Meanwhile Adams had risen to prominence as an openly gay Portland politician. His career in public life had included an 11-year stint as chief of staff to Vera Katz, a popular Portland mayor. In 2003, Adams had campaigned for Portland City Council and won as an openly gay man; his website featured a photo of himself and his then-partner. [1] It seemed that Adams sexuality barely registered as an issue with Portlands voters. In a poll the campaign commissioned, 72 percent of respondents said that Adams sexuality would not affect their vote. [2] Adams opportunity to run for mayor came in September 2007, when then-Mayor Tom Potter announced that he would not seek reelection. Potters term would expire in January 2009, and Adams, by now a well-respected public servant, was widely thought to be interested in replacing him.

One obstacle, however, was a rumor that had started that summer. Another potential candidate for mayor, a real estate developer named Robert Ball (who was also openly gay), learned that Adams might have carried on a sexual relationship with a minor. The affair had allegedly taken place in 2005 with a legislative intern named Beau Breedlove, then 17. If true, this meant that Adams had committed statutory rape under Oregon law.

In August 2007, Ball relayed the story to another City Council member, Randy Leonard. In private, Leonard asked Adams whether the rumor was true; Adams denied it forcefully, and Leonard warned Ball against repeating the story to anyone else. But weeks later, Ball sought out former Portland Mayor Vera KatzAdams former bossand told her the same story. Katz and Leonard both suspected Ball was trying to sabotage Adams politically, and contacted the Oregonian City Hall reporter. The reporter found them, and Adams, persuasive. A news item ran on Tuesday, September 18, saying in part:

It was among the most potentially damaging accusations that could be leveled against a gay politician, particularly one as high profile and ambitious as Adams. And it was coming from another gay man who also was thinking about running for the city's top job.

The problem: The story Ball told about Adams and a 17-year-old legislative intern isn't true, according to both Adams and the young man. Adams acknowledges trying to be a mentor, including exchanging numerous phone calls and text messages with the young man over several months in summer 2005.

But both men said that they have never been anything more than friends.

Ball said he was doing a public service in speaking with Leonard, implying that as a reserve police officer he felt a responsibility to report suspected child abuse. Oregon law requires people in positions of responsibilitypublic or privateto report child abuse to police or welfare workers.

Those he told, including Leonard and former Mayor Vera Katz, said they took it as an attempt at political assassination. [3]

Adams for his part launched an aggressive public-relations campaign the same day, starting with an open letter to Portlanders that he posted on his website at around 6 a.m. He called the rumor ugly politicking and said:

I will not dignify the substance of this smear by repeating itif you read the accounts you will see there is no foundation to it. The reason is simple: it is untrue I have in the past, and I will in the future, respond to people who reach out to me for help and advice. This is especially true when it comes to young people.

I remember when I was a teenager and I had nobody who I felt I could talk to at a time I desperately needed someone to give me advice and perspective about coming to terms with being gay. I came through it. Not everyone does

Gay youth suicide rates, homelessness and depression are still too high I didn't get into public life to allow my instinct to help others to be snuffed out by fear of sleazy misrepresentations or political manipulation. I understand the need for good judgment, and I keep within the bounds of proprietyas I did in this case. [4]

Adams spent much of the rest of the day talking to Portland media outlets. He averred that he was particularly hurt that the source of the rumors was another gay man. Im hoping that this gives me an opportunity to talk about the bigger issues here, he told one newspaper. Like the fact that its apparently still not okay to be gay in certain situations. Its as if, because Im gay, I cant have any meaningful interaction with males under the age of 18. [5]

An Oregonian editorial writer, David Sarasohn, went to City Hall that afternoon and interviewed Adams for nearly 40 minutes. Adams convinced Sarasohn there was no merit to Balls story. Moreover, Balls motives for spreading the rumor seemed to Sarasohn clearly political.

Listen to Sarasohn describe interviewing Adams.

Editorial Page Editor Caldwell likewise felt Ball had undermined the protested purity of his motives by telling public officials about Adams alleged impropriety, rather than going to Adams himself or notifying law enforcement. Sarasohn wrote on behalf of the board for a September 20 editorial:

It's not for us, or for anybody else, to say that Portland developer Bob Ball's concerns about Sam Adams relationship with a young internthree years ago when the intern was 17were anything but sincere. But it does seem that the way Ball expressed his concerns about Adamslike Ball, a widely mentioned candidate for mayor next yearlooks more like spreading politically lethal rumors than like child protective services. It's not clear what either of Ball's initiatives was likely to do for the (former) minor involved. What they were likely to do was tie one of the most toxic accusations in politics, sexual abuse of a minor by a gay adult, to Adams. [6]

In the space of a few days, Adams cleared himself of suspicion. Meanwhile, consequences were severe for Ball, whose credibility and reputation did not survive Adams public relations campaign. Ball decided not to run for mayor. Neither the Breedlove rumor, nor Adams sexuality more broadly, surfaced as an issue in the Portland mayoral race, which Adams formally entered on October 3, 2007 with a promise to focus on education. [7]