Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2017)
Page 4A OPINION East Oregonian Wednesday, December 20, 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 Run for office, or you might get a Nakapalau Last year, no one in Echo filed on the Hermiston School Board with to run for an open seat on the city just 14 write-in votes. Perhaps he was council. the best person for the job (and he has certainly done nothing to embarrass That left open an avenue for Lou Nakapalau to win the seat with only the city or school district) but we eight write-in votes in the November think it’s undemocratic that such a 2016 election. small percentage of Hermiston voters It was later discovered that the chose who got that important seat. councilman had been convicted of As we’ve said before, civic multiple counts of leadership can child pornography require a lot of If no one runs work for very little possession in 2000. Nakapalau thanks. It’s not a for an open has used his time responsibility that on the council to people should take seat, it will bring nationwide on lightly. be filled by embarrassment to But the moral of the small city. He the story is clear: someone without used his Facebook If no one runs for the support of important local account to tell a gay filmmaker in Hawaii: with a the electorate. positions “When you croak desire to improve of AIDS (Anally their city, school Injected Death Serum) I’ll spit on district, or cemetery district — you your grave.” may get someone of questionable values and skills. You will definitely Media coverage of that comment, get someone who did not campaign and Nakapalau’s unwillingness to for the seat, and may not be familiar apologize for it or even comment with the issues and how residents feel on it, brought an understandable about them. You will get someone backlash from some Echo residents who does not have the support of the against their city government. That majority of the electorate. backlash then spurred a backlash of The best option, of course, is its own, which created division and for many people to run for these distrust in the community — from positions, so voters can make an its political life to its downtown informed choice in a competitive commerce to its public schools. race. That’s how a healthy, It’s a mess. And it doesn’t appear functioning democracy operates. that mess will get cleaned up soon. But at the very least, someone Nakapalau has shown no signs of must run publicly for each seat. A resigning his seat, and city council has no ability to throw him out under name must be on the ballot, because that gives the electorate enough time Oregon law. It’s up to residents to to mount a write-in campaign if that start a recall petition. name is not to their liking. Gaining a seat on a city council The risks are too great otherwise. or school board without filing for the An unqualified and unfit person can ballot isn’t uncommon in Eastern Oregon, especially in smaller cities or get a few votes and suddenly be misrepresenting your community for lower-profile positions. and making decisions that negatively In Hermiston, former city council candidate Mark Gomolski won a seat affect its future. 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 Who is B2H power line being built for? Idaho Power claims it’s planning to build the B2H transmission line to benefit Eastern Oregon. Their advertisements promise resilient energy, positive economic impacts and new carbon-free reliable resources as Idaho Power moves toward “a collaborative energy future for you.” These are misleading advertisements, not legal contracts. The B2H will slash across 260 miles of Eastern Oregon with no substations to provide power for local communities. Not one. Positive economic impacts will be insignificant — three or four months of additional motel and restaurant business from outside contractors’ employees. Idaho is 10 years behind Oregon in developing carbon-free renewable resources like wind and solar. Oregon ranks fifth nationally in energy efficiency. Idaho ranks an abysmal 39th. Along the B2H route, thousands of holes will be blasted and drilled 40 feet down to anchor each tower’s four feet. These massive towers will rise to 19 stories high. That’s three to five times higher than the tallest buildings in Eastern Oregon towns. On the ground, they will punctuate sterile clear cuts as wide as an eight-lane highway. Impacts on farm and forest lands, wildlife, residential property values and our historic Oregon Trail will be permanent and devastating. Do you know exactly how close to your neighborhood or your favorite camping spot this continuously buzzing, crackling 500 kilovolt line will be? Probably not. Idaho Power only notifies property owners within 500 feet of a proposed line. Fortunately, it’s not a done deal, but it’s definitely a bad deal. National and regional organizations critical of the B2H have filed more than 100 pages of expert testimony with the Oregon Public Utilities Commission. They document obvious flaws in Idaho Power’s efforts to prove their questionable need for additional energy resources, which Idaho Power admits will not occur for at least ten more years. This “need” is actually driven by Idaho Power’s obsessive priority to increase profits for shareholders at the expense of ratepayers and our environment. Strange but true, utilities are guaranteed a profit on building things, whether they’re needed or not. Idaho Power will share $80 million profit with their partners if they’re allowed to build the B2H. Oregon doesn’t need and won’t benefit from this monstrously ugly and expensive transmission line. OTHER VIEWS After year of solid policies, what’s next for Trump? omething is happening in the final first-rate people, too, in the White days of 2017. People are noticing House and across the administration: that Donald Trump has gotten a John Kelly, Mike Pompeo, James lot done in his tumultuous first year Mattis, Neomi Rao, H.R. McMaster, in the White House. If in, say, 2014, a Nikki Haley, Marc Short and more. Republican, of either the conservative The question now, with the coming, or moderate variety, predicted that in inevitable departures from his 2017 a newly elected GOP president administration, is whether the president and Congress would — can convince the best people, or even Byron 1) Cut corporate and individual just really good people, to work for York taxes. him. Comment 2) Repeal the Obamacare individual The first thing a potential high- mandate. ranking Trump hire has to consider 3) Appoint a highly respected conservative is the sheer difficulty of working for Donald to the Supreme Court. Trump. Throughout the campaign and in the 4) Appoint a one-year record number of White House, Trump’s instincts have been judges to the circuit courts. remarkably consistent with those of many 5) Get rid of reams of unnecessary Republicans (and some independents) across regulations. the nation. But working in the atmosphere that 6) Destroy ISIS. he has created, and thrives in, 7) Approve pipeline can be a trial. What Trump projects and new oil drilling. needs in the second year — then a lot of are people who can endure Republicans would probably that trial and focus on the have cheered. Loudly. president’s political instincts. No need to go through “He needs people more the litany of complaints aligned with him,” noted against the president or the one Republican lawmaker succession of hair-on-fire, in a text exchange recently. Twitter-fueled controversies “Not toadies — Pompeo and that have marked the wildest McMaster disagreed with first year ever in presidential him on Afghanistan and politics. Or the special persuaded him — but people counsel investigation into more in general alignment the Trump-Russia affair that with his instincts. His key some Democrats (and some cabinet members and White NeverTrump Republicans) hope will result in House advisors need to channel his instincts in Trump’s removal from office. Despite it all, a constructive fashion for the country, helping Trump has racked up a solid record of first-year him achieve his goals.” accomplishment. “There are so many top-notch people on the It would not be a great surprise if much of sidelines,” noted another GOP lawmaker. Trump’s second year consisted of reminding A significant part of the problem is this: In 2018 midterm voters of how much he did in the supercharged atmosphere of Washington, his first year. Maybe that will be enough to a prospective Trump aide (and his or her keep Republicans in control of House and spouse) can face intense professional and social Senate, although the historical averages alone disapprobation from being associated with the — presidents tend to lose a lot of congressional president. seats in their first midterm — argue against it. “They definitely can,” said yet another And Trump’s second-year agenda is unclear. Republican lawmaker. “I think there needs There has been talk about an infrastructure to be 1) more assurance that Trump and the bill. About welfare reform. But it seems likely administration have their backs (I’m thinking that what Trump does in his next year will be of the ‘mean’ tweet from Trump about the anchored in his unilateral executive authority, House Obamacare repeal bill), and 2) more just like his first year. assurance that the Senate will get them Perhaps the critical factor in whether Trump through the approval process. Russ Vought can succeed from a policy standpoint next year (nominee for deputy director of the Office of is whether he is able to attract high-quality Management and Budget) is still waiting for people to his administration. his confirmation vote, and the same with Tom On many, many occasions during the Garrett for Ex-Im Bank.” campaign, candidate Trump promised he would If, as expected, some on the Trump team hire only the “best people” if he were to win head for the exits in the new year, the problem the White House. will become more serious. The recent, noisy departure of Omarosa Personnel isn’t sexy. And the key person in Manigault-Newman showed that was not true. Trump’s policy successes is Trump himself. So did the brief tenure of Anthony Scaramucci. But the president will need the actual “best And Sebastian Gorka. And others. people” if he is to make his second year as In the Trump White House, there have been consequential as his first. White House staff who had no business being ■ White House staff. Byron York is chief political correspondent Of course, the president has hired many for The Washington Examiner. S What Trump does in his second year will be anchored in unilateral executive authority, just like his first year. Lois Barry La Grande Prayer should not be a part of public meetings This is a letter of appreciation to the Pendleton City Council for choosing not to include prayer in city council meetings. Prayer is a highly individual choice and not appropriate for public bodies. As a secular person, I have family members and close friends who are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Baha’i, and of other belief systems including secular. All are thoughtful, civic-minded people who work hard for their communities. Everyone should feel 100 percent welcome in public meetings, and that is not the case when citizens must abide expressions of faith that are not their own. While I respect an individual’s choice to pray according to his or her belief, we must also guard against mingling personal belief systems with public citizenry. Good work, city council. Mary Hallman Pendleton 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 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com.
