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Situational awareness - July 6, 2020

Good morning from Salt Lake City

Let's Monday!

TICK TOCK

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

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

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

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

• Coronavirus cases are exploding in states that rushed to open up their economies.
• The Supreme Court still has a number of big cases to decide before the current term ends.
• Spencer Cox's chances of winning the GOP race for governor grow.

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Today At Utah Policy

OTHER UTAH HEADLINES

Deseret News

• Pignanelli & Webb: Primary election continues wild and crazy year of pandemic, plunging economy, protests and politics
• Extended deadline to file census forms gives Utah officials hope to improve survey response
• Rep. McAdams still favored in 4th Congressional District race
• State tax incentive program logs record year with 13,000 promised jobs and $150 million-plus in breaks
• After weeks of protests, D.A. expected to rule on high-profile police shooting this week
• Trump order to block international teachers may have 'devastating effect' on language programs

Salt Lake Tribune

• Utah coal counties pledge $20M in state money to help get Oakland port back on track
• Dr. Angela Dunn's job is 'rock solid,' her boss says, responding to rumors that Utah's epidemiologist was fired
• A third of recent UTA pass holders say they may never return
• Blake Moore widens lead in tight 1st District congressional race
• Down by 39K votes, David Leavitt says he won't concede attorney general race
• Burgess Owens opposes NFL playing unofficial Black national anthem before games
• Each of Utah's Republican candidates for governor won - and lost - these counties

Other

• Utah County commissioners clash before signing off on property tax rate (Daily Herald)
• Blake Moore widens lead for GOP nomination in 1st District U.S. House race (Standard-Examiner)
• The Reopening: Churches across the nation begin holding in-person services as some states ease pandemic restrictions (Standard-Examiner)

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NATIONAL HEADLINES

Coronavirus

There is growing evidence that the coronavirus can remain airborne indoors and is infectious is smaller quantities than originally thought [WaPo].

A rush to reopen the economy led to a spike in coronavirus cases [WaPo].

Florida and Texas reported a surge of coronavirus cases over the weekend [CNBC].

The growth of the virus is outpacing testing in several coronavirus hotspots [Axios].

Several Texas cities are warning their hospitals will run out of beds in two weeks or sooner [Texas Tribune].

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SCOTUS

The Supreme Court still has a number of blockbuster cases to decide this term, including Trump's taxes and whether religious organizations are required to pay for birth control under the Affordable Care Act [CNN].

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As if 2020 wasn't crazy enough

Musician Kanye West tweeted over the weekend that he's running for president. It's not clear if he's serious, or it's a publicity stunt for his upcoming album [Bloomberg].

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Economy

Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia said the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic is better than expected so far [Bloomberg].

President Trump signed an extension of the PPP small business coronavirus relief program on Saturday [CNBC].

A report predicts 100,000 brick and mortar retail stores in the U.S. will close by 2025 [Axios].

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2020

Sen. Tammy Duckworth is gaining steam as a possible running mate for presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden [WaPo].

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Sportsball

The Washington Redskins announced they would undergo a "thorough review" of their team nickname after a threat to pull funding from FedEx and Nike [ESPN].

If the Redskins do change their name, here are five possibilities for a new team moniker [Sporting News].

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That's a good prank

Heavily armed far-right groups showed up at Gettysburg on Saturday in response to posts on social media by supposed Antifa leaders about a planned event to burn the American flag at the historic battleground. The expected Antifa event failed to materialize as the event was likely a hoax [BBC].

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BUSINESS HEADLINES

• Utah coal counties pledge $20M in state money to help get Oakland port back on track (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Congress approves emergency loan program extension, $130 billion still available for distressed businesses (Deseret News)
• State tax incentive program logs record year with 13,000 promised jobs and $150 million-plus in breaks (Deseret News)
• This Utah company is developing a new Harry Potter game. But there's some backlash (Deseret News)
• Ogden, Weber and Davis counties looking to give federal dollars to local businesses impacted by pandemic (Standard-Examiner)

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Policy News

India as a supply chain partner & alternative to China
With the growing uncertainty of COVID-19's effect on global supply chains as well as increasing challenges of sourcing in China, it is vital for Utah companies to optimize their production and distribution of products by looking for new partners and opportunities. This session of our Virtual Trade Mission will focus on operations and supply chain solutions in India.

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Business community requests updated health guidelines and face mask requirement to combat Covid-19
The Salt Lake Chamber, along with the signatories below, has issued the following statement calling upon state leaders to update health guidelines to combat the coronavirus to include the requirement to wear a face mask in public places when social distancing is not feasible:

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CYBER24 pisode 87: Risk ransomware or invest in security? Small biz struggles
In this episode of the CYBER24 podcast, presented by VLCM, we discuss why many businesses are willing to risk a cybersecurity incident rather than invest in security training and technology. We also look into a recent phishing incident at a Utah hospital system.

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More National Headlines

• Protest mob shoots eight year old girl in Atlanta (WSB-TV)
• Trump's Magnificent Speech (American Greatness)
• 'Protests had a lot to do with it': Florida official says demonstrations contributed to coronavirus spike (Washington Examiner)
• There's a War Going On Over Kamala Harris's Wikipedia Page, with Unflattering Elements Vanishing (The Intercept)
• WHO Quietly Changes COVID Timeline following Republican Questioning (National Review)
• The New York Times Tries to Rewrite Very Recent History (The Dispatch)
• Six Weeks, Six Cities, 600 Murders (Townhall)
• Why is Black Lives Matter praising a terrorist? (Spectator)
• Tammy Duckworth refuses to rule out tearing down statues of George Washington (Twitchy)
• In 2020, Words Are 'Violence,' Arson Is Not (Reason)
• Cops Re-Thinking Protest Rules After Car Driven by Black Man Kills White Seattle BLM Freeway Blocker (PJ Media)

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1854 - The Republican Party was formally established at a meeting in Michigan.

1885 - French bacteriologist Louis Pasteur inoculated a human being for the first time - a boy, who had been bitten by a rabid dog. The youngster didn't develop rabies.

1942 - Anne Frank and her family took refuge in a secret section of an Amsterdam warehouse where they hid from the Nazis for two years.

1957 - John Lennon and Paul McCartney met for the first time as teenagers at a church in their native Liverpool, England, following a performance by Lennon's band, the Quarrymen.

1984 - President Ronald Reagan said it was a "probability" that many young people now paying into Social Security "will never be able to receive as much as they're paying."

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