In fairness, Weapons to Words—er, We Mean Rebar didn’t have quite the same ring. But that’s exactly how things unfolded after Mayor Mike McGinn took to the podium in early May to announce the city’s latest feel-good attempt at curbing gun violence. The program’s intended name was Weapons to Words, naturally announced at one of the countless warm-and-fuzzy press conferences the mayor held in the lead-up to the August primary election. The idea was to melt down guns collected during a January buyback and turn them into inspirational plaques—inscribed with children’s words—and place them at schools around the city. The only trouble was, the guns had already been melted down and turned into rebar, a fact the bearded man in charge learned the morning of the scheduled press conference. What did he do? Trudge on with the photo op, of course, triumphantly announcing a program the specifics of which he knew were completely impossible. Two days later, KIRO Radio uncovered the truth (see Best Reporter, TV/Radio, above), and McGinn was forced to apologize, explaining that the program would continue after future buybacks produced more weapons. So far, no such follow-up buyback has been scheduled. And though most voters probably won’t hold this laughable gaffe against McGinn when filling out a ballot (there are plenty of other gaffes for the mayor’s detractors to focus on, after all), it still served as a glaring black eye for an incumbent who already had plenty of bruises.