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GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! In weather-ville, you can expect a dry morning followed by a wet afternoon, and a... what's a word that falls right in between "wet" and "dry"... "dewy"? And a dewy high of 50 degrees! And now it's time for your dewy NEWS!

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Remember that "charter reform" thing you voted in favor of a few months ago? GUYS... IT'S HAPPENING. City transition teams are working their buttz off to get a literal poop-ton of stuff done, so that in November 2024 we can vote out all the members of our current city council and elect 12 new ones that aren't so beholden to rich people who absolutely despise us. (I'm editorializing again, aren't I?) In any case, we all want this to happen, but can the transition teams climb this bureaucratic mountain of details and get it all done in time? Our Courtney Vaughn took a hard look at the situation, and offers this smart, easy to parse report on where the process is now, and how far it has to go. (Don't worry... our current city council people will find other jobs.)

• Speaking of people that need to go away, dark money, anti-Portland group People for Portland is back to their old, tourism-killing ways with yet another inaccurate new billboard pushing their conservative, Republican agenda. Thankfully, people are waking up to who they actually are: 

• Multnomah County officials are considering bringing in California-based group Urban Alchemy—which has been hired by the City of Portland to run one of Mayor Wheeler's mass homeless camps—to do... something... about the area surrounding downtown's temporarily closed Behavioral Health Resource Center which provides services to houseless residents. Why the alarm over this particular area? Because it's too close to the city's luxury hotels, including the new Ritz-Carlton.

• Super exciting news: Local beloved drag queen Jinkx Monsoon is set to join the cast of the long-running show Doctor Who in what Variety calls "a major role." 🤗 SQUEEEEE!

• Idaho continues to be a really shitty place to live, as Governor Brad Little signed a bill yesterday that will ban gender-affirming care for transgender minors. AND if any doctor tries to help these children, it would be considered a felony, and they could be sent to prison for up to 10 years. Welcome to Dystopia, Idaho.

• The Oregon Book Awards were handed out on Monday night and, as our Suzette Smith reports, while there were a lot of well-known authors who received nominations, there were a surprising number of talented newcomers who picked up awards.

IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:

• As you may have heard, former President Trump pleaded "not guilty" to a whopping 34 felony charges against him, which prosecutors say were crimes that pointed toward one result: undermining the 2016 election. Naturally, Trump took on a defiant, butt-hurt tone and is using the opportunity to scam his supporters into putting more money into his bank account.

• Two big wins for progressives last night are making MAGA babies crrrryyyyyy this morning: Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal Wisconsin judge, handily beat her opponent for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, a move that could reverse the state's ban on abortion and Republican gerrymandering. Meanwhile, progressive union organizer/county commissioner Brandon Johnson beat his conservative "tough on crime" opponent to become the newest mayor of Chicago.

• Well, here's a switch... Trump announces we should DEFUND THE POLICE... at least when it comes to the DOJ and FBI who continue to investigate him for his clearly criminal actions.

• OMIGOD!!! This movie needs to come out RIGHT... FREAKING... NOW!!

• And finally... here's another of Trump's finest.