Is YOUR Utah State Legislator or Senator Conservative?

The group Utah Grass Roots publishes every year a score card rating your Utah State Legislators, Senators and your Governor.  This year Governor Gary Herbert received the highest rating so far in recent years over past governors. 

Want to know what they voted on this year and how they voted?  Here is a great look at their records.  

Click HERE and you’ll be taken to their website where you can see exactly where they stand.  They may be great people, but they may not be voting in the best interest of individual liberty and constitutional rights.  Check it out.  If you are looking for years past, visit this site. 

Here’s an example of what you’ll get: 

The Year of the Tenth Amendment

The Tenth Amendment to the Bill of Rights states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

This year the Utah State Legislature decided finally to put some teeth behind these words. They voted to exercise our health care rights, our land rights and our gun rights.

  

  

While the legislature should be applauded for their efforts, the question GrassRoots asks is, “What took so long?” These issues have affected the state for quite some time; they are not new. 

Utah Grassroots lauds the courage of the Wyoming legislature which passed HB 95 (Wyoming Firearms Freedom Act), and of the governor who signed this bill on March 11 of this year. Among other things, it provides jail time or fines (or both) to penalize government agents who attempt to enforce federal regulations on Wyoming-made firearms and ammunition, and authorizes the AG to defend any Wyoming citizen who is prosecuted for the violation of any such regulations. 

All news was not good from the session. Legislators raised the cigarette tax by $1 per pack which will increase the tax burden by $43 million. They also passed legislation which would allow the Utah Transit Authority to become a limited partner in housing development (this is comparable to the federal government investing in General Motors). Parental rights took a blow when a move to liberalize the booster seat law failed in the House. 

One of the big issues facing the state is the issue of ethics legislation. GrassRoots decided to not take a position on the legislation passed by the legislature this year. 

Grassroots believes the best method of enforcing ethics is an informed citizenry who are informed and hold all elected officials accountable for their actions. Ethics legislation must recognize that every individual, including elected officials, have rights which are guaranteed by the Constitution. These rights should not be infringed upon.

 

 

 

President Boyd K. Packer – Lifetime Freedom Award

We wanted to share with you a wonderful event that just recently took place in Provo, Utah.  Many may not know President Packer, but he is an ecclesiastical leader in my faith at one of the highest levels.  I believe this story will give hope and determination to all those who are fighting the battle for freedom and liberty.  We will likely not be called on to die for our country, but rather LIVE for it.  We may need to spend our fortunes, give of our time, and definitely have sacred honor.  To read the entire article and learn more about his man, click here.  Here is an excerpt from an article about that evening.

…After receiving the award, President Packer spoke of the freedoms the nation enjoys today — freedoms that came at a price.

He reflected upon James Madison’s record of the Constitutional Convention, referencing the weeks of time and effort that had been exhausted creating the U.S. Constitution allowing the freedoms enjoyed today.

He then told a story about the day that the men were individually signing the Constitution. During the convention, President George Washington was sitting in a high-back chair that had a picture of a rising sun on the back. Benjamin Franklin said that he had been looking at the sun all during the convention. He said he was never sure if it was a rising sun or a setting sun. But, as the men came forward one by one to sign the document, Franklin said that day he had the confidence to know it was a rising sun.

“Now 12 wars later and all that has gone on, that sun is now obscured,” President Packer said. “We know that war can’t destroy it, but if it is destroyed it will be from within. And now we face a danger greater than any of the wars we have faced. To honor the Constitution and to honor freedom is a sacred duty for all of us.

“I invoke the blessing on you who are doing this sacred work that you will keep it up, and that in due time the challenges that we face now from within can be conquered so that this nation may remain free.”

            We need the help of individuals around the country to educate our citizens on how freedom should look.  Stand up for freedom and lead your neighbors down a path that breaks the cycle of socialism that is currently underfoot.  Contact us for information on what you can do to help.