Wednesday night, the Republican who could win the Oregon governor’s race for the first time in 40 years criticized her Democratic opponent for her’stunning’ flip on defunding the police and supporting extended COVID lockdowns.
Christine Drazan, who chaired the Oregon House of Representatives for the Republican Party, refused to distance herself from election skeptics and QAnon conspiracy theorists within her own party.
It is unrelated to other races. It’s not about other candidates,’ Drazan responded when asked about Republican Senate candidate Jo Rae Perkins of Oregon, who thanked ‘Q’ and former President Donald Trump when she won the GOP primary.
Drazan was cited in August as wishing success to the other Republican candidates.
Drazan stood onstage with Democrat Tina Kotek and independent candidate Betsy Johnson, a former state senator who quit the Democratic Party, for the last gubernatorial debate with less than three weeks until Election Day and a small advantage in the polls.
The argument was dominated by issues that tarnish the state’s reputation: homelessness, drug abuse, and police support (or lack thereof).
Kotek, the former speaker of the Oregon House, stated that Drazan’s call for her Republican colleagues to walk off the job did not improve the issue of homelessness.
‘We lost momentum,’ Kotek remarked.
In a legislature ruled by Democrats, this approach was employed to slow down legislation by preventing the House from reaching quorum.
Drazan thought Kotek’s criticism was humorous.
Drazan stated, “The suggestion that the House speaker, who has had accountability for this task for over a decade, would pass responsibility to the House Republican leader is a touch flattering, but it’s really, really, really off target.”
Drazan alleged that Kotek gave “almost everything” precedence over addressing homelessness.
She has failed to demonstrate leadership on this subject. And you can’t blame Kate Brown,’ she continued, referring to the outgoing Democratic governor who, according to Morning Consult, had the lowest national approval rating in the spring. You cannot possibly blame the Republicans for this.
Drazan stated, “The worst indictment of Tina Kotek’s leadership is her inaction on this subject.”
All three contenders expressed cautious support for Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler’s plan to house the homeless at three huge campuses and prohibit camping in downtown Portland.
Kotek voiced support for retaining initiative 110, a 2020 election measure that decriminalized the possession of heroin, methamphetamine, LSD, oxycodone, and other dangerous narcotics.
‘I believe that starting afresh would result in more deaths,’ added the Democrat.
Johnson stated that she will ask the state legislature to’refer’ the measure back to the voters.
Johnson stated, “I believe there was little discussion about the downstream ramifications of ballot proposition 110, which practically legalized hard narcotics.”
For those caught with narcotics, the ballot initiative permitted a $100 fine or treatment at a rehabilitation center.
The latter choice is, however, rarely selected.
People will not seek these services, and why should they when our streets are flooded with cheap, strong drugs? Why would this even work?’ Johnson inquired. “I would start over,” stated the independent candidate.
Drazan described speaking with drug addicts who had no interest in receiving assistance.
“We must repeal Initiative 110 in order to settle this situation,” the Republican stated.
Next, candidates were asked if they favored more police presence on the streets; Kotek responded that she does.
When it was Drazan’s turn to speak, she remarked, “You know, Tina Kotek is the original candidate for “defund the cops”.” She did not assist law enforcement even when rioters attacked a police station. It amazes me that she would speak now that she supports law enforcement.
Johnson used the opportunity to criticize her former Democratic colleague.
I concur with Ms. Drazan in being astonished by Tina’s response since we must first respect our police. This does not mean marching with the rioters or criticizing the police during the riots,’ Johnson added.
Johnson continued, “We’ve developed a culture of lawlessness under Tina Kotek and Kate Brown.”
Johnson accused Kotek of ‘taking the side of the rioters’ in a letter to Mayor Wheeler; Kotek disputed to this characterization, noting that she wrote the letter to complain about the illegal use of tear gas in a residential neighborhood.
I believe it is crucial that candidates for governor do not deceive to voters. They both distort my background,’ Kotek added.
On the subject of COVID protocols, Drazan and Johnson both criticized Democrats for lengthy lockdowns, as Oregon had some of the nation’s longest school closures.
Drazan stated, “You know Kate Brown and Tina Kotek threw our children under the bus.” Tina Kotek just gave us all a lecture about being honest with voters. On this matter, she could not be more dishonest with voters. We were in a position to restart schools. She voted against.
Johnson stated that “the single worst thing we did during COVID was to exclude children from classes” and criticized Kotek for being too close with teachers’ unions.
Kotek concurred that kids were absent from the classroom for too long.
The candidates also discussed issues affecting their political parties.
Moderators informed Drazan that a pick-up truck at an Oregon political event displayed signs supporting her and Trump and was adorned with the Confederate flag, which is viewed as a racist symbol by many Americans.
The Republican stated, “I was unaware of that and I will fight firmly against racism in all its manifestations.” Furthermore, the Confederate flag would not be permitted at any of my political activities.
Kotek questioned Drazan on her position on abortion, stating, “The national Republican aim is to abolish abortion.”
“As governor, I will ensure that abortion remains legal in Oregon,” Drazan added.
She noted, however, that she would not support Oregon government monies being used to assist out-of-state women in obtaining abortions, an opinion shared by Johnson.
In light of the recent decline in abortion legalization across the United States, Kotek stated, “that could mean using Oregon taxpayer money to help those individuals receive the care they require.”
Johnson, a former Democrat, was asked if she would be a “spoiler” in the campaign, given that she has been polling at approximately 16 percent.
She exploited the question to mock the progressive, awakened faction of the party.
Let me begin by disputing that premise. I entered this race because I believed I was the greatest candidate to give true leadership for a state that has gone off the tracks under the leadership of Kate Brown and during the period Tina Kotek served as speaker.
Johnson also referred to Kotek as the race’s “spoiler.”
Johnson went on to say, “Tina has ruined the state I love and the party I once belonged to with her aggressively progressive ideas that I spoke out against during my time in the legislature.” There will be a price to pay if you continue on this progressive route that is allegedly at conflict with the rest of Oregon, as I kept telling my colleagues.
The policies, according to Johnson, caused a “spiral into urban deterioration in our metropolitan regions and a lack of opportunity in our rural areas.”
With Kotek and Johnson dividing the typical Democratic vote, Drazan has a chance of winning.
Kotek stated, ‘We don’t need a strong right turn to get our state back on track.’
Drazan argued, “It is not a hard right; it is called balance.”