America is a fascinating nation. It exhibits elements of every religion and every political system human history has chosen to show us. And now, thanks to the misdirected energy of the Coeur d’Alene City Council, we have the elements of Fascism.

State and federal wage and hour laws set minimum wages. They tell us what we must pay people. The EEOC tells us whom we may hire. And anti-discrimination laws tell us whom we may engage in commerce with. If history has any salient thing to teach us it is that these laws will all become more invasive and yes; anti-discrimination laws will achieve federal status. These laws are not scriptural. That they are constitutional is equivocal at best. They do not protect personal freedom or property rights; they diminish personal freedom and property rights and Honorable Councilman Gookin stood in a room filled to overflowing with his constituents who overwhelmingly expressed their opposition to Coeur d’Alene’s proposed anti-discrimination ordinance which Honorable Councilman Gookin then voted in favor of.

Honorable Councilman Gookin was recently quoted in the Coeur d’Alene Press as saying the Republican Central Committee is powerless:

“They have no business stepping on our toes telling us to repeal an ordinance, it’s way out of line,” he said, calling the action a sign of “dysfunction. They have no political power whatsoever, but for some reason they think they do.”

It is my strident wish to disabuse Honorable Councilman Gookin, of that to which he has incautiously harkened; the PCs have power. With more than 65 of the 70 precinct positions filled we outnumber Honorable Councilman Gookin, and taken on an individual basis all elected officials in Kootenai County, more than 65 to one. If the PCs choose to go door to door in every precinct in Kootenai County and render any elected official unelected, it will be so. The power is inherent and it is ours to wield or withhold as we see fit. That is the very definition of power.

Honorable Councilman Gookin’s unsustainable accusation that the Republican Central Committee is “dysfunctional” should be formally retracted and as with any unsustainable accusation an apology should accompany the retraction.

We, all the elected officials in Kootenai County, must keep our discourse at the highest possible level. We must exhibit deference to one another’s power as the voters see fit to mete that power to us.

BRUCE MADDUX

Kootenai County Republican Central Committee

Precinct 12 Committeeman

Legislative Subcommittee