Rex Rammell Challenges Risch for Senate Nomination

By Jill Kuraitis, 11-21-07

Former eastern Idaho elk rancher Rex Rammell is running for the Republican nomination to succeed U.S. Sen. Larry Craig. His primary opponent is Lt. Gov. Jim Risch.

Rammell has been the subject of controversy, especially during this year’s legislative session, after his elk escaped and then-Gov. Risch authorized state wildlife officials to shoot them.

The elk were untagged and officials feared they might spread disease to and possibly breed with wild elk, which some wildlife experts claimed could produce a weaker genetic strain of the animals.

According to Fish and Game, twenty elk were shot under the emergency order, about 40 were rounded up, and about 40 more are presumably still roaming in the Yellowstone area.  The biggest wild elk herd in the West, and possibly the country, live there.

Rammel sued the state of Idaho for $1.3 million after he was arrested and acquitted for several altercations with hunters and Fish and Game officials.

From his website:

“If you had asked Rex ten years ago if he ever thought he would be running for the United States Senate, first you would have gotten a blank stare, then a frank “no.” Politics, prior to 2002, was never one of his goals. But the winter of 2002 and a couple of Idaho legislators changed his life.

He was just coming off a major confrontation with the State of Idaho, Department of Agriculture over whether Rex needed a license or not to own an elk ranch. Since 1994 it was a requirement that all elk ranches be licensed. Prior to 2001, the Department of Agriculture inventoried the elk by counting heads. In 2001 they decided each elk needed an individual inventory. This required catching each elk and reading their small metal ear tags.

Rex was unable to catch nine elk that were on the mountain, but still contained in his 1000 acre facility. Because he couldn’t catch the elk and refused to dart them, the Department of Agriculture refused to renew his license. Rex challenged their authority to license ranches. Being a veterinarian and having worked with many cattle, sheep, and horse ranches he knew that they were not required to have a license, so why should elk ranches have the requirement?”

Rammell has sold his elk ranch.

Rammell, whose Ten Principles To Govern America include “Capitalism advocates the principles of competition and choice in a free market setting and if allowed to operate without government interference is a proven formula for prosperity” and “America was established by God for a righteous people. If American turns away from God she will fail” has his views on campaign issues posted on his website. He lists them as War on Terror, Immigration, Family, Taxes, Spending, Social Security and Medicare, Energy, Gun Rights/Second Amendment, and Public Lands.