[EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is a Letter to the Editor, written and submitted by verified resident. It does not necessarily reflect the opinions of South King Media, nor its staff.]
Silent Censure in Burien: When Silence Becomes Tyranny
In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville warned of a “tyranny of the majority”—when those holding power suppress dissenting voices not through formal action but through manipulation, silence, and exclusion. This tyranny has taken root in Burien, manifesting as silent censure and procedural marginalization against Councilmember Hugo Garcia. At the center of this troubling dynamic is City Manager Adolfo Bailon, a public servant whose experience in government makes it clear that his actions are both deliberate and calculated.
What makes Mr. Bailon’s behavior especially troubling is his recent statement, weird, and misdirected attack on Councilmember Garcia, which unjustifiably dragged CM Garcia’s personal life into the public discourse. His attempt to frame Garcia’s departure from his previous employment as anything other than a personal decision to care for our sick mom, who is suffering from a neurodegenerative disease, reveals a troubling level of misdirected anger. Instead of addressing substantive concerns about his leadership, Mr. Bailon has resorted to tactics that distract from his own failings and undermine the integrity of Burien’s governance.
What Is Informal Censure?
Unlike a formal vote of censure, which requires transparency and accountability, informal censure operates in the shadows. It is the quiet sidelining of an individual—slowing access to information, denying collaboration, and isolating a voice through public discrediting and administrative obstruction. Procedural marginalization and bureaucratic suppression are tools of this strategy, exploiting systems and processes to disempower dissent without triggering public scrutiny.
This is exactly what we are seeing unfold in Burien.
Mr. Bailon’s Actions Are Deliberate
Mr. Bailon’s professional background speaks for itself. He has served as Town Manager in Randolph, Vermont; as a director in the Mayor’s Center for City Services in Providence, Rhode Island; and for nearly a decade as a senior field representative for U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer. With such experience, Mr. Bailon is no stranger to institutional dynamics and power. He knows how to navigate systems—and, more importantly, how to manipulate them.
- The refusal to meet with Councilmember Garcia? Procedural marginalization.
- The withholding of information? Bureaucratic suppression.
- The inflammatory public letter discrediting Garcia last week? Informal censure weaponized for political purposes.
These behaviors are not accidental; they are calculated and designed to silence an elected representative and obstruct his ability to serve his constituents and govern.
The Silence of the Council Majority Enables This Tyranny
What makes Mr. Bailon’s actions even more worrisome is the silence of the council majority. Instead of holding their employee accountable, they have chosen complicity. Their silence tacitly endorses the City Manager’s behavior, signaling that it is acceptable to use bureaucratic tools to suppress a minority-elected voice.
Councilmember Hugo Garcia was elected to represent his constituents and advocate for their vision of Burien. By sidelining him through procedural obstruction and public attacks, Mr. Bailon is not just silencing one voice—he is silencing the thousands of Burien residents who voted for Garcia to represent them.
This is tyranny of the majority in action, enabled by bureaucratic suppression and the council’s failure to act.
Why This Matters
Informal censure and procedural marginalization have far-reaching consequences:
- They erode democratic accountability by undermining dissent and preventing debate.
- They create an illusion of consensus, where opposition is neutralized rather than addressed.
- They weaken trust in government, as decisions are shaped by administrative gatekeeping rather than open deliberation.
This is not simply an internal dispute—it is a threat to the very foundations of democratic governance in Burien. By failing to intervene, the council majority is allowing bureaucratic suppression to set a dangerous precedent: dissent can be punished without a vote, accountability, or consequence.
Mr. Bailon’s Distractions Are a Smoke Screen
Adolfo Bailon’s repeated claims of fear or hostility toward Councilmember Hugo Garcia ring especially hollow when examined the political reality of Burien. Councilmember Garcia, as a single voice on the council, lacks both the power and the support to treat the City Manager in the same disrespectful and obstructive manner that Mr. Bailon has directed toward him. In fact, in the city’s 31-year history, a progressive majority has never been elected—making Mr. Bailon’s claims speculative and distracting at best.
The real issue lies in Mr. Bailon’s tactics—refusing meetings, withholding key information, and publicly discrediting Garcia. These actions are not born of fear but are instead deliberate attempts to obfuscate Mr. Bailon’s responsibilities and deflect attention from his own mismanagement. By framing his actions as defensive measures, Mr. Bailon seeks to avoid accountability while undermining Garcia’s ability to fulfill his role as a representative of the community.
Restoring Trust and Accountability
Burien deserves better. To restore integrity to our local government, I call on the Burien City Council to take the following actions:
- Demand a public retraction and apology from Mr. Bailon for his inflammatory and insubordinate attack on Councilmember Garcia.
- Reaffirm that city staff must respect and collaborate with all councilmembers, not just those aligned with the majority.
Mr. Bailon has the experience to know better, and the council has the authority to stop him. Yet their silence has enabled this informal censure to escalate, eroding trust and silencing a duly elected representative. This is not governance—it is gatekeeping.
Tyranny thrives in silence, and silence, in this case, has become complicity. The people of Burien deserve open dialogue, accountability, and respect for the voices they elected. It’s time for the council to speak up, end this informal censure, and restore democratic principles to our city.
Sincerely,
– Aaron Garcia
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These attacks on our city manager are ridiculous. The lunatic left has lost elections and their nuisance lawsuits and now is left with nothing but personal attacks online.
Have you heard of the tyranny of the minority? That’s what’s happening here. A small handful of radical activists thinking they can respond to their constant losses to the majority of voters by personal attacks on individuals.
Hugo himself tried these tactics by calling his fellow council members Nazis when he disagreed with them, and was in the minority on a vote. Disgusting. And Hugo was let go from his job. And Burien voters will soon show him the door again.
Your attempts to discredit Adolfo have already failed. The more this small group of activists attempt to discredit him the more the majority of Burien voters dig in to support him as we see the results of his work.
Nice try though.
Oh please, you know nothing about the private interactions that happened between the two of them, it may have drove the City Manager to appropriately distance himself from the Councilmember.
You make it purely political when in fact it could be concerning safety and workplace harassment but you be you.
Lol a letter full of tyranny… wrong!? Alexis de Tocqueville traveled to the United States in the 1830’s and wrote a book on democracy & recorded what he saw… this was prior to 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and prior to the creation of the 14th/15th Amendment in 1868/1870…. which would have changed his views completely but unfortunately he was only researching America during the 1830’s. What your using as an example does not pertain to what your attempting to explain. Very rough correlation, I’d suggest finding a different historical period or example to better support your agenda.
Thank you for standing up to Bailon. He need to go. He has demonstrated such an extreme lack of professionalism.
Adolfo Bailon is an absolute embarrassment to our city.