Paul Mero

While co-hosting KVNU’s For The People on April 20, and quite coincidentally and unintentionally, I found myself in the middle of a sparring match between two people I consider my friends – State Republican Party Chairman James Evans and State Senator Todd Weiler. The issue was the current legal challenge to Count My Vote. Senator Weiler believes the challenge has run its course. James Evans believes the fight must go on.

In full disclosure, though an opinion cemented after hearing my friends argue over the airwaves, I also believe the legal fight against Count My Vote has run its course. To continue the legal fight is a waste of time in my opinion and, much worse, a public relations nightmare. I will go so far to say that if the state Republican Party doesn’t drop this fight, its leadership should be replaced, sooner rather than later. At this point, the party is wrong and seems unable to see it. read more

Choice is a strange master. At the Utah Legislature, it has led the push to incrementally legalize marijuana. This push does not come from Utah’s progressive left, but from its progressive right affiliated with the state Republican Party. Only in Utah will you find teetotalling Republicans who would, if they could, turn water into wine as a constitutional right.

Utah’s progressive right does not understand freedom, if smoking marijuana for the sake of choice is viewed as freedom. True freedom is a moral ecology — a delicate balance of human autonomy, a strong private culture of virtue and laws that reflect that culture. Utah’s progressive right has an incomplete understanding of this moral ecology. read more

As Governor Gary Herbert unveiled the Healthy Utah Plan to extend Medicaid eligibility to more of our neighbors in need he stated how “complex” this issue has become in the age of Obamacare.

These complexities now fall equally upon the good judgment of state legislators to discern. The ball is in their court.

How does a conservative state legislator wrap his mind around extending Medicaid eligibility even further? Perhaps I can help. I’m a conservative and I’m well familiar with policymaking. Conservatives must face some realities. As we did with state-based immigration reform, we need to get very practical. In that debate we first had to consider the rule of law. We needed to get the rule right before we could get the law right. A similar standard of analysis applies to the Healthy Utah Plan in extending Medicaid eligibility beyond current levels, especially inside the crazy world of Obamacare. We need to correctly understand the context of the governor’s proposal to correctly discern its sound application. read more

The congressional answer to President Obama’s recent immigration proposal should be to adopt it. Utah did. Utah even went further than President Obama. Utah’s conservative Legislature and governor did what President Obama has proposed on immigration. Consider it a high compliment to this state.

If you believe in freedom, if you are an authentic conservative, you should support this proposal. In fact, you may have already. Seven in 10 Utahns support the Utah Compact. There is no difference between the spirit of the Utah Compact and what has been proposed. read more

There are literally hundreds of policies that could now be implemented on the basis of full and equal rights for gays and lesbians. What’s to stop it all?

Indeed, there’s nothing to stop it after the madness of accepting the reasoning that the definition of marriage includes any claim by two or more consenting adults. Indeed, even the future of polygamy is now unbridled under the law.

Actually, there is one policy that can stop the madness now that the definition of marriage is subject to the tragedy of commons and rendered meaningless: It could be time for Utah to get out of the marriage business completely. If marriage can mean anything and if there really is no credible research suggesting significant benefits to men, women and children, ipso facto, there is no state interest in marriage. So why not get out of the marriage business? read more

Hate is not a family value. Neither is family a hate value. But a new generation of modern bullies would have every Utahn believe that devout people of faith — dedicated to their families and the common good of society — are bigots. During the 2015 legislative session, Utah’s leaders have a great opportunity to throw cold water on these bullies by passing a state Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).

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