Vito Barbieri


James Vito Barbieri II is an American politician and lawyer from Idaho. He is a Republican Idaho State Representative since 2010 representing District 2 in the A seat.

Early life, education, and career

Barbieri earned his associate's degree from El Camino College and his bachelor's degree and law degree from Westcliff University and Western State University College of Law.
He practiced law in California for 20 years. Since moving to Idaho in 2004, he has operated several small businessess, including a catering business and owns an electronic cigarette store in Post Falls.

Idaho House of Representatives

Committee assignments

Barbieri previously served on the Revenue and Taxation Committee from 2010-2012.

Elections

YearCandidateVotesPctCandidateVotesPct
2012 Primary3,14757.0%2,37343.0%
2012 General14,14265.7%7,37134.3%
2014 Primary3,25367.5%1,56832.5%
2014 General9,47065.9%4,90134.1%
2016 Primary3,25067.9%1,53932.1%
2016 General17,11572.2%6,58127.8%

Controversies

Barbieri came to national attention on February 23, 2015, after asking a doctor giving testimony if a woman could swallow a camera in order to undergo a remote gynecological exam and received the answer that such was not possible as swallowing a pill will not lead it to the vagina. In response to commentary on social media about the seeming anatomical confusion, he explained his remarks: "I was being rhetorical, because I was trying to make the point that equalizing a colonoscopy to this particular procedure was apples and oranges... So I was asking a rhetorical question that was designed to make her say that they weren't the same thing, and she did so. It was the response I wanted."