SALT LAKE CITY — Governor Spencer Cox is weighing in on former President Donald Trump's re-election.
"I think it will be very good for the state of Utah," the governor told reporters at a news conference Wednesday in his office on Utah's Capitol Hill. "I think you will see that we'll have an opportunity to really unleash the economy, the private sector, that we've been succeeding as a state despite the headwinds that we've received from an administration that's made it constantly difficult."
Cox said the state has filed dozens of lawsuits against the Biden administration over many of its regulations and he believes things will dramatically change with Trump back in the White House in January.
Election returns show the Republican incumbent governor currently has 56% of the vote to Democrat Brian King's 30% (write-in candidate Phil Lyman currently has 8%).
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Asked to address those who have expressed concern of what a future Trump presidency could bring with fears of a slide to authoritarianism, the governor disagreed.
"No one person can destroy what makes this country great," he told reporters. "Our country is not great because of our president. The argument could be made it's the opposite."
Instead, Cox told Utahns to log out of social media and turn off cable news, whom he accused of "making tremendous amount of money off of making all of us miserable and making all of us hate each other," and talk to their neighbors.
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"To those who are sad today? That’s OK. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be sad or disappointed but don’t be a fatalist. Believe in yourselves, believe in your country. Get back to work. Not just your jobs, but get back to work doing the things that are important," he said.
"If you’re unhappy with this outcome and I know lots of Democrats that are, look in the mirror and ask yourself why is it this happened? Why is it so many people rejected that message? And if you’re just saying that’s it because Americans are terrible human beings, you’re going to lose a lot of elections. Because the Americans I know and the Utahns I know are not terrible humans, they are good people. They care about this country and they care about their neighbors."
Cox, who made a surprise endorsement following the assassination attempt on Trump earlier this year, said people are "tired of being told they're racist or misogynistic or homophobic."
"What they want is they want people who will work to unleash the best of our country. That's what we're trying to do here in Utah," he added.
