Staying Positive
Funny how Republicans blame Biden as COVID surges, but resist almost every strategy to contain it. And oh, our governor! He's optimistic, despite Utah having the fourth-highest COVID rate in the nation. He made a stunning comment in the Deseret News. Read between the lines and it's all about herd immunity at the cost of lives. "I am more optimistic than I have been at any point in this pandemic, that with omicron spreading so rapidly, that will help us move on. That will give us the type of immunity that we've needed all along, to get us through this, combined with vaccines." Sen. Todd Weiler was one of many politicians who jumped on a Salt Lake Tribune editorial urging draconian enforcement of vaccine mandates, calling it "martial law." But editorial writer George Pyle suggested the hyperbole was all about getting someone's attention to the problem. And so the solution is to do nothing or ask "pretty please?"
Where's Spencer?
On this, the week of Martin Luther King Jr. memorials, it's a good time to talk about leadership. In dark and uncertain times, the spoken word often has more impact than any action. Politics should be the art of persuasion, but in Utah's case, the man with the bully pulpit has been cowed. The Salt Lake Tribune attempted to show how Gov. Spencer Cox had pivoted from the center to the right in deference to the Legislature, especially on the subject of COVID. And with an astronomical favorability score, it's hard to understand Cox's reluctance to lead. In King's sermon "A Knock at Midnight," he talks about church, but his words should resonate for Cox. Be the conscience of the state, King said. "It must be the guide and the critic of the state, and never its tool ...(or) it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority."
Ears to Hear
Everybody's taking polls these days. Everybody, especially politicians. It was heartening to see Senate President Stuart Adams send out a survey asking "friends and neighbors" to tell him what priorities matter most. Among those questions were many about tax policy, as the Legislature considers another tax cut because, you know, they have lots of money but they're not, as the governor says, "spending like a drunken sailor." In Adams' multiple choice, he asked people to rank what tax relief they want—including the food tax. He's already announced a bigger tax cut than last session, so we get one whether we want it or not. Then came the mask and vaccine questions, which probably shouldn't be a choice, but in Utah, they are. Adams was among his fellow unmasked lawmakers at a recent Utah Taxpayers Association meeting, and has since contracted COVID. While Adams is asking good questions, the thinking's been done.
About The Author
Katharine Biele
A City Weekly contributor since 1992, Katharine Biele is the informed voice behind our Hits & Misses column. When not writing, you can catch her working to empower voters and defend democracy alongside the League of Women Voters.
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