News Highlights

Gov. Huntsman calls questions about a role in a McCain administration "presumptuous" but stops short of pledging to serve out a second term if re-elected (Deseret Morning News).

At least three bills at the Legislature would lengthen the school year, giving teachers an opportunity to earn substantially more money and make more efficient use of school buildings and facilities (Salt Lake Tribune).

Standard-Examiner editorial supports legislation protecting municipal water rights.

Quote of the Day

“I’m Senator Mayne in a smaller package.”

-- Sen. Karen Mayne, who replaced her husband, the late Sen. Ed Mayne, in the Legislature, quoted in a Tribune profile.

The Week Ahead

Say happy birthday to Abraham Lincoln on Tuesday, and don’t forget your Valentine on Thursday.

Week four of the 2008 Legislature begins today, and the session hits its half-way point on Tuesday. Floor time increases this week to five hours a day as more legislation gets pushed through committees. See the House and Senate weekly schedules and the legislative calendar with committee agendas.

On the presidential campaign front, a number of key primary and caucus elections will be held on Tuesday, giving Barack Obama a chance to overtake Hillary Clinton in the delegate count. For all the week’s political events, see the UtahPolicy.com calendar.

Monday Musing

Romney in 2012?

In a Deseret Morning News op-ed essay, Mike Winder lays out a case for Mitt Romney to run again for the presidency in 2012. Romney is clearly keeping his options open. At the SL County Lincoln Day dinner last Friday, Sen. Bob Bennett noted that after suspending his campaign last week, Romney met with a group of U.S. senators and members of Congress and offered to campaign for them this year or when they’re next up for election. That’s exactly what a prospective future candidate does, Bennett noted.

Today in Political History

Feb. 11, 1812:  Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry signs a redistricting law that favors his party, from which the term “Gerrymandering” is derived. (NBC5) 

Feb. 11, 1945: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin sign the Yalta Agreement during World War II. (New York Times)

Feb. 11, 1971:  The United States and Russia sign a treaty banning nuclear weapons testing in the oceans.

Feb. 11, 1979: The bloody Iranian revolution begins and the Shah's reign is over.

Feb. 11, 1990:  Nelson Mandela released after 27 years in South African prisons. Later, he becomes the president. (Perspicuity) 

Wise Words

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

-- Nelson Mandela (BrainyQuote) 

Leadership Tip

Reinvent Your Job

"Never let your ego get so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it."

-- Colin Powell

Too often, change is stifled by people who cling to familiar turfs and job descriptions. One reason that even large organizations wither is that managers won't challenge old, comfortable ways of doing things. But real leaders understand that, nowadays, every one of our jobs is becoming obsolete. The proper response is to obsolete our activities before someone else does. Effective leaders create a climate where people’s worth is determined by their willingness to learn new skills and grab new responsibilities, thus perpetually reinventing their jobs. The most important question in performance evaluation becomes not, "How well did you perform your job since the last time we met?" but, "How much did you change it?" (Source:  Coach Thee) 

National Politics

Best Stories From . . .

-- The Guardian: "[A]fter a miserable night on Saturday, when her campaign suffered four substantial margins of defeats in four contests against Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton has dumped her manager Patti Solis Doyle, and replaced her with long-time friend and aide Maggie Williams."
 
-- New York Times: Columnist Frank Rich wonders "how much more racial friction the Clinton campaign will gin up if its Hispanic support starts to erode in Texas, whose March 4 vote it sees as its latest firewall. Clearly it will stop at little. ... A race-tinged brawl at the convention, some nine weeks before Election Day, will not be a Hallmark moment. ... [I]t will be a flashback to the Democratic civil war of 1968, a suicide for the party no matter which victor ends up holding the rancid spoils."

-- Washington Post: Columnist Jim Hoagland says Clinton and Obama "share a problem as they move deeper into the primary season: They have both issued promises to withdraw from Iraq that are impossibly vague, unrealistic or worse. They must now rectify this -- for the good of their campaigns and the nation."

-- The Hill: "President Bush said Sunday that there is 'no doubt' in his mind that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) is a 'true conservative.'"

Blog Watch

-- At Out of Context, Dan Harrie reports: "Sen. Orrin Hatch has a new instrument in his public-relations orchestra: incoming press secretary Mark Eddington. Eddington left the Tribune Thursday after an 8-year run, doing terrific work for the paper. He was hired as the Utah County beat reporter and spent years mining that rich lode for great stories. More recently he was editor of the Tribune's Close-Up zoned supplements and learned how to juggle with the mastery of a circus performer. He's a talented guy who will likely serve Hatch well, which means we are probably going to be doing some hand-to-hand combat at times in the future. My parting advice to him: 'Don't take it personally.'"

Lighter Side

I Haven’t a Clue

(Source: Reader’s Digest)

These student answers reveal why teachers need summer vacations.

Q: Use the work baron in a sentence.

A: Mrs. Jones is baron and can’t have children.

Q: The War of 1812 was between . . .

A: 1811 and 1813.

Q: What is an index?

A: It’s what you wash windows with.

Elected Officials Birthday List

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Utah in the National News

Associated Press in the Charlotte Observer: "People in Utah are used to being mocked by the outside world because of the state's polygamist roots, even if it makes their blood boil. So if any state should be sensitive to the problem of bashing another's reputation based on stereotypes, it ought to be Utah. But three weeks into their legislative session, lawmakers here have questioned the patriotism of Alabama and North Carolina on the floor of the House and have mocked Arkansas as an illiterate state on the Senate floor."

Local Headlines

Deseret Morning News

- Huntsman staying course

- Elderly drivers — a tough call

- Districts may share the wealth

- Ferguson betting on experience

- Struggles of black Utahns chronicled in documentary

- Surgery centers want slice of Medicaid pie

- Legislation on Jordan split fine-tuned

- Disciplinary files might be sealed

- Pleasant Grove reaffirms anti-porn position

- County Council gets an etiquette lesson

- Hospitalized vets to get visits from dignitaries

- John Florez: Cupid's arrows bounce off immigration laws

- Editorial: Make government accessible

- Op-ed: Mitt's presidential bid just beginning

Standard-Examiner

- Internal roles

- Editorial: Water rights and wrongs

Daily Herald

- Editorial: Stopping illegal immigration

KCPW

- UMNH Asking Lawmakers for Construction Cash

Salt Lake Tribune

- Film inspires black Utahns to reflect on racism in state

- Mayne fills big shoes of beloved late hubby

- Valor leaves legacy for 'little guy'

- Bills aim to stretch teachers' year

- Teacher librarians in short supply

- Rolly: Governor has eyes on airport bounty

- Earmarks curb fails to win over Utahns

Please submit calendar items to Daily@UtahPolicy.com

- Feb 11: Legislative meetings scheduled throughout day. See Legislative calendar for details.

- Feb 11: Midday Metro at 10 a.m. on NPR Utah, KCPW 88.3 FM: A beginner’s guide to fair trade and why it matters to you with Jacqueline DeCarlo, program adviser on fair trade to Catholic Relief Services. Call 801-355-TALK during the show to participate.

- Feb 11: RadioWest on KUER FM 90: "Reagan and the Candidates," 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Since their first debate in early 2007, Republican candidates have been invoking the name of Ronald Reagan to prove their true conservatism. Doug talks to the biographer Lou Cannon about the real Reagan and about how today's politicians measure up.

- Feb 12: Lincoln’s Birthday

- Feb 12: District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia Republican Presidential Primaries and Caucuses.

- Feb 12: Maryland and Virginia Democratic Presidential Caucuses

- Feb 12: Legislative meetings scheduled throughout day. See Legislative calendar for details.

- Feb 12: Planned Parenthood Action Council Annual Dinner, cocktails at 6 p.m., dinner at 7 p.m., Downtown Marriott Ballroom, 75 South West Temple. Keynote speaker is United State Attorney General, Janet Reno, the longest serving Attorney General since the Civil War and the first female Attorney General of the United States of America. For ticket and sponsorship info call 801-328-8939, email ppac@ppau.org, or visit www.ppacutah.org.

- Feb 13: Lt. Governor Herbert to attend the Sutherland Institute Blogger Briefing, 7:30 a.m., Sutherland Institute, 307 West 200 South, Salt Lake City.

- Feb 13: Governor Huntsman to attend the Globalization Course Lecture, 6 p.m., University of Utah, Warnock Engineering Building.
- Feb 14: Valentine's Day

- Feb 15: Governor Huntsman to attend the Utah Bankers Association Hall of Fame Luncheon, 12:15 p.m., Grand America, SLC.

- Feb 15: Governor Huntsman to attend the Utah Realtors Association Conference, 2:30 p.m., Salt Palace, Room 155, SLC.

- Feb 16: Lt. Governor Herbert to speak at the Emery County Lincoln Day Breakfast, 8 a.m., Museum of the San Rafael, Castledale.

- Feb 16: Davis County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner, 6 p.m. meet and greet, 7 p.m. dinner, Davis Conference Center. Single tickets $30, couples $50. Sponsorships available. RVSP to Ben Horsley at 801-529-4387 or email ben.horsley@gmail.com.

- Feb 16: Washington County Lincoln Day Dinner
- Feb 18: President's Day

- Feb 18: Teen Lobby Day sponsored by Planned Parenthood Action Council, Equality Utah, and the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault, 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., Utah State Capitol. Call Joey Richards at 801-328-8939 for more info.

- Feb 18: Planned Parenthood Action Council Citizen Lobby Day, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Utah State Capitol, East Building Cafeteria. Tell your legislators what is important to you this session. For more info call 801-328-8939 or email ppac@ppau.org.

- Feb 19: Wisconsin Republican Presidential Primary

- Feb 19: Hawaii and Wisconsin Democratic Presidential Primaries and Caucuses

- Feb 19: Utah Women's Alliance for Building Community Networking Event, 5:30 p.m., Wells Fargo Building, 299 S. Main, 11th Floor, Salt Lake City. Senator Carlene Walker and State Representative Karen Morgan will speak. Learn about the legislative process and ways to participate in local government. Free event, refreshments provided. RVSP here.

- Feb 21: Utah Republican Party Executive Committee Meeting, 7:30 a.m., Party Headquarters.

- Feb 21: Lt. Governor Herbert to speak at the Gathering of Seagulls Conference, 12 p.m., Red Lion Restaurant, Salt Lake City.

- Feb 22: Washington's Birthday

- Feb 22: Uintah & Duchesne Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinners

- Feb 26: United Nations Association of Utah program "Climate Change--Contrasting Approaches of the EU and USA," 6 p.m. dinner, 7 p.m. program, Sugarhouse Garden Center, Sugarhouse Park. Guest speaker is Dr. Erich Pohl of the University of Heidelberg. The public is welcome to both the dinner and program. Contact Maxine Haggerty at 801-277-7493.

- Feb 26: Salt Lake Council of Women (SLCW) Hall of Fame Event, 6 p.m. Reception, 7 p.m. Dinner and Awards program, Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg, 15 E. S. Temple, 9th floor. Keynote speaker First Lady Mary Kaye Huntsman. SLCW will induct seven women who have given twenty-five years or more of voluntary service to the community. Reservations by Noon, Feb. 19. Contact: Peggy Rounds at 801-943-7462 or prounds@msn.com.

- See the entire calendar