The Oregon Trial Lawyers Give Big to An Unlikely Recipient—Bend Republican Sen. Tim Knopp

OTLA almost always gives to Democrats. Its check to Knopp is our contribution of the week.

Sen. Tim Knopp
By Nigel Jaquiss

Contribution of the week
How much? $5,000

Who gave it? The Oregon Trial Lawyers Association

Who got it? State Sen. Tim Knopp (R-Bend)

Why is it interesting? The Oregon Trial Lawyers Association is one of the bulwarks of the Democratic Party. Nearly all of the $574,000 the group contributed last year went to Democratic candidates or causes. But earlåier this month, the trial lawyers crossed the aisle to give $5,000 to Knopp, a onetime GOP firebrand (he named his son Reagan) turned moderate. Campaign finance records show the group has never previously supported Knopp. Even more interesting: He hasn't yet drawn opposition in the primary for 2020, but he does have a Democratic opponent in his increasingly blue district. (Democrats now hold a registration advantage of 3 percentage points over Republicans.) OTLA executive director Beth Bernard says her group wanted to recognize Knopp for consistently doing the right thing. "He stood up to [state Sen. Jeff] Kruse (R-Roseburg) for his the on-the-job harassment," Bernard says. "He has been an advocate for our members who represent sex abuse victims, and he's been good on statutes of limitiations and nondisclosure agreements. For those people who are courageous on our issues, we've got
to be there for them."

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