My wife spotted this article and passed it along to me. Is the non-elected Governor Brown beginning to get the message that maybe, just maybe, gun control may be toxic to her re-election campaign? Read the article below and see what you think:
<broken link removed>
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Newly released emails show how Governor Kate Brown and her top advisors reacted starting just minutes after the mass shooting at Umpqua Community College.
As early as the night of the shooting, Brown's team weighed taking a forceful position on gun control, suggesting she use the line, "We must act now to stop this carnage." The governor and her team ultimately decided against it.
The governor's staff was flooded almost immediately with emails requesting information and offering help – including dozens of emails from journalists, state and federal lawmakers, and leaders at other state agencies.
The emails and handwritten notes were obtained by KGW through a public records request filed shortly after the shooting on October 1.
Brown was first alerted to the shooting at 10:54 a.m., roughly 20 minutes after gunman Christopher Harper-Mercer opened fire. Several minutes later, the governor's public safety adviser received a terse email from an official at the state's law enforcement training agency.
"We have some folks here for training who just received a report of an active shooter at Umpqua Community College. No further at this time," the email said.
At 11:09 a.m., the governor's chief of staff Brian Shipley received an email from a Department of Human Services employee with the ominous subject line, "Critical Situation in Roseburg."
"A gunman on campus," the email said. "Multiple ambulances at the campus. Reports indicated 20 people 'down' at present with the gunman reported 'down' as well."
Brown's office was inundated with interview requests from local and national media outlets, including NBC News, Fox News, The New York Times and others.
Many of the questions focused on details of the shooting, but journalists also wanted to ask about gun control.
Brown's initial public comments did not mention gun control, but internal emails show her communications team discussed taking a strong stance on guns during a press conference the day after the shooting.
At 9:15 p.m. on the day of the shooting, communications director Kristen Grainger typed out a series of talking points in preparation for the upcoming press conference.
Among her suggestions were the following lines: "There is not one solution that will prevent every shooting, but we must do better to prevent senseless gun violence," and "We have a moral imperative to do more to protect our children or we are sacrificing them to gun laws made by the gun lobby – we must act now to stop this carnage."
Grainger said later that everyone was very emotional after the shooting. Her the team discussed bringing up gun control, but ultimately Brown decided the timing was not appropriate.
"It was the governor's preference that we really focus on the community and that's what we did," Grainger said in an interview.
Brown does not have plans to spearhead any gun control legislation during the 2016 legislative session, according to Grainger. She will, however, talk with lawmakers about funding programs to continue supporting the UCC campus and the greater Roseburg community as they heal from the shooting.
One of the first offers of assistance came from Connecticut state officials. Within four hours of the shooting several people from the state wrote Shipley to offer help from people who responded to the Sandy Hook mass shooting.
"We learned many lessons as we responded to and recovered from our situation and we are all at the ready to support and assist you at any time," wrote Dora Schriro, the commissioner of Connecticut's Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.
Schriro offered up resources from the state's crime lab, state police and emergency management agency.
Brown wrote herself a handwritten note asking how Connecticut Governor Daniel Malloy dealt with the Sandy Hook shooting. The two later spoke on the phone about the shooting, according to Grainger.
It's not clear if state agencies took up Connecticut on any of their initial offers, although a team of mental health counselors from around the country known as a "blue team" did respond to Roseburg to provide counseling to victims, families and community members.
"The 'blue team' was very helpful to the community," Grainger said.
Grainger said that crime victim's assistance experts also came from other Oregon counties to assist their colleagues in Douglas County.
Brown and her staff received condolence notes from a diverse group of people, including several governors and international officials.
In addition to notes from Connecticut, the governors of Alaska, Colorado, and Virginia.
"As we both know only too well, there are no words that can make the hurt and shock lessen but I just wanted you to know that I have and will continue to lift up the families and loves ones of the victims in prayer," wrote Alaska Governor Bill Walker.
Brown also received notes from the Acting Consul General of Vietnam, who had recently been in Oregon for a business development trip, and from the head of world track and field governing body.
"I am sending my deepest sympathies on behalf of the Athletics family and my thoughts go out to all of those who were affected in this tragic event," wrote Sebastian Coe, the president of the IAAF.
I want to be very cautious in not reading too much into the above story. But this is quite possibly the very first time I've seen anything out of Salem since Gov. Kate took office that may show some kind of positive news for us. She won't spearhead any new gun legislation, but that's not to say that someone else like Prozanski won't - and based on his recent announcement, we can probably expect he'll be going after it.
Thoughts??
<broken link removed>
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Newly released emails show how Governor Kate Brown and her top advisors reacted starting just minutes after the mass shooting at Umpqua Community College.
As early as the night of the shooting, Brown's team weighed taking a forceful position on gun control, suggesting she use the line, "We must act now to stop this carnage." The governor and her team ultimately decided against it.
The governor's staff was flooded almost immediately with emails requesting information and offering help – including dozens of emails from journalists, state and federal lawmakers, and leaders at other state agencies.
The emails and handwritten notes were obtained by KGW through a public records request filed shortly after the shooting on October 1.
Brown was first alerted to the shooting at 10:54 a.m., roughly 20 minutes after gunman Christopher Harper-Mercer opened fire. Several minutes later, the governor's public safety adviser received a terse email from an official at the state's law enforcement training agency.
"We have some folks here for training who just received a report of an active shooter at Umpqua Community College. No further at this time," the email said.
At 11:09 a.m., the governor's chief of staff Brian Shipley received an email from a Department of Human Services employee with the ominous subject line, "Critical Situation in Roseburg."
"A gunman on campus," the email said. "Multiple ambulances at the campus. Reports indicated 20 people 'down' at present with the gunman reported 'down' as well."
Brown's office was inundated with interview requests from local and national media outlets, including NBC News, Fox News, The New York Times and others.
Many of the questions focused on details of the shooting, but journalists also wanted to ask about gun control.
Brown's initial public comments did not mention gun control, but internal emails show her communications team discussed taking a strong stance on guns during a press conference the day after the shooting.
At 9:15 p.m. on the day of the shooting, communications director Kristen Grainger typed out a series of talking points in preparation for the upcoming press conference.
Among her suggestions were the following lines: "There is not one solution that will prevent every shooting, but we must do better to prevent senseless gun violence," and "We have a moral imperative to do more to protect our children or we are sacrificing them to gun laws made by the gun lobby – we must act now to stop this carnage."
Grainger said later that everyone was very emotional after the shooting. Her the team discussed bringing up gun control, but ultimately Brown decided the timing was not appropriate.
"It was the governor's preference that we really focus on the community and that's what we did," Grainger said in an interview.
Brown does not have plans to spearhead any gun control legislation during the 2016 legislative session, according to Grainger. She will, however, talk with lawmakers about funding programs to continue supporting the UCC campus and the greater Roseburg community as they heal from the shooting.
One of the first offers of assistance came from Connecticut state officials. Within four hours of the shooting several people from the state wrote Shipley to offer help from people who responded to the Sandy Hook mass shooting.
"We learned many lessons as we responded to and recovered from our situation and we are all at the ready to support and assist you at any time," wrote Dora Schriro, the commissioner of Connecticut's Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.
Schriro offered up resources from the state's crime lab, state police and emergency management agency.
Brown wrote herself a handwritten note asking how Connecticut Governor Daniel Malloy dealt with the Sandy Hook shooting. The two later spoke on the phone about the shooting, according to Grainger.
It's not clear if state agencies took up Connecticut on any of their initial offers, although a team of mental health counselors from around the country known as a "blue team" did respond to Roseburg to provide counseling to victims, families and community members.
"The 'blue team' was very helpful to the community," Grainger said.
Grainger said that crime victim's assistance experts also came from other Oregon counties to assist their colleagues in Douglas County.
Brown and her staff received condolence notes from a diverse group of people, including several governors and international officials.
In addition to notes from Connecticut, the governors of Alaska, Colorado, and Virginia.
"As we both know only too well, there are no words that can make the hurt and shock lessen but I just wanted you to know that I have and will continue to lift up the families and loves ones of the victims in prayer," wrote Alaska Governor Bill Walker.
Brown also received notes from the Acting Consul General of Vietnam, who had recently been in Oregon for a business development trip, and from the head of world track and field governing body.
"I am sending my deepest sympathies on behalf of the Athletics family and my thoughts go out to all of those who were affected in this tragic event," wrote Sebastian Coe, the president of the IAAF.
I want to be very cautious in not reading too much into the above story. But this is quite possibly the very first time I've seen anything out of Salem since Gov. Kate took office that may show some kind of positive news for us. She won't spearhead any new gun legislation, but that's not to say that someone else like Prozanski won't - and based on his recent announcement, we can probably expect he'll be going after it.
Thoughts??
And yes, I will be working against them in 2016 come election time, even more so if they go for more gun control.
