Sam, The Hole's Getting a Bit Bigger, Baby

Remember what I said last night about Portland mayor Sam Adams white little lie, and that i said that no further action was expected?
SwimmingPolarBear/KATU-TV, Portland, OR/YouTube

Well, as I enjoy the entree of crow- hey, it tastes like turkey and chicken mixed together, by the way- with a side of collard greens (which makes that crow taste more bearable), it looks like America's first openly gay mayor of a city of over 500,000 people may have his goose cooked (sorry, couldn't pass up that last bird reference...) as the embarrassment he's apparently caused has hit national news.

Let's start with the blog The Huffington Post publishing a story (for you HP fans, just click here to http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/20/sam-adams-portland-mayor-_n_159289.html ). Of course, if you want to know more, just click on the title for the KGW NewsChannel 8 story. You, in the rest of the world, can see the story from our local perspective.

Then, there's Fox News, and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if Bill O'Reilly and Portland's equivalent, Lars Larson of KXL Newsradio 750 and nationally syndicated on Westwood One radio- are just licking their chops over this. And let's not forget CBN, who, thanks to Sammy Boy, has more ammunition to use in their fight against gay rights. Don't even get me started on those nutjobs from Westboro, Kansas. (I say this with my hands on the hip, and twirling finger in the face...had to bring out my inner black woman side for a moment...).

All that said, Adams is in more hot water, as Portland Police Bureau chief Rosie Sizer and Multnomah County District Attorney Michael Schrunk has asked Oregon Attorney General John Kroger to investigate to see if any criminal activity was committed.

Meanwhile, the calls for Adams' resignation continue to grow. The local newspaper, The Oregonian; and even the LGBTQ community's paper Just Out wants Adams 'just out' (sorry, Just Out folks, I couldn't pass that one up...). Out of office.

And if that's not enough, there's already a grassroots movement to petition a recall vote against Sam.

I'm beginning to wonder if I had made the right choice in voting for this man. We had to make a choice last May between Adams and his opponent, Sho Dozono. The latter strongly supports gay rights, as well as civil rights for others, so even if we had chosen him instead of Adams, the LGBTQ community would still be in good hands.

This fiasco began last year, when the newsweekly Willamette Week began looking into possible wrongdoing by Adams, who was at the time Portland city commissioner under now retired mayor Tom Potter. Adams said that he wasn't sexually involved with Breedlove, who was an legislative intern in Salem. Adams said that he only served as a mentor. But just when we Portlanders thought the story would die, several reporters from WW and one of the other weeklies, The Portland Mercury stayed atop of this. It must be noted that Mercury city hall reporter Amy Ruiz has been hired by Adams as adviser on sustainability and strategic planning (whatever that is...), and according to the cover story in today's WW, she had no idea that Adams may have done this to keep her mouth shut (think of this as, say, the Portland political mafia, if you like...).

WW investigative reporter Nigel Jaquiss- who won a Pulitzer Prize in 2005 for his expose on former Portland mayor and Oregon governor Neil Goldschmidt's tryst with a teenage girl that took place in the mid-1970's- also stayed on the story. The full cover story can be read by just clicking here to: http://www.wweek.com/editorial/3511/12113/

Politicians lie- maybe with the exception of the current Commander in Chief, but the jury haven't even arrived yet on Barack- that's a given. But if Adams is lying about Breedlove's age at the time of the two-month tryst- and remember, this took place in 2005. Breedlove reportedly turned 18 in June of that year- and he knew about it, don't be surprised if a city as forgiving as Portland isn't when it comes to some of our leaders. Portland is a progressive city- and definitely a near-paradise for the LGBTQ community. But we're not ones who suffer fools gladly. If mayor Adams committed improprieties by abusing his authority, he must be voted out- and possibly prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Yes, I voted for the man. But I can just as easily vote him out.

Looks like your boyfriend isn't the only person you have to answer to, Sammy.

Copyright (C) 2009 by Darren W. Alexander. All Rights Reserved.