Dudley's Wall between Himself and Voters Grows Thicker
Paulie Brading
Jeff Mapes - Oregonian Political Columnist, 9/22/10:
There was a notable absence in my story in The Oregonian Wednesday morning on environmental issues in the race for Oregon governor. I couldn't get Republican Chris Dudley to talk with me about this subject before my deadline.
This is the first time I've had this happen on a major issue story in covering six consecutive races for governor. The Dudley campaign on Tuesday morning asked for written questions, which of course is not the same thing. Most importantly, you don't know how much the answers represent the candidate as opposed to the staff. And you don't have the opportunity to probe and ask follow-up questions.
[As an aside, I should note that the Dudley campaign has generally been responsive to my interview requests. When I asked to talk to him about the issue of public employee pay earlier this month, I was on the phone with him within two hours. This time, I gave the campaign a week's notice.]
I sent a dozen questions to the Dudley campaign at 10:30 a.m. and was told they would get back to me "ASAP." I did not receive answers until 7:30 p.m. - well after our deadline
Mapes seems quite startled by Chris Dudley's request that he submit written questions to him instead of an interview.
Inaccessibility seems to be the hallmark of Dudley's campaign for Governor.
Your take?
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11:27 a.m.
Sep 22, '10
Well, we can spend the next three days bitching about the timeliness of his response OR we can go to the same article you cut-n-pasted from and debate the merits of the ANSWERS to those questions.
The Answers
12:23 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
What is there to discuss? Dudley pretends that our current approach is not balanced, where it clearly is. A recent poll shows that over 75% of Eastern Oregonians support senator Wyden's forest management compromise, for example, and that includes a lot of timber company employees.
Dudley wants to "correct" this "imbalance" by basically destroying Oregon's ecology, though he isn't going to say that so directly, of course.
He also "does not support oil drilling off the coast", after someone in his campaign noticed that Oregonian voters are very glad they're not eating highly toxic oil dispersant in their seafood. But naturally enough he won't say that he's actually in favor of a permanent ban, because that would preclude him from instantly reneging on his promise as soon as he gets elected.
With positions like this, of course Dudley is doing his damnedest to keep Oregonians from actually questioning him. The more they know about what he truly is, the more certain it is Oregonians will reject him.
1:29 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
We will never know if the written responses were actually from Chris Dudley or his campaign staff. The issue of timeliness isn't the point. The point is he backed out of an interview in which Mapes would have asked follow up questions or asked for further clarification.
Avoiding the press, debates, and yes, the voters is one of the strangest campaigns on record in Oregon. I believe it's fair to say Dudley's handlers have adopted a puppet campaign strategy. Dudley is a puppet controlled by others who hold the the strings which probably included writing the answers to the questions Mapes submitted.
2:27 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
Yeah, b/c Mapes gave us such in-depth detail from Kitzhaber in the piece.
The extent of Kitzs comments:
I would love to have the transcripts of Mapes' interview with Kitz to see if he actually asked him any questions at all.
10:13 a.m.
Sep 23, '10
At least Kitz showed up and answered questions without a hand in his back
10:36 a.m.
Sep 23, '10
Where can I catch your comedy act?
12:15 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
Dudley is a dunce. He doesn't know anything and evasion is his strategy for avoiding both the revelation of his ignorance and committing himself to corporate policy positions that trash the environment and the natural resources in our state, positions that are not going to sell well in Oregon.
I would add that he was bested by his principal opponent, Allen Alley, in the primary debates because he didn't know anything.
12:45 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
Since you don't want to discuss them, how about we discuss Kitzhabers mortgage that is the cover story at WWeek.
4:20 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
um, no it's not. his seeking a 3rd term is the cover story.
fact.
5:11 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
Is it not in:
[COVER STORY] Dr. Do-Over The Democratic gubernatorial nominee’s toughest opponent may not be Chris Dudley. Table of Contents: | Kitzhaber’s V I P Loan
BY NIGEL JAQUISS | NJAQUISS AT WWEEK DOT COM [September 22nd, 2010]
11:33 a.m.
Sep 23, '10
even oregonlive is covering the story.
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/09/john_kitzhaber_never_reported.html
4:18 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
during the primary, i attended a Kitz appearance at PCC in N Pdx. he spoke to the classroom of students at length, and then held an impromptu presser in the hallway. as with other Kitz appearances i attended during the primary, Mapes was able to grill Kitz at length -- and Kitz, of course, had the answers. he's made himself available almost every time asked (ridiculous number of debates he & Bradbury held; i went to 6). Duds only goes to friendly crowds and where he can repeat his well-coached answers.
5:11 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
I did some research on him for a FB post and honestly, Dudley is simply not qualified. When you look at who gave him money, and who endorses him, you see that he is pretty much a three-trick pony: tax cuts for business, relaxing "zoning laws" so communities can grow and conservative Christian on social issues. (Why else would Mannix be the second one on his key endorsers, after Alley, who when running against him in the primary said he was cough-cough inexperienced!) He shows practically no endorsers in the metro area except Bruce Starr. He is way out of his league and in office would be completely at the mercy of his staff. Really a bad alternative.
7:33 p.m.
Sep 22, '10
Why else would Mannix be the second one on his key endorsers
oh I don't know, maybe he placed them in some kinda order.....let's see.....lets see if you can detect a pattern....
a list of GOP Gubernatorial Nominee's who endorsed him followed by State Senators and then State Representatives......then county commissioners.....city mayors....city councilors and finally county sheriffs.
Oh, and they are in alphabetical order too
I thought dishonest attacks were the hallmark of the GOP, but I guess times have changed.
10:48 a.m.
Sep 23, '10
Don't fret Michael. Kitzhabers plan to create temp jobs with his 100k per job weatherization plan will save our economy! Im sure glad that we the tax payer wont be paying that bill! oh wait ... we will be.
3:00 p.m.
Sep 23, '10
It's pretty clear what Dudley's strategy is. He's trying his best not to answer questions because he'll either say something moderate that the insane Oregon GOP will go crazy about and send them running off to a conservative third party or he'll say something to appease the insane Oregon GOP and send all the moderates in Oregon running to Kitzhaber. He's walking a very fine line hoping he can get away with it until the election happens.