Is Utah's GOP strong or suffering?

Your columnists are providing a midsummer, two-part review of Utah's political parties as the election season progresses.

This week: the Republicans.

Pignanelli: Former speechwriter to President George Bush the elder, Peggy Noonan has impeccable Republican credentials (she coined the phrase "a thousand points of light"). In a recent column for the Wall Street Journal, she declared the national GOP is detached, played out and "busy dying."

The Utah Republican Party is not dying but is suffering the disease of internal dysfunction. The symptoms are readily apparent:

• On a scale unprecedented, Republican lawmakers openly recruited and assisted intraparty challengers against fellow Republican legislators.

• The fight for control of Senate leadership, against the incumbents, is at boiling point.

• A number of Republicans believe current State Treasurer Ed Alter, the Methuselah of the state GOP, has a divine right to pick his successor. Others believe that anyone, including Rep. Mark Walker, has the right to seek the open office. A very public accusation of bribery between Republicans was the result.

• The ethics complaint against Walker was generated by Republican legislators.

• Most analysts believe Walker is being used as a weapon by some Republicans and others to attack Republican legislative leadership.

• Republican leadership exposes the allegation of sexual harassment by an intern against a GOP legislator who signed the ethics complaint.

• The lawsuit challenging the omnibus education bill enjoys the support of Republican activists and lawmakers.

• A 12-year veteran of Congress is dumped at the polls by an unfunded nonresident challenger.

• Legislation to curtail the governor's powers is a common feature of legislative sessions.

• Speaker Greg Curtis is again in the race for his life just to get re-elected to the House.

• It goes on and on (no wonder voter participation is dropping).

The easy diagnosis: blame the Democrats. Twenty years ago, my Republican friends had no qualms emphasizing we were the enemy. Our mere existence provided purpose and kept them together. Today, Democrat challengers in general elections are viewed more as a constitutionally mandated nuisance than actual opposition.