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The Week Ahead
April ends today and May begins tomorrow, along with a variety of political events this week. Check them out at the Utah Policy.com political calendar.
Monday Profile
Lewis Billings: Sitting High on the Mountain
By GM Jarrard
Lewis Billings was standing on the tarmac at the Provo Municipal Airport waiting for the plane full of VIPs to arrive. He was the mayor, a post he hadn’t yearned for. Billings was asked to work on behalf of the man he was to greet by someone he respected and trusted, and he accepted the challenge. Fate had smiled on the young business manager-investor-turned-politician. And now Fate had asked him to wait for and then welcome to Happy Valley the next president of the United States.
 Today, in his second year of his third term — his 10th year to be exact — Mayor Billings loves his job and the people he was elected to serve. And they must love him — he keeps getting elected.
A Provo native, Lewis Billings was raised in a middle-class home on Provo’s west side. He did what most young men of Provo are raised to do: serve an LDS mission and then go to BYU. He did what was expected of him. Then he decided to strike out on his own and make some real money working in the high-tech world of computers and electronics, first as a junior executive and then senior level member of management, for three different corporations.
Having married in the interim, when pressed to relocate by his employer at the time, Billings resigned and accepted the post of CEO and managing partner for a real estate investment partnership. Billings was comfortable in this role in that he had been an active real estate investor since purchasing his first piece of real estate at the age of 15. This new position provided a wonderful change of pace. For several years, he enjoyed a period of time where required travel was greatly reduced, time for family, community service and personal interests greatly enhanced. It could be said that all was going pretty well in Billings' world when then-Mayor George Stewart, Billings’ predecessor, called him.
They had first met a few years before while serving on the same foundation board. “I told him once, then twice, finally a third time that I was very busy, that I had a business and partners and I wasn’t looking for another opportunity. But, he was persistent. He said he needed some expert help to prepare the city's state and federal legislative agendas and then to pursue them. Couldn’t I just come down and take a peek?” Billings recalled.
“He just wanted to talk. Well, we spent all day talking. Somewhere towards the end of the day with my arm all twisted out of shape — and after getting a parking ticket for being parked literally all day in front of City Hall — I could see a real opportunity to do something of significant value, and I made a commitment to help. For just a short period of time, of course. That was my understanding. Shortly thereafter, Stewart’s Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) was suddenly diagnosed with cancer, and I was asked by Stewart to temporarily fill the post. That temporary assignment became permanent when the prior CAO couldn’t return. As a former senior executive vice president and general manager of a publicly-traded corporation, I was intrigued by the challenge of managing an enterprise of the size and structure of Provo City. It seemed like a very exciting and wonderful way to give something back to the community I had lived in all of my life.” (Read complete profile.)
Washington Watch
Bennett's Rural Business Conference
Sen. Bob Bennett's Sixth Annual Rural Business Conference, to be held in Logan May 30-31, will feature speakers and presentations addressing emerging agricultural trends, economic development and business growth. Says Bennett: "Agriculture continues to be a dominant economic force for many of Utah's rural communities. We have added several presentations on new opportunities for the agricultural entrepreneur to our usual lineup of practical, real-world advice for small business owners" (see press release).
UDOT/UTA Open Houses
UDOT and UTA are co-hosting a series of open houses over the next two weeks to gather public input on I-15 Corridor EIS alternatives in Utah County. UDOT is also hosting open houses on Tuesday and Wednesday to solicit input on the the I-15 New Ogden Weber expansion project and the EA study of the S.R. 68 corridor in Davis County. For times and locations, click here.
Today in Political History
April 30, 1798: George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.
April 30, 1945: Adolf Hitler commits suicide in Berlin as Soviet forces capture the city. (Source: perspicuity)
April 30, 1975: The South Vietnamese capital of Saigon falls to Communist forces (New York Times)
April 30, 1995: President Bill Clinton put an end to all U.S. trade with Iran, citing the country's record of terrorism and its acquisition of nuclear power as the reasons.
Wise Words
“If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.”
-- George Washington (Source: Brainy Quote)
Leadership Tip
Pay Attention to your Experiences
Visions don’t materialize magically in a sudden flash of light. They come in part from paying attention to what is right in front of us. That is why, as cultural anthropologist Jennifer James has observed, “The core skill for understanding the future is the willingness to see it---and see it in perspective.” The Internet (or its precursor) has actually been around since the 1960s, when it was originally used for military research. It only became a viable commercial technology in the 1990s, some twenty –odd years after it was first conceived. It’s is a classic reason to look back before you look ahead: the technology and the talent may already exist in a laboratory or a garage somewhere. (Source: The Leadership Challenge 3rd edition, Kouzes and Posner pg 121)
National Politics
Best Stories From . . .
-- Washington Post: Columnist Robert Kagan: "America must 'lead the world in battling immediate evils and promoting the ultimate good.' With those words, Barack Obama put an end to the idea that the alleged overexuberant idealism and America-centric hubris of the past six years is about to give way to a new realism, a more limited and modest view of American interests, capabilities and responsibilities. Obama's speech at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs last week was pure John Kennedy, without a trace of John Mearsheimer."
-- Chicago Tribune: Columnist John Kass takes a tongue-in-check look at Sen. Hillary Clinton's various ready-to-use campaign trail southern accents and dialects, which include Daisy Duke, Southern Woman, Granny Clampett and Black Female Preacher.
-- Washington Post: Editorial says Sen. John McCain is injecting useful truths into the presidential race with his straight talk about the Iraq War (see also related Niall Ferguson column).
-- Times of London: Columnist Gerard Baker says Fred Thompson is an "Imaginary Candidate" whose popularity reflects the "escapism" of American voters "anxious to flee the present-day horrors of real-life Washington."
Taxpayers Assoc. Scorecard
The Utah Taxpayers Association has posted its 2007 Legislative Scorecard.
"The Junction" in 3D
Weber State University students have created a series of 3D renderings of "The Junction," a mixed use development currently under construction in Ogden. To explore the renderings, which include a 3D video flythrough, click here.
Blog Watch
-- Rob Miller posts a report, complete with photos, on the Salt Lake County Democratic Convention.
-- David Rodeback reports on the Utah County Republican Convention (see also related Utahania post).
-- Rep. John Dougall says: "Beware of the math terrorists here in the Alpine School District! (You know who you are.) 'Terrorist' is a strong word you say? Well how about the word 'extremist?' They are synonymous -- particularly in our present culture. Why would I use the word 'extremist?' I wouldn't, but the Alpine school superintendent would. Was this some accidental misstatement before the Orem city council? Nope. In fact, Sup. Henshaw repeated and reiterated his use of the word 'extremist,' justifying its use. He has finally resorted to trying to discrediting the opponents of his disastrous math agenda through name calling (picking one of the ugliest terms possible), since he failed in his use of logic and reasoning."
-- Rep. Craig Frank notes: "Every year around this time a number of Associations and Policy groups produce their annual legislative 'scorecards.' Sierra club released their card a few days ago -- Rep. Frank scored 38% -- that's good. Utah Taxpayers' Association scorecard came out [Saturday] -- Rep. Frank's score was 93.8% (7th place out of 75 places) -- voting against UTA's agenda only once (out of 14 pieces of legislation tracked). The single bill? HB203, by Rep. Scott Wyatt was generally not understood well by the House before the vote. I have personally spoken with Rep. Wyatt, and have given him my support next year for this crucial and timely bill" (see also related Utah Taxpayer post). |
