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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 2019)
East Oregonian A4 Friday, January 4, 2019 CHRISTOPHER RUSH Publisher KATHRYN B. BROWN Owner DANIEL WATTENBURGER Managing Editor WYATT HAUPT JR. News Editor Founded October 16, 1875 OUR VIEW Tip of the Hat, kick in the pants A tip of the hat to Debbie Pedro who has served Herm- iston well as the chamber of commerce director for the past decade. She’s on to her next adventure and we wish her the best of luck. Pedro has been not only a cham- pion of the business community but also a proponent of all things Hermis- ton since her arrival in 2001. Her pas- sion for the city and energy on the job won’t be easy to replicate. Hermiston has been in many ways a chamber director’s dream, with new business clamoring to find a place to set up shop and take advantage of the expanding population. Pedro has made the most of the moment, grow- ing the chamber’s enrollment and bol- stering Hermiston’s reputation across Oregon through her chairmanship of the state chamber board. To top it all off she’s been an excel- lent ambassador for the city, quick with a smile and a welcoming attitude. The good news for Hermiston is, she’s not going far. We’re glad that someone with such a deep base of knowledge about the Eastern Oregon economy will help direct the Colum- bia Development Authority as it brings in new industry and jobs to the former Umatilla Army Depot. A tip of hat to all of you who have made resolutions to make 2019 bet- ter than 2018. We know, it’s only a small step. But it’s a first step, and without it the jour- ney would never begin. Whether you’re planning a health- ier year for yourself, a happier year for your family or a more productive year in your community, we’re root- ing for you. Through the month of January we’ll look at some of the ways people resolve to be better, how they succeed and where they fail. It starts today EO file photo Debbie Pedro speaks after being named the Woman of the Year during the Hermiston Distinguished Citizens Awards Banquet in 2016 in Hermiston. with one of the most common resolu- tions — and easiest to skip out on: the workout regimen. Some may consider January 1 an arbitrary marker on the calendar, but we say any day you decide to improve things is significant. Go for it. A tip of the hat to the city of Hermiston for hosting a fami- ly-friendly community New Year’s Eve celebration. The event wasn’t perfect — tem- peratures in the low 20s gave The Shades trouble keeping their gui- tars tuned and prevented a giant papi- er-mâché watermelon from exploding into a shower of confetti. But by mid- night the fledgling event had drawn a few hundred people downtown, where they enjoyed a quality band and an impressive fireworks show. Not bad for a first try. We will look forward to ring- ing in 2020 with a giant exploding watermelon. OTHER VIEWS The year of the wolves I District attorneys have mixed results on public records test The Bend Bulletin O regonians like to pride themselves on being leaders in such things as protect- ing beaches and imposing deposit fees on a variety of bottles. When it comes to trans- parency of government, however, we have nothing to brag about. Just ask a group of jour- nalism students at the University of Oregon. Earlier this year the students asked district attorneys in all 36 Oregon counties for cop- ies of public records appeals filed with their offices. The DAs are the first stop in an appeals process that includes the Oregon Attorney General and, ultimately, the courts. Students also wanted copies of the DAs’ responses to those records and asked to have fees waived. That information, they argued, would give the public an insight into how well district attor- neys carry out their duties under the state’s public records laws. The district attorneys’ responses were sur- prising, though perhaps they shouldn’t have been. While Deschutes County’s John Hum- mel had no problem with accommodating the students, more than a few denied the requests, arguing they did not meet the public-interest test. Even more, while they agreed to send the records, failed to meet the deadline written into Oregon law in 2017: Agencies are sup- posed to acknowledge public records requests within five business days and, generally, respond to them within another 10. As for what does and does not meet the standard of what’s in the public interest, there is no “public-interest test” in Oregon beyond the DAs’ own judgment on the matter. In these 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. cases, the DAs were being asked to judge their own refusal, a situation that seems odd, at best. At the same time, some DAs proposed charging students upwards of $1,000 for the records, though some reduced or waived the charges as discussions progressed. Moreover, your chances of getting a public record upon appeal can depend on where you live. District attorneys in Multnomah County, and now Deschutes County, post their orders regarding public records on their websites. Hummel said he did so because the students’ request made him more sensitive to the notion of transparency in his office. Things are different in Lane County. There, District Attorney Patty Perlow orders agencies to release records only about a quar- ter of the time, though that figure does not reflect cases that are resolved before a denial is issued. Oregonians’ ability to see how their gov- ernment, no matter at what level, operates should not be limited by the county in which they live. Records in Lane County should be every bit as accessible as those in Multnomah or Deschutes, no matter what a district attor- ney’s view of the law is. Lawmakers should be able to fix most of these problems easily, if they’re of a mind to. They can make it clear that Oregonians expect their district attorneys to understand and uphold the public records law, deadlines and all. They should recognize that some agencies set fees high as a way of discourag- ing requests, and deal with the problem. Doing those things would not solve all the law’s problems, but it would surely help. n Willa Cather’s novel “My Antonia,” But we don’t live in a healthy society and there are two kind Russian farmers named we don’t have a healthy president. Peter and Pavel who have settled on the Trump doesn’t recognize, understand or Nebraska prairie. On his deathbed, Pavel tells respect institutional authority. He only under- stands personal power. He sees the story of how they came to emi- grate there. every conflict as a personal con- flict in which he destroys or gets Many years before, back in Rus- destroyed. sia, the two young men had been When the indictments come the groomsmen at a friend’s wed- ding. The party went on well after down, Trump won’t play by the midnight and eventually a caravan rules. He’ll seek to delegitimize of seven sledges carried the fami- those rules. He’ll seek to delegit- imize our legal institutions. He’ll lies through the snow, back to where D aviD personalize every indictment, slan- they were staying. As they rode, B rooks der every prosecutor. He’ll seek to faint streaks of shadow — hundreds COMMENT destroy the edifice of law in order to of them — could be seen dash- ing through the trees along the trail. save himself. Suddenly, the howling of wolves erupted from We know the language he’ll use. It will be all directions. the anti-establishment, anti-institutional lan- guage that has been coursing through the left The horses took off and the wolves and right for the past few decades: The estab- attacked. The rear sledge hit a clump and lishment is corrupt, the game is rigged, the overturned. The shrieks were horrific as the wolves pounced on their human prey. Another elites are out to get you. At that point congressional leaders will sledge tipped and then another, and the face the defining choice of their careers: swarms of wolves descended on the families. Where does their ultimate loyalty lie, to the Pavel and Peter were in the lead sledge, Constitution or to their party? carrying the bride and groom. They were If their loyalty is to the Constitution, they careening at top speed, but one of their horses will step back and figure out, in a biparti- was now near death with exhaustion. Pavel san way, how to hold the sort of hearings that turned to the groom. They would have to lighten their load. He pointed to the bride. The Congress held during the Watergate scan- dal — hearings that inspired trust in the sys- groom refused to let her be tossed over. Pavel tem. They will step back and find men and fought with him and tried to rip her away. In women of integrity — the modern versions of the scuffle he threw them both out and to the Archibald Cox, Elliot Richardson and Judge wolves. John Sirica — who would work to restore Peter and Pavel survived — but lived in decency amid the moral rot. infamy. They were the monsters who had On the other hand, if they put party above thrown a bride to the wolves. They were nation, they will see this crisis as just another forced to flee to the New World. episode in our long-running political circus. The story reminds us how thin the crust of civilization really is. It reminds us of what oth- They’ll fall back in partisan lines. They’ll hurl erwise good people are capable at moments abuse. Their primary concern will be: How of severe stress and crisis, when fear is up can this help me in 2020? If that happens, then the roughly 40 percent and when conflict — red in tooth and claw — of Americans who support Trump will see takes control. serious evidence that he committed felonies, It’s an especially good story to tell as we but they won’t care! They’ll conclude that this enter 2019, because this looks to be the year is not about law or integrity. It’s just a politi- of the wolves — the year when savage and previously unimaginable things might happen. cal show trial. They’ll see there is no higher It will be a year of divided government and authority that all Americans are account- able to. It’s just power and popularity straight unprecedented partisan conflict. It will be a through. year in which Donald Trump is isolated and If that happens, we’ll have to face the fact unrestrained as never before. And it will be in this atmosphere that indictments will fall, pro- that our Constitution and system of law were voking not just a political crisis but a constitu- not strong enough to withstand the parti- tional one. san furies that now define our politics. We’ll have to face the fact that America has become There are now over a dozen investigations into Trump’s various scandals. If we lived in a another fragile state — a kakistocracy, where healthy society, the ensuing indictments would laws are passed and broken without conse- quence, where good people lay low and where be handled in a serious way — somber con- gressional hearings, dispassionate court pro- wolves are left free to prey on the weak. ceedings. Everybody would step back and be sobered by the fact that our very system of David Brooks is a columnist for the New law is at stake. York Times. 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. 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 9780, or email editor@eastoregonian.com.