RECENTLY ELECTED REPUBLICANS ARE DAMAGING THE COUNTY

  

The transformation of Washington County from an overwhelmingly Democratic jurisdiction into one where a majority of the voters are registered Republicans has been a swift and total sea change. In the 2021 general election, 10,000 more Republicans cast ballots than in 2017. This gives Republicans a clear majority at the polls and ensures that Washington is as “red” a county as many of its rural neighbors to the east and north. The recent voting trend reverses a period of Democratic majorities and governmental control that predates the 1930s depression.

In the latest elections, Republicans have easily captured the majority on the Board of Commissioners, in addition to the offices of District Attorney, Sheriff and Controller. Beginning this January, all of the Row Offices (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts, Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds) will be held by elected Republicans. In recent state and national elections, Democratic candidates have not fared well in Washington County. The effort to elect a bipartisan Government Study Commission went down in flames because certain elected Republican officials fought vigorously against it.

It will take a well-trained team of political scientists to analyze the data and determine the reasons for this abrupt change in voting patterns. Westmoreland County is undergoing a similar transformation; so, we are not alone. It is not clear how many Democrats switched their party affiliation or how many are new voters. I suspect that the nativist appeal of Donald Trump has caused many chronic non-voters to take an interest in local government for the first time. Whatever the reason, elected Republican officials will be in charge of all non-judicial county functions as we begin this new year.

Since the Republican transformation began several years ago, it has become obvious that winning elections is a whole lot easier than governing Washington County.  Early on, rash decisions were made in the Row Offices to replace long-time knowledgeable employees with partisan Republican supporters who had no experience. Without a transition plan to train new employees in how to conduct critical clerical functions, many of the Row Offices made mistakes and could not keep up with their responsibilities, as defined by law.  The problem was exacerbated by the pandemic. This forced the courthouse to close and caused already challenged offices to be short staffed.

Unfortunately, rather than working with other county officials and with the courts to solve problems as they occurred, the newly elected row officers chose to say a lot, while knowing little. The rhetoric was and continues to be full-throated attacks against any elected Democrat still in office and against their nominal political leader, Republican Commissioner Diana Irey Vaughn, who helped get them elected.  Yearly audits designed to correct clerical and accounting deficiencies before they got worse were labeled “personal vendettas by Democrats.” Administrative court orders to cure deficiencies or to turn over records and files were publicly criticized and resisted.

Republican officials made up new rules on the fly in direct contradiction to their statutory authority or chose to ignore administrative orders issued by the President Judge. In short, long-established nonpartisan clerical functions, designed by law to ensure the orderly functioning of the county judicial system, became partisan political battlegrounds. In true Trumpian fashion, these officials attacked the messenger who pointed out deficiencies rather than dig in and resolve the problem for the betterment of the voters who placed them in office.

No one can recall the mundane Row Offices being front-page news until a Democratic Clerk of Courts stole funds from the office and his Republican replacement, (with little to do since several functions were removed from her jurisdiction), began spending her time seeking media attention.  She has filed more appeals from court orders and sued more individuals for a variety of offenses in a matter of weeks than the Clerk of Courts office has undertaken in decades. In the process of avoiding a contempt hearing scheduled against her for ignoring court directives, she has attempted to become the aggrieved and persecuted figure in the eyes of her many social media followers and the evening news. While it is all interesting theater, the embarrassment to the county and disruption to judicial processes has been vast and immeasurable.

The tragic figure in all of this has been Chairman Commissioner, Diana Irey Vaughn. She realizes that the opportunity for her party, now finally in control of county operations, is about accountable leadership and not partisan rhetoric.  Irey Vaughn was a minority Commissioner for many years and knows what good government looks like.  She has no interest in tearing down what works or in supporting witch-hunts into corruption that does not exist. Her responsible position has drawn the ire of the new breed of Republican leadership who want to replace her with one of their own.

The newly elected Republicans should be careful what they wish for. If they replace Irey Vaughn, all of their imagined dragons will be slain. There will be no one else to blame for damaging missteps as Washington County slips into mediocrity or worse. Without knowledgeable officials in key positions, the county’s municipal bond ratings will go down and surplus county funds will disappear. In addition, businesses will lose confidence, and taxes will increase. Living or working in Washington County will become undesirable.

The only good news for county residents is that in time, voting patterns will again begin to change.

 

A FALL TRIP TO THE SOUTHERN LOW COUNTRY

This autumn, we were looking forward to a November trip to Portugal when the ongoing pandemic convinced us to reconsider. Rather than struggle with masks and constant testing while traveling through this beautiful country, we postponed our plans until March of 2023. We had not been away all summer and were eager to travel, but where? Sedona and San Diego were on the list but in the end, my spouse was set on returning to the low country in the Deep South. Savannah, Georgia and Hilton Head, South Carolina became our destination.

Expect the unexpected when flying over the next six months.  The airlines drastically cut back their operations because of COVID. They have struggled to replace staff to meet the growing demand.  We scheduled a 6 A.M. flight to ensure the plane would be on the ground (it was) so that we would make our DC connection to Savannah (we did not).  

Mechanical difficulties delayed our flight and we arrived in DC just as the connecting flight was boarding. Our luggage made it on the plane and we were directed to wait until late the next day to continue our trip. Not to be deterred, we immediately booked a flight to Charleston, two hours from our destination. Upon landing, we found a one-way rental car at an outrageous price and drove to the Savannah airport to pick up our booked rental car and luggage.

For the rest of the week we were treated to beautiful November weather, small crowds and outstanding dinners. The old town in Savannah features many fine Hotels situated in renovated warehouses near the river.  The famous moss draped squares are within walking distance as is the old town walking market, featuring hundreds of small shops.

We spent a fascinating afternoon at the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, with exhibits from the great era of Atlantic trade. Of special interest were the descriptions of naval encounters during both the American Revolution and Civil War. A new exhibit presented a multi-media depiction of the middle passage that brought African slaves to the Deep South. The message was clear that the slave trade was a massive crime against humanity.

 Our third day saw us on the road, heading north to Hilton Head. For some reason, this barrier island has developed a reputation as more sophisticated than its more pedestrian neighbor, Myrtle Beach. The only evidence of this was the more exclusive Sea Pines Plantation that charges a toll to enter this exclusive enclave.

The Resort fees and lodging on Sea Pines are more expensive than the rest of Hilton Head. Sea Pines is the home of the beautiful Harbour Town and its iconic lighthouse and golf course. At the end of this portion of the island is the world famous Salty Dog Café where one can lunch overlooking the harbor and buy merchandise of every description.

We booked one of the many resort hotels outside of Sea Pines. The off-season rates were reasonable and the location was only blocks from a well-kept beach. Upon our arrival, we made dinner reservations at several interesting restaurants. Each day started with a light hotel breakfast where we made plans for the day, on either the beach or exploring the island.

Our day trips included a morning at the small out of the way Audubon nature preserve. It provided a pleasant walk around a small lake with numerous songbirds indigenous to the South, serenading us. Our next stop was a picnic lunch at the Costal Discovery Museum that featured a restored family home and outbuildings.  The exhibits described Hilton Head in the laid-back days before a bridge connected the island to the mainland. Surrounding the homestead were miles of hiking trails.

Before departing the island, we took in one of the many boat tours that provide guaranteed encounters with the local bottlenose dolphins. We photographed Harbour Town and the lighthouse on our cruise around the bay. Our final dinner was an early meal at the marina as the sun went down.

The next morning we traveled back to Savannah where we would spend our last day before an evening flight to Pittsburgh. The weather was sunny and warm, the perfect opportunity to tour Old Fort Jackson, a National Historic Landmark only minutes from downtown Savannah. An enthusiastic young woman, garbed as a confederate soldier, gave us a tour of the complex, the oldest brick fortifications on the East Coast. She demonstrated many of the armaments adorning the fort and the smell of gunpowder was heavy in the air.

Our flight back home was uneventful and gave us time to reflect on how nice it would be to live in the Deep South during the fall and winter months. However, upon arrival, the blustery Western Pennsylvania weather felt about right for the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday.d, water, and living things to gain more environmental awareness. Explore history, culture, 

BE THANKFUL FOR A “GLASS HALF-FULL” THIS HOLIDAY SEASON

As the fall and winter holidays came and went last year, celebrations were few, and the mood was dismal. There was uncertainty about new vaccines and how they would be utilized. 2020 was dominated by the news of how COVID-19 spread across the globe. 2021 focused on ending the pandemic through vaccine distribution.

During this holiday season, vaccinated families are able to plan for safe gatherings unthinkable in 2020. In the White House, sanity has returned to America, and a dystopian attempt to bring down the democratic electoral process was defeated. As a country, we celebrated the first Veterans Day in two decades when we were not engaged in a military conflict.

While the media remains focused on President Biden’s declining poll numbers, the real story on the first year of his administration should be the lack of bizarre tweets and over the moon chaos, so common under the leadership of Donald Trump. We have gone through a year when foreign dignitaries were not insulted, autocrats were not praised, government officials were not fired for expressing their opinions, white supremacists were not encouraged and minorities were not demeaned. Whether one agrees with Biden’s policies or not, it is gratifying to have qualified adults running the government.

The glass is only half-full because of the new challenges of a reopening world economy that has sparked inflation and bottlenecks in the supply chain. As oil prices rise to fuel the reopening economy, gas prices also rise. As large numbers of long delayed container ships leave their Asian ports full of Christmas merchandise, American ports cannot process the large volume in an orderly manner.  The surge in sales for electronic devices during the pandemic created an outsized demand for semiconductors that was further aggravated by Asian factories closed because of COVID. Now a shortage will last well into 2022.

The above challenges of transitioning to a new post COVID economy with both feet in the information age are real, but temporary. Next year will see prices stabilize and bottlenecks resolved.  Moreover, the Democrat’s new infrastructure legislation has provisions to build domestic semiconductor plants to end reliance on foreign supplies.

The pandemic continues to be a glass-draining event. Despite President Biden’s aggressive offensive against the pandemic, following the advice of his public health officials at every turn, COVID-19 has proven to be a persistent adversary.  As of November 27, 2021, 454 million doses of vaccine were administered for Americans, beginning at age 5. Efforts have been hampered by misinformation and anti-government hostilities that have encouraged more than 120 million citizens to refuse vaccinations.  New variants of the virus have been able to gain a foothold and spread rapidly among the unvaccinated.

The battle against the pandemic has been exasperated by confusion over changing policies as new data is analyzed. This requires updated public health directives over masking, testing and booster shots. We all want the virus to be gone and a return to a pre-pandemic world. This result is not realistic, and we must adjust as the virus becomes endemic (here to stay, but under control).

So how is it possible to claim that the glass is half-full and filling up?  For starters, the stock market is higher than it ever was under President Trump, and the S&P 500 has hit more than 50 record highs in 2021.  More than 5.6 million new jobs have been created in Biden’s first nine months in office. Under his leadership, unemployment is down to 4.6% from an estimated 10%.

Wages for middle class workers have increased in 2021 at the most accelerated rate in decades. Overall wages are up 6%, and hourly wages are up 11% this year outpacing inflation by 3x overall and 5x for hourly wage earners.  Economic growth is on course to hit a healthy 5% this year and 4% in 2022.

Democrats have passed an infrastructure bill to secure broadband internet and better roads, bridges, electric power and drinking water for all Americans. Despite fierce Republican opposition, Congress is within striking distance of securing better child-care assistance, free pre-kindergarten and lower drug prices, as well as requiring the ultra-rich to pay more in taxes.

Unfortunately, Republicans have done their best to keep the glass from filling up. Their efforts over the past year have focused on the lie that Democrats stole the national election. They label initiatives designed to ensure American excellence as socialism. They criticize the withdraw from Afghanistan, negotiated by Trump, while opposing the resettlement of Afghan refugees. They complain about too many business “help-wanted” signs in a booming economy. Lastly, they oppose vaccine mandates that would shorten the pandemic.

On a personal note, I was reminded that the glass is half-full and that gratitude is in order as I sat in Heinz Hall last weekend listening to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Older patrons trooped in with masks on faces and vax cards in hand to view the magnificent Christmas tree and to take in the return of live concert music. We were treated to a 40-minute Nicolo Paganini violin concerto featuring an 18-year-old Spanish prodigy, Maria Duenas. Her performance was beyond words.

There is much that is good in this world, and the glass is slowly filling up. I hope we all experience some uplifting moments this holiday season to remind us why the journey is worth all the trouble.