The Democrats’ race for the roses
Don
Clark
He’s not an anchorman for KEZI, but his name's Don
Clark
As a candidate for the Democratic gubernatorial
nomination, the only thing he's interested in reporting is
his agenda for Oregon
That includes a mix of government make-work
projects, a four-year commission to examine higher
education, and a cautious approach to the Washington
Public Power Supply System
He’s the chief executive of Multnomah County, and
he’s been campaigning since last fall. His experience in
government has been non-partisan up to now. He has
been Chairman of the Multnomah County Commission
since 1974, he was elected Multnomah County
Commissioner 1968 and 1972 and was Multnomah
County sheriff in 1962
“I have more executive experience than anyone —
including the governor,” he says, puffing a pipe
He wears a pin-striped suit and polka-dot tie, but his
round face, balding head and angular build sparks the
image of an adult Charlie Brown eager to win a political
ballgame
Clark politely dismisses his two key opponents —
State Sen Ted Kulongoski and Lane County
Commissioner Jerry Rust — and goes to bat with
“executive experience" and his agenda for the
governor’s office
Kulongoski told Clark at least three times that he
would not run for governor, but “he changed his mind, I
guess,” Clark says. “I don't shop for public office.”
Rust has contributed a good deal to the campaign on
energy issues, Clark says, but Rust’s plans for Oregon to
manufacture solar panels and other renewable energy
products is unrealistic.
"We don’t have the raw materials to support a
Pittsburgh of the West,” Clark says “But he dreams good
dreams .”
The chief executive of the state’s most populous
county delights to mention his achievements He
reorganized the Sheriff's office in 1963 He backed the
state Court Reform Act which took six years to pass He
implemented the state’s largest 911 emergency telephone
system. He founded "Friends of the Columbia River
Gorge" and he manages 2,500 county employees in his
current position.
His proposed make-work programs are the Oregon
Employment Corps and the Young Adult Employment
Corps More than 20,000 Oregonians would have
temporary work through these programs, Clark says
Workers would build sewers, roads and water supply
systems for the long-range goal of creating jobs
“We can’t have growth unless there’s zoned land and
sewers," he says
Although there are more than 120,000 Oregonians
out of work, the two programs would “lift some hopes,”
Clark says, adding they are short-term programs and
would be phased out when the economy improves. "If
they sound like depression-era programs, you’re right,”
he says
Oregon’s educational system in its current form
makes less sense, Clark says. He would create a
four-year commission to analyze the “total pot" of state
education funds and to recommend changes For
example, more time and money could be directed to
pre-kindergarten and post-doctoral programs, he says
The commission would "challenge everything —
! every bloomin' sacred cow
What would happen it teachers were rewarded with
premium pay instead of tenure, if buildings were
de-emphasized, if textbooks were rented, if community
experience was required for instructors, and if teachers
were held more accountable for their students? Clark
says he'd like to know
Current policy is "to protect tenured faculty," but the
education of students is far more important than the
continuation of a "club" of tenured faculty, Clark says
The commission would have tour years and five percent
of the state's education budget to experiment with, he
says
“Higher education is extremely important for
Oregon’s economic recovery,” adds Clark, former
associate director of criminal justice at Portland State
University Because of higher education's economic
value, he says, four years are needed to think through all
the issues "Education is so important, we can’t do
anything rash ”
At least as important — if not more so — is to avoid a
rash reaction to the "unmitigated disaster” of WPPSS, he
says If utilities default on the WPPSS bonds (seven
percent of the U S bond market) the public bond market
could collapse, Clark says A bond market crash could
create a domino effect, he says
"We are very close to the brink of a full-blown
economic collapse We need to proceed with great
caution as we sort this thing out "
If utilities default, "I don't think Oregon and
Washington would get investment funds for at least 25
! years,” he adds
Conservation, geothermal and solar energy must be
promoted to ensure an adequate supply of power without
relying on nuclear plants, Clark says Multnomah County
built an underground shop which features the largest
government application of solar technology in the nation,
i he says Government must “show by example,” Clark
adds
Other items on his agenda include a job development
corporation to help small businesses get capital, a state
housing corporation to provide for $25 million worth of
new housing starts through low-interest loans, and a state
health care program based on Project Health, a
Multnomah County program which uses a variety of
private health plans so government costs may be
controlled _ _
By Ron Hunt
Ted
Kulongoski
Four days before the primary election, Ted
Kulongoski strolls into the Emerald office for an interview
He's eating an ice cream cone from the EMU
Baskins-Robbins. "It’s my lunch," he explains
Despite weeks of a breakneck
shake-hands-make-speeches-pat-backs political
schedule, Kulongoski is still energetic Primary elections
just aren't fun," he says. "It's hard campaigning against
people you like "
Although the race tor the Democratic nomination for
governor is one of the most watched in an otherwise
low-key primary, the political tug-of-war between
Kulongoski, Multnomah County Executive Don Clark and
Lane County Commissioner Jerry Rust has been polite
Each of the three has limited himself from outright
attack on the other and has agreed to support whomever
is chosen to face the most likely Republican candidate,
Gov Vic Atiyeh, in November But all three are quick to
point out — nicely, of course — their differences
Kulongoski centers his why-l-am-different spiel on
Clark, dismissing Rust with a tew sentences, saying he
and Rust have similar views but different lifestyles
Clark's administrative experience has been pitted
against Kulongoski's legislative record and his charisma
But the Junction City senator says the ability to reconcile
political enemies is more important than Clark's
"puffery "
Kulongoski says Clark - and his New Deal views on
government work programs — is 40 years too late It s
just not socially sound You can't do it It's a different
culture than it was 40 years ago "
A former marine and a Junction City labor lawyer,
Kulongoski was elected to the Oregon House of
Representatives in 1975 He was appointed to till a
vacancy in the Senate in 1977, then was elected to the
four-year seat in 1978 He almost upset U S Rep
Packwood, R-Ore.. in 1980 when he nabbed an
unexpected 44 percent of the vote
Kulongoski's slightly untidy hair brushes the collar of
his white monogrammed Oxford button-down shirt The
sleeves are carefully folded halfway up his forearm Quick
smiles and "ain'ts" sprinkle his interview
He criticizes Atiyeh for his emphasis on recruiting
large out-of-state businesses, saying the large
corporations Atiyeh is trying to wine and dine are being
sought after by every state in the nation "It's a facade
and more puffery than anything "
The best way to get new business into the state is to
woo small high tech firms, Kulongoski says "I know it's
not classy to say this firm will hire 25 to 40 people instead
of 500, but that's reality "
The governor has to be "someone with a vision,"
who plans for long-term results but without ignoring
short-term effects, Kulongoski says For instance, some
people have advocated letting chemical companies
locate in Oregon and, after they're settled, pass
environmental laws to clean them up "That sounds like
what the nuclear industry told us '
Kulongoski's emphasis will be on recruiting small
out-of-state firms and helping those already in the state
He says he will reshuffle the $4 million budget of the
Oregon Economic Development Department and
implement regional programs to aid small and
medium-sized businesses
In addition, he says he will create an Institute of Small
Business within the higher education system to act as a
clearinghouse and an independent source for data on
issues like worker's compensation
Quality education will help attract new businesses.
Kulongoski says “The State System of Higher Education
is the key element in the state's long-term economic
recovery "
It's going to take a "one-time major appropriation" to
boost higher education — and especially faculty salaries
- back to the level at which it should be "The state has
to do that," he says, adding that the money should come
from cutting property tax relief and from revising state
income tax tables to reap some of the windfall from
federal tax cuts
But, he warns, higher education officials are going to
have to lobby more effectively and be willing to eliminate
duplication within the system
Kulongoski says the Legislature should revise the
current higher education funding system that relies on
student hours and ignores program quality "What you
basically fund is a mediocre higher education system.”
The Washington Public Power Supply System should
mothball two of its three nuclear power plants still being
built, Kulongoski says "WPPSS ought to use the money it
has to complete plant two and at least prove to us they
can finish one plant "
Kulongoski admits that businessmen are suspicious
of his political aspirations But he says he has always
treated businessmen fairly, even when he has disagreed
with them
“In time, people will come around,” he says, adding
that businessmen are beginning to realize Atiyeh is a
do-nothing governor who can't revitalize the economy
Kulongoski estimates he will have to raise $400,000
to $500,000 to beat Atiyeh in the fall. "We re doing very
well right now,” he says adding that the Democratic
National Committee is keeping a close eye on the Oregon
governor race, hoping for a Democratic victory
"It isn't me They're looking at the state and how it
looks in the national picture They’d like nothing better
than to say on November 3, The tide is turning.' "
At 3 p m an aide pokes his head into the office "I'm
sorry to interrupt, but we have to be in Salem by four As
Kulongoski leaves the room, his aide points out a sign
hanging on the window of the editor's office: "Discussion
of the fate of the world in progress Please do not
disturb."
Kulongoski laughs "Don't I wish Don't I wish "
By Sally Hodgklnson
Jerry
Rust
Forget the polls — Jerry Rust says he 'feels” he will
win the Democratic nomination for governor.
He feels the same way he did when he was about to
win his Lane County Commissioner’s seat in 1976 and
1980, Rust says "I'm not just hopeful. I’ve got the
feeling ”
But Rust agrees it’s going to take more than just a
feeling to beat opponents State Sen Ted Kulongoski and
Multnomah County Chief Executive Don Clark
“The indications that we get right now in Portland are
about 30 percent for Kulongoski, 28 percent for Clark,
and I'm 15 percent," he says "That’s from two weeks
ago, and on the rise from zero percent in January.”
One of the biggest obstacles between himself and
the nomination is Kulongoski’s avoidance of open
political debate, Rust says.
“Ted has been an armchair candidate,” he says. "He
has removed himself from the fray It’s a strategic move
on the part of the front-runner to ignore the opposition "
Another problem Rust may be forced to deal with has
to do with a few "black marks” on his past.
Rust was hospitalized for marijuana use in 1967 at
the end of his Peace Corps tour in India. He was arrested
in 1970 and charged with marijuana possession. And in
1977 he was cited for driving with an expired license and
having an open bottle of beer in his car.
“I think some voters will respond to this, but I think
most people are fair,” he says. “I don’t think anyone can
say that they don’t have any black marks on their past.
"My only comment is that whatever penalty I had, I
paid. Life goes on, and the real issues that affect this
campaign are vastly more important than something that
happened years ago.”
Rust is taking a tough stand on environmental and
alternative energy issues when other candidates aren t,
he says
"I’m the only one addressing the timber industry, and
I'm the only candidate who wants to stop the WPPSS
(Washington Public Power Supply System) fiasco,” he
says. "Even Kulongoski. who has had a fairly progressive
stature with respect to nuclear energy, is tied into the
Number Two plant.”
Oregon shouldn’t be tied into any of the WPPSS
nuclear plants. Rust says.
“It's too late to save us a whole bunch of headaches
and heartaches and bad debts,” Rust says. "But it's not
too late to cut our losses. The point is to terminate, and
I’m the only candidate that has developed a plan to do it.”
Instead of developing nuclear power, Oregon should
spend the money on renewable forms of energy, he says.
The same amount of power would be generated for about
half the cost by developing hydroelectric, wind,
geothermal, biomass (producing fuel from plants) and
solar power, Rust says.
"It's real obvious to me that we're either to get into
the renewable age or we re not going to get into any
age,” Rust says.
Hydroelectric power has a bright future, Rust says.
For instance, Oregon could generate one-third of the
power Trojan produces simply by fitting turbines on
existing flood control dams, he says.
"I feel that by develojsing alternative energy, we
could create vast new industries within the state. We
could manufacture things like photoelectric cells and
solar hot water heaters."
“There is no technological problem with solar
energy.” he adds. “They have been worked out. But there
is a political problem. Someone has decided that we need
nuclear energy to survive.”
i Oregon could sell surplus energy to other states,
, Rust says, adding that Oregon should establish a state
agency separate from the Bonneville Power
Administration.
“Article 11-D (of the Oregon Constitution) shows that
people have given themselves the authority to bring in
these renewable products,” he says. “My idea is to create
a pool of energy separate from the BPA. We could put
Oregon in the power business and get people back to
work at the same time."
Getting Oregonians back to work would also benefit
higher education, Rust says.
“I will exceed your expectations with respect to my
committment to higher education,” Rust says.“And I
think the way I’ll do it is through my economic recovery
program. My target is to get 150,000 people back to
work."
Rust emphasizes small business support as the road
to economic recovery. He says he favors a constitutional
amendment to create a state bank which would make
loans to small businesses at a lower interest rates than
commercial banks.
It’s not going to be easy to win on the state bank
issue,” Rust says. “It's going to take a Constitutional
amendment.”
To generate more revenue within Oregon, Rust says
he favors a more progressive income tax. Instead of
people with $20,000-$250,000 income paying 10 percent,
he would gradually raise the tax to about 15 percent.
“The tax curve hasn’t shifted since 1963,” he says. “I
do know that $300 million could be produced, and it
would still be a modest thing to ask from the wealthy."
Oregon's state deficit was approximately $300 million this
year.
Rust chooses to fight as governor instead of Lane
County Commissioner because the issues he deals with
are statewide.
"Whether it’s mental health, economic development,
the timber industry, or the herbicide battles I’ve been
involved in, these issues are bigger than Lane County,”
he says. “I'm running because I felt these issues would
not be raised had I not run.
“I've got a program. I've got a message. And I care a
whole bunch.”
By Chris Courtnler
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