The Liftoff: Controversies in Eugene, Salem, and Portland
PLUS: The Ethics Commission launches a full investigation; two Oregon mayors resign after offensive social media; a new (and familiar) entrant in CD5; Shull ponders challenging Tootie Smith; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff—your comprehensive source each week for the biggest headlines in Oregon state government and politics.
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1. Statewide political news, candidate announcements, resignations, and huge political contributions
This week we launched our 2024 candidate tracker, available for our paid subscribers as a way to know who is in and who is out this political cycle. The Oregon Bridge co-host Regan Knopp will keep track of candidate announcements, social media, campaign releases, FEC filings, Oregon Secretary of State, and insider tips about all Oregon candidates running (or not) for federal, statewide, and legislative offices. Moving forward the office of Portland mayor and council members will be included as well.
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Democrat Jamie McLeod-Skinner is running for Congress (again). This means there could be another showdown between GOP Congresswoman Chavez-DeRemer and McLeod-Skinner. But first, McLeod-Skinner would have to win a competitive primary. Metro Council President Lynn Peterson and State Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley) are also running.
McLeod-Skinner planned to launch her campaign with an event last Saturday at a Bend brewery but postponed it after contracting COVID. “While she described her symptoms as mild, she also said she wouldn’t be available for a phone interview until Friday as she focuses on recovering,” reports Julia Shumway with the Capital Chronicle.
McLeod-Skinner’s initial endorsements include UFCW 555, Sen. Deb Patterson, Sen. Jeff Golden, and Equality PAC.
Newport Mayor Dean Sawyer resigned Monday, three days after OPB revealed he had posted offensive content in a private law enforcement Facebook group. The Newport News has more details on his resignation.
The next day, Baker City mayor Matt Diaz announced his resignation after offensive social media posts. According to the Oregonian, he resigned “following heated controversy over an offensive meme he posted last month that depicted four pride flags rearranged to form a swastika.”
Gary Warner of the Oregon Capital Insider, compiled a list of the top 10 political contributions (so far) of 2023, including Phil Knight, NW Natural Gas, Dennis Beethan, and more. Find out who they’re giving to and read the full list here.
Nigel Jaquiss at Willamette Week has the latest in the recall attempt on Rep. Paul Holvey, including the barbs being traded by Holvey and UFCW 555 lobbyist Mike Selvaggio.
2. Controversial city government news in Portland, Salem, and Eugene
In Eugene, the City Council voted to repeal its controversial natural gas ban, citing a court decision that overturned a similar measure in Berkeley, California. But, the Council pledged to introduce a new version of the ban that would comply with the decision soon, according to the Oregonian.
How’s this for a rough headline for the city of Salem: “Salem councilors vote to tax worker paychecks after citizens overwhelmingly ask them not to”. It’s from an article originally by the Salem Reporter that appears in the Oregonian.
From the article: “Councilors voted 5-4 to implement a tax that would have the average person who works in Salem pay about $500 per year to close a city budget deficit. The additional money would pay for existing police officers and firefighters and adding more of both and keep homeless sheltering services open after the federal and state money currently paying for them runs out next year.”
Portland Commissioners Rene Gonzalez and Dan Ryan are exploring a potential ballot measure referral to make several changes to the city’s new form of government and election system that voters approved last year. According to the Oregonian, “Gonzalez and Ryan’s proposal would tweak a few of the measure’s key provisions in an apparent attempt to simplify council elections, adjust the balance of power between the city’s legislative and executive branches and trim overall costs associated with the changes.”
Recruiting is already under way for 2024 Portland City Council Candidates. For the first time, there will be 12-elected members of the city council in 2025 under the city’s new form of government. Willamette Week reports several groups are recruiting:
Our Portland: A training academy run by progressive Sarah Iannarone
Oregon Labor Candidate School: Sponsored by various labor organizations
Emerge Oregon: A training program for Democratic women leaders
Business Political Action Committee: Former executive director of the Oregon League of Conservation Voters Doug Moore is forming a PAC to fund centrist City Council candidates, likely in partnership with the Portland Metro Chamber (formerly Portland Business Alliance).
Willamette Week compiled recent national headlines about Portland, and they don’t paint a pretty picture. “Portland is on a short list of destination cities for national media. Rather than a model, however, we have become a cautionary tale.”
“Now, it’s mostly fentanyl that comes cheap. Instead of IPAs and doughnuts, reporters from elsewhere come to chronicle Portland’s drug market, our tent cities, and hapless elected officials. No longer a forward-thinking burg known for recycling, land use planning, and an indie vibe, we are now being characterized as a proto-Detroit, with high-income earners taking their Teslas to the ‘Couv, Bend or Idaho. Even Damian Lillard wants out.”
The Multnomah County Health Department paused it’s plan to provide smoking supplies to fentanyl and meth users. Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said she is pausing distribution until there is further analysis of the plan.
According to the Oregonian, “the abrupt pause followed political backlash criticizing the decision as one that would enable more drug use across the city….The county has already purchased more than $80,000 of such supplies, including glass pipes, tin foil and snorting kits.”
The move also caused friction among commissioners. According to KOIN, Commissioner Sharon Meieran said this at the meeting, addressing Pederson: “You knew about this back in early May, yet when things turned around you could have talked with us about this in May (or) June. I don’t think blaming the health department is the healthy way to lead.”
3. What it’s like to be a Republican National Committeeman with Solomon Yue
Solomon Yue is a long-time Republican Party official and Oregon's Republican National Committeeman (RNC). Escaping from Communist China during Mao's cultural revolution, Yue found himself as an immigrant in the US by way of Alaska before ending up in Oregon. Once in Oregon, he slowly began to rise through the ranks eventually culminating with the peak of GOP influence as a Republican National Committeeman.
Solomon walks us through his upbringing, including his time in a Chinese re-education camp. He discusses how being an immigrant shaped his views on politics and policy, and what it's like in a day-to-day capacity in his role. We also talk about the Oregon GOP and changes that Solomon would like to see with the party going forward. Solomon also shares his take on a number of newsy topics—such as the 2024 Republican presidential primary and if he thinks Trump will skip the first debate.
4. Sponsored Message from Harrang Long P.C.: Harrang Long’s Political Law Practice
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5. Guns, ethics, and opioids—and other state government news
![Oregon State Capitol State Park Cherry Blossom Viewing [IMG_6092-Pano-HDR]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5dcfa466-e346-4b48-a1b4-a4cfeb531bea_1024x576.jpeg "Oregon State Capitol State Park Cherry Blossom Viewing [IMG_6092-Pano-HDR]")
Late Friday afternoon, federal judge Karin Immergut upheld Oregon’s Measure 114 banning large ammunition magazines and requiring a permit to buy guns. But the law remains on hold because of a case in Harney County, where a trial is scheduled for September.
The Oregonian’s Maxine Bernstein (who has covered M 114 extensively), wrote: “The 122-page decision followed a weeklong trial in Portland last month that centered on whether the new gun regulations hold constitutional muster in the wake of last summer’s landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in New York that set a new standard for interpreting the Second Amendment right to bear arms.”
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission unanimously voted to launch a full investigation into former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan and her relationship with the co-founders of La Mota, Rosa Cazares and Aaron Mitchell, reports Willamette Week. In the report released Friday afternoon, “staff concluded that there is reason to believe that Fagan may have leveraged her elected position for personal financial gain by entering into the contract with La Mota’s affiliate company, Veriede Holding.”
Meanwhile, according to WW: “The Oregon Department of Justice asked the U.S. Department of Justice on June 21 to narrow the scope of subpoenas it issued to five state agencies in May related to former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan and her relationship with the founders of the La Mota dispensary chain. The Oregon DOJ argued the broadness of the subpoenas would require months of staff time from each agency to cull through millions of pages responsive to the feds’ requests.”
The legislature’s Opioid Harm Reduction Policy Package (HB 2395), which would expand access to the opioid overdose reversal medication, Narcan, is in question, according to KGW.
“The final version of the bill dropped language that would have encouraged the Oregon Prescription Drug Purchasing Program (OPDP) to buy Narcan in bulk, opening up pathways to discounted widespread distribution. Oregon Health Authority spokesperson Afiq Hisham said OPDP would like to support opioid antagonist…However, he said the currently unfunded OPDP model would be unable to do this without organizational changes and funding.”
Gov. Tina Kotek placed the chair of the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board, Constance Wold, on paid administrative leave Thursday—one day after the Oregonian ran an article outlining that the Department of Administrative Services had paid $42,000 to an outside law firm to investigate workplace complaints against Wold.
From the O, “State officials have been tight-lipped about what the investigation by Stoel Rives attorney Brenda Baumgart found. They did not ask Baumgart to produce any written report on her findings from the investigation and Wold remained in her position until Thursday, even though the investigation wrapped up in September.”
6. Will Oregon’s investment in semiconductors pay for itself?
This section was authored by ECONorthwest.
High on Oregon’s 2023 Legislative Agenda was creating a state version of the federal CHIPS Act to support the growth of the semiconductor industry. Lawmakers had an early question: if semiconductor firms expanded in Oregon, would the associated tax revenues cover the cost of public services used by new employees and other people attracted by the new economic activity? Or more simply, would the growth pay its way?
To answer that question, ECONorthwest estimated the fiscal impacts of a hypothetical semiconductor campus. We assumed a 3.5 million square foot facility that would directly employ 8,500 people with average annual compensation of $160,000. The new campus would support an additional 17,500 jobs in the community through its supply chain purchases and the employees’ local spending.
Our modeling found the new economic activity would generate $6.4 billion in state taxes during 2024-2043. Over the same period, the campus, and influx of new residents attracted by it, would require $3.6 billion in public services—leaving the state with a $2.8 billion fiscal surplus.
The key to our answer: high paying jobs. The well-compensated workers would, on average, contribute more in tax payments than they would demand from the public sector in terms of services and support.
7. The Way: Sports in the Spotlight
We’ve got two excellent articles from Oregon Way contributors and editors Mark Hester and Gary Conkling. Hester starts us off with the importance of the Trailblazers to the state despite the likely loss of Damian Lillard and what they mean going forward. Next, Conkling puts a dose of reality into the MLB team debate and argues that a Portland baseball team isn’t likely anytime soon.
8. News Roundup: National group asks Sec. of State to disqualify Trump from OR ballot, and more!
Two advocacy groups, Free Speech For People and Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, sent a letter to Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade asking Oregon to disqualify Trump from running for federal office, reports The Capital Chronicle.
Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley once again proposed the “Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee Act”, which would put more than 1.1 million acres of federal lands in the Owyhee Canyonlands in Southeast Oregon. It would also transfer 30,000 acres of federal and private land into a trust overseen by the Burns Paiute Tribe.
The governor’s staff told reporter Dick Hughes that she has received more than 4,000 emails on HB 2426, the bill to allow self-service gas, which Kotek has not signed yet. The comments are evenly split (2,094 favor it and 2,013 oppose it).
From the Oregonian: “State workers union, Oregon officials agree on contract for big raises”
The Oregon Nurses Association announced Wednesday that 57 crisis intervention specialists, counselors, therapists and social workers at Portland’s only psychiatric emergency hospital filed for union recognition with the National Labor Relations Board, according to the Portland Business Journal.
From OPB: “Oregon officials name taxpayers owing more than $50,000 in taxes, penalties”
Pamplin has the latest drama in Clackamas County, as embattled Commissioner Mark Shull ponders running for reelection—or challenging Tootie Smith for the Chair. Here’s a quote from Shull: “If I were to decide to file to run for chair, I know from September of this year all the way to 31 December of next year, Tootie Smith is going to treat me like dirt.”
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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.