November 6th, 2006 1:14 AM
By Dean A. Radford / King County Journal
The Issaquah school bus driver fired after she flipped off President Bush in June was hired by the Renton School District as a substitute bus driver in mid-September.
She is not a full-time employee of the district and works only when needed, but that has been frequently, according to Randy Matheson, a spokesman for the Renton School District.
The driver, Staci LaManna, 43, of Renton disclosed to the Renton district when she applied for work that she had been fired by the Issaquah School District — and the reason why, according to Matheson.
She was hired by Renton on Sept. 20, about three weeks after she was fired by the Issaquah district. Issaquah district officials said she was fired for a series of events, not just the Bush incident.
Renton school officials first verified she was a safe driver and had a certificate to drive a school bus, Matheson said.
Renton district officials talked to LaManna about what is appropriate behavior for bus drivers, Matheson said.
Bus drivers represent the school and are models of good behavior for students, he said.
She won't be called to drive a bus again if similar behavior occurs, he said.
"Our intent is to continue using her as a substitute bus driver," Matheson said. "So far, she hasn't given us any reason not to use her."
Matheson said it's unlikely the Renton School District would fire a regular bus driver for a similar incident, unless there was something else in the driver's personnel file. Short of firing, punishment could include suspension without pay, he said.
LaManna has filed a union grievance with the Issaquah School District, claiming she was denied due process.
The story of LaManna's firing, first reported in the King County Journal, comes at the tail-end of a close and contentious battle between U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert and Darcy Burner of Carnation for Reichert's 8th District Congressional seat.
The seat is critical to whether the Republicans retain control of the House.
Reichert was riding with Bush in a motorcade from Boeing Field to a fundraising event in Medina for the freshman congressman on June 16. They passed buses filled with smiling and waving Issaquah students waiting to resume their trip on Interstate 5.
As Bush's limousine came even with a bus driver, he saw LaManna make the obscene gesture. The president told Reichert, who about a week later called the Issaquah School District to report the incident. However, the district already knew of the incident and had begun an investigation.
LaManna's union has protected her identity, but it did help arrange for an interview on KING-TV Friday. She appeared in silhouette. She admitted her guilt. She wasn't making a political statement, she said.
It was a way to release "a little bit of anger," she said, as she waited in traffic.
An official of the labor council representing LaManna said the incident has turned her life "into a living hell." He said she continued to drive Issaquah students on field trips last summer during the district's investigation.
But on June 16, "she was having a really bad day," said Bill Dennis, director of research for the Washington state Council of County and City Employees.
Dennis said LaManna was frustrated with "events that were going on at her job" and how she was delayed by the motorcade. She's regretful and apologetic for what she did, he said.
The Issaquah School District has declined to release details of LaManna's confidential personnel records. However, Dennis said that earlier discipline issues the district has said contributed to her firing included being late for work.
Sara Niegowski, an Issaquah School District spokeswoman, said the district's discipline follows a system of progressive punishment. But the district drew the line when she made the obscene gesture while driving a bus load of students.
"She would have been fired for flipping off a deer," Niegowski said.
The incident has gone national, with talk show hosts of all political stripes and national news shows talking about the bus driver who flipped off the president. Many applaud her for exercising her freedom of speech while others say the behavior crossed the line, especially because it was done in front of children.
A national online poll by MSNBC.com is going overwhelmingly against giving LaManna her job back. Her union says LaManna is a single mother who's trying to earn a living.
The union typically doesn't take such grievances public, unless the media spotlight will help its members.
Reichert talked about the incident at campaign stops and at a Republican Party picnic last summer.
According to The Associated Press, the state Democratic Party released an audio tape of Reichert's speech at the Republican picnic at which he told how the events of the motorcade unfolded.
He seemed to be bragging in the tape about getting the driver fired, according to The Associated Press.
The point he has made repeatedly is that you can disagree with the president, but still treat him with respect.
At the picnic, Reichert said he called Issaquah School District Superintendent Janet Barry the next day, but more recently he has reconstructed the events in his mind and says he didn't reach Barry until about a week later. At that point, the district was already investigating the incident.
Barry has said Reichert called her as a courtesy. Still, Reichert has taken hits for supposedly getting the bus driver fired.
The Burner campaign isn't planning to use the incident as political fodder in the waning days of the race, according to its spokeswoman, Jamie Smith. Smith isn't even sure Burner has seen the press reports about the bus driver.
Voters will decide whether this matters, she said.
"This isn't a big deal," said Kimberly Cadena, Reichert's spokeswoman.
It is, she said, another example of how the Burner campaign and the Democrats are trying to make the race about Reichert and Bush, not Reichert and Burner.
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