JEERS ... to University of Idaho President Scott Green.
As Idaho Education News’ Sadie Dittenber noted, the UI president included this sentiment in his State of the University address: “I don’t take political sides. I have to stay middle of the road.”
A wad of cash — $7,289 that Green contributed directly to legislative campaigns, another $10,000 that he gave to a political action committee headed by Rep. Megan Blanksma, R-Hammett, and $25,000 that Green’s wife, Gabriella Green, provided to a third party group, Idaho Deserves Better — says otherwise.
And that’s after Green alienated a swath of state lawmakers with his plan to acquire the online, for-profit University of Phoenix for $685 million. Many legislators who stood by Green — notably Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, R-Boise — lost their reelection campaigns in that primary.
And if you want to see an apolitical, middle of the road state of the university address, look to Boise State University President Marlene Tromp’s speech. It focused on research, enrollment and graduation rates.
That’s not to say Green doesn’t have provocation to encourage the UI family to get out and vote. The Idaho Republican state convention all but declared war on the public funding of higher education. And spurred on by the Idaho Freedom Foundation, lawmakers used diversity on campus as a wedge issue — even though diversity is key to educating Idaho’s young people about the economy they’re about to encounter.
It’s the right message. But Green is the wrong messenger.
CHEERS ... to U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., and former U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash.
Both are on track toward prevailing in the Aug. 6 primary election — Newhouse in a reelection campaign and Herrera Beutler in her comeback bid to become the state commissioner of public lands.
Newhouse and Herrera Beutler were among the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump for inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
So far, only Newhouse and California Rep. David Valadao survived.
The rest, such as former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., were defeated in GOP primaries or, like former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., chose to retire.
Washington and California, however, operate under a top-two primary system — which means coming in second is enough to survive until the November general election, when the broader electorate weighs in.
The system didn’t save Herrera Beutler in 2022, when she placed third in the primary. But this year, her pending first-place finish promises Herrera Beutler a slot on the Nov. 5 election ballot. The same goes for Newhouse.
Just as two years ago, a second-place finish would give him a chance to persuade Republicans, Democrats and independents to support him in the fall. Vote-counting won’t be completed until next week, but Newhouse’s lead over third-place, Trump-endorsed Tiffany Smiley seemed sufficiently large enough to generate her apparent exit statement.
Standing up to this vindictive former president took a lot of courage. But Washington’s top two primary allows Newhouse and Herrera Beutler at least a fighting chance to take their case to all of the voters.
JEERS ... to Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador.
Twice in the past three weeks, the Idaho Supreme Court has more or less issued this advice to the state’s top lawyer — go back to law school.
On July 29, Vice Chief Justice Robyn Brody challenged Labrador’s assertion that he could both sue and then have his deputies defend Secretary of State Phil McGrane in an attempt to yank the Open Primaries Initiative off the Nov. 5 ballot. The court ordered Labrador to explain why that didn’t violate Idaho’s Rules of Professional Conduct.
And when the court threw out Labrador’s OPI challenge Tuesday, it rebuked him on two grounds:
-- Until voters approve an initiative, it is not law. No court can rule on its constitutionality. In fact, dating back decades, the court has given deference to hearing the voice of the people through the initiative process. Even if a measure is later struck down, such as the 1986 lottery initiative, the process can encourage the Legislature to bring it back as a constitutional amendment, which happened in 1988.
-- Idaho operates a system of trial and appellate courts. As any lawyer should know, Labrador should have started at the bottom, not the top, if he wanted to challenge the OPI.
“The attorney general’s petition fundamentally misapprehends the role of this court under the Idaho Constitution and the role of the secretary of state under the initiative laws enacted by the Idaho Legislature,” Brody wrote.
Translation: Labrador should consider using his office to practice law rather than campaign for governor.
CHEERS ... to Rod Gramer.
After 11 years at the helm, Gramer — a former reporter, newspaper editor and television news executive — is retiring as president and CEO of Idaho Business for Education.
If you have a child in Idaho’s public schools, you owe him a debt of gratitude. Gramer’s efforts helped create a supportive political environment for early literacy programs and all-day kindergarten in the Gem State.
More recently, it was Gramer’s dogged investigation that revealed how any pivot toward vouchers inevitably leads to universal access, which drains the public treasury, undermines public schools and gouges local property taxpayers.
The out-of-state financed voucher movement was narrowly blocked in the House Education Committee in 2023 and again this year in the House Revenue and Taxation Committee. For that, you can credit Gramer’s penchant for facts and logic. — M.T.
