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Eye On Boise archive for Oct. 2006

TUESDAY, OCT. 31, 2006

Two felony charges of misuse of public money

The criminal complaint unsealed today in the University Place case charges former UI financial vice president Jerry Wallace with two counts of misuse of public money by officers, a felony. The complaint charged that Wallace falsified accounts and loaned or appropriated UI money “on behalf…

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Uh, whose idea was this anyway?

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a Republican who may run for president in 2008 and would become the first LDS president if elected, stopped off in Boise this morning for a rally for Republican candidate for governor Butch Otter. Romney gave a stirring, patriotic talk to…

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MONDAY, OCT. 30, 2006

Casey overcomes misgivings, endorses Luna

Retired Coeur d’Alene High School principal Steve Casey, who lost to businessman Tom Luna in the GOP primary election for school superintendent in May, endorsed Luna today despite earlier expressing misgivings about Luna’s qualifications for the job. “We did have some spirited debates along the…

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Who made that claim about me? Oh, it was me...

Apparently when congressional candidate Bill Sali made that reference to people seemingly claiming he has a position on Proposition 2 when he maintains he doesn’t (an interesting boast), those claims he was referring to came from his own campaign. “No matter what anyone else claims,…

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Part 2: Where they stand on education

Education is the single largest piece of Idaho’s state budget, and the Idaho Constitution makes it a top priority for the state. Yet Idaho ranks near the bottom of states in per-pupil expenditures for schools, and last winter, the state’s Supreme Court declared the system…

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SUNDAY, OCT. 29, 2006

Debate goes on without Otter

Ignoring the elephant in the room – or, more accurately, the elephant NOT in the room – two candidates for governor focused on issues as they faced off in the League of Women Voters-Idaho Press Club debate on Idaho Public TV on Sunday night. Democrat…

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FRIDAY, OCT. 27, 2006

Cheney's visit not a fundraiser this time

It turns out that Vice President Dick Cheney’s second campaign visit to Idaho in three months will be different from the first – it won’t be a fundraiser, and it won’t be for any particular candidate. Instead, Cheney will fly briefly into the Coeur d’Alene…

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WEDNESDAY, OCT. 25, 2006

Debate: Segregation, same-sex marriage and schools

The two candidates for Idaho superintendent of schools debated some hot topics during their live debate tonight on Idaho Public Television. Among the highlights: Republican Tom Luna called for separate charter elementary schools for children who are struggling to learn English. “In my district in…

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Otter won't release his own polls

Republican candidate for governor Butch Otter won’t release his own campaign polls, but he says they differ from Democratic opponent Jerry Brady’s newly released poll showing Brady taking the lead in the race. “The numbers are different, and we feel very confident that on Election…

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TUESDAY, OCT. 24, 2006

SUNDAY, OCT. 22, 2006

Saturday surprise makes it three

Having checked the FEC independent expenditure reports daily for the past week, I was darn surprised to see a new anti-Larry Grant TV ad yesterday – this one sponsored by the Club for Growth PAC. That group hadn’t reported any spending against Grant. But on…

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THURSDAY, OCT. 19, 2006

Idaho attorneys raise concerns about HJR 2

Forty-one attorneys from throughout the state have signed a statement opposing HJR 2, the constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, civil unions or domestic partnerships in Idaho. Among the concerns cited are that the measure, as written, could hamper legal protections for some battered women…

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Idaho a sign of national political trends?

Interesting story in the LA Times today suggests that Idaho’s a glaring example of national political swings that are making this a fast-changing and very interesting election season. “America does not get much more Republican than Idaho,” wrote Times reporter Janet Hook. “President Bush pulled…

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They're both ready to move against meth

Today, the Idaho Statesman newspaper endorsed Larry LaRocco for lieutenant governor, saying it liked the plan LaRocco outlined to use the lieutenant governor’s office to lead a fight against methamphetamine use and its effects throughout the state. Republican Jim Risch, the newspaper said, lists his…

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WEDNESDAY, OCT. 18, 2006

History tells story of legalized discrimination

In researching my article in today’s paper on HJR 2, the anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment that’s on the November ballot, I ran across some startling history. Here it is: The Idaho Constitution prohibited people of Asian ancestry from voting, serving as jurors or holding office…

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MONDAY, OCT. 16, 2006

Sali’s two biggest donors not fond of one another

Here’s an odd note: GOP congressional candidate Bill Sali’s biggest contributions on his latest campaign finance report were from two PACs: The Association of Trial Lawyers of America PAC (Sali is a lawyer, as is Democratic opponent Larry Grant), and the Washington, D.C.-based Freedom Project,…

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Grant campaign says 'It's not us'

Automated phone calls have gone out across the 1st Congressional District, and folks whose dinners are interrupted, when they first pick up the phone, are getting the impression the pesky, aggressive calls are coming from Larry Grant’s campaign. But they’re not – they’re from the…

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FRIDAY, OCT. 13, 2006

Of campaign donations and debts

Idaho Gov. Jim Risch has collected nearly $130,000 in campaign contributions for his run for lieutenant governor this year but has spent little of it campaigning, so he has $119,953 in campaign cash – and a $360,000 campaign debt to himself that he's carried over…

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THURSDAY, OCT. 12, 2006

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 11, 2006


'It isn't us'

The fact that the Washington Farm Bureau is a main sponsor of that state’s regulatory takings initiative has sparked rumors that the Idaho Farm Bureau has something to do with Idaho’s Proposition 2 – but the farm bureau says the rumors are false.“That rumor’s been…

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Now Butch is against it

Butch Otter was still undecided on Proposition 2 on Monday, at which time he said in a debate, “I’ve listened time and time again to both sides, and quite frankly I’m still confused because I don’t know exactly what it says.”On Tuesday morning, when I…

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TUESDAY, OCT. 10, 2006

Putting the numbers together

OK, it makes a little more sense now that Butch Otter’s campaign says he’s hit the $2 million mark since the close of the last campaign finance filing period on Sept. 30. It’s not that Otter has made up the entire half-million-dollar difference between the…

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