Politics
Biddle is best of candidates for at-large appointment
Sekou Biddle is emerging as one of two frontrunners for the DC Democratic State Committee's nod to fill Kwame Brown's at-large Council seat. Advocates for livable streets and neighborhoods should hope that the committee chooses Biddle tomorrow night, as he would be the best interim Councilmember among those being considered.
Image from Sekou Biddle's campaign site.
I met with Biddle in December, and found him to be a very intelligent and thoughtful person with a strong grasp of issues.
He often rides the bus from his home in Shepherd Park to his job at an education nonprofit downtown, and has recently also started making the trip by bicycle on a regular basis. At Monday's Ward 6 Democrats forum, he called the S9 bus a vital link whose service should be preserved.
Biddle told me how, when he goes to his organization's headquarters in Atlanta, he rides MARTA and uses Zipcar instead of renting a car at the airport. Since their offices are near a MARTA station and there are Zipcars in the parking lot, he can readily navigate the city without having his own car.
He expressed a desire for more residents on Georgia Avenue to support the kind of retail he and his family want to be able to walk to. He fully understood the dynamic where development is necessary to attract retail.
He unequivocally supports marriage equality, while many advocates are very nervous about Vincent Orange's often-shifting position on LGBT rights issues.
We also had a long discussion about education reform. Biddle agrees with the basic thesis of Waiting for Superman, that we need to look to the charter schools that work by replicating them and/or importing their practices into DCPS schools.
As an educator, Biddle has a lot of detailed knowledge of education policy. In other areas, like any new candidate, he has some opportunities to learn the nuances of many other policy areas, though at the very least he has a lot more specifics than any of the others.
For example, on Monday, he seemed supportive of cycle tracks (like on 15th) but some reported being nervous about his comments about bicycling on other roads. He also said that his supporters should choose Stanley Mayes as their second choice, just minutes after Mayes gave some very driver-centric answers to the transportation question.
The rest of us don't get to vote until April, and I'd like to see who else runs before coming out in support of anyone for that race. Occasional contributor Dave Stroup, for example, has called for drafting Bryan Weaver, who ran unsuccessfully against Jim Graham in the 2010 Democratic primary. In his mass email last night, Stroup wrote,
This isn't so much about whether you would vote for Bryan or not, it's about bringing a fresh, independent voice to this election. This isn't a statement about the quality of the current candidates. ... I think his entry to the race could shake things up, and get more people talking, and get more people out to vote.It wouldn't be bad to have a healthy debate among several good candidates for the final race. But whomever the DCDSC picks tomorrow will have a large advantage in the final race, and would cast votes on the budget and important legislation in the meantime.
The DCDSC should demonstrate that they aren't just an elite club of out-of-touch insiders who nominate the person whose "turn" it is instead of thinking about who's best for DC. On that score, I agree with the Young Democrats, Ward 6 Dems, Kwame Brown, five other Councilmembers and top Vince Gray advisors: on tomorrow's ballot, Sekou Biddle is the right pick.
 | David Alpert is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Greater Greater Washington and Greater Greater Education. He worked as a Product Manager for Google for six years and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He loves the area which is, in many ways, greater than those others, and wants to see it become even greater.   |
Comments
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by Fritz on Jan 5, 2011 3:15 pm • link • report
by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 5, 2011 3:24 pm • link • report
Just spoke to V.O. about expectations for Thursday's DCDSC vote: "All I know is, I got this, and I probably got it on the first ballot."
Yet another reason to hope for anyone but Vincent Orange. I like Bryan Weaver a lot (voted for him in September) but I'd prefer Sekou in April. So while I'm sympathetic to a draft Weaver movement, let's not split the anti-Orange vote.
by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 5, 2011 3:29 pm • link • report
If the DSC wants to remain relevant, they will choose Biddle tomorrow. At that point whoever is chosen will have the opportunity to lead or fail between now and April.
So far, I am impressed with Biddle.
by William on Jan 5, 2011 3:51 pm • link • report
Call me an idealistic fool, but I'd rather see Weaver run a great campaign and motivate people--even if he loses to Vincent Orange, than to have no real campaign at all.
We've got to stop this fear of losing. Sure, it happens. But stop playing it safe to avoid the loss. People respond better to people who fight for what they believe in, and who are motivated. Sure, we might run into the wall a few times before we get it right, but for me it's worth it. You don't build a movement by making the safe choice every time.
by Dave Stroup on Jan 5, 2011 4:22 pm • link • report
by Bill on Jan 5, 2011 4:59 pm • link • report
1. A month ago, they never heard of him.
2. His issue is education. And he talks about education a lot. Some might know that he's a member of the DC Board of Education (representing Ward 4).
3. He has the support of Council Chairman Kwame Brown, a bunch of councilmembers and Mayor Gray's campaign chair, Lorraine Green -- so he can't be a total outsider.
Not long ago, I was introduced to Sekou by another progressive activist, a personal friend of 10 years. Sekou sat with me for 3 hours (sympathies to him).
I grilled him on the three issue areas I care about the most: openness in government (I served as exec. dir. of NJ Common Cause); transit/sustainable transportation (I've led rider advocacy campaigns through Sierra Club and was an organizer last spring of the Fair Share for Metro campaign that defeated almost all the proposed service cuts); and gay/lesbian/bi/trans. equality (I'd care about those issues anyway, and also I'm gay).
I was impressed. He listened. He asked good questions. He "got" where I was coming from. And I found we shared a lot of the same views in all the areas, and we shared a framework on going about considering issues. There are three things above all else that people take away about Sekou -- when they make the effort to learn about him: a) he's thoughtful; b) he's smart; and c) he's all about achieving results that make a discernible, positive difference in people's lives.
I began volunteering FOR him -- not just against Vincent Orange, who deeply disappointed me during his two council terms and who has run for citywide public office four times and has lost badly each time. I wasn't going to sit by and watch a decent guy with impressive substance -- on many issues -- wage his campaign while I sat on the sidelines.
Who among the "insiders" was the first to endorse Sekou for the At-Large appointment? The DC Young Democrats!
It was the YOUNG DEMOCRATS who led the way -- hardly the old-line, business-as-usual "insiders." The Young Dems -- I was one myself till about 10 years ago -- are idealistic and savvy. I got more jazzed up and then I formally asked Sekou if he'd consider hiring me for his campaign. I've been inspired by him because if he hasn't yet been a public champion of your issue area, he'll ask you intelligent questions, he'll share with you his own experiences and insights, he'll focus on the end goals of actually changing policy while being focused on improving people's lives. And more than likely, I figure, you'll come away impressed.
It's striking -- this is a guy who was just endorsed by Mayor Gray's campaign chair, yet he is supported by many who supported Mayor Fenty. Sekou has been a champion of education reform, while committed to collaboration with the community. Talk about One City? Sekou's there.
So all of the above is why I'm excited that as of Monday, I'll be working full-time on Sekou Biddle's staff.
by Dennis Jaffe on Jan 5, 2011 8:20 pm • link • report
I also think he has more political appeal than Bryan, whom I like a lot. And that's what I was saying. Normally I'd be all for Weaver, but I think it's not necessary to draft him into the race just to liven things up. I hope Bryan tries again at the Ward 1 seat and wins it.
by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 5, 2011 9:10 pm • link • report
That successful Charter school movement is now running Anacostia and was running Dunbar. I hope you don't think that's what works. I could go on. However you need to go on with your endorsements and do more research.
by informed on Jan 5, 2011 9:32 pm • link • report
by wdc on Jan 5, 2011 10:17 pm • link • report
by Lance on Jan 5, 2011 11:26 pm • link • report
by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 6, 2011 10:27 am • link • report
by John on Jan 6, 2011 3:46 pm • link • report
by John on Jan 6, 2011 10:00 pm • link • report
by Geoffrey Hatchard on Jan 7, 2011 5:30 pm • link • report
This Democrat will vote GOP before voting for this fool. If we want a conservative at-large council member then vote for the real deal one not one that "aspires" to be one.
Listen to the "elitist" views for yourself.
by Ward 4 Action on Jan 11, 2011 8:47 am • link • report
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