Oregon's Governor? It's Still John Kitzhaber, Says John Kitzhaber

Governor John Kitzhaber's attorney had already told the Oregonian, using fuzzy words like "hope and expect" in the face of today's sudden flurry of resignation rumors, that Kitzhaber wasn't planning on stepping down.

Kitzhaber's reportedly now said so on his own.

Kitzhaber: 'Let me be as clear as I was last week, that I have no intention of resigning as Governor of the state of Oregon.'

— KGW News (@KGWNews) February 11, 2015



“Let me be as clear as I was last week, that I have no intention of resigning as Governor of the state of Oregon. I was elected to do a job for the people of this great state and I intend to continue to do so.”

And here's the full statement:

So why did Secretary of State Kate Brown, the governor's would-be successor, take a sudden trip back to Salem from Washington? We'll point everyone once more to the Statesman Journal, which pointed out that Brown's major project, a bill tying opt-out voter registration to DMV records, is up for discussion Friday.

Not that things are rosy for Kitzhaber. He's not being supported much by legislative leaders, who've remained silent. And the state attorney general's office has opened a criminal investigation into his and his first lady Cylvia Hayes' conduct. The FBI's also investigating, according to Willamette Week.

They've been accused of blurring her professional and public roles—allowing Hayes to profit while shaping state policy and trading on her insider status, as first lady and as an unpaid adviser, in her work as a private consultant. Also of note: A pair of Kitzhaber associates who'd connected Hayes with some of her better-paying contracts eventually got their own jobs in the administration.