Former VP Joe Biden says Trump has “some difficulty with precision” and shouldn’t interview with special counsel. The LDS Church supports a bill that would make Utah a two-party consent state in recording conversations. The Utah Legislature will avoid a government shutdown.
Happy Wednesday. Former Vice President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he would advise President Donald Trump not to interview with special counsel about possible Russian collusion. “The president has some difficulty with precision,” Biden said in an interview. [CNN]
Topping the news: The LDS Church has thrown its support behind a bill that would make it illegal to record a conversation without first getting approval. [Trib]
-> A new bill would prohibit city and local officials from speaking out in favor of federal protections on public lands. [Trib]
-> The Utah Legislature finalized a series of safety net budgets that would prevent a government shutdown like the one currently looming in Washington. [Trib]
-> Robert Gehrke expresses disbelief at one Utah lawmaker who has been punished again after making inappropriate remarks to a woman working at the Capitol. [Trib]
Tweet of the day: From @mviser: “America: Your final term paper is due in December. Congress: Great! Congress in Dec: We need more time. 4 more weeks? America: Fine. Congress in Jan: Oops! Didn’t know it would be THIS hard. 3 more weeks? America: Ugh. Congress in Feb: Just 6 more weeks? America: Seriously?”
Happy Birthday: To state Rep. Brad Daw.
In other news: The U.S. House passed a new set of guidelines — based, in part, on a proposal by Utah Rep. Mia Love — that would require lawmakers to pay their own settlements in cases of sexual harassment or misconduct. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4]
-> The Salt Lake City Council discussed what an inland port proposed for the northwest quadrant could mean for taxation and land use. [Trib]
-> State Sen. Allen Christensen is withdrawing his legislation that would have required new immigrants to remain in the state for five years before qualifying for CHIP or Medicaid. [Trib]
-> State lawmakers rejected a bill that would abolish daylight saving time in Utah. [Trib] [DNews]
-> The House unanimously passed a bill that closes a loophole in Utah’s seatbelt law. [Trib]
-> The House also passed a bill that would make it easier to catch state employees who use their official email accounts for political purposes. [Trib]
-> Legislators have proposed about a dozen air-quality bills ranging from reducing car emissions to funding more research. [Trib]
-> A new bill passed that through the Senate would open up any state highway to tolling. [Trib] [DNews]
-> Another bill passed through the House would allow Utahns to choose “water cremation” over burial or traditional cremation. [Trib]
-> The House passed legislation, proposed as a pedestrian safety bill, that would limit panhandling in Salt Lake City. [Trib]
-> New polling suggests that Utahns prefer having a campus’ board of trustees appoint a new university president rather than the state Board of Regents. [Trib]
-> Salt Lake residents can attend one of several open houses to share their opinions on the possible locations of off-leash dog parks. [Trib]
-> Pat Bagley depicts his version of how EnergySolutions gets stuff done. [Trib]
Nationally: President Donald Trump said he would welcome a government shutdown if Congress did not reach an agreement on stricter immigration laws. [NYTimes]
-> Elon Musk’s SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon Heavy rocket into space Tuesday afternoon. [NYTimes]
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— Courtney Tanner and Eric Baker