Why is it that the Utah Legislature spends so much time trying either to restrict or manipulate voting in the state? I’d like it much better if they spent more time trying to make life better for Utahns. Instead they seem to think their role is to teach Utahns what is best for us.
Why is it, for example, that L.A. and even China can do a better job cleaning their air than we can? The only answer that makes sense is that we don’t have the political will.
Meanwhile, people who grow up here, like me, suffer compromised health which undoubtedly led to the earlier-than-necessary demise of my father, who suffered from asthma.
This year, their big effort is focused on wrecking the nice vote-by-mail system we have here in Utah. They acknowledge the popularity of voting by mail, and claim they won’t be getting rid of it. You will still receive your ballot by mail. You’ll just have to hand it in to an election official in person so that they can check your I.D. This effectively guts vote-by-mail by making it necessary to visit the county clerk’s office to register your vote.
This is a solution in search of a problem, and anyone who has followed politics in this country recently knows that it’s inspired by Donald Trump’s refusal to accept his loss in the 2020 election.
Utah already has a supermajority in the legislature and a consistently GOP governor with no sign of this changing anytime soon. With their positions secure, wouldn’t it be a good time to start focusing on the good of all Utahns?
David Harris, Salt Lake City
