 The UtahPolicy.com daily newsletter gets you up to speed on the top local and national news about politics and public policy. Send news tips or feedback to bschott@utahpolicy.com, or message us on Twitter. Situational awareness - August 30, 2019Good morning from Salt Lake City and TGIF!Thanks for reading Utah's must-read daily political news rundown. Please encourage your friends and colleagues to sign up for our emails.PROGRAMMING NOTENo newsletter on Monday as we'll be taking the day off for Labor Day. We will return to your inboxes and mobile devices on Tuesday. Have a safe and happy holiday. Here are the stories you need to pay attention to this morning:
Friday TriviaOur polling shows President Donald Trump sitting at 40% in Utah ahead of his 2020 re-election bid. Trump carried Utah in 2016 with only 45.5% of the vote, which is a shockingly low level of support in a heavily Republican state. What was the lowest support ever recorded by a winning presidential candidate in a popular vote statewide presidential election? Send your answers to me via email at bschott@utahpolicy.com. The first three readers to submit correct guesses will be recognized in Tuesday's newsletter. TICK TOCKDays to the 2019 Utah municipal elections: 67 (11/5/2019) Days to the first day of the 2020 Utah Legislature: 150 (1/27/2020) Days to the Utah presidential primaries: 186 (3/3/2020) Days to the 2020 Utah primary elections: 299 (6/23/2020) Days to the 2020 election: 431 (11/3/2020) Today At Utah Policy How should Utah fund roads? Our new poll shows Utahns oppose raising the gas tax or implementing tollsBy Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor Utahns recognize that the state per-gallon gasoline tax doesn't pay for all the road needs and that sales tax is diverted to roads, but they don't like the idea of raising the gas tax, and they really don't like the idea of charging tolls on some major roads, a new UtahPolicy.com/Y2 Analytics survey finds.  Bob Bernick's notebook: Trump's unpopularity could hurt Utah Republicans in 2020By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor Bob Bernick Could GOP President Donald Trump actually lose Utah next year?Very unlikely.  Utah Thrives podcast: Education outcomesBy Utah Foundation You might think, because Utah spends less per student in our public schools than any other state, that the results our students achieve in the classroom would also be low compared to states that spend more. But that's not true. OTHER UTAH HEADLINESDeseret News
Salt Lake Tribune
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NATIONAL HEADLINESBracing for a monsterHurricane Dorian could strike Florida over the coming days as a category 4 hurricane with winds of 130 mph. All of Florida is under a state of emergency [CNN].
Build the wallThe Trump administration is set to tap military construction funds to help build the wall on the U.S. Mexico border. Remember, Trump repeatedly promised during the 2016 campaign that Mexico would pay for the wall [CNN]. ComeyThe long-anticipated report from the inspector general about former FBI director James Comey says he violated FBI policy for not turning over memos when he was fired and by leaking details of those memos to the media. The report also says there's no evidence he leaked classified information, which President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused Comey of doing [WaPo]. Israel/IranIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu frantically tried to call President Trump to make sure he didn't meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who made a surprise appearance at the G7 summit in France [Axios]. 2020
Trump's personal assistant resignsMadeleine Westerhout, President Donald Trump's longtime assistant, suddenly resigned Thursday after Trump learned she had shared details about his family during an off-the-record dinner with reporters [NYT]. Trump faked phone calls with ChinaPresident Trump claimed earlier this week he had received phone calls from China about possibly making a deal to end the trade war. Administration officials said Thursday the phone calls Trump described didn't happen the way he said they did. They also said Trump was eager to project optimism and boost markets [CNN].
Immigration
Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.A press secretary for President Trump's re-election campaign bizarrely claimed that Trump does not lie despite plenty of evidence to the contrary [CNN]. Yikes!President Trump's re-election campaign sent out a video on social media featuring a logo used by a fascist group and a white supremacist website [Fast Company]. For your radarPending home sales fell sharply in July amid fears that the economy was heading toward recession [CNN]. BUSINESS HEADLINES
Policy NewsUtah companies receiving misleading mailers from 'UT Certificate Service' directing businesses to pay grossly inflated fee for company's Certificate of Existence which is already available for low cost from the State of UtahFrancine A. Giani, Executive Director of the Utah Department of Commerce, announced the Division of Corporations and Commercial Code and Division of Consumer Protection have received multiple reports that misleading letters are being sent to Utah businesses instructing owners to pay $72.50 for a Certificate of Existence with the state that normally costs $12.00 each. Casual Friday: Weekend Events & Outdoors Report Outdoors Report--KSL.com:Bear spotted on popular trail in Millcreek Canyon, hiker warns-- KSL.com: Salt Lake City approves $1.3M plan to repair Fisher Carriage House, open rec opportunities to public-- KSL.com: The secret life of Indian paintbrush-- KSL.com: Crews work to find cause, clean up after 3,000-foot rockfall in Zion-- KSL.com: Prehistoric Lake Bonneville trail progresses in Utah More National Headlines
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY30 B.C. - Cleopatra killed herself following the defeat of her forces by Octavian, the future first emperor of Rome. 1780 - Benedict Arnold betrayed the United States when he promised to secretly surrender the fort at West Point to the British army. He fled to England and died in poverty. 1967 - Thurgood Marshall is confirmed as the first African American Justice of the Supreme Court. Wise WordsHumanity "You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty." Mahatma Gandhi Lighter SideLotto Economy "Now get this: In Ohio, the Guinness world record was just broken for most people scratching Lotto tickets at the same time. Even worse, that's Trump's plan to fix the economy." - JIMMY FALLON Subscribers may receive special messages with information about new features, special offers, or public policy messages from clients and advertisers. |
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