If Idaho is going to have a special session, it should tackle the coronavirus pandemic first
As COVID-19 continues to spread through Idaho, we hear calls from some lawmakers for a special session of the Legislature. They claim that the Legislature is being left out of the decision making process, that it should be responsible for the allocation of federal resources, and that their power is being usurped. Yet nowhere in these calls do we hear any discussion or addressing the health care crisis facing Idaho. It’s just about being left out of the decision making process. Well, they had their chance and chose to ignore the issue.
In early March information regarding the spread of COVID-19 was known to us all. Cases were being reported in many states. Several legislators had been exposed at the CPAC conference, yet refused to self-quarantine. Business continued as usual at the Statehouse with the public packed into hearing rooms, sharing microphones and podiums.
Minority leadership made several requests that the Legislature pass budgets and make an effort, for the safety of the public and building occupants, to adjourn the session. Those requests were denied. A bill to allow for conducting legislative business remotely was not even given a hearing. Yet legislators were kept in session to pass anti-transgender legislation. At a critical time in the pandemic response, the opportunity to plan for what we knew was coming was ignored.
Even before COVID-19, lack of planning has plagued the Legislature. For example, the governor ordered budget holdbacks due to the potential for an economic downturn. Yet why would those holdbacks include the Department of Labor, when a downturn would surely mean more demand for unemployment services? And cutting Health and Welfare ignores the future need for increased services due to job loss. The constant call to cut government, without regard for the services that are necessary to provide, has left Idaho in a position of not being able to adequately respond to this crisis.
Worse yet, in the face of hard science and with the benefit of learning from the experiences of other countries, members of the majority party have chosen to politicize an issue that is not at all political. The virus knows no party and should be the one problem that, even in these troubled times, we should all be attacking together. Any call for an interim session or working groups should prioritize Health and Welfare to find ways to improve testing and help guarantee the safety of our citizens. Yet, this isn’t even on the agenda.
Masks help to protect each other from the virus, yet they are portrayed as a freedom issue. True leaders should be willing to risk losing an election in order to protect the lives of Idahoans. Instead, many are falling prey to conspiracy theories and rhetorical arguments that have nothing to do with keeping their constituents safe, but everything to do with holding on to their seats.
The majority of Idahoans have shown a commitment to beating this virus and making sacrifices to do so. If the GOP majority is going to force the expense of a special session and/or interim working groups on to the taxpayers, it should be making a sincere effort to solve the real problems facing our people, not to orchestrate a power grab as their stated agenda suggests.