[Vision2020] No Candidates Have Been 'eviscerated'

[Tom Hansen]

Courtesy of today's (November 2, 2010) Moscow-Pullman Daily News with a
special thanks to Leigh Robartes of KRFP, Radio Free Moscow.

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No candidates have been 'eviscerated'

Your weekend editorial (Daily News, Oct 30 & 31) reads as if only the
"left of center chattering classes" are able to tune their radios to 92.5,
let alone call in during our candidate forums.

We publicize our forums to attract a cross-section of the electorate. We
take calls from listeners in the sequence they come in.

Our forums are unique in that voters can publicly and directly ask as many
as 25 questions in an hour.

I have hosted candidate forums every year since 2005 on KRFP, and numerous
years prior on KUOI, and there have been no candidates "being lectured,"
and I don't remember any candidates "being eviscerated," even in the
figurative sense of the word.

Mostly we've had questions about public policy and positions on issues.
The format certainly allows for all sorts of questions from callers, but
given past experience it's purely speculation on your part that there
would be a lack of civility. Over the years, most candidates have gladly
participated, although occasionally some have declined, including at least
two Democrats.

Seeing no story from your news reporter, Christina Lords, only the weekend
editorial, I'll include some of what she called to find out Friday.
Gresham Bouma told me he couldn't take the risk that he would say
something during that night's radio forum that would be jumped on by those
opposed to him so soon before the election, when there would be little
time to respond. He also didn't want a one-hour forum on his pastor. I
told Gresham that was unlikely, but I was unable to persuade him to
participate.

Due to the 300-word limit to reply to your 400 word editorial, I'll leave
it to you to run a correction on the circumstances of Bill Goesling not
participating.

Leigh Robartes, station manager, KRFP/Radio Free Moscow

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Seeya at the polls, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown