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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 12, 2016)
144TH YEAR, NO. 31 ONE DOLLAR WEEKEND EDITION // FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 2016 SEASIDE KIDS OFFERS FREE PLAY SPORTS • 7A FRIDAY EXTRA • 1C Insider: Culture, blunders doomed Cover Oregon Debacle wasted $300 million By NICK BUDNICK Capital Bureau Tom Walsh Take a week off, wade through thousands of pages of court fi l- ings in Oregon’s long-running court battle with software giant Oracle, and you still won’t have the real story of how Cover Ore- gon failed and wasted more than $300 million, according to Tom Walsh, a longtime technol- ogy specialist and veteran of the project. Hundreds of thousands if not millions of words have been writ- ten about Cover Oregon in the two years since the state proj- ect to enroll Oregonians in the federal Affordable Care Act imploded. However, an insider’s account has never been published until now. Other top consultants and former managers have rou- tinely declined to comment, often citing the pending litigation. But Walsh is ready to speak another debacle when the state out because of continued public launches its next big-ticket, tax- confusion around Cover Oregon. payer-funded IT projects. underway); farther aield were more “I don’t think Oregon knows “I think people should under- stand why it failed,” Walsh says that it (has) a problem,” Walsh matter of factly, given how many says. Hint: it has to do with people worked so hard on the ambitious project, and how much management. was spent. See INSIDER, Page 8A He’d also like to prevent ASTORIA REGATTA US won’t reclassify pot, OKs research Move rebuffs growing support across country By ALICIA A. CALDWELL Associated Press Knappa’s princess wins the crown as festival opens By ELI STILLMAN The Daily Astorian A s the Astoria Regatta crown was placed on Aubrey McMah- an’s head Thursday evening, her fi rst act as queen was to declare the 122nd Regatta Fes- tival open. McMahan was one of four princesses in the Regatta court leading up to the coro- nation ceremony at the Lib- erty Theater. Alongside her were Kristen Travers and Vic- toria Holcom, of Astoria, and Brenna Borup of Warrenton . They were scored by on per- sonal presentation and public speaking by a panel of judges to decide who would wear the queen’s crown for 2016. “It See CROWN, Page 10A WASHINGTON — The Obama admin- istration has decided marijuana will remain on the list of most dangerous drugs, fully rebuffi ng growing support across the coun- try for broad legalization, but said it will allow more research into its medical uses. The decision to expand research into marijuana’s medical potential could pave the way for the drug to be moved to a lesser category. Heroin, peyote and marijuana, among others, are considered Schedule I drugs because they have no medical appli- cation; cocaine and opiates, for example, have medical uses and, while still illegal for recreational use, are designated Schedule II drugs. The Drug Enforcement Administra- tion said the agency’s decision came after a lengthy review and consultation with the Health and Human Services Department, which said marijuana “has a high potential for abuse” and “no accepted medical use.” The decision means that pot will remain illegal for any purpose under federal law, despite laws in 25 states and District of Columbia that have legalized pot for either medicinal or recreational use. Advocates for change Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian TOP: Aubrey McMahan from Knappa High School reacts as her name is called as queen during the 2016 Regatta Queen’s Coronation on Thurs- day at the Liberty Theater . ABOVE: McMahan is crowned the 2016 Re- gatta Queen . Advocates have long pushed for the fed- eral government to follow suit. “If the scientifi c understanding about marijuana changes — and it could change — then the decision could change,” DEA acting administrator Chuck Rosen- berg wrote in a letter to the governors of Rhode Island and Washington, who sought the review of marijuana’s classifi cation in 2011. “But we will remain tethered to science, as we must, and as the statute demands. It certainly would be odd to rely on science when it suits us and ignore it otherwise.” Rosenberg said designating marijuana a Schedule I drug does not necessarily mean it is as dangerous as other drugs. See POT, Page 10A Will Donald Trump energize the Latino vote? This story is part of Divided America, AP’s ongoing explo- ration of the economic, social and political divisions in American society. By SERGIO BUSTOS and NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press LAS VEGAS — It’s a par- adox in American politics: Many Hispanic families have an immense personal stake in what happens on Election Day, but despite numbers that should mean political power, Hispanics often can’t vote, aren’t registered to vote, or sit it out. Enter Donald Trump, sonal than Donald Trump talking about deporting 11 mil- lion immigrants.” and the question that could make or break the election in key states. By infl aming the anti-immigrant sentiments of white, working-class men, has the Republican nominee jolted awake another group — 27.3 million eligible Hispanic voters? “A lot of times you hear this rap about how politics doesn’t affect their life,” says Yvanna Cancela, political director of Las Vegas’ largely immigrant Culinary Union. “But that changes when it’s personal, and there’s nothing more per- Largest ethnic group Hispanics now represent the nation’s largest ethnic community with some 55 mil- lion people. More than one- third of them are U.S.-born, and the others immigrants who are citizens, legal residents or here illegally. Most trace their familial roots to Mexico, one of Trump’s favorite targets. A cornerstone of Trump’s platform is building a wall along the Southwest border — and forcing Mexico to pay See TRUMP, Page 10A AP Photo/John Locher Fabiola Vejar, right, registers Stephanie Cardenas to vote in front of a Latino supermarket in Las Vegas. Shielded from deportation under an Obama administration pro- gram that protects those brought to the country illegally as children, Vejar, 18, cannot vote.