North Idaho Slow Growth
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Just days before the May primary election, conservative KCRCC precinct organizers were dismayed to see Sheriff Norris featured on a misleading mailer endorsing their NIR-RINO opponents. The mailer was intentionally deceptive. It made it appear as if their RINO challengers, whose campaigns were financed by corporations and NIR power-brokers, were MAGA conservatives.
The bogus mailer, funded by the KCSO Employees Association (KCSEA), featured Sheriff Norris and President Trump inviting voters to resist “the Establishment”. But listed below the recommended candidates for county offices, was the name of the NIR-backed RINO precinct candidate corresponding to the home-owner's specific neighborhood. The flyer was customized for every precinct in Kootenai county.
Voters who did not remember the name of their conservative precinct leader, or who did not recognize deceptive RINO campaign tactics, or who trusted Sheriff Norris, may have been fooled. And since the KCSEA mailer went out just days before the election, it undoubtedly contributed to the defeat of many conservative KCRCC precinct leaders.
Norris supporters were shocked by his involvement in this betrayal.
But what many supporters don't know, is that both Norris and KCSEA are affiliated with the Fraternal Order of Police, a deceptive, big-government, public employee lobby that claims to stand for “law-and-order” but has a globalist Agenda.
The FOP's true priorities are budget-busting benefits for officers, promoting high-tech surveillance, and growing government. The FOP is associated with Freemasonry and police corruption, and KCSO should have nothing to do with them.
The KCSEA-FOP mailer was a slap in the face to hard-working, conservative PC candidates in the cross-hairs of the well-funded, NIR-RINO political machine. And it is no wonder that KCRCC conservatives,—who voted almost unanimously to support Norris,—feel betrayed. They were betrayed.
Norris Denies Everything
Norris responded to complaints about the flyer by denying any coordination between the Sheriff’s Office and KCSEA-FOP leadership. On a video released to the KCRCC, he claims that neither: “the Sheriff nor the Sheriff’s office had any coordination or participation in this flyer whatsoever. . . . .”
But it is impossible that Norris did not know about KCSEA’s misleading mailer, targeting PCs. The deputies who lead KCSEA are part of his inner circle, and can often be found at his side at public meetings and town halls. They are, in essence, Norris's Public-Relations Posse.
- Sgt. Nick Franssen, current president of KCSEA is KCSO’s Community Outreach Coordinator. He runs the Sheriff’s Citizen Advisory Group, the annual Holidays and heroes program, and attends all town halls hosted by KCSO.
- Lt. Zach Sifford, long time board member of KCDSA/KCSEA and former president is KCSO’s Chief Public Information Officer, and Norris’s spokesman since 2021. He writes most of Norris’s public statements.
- Captain Jeremy Hyle, former president of KCSEA is the Jail Bureau captain, and is on Norris’s command staff.
And that’s not all. Carla Mattare, the wife of Norris’s campaign manager, operated the KCSEA Facebook page until she was called out, and no one has posted since she stepped down in May.
Finally, documents available on Dan Wilson’s website, conclusively prove that Bruce Mattare himself directed KCSEA campaign strategy while he was managing Norris’s campaign in 2020.
It is simply incredible that Norris was unaware of KCSEA's decision to promote RINOs, because of his close association with the group's leaders. Still, he had no choice but to deny any coordination with KCSEA because direct involvement on his part would be a violation of campaign laws.
FOP: "Boo Hoo!!! How dare you accuse us of lying!!!”
Still many conservatives were convinced by Norris’s video that he had been duped. So the firestorm continued and blame shifted to KCSEA for supposedly “deceiving” Norris. In response Nick Franssen, KCSEA president, posted a heart-wrenching, indignant denial of wrongdoing.
“Today I, with the men and women I serve with, were called liars!!! . . . We are being accused of deceiving the man we serve under. We are being accused of half-truths and misleading an elected official . . . This has sickened me to my core. Trying to make people believe that my honor, and integrity, and word is tainted . . . is disingenuous and wrong!“
Of course anyone who is familiar with Masonic methods of manipulation and truth-twisting, will recognized the fake indignation, fake hurt feelings, and fake appeals to honor on display as standard deflection techniques, and utter malarkey.
The Drama Continues . . .
With Norris's denial on record, and only a few days to rectify the situation, KCRCC conservatives paid for a last-minute text-message campaign in order to notify voters of the deception. Their message claimed that Norris did not approve of KCSEA-FOP’s endorsements. It then identified the name of the true MAGA conservative for each precinct and included a link to Norris’s denial video.
But there is more!!!
Because these pro-KCRCC conservative text messages began with the phrase “KOOTENAI SHERIFF ALERT”, KCSO spokesmen (who happened to be the Pro-RINO KCSEA leaders who sent the flyer), claimed the text-messages impersonated the sheriff and were misleading and illegal. They then attempted to use of the County’s Emergency Notification channel to claim that bad actors were impersonating the Sheriff and trying to confuse Kootenai Voters.
What a Freaking Circus!!!!
The whole FOP Flyer fiasco is documented on Dan Wilson’s media page, and the last minute contretemps, involving dueling Sheriff Alerts, was reported in this video on the day before the election. This is either hilarious, tragic, or infuriating, depending on one’s POV.
When Did KCSO Deputies form a Political Lobby?
If this all seems crazy and confusing, that’s because it is. And the reason that many conservatives are still unfamiliar with the treachery of KCSEA-FOP, is that a politically weaponized Sheriff’s Employee Association is a new arrival in Kootenai politics. It first appeared—by no coincidence,—four years ago, when Robert Norris first ran for Sheriff.
The KC Sheriff’s Deputies’ Association (KCSDA) has existed for several decades, but until recently it was just a “benevolent society,” that served KCSO deputies and stayed out of politics. As a tax-exempt charity, KCSDA was restricted from political lobbying and did not endorse sheriff candidates.
But in 2019, just as Norris was ramping up his first run for sheriff, the decision was made to affiliate KCDSA with FOP, a national police lobby with close ties to Freemasonry. A year later, KCDSA was re-chartered as KCSEA, Lodge #43 of the Idaho Fraternal Order of Police. This association changed both the mission and makeup of the group.
KCSEA-FOP’s tax status was changed so that it could engage in political activity, and its membership was expanded to include the Sheriff’s command staff, and non-sworn KCSO employees. This is significant because KCSEA’s leadership is composed of men who have been promoted into positions of leadership within KCSO. This means that KCSEA represents KCSO leaders rather than rank-and-file deputies.
And a Political Action Committee Too!!
And if politically weaponizing KCSEA, were not enough, a new Political Action Committee associated with KCSO was formed at the same time. The new PAC took the name of KCDSA, the same name as the old Deputies association. However, the major donors to the KCDSA PAC were not sheriff’s deputies, but rather, corporations, and deep-pocketed RINOs.
So far in 2024 the KCDSA PAC has raised thousands of dollars from corporate donors. Why are these donors so passionate about Law Enforcement and so anxious for Bob Norris to remain as Sheriff?
In summary, six years ago, KCDSA was a locally-controlled charitable association serving KCSO deputies. Now it is a Political Action Committee associated with a corrupt, Masonic, national police lobby, with ambitions of controlling both the Kootenai Sheriff’s office and the BOCC.
The Mattares and the KCSEA
It is impossible for outsiders to know exactly what is going on behind-the-scenes, but to some observers it appears that KC Commissioner Bruce Mattare may have been involved with the conversion of KCDSA into an FOP-controlled political machine. The timing lines up with the period when he was managing Norris’s campaign for sheriff, both he and Norris have ties to Masonry, and “Public Safety” is an excellent stalking horse for an aspiring red-state political-boss.
But for solid evidence of Mattare’s involvement in KCSEA-FOP, we refer to an article on Dan Wilson’s website, where documents are provided. The article proves conclusively that 1) Carla Mattare manages the KCSEA-FOP Facebook page, and 2) Bruce Mattare approved the text of a 2020 Pro-Norris CDA Press advertisement paid for by KCSEA.
It is unsurprising, therefore, that in 2022, the KCSEA endorsed Bruce Mattare for County Commissioner, and KCRCC also endorsed him because he seemed more conservative than Filios.
But what most conservatives don't know is that Mattare was the only KCRCC candidate that KCSEA-FOP endorsed. For all other state-wide offices, KCSEA-FOP endorsed establishment-backed RINOs, including Jim Addis, Pete Riggs, and Tara Malek—the opponents of KCRCC endorsed conservatives.
None of this is surprising to anyone who looks into FOP Political activities. Their leftist-RINO preferences are beyong obvious. The Fraternal Order of Police is a budget-busting, pro-union, big-government lobby at the national level, and Idaho's FOP endorsed candidates are invariably establishment-backed RINOs.
The FOP claims to support to “law and order”, endorses Republican Presidents, and goes all weepy over L.E. officers killed or wounded. But it always has a hand out for more money, always supports big-spending liberals and RINOs, and accuses any official who tries to hold the line on L.E. spending of "defunding the police."
In any case, it is important for conservatives to understand that the FOP is, and always has been a globalist-RINO front group. It consistently endorses RINOs, so seeing that the only candidates that have been backed by both KCSEA-FOP and KCRCC are Bruce Mattare and Bob Norris, should tell you something about their true political loyalties.
And if, as the evidence suggests, Mattare and Norris have been working closely with KCSEA leadership since it affiliated with the Masonic-FOP, What does that say about the "unbiased" pretense of ALL of KCSEA's endorsements, and the hidden loyalties of FOP's preferred candidates.
KCSEA's Endorsement of Norris
Until its affiliation with the Fraternal Order of Police, KCSO’s employee organization did not endorse candidates for Sheriff and its decision to do so in 2020 was controversial.
Although KCSEA contends that its endorsements are based on the preferences of an “overwhelming majority of members”, its poll was conducted electronically over a two-week period, results were not published until the end, and its Facebook page comments reflect a vigorous debate.
KCSEA claims that Norris received 84 votes, to Edmonson’s 43 and 8 write ins. But according to the KCSO website, there were about 320 Sheriff Employees in 2018 (192 sworn,126 unsworn). So another way to spin the numbers is that Norris received only 84 KCSO employees out of 320. Of course KCSEA voting was restricted to dues-paying members "in good standing". And many KCSO employees may not have felt comfortable declaring their preference, after having to "sign in" to vote in an electronic poll hosted by a politicized employee group.
Nevertheless, KCSEA’s endorsement of Norris was presented as “exhaustive" and "unbiased", and it was used to convince other Public Safety organizations, establishment politicians, and local stakeholders to back Norris, all without any further vetting, forums, or member votes. Just a flood of orchestrated endorsements, Letters to the Editor, and generous donations. That’s how the Masonic influence peddling system works.
Even so, the 2020 Kootenai Sheriff's campaign was brutal. But with a whole host of well-coordinated endorsements, an outpouring of totally spontaneous Letters to the Editor, an always full war-chest, and numerous surrogates, Norris was able to win a smashing 9,931 votes out of 89,161 registered voters for plurality of 44% Republican votes during an all-mail-in primary election.
KCSEA's Coronation of Norris
In both the 2020 campaign for Norris, and the 2022 election for Mattare, KCSEA leadership was careful to keep up the appearance of objectivity. Forums were held and endorsements came only after some time was allowed for deliberation.
But for Norris' re-election campaign, all pretense of objectivity or fair consideration of outside candidates vanished. By late October of 2023, a full seven months before the primary election, and five months before the candidate filing deadline, KCSEA announced that their members had voted "overwhelmingly" that Norris should "seek a second term." (Facebook page comments are good for comic relief).
Note the time and phrasing of this announcement. This was not an informed, full membership vote. It was merely an acknowledgement that Norris was likely to seek re-election, promoted on Facebook as election by acclamation. This is Soviet Style propaganda.
At the time KCSEA decided to go all in for a 2nd Norris term, the only declared challenger was Dan Wilson, an independent, private citizen who had never run for elective office and was not well connected. But evidently KCSEA thought that any opposition at all to Norris was too much.
KCSEA saw no need to host candidate forums, discuss issues relating to the Sheriff's office, hold-full member votes, or see who else might enter the race. Norris was the first sheriff candidate the KCSO Employees Association had endorsed, and-the only one that KCSEA leadership (a.k.a. Norris's command staff), would ever consider endorsing.
The flagrant conflict of interest here is breath-taking. In only five years the FOP has so politicized the KCSO that the Sheriff's Employee Organization cannot even entertain the idea that anyone but Norris could hold the Office of Sheriff.
KCSEA's Compliant Commissioners
But endorsing Norris was just the start! With Norris leading the ticket, KCSEA began scraping together a whole slate of "Law and Order Candidates" that they believed would advance their "Big Public Safety" agenda. Of particular importance was finding BOCC candidates that would vote with Mattare to ratchet up KCSO funding.
It tooks several months to put together a slate of sufficiently compliant commissioners, but eventually Dale Gibboney and Brett Surplus were selected. But by what process? Most of the other commissioner candidates were not even contacted by KCSEA.
There certainly were no public forums or interviews. There was no pre-established vetting process or candidate questionaires. There was no opportunity for KCSEA rank-and-file to meet other candidates and no no full membership votes. So on what basis were they selected?
Both Gibboney and Surplus were seriously flawed candidates, but satisfactory to the KCSEA-FOP leadership, because their willingness to play ball with KCSEA power brokers was the only qualification necessary for public office.
The KCSEA leadership wanted compliant commissioners and it planned to use Norris’s popularity—while it lasted—to foist its slate on Kootenai County Republicans. It hand-selected its entire field of "Law and Order" candidates by private arrangement, and handled all aspects of their campaign for them.
KCSEA leaders tried to use Norris and Mattare's influence to sway KCRCC PCs. But when KCRCC's endorsement process,—which involved public forums, public candidate questionaires, numerous interviews, and a full member vote,—failed to go in KCSEA's direction, they threw in their lot with NIR. NIR also hand-selected their entire field of precict candidates by private arrangement and ran their campaign for them. Precienct.
Of course they did. Private selection of candidates who are loyal to party bosses is the Masonic Globalist-RINO way of doing politics. As are coordinated endorsements, generous donations, professional campaign strategists and fawning media attention. And KCSEA-FOP, just like NIR, IACI, and every other establishment backed, globalist political lobby, is a Masonic-RINO front group.
KCSEA Campaign goes Kuput
The rest is history. KCSEA-FOP's Commissioner slate crashed and burned, getting only 3 of 58 KCRCC endorsements and Gibboney ran fourth in a field of four.
And KCSEA’s last-minute, treacherous effort to overthrow the KCRCC conservatives did damage, but not enough to give their Globalist-RINO allies control of the Kootenai County GOP.
But in any case, KCSEA-FOP and their henchmen Norris and Mattare have shown their true globalist-RINO loyalties and can no longer pass themselves off as conservatives.
KCSEA is a thoroughly discredited disaster. It should disband, and any future KCSO employee groups should stay out of politics and break all association with FOP.
And KCRCC should consider permanently withdrawing endorsements from Norris and Mattare. They are treacherous power mongers, not trustworthy, not honest, not conservative, and forever tainted by their association with FOP.
Now, more than ever, Conservatives need candidates they can trust, who are dedicated to the best interests of the citizens of Kootenai County, not to globalist stakeholders, power brokers, and secret societies.
Comments
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George Howley says (Aug 26, 2024):
Obvious hit piece, thank you for reminding me to donate more money to help Sheriff Bob Norris re-elected. Give me a call for info on a gun safety class where all proceeds will go to re-elect Norris George Howley 208-719-1499 Retired Lieutenant NYPD WTC 1st Responder
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Lori Wilson says (Sep 9, 2024):
What an eye opening article. So who can you trust since the KCRCC endorsed Norris and Mattare???
