This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Governors 'sucking wind' this presidential cycle. Pope Francis lectures Congress on unity. Biskupski goes after Becker on environment.
Happy Friday. By now, conventional wisdom would have placed Jeb Bush at the top of the polls in the presidential race. If not him, perhaps a Scott Walker or Rick Perry or Bobby Jindal or Chris Christie. Except two of those folks are already out of the race and only Bush is considered a top-tier candidate. This is not the year for governors. "Governors at this time are at a distinct disadvantage because typically they're not fluent in the language of anger," says former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. [http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/governors-2016-no-respect-213937" target="_blank">Politico]
Topping the news: Pope Francis addressed a divided Congress yesterday with a message intended to unite them. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2986802-155/in-historic-speech-pope-francis-urges" target="_blank">Trib] [http://fox13now.com/2015/09/24/popes-speech-defies-political-categories/" target="_blank">Fox13] Utah politicians felt "honored" to witness the address. [http://www.good4utah.com/news/top-stories/utah-lawmakers-say-they-were-honored-to-witness-popes-historic-address" target="_blank">ABC4] But Sen. Orrin Hatch uses the Pope's words to call out President Barack Obama on religious freedom. [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637509/Much-of-Pope-Francis-speech-resonates-with-Utah-congressional-delegation.html" target="_blank">DNews]
-> SLC mayoral candidate Jackie Biskupski criticized Mayor Ralph Becker for claiming to be an environmentalist. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2988207-155/biskupski-rolls-out-environmental-platform-digs" target="_blank">Trib]
-> Utah Republicans will meet next week in closed-door caucuses for briefings on a proposal to use Medicaid funds to help low-income residents. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2988779-155/utah-republican-lawmakers-to-huddle-behind" target="_blank">Trib] [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637474/Lawmakers-to-hear-Medicaid-expansion-plan-next-week.html" target="_blank">DNews]
-> A federal judge rejected a request by the Utah Republican Party to rule in its favor on a lawsuit against the state over the "Count-My-Vote" bill after the GOP missed deadlines. [http://fox13now.com/2015/09/24/judge-says-utah-gop-missed-deadlines-so-he-drops-their-request-to-rule-in-sb54-case/" target="_blank">Fox13]
Tweets of the day: From http://twitter.com/stevebuttry" target="_blank">@stevebuttry: ".https://twitter.com/ABC">@ABC broke into the newscast about the pope for a special report on the pope. Now back to our regular newscast about the pope."
From @http://www.twitter.com/dcbigjohn" target="_blank">dcbigjohn: "The pope walks within a foot of the most powerful people on earth and refuses to touch them, but will risk his life to hug poor kids."
From http://twitter.com/pourmecoffee" target="_blank">@pourmecoffee: "Pope Francis: 'I don't understand. Which is the original Ray's Pizza? There's like nine of them. They can't all be. It doesn't make sense.'"
Happy Birthday: Today to state Sen. Lyle Hillyard, on Saturday to state Rep. Angela Romero and on Sunday to Sen. Allen Christensen and Wade Garrett, Rep. Jason Chaffetz's district director.
Tune in: Tribune reporters Thomas Burr, Mike Gorrell and Brian Maffly, along with managing editor Dave Noyce join Jennifer Napier-Pearce to talk about the week's top news stories including the pope's U.S. visit, the death of another LDS apostle and the Interior's decision on the greater sage grouse. Tune in to http://kcpw.org/stream/" target="_blank">KCPW or http://upr.org/" target="_blank">Utah Public Radio at 9 a.m. MDT for the live broadcast.
In other news: If the presidential election were held today and the candidates were Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton, Utahns would vote for Bush by a big margin over the former secretary of state, a new poll shows. [http://utahpolicy.com/index.php/features/today-at-utah-policy/7101-" target="_blank">UtahPolicy]
-> National Journal looks at Rep. Mia Love's re-election chances and says she's more vulnerable than people think, noting that her race is a prime target of Democrats. [http://www.nationaljournal.com/s/73724/mia-loves-surprisingly-unsafe-2016-reelection-prospects" target="_blank">NJ]
-> About 45,000 refugees now live in Utah, but more coordination between the 220 separate organizations intended to help them is needed. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2988590-155/study-better-coordination-of-services-to" target="_blank">Trib]
-> Judge Shauna Graves-Robertson, Utah's first black female judge, addressed elementary students on crime and punishment yesterday. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2987062-155/elementary-students-discuss-crime-and-punishment" target="_blank">Trib]
-> LDS apostle D. Todd Christofferson told attendees from various faiths at the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia about Mormon practices on home life. [http://www.sltrib.com/lifestyle/faith/2988987-155/mormon-apostle-appears-at-philly-meeting" target="_blank">Trib] [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637493/Elder-Christofferson-talks-about-how-President-Monson-calls-a-new-apostle-reflects-on-Elder-Scott.html" target="_blank">DNews]
-> A new police wing was added to Draper's City Hall. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2987083-155/draper-unveils-new-police-wing-at" target="_blank">Trib]
-> A Utah bank and its insurer have agreed to pay more than $5 million to settle claims from American Pension Services of Riverton. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2988344-155/bank-insurer-to-pay-5m-in" target="_blank">Trib]
-> Utah lawmakers unveiled an online calculator Thursday that shows how the state would be hit by various federal budget disasters like a shutdown. [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637537/Utah-unveils-tool-showing-impact-of-federal-budget-crisis.html" target="_blank">DNews] [http://kutv.com/news/local/utah-unveils-tool-showing-impact-of-federal-budget-crisis" target="_blank">KUTV]
-> Technology is one factor that has helped Washington County School District's graduation rate rise by 8 percent in the past three years. [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637546/Report-Technology-helps-struggling-students-graduate-in-St-George.html" target="_blank">DNews]
-> Bob Bernick and Bryan Schott discuss this week in news, including their poll on Gov. Gary Herbert and the upcoming legislative debate on a Medicaid expansion alternative. [http://utahpolicy.com/index.php/features/today-at-utah-policy/7098-Bob%20Bernick%20and%20Bryan%20Schott" target="_blank">UtahPolicy]
-> After years of struggle, Coalville now has a new $12 million water treatment facility. [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865637512/New-12M-water-treatment-plant-is-beautiful-ex-Coalville-mayor-says.html" target="_blank">DNews]
-> Lawyers are asking a federal judge to block references to polygamy, child-bride marriages and Warren Jeffs' sermons in an upcoming trial. [http://www.sltrib.com/blogs/polygamy/2988161-155/lawyer-for-polygamous-towns-dont-want" target="_blank">Trib] [http://fox13now.com/2015/09/24/lawyers-want-to-keep-polygamy-underage-marriages-and-warren-jeffs-sermons-out-of-court/" target="_blank">Fox13]
-> Paul Rolly talks about the increasing loopholes parents must jump through in Davis School District to qualify their children for free or reduced lunches. [http://www.sltrib.com/news/2983142-155/rolly-applying-for-free-or-discounted" target="_blank">Trib]
Nationally: The United States and China will outline an international agreement on climate change today with each country committing to new measures for curbing emissions. [http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/us-china-climate-pact-214045" target="_blank">Politico] President Barack Obama has also decided to break the year-long silence between the United States and Russia next week. [http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/obama-meets-putin-schedule-214017#ixzz3mfUz1eEm" target="_blank">Politico]
-> Poll numbers suggest that Jeb Bush has made a poor impression on voters, placing fifth in New Hampshire among GOP candidates. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/09/24/jeb-bush-is-in-5th-place-in-this-nh-poll-but-thats-not-his-worst-news-out-of-the-survey/?postshare=2141443135331502" target="_blank">WaPost] In the same state, Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders has overthrown Hillary Clinton in the polls. [http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/24/politics/new-hampshire-2016-democratic-primary-hillary-clinton/index.html" target="_blank">CNN]
-> After feuds, Republican candidate Donald Trump will meet with Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes to discuss the network's coverage of the billionaire's presidential campaign. [http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/254814-trump-fox-chief-roger-ailes-to-meet" target="_blank">TheHill]
Where are they?
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— Thomas Burr and Mariah Noble
https://twitter.com/thomaswburr" target="_blank">Twitter.com/thomaswburr and https://twitter.com/mnoblenews" target="_blank">Twitter.com/mnoblenews