Even though Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ senate seat fell
into Democratic hands, Luther Strange’s loss (and Majority Leader McConnell’s)
loss forced the Republican US Senate majority to start acting like one,
especially since they are two senate seats away from becoming the minority
again. Granted, Republicans have to defend 8 seats in 2018, while the Democrats
and their liberal Independent colleagues must defend 25. Yet anything can
happen, and anything can go wrong for Republican leaders, who have not shaken
their frustrating penchant for snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory.
At least Majority Leader McConnell is starting to enjoy
President Trump’s tweets and going along (somewhat) with the will of the not-so
silent conservative majority. If he enjoins Democrats’ efforts to stop Trump’s
agenda any further and puts the gas on enacting repeal of Obamacare and
construction of the border wall, then maybe McConnell can keep his Majority
Leader job.
It’s good that some of McConnell’s closest establishment
allies have announced retirement (Flake, Corker). Stronger, more experienced
conservative candidates should be able to avoid the Roy Moore fate which
upended the Alabama special election. There has been some gossip that another
US Senator will be seeking the exit, standing down from re-election: Orrin Hatch.
His tenure has now exceeded 40 years. He is currently the
longest-serving Republican US Senator in United States’ history. There has been good in that tenure. As
Chairman of the US Senate Judiciary Committee, he championed the trial against
President Bill Clinton in 1999, reminding liberal pundits that the fight for
justice was part of the entire Civil Rights Movement, even when politicos
mocked the whole process. Looking back 20 years later, it’s good that some elected
officials took President Clinton’s sexual perversion and criminal dishonesty
seriously. The rampage of sexual assaults, misconduct, and legal settlements
spilling out of Washington DC is horrific—and a result of the American
political culture’s lax attitude toward infidelity and sexual promiscuity among
our elected officials.
Of course, Hatch’s long-time tenure in the Upper Chamber has
earned detractors. As many as three-quarters of Utah voters want him to retire.
Has he been in Washington DC too long? Regardless of one’s answer, term limits
are not the answer to the lingering legislators who hold onto power (just look
at the mess that is California).
Lately, Hatch has been changing his tune and has made
glowing statements about President Trump: “You
are one heckuva leader”, Hatch stated to President Trump after the historic
tax reform bill passed and was signed into law. He also commented, and to MSNBC
of all news media companies, “Donald
Trump is one of the best I’ve served under. He’s not afraid to make
decisions. He’s not afraid to take on the big mouths around here.” To Hatch’s
credit, he continued backing then-candidate Trump during the “Graber-gate”
audio recording released in October 2016. Even when the polling and final voting
results showed President Trump earning only 44% of Utahns’ vote on Election Day,
Hatch made the right call and stood with Trump.
These are welcome remarks from Hatch in connection with
President Trump, and I could not agree more with Hatch’s assessment. The
President’s decision to retract the massive federal government land-grab by
President Obama is another policy victory which Hatch praised.
Is Hatch changing his tune about the President and his style
of politics for purely political reasons? It seems strange at first glance,
since reports indicated that the US Senate Pro Tem was going to retire and hand
off the reins to former Governor and Presidential candidate Mitt Romney. That
move would have soured the national grassroots. US Senator Mike Lee knocked out
fellow Republican incumbent Robert Bennett because of his un-conservative
wavering on fiscal discipline and healthcare reform. Romney would not have
survived Utah’s tumultuous primaries next year.
It looks as though Hatch is going to run again—and win.
Frankly, I have no problem with that … at this point. The only issue I have
with Hatch is immigration. He supported the 2013 Obamacare of Immigration
“reform” bills. He has also listed himself as a co-sponsor for US Senators Thom
Tillis and James Lankford’s SUCCEED Act. We don’t need legislation for
illegals. We need to put Americans first. The tax reform package will do more
of that, and that’s great. Truly, the work on this long-waiting and much-needed
reform could not have happened without Hatch’s help. As for immigration, five
Republican US Senators met with President Trump in the White House to discuss
the immigration fights to come next year, Hatch was not one of them. That’s
another good sign to let Hatch stay.
It also helps that one of Utah’s largest newspapers slammed
Hatch, all while calling him “Utahn
of the Year.” Why did the Salt Lake
Tribune give him this back-handed compliment? His success with tax reform
and his leadership on restoring the state’s ownership of key lands from federal
hands. The editorial also claims another election bid would be a “theft from
the electorate.” Really?
If Hatch is showing some conservative credentials to ease
his re-election bid--only to go back to middling Establishment politicking—then
he needs to go. But if this US Senator goes along with the MAGA program, he
should stay. That outcome would ensure a strong Presidential ally in the upper
chamber while freeing up GOP campaign dollars for targeted Democratic seats
next year. There’s still time until the Utah primary, and anything can change.
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