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February 15, 2005
Behind the Headlines: A Healthy Relationship with the Governor
“Huntsman Challenged.” “Huntsman, lawmakers rocking boat.” After reading headlines like that in the newspapers, you might be thinking the Legislature has a dysfunctional relationship with the Governor. And you might even be feeling frustrated with us because of it. Well let me reassure you – this is simply not true. The Legislature and the Governor have a very healthy and very open working relationship.
Since the first week of the session both Senate and House leadership have met with the Governor. The Speaker and the President also frequently meet privately with the Governor. Even though we don’t agree on every issue that doesn’t mean we aren’t working together. Just last week I had the opportunity to meet with Governor Huntsman to discuss some of his priorities and to help him understand issues that are important to me. I feel fortunate to be able to call the Governor and have the type of relationship that will allow us to discuss issues.
Maybe it is because it has been so long since we had a new Governor elected that so many are worried about the way the Governor is being treated. I can think of dozens of times when we didn’t agree with Governor Leavitt but we still worked through the issues and finished with balanced budgets. There is supposed to be some difference between the executive branch and the legislative branch. For some reason, this year the perception is that if we don’t agree on one issue, then nobody is getting along on any issues.
I for one am grateful for the openness of Governor Huntsman. He has priorities but he is willing to take suggestions from the legislature in an effort to make his priorities better. We understand that as the legislative branch we can’t be successful without him. At the same time, he can’t be successful without us.
Jeff Alexander
Posted by majority at February 15, 2005 04:29 PM
Comments
I'm glad to hear that our government is working the way it should be, press headlines be damned. I can't speak for everyone, though, when I say that I don't equate "rocking the boat" with belligerence or inappropriate stubbornness.
I'm not sure where you're picking up the "vibe" that we the people out there want the Legislature to just make nice with the Governor, with everybody toeing the party line. In fact I think there's a lot of the opposite sentiment-- people who want a Legislature and Governor that don't take one monolithic stand even though they do belong to the same party.
Posted by: Wacky Hermit at February 18, 2005 07:15 AM