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Perhaps the most jolting moment during this afternoon’s news conference with Portland mayor Sam 
Adams at Portland City Hall was the plea by Portland Police Association secretary-treasurer Mitch Copp – on behalf of the Police Association – for Adams to step down from his mayoral post, today.
“We’re very concerned about this. In fact, we’d like you to step down, as mayor, and resign today. We think that’s the right thing for you to do,” Copp said in stark, pointed language that turned cameras and reporters immediately in his direction.
That the Police Association, which represents the 900 police officers, sargeants, detectives and criminalists who work for the Portland Police Bureau, should emerge as the strongest voice so far to condemn Adams and ask him to step down might come as no surprise. Adams has long had a tenuous relationship with the city’s police bureau, and the Association, which made endorsement decisions in every City Commissioner race in 2008 (endorsing eventual winners Randy Leonard, Amanda Fritz and Nick Fish), choose not to make an endorsement in the mayoral race between Adams and businessman Sho Dozono.
When asked in the press conference if he would consider resigning from office, Adams said he would only take that step if it “was in the city’s best interest.”
There is one another organized effort to boot Adams from office: a new website and blog called “Recall Sam Adams” has sprung up in the last 24 hours. Its first posting, by an anonymous author, details four reasons why Adams should be recalled from office. But the process is more tenuous than you might think: an article in today’s Portland Business Journal details the steps it takes to recall a publicly elected official, from petitioning to signature drive to a citywide ballot referendum. The entire process can not, by law, commence until six months from the official’s starting date in office, and can take at least several months’ more until completed.
15 responses so far ↓
1 Ken Wayne // Jan 20, 2009 at 4:51 pm
If this would have been a teenage girl/woman he would have resigned today. This has nothing to do with being gay. It’s judgement and character. If you’re going to lie then you are a lier. He lied to maintain his political career. If he had taken the hit before and told the truth he would not have gone far but would still have our respect. His cover-up shows he is not to be trusted and that it’s not about us, it’s all about him. Bye, bye Sam! Please take yourself out of our misery, now.
2 Andy // Jan 20, 2009 at 5:05 pm
I regret to say I concur. He lied to further his political career because he knew that stuff like this is toxic. As a gay man, I am disappointed and embarrassed. He’s just become a poster-boy for the anti-gay right with their rhetoric of “protect the children” and their fantasies about predatory gay men. Way to go, Sam.
3 Brian Michael Peterson // Jan 20, 2009 at 5:18 pm
I have to say that I disagree with the both of you! He needs to stay in office and not let people pull him down. Yes, he made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes and if you think that a gay mayor should step down due to the perils of politics, then you don’t know your history!
4 Jackie // Jan 20, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Andy is right. If Sam doesn’t resign, the entire GLBT community will take the hit as child predators. Time for Sam to go.
5 John // Jan 20, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Reading the WW editorial, the main reason the story resurfaced is that the youth’s former friends, including his 39 year old ex-bf, started telling stories. Adams is not the only complicit party here. And judging from the reactions, he was right when he said he chose to deny it, because he knew people would blow it out of proportion. The Police Association is showing that the people who didn’t vote for him are using this an excuse to tear him down.
6 gerryblakney // Jan 20, 2009 at 6:08 pm
It seems that JustOut is actually referring to Sam and his administration- News is news, not slanted opinion… right?
How will Sam Adams resigning on his own, actually save the apparent bad name or the gay community as so many in these comments claim?
I think a public stoning done by only gays would REALLY clear our “scarred” name…
7 Ken Wayne // Jan 20, 2009 at 6:35 pm
Brian above: “I have to say that I disagree with the both of you! He needs to stay in office and not let people pull him down.” WHY! “Yes, he made a mistake.” HOW MANY? “Everyone makes mistakes and if you think that a gay mayor should step down due to the perils of politics, then you don’t know your history!” AND WHAT HISTORY IS THAT? There’s enough space to respond. You offer nothing to support yourself.
8 Kurt // Jan 20, 2009 at 8:31 pm
So what did Sam Adams do wrong here? He had sex with another adult. Can someone explain why that was wrong? Are two adults not allowed to have sex with each other?
Or was it that he lied about whether he had sex with another adult? Again, if it was none of our business to begin with and STILL is none of our business, who can fault him for lying? Please. This is insane. Please tell me how lying about who had sex with (which is none of our business) has ANYTHING to do with the job he was elected to do….
9 Kate // Jan 20, 2009 at 11:49 pm
What did he do wrong? He lied and he slept with a person he was mentoring. He started the relationship with a minor (even if he did wait until the kid was 18- but can you really believe that?). What kind of judgement is that? Disgusting!
Resign Sam Adams.
10 Lilly // Jan 21, 2009 at 1:57 am
I didn’t vote for him because of the new taxes he wanted to impose but I still respected him. Now he’s dragging out the lame “I made a mistake; I screwed up..”" blah blah blah excuses that liars always cough up when they’re exposed. Homophobes can obsess on his sex life; the real issue is that he scammed the people of Portland by representing himself as a man of integrity.
11 marqpdx // Jan 21, 2009 at 10:00 am
Sam,
You tragically misjudged us. We would have accepted that you were free to have a relationship with another adult. Had you come clean with us, challenged us to accept your rights as an adult, we would have had much to consider, but would have been able to see you wholly.
Instead you lied. You dismissed us, you thought only of your political future, and you kept on lying; you got Breed to lie, and you lied over and over again.
Adults we can accept. Liars we cannot.
You must resign today.
12 pdxmom // Jan 21, 2009 at 11:48 am
Sam absolutely should NOT feel compelled to resign. Where were the calls from this group for Clinton to resign after the Lewinsky scandal? For that matter, where’s the person – politician or otherwise – who hasn’t erred and tried to cover it up? Do any of you remember what happened when Barney Frank’s liaisons were made public? Or are we ahistorical enough that we see him taking a leadership role in Congress now and don’t recall what he weathered – much of his own making – to get there?
I accept Sam’s apology, and frankly think it would be horrible if he were to have to resign. It’s counterproductive, and frankly encourages more hiding, less transparency. It also feeds the idea that we have to be “better than” straight people – more squeaky-clean, less able to be given second chances to recover from our transgressions. The calls for his resignation – ESPECIALLY from LGBTQ people – only feed this toxic idea.
Sam won in an landslide because Portland is in a very precarious position, and we believed that he was the very best candidate to carry our city through these times. I do not believe that’s changed.
13 Glen W Livingston // Jan 21, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Here is a forwarded copy of the email letter that I sent this morning to Multnomah County DA Mike Schrunk formally requesting a grand jury investigation into possible violations of Oregon campaign laws and criminal violations of Oregon Revised Statutes.tnomah County can investigate this matter.
The District Attorney of Multnomah County can investigate this matter. He is just trying to legally pass the buck on this issue. But I guess that Schrunk has ducked the issue by getting Atty. Gen Kroger to investigate the matter.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at either telephone number or by email.
Sincerely,
Glen W. Livingston
——————————————————————————–
From: glenwlivingston@hotmail.com
To: da@mcda.us
Subject: RE: Request For Grand Jury Investigation of Mayor Adams Untruthful Statements
Date: Wed, 21 Jan 2009 11:33:32 -0800
Glen W. Livingston
1508 SW Hume St.
Portland, OR 97219-4267
Tel: 503-922-0672
Cell: 503-933-7540
January 21, 2009
Michael Schrunk
Office of District Attorney
Multnomah County
Dear District Attorney Schrunk:
I am writing this letter to you, as a citizen of Portland and the county of Multnomah, to formally request that your office open a grand jury investigation into the untruth statements and actions of Mayor Sam Adams.
Statements that occurred wile the Mayor was campaigning for the office of Mayor last year have been repudiated as lies by the Mayor. Also the employment of Ms. Ruiz to an office to which she admits that she has no expertise in can be construed as an illegal attempt to keep her from further investigatiion of the Adams-Breedlove illicit relationship.
The attempt to appoint Com. Randy Leonard to b be Commissioner of Police needs to be looked into as a payback for Leonards’ attempts to help Adams quash the investigation into the Adams-Breedlove affair.
There are too many alleged violations of ORS and also violations of Oregon elections laws to be ignored or investigated by a citizens panel of politicians. This needs to be investigated formally by a grand jury of Mulltnomah County citizens. It is your authority under the law to convene such an investigation and this is my formal request to your office to do so under Oregon law.
Sincerely,
Glen W. Livingston
14 Todd // Jan 22, 2009 at 11:22 am
Sam First. Portland Second.
15 Joseph // Jan 23, 2009 at 12:49 pm
An analysis of Sam Adams’ interview with The Oregonian Editorial Board a few days ago worth reading:
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/susan_nielsen/index.ssf/2009/01/sam_adams_and_the_unshakeable.html
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