Idaho senator tells Native American candidate to go back to where she came from at forum

Idaho Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Moscow, listens to proceedings on the Senate floor at the State Capitol building on Jan. 9, 2023. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)

This story was first published by Boise State Public Radio on Oct. 3, 2024.

A bipartisan forum in a small Latah County community took a turn when Republican Senate incumbent Dan Foreman stormed out of the event, following a racist outburst directed at a Native American candidate.

On Tuesday, local Democrat and Republican representatives organized a “Meet your candidates” forum in the northern Idaho town of Kendrick. Three contenders from each party vying for Legislative District 6 seats — one senate and two house representatives positions — answered questions submitted by audience members.

2024 legislative races to watch: North Idaho’s Legislative District 6

When asked if discrimination existed in Idaho, conservative Sen. Dan Foreman said no.

In a statement released Wednesday , Democratic candidate for House Seat A and member of the Nez Perce tribe Trish Carter-Goodheart said she pushed back on that idea when it was her turn to speak, pointing to her own experience and the history of white supremacy groups in North Idaho .

“[J]ust because someone hasn’t personally experienced discrimination, doesn’t mean it’s not happening. Racism and discrimination are real issues here in Idaho, as anyone familiar with our state’s history knows,” Carter-Goodheart’s statement read. “I highlighted our weak hate crime laws and mentioned the presence of the Aryan Nations in northern Idaho as undeniable evidence of this reality.”

Foreman stood up and angrily interjected, using an expletive to criticize what he cast as the liberal bent of the response, according to the release and people present at the forum.

Carter-Goodheart said he then told her she should go back to where she came from, and heatedly stormed off. One event organizer and two other panelists confirmed Carter-Goodheart’s account, adding Foreman appeared very agitated.

Carter-Goodheart is campaigning to be a House representative and is not running against the senator. Her opponent, Republican Rep. Lori McCann, was also present at the forum. In an email, she said she read Carter-Goodheart’s statement “and found it to be an accurate account of what transpired in Kendrick.”

Foreman has a history of angrily confronting people in public , and shouting profanities .

He did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.

Indigenous people, including the Nez Perce tribe, have lived in the Columbia River Basin for thousands of years. Foreman was born in Lake Forest, Illinois.

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