Tuesday, January 26, 2010
11 Approachable Legislators
Posted By Eric S. Peterson on January 26, 2010, 3:00 PM
City Weekly’s recent citizen lobbying guide offered a starting list of legislators that are worth cutting your citizen lobbying teeth on. A list I’m adding one more to in light of the start of the 2010 sausage grinding season.---
This list was a toughy to do just for as far as finding legislators who dared hit a moderate position on certain issues.
I’m adding a bonus to the list; a “should-have ran” if you will, with the addition of Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman.
I would say Carl didn’t make the grade for the first addition solely because he does toe a very orthodox conservative line that would be nigh impossible to push him from. That’s nothing new and nothing I think Wimmer would really deny. But Wimmer makes number 11 on the list for me because he will always hear you out.
Wimmer in fact was the first legislator I ever approached in my brief citizen lobbying stint, back when I was a student at the U. Needless to say I selected him to talk to outside the House floor not because he was supportive of my issue, but because he’s very recognizable (just try and spot another legislator that can bench press over 500 pounds).
He disagreed, but he very politely heard me out. In becoming a reporter and frankly, writing a number of articles questioning Wimmer’s association with Rick Koerber, the indicted Utah County businessman alleged to be the mastermind behind a $100 million Ponzi scheme, I’ve still found Wimmer to be very approachable.
He still talks to me and always returns my emails—a professionalism I wish was shared more by some of his colleagues in state government.
Anyways, I hate to end this blog like one of those D-News blogs that end with a question to you dear readers--but outta curiosity--I was just wondering if anyone out there in the blogovoid has ever had an experience with a legislator, good, bad or ugly they’d care to share?
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