2008 Woodie Awards
U.S. Senate candidate discusses issues
Billy Gates
Issue date: 2/15/08 Section: News
"I think today's political system is badly broken."
Those were the words of John Frohnmayer as he opened the the Pacific University Senate Town Hall series Feb. 12 at the Milky Way, sponsored by the Pacific University Undergraduate Council.
Frohnmayer, vying for incumbent Senator Gordon Smith's seat as an independent, covered a multitude of issues while describing his platform during the first half of the event, and the audience fired questions at him for the final half.
"There was excellent dialogue between Mr. Frohnmayer and the audience," said Mark Truax, president of the Politics and Law Forum, the event organizers. "He didn't dodge any questions like you would see from your typical politician. He answered them with confidence."
Before Frohnmayer explored the issues at hand, he further explained his decision to run as a third party.
"We have an extraordinary number of vital issues we are not addressing, because the democrats and republicans are too busy beating each other up," he said. "The gridlock in Washington can only be changed if there is a third force in American politics."
Frohnmayer may best be known in the political realm as the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts during the first Bush administration from 1989 to 1992.
Although the agency was under intense scrutiny for some of the projects it funded at the time, Frohnmayer believes his time as with the NEA sets him apart from the other candidates. "I know Washington, I've seen what happens first hand," he said.
"Congress got more mail about the NEA when I was there than they did about the savings and loan crisis."
One hot topic of the night was the environment, something that Frohnmayer prides himself on immensely. "There are so many different things we can do to help save our mother Earth," he said.
His plan to help preserve the forests of Oregon especially raised the eyebrows of audience members. "I would put forests in a trust that would allow for local maintenance and operations," he said.
Those were the words of John Frohnmayer as he opened the the Pacific University Senate Town Hall series Feb. 12 at the Milky Way, sponsored by the Pacific University Undergraduate Council.
Frohnmayer, vying for incumbent Senator Gordon Smith's seat as an independent, covered a multitude of issues while describing his platform during the first half of the event, and the audience fired questions at him for the final half.
"There was excellent dialogue between Mr. Frohnmayer and the audience," said Mark Truax, president of the Politics and Law Forum, the event organizers. "He didn't dodge any questions like you would see from your typical politician. He answered them with confidence."
Before Frohnmayer explored the issues at hand, he further explained his decision to run as a third party.
"We have an extraordinary number of vital issues we are not addressing, because the democrats and republicans are too busy beating each other up," he said. "The gridlock in Washington can only be changed if there is a third force in American politics."
Frohnmayer may best be known in the political realm as the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts during the first Bush administration from 1989 to 1992.
Although the agency was under intense scrutiny for some of the projects it funded at the time, Frohnmayer believes his time as with the NEA sets him apart from the other candidates. "I know Washington, I've seen what happens first hand," he said.
"Congress got more mail about the NEA when I was there than they did about the savings and loan crisis."
One hot topic of the night was the environment, something that Frohnmayer prides himself on immensely. "There are so many different things we can do to help save our mother Earth," he said.
His plan to help preserve the forests of Oregon especially raised the eyebrows of audience members. "I would put forests in a trust that would allow for local maintenance and operations," he said.
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