Situational Analysis | August 25, 2021

It's Wednesday and the 105th birthday of the National Park Service.

Also, smoky skies return because of the massive wildfires in California. ðŸ”¥

Be in the Know

1. Senator Mitt Romney calls the Afghanistan withdrawal the biggest 'mess up' in his lifetime - and that includes the fall of Saigon. Pulling the military out by August 31 means that some will be left behind. “These Afghan partners of ours that have been translators and working with us, to leave them behind to be slaughtered is an extraordinary breach of trust,” he told the Deseret News editorial board.

2. Utah was ranked the worst state for women's equality for the fourth year in a row, something that frustrates Utah's Lt. Governor. "Some of us are trying pretty damn hard not to be dead last in this ranking every year. Obviously, not enough of us," she said.

Utah Headlines

General

• Latter-day Saint Charities provides ‘heaven sent’ supplies to Afghan refugees arriving in Qatar (Deseret News)
• BYU law school launches a new Jerusalem initiative with lofty aims. The new program will allow students to study the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from afar and up close in hopes of making the world a better place. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Delta farmers deal with historic rainstorm aftermath (Fox13)

Politics

• Chris Stewart: Leaving Afghanistan was right, but the withdrawal has been a disaster (Deseret News)
• Will Utah lawmakers block mandatory vaccines? Cox says he won’t require shots (Salt Lake Tribune)

COVID Corner

• 1140 new cases, 9 new deaths. 22% of the new cases are school-aged children
• Unvaccinated 29 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19, CDC study says (The Hill)
• Goldman Sachs told employees on Tuesday that it will require anyone who enters the bank’s U.S. offices, including clients, to be fully vaccinated starting on Sept. 7 (New York Times)
• The delta variant may be starting to peak, expert says (Deseret News)
• COVID vaccine protection wanes within six months - UK researchers (Reuters)

Education

• Elder Jeffrey R. Holland knocks ‘divisive’ behavior in keynote speech to BYU faculty, staff (Daily Herald)
• Apostle Jeffrey Holland to BYU: Stop aiming ‘friendly fire’ at LDS teachings (Salt Lake Tribune)

Environment

• In response to 20-year megadrought, scientists launch effort to collect water data in U.S. West (St. George News)

National Headlines

General

• Taliban tell Afghan women to stay home from work because soldiers are 'not trained' to respect them (CNN)
• Airbnb says it will give temporary free housing to 20,000 Afghan refugees. (New York Times)
• Taliban to block Afghans' access to Kabul airport (Fox News)

Politics

• House passes $3.5T Biden blueprint after deal with moderates (AP)
• Anatomy of a power play: How 9 House Dems cut their deal with Pelosi (Politico)
• How screwed is Adam Kinzinger? Illinois Democrats are on the verge of rolling out a new congressional map that could end the House career of one of the GOP’s most prominent Trump critics. (Politico)
• House approves John Lewis voting rights measure 219-212, with zero Republicans voting for it (The Hill)
• Herschel Walker launches Senate campaign in Georgia (CNN)

Courts

• Supreme Court orders ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy reinstated (AP)

Policy News

Salt Lake Chamber to honor outstanding community leaders

Utah’s business and community leaders will gather for the Salt Lake Chamber’s 134th Annual Meeting on August 31, 2021. Attendees will recognize Chamber volunteers and community leaders who have shown exemplary support over the past year by committing their time and abilities to advance the Chamber’s mission and bolster the business community.

The event theme is “Future in Focus,” as the past year was one that no one could have seen coming, and the Chamber is taking stock and looking forward to discussing the future focal points for the organization and our community. The awards ceremony will honor Chamber partners who have helped to support and lend their expertise to the organization. (Read More)

Utah State Board of Education leadership statement on board member’s recent social media post

We have received public concern regarding a recent social media post by Board Member Natalie Cline, which names a specific school and contains no statement indicating the post is her personal opinion and not to be attributed to the board. We are reviewing this post for potential Board Bylaw violations. (Read More)

Romney statement on President’s August 31 deadline to withdraw from Afghanistan

U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today issued the following statement after President Biden announced that he will keep August 31 as the deadline for withdrawing troops from Afghanistan:

“The President must do whatever it takes to bring American citizens home from Afghanistan and safely evacuate our Afghan partners despite arbitrary deadlines. We have been given every indication that evacuation efforts cannot be concluded by August 31. Americans are still stranded in the provinces outside of Kabul and it’s unacceptable that there is still no plan to get these individuals to safety. And it’s not just Americans that are stranded. Leaving vulnerable Afghans—many of whom risked their lives, and their families’ lives, in service to our country—to face the wrath of the Taliban would be an utter disgrace and moral failure. Evacuation efforts should end only when the job is done.”

Rep. Stewart joined Bret Baier to discuss ongoing crisis in Afghanistan

Congressman Chris Stewart (R-UT) joined Fox News’ Special Report with Bret Baier to discuss the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan, including what it currently looks like on the ground and what we need to do moving forward.

Highlights of remarks are here or watch online here.   

Number of the Day

Upcoming

• Utah Foundation Breakfast Briefing: Mental health in anxious times – Aug 26 @ 9 am. Register here
• Zions Bank Community Speaker Series: Building economic inclusion – Aug 31 @ 12 pm. Register here
• Utah Foundation Annual Luncheon with Shaylyn Romney Garrett – Sept 23 @ 12 pm. Register here

On This Day In History

From History.com

• 325 - Council of Nicaea concludes with the adoption of the Nicene Creed
• 1900 - Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher and philologist (Übermensch and the doctrine of eternal return), dies at 55
• 1916 - National Park Service is founded.
• 1944 - Paris is liberated after four years of Nazi occupation
• 2005 - Hurricane Katrina forms
• 2018 - John McCain dies of brain cancer at age 81
• 2020 - The World Health Organization announces that Africa has eradicated polio (defined as four years since its last case)

Wise Words

“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.”

-Friedrich Nietzsche

Lighter Side

“Following the full approval of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine, the company revealed it would start marketing the drug under the name Comirnaty, so now people will start referring to the Pfizer vaccine as ‘the Pfizer vaccine.’” 

— SETH MEYERS

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