A few days ago I wrote this:
Excerpt:
Portland is known to be one of the most progressive cities in the country, so progressive in fact that anti-Trump rallies have become magnets for the violent pro-Trump Proud Boys to come from near and far to mount sometimes violent counter-protests.
I’d like to believe that assuming Sondland testifies, and does so honestly, it is because he did so as a matter of conscience. However considering it wouldn’t take much effort for a boycott of his hotels to impact his profits one can’t dismiss this as a possible motivation.
Now that he is a national figure he’s gone from being an obscure local hotel owner to someone who could become a progressive Portland pariah... www.dailykos.com/...
Since I wrote the above story Sondland’s hotel chain filed an ethics complaint against Rep. Earl Blumenauer over his call for a boycott.
“Sondland is expected to testify before three House committees on Thursday, defying an order from the State Department not to comply with Democrats' impeachment inquiry.” (The Hill)
Today there is another wrinkle, and a major one, to this story:
Because I live in Portland, the algorithm which places ads on websites which I view often put local ads in the stories. The ad on the right was in this story.
The article says that Sondland coveted the EU ambassadorship and spent his year in the job trying to prove his loyalty to Trump. The latest imbroglio has apparently led to some marital disharmony:
Excerpt from RawStory: Sondland’s wife Katherine Durant, a real estate investor and registered Democrat, fears her husband’s ties to Trump and the Ukraine scandal will hurt the hotel company he built.
One local company in Portland, Oregon, where the couple lives, has already cut ties with Provenance Hotels over Sondland’s role in the foreign scandal, and Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer has called for a boycott until the ambassador cooperates fully in the impeachment inquiry.
Durant has criticized media coverage of her husband, saying he deserves a chance to clear his name.
“We live in a world right now where there’s no upside to supporting someone like Gordon who is working for Trump,” Durant said. “It’s a mob.”
“He’s been extremely hard-working,” she added. “He came from immigrant parents, he’s first generation here, he made his own wealth, he’s worked his entire life hard, he’s extremely generous. I mean, he’ll sit down and listen to anyone, take his time, go to bat for them, give his money. But this environment is so sad and vicious that there is no one who will stick up for him. I find it really pathetic.”
As a retired therapist who did a lot of marriage counseling I have been fascinated by Donald and Melania Trump’s marriage, and particularly by George and Kellyanne Conway’s marriage (see story on right). Mike and Karen Pence’s marriage must be interesting too, but I haven’t given it much thought.
Now we have a Portland power couple with different political views making the news.
None of my friends ever heard of him but I have talked to several who stayed at their hotels. Who knew? I didn't. I don’t read “Oregon Business” so I missed this article from Jan. 2, 2018:
Power Couple: Gordon Sondland and Katy Durant (There’s a photo of Sondland with Jay Leno in the story.)
Here’s another interesting tidbit about Sondland:
Sondland was initially a supporter of Trump foe Jeb Bush. He was listed as a member of the Jeb Bush Jewish Leadership Committee. Former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor led the group, according to The Sun-Sentinel.
The foundation’s news page also showcases several events involving George W. Bush and Sondland Durant. For example, a 2012 article declared, “Sondland-Durant Facilitates Auction for Ford F-150 Owned By President George W. Bush At Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale.” The goal was to raise money for vets.
According to his website, Sondland has also served as Chairman of Governor’s Office of Film and Television; Chairman of the Portland Art Museum; Commissioner, White House Fellows Commission, appointed by President George W. Bush; President, Pioneer Courthouse Square Board Member; Governor’s Kulongoski’s Transition Team Member; and Mitt Romney Presidential Transition Team. Former Gov. Ted Kulongoski, of Oregon, is a Democrat. From Heavy.com
Between Portland making the news for being a magnet for the pro-Trump Proud Boys and articles and TV stories about how we will fare when the “big one” hits (the devastating earthquake caused by a rupture along the Cascadia subduction zone) this is the biggest local news to hit the national media in a long time.
The Sondland story hasn’t gotten much local coverage in Portland. Today there was nothing on their three TV station websites (KOIN, KGW, and KATU). Portland’s weekly newspaper is The Oregonian. It didn’t cover it today either. It is a mediocre paper. The best newspaper is actually a weekly, Willamette Week, known equally for its coverage of the cannabis scene and its investigative reporting. Here are two of their stories on Sondland:
Report: Portland Hotelier Gordon Sondland Was Embroiled in President Trump’s Ukrainian Efforts
Eleven Things You May Not Know About Gordon Sondland: Sondland is active in local politics—except in the most basic way.
Excerpt: Sondland and Durant are serious Ayn Rand devotees. The couple share an affection for the late novelist and Objectivist philosopher, who emphasized pursuing one's self-interest. One of Durant's companies is named Atlas Investments—after Rand's best-known novel, Atlas Shrugged—and another of her companies owns a downtown Portland building called "The Galt." (John Galt is the book's main character.) Sondland shared his political philosophy in a 2012 interview with The Oregonian about the city of Portland's proposed arts tax. "I prefer lower taxes and smaller government," Sondland said, "but in this case, I don't consider it a product of larger government. I consider the arts part of the larger community."