Saturday Roundup: 5/18/24

Yesterday evening I uploaded the last of 41 interviews conducted over the course of 30 days. (I might add one more soon, so stay tuned!) All are available on the Gem State Chronicle as well as YouTube, Rumble, Twitter, and Facebook.

This week at the Chronicle…

I spent much of the week recording and editing interviews, so I did not write as many articles as usual. However, on Monday I looked at how several outside groups were spending big money in this year’s campaigns and asked why the stakes were so high.

The next day, 16 legislators released a letter in which they renounced their membership in the Hazlitt Coalition, a network of state lawmakers sponsored by Young Americans for Liberty, one of the outside groups I discussed in the previous article.

Fred Birnbaum of the Idaho Freedom Foundation took a critical look at C. Scott Green, president of the University of Idaho, who has been donating a lot of money to candidates who support his plan to buy the University of Phoenix for half a billion dollars.

Every Wednesday I publish your letters to the editor. This week featured a letter asking questions about Sen. Chuck Winder paying for travel expenses via his campaign. If you would like to see your letter published at the Chronicle, email the editor.

In other news…

The Zoomer historian Rudyard Lynch of Whatifalthist published an extremely sobering video about what the next century might look like. I keep saying we have crossed into uncharted territory as a society. This is the sort of thing that many older Republicans simply don’t grasp — we’re not going back to 1776, 1952, or 1984. The only way out is through, which requires new ideas and strategies.

Jeremy Carl is a Hoover Institute fellow who has written a book calling out the pervasive anti-white racism in our society. It’s tempting to dismiss such things for fear of being labeled a racist or white nationalist, but this is now a mainstream conversation, with figures such as Jack Posobiec and Matt Walsh recognizing what is going on. Carl spoke to the folks at American Moment last week:

Auron MacIntyre had several good videos this week as usual, but I want to highlight this one in which he explains that democracy has been solved as a meta game. Too many conservatives still think politics is a debating forum where the best ideas naturally win, but that’s completely wrong and the reason we so often lose at the ballot box. Watch the whole video, it will change the way you see our political system:

The recently-doxed Lomez wrote a piece several months ago about the persecution of Douglass Mackey for making memes that mocked Hillary Clinton in 2016. He explains how this case is a bellwether for the status of our freedom of speech in the future.

Finally, 44 years ago Mt. St. Helens erupted, destroying hundreds of acres of pristine land around the mountain and covering cities as far away as Montana in a layer of ash. This documentary published just weeks after the eruption shows the aftermath:

Upcoming events…

Come out to Well Reformed Church at 1400 N Cole Rd. on Monday, May 20 at 6:30pm to hear me speak about getting involved in the political process. You’ll also hear a panel discussion from others who have been getting involved as well.

Join me the next day at the Ronald Reagan Republican Club of West Ada County luncheon on Tuesday, May 21, at 11:30am at Fiesta Guadalajara in Meridian. I’ll talk about the state of politics in Idaho, what’s going on with the Republican Party, and everything from the legislative session to ranked choice voting. Stop by for lunch after voting and bring your questions!

Finally, join me for a video stream live from the Riverside Hotel where the Idaho GOP is hosting a primary night party. I’ll bring you results as they come in as well as exclusive interviews with candidates, party officials, and other political junkies like me. Right now I’m planning to stream to YouTube, since that’s the most reliable platform, but I’m still evaluating my options.

Make sure to subscribe, follow me on Twitter, and follow the Chronicle on Facebook, Telegram, YouTube, and Rumble. Have a great weekend!