Idaho Lt. Gov. Little has challenger on GOP ticket
By William L. Spence, Lewiston Tribune, Idaho | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
If third-generation Idahoan and incumbent Lt. Gov.
Per the Idaho Constitution, the lieutenant governor only has a handful of specific duties, including presiding over the state
State law also directs that he or she "shall perform such additional duties as the governor may deem necessary and desirable." Beyond that, the office has one of the smallest general fund budgets in state government -- trailing only the
"If you have a governor that doesn't get along with the lieutenant governor, it's really not much of a job," said Little, who was appointed to office in 2009 and elected to a full four-year term in 2010.
Whether the lieutenant governor can -- or should -- have an agenda beyond what the governor and Constitution dictate is a point of contention between he and Chmelik.
Since taking office in 2009, Little, 60, has been an effective ally for Gov.
Chmelik, 53, takes a more independent view, saying he's running for lieutenant governor in part because the office "carries more weight" than a county commissioner. Thus, it gives him a greater ability to promote his top issue, the transfer of public lands from the federal government to the state.
"If I'm elected and I don't get along with the governor, I'll go work on my land issue," he said. "I don't work for the governor, I work for the people of the state. If I saw legislation being proposed that didn't fit with where I'm at, I can promise you I'd try to influence it and get it back on track."
To a large degree, the split in the lieutenant governor's primary is over the same major issues as the gubernatorial primary: Otter's support for a state-run health insurance exchange and the Idaho Common Core school standards.
Chmelik, who is president of the board of trustees for
"Let's teach kids how to think, not what to think," he said. "Teaching to the test just limits our kids."
He has similar problems with the state insurance exchange. It's a government solution to health care, rather than a free-market approach.
"I'd push to repeal it," Chmelik said. "We need people in executive positions who can come up with solutions that are more in line with the free market."
Little noted Otter and the Republican leadership didn't want anything to do with the Affordable Care Act. However, when the
"It was a Hobson's choice, but they're still making the argument that complicity (with the ACA) is encouraging it," Little said of those who oppose the move. "But now the verdict is in and going with a state exchange ended up being an even bigger advantage than we thought."
The latest exchange figures, for example, estimate that Idahoans save about
Despite the split over the exchange, Little said
From his perspective, that's where the focus needs to be in the coming years. Given
"There will be a day of reckoning on federal spending, so we have to be competitive and build our economy," Little said. "That means limiting regulations and taxes and, more and more, training our workforce."
Little is a past chairman of the
"I'm not the least bit uncomfortable with my record," he said. "I spend my time getting out and working every day to grow the state's economy. My understanding of the whole state (is better than Chmelik's), which is an advantage of the incumbent and of being a third-generation Idahoan. I think most people in
Chmelik moved to
"I like Brad, I think he's a great guy, but I have a completely different view of where to lead the state and what you can do as lieutenant governor," he said. "I tell people it's not my destiny in their hands when they vote; it's their destiny. They get to decide the amount of government they get. I want to work hard to get government out of the way and bring in free-market solutions."
The winner of the Republican primary will face Democrat
Spence may be contacted at [email protected] or (208) 791-9168.
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(c)2014 the Lewiston Tribune (Lewiston, Idaho)
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