Evan McMullin booed right after contacting Sen. Mike Lee a traitor at discussion

Brady Knox

October 17, 10:10 PM October 17, 10:10 PM

Senate hopeful Evan McMullin faced rapturous booing from the discussion group in Utah on Monday right after contacting incumbent Sen. Mike Lee (R) a traitor to the Constitution.

The breathtaking assertion took place as McMullin, an unbiased with the endorsement of Utah's Democratic Bash, decried Lee's skepticism towards and conduct all over certifying the success of the 2020 presidential election, heading so significantly as to get in touch with it the finest betrayal of the Structure in U.S. history. Following the unfavorable reaction from the crowd, Lee accused McMullin of lying and demanded that he apologize.

"I believe you understood how essential [the Electoral College] was when you sought to urge the White Residence, that had misplaced an election, to discover fake electors to overturn the will of the people today. Sen. Lee, that was the most egregious betrayal of our nation's structure, in its background, by a U.S. senator, I feel, and it will be your legacy," McMullin said, at which level the group booed until eventually silenced by the moderator.

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"Sen. Lee, you advised spurious so-referred to as authorized attempts to mislead tens of millions of Us citizens that the election had been stolen, and congratulations, you succeeded. As recently as this calendar year ... you're continue to casting doubt on the legitimacy of the election. You happen to be performing a large disservice to this state, Sen. Lee. You have betrayed your oath to the Constitution with this," he ongoing.

Lee gave a heated reaction to the accusation just before heading on to demonstrate his actions.

"Evan, that is not true. You know which is not true. You, sir, you owe me an apology," Lee responded to applause from the viewers.

"In the days leading up to Jan. 6, when the votes ended up going to be opened and counted, I had a position to do. There were being rumors circulating, suggesting that some states have been contemplating switching out their slates of electors. If that had been true, I would require to know about it," he spelled out. "I did investigation on that. I designed telephone phone calls to figure out no matter whether the rumors have been genuine. The rumors were wrong. On that basis, I voted to certify the success of the election."

The Utah election is approximated to be shut. A new poll from Deseret News and the Hinckley Institute of Politics discovered that 41% of respondents are arranging to vote for Lee, while 37% program to vote for McMullin, although the margin of error would make the race a toss-up. Twelve per cent of respondents claimed they are currently unsure, additional muddying predictions.

“The Utah Senate race will be won on the frontlines by the candidate who can seize the at any time-important foundation of reasonable voters,” Jason Perry, director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the College of Utah, told Deseret News. “Conservatives and liberals have mainly produced up their minds, now we’re likely to see how the silent, reasonable greater part exerts their ability. That is the ground both equally candidates want.”

Local issues like Great Salt Lake erosion in Utah become potent campaign cudgels

Cami Mondeaux

October 17, 03:30 AM October 17, 03:30 AM

The pitched battle for a Senate majority is being fought, in part, along the Great Salt Lake's miles of flat expanses in northern Utah.

The iconic ultra-salty lake, larger in square mileage than the state of Rhode Island, is rapidly drying. Its water is being diverted to nearby communities in Utah, one of the nation's fastest-growing states. The Great Salt Lake's shrinkage has now become a hot topic in a Senate battle that wasn't on many people's political radar screens earlier in the 2022 cycle: the race between Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee and independent candidate Evan McMullin.

To be sure, Lee is a favorite to win reelection. Lee is nearing 12 years in the Senate, where he has become a national spokesman for conservative causes. Utah is one of America's most Republican states, regularly giving GOP presidential nominees some of their best results.

Polling also shows Lee leading. A Sept. 13-15 OnMessage Inc. poll for the Senate Republicans' campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, put Lee at 51% and McMullin way back with 34%. And a Lighthouse Research & Development poll conducted a few days later for the Utah Debate Commission showed a somewhat close race, with Lee leading McMullin 48%-37%.

But supporters of McMullin, a former undercover CIA officer and chief policy director for House Republicans before growing disaffected with the GOP in 2016, when the party nominated Donald Trump for president, note the results of a Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll. The survey, conducted from Sept. 3 to Sept. 21, gave Lee a lead over McMullin of only 36% to 34%. Another 16% said they didn't know who they would vote for, while 13% would mark the ballot, which includes two third-party candidates in addition to Lee and McMullin, for somebody else.

The McMullin campaign can point to a mid-July Deseret News/Hinckley Institute poll showing environmental protection legislation has emerged as one of the top five issues facing Utah voters. It's easy to see why, even in one of the nation's most Republican states. If the Great Salt Lake continues to shrink and shrivel, the effects on the state’s environment, wildlife, and economy would be catastrophic, according to local experts.

The erosion of the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere reflects the importance of local issues in a high-stakes battle for Senate control. The chamber has been split 50-50 since Jan. 20, 2021, and Democrats hold the majority thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris's tiebreaking vote.

Both Lee and McMullin are well known in Utah. In 2016, McMullin ran for president as an independent, appearing on the ballot in 11 states, receiving a bit over 732,000 votes (0.53%). But McMullin in Utah nabbed 21.54% of the 2016 presidential vote (Trump, however, won the state with 45.54%, to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's 27.46%).

Running for Senate this year, McMullin is pursuing a nonpartisan campaign, pledging he won't caucus with either party if he makes it to the Senate. McMullin got a serious boost in April when Utah Democrats decided not to put forward their own Senate nominee and instead combine forces with his candidacy.

On the campaign trail, McMullin has talked up the need for mitigation efforts around the rapidly shrinking Great Salt Lake, where the salinity of the water averages about 12%, making it much saltier than the ocean. Lee, in contrast, has focused, among other issues, on his high-profile roles in helping to get confirmed former President Donald Trump's three Supreme Court justices. And Lee wrote a book released in June Saving Nine, arguing against expanding the size of the Supreme Court, as some liberal Democrats argue.

But local issues have played outsize roles in state races in recent years, sometimes yielding surprising electoral results. In short, voters often are most interested in topics that affect them directly. In the 2021 Virginia governor's race, Republican Glenn Youngkin, a wealthy former private equity executive and first-time candidate, emphasized education extensively on the campaign trail. That ended up being a deciding factor with many voters, giving Youngkin a win over Democratic rival Terry McAuliffe, a former governor who sought a comeback.

Limited water options

Salt Lake City and its suburbs are among the nation's fastest-growing regions, with the population surpassing 1.2 million residents in 2021. But with rapid population growth comes a range of environmental problems. Water that is typically diverted from rivers and snowfall into the Great Salt Lake is being sent elsewhere, causing the lake to reach its lowest water levels on record.

The lake's shrinking water levels, which threaten the state’s surrounding ecosystem, air quality, and economic growth, have prompted state legislators and local officials to begin allocating federal dollars toward preserving it. But local biologists are also seeking help from federal lawmakers to boost their efforts.

The lake has already shrunk by more than 65% over the last three decades, taking up less than 1,000 square miles, compared to the 3,300 it covered in the late 1980s, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. As the water levels continue to shrink, the lake’s salinity will only rise — threatening the local ecosystem.

Because the Great Salt Lake is a terminal lake, meaning it only retains water that flows into it without outflowing to other bodies of water, it relies on a consistent inflow to maintain its water levels. This has historically been done by melting snowfall in the Utah mountains that is diverted to the lake via small streams and rivers.

However, as the state has experienced a surge in population growth, more and more of this water has been diverted to other sources, such as farms, residential areas, and businesses. This process, combined with climate change, has greatly reduced water levels in the lake.

“We're taking too much water too early in the process of trickling downstream, and so now we have the pressures of climate change, where we're seeing these extremely high temperatures and we're getting more precipitation in the form of rain instead of snow,” Bonnie Baxter, a biology professor at Westminster College in Utah, told the Washington Examiner. "This is on top of a system where we've diverted so much of the water and the aquifers are depleted so we don't get a rebound effect. … In fact, if we get a good water year, what happens is the reservoirs upstream fill up and the water never makes it down to the lake.”

As water continues to shrink, that salinity could reach 17% by the end of the summer and threaten the algae in the water. The algae is a crucial food source for brine shrimp that live in the lake, which in turn are crucial food sources for the millions of migratory birds that travel through the area each year.

But the shrinking water levels pose an even greater threat to the surrounding population: As the lake recedes, more dust that contains harmful contaminants such as arsenic and copper (some of which have settled in the lake due to nearby mining) become airborne.

“That dust problem is a potential catastrophic crisis,” Baxter said. “We get particulate matter and also heavy metals blown into the air, so it's an air quality problem. As the lake shrinks, more of that basin is exposed, and some of that lake bed will become airborne.”

State lawmakers eye shrinking water levels

In theory, fixing the shrinking levels is simple: Divert water back to the lake. This, however, is easier said than done.

Utah legislators have sought to address the shrinking Great Salt Lake because of the potential air quality threats it poses to nearby residents, as well as the state’s economy.

During Utah's legislative session earlier this year, lawmakers passed a bill that would divert funds to “prepare and maintain a comprehensive plan” for the lake that would develop strategies to “deal with a fluctuating lake level” and encourage nearby development to preserve its water levels. Lawmakers also established a Great Salt Lake Watershed Enhancement Program that aims to increase water flow into the lake.

Utah’s members of Congress, all Republicans, have also pushed efforts to bring federal help to the lake. Sen. Mitt Romney and Reps. Chris Stewart, Burgess Owens, and John Curtis introduced legislation that would authorize $10 million for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to “monitor and assess the water availability and conditions” of the Great Salt Lake. Lee also supported the legislation.

Utah Senate candidates talk up lake shrinkage

McMullin has long pointed to environmental issues in Utah since launching his election bid in October.

While applauding efforts already being spearheaded by local legislators and Congress, McMullin said he would continue working on efforts to preserve the lake. This would include strengthening economic development in rural areas, investing in low-emissions innovation, and developing water conservation practices, among other things.

“There are already some wise steps being taken to address the shrinking lake — and we will all need to be aggressive to do our part,” McMullin told the Washington Examiner. "Utah is one of the most stunning places on Earth. We are fortunate to call it home, and tens of millions of others visit from around the world every year. We have a responsibility to be stewards of this beautiful place that powers our economy."

McMullin said environmental issues are just one area where that attitude can help, he said, because it’s “an issue where there is common ground.”

“No one wants to see the lake levels receding to record-low levels and or our air quality further damaged by exposed shores and salt flats,” McMullin said. “This Senate race is about replacing divisive and ineffective senators like Mike Lee, changing the broken politics of Washington, and coming together to solve problems. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Democrat, Republican, or independent — the health and future of the Great Salt Lake affects all of us, and we have to be willing to work together to address it.”

Lee's Senate office and reelection campaigns did not respond to questions from the Washington Examiner about Great Salt Lake erosion mitigation efforts.

GOP senator would not help gun violence reduction invoice right until he sees textual content

Max Thornberry

June 19, 03:07 PM June 19, 03:07 PM

A person Republican stated he thinks most goods in a proposed gun violence reduction bill are “unobjectionable,” but he will not say wherever he stands until finally there is text to discuss about.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) informed Shannon Bream on Sunday that he’s amazed there has not been any really hard documentation to arrive out of the discussions to address gun violence. A 7 days just after 20 Democrats and Republicans claimed they experienced a framework to tackle gun violence, lawmakers even now never have any published proposal, Lee said.

“The concern that we have right here is that we do not have a monthly bill,” Lee explained. “I individually refuse to point out regardless of whether I — or how I will vote on a monthly bill till right after I have noticed the textual content, simply because there are a whole lot of factors that can go completely wrong in laws.”

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The group of 20 senators announced they experienced an agreement on a monthly bill that would involve measures to fund psychological health and fitness companies, improve track record checks for gun potential buyers, maximize school assets, and employ red flag rules. Lee claimed those tips and other people reviewed by the bipartisan team seem high-quality, but there is not a obvious definition about what some of these proposals entail devoid of a published invoice.

“Now, I know you will find some bill text that's almost certainly been penned,” Lee reported. “But on the most contentious, controversial, potentially impactful provisions, there is no language. With no that language, you can’t ascertain whether or not it’s Ok.”

Going forward without having possessing a text to overview would be harmful, Lee reported.

“The essential thing below is, you have to be cautious each time a little something like this takes place that we not legislate below the warmth of the minute, under wonderful emotion, devoid of searching at the text and figuring out what we're accomplishing,” Lee explained. “We have to have to be very careful that we not punish law-abiding Us citizens for the wrongs carried out by the criminally minded and the crazy.”

Preliminary polling on alternatives proposed by the bipartisan team implies individuals are supportive of the proposed actions. Bream reeled off some of the Fox polling to Lee, mentioning that a lot more than 80% of voters approve of improved background checks, changing the legal age for purchasing an AR-style semiautomatic weapon from 18 to 21, and applying purple flag rules.

Even so, while poll respondents may well be supportive, there is nevertheless key opposition from some Republicans.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), the lead Republican in the bipartisan negotiations, felt the wrath of his constituents final week for his job in the discussions. When he appeared at a Texas Republican Bash conference on Friday, he was greeted by boos.

Some people today chanted, “No red flags,” and, “Don’t consider our guns,” according to some experiences.

Whilst Lee is hesitant to line up powering the bipartisan group, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) reported last 7 days that he supports the bipartisan framework. Having said that, McConnell’s backing is contingent on the bill’s textual content lining up with the bipartisan group’s proposals.

“If the legislation ends up reflecting what the framework suggests,” McConnell explained, “I’ll be supporting it.”