Rational in Portland

Jessie Burke is the owner of the Society Hotel in the Old Town Neighborhood and chair of the Old Town Community Association in Portland, Oregon. She is the mother of three young children. Jessie has a Master’s of Public Administration with a focus on Strategic Planning and Community Development from Portland State University. Jessie grew up very poor. Her father was paralyzed when she was 6. She lost a brother-in-law to a drug overdose. Her focus is on taking care of the least among us.

• https://jessieburke.com

• https://thesocietyhotel.com/portland/

• https://www.pdxoldtown.org/board-members

• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/02/01/they-left-portland-is-losing-some-of-its-biggest-fans/

• https://www.opb.org/article/2024/04/04/multnomah-county-commissioner-district-2-debate-sam-adams-jessie-burke-shannon-singleton/?outputType=amp

• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/homeless/fentanyl-oregonians-portland-emergency-central-city/283-bc97fda8-eff5-4148-95e7-77ff12b1a02f

• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/homeless/multnomah-county-paymotel-rooms-asylum-seekers/283-97992253-5da6-45da-98ae-88c79c5bc983

• https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2023/09/portland-business-owner-says-gov-tina-kotek-kicked-her-off-public-safety-panel-over-her-ties-to-candidate-challenging-da-mike-schmidt.html?outputType=amp

• https://www.votevadim.com
• https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2024/02/clackamas-county-reduced-homelessness-by-65-since-homeless-services-tax-passed.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/07/26/emails-show-that-even-as-multnomah-county-massively-underspent-homeless-services-dollars-it-fought-metros-corrective-action-plan/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2021/12/02/multnomah-county-auditor-finds-joint-office-overstated-number-of-homeless-people-it-housed/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/02/01/they-left-portland-is-losing-some-of-its-biggest-fans/
• https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2024/03/multnomah-county-chair-has-unparalleled-power-to-block-proposals-she-doesnt-like.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/multnomah-county-winter-storm-warming-shelter-report-severe-weather/283-dab953b9-6b72-45a6-b26c-9ea2377960ee
• https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2024/02/why-multnomah-countys-plan-to-move-hundreds-of-homeless-campers-into-apartments-utterly-failed-to-meet-its-goals.html?outputType=amp
• https://multco-web7-psh-files-usw2.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2022%20Point%20In%20Time%20Report%20-%20Full.pdf
• https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2023/04/staff-drug-use-alleged-misconduct-shuttered-multnomah-county-behavioral-health-center-now-reopened.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2024/02/15/man-repeatedly-caught-drug-dealing-in-downtown-portland-has-gained-attention-of-federal-prosecutors/

Pete Grabiel is a Portland lawyer and a Democratic candidate for the Oregon State House of Representatives in District 33.

• https://www.petegrabiel.com
• http://www.pitzerlaw.net/attorneys.html
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/02/01/they-left-portland-is-losing-some-of-its-biggest-fans/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2022/10/17/oregon-ranks-worst-in-nation-for-prevalence-of-mental-illness/
• https://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_aid_indigent_defense/indigent_defense_systems_improvement/publications/or-project/
• https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/2023/08/national-embarrassment-judge-sets-10-day-deadline-to-release-people-held-in-jail-without-lawyer.html
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/health/oregon-worst-in-nation-for-addiction-treatments-locals-rally-in-salem/283-b2e5b42b-218e-4b2c-9ec5-f3ce9fca8c74
• 'https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2022/10/17/oregon-ranks-worst-in-nation-for-prevalence-of-mental-illness/
• https://www.oregonlive.com/education/2024/02/students-nationwide-have-rebounded-after-pandemic-but-not-in-oregon-consequences-could-be-severe.html
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/education/oregon-students-fall-further-math-reading/283-78a61f5a-c3ff-471b-9004-f2285de9b9ff

Derek Clevenger is a political consultant who was the mayor of Aumsville and attempted a run for the Oregon State Legislature as an Independent.

• https://www.politico.com/news/2024/02/01/oregon-supreme-court-gop-walkout-00139079
• https://www.opb.org/article/2022/02/28/three-oregon-lawmakers-wont-run-reelection-citing-low-pay-growing-job-demands/?outputType=amp
• https://www.opb.org/article/2022/05/17/oregon-us-house-sixth-congressional-district/?outputType=amp
• https://apnews.com/article/nonchristians-unfit-elected-office-oregon-lawmaker-f25ce01bc0c3106522b02b46effdbe56
• https://theoregonway.substack.com/p/veterans-see-open-primaries-as
• https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/01/31/us/pandemic-learning-loss-recovery.html
• https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2023/05/22/heres-what-oregons-controversial-abortion-gender-affirming-care-bill-would-do/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/state/2021/06/11/oregon-house-expels-rep-mike-nearman-who-allowed-armed-protesters-to-breach-state-capitol/
• https://www.opb.org/article/2022/02/28/three-oregon-lawmakers-wont-run-reelection-citing-low-pay-growing-job-demands/?outputType=amp

• https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2024/01/31/fired-state-trooper-files-lawsuit-accusing-oregon-state-police-of-covering-up-widespread-misconduct/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2024/02/20/state-records-suggest-multnomah-county-deputies-let-hoover-gang-members-beat-up-jailhouse-rivals/
• https://nw-rrc.org
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/crime/gun-violence/portland-shootings-homicides-report-analysis-gangs/283-273aedf1-4908-4cfd-ad0c-21c2d9272f01
• https://www.koin.com/news/crime/portlands-homicide-rate-nearly-double-other-west-coast-cities/amp/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/city/2021/08/11/black-portlanders-are-more-likely-to-be-murdered-than-their-peers-in-cities-better-known-for-crime/
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1666861880630214656?s=46
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1653986649649586178?s=46
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/investigations/multnomah-county-misdemeanor-theft-shoplifting-prosecutions/283-f787c79b-a70c-4cb6-b48a-fb22cafbc15d
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/03/08/no-matter-how-violently-he-behaves-the-state-hospital-keeps-expelling-this-mentally-ill-portlander-back-to-town/
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1703940073107128805?s=46
• https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2024/02/why-multnomah-countys-plan-to-move-hundreds-of-homeless-campers-into-apartments-utterly-failed-to-meet-its-goals.html
• https://apnews.com/article/drug-overdose-deaths-fentanyl-portland-oregon-94d880c06809bc5248d8c14f34a92a64

• https://www.bobforportland.com
• https://x.com/bob4portland?s=21
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2022/10/05/we-tried-to-imagine-how-voting-would-work-under-portlands-proposed-charter-reforms/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2022/08/03/a-polling-result-never-seen-by-the-citys-charter-commission-show-portlanders-overwhelmingly-favored-placing-three-reforms-on-the-ballot-separately/
• https://www.portland.gov/transition/documents/july-public-comment-report/download
• https://www.portland.gov/bhr/class-comp/language-pay-differential-overview
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1755673364184920355?s=46
• https://media4.manhattan-institute.org/wp-content/uploads/portlands-police-staffing-crisis.pdf
• https://www.portland.gov/wheeler/homelessness
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/02/01/they-left-portland-is-losing-some-of-its-biggest-fans/
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2024/02/07/internal-documents-show-multnomah-county-believes-it-cant-fund-free-preschool-for-all-kids-unless-it-raises-its-tax-by-08/?mc_cid=918eb72b72&mc_eid=6e4c39d97a
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1685542859058094081?s=46

Eli Arnold is a former wartime military helicopter pilot and is now a member of Portland Police Bureau's Central Bike Squad. Eli is running for Portland City Council in District 4.

• https://www.eliforportland.com
• https://www.instagram.com/eliforportland?igsh=djRxcGYydHdjNDZu
• https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/2023/01/portlands-101-homicides-in-2022-set-new-record-at-some-point-we-have-to-be-tired-of-burying-our-children.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.instagram.com/ppbcentralbikesquad/
• https://abcnews.go.com/US/oregon-officials-declare-state-emergency-address-fentanyl-crisis/story?id=106826829#:~:text=Overdose%20deaths%20from%20synthetic%20opioids,to%20the%20county%27s%20health%20department.
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/crime/portland-teen-stabbed-max-train-update/283-ace79520-c950-4ba4-a778-ea53a3ae4ba4
• https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/2023/01/portlands-101-homicides-in-2022-set-new-record-at-some-point-we-have-to-be-tired-of-burying-our-children.html
• https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2023/04/portland-approves-up-to-50-million-for-urban-alchemy-to-run-mass-shelter-sites.html

Betsy Johnson is a former Oregon Senator and Oregon gubernatorial candidate. Max Williams is the former Chair of the Oregon House Judiciary Committee and former head of the Oregon Department of Corrections. They are working to pass a bill in the legislature that would amend Ballot Measure 110, which decriminalized all drugs in Oregon.

• https://fixballotmeasure110.com
• https://fixballotmeasure110.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/VERSION-C.pdf
• https://x.com/senbetsyjohnson?s=20
• https://www.koin.com/news/oregon/oregon-ranks-worst-in-the-country-for-drug-problems-report/
• https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023I1/Downloads/CommitteeMeetingDocument/278599
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1745871725093683328?s=20
• https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2023/12/07/with-youth-overdose-death-rates-soaring-state-offers-free-opioid-reversal-medication-to-schools/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/30/us/portland-fentanyl-emergency.html
• https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2809867
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20503245231167407
• https://www.kptv.com/2023/09/26/oregon-washington-see-largest-increases-fentanyl-deaths-since-last-year/
• https://www.thelundreport.org/content/opinion-oregon-lawmakers-must-include-youth-prevention-drug-policy-proposals
• https://gooddrugpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/ECP_OR-exec-summarypollcrosstabs.pdf

Josh Marquis is the former District Attorney of Clatsop County, Oregon. He has written for the LA Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times, among other publications.

• https://www.coastda.com
• https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2809867
• https://time.com/6318102/decriminalizing-drugs-overdose-study/
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20503245231167407
• https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/02/01/they-left-portland-is-losing-some-of-its-biggest-fans/
• https://www.oregonlive.com/data/2023/07/multnomah-county-lost-record-1-billion-in-income-in-2021-as-residents-moved-away.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2023/12/majority-of-portland-voters-say-theyd-leave-if-they-could-as-crime-homeless-concerns-persist-new-poll-finds.html?outputType=amp
• https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24215979/ppa-survey-toplines-01249-december-2023.pdf
• https://www.koin.com/news/oregon/oregon-ranks-worst-in-the-country-for-drug-problems-report/amp/
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/health/oregon-worst-in-nation-for-addiction-treatments-locals-rally-in-salem/283-b2e5b42b-218e-4b2c-9ec5-f3ce9fca8c74#
• https://gooddrugpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/ECP_OR-exec-summarypollcrosstabs.pdf
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1617930240155877376?s=46
• https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/safe-supply-around-the-world-1.6479317

Ben West is a Portland native, although he now lives in Clackamas County. Ben is a nurse, a military officer, and a Clackamas County Commissioner. Ben and his husband, Paul, sued the State of Oregon and won the right to get married. Ben and Paul are raising an adopted son, who is black. Former Oregon lawyer Donel Courtney advocated for the Lents Neighborhood where he lived in Portland, pushing back against homelessness and crime. Donel has since moved to India.

• https://www.clackamas.us/bcc/west
• https://www.aclu.org/bio/paul-rummell-and-benjamin-west
• https://www.kgw.com/video/news/crime/multnomah-county-da-prosecutes-fewer-than-half-of-misdemeanor-theft-cases-including-shoplifting/283-ca7da81d-d336-46ca-b7e3-85f954be028f
• https://www.oregonlive.com/data/2023/07/multnomah-county-lost-record-1-billion-in-income-in-2021-as-residents-moved-away.html?outputType=amp
• https://katu.com/news/local/man-arrested-for-allegedly-threatening-portland-bus-driver-with-knife-police-say-trimet-north-precinct
• https://www.brookings.edu/articles/combating-poverty-understanding-new-challenges-for-families/#:~:text=One%20of%20our%20arguments%2C%20based,until%20age%2021%20and%20get
• https://manhattan.institute/podcast-series/the-glenn-show
• https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/oregon-measure-110-poll-majority-against-want-repeal/283-9157a8c0-aa66-4303-b391-36afe7b12b4c
• https://www.northamericarecovers.org
• https://x.com/rationalinpdx/status/1617930240155877376?s=20
• https://attpdx.com
• https://www.ontargettrainingpdx.com/personal-trainer-near-me
• https://glennloury.substack.com/p/the-truth-about-roland-fryer