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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 6, 2016)
Page 6A OPINION East Oregonian Tuesday, September 6, 2016 Founded October 16, 1875 KATHRYN B. BROWN DANIEL WATTENBURGER Publisher Managing Editor JANNA HEIMGARTNER TIM TRAINOR Business Offi ce Manager Opinion Page Editor OUR VIEW OTHER VIEWS Clinton gets Gored EO Media Group fi le photo A sign posted in Jordan Valley opposes the Owyhee Canyonlands National Monument in Malheur County. Jordan Valley is nearly surrounded by the proposed monument. Blumenauer widens urban-rural divide Ow Ore. Idaho You have to hand it to U.S. Rep. County voters opposed the monument proposal in a county-wide advisory Earl Blumenauer. He’s not afraid to take a stand, especially when the issue vote. In essence, Blumenauer is telling will have zero impact on his district and when the victims will be hundreds rural Oregonians that their opinion doesn’t matter, and neither do their of miles away. The Portland Democrat sent a letter businesses, many of which have been to President Barack Obama recently in Malheur County since long before urging him to use he and his Portland the Antiquities Act friends ever heard to establish the of it. Area in 2.5 million-acre There is a detail Owyhee National lot of talk these Ore. Monument. days about the BAKER 84 The law allows urban-rural divide, 95 a president to about how urban 26 unilaterally folks lack an designate a national understanding of Ontario Proposed national monument, which rural areas. These conservation area forbids multiple same people say Nyssa use of the land. rural residents need The act is often to understand the used by lame needs of urban ducks to shove folks. such designations But when it down the throats comes right down r of local residents to it, urban residents ive 78 and curry favor say they have the with environmental votes, and whether Jordan groups. rural residents Valley The distance agree or not, that’s from Portland tough. That’s Burns Junction to the proposed Blumenauer’s monument: 368 stand, and the stand 95 miles. of others who want “A growing the canyonlands statewide coalition “protected” from of local citizens, the generations of Ore. McDermitt businesses, Oregonians who Nev. conservation have ranched there. N 95 organizations, Blumenauer, in 20 miles recreational his support for the Alan Kenaga/Capital Press Owyhee National interests, sportsmen, and Monument, just other diverse partners support made the urban-rural divide wider. permanent protection of the Owyhee He demonstrated — again — that the Canyonlands,” Blumenauer wrote to wants of Portland’s elites outweigh Obama. the needs of rural Oregonians. But, he wrote, “there are some The next time you hear folks talk local interests who are opposed to about the need for urban and rural such a designation.” Oregonians to listen to one another, The “local interests” are Malheur remember that, on issues such as this, County residents, including ranchers urbanites only seem to hear what they and others who for generations have want. depended on the canyonlands area Blumenauer mentions the to graze cattle. They fear grazing possibility of a “win-win” solution for and other economic activities would all communities in Malheur County ultimately be banned if the monument should the area be set aside as a were designated. That would most playland for hikers and campers. likely put them out of business. What he really means is “We win, Last spring, 90 percent of Malheur you lose.” Idaho Ore. 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. A Now, any operation that raises and mericans of a certain age spends billions of dollars creates the who follow politics and potential for confl icts of interest. You policy closely still have vivid could imagine the Clintons using the memories of the 2000 election — bad foundation as a slush fund to reward memories, and not just because the man their friends, or, alternatively, Hillary who lost the popular vote somehow Clinton using her positions in public ended up in offi ce. For the campaign offi ce to reward donors. So it was leading up to that end game was right and appropriate to investigate the nightmarish too. Paul You see, one candidate, George Krugman foundation’s operations to see if there were any improper quid pro quos. As W. Bush, was dishonest in a way that Comment reporters like to say, the sheer size of was unprecedented in U.S. politics. the foundation “raises questions.” Most notably, he proposed big tax But nobody seems willing to accept the cuts for the rich while insisting, in raw denial answers to those questions, which are, very of arithmetic, that they were targeted for the clearly, “no.” middle class. These campaign lies presaged Consider the big Associated Press report what would happen during his administration — an administration that, let us not forget, took suggesting that Hillary Clinton’s meetings with foundation donors while secretary of America to war on false pretenses. state indicate “her possible Yet throughout the ethics challenges if elected campaign most media I would urge president.” Given the tone coverage gave the impression of the report, you might that Bush was a bluff, journalists to ask have expected to read about straightforward guy, while whether they are meetings with, say, brutal portraying Al Gore — whose dictators or corporate policy proposals added up, reporting facts or foreign fat cats facing indictment, and whose critiques of the Bush plan were completely simply engaging in followed by questionable actions on their behalf. accurate — as slippery innuendo, and urge But the prime example and dishonest. Gore’s The AP actually offered was mendacity was supposedly the public to read of Hillary Clinton meeting demonstrated by trivial anecdotes, none signifi cant, with a critical eye. with Muhammad Yunus, a winner of the Nobel Peace some of them simply false. Prize who also happens to be No, he never claimed to have a longtime personal friend. If that was the best invented the internet. But the image stuck. And right now I and many others have the the investigation could come up with, there was sick, sinking feeling that it’s happening again. nothing there. True, there aren’t many efforts to pretend So I would urge journalists to ask whether that Donald Trump is a paragon of honesty. they are reporting facts or simply engaging But it’s hard to escape the impression that he’s in innuendo, and urge the public to read with being graded on a curve. If he manages to read a critical eye. If reports about a candidate from a TelePrompter without going off script, talk about how something “raises questions,” he’s being presidential. If he seems to suggest creates “shadows,” or anything similar, be that he wouldn’t round up all 11 million aware that these are all too often weasel words undocumented immigrants right away, he’s used to create the impression of wrongdoing moving into the mainstream. And many of his out of thin air. multiple scandals, like what appear to be clear And here’s a pro tip: the best ways to judge payoffs to state attorneys general to back off a candidate’s character are to look at what he investigating Trump University, get remarkably or she has actually done, and what policies he little attention. or she is proposing. Trump’s record of bilking Meanwhile, we have the presumption students, stiffi ng contractors and more is a that anything Hillary Clinton does must be good indicator of how he’d act as president; corrupt, most spectacularly illustrated by the Hillary Clinton’s speaking style and body increasingly bizarre coverage of the Clinton language aren’t. George W. Bush’s policy lies Foundation. gave me a much better handle on who he was Step back for a moment, and think about than all the up-close-and-personal reporting of what that foundation is about. When Bill 2000, and the contrast between Trump’s policy Clinton left offi ce, he was a popular, globally incoherence and Hillary Clinton’s carefulness respected fi gure. What should he have done speaks volumes today. with that reputation? Raising large sums for In other words, focus on the facts. America a charity that saves the lives of poor children and the world can’t afford another election sounds like a pretty reasonable, virtuous course tipped by innuendo. of action. And the Clinton Foundation is, by ■ all accounts, a big force for good in the world. Paul Krugman joined The New York Times For example, Charity Watch, an independent in 1999 as a columnist on the Op-Ed Page watchdog, gives it an “A” rating — better than and continues as professor of Economics and the American Red Cross. International Affairs at Princeton University. OTHER VIEWS QB battle of a different kind The (Minneapolis) Star Tribune, Aug. 29 n NFL quarterback’s recent sideline protest is a reminder that for all of the beauty of the principles enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, the exercise of them in real life can often be offensive. On Friday, Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers refused to stand for the national anthem before a game, saying he would not “show pride in a fl ag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” His action, which garnered headlines and understandable ire, is another in the long tradition of athletes leveraging their sports spotlight to make a statement. The “Black Power” salute during the 1968 Olympics medal ceremony may well be the most memorable of these moments. And Muhammad Ali refused to fi ght in Vietnam, a decision he defended by decrying racism. Kaepernick’s protest is a textbook example of a citizen exercising the freedom of expression that the First Amendment guarantees every American. He also did not violate NFL policy, which encourages rather than requires players to stand for “The Star-Spangled Banner.” And yet, his protest felt like a kick in the gut to many. Here is someone who has become unbelievably wealthy in a system he is now decrying. His right to criticize that system — a right that should not be questioned — has nevertheless been paid for in blood many times over by those who fought for our nation. A Although the military defends our values and our people — not a song or a fl ag — it was still stomach-churning for many Americans to watch Kaepernick disrespect these two treasured symbols. One of the greatest achievements of this country is that freedoms aren’t reserved only for the wealthy or powerful. That means fans are free to have an opinion and, in turn, that means Kaepernick will have to face the consequences of his action. That’s likely to include lost endorsements, less lucrative contacts and, yes, some serious booing when the 49ers go on the road. The quarterback is lucky that his team’s schedule doesn’t include the Philadelphia Eagles, whose fans are notorious for their brutal razzing of opposing athletes. But a cautionary note for Kaepernick’s critics is in order as the controversy continues. It’s fi ne to express opinions on social media or in news story comments. But it’s important to do so in a civil manner. The digital age’s new public forums regrettably have brought out the worst in some people. Facebook reaction to the Star Tribune’s Kaepernick story included profanity, a call for him to be deported and a number of people saying they hoped he’d be injured. Whether it’s the Kaepernick protest or the political news of the day, no discussion is served by spitefulness or personal attacks. Self-policing on social media, especially with this fall’s election, is also in order. If you wouldn’t want your mom to see it, don’t post it.
