Oregon Catalyst

Arson arrests: 4 for wildfire, 1 for school

In the news — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 12:00:57 +0000

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon Foundation,

The NW has an arson problem. Here is what occurred just this last week.

The U.S. Marshals Service has arrested four people suspected to be involved in the deadly Chelan Hills fire in Washington State. Authorities are also hunting for two others. All the arrested suspects are teenagers. It is believed that they shot fiery Roman candles from the bed of a speeding pickup truck.

In Oregon this week, a Keizer man is being charged with setting a fire that damaged Hallman Elementary School in Salem. The fire caused half a million dollars in damages.

The post Arson arrests: 4 for wildfire, 1 for school first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Top headlines for the week of 9/18

In the News — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 08:00:05 +0000

Top 5 Hedlines

1 New poll shows Drazan with lead
2 Where Kotek, Drazan stand on CAT reform
3 Timber giant opens 145K acres to geothermal
4 A new era for Oregon Seafood starts now
5 Developer closes, 55 laid off

Bonus

Big poll change as election approaches
Councilor’s old tweet: ‘pure hatred for police’
Mom wins challenge to LGBTQ+ foster policy

The post Top headlines for the week of 9/18 first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Rep. Bynum won’t answer socialism question

In the news — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 00:30:01 +0000

Commissioner Patti Adair Calls on Janelle Bynum to Give Voters a Straight Answer on Her Stance on Socialism
Patti Adair for Congress,
Press Release,

SISTERS, OR- Deschutes County Commissioner and candidate for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District, Patti Adair, called on Congresswoman Janelle Bynum to set the record straight on her position on socialism and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Commissioner Adair stated the following:

“On November 21st, Janelle Bynum voted present on a House resolution to condemn socialism. Then, this past June, it came out that Janelle Bynum had signed the ‘Promise to America’ pledge, which states, ‘We are capitalist, not socialist.’ However, on Tuesday, September 1st, Janelle Bynum was once again given the opportunity to condemn socialism when the House considered H. Res. 1490, a resolution condemning socialism in all its forms, and this time she voted against it. Voters deserve to have a straight answer from Janelle Bynum on where she stands on socialism and the DSA.”

The post Rep. Bynum won’t answer socialism question first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Rep. Yunker: Change to ODFW’s special hunting tag program

In the news — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 00:11:38 +0000

Rep. Yunker Helps Secure Rule Change to ODFW’s Special Hunting Tag Program
By Oregon State Representative Dwayne Yunker,

GRANTS PASS, ORE. — Following a request by Representative Dwayne Yunker (R-Grants Pass) and the Hunt of a Lifetime Foundation, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission today approved a rule change replacing the term “terminal illness” with “life-threatening illness” in its special hunting tag program. The program provides big game hunting opportunities for children facing serious illnesses and disabled veterans. The updated wording aims to prevent unnecessary distress for children and their families.

Following the Commission’s decision, Representative Yunker issued the following statement:

“Words matter, especially when we’re talking about children fighting for their lives,” said Representative Yunker. “These kids deserve hope, not a label that takes it away. I’m proud we worked together to make this happen.”

“Brett Loper with the Hunt of a Lifetime Foundation brought this issue to my attention and explained how the word ‘terminal’ was creating unnecessary challenges for children, families, and their doctors,” Representative Yunker said. “I knew this was something we needed to fix.”

“This program gives children facing life-threatening illnesses and disabled veterans an opportunity to experience something truly special,” Representative Yunker added. “A special thank you to ODFW Director Debbie Colbert, Game Program Manager Derek Broman, Brett Loper, and the Fish and Wildlife Commission for making this change possible.”

The post Rep. Yunker: Change to ODFW’s special hunting tag program first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Charter School Teachers Have Discovered the Emergency Exit

In the news — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 23:53:52 +0000

By Dustin James
Freedom Foundation,
September 1, 2026

After years of canvassing public employees across the country, my team and I have noticed a pattern that has become impossible to ignore.

Every charter school employee we have encountered has been happier with their employment than the frustrated union-represented public employees we so regularly meet.

But there is something even more revealing.

These charter employees are not simply uninterested in unions.

They are often completely against them.

And many of the charter school teachers we have spoken with did not simply happen to end up there. They left traditional public schools intentionally, and one reason comes up repeatedly:

The union.

They were tired of the bureaucracy, workplace politics and union influence over their profession. Perhaps most importantly, many told us they were frustrated by being expected to teach or participate in material they considered political, ideological or unrelated to the basic educational mission they signed up for.

They wanted to teach.

They wanted to focus on reading, writing, mathematics, science, history and the fundamentals their students need to succeed.

Instead, they felt increasingly pulled into nonacademic initiatives they did not believe belonged in their classrooms. And from their perspective, the organization supposedly representing teachers was often supporting the very agenda they wanted to escape.

So they left.

And in our experience, they are happier for it.

These Teachers Were Supposed to Need the Union

Teachers unions constantly tell Americans that educators need union representation to be respected, protected and treated professionally.

If that were universally true, charter schools should be filled with teachers desperate to organize.

That is not what we see.

We meet charter employees who like their schools, feel appreciated and enjoy being able to focus on educating students.

When unions come up, their reaction is never curiosity.

It is opposition.

Some have already experienced the unionized public-school system and deliberately chose to leave it behind.

That should tell us something.

They Wanted to Teach, Not Be Political Operatives

Most teachers enter education because they want to teach children.

They want to watch a struggling student finally understand a math problem. They want a child to discover a love of reading. They want to teach science, history, literature and the skills students will carry into adulthood. They do not want to be pressured to push gender ideologies or political opinions onto developing minds; they want classrooms focused on academics, not activism.

But former public-school teachers we have encountered have described feeling increasingly pulled away from that mission.

They talk about trainings, initiatives and classroom material they believe have more to do with politics and ideology than education.

Teachers are professionals. They do not all share one political philosophy, one worldview or one opinion about what belongs in a classroom.

Some are conservative. Some are liberal. Some are independent. Some want nothing to do with politics.

Yet unions routinely claim to speak collectively for all of them.

A teacher should be able to say:

“I came here to educate children, not advance somebody else’s political agenda.”

Many of the charter teachers we meet appear to have made exactly that choice.

Compare That With What We Hear From Union Members

The contrast is difficult to ignore.

Our team spends countless hours talking with public employees who already have everything unions insist workers need: collective bargaining agreements, grievance procedures, union representatives and dues coming out of their paychecks.

Yet we routinely hear:

“They don’t listen to us.”

“They don’t work for us.”

“They don’t have any respect for us.”

And one of the most devastating comments we have heard:

“We pay them for nothing in return.”

Then we meet charter school teachers who left that system and want absolutely nothing to do with bringing it into their new workplace.

That deserves an explanation.

A Good Workplace Does Not Require a Union

A union cannot manufacture good management.

A collective bargaining agreement cannot create mutual respect.

Union dues cannot create a healthy workplace culture.

Good administrators listen to their employees. Good schools respect teachers as professionals. Good workplaces make employees feel valued.

When those things already exist, workers have every right to ask:

What exactly would a union improve?

For many charter school employees we encounter, the answer appears to be nothing.

Some actually fear unionization would introduce the very things they left public schools to escape: more bureaucracy, more politics, more ideological battles and another organization claiming to speak on their behalf.

They have already seen that system.

They don’t want it back.

A Good Product Sells Itself

I keep returning to one simple principle:

If teachers unions provide real value, teachers should want them. Instead, many former public-school teachers we meet are relieved to be out of that system and opposed to bringing unions into their new schools.

So unions should answer a simple question:

If your product is so valuable, why do so many people who have experienced it refuse to go back? And why do you refuse to be open and transparent about their right to discontinue dues and membership while fighting to hold onto your monopoly over their collective bargaining, disabling them from choosing something they do support and that actually supports them as well?

Maybe the better question is not why charter teachers don’t have unions, but:

What are these charter schools doing right?

Many teachers point to the same things: more autonomy, less bureaucracy, a stronger focus on academics, and direct relationships with administrators—without another layer of political or organizational control.

Whatever the reason, the pattern is consistent.

Charter employees are not asking for unions. Many actively reject them.

And many former public-school teachers say they left specifically to escape the unionized system they already knew.

Sometimes the worker is not escaping a bad nonunion job.

Sometimes they are escaping the unionized one.

Teachers should absolutely have the freedom to join a union if they want one.

But they also deserve the freedom to reject it.

The post Charter School Teachers Have Discovered the Emergency Exit first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Don’t let Kotek cancel gas tax vote (surplus $$ abounds)

In the news — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 12:02:03 +0000

Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Weeks ago, a secret Legislative document revealed two dozen draft tax proposals on taxes that could be raised to back-fill the gas tax rejected by voters by a whopping 83% last May (Taxpayers Association was a key leader in that battle).

The taxes included tire taxes, Uber taxes, DMV fee increases, beer taxes, speeding fines increase and even indexing the gas tax to inflation so it automatically increases your gas tax without traditional lawmaker voting or a public vote.

At the same time ODOT is coughing up a near HALF-BILLION IN SURPLUS FUNDS:

• Nearly $56 million of ODOT bridge surplus funds were not reported to lawmakers when they were setting ODOT’s budget. This means ODOT was saying they were broke and needed a gas tax while they were sitting on $56 million in surplus funds.

• ODOT found $30 million in discretionary funds with the Oregon Connect program.

• Gov. Kotek earlier this year found $248 million in ODOT savings by eliminating 100 vacant positions and EV projects.

Don’t forget how ODOT has wasted your funds already.

Help us stop Kotek’s plan to back-fill the gas tax with a dozen new taxes.

Help us spread the word by sending this article by email, X, and Facebook.

Please financially support us.

– Donate to stop the dozen new taxes

– Charitable donation for our investigative work.

– Political Tax Credit.

— Was this article helpful? If yes, please contribute online at OregonWatchdog.com (learn about a Charitable Tax Deduction or Political Tax Credit options to promote liberty).

The post Don’t let Kotek cancel gas tax vote (surplus $$ abounds) first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

(photos) SWAT team bust mass-trash homeless den

In the news — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 12:01:27 +0000

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon Foundation,

Neighbors complained for years about an abandoned house in Southeast Portland known for drawing drug deals, stolen vehicles and other criminal activity, according to KATU.com. In late August, when Portland Police served a vacate notice on a dozen people living there, they arrested five, four of whom had outstanding felony warrants.

Two people who barricaded themselves inside the home at 3254 SE 111th Avenue and later tried to escape out the back were arrested on first-degree criminal trespass, interfering with a police officer, and third-degree escape. They also were wanted on felony warrants. Taxes haven’t been paid on the house since 2018.

It took several Hazmat agents to investigate the house.

The post (photos) SWAT team bust mass-trash homeless den first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Cato Institute files brief in Support of Oregon v Trump

Eric Shierman — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 12:00:12 +0000

I’ve earlier written about that hell-freezes-over case where Oregon is suing for freedom, for a change. The Cato Institute, the most consistent and effective national free-market think tank has lent some intellectual firepower to Oregon v Trump by filing an amicus brief in defense of Oregon’s stance on free trade.

There is another motive for Cato. A staunch advocate of limited-government that is also more politically independent than most institutions that chalk themselves with that policy perspective, Cato has long been a consistent opponent of the unconstitutional expansion of federal executive power even when it’s a Republican doing the expanding. So in addition to opposing Trump’s socialist trade policy, the unreasonable delegation of congressional power is no slouch second rationale. You can download a pdf of Cato’s brief here.

Eric Shierman lives in Salem and is the author of We were winning when I was there.

The post Cato Institute files brief in Support of Oregon v Trump first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

(5 memes) More AI humor …

In the news — Fri, 18 Sep 2026 03:05:32 +0000

By Guest Submission Meme,

More memes below,

The post (5 memes) More AI humor … first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

(video) Walk through Portland’s scariest, most vile underpass

In the news — Thu, 17 Sep 2026 23:55:02 +0000

By NW Spotlight,

Independent journalist and homeless advocate Kevin Dahlgren does a walk through a dangerous Portland underpass. View the post below, then follow Dahlgren and financially support him.

A pedestrian underpass in Portland, Oregon pic.twitter.com/NifTsZaVsr

— Kevin Dahlgren (@kevinvdahlgren) September 17, 2026

The post (video) Walk through Portland’s scariest, most vile underpass first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.

Socialist candidates 1,600 donors entitles them to free tax $$

In the news — Thu, 17 Sep 2026 23:48:34 +0000

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

As reported by Willamette Week, three of Portland’s Socialist-backed city councilors have individually surpassed the important 1,600 donors threshold, which now entitled them to a special city government program that will award them taxpayer funded cash grants to use for campaigning.

That’s right. In Portland, the government spends tax dollars on political candidates to use as they see fit. The most unnecessary of all government activities.

— Contribute online at OregonWatchdog.com (learn about a Charitable Tax Deduction or Political Tax Credit options to promote liberty).

The post Socialist candidates 1,600 donors entitles them to free tax $$ first appeared on Oregon Catalyst.