ENTERPRISE — Before taking questions from a group of about 30 Wallowa County residents on Thursday, Aug 11, U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz gave a little of his background.

A third-generation rancher from Southeast Oregon, where his Texan grandfather settled, he went onto college at Eastern Oregon University, got a law degree at Lewis & Clark Law School and practiced law for 30 years, first in litigation and trial law, then on water, ranches and the reorganization of ranches.

The freshman Republican who served 12 years in the Oregon Legislature discussed the possibility that the GOP might retake control of the U.S. House during the November elections. But that comes with a challenge.

“People say, ‘You Republicans, when you had power the last time, you didn’t do anything.’ Well, that’s not quite true, but this is your chance to say what you want us to do,” Bentz told the people gathered in the dining hall at Community Connection in Enterprise for his seventh town hall meeting with voters.

He said he looks forward to governing with the majority, an experience that has eluded him for his political career.

“I’m hoping to some day be able to govern for once as opposed to just throw rocks,” he said. “But when you see bills come out of the Senate and go across the floor of the House without one amendment because (Speaker) Nancy Pelosi knows she has about four votes to spare. She doesn’t dare bring an amendment because that would mean the bill would have to go back to the Senate. So right now the situation is such so that making changes based upon discussion is almost zero.”

A typical conflict between Democrats and Republicans involves the high rate of spending the current majority party has been conducting.

“Our polling indicates that the biggest issue is inflation,” he said, and also added other issues of energy, immigration, law enforcement and abortion in the wake of the recent Supreme Court ruling throwing out Roe v. Wade.

Partisan politics

Bentz said the current partisan rancor in American politics does no good.

“I’m not suggesting that we don’t get along,” he said. “If we don’t get along, we won’t have a country, and that’s the truth.”

A Lostine man said his greatest concern is just that — the state of our democracy. He said he identifies with the largest bloc of voters, those who are unaffiliated with either major party. The man talked about how unaffiliated voters are frustrated with candidates who won’t work across the aisle.

He and Bentz were familiar with an article in the Atlantic Monthly called “After Babel” that discussed how social media promotes political polarization.

Bentz took it from there and brought it to a personal level.

“It addresses why we in Congress and the legislatures are now very reluctant to reach across the aisle,” he said. “Why? Because you’ll be toasted and roasted and crucified on social media. And as you’re being crucified on social media, you’ll see that social media is designed so that the louder and the more obnoxious and the more outrageous you are, the more you’ll be put into a space with others just like you. It’s like mob rule on the internet. As a result, the people who normally would be on one end of the spectrum become much more powerful than they otherwise would be.”

He said lawmakers who’ve been on news programs find it challenging to dare say they’ve gotten along with their political opponents

“Because people will say ‘You’re not fighting for me. You need to be fighting for me; you don’t need to be getting along. These people are socialists or communists. Why are you even talking to them? They shouldn’t exist.’ That’s the kind of thing you hear,” Bentz said.

He said he asked Congresswoman Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., who’s been in Congress 18 years, how to meet Democrats.

“She said to join the prayer group,” he said. “So I did and I go to the prayer group every Thursday between 8 and 9, and guess what? I’ve met more Democrats there than any other place.”

Natural resources

In response to a question from a local rancher about restrictions on livestock grazing allotments, Bentz said he supports increased grazing and logging on federal forests.

“It’s not just the forests, it’s also water and the oceans and all that,” he said. “For us, the water issues are very high on my list. Forests are extremely high on my list and fire-related issues.”

His words were what many ranchers in Wallowa County were glad to hear — that grazing allotments should be opened up to eliminate the underbrush that serves as fuel for wildfires.

Bentz said he had an opportunity last summer in Washington, D.C., to demonstrate for some of his colleagues on the House Natural Resources Committee the far-reaching effects of decisions on managing public lands.

Bentz said he pointed to smoky skies over the nation’s capital.

“You see that smoke there? That’s Oregon going over Washington, D.C.,” Bentz said he told fellow committee members. “Yeah, the smoke went all the way, so I was able to point out the window and say, ‘We have to do something.’ And the something is we remove that fuel with the cows grazing or with mechanical thinning.”

Bentz said too many trees are growing in some areas — 300 to 500 per acre instead of the 80 that he said is more appropriate.

“All those trees are pulling up water, they’re cannibalizing each other,” he said. “One thing many people don’t recognize is the impact that more CO2 in the air has on the growth of a plant. Our trees are growing up to 14% faster than they used to. Where are the environmentalists when it comes to recognizing this growth? It’s all getting overgrown and it’s growing faster.”

Bentz said he doesn’t want to see Oregon — or anywhere — burn, although he acknowledged that fire is part of nature.

“Fire is a natural part of the forest, but not when you allow the buildup we’ve allowed to unnaturally occur,” he said.

Bentz said the GOP has plans to remedy the situation, if they’re in a position to govern.

“There’s hope, but we better win in November, but even if we don’t, we still have the Supreme Court.”