Ten Things You Need to Know Today – Monday, December 14, 2015

Good Monday morning from Salt Lake City. There are 17 days left in 2015.

The next GOP presidential debate is Tuesday. The Fed is expected to raise interest rates this week. Utahns do not support Trump’s call to ban Muslims.

The clock:

• 42 days to the opening day of the 2016 Utah Legislature – (1/25/2016)
• 49 days to the 2016 Iowa Caucus – (2/1/2016)
• 57 days to the 2016 New Hampshire Primary (tentative) – (2/9/2016)
• 88 days to the final day of the 2016 Utah Legislature – (3/10/2016)
• 99 days to the Utah Republican and Democratic caucus meetings (3/22/2016)
• 131 days to the Utah Republican and Democratic State Conventions (4/23/2016)
• 198 days to the 2016 Utah primary election – (6/28/2016)
• 331 days until the 2016 presidential election – (11/8/2016)

Monday’s top-10 headlines:

1. CNN sets the lineup for Tuesday’s GOP debate in Las Vegas [New York Times, Washington Post].
2. A new national poll shows Hillary Clinton would defeat Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, but lose to Marco Rubio and Ben Carson [The Hill].
3. The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade this week [Washington Post].
4. A poll shows most Utahns do not agree with Trump’s call to bar Muslims from entering the U.S. [Utah Policy].
5. Gov. Gary Herbert appoints David Damschen to replace Richard Ellis as state treasurer [Utah Policy, Deseret News, Tribune, Fox 13].
6. A majority of Utahns support legalizing medical marijuana [Utah Policy].
7. Utahns are still waiting for Rep. Rob Bishop‘s long promised public lands legislation [Deseret News].
8. Gov. Herbert offers his thoughts on the decision by Utah lawmakers to authorize a lawsuit against the federal government over public lands in the state [Fox 13].
9. Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and new Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski advocate for more investment to reduce homelessness [Deseret News].
10. Biskupski names Patrick Leary as her chief of staff [Utah Policy, Deseret News, Tribune].

On this day in history:

• 1799 – George Washington died at his Mount Vernon home in Virginia.
• 1819 – Alabama became the 22nd state in the United States.
• 1911 – Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen became the first person to reach the South Pole.
• 1979 – The album “London Calling” by the Clash was released.
• 2012 – A gunman killed 26 people, including 20 children, at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.