City Commissioner Dan Saltzman this morning delayed a motion before the council, to direct the city attorney’s office to appeal an arbitrator’s ruling saying the city should pay out $104,000 to former firefighter Tom Hurley. Hurley has been claiming disability checks from the city since 1993, after he hurt his back. He went to the […]
Matt Davis
Matt Davis was news editor of the Mercury from 2009 to May 2010.
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Oregon Republicans Using Robocalls To Find CANDIDATES
Classic. They’re running in two districts, one in Portland, one in Eugene, confirms Bob Tiernan, chairman of the Oregon Republican Party. Here’s what they say, according to one astute reader who transcribed his message: This is Bob Tiernan, Chairman of the Oregon Republican Party, and we need your help! Have you ever wanted to run […]
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BREAKING: Novick Withdraws From County Chair Race
“This will do wonders for my decisiveness, but I have come to the conclusion that this is Jeff Cogen’s time and this is his job,” he says. “Yesterday my phone was ringing off the hook from people who wanted me to run for treasurer, and today it’s ringing off the hook saying I might have […]
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Steve Novick, Jeff Cogen For County Chair
With the filing deadline at 5pm, the race to replace Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler is on. Steve Novick’s fanpage is off and running, while County Commissioner Jeff Cogen is also in the running, according to Big Jimmy Pitkin at WW—who seems to have suddenly decided he’s a reporter over the last couple of days. […]
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Good Morning, News!!
WHAT THE EFF??! “Gov. Ted Kulongoski has chosen Multnomah County Chairman Ted Wheeler to be the new Oregon state treasurer, filling the vacancy left by the death Sunday of Treasurer Ben Westlund.” TED WHEELER: HOPEFULLY AS STATE TREASURER HE’LL BE ABLE TO ADVOCATE FOR BETTER MENTAL HEALTH FUNDING TOO So much for Wheeler’s excellent remarks […]
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Make Friends For Police Reform
Hey, make friends with the Albina Ministerial Alliance Coalition for Justice & Police Reform on Facebook. Innit.
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Frederick: Cops Are “Occupying Force”
Once again justifying our endorsement last year, North Portland state representative Lew Frederick spoke out against Portland Police on Friday night at a rally by the Albina Ministerial Alliance Coalition for Justice and Police Reform. Here’s his speech, as I transcribed it on my laptop. FREDERICK: HAS BEEN SPEAKING OUT ON POLICE REFORM SINCE A […]
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Leonard Vs. China Over Tibet
Not content with taking on City Commissioner Dan Saltzman over a foie-gras purveying former firefighter, City Commissioner Randy Leonard appears to be setting the City of Portland up for nuclear war with China this morning. LEONARD: SNOWBALLS, NUCLEAR WAR, IT’S ALL THE SAME TO HIM Leonard read a proclamation to celebrate Tibetan Awareness Day last […]
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First Police Contract Negotiation Next Friday
Mark your calendars, folks. The first bargaining session between the city and the Portland Police Association over the police contract will be taking place next Friday, March 12, at 9am, in HR1—a conference room on the second floor of the downtown Portland Building. There’s no formal agenda for the meeting, but scheduling, logistics, and the […]
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Campbell Shooting: Details Of Sgt.Reyna’s Discrimination Suit You Didn’t Read in the Oregonian
The Mercury spent several hours yesterday rooting through the case files from the discrimination suit filed by Sergeant Liani Reyna—the supervisor on scene at the Aaron Campbell shooting—against the police bureau’s Special Emergency Response Team (SERT team). Officers are asking whether Reyna didn’t call SERT to the scene on January 29 because she may have […]
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Budget: Prioritize Bikes Or Mental Health?
My friend and occasional golf buddy Dave Lister has a column in today’s Oregonian posing a pretty smart question about whether Mayor Adams’ city budget should be prioritizing bikes or mental health funding. At the beginning of any city budget forum, the mayor is likely to open the event with a lecture explaining the “colors” […]
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Beanbag Girl Sets Bedroom On Fire
Credit where it’s due to WW reporter James Pitkin for this scoop: Beanbag girl was re-arrested last night after setting her bedroom on fire while watching TV footage of her sentencing yesterday afternoon. You go, beanbag girl! Or at least, I understand why she did it. Listening to the trial proceedings yesterday I was struck […]