Audience questions covered education and voting, more

HERMISTON — U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley told constituents to hold their elected officials accountable as he concluded his 599th town hall.

“We need energized, effective citizens to save our republic,” he said.

Merkley held the town hall at Hermiston High School, where around 130 Umatilla County residents maintained a peaceful, respectful atmosphere while asking questions about voting rights, immigration, education and recent actions by President Donald Trump and the executive branch. Attendees took tickets, some of which were randomly selected and their holders could ask the senator a question. Merkley also answered questions covering similar issues from the East Oregonian in an interview before the town hall.

To kick off the event, Merkley offered a few minutes of speaking time to Jesus Rome with the Hermiston Cultural Awareness Coalition, which promotes cultural diversity in the community and organizes events for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Juneteenth, among others. A more recent effort includes a Zumba cultural dance class with Blue Mountain Community College.

“We are stronger together,” Rome said. “Whether you’re Black, white, Latino, Native American or Asian, you are welcome in our community.”

Merkley presented the coalition with an American flag that’s been hung in front of the U.S. Capitol before taking audience questions.

Prominent focus on education

One of the major themes that came up during the town hall was the effect of federal actions on the U.S. Department of Education as well as local schools.

J Jesus Racon, a Umatilla High School junior, asked the senator about risks to school meal programs. Merkley said the programs are at risk of funding cuts, though he believes efforts to remove them will be stopped.

“I think people generally understand that if a child is hungry, they’re not going to learn anything at school,” he said, “and so we really believe in that vision of every child having an opportunity to thrive.”

Other questions focused on the Department of Education more broadly — such as possible effect on teaching subjects involving diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as risks to education for students who have disabilities or require special interventions.

“ The attack (on DEI) is just to me so misplaced and it is part of an effort to accentuate cultural wars and divide us against ourselves,” he said. “A divided house is weakened, and that’s a challenge.”

He added that Congress is charged with spending money, such as what funds the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, but recognizes the separation of powers in the federal government is weakening. Merkley said the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year to grant immunity to presidents for their official acts “mystified” him.

“Laws are not suggestions,” he said, “and the president is not a king.”

Questions on immigration and voting rights

Audience members asking about protections for immigrants and voters, in particular, received loud applause from the crowd. One woman asked Merkley about the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility — or SAVE — Act, which would require proof of citizenship when people register to vote. The House of Representatives passed the bill on Thursday, April 10.

Concerns with the act revolve around voter suppression of women and low-income or minority populations, particularly because not everyone has the required documentation the act would require. Additionally, IDs don’t always match birth certificates, especially for people who change their last names after marriage. Many Democrats, including Merkley, are saying this would disenfranchise millions of Americans.

Merkley said during the town hall — and during the media interview prior — it would not pass the Senate, where it would require 60 votes.

“We’ll kill it,” he said in the media interview. “It’s really irritating to hear it paraded as protecting our elections when it’s all designed to manipulate and stop people from voting who have the full right to vote in our country.”

Merkley said Oregon’s voting system has been reviewed and people voting who aren’t supposed to is a “non-problem.”

Karen Sherman, a Hermiston School Board member and retired teacher, asked the senator how to support her neighbors who are immigrants.

“I think there’s just this fear across the country and so anything that you can give us for hope, I guess, (or) a way to keep us going and moving,” she said. “We need to stand as a community for those people who are here, who have been here.”

She referenced field workers who do the physical labor of harvesting crops and said she’s noticed tension within the community over immigration. In response, Merkley said there has been historical bipartisan support on creating better pathways to citizenship and an improved asylum system. He told the crowd that despite concerns the Trump administration doesn’t want to change things, he didn’t know why there couldn’t be support for a comprehensive immigration bill in 2025 when it’s been there in 2013 and 2024.

“I feel like there’s a lot of weight on our shoulders, and I’m encouraging folks, if you are feeling that weight, then, first, don’t curl up on the couch,” he said. “By yourself, the world can be dark and depressing and it’s kind of ineffective all by yourself. But if you’re joined with others, then it’s energizing and it’s effective.”

The impact of anticipated wildfires and tariffs

Merkley also mentioned his work to acquire funds to address wildfire season in the state. He said losing the U.S. Forest Service personnel in federal layoffs earlier this year “may end up being a devastating setback” in wildfire prevention projects.

“It’s the Forest Service who have the best understanding of how to fight the fires because they understand the forest that they’re dedicated to,” he said.

Firings and reductions in workforce also are hitting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. With regard to fire season, Merkley said it’s “essential” to know “every detail about the weather” to assess how to best attack the fire. Losing weather service employees could also harm wildland firefighting efforts.

In agricultural communities across Eastern Oregon, Merkley said he’s heard from constituents about concerns over tariffs and the potential for retaliatory tariffs.

“People are really concerned about whether this whole structure is going to drive a lot of inflation, which, I mean, basically tariffs are a massive national sales tax,” he said. “So the answer is yes, yes it will.”

Merkley’s town hall in Hermiston was his 23rd of 36 planned this year. His counterpart in the Senate, Ron Wyden, will hold his own Umatilla County town hall at 6 p.m. on April 23 at Pendleton High School.