Everett Curry offers lying bullshit; Oregonian laps it up like dogs

[Update-8AM-] Kari at Blue Oregon has been in an email exchange with one of Everett Curry's relatives, Betty Curry. Mrs. Curry received the Everett "send-me-campaign-$-cuz-I'm-God's-Own-Partygoer" letters early on.


Last Sunday, snubnosed winger O columnist David Reinhard set his paper up to attempt to pull the rug out from under the David Edwards campaign for House District 30 in Hillsboro.


In his usual bloviating style, Reinhard babbled that the Edwards campaign was push polling against Edwards' opponent Everett Curry:

Last week I learned some voters received push-poll calls making an issue of Curry's religion. Businessman Erick Jones, a registered independent, was asked in a polling call if his feelings about Curry would change if he learned Curry was affiliated with the "radical religious right" or a Baptist minister. Others received similar calls.

I don't know where Reinhard gets his information--but according to mine, the Oregonian editorial board was handed ALL of the polling and phone banking questions for all of the phoning on Everett Curry. As I understand it, the editorial board was satisfied that none of the questions attacked Curry's religion in any way. Reinhard bases this entire account on the say-so of one guy--rather than finding out through his own editorial staff exactly what the phone questions were.

But apparently that's not good enough for Curry. He can't hold up to Edwards on the issues, so he's got to make crap up to try and get at the Edwards campaign. And he's using Reinhard and the Oregonian as his mouthpiece to get it done.

Reinhard further contends that Edwards campaign manager Seth Prickett sent a covert email to Curry--a charge that's true. However, Reinhard only excerpts part of the email from Prickett. He fails to note that Prickett asked Curry a series of questions about his positions. Noteably, Curry has failed to reveal his stances on a variety of social issues and Prickett was covertly attempting to get Curry to pony up what he really thinks.

No doubt this was a monumentally stupid move on Prickett's part. But I understand his frustration. When its clear you've got an opponent who's hard to the right and refuses to discuss it in order to hide it from voters--that's a frustration.

Instead of being honest about the email, Reinhard uses it to pretend that there's some sort of obsession by the Edwards Campaign with Curry's religion. In the meantime--poor, innocent Everett Curry sits taking the whips from the lash of the evil Edwards Campaign.

Please.

Curry isn't exactly lilly white when it comes to being completely forthcoming about himself.

In September, Curry told Oregonian reporter Holly Danks that he he has not been a pastor since 1986. But in the Oregon Voter's Pamphlet, Curry lists his occupation as an "ordained minister" from "1967-present". Further, The American Baptist Seminary shows Curry as finishing an interim pastorate in Oregon City in May 2005.

But hey, Curry (via his mouthpiece, Reinhard) says he doesn't understand why anyone would make an issue of his religion when it comes to the campaign:

"This has been a very strange thing," Curry said. "I have not made religion an issue in any way -- until now. I am proud of my service to my church, I by no means want to hide my relationship to my church. I believe it reflects a strong leadership pattern. David Edwards has stepped over the line in this campaign and is attempting to use my religion to scare voters."

Never made his religion an issue? More bullshit. Curry sent out a fundraising letter dated March 6, 2006:

In every community in which we’ve [Curry and his wife] lived, we contributed to the quality and humanity of life. In Southern California, we helped bridge racial distrust and formed the world’s first new racially diverse Rotary Club. Public Radio in Hawaii and Christian Radio in southwestern Oregon exist because we helped them in their start-up phases. We helped birth a community program for people who had no shelter in Oregon’s rainy and cold climate, and a police chaplain’s program to help law enforcement and citizens in difficult circumstances.

While these things were on our plate none were done alone. They were accomplished by a team of people. While all of these are community programs, we were clearly identified as Christian people who did them as a part of our call to serve God. Our Christian call to service in congregations, organizations, and in support of issues and candidates flows from our Christian faith.

That's looking an awful lot to me like Curry is making his religion a central part of a letter he's using to get people to donate to his campaign.

In Oregonian World, this clearly means Curry can pimp his religion all he likes--but no one had better make an issue of it..cuz that's 'bashing'.

Finally, Curry is in full court crybaby mode that a mailer was sent out stating that Curry's favorite Republican is George W. Bush.

Curry claimed an email to O reporter Danks that his George W. Bush quote is "fabricated":

From: "Vote For Curry"
To: "Holly Danks"
Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 11:21:34 -0700
Subject: [D30] Direction Edwards Campaign Is Going
Wanted to let you know the direction that David Edwards
and the House Democrat campaign committee (Future PAC)
have decided to take this race. The attributed quote is fabricated,
in fact my favorite president is Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Everett
--
Everett Curry
Republican Candidate
Oregon House District 30

Except that it wasn't fabricated. It appeared on the Washington County Republican Party MeetUp Group blog:

User ID: user 2603326

Location: Beaverton, OR

Introduction:
"I am a candidate in the May 16 Primary in District 30. My consulting practice, Barnabas & Co., focuses on nonprofit organizations. I assist in board development and financial/fundraisin g issues. I was formerly Director of Planned Giving at Linfield"
Are you currently a registered Republican in Oregon?
"Yes"
Who do you think will win the Oregon Governor's Race?
"Too early to call"
Who is your favorite Republican?
"George W Bush"
Who is your least favorite Democrat?
"Hillary Clinton"
How can we defeat the Dems in Oregon?
"Get Republicans to return their ballots...register independents to participate in our party."
Stats:
Meetup member since February 14, 2006
Group member since February 14, 2006
Last visited in the past few days
Everett Curry's Meetup Groups:

Curry has since scrambled to change this. I've got a printout of it here, which is copied and pasted into this blog post. I'll be happy to email it to anyone who wants it.

Everett Curry is lying his ass off to the people of House District 30. Unfortunately, the Oregonian is helping him do it.