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OPINION
East Oregonian
Saturday, May 13, 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
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OUR VIEW
Beating back
the recession
in rural Oregon
The Great Recession was a
The Port of Morrow is leading that
growth, with good paying jobs that
decade ago, yet many rural areas of
are helping prop up the Boardman
Oregon are still feeling the sting.
and Hermiston economies, from
And even worse, demographics
retail to housing developments. It’s
and a changing global economy
may mean that things will get worse the kind of economic engine that
gives all rural areas something to
before they get better.
aspire to, though
These are at least
few are blessed to
two takeaways from
be on a rail line
the “Employment
17
of
Oregon’s
and surrounded by
Landscape of Rural
23 rural counties an interstate and
Oregon” study
navigable
released this month
have fewer jobs gigantic
river.
by the Oregon
now than before
Still, the port’s
Employment
successes have
Department.
the recession
helped Morrow
The report
points out that 17
hit in 2008 — County become
strongest rural
of Oregon’s 23
Morrow County the
economy in the
rural counties have
state.
fewer jobs now than
is the lone
We cannot say as
before the recession
standout with a much for elsewhere
hit in 2008. And
the rural environs,
most of the jobs that
fast-expanding in from
the forests of
have returned pay
economy.
southwest Oregon
lower wages than
to the rangelands
those that left.
of the southeast.
All the while,
rural Oregon populations continue to The declining timber industry is
age, with the number of rural youths one clear culprit, but so too is a lack
of infrastructure, according to the
in the midst of decades of decline.
report. As is the fact that many rural
And this at the same time that the
economies are heavily dependent on
Portland metro area and much of
one industry — they are not diverse,
the Willamette Valley have grown
leaving them vulnerable to economic
by leaps and bounds, its economy
shocks and recessions.
humming and expanding with
The clearest takeaway from the
abandon.
report is the need in rural Oregon for
The difference between urban
economic diversity — to continue
and rural economies is just another
to support our traditional industries
example of the country being
while taking entrepreneurial risks
pulled in different directions, with
and branching out into others. That
succeeding factions barreling ahead
diversity brings diverse people,
while others fall farther behind.
Still, we don’t want to thump you who can help reverse the trend of an
aging and declining rural population,
with only bad news, because the
restoring solid funding levels to rural
report certainly wasn’t full of just
schools in the process.
that.
Still, we wouldn’t want to live
Our swath of Eastern Oregon
anywhere else.
is doing much better than in more
Perhaps Portland is booming
rural locales around the state like
now, but we know every boom
Grant, Gilliam, Lake, Malheur and
is followed eventually by a bust.
Wallowa counties.
Luckily rural Oregon isn’t riding
And Morrow County is outright
that roller coaster. Still, we need to
exploding, with job growth there
get our economies on track with new
outpacing nearly every county in
investment and new ideas.
the state — even the urban ones.
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
Who will save the republic?
Y
ou have seen them on high,
was closed to the American press. We
scurrying with great urgency
needed Tass, which is to Vladimir Putin
between columns of marble, the
what Fox News is to Trump, to provide
clicks of Armani-heeled favor seekers
official documentation for that meeting.
never far behind. You have heard them
The Trump White House makes
in the past few days, saying they are
gangsters look more civilized, and
“troubled” or “disappointed” about the
organized. With Trump, as with most
latest assault on democracy from the
outsize characters in fiction or real life,
White House.
Timothy character drives action. He’s a lifelong
They know enough history to get
charlatan, a con man, a habitué of
Egan
this: Donald Trump is the first president
bankruptcy courts. He thinks this will
Comment
in history whose campaign has come
blow over — everything always does.
under federal investigation for collusion
He’s off to Europe soon, the rogue
with a hostile foreign power. And now the
man out. And that photo with Pope Francis
person heading that investigation, the FBI
will surely make people forget the chaos back
director, has been fired.
home.
We’re looking for a few
But the truth will come
good men and women in
out. The journalism of the
Congress to understand the
past few days — those
gravity of this debasement.
labeled Enemies of the
We don’t need more parsing
People by Trump now
about the bad “optics” or
doing the people’s work, as
“timing” of Trump firing the
envisioned by the founders
man who could have ended
— has been extraordinary.
his presidency. We need
It’s obvious that Trump
a Republican in power to
fired James Comey because
call it what it is: a bungled
he was getting closer to the
attempt to obstruct justice.
truth of what happened with
And the tragic part is
Russian manipulation of
that Trump is likely to
the American election. His
succeed, at least in the short term. The person
advisers say an enraged Trump screamed at the
he chooses for FBI director will never assemble television when this story would not go away.
a prosecutable case of treason that leads to the
“Russia, Russia, Russia,” Kellyanne Conway
doorstep of this White House.
said, sounding like a “Brady Bunch” brat
The courts can do only so much. They
complaining about “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia.”
can block orders that violate the Constitution.
Trump’s assertion that Comey told him
But they can’t be real-time truth seekers in a
three times he wasn’t under investigation has
moment of real urgency. As for Ivanka Trump,
yet to be backed up and looks like another
the supposed sane person in an insane White
bogus Trump claim, if not a violation of Justice
House, she has only so many whispers into
Department protocol.
Daddy’s ear that will be listened to.
So, we turn to a handful of people
Thus, it falls to a half-dozen or so
in Trump’s own party to do something
Republicans to heed the words of a man whose courageous — to do the job they were sworn
statue they pass every day in the Capitol. “Even to do. Trump was at 38 percent approval in
if you’re on the right track,” said Will Rogers,
Gallup’s tracking poll Thursday and 36 percent
Oklahoma’s gift to American gab, “you’ll get
in a Quinnipiac survey — both historic lows
run over if you just sit there.”
at this stage in a modern presidency. These
As it is, they’re getting run over. Things that numbers may stiffen the spines of some
never happened before now happen with such
Republicans in Congress.
regularity that the numbing and the dumbing
The Irish Undertaker, Paul Ryan, is a
down can make a rational human inert. Trump
lost cause — and increasingly looks like a
is a tutorial in Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s
bystander to the multiple-car wreck happening
observation about “defining deviancy
before him. The Senate leader, Mitch
downward.” Here is a man who doesn’t share
McConnell — whose wife, don’t forget, is in
basic democratic values, who uttered nearly
Trump’s Cabinet — is also sitting this one out.
500 lies or misleading statements in his first
Call out the names: Sens. John McCain
three months in office, and it has all become
and Jeff Flake, Richard Burr and Bob Corker,
mere background — the screen saver of this
Ben Sasse and Lisa Murkowski. They have
presidency.
committees and investigators at their disposal.
The civilized world was recently appalled at Their party impeached Bill Clinton for lying
Trump’s outreach to tyrants from North Korea, about sex. The least they can do is demand
the Philippines and Turkey. This week, we find some accountability of a man whose entire
out that the family of the president’s son-in-law, presidency is a lie.
Jared Kushner, offered Chinese business
■
owners a path to U. S. citizenship if they
Timothy Egan, a New York Times
invested in a Kushner property. And a White
contributing op-ed writer, covers the
House visit of Russian political operatives
environment, the American West and politics.
The Trump
White House
makes gangsters
look more
civilized, and
organized.
YOUR VIEWS
Walden lost voter because
of stance on health care bill
Good day to you, Rep. Greg Walden.
Many congratulations on your work to
“repeal and replace” Obamacare — I know
it has been a significant goal for you. But
I’m a bit thick about some of these complex
issues and I don’t understand a few of the
provisions, so I’m wondering if you could
clarify a couple of things?
One is that I understand that as you repeal
Obamacare there really isn’t a plan to replace
it — just a very quick outline of a different
approach. Isn’t there more to health care for
all Americans than a quickie outline, and
before you eliminate one plan shouldn’t you
have another one ready to go?
This seems to me to be like eliminating
your car before you get another and then
you can’t go to work, and I’d call that poor
management.
And what about the tens of millions of
Americans who will end up with no health
care at all or health care that is much more
expensive and/or has less coverage? From
what I’ve read, seniors and poorer people
are really going to end up on the short end
of this stick, especially in rural areas. A lot
of your district, especially here in Eastern
Oregon, is very rural and there are lots of old
folks. So how does this repeal serve them?
And why are so many doctor and hospital
groups so opposed? Is it because poor
people and old people are taking such a
hit? Or because it will create so much chaos
in the health care system? Did you know
that Medicaid is a really, really important
program for a lot of people not only in your
district but all across America? And when
you eliminate so much from the Medicaid
program that a whole lot of people, including
your constituents in your district, get really,
really hurt?
I’ve always thought in terms of separating
“needs” and “wants.” I understand part of
this bill that you all have passed has given
huge tax breaks to the billionaires and
multi-millionaires. I’m sure you’ve made
big points with the Billionaire in Chief, Rep.
Walden, but not with me. I voted for you the
election before last but not again — ain’t no
way.
So for a second time, congratulations on
reaching your goal — and good luck to us all
who might be forced to live with it unless the
Senate wakes up and smells the coffee.
Andrew A. Clark
Pendleton
Legislature can bring dentists
to rural patients
Our Legislature is facing many challenges
during this year’s session. One issue that is a
top priority for many is access to health care,
including professional dental care.
A recent study found that the number of
dentists in Oregon is not lacking now, nor
will it be in the future. But many Oregonians
living in more isolated areas still have less
access to the providers they need to take care
of their teeth. As important as oral health
care is to one’s overall health, this should
be a top priority for our elected officials this
year.
One reason some dental school graduates
choose to work in a more populated
area over opening a practice in a rural,
underserved community is debt. When
considering where to practice after dental
school, many graduates, who have debt loads
of $300,000 or more, choose the option that
ensures they can more quickly pay off their
student loans, in a metropolitan area.
However, those who choose those
areas never get to experience the benefits
of working with and living in a smaller
community. Having grown up in La Grande,
I knew I wanted to practice in a rural area.
There is a rich quality of life in smaller
communities, and the need for more dentists
in some of these areas is significant.
Even though it can be more challenging
to cover the costs of operating a practice
in a rural town, the benefits of living in a
community such as La Grande make it well
worth it.
As dentists navigate the many challenges
of practicing in rural Oregon, including
lack of oral health education, geography
and patients’ abilities to pay, they are much
like the pioneers who settled in these areas
hundreds of years ago.
Our elected officials can help to ensure
that this pioneer spirit will continue in
the rural, under-served areas of Oregon.
One way to foster this is to support loan
forgiveness opportunities provided through
Scholars for a Healthy Oregon, and the
Oregon Medicaid Primary Care Loan
Repayment and Forgiveness programs. Rural
practitioner tax credits also help get more
dentists to the patients who need them.
As lawmakers continue the debate
on health care access in the Legislature
this year, it is vital that we find ways to
ensure that every Oregonian has access to
a professional dentist regardless of race,
income or geographic location.
James McMahan, DMD
La Grande
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.