Swallow's ethics | The Salt Lake Tribune

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

After reading the front-page story "Indicted businessman: Utah A.G. tied to alleged scheme" (Tribune, Jan. 12), I remembered hearing the differences between politicians and criminals: Politicians embellish and hire lobbyists; criminals lie and pay bribes.

The courts will decided if any laws were broken, but the episode shows poor ethics by Utah Attorney General John Swallow and raises serious questions regarding his judgment and ability to serve. It also embarrasses our state, which needs no help in that department.

It is time for the people of Utah to realize that we need a vibrant two-party state. Problems like this develop when one party, one belief system, has too much power. We need checks and balances to avoid such problems.

Ray Whelan

Salt Lake City