10 takeaways from Governor debate

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Interesting Tidbits from the Republican Gubernatorial Debate

Last night’s livestreamed Oregon Republican Gubernatorial debate from Hillsboro featured second time candidates State Senator Christine Drazan and Chris Dudley as well as State Rep. Ed Diehl (the chief petitioner against Governor Kotek’s gas tax) and Marion County Commissioner Danielle Bethel. The four candidates met the $100,000 fundraising requirement and at least 250 donors to participate. They answered questions about taxes, housing and homelessness, to business climate, education, natural resources and public safety.

#1. The program got off to a slow start with the program starting about 20 minutes late. Meteorologist Bruce Sussman and PDX Real journalist Angela Todd were the moderators.

#2. On opening statements, Rep. Diehl had the best comment as he said after the election, he was going to host a unity breakfast with all of the candidates regardless of who would win. It was a unique, stand-out act of kindness that resonated.

#3. Oregon’s sky-high tax rates and abysmal business climate dominated the discussion. All candidates agreed that we need to eliminate the Corporate Activity Tax. In taking swipes at Gov. Kotek’s Prosperity Council, Dudley said as governor he himself would be “Oregon’s Chief Prosperity Officer”.

#4. All of the candidates were fired up about improving Oregon’s public schools.

• Bethel: As governor I’m going to upend the entire board of education.
• Drazan: Our diploma is a participation trophy… We have to go after absenteeism. And we need to get politics out of our classrooms.
• Diehl: It is not complicated! We need school choice — I sponsored legislation for education savings accounts.
• Dudley: It should bother us that we are ranked dead last. I would declare an education emergency on Day 1.

#5. Additionally on education, Rep. Diehl had a great point by bringing up the problem of truancy (of which Oregon is among the worst).  Sen. Drazan took it one-step further when she mentioned on ending disruptions in the classroom which seemed to crystalize a larger problem.  Sen. Drazan also shared on how she had to pull her own daughter out of school during COVID (due to the extensive shutdown) and into a private school in order to save her child’s education.

#6. While taking the stage at their podiums Former Trailblazer Chris Dudley towered above the others at 6’11”. Candidates sat throughout the debate, but Rep. Diehl was the only one who stood up while answering questions – commanding the stage with a forward presence.  Smart move.

#7. Dudley had the best human interest story.  He talked about walking the streets of Portland on a Monday at 10:00am and witnessing several drug transactions.  He shared on how a drug dealer on a bike would ride by a stereo blasting and how he represented a modern day ice-cream truck, but offering drugs instead of ice-cream.  Dudley’s walk-through of Portland was a superb visual of how bad things had become in the city.  It spoke better than all the facts and figures being espoused.

#8. Rep. Ed Diehl claimed he was the only candidate on the stage who had built his own business – Bethel objected pointing out that she had also built her own plumbing business “What do you mean, I’m standing right here!” and Dudley also a business owner nodded along.   Still, Rep. Diehl had the best story on business.  Rep. Diehl referenced an example of a businesses in the town of White City that was trying to expand.  The business reached out to Kotek for help but she never returned her call.  Yet, other states, like Texas, were returning their call. The businesses is looking to expand in another state.

#9. On the natural resource topic, Rep. Diehl has the best example when he shared about a lithium mine on the Oregon-Nevada border. Nevada is mining it, but Oregon is not.  That story truly reflected Oregon’s failures.  Sen. Drazan laid out that we burn more carbon in a mismanaged wildfire, than in all of Portland’s traffic jams.

#10. Near the end, Chris Dudley brought up the fact that parts of Oregon feel left out, left behind and not included.  This statement moved the audience.  It struck a chord on how many Oregonians feel at the moment — especially rural voters.   Dudley invoking this sentiment either means he really is listening to people on a deeper level on his statewide tour, or Dudley has hired some great researchers who have been polling to find those missing strong sentiments.

Candidates threw a few sharp elbows in their closing statements:

• Drazan: We don’t have one minute to waste. We can’t have someone on day one that is looking for the bathrooms in the capitol.
• Bethel: I’m not the best funded candidate on this stage. I can’t loan myself money and Phil Knight didn’t write me a big check. It shouldn’t take money to win votes.   That comment did not land well.
• Dudley: We have to win this election. I’m tired of protest votes. Salem has failed. Salem’s problems will not be solved by someone from Salem. Join me as we push back on the political elite.

Bonus comment: The quirkiest statement came from Chris Dudley when talking about the timber issue.  He mentioned that he met a woman in Portland who said we shouldn’t cut down any more trees.  Dudley shared on how they had a good conversation and that he got her to change her mind.  From this example, Dudley said he can be a bridge to all Oregonians on other discussions.   In a way the example was a bit of hyperbole, but in another way we all recognize in Oregon that we have those intractable people, and for Dudley to go there and say he can bridge the gap and change people was an interesting example.   Dudley is a celebrity and an outsider, and it means he can throw things into the mix others cannot.

Bonus comment #2.  There was some great talent on stage.  Rep. Diehl demonstrates great command of the issues as he has an arsenal of fresh ideas and precise solutions to any problem.  People really love and appreciate this, and few do it better than Rep. Diehl.  Chris Dudley used more of the human interest stories and personal examples which is something that every candidate in Oregon should be doing more — but isn’t.  While everyone else on stage was in the mode of a job interview, Sen. Drazan spoke in conversational terms.  She often spoke in punchy lines followed by audience questions like, “Kotek is driving our state into a ditch.  This is crazy.  How much more of this are you willing to take?  Ask yourself, who is the best person to lead us out of this?”  This speaking style really connects with the audience and has made Drazan very effective at reaching everyday people (but yet goes unnoticed by many politically active people who are looking for more politics and provocative quotable lines).   As a result, these candidates are some of the best voices Oregon has had in a long time and we should take a moment to appreciate it.

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