So let’s get this straight: tens of thousands of Oregonians sign a certified referendum. Thousands of people take time out of their lives to make clear where they stand. Four thousand five hundred seventy opposition statements, 99% of them saying Hell no to SB1599 — and what does Salem do? They take that tsunami of dissent and shove it into the committee shredder, then hand SB1599 right back to the Senate floor like nothing happened.
I watched the Joint Special Committee hear testimony — you can watch it too if you need proof: the official OLIS feed has the whole thing. But if you’re expecting the legislature to actually listen to the public, you’re barking up the wrong tree. They hear us, and then they just write us off anyway. It’s like paying for a gym membership and then never showing up — except we’re the ones paying, and the gym keeps ignoring what we tell them we need.
Look at how the vote went. Four Republicans stood up and said no — including Shelly Boshart Davis, who actually called out what this whole charade is: a maneuver to rubber-stamp what the party wants. And that’s it. That’s your resistance. The rest? Lock step. Party loyalty over public will. Loyalty to the public-employee union narrative over the people who actually signed the referendum. Loyalty to process only if it leads to the outcome they want.
And I keep thinking: Where is our Fetterman moment? Not the national drama — though that guy made national headlines by actually saying “I might not toe the line” and instantly grinding teeth in his own party. He didn’t announce a filibuster or a walkout, he simply refused to sign onto the party’s shorthand — and chaos ensued. Now that’s the kind of moment that makes you sit up and say, “This is bigger than labels and tribes. This is about principle.”
Where is that in Oregon? Where is the Democrat who looks at 4,570 opposition statements — a public outcry of near-unanimous rejection — and says, “Maybe this isn’t just a box to check, maybe this is the people’s voice”? Where is the senator willing to break rank and say legality, constitutionality, sanity actually matter? Because right now I’m watching a party line vote bulldoze right over the public’s will like it’s dust on the carpet.
SB1599 is going to the Senate. And yes, because there’s a supermajority, it’s almost a done deal. That should terrify anybody who actually believes in representative government — not oligarchic party rule. The referendum was certified. That’s not a suggestion. That’s a constitutional process designed to protect the people from exactly this kind of power play. Yet here we are, watching that process get repackaged for political convenience.
And don’t give me the “we’re just being thorough” line. That’s the same excuse every power bloc uses when they’re more in love with control than common sense, more devoted to party than to the voters who put them there.
If you want to stop it — now is the time to make your voice heard while testimony is still open:
https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2026R1/Testimony/JSRP/SB/1599/2026-02-11-13-00?area=Measures
But let’s be honest: if it weren’t for a handful of Republicans raising objections, this committee would’ve steamrolled it without even pretending to care. And on the floor? The math is the math: a supermajority that says “party first, public second, process optional.”
So I’ll ask again — not rhetorically: where is Oregon’s Fetterman moment? Who’s willing to look at the record — 99% opposition — and say no, we don’t do democracy as a suggestion, we do it as a principle? Because if that doesn’t happen, then this is just what we can expect every time the party in power decides the will of the people is inconvenient.
And that’s no kind of government at all.
SO WHAT?
If you’re fired up after reading this, good. Stay that way. But don’t just yell at your screen.
Yes — submit testimony. That link is still live. Use it.
But don’t stop there.
Pick up your keyboard and write your State Senator directly. Not a form letter. Not a meme. A clear message:
Vote NO on SB1599.
Respect the certified referendum.
Leave the election date as it appears on the petition — November 3, 2026.
Find your Senator here:
https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/senate/pages/senatorsall.aspx
Click their name. Use their email. Make them put your name in their inbox. Be polite. Be firm. Tell them this isn’t about party — it’s about process. It’s about whether referendums mean what the Constitution says they mean, or whether they can be rearranged when politically inconvenient.
Supermajorities get comfortable. Comfortable politicians stop listening.
Remind them who they work for.
Because if 4,570 opposition statements — 99% of public testimony — isn’t enough to slow this down, then the only thing left is direct pressure from the voters they’ll face in the next election.
This is the moment. Write them. Call them. Make it clear.
November 3, 2026.
Not May.
Not maneuvered.
Not manipulated.
That’s my viewpoint, find more a bensviewpoint.substack.com
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