Today, our family received a letter from the Oregon Republican Party. It seems that they weren't able to find a candidate for Senate District 25 (currently held by Laurie Monnes Anderson, D) in time to have him file to be on the ballot. However, they have located someone and they're running a write-in campaign for the seat.
This is a pretty stealth campaign, otherwise they must have found him at the last moment. There's been no letters to the editor, and I've heard nothing about it around town. But today, there was a letter from ORP Chair Vance Day sitting in my mailbox along with our ballots.
You can read the entire content of the letter, and view a PDF scan of the letter, in my full posting on this at Blog for Oregon.
I'm curious to see if they're doing this is any of the other districts around the state where no Republican is running.
Earlier today the Oregon Senate approved SB 1080, legislation that will help prevent identity fraud in Oregon by tightening the requirements to receive Oregon driver's licenses and identification. SB 1080 will require the Department of Motor Vehicles to verify social security numbers with the U.S. Social Security Administration before issuing an Oregon driver's license, identification card, or driver's permit.
"The lax standard of driver's licensing in Oregon has made our state a target for criminal organizations and more vulnerable to identity fraud," said Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson (D-Gresham). "We took a stand for high standards for state documentation today."
Yeah, sure you did. What you actually did was:
Put thousands of unlicensable drivers on the roads
Put ALL Oregonians and other drivers in the state at risk of accidents involving unlicensed, uninsured drivers
Further pushed the undocumented community underground, making identification of that community much harder--which of course makes responding to the now-hidden but still existing impacts of undocumented residents that much more difficult
Succumbed to the perception of a losing issue for Democrats, despite the fact that harsh anti-immigrant sentiment has utterly failed to capture the American electorate, and without any attempt to respond to distorted perspectives on the issue
This was expected of course, but it's still frustrating--more of the preemptive capitulation of Democrats we typically see in the US Congress, on the basis of stoked political fears rather than an honest evaluation of the issue.
This quote is particularly upsetting:
"Respect for the rule of law is the foundation of our government," said Sen. Joanne Verger (D-District 5), a member of the Transportation Committee, "These conditions are common sense requirements that will protect the public safety and security of our neighborhoods."
Rule of law? WTF? What law says the DMV has to become Homeland Security? What law says the state has to do the federales' job? What suggests this law will do anything other than encourage MORE disrespect for the rule of law, by those now denied the opportunity to drive and pursue a livelihood?
Boo. I look forward to Speaker Merkley completing this pathetic dance, towards screwing the thousands of legitimate Oregon residents who will struggle mightily to produce the required documents. Boooooo.
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Rrroowf!