Former state Sen. Steve Urquhart on Friday criticized how he says the LDS Church lobbies legislators from the shadows — including how it used its influence first to fight gay-rights bills he pushed and later to enact them.
http://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/201 ... on-church/
He said the Mormon church “is seemingly incapable of finding the front door and walking through it. It doesn’t bother lobbying rank-and-file members or going on record in committee meetings like other political participants do; instead, it whispers to a few members of Republican leadership, and things magically happen.”
A 2016 review by The Salt Lake Tribune found that 88 percent of Utah lawmakers are Mormon, compared with about 61 percent of all state residents.
Given the faith’s sway over its devout members, he said, “this kind of ‘puppet string’ lobbying is dangerous. Plus, it simply is offensive. No other entity or group, no matter how powerful, gets to control things from the shadows in such a way.”
Urquhart said that is “a primary reason why the church is not better regarded in Utah by non-members, despite the considerable good it does.”
He added, “The church, no doubt, figures it would be criticized if it participated openly. Bingo! People throw elbows and bite in the public arena. Every participant catches a few. It’s not religious discrimination. It’s just politics.”