Good Wednesday morning from Salt Lake City. It’s veto override day. Lawmakers return to the hill to attempt to override two of Gov. Gary Herbert’s vetoes. We’ll have full coverage of the session throughout the day.
Davis County GOP shenanigans. A secret meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Barbara Bush passes.
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Tick Tock
- 3 days until the Utah GOP State Convention (4/21/2018)
- 10 days until the Utah Democratic State Convention (4/28/2018)
- 19 days until the final day a veto override session may begin (5/7/2018)
- 69 days until the 2018 Primary Election (6/26/2018)
- 203 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)
- 286 days until the first day of the 2019 Utah Legislature (1/28/2019)
- 933 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)
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Here are the news stories driving Wednesday
When does 60-percent not equal 60-percent?
Davis County Republicans say candidates needed 60-percent of the vote to win the nomination unless you gather signatures. Then you need 70-percent. That rule change sent one legislative race to a primary that normally would be over [Utah Policy].
Where do the ballot initiatives stand?
Here are how many verified signatures each ballot initiative has as of Tuesday [Utah Policy].
Other Utah headlines
- A new report shows outdoor recreation generates more than $12 billion annually in Utah and is responsible for more than 100,000 jobs [Deseret News].
- A state audit says the Salt Lake City Police Department should get information to the public more quickly when public interest is high [Deseret News, Fox 13, Tribune].
- Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Mia Love argue President Trump needs to get congressional authorization for military strikes on Syria [Tribune].
- A new Utah law will allow 17-year-olds to vote in a primary election if they will be 18 by the time of the general election [Deseret News].
- Staff shortages at the Salt Lake County jail could get worse before things improve. Low pay and meager benefits are hurting efforts to staff up [Tribune].
National headlines
- Huge scoop! CIA Director Mike Pompeo secretly met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un over Easter weekend [Washington Post].
- Barbara Bush, former first lady, and matriarch of the Bush political dynasty dies at the age of 92. She was the second woman to be the wife of one president and mother to another [New York Times].
- Fox News host Sean Hannity’s relationship with President Trump is so close that some White House staffers have called him the “shadow” chief of staff [Washington Post].
- Defense Secretary Jim Mattis wanted President Trump to seek congressional approval before approving airstrikes on Syria but was overruled by the president [New York Times].
- President Trump was reportedly so rattled by the FBI raid on Michael Cohen’s office he had trouble focusing on the military strikes against Syria [Washington Post].
- A flap over sanctions on Russia blows up. U.N. ambassador announced new sanctions on Russia on Sunday. President Trump was reportedly enraged as he had not approved the sanctions. The conflict erupted into the open when a White House official said Haley was “momentarily confused” about the sanctions [New York Times].
- Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch sided with the four liberal members of the court to rule in favor of an immigrant facing deportation. The Court ruled the Filipino immigrant’s second first-degree burglary conviction did not qualify as cause for removal [The Hill].
- A second Cambridge Analytica whistleblower says the company got the personal data of far more than the 87 million users Facebook admits were affected by the data leak [Business Insider].
- It’s tax day again! Technical difficulties at the IRS made it impossible for taxpayers to file online for a good portion of Tuesday. The agency has extended the filing deadline by one day [CNN Money].
On this day in history
- 1506 – The cornerstone was placed for St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
- 1775 – Paul Revere’s midnight ride. Paul Revere began his famous ride through the Massachusetts countryside, crying out “The British are coming!” to rally the Minutemen.
- 1831 – The University of Alabama is founded in Tuscaloosa.
- 1906 – An earthquake destroys much of San Francisco, California.
- 1923 – Yankee Stadium opens.
- 1930 – The British Broadcasting Corporation announced that “there is no news” in their evening report.
- 1942 – Lt. Col. James Doolittle led a squadron of B-25 bombers in a surprise raid against Tokyo.
- 1983 – A suicide bomber in Lebanon destroys the U.S. embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people.
