Anarchy is Recapture Canyon trespassers and Cliven Bundy, not marriage equality

Salt Lake City–Various news outlets have reported that Gov. Gary Herbert has called the choice by some states not to defend gay marriage bans as a step toward anarchy. The Alliance for a Better UTAH, which aims to bring balance, transparency and accountability to Utah politics, has released the following statement on Gov. Herbert’s position:

“Anarchy is an armed militia running roughshod over important ecological and cultural sites in southeastern Utah to protest America’s federal government. It is not state governors and attorneys general respecting the rule of law as arbitrated by courts of competent jurisdiction residing in their states. In fact, such respect is the very nature of our government as reflected by the Founding Fathers’ careful adoption of a system of checks and balances. Such an arrangement is by definition lawful and cannot be anarchic.

“Thousands of Utahns agree with us. In just 48 hours a petition started by Better UTAH to hold the Recapture Canyon protesters accountable has garnered nearly 1,400 signatures. That petition is addressed to US Attorney David Barlow and BLM Director Juan Palma. Clearly it should also be addressed to Gov. Herbert. If the Governor is so worried about steps toward anarchy, he should insist that armed violators of the law in our own San Juan County be held accountable, just as protestor Tim DeChristopher was before them.

“It is one thing for a state legislator or a grassroots political organization to use colorful speech, invoking images of anarchy, to make their point. It is quite another for a sitting governor – the state’s leading statesman – to engage in this same sort of rhetorical flamboyance. Just as the political process should be measured and balanced, so should our discourse about that process – starting with the Governor.”

For more information on the petition, visit: http://act.betterutah.org/sign/recapture_canyon/ 

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Contact:
Maryann Martindale
Executive Director, Alliance for a Better UTAH
801.557.1532 | maryann@betterutah.org

Isaac Holyoak
Communications Director, Alliance for a Better UTAH
801.664.9751 | isaac@betterutah.org

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