Bedke denies improper conversation with former committee secretary

Idaho House Speaker Scott Bedke accused a former secretary of stalking him three years ago as his wife underwent cancer treatment and then attempting to extort money from him by concocting a story the two had an affair.

The Idaho Attorney General’s office referred the matter to the Idaho State Police for investigation, but no charges were filed.

The story caught fire last week after the far-right “ Redoubt News ” published an article that was then distributed online by Gem State Patriot News.

“I didn’t want to pursue this person civilly,” Bedke said Monday. “To the extent this all dropped and went away and everyone went on with their lives, that was OK to me.”

Now, the woman is claiming she overheard Bedke and a governor’s office employee make lewd comments in the audience during a 2012 committee hearing when she was the secretary of the House State Affairs Committee/Betsy Russell, SR. More here.