‘City
of
Roses’
Volume XLVIII • Number 4
Hazardous
Beauty
New Effort at
Gun Control
A play about
friendship with
people who are
different
Faith leaders draft
legislation for
current session
See Local News, page 3
See Metro, page 9
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday • January 23, 2019
Established in 1970
Committed to Cultural Diversity
photo by D anny p eterson /t he p ortlanD o bserver
Brian Florence (left), one of the workers at the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan forced to go without pay during a government shutdown, gets a word of
encouragement and a thank you from U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, during a visit Friday to the Oregon Food Bank in northeast Portland. Florence also met with other members of
Oregon’s Congressional delegation, Democratic Reps. Suzanne Bonamici and Earl Blumenauer joining a chorus of voices to condemn the shutdown and call on President
Donald Trump to end it.
Shutdown Impacts Grow
Food pantries are lifeline to furloughed workers
by D anny p eterson
t he p ortlanD o bserver
Furloughed and unpaid federal workers from around
the state were bracing for more financial uncertainty while
also receiving emergency help from food pantries to feed
their families as the longest partial government shutdown
in U.S. history entered its second month and 32nd day on
Tuesday.
Members of Oregon’s Congressional delegation, in-
cluding Democrats Sen. Ron Wyden, Rep. Earl Blume-
nauer, and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, called on the presi-
dent to end the shutdown during an appearance Friday at
the Oregon Food Bank in northeast Portland.
Bonamici said she has voted with the House on nu-
merous bills with bi-partisan support to re-open the gov-
ernment, but they’ve been continually blocked by Senate
C ontinueD on p age 5