Janice McGeachin Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Analysis: How Critical Race Theory Turned Into A Political ‘Bogeyman’ In Idaho And Across The U.S.

By NWPB News July 5, 2021

Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin’s task force on school indoctrination meets at the Statehouse on June 24. CREDIT: Nik Streng/Idaho Education News

As education culture wars consumed the Statehouse this spring, the running joke was that Idaho educators were scrambling to Google to figure out what “critical race theory” is. Things aren’t much different now. So, think of this as summer school.Read More

Idaho Lt. Governor’s Ad-Hoc, Voluntary Task Force Seeks To Root Out ‘Indoctrination’ In Schools

By NWPB News June 26, 2021

Members of the indoctrination task force look at slides presented by Rep. Priscilla Giddings Thursday. Nik Streng/Idaho Education News

The “Task Force to Examine Indoctrination in Idaho Education” reconvened Thursday — in a meeting marked by a rocky start, a tense middle and a slow end.Read More

Extremism Expert Calls Idaho Critical Race Theory Debate A ‘Cynical’ Effort To Rally GOP Voters

By NWPB News June 14, 2021

Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin speaks at an anti-mask protest on the steps of the Idaho Capitol Tuesday. Nik Streng/Idaho Education News

A national expert on race and extremism said a recent spate of attacks on “critical race theory” in Idaho are part of a growing effort by conservative Republicans to exploit anxiety and engage voters in upcoming elections.Read More

In Idaho, The Next Political Fight Is Not Blue Versus Red, But What Shade Of Red The State Will Be

By NWPB News June 8, 2021

Ammon Bundy, center, who led the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation, stands on the Idaho Statehouse steps in Boise. Mainstream and far-right Republicans are battling for control of the party and the state in deeply conservative Idaho. CREDIT: Keith Ridler/AP

Mainstream Idaho Republicans, who have dominated the state for three decades and would be considered far right in many states, have themselves become targets, including protests at lawmakers’ homes. They fear disinformation and intimidation is driving the changes in the rural Western state.Read More

Analysis: Unmasking The Political Strategy Of Idaho Lt. Governor Janice McGeachin

By NWPB News June 3, 2021

For anyone who somehow missed last week’s news, the lieutenant governor made the most of her brief stint as acting governor. With Gov. Brad Little in Nashville, Tenn., for a Republican Governors Association conference, McGeachin issued an executive order rescinding local mask mandates. McGeachin said she wanted to keep kids from being forced to wear a mask — at least in Read More

Idaho Governor Overturns Mask Ban From His Own Lt. Governor, Calls It ‘Self-Serving Political Stunt’

By NWPB News May 28, 2021

File photo. Idaho Gov. Brad Little puts on a face mask before a public meeting earlier this year. So far he has resisted calls for a statewide mandate. On Sunday, Nov. 8, the governor of Utah, Idaho's southern neighbor, imposed a mask mandate. CREDIT: Idaho Education News

Idaho Gov. Brad Little on Friday issued an executive order repealing a mask mandate prohibition put in place while he was out of the state by the lieutenant governor, describing her actions as a tyrannical abuse of power and an “irresponsible, self-serving political stunt.”Read More

While Governor Is Away, Idaho Lt. Governor Issues Order Banning All Mask Mandates For Schools

By NWPB News May 27, 2021

Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin speaks at a Boise rally on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, when she announced her run for Idaho Gov. CREDIT: Sami Edge/Idaho EdNews

While acting as governor in Gov. Brad Little’s absence on Thursday, Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin issued an executive order prohibiting mask mandates issued by the state or its “political subdivisions,” including public schools, counties, cities and public health districts. It also extends to state boards, commissions, departments and divisions.Read More

Janice McGeachin, Idaho’s 2nd In Command, Announces Bid For Governor, Setting Tight GOP Primary

By NWPB News May 19, 2021

Ending months of speculation, Republican Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin officially entered the governor’s race Wednesday. McGeachin’s entry into the gubernatorial race sets up a potential showdown, and clash of ideologies, in the May 2022 GOP primary.Read More

Idaho Budget For Teacher Salaries Stalls After Pushback Over Social Justice And Race Theory Education

By NWPB News April 13, 2021

Rep. Matthew Bundy, a school teacher and Mountain Home Republican, debates for the teacher salary bill Tuesday, April 13, 2021. CREDIT: Idaho Education News/screenshot

The state’s K-12 teacher salaries budget fell Tuesday on a 34-34 tie vote after more than an hour of volatile debate — ranging from anecdotes about good teachers and “bad actors” to accusations that educators are being forced to include critical race theory in their coursework. Stories from teacher-lawmakers on both sides of the issue focused on the content’s presence — or Read More

A Novel Virus Exposes An Old Rift Within Idaho’s GOP

By NWPB News May 26, 2020

Gov. Brad Little delivers his State of the State address on Jan. 6, with Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin seated behind him. McGeachin has been among the state’s most vocal critics of Little’s coronavirus response. CREDIT: Sami Edge/Idaho EdNews

In Idaho, the divide between Gov. Brad Little and Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin is something we all could see coming — grounded, in part, by the fact that Idaho elects its governors and lieutenant governors independently. Little has no more say in this matter than any individual Idaho voter. Read More