Republican Vic Atiyeh, who guided Oregon through economic upheaval, dies at 91 [View all]

[alp227]

Source: The Oregonian

Vic Atiyeh, the even-tempered, low-key Republican governor who guided Oregon through the deep recession of the early 1980s, died at 8:15 p.m. Sunday of renal failure. He was 91.

Atiyeh was admitted to Portland's Providence St. Vincent Hospital on Saturday due to shortness of breath and possible internal bleeding, according to Denny Miles, a family spokesman who also served as Atiyeh's gubernatorial press secretary.

...

Atiyeh, governor from 1979 to 1987, became an elder statesman for his party after his governorship. He frequently told Republicans that he looked forward to the day that he would no longer be introduced as the last Republican to serve as governor -- but it didn't happen in his lifetime.

He was the first state leader to court Asian business, earning him the nickname "Trader Vic" and laying the groundwork for a modern Oregon economy that relies heavily on international trade.

Atiyeh often reminded his staff: "It's amazing how much you can get done if you don't care who takes credit for it." Nonetheless, his fellow Republicans and Democrats alike credit him as a man who helped change the face of Oregon.

Read more: http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/07/republican_vic_atiyeh_who_guid.html