Oregon - 10 GOP State Senators who staged long walkout barred from reelection

[CultureKing]

..that's 10 of the 12 republican state senators in Oregon.

https://apnews.com/article/oregon-republican-walkout-reelection-f1d270db9e9a72935c13b973d79a4bb7

Note: Oregon state voters approved Measure 113 in 2022 by a margin of 68% - 32% to disqualify legislators with 10 or more unexcused absences (there was a multi-year history of GOP senators simply leaving town to stall all movement on bills).

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

[Benjamin Frank 2.0]

AKA Actions have consequences.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Awwwww,

[Oryxslayer]

I haven't read anything that this would force special elections in those who don't have to stand for reelection this year. Instead the four whose terms seem to expire in 2026 are automatic Lame ducks: Senators Daniel Bonham (SD28), Cedric Hayden (SD06), Kim Thatcher (SD11), and Suzanne Weber (SD16).

And for those 6 that are barred this year, 2 are retiring already. Of the four remainders, most are safe and have designated successors in the event of the now real outcome of them losing this case.

Bill Hansell (SD29) and Lynn Findley (SD30) were already retiring.

Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp (SD27), Brian Boquist (SD12), Dennis Linthicum (SD28), and Art Robinson (SD02) are all barred this year.

Their designated successors:

Each previously designated a successor if they were barred from running. Robinson and Linthicum chose family members: Robinson’s son Noah and Linthicum’s wife, Diane, both filed for office last year. Dundee City Councilor and former Republican lawmaker Bruce Starr, a Boquist supporter, filed to run for Boquist’s seat. And Knopp earlier this month endorsed Shannon Monihan, executive director of the Downtown Bend Business Association, to run in his stead.

The reality is that of the ones who are effected this year, only the Minority Leader's seat is going to be competitive. SD-27 was already a Biden+20 seat thanks to the growth in Bend compacting the district, losing such a prominent incumbent is just going to make it Safe D. The selection of seats on both sides up this year in general are mostly the safe ones, with the exception of the marginal SD-05 presently GOP-held.

[Dan the Roman]

Except no one minded when Texas Democrats made a habit of this, and would be outraged if Tennessee Republicans adopted the same approach.

[Benjamin Frank 2.0]

Except no one minded when Texas Democrats made a habit of this, and would be outraged if Tennessee Republicans adopted the same approach.

No one minded? The Texas Democrats were arrested.

[OSR stands with Israel]

I am proud of them for helping block those truly disastrous housing bills that they did block .

[GeorgiaModerate]

Except no one minded when Texas Democrats made a habit of this, and would be outraged if Tennessee Republicans adopted the same approach.

Well, if I lived in Texas, I'd be pretty outraged if the Tennessee legislature tried to make laws affecting my state.

[Virginiá]

Except no one minded when Texas Democrats made a habit of this, and would be outraged if Tennessee Republicans adopted the same approach.

I can't really blame people for supporting, say, a walkout to block a gerrymander or voter suppression laws, but doing it for other basic policy on a regular basis? You can't govern like that. This is basically a tyranny of the minority situation, where they are trying to exert power they aren't entitled to.

In Oregon's case, the voters themselves approved the amendment in an effort to stop this behavior. Granted, I have always thought this was a stupid fix and they should have directly addressed the quorum rule, but it is what it is and for now, Republicans really don't have a leg to stand on. They knew what the deal was. They over-played their hand on walkouts.

[No War, but the War on Christmas]

I may just need to work my way back home someday, Bend in particular has been looking nice and considering how fast-growing it is could serve as another Blue bastion to hold the state down /w PDX and Eugene.

Congrats Oregon, hopefully this means that they can continue the good work of OHP, Reproductive Freedoms, Protections for LGBT People, Housing Expansion, etc.

[GM Team Member and Senator WB]

AKA Actions have consequences.

Or inactions, as the case may be

[Nyvin]

The Republican only won SD-5 in 2020 due to the Green Party candidate being on the ballot (who took ~4% of the vote...).  

Also it's VERY questionable that Tim Knopp could win re-election anyway.  He barely scrapped by in 2020 and that was with the older, more favorable district.  It shifted quite a bit left in redistricting and is probably unwinnable for him now.

If they flip those two and then flip SD-11 in 2026 then they'd finally have a two-thirds, quorum proof majority (20-10).

[America Needs R'hllor]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

I’m sorry but you cannot argue you believe in democracy if you believe in stuff like this

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

So how do you forcibly disband an entire state party?

[America Needs R'hllor]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

I’m sorry but you cannot argue you believe in democracy if you believe in stuff like this

I look at America, Israel, Hungary, Poland, Germany, and a myriad other places and realize pluralistic democracy has failed. We learned nothing from the past, distant or immediate. Self-defending democracy is the way. Outlaw every movement or candidate that smells of extremism and illiberalism. Nip it in the bud, before you get a whole political party being controlled by a candidate who attempted to end democracy and suffocating the free world. The paradox of tolerance on steroids.

[Benjamin Frank 2.0]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

So how do you forcibly disband an entire state party?

I can't specifically answer that, but I know the national Republican Party was subject to RICO restrictions for about 30 years. So, if the Oregon Republican Party was subject to RICO, it probably could be ordered disbanded.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

I’m sorry but you cannot argue you believe in democracy if you believe in stuff like this

I look at America, Israel, Hungary, Poland, Germany, and a myriad other places and realize pluralistic democracy has failed. We learned nothing from the past, distant or immediate. Self-defending democracy is the way. Outlaw every movement or candidate that smells of extremism and illiberalism. Nip it in the bud, before you get a whole political party being controlled by a candidate who attempted to end democracy and suffocating the free world. The paradox of tolerance on steroids.

This just sounds like liberal authoritarianism to me . I’m sorry but that’s not self defending democracy because you are basically ending democracy here too . 

Also Poland despite having illiberal leaders is still a democracy and the two examples you have of democracy ending happened because of how easy it was to change the constitution in Germany and Hungary

[brucejoel99]

Except no one minded when Texas Democrats made a habit of this, and would be outraged if Tennessee Republicans adopted the same approach.

I can't really blame people for supporting, say, a walkout to block a gerrymander or voter suppression laws, but doing it for other basic policy on a regular basis? You can't govern like that. This is basically a tyranny of the minority situation, where they are trying to exert power they aren't entitled to.

In Oregon's case, the voters themselves approved the amendment in an effort to stop this behavior. Granted, I have always thought this was a stupid fix and they should have directly addressed the quorum rule, but it is what it is and for now, Republicans really don't have a leg to stand on. They knew what the deal was. They over-played their hand on walkouts.

The ballot measure was funny but if the last petitioners were trying to preserve room for short protests, it didn't stop the ORGOP from continuing to block quorums now that safe-seaters see they can just cycle through willing family members every other cycle, so it obviously didn't work & the next ballot initiative needs to set the quorum at 50%. Hopefully the next initiative amendment's campaign arguments need not amount to any more than "We did the absence amendment to try leveraging the ORGOP into stopping their constant walkouts, but it didn't work, so now we need to solve the problem outright by just ending the 2/3rds-quorum altogether for the Legislature to be able to function" to win the ratification vote.

[Virginiá]

The ballot measure was funny but if the last petitioners were trying to preserve room for short protests, it didn't stop the ORGOP from continuing to block quorums now that safe-seaters see they can just cycle through willing family members every other cycle, so it obviously didn't work & the next ballot initiative needs to set the quorum at 50%. Hopefully the next initiative amendment's campaign arguments need not amount to any more than "We did the absence amendment to try leveraging the ORGOP into stopping their constant walkouts, but it didn't work, so now we need to solve the problem outright by just ending the 2/3rds-quorum altogether for the Legislature to be able to function" to win the ratification vote.

I don't know their exact reasoning but I always just assumed the amendment was designed the way it was purely to spite the GOP and get their members kicked out. It was more revenge and less solution. So I would say it worked as intended if that is the case.

Hopefully they stop dicking around now and actually deal with the primary issue.

[America Needs R'hllor]

Their entire party should be banned, but a good baby step.

I’m sorry but you cannot argue you believe in democracy if you believe in stuff like this

I look at America, Israel, Hungary, Poland, Germany, and a myriad other places and realize pluralistic democracy has failed. We learned nothing from the past, distant or immediate. Self-defending democracy is the way. Outlaw every movement or candidate that smells of extremism and illiberalism. Nip it in the bud, before you get a whole political party being controlled by a candidate who attempted to end democracy and suffocating the free world. The paradox of tolerance on steroids.

This just sounds like liberal authoritarianism to me . I’m sorry but that’s not self defending democracy because you are basically ending democracy here too . 

Also Poland despite having illiberal leaders is still a democracy and the two examples you have of democracy ending happened because of how easy it was to change the constitution in Germany and Hungary

Be that as it may - a democratic system that allows a person who attempted to destroy it to come back to power requires deep changes. And so is a democratic system that allows a person or a party dismantling it, slowly or quickly, to stay in power.

[Schiff for Senate]

If this was something that state Democrats unilaterally pushed through, I'd have mixed feelings. But such as it is, no one can cry that this was meant to subvert the will of the people, either - this won a substantial majority of the vote, doubtless including quite a few Republicans.