News Former Gov. John Kitzhaber got the political chattering classes wound up with a recent address to the City Club of Portland. Kitzhaber's speech ramped up speculation that he'll again seek the office he held from 19945 through 20023. (The Oregon Constitution limits a governor to serving no more than eight years in any 12-year period so Kitzhaber is eligible for a mulligan). Political insiders ...   More

News For someone who once called Oregon "ungovernable," ex-Gov. John Kitzhaber sure sounded ready to run for his old job in an appearance today at the City Club of Portland. Kitzhaber, whom insiders say is already out soliciting endorsements for another gubernatorial run in 2010, was introduced as the "only person who can tell you for sure" if he will or won't run again. Yet he never mentioned ...   More

News If U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Springfield) and ex-Gov. John Kitzhaber decide to run each other in the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial primary, DeFazio will carry one advantage: a war-chest of $370,000 in his congressional campaign fund. In case you missed our online Murmurs today, we reported that election law lets DeFazio —who's speaking June 19 at Portland City Club three weeks after Kitzhaber ...   More

News With ex-Gov. John Kitzhaber weighing a campaign to reclaim his former office, it's only fair that ex-Gov. Barbara Roberts — the woman he unceremoniously replaced in the governor's mansion by big-footing her out of the 1994 Democratic gubernatorial primary — should also be considering a comeback. Roberts, 72, has never forgiven Kitzhaber for breaking an unwritten political rule—that ...   More

News Gov. Ted Kulongoski announced a number of new appointments this week. At a time when his predecessor and possible successor, former Gov. John Kitzhaber, is running on a vision of a "post-partisan" Oregon, a couple of Kulongoski's choices are noteworthy. He named Larry Campbell, a Eugene Republican who was Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives in 1991 and 1993 to the Ethics Commission. ...   More

News As reported last week, former Secretary of State Bill Bradbury has hired a campaign manager. So it seems pretty certain that when former Gov. Barbara Roberts (below) introduces Bradbury next week, Bradbury will be announcing officially that he is a candidate in the 2010 Democratic primary for governor. Unofficially, Bradbury has been running for months, as evidenced by his raising and ...   More

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News Former Secretary of State Bill Bradbury formally kicked off his 2010 campaign for governor this morning, announcing his candidacy in a 22-minute press conference held at the Portland Community College-Sylvania campus. He was introduced by former Oregon Gov. Barbara Roberts, who served in the position from 1990 to 1994 before fellow Democrat John Kitzhaber replaced her. “It's time to ...   More

News The looming ballot fight over permanent increases in Oregon's income tax for the wealthiest state residents — and in the minimum tax paid by Oregon corporations — was a big topic this morning when Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Kitzhaber appeared at a Portland Business Alliance forum. The ex-governor was careful to begin his tax remarks by saying he was not going to back ...   More

News Former Gov. John Kitzhaber picked up two large donations this week from prominent Oregonians in his bid to win the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial primary. As we reported last week, Kitzhaber has been collecting some big-bucks contributions of the $10,000-per-donor variety. This week, Kitzhaber recorded a $15,000 contribution from winemaker Eric Lemelson and another $5,000 from the political ...   More