A Legacy of Failure

The 2022 legislative session was a mess

The Idaho State Legislature adjourned sine die Thursday afternoon, closing the books on the 2022 session. Their final act was a failure by the Senate to override Governor Brad Little’s veto of the Coronavirus PAUSE Act, which would have prevented employers from forcing vaccines on their employees. A triumphant Governor Little posted on his social media accounts today:

In all my years, I have never seen a more successful legislative session that produced so many positive results for the people we serve. We achieved what I never thought we could – “the trifecta” – record tax relief, record education investments, and record transportation investments in one year.

Does it surprise you that what makes the governor proudest is in spending taxpayer dollars? All three things he lauded involve money. There was no mention of anything that protects the rights of the people from either government or big business, no government reform, and certainly no recriminations for his decision to unilaterally shut down the state in 2020. Even the abortion ban, which should be the governor’s proudest moment, is not even acknowledged. Perhaps he was embarrassed - despite signing the bill, he called it “unconstitutional and unwise.”

Source: kidotalkradio.com

Our state house passed many spectacular bills: H666 would have closed the loophole that allows teachers and librarians to distribute obscene material to children, H675 would have banned mutilating children in the name of the transgender ideology, H761 was a much-needed reform of our election systems, and HCR052 was a first step toward stopping the ESG social credit system that is on the horizon.

Senate Pro Tem Chuck Winder dismissed these bills as “craziness” and vowed that they would never see the light of day. His loyal sidekick, Senator Patti Ann Lodge, used her position as chairwoman of the State Affairs Committee to throw them in the trash.

Senator Lodge is not running for reelection this year, so she does not have to face the voters to account for her perfidy. Keep an eye out for her to land in a very comfortable position with a corporate board or lobby group as a reward for her service to the establishment.

As I said in a recent podcast, this is a game that our delegates play with the voters. They play both sides: presenting themselves to their constituents as hardcore conservatives while quietly promising the powerful business interests that fund their campaigns that these popular bills will never pass. Committee chairs like Senator Lodge, who are appointed by House and Senate leadership, make sure to kill any bill that goes too far for their corporate masters. By killing the bills in committee, chairs make sure the legislators do not have to commit themselves to a public vote of yea or nay. Our delegates then come to us, hats in hand, promising that maybe next year they will get them through!

Our legislature needs an enema. Too many of our representatives are part of the system, and prioritize the defense and continuation of that system over efforts to reform and disrupt it. Even though Senator Lodge will not be running State Affairs next session, Senator Winder will surely appoint another dependable minion to take her place. The game will continue.

The only way we fix this is by electing a critical mass of delegates who are not owned by IACI, big pharma, or the other lobbyists, and do not owe favors to the leadership. We need a few dozen firebrands who are willing to boldly speak truth to power, like Representative Priscilla Giddings has done in her time in the legislature. Her populist stand has cost her: she has endured slanders from her fellow delegates, a censure vote overseen by her opponent in the lieutenant governor’s race, and constant attacks by the corporate press. That is what anyone who goes to Boise to speak for the people must expect. Fancy cocktail parties and media puff pieces are reserved for those who dutifully play the game.

It will not do to send just one or two rabble rousers to the Capitol, because the leadership can easily marginalize a few outspoken voices. We need a wholesale replacement of our legislature. Do you have a firebrand in your district who needs your help to defeat the IACI lackeys? Give them your time, your money, and your prayers. If you are subscribed to this newsletter then you are already plugged into politics, but there are many people who only decide who to support after they step into the voting booth. Tell your friends and your neighbors that it is time to send the career politicians packing.

Are you in District 15? Vote for Codi Galloway to unseat longtime obstructionist Senator Fred Martin.

Are you in District 20? Replace Senator Chuck Winder with Rosa Martinez. While you’re at it, elect Michael Hon to the House!

In my own District 14, we have several choices. I will be taking a close look at all of them in the coming days and will share my thoughts with you then.

Folks, we have to do something about business as usual. The system will not reform itself. If we keep electing the same career politicians, each one of whom owes favors to corporate lobbyists and legislative leadership, then we will have no one to blame but ourselves when our state goes the way of Washington, Colorado, and California.