Washington Times: Lawsuit Questions Obama's Eligibility for Office

This is interesting:

Lawsuit questions Obama's eligibility for office

From the 8/28/08 Washington Times article:

Pennsylvania's former deputy attorney general and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton supporter Philip J. Berg has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Pennsylvania accusing presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama of lying about his U.S. citizenship, which would make him ineligible to be president.
Mr. Berg is one of a faction of Clinton supporters who haven't heeded the party's call for unity, filing the suit just days before the opening of the Democratic National Convention, which will nominate Mr. Obama as the party's presidential candidate.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia last week, also names the Democratic National Committee and the Federal Election Commission and says Mr. Obama´s mother went to Kenya late in her pregnancy and ended up giving birth there. It also claims that later in life, Mr. Obama declared himself a citizen of Indonesia.

More information is available here.

I don't recall this item being reported anywhere in the traditional national press. Of course the things ordinary citizens such as your blogmaster don't know about would definitely fill libraries.

The 2008 general election gets more interesting by the moment, doesn't it?

Comments, anyone?

Sarah Palin: The Woman of the People

GOP VP candidate more popular than either John or Barack

This is very interesting. Here are few few lead paragraphs from this afternoon's Yahoo News story, in the wake of the GOP National Nominating Convention:

A week ago, most Americans had never heard of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Now, following a Vice Presidential acceptance speech viewed live by more than 40 million people, Palin is viewed favorably by 58% of American voters. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 37% hold an unfavorable view of the self-described hockey mom.

The figures include 40% with a Very Favorable opinion of Palin and 18% with a Very Unfavorable view. Before her acceptance speech, Palin was viewed favorably by 52%. A week ago, 67% had never heard of her.

The new data also shows significant increases in the number who say McCain made the right choice and the number who say Palin is ready to be President. Generally, John McCain's choice of Palin earns slightly better reviews than Barack Obama's choice of Joe Biden.

Perhaps most stunning is the fact that Palin's favorable ratings are now a point higher than either man at the top of the Presidential tickets this year. As of Friday morning, Obama and McCain are each viewed favorably by 57% of voters. Biden is viewed favorably by 48%.

Read the full story here: Palin Power: Fresh Face Now More Popular Than Obama, McCain

Gotta hand it to John McCain for this great off-the-wall selection. His maverick instincts once again shake up the U.S. political establishment, as per usual.

If in doubt, pick a "hottie", I suggest.

Looks to be a VERY interesting U.S. presidential campaign season, no?

Archive photo: Sarah draws a bead on U.S. liberals (Click to enlarge image):


Is there anyone who has anything negative to say about this?

Ha-ha. I didn't think so...

Is Barack Obama the Messiah?

It's hard to conclude whether this is a serious website... or merely a spoof:

Is Barack Obama the Messiah?

Either way, it certainly captures the mindless and heavily emotional "spirit" of the Democratic Party 2008 presidential campaign however, doesn't it?

Well....?

Don't forget to contribute your own comment.

8/7/08 GOP State Committee Meeting Notes

The Gop 8/7/08 GOP State Central Committee meeting, as interpreted by a GOP insider from Weber County

By Ricky Hatch
Legislative Chair, District 6

Intrigue, innuendo, implications, inferences, and "intertainment" - they were all there on Saturday August 23 at the State Central Committee (SCC) meeting at the Merit Medical Building in South Jordan.

The cause? Mitt Romney's request to release all of Utah's national delegates so they could vote for John McCain. In 1,000 words or less, I'll try to give you an accurate picture of this surprisingly complex issue.

Fact: Our state party's bylaws state: "On the first ballot, the national delegation shall be bound to vote for the candidate who has received the most votes in the Republican Presidential Primary...." This seems pretty clear, especially since Mr. Romney received 90% of Utah's Republican votes in February.

Now add a dash of confusion: Mitt Romney sent a letter to the State Party asking to have the delegates released, as he is "no longer a formal candidate."

And a teaspoon of controversy: At the State Convention, a motion was made to do something similar to releasing the delegates. Keep in mind that Mr. Romney had already withdrawn from the race at this point. The state delegates overwhelmingly rejected this motion by tabling it indefinitely.

Sprinkle with perceived condescension: Does the Utah GOP State Central Committee have the authority (let alone the gall) to go against the 3,000+ state delegates and 265,000 primary Republican voters and release these delegates?

Mix all of this in a room with 92 committee members (and at least 92 opinions) and you've got a raucous Republican Ratatouille.

Here's how Stan Lockhart presented it: The word "candidate" in the bylaws is ambiguous. Does it mean that the delegates are bound to the candidate who at the time of Utah's primary election got the most votes? Or does it mean that they are bound to the candidate at the national convention who got the most votes during the Utah primary?

The first interpretation (a primary-election candidate) binds them to Mitt without exception. The second interpretation (a convention-election candidate) leads to another not-so-simple question: Will John McCain be the only nominee at the national convention? Even though Mitt Romney withdrew from the race, is he still considered a candidate? FYI, the RNC's Rule # 40 states that in order to be a candidate, you must "demonstrate the support of a majority of the delegates from each of 5 or more states." Romney certainly had that in the 11 states he carried before withdrawing. Does he have the authority to remove himself as a candidate, or are the delegates bound to follow their state bylaws and vote for him?

Let's look at this through 1968 lenses and pretend, for argument's sake, that Mr. Romney were Robert Kennedy (it's just pretend, so calm down). Robert Kennedy was the presumptive Democratic nominee, but was assassinated before the national convention. How much sense would it make to cast the votes for someone who was not even alive? Yet, that is what this first interpretation says the delegates must do. Using Robert Rules of Order, that would be considered an "absurd result."

Thankfully, Mr. Romney is alive and kicking somewhere between Denver and Minneapolis. But should our delegates be bound to him? Using the "absurd result" argument, the state party wrote a "standing rule," which is basically a band aid used to clarify ambiguity in our bylaws until the bylaws can be changed. This was reviewed by the party's legal firm and submitted to the SCC. The standing rule clarified that the candidate referred to in our bylaws meant the candidate at the time of the national convention. This means that if Mitt Romney is still considered a candidate the first week in September, our delegation will be bound to vote for him. If he is not considered a candidate, the delegation must vote for John McCain, who got the 2nd most votes (15,000) in Utah.

There was a lot of discussion about whether this was using a back door, circumventing the rules of the party and the desire of the state delegates and voters. Some argued that this was changing the bylaws, which can only be done at the State Convention. Others said that standing rules like this are used only to clarify the bylaws, and therefore are under the jurisdiction of the SCC. Some said that we should focus on giving support to Sen. McCain. Others said that if we don't follow our own rules, how can anyone trust us. Both sides had meritorious arguments, and I'll admit I changed opinions at least once.

After 20 minutes of pro/con debates, the SCC voted 70 – 12 to pass the standing rule. Now the real question is whether or not Mitt Romney is considered a candidate. I guess we'll find out in September.

I'm sure Stan Lockhart had been getting a lot of heat from the RNC to release these votes, and I'm sure many people think he came up with this "candidate" ambiguity as an excuse to release the votes. I can't question his motives or his methods. But as I read the rules, they weren't clear to me. Regardless of this standing rule, I sure hope we get them clarified before the next presidential election.

I had to leave the meeting a little early, but I heard Lt. Governor Herbert say that Jon Hunstman will be speaking at the National Convention. This is the first time in Mr. Herbert's memory that a Utah Governor has spoken at a national convention, and is quite an honor.

Oh, and I accidentally stole State Senator Curt Bramble's seat in the middle of the meeting. Oops!

Articles about the releasing of delegates:

GOP central committee to meet about Romney delegates

State GOP Convention: Party chairman wants delegates to back McCain

It's the rules: Utah to vote for Romney

State Central Committee Meeting - 6/14/08

Not a meeting to attend if you were in need of sleep

By Ricky Hatch
House Legislative District 6 Chair

I told my friend Tiffany who came with me to the State Central Committee meeting that she should probably bring a book to read, because sometimes these meetings can be real yawners. I was wrong.

The Constitution and Bylaws Committee has a new email, cb@utgop.org, where you can submit your thoughts and ideas for all of them to read. This is helpful, because a new section, Section 7.5 of the Bylaws, "Standing Convention Rules," was given to the SCC in draft format on Saturday. They want us to read it, comment on it, and vote on it before November.

Lt. Governor Herbert spoke about the Presidential race being a race of personality (Obama) versus principles (McCain). He thanked everyone for their support in the Governor's re-election campaign, and stated that they'll be focusing primarily on the economy, especially on how they can help enable the private sector to succeed mostly by getting out of its way. He also talked about the controversy over the State Treasurer's race. I'll summarize his comments below.

We voted to fill a vacant position of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee. Jack Powers was elected with 30 votes. Mike Thompson got 23 votes and Kristin Chevrier (French for "goat raiser" - I'm serious) got 18 votes. There were a lot more than 71 people there.

A few amendments to the Bylaws and Resolutions gave the meeting its verve. If you want to see them, click here: Every one was voted down, after some lively debate on both sides. Our own Weber Country GOP Chairman Matt Bell made a good point in one of the debates.

Rob Bishop gave a relaxed one-minute speech from the back of the auditorium, sitting down. He mentioned that on July 2nd, the Republicans in office will make a Declaration of Energy Independence, introducing legislation to reduce our dependency on foreign oil.

National Committeewoman Nancy Lord talked about the fundamental proposed reform on when presidential primaries can be held. The Republican Rules Committee passed the Ohio Plan, which is a hybrid of a couple of different plans, and which is (surprise, surprise) the least controversial plan out there. It breaks the states out into 5 pods. 1-The "First States," (Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and 1 or 2 more I can't remember) which would have their primaries on February 1st. 2-The "Small States," including all territories, and states with 3-5 electoral votes. They'll vote anytime after the Monday of the 3rd week of February. Pods 3-5 are the Rotating Pods, which are made up of the following:

X – Utah and several other states

Y – California and other "medium-sized states"

Z – New York and other "large states"

The order of these states' voting will be determined by a lottery in 2012, and then will rotate for the next presidential 2 election cycles. i trying to get Utah (& 3 other states) added to the first pod, which would put our elections earlier than most?

The Utah Republican Women spoke about the upcoming conference at the SLCC Larry H. Miller campus in Sandy. The conference is called, "From Sea to Shining Sea," and looks to be excellent. It's on Saturday, June 28th. For more info, click here and go down to the April 29th entry. You'll be glad you did.

The Republican Hispanic Assembly raised $25,000 for John McCain, the highest donation amount by any Hispanic Assembly in the 50 states!

The Teenage Republicans are sending 7 kids to Washington DC next week, the most kids they've ever sent. They need an advisor for their Weber County chapter. Please, someone step forward and help these great kids make a difference!

Lt. Governor Herbert's discussion of the Treasurer controversy:

A complaint was filed about an alleged election code violation by Mark Walker. The Lt. Gov's office's responsibility is to gather the information and make a determination as to whether or not the alleged wrongdoing warrants an investigation by the Attorney General's office. The Lt. Governor is a friend of both Republican candidates and stated repeatedly that his first duty is to the public, and that he is being completely neutral in this information gathering.

LG Herbert said that there's a lot of information to gather and process, and he can't possibly have it resolved prior to the primary elections. Some people, Enid Greene included, feel that she should make his decision prior to the primaries. He and his attorney said that even if they could have gathered all of the info in time, they legally cannot resolve the issue before the general election. Why? - you'll have to get the non-Cliff Notes version of the committee meeting, probably by calling the Lt. Gov's office. There are options and possible resolutions other than going through the Lt. Gov's office.

The Utah State Supreme Court decided on Friday that Lt. Gov. Herbert did NOT have to reveal his findings and opinion prior to the primaries. Herbert said this was a victory for the Separation of Powers of the State.

A couple of articles on this issue: Utah court enters election flap; and High court to weigh alleged election-code breach.

--
Carpe Diem

An Open Letter From Weber County Republican Party Chairman Matt Bell

My Friends from the Weber County Republican Executive Committee and Weber County elected officials,

In the recent past I made a decision to have a debate among candidates who are running for office. The only contested race in Weber County is Legislative District 7. I had decided to have a debate in Legislative District 7 where Representative Donnelson lost to the challenger Ryan Wilcox by one vote in the Weber County convention. WOW, did this push some folks over the edge. I was in the process of setting up this debate when I received a call from the Utah Republican Party. They said I should not be holding this debate because it is a NO-NO to have an incumbent participate in a debate and this has not been done anywhere in the state of Utah; and if I did I could be censured by my Weber County Central Committee. My response to the state party was, “BRING IT ON”. The state party also told me that it was irresponsible to hold a debate with a sitting elected official. You can look in the Salt Lake Tribune and read more of the articles on this subject. There are about 5 articles in the last week. There was also a story on this topic in this morning's Standard-Examiner.

This is my response: IT IS A ONE HOUR DEBATE!!!!! Hello, we are a party with a wide tent and we welcome differing views. I have been accused of being biased, and that I would not sponsor a debate with other CERTAIN elected officials, which is ABSOLUTELY NOT true. We will have debates among our Republicans that are elected and their challengers. I want to say this one more time IT IS A ONE HOUR DEBATE. Rep. Donnelson has called me and told me he will not attend. The debate WILL go on without him.

Regarding debate rules, this was another point of contention. I made the decision that I will make the rules fair for both involved. We will have 6-7 topics and we will take questions from the floor.

As of now we, the Weber County Republican Party, DOES NOT have a nominee in Leg. 7. We will have a nominee at the primary election on June 24th and at that time the Republican Party will put 100% support behind this nominee. I would appreciate any feedback and support regarding this decision.

Thanks


Matthew
725-8771
I will be out of town until Wednesday late afternoon.

Weber County GOP 2008 Lincoln Day Dinner

Leg. 6 District Chair Ricky Hatch delivers his full report

An absolutely gorgeous spring day got us all in the mood for an equally gorgeous Lincoln Day Dinner, held on May 8 in Ballroom B at Weber State University's Shepherd Union Building. Do you feel bad that you missed it? Good – you should. It was a great event.

After the invocation and a moving presentation of Old Glory by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Pledge of Allegiance, our own lovely Miss Utah Julia Marie Bachison (say that 5 times fast...in French) sang a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. Then it was off to the races to see who could get to the excellent buffet first. I lost, but I eventually got some tasty chicken with the best mashed red potato concoction I've ever tasted.

As we dined on fluffy chocolate mousse cheesecake and skyscraper caramel apple pie, we listened to three interesting speakers. First, Lt. Governor Gary Herbert talked about the wit and wisdom of Abraham Lincoln. During a debate, Lincoln's opponent accused him of being two faced. Lincoln replied, "I can prove that this is not true. If I really had two faces, would I have worn this one?" But the Lincoln quote that Lt. Gov. Herbert talked the most about was, "Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle." He said that The Republican Party is made up of people who hustle. He thanked us, encouraged us, and sat down after speaking for only about five minutes. Short and sweet.

Richard "Dick" Richards, who was the head of the Republican National Committee during the Reagan years, spoke next. Mr. Richards, who is from Weber County, and who was the Weber County Party Chairman three times, talked about several of his experiences with The Great Communicator, about President Reagan's visit to Hooper, and about how Pres. Reagan thought America was "the promised land" and that the US Constitution was written by men who were brought to earth for that very purpose.

The concluding speaker was Josh Romney, Mitt Romney's son. He is young, tall, and looks a lot like Dad. Mitt asked David McCullough, a great historian and writer, what time period in our nation's history was the most critical? Mr. McCullough, who has written several excellent books on events and people around the time of the American Revolution, responded surprisingly, "From 9/11 to now." Josh spoke of three key issues that his father focused on: strengthening the economy, keeping the military strong, and fortifying the family and our great, god-fearing culture. He said that after leaving the campaign trail, Mitt spent almost every weekend skiing in Utah. There is a very small chance that Mitt will be selected as the VP candidate, and Mitt has not yet answered the question, "Will you run in 2012?" Josh said that the key to Mitt's success in life, and in government, has been his supportive wife. While campaigning, Mitt would get antsy when she wasn't with him. When she was by his side, he was much more comfortable. Further proof of why I feel that beside every great man is a great woman...and a very surprised mother-in-law.

So that's the scoop. Thank you to the many sponsors, our county party leadership, and especially to committee members Christie Moore, Pat Iannone, Bea Cardwell, and Event Chairwoman Suzanne Ellison-Ferre for creating an event as gorgeous as a spring evening in Weber County.

Yours,

Ricky Hatch

-
Carpe Diem

Gag on 2nd Amendment Is City’s Aim in Guns Suit

Interesting story from Friday's New York Sun:

"Gag on 2nd Amendment Is City’s Aim in Guns Suit"

From the NYSun story:

Lawyers for Mayor Bloomberg are asking a judge to ban any reference to the Second Amendment during the upcoming trial of a gun shop owner who was sued by the city. While trials are often tightly choreographed, with lawyers routinely instructed to not tell certain facts to a jury, a gag order on a section of the Constitution would be an oddity.
“Apparently Mayor Bloomberg has a problem with both the First and the Second amendments,” Lawrence Keane, the general counsel of a firearms industry association, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, said.
The trial, set to begin May 27, involves a Georgia gun shop, Adventure Outdoors, which the city alleges is responsible for a disproportionate number of the firearms recovered from criminals in New York City. The gun store’s owner, Jay Wallace, says his store abides by Georgia and federal regulations and takes steps to avoid selling firearms to gun traffickers. Mr. Wallace’s store is one of 27 out-of-state gun shops sued by New York City, and the first to go to trial.
City lawyers, in a motion filed Tuesday, asked the judge, Jack Weinstein of U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, to preclude the store’s lawyers from arguing that the suit infringed on any Second Amendment rights belonging to the gun store or its customers. In the motion, the lawyer for the city, Eric Proshansky, is also seeking a ban on “any references” to the amendment.
“Any references by counsel to the Second Amendment or analogous state constitutional provisions are likewise irrelevant,” the brief states.

This, from John Renzulli, attorney for defendant Adventure Outdoors, a Georgia gun ship which apparently sold a firearm which wound up in the State of New York:

“If you can’t discuss the Bill of Rights in a court of law, where should we discuss these issues? Should we reserve it for the tavern?”
Mr. Renzulli said the city’s lawsuit did implicate the Second Amendment: “The politics involved here is whether the city has the power to go into another state and control the lawful sale of firearms.”

Strangely, however, Attorney Renzulli doesn't intend to oppose The City of New York's motion to exclude reference to the Second Amendment (and we are NOT making this up) :

Mr. Renzulli, who has defended suits against the gun industry in Judge Weinstein’s courtroom before, said that in the past the defense has struck a deal with the plaintiffs on the matter: Lawyers for the gun industry won’t mention the Bill of Rights to the jury, if the plaintiffs don’t mention the National Rifle Association [Emphasis added].

Seems like a strange procedural stalemate to us.

Gun rights activists around the country anxiously await the US Supreme Court's decision in District of Columbia v. Heller, which was argued before SCOTUS in March of this year, wherein the high court is expected to resolve the constitutional question of whether the Second Amendment right to "keep and bear arms'' covers all people or only those affiliated with a National Guard or other state-run militia. The Supreme Court has never squarely addressed that question.

The Supreme Court decision, expected in June, can't come soon enough, we say.

5/10/08 Utah GOP Convention Podcast

Live blogging from the convention floor

For the convenience of Weber County Republicans who are unable to attend our May 10, 2008 Utah GOP State Nominating Convention, we've embedded the video player below. According to the somewhat sparse information we received from the Utah Republican Party just a few minutes ago, Ric Cantrell will be live blogging from the convention floor, and originating a podcast which should appear in the player. It's all experimental, we're told; but we nevertheless invite everyone to check it out. If all goes well, this should be a fine resource for home-bound Utah Republicans who'd like to listen to this event.



According to our understanding, the podcast/live blogging will also appear on the Utah GOP Blog Site. We'll add that until just a few minutes ago we didn't even know that the Utah GOP had a blog site.

We invite our readers to enter their comments to let us know how this exercise works out.

Special Event: From Sea to Shining Sea

Conference

Presented by the Utah Federation of Republican Women
for Federation Members and the General Public Adults 18 and Older
Saturday June 28, 2008 11 AM - 4 PM
Larry H. Miller Campus 9750 S. 300 West, Sandy; UT
Miller Free Enterprise Center

Understanding Middle Eastern cultural complexities and how interaction with these divergent cultures affects America; how we have affected them, including assisting them in change, helping immigrants, and refugees and more. Learn about the history, current conditions and where the Middle East might be headed. We will be taught to better understand and respect differences and similarities in thought, culture and philosophy and what the relationship to our troops is.

10:15 - 10:50 Registration / Check-in

11:00 - 11:10 Welcome

11:10 - 12:00 Key Note Speaker: Vickie McCall. Ms. McCall will address her eyewitness observations in Southwest Asia as she was part of a contingency of civilian military to current political circumstances.

12:05 - 12:50 Barbara Melendez, Immigration Law Attorney: Kirton & McConkie. Ms. Melendez will address problems facing the immigrant struggling to enter and gain American citizenship.

12:55 - 1:45 Luncheon buffet (casual dining)

1:50 - 2:40 Professor Donna Lee Bowen, PhD, Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations, Author, renown speaker, expert in Muslim political policy, women and traditions; Director, Middle East/ Arabic, BYU. Dr. Bowen will share her latest tour of the Middle East, finished just days prior to this conference.

2:45-3:30 Professor Victor Ludlow, PhD, Coordinator, Near East Studies, BYU; Expert in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, and Comparative Studies, as well as scholarly research on Judaism; renowned speaker, author and scholar. Dr. Ludlow will address the historical foundation of the Middle East and relate to modern behavior and trends.

3:35-4:00 Acknowledgements / Awards

AFFILIATED CHARITY: Landstuhl Hospital Care Project (LHCP) a Non-Profit action care program designed to provide injured discharged military with appropriate clothing and other necessities for their return home. Visit them at landstuhlhospitalcareproject.org.
(This is a 501(c)(3) organization and cash donations are accepted)

(Click to display mail-in registration form)

PREPARATION FOR THE CONFERENCE

The Conference Center at the Larry H. Miller Campus of the Salt Lake Community College campus is located west of the freeway and can be accessed from 300 West by either taking the 90th South exit, then going South on 300 West to the campus, or the 106th South exit West under the overpass, turning North onto 300 West to the campus.

All the lectures will be held in the Auditorium of the Miller Free Enterprise Center, in very comfortable theater style seating where participants will have a view of the speakers and any visuals. The building’s striking façade of tall plate glass decorates the largest bldg. in the complex and closest to parking for your convenience. Seating is limited, 300 maximum occupancy. It is therefore highly recommended that you pre-register as early as possible. At door registration is not guaranteed and the UFRW sponsor and all its affiliate charities are indemnified in the event that seating fills to capacity prior to door ticket purchases. It is suggested that if you plan to purchase tickets on the day of the conference, you email ahead to determine availability of seats, mailto:lebeauxtrois@yahoo.com@yahoo.com.

The Showroom is approached as you walk into the structure and features all the glass that is so striking from the outside. This will serve as both the luncheon buffet service with limited dining area and a display area.

Because space is limited in the Showroom as to the number of tables for eating, please be prepared for picnic style dining outside in Utah’s traditionally beautiful June weather. Participants are welcome to bring a blanket for picnic style eating. Eating is also allowed in the auditorium. And while that is the case, we would ask that respect be given the speakers and eating not be done during lectures. Nice dress casual or dress casual attire is appropriate. No holey jeans, bare feet, bare chests, or other inappropriate attire that may be distracting. No babes in arms please. If you have any questions about clothing, please inquire in advance of the conference by emailing lebeauxtrois@yahoo.com.

AFFILIATTED CHARITY: Landstuhl Hospital Care Project (LHCP) a Non-Profit action care program designed to provide injured discharged military with appropriate clothing and other necessities for their return home is being sponsored as part of this conference. This is a 501(c)(3) organization and donations are accepted. Donations can be sent to paypal.com, ufrw@hotmail.com; enter LHCP in the comments section.

Press Releases:

Utah Federation of Republican Women kick off Anticipated Conference With Landstuhl Hospital Care Project Goodwill Drive

Utah Federation of Republican Women Sponsors Landstuhl Hospital Care Project to kick off Conference Goodwill Drive

Lincoln Day/Patriot Dinner - 5/8/08

The Weber County Republican Party
Invites You To Our
Lincoln Day/Patriotic Dinner
May 8, Thursday, 2008
6:00 PM
Weber State University, Ballroom B
Beautiful Buffet Dinner
With
Josh Romney
Special Guest Speaker

During the evening you will have an opportunity to have pictures taken with officials from our
county, state and national congressional delegations
Tables will be: Ronald Reagan $1,500; : John McCain $1,000; (8 seats to a table)
Couples:$75; Individuals: $50.
For More Information Contact/Tickets
Matt Bell: 801 725-8771 - mattbell@xmission.com;
Suzanne Ellison Ferre 801 745-3098 - suzhvl@hotmail.com;
Christie Moore, 801 510-6634 - chrisim001@aol.com

Response to a Standard-Examiner Editorial: “Government by the Few”

An invitation to the Standard-Examiner to waive advertising fees, and to actively promote the existing Utah political process

By Christie Moore
Weber County Republican Party
Vice Chair

Every citizen can attend a precinct caucus of one party or another. How can the process be more open? The people who attend their caucus choose the delegates who choose the candidates. It is not the fault of those who attend caucuses that their neighbors care more about the results on “Dancing with the Stars” than about who will represent them in governing bodies.

From Wednesday's (4/16/08) Standard lead editorial:

Political parties, presently constituted, serve mainly as incumbent-protection rackets. There are exceptions, but they’re rare.

That claim may have merit in some counties, but it does not in Weber County. Our county Republican organization has open, transparent processes. Each challenger is given the same access to information and the same opportunity to contact delegates as the incumbent is given. The Weber County Republican Party is cited as an example of openness and fairness by citizens and challengers in other Utah counties and newspapers.

More from the editorial:

Government does belong to the people—the few people who go to the caucus meetings.
We hate to sound so cynical about it, but that leaves everyone else to watch from the sidelines.

Again, I must emphasize: THESE ARE PUBLIC MEETINGS! Anyone who wants to go can attend. No one is excepted. We publish the locations in the Standard-Examiner. We supply phone numbers for inquiries if someone does not know in which precinct they reside. This is a fair, grassroots process—pure democracy!

What could make the process more open? Perhaps the Standard-Examiner could deign to publish the caucus locations as a public service, just as it has historically done in the past, eliminating the hardship on the Parties of raising the money to advertise this democratic obligation.

State Central Committee Highlights

Saturday, Jan. 12, 2008 – Bountiful City Hall

By Ricky Hatch
Chair - House Legislative District 6

A balmy, sunny Saturday welcomed about 150 State Central Committee members to Bountiful City Hall. The free donuts and juice didn't hurt either. Not too much on this meeting's agenda – mostly reports. So here's a report of the reports.

Audit Committee report: The state party is audited once every two years. This year, we got audit bids from four different local CPA firms. James & Co. was selected and completed the audit in December. As in the past, we received an unqualified opinion (a good thing). The party runs a pretty lean ship (again, good).

Chairman Stan Lockhart's report: Four things. 1) Fundraising is going well and will remain a focus. 2) Stan had an op-ed piece in the 12/30/07 Tribune (see Salt Lake Tribune -- Republicans represent the morals and ideals of Utahns. 3) The state party is solvent continues to reduce overhead. 4) The Central Committee feels more cohesive and is focusing less on petty things and more on more important things, like elections. 5) We need to hold good caucuses this spring. OK, that's 5 things. So sue me.

Senator Bob Bennett's report: 35 Senate seats are up for grabs this year: 23 of them are Republican and 12 are Democrat. That doesn't bode well. He thinks we can steal a couple of seats from “them Dems,” but we’ll probably lose some as well. Demmit!

Lt. Governor Gary Herbert's report: Utah is bucking the national trend by maintaining a strong economy, leading the states in various economic indicators, such as personal income growth (9% last year), unemployment (2.8%) and job creation. The slowest growth sector in the state is the Government, which is a good thing. Our net population increased 85K last year. He and Governor Huntsman will run for reelection in 2008. But don't tell anyone...it's still a secret. OK, if it just happens to slip out, you probably won’t get in any trouble. They are focusing on three key issues right now: 1) Health care – they're trying to come up with ways that it can be handled by the state, not the federal government (not quite sure where the U.S. Constitution gives the Feds the right to “help” us in health care…). 2) Education – with the voucher bills defeated, there are still plenty of opportunities for reform, like giving more local control to principals. 3) Natural resource development – Utah just got a $60 million grant on finding more environmentally friendly ways to use coal. He pushed for a strong turnout on February 5th (Presidential Primary).

Congressman Rob Bishop's report: Four bills show how bad it is, and how good it can be, in Washington. 1) Defense Authorization bill – apart from a 7-month Democratic delay, it is a good, fair, bi-partisan bill. 2) S-CHIP – In the House, no Republicans were allowed to participate in this. The Dems wanted it to remain open so it could be an election issue. Yuck. 3) Alternative Minimum Tax – The Dems waited until the last day of the session to address this, and then tried to increase taxes. The “PAYGO” solution that is currently being pushed is (and I quote), “a crappy accounting scheme to raise taxes.” The Washington Post, the Washington Times, ipi.com, heritage.org, Paul Ryan, Larry Kudlow, and the Republican Committee on the Budget agree. 4) Safety and Mining Act – It gives a competitive advantage to surface mining (stronger on the East Coast) and union mines (stronger on the East Coast). I smell Hillary.

Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's report: He's campaigning for reelection this year, and wants to rent booths/tables at your functions (call 877-488-2008). They just formed a mortgage fraud task force. I liked what he said here, “The best consumer protection is a vibrant free market.” He says that the Utah AG office does not believe in being suit happy, like many other states have become.

Senator John Valentine spoke about “Why Am I a Republican?” Utah is one of only three states with a AAA bond rating. This is due to intelligent, conservative, Republican fiscal policy. He talked about the upcoming legislative session. Items to be addressed: health care reform, property tax reform, transportation, natural resource development, and educational funding and reform (like differential pay and possibly repealing tenure, so “bad” teachers can be removed).

Utah Republican Women report: Weber County’s own Darcy Kruitbosch is the President of the Utah Republican Women. As membership has been decreasing over the years, they are focusing on being visible in the community and at events. The leadership team is focused, unified, and charged for the future.

Ed Cox of the College Republicans spoke about fundraising. Lucas Johnson of the Teenage Republicans spoke about a Constitutional Convention being held this spring and about Teen Day at the Capitol.

We adjourned, had a light brunch, and then a power nap. OK maybe I was the only one who had a power nap, but I saw some people who needed one!

See you on February 5th (Presidential Primary) and March 25th (Caucuses)!

11/3/07 State Central Committee Report

Another installment of As the State Central Committee Turns

By Ricky Hatch
Chair - House Legislative District 6

The State Central Committee met last Saturday, 11/3/07. Short agenda, fairly short meeting, unbearably long report. Don't believe me? Read on....

State party Chair Stan Lockhart said that he will begin a campaign to promote the party's platform. I just finished reading 1984, so every time I type “The Party,” I feel a little uncomfortable. However, as I researched the Utah Republican Party Platform a few years back, I was thoroughly impressed. It hits SOOO many critical principles right on the head. From the first sentence (which declares a belief in God, the only author of our rights), it is evident that this document was written by good, wise people. You should read it – it's only 3 pages long. It's available for reading here. A hat was passed around, collecting $350 and a little dandruff to get the campaign started.

The party's accountant has left to be a full-time mom. Her duties are now being split by Maria Uboldi, and Mike McCauley, the current Treasurer. Now, you fellow auditors out there need not be alarmed, Mike's check signing ability has been removed to avoid funding any potential purchases of small tropical islands with party funds.

Information Access Policy: We discussed a proposed change to the party's Information Access Policy. In the past, the state party has put the contact info of all delegates on the web site. Making these names available is required by the party's constitution and bylaws, although these documents do not specify HOW these names must be made available. Apparently, these lists have been sold in the past, and some counties have been hesitant to give the names of their delegates to the state party for fear of being contacted too much by the buyers of these lists. The proposed change would require anyone who gets the list to sign a non-disclosure agreement. This option, thankfully, was met with quite a bit of skepticism and concern. Our own Christie Moore brought up a good point that the Weber County party has all of our delegate names available on the web site, and we've never received a complaint from any of them. Another gentleman commented that if someone is going to be elected to be a delegate, having their contact information available is part of the job. One alternative to the non-disclosure agreement is to copyright the contact lists, which would make it illegal to sell them without permission. This seems like a good idea, and the party has decided to look into this and other options before taking and further action. Whew!

Resolution Regarding School Vouchers: We discussed a resolution to give official support to the School Voucher Referendum. Surprisingly, there wasn't much debate, and our own plucky Paul Skeen stepped forward to express some valid concerns about the bills' constitutionality. I shared his concern, but Carl Wimmer, one of the bill's sponsors, allayed this concern by mentioning how the US Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Cleveland voucher program. With a couple of good alterations, the resolution passed overwhelmingly, with only about 3 “nay” votes.

Lieutenant Governor Gary Herbert talked about how true Republicans support public education, and how the voucher bills support public ed. He mentioned how great it is that we live in a Republic. He said that Dan Jones is predicting close to a 50% turnout in Tuesday's election. Yeah, dismally low. Utah's Presidential Primary will be on February 5th.

Representative Rob Bishop spoke quite passionately about some of the amazing junk that is happening in Washington right now. Those now in charge of the House & Senate are “running fast and loose,” doing things that have never been done there before (because they shouldn't be done). Examples: Invoking Closed Rules, which prohibit amendments to bills, and having the Rules Committee ad taxes to the Farm Bill (the Rules Committee has no authority to do that). Every appropriation bill passed by this Democrat-controlled Congress has exceeded the White House's recommended spending amounts, except for one bill – national defense. Hmmm...I smell bacon.

Representative Chris Cannon talked about the ineffectiveness of the multitude of oversight hearings, which have found no administrative improprieties.

National Committeewoman Nancy Lord said that the Republican National Committee will discuss this week the party's penalty for state parties holding presidential primaries prior to the RNC's mandated dates. Two plans are being discussed: 1) the Delaware plan, which will have the primaries held first in the small states, and 2) the American Plan, which uses a lottery system to determine which states hold their primaries first.

The head of the Utah Federation of Republican Women told a great story about how President & Laura Bush both asked her to thank the Utah Republican Women for all their service and support. The Hispanic Assembly has new leadership and is having great success in registering more Latinos to vote. The Hispanic Assembly's national convention was recently held in Utah. The College Republicans have new leadership at most of the universities in Utah.

So that's it – a long report of a short meeting – we were done within an hour and a half.

Yours,

Ricky Hatch.