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East Oregonian
Saturday, October 13, 2018
CHRISTOPHER RUSH
Publisher
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Managing Editor
TIM TRAINOR
Opinion Page Editor
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Another farm bill
deadline missed
L
ast month Senate and House
conferees working on the 2018 Farm
Bill failed to reach an agreement
before the old farm bill expired and without
Congress voting to extend it.
Congress has once again let down
American farmers and ranchers who need
to know the extent of farm programs when
making plans for next year’s crop. It is
impossible for those in agriculture to plan
for the next season without knowing how the
federal government intends to impact their
business.
This has happened all too often before.
The 2014 Farm Bill was supposed to be
the 2012 Farm Bill. It took more than three
years to negotiate, despite original promises
in 2011 that it would be passed before the
2012 presidential primary season. In reality,
constant wrangling over the cost of nutrition
programs and crop insurance subsidies
mandated that the old 2008 bill be extended
a number of times before Congress came up
with a bill it could pass.
Each farm bill has many parts. Some
programs, such as commodity and
nutrition programs, were created under
separate legislation. The farm bill provides
funding for these programs and provides
governing language that for the life of the
bill supersedes the “permanent” legislation.
The farm bill also creates new programs not
included in any other legislation.
So in establishing an expiration date on
the farm bill, Congress puts a gun to its
own head. Commodity programs revert to
“permanent” law written in the ’30s and
’40s should it fail to enact a measure to
replace or extend the expiring farm bill.
Other programs die altogether.
The permanent laws are so antiquated
they have little relevance to modern
agriculture. Trying to apply them in the
21st century should create consequences
too dire for Congress to ignore its duty.
Or at least that’s the theory. Congress
has repeatedly failed to yield to its own
extortion.
Senate and House conferees are
confident they will reach agreement and
pass a bill before the end of the year. We’ll
see. Between now and then there will be an
election. Given the current divisive politics,
that couldn’t possibly hold things up.
But it also provides an opportunity.
While we don’t think much of legislators
who can’t meet their own deadlines, we
have to put a fair amount of the blame on
their employers.
We may not get the government we
deserve, as the old saw goes, but we do get
the one we vote for.
YOUR VIEWS
More women needed on
Round-Up board
be voting for Jamie McLeod-Skinner.
Vickie Hendricks
Pendleton
The Pendleton Round-Up Board of
Directors needs to include more women.
There are 19 directors, and only one of the
members is female.
According to the 2017 Census, 47
percent of residents in Umatilla County are
women. And yet, females only make up
5 percent of the Round-Up board. That is
embarrassing.
Next time the Round-Up board comes to
the Pendleton City Council with their hand
out, the council should ask the board why
they find it so difficult to include women on
their board.
Murdock is involved,
successful
Justin Morton
Pendleton
Gomolski has what it takes
I am asking you to vote for Mark
Gomolski for Hermistion City Council.
I have known Mark Gomolski since he
moved to Hermiston. I have worked with
Mark Gomolski on a number of different
projects. Mark is a very hard worker with a
strong moral compass. He has the skills to
be a very effective member of the council.
I urge you to give Mark Gomolski your
vote.
Dan Dufault
Hermiston
If you sign up, you show up
I was shocked at how little Greg Walden
really knows about his district, as evidenced
in the Oct. 5 KTVZ (Bend television
station) debate with Jamie McLeod-
Skinner. I can only assume that is because
Greg Walden has chosen to not follow a
basic rule that is taught to all young leaders.
This rule is: If you sign up, you show up.
Greg Walden signed up to be our 2nd
Congressional District representative,
but he no longer shows up. His town hall
meetings stopped being scheduled months
and months ago. Because of lack of
interface with his constituents, he appears
out of touch with the real challenges facing
the people of our 20 counties.
In response to Jamie McLeod-
Skinner’s statement that “close to 50
percent of people in this district are below
or just above the poverty level,” he kept
trumpeting how well the national economy
is doing (“the strongest economy that
anyone has seen since the 1960s!”). The
economy is looking good for the wealthy,
for stockholders, and for his corporate
donors. Plus they just got gigantic, budget-
busting permanent tax cuts. But none of that
holds true for rural Oregon.
Let’s look at the facts:
• According to the Oregon Employment
Department, 10 of the 15 Oregon counties
with the highest poverty rates are here in
Greg Walden’s district.
• Greg Walden voted for, and can’t stop
talking about, permanent tax breaks for
corporations and the 1 percent.
• The individual tax cuts — the ones that
could actually help his constituents — were
paltry and designed to expire in just a few
years.
• Paul Ryan and other GOP leaders
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the
East Oregonian editorial board. Other
columns, letters and cartoons on this page
express the opinions of the authors and
not necessarily that of the East Oregonian.
confirmed that they’ll pay for that $1.7
trillion tax package with cuts to Medicare
and Social Security after the November
election.
How is this helping our district? It isn’t.
It’s helping the 1 percent and Walden’s
corporate PAC allies.
Jamie McLeod-Skinner has driven over
40,000 miles through this district, listening
to the stories of Oregonians, not millionaire
CEOs. She knows what’s really happening
and will work for our communities, not
corporations. Jamie McLeod-Skinner has
my vote.
Vickie Read
Pendleton
Walden fails to protect health
coverage
I am writing this letter to you in support
of Jamie McLeod-Skinner for Congress.
We need new ideas and new blood in
this very important position. The present
congressman has for a very long time
not been responsive to the voice of the
people and their needs. The latest attempt
in leading the charge to do away with the
Affordable Care Act is a case in point.
Thousands of Oregonians have signed
onto this health care insurance and it is
keeping their financial boat afloat. So many
have the prospect of bankruptcy if they are
not covered with health insurance when a
health problem arises and hospital stays,
and even minor surgeries are needed.
There was no new legislation to replace
this health care lifeline that so many
families depend on, so they would have
been without the protection. Students
are covered up until age 26, pre-existing
conditions are covered. These are only a
few among many other helps built in to the
Affordable Care Act.
The present congressman has had 20
years to prove himself to the people, so far
he has failed in that endeavor. As President
Trump says, “let’s drain the swamp!” It’s
time for a new Congress.
Vote for Jamie McLeod-Skinner for
Congress.
Janet L. Beitel
Umatilla
Walden’s constituents aren’t
stupid
In the televised debate against Jamie
McLeod-Skinner on Oct. 5, Greg Walden
claimed to support the Children’s Health
Insurance Program. He stated, “I have
consistently supported children’s health
insurance programs and, in fact, I led the
way in Congress, as chair of the Energy
and Commerce Committee, to hear from all
sides as to how we can expand and improve
children’s health insurance.”
His statements do not match the facts:
• From 2007-2017, Walden voted
against reauthorizing CHIP funding all
but one time, jeopardizing health care for
8.9 million children, including 120,000 in
Oregon.
• Last year, he held CHIP funding
hostage, trying to bargain for cuts to
Medicare and the Affordable Care Act. It
was only when the Congressional Budget
Office stepped in with a report showing that
eliminating CHIP would actually increase
the cost to taxpayers (because the kids
would be covered under the more costly
exchanges) that he gave in. This is well-
documented in news coverage.
• While Walden was holding CHIP
funding hostage, the governors of all 50
states had to scramble to find ways to
pay critical medical services for children.
According to the Kaiser Health Care
Foundation, several states even had to send
out notices to parents and doctors warning
that the program would be canceled.
• Three months later, he voted for
Trump’s rescission bill to cut $7 billion
from CHIP (it didn’t pass).
Using children as a “bargaining chip” is
not my idea of a real leader. On Nov. 6, I’ll
This letter is to endorse the re-election
of George Murdock to the Umatilla County
Board of Commissioners.
I have personally worked with
George in his leadership roles in Rotary,
Wildhorse Foundation, GOBHI, EOCI
Prison Advisory Committee and Pendleton
Chamber of Commerce. George is serving
or has served in leadership roles in all of
these areas, in addition to volunteering for
Altrusa’s Feed the Child, Athena grants
program, and with his church. George is an
exemplary citizen of Umatilla County, and
a credit to our community.
More specifically to George’s
qualifications for election, he has made
a marked difference in Umatilla County
from the day of his first election. I worked
with him on solid waste issues, as well as
numerous public safety and mental health
functions, throughout which I found him
to be fair, impartial, and always willing to
listen and offer creative solutions.
George has been instrumental in
initiating the County Charter Review,
transfer of EOTEC to Hermiston, helping
to create new housing, reestablishing our
Drug Court, rebuilding relationships with
law enforcement, helping to increase the
sheriff’s department’s much-needed patrol
staff, courthouse security, improved mental
health services in our schools, public
transportation improvements, expanded
training for county management and staff,
and much-improved county customer
service.
Please join me in voting to re-elect
George Murdock as Umatilla County
commissioner.
Susan McHenry
Pendleton
Murdock’s leadership efforts
show
We urge you to vote for George Murdock
for Umatilla County Commissioner.
He has shown fiscal leadership in
developing a new budget process, a
balanced budget plan for Umatilla County
and understands the need for accountability
in county finances.
George works to benefit all residents
of the county. His efforts have led to
modernization of the Umatilla County
Public Health Department, helped to
expand mental health services in the
schools, development of a regional
transportation plan tor workers, students
and others needing public transportation,
economic agreements with Vadata and
Lamb Weston, and his leadership creates
cooperation between the sheriff’s office and
the board of commissioners.
George works for all of us and is
dedicated, enthusiastic and trustworthy.
Please join us in supporting George.
Delores and Steve Bjerke
Pendleton
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
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Send letters to managing editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com.