House Minority Leader John Rusche, D-Lewiston, pictured, has filed a formal request for the Speaker of the House to convene an ethics committee to look into two issues regarding Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol: Hart’s invoking of legislative privilege from civil process in his personal tax disputes over income taxes with the IRS and the Idaho State Tax Commission; and Hart’s service on the House Revenue & Taxation Committee while pressing his own case in a state tax appeal that Idaho’s income tax is unconstitutional. “Does he have a conflict, if he’s trying to set aside tax law through his personal suit while at the same time he’s sitting on the committee making tax law for everybody?” Rusche asked. He also questioned whether “by invoking the privilege in the manner he has, is that abusing the privilege of a legislator”/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. More here.

Question: Are you comfortable that an ethics panel of 4 R's & 3 D's will eschew politics in favor of truth as they look into Hart's tax woes?