Dear Editor,
Our 6th District Congressional race “is on” between incumbent Congressman Ben Cline and well-known author Beth Macy. Highest on the list of the deep red 6th District is affordability for families. Macy wants to “restore “economic sanity” for rural people who have taken the hardest hit from both NAFTA and the opioid crisis. She vows to fight against cuts to Medicaid and the SNAP program under Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
The price at the pump directly affects not only the cost of driving, but grocery and general inflation. Cline expresses concern about high gas prices stemming from Trump’s Iran War but claims they are “temporary.” Cline is “optimistic” that the ceasefire will lead to a long-term agreement, thus lowering prices. This reasoning fails to address the formidable obstacles to resolving an unnecessary conflict that greatly raised the power of Trump’s adversary, Iran, who now controls the Strait of Hormuz. Iran will not give up controlling Hormuz because that control will help it fund war reconstruction and serves as Iran’s substitute for producing nukes to match its new strategic power. Trying to exit this conflict with “a win” over President Obama’s effective JCPOA that codified Iran’s compliance to not build nukes—an agreement that Trump jettisoned in his first term. Despite Trump’s clear loss to Iran after trying every tactic that was ill-advised by Israel and opposed by US military advisors, Trump nears agreement only to have it sabotaged by Israel again.
How does Cline reason that gas prices will fall considering the new landscape created by US wars of aggression? Ukraine has destroyed about 25% of Russia’s energy infrastructure, significant Persian Gulf infrastructure is hobbled for at least five years and could be further destroyed if the war is resumed. Ironically Trump’s war on renewable energy where our tax dollars paid to stop green energy projects throughout the South, worsens our energy situation by increasing demands on fossil fuels over renewables. Prewar gas prices will not resume at least until 2032, if ever. The US is losing dominance over China who planned for cheap electricity and widespread recharging stations. Trump took bad Israeli advice promising a quick win after assassinating Iran’s leaders. Trump cannot afford a land invasion and is stuck between achieving an agreement and pressure from Israel who is conducting an uncontrollable sabotage of a resolution by destroying Lebanon.
What Cline offers is not “common sense,” but magical thinking that a world controlled by billionaires and Israel, whose leader, Netanyahu, blocks Trump from settling with Iran, can prioritize the needs of Cline’s rural constituents for lower gas prices by a permanent peace agreement or just walking away. So, Cline stands squarely with weak Trump as he commits one strategic blunder after another that hurt Cline’s constituents, while imagining Trump will suddenly bring his 6th District rural voters pre-war gas prices. This, while Cline fails to fulfill his constitutional duty to reign in a deranged President Trump who wakes in the night to tweet 50 unhinged Truth Social tweets to compare himself to America’s great leaders.
Cline’s constituents desperately need Cline to do a reality check on Trump and Cline’s own pro-Trump stand. This is unlikely, but reality stares 6th District constituents squarely in the face every time they fill up at the pump or pay for groceries. Constituents need problems solved—no platitudes and rubber-stamping Trump’s blunders.
-Cynthia Munley
Salem
