Heavy blocks provide new security at the Capitol on Saturday, Jan.16. State officials took precautions ahead of warnings from the FBI of possible protests at capitols across the country. (Ron Cooper/Salem Reporter) A majority of Oregonians will get the Covid vaccination when it’s available, and they also want the Legislature[Read More…]
POLITICS
Oregon Congressman’s effort to dump one state’s presidential results rested on 10,000 votes never counted
U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Oregon. (FILE/The Enterprise) U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz met behind closed doors with his Republican colleagues in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6 as President Trump implored Congress to overturn the presidential election. They huddled to consider the case for dismissing millions of American votes. Making that case[Read More…]
Oregon’s only Republican in Congress opposes impeachment, expects Trump to be held ‘accountable’
U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz ONTARIO – U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, the only Republican in Oregon’s Congressional delegation, said Saturday that he doesn’t think President Trump should resign or be impeached. He said he expects the president to be held accountable “in the proper way.” Bentz, just finishing his first week[Read More…]
Bentz, Oregon’s only Republican congressman, acknowledges Biden win after opposing one state’s electors
Congressman Cliff Bentz talks with officers from the Capitol police after insurrectionists were cleared from the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6. Bentz condemned the intrusion. (Office of U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz) Oregon Congressman Cliff Bentz said early Thursday he accepted the election of Joe Biden as president but would[Read More…]
Insurrection at nation’s capital draws strong local reactions
Sen. Peter Courtney, D-Salem and House Speaker Tina Kotek D-Portland speak during a joint-committee work session at a one-day special session at the Oregon State Capitol on Monday, August 10. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Salem’s elected leaders condemned the violent unrest at the nation’s capital Wednesday as insurrectionists breached the building[Read More…]
“That is a coup”: Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley describes how a mob breached the nation’s Capitol
U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley in his Salem office on Nov. 25, 2019 (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley blamed chaos and violence that erupted in the nation’s capital squarely on on President Donald Trump and other national leaders, faulting them for allowing disinformation to flourish and lead to the[Read More…]
Why one local delegate to the Republican National Convention doesn’t expect conventions to stay virtual
Oregon Republican Party Chair Bill Currier casts the state’s votes for President Donald Trump as the party’s presidential nominee at the 2020 Republican National Convention. (Screen grab/Facebook) Kevin Mannix, a Salem lawyer long involved in GOP politics, has been to every Republican National Convention since 2000. The 2020 Republican National[Read More…]
What one local delegate to the Democratic National Convention thought of the unusual political convention
In a remote roll call vote at the Democratic National Convention, Oregon casts its votes for president. (Screen grab/YouTube.) On Wednesday, Aug. 19, Democrats from across the country officially made Joe Biden the party’s standard-bearer in the 2020 presidential election. Held over video because of the pandemic, 56 states and[Read More…]
Salem council results indicate voters prefer a progressive agenda
Campaign signs in the Marion County Democrats office in downtown Salem on Friday, May 22, indicate support for progressive candidates for Salem City Council. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Salem continues to head down a progressive path if Tuesday’s election results say anything about the makeup of the city. Salem city politics[Read More…]
How the collapse of the 2020 legislative session could shape this fall’s election and state politics
Seats in the Oregon House of Representatives remain vacant during a Republican boycott of the legislative session. (Sam Stites/Oregon Capital Bureau). SALEM – A new dynamic in Oregon politics is emerging following the collapse of the 2020 legislative session. And the top leaders in the Oregon Senate knew that as[Read More…]
