Jan 30, 2009  |  By: Chris Johnson  | COMMENTS     

The mayor of Portland, Ore., returned to work this week after announcing that he would not resign in the wake of revelations that he lied about having a sexual relationship with an 18-year-old man.

Mayor Sam Adams, who is gay, was quoted by the Associated Press as saying he intended to resume his duties, while acknowledging that he let people down and “made mistakes.”

“I ask your forgiveness,” he said. “I believe I have a lot to offer the city I love during this time of important challenges.”

Adams, who didn’t respond to the Blade’s request for comment, admitted last week to the Willamette Week that he was lying when he denied during his campaign that he had sex with Beau Breedlove when Breedlove was 18. The mayor, now 45, also acknowledged that he asked Breedlove to lie about the relationship.

Breedlove was reportedly 17 and working as a legislative intern when he met Adams. Both men have said they did not have sex until June 2005 — after Breedlove’s 18th birthday.

Adams began his term as mayor Jan. 1 after winning a May primary election in a 12-way race with 58 percent of the vote. He avoided a November runoff election by winning more than 50 percent of the vote.

After his affair with Breedlove was revealed last week, a number of prominent Portland residents called on Adams to step down. The police union and four of Portland’s newspapers — including JustOut, the city’s gay publication — called on Adams to resign.

Oregon Attorney General John Kroger (D) has launched a criminal investigation into Adams. Kroger spokesperson Tony Green said he could not comment on the status or the timeline for the
investigation.

On Tuesday, the Oregonian reported that Adams’ spokesperson, Wade Nkrumah, resigned Monday — the same day the mayor returned to work.

Despite the outcry, several supporters have defended Adams. The Portland Mercury and the Portland Area Business Association, a gay chamber of commerce, reportedly urged him to stay in office. And a rally Jan. 23 in support of Adams drew an estimated 400 people.

Denis Dison, spokesperson for the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which endorsed Adams during his campaign, said in a statement Monday that his organization “works hard to promote honesty and transparency in public service” and was “disappointed that Sam Adams lied.”

“Now he has announced his intention to stay in office, and his future as a public servant is in the hands of his constituents,” he said. “We expect Sam will begin to restore credibility and trust by employing his significant talent and renowned work ethic to make life better for the people of Portland.”

The Victory Fund gave $29,413 in cash and in-kind contributions to Adams’ campaign this year, according to Oregon’s campaign finance reports.

Dison declined to discuss whether the Victory Fund vets its endorsements for possible embarrassing behavior or whether revelations about Adams’ affair have prompted changes in his organization’s endorsement policies.

‘Consenting adults’

Dan Savage, a gay Seattle-based sex advice columnist, told the Blade he didn’t think any part of the Adams story has been overblown and said the media had a “right to jump on it and freak out about it.” However, he minimized the impropriety of the relationship.

“They were consenting adults,” Savage said. “They had no professional relationship. There was a power imbalance perhaps — there often is — but no laws were broken and no one was harmed in the making of this mess.”

Dan Pinello, a gay City University of New York government professor, said he didn’t think the Adams scandal had “excessive or inordinate gay overtones.”

“It’s unfortunate that a gay office holder who has a consequential office did that, but they’re just as human as straight office holders are,” he said.

Savage noted that the Adams scandal demonstrates that Americans have an intense interest in the sexual indiscretions of public officials.

“Clearly, in America, where we take a prurient interest in the sex lives of our politicians, it would behoove you to have your genitals sown shut if you’re female and sawed off if you’re male — if political office is your highest aspiration,” he said.

Savage said no double standard exists regarding the sexual behavior of gay officials and that Adams would face the same problems if Breedlove were female.

But Savage noted that a double standard surfaced among some liberal publications and officials that called on Adams to resign after they defended President Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

“I think the dailies and the gay paper were far too quick to call on him to resign before the facts were in ...