It has been widely publicized that the Utah Legislature passed, and Governor Herbert signed into law, the highly controversial bill that dramatically changes the public's access to government records. The changes to GRAMA, or Government Records Access and Management Act, provide special status to certain electronic communications of elected officials. HB477 also increased the fees and allows government agencies an indefinite amount of time to respond to records requests.
Utahns are upset and down right angry at their elected representatives over their votes to pass this fast-tracked bill. The public was not allowed time to review and comment on HB477 before the legislature acted in haste to pass this bill that could potentially make our State and local governments less transparent. All citizens want to know what their elected representatives are doing while on the job. And the elected officials who argue that their electronic communications with constituents and other officials should be protected for privacy reasons should remember that they work for us, the people of the State of Utah. If they don't want their emails to be read, they should step down from their elected position and allow the voters in their district to elect someone who will do the job in an open manner. Can you imagine what an employer would say if an employee of thier business said the owner couldn't read their emails because they were "private". Give me a break. That employee would be fired so fast his head would spin! Our elected representatives should not be treated any differently.
I'm glad to see that my State Senator, Steve Urquhart, realizes he made a mistake in voting for HB477. You can read his statement here.We all make mistakes, and I'm glad Steve can admit that and move forward to correct the mistake. I agree with Steve that HB477 should be scrapped, and then we should move forward to improve GRAMA in a way that addresses our modern electronic communications but still provides the citizens of Utah a transparent government.
Showing posts with label utah politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label utah politics. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Morgan Philpot Closing The Gap With Jim Matheson
In a poll released last night by Dan Jones & Associates for KSL and the Deseret News shows that Morgan Philpot is quickly closing the gap in the polls with Jim Matheson. The released results shows Philpot now down 12%, with 51% of the respondents saying they plan to support Matheson and 39% planning to vote for Philpot.
What is significant about these latest poll results is that two weeks ago in a poll conducted by Dan Jones & Associates, Philpot was down 26% to Matheson. And as Philpot appears to be closing the gap fast, Matheson's support has dropped to 51%, which is not a good sign for Matheson. If this trend continues for Matheson and if the 10% of undecided voters break for Philpot, which could happen in this anti-incumbent wave of voter anger, the Philpot - Matheson race could come down to the wire on election night.
Philpot appears to have the momentum, but it remains to be seen if there is enough time before election day for Philpot to win over enough voter support to get him across the finish line as the victor on election night next week. I hope that voters in Utah's 2nd Congressional District will see through the deception and negative attacks on Morgan Philpot and send Philpot to Washington D.C. as our representative.
Click here to see my thoughts on the Morgan Philpot vs. Jim Matheson race.
What is significant about these latest poll results is that two weeks ago in a poll conducted by Dan Jones & Associates, Philpot was down 26% to Matheson. And as Philpot appears to be closing the gap fast, Matheson's support has dropped to 51%, which is not a good sign for Matheson. If this trend continues for Matheson and if the 10% of undecided voters break for Philpot, which could happen in this anti-incumbent wave of voter anger, the Philpot - Matheson race could come down to the wire on election night.
Philpot appears to have the momentum, but it remains to be seen if there is enough time before election day for Philpot to win over enough voter support to get him across the finish line as the victor on election night next week. I hope that voters in Utah's 2nd Congressional District will see through the deception and negative attacks on Morgan Philpot and send Philpot to Washington D.C. as our representative.
Click here to see my thoughts on the Morgan Philpot vs. Jim Matheson race.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Philpot vs. Matheson
In the race for Utah's second congressional district, it is interesting to hear what my friends and colleagues are saying about the two candidates; Morgan Philpot (R) and Jim Matheson (D).
Most of the feedback I have heard about Morgan Philpot is mixed. Even many republicans, while planning to vote for him, feel that Philpot doesn't seem to understand the demographics of the district. Observers draw this conclusion from watching and listening to Philpot look and sound like a candidate trying to sway voters of a younger age (i.e. He spikes his hair in the front and uses a vocabulary that you would expect to hear from a 25 year old). Philpot is struggling to rally his base in a year that he should have easily tied it down.
On the flip side, many republicans and democrats are not satisfied with the incumbent Jim Matheson. Democrats think he is too conservative, and republicans think he is too liberal. Matheson claims to be an independent, but most of the water cooler talk I hear leads me to believe that most don't buy into Matheson's self-proclaimed independent label. Upon review of his voting record, Matheson consistently votes with Nancy Pelosi, even though he touts the handful of times he broke ranks and didn't vote with his party. He continually reminds voters that he is a blue dog democrat, supposedly trying to keep the extreme liberal left of his own party in check. Furthermore, Matheson always falls back on his Southern Utah roots as a reason that he relates with the conservative, rural part of the district.
However, the fact remains that Jim Matheson is a democrat that helped bring Nancy Pelosi to power by casting his vote for her to be Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. My personal opinion is that Matheson's campaign slogan of him "putting Utah first" is a farce. He puts his own interests ahead of his constituents' interests. I would like Matheson to explain his votes for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker and with a straght face say that he believes those votes were the votes his constituents wanted him to cast. He couldn't do it without lying.
Additionally, it appears that Matheson broke ranks and voted with the republicans only on votes where Nancy Pelosi already had the votes she needed to pass the socialistic Obama agenda. If Jim Matheson was truly undecided on his vote for Obamacare until the day he cast his vote, which he claimed, that tells me all I need to know about him. He is either too stupid to understand that what his party is doing is destroying America, or he is putting his own interests ahead of his constituents. Either way, Matheson is not getting my vote.
So while many conversatives may buy into Matheson's propoganda, I hope they will come to their senses, overlook Philpot's perceived lack of credibility, and vote for the only true conservative in the race for Utah's second congressional district, Morgan Philpot.
Most of the feedback I have heard about Morgan Philpot is mixed. Even many republicans, while planning to vote for him, feel that Philpot doesn't seem to understand the demographics of the district. Observers draw this conclusion from watching and listening to Philpot look and sound like a candidate trying to sway voters of a younger age (i.e. He spikes his hair in the front and uses a vocabulary that you would expect to hear from a 25 year old). Philpot is struggling to rally his base in a year that he should have easily tied it down.
On the flip side, many republicans and democrats are not satisfied with the incumbent Jim Matheson. Democrats think he is too conservative, and republicans think he is too liberal. Matheson claims to be an independent, but most of the water cooler talk I hear leads me to believe that most don't buy into Matheson's self-proclaimed independent label. Upon review of his voting record, Matheson consistently votes with Nancy Pelosi, even though he touts the handful of times he broke ranks and didn't vote with his party. He continually reminds voters that he is a blue dog democrat, supposedly trying to keep the extreme liberal left of his own party in check. Furthermore, Matheson always falls back on his Southern Utah roots as a reason that he relates with the conservative, rural part of the district.
However, the fact remains that Jim Matheson is a democrat that helped bring Nancy Pelosi to power by casting his vote for her to be Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. My personal opinion is that Matheson's campaign slogan of him "putting Utah first" is a farce. He puts his own interests ahead of his constituents' interests. I would like Matheson to explain his votes for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker and with a straght face say that he believes those votes were the votes his constituents wanted him to cast. He couldn't do it without lying.
Additionally, it appears that Matheson broke ranks and voted with the republicans only on votes where Nancy Pelosi already had the votes she needed to pass the socialistic Obama agenda. If Jim Matheson was truly undecided on his vote for Obamacare until the day he cast his vote, which he claimed, that tells me all I need to know about him. He is either too stupid to understand that what his party is doing is destroying America, or he is putting his own interests ahead of his constituents. Either way, Matheson is not getting my vote.
So while many conversatives may buy into Matheson's propoganda, I hope they will come to their senses, overlook Philpot's perceived lack of credibility, and vote for the only true conservative in the race for Utah's second congressional district, Morgan Philpot.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
St. George City Municipal Elections
It has been quite a while since I have posted on my blog - a little over 8 months in fact. I decided today that although I am extremely busy with some big projects at work, I need to make the time to share my thoughts about the current events and issues affecting my community.
Yesterday, the City of St. George held its election for mayor and two city council seats. While I am generally pleased with the outcome, I do wish that Suzanne Allen could have had a better showing. Suzanne has worked extremely hard for the citizens of St. George over the last 16 years, and I believe that she has always had the interests of the greater good at heart during her time on the city council. Voters reelected Gail Bunker to the council where she will continue to serve the citizens of St. George for four more years.
After his third run at the St. George City Council, Ben Nickle won a seat on the council. I don't personally know Mr. Nickle, but I have some concerns about his ability to govern as a member of the city council and work effectively with the other council members. While some have criticized Mr. Nickle over his extreme positions on certain issues, my concerns are more with his demeanor and delivery of his message. However, I will wait and pass judgment on Mr. Nickle after he has had an opportunity to demonstrate his abilities and intentions on the council.
Finally, while I do not always agree with Mayor McArthur on some of the positions he takes, I do believe that he is currently the right guy to be our mayor. He has worked hard and given his heart and soul to the city. He deserves our thanks for his commitment and dedication to service.
Again, congratulations to all of those who stuck their neck on the line and emerged victorious last night.
Yesterday, the City of St. George held its election for mayor and two city council seats. While I am generally pleased with the outcome, I do wish that Suzanne Allen could have had a better showing. Suzanne has worked extremely hard for the citizens of St. George over the last 16 years, and I believe that she has always had the interests of the greater good at heart during her time on the city council. Voters reelected Gail Bunker to the council where she will continue to serve the citizens of St. George for four more years.
After his third run at the St. George City Council, Ben Nickle won a seat on the council. I don't personally know Mr. Nickle, but I have some concerns about his ability to govern as a member of the city council and work effectively with the other council members. While some have criticized Mr. Nickle over his extreme positions on certain issues, my concerns are more with his demeanor and delivery of his message. However, I will wait and pass judgment on Mr. Nickle after he has had an opportunity to demonstrate his abilities and intentions on the council.
Finally, while I do not always agree with Mayor McArthur on some of the positions he takes, I do believe that he is currently the right guy to be our mayor. He has worked hard and given his heart and soul to the city. He deserves our thanks for his commitment and dedication to service.
Again, congratulations to all of those who stuck their neck on the line and emerged victorious last night.
Friday, November 14, 2008
May God Bless America!
With all of the challenges facing our country today, the United States needs all of the divine help it can get right now. From tough economic conditions to dealing with the global fight on terrorism, there appear to be many things not going well in our country at the moment.
Although I do not agree with him politically, I congratulate President Elect Obama and sincerely hope that he can hold the fabric of America together while we all fight to lift America out of the tough spot we are currently in. I also hope that some fresh, true conservative leadership will spring forth to help guide our country back into the light.
Finally, I need to give a shout out to my good friend Steve Urquhart on a campaign run with class and integrity. Representative Urquhart (he has been serving in the Utah State House of Representatives for the past eight years) will now be Senator Urquhart with his resounding victory on election night. Steve is a brilliant, genuine person who deserves the praise he so often receives for his work in the legislature. Congratulations Steve on a job well done and good luck with your new post in the senate!
Although I do not agree with him politically, I congratulate President Elect Obama and sincerely hope that he can hold the fabric of America together while we all fight to lift America out of the tough spot we are currently in. I also hope that some fresh, true conservative leadership will spring forth to help guide our country back into the light.
Finally, I need to give a shout out to my good friend Steve Urquhart on a campaign run with class and integrity. Representative Urquhart (he has been serving in the Utah State House of Representatives for the past eight years) will now be Senator Urquhart with his resounding victory on election night. Steve is a brilliant, genuine person who deserves the praise he so often receives for his work in the legislature. Congratulations Steve on a job well done and good luck with your new post in the senate!
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