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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 2015)
Page 4A OPINION (DVW2UHJRQLDQ 6DWXUGD\0DUFK Founded October 16, 1875 KATHRYN B. BROWN DANIEL WATTENBURGER Publisher Managing Editor JENNINE PERKINSON TIM TRAINOR Advertising Director Opinion Page Editor EO MEDIA GROUP East Oregonian • The Daily Astorian • Capital Press • Hermiston Herald Blue Mountain Eagle • Wallowa County Chieftain • Chinook Observer • Coast River Business Journal Oregon Coast Today • Coast Weekend • Seaside Signal • Cannon Beach Gazette Eastern Oregon Real Estate Guide • Eastern Oregon Marketplace • Coast Marketplace OnlyAg.com • FarmSeller.com • Seaside-Sun.com • NorthwestOpinions.com • DiscoverOurCoast.com MIKE FORRESTER Pendleton Chairman of the Board STEVE FORRESTER Astoria President TOM BROWN Bigfork, Mont. Director KATHRYN B. BROWN Pendleton Secretary/Treasurer JEFF ROGERS Indianapolis, Ind. Director OUR VIEW OTHER VIEWS 2KQR$QHZVHQDWHORZ T Staff photo by E.J. Harris Gov. Kate Brown speaks with the East Oregonian editorial board Friday about her administration’s priorities for Eastern Oregon. Eastern thinking the council’s recently stated desire 7ZR(DVWHUQ2UHJRQLVVXHVDUH for increased public awareness and high on new governor Kate Brown’s transparency. priority list. And it’s that lack of clarity that <RXFDQ¿QGWKHPERWKRQWKH IURQWSDJHRIWRGD\¶VSDSHU2QHLVDV continues to cloud the drone project. ROGDV(DVWHUQ2UHJRQVHFXULQJPRUH First, there is the mountain of muddled, still-being-sorted Federal water out of the Columbia River to EHQH¿WDJULFXOWXUH7KHRWKHULVDVW Aviation Administration drone rules, which City Manager Robb FHQWXU\SKHQRPHQRQ3HQGOHWRQ¶V Corbett aptly described as a “bowl of ÀHGJOLQJGURQHWHVWUDQJH spaghetti.” Then there We’re happy to are the yet-to-be- see both are on the decided details about governor’s radar Brown said VSHFL¿FUXOHVIRUWHVW and are happy to she is eager ranges. And then there welcome any political is debate between the ZLOODQG¿QDQFLDO to connect test range sites and investment we can with Eastern how revenue will be get from Salem. This divvied up between newspaper has long Oregon. the different entities. been a supporter of Also, there is the the Umatilla Basin inability of Pendleton water project, and DQGDLUSRUWRI¿FLDOVWREHIRUWKULJKW we think the ag community has put forward a sustainable project that will about the number of aerospace boost output and the river economy. technology companies interested in Former governor John Kitzhaber WKHUDQJH²FLW\RI¿FLDOVVD\PRUH was high on the project, too, but it than a dozen, but won’t name any at PD\EH%URZQZKR¿QDOO\EULQJV each company’s request. And then it to fruition. She expects to partner there is the great unknown as to what with State Senator Bill Hansell those companies see in the drone WR¿UPXSVXSSRUWDQGSXWWKH UDQJHLVLWMXVWDQHPSW\¿HOGWR proposal before the ways and means experiment in, or is it a headquarters committee next month. She said she and base of operations? is eager to see it pass. This bureaucratic swamp, mixed (DJHUZDVDZRUG%URZQXVHG with the vagaries of a quickly often during her trip, in her public changing and regulated industry, VWDWHPHQWV)ULGD\DWWKH(DVWHUQ presents a real hurdle to quick and 2UHJRQ5HJLRQDO$LUSRUWDQGLQDQ guaranteed success. interview afterward with the East But $1.7 million in state dollars Oregonian editorial board. to build necessary infrastructure sure She is eager to connect with helps clear some hurdles. Some are (DVWHUQ2UHJRQ6KHLVHDJHUWR straight grant dollars and much of the support the water, drone, housing and rest is low-interest, low-risk loans that transportation projects in the region. are well worth accepting. A piece of And in general, she’s eager. the package will have to be repaid if Pendleton city council was also less than 130 jobs are created by the eager on the drone project, perhaps WHVWUDQJHLQ¿YH\HDUV WRRPXFKVR2Q7XHVGD\ZLWKRXW 2EYLRXVO\DQ\WKLQJQHDU any public interaction and without high-tech jobs in such a short period even noting it on the council of time would be an overwhelming agenda, they agreed to accept a mix VXFFHVV(YHQKDOIWKDWZRXOGEHZHOO of loans and grants from the state worth $1.7 million in taxpayer money worth nearly $1.7 million. It was a and would spark a much-needed haphazardly planned action that took return to vibrancy for the Pendleton some starch out of Brown’s public area. remarks at the airport. It was also a Like Kate Brown, we are eager to disappointing one that undermined see if the bet pays off. Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East Oregonian editorial board of Publisher Kathryn Brown, Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, and Opinion Page Editor Tim Trainor. Other columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily that of the East Oregonian. LETTERS POLICY The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public is- sues and public policies for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper reserves the right to withhold letters that address concerns about indi- vidual services and products or letters that infringe on the rights of private citizens. Submitted letters must be signed by the author and include the city of residence and a daytime phone number. The phone number will not be published. Unsigned letters will not be published. Send letters to Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com. he United States Senate is worse “They’re putting poison pills in than ever. their own bills!” Sen. Chuck Schumer, I know this is hard for you D-N.Y., said in a phone interview. to believe, people. But, really, this Before we discuss how badly week was a new bottom. The Senate the Republicans behaved, we need found itself unable to pass a bill to take time out to note that none DLGLQJYLFWLPVRIKXPDQWUDI¿FNLQJ of the Democrats on the Judiciary a practice so terrible that it is one of Committee seem to have noticed the few subjects on which members of that somewhere along the line, this Gail &RQJUHVV¿QGLWIDLUO\HDV\WRZRUNLQ Collins change had been inserted in the bill. bipartisan amity. 2QHVHQDWRUDFNQRZOHGJHGWKDW Comment “This has got to get done for an aide knew, but never shared the me to continue having faith in this information.) institution,” said Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, It was easy to miss, the Democrats D-N.D., who’s particularly concerned about contended, being very oblique and supertiny. sexual exploitation of Native American ³2XWRIDSDJHELOOWKHUHLVWKLVRQH women. She has always struck me as one of sentence,” complained Sen. Dick Durbin, the more cheerful members of the Senate, so D-Ill. this seems like a bad sign. I believe I speak for many Americans Meanwhile, the House of Representatives when I say that missing a change in important KDVSDVVHGELOOVDJDLQVWKXPDQWUDI¿FNLQJ legislation is excusable only if the Senate already this year. Judiciary Committee is suffering from a Wow, the House is doing great! If you shortage of lawyers. overlook the introduction of a budget that No one seemed clear on how the new features terrible math language got there in the and many assaults on ¿UVWSODFHEXWDERUWLRQ hapless poor people, the restriction is not something lower chamber has been you casually toss into a on a roll lately. Speaker bill that you want to pass John Boehner and Nancy with support from both Pelosi, the minority leader, parties. It would be as if rescued the budget for the the Democrats had quietly Department of Homeland added a stipulation requiring Security, and now they’re DOOWUDI¿FNLQJYLFWLPVEH ZRUNLQJRXWDSODQWRDYRLGWKHQH[W¿VFDO barred from carrying a concealed weapon. cliff, which involves keeping Medicare Cornyn argued that it made no difference running. whatsoever because there were plenty of Plus, this week, the Republican majority exemptions that would allow any sexually got rid of disgraced Rep. Aaron Schock, who H[SORLWHGWUDI¿FNLQJYLFWLPWRTXDOLI\IRU GHFRUDWHGKLVRI¿FHDVLILWZDVDVFHQHIURP an abortion anyway. That was a good point, “Downton Abbey.” In the wake of questions except for the part where you wondered about his mileage reimbursement requests, why he was so insistent that this allegedly Schock announced his resignation. Since meaningless language be preserved at all he had never successfully sponsored any costs. legislation in his six-year congressional career, “My wish is that we hadn’t junked that his greatest legacy may be a reminder that bill up with abortion politics,” said Sen. Mark members of the House of Representatives Kirk, R-Ill., who has to run for re-election next should avoid brightening the workplace with year. Many Republicans agreed with him, but vases of pheasant feathers. in public they dug in their heels. In retaliation, 6RWKH+RXVHLVZRUNLQJRQDQHZ¿VFDO the Democrats brought all progress to a halt FOLIISODQSDVVHGKXPDQWUDI¿FNLQJELOOV ZLWKD¿OLEXVWHU and subtracted Aaron Schock. Maybe it’s Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who going to become the center of bipartisan thought he was going to show how to make cooperation the nation has been waiting for! the Senate work, was irate, and said there 2.SUREDEO\QRW$Q\ZD\LW¶VEHHQGRLQJ would be no vote on Loretta Lynch, President better than the Senate. %DUDFN2EDPD¶VDWWRUQH\JHQHUDOQRPLQHH At the beginning of the month, the Senate until Democrats gave in. ZDVZRUNLQJRQLWVRZQDQWLWUDI¿FNLQJELOO 3RVVLEOHWKHPHIRUWKHVHVVLRQ sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, “Republicans who can’t lead meet Democrats with several Democratic co-sponsors. The who can’t read.” LGHDZDVWR¿QHVH[XDOSUHGDWRUVDQGJLYH Lynch did get some support from former WKHPRQH\WRJURXSVWKDWKHOSVH[WUDI¿FNLQJ New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who penned victims. a letter urging Republicans to get behind her. Sounded promising. The Senate Judiciary When Giuliani is the most sensible voice in Committee had easily approved Cornyn’s bill the room, there’s not much farther down to go, earlier this year. Then before it reached the unless they start bringing in pheasant feathers. Ŷ ÀRRUVRPHRQHGLVFRYHUHGWKDWLWKDGDFTXLUHG Gail Collins joined The New York Times in a clause forbidding the use of the money to 1995 as a member of the editorial board. provide victims with access to abortions. Republicans who can’t lead meet Democrats who can’t read. YOUR VIEWS BMCC medical programs valuable to local hospitals I am writing in support of Blue Mountain Community College and the upcoming bond measure. It has been my pleasure over the past 20 years to serve two terms on the %0&&EXGJHWFRPPLWWHHDQGWRVHH¿UVWKDQG the college’s efforts to provide high quality education to our residents even as state funding for community colleges has continued to shrink. As vice president of human resources at Good Shepherd Health Care System, I have seen the value of our local community college in helping to educate registered nurses, medical technologists and many other occupations we need at a community hospital. Good Shepherd has been happy to help fund a nursing instructor at BMCC to ensure the DYDLODELOLW\RITXDOL¿HGQXUVHVWRFDUHIRURXU patients. BMCC provides our area with affordable college education opportunities not only in Pendleton but also in Hermiston and Boardman, two communities where I spend a lot of time. I am impressed with the coordination between our local school systems and BMCC WRIXO¿OOWKH(DVWHUQ3URPLVHWKDWKHOSVVR many of our high school students get a head start on a college education with dual credit classes. It is for these reasons that I encourage the citizens of Umatilla and Morrow counties to vote yes on the BMCC bond on the May 19 election ballot. Your vote will be an investment for years to come, and will allow BMCC to continue to provide a quality learning environment through upgrades at its facilities, enhance existing successful programs such as nursing, agriculture, dental and diesel tech, and develop new workforce development programs to meet the needs of regional industries so vital to our area. No one likes to pay more taxes but BMCC is vital to the continued growth of our region. In my opinion passage of this bond will be a good investment in our future. Please join me in voting yes for the BMCC bond. Be heard! Kelly B. Sanders Irrigon Comment online at eastoregonian.com, or visit our Facebook and Twitter pages.
