Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on today's campaign visits to southern and eastern Idaho by Mitt Romney, as Gov. Butch Otter moves to shore up support among LDS voters. BSU political scientist emeritus Jim Weatherby said, "I'm not surprised Otter brought Romney in, not for his support of a health care mandate in Massachusetts, but for his popularity in eastern Idaho." Otter is a vocal opponent of a government mandate that individuals  purchase health insurance; Idaho is suing the federal government over the issue. Romney, as governor of Massachusetts, enacted a mandate there as a key part of that state's health care reforms.

The LDS vote, Weatherby said, is "a significant factor in eastern Idaho, where Butch Otter has not run very strongly." Otter said, “Mitt and I have very similar value systems and I consider him a close friend and confidant.”