To the editor — I may be slower than most voters on “things to know” before an election. I was clueless when a local congressional candidate’s TV ads started claiming our incumbent representative “lined his pockets with taxpayer money.”
I finally found an investigative news report that said Newhouse Farms accepted a $313,000 payroll protection program loan during the pandemic.
The Newhouse Farms loan (plus interest) was forgiven.
So far, I had no problem with our incumbent. Government money got a lot of businesses and their employees through one of the strangest historical events of our lifetimes.
Still, I was curious whether Mr. Newhouse was consistent on who should receive loan forgiveness, so I Googled, “Dan Newhouse and loan forgiveness.”
Turns out, Mr. Newhouse vocally opposed student loan forgiveness. Apparently, some people deserved loan forgiveness, others didn’t.
Puzzled, I dug deeper until I hit pay dirt. Students of color carried more than their share of student debt because they had fewer resources and required larger loans.
It finally made sense. The politicians opposing student loan forgiveness were almost entirely from one major party. Their leader — Donald Trump — constantly dog whistles white nationalism.
Shame on Dan Newhouse for going along with such hypocrisy.
RHEA CARSON
Yakima
