Page 4A
OPINION
East Oregonian
Thursday, February 2, 2017
OTHER VIEWS
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
Conservative questions
for the new president
F
orgive those of us still
with little vetting itself and
reeling in the aftermath
with no better articulation
of inauguration day,
from the president. Even
unsure what to make of
high-ranking Republicans like
the beginning of Donald J.
Paul Ryan were not apprised
Trump’s presidency.
of the order before Trump put
I don’t mean Democrats,
his pen to paper.
understandably shaken by
Taken alone, the ban could
the turn of events in which
be held up for scrutiny, giving
Daniel
an ideological hero was
Wattenburger those of us not predisposed
replaced by his near exact
to take any president at his
Comment
opposite in the White House.
word a chance to consider the
What I mean is those of us
implications. But the fast and
who generally find common ground
furious first dozen days in office have
between our values and the Republican
given no chance for luxuries like careful
Party platform, but who feel the party
consideration. And forget talking about
has been duped and co-opted to a point
the order to build a border wall at a cost
where a candidate like Trump can go
of $12-$15 billion and possibly kick
from dismissed to tolerated to celebrated
off a trade war with Mexico, because
to staunchly defended in less than eight
that was so last week. Or Cabinet picks,
months.
many of whom should raise red flags
If you squint, 2017 is a banner year
for all Americans, regardless of political
for conservative-minded people — the
affiliation. Or the claims of massive,
voting base that Trump courted
democracy-shattering voter fraud he has
effectively enough to add to his more
yet to factually support in any real way.
extreme backers and win the election.
It’s felt like a shock and awe
The Oval Office and both chambers of
campaign, much like Trump’s bid for
Congress are controlled by Republicans,
the White House, designed to keep
and Tuesday’s announcement of Neil
opponents guessing, critics preoccupied
Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme
and everyone else unsure what to believe.
Court is evidence that the new president
It has invigorated the fan base but
is willing to follow through with his
hasn’t grown the support of people who
promise to keep a conservative majority
reluctantly voted for him, and especially
on America’s highest court.
those who lean conservative but couldn’t
find the stomach to support him on the
But if you stop squinting, the clearer
ballot.
picture is a deeply troubling — a selling
Those in the latter categories are
out of real conservative values in
exchange for a few scraps of policy. And desperately hanging on, wondering
why a president with an amenable
the cost is handing over our country’s
Congress would force such chaotic
leadership to a man unfit for the task.
policy instead of letting the government
There has been ample opportunity
work the way it’s supposed to when
since Election Day for Trump to prove
otherwise to those of us uneasy about his one party is ruling — with debated and
proactive lawmaking. We’re certainly
administration. The only honest defense
embarrassed by the Twitter tirades and
of his tactics is to admit we like to see
petty misinformation coming out of the
eye-poking and grandstanding, and to
defend his policy is to embrace the chaos White House.
And we’re concerned about the ability
of a man who has no patience for sifting
of this administration to effectively
through his own thoughts, much less the
handle an actual crisis, which certainly
advice of experts and certainly not the
will arise one way or another in the next
views of dissenters.
four years.
Some applaud his unwillingness
Trump’s assertion that he alone
to temper his approach — and it is,
admittedly, a break from politics as usual can fix this country seems be the only
— but his impulsive and ego-driven style steadfast pillar of his belief system. And
of all the principles that draw me toward
of leadership is creating a disconcerting
amount of disarray that should give us all conservative ideology, it is the belief that
government is responsible to the people
pause.
instead of the people being reliant on the
As a quick example, take the travel
government. Trump may present himself
ban issued at the end of last week.
as the restorer of conservative American
White House spokesman Sean Spicer
values, but has yet to exhibit he grasps
did his best to pitch the executive order
that basic principle.
as simply a measure to better evaluate
All conservatives should have trouble
the potential threat of people coming
swallowing that pill, even if it cures a
into our country. But Trump himself has
continued to call it a ban, and specifically few of the ailments that have bothered
them over the past eight years.
a Muslim ban, which would make it
■
clearly unconstitutional. Meanwhile, the
Daniel Wattenburger is the managing
implementation of the order created mass
confusion as it was (ironically) rolled out editor of the East Oregonian.
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.
OTHER VIEWS
State is $1.8 billion short
The (Salem) Statesman Journal
B
aseball, football and basketball
fans should be familiar with the
game “You Make the Call.”
It’s where armchair athletes second-
guess rulings made by umpires, officials
and referees.
In February, Oregon’s Democratic
lawmakers will offer residents their own
version of the game as they host six or
seven town halls around the state. The
Legislative Assembly members plan to
crisscross the state, informing the public
about a $1.8 billion budget shortfall, and
getting public opinion on ways to cut
spending and increase revenue.
Required by the state constitution
to balance a 2-year budget by the time
the session adjourns, Oregon Senate
President Peter Courtney and Oregon
House Speaker Tina Kotek hope the
public sessions will give them ideas for
spreading the pain. Courtney warned the
Statesman Journal editorial board that
special sessions will be required because
painful cuts are inevitable and no one
wants to talk about them.
“This is going to be a very tough
job,” Courtney said. “We try to get it
done early so the more than 190 school
districts across the state know how
much they have to spend, but there’s no
avoiding this starting point.”
Passing out copies of a summary of
the Joint Ways & Means Committee
co-chairs’ “Existing Resources Budget
Framework” for the 2017-2019
biennium, Kotek and Courtney used it
to illustrate how the budget currently
shapes up using general and lottery
funds. It also shows proposed cuts. They
emphasized that in some cases, cutting
state support for critical programs
triggers a reduction in federal funding.
The end result is that losses to
Oregonians could add up.
On the chopping block are education
at all levels, health care, Department of
Human Services and public safety. Also
subject to the swing of the state knife
are the judicial, natural resources and
transportation departments, to name a
few. Deficits ranged from 1.4 percent to
27.5 percent.
No department was spared.
Sen. Ted Ferrioli, the Senate’s
minority leader, agreed there would
need to be a reduction in spending and
an increase in revenue, but he said Gov.
Kate Brown’s budget was flawed.
“I found the governor’s budget
exceptionally cynical when it calls for
cuts in services to veterans and seniors
and yet comes up with a $145 million
pay raise for state employees,” Ferrioli
said.
He also said Republicans can support
a transportation package and PERS
reform, but both come with caveats.
He believes the new session offers the
opportunity for decisive action.
That’s where Oregonians come in.
Instead of sitting in an armchair
and carping about the lazy legislature,
inefficient state leadership and overpaid
lobbyists, attend a town hall and bring
suggestions for reducing spending.
Consider options you refused to
entertain previously.
Trump’s radical approach to
immigration: Enforce the law
T
here’s one fundamental
could be a lengthy removal process.
difference between the new
The Trump interior enforcement order
White House and the old when
allows removal paperwork to begin
it comes to immigration: Barack
at the time an illegal immigrant is
Obama ordered his administration not
charged, on the reasonable assumption
to enforce a number of immigration
that a person who is in the United
laws. Donald Trump has ordered his
States illegally to begin with, and
administration to enforce them.
is then charged with at least one
Trump’s two immigration executive
additional crime, does not have a right
Byron
orders, issued last Wednesday, are
to stay in the country indefinitely.
York
long, far-reaching, and complicated.
4) Follow the law in deporting
Comment
But perhaps the most consequential
“removable” illegal immigrants.
passage in the two combined orders is
“We cannot faithfully execute the
a single sentence: “The purpose of this order is immigration laws of the United States if we
to direct executive departments and agencies
exempt classes or categories of removable
to employ all lawful means to enforce the
aliens from potential enforcement,” the order
immigration laws of the
on interior enforcement
United States.”
says, referring to illegal
That is the heart of
immigrants who have been
Trump’s immigration
convicted of crimes, and
strategy. “We do not need
in some cases deported
new laws,” the president
multiple times, only to
said at the Department
return to commit more
of Homeland Security
crimes and endanger local
Wednesday. “We will work
communities. “I hereby
within the existing system
direct agencies to employ
and framework.”
all lawful means to ensure
Trump’s proposal
the faithful execution of
to build a wall on the
the immigration laws of
Mexican border dominated
the United States against
coverage of the two
all removable aliens.”
executive orders. But the
5) Stop automatically
orders do much, much
allowing asylum seekers
more than that — or at
to stay while their
least they start the process
cases are considered.
of doing much, much
Thousands of people come
more. For those who
to U.S. ports of entry along
follow immigration closely, the Trump orders
the Mexican border from places like Haiti,
contain several critical provisions. Among
India, China, and elsewhere — all claiming
them:
asylum. The Obama administration allowed
1) End “catch and release.” In the Obama them to stay in the country while their cases
years, as thousands of people, mostly from
were adjudicated. Many simply skipped out on
Central America, crossed the Mexican border
the process and stayed permanently. The new
illegally — and made no effort to escape
executive order would require those asylum
apprehension, asking for a “permiso” to stay
seekers to apply for asylum and then wait for
— the border authorities would briefly detain
a decision not in the U.S., but in Mexico or
them, give them a date to show up in court,
Canada. Then, if they are allowed in, they’re
and let them go. The practice was known as
in. But if asylum is not granted, they won’t
“catch and release.”
have been permitted to disappear into the
It did not take a rocket scientist to predict
United States.
that most, now safely inside the U.S., would
6) Inform the public. In the Obama years
not show up for court. With family units
it was sometimes hard to find good statistics
who arrived in that fashion, immigration
about illegal immigrants who were accused
court statistics gathered by the Center for
of crimes. Trump seeks to change that. From
Immigration Studies (a group which favors
the interior enforcement order: “To promote
tighter immigration restrictions), reveal that 84 the transparency and situational awareness
percent do not show up in court.
of criminal aliens in the United States, the
Under Trump’s new directive, the
Secretary (of DHS) and the Attorney General
Department of Homeland Security will now
are hereby directed to collect relevant
detain those illegal crossers and handle their
data and provide quarterly reports on the
cases on the spot. “The Secretary (of DHS)
following: (a) the immigration status of all
shall immediately take all appropriate actions
aliens incarcerated under the supervision
to ensure the detention of aliens apprehended
of the Federal Bureau of Prisons; (b) the
for violations of immigration law,” the order
immigration status of all aliens incarcerated as
on border enforcement says, “pending the
federal pretrial detainees under the supervision
outcome of their removal proceedings or
of the United States Marshals Service; and
their removal from the country to the extent
(c) the immigration status of all convicted
permitted by law.”
aliens incarcerated in state prisons and local
2) Put pressure on “sanctuary cities.”
detention centers throughout the United
“Sanctuary jurisdictions across the United
States.”
States willfully violate Federal law in an
The new statistics could give researchers,
attempt to shield aliens from removal from the and the general public, a much better idea of
United States,” the Trump order on interior
the extent of crimes involving suspects in the
enforcement says. The order would give the
country illegally.
Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland
Trump’s orders stop short of measures
Security the authority to determine “that
that would require the approval of Congress,
jurisdictions that willfully refuse to comply
such as resetting the numbers of immigrants
with (federal law) are not eligible to receive
allowed to enter the country each year.
federal grants, except as deemed necessary
But they still go a long way. And the early
for law enforcement purposes by the Attorney response among Republicans on Capitol Hill
General or the (DHS) Secretary.”
was encouraging for the new administration.
Some leaders of sanctuary cities are already
Trump will undoubtedly have proposals
promising to fight the federal government. But for Congress on immigration. But his two
some will likely yield to federal pressure — a
executive orders go a long way toward
remarkable change from the Obama years.
undoing the practices that Barack Obama
3) Speed deportations. Both the Obama
unilaterally set in place. If Trump makes sure
administration and now Trump said they
his orders are enforced, he will have kept a
want to remove illegal immigrants who
major promise to those who elected him.
have committed serious crimes. But Obama
■
waited until the immigrant in question had
Byron York is chief political correspondent
been convicted before even beginning what
for The Washington Examiner.
President Obama
ordered his
administration
not to enforce
a number of
immigration laws.
President Trump
has ordered his
administration to
enforce them.
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.
Coming Saturday: The East Oregonian will roll out a new series of commu-
nity columnists — talented writers from Athena, Echo, Helix and Pendleton.
Get their view from atop the tractor, from the headwaters of Dry Creek, from
the head of the classroom and from behind the lectern.
Their work will appear in each and every weekend edition of the EO.