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OPINION
East Oregonian
Thursday, December 8, 2016
Founded October 16, 1875
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Publisher
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Managing Editor
TIM TRAINOR
Opinion Page Editor
MARISSA WILLIAMS
Regional Advertising Director
MARCY ROSENBERG
Circulation Manager
JANNA HEIMGARTNER
Business Office Manager
MIKE JENSEN
Production Manager
OUR VIEW
Voters must make
sure Pendleton gives
marijuana a chance
The majority of Pendleton voters
included.
And the zoning rules themselves
that went to the polls in November
supported the operation and taxation go beyond the state regulations and
limit possible business locations to a
of both medical and recreational
dozen or fewer commercial spaces.
marijuana within city limits.
Perhaps most head-scratchingly,
They expected the city would take
steps, once the votes were tallied, to Pendleton proposes charging
put that democratic voice into law.
marijuana shop owners an additional
Yet the proposed
fee to process the
set of rules drafted
3 percent local tax
by the city attorney Only government that the city is owed.
and put before
Only government
can, with a
Pendleton council
can, with a straight
for the first time
face, charge you a
straight face,
Tuesday are not
for giving them
charge you a fee fee
business-friendly,
money.
and they would
unnecessary,
for giving them too. It’s According
make it exceedingly
money.
difficult to operate
to the Oregon
in the city.
Department of
Revenue, they are
The rules are
prohibitively expensive, duplicitous
happy to collect that tax and pass
with state regulations, and leave the
it along to the city. Sure, Pendleton
city vulnerable to lawsuit — thus
can do it themselves, but why set
putting local tax dollars on the line.
up that structure when only one
or two such businesses will be
A quick rundown of the
located here? Hood River will use
proposed rules include an $850
the Department of Revenue, via
non-refundable license application
a policy created by the League of
fee. Who would hand that check
Oregon Cities. The city would get
over to a city that has not shown
96 percent of the local tax under
it is open to such a business? If an
applicant is approved, the city would that arrangement.
And that’s the other thing:
then charge the business owner $550
for a recreational business and $300 lawyers for the Oregon Cannabis
Association are eyeing restrictions
for medical.
that are too onerous — which they
Such operations costs vary
will target with suits. It’s underway
throughout Oregon.
in Eugene right now. If no business
In heavily regulated Portland
can operate here, Pendleton would
(the city that, ahem, works) it costs
be vulnerable to an expensive
$975 to apply for a medical and
lawsuit.
recreational retail license. Once
The city of Pendleton, which can
that license is approved, a medical
retailer pays $3,500 a year to operate now tap into statewide marijuana
dollars, gets a bigger slice of that pie
and a recreational retailer pays
for every business that operates here.
$4,975 annually.
But in Hood River, where there is It’s better for the city’s bottom line
to have safe, successful operations
no business license, retailers pay no
right here. We bring in local tax
fee to apply and no fee to operate.
dollars and get a bigger share from
It’s the same in Grant County and
the state.
in the city of Huntington — and
The city has until Jan. 3 to put
we’ll leave it up to you to determine
their regulations in place. The
which municipality Pendleton
proposal that was read for the first
resembles more.
time Tuesday will go before the city
Pendleton also plans to require
council twice more, including at a
mandatory owner and employee
background checks, which is already Dec. 20 hearing. Pendleton voters, if
they want the city to enact their will,
a state requirement. It is unclear
should call their councilor or show
if the city plans to charge for and
up at a meeting in order to make sure
then pay for their own duplicitous
Pendleton benefits from marijuana
checks, which would raise costs for
everyone involved — city taxpayers businesses.
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
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.
OTHER VIEWS
Senate Democrats plan to ‘Ashcroft’
their good friend Jeff Sessions
T
here’s been talk among some
than Attorney General Ashcroft ... His
conservatives and Republicans
nomination will present a voluminous
that Democrats are plotting to
record spanning tens of thousands, if
“Bork” the nomination of Sen. Jeff
not hundreds of thousands of pages.”
Sessions to be attorney general. That’s
The Democrats — Patrick Leahy,
not right. What Democrats really hope
Dianne Feinstein, Richard Durbin,
to do is to “Ashcroft” the man soon-
Sheldon Whitehouse, Amy Klobuchar,
to-be Minority Leader Charles Schumer
Al Franken, Chris Coons and Richard
likes to call “my good friend from
Blumenthal — demanded that the
Byron
Alabama.” Sessions’ supporters have
committee hear from witnesses
York
expected it from the moment President-
who will discuss Sessions’ views
Comment
elect Trump made the Alabama senator
on “immigration; violence against
his first Cabinet pick.
women; civil rights, including LGBT
Sixteen years ago, John Ashcroft was a
protections; racial justice and hate crimes;
Republican senator nominated by a Republican workers’ rights; national security and civil
president who lost the popular vote but won
liberties; voting rights; criminal justice; and
the Electoral College after a particularly
government conflicts of interest, transparency
contentious election.
and oversight.”
The 2000 race also left the Senate split
Sessions will receive a “tough vetting,”
50-50, with Republican Vice President Dick
promised Schumer, Sessions’ good friend from
Cheney breaking ties. In a
New York who has taken
power-sharing arrangement,
part in many confirmation
the Judiciary Committee
hearings on the Judiciary
was evenly split, 9-to-9,
Committee but will leave
with a Republican chairman.
the panel when he becomes
If Democrats could stick
minority leader in January.
together, they could hold
Grassley is not ready to
Ashcroft to a 9-9 tie in
go along. “The confirmation
committee, which would have allowed the
process of John Ashcroft to be attorney general
nomination to go on to the full Senate, but
turned into a reckless campaign that snowballed
would also have allowed Democrats to portray
into an avalanche of innuendo, rumor and spin,”
it as a vote of no confidence in a top George W. the chairman said in a statement after meeting
Bush appointee.
Sessions on Tuesday. “That will not happen
In Judiciary Committee hearings, Democrats here.”
attacked Ashcroft furiously. They extended
“The hearings for the four most recent
the hearings to four days, called a long slate
attorneys general lasted one to two days
of outside witnesses, and attempted to portray
each,” Grassley continued. “And at each of
Ashcroft as a kind of neo-Confederate,
those hearings, three to nine outside witnesses
hyper-religious abortion fanatic who was, in the testified. Nine witnesses testified at the hearing
perennial favorite formulation of Democratic
for Attorney General Lynch, seven witnesses
attacks on Republican nominees, “insensitive”
testified at the hearings for Attorneys General
on issues of race.
Holder and Mukasey, and three witnesses
In the end, Ashcroft won the committee vote, testified at the hearing for Attorney General
10 to 8, only because Democratic Sen. Russ
Gonzales.”
Feingold, a friend of Ashcroft’s, voted to move
The bottom line from Republicans: No
the nomination to the floor as an “olive branch” Ashcrofting.
to the new administration. Democrats hated
Sessions has, of course, seen it all, from
Feingold’s apostasy, while Ashcroft, damaged
both sides. He was famously rejected by the
but alive, eventually won confirmation.
committee in 1986 when he was nominated to
Now, Republicans have a 52-48 advantage
a seat on the U.S. District Court in Alabama.
in the Senate and will likely have a one-vote
(Many Republicans believe that Sessions’
advantage when the Judiciary Committee is
confirmation fight was a Democratic trial run
formally organized in January. A party-line vote for attacking the Supreme Court nomination of
would win for Sessions. But that hasn’t stopped Robert Bork the next year, meaning Sessions
Democrats from looking back to the Ashcroft
was borked before Bork.)
precedent when, without a majority, they
Sessions went on to win a Senate seat in
managed to beat up one of the new president’s
1996, took a place on the Judiciary Committee,
nominees.
and was a vocal advocate for Ashcroft in
In a letter Monday to Sen. Chuck Grassley,
the committee in 2001. He knows what is
the Republican chairman of the Judiciary
coming. But he also knows votes, and this time
Committee, eight Democrats currently on
Republicans on the committee will have more
the committee argued that Sessions’ hearings
votes than Democrats. The GOP can exercise
should be at least as long and involved as
more control over the hearing and witnesses
Ashcroft’s.
than they could in the 9-to-9 days of the
“John Ashcroft was a senator for only
Ashcroft nomination. If Sessions can keep the
six years, serving on this committee until
support of all the Republicans on the committee
just before he was nominated to be attorney
— and there is no indication so far that any will
general,” the Democrats wrote. “His
defect — he won’t face a repeat of the Ashcroft
confirmation hearings required four days, and
experience.
included testimony from four members of
■
Congress and 19 additional outside witnesses.
Byron York is the White House correspondent
Senator Sessions has served nearly 20 years
for National Review and the author of “The Vast
in the Senate, more than three times longer
Left Wing Conspiracy.”
Sessions has
seen it all —
from both sides.
OTHER VIEWS
Say what, Al Gore, Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump?
G
ood for Al Gore for meeting
with Donald Trump on
Monday. Good for Ivanka
Trump for inviting Gore to come
in for a talk on climate change, and
good for President-elect Trump for
embracing the encounter.
Alas, though, a single meeting
does not an environmental policy
make; skepticism is in order. The
ultimate proof will only come from
the appointments Trump makes for
his key environmental and energy
jobs and the direction he gives them
— whether to press ahead with U.S.
leadership on mitigating climate
change and introducing clean energy
and efficiency standards, or abandon
that role, as Trump previously
indicated he might, and try to revive
the U.S. coal industry and unleash
more drilling for fossil fuels from
sea to shining sea.
Ivanka clearly has an influence
on her father’s thinking, and the fact
that she went out of her way to set
up a meeting with
Gore, who has
done more to alert
the world to the
perils of climate
change than anyone
else on the planet,
and the fact that
Thomas Gore described
Friedman the meeting as “a
sincere search for
Comment
areas of common
ground … to be
continued,” offer a glimmer of hope.
When my publisher had Trump
in to The Times recently, it became
clear to me that very few people
had thought he would win the
election, and so the people who
were gathered around him for the
last year and a half were not exactly
America’s best and brightest.
Extreme, long-shot campaigns
often attract a Star Wars bar
collection of extreme opportunists
and conspiracy theorists — and the
Trump campaign was the Good Ship
Lollipop for many such types.
For a man who seems to learn
mostly from those in his friendship
circle, or from TV news shows, such
an unbalanced team made many of
Trump’s bad instincts worse. Some
of those characters were from the
coal and oil industries, and they saw
in Trump their last chance to kill the
renewable energy revolution at a
time when many other Republicans
were already moving on.
One hopes that Ivanka is telling
her father that nothing would force
his critics — in America and abroad
— to give him a second look more
than if he names serious scientists to
the key environmental jobs.
And I suspect that Trump himself
discovered during the campaign
that outside of the U.S.’ coal-
mining regions, a vast majority of
Americans understand not only that
human-generated climate change is
real — but also that when residents
of both Beijing and New Delhi
can’t breathe, clean energy systems
will become the next great global
industry. They represent a huge
manufacturing export market.
It would be flat-out crazy for
America to give up its leadership in
this field by turning back to burning
dirty lumps of coal when wind and
solar are beginning to beat fossil
fuels in price without subsidies.
I don’t expect Trump to abandon
his effort to increase oil drilling
or to ban coal. But I laud Gore
for trying to work with him on
this issue, because if Trump was
to embrace the science of climate
change, it would be game over for
the fossilized climate deniers who
remain in his own party. (Many
Republican lawmakers would be
relieved.) It’s also probably his
single best peacetime possibility to
unite Americans.
A fantasy? Maybe. But it is
worth remembering how the last
Republican administration evolved.
Texas oilman George W. Bush
went from shocking the world by
announcing a U.S. withdrawal from
the Kyoto climate treaty to embracing
“wind and solar” and calling for
Americans “to address the serious
challenge of climate change” in his
2007 State of the Union address.
Bush also appointed experts in
environmental law and practitioners
and directed them to promote clean
energy through bipartisan legislation
and regulation that remain the basis
of a lot of policy today. Bush decried
the fact that America was “addicted
to oil” and ended up creating a
“major emitters” conference that
helped pave the way for the Paris
climate agreement.
In short, I am not sure Trump
realizes all this — that impugning
climate science and just unleashing
coal and oil would be a departure
from the last two Republican
administrations.