Utah's Phil Lyman throws a Hail Mary to the Supreme Court hoping to keep write-in campaign alive.
Hits & Misses
By Katharine Biele @kathybiele
Miss: Lie Man
For all the "earned media" Phil Lyman gets, you'd think he was the frontrunner for governor. Are we tired yet? Lyman has been pissing his way into our attention ever since he lost the GOP primary to Gov. Spencer Cox. To be clear, we're talking about two Trumpian candidates who probably deserve oblivion rather than stardom. Cox endorsed DJT after the ear-grazing incident—he was questionably sure it had changed Trump's heart. And Lyman loves then-President Trump for pardoning him for organizing an illegal public lands protest. Lyman has been lobbing insults at Cox and now wants the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the primary. That's unlikely, at best, because the Legislature made a signature path to the ballot law, weakening the fringe element of caucuses. And there's no proof of misconduct. It's not enough for Lyman, who successfully threatened to sue two other "Lymans" on the ballot for governor. Not that any of them would have won in this state that reliably votes "R," no matter what.
Miss: Nuke 'Em
While Utah has significant water and air problems, the energy question is what looms large. Two-thirds of the state's energy comes from fossil fuels, which are on the downswing. Now we see big tech and billionaires lifting nuclear energy as the solution for the future. Is it? The question has been debated for decades. The Deseret News ran a story about public officials—Rep. John Curtis, for one—championing nuclear power in the state. All this is happening in tandem with attempts (and pushback) to approve uranium mines that would fuel reactors. Native Americans near the Grand Canyon want a mine shut down to save their land. The Ute tribe near Southern Utah's White Mesa mill sees destruction on their native lands. It's difficult to breathe amid all the urgency for energy, which groups like Uranium Watch say ignores the problems of mining, waste and, of course, cost. Even with revved up timelines, the nuclear enthusiasm wanes and might be better used to fund research on storage, not just for nuclear, but also solar and wind.
Hit: Holding Court
If not for the internet and, frankly, independent journalists like Bryan Schott, the public might never know how public officials are wading into national issues. We have long known that outgoing Attorney General Sean Reyes spends more time on out-of-state cases than anything in Utah. But the national attention to Republican concerns seems to reflect directly on Utah lawmaking. Schott called out the governor and lawmakers for "quietly" filing a friend-of-the-court brief supporting Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care. The brief claims such laws protect kids, comparing bans on hormone therapy and puberty blockers to "lottery tickets and handguns." Speaking of which, Reyes also filed a brief to "protect" 2nd Amendment rights and allow assault weapons. Never mind that it doesn't protect life.
About The Author
Katharine Biele
A City Weekly contributor since 1992, Katharine Biele is the informed voice behind our Hits & Misses column. When not writing, you can catch her working to empower voters and defend democracy alongside the League of Women Voters.
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