The Cost of Growth

There is an old saying, “Be careful what you wish for as you might just get it.” Most people don’t realize that, along with the positive changes, there are many negative consequences that accompany growth. Idaho is a great place to live, and much of that has to do with the fact that it still has a small population base compared to other states. Bigger is not always better. Look at Meridian, where I lived for 15 years, just off Ten Mile Road. When I moved in, there was a moderate amount of traffic, and years later, it would take me 10-15 minutes or more to make a left-hand turn onto Ten Mile Rd.

Meridian was touted as the 6th fastest growing city in America, growing from 72k to 115k in 11 years, but there is always a price for growth. Even McCall, a beautiful mountain town when I first came to Idaho with a population in the winter of 6k, explodes to 30k in the summer months. June starts the invasion of the rich and famous as they travel by private jet at the McCall airport to visit their multimillion-dollar homes on Lake Payette. Our Capital city is another example of unexpected consequences, as our leftist Mayor McLean flies the Rainbow flag in violation of state law. Growth is inevitable; however, the cost may not always be worth the changes that take place.

Having lived in three different time zones in fast-growing cities, I will tell you they all wind up the same. Congested, less friendly, with a much higher cost of living and, for some reason, they all become more liberal as they grow. I hesitate but predict that in 20 years, you will not recognize the Treasure Valley as people will be commuting from as far away as Payette and Fruitland to their jobs in Nampa and Caldwell.

While Boise and Meridian have become overcrowded and more liberal, I believe Nampa will be the next bastion of conservatism to fall to the libs as the growth continues westward. I can still hear former Governor Butch Otter saying how Idaho is the Reddest of the Red states. I hate to admit it, but Idaho is no longer the reddest of the red states. As corporate power continues to grow in our state, you will also see the liberal movement continue to grow. IACI is the most powerful lobbyist group in Idaho, and they will continue to promote their agenda, not the people’s.

Does anyone remember how our conservative corporations required their employees to get a covid shot or find another job? There are many who listen to Kevin Miller on 580 KIDO radio each morning and hear me talk about Governor Little and how inept I think he is at his job, but I certainly don’t hate the man. Just like our country has been run for years by the corporate lobbyists on K Street, we have been experiencing the same thing here in Idaho. The people have lost control of their government and it is running amuck as our state budget grows by leaps and bounds every year along with the 189 state agencies that will suck up an additional $600 million of our tax money this year.

We have already seen the advent of the technology invasion in our state with the likes of Meta, Amazon, and don’t forget the huge Micron expansion that is just the beginning. Soon we will see more “AI” Data Centers being built out in Kuna that will bring very few jobs but will be sucking up energy and water like you could never imagine. Idaho is in a major expansion that we are not prepared for, as we barely have enough room on the roads for our current population’s commuting needs. Don’t get me wrong, growth is not all bad if there has been someone planning for the infrastructure to accommodate it, but unfortunately, I don’t see that happening in our state.

Idaho has been found by the rest of America, and while it has turned more purple is not the same as when I first came here, but it is still quite a safe haven for conservatives compared to those states that surround us. We recently saw Bernie and AOC hold a rally that only drew about 10k, but that doesn’t mean that their movement won’t grow. People forget that for 24 years from 1971 to 1995, Idaho had Democratic Governors, and as Idaho grows, don’t think that could not happen again.

Liberals are a different breed as they never give up, and their goal is to change everything to their way of thinking. They have controlled our education system for 6 decades, and we have seen how devious they can be and the lengths they will go through to indoctrinate our children and change our country by using the power of our government-sponsored indoctrination.

Even in our state, as the legislature just passed a school choice bill this session, we are already seeing a challenge to this legislation by Jim Jones, a former chief justice of Idaho’s Supreme Court, who claims to be a conservative. In my opinion, it is people like Jones and his “pretend to be” conservative buddies who have been instrumental in turning Idaho purple. You only have to look at our liberal congressman who has been in office since 1999 to realize that we have been moving more left. Congressman Simpson, who purports to be conservative actually suggested breaching four of the Snake River dams on the western side of our state. This $33 billion dollar project was to free up the waterway for long-ranging salmon that are also a key food source for orcas but would destroy western Idaho’s agricultural-based economy. Sounds a lot like a project the left would suggest.

Or look north to Coeur d’Alen,e a bastion of liberalism for decades. I’m sounding the alarm, and I hope you all understand that our state is vulnerable to turning blue as our population accelerates. With that in mind, I would like you all to see the latest Idaho Freedom Foundation Freedom Index, which rates all of our current legislators’ voting scores so you can get an idea of just who you might want to vote for in next year’s elections. We would like to thank Ron Nate and his crew at the Idaho Freedom Foundation for all of the hard work that goes into this survey. See how many of your legislators have actually kept the promises they made to you in the last election.

You can find the latest Freedom Index by clicking the link below. https://idahofreedom.org/research/2025-idaho-freedom-index-report/

“We Get the Government We Deserve”