By Jeff Mapes, The Oregonian

March 06, 2010, 12:01AM

SEASIDE –At the first major debate of the Republican gubernatorial race, former Portland Trail Blazer Chris Dudley, businessman Allen Alley, and former state legislator John Lim argued Friday night over who could best persuade Oregonians to end the 24-year Democratic control of the governor’s office.

Alley said he was the only candidate willing to enter into what is hostile territory for Republicans – union endorsement meetings and a debate sponsored by environmental groups – to reach beyond the third of the electorate that belongs to the GOP.

Dudley countered that he was the only true outsider in the race since he he has not served in any public office, and he argued that he has worked with a wide variety of people in his athletic, charitable and business endeavors.

Lim scoffed at his two rivals, saying he was the only one with long experience in the complexities of government – and he noted that he was elected five times to seats in the state House and Senate from heavily Democratic Multnomah County.

All three quickly agreed that Oregon’s Democratic leadership is unfriendly to business, hostile to developing Oregon’s natural resources and wasteful of the taxpayer’s money.  But the three candidates, appearing before more than 500 people attending the annual Dorchester Conference, showed major stylistic differences that set them apart.

Alley, who has been on the campaign trail for almost a year, dominated the debate rhetorically, delivering polished mini-speeches that came at familiar issues from a fresh angle.  At one point, for example, he marveled at how Oregon could have one of the highest unemployment rates in the country when it has so many natural advantages – from its Pacific Rim location to its abundant forests – envied by other states.

“What would Ohio do with our ports?” he asked rhetorically.  “What would Michigan do with our water?  What would Indiana do with our trees?  They’d find economic opportunities for their citizens.”

Dudley, who at 6’11” was a center for 16 years in the NBA, quickly overshadowed the other candidates physically when he moved from behind his podium at the start of the debate and towered over the audience.  He gestured with his long arms as he recited a long list of Oregon’s woes and portrayed himself as a fresh start for the state.

“If you don’t want a governor who has spent his career as a Salem insider, then I ask you to select a governor who will lead us in a new direction…and put Oregon and Oregonians back to work,” he said.

Lim, who retains a thick accent from his native Korea, argued that becoming the only Asian-American governor in the U.S. would give Oregon a major leg up in winning investment from China and the other major Asian economic powers.  He even suggested that “hundreds of thousands” of Asian visitors would come to Oregon, filling hotels, restaurants and gift shops.

A fourth major Republican candidate, veteran initiative activist Bill Sizemore, was not invited to participate in the debate.  Sizemore said beforehand that he was the only real conservative in the race and that put him out of step with the more moderate Dorchester board.  Angela Wilhelms, the Dorchester president, denied that was the case.  She said Sizemore was excluded in large part because his candidacy wasn’t seen as viable as the other three.

While the debate was generally well mannered, the three candidates did take some digs at each other.

Dudley said the major difference among the three was in their backgrounds.  “I haven’t served in the governor’s office or the Legislature,” he said, “I’m an outsider…If you look at our last two governors, they have had over 60 years of experience between them and look at where we are.”

Alley, who worked for about a year as a deputy chief of staff to Gov. Ted Kulongoski, noted that he was the only Republican candidate for governor to seek the endorsement of AFSCME.  And he said he was the sole Republican who agreed to debate Democrats John Kitzhaber and Bill Bradbury at a forum sponsored by the Sierra Club and three other environmental groups later this month.

“If you are not willing to defend your positions in front of the unions, defend your positions in front of the Sierra Club, you don’t deserve to be the governor of this state,” said Alley.

After the debate, Dudley noted that he was a negotiator for the NBA players union and that he was quite willing to talk to labor groups.  Although organizers of the Sierra Club debate had earlier said that the Dudley campaign had turned down an invitation to appear, Dudley said he was still looking into whether it was possible for him to participate in that event.

“I don’t have a problem talking with any group,” he said.

Lim took the most pointed shots at his two opponents, criticizing Dudley for having a spotty record of voting in elections, something that Dudley apologized for months ago.  And Lim charged that Alley was once a supporter of a “cap and trade” program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but now opposes it.

Alley said after the debate that he worked on the issue when he was in the governor’s office but said he never supported a cap and trade program. CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said Alley preferred a carbon tax.  He said he opposes such a tax.

--Jeff Mapes