The Senator & The Showgirl: Jeff Merkley Meets Portlandia’s “Nina”

Friday, August 29, 2014

Byron Beck, GoLocalPDX Features Contributor

Jeff Merkley

Guess who Oregon's own Sen. Jeff Merkley posed with in a photograph?

It was none other than "Nina" from the television show Portlandia.

According to Merkley's campaign account, "Nina"— just one of several characters Fred Armisen plays on the sketch comedy show— was filming near his campaign office on Thursday in the Lloyd Center mall area.

Jeff's campaign tweet exclaimed: "Great running into Fred Armisen & the cast & crew of @portlandia!"

But did the good Senator from Oregon know exactly what character he had run into at Lloyd Center?

"Nina" is one of Portlandia's more "adventurous" characters alongside Carrie Brownstein as "Lance." This couple is best known for the episode that included the notorious "Cacao."

In that sketch "Nina" and "Lance" explored the boundaries of their sexual selves with one caveat: if stuff got too rough they would shout out the word "cacao."

No word if that "word" was uttered during this chance meeting.

Guess who was filming by my campaign office? Great running into Fred Armisen & the cast & crew of @portlandia! pic.twitter.com/XJr5LbXuvV
— Jeff Merkley (@JeffMerkley) August 29, 2014