Senator Frank Morse named to national League of Conservation Voters' state "Dirty Dozen" list

August 31, 2010

Contact: Toby Van Fleet,
OLCV Communications Director,
503-224-4011 x212, toby@olcv.org

Senator Frank Morse named to national League of Conservation Voters’ state “Dirty Dozen” list

Morse’s anti-environment record earned him a spot on the list over hundreds of other candidates, making the choice for Rayfield an easy one

Washington, D.C.—Today Oregon Senator Frank Morse was named to the national League of Conservation Voters’ inaugural state-level “Dirty Dozen” list, which represents 12 of the most anti-environment candidates in the country.

Morse represents Senate District 8, which covers Albany, Corvallis, and Philomath. His dismal record on the issues Oregonians care about the most earned him a spot on the list over hundreds of candidates in 34 states. The Oregon League of Conservation Voters has endorsed Morse’s opponent in the race for the seat: Dan Rayfield.

In his first year in the Oregon Legislature, 2003, Senator Morse earned a 0% on the OLCV Environmental Scorecard, and he has remained consistently anti-environment since then. In Oregon’s special session this past February, he voted against all three of the most important environmental bills, including the ten-year moratorium on offshore drilling off Oregon's coast that the Legislature ultimately passed, and a ban of the toxic chemical Bisphenol A from baby bottles sold in the state. Those bills were supported by a broad coalition of nearly 50 Oregon environmental groups. Read highlights of Morse’s record of voting against the environment on the OLCV Blog here: http://olcv.org/blog/morse-named-dirty-dozen-list-rayfield-clear-choice-...

“The race in Senate District 8 is a clear choice,” said OLCV Executive Director Jon Isaacs. “Oregon voters have shown time and again that they want their lawmakers to protect Oregon’s natural legacy, ensure basics like clean drinking water, and hold polluters accountable. And they certainly don’t want to put our coastal economy at risk with offshore oil drilling. The record shows that Morse just won’t represent Oregon values. Rayfield will.” 

LCV solicited input from its 34 state partners from among hundreds of candidates running for governor, state senate and state house. The candidates selected represent some of the most anti-environment politicians running for public office this year.

“From Congress to the state house there has never been a more urgent time to defeat politicians who stand with corporate polluters and block progress on sound environmental policies,” said LCV President Gene Karpinski. “With the U.S. Senate’s recent failure to act on comprehensive energy and climate legislation, we need strong environmental leaders at the state level to move the ball forward on new energy policies that will put America on the path to a clean energy future.”

LCV's trademark Dirty Dozen program targets candidates for Congress — regardless of party affiliation — who consistently vote against clean energy and conservation and are running in races in which LCV has a serious chance to affect the outcome. For the candidates on this—the first—state-level list, LCV will be focusing on relevant education efforts rather than race targeting.

Read the national LCV press release here: http://www.lcv.org/newsroom/press-releases/lcv-names-candidates-to-the-i...

The Oregon League of Conservation Voters passes laws that protect our natural legacy, elects pro-environment candidates, and holds all of our elected officials accountable.

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