Utah’s mama Cox and his rebellious kids, an unrepentant Legislature 

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In a marked show of maturity and wisdom, Gov. Spencer Cox punctuated the finale of the 2022 Utah legislative session with words of advice and caution for the years ahead.

Largely in response to the passage of a bill banning female transgender athletes from participating in school events, “Mama” Cox mothered his headstrong child-legislators with this cautionary advice: “Some of the worst decisions get made at the last minute.”

He also called on the legislature to make sure that its decisions reflect the public voice, cautioning that a failure to welcome and solicit the views of the public would endanger the trust of the people.

Not surprisingly, House Speaker Brad Wilson, R-Kaysville, was unrepentant, on one hand acknowledging the concern of public trust, but insisting that the system is working as it should. With the typically glib, vanilla-ice-cream words of a seasoned politician, he noted, “I have the utmost belief in the legislative process, in my colleagues, the Governor and in the people of Utah.” (Drum-roll in the background) Wilson ended his comments with nice, but pale, sentiments—not at all responsive to Mama’s admonitions—noting that we must all work to make our state better than we found it.

Fortunately, it’s not a difficult task to make our state “better than we found it.” Utah has gone from the parched desert and braided prairie-dressed wives of the “days of ’47” to one of America’s most envied states: incredible employment opportunity; amazing recreational resources; mind-blowing, high-tech innovations from its creative minds; a growing diversity in its population; and a Great Salt Lake that seems, at least for now, not destined to die.

HB11, intended to ban transgender girls from participating in school athletic competitions, had been a slam-dunk. Sadly, the vote on that bill may well have reflected the preferences of Utahns, who have not been particularly friendly to the minority interests of the LBGTQ community.

It should cause all of us some concern that, like so many so-called Christian-majority populations, Utahns hold a fair amount of prejudice toward those who are different, and the Legislature doesn’t seem to be able to do its job without succumbing to its sanctimonious roots. With neither public input nor good sense, HB11 had been rammed through the legislative process with a devastating majority vote.

Cox was wise enough to express grave concerns. Being just a bit more thoughtful than his children, he had warned them that he would veto the bill if it passed, and he did, exerting his executive privilege of the last-say, and flexing his farm-boy muscles.

Ah, yes, but there was a caveat. Mama Cox’s naughty children, who are given the responsibility and trust of legislating fair and intelligent laws for our state, immediately rebelled at the imposition of Cox’s parental authority. Calling a special legislative session, Utah’s chosen immediately overruled the governor’s veto—which is their right. Cox’s veto was handed back to him on a platter, with a stunning supermajority dishonoring his thoughtful decision.

And Utahns shouldn’t forget that, while less important matters stole the legislative spotlight, a dozen supposed gun-control laws were passed in that same legislative session, all failing to address the real problem of gun deaths. Included was a bill allowing private gun owners to do background checks for buyers in private, non-commercial sales, but nothing was done to avert the gun disasters and mass killings that continue to sully the international reputation of America, while killing 50% more young people today than the pre-pandemic level.

The whole world looks at our country as some kind of bad joke—just a continuing sequel to John Wayne westerns and the Colt .45 mindset of a strangely, red-necked, gun-crazy population. If our legislators continue to avoid the issue, Utah may well find itself as another type of leader—in the terrible curse of mass-shootings, almost invariably carried out by assault-rifle-wielding crazies.

It seems like the lives of our children are the last thing the Legislature wants to address.

Cox also warned against the proliferation of new bills, and cautioned the Legislature on the sheer quantity of legislative submissions. He went a step further, exhorting the Legislature from its rampant creation of new “boards” charged with examining issues, stating that there were far too many boards and asserting that, “for every new board formed, two should be eliminated.”

Bravo for Cox. That assertion indicates his understanding of an old and wise notation—that governments that govern least, govern the best.

Despite its many superlative accolades, Utah is just another example of how self-important, “righteous” legislators seek to leave their marks on our state—not necessarily out of the public need or good, but for their own egotistical recognition and legacies.

The author is a retired novelist, columnist and former Vietnam-era Army assistant public information officer. He resides in Riverton with his wife, Carol, and the beloved ashes of their mongrel dog.