Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 3, 2016)
Page 4A OPINION East Oregonian Thursday, March 3, 2016 OTHER VIEWS Hillary Clinton’s moment Founded October 16, 1875 KATHRYN B. BROWN DANIEL WATTENBURGER Publisher Managing Editor JENNINE PERKINSON TIM TRAINOR Advertising Director Opinion Page Editor Y OUR VIEW A load of Trump Donald Trump is now clearly, We would argue the man is unequivocally, indisputably in line to clearly capitalizing on displeasure become the Republican nominee for with GO3 of¿ceholders’ actions president. during the Obama administration. In the process, he has left quite a Those Republicans told their wake behind him. constituents that the president was Trump’s success the devil incarnate on Super Tuesday and out to destroy “started a civil war” America. Those So how is in the Republican of¿ceholders now party, according seem surprised that Trump, the to The Wall Street their constituents antithesis Journal conservative became apoplectic commentator 3eggy when Congress took of so many Noonan. any action to work supposedly With his abrasive with the president to and entertaining solve problems. central personality and his Trump is also Republican knife-sharp barbs, a celebrity. And Trump has cleft the Our culture is ideals, doing rich. *O3 into a shape few currently obsessed so well with with both, conÀating believe it could form. On one hand, them with character Republican Trump has excoriated traits of merit, George W. Bush and morality and voters? the Iraq War. On competence. the other hand, he Trump has advocated hunting down and killing lifted a veil over a segment of the the families of Islamic State soldiers Republican 3arty that was always — a blatant war crime. there, but had been mostly relegated On one hand, he spoke to screaming at the establishment glowingly of 3lanned 3arenthood from beneath the bleachers. in a nationally televised debate and For decades, a majority of has a long history of pro-choice the Republican party have been statements. On the other hand, he classic conservatives who want the says he is now pro-life and when government to run more ef¿ciently. asked to elaborate by Bloomberg There was always a wing that News said: “It’s an issue. I mean it’s wanted less government, no matter an issue, and it’s a strong issue.” the ef¿ciency. And there was also On one hand, Trump said he some who claimed to be socially would not let people without health conservative, but their steadfast insurance “die on the streets” and support of the thrice-married, foul- wrote in 2011 that he supports mouthed, egotistical, materialistic universal health care. On the other and nonreligious Trump shows that hand, he called Obamacare a “heat- was just a front. seeking missile that will destroy jobs We’d argue it was a front for a and small businesses” during this political philosophy of opposing campaign. He has vowed to repeal it. progress. Sure, that means opposing Trump has mocked and gay marriage and opposing health humiliated members of his own care reform. And it also means party, from operative Karl Rove — opposing immigration reform and who helped run the Bush machine tax reform, from creating a national — to popular Republican governor energy policy and modernizing Nikki Haley, popular Fox News host our transportation plan. These Megyn Kelly, popular 9ietnam War anti-progress beliefs are laced hero John McCain, etc. You get the with racism, sexism, homophobia, picture. religious hatred and xenophobia. He has been vitriolic and violent Trump and his crowds have made to the press, even the news stations that clear at every stop on the that have breathlessly given free campaign trail — the support of television time to his supposedly the Ku Klux Klan is the most elf-¿nanced campaign. straightforward evidence thereof. The man got into a Twitter war This group of has crawled out with the 3ope, for heaven’s sake. from under the bleachers and has So how on Earth is Trump, when elbowed their way onto the stage. he is the antithesis of so many As the war for the microphone supposedly central Republican commences, the GO3 may just split ideals, doing so well with and crumble. And after listening to Republican voters? Trump, it will be anything but civil. Democrats are aware of that, and ou can look at Hillary Clinton’s have consoled themselves by focusing path to this juncture and marvel on who her Republican opponent at how dif¿cult she has often might be: Trump. He racked up victory made things for herself, creating after victory on Tuesday, and Clinton’s messes where there didn’t need to remarks at a celebratory rally in Miami be any, frittering away advantages, on Tuesday night were a targeted misunderstanding the mood of rebuke of him. voters, underestimating the mettle Mocking his slogan, she said that of opponents, and failing to cement Frank the country’s challenge was “not to an image — and a message — that Bruni make America great again. America seemed authentic and right. Comment never stopped being great. We have to That’s a legitimate perspective. make America whole.” She’s a deeply Àawed politician. She added: “Instead of building walls, But she’s also a preternaturally determined, we’re going to break down barriers.” resourceful and patient one. Her path Trump, at his own victory party, was more illustrates that just as compellingly. For about explicit and more derisive in his invocations a quarter of a century, she has been vili¿ed of her. Referring repeatedly as loudly as she has been to the ongoing investigation lionized, told that her talents of her email practices as pale beside her husband’s, secretary of state, he said called “likable enough” but that he’d be surprised if she seldom lovable, and cast in were even allowed to remain supporting roles: the ¿rst in the presidential race. lady, the secretary of state. He argued that she She never retreated. Never can’t credibly promise gave up. America any progress or And as the returns from solutions, given that she’s Super Tuesday came in, been involved in politics nudging her closer to the for decades and, in his Democratic nomination, estimation, has never I realized that we weren’t delivered. just seeing greater clarity in “You look at her record a messy race for the White as secretary of state — it’s House and the possible abysmal,” he said in a voice dripping with approach of history: a ¿rst-ever major-party contempt, adding that it would be easy to female presidential nominee. defeat her and he relished the thought of her as We were seeing the vindication of a an adversary. fortitude and ¿erceness that warrant as much To attain the presidency, a politician notice as her less savory qualities. needn’t be adored — just less loathed than the She notched important wins Tuesday in alternative. Massachusetts, Texas, 9irginia, Tennessee, In that same Quinnipiac poll, Trump’s Georgia, Arkansas and Alabama, echoing her unfavorable to favorable ratio was even triumph in South Carolina on Saturday. worse than Clinton’s: 59 to 34 percent. Her Let’s give her this moment, because supporters and advisers are accordingly she fought her way here. She tuned out the crafting a strategy of brutal negativity and naysayers. She turned a blind eye to all relentless attacks, as The New York Times her scars. Her ability to do that may reÀect reported earlier this week. Envisioning that, unrestrained ambition, a sturdy con¿dence in David 3louffe, who managed Barack Obama’s her mission or — more likely — an intricate 2008 campaign, said that a Clinton bid would cat’s cradle of both. Whichever the case, it be less “hope and change” than “hate and demonstrates a grit that could be her greatest castrate.” asset in a general election. There are several problems with “hate and But grit won’t be enough. castrate.” One is that Trump already dwells The surprising, impressive success of in the sewer and most voters know it; to join Sanders, who had his own key wins Tuesday, him there isn’t to expose him but to degrade has made that clear. There’s an ire and a yourself. disgust in the body politic — they fuel his Another is that it doesn’t address the ire I campaign just as they do Donald Trump’s — mentioned earlier, the yearning to rebel. And a and they’re built on a belief that the system is disappointed Sanders voter with that yearning rigged, the status quo is unacceptable and its could, in a general election, sit on the sidelines guardians are untrustworthy. or vote for Trump before siding with Clinton, Clinton is poorly positioned to mollify that unless she makes some adjustments defter rage, and the reason isn’t just coziness with than any that she has made so far. Wall Street. It’s her familiarity, her celebrity, Worst of all, an epically nasty general- her crowd. She’s political royalty, and she election campaign would do nothing to unite can put the crown deep in a closet; she can the country and give the next president much renounce it all she wants. There are voters of a chance of governing effectively. who will still see it there. Clinton has the toughness to engage And oh, the baggage she carries! Many in — and survive — a brutally ugly contest. more Americans have an unfavorable She also has the smarts to know the cost of it. impression of her than a favorable one: In Has she honed the character and nimbleness to a Quinnipiac University poll from early prevail in a more inspiring, unifying way? February, the split was 56 to 39 percent. As well as we know her, this is yet to be She conquers that ... how? By introducing herself better to voters? They know her plenty revealed. Ŷ well. By unveiling yet another new image? Frank Bruni has been a columnist for The It’s hard to imagine there are any permutations New York Times since 2011. left. Clinton is political royalty. She can put the crown deep in a closet, but there are voters who will still see it there. LETTERS POLICY 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. The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public issues and public policies for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper reserves the right to withhold letters that address concerns about individual 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. YOUR VIEWS Despite survey results, no Pendleton housing shortage The East Oregonian front page on Saturday sported a headline, “City still facing a housing shortage.” The ¿rst sentence asserts that “3endleton still faces a signi¿cant housing shortage.” The article implies that there is a problem and that city government should try to solve it. This is misleading and mistaken. $bout ¿ve years ago the city made an effort to solve this alleged problem by zoning seven acres of city-owned, vacant land for high density housing and giving the land to a developer with a plan to build some 70-plus units of “affordable” housing. The developer initially built 22 units, 2- and 3-bedroom units, and is now adding 10 more. The developer is located in the 3ortland9ancouver area, so the rental revenue is leaving 3endleton The rents are in the $900 to $1,000 per month range, but the units are Section 8 eligible so can be subsidized for low-income residents who cannot afford this much. However, the landlord does not accept people with poor credit histories, felony records or other indicators of potential problems. ,f there is, indeed, a signi¿cant housing shortage, I wonder why this developer has not rapidly pursued adding another 30 or 40 units to this development" 3erhaps there is not really such a shortage? Your article reports that an estimated 30 percent of those who work in 3endleton live outside the city and that of those, 40 percent would live in 3endleton if they could ¿nd “affordable, quality” housing. Of course, quality and affordability are in the eye of the beholder. And it is also true that those who live outside the city do not pay $60 per month real estate tax to the city on a $120,000 house. Nor do they pay another $62 per month in city watersewer charges. That allows more “quality and affordability” for housing outside the city. The article reports that 156 new units became available in the ¿ve years since the city starting pushing for more “affordable” housing. Of those, 22 were those described above. Most other new units were produced by local, private sector landlords. For those units, the rental income stays here. This suggests that perhaps the city should not promote big, new developments, but concentrate on reducing the housing costs that are driven by the city taxes, water sewer charges, city fees). The city could also focus on making it easier for owners to renovate existing units. That would mean reviewing regulations and addressing how city staff interact with these local developers, builders and landlords. The U.S. Census reports that there are about 6,800 housing units available in 3endleton for our population of about 17,000 people (one unit for every 2.5 people). Of these, 57 percent are owner occupied and 80 percent have had the same occupants from one year to the next. Median gross rent in 2013 was $448. So let’s stop talking about a housing shortage and talk about how to make 3endleton a more affordable place to live. Betty Brunette Pendleton
