State of Oregon Archives: on Free Trade
Jeff Merkley:
Support free-trade, but wait on Trans-Pacific Partnership
In Congress, the crucial Oregon forest issue centers on legislation dealing with some 2.8 million acres of federal forests in western Oregon known as the Oregon & California Railroad lands. Both Wehby and Conger prefer the House-passed bill sponsored
by three Oregon congressman, that would put much of the land in a state-managed trust aimed at boosting timber harvests.Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has his own somewhat more restrictive O&C plan. Conger flatly says he would vote against it if the
Wyden plan came to the Senate floor. Wehby says she'd wait to see the final form.
Both lean toward supporting free-trade pacts. But neither is ready to commit on the upcoming Trans-Pacific Partnership or
on legislation--known as Trade Promotion Authority--that would allow an up-or-down congressional vote on any trade agreement approved by negotiators.
Source: The Oregonian on 2014 Oregon Senate race
May 2, 2014
Kate Brown:
International trade supports a half million Oregon jobs
As we say at Business Oregon, we must "grow our own.""Grow Our Own" calls on us to invest in Oregon-based industries and businesses, and help them grow and thrive. In order for our traded sector businesses to grow, they must continue to access new
markets around the globe. 95% of the world's consumers are located outside the U.S. The potential for economic growth through exports is great.
International trade supports nearly a half million Oregon jobs; in the city of Portland alone,
that means about 268,000 jobs. For every one traded manufacturing job, three additional local jobs are generated.
Business Oregon is serious about keeping the state's international trade healthy. Director Sean Robbins held a "Doing Business in Oregon"
seminar in Japan last month. The trip's goal was to recruit Japanese companies to open U.S. operations in Oregon. I look forward to my first trade mission to Asia in October to follow up on Business Oregon's great work.
Source: 2018 Oregon Governor campaign press release
May 18, 2015
Kevin Stine:
We need fair trade, not free trade
Q: Do you support or oppose the statement, "Support & expand free trade"?
A: Oppose. We need fair trade, not free trade. Free trade agreements have resulted in businesses shipping jobs overseas, at the cost of the American worker.
Source: Email interview on 2016 Oregon Senate race with OnTheIssues
Jan 1, 2016
Kevin Stine:
Oppose "fast track" trade legislation; oppose TPP
Medford City Councilor Kevin Stine is launching a Democratic primary race against Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, according to the Mail Tribune of Medford. In an interview with the newspaper, Stine criticized Wyden for supporting "fast track" trade
legislation aimed at smoothing the way for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a proposed 13-nation trade pact.< Wyden's played a key role in passing the legislation, which angered organized labor and several left-of-center groups.
Source: The Oregonian on 2016 Oregon Senate race
Sep 21, 2015
Monica Wehby:
Support free-trade, but wait on Trans-Pacific Partnership
In Congress, the crucial Oregon forest issue centers on legislation dealing with some 2.8 million acres of federal forests in western Oregon known as the Oregon & California Railroad lands. Both Wehby and Conger prefer the House-passed bill sponsored
by three Oregon congressman, that would put much of the land in a state-managed trust aimed at boosting timber harvests.Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has his own somewhat more restrictive O&C plan. Conger flatly says he would vote against it if the
Wyden plan came to the Senate floor. Wehby says she'd wait to see the final form.
Both lean toward supporting free-trade pacts. But neither is ready to commit on the upcoming Trans-Pacific Partnership or
on legislation--known as Trade Promotion Authority--that would allow an up-or-down congressional vote on any trade agreement approved by negotiators.
Source: The Oregonian on 2014 Oregon Senate race
May 2, 2014
Christine Drazan:
We need to let federal tariff policies continue to evolve
[On Tariffs]: "I think that we need to continue to let some of those federal policies continue to evolve," said House Republican
Leader Christine Drazan of Canby. "I have not weighed in personally, one way or another, about how Oregon might be impacted by tariffs. I think we need to continue to gather more information on that."
Source: The Oregonian, "Tiptoe," on 2026 Oregon Gubernatorial race
Apr 22, 2025
Jeff Merkley:
Tariffs will raise the cost of living about $2,000 or more
It's estimated that the tariffs envisioned by Trump will raise the cost of living about $2,000 or more per year for families. That's really a huge, huge, tax on American families. But then there's also the fact that the countries will retaliate.
So back under Trump one, we had countries that banned our wine, banned our Christmas trees, banned our Hood River fruit and all kinds of things from different places. That is very unpredictable.
Source: KDRV, "Tariffs," on 2026 Oregon Senate race
Mar 12, 2025
Tina Kotek:
Worried about having blanket tariffs which impact Oregon
What worries me about the economics of the country and of Oregon right now is, frankly, what's happening at the national level. The idea of having blanket tariffs could impact a place like Oregon. We're a very trade dependent state. I mean, we sell
soft wheat to Asia. I just met with some folks from Ferrero [Italy] who make Nutella and they want to buy our hazelnuts. Tariffs will impact us a lot. We've seen some downturn in the semiconductor industry, which is a big sector for us.
Source: Oregon Public (OPB/PBS News) on 2026 Oregon Governor race
Mar 18, 2025
Page last updated: Feb 07, 2026