Thank you Independence High School

I recently received a letter from the faculty at Independence High School. I would like to share it with you since Democrats would like you to believe that teachers are not happy with the Republican Party and what it has done in the legislature. Here it goes:

Dear Steve Clark,

Independence High School teaching staff would like to thank you. As this new school year began and our new pay scale took effect, we did not want to pass the opportunity to mention our gratitude. We appreciate the efforts you have made over the past couple of years to make salaries in Utah competitive with surrounding states.

Additionally, with the change in the economy, it is particularly nice to live in the most fiscally responsible state in the nation. Even so, we know that you had to meet to re-balance the budget. Thank you for holding education harmless. It can be difficult to find the places to cut the budget and to leave education alone means a lot to the educators, students and parents of our school.

Sincerely,

Independence High School

All faculty signed the bottom of the letter.

THANKS INDEPENDENCE FOR YOUR GRATITUDE - remember it was the Republicans that got you the raise, kept Utah the most fiscally responsble state in the nation and held education harmless during re-balancing.

Ethics Committee Update

We - the House Ethics Committee - have made a decision on the Rep. Greg Hughes complaint. All charges filed against Rep. Hughes were found unproven. We spent seven days and took 60 hours of testimony from 40 witnesses before we came to this verdict. The complaint was filed by three Democrats and the committee of four Republicans and four Democrats found all six charges in the complaint unproven. The process works and works well. On this committee no party has vote advantage so the decision was correct, fair and non-partisan. I consider it a sacred trust to be one of the eight members of the Ethics Committee whose responsibility it is to sit in judgment of the 75 members of the House of Representatives.

Next week we start hearing the Rep. Phil Riesen complaint.

The Colorado Model

I suggest my readers refer to an article written in the The Weekly Standard, Denver Colorado by Fred Barnes. It is entiled "The Colorado Model."

The essence of this article is that Ethics in Colorado is being used as a test bed for a swarm offense by Democrats and liberals to put conservatives and Republicans on defense as much as possible. Does this tactic sound familiar?

Two party system

I have heard complaints that the two party system doesn't work in Utah. I disagree - the two party system is live and well in Utah. I have also heard that balance is needed in the legislature. I agree - but only if the people of Utah decide the balance. Since 1970 the voters of Utah have supported the two party system but have not supported balance otherwise we would see 52 Republicans and 52 Democrats serving. However, the voters will speak on how many Republicans and Democrats will serve in the legislature Nov. 4th.

When voters go to the polls they will remember that Utah is only one of five states with a triple A (AAA) bond rating, Utah has had enormous economic growth, its revenues are healthy even in declining economic times and its savings accounts are filled to the brim. Finally, Utah is proven to be the Best Managed State in the Nation.

Ethics Committee Hearing

I am writing this post from the Ethics Committee Hearing. As a committee member I cannot comment on the testimony or procedures but I can say the system works and works well. I now see the wisdom of this process and know that this is the best possible way of insuring fairness and integrity into the ethics process. I am honored to be a member of the committee.

Rally the troops!

I overheard a Democrat candidate trying to justify the disguise of his Democrat affliation. He said "I'm not a Democrat my political philosophy aligns with the Republicans." He went on to say "he would never support abortion." The voter asked "if you align with the Republicans why don't you run as a Republican?" The answer: "well I don't like the ethics of the Republicans." The voter ends the discussion by saying "well why don't you run as a Republican and then change Republican ethics when you get elected?"

Good question!

Republicans it is time to rally the troops! The Democrats are out in mass. It is time for Republicans to say "enough is enough" with this Democrat masquerade. We need sign locations, cottage meetings, walking neighborhoods, we need to energize the Republican base. Remember, we have only one month left to get our message out!

Thank you Daily Herald

In a October 2nd editorial the Daily Herald accessed the performance of the legislature in its budget cutting Special Session: " overall they (the legislators) did well which is good because this session is just a warm-up for tough choices they'll likely face in the regular session."

The paper goes on to say:"that makes the next session of the Legislature one of the most important in years. It's good that our lawmakers had a little practice before January." It is obvious the paper sees the importance of legislative stability in upcoming budget challenges.

"The governor and lawmakers acted commendable." "Utah's Legislature has a terrific track record of sound fiscal management and the Special Session only served to reinforce that reputation.

Remember, "while the dogs will continue to bark at the wheels of the caravan it will continue on!"