Huntsman takes a lead over Cox in a new poll. Top stories to start your Tuesday from UtahPolicy.com

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Situational awareness - June 16, 2020

Good Tuesday morning from Salt Lake City

TICK TOCK

14 days to the 2020 Utah primary elections (6/30/2020)

140 Days to the 2020 election (11/3/2020)

218 days to inauguration day (01/20/2021)

223 days to the start of the 2021 Utah Legislature (1/25/2021)

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

HAPPY BLOOMSDAY!

If like me, you're a fan of James Joyce, you know that June 16th is "Bloomsday," a celebration of the author's life and legacy. His novel Ulysses follows Leopold Bloom on an ordinary day in Dublin on June 16, 1904.

"Every life is in many days, day after day. We walk through ourselves, meeting robbers, ghosts, giants, old men, young men, wives, widows, brother-in-love, but always meeting ourselves." - James Joyce, Ulysses.

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Today At Utah Policy

OTHER UTAH HEADLINES

Deseret News

Salt Lake Tribune

Other

NATIONAL HEADLINES

SCOTUS

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that federal employment law safeguards gay and transgender employees from discrimination in the workplace [Reuters].

The Court declined to hear 10 Second Amendment cases on Monday [Route 50].

The Justices rejected eight cases involving qualified immunity which shields government officials from lawsuits, including seven involving police accused of excessive force or other misconduct [Reuters].

The Court also refused to hear a case over whether local governments can declare themselves sanctuary cities [NBC News].

Police reform

President Donald Trump will sign an executive order on police reform Tuesday. The order will reportedly focus on police certification, creating a database to track officers accused of misconduct and sending out social workers on law enforcement calls involving people suspected of having mental health issues [NPR].

Infrastructure week

The Trump administration is considering a $1 trillion infrastructure spending proposal [Bloomberg].

Bolton's book

President Trump said former national security adviser John Bolton will have "criminal problems" if he moves forward with publishing his tell-all book from his time in the White House [Washington Post].

Little Rocket Man

North Korea blew up an office used to hold talks between that country and South Korea. The move is North Korea's most serious provocation in years [Bloomberg].

Coronavirus

An updated forecasting model projects 200,000 Covid-19 related deaths in the U.S. by October [CNN].

The FDA pulled the emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine to treat Covid-19 [NBC News].

New Zealand's boasts that they were coronavirus-free ended as two new cases popped up, caused by travelers from the UK [Guardian].

China is expanding their new lockdown in Beijing as the number of new cases has climbed above 100 [AP].

Uh-oh

India says three soldiers were killed during a skirmish with Chinese troops [AP].

This is an insane story

Prosecutors allege former eBay employees harassed a couple who wrote critical stories about the online retailer in their newsletter. The harassment included mailing live spiders, a pig fetus and a box of live cockroaches to the couple. The employees then allegedly offered to help the couple stop the harassment that the employees created [NBC News].

Back to normal?

The Oscars have been bushed back to April 25, 2021 [Variety].

Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred says he's "not confident" there will be a 2020 baseball season [ESPN].

Yikes!

Inflation in Zimbabwe jumped to 785.55% in May [Bloomberg].

BUSINESS HEADLINES

Policy News

More National Headlines

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1858 - Accepting the Illinois Republican Party's nomination for the U.S. Senate, Abraham Lincoln said the slavery issue had to be resolved, declaring, "A house divided against itself cannot stand."

1897 - The United States signed a treaty of annexation with Hawaii.

1903 - The Ford Motor Company is incorporated.

1963 - The Soviet Union launched the first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova, into orbit aboard Vostok 6.

1987 - A jury in New York acquitted Bernhard Goetz of attempted murder in the subway shooting of four young blacks he said were going to rob him; he was convicted of illegal weapons possession.

2011 - Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., announced his resignation from Congress, bowing to the furor caused by his sexually charged online dalliances with a former porn actress and other women.

Wise Words

"Don't be afraid to give up the good to go for the great." John D. Rockefeller

Lighter Side

"But Trump's defending bringing everyone together for a big-time spittle-fest. His advisers say that the recent Black Lives Matter protests in metropolitan areas will make it harder for liberals to criticize him. Nah, it's still easy to criticize him. Here, watch!" - STEPHEN COLBERT

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