The Canadian Press
Far-right lawmaker takes over Oregon GOP in larger US shift
SALEM, Ore. — A far-right senator who has rebelled against coronavirus restrictions and supported protesters who stormed the Oregon Capitol has been elected chairman of the state Republican Party, showing how the GOP is taking a harder-line shift in some states and continuing to support former President Donald Trump. The ascendancy of state Sen. Dallas Heard reflects the bitter frustration felt by Republicans in Oregon, where Democrats dominate the Legislature, governor’s office and other statewide offices. Some even want their rural, conservative counties to become part of neighbouring Idaho, where the GOP is dominant. But the move further right has alienated some, including one of Oregon’s most prominent Republicans, Knute Buehler, a former lawmaker who left the GOP in disgust and became unaffiliated…