Schanz Vs Edwards

My wife pointed out that my views aren't present on my own blog. So, I just have a few thoughts.

D.J. Schanz, mudslinging?

What is happening here is that D.J. is saying negative things about his opponent. Mudslinging, if you want to call it that, is what I have done here for years. I've questioned positions that politicians have held, that cast them in a negative light. What I really like about this campaign is that D.J. is doing all this himself--and so he should! I don't like whisper campaigns, where a candidate hides behind anonymous posters. Would Becky have admitted to having voted Democratic in the last Presidential primaries if mudslinging had not occurred? Now, the voter can decide whether they like her prior vote. (She won't admit for whom she voted, which is a privilege sometimes taken by the media, but why would a politician not confess as to their past political decisions?) Here are some possibilities opened up by Edwards' partial admission.

1) She voted for the Democrat with the best chance of winning against the Republican.
2) She voted for the Democrat with the worst chance of winning against the Republican.

Well, which is it? It makes a difference to me.

As for D.J., it appears that he just hasn't voted at all. At worst, he is a repentant non-political businessman who has opposed Becky for her liberal stances. I believe in repentance.

At best, Becky passed every bill she put forward and has reasons for voting against conservative bills, and for liberal ones.

For me Edwards reasons for voting for a tobacco tax hike (sin tax) isn't good enough. I fear the governments addiction to the tax revenue, more than I fear societies addiction to nicotine. Taxing stupid people does not make them smarter. People smoke because they are addicted. The following sentence from Edwards describes a very twisted view of conservatism.

"The tobacco tax is a common sense way to further the conservative principles of individual choice and accountability. "

I do not think having a 100% pass record for Edwards bills makes her more conservative.

I do not think having all her bills produced by her constituents makes those bills conservative.

[Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers] Becky Edwards responds to opponent's mai...

Friends,

The other day I received an email from one of our neighbors who was concerned about the negative mudslinging and false accusations being made about me during this campaign.

I wrote him back clarifying the truth, dispelling the rumors, and assuaging his concerns. Below you will find the information he forwarded to many of his neighbors.

If you know people who might appreciate knowing the truth about me and the issues I stand for, one way you can help is by sending this email to your friends and neighbors in our District. Time is of the essence as the primary is tomorrow, Tuesday, June 22nd. Please encourage those who may have concerns or questions to contact me directly at 808-0805 cell, 295-2950 home, orvotebeckyedwards@gmail.com. My website, www.utahbecky.com, has additional information and a link to my legislative blog.

Thanks,

Becky



Becky Edwards' Strong Conservative Record and Positions. Becky has consistently voted in line with your mainstream conservative principles:


· Effective -- 100% pass rate for all bills she presented
· Conservative -- voted "yes" on bills dealing with states rights, eminent domain, and opposing illegal immigration
· Fiscally responsible – voted to reign in reckless spending and responsibly limit the size and role of government
· Our Leader in the Legislature – Becky leads out on our behalf, on issues that are important to us. All Becky's legislation was generated directly from the people of our District
· Held the line on taxes -- consistently voted against tax increases and voted for balanced budgets both years. The tobacco tax she voted yes for, was also supported by 84% of the people of our District. It helps protect us against higher health care costs in Medicare and Medicaid associated with smoking-related illnesses. It also increased health care availability for all citizens by increasing the number of spots at the UofU Medical School (from 82 to 102).
· Protected taxpayer dollars – voted for legislation reforming teacher union pensions, saving billions in taxpayer money
· Supports legislative process and the Utah State Constitution over outside lobbyists -- Opposed the HJR24 legislation pushed by California lobbyists to change the Utah Constitution to make it easier for public contractors to take taxpayer money in public contracts
· Protects children and families -- sponsored legislation that cracks down on sexual crimes against children

Becky is a tough, but ethical, fair, and courteous legislator who stands up to lobbyists and special interest groups outside of our district.

Becky is committed to transparency and accountability. She has a daily blog during the session where she records each of her votes, writes about what happens during the legislative session, and encourages feedback from people in her district.

Becky is fiercely loyal to the people of OUR area and you and your neighbors truly are her lobbyists and her special interest groups.



TAXATION:

Becky is a sincere and devoted fiscal conservative who has not voted in favor of income or other tax increases.

Her decision to support raising the tobacco tax to the national average was based on her belief that those who use government services, such as Medicare and Medicaid, ought to be responsible for paying for those services. Smokers cause high costs for society through their choices and those costs are shared by all taxpayers. Individuals should be accountable for the costs of their choices, and the tobacco tax helps achieve that in a modest way. The tobacco tax is a common sense way to further the conservative principles of individual choice and accountability.




AFFIRMATIVE ACTION:

Becky believes that all people should be given the same opportunities to succeed. Some say, without justification, that she support affirmative action. The truth is, however, that Becky does not support quotas and her action on this resolution is both conservative andcourageous in it's support of a constitutional legislative process.

The affirmative action controversy stems from her actions opposing a proposed resolution called "HJR24." HJR24 was a pet project of a powerful California lobbyist seeking to change the rules for public contractors to make it easier for private companies to get taxpayer money. HJR24 would have radically changed the Utah Constitution and may have been an impediment for Utah's fine public universities to deliver scholarships and other programs to deserving students. It needed more study to fully analyze the implications and unintended consequences, which always exist even with the most seemingly straightforward legislation.

The sponsors of HJR24 here in Utah wanted to ram the bill through the legislature without allowing the Constitutional Revision Commission to hear it. Becky, however, expressed concerns about this legislation out of a sincere conviction that the legislative process should not be abused. Due consideration is necessary before passing constitutional amendments. In the end, her principled stand in support of proper legislative procedure won out, and the HJR24 sponsors withdrew their resolution recognizing that they did not have sufficient Republican support for it to pass. It will now be studied by an interim committee and will be up for consideration again in the 2011 session.



BECKY'S PERSONAL VOTING RECORD:

In answer to the allegations about her voting record perpetrated by her opponent, the simple truth is that during the Presidential Primary of 2008 Becky supported Mitt Romney. She worked on his campaign and Becky and her husband held a fund raiser for Mitt in their home.

Becky has never been registered as a Democrat and did not support Obama.

This is what she says:

"While I am committed to 100% transparency with votes I've taken as your elected official, I have always defended an individual's right to a secret ballot.

When I became a voter 30 years ago I was a registered Republican, voted in several states through the years, and even served as a county delegate here in District 20. When the Republican party required voters to be registered as Republicans in order to vote in the party primary I became an unaffiliated voter. That never changed the principles, people or issues I voted for and supported.

When I went to vote as an unaffiliated voter in the presidential primary in Feb. 2008 I could not receive a Republican ballot. So, I took and voted on a democratic ballot, the only ballot available to me that day. I have never hidden this or denied it. And because I believe in the sanctity of a private ballot, I have never stated who I voted for. Nevertheless, you can be confident that I placed my vote thoughtfully and with careful consideration of the issues, as well as a reliance on my conservative principles, to make that important decision.

In hindsight, I may regret being an unaffiliated voter at that time and missing the chance to vote for the candidate I was so strongly supporting, Mitt Romney. However, participation in the process of voting is something I take very seriously. I consider it a patriotic responsibility of all Americans, and I was not willing to pass up an opportunity to vote, even on a democratic ballot. Participation in the political process and consistently casting a vote is not something my opponent can make reference to because there is no record with the County Clerk of his placing a valid ballot, ever, since moving to our district in 2006.

In conclusion, my focus will continue to be on my conservative voting record as your elected official. For nearly 1000 votes I have been transparent and truly represented the people of this district. Over and over again I have supported the mainstream conservative principles we all hold dear. Check out my blog for a complete list of my votes and a daily account of activities during the legislative session."

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Posted By Natalie to Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers at 6/21/2010 03:23:00 PM

[Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers] DJ Schanz's Financial Disclosure

The most recent financial disclosure shows that the challenger in Leg 20, DJ Schanz, took over $2,000 from Parents for Choice in Education.

Also, on a related note, all those that think Becky is a 'tool of the UEA,' please note that she received a 73% grade on the Parents For Choice Legislative Scorecard for the 2010 session. That's a higher grade than 18 Republicans in the house, including Davis County Republican legislators Paul Ray, Doug Aagard and Roger Barrus. On the UEA scorecard, Becky received a 67%. My conclusion? Becky Edwards is thoughtfully representing our district, not the teachers' union or the pro-voucher Parents for Choice.

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Posted By Natalie to Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers at 6/17/2010 06:46:00 AM

County Convention Update

My new commitment to blogging has not yet moved me to post immediately after an event. This hast the advantage of giving me time to reflect and be a little more thoughtful.

That's my story!

The Davis County Convention was on Saturday, and I saw a couple of friends there. It was their first convention, and I took the bull by the horns and tried to convince as many people as I could speak to to see things my way. I went with my Dad, which has become something of a tradition for me, and he was very patient with me this time as I dragged him around trying to talk to more people that he didn't know.

A neighbor of mine attended as a delegate for the first time. He has started a blog called Davis County Republican. He couldn't believe that the name was available. See his blog here.

The key results were as follows.

Bret Milburn (I) -- Commission seat A
Louenda Downs (I) -- Commission seat B
Todd Richardson -- Sheriff
Dennis Yarrington -- Assessor

That last one was an upset as I thought Ivie had done a good job. Everything else went the way I expected and wished. I honestly wish that we'd had better candidates running against the incumbents so that it would have been a real challenge for them. As it was, the two losing Commissioner candidates has some untenable ideas about how to reform the government, although their rhetoric was more conservative, and you know how much I want conservative qualities in my officials. Some examples of some unrealistic goals follow. Dave Andreasen wants to run a fiscally conservative county, but wants to switch out the Commissioner form for the Council Mayor, which would have cost so much more than what we have now. Nine part-time councilmen, and one full-time mayor would require so much more money to keep things running than what we have now. Drew Chamberlain, who ran against Downs, claimed he could lower the commissioner pay by 60 percent. Not likely considering he'd have to convince the other two to take a pay cut. Likely, all he would end up doing is donating the remainder of his pay to charity, not of my choosing, and working as hard as someone who earns $40k may work. My feeling is that if the commissioners think they are actually worth less money, then I am fine with them earning less, but if they work for the full $109,000 they are paid each year, then I am all for that.

Finally, we were scheduled to finish at 2 PM, and we finished at 2 PM. Very strange!

Meet the Candidate: D.J. Schanz

I may not be a State Delegate, but I find myself tonight at a meeting with a candidate running for the Utah Representative for my district against Edwards.

Most of the people here are members of the 9-12 group. I've decided that I'm better off not affiliating. At this point I'm a Republican, but that's about it as far as political proper nouns go for me.

D.J. Is an entrepreneur, and has a wife and three kids. He's been Director of Campaign for Liberty.

This is more like a campaign bull session than a meet the candidate night, but I think everyone is of a like mind about D.J's limited government viewpoint.

I've been the only person asking questions like you would normally at one of these meetings.

D.J. is a eloquent, gregarious guy, but based on those with whom he associates, I think I understand his values. I think I share them, and I can't say that I feel that way about the our current representative. He mentioned The Law, by Bastiat and the Constitution as the two documents that have most influenced his thinking.

If you are a State Delegate, and your instinct is to go with the incumbent, then you should think a second time.

I haven't met Chet Loftis, and he could be a very good candidate, so don't consider this an endorsement.

Open Thread: What are Delegates thinking?

This is an invitation to all County delegates from Davis County to spill on any subject, or candidate that springs to mind? What are you thinking about as you head towards April 10th? Which candidates have you met? Which do you like?

Best Precinct Caucus Ever!

That's what people are saying. Our precinct had 46 attendees and 1 visitor(an unregistered individual who wanted to learn. Shame he couldn't vote because we got mixed signals from the County leadership on this.) I got elected as a County Delegate, just as I wanted. I got elected vice-chair which is the price that you pay.

One litmus test arose tonight, which was whether you would vote for Bob Bennett. It was about 50/50, and the results reflected that too on the State Delegate side.

A Return to Blogging

It's been 2 years since my last post. I thought this blog was dead and gone, and I must say that I have enjoyed the sabbatical (a very long sabbatical). This morning at a Precinct Caucus training I was recognized as "the blogger" by someone at the registration area, and I thought it strange that something I thought was long behind me was still front and center somehow.

The comment about my blogging was a very odd coincidence, because I had already decided to return to blogging local politics. It wasn't going to be tonight, but soon. I'm not going to go as strong as I did before, but some people still remember me, so maybe I can make a difference.

[Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers] The Davis School Board is INSANE!

This showed up in my inbox this morning. I am posting it with a hearty AMEN!

The Davis School District Board members are insane! At least according to Albert Einstein who defined insanity as, "doing the same thing over again and expecting different results."


This upcoming week, against great opposition, the Board members are expected to pass a proposed junior high boundary change. This change moves kids from the communities west of Redwood Road (North Salt Lake and Woods Cross) out of Millcreek Junior High, into Muller Park Junior High. The reason the District Board members are insane--they did the same thing less than four years ago; moving the children of the same area, out of South Davis Junior High, into Millcreek Junior High. The District's solution to overpopulation obviously did not work four years ago; otherwise this needless disruption to the kids, families, and communities would not have been necessary. Moreover, the same solution will not work this time. When the numbers of students' enrolled full time are evaluated, it shows that the overpopulation problem will only be temporarily solved; in a few short years, the incoming students will overpopulate Muller Park. Why do the board members of Davis School District think that doing the same thing this time will produce different results? They must be insane!

Davis School District has a history of underestimating the population of the aforementioned communities. In the past four years, the children and families of these communities have overpopulated one elementary, one junior high, and one high school, evidenced by the fact that in the past four years the children and families of these communities have already endured the boundary shift of one elementary, one junior high, and one high school. When are the Davis School District Board members going to stop defaulting to the quick and easy solution of disrupting, displacing, and discarding the kids of these communities? When are the Davis School District Board members going to require more of themselves and the District staff by finding a more permanent solution? Will Davis School District staff and Board members perpetuate their insanity? Will they continue to disrupt and displace the children of these communities, causing them to feel disposable? If so then Albert Einstein was right, "The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education".

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Posted By Natalie to Davis County Watch: Guest Bloggers at 2/01/2010 07:13:00 AM