Plus, what Utahns think of the two frontrunners for the 2024 GOP nomination
Good morning. Today’s temperatures: Logan: 38 - 66° ⛅ | 10% 💧 | ⚠️ Salt Lake City: 48 - 70° ⛅ | ⚠️ St. George: 53 - 84° ☀️ ⚠️ Flood Watch Utah is the only state in the U.S. where every county contains at least some portion of a national forest. What national forest is closest to you? For us here in Salt Lake City, it's the Uintah-Wasatch-Cache national forest which extends up the Wasatch Front and east across the Uintah mountain range. Also on our mind: Ken Jennings is competing on "Wheel of Fortune" against his "Jeopardy!" co-host, Mitt Romney says Trump is "not fit" to be president after Trump is found liable for sexual assault and this Latter-day Saint athlete may be the most intriguing football prospect in the nation. |
| How Eric Dowdle built a puzzle empire, piece by piece |
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| | You'll find his art everywhere; not on walls, but on tables. Eric Dowdle — painter, puzzle maker and the star of the Magnolia Network series “The Piece Maker” — has brought his puzzles, characterized by folk art depictions of real places, to roughly 5 million homes from his studio in Lindon, Utah. A Latter-day Saint raised on a Wyoming farm with 11 siblings, Dowdle now has become a celebrity of sorts on popular streaming platforms. Every episode of “The Piece Maker” features Dowdle visiting a different location — Alaska, Hawaii, San Francisco, the Outer Banks, New York, Miami, New Orleans and southern Utah. He visits each of these places in preparation to paint them, and at the conclusion of each visit, Dowdle sketches the people he’s met, the food he’s tried and the experiences he’s had in his folk art interpretation of the town. His first puzzle was terrible, he says, but it was an image of something that he felt mattered — a pioneer quilt, which stood out on the puzzle shelves, compared to the images of trees and skies most puzzle companies were selling. He had the puzzle manufactured and sold it to grocery stores. But the gamble started to pay off when he found success painting places, and finding ways to sell puzzles to people who had never before bought puzzles. He sold puzzles of the cities these people loved, and the things they loved to do in those cities. |
Read more about Dowdle's plans to create giant puzzles of towns all across the country for America's 250th anniversary. |
| Former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are now running even among Utah Republican voters according to a new Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll. 800 Utah voters were asked who they would cast their ballot for if the 2024 Republican presidential primary were held today. Here's how they responded: 21% said they would vote for Donald Trump 19% for Ron DeSantis 11% for Liz Cheney 8% for Nikki Haley 6% for Mike Pence 4% for Ted Cruz 9% for another candidate 22% don't know But among registered Republican voters, the two men are tied at 28% each. That’s a big shift from last month’s poll, when DeSantis was ahead of Trump 31% to 23% with GOP voters. These results mirror a broader trend as DeSantis' strength in national polls has begun to falter amidst and onslaught of attacks from Trump. However, the last few weeks haven't gone smoothly for the former president, either. On Tuesday, Trump was found liable for sexual abuse and defamation in a civil case. He was also charged with 36 counts of falsifying documents earlier in April. Joshua McCrain, a political science professor at the University of Utah, said that the trend of Trump staying ahead in polls isn’t surprising, even amid an array of legal troubles. Part of Trump’s appeal is because of his high name recognition among Utah voters, McCrain said. Read more about what Utahns think of the two frontrunners for the 2024 GOP nomination. More in Politics Mitt Romney says Trump ‘not fit’ to be president after Trump found liable for sexual assault, defamation (Deseret News) Mitt Romney, other GOP senators want Biden to ‘finish the border wall’ (Deseret News) George Santos is in federal custody after being charged by the Justice Department (Deseret News) | FROM DESERET NEWS MARATHON Chase 53 Years of Tradition — Run Utah's Oldest Road Race This Pioneer Day Experience tradition on July 24th while racing down the historic pioneer route into Salt Lake Valley and through the Days of ‘47 Parade in the Deseret News Marathon. Full marathon, half marathon, 10K and 5K are available. Prices increase on May 12th. | Health FDA reveals new requirements for breast cancer screening (Deseret News) Here’s why tens of thousands of COVID-19 vaccine doses were scrapped in Utah (Deseret News) Faith This NFL kicker says his wedding ring matters more than his 2 Super Bowl rings (Deseret News) BYU study shows family history can improve psychological well-being of young adults (Church News) Education The 3 Utah students just named U.S. Presidential Scholars include Deseret News/KSL’s top Sterling Scholar (Deseret News) Schools are experimenting with later start times (Deseret News) Weber and Wasatch Counties Young stroke victim survives with quick, lifesaving treatment in northern Utah (KSL) When will Deer Creek, Jordanelle reservoirs reach capacity this spring? (KSL) Utah and Salt Lake Counties Several pounds of drugs and a drug lab seized in Lehi home, police say (KSL) Why the Salt Lake City airport is seeking up to $600M in new bonds this year (KSL) The West The end of Title 42: How U.S. border states are responding (Deseret News) Lawmakers in Nevada pass abortion protections, putting them one step closer to state constitution (Nevada Independent) Police seize over 2,000 fentanyl pills after traffic stop over the weekend in Idaho (East Idaho News) The Nation Donald Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation in civil case, Manhattan jury finds (Deseret News) Annual inflation ticks down in April but some prices still on the rise (Deseret News) Biden, Buttigieg propose new rule that requires airlines to cover more than just refunds (Deseret News) The World Jacob Hess: The beauty of England’s coronation (Deseret News) Protests broke out in Pakistan after former leader was arrested on claims of corruption (Deseret News) The West Needs Russia to Power Its Nuclear Comeback (Wall Street Journal 🔒) Trending Utah mommy blogger Heather Armstrong, known as Dooce to fans, dead at 47 (FOX 13) Ken Jennings is competing on ‘Wheel of Fortune’ — against his ‘Jeopardy!’ co-host (Deseret News) Tom Hanks’ debut novel has arrived — he has already responded to his critics (Deseret News) Sports This Latter-day Saint athlete may be the most intriguing football prospect in the nation (Deseret News) Could BYU’s receivers room be elite? (Deseret News) How hard work and patience have paid off for Devaughn Vele (Deseret News) | Jeff Nigbur waits for the starter to drop the starting gate during the 3rd Annual LiveDaybreak Soap Box Derby in South Jordan on Saturday. (Kristin Murphy, Deseret News) Read more about Daybreak residents racing down a rainy road during the 3rd annual soap box derby. |
That's all for today. Check your inbox tomorrow morning for more news from the Beehive State and beyond! And reply to this email or email [email protected] to tell us what you think of Utah Today! — Brigham |
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