Was dumping GOP wise — or desperate?

Local politics is starting to heat up to match the weather. We can't keep you cool, but we can address some of the burning issues:

Salt Lake City mayoral hopeful Keith Christensen recently announced his withdrawal from the Republican Party and is now an independent. Was that a wise move?

Pignanelli: The best use of Christensen's time is to review his list of contributors ... and start mailing out refunds. His massive campaign chest cannot overcome this debacle.

Christensen possesses the best resume for mayor (successful businessman, council member). He would be a leading contender if he switched in January. Instead, his dumping the GOP affiliation in July smacks of desperation.

Mayoral campaigns are exercises in coalition building. Christensen was combining support of GOP voters with Democrats and Independents swayed by Rocky's endorsement. Democrats and leftist independents will not be persuaded by Christensen's last-minute change. Christensen didn't just drop the Republicans, he "flipped them off" with acidic remarks — losing a core constituency. You can actually hear Dave Buhler (a major Republican mayoral candidate) smiling.

Webb: Christensen understands that the pool of progressive/liberal voters in the city is larger than the conservative/Republican pool, so dumping the Republican Party makes sense, and it's an especially good strategy for the final election. He also received some much-needed media attention. I think business leaders who know Christensen will stick with him, but he may lose some rank-and-file Republicans. Christensen now must spend his money smartly on building grassroots support to overwhelm Jenny Wilson and Ralph Becker. This all means Buhler, if he can get the Republican base to turn out, stands a better chance of getting out of the primary.

Mayor Rocky Anderson has fought the proposed pedestrian skybridge over Main Street between the new malls. Any campaign impact?

Pignanelli: The LDS Church is expending one-half billion dollars toward rehabilitating downtown Salt Lake City and should build a skybridge for the convenience of people now missing from the area — shoppers. (For that much money, they can build a chairlift, monorail or anything else that makes the development viable.)

The controversy provides Rocky the perfect platform to poke at the church without incurring charges of anti-Mormon bias because the issue is not based on morals (i.e. alcohol, gambling). The City Council is supportive and so are most voters.