Oregon Governor

Mark Hatfield fought against wars launched by presidents of both parties and championed aid for the poor, while remaining loyal to his party's leaders.

Will Northwest miss a teachable moment on tsunamis, quakes?

Posted Tue, Apr 19, 2 a.m.

Particularly along Washington and Oregon's coasts, people are finally eager to pay attention to experts. But where's the money going to come from?

Why we must have fiscal reform in the states

Posted Tue, Jan 18, 2 a.m.

By Mark Muro

The Great Recession is over, but it has exposed budget practices that the states must end to avoid careening into even bigger financial wrecks.

Oregon will likely have a legislative tie, in both Senate and House

Posted Wed, Nov 3, 11:06 a.m.

The governor's race is still up for grabs. But at least it won't end in a tie, like both chambers of the legislature seem head toward.

Oregon governor's race: Bizarre

Posted Wed, Oct 13, 2 a.m.

In any other year, attention would focus on how strange it is that the Republican candidate is a former NBA player with the slimmest credentials of a contender in recent memory. But in 2010, Republican Chris Dudley, who seems to be in Oregon's moderate mold, may defeat Democrat John Kitzhaber, a former governor.

Oregon envy: Can a Seattleite turn green wishing to be there?

Posted Wed, Feb 3, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

Much as I hate to admit it, Portland and Oregonians come closer to the Northwest ideal than we do.

Running out of budget gimmicks, states face grim years

Posted Tue, Jan 26, 4:05 p.m.

By Neal Peirce

Financial issues are forcing states into calamitous binds about what they can do. Most of them are afraid to impose their sales taxes on services, the very area in which more of the economy is moving.

Olympia lawmakers eye Oregon for tax lessons

Posted Mon, Jan 25, 2 a.m.

As Oregon voters this week vote on two tax-hike measures, the Washington legislature watches for signs indicating whether tax increases could fly in their state.

A popular Oregon governor hopes for an encore

Posted Fri, Sep 4, 6 a.m.

John Kitzhaber has jumped into the 2010 race, hoping for a third term. The Democrat faces a changed landscape from his highly effective earlier days.

Oregon Democrats bite the bullet on tax increases

Posted Mon, Jun 15, 6 a.m.

While Washington legislators punted on tax increases, Oregon's Democratic majority passed some big increases. One reason for the contrast: Gov. Ted Kulongoski can't seek a third term, while Gov. Gregoire might still hope for one.

The incredible, shrinking Northwest GOP

Posted Fri, Nov 7, midnight

As Washington and Oregon become increasingly urban, Republicans are increasingly scarce. They remain in control of isolated, rural counties, but their numbers are no match for Democrats.

The wandering pedophile

Posted Fri, Nov 16, 5 a.m.

By Knute Berger

Jack McClellan has been convicted of no crime, but he's become a pariah and an outcast, unwelcome in the Northwest. He loves to blog about his fantasies of little girls, but in reality he is molesting all of us.

Critics, deal with it: There's good news about the arts in Oregon

Posted Tue, Jul 31, 5 a.m.

By Kimberly Marlowe Hartnett

The Oregon Cultural Trust seems to be fulfilling its mission, dispersing $1.36 million this year. So how 'bout we stop rehashing the early days of underachievement?

The governor's stamps of disapproval

Posted Mon, Apr 30, 8 a.m.

By Kimberly Marlowe Hartnett

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski went a week eating on $3 a day, and all he got was a ration of ...

The Big Brother rebellion continues

Posted Mon, Apr 23, midnight

By Knute Berger

But not all Northwest states are on board with the Real ID secession movement yet.

Oregon Governor Blog posts

Midday Scan: Coveting tribes' gains; looking busy in Olympia; Everett probers

Posted Tue, Dec 6, 11 a.m. 2011

by Pete Jackson

Now that some tribes are doing a little better, Republicans in Olympia can't stop thinking about how easy life would be if they could just get more of the gambling revenue. While the legislative leadership spins its wheels on the budget, other lawmakers don't want everyone else to see how little else is being done. Questions about Kitzhaber's death penalty moratorium.

Oregon election update brings a turnaround

Posted Wed, Nov 3, 10:42 p.m. 2010

by Floyd McKay

Former Gov. John Kitzhaber pulls off his comeback after all, and the state's Congressional delegation bucks the national trend.

Oregon will move to tax cars by the mile

Posted Tue, Dec 30, 6 a.m. 2008

by Knute Berger

The gas tax would be phased out and drivers monitored by GPS and subjected to a mileage tax instead.

Sausage Links, fancy-pants luncheon edition

Posted Thu, Jul 17, 1:21 p.m. 2008

The Queen of fist-bumps, New Yorker cover girl Michelle Obama, is in Seattle today to headline a fundraiser for Gov. Chris Gregoire. The event is expected to bring in $400,000 for Gregoire's re-election campaign. Seattle Times chief political reporter David Postman will have live coverage of the event as it develops, while Eli Sanders at the Stranger already has pictures from the WaMu Theater. ...

Sausage Links, tree-cutting edition

Posted Mon, Jul 14, 3:09 p.m. 2008

Timber! The Seattle Times has a series of special reports about the lack of oversight in the logging industry and the cost to state taxpayers. According to the report, no one checked when Weyerhaeuser started clear-cutting unstable slopes, some of which eventually slid and cost millions of dollars to clean up. Naturally, David Goldstein at Horse's Ass blames Republican-led deregulation. ...

Sausage Links, gas cards for bad guys edition

Posted Fri, Jul 11, 2:20 p.m. 2008

Alright everybody. Let's head to Tacoma. If we hurry, we can help Tacoma-Pierce County Crime Stoppers catch sexual predators, gangsters, domestic violence abusers, and violent criminals. Why? Because they're giving away $250 gas cards and up to $1,000 in exchange for information that would lead to arrests. Here's the list of criminals. Start hunting. After all, what better incentive is there to dodge outrageous gas prices than to catch perverts? Don't answer that.

Sausage Links, mayor-about-town edition

Posted Wed, Jul 9, 2:49 p.m. 2008

Oh, Greg. You are trying to break our hearts! Just when we vilify you for airballing the Sonics all the way to OKC for a cool $45 million – you show you're a real Mayor-about-town houses and plastic bag taxes.

For better or worse, everybody's talking about Mayor Nickels' proposals today. Erica C. Barnett at The Stranger says she spotted a "Plastic Monster" at last night's public-comment meeting about the proposed plastic bag tax, while Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat warns if we don't choose paper the plastic bag police will get us. Meanwhile, the folks at Sound Politics rail against Nickels for the new town house plan, which they argue will regulate affordable housing "out of existence." ...

Sausage Links, top-two headache edition

Posted Tue, Jul 8, 2:23 p.m. 2008

David Postman had a busy morning. First, The Seattle Times chief political writer reported the proper way to describe the ~~death with dignity~~ "assisted suicide" initiative. Then he dropped a political firebomb, reporting the state's political parties haven't yet given up trying to ax the "top-two" primary, with both Republicans and Democrats claiming the entire '08 election won't count. I thought that headache was over. Turns out it's just getting started. ...

Sausage Links, "freedom to get drunk and blow stuff up" edition

Posted Mon, Jul 7, 1:23 p.m. 2008

Chris Mulick at the Tri-City Herald has today's top story, reporting this morning that Tim Eyman's Initiative 985 and the Service Employees International Union-backed Initiative 1029 would – if passed by voters in November – increase the state's budget deficit by an estimated $300 million.

Sausage links, Seattle SuuuuuuperSonics edition

Posted Wed, Jul 2, 1 p.m. 2008