Coverage of Jeff Merkley’s acceptance speech here:

He also emphasized the importance of developing a bold new energy program to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil and to tackle global warning. He also pledged to take aim against predatory mortgage practices and to expand Oregon’s regulations on the payday and title loan industries nationally.

Anti-payday lending zealot, Jeff Merkley, has won in Oregon.

Anti-payday lending candidate Jeff Merkley is predicted to win his tight race with Gordon Smith in Oregon.  The remaing votes to count are in Democratic areas.  

After the news of the last few days, we can either get drunk, go back to sleep, or get more determined to fight for financial choice.   These suggestions aren’t mutually exclusive, though.  

Smith holds a slim lead over Merkley in Oregon.

One U.S. Senate candidate in Oregon wants to put payday lenders out of business and the other is a believer in free markets.  This is a tough one.  

When anti-payday lending forces push for a 36% rate cap, they say that lenders can operate under it. Once it passes and lenders close stores, they then take credit for that.  In other words, they lie.  See this crazy video promoting the Senate candidacy of Jeff Merkley.   

Jeff Merkley, Oregon legislator and candidate for U.S., is most famous for leading the charge to drive payday lending out of the state.  He seems most proud of it as evidenced by this flyer sent out by the AFL-CIO in support of his candidacy.  The Payday Pundit calls readers attention to the typos in the flyer and hopes that Merkley is not positioning himself as the “education candidate.” 

Last month, Merkley did the opposite of “strenghening” the economy and actually held an event where he celebrated lost jobs in Oregon.

In a stunt to gain publicity, House Speaker Jeff Merkley toasted the closing of payday loan stores in Oregon.  

As seen in other states where payday lenders have been forced to close their doors, Oregonians will now spend more money bouncing checks, using overdraft protection, and paying bills late. 

Congrats Speaker Merkley.  While you are toasting the closing of legal, regulated, tax-paying Oregon business, hard-working Oregonians are left without a credit option and forced to choose between other, more costly short-term credit options they had previously tried to avoid. 

Speaker Merkley, while you’ve eliminated a credit option, the need is still there.  You’ll have to answer to the consumers whose credit choices you’ve limited and the employees whose jobs you’ve taken away.