A Few Thoughts on
Values
You’ll hear me talk in terms of values a lot. This is for a few reasons–One, as the saying goes “Values unite us, while issues divide us”. You and I have more values in common than we have in opposition, no matter what social media algorithms or 24-hour news channels might have us believe. Two, ours is a relationship. If you elect me to be your representative, I will continue to make myself available to talk with you about how the work is going. Shared values give us a framework to talk about it.
Unalienable Rights
Our nation has a mission statement. It is that we are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights. The most prominent of these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. While our Creator endowed us with them, how to maximize these rights for all and how to strike the balance between them is up to us. It’s one of the most important functions of our politics. As the old saying goes, “Your right to swing your arm ends where the tip of my nose begins.” Liberty is critical. It should be maximized. But the Founders understood that some liberty will be infringed to protect others’ rights to life, health, and happiness. Go thou and govern likewise.
Compromise
I believe in compromise. It’s a fundamental part of any relationship. I believe in good governance and I want a government that works for everyone. Too often, people think of compromise as what you give up after you’ve fought your way to a standstill. Most of our leaders approach governing this way. But the best compromises are made from out front and not from behind. I’ve found that if I give some priority to what all parties want, and couple that with a clear vision of where we’re going, much better solutions are born.
Family
Families are the most important relationships we have in our lives. Parenting is hard and parents need all the support they can get. One of the most effective places that government can have a shot at helping to create a level playing field, is by making sure all children have adequate nutrition, education, and medical care. The government shouldn’t insert itself too much into family relationships, but helping lower-income families to afford the building blocks of healthy development is an investment in our community. It’s good for the kids and it saves us money in the long-term by giving those kids a better shot at becoming productive members of society.
Water & Air
When Utah was recently named the #1 State in the Union, there were only two areas that held us back. Our worst grade was in Natural Environment, where we were 46th in the nation. Pretty shocking for a state that won the outdoors lottery. Working to clean up our pollution problem, become more water-wise, and save the Great Salt Lake have to be priorities and common values. The future of our community depends on it.