Smoke, Mirrors, and Supermajority Power
Welcome to the Utah Legislature’s Haunted House, Where Democracy Goes to Die
If you’re reading this, you’re probably a Highly Engaged Political Person™ who already knows that while technically there’s a process for how bills become laws (or you were educated by Schoolhouse Rock like us), but that is absolutely not what actually happens inside Utah’s Capitol.
As you know, we’ve been voluntarily subjecting ourselves to what should probably be classified under the Geneva Conventions as torture—sitting through committee hearings, floor debates, and press conferences that function as little more than a taxpayer-funded performance art at the Utah State Capitol.
And look, there are dedicated lawmakers — Republican and Democrat – who fight like hell to pass meaningful policy, engage with their constituents, and fight for transparency. But when a single party holds near-absolute power, you’re up against a rigged system. The rules of fair governance often get bent, if not outright broken.
Because the truth is, Utah’s Legislature is not a fair place.
It’s an overproduced, self-indulgent, off-off-Broadway production of political theater, with the Republican supermajority as its overpaid, unchecked lead actors—and with rules designed to ensure that no matter how many people speak out, no matter how good the arguments are, the ending has been all but written.
And if you’ve ever attended a Utah legislative hearing, first of all—I’m so sorry. You may be entitled to financial compensation. Second, you may have noticed that something feels off.
You walk in expecting debate, transparency, and public engagement. The room looks official—committee members sit at long tables with nameplates, microphones are set up for public comment, and the electronic board for floor votes glows brightly.
It looks like democracy. But it’s not.
Because once you start paying attention—really paying attention—you realize that everything is a haunted house of governance, filled with misdirection, manipulation, and traps designed to make you think you’re participating while ensuring that the Republican supermajority gets exactly what it wants.
You think you’re walking into an open debate? That’s a trapdoor.
You think public testimony matters? Wrong, that’s a two-way mirror.
You think a good bill has passed? Oops, that door leads straight to the funding graveyard.
And that feeling you get—the exhaustion, the apathy, the urge to look away because what’s the point? We get it.
That’s exactly what they are counting on.
The Republican supermajority wants you to believe in their version of democracy—the one where they pretend to debate bills, pretend to listen to public comment, pretend to represent the will of the people. And they also want you to believe that nothing you do will change the outcome—that their power is inevitable, that your exhaustion is the only logical response.
Because when people check out, they get away with more.
And here’s the truth: the outcome isn’t inevitable. The supermajority isn’t invincible. And once you start paying attention to how they actually operate, the illusion starts to fall apart.
So, if you’ve made it this far, congratulations—you’re officially one of the real ones. You care about this stuff, even when it’s frustrating, exhausting, and designed to make you want to give up. And because you stuck around, we’re going to let you in on some secrets. Let’s pull back the curtain and walk through the tricks the Utah GOP uses to keep you disengaged—so that next time, instead of feeling like it’s pointless, you’ll know exactly how the game is rigged and, more importantly, how we can start to break it.
Trick #1: Step Right Up and Speak Into the Void
A terrible bill gets introduced. You see people organizing against it—activists rallying, citizens writing emails, experts testifying. Maybe you even show up to a hearing or watch it online, hoping, maybe this time will be different.
And then?
The bill passes anyway.
Because that’s how it always ends.
And not only does it pass, but Republicans make sure that the people fighting against it barely get a chance to speak.
Take HB267, the Republican bill aimed at gutting the Utah Education Association and other public employee unions. Hundreds of union members showed up at the Capitol to fight back. Four entire overflow rooms were packed with union members, educators, and everyday citizens, waiting for their turn to speak.
And yet, somehow, every single supporter of the bill got to speak. Huh.
Meanwhile, most of the opposition never got a turn. They sat in rooms, waited for hours, and then were told—oops, time’s up! And were threatened by the chair that he would end public comment if anyone dared to applaud. The committee chair sighed theatrically and said something about how he “really wanted to let everyone have their say”—as if he hadn’t personally orchestrated the process to ensure the bill’s passage was never actually in question.
And this wasn’t a one-time fluke. It happens constantly.
The trans dorm bill and the union bill were in the same committee on the same day. The room was full, with three overflow rooms. People had to pick which fight they wanted to show up for.
On Tuesday, the Senate union-busting bill was scheduled at the same time as the constitutional amendment to increase the threshold for ballot initiatives vote. The meeting went three and a half hours, and union workers literally had to walk off job sites to be there.
And even when people do make it? You get 30 to 60 seconds to speak.
This isn’t about listening to public input. It’s about exhausting opposition—making sure that regular people have to disrupt their entire lives just to fight bad legislation.
And then, once those people are tired, burned out, and defeated, the Republicans get up on the floor and congratulate themselves on what an “open process” they’ve run.
It’s a performance. And they are betting on you not noticing.
Trick #2: The Mystery of the Disappearing Bill
Let’s say, against all odds, a good bill manages to get traction.
It’s popular. It has bipartisan support.
It’s something everyone agrees on.
Guess what? Sometimes it doesn’t matter.
Because the Speaker of the House and the Senate President control everything—and if Republican leadership doesn’t want a bill to pass, it won’t.
They can send it to an unfriendly committee, where it will quietly die. Sometimes they won’t even vote for or against it but simply vote to “hold” the bill or move to the next agenda item.
They can refuse to bring it to a vote.
They can also let it die on the voting board, letting the 45-day clock run out without acknowledgment.
Or, if they really want to get cute, they just steal it.
Because if you really want the good policy to pass, a Republican has to run it, obviously. Every year, Democrats propose good, well-researched legislation—bills that are popular and would actually help people.
And every year, those bills disappear—only to re-emerge later with a Republican sponsor. Suddenly, the same bill that was “too extreme” when a Democrat ran it is common sense now that a Republican put their name on it.
Trick #3: If A Bill Passes And No One Funds It, Does It Even Exist?
If Republicans really want to seem like they’re listening, they’ll pass a bill—and then just not fund it.
The process for voting on bills and passing the budget is separate, complicated, and famously hard to understand (which works out great for them). A bill can pass, but unless funding is explicitly allocated, it can be like a feel-good press release with no actual impact.
And here’s where they really shine: while they’re busy gutting funding for necessary programs, they love to remind everyone how much they care about maintaining a balanced budget and cutting taxes. You’ll hear them say things like: “We’re being fiscally responsible!”, “We can’t fund every request!”, “We need to make tough choices!”
And somehow, those tough choices always seem to leave critical services underfunded, while their favorite pet projects—special interest tax breaks, handouts to well-connected businesses, and slush funds for "economic development"—miraculously never have budget issues.
Trick #4: The Magic Act – Now You See the Rules, Now You Don’t
You’d think that when lawmakers pass bills that impact millions of Utahns, they’d at least follow their own rules—give them time for debate, public input, careful consideration.
You’d be wrong.
Because when the supermajority wants something passed quickly, the rules are optional.
The House Speaker and Senate President control everything, including how fast a bill moves. And when public scrutiny is inconvenient, they just suspend the rules. Instead of the usual multi-step process—committee hearings, floor debates, public comment, multiple votes—bills can be introduced, debated, and passed in mere hours.
Take Amendment D, the legislature’s last-minute attempt to strip voters of their power to challenge laws. By the time most Utahns even heard about it, it was already done. In a single special session, leadership rushed through a constitutional amendment, dodging real debate and public awareness until it was too late.
Or look at HB215, the school voucher bill. A massive overhaul of Utah’s education system—one that voters overwhelmingly rejected the last time they had a say—was rammed through in less than two weeks at the start of the 2023 session. Public opposition didn’t stand a chance.
We’re watching it happen right now with HB267, the bill stripping collective bargaining rights from public sector unions. The Speaker prioritized it on the floor, bypassing other bills that should have been heard first. Then, the Senate President suspended the rules, rushing it through just one day after it passed out of committee.
And if you think Democrats—or even Republican legislators with concerns—can step in and stop it? Nope.
Because the man at the front controls the room.
The House Speaker and Senate President decide who gets called on to speak and for how long. A few Democrats might get a turn—just enough to make the process look fair—but the second the arguments get too effective? A Republican suddenly says “I call the question.” Debate over. That’s it.
By the time most lawmakers see the final version of these bills, they’re already being voted on. No time for amendments. No time for public testimony. No time to ask, “Hey, maybe we shouldn’t rewrite the state constitution in a single afternoon?”
And so laws get passed before anyone fully understands their consequences. Communities scramble to react after the damage is done.
So What Do We Do?
We’ve been conditioned to believe that nothing we do matters–that the supermajority will always win, that showing up and speaking out is pointless.
That the best we can do is fight for scraps—water down bad bills, or harm reduction our way to marginally less bad policy, celebrate when something terrible gets slightly less terrible. That’s not winning. That’s not how democracy is supposed to work.
But here’s the truth: this isn’t inevitable. The GOP wants you to believe that Utah will always be this way. That you have no power. That you might as well sit down and accept it.
But they don’t have to win every time. Power isn’t static. When enough people push back, even the most entrenched systems start to crack. Utah’s supermajority is not invincible. They know this, which is why they keep changing the rules to consolidate their power. But that fear means something—it means change is possible.
We don’t have to flip Utah blue overnight. But if we break their total control—if we flip just a handful of seats—they lose the ability to do whatever they want. And they are scared of that.
Because if enough of us see through their tricks, if enough of us stop playing along, their whole rigged system falls apart. We just have to tear down the set.
We Have To Keep Trying
The fight for fair representation, government accountability, and real democracy isn’t easy. But it’s worth it.
Every time someone testifies at a hearing, every time a bad bill gets called out, every time voters show up to challenge the status quo—we get closer to a better Utah.
So don’t check out. Don’t let them convince you that your voice doesn’t matter. Because the second they think you’re not watching? That’s when they get away with the most.
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