A group of us, Republicans and Democrats, decided to see [if] we could put together a core bill that represents the philosophy and the practical approaches that will actually allow this to happen.

[Republicans] are proposing more tax cuts, mostly for the affluent and big corporations,

It's a problem that Republicans and Democrats alike need to solve. Oregonians are counting on us not to turn this into a political issue.

[While initially, Democrats hesitated to call for an outright concession, by the end of the day many party members acknowledged the contest was over.] I believe there should be a concession speech, ... As difficult as it is, I believe that George W. Bush at this point is the winner and Al Gore is the loser.

If I just did it to help Democrats, I guess I am puzzled why so many Republicans would help us.

I've also been mayor in a city that's five to one Democrats over Republicans. And I think I've been able to accomplish as much as any other mayor in the city, some people believe a lot more,