Kulongoski, Saxton views aired in synagogue
By Toshio Suzuki
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The Oct. 11 event dubbed A Conversation With Oregon's Next Governor featured one Republican and one Democrat sharing their respective dreams for Oregon, answering questions from Oregonians and orating countless emphatic proclamations from the Neveh Shalom sanctuary. All that was missing was candidate Ron Saxton.
With the campaign trail winding down, Saxton was a no-show, coming down with the flu and sending his wife of 28 years, Lynne, in his stead. This was the largest surprise of the structured two-hour event that had Gov. Ted Kulongoski taking the podium for the first hour and had both guests fielding questions from a three-person panel and then the audience.
Panel representatives were from the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland Community Relations Committee and the National Council of Jewish Women, the event co-sponsors.
Neither the current governor nor the potential first lady of Oregon politics heard the other speak in response to many similar questions concerning Oregon's economy, healthcare plan and education system. With 27 days remaining in the election, the motif from each speaker often lacked subtlety: The incumbent Democrat supports his four-year record and the Republican challenger challenges it.
CRC Director Bob Horenstein said that attendance of approximately 200, is an indication of the tight race between Kulongoski and Saxton, both experienced lawyers, and the overall level of interest in the Jewish community.
When asked by an audience member about Oregon's reputation as being inhospitable to business and claims that the Silicon Forest is "withering," the governor cited his implementation of industrial land sites that lured Google and nanotechnology's Genentech to Oregon.
"There are more Oregonians working today than ever before," said Kulongoski, further asking the audience to "think a little broader about the economy" because Oregon needs structural engineers as much as it needs architects.
Lynne Saxton, a fourth generation Oregonian and Willamette University alum like her husband, relished the opportunity to explain the "philosophical difference" separating each candidate's fiscal identity.
"Ron was a fiscal conservative in the last election and I can tell you with the 12-year-old car I have in the parking lot that he'll be a fiscal conservative until the cows come home, cause that's the way he was raised," she said.
As an example, Saxton noted that within five miles of where she spoke there are 11 school districts with their own payroll departments, health plans and administrative costs, all of which she said could be consolidated to save money.
"Part of the challenge here in Oregon is we have been applying Band-Aids for a very long time," said Saxton, who added that the revenue from the state tax system is not being spent well and has areas of "tremendous waste."
On health care, both acknowledged that the future long-term care challenges the baby boom generation represents and the importance of insuring more Oregonians, especially children.
When asked directly about long-term care, Saxton quoted her husband's support for Measure 44, which if passed would make more Oregonians eligible for discounted prescription drugs.
Kulongoski said he also supports 44 because Oregon has "to have a social safety net so they (the elderly) can have some dignity when they grow old."
On education reform, Saxton said while visiting all 36 Oregon counties and more than 20 schools, her husband encountered the same issue of graduating seniors leaving the state in large numbers.
"The status quo politicians are not getting the job done," said Saxton. She also said that incentive-based pay has to increase to stop the outgoing flow of qualified teachers.
The unfortunate reality with education is that not every child has parents who read to them, said Kulongoski, who proposed an education continuum that would provide free pre-kindergarten to all Oregon children.
"Preschool is not a welfare program," he said, adding that his initiative "can't be done cheaply."
Only the governor was asked about Israel, its recent war and the role of the U.S. government in the Middle East. Kulongoski paused as if to regroup his thoughts then said there needs to be a public discussion on what is in America's long-term best interest.
"The Arab world is very confusing and difficult to understand for most of us," he said. "I still believe Israel, as the only democratic nation in the Middle East, is an asset to this country. Are we doing Israel a disservice with how we're conducting our foreign affairs with the rest of the Arab world?"
During the campaign for the governor's office, Ron Saxton has declined to comment on foreign affairs and his wife did not face any such questions. Instead, the executive director of The Christie School, a mental health agency serving children and families, used her experience to represent her husband and his campaign theme: "In all circumstances in which he has ever operated, he's been a leader; and if there's one glaring doubt right now in Oregon, it's leadership."
Election Day is Nov. 7.