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SALT LAKE CITY — The state's threatened lawsuit to take control of public lands from the federal government sparked friction during a last-minute debate Friday between GOP Gov. Gary Herbert and his Democratic challenger, Mike Weinholtz.
"We need to preserve these lands. We need to get serious about the fact that they belong to all of us and stop villainizing the federal government at every turn," Weinholtz said during the debate sponsored by the Utah League of Cities and Towns.
He called the possible lawsuit that the Utah Legislature already has set aside $14 million to pay for "absolutely unwinnable. And that's not only morally bankrupt, but it's fiscally irresponsible and it's the not the kind of thing I would do as governor."
Herbert told the local government leaders the state is also negotiating with the Obama administration and trying get legislation passed in Congress to deal with the issue of who should manage Utah's public lands.
"Only as a last resort do we litigate," the governor said. He said Utahns "want a balanced approach. They want to have input. They want to have a say in what happens in their own backyard."
The hourlong debate, announced late Thursday after the governor agreed to participate, was the first between Herbert and Weinholtz, although they have made joint appearances at other events, including at a candidate forum earlier this year.
Herbert had not been expected to attend even though the league has a long history of hosting gubernatorial debates at its annual meeting in election years. That changed after he was publicly criticized over the decision.
"It's something critical in the state to be able to have the governor of the state of Utah come and talk to local officials," Ken Bullock, the league's executive director, said at the meeting Friday. "I believe it's their responsibility."
The governor told reporters later he "always thought we were going to come to the Utah League of Cities and Towns" and said a "miscommunication" between his state office and campaign staffs led to the debate not being scheduled.
Herbert's campaign manager, Marty Carpenter, said the governor returned earlier than planned Thursday from a trade mission in Toronto, Canada, to be ready for the debate and his annual fundraising gala Friday night.
Carpenter said the total take for the gala that costs as much as $25,000 to attend will be about $1 million, but more than half of that has already been collected and used in Herbert's primary race against Overstock.com Chairman Jonathan Johnson.
Weinholtz, who has already loaned his campaign $2.5 million, told reporters he was happy with his debate performance because he was able to "hit the governor" on issues where they differ.
"I think my public lands stance resonates throughout Utah, not just in the urban areas," said Weinholtz, chairman of CHG Healthcare. He said he believes lawmakers will come around to seeing a lawsuit against the federal government as futile.
And if they don't, Weinholtz said he would consider launching a ballot initiative to stop state spending on the potential lawsuit, being drafted by a New Orleans-based law firm hired by the Utah Commission on the Stewardship of Public Lands.
"The citizens of Utah aren't in favor of this. It's the single party, far right who are interested in selling off our public lands," Weinholtz said, "driven by real estate developers (and) extractive industries."
Herbert said both during and after the debate he has never been in favor of selling off federal lands should the state gain control. He also said he believes there's a chance to win the lawsuit but called it a longshot.
"It's not going to be easy, but it may be a fight worth having," the governor said, describing the threat of a lawsuit as telling the federal government: "We'll slap you up the side of face with litigation if you don't sit and talk to us."
The candidates agreed that the battle for control of the more than 30 million acres of federal land in Utah should not be called "taking back" the land. Weinholtz said such language serves only to inflame hatred toward the federal government.
Herbert said using the phrase "'take back the lands' hurts the cause." Earlier this week, a congressional hearing was held on the public lands initiative from Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, an effort to deal with 18 million acres of federal land.
The governor supports the bill, which includes establishing Bears Ears in southeastern Utah as a conservation area in lieu of a national monument designation by President Barack Obama.
