Newspapers Call for Adams' Resignation

[Sekkle]

Editorial boards of The Oregonian, Portland Tribune to Sam Adams: Resign
Posted by Noelle Crombie, The Oregonian January 21, 2009 07:55AM
The editorial boards of The Oregonian and The Portland Tribune have advice for Portland Mayor Sam Adams, whose new administration is being engulfed in a sex scandal: Resign. The mayor met with editors of both newspapers Tuesday.

From this morning's editorial in The Oregonian:

You'd think, listening to Portland Mayor Sam Adams' apologies for his poor judgment in having sex with a teenager, that the whole thing was a passing mistake. A misjudgment, maybe, covered up by a pro forma lie in the heat of a campaign.

When pressed, Adams on Monday reversed that long-standing lie about his 2005 relationship with a young man named Beau Breedlove and admitted that it was sexual, not platonic or mentoring. Adams apologized Tuesday for lying and for pressuring Breedlove into lying, too, when the rumors about them first arose in 2007, early in the mayoral campaign.

Adams acknowledged the obvious problems that all of this creates for his ability to be effective in the mayor's job that he assumed less than a month ago. Yet, he argued, it was "an error in judgment. An anomaly, not a trend." He suggested that Portlanders need to weigh this behavioral blip against his two decades of public service and good judgment.

We don't think it's as easy as all that.

The Portland Tribune is urging Adams to resign quickly so the city can move forward.

We don't believe the public makes much of a distinction when it comes to a man over 40 having sex with either a 17-year-old or an 18-year-old. And it makes no difference if the teenager is male or female - it's sexual opportunism, pure and simple.

When he met with the Portland Tribune editorial board on Tuesday evening, Adams said he would remain in office because he believed it was in the best interest of the city. But he also promised to resign if he became convinced that his departure would be best for Portland.

Adams doesn't need to wait for such proof. His own dishonesty led to him being elected under false pretenses, and his behavior now threatens to shatter his effectiveness at a time when Portland is in desperate need of dynamic and credible leadership. The sooner Adams leaves office, the faster Portland can begin the process of finding a mayor who still has the ability to inspire - not depress and distract - us.

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index...he_oregon.html

Unfortunate that this is how things are starting out for him.

[dkealoha]

Being a gay man myself, I'm disappointed that Sam lied about this. Although I don't think his sex life is any of our business, I also think that being a public figure and a representative for both Portland and the gay community, he should have known better.

Now, every time I hear someone start talking about Sam I wait for an ignorant slam on gay people to come out of their mouth. Thankfully, I haven't heard such comments from people yet, but it just seems like any moment now.

[pdxman]

Though I am not gay myself, I feel the same way--he should not have lied. That being said I voted for him and want him to stay. He apologized and set things straight and hopefully the people of the city of portland can forgive him and move on.

[pdxf]

The Sam Adams issue is really disappointing. I could care less that he was in a relationship (every other source has said he was 18, so the relationship was between two consenting adults - non issue), but to lie as much as he did to cover it is a good reason for someone to have to step down (would he have been elected had he fully disclosed during the election?).

That being said, I am ready for a mayor that will help make Portland great, and Adams is the guy to do this (I'm tired of a mayor who doesn't do anything (Potter), and miss for a Katz style mayor who helped with the eastbank, streetcar, pearl, etc...). For this reason , I personally can let the lie go, knowing there are better things coming down the road for the city as a whole.

[360Rich]

I wonder why he adamantly denied it, if Beau was really 18 at the time. Like pdxf said, if he's 18, they're both consenting adults.

It makes me think that Beau was 17, hence to need to cover it up.

Either way, I don't think that Sam will be the mayor for much longer.

Really, really disappointing.

[2oh1]

I voted for a mayor, and a mayor is what I got. I want him to stay. I'm very disappointed in this particular example of how he conducts himself personally, but it's none of my business. I had similar feelings about Clinton's affair. I thought he was a fantastic president, but if he were my friend and single, I wouldn't set him up with anybody!

[nobody]

This is disappointing but what he does in the bedroom is his business, if it involves two consenting adults then I really don't see a problem. I understand why he lied but it doesn't really excuse it.

That being said I am still a huge fan of his public policy and think he'll do a great job as mayor, I hope this doesn't force him out. Huge bummer that he's being called to resign.

[PacificNW]

If the other young man involved was 18 the sexual relationship was between 2 consenting adults. If the questions asked prior to the election were if they had a past sexual relationship, Mr. Adams should have stated it was none of our business and not lied. BUT if the questions asked were if his sexual relationship involved a minor...now that is different matter. This issue is going to be investigated by the state Attorney General. I hope Sam is telling the truth and the legalities can be resolved. I know that some people have a problem with the age difference of the parties involved (regardless if all concerned were of legal age) because of the "power of age/position vs youth". I sure don't hear the "outrage" about the "older men/younger women" events we see and read about daily. Was there a huge uproar when a married John McCain had a sexual relationship with a much younger Cindy (18 year difference), for example? Maybe there is an underlying homophobia going on here. BTW, I have met, in my long life, some pretty aggressive (knowing what they want) younger/older (and vice versa) men and women when it came to matters such as sex and career/life advancement. I don't know in what context (professional, personal, or both) Sam defined his mentoring, or if the philosophy of "mentoring" was compromised by Sam (morally or legally). I don't know the legal issues regarding mentoring. I am just guessing but, in the moral sense, sex should probably not be part of the relationship...or if it does become sexual the "mentoring" ceases and the two adults involved become more of "equals". The morality of the issue of mentoring I am not in the position to judge since I am just a mortal, not perfect, being. I am, too, disappointed, but not being a citizen of Portland, my feelings really don't matter. I do hope everyone who lives in the city can have some patience until this all plays out. I wish the best for Sam, Beau??, and the people of Portland. Sam can accomplish some amazing things for the city.

[dkealoha]

I also want Sam to stay in office. Regardless of this whole mess, he would be an amazing Mayor. I mean, in his first few weeks in office he already has a whole plan about stimulating the economy in Portland as well as attracting new business (Vestas). Hopefully everyone can get over this scandal and move on. I think feelings are pretty mixed among voters and other politicians though.

[rsbear]

Originally Posted by PacificNW

If the other young man involved was 18 the sexual relationship was between 2 consenting adults. If the questions asked prior to the election were if they had a past sexual relationship, Mr. Adams should have stated it was none of our business and not lied. BUT if the questions asked were if his sexual relationship involved a minor...now that is different matter. This issue is going to be investigated by the state Attorney General. I hope Sam is telling the truth and the legalities can be resolved. I know that some people have a problem with the age difference of the parties involved (regardless if all concerned were of legal age) because of the "power of age vs youth". I sure don't hear the uproar about the "older man/younger woman" events we see and read about daily. Was there a huge uproar when John McCain had a sexual relationship with a much younger Cindy (18 year difference), for example? Maybe there is an underlying homophobia going on here. BTW, I have met, in my long life, some pretty aggressive (knowing what they want) young men and women (and vice versa) when it came to matters such as sex and career/life advancement. I don't know in what context (professional, personal, or both) Sam defined his mentoring, or if the philosophy of "mentoring" was compromised by Sam (morally or legally). I don't know the legal issues regarding mentoring. I am just guessing but, in the moral sense, sex should probably not be part of the relationship...or if it does become sexual the "mentoring" ceases and the two adults involved become more of "equals". The morality of the issue of mentoring I am not in the position to judge since I am just a mortal, not perfect, being. I am, too, disappointed, but not being a citizen of Portland, my feelings really don't matter. I do hope everyone who lives in the city can have some patience until this all plays out. I wish the best for Sam, Beau??, and the people of Portland. Sam can accomplish some amazing things for the city.

So wonderfully put - I agree with everything you wrote.

[tworivers]

^^^ I agree. He should stay and weather it out. Within a few months, the media being what it is, the fuss should die down. Totally boneheaded move, though -- on the one hand, I understand the impulse to lie in the context of being a gay man running for office, knowing that your opponents, not to mention the media, will pounce on a story like this. On the other hand, you would think someone in his position would do everything possible to avoid ANY possible appearance of impropriety in the first place, which might include dating an adolescent legislative intern. I'm pretty surprised, honestly.
If the "investigation" by the AG reveals that the kid was 17 at the time of their dating, well, his career is over. What a depressing turn of events that would be.
BTW, regarding the mentoring question, Adams is claiming that that whole supposed aspect of their relationship was actually part of the lie.

[tworivers]

http://samisstillmymayor.blogspot.com/

[maccoinnich]

Got to feel for Beau Breedlove. I mean, really, the surname is bad enough, but for his parents to have added alliteration to it is child cruelty.

I think the Clinton comparison is the best one. Clinton lied, then admitted, ro relations with a much younger woman. Granted, Lewinsky was in her early to mid 20s, but the age difference between her and Clinton was still 27 years. Clinton was also in a very strong position of power, being, you know, President of the United States. Oh, and he was married.

I'm pretty disappointed to read about this, but surely the same principles should apply for everyone. Did the Oregonian call on Clinton to resign?

[Dr Nevergold]

I left Portland just as Sam Adams was elected and taking power. Unfortunate to hear he is now being asked to resign from the major newspapers.

Personally I think the world needs to lighten up, realize that even public figures have sex lives, and that if it was consensual, just let it go. Period. Newspapers should stop asking for resignations unless its a serious issue.

[PacificNW]

↑ Good points......

[pdxf]

Originally Posted by BrandonTO416

Personally I think the world needs to lighten up, realize that even public figures have sex lives, and that if it was consensual, just let it go.

Unfortunately this isn't really a sex issue or gay issue. The issue is that he lied about it, vehemently denying the accusation. You could rephrase this to say that public figures lie, and we should just let it go, but that wouldn't work quite as well!

I'm just stating what the issue really is (that he lied)...again, I'm hoping Sam can stick around and I personally can let the lie go (perhaps it says more about our society that he felt he had to lie about having a relationship with a consenting 18 year old male).

[urbanlife]

I get a kick out of the whole, I have no problem with it except that he lied about it, my question would be who is willing to talk to everyone about every aspect of their sexual life. When he was asked about it and lied, maybe it was something he didnt feel like talking about as well as felt that it was a non issue in the first place and didnt need it to be used as a political weapon against him.

So I ask everyone here who is upset that he lied, tell us everyone you have slept with...or better yet, go to your work and tell everyone there who you slept with throughout your entire history and see how many details you choose to leave out.

[65MAX]

First off, Sam should absolutely NOT resign. What Clinton did was far worse than anything Sam did in two ways. And Clinton stayed in office.

One.... Clinton was answering questions under oath and therefore perjured himself. Sam's answers were only given to some nosy voters and reporters who were just looking to dig up dirt for a juicy story that homophobes would have eaten up. Not to mention the whole issue was instigated by one of Sam's enemies and (at the time) potential mayoral candidate Bob Ball, another gay man in his forties who dates men half his age. Should Sam have told reporters to go F themselves, it's none of their god damned business? Probably. Instead he lied to get them off his back. I think a lot of smart people would have done the same thing.

Two.... Clinton was, and is, married. Sam is a single man and he was sleeping with another single man. What's the big deal?

This will blow over. Give it a couple of weeks and the press will be onto the next fabricated scandal.

[philopdx]

I think Sam should stay as well. I mean, who was the alternative - Sho Dozono? The guy who can't even manage his own restaurant? Please. I was proud of my vote last week and I'm still proud of my vote today. Sure, when he lied about about the relationship, he had his own best-interest at heart. Don't we all?

Sam seems to achieve a good middle-ground between promoting transit and sustainability as well as driving business growth in the city. I hope he fights and stays.

Looking back, wanting to escape from the puritanical fixation on other people's genitalia is one of the myriad reasons why I left the deep south.

Trust me, even in the heart of guns-and-jesus Dixie, community leaders occasionally get caught in compromising positions, so to speak:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive...072scuba1.html

The last two bullet points on page 4 say it all.

Cheers.

[RED_PDXer]

I'm with Sam 100% on this. I have no doubt that the same people calling for his resignation have made serious errors in their life and I suspect the vast majority of them are the same ones that voted against Sam in the first place. Haven't we come to understand that politicians shouldn't be venerated so highly? They are public servants and real people - not saints. This has nothing to do with the job he voted into office for. It's an absolute shame that he had to leave DC because of this "story" and not be able to testify in front of Congress on transportation issues. I will never pick up an Oregonian, Tribune or Willamette Week again. I had essentially nixed them all years ago, but I would occasionally pick one up if it was sitting in front of me and I was bored. Now I'll probably crumple up the paper if I see it (and recycle it).