GOLDENDALE — Each year, Meet the Candidates Night at Goldendale Grange Hall is the same. Area residents gather in the Klickitat County town for a night of introductions and a few answers from local candidates.
But this year, they had company.
Goldendale Grange Hall was filled to the brim with residents and out-of-towners alike all hoping to hear from the 3rd Congressional District candidates, Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, and Democratic challenger Carolyn Long of Vancouver. It even drew a TV crew from Portland.
Local police stood at each corner and hugged the walls to make sure things didn’t get out of hand as the crowd of more than 150 waited for the forum to start. While waiting, people asked each other where they were from, curious who was local and who may have made the two-hour trek from Vancouver.
Last chance
Herrera Beutler and Long had only one other public forum this cycle, meaning Goldendale was the last chance for voters to catch the candidates side by side before the election. The surprise for many was that the forum wasn’t just for the congressional candidates — 17 others were set to speak. For residents at the eastern edge of the 3rd Congressional District, Wednesday night was the only chance to hear from candidates at all.
On the fly, moderator Scott Robinson decided to let Herrera Beutler and Long go first, and things quickly became argumentative.
While the introductions were fairly routine — Herrera Beutler talked about protecting jobs and Long shared how she grew up in rural Oregon — Herrera Beutler claimed that Long supports repealing the recent tax bill and implementing “Medicare-for-all.” Triggering deja vu for any who attended the Woodland forum, Long said her positions were being taken out of context; she said she supports parts of the tax bill and wants to fix the Affordable Care Act before considering adding a public option.
“I know Carolyn Long is not for ‘Medicare-for-all,’ because I am,” Liz Hallock, a candidate for 14th Legislative District Position 2, said when it was her turn to speak. “And I’ve read up on her.”
Before the forum began, it wasn’t clear if the crowd would have a chance to hear from the candidates on any issues. In the end, Robinson allowed four questions on widely different subjects: immigration, a free society, and growth boundary conflicts with Lyle Point. Each candidate also was given a separate question to answer on their own. Herrera Beutler was asked to explain the difference between a public option and a single-payer system, while Long was asked what regulations to decrease gun violence she supports. Long ended up using her time to answer both questions.
“After you stop the bleeding of the ACA, you pursue a public option, which is different than single payer,” Long said.
Herrera Beutler said both health care options are a problem.
“We have to move forward with a plan that opens up the market,” she said, adding that she’s co-sponsored a bill to allow the importation of prescription drugs from Canada.
To the question of what the most important element to a free society, is Herrera Beutler responded, “integrity,” and Long responded, “a healthy, robust democracy.”
The candidates also differed on the construction of a border wall with Mexico and offered an opinion on growth management boundaries.
But ultimately, the conversation disintegrated into the same back and forth voters have heard as the election draws near. Herrera Beutler claimed that Long was misrepresenting her real positions on health care and tax reform — or perhaps was backtracking from them. Long asked voters to look into her positions to learn the truth.
“Facts matter, integrity matters, and I got her on all of that,” Long said.
Herrera Beutler agreed, at least on the point that facts matter.
“We’re holding her feet to the fire,” she said. “I’m going to make sure the people I represent know the whole truth.”
