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PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, JULY 26, 2019 Opinion Egregious budget deal “A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money. “ That’s a quote attributed to long-ago U.S. Senator Everett Dirk- sen (which he probably never said). The quote—real or not—was about the federal budget in the 1960s. Back then a budget defi cit of $5 billion would send people into a tizzy. Now? The recent agreeement between the White House and Con- gressional leaders will lead to annual defi cits of about $1 trillion. The current national debt stands at $22 trillion and grows day by day. The new budget agreement, which will remain in place until after the 2020 elections, will add about $10 trillion to our national debt when all is said and done. The president, his GOP support- ers and the Democrats all get money for pet projects, all forgetting any past declarations about defi cits. When both parties agree to such an egregious budget plan, they all get political cov- er. The Democrats can say they se- cured money for cherished domestic programs. The Republicans get to say they have money to increase military spending. They will all congratulate themselves on this deal while Amer- ica’s Everyman and Everywoman will, again, bear the brunt. This is a perfect example of our leaders not leading. On top of that, economic experts say that the recent $1.5 trillion tax cut did not have the desired affect. Much of that money ended up as executive bonuses and stock buy-back schemes. Why should this latest budget agreement (which still has to be ap- proved by Congress and signed by the president) matter to the average cit- izen? There are two very good reasons. One, it breaks any sem- blance of trust between citizens and government when their leaders preach one thing and then do the opposite. It’s politics as usual. Two, the bigger our national debt, the bigger the mandated interest pay- ment. That interest payment, itself billions of dollars, takes money away from other areas that needs fi nancing. Those are good reasons for Amer- icans to be wary of these types of budget deals. On top of that our debt is owned by China and others. What will our leaders say they came knock- ing on our door looking for payment? The $385 billion budget plan gives both parties gifts they can bestow onto their supporters as well as polit- ical cover from each other. That’s no way to run a country. We are outraged and hope many others are, too, and take the time to let their leaders know how they feel. —LAZ our opinion Banners As Americans take to the road this summer they will drive through large cities and small towns. Just about every burg they visit will have one thing in common: identifying banners lining the main street. We have called for banners along River Road for years and now we renew that call. Banners attached to utility poles along Keizer’s main thoroughfare will tell visitors who we are and it will show residents that we mean business when we promote the city. We envision a series of banners, one for each quarter (that way the shelf life will be much longer when they hang for only three months a year): First quarter (February through April)—Springtime in Keizer Second quarter (May through June)—Iris Capital of the World along with KeizerFEST. Third quarter (July through Sep- tember)—Summer in Keizer. Fourth quarter (October through January)—Holidays in Keizer. A banner project can be funded with a combination of grants, fund- raisers and donations. Let’s make this a banner year in Keizer. —LAZ After 69 years, Korean War is not over fi nal Truce Documents have not been fi nal- ized. The North Ko- rea and South Korea militaries still look at each other across the 38th parallel. This war is now 69 years old. The term “Freedom is not Free” is a true statement. Yes, I was there and on the “hill” the night of 27 July 1953 and was privileged to view the ceasefi re fl ares as they opened signi- fying the end of fi ring of all weapons on both sides. Bob Wickman Keizer letters To the Editor: The Korean War (Not a declared war; only Congress can declare war) began 25 June 1950 and the ceasefi re occurred 27 July 1953 at 10 p.m. (2200 hours). During the 37 months of com- bat more than 37,000 Americans were killed. This equates to about the population of the city of Keizer. Something to think about, isn’t it? In addition there were 103,284 wound- ed, 8,177 missing in action. And the Trump’s unnecessary roughness By DEBRA J. SAUNDERS The most revealing moment of last week’s Greenville, North Carolina, Trump rally was not when the crowd chanted “Send her back” in support of President Donald Trump’s criti- cism of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., a Somali-born immi- grant who frequently calls Trump a racist and whom Trump argues hates Amer- ica. Trump later told re- porters he “felt a little bad- ly about” the chant and “would certainly try” to stop supporters from re- peating the refrain at future rallies— which I take as recognition that his go-back rhetoric against Omar and three female American-born House Democrats could endanger his re- election campaign. Later Trump recalled running into a successful businessman who “can- not stand me.” Trump told the rally that he said to the man: “I never have liked you, and you have never liked me. But you’re going to support me because you’re a rich guy.” Trump added: “But it’s not like he has a choice. He has no choice. And on top of that, it’s a good choice be- cause we’ve done the right thing.” It was a stark admission that Trump enjoyed holding mainstream Republicans hostage because 2020 Democratic hopefuls are so far to the left that conservatives who don’t like his Twitter rants have nowhere to go. A friend calls Trump’s latest Twitter campaign “torturing the moderates.” And she voted for Trump. This latest Trump melodrama began Sunday when Trump tweet- ed that the four progressive Dems known as “the squad”—Omar, Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Alex- andria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Ayanna Pressley of Massachu- setts—should “go back and help fi x the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came.” The reaction of many Republicans was a prolonged cringe. Not because they demand political correctness but because they are aware how the go-back rhetoric is likely to alienate some of the very Latino and women voters the campaign has been courting. It didn’t help that three mem- bers of the squad are native-born Americans who are also women of color. Democrats and never-Trumper scolds could not get on Twit- ter fast enough to denounce as un- principled and cowardly any Repub- licans who did not turn completely against Trump for his race-baiting rhetoric. A number of conservatives did voice their disapproval on social me- dia and through back channels. But they aren’t going to defect; they sup- port what Trump does even as they abhor what he says. They love his judicial picks, agree with him on border security and ben- efi t from the strong economy. They believe that if a Democrat takes the White House, he or she will pack the courts with activist judges who will legislate from the bench, neuter or eliminate Immigration and Customs Enforcement and push soak-the-rich taxes likely to fell a strong economy. Besides, the right believes the left pays too much attention to words and bestows too little attention on results. It doesn’t say much for Trump that he repeatedly and unnecessarily forces the very people he needs to get things done to bite their tongues because he cannot control his. And Wednesday night, he pretty much ad- mitted he likes it that way. The Trump amen chorus predict- ably dismissed all criticism of the “send her back” chant as Trump-hater folly. There’s a big hole in that argu- other voices ment: Trump threw the chanters un- der the bus. He knew it was election poison, so how could it be wrong for others to say it was toxic? Last Friday, Trump walked back his walk-back as he told reporters the Greenville attendees were “incredible patriots” and that he was incensed at Omar’s anti-Semitism. Trump’s right about Omar. She has tweeted that support for Israel was “all about the Benjamins” and questioned pro-Israel offi ceholders for their “al- legiance to a foreign country.” She so enraged House Democrats that they voted on a resolution to censure anti-Semitism, a measure they then watered down as a resolution against “hateful expressions of intolerance” to mollify the squad. Tuesday, she introduced a reso- lution “affi rming that all Americans have the right to participate in boy- cotts in pursuit of civil and human rights at home and abroad” -- an apparent gesture of support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. But rather than simply confront her on the issues, where she is vulner- able, Trump the bully chose to make it personal. And so America spent an- other week arguing about his unnec- essary roughness. There was an apparent strategy behind Trump’s go-back tweet. Team Trump is focused on turning out Trump’s 2016 voters who skipped the midterm elections, GOP organizers believe, because Trump’s name was not on the ticket. For that rump, Trump has put re- liable GOP voters through an ago- nizing slog. They’ve been put on the spot routinely while they have been taken for granted because they are committed Republicans. But it’s get- ting old, and it’s time for Team Trump to wonder: What if they’re the voters who decide to stay home? (Creators Syndicate) US to become majority minority soon Keizertimes Wheatland Publishing Corp. 142 Chemawa Road N. • Keizer, Oregon 97303 Phone: 503.390.1051 • www.keizertimes.com MANAGING EDITOR Eric A. Howald editor@keizertimes.com SUBSCRIPTIONS One year: $35 in Marion County, $43 outside Marion County, $55 outside Oregon ASSOCIATE EDITOR Matt Rawlings news@keizertimes.com COMMUNITY REPORTER PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Lauren Murphy reporter@keizertimes.com Publication No: USPS 679-430 ADVERTISING POSTMASTER Paula Moseley advertising@keizertimes.com Send address changes to: PRODUCTION MANAGER & GRAPHIC DESIGNER Andrew Jackson graphics@keizertimes.com LEGAL NOTICES legals@keizertimes.com BUSINESS MANAGER EDITOR & PUBLISHER Lyndon Zaitz publisher@keizertimes.com 2019-20 President, Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Keizertimes Circulation 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, OR 97303 Periodical postage paid at Salem, Oregon Leah Stevens billing@keizertimes.com RECEPTION/SUBSCRIPTIONS Lori Beyeler subs@keizertimes.com facebook.com/keizertimes twitter.com/keizertimes The Declaration of Indepen- dence held the signatures of 54 courageous colonists, representing all thirteen colonies. They com- pleted their work and presented it July 4, 1776. Among its new order pronouncements, it recognized that “We hold these truths to be self-ev- ident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Cre- ator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Jewish-Amer ican Emma Lazarus wrote “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teaming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.” Ms. Lazarus was 38-years-old when she died of cancer in 1887, 15 years before her poem was placed on a plaque at the Statue of Lib- erty’s base. Lady Liberty’s message has been a beacon to the world ever since. Use of the Declaration and Lazarus’ poetry reminds all here that our forebears had the courage and fortitude to strike out from the Old World to the United States of Amer- ica to seek out a country where free- dom, liberty and the opportunity to pursue happiness were written into lawfully honored documents, prom- ising everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, language, culture and or- igin, the chance to live an American Dream. My maternal grandparents came to the U.S. from Finland in the 1880s, my paternal relatives from Scotland in the 1850s. I never knew them because they passed from life before my birth; nevertheless, I ven- erably honor them for what they did for me and believe my sentiments are shared by virtually all of my fellow Americans. One of the seri- ous obstacles for a se- cure life in the U.S. has been for persons of race and skin color. At its heart have been barriers, barbs and bias. Fact is the U.S. will soon have no clear racial or ethnic majority while some states have already crossed that threshold with more to get there in the im- mediate future. Major contributors to the number of arrivals will come from the Latin and Asian countries, known to grow more quickly than non-Hispanic white populations. The facts also show that persons of color already constitute the ma- jority in California, Texas, Hawaii, and New Mexico. In nine others, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey and New York, persons of col- or make up more than 40 percent gene h. mcintyre of statewide populations. There will be no clear racial or ethnic majori- ty in 25 years as whites will count at 49 percent, Latinos at 25, Afri- can-Americans at 13, and Asians at 8 percent. Four percent will identi- fy as multi-racial. 2050 projections promise 100 million Latinos and 42 million Asians. It is suggested that those of us who choose to act out through prej- udicial violence and hateful dema- goguery may wish to make attitude adjustments regarding others of col- or. Prospective agents of change should also consider behavior ad- justments for the sake of their chil- dren. When parents stop practic- ing and preaching adversarial ideas through antagonistic expressions, hate has a chance of drying up and blowing away. Just telling people of color to “go back home,” when they’re already bona fi de citizens on the verge of majority status, fi ts only an American future without peace and a nation divided against itself. (Gene H. McIntyre shares his opinion regularly in the Keizertimes.) Share your opinion Submit a letter to the editor, or a guest column by noon Tuesday. Email to: publisher@keizertimes.com
