Risch CHIPS act vote
Senator Risch, Have you no shame? How could you pick up a shovel and pose in a picture for the groundbreaking for the new Micron Chip Processing Plant when you voted against the bill that made this investment possible? You gave a lame excuse about other expenses in the bill that you opposed, but that pales in the light of the fact that you eagerly voted for a huge tax break for you and your wealthy buddies just a short time ago.
Idaho needs senators who vote for what is most helpful for our state and the citizens of America, not obstructionists who vote against any bill sponsored by the Democrats. You missed your chance to look like a statesman. This bill is a huge plus for Idaho and Boise especially. It would be refreshing to see you provide some positive leadership.
Darryl and Joy Christianson
Boise
‘Fear and blame’
Fear and blame. In reading Mr. Crapo’s Guest Commentary in the 9/25 Sunday edition of the Idaho Press it is clear that you prey on those who are ignorant of the inner workings of what is ailing our country and most of the world currently. You aim to sow fear and shine a laser light of blame in a single focus. Mr. Crapo, you seem to be an intelligent man. I am saddened to see you use it for such endeavors. What have you personally done in your position to work toward a solution to these ills you cast blame for? Why don’t you use words to provide hope and write whole truths without the blame? I see, however, that your time was used voting to limit the rights of women, make voting more restrictive in Idaho, rescind funding to schools that enforced COVID mandates, prevent the IRS from doing their jobs, and deny the elderly in Idaho oral, dental, and hearing support through Medicare, to name a few. Remember, you represent the masses.
Stephanie Smyth Jackson
Meridian
‘A boulder of salt’
Jim Jones, in his editorial on 9/25 cites donations to the Raul Labrador campaign for Attorney General as “troubling” and from “suspect organizations that pose a real conflict of interest for the AG’s office.” A check of the Idaho Secretary of State site shows that two of the three donors cited also donated to the incumbent AG; Lawrence Wasden. Given that highly relevant fact which Jones failed to mention, I am having trouble discerning what point he was trying to make: That AG Wasden and his challenger Labrador both are compromised but the incumbent is the lesser of two evils? Folks, in the current political environment you MUST take everything you read or view with a boulder of salt. The “facts” presented even by long-trusted sources may be massaged in degrees ranging from carefully selected to mildly slanted to altered so they bear little or no resemblance to the actual truth.
Steve Dunlap
Boise
‘School choice’
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Public education was previously guided by local control and community inputs. But the God-awful alliance of politicians and Big Money — capitalizing on the “Knowledge Economy” — transformed the system through “marketplace” theory based on competition and “school choice.” Now, with new GOP leadership being openly anti-government, pro-privatization, people need to distinguish truth from targeted political marketing.
When words in the party platform don’t match policy proposals or actions, it’s political marketing.
“We believe that successful education is a joint responsibility of the individual, the family, and the community... [and] the most effective, responsible and responsive educational system is that system closest to the people,” wrote GOP leaders. But they support “a change to Idaho’s public school funding formula that includes ‘school choice’” and they plan to “promote private enterprise... as the solution to our domestic policy challenges.”
“School choice” through private providers doesn’t support a local control “system closest to the people.” Don’t buy it. Support candidates with truly responsible and responsive improvement plans.
We need leaders to improve what we have, not destroy it.
Victoria M. Young
Caldwell
Crapo’s inflation claims
As usual Mr. Crapo had this long distorted editorial in Sunday’s paper. According to him all of our inflation is due to President Biden. Since the 1st quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2022 our inflation rate is 19th in the World. A few other present rates: Netherlands 12%, UK 9.9%, Europe 9.1%, Spain 10.5%, Germany 7.9%. Can he blame these on Biden?
Go to votesmart.org to see where he gets his campaign money. United Health Group tops the list. They are one of the insurance companies pushing fake medicare, Medicare Advantage. Most of their $24 billion 2021 profit came from medicare and medicaid, that is from taxpayers.
Crapo was the lead senator fighting against controlling the cost of prescription drugs including insulin.
Every Republican voted against reducing the cost of drugs, funding the ACA where many of you get your health insurance, the climate crisis, lowering energy costs, a tax system that requires big business to pay a minimum tax of 15% on profits, reducing the out-of-pocket cost of medicare D.
Leo Faddis
Kuna
