7 rural counties in Oregon have voted in favor of an effort to become part of Idaho.
Leaders of the Greater Idaho movement, which seeks to transfer more than 70% of Oregon’s land to Idaho, say Oregon’s Legislature doesn’t represent rural residents. ⬇️ businessinsider.com/oregons-rural-…
Ballot measures in the counties called on county officials to consider the move.
Last week, 5 counties voted for the effort, bringing the total to 7. Leaders of the movement said it started at the beginning of the pandemic after Oregon’s GOP tried to recall @OregonGovBrown.
Greater Idaho’s president, Mike McCarter, said the proposed new border would encompass 18 full and 3 partial Oregon counties and account for about 860,000 people.
That’s only about 21% of Oregon’s population, but it would represent 70% of its land.
Ems and McCarter said the push to join Idaho centered on Oregonians living in rural areas who don’t feel represented by the Legislature.
Most of the population lives in urban centers and skews Democratic, while people living in rural areas skew Republican.
Ems said that the majority had “no incentive” to include people in the rural parts in their decision-making and that people living in “concrete jungles” were telling those “who live and steward the land how to run their land.”
Despite a lack of conversation with Oregon’s Legislature, McCarter said it could start paying attention to their cause now that seven counties have voted in favor of the Greater Idaho movement. businessinsider.com/oregons-rural-…
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.@BorisJohnson's former aide Dominic Cummings is appearing before a House of Commons committee to set out a series of potentially damaging claims about his former boss’ handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Cummings says he warned the prime minister on March 12 that the government's Covid plans were "terrifyingly s***" and that hundreds of thousands of people would die unless he locked down the country immediately. businessinsider.com/boris-johnson-…
Cummings, who left Johnson's government last year, apologised for his own failure to act earlier to prevent the more than 120,000 people in the UK who have died of the coronavirus. businessinsider.com/boris-johnson-…
“Nobody is looking out for us,” a Hill staffer said. Many of Congress’ employees are struggling in an environment where working long hours and going above and beyond the job description was the norm before 2020. businessinsider.com/congress-capit…
Current staff and outside experts fear that the trauma is pushing qualified people out the door, exacerbating the long-running problem of brain drain on Capitol Hill. businessinsider.com/congress-capit…
President Biden is approaching his 100th day in office. So far, voters seem pleased, but Republicans are struggling to counter his robust policy agenda.
It's difficult to run against a popular president who just funneled a massive amount of stimulus into the economy to help the country recover from the pandemic.
Republicans are increasingly becoming vocal about their predicament.
Matt Gaetz is currently being investigated by the House Ethics Committee, over allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use.
Insider spoke to 21 of Gaetz’s high-school classmates, some of whom said they could have predicted these sex scandals. 👇 businessinsider.com/matt-gaetz-hig…
Erin Scot was at a friend's wedding rehearsal dinner in 2009 when her old pal from high school Matt Gaetz showed a group of friends a picture of a woman. It was like a "night vision" picture, and Scot said it was clear that Gaetz was bragging about his relationship with her.
Gaetz wasn't one of the "cool" kids at Niceville High School, which alumni described as a cliquey school, his former classmates said. They said he mostly hung out with the debate crowd. businessinsider.com/matt-gaetz-hig…
President Trump promised good jobs and a return to greatness on the world stage during his inaugural address in 2017.
Four years on, none of these visions have been realized. Here are some key quotes from his address, and why they haven't aged well. businessinsider.com/trump-inaugura…
👉 Trump said Americans 'want great schools for their children, safe neighborhoods for their families, and good jobs for themselves.'
But he has done little to make sure people got this, instead installing controversial education secretary Betsy Devos. bit.ly/36emRkz
As for safe neighborhoods, crime has already been declining since the 1990s. But since Trump took office, cities have seen worrying spikes in homicides, especially since the pandemic.
Trump's final days in office are tailor-made to keep the spotlight on him at the expense of Biden, who is scheduled to take office at noon Wednesday, according to reports. Here’s a thread 👇 businessinsider.com/analysis-trump…
Since the attack on the US Capitol, Trump has lost allies and faces a second impeachment trial. But until noon on Wednesday, he retains the vast powers of his office — and seems intent on using them. businessinsider.com/analysis-trump…
🙏 Pardons 🙏
Trump is said to be planning a last-minute spree of pardons, which he can issue unilaterally and would spawn another chaotic news cycle. businessinsider.com/trump-plans-10…