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Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

Morning must reads for Friday, September 8, 2017

Good Friday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 251st day of the year. There are 114 days remaining in 2017.

The clock:

• 39 days until ballots for the 2017 general election are mailed to voters (10/17/2017)
• 60 days until the 2017 election (11/7/2017)
• 136 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)
• 181 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)
• 424 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)
• 1,152 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today's political TL; DR -

• POLL: Most Utahns say the University of Utah will have the best college football season this year [Utah Policy].
   
• Hillary Clinton says she thought Jason Chaffetz was actually Reince Priebus when she shook his hand at Donald Trump's inauguration [Utah Policy].
   
• Gov. Gary Herbert joins a bipartisan group of governors in Washington, D.C. urging Congress to give states more control of health insurance, which would help control costs and improve coverage [Deseret News, Tribune].
   
• Officials say they have made more than 1,000 arrests related to Operation Rio Grande [Deseret News, Tribune].
   
• Sen. Orrin Hatch votes in favor of a $15 billion aid package for victims of Hurricane Harvey while Sen. Mike Lee cast a "no" vote because the deal was tied to an increase in the debt limit without any spending cuts [Deseret News, Tribune].
   
• A Senate committee gives the thumbs up to Sen. Orrin Hatch's bill designed to improve child safety [Deseret News].
   
• Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski signs the lease agreement closing Rio Grande Street for two years [Tribune].
   
• Amazon says they will build a second headquarters somewhere in the U.S., and Utah officials want to build to host the facility [Deseret News, Tribune].

National headlines:

• While you were sleeping. A massive 8.1 earthquake hit off Mexico's southern coast, killing at least 5 people. It was the biggest earthquake to hit that country in a century [Associated Press].
   
• Republicans are reeling from President Donald Trump's sudden decision to side with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on raising the debt limit [Washington Post].
   
• Here's a deep dive into how Russian intelligence operatives created thousands of fake profiles on Facebook in order to push damaging information about Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election [New York Times].
• Donald Trump Jr. told Senate investigators on Thursday that he only took a meeting with a Russian lawyer in 2016 to learn whether Hillary Clinton was fit to be president [New York Times].
   
• Special counsel Robert Mueller wants to interview White House staffers about the statement about Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with a Russian lawyer during the 2016 election. The statement, which turned out to be false, was reportedly crafted by President Donald Trump himself [CNN].
   
• The Democratic National Committee is launching a major cyber security effort to make sure they are ready for any outside attacks in 2018 and beyond [BuzzFeed].
   
• House conservatives are mulling a plot to oust Paul Ryan as speaker, possibly replacing him with former speaker Newt Gingrich or former Sen. Rick Santorum in order to help advance their hard-line agenda that has, at least so far, been stalled [Washington Post].
   
• Here's a great profile of White House staff secretary Rob Porter. The former chief of staff to Sen. Orrin Hatch has one of the most important jobs in the Trump administration [Business Insider].
   
• Former White House strategist Steve Bannon blasts Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, saying their opposition to President Trump's agenda is an attempt to "nullify" the 2016 election [The Hill]. Bannon also says the Catholic church "needs illegal aliens to fill the churches" [CBS News].
   
• Democrats are growing increasingly annoyed by attacks from Bernie Sanders supporters who are demanding ideological purity from Democratic candidates [Politico].
   
• A federal appeals court blocked an effort by the Trump administration to temporarily bar most refugees from entering the U.S. [Reuters].
   
• The personal data of 143 million Americans, including social security numbers, was exposed during a major data breach at credit reporting agency Equifax [Washington Post]. Three of Equifax's top managers sold stock worth at least $1.8 million prior to the disclosure of the breach, which sent shares tumbling [Bloomberg].
   
• South Korean officials are preparing for another possible missile test by North Korea [Associated Press].

On this day in history:

• 1504 - Michelangelo's David is unveiled in Florence.
   
• 1565 - St. Augustine, Florida was founded by Spanish admiral Pedro Menendez de Aviles.
   
• 1892 - The Pledge of Allegiance is first recited.
   
• 1900 - A powerful hurricane hits Galveston, Texas killing about 8,000 people.
   
• 1974 - President Gerald Ford pardons former President Richard Nixon for any crimes Nixon may have committed while in office.

Today At Utah Policy

Poll: Utahns expect the Utes to have the best football season this year
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
As Utah and BYU get set to face off in the "Holy War" game on Sunday, a new UtahPolicy.com survey finds most Utahns think the University of Utah will have the most successful football season this year. ...

Clinton says she thought Chaffetz was Priebus at the inauguration
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Remember the handshake between then Rep. Jason Chaffetz and Hillary Clinton during Donald Trump's inauguration? What everyone thought might have been a moment of goodwill between the defeated Democratic nominee and her Congressional tormenter was, in reality, a case of mista...

Group criticizes AG Reyes for support of partisan gerrymandering
By Press Release
The Alliance for a Better Utah criticized Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes for signing onto an amicus brief supporting the practice of partisan gerrymandering....

CfA calls on Utah Lands Commission to disclose interactions with its lawyers
By Press Release
Campaign for Accountability called on the Utah Commission for the Stewardship of Public Lands to release all communications, documents, and invoices submitted by its law firm, Davillier Law Group, LLC. ...

Sen. Lee issues statement on disaster relief bill vote
By Press Release
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement regarding Thursday's vote on the disaster relief bill:...

Sen. Lee speaks out against religious tests
By Press Release
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) spoke on the Senate floor to address the hostility displayed towards people of faith who have come before the Senate during recent confirmation hearings and the duty the Senate has to distance itself from this unconstitutional and un-American behavior of...

Weekly survey: Trump's decision to end DACA
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
This week President Donald Trump announced he was ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which shielded the children of undocumented immigrants from deportation. Do you think it was the right move, and will Congress be able to pass immigration refo...

Policy News

After public engagement, Mayor Biskupski signs lease agreement to temporarily close portion of Rio Grande Street
Mayor Jackie Biskupski signed a lease agreement between Salt Lake City and the State of Utah, allowing for the closure of a portion of Rio Grande Street to both vehicular and pedestrian traffic....

Hatch on the Senate: We can do hard things
Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate and one of the most effective legislators in modern history, spoke on the Senate floor about the lessons to be learned from current events and the need to come together as a leg...

Casual Friday: Weekend Events & Outdoors Report
Outdoor Notes--Tribune: Tiger muskie and 2 other fish species part of new plan to help curb chubs at Utah's Scofield Reservoir-- Tribune: Northern pike proving to be a pesky problem at Yuba Reservoir in central Utah --Tribune: Erin Alberty: Do you have what it takes to eat a...

Local Headlines

Salt Lake Tribune

Op-ed: Middle school course changes will allow for flexibility, local control

Editorial: Coal is gone, let's diversify

Amazon's $5B second headquarters will offer 50,000 jobs, and Utah may bid for it

Utah's ACT scores inch up; state ranks either 33rd or 5th. Here's why.

Sen. Mike Lee joins conservative lawmakers in supporting baker who refused cake order for gay wedding

Trump remains under 50 percent in Utah, holding steady despite his tumultuous first year in office

Salt Lake City mayor signs lease agreement to close Rio Grande Street

Salt Lake City, Sandy council primary results hold up in recount

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert stresses need for state control in health care

Utah's Mike Lee votes against Hurricane Harvey relief bill tied to debt limits

Northern Utah residents sound off on whether a new Davis County freeway is 'overdue,' 'devastating' or somewhere in the middle

After more than 1,000 arrests, drug treatment comes online as part of Operation Rio Grande

Deseret News

A. Scott Anderson: Utah leaders step up in big way to address homelessness

Jay Evensen: Credit cards, student loans and the federal deficit - a toxic brew

Op-ed: Bears Ears: Perhaps there's a third way

Editorial: Parents are even more important than schools in academic achievement

Silicon Valley finds peace in Utah mountains

Hatch child protection bill passes Senate committee

Will Amazon's new headquarters land in Silicon Slopes?

Utahns nearly evenly split over President Donald Trump's job performance

Hatch draws on Charlottesville, Houston to urge unity in the Senate

Herbert urges D.C. committee to give states control of health insurance

31 arrested in 4 raids linked to Operation Rio Grande

Sen. Mike Lee battles for religious freedom in courts, on Senate floor

Native Utahn to head four-state Homeland Security Investigations office

S.L. Chamber of Commerce honors champions, outgoing chairman at awards event

District attorney asks FBI to also investigate controversial U. nurse arrest

Over 1,000 arrests made in Operation Rio Grande as 37 new treatment beds open

Other

Editorial: The solution to Utah County's housing problem can shift with two key changes (Daily Herald)

Odell Miner officially files to be write-in candidate for Provo mayor (Daily Herald)

Provo recount uncovers 150 unrecorded ballots (Daily Herald)

Op-ed: Remarkably few prisoners die in the Weber County Jail (Standard-Examiner)

Davis County leading largest US counties in employment growth, new numbers show (Standard-Examiner)

National Headlines

Southern Poverty Law Center Gets Creative to Label 'Hate Groups' (Bloomberg)

Clinton's score-settling frustrates Democrats (The Hill)

Ivanka Trump teams with Grover Norquist, faith and family leaders to boost tax-reform efforts (Washington Times)

Power shift as Trump opens door to Schumer, Pelosi (The Hill)

All 5 living former presidents launch appeal for help for Harvey victims (CNN)

Trump Administration Sides With Baker In Same-Sex Wedding Cake Case (BuzzFeed)

Rep. Charlie Dent, outspoken GOP moderate, will not seek reelection (Washington Post)

Amid raging wildfires, fire management practices criticized (Associated Press)

Federal Judge excoriates Sen. Menendez prosecution team (Washington Post)

Sen. Warren to support nationwide health insurance coverage (Boston Herald)

White House Considering at Least Six for Fed Chair (Bloomberg)

Wise Words

Tools

"Men have become the tools of their tools." Henry David Thoreau

Lighter Side

Out of Paper

"Axios today published a list of groups that President Trump has alienated during his first seven months of office. And now the world is out of paper." Seth Meyers