I guess birds of a feather do flock together. I'm referring to Donald Trump and Sen. Orrin Hatch.
Hatch spoke to University of Utah medical students in the fall of 1975 when he was running for the U.S. Senate against three-term incumbent Frank Moss. I was very interested to hear him speak, as Moss had defeated my grandfather Ernest L. Wilkinson for the Senate seat in 1964. I sat on the front row to hear him speak, and he said all the right things I wanted to hear as a first-year medical student.
He talked about the problems with Medicare and Social Security, but mostly about strict term limits for members of Congress. He was well known for saying, "What do you call a senator who's served for 18 years? You call him home."
I agreed and believed everything he said. I voted for him.
Forty-two years later I've come full circle in my opinion of Sen. Hatch. I guess the 18-year term limit turned into 42 years with no explanation.
In November 2017, he called Trump "one of the best presidents I've served under." This is about a president who is not capable of telling the truth about anything. Later, in Newsweek magazine, Trump went on to exaggerate that Hatch had called him "the greatest president ever."
I guess they are products of our political system. We need term limits and, most of all, politicians who can and will tell the truth, and put the citizens of the United States before their personal interests.
The rest of the world is closely watching, including our bewildered allies.
E. Leigh Wilkinson, Sandy