Congressman Blake Moore holds town hall at USU
Utah’s representative for the first congressional district, Rep. Blake Moore, spoke to business students at the Utah State Life Sciences Building on Friday. He also addressed pressing national questions, including some about former President Donald J. Trump.
Government relations director Neil Abercrombie said Moore was previously invited to USU to meet with university leaders about different facets of the school.
“Our leadership team was incredibly impressed with that visit,” Abercrombie said. “Very engaging for a first visit.”
Abercrombie added that Moore’s committee assignments, armed services and natural resources, are both critical to the first district, especially for Utah State.
The event was sparsely attended, with a live stream available for participants to watch remotely.
Moore referenced the fact that he attended USU as a freshman, before going on his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints.
“I loved my time up here, and it was something I got to reflect on a lot during the campaign,” he said.
Moore said being a representative is not the glamorous role one would expect it to be.
“It’s tough, and with that I’m just more and more convinced that I can do some good here.”
Moore then opened up the discussion by saying his brand is rooted in three conservative principles: Aspiration, pro-growth and inclusivity.
For aspiration, Moore said to just “check out the Space Dynamics Lab.”
“We think big in this district,” he said.
Moore added the Space Dynamics Lab is the next frontier on communication and space-related capabilities.
Pro-growth is about being thoughtful and providing balance, he said, and inclusivity is about communicating the needs of the next generation of Utahns.
“Utah does so many things right,” Moore said. “In our own little border of Utah, we get rewarded for that with a strong economy.”
Most of the townhall consisted of questions from the audience and pre-selected questions submitted beforehand.
© Joseph F Myers Blake Moore
One person said they were concerned about the state of the Republican Party, especially as it regarded Trump’s influence and conspiracy theories surrounding the election. They mentioned that the Republican Party is currently more concerned with “owning the libs,” than providing compromise and bipartisan solutions.
Moore acknowledged this is a concern that many people have.
“Too much of what our party is trying to accomplish gets lost in the message, in the media and with respect to former President Trump.”
Moore said he was asked frequently during his campaign if he supported Trump.
“Let me be clear, President Trump did things for the Republican Party that are very, very positive,” he said. “There’s a bit of a working-class mentality that was brought back.”
However, Moore said he doesn’t support many of the election claims that took place and voted to certify the election.
He added that his Republican colleagues that objected to the results were “just trying to make a point.”
Going forward, Moore said a successful Republican candidate for president will be someone who can maintain an outlook on the positive things that came from Trump while also being able to embrace those frustrated with Trump.
Another attendee asked about the United States’ role in pressure over human rights violations, especially as it relates to Myanmar and China.
“We have $30 trillion in debt,” Moore said. “What kind of leverage can we put on people? China owns a chunk of our debt.”
Moore explained that our national debt is really a national security risk. He said, if the US wants to continue to have any influence, then the American dollar has to continue to have reserve status.
Another question came from someone who wanted to know the congressman’s thoughts on renewable energy.
Moore said the key to renewable energy and green technology is going to come from America’s determination to make investments in those resources; however, he said the decisions surrounding investments cannot be mandated.
The Congressman’s town hall was put together with joint efforts from the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business and the Institute of Government and Politics.
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