Trumpcare, churches and political polling. Your Friday morning political briefing from UtahPolicy.com

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Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

Morning must reads for Friday, May 5, 2017

Good Friday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 125th day of the year. There are 240 days remaining in 2017. Today is the 106th day of Donald Trump's presidency.

Trumpcare passes the House. The LDS Church says they'll remain politically neutral despite Trump's executive order relaxing restrictions on political activity by churches. Vivian Lee gets a big golden parachute.

The clock:

15 days until the Utah Republican State Convention (5/20/2017)

43 days until the Utah Democratic State Convention at Weber State University (6/17/2017)

186 days until the 2017 municipal elections (11/7/2017)

262 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)

307 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)

550 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)

1,278 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today's political TL; DR -

Bob Bernick says it's clear that the days of SB54, which provides for a dual-track path to the ballot for candidates, are numbered. Gov. Gary Herbert is the last bulwark standing against the repeal of the law [Utah Policy].
Healthcare, special election rules and turmoil at the University of Utah. Understand the "what" and "why" from the last week in Utah politics with our week-in-review [Utah Policy].
House Republicans barely got enough votes to pass their Trumpcare measure [Politico].
Utah's Congressional delegation toes the party line, providing four votes for the Trumpcare measure [Deseret News, Tribune],
There's still a long way to go with Trumpcare. Senators hate the House bill so much that they're vowing to start from scratch. It could take months, if not until the end of the year, before a Trumpcare bill reaches the president's desk [The Hill].
Worth your time. Here are a couple of deep dives on how the House finally got to "yes" on Trumpcare after the previous failure [Politico, Washington Post].
Sen. Orrin Hatch will play a huge role as the Senate takes up the Trumpcare measure passed by the House [Utah Policy].
President Donald Trump signed an executive order relaxing restrictions on churches engaging in political activity. The LDS Church says they will continue their policy of political neutrality despite the new leniency from Washington [Deseret News, Tribune].
How bad was political polling during the 2016 election? A new report says the national polls were mostly right, but state-level polls were way off [Washington Post].
North Korea is accusing the U.S. of hatching a "biochemical" plot to assassinate Kim Jong Un [CNN].
The Justice Department is launching a criminal investigation into Uber's use of software to avoid the authorities in areas where the ride-sharing service was not banned or not allowed [Washington Post].
Former House Majority Leader Kevin Garn's company won a construction contract from the Utah Transit Authority after he formed a separate company with then Rep. Greg Hughes, who was UTA board chairman at the time [Tribune].
The White House is moving forward with their plan for tougher vetting of foreign visa applicants [Wall Street Journal].
Dr. Vivian Lee, who stepped down as the head of University of Utah healthcare, gets to keep her $1 million salary for a year [Deseret News].
Rep. Mike Winder wants to turn the Jordan River into a state park [Deseret News].

On this day in history:

1893 - Panic hit the New York Stock Exchange; by year's end, the country was in the throes of a severe depression.
1925 - John T. Scopes was arrested in Tennessee for teaching Darwin's theory of evolution.
1985 - President Ronald Reagan attended a wreath-laying ceremony at a military cemetery in Bitburg, West Germany. The visit drew worldwide condemnation because 49 members of the Waffen SS were buried there.
1961 - Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. became America's first space traveler as he made a 15-minute suborbital flight in a capsule launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Today At Utah Policy

Bob Bernick's notebook: Herbert stands alone against SB54 repeal efforts By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor For those in the Utah political world who care about SB54 and the current dual-route to a political party’s primary ballot process, the current showdown between GOP Gov. Gary Herbert and most Republicans in the state House and Senate tells it all....

Sooner or later, Utah will join the rest of the country - Bernick and Schott on politics #327 By Bryan Schott and Bob Bernick Utah lawmakers and Gov. Gary Herbert are headed toward a showdown over the rules for a special election that may or may not happen....

Podcast: Bernick and Schott on politics #327 By Bryan Schott and Bob Bernick Bob Bernick and Bryan Schott break down the week in Utah politics....

Hatch to play big role in Senate debate over health care By Golden Webb Now that the House has guttedObamacare, handing Pres. Trump a major political victory, the debate moves to the Senate, where Orrin Hatch's clout among his colleagues willbe instrumental in driving support for any measure the chamber considers. Hatch's goal, reports Roll Call...

Weekly survey: Special election for Congress By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor If Rep. Jason Chaffetz steps down from his seat before his term is up, how should the state pick the candidates for the special election to replace him? ...

Policy News

Casual Friday: Weekend Events & Outdoors Report Outdoor Notes--Tribune:Utah Hike of the Week: Meadow Lava Tubes--Tribune: At Meadow Lava Tubes, a youngster's enthusiasm for hiking gathers steam--Tribune:Stop and explore the petroglyph wonders of Utah's Parowan GapWeekend EventsNew Films-- The Dinner: Tribune review-- Guar...

Rep. Mia Love votes to repeal Obamacare Rep. Mia Love joined the majority of the U.S. House of Representatives, who voted to pass the American Health Care Act (ACHA). After the vote, Rep. Love released the following statement:...

Hatch statement on House passage of bill to repeal and replace Obamacare Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today issued the following statement after the House passed the American Health Care Act (AHCA):...

Bishop casts vote to repeal Obamacare The U.S. House of representatives has voted to pass the American Health Care Act (AHCA). Rep. Rob Bishop (UT-01) released the following statement after voting in favor of the measure:...

Rep. Stewart votes to repeal and replace Obamacare Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) released the following statement after voting in favor of the American Health Care Act, which passed the House of Representatives Thursday:...

Utah's defense industry directly and indirectly supported over 109,000 jobs and $9.2 billion in economic activity in 2015 Utah's defense industry directly and indirectly supported over 109,000 jobs and $9.2 billion in economic activity in the state during 2015, according to new research released by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute....

Local Headlines

Salt Lake Tribune

Op-ed: Bill will help to keep Utah's children safe

Op-ed: Don't undermine the independence of Utah's judges

Defense industry supported 109,000 Utah jobs, research shows

Mormon church creates family history tree for congresswoman at request of Rep. Mia Love

Developer won UTA deals after forming company with then-Chairman Greg Hughes

Former Kane County treasurer pleads guilty to stealing public funds, receives 30 days in jail

Mormon church vows to stay neutral in partisan politics - despite Trump's order

Gehrke: Tale of mother facing deportation should be a wake-up call for Utah

Deseret News

Jay Evensen: Is jury duty just a waste of time?

Provo, Orem ranked among the least diverse cities in the country

Chaffetz targets presidential pensions after Obama earns $400K for speech

LDS Church says Trump's order easing political restrictions won't alter current stance

Utah Technology Council begins search for new CEO

Utah's 4 House reps say yes to AHCA, call it better alternative to Affordable Care Act

Energy summit highlights Utah's successes, challenges

Dr. Lee to keep $1 million salary from university for one year as fallout continues

Jordan River State Park? Utah lawmaker considering bill to protect river from homeless

Mormons present family history to African-American congresswoman

Other

Former UCRP secretary threatens lawsuit against Utah County Republican Party (Daily Herald)

Park City area woman to challenge U.S. Rep. Bishop, cites Bears Ears issue (Standard-Examiner)

National Headlines

House Republicans claim a major victory with passage of health-care overhaul (Washington Post)

List of Obamacare Taxes Repealed (Americans for Tax Reform)

Trump signs order seeking to allow churches to engage in more political activity (Washington Post)

Trump savors health care win: 'Hey, I'm president' (Politico)

Congressional health-care bill 'defunds' Planned Parenthood (Washington Post)

Sean Spicer Is Doing a Good Job. Here's Why. (Politico)

Texas' new ban on 'sanctuary cities' could put police in jail if they fail to enforce immigration holds (Los Angeles Times)

Tillerson urges ASEAN to cut North Korea funding, minimize ties (Reuters)

Apple plans to spend $1 billion to support advanced manufacturing jobs in the US (Washington Post)

Airlines 'self-inflicted' woes under glare at US Senate hearing (Reuters)

House panel approves GOP Dodd-Frank rewrite (The Hill)

Wise Words

Still True
"We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt." Thomas Jefferson

Lighter Side

Reminders
"There's a lot going on in Washington right now - Trump is working on a new budget, tax reform, healthcare, trade. So to make sure he doesn't forget anything he actually likes to set reminders on his phone. For example, he has this one reminder that says, "Play Tetris to practice building the wall." Jimmy Fallon

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