SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – It’s understandable when you host a meeting featuring actor Matthew McConaughey – and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pops in as a surprise guest – that the mundane business of bipartisanship and saving democracy maybe gets lost in the shuffle.
But as Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, took the chairmanship gavel of the National Governors Association from Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox on Friday at the NGA’s summer meeting, the real star of the whole show was the American experiment in spreading democracy and freedom around the globe and beating back authoritarianism.
And the consequences of failing in that endeavor, an emotional Cox argued in his final speech as NGA chair, could be civil war (“it’s happened before”) and at the very least irreversible animus among neighbors, friends and family members. Polis promised to keep Cox’s “Disagree Better” initiative alive even as he launches his new “Let’s Get Ready” education program.
“We appreciate [McConaughey’s] dedication and your dedication to this work, as well as the presentation yesterday that showed the efficacy of the work,” Polis said to Cox. “It’s needed now in the national discussion more than ever before, and, of course, it’ll continue to live on, and we at NGA look forward to helping to facilitate the ongoing work of Disagree Better …”
Asked after the joint press conference with Cox about the Oscar-winning McConaughey’s role in fomenting bipartisanship, Polis praise the potential future candidate for political office.
“Matthew McConaughey has really dedicated a part of his time towards civil discourse, towards making sure that people can get along together regardless of their political opinions,” Polis said. “Like the rest of America, Hollywood also has people on the left, some brave ones on the right, but Matthew’s one that has tried to forge a path where we talk about what we have in common and have real dialogue across that chasm, and it’s more of what we need across America.”
Cox was pressed on what Utah gets out of its relationship with Ukraine, codified in a memorandum that laid out basic trade partnerships and business relationships but then went much further (he was also asked about Republican Freedom Caucus resistance to ongoing U.S. financial backing of Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s brutal invasion).
“There is still evil in this world, and that evil is on the march right now, and that evil feels emboldened, and it is up to good people everywhere,” Cox said. “This is what America does best. It’s what we did best in World War I and World War II. And I’m grateful that we are able to slow down and stop evil without risking the blood of our people. And so my hat’s off to the Ukrainian people who are standing up to that evil.”
Polis seconded that stance.
“I would just add that governors truly understand the strategic importance of supporting Ukraine and our allies in Europe, preventing future Russian aggression, as well as the moral imperative to defend another democracy against an authoritarian regime,” Polis said. “And I think it’s terrific that President Zelensky is taking this on the road directly to the American people here in Utah, in addition to, of course, sharing his thoughts with the U.N. and with leaders in Washington.”
The absolute security lockdown of the Grand America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake on Friday, especially during Zelensky’s brief speech, stood in stark contrast to the Secret Service failure to stop a lone gunman from attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump a day later in Pennsylvania.
Saturday’s shooting at a rally that cost the life of the gunman and at least one Trump supporter demonstrated that political violence is woven into the fabric of the American experience — enflamed by social media and an abundance of guns these day, but a terrible tradition that’s cost the lives of four presidents and very nearly several more.
Trump has pushed the boundaries of violent rhetoric since storming onto the political scene in 2015, and he’s repeatedly expressed his affinity for strongman dictators from Russia to North Korea. Cox, who has never voted for Trump and doesn’t support him at the top of the ticket in November, addressed what many consider the hopeless cause of bridging the political divide.
“There’s no question that we’re pushing a rock uphill right now, but that’s how change happens,” Cox said. “We have to do this work, and it is resonating everywhere we go. There is a hunger for this. There’s a desperation out there. 70% of Americans don’t like what’s happening, and neither party is listening to them. And so I’m so grateful to have people like Gov. Polis and others who are doing the work of bridge building.”
A Salt Lake City FOX News reporter asked Polis about one of the most divisive issues in America today, wondering if he could end the City of Denver policy of paying for bus tickets to Salt Lake for migrants arriving in Denver from the Mexican border.
Polis said he was notified of the issue by Cox and put him in touch with Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, but that it’s part of an overall effort to humanely get migrants to their ultimate destination, whether it’s Salt Lake City, California, Chicago or the East Coast.
“It’s important that we do two things,” Polis said. “One is, of course, secure the border and create a faster way where legitimate refugees can get status that allows them to work, and the second is, of course, to understand that human dignity of every individual and make sure that we’re able to get through this in as humane way as possible.”
Following the press conference, Polis addressed several other issues with individual reporters, first taking on President Joe Biden’s age and fitness for office in the wake of the first presidential debate and a recent press conference following a NATO conference where Zelensky spoke.
“Again, it’s not about a debate or news conference, it’s about protecting our democracy and protecting our freedoms and winning in November,” Polis said. “And I think the president needs to show what will change that will enable him to do that because if the election was held today, he likely wouldn’t win. They really need to look at how they can reinvent the campaign, look at messaging, look at strategy. Of course, it’s a legitimate discussion about the candidate, but how are we going to win to protect democracy?”
Polis and Cox both kicked off their press conference by acknowledging last weekend’s record heat in Salt Lake and across the West. Separately, Polis was asked how he can disagree better with Cox on climate change since Colorado is downwind from Utah and the two states have such radically different approaches on fossil fuel production and renewable energy.
“Certainly part of our argument about why we should have a waiver from the EPA ozone, non-attainment area is because much of the ozone in our air does drift in from other states,” Polis said, while arguing he cooperates with all 50 states on climate change. “And that’s a number of states. It’s not just …. it’s several states depending on the wind. So we don’t want to penalize Colorado consumers just because the wind is bringing in ozone from other states.”
He declined to comment on the conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court recently reversing longstanding environmental regulations and agreeing to take up Eagle County’s lawsuit that reversed federal approval for the controversial Uinta Basin Railway project in Utah that would dramatically increase the number of oil trains traveling through Colorado.
“I don’t have any tea leaves on that one, so we’ll see,” Polis said of the expected SCOTUS ruling this fall that could revive the project.
Finally, Polis previewed his new “Let’s Get Ready” education program:
“It’s called Let’s Get Ready and it’s about preparing students across our country for success in the future,” Polis said. “How do we really lean into measuring successful outcomes for students to make sure that what we’re doing in our schools aligns with good outcomes for individuals, meaning they can get good jobs, earn a living, and good outcomes for our economy and for the private sector — the workforce that powers the future, uh, and how can we evaluate that and do more of what works and change what isn’t working in education.”
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McConaughey video: https://youtu.be/VrryTGurNGY?si=TpN_k9J7BLQsHPbC
Zelenskyy video: https://youtu.be/y0XnBxyVqf8?si=PUOidljITWNXOmRK
