https://katu.com/news/local/oregon-sena ... 06-21-2019
Nothing on whether arresting them would be legal, just that the state police are working with out of state agencies to do so and the Republicans are threatening a court challenge. However, the article does provide the following regarding the fines:SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Republican state senators in Oregon continued to engage in a high-stakes game of brinksmanship Friday with Democratic lawmakers, remaining away from the capitol for the second day and threatening a lawsuit over a $500-per-day fine from the Senate president.
Eleven Republican senators fled the Legislature — and in some cases, the state — to thwart the passage of a cap-and-trade proposal that would dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The minority GOP caucus wants the plan to be sent to voters instead of being instituted by lawmakers — but negotiations with Democrats collapsed, leading to the headline-grabbing walkout.
Carol Currie, a spokeswoman for Senate President Peter Courtney, confirmed that each missing senator was hit with a $500 fine Friday morning, which will be renewed each day they continue to delay a vote. She said in an email that "they will receive a bill for the amount owed."
Republicans immediately pushed back.
"We will file legal action," said Sen. Tim Knopp, a Republican from Bend who has said he has been in three states in the past three days. "If they were trying to bring us back, threatening to arrest us and impose fines isn't going to work."
Senate Majority Leader Ginny Burdick said Republicans have no legal recourse as the fine is explicitly written in statute. A GoFundMe to cover the rogue lawmakers' expenses and fines raised nearly $30,000 in less than a day. State ethics laws prohibit officials from receiving gifts exceeding $50, so it's unclear whether senators could access the money.
Democrats have an 18 to 12 majority in the chamber, but they need 20 members present for a quorum. One GOP senator recently died and has not yet been replaced.
State Police can force any senators they track down in Oregon into a patrol car to return them to the Capitol, although the agency said in a statement that it would use "polite communication" and patience to bring the rogue lawmakers back. Knopp confirmed that he was contacted by the state police, but he said he declined the superintendent's request to return back to the statehouse.
The state police don't have jurisdiction outside Oregon. But the Oregon State Police confirmed Thursday evening it was working with out of state agencies to track down the Republicans.
Under the proposed cap-and-trade bill, Oregon would put an overall limit on greenhouse gas emissions and auction off pollution "allowances" for each ton of carbon industries plan to emit. The legislation would lower that cap over time to encourage businesses to move away from fossil fuels: The state would reduce emissions to 45% below 1990 levels by 2035 and 80% below 1990 levels by 2050.
Those opposed to the cap-and-trade plan say it would exacerbate a growing divide between the liberal, urban parts of the state and the rural areas. The plan would increase the cost of fuel, damaging small business, truckers and the logging industry, they say.
Democrats say the measure is an efficient way to lower emissions while investing in low-income and rural communities' ability to adapt to climate change. It has the support of environmental groups, farmworkers and some trade unions.
California has had for a decade an economy-wide cap and trade policy like the one Oregon is considering. Nine northeastern states have more limited cap-and-trade programs that target only the power sector.
Republicans aren't just holding up a climate plan, but a significant portion of the state budget including funding for the state's health care, foster care and higher education agencies.
"If we don't get that passed, we're going to see some real disruption in the services that people depend on," said Burdick, a Democrat from Portland.
The Legislature this week approved a continuing resolution to prevent those agencies from shutting down, funding them at current service levels in the event a budget isn't approved by June 30, the constitutional end of session.
Knopp said Republicans would be willing to return to the statehouse to solely vote on budget bills.
"We would come back if that's what Democrats want to vote on," he said. "At this time, that hasn't been offered. As far as I'm concerned, the Democrats are responsible for this impasse."
Burdick said it's not Republicans' "job to dictate what we can pass and what we can't pass."
"They're responsible for being here," she said.
The walkout also puts other major Democratic priorities on hold, including affordable housing, tobacco taxes and paid family leave. Legislation addressing these topics sailed through the House Thursday, but their fate remains uncertain with the Senate shutdown.
This is the second time in this legislative session that minority GOP lawmakers have used a walkout as a way to slow the process. Democrats have a rare supermajority in the House and Senate, meaning Republicans don't have many ways to influence the debate.
Oregon House Democrats once fled the capitol for five days in 2001 over a redistricting proposal. At the time, Brown, then-Senate President, called the walkout "appropriate under the circumstances."
As governor, she convinced Republicans to end a May walkout over an education funding tax package in exchange for tabling legislation on gun control and vaccine requirements. Part of that deal was that conservatives would not walk out again.
This time around, the governor said she's pursuing more direct action against Republicans because she felt that they backslid on "the word they gave to their colleagues and to me."
"Senate Majority Leader Ginny Burdick said Republicans have no legal recourse as the fine is explicitly written in statute."
I should point out, however, that the Governor recognized a previous walkout by Republicans as "appropriate", and says that her response in this case is due to Republicans violating a prior deal in which they agreed not to walk out again in exchange for tabling gun and vaccine requirement legislation. It also confirms that the police are under orders to try to persuade them to return, rather than simply arrest them by force.
Yeah, that totally sounds like the illegal kidnappers aerius feels the Alt. Reichists would be justified in shooting.
More importantly, I also found this article, which confirms that the State Senate Majority Leader regards the fines as legal, cites a spokesperson of the Oregon State Police who argues that the OPS can use force to bring lawmakers to the Capitol (while confirming that doing so is prohibited without the permission of the superintendent of OSP and that they will not do so without pursuing alternatives), and quotes the legislative counsel's determination that the Governor's actions are legal:
https://nbc16.com/news/local/in-a-cabin ... nd-them-upYes, it is legal for the Governor to authorize the State Police to assist the Senate in returning absent members. ORS 181A.090. Unless excused, legislators are required to be present when the chamber in question -- the Senate, in this case -- convenes for a floor session. Senate Rule 3.10."
In short, until a court determines otherwise, all evidence I have found shows that the Governor's actions are at least arguably legal. Meaning that aerius either talked out of his ass or lied, as usual. He did so to defend the argument that Republicans would be justified in murdering state troopers in the lawful execution of their duty for political reasons (ie, terrorism). He used those lies as a justification to defame and abuse me and try to discredit my arguments by personal attacks on my character and intelligence, as usual, though that is a fairly minor offense compared to defending terrorism and murder.SALEM, Ore. — Oregon's Republican state senators refused to give their location to KATU Friday as state troopers continued looking for them amid a walkout. They also blasted Gov. Kate Brown and other Democrats for being hypocrites since in the past they staged similar legislative boycotts.
"I am in a cabin near a lake," said state Sen. Tim Knopp, R-Bend, during a Facebook video chat interview. "And that's about all I can tell you."
Knopp told a KATU reporter he and other Republican state senators are threatening to file a lawsuit, saying the situation is not being handled legally.
On Thursday, after Republican senators refused to show up to a floor hearing, state Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, said lawmakers with unexcused absences would be fined $500 a day.
"They haven't done it yet," Knopp explained. "And they've said that they're going to deduct it out of salary and per diem, which I do not believe they have the authority to do at this time. ... And so they will be facing a lawsuit from myself and other legislators likely because of the move to try to find legislators."
Friday was day two of the GOP walkout in the state Senate.
Republican senators also refused to show up to floor hearings earlier this year in an attempt to block an education funding bill, which ultimately passed after Democrats agreed to kill two other bills.
The Senate chamber was empty for much of the day Friday because with all 11 of the minority party's senators missing lawmakers once again could not legally vote on any bills.
Republicans are staying out of the Capitol in order to keep a cap-and-trade bill aimed at fighting climate change from passing.
On Thursday, Brown ordered the Oregon State Police (OSP) to start looking for the missing senators. Two of them including Knopp told a KATU reporter they're out of state.
"I've been in three states in three days," Knopp said.
After being asked if he'd been contacted by OSP he said, "I've talked to Superintendent (Travis) Hampton, and he requested that I return to the Capitol and I told him that I support our men and women in uniform and respect the job that they have to do. But I politely declined his offer to return."
State Senate Majority Leader Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, said the $500 fine on absent lawmakers is legal.
"I don't think there is any grounds for a lawsuit," she said. "We mirrored the fine for the contempt of court ... I hope the state police find them and persuade them to come back because we have business to do and I hope their districts are pressuring them to come back to work."
State Senate Minority Leader Herman Baertschiger Jr., R-Grants Pass, would not tell a KATU reporter where he was either. In a phone interview, he said although he's not at the Capitol he's working.
"My constituents sent me to Salem to represent them," Baertschiger said. "And when they say that this bill is so devastating to their communities, I'm representing them by stopping it."
Baertschiger said he was contacted by OSP's superintendent as well and he told him only that he's not in Oregon.
OSP said it can force lawmakers into a vehicle and bring them to the state Capitol.
"The OSP will go to great lengths to avoid this scenario and no physical contact is permitted, absent the permission of the superintendent of OSP," Capt. Timothy Fox, an OSP spokesman, told KATU.
A KATU reporter asked Dexter Johnson, the legislative counsel -- basically the head lawyer for the Legislature -- about the legality of the governor's actions. He sent him a statement saying in part:
"Yes, it is legal for the Governor to authorize the State Police to assist the Senate in returning absent members. ORS 181A.090. Unless excused, legislators are required to be present when the chamber in question -- the Senate, in this case -- convenes for a floor session. Senate Rule 3.10."
"It's extremely unfortunate," Gov. Brown said Thursday while announcing her order to OSP. "Unfortunately, Senate Republicans failed to show up and failed to do their jobs."
But Republicans said Brown should take a harder look at her own actions.
They point out that in 2001 House Democrats staged a five-day walkout to prevent a Republican plan to redraw state legislative districts without the governor's signature.
Brown, the Senate minority leader at the time, told the Associated Press the House Democrats' actions were "very appropriate under the circumstances" and "under certain circumstances, it's fair to say we would use all tools available to us ..." and stage a similar boycott.
"It would seem to be hypocritical of the Democrats to use the same, basically the same procedure that we're using now," Knopp said. "And then when we use it, say that it's not appropriate."
A KATU reporter asked a spokeswoman for Brown if he could talk on camera with her about the hypocrisy claims Friday and the spokeswoman said Brown was not available. A few minutes later KATU employees saw Brown being interviewed on CNN and in the clip, she did not address the claims of hypocrisy.
Brown's spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a subsequent email a KATU reporter sent asking why Brown was available to speak with CNN but not KATU.
I'll also add, in response to his citing the passage from the Oregon Constitution saying that legislators are immune to arrest for most causes while the legislature is in session is of questionable relevance, given that so far as I can determine, the legislature is not currently in session due to these fucks' actions.
