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wallowa.com
Wallowa County Commissioner
Dan DeBoie
John Hillock
Diane Daggett
October 10, 2018
Wallowa County Treasurer
Cliff Walters
Carolyn Doherty
Goebel-Burns
Velda Bales
Wallowa County Chieftain
Circuit Court Judge
Mona K. Williams
Wes Williams
Local candidates make their pitch to voters
By Kathleen Ellyn
Wallowa County Chieftain
A crowd of nearly 50 people
packed the conference room at the
Outlaw Restaurant in Joseph last
Wednesday to hear campaign state-
ments and to ask questions of candi-
dates for county commissioner, cir-
cuit court judge and county treasurer.
Candidates came prepared to
address the sensitivity of the Joseph-
area crowd, following months of con-
troversy over Commissioner Todd
Nash’s rush to push through a new
transient lodging tax that affected the
area.
Wallowa County
Commissioner
candidates
Commissioner candidates Diane
Daggett, John Hillock and Dan
DeBoie all pledged open communica-
tion and respect for all economic sec-
tors in the county if elected commis-
sioner. Candidate Cliff Walters, the
least experienced of the group, kept
his comments neutral and stated that
he was known for doing what he said
he would do.
The complexity of the issues fac-
ing the county and the necessity of
developing partnerships between
public and private groups was key to
candidates.
“I believe the underpinning of our
rural character is our ag and forest
lands and the economy they gener-
ate,” said Daggett. “Don’t misunder-
stand me, all of our economic sec-
tors are important to the health of our
community.”
Businessman John Hillock had
already begun researching grant
opportunities for the county.
“I’ve thought for years that Wal-
lowa County was lacking somebody
that was going out and was look-
ing for grant opportunities or other
opportunities,” he said. “My history
shows I’ve brought — I said about
a million dollars to the community
in (energy) grants and incentive dol-
lars, my son says more like $2 mil-
lion. We’ve done our share of bring-
ing money into the community ... I
think I can bring that expertise to the
county and get some of that done.”
DeBoie, a former commissioner,
reminded the crowd of the financial
realities facing Wallowa County and
the power of the community.
“Wallowa County people are gen-
erous, they know what they want,
they know what they’re buying and as
a commissioner it’s part of what it is
to find out what the people want and
go hard to get it,” he said.
The candidates also understood
the tenuous nature of Wallowa Coun-
ty’s funding stream and the impor-
tance of working with legislators
“higher up the chain” to secure finan-
cial support for counties with lots of
publicly-owned lands.
“I’d like to see the county con-
tinue to fight and encourage our fed-
eral government to invest in commu-
nities that are public-land based,” said
Daggett.
DeBoie emphasized the impor-
tance of “keeping our forest receipts
... that feed the road department and
the school, we’re going to work
with our elected officials higher up
the chain to make sure we don’t lose
those. If we lose some of that stuff
we’re going to be in deep trouble.”
County treasurer
candidates
Not even Treasurer candidates
Velda Bales, Carolyn Doherty
and Ginger Goebel-Burns were
free of sharp questions. One ques-
tion quizzed the candidates on who
they served — the people or county
government — and another asked if
they saw their position as a check on
the powers of commissioners.
All said they served the people,
often highlighting the portions of
their work experience that showed
both their depth in the community
and their ability to serve the public.
Goebel-Burns pointed out that
she has always worked for commis-
sioners in her position with the road
department. But as an elected offi-
cial she said it would be a case of
working with, not working for the
commissioners, and following the
laws that regulate the treasurer’s
office.
As to the question of their being
a “check on the powers of the com-
mission,” all candidates rejected the
notion that it was within their job
description to keep the commission-
ers in check.
“I’m not going to say to the
commissioners, now wait a min-
ute, I don’t think you should be giv-
ing transient lodging tax money to
Alpenfest,” said Goebel-Burns.
Doherty said that while the trea-
surer’s top priority was serving the
people of the community, keeping
commissioners “in check” was not
the job of treasurers. “(Commission-
ers) know their positions, duties and
ordinances,” she said.
Bales interpreted the question as
one about the importance of working
closely with all of the other officials,
but agreed that the community was
the treasurer’s boss.
“You have to keep that in mind
and ... follow all of the regula-
tions required through the treasurers
office,” she said.
Circuit Court Judge
Both candidates for circuit court
judge — Wes Williams and Mona
K. Williams — have extensive expe-
rience. Both candidates felt their
experience in family court is valu-
able for judgeship, as is their experi-
ence in both civil and criminal cases.
Former Wallowa County District
Attorney Mona K. Williams is cur-
rently a Wallowa Circuit Court judge.
She emphasized her dedication to
fairness, victim’s rights, defendant’s
rights, and protection of the people
of Wallowa County. That experience
put her in good stead as a judge, she
said.
“Although judges don’t get to
make decisions about what cases
are brought, who gets charged ... I
do have the obligation to follow the
constitution ... and to do justice,” she
said.
Wes Williams is an attorney with
experience before both the Oregon
Court of Appeals and the Oregon
Supreme Court. He has represented
victims of both criminal and civil
crime and represented families and
juveniles, arguing one case pro bono
for six years all the way to the Ore-
gon Supreme Court where his client
prevailed.
His criminal defense experience
is primarily in defending individuals
squaring off against the government,
banks and insurance firms, he said.
“My reason I’m running for judge
is primarily because I believe we
need a judge who will protect con-
stitutional rights,” he said. “That has
been the focus of my practice for 22
years. I also believe we need a judge
that has a broad experience in the
law, both in civil court and in crim-
inal court.”
Wallowa County residents who
missed the nearly three hour forum
have another chance to learn about
the candidates in depth by attending
the candidate forum set for Wednes-
day, Oct. 10, 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Clover-
leaf Hall in Enterprise. Those invited
include candidates for Oregon gov-
ernor, U.S. House of Representative
candidates, as well as local candi-
dates for circuit court judge, county
commissioner, county treasurer and
Enterprise City Council.
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Office C
WALLOWA COUNTY CHIEFTAIN
209 NW FIRST ST., ENTERPRISE OREGON
