Lobbyist Sees Fertile Ground In Statehouse

It’s not too hard to tell that there are a lot of farmers in the Idaho Legislature.

When a lobbyist was telling a legislative committee about ski resorts’ investments into new equipment, he used this analogy:

“It’s like putting fertilizer on dryland alfalfa.”

(The point was that the investment paid off only if the weather cooperated.)

Around the large table, the lawmakers all nodded their heads.

The year that was

Gov. Phil Batt didn’t stop to correct himself during his State of the State address when he said, “Perhaps the most far-reaching change in 1966 will be a revolution in the relationship between state and federal governments.”

1966? That’s the year Batt was a freshman state representative, running for his first term in the state Senate. It’s the year he started his hops-growing project in Bonners Ferry with Coors beer. It’s the year race riots swept Los Angeles, Cleveland and Chicago, President Lyndon Johnson visited Vietnam and Red China tested a nuclear bomb.

But it’s not this year.

Just one more puff

The governor’s speech was at least 45 minutes long, and he acknowledged that was a long time to sit and listen. Periodically during his talk, Batt turned to Attorney General Al Lance and House Speaker Mike Simpson and needled them about their need to slip outside for a smoke break. Both are notorious puffers.

The learning curve

U.S. Rep. Helen Chenoweth’s misunderstanding with Newt Gingrich - he canceled his fund-raising appearance for her to punish her for a vote, but she thought it was because he was stuck in the snow and budget talks - isn’t the first time she’s missed details of how things work in Congress. “In this last year, it’s been a straight-up learning curve,” she said last week.

“They had me speaking on the floor of the House the very first day we were in session.

“There were days when in committee, I didn’t understand the process or the protocol,” she said. But she’d “wade into” something, drawing “snickers from the Democrats.”

“I’d wish I could crawl under the table,” the Idaho Republican said.

“But,” she added philosophically, “that’s the way you learn.”

Call of the road

Randy Stapilus has been a fixture on the Idaho political scene for two decades, reporting and analyzing for newspapers around the state and most recently writing and publishing books and newsletters including the popular reference guide, the Idaho Political Almanac.

But now Stapilus, who just turned 40, and longtime partner, Linda Watkins, are heading out on the road for a sojourn expected to last a couple of years. “We’ll probably hit most or all of the 50 states,” Stapilus said.

He’ll continue to publish one of his national newsletters from the road, thanks to a computer and Internet access. He and Watkins will depart in early February.

Idahoans can keep up on their adventures via his Ridenbaugh Press home page on the Internet, at http:/ /www.hway.com/ridenb/.

Don’t need no numbers

Rep. Jim Stoicheff, the House Democratic leader from Sandpoint, isn’t bothered too much by his party’s tiny caucus: Just 13 of the 70 members of the House are Democrats. “I’ve been telling all my Republican friends, if we lose about five more Democrats, we’ll just about be at ‘quality parity,”’ he chuckles.

, DataTimes MEMO: North-South Notes runs every other Sunday. To reach Betsy Z. Russell, call 336- 2854, fax to 336-0021 or e-mail to bzrussell@rmci.net