OPINION: Introducing a new voice on Sunday’s Opinion page

If you don’t know Marv Dugger, it’s your loss.

For more than five years as a columnist for the Lewiston Tribune, the retired journeyman carpenter from Clearwater Paper was a happy warrior who loved the give and take of debating politics, environmental policy and gun laws. Disagree with him or not, it was impossible not to appreciate Dugger’s humor or genuine kindness.

Look over his archive and you find:

Fish and the lower Snake River dams — “If fish survival is really the issue, why are we even talking about destroying the four lower Snake River dams, the most fish-friendly dams in the whole system, and ignoring the obvious problems?”

Personal tragedy — “The last time I had a real cry was when I saw an article about our former local county coroner, the one who hauled the lifeless body of my beloved son to Spokane in a black body bag for the required autopsy. It hurt like hell.

“When Mckenzie died, he felt no pain. The coroner’s report said that from the amount of fentanyl in his system, he was probably dead before he hit the floor.”

The Second Amendment — “The primary purpose of government is to protect the rights and property of its law-abiding citizens, and they’re not doing it. It is also no coincidence that the cities with the toughest restrictions on gun ownership are having the most destruction.”

President Joe Biden — “With Biden’s cognitive decline so obvious that the public can see it — and from what I can see, it has been going on for a while — for the good of our country, why haven’t the people around him come forward about his situation? I think that answer is obvious. Political power matters more to them than the good of our country.”

Even before he launched his Lewiston Tribune column, Dugger endeared himself to the community when he lent his image and credibility toward passing the new Lewiston High School bond.

“This will be a world-class learning center where students will be able to develop vocational skills and earn college credits and degrees that will qualify them for good high-paying jobs right out of high school,” he wrote. “Our children will be able to stay in our area and work instead of moving away. We need the new school.”

So it is with a sense of sadness that we announce Dugger’s retirement from this page. In part, it reflects the policy of rotating columnists in and out after about four or five years. In Dugger’s case, however, it comes a little sooner than we’d like.

“Health related issues have forced me to curtail my writing,” he says. “I hope that my columns have helped inform people on important issues of the day or have even helped resolve some issues. I hope that (the Tribune) will replace me with another conservative writer. A mixture of ideas is good for our country; it keeps people thinking.”

And so the transition begins. Elsewhere on this page, you will see an introductory column from Steve Taggart.

Taggart, 60, of Idaho Falls, was among a group of statewide political columnists who worked with the old Idaho Politics Weekly, along with former Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice Jim Jones and veteran Idaho journalist Chuck Malloy.

In the years since the venue folded, Jones and Malloy have remained active. When Taggart approached the Tribune about relaunching his writing career on this platform, we frankly jumped at the opportunity. Not only does he complement the Tribune’s conservative columnists who rotate on the Sunday page, Taggart offers a regional counterbalance to political columnists such as Malloy, Randy Stapilus and Marc Johnson.

You won’t find too many people with his depth of experience in Republican circles. Now a practicing attorney, Taggart was still a teenager when he became captivated with Ronald Reagan and began phone-banking with the Bonneville County Republicans. He moved on to former Republican state Sen. Mel Richardson’s unsuccessful campaign to dislodge then-Congressman Richard Stallings, D-Idaho, in 1986.

From there, Taggart became a political consultant with a Utah firm, where he worked on behalf of the late U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch’s reelection efforts in 1988 and 1994. He then served as a policy adviser to the late Utah Gov. Norm Bangerter.

After completing law school, Taggart served as chief of staff to the late Congressman Chris Cannon, R-Utah, who among other things was a manager in the impeachment of former President Bill Clinton.

Since returning to Idaho Falls, Taggart has left his mark on local politics. In 2017, while Dugger was helping to build a new Lewiston High School, Taggart was involved in the successful effort to create the College of Eastern Idaho. He also helped Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper’s three successful campaigns.

“My role in the past has been as an organizer,” Taggart said. “I’m more interested in the pundit role, now.”

What you can expect from Taggart is the perspective of a native Idahoan who sees his state at a crossroads. For decades, Idaho chased after new businesses and jobs. Economic growth was prized, even essential. But with explosive expansion has come a transformation. The cost of housing, once a bargain, is becoming out of reach for many Idahoans, particularly younger people. A population influx has shifted Idaho’s center-right culture to a more hard-core right environment. And it has placed new demands on natural resources, primarily land and water.

“We have challenges in terms of really what is our future,” he said. “I think there are going to be all kinds of fascinating things to talk about as Idaho goes through a transition. ... Do we push forward in terms of growth or do we slow it down? That’s where I think we’re going.”

So begins a new chapter at the Opinion page. Here is the first of more changes to come. Please welcome Steve Taggart. — M.T.