President Bush told reporters, “I’m kind of hanging loose, as they say,” before he took off this afternoon on a mountain bike ride around a loop at Tamarack Resort. The very-fit Bush reportedly outstripped Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, who couldn’t always keep up. Then, around…
President Bush’s speech today in Salt Lake City sounded themes we’re likely to hear again on Wednesday when he speaks on the war on terror at the Idaho Center in Nampa. Here’s an AP account of his remarks this morning at the Veterans of Foreign…
What with President Bush in Idaho, folks of all political stripes are getting into the act – from a “Potatoes for Peace” performance at an anti-war rally planned for Tuesday evening across from the state capitol, to an announcement from Trout Unlimited that the president…
Carl Wilgus, Idaho's tourism chief at the state Dept. of Commerce & Labor, has been named state tourism director of the year by the Travel Industry Association of America - surprising no one. Idaho's tourism growth recently picked up to pre-Sept. 11 levels, and tourism…
Following are excerpts from the transcript of today’s White House “press gaggle,” which apparently is when a gaggle of press types gather around a White House spokesperson for a few announcements and a little Q & A, or at least I’m guessing that’s what it…
The IRS, through a press spokeswoman in Seattle, declined to comment on whether the agency received Idaho Demo Chair Richard Stallings’ letter requesting an inquiry into campaign spending practices in Idaho like Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s, or to give any response. The reason? They don’t comment…
Idaho Democratic Party Chairman Richard Stallings has written a formal letter to the IRS asking whether, if a public official spends campaign money for personal expenses, that money becomes taxable income.Attached to his Aug. 12 letter were copies of Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s latest campaign finance…
L. Michael Bogert, Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s top lawyer for five years who also made an unsuccessful run for Idaho Attorney General, has been named the new administrator of the EPA’s Region 10, which includes Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska.Bogert will take over from acting regional…
About the oddest thing about President George W. Bush’s plans to visit Idaho later this month is that he hasn’t come sooner. Never, once, has this two-term Republican president visited the state with an all-Republican congressional delegation that’s given him more than two-thirds of its…
You can see Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s latest campaign finance report for yourself here; the governor, who is not running for re-election, has drawn criticism for using his campaign account, in part, for lunches out, flowers, candy, travel and gifts. But University of Virginia political scientist…
Wow, I only left town for a week – to enjoy my vacation windsurfing in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge – and when I returned, the Boise news media world had been shaken to its core. The big news: The sale of the Idaho Statesman…
Gov. Dirk Kempthorne has announced the process for picking the design for Idaho’s state quarter: Anyone in the state is invited to send in their suggestions by email to Idahoquarter@arts.idaho.gov or by snail-mail to Idaho Quarter, Idaho Commission on the Arts, P.O. Box 83720, Boise,…
If you could capture the essence of Idaho in a design not much bigger than a thumbnail, how would you do it? It’s no idle question – the time is drawing near for Idaho to start designing its official state quarter, which will be issued…
Rep. Steve Smylie, R-Boise, a schoolteacher and four-term state representative, has formed an exploratory committee to look into a possible run for state superintendent of schools. “I’ve formed a committee, had a poll done, raised a few thousand dollars,” Smylie said. “I’m months away from…
State Superintendent of Schools Marilyn Howard won’t say whether she’ll run for re-election for a third term – there’s a while yet ‘til the 2006 election – but rumor has it that she won’t. Howard is currently the only Democrat holding statewide elected office in…
He’s not an announced candidate yet, but Larry Grant of Fruitland has formed an exploratory committee to look into running for the 1st District congressional seat. Grant, a Democrat whose campaign activity in the past has usually been behind the scenes – serving as campaign…
Veteran reporter Chuck Oxley of the Associated Press is leaving AP to become the new communications director for the Idaho Democratic Party. His hire is one of several the Democrats are making with money being handed out by the national Democratic Party at the urging…
If it seems like Gov. Dirk Kempthorne is particularly receptive to the counsel of Deputy Attorney General and natural resources specialist Clive Strong, perhaps it’s because when the two began their acquaintance, Strong was the authority figure. Kempthorne, who was noting lots of University of…
According to a press release from 1st District congressional candidate Norm Semanko, an upcoming campaign kickoff barbecue in GOP fundraiser Al Henderson’s backyard is a sign that Semanko is an “upper echelon politician.”“The campaign kickoff bar-b-que hosted by Henderson is considered a premier event in…
Longtime Kootenai County Clerk Dan English, a Democrat, was a little surprised to get a phone message at his Twin Lakes home reminding him about the 4th of July parade in Coeur d’Alene – courtesy of former state Sen. Sheila Sorensen, who’s running for the…
The legislative interim committee on property tax relief is coming to a location near you – for 12 public hearings around the state in the next two months. First stop will be Sandpoint on July 27 at 1 p.m., followed by Coeur d’Alene the same…
Scrolling through pent-up email after a week’s vacation, I was surprised to come upon this missive from the Idaho Attorney General’s office: “AGREEMENT REACHED TO ELIMINATE TOBACCO.”Wow – I was only gone a week, and the lawyers found a way to make tobacco disappear? Not…
En route from Pocatello to Boise, I passed the Garden of Eden – it’s a truck stop in Eden, Idaho, who knew? And then I drove right by the road to Bliss. As the landscape gradually became drier, browner and more dominated by sagebrush near…
Members of the Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee were hearing an update on the state budget today, including the good news that Idaho’s structural deficit is shrinking and now looks likely to be virtually gone by the end of fiscal year 2007, if current trends hold.…
Rep. George Sayler, D-Coeur d’Alene, isn’t letting a little rain up north dampen his parade today: Today is his birthday, it’s the last day of school, and he’s now retired after a long teaching career. His summer, he said, “just got off to a great…
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