Check the Tape - Saxton Claims His Global Warming Comments are Out-Of-Context

In the final gubernatorial debate, Saxton was asked about his statement that he is "not running for Governor to deal with global warming."

Saxton said that his comment in the earlier speech had been taken out of context, that the group had been speaking about the duties of the Governor and where the Governor could have the greatest impact.

Well, we were able to track down the tape of that appearance and Saxtonwatch now provides you with his full answer. You decide for yourself:

Here is the transcript of Saxton's assertion that he was being taken out of context:

BOB HUNTER: Governor, in September, Mr. Saxton spoke for a business group. In that talk, he told the crowd – and I’m quoting here – to be really blunt with you, I’m not running for Governor to deal with global warming. But there seems to be a growing consensus, even in the federal government, that global warming is real. Is this something that the Governor should be expected to grapple with or not?

[..]

RON SAXTON: I do. That’s, you know, one of the things that happens when you take a single line out of a longer speech. ...What I was talking about when I made the comment you quoted was, we were speaking about the duties of the Governor and what is it the Governor has to do the most about? Where can the Governor have the greatest impact? And the truth is, while global warming is important and an issue that needs to be addressed, the Governor has a much greater impact when we’re talking about education for our students, what are we going to do to deal with public safety in our state, what are we doing to deal with the business climate here. So in relative terms, my comment was where can a Governor make a real difference? It wasn’t in any way to show a lack of concern for global warming.

» October 30, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton Caught Playing It Fast and Loose With PERS Numbers

The O catches Saxton in another lie today - noting that he has grossly exagerated the cost of the state's PERS program. Saxton has repeatedly claimed it consumes 20 percent of state payroll (like on his website here). Saxton now admits he was lying:

Saxton has repeatedly charged that Oregon governments paid 12 percent of their workers' wages for pension costs when Kulongoski took office and that they now pay more than 20 percent.

In response to questions from The Oregonian last week, Saxton's campaign acknowledged that he had used incorrect numbers. Actually, the employer rate rose from 10.64 percent to 15.1 percent during Kulongoski's tenure.

The article also notes that these higher rates are going to pay down the unfunded liability in the system, something Saxton continues to play dumb about despite his alleged business expertise:

The governor also noted that rates are projected to drop next year and that Oregon's relatively high rates reflect the fact the state is determined to pay off its unfunded liability -- unlike many states unwilling to deal with a looming deficit.

That is why, according to a recent analysis, Oregon's retirement system is nearly fully funded, while our neighbors in Washington, Idaho, Nevada and California all still have huge, overhanging debts in their primary funds.

» October 30, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton’s Ethics Proposal - Less than Meets the Eye

In last week’s debate on KGW, Saxton refused to pledge that he would not take, and would not let his staff take, any gifts from lobbyists, including travel, lodging, and meals. Saxton claimed that he had put out a "similar" proposal, albeit with a loophole to allow gifts up to a certain dollar amount. According to Saxton, his proposal had "some common sense limits – I think we said $40 or something like that."

Based on a review of the plan, it’s not clear where Saxton thinks he proposed that gift limit. The press release announcing the plan and Saxton's white paper on ethics mention nothing about such a gift ban. The only ban he proposes is on out-of-state trips funded by most third-party organizations. And that’s it.

Saxton said, "people do not have confidence in their elective leaders," and that’s why he put forward his "tough proposal." Yet how does he expect Oregonians to have confidence in him when he claims to have proposed a ban on gifts that appears nowhere in his proposals?

It certainly provides an interesting contrast to Governor Kulongoski, who did not hesitate to raise his hand and take the pledge.

From the October 17 debate:

Vince Patton: I have a question about influence peddling. Thanks to the work of the Oregonian, voters now know that a number of lawmakers were treated to all-expense-paid luxury trips to Hawaii courtesy of lobbyists with the beer and wine industry. Well, Ron Tammen, the respected head of the Hatfield School of Government at PSU, has a proposal. And I wondered if you might be willing to take his pledge tonight and say that: I will not take any gifts from lobbyists, including travel, lodging, and meals, nor will my staff.

Ron Saxton: Well, I've put a proposal out this week that's very similar to that. I think there are some commonsense limits – I think we said $40 or something like that. But within that limit, I absolutely don't intend to take travel and so forth and, you know, I don't intend to take gifts whether there's some modest, you know, 10, 20, 30, 40 dollar limit, I don't know the answer to that. But what happened in the legislature is shameful, it's wrong, people shouldn't be taking those gifts. They shouldn't be, you know, taking the more expensive meals and so forth. And what we absolutely have to have is very strict enforcement of the penalties. And I'll tell you, beyond what the professor has suggested, what I called for in my proposal was that when there is a wrongdoing, when somebody violates those rules, they need to pay the penalty out of their own money. Today the law allows them to pay for those penalties out of their campaign funds. That's wrong. So, I've got my own proposal, we put it out this week. It's on the website. I think it's tougher than the one you're proposing and I absolutely support it.

Governor Kulongoski: First of all, I didn't wait for this crisis because when I became the Governor, I actually went to the legislature and got the Oregon Law Commission to actually undertake a review of the ethics laws and they're gonna report back on December 1 with proposals of what they think the state should do to actually provide a more fair ethics system. The other thing is that I actually got $224,000 from the legislature to actually have them do that. So, I've been on the forefront of this issue. What I will tell you is: I will raise my hand and I will take your pledge because I believe it is the right thing to do.

Ron Saxton: Let's be clear, we've got a crisis in this state of confidence. People do not have confidence in their elective leaders. The legislature's approval rating is unbelievably low; the Governor has one of the lowest approval ratings in the country. People don't have confidence. And so we have to have complete, total disclosure. We have to limit anything in terms of significant gifts. I'm there. We're gonna have tough proposals. We've put out a tough proposal. And we have to do it if we're gonna restore confidence because the confidence is not there today.

» October 25, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton Rewrites History on Portland School Police

Ron was on KEX last week, offering an account of unusual revision on how the Portland Public Schools handed off policing the schools to the City - claiming it was the result of "greater efficiencies and coordination." From the October 19 Mark & Dave Show:

When I went on the board the school district had its own police force, I didn’t think that made sense, we’ve got police all around us, and so we worked out with the city for the city to take over the policing duties for the school district. That saved money for everybody, as well as some greater efficiencies and coordination.

Ron has an interesting interpretation of "working it out" with the city. Press accounts from the time report that Saxton-hired Ben Canada gave the the City a one-day ultimatum: either pick up the tab or I'm shutting the school police down.

As the Portland Skanner reported on May 16, 2001:

Mayor Katz, in a May 8 memo to the school board and district Superintendent Ben Canada, criticized school officials for their sudden decision to "unilaterally discontinue" paying for its school police force.

City officials said the move took them by surprise when Canada called to notify city hall of the decision the day the school district budget was scheduled for a vote. Portland Public Schools had faced a 20 million budget deficit, which officials said triggered the decision.

Katz agreed not to simply fund the school police for the school
district, but rather to absorb the school police into the city's police bureau. "The mayor really was left with no other choice," [Mayor's Katz police liaison Elise] Marshall said.

Portland's city government also faced a significant shortfall this year. "We are having to basically ask the Portland Police Bureau to absorb a 2 million cut," Marshall said.

And these cuts actually hurt neighborhood services and response time, as the Oregonian reported on May 9, 2001:

Katz said the district had given the city little choice but to take over school police when the district said last month it planned to drop the 19-officer force to balance its budget.

Katz warned that absorbing the school officers into the Portland Police Bureau could come at a cost to neighborhood policing efforts and "further exacerbate fatigue of officers."

"Last year we eliminated nine officer positions," she said in memo faxed to the school board and Superintendent Ben Canada. "Taken together, these impacts could increase the time it takes to respond to calls for service."

Another example of how Saxton's promised efficiencies are little more than cuts to important public services.

» October 24, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

O: Saxton's "Numbers don't quite add up" and "lacks specifics"

The Oregonian has an interesting piece today noting what most of us have been saying for a quite a while: Saxton's magic promises to run the state on rainbows and mysticaly solutions out of the yellow pages don't add up:

To date, Saxton has offered few specifics on where he would cut. In broad terms, he says he would have efficiency experts comb through state agencies to look for cost savings, and he mentions printing, data processing and vehicle maintenance.

He also would use the "Yellow Pages test" to see how many state services could be shunted off to the private sector, thereby saving the state the cost of salaries and benefits for the employees who perform the service. Privatization plans tend to grab attention during campaigns, but they're difficult to carry out because of union agreements and other contractual obstacles when large numbers of jobs are at stake.

Critics have seized on Saxton's hesitancy, saying he has failed to give a clear picture of one of the cornerstones of his campaign.

"Being efficient is a good thing," says Steve Novick, a consultant with Pyramid Communications in Portland and an activist who has worked against a number of anti-tax measures. "But this man has yet to identify any efficiencies."

» October 19, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

New Video - Saxton's Latest B.S. Ad

Saxton's latest attack ads juxtapose a national scorecard on higher education with pictures of grade schoolers and Saxton's empty promises to improve K-12.

Yesterday, Stand for Children and State Superintendent of Instruction Susan Castillo held a press conference to ask Saxton to pull the misleading ads. KGW was there:

Also this morning The Oregonian, ran an ad watch noting the misleading nature of the ad and that it quotes the paper's editorial page out of context.

The Saxton campaign is vowing to keep up their barrage of false attacks.

» October 11, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Ron's Back to His Old Tricks

Saxton is peddling the line again that we just need to privatize food service in state prisons to fund the Oregon State Police.

SAXTON: The state feeds its prisoners with government employees, using government procurement rules to cook in government kitchens. If you just took the cost of food in the county jails and said the state could feed its prisoners for that, you just freed up enough money to hire back 80 to 100 police officers. That’s what I’m talking about for common sense. [KLCC, 10/3/2006]

It just isn't true. Oregon ranks number twelve in the nation for cost efficiency in our state prisons. The state spend $2.38 per day to feed each prisoner. Washington County, which has privatized services, pays 83 cents to 89 cents per meal (that's $2.49 to $2.67 a day).

The state's larger size lets it use centralized purchasing, along with some very savy bargaining, to feed prisoners are very reasonable rates.

Of course Saxton's proposal also completely misses a key point in the need to fund the state police - a dedicated funding source. Savings would go back into the general fund. Yet the chief challenge of OSP funding over the past two decades has been forcing it to compete with other priorities. The state police need a dedicated funding source that allows for stable investment in training more troopers and retaining specializations.

» October 5, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton's False Immigration Ad - Back it Up or Pull It Down

You may have heard about Saxton's latest attack ad, which includes the lie that illegal immigrants are voting in Oregon. Yet in the past 15 years of elections, there are no recorded instances illegal immigrants voting according to the Secretary of State's office.

KATU did a great report on the ad this evening - we've posted it below. But in the critical exchange where the Saxton campaign is asked why they made a false claim they can't back up, his spokesperson responds she "isn't going to get into the nuances of the ad."

It's not a nuance - it's a lie. And if the Saxton campaign can't back up their false claims, the ad should be pulled down.

See the story for yourself:

» October 3, 2006 - 3 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton's Cherry Farm

Given the latest round of Saxton's false attacks on immigration, the folks over at Loaded Orygun are raising an interesting question: did Saxton make sure that all of his workers were citizens or in the country legally?

Will Saxton vouch that his use of immigration as a political football doesn't also reek of hypocrisy?

» October 3, 2006 - 1 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

New Video: Saxton Inc. - A Corporate Education

Ron Saxton is running for governor as the educashun candidate, promising smaller classes, better teachers, the right to send your kid to any school and , of course, to do it for free.

Here at Saxtonwatch we figured you'd appreciate a look at how Ron's promises match up to his record as head of the Portland School Board - his only experience in elected office.

We think the video speaks for itself. Hope you enjoy it and pass it on to your friends!

» September 28, 2006 - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Register-Guard Debunks Saxton's False Claims About Prison Chow

Ron has been running around telling folks that we can fully fund the Oregon State Police if we privatize the food service at state prisons - just like they did in Washington County. Here's the story from the Oregonian:

His chief opponent, Republican Ron Saxton, said he, too, wants more money for state police and wants the patrol force increased closer to past levels. However, he said he said he would find the money through efficiencies, such as reducing the cost of feeding inmates in state prisons or other, undescribed cost-cutting methods.

But today's Eugene Register-Guard reports that the state, through centralized purchasing and the endeavors of public workers, is actually paying less per meal than Washington County:

Prison officials consider the program a real success story. Since Monem traded his gig with a major commercial food vendor for one with the Oregon Department of Corrections, the state has seen its costs drop from $3.95 per inmate a day in 1997 to $2.38 [79 cents a meal]. Only 11 states feed their prisoners more cheaply than Oregon does, according to a U.S. Department of Justice study.

[..]

Saxton's spokeswoman, Angela Wilhelms, said when the candidate talks about counties spending half what the state does to feed inmates, he's actually comparing the costs of two counties to the state.

One is Washington County, where a switch from government-run to contractor-provided food service cut costs by about one-third, said Sgt. Todd Iverson, who oversees the program.

The contract leaves the county paying between 83 cents and 89 cents per meal.

What is particularly sad is that Saxton's numbers were already debunked in the primary. But that hasn't stopped him yet. We can only guess that it doesn't matter what you say if you're only concern is saying whatever you think it will take to get elected.

» September 15, 2006 - 1 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton Touts Charter School Violating State Law

On Friday, Ron visited a charter school, Oregon Connections Academy, in Scio, noting "These guys are doing a great job."

Too bad the same day the state ordered the state to comply with the law or lose public funding.

» September 11, 2006 - 0 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton Knows Business, For True!

We're setting aside for now Saxton's penchant for giving different audience diametrically opposed positions on the kicker, but don't worry - it'll make an appearance soon enough.

But overlooked from Ron's Friday appearance on Lars was his blinding ignorance about who actually will receive the benefits of the corporate kicker.

Ron loves to tout his experience in business as qualifying him for office. But for someone who wants to overhaul the state tax system he seems woefully uninformed about it.

Here is the part in the interview where they spin the tax credit as primarily benefiting mom and pop family businesses:

LARS LARSON: I guess part of what I find frustrating about the corporate kicker is that - I’m not a corporation, I don’t have a corporation, but when people think corporation a lot of times they think Enron, they think Nike, they think Pepsi Co. or Coca Cola they don’t think that it-

SAXTON: This is about the corner store and the gas station owner and all the little private small business people.

LARSON: Yea, the guy that cleans your carpets or the guys who were up at my place the other day cutting a retaining wall in half for me.

SAXTON: Right, and let’s be clear those people are struggling to buy the new equipment struggling to reinvest, to make the investments to allow their business to succeed if they get some kicker money back and this allows them to invest in their business great that’s wonderful, then I’m thrilled.

Despite Saxton's claims that this is about the little guy, the data shows otherwise. As this analysis by the Oregon Center for Public Policy shows, 93 percent of the corporate kicker will go to businesses with profits over $250,000 - leaving just 7 percent for small business owners.

Moreover, most small businesses are S corporations, and as a business expert like Saxton should know, most profits from S corporations are taxed as part of an individual return - not corporate.

It's great that Saxton pulled a page from the Bush playbook, but he might want to get his facts right first.

» September 5, 2006 - 0 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Saxton Wants to Make Oregon Schools "Amoung" The Best in the Nation

Expect to hear a lot in the next few weeks about Saxton's plan for education. But if his latest email to supporters is any indication, we should think twice about putting our schools in Saxton's hands.

Saxton declared in an August 29 note to supporters:

Our schools can be amoung the best in the nation, our streets the safest and our public services the most effective and efficient. But we need leadership that doesn’t defend a broken system of government or wait light years to find solutions.

Before he gins up his plans too much, could someone tell him that it's spelled among? And that a light year is a measurement of distance, not time?

» August 30, 2006 - 3 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Fact Check: Saxton Spins the Hood River News

Ron was in Hood River last week and serving up a steaming pile of bull plop to the Hood River News. It's amazing that he continues to just make stuff up and expects no one to catch him.

Oregonian's Average Income Ron claimed that Oregon's average income ranks 38th in America. It's actually 29th, and, perhaps more relevant to the gubernatorial race, average personal income for Oregonians has increased nearly $3,000 (10 percent) since Governor Kulongoski took office.

Law Enforcement in Oregon Ron told the paper that "citizens in Oregon have less police protection per capita than any other state in the nation." Not even close to true. According to the most recent data from the Department of Justice, Oregon was 14th in the nation in per capita expenditures on public safety.

Growth in State Government Ron also claimed state government has grown 150% in "recent years." If by recent years he means the last decade, then the total state budget is up 131 in real dollars since 1997. And not to forget that the population of Oregon has also increased 113 percent during that period.

» August 23, 2006 - 0 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality

Flashback: Sarasohn Pours a Dose of Reality on Ron in the Primary

As SaxtonWatch launches, promising to police Ron's rhetoric and give voters the real scoop, we take a moment to tip our hat to others who have taken on the responsibility before us.

During the Republican primary, David Sarasohn took a look at what Ron was saying and found it didn't quite square with the truth.

On Ron's deceptive claims about government efficiency:

When he's just denouncing bureaucracy and waste, Saxton does fine. But when he gets into specifics, his statements seem to lack the crispness and precision you expect from a $300-an-hour lawyer.

His first TV spot declared, "Let's face facts. Oregon has one of the nation's most inefficient state governments, getting a D for managing your tax dollars."

Oregon did get a D in the annual report of the Government Performance Project, "Governing the States 2005," but not for managing its money. The D was for the state's entire financial system, including the almost total dependence on the income tax, the kicker, the lack of a rainy-day fund and initiatives that can overturn any planning.

On the question of money management, the current report says, "Oregon state officials are doing what they can to make sure Oregon gets the most for what little money it has." As Susan Willie, director of the Government Performance Project, explains: "Given all of these constraints, Oregon's doing the best it can."

So the D isn't really for managing tax dollars.

Maybe it's for Dishonest.

And how Ron was misleading voters on our schools:

In his newest spot, Saxton looks soulfully into the camera and declares, "Oregon's politicians just spent a billion more dollars on our schools. Yet a third of our kids still don't graduate and Oregon ranks 46th in key student achievement areas. More money alone won't solve the problem."

Although apparently it helps in winning elections.

Over four years, from the 2001-03 budget cycle to the current one, the Legislature has added a billion dollars to school spending. But as The Oregonian's Jeff Mapes noted, the rating came from a Manhattan Institute study of college readiness in 2001 -- before any of the new money had been spent. The same study in 2002 ranked Oregon 25th.

And most national studies, not to say tests, rank Oregon schools considerably higher than 46th -- even in Portland, where Saxton's time as school board head is the core of his government experience.

When it comes to prison spending, Ron's numbers just don't add up:

In debates and other appearances, Saxton has often asserted that Washington County spends 80 cents per meal on prison inmates while the state spends $3 a meal, and he was going to get state prisons off the truffle-infused gravy train. But the state says it actually spends more like 70 cents a meal on food -- and even counting labor and other costs, Saxton's $3 number imagines a much happier meal than prison inmates ever get.

And Ron admitted he was making up number in the debate over immigration:

All three Republican candidates have eagerly taken up the illegal immigration issue, but Saxton has outdone the others, with an early radio ad charging that illegal immigrants cost Oregon taxpayers "hundreds of millions of dollars." Questioned afterward, he agreed the number was actually "unknowable."

Oregonians owe Sarasohn a debt of gradtitude holding Saxton's claims to account. We look forward to his continuing review of gubernatorial race as the campaign heats up.

» July 27, 2006 - 0 comments - Filed in Ron vs. Reality