As the new Chairman of the Utah Democrat Party, if the openly gay Jim Dabakis really wants to “reach out to the LDS community” he’s set a difficult goal. He could start by addressing his party’s platform and explaining how Utah Democrat Party practices conform to their statements and how they square with the National Democrat Party practices and programs.

A few excerpts from the Utah Democrat Platform follow:

Plank #1. Economic Development: Utah Democrats believe economic development generated in the private sector creates the wealth that sustains a high living standard in Utah. (How is that plank supported by an ever increasing government role in all aspects of business and private life? How can increasing taxes on the private sector strengthen that sector?)

Plank #2. Good Government: Utah Democrats have a firm and enduring belief in low taxes and balanced budgets. (Historically, Democrats have demanded an expanded role for government, more taxes to pay for that expansion, and has been anxiously willing to expand the budget deficit in accomplishing that goal. If Utah Democrats really believe Plank #2, are they really part of the national Democrat Party?)

Plank #3. Public Safety and Health: Utah Democrats strongly affirm that people who are in the United States should be here legally. (Yet, any attempt to enforce existing law mandating deportation of anyone here illegally is opposed by the Democrat Party. In practice the Democrat Party strongly advocates extending special financial and other benefits to illegal invaders. This divergence from their plank appears both hypocritical and dangerous to the public safety.)

Plank #4. Our Environmental Legacy: Utah Democrats support the protection of wilderness with the right of access to use it responsibly as well as acting to help preserve critical wildlife habitat. Multiple uses of the public lands in sustainable ways are encouraged. (This “right of access” appears limited, particularly at the national level, to anyone young, energetic and healthy. Those who can not walk into public lands are increasingly prohibited, or unnecessarily limited, in their use of any motorized conveyance.)

Yep. Chairman Dabakis really has set a hard, if not impossible, goal. A dog is a dog, even if it wants to call itself a cat.