2010 Election Not So Good For Oregon Gun Rights
Salem, Oregon –-(Ammoland.com)- The historic 2010 elections are now mostly behind us.
While much of the country voted to restore some fiscal and political sanity, Oregon bravely bucked the trend.
With some notable exceptions, voters chose candidates who promised to end policies of massive government intrusions. In Oregon, Multnomah County Elections workers Portland voters returned John Kitzhaber to the Governor’s mansion.
This was an amazing race. While Chris Dudley held a small lead through most of the campaign, Kitzhaber pulled out a last minute victory, as so often happens when the Multnomah County votes are discovered recorded.
What’s most interesting about this race is that Kitzhaber campaigned on his “experience” but left office last time admitting he could not do the job.
Based on his history, it is reasonable to assume that along with creating special exceptions for his beach house and sweetheart deals for his girlfriend, Kitzhaber will veto any bill that can, in any way, be perceived as “pro-gun.” Anyone running a business will consider relocating, schools will continue to fail and unemployment will rise. The public employee unions will continue to benefit until the state runs out of productive people to tax. (Which, when you think about it, can’t take much longer.)
On the national level, there was one congressional race that was very close. That was the 5th Congressional District race between Scott Bruun and Kurt Schrader.
Schrader went to Washington with a record as a committed enemy of gun owners. He voted to decimate gun shows in Oregon and, as a Congressman, voted to shut down organizations like OFF. Schrader has been one of Nancy Pelosi’s most obedient servants, voting for bail-outs for billionaires and Obama’s health control. As you might expect, he was rewarded by an endorsement from the NRA who also sent thousands of dollars to Harry Reid who elevated two committed gun banners to the Supreme Court. Harry was victorious over his opponent Sharon Angle, a strong supporter of gun rights. Thanks NRA!
Ballot Measure 71 passed overwhelmingly, meaning the voters have decided that the legislature was not doing enough damage meeting every other year, now they will meet every year. The con job was that with the passage of this measure, the legislature would be better able to deal with the budget, but the new sessions won’t be limited to the budget. If you watched the fiasco in February’s “special” session you saw how bills that are not really understood or even read get rammed through with almost no citizen input.
The good news is the change in the Oregon legislature. With one or two seats still in play, it appears right now that the Oregon House is split in half. The Senate might be as well, depending on the final vote count in District 3, where Alan Bates has been the last minute beneficiary of a sudden “surge” of Democrat ballots. If the anti-gun Bates prevails, the Oregon Senate will be 16-14 Democrat. If his opponent wins, the Senate will likely be split evenly as well.
Having both Houses evenly split would be unprecedented. The last time anything like that happened, the Senate was evenly split in 2003. Picking a Senate President became quite a circus until the Republicans folded and allowed anti-gun militant Peter Courtney to assume the position, one he has held ever since.
While there are several races whose outcomes benefit gun owners, there is no question that the single most exciting victory we had was the removal of our number one target, House Rep Judy Stiegler.
Stielger, from Bend, was a freshman legislator who masterfully derailed several popular pro-gun bills while attempting to portray herself as a supporter of gun rights. We are very pleased to have been able to return Stiegler to private practice. For everyone who worked to send her home, we thank you. OFF, and many OFF members, supported her opponent Jason Conger. We suggest you drop Jason a note and congratulate him, and please remind him that as gun owners, we are expecting him to be a strong supporter of gun rights. His address and a sample message can be found here.
We are also very pleased to be able to announce (unless there is another surge of “discovered” Democrat ballots) the retirement of Martha Schrader, Senate district 20, who lost to OFF-supported Alan Olsen. During the campaign, Martha, (Kurt Schrader’s wife) attacked pro-gun Olsen for a 30 year old bankruptcy. Now that Martha will be returning to her Canby home, perhaps she will find time to pay the real estate taxes she and Kurt have, in the past, chosen to ignore.
2011 will be another uphill climb for gun owners. The election of John Kitzhaber means we will have to work harder than ever to protect our rights. While most of the country is trending towards liberty, Oregon has re-elected pro-bailout, pro-health control, anti-gun Ron Wyden to the US Senate and the failed ex-governor one more time.
With your help we will keep on doing what we have done since 1999, fighting. Buckle up, folks, it’s going to be an interesting ride.
About:
The Oregon Firearms Federation has proven itself to be Oregon’s only no compromise lobbying group, OFF takes the same tough stands and serves as a vehicle for educating gun owners, promoting their rights and when necessary, fighting the freedom haters in court. Visit: www.oregonfirearms.org