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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

Standing Up To GOP Loyalty Oath

In his weekly Cheers & Jeers column, Marty Trillhaase of the Lewiston Tribune Cheers ... state Sen. Dan Johnson, R-Lewiston. Alone among north central Idaho Republicans seeking election to the state Legislature, he has stood up to the GOP's loyalty oath. Republican apparatchiks insist that candidates swear fealty to the party platform, even with these warts:

  • Eliminating your right to elect your own U.S. senator, handing that power back to state legislators.
  • Throwing the economy into chaos by eliminating the Federal Reserve.
  • Empowering self-serving politicians to gerrymander their legislative and congressional districts.
  • Closing the GOP primary to anyone who is not a card-carrying Republican .
  • Violating Idaho's Constitution by allowing tax dollars to flow to private and religious schools through tax credits.

Among those who endorsed every wacky idea in that document were Rep. Thyra Stevenson, R-Lewiston, Sen. Sheryl Nuxoll, R-Cottonwood, Rep. Paul Shepherd, R-Riggin, Rep. Shannon McMillan, R-Silverton, and her primary election opponent, Shauna Hillman of Wallace. Full Cheers & Jeers column here.

Question: Anyone have a list of North Idaho Republican candidates who have signed the Idaho GOP loyalty oath?



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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