were likely to do so. I don't think anyone assumed they didn't want to leave. He made a decision to stick to his long stated position, in light of every threat the OR has made.

That isn't the attitude of someone who thought the OR was bluffing. A lot of commentary I have seen on this issue makes the assumption that the Utah state legislature and the Gov were short sighted to allow the show to leave. That is silly because I don't think there is a person more concerned about Utah's long term success than Gov Herbert. He signed the resolution knowing full well what it meant. A monument designation has longer, far reaching impact (practically forever) to the state than a trade show that signs contracts every three years for sweet heart government subsidies.