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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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DFO: Jeff Ward Deserves A Hat Tip

Larry Spencer might not have much good to say about Jeff Ward of the Reagan Republicans this morning. But I tip my hat to Ward for saving the Kootenai County Republicans from themselves last night. By voting 31-30 to disinvite Richard Mack to speak at the Lincoln Day Dinner March 24, the Republicans avoided the stigma of officially associating themselves with a controversial figure on the right fringe of the political spectrum. It's one thing for the local Tea Party to invite an individual lionized by the militia and Patriot movements in this country. But quite another for the official local Republican Party to do so. The appearance of Mack as a keynote speaker would color how outsiders view the local Republicans and Kootenai County. The move to disinvite Mack may be the local Republicans first step back from the right fringe. The next step would be for the local Republicans to pick true conservatives rather Constitutionalists and Libertarians in the GOP primary election this spring -- DFO.



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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