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Saltzman Says He'll Retire in 2022
Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman tells WW that if he wins re-election in 2018, his sixth term at City Hall will be his last. For years, speculation has persisted that Portland's longest-serving city commissioner would retire at the end of his current term. But Saltzman, who was first elected in 1998, says he'll seek one more term and then call it quits in 2022. "I'm 63 now," says Saltzman. "If I get re-elected, by the time I finish that term, I'll be close to 70. So I figured, that's enough. Time to do something else."
Wyden Calls for Stripping Kushner of Security Clearance
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in a July 17 interview on CNN that he thought White House adviser Jared Kushner's presence at a meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer should disqualify him from handling classified material. "You really are just stunned at how reckless, almost cavalier this White House is with respect to security clearances," Wyden said. The senator, who has consistently harried the Trump campaign for its contacts with Moscow, turned his aim at the president's son-in-law: "He concealed contacts with the Russians on the security clearance forms, then he attended a meeting billed as a session that in effect would have Russia helping the Trump campaign against Hillary Clinton. I just think the evidence piles up."
Portland Marathon Agrees to New Route
The Portland Marathon may have found a path forward to holding its race in October. More than nine months after the city of Portland began asking for a change in the route, marathon organizers have agreed to a compromise. The old route, which had been in place for two decades, required more police officers than the city was willing to provide—the new one doubles back over the same path, reducing the demand on police. But the Portland Bureau of Transportation has not yet issued a permit. "Because the organizers did not contact the Police Bureau or PBOT to discuss event plans for more than six months," says PBOT spokesman Dylan Rivera, "time is running out and the marathon still has many steep hills to climb before it can qualify for a permit."
Kitzhaber and Hayes Face Renewed Inquiry
The investigation into allegations of influence peddling by former Gov. John Kitzhaber and first lady Cylvia Hayes isn't over. Less than a month after federal officials declined to press criminal charges against Kitzhaber and Hayes, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission voted unanimously July 14 to launch full investigations. The commission found "substantial investigative basis" that the first couple may have traded on their public position for private gain, improperly taken gifts and violated conflict-of-interest statutes.