The Old Bennett vs. the New Bennett
I wrote recently about the change in Utah Sen. Bob Bennett's demeanor from the time he was secure in his seat representing arguably the reddest state in the country to now, when he is facing a serious challenge just to win the nomination from his Republican Party to run for a fourth term next year.
Bennett's peril comes from the right wing of his party, so the senator who has been a voice of reason for 16 years has suddenly become one of the most partisan members of his body, all to show the conservative delegates he will face next year that he is ready to fight the good fight against anything Democrat or liberal.
I mentioned his stand in his first year in office when he defended new Democratic President Bill Clinton's selection of a lesbian to be assistant secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, arguing that she was competent and was the president's choice.
I contrasted that to now, when he personally blocked the confirmation of Assistant Department of Interior Secretary David Hayes over the department's shelving of oil and gas leases in Utah. That, I believe, was an overture to his party's right wing.
Another Old Bennett vs. New Bennett comparison can be made with his announcement this week that he is going to hold Census officials' feet to the fire and appointments there go through the confirmation process, especially about the controversy last time when they didn't count Mormon missionaries for Utah and alleged involvement of liberal groups that were found to have voter registration irregularities last year.
The old Bennett strongly criticized the way the Utah Legislature gerrymandered congressional and legislative districts after the 2000 Census to favor Republican candidates as much as possible. He joined the voice of the conservative Wall Street Journal editorial page to lambaste the Republican-dominated Legislature for the blatantly political way it carved up districts.
But Bennett now is doing everything he can to cater to those same conservative Republican legislators who already are showing disdain toward efforts to get an independent commission in place to set new district boundaries.
Something tells me Bennett will not go against Republican lawmakers on this issue like he did nearly 10 years ago.
Cheers,
Paul Rolly
Bennett's peril comes from the right wing of his party, so the senator who has been a voice of reason for 16 years has suddenly become one of the most partisan members of his body, all to show the conservative delegates he will face next year that he is ready to fight the good fight against anything Democrat or liberal.
I mentioned his stand in his first year in office when he defended new Democratic President Bill Clinton's selection of a lesbian to be assistant secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, arguing that she was competent and was the president's choice.
I contrasted that to now, when he personally blocked the confirmation of Assistant Department of Interior Secretary David Hayes over the department's shelving of oil and gas leases in Utah. That, I believe, was an overture to his party's right wing.
Another Old Bennett vs. New Bennett comparison can be made with his announcement this week that he is going to hold Census officials' feet to the fire and appointments there go through the confirmation process, especially about the controversy last time when they didn't count Mormon missionaries for Utah and alleged involvement of liberal groups that were found to have voter registration irregularities last year.
The old Bennett strongly criticized the way the Utah Legislature gerrymandered congressional and legislative districts after the 2000 Census to favor Republican candidates as much as possible. He joined the voice of the conservative Wall Street Journal editorial page to lambaste the Republican-dominated Legislature for the blatantly political way it carved up districts.
But Bennett now is doing everything he can to cater to those same conservative Republican legislators who already are showing disdain toward efforts to get an independent commission in place to set new district boundaries.
Something tells me Bennett will not go against Republican lawmakers on this issue like he did nearly 10 years ago.
Cheers,
Paul Rolly
9:36 AM
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