There was a time not long ago when candidates for the presidency of the United States promised that, if elected, they would work to unite the country. In the current era of hyperpoliticization, the two candidates for the country’s highest office seem to offer only further division. This is unfortunate, but not inevitable or immutable. We believe Utah offers a model for a better path forward.
What is often referred to as the “Utah Trail” is based on a spirit of cooperation and collaboration. This approach is not unique to Utah, but it certainly sets our state apart and makes it special. It is not a new phenomenon, as the settlement of Utah created a distinct culture based on a combination of rugged Western individualism and a strong sense of community building born of the need to survive in the high mountain wilderness.
This spirit is not just part of our past; It informs our present and guides our future. When we consider the greatest risk to the continuation of Utah’s current era of prosperity, we cannot help but worry about losing what makes our state strong: the principles of individual liberty, free enterprise, fiscal responsibility, the rule of law, and moral leadership. These are the principles on which our organization, RR PAC, is built, with the mission of supporting local and state candidates who defend these same values.
Our members are community and business leaders, including our three founders, Governor Gary Herbert, House Speaker Derek Miller and former White House staffer Lew Cramer. Our members include public sector leaders such as Becky Edwards, Rich McKeown and Natalie Gochnour. We represent private enterprise with business leaders such as Mel Lavitt, Ally Isom and our current president, Charlie Freedman. We come from different backgrounds and offer diverse perspectives, with a common cause to support the choice of pragmatic problem solvers.
We believe in the big tent advocated by President Ronald Reagan. The best way to resolve our current political divide is to follow Reagan’s sound advice that “the person who agrees with you 80% of the time is a friend and ally, not 20% of the time a traitor.” Our state and our country need more people who think and act this way.
That is why we endorse and support a slate of candidates in the upcoming legislative elections who embrace and extol the virtues embodied by our fortieth president. Those candidates include Daniela Harding, Mike Bird, Chad Westover, Todd Weiler, Emily Lockhart, Ray Ward, David Parke, Scott Cuthbertson, Wayne Harper and Don Ipson.
Reagan believed in America as the “City on a Hill.” That flame still burns brightly in Utah, and with the right state and local leaders, Utah will set an example for other states to follow and help rekindle the light across our beloved country.
Charlie Freedman is the president of RR PAC, also referred to as the “Reagan Roundtable.”
Keynote USA
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