Oregon Senate Session Canceled After Militia Threat

Senate floor sessions were planned for this weekend, but Saturday’s session was canceled after militia groups threatened to show up at the Capitol in Salem, state Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward tweeted Friday evening.

Oregon State Police confirmed to KATU that Saturday’s session was called off. The Associated Press reported a spokeswoman for Senate President Peter Courtney said state police recommended the Capitol be closed Saturday.

For the last two days, Senate Republicans have staged a walkout in protest over a controversial cap and trade bill Democrats say is needed to curb human-caused climate change. The walkout has denied the Senate a quorum.

In her tweet, Steiner Hayward, a Democrat, attached a text message informing members to stay clear of the Capitol.

After media began reporting on her tweet, Steiner Hayward deleted it. But before she did, KATU News had grabbed a screen capture of it.

Before this week’s walkout, rhetoric became heated and Republican state Sen. Brian Boquist made threatening remarks toward other lawmakers and OSP troopers as Gov. Kate Brown and Senate Democrats considered calling in state police to bring missing senators back into the Senate chamber.

Gavin Newsom Says Charlie Kirk Helped Him Better ‘Understand’ Christianity

In-N-Out Retires the Number 67 from Its Ordering System Over Viral ‘6-7’ Trend

Trump addresses trio of attacks in Syria, Brown University, and Australia at White House Christmas event

Trump encourages Jewish Americans to ‘celebrate proudly’ during Hanukkah after deadly Bondi Beach shooting

Ohio Doctor Indicted for Allegedly Drugging Pregnant Girlfriend with Abortion Pills

Oversight says DC police chief ‘undermined’ accuracy of crime data

Polling Finds Pete Buttigieg Less Popular with Black Voters Than Former KKK Leader

Los Angeles Electric School Bus Bursts Into Flames, Driver Hospitalized

Trump’s election win filled Hamas with ‘fear,’ hostage held like ‘slave’ for 505 days recounts

Leaked lessons from first-year University of Illinois education course show extreme left bias: ‘Just so wrong’

Gruesome Charges: She Was a Miss Switzerland Finalist Then Her Husband Used an Industrial Blender to ‘Puree’ Her – That Was After He Cut Out Her Womb

Person of interest in custody following deadly shooting at Brown University

Platner courts progressives as Maine Senate race with Mills and Collins tightens

How fears of being labeled ‘racist’ helped ‘provide cover’ for the exploding Minnesota fraud scandal

Poll: Trump Holds Double-Digit Leading Majority Over Democrats Regarding Who Americans Trust to Manage the Economy

Courtney and House Speaker Tina Kotek, both Democrats, issued a joint statement Friday afternoon condemning Boquist’s remarks.

“We strongly condemn the comments made this week in the Oregon State Capitol by Senator Brian Boquist threatening lawmakers and Oregon State Police troopers. Law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day in the name of protecting Oregonians and should never be subject to these kinds of threats, let alone from a public official. His comments have created fear among employees in our workplace. We will always defend free speech and welcome frank policy discussions, but threats like these are unacceptable.”

When Republicans began their walk out Thursday, Brown called in state troopers to find the senators and bring them back to the Senate, but most have reportedly left the state.

Shortly after it was announced the Senate had canceled its Saturday session, the Oregon Republican Party tweeted the Democrats had canceled the session because of a “fear that Republican voters may show up.”