PORTLAND, Ore. — On Thursday evening, two of the top Democratic candidates in the running for Oregon's Congressional District 3 — vying to take over Earl Blumenauer's seat — sat down to talk climate change, and how they will advocate for climate policy on a national level at a forum in Southeast Portland.
Portland's Citizens' Climate Lobby organized the event and prepared detailed questions for each candidate to ponder ahead of time. Then, they took several questions from the audience.
The two candidates in attendance were Maxine Dexter, a doctor and Oregon State Representative for District 33, and Susheela Jayapal, a lawyer and former Multnomah County Commissioner. Candidate Eddy Morales, a Gresham City Councilor, could not attend the forum, but told KGW he "believes climate change is the greatest existential threat facing our country and planet."
Both Dexter and Jayapal touted their experience as elected leaders and how they involve community in their approach to climate legislation, touching on topics like the deadly heat dome of 2021 and wildfire smoke. Both candidates also stressed the need to move away from fossil fuels and invest in clean energy projects. The questions covered a lot of ground: from what motivates them to take action to how they'd make effective changes.
When asked about deforestation and what policies Congress should pass to combat it, here's a snippet of how each candidate responded:
"Short term solution: we need economic incentives," said Dexter. "Unfortunately, money is how things work, so we need to make sure there's incentives to protect forests. There's really robust data that you must let the trees grow for longer and they become more efficient with carbon capture."
"It is the all-of-the-above approach. It is protecting existing forest land through regulation, working with local communities to see how they're using their forests, and to the extent we're affecting their practices, what are the economic effects and how do we mitigate some of those consequences," said Jayapal.
KGW's own Matt Zaffino was the moderator and asked each candidate how they would talk to climate skeptics or deniers.
"I think we do it by talking about common denominators: things that we are all experiencing, whether that's the heat dome or ice; in other parts of the country, it's severe weather of other kinds," Jayapal said.
"We need to build trust to really have that candid conversation," said Dexter. "People don't disclose their fears or their questions, especially when they feel judged, so I think de-stigmatizing the conversation."