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SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah news outlet says one of its veteran reporters had his Legislature credentials suspended following an incident related to Sen. Mitt Romney’s appearance at the Utah state Capitol last week.
UtahPolicy.com contributing editor Bob Bernick was suspended for one week because he had entered a room in the Capitol that Romney was in last Wednesday, the news outlet reported Tuesday.
UtahPolicy.com's report stated that Bernick had entered a hallway routinely open for media in an effort to ask Romney about his impeachment vote the day before. A staff member then said the hallway was being closed down for “security reasons” before he entered the House Majority Caucus Room.
UtahPolicy.com posted a 24-second video recorded by Bernick to YouTube showing the brief incident. In it, Bernick asks Romney, “Do you have a comment to make, sir?” twice. But Romney ignores the question as he passed by in the room. Bernick is told he’s not in the hallway by a law enforcement officer.
The Utah State House and Senate oversee press credentials at the Capitol. Officials said they were made aware of the incident since Utah Highway Patrol filed an incident report, which stated Bernick had entered a secure area of the building without permission. The area itself is open to the media at times, according to officials.
“This decision was based upon a report from Utah Highway Patrol, eyewitnesses and video. Mr. Bernick is still allowed access to all public areas of the Capitol, including all committee meetings and galleries,” Utah Senate director of communications Aundrea Peterson and Utah House of Representatives deputy chief of staff Jon Ammons said, in a combined statement to KSL.com. “We respect members of the media and their role. For everyone's safety, both the public as well as credentialed media need to abide by the rules and policies.”
I’m disappointed that Bernick didn’t even get a chance to tell his side of the story before his credential was jerked.
–LaVarr Webb, UtahPolicy.com Publisher
The suspension began Tuesday and runs through next Tuesday before Bernick’s credential will be reinstated. Media who have their credentials suspended or revoked have the ability to appeal the decision, officials said.
Bernick joined UtahPolicy.com shortly after he left the Deseret News in 2010, according to his biography on the outlet’s website. He has covered the Legislature for more than three decades.
“I’m disappointed that Bernick didn’t even get a chance to tell his side of the story before his credential was jerked. The Legislature isn’t a court of law, obviously, where due process is sacred,” UtahPolicy.com publisher LaVarr Webb said, in a statement. “But essentially all entities of state, local and federal governments at least, give an accused person an opportunity to respond before levying a penalty.”
Romney visited the Utah State Capitol last week to meet with Utah Republican legislatures about his impeachment vote, which caused a stir among Republicans locally and nationally. On Feb. 4, Romney voted to convict President Donald Trump on a count of abuse of power. In doing so, he became the first senator ever to vote to convict a president of the same political party in an impeachment hearing.
In the end, Trump was acquitted on that count and a count of obstruction of Congress. After the vote, one Utah lawmaker even sought to censure Romney for his vote. Bills to recall or censure Utah’s junior senator were scrapped this week.
