As a resident of Davis or Salt Lake County since age 7, I read local newspapers, watched TV news channels (ABC, CBS, NBC and university TV), learned about our politicians, and believed we had honorable men making concerted attempts to cooperate, compromise and collaborate with others to bring about and create laws, policies, etc. for all.
I remember names like James Hansen, Jim Matheson, K. Gunn McKay, Wayne Owens, Frank Moss, both Wallace and Robert Bennett, and Jake Garn.
I became aware of politics in fourth grade and grew up as these men were in office. I respected them and felt comfortable with them representing me and my family.
None of them would have supported Trump in any way, shape or form and would not have hesitated to call him out for his unfitness and inadequacy to be president.
However, I haven’t felt comfortable with almost any of Utah’s politicians for the last 25-30 years. There is no factual evidence to prove my opinion, but I think that any single one of the names I mentioned would rise far, far above today’s politicians such as Mike Lee, Jason Chaffetz, Sean Reyes, Phil Lyman, Burgess Owens, etc.
I might as well believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny to believe that some people go into politics and attempt to be a “statesman” instead of just another politician whose primary worry is reelection.
I just listened to Mitch McConnell praise himself for passing the COVID relief bill while falsely blaming the Democrats for the delay. And then Trump could have talked to McConnell about his objections, but he deliberately waited so as to throw another cruel monkey wrench at the American people who refused to reelect him.
Richard Egan, Salt Lake City
