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Daily Briefing

Good Monday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 317th day of the year. There are 48 days remaining in 2017.

The clock:

70 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)115 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)358 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)1,086 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today's political TL; DR -

POLL: A slight majority of Utahns agree with President Trump when he claimed "both sides" were to blame for the violence at a neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia this summer [Utah Policy].
National Democrats add Rep. Mia Love's seat to the list of their targeted seats in next year's election [Utah Policy].
Our "Political Insiders" are divided along party lines whether there should be a law requiring social media companies to remove "fake news" posts [Utah Policy].
Sen. Mike Lee pulls his support for Roy Moore, the GOP nominee for Senate in Alabama, after a report that he had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl [Tribune].
Gov. Gary Herbert is rapidly changing Utah's judiciary because he's been able to fill a high number of vacancies on the bench [Fox 13].
Backers of the ballot initiative to legalize medical marijuana say they hope to have all of the signatures they need to get on the ballot by January. Lawmakers could see the first results of state-mandated research into the efficacy of medical marijuana during the 2018 session [Deseret News].
Voters approved hundreds of millions of dollars in public school bonds on election day this year. Backers of the Our Schools Now ballot initiative say that gives them hope voters will approve another tax hike next year to boost school funding [Tribune].
Provo is moving to fill the vacancy left by Mayor John Curtis as he leaves to take a seat in Congress [Tribune].
Pleasant Grove Mayor Mike Daniels is accused of violating state law after he penned an op-ed in the city's newsletter urging residents to vote against a proposition that appeared on November's ballot [KSL].
The state says their Express Pass website is back online after they fixed a security flaw that potentially exposed the personal information of thousands of Utahns [Deseret News, Tribune].
A group of Republican members of Congress wants President Trump to either shrink or completely eliminate the 27 national monuments under review by the Interior Department, including Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante [Tribune].
LaVarr Webb says Congress should take a hard look at eliminating the tax exemption given to credit unions [Utah Policy].
Conservative Thomas Dyches explains why he has soured on the death penalty [Utah Policy].

National headlines:

Republicans in Congress say they're confident the tax reform package will pass the House later this week [Politico].
President Donald Trump got loose on Twitter on Sunday attacking those who are investigating his campaign's alleged ties to Russia as "haters and fools." He also called North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un "short and fat" [New York Times].
A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake on the Iran-Iraq border has killed more than 300 people [Associated Press].
President Donald Trump says he will make a "major" announcement on trade this week after he returns to the U.S. from his trip to Asia [Politico].
Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore is trying to get his campaign back on track following a blockbuster report that he initiated an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old girl in the 1970's [Washington Post]. Moore has promised to sue the Washington Post for publishing the report [Associated Press].
President Donald Trump now says he believes the conclusions from U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election. He also says he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is sincere when he denied that Russia interfered in the election [ABC News].
Despite big wins in last week's elections, Democrats should probably temper their enthusiasm about next year's midterm elections. Partisan gerrymandering will likely minimize any gains they make in 2018 [New York Times].
Former Vice President Joe Biden is still playing coy about whether he'll run for president in 2020, saying he's not sure it's an appropriate thing for him to do [Yahoo].
A 12-year-old Colorado girl is suing Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Drug Enforcement Agency seeking to legalize medical marijuana nationwide. The girl suffers from epilepsy and uses cannabis to alleviate her condition [ABC News].
The Army has lifted a ban on recruits who have a history of some mental disorders, including bipolar disorder and depression [USA Today].

On this day in history:

1002 - English king thelred II orders the killing of all Danes in England, known today as the St. Brice's Day massacre.
1927 - The Holland Tunnel opens to traffic as the first Hudson River vehicle tunnel linking New Jersey to New York City.
1956 - The Supreme Court declares Alabama laws requiring segregated buses illegal.
1982 - The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C.

Today At Utah Policy

Most Utahns agree with Trump when he says 'both sides' are to blame for the violence in Charlottesville By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor Most Utahns agree with GOP President Donald Trump when he said "both sides" were responsible for violence in a recent white supremast incident in Charlottesville, Va., a recent UtahPolicy.com poll finds....

In tax reform debate, Congress should scrutinize credit union tax exemption By LaVarr Webb, Publisher The U.S. Congress is pushing hard on tax reform. Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch is a key leader on this issue. The nation's tax code badly needs restructuring....

Should there be a law requiring social media companies to remove 'fake news'? By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor There is a sharp divide between our "Political Insiders" about whether the government should step in to stop "fake news" from spreading on social media....

Democrats add Love's seat to list of 2018 targets By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor The campaign arm of Democrats in Congress is adding Rep. Mia Love's 4th CD to their list of targeted seats in 2018....

Guest opinion: Why I changed my mind about the death penalty By Thomas Dyches I've always supported the Death Penalty. And I think in principle, in a perfect world, it could be considered a valid form of justice....

Policy News

Snap Inc. chooses Utah for future expansion The Governor's Office of Economic Development announced that Snap Inc. will expand operations to Utah, adding up to 50 new jobs....

TaskEasy chooses to expand In Utah The Governor's Office of Economic Development announced that Utah-based TaskEasy will expand in the state, adding up to 191 jobs, $5.3 million in new state revenue and an estimated $6.5 million in capital investment....

Carta selects Utah for future expansion The Governor's Office of Economic Development announced that eShares Inc., doing business as Carta, will expand operations to Utah, adding up to 464 jobs, $5.7 million in new state revenue and an estimated $5.7 million in capital investment....

Local Headlines

Salt Lake Tribune

Op-ed: Congress should follow Utah's principles of sound tax reform

Holly Richardson: Let's support veterans more than just once a year

Jim Dabakis: The Utah Medicaid expansion deserves only scorn

Editorial: A charter school example

Voters give OK to $650M in local school bonds. Will they do the same for statewide $715M Utah education proposal?

Herriman's future growth plan may be up to city voters

Sen. Mike Lee pulls endorsement of Alabama's Roy Moore while Mitt Romney calls the Senate candidate 'unfit for office'

Provo City makes plans to fill hole left by departing Mayor and Congressman-elect John Curtis

Western members of Congress to Trump: Erase Utah's Bears Ears, 8 other monuments

State reopens express-lane toll website after security patch

Utah lawmaker hoping to 'recruit Romney,' launches petition urging former presidential hopeful to run for Senate

Ryan Zinke, first Interior secretary in nearly 50 years with military background, spends Veterans Day cleaning the Vietnam Wall, praising vet

Deseret News

Frank R. Pignanelli and LaVarr Webb: Lessons of recent elections and Count My Vote switcheroo

Val Hale: Utah is better and stronger when businesses and government work together

Op-ed: How to help women get off the leadership sidelines

Op-ed: Pressure to push medical marijuana might just backfire

Op-ed: Congressional tax proposal welcomes investment back to US

Op-ed: Can Utah achieve top status in education excellence?

Count My Vote: Allow the people of Utah to choose their officials

Editorial: President Matt Holland leaves behind an impressive legacy as he accepts a call to serve

State says Express Pass flaw fixed, site back online

Mitt Romney may be making moves to run for Senate

Democratic committee targeting Utah Rep. Mia Love's seat

S.L. mayor promises changes to handling of nonemergency calls

Microsoft CEO lauds Utah at Technology Council Hall of Fame Gala

State set to begin Rural Health Week, touts lack of rural hospital closures in Utah

Utah cannabis research: Providing answers or just a smokescreen?

Utah grants aid startup firms through 'valley of death' period

Other

Editorial: Utah County voters are headed in the right direction as they move the needle (Daily Herald)

Editorial: Now let's develop a school bond proposal the entire community can support (Standard-Examiner)

Ogden school bond's failure muddies things, but most say upgrades still needed (Standard-Examiner)

As women pick up seats nationwide, Utah counterparts underrepresented in public office (Logan Herald Journal)

Rep. Potter proposes special ed stipend (Logan Herald Journal)

Park City voters complete Andy Beerman's rise to mayor's office (Park Record)

National Headlines

Partisan divide grows in US states, with mixed results (Associated Press)

Turns out Trump didn't ruin America's economy (New York Post)

Trump to meet Philippines' controversial Duterte (AFP)

The Individual Mandate Is The Worst Tax Ever (Wall Street Journal)

How the ex-DNC chair ruined Clinton's chance at 2020 (New York Post)

SNL hits the nail on the head: The DNC is old and out of touch (Washington Post)

Biden on 2020: 'Not sure it's the appropriate thing' to do (ABC News)

Tom Steyer's impeachment movement could help Tom Steyer (and that's about it) (Los Angeles Times)

Tom Perez: 'I am not talking about impeachment' (The Hill)

US carries out 3 drone strikes against extremists in Somalia (Associated Press)

Bill Gates firm buys Arizona land for $80 million to create 'smart city' (FOX News)

Wise Words

Chance

"Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and diligence." Abigail Adams

Lighter Side

Suck Up

"Why is Trump complimenting China? I feel like this is part of Trump's strategy to suck up to the Chinese people until they finally tell him how they built their wall." James Corden

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