West
Conservative portion of blue state looking to break off and join neighboring red state
Oregon’s ideological fault lines exposed during the anti-police riots of 2020 are again coming to the fore, as the Greater Idaho movement looks to sever the conservative geographic majority of the state from the urban progressive movement.
“This movement has always been about the people of Eastern Oregon, getting their voice heard and helping those communities get the kind of state-level governance they actually want,” executive director Matt McCaw told Fox News Digital.
“If the Oregon Legislature truly believes in democracy, they will honor those voters’ wishes and move forward on making a border change happen.”
But similar attempts at secession have produced mixed results in U.S. history.
Earlier this month, state Rep. Mark Owens, R-Malheur, put forward HB 3844, the measure that creates and directs a task force to document the impacts of relocating the Idaho border to include about 13 eastern Oregon counties, and requires a report be presented to lawmakers in Salem. He did not respond to a request for comment.
GREATER IDAHO MOVEMENT GAINS MOMENTUM
The Greater Idaho movement began putting such measures up for votes in various localities in 2020, and efforts have intensified as several incidents and issues in the geographically smaller but denser-populated coastal region have caused political divisions.
During the anti-police riots of 2020, Oregon was front-and-center as protesters vandalized Portland and made a dayslong violent stand in front of the Mark Hatfield Federal Courthouse. But in the eastern two-thirds of Oregon, the conservative geographic majority of the state does not often ideologically align with their urban brethren.
Greater Idaho president Mike McCarter said of the new legislative development: “We are encouraged to see the representatives of Eastern Oregon coming together to advocate for their voters by bringing these bills to the Legislature. The people of Eastern Oregon have made clear they want to explore moving the border and joining Idaho.
“This movement has always been about the people of Eastern Oregon, getting their voice heard and helping those communities get the kind of state-level governance they actually want.”
By shifting the border, proponents believe both states have a “win-win” – in that the people living in each would better reflect the established political majority and lower political tension.
NY LAWMAKER CALLS FOR STATEN ISLAND TO SECEDE
In New York City’s Staten Island, there has been a movement afoot for decades seeking to break from the Big Apple. (AP Photo)
A report in the Central Oregonian noted an “interstate compact” is part of what is required to move the line, and cited other border-shifting bills in other states.
One would forward the cause of adding several rural Illinois counties that don’t see eye-to-eye with Springfield or Chicago to more closely aligned Indiana. Another in Iowa would allow the same movement for counties in the Land of Lincoln that are closer to the Hawkeye State line.
Idaho GOP Gov. Brad Little and Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek did not respond to requests for comment.
So far, only a few such movements regarding either secession or redrawing of state lines have been successful.
The now-55 counties of West Virginia voted to secede from the then-Confederate Virginia and independently ratified the U.S. Constitution on June 20, 1863.
A Washington Post story on the matter said Mountaineers split from Virginia as a way of “defending the ‘United States’… rather than the ‘seceded states’.”
In New York City’s Staten Island – the “forgotten borough” as many locals call it – there has been a movement afoot for decades seeking to break from the Big Apple.
Already geographically distant on the “New Jersey side” of the Hudson River, the borough is also separated from the Garden State by the Kill Van Kull and Arthur Kill.
Efforts to reestablish the reliably-red borough as the city of Richmond (after its coterminous county) or other names began with a favor from then-Gov. Mario Cuomo in the 1980s.
Cuomo enraged city leaders but endeared himself to the working-class voters on the island by approving state Sen. John J. Marchi’s push for a secession referendum.
Marchi, who died in 2006 and now has a Staten Island Ferry named in his honor, saw his borough vote nearly 2-1 to secede in 1993 – only to have their desires quashed by Albany’s Democratic majority.
And while the 1995 election of Mayor Rudy Giuliani calmed secession tensions, the drumbeat began anew in recent months.
“I think it’s time to secede,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., told The New York Post as Gov. Kathy Hochul was touting her congestion-priced driving fee that now double-taxes Staten Island commuters.
“There’s no real value in being part of this city or the state. We didn’t vote for this mayor; we didn’t vote for this governor; and we didn’t vote for this president (then Joe Biden), but we’re always the ones getting screwed,” she said.
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The United States and Israel launched targeted attacks on Iran on Saturday. The move brought new uncertainty into global energy markets, as northern Nevadans could be paying more at the pump in the coming weeks.
Following the strikes, oil prices increased. Brent crude, the international benchmark, jumped to roughly $73 a barrel, while the national benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, traded above $67.
Much of the concern centers around the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman. which carries about a fifth of the world’s oil supplies.
Patrick de Haan, head of petroleum analysis with GasBuddy, a price tracking company, spoke on the current questions in the region.
“The known would reduce oil prices if there becomes clarity, but it’s the unknown that is stoking fears…. If there is some sort of clarity in the days ahead, whether from Iran, the United States, or Israel, on how long this would last. We’d be able to put potentially an end date for the potential impacts that we’re seeing,” said de Haan.
Experts say for every $5 to $10 increase in oil prices, drivers could pay 15 to 25 cents more per gallon.
According to Triple-A, the average price of a gallon of gas in Nevada on Sunday comes in at $3.70, which comes in above the national average of roughly $2.98.
Over at the Rainbow Market on Vassar Street, prices sat just below four dollars a gallon on Sunday. Reno resident Abran Reyes talked about gas prices potentially going up.
“Whether it’s to work, to maybe run errands, to do stuff that helps you, gas is essential…. That gas price really hits, especially in today’s economy, where gas prices are extraordinary…. I just hope everyone’s safe. I hope our soldiers and all of our troops can be okay,” said Reyes.
New Mexico
3 thoughts: New Mexico 81, SDSU 76 … Kudos for the local kid, mid-majors getting the squeeze and European bigs
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Three thoughts on San Diego State’s 81-76 loss at New Mexico on Saturday afternoon:
1. Kudos
No loss is a happy occasion within SDSU’s basketball program, but it was mitigated somewhat by the how and who:
The how: A 3-pointer from the left wing with 43 seconds left that broke a 74-74 tie.
The who: Luke Haupt, a sixth-year senior from St. Augustine High School and Point Loma Nazarene University who is one of those classy, genuine guys you can’t help but root for.
Aztecs coaches know him and his family well, his father Mike being the longtime head coach at Saints who sent Trey Kell to them. Aztecs players know him from the Swish summer league and open gyms during the summer.
Coach Brian Dutcher: “Kudos to Luke, known him a long time. Coaches are a little different than fan bases, where sometimes (fans) get too hard on the opposition. I wanted to win in the worst way, trust me when I tell you that. But … tip your hat to guys who make important and timely plays.”
Junior guard Miles Byrd: “Credit to Luke Haupt. He’s a San Diego kid. He’s going to (get) up for these type of games. You respect that. Players show up in games like this, and he showed up.”
There’s respect for the moment and respect for what it took to get there.
Haupt grew up, like most kids in San Diego, watching the Aztecs and dreaming of maybe one day playing in Viejas Arena. He went to Division II PLNU instead and toiled in relative anonymity for five seasons, one of which was abbreviated by the pandemic and 1½ of which was wiped out by knee surgery.
The 6-foot-7 wing finally got to Division I for his sixth and final year, lured to New Mexico by former UC San Diego coach Eric Olen, and has averaged 7.2 points per game with a career high of 30 against Boise State. He had 17 on Saturday against his hometown team, the final three coming with 43 seconds left in a tie game.
The play wasn’t designed for him. Fate sent the ball his way.
“It was a big shot, but it was everything I’ve worked on my entire career and basketball life,” Haupt said. “It’s all the people who have helped me get here and all the work that’s been put in.
“These are moments you dream about.”
2. Death of Cinderella
The Aztecs have slipped off the NCAA Tournament bubble with losses in three of their last four games, yet their metrics are comparable and in some cases better than a year ago, when they didn’t win the conference tournament and sneaked into the First Four in Dayton.
They are hanging tough at 42 in Kenpom and 44 in NET. Last year they were 46 and 52 on Selection Sunday.
The problem is that there might be historically few at-large berths available to mid-major conferences as the preposterous sums of money coursing through the sport accentuates the divide between the haves and have-nots. The latest field from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has 11 teams from the SEC, nine from the Big Ten and eight each from the Big 12 and ACC.
The Big East, considered a power conference given its financial commitment to men’s basketball (although that is starting to wane), is expected to get only three, but do the math: Power conferences account for 34 of the 37 at-large invitations to the 68-team field.
Lunardi, and several other bracketologists, has only three mid-majors getting at-large berths: Saint Mary’s and Santa Clara from the WCC, and New Mexico from the Mountain West.
Only Saint Mary’s is in the main bracket. Santa Clara and New Mexico are in his First Four (and the Lobos are his last team in).
“It’s harder,” Dutcher said, “because there are only so many at-large bids that are going to go to non-power conference teams. When thrown up against the power conferences, the Selection Committee is finding ways to put the power conference teams in.”
Since the tournament expanded from 65 to 68 in 2011, mid-majors have averaged a combined 6.3 at-large berths. The high was 10 in 2013, but it’s been seven as recently as 2024. Last year it slipped to four, equaling the record low, and no mid-major teams reached the Sweet 16.
If teams like Utah State, Saint Louis and Miami (Ohio) win their conference tournaments, knocking out “bid stealers,” it could be three, maybe even two.
Money is talking. It doesn’t guarantee success, but it certainly increases the chances.
3. Euros
The Aztecs have not dipped into the European professional market for players, but maybe this season will change their perspective.
They have nine losses. Seven have come against teams with a European big.
The latest was New Mexico, which got 24 points and 18 rebounds from the 6-foot-9, 240-pound Tomislav Buljan, a 23-year-old Croatian pro granted one season of collegiate eligibility by the NCAA. He had 20 and 14 in the first meeting, when the Aztecs narrowly escaped with an 83-79 win after trailing in the final minute.
“He was a monster tonight,” Haupt said. “That was huge for us. Loved the way he played.”
The week before, the Aztecs lost to Colorado State and Rashaan Mbemba from Austria.
They’ve lost to Grand Canyon twice with 7-1 Turkish pro Efe Demirel, a 21-year-old “freshman” who has experience in the Euroleague, the continent’s most prestigious competition.
In the December loss to Arizona where the Aztecs were crushed 52-28 on the boards, 7-2, 260-pound Lithuanian center Motiejus Krivas had 13.
Michigan, which beat SDSU in November, has 7-3 Aday Mara of Spain.
Baylor beat the Aztecs two days later with 6-9 Michael Rataj of Germany, then a few weeks later added 7-0 James Nnaji from Spanish club FC Barcelona.
Only Troy and Utah State didn’t start a European big in wins against SDSU — although Mexican forward Victor Valdes had 20 points for Troy.
“Obviously, it’s changing the game,” Dutcher said. “The European pros are coming over because they can make more money over here than they can in Europe. They come over and they’re making good money, whether it’s Demirel at Grand Canyon or it’s Buljan at New Mexico.
“These are good players who come up through a club system and are basically professional basketball players.”
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