Thread: OR- Gordon Smith's blatant disregard for the law

Gordon Smith's blatant disregard for the law

Carla Axtman
Gordon Smith's problems with the undocumented workers issue took an interesting turn last week that seemed to go largely unnoticed.

Smith gave an interview to KATU TV last week in a scrambling, panic-button response to the Willamette Week piece making note of some pretty fishy goings on with hiring practices at Smith's frozen food and processing plants. The attention-grabbing part happens around the 1:40 mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpzB_TaJ ... ths-1.html

Smith says, "Everyone that works at our plant has a Social Security number. Now there's a process to find out whether those are accurate. That's the process that we're following."

But Smith's own plant manager, Kelly Brown, told the Oregonian that they had to fire 12 people (Smith told the Oregonian that they'd fired two in the same story). And the tax preparer in the WW story said that he'd helped at least 5 Smith employees without Social Security numbers file their tax returns.

Obviously, not "everyone who works" at Smith's plant has an SS# or they'd be able to file their taxes with one. Smith has tried to dismiss this story as a lie and a smear. But there's clearly a problem if his workers are on the job without having Social Security numbers.

Smith's plant also recently spilled wastewater into a nearby creek, triggering a Class 1 DEQ violation. That's the most serious type of violation issued, incidentally. Surrogates tried to brush it off as meaningless...just the way they're trying to dismiss the issues surrounding workers at Smith's plant.

And now, Smith's campaign is in trouble for violating campaign laws:

Television stations in Minnesota and Oregon are asking the Federal Election Commission and the Federal Communications Commission for advice regarding allegations that Republicans in two Senate races are shortchanging viewers with the brevity of their stand-by-your-ad statements.
The argument is over a matter of seconds, but depending on how the complaints are evaluated, the decision could cost Republican Sens. Norm Coleman (Minn.) and Gordon Smith (Ore.) hundreds of thousands of dollars.

TV stations in both states received letters from Democratic challengers arguing that the statements of approval at the end of the GOP campaign ads violate election laws. Attorneys for Al Franken, the challenger in Minnesota, said Coleman's image does not appear for a full four seconds at the end of his spot. Attorneys for Oregon challenger Jeff Merkley said Smith's ad shows a written statement but not his image.


Now I would grant that this last one isn't exactly an earth shattering thing. But its definitely part of an emerging pattern--where Smith (and his surrogates) seems to believe its perfectly acceptable to skirt the law.

And before the comments devolve into a discussion of the legal merits of immigration reform, enviornmental regulation or campaign finance law--let me be clear. Don't bother. Smith is a U.S. Senator and has not just a legal obligation, but a leadership obligation, to obey and uphold the law. Especially given his power to make changes to law--to flout them as he is now shows a deplorable lack of leadership and character.

September 15, 2008 | Carla Axtman | Comments (30 so far)


http://www.blueoregon.com/2008/09/gordon-smiths-1.html

Smith, at least, has turned from favoring Comprehensive Immigration Reform to a fairly strong immigration enforcement position---much of it due to his conservative Republican constituents. In all probability his food processing business does employ a number of illegals. The liberal press is quick to point out any hypocrisy--so they can get a real OBL Democrat elected in Smith's place this November.