Time might be right for a Republican governor
March 4, 2010

Vic Atiyeh has one distinction he'd gladly relinquish — being Oregon's last Republican governor.

Four Democrats — Neil Goldschmidt, Barbara Roberts, John Kitzhaber and Ted Kulongoski — have been elected since Atiyeh served as governor during 1979-87.

Atiyeh thinks Republicans have a good chance to regain the governor's office this year, with Allen Alley and Chris Dudley as their leading candidates.

Both are outsider candidates — Dudley a Yale-educated former Portland Trail Blazer and Alley a high-tech entrepreneur who ran for state treasurer two years ago.

Republicans make up only 32 percent of Oregon's 2,053,332 registered voters, but Atiyeh could be right about their chances to win the governorship. He bases his observations on his reading of Oregon politics, not on polls.

Atiyeh was an old-style governor, and I say that with the greatest of admiration. He didn't govern based on polling; he did what he thought was right for the state.

Responding to my Feb. 18 column, Atiyeh graciously invited me to lunch last week. During our two-hour discussion in his downtown Portland office and at a Chinese restaurant across the street, I again was reminded of how much we Oregonians have in common.

Atiyeh always understood that.

He didn't care about party affiliation when making government appointments. He chose the best people, an approach that enabled his administration to break traditional barriers — while being an effective organization. As a reporter, I could call up an Atiyeh official on a budget issue or other question, and get an immediate answer.

Some people say that's because government was much simpler back in the 1980s. I don't buy that. The issues confronting government always have been complex for their day.

The economy was awful in the early '80s, and the state budget was in the dungeon. Interest rates were so high that my wife and I in 1983 bought our house with an adjustable rate mortgage of "only" 121/8 percent interest. (Our interest rate on that mortgage has since dropped to 45/8 percent.)

In those tough times, Atiyeh led.

It wasn't easy. The solutions weren't perfect. But thanks to Republican Atiyeh's collaborative work with the Democratic Legislature, Oregon made it through those difficult days.

I've often wondered why Atiyeh fared better with the Legislature than some of his successors who, like him, had been in the Legislature before becoming governor.

Here are two possible answers, which might be relevant in this year's gubernatorial races:

First, Atiyeh did not hide behind his staff.

He was the most recent governor — I hope not the "last" — to put a premium on accessibility and openness.

Besides meeting weekly with legislative leaders — from both parties — he welcomed any legislator who wanted an appointment with him. In contrast, some current legislators say they rarely see their governor.

He also held weekly press availabilities so reporters could ask him about anything in state government.

Second, Atiyeh had a life.

And perspective.

He was rooted in his family and his faith. He loved being governor, but he didn't get caught up in the trappings of his office.

As a leader, he had the strength of his convictions without arrogantly insisting he had all the answers.

Atiyeh has been married for more than 60 years, and one can't accomplish that without learning humility and compromise — good qualities for a governor.