Brown promotes Oregon goods on trip to South Korea, Japan – Oregon Capital Chronicle

With most consideration centered on the three ladies working to change into Oregon’s subsequent governor, the lady who now holds the job has spent the previous 12 days on a commerce mission in Asia.

Gov. Kate Brown spoke with Oregon reporters by Zoom from Japan on Tuesday, the place she was wrapping up a 12-day tour of South Korea and Japan. South Korea is Oregon’s fourth-largest export market and Japan its sixth. 

“Oregon’s robust commerce relationship with each Korea and Japan has contributed to Oregon seeing the fifth quickest export progress in america over the previous 5 years,” Brown stated. “We have been solely certainly one of six states to see constructive export progress in the course of the pandemic.” 

Brown stated the journey was timed to coincide with Japan and Korea each just lately reopening to worldwide tourism after shutting down for Covid – Korea in April started permitting vacationers for the primary time since early 2020, and Japan reopened earlier this month. It supplied an opportunity for Oregon’s elected and enterprise leaders to rekindle private relationships after final visiting in 2019, she stated. 

But it surely additionally took her out of Oregon as campaigning for the upcoming election reached its zenith – together with simply lacking the arrival of President Joe Biden when he visited Portland to marketing campaign for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek. Brown has been rated the nation’s least widespread governor in quarterly polls from Morning Seek the advice of all yr, and Kotek has stepped up criticism of Brown in latest weeks.

That features one tv advert, shot as if Kotek is trying right into a doorbell digital camera, through which the Democratic nominee criticizes Brown for doing “nothing” on homelessness, and one other on social media that describes Brown’s lack of motion on homelessness as equivalent to Republican Christine Drazan’s.

Brown stated she hadn’t seen these adverts whereas touring in Asia, however she stands behind her file on homelessness. 

“I’m frankly actually happy with the work that my administration has finished in robust partnership with the Oregon Legislature,” Brown stated. “That is work that has really been bipartisan to put money into making certain that everybody throughout Oregon has a heat, secure, dry, inexpensive and accessible place to name dwelling. Now we have made important investments and, frankly, I feel there’s been no different administration that has invested on the degree we have now.”

She stated she appears ahead to working with the state’s subsequent governor on housing and homelessness prevention, in addition to sustaining Oregon’s relationships with commerce companions and rising the semiconductor business. The latter was a part of the rationale for Brown’s journey: She needs Japanese and Korean expertise corporations to put money into semiconductor manufacturing in Oregon. 

Brown additionally promoted Oregon’s agricultural merchandise, together with urging the Korean authorities to think about importing Oregon-grown raspberries and blackberries. Each international locations already import Oregon blueberries, and Brown stated she was stunned by how widespread the fruit was. 

“All over the place we went, people talked about Oregon blueberries,” she stated. “They’re being very artistic of their use from each morning for breakfast to creating certain they’re utilized in treats similar to frozen yogurt pops, and naturally, yogurt and I believe slightly little bit of ice cream. I used to be simply blown away.”