Minneapolis-St. Paul has done a wonderful job in rolling out the welcome wagon for the delegates. I am impressed by the number of volunteers. It seem wherever you go, there is a volunteer to greet you and make certain you know where you are going.
To welcome the delegates, they hosted a welcome reception tonight. This was held in conjunction with their Civic Fest.
At the Civic Fest they have a number of exhibits devoted to the history of the Presidency and the history of Minnesota. Highlights included a replica of Air Force One, Presidential China and Presidential Limousines. One interesting fact was that Reagan had his limousine made taller than regular limousines so that he could wear his cowboy hat.
Also as part of the exhibit they had an exhibit of Lincoln’s life. One of the more sobering aspects of the exhibit was on the Civil War. On a day by day basis, it showed how the war was going for each side. In the lower right hand corner it had a ticker on the number of causalities on both sides of the war. It boggles the mind how many were killed and injured on each side.
After the Civic Fest, I attended a delegate reception for those in the party who want to promote freedom and more personal responsibility in the party. It was refreshing to see so many first time delegates in attendance (out of the approximately 300 in attendance only one had previously been a national delegate).
While many in the group have not been John McCain fans, his selection of Sarah Palin for the vice presidency has a chance to energize this group. If McCain and his campaign are smart (and thus far they have run a very good general election campaign) they will use Palin to reach out to this group of voters.
In critical battleground states they could represent the swing votes the party needs to win. Thus far the party has largely ignored this group. In my discussions with conservatives, Palin’s nomination has gotten many to reexamine the Republican ticket.
If Republicans are smart they will use this time to reach out to them.
On Monday, delegates will listen to Governor Mitt Romney and visit History Fort Snelling prior to the start of the convention. Due to Hurricane Gustav, Monday night’s session which was to feature President Bush has been cancelled. The Utah Republican Leadership has planned a humanitarian project for the delegates.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
The VP Pick
On the surface, McCain's pick of Sarah Palin appears to be a good move. She is right on several issues:
1) She is pro-life.
2) She is a life long member of the NRA
3) She believes in traditional marriage
4) She is for utilizing the nation's resources to solve the energy crisis
5) She stand for ethics reform
6) She has a record of decreasing taxes
The devil is always in the details, but I can say I agree with her on these six issues. Most of these are core Republican issues.
I admit I was nervous that McCain would pick a Lieberman or Ridge, but his choice of Palin has energized the base and stole Obama's thunder after his speech. Thus far McCain's camp has made the right moves.
1) She is pro-life.
2) She is a life long member of the NRA
3) She believes in traditional marriage
4) She is for utilizing the nation's resources to solve the energy crisis
5) She stand for ethics reform
6) She has a record of decreasing taxes
The devil is always in the details, but I can say I agree with her on these six issues. Most of these are core Republican issues.
I admit I was nervous that McCain would pick a Lieberman or Ridge, but his choice of Palin has energized the base and stole Obama's thunder after his speech. Thus far McCain's camp has made the right moves.
Monday, August 25, 2008
What to Do With Utah Delegates
As we prepare for the national convention, prominent John McCain supporters pushed for Utah's delegation to be unbound to Mitt Romney so they would have to vote for John McCain.
In the February primary Utah voters gave Mitt Romney over 90% of their vote. An attempt to unbind the delegates to Romney at the state convention was defeated. Then at the last possible second (after the deadline for filing convention challenges had passed) the Utah Republican State Central Committee decided to give the bylaw which had awarded all of the delegates to Romney a new meaning. One that effectively would bind the delegates to McCain. This interpetation was sent to central committee hours at approximately 5 p.m. before a state central committee meeting the next morning. Just as Clinton attempted to redefine what the meaning of the word "is" is, Utah Republican leaders decided to change the definition of what a candidate is.
As a candidate for national committeeman and national delegate at the state convention, the state delegates knew the definition and they wanted their votes to go to Romney.
Now as a national delegate I must decide if I should follow the interpetation of the rule as understood by Utah voters or the tortured interpetation that was thrown at central commitee members at the last possible second when the issue had been before us for over six months.
Here is an oped piece that I authored which appeared in The Salt Lake Tribune on the subject.
Follow the link:
http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/ci_10223675
In the February primary Utah voters gave Mitt Romney over 90% of their vote. An attempt to unbind the delegates to Romney at the state convention was defeated. Then at the last possible second (after the deadline for filing convention challenges had passed) the Utah Republican State Central Committee decided to give the bylaw which had awarded all of the delegates to Romney a new meaning. One that effectively would bind the delegates to McCain. This interpetation was sent to central committee hours at approximately 5 p.m. before a state central committee meeting the next morning. Just as Clinton attempted to redefine what the meaning of the word "is" is, Utah Republican leaders decided to change the definition of what a candidate is.
As a candidate for national committeeman and national delegate at the state convention, the state delegates knew the definition and they wanted their votes to go to Romney.
Now as a national delegate I must decide if I should follow the interpetation of the rule as understood by Utah voters or the tortured interpetation that was thrown at central commitee members at the last possible second when the issue had been before us for over six months.
Here is an oped piece that I authored which appeared in The Salt Lake Tribune on the subject.
Follow the link:
http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/ci_10223675
Thursday, May 1, 2008
GrassRoots Report Released
For the past seven years, I have authored the GrassRoots report. It is now posted to our website:
http://www:utahgrassroots.org
http://www:utahgrassroots.org
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Email Address
If you would like to contact me, please email me at donguymon@msn.com.
I am happy to answer any question you may have.
Don
I am happy to answer any question you may have.
Don
Column on Illegal Immigration
Below is an op ed piece I have written on illegal immigration:
Stop Illegal Immigration
By Don Guymon
In the 2008 Legislative Session, both chambers passed S.B. 81 an omnibus illegal immigration bill. The bill had several good measures to curb illegal immigration. Unfortunately both chambers put off implementation until 2009 so further research can be done on illegal immigration.
It is surprising that individuals would feel the need to study the issue of illegal immigration further. Why do we need to wait a year when this has been studied for many years? Is not the fact that individual here illegally enough?
S.B. 81 would require county sheriffs to verify the immigration status of foreign nationals; prohibited the alcoholic beverage control commission from granting liquor or private club licenses to individuals who are not in the country illegally; prohibits local entities from keeping their law enforcement officers from enforcing immigration laws and requires employers who contract with the state to verify whether their workers are legal to work in the United States.
This bill was pretty straightforward, so why do we need to study it further?
It was not just that implementation of S.B. 81 was put off until 2009. Several other good bills died. Bills that would have prohibited illegal immigrants from receiving instate tuition and stopped the issuance of driver privilege cards died and not for the first time.
Many say that the issue of illegal immigration is a federal issue and the state should not deal with it. Yes it is a federal issue. At a time when we are fighting a war on terror, it makes little sense that our borders are not under control.
But the state also has a role to play.
If the state is providing driver privilege cards to those who are here illegally, is not the state aiding and abetting and abiding the breaking of federal law?
If the state is giving preferential treatment to the children of illegal immigrants over students from other states who want to study at public schools, is the state not aiding and abetting the breaking of federal law?
Many argue that these are good men and women simply here to make a better life for their family. Good intentions aside, good people do not break the law.
For example MSNBC recently reported that nine million people had inaccurate social security taxes. While some of these may be mistaken, many are because of illegal aliens stealing people’s identification.
The recent raid of illegal immigrants at Swift Meatpacking plants found over 1,200 individuals arrested for identity theft.
Illegal immigration is an issue that our lawmakers are going to have to deal with whether they like it or not.
During the impeachment of President Clinton, we heard that this must happen because we as a nation believed in the rule of law. If we are still a nation that believes in the rule of law, we can begin by insuring that all individuals arrive in this country legally
The failure of lawmakers to enact S.B. 81 in 2008 shows that many do not take the problem of illegal immigration seriously. Legal citizens will continue to have crowded classrooms, higher health care, and the inconvenience of having to restore their identity because this problem will continue.
If citizens do not stay vigilant, S.B. 81 will be gutted during the 2009 session, and Utah will continue to do very little to curb this growing epidemic.
Stop Illegal Immigration
By Don Guymon
In the 2008 Legislative Session, both chambers passed S.B. 81 an omnibus illegal immigration bill. The bill had several good measures to curb illegal immigration. Unfortunately both chambers put off implementation until 2009 so further research can be done on illegal immigration.
It is surprising that individuals would feel the need to study the issue of illegal immigration further. Why do we need to wait a year when this has been studied for many years? Is not the fact that individual here illegally enough?
S.B. 81 would require county sheriffs to verify the immigration status of foreign nationals; prohibited the alcoholic beverage control commission from granting liquor or private club licenses to individuals who are not in the country illegally; prohibits local entities from keeping their law enforcement officers from enforcing immigration laws and requires employers who contract with the state to verify whether their workers are legal to work in the United States.
This bill was pretty straightforward, so why do we need to study it further?
It was not just that implementation of S.B. 81 was put off until 2009. Several other good bills died. Bills that would have prohibited illegal immigrants from receiving instate tuition and stopped the issuance of driver privilege cards died and not for the first time.
Many say that the issue of illegal immigration is a federal issue and the state should not deal with it. Yes it is a federal issue. At a time when we are fighting a war on terror, it makes little sense that our borders are not under control.
But the state also has a role to play.
If the state is providing driver privilege cards to those who are here illegally, is not the state aiding and abetting and abiding the breaking of federal law?
If the state is giving preferential treatment to the children of illegal immigrants over students from other states who want to study at public schools, is the state not aiding and abetting the breaking of federal law?
Many argue that these are good men and women simply here to make a better life for their family. Good intentions aside, good people do not break the law.
For example MSNBC recently reported that nine million people had inaccurate social security taxes. While some of these may be mistaken, many are because of illegal aliens stealing people’s identification.
The recent raid of illegal immigrants at Swift Meatpacking plants found over 1,200 individuals arrested for identity theft.
Illegal immigration is an issue that our lawmakers are going to have to deal with whether they like it or not.
During the impeachment of President Clinton, we heard that this must happen because we as a nation believed in the rule of law. If we are still a nation that believes in the rule of law, we can begin by insuring that all individuals arrive in this country legally
The failure of lawmakers to enact S.B. 81 in 2008 shows that many do not take the problem of illegal immigration seriously. Legal citizens will continue to have crowded classrooms, higher health care, and the inconvenience of having to restore their identity because this problem will continue.
If citizens do not stay vigilant, S.B. 81 will be gutted during the 2009 session, and Utah will continue to do very little to curb this growing epidemic.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Consistency
Below is a column I wrote for a past GrassRoots report:
Consistency.
If we could achieve this one word in Utah politics, it would be a great day for this state.
Opponents of H.B. 148 which introduced educational vouchers to the state lamented the cost. Yet 30 of the 48 House and Senate members who voted against vouchers had no problem giving $15 million of the citizen’s money to build a soccer stadium.
If sending every dollar possible to educate our children is the real reason to oppose vouchers why is the $15 million soccer stadium an exception?
If it is so important that every possible dollar be spent on classroom spending, why did 34 of the 37 representatives who voted against vouchers oppose insuring more money was funneled into the classroom? H.B. 193 would have required that 65% of school funding be spent on instruction. The bill was defeated in the House 24-49-2.
One would think that if the state was not spending enough money to teach its children then we would be attempting to streamline our system. Yet S.B 49, which creates extended day kindergarten in the state, passed overwhelmingly. The bill carries a $30 million price tag for the first year.
Many of our politicians proclaim the pro-life mantle and talk about the importance of protecting the unborn. H.B. 235 would have been a test case to challenge Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion. In a year of record spending increases, it was decided that the unborn was not as high a priority as a soccer stadium for a millionaire.
Being consistent when it comes to principals is not easy. This year H.B. 84 which created the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund passed both chambers by large margins. The money comes from increased fines for those convicted of DUI’s. Certainly those who commit this crime should be punished, but is creating another government program the way to go? What happens if we are ever able to rid the society of drunk driving, how will this continue to be funded? For those who decry socialized medicine, isn’t such a bill a step in the direction of a government run system?
This year it became more difficult to purchase cough and cold medicines. Yet nothing was done to curb the attack on our borders of illegal immigration.
Of course, the lack of consistency is not only absent in our state politics. On a national level, conservatives are falling all over themselves to support candidates who only recently were pro-abortion and pro-gay rights.
Our lack of consistency will eventually hurt this state. Currently our economy is growing and unemployment is very low. Yet government has grown larger than the rate of inflation and according to the Utah Taxpayers Association has grown on average 9% over the past two years.
What will happen to this state when the economic good times end? It may not be a popular notion but every Economics 101 class in college teaches of economic cycles with times of growth such as we are in now, but times of correction when the economy does not fair as well.
When the economy goes bad, as it inevitably will, who will pay for the increased state spending? How will we fund full day kindergarten or a soccer stadium and the myriad of other programs which have been recently implemented?
While our lawmakers should be praised for recent tax cuts, ultimately the lack of fiscal restraint will ultimately lead to an increased tax burden. Because when faced with cutting spending or raising taxes, unfortunately our elected officials have been remarkably consistent. Please hold onto your wallets. That will be the price we will pay for inconsistency in our state government.
Consistency.
If we could achieve this one word in Utah politics, it would be a great day for this state.
Opponents of H.B. 148 which introduced educational vouchers to the state lamented the cost. Yet 30 of the 48 House and Senate members who voted against vouchers had no problem giving $15 million of the citizen’s money to build a soccer stadium.
If sending every dollar possible to educate our children is the real reason to oppose vouchers why is the $15 million soccer stadium an exception?
If it is so important that every possible dollar be spent on classroom spending, why did 34 of the 37 representatives who voted against vouchers oppose insuring more money was funneled into the classroom? H.B. 193 would have required that 65% of school funding be spent on instruction. The bill was defeated in the House 24-49-2.
One would think that if the state was not spending enough money to teach its children then we would be attempting to streamline our system. Yet S.B 49, which creates extended day kindergarten in the state, passed overwhelmingly. The bill carries a $30 million price tag for the first year.
Many of our politicians proclaim the pro-life mantle and talk about the importance of protecting the unborn. H.B. 235 would have been a test case to challenge Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion. In a year of record spending increases, it was decided that the unborn was not as high a priority as a soccer stadium for a millionaire.
Being consistent when it comes to principals is not easy. This year H.B. 84 which created the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund passed both chambers by large margins. The money comes from increased fines for those convicted of DUI’s. Certainly those who commit this crime should be punished, but is creating another government program the way to go? What happens if we are ever able to rid the society of drunk driving, how will this continue to be funded? For those who decry socialized medicine, isn’t such a bill a step in the direction of a government run system?
This year it became more difficult to purchase cough and cold medicines. Yet nothing was done to curb the attack on our borders of illegal immigration.
Of course, the lack of consistency is not only absent in our state politics. On a national level, conservatives are falling all over themselves to support candidates who only recently were pro-abortion and pro-gay rights.
Our lack of consistency will eventually hurt this state. Currently our economy is growing and unemployment is very low. Yet government has grown larger than the rate of inflation and according to the Utah Taxpayers Association has grown on average 9% over the past two years.
What will happen to this state when the economic good times end? It may not be a popular notion but every Economics 101 class in college teaches of economic cycles with times of growth such as we are in now, but times of correction when the economy does not fair as well.
When the economy goes bad, as it inevitably will, who will pay for the increased state spending? How will we fund full day kindergarten or a soccer stadium and the myriad of other programs which have been recently implemented?
While our lawmakers should be praised for recent tax cuts, ultimately the lack of fiscal restraint will ultimately lead to an increased tax burden. Because when faced with cutting spending or raising taxes, unfortunately our elected officials have been remarkably consistent. Please hold onto your wallets. That will be the price we will pay for inconsistency in our state government.
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