Utah Citizens win in house: thanks in part to the efforts of John Birch Society members, the Utah House of Representatives passed a resolution against efforts to create a North American Union.(Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America )

The Utah House of Representatives on February 6 passed a resolution urging U.S. withdrawal from the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) of North America by a lopsided vote of 47 to 24. The resolution became bottled up on the Senate side, however, and never made it to the Senate floor prior to the legislature adjourning on February 28.

This resolution was introduced in the House by Representative Steven Sandstrom. In an interview with THE NEW AMERICAN, Rep. Sandstrom was asked how he learned about the SPP, the planned NAFTA Superhighway, and other activities intended to create a North American Union. He responded, "It was members of the John Birch Society in my district who made me aware of this issue. Then I did my own research and found a lot of information outside the JBS material and realized that it was real and what a growing problem this was."

When asked what factors contributed most to passage of the resolution, he reflected, "The thing that has helped the most was the educating of other legislators with the facts. Initially many of my colleagues didn't believe it was real, but with the facts they began to realize that it not only is real but that we are following the same pattern as the European Union. The promoters of an EU-style North American Union in this country began with NAFTA and then CAFTA, then they tried to get the FTAA passed and when that didn't work, they have now proposed the SPP, mirroring the process of the EU."

When asked what the greatest opposition to passage of the resolution was, he said, "First of all it was a lack of understanding, people thinking this was no big thing or that it was some sort of conspiracy theory, that was my greatest obstacle." Rep. Sandstrom sees the passage of this resolution as the beginning of a groundswell that will spread across the nation. He enthused, "I have been contacted by legislators from across the nation who have wanted to do this same thing in their states. I have heard from Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Wyoming, and other states wanting to do this same thing. Washington will have to listen, and this is the only way to defeat the SPP--through movements like this across the nation, through education. No one would accept this if they knew what it was, another European-type Union for the Americas."

Later, when it appeared that the House-passed resolution would not be allowed to make it to the Senate floor for a vote, where it likely would have passed, Rep. Sandstrom lamented that "there are powerful forces working against us"--a reference to pressure from Washington.

Laying a Firm Foundation

Enabling Sandstrom to do his job were citizens throughout the state who had laid the foundation of understanding with their own representatives in the legislature. Committees were formed to coordinate their efforts. Letters were written to the legislators; information about the issue was made available through phone calls, e-mails, and letters to the editors of local newspapers, magazine advertisements, and calls to local talk radio. Concerned citizens contributed time and financial support to the effort. The grass-roots efforts created a framework of understanding within the legislature and the community at large.