Fay Stetz-Waters, new Linn County Circuit judge, will be the guest speaker Thursday, Feb. 1, at the Linn County Democrats' monthly general meeting in the Albany Public Library meeting room, 2450 14th Ave. S.E.
    A social time with light refreshments starts at 6 p.m. The meeting begins at 6:30.
  Judge Stetz-Waters brings her experience as a Marine, 911 dispatcher, Legal Aid attorney, administrative law judge and hearings officer to her work as a circuit judge.
  Her personal journey – from a girl growing up in Baltimore who enlisted in the Marines to an experienced attorney and now judge – shaped her values and informs her work on the bench.       Judge Stetz-Waters said she is committed to following the law, knowing that her rulings impact the lives of those who appear in her courtroom. Learn more about Judge Stetz-Waters at https://www.judgefaystetzwaters.com. 
   Also on the Feb. 1 agenda will be:
   • Nomination and election of the Linn County delegates and alternates to the State Platform Convention, set for March 16-18 at Parrish Middle School and North Salem High School in Salem.
    • First reading of proposed Linn County Democratic Central Committee by-law amendments.
    For more information about the meeting and the Linn County Dems, contact Co-Chair Graham Kislingbury at g.kislingbury@comcast.

  The Democratic Party of Oregon Platform Convention will be held March 16-18 at Parish Middle School and North Salem High School.
  At our Jan. 8 Linn County Democratic Central Committee (LCDCC) monthly general meeting, we passed a motion to open nominations for Linn County delegates and alternates to the State Platform Convention. 
 If you would like to be considered for nomination, please send an email to [email protected] with your:
• Full legal name
• Full mailing address
• Email address
• Phone number.
  Our delegates and alternates must be registered Democrats and residents of Linn County.
  The nomination period will remain open until our next monthly general meeting on Thursday, Feb. 1, when our LCDCC Precinct Committee People will officially nominate and vote on the nominees.
  Linn County can have up to 22 delegates and 11 alternates at the state  convention.
Here is a link to the Platform Creation Timeline: http://bit.ly/2FuMLRV
  The second draft of the state platform will be circulated later this month. When we receive it, we’ll send it out on the hotlines. Suggestions for revisions and additions can be made at that time.
  Also, the Benton County Democrats have invited any interested Linn County Dems to join them for a county platform convention to review the second draft of the state platform and send along any revisions and addition to the Democratic Party of Oregon. That convention will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 3, at Grace Lutheran Church, 435 N.W. 21st, Corvallis.
  Thanks for considering delegate and alternate nominations to the State Platform Convention.
Graham Kislingbury
Co-Chair
Linn County Democrats
  P.S. A special thank you to the 10 Linn County Dems who signed up in December to work on platform subcommittees. Your work is greatly appreciated.

Jeanne Atkins, Democratic Party of Oregon chair, emailed the following letter to State  Central Committee members on Jan. 11:

Fellow SCC members:
  On January 2nd I received a new resolution on the subject of opening the Democratic Primary to nonaffiliated voters, with the request that it be considered under our emergency resolution processes.  The proposal was made by SCC delegate James Barber.    
  The DPO by-laws state that if an issue is raised by a proposed resolution that could not wait to be considered at the next regularly-scheduled SCC meeting, the Chair "may" determine that an emergency exists and that the proposal be the subject of an emergency meeting of the SCC.  It was agreed by the proponent and by our Rules Chair and our Parliamentarian, that if an emergency were found,  Article XVIII, Section 1 of the by-laws would require a special meeting of the SCC to discuss and vote on the question.  It was also agreed that the meeting could be conducted by telephone.
 Furthermore, it was agreed that whatever the Chair determines on the question of an emergency can be overruled by the Administration Committee.
  As your Chair, I ruled that an emergency did not exist.   Put most simply, it was my finding that the key matter within the resolution – whether to open the primary to nonaffiliated voters – had already been properly vetted through the Platform and Resolutions Committee this fall, and debated and voted on at our most recent SCC meeting in Portland (November 19, 2017).   Robert's Rules does allow for possible reconsideration votes, but only if notice is given at the time of the original vote.
  The Administration Committee heard me out and then had their own thorough discussion. They concluded, by a divided vote, to let my determination stand.   
  A number of challenging issues were considered:

• Whether there was confusion among SCC members about the meaning of the resolution voted on in November, sufficient to justify putting the issue forward a second time with a change in terminology.
• Whether the revision of the resolution was significant enough to justify considering it a new issue and not a reconsideration;
• Whether it was more respectful of the SCC's authority to move it forward for a second discussion and a new vote, or more respectful to allow the recent vote to stand.

  Each issue and others played a part in the debate, with differing opinions on all these questions.  Administration Committee members took their responsibility seriously and were respectful of each other’s views.  I thank them for their thoughtfulness and their diligent work.
  I am forwarding this information to you because I know there has been discussion among some, but not all of you, regarding this proposal, and I wanted to inform you of my actions and the conclusion of the Administration Committee.   
  Linked below is the resolution and its face sheet so you can be aware of its contents. I am happy to answer any questions you may have or provide additional information. The resolution will be forwarded to the PRC Committee for further consideration and potential action in the future.
  Thank you for your attention,
Jeanne

FACESHEET 
drive.google.com/file/d/1CztDKHsPZr_-Y8Vr4dMKTgILk4W9rR9R/view

RESOLUTION
drive.google.com/file/d/1rabNaBwmX26aWmONCUvyHmDCtu9WwEzj/view

​  MoveOn and its allies from 25 national organizations have put a lot of thought into this question: What happens if Donald Trump fires Robert Mueller?
  They have planned “Nobody is Above the Law” rapid-response actions across the country, ready to deploy if Trump fires Mueller, special counsel on the Russia investigation.
  So here’s the plan: If Trump fires Mueller before 2 p.m. local time on any given day, MoveOn members and allies will be in the streets at 5 p.m. local time the same day.
  If news breaks later in the day, the rallies would be at noon local time the following day. 
  There would be two mid-valley rally sites: outside the Linn County Courthouse, 300 Fourth Ave. S.W., Albany; and outside the Benton County Courthouse, 120 N.W. Fourth St., Corvallis.
​  MoveOn is the largest independent, progressive, digitally-connected organizing group in the United States.