Washington Watch

Hatch Hails Newborns Bill Approval
Sens. Orrin Hatch and Chris Dodd applaud the "House passage of their bill to educate parents and health care providers about the importance of newborn screening, improve follow-up care for infants with an illness detected through newborn screening, and help states expand and improve their newborn screening programs" (see press release).

Cannon Receives NTU Award
Rep. Chris Cannon is named as a "Friend of the Taxpayer" for 2007 by the National Taxpayers Union (see press release).

College Dems to Hold Convention 

College Democrats of Utah (CDU) will hold their First Annual Statewide Convention Saturday, noon, in the U. of U. Olpin Student Union Theater.  College Democrats from across the state are expected to attend this first official CDU event organized by the College Caucus leadership of the Young Democrats of Utah.

"In the past, the College Caucus has been a fairly informal group without much statewide activity," said Caucus Chair Aaron Curtis in a press release.  "This year, we are changing that dynamic by organizing an active College Democrats of Utah organization.  This convention will allow Democrats at Utah colleges to begin building a strong network of intercollegiate support."

Students will vote on the new CDU Constitution and elect the first CDU Executive Board.  Keynote speech will be delivered by Rep. David Litvack and a panel of community activists will discuss how college students can get involved in political and social activism. 

"Young people are voting in record numbers this year," said Juli Huddleston, the College Caucus Vice-Chair.  "By going to the polls this fall, college students have the opportunity to dramatically change Utah politics, and an effective organization of college Democrats will ensure that such a movement takes place." The group will organize an active campaign to bring college students to the polls for the June 24th primaries and the general election. 

Today in Political History

April 9, 1865:  Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrenders his army at Appomattox Court House in Virginia to Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. (Source:  NBC5) 

April 9, 1992:  Former Panamanian ruler Manuel Noriega is convicted by a Miami jury of having assisted Colombia's cocaine cartel. 

April 9, 1996:  Power of "line-item" veto is given to the president to allow the president to control “pork barrel” spending, the practice of adding unrelated items to major legislation.  On June 26, 1998, the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, struck down the line-item veto law, declaring it unconstitutional. (Perspicuity) 

Wise Words

“Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less.”

-- Robert E. Lee  (Source:  Son of the South) 

Campaign Tip

Blog Your Way to Election Success

One of the newest ways for elected officials and those seeking office to reach out and interact with the voters is through a public involvement tool such as a blog.  A blog is very cost effective, allows for direct feedback from voters, is a  good way to brand your campaign, creates avenues of access for voters that normally wouldn’t exist and it can be a conduit for collecting campaign contributions.  If the blog is informative, up to date and interactive it can be a very valuable tool in your campaign toolbox.  (Source: Davick Services) 

National Politics

Best Stories From . . .

-- The Hill: "Gen. David Petraeus ... and U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Tuesday told the Senate that the situation in Iraq has improved greatly but that challenges remain. The duo ... also urged lawmakers to not allow the 'snapshot' of recent fighting in Basra to cloud the overall picture."

-- Los Angeles Times: "John McCain, chiding his Democratic presidential rivals for promising to withdraw troops from Iraq, said Monday that it would be 'reckless' to leave the combat zone too quickly."

-- Politico: "Democratic talk of an early, hard-hitting campaign to 'define' and tar [McCain] appears to have fizzled for lack of money, leading to a quiet round of finger-pointing among Democratic operatives and donors as McCain assembles a campaign and a public image relatively unmolested."

-- National Journal: Columnist Charlie Cook: "Should Republicans want to hold onto the presidency in 2008? It sounds like a stupid question ... But one thing that has been true over the last couple of decades is that both parties have enormously strong self-destructive tendencies. ... To give one party the White House and majorities in the House and Senate is like a ticking time bomb; it's only a matter of time before it explodes and the party loses, and loses big."

Lighter Side

Is there such a thing as a conservative with a sense of humor? Check out tilting-right political cartoons at GOPUSA.