The 4th seat mutates

So the Utah-DC exchange bill is introduced in the 110th, but with a new twist:

[this year's bill contains] a provision that would bar [Utah's Republican-controlled legislature] from redrawing congressional districts until 2012. Some Democrats in Congress fear [they would] gerrymander the state's only Democratic congressman, Jim Matheson, out of office.
State lawmakers already met in a special session last year to finalize a four-seat map.
[Utah Republican Congressman Chris]Cannon says the redistricting moratorium is "a slam down on our Legislature." He said state lawmakers wouldn't want to redraw the map, but Congress shouldn't be telling them they can't.

I think this is a reasonable restriction, since it forces Utah Republicans to go with the December 2006 map (see HR 328 IH sec. 6(a)(1)).

The DC vote folks want this bill to happen on or before April 15th, when their whole taxation without representation will have the most symbolic power.

quote of the day (Buttars edition)

As usual, St. Sen. Chris Buttars tops the list in terms of stupid statements: “The state has become hostile to religion.” Really? If anything the culture in this state is hostel to those who are atheists. Just look at Bountiful, Utah. While it probably still is the one of if not the most LDS city in Utah, there are lots of churches of other religions in that city. I suspect that those who are not LDS and live in Bountiful feel compelled to prove that they are just as religious as their LDS neighbors. There are churches every other block there from my experience. Even in "secular" Salt Lake City and Park City, there are are no shortage of people attending church without any "hostility." If you ever try to get any chores done on a Sunday in Utah, you can forget it. Almost everything is closed on Sundays, save grocery stores, Chinese restaurants, some coffee shops, convenience stores, some smoke shops, and some 'private clubs.' Utah has some of the strictest anti-smoking and drinking laws in the country, and have had them 20 years before the smoke-free restaurants movement of the late 1990s.

AG Mark Shurtleff, a conservative, LDS Republican that actually knows the law (unlike lawmaker Butters) knows that the West Valley Republican's bill will cost the state lots of money in pointless lawsuits:

"What it will guarantee is it opens up the need for more litigation in state courts," he said, just as there have been in federal court. ...The Republican attorney general said the bill would protect "every strange permutation" of religious expression, including a child who defends wearing a Satanic T-shirt to school by claiming to worship Satan.

Did I call that one about that Satan Tees or what? The Tribune chimes in with more doubters:

“Can we solve this problem by working with the school boards instead of passing legislation and opening up a can of worms?” asked Sen. Scott McCoy, D-Salt Lake City.
“This is a sledgehammer,” said McCoy, an attorney. “I don't know that we need a sledgehammer.”
The bill also drew opposition from Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Utah Higher Education officials.
“There will certainly be a number of state court challenges because of this law,” Shurtleff said.

I guess every work place has to have it's Chris Buttars.

"I have a feeling it is going to be very interesting."

That is the closing line on Sen. Hillary Clinton's announcement video on her website. And this is one thing everyone should be able to agree on. Right now, there are about 7 Democrats in the race for the party's nomination, but only 4 real shots (HRC, Obama, Edwards, and Richardson) and the last one, Richardson, is on the outside looking in on the 3-way race. By contrast, the Republican side is McCain versus the anti-McCain, whoever wins that prize.

Both primaries look to be wide open. McCain probably will win the nomination, since there is no good consensus "true conservative" to challenge him...but he is looking pretty weak right now. But who knows, maybe the religious right will rally around Romney (unlikely because of the SBC's hatred of Mormons) or Gingrich (he seems to be Giullini's man) or Brownback (too dumb to be president after GWB). I predict a McCain/Gingrich ticket at this point, but its is way too early.

Democrats will squabble and might not know who their nominee is until after Super Tuesday, especially if it narrows to a Clinton v. Obama race. Hillary has sworn off taking any public money either in the primaries (like Kerry and Dean and Bush) or in the general, a first. Edwards and Obama are holding simultaneous fundraisers in NYC early February not just because it is Hillary's "home turf" but because there is a lot of money in that city. Richardson may be running for VP and even that race is tough, with Warner and Clark and Bayh as possible contenders.

AFSCME is holding a cattle call in a few WEEKS, so if Clark wants to even have a chance, he better announce before then. He is my first choice, but if he doesn't run, then I would say Obama, then Richardson, then Edwards, and then Hillary (in that order). I think Hillary has done a great job as Senator and should stay there, where her talents and shortcomings are best matched.

Utah Republican legislators: too righteous to be ethical

In the U.S. Senate, after a failed attempt (45-55) to fillabuster the Finegold-Obama ethics bill by the GOP leadership, the bill passed albeit without key provisions thanks to Utah's senators. Sen. Bennett introduced an amendment that would allow astroturf non-profits like those used by Jack Abramboff to continue to lobby Senators sans reporting. And horribly enough, it passed. Worse yet, the bill was weakened substantially by ethically lacking senators who didn't want an independent Office of Public Integrity like other countries have and preferred the current self-regulating system that worked so well that the 109th Congress lost 3 members to felony charges (2 convicted and sentenced) and another resigned because of what would be felony charges. Others lost who should have been investigated, indicted, and convicted. Even this watered down version was too much for Sen. Hatch, who was one of two senators to vote against the ethics bill.

And if you think that's terrible, at least they are letting it come up for consideration (although I bet Hatch and Bennett filibustered like good GOPers), unlike their state level colleagues.

But Legislative leaders have issues with outright banning meals, because food is often paired with lunchtime meetings during the session. In addition, lawmakers say they're not about to be pressured into passing new laws based solely on what the Governor does.

Rep. Greg Curtis, House Speaker: "He chose to do this in the state of the state, in a very public forum. To my knowledge, I haven't been able to obtain a copy of the executive order. And it seems to have been done for a very public purpose."

Every year St. Rep. Ralph Becker has introduced ethics reforms, and every year the GOP majority have kept his bill from coming to a vote. According to the non-partisan center for public integrity, Utah ranks 47th in "Legislator Personal Financial Disclosure," garnering a grade of "F." This means that legislators rarely, if ever report conflicts of interests (i.e. and vote on a bill/amendment that effect them personally). I remember a friend of my parents was a state senator in the early 1990s, and when a bill came up on taxing small aircraft, he announced that he could not vote on the matter since his family owned one. They all look at him in shock and horror, and not because his family was wealthy enough to afford a private jet, but that he disclosed it.

In prior years, when ethics bills have come before the state legislature, Legislators took the bills as a personal affront to their morality. They assumed that the sponsor was accusing them. One even cried during his speech, babbling something about his wife. I wish I could find the test of that, I can't remember what was said, but I remember it was rich.

feeling like a young parent

My wife and I don't have children yet. We want to start a family soon, and need the financial stability of me being employed full-time before we make that leap. But as avid readers know, we did get a dog "for Christmas."

The miniature/toy poodle, who named himself Poe, [we went through a list of authors and he responded to Edgar Allen's last name] is now a full member of the family. And just like an infant, he has trouble sleeping through the night and wakes us up with his antics. So as a result, I haven't been sleeping through the night either.

Plus, like a child, we have been dressing him in snow coats [because of the cold (10 degrees at 11 PM) and his lack of fur (the rescue society gave him a mighty buss)]. We go home at lunch to take him out on walks and he is sad to see us go every time, trying a sit-down strike on our laps to keep us from returning to work/class.

Unlike my classmates with lots of real children, mine will never grow up and learn how to talk to us and so on. Instead we rely on gestures like pawing the dish for
hunger, weird behavior and pawing the door for urgent bathroom breaks, and tail wagging for happiness.

So I know we are not experiencing nearly the same thing as our friends with infants and young children, but for right now, it is the closest we are going to get.

better late than never

Obama on the McCain Doctrine:

“I cannot in good conscience support this plan. As I first said two months ago, we should not be sending more U.S. troops to Iraq, we should begin redeploying them to let the Iraqis know that we will not be there forever and to pressure the Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds to finally reach a political settlement.

“Escalation is a failed policy opposed by generals, Democrats and Republicans, and now even the Iraqis themselves, and the fact that the President is already moving ahead with this idea is a terrible consequence of the decision to give him the broad, open-ended authority to wage this war in 2002.

“It now falls on Congress to find a way to support our troops in the field while still preventing the President from multiplying his previous mistakes. That is why I not only favor capping the number U.S. troops in Iraq, but believe it’s imperative that we begin the phased redeployment I called for two months ago, and intend to introduce legislation that does just that.”

So I take it the Senator is in favor of a rhetorical empty gesture, a symbolic non-binding resolution. The Levin resolution.

Obama believes that symbols mean a lot, and they do. But actually doing something is always better than great speeches and gestures.

Romney can only dream of being the next Gore

That is, best case scenerio, he will win the popular vote, but lose his "home" state.

A Nov. 17 poll by Survey USA and WBZ-TV found that 65 percent of residents disapproved of Romney's performance, a figure that dropped to 59 percent a month later in Romney's waning days in office. The Globe and WBZ reported 54 percent of those surveyed in October viewed Romney's performance as unfavorable.

In reality, Romney is a lying opportunist. I would tell my conservative friends who are worried about Romney's fidelity to conservative ideals that he is a conservative...as long as that will get him the nomination.

Romney played liberal Republican in 1994 and 2002 and governed conservative to please the national party people from 2003 until 2007. In truth, he has no principles and just wants to get power. He probably is conservative socially, more so than Giulliani for sure, and maybe more than McCain on things like tax cuts and illegal immigration.

Nevertheless, he will never be president.

so much for Oprah

Folks had speculated that Barrack would announce he was running for president on Oprah because the website had a TBA for one of the days of the week. However, Obama is trying to be all high-tech and announce via a streaming video on his website. Here's the text (HT to Hotline)

"As many of you know, over the last few months I have been thinking hard about my plans for 2008. Running for the presidency is a profound decision - a decision no one should make on the basis of media hype or personal ambition alone - and so before I committed myself and my family to this race, I wanted to be sure that this was right for us and, more importantly, right for the country"

"I certainly didn't expect to find myself in this position a year ago. But as I've spoken to many of you in my travels across the states these past months; as I've read your emails and read your letters; I've been struck by how hungry we all are for a different kind of politics."

"So I've spent some time thinking about how I could best advance the cause of change and progress that we so desperately need. The decisions that have been made in Washington these past six years, and the problems that have been ignored, have put our country in a precarious place. Our economy is changing rapidly, and that means profound changes for working people. Many of you have shared with me your stories about skyrocketing health care bills, the pensions you've lost and your struggles to pay for college for your kids. Our continued dependence on oil has put our security and our very planet at risk. And we're still mired in a tragic and costly war that should have never been waged."

But challenging as they are, it's not the magnitude of our problems that concerns me the most. It's the smallness of our politics. America's faced big problems before. But today, our leaders in Washington seem incapable of working together in a practical, common sense way. Politics has become so bitter and partisan, so gummed up by money and influence, that we can't tackle the big problems that demand solutions.

And that's what we have to change first.

We have to change our politics, and come together around our common interests and concerns as Americans.

This won't happen by itself. A change in our politics can only come from you; from people across our country who believe there's a better way and are willing to work for it.

Years ago, as a community organizer in Chicago, I learned that meaningful change always begins at the grassroots, and that engaged citizens working together can accomplish extraordinary things.

So even in the midst of the enormous challenges we face today, I have great faith and hope about the future - because I believe in you.

And that's why I wanted to tell you first that I'll be filing papers today to create a presidential exploratory committee. For the next several weeks, I am going to talk with people from around the country, listening and learning more about the challenges we face as a nation, the opportunities that lie before us, and the role that a presidential campaign might play in bringing our country together. And on February 10th, at the end of these decisions and in my home state of Illinois, I'll share my plans with my friends, neighbors and fellow Americans.

In the meantime, I want to thank all of you for your time, your suggestions, your encouragement and your prayers. And I look forward to continuing our conversation in the weeks and months to come.

And if that doesn't work out, there's always getting reelected in 2010.

the undemocratic, dogmatic branch

Which branch am I referring to? Why its the Utah State Legislature of course. Its members routinely give the metaphoric finger (because swearing and fingering in reality would be "rude" and "sinful") to Utahns by adopting unneeded legislation and ignoring the people's priorities.

Utahns want lawmakers to spend a projected $1.6 billion surplus first on public education. A tax cut is lower on their list of priorities. Much lower.
But legislators are poised to give Utahns a tax cut ranging from $100 million to $300 million anyway - whether they want it or not.

And that's not all. Utahns don't want school vouchers, but screw 'em we will do it anyway.


But wait, there's more:

If someone directly challenges Roe v. Wade . . .
And if the U.S. Supreme Court reverses more than 30 years of legal precedent . . .
State Rep. Paul Ray wants Utah to be ready.
[...snip...]
Ray's bill is modeled on similar legislation South Dakota voters rejected earlier this year. That law was meant to test the 1973 Supreme Court decision that granted women the right to legally end a pregnancy. But South Dakota's bill did not include exceptions for incest, rape and the health of the mother.
"I would have issues if we didn't consider those exceptions," said Ray.

So now the legislature will most certainly pass a litmus test bill on a theoretical problem. Why not wait until Roe is overturned and then pass the bill? Someone in Utah just might get an abortion in under some freak scenerio I guess. While there are 4 solid anti-abortion votes on the high court, it is fairly uncertain that Justice Anthony Kennedy could be convinced to reverse on Roe. Rather, the anti-abortion plurality will have more success if they keep finding areas to chip away at ones ability to have an abortion...although there aren't too many exceptions left to find. There already are 24-hour waiting periods, parental consent for minors (from both parents with a judicial escape clause if the girl claims Daddy is the father), the prohibition on dilation and extraction procedures (so called "partial birth abortions") unless the health/life of the mother is in jeopardy, forbidding people from traveling state lines to have an abortion in another state were the laws are laxer, unfunding clinics, making it dangerous and unprofitable to become a doctor performing such procedures etc. [the last few are extra-legal ones that occur]

And really is this an urgent problem? Are the number of abortions skyrocketing in Utah despite the 75% anti-Roe gut reaction of LDS-dominated Utah? No

Abortions in Utah

Abortions remained fairly flat even as Utah's population grew by 300,000.
Abortions by year:
* 2000: 3,279
* 2001: 3,372
* 2002: 3,300
* 2003: 3,338
* 2004: 3,379
* 2005: 3,279
Population:
* 2000: 2.25 million
* 2005: 2.55 million

Why won't the legislature work on making our K-12 schools better, our college more affordable, better health coverage for the poor, etc. Why not do things that will actually improve the lives of Utahns rather than posture for lower taxes for the rich and a fake abortion bill?

And in this corner

Only a fews on the job, and Lohra Miller has already pissed off her predecessor.

An aggravated assault charge was dismissed Friday against Granite School District Police Lt. Richard Todd Rasmussen, who shot and wounded an unarmed man after a chase in October 2004.
Newly elected Salt Lake County District Attorney Lohra Miller said it would be difficult to prove Rasmussen did not fire in self-defense.
It was Miller's first major decision as the new district attorney, and it drew immediate fire from her predecessor, David Yocom, whose office filed the charges against the officer.
"It should have been decided in a courtroom, rather than for political reasons," Yocom told The Tribune on Friday. "Let a jury make the decision. Especially when a law enforcement officer is involved, it should go to trial."

Here is the trust of his 'political reasons' charge

Miller said she reviewed the case - filed in January 2005 and set for trial next month - at the request of "a number of police officers."
One of Miller's campaign slogans was "Ask a Cop," and heading into the election, she had the support of the 700-member Fraternal Order of Police.

Dave Yocum was an awesome DA and I loved how tenacious he was. But I have to say there isn't much there there...unless you have built in assumptions. But I have no dog in this fight, I am just reporting it.

The worst part of the whole thing though, is that it puts Wally Bugden on the same side as Miller. Bugden is also currently representing former FBI 10 most wanted Warren Jeffs for a pretty penny (jetting to St. George etc.).

"These decisions are made in pressured circumstances," Bugden said. "They are split-second decisions made in dangerous and stressful circumstances.
"Sadly, people get shot with a Coke can in their hand," he added. "But the common denominator in officer deaths is an officer who hesitates."

How much do you want to bet that on another day, Bugden would argue the opposite thing for another client? Nah that's like betting on Payton Manning to choke during the playoffs. Too easy.

the real cost of Bush's pride

Rather than admit his lost and move on, Bush wants to double-down on his pair of twos with someone else's money.

Hundreds of soldiers, including some Utahns, will have their tours of duty in Iraq extended to support an increase in troop strength announced by President Bush on Wednesday.
[...snip...]
"The clock has been reset, folks," said Brian Tarbet, adjutant general of the Utah National Guard. "All soldiers are available again today. All of them."
That includes soldiers from units, such as the 115th Maintenance Company, that have recently returned home from Iraq.

Rather than complaining, these national guard troops seem resigned to their fate: "I kind of figured it was going to happen - they're not going to start drafting people," said Troy Steen, who returned from Iraq with the 115th less than a year ago. Oh and for those of you who just want to cheer these people on without thinking about the conserquences of this mindless war, this is his third tour since 9/11 and he has a new wife. But that doesn't matter, Bush can't be wrong, he can't lose, so we are stretching our nation's military to its breaking point.

More than 80 percent of current Utah Guard members have deployed since the 2001 attacks, according to state Guard officials. Pentagon rules limiting how long reservists may be called into active duty had, until this week's policy change, left many of those ineligible to redeploy to war.

"Even 12 months is hard, but it's a cycle," Rich Miller, who recently returned from a tour of duty in Ramadi, Iraq, where he led the Utah-based 222nd Field Artillery, said "You miss one school year . . . you're not away for your child's junior and senior year."

The more I think about it, the madder I get.

Buttars than ever

After trying to bring religion into the school via teaching "intelligent design" last session and failing, cultural warrior Utah State. Sen. Chris Buttars (R-West Valley) is at it again.

His bill, SB111, is titled, "Free Exercise of Religion Without Government Interference." It would require government entities to demonstrate "clear and convincing evidence" that any action taken to curb free exercise of faith "is essential to further a compelling government interest" and is the least restrictive way of doing so.

His idea is to allow students to wear t-shirts with religious themes like "CTR" (Choose The Right, an LDS-phrase) and for said students to be able to pray at graduation. Of course, the court has repeatedly said that even a moment of silence amounts to an unconstitutional establishment of religion. And would Buttars be ok with kids wearing Satanic shirts?

Moreover his belief that being gay is amoral, and his bill to ban gay clubs in high schools, will be in direct conflict with SB111. What a moron.

clueless in Salt Lake City

Photo Credit: Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Morning News
How shameless is the Utah Republican Party? My quote of the Day:

Last year, Dayton and GOP House members came under criticism for making the pre-legislative fund-raiser a "speed date." Using a format adopted by some adult dating services, lobbyists paid $100 and got several hours to move from one small table to another, talking to individual Republican House members.
"We took some flak last year, and we never fully understood why," said Kat Dayton, who heads fundraising for the Utah St. Rep. GOP PAC, adding that she thought the "speed dating" format "was done just for fun, just for a change."

She added, "I don't get why they compare politicians to prostitutes." OK well that was my attempt at a Daily Show style quote.

Instead of getting into the House Republicans' reception for $100 — as was the case with the speed dating format last year — individuals will have to pay $300 a pop. Groups can also pay $2,500 or $1,500 for tables at the event.
Dayton said House Republicans hope to raise more than $30,000. Senate Republicans are anticipating collecting about $80,000 at their breakfast event, which carried a price tag of $1,800 a table.
There's one more twist to this year's event: It is being held at The Point, a reception center/restaurant on the top floor of the Huntsman Cancer Research Center at the University of Utah.

In other news, the bill to give Utah a 4th seat and DC a vote in the House has resurfaced. No word on when it will come up for a vote.

The Bush Matrix

Remember the first Matrix movie, you know the good one? When they explained that Deja Vu was the Matrix changing something and was a software error? Well Bush will speaking about Iraq tonight for upteenth time and I hereby boldly predict that the media will fuss about how great a speech it was and speculate that it might move opinion, but that no ones minds will be changed in Bush's favor. I mean, look at this:

A poll by The Salt Lake Tribune conducted last week showed that Bush has lost majority support on Iraq from Utahns. Just 41 percent approve of the president's handling of the war, with 45 percent opposed.
Utahns were split on the question of a short-term increase in U.S. troops in Iraq, with 44 percent in support and 42 percent opposed.
A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll found three of four Americans disapproved of how Bush has handled the situation and only 17 percent called for an increase in U.S. forces in Iraq.

If Utah, the reddest state in the nation have 41 approval of Bush's Iraq policy, adn only 17% nationwide want an increase in troop levels, how is Bush going to get any support for 21,500 more men and women to go to Iraq?

He isn't, and I don't think he really cares anymore. He will do just about whatever he wants, signing statements and all, since it will take a long time for the Democratically-controlled Congress to get through all the crap he has already done and all the legal battles over Congressional subpoenas etc.

Just like Neo, Americans have discovered that Bush has Potemkin Village of an Iraq Policy (wait until they figure out the same is true with the War on Terror and domestic policies). Now that we have all swallowed the Red pill, are we willing to deal with the consequences and seriously reign in this madman? Or will we mutter something about "commander in chief" and let more people die needlessly?

bad day

This morning, before leaving the house, I thought our checkbook had been stolen (it fell out of my bag and into the backseat of the car). Then I spent all morning prepping cases for the wrong week. Then I learned that I screwed up a memo to the number two guy in my division. Then I was late to class because I chatted with a classmate 30 seconds too long (TRAX left without me). Then I went home and walked the dog twice and only mananged to have one slice of pizza before I had to fix my memo and send it back. Then I found out they changed the bus schedules and was late to the next class. Oh and I resprained my ankle rushing down some icy steps. Then I went back to work and wasted more time on said cases. Then I got home and iced my ankle, only to have smoke billow out of our stove and ruin my dinner (pizza) and make the whole house a hazy chocking mess. So while the oven self-cleans, my wife and dog and I are holed up at my grandmothers, and her excessively hot house.

So now I am hot, with a headache from the fumes, and a sore ankle.

But other than that, I have had a great day...how was yours?

Monday round-up

• Could someone please remind me why the legislature wants armed students, faculty, staff, and other persons on the University of Utah campus? Last time I checked, it wasn't a high crime area, let alone an area with lots of violent crime requiring a gun for ones own protection. And apparently, I am in the vast majority about this one:
  

  The Deseret Morning News/KSL-TV poll shows 64 percent of those surveyed think guns should definitely or probably not be allowed on campus. That's compared to 36 percent who think concealed weapon permit holders should be allowed to carry guns.
  The poll, conducted by Dan Jones and Associates on Jan. 2-4, has a 5 percent margin of error.

  
  Why does state law then force the U to accept guns on campus? Because they are more interested in appealing to the NRA lobbyists than actual constituents. They are trying to out conservative each other.


• Sign number 234 that Gore will not be running for president but is still popular and trying to start a movement around global climate change:
  

  After about 1,500 tickets were snapped up in 10 minutes for former Vice President Al Gore's speech later this month, Boise State University has moved the speech to a larger venue and is offering more tickets.
  Gore is now scheduled to appear at Taco Bell Arena to give the keynote speech of a conference sponsored by BSU's Frank Church Institute. The speech is set for 7 p.m. Jan. 22 and is titled ''Global Warming: Beyond the Inconvenient Truth''

  
  That's right Boise, Idaho. No disrespect to Broncos fans [what a game!] or people from Idaho, but if you are running for president, you don't give speeches in Idaho, you give them in New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina, Nevada, Michigan, etc. But if you care about your issue and aren't just posturing for the cameras, you go to places like Boise.


• Allow me to join the crowd and applaud SPEAKER Pelosi for setting term limits on Committee Chairmen. This was, as Ed Kilgore points out, the only good idea Newt had. True change cannot come without abandoning the chairman for life mentality. All of the major incoming committee chairmen just waited out the Republican majority for 12 years to get their gavels back. As Sen. Obama said on Oprah, those who are in DC too long start representing Washington to their constituents rather than their constituents to Washington. How much of a reformist can one be if one can indefinitely weld power? Chairman Waxman is a "Watergate baby" i.e. Class of 1974. John Dingell has been a member of the House since 1955, longer even than Ted Kennedy. Dingell has written major legislation, like the Clean Air Act, but he also has stymied improving fuel economy for cars to "help" Detroit Automakers. Just ask them how much they were helped when you compare Toyota's hybrid sales to their own SUV sales. It's time for a change.


• And lastly, a store that was never open finally closes its doors for reals this time.
  

  Amy's Antiques in the 9th & 9th district, an attractive old brick building literally shuttered with plywood for more than 10 years, is approaching its final transaction.
  Lou Diston, who owns the building and ran the resale shop for 20 years, is finally unloading what's left of her decades of picking up remnants from estate sales she managed.

  
  I remember in middle school and high school walking past Amy's and wondering how one could get away with such a fake "business" where one bought crap and pretended to have a store but never sold anything. I haven't taken a tax course in law school, but I always assumed there was some pecuniary reason for this setup.

selfish vs. selfless

If you ever wanted to know how many Democrats there are proportionally in Utah, it is better not to ask the party affiliation question but this question: would you rather have a tax cut, or an increase in government services?

The Dan Jones & Associates poll of 400 Utahns conducted this past week shows that 38 percent of Utahns want a $100 million tax cut, as suggested by GOP Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.
Nineteen percent favor a $300 million tax cut, a number already approved by Utah House Republicans. Together, 57 percent of Utahns told Jones they want some kind of tax cut in 2007.
But 37 percent said they don't want any tax cuts this year. They favor just spending the extra cash on state programs, Jones found.

Thirty-seven percent. That is what Utah Democrats are up against these days. But people's selfish tendencies have been overcome before. Look at TRAX where, although it took a decade or so to get light rail, once implemented, the public was willing to raise their taxes for it.

If somehow the public can see the benefit to its high tax burden, they will be willing to pay for it. But when it just goes to adding more roads and irrigation, without less traffic or better agricultural production, they aren't willing to let the state government have their cash. Spend it on education Pre-K to 12, and post-secondary. Get more teachers more classrooms more books. Make college tuition completely tax deductable and more affordable.

But whatever you do, don't give the wealthy a useless tax cut.

Friday round-up

• Utah is bound to get another seat, either in the next couple of months, or in 2012. However, under current projections, it wouldn't get a 5th seat in 2022. But don't loose sleep yet. "We have confidence in the projections we produce," Robert Spendlove, manager of demographic and economic analysis for the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget, said. "However, this is 15 years away and there is a wide margin of error ... when you're talking about tenths of a percent." By the way, Spendlove is a terriffic name for a guy working in a budget office.


• Jon Huntsman Jr. is backing McCain, but Jon Sr. is backing Romney. Romney needs the Huntsman's money men given the cash gap between McCain and the rest of the field (which he created with his Campaign Finance Reform by favoring members of congress over governors). It will be interesting to see if Jon Jr. comes back to Daddy or continues to assume that McCain will win it all. Someone wants to have a cabinet post after all.


• Great lede by the Tribune, pointing out the utter hypocrisy of what Rep. Bishop and his Republican colleagues say: "Utah Rep. Rob Bishop, say[s] Democrats are shutting them out of the legislative process, but their protests do not appear to match the record of the GOP-run House. ...Bishop served as a member of the House Rules Committee, which under Republican control brought more bills to the floor under "closed rules" than any previous Congress.
  In 1994, as speaker of the Utah House of Representatives, Bishop criticized proposals to open the legislative process, specifically the Rules Committee meetings, as shallow, and compared them to taking the doors off bathroom stalls." There's a lovely image.

Mitt "Multiple Choice" Romney

The DNC's blog has a scathing list of quotes by Mitt about his position of the day on hot button issues. Here they are, for your enjoyment:

Romney’s Position On A Woman’s Right To Choose Is:

A. Abortion Should Be Safe And Legal. “I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country… I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years that we should sustain and support it. And I sustain and support that law and the right of a woman to make that choice.” [Romney Kennedy Debate Transcript, 10/1994]

B. Not Pro-Choice Or Pro Life. “I've never used either title, pro-life or pro-choice, in the past. I said I don't favor abortion.” [Fox News, 2/26/06]

C. Firmly Pro-Life. “I recognized that we had so cheapened the value of human life, through the Roe v. Wade mentality, that I could no longer stand on the sidelines, if you will. I had to take sides. And I call myself firmly pro-life.” [CNN, 10/17/06]

D. All of the above.

Romney’s Position On A Constitutional Amendment To Ban Same-Sex Marriage:

A. Full Equality for Gays and Lesbians. “As we seek to establish full equality for America's gay and lesbian citizens, I will provide more effective leadership than my opponent [Ted Kennedy].” [Boston Globe, 10/17/94]

B. Against Constitutional Amendment to Ban Gay Marriage in Massachusetts. In 2002, Romney condemned a proposed constitutional amendment that would ban both gay marriage and domestic-partner benefits in Massachusetts, despite the fact that his wife and son supported it. [Boston Globe, 3/22/02]

C. For Federal Constitutional Amendment To Ban Gay Marriage. “Massachusetts is the front line on marriage, but unless we adopt a federal amendment to protect marriage, what is happening here will unquestionably enter every other state.” [“Transcript of Romney Address to Liberty Sunday,” EvangelicalsforMitt.com, 10/16/06]

D. All of the above.

Romney’s Position On The Bush Tax Cut:

A. Refuses to Publicly Endorse Bush Tax Cuts. Romney refused to endorse tax cuts at the heart of President Bush's economic program in 2003. Romney’s spokesperson said that it’s “just not a state matter.” [Boston Globe, 4/11/03]

B. Brags About Support for Bush Tax Cuts. During a November 13, 2006 press conference held in Arizona, Romney outlined differences between himself and McCain. Romney said “he was quicker than McCain to endorse President Bush's tax cuts.” [East Valley Sun, 11/14/06]

C. All of the above.

And now, for super-duper double bonus points...

Romney’s Governorship Was A Failure Because:

A. Goals Unmet. “Romney himself admits that a number of his goals remain unmet. His inability to lower the nation's highest unemployment insurance rate, to secure merit pay for teachers, and to reinvigorate the Republican Party were among the frustrations he listed.” [Editorial, Boston Globe, 12/26/06]

B. Highest Property Taxes in 25 Years. Romney’s cuts to local aid forced Massachusetts property taxes to their highest level in 25 years. [Quincy Patriot Ledger, 12/16/05]

C. 3,000 Jobs Lost. Romney oversaw a net decrease of more than 3,000 jobs in Massachusetts. [BLS, Seasonally Adjusted Employment Statistics, 12/2002 – 10/2004]

D. All of the above.

If you guessed (D) All of the above you can go to the head of the class!

Is there something in the water in Massachusetts that gives statewide politicians Foot-in-Mouth and I-was-for-it-before-I-was-against it diseases? At least John Kerry waited until after he got nominated before taking such idiotic multiple stances.

Utah's public ed: still terrible

There is a new story out in today's Salt Lake Tribune that has Utah at the 20th in the country in overall "offering children a chance at success" rather than looking at hard numbers like test scores, class size per pupil spending, something we lag far behind the rest of the country on.

Instead of repeating past analyses on K-12 practices, this year's report compared hurdles kids face long before school-age years, as well as opportunities available as adults.
Factors such as parental education, employment, income and English fluency were considered. So were the percentage of adults statewide who hold college degrees, work full-time jobs and earn above-average incomes. School factors such as preschool and kindergarten enrollment, reading and math skills and graduation were also compared.
[...snip...]
Utah scored well above average for home conditions kids experience before school. The state scored below average for preschool enrollment and about average for kindergarten enrollment. Elementary reading skills were above the national average and middle school math achievement was on par with the nation.
High school graduation rates were well above average, but after that, Utah's scores fell. Attendence and graduation from college were about average. But the percentage of Utah adults making average salaries and holding full-time jobs was below the national norm.

Utah parents do the best for their kids as they can. Our streets are safer than most other states, and the LDS Church's focus on family pushes families to prioritize their children. Yet, college graduation and attendance is going down, incomes are down and education's share of the budget is too.

Huntsman will supposedly push for a major increase in spending this year, and if true, I support it. But we saw that his first priorities are to cut taxes for his wealthy friends (and himself) as well as spend money on construction projects rather than his state's public education.

We need to build more schools and classrooms, hire more teachers, build up respect for the teaching profession and for education in general. Maybe we need to even build a new University so that folks who go to the U of U don't feel like a number and slip through the cracks...although that will probably be a couple decades down the road and Utah State could probably pick up the slack if they were properly funded.