Interview Transcript: Reporter: Okay, well, my first question is can go ahead and tell me about, like, your, your own background in politics. Francis: My background in politics would be I was a teacher of history for almost 40 years, 37 years, and I dedicated, I think my teaching to trying to help students to find democracy for themselves. So I go from theory to practice. I'm not a politician because this is not my career, my still my identity. If people ask me, what's your Kennedy history teacher? Reporter: Gotcha. I like that that's like being you. I mean, you have all that experience being able to study and help others understand, like democracy and everything like that. I love that. Francis: Yeah. It's like I, I tell people a I consider myself a moderate. And so I had to define the middle. And the middle to me is found in the Declaration of Independence, because in the second paragraph you have the statement about equality and human rights, life, liberty, pursuit of happiness. And then in the same paragraph there is a clear reference to the responsibility of government for the safety and happiness of the people. Those two require a balance. Is that if that doesn't make sense. So what I'm saying is absolute liberty will destroy our democracy. Absolute safety of the society will destroy democracy. Reporter: You're right. Like you said, there has to be a balance of that kind of thing. Francis: Exactly. And then at the end of the declaration of Independence, Jefferson makes the reference to the requirement of the need for sacrifice in order to achieve the principles of the Declaration of Independence. I'm paraphrasing there, but you can see it if he says, and what they signed on is their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. Which means if we cannot have a successful democracy in America unless people are willing to make a sacrifice, but that too has to be balanced, because does not require everything and the responsibility of a government to be restrained in terms particularly of taxes and the requests of sacrifice from the people, makes sense. Reporter: Okay. Oh. Let's see. One thing I do want to ask is, what is it that inspired you to run in the first place? Francis: I think it was this idea of. Francis: Being retired from the teaching career and still wanting to be a public servant, because that's what I consider teachers are also. And so there's that. And there is also this idea of, oh, I just think in current terms it's important to be a moderate. And I am I'm just totally enamored of. Francis: Non Partizan politics is the easiest way to put it. It's just so refreshing that the six of us vote on issues and I could not tell you whether it's a Republican vote or a Democratic vote. It is nothing like that. It's each of us struggling in our own way, with our own approach and perspectives to figure out what is best for the city of Idaho Falls and how to build a community. Francis: That that drives me to it. And I think that it's just it's just a pleasure, actually, particularly in these eight years I've been on council that we have such respect for each other. We don't worry about getting angry. I mean, we disagree. We have vehement disagreements, there's no doubt about it. And that's good. That's the way it should be. Francis: Just the idea of being able to give back to the community. And also, I am a firm believer that the responsibility of government is to build community and and to make decisions for our community, which means no particular interest group can dominate my vote. Reporter: Gotcha. Yeah. I really like your thoughts on that. I never really thought about it that way. How could be so different on a city level like that. Francis: Yeah. It's just so refreshing. Reporter: Gotcha. Well one other thing I wanted to ask is if you, if you are elected, is is there anything that you'd really like to accomplish for the city? Francis: I want to continue a pattern that has really been emphasized over the last 12 years or more of transparency in government, particularly, and in the budgeting process. So the people in the community have a chance to look at exactly what the budget is and and what it all means. So that's one. And we've we've done many steps in that direction. Francis: But I want to make sure if I can that what we do is institutionalize. So after after my service, it's institutionalized enough that other people and the whole community accepts this is the right way to do it is best to be really open. The other thing, and it's related to that, is I am a firm believer in written agreements and contracts and we have run into so many things from past decades where it was kind of like so-and-so said something. Francis: I'm pretty sure it was meant to be this way, and I'm not sure exactly who said that. We've run into that, and that's why I always have to ask for things to be in writing. And I want to continue that for sure. I, I will say to you, I cannot make political promises. That's not wise. Decisions, I think, at the city council level, because I'm not promising to deliver this or that to the public, except that I will promise to deliver my time, and I will promise to deliver my philosophy of maintaining the middle, as I've described earlier, in decision making, and recognizing that as I make a decision and people that people will ask me this, and I know if you want to work to send or not to the story, but people say, do you like service on the council? And my answer is yes. And they'll say, well, what do you like about it? And I'll say, I like planning. I like problem solving. And I like transparency. If that's a good way to put it. That, that those are things that I really like. I also like policymaking. You should have that. So I like those things. Then people say well what's the hardest part. And the answer to that is over and over again I will answer the same way it is. Land use decisions because that is exactly where you get. This is particularly for zoning, initial zoning and rezoning. That is where you get that tension between people's right to liberty and freedom and the society's right to safety. And you have a clash of two groups of people oftentimes are more two groups of people, each with valid arguments for their liberty. And it is up to the council to make that decision for a community. And it is very, very difficult. Because that's, you know, me in a way, that's that's what an elected official has to do, is balance. The rights and yet the need for safety and happiness in the society. I mean, that's that's what it is. You can't ask for anybody else on people. And I also say, you know, council members can vote. Maybe it's either yes or no. Reporter: You're right. I've never heard of anything like that before. Francis: You know. And as a teacher, I could always I could always, you know, a student asked me a question and I said, well, I will find the answer to that and I'll get back to you. Or when it was some issue in if I made an incorrect sentence, I could go back and fix that sentence immediately. Actually, I hope they learn from that. Like it's okay to cross something out when you write an essay and change what you're saying, but you can't do that on council. It's a yes or no vote and I'm finished. So when it comes down to the vote, it's reminding myself to have the humility that I have just made my best decision. I could on a clash of rights. Does that make sense? Reporter: Yes, I believe so, yes. Francis: Thank you for sharing that. Okay, so that's why. That's why I don't want to make promises. I'm going to bring this. I'm going to bring that. I'm going to the I can't do that because I have to look at these individual decisions in the context of that tension, particularly in land use. Right. And it actually the same as same is true with the budget, which is probably the most important thing we do all all together besides of, everything being so related to how you put a budget together and what sacrifice you have to ask of the people to do it. And yet there is a very specific limits. And, this particular budget was has been very difficult on the, because it's where we're short of what we need. But we work it through every time, and we do get a budget and a lot of budget is compromising, which is good in a way. I mean, if one group dominated, it would be a real problem. Reporter: