ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
WYATT HAUPT JR.
News Editor
JADE McDOWELL
Hermiston Editor
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2020
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Walden
leaves a
lasting
legacy
I
n today’s pop culture dominated cli-
mate, politicians rarely receive much
thanks, but the work of U.S. Rep. Greg
Walden stands out as a classic example of
what an elected leader should do once he or
she reaches Congress.
Walden, as many already know, will
close the door on a long career in January
2021. His successor, Ontario attorney Cliff
Bentz, will step into Walden’s position with
big shoes to fill.
Walden did not always get it right, but his
best efforts far overshadowed any miscues.
While in office, Walden was a champion of
property rights, water rights, farmers and
ranches and those who serve our nation.
His long political record — which began
as a state lawmaker — paid off often in
Congress, which means those he served in
the sprawling 2nd Congressional District
reaped the benefits.
Occasionally — or frequently, depending
from the individual perspective — our fed-
eral politicians fail and forget they represent
the people. They ignore the will of those
who elected them. By and large, that was
never a trap that Walden fell into.
Walden made it a priority to visit his dis-
trict as much as possible. He held town hall
meetings in out-of-the-way places across
rural Eastern Oregon, but, maybe most
importantly, he listened. That may not seem
like a great attribute, but it is. Walden lis-
tened to the voters. He paid attention. He
delved deep into local problems and sought
answers. That type of commitment from a
politician is refreshing, and Walden did it
year after year.
Oregon is going to miss Walden on sev-
eral levels, especially regarding his seniority
and the know-how he collected over years as
a congressman. When Walden departs, he
will take with him all the key relationships
he had with other lawmakers that helps get
things done. The various coalitions he made
with other politicians that are often criti-
cal for a bill to pass will also be gone. That
won’t help Oregon in the short term.
However, Bentz, while not a Walden
protégé, is very much like the Hood River
politician in his outlook and his concern
for rural values. On water issues especially,
Bentz is well versed. That will pay off for
Oregon down the road.
Meanwhile, the state will watch one of
its longest serving federal lawmakers exit
the stage. He can depart with the knowl-
edge that, for the most part, he consistently
served the voters of his district and made
sure their priorities were his priorities.
EDITORIALS
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.
LETTERS
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:
editor@eastoregonian.com,
or via mail to Andrew Cutler,
211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801
2020 leaves us bloodied but unbowed
ANDREW
CUTLER
FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK
I
t’s been a tough year.
From my standpoint as the pub-
lisher/editor of the East Oregonian
I can’t think of any other time in my
career where the challenges seemed so
great and the future so stark as it was
in the spring when COVID-19 was
escalating.
Matters grew worse as the year wore
on and as COVID-19 cases climbed
locally.
Yet, through it all, I was able to see
many different things that enhanced my
already strong faith in our local com-
munities and in our newspaper.
Crisis often brings out the very worst
or best in people, and from my experi-
ence I saw far more outstanding actions
and words from people than the reverse.
Our newspaper staff performed
during extremely trying circumstances.
We were helped in that endeavor by our
readers and others who, instead of fall-
ing into a river of fear, decided to be
proactive and to work the problems one
by one as they came up.
A few examples that come to mind
include the 2nd Congressional District
candidate forum in May hosted by EO
Media Group and streamed online by
La Grande-based Eastern Oregon Alive
TV. That partnership brought the candi-
dates together virtually so Eastern Ore-
gon voters could get a sense of where
candidates were at on important issues,
something that can often be challenging
— even during the best of times.
Another example is the August part-
nership between the East Oregonian,
Hermiston Herald and Umatilla County
commissioners to distribute 25,000
masks throughout the county during the
height of the outbreak. Joining forces
with the county to provide masks and
much-needed information shows the
important role this newspaper plays.
The local newspaper is a key insti-
tution in any community. I have always
felt that a community is what helps
make a newspaper good in the first
place. Our subscribers and advertisers
are paramount to our success.
That is why I want to thank our
advertisers, our subscribers and all the
staff at the East Oregonian. Our read-
ers deserve praise for remaining loyal
and giving us the benefit of the doubt
when the darkest days of the pandemic
descended upon us. Our subscribers are
the lifeblood of our organization, for
without them, there would be no paper.
I take our obligation to the reader
very seriously. I spend large chunks of
time every day wondering about the
reader, pondering a news coverage task
by putting myself in the place of the
reader and asking, “What would I want
to know?”
We are grateful for our advertisers,
because in a year unlike any other in
our lifetimes, it would have been easy
for advertisers to save every penny.
Instead, when it was more important
than ever for them to get their message
out, they trusted the East Oregonian to
deliver that message, and for that I am
thankful.
Our staff here at the East Orego-
nian also deserves to be lauded. From
our advertising representatives to our
reporters and editors, each person con-
tributed to our success this year despite
monumental challenges.
Some may not believe that. Some
may think, “What I do isn’t that big a
deal for the newspaper,” but they would
be wrong. Every employee makes a dif-
ference every day here at the East Ore-
gonian, whether they realize it or not.
Without their dedication we would not
be the great organization we are today.
The proof is in the pudding, as they
say. While there were many challenges
in 2020 — for all of us — one thing the
East Oregonian continued to do without
fail was ensure that critical information
went out to subscribers and nonsub-
scribers alike in print and online at eas-
toregonian.com. And for that, the East
Oregonian, once again, was named
the No. 1 paper in its circulation class
in the ONPA General Excellence cate-
gory. That’s something everyone here at
the East Oregonian and the community
should take pride in.
We — the East Oregonian, residents
and our readers — have been bloodied
but we are unbowed. That’s because of
the unique kind of Eastern Oregon grit
that is hard to define but crucial during
tough times.
So, as the new year looms just a few
days away, I want to thank everyone for
allowing us to fill our vital role in East-
ern Oregon and continue our mission to
keep the public informed.
———
Andrew Cutler is the publisher/editor
of the East Oregonian.
first time in the history of the United
States in which the federal government
carried out more civilian executions
than did the states.”
The report describes specific exe-
cutions, often accompanied by pho-
tos of the prisoners executed: “The
rash of executions was also aberrant
in its selections of prisoners to be put
to death. The condemned included
the first Native American ever exe-
cuted by the federal government for a
murder of a member of his own tribe
on tribal lands; the first federal exe-
cutions of teenaged offenders in 68
years; the first federal execution in 57
years for a crime committed in a state
that had abolished the death penalty;
the scheduled executions of two pris-
oners who medical evidence indicated
had intellectual disability; the sched-
uled executions of two prisoners with
serious mental illness, including one
who may have been mentally incom-
petent at the time of his execution; the
scheduled executions of two prison-
ers who did not kill anyone and three
who were less culpable than co-defen-
dants who received lesser sentences;
the first lame-duck executions in more
than a century; and executions carried
out against the wishes of victims’ fam-
ily members, trial or appellate prosecu-
tors in the cases, and at least one of the
judges who presided at trial.”
Gary Dielman
Baker City
Levy’s support of
disenfranchising millions
of voters is appalling
YOUR VIEWS
Trump’s unconscionable
use of federal death
penalty
The Trump administration’s inept-
itude in dealing with the COVID-19
virus has led to the avoidable deaths of
over 300,000 U.S. citizens, soon to sur-
pass 400,000.
As if that’s not enough deaths, the
Trump administration in the last half of
2020 has begun executing federal pris-
oners on death row, thereby ending a
17-year moratorium on executions.
I don’t think I’m being cynical in
pointing out that the executions are
taking place right after the Republi-
can Party’s renomination of President
Trump last July as the party’s candi-
date for president. How better to show
you’re tough on crime than by killing
prisoners on death row in the federal
prison system?
The other day I read the Death Pen-
alty Information Center’s just-issued
“The Death Penalty in 2020: Year End
Report.” The report covers thoroughly
death penalty statistics in all 50 states,
plus military and federal system.
One federal system statistic in the
report, besides ending of the 17-year
moratorium on executions, is the fol-
lowing: “The 10 people executed under
the federal death penalty in the second
half of 2020 exceeded the number exe-
cuted by all of the states combined, the
I am appalled to see that our represen-
tative-elect, Bobby Levy, signed on to
the Texas attorney general’s failed effort
to disenfranchise millions of voters in
four states. More specifically, the Texas
AG attempted to stop the Electoral Col-
lege from counting the votes of the four
swing states that just happened to sup-
port Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
And what was the big problem that
Texas sought to address? These four
states, as well as many others, had
expanded the ability for their citizens to
vote by mail. Never mind that no state
has the ability to dictate to another state
how to conduct their elections. Levy
must surely realize there is nothing
wrong with voting by mail. Oregon has
proven many times over two decades that
voting by mail is a secure and econom-
ical way to conduct elections, and Levy
herself has just been elected by this very
system.
I’m sure Levy is sincere in her sup-
port of election integrity, but watching a
debunked propaganda video is no way
to develop an informed opinion about
anything. I hope for all of our sakes that
Levy can make better decisions in the
future.
Jon White
La Grande