Idaho may not be the reddest state in the country, but one credible survey places it in the top five. All the statewide elective offices are held by Republicans, and both houses of the Idaho Legislature have lopsided GOP majorities.
Although Idaho has been dominated by the GOP for several decades, the legislature has generally been pragmatic and reasonable. That is, until the party was able to close its primary election to all but registered Republicans 10 years ago. That, plus the election of Donald Trump, the malign influence of Fox News and the increasing involvement of a plethora of right-wing organizations, has turned the state into a battlefield of the culture wars. Those organizations include the Heritage Foundation, the American Legislative Exchange Council and the State Policy Network (SPN), which has affiliates in every state.
The SPN group in Idaho bears the ill-fitting name Idaho Freedom Foundation (IFF). The organization has developed significant clout in the Idaho Legislature in recent years with its hard-edged culture war tactics and dark money support. Legislators defy the IFF’s wishes at their peril. It is a principal reason for the increasingly extreme legislative body.
A sampling of the culture war issues dealt with by lawmakers in the last two years provides a flavor of the extremist nature of the body. There have been numerous bills to hamstring the state’s ability to stop the spread of the coronavirus. A law was passed to prevent the teaching of...
The President of the Association of Yorubas in Diaspora, South Africa, Dr Olusola Agbeniyi, has asked the senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole, to desist from making what he described ...