Continuing on the theme of books by Idaho governors, we have a book this week on the longest-serving governor in Idaho history.

It is hard to overestimate the impact that Cecil Andrus has had on the state of Idaho. Along with the last two books I wrote about, by Phil Batt and Robert Smylie, one could appreciate the last half of the 20th century in Idaho politics by studying the careers of these three men.

Andrus’ book is similar to the man; it is atypical and intriguing. Instead of providing a blow by blow account of his life as is done in most autobiographies, Andrus indirectly writes about his life by creating a primer for politicians, especially those in the West.

Though my back yard is still covered with snow, I can tell spring is in the air. It is not the return of the robins (especially since at least one has wintered in my yard) but the change in the state legislature.

While the first month of the term consisted of mostly committee meetings and votes on changing the wording of regulations, the legislative branch is starting to deal with the principal purpose of their existence: the state budget.

I contend that approximately 90 percent of the work done by the state legislature is related to the state budget in one manner or the other and that if the legislative session consisted of nothing more than approving the budget the state could proceed just fine.

Since it is Presidents’ Day, I thought I would write about presidents.

Everyone thinks of the president as a leader, but how should he or she lead the country? How should the president lead in relation to Congress and his or her political party?

James MacGregor Burns, historian and political scientist, developed a typology of presidential leadership. His models are named after early Americans and their beliefs on leadership. The question ultimately is: Who Should Take the Lead in Setting Policy?

• Madisonian Model: The president relies on Congress to lead in setting policy. The president mainly administers policies set by Congress.

Every four years, people talk about how to improve the presidential nominating process. The topic is especially pertinent to those political parties and individuals whose candidate did not win the last election.

There are two reforms that are debated quite often by many political observers. The third proposal I will examine is an invention of academics, so it is long on theory but problematic in practice. For each potential reform, I will provide general advantages and disadvantages.

1) Primary/Caucus Clustering

All states are split up into four geographic regions. All states within a region would have a primary or caucus on the same day. Each region’s voting would be separated by one month. The order of the regions would change every four years.

A number of people have asked me why we have this complicated process for choosing the presidential nominees of each party. Why is it done this way and why are both parties different?

To understand our current presidential nomination system, one has to look at the historical events that have influenced the current process. This process was not created but rather evolved over the course of the country’s history.

When political parties first began to become influential on the national level in 1800, presidential party nominees were chosen by caucuses (meetings) of party loyalists in Congress. After John Quincy Adams defeated Andrew Jackson despite receiving fewer votes in 1824, the parties began to move to having conventions choose the nominee. The delegates for these conventions were chosen by local caucuses or were appointed due to their position in the party organization.

For the book of the week, I thought I would stay on the subject of Idaho governors.

This autobiography provides the life story of one of the most influential and longest serving governors in the history of the state. Robert Smylie moved the state of Idaho into the modern era. I will write more about the man than the book though both are intimately intertwined.

As State Attorney General, Robert Smylie was instrumental in enforcing the laws against gambling and ensuring the proper collection of the income tax.

His first act as governor was to fully fund our public schools. Smylie saw this as the most important job of state government.

Congress has passed and the president will sign into law the Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008. The bill will provide checks for almost all Americans from $300 to over $1,000 based upon your marital status and number of children.

The idea behind the stimulus package is that, given the money, individuals will spend it on consumer goods, which will increase the production of goods and services, increase employment and generally raise the standard of living for everyone. It is expected of us to spend the money on goods and services, though many people queried intend to use the money to pay down debt.

When I told The Statesman staff that I would do a blog for them, I wasn’t sure I knew what I was getting into. I had not “blogged” before and did not make a practice of reading blogs.

I was told to look at Kevin Richert’s posts as he is considered the expert.

I do not take directions well so, of course, I just jumped into this.

My subsequent investigations and comments from readers seem to indicate I am not “blogging.”

Kevin and many other bloggers write at specific times when events are happening. They provide their readers with the first thoughts of a phenomenon, unfiltered by time and reflection.

I sent a survey to all of the Idaho state legislators regarding various interest groups in the state and which were the most active and effective.

Legislators were asked to classify the groups into one of five categories. One category was for groups which are “rising in power.” The group that received the most votes in this category was The Common Interest.

If you are not familiar with this group, you should find out about them.

The Common Interest was created by Keith Allred, a PhD who has taught at Harvard and Columbia. Despite the Ivy League credentials, Keith is no East Coast academic egghead but a fifth-generation Idahoan who worked on the family cattle ranch when he was young. His inspiration comes from the Founding Fathers with the idea that government should be responsive to the people.

After the Super Bowl, I turned on CSPAN (OK, I am a political junkie). I saw an Obama rally with Oprah, Caroline Kennedy, Maria Shriver (Arnold Schwarzenegger’s wife and Caroline’s cousin), and even a brief appearance by Stevie Wonder. Then Obama came out and gave one of the most stirring speeches I have ever heard.

The speech was about children, parents, and even student loans. What may surprise you was it was not Barack Obama but Michelle Obama.

Michelle is an impressive person in her own right. A Princeton graduate and noted lawyer, Michelle is also raising two young daughters in the midst of a presidential race. Her comments on the influence of her parents and how they shaped her character were inspiring. How Michelle is trying to instill those values in her daughters was heartwarming.