Election thoughts

by David Leslie, Corvallis

Ballots for the Nov. 3 election are in our hands already. Ads and spin will stop soon; the time to vote has arrived. It is our responsibility as citizens to express our preferences.

Not all elected offices, policy choices or initiatives are of equal importance at any given time. And sometimes the choices are not great, and some options are even unappealing. That seems to be the case on both sides of the aisle this cycle.

The way I think about it, the most consequential challenge before us is to reign in this lawless, corrupt and incompetent president. The available “fix” is to demand that the U.S. Congress reassert its constitutional role as a check on presidential malfeasance. Republicans have refused for years to constrain President Trump in any way; they have been a “rubber stamp” for his worst ideas. That means we must replace MAGA/Trump supporters with Independents or Democrats. Not forever perhaps, but for long enough to reset our damaged political culture. Future generations will judge our success. Or our failure.

Closer to home, any Democrat you send to the Montana legislature will improve state governance over the next two years. Our governor shamelessly curries favor with the Trump Administration, and the far-right dominated legislature rides the wave. Democrats will reframe the dialogue to “what’s best for the citizens of Montana?”

But for that to happen, we all must vote for the candidates best able to carry out a corrective agenda.

As for initiatives, I recommend YES on I-194. No dark money was our Montana mantra for a very long time. Time to reinstate it. I-132 is as simple as it is important. If passed, it will require that judicial elections remain nonpartisan. This deserves a YES vote as well. I-133 prohibits the government from interfering with our constitutional right to the ballot initiative process. This vital provision ensuring citizens can influence how they are governed was included in our state constitution for a reason. I-133 says that will not change. Vote YES on that too.

We have a lot of political work ahead of us over the next decade. Let’s ensure the debates are about ideas and what benefits the people, not just partisan struggles for power. This election will send important messages to all politicians.

See you at the polls.