The Liftoff: Christine Drazan announces what's next
PLUS: Oregon House Dems elect new leadership; Congresswoman Chavez-DeRemer's big fundraising haul; Kotek and Bluemenauer blast Portland officials; Holvey recall comes up short (for now); and more!
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1. Drazan’s new group, federal gun appeals, fundraising hauls, and other political headlines
Two gun store owners and two gun rights advocacy groups have appealed the federal ruling on Oregon’s voter-approved gun laws. The appeal to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals was filed just a few days after Federal Judge Karin Immergut ruled that Oregon’s gun laws requiring a permit to purchase a firearm and limits on magazine size are constitutional.
Portland attorney James Buchal filed the appeal notice on behalf of Mark Fitz, Grayguns, Inc., G4 Archery, Second Amendment Foundation and Firearms Policy Coalition. “In court filings, the Second Amendment Foundation, a nonprofit based in Washington state, says it has more than 700,000 supporters and members nationwide, including thousands in Oregon, and advocates for firearms rights,” reports the Capital Chronicle.
It’s anybody’s guess what happens next, but this could be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Former GOP nominee for governor Christine Drazan has launched a new 501(c)4 non-profit called “A New Direction.” According to Drazan, the new group “is dedicated to holding power to account and providing Oregonians with a more balanced approach to the challenges we face.” The group plans to raise around $600,000 in their first year for polling, communications, voter registration, and issue advocacy. According to the IRS, 501(c)4 organizations “may engage in political campaigns, provided that such activities are not the organization's primary activity.”
Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer raised almost $720,000 for her re-election campaign between April 1—June 30, according to her quarterly campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission. The next-closest Oregon candidate, freshman Democratic Rep. Andrea Salinas, raised nearly $350,000 in the same period, reports Julia Shumway of the Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Chavez-DeRemer is facing new attacks for conflicting statements and votes on the issue of abortion. The Capital Chronicle published this story: “Chavez-DeRemer pledged to oppose abortion funding bans, then voted to block military reimbursement”
U.S. District Judge Michael McShane found that the Senate Conduct Committee retaliated against Sen. Brian Boquist and violated his First Amendment rights when it required him to give a 12-hour notice prior to entering the Capitol. At issue is when Sen. Boquist (I-Dallas) said state police should “send bachelors and come heavily armed” if they wanted to bring him back to the Capitol during a 2019 Republican Senate walkout.
OPB’s Lauren Dake tweeted that UFCW 555 submitted 6,600 signatures in favor of recalling Rep. Paul Holvey (D-Eugene). The Secretary of State’s office said only 2,610 were valid—and the union needs 4,598 signatures. They have until Aug. 21 to gather more.
Oregon House Democrats elected a new leadership team—with a mix of continuing figures and newer faces:
Speaker Dan Rayfield
Majority Leader Julie Fahey
Whip Andrea Valderrama
Deputy Whip Jason Kropf
Assistant Majority Leader Ben Bowman (full disclosure: he’s a contributor to this newsletter)
Assistant Majority Leader Maxine Dexter
Assistant Majority Leader Hai Pham
Assistant Majority Leader Lisa Reynolds
Assistant Majority Leader Thuy Tran
With the leadership election, Rep. Rob Nosse ends his tenure as Deputy Whip; Rep. Dacia Grayber and Rep. Pam Marsh end their tenures as Assistant Majority Leaders.
2. ‘Spirited’ city council meeting, DA Schmidt’s office cited for gender discrimination, and more Portland news
For three hours on Tuesday, the Portland City Council discussed a slate of proposals by City Commissioners Rene Gonzalez and Dan Ryan that would fundamentally alter the charter reform ballot measure approved by 58% of Portlander voters in November. The changes would shrink the size of the future City Council from 12 to 8 members, give the mayor veto powers, and adopt a simpler form of ranked-choice voting than what was included in the 2022 charter measure.
“The conversation was at times spirited, tense, and downright awkward as council members spoke with each other, selected speakers and a number of city bureau staff that opined on potential pitfalls of placing the referrals on the ballot,“ writes WW.
By Thursday, they dialed back their efforts. Commissioner Rene Gonzalez announced that he had scrapped plans to bring three ballot items before City Council for votes next week. They may still move forward with a proposal to give veto power to the city’s mayor. But even if it’s approved by City Council in late fall, the plan wouldn’t go before voters until May, 2024, six months after Gonzalez and Ryan had originally proposed, reports The Oregonian.
The Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industries found “substantial evidence” that Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt’s office subjected lawyer Amber Kinney to gender discrimination, retaliation and constructive discharge — saying she was forced out when she resigned in January 2022, according to The Oregonian.
WW’s Nigel Jaquiss has a story about the growing unease between Democrats over Portland’s drug problems. The headline says it all: “Kotek and Blumenauer Tell Local Officials: Fix Rampant Drug Use on Portland Streets, Now”
From the story: “Gov. Tina Kotek and U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer are exasperated with the scale of untreated substance abuse on the streets of Portland, where both began their political careers. A May letter newly obtained by WW expresses a rare level of frustration, as two of the state’s top elected officials exhorted Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler to do more to fix what they called a “crisis.”
Wheeler and Vega Pederson fired back: “The cascade of problems we face emanate from decades of state and federal inaction and neglect.”
Portland City Auditor Simone Rede released her audit topics for the 2023-24 fiscal year, including reviews of the Joint Office of Homeless Services, the Portland Arts Tax, gun violence prevention, and climate justice initiatives. The Portland Mercury has all the details.
City Auditor Rede also finished an audit of Portland's clean energy fund (which has hundreds of millions of dollars funded by large retail sales). The audit found the voter-approved fund has improved its ability to monitor revenue projections and has started to put accountability systems in place after several years of trouble.
Dozens of Portland nonprofits, businesses, advocacy groups and state lawmakers released a petition on Monday calling on the Portland City Council to fully fund and expand the Portland Street Response. The program, which was established by the Portland City Council in 2020 as a pilot program within Portland Fire & Rescue, has faced an uncertain future under City Commissioner Rene Gonzalez.
Willamette Week’s “Best of Portland” is out, and here are the winners for “Best Political Figure”:
Ron Wyden
Tina Kotek
JoAnn Hardesty
3. Introducing Reagan’s Candidate Tracker
Host Reagan Knopp is bringing his famous candidate tracker to OR360 subscribers! The candidate tracker will be updating subscribers with the latest information about new candidates as they declare and/or make changes to what they’re running for. Be sure to check out the tracker here.
4. Sponsored Message from Harrang Long P.C.: Harrang Long’s Political Law Practice
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5. The Way: Recapping 2023’s Housing Agenda
We have a great Oregon Way piece for you this week from Katy Brooks who is the CEO of the Bend Chamber of Commerce. Brooks gives a recap of all things done by the legislature when it came to housing in 2023—including the wins and areas that she argues could still benefit potential homebuyers.
6. Payouts for former executives and other state agency news
Oregon will pay the former head of the state’s public defense system, Stephen Singer, $380,000 to settle a whistleblower lawsuit that stemmed from his firing last year. According to The Oregonian, “Singer originally sued the state for $2.4 million and sought to regain his old job, which came with a $205,000 salary. He held the post for just eight months. In his lawsuit, he alleged he was a whistleblower and faced retaliation as a result.”
Meanwhile, in Nyssa: The school board in Nyssa, Oregon approved a separation agreement with Superintendent Darren Johnson that included a payout of $137,486.
From The Lund Report: “The Oregon Health Authority is preparing to award a $1.5 million grant to a Portland-based organization that the Oregon Department of Justice has warned is not legally eligible for state funding because of repeated failures to file necessary financial documentation.”
In 2021, Oregon lawmakers approved HB 2980 to fund the mental health respite center program. The centers are intended to help fill a gap between outpatient behavioral health treatment and acute care in a long-term residential setting, such as the Oregon State Hospital.
Big news from the Oregon Health Authority on their Medicaid redetermination process: “So far, more than three-fourths of the Oregonians reviewed for eligibility on the Oregon Health Plan have kept their benefits since the state started reviewing the status of the nearly 1.5 million people on Medicaid.”
7. News Roundup: a police department shuts down, an accidental emergency notification, and declining unemployment
Oregon’s unemployment rate continued to drop in June (for the fifth consecutive month) according to the Oregon Employment Department.
The U.S. Department of Education will clear nearly $573 million in student loan debt currently owed by Oregon borrowers. According to The Capital Chronicle, 12,000 Oregonians who have been making payments on their federal student loans for at least 20 years will qualify under the new rules.
The Malheur Enterprise ran a series last week on childhood poverty in Malheur County. They report Malheur County’s child poverty (36%) has been the worst in the state for a decade, and includes more than 2,300 children.
From OPB: “Grant County explores public safety options after John Day Police Department dissolves”
Whoops — didn’t mean to do that: “Oregon emergency system erroneously sends county evacuation notice statewide”
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About the Authors
Ben Bowman is the state representative for Oregon House District 25 (Tigard, Metzger, and South Beaverton) and a member of the Tigard-Tualatin School Board. In his day job, he works as an administrator for a public school district. Previously, he worked as a legislative aide for former Reps. Margaret Doherty and Val Hoyle. He also co-hosts The Oregon Bridge podcast. In the newsletter and podcast, he speaks only for himself.
Alex Titus is a small business owner and consultant to businesses, nonprofits, and associations. Previously, he served as an Advisor in the Trump Administration and as a Policy Advisor to President Trump’s Super PAC. His writing has appeared in National Review, Fox News, The Hill, RealClearPolitics, and other publications.
Kristina Edmunson has been everything from press assistant for Governor Kulongoski, media advance associate for Vice President Biden, and communications director for Attorney General Rosenblum. Born and raised in Eugene, she has been involved in some of the biggest policy and legal decisions in Oregon over the last decade. Today, she runs her own communications practice. She speaks only for herself in her contributions to The Liftoff.
Growing tired of this publication . Promised to be unbiased and fair reporting. The cancer that is Portland politics is given a pass. It will spread and ruin this state. Homeowners being ignored. Criminals, and yes this includes many homeless, are repeatedly let destroy property and cause harm to lawful people. Violence continues. Progressive thought and policies are not challenged. The result is extreme viewpoints are the only ones in control on either side. Rational and moderate voices are shedding Portland and leaving options to govern to people like Kotek and her counterparts from the conservative standpoint to continue the stalemate. You have done little to point out this vortex of destruction.
So, they want Portland officials to get the drug problem under control? Is that it? According to Bluemenaurer and Kotek? Got a hint for y'all. That will NOT happen until POLICE, ya know, as in POLICE OFFICERS are allowed to ARREST drug users for using and selling. So, yeah, good luck with that. If these people, Kotek included want a change, they have to start SUPPORTING POLICE officers and that also means the "deadly incompetence" of MIKE Schmidt needs to be dealt with. If Mikey Boy still refuses to prosecute criminals, as in drug dealers, pimps and sexual predators, NOTHING IS GOING TO GET BETTER. Hope that was easy enough for people to understand. Law and order gets restored when POLICE, as in POLICE OFFICERS are allowed to do their jobs, and the DA supports the arrest and incarceration of criminals, but Mikey Boy is against incarceration, so yeah, good luck with that ever happening. It's going to take Mikey Boy losing to Nathan Vasquez before ANY law and order returns to this town.