This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
When Gary Herbert assumed the governorship from Jon Huntsman Jr. in August 2009, we said that he was known to be a thoughtful, careful man who likes to listen to all sides and drill down into policy issues. We urged him to steer a moderate political course. In his year in the job, he has done that, for the most part, and he's earned our endorsement to continue in office for another two years.
By any objective measure, Herbert is a bona fide conservative on both financial and social issues. But in Utah, where the Republican-dominated Legislature is pulling further to the right every day, dancing happily with tea party enthusiasts, Herbert has emerged as a moderating force, a voice of reason. We hope he will play that role more strongly if he is re-elected, backed by an electoral mandate of his own in the top job.
Nevertheless, a governor must work with the Legislature, and Herbert has done that, too. He formulated his first budget proposal, the one for the current fiscal year that began July 1, just as the economy was showing signs of weak recovery from the Great Recession. In the face of further erosion of revenues, he promised to dip into the Rainy Day Fund, protect education as far as possible and make judicious cuts elsewhere in state government while avoiding any recovery-killing tax hikes. In the end, he accomplished most of that, though he allowed the Legislature's tobacco tax increase to pass into law without his signature.
In the political storm over immigration, he called for a summit to provide a civil forum, and he has urged the Legislature to retain in-state college tuition for children of undocumented immigrants who graduate from Utah high schools. He backed an immediate investigation that quickly exposed rogue state workers who anonymously published a list of 1,300 aliens allegedly in the country illegally. He wisely decided not to call a special session to make voluntary a state law that requires employers to verify the eligibility of employees to work in this country because he worried the session could take hasty, extremist decisions. He has warned about the risks of racial profiling and arrests without probable cause inherent in Arizona-style immigration enforcement legislation.
After lengthy deliberation, he correctly decided that Utah would administer the new high-risk insurance pool under the federal health reform law. He dismissed calls for the state to turn down federal stimulus money to keep teachers in their jobs.
Herbert took a stand to prevent further shipments of depleted uranium from coming to Utah for disposal until federal and state regulators can develop rules that take account of its peculiar long-term hazards.
The biggest disappointments of his young administration have been Herbert's refusal to part company with the climate-change deniers in his party and his opposition to caps on financial contributions to political campaigns, including his own. But we applaud his decisions not to sign the proposed agreement with Nevada to divide Snake Valley water and his move to protect a Native American archaeological site in Draper that otherwise could have become a FrontRunner station.
He has been too cautious in wielding his veto pen to strike down absurdly unconstitutional "message" legislation, such as that declaring eminent domain on the part of the state over federal lands, or that federal gun laws don't apply to firearms manufactured and sold exclusively within the state.
But he has argued rightly that Utah should not be the wholesale clearinghouse for anyone outside the state who wants a permit to carry a concealed firearm.
Herbert's opponent, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, is also worthy to hold the governor's office. He, too, is a fiscal conservative who resisted subsidizing the Real Salt Lake soccer stadium with public funds and turned back one property tax increase during the recession, though he reluctantly agreed to another. Like Herbert, he has trimmed budgets and sacrificed public jobs to financial reality. He has an impeccable environmental record, something that Herbert should emulate, particularly where Salt Lake Valley air quality is concerned. Corroon and running mate Sheryl Allen offer the refreshing alternative of a genuinely bipartisan ticket.
But Herbert has a leg up on experience in the job, and he can play a more constructive moderating role on Capitol Hill as a Republican than could Corroon as a Democrat. Herbert also has a moderate running mate in Lt. Gov. Greg Bell.
With a bit more seasoning, Herbert could emerge as a strong, consensus-building governor who represents all Utahns, recognizing that the state body politic is much more progressive than the Legislature. We believe he will. That's why we enthusiastically endorse him to continue as Utah's governor.