OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer has been projected to flip a Democratic-held House seat in Oregon, which hurts Democrats already sinking chances of retaining control of the U.S. House. Chavez-DeRemer was the first woman and first Latina mayor of Happy Valley, Oregon.
“Chavez-DeRemer was expected to defeat Democrat Jamie McLeod-Skinner, an attorney, small-business owner, and regional emergency response coordinator in Oregon’s new 5th Congressional District. The seat, which Joe Biden carried by more than 8 percentage points in the 2020 presidential election, includes a sliver of the city of Portland, many of its suburbs, the city of Bend, and large swathes of rural, central Oregon,” HuffPost reported.
“Her projected loss to Chavez-DeRemer dashes the hopes of progressives who wanted the chance to prove their mettle in a swing seat. It also strengthens the arguments of party moderates who maintain that Schrader would have been a stronger contender, despite his close ties to the pharmaceutical industry. But the principled progressive stances ― and associations ― that were a boon for McLeod-Skinner in the primary proved a challenge in a general election,” the outlet added.
HuffPost continued: “Chavez-DeRemer and her allies have tied McLeod-Skinner to the least-popular parts of the radical left in the city of Portland. For participating in a Black Lives Matter march, serving as a city council member in a left-leaning Bay Area city, and accepting the support of the left-wing Working Families Party, which has embraced calls to defund the police, Republicans have branded McLeod-Skinner an anti-police radical. McLeod-Skinner, who has never supported reducing police funding, enlisted the support of a former Bend police chief to vouch for her pro-law-enforcement credentials.”
Decision Desk HQ projects Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R) wins election to the U.S. House in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District.
D to R Flip.#DecisionMade: 10:42am EST
Follow more results here: https://t.co/AOgwtoMxNF pic.twitter.com/goTIMQOfOK
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 13, 2022
Chavez-DeRemer slammed McLeod-Skinner for supporting President Joe Biden’s domestic policy agenda.
“You cannot say that you’re for hardworking Americans and working families if you’re willing to support every single spending bill that Biden has brought down,” she told HuffPost.
Although Latinos are “a small sector of the entire state, it’s still one of the fastest growing populations that we’re seeing,” Chavez-DeRemer said. “Giving them a voice, letting them know that we support those family values and then recognizing that they can trust us if we can look like them, understand them … and we can be relatable, I think that that’s key.”
Chavez-DeRemer delivered a strong message to voters on her plan to address issues plaguing the state.
On the economy, she said: “The Radical Left’s policies have turned our economy into shambles and pushed inflation to record-breaking numbers. The American people, especially families, are struggling daily to purchase basic necessities and pay bills while prices continue to surge. With inflation hitting a 40-year high, it has gotten progressively harder to financially get by. This is why we must stand up against the Left’s agenda with Conservative leadership to get our economy back on track and make our country affordable again.”
On school choice in Oregon, she said: “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.”
On Critical Race Theory, she said: “Our children are being taught to hate each other based on the color of their skin, under the guise of ‘equity’. Critical Race Theory teaches victim mindset – that minority students are automatically disadvantaged and that white students are intrinsically racist. These aren’t ideas limited to debate in higher education lecture halls. This theory is being used to indoctrinate students as young as elementary school in Oregon and around the country.”
The reality is that the United States is the greatest country on Earth. It’s a land of opportunity for all. My grandmother knew that better than anyone. Her family left Mexico so that she could have a better life in this great country and her children and children’s children could live the American dream. Today, one of her descendants is running to be a representative in the United States Congress. Our students should be learning inspiring stories like my grandmother’s, not regressive ideologies that discourage achievements and divide. We must ban the teaching of critical race theory in our schools.
