comments Furse-Terry race for Washington County Commission (your comments) helvetia.JPG The unincorporated Helevtia area, north of U.S. 26, lies within the Washington County Commissions District 4, currently represented by Bob Terry. He faces a May 20 election challenge from former U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Furse. (The Oregonian/2012) Print George Rede | grede@oregonian By George Rede | grede@oregonian Email the author | Follow on Twitter on January 16, 2014 at 9:01 AM, updated January 16, 2014 at 9:20 AM 0 Jayne Carrolls assertion that the Washington County Commission race between incumbent Commissioner Bob Terry and challenger Elizabeth Furse carries statewide importance is sparking some meaty discussion among readers. While county commission races are traditionally not considered pivotal beyond county boundaries, a Furse victory could mark a historic shift from moderation to liberal extremism in Washington County, Carroll, a conservative talk radio host, wrote in a guest opinion for the Hillsboro Argus. The former congresswoman, while no longer a household name, could generate considerable cash from left-wing special interests and dominate the campaign with pro-farm environmental sentimentalism. In truth, her election would launch a major shift from responsible economic growth to leftist social engineering, higher taxes, and the anti-business practices so cherished in Portland. Pay attention to this race between Terry and Furse. Their May 20 contest is one of major significance for the future of Oregon Linda Peters, a former board chair of the county commission, responded: The last sentence is accurate, but not for the reasons given. Our current board majority is notable for its cronyism, secrecy, and intolerance of dissent. They waste public money on self-aggrandizing big projects and sweetheart deals for favored land developers, while adopting Tea Party-ish policies against adequate funding for county services, sidewalks, and other community needs. They are known to scold and ridicule those who question or give unwelcome testimony in hearings. Thats no way to run a county government. Like Ms. Carroll, the current board majority seem not to comprehend the value of a balanced, diverse and sustainable economy for Washington County. It is they who are indulging in social engineering, creating sprawl, commercializing community spaces like the Fairgrounds, pushing toward some hazy manifest destiny in which all farmland is developed and all their land developer friends are rich, rich, rich. They are too extreme for Washington County. Other readers had this to say: My opinion: Not a huge Bob Terry fan. But will be voting and working for him now. Furse and her Democratic ultra liberalism is very frightening. beerhunter02: I agree with you. We only need to look back at history to see what the board was like when Mrs Peters was there. I can not believe they use this quality of life argument and use it to fight jobs or job creation. I can tell you that quality of life is not good without a job. Linda Peters: What the board was like when I was there was open, respectful, responsive to citizen input, and economically VERY productive: we used the Strategic Investment Program to incent Intel and others to build in the Sunset Corridor as long planned. We worked with Rep. Elizabeth Furse and Sen. Mark Hatfield to bring Westside Light Rail to Hillsboro. We added jobs, boosted both urban and rural economies, and created prosperity through smart growth.... PieceWorker: The current majority is not moderate. In decision after decision they have put developers interest above the physical and financial safety of the citizens. Note in passing, that Tom Brians PAC, Citizens for Good Government, gave one of the largest campaign donations for a county office in the historyof the state. This PAC was mostly financed in December with large donations from Developers or Building/Construction Companies. The donation is actually quite blatant.
Posted on: Thu, 06 Mar 2014 02:22:47 +0000