Rep. Chenoweth-Hage to speak in Yerington

Members of the Lyon County Central Republican Committee will hear U.S. Rep. Helen Chenoweth-Hage, R-Idaho, at tonight's annual Lincoln Day Dinner.

"I'm glad she's coming," said Ed Harris, chairman of the Lyon County Central Republican Committee. "I think she's a one terrific lady."

Chenoweth-Hage will be the featured speaker at the dinner to be held at the Casino West Convention Center in Yerington.

Harris said arranging for her to come was relatively easy.

"I called her office and asked her to come last November," he said. "She has a terrific scheduling secretary who put me on the list."

Although she is from Idaho, Chenoweth-Hage is no stranger to Nevada politics.

Last November, she visited Elko County in an attempt to resolve the conflict between county and federal officials over the South Canyon Road near Jarbidge.

She and Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., held a hearing to mediate between the two sides.

Chenoweth-Hage, whose husband, Wayne, is a rancher and activist in the Sagebrush Rebellion fighting federal control of land, said she was involved because the matter had national implications that reach beyond Nevada's borders.

Harris said he supports Chenoweth-Hage's political ideals.

"I wish we had a Congress just full of her," he said. "It think she's a great American who adheres to American values. I think she's looking out for the western states."

"I think she believes in the U.S. Constitution," he said. "A lot of those people in there don't."

Chenoweth-Hage is in her third term representing Idaho's First Congressional District.

She chairs the House Resources subcommittee on forests and forest health and is a member of the Resources, Government Reform, Agriculture and Veterans Affairs committees.

Chenoweth-Hage was born in Kansas and attended Whitworth College in Spokane, Wash.

She moved to Idaho in 1964 where she was a self-employed medical aide and legal management consultant. She has also been a guest instructor at the University of Idaho's School of Law.

From 1975-1977, she served as state executive director of the Idaho Republican Party, going on to serve as chief of staff to then Rep. Steve Symms.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate John Ensign and state Republican officials will also attend the dinner.

A no-host cocktail hour will begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. Cost is $35 per person.