With 62 days until the midterm elections, news organizations are already starting to make predictions for who will win and by how much. Among them, POLITICO has analyzed every race for House, Senate and governor, using historical trends, polling data and evaluations of campaign strategies to determine expected winners. The news organization is predicting the House of Representatives will lean to the Democrats, while the Senate will likely go to the Republicans. Check out the tool to search by state or district. [Politico]
Happy Wednesday.
Topping the news: Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation hearings had a dramatic start on Tuesday after the Judiciary Committee received a dump of documents from the nominee’s past the night before and amid frustration among members of the Senate over noisy and “insolent” protestors. Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch personally insisted one protestor be removed from the court room. [Trib] [DNews] [KUER]
-> Here’s everything you need to know about the confirmation process and its potential impacts. [Trib]
-> Former Salt Lake County Republican Party Communication Director Dave Robinson has lost his title but will continue to work for the party in a more limited role after an uproar over his comments that sexual promiscuity is tied to high suicide rates among LGBTQ+ individuals. [Trib]
-> Salt Lake City residents want to see a redesign of their current flag, which experts say violates design standards and doesn’t appear to represent anything about the city. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: From @rodneyb74: “Wait... Salt Lake City has a flag?”
-> From @PalmerReport, “Donald Trump’s day so far: Brett Kavanaugh snubs Parkland father Fred Guttenberg, White House adviser Zina Bash flashes white power symbol, Bob Woodward drops a house on Trump, John Kelly says Trump is an “idiot”, James Mattis says Trump is insane, it’s still only 5pm.”
Happy Birthday: Utah House of Representatives Chief of Staff Greg Hartley and gun rights advocate Clark Aposhian.
In other news: Gov. Gary Herbert is urging Utahns to decontaminate their boats after leaving Lake Powell and before entering other bodies of water, saying boat owners are on the “front lines” in the fight against quagga mussels, an invasive species that plagues the state’s waters. [DNews]
-> Whether the Inland Port Authority board’s subcommittees are required by law to keep their meetings public is up for debate, and experts say Utah’s Open and Public Meetings Act may not be as straightforward as it’s been made to sound. [DNews]
-> Drug Safe Utah, the group opposing Proposition 2, broadcast an advertisement on multiple radio stations declaring that the medical marijuana ballot initiative is about recreational use, not medical. The initiative’s sponsors have filed a complaint with the Utah Lt. Governor’s Office in response. [Fox13]
-> A protestor who was arrested in July and identifies as transgender is now joining advocates calling for Utah’s jails and prisons to adapt to better treat members of the community and other marginalized populations that may come through the doors. [Trib]
-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke critiques Mia Love’s campaign messaging on same-sex marriage, since a majority of Utahns now support the right for members of the LGBTQ+ community to marry. [Trib]
-> Pat Bagley points out that the uproar surrounding Kavanaugh’s appointment may foreshadow future issues. [Trib]
Nationally: Former Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl will step in to fill the late Sen. John McCain’s shoes in Congress, though he will likely only stay for a year or two — creating an opportunity for Democrats to gain an additional seat in 2020. [WaPost][Politico]
-> President Donald Trump may have the power to ‘flip’ the Supreme Court with Kavanaugh, but his impact on the lower courts remains to be seen. During his term so far, he has filled 60 seats in the federal district courts, but he hasn’t yet shifted the partisan balance of any of them. [NYTimes]
-> The U.S. Justice Department has decided to bring criminal charges against two Republican lawmakers running for reelection this November — a call Trump derided on Twitter, arguing it could jeopardize the party’s control of the House. [NYTimes]
-> Twitter is under pressure from both conservatives and liberals for how it will handle abusive, threatening, or offensive language, including from the president. The company says it makes certain accommodations for political officials but that Trump is not immune from being removed from the platform. [Politico]
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-- Taylor Stevens and Cara MacDonald
Follow @sltribpolitics