I support Sam Carpenter for governor of the state of Oregon. Sam has the background, the expertise, the drive and the vision to Make Oregon Great Again.

Oregon has for far too long been governed by “far-left progressives.” As a result, our state has suffered from the many very poor decisions made by our leadership.

We are on our way to becoming a fiscal basket case. According to a recent valuation by the system’s actuary, Oregon’s public pension deficit has grown to $25.3 billion (with no solution in sight). By August 2017, large fires in Oregon had cost the state and federal agencies a combined $100 million to fight and burned more than 300,000 acres, in no small part due to forest mismanagement. Poor leadership resulted in the waste of several hundred million dollars for the Columbia River Crossing Bridge with no results and the “Cover Oregon” Health Plan debacle wasted hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars. A March 2016 report from the state legislative fiscal office and the Statesman Journal reported that state employees were making nearly double what average Oregonians make. Latest numbers show that Oregon has jumped from the 10th to the sixth biggest government spending state per capita in the nation — spending more per person than 44 other U.S. states in terms of total government spending. The 2017 Oregon Legislature passed $530 million in new vehicle and gas taxes. Additionally, led by Gov. Kate Brown, the Legislature jacked up 530 existing fees totaling $374 million. Currently being pushed by Gov. Brown, a cap and invest (aka tax) program to charge $700 million a year to “polluters” by forcing them to buy “pollution” permits. Most Oregonians do not know the amount of the coming sticker shock and taxes that are heading their way. And those are just a few examples of why Oregon’s far-left progressive leadership needs to be replaced.

The two main primary contenders for the Republican nomination are Knute Buehler and Sam Carpenter. While Knute Buehler has an excellent reputation as a surgeon, he does not have the expertise, the life experience or the vision, nor does his record support his contention that he would be the best candidate to challenge Gov. Brown in the general election and to effect the mandatory changes so needed in our state.

Sam Carpenter does. Sam is a multibusiness owner from Bend. His specialty is the hands-on repair of struggling companies. As a business consultant/troubleshooter he has assisted in the repair of over 500 small and medium-sized businesses across the country. Sam came from a rural small town, blue collar working class environment. For his first 35 years he operated heavy equipment, ran chain saws, fixed fence lines, fought forest fires on the ground and managed hard-hat construction crews. Moreover, he is an author and philanthropist. Sam’s wide set of successful life experiences, experiences that Knute Buehler does not have, make him a perfect candidate for governor.

Sam is running for governor as a Republican. And it’s not just about the governor’s seat. Sam believes that the time is ripe for a Republican “Red Trifecta” where Republicans not only take back the governor’s post, but also both the House and the Senate as has already occurred in 26 other states. No matter individual political party, economic or social proclivities, he understands that our decades-long economic doldrums can only be reversed by replacing all of our far-left progressive leadership’s largesse, inefficiency and over reach.

Sam believes that we can’t tax our way out of our fiscal crisis. We’ll need to grow ourselves out of it. We’ll accomplish this by a combination of inducing massive organic private sector growth, spurred on by a major reduction in Salem’s hunger for enormous taxes and regulations.

Sam is pro-life, relies on God’s wisdom, reveres our military/first responders and loves our flag. He stands for limited government based on our constitution, will always put our state citizens first and vows to Make Oregon Great Again.

— Keith Sime lives in Redmond.