The independent., May 19, 2005, Page 2, Image 2

Page 2
The INDEPENDENT, May 19, 2005
ne
INDEPENDENT
Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published on the
first and third Thursdays of each month, by Public Opinion
Laboratory Ltd., 725 Bridge St., Vernonia, OR 97064, as a
free newspaper. Publishers, Dirk & Noni Andersen. Editor,
Noni Andersen. Phone/Fax: 503-429-9410, email: noni@
the-independent.net Display Advertising, Clark McGaugh,
email: clark@the-independent.net Classified Advertising,
Rebecca McGaugh, email: rebecca@the-independent.net
Why, or why not filibuster?
With the Senate nearing a battle on rules changes, former
Senate majority leader George J. Mitchell recalled in a May 10,
2005, New York Times Op-Ed column, words spoken 55 years
ago by Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine against a
member of her own party.
“I don‘t believe the American people will uphold any political
party that puts political exploitation above national interest,” the
senator said. “Surety we Republicans aren't that desperate for
victory. While it might be a fleeting victory for the Republican
Party, it would be a more lasting defeat for the American peo­
ple. ...it would ultimately be suicide for the two-party system
that has protected our American liberties from the dictatorship
of a one-party system.”
The circumstances are now different, but the principles of
preserving our system of checks and balances are at tbe heart
of the Senate rules debate, Mitchell wrote.
Our founders created a system to prevent abuse of power.
The president’s veto power is a check on Congress. The Sen­
ate’s power to confirm or reject judicial nominees balances the
president’s authority to nominate them. The proposal by some
Republican senators to change rules that have governed the
Senate for two centuries now puts that system in danger.
Since 1789, the Senate has rejected nearly 20 percent of all
nominees to the Supreme Court, many without a vote.
In 1968 Republican senators filibustered to block voting on
President Lyndon Johnson’s nominee for chief justice of the
Supreme Court. During debate, Republican Senator. Robert
Griffin, said: “It is important to realize that it has not been un­
usual for the Senate to indicate its lack of approval for a nom­
ination by making sure that it never came to a vote.”
Between 1968 and 2001, both parties used filibusters to op­
pose judicial nominees. In 2000, the last year of Bill Clinton’s
presidency, Republican senators filibustered two of his nomi­
nees for circuit judges. They also prevented Senate votes on
more than 60 of Mr. Clinton’s judicial nominees.
Filibustering to prevent votes on judicial nominees is not a
new tactic invented by Senate Democrats.
Senate rules can be changed, and often have been. But
Senate Republicans don’t have the votes for a change within
the rules. So they propose to act unilaterally to get their way
and claim their actions are justified because the filibuster is be­
ing used unfairly to stop the confirmation of President Bush’s
nominees. But 208 of the president’s 218 judicial nominees
have been approved. That is 95 percent of Mr. Bush’s judicial
nominees, a higher percentage of approval than any of his
three predecessors achieved.
Let’s hope that Oregon’s Senator Gordon Smith under­
stands history and the principles behind checks and balances
as well as Senator Margaret Chase Smith did.
.............
•” ■••• •■./ ."5
Large class sizes harm
stu d e n ts and society
To the Editor:
Class size: Does it really
matter? As a parent who at­
tended the public forum held
May 4 and the school board
meeting on May 12, I am con­
cerned that the voice of the ed­
ucators, parents and the public
sector are not being heard or
taken seriously.
We all have a vested interest
in our children’s education.
Washington Grade School is
faced with overcrowded class­
rooms. Larger classes have
been plaguing Oregon’s School
Districts but now it has come
home. It has been apparent in
this year’s first grade classes
which each have about 28 to
29 students per class.
I believe that large class
sizes continue to wreck many
positive advances in education
and learning. The Board of Ed­
ucation and many of the un­
informed general public would
assert that reducing class size
is too costly, and furthermore,
that there is no proof or evi­
dence that small class sizes
_
______________
class sizes for our society as a
make a difference in learning.
There are pros and cons in whole are enormous. Poor edu­
class size and the effect it has cation can lead young people
on learning. Research has to crime. Which might lead
shown that small classes of 15 some to our overcrowded
to 20 students result in learning prison system. Inmates have
gains on standardized tests in an average education level of
reading and mathematics with below twelfth grade. The aver­
considerable marked improve­ age cost to society of keeping
ment in the earlier grades. The one person in jail is over
advantages gained from being $24,000 per year. The cost of
in small classes have lasting instructing one student in Ver­
benefits into the later years of nonia is just about $8,000 per
the students lives.
year. We are now paying for
As a parent I am able to take neglecting to properly fund
the time to volunteer. I see that schools. Higher crime rates
the teacher’s workload has in­ and the lack of qualified work­
creased and that also takes ers for our industries have neg­
away from time spent on the atively impacted our society.
student-teacher relationship
The Board of Education and
that is crucial in assessing each the Budget Committee have
student’s needs. With smaller got to do more than give an
class sizes teachers can get to aide to our educators on Fri­
know each student and can days as has been discussed for
readily identify their strengths the following school year. It is
and weaknesses, thereby in­ not enough.
Have all options been dis­
creasing the ability to make a
plan to help improve the weak­ cussed and researched that
nesses. This in turn gives stu­ would benefit the students and
dents the confidence to attend the teachers? We do not want
school and continue their edu­ to become desensitized to the
cation. Then, truancy is re­ harm large classes do to our
students and ourselves. We
duced.
The ramifications of large
Please see page 3