The Liftoff: New state representative accused of sexual assault
PLUS: A celeb rockstar roasts Portland; Erickson sues Salinas; more partisanship in Salem?; the most diverse legislature ever; Chavez-DeRemer won't move; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff!
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1. An indicator of heightened legislative partisanship in 2023, new state rep. accused of sexual assault (and other legislative news)
Senate GOP Leader Tim Knopp sent out a fiery press release last week attacking Sen. Rob Wagner, the man Democrats nominated to be the next Senate President. The release said Wagner is “untrustworthy, deeply partisan, and doesn’t have the necessary skills to run the Senate in a bipartisan fashion.”
The real questions: Will this be an early blip that can be worked out? Or will this set the tone for a divisive legislative session?
Content Warning: State Rep.-Elect Brian Stout has been accused of sexual assault and threatening to murder a woman. There are many other alarming and graphic details reported by Willamette Week.
More quick hits from the state legislature:
The legislature will be more racially diverse in 2023 than any time in Oregon history with 19 people of color. All but one will be Democrats. The House will consist of 31 men and 29 women—but the Senate will have only 8 women compared to 22 men. Read more from the Capital Chronicle.
The safety restrictions on Sen. Brian Boquist have been lifted by the Senate Conduct Committee.
WW published an interesting piece on the future of gambling in Oregon and how online betting giants Fan Duel and Draft Kings are causing a stir.
Rest in Peace to former State Rep. Bill Garrard, who served in the legislature for over a decade representing Klamath County. He passed away at the age of 82.
2. Paulson to sell Thorns, more businesses threaten to leave, and other Portland news
Portland broke another homicide record with its 93rd confirmed homicide of the year.
Merritt Paulson has officially put the Portland Thorns up for sale nearly two months after various charges of misconduct were exposed during an internal investigation.
Thorns captain Christine Sinclair tweeted gratitude, writing: “Merritt, thank you for taking the chance on women’s soccer 10 years ago that so few were willing to make. With your leadership, Portland has shown what is possible when our game is invested in.”
From OPB: “Multnomah County Will Consider Banning Flavored Tobacco Despite Legal Questions”
From The Oregonian: “Less than a month after Portland voters approved a dramatic overhaul to the city’s form of government and election system, the citizen-led body that crafted the proposal is poised to recommend more changes to Portland’s founding document.”
From Pamplin: “The day before the City Council is expected to approve $27 million to help create six large sanctioned homeless camps, five local businesses told city and state leaders they are on the verge of moving out of Portland because of crime and homelessness.”
The well-known companies are Salt & Straw, Stumptown, Olympia Provisions, Revant Optics, and Smith Teamaker.
3. Ron Wyden watchdogs crypto, Erickson sues Salinas (and other federal news)
Senator Ron Wyden is requesting financial data from key players in the crypto industry — including Binance, Coinbase, and others. Crypto firms have come under intense scrutiny after the collapse of FTX (as described in a previous version of The Liftoff).
In more crypto news, the Democratic Party of Oregon will not say whether it will return donations from Nishad Singh an executive with FTX. The party responded in a statement to WW saying: “The issue is important to us. We are aware of the situation and monitoring it closely. We have no other comments at this time.”
Failed congressional candidate Mike Erickson is suing Congresswoman-Elect Andrea Salinas—but according to the Capital Chronicle, he is “still deciding whether he wants to overturn the election or if he is merely seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages from the Salinas campaign for factual errors in a negative campaign ad about Erickson’s 2016 arrest for driving under the influence.”
Lori Chavez-DeRemer will not move into the 5th Congressional District. She will maintain her residency in the 3rd Congressional District, represented by Congressman Earl Blumenauer.
4. Gratitude from The Oregon Bridge podcast!
Last week was the week after Thanksgiving, and we took a break from politics! In this episode, Ben and Reagan offer some thoughts on what they're grateful for, metrics on how the podcast is doing, highlights from their Thanksgiving, news from the weekend's sporting events, and a few other hot topics. To all of our listeners, viewers, and supporters—thank you. We love creating this podcast and we're grateful for your continued support.
5. Portland gets roasted by British rockstar
Last week, The 1975, a popular rock band, played before a packed crowd at the Moda Center (where the median age was roughly three decades younger than the median age of the readership of this newsletter). About halfway through the concert, Matt Healy, the lead singer, began a playful and incisive mini-roast of Portland. Here are some paraphrased excerpts:
“They should put a tent over the entire city of Portland. Not because of the homeless people—because this city is full of clowns.”
“Do you know why they call this ‘Stumptown’? Because no one can tell you why they live here.”
“Portland: the city where everyone has ten pronouns and zero job titles.”
Audience members groaned, laughed, or cheered. Healy said “I’m joking!” multiple times and added that he loves Portland and loves liberals.
6. Measure 114 interview: Moms Demand Action
Oregonians narrowly voted to pass Measure 114 and institute a major overhaul in gun ownership. But what exactly is in the measure and what do its supporters hope to get out of it? Today we have Hilary Uhlig who is the Oregon Chapter Leader of Moms Demand Action—an organization that was heavily involved in the measure. Expect more smart, short interviews like this to come for paid subscribers.
AT: Thanks for taking the time to interview with Oregon360 today, Hilary Uhlig. Can you tell us a little bit about your background and your organization?
HU: Moms Demand Action is a grassroots organization that unites Americans from every walk of life in the goal of eradicating gun violence. We were founded by Shannon Watts in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy, and since then we’ve transformed into a nationwide movement, working with Mayors Against Illegal Guns to create Everytown for Gun Safety and have since expanded to include a student arm with Students Demand Action. I started volunteering with Moms Demand Action 5 years ago because no one should be living in fear of gun violence in our neighborhoods, our schools, our stores, or our places of worship.
AT: What are some of the outcomes that we can expect once Measure 114 reaches full implementation?
HU: Currently, when used in mass shootings, high-capacity weapons lead to 5 times the number of people shot because these weapons are designed to harm as many people as possible – and there is no reason to have these in our communities. In the United States these weapons account for an estimated 22 to 36 percent of gun related crimes. Measure 114 will help us feel and be a little bit safer when dropping our kids off at school or going about our daily lives. The permit to purchase system in Measure 114 will ensure that prospective gun owners complete hands-on firearm safety training and learn about secure gun storage. Educating gun owners on the importance (and legal requirement) of secure storage of firearms will go a long way toward ensuring responsible gun ownership and keeping guns out of the hands of people who should not have access to them. Measure 114 also requires permit issuers to deny permits to people who pose a documented public safety risk.
AT: Firearm advocacy organizations such as the Oregon Federation of Firearms have filed lawsuits against the measure in an attempt to delay its implementation. Do you think there is a chance that this measure could be overturned by a court?
HU: I’ll leave that debate to the legal scholars. However, I’ll tell you one thing – we the people made our voices heard, and we hope that folks on all sides of the issue understand that we voted for this measure because we just want to live in a safer state where gun violence is less likely. This is a common-sense public safety measure designed to save lives – we can both work to reduce gun violence and maintain the rights of responsible, law-abiding gun owners.
7. Three big-ticket stories to follow
As alluded to in the interview above, Measure 114 will be a major hot topic for months to come. The organizations representing Sheriffs and Police Chiefs told a judge that their agencies are unprepared to implement the measure.
A line of people stretched around the block waiting to get into an unlicensed store illegally selling psychedelic mushrooms for $40 in Portland. As of Sunday, the store had not been shut down by law enforcement.
ECONorthwest published a study that, according to Pamplin, “questions whether even significant spending increases will reduce the population most Portlanders talk about: the chronically homeless living in tents and vehicles in hundreds of unsanctioned camps across the city.” If you care about housing policy and reducing homelessness, the article is worth your time.
8. News Roundup: Christmas trees, speed limits, and a history-making chair
Making History: According to the Oregonian, “The Columbia River Gorge Commission has elected an Indigenous chair – a first for the 35-year-old commission that has had scant tribal leadership.” Carina Miller, a member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, will chair the 13-member commission.
Worker Woes: Central Oregon businesses are struggling to hire workers due to a lack of housing according to a new survey. House prices in Bend, in particular, have skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oregon Exceptionalism: The WW profiled an Oregon Christmas tree grower and highlighted how the state brings Christmas cheer.
Choose Your Speed: “Oregon’s cities can now apply to control speed limits on their own streets”
National News Spotlight: Oregon police are shooting down rumors that the murder of a couple may have been linked to the murder of 4 Idaho college students—”at this point in time”.
Thank you for reading.
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About the Authors
Ben Bowman is the chair of the Tigard-Tualatin School Board and state representative-elect for Oregon House District 25 (Tigard and Beaverton). 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.