By Malcolm Siret
On 30 August President George W Bush is due to visit Utah, a key Republican state which gave his party its biggest majority in both the 2000 and 2004 US presidential elections.
It's a wonder, then, that following a recent survey carried out for the Deseret Morning News suggesting that a majority of Utahns believe Bush is "doing a good job", plans are underway to prepare for massive protests expected to greet the president in Salt Lake City.
When Bush visited SLC last year for the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention, Mayor 'Rocky' Anderson decided to organise, or at the very least instigate, a gathering of protesters; by contacting environmentalists, anti-war movements, Democrats and members of his administrative staff. In an email referencing Bush's visit, Rocky said: "Don't let him come to Utah and not see huge opposition, even in the reddest (most Republican) state. This would send such an important message."
The result was a turn out of more than 2000 people, not only voicing their opposition to the war in Iraq, but also showing their discontent over domestic policies such as the cutbacks in housing programs for the poor and claimed they had "lost our democracy".
The rumor is that Rocky now plans an even bigger protest later this month, and he anticipates "tens of thousands" of demonstrators: "I certainly hope there is an effective expression of opposition to where this country is headed right now under the Bush administration. When that happens in Salt Lake City, people pay attention all over the world."
