Utah Policy Daily Newsletter

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Situational Analysis - April 22, 2021

Happy Thursday! Today is Earth Day and National Take Our Kids to Work Day. Utah's DEQ has some ideas on how you can observe Earth Day. Check them out.

News you need to know

President Biden is expected to recognize the massacre of Armenians as genocide. It's a big deal. Turkey is not impressed, as they have spent more than 100 years denying that a genocide occurred.
As the head of ALEC, Utah Senate President Stuart Adams wants to lead a multi-state effort to rein in social media companies. Legal experts say that's unconstitutional.
The Senate voted 51-49 yesterday to confirm Vanita Gupta as associate attorney general, the third ranking official at the Department of Justice. Sen. Lisa Murkowski was the only Republican to vote for Gupta's confirmation.
The NRA launched a $2 million campaign to oppose Biden gun-control agenda, even as its leaders are called to testify in the second week of a bankruptcy trial.
House Republicans' recently unveiled their Energy Innovation Agenda: "Our solutions promote innovation, invest in clean energy infrastructure, and outline initiatives in natural solutions and conservation," said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

Countdown

2 days until the United Utah Party Organizing Convention and the Utah County GOP convention (04/24/2021)
8 days until the Biden/Harris administration's first 100 days are up (04/30/2021)
9 days until the in-person Utah GOP Organizing Convention (05/01/2021)
142 days until half-way through the Cox/Henderson's administration's 500-day plan (09/11/2021)

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Utah Headlines

Deseret News

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom calls out religious freedom violations from 2020.
Court packing? This isn't the first time this bad idea has come forward
Utah Supreme Court deliberating who decides the future of Salt Lake City land use. The outcome of the Utah Inland Port Authority lawsuit won't just decide fate of port, but set statewide precedent for city powers
Survey shows preference for Dixie State's current name. Other top choices? St. George and Deseret State universities.
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney opposes Biden plan to pull U.S. troops from Afghanistan while other GOP members of Utah's congressional delegation support Biden's plan to withdraw all U.S. troops by Sept. 11
LDS Church donates funds and formed a new partnership to help sex trafficking victims in Hawaii.
Enough talking - becoming a climate science leader takes a lot more than a promise

Salt Lake Tribune

Former Arizona politician sentenced for human smuggling in Utah in cases of adoption fraud.
Utah Pride Center boss Rob Moolman stepping down after an active, sometimes-stormy tenure
Salt Lake City Council seeks replacement to take over west-side seat as District 2 council member Andrew Johnston steps down to direct homelessness policy and outreach.
Astrid S. Tuminez: Making Utah Valley University a 'green' campus in more ways than one
Who will control Salt Lake City's inland port? Utah Supreme Court wades into the legal land battle.

Other Utah News Sources

Provo Municipal Council asked if diversity in Provo matters (Daily Herald)
Utah County Commission approves budget changes, clearing way for property tax rollback (Daily Herald)
Spanish Fork City Council adjusts accessory dwelling unit policy to align with new law (Daily Herald)
Former GOP leader insists he acted fast against harassment claims, says he's being 'Kavanaughed' (KUTV)
How a Utah renter fought back after being asked for sex to forgive overdue rent (KUTV)
Day after Chauvin verdict, Cox, Henderson ceremonially sign 12 police reform bills into law (KUTV)
IN FOCUS Discussion: Derek Chauvin's murder trial verdict (ABC4)
Ex Mantua Police Chief speaks out after termination, says he was 'cheated' (ABC4)
Sen. Mike Lee, Rep. Chris Stewart hold virtual town hall (Fox13)

COVID Corner

There were 590 new cases in Utah on Wednesday, the most in a single day since April 6 and 3 new deaths. The number of Utahns fully vaccinated against the coronavirus reached almost 820,000. (Salt Lake Tribune)
The Tokyo Olympics are fast approaching and COVID-19 vaccinations are recommended but not mandatory for the athletes. (Deseret News)
Utah County senior companionship program pushing through COVID-19 pandemic (Daily Herald)
Early data indicates another possible rise in Utah coronavirus cases (KSL)
Utah in jeopardy of not reaching COVID-19 herd immunity (KUTV)
Utah's COVID-19 long haulers optimistic about federal research bill (KUTV)
India records world's biggest single-day rise in coronavirus cases, reporting 314,835 new daily cases (Reuters)
U.S. sees unprecedented drop in vaccinations over past week as they decline 11 percent (Washington Post)

National Headlines

Police chiefs hail Chauvin verdict as a key step to healing (AP)
Justice Dept. Opens Broad Inquiry Into Minneapolis Police - The investigation is a sign that President Biden intends to wield federal law enforcement as a tool to combat police abuses. (New York Times)
Chauvin trial hardens political fault lines. Nearly every Democrat at every level issued statements heralding the decision. Few Republicans followed suit. (Politico)
Derek Chauvin's personal history: About his ex-wife, stepchildren, past discipline and more (Fox News)
What Teenagers Have Learned From a Tumultuous Time in Politics - Soon-to-be voters say they're disillusioned by what they've observed, but many are also motivated to political action. (New York Times)
They believe in ambitious women. But they also see the cost. (New York Times)
Liz Cheney faces the wrath of MAGA - The Wyoming congresswoman challenged Republicans to turn away from former President Trump after Jan. 6. Instead, they turned on her. (New York Times)
Chauvin verdict injects a fresh jolt of momentum into police overhaul efforts (Washington Post)
Chauvin verdict spotlights Harris's unique role (Washington Post)
Biden convenes world leaders for virtual climate summit, seeking to restore U.S. leadership. Harris says 'it is imperative we act' (Washington Post)
U.S. pledges to halve its emissions by 2030 in renewed climate fight (Reuters)
Russia arrests over 1,700 at rallies for hunger-striking Navalny (Reuters)
DC statehood faces a crossroads with congressional vote (AP)
House Dems ready to pass DC statehood Thursday, call on Senate to end filibuster to do same (Fox News)
Liberal advocacy group stirs debate, discomfort with primary challenges (The Hill)
Black Democrats urge party to shift its voting rights push (Politico)
Dems' ambitions narrow as political reality sets in (Politico)

Policy News

It's Time for President Biden to Restore Protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments
In response to Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland's visit to Utah, and as we celebrate Earth Week, Anna Peterson, Executive Director of The Mountain Pact released the following statement encouraging swift action by President Biden to restore and expand protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments:

Sen. Romney: U.S. Withdrawal from Afghanistan Will Have Serious Consequences
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today released the following statement after attending a Senate briefing with Administration officials on Afghanistan and the recently announced withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Lee and Republican Coalition Issue Joint Statement on Earmark Ban Victory
Following a vote by Senate Republicans to keep the ban on earmarks, Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), Steve Daines (R-MT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), James Risch (R-ID), Rick Scott (R-FL), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Rand Paul (R-KY), Rob Portman (R-OH), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Braun (R-IN), and Joni Ernst (R-IA) issued the following joint statement:

Rep. Stewart Introduces the Ensuring Access to Domestic Mineral Production Act
Congressman Chris Stewart (R-UT) recently introduced the Ensuring Access to Domestic Mineral Production Act. This legislation ensures America's economic and national security.

Romney Secures Measures to Counter China Threat
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today secured seven of his amendments in the bipartisan Strategic Competition Act of 2021 aimed at developing a strategy to encourage China to play by the rules of the international community. One of his amendments would mandate a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Olympics in light of the Chinese Communist Party's ongoing human rights abuses, including the Uyghur genocide. The bill passed the Committee by a voice vote and now awaits consideration by the full Senate.

Business Headlines

Mike Lee says Apple, Google app store strategies are an abuse of market power (Deseret News)
Kids' cellphone startup Gabb grabs $14M in new funding, counts Taysom Hill among investors (Deseret News)
Ogden City looking to give financial boost to local company seeking to relocate downtown (Standard Examiner)
California wants our hydrogen (we don't) (Utah Business)
GREENbike offers $1 annual pass to essential workers in 2021 (Utah Business)
New tech utopia in Provo, Utah booming. Provo has been ranked the best performing city in the country due to stunning wage and job growth (Fox Business)
EXCLUSIVE Texas energy fund shuts, founder says he squandered millions (Reuters)
American Airlines loss narrows as travel demand picks up (Reuters)
VC Firm Of Moderna Chairman Dumped $1.4 Billion Of Stock In Two Months (Forbes)

On This Day In History

(From History.com)

570 - Muhammad, Arabic prophet and founder of Islam is born in Mecca, Hejaz, Arabia.

1500 - The Portuguese discover and then claim Brazil.

1925 - Saltaire fire

1945 - Hitler admits defeat.

1857 - Sarah B. Cochran is born. She was an American coal magnate, philanthropist and women's suffrage supporter in southwestern Pennsylvania.

1891 - Laura Gilpin is born. An early photographer, she won acclaim for mastery of the platinum printing process in the early 1920s. Her early work with autochromes of still-life and portraits allowed her to record 35 years of vanishing rural America.

1904 - Robert Oppenheimer, American theoretical physicist known as the father of the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project), is born in NYC, New York.

1970 - The first Earth Day is celebrated.

1976 - Barbara Walters becomes the first female US nightly news anchor.

1994 - Former President Nixon dies.

1994 - 7,000 Tutsi slaughtered by Hutus in the stadium at Kibuye, Rwanda.

2000 - In a pre-dawn raid, federal agents seize six-year-old Elin Gonzlez from his relatives' home in Miami, Florida.

2004 - Pat Tillman killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.

Wise Words

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors. We borrow it from our children."

~Native American proverb

Lighter Side

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