This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Regarding the Jan. 8 forum letter by Ben Oldham ("Not democratic), and his disdain for the presidential authority to designate certain lands as monuments, thus the Bears Ears area (not to mention the Grand Staircase-Escalante, and any other lands that Democratic presidents set aside as monuments). You forget one thing, just as those who represent us do: Those lands are federal (not state) lands, and are controlled by said federal authority. Which means, we all should have a say in the matter, not just our representatives, or just the governor, or even you.
That land was set aside because your representatives could not do their job, and come to some sort of compromise. So that Democratic president you think overstepped his boundaries by designating these lands a monument was doing his job.
Or do you, along with our representatives, not know that the all presidents of the United States have the authority under the Antiquities Act to set lands aside as monuments. So, if just you want to come out and say you don't like Democratic presidents, just say so. We Democrats won't tweet bad words about you.
Besides, I don't like a President-elect Donald Trump tweeting national policy before he's even taken office. You know, Ben Oldham, we have one president at a time, and your president hasn't taken office yet.
Charles Glaser
West Valley City