Sen. Bob Bennett may take job at University of Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — Bob Bennett's 18-year run as a Utah senator may end in January, but that doesn't mean the 77-year-old is ready to retire.

Already on the job hunt, Bennett is negotiating with the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah and with consulting firms in Washington, D.C.

"I don't want to just sit around," Bennett said Tuesday in his Salt Lake City office after an interview with institute director Kirk Jowers.

Under ethics rules that apply to senators, Bennett can't announce any final details until after January, when his replacement, Mike Lee, will be sworn in as Utah's newest senator. But Bennett said Tuesday that he's had several job offers and he fully intends to stay involved.

"All of the parts of my life have not yet fallen into place, but … I can announce that negotiations are under way," Bennett said.

Jowers confirmed the university's discussions with Bennett, whom he called "one of the most respected public officials in the country." Specifics are still unresolved, Jowers said, but Bennett could possibly teach seminars to students at the school and be involved in research projects. Bennett's experience would help the school, Jowers said.

"He can help us organize great conferences, incredible speeches, where we bring in some of his colleagues and peers he's met through his 18 years back in Washington and help us address cutting-edge issues with some of the most important figures in the country," Jowers said.

The Hinckley Institute of Politics, founded in 1965, focuses on fostering an appreciation and understanding of politics in the university's students, but also provides programs and input to the general public.

Bennett's other job prospects include consulting and possibly some lobbying, he said, and he plans to keep a separate office open in Utah as well as in Washington D.C. after his term ends. But the senator, who received his bachelor's degree in political science from the U., said he would be especially excited to return to his alma mater.

"To go back to the University of Utah to be part of the faculty and be teaching things, now that's pretty tall cotton," he said with a grin. "I kind of like that."

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