Tell The Truth Lori

Lori vehemently disagrees with Oregon laws that ensure that women can freely exercise their rights to health care, saying: “Oregon law allows abortion without restriction, but a vast majority of Americans support rational protections – and that certainly applies to infants who survive abortion attempts.”

The federal legislation she was talking about is H.R. 26, the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, a bill aimed at frightening healthcare providers and discouraging them from providing women needed reproductive care, even in those places, like Oregon that protect a woman’s right to bodily autonomy.  

Lori also said, “...no matter where you stand on this issue, we should all be able to agree that politically-motivated violence is wrong. In the wake of the leaked Supreme Court opinion last year, we saw violence unfold too close to home as Oregon’s Right to Life offices were attacked.” 

This time Lori was talking about H.Con.Res.3, the bill that selectively focuses on the few attacks on pro-life facilities while ignoring attacks on women’s health care centers. 

Lori has earned a 100% rating from the National Right to Life by voting for two key anti-abortion bills:

The first bill is the completely unnecessary and extremely divisive “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act,” a bill intended to weaponize women’s health care and intimidate health care providers.

But Oregon does NOT have any laws that would permit infanticide. No state does. Lori is using a made-up issue that doesn’t even exist as an excuse to vote for federal legislation that would hinder states like Oregon from ensuring that abortions are legal and accessible.

Lori also voted for H.Con.Res.3, a bill that condemns attacks on pro-life facilities, groups, and churches, while overlooking the murderous assaults that have terrorized women’s health care facilities and providers for decades. 

Why do Lori and MAGA Republicans single out the pro-life facilities for protection while turning a blind eye on women’s health care centers where attacks have sky-rocketed from their already high levels?

Because she is a MAGA extremist.

What can we make of Lori’s record?

On the one hand:

• She voted twice to prevent the Defense Department from providing America’s military service members and their families funding for travel to obtain an abortion. 

• She has expressed extreme anti-abortion views – celebrating the Dobbs decision, denouncing Oregon’s laws protecting reproductive freedom, and calling for a 6-week abortion ban.

• She has voted for two other anti-abortion bills that have been introduced, earning a 100% rating from National Right to Life.

• These two bills are intended to erode the availability of reproductive health care because the bills will have a chilling effect on the ability of women to obtain reproductive health care, even in those states, like Oregon, where it is still fully legal. 

• These votes are completely inconsistent with her supposed embrace of the states’ ability to determine their own policies.

On the other hand:

• She claims to oppose the national ban on abortion sought by the RNC even though that’s the only way to achieve her stated aim of a 6-week abortion ban. Can we believe that?

• She claims to oppose making the ban on taxpayer funding for abortions permanent. Is that what she really believes?

• She claims to support the ability of states to chart their own course with respect to making contraception, abortion pills, and women’s health care available. Is that at all credible? 

Or is this all just a flip-flopping ruse to confuse Oregonians about what she really believes?

How does Lori think she’ll get her “heartbeat bill” in states like Oregon unless she and her MAGA buddies pass a national abortion bill?

Do we really think that Lori would defy the RNC, which seeks to impose a national ban on abortion (unless she gets Kevin McCarthy’s permission)?

NO – Lori has clearly told us who she is and what she believes. She is a MAGA extremist on reproductive rights. The rest is a lie. 

Lori says: “The brinksmanship could've been avoided if the president came to the table when the House acted to lift the debt ceiling in April…”

That’s a lie! Biden released his budget proposal on March 9, his formal budget on March 28, and invited the GOP to provide theirs for negotiation that same day. On April 26, the MAGA House passed H.R. 2811, linking default to unspecified huge across-the- board cuts. Biden invited McCarthy to negotiate on May 1.  

Tell the Truth Lori!! Fact-checking you is a full-time job! 

She issued a joint statement with Rep. Salinas, her Democratic colleague who represents the neighboring ORD6 (and with whom she serves on the Agriculture Committee), and has promised to collaborate on the farm bill.

She says “The Farm Bill is one of my top priorities.” “SNAP is 80% of it.” LCD Town Hall 2/28/2023

She co-sponsored the “America Works Act,” a bill to increase the work requirements for SNAP (by far the largest program in the farm bill), which will effectively cut the spending for, and limit access to, SNAP benefits. This bill will have an even more negative effect on states such as Oregon, which operate under a work requirement waiver that this legislation seeks to eliminate. Her position is extreme even in her own caucus, as she is one of only three Republicans from 18 GOP-held swing districts to co-sponsor the bill. 

Lori blamed Oregon’s landmark land use planning laws for homelessness. “Oregon has a restrictive land use system that discourages the development of affordable housing. I’d be in favor of loosening our land use system and streamlining the building permit process. We also promote multiple housing options like middle housing.”

Lori said that more than 90% of homeless people are addicted to drugs or alcohol. [Facebook, Captive Audience 7/25/22 video]

Lori opposed rent controls as a tool to alleviate homelessness.

Lori claimed that the first step to ending homelessness was to secure the southern border. 

Did Lori persuade Clackamas Co. Commissioner Tootie Smith to reverse her vote to defeat the County’s “Project Turnkey,” to mitigate homelessness, which was opposed by local Republicans? Lori and Tootie had a phone call right before Tootie acted. 

Lori also voted for H.R. 3564 to rescind a Federal Housing Finance Agency rule making it more difficult to serve low- and moderate-income households and rural communities as well as federal agencies’ ability to promote affordable housing  and manufactured housing. 

WHAT SHE SAID
THEN

When asked, do we need the federal Department of Education, she said: “We don't need to defund the police. But we can certainly start taking a hit at the federal education department, because it has proven to be defunct.” [Facebook, Captive Audience, 7/25/22] (VIDEO) 

WHAT SHE SAYS
NOW

So far she has remained mum on whether she supports H.R. 899, a bill to abolish the Department of Education.

WHAT SHE 

DOES

In the meantime, she supports bills promoting “school choice” that undermine our public schools, like H.R.531, the Educational Choice for Children Act and H.Res.51, supporting the creation of "National School Choice Week." 

She says: “Oregon Children were stripped of their right to a quality education because of unconstitutional mandates and harmful school closures. Now, when Oregon kids are struggling to catch up, schools are forcing divisive and politically charged issues into the classroom. As a mom of twin girls, I firmly believe Oregon Parents deserve a say in what their children are taught, which is why I will support a Parental Bill of Rights that ensures transparency for school curriculums and protects the rights of parents.” 

“...I think it's important to

denounce any sort of racism.

CRT doesn’t do that except further divide the children they are just, the developable souls of these young people,

and we’re imposing CRT to further divide them…” [KOIN 6, 6/5/22]

She opposed the Biden Administration’s loan forgiveness plan even though she received more than $1.3 million in PPP loans that were forgiven. 

She supports the bipartisan Student Loan Disclosure Transparency Act.(Meh, big deal!)  

She signed an amicus brief opposing Biden's Executive Order to relieve a portion of the crushing burden of student debt. 

Lori followed that up with a vote for H.J. Res. 45, to overturn Biden’s Executive Order providing student debt relief. 

Lori says, “…despite false accusations, my colleagues and I will make sure our veterans and service members are taken care of in the upcoming appropriations process. Any claims to the contrary are disingenuous political attacks.” 

But, Lori voted with the MAGA House majority to pass the MAGA Default Bill, HR 2811, which would have cut the funding to the VA by 22%, slashing veterans’ access to health care, housing programs, food security, and training programs, among many others. 

Lori shows how far her worthless words are from what she actually does. 

Lori said, “The Radical Left wants you to believe that Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan has done positive things for our country. The reality is, all it’s done is hurt the American people and lead our economy to spiral out of control.”

But, as of June 2021, Oregon had received $531 MM in restaurant revitalization funding under the American Rescue Plan to help restaurants keep their doors open. 

And she does not begrudge the $1.3 MM in American Rescue Plan loans she received and that were forgiven supposedly to keep her business afloat, while she and her husband took home income in excess of $1MM and while she opposed student loan forgiveness! 

But, Lori says not a word about the passage of Biden’s CHIPS Act, designed to do exactly that. It passed the House with 214 Democratic votes and only 1 Republican vote, the year before she was elected. The CHIPS Act has already begun to rebuild American supply chains, manufacturing, and infrastructure, while lowering the costs of goods, creating high paying manufacturing jobs around the country, and ensuring the US can make more critical technologies at home. Cliff Bentz, whom she “sees almost every day,” voted against it. 

Although Lori voted for the disastrous MAGA “Sophie’s Choice” Default/Budget bill, she doesn’t say a peep about the disastrous and feckless actions of “The King of Debt,” as Trump calls himself, that caused enormous deficits and an economic meltdown. Trump came into office with a healthy economy, declining interest rates, and relative peace after 15 years of global military conflict. In just four years, Trump’s irresponsible tax cuts, passed in the dead of night with only GOP votes, and the sudden economic downturn in 2020, exacerbated by his mishandling of the pandemic response, resulted in an unprecedented increase in the national debt. In fact, nearly 25% of the national debt was incurred under Trump!

Just as Obama had to clean up the enormous economic mess created by George W. Bush, Biden has had to clean up after Trump!

Enough of this nonsense about "economic mismanagement" by the so-called “Radical Left”! Lori and the MAGA GOP should look in the mirror!

Lori said, “Spending has been out of control with the national debt surpassing $30 trillion in February [of 2022]

Lori says, “I will rein in out-of-control spending, which has been a driving factor of inflation.” 

But she is happy to take credit for millions of federal dollars for Oregon’s seafood industry, money provided by the Biden Administration through the advocacy of Senator Merkley and our hard-working Democratic Members of Congress.

Lori signed a letter drafted by Senator Merkley. Then she said, “I’m pleased that the USDA has fulfilled our request for additional support for fisherman and seafood processers across the Pacific Northwest.”

And Lori is a co-sponsor of H.R. 2851, a bill to expand the National Apprenticeship Act, which was first passed as part of FDR’s New Deal programs. If enacted, it will significantly expand federally-funded apprenticeship programs, appropriating in excess of $500 million in funding over 5 years. 

Where would those funds come from, if Lori and the MAGA GOP had succeeded in slashing non-defense discretionary spending by 22%? Would at least some of it come from the Inflation Reduction Act, which she abhors but whose funding she delights in spending?

Lori opposes raising the federal minimum wage. Really? She and her husband are millionaires. 

Lori says, “It shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody how I’m voting.” 

Lori’s votes show she’s MAGA, not a moderate. 

Lori grossly violated the bright line between her campaign activities and her official activities as our so-called “representative” in the House when she used taxpayer money to fund her official field office in Redmond while proudly asserting that she chose Redmond to “recognize [it] as a real force in my campaign.” 

This violates Congressional Ethics rules such as “the basic principle that government funds should not be spent to help incumbents gain reelection.”

Is this why she was so willing to undermine the OCE?

After MAGA fraudster George Santos was indicted on 13 federal felony counts, Lori joined every other Republican House member present to defeat a motion to expel him from Congress.

Oh, the irony!! Lori voted for H.R. 1163, a bill to go after unemployment fraud. Her MAGA buddy, George Santos, also voted for it! 

Immediately afterwards, she was slammed by Trump and others on social media.

Trump said in a Truth Social post on June 16, 2023 that any Republican who opposed the censure resolution should face a primary challenge for the GOP nomination in their next election.

What did Lori do? She flip flopped! This is what she said.

Lori’s opponent in the 2022 race, Jamie McLeod-Skinner, strongly supported a ban on lawmakers trading individual stocks.

Lori’s stance? Crickets. It’s not surprising since she’s a multi-millionaire, according to her financial disclosures. She owns a wide variety of stock in industries (like pharmaceuticals, oil and gas) that frequently attract Congressional attention. 

Lori is not on record as supporting the Bi-partisan Ban on Congressional Stock Ownership Act.

Likewise, Lori has shown zero interest in supporting H.R. 2673, the ETHICS Act, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Merkley, which would bar members of Congress, their spouses, and dependent children from owning or trading individual stocks, securities, commodities, or futures. 

Astonishingly, Lori describes her vote for the atrocious “border security” bill, H.R. 2, as a humanitarian effort to protect immigrants! “[T]he crisis at our southern border is a humanitarian issue that has put the lives of migrants at risk. Too many Latina women and children are facing abuse during their attempts to enter the U.S. As a mother, as a Christian, and as a human being, this is tragic and inexcusable. We must put a stop to the atrocities taking place at the hands of smugglers and cartels, and that starts by putting clear and concise border security and immigration measures into practice to restore order.” 

This is pure MAGA propaganda!

No official text or summary had yet been released for H.R. 3599 as of 5/26/2023, but Lori has this to say about it: “The bipartisan Dignity Act is a comprehensive solution that would bolster border security while taking a compassionate approach to immigration reform – helping families stay together, supporting immigrants’ contributions to our workforce, and growing our economy by creating new opportunities in rapidly expanding industries.” 

Shortly after supporting the cruel, Trumpy H.R. 2, Lori announced that she is co-sponsoring the Dignity Act, H.R. 3599.

Does she think that supporting this bill cancels out the harm she did in voting for H.R. 2? Maybe she made a deal with McCarthy to let her remove some of the stench of H.R. 2?

Lori blamed migrants for the spread of Covid in 2021, saying: “...you can imagine COVID’s rampant because of the southern border, right that’s not helping our COVID numbers.” [All Ears Podcast, 37:17] 

She blames migrants for homelessness, “We will deal with it [homelessness] in Oregon by working on border issues. Enough is enough. We have to stand up for our beautiful state.” LCD Town Hall 2/28/2023 

She participated in the MAGA House members publicity stunt visit to the southern border arranged by McCarthy. McCarthy only invited House GOP members who had flipped a formerly Democratically-held seat. 

Lori also voted for H.Res. 461, which condemned the use of elementary and secondary school facilities to provide shelter for migrants.

Lori co-signed a stern letter to Secretary of Labor nominee Julie Su about reports of unaccompanied migrant children being employed illegally at factories and construction sites. 

But, that effort is hypocritical when considered in the context of GOP efforts to roll back child labor laws and their refusal to fund the very agencies that are supposed to protect child migrants. 

Republican Arkansas Rep. Rebecca Burkes, who sponsored the bill to eliminate child work permits, said: “There’s no reason why anyone should have to get the government’s permission to get a job.” 

Lori ignores more immediate causes. She might more productively direct her attention at laws now being passed in GOP-controlled states, loosening protective child labor laws. Measures to relax child labor laws have been passed in GOP states – Iowa, New Hampshire, Arkansas – and are being brought forward by GOP legislators in Wisconsin, Missouri, and Ohio. 

And what about the corporations that are illegally hiring these children to do dangerous and exhausting jobs? The Biden Administration has set up an inter-agency task force to address child labor abuses and has asked Congress for additional funding.

Like other MAGA Republicans, Lori is happy to criticize the Biden Administration while refusing to provide the funds needed to address the problems she complains about. Biden’s budget would add desperately needed funds immigration/border services. Meanwhile, Lori voted for the MAGA Default/Budget bill that would have made deep cuts to this funding. 

During the 2016 presidential primary, Lori decided she “could get behind” what Trump was “fighting for” when he “started to be a man of substance”

She was a proud Trump delegate in 2020. “I am deeply honored to be chosen as a delegate for President Donald Trump to the Republican National Convention.” 

Lori says she will support whoever the GOP nominee is in 2024, including Trump. 

She said, “You can count on Lori to ALWAYS defend the America First platform in office.”

Regarding the January 6 insurrection, Lori said,

“... we have a protected right for people to peaceful protesting, we should have been allowed to do so.

So I think the media had something to do with all of that when what we saw from all the way here in Oregon it can

be scary at first and think what is happening and we’re shocked by it all but we got to read between the lines and

we have to know what really happened. People who are held without due process, and still are being held today, I

think is completely unconstitutional, it shouldn’t be allowed, and we should be fighting against anything like that.”

Lori did not comment on Trump’s federal indictment on felony espionage and other charges. 

Yet, Lori still opposes the American Rescue Plan, which saved the US economy from disaster, falsely blaming it for inflation: “But others ended up doing more harm than good – like the $1.9 trillion spending bill in early 2021 that sparked 40-year high inflation and the massive interest rate hikes we’re dealing with today. Despite the rosy economic picture the president painted, our labor force participation rate is at its lowest point in decades and real wages haven’t kept up with inflation.” 

Lori says, “I’ll stand up against burdensome regulations, like the Biden Administration’s WOTUS rule* that constrains our rural economy. Oregon farmers and ranchers have always been the best stewards of their land; it’s time our government empowered them instead of telling them how to take care of it.”

*Waters of the U.S,” a key component of the Clean Water Act, the definition of which was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, on May 26, 2023, after having been utilized for over 50 years.

She urged the EPA to roll back regulations regarding rat-killer poisons.

She’s more concerned with making it easier to use rodenticides than she is about making sure that these deadly poisons are used safely.

Doesn’t the public need to be protected from these dangerous chemicals that Lori seeks to deregulate??

Lori is LYING! The Portland Police budget figures are:

$223,323,085 in 2020-2021 $230,731,539 in 2021-2022 $246,267,000 in 2022-2023

$261,679,425 in 2023-2024 (proposed). 

Portland’s murder rate data is as follows:

2019 - 36

2020 - 55

2021 - 90

2022 - 101

2023 -  down 24% through March.

Singling out Portland, Lori says, “Rampant crime has forced too many Oregon businesses to close their doors recently, and I know many shoppers and retailers are forced to be constantly vigilant and concerned for their safety… Recently, REI became the latest Portland-area business to close due to safety concerns associated with rising crime…” 

Tell the Truth, Lori! An REI spokeswoman also said, “... we have outgrown our current space, and the building requires significant investment to address issues that we have been unable to reach agreement on with the landlord.” There are also reports that the closure is due to a “long-simmering battle with employees over everything from Covid policies, sick days, and efforts by workers to unionize.” 

In announcing her support for a host of pro-law enforcement measures, Lori embraces the “thin blue line” flag that for many symbolizes division between the police and the community and has been adopted by white supremacists and neo-nazis. Since that flag was prominently displayed during the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” white supremacy rally in 2017, a number of police departments, including those in Portland, Vancouver, WA, Bend, Boise, and Los Angeles, have banned its display.

Lori needs to learn that one can appreciate the sacrifices of the police without using that hateful thin blue line flag.

Lori voted for a package of measures, H.Cong.Res. 40, expressing support for local law enforcement officers and condemning efforts to defund or dismantle local law enforcement agencies and H.Res. 363, memorializing officers killed in the line of duty.  She also voted for H.R. 3091, a bill supported almost exclusively by GOP House members, that directs the General Services Administration to establish a program under which a federal law enforcement officer may purchase a retired handgun from the agency that issued the handgun to the officer. And, she voted for H.R. 2494, which makes it a deportable offense to assault a law enforcement officer.