Letter to the editor: Not what we want

It’s one thing for an incumbent politician to oppose the challenger with ads, personal appearances and sound bites. It’s quite another to punish a challenger using the force of government.

While running for public office, I was threatened, I was defamed and a four-inch-thick dossier was (and probably still is) compiled that includes details of my private life.

I was fined $1,800 in court for simply requesting public information about my opponent Oregon State Rep. John Huffman’s finance and campaign contributions from a local nonprofit. When I appealed to Huffman for help, he refused to do anything about it and claimed he had nothing to do with any of this. I think all campaign contributions should be public information.

Of course he doesn’t have anything to do with this. The “top dogs” never do the dirty work. Likewise, the Mafia dons never pull the trigger. They have hit men for that.

Our nation is now, in many ways, a quasi-monarchy where those in political power stay in power for life. Challengers are tolerated only to make the process look legitimate. Is that what we want for America?

Britt Storkson

The Dalles