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| The UtahPolicy.com daily newsletter gets you up to speed on the top local and national news about politics and public policy. Send news tips or feedback to [email protected] Situational Analysis - March 19, 2021It's Friday and we are nearly two-thirds of the way through March. How did that happen?! It's also National Let's Laugh Day and National Chocolate Caramel Day. How will you celebrate? Remember the state-wide food drive tomorrow, Saturday March 20. Have a bag on your porch by 9 am. The US Senate narrowly confirmed Xavier Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday, with just one Republican-Sen. Susan Collins-voting in favor. William Burns, meanwhile, was unanimously confirmed to lead the CIA. Burns sailed through a largely amicable confirmation hearing last month, where he told senators he would focus on four main priorities as director: challenges from China, boosting the spy agency's technological prowess, strengthening its workforce, and boosting partnerships within the U.S. intelligence community and abroad. Utah has opened up vaccine eligibility to all Utahns 16 and older beginning Wednesday and nationally, 100,000 million vaccines are in arms, well before the 100-day target President Biden set. If you only have time for one thing: Read Savannah Hopkinson's piece on why #StopAsianHate is personal to her. "I was not born in the United States, but everything I know about race is a result of my time here. Being kicked off a playground because my presence was "scaring the other kids." Being told it was great that I could understand my mom's accent. Constantly having people approach me and ask if I spoke English, or even approaching me assuming I didn't and immediately jumping into a different language. Kids laughing at my 'weird' food. People making games out of guessing what ethnicity I looked like. Attending college information meetings and being told I stood a good chance because I could "get the minority benefits," as if I hadn't spent years working just as hard or harder to prove myself....Ethnicity is not a virus. Hate is." Just don't read the comments. Holly's Hot Tip: If you're having a bad day, don't go buy a gun and shoot a bunch of people. Thanks for coming to my TED talk. Countdown 26 days until the end of the Cox/Henderson administration's first 100 days (04/14/2021) Today At Utah PolicyTweets of the day: Friday funBy Holly Richardson Birds as artists, wax figures, Britannia portrayed as a woman of color, Utah sunsets, the world's happiest country and an island for sale for way less than a million. Rural news round-up By Holly Richardson Rural round-up - From an event for World Down Syndrome Day to collecting baby basket items and from state of the city addresses to a blistering op-ed aimed at Utah legislators, here is a round-up from rural publications around the state. Commentary: Romney is a solid conservative on public lands issues By LaVarr Webb Conservative Republicans in Utah have been angry at Sen. Mitt Romney for voting to boot former Pres. Trump out of office. He has also taken moderate positions on other issues that a lot of conservatives don't like.But on one key issue important to conservatives public lands Romney has been a champ. Utah Republicans ought to be pleased with Romney's efforts to protect Utah's interests on public lands and energy. Utah HeadlinesDeseret News It was all hands on deck for the 2020 earthquake - A look back on that day through the eyes of a journalist. Asian Americans fighting two viruses - COVID-19 and racism - Asian American members of Congress, scholars and advocates, including actor Daniel Dae Kim, who testified Thursday about the rise in discrimination against Asian Americans before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. Moroni's trumpet fell one year ago. Where is the statue now and what's happened since? - He's in a local storage facility until 2024. Now all Utahns are eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations starting Wednesday - Governor says public health departments wanted date moved from April 1 because vaccine appointments were going unfilled in some counties. Water restrictions could come early with 90% of Utah in 'extreme drought,' Cox warns - Cox said Utahns must focus on conservation in a "very big way. We have to do better."Salt Lake Tribune Will counties be allowed to enact mask mandates after April 10? It depends. - All pandemic public health orders will not end in Utah until caseload, ICU and vaccine benchmarks are met. Even when Utah lifts mandate, you'll still need a mask to shop at grocery stores - Harmons, Smith's and other retailers want employees to get vaccinations before eliminating face coverings for customers. TestUtah relief funds, inland port 'bank' and widening vaccine pool on this week's 'Behind the Headlines' - Join Salt Lake Tribune journalists on KCPW's new roundup this morning at 9. Why does Mitt Romney want to send checks to parents each month? To encourage them to have more kids. - The Utah Republican also argues payments starting when a woman is pregnant will help curb abortions. Sean Reyes, other AGs press Biden over restrictions in stimulus plan - 21 Republican attorneys general pressed the Biden administration Tuesday to clarify a provision in the $1.9 trillion economic aid package, warning that its restrictions on state efforts to cut taxes could be "the greatest attempted invasion of state sovereignty by Congress in the history of our Republic."Other Salt Lake County sheriff creates 'ICE dashboard' to show local immigration enforcement stats (KSL) - Between 2016 and 2020, ICE issued 3,269 detainers on jailed individuals in Salt Lake County. Making the dashboard public is a "monumental" move towards transparency. Utah national parks prepare for return of Spring Break crowds (FOX 13) - Though state restrictions are slowly lifting, Garthwait reminds visitors they are still on Federal lands with Federal restrictions and masks are still required of the anticipated record-breaking crowds. $23 million in earthquake repairs still needed for two Salt Lake City landmarks (FOX 13) - The Salt Lake City and County Building needs about $3 million for the repairs and the Rio Grande building needs about $20 million.COVID Corner No deaths in Utah caused by COVID-19 vaccine, state's medical examiner verifies (Salt Lake Tribune) - The ME's office also called on "members of the media to wait for all the facts to be known prior to reporting information that could lead to undue diminished confidence in these life-saving vaccines." US coronavirus vaccine rollout becomes 'less messy' (CNN) - It's better in a lot of ways, including vaccine supply, reaching underserved populations, calming conspiracy fears and increasing vaccinators. AstraZeneca: Germany, other European countries to resume use of vaccine (DW) - Germany, France and several other European countries have decided to lift suspensions on the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine following safety guidance from the European Medicines Agency. Paris to enter four-week lockdown as France faces third Covid wave (The Guardian) - New restrictions for capital and northern parts of country from Friday as virulent variants spread. Ford Field to distribute more than 300K doses of Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson vaccines (Detroit News) - The COVID-19 mass vaccination clinic is set to open Wednesday. Does the COVID-19 vaccine really stop 'long-COVID'? (Deseret News) - Scientists can't confirm whether this is true but they've begun additional research into the matter to figure out if it is true. Older people can get COVID-19 twice ... if they don't get the vaccine (Deseret News) - Two British researchers said natural immunity isn't a good strategy for keeping the world safe from the coronavirus. COVID-19 survivors might only have immunity for 6 months (Deseret News) - The Lancet just published a study that found that reinfection can happen for individuals who naturally became infected with the coronavirus.National HeadlinesLatest bipartisan gang tries to save Senate from itself (Politico) - It's no accident that 10 GOP senators are in the group: That's the number needed to break a filibuster. Ron DeSantis Is Very Pleased With Himself (Politico) - The much-criticized and combative Florida governor has survived the Covid pandemic and Donald Trump. And that makes him unique in the GOP. Biden, Harris to meet with AAPI leaders in Georgia following deadly spa shootings (ABC News) - The original plans to talk about COVID-19 relief were scrapped after a shooting spree in the Atlanta area Tuesday night killed eight people, the majority of whom were women of Asian descent. US and China trade barbs after Blinken warns of need to respect global order or face a 'more violent world' (CNN) - By evening, the Chinese had accused the US delegation of being "condescending" in its tone, while a US official said the representatives from Beijing seemed "intent on grandstanding." House Passes 2 Bills Aimed At Overhauling The Immigration System (NPR) - The American Dream and Promise Act, which previously passed in the House in 2019, would create a process for "DREAMers" and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which would establish a system for agricultural workers to earn temporary status with an eventual option to become a permanent resident. Biden administration eyes mid-May to begin relaxing Covid travel restrictions, sources say (CNBC) - The relaxation of restrictions would involve travel across the Mexican and Canadian borders and on inbound travel from the U.K., Europe and Brazil, two sources told CNBC. A New Report Adds Evidence That Trump Was a Russian Asset (Slate) - He helped Putin manipulate the U.S. election in 2020, as he did in 2016. 'Get a tall oak tree': Rep. Chip Roy of Texas defends apparent pro-lynching remarks (NBC News) - Alternate headline: Rep Roy defends the indefensible. The largest mass lynching in US history was against Chinese immigrants - the Chinese Massacre of 1871 in Los Angeles. Biden will send Mexico surplus vaccine, as U.S. seeks help on immigration enforcement (Washington Post) - The United States made clear it sought help from Mexico in managing a record influx of Central American teenagers and children. Mexico pledged to take back more Central American families "expelled" under a U.S. emergency health order. Biden administration celebrates 100 million COVID-19 vaccine dose milestone (Deseret News) - The White House is also finalizing plans to send millions of AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines - not yet approved in the U.S. - to Canada and Mexico.Policy NewsFRIDAY: Bipartisan immigration summit features Sens Romney, Bennet, Sinema and Kelly and moreWith the House having approved the Dream and Promise Act of 2021, the American Business Immigration Coalition - Intermountain Chapter, will host an immigration summit this Friday, March 19 at 11:30 MST / 2:30 EST featuring bipartisan elected officials, business leaders, CEOs, and university presidents at the Intermountain Rising: Unlocking Our Regions Economic Potential Through Bipartisan Immigration Reform. Sen. Lee, colleagues call for Judiciary Hearing on Obama-Biden's FTC deal with Google Today, U.S. Senators Mike Lee (R-Utah), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) sent letters to Federal Trade Commission Acting Chair (FTC) Rebecca Slaughter and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) calling for a public Judiciary Hearing into recent revelations that the Obama-Biden FTC failed to enforce antitrust law in an 2011 investigation of Google and instead let the company off with a slap on the wrist. The senators call for testimony from Google executives and relevant FTC officials, including the former Commissioners who now represent big tech firms. Carson Jorgensen announces he is running for Chair of the Utah GOP Mr. Carson Jorgensen, a successful 6th generation rancher, father of 4 daughters, and husband to Amy, announces his candidacy for State Chair for the Utah GOP. Rep. Curtis leads bipartisan coalition with legislation to combat surveillance of Uyghurs and others Today, Representative John Curtis (R-UT) led a bipartisan coalition to re-introduce the Foreign Advanced Technology Surveillance Accountability Act. This bipartisan legislation would combat foreign adoption of advanced technology surveillance equipment, such as those used by China against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Utah Taxpayers Association releases 2021 legislative scorecard The Utah Taxpayers Association has released its 2021 Legislative Scorecard. This year the Association's annual scorecard ranks Utah's 104 legislators on 14 crucial taxpayer related bills from the 2021 legislative session. The bills that were rated covered key taxpayer issues such as cutting taxes, preventing tax increases, promoting equity in Utah's tax code and ensuring economic success in the state for years to come. Business HeadlinesFrom stimulus checks to Tax Day 2021: Answers to your questions about IRS changes, COVID relief and more (USA Today) - Lots of Q&A here. No stimulus check yet? Use IRS 'Get My Payment' tool to find the status of new COVID relief payments (USA Today) - As of Wednesday, the Internal Revenue Service said it had sent out coronavirus relief checks to more than 90 million Americans under the initial round of payments. Here's how unhoused people can get the $1,400 stimulus check -- and how others can help (CNN) - The stimulus may come in a prepaid debit card and unhoused people who make less than $72,000 can file their taxes for free through the IRS. Nike posts mixed results as sales fall short of estimates, hurt by U.S. port congestion (CNBC) - In North America, revenue dropped 10% year over year, as Nike said shipments have been delayed by more than three weeks. However, Nike continued to see momentum online. Its e-commerce sales surged 59% during the period.On This Day In History(From History.com) 1589 - William Bradford is born. He was the Governor of Plymouth colony for 30 years and is the 11th great-grandfather of Utah's Lt. Governor, Deidre Henderson. 1875 - Margaret Foley is born. She became a labor organizer, suffragist, and social worker, and an out-spoken suffrage activist who would loudly confront anti-suffrage speakers. She made a solo balloon flight over Lawrence, Massachusetts, tossing suffrage literature from the basket. 1916 - The first US air combat mission begins. 1931 - Nevada legalizes gambling. 1954 - Jill Abramson is born in New York City. She became the first female executive editor of the New York Times. 1964 - Geraldine Mock departs from Columbus, Ohio in her single-engine Cessna 180 christened the "Spirit of Columbus" in an ambitious adventure. She earned the nickname the "Flying Housewife" and became the first woman to fly around the world solo when she returned to Columbus on April 17, 1964. 1979 - C-Span launches and begins broadcasting live from the US House of Representatives. Did you know it had been around that long? Neither did I. 2003 - War in Iraq begins.Wise Words"All great and honorable actions are accompanied with great difficulties [that must be] overcome with answerable courage." ~William Bradford Lighter SideLighter Side"The N.C.A.A. March Madness basketball tournament began today, and it's extra exciting because there was no tournament last year. So this is my first chance in two years to get furious at 19-year-olds I hadn't heard of five minutes ago." Seth Meyers Subscribers may receive special messages with information about new features, special offers, or public policy messages from clients and advertisers. |
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