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Morning must reads for Monday, May 22, 2017

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Good Monday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 142nd day of the year. There are 223 days remaining in 2017. Today is the 123rd day of Donald Trump’s presidency.

The Utah GOP picks Rob Anderson to chair the party. Utah Republicans may be moving toward the political middle. Trump’s budget cuts $1.7 trillion from entitlement programs. 

The clock:

  • 26 days until the Utah Democratic State Convention at Weber State University (6/17/2017)

  • 85 days until the 2017 Utah primary election (8/15/2017)

  • 169 days until the 2017 election (11/7/2017)

  • 245 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)

  • 290 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)

  • 533 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)

  • 1,261 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today’s political TL; DR –

  • Utah Republicans tap Rob Anderson to be the new chair of the party, voting out James Evans who was seeking a third term as their leader [Utah Policy].
  • The Utah GOP took some steps toward the political middle by electing a more moderate leadership team on Saturday [Utah Policy].
  • Sen. Orrin Hatch and Gov. Gary Herbert‘s teams worked hard to ensure that the two men avoided getting booed at the Utah GOP convention on Saturday [Utah Policy].
  • Rep. Jason Chaffetz says government officials who leak information to the press should be jailed [Utah Policy].
  • Gov. Gary Herbert‘s office sets the rules for the special election to replace Rep. Jason Chaffetz when he leaves office on June 30 [Utah Policy].
  • Legislative leaders push back against the governor, saying they should be the ones to set the rules for the special election to replace Chaffetz [Utah Policy].
  • Our “Political Insiders” say President Trump made the wrong move when he dismissed FBI Director James Comey [Utah Policy].
  • Check out the latest episode of “Beg to Differ” with Bryan Schott and Rep. Mike Winder. They chew over the latest news from Trumpland plus the race to replace Rep. Jason Chaffetz [Utah Policy].
  • Chaffetz says he expects to speak with fired FBI Director James Comey on Monday [Politico].
  • President Donald Trump arrives in Israel after visiting Saudi Arabia. The direct flight between the two countries is the first direct flight by a U.S. President [Bloomberg].
  • President Trump’s budget proposal will slash entitlement programs like Medicaid and food stamps by $1.7 billion [Washington Post, Axios].
  • Hillary Clinton‘s campaign manager John Podesta says President Donald Trump is “absolutely crazy” and “unfit for office” [Politico].
  • Former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates speaks publicly about what she told the White House about Michael Flynn and her eventual firing by President Donald Trump [New Yorker].
  • Republicans are slowly coming around to the reality of human-caused climate change [Axios].
  • Young men in America are falling to the bottom of the income scale [Boston Globe].
  • The number of candidates for Jason Chaffetz‘s seat is exploding, with a half-dozen jumping into the race so far [Deseret News, Tribune].
  • County officials decide to place the new homeless resource center for men in South Salt Lake. That decision is prompting fear and anger from residents near the new facility [Deseret News]. However, nobody knows who actually made the decision to place the men’s facility there [Tribune].
  • Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder is reportedly considering taking the top cop position in Moab [Deseret News].
  • Draper will hire an outside counsel to investigate whether Councilwoman Michelle Weeks violated ethics rules or laws when she asked a city employee to proofread some emails that were not related to her position on the council [Tribune].
  • Here’s a great deep dive into Utah’s booming economy. Even though Utah has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation, many companies are having trouble finding qualified workers to fill open positions [New York Times]. 
  • Huntsman Corp. agrees to merge with Switzerland’s Clariant AG to create a company worth about $14 billion [Wall Street Journal].
  • The wet winter and spring mean Utah’s reservoirs are filling up fast after years of drought [Deseret News].

On this day in history:

  • 1868 – The Great Train Robbery took place near Marshfield, Ind., as seven members of the Reno gang made off with $96,000 in cash, gold and bonds.
  • 1939 – The foreign ministers of Germany and Italy signed a “Pact of Steel” committing the two countries to a military alliance.
  • 1947 – The Truman Doctrine was enacted as Congress appropriated military and economic aid for Greece and Turkey.
  • 1972 – Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit Moscow.
  • 1992 – Johnny Carson hosted NBC’s “Tonight Show” for the last time after nearly 30 years in the job.