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Greg Curtis: Courage Under Fire
The Wall Street Journal recently published an essay (subscription required) by Howard S. Rich on school choice that highlighted the role of Utah House Speaker Greg Curtis played in Utah. Here are some excerpts:
“The flattened borders of the 21st century have made networking faster, global trade freer and competition more rigorous -- meaning the premium we place on educating future generations is higher than ever before. Yet the nation's monopolistic approach to education remains a millstone around our children's necks, with America consistently lagging behind its industrialized peers in academic achievement.
“The late Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman understood the central role school choice must play in revitalizing American education. "Empowering parents would generate a competitive education market, which would lead to a burst of innovation and improvement . .
“Universal school choice plans can ultimately forge winnable political coalitions. Utah adopted the nation's first universal school choice bill this year in spite of a staggering amount of political capital devoted to defeating the legislation and demonizing those who rallied behind it. House Speaker Greg Curtis, who was targeted for defeat by teachers unions last year and came close to losing his seat, is emblematic of courage under fire. Instead of being awed by the onslaught, Mr. Curtis pushed choice aggressively, and was a central figure in the school choice victory.”
Tuesday Profile
Howard Stephenson: Tax Watchdog
By GM Jarrard
 1964. It was a great year for rock and roll but a bad year for Republicans. Pres. Lyndon Johnson’s caricature of Sen. Barry Goldwater as a maniac itching to launch a thermonuclear war paid off. Johnson won in a landslide. And in Fredonia, Arizona, a 14-year-old member of the local high school marching band discovered his political bearings. For a young Howard Stephenson, it was like a political bar mitzvah.
“Our band was at the Kanab airport just over the state line awaiting the arrival of Sen. Goldwater’s plane. It was his last stop on his presidential campaign. In previous senatorial campaigns, Fredonia had always been Goldwater’s lucky town, a place where he began and ended his appearances. Then, just as the candidate was to land, somebody lost a contact lens — they were rare and expensive in those days. So, there we were on our hands and knees on the tarmac looking for that lens. It was an inauspicious position to be in. As we saw his plan taxi in, we quickly got to our feet and into position,” Stephenson recalls.
That year, of course, in Fredonia Goldwater’s luck ended. For Stephenson, however, it was a turning point. But, it wasn’t so much Goldwater that caught the teen’s attention as it was another man, an actor and TV spokesman for Death Valley Days, Ronald Reagan.
Stephenson remembers the day when he heard The Speech, October 27, 1964, commonly referred to as Reagan’s “Rendezvous with Destiny” address.
“That’s what it was for me, a turning point,” Stephenson notes. He relates those parts of the speech that still ring loudly in his ears: (Click for full profile)
Washington Watch
Matheson: Mesa Should Continue Service
Rep. Jim Matheson says he's pleased with a U.S. Dept. of Transportation announcement that Mesa Air must continue serving three Utah communities until replacement air service can be awarded (see press release).
Today in Political History
June 19, 1862: Congress votes to prohibit slavery in U.S territories, nullifying the Dred Scott case. (Source: NBC5)
June 19, 1934: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is established.
June 19, 1953: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, American citizens, were executed at Sing Sing prison for spying for the Soviet Union. The US Supreme Court declined to issue a stay of execution. (Source: perspicuity)
Wise Words
“To judge from the history of mankind, we shall be compelled to conclude that the fiery and destructive passions of war reign in the human breast with much more powerful sway than the mild and beneficent sentiments of peace; and that to model our political systems upon speculations of lasting tranquility would be to calculate on the weaker springs of human character.”
-- Alexander Hamilton, 1788, Federalist No. 34 (PatriotPost)
Communications Tip
Take Time to Learn Skills
Communications skills are crucial to every aspect of life. Most political failures are failures of communications. Employees who can’t communicate effectively won’t be successful. The manager that does not know how to communicate effectively with staff members will lose their cooperation. The salesperson who does not understand that listening is a part of communication will lose the sale.
Are you a good communicator? Can you deliver a powerful message? Can you grab your audience’s attention and keep it? Can you effectively make your points so you can count on the correct action being taken? Have you mastered the art of asking questions to increase understanding? If not, it’s worth taking the time and effort to learn these skills. (Source: Alliancetac)
National Politics
Best Stories From …
-- Quinnipiac: Analyst Peter Brown: "The race for the Republican presidential nomination has reached a potential turning point. ... Fred Thompson's impending entry into the race ... will make this a momentous summer...."
-- New York Times: As John McCain courts the defense industry for campaign contributions, he's "reminding military companies and lobbyists why they have never liked him. ... [McCain's] presidential campaign may be paying the price for a career of positions seemingly calculated to alienate constituencies that according to Washington custom should be prime sources of campaign cash."
-- Washington Post: "Gov. Bill Richardson has found a second home in Nevada. ... The decision by Nevada Democrats to move their caucuses to Jan. 19, 2008 ... was supposed to make the state ... a prime destination for presidential candidates. But so far, the gregarious New Mexico governor has been the only one to make it a priority."
-- Slate: Columnist Christopher Hitchens: "If Scooter Libby goes to jail, it will be because he made a telephone call to Tim Russert and because Tim Russert has a different recollection of the conversation. Can this really be the case? And why is such a nugatory issue a legal matter in the first place?"
Blog Watch
-- Paul Rolly reports: "Joe Hunter, Utah Congressman Chris Cannon's chief of staff, has been hired by Parents for Choice in Education as a campaign strategist for the referendum vote on vouchers this year. That group is part of a coalition that will try and defeat the ballot proposal to repeal the voucher bills passed by the Legislature earlier this year. Hunter will continue as Cannon's chief of staff, but will carefully monitor his time proportions between his job in the congressional office and his campaign work for the pro-voucher vote to make sure he doesn't do anything improper while on the taxpayer dime. 'Anything I do will be fully vetted. I will make sure everything is proper,' he said" (for more on the voucher issue, see Steve Urquhart and Blau Exchange).
Lighter Side
“Keep your eyes wide open before marriage and half shut afterwards.”
—Benjamin Franklin (Tea Leaf) |
