Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in Oregon Politics: Blue Oregon, Shemia Fagan, Kurt Schrader

Friday, January 23, 2015

Jesse Cornett, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Every Friday, GoLocalPDX breaks down who's rising and who's falling in the world of Oregon politics. Check out who made the lists this week.

HOT:

The Zidell Family

The Portland Develop Commission is spending nearly $30 million dollars to assist in the redevelopment of property owned by the Zidell family in South Waterfront. The city has failed to meet its affordable housing development goals for the district. It's been reported that despite the subsidy, Zidell's ZDZ Realty company does not want to build affordable housing on its property. Meanwhile in East Portland, the Zidell family put in a bid for massive PDC subsidies to redevelop the Lents Town Center. Why on earth would we use tax money to help people who need it when we can double down on the wealthy?

Oregon Bus Project

The Oregon Bus Project is riding high after well over 12 years of getting younger Oregonians politically engaged. On Tuesday night a decidedly young crowd packed the Waypost, a NoPo bar for a showing of the State of the Union. Reports are that the crowd went wild with the “I won both of them” retort.

Over the past decade, the Oregon Bus Project, through Politicorps, has trained hundreds of college aged activists how to make a difference in the world. They bring them together from all over the world and all walks of life. Know someone who could benefit from the training? Nominate them now: the cool kids club is now accepting applications.

BlueOregon.com

After two weeks of our musing, Kari Chisholm, also one of GolocalPDX’s Top 25 Coolest Portlanders, posts his own suggestions on who might run for Mayor of Portland, including carrying forth the threat to run by Thomas Lauderdale of Pink Martini. Me thinks Thomas Lauderdale will run for Portland Mayor right after Donald Trump runs for President, which is why I didn’t bother to include him here in the first place (or the second). Commenters at BlueOregon suggest everyone from Commissioner Amanda Fritz to in themselves. Perhaps the most interesting name? David Schor. Davis is a long time Portlander and an attorney for the state. He might be the dark horse that some are hoping for.

Full disclosure I am a co-founder of and former long-time contributor to BlueOregon.

Shemia Fagan

Shemia Fagan is barely in her 30’s. She’s a former David Douglas School Board Member. She is a second term state lawmaker. She’s got a young son. This week she announced that was starting her own law firm, focusing on working parents and small businesses, two topics she knows a lot about. Shemia, Rep. Fagan as it were, wins the overachiever of the week award.

NOT:

Rapists

There are allegations flying that a local activist repeatedly mistreated women, including harassment and rape. I won’t mention his name again because I don’t want to feed his ego. Charges have not been filed against him and may never be. The adage is that where there is smoke there is fire. There is far too much smoke in this case for there to be no fire.

Kremer and ~~Abrams~~ Pasero

Kremer and Abrams, a weekly talk show on KXL, bills itself as a left versus right program. When the left leaning Marc Abrams takes leave, they don’t seem to do a lot of working in finding a suitable replacement. This leaves the show being a right and right love fest, like the majority of KXL’s programming. That in itself is not surprising. Having the fill in host, Jim Pasero, encourage Governor John Kitzhaber strangle himself with his fishing pole is beyond the pale. Encouraging one to be injured, even by their own hand, because of political disagreement has no place in discourse. Mr. Pasero earns our Dick of the Week award. Congrats.

US Congressman Kurt Schrader (D-OR)

Democratic Oregon Congressman Kurt Schrader recently decided to vote with the majority Republicans in favor of the Keystone Pipeline project. The project will provide only a handful of long term jobs and otherwise has no significant economic impact on America. It certainly has none in his Willamette Valley District. This week he posted an oped defending this and his other votes early this session. In his feeble defense he doesn’t even try to explain why the measure is good for those who he represents. He does take the time to use inflammatory language about the “left” leaning media. The response certainly makes this columnist wonder if a party switch might be in the works.

Have any suggestion for who is hot or who is not? Email them to me at [email protected].

Jesse is an East Portland resident, political junkie, snowboard fanatic, and former pub owner.