How to Sound Smart About Utah Politics – May 29, 2014

Hatch says it’s inevitable that same-sex marriage will become legal. Democrat Doug Owens calls for the resignation of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki. Students say Wasatch High School altered their yearbook photos without permission.

 

Countdown:

  • 26 days until Utah’s 2014 primary elections
  • 159 days to the 2014 midterm elections
  • 242 days to the start of the 2015 Utah Legislature
  • 523 days until the 2015 elections
  • 599 days to the 2016 Iowa Caucuses (tentative)
  • 894 days to the 2016 presidential election

Thursday’s top Utah political news stories:

  • Sen. Orrin Hatch says same-sex marriage will probably become the land of the land sooner or later [Tribune, Deseret News, Daily Herald].
  • Democrat Doug Owens says Secretary of Veterans Affiars Eric Shinseki should resign immediately due to the burgeoning scandal in the VA medical system [Tribune].
  • Utah lawmakers are considering changes to the way they deal with budget surpluses [Utah Policy].
  • Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams launches a diversity and non-discrimination campaign for employees [Tribune, Deseret News].
  • Several girls at Wasatch High School say the school altered their yearbook photos to cover up exposed skin [Tribune].
  • Consumer confidence in Utah slipped a bit last month, but still remains high [Tribune].
  • There are rumors that Jon Huntsman, Sr. is angling to buy the Salt Lake Tribune [Salt Lake Magazine].

On this day in history:

  • 1765 – Patrick Henry denounced the Stamp Act saying “If this be treason, make the most of it!”
  • 1790 – Rhode Island became the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the United States Constitution.
  • 1848 – Wisconsin became the 30th state of the union.
  • 1917 – John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States, was born in Massachusetts.
  • 1953 – Sir Edmund Hillary and sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
  • 1988 – President Ronald Reagan began his first visit to the Soviet Union.
  • 1990 – Boris Yeltsin was elected president of the Russian republic.
  • 2004 – A memorial to America’s World War II veterans was dedicated on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.