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The Week Ahead
Month of June ends.
A couple of important legislative committee meetings are scheduled this week, including the Government Competition and Privatizations Subcommittee on Wednesday, and the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee on Friday. The transportation group will meet at UDOT headquarters and focus on issues and challenges facing transportation in Utah. For the legislative agendas and meeting notices see the legislative calendar and check out other political events this week listed in the Utah Policy.com calendar.
Utah Fund of Funds Workshop
The Utah Fund of Funds will hold its monthly Emerging Entrepreneur Monthly Workshop on Wednesday, June 27 in the Karen Gail Miller Conference Center at the Larry H. Miller Business Innovation Center (9690 South 300 West, Sandy). Drinks will be provided for the brown bag event. The topic for this first Fund of Funds monthly workshop will be, “Designing the Perfect Investor: Not all Money is the Same,” presented by Nicole Toomey Davis. For more information, click here.
Herrod: Chamber is Wrong
Rep. Chris Herrod from District 62 in Utah County has written a lengthy “open letter” taking the Salt Lake Chamber to task for supporting President Bush and Senate leaders on immigration reform. Some excerpts:
“Although I am sure that it is not politically wise for me to write this letter, I want to express my disappointment about the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce’s recent full page ad in support of the immigration bill before the U.S. Senate. I believe the Chamber’s position is wrong and will in the long run hurt the Chamber’s credibility with the public both here in Utah and around the world.”
“If this bill is passed, we will effectively discriminate against 60 million people worldwide who would have had the ability to come to the United States had it not been for amnesty (12 million illegal aliens + an average of 4 family members = 60 million). This bill radically shifts U.S. demographics and is unsustainable. We will cease to be a melting pot. This nation can survive many languages, but it cannot survive just two.
“Most people in Utah understand this and this is why they are upset. They are not xenophobes as they are often portrayed in the media. They simply believe in fundamental fairness, the rule of law, and protecting our national security by enforcing our borders.”
Washington Watch
Hatch: Biologics Agreement
Sens. Orrin Hatch, Mike Enzi, Ted Kennedy, and Hillary Clinton announce "an agreement on legislation authorizing the FDA to approve a follow-on version of biologic therapies. The legislation includes standards for FDA to approve follow-on biologics, a mechanism to resolve patents in an expedited way, and strong but responsible incentives to encourage innovation and the development of new therapies" (see press release); Sens. Hatch and Tom Harkin welcome "the long-sought publication of good manufacturing practices (GMP) regulations for dietary supplements" (press release).
Matheson Provisions Approved
The House Energy Subcommittee approves an energy bill which includes a Rep. Jim Matheson-authored provision calling for energy efficient commercial buildings (see press release); Matheson adds "a requirement to a bill reauthorizing research and development programs at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to prioritize noise pollution when changing commercial flight paths" (press release).
Today in Political History
June 25, 1788: Virginia is admitted as the 10th U.S. state.
June 25, 1876: Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry are wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians in the Battle of Little Big Horn in Montana.
June 25, 1950: North Korea invades South Korea, beginning the Korean War. (Source: perspicuity)
June 25, 1973: Former White House Counsel John Dean begins testifying before the Senate Watergate Committee. (Source: NBC5)
Wise Words
“The society which scorns excellence in plumbing because plumbing is a humble activity, and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because philosophy is an exalted activity, will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy. Neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water.”
--John W. Gardner (Source: Quotes Exchange)
Leadership Tip
Colin Powell on Leadership
"Don't be buffaloed by experts and elites. Experts often possess more data than judgment. Elites can become so inbred that they produce hemophiliacs who bleed to death as soon as they are nicked by the real world.
“Small companies and start-ups don't have the time for analytically detached experts. They don't have the money to subsidize lofty elites, either. The president answers the phone and drives the truck when necessary; everyone on the payroll visibly produces and contributes to bottom-line results or they're history. But as companies get bigger, they often forget who ‘brought them to the dance’: things like all-hands involvement, egalitarianism, informality, market intimacy, daring, risk, speed, agility. Policies that emanate from ivory towers often have an adverse impact on the people out in the field who are fighting the wars or bringing in the revenues. Real leaders are vigilant, and combative, in the face of these trends.” (Read more from Colin Powell)
National Politics
Best Stories From …
-- New York Times: "Ralph Nader, whose run for president infuriated Democrats in 2000 and made him the object of disdain when he ran again in 2004, said [Friday] that he might get into the 2008 race."
-- Washington Post: The money gap is widening between the presidential frontrunners and the rest of the field, "a separation that will be apparent when the campaigns file their fundraising reports on the second quarter, which ends next Saturday."
-- Los Angeles Times: Columnist John Ziegler: "Of all the buzzwords in politics that have taken on a life of their own, 'bipartisanship' is, without a doubt, the most overrated and misunderstood. A spot-on example of the absurd 'bipartisan' folly transpired [last] week at a USC-sponsored conference dramatically titled 'Ceasefire! Bridging the Political Divide.' Speakers included a long list of prominent liberals from the world of politics and media ... The 'other side' of the political divide was represented ... by [Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Bush-critic Matthew Dowd]. ... [I]t was obvious from the start that only the conservative side was supposed to lay down its weapons. The real definition of bipartisanship is clear: conservatives surrender."
-- American Prospect: Columnists John B. Judis and Rudy Texeira: The 2006 election marked "the end of a fleeting Republican revival ... and the return to political and demographic trends that were leading to a Democratic and center-left majority in the United States. ... While Democrats picked up 30 House seats and six Senate seats, they also won six governorships, netted 321 state legislative seats, and recaptured legislative chambers in eight states. That's the kind of sweep that Republicans enjoyed in 1994, which led to Republican control of Congress and of the nation's statehouses for the remainder of the decade."
Blog Watch
-- Frank Staheli says: "My wife and I have a big Mormon family, so we have a big Mormon wagon -- an SUV. We calculated the cost to drive the thing a couple months back, and it shocked us. At least 25 cents per mile. And that's just for gas. So it is with some trepidation that I agree with Jay Evensen of the Deseret News that we need to raise taxes on gasoline."
-- Scott Hinrichs observes: "For all of the mouth-frothing over the 'blind' and 'stupid' conservatism of the 'sheeple' in Utah, I must conclude that most Utahns are actually quite moderate. Let me put that another way. Utah leans strongly conservative on certain (not all) social issues but isn't very conservative at all on many fiscal issues."
-- ULCT lobbyist Lincoln Shurtz posts a June legislative interim update (see also related UAC Blog post).
-- Jeremy Manning says: "Sen. Buttars is pushing for a legal mandate requiring insurance companies in our state to cover gastric bypass surgeries and other medical procedures that treat morbid obesity. He is perfectly willing to ignore the fact that when government forces insurance companies to cover these procedures it means everyone else's health insurance policy premiums go up to pay for it. This is a good example of my problem with all government involvement in the health insurance industry. I hate the idea that government can force the rest of us to finance health care for those who make risky and foolish lifestyle decisions that put their health in jeopardy."
Lighter Side
“In politics, sincerity is everything. Once you can fake that, you’ve got it made!
-- Groucho Marx |
