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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories 10 things to know for Monday City ready to rein in bad dog owners Josephine County scrambles to house juvenile offenders Travel funds would help disabled woman reconnect with her father Get Up & Go: Dec. 22 Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Josephine County scrambles to house juvenile offenders Emergency Services Emergency services Emergency services Police search for pursuit suspect near Hyatt Lake Politics and Elections State certifies recount showing failure of GMO-labeling measure Time running out for O&C funds GMO vote recount still shows little change GMO labeling votes recounted under careful watch in Jackson County Kent Bush: First Amendment doesn’t mean what you think it means Education Ruch school class focuses on the natural environment Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Logos may offer students 'fifth year' at RCC or SOU St. Mary's plays host to youth robotics tournament A lesson in giving Environment Biologist resigns over LNG reporting failure Bird flu discovered in Winston backyard flock Jackson County holds back on enforcing GMO ban for now No fish, no funding for problem dams Most residents speak against gas pipeline State News Questions remain in death of Oklahoma teen Impostor makes off with Salvation Army donations in Corvallis, Albany Faith-healing couple sentenced to 10 years for death of diabetic daughter Uber suspends operations in Portland for 3 months Group challenges timber producer's 'green' label Nation - World Obama makes Maduro’s ‘insolent Yankees’ line harder to sell Grand jury won't indict Ferguson cop in shooting Obituaries Eva Mae Clement Gerald Steve Stebbins Nellie Fay Luther Ernaldo (Al) Gerald Wesley Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable ACCESS receives $50,000 donation from Wells Fargo Sports Latest Stories Schireman, Tornado shoot past Pacers On the rise Gutches, Johnson lead Raiders to eighth at Reno TOC Rally falls short for Oregon Cavs tame Grizzlies as Waiters steps up late Varsity 541 College Sports Gutches, Johnson lead Raiders to eighth at Reno TOC Rally falls short for Oregon OSU’s Andersen details ‘very, very busy’ first week Winston cleared in conduct hearing Quinnipiac holds off Oregon State, 60-52 Pro Sports On the rise Cavs tame Grizzlies as Waiters steps up late Mavs victorious in Rondo debut Chargers rally big to beat 49ers No slowing Blazers in win over Pelicans Community Sports Keeping Fit: Runners need to do more than run to stay in shape RESULTS/STANDINGS LOCAL EVENTS Business Latest Stories Silvio Calabi: GLA250 is a Merc for the masses Blog: The Holidays Have Arrived Falling gas prices help spur travel at Medford airport Employment in Oregon surpasses pre-recession levels Free lunchtime presentation covers business planning Real Estate News Rental owners group reports 2.48 percent vacancy rate More sales, but no change in residential housing median price People In Business People in Business, Dec. 3 Transportation Falling gas prices help spur travel at Medford airport Allegiant Air will resume Medford-Phoenix service May 22 Agriculture K-BAR ignites agriculture boom beneath Table Rocks Southern Oregon wine industry had a robust 2013 Opinion Latest Granlund cartoon: Christmas Day creche Letters to the Editor, Dec. 22 Kathleen Parker: Talk about a wildfire: Is the movie next? Other Views: Kingsley Field jobs are welcome Our View: Be careful when you donate Editorials Other Views: Kingsley Field jobs are welcome Our View: Be careful when you donate Other Views: Detective's sentence violates public trust Our View: Cheers and jeers Our View: Vaccines benefit everyone, save lives Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Dec. 22 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 21 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 19 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 18 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 17 Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Loved one chose death with dignity in Oregon Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future Guest Opinion: Suit threatens family farms and democratic vote Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Lifestyle Latest stories Silvio Calabi: GLA250 is a Merc for the masses Get A Life: Spend real-life time with each other Health Watch: Small diet changes can make a big difference Family Time: What parents feed baby can have long-term impact Home Help: Home safety tips for a safe and happy winter season Food Community blog: 'Cookbook Book' digests genre's past 300 years Community blog: Liver pat� an easy nosh for Hanukkah and beyond Local bubbly can ring in the New Year Food for Thought: How to keep your kitchen organized during the holidays Kitchen Call: Shopping for the cook Home and Garden Home Help: Home safety tips for a safe and happy winter season How NOT to install drywall Dear Monty: Siblings dispute inherited real estate Home Help: Create a happy homemade holiday Rogue Valley Christmas light displays Health Health Watch: Small diet changes can make a big difference Community blog: Removing Barriers Is Good Insurance Health Watch: Change up your treadmill workout Community blog: A Dark Night of Healing and Hope Community blog: The Promise of Hope � and Health - Fulfilled Hiking Biking Faith Churches, synagogs host seasonal events Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Milestones and Achievements Fans, friends and family welcome home victorious SOU team at airport Wedding: Boldt-Mahon Order of Elks national office revokes Medford lodge's charter Jackson County's new health building complete, will serve clients in February Ashland celebrates 'Wild' screening with Cheryl Strayed Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Live Music in Local Clubs Celebrate winter solstice with the Bad Film Society Southern Oregon Repertory Singers present 'The Holly and the Ivy' Tomaseen Foley's "A Celtic Christmas" returns to the Craterian Theater Stefan Baumann and Eugene Bennett highlight Third Fridays Theater ACT presents reading of 'The Quality of Life' Meet the real Jacob Marley This Nutcracker ballet will have a superhero twist Plumbing the depths of meaning TMTO presents 'A Christmas Carol: The Musical' Music Live Music in Local Clubs Southern Oregon Repertory Singers present 'The Holly and the Ivy' Tomaseen Foley's "A Celtic Christmas" returns to the Craterian Theater Seattle rock band Smokey Brights plays Howiee's Eight Dollar Mountain and Fruition play Applegate Lodge Community Events Celebrate winter solstice with the Bad Film Society Tomaseen Foley's "A Celtic Christmas" returns to the Craterian Theater Stefan Baumann and Eugene Bennett highlight Third Fridays Dancing People Company celebrates the solstice Dance to the Southern Oregon Jazz Orchestra Dining Coffee shops roll out holiday-inspired drinks Over Easy serves 'pop-up' brunch Sundays Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Brunch at Loft Brasserie Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Questions remain in death of Oklahoma teen ... City ready to rein in bad dog owners ... Victorious Raiders parade trophy through downtown Ashland ... Questions remain in death of Oklahoma teen ... City ready to rein in bad dog owners ... Victorious Raiders parade trophy through downtown Ashland ... ANOTHER VIEW Dana Milbank: How the GOP can poke back against Obama Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Nov. 23, 2014 @ 12:01 am Posted Nov. 23, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News Here's a paradox worth pondering: Could President Obama's executive actions on immigration actually make it easier to enact comprehensive reform? The invective pouring forth from Republicans this past week would seem to suggest not: "deliberately sabotage any chance of enacting bipartisan reforms ... trying to pick a bar fight ... throwing this nation into a crisis ... anarchy." Mitt Romney, the failed 2012 Republican presidential nominee, told CBS' Bob Schieffer that Obama was "poking an eye of the Republican leaders in Congress." The natural instinct is to poke back — an eye for an eye. But one Republican, at least, has a better idea. "Rather than poke him in the eye, I'd rather put legislation on his desk," Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) told me Thursday. The idea of Congress legislating seems quaint these days, but Flake's counterintuitive view is that Obama's unilateral action Thursday will increase pressure on the president to accept conservative immigration bills and therefore will increase the odds that something resembling comprehensive immigration reform will be enacted. "I think it will be easier in a sense," he said. Flake is a conservative in good standing, and he opposes the executive orders as much as the next Republican. Elected to the Senate in 2012 after a dozen years in the House, he has a 95 percent lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union. But he's also a reasonable man; he was a member of the Gang of Eight that crafted the original Senate compromise on immigration. And this border-state legislator thinks it's stupid to shut down the government in an effort to undo Obama's immigration orders. As for the lawsuits against Obama? "Background noise," he said. Instead, Flake proposes letting the orders stand — and even offering to make them permanent — if Obama first makes the three concessions that Republicans have long sought on immigration. His hunch is that Obama, in order to quell the Republican rage on immigration and to make his executive actions permanent, would ultimately take that deal. First, Flake wants the House, followed by the Senate, to pass a border-security bill with tougher standards than the Senate compromise, requiring a 90 percent apprehension rate at the border before any permanent legalization of undocumented immigrants. Obama, who has just stretched the limits of his constitutional authority to protect undocumented immigrants, "would be harder pressed to veto a border security bill, a tough one, than he would have before," Flake figures. Next, the Republican Congress would send Obama a bill with tougher interior enforcement of immigration, including a mandatory "E-Verify" program. Third, Congress would send Obama legislation covering visas for temporary and high-tech workers. Some Democrats would object to both, but Obama would find them "tougher for him to turn down now" after the furor stirred by his executive order. Then, and only then, would Congress send Obama legislation giving his executive actions force of law and providing a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. Flake admits that will still be opposed by many Republicans as so-called "amnesty." But Flake thinks he can win over enough of them after giving them piecemeal approach to immigration reform they insisted on. Obama and the Democrats may regard the first three bills as legislative eye pokes, but the president, who picked this latest fight with his executive order, has a powerful incentive to make concessions now: His executive order offers temporary protection from deportation to 3.7 million undocumented immigrants, but without congressional approval, it doesn't put anybody on a path to citizenship and it can be erased by a future president. Is the Flake plan naive? Perhaps. Flake, telegenic and amiable, occasionally lives up to his name, most recently filming a reality survival show on a deserted island with Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.). When seeking out a quiet place for us to talk Thursday off the Senate floor, he wandered into a room where the Senate Democratic caucus was meeting with White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. But Flake is one of the good guys in Washington — devoted to his conservative principles but also to the belief that lawmakers have been sent here to get stuff done. He retains strong ties to House conservatives (he's coordinating with House Republicans to introduce the various provisions). And he predicts he can find enough Republicans to support his approach — "if we can resist the urge to shut down the government" in the meantime. That's a sizable if. "Make no mistake: It's going to be tough for a lot of members to deal with this president at all," the senator said. And Obama made clear Thursday night that the disregard is mutual. But, with luck, both sides will conclude that Flake's plan, though imperfect, beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Follow Dana Milbank on Twitter, @Milbank. 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