KENDRICK, Idaho (AP) — Tensions rose during a bipartisan forum this week after an audience question about discrimination reportedly led an Idaho state senator to angrily tell a Native American candidate to “go back where you came from.”
Republican Sen. Dan Foreman left the event early after the outburst and later denied making any racist comments in a Facebook post. He did not respond to a voice message from The Associated Press seeking comment.
Trish Carter-Goodheart, a Democratic candidate for the House District 6 seat and member of the Nez Perce Tribe, said the blowup left her shaken and thinking about security needs for future public events. It also forced some tough conversations with her two young children, Avery and Lavender, who were in attendance.
“Having conversations about racism with an 8-year-old and a 5-year-old is not something me and my husband Dane were prepared for,” Carter-Goodheart said Friday. “They’ve never seen a grown adult man have a meltdown like that. They were scared. I was scared.”