OregonCatalyst needs your help!

The OregonCatalyst editorial team has decided to take on a MASSIVE elections related project for the upcoming 2006 primary and general. In this project, OregonCatalyst will mail all the federal and state legislative candidates in Oregon and invite them to participate in an on-line discussion with Oregon’s conservative blog community via OregonCatalyst. The process will begin with OregonCatalyst sending out a very general questionnaire (top legislative priorities, name a tax that you would like to eliminate, etc.) From these answers we’ll ask a few follow-up questions. We’ll then compile all the answers and questions asked and publish it on-line. Viewers will then get a chance to comment and hopefully create some dialogue and/or buzz about the individual races. (Side note “¦ during the summer months we’ll also extend an invitation to the authors of the initiative to “make their case.”)

We have two goals in this process “¦

1. To get as many candidates to participate as possible. (Invitations will be extended to all both Republicans and Democrats. The third party question is still up in the air but we’re learning against it.)

2. And, in an impartial and evenhanded approach, provide opportunities for the candidates to get some free ink while still balancing the journalistic needs of OregonCatalyst and the expectation that our readers have.
So today “¦ is a discussion day at OregonCatalyst. Please provide us with a list of questions that you would like to ask members of both parties in Salem “¦ critiques regarding our proposal “¦ or anything else that you would like the OregonCatalyst to do during the election season.