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a voter’s guide to the 1996 election and life on the campaign trail
Which US. Senate
candidate will
you vote for on
Nov. 5. Why ?
Let us know.
Senate candidate speaks out on education
Editors Note: The Emerald had an
opportunity to interview U.S. Senate
candidate Gordon Smith by phone
last week. The Republican answered
education questions that are key
concerns to students. His opponent,
Tom Bruggere, was featured Tues
day.
By Doug Irving
Community Reporter
Gordon Smith recently described
his stance on issues affecting stu
dents and higher education. His an
swers appear verba
tim below.
Smith, the presi
dent of the Oregon
State Senate and a
legislator since 1993,
is running for U.S.
Senate for the sec
ond time. He lost
earlier this year to Democrat Ron
Wyden in the special Senate elec
tions following Bob Packwood’s res
ignation.
ISSUE: Student Loans
■ The Federal Student Loan Program has
offerings such as flexible repayment op
tions and speeds up the rate in which stu
dents receive their loan checks.
Q Do you support this program?
A Yes I do. I think whatever we can do
■ to reduce the cost of higher educa
tion we need to do. We need to make it
more affordable and accessible. This is
one of the many ways to do that.
ISSUE: Access to Higher Education
QDo you believe equal access to
■ higher education is a right for all
people?
A Yes, because higher education is the
■ key that unlocks the future. The fu
ture that includes the American dream
COURTESY PHOTO
needs to be available to all people who will
show the initiative and go the extra mile
with higher education.
QHow would you ensure equal ac
■ cess to higher education?
A You do it by keeping college tuition
■ down and making sure that the fed
eral government does its part in that effort
with college grants and loans. In my case,
as state Senate president, I helped pass
the Oregon Education Endowment, which
in the years ahead will help to provide col
lege funding for thousands of Oregon stu
dents.
ISSUE: Financial Aid
■ In the last 20years, the government
has shifted the balance of federal financial
aid from grants to loans. While in 1975,
federal aid consisted of 20 percent loans
and 76 percent grants, in 1993, it was 80
percent loans and 20 percent grants, ac
cording to the Oregon Student Associa
tion.
Q Would you take pro-active mea
■ sures to reverse this trend?
A I believe that a legitimate role of gov
ernment is public education. Head
Start to higher ed.
QWhat kind of pro-active measures
■would you take?
A I would resist any cuts to students,
■vote grants and would argue for just
the reverse. Or giving students more of an
ability to graduate without the burden of
more debt or greater debt in their life. We
need to get a start that isn’t laden with
years of school debt.
I think, actually, that the president’s
program of community service is a good
way to help people to earn college tuition.
Q Could you describe that program?
Alt’s his AmeriCorp program where
■you can give community service. It's
like Peace Corp in exchange for college tu
ition.
ISSUE: Debt Burden
■ Students continue to increasingly bor
row money to get through college, leaving
them thousands of dollars in debt. The av
erage University student graduates with
$17,500 of debt.
QDo you have any long-term solu
■tions to the issue of debt burden?
A I think by reversing the trend you
■ identified earlier and take more in the
form of grants is the way government
should do that. And holding down tuition.
ISSUE: Measure 47
■ The Legislative Revenue Office esti
mates that local governments and schools
together will lose an estimated $1 billion
statewide in the 1997-99 biennium if Mea
sure 47 passes. The measure would re
duce and limit property taxes, local rev
Turn to SMITH, Page 3
BIOGRAPHY
s
■ BORN: May,
1952 in Pendleton,
Ore.
■ RESIDENCE:
Pendleton, Ore.
■ EDUCATION: j
Bachelor’s degree
in history from
Brigham Young
University; law de- I
gree from South
western University.
■ CAREER
HISTORY:
President and CEO
of Smith Frozen
Foods, a frozen
vegetable packer.
■ POLITICAL
HISTORY:
Elected to Oregon
Senate in 1992.
Chosen as Senate
minority leader in
1993. Elected Sen- |
ate president after !
the 1994 elections.
■ PLATFORM:
Includes restricting
federal regulation
of education and
giving more power
to the state.
Strongly supports i
tax relief for work- j
ing families. Sug
gests a $500 tax
credit per child for
families with in
comes below
$100,000. Will
strive to balance
the use of national I
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±11 u.
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- «J
A look at some of the 23 ballot measures
- in the Nov. 5 election
THE MEASURE
WHAT IT WOULD DO
Would give crime victims rights such as ex
panding admissible evidence and limiting
pretrial releases. Applies to crimes where in
dividuals are victims and where people of
Oregon are victims. Victim could be present/
heard at each critical stage of the legal
process if the person charged is also pre
sent. Victim could receive payment from a
person convicted of an act that caused them
financial loss. Defendant may be convicted of
murder by and 11-to-one jury vote of guilty.
Defendants’ rights would be the same as
those granted under the United States
Constitution.
ARGUMENTS FOR
Criminal defendants have
many legal protections dur
ing the judicial process and
victims deserve a comparable
set of rights. All relevant evi
dence should be heard in ju
dicial proceedings. People
accused of serious crimes
should be held in jail until trial
to protect the victim, unless
the judge is certain no addi
tional crimes will be commit
ted.
ARGUMENTS AGAINST
Takes away important state rights
that protect people against govern
ment invasions of privacy and re
places those safeguards with less
protective federal rights. Has more to
do with taking away privacy rights
than helping crime victims. The Ore
gon constitution and statutes have
established a bill of rights for Orego
nians that suits their particular needs.
Most of the measure’s provisions
that address the concern of victims
are already required by Oregon law.
THE MEASURE
WHAT IT WOULD DO
The constitution now provides that laws
for the punishment of crime must be
based on principles of reformation and
not vindictive justice. The measure would
delete that language, and insert language
stating that laws for the punishment of
crime must be based on the following
principles: “Protection of society, person
al responsibility, accountability for one’s
actions and reformation.”
ARGUMENTS FOR
Will uphold public safety while
making criminals accountable
and responsible. Changes don't
prohibit rehabilitation efforts,
but will expect criminals to take
personal responsibility for their
actions. The U.S. Constitution
protects against cruel and un
usual punishment, so there
should be no concern over re
moving existent language.
ARGUMENTS AGAINST
The measure is not needed because it
restates a long-standing interpreta
tion ot the existing constitution. The
language is unclear and while adding
several motivations for punishment
that may be used, raises the question
of whether vindictive justice is an ac
ceptable motivation for punishment.
The goal of adding criteria for punish
ment could be better achieved
through statute.