PORTLAND, Ore. — The impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump is expected to ramp up again this week with lawmakers scheduled to hear testimony from a number of people, including Portland businessman Gordon Sondland, on Thursday.
Sondland, the founder of Provenance Hotels, is the U.S. Ambassador to the European Union. He's expected to tell Congress that his denial of a "quid pro quo" with Ukraine in a text message came directly from the presdient.
Those texts, between Sondland and a former diplomat who raised questions about whether U.S. military aid was tied to Ukraine investigating Joe Biden and his son, were released earlier this month.
Sondland is also expected to testify that he doesn't know why aid to Ukraine was held up or who gave that order.
Knowing that, a big group marched through downtown Portland on Sunday, right in front a Provenance hotel.
They said their goal is to remind Sondland that Oregonians are watching.
The original plan was to show up at Terry Schrunk Plaza as part of a national day of protest. Groups across the country held rallies demanding that the president be forced out of office.
Here in Portland, the mission recently became two-fold.
"We were planning this event even before it became clear that we had someone here in Portland who is literally at the center of this impeachment inquiry," said Kate Sharaf, a spokesperson for Stand on Every Corner PDX.
That connection led protesters to the Heathman Hotel, one of five operated by Provenance Hotels, a Portland-based company founded by Sondland.
Today's protest and march are the latest local hit to Sondland's brand. Another crowd camped in front of the Heathman earlier this week, and Portland-based Salt and Straw pulled their patented ice cream delivery service from all Provenance hotels.
The move came after Congressman Earl Blumenaeur called on a boycott of the properties.
The company hit back over the weekend, filing an ethics complaint against Blumenauer.
A Provenance spokesperson told KGW that Sondland no longer serves as an executive. They said he stepped down more than a year ago when he transitioned over to public service.
On Sunday, the crowd of protesters said they still saw the connection as their chance to send Sondland a message.
"Oregonians expect him to come clean, do the right thing, and tell the truth," Sharaf said.