Jim Risch, Wisconsin born but a Junior Senator from Idaho, entered politics at age 27 when he was elected to the post of prosecuting attorney in Ada County, Idaho. His law degree pushed him forward in his political career. He went on to serve in many statewide elected positions— State Senator, Lieutenant Governor, and for a short time Governor of Idaho. In 2008 he ran a successful campaign to the US Senate where he has served since.
Risch is a staunch conservative who serves as the Chairman on the Foreign Relations Committee. You can nearly always expect him to vote with the Republican Party. He is a Trump supporter and tends to side with the President on most of his big and controversial decisions. He serves as a mediator between congressional Republicans and the President, urging his congressional counterparts to support Trump’s policy goals and ambitions. His tactics for bridging this divide are not always the most orthodox; he has been known to twist the truth in order to achieve peace.
So far as policy goes, he was one of 22 senators who signed a letter requesting that the President pull out of the Paris trade agreement. He backed President Trumps aggressive tactic in dealing with North Korea. He helped to introduce legislation that would put sanctions on Syria in the wake of the Bashar al-Assad scandal, legislation that would also bolster US relations with Israel and Jordan. This came after he was criticized for his initial reaction to the crisis, in which he was basically quoted by saying that the President wasn’t wrong to not question al-Assad’s version of events.
Per my research, there exist many heavily written op ed’s which cite him as being a chairman who understands foreign relations well but repeatedly ignores good policy options in favor of worse ones.
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