Idaho gubernatorial candidate Keith Allred hopes his past record of working with members of all political parties will serve him well on his run for the state's top office this November.
"In my bones, I'm an independent," Allred said during an interview in Ketchum on Tuesday. "I'm looking to seek out good ideas regardless of where they come from on the political spectrum."
Because of his insistence on working both sides of the aisle, Allred said he was surprised when Betty Richardson, who heads the Idaho Democratic Party candidate recruitment committee, knocked on his door and asked if he was interested in entering the race.
"It was not even remotely on my radar screen," Allred said.
At that point, Allred was celebrating the five-year anniversary of a nonprofit organization he founded, The Common Interest, with the goal of putting "common sense solutions ahead of special-interest and partisan politics in the Legislature."
But Allred jumped at the opportunity, despite the fact that it meant running in an overwhelmingly Republican state and that, by his own admission, his name recognition "isn't that good" at the moment.
For the fifth-generation Idahoan, however, those obstacles are surmountable, largely due to Allred's assessment of his competition.
"[Gov. C.L. "Butch"] Otter is the most vulnerable incumbent governor of Idaho in my lifetime," he said.
After Otter's State of the State address earlier this month, Allred found fault with the governor's plan for pulling Idaho out of the recession, criticizing the proposed budget cuts to education and other state agencies.
If elected, Allred said in the interview, he would take a different tact, making the elimination of tax exemptions a critical means of reducing the overall tax rate and increasing job creation. His plan to cut exemptions, which include tax benefits to ranchers and agricultural business owners, could find Allred in opposition to powerful lobbies.
"This is a position I want to be in. It's not a place I'm afraid to be," said Allred, who grew up in Twin Falls and spent his teens ranching in Blaine County. "As governor, I'll be able to partner with everyday Idahoans."
Allred said that as an elected official he would take the same approach to legislative issues as he has with The Common Interest, namely putting the issues to the public via random sampling of voters as a way to find consensus. By reviewing all the existing tax exemptions, Allred said, he would be able to present the pros and cons to residents and gain their input on the issue before bringing proposed legislation to the capitol.
Other priorities include instituting strategic, cost-effective programs for the state's kindergarten through 12th grade education to boost graduation rates and refrain from decreasing the department's budget further, as was proposed by Otter.
Allred, who now lives in Eagle after returning in 2003 from a seven-year stint as a professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, said Otter is making a mistake asking for additional education spending holdbacks, especially with state economists forecasting about $80 million in growth for this fiscal year and with $200 million sitting in the state's "rainy day fund."
He conceded that to protect education, cuts would have to be made in other areas of the budget. His suggestions include increases on the leases of cabins on Forest Service land, such as at Pettit Lake north of Ketchum, which, Allred contended, could bring in $20 million if the cabins are valued at market rate.
He said an additional $60 million could be added to the state's coffers simply by collecting delinquent tax payments.
"The notion that things are so tough that we have no options is just wrong," he said.
On a more local level, Allred said Blaine County, with its dependence on tourism and the real estate market, is a good indicator of Idaho's need to diversify its economy.
Jon Duval: jduval@mtexpress.com
Democrats close caucus meetings
BOISE (AP)—Democratic lawmakers in the Idaho Capitol plan to caucus in secret, just like their Republican colleagues, in a move they say is designed to maximize their effectiveness.
According to a news release, the new rules take effect immediately for House and Senate Democrats.
For years, minority Democrats—they hold just 18 House seats and seven seats in the Senate—have allowed members of the public, including reporters, into their meetings.
Last year, however, House Democrats closed at least two caucus sessions to reporters. Now, the party's lawmakers in both chambers are banning outsiders from listening in on their discussions about strategy and priorities.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keith Allred was in Ketchum on Tuesday for interviews and to meet with the Blaine County Democrats. Here, he addresses the Democrats at the Roosevelt Grill. Photo by David N. Seelig
