Politics make strange bedfellers. That’s what they say. Like attorney Dan Berman and Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson attending fund-raising dinners for Sen. Orrin Hatch. For you Gen-Xers, Berman, a Democrat, ran against Hatch in 1980 and lost. Since then, they’ve been fast friends. Berman, noted as one of the toughest lawyers this side of the Mississippi, doesn’t usually take to losing that well.
Anderson, as insiders know, is a graduate of the Dan Berman School of Charm. As a young whippersnapper, Anderson worked for Berman and took to his lawyering style like a Doberman pinscher to Rocky Mountain oysters. So why do these Democratic tough guys kiss up to Orrin? Could it be the senator’s gifts as a songwriter?
• That’s old news, if still a head-scratcher. But here’s a new tune from that same songbook. Rocky is actively supporting conservative Republican Mitt Romney in his bid for governor of Massachusetts. The Rock will star in some of Mitty’s new TV campaign spots. What’s wrong with this picture? Nothing, if you understand the Good Ol’ White Boy Network.
• You’ve got to hand it to Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. The guy has a sense of humor. When crack reporter Scott Lewis asked the A.G. what he thought of this newspaper for the 10th Anniversary issue, Shurtleff replied, “I will continue to fight to allow students to carry concealed copies of City Weekly on the University of Utah campus.”
Ha ha. That’s funny.
• Recently, the staff here at SmartBomb got a visit from our good friend Paul Murphy, who is the A.G.’s spokesman. He made the special trip down here because he needed to explain a few things to us. First off, he took umbrage that City Weekly gave his boss gas for giving his staff July 5 off. See, the Legislature hasn’t given them a raise in nigh on to a decade. So Shurtleff gave them some compensation himself. It was the right thing to do. OK, we’re impressed.
Second, Murph was a little nonplussed by our continued criticism of his boss’ battle to get concealed weapons permit holders the ability to carry firearms on college campuses. See, Murph explained, it’s the law. The Legislature makes laws and the A.G. enforces them. Get it?
• So, in summary, here it is: The Legislature won’t give the A.G.’s staff a raise, so Shurtleff intercedes and gives them time off as compensation independent of the state budget. The Legislature passes a concealed weapon law and this time he must follow instructions. OK, we get it.
But here’s one final question SmartBomb put to Murph: When is the A.G. going to begin enforcing fornication laws on campuses across the state? After all, it is the law.
• Here’s something we pulled from our “Healthy Living”-file: A 56-year-old New York man is suing McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken, alleging the fast-foot chains have made him obese. Caesar Barber, 56, stands 5-foot-10 and tilts the scales at 272 pounds, reports the Associated Press. He blames his extra baggage on what he describes as false advertising from the fast-food industry. “Those people in the advertisements don’t really tell you what’s in the food. It’s all fat, fat and more fat. Now, I’m obese.”
They don’t call it “Super Size” for nothin’.
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