PRINEVILLE, OR -- Prineville mayor Jason Beebe has announced his candidacy for Oregon’s 2nd Congressional District against incumbent Cliff Bentz. He acknowledges there are fundraising challenges, “Representative Bentz is well ingrained into the Republican community. So, it's finding those people that that are like me, that aren't happy with him, and getting the funds from them,” but tells KBND News he's compelled to put his name in for the Republican primary nomination, “I don't think he's really supporting Oregonians in District Two and I think he's just in it for himself, and I'm not in it for myself. I'm in it for we, the people. And so, I decided to run.”
Beebe says his 13 years on Prineville’s city council, the last three as mayor, gives him experience he can take to Washington, D.C., “I've seen what it takes to fight for that process or fight for those results and I'm hopefully going to take that experience with me and do the same thing.” The Crook County native says helping guide Prineville through population and business expansion gives him insight into the inner-workings of government, “I've sat down with our city manager multiple times. I've had conversations with members of Congress, the state delegation and just get a good understanding of what it is that it takes.”
He says he’s ready to get constituent input, “I'm willing to go listen to anybody in the eastern side of Oregon and all of District Two and find out what it is they want for their communities. And let's try to do the same thing we did here in Prineville, and bring in businesses to those areas,” and adds finding energy solutions that would boost business, including hydro, biomass, and nuclear are important to him, “I definitely want to keep our hydropower and be able to use that, wherever we can find ways to use hydropower, even in small areas during the irrigation seasons, and stuff to offset some power usage, why not do it?”
So far, Beebe is Bentz’s only challenger. Candidates have until March 14th to file to run in Oregon’s Primary on May 21st.
photo courtesy: Beebe For Oregon
