Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing What You Need to Know About Utah Politics Today - January 28, 2014

Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

What You Need to Know About Utah Politics Today - January 28, 2014

Lockhart hits Herbert. Same sex marriage may be a smaller issue on the Hill in 2014. Dabakis says he sees a need for "Count My Vote."

Countdown:

• 44 days until the final day of the 2014 Legislature
• 147 days until Utah's 2014 primary elections
• 280 days to the 2014 midterm elections
• 643 days to the 2015 elections
• 708 days until the 2016 Iowa Caucuses
• 1014 days to the 2016 presidential election

Today's Utah news highlights:

• Speaker Becky Lockhart, sounding very much like a candidate for governor in 2016, comes out swinging against Gov. Gary Herbert on the opening day of the 2014 Legislature [Utah Policy, Tribune, Deseret News].
• It's all about defending the status quo on the first day of the legislature in the Utah Senate [Utah Policy].
• There will be two competing rallies on either side of the same-sex marriage debate Tuesday evening at the Capitol [Tribune].
• There may be an uneasy cease fire in the same-sex marriage fight on the Hill this year [Tribune].
• Rep. Merrill Nelson is proposing a bill to allow Utahns to contribute to the defense of Amendment 3 on their income tax returns [Q Salt Lake].
• Liquor laws could cause a split between the House and the Senate [Tribune].
• Utahns oppose raising the gas tax to pay for transportation [Tribune].
• Legislative leaders say they don't expect any tax hikes this year [Standard-Examiner].
• The committee investigating John Swallow will not continue due to time constraints [Utah Policy].
• Right now, there are more than 70 education bills slated for consideration during the 2014 session [Standard-Examiner].
• Senate Minority Leader Gene Davis says lawmakers should focus on education funding in 2014 [Utah Policy].
• Sen. Jim Dabakis says, while he opposes "Count My Vote," he sees a real need for choosing candidates by direct primary instead of caucuses [Utah Policy].
• Sen. Orrin Hatch is part of a group of three Republicans in backing a plan to replace Obamacare [Tribune].
• Sen. Mike Lee will focus on economic inequality during his response to the State of the Union Address on Tuesday night [Deseret News].

On this day in history:

• Congress passed legislation creating the U.S. Coast Guard in 1915.
• Louis Brandeis, the first Jewish member of the Supreme Court, was appointed in 1916.
• Elvis Presley made his first national TV appearance in 1958.
• A cease fire officially went into effect in the Vietnam War in 1973.
• The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 72 seconds after liftoff in 1986.
• The U.S. House approved a huge $819 billion stimulus bill in 2009Today In History. What Happened This Day In History

   

  A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.

   

  January 28

   

  28   The Roman Emperor Nerva names Trajan, an army general, as his successor. 

  1547   Henry VIII of England dies and is succeeded by his nine-year-old son Edward VI. 

  1757   Ahmed Shah, the first King of Afghanistan, occupies Delhi and annexes the Punjab. 

  1792   Rebellious slaves in Santo Domingo launch an attack on the city of Cap. 

  1871   Surrounded by Prussian troops and suffering from famine, the French army in Paris surrenders. During the siege, balloons were used to keep contact with the outside world. 

  1915   The U.S. Coast Guard is founded to fight contraband trade and aid distressed vessels at sea. 

  1915   The German navy attacks the U.S. freighter William P. Frye, loaded with wheat for Britain. 

  1921   Albert Einstein startles Berlin by suggesting the possibility of measuring the universe. 

  1932   The Japanese attack Shanghai, China, and declare martial law. 

  1936   A fellow prison inmate slashes infamous kidnapper, Richard Loeb, to death. 

  1941   French General Charles DeGaulle's Free French forces sack south Libya oasis. 

  1945   Chiang Kai-shek renames the Ledo-Burma Road the Stilwell Road, in honor of General Joseph Stilwell. 

  1955   The U.S. Congress passes a bill allowing mobilization of troops if China should attack Taiwan. 

  1964   The Soviets down a U.S. jet over East Germany killing three. 

  1970   Israeli fighter jets attack the suburbs of Cairo. 

  1986   The space shuttle Challenger explodes just after liftoff. 

  Born on January 28 

  1693   Anna "Ivanovna", Tsarina of Russia. 

  1706   John Baskerville, inventor of the "hot-pressing" method of printing. 

  1933   Susan Sontag, American essayist and novelist (The Style of Radical Will, Illness as a Metaphor).