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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Prisoners in their own home How do you feel about new cell towers? Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Education Prisoners in their own home Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Ashland Kiwanis recognizes Samara Diab Hands-On work with robots at ScienceWorks Environment Wild Side: Selfish and other reasons for saving endangered species Mt. Ashland Ski Area: Low snow closes 'bunny hill' chairlift for beginning skiers With pre-season conditions worst in 25 years, catastrophic wildfires expected in region this summer Legislature might be divided on clean fuels bill, but these Ashlanders weren't Ashland Rowing Club members put their backs into Emigrant Lake clean-up Business Breaking ground on organic vineyard practices Southern Oregon University: Recent and pending projects at SOU total about $132 million Test Drive: 2015 Subaru Outback Limited Silvio Calabi: 2015 Cherokee is a modern Jeep Ride & Drive: 2015 Hyundai Genesis Politics and elections Short-term rental restrictions kept in some areas, loosened in others Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US Mark L. Hopkins: Looking for a political straight shooter Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Ballots on Jackson County marijuana tax go out today State News Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Kate Brown sworn in as Oregon's 38th governor Nation - World Leonard Nimoy, famous as Mr. Spock on 'Star Trek,' dies Obituaries Death Notices Shiela R. Ettlich Karen June Shaw Death Notices Death Notices Shareable Bank of America is predicting a massive Tesla collapse Mars One attracts science fiction geeks and people who hate society Sports Latest Stories Wade scores 32, Heat rally to beat Blazers AHS grad Bailey claims national wrestling title Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Fredrickson leads Grizzlies to season-opening romp Thompson, Weber to play in all-star game High school Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Fredrickson leads Grizzlies to season-opening romp Grizz alpine skiers finish strong at state Ashland High's Honsinger tops field in final nordic ski meet Grizz snowboard team heads to state with repeat potential Southern Oregon University AHS grad Bailey claims national wrestling title Thompson, Weber to play in all-star game Beavers get No. 3 seed, host NCAA games Young shoots Ducks into Pac-12 title game Raider softball team opens league play with split at Northwest Voices Latest Stories Landgren cartoon: Boston gets a ‘Frozen’ sequel Our View: SOU's economic clout Letters to the Editor, March 18 Letters to the Editor, March 17 Landgren cartoon: Sunshine Week Editorial Our View: SOU's economic clout Our view: Keep it simple in developing marijuana rules Our View: Ashland is at risk as a bad fire season looms Our View: Ashland backs residents over visitors in lodging decision Our View: No need for blame in Hannah Thomas-Garner case Letters Letters to the Editor, March 18 Letters to the Editor, March 17 Letters to the Editor, March 14 Letters to the Editor, March 12 Letters to the Editor, March 11 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Guest Opinion: Ashland schools failed to protect my son from bullying Guest Opinion: There is nothing uniform about the Uniform Crime Report Columns Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Council Corner: City considers the sharing economy Herb Rothschild Jr.: Demonizing Putin makes case for war Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Jeffrey Gillespie: The opaqueness of Hillary Clinton Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Community blog: Herzog scholarship for young writers Movie listings: March 13-18 Nitty Gritty Dirt Band co-founder John McEuen performs at the Unitarian Fellowship in Ashland Thanks for the Memories presents 'Anastasia' Community blog: Take a peek at poet Scott Wozniak Theater Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday Theater review: Thanks for the Memories pulls off challenging 'Anastasia' in Ashland Ticket availability Ticket Availability Music The Farr Side: Madonna — ever the trendsetter Nitty Gritty Dirt Band co-founder John McEuen performs at the Unitarian Fellowship in Ashland Alice DiMicele plays Unitarian Fellowship The Farr Side: Another career highlight for Kelly Clarkson Music on the Mountain: Ski area launching concert series Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies 8 must-see spring films Movie review: ‘Wrecking Crew’ is a look at the people who really put the bomp Movie review: ‘Cinderella’ is an instant classic Shailene Woodley returns as Tris in ‘Insurgent’ Movie listings: March 13-18 Food and Drink Sammich does it Chicago-style Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Oregon Shakespeare Festival designer for a half-century says he's still learning Page H. Onorato: How food names came into being Tammy Kelly: Healthy leftover ham Lost in Suburbia: Top 10 reasons I like my dog better than my kids Dear Monty: Tips for checking out an existing septic system Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund ... Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday ... Our View: SOU's economic clout ... Louie's to donate sales to Helman Hug Fund ... Ashland High School Drama Club to host Showcase Night on Thursday ... Our View: SOU's economic clout ... Mark L. Hopkins: Looking for a political straight shooter Comment By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now Posted Mar. 9, 2015 at 6:51 AM By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now Posted Mar. 9, 2015 at 6:51 AM » Social News Sports announcer Howard Cosell made famous the phrase “Tell it like it is.” He prided himself on laying out his words of description for the listener just the way he saw it and letting the listener decide for himself just what occurred and, perhaps, why. How we love a politician who will do just that for us. It is one of the reasons we liked President Ronald Reagan. The media tagged him with the name “The Great Communicator,” and he certainly was. He knew how to address the public and always seemed knowledgeable, ethical, and above all, honest. He could look us in the face right through our TV screens and tell us exactly what was going on and what he intended to do about it. And we believed it. At least the vast majority of us believed it. It seems that every political season for the past two decades we have been looking for another Ronald Reagan. It doesn’t seem to matter who the new candidate is or what he says, if he doesn’t remind us of President Reagan we seem to doubt his credibility. George H.W. Bush was probably the best qualified President in our modern history. Yet we turned him out of office and replaced him primarily because he, well, he wasn’t Ronald Reagan. Presidents Clinton and Bush each had their strong points, but national polls indicated both left office just ahead of the political grim reaper. And that brings us to President Barack Obama. President Obama is a visionary and a communicator. He is certainly the best at communicating we have had in that office since Reagan and when he speaks to the public he is both articulate and understandable. Still, he isn’t Reagan and at least partially because of that fact, he could walk on water and a portion of the voting public would accuse him of not being able to swim. So who can fill the bill as the political straight shooter that our electorate is searching for, that our country needs, the one who will “Tell it like it is?” Will it be former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush or perhaps current governors Chris Christie or Scott Walker? How about South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham? He became a national personality during the Bill Clinton hearings back in the ‘90s, but is he well-known enough to strike a chord with rank and file Republicans? The Democrats probably have their candidate in Hillary Clinton. But of this group, who is or will become the Reagan-style communicator we are looking for? We are going to have to wait another 22 months to find out. If you feel I am leaving you with a note of skepticism, I’m sure you understand why. Dr. Mark L. Hopkins writes for More Content Now and Scripps Newspapers. He is past president of colleges and universities in four states and currently serves as executive director of a higher-education consulting service. Hopkins’ latest book, “Journey to Gettysburg,” is now available at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. Contact him at [email protected]. By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now Posted Mar. 9, 2015 at 6:51 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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