Decoding Kotek’s big speech for fibs

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Oregon Governor candidate and former House Speaker Tina Kotek wrote a letter to the Sunday Oregonian making it one of the largest audiences she will have in the whole campaign.  We de-code it to lay-out the truth behind her misrepresentations and absurd statements.

TINA KOTEK: “I’m running for governor because I’m a problem solver.”

REALITY: Which “problem” exactly has Kotek solved?

Since Oregon is…
#4 for worst homeless state
#4 worst for welfare dependency state
#1 worst for drug dependency state
#5 worst for cost of living state
#8 highest top income tax state
#2 highest corporate tax rate state
– Below national average for job recovery
– Above average for crime
– Among bottom on national graduation rates.

..seems like Tina Kotek is a problem creator not a problem solver.

TINA KOTEK: “But too many times, when things got tough in the Capitol, neither of my opponents brought forward solutions.”

REALITY: On the highly controversial and wide-sweeping Carbon Tax, there were hundreds of amendments offered but ceremoniously rejected. Scores of people attended town hall meetings but were not given a chance to speak. Tina Kotek was so anti-other people’s opinion that even members of her own political party and fellow lawmakers said she actively censored her lawmaker colleagues. Read what Democrat State Representative Marty Wilde said about Kotek’s leadership:  “Since I joined the caucus in 2019 as a freshman legislator, it has become less and less democratic. My fellow Democratic lawmakers and I met privately each day during the legislative session. We debated proposals like the Student Success Act and public pension reform, and we did not even inform the public about the topics of our discussions and preemptive decisions…Over time, we even stopped debating the issues, as caucuses became a forum for leadership to give orders to ensure the Democratic agenda prevailed over the Republicans’ agenda, regardless of whether it was in the public interest.…worst of all, leadership positions were filled based on success in fundraising, not merit or expertise. The House Democratic leaders even stopped telling the caucus members about their discussions. In effect, the content and direction of legislation for all of Oregon was decided by a group of 10 or fewer people picked by their ability to raise money, in secret.”

TINA KOTEK: “I started my career 20 years ago at Oregon Food Bank. My job was to hear directly from folks all over the state who were struggling, many of them working multiple jobs and still needing help to feed their families.”

REALITY: Having seen people barely being able to pay their bills is why Kotek says she ran for office … and then she proceeded to mess up their lives by raising their gas taxes, payroll taxes, small business taxes by 17%, health care taxes, payroll taxes, wage taxes, car taxes, truck taxes, bike taxes, camping taxes, alcohol license taxes, cell-phone taxes, as well as 500 fee increases and the largest tax in Oregon history (CAT tax). How are those barely hanging-on people you met at the Oregon Food Bank doing now under your avalanche of new taxes?  Oh yeah, we already answered that question earlier when we mentioned that Oregon is the nation’s #4 homeless state and #8 welfare state.

Thanks to Tina Kotek’s mountain of new taxes and regulation, Oregon is the nation’s #5 highest cost-of-living state.

TINA KOTEK:  “As governor, I will make sure these funds are achieving the promised outcomes: fully funding career and technical education, improving graduation rates…”

REALITY: Kotek voted to lower graduation standards as a way to improve graduation rates.   Oregon was already rated among the bottom states for graduation rates (nowhere to go but up) and Kotek’s solution was to simply make it easier to graduate.   When it came to supporting charter schools, which have a high graduation rate, Kotek blocked a bill allowing parents to attend more charter schools.  This is the worst path to deal with graduation.

Kotek’s way of tackling big problems by redefining the definition is a common liberal tactic.  Kotek said she helped lower the State’s $26 billion public pension debt by passing a bill that reduced short term costs in exchange for spreading the costs over a longer period of time where, in fact, it costs taxpayers more.  Thanks Kotek.

TINA KOTEK: “As governor, I will end unsheltered homelessness for the most vulnerable people”

REALITY: Take that “end unsheltered homelessness” pledge from the person for whom homelessness increased to epidemic proportions under her leadership as the third most powerful lawmaker in Oregon.

Even better, how will you do it Kotek?

What state in America has ended unsheltered homelessness?

CONCLUSION: You would think that after serving as the longest tenure for Oregon House Speaker and serving with super-majorities of the same political party you would RUN on your accomplishments.  Instead Kotek is running on fibs and exaggerations.  It would just be a sad story alone, but it is a costly one, because Kotek by getting most of what she wanted over the years has cost us all dearly in higher taxes.   The more liberals dream of utopia the more our wallets shrink and our freedoms get removed.

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