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One Lawmaker Is Pretty Unhappy With That Idaho Gubernatorial Debate

One Lawmaker Is Pretty Unhappy With That Idaho Gubernatorial Debate

"You’ve posted bigoted jokes on your website skewering women and gays and Jews and Asians and Polish people like me…"

The Republican primary debate for Idaho's gubernatorial race Wednesday night quickly went off the rails and never recovered due to the inclusion of two very, very colorful candidates, prompting one challenger to say later that Idaho had been made a "laughingstock."

First, see for yourself how the night went:

 

One of the long-shot candidates, Harley Brown, a U.S Navy veteran and president of an Idaho biker club, made no attempt to present himself as a serious contender. Rather, he used his time during the debate to talk about political correctness, “raising hell” and God’s call for him to be commander in chief.

The other unlikely candidate, Walt Bayes, wanted to talk about God’s judgment, the Bible and the end times.

But between the two, it was Brown who stole the show. Here are his top four debate moments, as compiled by the Conservative Intelligence Briefing:

4. Brown's opening remarks

3. Moderator question: “Mr. Brown: You’ve posted bigoted jokes on your website skewering women and gays and Jews and Asians and Polish people like me … how is that disrespect for people going to allow you to govern?”

2. Brown's solution for taking back federal lands involves "raising hell" and references to "True Grit":

1. Here are Brown's concluding remarks:

Bayes and Brown were only included in the debate at the insistence of Idaho Gov. C.L. Otter, the Washington Examiner reported Friday.

And Idaho state Sen. Russ Fulcher, Otter’s only serious primary challenger, is apparently not happy with the moderators’ decision to include Brown and Bayes, alleging that the governor insisted on their inclusion to distract from substantive debate.

“Clearly, the governor wanted to take time away from me and minimize exposure to his failed record as governor,” Fulcher said in a statement Thursday. “Apparently, Gov. Otter is content to have Idaho be a laughingstock so long as it improves his chance of winning an election.”

By Bayes’ own admission, Fulcher’s claim doesn't appear to be that far off.

“Butch, I’d like to thank you for making it possible for me to be here tonight,” Bayes said Wednesday at the end of the debate. “He kinda insisted that me and this other un-normal person could be here tonight.”

 

 

 

Follow Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) on Twitter

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