The Joy of Being a Single Issue Voter

My voter's guide came in the mail today, and as has been my habit the past few years I went through and read all the position statements in preparation for the primary next month. Good times.

A race that I don't get to vote on but that has been getting a ton of attention is the 6th LD contest involving Republicans Kevin Parker and Mel Lindauer, currently held by Democrat Don Barlowe. Parker and Lindauer have been going at each other pretty hard (think Obama v. Hillary, but local), and it's a primary to watch.

My biggest issue is always education, so that's the first thing I look for whenever I read on a candidate. I know that politics is a game that lends itself to blurbs, but it is possible to be too general. Take what Parker says in the voter's guide regarding education:

My top priorities are building a first class education system by funding the fundamentals first;

....and that's it. Sounds nice, what with the alliterative "fun" and all, but what does it really mean?

So I went to Parker's website, here, to see if he'd expanded on that idea at all. Here's what his site says in whole:

Education: Every student deserves the opportunity to be successful for the 21st Century job market. We need to fight a real problem with the hope of real results. The legislature should fund education first and fund the basics of education while preparing students for higher education or trade school opportunities.

Sounds like more education funding, then. That's my kind of guy! But wait....

Economy/Government Spending: It is time controlled spending and accountability is emphasized in the legislative budgeting process. The Senate Ways and Means projects a 2.4 billion dollar deficit next session. We need a voice that calls government to live within its means. Spokane cannot only be a great place to live, but it must also be an equally great place to work. This community needs a representative who fosters job growth and economic development.

So we have fund the fundamentals, without identifying what the fundamentals/basics are. We need to fight a real problem, but we never identify what that problem is. I'm sure (?) that he's elaborated on his education viewpoint during town hall meetings and such, but for the people in his district who vote education, like I do, he hasn't given them much to go on.

And I don't think that's a very good strategy in an urban district like the 6th.