Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2016)
Page 4A OPINION East Oregonian Thursday, July 21, 2016 OTHER VIEWS Founded October 16, 1875 KATHRYN B. BROWN DANIEL WATTENBURGER Publisher Managing Editor JENNINE PERKINSON TIM TRAINOR Advertising Director Opinion Page Editor OUR VIEW Ted speaks at Trump show AP Photo/John Locher Massachusetts delegates Patricia Saint Aubin and Amy Carnevale dance during the second day session of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland on Tuesday. Conventional wisdom A convention is a four-day infomercial for a political party. It’s a pep rally, a lecture series, a campaign stop and a coronation. It’s at times fantastic and fascinating. Yet at times it oscillates between dreary and unhinged. The Republicans had the irst go at it in this quadrennial, convening in Cleveland. The new king of the party, Donald Trump, plans to close out the event Thursday with a speech. The party did the real work of the convention on Tuesday — scrubbing the “presumptive” preix from Trump and oficially naming him the Republican nominee in the November election. There were a few small insurrections that tried to throw a wrench in those plans, but they did not amount to much. Some Republicans tried to mount a rules change that would have unbound delegates, meaning they could support whoever they wished and would not be forced to represent the results of their state’s primary. But the move failed to gather momentum and faltered. In another skirmish, Republicans from Alaska were incensed when their delegates — who were split between Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio — were tallied completely for Trump. One reason the skirmishes remained small was because of earlier backroom rules ights that closed the door on the “Never Trump” factions. Those rules committees have helped pave the way for a number of U.S. presidents, and dumped “presumptive” nominees who had garnered more primary votes. In 1952, Robert Taft entered the convention as the GOP favorite, but late-entering Dwight Eisenhower supporters used an early rules committee hearing to test the waters for an overthrow. The waters proved warm, the GOP traded out Taft for Einsenhower, and Ike went on to serve two terms as president. There were a few other noticeable moments of disagreement and discord in the 2016 edition, but conventions are for creating an environment and a narrative to make a nominee look presidential. There has been little political drama in the GOP convention, but plenty of the personal kind. Melania Trump lifted portions of her speech from Michelle Obama, but what was even more damaging was her admission that she “always liked” the current First Lady. You could almost hear the shudder echo through the arena when that went public. Then there was the long line of Trump detractors who have since climbed aboard the bandwagon. Rick Perry once called Trump a “cancer,” yet endorsed him. Not everyone got in line — there are no Bushes in the Buckeye State, and Governor John Kasich has made himself scarce. Ted Cruz could barely bring himself to utter Trump’s name and very clearly did not disappoint. Barbara Bush said in an interview Tuesday: “I don’t know how women can vote for Trump.” Conventions, by their nature, are not places for balanced debates. Republicans — and their nominee — get four days to make their best argument about the future of the country. Next week, Democrats get their opportunity. But we can learn things from conventions, mostly about how a political party deines itself. This year, both parties are deining themselves mostly in opposition to the other: Republicans are anti- Hillary and Democrats anti-Trump. Which is a reminder that conventions are extravagant infomercials. You must watch with a critical eye and realize that, like every As Seen On TV pitch, the problems are not that bad and the solutions are not that easy. 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. C LEVELAND — One of the last mild next to those mentioned by Rick times you saw Ted Cruz, lames Perry, who called Trump “a barking were shooting from his head carnival act” and “a cancer” before and spittle was lying from his mouth endorsing him and showing up in — metaphorically, at least — as he support of him here. And it’s not just Trump who brings branded Donald Trump “a pathological out the squish in politicians. Their liar,” “a serial philanderer,” “utterly spines jellify in all sorts of situations. amoral” and a “narcissist” on a level Remember Marco Rubio’s this country had seldom seen. It was Frank insistence that he’d be leaving the the day of Indiana’s Republican Bruni Senate after 2016? In May he gave primary, Trump had just insinuated a Comment his latest guarantee, tweeting: “I have connection between Cruz’s father and only said like 10,000 times I will be a the assassination of John F. Kennedy, private citizen in January.” and Cruz announced that Rubio wasn’t just resolute; he must at long last tell the he was labbergasted that world “what I really think” anyone could doubt his of Trump. resoluteness. As it turns But when you saw out, though, a vow doesn’t the Texas senator on the become an ironclad convention stage here on guarantee until it’s made Wednesday night, that 20,000 times. In June, he contempt and candor was announced his candidacy for absent. He may not exactly re-election. have praised Trump, but Pranksters write he swallowed whatever in disappearing ink; misgivings he still feels, politicians speak in it. And and his presence alone was that certainly includes taken by some viewers as a Democrats — Evan Bayh, gesture of implicit, tentative for one. When he left the support. Senate six years ago, he It is also an example of did so in an indignant, what he always says he can’t operatically aggrieved stand about other politicians fashion, describing it as and what voters loathe as hopelessly partisan and well: the elasticity of their corrupted by money and convictions, the urgency of outside inluences. He then their self-interest and the alacrity with which they take an eraser to their joined the outside inluencers, going to work for a lobbying and law irm. But he apparently past words. missed all that partisanship and corruption, There’s a lot of erasing going on these because now he wants back in. The negative days, and Trump is a big reason. For many ads write themselves. Republicans, rallying round him means Cruz isn’t up for re-election to the Senate conveniently forgetting how much they until 2018, but what’s on his mind is 2020. disagreed with or even detested him before, a He clearly began plotting his comeback the breach much wider than the one that typically moment he exited the Republican primaries. exists between opponents within a political His convention speech will be a part of it and party. warrants careful study as a road map to where Mike Pence had to do a memory purge he thinks the post-Trump GOP is headed. so complete it may well constitute a He has even repaired his pride (to lobotomy. Once upon a time he deemed the extent that it ever needs repair) and Trump’s proposal to ban all Muslims from reasserted his dominance by coming up with entering the United States “offensive and unconstitutional,” but Trump’s slight tweak to a conspiracy theory for how the Republican nomination was actually stolen from that — a focus on immigrants from Muslim- him — by the news media! As he explained heavy countries that seem to be fertile for to Politico’s Glenn Thrush: “I think many terrorists — is something Pence now praises. of the mainstream media players are liberal People say the vice presidency is a miserable Democrats. They intend to vote for Hillary. job, but what misery politicians go through in They believed Donald was the easiest pursuit of it. candidate for Hillary to beat. And I think many Pence is also among the large crowd of of them wanted him to win the nomination. I lawmakers whom Trump savages for having don’t think it was innocent decision-making supported the invasion of Iraq. He’s an advocate of the trade deals that Trump mocks. behind this.” I take back what I wrote earlier about his And in that Indiana primary? Pence endorsed ickleness. He is 100 percent constant — in his Cruz. But now he’s all aboard and all about adoration and exaltation of Ted Cruz. the good ship Trump, because it has the ■ plusher staterooms and is sailing toward the Frank Bruni, an Op-Ed columnist for The snazzier port. New York Times since June 2011, joined the I shouldn’t beat up on Pence. Whatever paper in 1995. reservations he expressed about Trump were Cruz isn’t up for re-election to the Senate until 2018, but what’s on his mind is 2020. He clearly began plotting his comeback the moment he exited the Republican primaries. OTHER VIEWS Building homes in Pendleton could bring jobs C ompletion of an up-to-date attract business investment when you study of Pendleton housing is have decent housing than to persuade good news. Although housing yourself that new business will come construction has been on the upswing, without suficient housing. many of us in town have been Until now, worrying about considerable numbers Pendleton has lacked of people who work in Pendleton a comprehensive but can’t ind housing here. Many assessment of its have long commutes and others have housing. A Tucson, Mike settled elsewhere. Forrester Arizona, company, No point in complaining about Sabino Community Comment declines in school enrollment or Development fewer shopping opportunities if we in Resources, did a Pendleton fail to provide enough apartments, Pendleton housing study in single family houses, town houses, renovated 2011, but a Sabino oficial old houses or other units for people to live in. admitted to John Turner that Same goes for new business investment his irm’s recommendations or jobs. If you have low housing vacancy in the wake of the Great rates, as Pendleton has, it is tougher to attract Recession were too businesses or their employees. conservative. Turner, who For those who prefer smaller is mayor-elect, chairs communities, the Pendleton area can’t be the Pendleton Housing beat for livability. The Pendleton personality, Committee. He and his diversity and recreation make this a special committee just submitted to place. city council a 2016 report But I wonder if some of us are so satisied from Sabino on housing that we have failed to keep up with the along with comments from times: The need to refurbish old housing and the Pendleton Housing Committee. changes in demographics, for examples. The new Sabino report contains new You can argue that new or renovated information on Pendleton’s housing situation: housing should wait for expanded business sizes of the various classes of housing in town. But it seems to me that it’s easier to inventories, how incomes inluence decisions on renting and buying housing units. As Pendleton tries to meet housing needs, the city will now have a 50-page report to hand to builders, lenders and others. The report also suggests to the city a few Pendleton housing priorities based on market needs I’d like to make a suggestion here: that the city try to ind a person from the housing industry — maybe retired — to do part-time contract work overseeing efforts to expand the housing inventory. There are a few components here — construction companies, subcontractors, Realtors, lenders, city planning and zoning, state and federal programs — that try to encourage certain types of housing. Some of the players are in the private sector, some in government. Seems to me that a person with some of that experience plus ability to work with others could be a deinite plus for housing in Pendleton. He or she could be a liaison among the parties. Even working No point in complaining about declining school enrollment or shuttered business if we fail to provide enough places for people to live. just one day a week could help. The alternative is to assign city staff, including the city manager, to tend to bridging gaps among the various parties. I think such an arrangement sometimes works out better on paper than on the ground. Because of the importance of housing to this town and because of the complex process, the right part-time overseer could help. The new Sabino report helps pave the way to make more housing headway. ■ Mike Forrester is a member of the EO Media Group board of directors and former editor of the East Oregonian. He lives in Pendleton. LETTERS POLICY 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 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.
