In Apparent Conflict With Its Mission and History, ACLU Takes Sides in Oregon Governor’s Race

The civil rights group says it is nonpartisan and doesn’t get involved in candidate races but is spending heavily to support Kotek. You can tell the governor’s race is close when supporters of Gov. Tina Kotek take unusual measures to maintain Democrats’ nearly 40-year monopoly on the statewide office. First, the carpenters union in September dumped an unprecedented (for Oregon) $10 million into a PAC and have so far given $750,000 of it to Kotek. Then, on Oct. 15, the ACLU of Oregon announced it had formed a political action committee—something the organization confirmed it had never done before. “ACLU...