Militia Leader Known As The 'Bundy Ranch Sniper' Seeks A New Title: Senator
The moderator was polite enough not to make it Question 1. But, oh, it was coming.
This face-off in Hailey, Idaho, wasn't a typical debate night. Beforehand, incumbent state Sen. Michelle Stennett, a Democrat, had sought assurances for her safety, fearing riled-up supporters of her Republican opponent, Eric Parker. He, in turn, posted guards outside to avoid a ruckus like the one at a recent GOP picnic. That time, a heckler interrupted Parker's speech to call him a domestic terrorist.
The precautions all go back to what Parker calls "the elephant in the room" in his bid for state office, namely that federal authorities consider him an anti-government extremist who belongs in prison. Instead, Parker beat felony charges twice, now leads one of the best-known militia groups in the mountain region, and is currently on the ballot in a rare purple district in bright-red Idaho.
That trajectory – and the alarm it's raising in some Boise political circles – finally came up in Question 8, after property taxes and gun control: "Mr. Parker, in the past you've pled guilty to breaking the law at the 2015 showdown between the Bureau of Land Management at the Bundys' ranch in Nevada."
If elected, the moderator continued, would Parker uphold his oath to follow all laws, even if he disagreed with them?
Parker, in a navy suit with his long hair tied back, listened with a slight smirk, then started his answer with a correction: "It was 2014."
Six years ago, during the , Parker, then a 30-year-old electrician, stood on a bridge along with other right-wing supporters of the local Bundy family's fight with the government over grazing rights. Below, in a dry riverbed, heavily armed authorities watched the demonstrators. As tensions
