“Ground Control to Major Tom. Your circuit’s dead, there’s something wrong. Can you hear me, Major Tom?”

— David Bowie

While Idaho has been dealing with the apocalypse here in the real world, Mike Simpson proposes a plan to kill hydro-power that makes electricity in the Pacific Northwest affordable with the stated goal of saving the salmon. And it’s not just his salmon plan, but also his Great American Outdoors Act to fund the national parks, while we were all fighting to hold onto jobs and feed the kids in the middle of a pandemic. Idaho doesn’t exist in a bubble. Despite not being at the forefront of many national topics of discussion, national topics are still very much present for us back here at home. One is left questioning this seeming disregard for the world Congressman Simpson’s constituents increasingly find themselves in, and the response is reminiscent of the Marie Antoinette trope “let them cake!” Or maybe it should be “let them eat fish”?

The neo-Marxist insurgence, pandemic, electoral malfeasance, mass media and big tech censorship: are all hot topics around the country, and yet it seems Mike is out to lunch. We’re getting more action on these fronts in the state Legislature than we are in D.C., and that’s a shame. At the national level, Idaho leads the charge from the state Legislature on numerous topics. From gun rights to banning critical race theory in the public school curriculum, to electoral reform, to banning abortion beyond fetal heartbeats, Idaho is running at the front of the conservative pack.

Yet here in East Idaho we’re feasting on milquetoast and salmon croquettes. Why is this the case? How is it that Western Idaho leads with the Raul Labradors and Russ Fulchers of the state, and we get Barney Fife? Don’t get me wrong, this is not a personal attack on Mike Simpson. I’m sure he is a fine gentleman; so was Barney Fife. But this is an attack on Mike’s job performance. When we serve in public roles and on the public dime there is a certain expectation to lead from the front and not the rear, better yet from outer space. Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Just today was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. A few months ago I wrote about how Democrats excel in beating a dead horse that serves as nothing more than propaganda press for the Democrat Party and distracts from real progress in this country. Today, Mike crossed the aisle against party leadership’s desire to make some glue with the Democrat Party and resuscitate the Jan. 6 “Insurrection” narrative. Democrats passed a Congressional commission to investigate Jan. 6, which is duplicitous of existing work by the Department of Justice. Let there be no doubt we’ll be getting the Adam Schiff failed Hollywood screenplay version of the Civil War that never happened. And they didn’t need a single conservative to vote for their latest time and money sink, yet the usual suspects and 25 of their Republican-In-Name-Only (RINO) cohort joined them. Poor company choice, Mike. Never mind that just this week new video footage emerged of protestors receiving explicit permission from Capitol Police to enter facilities upon reaching and promoting an agreement on conduct within Capitol premises.

Back in January, I felt as though there was more than sufficient evidence to challenge the results of the November 2020 election, and several state legislatures came to the same conclusion. For my part, I blew up Congressman Simpson’s phones and sent him certified letters on the subject as well. Mike Simpson refused to raise the slightest objection to the results, despite the urging of much of Idaho and Idaho leadership. This state went 64 percent for Donald Trump, and I’m sure I’m not alone in my disgust with our representation. I question whether Congressman Simpson is checked out, or if he is just past his expiration date? 2022 will mark 24 years in office for Mike. I was a junior in high school when he entered Congress and celebrated my 20-year reunion two years ago. Whatever happened to the citizen-statesman? Serving in Congress was supposed to be a part-time endeavor and not a career. By his actions Congressman Simpson either doesn’t grasp the existential impasse we find ourselves in as a country and isn’t made for this time, or he represents the conservative establishment that has seen us lose every foothold in the ongoing culture wars.

“Nothing so strongly impels a man to regard the interest of his constituents, as the certainty of returning to the general mass of the people, from whence he was taken, where he must participate in their burdens.” — George Mason

Brian Parsons has been a resident of Pocatello for the past seven years. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in digital media from the University of Georgia and a Master of Science degree in information systems from the University of Utah. He’s a digital marketing consultant, a proud husband and father, and an unabashed paleo conservative. You can follow him on his blog at WithdrawConsent.org.