Your Voice: Jan. 14, 2026

We were told these operations would target “criminals.” Yet TRAC (Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse) reports show a very different reality: 73.46% of people held by ICE have no convictions at all, and 93% have no violent convictions. These are not threats to public safety — they are our neighbors, coworkers, and friends.

In recent weeks, ICE has operated in our own communities. Three local families are now missing loved ones, with little hope for their return. Their grief is immeasurable. But the harm does not stop with them. The broader Latino community has been thrown into fear — parents afraid to leave home, workers afraid to go to their jobs, children kept home from school because their families no longer feel safe. These abductions do not just target individuals; they destabilize the economic, social, and emotional fabric of the entire Gorge. As Martin Luther King Jr. Day approaches, we are reminded of Dr. King’s unwavering call to defend human dignity through non-violent action. This moment demands that same courage from all of us.

Protect Oregon’s Progress will hold a rally on MLK Day (noon to 1 p.m. on W. Sixth Street across from Fred Meyer) to lift up Dr. King’s message and stand in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors. They will also be collecting Safeway and Fred Meyer gift cards to support the families who have lost a loved one to ICE enforcement.

The Gorge is a community defined by compassion. I hope residents will be moved to show up, stand up, and give generously. More information is available at protectoregonsprogress.org

In community spirit,

Kathy Clark

The Dalles

Impeach Trump

The shooting of Good is the last straw.

Venezuela is the last straw.

The Times interview: “Yeah, there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.” He added, “I don’t need international law,” is the last straw.

Failure to release the Epstein files is the last straw.

I could go on and on.

There must be accountability; launch an investigation and bring charges against the shooter.

Impeach this man.

David Michalek

Hood River

Liberty in crisis

In her Jan 8 “Letters from an American,” Heather Cox Richardson reports that Renee Nicole Good, killed by an ICE agent, was a legal observer trained to observe police conduct and was trying to exit the scene, not to threaten ICE agents as claimed by the Trump administration. Trump has made it clear that he is using terror as a principal agent in his immigration policy.

Meanwhile, Trump is incoherently melting down. While the extraction of Maduro and his wife from Venezuela was brilliantly executed, the act itself was in apparent violation of international law, and he has no withdrawal plan, which is reminiscent of George W. Bush’s “shock and awe” invasion of Iraq and the resultant elation followed quickly by quagmire. All the ex-military House Democrats spoke on Jan. 7 in condemnation of the invasion of Venezuela because they have personally experienced the human and financial cost of U.S. invasions of Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. They warned about the danger of Trump’s threats to remove the Columbian leader, invade Mexico, invade Cuba, and make Greenland a part of the United States following his “Donroe Doctrine.”

PBS and other major news outlets have reported on the concern in Europe. If you listen to the news, you know that we have closed most of our bases in Greenland (in cost-cutting measures) over the last several years, and if you heard the news on Jan. 7, you know that we are welcome back — but not as owners of Greenland (and its vast mineral and oil revenues). Taking Greenland by force means an end to NATO.

I know that all that matters to many Americans is the cost of living, not politics. Trump, fearing huge losses in the midterms, is scrambling to reverse the cuts to healthcare and bail out farmers, but no one is scrambling to reverse the truly massive cuts to taxes on billionaires and powerful corporations that also had been set to expire in 2025. Servicing the resultant debt will mean safety net cuts. We will face cost of living increases from a worldwide loss of trust.

Michael Beug

White Salmon

Video proof

An ICE agent kills a 37-year-old mother driving a mini-van after dropping off her 6-year-old child at school, and what does the Trump administration do? They call her a domestic terrorist. They assert she had “weaponized” her van. Trump himself claims that the woman hit the agent, and that the agent ended up in the hospital. Video recordings of the horrific killing prove that Trump and his apologists are lying. These lies mock the concept of honesty and betray any semblance of compassion, but today’s GOP leadership asserts that “empathy is a weakness” and that America is a “predator” nation.

“We live in a world that is governed by strength, that is governed by power, that is governed by force,” Trump adviser Stephen Miller said after the U.S. invaded Venezuela to haul off its president, sending an explicit threat to the remaining Venezuelans — your oil or your life. With this amoral “might makes right” justification, the Trump regime executes people on boats, attempts to extort a NATO ally into giving up Greenland, suppresses the release of the Epstein files, defies court orders … the list of travesties is long.

The last time I checked, cruelty, chaos, and corruption lack popular support. According to polls, increasing percentages of conservative voters are rejecting the Trump administration. These defectors demonstrate an alternate definition of strength: the ability to admit mistakes. If you’re still not sure about the Trump administration, watch the video of the ICE agent killing the Minneapolis mother.

Rick George

White Salmon

Where’s Bentz?

There is a growing list of concerns about Rep. Bentz, but his silence this week stands out above the rest. As of today (Jan. 8), six full days after the Trump administration’s deadly operation in Venezuela, which killed 80 people in the course of arresting that nation’s leader and asserting control over its oil resources, Bentz has yet to make a single public statement. Not one word of concern, condemnation, or even basic acknowledgment.

This is not a minor oversight. When a U.S. administration uses military force to detain the head of a foreign government and claims authority over that country’s natural resources, every member of Congress has a responsibility to speak clearly about where they stand. The stakes are enormous: international law, national sovereignty, human life, and the precedent this sets for future actions. Now the administration is threatening to take similar action elsewhere, raising the urgency even further.

Six days is more than enough time for any elected official to form an opinion. If Bentz cannot do that, then he is not doing his job and he is failing the people he represents. Silence is not an option for someone entrusted with public office.

Other Republicans have already spoken out (“The Republicans Breaking Ranks With Trump Over Greenland Threats,” Time, Jan. 8). They have found the courage to take a position, to question the administration’s actions, or at the very least to acknowledge the gravity of what has happened. Bentz’s refusal to do the same is not neutrality — it is abdication.

Constituents deserve representation, not avoidance. Bentz is refusing to hold town halls as well. Leadership requires clarity, accountability, and a willingness to confront hard truths. If Bentz cannot meet that basic standard, he should step aside for someone who can.

If Bentz won’t speak up on his own, then it’s up to us to demand it. Call 202-225-6730 or email his office, bentz.house.gov/contact. Ask his staff where he stands on the use of deadly force abroad and the seizure of another nation’s resources. Silence from our representative should never be acceptable.

Accountability only happens when constituents insist on it.

Debi Ferrer

The Dalles

Don’t polish the halo just yet

The recent article on Cardinal Glass extolled the “green” virtues and initiatives the company has taken to protect the environment (“Cardinal Glass sets sustainability benchmark, Hood River plant follows suit,” Dec. 31, 2025). Many of these are no doubt important and headed in the right direction.

However, the article contained an “apples to oranges” comparison which may have confused readers. I refer to the paragraph comparing the amount of carbon captured by Cardinal to the carbon sequestered by 1.6 million trees over a decade. To be a fair comparison, Cardinal needs to tell us how much of what they capture is successfully sequestered. And all forms of sequestration are not equivalent. Trees can sequester by turning carbon into long life building materials. I’m presently unaware of an “industrial scale” process that has been proven to be economically viable AND is long term reliable.

I sincerely hope that Cardinal has a good answer for the sequestration. I submitted a question to them via their website and have not received a reply yet.

Wayne Thayer

White Salmon

‘NMLG’

Not my legitimate government.

Some letter-writers here have mocked submissions protesting the current U.S. administration. I can handle that. but here’s my own litany. Trump, his cronies and minions:

• Terrorize, kidnap, imprison, exile contributing members of our society (a proven majority with no criminal record), often including lawful residents.

• Slam the doors to refuge, asylum, and immigration overall (except by white people and millionaires).

• Brag about assault and harassment of women and LGBTQ+.

• Encourage attacks on journalists and exclude a free press from public events.

• Insult ethnic and religious minorities and other countries.

• Ignore judicial injunctions.

• Bypass Congress.

• Post degrading, juvenile comments and AI videos about their aims, images, and “enemies.”

• Free convicted domestic terrorists, ideological supporters and election saboteurs, and at least one foreign narcotrafficker.

• Dismiss the separation of church and state.

• Jeopardize businesses by imposing tariff whiplashes and undercutting workforces.

• Pursue “deals” that profit the Trump family coffers.

• Push through appointments and positions of wholly unqualified department heads, while firing those with a lifetime of experience.

• Call their big bill “beautiful” while it intends to reduce funding for child care, food and housing resources, health care coverage and more.

• Invade, bomb and threaten sovereign countries.

• Reverse environmental protections and defund alternative energy.

I could go on. And on. “Lady Liberty” is betrayed, the constitution is an irritant, billionaires are gaining, retribution and revenge rule the day. Meanwhile, stress and uncertainty take their toll on everyone.

We need to do everything possible to reverse some of these directions and outcomes with our ballots, in 2026 and beyond. AND we need to be in the streets. By that I DON’T mean carrying arms, physically harming people or vandalizing property. My own values oppose those actions. I DO mean being public and visible with our resistance to the autocratic, reckless government in power. Standing witness. Documenting abuses. Supporting advocates. Speaking out. Protesting forcefully and peacefully. Materially assisting those who are especially vulnerable or victimized.

May we work together to turn this ship around in 2026.

Tina Castañares

Hood River

America feared

Following the carnage of World War I and World War II, the U.S. worked with other nations to form the United Nations (UN) and other multinational organizations to establish international rules and standards to reduce the risk of major power conflicts and protect the sovereignty of smaller nations. While far from perfect, the result has been 80 years of relative peace and global prosperity.

Trump’s America First foreign policy has severely undermined a world order that has avoided major conflict and raised standards of living. Trump has weakened our commitment to NATO, tolerated Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, used drones and missiles to destroy suspected drug boats, launched a military strike to capture Venezuela’s president, and threatened the sovereignty of neighbors and allies while pandering to dictators and autocrats. The list of violations of both international and domestic laws and norms could go on and on. These are not the actions of the nation I grew up to believe in.

America First has become America feared, hated and alone. The unraveling of international norms will encourage further aggression by Russia, China and others. In a world with tens of thousands of nuclear warheads and millions of increasingly sophisticated military drones, we should be fearful of unleashing ourselves and others to pursue nationalistic self interest.

Richard Davis

The Dalles

Venezuela

Sidestepping Congress, President Trump illegally attacks Venezuela, and the Republicans in Congress applaud or sit on their hands and say mum. No question that Maduro was a brutal dictator whose recent election was suspect. There are other such brutal dictators in the world, including Putin, whom Trump coddles at every turn. Trump wants Venezuelan petroleum and uses the pretext of Maduro’s involvement in drug trafficking as rationale for his actions, which is hypocrisy, as Trump recently pardoned former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez after he was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 45 years in prison. 

Trump flaunts the rule of law and Republicans in Congress turn a blind eye to his actions. Republicans in Congress need to get a spine before America becomes a rogue nation. Trump bullies other countries, ignores laws, and praises himself for transactional deals that benefit his powerful cronies while the American people grapple with higher food prices, healthcare costs, and increasingly ferocious natural disasters. 

Trump campaigned on a message of America First, which some who voted for him took to mean he would focus on problems at home and make their lives more affordable. Instead, Trump bombs Caracas, threatens Greenland and Panama with takeover, and pats himself on the back for a job well done.

Forty five percent of Oregonians live paycheck-to-paycheck. Poverty in the U.S. and in Oregon is around 12%. Many people in Oregon depend on Medicaid and Obamacare subsidies for healthcare. Eighteen percent of Oregonians rely on food subsidies from SNAP benefits. Setting aside the question of legality, how is bombing Venezuela and getting rid of Maduro going to help Oregonians who live paycheck-to-paycheck? The Republican Big Beautiful Bill will have a greater negative effect on peoples’ lives by making it harder to obtain Medicaid benefits and health insurance, and by slashing food subsidies through SNAP benefits than any commercial positives that Trump can squeeze out of Venezuelan petroleum.

Trump’s actions in Venezuela are illegal and wrong. Trump is creating a dog-eat-dog international order that will come back to bite the United States. 

Christine Psyk

Hood River

National protest

Have you familiarized yourself of late with the Ten Commandments? Our president sure hasn’t. Now, with recent killings instigated by him, he had broken every one.

Time has past to be reminded again of his immoralities. We may not be able to avoid the bloodbath that he and his enablers are bringing, if there is still a peaceful way back to what our founding fathers tried to create.

Mark your calendars for the national protest Jan. 20. But you have to be there. This means all of us, conservatives and limited government people, liberals — sane people everywhere.

Jeff Hunter

Hood River

Cost of party loyalty

Jan. 8, Rep. Cliff Bentz cast a vote that should concern every family in Oregon’s Second Congressional District. House Democrats moved to extend critical health care subsidies that keep insurance premiums affordable and coverage within reach for working people. Bentz voted no.

This wasn’t a symbolic gesture or a procedural footnote. It was a decision with real consequences in a district where access to health care is already fragile — and where more people rely on Medicaid than voted for Bentz in the last election.

In CD-2, health care is not theoretical. It is shaped by long travel distances, an aging population, workforce shortages, and rural hospitals operating on razor-thin margins. Subsidies that lower premiums don’t just help individuals; they stabilize local hospitals, reduce uncompensated care, and keep clinics open in communities with few alternatives. When affordability disappears, the system doesn’t become more efficient — it becomes more expensive and more dangerous.

Opponents of these subsidies often claim fiscal responsibility as justification. But cutting off affordable coverage doesn’t reduce costs; it shifts them. People delay care, conditions worsen, and emergency rooms become the provider of last resort. That raises costs for everyone while producing worse outcomes — especially in rural areas.

Others may argue the vote was about party alignment or messaging. That, too, matters. When a member of Congress signals that affordable health care is negotiable, it sends a clear message to families, providers, and insurers: You are expendable in the broader political fight.

Medicaid and premium subsidies are not fringe programs in CD-2. They cover children, seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, and working families whose wages haven’t kept pace with rising costs. They help ensure that a medical emergency doesn’t become a financial catastrophe — and that rural hospitals can keep their doors open.

Representation requires more than voting with party leadership. It requires understanding the lived reality of your district and acting accordingly, even when it’s politically inconvenient. On this vote, Cliff Bentz chose party loyalty over people.

I’m running to unseat Bentz and bring true representation for Oregon CD2.

Mary Doyle For Congress.

Mary Doyle

Bend