March 28, 2019

Religious Persecution is Never Acceptable

Few things are more personal than our religious beliefs. So, yesterday’s debate and vote on HR6, referred to as the Christian persecution resolution, hit home in a way I hadn’t anticipated. Everyone suffering religious persecution is worthy of defense, and I said as much during the floor debate. Below, I share my full statement, and you can watch the complete …

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March 24, 2019

A Vote on Medicaid

It’s been a big week in Boise. In the Senate, they focused on the voter initiative process. In the House, it was Medicaid. Both of these issues sucked up a lot of oxygen and raised a lot of questions. As you probably know by this point, I voted “no” against the Medicaid bill that came to the House. Below you’ll …

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March 7, 2019

When a Bill Dies

On Monday, I had a bill held in committee. When a bill gets held that means it’s done for the session. But in this case, my bill dying in committee isn’t a bad thing. A Kind of Boring Bill Let me provide a little background. The bill dealt with an issue that’s probably not top of mind: legal public notices. …

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March 4, 2019

In Memorial: Setting Precedent

Idaho Wilderness Memorial

It’s been a busy few weeks. We’re finalizing budgets and hitting bill deadlines. So, I haven’t had a chance to send an update.  But I wanted to make sure I touched base today because of a vote I cast on Monday. It didn’t involve a bill, but a joint memorial, HJM 8. We introduce joint memorials when we petition another …

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February 7, 2019

Budget Decisions Under a Microscope

Boise Capitol

Yesterday, I sat through one of the most intense budget hearings of the session. Over the last few months, there’s been a lot of focus on education and healthcare in Idaho. But Wednesday morning (you can download video from the hearing) I got a deep dive into our Department of Corrections. Director Josh Tewalt’s opening remarks were startling. Over 77% of …

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February 2, 2019

Making Time to Serve You

Buy Idaho Day

When I started to write this week’s newsletter, I was stumped. How do you shove a full week of stuff into single email? I thought it might help to take a look at an average day. Most days start at 7 a.m. with meetings of some sort. Most days end with a reception or dinner that goes until 8:30 or …

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