Idaho's RINO herd thins out yet again
Marty Trillhaase
May 29, 2010
Lewiston Morning Tribune
In 1992, Idaho Republicans were tickled to have Moscow's Gary Schroeder.
Locked in a tie with Democrats for control of the Idaho state Senate, the GOP needed to pick up some seats. Schroeder helped them by defeating the latest in a long line of Latah County Democratic senators.
In fact, Schroeder was the first Republican Latah County voters sent to the Senate since 1954, when they elected Jack McBride.
Of course, Schroeder had to reflect an amalgam of the University of Idaho community and Latah County farmers. That made him more moderate than most of his fellow Republicans, whose tolerance for diversity waned as their own majorities soared.
It wasn't long before right-wing purists labeled Schroeder and his fellow centrists Republicans In Name Only.
Over time, moderates have lost ground, ceding first the doctrinaire House and then the more pragmatic Senate. Both chambers have shifted closer to the right-wing fringe.
Tuesday, it was Schroeder's turn.
Tea Party member Gresham Dale Bouma of Viola won 57 percent of the GOP primary vote. He goes on to face Democrat Dan J. Schmidt of Moscow in November.
Whether it's Republican Bouma or Democrat Schmidt who inherits Schroeder's seat, the move means one less moderate in the GOP caucus. And whether it has 28 or 27 of the Senate's 35 seats, the GOP will control that chamber.
Without Schroeder, the Senate Education Committee tilts decidedly to the right. So will the Resources and Environment Committee, which Schroeder chaired.
Nor was the Moscow Republican alone. Also sent to retirement were moderate:
Twin Falls Sen. Charles Coiner. Challenger Lee Heider won 57 percent of the vote. And because no Democrat filed for the seat, Heider has been elected.
Sen. Lee Heinrich, R-Cascade. Challenger Sheryl L. Nuxoll of Cottonwood claimed 57 percent of the GOP vote. She faces Democrat Leta Strauss of Grangeville in November.
Sen. Mike Jorgenson, R-Hayden. Republican Steve Vick of Dalton Gardens took nearly 60 percent of the vote. He, too, faces no Democratic opponent and will serve in Boise.
Added to this political stew was a pungent anti-incumbency ingredient. Even U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho - a steady, conservative vote against bank bailouts, economic stimulus and health care reform - forfeited 21 percent of the vote to a mere placeholder on the GOP ballot. All of which means one of every five voters is ready to cast a vote for change.
That anti-incumbency head wind didn't deprive Gov. C.L. (Butch) Otter of renomination, but it kept him below 55 percent while delivering undeserved tallies to such nominal challengers as former elk rancher Rex Rammell of Idaho Falls (26 percent) and Ada County Commissioner Sharon Ullman (8.4 percent).
So as the Idaho GOP rebranded itself even more firmly as the base of the Tea Partiers, the Rex Rammelites and the Ron Paulistas, moderates and pragmatic conservatives must be looking over their shoulders whenever someone suggests it's time to raise more money for Idaho schools, universities or highways.
As unlikely as such moves were before Tuesday, they're even more remote now.
At some point, this lunge to the right has to alienate the bulk of Idaho voters who say they lean toward the center and support good schools for their children. It happened once before in the 1990 election, which gave Democrats a momentary boost.
But with nearly four dozen of Idaho's 105 legislative seats safely in GOP hands because no Democratic candidate even filed to run, that change won't come this November.
For the next two years, Idahoans are stuck with the choices Republican activists made for them.
Originally posted at http://www.lmtribune.com/story/opinion/510323/
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