Oregon tribe takes interest in Woodland politics
Friday, October 5, 2007 11:36 PM PDT
By Thacher Schmid and Leila Summers
Printable version
E-mail this articleThe Confederated Tribe of the Grand Ronde's opposition to the Cowlitz Tribe's proposed casino near La Center has extended into new territory -- the Woodland mayoral election.
Woodland residents received fliers and phone calls urging them to vote for mayoral candidate Charles Blum, paid for by the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, opponents of the casino. The fliers were mailed primarily to northern Clark County residents shortly before the electoral primaries August 21.
The Grand Ronde in June acknowledged spending $170,000 on TV advertisements and fliers opposing the Cowlitz tribe's casino project near La Center. The Woodland fliers and calls appear to be a continuation of the tribe's previous campaign, but also represent a new step -- becoming involved in a municipal mayoral race.
A representative of the Grand Ronde, Siobhan Taylor, confirmed the tribe had funded fliers to registered voters. Taylor said there was nothing illegal or controversial about the move, and the tribe had not contributed to Blum's campaign.
"It was a positive direct mail piece about Chuck Blum," Taylor said. "We said nothing about his opponent, we said nothing about the casino."
Asked how much the Grand Ronde have spent opposing the Cowlitz campaign to date, Taylor said it was "pretty close to ($170,000) still."
Taylor confirmed the Grand Ronde also paid for phone surveys in the Woodland area, but denied the calls asked respondents to vote for Blum.
"We did some research, and it's not something we've even released," Taylor said. "We were just gathering data, which is something that we do constantly in all markets.
Woodland residents said the questions pertained to candidates in the mayor and city council races as well as the casino, the Woodland swimming pool debate and construction of a Wal-Mart SuperCenter off Dike Access Road.
Woodland candidates are not required to report their campaign finances because there are fewer than 5,000 voters in the race and candidates do not expect to raise more than $5,000, said Lori Anderson of the state Public Disclosure Commission.
"We have contacted Mr. Blum, and he has told us he does not intend to raise $5,000, so he does not have to report his campaign contributions," Anderson said.
Blum, who submitted an early draft of a proposed resolution opposing the Cowlitz tribe's casino project, said he has received no money of any kind from the Grand Ronde, and the Grand Ronde never contacted him before sending the fliers. Blum said he wrote a letter to a return address on the flyer two months ago but has received no response.
"I wasn't a very happy camper," Blum said about learning of the fliers. "They took the information directly off my Web site, and in doing so they took one photo off that would be in copyright violations."
'They took info'
John "JJ" Burke, a Woodland City Councilman running against Blum for mayor this November, said he brought the fliers to Blum's attention.
"He acted surprised, like he's never seen them before," Burke said. Woodland residents gave him two different fliers that were sponsored by the Grand Ronde, said Burke, who supports the casino but wants the city to talk to the Cowlitz Tribe about several concerns, including how the casino will impact traffic and the population of Woodland.
The Grand Ronde's involvement seems peculiar to City Councilman Jim Tone.
"I would say it's unusual," he said. "I think small towns should be left to the small towns. We don't need to bring in outside groups. I think it clouds it a little bit."
"We're very interested in the outcome of the election," Taylor said. "We've been real above board about it. Everybody knows that the Grand Ronde is opposed to the Cowlitz coming down (to La Center) to build their casino."
Cowlitz tribal spokesman Phil Harju said he saw a story comment on tdn.com -- The Daily News Web site -- suggesting the Grande Ronde mailed fliers on behalf of the Blum campaign.
"I've heard some stories about what's going on in Woodland, but I don't have any first-hand knowledge," Harju said Friday, emphasizing the Cowlitz Ttribe has no involvement.
Taylor said the Grand Ronde contributed money to an opposition group named Citizens for a Healthy Clark County. Asked if they had contributed to Blum's campaign, Taylor said, "I don't believe so, no, I don't believe they have."
Blum said he wasn't sure how the Grand Ronde knew he was opposed to the Cowlitz casino unless they had attended Woodland City Council meetings. The language of his proposal to the Woodland council opposing the casino project, he said, was drafted by a lawyer and taken from resolutions from the cities of Vancouver and La Center. Blum's proposal is one of two the Woodland council is using to draft its proposal. The council plans to vote on the matter October 15.
Burke said he wouldn't be surprised to see more promotional material for Blum by the tribe before the Nov. 6 elections.
"It gives (Blum) an edge," Burke said. "I don't have time to call everybody up."
Studies have shown the Cowlitz casino would cost the Grand Ronde's casino, Spirit Mountain, millions of dollars annually. In a June interview, Taylor suggested the Grand Ronde were part of a group of "concerned citizens" who oppose the "shady" way in which the Cowlitz tribe was going about siting their casino near La Center.
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