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Oregon state Sen. Lew Frederick, a Democrat from Portland, speaks to reporters on Thursday, March 5, 2020, as other Democratic lawmakers look on. At the news conference in the Oregon State Capitol, frustration boiled into the open after Senate Republican Leader Herman Baertschiger, Jr., said his party would return from a boycott of the Legislature on Sunday only to vote on emergency budget bills. Democratic lawmakers said representative democracy is at stake by repeated use of walkouts to deny a quorum and freeze all legislation. Later in the day, the 2020 legislative session ended early over the impasse, with Democratic Senate and House leaders rejecting Baertschiger's proposal.(AP Photo/Andrew Selsky)

Oregon state Sen. Lew Frederick, a Democrat from Portland, speaks to reporters on Thursday, March 5, 2020, as other Democratic lawmakers look on. At the news conference in the Oregon State Capitol, frustration boiled into the open after Senate Republican Leader Herman Baertschiger, Jr., said his party would return from a boycott of the Legislature on Sunday only to vote on emergency budget bills. Democratic lawmakers said representative democracy is at stake by repeated use …

March 5, 2020

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Oregon 2020 legislative session implodes amid GOP walkout
March 5, 2020 10:56 p.m.

Oregon 2020 legislative session implodes amid GOP walkout

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon's 2020 legislative session imploded Thursday amid a boycott by minority Republicans over a climate change measure, an action they have taken repeatedly and which Democrats say threatens democratic rule.