Free Republic

The New Hampshire presidential primary seems to have set the shape of the Republican contest for some time to come, bringing into focus some questions awaiting Idaho's Republicans. And for Idaho's many establishment Republicans, those may be eerie questions. (I'll get to the Democrats later.) This year's Republican nomination battle is far more splintered in Idaho than it has been for many years. Four years ago, the establishment was solidly behind Mitt Romney, and until he dropped out in 2008 he had strong backing then as well. George W. Bush had the Idaho establishment firmly in his corner the two...

California, Oregon and the federal government are working on a way around congressional barriers to the removal of hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River. The states, the U.S. Interior Department and the owner of the dams, PacifiCorp, announced Tuesday that they have agreed in principle to pursue removal through the federal dam relicensing process. The move comes after a complex deal to decommission four hydroelectric dams and restore portions of the historic salmon river fell apart when Congress failed to act on a crucial piece of the pact by a Dec. 31 deadline. Republican members of Congress and local elected...

The Utah Attorney General's Office filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture, claiming the agencies' strategy to disallow new mining on or near greater sage grouse habitats is a breach of "numerous federal laws and regulations." The lawsuit in U.S. District Court seeks an order voiding the federal government's land-use plan amendments submitted last year that would directly prohibit new hard rock mining on 233,300 acres in Utah. "The state of Utah claims that the 2015 federal plan amendments disregarded the hallmark of federal land management -- multiple use and sustained yield --...

Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt joined Dave and I to talk Ted...no not Ted Talks, Ted Cruz. Attorney General Laxalt will be stumping for Ted all across the state leading up to the Republican Nevada Caucus February 23rd, he believes that Senator Cruz is the best candidate, not only for the Country but for Nevada. One of the biggest issues in the west and specifically in Nevada is the amount of Federally controlled lands, something Attorney General Laxalt has been fighting against and he believes Senator Cruz would be the best candidate to help champion that fight.

Another big battle is brewing over Syrian "refugees" sweeping into small-town America. Rural folks in Montana are pushing back against plans by urban elites to plant hundreds of Muslims from the Third World into Helena and Missoula. They plan a protest rally at 10 a.m. Monday in front of the county courthouse in Missoula. And if the pattern holds of similar rallies in Twin Falls, Idaho, and Fargo, North Dakota, a contingent of pro-refugee people will show up to counter protest. Of all the 50 states, there are only two that have not received their "share" of the nearly 1...

Environmental organizations that offered more than 150,000 comments calling on the U.S. Forest Service to reject an agreement to allow additional mining in the North Fork area said the response demonstrated strong public opposition. More like "stuffing the ballot box," said an industry spokesman who noted that the environmental opposition would undermine a bargain fashioned over five years of talks. The Forest Service proposes reinstating the North Fork coal-mining exception to the Colorado Roadless Rule. The exception would allow Arch Coal to extend the West Elk Mine near Somerset below the roadless area. The roadless exemption would allow construction of...

Let me be clear - I am pro-life. I support that position with exceptions allowed for rape, incest or the life of the mother being at risk. I did not always hold this position, but I had a significant personal experience that brought the precious gift of life into perspective for me. My story is well documented, so I will not retell it here. However, what I will do with the remaining space is express my feelings about life, and the culture of life, as we just marked the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. I build things. There is...

GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump holds a commanding lead among Idaho Republicans; a new Idaho Politics Weekly poll shows. As the GOP race tightens in early-voting states, like Iowa and New Hampshire, Trump has few concerns in Idaho, where Republicans hold a closed primary on March 8. The Dan Jones & Associates poll finds Trump is preferred by 30 percent of Idaho Republicans. Retired doctor Ben Carson – who has been fading fast in other states – comes in second with 19 percent support; followed by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at 16 percent; and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio at 10...

Ever wonder why the federal government would be sending hundreds of foreign refugees to a relatively small town in Idaho? Wonder no more. They’re sent there, many of them, to work in the world’s largest yogurt factory. As WND previously reported, Twin Falls is in line to receive about 300 refugees this year, many of them Muslims from Syria. And the state of Idaho, despite its reputation as a mostly white, conservative farm state, has been a popular destination for refugees in recent years. Boise Mayor David Bieter has gone on record as a huge supporter of President Obama’s welcoming...

HOUSTON, Texas - Over the weekend, Presidential candidate Ted Cruz continued to gain momentum as courageous conservatives around the country continued to coalesce behind his campaign for President. In Idaho, Cruz scored two major victories among Republicans, as the Gem State's Presidential Primary approaches on March 8th.The leadership of the Idaho Republican Party gathered in Boise for its annual Winter Meeting on Friday and Saturday. The party hosted a Presidential Candidates Reception and Straw Poll on Friday evening, with Ted Cruz winning the poll by more than a 2-1 margin with support from 40 percent of the vote. Marco Rubio...

Historic: Heavily Armed Idaho 3 Percenters Roll Up On FBI Compound (Pacific Patriot Network) This is the very first time in U.S. History that the Federal Bureau of Investigations has ever been confronted by heavily armed members of the Patriot community. The leadership team of the Pacific Patriot Network rolled up on the FBI compound with approximately 20 vehicles and entered into firm, but diplomatic dialogue with FBI agents. Again, to emphasize the significance of this historic event; the Constitutional Crisis at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is being peacefully resolved with direct intervention by the PPN. More updates, analysis...

Speaker of the House Scott Bedke, R-Oakley, said Thursday he will deploy a secret gun committee to vet a bill that would allow Idahoans to conceal firearms without a permit. Bedke, speaking to reporters at a briefing ahead of next week’s legislative session kick-off, offered tepid support for permitless concealed carry. “I would be supportive [of permitless carry] in concept,” Bedke told reporters. Two House Republican caucus members, freshman Reps. Ron Nate of Rexburg and Heather Scott of Blanchard, announced this week they will introduce a permitless carry bill in the upcoming session’s first two weeks. That announcement included quotes...

A growing number of state organizations seek to remedy what they consider negligent policies and shoddy oversight of public land on the part of federal agencies. Under the umbrella name Transfer of Public Lands, the movement offers a solution to the problem that is simple in concept: transfer ownership and management of public lands administered by federal agencies to equivalent state agencies. These agencies, being accountable to governors, state legislators and citizens, will manage the public lands in a more conscientious, cost-effective way. ... Unlike states east of the Continental Divide, public lands in Western states such as Washington and...

A southeastern Idaho cafeteria worker said she was fired for giving a student a free meal costing $1.70, but the school district offered her the job back after a national outcry. Dalene Bowden received a termination letter from the Pocatello School District last week after she gave a tray of food to a 12-year-old student who said she didn't have money for the meal.

When a middle school student came to Dalene Bowden and said she was hungry but didn't have the $1.70 to pay for her meal, the food service worker didn't think twice. She gave her the meal for free. Bowden's supervisor at Irving Middle School saw the cafeteria worker's deed and reported her. Last week Bowden received a certified letter from the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District in Pocatello, Idaho, that informed her of she was terminated from her job due to theft and "inaccurate transactions when ordering, receiving and servicing food."

The agreement never sold well either in solidly Republican Klamath County or on the California side of the border, where the idea of removing dams and tilting the scale toward environmental and tribal purposes was regarded suspiciously. "They try to say the community is for it, and it's not true at all," said Klamath County Chairman Tom Mallams, noting that almost all successful candidates in the area run against the agreement. ... Among western Republicans, the idea of removing the dams has been viewed with great suspicion, even though the aged structures are relatively small hydroelectric producers, aren't used for...

Since the start of the Syria's civil war in the spring of 2011, the U.S. has admitted 2,311 Syrian refugees and resettled them in 36 different states. According to data from the State Department's Refugee Processing Center the top three destinations for Syrian refugees since the beginning of the conflict are California, Texas, and Michigan. From March 15, 2011 through December 1, 2015, California received the most (261) Syrian refugees, Texas received the second most with 242, and Michigan has received the third most with 217. Other states that have received Syrian refugees since March 2011 include: Arizona (182), Illinois...

The Adams County Sheriff's Office has released the names of the deputies involved in the shooting of Jack Yantis on November 1st, 2015. "Out of concern for the safety of the two deputies involved in this incident and the desire for a fair and impartial investigation to be conducted, I have been hesitant to release the names. I still have concerns about threats made against the deputies but, at this time I believe that it is the right thing to do," said Sheriff Ryan Zollman. "I sincerely hope that our deputies and their families will be safe and that the...

Fazliddin Kurbanov: Terrorist 'Refugee' A case study in Obama's refugee folly. November 20, 2015 Arnold Ahlert    The fecklessness of the Obama administration’s despicable â€œrefugee” agenda can be personified. Last August a federal jury convicted Uzbek refugee Fazliddin Kurbanov of three terror-related charges that included working to support a terrorist organization, and amassing explosive materials in his apartment in Boise, ID.   Kurbanov is a Russian-speaking truck driver originally from Uzbekistan who began his life as a Muslim. When his parents converted to Orthodox Christianity, the family was subjected to government persecution and they fled to nearby Kazakhstan. In 2009 his parents came to...

State Treasurer Ron Crane to Serve as Chairman and Former State GOP Chairman Norm Semanko as Idaho State DirectorHOUSTON, Texas - Presidential candidate Ted Cruz continues to build out a strong, national organization, today naming State Treasurer Ron Crane as the Idaho State Chairman and former State GOP Chairman Norm Semanko as Idaho State Director for the Cruz for President Campaign. Idaho hosts its GOP primary on March 8, 2016."Idaho is an important state for us, and with Ron serving as our Chairman and Norm as our State Director, we gain two of the most respected conservatives in the state,"...