News Highlights

Article: "Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. kicked off his weeklong trade mission in the land known as the Middle Kingdom today with back-to-back meetings with U.S. and Chinese officials, including one of the toughest negotiators he's ever faced. 'Ma is my old counterpart when I was a trade negotiator,' the governor said of the vice minister of China's Ministry of Commerce, Madame Ma Xiuhong. 'She is very good, very smart and very savvy'" (Deseret Morning News) (see also related Daily Herald and Salt Lake Tribune stories).

Rep. Rob Bishop and Democratic challenger Steve Olsen tout their conservative credentials in debate Monday at the Hinckley Institute of Politics (Standard-Examiner and Morning News).

A visioning process that focuses on the future of Washington County, the nation’s fastest-growing county, starts tonight with a summit meeting (Morning News). For more information, see the Vision Dixie Web site.

Population boom: In 2005, 11,295 babies were born in Utah County. In the same year, only 1,716 people died (Daily Herald).

Quote of the Day

“… after months of being told by candidates and campaign strategists who and what to vote for on election day, we get the final say on Nov. 7. It's our choice. Get out there and vote. No excuses.”

-- Opinion column by Morning News editorial writer and columnist Marjorie Cortez.

Early Voting Locations

Only 21 days to go before election day, and early voting begins in just a week, Oct. 24. The lieutenant governor’s Web site has a PDF list of all early voting locations and times they are open.

Get Out the Vote

For candidates and campaign workers, it’s time to focus hard on a plan to get supporters to the polls on election day. Read the second installment of Joe Garecht’s get-out-the-vote suggestions below.

Blog Watch

Jesse Harris says: "Supporters of the public school system will tell you that our schools are failing because of inadequate funding and more specifically low teacher pay. This is despite Utah's performance being better than the national average even when our per-pupil funding consistently places us in the bottom 10. If funding is the answer, then why aren't we doing worse? Could it be there is more to education performance than the raw dollars being shelled out? New York proves this by having the highest per-pupil funding of any state yet consistently placing in the bottom 1/3 for education performance. Clearly there is more to it than just money"... At Utah Politics, Eric R. says: "The economic benefits of low taxes and limited government have been demonstrated time and again around the world. Yet Utah state government seems to not understand these basic concepts"... Paul Rolly reports: "My political column that ran in The Tribune's Sunday Opinion Section proffered the idea that Salt Lake County continues to wane in influence at the Utah Legislature, despite having about half the state's population, because most of the members of the Republican leadership are from counties other than Salt Lake County, areas that often have different priorities than the majority of Salt Lake County residents. I noted that the trend likely will continue because those Republicans vying for leadership positions this year are mostly lawmakers from Utah County, Washington County or the rural outskirts. It's true that the speaker of the House is and will continue to be Greg Curtis, from Salt Lake County. And Salt Lake County could possibly gain the president of the Senate, since Michael Waddoups is challenging Utah County's John Valentine for speaker. But the other six leadership positions are from outside Utah's most populous and urban county and that trend will continue. Today, I learn that Wayne Harper and Jim Dunnigan, both from Salt Lake County's west side, plan to run for House majority whip. They will join in that race two candidates I mentioned on Sunday, Becky Lockhart of Utah County and Gordon Snow of Uintah County. Don't expect Salt Lake County to gain from that race, however. Harper and Dunnigan will split the Salt Lake County vote, thereby giving the Whip's job for sure to either Lockhart or Snow. That means the urban Republicans are no less naive that Utah's lovable Democrats. Remember how moderate Democrats Dave Jones, Jim Bradley and Mike Zuhl could not agree on letting one of them run for Salt Lake City mayor, so they all ran against each other, split the same support base, and gave the race to the more liberal and divisive Rocky Anderson. Yep, the more different Utah politicians seem, the more alike they really are"... At New West, Tracy Medley notes: "Look at Pete Ashdown's MySpace profile and you'll see much more than the same old lists of political humdrum and issue-babble; if you look close enough you may even find a real boy ... er man. For instance, Ashdown, who is challenging Senatorial fixture Orrin Hatch this November, likes Battlestar Galactica, Rushmore and Dante's Inferno. Battlestar Galactica? ... all politics aside, who can argue with that?"... At The Right Angle, Robert B. Bluey says: "Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney swung through Washington, D.C., [yesterday] for a luncheon speech to nearly 400 fans and admirers who packed a Capitol Hill restaurant to hear his message. The private fundraiser, organized by Romney's Commonwealth PAC, was so popular that attendees barely fit in the room. The turnout confirmed the sentiments of Republican National Chairman Ken Mehlman, who told the crowd that there was 'no more sought-after speaker than Mitt Romney' among Republicans these days. Not long ago that honor likely belonged to Sen. John McCain (R.-Ariz.) or former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. ... With 2008 still two years away, Romney has a long way to go before even securing the Republican nomination. But as his upbeat performance ... demonstrated, he's able to talk family values and national security as effectively as anyone. Romney's previous success as a businessman -- not to mention his work on the 2002 Olympics -- makes him a candidate who has real-life experiences. Conservatives are certain to gripe about his recent pro-life conversion and the health-care solution he devised for Massachusetts, but even the latter can be a political winner. I overheard some attendees saying they were there solely because of Romney's innovative health-care plan, not his conservative political leanings" (see also here and here).

Washington Watch

Easy Re-Election for Matheson?

Article: "[T]his year, with the national political atmosphere putting the Republicans' House majority at serious risk, [Rep. Jim] Matheson appears to be having a much easier re-election campaign than usual. National Republican strategists, who usually have resources to throw at targeting Matheson, are busy across the nation trying to defend dozens of their own seats that Democrats are vying hard to take over. That has left Matheson's 2006 challenger, state Rep. LaVar Christensen, to pretty much fend for himself. The latest campaign finance reports, for activity through Sept. 30, suggest that Christensen -- best known as author of a ballot initiative to ban gay marriage that Utah voters approved in 2004 -- will have a hard time seriously contending without an outside boost" (CQPolitics.com).

Compelling International News

Baaa, Humbug

(From London's Daily Telegraph)

“It has taken more than 12 months and cost about £10,000 but a council is finally on the verge of discovering the identity of a man who kept saying "baa" during a planning meeting. After a wide-ranging investigation, Havering council, based in Romford, Essex, has prepared a 300-page report, according to the Romford Recorder newspaper.

“Unfortunately, the downside is that the prime suspect is no longer a councillor and is, therefore, beyond the scope of any punishment that it might want to mete out. The incident has it roots in a planning meeting in September last year when an application was being heard to put a mobile home on a farm housing rare breeds of horses and sheep. The solemnity of the debate was, apparently, interrupted by a male councillor making unhelpful "baa-ing" noises.”  (Source: OpinionJournal.com Best of the Web)  

Campaign Tip

Getting Out the Vote, Part II
(Second in a series of two articles by Joe Garecht of LocalVictory.com) 

Organizing an outstanding get out the vote operation can make or break a local campaign. In part one of this article, we talked about what a get out the vote campaign is and how to build a list of supporters who plan to vote for your candidate on Election Day. In this installment, we will look at how your campaign can ensure that these supporters actually go to the polls to vote for your candidate.

The Voter Blitz
No later than four or five days before the election, your campaign should begin its "voter blitz." While all aspects of the campaign are involved in this blitz, your get out the vote operation will be crucial to its success. Your team should begin to take steps to contact each voter you have identified as a supporter and motivate them to go out and vote for your candidate. Each supporter should be contacted at least once, though if you have the manpower or money to do so, contacting each supporter 2-3 times would be beneficial.

There are several different ways your campaign can go about contacting these supporters. You can operate a phone bank (volunteer or professional) that calls each supporter to remind them to go vote on Election Day. You can organize literature drops and door-to-door visits to get out the vote, and mail out direct mail pieces that reinforce your message. The best option is to utilize several different methods to reach each supporter numerous times.

No matter what method you choose, your message to the voter is the same: Please remember to vote for our candidate on Election Day. Remind the voter when Election Day is, and if possible, tell the voter where their polling place is. Do whatever you can to make it easier for your supporters to go vote. If you are able, offer rides to the polls, vans taking senior citizens from the local nursing home, baby-sitting services and maps to the polling places.

Election Day Operations
On Election Day, your campaign should have a team of volunteers and staff in place to keep track of which supporters have gone to the polls. Every polling place should be staffed with at least one person from your campaign. Be sure to check local regulations on what these "poll watchers" are and are not allowed to do once near the polls. Generally, they will not be allowed to campaign in any way, only observe.

Your poll watchers should have a list of all supporters you have identified who will vote at that polling place. As the voters come in to vote, the election officials will ask for their names and mark them off on the official registers. Your poll watchers should listen as well and mark down each supporter as he or she comes to vote. Your campaign will want to remind supporters who have not gone to the polls yet to go out and vote.

Your campaign should have a system in place for relaying information from the poll watchers to the campaign headquarters. (If the district is large, there may be several regional headquarters set up in supporters' homes and offices around the district). One way to do this is to have a volunteer who drives from polling place to polling place and collects the names of supporters who have gone to the polls so that they can me marked on the master list. The campaign should have phone banks in place to contact voters who have not gone to the polls and volunteers to go knocking on supporters' doors reminding them to vote.

Don't worry about contacting a voter "too often." Common sense should prevail (don't call a supporter at 7am on Election Day telling them to get out of bed and go vote), but it is fine if a supporter is reminded to go vote several times on Election Day. The campaign should begin making phone calls and visits to remind supporters to vote before lunch time, and should continue making calls right up until the polls close. Remember: each and every vote puts your campaign closer to victory.

Get out the vote campaigns are an essential component of victory for your candidate. By identifying supporters, reminding them to go vote, making it easy for them to go to the polls and keeping track of who has gone to vote, your campaign can organize an Election Day effort that will help put your campaign, and your candidate, over the top.

Read Part I of this Article

Utah in the National News

Lengthy Washington Post profile on Kristen Cox, 37, a blind woman who grew up in Utah, served an LDS mission in Brazil, graduated from BYU, and who is now lieutenant governor running mate to Maryland Republican Gov. Bob Ehrlich.

Mitt Romney Watch

Romney gets credit for raising a lot of money for the Republicans Governors Association (Washington Post).

Local Headlines

Deseret Morning News

- Huntsman in Beijing: He meets with 'old counterpart'

- Tunnels for skiers?

- Utah adds to U.S. growth

- Pipeline plan fuels worries

- District 2 looks like Matheson cakewalk

- New gym is possible

- Parents of disabled criticize cuts

- Groups appeal amendment to Utah Constitution

- 'Vision Dixie Summit' tonight in St. George

- 'Rules' an issue in race for Salt Lake County recorder

- Bishop, Olsen tout credentials at debate

- Ashdown far from spending limit

- Davis residents can meet the candidates

- Rocky to speak at U. on protecting environment

- Amer coming to Ogden

- Gasoline 'gouging' elicits a rebuttal

- Utahns applaud Amer decision

- Marjorie Cortez: Voting is vital even if you're sick of political ads

- Editorial: Hate takes no holiday

Standard-Examiner

- Where they differ?

- Ski company bringing up to 230 jobs

St. George Spectrum

- Vision Dixie to help county grow, change

- Op-ed: Congress is in desperate need of new blood

- Editorial: Laud the Hispanic chamber

Daily Herald

- Day One: Reflections from the Forbidden City

- The rising birthrate

- Orem in search of more cemetery land

- Eagle Mountain, Genola look to establish city cemeteries

- Campaign funding explained

- Editorial: Free speech on Capitol Hill

KSL Editorial Board

- Continue conservation mindset

KCPW

- E-waste back on legislative agenda

- 'Even failed attempts at online enticement should be felonies'

- Getting tough on retail thieves

- Medicaid rules leave disabled children without coverage

- Granite schools could see big changes

Salt Lake Tribune

- Chinese market: Utahns want in

- Hatch has no worries, gives away big bucks

- Hate-crime reports decline in Utah

- Pay cut a new challenge for foster parents

- Disabled activists fight feds

- Recorder job sounds dull, but rival candidates add some spice

- Mullen: Prop. 3 needs a close look

- Plan would link Wasatch ski resorts

- Spanish Fork likely to terminate 10-year agreement on annexation

- Morgan official takes name off ballot

- Newcomers are ready to make an impact

- Adam Aircraft's Ogden facility marks new era

- Ogden scores ski equipment headquarters

- Editorial: Supply and demand: Gasoline will cost what we are willing to pay

Please submit calendar items to Daily@UtahPolicy.com

- Oct 17: Utah International Trade Commission, 9 a.m., room W125.
- Oct 17: Midday Metro at 10 a.m. on KCPW 88.3 FM features Shauna Kerr from Trust for Public Lands on November's Open Space Initiative; plus David Korten, author of The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community. To participate, call 801-355-TALK or email midday@kcpw.org during the show.

- Oct 17: Executive Appropriations Committee, 1 p.m., room W135.
- Oct 18: Legislative meetings scheduled throughout day. See legislative calendar for details.
- Oct 18: Meet the Candidates/Fundraiser, 6 to 9 p.m., South Jordan Community Center. Voters from Sandy, West Jordan, South Jordan, Harriman, Riverton and Draper are invited to meet Republican candidates for countywide office. Lohra Miller for District Attorney and Carrie Dickson for Clerk as well as all of the other candidates have been invited to personally meet with voters. Refreshments will be provided.
- Oct 19: Utah Intergovernmental Roundtable Summit, continental breakfast begins at 8 a.m., Delta Center. Topic is "Growth = Challenges: A Dialogue on Growth in Utah," and is designed to promote a discussion of the challenges facing the state due to population growth. Education, water, infrastructure, and transportation will all be impacted. To see final agenda and to register, visit http://www.cppa.utah.edu/uir/.
- Oct 19: Utah Technology Commission, 8 a.m., room W110.
- Oct 19: Hinckley Forum " U.S. –Nigeria Relations," 10:45 a.m. His Excellency George A. Obiozor, Ambassador to the U.S. for the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
- Oct 19: Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee, 1 p.m., W025.
- Oct 19: Child Welfare Legislative Oversight Panel, 2:30 p.m., room W020.
- Oct 19: United Way of Salt Lake Women’s Philanthropic Network presents The Power of the Purse, 6 p.m., Rice Eccles Stadium, 4th floor. Keynote Speaker: Fara Warner, author of The Power of the Purse. Warner spotlights the roles women encompass in society today, how they have shed traditional roles and how women can be effective in working to change conditions and society for the better. Tickets: $100.00 per person or $800.00 per table. Contact Jennifer Andrs Atkin at 736-7787.
- Oct 19: Healthcare for All in Utah: Pros and Cons of a Proposed Constitutional Amendment, 6:30 p.m., University of Utah College of Law. This event is a discussion about the state's responsibility to provide affordable basic healthcare to all Utahns, and features Senator Scott McCoy, Dr. Joseph Jarvis, attorney Bill Tibbits, and economist Roberta Herzberg.
- Oct 19: Summit County Libertarian Party Meeting, 7 p.m., Starbucks, 6400 North Highway 224, Park City.
- Oct 19: Davis County Democrats planning committee meeting, 7 p.m., Campaign HQ office, 50 West Gentile (corner of Main Street and Gentile), Layton. Agenda includes recruitment of volunteers, and get out the vote activities.  All interested Democrats are urged to attend.  The general public is also invited

- Oct 20: Green Party Honk 'n' Wave for Peace "U.S. Out of Iraq, Now," featuring Bob Brister, Green Candidate for Utah's 2nd Congressional District, 9 to 10 a.m., NW corner, intersection of 700 E and 2100 S, Salt Lake City. For more information see www.bristerforcongress.org.
- Oct 20: Utah Association for Bilingual Education 2006 Conference, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., Granite School District Center, 2500 S. State St., Salt Lake City. Dr. Elena Izquierdo, a nationally known expert on bilingualism/biliteracy from UTEP, will be the speaker. The cost is $25 ($10 for students). For more information visit UABE's website, www.uabe.org, or contact Barbara Lovejoy at 801-466-1117 or bclovejoy@msn.com.
- Oct 20: Utah Tax Review Commission, 1 p.m., room W125.

- Oct 20: Salt Lake County Northeast Quadrant Constitution Party meeting, 7 p.m., Home of Gary & Carolyn Alder, 4046 S 700 W, Salt Lake City.
- Oct 21: Weber County Constitution Party meeting, 10 a.m., Main Library, 2464 Jefferson Ave., Ogden.
- Oct 21: Green Party Honk 'n' Wave for Peace "U.S. Out of Iraq, Now," featuring Bob Brister, Green Candidate for Utah's 2nd Congressional District, 10 to 11 a.m., NW corner, intersection of State Street and 6400 South. For more information see www.bristerforcongress.org.
- Oct 23: Medicaid Interim Committee meeting, 8:30 a.m., room W135.
- Oct 25: Women’s State Legislative Council Meeting, 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., State Office Bldg Auditorium.  Candidates running for United States Congress representing both Parties will speak. Question/Answer. Delegate members are invited & visitors are welcome.  Visitors may call for a Guess Pass to Kitty Kaplan, Pres-Elect at 942-5133, kittykaplan@msn.com. For more info and calendar, visit www.wslcofutah.org.
- Oct 25: Speaker Greg Curtis' World Series Tailgate Party, 6:00 p.m., Skybox restaurant.  For more information contact Kat Dayton at 801-580-4743 or katdayton@gmail.com.
- Oct 26: ChamberWest General Membership Meeting, 11:45 a.m., The E Center Centennial Room, 3200 South Decker Lake Drive. Topic is Meet the Candidates (Any Federal, State, Local candidate that represents any area of West Valley City, Taylorsville and Kearns). Cost is $15 with RSVP. To RSVP, call 801-969-8755 or e-mail rsvp@chamberwest.org.
- Oct 26: Subcommittee on Oversight, 3 p.m., room W140.
- Oct 26: Salt Lake County Libertarian Party Meeting, 7 p.m., Grecian Garden, 4816 South State Street, Murray.

- Oct 31: Hinckley Forum "Campaign 2006: The Race for Senate District 7," 2:00 p.m. Ross Romero (D) v. Bryce Jolley (R).

- Nov 1: Special Districts Subcommittee of the Political Subdivisions Interim Committee, 9 a.m., room W125.
- Nov 1: Native American Legislative Liaison Committee, 9:30 a.m., 130 House Building.
- Nov 1: Hinckley Forum "The Axis of Evil: A Foreign Policy Briefing on Iraq, Iran, and North Korea," 10:45 a.m. Guest is Senator Bennett.
- Nov 2: Downtown Alliance 12th Annual Achievement Awards Breakfast, 7:30 to 9 a.m., Hilton Salt Lake City Center, 255 South West Temple. The awards are designed to pay tribute to those individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to downtown Salt Lake City during this past year.
- Nov 4: Green Party Honk 'n' Wave for Peace "U.S. Out of Iraq, Now," featuring Bob Brister, Green Candidate for Utah's 2nd Congressional District, 10 to 11 a.m., NW corner, intersection of State Street and 6400 South. For more information see www.bristerforcongress.org.
- Nov 6: Hinckley Forum "Confucius Beliefs and the Effectiveness of Local Governance," 12 p.m. Guest is Da-chi Liao, President of the Taiwan Political Science Association.

- Nov 8: Hinckley Forum "Who Won and Why," 11 a.m. Live RadioWest with Doug Fabrizio. Kirk Jowers, Director, Hinckley Institute of Politics, Dan Jones, Professor Lecturer, Political Science Department; President Dan Jones and Associates, Dave Buhler, Adjunct Professor Political Science Department, U of U; Chair, Salt Lake City Council.
- Nov 8: Hinckley Forum "What We Give Back: A Conversation about our Responsibility to our Community," 6 p.m., Libby Gardner Hall. Guests include Rev. Trace Browning, Episcopal Chaplain, Rowland Hall Saint Marks, Ruby Chacon, local artist, Ron Yengich, criminal defense attorney, Ted Wilson, former Salt Lake City mayor, Honorable Judith S. H. Atherton, Utah Third District Court Judge, Steve Ott (moderator).
- Nov 10: Hinckley Forum "Immigration," 12 p.m. Guests include Charles Hirschman, Boeing International Professor in the Department of Sociology, and Professor at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington.

- Nov 13: Retirement and Independent Entities Interim Committee, 9 a.m., room W135.
- Nov 15-17: Utah Association of Counties Annual Convention, Dixie Center, St. George.
- Nov 15: Salt Lake Chamber 30th Annual Women and Business Conference and Athena Award Luncheon, 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., The Grand America Hotel, 555 South Main Street, Salt Lake City. Cokie Roberts, senior news analyst for NPR as well as political commentator for ABC News, will be the keynote speaker. To learn more or register, visit www.saltlakechamber.org.

- See the entire calendar

Elected Officials Birthday List

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