Express
photos by David N. Seelig
Craig holds town
hall meeting
Senator addresses
mental health, wolves, forests
By GREG
STAHL
Express Staff Writer
Sen.
Larry Craig, R-Idaho, conducted a town hall meeting Friday in Ketchum.
About 70
valley residents gathered Friday at the American Legion Hall in Ketchum to
communicate concerns and ideas to Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho. The town hall
meeting was one in a series Craig held across Southern Idaho this month.
Wood River
Valley residents covered issues from gray wolf reintroduction and forest
logging to mental illness and genetically altered food. Many chastised
Idaho’s senior senator for what they view as his skewed political
stances on public lands management.
Even so,
Craig said he values such meetings.
"This
gives me a chance to gain your thinking," he said.
Craig
listened and responded in a question-and-answer format.
-
Tewa
Evans, president of the local National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
chapter, used the opportunity to lobby a senate bill that would
provide those with health insurance equal coverage for mental health
benefits.
"We
know mental illness is treatable if it can be paid for," Evans said.
Tewa
Evans, president of the local National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
chapter, lobbied for equal coverage for mental health benefits.
She pointed
out that Idaho ranks 49th in the nation for mental illness
coverage, and that Blaine County has the highest suicide rate in Idaho.
The state has the fifth highest suicide rate in the nation, she said.
The bill,
the Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act, would cover the full range of
severe mental illness, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major
depression, obsessive-compulsive and panic disorders and serious childhood
mental illnesses.
The bill is
cosponsored by Sens. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and Paul Wellstone, D-Minn.
Criag said
he is studying the legislation, but has not signed on as a co-sponsor.
The
concern, Craig said, is that businesses might stop providing insurance to
their employees if premiums go up as a result of the greater costs
incurred by providing mental health benefits.
Lynne
Stone, an environmentalist and the executive director of the Boulder
White Cloud Council
"I
would prefer that the wolves not be here," Craig admitted. "I do
not believe they should be able to push livestock off the land. But the
reality is this: You’ve got your wolves, and they’re going to
stay."
Craig also
readily admitted his opposition to Clinton’s roadless policy, which has
to be re-addressed following a federal court ruling in Boise last spring.
"It
became obvious to me that there was a pre-drawn conclusion," Craig
said. "The rule’s down, and it will stay down, I believe. But we
still have to deal with the roadless issue, and we must."
Craig
advocated selection of road-free public lands on a national
forest-by-forest basis.
"A lot
of times, we forget the local decision making process," he said.
Craig said
he likes President George W. Bush "because he’s strong, he’s
bright."
"He
puts very talented people around him. He delegates authority and lets that
authority run.
"It’s
a busy time. It’s a challenging time in Washington," Craig said.
"But it’s an exciting time."