My pro TPP Oregon Senator Ron Wyden just endorsed Hillary Clinton. Look at his primary challenger?

[cascadiance]

Ron Wyden, who was one of the primary driver of corporatist Democrats to join forces with the Republicans to pass the Fast Track bill which could lead to us passing TPP later just endorsed Hillary Clinton as noted in the HRC group a short time ago.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/110738974

Note how this Oregonian article on this mentions nothing about Wyden's stances on TPP, etc. as being perhaps a reason he's more aligned with Hillary than Bernie...

http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2016/01/ron_wyden_makes_it_official_he.html

I'd earlier tried to call in to persuade Pete DeFazio to do a primary challenge to him this year, but that hasn't happened. But there is someone who is challenging him in the primary, Kevin Stine of Medford.

http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20150921/NEWS/150929984

He looks a little young and perhaps inexperienced, but he does look to have some good policy stances and is noted for running on his disagreement with the way Ron Wyden has voted on our trade policies. As the first comment noted here, I wonder how much of a supporter of Bernie Sanders he is. I would think he would be wise to align himself with Bernie Sanders, who I think still has the largest crowd in his campaign at the Rose Garden here in Portland when he brought 28,000 of us together to see him there this last summer.

If nothing else, by taking a strong support of Bernie, and us helping build him a platform to speak from, perhaps he can also bring more focus to issues here in this state that Bernie's been talking about in terms of wealth inequality, job outsourcing through both TPP and guest worker program crap, health care reform, student debt relief, etc. that can force Wyden to provide answers to those questions if he wants solid Democratic Party support in the coming election.

Oregon has been paving the way for marijuana legalization and amnesty reform in its latest state propositions along with state legislation, and the legislature has moved towards making community college free starting in 2017. A lot of things that Bernie supports. I think we as voters need something more from Wyden to support what we want both in this state and nationally too.

[ErisDiscordia]

1. I wish him luck

If I were 30 years younger, I'd do the same.

[fredamae]

2. Ron "TPP" Wyden can no longer

represent Oregon because he chose to Stop Representing Oregonians.

I'll write in "sand dollar" before I'd cast another vote for him. Wyden loss extends to just about Everyone I know...

I too have lobbied DeFazio to challenge him ... No luck

[davidpdx]

22. I'm with you fredamae

I'm also writing in Daffy Duck for the House seat held by Schrader. If we lose the primary, my ballot in November may get ugly.

[fredamae]

23. Lol, While I was brewing

my morning cuppa...I was - ironically - trying to think of something for schrader myself-I decided on "Slug Shit".
I don't want to insult any of the fine sea critters at the beach. And voting for him is literally "wasted".
He's a veterinarian by trade so the possibilities are endless...but I don't want to insult any of our critter friends.

[libdem4life]

3. More Coattails. Suddenly, anti-establishment Progressives think they, like Bernie, have a chance.

I also hope we get to wish farewell to DWS in Florida...and in the DNC. There's a Sea Change at work.

[Art_from_Ark]

24. It's time to kick the weasels out of Toad Hall!

[libdem4life]

25. Send 'em packing !

[bkkyosemite]

4. Medford is in a red county (Jackson) although we are the only county in the U.S.

that voted for no GMO's and passed.

Bernie's rally a couple of weekends ago had 100 people and I was there. Many honked as they drove by and many had thumbs up. But there were some who would yell socialist, communist or gun their motors (usually young guys in big trucks). I canvassed for Obama here and had people show their fist and yell at me.

If this guy has a chance he needs to be better known. I have never heard of him here. And in this county Obama won by a handful of votes, I think 7. So there you have Medford. I wish him well. Btw I'm going to call Wyden and give his staff a piece of my mind and that I am for Bernie.

[cascadiance]

5. I'm hoping TPP's ISDS courts doesn't allow Monsanto to sue you for lost profits there...

That would be a good issue to bring up in asking Ron Wyden why he supports both Hillary and the TPP there.

[bkkyosemite]

7. Monsanto spent 1 mil here and then after we won

they went to court to undo what we did.......and they lost. I'm sure they will keep trying the criminals.

[cascadiance]

10. The problem is that the USDS courts will be probably more aligned with Monsanto's interests...

... than the other courts they went to earlier.

[bkkyosemite]

21. We'll fight like hell. We banded with the farmers and we won

we are not going to sit down and take it from criminals.

[Enthusiast]

6. I used to send Wyden the occasional small donation.

Since he endorsed the TPP I am clear done with Wyden. What a betrayal of the working people of this nation.

[bkkyosemite]

8. I'm wondering what Merkley will do. I'm calling both tomorrow.

[cascadiance]

9. I'd like to think that Merkley will hold out like Warren has...

Merkley has a very good relationship with Elizabeth Warren on the Finance Committee, and of course he was probably the first senator to talk in favor of legalizing pot even before Bernie did, when he was up for election the same year as the marijuana initiative was on the ballot. I've talked with him a number of times at his BBQ's here in Portland. He's one of the good guys!

[Enthusiast]

12. Glad to hear it. I like the good guys.

[Trajan]

27. Merkley has come out AGAINST TPP

The one shining star in Oregon's political universe ...

SO disappointed in Blumenour and Bonamici ... How dare they ignore their voting constituency ....

[SoapBox]

11. Wyden...

Ugh. Such a disappointment.

Time for him to go...like Pelosi and War Hawk DiFi, here in California.

[libdem4life]

26. Hate to say it, but somebody gave DiFi a job for life. She def knows where the bodies are buried.

There are quite a few (politically speaking) in CA. Pelosi...she's richer than god and lives in one of the most liberal establishment counties in CA.

[Bernin4U]

13. Yes, Jeff Merkley as the Senior Senator from Ore!

Hardly a surprise about Wyden, but thanks for the heads-up.

Will be interesting to look into Stine. Sounds like he's definitely to the left of Wyden. And being against wasteful military spending makes him a fiscal conservative? Interesting.

Seems very green though, only being in his 2nd year on the city council.

[cascadiance]

14. Yes, I really thought it would be the perfect time for DeFazio to make the move up...

... as he's been pretty much the one Oregon House congressman with a decent record both on the Free Trade bills and also has a decent record on things like privacy issues that Wyden had been good on in the past too, but I'm guessing the party brass put a lot of pressure on him to stay out. I do think that Stine might be a decent guy, but would have liked to see him in the House for at least a term or two before trying the Senate. I think the money people will go after him and try to keep him out of the Senate. I think though that even if he loses, if he could put up a good "people's battle" and inject a little publicity towards Wyden's stances on things like the TPP, and strongly support Bernie,which could put a lot of pressure on Wyden in the general election to take better stances for us if Stine gives him a good battle with many of us throwing a lot of support his way which wouldn't be normally expected for a real green politician. Might also send a message to DeFazio that he should have taken the opportunity when he had it so that he doesn't miss one thrown his way later if it presents itself (i.e. if Merkley were to become someone like Bernie's running mate or something like that).

[Bernin4U]

17. Bernie and Jeff?

First I've heard that ever suggested. Not that it's so crazy.

"Berner and Turner" has a nicer ring to it, and the mix looks great on paper. But would she make a good successor? Seems maybe a little underqualified.

How about Blumenauer as the junior US sen?

[cascadiance]

18. I was disappointed with Blumenauer voting for Fast Track legislation in the House...

... and the same for my congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. DeFazio was the only Oregon congressional Dem to really take a decent stand on trade legislation. You really wouldn't be changing much if you replaced either one of Bonamici or Blumenauer for Wyden, given both of them are doing the same thing on TPP, etc.

Merkley seems as reasonable as it gets in the Senate for a good progressive Senator, and tried to lead us to fix the filibuster rules properly which might have helped get things done properly and stop the Republican obstruction had he been able to get the Dems to vote them in. Though not a woman like Warren, I think he has a lot of the same stances she has on many things and served on the Finance committee too. He also has the geographic benefit of being a west coast politician to complement Bernie being from the east coast that Warren wouldn't have. If Merkley were to leave the Senate for a VP slot, I would think that would definitely be the time to recruit DeFazio for the Senate then. And if Stine didn't beat Wyden in this primary race, he might be a great one to go for DeFazio's seat if DeFazio were to move to the Senate later.

[in_cog_ni_to]

15. What the hell happened to Wyden?! I always saw him as one if the most Progressive members of

Congress.

Is he planning to retire in a year or two? Maybe he decided to sell out to make some retirement money? His recent behavior has been bizarre! TPP and endorsing HRH are not Progressive things to do! Something happened to Ron Wyden.

I'm glad he's being primaried and I hope he loses! That would send a nice message.

PEACE
LOVE
BERNIE

[cascadiance]

16. I think it got started when he was working with Paul Ryan on that lame Medicare bill of Ryan's...

... that he distanced himself from later. As I noted here on DU, it was about the same time he did this when he had to get prostrate cancer surgery, so I wonder if there was something going on between those events that might have made him "hostage" to lobbyist money or something like that. Timing of that and what Wyden did then seemed strange at the time.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1073&pid=57

That was about the first time I found something I was disappointed in that he had done, as before he had done a lot of other good work, particularly on privacy issues.

[in_cog_ni_to]

19. Man, I hope he's not seriously ill

And on-the-take because he desperately needs money.

I didn't know he had surgery before. That does add a twist to what he's doing with all this out-of- character behavior.

I still can't believe he enforced HRH.

PEACE
LOVE
BERNIE

[cascadiance]

20. I think he's fine now, I think that was six years ago right near his last election, not this one.

I just wonder if there was something going on weird with the health care providers taking care of him then that were trying to persuade him to work with Ryan then. Pure speculation on my part, as at the time, it seemed a bit out of character for him to even talk to Ryan on that crap Ryan was working on, and later he was said to have pulled back from that too.