Salem Political Snark

Edgiest moments from Salem City Council Candidate Forum

Here's one unarguable takeaway from last night's City Council Candidate Forum:

If you take the intense in-your-face vibe of either the Republican or Democratic presidential debates (especially the Republican) and flip it upside down, like turning matter into antimatter, you'll end up with something closely akin to Salem's oh-so-decorous candidate forum.

Held in the Library's Anderson Room, and sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Marion and Polk Counties, along with the Salem City Club, the forum accurately reflected Salem's dual political personality: calm on the outside, seething on the inside. 

So as I took notes about what the seven candidates said, I'd pen in an Angry Arrow next to comments that struck me as honestly edgy -- even though usually one had to read between the spoken lines to really understand what was going on.

Here, then, are what I felt were some snarky moments of the Candidate Forum, starting with an introduction to the "teams" each of the candidates belonged to, even though they weren't wearing any uniforms. 

Progressive Team: Cara Kaser (Ward 1), Matt Ausec (Ward 5), and Sally Cook (Ward 7) are the Progressive Salem slate of candidates. I'd also put Ausec's opponent, Tiffany Partridge, on the progressive team. Interestingly, I'm pretty sure that only one of them ever spoke the word "progressive." (Kaser said that Salem was a diverse progressive city.)

Chamber of Commerce Team: Jan Kailuweit (Ward 1) and Councilor Warren Bednarz (Ward 7) are the Chamber of Commerce slate of candidates. Likely Councilor Brad Nanke (Ward 3) would join them, if he wasn't running unopposed in the May election. Kailuweit and Bednarz never referred to the Chamber, though their positions are clearly in line with what the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce favors.

Citizen involvement. Kailuweit and Nanke repeatedly referred to the City Council's Budget Committee as being a marvelous example of how open and transparent city government is. Why, anyone can be involved in the budgeting process. All you have to do is somehow learn that the Committee is meeting, then have the time and inclination to testify. 

They were astounded that -- shock! -- often no citizens take part in the Budget Committee goings-on. But in line with the Chamber of Commerce Team motto, Everything is great in Salem, so keep things just as they are, Kailuweit and Nanke saw little or no need to do anything differently, citizen-outreach-wise. 

On the other hand, the Progressive Team was big on encouraging more public involvement in City of Salem affairs. Ausec said that expensive consultants should be used less, and knowledgeable local people should be used more. Cook said that citizens should be talked to on the neighborhood level, rather than expecting citizens to troop down to City Hall at inconvenient times in order to weigh in on policy issues.

Making Library into Police Facility. Sally Cook took a good shot at Warren Bednarz, even though she didn't mention him by name. Each candidate was asked to talk about City Council decisions that they applaud or oppose. Cook's oppose was the out-of-the-box 2014 proposal by Councilor Bednarz that the Library be converted to a police facility. 

Cook correctly said that this crazy notion, which should have been kept in the box, wasn't handled in a public way. The Library Advisory Committee wasn't involved at all by City officials, who worked on the Library conversion behind closed doors, then sprang it on citizens. 

Expanding Urban Growth Boundary. Right-wingers hate Oregon's highly successful land use system, which requires urban growth boundaries to prevent unfettered sprawl into farm, forest, and other irreplaceable rural lands. The Chamber of Commerce Team's support for an unneeded billion dollar Third Bridge across the Willamette requires Salem to expand its urban growth boundary, so mention of the UGB caught my ear.

Jan Kailuweit rather confusingly said that (1) housing is affordable in Salem compared to Portland, but (2) an option is to expand the Urban Growth Boundary to make more land available for housing. He called for an undefined "sweet spot" between the two that apparently involves some sort of UGB expansion. Matt Ausec, though, said there was no need to expand the UGB, as there is plenty of under-developed space in Salem.

Downtown vitality. When it comes to downtown Salem, the Progressive and Chamber of Commerce teams had predictably different views. An audience member asked about empty buildings downtown. Bednarz said buildings are full there on the first and second floors, which caused me to jot down a large skeptical question mark, ?, in my notebook.

Carole Smith, who is running for Mayor against Chuck Bennett, says that downtown has the lowest rental rates in Salem, and the second-highest vacancy rate, which shows the need to revitalize the Historic District. Since Smith lives downtown and owns property there, I trust her take on the area more than Bednarz'. 

Kailuweit also made the questionable claim that vacancies are normal in the downtown area. His opponent, Cara Kaser, disagreed, saying there are quite a few vacancies. Further, long-time owners of downtown buildings currently have little incentive to invest in upgrades. She said that Salem should join the Oregon Main Street program that has been successful in other cities.

Mass transit. Ah, this was one of my favorite subjects talked about at the forum, because the candidates got pleasingly into it with each other. Cara Kaser said she was disheartened when several members of the City Council contributed to the Chamber of Commerce-led campaign against a payroll tax to fund much-needed improvements to the Cherriots bus system.

(Salem, I've heard, is the only capital city west of the Mississippi with no evening or weekend bus service -- embarassing!)

Kaser wants the City Council to support the mass transit district by helping Cherriots find a way to fund its services. During her campaigning, she's heard from people who say they aren't able to get downtown, or anywhere else, on Saturday and in the evening. Ausec echoed this, saying that people are very concerned about the sorry state of mass transit in Salem. Many can't afford cars and need a bus to get around.

Jan Kailuweit, loyal Chamber of Commerce Team member that he is, regurgitated the nonsensical talking point that I found so irritating when the mass transit payroll tax was being debated last year. He said that since many business owners wouldn't benefit from Saturday and weekend bus service, because they aren't open then, there was no reason for these owners to vote "yes" on a payroll tax.

Geez, Jan.

Have you ever thought that taxes often are levied for a communal public benefit, and that citizens willingly pay them because they feel a responsibility to care for other people? My wife and I don't have any children in school. Yet we happily pay property taxes that support schools.

This Chamber of Commerce notion that only those who directly benefit from a tax should support that tax is ludicrous. It goes against our entire system of taxation: people with more money pay a greater amount in taxes than people with less money;  those in need are helped by others, because this is the freaking right thing to do.

I came away from the City Council Candidates Forum as convinced as ever that the Progressive Team should be voted for in this election. They stand for positive change in Salem that will make this town more livable, economically vibrant, compassionate, and caring. 

More of the same -- the Chamber of Commerce Team mantra -- doesn't cut it for me. Hopefully voters will agree.

My (not so) secret plan to sway Salem's May election

I'm a big fan of House of Cards, the Netflix series that features devious political machinations in Washington, D.C. 

Sometimes, though, the sneakiest thing to do in politics is be absolutely open and upfront. That's so unusual these days, nobody will believe what you're saying! He must have a secret agenda...

Well, believe it or not, here's my not-so-secret plan to sway Salem's May election for Mayor and four City Council positions.

People power. Especially, social media people power. 

I designed a Salem, Let's Blast Off to a Fresh Start ad for Carole Smith, my choice for Mayor, that ran in today's Statesman Journal. In the ad I was pleased to incorporate the rocket ship part of the new Strange Up Salem logo that was designed recently.

It's a nice fit, this Blast Off to a Fresh Start campaign and my passion for strange'ing up Salem. Which as I say on the Strange Up Salem Facebook page, means:

Let's make Salem, Oregon out of the ordinary. Creative. Fun. Diverse. Vibrant. Artistic. In short...STRANGER!

Politically, Salem is in a stale rut. In one long sentence, here's what this town needs to get away from:

The Chamber of Commerce grooms right-wing people to run for local public office by getting them onto City of Salem committees and urging them to get involved with neighborhood associations, then these people run for office and, not surprisingly, get endorsed by the Chamber's Board of Directors, after which the Chamber's Political Action Committee supports them with lavish (for Salem) amounts of money, and this -- combined with the usual editorial page endorsement from the Chamber-friendly Statesman Journal newspaper, along with low voter turnout in May primary elections where local races usually are decided, allows the conservative Chamber candidates for Mayor and City Council to be elected in a liberal-leaning city.

This isn't good for Salem. 
We need fresh ideas.
We have to get out of a 1950's-era Chamber of Commerce mentality. 
Sprawl. Worship the auto. Let charity take care of people in need.

I put up a Fresh Start Salem web page that advocates voting for candidates in the May election who have a different vision for this town.

People power can elect a new Mayor and three city councilors in the May 17, 2016 election who are committed to a fresh start for Salem. We all know how much untapped potential lies dormant in this town, ready to blossom when City leaders involve people, listen to people, say YES! to people with great ideas.

For example, cities all across America are thriving by embracing Smart Growth and New Urbanism.

But here in Salem, currently we've got a Mayor and City Council majority who are enthralled by Dumb Growth and Old Urbanism. This has to change, or other cities are going to whip our economic and livability ass.

So how is Salem going to break out of the Chamber of Commerce-controlled political system I described in my Long Sentence?

People Power. Which should be way more potent than Money Power, since people vote and money doesn't.

A political revolution is needed here in Salem. Completely peaceful, of course.

The lessons learned in Tunisia apply, though, where people using social media like Facebook fueled the flames of a much-needed political changeover.

So I'm hoping Salem's citizens will take up the Let's Blast Off to a Fresh Start message and spread it widely. I've started to do this via some Facebook posts I put up today. More will follow.

Check out my first Strange Up Salem post and my second Strange Up Salem post. Then share them with others.

If lots of people help share this simple Blast Off to a Fresh Start message -- vote for Carole Smith, Cara Kaser, Matt Ausec, and Sally Cook in the May election -- there's a good chance Salem will elect four people with fresh creative ideas a month from now, May 17.

Salem's May 2016 election: Fresh vs. Stale is voters' choice

Fresh is better than stale, right? Sure applies to bread. Also, to political candidates. Such as the people running for Mayor and four City Council seats in Salem's upcoming May election.

Salem voters have a clear choice between two groups of candidates. Fresh or Stale?

The three Chamber of Commerce-backed candidates (along with Councilor Brad Nanke, who is unopposed for re-election) promise more of the same.

Top-of-the-ticket guy Chuck Bennett, the Chamber's choice for Mayor, makes this clear in the positions I've heard him take. How depressingly stale is this?

-- More ignoring of what ordinary citizens see as best for Salem, while paying rapt attention to special interests and this town's version of the 1%.

-- More wasteful spending on planning for an unneeded half-billion dollar Third Bridge that would mean a $1.50 each-way toll on both the new and current bridges.

-- More sprawl, more trees cut down for no good reason, more lifeless shopping centers like ghastly Keizer Station.

-- More small-hopes for low paying warehouse jobs at business parks far from Salem's urban core, rather than investing in Smart Growth that will make this town attractive to cutting-edge 21st century businesses.

-- More lucrative tax breaks for Salem's already rich and powerful, while ordinary citizens get nickel-and-dimed to death by the City of Salem.

Fortunately, there's a Fresh Choice. I urge you to consider voting for these creative, concerned, compassionate candidates.

Carole Smith for Mayor
Cara Kaser for Ward 1 City Councilor
Matt Ausec for Ward 5 City Councilor
Sally Cook for Ward 7 City Councilor

Salem can't move forward with Chamber of Commerce-backed elected officials. The Chamber is stuck in a 1950's mentality of pave, pave, pave; sprawl, sprawl, sprawl; cars, cars, cars.

It's like Dwight Eisenhower is still president, not Barack Obama.

Citizens who care about making Salem into a town that works for everybody, not just the already rich-and-powerful, should vote for Fresh, not Stale. 

Here's how I put it in the final Salem Weekly Strange Up Salem column that I wrote in April 2015, "Time to Take Back this Town."

Salem currently is being led by a Mayor and City Council majority who view citizen participation as an irritant. They put on outward happy-face smiles in public meetings while fuming inside when anyone challenges their predetermined policy pronouncements.

Their policies almost always bow at the altar of Salem’s version of the 1%, who already are rich and powerful, yet desire more wealth and influence. Not coincidentally, municipal elections typically are bought by money from the Chamber of Commerce and special interest groups.

So even though Salem’s citizens authentically want their town to be more environmentally friendly, caring of our historic heritage, compassionate toward those in need, and economically equitable, the Powers That Be divert our attention from pressing problems by trying to persuade us that everything is fine, don’t listen to the boo-birds, and, hey, how about that Angry Owl?!

Sadly, the Statesman Journal, a sorry excuse for a community newspaper, has surrendered its journalistic credentials, including any attempts at serious investigative reporting, and become a simplistic cheerleader for the Pollyannaish civic boosterism crowd, filling its pages with human interest stories.

Our City officials would rather waste half a billion dollars on an unneeded Third Bridge than deal with problems concerning the homeless, bicycle infrastructure, tree preservation, downtown vitalization, earthquake safety, and many other pressing concerns.

Salemians need to take back their town. Speak out loudly, confidently, passionately. And vote! In every election, May and November.