In the past few days, three Idaho governors - former Govs. Cecil Andrus and Phil Batt and current Gov. Butch Otter - have published guest opinions in the Idaho Statesman newspaper with strongly worded messages about potential changes in the nuclear waste agreement Batt famously negotiated with the feds, guaranteeing that Idaho won't become the nation's future nuke waste repository. Today, Idaho Statesman reporter Rocky Barker sorts through the charges; you can read his full report here. The upshot: Both Andrus and Batt are urging Otter to stick with the 1995 agreement, and despite possible changes outlined by current INL Director John Grossenbacher, Otter is pledging that he will.
  

Idahoans of all persuasions, political as well as religious, should congratulate their former attorney general on his call to serve as a general authority and a member of the LDS Church’s First Quorum of the Seventy. It is an honor long overdue. EchoHawk, 63, was also the 1994 Democratic nominee for governor, but lost narrowly to former Lt. Governor Phil Batt. The Wilder State Senator won 52% to 48% giving EchoHawk the distinction of being the first Native American to come close to being elected governor. EchoHawk, a Pawnee, is currently the Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. To know Larry is to like him. He’s just one of those truly fine people all too rare nowadays/Chris Carlson, Ridenbaugh Press. More here. (AP file photo: Terry EchoHawk wipes the tears away as her husband, Larry EchoHawk, concedes his bid for Idaho governor on Nov. 9, 1994, in Boise)

Question: Do you remember Larry EchoHawk?

If Republican leaders try to hijack the redistricting process, they run the risk of compromising years of “remarkable success” at the polls. That's the assessment from one of the architects of the GOP's success — Phil Batt, a former governor, lieutenant governor, legislator and state Republican chairman. Batt submitted a guest opinion today, criticizing House Speaker Lawerence Denney and GOP Chairman Norm Semanko for trying to fire redistricting commissioners Dolores Crow and Randy Hansen. Writes Batt: “Our party leaders want to sully the reapportionment process for more political gain. I guess they want 100 percent Republicans of their own variety (Dolores and I probably don’t qualify)/Dan Popkey, Idaho Statesman. More here. (AP file photo of Phil Batt)

DFO: And you wonder why I continue to consider Phil Batt the most effective governor of my 30 years in North Idaho? I finally figured out what kind of Republican I am. I am a Phil Batt Republican — one who respects fair play and common sense over the hardline zealotry of those now in charge of the Idaho GOP.

Question: Is former Gov. Phil Batt right? Will continued heavy-handedness by Norm Semanko and GOP leaders undercut the Idaho Republican Party?

Former Gov. Cecil Andrus opened his remarks at Thursday's City Club of Boise forum distancing himself from the claim of his former press secretary, Chris Carlson, that Andrus is Idaho's “greatest governor.” Andrus and Carlson appeared to discuss Carlson's new memoir, “Cecil Andrus: Idaho's Greatest Governor,” which has prompted a good deal of debate about who is worthy of the title. Before Andrus answered the first question posed by moderator Marty Peterson, Andrus asked for time for what he called a “disclaimer.” “This is Carlson's book, not mine,” Andrus said, “and I took offense at the cover and the title, you know, 'The Greatest Governor.' What an arrogant sounding, conceited title.” Andrus, a Democrat, then suggested three contenders for the “greatest” moniker: Republicans Phil Batt and Bob Smylie and Democrat John Evans/Dan Popkey, Statesman. More here.

This will not be an easy task. The demonization of political opponents has turned into a cottage industry of hate that benefits many. And the emotions of regular people have been raised to a frenzy by the politics of fear from all sides of the debate. But Idaho can offer a model for taking on the worst elements. No matter what the motivation of the shooter, who killed six and wounded Giffords and more than a dozen others, the incident has prompted a national discussion that is long overdue. There was a time not long ago when Idaho was viewed as the center of the right-wing hate movement in the United States. But even as our politics has become more conservative, we have excised the hate-mongers and our image as a refuge for neo-Nazis. We had become a base for these people because of our tolerance and our basic “leave-us-alone” attitude. But when we as a state realized where it had taken us, we shifted gears led by leaders like Phil Batt and Bill Wassmuth/Rocky Barker, Idaho Statesman. More here. (SR file photo of Bill Wassmuth at 1997 NIC Popcorn Forum)

Question: What have you done personally as a blogger and online commenter to reduce hateful rhetoric and inflamed political commentary online?

Phil Batt wasn’t Idaho’s flashiest governor, but the onion farmer from Wilder was one of its most respected, both for his fiscal restraint and his political vision. So when Batt, now 83, stepped away from his retirement on Tuesday to endorse Vaughn Ward in an Idaho GOP congressional primary race, it resounded. “I think the governor understands the gravity of the situation, with trying to take back this seat,” said Ward, who faces Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Eagle, and three other Republicans in the GOP primary race for Idaho’s 1st Congressional District seat - which now is held by conservative Democrat Walt Minnick.

When Batt was chairman of the Idaho Republican Party, he rebuilt it from a low point at which Idaho’s state Senate was split 21-21 between Republicans and Democrats into the powerhouse it stands today, controlling every statewide elective office, three of four seats in the congressional delegation and two-thirds of the Legislature. You can read my full story here at spokesman.com.

Former Idaho Gov. Phil Batt today endorsed Vaughn Ward in the GOP primary race for the 1st District congressional seat, joining a group of GOP Canyon County elected officials in taking sides in the hotly contested Republican primary race. “I think he’s a better-qualified candidate, a deeper thinker, a harder worker,” Batt said of Ward, who’s facing off with state Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Eagle, in the primary contest. That means Ward now has two former Idaho governors - Batt and former GOP Gov. Dirk Kempthorne - on his side in the race. Batt said he’s not particularly displeased with the performance of the current 1st District congressman, conservative “Blue Dog” Democrat Walt Minnick/Betsy Russell, Eye On Boise. More here.

Question: Does Batt’s endorsement give Ward the over-the-top momentum he needs to defeat Raul Labrador in the Republican primary?