Why Charles Lewis Will Be Surprisingly Good for Portland

Symbolism upon symbolism: Charles Lewis made the announcement of his run for City Council on 6 June 2007 (anniversary of RFK's death) in front of the statue of Martin Luther King, Jr. (which he helped complete the fundraising for). RFK and MLK in 1968 were known for their crusade against poverty and you can't help but wonder how different America might be had they lived and continued to work for equality. I hope Charles Lewis will carry the banner of those two political and spiritual heroes.

Ever since the revelation of John Branam's exorbitant payment to his buddy and campaign manager Phil Busse ($25,000 for three months campaign work), I have been looking for a new candidate to support for City Commissioner Position #1 (the seat Sam Adams is vacating to run for Mayor). I kind of considered voting for Jeff Bissonnette, mostly because of his work on the Utilities board and his ability to see Enron for the scheme it was when they tried to manipulate the energy in Oregon. Plus he's older and the complete opposite of John Branam's slick and shallow image.

Last week, I received a flyer in my mailbox from Charles Lewis, who is also running for the position. It was one of the coolest political flyers I've ever come across. Eight pages in scrapbook style, offering a sufficient biography and background info on why he'd make a great City Commissioner. As I read through it, I was shocked that I didn't even consider him at first. There are six people running and I hadn't heard about his campaign until earlier this year (even though he announced his candidacy on 6 June 2007--months BEFORE Sam Adams decided to run for mayor). The reason why I didn't look into his campaign earlier this year is because the media always referred to him as "The Portland Duck Tour owner." They made him sound like a novelty candidate without any kind of political background! However, the shame is completely on me for falling for media characterizations when I know better. Honestly, though, between volunteering on Sam Adams campaign, looking for a new job, and planning the Memorial Day retreat, I just didn't make time to read every candidate's website and contact their campaigns to meet them in person.

My early support of John Branam was based mostly on his being the first candidate that I heard about running for Sam's seat; plus he has the whole bi-racial Obama thing going on (local alternative press have dubbed him Obranam); he served in the Peace Corps in South Africa and met Nelson Mandela; and he has on his campaign staff Jake Oken-Berg (lead singer of the great Portland band the Retrofits--the one I saw in concert earlier this year) and Paul Van Orden (whom I've met a few times when he talked about how to get a job in city government). I was content with that being enough reasons to vote for him until the papers reported the way Branam has spent his campaign funds that are part of Portland's experiment in what is called VOTER-OWNED ELECTIONS. I've heard many people wonder if Branam's actions is going to kill this system because there are those who oppose this innovation and might point to Branam as an example of candidates abusing the system. But that's just an excuse to throw the system out with the unethical candidate, which would unfairly punish candidates who use the money properly. The system is a great idea so candidates don't have to dial for dollars (and the whole "quid pro quo" that comes attached when people donate money).

I'm actually glad it happened though, because it caused me to look deeper into Branam's candidacy and I found some info online that makes him look even shadier. So, when you scratch the surface and realize there's not much depth, it's time to look for a new candidate.

Charles Lewis more than meets the standard I'm looking for in a great city commissioner. I met with him yesterday for about thirty minutes at his campaign headquarters. He took time out of his busy schedule to meet with me, which is impressive enough. After talking with him, I feel that he is very genuine and a likeable person. A complete lack of pretension is what came to mind after I met with him. His personal biography is one that could make snobs of anyone, but he remains down to earth and dedicated to the music center he founded and executive directs (Ethos Music Center).

Here's a little background info about him:

He received his degree in Political Science from the University of Portland, served in Congo (not the one formerly known as Zaire) in the Peace Corps, got a full ride scholarship to Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, was elected the Student Body President and received the Robert F. Kennedy Award for Excellence in Public Service (like me, Lewis also admires RFK a great deal). And he's married to the pastor of the Piedmont Presbyterian Church, who is due to deliver their first child in June.

With an education and experience trajectory like that, you'd expect him to land a great job anywhere in government or the private sector. What does he do after Harvard?

That's what has impressed me the most to take notice of his candidacy.

After the prestige of Harvard, he returned to Portland and lived on a friend's couch for a year while he ran up his credit card to start an after-school music program for low-income children in Portland when budget cuts forced schools to drop their music education programs. Now the organization he founded employs 78 people and has an upper six-figure annual operating budget. He was also instrumental in completing the fundraising for Oregon's Martin Luther King Jr. Statue at the Oregon Convention Center (which I've seen many times from the MAX train and admired from the window). And if that weren't enough, he and his wife started a Portland Duck Tour company with an amphibious bus that drives around the city before ending with a float down the Willamette River.

That's not all! He also used part of his campaign finance money to fix potholes in city streets. Gee...here we have one candidate who wants to ensure that taxpayer money is spent on basic services and helping communities while another candidate uses part of his taxpayer money to pay a buddy a nice salary for three months. It's a dramatic choice between two Returned Peace Corps Volunteers.

After meeting him, I'm ready to cast my ballot. To me, there's no contest. Of course, I must also confess that I'm partially biased to any candidate born the same year as me (1971) and a high school class of 1990 alumni. But beyond that "superficial criteria", he has the life experience, work experience, and educational background to make a great city commissioner for Portland.

If you don't agree, think about this...

What would possess a guy with a Harvard graduate degree to run up his credit card to solve the problem of schools cutting music education for children? He put his financial future on the line for something he believed in. He could've left grad school with a six figure salary job offer in New York or Washington, but instead he returned to Portland to help low income children learn how to play instruments. It's no wonder why the Portland Tribune compared him to Barack Obama (though John Branam would love that comparison for himself). Dismissing Lewis as merely a Duck Tour businessman doesn't do his experience justice. Those who do should take note. He decided to sell his Duck Tour business and hoped for a local buyer to keep it going in Portland. What he told me is something I've heard quite a few candidates mention about Portland's business reputation. The group that bought his company and those that considered buying it, none of them see Portland as very business friendly. That's why wages are suppressed in Portland and the job market is the worst I've seen in any city I've lived in.

But if there's anyone who could help bring businesses to Portland and turn around that image, Charles Lewis is that person. If you live in Portland and haven't voted yet, please vote for him. Let's see what his Ethos-style leadership will bring to the city. I have a feeling that Charles will be surprisingly good for Portland as City Commissioner for the next four year term...but there's only one way to find out.

VOTE!