But as Pierson would discover, like many reformers before him, that meant changing a mindset that has been entrenched for generations.

As reformers worked in January 1975 to draft legislation that would have changed Idaho from an elected coroner system to one headed by a state medical examiner, funeral home directors organized a preemptive strike.

Gutam says many prefer to boost their chances for career advancement by publishing in prestigious journals from European and U.S. publishers, which some reformers have criticized as unreliable and overly restrictive gatekeepers of quality papers.

Some of Gaetz's former House colleagues have voiced support for his nomination, including Speaker Mike Johnson, who called him a "reformer" who would "bring a lot to the table".

Gaetz, he claimed, was an “accomplished attorney,” despite his thin legal resume, and “a reformer in his mind and heart.”