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- Senate race
- Nov 8:
- Sen. Bennett fares well in Provo exit poll
- Nov 4:
- With Shurtleff out, new challengers may emerge
- Oct 21:
- Senate candidate will formally enter the race against Bennett on Thursday
- Oct 20:
- Bailed-out bank among Bennett's top donors
- Oct 16:
- Bennett spends more campaign cash than raised
- Oct 14:
- RNC boss praises Bennett, stays out of Senate fight
- Aug 26:
- Senate race already getting testy eight months out
- Aug 25:
- With tough election ahead, Bennett pens LDS book
- Jul 24:
- EnergySolutions backs Bennett
- Jun 10:
- Eagar's hat is in the ring to challenge Bob Bennett for U.S. Senate seat
- Jun 9:
- Another challenger for Utah Sen. Bob Bennett in his 2010 re-election bid
Provo » Utah cannot afford to lose U.S. Sen. Bob Bennett's experience and influence in Washington, his Senate colleague warned Friday.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, speaking at the Provo/Orem Chamber of Commerce's First Friday Forum, said he likes all the people who are vying for the Senate in 2010 -- even Democratic challenger Sam Granato -- but said Bennett is the best one for the job.
"We have to wake up around here," said Hatch, the state's senior senator. "[Bennett] is considered a real conservative back in Washington. If he is re-elected -- and I believe he will be -- he will have 24 years experience, and he could become the ranking member or the chairman of the [Senate] Banking Committee."
Hatch considers the Banking Committee among the Senate's most powerful.
Bennett took office in 1993 and wouldn't have 24 years in Washington until the end of the fourth term he's seeking.
Hatch's comments followed Bennett's recent last-place finish in a Utah County Republican Party straw poll. Attorney General Mark Shurtleff finished first, with 42 percent of the vote; another challenger, Cherilyn Eagar, received 32 percent.
Jason Powers, spokesman for Shurtleff's campaign, said returning Bennett to Washington only makes sense if people want the same results from government.
Shurtleff will bring fresh insights, as opposed to Bennett's perspective as a Washington "insider," Powers
Case in point: Powers pointed to Bennett's 2008 support of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, in which the government bailed out banks and other institutions that faltered during the sub-prime mortgage collapse.
"Let's see what [Bennett's] seniority got us last October: It got us billions of dollars in debt," Powers said. "It is not the role of the government to decide who wins and who loses."
Hatch acknowledged the bailout was controversial, but said it was needed to stave off a full-blown financial depression and panic on Wall Street.
Hatch also predicted the debate over health care would become a "major donnybrook." He said congressional Democrats only appear to be backing down from a public option for health insurance.
Hatch said Democrats plan to install a "trigger" that would create a government-run health insurance program if the private sector fails to meet certain goals.
"If the Republicans and [moderate] Democrats don't stand up, we are going to move toward a socialist system," Hatch said.
