I'm back!

So, it's been quite some time since I've posted on here - been very busy. But, hopefully, now I'll be able to start posting regularly again!

On the election, of course, Raul Labrador beat not only Vaughn Ward in the primary, but re-took the seat for the GOP in the general election as well. While, of course, Ward was my first choice (and Ken Roberts would have been my second choice), Raul Labrador should, at the very least, vote with the conservative wing of the Republican Party, and help put a halt to Obama's left-wing social agenda (I will admit that Minnick, at least, put on a good show as a fiscal conservative - it was his SOCIAL views which made him a poor fit for Idaho).

For the Idaho races, not surprisingly, it was a clean sweep for the Republicans statewide. More locally, the GOP took a Shoshone County seat for the first time in almost 30 years, with Larry Yergler, and Shannon McMillan took a state legislative seat that had been held by the Democrats since 1996, spending only a fraction of what the heavily-PAC sponsored incumbent had spent. This should PROVE that the old saying "money wins elections" is not always true. All in all, 2010 was good for the Republican Party. Now, let's see if Obama has Clinton's skills in recovering from the mid-term defeat, or if this is a harbinger of things to come in 2012.

Another big local news item has been Phil Hart's (R-District 3) difficulties regarding not only the on-going tax issues (which is old news by now), but revelations about his taking of timber off of school enowment lands in 1994, to construct his home. Of course, the State dropped the ball on renewing the judgment the obtained against him, rendering it useful only in the event of a toilet paper shortage, but that has not stopped Eric Anderson (R-District 1) from attempting to make it fodder for an ethics complaint nonethess, in addtion to the tax issue, which was already dealt with in a prior complaint. How does an alleged wrongful act committed 10 years prior to being elected "involve legisilative duties," to use the language of the Rule? Your guess is as good as mine.

So, a lot has happened, and a lot promises to happen in the future. Hopefully, I'll be able, once again, to offer my insight on both in the coming months and years!

Been a while.

I've been rather busy lately, so I haven't had the chance to update this blog as much as I'd like.

Since last time, the big change has been the 1st District Race - as you likely know, Roberts is out, Labrador is in, and Salzburg is still hanging in there.

My opinion of Ward remains the same - I still think he's the best man for the job. However, here is my view of the challengers:

Raul Labrador: Ward has a large fundraising advantage over Labrador, who is a latecomer to the race. I still don't know an awful lot about him, yet. His career as an immigration attorney, by itself, doesn't concern me, as defending those accused of illegal activity does not make one supportive of such acts. Also, being a native Spanish speaker (he's Puerto Rican, BTW, not Mexican) in an area with many immigrants, it is only smart from a business perspective to tap into such a potential client base. That being said, his stance on immigration is a legitimate question to ask, just as with Ward (or Salzberg).

Allan Salzberg: He's not very well funded, and, realistically, will probably not win the primary (it would be interesting, though, to have an Idaho Congressman with a New York accent). However, he is a very intelligent man, and has many excellent ideas on energy independence. It would behoove the winner of the race to sit down with Dr. Salzberg, and listen carefully to what he has to say.

More to come as the race develops.