Tuesday's news at a glance: Congressional negotiators reach a tentative deal to avoid a government shutdown, but Trump's Fox News allies slam the bargain. Republicans in the Utah Legislature block the voter-approved Medicaid expansion and replace it with a scaled-back version. The LDS Church comes out against a bill to replace 3.2 beer with stronger brews at Utah grocery stores.
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Today is the 43rd day of the year. There are 322 days remaining in 2019.
30 days until the final day of the 2019 Utah Legislature (3/14/2019)
81 days to the Utah State Republican Party Organizing Convention (5/4/2019)
111 days until the municipal election filing period opens (6/3/2019)
115 days until the municipal election filing period ends (6/7/2019)
182 days to the 2019 Utah primary elections (8/13/2019)
266 days to the 2019 municipal elections (11/5/2019)
349 days to the first day of the 2020 Utah Legislature (1/27/2020)
357 days to the 2020 Iowa Caucuses (2/3/2020)
625 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)
Poll: Most Utahns can't name their legislators
By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor
OK kids, here's a civics question: Can you name either your Utah House member or your Utah Senate member?...
Senate blocks measure to prevent new national monuments in Utah
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
On Monday, the U.S. Senate voted down a proposal to block presidents from unilaterally declaring new national monuments in Utah....
GOP-backed Medicaid expansion replacement signed into law by Gov. Herbert (Updated)
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
On a nearly straight party-line vote, the Utah Senate gave the final legislative approval to the scaled-back Medicaid expansion on Monday morning. SB96 overrides Prop. 3, which was approved by 53 percent of voters in November. Gov. Gary Herbert signed the bill into law Monda...
Guest opinion: Will of the people
By Katie Matheson, Communications Director, Alliance for a Better Utah
There are a number of legislators and anti-Medicaid expansion advocates who continue to bluster over what exactly Utah voters meant when they cast their votes for Medicaid expansion in 2018....
Utah Democrat says the state should start taxing carbon emissions
By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor
A state House Democrat wants to completely change how Utah deals with carbon emissions, taxing them directly while giving all kinds of tax breaks to a variety of carbon-producing businesses and low-income and senior citizens....
One Utah lawmaker thinks this is the year Utah joins the effort to rewrite the U.S. Constitution
By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor
Sometimes, in the bustle and politics of pressing issues, the really big work of the Utah Legislature can pass us by....
Deseret News
Salt Lake Tribune
Other
Lawmakers reach a tentative deal to avoid a government shutdown. Will Trump sign it? Negotiators say they have an "agreement in principle," which includes $1.375 billion for physical barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, but no wall - https://politi.co/2N0eyOc
President Trump's allies at Fox News hate the agreement. Sean Hannity called the deal a "garbage compromise" - http://bit.ly/2N0SkM2
President Trump and Beto O'Rourke hold competing rallies in El Paso. Trump pushed for his long-promised border wall while O'Rourke disputed Trump's claims that the city was crime-ridden until the construction of a border fence - https://wapo.st/2N0QSJA
Sexism on the campaign trail. There are six women running for the Democratic presidential nomination this year, and researchers say voters tend to use stereotypes for female candidates that they don't use for men - https://nyti.ms/2N2AnwP
Trump tax cuts leading to smaller tax refunds. The average tax refund is 8.4 percent lower under the tax reform passed by Republicans at the end of 2017 - https://nbcnews.to/2N0xkVK
Did...Did Trump just steal Hillary Clinton's campaign slogan? Trump seemingly co-opted Clinton's "Stronger Together" slogan from 2016, and Twitter promptly shredded him for it - http://bit.ly/2N1TW8d
A staggering wealth gap in America. A new study concludes that the 400 richest Americans own more than the 150 million adults in the bottom 60 percent - http://bit.ly/2N8KEYp
Democratic lawmaker apologizes for using "anti-Semitic tropes." Freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar was rebuked by other members of Congress for suggesting Israel's allies in American politics were motivated by money - https://wapo.st/2N1QmLj
One of President Trump's judicial nominees is apologizing for her writing on date rape. Neomi Rao, who is Trump's nominee for the D.C. appeals court, said she regretted her writings in college that partially blamed date rape victims for their assaults - https://wapo.st/2N22jRl
Tobacco use soaring among children. 4.9 million high school and middle school kids used tobacco products in 2018, up from 3.6 million the previous year. The rise is driven primarily by growth in e-cigarette use - http://bit.ly/2N008xL
Insects are dying off in massive numbers. Researchers say more than 40% of insect species could become extinct in the next few decades, which could have a catastrophic effect on the planet - https://cnn.it/2N0fke4
1541 - Santiago, Chile, was founded.
1733 - Englishman James Oglethorpe founds Georgia and its first city at Savannah.
1909 - The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded.
1914 - The first stone of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. is put into place.
1963 - Construction begins on the Gateway Arch in St. Louis.
1999 - President Bill Clinton is acquitted by the U.S. Senate in his impeachment trial.
2000 - Charles Schulz, creator of the "Peanuts" comic strip, died of colon cancer at age 77.
43 women completed political training with Women's Leadership Institute, consider run for public office
The Women's Leadership Institute (WLI) recognized 43 women who completed its six-month bipartisan Political Development Series (PDS) and are now considering running for public office....
Sens. Lee, Romney and Rep. Bishop congratulate Hill AFB on new software sustainment center
Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Rep. Rob Bishop sent a letter to Col. Jon Eberlan, Commander of 75th Air Base Wing at Hill Air Force Base, Friday, congratulating him on the opening of the base's new Software Sustainment Center....
Change
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi
Prayer Works
"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was also at the prayer breakfast. Both Trump and Pelosi walked in the room and prayed they wouldn't be seated next to each other." - JIMMY FALLON
