Idaho GOP defends Foreman, calling Kendrick forum incident ‘a setup’

The Idaho Republican Party defended state Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Viola, against allegations of racism in a Facebook post Monday.

“This was a setup, pure and simple. Dan Foreman is not a racist nor does Idaho have a systemic racism problem,” the party’s Facebook post said. “This is a non-issue, as it didn’t happen as reported.”

The social media post comes after Foreman, at a candidate forum in Kendrick on Sept. 30, reportedly told Trish Carter-Goodheart, a Democratic House candidate in District 6A who is a Lapwai native and member of the Nez Perce Tribe, to “go back where you came from” during a discussion about the prevalence of racism in Idaho.

Carter-Goodheart included the quote in a news release last week, and her election opponent, Rep. Lori McCann, R-Lewiston, told the Tribune that “her statement is accurate.”

The Idaho Statesman of Boise also reported that Foreman’s opponent, Julia Parker, D-Moscow, and Kendrick Mayor Rose Norris corroborated Carter-Goodheart’s account.

No recording of the incident has become public or is known to exist.

In his own Facebook post, Foreman wrote that “the accusation made is patently false.”

On Monday, the Nez Perce Tribe distributed a news release that condemned Foreman’s reported comment, saying it “refuses to tolerate this kind of hateful and divisive politics and we ask other elected leaders in this region to stand with us in pushing back against such offensive behavior.”