Dear Neighbor,
What unusual times we are living in! As a candidate for the Idaho State Senate, I am reaching out to voters with my message of limited government and limited spending as a means to future economic prosperity in our state. Please visit my website, Facebook, and Instagram pages (listed on my card) for my positions.
In this letter, I will highlight the difference between the views of my opponent, Senator Van Burtenshaw, and myself, regarding the function of government. As we look at his voting record for the last six years, we can get a glimpse of his concept of government. In sharing these things, I make no reference to his character or his sincerity. I only point out that we see the proper role of government differently.
I refer you to two organizations, one national and one in-state, that evaluate and score legislation as to its adherence to principles of limited government, as outlined in the United States Constitution.
- The American Conservative Union rated my opponent, in 2018, as 58% conservative in his voting, and in 2019 as 53%. (https://www.conservative.org/ ACU Foundation: State and Federal Ratings)
- The Idaho Freedom Index rates him at 8% for 2018, at 64% for 2019 and 55% for 2020.
- The Idaho Freedom Foundation also has an Idaho Spending Index for votes on spending bills. My opponent scored 21% conservative in that rating for 2019 and 8% for 2020. By comparison, in 2020, 15 of the 21 Democrats in the legislature were rated higher than 8%. (https://idahofreedom.org/)
Those numbers show a pattern that doesn’t lead to limited government. The problem is, while the average income for Idahoans grew by 8.7% from 2017 to 2019, the state budget in that same period grew 11.6%. Is that sustainable? We then are faced with either raising taxes or cutting spending. Two examples from 2020:
House Bill 579 (Price tag: $8.8 million, annually) This bill supports Idaho Public Television (IPTV) and your taxes pay 31% of its budget. IPTV carries many valuable programs, but should your taxes go to support an entity that competes with private industry? Other television stations don’t get governmental help. That is not government’s role. Other funding sources can be found. (Some legislative sessions and Idaho Supreme Court hearings are streamed on IPTV; the state can and should pay for those.)
Senate Bill 1393 (Price tag: $69.8 million) This bill, besides increasing some funds that go to Medicaid, also funds a new program, the Idaho Health Data Exchange, a project that will put the health care records of every citizen in Idaho into one electronic data-base. Imagine who will want to get their hands on that data-base! Do you want your personal healthcare records to be there? Talk about invasion of privacy! This bill passed and is now law. Conservative legislators voted against this; my opponent didn’t.
Many more examples could be cited, but the message is clear: these votes have led to more spending, less privacy, and more government overreach. I am convinced that limiting government and its associated spending will lead to greater personal freedom and prosperity in the future!
Thank you for taking time to read this! If I am elected, I will expect you to watch the votes I cast . . . and you will see a difference!
Please support Dr. Jud Miller for District 35 Senate.