Free Republic

Big money and attack ads didn’t appear to help. Idaho’s Republican establishment mostly got its clock cleaned. I guess that it’s a combination of arrogance, a sense of entitlement, and an inability to read the room. Country clubs and service clubs aren’t a reflection of the overall electorate. Glenneda Zuiderveld was told she had to work the service club circuit. Instead, she focused on county fairs, gun shows, and pancake breakfasts. None of this year’s challengers showed up with nose rings, or Mohawk haircuts and called for legalizing dope. The change in approach from the insurgency was finally delivered. In...

Thirteen fed-up counties in liberal Oregon have voted in support of measures to start negotiations to secede from the state and join conservative Idaho. Crook County became the latest to approve the 'Greater Idaho Measure' following a vote on Tuesday. The proposal seeks to move the Oregon border 200 miles to the west, meaning that 14 counties and several partial counties would fall under Idaho state lines. Organizers behind the Greater Idaho movement say east Oregonians are being alienated by the state's progressive policies which they blame for high crime rates. They claim a move to Idaho would allow residents...

Fifteen incumbent Republican legislators, including Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, R-Boise; Sen. Scott Herndon, R-Sagle; and Rep. Julianne Young, R-Blackfoot; lost their re-election bids Tuesday, according to unofficial primary election results released by the state and counties. Winder, the highest ranking member of the Idaho Senate, lost to Republican challenger Josh Keyser in the District 20, Idaho Senate Republican primary election. With 100% of Ada County precincts reporting, Keyser secured a 281-vote victory over Winder, according to the Ada County Elections Office.

The marijuana industry has become a substantial financial contributor to various political groups, including Young Americans for Liberty (YAL). This libertarian group, often mistaken for a conservative Republican entity, supports far-right GOP insurgent legislators to promote marijuana legalization in the states where they work to influence elections. This short story is about how a political machine conceals its true agenda through culture war fights and confrontational tactics to earn the support of a well-funded out-of-state organization. They don’t care if you support marijuana legalization or not; so long as they convince you to vote for their squad, your voice does...

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has collected enough signatures to qualify for the ballot in Texas, his campaign said.

“It crosses my mind more that that could’ve happened while I was there,” Ashlin Couch said in a segment that aired on Good Morning America on Wednesday, May 8. “And, you know, you never know, like how long someone is watching your house.” According to GMA, Couch moved out of the off-campus Moscow, Idaho, home in May 2022, six months before the murders took place. Her former roommates and friends, Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were fatally stabbed in the three-floor residence on Nov. 13, 2022. All four were close friends and...

What are the ramifications and true reality of breaching the dams of the pacific northwest (PNW)? Please begin with our previous articles on this topic, found here, here, and here. In this installment we bring you information on the debate regarding the salmon and steelhead populations. The paper seen below was written by retired Idaho Department of Fish and Game Fish Culturist, Fish Hatchery Superintendent, Fish Hatchery Manager, and Fish Hatchery Complex Supervisor Jerry McGehee on January 2, 2024. It is entitled More Pieces of the Puzzle to the Life Cycle of Idaho Salmon and Steelhead. McGehee’s ten-page paper explains...

The Gem State is no stranger to the weird and wonderful world of silly legislation, and like many states, we harbor a number of outdated statutes written too long ago to be relevant, and too nonsensical to make removing them from the rulebooks worth the effort. So, we dug a little deeper into Idaho’s hidden vault of crazy laws to see what sort of ridiculous ordinances we could find that you haven’t heard of yet. Here are just a few of the weirdest laws in Idaho: 1. It is against the law to live in a dog kennel (or house)...

Protesters gathered outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday as justices hear a case over whether emergency rooms can provide abortion in medical emergencies in states where abortion is banned. Oral arguments are taking place in the case of Moyle v United States and Idaho v United States. It is the first time the country's highest court will hear arguments over the scope of state abortion bans after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022 returning the issue of abortion to states. The Biden administration argues the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) can in narrow circumstances...

Tomorrow, (right now) the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States, two consolidated cases questioning whether the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) supersedes Idaho’s near-total abortion ban and can force physicians to perform abortions in emergency situations. Idaho’s “Defense of Life Act” was enacted in 2020 and took effect when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. The law makes it a felony for doctors to perform an abortion unless it’s necessary to save the life of the mother. Soon after Roe’s overturning, the...

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court will consider Wednesday when doctors can provide abortions during medical emergencies in states with bans enacted after the high court's sweeping decision overturning Roe v. Wade. The case comes from Idaho, which is one of 14 states that now ban abortion at all stages of pregnancy with limited exceptions. It marks the first time the Supreme Court has considered a state ban since Roe was reversed. The Biden administration argues that even in states where abortion is banned, federal health care law says hospitals must be allowed to terminate pregnancies in rare emergencies where a...

The US Supreme Court on Monday ruled that Idaho can enforce its ban on sex changes for children. Healthcare professionals can face up to 10 years in prison for mutilating children or providing puberty blockers to them. In December Judge Lynn Winmill, a Clinton appointee, ruled that Idaho could not enforce the transgender ban while the lawsuit by two plaintiffs made its way through the courts. The US Supreme Court 6-3 granted an emergency request filed by Idaho’s Attorney General. Idaho previously enacted the Vulnerable Child Protection Act which protected children from dangerous puberty blockers and procedures that remove body...

An 85-year-old Idaho woman fatally shot a home intruder in an act of self defense. County Prosecutors stated that Christime Jenneiahn committed a “justifiable homicide” after she shot an armed burglar who handcuffed her to a chair and threatened to kill her multiple times. Jenneiahn shot and killed 39-year-old Derek Condon, presenting “one of the most heroic acts of self-preservation” that Bingham County prosecutor Ryan Jolley has ever heard of, according to an incident review written Tuesday.

ROSE, Idaho — The man who was shot and killed by an 85-year-old woman during a home invasion had parked at least a mile away from her home, walked, and then broke in through a window with a screwdriver. The incident happened on March 13 off 134 West and 600 North. Bingham County prosecuting attorney Ryan Jolley described the home where it all happened as a secluded area surrounded by fields.

A group in Seattle, Washington – the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights (IREHR) – is warning Idahoans about an event taking place this weekend in Coeur d’Alene at Altar Church. Former Sheriff Richard Mack of Arizona, the presenter for the event, spoke to the Idaho Dispatch today, responding to the claims and accusations. IREHR’s About Page explains the organization’s beliefs and mission saying, in part, “Our long-held dreams for social and economic justice have become imbued with new hope in the future. More, the drive towards a truly multi-racial, multicultural democracy and individual human rights have gained...

An 85-year-old Idaho woman shot and killed an intruder in her home in what a county prosecutor called "one of the most heroic acts of self-preservation I have ever heard of." Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley said in a case review that the woman, identified Wednesday as Christine Jenneiahn, acted in self-defense and ruled it was a case of justifiable homicide. "That Christine survived this encounter is truly incredible," Jolley wrote. "Her grit, determination, and will to live appear to be what saved her that night. [snip] While Condon was searching downstairs, she dragged the wooden chair to which she...

ROSE, Idaho — An 85-year-old woman who shot and killed a man after he broke into her home in the middle of the night was threatened, hit, handcuffed to a chair and shot multiple times, according to newly released information.

Idaho school districts soon will have to remove any requirements that teachers use transgender students’ preferred pronouns. Gov. Brad Little quietly signed House Bill 538 on Monday. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, broadly enacts protections for public employees, including teachers, who are unwilling to use someone’s preferred name and pronouns. It had overwhelming support among Statehouse Republicans. The bill bars teachers from referring to a student by a name or pronoun that doesn’t align with their birth sex, unless the teacher has parental consent. It also gives teachers the right to sue their district if they’re disciplined...

The FBI arrested a man on Saturday who pledged his alliance to ISIS and planned to attack churches in Idaho. Alexander Scott Mercurio, 18, was charged with attempting to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, according to the Justice Department. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force conducted the investigation, CNN reported. Mercurio planned to attack churches in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Sunday “using weapons, including knives, firearms, and fire,” according to court documents cited by the Justice Department. “Thanks to the investigative efforts of the FBI, the defendant was taken into custody before he could...

SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — The FBI on Saturday arrested an 18-year-old in Idaho for reportedly attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State group. The arrest came one day before the suspect was allegedly going to carry out a series of attacks on Idaho churches in the name of ISIS. Alexander Scott Mercurio, of Coeur d'Alene, allegedly pledged allegiance to ISIS and planned to carry out attacks on churches in the city on Sunday using "knives, firearms, and fire," according to a statement released by the Department of Justice. "The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force conducted...