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MARCH 13, 2020, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A5 Opinion Voters will remember in November By BILL POST Governor Kate Brown, House Speaker Tina Kotek, Senate Presi- dent Peter Courtney and I agree on at least one thing: the 2020 legisla- tive session was a failure. Regarding how and why the session failed; we have extremely differing views. Just three bills made it to the gov- ernor’s desk before adjournment. Dozens of crucial bud- get bills and bipartisan policy proposals failed to receive votes. But it didn’t have to end this way. The truth is, Dem- ocrat leaders wanted their cap-and-trade bill so badly, they were willing to sacrifi ce everything in its wake to ensure its passage. They made the choice to put a fl awed cap-and-trade bill ahead of legis- lation that would have addressed homelessness, health care, housing, education and public safety. When we encouraged them to put budget bills and bipartisan policy proposals ahead of cap-and-trade early in the session, they said no. That was their right and that was their choice, but they now need to own that decision. They do not have the right to make this choice and then try to pin the blame on others for their own actions. When it became clear that Dem- ocrat leaders were not interested in compromise on cap-and-trade and were not going to move forward with a proper end to the session, Republican lawmakers developed their own plan for completing the legislature’s busi- ness. Our proposal to return on the fi nal day of the session (March 8) would have allowed us to pass those essen- tial budget bills and other shared priorities. To be clear, Republican lawmakers were not attempting to “cherry pick” which bills lived or died. In fact, we agreed to the list of important budget bills that Democratic leadership an- nounced as priorities on the House fl oor without allowing the passage of cap-and-trade. Again, Democrats said no. Make no mistake, we had the time (in 2019 the Senate passed guest column over 100 bills on the last day), the authority, and the resources to get these bills across the fi nish line on the fi nal day of session. Instead of joining us on Sunday to fi nish the peoples’ work, Democratic leader- ship prematurely gaveled out the session and quit on the people of Oregon. It’s ironic, given the rhet- oric that has been aimed at Repub- licans over the last two weeks, that the fi nal act of the 2020 legislative session will be Democrats “walking out” on Oregonians. Sadly, there were a lot of bud- get and policy bills that both par- ties agreed upon, including my two bills; kratom and land use. It’s unfor- tunate we couldn’t have passed these bi-partisan bills at the beginning of session. Instead, Democratic lead- ership made their choice to hold common sense bills hostage until their agenda was complete. Democratic leaders made their choice and their agenda wasn’t completed. Now, they own this ses- sion’s failure. It is my sincere hope that Oregon voters will remember in November. (Bill Post represents the 25th House District that includes Keizer.) Covid19 isn’t another Katrina. It’s worse. By MICHAEL GERSON One symptom of the coronavi- rus outbreak—at least for me—has been nasty fl ashbacks to Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. At the time I was a policy adviser to President George W. Bush, visiting New York City for meetings. The day after the storm hit, I recall talking to a colleague at the White House and helpfully offering that the federal re- sponse “looked pretty good from here.” The next several days had the quality of a nightmare, as images of unrelieved suf- fering fi lled the news. The crisis, it turned out, was unprecedented—not just a massive hurricane but a city-wide fl ood. When it came to providing re- lief and maintaining order, the nor- mal procedure was to defer to state and local authorities. They quickly proved incapable or incompetent. Many Americans assumed that the main federal component of the re- sponse—the Federal Emergency Management Agency—could do emergency response and logistics on a large scale. But FEMA wasn’t (and isn’t) an elite corps of emergency responders. It was (and is) a skeletal organization that expands by hiring contractors in time of need. And the need is usually defi ned as putting up trailers while a relatively thin strip of destroyed coastal homes is rebuilt. As the scale of Katrina’s destruc- tion became evident, some at the White House proposed to preempt state and local roles and send in the military. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld offered legal objections to conducting operations on U.S. soil. Others made the case that if we took action, we would “own” the situa- tion—creating the impression we could replace the institutions that had primary responsibility. We found, of course, that the president owns every crisis that can only be solved on a national scale. So why the fl ashbacks? Because the United States again faces a cir- cumstance in which the problem may be larger than the institutions that normally deal with it. Public health is mainly the responsibility of states and localities. Americans may think the Centers for Disease Con- trol is leading a national response to the coronavi- rus. It isn’t. The CDC has a weak role in setting and implementing policy, and it is not suffi ciently staffed to do the job people think it is doing. The working group headed by Vice President Mike Pence—while needed and helpful— only has the power of ca- joling. In a public-health emergen- cy, there is no national coordinating function. In normal circumstances, I am all for federalism. But some problems have a scope—say, fi ghting a war or constructing a national highway sys- tem—that overwhelms the theory of local control. Coronavirus is likely to be this kind of problem. As America moves to the mitigation stage of the out- break, social distancing measures —such as closing schools, ending mass gatherings and restricting travel —are the next line of defense. But the problem with such measures is that they tend to be imposed too late and/or lifted too early. And the current implementation of social distancing by states and localities can best be called spotty. All the elements now exist for a swiftly unfolding emergency, on a scale that dwarfs Katrina. Because of the early absence of adequate tests, we have very little idea how preva- lent the disease is in the country and other opinions What can we do? happen. So what, during all of this uncertainty, can we as individuals step in and do? Lots of things really. There are many small steps that each of us can take that collectively will make positive im- provements to our present and future environmental quality. None of them require permission, just good choices. Here are some examples for you to consider: Drive less. Learn to combine trips, use public transit and, letters To the Editor: The Trump Adminis- tration is rolling back en- vironmental programs and safeguards on a fairly regular basis. Our state legislature could step in to manage and oversee the voids that are being created by the roll backs. But if there isn’t the political will, inter- est, and money to do so, it might not 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 Stephanie Wittman 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 2019-2020 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 Lori Beyeler INTERN Brooklyn Flint facebook.com/keizertimes twitter.com/keizertimes little idea of how fast it is spreading. Dangerously and absurdly, politi- cal leaders have been using the low number of confi rmed cases as the evidence of success when it is actu- ally a measure of our blindness. While administration offi cials were speaking the word “contained,” the virus was spreading unhindered in some places for weeks. And if sickness begins to come in a sud- den rush, it will swamp the health care system, leading to shortages of masks, hospital beds, ventilators and personnel (as it has in northern It- aly). “The glaring risk today,” as J. Ste- phen Morrison of the Center for Strategic and International Stud- ies told me, “is that the elderly and those with fragile health suffer ex- treme illness but are unable to access life-sustaining care and die in large numbers.” In just 18 days, Italy went from three confi rmed cases of coronavi- rus to imposing nationwide internal travel restrictions. In a similar cir- cumstance, the United States would need an assertive, active, early fed- eral role in encouraging mitigation, readying the health care system and helping states and localities bear the cost of the crisis. Agencies would have to aggressively use their power to infl uence, because there is no time for Congress to give them the real power to act. Some logistical role for the military may even be helpful. I can imagine the objections. Some may argue that this would trample on the authority of states and localities, and that the adminis- tration would own whatever follows. But an unprecedented emergency may require going beyond tradition- al thinking and traditional roles. And the administration owns the situa- tion already. (Washington Post Writers Group) when possible, walk. Fly less. Ev- ery day, U.S.-based commercial aviation uses about 63 million gal- lons of fuel. That fuel is converted into gases, particulate matter and sensible heat that is injected di- rectly into the atmosphere. Con- sume less. Be less wasteful. Put up a clothes line and during the summer months, hang out your laundry to dry in the breeze and sun. Grow a garden, large or small, and produce some of your own produce. Make a plan to reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides in your yards. Accept some dande- lions, clover, a few weeds, and la- dybugs in your yard. Help farmers use fewer pesticides by being more tolerant of spots and blemishes on the produce you purchase. Ask the city, county and state right-of-way managers to use less herbicide on road shoulders and drainage ways. Make it part of your way of life to take good care of earth’s most precious resources; clean air, fresh water and healthy soil. Additionally, the City of Keiz- er has environmental protection information and programs that you can check into. You probably have some ideas of your own. Give them a try. If we all do just a few things consistently and regularly, we can protect and enhance our environment and health without the effort becoming burdensome. The countryside, waterways, air, soil, wildlife, and all of us will ben- efi t. There is no downside. Jim Parr Keizer cuffed in Keizer Anthony Dale Stallions Brett Raymond Chase Arrested March 2 for: Theft Previous convictions: Violating stalking order Arrested March 5 for: Unlawful use of a weapon Pending charges: Criminal mischief, burglary, theft Stanislav Vadimovich Bakanov Arrested March 3 for: Violating restraining order Previous convictions: Stalking, menacing, theft, burglary Cutty Willie Moore Arrested March 3 for: Violating restraining order Previous convictions: Stalking, menacing, theft, burglary Anthony Wesley Good Arrested March 7 for: Failure to register as a sex offender Pending charges: Fleeing police, drug possession, Failure to register as a sex offender Cody Lee Woodard Arrested March 3 for: Disorderly conduct Previous convictions: Theft Elise Dianne VonKemp Arrested March 7 Heather D. Drew Arrested March 4 for: ID theft Past convictions: ID theft, drug possession for: Resisting arrest Previous convictions: DUII Daray Koty Williams Arrested March 4 for: Possession of methamphetamine Other pending charges: Disorderly conduct, criminal mischief, intimidation Jose Alvarez- Vilches Arrested March 8 for: Felon in possession of a weapon Past convictions: Criminal mischief Tommy Lynn Barnes Arrested March 5 for: Possession of heroin Past convictions: Theft (numerous counts), drug possession Juan Carlos Navarro-Flores Arrested March 5 for: Reckless endangering Alexander L. Liljequist Other pending charges: Reckless endangering, conspiracy to commit a felony Arrested March 8 for: Theft Past convictions: Traffi c infractions Blood drive March 14 The American Red Cross is hold- ing a blood drive at Dayspring Fel- lowship, 1755 Lockhaven Drive N.E. on Tuesday, March 24 from 12 - 6 p.m. To schedule an appointment call the Red Cross at 1-800-733-2767 or contact Connie Moritz at (503)-851- 0375. BECOME A SUBSCRIBER KEIZER NEWS IN YOUR MAILBOX ONLY $35 A YEAR CALL 503-390-1051 puzzle answers
