Kate Brown: Running for Secretary of State
Kate Brown announced this morning that she's running for Secretary of State.
From her statement:
Democratic State Senator Kate Brown announced today she would seek her party’s nomination for Secretary of State in 2008. Brown recently resigned her position as Senate Majority Leader, after nine years as the leader of the Democratic caucus and sixteen years in the Legislature.“My legislative career has been extremely satisfying,” said Brown. “Over the years we have accomplished much to make Oregon a better state. The time has come for me to take my proven leadership skills and problem solving abilities to a new level. I want to be Oregon’s next Secretary of State. If elected, I will bring the same dedication and hard work ethic I demonstrated in the legislature to being Secretary of State. I will serve my full term and will fulfill my duties with integrity, fairness and common sense.”
Brown announced her candidacy today, as she begins raising money and reaching out to Oregonians fulltime. An official kick-off event will be scheduled in the fall.
“Among the many important parts of this job, the Secretary of State is the keeper of Oregon’s democracy,” said Brown. “After years of chairing the Senate Rules and Elections Committee, which dealt with most aspects of election law and campaign finance measures, I am uniquely qualified to preserve the integrity of our elections.”
Senator Brown noted her work leading the effort to make campaign finance reporting in Oregon more transparent and accountable to Oregonians, requiring more detailed and more frequent reporting, and moving campaign finance reporting to a real-time, searchable online database. The new rules, required by Brown’s bill (2005 HB 3458), took effect January 1, 2007. The upcoming election will be the first statewide election under the new reporting requirements.
“Throughout my time in the legislature, I’ve also worked to make government itself more accountable and efficient. We tried various ways to look at state agency spending through the budgeting process to ensure wise use of resources. As Secretary of State, I will use the Audits Division to ensure all our state programs are using taxpayer dollars efficiently and effectively. Even in times of economic growth like we are experiencing today, we must be vigilant to ensure we get the most bang out of our limited bucks,” added Brown.
Visit Kate Brown For Secretary of State. Discuss.
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July 09, 2007
Posted in in the news 2007. |
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Jul 9, '07
This should be an improvement. The way Democrat voters lined up behind Bradbury for re-election despite his highly partisan actions (screwing over Ralph Nader, playing games with initiatives he didn't like etc) was disgusting.
Bob Tiernan
Jul 9, '07
I don't agree with bob about nader and bradbury. But i do agree that Kate will rock as S.O.S. It is time for her to move on to statewide office. I think the S.O.S offfice is a perfect fit for her talents, energy, and conmitment. i wonder who will run for her seat though???
Jul 9, '07
Kate Brown and Vicki Walker in the primary. I am in charge of selling popcorn.
Jul 9, '07
Was this the position Ben Westlund was rumored to be eyeing? Wonder what'll happen to him, is he still viable as a Senator after having changed his registration?
Jul 9, '07
I am glad to see this announcement and would be happy to have Kate Brown as SOS.
P.S. verasoie - Ben Westlund's website indicates that he is considering running for Treasurer.
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Obnoxious hate speech removed.]
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Responses to obnoxious hate speech removed.]
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Responses to obnoxious hate speech removed.]
Jul 9, '07
Is Westlund going to run for Treasurer as a Democrat, Republican, Independent, Constitution Party, Green Party, Socialist Party, or as a Romantic Humanist?
Does this mean we lose that Senate seat next election?
Jul 9, '07
I'm very happy to see Senator Kate Brown in the race for Secretary of State.
She has been a hard working, smart, valued member of the Oregon Senate for nearly a decade. With her leadership she removed the Gordon Smith Conservativism that controlled that chamber for over a Decade. She then replaced it with pragmatic progressivism which lead to an Oregon Rainy Day Fund, stronger environmental protections, equal rights for Gays and Lesbians, greater protections for abused woman and children, mental health and contraceptive parity, and much, much more.
Kate Brown has a record of being a voice for progressive ideals and leadership skills to make them reality.
I am excited to see what Kate Brown can do Secretary of State.
Good Luck Kate and you have my vote.
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Obnoxious comment removed.]
Now, this is the way to run a website! Seriously.
I am happy with Kate Brown. She is exiting at a perfect time, after a highly successful session. The district that she will be leaving is heavily Democratic so no worries about losing any Senate seats from this one. Since it is my district I will be curious to see who is eyeing her seat.
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Another obnoxious comment deleted. (We can play this game all day, buddy.)]
2:40 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
[Editor's note: Blue Oregon does not make endorsements as a site and we'll be posting other announcements when/if additional candidates enter the primary.]
Jul 9, '07
Initially, I was taken aback by the superficial resemblance between Kate's photo and Florida's infamous SOS Katherine Harris (without the scary make-up, of course). I'm better now, though, and am thoroughly pleased to hear that OUR Kate is running for SOS. I think she would do a great job.
Her announcement pledges that she will serve out her full term; presumably that means we will not see her run for governor in 2010 if she's elected to this seat?
Jul 9, '07
Since when has any Portland liberal democrat ever been even close to cutting spending or being fiscally disciplined? We are ripe for a census and more gerrymandering in the next few years, do we really want another "keep Portland weird" type liberal to have any statewide office? I'll be curious to see if "progressives" like Brown continue to try to clamp down, restrict and destroy the initiative process. That sounds a bit regressive to me. Anyway why do liberals like Brown did in that message keep trying to shift the term liberal into progressive? Does progressive mean tolerating every bad behavior (drug use, abortion), holding government and citizens to zero accountability (welfare, social security etc), and obliterating every social norm (ACLU on religion, Gay/Lesbian marriage)? That's Brown and that sounds liberal, not progressive.
3:33 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Blow your Portland bashing out your ass OA.
Jul 9, '07
-OA,
Luckily, there are many places that you can call home if you are anti-Oregon and even more so anti-Portland. Kansas or Oklahoma, perhaps?
What are social norms? What you determine them to be? A history book would enlighten you that social "norms" have varied over the years. America is a nation of PLURALITY. We are a nation that believes in ALL voices, not one. DIVERSITY is Portland's halmark. It is Kate Brown's halmark and it is EXACTLY where I want to be.
Jul 9, '07
OA - LIBERAL = PROGRESS i.e. liberals are progressive Conservative = Stagnation, debt, prejudice, ignorance ie Conservatives are regressive and anti-progress
Jul 9, '07
Kate Brown will make a great secretary of state. With all due respect to Bradbury and Kiesling, she will bring the zing back to the office it has lacked since Barbara Roberts left. Has Vicki Walker announced? I don't see how she beats Kate in a primary.
Jul 9, '07
Editor, interesting how you only pulled down the blog that YOU thought was obnoxious. Is that what liberals call free speech? It seems to be with Hillary, Pelosi, Reed and your democrats pushing to re-start the fairness doctrine. If they can't beat us conservatives, why not outlaw us?
BTW- Liberalincarnate, I love Portland and Oregon, but I abhor the fact that liberals continually push to make everyone different and diverse. They are ruining our society. We should be trying to find similarities and ways to get along, not point out our differences and flaunt them. How many times have you heard "Bush is a divider"? There is nothing more divisive than pointing out all the ways we are different and intentionally trying to be different than everyone else. Go ahead and stay "weird" the rest of us will keep the world running.
4:56 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Even in Walker loses, she gains the experience of running for a statewide office.
And since her senate seat isn't up next year, she won't lose her seat if she runs.
We need more people who are willing to run for office even if their chances of winning are low. You gain experience, name recognition, etc. Not to mention the fact that a contested race usually means more information about the candidates reach the voters, the voter actually have a choice, and higher voter turnout.
The only negative I could see is if you had Brown, Walker, and some likable conservative all running for the position. Brown & Walker could split the vote enough to give it to a conservative. However, I seriously doubt Brown or Walker would let that happen.
5:14 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Boy, I can tell I am not feeling well today... I've never had so much trouble spelling since I was young.
That should have said "Even if Walker loses..."
5:17 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Bizarre thread. Kate's a great candidate and should make a great--and uncontroversial, based on her record in the lege--SOS.
5:18 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Ah... OA brings out the old fake outrage and fraudulent bloviating standard used by trolls and whiny "conservatives" for years now... the "if you are intolerant of intolerance then you practice discrimination" cry-baby schtick.
Sell your convoluted and contradictory bromides over at RedState or FReerepublic.
Jul 9, '07
Jenni -
I was definitely not suggesting Walker shouldn't run. I think real election contests produce better elected officials. They are forced to define their goals more clearly and have more accountability to the voters.
5:59 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Ross:
I didn't think you were. However, ever since the rumor surfaced that Brown might run for SOS and Walker might also run, some have been suggesting it.
6:26 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
The only negative I could see is if you had Brown, Walker, and some likable conservative all running for the position. Brown & Walker could split the vote enough to give it to a conservative. However, I seriously doubt Brown or Walker would let that happen.
Huh? There's a Democratic primary first. (Unless you're talking about a likable conservative Democrat.)
6:28 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Editor, interesting how you only pulled down the blog that YOU thought was obnoxious.
OA, we're leaving your comments up. What we pulled down was hate speech. I think I'll clarify those Editor's Notes.
6:32 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Sorry, like I said earlier, I'm not feeling well and my brain's not what it should be today... I forgot that we do have a partisan primary for those positions. I was thinking it was everyone running all at once.
8:53 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Kari and BlueOregon folks,
Tell me if I'm wrong but I've rarely seen so many comments deleted because of hate speech. Is this a sign of the campaign to come? Do progressives (definitions aside) have to get prepared to defend talented Kate? Clearly, her leadership and ideas have ensured that she deserves such a defense...
Jul 9, '07
Great quote to remember about ALL primaries:
"I think real election contests produce better elected officials. They are forced to define their goals more clearly and have more accountability to the voters. "
Looking forward to intelligent debate between Brown and Walker. It is what voters deserve.
10:00 p.m.
Jul 9, '07
Kristin -- Nah, they didn't look targeted at Kate. It just looks like a particularly nasty troll (not from Oregon) found our site and went crazy.
Jul 9, '07
Kate Brown is a talented, very smart, tough lady who knows how to work a crowd. I'm glad to see she's in. Primaries are good things, in my mind the most important election - it is when you get to decide WHO represents you against "the other guy."
Jul 9, '07
HOUSE DEMOCRATS PASS PAYROLL TAX IN FINAL HOURS HB 2575 Deducts $35 Million from Oregonians¹ Paychecks in 2009-11 Tax tax tax, its all the democrats do is tax hard working people. This is why I am not a democrat, this tax will not benefit me or my family but we will have to pay it, we will get NO return from this money that the state will TAKE from us. Thanks democrats for TAKING away my children's education funds away from me. Shouldn't I have a say in this, shouldn't Oregonians have a say in this, shouldn't we vote to increase taxes? I don't get it...progressive my But@ Progressive money takers, and I mean TAKE...not ask but TAKE!!!
Jul 9, '07
Yamhill county,
Wow, dude, chill out man and take a civics lesson while you're at it. We live in a representative democracy, so you and every person in Oregon have their say in the person you elect to represent you. The state's education budget just went up 18%, that's a huge increase for your kids' education, and Oregonians supported it overwhelmingly by electing Democrats to represent them. And it was one of the platforms they ran on, so you can't say they didn't ask, people elected them expressly to do so! If you don't like that, go find a different country to live in, because here, representative democracy is the law of the land.
Jul 9, '07
Newsflash, Yamhill County -- that did not pass the Senate. You can hold off on the bitching.
Yeah, it would certainly suck to have paid family leave, huh? Because then you wouldn't have to take the money you'd be putting into your children's education fund to pay the bills when you/they get sick and you miss work... oh, wait. Nevermind.
12:28 a.m.
Jul 10, '07
YC, care to explain how a penny-an-hour is a massive burden? If you work 40 hrs a week, 52 weeks a year, that's 2080 hours... Or $20.80 a year.
And in return for those insurance payments (not a tax), you'd be able to get $250/week for six weeks in the event of a birth, death, major illness, etc.
If you work for 40 years, you'd pay $832 in total fees. If you make a six-week claim just one time, you'd claim $1500.
You were saying?
3:36 a.m.
Jul 10, '07
Yes, and it is too bad this did not pass in the Senate. Enough Dems voted against the bill that it didn't pass. It's pretty bad this could get through the House, yet not the Senate.
I'd have loved something like this back when I had our daughter. I spent more than a week in light labor, before going to heavy labor for more than 24 hours. I ended up with an emergency c-section on a Saturday. By Thursday I was back at work since we couldn't afford for me to miss any more work. Or when I had surgery in the fall of 2005 and my husband couldn't take off much time to stay at home with me - leaving me with an abdomen covered in cuts and a three year-old to take care of while he was at work.
It's just wrong that the United States for being one of the richest countries in the world treats its employees so much worse than other countries. We work more hours per day, week, month, and year than other similar nations. We get less time for vacation, we get less sick time, and we don't get paid leave. And most of us get stuck with crappy health care plans that only pay out after you've paid out a lot out of pocket (in addition to several thousand in premiums). Ours pays something like 80% after we've paid our co-pay and met our deductible. It used to pay for everything once we'd met our deductible. Now we pay considerably more per month, plus our co-pay doubled (tripled for OBGyn, physical therapy, and ER visits).
8:37 a.m.
Jul 10, '07
The PFL bill was very frustrating but Kate Brown's strong support did a lot to take it as far as it went. Some Democrats might have fallen under the sway of Big Business (i.e. AOI) which were patently opposed to the Bill. Unfortunatly, some of their opposition stems from ignorance. In California, where they have a similar bill, businesses have found a decline in sick time (family leave is always easier to plan for than unanticipated sick time) and a decline in employee turnover (so very expensive). Also, do businesses really want exhausted, resentful employees who would REALLY rather be somewhere else? Also, some Democrats and Republicans voted against the Bill even though they said they heartily supported the concept because they were concerned about the way in which the program would be paid for long-term. To those legislators, I would certainly expect that they joined with Bill co-sponsors in February to put forth a bill they like -- it's time for them to put their time and efforts where their mouth is.
Jul 10, '07
I too understand it would be nice to have someone else pay for you to take time off work, when you get sick, have a baby etc. But what happened to learning how, and actually preparing to take care of yourself? Why can't people save a few weeks income (or like every financial planner suggests at least 3-6 months income)? Or how about buy your own insurance? Nope in most democrats minds it is the government's responsibility to tax OTHER people to pay for the services YOU need, but should have saved up for yourself. People! Government programs are not the answer to every problem! Lets teach each other how to take care of ourselves and each other without having the government force you. That is a recipe for freedom and prosperity.
Jul 10, '07
I think this thread was about Kate Brown's run for Secretary of state. Brown is a dynamic leader who is willing to take risks. Ethics reform, domestic partnerships, access to birth control, support for foster kids, sexual assault protections - and that's just a partial list for this session alone. As Democratic leader she led the Senate Dems from at 10-20 minority to an 18-12 majority. At the same time, she is pragmatic and able to work across the aisle. Kate Brown is a rockstar, and I support her wholeheartedly.
Jul 12, '07
Does anyone have information on where Kate Brown gets her money?
I am trying to track insurance industry, Big Pharma and hospital chain money in the Oregon Legislatiure- with emphasis on the Multnomah Co. Dems.
<h2>Is there any truth to the rumor that the Dems are up to their eyebrows in health greed industry money?</h2>