In This Episode
Buckle up - this is a conversation that will have you cheering, jeering or both! Portland is at an inflection point — economically, politically, and on the streets. This week on SchmidtShow PDX, we talk to two guests with very different vantage points on the city’s challenges: a seasoned political strategist now advocating for Portland’s business community, and a frontline service provider working to restore basic dignity to people living without shelter.
Jon Isaacs — Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Portland Metro Chamber
Jon Isaacs has spent 30 years in Oregon politics — from the state Senate Democratic minority caucus to Jeff Merkley’s 2008 Senate campaign to his current role as VP of Public Affairs at the Portland Metro Chamber. He’s watched extremes take over parties and watched the backlash follow. He’s here to say he sees it happening again — and Portland should be paying attention.
Mike and Jon cover a lot of ground: the new city government’s structural flaws, the DSA’s national platform and what it means for Portland, the Chamber’s actual role in the region, and whether Portland can square its progressive values with the reality of a three-year recession. They also rip baseball cards live on air.
What We Cover
The Backlash Thesis. Jon watched Oregon Republicans implode under their own extremism in the late 90s and helped engineer the Democratic takeover that followed. He sees the same ingredients forming now — and argues the backlash isn’t just likely, it’s predictable and we should be worried.
An Unlikely Alliance that Worked. Mike had the plan, Jon made the calls, and together with then-Councilor Rene Gonzalez — someone Mike agreed with on almost nothing — they built a coalition that dropped Portland’s vehicle theft rate from third in the nation to its lowest since 2012. Sometimes unlikely alliances are what it takes to get things done.
Portland’s New Government. Twelve seats, no mayoral veto, a never-before-tried combination of ranked choice voting and multi-member districts, implemented in a year. Jon calls it a design disaster — built less around good governance than around producing predetermined political outcomes.
The DSA’s Actual Platform. Jon walks through the national DSA agenda — including the chair’s plenary on abolishing the traditional family as a “gateway to capitalism” and calls to defund CPS — and argues that if Portlanders understood it fully, many would be alarmed. His case is economic as much as cultural: Portland needs families and in-migration, and Jon claims that the DSA’s national goals run directly counter to that.
The Revenue Math. Half of Portland’s city revenues and half of Multnomah County’s revenues come from business income taxes. If you want government to fund progressive priorities, you need thriving businesses. According to Jon, that’s not ideology — it’s arithmetic.
The two things the Chamber says need to happen to achieve a prosperous and progressive Portland. Two things: restructure Oregon’s tax system toward a broad-based low-rate consumption tax that actually funds the basics, and shift housing policy from spending to incentivizing private investment. Carrots, not sticks.
📊 Read the Metro Chamber’s State of the Economy Report: portlandmetrochamber.com
Dr. Sandra Comstock — Hygiene for All (H4A)
Hygiene for All operates a hygiene and health hub under the Morrison Bridge, where community joy, connection, and access to basic services are the foundation of their model. By providing hygiene facilities and health services, they work to address both the civic and public health dimensions of Portland’s homelessness crisis. hygiene4all
We talk with Dr. Comstock about:
Hygiene for All’s mission and the essential services they provide to Portland’s unsheltered community
The recent fires and setbacks that have disrupted their operations — and what that means for the vulnerable people they serve
A direct call to action: H4A needs your financial support right now to restore hygiene services. Please donate. And if you have time, volunteer — from offsite inventory and laundry support to onsite service — many hands make light work. hygiene4all
The deeper question: after three consecutive Portland mayors making homelessness their signature priority, why does a durable solution still feel out of reach? What are we missing?
🚿 Donate or volunteer with Hygiene for All: h4apdx.org/join-us
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