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Situational awareness - December 18, 2019

Good Wednesday morning from Salt Lake City.

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

• The House is poised for a historic vote on Wednesday to impeach President Trump.
• A new poll shows Ben McAdams' support for impeachment may not hurt him politically.
• Congress advanced a $1.4 trillion spending bill to avoid a government shutdown.

TICK TOCK

Days to the first day of the 2020 Utah Legislature: 40 (1/27/2020)

Days to the 2020 Iowa Caucuses: 47 (2/3/2020)

Days to the Utah presidential primaries: 76 (3/3/2020)

Days to the final day of the 2020 Utah Legislature: 85 (3/12/2020)

Days to the 2020 Utah primary elections: 195 (6/30/2020)

Days to the 2020 election: 321 (11/3/2020)

Today At Utah Policy

OTHER UTAH HEADLINES

Deseret News

• Hal Boyd & Lynn Chapman: The Washington Post says the Church of Jesus Christ has billions. Thank goodness
• Op-ed: The UK has voted. What are the lessons worth learning?
• Jay Evensen: Trump's new homeless czar could shake things up
• Should Congress set national standard for college athlete compensation?
• Poll: Utahns split over impeaching Trump
• Utah Democrat resurrects bill for universal background checks on gun sales
• 2 referendums submitted to reverse Utah tax reform

Salt Lake Tribune

• Every senior at Utah's Monticello High got a diploma in 2019
• In Utah, deaths on the job increased 14% in 2018
• Sen. Mitt Romney isn't taking sides ahead of Senate trial: 'I will act as a juror and will be unbiased.'
• Bill on universal background checks for firearms sales to get another shot in the Utah Legislature
• Another group launches referendum to dump Utah's new tax reform

Other

• Utah County Commission approves 67.4% increase to county portion of property taxes (Daily Herald)
• Weber County poverty exceeds Utah's other largest populated counties, barely (Standard-Examiner)

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NATIONAL HEADLINES

Historic day ahead

The House will almost assuredly impeach President Donald Trump today. The vote will likely be along party lines, save a handful of members who will cross over [AP].

Democrats appear to have enough support to pass both articles of impeachment when they come up for a vote later Wednesday. Here's where every member of the House stands ahead of today's historic vote [New York Times].

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Trump's final impeachment gambit

President Trump sent a bonkers six-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday ripping Democrats and calling the impeachment an "attempted coup" and comparing the process to the Salem Witch Trials. The letter was riddled with inaccuracies and falsehoods [Washington Post].

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Avoiding a government shutdown

The House approved a $1.4 trillion spending bill on Tuesday. The measure funds President Trump's border wall while increasing spending on several domestic programs [AP].

The Senate passed a $738 billion defense bill on Tuesday, sending the measure to President Trump's desk [New York Times].

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FISA reforms

The secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ordered the FBI to change how investigators seek permission for surveillance targeting Americans following reports that judges were misled about the rationale for wiretapping a former Trump campaign adviser [New York Times].

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BUSINESS HEADLINES

• Op-ed: Lee's immigration bill will give Silicon Slopes the high-tech workers it needs (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Dominion Energy and partner look to transform Utah hog waste into energy (Deseret News)
• Fast-rising personal debt driving Lending Club's success (Deseret News)

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Policy News

Curtis introduces clean energy incentivizing 'INVEST Act'
Representative John Curtis (R-UT), introduced H.R 5409, the Incentivizing New and Valuable Energy Storage Technology (INVEST) Act, which promotes storage technology in the energy industry.

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Romney applauds passage of defense bill with critical provisions for national security, Utah's Hill Air Force Base
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) applauded Senate passage of the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which authorizes funding for our national defense, promotes the advancement of technological research, and provides for a pay raise for our troops.

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McAdams votes against budget-busting, rushed spending package
Congressman Ben McAdams voted against two fiscally-reckless, end-of-the-year spending bills that are loaded with unpaid for provisions, adding an additional $500 billion to the federal debt over 10 years.

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Gov. Herbert and REV West States release voluntary standards for EV charging stations
Governor Gary R. Herbert, on Friday Dec. 13, joined the governors of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming to reaffirm the region's commitment to developing coordinated electric vehicle infrastructure across the West, as well as to release voluntary minimum standards for those charging stations.

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More National Headlines

• Democrats Have Failed to Prove Their Case Against Trump (Atlantic)
• FISA Court Issues Rare Public Order Condemning FBI for Russia Probe Abuses and Demanding Reforms (National Review)
• IG Report Proves Adam Schiff Has Been Lying About Spygate Since The Beginning (Federalist)
• Dem rep from Trump district faces rowdy town hall, boos after backing impeachment (FOX News)
• CNN beclowns itself yet again (Powerline)
• In a rhetorical shift, Elizabeth Warren emphasizes 'choice' on health care (CNN)
• Europe Ensnared in a Web of Russian Spies (RealClearDefense)
• The Inevitable Unraveling of Our Post-World War II Institutions (American Greatness)
• Latvian government says it flagged 'suspicious' Hunter Biden payments in 2016 (John Solomon Reports)
• Kamala Harris Doesn't Understand How Polling Works (Free Beacon)
• Jersey City official refers to Jewish 'brutes,' asks if residents are 'brave enough' to explore shooters' message (JTA)

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1777 - The United States celebrates its first Thanksgiving, marking the recent victory by the American rebels over British General John Burgoyne at Saratoga in October.

1787 - New Jersey became the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

1865 - The 13th Amendment to the Constitution abolished slavery in the United States.

1917 - The resolution containing the language of the Eighteenth Amendment to enact Prohibition is passed by Congress.

1957 - The first nuclear facility in the United States to generate electricity, the Shippingport Atomic Power Station in Pennsylvania, went online.

1972 - Following the collapse of peace talks with North Vietnam, President Richard Nixon announced the beginning of Operation Linebacker II, a bombing campaign against targets in Hanoi and Haiphong.

1977 - United Airlines Flight 2860 crashes near Kaysville, Utah, killing all three crew members on board.

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