Lt. governor still has no good ideas

Since being elected two years ago, Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin has essentially been a spectator at the political game.

Bolstered by her Tea Party cronies, she's like the fan whose team can do nothing right in her eyes, especially if the team's quarterback is Gov. Brad Little.

A man who hopes to represent all Idahoans as lieutenant governor just over two years from now, Coeur d'Alene's Luke Malek, said he's not sure if McGeachin plans to run again — and if so, to which office she might aspire. But what he's seen so far is, well, lacking.

"I'm disappointed that she hasn't brought anything to the table…" Malek said. He was particularly critical of McGeachin serving as a stumbling block for Little, criticizing the governor for taking strong steps against COVID-19 but offering no better ideas.

Well, McGeachin has finally come up with something, and it's a stinker.

Last week, Idaho earned a headline story in U.S. News & World report thanks to McGeachin's $17 million request to combat COVID-19. Sound pretty good? Read further.

McGeachin's proposal calls for investing in a technology that health officials say is not only ineffective, but potentially dangerous. Describing it as "very high-tech equipment," McGeachin wants the tech package to include "walk-through disinfectant cubes" at the state capitol.

If we've learned anything over the last eight months or so, it's that some people will jump at quack cures while eschewing more scientifically-based solutions. Our lieutenant governor is now clearly in that club.

“A person can walk through a cube and be disinfected from head to toe, including on the bottom of their feet," McGeachin said during a meeting with reporters.

What she didn't mention is that a National Institutes of Health study published last summer found “walk-through sanitation gates” were not only ineffective, but could hurt people.

“Fumigation is meant for inanimate objects and surfaces, and it should never be used on people,” the study said.

There is some good news with this report, however. Her proposal went to Gov. Little's Coronavirus Financial Advisory Committee, where it hopefully was relegated to a rarely opened drawer.

After it was fumigated, of course.