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Guest Columnist Brian Parsons: Return Of The White Elephant

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May 2, 2026

Return Of The White Elephant

By: Brian Parsons

It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.” – Noel Coward

Have you ever participated in a white elephant gift exchange? Often, a tradition at the Christmas holidays or similar, a white elephant gift exchange is a game in which participants bring practical joke gift items designed to elicit laughs. The exchange is about the experience and not the gifts.

Here’s how it works: participants draw numbers in the order of participation. When it is the first person’s turn to draw a present from the pile, they get to unwrap it, and everyone laughs at their expense as they display their newly won Trump Chia Pet. Grow your own tremendous plant! When the next person’s turn comes, they can either steal the Trump Chia Pet or open a new gift from the pile. The cycle continues until everyone has a white elephant gift. In the end, nobody knew what they were getting, and nobody left with anything good.

Here in Bannock County, the white elephant is making the rounds again. Unfortunately, this white elephant also doesn’t end with anything good. It ends with No Kings rallies, ICE protests, selective war support, abortion on demand, gender transitions for minors, and probably a medical marijuana dispensary on every corner. This is a different white elephant.

In 2022, the Bingham and Bannock County Republican Parties didn’t get their way at the GOP State Convention. In protest and to deny the convention a quorum, they walked out, leaving the voters of Bannock County unrepresented at the state level. Grassroots Bannock County Republicans took notice and organized to remove the obstructionists from office. They were successful.

Since that time, the reorganized Bannock GOP has given the party back to the people. They have been present. They have fixed infrastructure, the website, and created a compliant donation platform. They have fundraised and paid their annual dues years in advance. They have refrained from playing favorites by endorsing candidates over others. All candidates have had access to an elections center, had their campaign literature stuffed on their behalf, signs and literature distributed, and even had Republican Central Committee members make phone calls on their behalf.

The most important feat of the reorganized Bannock GOP is its presence, and the Idaho Republican Party has taken notice. This is why they were asked to host the 2025 GOP Summer Meeting in Pocatello. This is why District 29 Chair John Crowder was awarded the Most Outstanding Chair Award by the Idaho GOP. This is why disgruntled malcontents continue to fight to get their club back.

Having lost the keys to the kingdom in 2022, a select cadre of the good old boys joined their wallets and efforts in an attempt to wrestle control of the party back from the people in 2024. I wrote about it then. Unable to find enough Republicans to field a slate of conservatives, they’ve recruited and dipped into the Democratic Party to round out their rosters. Thus, the birth of the white elephant.

The white elephant was the moniker adopted by Trent Clark and Tom Luna when their Gem State Conservatives mated with Christa Hazel’s North Idaho Republicans of Coeur d’Alene. Christa is a well-known spokesperson for Women for Biden and a Kamala Harris devotee. The white elephant moniker prompted the Idaho GOP to issue cease-and-desist letters over its use of the elephant trademark. The white elephant perfectly explains why East Idaho’s elected representatives refuse to sign the Integrity in Affiliation pledge of the Idaho GOP, which aligns at 95% with the national platform.

Most recently, Bannock residents may have noticed the white elephant showing up on Precinct Committeeman signs around town. It is an interesting choice, given the connotations of a joke played on unwitting participants. In this case, many of the unwitting are both candidates and voters. A recent list of white elephant candidates is circulating, claiming to represent a common-sense slate.  Some unfortunate inclusions have seen themselves roped in with active “No Kings” and anti-ICE voices. There is nothing either Republican or common sense about liberals larping as conservatives.

Unfortunately, it appears that several detrimental ballot initiatives will have met the signature threshold required to appear on the November ballot this year. Republicans will once again be tasked with standing in the gap for children and family-first values. One initiative in particular would codify abortion on demand up through viability and potentially permit medical gender transitions for minors.  Republicans will need all hands on deck.  Don’t expect a white elephant to ride with you into battle.

Brian Parsons is a locally and nationally published columnist and the current vice chair of the Bannock County Republican Party. He’s a proud husband and father, saved by Grace, and an unabashed paleoconservative. You can follow him at WithdrawConsent.org or find his opinion columns at the American Thinker, in the Idaho State Journal or in other regional publications.

Guest Columnist Martin Hackworth: A Modest Proposal

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May 1, 2026

A Modest Proposal
Tired of partisan gerrymandering and a dysfunctional House of Representatives?
Me too. I got an idea.

By: Martin Hackworth

This week, the United States Supreme Court issued a 6 – 3 decision in a Louisiana voting rights case that makes it more difficult to argue for the drawing of congressional districts based on illegal racial gerrymandering.

The case, Louisiana v. Callais, placed new limits on Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which has been used for decades to challenge how voting districts are drawn in order to ensure the adequate representation of black voters. In this decision, the Supreme Court explicitly banned the use of race to determine how congressional districts are drawn.

Justice Alito wrote for the majority, “Allowing race to play any part in government decision making represents a departure from the constitutional rule that applies in almost every other context.”

I know bupkis about constitutional law, but I approve of the court’s attitude, as expressed here and in many recent decisions, that the best way to end discrimination is to stop discriminating. This, at least to me, seems to move the court away from activism in the form of legislating via legal fiat and back toward just calling balls and strikes. I don’t see this ruling as a stretch—I see it as a correction.

Predictably, not everyone views it that way. Cliff Albright of Black Voters Matter opined, “It means that you have entire communities that can go without having representation. It is literally throwing us back to the Jim Crow era unapologetically, and that’s not exaggeration.”

This, of course, is an exaggeration.

Before I present my modest proposal, a word about the hue and cry and hysteria from the left concerning this decision. I’m a white hillbilly from Appalachia, but if I were black and living in this country in 2026, I’d be way more pissed off at those on the left than those on the right about my plight.

It’s only among leftists that you can’t walk a block without tripping over someone who insists that Black Americans cannot succeed in K-12, get into college, find a job, get a driver’s license, purchase a home, start a business or vote without some form of federal assistance. All of this despite the fact that black students are admitted to places like Harvard at rates close to four times greater than their SAT scores would indicate based on race.

That’s doting assistance from cradle to grave. If an entire group of people thought so little of my abilities, I’d be pissed. I wonder if that’s why so many more blacks than expected supported Donald Trump in the last election?

But let’s move on to the issue at hand. I’m not much of a fan of tortured gerrymandering myself. Both sides of the political spectrum support grotesque gerrymandering to protect individuals and turf. It’s one of the principal reasons that the House of Representitives is so dysfunctional.

It ain’t so! You say? OK, tell me this. When was the last year Congress fulfilled one of its most basic functions, a process that, on Capitol Hill, begins in the House, and passed a budget? Hint. It’s not in this century.

I don’t personally know anyone who thinks that the U.S. House of Representatives is anything apart from a political clown show. I submit as impartial evidence for the proposition this clip of EPA administrator Lee Zeldin using Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo (a recent SCOTUS decision relevant to the discussion at hand) to rope-a-dope Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, into embarrassing everyone in the country with blue hair.

I’m quite sure that Rosa DeLauro and her fellow progressives lack the self-awareness to see this for the takedown that it was. Black friends, Rosa DeLauro is one of the people who believe that you need a lot of help from the federal government to achieve a goal as modest as being just like her. Ponder that.

The dysfunction in the House of Representatives is complicated—but in no small part influenced by a lack of competitive seats due to grotesque levels of gerrymandering. The good news is that the 21st century may offer a remedy.

AI, all the rage these days, needs some work. There are many reasons to doubt the efficacy and politically/socially impartial nature of some of the leading AI engines. But I think the day is coming when AI will improve dramatically.

I’m not a fan of AI for many of the things that people imagine that it will be useful for. That’s a discussion for another time. But one thing I think that AI could be very useful for is solving otherwise intractable legal disputes—like the decennial process of redistricting. As imperfect as even improved AI might be, it’s probably better than allowing political parties or allegedly non-partisan panels and judges to draw boundaries.

I don’t know if I can name a single human being who I’d trust to draw political boundaries impartially 100% of the time. Redistricting might just be a task tailor-made for AI. Input the geography, demographics, and guidelines, and let AI draw the boundaries.  I think that I trust AI, with some safeguards, to manage the process better than the folks who come up with districts that look like this:

That’s it. My modest proposal.  It involves AI and politics, two of the most trustworthy things out there. What could possibly go wrong?

 

 

Associated Press and Idaho Press Club-winning columnist Martin Hackworth of Pocatello is a physicist, writer, climber, skier, motorcyclist, musician, and retired Idaho State University faculty member who now spends his time raising four kids. Follow him on X at @MartinHackworth, on Facebook at facebook.com/martin.hackworth, and on Substack at martinhackworthsubstack.com.

AG Labrador Announces $7.4 Billion Opioid Settlement with Big Pharma Giant

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(Attorney General’s Office Press Release, May 6, 2026)

BOISE, ID — Attorney General Raúl Labrador announced that a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, has become finalized and legally effective. The settlement concludes nearly a decade of work by attorneys general across the country investigating and litigating Purdue’s and the Sacklers’ role in fueling the opioid crisis.

After Purdue filed for bankruptcy in September 2019, attorneys general took a lead role in the proceedings, including negotiating a new settlement that obtained additional money from the Sacklers after the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2024 invalidated provisions of a prior agreement. Fifty-five attorneys general representing all eligible U.S. states and territories signed onto the settlement, which resolves litigation over Purdue’s and the Sacklers’ production and aggressive marketing of opioids that fueled the largest drug crisis in the country’s history.

“The Sackler family and Purdue Pharma made billions marketing opioids they knew were dangerously addictive, and Idaho families paid the price,” said Attorney General Labrador. “They knew the damage they were causing, and they did it anyway. Through this settlement, my office is recovering $24 million for Idaho, and we will keep pursuing pharmaceutical companies that profited from this crisis.”

Idaho is expected to receive $24,430,356.69 from the settlement. Funds will be distributed across three areas: 40 percent to the state for behavioral health and related services, 40 percent to cities and counties, and 20 percent to Idaho’s seven public health districts.

The settlement permanently bars the Sacklers from selling opioids in the United States and delivers funds for addiction treatment, prevention, and recovery to communities across the country over the next 15 years. Most funds will be distributed in the first three years. The Sacklers are paying more than $1.5 billion today, followed by approximately $500 million in May 2027, $500 million in May 2028, and $400 million in May 2029. Purdue is also paying approximately $900 million today.

With this settlement, Attorney General Labrador has secured more than $127 million in opioid settlement funds for Idaho since taking office in January 2023.

The settlement transfers Purdue’s manufacturing operations to Knoa Pharma LLC, overseen by a board of directors with no prior connection to Purdue. Knoa is prohibited from marketing opioids, and an independent monitor will oversee its operations to limit the risk of diversion. The settlement also requires Purdue and the Sacklers to make public more than 30 million documents related to their opioid business.

Stay Safe During National Electrical Safety Month

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(Idaho Power News Brief, May 5, 2026)

May is National Electrical Safety Month, and Idaho Power is sharing ways you can keep your home and family safe.

  • Inspect power cords and replace any that are damaged or frayed.
  • Ensure you don’t plug too many cords into one outlet, and if you have young children, place safety covers on outlets. You can also download free electrical safety coloring sheets to help teach kids about electrical safety.
  • Keep electric appliances away from water and ensure any outlets near water sources, such as bathrooms or kitchens, are GFCI protected.
  • Stay away from power lines, which are energized and dangerous. Fly kites and drones far away from power lines.
  • Check out our Community Education Guide for free safety presentations to students and adults.

Visit idahopower.com/safety for more information.

Senator Crapo: Continuing the Fight for Affordable Housing, Curbing Veterans Overdoses and Second Amendment Protections

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(U.S. Senator Mike Crapo, May 5, 2026)

Continuing the Fight for Affordable Housing

Idahoans, like fellow Americans across the country, have faced a stressful, unforgiving housing market.  Cutting unnecessary red tape to increase housing supply is one of my top priorities, and I have worked with my congressional colleagues to advance legislation to address this issue.  On March 12, 2026, the Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act by a vote of 89-10.  This bill would address overregulation contributing to excessive costs and delays, modernizing federal housing programs without generating new government spending.  As a senior member of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, I fought to include provisions that would benefit our nation’s veterans and rural communities, ensuring all Americans have increased access to affordable housing.

Additionally, I joined Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) in introducing the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Modernization Act of 2026 (NAHASDA).  This bipartisan legislation would modernize federal housing programs for American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians, expanding housing assistance through 2033.  I am proud of Idaho’s rich history of Native American culture, and will continue to advocate for safe, affordable housing opportunities.

I wrote about this topic in a recent opinion piece in the Post Register, which is also accessible on my website, at www.crapo.senate.gov.  You can also read more about these bills on my website through the following links:

Curbing Veteran Overdoses with the End Veterans Overdose Act

The U.S.’s opioid epidemic has had alarming impacts on our nation’s veterans.  Unfortunately, many servicemembers have transitioned from prescription pain medications to potent synthetic opioids in order to manage their chronic conditions following their service.  This has led to increased risks of overdose within the veteran population.

In response, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire) and I are working together to combat the ongoing substance use disorder crisis among veterans.  The bipartisan End Veteran Overdose Act would remove barriers to accessing opioid reversal medications for veterans and their caregivers, ensuring equal opportunity for veterans in need of lifesaving care.

You can read more about the End Veterans Overdose Act on my website HERE.

Advocating for Second Amendment Rights

The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees Americans the right to bear arms lawfully without federal infringement.  Throughout my time in Congress, I have continuously advocated for gun owners and firearm businesses to continue purchasing and selling guns without fear of criminalization.  I am a co-sponsor of the Protecting Americans Right to Silence (PARTS) Act that would modernize the outdated definition of a suppressor to align with current technologies and practices, providing much-needed clarity for manufacturers, retailers and consumers.

Moreover, legislation such as the GRIP Act would protect American privacy and Second Amendment rights by strengthening existing federal law to ensure that federal tax dollars are not used to compile and store sensitive personal information about legal firearm purchases.

Continuing these efforts, I have joined 10 of my Senate colleagues in supporting the Federal Law Enforcement Officer Service Weapon Purchase Act.  This bill would allow active and retired federal law enforcement officers in good standing to purchase retired service weapons and firearms.  Millions of taxpayer dollars are wasted each year destroying retired federal service firearms, and I am committed to promoting common-sense firearm policy and cost saving measures.

Bannock County Assessor: Property Value Updates

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(Bannock County Press Release, May 4, 2026; Cover photo credit: Bannock County)

Bannock County Assessor Anita Hymas (Official Photo)

It’s hard to believe how quickly the year is moving—it feels like we just started, and now May is already here. With that comes our annual Assessment Drive, when we finalize property values and prepare notices to be sent to our printer so they can be mailed by the first Monday in June.

This year, you may notice adjustments in a few key areas:

Older Manufactured Homes

We did not adjust these values last year, and recent sales continue to show that values have not declined. As a result, we are seeing increases, particularly for homes from the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. If you or someone you know owns a manufactured home, we encourage you to review the value listed on your notice. If you have questions, please contact our office as soon as you receive your notice—or before June 22, 2026.

Rural Residential Areas

In some rural parts of the county, land values have been adjusted to reflect current market trends. We continue to keep values at the lower end of the 90%–110% range required by the State Tax Commission.

Other Factors That May Affect Property Values

You may also see changes to your property value for several other reasons:

  • Your property was included in our annual review cycle. We appraise one-fifth of the county each year and are currently in year four of our five-year plan.
  • Improvements or additions to your property—such as a barn, shop, or other structures—can increase value.
  • If you built a new home in 2025, the full value will appear on your 2026 notice.

Commercial Properties

Commercial properties follow the same five-year review cycle. In the Pocatello/Chubbuck area, we are seeing continued growth and development, particularly along the South 5th corridor, the Northgate area, and northern Chubbuck. While this growth is a positive sign for our community, it can also influence property values in surrounding areas.

In June I will cover the process to appeal your value. Not everyone sees this newsletter so please reach out to your friends and family to help them understand the process as well.

Just a reminder that early voting is now underway for the May primary election. Early voting began on Monday the 27th and will continue through May 15. Election Day is May 19. Early voting is held at the Elections office at 141 N 6th Ave from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

We encourage everyone to take part and make their voice heard. Primary elections play an important role, as they help determine which candidates will move on to the general election.

Be sure to get out and vote!

~ Anita Hymas
Bannock County Assessor

Guest Columnist ID Representative David Leavitt: The Welcoming Creep of Communism

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May 4, 2026

The Welcoming Creep of Communism
The slow normalization of radical leftist politics in Idaho.

By: Idaho Dist. 25 Representative David Leavitt

ID State Representative David Leavitt (LD25); Photo Credit: David Leavitt

Trust is the foundation of everything we do in public life. It is what allows voters to send someone to represent them with confidence — believing that when the pressure comes, when the lines are tested, their elected officials will hold firm. That trust is not built on campaign slogans or party labels. It is built on judgment, on consistency, and on a clear understanding of who you stand with and who you do not.

What concerns me right now is not the obvious opposition. We all expect that. What concerns me is when the lines begin to blur — when the boundaries that used to be clear start to fade — and when the people who were sent to stand guard instead begin opening the door.

There is an organization called Indivisible. It is not a neutral civic group. It is a coordinated progressive network, organized at the national level, with a clear mission to influence policy and elections at the local level. This is an organization that, in their own words, declared it critical to defund the police and directed their members to donate to Black Lives Matter organizations during the 2020 BLM riots. This is the same organization that coordinated the No Kings rallies across the country, reportedly funded in part by George Soros’s Open Society Foundations.

And this is the organization that just promoted a candidate event in Twin Falls, sixteen days before a Republican primary.

The issue is not their existence. The issue is what happens when they stop operating on the outside and are instead welcomed in.

In the summer of 2025, I received an invitation from Indivisible Twin Falls County Idaho to participate in what they called a Speed Representing event — framed as a civic gathering for community members to meet their elected officials. Open dialogue. Nothing alarming on the surface.

It was signed: In solidarity.

That is not neutral civic language. That is the language of a movement with a direction. Here is exactly what I wrote back:

Dear Ms. Muth,

Thank you for the invitation to participate in your upcoming event. After reviewing the purpose and platform of Indivisible, I must respectfully but firmly decline. Indivisible is not a neutral civic organization. It is openly partisan and activist in nature — formed to resist conservative policies, reshape American institutions, and advance a progressive political agenda that I believe stands in direct conflict with the foundational principles of our constitutional republic. As a state legislator, I take seriously my oath to defend individual liberty, limited government, and the rule of law. These are not vague talking points — they are cornerstones of the American tradition. I cannot, in good conscience, participate in an event sponsored by an organization that actively seeks to undermine those principles. If your members wish to speak with me individually or attend one of my town halls, they are welcome to do so. But I will not lend legitimacy to a group whose goals are explicitly aligned with centralized power, ideological conformity, and a redefinition of our system of governance. Please consider this a final and clear statement of my position.

Sincerely,

Representative David J. Leavitt,
District 25, Seat B
Idaho House of Representatives

They came back anyway. A second invitation arrived with five scheduling options. Option 5 read: I will not be participating. They made my refusal a checkbox on a form.

That persistence is not coincidence. It is strategy. Every elected official who shows up — even once — gives them what they need. A face. A photo. An implicit signal to voters that this organization belongs in our political landscape. The goal was never conversation. The goal was legitimacy. I was not willing to provide it.

To understand why that line matters, you have to understand what we are actually dealing with.

Progressivism, socialism, and communism are not separate destinations. They are the same destination reached at different speeds. Communism arrives by force. Socialism arrives through legislation. Progressivism arrives through culture — quietly, gradually, and with a smile. All three rest on the same premise: that the collective supersedes the individual and that the state is the proper mechanism for achieving social outcomes.

That premise is incompatible with a constitutional republic, where rights are inherent, pre-political, and cannot be voted away. You cannot have both frameworks simultaneously. Every step down the progressive road moves the needle away from one and toward the other — whether anyone admits it or not.

Antonio Gramsci, an Italian Marxist writing in the 1930s, recognized that violent revolution would not work in Western democracies. His solution was infiltration — embed the ideology inside institutions, schools, media, and local government, reshape the culture from within, and the politics follow without a fight. He called it the long march through the institutions.

What you are watching in Twin Falls right now is that march.

I spent twelve years in uniform. The most important lesson I learned had nothing to do with tactics. It came from watching what happens when you challenge power.

I watched fellow soldiers — good people doing the right thing — mistreated by leadership that cared more about protecting its own position than the mission or the people carrying it out. When those soldiers pushed back, leadership did not engage their concerns. It came for them. Their reputations. Their records. Their standing.

Power does not argue with a threat. It mobilizes to remove one.

When my colleagues and I won our seats and began voting to actually limit government spending, the response was not debate. It was a coordinated effort, backed by significant money from the highest levels of state government, to remove us. The Governor has poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into PACs targeting our seats. The teacher’s union launched a campaign to use the Republican primary against us. A school board chairman held a mandatory meeting on taxpayer time and money to tell school employees we were the enemy — a move the Idaho Attorney General found violated the Public Integrity in Elections Act.

The targeting is the confirmation. When power spends that much to remove you, it is because you were threatening something real.

Now look at what that same network has assembled for this primary. And this time, you do not have to take my word for it. The evidence is on their own Facebook page.

On April 11, 2026, Indivisible Twin Falls County Idaho posted professional photos from their Speed Representing event — individual photos of each candidate who showed up, named by office, documented for the public record. Cherie Vollmer. Alex Caval. Casey Swensen. Grayson Stone. Scott Tverdy. Kristina Glascock. Chance Requa. Each one photographed at an Indivisible event. Each one’s participation documented and promoted by a progressive organizing network that called for defunding the police, directed members to donate to Black Lives Matter organizations during the 2020 riots, and sponsoring the No Kings rallies.

Then Indivisible posted one more photo from that night. Three candidates who declined to attend — myself included — with NO SHOW stamped across our faces in red.

They drew the line themselves. They documented who was willing to walk into that room and who was not. They celebrated the ones who came and publicly shamed the ones who refused. That is not civic engagement. That is a political operation — and they posted the evidence themselves.

From Indivisible Twin Falls County Idaho’s public Facebook page — posted April 11, 2026:

It did not stop there. Indivisible Twin Falls then promoted a Community Meet and Greet on their Facebook page, co-hosted with the Hispanic Political Education Committee and Vota Idaho, featuring those same candidates for Districts 24 and 25. The Hispanic Political Education Committee and Vota Idaho are endorsing them. Indivisible is amplifying it. Different organizations. Same direction. Same candidates.

From Indivisible Twin Falls County Idaho’s public Facebook page — the May 6 promotion:

Look at what those candidates share in common beyond their party registration. They are products of the government class — city councils, county commissions, state agencies, industries directly tied to government spending and policy. They are not outsiders challenging the system. They are the system, seeking to protect itself from the people who came to limit it.

And they know that in Idaho, you cannot win without an R next to your name. So the strategy is not to abandon the Republican Party. It is to use it. Wear the label. Accept the progressive organizational support. Win the primary. And the conservative voters who pulled that lever never know what they actually voted for.

So ask yourself a simple question. If Indivisible — the defund the police, BLM-supporting, Soros-funded protest machine — is documenting your candidate’s attendance at their events and promoting their path to victory, what exactly are they expecting to get in return?

They are not trying to beat the Republican Party. They are trying to become it — just long enough to win.

Birds of a feather flock together. Not as a saying — as a description of observable reality. Where someone chooses to spend their time, who they stand beside, which rooms they walk into willingly — that tells you more about them than anything they will ever say at a campaign forum.

Not what they say. What they do.

I knew my answer before the first invitation arrived. That is what it means to have a fixed sense of purpose — a clear, non-negotiable understanding of what you stand for and who you stand with. The line is drawn before you are ever asked to cross it.

Here is what I am asking of you. Before you accept a candidate at face value, ask the next question. Who is hosting their events? Who is promoting them? Who benefits from their election? Do not take my word for it — go look. The Facebook posts are public. The photos are real. The organizations are documented. The Attorney General’s finding is on record. None of this is hidden. It is simply counting on you not to notice.

The welcoming creep does not announce itself. It shows up as a conversation, a handshake, a community meet and greet. It feels harmless. It feels like nothing has really changed.

But something has.

Hold every candidate who asks for your vote to the standard of principle over convenience. Watch which invitations they accept and which ones they decline. Because that choice — made quietly, before anyone is watching — tells you exactly who they are.

Because once something is normalized, it is already halfway won.

And once you see it, you cannot unsee it.

Guest Columnist Sen. Jim Risch: Keeping Idaho’s Local Gems Strong

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May 4, 2026

Keeping Idaho’s Local Gems Strong

By: U.S. Senator Jim Risch

National Small Business Week is a celebration of something we in Idaho know all too well: small businesses aren’t just part of our state’s economy; they are the economy.

We are home to more than 207,000 small businesses, which make up over 99% of all Gem State companies and employ hundreds of thousands of hardworking Idahoans.

Supporting small businesses has been a top priority of mine throughout my time in public service. As a rancher and small business owner, I know firsthand the challenges local entrepreneurs face. These experiences have shaped my work in Washington, D.C., particularly through my service as a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

During my chairmanship and time on the committee, I have advanced dozens of reforms that expand opportunities for the Main Street businesses that power the Gem State. I’ve introduced legislation to foster economic investment in emerging businesses, help them pursue federal contracts, and protect their access to the capital they need to succeed.

Last year, I worked alongside my Senate colleagues to pass the Working Families Tax Cuts that delivered important victories for Idahoans and small businesses.

Among its provisions, the Working Families Tax Cuts Act made permanent the 20% tax deduction for Idaho’s more than 41,000 pass-through businesses, allowing them to reinvest more in their operations and workforce. The Act, now law, also increased entrepreneurs’ ability to conduct research and development, rolled back costly federal regulations, and modernized critical safety net programs for our farmers and ranchers.

As I’ve traveled across Idaho, I’ve stopped at countless local restaurants, mom-and-pop shops, and rural businesses that are the epicenter of their communities. Those visits inspired two major initiatives: my Small Business of the Month program and Support Local Gems. Both efforts encourage Idahoans to shop locally, boost our economy, and recognize the small businesses that make Idaho, Idaho.

Each Main Street storefront, local employer, and entrepreneur forms the backbone of Idaho’s economy and our quality of life. They are our friends and neighbors, provide invaluable goods and services, and epitomize what makes our state great. As we celebrate National Small Business Week, I encourage everyone to show their support for these dedicated Idahoans who make our state and communities thrive.

I am honored to fight for them and you in Washington, D.C., and advance policies that keep Idaho the best state to live, work, and raise a family.

U.S. Senator Jim Risch represents the people of Idaho in Congress.

U.S. Proposes UN Security Council Resolution to Defend Freedom of Navigation, Secure Strait of Hormuz

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(U.S. State Department Press Statement, May 5, 2026)

The Islamic Republic of Iran continues to hold the world’s economy hostage with its efforts to close the Strait of Hormuz, threats to attack ships in the Strait, laying of sea mines that pose a danger to shipping, and attempts to charge tolls for the world’s most important waterway.

At President Trump’s direction, the United States, alongside Bahrain and our Gulf partners, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Qatar, drafted a UN Security Council Resolution to defend freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

The draft resolution requires Iran to cease attacks, mining, and tolling. It demands that Iran disclose the number and location of the sea mines it has laid and cooperate with efforts to remove them, while also supporting the establishment of a humanitarian corridor.

The United States looks forward to this resolution being voted on in the coming days and to receiving support from Security Council members and a broad base of co-sponsors.

Shoshone Falls Flows will Rise This Week

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(Idaho Power News Brief, May 5, 2026)

Flows over Shoshone Falls will ramp up Wednesday, opening a brief window for spectators to enjoy one of Idaho’s most popular scenic attractions.

On Tuesday, about 400 cubic feet per second (cfs) of water was flowing over the falls, which are located near the city of Twin Falls. That volume will increase to about 3,700 cfs by Thursday afternoon. The higher flows are expected to last until the week of May 18 when they will drop again.

The additional flow comes from water released each spring by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from reservoirs on the Upper Snake River to help young salmon and steelhead migrate downstream through the lower Snake and Columbia rivers to the Pacific Ocean.

The additional water is expected to be released at Milner Dam east of Twin Falls on Wednesday and will increase over the next couple of days to the target flow rate.

Idaho Power’s Shoshone Falls Power Plant has a capacity of 14,729 kilowatts — enough to power more than 11,000 homes. The original plant was built in 1907, becoming the first power plant in the Magic Valley.

Idaho Power does not control the timing or the amount of federal water releases. The company provides a minimum scenic flow of 300 cfs over the falls during the summer as long as flows from upstream reach that level.