President Biden has every reason to snub Idaho Gov. Brad Little, but he shouldn’t
President Joe Biden has several reasons to snub Idaho Gov. Brad Little.
After all, it was Little who signed up to support a Texas lawsuit challenging the legitimacy of Biden’s election victory in November over Donald Trump.
It was Little who complained that Idaho wasn’t getting enough federal coronavirus relief money.
It was Little who chose to eliminate federal unemployment benefits in Idaho.
It was Little who criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the border with Mexico and vowed to send Idaho law enforcement there.
It was Little who tweeted out a falsehood that Biden would eliminate 90% of red meat consumption (that tweet is still posted).
It would seem that Biden has plenty of reasons to leave Little out of the president’s meeting this week with governors on wildfire. And you could probably easily forgive Biden for scoffing at Little’s call now for a “partnership” when it comes to federal and state cooperation.
“Where has your cooperation been these past few months, ever since the Capitol insurrection attempt, Brad?” you could hear Biden saying.
After all, isn’t that how Biden’s predecessor acted for four years, calling people names online and nitpicking every slight, picking and choosing which “red” states to help and praise, and which “blue” states and cities to criticize?
But that’s exactly why Biden shouldn’t snub Little, however tempting it might be.
That kind of apparent political payback is petty, and most Americans are tired of it, especially when it comes to basic government functions and public safety, such as wildfire management, or roads and bridges.
We expect our leaders to act like leaders, not bickering back-biters on The Real Housewives of Washington, D.C.
Biden reportedly met with eight governors — six Democrats and two Republicans. The participants were from California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Utah and Wyoming.
Leaving Idaho out of any conversation about wildfire management is a blatant oversight.
Idaho is in the 100th percentile for wildfire likelihood, according to a U.S. Forest Service wildfire risk map. The state is regularly in the top 10 U.S. states for acreage burned by wildfire, Insurance Information Institute data show. And Boise is home to the National Interagency Fire Center, which also was not included in the Biden administration’s meetings.
As Little pointed out in a follow-up letter to Biden, Idaho is a model for federal-state cooperation in solving the wildfire crisis with its Shared Stewardship and Good Neighbor Authority land management practices.
So while it may be tempting for Biden to exact a little political payback, he should be the bigger person, put political pandering aside, and cooperate for the sake of Idahoans and all Americans.
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