Good Wednesday morning from Salt Lake City.
Utah may miss the July 31 deadline to come up with a plan for Medicaid expansion. LDS Church reaffirms it's commitment to heterosexual marriages. The FBI is hindering Utah's plan to conduct stronger background checks on undocumented immigrants who want a driving privilege card.
Countdown:
- Days to the 2015 Utah municipal primary elections – 41
- Days to the 2015 election – 125
- Days to the 2016 Iowa Caucus (tentative) – 202
- Days to the opening day of the 2016 Utah Legislature – 209
- Days to the 2016 New Hampshire Primary – 211
- Days to the 2016 Utah primary election – 364
- Days until the 2016 presidential election – 497
Wednesday's top-10 headlines:
- Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox says the group working to find a compromise on Medicaid expansion might miss their self-imposed July 31 deadline [Utah Policy].
- The LDS Church sends a letter to members reaffirming the church's doctrinal commitment to traditional marriages [Tribune].
- The FBI is blocking a new Utah law requiring more stringent background checks on undocumented immigrants who want a driving privilege card [Tribune].
- The Utah GOP is making a big push to raise money ahead of next year's elections [Utah Policy].
- Nearly 100 cities want voters to consider a sales tax hike on this year's ballot to pay for transportation [Deseret News, Tribune].
- Jonathan Johnson is acting like he's running for governor in 2016 even though he hasn't officially declared his candidacy yet [Utah Policy].
- A Delta man who claimed he was the victim of anti-gay hate crimes admits to police he staged the attack himself [Tribune, Deseret News, ABC 4].
- President Barack Obama will announce an agreement with Cuba to open embassies in Washington and Havana in another move to re-establish diplomatic relations between the two countries [The Hill].
- Rep. Kraig Powell says Utah's adoption laws will have to change in the face of the Supreme Court ruling on marriage [Tribune].
- California passes one of the toughest childhood vaccination bills in the entire nation, requiring immunizations for nearly every schoolchild in the state [NPR].
On this day in history:
- 1847 – The first U.S. postage stamps were issued.
- 1863 – The Civil War Battle of Gettysburg began.
- 1898 – Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders led a charge up Cuba's heavily fortified San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American War.
- 1941 – NBC broadcast the first FCC-sanctioned TV commercial, a spot for Bulova watches shown during a Dodgers-Phillies baseball game. It cost Bulova $9.
- 1966 – The Medicare federal insurance program went into effect.
