Finally: Oregon Business Titans Use Their Clout for the Rest of Us

October 28, 2010

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For years we’ve implored the moneyed business class to please speak on behalf of the “other Oregon” that is without a big voice in Salem. The big money boys have been quite happy to sit on kitchen cabinets, be silent partners, give token amounts to both sides, or, more often, sit on the sidelines, fighting their own (usually property) battles with the local politicos.

Until now.

Nike’s Phil Knight has just increased his donation to Chris Dudley’s campaign by another $200,000, bringing his total donation to $400,000.00.[HERE] Knight has also given money to Rob Cornilles for Congress while icing out incumbent David Wu. He’s also given seed money to state house candidates in Washington and East Multnomah Counties [HERE].

Andrew Miller of Stimson Lumber has given $385,000.00 to Dudley’s campaign.

Tim Boyle of Columbia Sportswear heads the Democrats for Dudley campaign. He has also given money to congressional candidate Cornilles.

Who can blame them? Incumbent, David Wu, has openly criticised both Knight and Boyle of being bad for America and the American worker, as he smugly told Laurel Porter on her KGW TV show recently [HERE].

I guess there’s just so much insult and incompetence these guys will take. They’ve caught their limit!

Businessmen are men of action. And they know that you don’t win by sitting on the sidelines. Knight, Boyle and Miller have discovered that letting others do their talking, taking a powder or doing the occasional op ed aren’t working anymore [HERE] . Twenty four years of Democrat governors have shown them what’s ahead: Sustainability of inertia.

Twenty four years have given us higher taxes, budget sucking light rail, press clippings about how wonderful we are, few jobs and little else.

The Democrats have responded by going into crisis mode, cajoling Intel [which gave $5000.00 to Wu] into making its Oregon expansion announcement before the election. The last minute news conference was attended by all the major Democrat candidates. Of course, they are among the same Democrats–former Governor John Kitzhaber anyone? who told Intel in 1999 that the chip giant couldn’t grow here because of the their buddies’ fear of sprawl [HERE].

I’m glad these guys are speaking out. We need some big $peech right now. Money is speech.

Just ask the unions.

Thank you for giving the “other” Oregon a voice in this election.

Tell ’em where you saw it. Http://www.victoriataft.com