LOCAL & STATE
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2019
Bentz running for Walden’s seat;
Buehler, others ponder campaign
BAKER CITY HERALD — 3A
Baker City Police
investigating graffiti
investigated at these busi-
nesses: AmeriTitle, 2245
Baker City Police are
Main St.; Club 24, 1924
investigating damage to
Broadway St., the build-
fi ve Baker City business
ing that houses the Baker
buildings and one home
City Herald, Styles R Us
site that were vandalized salon, Calvary Chapel
with spray paint over the Church and A Therapeutic
past week.
Massage at 1668 Resort
Offi cer Jonathan
St.; Bella, 2023 Main St.;
Parsons noted graffi ti of a and the Baker Tower, 1705
similar pattern sprayed at Main St.
the six sites, Lt. Ty Duby
Private property at 2580
said today.
First St., owned by Charles
Crimes of fi rst-degree
and Candice Hofmann,
criminal mischief are being also was damaged.
By Chris Collins
ccollins@bakercityherald.com
From staff and wire reports
Ontario Republican Cliff Bentz, who
represents Baker County
in the Oregon Senate, an-
nounced Tuesday that he
will seek to replace Greg
Walden, who said Monday
he will not run for re-elec-
Bentz
tion in 2020.
Bentz has served in the
state Senate for almost two years, and
he previously served 10 years in the
Oregon House of Representatives.
“Congressman Walden has done (and
is still doing) a great job as Oregon’s
only Republican Congressman,” Bentz
said in a press release. “It was a sur-
prise to learn that he has decided not to
run again.
“The challenges in Washington, D.C.,
are great,” Bentz said. “However, based
upon my years of working as a rancher,
farmer, attorney, and as member of the
Republican party successfully passing
legislation in a Legislature controlled
by Democrats, I feel confi dent that I can
adequately represent the people of the
2nd Congressional District of Oregon,”
Bentz said he will be establishing a
congressional campaign team over the
next several weeks. His campaign web-
site is: https://www.cliffbentz.com
Bentz isn’t the only Republican who
has expressed an interest in replacing
Walden as representative for the 2nd
District, which includes all of Oregon
east of the Cascades and parts of Jack-
son and Josephine counties in Oregon’s
southwest corner.
Knute Buehler, a former state
lawmaker who was the Republican
nominee for Oregon governor in 2018,
announced on Twitter that he’s consid-
ering seeking his party’s nomination for
Walden’s seat.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports
that former state Sen. Jason Atkinson of
Central Point also is considering a run.
Buehler, of Bend, is a surgeon by
training and served two terms in the
Oregon House of Representatives, after
fi rst winning election in 2014. He ran
unsuccessfully for secretary of state in
2012 against Kate Brown, and Brown
defeated him again in his 2018 bid for
governor.
Buehler is fi scally conservative
but on social issues, he is much more
moderate than Walden. Buehler is pro-
abortion rights and a champion of gay
marriage.
Like many Republicans, Buehler was
surprised by Walden’s announcement.
In a telephone interview on Tuesday
evening, Buehler said he is exploring
a run for Congress but won’t impose a
deadline on when he’ll jump in or stay
out of the race.
“I want to make sure I am not rushed
into making the decision,” Buehler
said. “I have no specifi c time marker for
making a choice.”
It has been just under a year since
Buehler lost the governor’s race to
Brown. But that campaign started in
August 2017 and was demanding on
his wife, Patty, and his adult son and
daughter, Buehler said.
“I really need to talk to Patty and my
children,” Buehler said. “You have to be
all-in if you are going to do something
like this.”
Buehler said he has already had con-
versations with people who backed his
past campaigns to gauge whether a run
for Walden’s seat is a good idea.
“I have supporters throughout Con-
gressional District 2 and around the
state,” he said. “I value their opinions.
This is a really important decision for
me personally and for the future of the
state. This is a position that can do a lot
of good for people.”
Arctic air just misses October record
■ Low of 3 degrees at the airport; coldest October reading on record is 2, set in 2006
The frost, it seems reason-
able to conclude, has perme-
ated the pumpkin.
Certainly any squash
exposed overnight in Baker
City acquired more than a
superfi cial scrim of ice.
The temperature dipped to
3 degrees this morning at the
Baker City Airport.
Gambleton
That not only broke the
previous record low for Oct.
30 of 9 degrees, set in 2006,
but it’s also the second-coldest
temperature ever recorded
during October at the airport,
where records date to 1945.
The coldest October day
was Oct. 31, 2006, when the
low was 2 degrees.
Baker
teacher
honored
WALDEN
Today is also the second
straight daily low tempera-
ture record at the airport.
Tuesday’s low of 6 degrees
broke the previous record for
Oct. 29 of 9 degrees, set in
1971.
Today’s record likely will
be the last for a while, as the
National Weather Service
Stacy Gambleton, a fourth-grade teacher
at South Baker Intermediate School,
received an Apple Appreciation Award
from Community Bank. The bank collected
nominations for teachers in each town with
a Community Bank branch.
is forecasting a gradual
warming trend through the
weekend.
Conditions for Thursday’s
trick-or-treating event from
4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in down-
town Baker City should be
clear with light winds, and
temperatures dropping from
around 40 to the mid-30s.
Among the entries for Gambleton: “She
is so great with the kids — kind, patient
and loves everyone.” “She is the best
teacher ever!” Gambleton chose the Fourth-
Grade Book Club to receive the $200 dona-
tion that goes with her award.
challenger Jamie McLeod-
“I think the District
Skinner.
should feel very grateful
Continued from Page 1A
Walden won 56.3% of the
for the work Greg has put
Tom Van Diepen of Baker
votes to McLeod-Skinner’s
City, who is a precinct com-
39.4% — the smallest margin in. It’s been an honor to
mittee person for the Baker
of victory in his congressional
work with him. He’s one of
County Republican Party,
career.
the good guys.”
said when he heard Monday — Tom Van Diepen, precinct
His previous low was his
committee
member,
Baker
that Walden would not seek
fi rst race when, as a non-
— Suzan Ellis Jones, chair,
re-election he initially felt the County Republican Party
incumbent, he won 61.5% of Baker County Republican
Party
same trepidation that Jones
the votes against Democrat
That law automatically
has about whether the 2nd
Kevin Campbell.
District will remain Oregon’s registers people to vote if,
In Walden’s subsequent
website Monday announc-
after visting a DMV to renew re-elections prior to 2018, he ing his pending retirement,
lone GOP stronghold.
a driver’s license or some
But Tuesday afternoon
received between 66.8% and Walden said he is “confi dent
Van Diepen said that, after
other transaction, they fail to 73.9% of the votes.
I would earn the support of
further refl ection, he’s not as fi ll out a form declining to be
Jones noted that in 2018,
2nd District voters for another
worried about Republicans
registered.
for the fi rst time, Walden lost term.”
losing the seat.
The Motor Voter law has
in Deschutes County, where
The Cook Political Report
“Anything can happen, but added hundreds of thousands McLeod-Skinner, who lives
rates the district as one of the
I don’t see a progressive or a of people to Oregon’s voter
in that county, received about 160 most “solid” Republican”
liberal making much head-
rolls, but a majority of these 100 more votes. Walden won House districts in the 2020
way in Eastern Oregon,” Van newly registered voters have Deschutes County by more
election. The winner of the
Diepen said.
not declared a party affi lia-
than 32,000 votes in 2016.
Republican primary in May
Although registered
tion.
(Walden also lost his home would be the likely front-
Republicans outnumber
The result is the percent-
county, Hood River, to McLeod- runner to win the seat in
Democrats in the District by age of non-affi liated voters
Skinner, 6,735 to 3,578.)
November.
more than 46,000 — 189,983 has swelled. In the 2nd
Walden dominated in Baker
Jones believes the 2nd
Republicans as of Septem-
District the non-affi liated
County, with 6,004 votes to
District has benefi ted from
ber, compared with 143,353
percentage has risen from
McLeod-Skinner’s 1,894.
Walden’s seniority. He is the
registered Democrats — the 22.7% in 2014 to 27% in
Van Diepen credits
ranking Republican member
GOP’s percentage has been
2016, 32.9% in 2018 and this McLeod-Skinner for running of the House Committee on
decreasing over the past fi ve September, for the fi rst time, a strong campaign, but he
Energy and Commerce.
years.
there are more non-affi liated doesn’t believe her com-
“Greg is right up there in
In September 2014, two
voters in the District (34.6%) petitive race against Walden leadership,” Jones said. “A
months before Walden was
than registered Republicans means the 2nd District is on
freshman coming in is not
elected to his ninth term,
(33.2%).
the brink of joining Oregon’s going to have the same clout
Republicans accounted for
“The District is changing,” other districts on the Demo-
that Greg has. That’s a given.”
40% of the 2nd District’s
Jones said.
cratic side of the aisle.
Van Diepen, by contrast,
electorate, compared with
She points to Walden’s
“She worked hard for those said he doesn’t mind that
Democrats’ 29.2%.
most recent election victory,
votes” he said of McLeod-
Walden’s replacement will
The percentage of regis-
in November 2018 when
Skinner.
lack seniority.
tered Republicans dropped to he defeated Democratic
In a video he posted on his
Van Diepen said he sup-
37.1% in September 2016, to
34% in September 2018, and
to 33.2% this September.
Democrats have also lost
Sponsored by Baker Branch AAUW
ground during that period,
going from 29.2% of the Dis-
trict’s voters in 2014 to 28.5%
in 2016, 25.8% in 2018 and
25.1% this September.
The largest change among
the 2nd District’s electorate
during that period has been
the increase in the number
of voters who aren’t affi liated
with any party, a trend due
in part to Oregon’s “Motor
Voter” law, which took effect
in 2016.
“Anything can happen,
but I don’t see a
progressive or a liberal
making much headway in
Eastern Oregon.”
OPEN TO COMMUNITY
BUYING
Continued from Page 1A
Cleanup and minor remodeling is planned in the
spring, and Baker Charter Schools expects to be in the
building by June, Huld said.
The online schools, which have 60 students and 25
staff locally, will move to that building from the current
location at North Baker School, 2725 Seventh St.
“The building will better meet our needs, allowing
us to more effi ciently utilize space for both faculty and
staff,” Huld stated in a press release.
Baker Charter Schools has eight locations across
Oregon currently serving 2,500 students statewide.
The main offi ce, which contains fi nancial and student
records for the entire state, is housed in Baker City.
Huld said the Ellingson building has offi ce spaces as
opposed to the classrooms at North Baker, which will
better meet the needs of Baker Charter Schools.
Baker Charter Schools is its own entity with its own
budget and board of directors, although it works in
partnership with Baker School District.
Huld said the school is using funds from its savings
to purchase the building, not tapping into its operating
funds.
Baker Charter Schools consists of two separate
charter schools — the Baker Web Academy, an online
or textbook-based K-12 school, and Baker Early Col-
lege, which allows students in grades 10-12 to complete
high school and start their college experience early.
More information is available at https://bakerchar-
ters.org/about-us
Baker School District Superintendent Mark Witty
spoke in favor of the Baker Charter Schools’ purchase
of the Ellingson building.
“We appreciate the strong relationship that we have
with Baker Charter Schools and believe this purchase
will be advantageous in providing the operational
space necessary to continue to grow the service model
even further in the State of Oregon,” Witty stated in
the press release.
ports term limits for Congress
— even a single term — be-
cause he believes that the lon-
ger lawmakers serve, the more
likely they are to negotiate to
advance their position rather
than to focus on representing
their constituents.
Ultimately, Van Diepen
said his chief concern is that
Walden’s replacement will be
a true conservative, regard-
less of the candidate’s party
affi liation.
Although Jones acknowl-
edges that some of her fellow
Republicans have at times
criticized Walden, saying he
isn’t suffi ciently conservative
to satisfy them, she believes
Walden has effectively repre-
sented what she sees as the
District’s conservative values.
“I’m a conservative, and to
me Greg is a conservative,”
Jones said. “He is a constitu-
tionalist.”
Van Diepen agrees.
“I think he’s as good as any
of them,” he said of Walden.
Van Diepen does believe,
though, that Walden was most
effective in his fi rst term.
Jones said Walden played a
vital role in lobbying President
Donald Trump to pardon
Dwight and Steven Hammond,
the Harney County ranchers
who were sentenced to fi ve
years in prison after being
convicted of lighting fi res.
Jones also believes Walden
has consistently represented
his constituents regarding
management and use of natu-
ral resources on public land,
which makes up more than
half of many counties in the
2nd District, including Baker
County.
Walden has sponsored legis-
lation intended to increase the
rate of logging on federal land
and potentially reduce the risk
of wildfi res.
Jones contends Walden’s
support of such bills has ben-
efi ted not only the 2nd District
but all of Oregon.
Although she concedes she’s
disappointed that Walden won’t
seek another term in Congress,
Jones, who said she speaks
with Walden on a nearly week-
ly basis, said she understands,
and respects, his decision.
“I think Greg made a good
decision for himself and (his
wife) Mylene,” Jones said. “I
think the District should feel
very grateful for the work
Greg has put in. It’s been an
honor to work with him. He’s
one of the good guys.”
Mobile Service
Outstanding
Computer Repair
Any issue $40 fl at rate
Call or Text 24/7
Dale Bogardus 541-297-5831
If your computer is scary and slow to boot
give me a call and I will save you some loot!
www.outstandingcomputerrepair.com
Refurbished Desktop & Laptops For Sale
House calls (let me come to you!)
Drop Offs & Remote Services are Available
All credit cards accepted