Good Wednesday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 53rd day of the year. There are 312 days remaining in 2017.
Utah could change the way public lands are managed. Trump plans a crackdown on undocumented immigrants.
The clock:
- 15 days until the final day of the 2017 Utah Legislature (3/9/2017)
- 258 days until the 2017 municipal elections (11/7/2017)
- 334 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)
- 379 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)
- 623 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)
- 1350 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)
Here are the stories making news in politics this morning:
- Rep. Mike Noel wants to change the way public lands are managed in Utah, including requiring a positive vote by 2/3rds of the legislature before any lands are sold [Utah Policy].
- Sen. Mike Lee says he wants to probe into China granting President Donald Trump a trademark on his name shortly after he became president [Utah Policy]. Lee also says Congress is working to undo many last-minute executive orders implemented by Barack Obama before he left office [Deseret News].
- Former Labor Secretary Tom Perez, who is running to head the Democratic National Committee, visits Utah to boost local Democrats [Utah Policy]. Here’s a podcast of our interview with Perez [Utah Policy].
- LaVarr Webb argues that Donald Trump‘s penchant for causing chaos could be the catalyst for shaking up Washington [Utah Policy].
- A new television ad campaign aims to build support for the Bears Ears national monument [Utah Policy].
- A Senate committee holds a bill providing a mechanism for removing elected officials who are mentally incapacitated. The measure is in response to Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott who seemingly is suffering from diminished capacity [Deseret News, Tribune].
- The Utah House approves a measure allowing Utahns as young as 18 to carry concealed weapons [Tribune].
- Rep. Jason Chaffetz says he believes the investigation into the Trump administration’s ties to Russia is better handled by another Congressional Committee, not his Oversight panel [Deseret News]. Chaffetz says President Donald Trump is poised to take action on overturning the Bears Ears National Monument created by Barack Obama last year [Deseret News]. Chaffetz wants to launch an investigation into a message posted on Twitter from Bryce Canyon National Park welcoming the Bears Ears Monument [Tribune].
- President Donald Trump is pushing a stricter enforcement of immigration laws, including more aggressive detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants who commit crimes [New York Times].
- The Trump administration could roll back protections for transgender students established under the Obama administration, including a directive to require public schools to allow students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that match their identities [Washington Post].
On this day in history:
- 1819 – Spain ceded Florida to the United States.
- 1924 – Calvin Coolidge delivered the first presidential radio broadcast from the White House.
- 1980 – In one of the most dramatic upsets in Olympics history, the underdog U.S. hockey team made up of collegians and second-tier professional players, defeated the defending champion Soviet team, regarded as the world’s finest, 4-3, at the Winter Games in Lake Placid, N.Y.
