Issue One and Principles First host Salt Lake City event on constitutional freedoms and executive overreach with former Republican presidential candidate John Kasich

This week, Issue One and Principles First convened an in-person discussion in Salt Lake City, Utah on constitutional freedoms, religious liberty, and executive overreach.

The event was in support of Issue One’s We the People Playbook — a new legislative reform package designed to restore congressional authority and uphold our system of checks and balances — and featured a conversation with John Kasich, the former governor of Ohio, congressional representative, and 2016 presidential candidate.

“Executive power was never meant to be unchecked, it was meant to be restrained,” Kasich said. “The presidency demands a steady hand and a respect for the limits our Constitution so carefully outlines. At moments of national division, we need leaders who appeal to our better angels — leaders whose moral clarity and integrity can help move our nation toward a more hopeful, united future.”

“We know that voters are increasingly concerned about too much power being concentrated in the presidency, and events like these allow us to go into communities and connect with citizens who are troubled by what’s happening in our country,” said Issue One Legislative Director  Jamie Neikrie, who interviewed Kasich at the Salt Lake City event. “Our message is clear: We need our elected leaders to stand up and protect our system of checks and balances. The Framers never intended for any president to wield unilateral power. Congress must rise to the occasion and fulfill its constitutional role. This isn’t about partisanship — it’s about whether our leaders choose to stand on the side of the Constitution or stand on the sidelines of history.”

The event also featured a panel discussion with former Congresswoman Claudine Schneider (R-RI); former Senate candidate Jared Young; and former CIA analyst, historian, and author Holly Berkley Fletcher. The panel was moderated by Mormon Women for Ethical Government’s Emma Petty Addams.

“Religious liberty and our most cherished freedoms don’t protect themselves. They rely on leaders who understand and follow the boundaries set by our Constitution,” said Principle First Executive Director Brittany Martinez. “When a president stretches beyond those limits, they put our fundamental rights at risk. That’s why we need members of Congress — Republicans, Democrats, and independents — to safeguard the Constitution that they swore an oath to protect and uphold the American promise of freedom for all.”

Learn more about Issue One’s Check the Exec campaign and the We the People Playbook.