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OPINION
East Oregonian
Friday, April 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
Tip of the hat;
kick in the pants
A kick in the pants to plans to scrap the voter-approved initiative Measure
98, which Oregon voters passed in last November’s election.
It does seem like funding for the college-prep, vocational ed and dropout
prevention programs that Measure 98 should have enacted has survived for now
— but the program remains in doubt and in the cross-hairs of legislators.
It’s mostly Oregon Democrats who are
finding it hard to find the money, because they
say the state doesn’t have enough of it to go
around this budget period.
“I truly believe that until we get a revenue
package and some funding, we shouldn’t fund
any of 98,” Democratic Sen. Arnie Roblan, who
chairs his chamber’s education committee, said
to the Associated Press. “You don’t add new
programs when you’re cutting old programs.”
The state’s system of voter-approved
measures is not perfect, and we think it clearly
needs a new look. It can force the hand of
legislators to spend money they don’t have. It can also simplify complex budgetary
and legislative matters into populist screeds that do not consider the wide-ranging
effects .
But it sets a poor precedent if lawmakers ignore the clear will of a majority of
voters, who took the time to research a topic and send in their ballot. Each time they
do, democracy is weakened in Oregon.
OTHER VIEWS
Trump’s long march problem
A new president needs to staff his
the Bannon coterie in the White House
administration with people who will be
were said to be shocked.
loyal to him. Donald Trump’s problem
Veterans of earlier White Houses
is that he does not have enough
faulted Bannon for not trying to build
loyalists to staff the White House,
relationships with people who could
much less the entire executive branch.
be his allies in the West Wing. When
Previous presidents have come
trouble came, who would go to bat
to Washington after enough time in
for him? But a bigger problem was
politics to develop concentric circles of
revealed by Trump’s observation that
Byron
loyalists who can take jobs at all levels
Bannon had only joined Trump late in
York
of government. Just look at the people
the campaign.
Comment
who stood ready to help the Bush
In the China of Chairman Mao,
family or the Clintons over the years.
veterans of the Long March held a
Trump, who never held public office before special place; they had been with the Great
winning the presidency, didn’t have that. In
Helmsman for the entire journey. The situation
addition, he campaigned with an abrasive
is much the same in any American political
style that alienated a significant portion of the
operation, where candidates value people
Republican Party’s political talent. Beyond
who have been with them all the way. In
that, Trump’s way of running his business,
TrumpWorld, that’s nobody — outside the
even though it made him
president’s family and a
a billionaire, was small in
few assistants from Trump’s
scale — in his Trump Tower
company.
office, he relied heavily on
Trump named Bannon
a tight circle of people who
chief executive of the
were either related to him
campaign on August
or had been with him for a
17, 2016. Even though
very long time.
Bannon’s Breitbart News
Now, Trump’s style
had supported Trump for
has led to an acute staffing
longer, the president is
problem across the
right — that is pretty late
administration and also to
in a campaign that began
high-profile infighting in the
in earnest more than a year
White House. The former means that Trump
and a half earlier. Bannon wasn’t there for the
cannot assert full control over a massive
Long March.
federal bureaucracy that is already inclined
Of course, other top White House aides,
to resist him. The latter has led to an almost
like chief of staff Reince Priebus and
comical situation in which the president
spokesman Sean Spicer, were also latecomers,
has piled portfolio upon portfolio on trusted
and they were never fully part of the
son-in-law Jared Kushner — now commonly
campaign. Not surprisingly, there have been
referred to as one of the most powerful men in trust issues; no Long March loyalty for them,
Washington — who had no preparation for the either.
responsibility.
Thus Trump’s focus on the family. After
On the question of the federal bureaucracy, dispatching sons Don and Eric to run the
many Trump supporters are dismayed
business, Trump formally brought daughter
by the slowness with which he is hiring
Ivanka and Kushner into the White House
for the various government departments
power structure. (The president sought and
and agencies. According to a database
received a Justice Department opinion arguing
compiled by the Partnership for Public
that the White House is exempt from federal
Service and the Washington Post, out of
anti-nepotism law.)
553 important positions that require Senate
And Trump began to pile jobs on Kushner.
confirmation — and that is by no means
The Middle East peace portfolio. Point of
all the political appointments Trump has to
contact for foreign leaders. Tackling the
make — only 22 Trump nominees have been
opioid crisis. Heading the Office of American
confirmed, while another 53 have either been
Innovation. “No human being can do all
formally nominated or are awaiting formal
that stuff,” says a Republican White House
announcement of their nominations. That
veteran.
leaves 478 jobs with no nominee at all.
When Bill Clinton’s White House went off
Even though that slow start across the
the rails in the spring of 1993, Clinton tried to
bureaucracy is probably more consequential,
recover, barely more than 100 days in office,
the White House palace intrigue has received
by hiring the veteran Republican political
the lion’s share of press attention. Lately, the
operator David Gergen.
spotlight has focused on friction between
The addition helped smooth things a bit,
Kushner and top adviser Steve Bannon. And
in part because it showed Clinton was willing
that, too, is partly a function of the lack-of-
to reach outside his circle to help run the
loyalists problem.
government.
The president himself suggested that
Donald Trump will probably have to do
in a recent interview with the New York
that too. (Reach outside his circle, that is, not
Post’s Michael Goodwin. When Goodwin
specifically hire Gergen, which would cause
asked whether Trump still had confidence in
some Republicans to leap from tall buildings.)
Bannon, Trump said: “I like Steve, but you
The president will have to entrust with power
have to remember he was not involved in my
a new set of Republicans who weren’t on the
campaign until very late. I had already beaten
Long March and who aren’t related to him by
all the senators and all the governors, and I
blood or marriage. It’s coming, sooner or later.
didn’t know Steve.”
■
It doesn’t take a mind reader to interpret
Byron York is chief political correspondent
that as a vote of no confidence. Members of
for The Washington Examiner.
Trump’s style has
led to an acute
staffing problem
across the
administration.
A tip of the hat down the dusty trail to Bill O’Reilly.
The man had been the face of Fox News, and
consistently the most-watched pundit on cable
television for much of his tenure.
But his famous lack of self-control led to his
undoing — his creepy and malicious harassment
of female employees and other women who were
hoping to contribute to his popular show.
O’Reilly has pleaded his innocence, but also paid
more than $13 million in settlements to multiple
women over the years — which severely undercuts
his case.
Coming on the heels of other firings for alleged
sexual harassment at the network, we think it’s
high time for a cleaning up and throwing out of serial harassers. Hopefully a better
organization will come out of it. Look for O’Reilly on the airwaves sometime soon,
proclaiming he is the victim of a wide conspiracy, when in fact he was the cause of
his untimely downfall.
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.
D ays of a
T rump p resiDency
Tuesday, April 29 marks 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency.
To mark the occasion, we’re asking readers to submit 100 words on the
president’s first 100 days.
Tell us what you think of the new president’s performance, and if he lived
up to the promises he hoped to achieve in the opening months of his term.
Keep your response to 100 words so we can run a whole passel of them in
the April 29 paper. The deadline for submissions is Monday, April 28 at noon.
Drop off your thoughts at our Pendleton or Hermiston locations, or email
them to editor@eastoregonian.com. Please include a phone number and city
of residence, so we can verify your identity before publishing.
LETTERS POLICY
The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public is-
sues 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.
YOUR VIEWS
Alcohol, though legal,
the most abused drug
I read with great interest the
article “Alcohol industry jobs
outpace software sector” in the
March 14 edition of the East
Oregonian newspaper. Senior state
economist Josh Lehner is quoted
as saying, “Alcohol production
is a value-added industry with a
geographic spread across the state
impacting agricultural production,
equipment manufacturing and
marketing services.”
He has that right, but no
mention was made of the other
entities impacted by the production
of alcohol. As I see it, there are
plenty of other jobs added due
to alcohol: police (just check
the public safety log in the same
paper).
After the police, how about
the jail, bail bonds, then the
lawyers, court employees, car
insurance companies, body shops,
hospital emergency rooms and the
Department of Motor Vehicles. Not
to mention, the counseling services
and rehab facilities and different
lawyers for the possible divorces.
Plenty of jobs abound thanks to
the alcohol industry.
If just 5 cents was added to
each container of alcohol sold in
the state, the state wouldn’t be in
such a deficit. Imagine how much
is spent on alcohol every day in
Oregon and then imagine the
income the state would realize.
One last thought: Everyone
was afraid of marijuana until they
realized the tax dollars it would
generate. Hands down, alcohol is
the most abused drug there is and
it is legal.
Sandy Ott
Pendleton
No place for women
in current fire station
I am writing this letter in
support of the new fire station
bond.
Pendleton Fire is currently
a combination department of
career and reserve staff. There are
21 career staff (one female, 20
male) and 17 reserve staff. The
reserve staff includes four students
currently enrolled full time at Blue
Mountain Community College in
the fire/EMS program.
The students are not only
full-time college students but also
full-time interns that work 24-hour
shifts alongside the career staff
for real life experiences. While
on duty, the students stay in the
fire station, utilizing the dorm
facility. This is a great opportunity
for the students to gain real life
experiences in both fire/EMS.
The 17 reserve staff include
eight females. Those eight females
offer a variety of different patient
care levels that range from
EMT-Basics, paramedics, nurses
and a physicians assistant.
Each of them participate
in 9-1-1 calls and interfacility
transports. While it is great to
have a variety of care, the current
fire station does not support the
housing for reserves. The current
fire station only supports one
female on shift comfortably at
night.
Currently, regardless of gender,
the fire station does not support
the supplement of reserves during
the night. With career staff and a
student, there are no beds available
and there is no more room to put
beds. The support of the new fire
station bond would support the
growth of the reserve program and
provide the ability to supplement
the career staff during the night
hours, which often has a higher call
volume than the day.
The average age that called
for Pendleton Fire in 2016 ranged
from 54-72, the most common
concern being chest pain. From
2007 to 2016 the call volume has
increased by 339 requests for
emergency services.
The demand for the 9-1-1
services will only continue to
increase. There is a need for
additional career staff along with
equipment to keep up with the
increase in call volume.
The support of the new fire
station bond supports a variety
of different areas. The health of
your firefighters, the ability for
additional career and reserve
staff, training, diversity, and most
importantly having the personnel
and equipment available to you
in your time of need. Vote yes for
your family.
Thank you for your support.
Melissa Griffin
Pendleton
Greg Walden fizzles
at public town halls
On April 14, Greg Walden
appeared at the Grants Pass High
School to a packed crowd
Unlike other town halls,
Walden’s opening ploy was to
go directly to questions from the
audience. That was surprising, and
apparently self-protective, because
he basically refused to give the
audience an initial overview of the
issues he represented. Therefore a
whole list of possibly controversial
items avoided discussion.
There were a number of people
who politely applauded some of
Walden’s comments. However,
on the whole, it was not a friendly
crowd.
They cheered progressive
ideas, particularly universal health
care. Objections were raised
about veteran care. Walden was
not believed when he said he
responded fully to constituent
concerns that he had received.
A number of pointed questions
received standing ovations.
Questions were asked by
persons using the microphones
available in the aisles. As time
reached the meeting’s end, it
seemed the line was getting
longer. Appearing anxious to
leave, Walden left a lot of persons
standing as he exited the stage.
He did not stay the customary
extra time to greet members of the
audience.
Walden’s performance was not
impressive.
Leif Hatlestad
Rogue River