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OPINION
East Oregonian
Tuesday, March 21, 2017
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
GOP should learn from
Obamacare’s failures
Congress’ proposed alternative to
population to 15 percent. That is
because of bureaucratic hurdles
Obamacare would not force anyone
imposed by the American Health
off the Oregon Health Plan. Let’s be
Care Act, as well as reduced subsidies
clear about that.
and Oregon’s inability to cover the
But let’s be equally clear:
Hundreds of thousands of Oregonians increased costs.
The Republican plan would repeal
could lose their health insurance.
and replace the Affordable Care Act,
That contradiction exists because
which had little to do with health-care
the so-called American Health
reform either. The reform was in
Care Act is not health-care reform.
insurance coverage, although Oregon
It is financial reform, or at least
was able to improve
change. The plan put
while reducing
forth by congressional
Oregon’s view care
price hikes. The key
Republicans and the
Gov. Kate Brown
was the establishment
Trump administration
released a report
of coordinated care
would slash federal
last week about the
organizations, whose
spending on health care,
American Health
collaborative model
shifting much of that
Care Act and its
of overall health care
responsibility to the
potential impact on
Oregonians. To read reduced emergency
states.
Still, it’s disingenuous the report, go online room visits and hospital
to 95PercentOregon. admissions. On the other
for Republicans to
com, and click on
hand, Cover Oregon was
say no one would be
News and Updates.
an expensive fiasco, and
kicked off Medicaid, or
it is still costing Oregon
for Democrats to say
money.
millions of Americans would be, as
The Affordable Care Act and the
if those outcomes were guaranteed.
As with the health plan’s predecessor new congressional plan share other
similarities — unfortunate ones,
— the Affordable Care Act, or
starting with lack of clarity at the
Obamacare — no one knows what
outset.
will happen.
Changes in the American Health
The question for Congress and
Care Act are likely because the
the American people comes down to
current proposal appears to please no
how much our government should
spend on health coverage for low- and one. Conservatives in the Republican
congressional majority contend
moderate-income Americans.
the plan remains too much like
If states have the money — which
Obamacare. Minority Democrats
few, if any, will — they could
complain that it undoes Obamacare’s
continue serving all their Medicaid
good points.
recipients. In Oregon, where most
Unfortunately, congressional
Medicaid coverage is through the
Republicans appear ready to follow
Oregon Health Plan, that could cost
the Democrats’ bad example and
the state an additional $2.6 billion
ram their health-finance plan down
over five years. That is why state
the throats of the opposition. That
officials say as many as 375,000
people could lose Oregon Health Plan strategy resulted in the Affordable
Care Act we currently have — a mix
coverage by 2023.
of flaws, successes and uncertainties.
Democratic Gov. Kate Brown
A Republican plan that follows a
said last week that the number of
similar unilateral approach will yield
uninsured Oregonians would triple,
a similar outcome.
from the current 5 percent of the
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.
YOUR VIEWS
Strong schools create
strong community bonds
When my family and I first visited
Hermiston in 2008 to decide whether
to accept a job in the area, one of our
deliberate stops was a visit to the school
district. Since our only child was in high
school and her education was one of our
primary concerns, we couldn’t imagine
relocating to a place with an inferior
school district.
To say that we were impressed by
the Hermiston School District wouldn’t
adequately capture the favorable
opinion that we formed after a 2½ hour
visit with the superintendent and high
school principal. Even though it was the
third day of the new school year, they
dedicated significant quality time giving
us a tour of the facilities, letting us visit
classes in session, and answering all our
questions.
That time spent at the high school
was a major factor in our deciding
to move to Hermiston. Our daughter
graduated from Hermiston High School,
subsequently graduated from Corban
University, and then moved back to the
area.
The quality of education that
Hermiston area children have available
is remarkable, and our schools really are
at the heart of who we are as a thriving
community. With projected enrollment
growth of 800 students in the next
six years, we must continue to invest
in our schools if area families in the
future are going to have access to the
same experience we did when we first
considered Hermiston as the place to live
our lives.
I strongly encourage you to invest in
the future by supporting our school bond
this May.
Joseph Franell
Hermiston
Western meadowlark
no flighty symbol
Thank you for posting Jade
McDowell’s article in the East
Oregonian making us aware of the
importance of Oregon’s state symbols.
Senator Bill Hansell (R-Athena)
understands the importance of state
symbols and would make an excellent
standard bearing for one symbol that I
care deeply about — our state bird, the
Western meadowlark.
How important is our Western
meadowlark? According to the Oregon
Blue Book, the official state fact book
about all levels of government in
Oregon, “The Western Meadowlark
was chosen as the state bird in 1927
by Oregon’s school children in a poll
sponsored by the Oregon Audubon
Society. The governor then proclaimed it
to be the official state bird. It is the only
Oregon symbol not officially chosen
by the Oregon Legislature.” (Source:
bluebook.state.or.us).
The U.S breeding population of
Western meadowlarks has declined by
50 percent between 1966 and 2014,
according to the North American
Breeding Bird Survey. The species
rates a 10 out of 20 on the Continental
Concern Score and was not listed on
the 2014 State of the Birds Watch List
(Source: Cornell Lab of Ornithology).
On February 25th the EO reported
that Senator Fred Girod (R-Stayton)
proposed replacing the state bird with
the osprey. Although the osprey is an
admirable species, its choice as Oregon’s
state bird has one fatal flaw: Every
single osprey in Oregon migrates out of
the state each year and flies to its winter
range in Mexico and Central America.
The thought had occurred to me, “Why
would Oregonians choose a state bird
that is only in the state six months out of
every year?” Surely, at the very least, we
can select a species to enjoy that is here
year-round!
Maintaining our meadowlark as the
state bird would (1) honor the legacy
of Oregon’s 1927 school children and
(2) bring awareness of the decline of
this species to the citizens of Senator
Hansell’s district.
By sheer coincidence, yesterday
morning while walking through our
pasture here on the Umatilla Indian
Reservation, I heard the first flutelike
melody of 2017 ring out from this
distinctive species and it definitely
brightened my day ... surely spring can’t
be far behind, can it?
Jack Simons
Pendleton
OTHER VIEWS
‘That food saved my life’
F
irst, a quiz: What is the most
In the United States, humanitarian
important crisis in the world
aid has been a bipartisan tradition, and
today?
the champion among recent presidents
A.) President Trump’s false
was George W. Bush, who started
tweets that President Barack Obama
programs to fight AIDS and malaria
wiretapped him.
that saved millions of lives. Bush and
B.) President Trump’s war on the
other presidents recognized that the
news media.
reasons to help involve not only our
C.) Looming famine that threatens
Nicholas values, but also our interests.
20 million people in four countries.
Think what the greatest security
Kristof
Kind of answers itself, doesn’t it?
threat was that America faced in the
Comment
“We are facing the largest
last decade. I’d argue that it might
humanitarian crisis since the creation
have been Ebola, or some other
of the United Nations,” warned Stephen
pandemic — and we overcame Ebola not
O’Brien, the U.N.’s humanitarian chief.
with aircraft carriers but with humanitarian
“Without collective and coordinated global
assistance and medical research — both of
efforts, people will simply starve to death.”
which are slashed in the Trump budget.
How is Trump responding to this crisis?
Trump’s vision of a security threat
By slashing humanitarian aid, increasing
is a Chinese submarine or perhaps an
the risk that people starve in the four
unauthorized immigrant, and that’s the vision
countries — Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia
his budget reflects. But in 2017, some of the
and Nigeria. The result is a perfect storm:
gravest threats we face are from diseases or
Millions of children tumbling toward famine
narcotics that can’t be flattened by a tank
just as America abdicates leadership and cuts
but that can be addressed with diplomacy,
assistance.
scientific research, and social programs inside
“This is the worst possible time to make
and outside our borders.
cuts,” David Miliband, president of the
It’s true that U.S. foreign aid could be
International Rescue Committee, told me.
delivered more sensibly. It’s ridiculous that
He said that “the great danger” is a domino
one of the largest recipients is a prosperous
effect — that the U.S. action encourages other country, Israel. Trump’s budget stipulates that
countries to back away as well.
other aid should be cut, but not Israel’s.
The essence of the Trump budget released
The United States contributes less than
a few days ago is to cut aid to the needy,
one-fifth of 1 percent of our national income
whether at home or abroad, and use the
to foreign aid, about half the proportion of
savings to build up the military and construct
other donor countries on average.
a wall on the border with Mexico.
Humanitarian aid is one of the world’s
(Yes, that’s the wall that Trump used to
great success stories, for the number of people
say Mexico would pay for. Instead, it seems
living in extreme poverty has dropped by
it may actually be paid for by cutting meals
half since 1990, and more than 120 million
for America’s elderly and by reducing aid to
children’s lives have been saved in that
starving Yemeni children.)
period.
It’s important to note that “all of these
Consider Thomas Awiapo, whose
crises are fundamentally man-made, driven
parents died when he was a child growing
by conflict,” as Neal Keny-Guyer, CEO of
up in northern Ghana. Two of his younger
Mercy Corps, put it. And the United States
brothers died, apparently of malnutrition.
bears some responsibility.
Then Thomas heard that a local school was
In particular, the catastrophe in Yemen
offering meals for students, a “school feeding
— the country with the greatest number of
program” supported by USAID, the American
people at risk of famine — should be an
aid agency, and Catholic Relief Services.
international scandal. A Saudi-led coalition,
Thomas went to the school and was offered
backed by the United States, has imposed a
daily meals — on the condition that he enroll.
blockade on Yemen that has left two-thirds
“I kept going to that little village school,
of the population in need of assistance. In
just for the food,” he told me. He became a
Yemen, “to starve” is transitive.
brilliant student, went to college and earned a
The suffering there gets little attention,
master’s degree in the United States. Today,
partly because Saudi Arabia mostly keeps
he works for Catholic Relief Services in
reporters from getting to areas subject to its
Ghana, having decided he wants to devote his
blockade. I’ve been trying to enter since the
life to giving back.
fall, but the Saudi coalition controls the air
I asked him what he thought of the Trump
and sea and refuses to allow me in. In effect,
budget cutting foreign assistance. “When I
the Saudis have managed to block coverage
hear that aid has been cut, I’m so sad,” he
of the crimes against humanity they are
answered. “That food saved my life.”
perpetrating in Yemen, and the United States
■
backs the Saudis. Shame on us.
Nicholas D. Kristof, a columnist for The
Likewise, the government in South Sudan
Times since 2001, is a two-time Pulitzer
this month denied me a visa; it doesn’t want
Prize winner who grew up on a sheep farm in
witnesses to its famine.
Yamhill, Oregon.
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.