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Tuesday, January 20, 2009

News / City Hall / Politics / Portland City Hall Shocked, Stunned

Posted by Matt Davis on Tue, Jan 20, 2009 at 10:27 AM

City Commissioner Randy Leonard's front desk person had gotten 5 calls from citizens and 3 media calls when I stopped in just before 9am. But Leonard isn't in yet, and his Chief of Staff, Ty Kovatch, declined comment.

Commissioner Dan Saltzman is out of town with his family for the inauguration. His chief of staff, Brendan Finn, gave no comment.

Commissioner Amanda Fritz was "indisposed" in a back office when I asked her staffer for two minutes. "If it's about the mayor, the Commissioner has a policy not to comment on personal matters," said her staffer, returning from a brief conversation with Fritz.

Commissioner Nick Fish was watching the inauguration with his staffers when I walked into his office:
f018/1232476046-inaugurationnickfish.jpg
"He looks good out there," said Fish, watching Joe Biden. "That morning sun looks good on him."

After tissues were passed around, Fish moved into his back office without commenting on the news about Adams. I asked for two minutes with him.

Meanwhile on the front desk of Fish's office, a staffer's notepad, clearly visible, had about a dozen "to do" items listed under the word "Monday." Under the word "Tuesday," just one single line was written: "Amy Ruiz."

An hour later, Fish's chief of staff, Sam Chase, emerged from a meeting, and told the Mercury "he doesn't want to have a discussion about it right now."

Upstairs, Mayor Adams' office is spooky.

"Do you have an appointment?" asked the receptionist, when I asked to speak with Adams' chief of staff, Tom Miller, or his head of communications, Wade Nkrumah.

"They're out right now. I can take down your details," said the receptionist.

"It's okay," I said. "I'll wait."

I've been here five minutes. The phone is ringing off the hook.

"The mayor plans to issue a public apology at 1:30," says the receptionist, into the phone. "If you'd like to express your opinion I can either transfer you to the mayor's voicemail, or to the mayor's public advocate."

I asked to speak to the public advocate. After 10 minutes I was told that the public advocate is "kind of swamped this morning," and that "Wade and Tom will be the point people" this morning. There's no indication when they'll be around.

The receptionist just took a call from an angry member of the public who was screaming "he's a liar" so loudly into her earpiece that it traveled 12 feet to where I'm sitting. "Sir," she said. "Sir?" And he hung up.

 

Comments (15) RSS

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1
Sam Adams should resign this afternoon so the city can get on with the real and neccessary projects that the citizens of Portland need.

We should not let Adams' greed and narcisissism interfere with the need for good government. By staying on in the midst of all the scandal, after admitting that he is a liar, he is simply distracting city staff, journalists and the other citizens of Portland from the real tasks at hand.

Imagine if Obama, 17 days after taking the oath of office, admitted that Bill Ayers was his best friend, or that Reverend Wright was the greatest preacher ever or any of the things that he denied during the campaign were in fact true. You can't address a scandal (or scandalous accusations) with a lie and then simply come clean once elected. If he doesn't resign immediately, then he is allowing his self-interest to overwhelm the public good and betraying the public trust.
Posted by Number Six on January 20, 2009 at 10:50 AM · Report
2
Any idea if goofballs drunk on morbid curiosity with nothing better to do on a Tuesday afternoon, er, I mean, local bloggers, are allowed to attend public apologies at City Hall? I'm bored.
Posted by Whateveretc on January 20, 2009 at 10:53 AM · Report
3
For clarification: The public apology is in a public building, and therefore open to the public.
Posted by Matt Davis on January 20, 2009 at 11:02 AM · Report
4
Number Six. Do you have anything better to do other than sit around all day and comment on blogs about something that two adults did in a bedroom?

Just sayin...
Posted by BlackedOut on January 20, 2009 at 11:07 AM · Report
5
So what about the questions about the Portland Mercury's news staff (namely Amy Ruiz) burring the story in exchange for a job in the Adam's administration? A job which some people are saying she has no qualifications for. I have heard that Scott Moore was also involved in the cover-up. When will the Merc issue a statement?
Posted by rdp on January 20, 2009 at 11:08 AM · Report
6
Garrett, was the kid an adult when they started getting physical? That's the big question...and one we'll probably never know the truth of.
Posted by Whateveretc on January 20, 2009 at 11:16 AM · Report
7
Garrett,
one was barely an adult... the other a public official who dates someone on the news staff of the city's largest paper and hired the editor of the city's most militant paper... amazingly neither of which covered the story...
the words "cover up" come to mind.
Posted by Shy Girl on January 20, 2009 at 11:17 AM · Report
8
"Sam Adams should resign this afternoon so the city can get on with the real and neccessary projects that the citizens of Portland need."

Yeah, but we're talking about Sam Adams. Somehow this will all be our fault.
Posted by Blabby on January 20, 2009 at 11:18 AM · Report
9
More on Ruiz here:

http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/Blogto…
Posted by Matt Davis on January 20, 2009 at 11:22 AM · Report
10
"was the kid an adult when they started getting physical?"

For legal reasons that's the big question, but really, a 42-year-old man moving in on an 18-year-old subordinate in their office. Gay or hetero, that's just inappropriate.

And those who want to lead us should be held to a higher standard. The mayor should be an upright person, and not an office predator.

I hate to patronizing, but those of you who "don't get the fuss" will get it when you're older, or gain more experience in a responsible work environment.
Posted by Blabby on January 20, 2009 at 11:23 AM · Report
11
Garrett, you know your position is losing when your attack involves attacking the anonymous blog commentor instead of addressing the real issue. Yeah, I got better things to do but until I digest my Obama celebratory donuts and the rest of my office gets back to work, I've got a few minutes to surf the web and think about the jackasses upstairs making my job harder with scandal, mismanagement and waste. We don't need superheroes or perfect people in political office, but when you have a confirmed liar in office, something needs to be done about it.
Posted by Number Six on January 20, 2009 at 11:34 AM · Report
12
@Blabby: Beau did not work under Sam, in Sam's office, or even for the city. He worked in the Oregon State House in Salem.
Posted by Pangloss on January 20, 2009 at 11:53 AM · Report
13
Pangloss, thank you for that clarification.
Posted by Blabby on January 20, 2009 at 12:06 PM · Report
14
the Mercury is "millitant"? LOOOOOOOOOOOL.
Posted by Chunty McHutchence on January 20, 2009 at 12:09 PM · Report
15
@ Number Six...

No I'm not attacking you. I just noticed how you keep posting the same ranting diatribes on every post relating to Sam Adams. State your case once and leave it alone. Every response you have doesn't have to have the same diatribe over and over.

@ Shy Girl. At the time there were unfounded rumors coming from a possible mayor candidate. Do you know if the O or Mercury investigated into matter. If they did and found nothing (which at the time was probably the case) then I wouldn't write an article based on a rumor spread by a possible candidate. That's what Perez Hilton is for. While much of the Mercury dabbles in many things that are not serious their coverage of city hall is usually the best in the city.
Posted by BlackedOut on January 20, 2009 at 12:29 PM · Report

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