The University of Idaho Argonaut

This past week marked a high point for many Idahoans, a low for others. President Bush, for the first time, came to visit the great state of Idaho. His arrival in Boise was marked by a flurry of preparations, including the assembly of a small army of secret service agents, Idaho state police, and other security officials. Gowen Field was all but sealed off on Monday in anticipation of the president’s arrival.

The First Texan emerged from Air Force One, followed by his loyal local lapdog Dirk Kempthorne, who took it upon himself to escort the president throughout his stay in Idaho. Of course, this afforded our governor a plethora of photographs with President Bush, which will no doubt be of great use on Kempthorne’s next tax sponsored goodwill trip to China.

Bush spent a few minutes shaking hands with various officials and pseudo-dignitaries until he was ushered off on Marine One bound for Tamarack Resort, near Donnelly. He spent the next two days fishing, mountain biking and avoiding photographers at the premier resort for Idaho’s aristocracy. No doubt this will bolster the popularity of the fledgling ski resort, where several prestigious Idahoans, including Kempthorne, are landowners.

On Wednesday, he returned to the Idaho Center in Nampa. He gave a speech to a crowd of 9,000, two-thirds of whom were military personnel and their families.

The president’s speech touched on a few issues, including the fact that Idaho has deployed 1,700 members of its National Guard to Iraq. This is the highest percentage deployment of soldiers than any state in the nation.

Bush continued to drive home his point of continuing threats of terrorism. “We face dangerous enemies who want to harm our people,” Bush said. “The only way to protect citizens where we live is to go after terrorists where they live.” These canned lines drove the selected audience into an uproar of support, resulting in a total of 17 standing ovations during the 43-minute speech.

Notably absent from the crowd invited to view the president’s speech were protestors and other outspoken dissidents. One hundred and fifty people gathered outside of the Idaho Center to voice their opposition to Bush’s policies and the war in Iraq.

The presence of these protestors, as well as many others across the nation, was downplayed during President Bush’s visit. Very little attention was given to issues in the Middle East, or to the fact that Bush’s national polls have settled into a steady decline. Instead, Bush took it upon himself to thank Idahoans personally for their sacrifices by vacationing for two days and delivering a prepared speech.

Whatever the ramifications of his visit may be, it seems clear that Bush’s visit to Idaho did little more than serve the interests of other parties within the state that will use the occasion to bolster their images and financial standings. Sadly, the true point, the fact that even a state as small as Idaho is making its contributions to the nation’s welfare, was overlooked in lieu of more trivial and self-serving issues.