While the Associated Press hosted its annual preview of the upcoming legislative session at the capitol Friday morning, nine far right lawmakers held their own event spelling out their priorities.
They’ve christened themselves “liberty legislators.” The gang of nine held their own alternative legislative preview in Meridian Thursday night. Led by Representative Heather Scott of north Idaho, the gathering of conservative lawmakers drew around 200 people.
Among the lawmakers under the mantle of liberty legislators are Representatives Dorothy Moon, Bryan Zollinger, Priscilla Giddings, Karey Hanks, Ron Nate and Christy Zito. In the upper chamber, Dan Foreman and newly-appointed Senator Tony Potts are caucusing with the group.
The Spokesman Review reports several items are top of mind for the lawmakers in the upcoming session: Repeal the state’s grocery tax, cut red tape, get overspending under control and “defeat the liberal agenda.”
The group rallied against proposals to restore state agencies to pre-recession levels. Potts, who was tapped to fill the seat vacated by former Senate Majority Leader Bart Davis, spoke out against child immunizations. Banning the sale of illegal fireworks in Idaho was also a point of contention for the group. Focusing in on the sale of fireworks on Indian reservations, Representative Zito called moves to ban already-prohibited fireworks a protectionist deal.
The 2018 legislative session begins January 8 with the governor’s State of the State address.
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