The Liftoff: The legislature's new addiction-focused committee kicks off
PLUS: Eugene Weekly's 'best politician' award goes to…nobody; Kotek's big OPB interview; Oregon largest school district may go on strike Nov. 1; Wagner and Knopp reflect on session; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff! We are back with another jam packed edition of The Liftoff.
We are your go-to source for all the latest Oregon political, government and election related news. We want to hear from you as we get closer to the 2024 election cycle! What content are we missing? Do you have a major announcement? Send us a tip (or write an op-ed)!
1. DA Schmidt gives himself an A, Senate Pres. Rob Wagner wants a different tenor, and more political news!
There were so many Oregon politicians and elected officials in the news this week, that we had a hard time keeping track! But, as we inch toward a major election cycle next year, we will see more and more Oregon elected officials (and elected officials-to-be) make news.
Here were some of our favorite political stories of the week:
Senate President Rob Wagner is profiled this week by Oregon Capital Insider's Dick Hughes.
From the column: “Like Knopp, he looks for a different tenor when the Legislature returns in February: Deal with housing and homelessness, drug addiction and treatment, and budget fixes. Leave major partisan issues for the long session in 2025.”
Portland DA Mike Schmidt gives himself an A, or at least according to a long-ranging interview with Willamette Week.
Excerpt: “In Schmidt’s telling, however, he’s one of the most successful elected officials in the region. He’s grown his office’s budget (by 30% in the past three years), launched a handful of innovative new programs, and presided over a recent encouraging decline in crime—even though, as he points out, crime rates are a bad indicator of his success or failure.”
Eugene’s best politician as voted by Eugene Weekly voters goes to….nobody! But, Congresswoman Val Hoyle (D-Eugene) did come in second. Eugene Weekly says voter turnout this year was the best it’s been in years, with twice as many people voting this year.
Kotek’s big interview. Governor Kotek was interviewed by OPB’s Dave Miller on Tuesday. The interview was wide ranging, touching on Measure 110, Portland’s future, meeting housing goals and more.
One quote from the interview: “I don’t think the measure got it right… Measure 110 does need some fixes, and I’ve been really up front about that. I’ve been talking with legislators about the unintended consequence of Measure 110 and what it means for public use of things like fentanyl and meth. We need to fix that.”
2. Portland Metro
Trash wars: According to Willamette Week, Metro Regional Government’s auditor last week released a scathing report on Metro’s dump. The audit revealed a botched plan to buy greener diesel fuel, a lack of safety training, a broken arm, five fires, and lax tracking of where Portland’s hazardous waste really ends up.
From the article: Metro handles about 40% of the region’s garbage. People regularly toss things into the piles at transfer stations that don’t belong there, like old propane tanks and lithium batteries, both of which are flammable. They toss out paint thinner, syringes and fluorescent bulbs chock-full of mercury.
Moving wars: From OPB: City commissioners sparred Friday over a proposal to relocate their offices before their terms end in December 2024. This plan, which has been led by Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office, allows construction to convert their four offices into 12 council offices starting early next year, before the new government’s first day of work in January 2025. That would require city commissioners to move their offices to another city building during that time.
No phones allowed: According to Willamette Week, all five Multnomah County commissioners spent Friday in a conference room at the Kennedy School in Northeast Portland with no phones, staff or other distractions, “figuring out shared values, goals and, perhaps most importantly, how to communicate more smoothly.”
Three Portland-area Target stores closed on Sunday, citing increased theft. But an investigation by Fox-12 KPTV suggests that the police data doesn’t add up.
From the investigation: “According to dispatch data from six Target locations around Portland, every store remaining open had higher property crime rates - including burglary, theft and robbery - than the stores slated to close. When expanding the considered data to all police dispatches, the rate of crime still didn’t support the company’s reasoning.”
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4. Oregon GOP Chairman Justin Hwang on how Republicans can win
Justin Hwang is a Korean immigrant and small business owner. He’s been chairman of the Oregon Republican Party since 2022 and was previously a candidate for state representative and state senate. He talks about the challenges Republicans are facing in Oregon and where he sees the opportunities for Republicans to hold and make additional gains.
5. Other statewide news
Oregon legislators heard from state behavioral health officials and local addiction treatment providers during a four-hour meeting on Wednesday, reports the Oregon Capital Chronicle. The committee met for the first time amid growing criticism of the state’s drug decriminalization law, Measure 110.
Sen. Kate Lieber (D-Portland), co-chair of the new Joint Interim Committee on Addiction and Community Safety Response, said lawmakers need clear direction on what they can do to get people into treatment now.
Baker City has had no elected government for nearly a month after three city councilors resigned Sept. 27. This triggered a state law that gives the county board of commissioners the power to appoint replacements for the council, reports OPB.
On Wednesday, the Baker County Board of Commissioners appointed four new councilors. All four served on the City Council before the last council dissolved.
According to the Oregon Capital Chronicle, GOP Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer sent U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg a letter urging the federal government to block the Oregon Department of Transportation from tolling I-5 and I-205 in the Portland area to pay for highway improvements, including a new bridge over the Columbia River. Gov. Tina Kotek earlier this year ordered a moratorium on toll collections until 2026.
6. The Way: Is leadership a lost art?
The Way contributors Mark Hester and Gary Conkling were back this week with two pieces on leadership, including a look at three under-the-radar leaders who deserve more attention (including Oregon’s own Les Zaitz).
Read Gary Conkling’s piece “Leadership is becoming a lost political art” here.
7. News Roundup:
GOP Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer was one of 20 Republicans who voted against Rep. Jim Jordan to be House Speaker on Tuesday, reports OPB.
Portland Public Schools announced Thursday night that it received notice from the Portland Association of Teachers that they may strike starting Nov. 1.
Influential figure in Oregon GOP politics, Loren Parks, has died at age 97. According to The Oregonian, the wealthy longtime Washington County resident helped pass several ballot measures and funded many GOP candidates in Oregon.
Tips? Feedback? Ideas? Corrections? Email benjaminwbowman@gmail.com or kristinaedmunson@gmail.com.
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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 Gov. Kulongoski, media advance associate for VP Biden, and communications director for AG 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, and sits on Multnomah County’s Community Involvement Community. She speaks only for herself in The Liftoff.