Donald Trump has a campaign office in Seattle, but its location is a closely guarded secret. Ana Sofia Knauf, a reporter for The Stranger, describes the secret Trump headquarters as being "in an unmarked storefront on Highway 99 near a couple of sex shops," where "the windows have been carefully covered with brown butcher paper so that no one can see in." Knauf, obviously no fan of Trump, says she was able to gain entry — for a day of working the Trump phone bank — because a friend was willing to jump through the hoops set up by Trump's Seattle gatekeeper, including emailing your name, phone number, and what Knauf calls "a loyalty oath" to Trump.
The gatekeeper, a man Knauf calls "Dirk" and describes as "a long-suffering libertarian" with "beady dark eyes and slicked-back hair," explained to her that the secrecy is because some Trump canvassers were pelted with rocks nearby and he doesn't want a brick through the window. She continues:
Dirk is definitely a dreamer — he's dreaming of a Trump victory in Washington State in November. He believes it's a real possibility. So Dirk is going to work diligently to try to make that happen — which is great news, because Dirk is going to waste a lot of energy and time, and hopefully a nice chunk of Trump's money (resources that could be used in vulnerable swing states), working for a candidate so hated by the people of Washington State that his office is effectively underground. [The Stranger]
Read Knauf's entire account, including her mostly sympathetic description of the other volunteers and her experience dialing Republicans and independents, at The Stranger.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
5 museum-grade cartoons about Trump's Smithsonian purgeCartoons Artists take on institutional rebranding, exhibit interpretation, and more
-
Settling the West Bank: a death knell for a Palestine state?In the Spotlight The reality on the ground is that the annexation of the West Bank is all but a done deal
-
Sudoku medium: August 23, 2025The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
Judge: Trump's US attorney in NJ serving unlawfullySpeed Read The appointment of Trump's former personal defense lawyer, Alina Habba, as acting US attorney in New Jersey was ruled 'unlawful'
-
Third judge rejects DOJ's Epstein records requestSpeed Read Judge Richard Berman was the third and final federal judge to reject DOJ petitions to unseal Epstein-related grand jury material
-
Texas OKs gerrymander sought by TrumpSpeed Read The House approved a new congressional map aimed at flipping Democratic-held seats to Republican control
-
Israel starts Gaza assault, approves West Bank planSpeed Read Israel forces pushed into the outskirts of Gaza City and Netanyahu's government gave approval for a settlement to cut the occupied Palestinian territory in two
-
Court says labor board's structure unconstitutionalSpeed Read The ruling has broad implications for labor rights enforcement in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi
-
Feds seek harsh charges in DC arrests, except for riflesSpeed Read The DOJ said 465 arrests had been made in D.C. since Trump federalized law enforcement there two weeks ago
-
Trump taps Missouri AG to help lead FBISpeed Read Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been appointed FBI co-deputy director, alongside Dan Bongino
-
Trump warms to Kyiv security deal in summitSpeed Read Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Trump's support for guaranteeing his country's security 'a major step forward'
