Episode snapshot:

Portland doesn’t just debate policy—we debate reality. Journalist Donovan Scribes joins me to break down his “Top 10 Takeaways” from a chaotic 2025, and we talk about how vibes (and media narratives) can drive big decisions on Measure 110, police budgets, and the so-called “doom loop”—plus what feels genuinely hopeful heading into 2026.

• Vibes vs. evidence: how hype forms, spreads, and becomes policy

• Portland’s journalism landscape: where Donovan goes to get grounded and verify what’s real

• 2025 in review: the moments and patterns Donovan thinks mattered most

• Memory, protest, and power: what Portland learned (and didn’t) since 2020

• Hopeful 2026 governance bets: “boring competence” wins that could change daily life—sidewalks, storefronts, AI accountability, and harm reduction tools

• Sidewalk Improvement & Paving Program (Loretta Smith / Mitch Green / Olivia Clark)

• Small business storefront support (Dan Ryan)

• AI + housing / algorithmic systems (Angelita Morillo)

• ERPO focus + youth suicide prevention framing (Steve Novick), including discussion of emerging “smart gun” concepts

• Donovan’s Portland Mercury piece: “THE BLACK BYLINE: Top 10 Takeaways from 2025, A Wild Year in Portland”

• The Portland Mercury x Donovan Scribes project: BlackOut — A Five-Year Retrospective on Portland’s Racial Justice Movement

If this episode helped you see Portland a little clearer: like, follow, and subscribe—and share it with one person who cares about this city.

Guest Co-Host: Jennifer Williamson • Interview Guest: MAC Smiff (Thesis PDX)

In this episode, Mike is joined by guest co-host Jennifer Williamson, attorney, former Oregon House Majority Leader, and co-founder of Swift Public Affairs, for a wide-ranging conversation on law, politics, and what’s about to hit Oregon’s healthcare system.

Then we bring in Mac Smiff, organizer and host of Thesis, one of Portland’s longest-running independent music showcases, to talk about building a more accessible and exciting local music scene.

Segment 1 – The AG, Kristi Noem, and Federal Misconduct

Mike and Jennifer kick things off by unpacking Oregon Attorney General Rayfield’s recent press release and letter to South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, flagging concerns about:

• Allegations of potential criminal misconduct by federal agents in Oregon
• What it actually looks like to investigate possible federal misconduct at the state level
• How fighting via press releases, and threats of investigation may fall flat without more.

Referenced links:

• • AG Rayfield press release
  • Portland DA balked

Segment 2 – What’s Coming for Oregon Health Care & OHP

Next, Jennifer draws on her recent conversations with Oregon lawmakers and policy folks to talk about the real-world impacts of federal funding decisions on Oregon’s healthcare system, including:

• What’s at stake for Oregon Health Plan (OHP) members
• How impending federal funding shifts and cuts might show up at the local level
• What this could mean for providers, hospitals, and families trying to stay insured
• Where the political fights are happening—D.C. vs. Salem—and who actually has leverage

Referenced links:

• Article on federal funding changes & Oregon
• Coverage of impending OHP cuts
• OHP / Medicaid & Snap implications

Segment 3 – Building Portland’s Music Future with Thesis (with MAC Smiff)

Then we’re joined by MAC Smiff, who runs Thesis, one of Portland’s longest-running recurring music shows.

We dig into:

• The origin story of Thesis and why it’s stuck around so long
• How the show is designed to bring new, young artists onto the stage
• The work behind the scenes to remove barriers to performing — cost, logistics, access, and gatekeeping
• Why Thesis aims to be the place where Portlanders can say “I saw them first,” at their cocktail parties, and what that means for building a real, sustainable scene
• How people who care about Portland’s culture can actually show up and support the artists coming next

Learn more / follow Thesis & MAC:

• Thesis info / tickets
• News coverage of Thesis
• IG @thethesispdx

Thanks for Listening

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Schmidt Show PDX.

Do all the podcast things to help keep this going:

• Follow / subscribe to the show
• Rate and review us on your podcast app
• Share this episode with a friend who cares about Oregon politics, healthcare, or Portland music
• Reach out with feedback or guest ideas – who should we talk to

Follow and connect with us on our substack!

This holiday week, we’re breaking from our usual co-hosted current events + one-interview format and bringing you two back-to-back conversations with people doing deeply local work in Portland:

• Tyler Pell from Tennis Courterly
• Katie and Nicki from Sisters of the Road, talking about the Finding Home report

First up, Mike talks with Tyler Pell, founder of Portland Tennis Courterly – an analog, paper newsletter devoted to all things tennis in Portland. While it’s technically about tennis, it’s just as much about community, public space, and how we use shared resources like parks and courts.

• Why Tyler started an analog tennis newsletter instead of going online
• How Tennis Courterly is trying to “rebrand” tennis in Portland and build political consciousness around public courts and budget priorities
• What it looks like when a sport becomes a vehicle for community-building, not gatekeeping

• Select public tennis courts in Portland
• Players Racquet Shop
• Old Town magazine store Chess Club (downtown Portland)
• Mother Foucault’s Bookstore

Online:

• Website: https://tenniscourterly.com
• Instagram: @tenniscourterly

Next, we bring you part of a wide-ranging conversation with Katie and Nicki from Sisters of the Road, a long-standing Portland organization that centers the dignity and autonomy of people experiencing poverty and homelessness through meals, organizing, and advocacy.

They’re here to talk about Finding Home: Lasting Solutions Rooted in Community Expertise, a new report produced with Welcome Home Coalition that captures the perspectives of 650+ people experiencing homelessness in the Portland region.

91% of people surveyed said they would move into housing if they could afford it.

This challenges the myth that people on the streets “don’t want housing” or “prefer tents.”

• What the Finding Home study asked and how it was designed
• Why most respondents strongly prefer stable housing over shelters or living outside
• How a shelter-heavy response misses what people actually need
• The importance of peer support, rent assistance, and eviction prevention versus pouring more money into mass shelters and sweeps
• The broader myths and tropes about houselessness that this research dismantles

• Website: https://tenniscourterly.com
• Instagram: @tenniscourterly
• Physical copies (Portland):
  • Select public tennis courts
  • Players Racquet Shop
  • Old Town magazine store Chess Club
  • Mother Foucault's Bookstore

• https://www.sistersoftheroad.org
• Finding Home report (overview, toolkit, and links)

We only included part of the conversation with Katie and Nicki in this episode. To hear the full, extended interview and explore more of the Finding Home data and policy implications, head over to our Substack and become a subscriber.

Subscriber support helps cover production costs and lets us grow so more people can hear stories about folks working to make Portland a better place.

👉 Extended interview and subscriber extras: Schmidt Show PDX Substack

This week on Schmidt Show PDX, Mike is joined by guest co-host Steph Routh for a timely and emotional episode.

We begin by remembering the late Representative Hoa Nguyen — her life, her leadership, and what her loss means for our community. From there, Steph walks us through how Oregon fills a vacant legislative seat, breaking down the appointment process in plain language and offering a smart idea to make that process more democratic and transparent.

In the second half of the show, we sit down with Xander Schultz, co-creator of Defiance.org. We dig into:

• What collective action really looks like today

• Why strong democratic institutions still matter

• Historical protest movements that actually worked — and what we can learn from them now

If you care about how power works, how people organize, and how to build a more just democracy, this episode is for you.

• Remembering Rep. Hoa Nguyen

• How Oregon fills a vacant legislative seat — and how it could work better

• The story behind Defiance.org

• Collective action, solidarity, and shared interests

• 💌 Subscribe to our Substack for episodes, extras, and show updates: https://schmidtshowpdx.substack.com

• ▶️ Like, subscribe, and share Schmidt Show PDX on your favorite podcast platform

• 🔁 Send this episode to a friend who cares about democracy, protests, or Oregon politics

Special co-host: Candace Williams (Family Forward Oregon)

Guest: Greg Raisman (Awesome Portland)

A no-fluff convo with Candace Williams (Family Forward) on what’s really happening in Portland right now—plus an invitation to Dance Like a Mother on November 8. Then an interview with Greg Raisman (Awesome Portland) on your zany ideas into $1,000 micro-grants that make Portland smile. Want $1,000? Have a plan to make Portland more awesome? Ever wished for a cooler, lower-stakes version of Shark Tank? This episode is for you.

When/where: Sat, Nov 8, 2025 • 6:30–9:30 pm • Holocene (PDX). Tickets are available now to power Family Forward’s care-justice work.

Get Your Tickets HERE

What they do: Awesome Portland gives out $1,000 micro-grants—no strings attached—for scrappy, community-boosting ideas in the Portland area. They fund across art, culture, community, environment, and more.

Apply for $1,000 HERE

Believe in Portland and the good people and stories that make this place special? Subscribe on Substack. Free gets you show notes and links; paid powers studio time, editing, and more episodes. It’s the most direct way to keep this thing rolling.

https://schmidtshowpdx.substack.com

We just wrapped up a fantastic recording session for Episode 8 – the Season 1 Finale of The Schmidt Show PDX, and trust me: you’re not going to want to miss this one.

💥 For the first time ever, we’re bringing in a guest co-host to join the mic. Who is it? You’ll have to tune in Wednesday to find out — but let’s just say, this person knows Portland politics inside and out and brings sharp insight with heart and humor.

But that’s not all…

🛑 We’re also diving into one of the most urgent issues facing Oregon and the West: the threat in Congress to sell off public lands to private interests. What’s at stake? Could this really happen? And — most importantly — what you can do to help stop the sell-off and other terrible ideas from the current administration and protect our shared wilderness for future generations. Join us as we interview Bethany Cotton from Cascadia Wildlands.

This season finale is the perfect mix of guest surprises, big ideas, and real pathways to action. Don’t miss it.

schmidtshowpdx.com

What happens when a national misinformation campaign hits your city? You organize. In our latest episode of *Schmidt Show PDX*, we’re joined by Moira and Andres from Portland For All — a grassroots coalition fighting for housing, public safety, transit access, and a truly inclusive civic vision for Portland. But before we dive into that conversation, Mike offers a critical monologue tracing the disinformation playbook used by Trump and his allies — first in Portland, now in Los Angeles — where federal forces provoke confrontation, media amplifies chaos, and social media pundits declare “hellscape” collapse. The result? Real damage to cities. Lost revenue. Fractured trust. Local disinformation machines like People for Portland feeding off the national spectacle. That’s why Portland For All matters. Because in the face of fear campaigns and paid outrage, they’re building something real — and inclusive. As Mike says, it’s time the left went big tent. We hope this episode pushes that conversation forward. 🎧 Listen now. Organize later. Or better yet — both.

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If you care about democracy, misinformation, or what’s really going on in the American political machine — then you’ve heard of Thom Hartmann. This week on Schmidt Show PDX, we sit down with the nation’s #1 progressive talk show host to dig into the state of democracy, the rise of disinformation, and how local media — yes, podcasts like this one — can help turn the tide. We talk about: - The role of independent media in pushing back against corporate consolidation - How misinformation spreads — and who profits from it - Why platforms like The Thom Hartmann Program still matter in an age of AI clickbait - And how Oregon’s political soul connects to national conversations 🧠 And because we couldn’t resist: Thom joins us for a trivia game, “Hamilton or The West Wing?” — where he tries to guess whether a quote about democracy came from the Founding Fathers or fictional TV politicians. (Spoiler: he was alarmingly good.) 🎧 Tune in and find out: - Why local journalism might be our last best hope - How Thom connects with other media icons like Sam Seder (host of The Majority Report) and David Sirota, creator of the hit investigative podcast Lever Time - Why Wajahat Ali’s book, Go Back to Where You Came From, is one of the sharpest reflections on race, media, and belonging in America today - And how a single conversation in New Orleans (yes, we talk about that night) brought together voices shaping progressive media across the country 📰 Related Media You Should Absolutely Check Out: - 📻 The Thom Hartmann Program - 🎙️ The Majority Report with Sam Seder - 🧨 Lever Time from The Lever - 📚 Go Back to Where You Came From by Wajahat Ali 📱 Subscribe to Schmidt Show PDX on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your media-with-a-backbone. 💬 Leave a review. Share the episode. Tell a friend. 🎤 Because the only thing louder than disinformation... is a mic in the right hands.

schmidtshowpdx.com