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Situational awareness - January 17, 2020

Good morning from Salt Lake City and TGIF!


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Here are the stories you need to pay attention to this morning:

  • Trump's impeachment trial gets underway.
  • Rob Bishop teams up with Thomas Wright.
  • Mike Bloomberg set to campaign in Utah.

PROGRAMMING NOTE

MLK Day 01

We will not publish our morning newsletter on Monday, Jan. 20 because of the MLK Day holiday. Expect us to return to our normal publishing schedule on Tuesday, Jan. 21.


FRIDAY TRIVIA

This week's question comes from Ken Sizemore:

Name the seven Utah interlocal entities established in the early 1970s to provide a common forum to identify, discuss, study and resolve area wide problems.

Send your answers to me at mailbag@utahpolicy.com. The third reader to submit the correct answer gets to ask next week's question as well as one of our laptop stickers.

Good luck!


TICK TOCK

Days to the first day of the 2020 Utah Legislature: 11 (1/27/2020)

Days to the 2020 Iowa Caucuses: 18 (2/3/2020)

Days to the New Hampshire primaries: 26 (2/11/2020)

Days to the Utah presidential primaries: 47 (3/3/2020)

Days to the final day of the 2020 Utah Legislature: 56 (3/12/2020)

Days to the 2020 Utah primary elections: 166 (6/30/2020)

Days to the 2020 election: 292 (11/3/2020)



Today At Utah Policy

images/1000px_Article_Photos/20200116_Bishop_Wright.jpgThomas Wright picks Rob Bishop as his 2020 running mate
By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor
At first glance, GOP gubernatorial candidate Thomas Wright's pick of retiring U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop to be his lieutenant governor running mate -- announced Thursday -- may appear odd.
images/mugs/LaVarr_Webb.jpgWhy polling is helpful -- even if you dislike the results
By LaVarr Webb, Publisher
As readers know, at UtahPolicy.com we conduct regular survey research with Y2Analytics on public policy topics, political races and politician popularity.
images/1000px_Screenshots/20200116_Stewart_Fox.jpgStewart says Democrats are 'giddy' over impeaching president Trump
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Rep. Chris Stewart slammed Democrats on Thursday for being "giddy" over the impeachment of President Donald Trump.
images/1000px_Mugs/Michael_Bloomberg_01.jpgDemocratic presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg to campaign in Utah on Saturday
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg will make a campaign stop in Utah on Saturday.

OTHER UTAH HEADLINES

Deseret News

Salt Lake Tribune

Other



NATIONAL HEADLINES

President Trump is officially on trial

The Senate began the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on Thursday. The first day of the official proceedings were marked by conflict over whether to call witnesses and new evidence about President Trump's dealings in Ukraine [Washington Post].

The Senate is cracking down on reporters covering the impeachment trial, hindering their ability to do their job covering the proceedings [CNN].


Ukraine scandal

Lev Parnas, the indicted former associate of Rudy Giuliani, alleged President Trump was fully aware of efforts to push the Ukrainian government to open an investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden. Parnas also says Trump tried to fire Ambassador Maria Yovanovitch multiple times [Politico].

Parnas accused former Energy Secretary Rick Perry of telling Ukraine's president he had to announce an investigation into Joe Biden and the energy company that hired Biden's son as a board member when he attended the new president's inauguration last May [Bloomberg].

The non-partisan Government Accountability Office says the Trump administration broke the law when it withheld aid to Ukraine [New York Times].


Iran

Iran's supreme leader called President Trump a "clown" who will "push a poisonous dagger" into the backs of the Iranian people [AP].

Several U.S. service members were injured during last week's Iranian missile attack on an Iraqi air base despite initial claims that no casualties had taken place [CNN].


Trade deal

The Senate passed the revamped North American trade agreement to re-write the rules of trade with Mexico and Canada [NBC News].


Tax cuts

The Trump tax cuts delivered a $32 billion windfall to the top six U.S. banks as they cut jobs, cut back on new borrowing and delivered bigger payouts to shareholders [Bloomberg].


Yikes!

A Georgia election server contains evidence it was possibly hacked before the 2016 presidential election according to an election security expert [Politico].


Polling

A new poll shows black Americans are deeply pessimistic about opportunities available to them in the United States. The survey also finds that more than 8 in 10 black Americans believe President Trump is a racist and he has made racism a bigger problem in the country [Washington Post].


Mystery virus

A mysterious SARS-like virus has spread from China to Japan [Bloomberg].



BUSINESS HEADLINES


Policy News

Rep. Patrice Arent announces retirement at end of 2020
Representative Patrice Arent (D - House District 36) has issued the following statement:
Mayor Mendenhall announces plan for temporary winter shelter
After weeks of work in coordination with the Salt Lake City Council, service providers, Salt Lake County, and State partners, Mayor Erin Mendenhall today announced the temporary expansion of up to 145 beds available to unsheltered individuals in Salt Lake City.
images/1000px_Logos/WTC_Utah_Logo.pngJoin WTC Utah on Jan 24 for a business luncheon with the Consul General of Switzerland in San Francisco
World Trade Center Utah, in partnership with the Governor's Office of Economic Development and the Salt Lake Chamber, invites you to a luncheon welcoming The Honorable Benedikt Wechsler, Consul General of the Confederation of Helvetica (Switzerland) in San Francisco.
Casual Friday: Weekend Events & Outdoors Report
Outdoors Report--Salt Lake Tribune:Sutherland Institute's campaign against Bears Ears was relentless, effective and mostly funded by a tight circle of activists

More National Headlines


ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1605 - Don Quixote was published.

1946 - The U.N. Security Council met for the first time.

1961 - In his farewell address, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned against "the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex."

1977 - Convicted killer Gary Gilmore was executed by firing squad in Utah. It was the first execution since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty the previous year.

1988 - President Bill Clinton became the first U.S. president to testify as a defendant in a criminal or civil suit when he answered questions from lawyers for Paula Jones, who had accused Clinton of sexual harassment.


Wise Words

Youth


"It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men."Frederick Douglass

Lighter Side

Canada Here They Come


Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that they'll no longer be senior members of the royal family and they might move to Canada. I give them a lot of credit - tons of celebrities always threaten to move to Canada; they're actually doing it."- JIMMY FALLON

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