Morning must reads for Monday, March 20, 2017

Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

Morning must reads for Monday, March 20, 2017

Good Monday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 79th day of the year. There are 286 days remaining in 2017.

How would renegotiating NAFTA affect trade in Utah? McMullin says he may take on Hatch or Chaffetz in 2018. Confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch begin Monday.

The clock:

• 9 days until the last day Governor Gary Herbert can sign or veto bills (3/29/2017)
• 61 days until the Utah Republican State Convention (5/20/2017)
• 89 days until the Utah Democratic State Convention at Weber State University (6/17/2017)
• 232 days until the 2017 municipal elections (11/7/2017)
• 308 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)
• 353 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)
• 596 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)
• 1324 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today's political TL;DR -

• World Trade Center Utah President and CEO Derek Miller says President Donald Trump needs to get a political win by renegotiating NAFTA, but his window of opportunity is short [Utah Policy]. Here's the video of our interview with Miller [Utah Policy].
   
• Our "Political Insiders" offer up their opinions on what the political future holds for Sen. Orrin Hatch and Rep. Jason Chaffetz [Utah Policy].
   
• Evan McMullin says he is looking at a possible primary challenge to either Sen. Orrin Hatch or Rep. Jason Chaffetz in 2018 [Utah Policy].
   
• Sen. Mike Lee discussed the Republican replacement for Obamacare with GOP officials at the Mar-a-Lago resort this weekend, but President Trump was not in the meeting [Utah Policy].
   
• Confirmation hearings begin Monday for Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch [Washington Post].
   
• FBI Director James Comey heads to Capitol Hill to appear before the House Intelligence Committee to discuss Russian interference in the 2016 election and Donald Trump's claim that he was surveilled by the Obama administration [Wall Street Journal].
   
• The Trump White House has started using political appointees to keep an eye on Cabinet agencies. They report to the White House on a weekly basis to make sure they don't stray too far from the White House's agenda [Washington Post].
   
• The White House is turning up the heat on Republicans in Congress who are not yet sold on the plan to replace Obamacare [Politico].
   
• The Secret Service reportedly took 15 minutes to catch the man who jumped the White House fence last week. He was finally arrested just outside the main door to the president's residence [Huffington Post].
   
• weekValley City and South Salt Lake officials and residents push back against the plan to put a homeless shelter in one of those cities [Deseret News, Tribune, Fox 13].
   
• The Our Schools Now group is pressing ahead with their plans to put an income tax hike on the 2018 ballot to better fund Utah's public schools [Associated Press].
   
• The NSA denies allegations that they conducted "blanket" surveillance of Salt Lake City during the 2002 Winter Olympics [Tribune].
   
• Restauranteurs rally at the Capitol to urge Gov. Gary Herbert to veto the bill lowering Utah's DUI threshold to .05%, the lowest in the nation [Associated Press, Tribune].
   
• Now that lawmakers have approved $1 billion in funding for transportation projects, there's no shortage of local officials who have needs that need money [Tribune].
   
• Utah Democrat Jenny Wilson is named to the transition team for the national party as newly elected party Chairman Tom Perez takes the reins [Tribune].
   
• A gay rights organization and an atheist group have asked the Trump administration to investigate whether a foreign government made a deal with the Church to procure visas for LDS missionaries [Deseret News].
   
• The Utah Transit Authority will erect fences to separate the Gateway Mall from the downtown homeless shelters. The fences were requested by the mall's owners [Tribune].

On this day in history:

• 1815 - Napoleon Bonaparte entered Paris, beginning his Hundred Days rule.
   
• 1816 -The Supreme Court affirmed its right to review state court decisions.
   
• 1854 - In what is considered the founding meeting of the Republican Party, former members of the Whig Party met in Ripon, Wis., to establish a new party to oppose the spread of slavery into the western territories.
   
• 2003 - U.S. and British forces invaded Iraq from Kuwait.

Today At Utah Policy

How Trump can get a political win through NAFTA renegotiation
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
President Donald Trump could get a much-needed political win if he can successfully renegotiate the NAFTA trade pact, but his window for doing so is very short....

Derek Miller on Trump, Russia and international trade (with video)
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Derek Miller of the World Trade Center Utah discusses the latest news about the Donald Trump administration and Russia....

Lee met with Trump to discuss GOP health plan
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Sen. Mike Lee made a trip to Florida this weekend to discuss the GOP plan for replacing Obamacare with President Trump....

'Political Insiders' weigh in on Hatch and Chaffetz's political future
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Our "Political Insiders" and readers say Sen. Orrin Hatch should not run for an 8th term in the Senate in 2018. But, they're not sure if Rep. Jason Chaffetz's political fortunes have dimmed because of some of his recent public gaffes....

McMullin could challenge Hatch or Chaffetz in 2018
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Former independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin says he is open to running against Sen. Orrin Hatch or Rep. Jason Chaffetz in 2018....

Policy News

Luncheon with the Ambassador of Paraguay
World Trade Center Utah, in partnership with the Governor's Office of Economic Development and the Salt Lake Chamber, is delighted to welcome His Excellency Germán Hugo Rojas Irigoyen, the Ambassador of Paraguay. ...

Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing rolls out updated Controlled Substance Database
Francine A. Giani, Executive Director of the Utah Department of Commerce announced that the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing (DOPL) has released the newest software version of the State’s Controlled Substance Database (CSD) which records all controll...

Governor signs 84 bills
Gov. Gary R. Herbert has signed 84 bills, bringing the total number of bills signed from the 2017 General Legislative Session to 103....

Local Headlines

Salt Lake Tribune

Paul Mero: To truly defend religious freedom, we should stand down on LGBT issues

Op-ed: Here's five free-market victories from the legislature

Op-ed: And here's five unneeded tax increases from the Legislature

Op-ed: Watch out, Utah cities, it may be you getting rolled next time

Op-ed: Lower alcohol limit means more people of color will be improperly stopped

Op-ed: Step up again, Sen. Hatch, to preserve the NEA and NEH

Editorial: To add more voters in Utah, subtract the gerrymander

Editorial: Utah State Records Committee makes two good calls for openness

Utah leaders learn $1B in highway money attracts a lot of friends

As protesters rally in Utah Capitol, Gov. Herbert scrutinizes toughest-in-nation DUI bill

Utah Democrat Jenny Wilson appointed to national party transition team

Gov. Herbert signs bills on homelessness, panhandling, payday lenders

Fences will separate homeless shelter from The Gateway mall

Top NSA officials deny 'blanket' surveillance during Salt Lake City Olympics

'I feel like lower-income communities are being targeted': S. Salt Lake, WVC residents voice sympathy for homeless, don't want shelters

From homelessness to graduating Yale Law School - Salt Laker Bryant Watson shows there is hope

Gehrke: Lawmaker-turned-lobbyist helped 911 agency sell $18 million hike

Deseret News

Frank Pignanelli & LaVarr Webb: Some issues occupying our feeble minds

Op-ed: Pres. Trump has one thing right

Hal Boyd: Trump's wall of words is free, but how much does it cost?

Op-ed: Medicaid matters and so do Utah's most vulnerable

Dan Liljenquist: Being ambassador to Russia in the era of Putinism

Editorial: Utah's .05 alcohol limit is backed by sound data

Editorial: Utah once again in the bottom-tier of states for voter turnout

Group rallies for Herbert to veto 'extreme' bill lowering blood-alcohol limit

McMullin says he may challenge Hatch or Chaffetz in 2018

Groups ask Trump administration to investigate LDS Church

Raising your voice at town hall meetings still the 'gold standard' for engagement

Later start times for Utah high schools? Medical science says yes, but logistics can be tricky

NSA officials deny 'blanket' spying in Salt Lake during 2002 Olympics

Deadline encroaching, Salt Lake County still facing public outrage over potential homeless shelter sites

Other

Restaurants worry about unintended consequences of Provo Rep. Norm Thurston's BAC bill (Daily Herald)

Democrat launching campaign against Jason Chaffetz aims to find common ground with conservative district (Daily Herald)

Clearfield woman's push to permit backyard chickens gains city backing (Standard-Examiner)

National Headlines

U.S. Supreme Court's ideological balance at stake in confirmation fight (Reuters)

Trump and Republicans face a fresh test to shape Supreme Court, assert their power with Gorsuch hearings (Washington Post)

Kellyanne Conway's husband tapped for DOJ role (CNN)

Donna Brazile comes clean about Clinton debate scandal (The Grio)

Trump budget clouds Public Broadcasting Act's 50th year (Washington Post)

Disney Coughs Up $3.8 Million For Violating Minimum Wage Laws (Daily Caller)

This is what Bernie Sanders would do to the tax that cost Trump $31 million (Business Insider)

Long Before New Hacks, US Worried by Russian Spying Efforts (New York Times)

Trump advisers want concessions for coal if US stays in climate pact (Politico)

Justice Department: President should have power to fire head of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Washington Times)

First Skirmish of G-20 Sets Scene for Battle of Ideas on Trade (Bloomberg)

Wise Words

Early Morning Walk
"An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day." Henry David Thoreau

Lighter Side

Justice League
"It's another setback for President Trump.. . . A federal judge in Hawaii blocked a second version of his travel ban, and now Trump says that he'll bring it to the Supreme Court. And if they block it, he said he's going to bring it to the Justice League." Jimmy Fallon