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Sorry about the “robo” calls
It's against state law for a political campaign to make automated phone calls to households on the federal no-call list.

But somebody forgot to tell the candidates.

The campaigns for Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama fessed up this week to making "robo" calls to blocked Oregon numbers.

Both campaigns say they have stopped. And, for the record, they're sorry. (Michelle Cole, The Oregonian)

Experience is the difference
Three of the Democratic candidates vying for Congresswoman Darlene Hooley's seat appeared on OPB's Think Out Loud program Thursday. The three don't differ much on the issues.

Andy Foster is a graduate student at Oregon State University and a small business owner.

Steve Marks is best known for having been chief of staff for former Governor John Kitzhaber.

And Kurt Schrader is a State Senator.

Agreement turned testy when the topic of experience came up. Kurt Schrader criticized his opponents for lacking legislative experience. (Andrew Theen, Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Unions irked by Novick mailer
Steve Novick is taking some heat today from organizations including the SEIU, AFL-CIO, and Oregon Nurses Association over wording in on one of his recent pieces of direct mail, which raises the question of just what constitutes negative campaigning in this heavily contested U.S. Senate primary.

The piece points out a number of differences between Novick and Democratic primary rival, state House Speaker Jeff Merkley, including early opposition to the war in Iraq, Social Security taxes and, for these unions, the kicker: Health care.

The line that is causing all the fuss says that Merkley "failed to deliver on Healthy Kids legislation that would have increased taxes on cigarettes. The result, 125,000 Oregon kids today are without health care." (Lauren Lafaro, PolitickerOR.com)

Will Drake get swooshed in Beaverton
In all of Oregon, how many full-time mayors do you think there are?

Give up?

The answer is: two.

Everyone else is technically part-time. One of the full-timers is Portland mayor Tom Potter who’s leaving office after serving just one term.

But the only other full-time mayor has held down his job for nearly 16 years. However, as Rob Manning reports, Beaverton Mayor Rob Drake could soon be looking for work. (Rob Manning, OPB)

Can Obama snare Oregon’s white voters?
As Oregon’s May 20 primary approaches, one of the biggest questions on the minds of many Democrats is whether Illinois Sen. Barack Obama can attract enough votes to beat John McCain in the general election.

Specifically, whether Obama can pull in the white voters that New York Sen. Hillary Clinton has been appealing to, state after state.

But one Portland pollster says that Obama — who’s stumping in Portland and Pendleton this weekend — could make history with his share of white voters here. (Jennifer Anderson, Portland Tribune)

Shouldering the burden
They're foot soldiers, loyalists and high-wattage volunteers whose passion might be the most critical weapon in a Democratic presidential candidate's arsenal.

As Tuesday's Oregon primary approaches and the battleground for the almighty vote shifts from the airwaves to the ballot box, the task of delivering a victory to Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama has fallen on the shoulders of the volunteers working their campaigns.

These are the workers, mostly unpaid, who staff events, gather and sort voter-contact information, recruit other volunteers and even make donations.

"Volunteers certainly contribute to a candidate's success," said Michelle Eng, an Obama campaign worker. "They help voters feel like they're a part of the campaign, and that's how it should be." (Thelma Guerrero-Huston, Statesman-Journal)

Working overtime
They're coming back, both of them, and while the attention they will generate will be welcome, it comes with a cost.

Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama return to Oregon this weekend for final campaign appearances before Tuesday's primary.

But each visit by a candidate imposes taxpayer costs, mostly in the form of overtime pay for law enforcement officers, that are a necessary part to move the candidates around the state and protect them while they are here. Example: When Obama visited the University of Oregon on March 21, Eugene Police paid an extra $29,305 for 434 hours overtime pay to its officers. (Edward Walsh, The Oregonian)

With the PolitickerOR.com Wake-Up Call e-mailed to your inbox, phone, Blackberry or PDA first thing in the morning, you can get a rundown of Oregon's top political headlines. Sign up to get the Wake-Up Call delivered every morning.