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Bob's Words

What is the Cost of Illegal Immigration?

As we hear the cry from many Americans about how unaffordable America is, we need to ask ourselves how this came about. Well, I would suggest that opening our borders and allowing 10 or 15 million illegal aliens to migrate and scatter to every congressional district in the country has caused a serious strain on […]

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Labrador Letter: Our Office Celebrates Another Strong Year of Service

Dear Friends, Last month, our entire office gathered at the Idaho State Capitol for our annual Office Wide Meeting. Every November, we bring everyone together to look back on the year’s work and recognize the people who made it happen. My Chief of Staff Phil Skinner kicked things off with updates from every division on […]

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Labrador Honors Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Detectives for 100th Combined ICAC Arrest in East Idaho

IDAHO FALLS, ID —  Attorney General Raúl Labrador recognized Detective Jared Mendenhall of the Idaho Falls Police Department and Detective Korey Payne of the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office for reaching 100 combined arrests through the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. The milestone represents years of investigations protecting vulnerable children from online predators across […]

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Ending Bureaucratic Excess in Idaho

Reprinted with permission of the Idaho Freedom Foundation It’s no exaggeration to say that Idaho taxpayers spend millions of dollars every single day on wasteful and sometimes unconstitutional state-run programs. The Idaho Freedom Foundation’s (IFF) goal is to find and eliminate as many of these programs as possible. To this end, the IFF has submitted recommendations on […]

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Op-Ed: Local Elections Are Already Partisan

Don’t you love Election Day? I’ve always enjoyed watching the returns come in, digging into the numbers, and seeing what’s happening beneath the surface. Like any sporting contest, every Election Day has winners and losers. I’ve been on both sides. Winning is certainly better than losing, but anyone willing to put their name on the […]

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Op-Ed: Idaho is Worth Fighting For

You know, I think I’ve traveled more in the three and a half years since I was elected chair of the Idaho GOP than ever before in my life. In that time, I’ve visited nearly every county in Idaho—sometimes crossing from one end of the state to the other in the course of just a […]

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Governance vs. Growth Politics

Idaho is growing faster than most of us can keep up with. New subdivisions appear almost overnight. Cities expand their boundaries. State lawmakers celebrate population increases as a mark of success. Growth has become the headline. But in the middle of this boom, something deeper is being forgotten: the difference between growth politics and governance. […]

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Op-Ed: Your Vote Matters!

When most people think of elections, they picture the noise and spectacle of presidential years—rallies, debates, and wall-to-wall news coverage. But while those contests grab the headlines, it’s the quieter local elections that often shape our daily lives the most. On November 4th, Idahoans will once again have the chance to vote—this time for city […]

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Skinsuit Politicians

North Idaho is largely populated by good and friendly people. People who volunteer their time for civic and charitable causes. People you would want for neighbors. People who inspired the joke: “I was at the local hardware store and while I was searching for what I wanted, three different people asked if I needed assistance…. […]

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Bob's Words

A History of Idaho’s Grocery Tax

Origins of Idaho’s Grocery Tax: Idaho had briefly experimented with a 2% sales tax (including on food) in 1935 to raise revenue, but that early tax proved hugely unpopular and was repealed in 1937. Idaho’s taxation of groceries is rooted in the state’s adoption of a general sales tax in the mid-1960s. While many assume […]

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Op-Ed: See You at the Fair!

There’s nothing quite so American as an old-fashioned county fair. It’s a veritable smorgasbord of animals, games, vendors, and more food than you could eat in a week, drawing thousands from surrounding communities to celebrate summer and American traditions. Wherever American traditions are celebrated, the Idaho GOP is there. Stop by your county or regional […]

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Dorothy Moon, Fiscal Conservative

The Idaho Republican Party has undergone a fiscal conservativism transformation, but some political establishment cronies are so habituated to spending that when presented with fiscal conservatism facts they refuse or are unable to understand. It is outside their world experience, as if you were trying to discuss fire with a fish. What is a “fiscal […]

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