Baird visits to hear needs in final year

Congressman Brian Baird visited Cathlamet last Friday to gather input on needs and concerns local constituents have for him in his final year in office.

Baird, who was elected in 1998, has announced he will not seek re-election.

He met Friday with local elected officials and held a town hall meeting to talk with the public.

Baird's theme seemed to be, "Do the math," a sentence he used several times in his appearances.

The numbers most discussed centered on jobs, the economy and national debt.

"The main issue is jobs, as it should be, but it's not an easy issue to solve," he told the audience.

Federal economic stimulus money helped with jobs last year, "but in the long run we've got to have a more sustainable economic recovery model."

Federal deficit spending will hurt the economy over the long run, he said.

"I've been a deficit hawk for a long time," he said. "We are mortgaging the future of our country to other countries.

"We have an economy based on consumption. We're buying things with money we've borrowed from overseas, and most of the products we're buying are coming from overseas, and that can't sustain itself."

The issue is non-partisan, he said; both parties have contributed to it, and all will have to work together to address it.

Three steps are necessary, Baird said: 1. Stimulate the economy, 2. decrease spending, and 3. increase revenues.

"The math is not there any other way," he said.

Baird and Wahkiakum County Commissioners Blair Brady, Dan Cothren and Lisa Marsyla discussed issues, including a proposal from Brady that the federal government set up a fund to help counties purchase timberland from willing private sellers.

Wahkiakum County's government would be selfsustainable with another 15,000 acres of timberland in addition to the 12,900 it already has. Environmental concerns reduce the number of harvestable acres, the commissioners said, but a larger base could be managed on a sustainable program that would provide money to the county and also allow conservation measures that would protect the environment.

The county is already working with the state of Washington on expanding its timber base, but the state's funding problems are keeping the program from getting a good start.

Baird said he liked the idea, but it would take at least a year to set it up for action in Congress. Needed first is a business plan that would show how the numbers would work for the benefit of all parties. He suggested contacting a university school of forestry to see of a doctoral student might be interested in working on the plan.

Baird said that "doing the math" helped him decide not to seek re-election.

He and his wife have twin sons, and they vacationed last year on Mount Rainier. While he was hiking with them, he reasoned that a re-election campaign would be so time consuming that he would hardly see the boys, "less than 2 percent" of the time, he said.

He said he doesn't know what he'll do after leaving office. His wife has a good job in Washington, D.C., he said, but they like Washington state.

As for advice for a successor, Baird said, "Do not make promises about taxes or spending that will be difficult to keep. Do what is right for the country. Next, make the effort to have interest and knowledge in local issues."