Representative Heather Scott - District 1
On Monday, August 2, at 8:00 am Pacific Standard Time, Rep. Priscilla Giddings from District 7, will be called before an Idaho House of Representatives Ethics Committee at the Idaho Statehouse. Rep. Giddings’ accusers are charging her with “behavior disparaging to the body” and will consider a recommendation to the full House of one of the following: reprimand, censure, expulsion, or dismissal of the complaints. At the root of the charges is the claim that a major crime occurred when she posted a link to a news article to social media and included the same link in her weekly newsletter. The article also happened to criticize leadership and expose corruption at the Capitol. |
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In the linked article, a news reporter shared the name of a young woman (originally released publicly by David Leroy, Rep. von Ehlinger’s lawyer) who accused Representative von Ehlinger of rape. Rep. von Ehlinger subsequently went through a similar House Ethics proceeding and the House Ethics Committee recommended he be expelled from the legislature for this unadjudicated accusation. He resigned shortly thereafter, but has held firm to his claim that he is innocent. No criminal charges relating to the accusation have ever been filed.
It appears Rep. Giddings is now in the sights of the House Ethics Committee. Possibly because of her strong stance against corruption in government, or because of pressure from groups outside of the House membership.
 Our legal system’s founding principle of “innocent until proven guilty” is quickly being replaced within society by a “no due process” mentality and a politically-weaponized cancel culture. On top of that, this cancel culture's mentality appears to be employed by members of the legislature, using outside groups to push various political narratives onto Idaho citizens. This is also happening across the country.
The Boise based Idaho 97 organization, along with the ACLU, are demanding legislators “remove” Rep. Giddings from her seat. This same group collected signatures in an effort to pressure the Air Force Reserve to have Rep. Giddings fired from her military post. These well-funded groups label those they disagree with as “extreme” to put doubt and fear into constituents’ and legislators’ minds. They regularly push the limits of their 1st Amendment free speech rights with rhetoric and label-lynching of those they don’t align with.
Ironically, these same agitators go to great lengths to extinguish the 1st Amendment rights of their critics. As citizens we must be aware of what is happening and speak up against this behavior and demand accountability from legislators who cave into these tactics. It appears the first few legislative targets of these groups have been conservative Christians, people they fear and thus publicly label extremists.
 Representatives come from different parts of the state with different constituent bases. Each constituency is unique and depending on location, has varying attitudes about governance. Legislators are elected by their constituents, not by radical political activists from Boise, and they should feel safe to share their concerns about what is happening at the Capitol. In order for legislators to properly do their job and represent their constituents, and inform them of what is happening in state government, they need to be allowed to exercise their 1st Amendment protected right to free speech. What a travesty that legislators can’t be given a speeding ticket while enroute to a session, but can have their reputation and lives trashed for exercising their 1st Amendment rights by a House Ethics Committee where there are no rules, except those arbitrarily imposed by Ethics Committee members.
Our System in Government is Broken
In my opinion, and that of many others, what is happening is an ugly political stunt which will only continue to increase the disdain the governed have for the governing. I have personally lost faith in the committee process. I believe the Ethics Committee has been weaponized and is being used as a political tool rather than for what it was originally designed to accomplish. The original intended purpose of the committee was to deal with credible, legitimate, internal House problems, not to be used for witch-hunts or political vendettas by outside groups or agendas.
I have been reviewing important legislative bills where the vote count was close, where 1 to 2 votes could have changed the outcome. It is very interesting that one of the most controversial bills of the 2021 session that failed to pass was a grant to spend $6 million to indoctrinate children age 0-5 in critical race theory (H226 above). Rep. Giddings has been a leader on pushing back on the Critical Race Theory agenda. If Rep. Giddings is expelled, that would make 2 conservative legislators (both military veterans) removed in the last few months, that could change the outcome the next vote we vote on this legislation.
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I have served as a legislator at the Idaho State Capitol for seven years now, and I have witnessed corruption and glaring examples of bad behavior which have been ignored, not pursued and not made public. I know of at least six incidents involving legislators, including the following: extra marital affairs with other legislators, pedophilia investigations, theft, slander of citizens, police reports filed on “peeping toms” and questionable pet project funding. None of these were turned into public spectacles or addressed publicly by leadership or Ethics Committees.
In my opinion, this complaint against Rep. Giddings has been made public for a different purpose. The top name on the complaint is Rep. Scott Bedke, Speaker of the House, who unilaterally controls and approves all spending in the House (about $2,000,000/year). Speaker Bedke just happens to be running against Rep. Giddings in the race for Lieutenant Governor of Idaho in the May 2022 primary. For this hearing, he has authorized thousands of taxpayer dollars to be spent on the House’s private legal team to prosecute Rep. Giddings at the proceeding, yet authorized no funds for her defense. He has refused to reimburse some legislators’ travel costs to Boise to attend the Ethics Committee hearing. Notably, he is joined on the complaint by many of his committee chairmen, a few freshman legislators and most of the members of the Democrat caucus.
The complaint against Representative Giddings and her alleged crimes strain credulity and pale in comparison to the accusations listed above. Yet, here we are, with the only apparent difference being she is not part of the establishment or House leadership team.
 What can you do to be engaged in the process and decide for yourself?
In this specific case, If you cannot go to the Capitol, I encourage you to watch the hearing live to see for yourself to form your own opinions. Pay attention to the testimony and watch your representation. I will be attending a watch party in North Idaho that will be streaming the event that you can find on Facebook.
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The committee hearing is set for 8 AM Pacific Time (9 AM Mountain Time) on Monday, August 2, 2021. Click on this LINK or the graphic to the left to live stream the event. You will need to click on the right committee room which is currently EW42 but might change to the |
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All of the legislators’ allegations against Rep. Priscilla Giddings, as well as her response to those allegations can be viewed at this link:
(LINK TO COMPLAINTS AND RESPONSE)
Armed with this knowledge, you will be able to analyze the situation for yourself and combat any false narratives being promoted by elected officials or their media counterparts.
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Below is a list of the committee members who are on the ethics committee. Four of the five committee members had to vote yes to turn this into a public event. If you are concerned, you can contact them.
Ethics on House Policy
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Your Representatives will be voting on the punishment for Rep. Priscilla Giddings if the Ethics Committee does not dismiss the complaints. If you do not know who your Representatives are please click below to find out who they are and how to contact them. (Who Are My Legislators?) |
In closing, I just want to share my personal thoughts. If being an Idaho elected official and trying to express and represent your constituents the best you can is scrutinized to the level we can no longer speak freely, what recourse does this leave you, the citizens? What message does this convey about Idaho and our once great nation? And what message does it say to our veterans who gave everything to defend our freedoms and rights?
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