The Left is Gunning for Idaho
Left-wing interest groups are preparing the ground for a takeover of Idaho
Establishment Republicans are more concerned with defeating conservatives than preserving Idaho’s distinctive characteristics.
The Left is better funded and more determined than our current Establishment.
America’s professional left has been active flipping states like Colorado, North Carolina, Nevada, and Arizona for years. Now their sights are set on Idaho.
Sensing an opportunity from the weak Republican Party establishment, well-funded activist groups have been building and expanding their presence in Idaho for years—and they’re serious about policy and winning elections.
The first major shot was fired when they successfully elected Boise Mayor Lauren McLean. Her funding came almost entirely from out of state and from dark money “conservation” groups, like the League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund (LCV). According to OpenSecrets, LCV’s top donors during the 2018 election cycle included Michael Bloomberg and Bain Capital’s Joshua Bekenstein.
Mayor McLean used her electoral victory to promote expanding young children’s sex education, advancing the Black Lives Matter agenda, and pushing for free abortion. What this has to do with environmentalism promoted by billionaire-backed conservation groups, no one knows.
McLean’s win was also a victory for dozens of other interlocking leftist groups. These are the engines of professional activism that drive left-wing trends wherever they are active. Most prominent among them is the Conservation Voters for Idaho (CVI), which couches their support for all species of left-wing activism in terms of “advocating for sound environmental policies.” CVI receives significant funding from LCV. According to BoiseDev, CVI recently started spending heavily in Boise, “with signs of more dollars to come.”
A disclosure from 2019 reviewed by BoiseDev showed “CVI’s Action Fund reported $92,804 in its war chest—the most of any PAC that filed with the city.” That included a $25,000 check from LCV sent all the way from Washington, D.C. CVI used this infusion of cash to fund an ad campaign in support of McLean.
CVI promotes “clean energy” and climate change legislation, but the purpose behind the group is to find issues that will leverage greater left-wing change. It has a staff of ten very diverse people, working full-time to transform Idaho, and they are even hiring. For comparison, the conservative Idaho Freedom Foundation has full-time staff of ten as well.
Another prominent left-wing group is Reclaim Idaho. It is well-funded outfit focusing on grassroots organizing in every Idaho community. Their ambitions include expanding Medicaid and huge increases in funding for K-12 education through successful ballot initiatives. Again, the real purpose of these policies is to fundamentally change the state.
Last but not least, The Idaho 97 Project is dedicated to promoting more and more COVID restrictions, including mask mandates, and vaccine passports. It also advocates sex education for very young children, promotes illegal immigration, and supports refugee settlement in Boise and the Treasure Valley.
Hurijia Mustafic and Mohammed Sufi served as Idaho 97’s 2021 interns. Mustafic was hired after she was charged with “third-degree rioting” and “two counts of assault on a police officer” in an August 2020 episode, according to court documents.
The establishment seems utterly uninterested in confronting or even discussing the growing influence of these organizations. The press, of course, eagerly provides a megaphone for the left’s narratives in Idaho, as in the rest of the country. Idaho Education News works hand in glove with Reclaim Idaho to suggest that the education establishment is doing great and just needs more funding and more public trust. Local television and newspapers toe the line on virtually every issue.
National trends bring all things to each state—no matter how seemingly safe. Some states are better equipped to resist and provide independent leadership for the overall good of their people. But the left is gunning for Idaho and our Republican leaders seem ill-equipped and naïve in responding to the challenge. If they aren’t working for the other side, they should be.
See also:
The Left is Gunning for Idaho, Part 2
The Left is Gunning for Idaho, Part 2 (and What to do About it)
The Left is Gunning for Idaho, Reclaim Idaho Edition
The Left is Gunning for Idaho, Defend and Protect Idaho Edition