Having been elected previously in precinct caucus meetings to represent those in my community, when I was nominated and elected as vice-chair of SF-05 this year I wasn't as overwhelmed by the responsibility. I knew what I was in for. As my part of this vetting process, I'm analyzing all the candidates I can see and posting some of their links on my blog.
First, the election I see happening at the county level that is getting the most attention is the new Senate District 7 for the Spanish Fork area. The two major candidates here are Diedre Henderson and Glen Roberts.
Diedre was a part of Jason Chaffetz's successful US House campaign and is a very driven, professional, apparently successful woman. Her principal political issue is the solvency of the State of Utah due to the devaluation of our land in relation to the escalating size of our bonds and debt limit. She is for smaller, more constitutional government at the state level and wants more localized government rather than larger more centralized government.
Glen Roberts is for less laws. Glen is a licensed attorney who runs a title company. He is very much in favor of a smaller government on all levels and went so far as to tell me that he would support legislation requiring the repeal of two laws for every new law passed. His belief is that the american dream and individual freedom are being retarded by an overreaching, overly-burdensome government at federal, state, and local levels. His campaign visibility is much less than his opponent and this may be his weakness, he sees it as proof that he is not in anybody's pocket. He frankly brought up that he had read Ron Paul's book (in my opinion this was to demonstrate his ideals agreed with those of Dr. Paul) and that he was in support of individual freedom first-and-foremost.
The next interesting election I'm vetting is that for Utah Congressional District 66. The major candidates are Carolina Herrin, Mike McKell, and Kyle Roberts.
Carolina Herrin is for less regulation, specifically that which is burdensome on individuals and our small businesses. When I asked her what her principal issue was, and what she wanted to achieve, she jumped first to reigning in the Utah State Department of Commerce. She wants less laws to tie down Utah individuals and businesses; and more laws to tie down (restrict) the State bureaucracy's ability to write rules or regulations that are tied to legislation-- making administrative law criminally applicable. As I dig down into her past experience and job-history, I'm led to question vigorously how this has become her primary focus since she has worked as a bureaucrat and enforcer at the state level and her husband is ex-military and current law enforcement. Her message rings true to me, but I can't help but remember the quote attributed to Cicero:
"A bureaucrat is the most despicable of men, though he is needed as vultures are needed, but one hardly admires vultures whom bureaucrats so strangely resemble. I have yet to meet a bureaucrat who was not petty, dull, almost witless, crafty or stupid, an oppressor or a thief, a holder of little authority in which he delights, as a boy delights in possessing a vicious dog. Who can trust such creatures?"
I still have questions for this Sao Paulo-born political superstar. (Em que voce acredita mesmo?)
Mike loves the 10th amendment. Specifically anything that applies to Utah's sovereign ownership of state land. Mike's principal issue is the fact that the Federal government owns and controls WAY too much land in Utah. As an attorney, Mike knows how to fight for what he wants and will be effective in whatever he pursues. He wants smaller, more accountable government and has proven this to me by being available to me, his constituent, at even the craziest of hours. It appears he knows each of his delegates personally- he discusses them all by name; which is an impressive feat, but with the amount of time he seems to be spending I can see that as possible. Mike can get things done and he seems to be an accountable kind of fellow.
Kyle has a deep understanding for constitutional fundamentals. Having received part of his formal education at George Wythe College, he would have learned things about politics and civics that his opponents likely don't even know exist. And you don't know what you don't know. His principal issue is education and ensuring that we, the parents have the tools and freedom necessary to ensure our children get the education we want for them. He is in favor of decentralized education and believes that a free-market approach to education fosters the best result. His economic focus appears to be pro-business by reducing marketplace regulation. Kyle hasn't made contact with this county delegate yet, which is somewhat concerning. I found out about him through one of his opponents. Fortunately, his website is actually functional and informative. I expect to search him out and ask him the tough questions in the two weeks leading up to the county convention.
Using only his site as my guidebook on Kyle Roberts, I am disappointed to see a George Wythe educated politician not bring up individual freedoms and civil rights in his literature. The current mommy-state mentality has been leading us down the path of modern-day slavery through malum-prohibitum criminal law. One in Nine adult Americans (13%) have been arrested, incarcerated, or are on probation or parole through our criminal justice system. Minorities bare most of this burden, but new 'white-collar' regulations are pushing a new demographic through 'the system'.
Mark Shurtleff will not be running as incumbent this year. He's through in his current job. The contenders for his position are John Swallow and Sean Reyes. As a county delegate, I don't get to vote for this election. I do have some food for thought here though: The Attorney General is the State's attorney; we want him to effectively represent the state's interests, right? The claim has been made that the Attorney General's office has represented the State AGAINST (vs) Utah Citizens more than all other activities combined. This is an important office that requires SIGNIFICANT research before the vote. While it is important to protect our citizens freedoms and rights from infringement by other citizens, protecting our state's rights and our citizen's rights from foreign authority seems much more important and relevant to this job.
The County Commissioner is another race that seems to be a hot topic. I have just started vetting the canditates, but here's what I can see so far:
Larry Ellertson
Larry is the current Commissioner for seat C. He is the incumbent. He is a CPA, and worked for UP&L for some years before becoming the commissioner. In a recent email from his campaign, he stated that "The proper application of the limited role of government is to help remove barriers and allow free enterprise to prosper". He takes credit for the current business-friendly environment that has helped Utah County prosper.
Lorne Grierson
Lorne is a successful businessman who wants to make sure that Utah County has the infrastructure necessary to accommodate the growth he sees coming here. He seems to have a good understanding how organizations work and he's visionary in that he looks at the county's future as his chess board instead of the past.
John Morris believes that people want freedom, and that freedom is the goal of government. His website lists first the issue of zoning and he discusses his support of property rights and importance of protecting those rights by reducing the governmental powers that can infringe on personal property rights. He is a constitutionalist to the core and appears ready to question society's "sacred cows" and pull back the curtain to show us the 'wizard' by which we've been oppressed. John Morris is the first politician this year to get my endorsement. I think he 'gets it'. I plan to talk to him personally to question him more fully about his views, but if he stands true to his views as expressed on his website, he has a willing supporter in me.
