The Week Ahead
It’s the last week of September and a busy political week. For all the activities, including a number of fundraising events, see the Utah Policy Daily calendar. A highlight is the Western States Primary Symposium Friday and Saturday attended by Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. The Water Issues Task Force will hear a proposal from Trout Unlimited on in-stream flows Thursday at 2 p.m. in W125 at the Capitol. For other legislative meetings this week, see legislative calendar.
Sen. Bennett on Yahoo!
Want to ask Sen. Bob Bennett a question? Bennett is this week’s guest on Yahoo!’s “Talk to Power” feature hosted by TV news personality Judy Woodruff. Readers can pose on-line questions to Bennett and he will respond. Early questions from Yahoo! readers focused on economic issues and Social Security, reflecting Bennett's role as vice chairman of the Joint Economic Committee and a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee. Check it out here.
Utah’s Top Issues
It’s important for Utah policymakers and opinion leaders to be aware of and up-to-speed on the top issues facing the state. Here is our weekly list, generated by observing what’s hot in the news media, what’s on the agenda of various policymaking groups, and what’s being discussed among opinion leaders and policymakers. We welcome suggestions and input from UPD readers. E-mail daily@utahpolicy.com.
Emerging
- Western states primary
- SLCIA nonstop service to Europe
- 4th congressional seat for Utah
- Tolling on highways
- Snake Valley water pumping for Las Vegas
- SITLA land sale on Green River
- Minimum wage increase
- High gas prices
Mature
- 2006 election campaigns
- Downtown SLC revitalization
- Immigration
- Washington County lands sales
- Open space funding
- Guns at college
Getting Old
Oldies But Goodies
- Banks/Credit Unions
- Highway funding
- Vouchers/School Choice
- Tax cuts vs. education funding
- No Child Left Behind
- Healthcare reform/Intermountain Healthcare
EDCUTAH Helps Corporate Expansion
The Economic Development Corporation of Utah is rolling out a “SURE Sites program” to qualify Utah industrial locations that are ideal for corporate expansion. This week’s edition of the Economic Review, EDCUTAH’s e-newsletter, features the Sure Sites program, which is expected to put Utah ahead of anything currently available in neighboring states. “Now, in 15 minutes a site consultant can create numerous infrastructure map layers and conduct in-depth analysis of a site, extract all of the necessary data, then download the data into a format that can be saved to disk and printed. This will be a huge competitive advantage going forward,” says EDCUTAH’s Michael Flynn, vice president, public development.
Blog Watch
At the House Democratic Caucus blog, Rep. Rosalind McGee says: "I suppose one of the luxuries of being a Democrat in Utah is you don't have to apologize for voting against your conscience, because you don't HAVE to vote against your conscience. Regardless of your party however, it is always difficult to listen to good people apologize for bad decisions. Rep. Scott Wyatt's ... speech on the House floor during the recent special session ... was once such event. Such speeches are generally predictable, but jaws dropped when Scott said, 'I submit that the best thing we can do for the children of Utah is to invest in their future by stimulating the economy.' Had I really heard that? I conferred with some of my colleagues, and sure enough my hearing is just as good as Ralph Becker's. ... It was the first time in my life I've heard someone attempt to explain how a tax cut for the wealthy is in the 'best interest of our children' and that economic stimulus is a long-term benefit whereas 'investing in education is a short term benefit'" (see also here, here, and here)... Rep. Craig Frank relates: "[An acquaintance said] someday he'd like to get involved in the legislature and inquired as to the salary of a Representative. That's always a loaded question ... (the implication, often, is legislators are a bunch of 'fat cats' making exorbitant amounts of cash on the backs of the citizenry). $120 a day, was my answer. $120 a day?! Gulp! And then the next, almost predictable, obligatory, sympathetic question: How do you live on that? Well, the fact is, I don't live on that. And if it weren't for my 'real' job in the structural steel industry, I could never afford to serve in the state legislature"... CoolestFamilyEver explains why "blogging is politics for the lazy"... At Out of Context, George Pyle says: "The 2nd District congressman from Utah, Jim Matheson, has often been attacked for being a DINO -- Democrat in Name Only ... The Realpolitik excuse offered by observers ... is that ever since his Salt Lake County-only congressional district was shamelessly gerrymandered by the Republican Legislature to include scads of red-state voters in red-rock country, Matheson has had to scamper to his right to keep his job. Now, as part of a political deal to gain Utah the fourth seat in the House that it was rooked out of after the 2000 Census, the state's Republican leaders are basically promising to gerrymander Matheson into a safe seat. They've come up with a tentative map that gives Matheson all of Salt Lake City and its nearest suburbs, plus Robert Redford country up in Park City. ... [But as] solidly liberal as the new district stands to be ... it would be entirely possible that he'd be vulnerable to a challenger from the left, making Congress a little bit more liberal, if not officially more Democratic. The Republicans may have outsmarted themselves on this deal. They say Rocky Anderson's looking for a job" (see also here and here)... Hotline On Call notes: "We can't find the link for this, but it appears as if those Fox News appearances are paying off for Mitt Romney. From the MIRS Capitol Capsule: 'Fox News commentator Bill O'Reilly told a gathering here today that Massachusetts Gov. and former Michigander Mitt Romney is his early favorite to win the 2008 presidential election over U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) in what he sees now as the likely head-to-head race. Speaking at the Michigan Future Forum, sponsored by the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, O'Reilly said former frontrunner U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) will be hurt for his "soft" positions on the terrorist interrogation and border security issues'" (see also here and here).
Washington Watch
U.S. Chamber Money for Matheson
Rep. Jim Matheson made the front page of the Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required) on Friday. A chart accompanying the article notes that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is spending $344,000 on TV ads supporting the congressman, the third highest amount in the country. For the first time, the Chamber is spending money on Democrats it wants to see re-elected.
Bennett to Greens: Take the Deal
Article: "[Environmentalists are balking] at a bill being pushed by Sen. Robert F. Bennett (R) and Rep. Jim Matheson (D), both of Utah, that would sell as much as 40 square miles of federal land -- nearly twice the size of Manhattan -- and use the profits to pay for a water pipeline and other area projects. Bennett, whose proposal would sell off as much as 25,000 acres of federal land in Utah's fast-growing Washington County while protecting other red-rock areas, said environmentalists would be wise to take the deal he is offering. His advice to them, he said in an interview, is: 'Take it and then keep arguing for more, that's your job. I don't object to you earning a salary for a hopeless cause'" (Washington Post).
Matheson: $$ for Airport
Rep. Matheson says "the federal Department of Transportation has announced a grant of $17 million towards acquiring land for the proposed St. George Airport" (see press release).
Cannon Endorses Border Bills
Rep. Chris Cannon votes "for three major pieces of legislation that will help increase border security and crack down on illegal immigration" (see press release).
Downtown Rising Workshop
The Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce will be holding a "public visioning workshop" at the SLC Public Library tomorrow night at 6 p.m. "to review what has developed from the Downtown Rising collaboration so far, explore ideas and give input for the future of downtown." For more info and to register, click here. |
