Would Greater Idaho be a Lesser Oregon? Yes.

A proposal to expand Idaho into rural parts of Oregon would be their gain and our state's tremendous loss.

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"Canyon View" by BLM Oregon & Washington is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Kevin Frazier edits The Oregon Way between zoom classes at the UC Berkeley School of Law. He’s a proud Duck and operates a nonprofit, No One Left Offline, focused on closing the digital divide.

In a push to expand Idaho into eastern Oregon and clear across to the Pacific, the president of Move Oregon’s Border for a Greater Idaho claimed that “[t]here’s a longtime cultural divide as big as the Grand Canyon between northwest Oregon and rural Oregon, and it’s getting larger.” Mike McCarter included that point in his argument to the Idaho Legislature during a hearing on the idea.

Via GreaterIdaho.org

Believe it or not, this huge, new state could become a reality simply with approval from the Oregon and Idaho legislatures and Congress. In fact, this process took place as recently as 2017, when North Carolina and South Carolina resolved a border conflict that caused 19 homes to be moved across state borders.

Believe it or not, a number of Oregonians are supportive of McCarter’s new map—two counties (Jefferson and Union) have already voted in support of creating Greater Idaho and five more counties will vote on the idea in May. McCarter hopes that once 22 of Oregon’s 36 counties have voted in favor, the Oregon Legislature will acquiescence and back the proposal.

And, believe it or not, there may be growing interest in the proposal in Idaho. The AP reported that after the hearing members of the Idaho Legislature appeared “intrigued but skeptical.”

There are six key reasons, according to McCarter, for why Oregon counties should join Idaho: (1) American Values, (2) Law and Order, (3) Low Tax, (4) Safety, (5) Thriving Economy, and (6) Representation. All of which are apparently more readily available in the Gem State. Mark Simmons, former Oregon Speaker of the House, offered a more concise rationale: the pursuit of “[v]alues of faith, family, independence.”

So, should Oregonians back this effort or at least not stand in the way of those trying to leave? No, Greater Idaho is a Lesser Oregon.

This should be Oregon’s Sputnik Moment — the point when we collectively realized that the status quo is not sufficient. The fact that so many Oregonians are desperate to feel heard, to have their values reflected in their government, and to see that their priorities are being addressed is a glaring indictment of our current approach to integrating rural Oregon into statewide decisionmaking. We need to channel Tom McCall’s notion of an “Oregon Family,” and bring all the siblings back together.

Losing Eastern Oregon would be a monumental loss to the state’s culture, economy, and political balance. What’s more, Oregon’s failure to hold onto its own would send a clear signal that the American Experiment — governing collectively by identifying compromises — has failed.

We cannot fail. Oregon’s diversity of communities, geographies, and ways of life is a source of our state’s strength. At times, that diversity can prove challenging, especially when the stakes are this high — economic turmoil, cultural tumult, and a pandemic that at times feels invincible. But, over a long time horizon, it’s clear that this diversity adds to the character and positive attributes of our home.

Greater Idaho would allow Republicans in Idaho and Democrats in Oregon to ram through their favorite bills and avoid any sort of checks from those with different perspectives. That’s not governance. That’s a surrendering to McCarter’s misleading belief that a Grand Canyon-wide gulf differentiates our values.

Oregon, Idaho, and America benefit when rural and urban communities partner together, when solutions are reached collaboratively, and when everyone feels at home. Our current way of governing hasn’t realized those strengths. McCarter and other Greater Idaho backers are right to complain about the fact that no one in Oregon’s Democratic leadership is from a truly rural community. And, they’re often right to feel as though their priorities are placed on the backburner, while their values get labeled as backwards.

We’ve got to get back to the notion of an Oregon Family. It’s on the next governor, who we’ll elect in 2022, to radically alter how Oregon governs. Our top political leader must shun the urge to take the easy path by rubber stamping Democratic ideas and catering solely to the interests of those in the Willamette Valley.

Real or perceived, the fact that some people feel that there are irreconcilable differences between rural and urban Oregonians means we simply are not trying hard enough to meet our fellow Oregonians and celebrate our shared love for this place.

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