Candidates draw Q&A full house
Lou Marzeles
Editor
One of the first candidates to speak at last week’s Candidates’ Night meeting put the evening into perspective. “I believe ideas aren’t Republican or Democrat,” Leland Yialelis, running for U.S. House of Representatives, told the audience. “I believe ideas are good or bad.”
For two hours Thursday evening, a crowd of close to a hundred people listened to ideas from 18 different candidates, deciding which sounded good and which sounded bad to them.
The format for the evening was, each candidate had three minutes to make an opening statement, followed by questions from the audience. The questions were written on cards and passed on to moderators, who read the questions to the candidates. At no time did audience members speak directly to candidates.
First up were the candidates challenging incumbent Doc Hastings for his long-held congressional seat. Of the five challengers, four showed up at the meeting; only Democrat Jay Clough was not there. Neither was Hastings. Of the five, the most conspicuous platforms espoused were those of Constitution Party candidate Mary Ruth Edwards and Rex Brocki. Brocki, arriving a half hour late and dressed in T-shirt and shorts, openly acknowledged that he was not running to actually get elected. “I’m running to publicize the issue of the federal income tax,” Brocki said. “All taxation is theft. It’s completely unconstitutional and has to be repealed.” He then gestured toward Edwards and said, “She’s a great lady. I hope she wins.”
Edwards’ platform rests on three key principles, she told the audience. “First is, ‘Honor God,’” she said. “We have to acknowledge that our founding fathers knew that all human rights come from God, and that those rights exist before government. The government’s role is to preserve rights, not grant them. Point two is, ‘Defend the Family.’ Government needs to protect the family, not implement policies that undermine its strength. Three is, ‘Restore the Republic.’ We are not a true democracy; we’re a republic, which chooses representatives accountable to the people and to no one else. Representatives protect the people’s rights, not control them.”
Next came candidates for state legislature. Present were Rep. David Taylor and his opposing candidate Thomas Silva, and Rep. Bruce Chandler. Chandler took the floor first and declared that the state government was in serious need of reform. “Of all the legislators in Olympia,” he said, “there weren’t 20 who knew the content” of some major proposed legislation.
An audience question was directed to Rep. Taylor, inquiring, “Who asked the people about what the state government is doing?”
“Who asked the people?” Taylor repeated. “The simple answer is, nobody. I’m going to introduce legislation requiring a 72-hour time-out before voting on major legislation. That will give the people time to respond.”
Candidates for county positions were up next, beginning with David Sauter, running unopposed for county commissioner. “I’m unopposed, but I still feel I need to earn your vote,” Sauter said. “Debate sharpens the process.” County Sheriff Rick McComas, also unopposed this year, echoed Sauter’s sentiments. “I should be here to earn your vote,” he said.
Adam DeHart, Darlene Johnson, and Victoria Allen were in sharp contrast in their positions on the function of the county Assessor; all are candidates for that office.
“I’m a good listener and a problem solver,” DeHart said. Allen stressed the need to understand how the assessment process works. “The assessor needs to take input from taxpayers and explain to them what’s happening,” she said. “My best experience working in the Assessor’s office for the last seven years has been listening to you.” Johnson focused on a 2008 report on the county appraisal process, promising to correct deficiencies.
Prosecuting Attorney candidates then took the floor. Dave Brown focused on his platform of reducing his own salary if elected in order to keep costs under control. Lori Hoctor declared, “I’m running because I believe there are serious problems in the Prosecuting Attorney’s office,” adding that if elected she intended to hire a team that would cut outsourcing expenses. Craig Juris observed, “There’s going to be a change in the Prosecuting Attorney’s office—anyone you elect is going to be new. The question is, do you make a change for change’s sake or for someone who can do the job.” He emphasized his experience in the office, pointing out that his experience was longer than his opponents’ combined.
An audience question about recent allegations that Brown had been investigated by the county for sexual harassment was directed to Juris. “The problem with politics is mudslinging,” he said. “The matter was brought to me, and I passed it on to the elected official.” He then added he would comment no further on the matter. “I’m not going down that road,” he said. “I don’t believe it’s appropriate.”
Brenda Sorensen spoke on her quest for reelection as county Auditor. “We had unqualified audits,” she said, “meaning our office has had no problems cited.” Opponent Connie Kayser was unable to attend, and a representative for her read a brief statement saying that her husband’s recent heart attack was keeping her at home.
The three candidates for the office of East District Court Judge followed. “This is a part-time position,” said Tim O’Neill. “I intend to make it a full-time job.” Gwendolyn Grundei was asked if she supported telephone warrants, allowing police to obtain search warrants on the fly. “I support them,” she said. “I don’t mind being awakened in the middle of the night.” Rick Hansen focused on his years of legal service to the community. O’Neill was questioned about his legal residence. “I do have a Klickitat County residence,” he said. “My legal residence is in Goldendale.”
Port of Klickitat receives state loan, grants for development
Lou Marzeles
Editor
The Port of Klickitat is getting a total of $360,000 in loans and grants from the Washington State Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) as part of a plan to invest more than $2 million in public investments targeting business growth and job creation across the state.
The Port, comprised of three districts (District One: Bingen, White Salmon, Columbia and Burdoin Heights; District Two: Lyle, Klickitat, Hartland, North Dalles, Wahkiacus, and Appleton; District Three: Fruit Valley, Husum, Trout Lake, Laurel, Glenwood, and Major Creek), gets a $310,000 loan and a $40,000 grant for infrastructure development to make land available for new and growing businesses on port property. CERB funds are matched by nearly $400,000 in local funds and $100,000 in federal funds.
Since 1982, CERB has committed more than $150 million to counties across the state, an investment generating more than 36,000 jobs.
“These strategic infrastructure investments help strengthen the partnership between business and government, leading to job creation and economic development,” said Rogers Weed, director of the Washington State Department of Commerce. “Tools like CERB help Washington businesses succeed and help our state stay competitive even during tough economic times.”
The release of CERB funds to these projects is contingent upon each applicant completing specific pre-contract requirements, such as finalizing other funding sources and obtaining necessary permits.
As Washington’s strategic economic development resource, CERB is focused on creating private sector jobs in partnership with local governments by financing infrastructure improvements. These improvements encourage new business development. In addition to funding construction projects, CERB provides limited funding for studies that evaluate high-priority economic development projects.
Learn more about CERB at www.commerce.wa. gov/cerb. CERB receives administrative support from the Washington State Department of Commerce. For more information on the Department of Commerce, visit www.commerce. wa.gov.
City police handling far more cases
Rebecca Gourley
Reporter
This week’s City Council meeting, held Monday night, brought some good news to attendees.
Goldendale Fire Department representative Marty Hudson reported that they have had fewer calls this year so far. This time last year, the department had about 50 calls; this year they have only had 35.
On the other hand, Chief of Police Rick Johnson shared that officers in Goldendale have been busy, especially lately. On average, each city police officer has handled 255 cases from January to July in Goldendale. By comparison, he reported, each county police officer has handled about 152 cases in the same time frame. Johnson projects that they will far exceed 3000 cases by the end of the year. He also reported that they had arrested 13 people in one night, this past Saturday.
The city will have legal representation concerning the East Central Neighborhood Improvement Project starting soon. The city council approved an agreement with Foster Pepper for bond counsel services for this project. Foster Pepper is a law firm based in Seattle, with an office in Spokane and over 120 lawyers representing publicly traded companies, government agencies, and more.
The matter of homeowners not adhering to the nuisance ordinance requiring cutting weeds and tall grass on their property was discussed in detail. It was reported that there were 50 repeat offenders, meaning that 50 property owners have received letters more than once in two years about cleaning up their properties.
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