After giving Vice President Dick Cheney a rousing welcome, electing Geneva Steel boss Joe Cannon as their new chairman and carefully accommodating two dozen gun-toting delegates, state Republican Party convention attendees really shook things up Saturday:
Come 2002, delegates decided, only card-carrying Republicans will vote in a GOP primary election.
The move will change Utah's voting landscape. Republican leaders have long talked about the issue, but, in a revision of the state party's constitution, the 1,983 delegates in Sandy's South Towne Expo Center voted to close their primary elections, which for 30 years have been open to any and all voters.
The decision raised new controversy and some concern, but the rest of the convention went smoothly.
Cheney was warmly received — as were other state GOP officeholders who accompanied him to the podium.
In a 20-minute speech, the vice president was interrupted by cheers dozens of times as he detailed accomplishments of President Bush's first months in office.
Bush, he said, has already kept a number of campaign promises, including cutting taxes, limiting government growth, reforming education, moving to rebuild the armed forces and developing a federal energy policy. A special Social Security commission will solve the retirement fund's problems. "The days of using Social Security as a political weapon are over," said Cheney.
"More than anything else," Cheney said of Bush, "he has proven that one good man can change the tone in Washington. Quietly and without pretense he has restored honor and dignity to the White House."
A heated pre-convention debate involving gun rights advocates, the Secret Service and state party officials also ended quietly.
Perhaps worrying that some delegates with concealed weapons permits wouldn't welcome Cheney because they were told guns weren't welcome in the convention hall, state party officials worked to get the lockboxes for them — and passed out pro-Cheney signs just before the vice president's speech.
State law officials manning lockboxes set up in the parking lot said 24 people deposited legally permitted concealed weapons — all handguns — in the lockers, thus not causing any problems for the Secret Service who screened all people with metal detectors for Cheney's visit. About half a dozen people protested outside the convention hall, security officials said, some carrying signs about protecting gun rights, others opposing nuclear waste storage in Utah.
As it turned out, the hot topic of the day turned out instead to be voting in primaries.
In the open primaries of the past three decades, any Utah voter would go to the polls on primary day, pick up a ballot that has all party candidates listed and then choose whether to vote — in secret — for Republicans, Democrats or some minor party candidates. Not only could no one criticize who you voted for, they didn't know which party primary you voted in.
That no longer will be the case.
When citizens go to primary polling places in June 2002, they can only chose the Republican ballot if they are already registered as Republicans or, if they are officially unaffiliated and aren't registered in any party, they can register right then as a Republican with the election judge and pick up a GOP ballot, outgoing party chairman Rob Bishop explained after the seven-hour convention ended.
Come 2004, however, unaffiliated voters — sometimes called political independents — won't even have the opportunity to register as a Republican at the polls on primary election day. If they haven't been a registered Republican for some time with their county clerk, they will be denied a GOP ballot, Bishop said. Since the Utah Democratic Party hasn't closed its primaries, non-Republicans could vote in a Democratic primary, if there is one.
"I worry about what they (the state GOP delegates) did today," Bishop said. "I've advocated for some time that we need to close our primaries to party members only. But we have to educate people so they see the reason for it. It takes time."
Bishop fears a backlash against GOP candidates in the November general elections if citizens are denied an opportunity to vote for them in a June primary.
Closing its primary elections was not recommended by state GOP officials. In fact, the conservative delegates loudly voted down party leaders' suggested changes to the state GOP constitution, which dealt with a variety of different issues.
Instead, in constitutional amendments recommended by delegates themselves, they voted to close their primaries starting in 2002.
"It's time to get the Democrats out of (voting) in our primaries," shouted delegate Mike Taylor to loud cheers from the floor. "It's time to close our primaries."
Delegate Lloyd Miller argued against the move. He said every partisan elected official in his area is a Republican, from county commissioner to legislator. "If you don't vote in the Republican primary, you don't vote" in an election that matters, he said. Closing the primaries basically disenfranchises registered Democrats and independents.
But the more conservative delegates were unsympathetic.
Only Republicans should pick GOP candidates, said more than two-thirds of the delegates, the super-majority needed to change the state party constitution.
Another touchy topic in Utah — embryonic stem cell research — was raised, but not by Cheney, who didn't mention the subject while listing Bush victories.
As the convention wore into its sixth hour, delegates debated a resolution condemning any embryonic stem cell research. One man in favor of such research said the resolution "could undermine" Bush's recent decision to provide federal funds for research on a limited basis.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, briefly addressed the delegates, but only to present Bishop with a gift of appreciation for two terms as chairman. Hatch didn't speak about stem cells, either. Hatch favors such research.
But a number of delegates strongly condemned the research, saying it was killing human life.
And the resolution passed resoundingly.
Delegates also adopted a resolution opposing hate crime legislation. James Evans, who is black and dropped out of the party chairmanship race last week, said no special distinctions should be made on crime enforcement. "Prosecute the crime, not the motivation for the crime," Evans said.
Another battle was fought over giving tax credits to Utah parents who send their children to private schools. After two resolutions supporting tax credits and school choice passed, a number of delegates who said they either were teachers or supported public school teachers left the meeting.
But overall, the tone of the convention was upbeat and friendly. As the convention drew to a close — and Cannon was named the winner — a strange site was seen: Cannon's younger brother, U.S. Rep. Chris Cannon, who had bitter fights with former Rep. Merrill Cook over the years, hugged Cook at the back of the hall as they exchanged greetings.
Besides Joe Cannon, other officers elected were Frank Guliuzza, vice chairman; Miriam Harmer, secretary; and Mike McCauley, treasurer.
Trying to set the tone early, Bishop opened the convention at 10 a.m. quoting "from one of my church leaders" to always be civil and kind in public discourse. Joking privately later, Bishop said: "It was pretty good of me to quote (LDS Church) President Gordon B. Hinckley at the start, huh?"
While Hatch and Gov. Mike Leavitt were booed and jeered at the 2000 GOP convention, only cheers met the men Saturday when they accompanied Cheney to the stage this time around.
E-mail: bbjr@desnews.com