I have learned that the Attorney General is the chief legal advisor to the State Government and the chief law enforcement officer. There are two candidates for Utah Attorney General: Sean Reyes and John Swallow. I was able to meet with both candidates and hear their positions on various issues.
John Swallow was brought in to the attorney general's office by the current attorney general, Mark Shurtleff. Mark Shurtleff is endorsing him as the new attorney general. John Swallow has been a part of the team that brought the Obama Care case to the Supreme Court a few weeks ago. This is basically all I have heard from John about his role as attorney general.
Sean Reyes is running against John Swallow. He has had quite a bit of legal experience working for a local law firm. He was Utah's Young Lawyer of the year. He cited several cases in which he worked as an attorney, one being a tough lawsuit that he won against the EPA. He is given a rating on Martindale.com, a directory used by law firms to rate effectiveness, of a 5 out of 5. John Swallow is not rated.
What impressed me about Sean is that he plans to litigate in federal issues including the issues related to the Commerce Clause and Utah Lands Issues, but he also has plans to effect change on local issues. He has worked with something called Fraud college which educates Utah citizens about fraud. We have a big problem with fraud including Ponzi schemes in the state. He also feels strongly about protecting Utah families in issues related to child abuse.
After meeting both candidates, I felt most inclined to vote for Sean Reyes. I would appreciate any input you have on this race.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Gubernatorial Debate with Sumsion, Philpot, Herbert, Skokos, Ronnow, and Kirkham
I attended the Gubernatorial debate on Wednesday afternoon. It was a great opportunity to see all the front runners (and some of the not so front runners) interact with each other and answer a variety of questions.
I have decided to be open about my opinions here as I would like the members of my precinct to know my thoughts about the candidates and which way I am leaning in my support for them. I have not made any decisions as of yet, so I continue to be open and hope to continue to hear from the members of my precinct about their thoughts an feelings on the candidates. It is my sincere desire to represent the members of the precinct at the convention.
With that said I will review the candidates. As I stated in my speech on the caucus night, by biggest issue is the economy and jobs, so I took specific notes on each candidates response on that issue that I will report here. Otherwise, I will just give a general response about the candidate.
This is the order they sat in during the debate...
Ken Sumsion
I want to like this guy, but he is rubbing me the wrong way. He is a conservative legistlator. He is the co-founder of the Patrick Henry Caucus, which has led the states in taking the Obama Care Lawsuit to the Supreme Court. He want to fight hard for Utah Lands. I agree with his support of these issues. He gave the best response to my question about the economy and jobs. He stated that the economy would grow from 1. low energy costs 2. a well-managed work force (including government employees) and 3. manageable taxes. Even with this response, he does not currently have my support. I believe a governor needs to be able to listen to their constituents and here all sides. I don't believe Ken would have the capacity to do that. He has an agenda and I believe it would be his way or the highway.
Morgan Philpot
This was my first opportunity to hear from Morgan Philpot. He is a dynamic speaker and gave clear and decisive answers in the debate. Morgan is guided completely by the free market. He would like to see both education and health care given back to the free market system. Morgan called me after the debate and was able to talk with him about four issues:
1. What was his bill that gave vouchers to students with disabilities
The bill was inspired by one of his constituents who wanted to have her son with Autism attend a private school. The bill give the parent of a child with a disability $7000 to attend a private school, but keeps $8000 (I might be wrong on this number) with the public school the student would have attended. It has been well received among parents of kids with disabilities.
2. What would be your answer to improving education?
He would prefer to introduce the principles of the free market into education with a voucher system, but he understands that Utah has spoken out against vouchers and would "not be a dictator" on this issue if he were elected to be governor. He would instead introduce more choice within in the public school system by allowing parents to take students to the school of their choice.
3. How do you feel we can improve the economy in Utah.
He is in strong support of the free market, but is not in support of "crony capitalism". Which means he would lower taxes and provide incentives to any business that wants to come into Utah, but would not give special incentives to specific businesses who then make campaign contributions to the Governor. He states that is happening with our current governor.
4. What experiences do you have they prepare you to serve as governor?
He doesn't feel anyone ever has enough experience to serve as governor unless they become a career politician. Having said that, this is his work experience.
-internship in white house during Clinton administration
-served in Utah House of Representatives
-law school
-currently works for an advertising agency (I believe it. He has the best posters.)
I have to say, I was impressed with Philpot, particularly after my phone call with him. I need to do more research before I make a decision on him.
Governor Herbert
Governor Herbert was attacked on all sides and I felt like he held his own. He is only one with a clear record as governor, so he had plenty to attack. He continued to point out that we are seen as the best managed state in the country, we have one of the most appealing business environments, we are looked at as an example to the rest of the country. I agree with that. I believe Governor Herbert has done a good job of managing the state. We have a low per pupil spending in Utah, but still has good educational outcomes. It is hard to criticize him for that. I believe the Replican party is making an issue out of the common core, without checking their facts. Governor Herbert understands what the common core is all about. As of right now, Governor Herbert still has my support for Governor.
William Skokos
William Skokos is an oil guy who would like to see Utah lands developed for their natural resources. He pointed out that there are plenty of resources on the lands that are not managed by the Federal Government, which is good news, because it sounds like the effort to get our lands back will be a long, tough, and most likely unsuccessful fight. All of his answers centered on natural resources. If the question was about something else, he looked to a cheat sheet in front of him to give a response that sounded somewhat canned.
Lane Ronnow
Hmmm. Interesting guy. Is certain that the Utah unemployment rate is actually 30%, but doesn't give any reference to where he is getting that info. He kept referring to his "swindle sheet" which was his campaign literature. That's all I have to say about that.
David Kirkham
Kirkham was much more impressive in this debate, but I don't feel he has the skills needed to be a viable candidate for governor. He talked about how he was able to use technology to bring a manufacturing plant back from Poland to the US. This is definitely what we need to see happen in our country. I would like to see him work as a consultant to business to help them do this rather than sending work over sees. He is very likable.
So there you have it. Please provide your thoughts. I'd love to hear them.
I have decided to be open about my opinions here as I would like the members of my precinct to know my thoughts about the candidates and which way I am leaning in my support for them. I have not made any decisions as of yet, so I continue to be open and hope to continue to hear from the members of my precinct about their thoughts an feelings on the candidates. It is my sincere desire to represent the members of the precinct at the convention.
With that said I will review the candidates. As I stated in my speech on the caucus night, by biggest issue is the economy and jobs, so I took specific notes on each candidates response on that issue that I will report here. Otherwise, I will just give a general response about the candidate.
This is the order they sat in during the debate...
Ken Sumsion
I want to like this guy, but he is rubbing me the wrong way. He is a conservative legistlator. He is the co-founder of the Patrick Henry Caucus, which has led the states in taking the Obama Care Lawsuit to the Supreme Court. He want to fight hard for Utah Lands. I agree with his support of these issues. He gave the best response to my question about the economy and jobs. He stated that the economy would grow from 1. low energy costs 2. a well-managed work force (including government employees) and 3. manageable taxes. Even with this response, he does not currently have my support. I believe a governor needs to be able to listen to their constituents and here all sides. I don't believe Ken would have the capacity to do that. He has an agenda and I believe it would be his way or the highway.
Morgan Philpot
This was my first opportunity to hear from Morgan Philpot. He is a dynamic speaker and gave clear and decisive answers in the debate. Morgan is guided completely by the free market. He would like to see both education and health care given back to the free market system. Morgan called me after the debate and was able to talk with him about four issues:
1. What was his bill that gave vouchers to students with disabilities
The bill was inspired by one of his constituents who wanted to have her son with Autism attend a private school. The bill give the parent of a child with a disability $7000 to attend a private school, but keeps $8000 (I might be wrong on this number) with the public school the student would have attended. It has been well received among parents of kids with disabilities.
2. What would be your answer to improving education?
He would prefer to introduce the principles of the free market into education with a voucher system, but he understands that Utah has spoken out against vouchers and would "not be a dictator" on this issue if he were elected to be governor. He would instead introduce more choice within in the public school system by allowing parents to take students to the school of their choice.
3. How do you feel we can improve the economy in Utah.
He is in strong support of the free market, but is not in support of "crony capitalism". Which means he would lower taxes and provide incentives to any business that wants to come into Utah, but would not give special incentives to specific businesses who then make campaign contributions to the Governor. He states that is happening with our current governor.
4. What experiences do you have they prepare you to serve as governor?
He doesn't feel anyone ever has enough experience to serve as governor unless they become a career politician. Having said that, this is his work experience.
-internship in white house during Clinton administration
-served in Utah House of Representatives
-law school
-currently works for an advertising agency (I believe it. He has the best posters.)
I have to say, I was impressed with Philpot, particularly after my phone call with him. I need to do more research before I make a decision on him.
Governor Herbert
Governor Herbert was attacked on all sides and I felt like he held his own. He is only one with a clear record as governor, so he had plenty to attack. He continued to point out that we are seen as the best managed state in the country, we have one of the most appealing business environments, we are looked at as an example to the rest of the country. I agree with that. I believe Governor Herbert has done a good job of managing the state. We have a low per pupil spending in Utah, but still has good educational outcomes. It is hard to criticize him for that. I believe the Replican party is making an issue out of the common core, without checking their facts. Governor Herbert understands what the common core is all about. As of right now, Governor Herbert still has my support for Governor.
William Skokos
William Skokos is an oil guy who would like to see Utah lands developed for their natural resources. He pointed out that there are plenty of resources on the lands that are not managed by the Federal Government, which is good news, because it sounds like the effort to get our lands back will be a long, tough, and most likely unsuccessful fight. All of his answers centered on natural resources. If the question was about something else, he looked to a cheat sheet in front of him to give a response that sounded somewhat canned.
Lane Ronnow
Hmmm. Interesting guy. Is certain that the Utah unemployment rate is actually 30%, but doesn't give any reference to where he is getting that info. He kept referring to his "swindle sheet" which was his campaign literature. That's all I have to say about that.
David Kirkham
Kirkham was much more impressive in this debate, but I don't feel he has the skills needed to be a viable candidate for governor. He talked about how he was able to use technology to bring a manufacturing plant back from Poland to the US. This is definitely what we need to see happen in our country. I would like to see him work as a consultant to business to help them do this rather than sending work over sees. He is very likable.
So there you have it. Please provide your thoughts. I'd love to hear them.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Breakfast with Alder, Sumsion, Herrod, and Kirkham
I went to Denny's this morning to have breakfast with the candidates listed above. I missed Alder's presentation and, although I have talked with him briefly at another event, I haven't heard anything that would sway me toward considering him as a viable candidate, so I will move on.
I was happy to get a chance to hear from Ken Sumsion, but I was disappointed that he spent all of his 15 minute presentation on the Utah Land's issue. I am not opposed to this issue and I am happy to hear that there are many candidates in this race that feel strongly about getting more access to public lands in Utah, but I feel that a governor can not afford to be a one issue leader. I have yet to feel that any of the candidates running for governor truly have a vision for Utah and unfortunately that didn't change when I listened to Ken. I haven't heard from Governor Herbert and yet, he is still winning in my mind. Not because I am so confident about how well he has managed the state, but because no one else in the race is convincing enough to persuade me to not vote for him.
I have heard from Herrod several times, so this speech was familiar to me. He lived in the Soviet Union, he has seen the iron curtain, his wife bares the scars of socialized medicine, Barack Obama is very bad. Herrod does say a lot of things that make sense, but as I mentioned before, he isn't compelling. He hasn't convinced me that he could make any changes at the federal level, but I have said that before.
Kirkham. Wow. I am not sure how to start. This was my first interaction with this guy although I did receive a giant poster in the mail of a car he built in his factory. Is this a governor's race or an advertising campaign? He kept saying "I can get the job done," but I wasn't sure he had any clue what the job was. The most convincing thing he explained, was why Philpot is too inexperienced to serve as governor. I haven't hear from Philpot yet, so I will wait to make a judgement about that.
The most impressive guy at breakfast was an old man who wants Gary Herbert to learn to ride a motorcycle so that he can be out in front at the next parade. He commented on Herbert's successes although he leads from behind rather than from the front. I would have liked to have spent more time hearing from this guy rather than most of what I heard from the candidates. On my way out, I let him know he had my vote if he ever wanted to run for office. He seemed pleased as he walked away in suit pants and cowboy boots. My kind of guy.
I am planning to attend the governor's debate tomorrow and hope to have more information to solidify my opinion on this race. Please let me know your comments on any of the races I mentioned here.
I was happy to get a chance to hear from Ken Sumsion, but I was disappointed that he spent all of his 15 minute presentation on the Utah Land's issue. I am not opposed to this issue and I am happy to hear that there are many candidates in this race that feel strongly about getting more access to public lands in Utah, but I feel that a governor can not afford to be a one issue leader. I have yet to feel that any of the candidates running for governor truly have a vision for Utah and unfortunately that didn't change when I listened to Ken. I haven't heard from Governor Herbert and yet, he is still winning in my mind. Not because I am so confident about how well he has managed the state, but because no one else in the race is convincing enough to persuade me to not vote for him.
I have heard from Herrod several times, so this speech was familiar to me. He lived in the Soviet Union, he has seen the iron curtain, his wife bares the scars of socialized medicine, Barack Obama is very bad. Herrod does say a lot of things that make sense, but as I mentioned before, he isn't compelling. He hasn't convinced me that he could make any changes at the federal level, but I have said that before.
Kirkham. Wow. I am not sure how to start. This was my first interaction with this guy although I did receive a giant poster in the mail of a car he built in his factory. Is this a governor's race or an advertising campaign? He kept saying "I can get the job done," but I wasn't sure he had any clue what the job was. The most convincing thing he explained, was why Philpot is too inexperienced to serve as governor. I haven't hear from Philpot yet, so I will wait to make a judgement about that.
The most impressive guy at breakfast was an old man who wants Gary Herbert to learn to ride a motorcycle so that he can be out in front at the next parade. He commented on Herbert's successes although he leads from behind rather than from the front. I would have liked to have spent more time hearing from this guy rather than most of what I heard from the candidates. On my way out, I let him know he had my vote if he ever wanted to run for office. He seemed pleased as he walked away in suit pants and cowboy boots. My kind of guy.
I am planning to attend the governor's debate tomorrow and hope to have more information to solidify my opinion on this race. Please let me know your comments on any of the races I mentioned here.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Senate Debate
At the last minute I was invited to the Debate for US Senate on Wednesday April 4 at Juan Diego Catholic High School in Draper. I have been invited to events by Chris Herrod and Dan Liljenquist, but I had yet to see Orrin Hatch during my time as state delegate.
I feel that all three candidates could serve Utah well. Although Chris Herrod has strong conservative principles, I don't feel he has the strength to get things done in Washington D.C. On the other hand, Dan Liljenquist, is smart and tenacious. He gave a strong performance in the debate and has solid experience in both the Utah senate and in the business world that make him a viable candidate.
I know that many members of the precinct feel that we should keep Orrin Hatch in office because of his position of seniority. I think this is a valid reason to keep him there, but keep in mind that the next person in line for the head of the finance committee is Mike Crapo, a strong conservative from Idaho. These are my thoughts about the debate. I encourage you to watch the debate to see each candidate in action. I am interested in representing the precinct at the state convention, so I would love to hear your comments.
Click this link to see the debate
I feel that all three candidates could serve Utah well. Although Chris Herrod has strong conservative principles, I don't feel he has the strength to get things done in Washington D.C. On the other hand, Dan Liljenquist, is smart and tenacious. He gave a strong performance in the debate and has solid experience in both the Utah senate and in the business world that make him a viable candidate.
I know that many members of the precinct feel that we should keep Orrin Hatch in office because of his position of seniority. I think this is a valid reason to keep him there, but keep in mind that the next person in line for the head of the finance committee is Mike Crapo, a strong conservative from Idaho. These are my thoughts about the debate. I encourage you to watch the debate to see each candidate in action. I am interested in representing the precinct at the state convention, so I would love to hear your comments.
Click this link to see the debate
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