Lee says it’s not inevitable that same-sex marriage will become legal across the country. Chaffetz calls for the resignation of Eric Shinseki. Hatch apologizes for remarks he made at a Memorial Day event.
Countdown:
- 25 days until Utah’s 2014 primary elections
- 158 days to the 2014 midterm elections
- 241 days to the start of the 2015 Utah Legislature
- 522 days until the 2015 elections
- 598 days to the 2016 Iowa Caucuses (tentative)
- 893 days to the 2016 presidential election
Friday’s top Utah political news stories:
- Sen. Mike Lee says it’s not inevitable that same-sex marriage will become legal across the United States [Deseret News].
- Rep. Jason Chaffetz joins the chorus calling for the resignation of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki [Deseret News, Tribune].
- Chaffetz names Fred Ferguson as his new chief of staff [Tribune, Deseret News].
- Sen. Orrin Hatch apologizes for making partisan political comments during a Memorial Day event [Tribune].
- The West Valley City Council advances a plan to possibly save the UTOPIA fiber optic network [KSL].
- Scott Anderson praises Gov. Gary Herbert’s Medicaid expansion alternative plan [Deseret News].
- Rep. Michael Kennedy, who is also a physician, admits to undercharging poor and uninsured patients in order to give them a break [Tribune].
On this day in history:
- 1431 – Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in France.
- 1539 – Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto landed in Florida.
- 1854 – The territories of Nebraska and Kansas were established.
- 1911 – The Indianapolis 500 was run for the first time.
- 1922 – The Lincoln Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C.
- 1989 – Protesters in China’s Tiananmen Square erected a 33-foot tall statue they called the “Goddess of Democracy.”
- 2005 – Vice President Dick Cheney predicted the Iraq war would end before the Bush administration left office.
