There's something about being in an outpost like Portland, Oregon, that makes one almost immune to both fame and scandal. Maybe that's what explains why the Acela Corridor crowd has largely ignored the bizarre stories coming out of Oregon this week about Mitt Romney-endorsed Senate candidate Dr. Monica Wehby.

Where to begin? Let's start with the fact that a medical child-abuse case involving Dr. Wehby is set to begin on May 19 — the day before her primary. In the case, a woman is being accused of "harming her children with unnecessary medical procedures, several of which were performed by pediatric neurosurgeon and U.S. Senate candidate Monica Wehby." Putting aside questions of innocence or guilt, one can only suppose this is — at best — a major distraction.

Then there's the fact that Democrats are filing a complaint over a super PAC running ads attacking Wehby's GOP opponent. The problem? Wehby is reportedly romantically linked to a major funder of the group — raising questions about coordination.

Another large contributor to that same super PAC is a man named Loren Parks, who was recently profiled in a Mother Jones post titled, "Meet the Sex Hypnotherapist Helping the GOP Retake the Senate." (Need I say more?)

Now, it wouldn't be surprising for Wehby's GOP opponent to be pushing all these storylines. But it seems unlikely this is coming from him. It's probably more a combination of tough timing and Democrats trying to take out the candidate they fear most before November.

Regardless, I'm stunned that these stories haven't gained more national attention. This might all be much ado about nothing, but it's all still weird. Wehby is just lucky she doesn't live in New York. Matt K. Lewis

The Los Angeles Dodgers are headed to the World Series, after defeating the Chicago Cubs 11-1 Thursday night at Wrigley Field, winning the NLCS in Game 5.

It was a big night for Dodger Enrique Hernandez, who hit three home runs and set an NLCS record for most RBIs in a game, the Los Angeles Times reports. This is the Dodgers' first pennant win since 1988, and they will face off against either the Houston Astros or New York Yankees in the first game of the World Series Tuesday in Los Angeles. Catherine Garcia

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is backing out of a controversial scheduled appearance at the Women's Convention next week in Detroit in order to visit Puerto Rico, where in the wake of Hurricane Maria, 3 million people remain without power and 1 million don't have running water.

In a statement, Sanders apologized to the organizers of the convention for having to cancel, adding, "Given the emergency situation in Puerto Rico, I will be traveling there to visit with San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz and other officials to determine the best way forward to deal with the devastation the island is experiencing."

The Women's Convention is a three-day event put on by the same organizers behind the Women's March in January. When it was announced that Sanders was speaking on opening night, there was immediate backlash from critics wondering why the honor was given to a man. In response, co-president Tamika Mallory said Sanders was not the convention's headliner, and he was invited because he's a "fierce champion of women's rights." Prominent women appearing at the event include Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and actress and activist Piper Perabo. Catherine Garcia

On Thursday night, the Senate approved a 2018 budget resolution on a 51-49 vote, authorizing adding another $1.5 trillion to the federal deficit over a decade in order to cover President Trump's proposed tax cuts. The budget resolution contains a provision allowing Senate Republicans to pass a tax bill with no Democratic votes.

Trump's tax plan is still being developed, but Democrats are warning voters that all signs point to it benefiting the wealthiest Americans and corporations. An amendment was crafted by House and Senate Republicans so they don't have to spend weeks reconciling the Senate budget with the version the House has already passed. Both the House and Senate tax-writing committees are trying to release their draft legislation by early November. Catherine Garcia

In an op-ed for The New York Times published Thursday, actress Lupita Nyong'o described several uncomfortable encounters she had with Harvey Weinstein, saying she's speaking up to "make certain that this is not the kind of misconduct that deserves a second chance."

Nyong'o said she first met Weinstein in 2011 while a student at the Yale School of Drama, and was warned he "could be a bully." He invited her to screen a movie at his Connecticut home, and he led her into his bedroom, where he said he wanted to give her a massage. "For the first time since I met him, I felt unsafe," she said. Nyong'o turned the tables and offered him a massage, because "it would allow me to be in control physically, to know exactly where his hands were at all times." When he said he wanted to take off his pants, Nyong'o raced to the door. "I didn't quite know how to process the massage incident," she said. "I reasoned that it had been inappropriate and uncalled for, but not overtly sexual."

That wasn't the only encounter she had with Weinstein, and after 12 Years a Slave came out in 2013, he approached Nyong'o and told her he had "treated me so badly in the past," she said. "He was ashamed of his actions and he promised to respect me moving forward. I said thank you and left it at that. But I made a quiet promise to myself to never ever work with Harvey Weinstein." Now that other women have come forward with allegations of sexual harassment and assault against Weinstein, Nyong'o said she can see there "is clearly power in numbers." While she wishes she had known then that she wasn't alone, Nyong'o is thankful for those who have shared their stories. "Now that we are speaking," she said, "let us never shut up about this kind of thing." Catherine Garcia

At least two potential candidates for U.S. attorney positions in New York have been personally interviewed by President Trump, including one person who, if nominated and confirmed, would have jurisdiction over Trump Tower in Manhattan, two people familiar with the matter told Politico.

It's unclear when Trump met with Geoffrey Berman of the law firm Greenburg Traurig and Ed McNally of the firm Kasowitz Benson Torres, Politico reports. Berman is seen as a possible candidate for U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, which oversees the area where Trump Tower is, and McNally for the Eastern District. White House Counsel Don McGahn has been tasked with leading the process of filling the U.S. attorney posts, and an administration official told Politico Trump asks for regular updates on the Southern District position.

Trump also personally met with Jessie Liu when she was a candidate for U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, documents submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee show, and she was later confirmed by the Senate. "To be very blunt, these three jurisdictions will have authority to bring indictments over the ongoing special counsel investigation into Trump campaign collusion with the Russians and potential obstruction of justice by the president of the United States," Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) told Politico Thursday. "For him to be interviewing candidates for that prosecutor who may in turn consider whether to bring indictments involving him and his administration seems to smack of political interference." Catherine Garcia

Quentin Tarantino knew about the accusations of sexual misconduct made against Harvey Weinstein in the 1990s, but continued to work with him, something he now regrets, the director told The New York Times in an interview.

"I knew enough to do more than I did," he said. "There was more to it than just the normal rumors, the normal gossip. It wasn't secondhand. I knew he did a couple of these things." Tarantino said in 1995, his then-girlfriend, actress Mira Sorvino, told him Weinstein made unwelcome advances, and he also heard about actress Rose McGowan reaching a settlement with Weinstein following an incident at the Sundance Film Festival. "I chalked it up to a '50s-'60s era image of a boss chasing a secretary around the desk," he said. "As if that's OK. That's the egg on my face right now."

Weinstein and Tarantino have long been close, with Weinstein distributing such Tarantino films as Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, and the Kill Bill films, and he recently threw Tarantino an engagement party. When reports came out in the Times and New Yorker about allegations of sexual harassment and assault against Weinstein, Tarantino said he was "shocked and appalled," and he told the Times he now apologizes for not speaking up soon. Hollywood needs to change, he added, and "what was previously accepted is now untenable to anyone of a certain consciousness." Catherine Garcia

Getting a fun package in the mail is always exciting — but unless you're Chance the Rapper, unboxing it usually isn't an overwhelmingly cute affair. The Chicago-born musician received his three Grammy awards in the mail Wednesday, and along with his 2-year-old daughter Kensli, proceeded to unpack the glittering gramophones.

The scene was unbelievably adorable:

At January's awards, Chance won the Grammys for Best New Artist, Best Rap Album for 2016's Coloring Book, and Best Rap Performance. You can listen to Coloring Book on Spotify. Kimberly Alters