A Utah woman spent the day with Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, after a heated Twitter exchange insinuated the lawmaker doesn't do his job -- even amid the ongoing legislative session.
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah woman spent the day with Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, after a heated Twitter exchange insinuated the lawmaker doesn’t do his job — even amid the ongoing legislative session.
It all started when Weiler attempted to share advice with his constituents in a sarcastic manner, advising residents to be specific about why they want their representatives to oppose the bill.
“Pro tip: Stop emailing the #utleg to “vote no on HB 38″ because (1) we’re not smart enough to memorize 800 bills each session; (2) what’s HB 38? (3) Like, why? and (4) I am tired and am probably not going to look it up,” Weiler tweeted.
But the tweet was met with considerable criticism — especially considering HB38 is one Weiler’s bills this session. Rosemary Card called him out for it.
“I don’t think you’re supposed to say the ‘I’m not going to do my job’ part out loud,” she replied to Weiler’s tweet. “This fussy snarky online persona isn’t impressive or cool. It’s embarrassing and disappointing. Try gratitude for the opportunity to be in your position with a dash of maturity.”
“Come spend a day with me before you decide if I work,” the senator replied.
And she did.
Days later, Card joined Weiler on Capitol Hill at 6:50 a.m., and followed him from meeting to meeting until roughly 5 p.m. Weiler stayed another 41/2 hours until he finished for the day.
“I’m debating bills, presenting bills,” Weiler told Jeff Caplan on KSL NewsRadio on Friday. “It’s very busy up here, especially at the end of the session.”
“Heading into this I had a lot of people reach out and tell me he is a genuinely nice guy and there seems to be some kind of disconnect between the social media and the guy I know, and he is a genuinely nice guy,” Card said summarizing her day at the Capitol on Instagram.
“I don’t agree with a lot of his politics, and I’m sure he doesn’t agree with a lot of mine, but he’s not like a bad person.”
Card said she had the chance to speak to Weiler throughout the day when she asked him about his snarky comments on social media explaining that having someone in a position of power act that way on social media is something that can turn people off.
Weiler said that conversation is something that he has learned from. In hindsight, the senator said he doesn’t take back the message he was trying to get across — but he said he regrets the way he delivered it.
“I was being a little snarky on Twitter, which I’ve been known to do,” he said. “I was giving good advice, because first of all, 96% of emails I get are not from my constituents, they’re from people who live outside my district. They never say what [the bill to oppose] is, they never say why to vote no. Those get amended all the time, so I was saying, ‘Hey if you want to be effective when you email your legislator, tell them what you’re against and why you’re against it.’ Which is good advice, but I could’ve rephrased it in a less snarky manner. I take the blame.”
Card echoed Weiler’s call to reach out and contact your representative and let them know you’re one of their constituents and share the bill number and a bit of background on it.
“It doesn’t need to be perfect but just share why you want them to vote yes or why you don’t. Don’t write a novel, be concise and just share.”
Listen to the full story from Jeff Caplan’s Afternoon News: