OPINION
6A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 2015
D AILY A STORIAN A new phase in anti-Obama attacks
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Founded in 1873
STEPHEN A. FORRESTER, Editor & Publisher
LAURA SELLERS, Managing Editor
BETTY SMITH, Advertising Manager
CARL EARL, Systems Manager
JOHN D. BRUIJN, Production Manager
DEBRA BLOOM, Business Manager
I
t is a peculiar, but unmis-
takable, phenomenon: As
Barack Obama’s presidency
heads into its twilight, the rage
of the Republican establishment
toward him is growing louder,
angrier and more destructive.
Republican
lawmakers
in
Washington and around the coun-
try have been focused on blocking
Obama’s agenda and denigrating
him personally since the day he took
RI¿FHLQ
AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
But even against that backdrop,
U.S. President Barack Obama speaks during his news confer-
ence at the Summit of the Americas in Panama City, Panama,
and even by the dismal standards of
Saturday.
political discourse today, the tone of
the current attacks is disturbing. So
is their evident intent — to under-
mine not just Obama’s policies, but
… even by
his very legitimacy as president.
the dismal
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his is the season of the fundraiser. Last week was the Lady Republicans’
earlier questioning
standards
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RI 2EDPD¶V $PHULFDQ FLWL]HQVKLS
Saturday is Clatsop Community $400,000 a year in scholarships.
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of political
College’s annual dinner and auction.
One of the less visible, but high- in their message — reminding peo-
discourse
7KDW ZLOO EH IROORZHG E\ WKH VRXS O\ LPSRUWDQW ORFDO QRQSUR¿WV LV ple that Obama was black, suggest-
ing
he
was
African,
and
planting
the
bowls dinner, which is the special CASA, the Court Appointed Special
today, the
equally false idea that he was secret-
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tone of the
DVWKH:RPHQ¶V5HVRXUFH&HQWHU7KHQ vocate for children in court proceed- slightly more subtle, but it is impos-
WKHUHZLOOEH+RSH+RXVH¶VGLQQHUDQG ings. CASA held its annual dinner sible to dismiss the notion that race
current
plays a role in it.
the mother of all local fund-raisers and auction one month ago.
AP Photo/Molly Riley, File
attacks is
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Outrageous attack
Senate Majority Leader Mitch Mc-
Foundation dinner and auction.
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disturbing.
Perhaps the most outrageous ex- Connell of Ky. speaks to report-
1RQSUR¿W RUJDQL]DWLRQV SOD\ Beach Education Foundation auction ample of the attack on the president’s ers on Capitol Hill in Washington
DQ RXWVL]HG UROH LQ WKH OLIH RI WKH and banquet is one of the county’s big- legitimacy was a letter signed by 47 March 17.
Republicans had no objection when
President George W. Bush used his
&ROXPELD3DFL¿F UHJLRQ7KLV ZRXOG JHVWSKLODQWKURSLFHYHQWV7KHDFFRP Republican senators to the leader-
be a much different place without plishment of the Friends of Chinook VKLSRI,UDQVD\LQJ2EDPDKDGQRDX QHORU¿QDQFLDOUHVRXUFHVWRHQIRUFH H[HFXWLYH DXWKRULW\ WR DXWKRUL]H WKH
WKHP7KH\VXVWDLQDEURDGVSHFWUXP School is plainly visible as one drives thority to conclude negotiations over administer or cooperate with an ex- torture of terrorism suspects and tap
,UDQ¶VQXFOHDUZHDSRQVSURJUDP7U\ ecutive order issued by the president WKHSKRQHVRI$PHULFDQFLWL]HQV,WLV
of activities that range from the artis- WKURXJK&KLQRRN7KHUHVWRUHGJ\PQD to imagine the outrage from Republi- of the United States that has not been not executive orders the Republicans
tic and cultural to youth athletics to sium and the schoolhouse with its new cans if a similar group of Democrats DI¿UPHGE\DYRWHRI&RQJUHVVDQG object to; it is Obama’s policies, and
human welfare, education and health coat of paint are testimony to the power KDG ZULWWHQ WR WKH .UHPOLQ LQ signed into law as prescribed by the Mr. Obama.
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care.
RIKLVWRULFSUHVHUYDWLRQ7KHJ\PKDV telling Mikhail Gorbachev that Pres- United States Constitution.”
McConnell,
who declared war on the
ident
Ronald
Reagan
did
not
have
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Next week, the board of Astoria become home to a variety of concerts,
the authority to negotiate a nuclear like John C. Calhoun’s secessionist QHZ SUHVLGHQW LQ DV PLQRUL
+LJK6FKRRO6FKRODUVKLSV,QFPHHWV events and the Oregon Shakespeare arms deal at the Reykjavik summit VFUHHG RI WKH 6RXWK &DUROLQD W\ OHDGHU DQG XVHG WKH ¿OLEXVWHU WR
WR LQWHUYLHZ VWXGHQWV VHHNLQJ ¿QDQ Festival’s two annual visits.
meeting that winter.
Exposition and Protest. Laurie Rob- SDUDO\]HWKH6HQDWHHVVHQWLDOO\WROG
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7KHUHLVQRIXQFWLRQDOGLIIHUHQFH erts of 7KH $UL]RQD 5HSXEOLF wrote foreign governments to ignore the
the scholarship fund is a phenome- things we cannot expect from the EHWZHHQ WKDW H[DPSOH DQG WKH ,UDQ that it was just “one of a series of carbon-emission goals Obama was
QDOPLOOLRQ7KHJURXSLQWHQGVWR SULYDWH VHFWRU RU JRYHUQPHQW 7KH\ talks, except that the congressional kooky measures aimed at declaring trying to set by international agree-
build the corpus to $10 million, which — and their fundraising events — are Republican caucus does not like our independence from federal gun ment. Because climate-change de-
Obama and wants to deny him any laws, from the Affordable Care Act, niers in Congress and in some states
would allow it to give $350,000- HVVHQWLDO¿[WXUHVLQRXUOLYHV
policy victory.
from the Environmental Protection oppose the effort, setting those goals
On April 3, Colbert King, a :DVK Agency, from the Department of Jus- is pointless, McConnell pronounced
last month.
LQJWRQ3RVWFROXPQLVWVXPPDUL]HGD tice, from Barack Obama.”
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series of actions by Republicans at-
something other than a blend of
Executive action
tacking the president’s authority in
Republicans defend this sort of ideological extremism and personal
areas that most Americans thought
had been settled by the Civil War. Ar- action by accusing Obama of act- animosity, it is not clear what that
L]RQD OHJLVODWRUV IRU H[DPSOH KDYH ing like a king and citing executive might be. But it is ugly, it deepens
been working on a bill that “prohib- actions he has taken — on immi- mistrust of government and it harms
he expression “Everybody com- Northwest residents supplement via our its this state or any of its political gration and pollution among other WKH RI¿FH RI WKH SUHVLGHQW QRW MXVW
plains about it, but nobody does electricity rates. Decisions to turn parts subdivisions from using any person- WKLQJV 7KDW¶V QRQVHQVH 7KH VDPH Obama.
anything about it” usually refers to the of arid eastern counties into major ag
weather, but can just as aptly refer to producers were made over sharp pro- GUEST COLUMN
perennial griping from rural regions tests from lower Columbia River resi-
about the political/economic domi- dents, who correctly foresaw the doom
nance of urban areas and the national of salmon runs that underpinned our
government.
economy for generations.
By DAVE DENSMORE
mention taxpayers’ mon-
before the sea lions over-
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While Clatsop County enjoys rela-
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ey spent on studying the
ran it.)
can be at least partially redressed, if we tively close geographical and political
feasibility of, and putting
What’s being done to
choose.
proximity to the Portland/Salem dy-
repair and reclaim our
ell, the cat is pretty much WKH ERDW\DUG LQ 7KDW HI
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Our sister publication, Salem-based QDPR ZH QHYHUWKHOHVV ¿QG RXUVHOYHV
out of the bag as far as fort was begun in the late
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&DSLWDO 3UHVV VSHFLDOL]HV LQ FRYHULQJ VRPHZKDWYLFWLPL]HGE\GHFLVLRQVOLNH the boatyard is concerned.
of much needed revenue
viable option with paved
West Coast agricultural people and is- the main stem gillnet ban and ex-Gov.
:HQRZ¿QGWKLV3RUWRI$VWRULD surfaces, drains and power
from a viable, working
VXHV,WZRXOGEHIDLUWRVD\WKDWIUXVWUD .LW]KDEHU¶VUHIXVDOWR¿OORXUVHDWRQWKH Commission has let a lease on prop- already in place. Due dili-
ERDW KDUERU" :K\ LV WKH
tion is a long-term motif of its coverage Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission. erty that was already in use.
Port of Astoria seen as
gence was exercised back
then and all options were Dave Densmore being user unfriendly for
of political decision making in Oregon, Political “outsidership” is a far more
No wonder the push was on to kill examined.
everyone except heavy
Washington and California as seen from YLYLG H[SHULHQFH LQ 3DFL¿F &RXQW\
VKLSSLQJ"
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7KH3RUWGLGQRWDQGLQIDFWGRHV
WKHSHUVSHFWLYHRIIRRGSURGXFHUV7KLV which along with the rest of Southwest
Why did a Port commissioner
was apparently made behind closed QRW, own tongue Point, thus it was
LV DEXQGDQWO\ UHÀHFWHG LQ WKH &DSLWDO Washington beyond Vancouver, suf- doors in “executive session” and QRW DQG LV QRW WUXO\ DQ RSWLRQ , tell a boat owner the day after the
3UHVVDQDO\VLV³2QH:DVKLQJWRQ7ZR fers endemic underemployment and when exposed, excused as needing have copies of two different studies, boatyard advisory group met that the
Sides,” in today’s 'DLO\$VWRULDQ.
other woes. Even so, as late state Sen. to generate more revenue from land which by the way were QRW supplied boatyard was still going away. Poke,
Much heartburn is generated by Sid Snyder of Long Beach often not- that was tied up by a “failing” boat- E\WKH3RUW7KHUHZHUHSXEOLFPHHW prod, ask questions, it’s far past time
ings, advisory boards and public more than lip service was paid to
statewide decisions about wildlife and HG3DFL¿FDQGRWKHUUXUDO:DVKLQJWRQ yard operation.
When it looked like that wasn’t comment solicited. A commercial transparency.
land-use controversies, with Eastside counties get far more back in the form JRLQJWRÀ\VXGGHQO\³2KP\*RG designer was hired out of Portland
Even Englund Marine, which has
OHJLVODWRUVJHQHUDOO\¿QGLQJWKHPVHOYHV of government services than they ever DEQ is going to drop the big one and those presentations were all grown from a single small store intro
RXWÀDQNHGRQWRSLFVVXFKDVZROIUHV pay in taxes — thanks to the success of on us any day!” Well, you people open to the public.
a huge multistore complex, has done
checked it out, stood up and exposed
So ask of this Port commission so due to proper business practices
WRUDWLRQ,QFRPPRQZLWKVHYHUDORWK the Seattle metroplex.
what happened to the plan for a sea- and an understanding that growth
er issues and legislative themes, this
7KHVROXWLRQWRGLVHQIUDQFKLVHPHQW the fallacy in that, also.
Now
we
food support comes with one small sale at a time,
¿JKWRYHUZROYHVLVFORVHO\PLUURUHGLQ urged by Washington’s Eastside law-
have an ad-
c o m p l e x ; not dreaming of pie in the sky huge
Oregon.
makers — creating a separate state — visory board Maybe it’s time to
ask
what VFRUHVRUJUDQWV$VIDUDV,¶PFRQ
,WLVSHUKDSVSRVVLEOHIURPWKHSHU will go nowhere. Other answers are, (with port
h
a
p
p
e
n e d cerned, the public trust has been re-
vote ‘None of the
commission-
spective of living in a rural area on the however, conceivable. For example:
to the cold peatedly betrayed.
Sincere BS is still BS! Maybe it’s
storage plant
far west side of the Cascades to objec-
• Abandon statewide wildlife and ers, and the Above’ for the Port
time
to vote “None of the Above” for
yard
man-
that
tried
WLYHO\H[DPLQHWKH¿JKWDERXWZROYHV natural resources commissions in favor
commissioners.
ager
who
to come in the Port commissioners until we get
and other issues. Living at the mouth of two or more regional commissions in a d a m a n t l y
here;
ask people in there who can remember
of the Columbia River, we are familiar each state with memberships that better advocates moving the whole yard why Bornstein’s has been kept from they are voted in by the people to
with the phenomenon of urban-orient- UHÀHFWORFDONQRZOHGJHDQGFRQFHUQV
VRPHZKHUHHOVHVWXG\LQJKRZWR¿[ expanding (providing more jobs); serve DOO the people’s interests.
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DVN ZK\ WKH UHSDLUHG 3LHU LV MXVW
ed enthusiasts being avidly interested
• Directly elect natural resource the yard.
+RZULGLFXORXVLVWKDW"<HWRQHRI sitting, being “saved for heavy car- serving that care about the Port and
in protecting large carnivores — sea commissioners rather than giving those
not just catering to cronyism.
lions in our case — that a substantial appointments to governors, who in re- the prime movers who was respon- go” that may not ever come.
Put the pride back in Port Of As-
sible for getting the Port a boatyard
Ask why the East End Mooring
SURSRUWLRQ RI ORFDO SHRSOH ¿QG WR EH cent decades invariably hew to urban LQWKH¿UVWSODFHZDVWROGKHZDVQ¶W Basin is in such disrepair when there toria. Clatsop County deserves a port
problematic. Eastside ranchers and their interests and sensibilities.
welcome.
are waiting lists of boats needing to be proud of.
,W¶VXSWR\RX<RXDOOFDQGRLW
communities clearly fear ending up in
7KHUH ZDV D ORW RI HIIRUW QRW WR PRRUDJH ,W ZDV IDOOLQJ DSDUW ORQJ
• Rather than embracing empty
a similar circumstance, with a growing slogans like “One Washington” or
population of lamb- and calf-chomping ³7RZDUG 2QH 2UHJRQ´ HPEDUN RQ
wolves protected by rigorous laws writ- a substantive and inclusive process
ten by people who don’t have to bear to devolve power from state capitals
• U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici +DUW 6HQDWH 2I¿FH %XLOGLQJ bradwitt@state.or.us
any of the consequences.
and agencies to counties and region- (D)5D\EXUQ+2%:DVKLQJ :DVKLQJWRQ '& 3KRQH
• State Rep. Deborah Boone
By the same token, however, al governments, with accompanying WRQ '& 3KRQH :HEZZZPHUNOH\ (D) &RXUW 6W 1( +
)D[ 'LVWULFW senate.gov
6DOHP253KRQH
Eastside ranchers and farmers would funding.
RI¿
FH
6:
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•
State
Rep.
Brad
Witt
(D):
(PDLO UHSGHERUDK ERRQH#
have a pale shadow of an agricultural
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6XLWH %HDYHUWRQ 25 6WDWH &DSLWRO &RXUW 6WUHHW VWDWHRUXV'LVWULFWRI¿FH32%R[
industry without the federal dams and verse and quick-changing places. Our 3KRQH)D[ 1( + 6DOHP 25 &DQQRQ %HDFK 25
reclamation projects that all Americans political systems must start evolving to :HEERQDPLFLKRXVHJRY
3KRQH :HE ZZZ 3KRQH :HE ZZZ
• U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D): leg.state.or.us/witt/
Email: rep. leg.state.or.us/ boone/
SD\IRUZLWKWD[HVDQGZKLFK3DFL¿F UHÀHFWWKLVUHDOLW\
SAMANTHA MCLAREN, Circulation Manager
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the fundraiser
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Give rural people greater
say in resource decisions
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Put the pride back in the Port
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Where to write
