"I believe it was an inspired document," he said. As a Utah House member for six years, Swallow said he often argued against amending the state constitution. "We can let statutes rule, solve the problem another way" without an amendment, he said.

Swallow saved his harshest criticism of the platform for No Child Left Behind. Saying Bush's education plan may have laudable goals, "states and local school boards can adopt the No Child Left Behind effective parts."

Federal education mandates "are making it impossible" for Utah teachers to effectively manage classrooms, he complained.

He disagrees with the platform's call that No Child Left Behind now be extended to junior and senior high schools.

However, Swallow doesn't want to see the $100 million NCLB monies now coming into Utah reduced. Because 70 percent of Utah land is controlled by the federal government, Swallow said it is appropriate that federal monies come here to support public education. "There just shouldn't be strings or mandates" attached.

In several places, the platform lauds Bush's Patriot Act — a slew of legal changes enacted after 9/11 that gives the federal government broad powers in investigating and prosecuting citizens.

Some local GOP officeholders have been critical of the Patriot Act. And Swallow said he, too, believes it should be thoroughly reviewed before it is extended next year.

"I don't like some parts, like the government being able to look at private person's library records without a warrant. We need to protect our privacy rights." But the act "did give law enforcement agencies new tools" in fighting terrorism, he added.

A GOP-sponsored resolution passed the Utah House last session calling on Congress to study getting out of the United Nations. But Swallow goes with the platform's support of UN membership.

Finally, Swallow is lukewarm to Bush's immigration reforms, one of which says undocumented workers can "come out of the shadows" to fill jobs that American citizens don't want. While the platform says this is not an amnesty, Swallow said it is wrong to encourage illegal aliens to come to the U.S., hide for a while and then receive legal status, perhaps over those who wait their turn and enter the country legally.

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E-mail: bbjr@desnews.com