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Extremely American

The Anti-Government Government

Published January 26, 2022 at 6:01 AM MST
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FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2021 file photo, Republican Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin addresses a rally on the Statehouse steps in Boise, Idaho. McGeachin is a far-right Republican who is running for governor. This week she sought to activate the Idaho National Guard and send soldiers to the U.S.-Mexico border while Gov. Brad Little, also a Republican, was out of state. Mainstream Idaho Republicans concerned about a takeover by the surging far-right wing of the party are asking Democrats, Independents or other affiliated voters to register as Republicans to vote in the party's May primary. (AP Photo/Keith Ridler, File)
Keith Ridler/AP
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AP
FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2021 file photo, Republican Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin addresses a rally on the Statehouse steps in Boise, Idaho. McGeachin is a far-right Republican who is running for governor. This week she sought to activate the Idaho National Guard and send soldiers to the U.S.-Mexico border while Gov. Brad Little, also a Republican, was out of state. Mainstream Idaho Republicans concerned about a takeover by the surging far-right wing of the party are asking Democrats, Independents or other affiliated voters to register as Republicans to vote in the party's May primary. (AP Photo/Keith Ridler, File)

When Idaho Gov. Brad Little left the state in April 2019, his second in command wasted no time asserting her authority as acting governor.

Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin gathered members of a prominent militia outside the Idaho capitol and administered an oath similar to one taken by new U.S. troops.

This was just the latest move for the far-right, militia-adjacent politician.

She led a full-on rebellion against the state's pandemic measures and became a fixture at rallies of the paranoid conspiracy group The John Birch Society. She even sent a Facebook post of encouragement to a militiaman imprisoned for pointing a rifle at federal agents.

McGeachin is leading a kind of anti-government government and now she and her allies are making a play to take over.

Tags
Extremely American Janice McGeachinLieutenant GovernorMilitiaAnti-Government

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