The legislature is considering a bill that should make Oregon voters mad, or at least uneasy. Why? Because some day the bill might cause Oregon’s electoral votes for president to be cast for someone other than whoever got the most votes in this state.
I don’t play poker and have no interest in the game, but I’m trying to understand why 39 members of the Oregon House —Â NOT including Albany’s Andy Olson — voted on Thursday to shut down and ban private poker clubs in Portland and perhaps other towns as well.
It would be nice if Oregon legislators insisted on getting some facts instead of voting based on assumptions and emotions, as the Senate Judiciary Committee did on the gun-confiscation bill it passed, 3-2, on Tuesday.
On a slow day you can always amuse yourself by browsing what the Oregon legislature is up to. Take, for instance, the left-lane bill that cleared a Senate committee last Wednesday by a vote of 4 to zip.
Guns are on the minds of Oregon legislators again this year, judging by the number of bills introduced so far. Some would relax the restrictions on gun transfers and have no chance with the Democratic majority. Others would tighten restrictions or add new ones.
There are lots of things that could conceivably be taxed. But old cars? Clunkers driven by people who probably can’t afford to get anything new?
Watch out, the lawmakers are back
The 2019 legislature has organized itself in Salem. From here it looks like the majority will do everything it can this session to make life more expensive and less free for taxpayers and other citizens who would rather be left alone.
Tags: 2019 legislature, gun bills, Oregon legislature, tax increases