Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy and Democrat Nathaniel Woodward participate in a debate put on by the Utah Debate Commission at Utah Tech University in St. George on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (Photo by Kensington Owens/Utah Tech University)
Much of Utah’s 2nd Congressional District is public land, so it’s fitting that one of the first questions during a debate between candidates Rep. Celeste Maloy, the incumbent Republican, and Nathaniel Woodward, a Democrat, focused on how the federal government manages its land, and whether some of it should be transferred to the state.
In August, Utah sued the federal government, questioning whether the Bureau of Land Management can control what the state calls “unappropriated land,” which is land that has no designation. National parks, national monuments or national forests, are excluded from the lawsuit.
The lawsuit asks the U.S. Supreme Court to consider whether the federal government can hold that land in perpetuity without formally designating it.
About 18.5 million acres of BLM land in Utah — nearly 34% of the entire state, according to the lawsuit — is unappropriated land, the largest chunk being Utah’s west desert, which is almost entirely encompassed by the 2nd Congressional District.
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Both candidates seemed supportive of the idea. But Woodward was skeptical of the lawsuit itself, while Maloy gave it her full endorsement.
“I think it’s a really thoughtful effort,” she said in response to moderator and FOX 13 reporter and anchor Max Roth’s question during the debate at Utah Tech University in St. George Monday night. “I think they’re asking the right question.”
Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy speaks during a debate put on by the Utah Debate Commission at Utah Tech University in St. George on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (Photo by Kensington Owens/Utah Tech University)
Utah, Maloy said, is not the only state that needs to know whether the federal government can hold onto undesignated land. In the past, states have asked for a remedy to controversial public land policies without actually knowing if it’s constitutional for the federal government to hold the land itself.
“We do need an answer to that question. Is it going to be this way forever, or is the federal government going to dispose of that land at some point?” Maloy said.
Woodward, on the other hand, liked the idea of transferring federal land to state control. But he has heartburn over who’s behind the current effort, telling the audience that he was “hesitant to fully get on board with any type of lawsuit that goes against the federal government with this type of rhetoric.”
“My hesitancy with this lawsuit is the people who are bringing it. The vast majority of the lawmakers in the state are either developers themselves or in bed with those same companies and funders. And so I would like to see this led by people who live on the public lands,” Woodward said.
Democrat Nathaniel Woodward participates in a debate put on by the Utah Debate Commission at Utah Tech University in St. George on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (Photo by Kensington Owens/Utah Tech University)
If there were any kind of land transfer, Woodward thinks it should be the Utah Trust Lands Administration that takes control. The agency currently manages 3.3 million acres of land in Utah, generating revenue through real estate planning, grazing, resource use, and energy and mineral leasing. That revenue mostly goes to the state’s public schools, with some funds also going toward non-public education beneficiaries like the Utah State Hospital or the Utah Division of Water Resources.
The state has launched a widespread public relations campaign to promote its lawsuit. Called “Stand for our Land,” the campaign includes billboards and radio, print and television advertising. Again, both candidates seemed to support the idea of advertising the lawsuit, but Woodward had caveats while Maloy called it “an appropriate use of state dollars.”
“The fact that they’re being proactive about informing residents in Utah about what they’re doing, so that they’re not just getting it from headlines, I think is wise,” Maloy said.
Woodward said he supports the idea, but was hesitant to fully get behind using tax dollars to fund what he called a “biased” campaign.
“It’s coming with too much of the fluff and not enough of the neutral standpoint. You have to advertise it so people will watch it, of course, but I’m more worried about the use of taxpayer dollars to sell an agenda in a way that doesn’t fully address what’s actually happening,” Woodward said.
Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy and Democrat Nathaniel Woodward participate in a debate put on by the Utah Debate Commission and moderated by FOX 13’s Max Roth at Utah Tech University in St. George on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (Photo by Kensington Owens/Utah Tech University)
Candidates talk abortion and funding for Ukraine, Israel
Federal spending came up several times during Monday’s debate, including a question on whether Congress should continue supporting Israel and Ukraine. Both candidates seemed to agree that the conflicts are wildly different, but both warrant some U.S. involvement.
Woodward said Israel’s war on Hamas and Hezbollah — which has killed at least 42,227 people, including nearly 16,765 children, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health — needs greater scrutiny.
“We have a tremendous amount of civilians — children, men, women — who have nothing to do with this conflict other than they live there and they are the ones suffering. We need to make sure that our allies, like Israel, are not being flippant and wanton with their attacks,” Woodward said.
In Ukraine, Woodward said European countries should step up, but acknowledged the U.S. needs “to make sure the people of Ukraine are safe.”
Maloy, who visited Ukraine in August, said she was inspired by the country’s resolve. But until there is greater transparency for how funds are being used, she said she will support sending them military aid and weapons, but not cash.
Maloy called Israel the country’s greatest ally in the Middle East and urged Congress to stay on course with funding.
“They’re fighting Iran’s terrorist proxies, and they’ve done an incredible job recently of taking out terrorists who are on our terrorist watch list. … It’s really easy to draw the line from what Israel is doing to what we need done, and we have to support Israel,” Maloy said.
On abortion, Maloy said she wishes the entire country shared her pro-life views, but she supports a state’s rights approach.
“I love that Utah has a very strict abortion law. Other states are going to come up with different answers, and that’s part of being a nation that’s made up of 50 individual states,” she said.
Woodward said it wasn’t his place to tell a woman what to do with her body, while calling for a “civil dialogue” around the issue.
“I have a daughter, the idea that she may be denied elective or even life-saving treatment based on some guy who looks like me’s viewpoints is sickening to me,” Woodward said.
Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy and Democrat Nathaniel Woodward shake hands during a debate put on by the Utah Debate Commission at Utah Tech University in St. George on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (Photo by Kensington Owens/Utah Tech University)
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