{"id":1752142,"date":"2022-11-26T07:32:45","date_gmt":"2022-11-26T12:32:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1752142"},"modified":"2022-11-26T11:18:23","modified_gmt":"2022-11-26T16:18:23","slug":"greater-idaho-moves-closer-to-bi-state-referendum-as-two-more-oregon-counties-vote-to-leave-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/greater-idaho-moves-closer-to-bi-state-referendum-as-two-more-oregon-counties-vote-to-leave-2\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cGreater Idaho\u201d Moves Closer to Bi-State Referendum As Two More Oregon Counties Vote to Leave"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgreater-idaho-moves-closer-to-bi-state-referendum-as-two-more-oregon-counties-vote-to-leave-2%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1752142&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Two more conservative-leaning counties in eastern <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-oregon\">Oregon<\/a>, and one politically split county in California, have voted to begin the process that could lead to secession from their respective blue states.<\/p>\n<p>On Nov. 8, Oregon\u2019s Morrow County passed the Greater <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-idaho\">Idaho<\/a> proposal with 60 percent of the vote and Wheeler County with 59 percent.<\/p>\n<p>A similar measure in San Bernardino County, California, passed by a narrow margin, 51.3 percent to 48.7.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese are solutions they want their elected leaders to look into,\u201d said Matt McCaw, spokesman for the Greater Idaho Movement based in Oregon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe think it makes sense to move the border to where the cultural divide [exists]. Oregon is a very polarized state\u2014two very different cultures.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2696032\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2018\/10\/22\/progressive-utopia-1200x819.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy size-medium wp-image-2696032\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/progressive-utopia-600x409-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"409\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2696032\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/progressive-utopia-600x409-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"409\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Police clash with anti-Trump protesters during a protest on June 4, 2017 in Portland, Oregon. (Scott Olson\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>The Greater Idaho Movement seeks as many as 15 counties in Republican-majority rural eastern Oregon to join with neighboring Idaho to the east.<\/p>\n<p>So far, 11 counties have signed on since the movement launched in 2019. Another county will vote on whether to investigate the secession process early in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>If both states ultimately agree to separation, the next step would be to form an interstate compact between Idaho and Oregon, something McCaw believes has \u201cplenty of popular support.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The benefits would be mutual, he said.<\/p>\n<p>For example, though Oregon would end up losing about 400,000 (9 percent) of its population and ceding 63 percent of its land mass to Idaho, a\u00a0political merger would end the longstanding partisan divide in Oregon, where Democrats comprise 47 percent of the electorate.<\/p>\n<p>The situation is nearly the reverse in Idaho, with nearly 84,000 square miles, 2 million residents, and a gross domestic product that exceeds $79 billion. Moreover, nearly 50 percent of the state leans conservative and Republican.<\/p>\n<p>Oregon, by contrast, encompasses more than 98,000 square miles and has 4 million residents and a gross domestic product of $224 billion. Vast swathes of some 30 million acres of productive forestland lie in the eastern part of the state.<\/p>\n<p>McCaw said most of Oregon\u2019s wealth comes from industry and finance in the western coastal area, where liberal politicians in the state\u2019s largest city of Portland often decide the state\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe west side of the state is urban and very left-learning. The right side of the state is very rural\u2014very conservative. Eastern Oregonians match culture and values, and politics with Idaho.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3446856\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/08\/02\/BLM-protest-in-Portland-1200x799.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy size-medium wp-image-3446856\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/BLM-protest-in-Portland-600x399-1.jpg\" alt=\"Black Lives Matter protesters\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3446856\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/BLM-protest-in-Portland-600x399-1.jpg\" alt=\"Black Lives Matter protesters\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> A Black Lives Matter riot in a file photo in Portland, Oregon. (Noah Berger\/AP Photo)<\/figure>\n<p>McCaw said that political and cultural polarization is a problem not only in Oregon but across the United States. He said there is a \u201chuge urban [and] rural divide\u201d that is \u201conly getting bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said that disapproval with the 2022 midterm elections among conservatives would only fuel partisan realignments at the state and county levels.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re about matching government to people and their values. You get rid of polarization and tension by matching people to the government they want,\u201d McCaw told The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>In San Bernardino County, with more than 2 million residents, real estate developer Jeff Burum proposed Measure EE as a way to leave California and create the new state of Empire.<\/p>\n<p>At issue is the state\u2019s apparent inability to supply the resources or funding to support a growing population.<\/p>\n<p>The measure asked voters their \u201copinion on whether they want San Bernardino County elected representatives to study and advocate for all options to obtain the county\u2019s fair share of state funding, including secession from the state of California.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Burum told The San Bernardino Sun, \u201cI would never wilfully want to leave this state. But I can tell you this, if you\u2019re just going to continue to abuse me and abuse us, sometimes you don\u2019t have a choice but to stand up for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Jack Pitney, a professor of American politics at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, told the Daily Press there is a \u201cvery low probability\u201d Measure EE would succeed, given that there are constitutional hurdles to overcome.<\/p>\n<p>He said the Constitution requires a vote of the state legislature to allow secession and the U.S. Congress to approve the establishment of a new state.<\/p>\n<p>West Virginia was the last state to secede at the height of the Civil War in 1863.\u00a0Until 1792, Kentucky was a part of Virginia, and Maine a part of Massachusetts before separating to become an independent state in 1820.<\/p>\n<p>Another example is Washington, once a part of the Oregon Territory before it split from Oregon and became a territory in 1853 and the 42nd state in 1889.<\/p>\n<p>In Idaho, Republican state Rep. Barbara Ehardt said she supports the Greater Idaho movement as a \u201cwin-win\u201d for both states even though it\u2019s far from being a done deal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStates rights\u2014that\u2019s why I favor this movement. At some point, states will have to get the courage and rise and say, you know what? We\u2019re not playing in that sandbox because it\u2019s corrupt. We\u2019re going to do what we need to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first heard about this [movement] it resonated. Why wouldn\u2019t we want to explore this, given that Idaho has been the No. 1 state in the nation for percentage of growth?\u00a0If this weren\u2019t a win for Idaho, I wouldn\u2019t be behind it,\u201d Ehardt told The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>Ehardt said the more liberal-leaning parts of Oregon would benefit from fewer political struggles with conservatives and tax subsidies of the state\u201ds less affluent eastern half. There would be \u201czero exchange\u201d of congressional seats, and a more unified culture.<\/p>\n<p>The gains for Idaho would come from natural resources\u2014minerals, water, timber, and the acquisition of Coos Bay, an important commercial hub.<\/p>\n<p>As one of the nation\u2019s fastest-growing areas for conservatives, Idaho\u2019s right-leaning base would gain from the infusion of 400,000 new residents, many of whom would likely vote Republican, Ehardt said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4850694\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2022\/11\/08\/vlcsnap-2022-11-04-17h05m53s594-1-1-1200x675.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy size-medium wp-image-4850694\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vlcsnap-2022-11-04-17h05m53s594-1-1-600x338-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-4850694\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/vlcsnap-2022-11-04-17h05m53s594-1-1-600x338-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Oregon rancher Lane Roelle in Siskiyou County, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2022. (The Epoch Times)<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s opposition among Democrats in Idaho, as one would expect,\u201d Ehardt said.<\/p>\n<p>Among conservatives, however, \u201cthey\u2019re thinking politically to preserve a way of life because of insane policies that will destroy their way of life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Several Democratic state lawmakers in Oregon did not respond to The Epoch Times\u2019 request for comment on the idea of county secession.<\/p>\n<p>At this stage, Ehardt views Greater Idaho as something of a \u201clong shot,\u201d but not impossible to achieve.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019d probably need a little divine intervention. I don\u2019t mind saying that. Because I believe in that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McCaw said the issue is\u00a0\u201cless about red versus blue state but whether this makes sense. The answer is \u2018yes\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4182253\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2021\/12\/28\/72EF43AD-3C4C-4632-9ED5-39EEBBE31398-1200x800.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy size-medium wp-image-4182253\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/72EF43AD-3C4C-4632-9ED5-39EEBBE31398-600x400-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-4182253\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/72EF43AD-3C4C-4632-9ED5-39EEBBE31398-600x400-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Nikki Conley chose a small town in Idaho to start her orchard, after years of toiling in front of a computer as a graphic designer. (Ben Norwood)<\/figure>\n<p>Some states, such as Texas, have taken matters a step further, demanding secession from the United States to become a separate country.<\/p>\n<p>In June, the Texas Republican Party endorsed a referendum on the state seceding from the United States and forming an independent republic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think people are recognizing it doesn\u2019t make sense to keep the [political] tug of war going,\u201d McCaw said. \u201cIt\u2019s only getting more polarized. We\u2019re only getting more different.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McCaw said that if Oregonians want a left-leaning government, \u201cthey should get left-leaning government.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEastern Oregon is not that way. It wants a right-leaning government. Let states make those decisions. Let border decisions make sense when [borders] are drawn.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, McCaw feels Greater Idaho has gained enough support and momentum to bring the measure to a referendum vote in both states, possibly in 2024.\u00a0He said in poll after poll, conservative residents in both states\u2014even many Democrats\u2014feel that divorce \u201cmakes sense\u201d in the current political environment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe feel like we\u2019ve proved at this point that eastern Oregon wants this as a solution,\u201d McCaw said.\u00a0\u201cWe believe we can make this happen.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"author_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"one_author_block round\">\n<div class=\"top_row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/author-allan-stein\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Allan-Stein.jpeg\" alt=\"Allan Stein\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Follow<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Allan Stein is an Epoch Times reporter who covers the state of Arizona.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two more conservative-leaning counties in eastern Oregon, and one politically split county in California, have voted to begin the process that could lead to secession from their respective blue states.On<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1751569,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1752142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1752142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1752142"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1752142\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1751569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1752142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1752142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1752142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}