Oct. 1 – Supreme Court nominee once brawled alongside former Blazer
U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh participated in a bar fight with former NBA basketball player Chris Dudley in 1985 while both men were attending Yale University, The New York Times reported. Kavanaugh’s judicial temperament and conduct have been called into question during a series of hearings and investigations into allegations that he sexually assaulted Christine Blasey Ford while drunk at a high school party. The Senate voted 51-49 to advance to a vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation shortly after a controversial FBI report investigating the allegations was released.
Oct. 2 – First debate for governor features questions from students
Gov. Kate Brown and Rep. Knute Buehler fielded the questions of 15 students from across the state during the first of three debates before elections in November. The children, aged between 12 and 19 years old, questioned the candidates on issues ranging from climate change to LGBTQ+ suicide, though the latter question did not receive an actual answer, according to the student who asked it. Neither campaign has released polling thus far, but some independent polls have called the race a tossup.
Oct. 3 – ICE union calls for Ted Wheeler to relinquish control of police bureau
The union representing Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents is requesting a criminal investigation into Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler. An attorney representing the union sent a letter to the Oregon Department of Justice accusing Wheeler of official misconduct and failure to enforce local ordinances after the mayor said he would not use police resources to break up a protest outside a south Portland ICE facility earlier this summer. Wheeler has been a vocal opponent of the Trump administration’s immigration policies and characterized the action as part of ongoing political backlash.
Oct. 3 – Wyden calls for IRS to look into potential tax fraud by Trump family
Following a report on the financial history of U.S. President Donald Trump by The New York Times, Sen. Ron Wyden (D–Ore.) sent a letter asking the IRS to fully investigate potential tax fraud by the Trump family. The Times report showed Trump had received nearly half a billion dollars from his father’s real estate empire, and that the president’s parents paid only a five percent tax rate on over $1 billion in wealth transferred to their children.
