Nix D.C.-style politics

Washington County leaders should do better

The old saying goes, “All politics is local.” Today, it may be more appropriate to say “All politics is national.”

I’m finishing up my 11th year as a justice of the peace on the Washington County Quorum Court, and in the past few years, there has been a noticeable shift toward the toxic partisan politics that plague Washington, D.C.

The Quorum Court used to be focused on county services, like roads and bridges. Now, it’s focused on things like declaring the county as “pro life.” We used to pay attention to the pay and benefits of our hard-working county employees. Today, we spend time debating non-binding resolutions declaring that we “Back the Blue.”

Many of our county employees barely make above the minimum wage, but our Budget Committee touted how grateful employees should be to get a 3.5% raise. That’s less than $80 a month for our lowest-paid employees, but $300 a month for our highest-paid county employee, the county attorney, who also happens to be the chair of the County Republican Party. A Democratic colleague tried to increase the county minimum wage to $15 an hour. The Republican-dominated court voted it down and then made a surprise latenight attempt to lower the property tax millage. They wanted to be able to boast about lowering taxes, but for the average homeowner, the tax cut would have amounted to less than $10 a year. They failed in that effort, and then told county employees they’d have to wait until next year for a serious discussion about pay. And we wonder why we have such high turnover among employees.

My closest allies on the court used to be a Fayetteville Democrat and three Republicans from Elm Springs, Springdale and Sonora. We didn’t always vote the same way, but we shared a common goal of doing what was best for the county. We were respectful. We were friends.

Today, most of my Republican colleagues won’t speak to me. They sneer at me in meetings, bash me on social media and make rude comments to me during and outside of meetings. They’re rude to citizens who come forward with dissenting opinions. They leave the room when citizens speak, cut them off if they don’t come forward quickly enough, or even have deputies kick them out. After one recent meeting, a justice of the peace actually got in an elderly citizen’s face, chest to chest, and yelled at him because he didn’t like something the citizen said. Some of them are downright bullies, intent on being ugly. I’m not saying I’m perfect. I’m often passionate, rarely quiet. I don’t suffer fools gladly. I don’t mince words. I’m sure some of my colleagues would prefer that I be more, er, “deferential.”

LOL. Insert eye- roll emoji. Well-behaved women seldom make history.

My reward for being an outspoken Fayetteville Democrat who got 64% of the vote in her last election? The Republican-controlled Election Commission is going to mess with my district and try to dilute the voice of my city. They expressly reshaped the districts to ensure that “no part of Fayetteville” would be in any “Springdale district.” Yet Fayetteville gets carved up into pieces of nine (of 15) districts. The district I represent stands to gain a big section of the county outside the city limits, but will lose my Mount Sequoyah neighborhoods behind Root School — my elementary school — to the justice of the peace for Elkins.

I will also lose the historic district, from Dickson to Prospect, from Washington to Mission. I’ve walked those streets in the dark, in the rain, in the snow even, going door to door. I can name people I know on virtually every street. I remember the nice lady on Olive who invited me to sit on her porch and visit. I love the house with all the pumpkins on Lafayette. I’ll never forget the house on Walnut where my knock woke a sleeping baby from an afternoon nap. (Still very sorry about that.)

We’ve become what everyone despises — the worst of partisan politics. It’s disheartening. It makes me miss the days when Tom Lundstrum Sr. was my seatmate. And my friend. I like to say that if a Madison and a Lundstrum can be friends and allies, then anything is possible in politics. I hope that’s still true.

I hope Washington County can rise above the toxicity. I hope all of you are paying attention. I hope you will hold us accountable and help us return to the days of all politics being local. The county will be better for it.

Eva Madison of Fayetteville is a Democrat who holds the District 9 position on the Washington County Quorum Court.