The Constitution Party of Utah recently joined with Ben McClintock’s Defending Utah, Robyn Openshaw’s Take Action for Freedom, 30 other Utah civic organizations, and some 4,000 individual Utahns in declaring the Governor’s “State of Emergency” ended. The Constitution Party affiliates of Cache and Morgan Counties also joined themselves in their separate County capacities to the list of the Declaration’s official sponsors. 

This DECLARATION TO UTAH PUBLIC OFFICIALS - Termination of State of Emergency and Emergency Powers by the People of Utah put on a human and very public face on 12 September in Salt Lake City. Culminating over two weeks of daily eight-hour mothers’ protests in front of the Governor’s Mansion, some 1500 Utahns — including representatives from Take Action for Freedom, Defending Utah, the Constitution Party of Utah (including the two distinct County delegations), and some 30 Utah civic organizations¹ — marched on that date from the State Education Department building at 250 East 500 South to the Governor’s Mansion to read the Declaration publicly, unite across diverse interests, and remind the Governor, the State Legislature, and all civil officers of the State of Utah that they are not principals, but agents of principals — the citizens of this State —, that they may lawfully exercise not limitless powers for unlimited ends, but only prescribed and carefully limited powers for the limited end of forcibly protecting the life, liberty, and property of the citizens of this State, and that they hold their several offices by our collective sufferance on the lawful condition of their individually sworn oaths to “support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Utah.”²

Add your own signature to the Declaration here:

Highlights of the 12 September March on the Governor’s Mansion were the public reading of the Declaration by a representative of Defending Utah, Tatia Nelson’s leading of the marchers in three verses of our National Anthem, and Michelle Stone’s emotional account of the recent nightmare of the death of her newborn under “lockdown” conditions.

The Declaration emphasizes both the usurpation and the tyranny of the Governor’s recently issued edicts. It points out that the Constitution of the State of Utah clearly defines and distinguishes between legislative, executive, and judicial powers and specifically forbids public servants clothed with one type of government power from usurping the exercise of powers granted to another branch of government, while also highlighting that many of the particular legislative powers that the Governor has usurped are themselves either not granted to, or specically witheld from, the State Legislature by the Utah or United States Constitution, respectively.

The Constitution Party of Cache County brought two 8-foot banners to the March, which deserve special mention. March organizers had them carried at the head of the column, each carried by two people marching abreast. The first simply cites verbatim Governor Herbert’s most recent swearing of the oath required by the Constitution of the State of Utah as he entered his current term of office on 4 January 2017³. At one point during the event, March organizers stretched this particular banner across the steps in front of the Governor’s Mansion, where it served as a backdrop for several speakers. The second banner cites John Locke’s famous definitions of Usurpation and Tyranny, respectively, and congratulates Governor Herbert on his currently “checking both boxes.”⁴

Your correspondent has long regretted the unhappy practice into which we Americans have fallen in recent decades of hiring someone to sing our National Anthem for us at public events, rather than uniting in singing it together. Tatia Nelson, who commands a beautiful soprano voice, cast aside this unfortunate custom of civic indifference and invited all in attendance to sing our National Anthem together. True, she did introduce us all to a “fifth verse,”⁵ which most had probably never heard. But she inspired all 1500 people to sing verses 1 and 4 together. View the singing of the National Anthem here. The banner inscribed with Governor Herbert’s oath is clearly visible at several places, including at time hacks 0:25 and 0:45.

Michelle Stone, a mother of 12 from Highland, Utah, deeply moved all in attendance with her account of the recent birth, then wrenching death, of her youngest child. “The two most sacred events in human life, said Mrs. Stone, “are when it begins and when it ends. I know from experience that we have sacrificed both on the false alter of COVID.” Mrs. Stone described in difficult detail how her family’s supreme trial of welcoming, then losing, a precious child, was rendered Kafkaesque by the probably well-meaning, but unthinking and unlawful, impositions of medical and other personnel, who forcibly intervened to prevent Stone and her husband, first, from making together the trying medical decisions that parents must make in desperation to save the life of their child and, finally, from sharing together the intimacy of family love as that baby drew her last mortal breath. View Mrs. Stone’s account here.

Robyn Openshaw, a principal organizer of both the two weeks of mothers’ marches and the 12 September March on the Governor’s Mansion, announced the encouraging news that several Utah State legislators and other public servants had added their signatures to the Declaration. She rightly reminded us, however, that the Rule of Law and oaths ultimately mean little to most public servants, while the one thing that does move nearly every public servant is the approval or disapproval of a large number of his or her constituents. She therefore urged all the participating marchers to print out copies of the Declaration, then present or mail them to as many of our Utah public servants as possible, announcing that we will place their responses on public record as either having “Signed the Declaration,” Declined to sign the Declaration,” or “Refused to respond to his constituents,” then disseminate this public record widely on social media. Print out your own copy of the Declaration here, distribute it to your local public servants, and hold their feet to the fire.

The courteous assistance of the Salt Lake City Police force should not go unnoticed. Salt Lake’s finest invited marchers to leave sidewalks for the open streets and efficiently cleared intersections as marchers proceeded up the blocks toward the Governor’s Mansion. Many marchers expressed frequent thanks to the officers for the increase in order and safety afforded by this service. 

Media organizations present at the 12 September March on the Governor’s Mansion included KUTV and Mother Jones magazine. Jacob IsBell, one of the principal organizers of the March, frankly acknowledged to all marchers the very real challenge posed by the propaganda to be expected from Establishment media presumptively hostile to such wholesome civic actions as this march was. He reminded the assembled marchers that they could likely expect from the media either silence or a carefully contrived misrepresentation to the viewing and reading public of the nature, purpose, content, and tenor of the event, as well as possible slander of those in attendance. In frankly acknowledging this challenge, Mr. IsBell refused to permit marchers to accept it as grounds for discouragement. He twice addressed the gathered crowd to great effect on the subject of love and unity, reminding all that good citizens can accomplish more by love and unity than by divisiveness. He exhorted all assembled to unite in firmness to “give our Governor and other public servants one more invitation to do the right thing,” and to hold them accountable. Yet, in the event that the Governor and other errant Utah public servants should disdain this last in a chain of similar invitations and persist in their lawlessness, IsBell urged all to reach out the hand of friendship and love to unite as many fellow citizens together as possible, even and especially including those in the media and the Establishment who might view themselves as our enemies, and so persuade at least some of them to “cross the line to the bright side” at some future point and to stand with us in restoring and upholding sober, responsible Citizenship and the Rule of Law.

The Constitution Party of Utah looks forward to cooperating with Defending Utah, Take Action for Freedom, and many other civic organizations to restore and uphold the Rule of Law in this State. Stay tuned for announcements, and please inform each other of similar opportunities to unite with others to revive our flagging civic health.

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1 From the published copy of the Declaration, these are Utah Central Committee, Iron Dixie Committee of Rights, Utah County Freedom Committee, Utah Freedom Revolution, Utah Conservative PAC, Take Action for Freedom, Utah Freedom, Utah Economic Coalition, Utah Health Freedom, People’s Rights Utah, Eagle Mountain Committee of Safety, Utahans For Health Freedom, Stand for Freedom (Utah), Liberty Action Coalition, Sandy City Committee of Safety, Coalition to Restore Liberty, Vernal Committee of Safety, United Women’s Forum, Utah Constitution Party (State), Defending Utah, Constitution Party of Morgan County, Constitution Party of Cache County, Carbon County Committee of Safety, Rep. Phil Lyman (Utah Legislature), Duchesne City Council Members (Danny Peatross, Bryce Hamilton, Jason Baker), Rodney Rowley (Mayor of Duchesne), Moms Against Masks, Timpanogos Committee of Safety, Rep. Marc Roberts (Utah Legislature), We the Parents, Utah Business Revival, Utah Parents United, and Sanpete Ready.
2 See Article VI, Clause 3, Constitution of the United States, and Article IV, Section 10, Constitution of the State of Utah.
3 “I, Gary R. Herbert, having been elected to the office of Governor, do solemnly swear that I will support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Utah, and that I will discharge the duties of my office with fidelity.”
4 “As Usurpation is the exercise of power, which another hath a right to; so Tyranny is the exercise of power beyond right, which nobody can have a right to.” John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, Section 199.
5 Penned by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.:
“When our land is illumined with Liberty's smile,
If a foe from within strike a blow at her glory,
Down, down with the traitor that dares to defile
The flag of her stars and the page of her story!
By the millions unchained, who our birthright have gained,
We will keep her bright blazon forever unstained!
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
While the land of the free is the home of the brave.”