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Senator Grow’s bill to make it harder to qualify a voter initiative for the ballot was introduced recently in the Senate State Affairs Committee.

Idaho’s Constitution is clear — political power is inherent in the people (Article 1 Section 2) and “The people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws, and enact the same at the polls independent of the legislature.” (Article II Section 1)

What Grow proposes is similar to declaring a national emergency because Congress isn’t going along.

Senator Grow’s bill will make it next to impossible for any initiative emanating from a rural area in Idaho to come in front of the voters. This bill has important unintended consequences.

Our U.S. senators are having heartburn over Trump’s emergency declaration as they think ahead and wonder about opening the door for any president to override Congress. Idaho’s legislators ought to think ahead to the door that they open. When we act on ideology over principle, we will come to rue that day.

Rand Paul had a few things to say about this in a recent op-ed. Paul warned of the dangers of doing a work around the Constitution. His cautions apply to Idaho and Prop 2. Paul says: “I would literally lose my political soul if I decided to treat President Trump different than President Obama ... the only way to be an honest officeholder is to stand up for the same principles no matter who is in power.

Likewise Idahoans need to stand for the State Constitution no matter who is in power.

MARY OLLIE

Bonners Ferry