| New Slate of Leaders
Congratulations to the new House and Senate leadership. The new leaders in both houses are experienced, reasonable, thoughtful, and well qualified to direct the Legislature. Senate President John Valentine, Majority Leader Peter Knudson, along with Dan Eastman and Beverly Evans, will run things in the Senate. House Speaker Greg Curtis, Majority Leader Jeff Alexander, along with Steve Urquhart and Ben Ferry will lead the House. The upcoming session will be interesting and eventful.
Richard H. Headlee
We express our condolences and wish the family of Richard H. Headlee well as they mourn his death and celebrate his life. Richard Headlee passed away early Tuesday morning after a long illness. He was fairly well known in Utah, but he was much better known in Michigan, where he ran for governor, got a constitutional amendment passed, and had enormous influence on public policy. His passing has been noted much more prominently in Michigan than in Utah, although he has lived here for a number of years in retirement. Read this tribute to him at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. It calls him “a giant of Michigan political history.”
Richard Headlee’s son, Howard Headlee, is president of the Utah Bankers Association. He spent most of Tuesday fielding calls from Michigan newspapers, radio stations and TV stations. In an e-mail to friends, Howard said, “The 30 years he spent in Michigan were amazing years of accomplishment and friendship. Some political commentators have suggested he has had more impact on the state than any elected official, and more influence over the past half century than any other individual. I am very proud of him and as I read some of what is being published I am beginning to understand why I already miss him so much. The 17 years we have shared with him since his heart transplant have been a blessing and a miracle and for that we give thanks.”
Blog Posting on Transportation
Check out the timely new posting on our policymaker blog by Wilf Sommerkorn, director of economic development for Davis County. Wilf addresses transportation funding issues, which will be front and center in the upcoming 2005 legislative session. He suggests some good reading material for those interested in transportation and urban growth.
Now that the election is over, we encourage all of our volunteer bloggers to write about the election results, the issues of the day, or whatever is on your minds. If you don’t want to sign up at www.blogger.com, you can just send us your thoughts in an e-mail to daily@utahpolicy.com.
Best Campaign Ever
In his latest National Journal column, Charlie Cook sings the praises of the George Bush election team, “which unquestionably was the best planned, best executed presidential campaign ever.” The true measure of the effort is the turnout figures, Cook said. What’s amazing is that the John Kerry campaign, along with the various independent groups supporting him, also ran a good campaign and not only hit, but exceeded, their targets in the number of voters they thought were needed to win.
But the Bush campaign, with its allies, got even more of its voters out. In Ohio, for example, Kerry got 25,000 more votes than its goal, but Bush got 130,000 more.
Cook argues that while the election “was a good and clean win” for Bush, it was not the “transformational election that some are making it out to be.” The shift toward Republicans is important, but hardly massive. To sign up for Cook’s free weekly column, go here. |
