Is "Greater Idaho" great for Eastern Oregonians?

 As written before on this blog, there is a burgeoning movement in Idaho and Eastern Oregon to annex east Oregon counties into the state of Idaho. This is a grassroots movement centered around Oregon counties seceding from the state because, according to a spokesperson for the movement, they are "socially, culturally, economically, and politically much more aligned with the Idahoans than they are with Western Oregonians." So far, 11 out of the 15 counties in Eastern Oregon have voted on ballot initiatives indicating they would prefer leaving Oregon and becoming part of Idaho. Greater Idaho itself, if ratified, would take 63% of Oregon's landmass and move 15 counties. 

In Oregon, there are 10 counties that are considered to be frontier, according to the Oregon Office of Rural Health. Of those 10, 8 have already voted on ballots to leave the state of Oregon and be a part of Idaho, and the two remaining currently have ballot initiatives to leave Oregon. It has been noted by those in the Greater Idaho movement that of the 11 counties that have voted to leave Oregon, the vote has been 60% to 40% in favor of leaving. This suggests that there are strong sentiments among Eastern Oregonians to leave the state because of the dissonant values that they have compared to Western Oregon. 

The Greater Idaho movements points to several issues that align the Eastern Oregon counties with Idahoan values. Many have pointed out that the "State of Portland" is antithetical to the voices of Eastern Oregon people, with people moving from Western Oregon because they feel like they do not have a voice in state politics. This has led to Eastern Oregon becoming a home to "political refugees" where there is a "conservative majority, and no discontent or disconnect." 

The Greater Idaho movement identifies several "perks" to seceding to Idaho, including the fact that Idahoans pay less than $1,722 less in taxes than Oregonians. It also notes that Idaho's regulatory and tax regimes would allow Eastern Oregon "rural industries" to be "revived." Annexation of the 15 counties would "take pressure off of Idaho's housing market" and "reduce the growth in traffic and reduce the loss of Idaho farmland to suburban housing." Finally, it identifies the fact that because of Oregon's tax scheme, the "Western part of the state has to subsidize the Eastern part of the state 'at the tune of a few hundred dollars per person." 

In terms of the legal questions surrounding the movement, advocates for Greater Idaho have pointed to the fact that "state lines have been relocated many times in American history because it just takes an interstate compact between two state legislatures and approval of Congress." This year, to initiate the interstate compact, Oregon state senator Dennis Lithicum of Klamath Falls introduced a bill that requests "discussions between Oregon and Idaho government regarding relocation of the Oregon and Idaho border." However, critics of the movement say that it would further the political divide between progressives and conservatives rather than promoting healthy discourse within the political system. The state House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel said that moving the border of the states in order for Eastern Oregonians to live with "like-minded people, instead of trying to settle differences through discussion, 'could leave to the downfall of America,' and is a 'recipe for civil war.'" 

This movement seems to speak directly to the growing divide between rural and urban areas within states. It suggests that having rural areas being subsumed by other rural states would lead to more representation for people that feel like their voices are silenced by more urban, liberal parts of their states. This is something that has been discussed for years, as rural parts of states express more and more discontent with state politics being dominated by the larger cities of the states. It raises an important question of whether rural and urban communities' values can be reconciled. This movement argues that it is more beneficial for rural areas to be clustered with other rural communities in order to promote similar financial, social, and cultural interests that are otherwise ignored or dismissed by urban centers.

Conclusively, I lean more towards the sentiments expressed by House Minority Leader Rubel. I think rural and urban communities have much to learn from each other. Further isolating rural communities from urban culture and politics would further the divide that fuels America's culture and political wars that are already tearing at the political system. But again, this movement is rooted in grassroots organizing that is predicated on rural communities feeling dispossessed and a desire to align with states and people that share their lifestyles and values.