A little foreplay

In a month or so, we Portlanders will be inundated with election porn – direct-mail flyers from bobbleheads running for political office, and from those ever-present "activists" pushing or fighting mostly inane ballot measures. But just to wet the whistle, my local representatives in the state legislature dropped a glossy full-color four-pager on me the other day. It appears to have been produced and mailed at public expense.

The front-page come-on is pretty vague. And when you get inside, the more detailed list of "accomplishments" is pretty odd. Both Frederick and Nelson brag about bills that they introduced but couldn't get passed. They let us know that they're interested in reintroducing them in the future. Being that they're up for re-election in November, doesn't that sound like a campaign promise? So should the taxpayers be paying for the campaign literature? 

Oh, well. Nelson reports that he offered an amendment that made it into one bill that actually passed. That seems to put him ahead of Frederick in getting stuff done. 

And funny thing, no mention by Frederick that he voted against repealing the insane hard-drug decriminalization law, Measure 110. He was one of the few legislators spaced-out enough to oppose basic common sense.

For Sanchez, the big achievements are that she "worked on" a bill that passed, and co-sponsored another law "that establishes a task force to analyze and address challenges."

And oh boy, are they all ever proud of doling out the pork. Including – was there any doubt? – the Albina Vision Trust apartment bunker-fest! Nothing "heals our community" like more apartment towers. Is "Blackwash" a word?

Given that this trio, and that awful Khanh Pham, are backed by the local Democratic Party machine, there is absolutely zero chance that they won't be returned to the legislature to continue the frivolities. But despite their death grip on Salem, I'm sure their official election porn will be added to the heap in a month or two. This mailer is doubtlessly just a warmup.

UPDATE, 3:20 p.m.: A reader asks why I think the taxpayers paid for this. The return address is Oregon Legislature, 900 Court St. NE, H-275, Salem, OR 97301.