KGW’s Straight Talk

It's been more than two years since Washington State enacted the "Tiffany Hill Act," named in memory of a young mother gunned down by her estranged abusive husband. The law allows courts to order offenders to wear a GPS ankle bracelet which would be monitored and linked to an app on the victim's phone, alerting them when their abuser was nearby. State Sen. Lynda Wilson (R-Vancouver), one of the au...

As the transgender community faces threats on multiple fronts, local advocates pledged to fight back and offer support to transgender individuals and families. Jess Guerriero, a social worker at OHSU's Transgender Health Program, and Seth Johnstone of Basic Rights Oregon were guests on this week's episode of "Straight Talk" to discuss the threats facing transgender people and the resources and sup...

Over the years, when people would encourage then-Oregon state Sen. Betsy Johnson of Scappoose to run for governor, she says her comeback line was always, "I'd rather throw myself in a wood chipper."  It's not the wood chipper, but Johnson has thrown herself into the ring in the three-way race for Oregon governor. Johnson was a guest on this week's episode of Straight Talk to discuss why she's runn...

Beaverton Mayor Lacey Beaty is a combat veteran who served in Iraq, married to another combat veteran. They are gun owners — but Beaty believes it's time for the nation to pass what she called "reasonable gun control measures." Beaty said following the mass shooting at a Uvalde, Texas elementary school where a gunman used an AR-15 rifle to kill 19 children and two teachers, she felt unsafe in Amer...

Following Oregon's primary election on May 17, the state's general election in November is shaping up to be historic and expensive. For the first time in state history, all the major candidates for Oregon governor are women. Former House Speaker Tina Kotek secured the Democratic nomination, former Republican House leader Christine Drazan won the GOP nomination, and it's expected former longtime De...

Dan Ryan was first elected in 2020 in a special election to serve the last two years of the late Commissioner Nick Fish's term. Now, he is running for a full four year term, but faces a challenge from several candidates, including the leading opponent Alanna Joy "AJ" McCreary. In their pitch to Portland voters, Ryan pointed to his experience and said now is not the time to elect a newcomer to poli...

Most Oregon voters have their ballots and Election Day is just weeks away for the May Primary. Democratic Gov. Kate Brown is term-limited and cannot run again, and for the first time in decades it appears possible a Republican candidate could win election to the governor's office. In a debate hosted by Portland City Club and moderated by KGW's Laural Porter and David Molko, candidates Bridget Bart...

Oregon's primary election is May 17th and ballots are beginning to hit mailboxes throughout the state. At the top of the ticket, the Governor's race which is wide open this election since incumbent Gov. Kate Brown can't run again because of term limits. KGW and The City Club of Portland partnered for a debate between the leading Democratic candidates, former House Speaker Tina Kotek and State Trea...

Shortly after receiving the Edward R. Murrow Lifetime Achievement Award, KGW alum Ann Curry sat down with Laural Porter at Portland's Behind the Museum Café for a wide-ranging conversation about her reflections on her career, the most powerful stories she's covered, restoring trust in journalism, the importance of local journalism and why Oregon still holds a special place in her heart.

Oregon's primary election is about a month away on May 17, with ballots going out in less than two weeks. Secretary of State Shemia Fagan wants Oregonians to feel confident in the security of the state's election process. Appearing on KGW's Straight Talk with Laural Porter, Fagan was emphatic in saying the 2020 election results were accurate. Her office is on the offensive in an effort to reassure...

Oregon lawmakers passed massive back-to-back investment packages in the state's mental and behavioral health system in the 2021 and 2022 legislative session, leveraging state general funds and federal dollars for a combined total of $1.25 billion. Lawmakers have described the investments as "historic" and the beginning of an effort to turn around a neglected system. Oregon state Senator Kate Liebe...

The new Speaker of the Oregon House, Rep. Dan Rayfield (D-Corvallis), said he would give the recently completed 2022 short legislative session an A-minus grade, because there's always room for improvement. Republican House leaders would agree there's room for improvement — a lot of it. They said they would grade the session a D. House Republican Leader Rep. Vikki Breese Iverson (R-Prineville) and...

Political insiders are predicting the race to represent Oregon's  newly redrawn  5th Congressional district could become the nation's marquee Democratic House primary to watch. That's according to an  article in Politico . Seven-term incumbent Kurt Schrader, a moderate, is being challenged from the left by former congressional candidate Jamie McLeod-Skinner from central Oregon.  They're running in...

Intel is Oregon's largest corporate employer with 22,000 employees. It's at the heart of Oregon's "Silicon Forest" in Washington County, but when Intel announced it was making a $20 billion investment in a massive chip manufacturing facility, that investment went to Ohio, not Oregon. How did Oregon miss out? Monique Claiborne, CEO of Greater Portland Inc., along with Oregon state Representative Ja...

When the new Oregon Speaker of the House Rep. Dan Rayfield (D-Corvallis) gaveled out the 2022 Oregon legislative session on March 4th, his 10-year-old son Adam was by his side. It was the conclusion of Rayfield's first legislative session as Speaker of the House after being elected to replace former Speaker Tina Kotek, who resigned to focus on her campaign for governor. Rayfield called the 31-day...

For the first time since 1986, Portland has a contested race to see who will be the next city auditor. Current auditor Mary Hull Caballero decided not to run for re-election, and for a while it looked like no one wanted to take the job next. But now there are two candidates vying to replace Hull Caballero; Simone Rede, who works as a senior management auditor at Metro, and Brian Setzler, a certifi...

CEO of the Portland Business Alliance Andrew Hoan joined John Tapogna of ECONorthwest and Michelle Neiss from DHM Research as guests on this week's episode of "Straight Talk" to discuss the  2022 State of the Economy report.

Peter DeFazio is the longest serving House member in Oregon history and the 65th longest in U.S. history. He was a guest on this week's episode of Straight Talk to reflect on his congressional career and his plans for retirement.

Long-term care executive Phil Fogg is calling on the U.S. to treat the workforce shortage in health care as a national crisis.

Bloodworks Northwest is calling on Washington and Oregon residents to give blood this holiday season as the nationwide shortage continues. We also talk to Josh Schreck with the KGW Great Toy Drive about this year's effort to support the community. Investigative reporter Kyle Iboshi also joins to discuss holiday scams to watch out for. 

Portland Commissioner Dan Ryan joined Oregon Recovers co-founder and director Mike Marshall and Oregon State Representative Tawna Sanchez (D-District 43) on this week's episode to discuss behavioral health and homelessness in Oregon.

Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury joined Laural Porter on Straight Talk to discuss the city's homeless crisis and progress being made, thanks in part to Metro's supportive housing bond that passed in 2020. Homeless service providers Mercedes Elizalde from Central City Concern and Stacy Borke from Transition Projects were also guests on this week's episode.

Congressman Earl Blumenauer says he's optimistic the planet can slow global warming. He recently attended the global climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland and joined Laural Porter on Straight Talk to discuss climate change and his new report on preparing for climate disaster, "From Ruin to Resilience." 

Gabe Newland with the Oregon Justice Resource Center and Marion County DA Paige Clarkson joined Laural Porter to discuss the pros and cons of clemency for offenders convicted as teens.

Political strategists Dan Lavey and Kevin Looper usually find themselves on opposing sides of an issue. Lavey served as strategist for former Republican U.S. Senator Gordon Smith, and advises Oregon business interests.  Looper is a long-time Democratic consultant. However, what they see as the decline and decay of their hometown, Portland, brought them together to launch the nonprofit advocacy gro...