Oregon Republicans Better Get Used To Obstructing Democrats In The Private Sector

So long, farewell …

Let’s raise a glass for Oregon’s new and far-less-shady Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade. Gov. Tina Kotek picked the former Portland auditor in late June to complete scandal-ridden Shemia Fagan’s term, which ends in 2025. After retiring as auditor in 2014, Griffin-Valade published a four-part mystery series, but she amped up her personal coolness even more with one of her first major acts in office. She’s officially put the hammer down on tantrum-throwing Republicans who tried to derail Democratic legislation.

Griffin-Valade confirmed last week that she intends to enforce Measure 113, which Oregon voters approved in 2022 by a landslide 70 percent. Measure 113 bans lawmakers from running for re-election if they racked up 10 or more unexcused absences in a single legislative session. It also prevents them from running for office in another chamber. It’s a well-deserved career killer.

Nonetheless, 10 of the 12 total Republican state senators called the measure’s bluff. Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp, Daniel Bonham of Madras, Lynn Findley of Vale, Bill Hansell of Athena, Cedric Hayden of Fall Creek, Dennis Linthicum of Klamath Falls, Art Robinson of Cave Junction, Kim Thatcher of Keizer, Suzanne Weber of Tillamook, and Brian Boquist from Dallas, an independent who hangs with a bad crowd, all walked off the job in “protest” against Democratic-led bills that would protect and expand access to reproductive and gender-affirming health care.

The minority party believed the bills were too “extreme” so deliberately denied Democrats the two-thirds quorum necessary to conduct business. (Maybe a potential Measure 114 would just lower the damn quorum.)

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MIA Oregon Senate Republicans Won't Return To Work Even If It Costs Them Their Jobs

Oregon Republicans Go Full Ferris Bueller To Block Democratic Bills

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Republicans returned to work after six weeks, wrangling some concessions from Democrats, who agreed to change language concerning parental notifications for abortion and dropped several amendments on a bill that would punish the manufacturing or transferring of undetectable firearms.

However, these anti-democratic tactics came with a price and Griffin-Valade is coming to collect.

“It is clear voters intended Measure 113 to disqualify legislators from running for reelection if they had 10 or more unexcused absences in a legislative session,” Griffin-Valade said in a statement. “My decision honors the voters’ intent by enforcing the measure the way it was commonly understood when Oregonians added it to our state constitution.”

Republicans have whined that Measure 113 trampled their First Amendment rights to stop Democrats from passing laws they didn’t like, and they even sent a letter to then-acting Secretary of State Cheryl Myers claiming the language in the “stop Republicans from walking out on legislative sessions” bill was “misleading.”

Griffin-Valade doesn’t buy this nonsense, and is directing the Oregon Elections Division to enforce Measure 113, which she says is consistent with guidance from the Oregon Department of Justice.

The courts “have emphasized that the text of adopted ballot measures must be interpreted in a way that is consistent with the voters’ intent. And voters universally understood Measure 113 would prohibit legislators who accumulate 10 or more unexcused absences during a legislative session from holding office in the immediate next term,” read a press release from the secretary of state’s office.

Somewhat laughably, Knopp insisted yet again, “We believe the plain language of Measure 113 allows for members to run again in 2024 elections.” It’s possible Knopp is simply illiterate, but here’s the first paragraph of Measure 113’s “plain text”:

Ballot Measure 113 amends the Oregon Constitution to create a constitutional ban on holding state legislative office, for one term, if a state Senator or Representative is absent without excuse ten or more times from floor sessions during any one legislative session. The measure deems the failure to attend without excuse to be disorderly behavior and disqualifies the legislator from holding office after the legislator’s current term ends. A candidate may run for office in the next primary and general elections and win, but cannot hold office under this measure due to ten or more unexcused absences

In other words, it’s all there in black and white, clear as crystal … the 10 Senate Republicans had 10 unexcused absences with the deliberate intent of disrupting legislative business … you lose!

And none of them gets to come back.

[Truthout]

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