A speech by US Congressman Les AuCoin advocating for arms control and building a peace admist national discussions of nuclear weaponry and building up arsenals in the defense budget. Delivered in the early years of the Reagan administration, Congressman AuCoin referenced the 1969 book "War by Timetables" by J. P. Taylor and states that "This member of congress has not voted for a single defense appropriations bill since he was elected to office eight years ago-- not a single one. And there's a very simple reason for that -- because it's not longer a defense budget anymore, it is a military provocation budget."
A Wall Street Journal newspaper article titled "Can Congress Staunch Red-Ink Flow?" by US Congressman Les AuCoin published on March 18, 1982. In his article, Congressman AuCoin discussed the $91.5 billion deficit proposed by President Reagan and criticized a previous editorial published on March 8 of that year titled "Deficit Hypocrisy."
The remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin announcing his candidacy for a fifth term in Congress at a press conference at the Hilton Hotel in Portland, Oregon on March 8, 1982.
The remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin at the Small Business Hearings in Oregon sometime in the early years of the Ronald Reagan administration. In his remarks, Congressman AuCoin discussed the notable economic debates of the era and their impacts on both the national level and the local level. Criticizing what is now known as Reaganomics, AuCoin questioned and stated "Is it fair or workable to have an economic policy which exempts oil companies from windfall profits taxes and allows the largest corporations to sell their paper tax losses -- while offering no relief to small business from history's largest peacetime tax increase, the 1977 payroll tax hike? Is it fair or workable to have an economic strategy that abandons the 1984 goal of a balanced budget, produces projected deficits of $300 billion in three years and, with that, the continuation of high interest rates? I believe it clearly is not workable -- the collapse of the housing timber, automobile, and thrift industries is clear evidence."
A speech titled "The Middle East -- What Next?" delivered by US Congressman Les AuCoin before the International Forum of the World Affairs Council and American Jewish Committee on January 14, 1982. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin discussed the US–Saudi Arabia AWACS Sale, "the status of American relations with Israel, the recent controversy over the Golan Heights, and ... the likely events after Israel returns the Sinai to Egypt this April."
A Business Week magazine article titled "Reaganomics," as placed in the Extension of Remarks section of the Congressional record by US Congressman Les AuCoin on December 4, 1981. The article discussed President Ronald Reagan's supply-side economic plan to cut taxes and increase military spending, an economic school of thought that was then famously coined "Reaganomics."
The House floor remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin on the Renewable Resources Recovery Act of 1981 and his emergency legislation to save declining lumber mills admist bankruptcies and high interest rates by granting the Secretary of Agriculture new powers.
The House floor remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin expressing his opposition to an arms sale to Saudia Arabia, delivered on October 14, 1981. Representative AuCoin and several other members of Congress had criticized the Reagan Administration's proposal to sell offensive arms to Saudi Arabia (the US–Saudi Arabia AWACS Sale), with Congressman AuCoin stating "...these are our most sophisticated intelligence-gathering and surveillance aircraft. AWACS are so sensitive, so advanced, we do not even allow our NATO allies in Europe the exclusive control over the places that Saudi Arabia seeks!...This sale jeopardizes the peace."
The House floor remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin regarding a "Call to Conscience" vigil on behalf of Solomon Alber, delivered on October 1, 1981. Solomon Alber and his family were among thousands of "refuseniks," or Soviet Jews of the era who were denied visas to emigrate by the Soviet government. The vigil was organized by Congressman Barnes to demonstrate the congressional concern for those oppressed by the Soviet Union.
A speech by US Congressman Les AuCoin, as recorded in the Extension of Remarks, advocating for Congress to exercise oversight authority over the Postal Service following the increase in postal rates, expressing how he and his constituents were skeptical that such an inflationary rate change was necessary.
The remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin delivered at the Oregon AFL-CIO State Labor Convention on September 17, 1981. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin advocated for organized labor and the working class, and discussed his dissatisfaction with the union busting movement and overall federal budget cuts proposed by the Reagan Administration.
A speech by US Congressman Les AuCoin, as recorded in the Extension of Remarks, advocating for the A-95 Circular Review procedure in the face of proposals to cut it by the Reagan Administration. In his speech, AuCoin explains how the "A-95 Circular Review procedure provides state and local officials the opportunity to participate in the review of proposed federal grants and projects. Through this intergovernmental communications process, A-95 has proven to be a valuable tool for assessing local needs, coordinating resources, and preventing waste or duplication of government services."
The testimony of US Congressman Les AuCoin before the Conservation Subcommittee of the Committee on Energy and Commerce expressing his support for "legislation to remove the Lake Oswego Dam and hydroelectric facility from jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission." AuCoin discusses his House companion bill to Senator Mark Hatfield's bill, S.1573, which eventually became law.
A speech by US Congressman Les AuCoin given at the national convention of IMAGE, an organization of Hispanic federal, state, and local government employees, on June 5, 1981. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin discussed the issue of the Reagan Administration proposing to cut several programs that benefited Hispanic Americans from the 1982 federal budget -- such as portions of the Occupational Safety and Health Adinistration (OSHA), bilingual education and migrant health, housing and social services -- all while increasing military spending. During his time in Congress, AuCoin had been a part of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
The testimony of US Congressman Les AuCoin before the Committee on House Administration discussing the problem of the early release of Presidential election results and advocating for his bill, HR3595 - A bill to amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to provide a uniform time for the closing of the polling places in all elections of the electors of the President and Vice President of the United States, to prevent the release of election results before polling places have closed, and for other purposes. The testimony was delivered on December 15, 1981, and the legislation was notably introduced following the 1980 presidential election, when Jimmy Carter conceded the election before polls closed on the West Coast.
House floor remarks by US Congressman Les AuCoin, as published in the Congressional Record, advocating for HR3595 - A bill to amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to provide a uniform time for the closing of the polling places in all elections of the electors of the President and Vice President of the United States, to prevent the release of election results before polling places have closed, and for other purposes. This legislation was notably introduced following the 1980 presidential election, when Jimmy Carter conceded the election before polls closed on the West Coast.
The shortened remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin at the Oregon Committee for Israel Bonds on June 3, 1981. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin criticized the Reagan Administration's proposal to sell offensive arms to Saudi Arabia (the US–Saudi Arabia AWACS Sale), a country in which the US had a history of oil pricing disputes with, instead describing Israel as the true "dependable friend in the Middle East."
Remarks of US Congressman Les AuCoin at the Oregon Committee for Israel Bonds on June 3, 1981. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin criticized the Reagan Administration's proposal to sell offensive arms to Saudi Arabia (the US–Saudi Arabia AWACS Sale), a country in which the US had a history of oil pricing disputes with, instead describing Israel as the true "dependable friend in the Middle East."
A speech by US Congressman Les AuCoin delivered to the Western States Chiropractic College in Portland, Oregon on May 2, 1981. In his speech, Congressman AuCoin discussed the federal budget resolution for 1982 and his concerns about how Reaganomics would negatively affect higher education and the quality and quantity of health care, all while increasing funding for defense spending.
A long video recording featuring multiple televised debates, advertisements, and interviews between the candidates of the 1984 and 1986 congressional race for Oregon's 1st Congressional District, Democratic incumbent Les AuCoin and Republican challengers Bill Moshofsky and Tony Meeker. The first debate featured in the video was between AuCoin and Moshofsky and was held at the City Club of Portland in 1984; topics discussed in the debate included the logging industry, tax reform, federal spending, the federal budget and the Oregon state budget, the Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) light rail system, school prayer, and environmental protection for the Columbia River Gorge, among other issues. The second clip featured in the video was a KATU 2 joint interview between AuCoin and Meeker from 1986; discussed topics included the logging and fishing industries in Oregon, the federal and state budget, federal spending, and tax reform. The third clip featured in the video was a KGW 8 program that individually interviewed candidates AuCoin and Moshofsky for the 1984 election; the candidates discussed the issues of tax reform, the federal budget and spending, the Nicaraguan Revolution, and a Columbia River hatcheries program. The fourth clip featured in the video was a KPTV 12 program called "Your Choice '84," a program in which several candidates for various Oregon elections are quickly interviewed in a cheery atmosphere; in this interview, candidates for Oregon's 1st District were featured. AuCoin, Moshofsky, and Philip Logan discussed the situations in El Salvador and Nicaragua, the arms race, tax reform, and the national budget deficit. The final clips are various televised AuCoin campaign ads from the 1976 and 1978 elections.
A collection of television programs and news stories from 1979 and 1980 featuring US Congressman Les AuCoin, lasting 54 minutes. The collection includes news stories on the 1980 congressional race for Oregon's 1st Congressional District between Democratic incumbent Les AuCoin and Republican challenger Lynn Engdahl; a KOIN 6 Mid-Morning interview featuring Congressman AuCoin on Egypt-Israel relations and US-China relations and economic opportunities following AuCoin's delegation trip to China in 1979; a news story on the controversial Campell amendment of a real estate bill in 1979 featuring comments from AuCoin on the issue of special interest funding related to the bill; a KGW News 8 story on a volunteer program by the Northwest Pilot Project that helped the handicapped; a news story featuring AuCoin's endorsement of the Carter-Mondale ticket in the 1980 presidential election; news stories on the 1970s national housing, inflation, and oil crises and its effects on Oregon and AuCoin's housing program proposal; a KOIN Mid-Morning interview featuring Les AuCoin and his wife Sue on the their personal relationship, the Afghan-Soviet War, the CIA, and the Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics Boycott; a KGW News 8 news story on social program cuts from the 1981 federal budget featuring comments from Congressmen Bob Duncan and Les AuCoin; news stories on an experimental commuter train called the Willamette Express from Portland to Eugene; a news story on the Pacific Northwest Power Bill featuring Congressman AuCoin's comments on the US House floor.
A collection of televised advertisements, news stories, and other video clips from the late 1970s through the late 1980s featuring US Congressman Les AuCoin's reelection campaigns for Oregon's 1st Congressional District. Each advertisement is sponsored by the Re-Elect Les AuCoin Committee and ends with the slogans "Les AuCoin. He's there when we need him," "Les AuCoin. He stands up for Oregon," "Keep Les AuCoin in Congress," or "Results for Oregon. Congressman Les AuCoin." The advertisements feature political topics such as the energy crisis, the federal budget and federal spending, the timber industry, trade, the fishing industry, US-China relations, the housing crisis, abortion, and the 1980 Mount Saint Helens eruption, and the environment, among other topics. News stories featured in this collection include one on the 1980 congressional race for Oregon's 1st Congressional District between Democratic incumbent Les AuCoin and Republican challenger Lynn Engdahl; a KOIN Mid-Morning interview featuring Les AuCoin and his wife Sue on the their personal relationship, the Afghan-Soviet War, the CIA, and the Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics Boycott. Brief clip from the 1982 and 1984 debates between AuCoin and his Republican challenger Bill Moshofsky is also shown. The collection includes some repeat of video clips. Notably, footage of Naum Chernobelsky and his family arriving at the Portland airport in October 1988 is featured at the 31:51-35:11 minute mark. Chernobelsky and his family were among thousands of "refuseniks," Soviet Jews of the era who faced discrimination and were denied visas to emigrate by the Soviet government.
A campaign advertisement titled "Mud" from the early 1980s (likely 1980) for one of US Congressman Les AuCoin's re-election campaigns for Oregon's 1st Congressional District. The ad shows mud being slung at a photograph of AuCoin, while a voiceover recounts negative allegations that his opponent has made against him. The voiceover rebuts the negative comments and closes with the slogan: "Les AuCoin. He stands up for Oregon."
A video recording of a 1981 televised program called "The AuCoin Report" in which US Congressman Les AuCoin addresses various prominent political issues in Congress. Interviewed by two reporters, AuCoin discusses Social Security and the retirement age, tax reform during the Reagan administration, the federal budget, women's rights and the Equal Rights Amendment, EXIM Bank, the eruption of Mount St. Helens, the timber industry, Amtrak, and college financial aid cuts by the Reagan administration.
