SANDPOINT â Avery Bocksch went 3-for-3 with a double to pace the Sandpoint baseball team, which scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to topple Moscow, 6-4, on Wednesday and take the Class 4A district championship series and advance to the state tournament. More Headlines
MALDEN â At least 15 building permits have been issued for permanent dwellings in Malden since a Labor Day fire destroyed most of the residences in this rural northern Whitman County town. The new houses will be a mix of stick-built structures, modular homes and shops with living spaces, Malden Mayor Dan Harwood said. More Headlines
SpokaneFāVS
Idaho State Capital
It is a race to the bottom and just now Idaho is winning.
In ancient times, Idaho politics were a model of bipartisan, western-style independence. Republicans and Democrats shared the state, not always in agreement, of course, but rather both modeling effective governance. Remember, Idaho once had a respected, progressive governor in Cecil Andrus, and a respected, independent U.S. Senator in Frank Church.
Despite that ancient history, Idaho in the ‘80s and ‘90s and into the early years of this century became an “end-of-the-road” destination, the northern, western state where all roads metaphorically end, collecting the wackaloons and nutcases and worse who were fleeing other parts of the country in search of religious fundamentalism and their version of racial purity.
A note from the editor
Sharon Fisher
You know, when we scheduled a Focus section on government for this week, the idea was that it would be a great time to summarize the session, since of course by now the Legislature would have adjourned sine die.
LOL. As if.
That said, there was still plenty to write about, ranging from our intrepid reporter Catie Clark’s Governor’s extraordinary second appearance direct to Idaho voters flanked by all the living Idaho former governors (and I bet Cecil Andrus would have been there if we could) explaining why he was vetoing the two bills the Legislature had passed that were intended to limit governors’ emergency powers. (Catie also wrote about what the two bills were and how they were different.)
Two bills before the state Legislature impose new costs and bureaucracies without reducing emissions all that much.
by
In this June 1, 2016, file photo, piles of wood chips sit near a paper mill in Tacoma, Wash. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Reversing human-driven carbon emissions is the environmental challenge of our time. There’s no doubt about that, at least in my mind and in many others. But the key political challenge in a democracy like ours is convincing a meaningful majority of voters to come along with us. Anything less is unsustainable.
Yet, Gov. Jay Inslee has failed to bring Washington voters along on his attempts to reduce energy-related carbon emissions. If the governor urged people to support new carbon taxes and higher gas prices, it’s unlikely constituents would flood their legislators inboxes. A recent Crosscut/Elway poll found support and opposition for the governor’s cap-and-trade proposal nearly tied within the margin of error. Only 4% of those polle