The Idaho Way: Racist Boise captain’s words show we are still far from rooting out racism
By Scott McIntosh, opinion editor
If you like this newsletter, forward to a friend, and they can sign up here.
The city of Boise needs to clean house following revelations that a former Boise police captain holds racist views.
According to an Idaho Statesman article Sunday, Matthew Bryngelson, who retired in August after nearly 24 years with the Boise Police Department, was scheduled to speak at a conference hosted by the American Renaissance, an organization known for its white supremacist views.
In a video and in writings now tied to Bryngelson, he expresses deeply racist and, frankly, disturbing views about African Americans and “non-whites,” both as criminal suspects and as co-workers.
In his writings and the interview, Bryngelson generalizes that the worst crimes are committed by Blacks, and he characterizes Black police officers as lazy and doing the bare minimum.
The revelations about Bryngelson’s views illustrate just how much of a problem the city of Boise is contending with, when an officer who holds such abhorrent views can serve for more than two decades and rise to the level of captain.
The city of Boise needs to root out officers like Bryngelson and remove them from the department. Those kinds of attitudes have no place in society, let alone in a position of power such as a police officer.
Attorney general appointee
If I were running a business right now, writes opinion writer Bryan Clark, I would be very worried about the impending legal climate in Idaho.
Attorney General-elect Raúl Labrador recently announced his pick for solicitor general — a former Trump administration official named Theo Wold.
Wold appears to have taken on a few personae in his recent career.
In a 2020 interview on right-wing talk radio, Wold adopted the style of speech and talking points typical of the administration he worked for. He castigated the media, inveighed against “swamp creatures” ruling Washington, promised “haymakers” for Mexican cartels if his boss was reelected, and generally acted as a carbon copy of any number of Trump surrogates.
But watch his speech two months ago, and he’s changed considerably. Gone is the Trumpy style of banter. Now with an odd, vaguely European diction, Wold expounds a vision for conservatives to use government power to take control of cultural institutions.
This includes an authoritarian agenda for businesses: using the power of government to force businesses to adopt, or at least conform with, conservative values.
Read Bryan Clark’s full column here and learn why Wold’s appointment is concerning.
Required patient care in face of Idaho’s abortion ban
For years, anyone showing up at an American hospital emergency room could get the life-saving treatment they needed. No matter who they were, a federal law known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act made it clear: If you showed up at an emergency room, that hospital was obligated to do what had to be done to stabilize you.
In August 2022, Idaho’s abortion ban went into effect, and pregnant people across the state could no longer count on receiving the medical treatment they needed when they experienced severe pregnancy complications. That’s because the new laws don’t make it clear when a pregnant person’s life is enough at risk to warrant life-saving treatment.
Read the full guest column here from Wendy Heipt, a reproductive rights counsel at Legal Voice.
Subsidizing private school won’t improve public education
The president and CEO of Mountain States Policy Center, which styles itself as an “independent, free-market think tank,” recently floated a thought piece on how to improve Idaho’s public school system, Jim Jones writes in a guest column this week. First, Mountain States Policy Center contends we can restore faith in public schools by using taxpayer money to fund private education. Second, it contends we should increase transparency in public school budgeting.
Both premises are faulty, Jones writes. Here’s why.
Move beyond Trump?
U.S. Rep. Russ Fulcher, R-Idaho, who like many Republicans is wondering what happened in this year’s midterm elections, says one thing seems clear.
“We need to move beyond the conflict associated with Donald Trump,” Fulcher told guest columnist Chuck Malloy.
That’s a profound statement coming from one of the few Republicans who objected to certifying the 2020 presidential election. And it might not get him a lot of fan mail in Idaho’s 1st Congressional District, where Trump is a popular figure. But Fulcher is not the only Republican casting doubts about Trump leading the party in 2024.
Read Malloy’s full column here.
Action needed to save Medicare
Medicare in Idaho is under attack from soaring inflation, burdensome bureaucratic red tape and congressional neglect, writes Dr. Lyndon Box, a Caldwell cardiologist. Without action from Congress, Medicare cuts will be enacted, and thousands of Idahoans may lose access to their doctors. I urge our congressional delegation to drive a bipartisan solution that protects vulnerable patients in our state.
Read the full guest column here from Dr. Box and what he wants Congress to do.
I’m listening
Send me your story ideas, news tips, questions, comments, or anything else on your mind. You can reach me via email at smcintosh@idahostatesman.com.
Find me on social media:
Twitter (my DMs are open)
What you’re saying
This week, we received letters to the editor on becoming a foster parent, what it means to be pro-choice, the dangers of climate change and the humility and leadership of Cecil Andrus. You can read these and more letters by clicking here.
You can submit a letter to the editor or guest opinion by clicking here.
Like this newsletter?
If you like this newsletter, forward to a friend or colleague, and they can sign up here.
