Dem
47
GOP
53
In January of last year, Sen. John Curtis (R-UT) took over the seat that had been occupied by Mitt Romney. That is just 16 months ago. And yet, Curtis is already plotting his exit strategy. Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT) could seek a third term, but just announced he won't do so, and Curtis is thinking seriously about trying to be the guy who replaces him.
The fundamental problem here is that Curtis is unhappy in the Senate. He headed to Washington, DC, with the idea that he could "get things done," and quickly learned that wasn't going to happen. Bipartisanship is a near-extinct species, and any Republican who does not fall in line with MAGA knows they will reap the whirlwind. So, Curtis has basically been Romney v2.0—achieve nothing, and vote however Donald Trump tells you to vote. Indeed, Curtis is even more "loyal" than Romney was. Even though the Senator ostensibly dislikes many elements of Trumpism, he has nonetheless voted with the President 100% of the time on legislation since arriving in Washington.
In an indication that Curtis is a somewhat unusual kind of fellow, he's going to meditate on whether to pursue the governorship, and he will do so while undertaking a 250-mile walk across Utah in honor of the nation's 250th anniversary. If he does jump in, he will almost certainly face off against the very Trumpy former Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), who is also making noise about a run. In the absence of any hard data, you have to like Curtis' chances against Chaffetz, since Curtis has won statewide before and Chaffetz hasn't, and since LDS Church teachings and MAGA don't actually mesh all that well.
Meanwhile, one wonders if the misery of serving these days will, sometime soon, light a fire under the members of Congress. The most obvious fix would be national anti-gerrymandering legislation. That won't affect the Senate directly, but it should produce a less partisan House, making it more possible to craft legislation that can get through both chambers. Beyond that, we think killing the filibuster would also improve things, since the filibuster encourages gridlock, which is the opposite of "getting things done." Holding executive branch employees responsible for crimes and/or ethical lapses would also be a step forward, but don't hold your breath on that one. (Z)