House Speaker Dave Clark tells the Deseret News editorial board that Gov. Jon Huntsman has gone "over the line" in establishing a commission that would look into government ethics.

Clark, a Santa Clara banker (I love it that bankers now rank below lawyers and even journalists in public esteem), warns that Huntsman is threatening the separation of powers.

I am very, very protective of the legislative branch of government . . . and I hope he will respect that.

Clark makes it sound like the Guv is trying to get his hand inside the Legislature's blouse.

What's most telling about this bit of non-news is, first, that Huntsman's Commission on Strengthening Democracy and Other Good Stuff, like all such blue-ribbon farces, will not produce any ethical changes.

More importantly, after kvetching about outside-imposed changes, Clark admits the Legislature's lame attempt at ethics reform is going nowhere, or, as he puts it in his gooberish way, "gosh, all four tires were flat."

It's not going to happen in this session. This is going to take, I think, through this next summer. I hope the people of Utah will have enough patience to know we're sincere and determined in what we are doing.

Clark and his pals obviously take Utahns for chumps and I haven't seen much evidence to the contrary.