Commissioner Goes on Tirade Against the Public
by Shari Dovale
The two CommissionMEN of Bonner County had quite the losing streak last week when both of their pet projects got rejected by everyone that counted.
First the RV campground expansion project. This has been the pet project of Luke Omodt since his inception onto the board. This plan was to take land from the sheriff’s complex and give it to the fair board. As Chairman Bradshaw has a very public, and notorious, ongoing animosity for the current sheriff, he seemed quite happy agreeing to side with Omodt.
After months of bickering CommissionMEN fighting with the fair board and the public, knowing that it was an extremely unpopular plan with everyone, the two men continued on as if they heard nothing from anyone. They completely ignored all public comments and suggested that the fair board would be replaced if they did not get onboard with the agenda.
A meeting to accept bids to start the project was held last week, yet a needed extension for the grant money to pay for the project was denied right after this meeting.
OOPS!
The second long shot the CommissionMEN tried was giving a year’s salary to an employee that was retiring after 8 years with the county. This same employee was also (coincidentally?) a sponsor of Steve Bradshaw’s failed 2022 gubernatorial campaign.
The public weighed in with the extreme displeasure at the preferential treatment given to Bradshaw’s friend. That project left quickly.
Both CommissionMEN were sorely tested over these huge losses. Now, they seem to have come back with a vengeance, and intend to take it out on the public, as well as the only female Commissioner on the board, Asia Williams.
Tuesday’s business meeting was a mockery of our Republic. Chairman Bradshaw shut down the meeting before it even really began.
Practically stomping his foot in a toddler-tantrum, Bradshaw declared all public comment to be shut down from now until he deems it a good idea. All based on his whims.
When he and Luke Omodt left the meeting room, Commissioner Williams attempted to continue comment for the benefit of the public. Bradshaw could not have any dissent on his royal-like decrees, so he stepped back into the room and called for it to be cleared, including ordering an employee to “Make the Call.”
This behavior by Bradshaw and Omodt both show that these shenanigans were planned in advance. Omodt never so much as blinked in surprise at what Bradshaw did. He got up at the same time as the other man, obviously knowing that was the plan from the beginning. Bradshaw never told the employee who to call, he just said “Make the call” so that was also pre-planned and the employee obviously knew who he was supposed to call in advance.
It was clear later that Bradshaw meant for the employee to call the Sandpoint police, as they showed up shortly after.
The tyranny continued after the meeting when Commissioner Williams tried to continue the comment period for the benefit of the public. The technology department, which is normally charged with streaming these meetings, shut down their live stream stating they were “told to leave” thereby taking all authority away from Commissioner Williams.
Commissioner Williams has offered to come in early next week to allow the public time to speak, yet she will have to find someone other than county employees to record/stream the meeting. This is unacceptable for a duly elected official.
Bradshaw and Omodt have spent months making their point that they will not allow Commissioner Williams any authority in the county. They continue to over rule her and show that they are running a two MEN board. They do not want her, and will not allow her to do her job.
This shows behavior that many might call collusion, and illegal quorums. This is not the first time that this type of behavior has been questioned. Is this how our county is supposed to be run?
Chairman Bradshaw is a self-described pastor at his personal church in Cocolalla. This man has one of the foulest mouths heard outside of a sailor’s pub. Not caring that he is talking to a lady, or even to a taxpayer, Bradshaw spews nastiness. Commissioner Luke Omodt tries to deflect the situation and cover for the Chairman. Fair warning on language, Watch below:
That is not the only expletive rant Bradshaw went on during the day. Again, fair warning for language, but here we see him stop his truck as he was leaving to scream at a constituent, a man he is supposed to represent:
I was asked a question later for which I may need help finding the answer: Is it blasphemy or heresy for a “pastor” to scream these words?
Luke Omodt had his moments as well, when he accused a resident of threatening the CommissionMEN with violence. Spencer Hutchings responded with a lot more class than these two hooligans have shown.
Related: Commissioner Calls Public Comment Debauchery and Foolishness
Related: Witchcraft in the Commissioners Office?
