Primary wins and losses around the country, Bear Ears land swap, water (or lack therof) in the West
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The Utah Policy newsletter is your one-stop source for political and policy-minded news. We scour the news so you don't have to! Send news tips or feedback to Holly Richardson at editor@utahpolicy.com.

 

Situational Analysis | May 18, 2022

Today is Wednesday and it's the first interim day of the year. Follow along at le.utah.gov

Be in the Know

  1. Big primaries around the country last night. Idaho governor Brad Little won his primary against his Lt. Governor, scandal-ridden Congressman Madison Cawthorn lost his re-election bid, Trump-backed Doug Mastriano who thinks the 2020 presidential election was stolen wins the Pennsylvania GOP governor primary and Cook Political immediately moves that race from "toss-up" to "Lean Democrat." The Dr. Oz Senate race is too close to call.

 

FROM OUR SPONSOR, CHRIS STEWART FOR CONGRESS

Congressman Chris Stewart is the Clear Choice for Current Issues

Representative Chris Stewart is working to preserve our constitutional rights, protect religious liberty, combat unnecessary surveilling of the American people, and support mental health through legislation. Learn more about how Chris Stewart is the conservative voice for Utah.

 

Utah Headlines

General

  • Is Elon Musk using fake accounts as an excuse to bail on Twitter deal? (Deseret News)
  • Gov. Spencer Cox to declare Nathan Chen Day ahead of Stars on Ice tour’s Salt Lake City stop (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • 1 million deaths later, how do we evaluate our response to COVID-19? (Deseret News)
  • Auto-related deaths spike nationally, Utah is no exception (KSL Newsradio)
  • Sculpture will honor workers who built world's first transcontinental railroad in Utah (Fox13)
  • Suspicious speaker box nets seizure of nearly $500K in narcotics in Washington City (St. George News)
  • Goodbye, Judeo-Christian nation. Hello, interfaith America (Deseret News)

Politics

  • Mike Lee among 11 Republicans to vote against aid package to Ukraine (Deseret News)
  • Katie Wright: Gerrymandering is bad no matter which party does it. (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • Ben Shelton: Utah should be the next state to allow psychologists to prescribe medication (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • Utah Sen. Mike Lee has a plan to combat baby formula shortage (Deseret News)
  • Commissioner Gardner plans to prepare Utah County for growth if reelected (Daily Herald)
  • Davis Commission Seat B candidates voice priorities (Standard-Examiner)
  • Weber County elections officials to open office to public as primary looms (Standard-Examiner)
  • GOP will skip on the Utah Debate Commission to keep their primary debates in-house (KUER)
  • Meet the Democrat who may be America’s fiercest advocate for religious freedom (Deseret News)

Education

  • Summit Academy placed on lockdown over perfect storm of events (KSL TV)

Environment

  • Salt Lake County mining ban draws lawsuit from Parleys quarry developers (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • The key to any water forecast in the West is really ‘what happens in the winter’ (KUER)
  • Water in the arid West: ‘We are standing on the shoulders of giants’ (Deseret News)
  • Why southeastern Utah is one of the most at-risk regions in the country for wildfires (Deseret News)
  • Utah lawmakers approve Bears Ears land swap (Fox13)
  • Utah lawmakers consider a pipeline from the Pacific Ocean to the Great Salt Lake (Fox13)

Family

  • Ogden domestic violence shelter calling for more housing amid increased need (KSL)
  • The overlooked factors that likely contributed to the baby formula crisis (Deseret News)
  • Experts spell out do's and don'ts for parents amid baby formula shortage (KSL)
  • Fewer US couples said 'I do' in 2020; Utah was 1 of 4 states that had more weddings (KSL)
  • Utah Food Bank, pantries working to keep up with rising demand (Fox13)

National Headlines

General

  • U.S. retail sales grew 0.9% in April. Retail spending rose for the fourth straight month as inflation remained high (Wall Street Journal)
  • Buffalo shooting suspect’s 673-page diary reveals descent into racist extremism (Wall Street Journal)
  • Taliban dissolves human rights commission that was ‘not considered necessary’ (The Hill)

Politics

  • This lawmaker says her fellow Republicans have ‘enabled’ white supremacy following Buffalo shooting (Deseret News)
  • In Buffalo, Biden mourns victims, says ‘evil will not win’ (AP)
  • Biden condemns 'poison' of U.S. white supremacy (Reuters)
  • Victories by Mastriano, Budd show potency of Trump’s false stolen election claims in GOP (Washington Post)
  • Fetterman wins Pennsylvania Democratic Senate primary (The Hill)

Ukraine 🇺🇦 

  • Estonia’s tough voice on Ukraine urges no compromise with Putin. Kaja Kallas, the prime minister, remembers the repression of life under Soviet rule and sees the same brutality in occupied Ukraine, which she believes is fighting for all of Europe. (New York Times)
  • On a Russian talk show, a retired colonel stuns his colleagues by pointing out that the invasion isn’t going well. (New York Times)
  • From civilian to soldier: Ukrainian army volunteer buried (AP)
  • Ukraine will get worse for isolated Russia, analyst says on state TV (Reuters)
  • Ukraine pushes back Russian forces from Kharkiv (Reuters)
  • Mariupol: Ukraine doing everything to save remaining fighters (BBC)
  • Ukraine war brings NATO mission on eastern flank into sharp relief (Politico)
  • The fall of Mariupol could conceal war crimes evidence from the world and give Russia's offensive a boost (CNN)
  • Ukraine hopes to swap steel mill fighters for Russian POWs (AP)
  • Fears for Mariupol defenders after surrender to Russia (Reuters)
  • Ukraine is becoming a scrapheap for Russian tanks (Reuters)
 

News Releases

Salt Lake County adopts West General Plan

The County Council voted to adopt the West General Plan, guiding the long-term vision for conservation and development in the westernmost unincorporated areas of the County, after four years of planning and engagement with municipalities and stakeholders.

The Plan’s area has a diverse geography, from the shorelines of the Great Salt Lake to the Oquirrh Mountains and south to the Traverse Mountains. The Plan serves as a starting conversation for the region to manage the growth that is coming. (Read More)


Rep. Stewart introduces the FORMULA Act in the House

Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT) and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the FORMULA Act to help American families feed their babies. This legislation will combat domestic baby formula shortages and bolster the supply chain. Recent shortages come in the immediate aftermath of a recall and temporary closure of a major American formula factory, but highlight systematic weaknesses in this vital supply chain. As a result, families in Utah and across the nation are struggling to feed their newborns. “New mothers are hunting from store to store to feed their infants,” said Rep. Stewart. “This is heartbreaking to see, and it should never happen in America. (Read More)


Are we alone in the cosmos? Space Dynamics Lab to help answer the question

Utah State University’s Space Dynamics Laboratory announced today that it has delivered a critical subsystem to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for integration onto the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. The Cryogenic Thermal Subsystem for the Roman Coronagraph Instrument was delivered to JPL at SDL’s facilities on USU’s Innovation Campus.

SDL designed, built, tested, and delivered the Cryogenic Thermal Subsystem, which includes two space-qualified radiators, two thermal straps, and support structures that will reject heat generated by the detectors of Roman’s sensitive Coronagraph Instrument. One of two instruments on the Roman Space Telescope, the Roman Coronagraph Instrument will demonstrate technology to enable future missions to discover and characterize planets that could sustain life within their star’s habitable zones. Planets within a habitable zone are those within the range of a star where water could exist on the planet’s surface. (Read More)


Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute: Economic and fiscal impact of 2030 Olympics in Utah

Estimated economic and fiscal impact shows cumulative $3.9 billion in output

The hosting of another Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Utah in 2030  would make a significant economic impact to the state, generating jobs, income, and economic output. An  analysis by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute shows this additional impact would build upon the significant  success of the 2002 Games, including the subsequent growth in both the state’s travel and tourism, and sports  and entertainment industries. 

“Salt Lake City enjoys a significant advantage of looking back on the lessons learned from hosting the 2002  Olympic Winter Games when examining the potential economic, social, and environmental impacts of hosting  the games in 2030,” said Gardner Institute director Natalie Gochnour. “The 2002 Games left a lasting legacy on  the Beehive State and left us favorably positioned to host another successful event.” (Read More)

 

Tweet of the Day

Screen Shot 2022-05-17 at 11.42.59 PM
 

Upcoming

  • Envision Utah Breakfast, May 25, 8:00-9:30 am, Register here
  • Ballots are mailed â€“ June 7
  • Primary election day â€“ June 28
  • General election â€“ Nov 8
 

On This Day In History

  • 1860 - Abraham Lincoln is nominated for the presidency at the Republican Convention.
  • 1896 - The US Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson, that “separate but equal” accommodations is Constitutional. It remained until the Brown v Board of Education ruling 48 years later.
  • 1920 - Pope John Paul II is born in Poland
  • 1953 - Jacqueline Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier.
  • 1971 - US President Richard Nixon rejects 60 demands of Congressional Black Caucus.
  • 1973 - Jeannette Rankin, American politician, 1st woman elected to US Congress (R-Montana), women's rights advocate and pacifist, dies at 92
  • 1980 - Mt. Saint Helens erupts
  • 2012 - Facebook raises $16 billion in largest tech IPO in U.S. history

Wise Words

"War is the slaughter of human beings, temporarily regarded as enemies, on as large a scale as possible."

 - Jeannette Rankin


Lighter Side

Q. What's a writing utensil's favorite place to go on vacation?

A. Pencil-vania!

 

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