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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2018
GOP unsettled by narrow Arizona win
By BOB CHRISTIE
and ANITA SNOW
Associated Press
GLENDALE, Ariz. — It
took a big money push from
the Republican Party, tweets
by the president and the sup-
port of the state’s current and
former governors, but the GOP
held onto an Arizona U.S.
House seat they would have
never considered endangered
in any other year.
Tuesday’s narrow victory
by Republican Debbie Lesko
over a Democratic political
newcomer sends a big message
to Republicans nationwide:
Even the reddest of districts in
a red state can be in play this
year. Early returns show Lesko
winning by about 5 percentage
points in Arizona’s 8th Con-
gressional District where Don-
ald Trump won by 21 percent-
age points.
“Debbie will do a Great
Job!” the president tweeted
Wednesday.
The former state senator
defeated Hiral Tipirneni, a for-
mer emergency room physi-
cian who had hoped to rep-
licate surprising Democratic
wins in Pennsylvania, Ala-
bama and other states in a year
where opposition to President
Trump’s policies have boosted
the party’s chances in Republi-
can strongholds.
Republican political con-
sultant Chuck Coughlin called
Tuesday’s special election
margin “not good” for national
Republicans looking at their
chances in November.
“They should clean house
in this election,” said Cough-
lin, longtime adviser to for-
mer Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer.
“There’s a drag on the mid-
terms for Republican candi-
dates that’s being created by
the national narrative. And it
would be very hard to buck
that trend if you’re in swing
districts, much less close dis-
tricts, if you can’t change that
narrative between now and
November.”
Lesko replaces former
Rep. Trent Franks, a Republi-
can who resigned in Decem-
ber amid sexual misconduct
allegations. A former aide told
The Associated Press that he
pressed her to carry his child
as a surrogate and offered her
$5 million.
The district sprawls across
western Phoenix suburbs, cov-
ering some of the most conser-
vative areas of the red state,
including the retirement com-
munity of Sun City.
At a victory party in her
Glendale neighborhood, Lesko
greeted supporters and looked
back in wonder.
“I’ve really come a long
AP Photo/Matt York
Republican congressional candidate Debbie Lesko, right, celebrates her win with former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer.
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin
A supporter of Democratic candidate Dr. Hiral Tipirneni
waits for election results with other supporters.
Hiral Tipirneni, Democratic candidate in the special election
in Arizona’s 8th Congressional District, greets supporters.
‘There’s a drag on the midterms for Republican candidates
that’s being created by the national narrative. And it
would be very hard to buck that trend if you’re in swing
districts, much less close districts, if you can’t change
that narrative between now and November.’
Chuck Coughlin
Republican political consultant and longtime adviser to former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer
way and this is really quite
overwhelming, it’s very sur-
real,” she said. “Twenty-five
years ago I left an abusive hus-
band and I sure as heck never
would have dreamt in a mil-
lion years that I would be
running for Congress to be a
congresswoman.”
Brewer, who backed Lesko
and was at her victory party,
also warned that Republi-
cans need to make changes if
they want to hold the district
and other seats in November
elections.
“I think all Republicans
need to wake up and listen to
what the public wants,” she
said. “Before November, we’re
going to have to work very
hard. We’re going to have to
listen to our constituents.”
Tipirneni worked the dis-
Park: Petition is now in circulation
Continued from Page 1A
most notably at the Asto-
ria Column and at McClure
Park on Eighth Street, which
raised funds for the installa-
tion of a new slide and other
improvements.
City Councilor Bruce
Jones, who represents Alder-
brook, attended the neighbor-
hood meeting over the week-
end. Knowing there is strong
interest in keeping Birch Field
as a park — with plans for a
friends group and long-term
improvements in motion —
could be enough to sway the
council, he said.
He emphasized that he
could only speak for him-
self, but said, “That would be
enough for me to say, ‘Let’s not
delist it.’”
Morley was one of a num-
ber of Alderbrook residents
who attended a community
meeting Jones held earlier this
spring after the news spread
about the possible delisting.
Following that meeting, she
and others decided to be pro-
active in opposing the decision.
They held a meeting of their
own and decided to try to con-
vince the council to change its
mind. A petition to “Save Birch
Field” is now in circulation.
Selling
underutilized
park land was one option
councilors pursued as a
way to make the Parks and
Recreation Department more
sustainable. City leaders
have argued park facilities and
responsibilities — as well as
associated staffing and main-
tenance costs — have only
increased over the years, with no
real plan for how to sustain the
department into the future. In
prior years, the department’s
budget was supplemented by
other city funds. Now, the city
is trying to establish the real
costs of running the depart-
ment, trimming programs and
looking at other funding and
management options to ensure
it can sustain itself.
Earlier this year, four parks,
including Birch Field, were
under scrutiny for possible
sale. Birch Field was deter-
mined to be the best candi-
date for development. Two of
the other parks, with adoption
agreements in place for mainte-
nance and beautification, were
taken off the list for the time
being.
The fourth site, home to a
reconstruction of the first U.S.
Custom House built west of the
Rocky Mountains, might be
adopted by the Lower Colum-
bia Preservation Society.
Staff told the City Council
earlier this year it could be a
difficult park to redevelop, and
there was debate about the fea-
sibility of moving the custom
house elsewhere. The preser-
vation society wants to keep
the house where it is and take
over maintenance of the park,
said Angela Cosby, the parks
director. The society will pres-
ent a case for the park on May
7 as well.
Morley said she loves being
a part of a neighborhood and
believes an improved Birch
Field would enhance Alder-
brook. She was also intrigued
by the idea of forming a friends
group.
“I was so excited about the
opportunity for citizens to step
up to the plate, and get involved
in the community to help over-
come budget shortfalls, that
I jumped at the chance,” she
said.
She has been working with
parks staff to figure out a path
forward for Birch Field.
“It has been a great expe-
rience so far,” she said, “and I
am so excited to be part of cre-
ating the future of Birch Field
and Park.”
Cougar: ‘Leave the animal a way to escape’
Continued from Page 1A
In the very rare instance
of a cougar encounter, people
should stay calm, stand their
ground and speak loudly and
firmly.
“Cougars often will retreat
if given the opportunity,” the
state webpage notes. “Leave
the animal a way to escape.”
Cougars tend to avoid
noisy areas and it is rare to
have a cougar stay in the same
area for more than a few days
before moving on, unless they
are near a good supply of live-
stock that is left out at night.
Coastal cougar popula-
tions appear to be on the rise
with a total state population
of more than 6,000, accord-
ing to a recent survey by the
state. A handful of cougars
have already been killed this
year after they threatened pub-
lic safety.
A cougar’s range can vary
greatly depending on the land-
scape it is navigating. Pre-
liminary data collected from
cougars collared this winter
in Fish and Wildlife’s Alsea
management area near New-
port revealed the elusive pred-
ators may have relatively
small ranges on the coast. The
older males that were collared
had ranges of about 50 square
miles — smaller than what
researchers have seen for cou-
gars living in Eastern Oregon.
One female’s range appeared
to be closer to 15 square miles.
trict hard, making inroads
rarely seen in an area that
hadn’t elected a Democrat
since the early 1980s. She was
seen as a fresh Democratic
face with relatively moder-
ate views that could get sup-
port in the district. Making a
push for older voters, she had
said Lesko would vote to go
after entitlement programs like
Social Security and Medicaid
to pay for tax cuts that mainly
benefit the wealthy. She’s
pushed a plan to allow some
people to buy into Medicare.
Tipirneni said she plans
to run in November’s gen-
eral election and told support-
ers not to give up the cause.
She said that despite the big
Republican advantage in the
district, the results show peo-
ple were ready for a change.
“We have a very short
amount of time, and clearly
Ms. Lesko she had the regis-
tration numbers a little bit in
her favor and she also had the
name recognition,” Tipirneni
said. “But given more time I
know we can get more folks on
our side.”
The Associated Press called
the race for Lesko after state
officials released tallies of
more than 155,000 mail-in bal-
lots, which represent about 75
percent of the votes expected.
National Republican groups
spent big to back Lesko, pour-
ing in more than $500,000 in
the suburban Phoenix district
for television and mail ads
and phone calls to voters. On
Election Day, Trump and cur-
rent Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey
urged Republicans to go to
the polls and vote for Lesko.
National Democratic groups,
meanwhile, didn’t commit
money to the race, a sign they
didn’t believe the seat was in
play.
Several Republican vot-
ers who spoke with AP said
they backed Lesko primar-
ily because she supported
Trump’s border security plans.
David Hunt, a 64-year-old
retired construction and ware-
house worker from Glendale,
said he cast his vote Tues-
day for Lesko because he
believed that immigrants in the
country illegally are creating
unfair competition for jobs for
recent high school students in
Arizona.
“She’s the best candidate to
deal with the porous border,”
Hunt said.
His views were echoed by
Larry Bettis, a retiree from
Glendale.
“Immigration - the fence,”
Bettis said. “That’s all I really
care about.”
Democrats
said
they
wanted to send a message to
Trump and supported Demo-
cratic health care plans.
“I don’t like the president
and felt it was time to take a
stand,” said Nikole Allen, a
45-year-old medical assistant
from New York now living in
Glendale. “It’s time for us to
vote the Republicans out.”
Walking: ‘It gives me
incentive to keep going’
Continued from Page 1A
Earlier this month, the
Clatsop County Public
Health Department began
Step it Up!, a program that
encourages people with can-
cer to walk with other survi-
vors. The Oregon Health &
Science University-Knight
Cancer Institute awarded the
county a $15,025 grant for
the project.
Doctors
traditionally
have advised people with
chronic illnesses to reduce
physical activity. More
recent research has shown,
however, that regular exer-
cise can allow people to
reap the benefits of physical
activity without increasing
the severity of their diseases,
according to the American
Cancer Society.
But as more doctors are
recommending
exercise,
patients have needed to find
ways to overcome much of
the fatigue that comes with
fighting cancer. Communal
walking programs are one
solution.
“It gives me incentive to
keep going,” said Colleen
Siegfried, diagnosed with
breast cancer at 59 in 2009.
“It’s not so much like exer-
cise. It’s fun that way.”
Rather than following a
rigid schedule, walkers are
encouraged by group lead-
ers like Keippela to move at
their own pace, take breaks
when needed and gradu-
ally progress in speed and
stamina. During the walks,
conversations can range
from small talk to how they
are feeling physically.
“It’s relaxed, informal,”
Keippela said. “We don’t
want anyone to strain them-
selves or push themselves
because we’ll get there.”
Sessions take place a
number of times each week
at Clatsop Community Col-
lege’s Patriot Hall and Prov-
idence Seaside Hospital.
Walkers say the indoor set-
tings are beneficial.
“It feels like my shoes are
filled with beach grass and
sand. It’s really nice to be in
here on a flat surface,” Sieg-
fried said.
The program is funded
through January, but how
long it will last depends
on the interest levels of the
walkers, said Sarah Mitch-
ell, a county public health
nurse.
In the years after discov-
ering she had cancer, Sieg-
fried was also diagnosed
with a genetic disorder that
causes her chronic pain.
Catching her breath after
a walk Monday at Patriot
Hall, she seemed optimis-
tic that her condition — like
Keippela’s — will improve.
“I’d like to get stronger,”
Siegfried said. “I could go
any direction, but I’d like to
get stronger.”