Where's the guv?

The 2005 Utah Education Association Convention left Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. out of the lineup, parting with what has become an apparent tradition.

In the late 1980s, Gov. Norm Bangerter was regularly scheduled to speak at the convention's opening ceremony. He even showed up in 1989, weeks after teachers walked out of their classrooms to protest his proposed tax cuts.

Gov. Mike Leavitt addressed conventiongoers nearly every year of his three-term stint, praising educators, pep-talking rookies and hinting at new initiatives.

Leavitt's successor, Gov. Olene Walker, was honored at last year's convention, UEA President Pat Rusk said.

Huntsman addressed the convention last year while on the campaign trail. So did Scott Matheson Jr., his UEA-backed, Democratic opponent.

But the state's CEO is conspicuously absent this year.

The 18,000-member teachers union didn't invite him.

But Rusk said the UEA certainly meant no slight by it.

"Our focus wasn't on the governor and legislators this year. Our focus was on the community," Rusk said after unveiling the association's "No Excuses! Invest in Public Schools" campaign, which aims to educate residents about Utah's history of school investment, now last in the country for per-student spending.

"There was no message in that. It just wasn't part of the program."

Huntsman deputy chief of staff Mike Mower noted Huntsman Education Deputy Tim Bridgewater was invited to visit the convention and planned to stop by Thursday evening.

"(The governor) is always honored when he is asked to speak. However, he appreciates that he's not always invited to address every event and gathering, and when he is invited, he makes every effort to attend or send a representative," said Mower, also Huntsman's legislative liaison.

"We have a good working relationship with UEA officials. The governor was there last year; I'm sure he'll be there in future years."

The response is far more gracious than the Republican Party's back in 1988, when Bangerter didn't receive an invitation.

State party leaders responded with a press conference, where they complained Bangerter wasn't invited but UEA-backed Democratic challenger Ted Wilson was.

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E-mail: jtcook@desnews.com