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Pam Bondi already fired as attorney general, cabinet official teed up as replacement: sources
Fox News
President Donald Trump has reportedly already fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, according to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke with Fox News Digital.
Bondi met with Trump in the Oval Office on Wednesday night ahead of his speech to the nation on the war in Iran where was reportedly informed of her ouster, according to two sources familiar with the meeting.
Trump is reportedly considering replacing Bondi with Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zelin, according to the sources familiar with the matter. Trump held a meeting with Zeldin at the White House Tuesday to discuss wildfire and prevention, where talks of the transition also unfolded, according to an individual familiar with the meeting.
Oregon News
POLITICS
Some Oregon Democrats get an unlikely primary foe: Their party’s top boosters
OPB | By Dirk VanderHart
In a rare move, labor unions and advocacy groups are taking aim at two sitting Democratic lawmakers this year.
At a party to launch her insurgent bid against a fellow Democrat last month, state Senate candidate Myrna Muñoz grabbed a microphone and shouted out to union supporters in the crowd.
“I know SEIU’s in the house,” Muñoz said to cheers. “And OEA?” More cheers.
The callout amounted to campaign boilerplate, easy to ignore. But in an election year when many Democrats like Muñoz see little to fear from Republicans, it says something about the restive state of Oregon’s progressive coalition.
Muñoz is one of two Democratic candidates this year working to eject sitting Democratic lawmakers with help from some of the party’s most powerful supporters.
Service Employees International Union Local 503, the Oregon Education Association, and the Oregon AFL-CIO, three of the state’s largest and most active labor groups, are endorsing Muñoz as she runs against state Sen. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro. Environmental groups like the Oregon League of Conservation Voters and the Sierra Club have signed on, too.
The show of support for a challenger — particularly an unknown like Muñoz — is a rarity in Oregon, where progressive groups in the union, environmental and social equity realm typically rally around Democratic incumbents. In the chaotic politics of 2026, though, some of those organizations say they’re no longer content with a Democratic supermajority they view as ineffective.
“Take this as a clear sign: Just because we have supported a candidate before, that does not guarantee their support in every election,” said OEA President Enrique Farrera, whose union is also declining to endorse Gov. Tina Kotek’s reelection as a way to show displeasure ahead of the May primary. “Elections are about choices.”
Sollman’s reelection bid isn’t the only race bucking the typical script.
State Rep. Daniel Nguyen’s campaign this year is complicated by a challenge from John “Waz” Wasielewski, a Lake Oswego teacher supported by OEA, the American Federation of Teachers, and Basic Rights Oregon, among others.
The races pit left-wing challengers against a more centrist contingent of the party. Nguyen and Sollman are moderate Democrats who support targeted tax breaks to business that they believe can help improve the state’s flagging economy.
Muñoz says she never expected to run for office. She even supported Sollman in the past.
That began to change last year, when Sollman was one of just two Democrats to oppose a labor-backed bill that made Oregon the first state in the country to grant unemployment pay to striking public employees.
"I didn’t feel supported by my senator,” Muñoz, a Forest Grove resident, said in an interview with OPB.
Sollman says her votes and policy proposals are for her constituents, not specific Democrat-leaning groups.
“I’m not a rubber stamp,” she said. “I’m an independent thinker for my district and for my community and I think that’s what they elect me to do.”
The lawmaker — who started her legislative career in the state House in 2017 before moving to the Senate in 2022 — told OPB she’s noticed a shift in her party during President Donald Trump’s second term.
“We used to be able to disagree on tough issues,” she said. “Whether this is coming from a Trump-type atmosphere or not, it has felt to me like I have had situations where it’s more of an ‘our way or the highway,’ now.”
Oregon’s new health program paid millions to ineligible patients, audit finds
The Oregonian | By Kristine de Leon
Oregon officials approved health coverage for thousands of people who did not qualify and paid out millions of dollars in benefits they should not have, a new state audit found.
Auditors with the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office found the Oregon Health Authority broke federal rules after it launched a program in 2024 as part of the Oregon Health Plan to cover people who earn too much for Medicaid but still struggle to afford insurance.
The lapse was serious enough that auditors issued a rare adverse opinion, the strongest finding they could make, concluding the state did not comply with key federal requirements.
The problems led to at least $8 million in confirmed improper payments tied to eligibility errors, along with roughly $7 million in likely improper payments based on case reviews, according to the audit.
The finding comes as Oregon faces ongoing pressure to reduce eligibility errors in public benefits programs or risk $500 million in federal penalties in the 2027–29 budget cycle, with the possibility of additional penalties beyond that.
It also comes as part of a broader statewide audit of federal spending, which Oregon must complete to continue receiving roughly $21 billion a year in federal money.
Officials with the Oregon Health Authority said the agency had already found and fixed the eligibility system errors before the audit was conducted. They also disputed the audit’s estimates, saying their own analysis “does not align with the Secretary of State’s questioned costs” and that the figures don’t reflect how many people were affected or how long they were enrolled.
Several top leaders depart Oregon Department of Education
The Oregonian | By Julia Silverman
A longtime key leader at the Oregon Department of Education, Tenneal Wetherell, is leaving the agency for a new position at the helm of the Lane Education Service District in Eugene.
Wetherell has regularly represented the state education agency during legislative hearings and in front of the state Board of Education. After serving as chief of staff to current agency head Charlene Williams, she was named the department’s Deputy Director of Operations, overseeing finance, human resources, information technology, nutrition services and some specialized programs.
Her departure is the latest in a wave of upper management churn at the agency, which has been helmed by Williams…
Audit says Oregon state parks failed to complete safety inspections
Statesman Journal | By Zach Urness
Staff at Oregon’s state parks failed to complete safety inspections of park buildings and kept inconsistent records of state property, according to an audit released April 1 by the Oregon Secretary of State.
The problems, auditors found, could risk visitor safety and taxpayer money due to lawsuits and fines if not addressed.
Blazers new owner Tom Dundon to speak to media Thursday afternoon at Moda Center
KGW | By Jared Cowley
Owner Tom Dundon and alternate owners Andrew Cherng and Sheel Tyle are expected to speak, along with team president Dewayne Hankins and general manager Joe Cronin.
U.S. Forest Service to close Portland headquarters, research station, open Salem office
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Alex Baumhardt
The restructuring at the Forest Service involves closing the 100-year-old Pacific Northwest Research Station and installing a new state director in Salem.
Joy Krawczyk, a spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Forestry, said in an email it’s too early to know how the federal shakeup would impact the state agency’s work but that officials are excited to see a U.S. Forest Service office in Salem, and to hopefully partner more closely with staff there.
Trump administration pushed Oregon to end its LGBTQ+ foster policy. The state ignored it
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Shaanth Nanguneri
A federal appeals court ruling also left the state’s 2018 policy requiring prospective foster and adoptive parents to affirm LGBTQ+ children’s identity in limbo.
Jake Sunderland, a spokesperson for the state human services department, said that Oregon’s affirmation policy will be changing but wasn’t able to provide details by Wednesday afternoon.
Half a dozen reports from Oregonians could spur criminal inquiries into feds by AG Rayfield
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Shaanth Nanguneri
It’s unclear which exact incidents across Oregon Rayfield is looking into, because justice department officials withheld documentation and evidence submitted for each report. However, court records in Oregon’s case against Trump’s attempted deployment of the National Guard suggest that state attorneys are interested in a potential criminal investigation into activity near Portland’s ICE facility.
Oregon leads $10M petition for Kroger to pay legal fees after blocked Albertsons merger
KOIN 6 | By Michaela Bourgeois
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield is leading a petition against Kroger, seeking a total of $10.3 million in legal fees after the company’s failed merger with Albertsons.
Live in Multnomah County and want tuition-free preschool? Enrollment is open for Preschool for All
The Oregonian | By Austin De Dios
Parents looking for tuition-free preschool for their 3- and 4-year-olds in the upcoming school year can now apply for Multnomah County’s Preschool for All program.
Families can apply on the program’s website. There are no eligibility restrictions and the county offers a range of options for preschool and early learning.
The Solution to Multnomah County’s Struggles With Compulsory Drug Rehab Turned Out to Be in the County Next Door
Willamette Week | By Anthony Effinger
“What’s attractive about Washington County is that they are getting results. They are getting people through deflection and into treatment.”
Will Portland City Council’s shake-up boost its success? The overhaul’s own architect has doubts
The Oregonian | By Shane Dixon Kavanaugh
After months of misgivings, mounting frustration and false starts, the Portland City Council finally has a new committee structure in place — a move that lawmakers hope will establish a more functional framework for carrying out business.
It remains to be seen whether the rejiggering will result in a turnaround from the series of challenges councilors have faced in the past 15 months.
Even the overhaul’s architect, Council President Jamie Dunphy, has doubts.
HEALTH CARE
‘Numerous Systemic Issues’: Letter on Providence Health Insurance Mess Suggests Faulty Planning
Willamette Week | By Andrew Schwartz
The letter bolsters evidence that the Providence Health Plan and its contractor failed to adequately prepare for a major Jan. 1 transition they devised.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Intel stock jumps as chipmaker spends $14B to buy back full ownership of Irish factory
The Oregonian | By Mike Rogoway
Intel shares climbed nearly 9% Wednesday after the chipmaker said it will spend $14.2 billion to buy back a 49% interest in a factory in Ireland.
Nike stock plummets while executives insist their turnaround plan is working
The Oregonian | By Matthew Kish
Nike CEO Elliott Hill remains convinced the company’s comeback is about to turn a corner. But some investors aren’t sticking around to find out, having grown impatient with a turnaround that’s now being measured in years, not quarters.
EDUCATION
PPS Deems Midyear Budget Hole Closed as School Board Approves Furloughs for Four Unions
Willamette Week | By Joanna Hou
The district’s budget picture for the upcoming academic year is still murky.
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