ASPIRE TO REACH HIGHER

Lt. Governor Herbert; President Valentine; Speaker Curtis;
Members of the Legislature, Supreme Court and Cabinet;
My wife and best friend, our First Lady;
And all Utahns.

To say that tonight is an historic occasion is an understatement. To be here in this resplendent chamber for the first time, is awe-inspiring! We are here as the most economically competitive and dynamic state in the nation. We enjoy some of the most pristine and beautiful land our country offers. It is deeply humbling to consider our fortunate circumstances amid national uncertainty.

I am grateful for each one of you, the citizens of this state, for allowing me to serve as your Governor. Thank you for your faith, trust, and encouragement.

The activity of 50,000 visitors, streaming through this magnificent building since its opening has been thrilling. I can't begin to express how motivating it has been to hear student choirs sing daily renditions of patriotic songs. Reverberating through the rotunda and then through my mind. May you always feel welcome here.

This evening we return to this elegant Capitol our forbearers constructed more than ninety years ago to conduct the people's business. Visits by prime ministers and presidents, protestors and petitioners and the echoes of policy debates over the generations serve to reaffirm our core values that were famously enshrined by President Roosevelt in 1941; freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from want and freedom from fear.

This is a defining time in Utah. We are soaring to ever-greater heights. So let's remind ourselves why we stand at the threshold of these extraordinary times.

We are young and industrious. As the youngest state in the nation, we have a vibrancy that cannot be matched. I am amazed at the growth we are experiencing, as is my good friend Mayor Tom Hirschi of Hurricane where the population has tripled in the last 15 years. As the third fastest growing state in the country, we are adding an astonishing 10 people an hour to our population of 2.7 million.

Our economic prowess has been nationally recognized by many respected organizations. We no longer have one of America's top performing economies. We have the nation's premier economy. And during times of uncertainty we will work even harder to keep it that way.

An example of this? One of the world's largest corporations, Proctor and Gamble, chose Box Elder County to build its first domestic manufacturing plant in more than 30 years. Amer Sports, the world's leading winter sports equipment company, moved its headquarters to Ogden, bolstering our competitive outdoor products industry. And now, one of America's fastest growing software companies is our very own, Orem-based, Omniture.