Rep. Raul Labrador’s self-praising Reader’s View published on Dec. 22 is proof that his new communications manager, who used to work for Herman Cain, can certainly spin a story. But the devil, as they say, is in the details.
Mr. Labrador claims that the House of Representatives, currently controlled by a Republican majority, “tackled entitlement reforms.” Unfortunately, he — or more accurately, his new communications manager — does not explain what that really means. That is no surprise because when people look at Mr. Labrador’s positions, most Idahoans disagree with them.
Mr. Labrador wants to put your Social Security savings into the stock market. Of course, if you had your Social Security in the stock market over the past few years, during the recession, you would have lost a big chunk of it. Then what would you retire on? I guess you would just have to keep working. If you can find a job, that is. Then, too, if everybody’s Social Security had been in the stock market, think about how much money the stockbrokers, bankers and investment advisers would have made from managing that money. You remember those guys: the ones whose greed and corruption triggered the recession, the ones who still collected their huge bonuses while your investment savings went down the drain.
Mr. Labrador voted to end Medicare as we know it. Instead of having Medicare simply pay the doctor of your choice directly, he wants the government to give you a voucher that you can give to an insurance company, which then decides whether or not to pay your doctor. You remember those guys, the ones who raised your premiums every year before you qualified for Medicare in order to continue to make a nice profit.
Mr. Labrador voted against extending the payroll tax reduction and extending unemployment benefits, both of which would have expired at the end of 2011, not because he was against them but because he didn’t want to pay for them by adding a small tax surcharge on millionaires and billionaires. He wanted to pay for them instead by freezing the salaries of government workers. It seems he believes we should balance the budget on the backs of the little guy in favor of the wealthy.
Mr. Labrador brags about voting against the president’s Affordable Health Care Act. What that means is that he would go back to allowing insurance companies to use preexisting conditions to deny coverage to those who need it; that he would allow insurance companies to kick your college-age children off your insurance; and that he would allow insurance companies to put lifetime caps on how much they have to spend on your medical bills. Also, it means he favors going back to having seniors pay more for prescription drugs.
Finally, Mr. Labrador co-sponsored a bill to end subsidies for alternative energy projects, including wind, solar and ethanol. Yet he says nothing about the tax breaks and favorable treatment given to oil companies. You remember those guys: They’re the ones who are charging more than $3 a gallon for gasoline and raking in their highest profits in history.
So Mr. Labrador votes in favor of stockbrokers, bankers, insurance companies, millionaires, billionaires and oil companies instead of ordinary Americans. Yet he claims to be doing the people’s bidding. Spin.
The Holiday Season is a time to be thankful for family, friends, a roof over our heads and food on our tables. But in this age of partisan bickering, GOP ethics violations, and Idaho’s political imbalance it can be easy to lose sight of some of the other things we can be happy about. Here is what I am, politically speaking, thankful for this season:
No. 10. The opportunities the GOP gives us almost every day to hold them accountable for their offenses and misdeeds.
No. 9. That Idaho voters will have the opportunity to repeal the Luna education bills in 2012.
No. 8. For all of our precinct captains and other Democratic activists and volunteers around the State who proudly carry our banner, even in parts of the State where it can be a lonely job.
No. 7. For all the candidates out there – past, present and future – who dedicate their time and energy to run on the Democratic ticket, trying to make Idaho a better place.
No. 6. My IDP staff- Shelley, Sally, Marie, Matt, Jill, and Lance who do the hard work every day.
No. 5. Jeanne Buell, Susan Eastlake, Pete Gertonson, and Carolyn Boyce who help me provide leadership within the IDP.
No. 4. For all of our County Chairs, Legislative District Chairs, State Committeemen and Committeewomen who volunteer to organize our party and recruit candidates.
No. 3. Our Democratic Legislators who battle every year to do what is right and be a voice of reason in the statehouse.
No. 2. Our Redistricting commissioners who took on the tough job: Allen Andersen, George Moses, Julie Kane, Ron Beitlespacher, Shauneen Grange, and Elmer Martinez.
No. 1: That Barack Obama is our President. I am thankful for who he is, what he is doing, and the leadership he is providing to the country.
What is your top ten list of things to be thankful for in Idaho politics?
As we dust ourselves off from the tornado that hit the Democratic Party in 2010, one of my primary goals as your new Chair is to get the Party organized, not only at the state level but also down to as many counties and precincts in Idaho as possible.
Although it has only been four months since I became Chair, I have taken the time to travel around the state, attending the Howard Dean event in Worley, the Truman Banquet in Idaho Falls, the Stallings Banquet in Pocatello, and the AFL-CIO convention in Lewiston, as well as a number of local party meetings and events. Not to mention a lot of telephone time talking to Democrats all over the state. It is great to talk to so many friends and supporters, both new and old.
I am very pleased that Jeanne Buell stayed on as Vice Chair of the Party and that Susan Eastlake continued as Treasurer. Their knowledge, experience and enthusiasm has made it easy for me to work with the IDP Central Committee, the Executive Committee, and the state Party staff in beginning to get organized. The addition of Pete Gertonson as our National Committeeman and Carolyn Boyce as our National Committeewoman adds even more experience, skill and talent to our state party team.
The first step in getting organized was to reach out to some of the people and groups that are essential to the state party. In that regard I have appointed Dave Whaley of the AFL-CIO, Senate Minority Leader Edgar Malepeai, and House Minority Leader John Rusche, as ex-officio members of the IDP Executive Committee because I felt their voices needed to be heard. I appointed Pete and Carolyn as ex-officio members as well, knowing that their counsel is invaluable.
Since I became Chair in late February, we made Shelley Landry IDP Executive Director. In these first few months she has done an excellent job of reviewing the budget, getting the delegate selection process drafted, and getting the staff in place. We now have Sally Boynton Brown as the field director for the counties in the 2nd Congressional District and Matt Greene as field organizer for the counties in 1st Congressional District. Both have hit the ground running, learning about their districts and the needs of their county organizations. Sally is also in charge of communications and is liaison to the Idaho Democratic Legislative Caucus while Matt is in charge of our Votebuilder database. We also have Jill Ellsworth working on the bookkeeping and Marie Hattaway involved in fundraising.
Next on my agenda is to have IDP complete strategic planning meetings around the state. The purpose of these meetings is to get the counties together and plan for our future, discussing all aspects of the needs and activities of the county organizations plus the support and direction they must have from the state party. We hope to have these meetings completed and recommendations in place for the State Central Committee Meeting in October. By reaching a consensus on plans and messaging we will be well prepared going into 2012 to give our candidates the support they need.
Of course, we need to recruit candidates for all levels of government for 2012. We do not have a U. S. Senate race or any statewide office races, so we have a perfect opportunity to give more attention to the Congressional, legislative and county races.
From all I have seen and heard to date, one thing I am sure of is that there is a trainload of Idaho Democrats out there who are ready to get involved. To which I say, “All Aboard!”
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