Guest opinion: Will election losses inspire Democrats to make liberalism liberal again? by Jared Whitley The once and future President Donald Trump earned a victory two weeks ago has been decisive on all fronts, a rebuke of the last four years of far-left policies. But the ongoing question after an election like this is how will the shellacked party react to its shellacking? For example, when voters handed Democrats won the 2006 midterms, all of us Republicans in Washington understood it was because of the Iraq War. President Bush even responded, to show he respected the will of the electorate, by immediately replacing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Some Democrats have been able to offer a mea culpa for the last four years, with some in the DNC going so far as to call the far-left âa freakshow.â Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) criticized his own party for abandoning the working class. Rep. Richie Torres (D-NY) called defunding the police an âabsurdity.â CNNâs Van Jones called the Democrats who support Hamas terrorists âidiots.â Now as someone who makes his livelihood from Republicans winning elections, I am perfectly fine with Democrats not learning the lessons from their disastrous foray into âhipster Marxism.â But as someone who wants the best possible outcomes for the country, I hope they can learn some lessons. This will get me in trouble if I ever run for office, but we need liberalism. Our government works best when we have conservatives conserving those institutions that work on behalf of the majority of people, and liberals defending the liberties (thatâs where we get the word) of those individuals where it might not. For example, conservatives champion law enforcement while liberals protect the rights of the accused. This constructive conflict is why our country and the world have been so prosperous the last 70 years. (Read More) News Releases Nominees announced for 4th District Juvenile Court vacancy The Fourth District Judicial Nominating Commission has selected nominees for a vacancy on the Fourth District Juvenile Court. The vacancy results from the retirement of Judge D. Scott Davis on March 1, 2025. The nominees for the vacancy are: Tyler Berg; Michael Howard; Dianna Odell; Ryan Petersen; and Joseph Stewart. Written comments can be submitted to the Fourth District Judicial Nominating Commission at judicialvacancies@utah.gov or Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, P.O. Box 142330, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-2330. The deadline for written comments is noon Dec. 1, 2024. (Read More) Romney, Sullivan introduce legislation to realign U.S. strategic investment to better compete with China U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) today introduced the Aligning Development and Competition Act of 2024, legislation that aims to reorient U.S. foreign development investments through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to better compete with China. DFC was created by the BUILD Act of 2018 with the dual mandate of advancing global development and U.S. foreign policy objectives through public and private investment. (Read More) Curtis introduces SCAM Platform Act to help Americans combat fraud with AI Representative John Curtis (R-UT) introduced the Spam Communications Assessment and Mitigation Platform (SCAM Platform) Act, legislation that would create an AI-powered platform under the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). This platform would allow Americans to upload texts, emails, and letters they suspect might be scam attempts. Using advanced AI, the portal would analyze submissions to determine whether they match known scams or exhibit signs of fraudulent activity. (Read More) House Natural Resources passes Mooreâs legislation to improve recreation access to federal waterways The House Natural Resources Committee passed Congressman Blake Mooreâs Modernizing Access to Our Public Waters (MAPWaters) Act by unanimous consent. This bipartisan piece of legislation will enhance access to the nationâs outdoor recreational opportunities by digitizing and standardizing mapping information, such as access points and permissible uses, of federal waters. Congressman Moore was joined by Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Russ Fulcher (R-ID), and Debbie Dingell (D-MI) in introducing this legislation. Senators Barrasso (R-WY) and King (D-ME) introduced companion legislation in the Senate. (Read More) Owensâ Mining Schools Act clears committee The House Natural Resources Committee passed the Mining Schools Act, introduced by Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee Chairman Burgess Owens (R-UT) and Congressman Jim Costa (D-CA). This legislation enhances and expands opportunities for mining and geological programs at U.S. colleges and universities, equipping students with the skills and training needed to meet the nationâs future energy demands. (Read More) | 