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I didn’t know what to make of guest columnist Val Stilwell’s aggressive adulation of Lane County Commissioner David Loveall until I read her biographical statement at the end of the essay, presenting her as a “communication strategist.” Clearly, what Stilwell is selling is a repackaged and rebranded Loveall for voters’ consumption. But I wasn’t buying her arguments.
First, Stilwell resorts to the “bait and switch” argument tactic to change and control the prevailing conversation about Loveall’s demeaning and offensive treatment of others, by attempting to shift the focus of the conversation to point fingers at other (liberal) commissioners like Heather Buch and Laurie Trieger. Throw in some wild accusations about the failure of Lane County government with unsubstantiated claims like “settlements are all too common in Lane County government.” What settlements? And your evidence is?
When Stilwell lets go of that smokescreen, she moves on to the Donald Trump/Steve Bannon sales pitch of “I’m an outsider (read: like you, the voter) here to drain the swamp.” Stilwell wrote, “He ran to represent voters and business owners like me,” continuing with, “The bureaucratic establishment (read: swamp) has chosen its target … They are not just coming after Loveall. They’re going after voters like me (read: and you!).” Sound familiar? Words lifted right out of Bannon’s MAGA playbook of hyperbole and fear.
If that sales pitch doesn’t move you to love Loveall, how about Stilwell’s claim that “he’s the first to admit he’s not perfect. He’s a Navy veteran. He’ll even tell you he’s got a sailor’s mouth from time to time.” I hear an echo of Melania Trump soft-pedaling the president’s misogynistic sneer about grabbing women by the p**** as “just locker room talk.”
So if commissioner Loveall refers to a woman as “spinster” or a “stripper on a stripper pole,” is that just his “sailor’s mouth” talking? Or when Loveall writes to Lane County Administrator Steve Mokrohisky, “Tell employees to f*** off. Commissioners can do whatever they want and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.” Is that a sailor’s mouth, or Loveall showing his disdain and disrespect for government employees?
To paraphrase Stilwell’s final pitch, like her, I work hard, pay my taxes and expect my government officials to be accountable (and I add, respectful of others). The willingness of Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon to run against Loveall for the Lane County commissioner seat gives me hope that we will elect a leader like VanGordon, as Springfield, Eugene and Lane County need more leaders like him who put truth, integrity, respect and constituents’ needs first.
