Idaho’s U.S. senators must reject plan to sell off public lands | Opinion

Public lands

As a fourth-generation Idahoan, I’ve grown up knowing that public lands aren’t just open space. They’re a public good. They are where we hike, raft, fish, reflect and hunt. They connect us not only to the land but to one another. That’s why I’m alarmed by the Senate’s so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” which proposes selling off millions of acres of BLM and Forest Service land, including in Idaho.

Supporters claim these sales will make land available for housing and development, but this logic reduces our shared commons to a line item. These lands were never meant to be sold; they were meant to be stewarded. Privatization pushes access further out of reach, especially for working-class families who rely on public lands for affordable recreation and peace of mind.

While it’s encouraging that both of Idaho’s U.S. senators say they oppose the bill, we can’t treat that as a done deal. We need to call them. Every day. Because without sustained pressure from Idahoans, opposition can fade into compromise, and compromise here means irreversible loss.

Public land is not surplus. It is sacred, grounding, and necessary. Let’s keep it in public hands.

Devon Van Kleek, Boise

Trump

Please have the courage to admit you were wrong. What the U.S. and President Trump have accomplished in the last 72 hours is historic and good for the world. All of the negativity and outright misinformation has been replaced by peace and a much safer Middle East and the world. Stop attempting to make every decision this administration has made bad. It is simply common sense: 1. Boys should not compete against girls. 2. We must control our borders. 3. When the U.S. is energy independent, we are safer and stronger as a nation. 4. We are $37 trillion in debt. We have to address this problem now. God bless the U.S.A.

Chipp Leibach, Boise

Transgender attacks

The recent Supreme Court decision against transgender Americans and our MAGA states describing trans young adults as “kids” and “children” are classic political dog whistles. The MAGA war against transgender Americans and both legal and illegal immigrants is simple, they are perfect scapegoats and marginalized people who are unable to fight back and are ripe for ridicule and abuse. The Supreme Court forgot to mention that transgender individuals have no political representation in our “democratic process.” Who represents legal and illegal immigrants? We enjoy the fruits of illegal immigrant labor but support their brutal deportation? We have forgotten illegal immigrants are human beings. Mr. MAGA himself just cut off LGBTQ youth from the national suicide hotline? We will pay a steep price for our MAGA majorities’ unfettered love for our psychopathic Caesar Donald Trump. And thanks to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, our “democracy” will forever be tethered to money-generated “representation” and a corrupt government. Nothing “Great” about that. A warning to America: If you are on the MAGA scapegoat list, that unmarked van with masked thugs will be coming for you soon! It is not a question of if but when. Be prepared to Fight! Fight! Fight!

Kurt Smith, Boise

Protect public lands

The proposed sale of Idaho’s public lands poses a significant threat to the overall quality of life for all Idahoans. These lands, currently accessible to all, are fundamental to our state culture, providing essential spaces for activities such as hunting, fishing, and hiking. Should these public lands be privatized, the consequences would include restricted access, widespread “no trespassing” signage, and the loss of recreational freedoms central to Idahoan identity.

This potential sale also jeopardizes Idaho’s robust outdoor economy, which directly supports thousands of jobs, particularly within rural communities. The loss of these lands would translate into reduced tourism revenue, the decline of local small businesses, and a significant weakening of our state’s economy, ultimately reducing the quality of life for all Idahoans. For a state that is already struggling with low wages and a high cost of living, this sale would be disastrous. These lands belong to all Idahoans, they are not items to be sold to the highest bidder.

I strongly urge every Idahoan to contact Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch. Please express your support for protecting our public lands and preserving the unique Idaho way of life.

John Waits, Boise

Patriotism

A line from Bob Dylan: “Patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings. Steal a little and they throw you in jail. Steal a lot and they make you king.”

The corrupt scoundrel masquerading as President, his abettors in his cabinet, the courts and Congress are stealing our democracy.

Pete Friedman, Boise

ICE agents

I have two questions about ICE Homeland Security which I think are “Gestapo” types. One: Where are all the “agents” coming from? Who knows, eh? Possibly White supremacist/neo-Nazi groups who get a chance to get paid to play soldier and enjoy government supported roughing people up while dressing in camo outfits and have government-provided long rifles and blackened window vehicles and be really big masked men. Remember, “Good people on both sides,” said the wannabe dictator about Nazi marchers in Charlottesville.

Two: How much is all this costing the U.S. taxpayer? I mean these “agents” have even been spotted here in small towns in Idaho. Where is government efficiency when it takes five or six SUVs full of heavily armed “agents” to arrest a guy who is cleaning or pushing baskets at the Walmart parking lot, working at landscaping or a roofing company, or bent over working in an agricultural field or sweating in a meat packing plant, or a woman working in a restaurant or a student who wrote a letter to a student paper criticizing what Trump is doing? Yea, none of those count. We have unlimited funds for that.

Did you vote for this?

Roger Hayes, Moscow

At war

Vice president: “We’re not at war with Iran, we’re at war with Iran’s nuclear program.”

Certainly, we are not at peace, and if not at war, what should one call a unilateral attack on Iran by the United States without any input from Congress?

Mary Feeny, Boise