BREAKING: Hooley Won't Seek Re-Election

Oregonian Washington, D.C., reporters Jeff Kosseff and Charles Pope are reporting today that Oregon Fifth Congressional District Rep. Darlene Hooley won't seek re-election in 2008.

Citing her 32 years of public service, Hooley told the Oregonian she was tired of the relentless travel and non-stop fund-raising involved with seeking a seventh term.

"At some point in everybody's life you have to decide, how much longer do I want to do this?'' she said."It's time to move on."

Hooley also told the newspaper that she believes it might be easier for for a new Democrat to win the seat this year than it will be two years from now.

Oregonian reporter Jeff Mapes speculates on his blog about who might step up to run for that seat now that the incumbent has bowed out:

Expect other Republicans to look at this race besides Mike Erickson, the businessman who was beat by Hooley two years ago and had signed up for another run.

...Who else might get into this? Well, you could look at every legislator and county commissioner in the 5th Congressional District for starters. You could look at the Republicans who have run for Hooley's seat in the past: State Sen. Jackie Winters, R-Salem, Lake Oswego lawyer Jim Zupancic and Rep. Brian Boquist, R-Dallas. And I suspect I'm just starting to scratch the surface.

...Democrats haven't had time to figure out a logical replacement candidate. I immediately thought of House Majority Leader Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, a rising political figure...

Any other speculation about who may be a good candidate for Oregon's fifth now that Hooley has announced plans to take her leave?

Dubya's Final Acts of Defiance

Gordon Smith's Nightmare?

Like any cookie-cutter conservative politician worth his salt, Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith's impeccably perfect hair is his finest virtue.

If I didn't know better, I'd think he gets his haircuts at that Playdoh beauty shop where kids pump clay though holes in a tiny figurine's head and then "style" it by pressing it in a mold and cutting away any excess.

But what I'd really like to know is how Smith's fellow conservatives -- who derided John Edwards' "Breck Girl" perfect hair -- feel about Gordon's attention to his own flawless locks?

Better still, how do the conservative hacks who attacked John Edwards as a phony populist because of the personal wealth he earned after rising from his family's modest means feel about Smith's fortune, which was handed to him by his aristocratic family?

Oh, the headaches such hypocrisy must cause for those poor conservatives of Oregon's Republican Party. It's no wonder they don't have enough energy left to come up with viable candidates for statewide offices in Oregon.

But I digress. This post is supposed to be about hair. And to that end, I wonder if Gordon Smith ever wakes up in a cold sweat after having this nightmare:

WMD Stockpiles: The Administration's Behind

(January 2004)

Those 16 infamous words about Iraq allegedly trying to buy yellow cake uranium from Nigeria eventually sparked the Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson affair that brought down Vice President Cheney's chief of staff Scooter "Pardon Me" Libby.

It's a Heap Year!

UPDATE, Feb. 6: I uploaded some video on YouTube.

You've got to hand it to the people at the The Old Farmer's Almanac, they sure got this one right. The Western Edition's weather prose for February:

Groundhog's shiver, stay indoors. Snow is reaching second floors! Not a good time to be a snow maker: There's two more feet on every acre! Call it a heap year!

Maybe those Almanac writers should try their hand at political prognostication.

Groundhog Day: Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton ... ...

I've been a bit remiss in failing to note that my favorite New York Times op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof, who grew up on a sheep and cherry farm near Yamhill, Ore., has recently returned to his column after an extended book leave.

Kristof has often been a solitary light in the mainstream media consistently trying to draw attention to the tragic genocide taking place in Darfur.

And you'll remember that he was one of the loudest voices in the MSM willing to question the accuracy of Bush Administration claims that Iraq posed an "imminent threat." It's certainly good to have him back. That's especially true when he writes about things nobody else wants to seriously discuss. His Jan. 31 column "The Dynastic Question" is a great example.

We Americans snicker patronizingly as "democratic" Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Singapore, India and Argentina hand over power to a wife or child of a former leader. Yet I can’t find any example of even the most rinky-dink "democracy" confining power continuously for seven terms over 28 years to four people from two families. (And that’s not counting George H.W. Bush’s eight years as vice president.)

Perhaps there is some such "democracy" somewhere: If you know of one, report it on my blog, and I’ll support you for president in eight years time ... and then your spouse ... and then your eldest child.

...We remember John Quincy Adams as intelligent and diligent, but his presidency is diminished by the hint of dynastic succession and is seen as emblematic of a parochial time when America was ruled by an incestuous elite. Some day, I suspect we may detect the same narrowness in the rise of the Bush Dynasty and, if there is one, in the Clinton Dynasty.

...Certainly, it’s easy to see why voters nostalgic for peace and prosperity might yearn for a Clinton Restoration. Maybe we want another political dynasty, but we shouldn’t back into one without discussion — again.

In a country of several hundred million people, the idea that two families are put in charge for nearly three decades really flies in the face of a populist democracy. And it doesn't speak well for the imagination of our populace or its leaders.

Maybe we ought to start calling this government a "nepocracy" and change the National Anthem to the theme from Sanford & Son.

Metsger Calls Out Merkley's Fundraising

Looks like Oregon House Speaker and U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Merkley is taking some in-party heat for his decision to fund-raise during the upcoming special session.

The Oregonian's Jeff Mapes reported Tuesday that state Sen. Rick Metsger, who is running for secretary of state against fellow Democratic state Sens. Kate Brown, Brad Avakian and Vickie Walker, released a statement reiterating his intention to not raise money during the session. He also leveled some criticism at his primary opponents and Merkley.

Merkley is "the one who put the rule in" banning fund-raising for House members during the session, said Metsger. "Now he wants to make contributions to federal office different than to state office. To me, that is a distinction without a difference."

This seems similar to Merkley's robocall mess up, where he kicked off his campaign with a front-page story in the Oregonian detailing how he sent recorded campaign calls to people on the no-call list after having voted in the Oregon legislature to ban such calls. The law "doesn't take effect until January," Merkley campaign manager Jon Isaacs explained to the newspaper.

Give the campaign credit for following the letter of the law, if not its spirit. But the attitude seems more like politics-as-usual, not the "change" we're being promised.

In the thread of a different post on Mapes' blog, this one covering Merkley opponent Steve Novick's new ad, one of the commenters offered this: "Hilarious! No wonder Merkley is going to accept contributions during the session."

That observation, made with humorous intent, also appears to be spot on.

Just In Case You Got Distracted

With the news focus shifting lately to the growing economic slump and the antics of the 2008 primary elections, it's important to remember what's at stake here.

BAGHDAD — Sunni Arab guerrillas ambushed an American convoy in the northern city of Mosul with a roadside bomb on Monday, then sprayed survivors with machine-gun fire from perches in a nearby mosque, killing five American soldiers.

It was the second devastating attack on United States forces this month, bringing the number of fatalities to 36 this year, and the latest sign that the main front of the insurgency has shifted to northern Iraq. New York Times, published Jan. 29, 2008

Current Republican front-runner John McCain, who has a very realistic chance of beating whomever the Democrats nominate, says it's fine with him if the United States has troops in Iraq for the next 100 years. It's a good time for liberals and Democrats to step back, take a deep breath of inspiration, and remember who and what they're fighting for.


This war brought to you by George W. Bush and his employers.

This Is What 14" Looks Like

You may have heard that Spokane got 13.7 inches of snow yesterday.
That's a new record for the Inland Empire. My sisters sent some pictures:








Apparently there's more on the way. If less than a half-inch of snow can close Portland schools, could you imagine the Donner Party-like mayhem that would strike if Stumptown got dumped on like this?

A Beer With Novick

Oregon Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Steve Novick released another video ad today. This one comes two weeks after the campaign launched its first advertisement, which earned many positive reviews and front-page coverage in the Oregonian. The first ad aired for two weeks on television, and nearly 10,000 people have watched it online so far.

This new ad, titled "Beer with Steve," also relies on humor, partly playing off the notion that George W. Bush won elections because he was allegedly the type of guy people wanted to have a beer with.



UPDATE: The "web exclusive" release for Steve Novick seems to be picking up speed. It got noticed by the Oregonian and The Register-Guard. The ad's been featured on the front page by national blogger Atrios. It's also getting coverage at Huffington Post by HP Associate News Editor Will Thomas.

Man's Best Friend! Oh, Really?

Just days after blowing the lid off of who REALLY was the most annoying character in the diner scene from Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds, Mo Rocca may be on to something again in the video below. I've seen a lot of this type of behavior in Oregon. Especially in those seedy new "dog parks" popping up around Portland.

I just hope the Clark County GOP doesn't get wind of this, or it'll be plastered across their homepage before you can say "givin' the dog a bone."

Election 2008 Primer: Recognizing The Perfect Country & Western Song

Those vaguely mysterious but often-quoted "some" say that one of the keys for Oregon Democrats hoping to win statewide elections is the ability to pull in the more-conservative voters from rural Oregon and the Portland Metro bedroom communities that stretch to the tri-counties' outer reaches and beyond.

Knowing the finer points of country music certainly can't hurt win hearts and minds there, especially in those "east of the Cascades" locations like Republican incumbent U.S. Senator Gordon Smith's home town of Pendleton.

To that end, I've compiled a short primer on just what exactly makes The Perfect Country & Western Song:

This song, written by Steve Goodman and performed by David Allen Coe, seems like an obvious choice because Goodman went out of his way in the last verse to mention Mama, trains, trucks, prison, and gettin' drunk.

But this tune by one-eyed Dick Curless has got to be a close second.

And don't forget George Jones.

CORRECTION

Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani doesn't look as much like kids' cereal mogul Count Chocula as I originally thought.

He looks more like Underdog nemesis Simon Bar Sinister.



The World's Maddest Dog regrets this error and any inconvenience it may have caused.

We Are Family

As the dust settles from this past weekend's lefty blogosphere hi-jinks and hysterics in the Oregon Democratic U.S. Senate primary, it's important to remember we're all in this together. Loaded Orygun's got a great video post from the Democratic Party of Oregon that reminds us all of the liberal values we share, the foundation the party is built on.

Maybe it's time to take a second and pick up on what the Sister Sledge are layin' down!

Going Negative On Novick: Jealous Much?

(UPDATED BELOW)

If the topsy-turvy national primary season has taught us one thing, it's that having a good week certainly comes with its consequences. I guess that's to be expected in the game of politics-as-usual.

And it's no newsflash that Steve Novick's (pictured at left) U.S. Senate campaign has been picking up steam as of late.

The release of its catchy new television ad earned coverage on the front-page of The Oregonian and got more notice from Register-Guard reporter David Steves. The Salem Statesman-Journal declared Novick one of the week's "winners." The once-skeptical Ashland Daily Tidings is now convinced that Novick's "humor is a welcome and refreshing change. He is anything but a politically washed and dried, spin-cycle candidate speaking only in elementary talking points."

Several friends of mine who don't follow politics the way the rest of us do commented that they had seen the ad by "that politician I've been talking about." Their reviews were unanimously positive. These personal anecdotes apparently weren't isolated events, as the Novick campign blew past the goals it set for more ad buys.

In D.C., political insider newspapers Roll Call and The Hill took notice of Novick's campaign.

At the same time, the mainstream media were starting to notice how primary opponent Jeff Merkley's rhetoric was morphing closer and closer to Novick's.

But then the strangest thing (insert wry grin here) began to happen. Negative stories about Novick started popping up on the internet from the usual suspects -- and some not-so-usual suspects.

On Jan. 15, Senate Guru 2008 attempted to smear Novick with an accusation that he recently plagiarized rhetoric from Barack Obama's presidential campaign. Turns out Novick's been using the line in question since the first official day of his campaign nearly a year ago. And this wasn't the first time the "Guru" had pursued and pushed a false negative narrative about Novick.

Then on Jan. 16, BlueOregon front-paged a piece by the Oregon Economics blog wondering if Steve Novick isn't just a little too short to be elected.

But the whopper of them all came on Jan. 18, when Merkley campaign consultant Kari Chisholm -- whose internet consulting company Mandate Media also publishes BlueOregon -- wrote an outraged post on that site about a brand new, eh-hmm, scandal he was "sad" to have to report about his "friends" at the Novick campaign.

From Oregonian reporter Jeff Mapes' blog (which mentions this incident only as part of a post about other issues):

Liz Kimmerly, who is working on the Novick campaign, is also starting a Progressive Democrats chapter in Oregon. And she allegedly tried to rush through an endorsement process that critics thought was rigged to favor her man Novick.

Blue Oregon founder Kari Chisholm, who is supporting Merkley, wrote a quite outraged post about it. Novick's campaign manager, Jake Weigler, responded to the same post that this was all about nothing. He said that Kimmerly recused herself from the process, and the local chapter agreed to put off the endorsement for a month after the Merkley campaign complained.

That was on Friday. On Saturday, the chapter met and one attendee, blogger Ben DuPree of Witigonen, said Kimmerly still seemed to be pushing for a quick endorsement before Moses Ross, a political operative and Democratic Party activist, took over and slowed things down. Novick, Neville and Merkley's campaign manager, Jon Isaacs, were present and it sounds like quite the lively night, if you're into that sort of low-stakes drama.

Although Register-Guard reporter David Steves first reported the story on his blog, Steves' version of events seemed much tamer than Chisholm's two overwrought BlueOregon posts on behalf of his outrageously wronged client (that wry grin again). Given Chisholm's and others' hysterical comments about this episode being the dirtiest trick in Oregon Democratic history, you'd never know what the real, un-entangled journalists were reporting about this "low-stakes drama."

From Steves' post:

Democratic consultant Moses Ross, who was asked to take that duty over, said he’d been concerned that Kimmerly was trying to rush the endorsement process. But he added that he didn’t think the Novick staffer was trying to rig the process to benefit her boss—even though that could have been the effect.

“I don’t sense there were any dirty tricks involved - just enthusiastic activists,” said Ross, who is not involved with the campaigns of any of the Democrats running for the Senate seat held by Republican Gordon Smith.

“I think it will be a fair and-above board process. And that’s my role to see that that happens,” Ross said.

Novick campaign manager Jake Weigler said no one on his staff, including Kimmerly, saw the PDA endorsement as an opportunity to game the system. He said Kimmerly had been involved with the Progressive Dems when she lived in Los Angeles before relocating to Portland, so it made sense that she would start a chapter here for reasons other than to help her candidate pick up an endorsement.

It’s not unreasonable to ask why Chisholm is trying to make such a big thing out of a "scandal" nobody else but Merkley's internet partisans seem all that interested in. Merkley is a paying client of Chisholm's company, Mandate Media. That same company publishes BlueOregon. There’s no disputing that.

The question is, does BlueOregon come along with the deal when a candidate hires Chisholm and Mandate Media, which thrives on its Democratic Party establishment clients? Sure looks like it does, especially when you consider the "Is-Novick-too-short-to-be-elected?" post that preceded the current "scandal" Chisholm’s trying to build up against his client's opponent.

There's a real reason Oregonian columnist Steve Duin referred to Chisholm as the "Democratic Party errand boy who runs BlueOregon." It's no mistake he's already earned Willamette Week's Rogue of the Week for his "excessive use of bullshit in his mudslinging" against the Novick campaign.

I admit that I've enjoyed the guilty pleasure of watching Chisholm in political operative mode using BlueOregon to beat the drum against Republicans. It's much less amusing when he does it unfairly to fellow Democrats. I'll admit to being a hypocrite on that score.

But the sky-is-falling posts at BlueOregon on this drummed up attempt to further smear Novick are at least as tainted by conflict of interest as were Liz Kimmerly's alleged efforts to put herself in charge of a somewhat obscure group's relatively "meaningless" (Chisholm's word ) endorsement for the Senate nomination.

The Merkley camp appears desperately willing to go out of its way to hit the gutter -- from co-opting Novick's bolder message to engaging in any low-stakes drama it can pump entirely out of proportion.

What drives this? It's gotta be Novick's recent successes. Sometimes it just doesn't pay to have a good week. Maybe the proper response from the Novick campaign (and in the spirit of the people mercilessly pimping these pumped up dramas) should be: jealous much?


“Fake” Scandal Backfires On Merkley Operative
(UPDATE: Tuesday, January 22, 11:45 a.m.)

Well, “Endogate” really got interesting this morning. In the thread of Chisholm’s third breathless post pushing the latest line of attack, Progressive Democrats of America Executive Director Tim Carpenter weighed in to ask Chisholm to stop misrepresenting the nature of their previous telephone conversation and to stop using BlueOregon and the DPA in a “swift boat campaign” against Novick. Carpenter's comment speaks for itself:

Kari,
It was my hope that after you began your effort to misrepresent my conversation with you on the phone you would allow the work of PDA to move forward. I was wrong! When you called me I had just completed my chometherpy session and just had a shot in my eye...you never said you were blogging... simply calling to ask a few questions..I never said anyting about 48 hours...never..Liz was active in PDA in California before she moved to OR to begin a Portland Chapter. she had been on a number of calls with national PDA...her work with PDA predates her move to OR... if you are really about building the progressive movement which I think you are...it's time to stop the swift boat campaign and allow the PDA chapter to move forward and the Senate race to get back to talking about single payer heatlh care, the end of the occuaption of Iraq and building the movement. It was never my intent to jump into this...it's time to get back to organizing...finally I invite folks to visit the PDA site at PDAmerica.org and read about the great OR PDA work that is moving foward ...onward! Posted by: tim carpenter | Jan 22, 2008 7:27:34 AM @ BlueOregon (emphasis mine, ellipses are Carpenter's)

There are certainly a lot of questions that should be answered, but not by the Novick campaign. Given the recent pattern of fraudulent attacks against Steve Novick’s character, one can only wonder if the Merkley camp has realized that bold and fresh beats “washed and dried, spin cycle” politics no matter how much old-guard establishment props a candidate piles up.

Again – in the spirit of the motives behind this pattern of trumped up charges – one can only ask: jealous much?