It's way too early to come a real conclusion about Mark Hass' vote on the revenue bill yesterday. On the surface, it does appear he chose business interests above the need to raise revenues; perhaps this does represent the interests of his Beaverton constituents. It does not serve the rest of the state well, but let's see what happens today.

What does come through is the apparent lack of clout voters carry. In 2008, across Oregon and the nation, voters demonstrated clearly they wanted a new kind of politics. The swing of voters from right to left, although limited, was decisive, from the Democrats' rejection of Hillary to so many unexpected wins in "red" areas across the nation. Oregon voters have been moving in that direction for years, not because they want Dems to act like moderate Republicans but to step up and do what is necessary to fix our state.

Mark Hass, and way too many other Dems in the Leg, did not get the message. He chose, it seems, to continue the broken status quo. Meanwhile, it appears the Dem leadship is giving away goodies to get votes. Stand on principle? Why? What good does that do? Once these guys get themselves holed-up in the Capital, they begin to lose touch with reality. The sound of their own voices whispering in the corridors and between office doors becomes the sound of wisdom.

Out here, we simply hear the roar of the avalanche hurtling down on us.

If what we saw yesterday turns out to be the final case, then Mark Hass may go down in modern Oregon political history as Karen Minnis' love child. Choosing to support corporate interests over the needs of school children, cops and firefighters, the elderly and others in need is a gross betrayal of the state. Perhaps we're just waiting now for Hass to do a reverse Ben Westlund and announce the Democratic Party has left him behind.

It appears they should.