This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
[No, the photo above is not from The New York Times. That's from The Tribune archives.]
In the last couple of days, Utah has been mentioned, mostly in passing, in a couple of interesting pieces in The New York Times. And it's just as well it's just in passing, because none of it is good.
Yes, that's disgraced former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff on Page One of The Times. The photo is on the right, about half way down the page. Not at the bottom of the page. That's Elvis. Shurtleff, back left in the photo, is not identified in the caption because the Times editors are focusing on another attorney general who has been the target of some very aggressive lobbying, Florida's Pam Bondi.
It's not good unless you count as a positive the fact that it is two former attorneys general, not the sitting one, whose cases most directly relate to a big investigative piece, "The People's Lawyers."
It seems that in many states — not just Utah — A.G.s are apparently being pushed, pulled and bought by powerful industries that are seeking protection from multi-state and federal investigations.
Of course, the related stuff about the Republican Attorney General's Association doesn't look all that good for incumbent Attorney General Sean Reyes, given that that shady organization is a big source of funds for his re-election campaign.
Oh, and there's another brief mention of the embarrassment of Utah's Wild West gun laws, in a piece by the woman who brought national attention to them a couple of weeks ago.
— Lobbyists, Bearing Gifts, Pursue Attorneys General — Eric Lipton | The New York Times
" ... Attorneys general are now the object of aggressive pursuit by lobbyists and lawyers who use campaign contributions, personal appeals at lavish corporate-sponsored conferences and other means to push them to drop investigations, change policies, negotiate favorable settlements or pressure federal regulators, an investigation by The New York Times has found. ...
" ... In Utah, the attorney general dismissed a case pending against Bank of America over the objections of his staff after secretly meeting with a former attorney general working as a Bank of America lobbyist.
"That Bank of America case was cited in July when the two most recent former attorneys general in Utah were charged with granting official favors to donors in exchange for golf getaways, rides on private planes and a luxury houseboat.
"While the Utah case is extreme, some participants say even the daily lobbying can corrode public trust. ..."
In an online sidebar, The Times lays out the dealings of the Republican Attorney Generals Association:
"The Republican Attorneys General Association, created nearly 15 years ago, has grown in prominence as the number of Republicans holding the job has surged, reaching 25 as of this year. RAGA takes in millions of dollars a year from major corporations — companies that are seeking help to move their agendas or have been targets of investigations. ..."
Starting on Page 26 of the RAGA report are emails from former Utah Attorney General John Swallow, written when he was chief deputy to Shurtleff and planning his own campaign for the top job. He is seen going on about how he could help build a "critical mass of support among conservative AGs" to protect the payday loan sharks from the new federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The Kansas City Star (Go, Royals!) has been after the Missouri attorney general, a Democrat, for his taxpayer-funded lawsuit supporting Big Ag:
— Chris Koster's egg lawsuit busts its budget — Barbara Shelly | The Kansas City Star
Also in the Times:
— It's Game Over for 'Gamers' — Anita Sarkeesian | For The New York Times
"SAN FRANCISCO — I remember, when I was a kid, desperately trying to persuade my mom and dad to buy me a Game Boy. They were very reluctant. The conventional wisdom of the early '90s said that video games would rot kids' brains, and as immigrants who came to North America from Iraq to provide a better life for me and my sister, my parents bought into that myth.
"But there was another, more pernicious reason my mother questioned my interest: She thought it was a toy for boys. And could I really blame her? It was right there in the name: Game Boy.
"I persisted, however, and after some months of campaigning finally convinced my parents that Nintendo's hand-held gaming device was, in fact, appropriate for their little girl.
"This was a story I was planning to share a couple of weeks ago at Utah State University. Unfortunately, I was not able to give my scheduled lecture there. The school received emailed threats to carry out 'the deadliest school shooting in American history' if I were allowed to speak on campus. When the Utah campus police said they could not search attendees for firearms, citing the state's concealed carry laws, I felt forced to cancel the event. ..."