Jake Putnam took this very cool photo yesterday of the Idaho state capitol in our wintry weather; he titled it "Statehouse winter." After two and a half years of renovation, the capitol reopens to the public next Saturday, Jan. 9th, after a 30-minute rededication ceremony…
Independent gubernatorial candidate Jana Kemp says she's now collected more than 1,100 verified signatures on her petition for candidacy, and she's scheduled a press conference for Tuesday, Jan. 5th in Nampa to launch her campaign. It'll be at 2 p.m. at the Nampa Civic Center.…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi decrying the health care reform bills passed by both houses of Congress, along with the "deal making, arm twisting and the ends-justifying-the-means attitude that we saw…
Former Idaho Transportation Director Pam Lowe, whose wrongful-termination lawsuit against the state is now pending in federal court, filed an amended claim today adding an additional "claim for relief" to her case, which already charged sex discrimination, political pressure, due process violations and more: That…
Today I complete a full week of unpaid furlough, my second this year. These are difficult times in the newspaper business, and like everyone at my paper, I'm doing my part (we also took 7 percent pay cuts this year). It's been an interesting week.…
Gov. Butch Otter, a guest co-host on KBOI talk radio this afternoon, was asked by a caller what he thinks of the candidates in the 1st Congressional District GOP primary race. Otter briefly praised both Vaughn Ward and Raul Labrador, and said, "The Republican Party's…
GOP gubernatorial candidate Rex Rammell has issued a press release entitled "The Constitution will hang by a thread," explaining his latest campaign tactic, in which he's inviting men who are elders in the LDS church to meet with him to discuss prophecy in regard to…
The Treasure Valley shimmered under a winter sunrise this morning, as seen here from Bogus Basin Road. But despite today's sunny skies, a cold snap is on the way. The wind chill is expected to drop to zero overnight tonight, according to the National Weather…
Certainly, it's not good economic news that Idaho's unemployment is breaking more and more records. Last week, the $16.2 million in unemployment insurance benefits paid by the state broke the previous weekly record, which was set the first week of April, and the year-to-date figure…
Here's how Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keith Allred responded, in a recent interview, to a question about whether his run on a partisan ticket will destroy The Common Interest, the nonpartisan citizen advocacy organization he's worked for five years to build:"If I run and win, I…
Perhaps the oddest thing about Keith Allred, the newly announced Democratic candidate for governor of Idaho, is that he's not a Democrat. He's not a Republican either. Instead, the 45-year-old former Harvard professor and expert mediator is a passionate advocate for a grand experiment in…
The Idaho Republican Party put out a press release today headed "Allred deceives public," saying that when it tried to file an IRS complaint against The Common Interest over founder Keith Allred's email to members informing them he was running for governor, it could find…
Idaho's overall tax burden, per capita, is the sixth-lowest in the country and the lowest among western states, the Idaho Tax Commission says. That's the result of its latest tax burden study, which showed significant impact from the 2006 legislation that lowered Idaho's property tax,…
In his letter describing why he's co-chairing Keith Allred's Democratic gubernatorial campaign, former GOP state Sen. Laird Noh writes, "I am a Republican rancher with nothing bad to say about Butch Otter." Citing his longtime Republican credentials, he asks, "Why would a person like me…
Keith Allred formally announced his candidacy for governor as a Democrat this morning, at a rally in the Twin Falls High School gym, the same place he gave his first speech as a sixth-grader and where he spoke often when he was the school's student…
In response to the Idaho Republican Party's announcement that it plans to file a complaint with the IRS over Keith Allred's letter to The Common Interest members telling them he was running for governor, Common Interest board member Marguerite McLaughlin of Orofino says the communication…
The Idaho Republican Party has put out a news release saying it plans to file a complaint with the IRS against Keith Allred for the Dec. 10 letter he emailed out to members of his citizen advocacy group, The Common Interest, informing them that he…
Associated Press reporter Rebecca Boone has filed a full report on the lawsuit that Syringa Networks filed against the state of Idaho today, charging that a multimillion-dollar broadband contract for the Idaho Education Network was awarded to Qwest, even though that firm didn't have the…
It's been a long wait for Boise skiers, with Bogus Basin not yet open even as the holiday season approaches. But now, thanks to the current storm, comes the good news: The local non-profit ski resort will open for the season on Thursday. According to…
Here's a news item from the AP: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Syringa Networks is suing the state, saying the Idaho Department of Administration illegally awarded a lucrative Idaho Education Network contract to Qwest even though Qwest didn't have the lowest bid. In the lawsuit filed…
Fired ITD Director Pam Lowe's wrongful-termination lawsuit against the state is being removed to federal court, as a result of a move by the state of Idaho today. The state's appointed special deputy attorney general for the case, attorney B. Newal Squyres of the firm…
CQ Politics writer Greg Giroux quotes former Idaho Democratic congressional candidate Larry Grant describing GOP 1st Congressional District hopeful Vaughn Ward as "a Sarah Palin Republican" and rival Raul Labrador as "a Bill Sali Republican," and adding, "The moderate Republicans ... won't run because they…
Idaho's Commission for Libraries has been selected by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as one of 13 state library agencies that the foundation will help apply for federal broadband stimulus grants, with the aim of bringing high-speed Internet access for the public to all…
Keith Allred, the founder of The Common Interest who's decided to run for governor as a Democrat, will announce his candidacy on Thursday at 11 a.m. in the gym at Twin Falls High School, the place where he gave his first speech when he was…
Pete Cenarrusa, Idaho's longest-serving elected official, is turning 92 and has released his memoirs, "Bizkaia to Boise: The Memoirs of Pete T. Cenarrusa." The longtime Idaho secretary of state and former lawmaker and speaker of the House will hold a book signing on Wednesday, from…
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