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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 8, 2019)
A4 East Oregonian Thursday, August 8, 2019 CHRISTOPHER RUSH Publisher KATHRYN B. BROWN Owner ANDREW CUTLER Editor WYATT HAUPT JR. News Editor JADE McDOWELL Hermiston Editor Founded October 16, 1875 OUR VIEW Brown’s attitude about rural Oregon is showing G ov. Kate Brown’s disdain for rural Oregon is showing. Brown is considering sev- eral legislative vetoes, and all but one target the districts of rural lawmakers who opposed her beloved carbon cap- and-trade legislation, House Bill 2020. The exception is legislation that affects the Oregon Medical Board budget. The governor’s staff said the poten- tial vetoes are to ensure good policy, not for revenge politics. Really? This is the governor who only a few days ago, when asked whether she would exact retribution against senators who allowed HB 2020 to die, responded, “Revenge is a dish best served cold and slowly.” Brown announced her poten- tial vetoes on Sunday, which means they could happen late this week. It is astounding that she would consider Oregonians so gullible as to believe her statement that she is aiming at legisla- tion that “allocated public funds without appropriate public accountability mea- sures and without ensuring the respon- sible use of taxpayer dollars.” This the governor who two years ago vetoed $2.6 million for projects backed by then-Rep. Sal Esquivel, R-Medford, saying she was holding him account- able for breaking a “straightforward agreement” to support the Oregon Health Plan. Esquivel had provided the lone Republican vote in the Oregon House needed for passage of the OHP funding. But he then tried to overturn that funding through a referendum. At least Brown had the guts to admit her retaliation in her veto letter. The laughable irony is that she began that letter by saying her leadership style was to establish goals and work with others “to achieve these goals collaboratively using the democratic process and with- out being dictatorial.” Brown backed off vetoing a third Esquivel project after hearing from peo- “THAT TIME FRAME WHERE URBAN OREGON WAS DEPENDENT ON RURAL OREGON WAS A WHILE AGO” — Gov. Kate Brown ple in Southern Oregon. Maybe there is a chance she will change her mind this week on the potential vetoes. Don’t count on it. Brown’s attitude toward rural Oregon came through loudly and clearly in a Capital Bureau story this week: “That time frame where urban Oregon was dependent on rural Oregon was a while ago,” Brown said. “I would say probably more than four decades ago. So I don’t think we can go back to those times.” Yes, times have changed. But Brown seems clueless as to how dependent urban Oregon is on the food, fiber, energy, water, recreational opportuni- ties and, yes, the timber and other natu- ral resources of rural Oregon — not to mention the new data centers and other rural industries. Brown’s threat to veto HB 2437 is a direct attack on agriculture. Among other things, the bill would make it eas- ier for farmers and ranchers to clear ditches without a state permit and expensive environmental consultation. Of the 90 Oregon legislators, 60 voted for the bill, but some hard-core envi- ronmental groups have continued fight- ing it. It is important to note that one spon- sor of HB 2437 was Sen. Betsy John- son, D-Scappoose, who opposed the awful version of carbon cap and trade favored by Brown and many other Democrats. Other opponents of that carbon bill included Sens. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario; Arnie Roblan, D-Coos Bay; and, although her opposition was not as public, Laurie Monnes Anderson, D-Gresham. Brown’s potential vetoes target proj- ects in Roblan’s and Bentz’s Senate dis- tricts. They projects are contained in HB 5050, the end-of-session “Christ- mas tree” budget bill that passed the Legislature with only four dissenting votes. Brown said she was considering a line-item veto of the $4 million allo- cated to the city of Newport for work on replacing the Big Creek dams. Roblan is Newport’s state senator. The dams are deemed unsafe, but Brown complained that the Legisla- ture had not approved her budget pro- posals to study the state’s most dan- gerous dams and create a dam safety task force. She said next year’s Legisla- ture should fund those proposals before “dedicating funds and planning work on any specific dam.” Her duplicity ignores that HB 5050 also included $14 million to rehabilitate the Wallowa Lake Dam, an important project and one that she has champi- oned as illustrating her commitment to rural Oregon. Bentz represents much of Eastern Oregon. Brown said she might veto the $500,000 in HB 5050 for grants to Eastern Oregon counties for devel- oping economic opportunities outside urban growth boundaries. The grants would complement Senate Bill 2, which Brown signed into law and was spon- sored by Bentz; Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena; and Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem. Courtney had angered Brown and environmentalists by announcing — accurately — that the climate change legislation lacked the votes for Sen- ate passage, even though supporters disagreed. If Brown is trying to teach certain legislators a lesson, it is not one of lead- ership or statesmanship. OTHER VIEWS Americans need relief from drug companies E YOUR VIEWS Wolf recovery has no value to Oregon A La Grande Observer story published June 29 titled “ Wolves Continue to Drive Debate” by Stephan Hamway deserves a response based on facts. In that story retired Forest Ser- vice Hydrologist Suzanne Fouty expressed the opinion that wolves would act as “security guards” for streamside vegetation by keep- ing the deer etc. from grazing wil- lows and shrubs along the banks of streams to oblivion, thus allowing the shade to cool the water for the fish. Fact No. 1: A four-inch diam- eter tree consumes 40 gallons of water per day. If the streams were choked with willows, etc., what water would be left for fish, partic- ularly during the hotter late sum- mer and early fall when flows are already low? The story also stated that a 2006 study indicated that Oregon had enough territory to support 1,450 wolves. Fact No. 2: According to the International Wolf Center, a wolf needs 7 pounds of food per day to flourish and reproduce. 1,450 wolves would need over 10,000 pounds per day, or over 3 mil- lion pounds per year. If their aver- age prey weighed 150 pounds that would be over 24,000 kills per year. Fact No. 3: According to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, total deer population is 33% below the management objec- tive at 226,000 deer, according to the 2017 survey. If the wolves only preyed on deer they could easily decimate the deer population in a few years, but we all know that deer are not their only prey. Fact No. 4: Wolves are pack predators. If there are 8 to 12 hun- gry wolves near livestock, fladry and range riders are not going to stop them from taking livestock. Wolves are a smart predator; they know that most cattle are already habituated to stock dogs and will not initially fear the presence of wolves. The wolf has also figured out that a beef calf does not flee as fast as other wildlife. I will now state my opinion based on fact. Increasing wolf numbers will create more preda- tion on livestock. The Wolf Recov- ery Program has cost over $8 mil- lion with zero benefit other than creating a subset of bureaucrats that are employed in the program. This program in my opinion is a sick joke that has no value to the citizens of Oregon. John Coote Island City 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. very year, I hold a town When it comes down to it, the hall in every Oregon only people in this country who county. From coast to think drug prices aren’t way too grasslands, Gorge to high des- high are those getting rich from ert, blue to red, there is one con- drug company profits. sistent issue that Oregonians ask At one point, I thought drug me to address — the price of pre- prices would be the one issue scription drugs. President Trump and I could Albert, in Linn County, pays agree on; he came into office $800 per dose for his wife’s promising to lower drug prices. immunosuppressant medication. But there has been no action to I don’t know too many match the rhetoric. In Oregonians who can sus- fact, the president’s tain that, and Albert’s revised North American worried that soon, the Free Trade Agreement family won’t be able to (commonly known as afford for her to con- NAFTA) actually locks tinue taking that med- in high drug prices in ication. It’s the same the U.S. At the behest story all over. T.J., from of drug companies, it J eff Klamath Falls, needs locks in special monop- M erkley olies, allowing them to medication to manage COMMENT set high prices on vac- his rheumatoid arthri- cines, treatments for tis condition and it costs cancer and heart disease, and almost $5,500 per dose. If that more. Last year, after the presi- sounds ridiculous, it is. In Can- dent announced his prescription ada, the same drug costs $1,800 drug blueprint, pharmaceutical per dose. These aren’t isolated companies’ stock prices actually examples. It’s common for drugs went up! If a plan is good for the to be up to 10 times more expen- sive here than in other developed companies selling prescription countries. drugs, I am certain it is not good I held a recent AARP tele- for us as consumers. town hall, and more than 1,650 I have a few ideas that drug seniors living all across the state companies wouldn’t like at all, called in about their concern over but would really help our pock- etbooks: outlawing drug compa- the rising costs of drugs. From nies’ price gouging of American digging into savings to pay for consumers and allowing Medi- medications to not taking full care to negotiate drug prices. doses of medication to make it Americans spend on aver- stretch farther, seniors in Oregon age $1,200 on prescription drugs are suffering real consequences every year—more than patients because of the exorbitant cost of in any other country. This is drugs. largely because pharmaceutical It’s not just Oregonians who are suffering. Nearly a quarter of companies play Americans for Americans who take prescription suckers: They get American tax- payer-funded research behind medications say they or a family member has not filled a prescrip- many of their breakthrough tion, has cut pills in half, or has drugs, then turn around and skipped doses simply because of charge us far more than people in the cost. Of the 6 in 10 Ameri- other countries. cans who report taking at least My End Price-Gouging for one prescription medicine, 80% Medications Act would stop that say the cost of their prescription practice. The bipartisan, bicam- eral bill would stop drug compa- drugs is unreasonable. 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. nies from charging Americans more for prescription drugs than the median price per drug in 11 developed nations. This estab- lished reference price would apply to all patients in the U.S. market — those who are unin- sured, have purchased their own coverage, or who are covered under a group health plan, like their policy from an employer or Medicare. If drug companies try to evade the law, they’ll be sub- ject to fines five times the price difference. In addition to stopping the price gouging by drug compa- nies, we should be using other means to bring down drug prices, but currently the best tool we have is locked away. I’ve written legislation that would unlock the toolbox and let Medicare negoti- ate the price of the drugs it buys. Medicare is, by far, the biggest insurer in the nation, yet the drug companies have convinced poli- cymakers in Washington to pre- vent Medicare from negotiating drug prices. If our government is working for We the People instead of the special interests like drug companies, this change should be a no-brainer. We have allowed Americans to be ripped off by drug compa- nies for far too long. I am tak- ing a multi-pronged approach to stand up to Big Pharma, and stand beside the Americans who are being forced to choose between life-saving medicines and basic necessities. My hope is that every Oregonian who’s attended my town halls; every senior who called in to my tele- town hall; and every American who relies on affordable health care and prescriptions will join in the cry to put a stop to phar- maceutical companies’ greed and provide Americans with much- needed relief. ——— Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, is the junior senator for Oregon. Send letters to the editor to editor@eastoregonian.com, or via mail to Andrew Cutler, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801
