Greiner Withdraws from Senate Race

I was not surprised to see today that Jon Greiner has pulled out of the race for Senate in District 18. Even though I didn't agree with all of Senator Greiner's legislation, it is our loss and I wish him the best of luck. Our alternatives leave much to be desired for.

The savvy folks over at the Weber County Forum were first to report the information and all the details can be read on their blog here: Weber County Forum: Breaking: Has Jon Greiner Officially Dropped Out of the Senate 18 Race?

Hatch Act Fallout - What is next.

Yesterday the Standard Examiner published an editorial calling on Senator Greiner to resign as the Ogden City Police Chief. The main concern is the potential loss of $215,000 in federal grant money. No one wants to lose this money and Senator Greiner has a tough decision to make. I spoke with him briefly on Tuesday night and I can tell this weighing on his mind. But what is the real fallout from this ruling on the Hatch Act.

The Standard Examiner did a good job pointing out all of the reasons Greiner needs to resign but I would like to take this discussion a little further. Realize first of all the $215,000 we get next year has already been spent. Since Greiner, according to my sources, has already spent over $250,000 just in legal fees. I would say he is good for one more year to fight this thing. But most importantly what about the scores of politicians and future politicians that are also in charge of federal grant money. What happens to them?

For example:

Terry Thompson and Brett Haycock, both running for Weber County Sheriff, are in charge of numerous federal grants that benefit our county. Do they need to resign if they want to run and if they don't are they in violation of the Hatch Act? Will we even have any candidates this year?

What about Legislators that run Non-profits that receive Federal Grant Money are they now in violation? Should they now resign?

I am willing to bet there are many other Hatch Act violations that now exists because of this ruling, will anyone call them out or has Greiner been unfairly attacked.

I open this up to debate for I don't think we realize how far this ruling will reach.

The Weber Country Forum had a great posts expanding on this topic: See Here

Anybody but Bob - Reader Comments

Michael Booth a loyal reader posted some great points with regards to the "Anybody but Bob" debate. I post them here to get more readership and comments from you all on these points. I think they are great.

Also check out the Salt Lake Tribune's Article, by Robert Gehrke, about the subject, where I was quoted. http://bit.ly/dhstji and here on Right Jeff's Blog http://goo.gl/acZV

Bob Bennett

---------------
Pros:
* He's very accessible; Several of those in attendance had met him and had conversations with him
* He has a degree of seniority
* He has a record and experience
* Sen. Hatch likely won't run for another term so losing Bennett could in the near future leave us with two inexperienced senators

Cons:
* He's made some unpopular votes (TARP, earmarks, gun control)
* Despite serving for 18 years, he's still a "mid-grade" senator

Mike Lee
---------------
Pros:
* Served as law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Alito
* Seems to have good understanding of the U.S. Constitution
* Young, new, could do much better than Bennett

Cons:
* Few of the attendees knew much about him
* Young, new, could do much worse than Bennett
* Fear of him being not moderate enough

The final consensus was "don't really know" who to vote for. Everyone agreed to do more research and to contact the delegates with their opinions.

All in all, I wouldn't count Bennett out just yet. The consensus on the internet (blogs, comments, Facebook, Twitter) is definitely stacked against him. But out of all the people in my caucus last night, I'm probably the only one participating on the internet. I'm sure there are still many members of the party, and more importantly delegates, whose opinion is not yet known. This could still be Senator Bennett's game.

Thanks Mike for the comments. The floor is now open for debate.

Caucus Meeting Results - Anyone But Bob

Last night was our Neighborhood Caucus Meetings and it was great to see all the people come out. This year we had over 20 people in my tiny little living room, compared to the six the last time, this was a great turn out. The meeting went off without any problems and we elected some new officers this year. Once again I will be representing South Ogden 2 as the Precinct chair, my wife as the Vice Chair. But we have added a new Secretary Trisha White.

Where things really got heated was in State Delegate debate. You could tell everyone was there to talk about Bob Bennett. What is to be done with our Senator? A healthy debate broke out regarding the issue and a straw poll was cast. More than half agreed they would support Anyone But Bob. Some of our more mature participants weighed in on Mr. Bennett's seniority, however the young crowd cried foul on seniority and said now is the time for someone new and who is a real Republican.

After the meeting I spent the rest of time with our Leg Chair collecting packets. Nearly 90 of the precincts in Leg 10 all shared the same sentiment--Anyone But Bob. Also, as I have following the pulse of the Utah political climate on Twitter and Facebook, the results seem to be similar.

With these kinds of results, I don't anticipate a slow demise like Chris Cannon had, I predict an all out war with Bennett losing.

If you are Bennett supporter you better come up with a better reason than seniority; if you are a Anyone But Bob supporter then your candidate better prove to have the "MOXIE" to win and take charge.

Interesting night and an interesting election to come.

Caucus Meetings - March 23, 2010

Caucus Meetings are coming up. Some of you may call these precinct meetings or neighborhood meetings, but either way they will be happening all over the state on March 23, 2010 at 7 pm.

This year is sure to be an exciting year with many county and state wide races playing out. The grassroots politics begins this year with each of these meetings; therefore I encourage you to attend your neighborhood caucus meeting and help choose who will represent you at your county and state conventions. Our caucus meetings haven't been this exciting for nearly six years.

Each meeting will choose state and county delegates whom will go on to help choose who will go on to primaries or represent your party in the upcoming elections.

For the Weber County Republicans you can find your caucus information at the following website:

Weber County Republican Party Blog: 2010 Weber County GOP Neighborhood Caucus Meeting Locations

For the Weber County Democrats you can find your caucus information at the following website:

http://www.wp.weberdemocrats.org/?page_id=7

For those in South Ogden 2 and Republican, the caucus meeting will be at my house at 7 pm. See ya there.

Saying goodbye to Centennial Bank

Once again we are seeing another bank close it's doors. When I got the word on Friday my mind quickly went back to January, where I was able to see first hand the pain of customers leaving Barnes Bank. Now we will be seeing it again. Fortunately Centennial Bank is not as large Barnes Bank; however this time it really hits at home. This bank was headquartered in our own back yard. I wish the 70 employees of the bank well, and to the 3,000 customers, I hope your money was fully insured. Either way this makes me sick.

My company pushed construction and real estate loans the same time everyone else did. We had a great rate, promotions, and we made loans. But in the end this comes down to poor underwriting and mis-management.

For more on this here is a nice article from the Tribune on the subject: http://bit.ly/dA2xap

Time Flies

Due to some crazy things in my world, blogging has taken a backseat. It is tough because I love the legislative session and the political process so much. However some higher priorities have taken over for me. My work, especially, has been incredibly challenging and exciting lately.

Today, I thought I would just post some of the things that I am reading that I found interesting:

What I am reading:

• Saintless's Best of Utah Picks - http://goo.gl/m5WD
• Retiree to be honored as first Latino in Legislature - http://goo.gl/0TRm
• Mitt Romney Book Tour Begins - http://goo.gl/LH0X
• Jazz Lose - http://goo.gl/Sirn
• Board of Regents Roster - http://goo.gl/IIeZ

Just a few things to think about today.

Oh…and message bills in the legislature are dumb.