At Lincoln High,
Jake Oken-Berg was a star runner, editor of the newspaper
and captain of the Constitution team. Now a sophomore at Pomona
College in Claremont, Calif., he's maintaining both a whiplash
schedule and a near-4.0 GPA. On Dec. 15, Oken-Berg came back
to Portland for winter break--and to campaign for next year's
mayoral race.
Willamette Week: Are you able to monitor how
many hits a day your Web site (www.jakeformayor.com)
has been getting?
Jake Oken-Berg: We've gotten thousands of hits already.
I think our No. 1 day there was something like 700 to 800,
and that was for a half-day period. The hits go up immediately
as soon as I do an interview.
I've heard you talk about writing a Portland song, and
I was just wondering if you have any lyrics you could share
with us?
I haven't written any lyrics yet. I did write a spoof to
the song "Brick," which is a Ben Folds Five song, for the
107.5 crew about how early I had to get up to talk to them.
I'm thinking about making the official campaign song "If
I Had a Million Dollars," by the Barenaked Ladies.
That sort of cuts to the heart of the matter.
Exactly. The statement "if I had a million dollars" seems
to really sum up exactly what this campaign could take on.
Do you care to sing for us or tell us any of the lyrics
to the "Brick" song?
"It's 6 am, a day of December, phone is ringing in the
dark. Smell of college, I am freezing, my roommate's sleeping
and I am speaking to Cort." Because it's the "Gina, Cort
and Rebecca Show."
As part of your 10-point program on your Web site, you
list "credibility within City Hall" as an important facet
of your platform. Is this in response to current operations
at City Hall?
Oh yes. It definitely is. You know, first of all, I think
Mayor Katz is a wonderfully intelligent person. She's a
good person and she has a lot of great ideas. However, the
problem is, simply being an intelligent person, a good politician,
if it doesn't go along with accountability, it doesn't matter
for beans.
In what ways, if any, do you feel like a typical 19-year-old?
It's a fair question, because I still have to enjoy being
in college and enjoy life. And the bottom line is, I am.
We had a great cross-country party on Saturday night. All
of us got together and danced and had a blast.
If you are elected, will you be popping champagne or
just celebrating with pop?
Oh no, it's going to be pop. But most likely it will be
water, because I'm a runner. I think you can imagine carrying
on what I'm doing with a hangover. It wouldn't exactly work.
If I win this thing, we'll probably have champagne for the
adults who have helped me out, but it's probably going to
be Martinelli's for me. And I really love Martinelli's.
Another Lincoln grad once went on to surprise some folks
by becoming mayor. Beyond those similarities, do you identify
at all with Bud Clark?
I think there are a lot of similarities between what I'm
trying to do and what Bud
Clark has done. He did it from the ground up--took out
something like $90,000 on his tavern, went for it and won.
It was because he was someone who had a fresh perspective
and great ideas, and I hope I can emulate that model.
More than any previous Portland mayor, is he the guy
you look to for inspiration?
As far as ideas, Neil
Goldschmidt is an absolute inspiration: what he did
in guiding the city, realizing that we can't have a highway
running directly through the east side--destroying houses,
four lanes wide--and diverting that money to light rail
and numerous other things. The man is a genius.
Are you more Luke Skywalker or Han Solo?
I have to say I'm Han
Solo.
Why's that?
Basically, the deal is that Han Solo was always the guy
who was a little more compulsive in wanting to do things,
but in the end he was there for his buddies and he got the
job done.
Other than your own, what Web site do you go to most
regularly?
Well, I'd have to say Willamette Week--I'm not joking.
I check it every Wednesday when they have their update out
there, and I read the politics, and most importantly I read
who's the winners and losers,
because I want to make sure I'm kissing up to the winners
but not hanging out with any losers.
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Willamette Week | originally
published December 22,
1999
|
