Until Monday, Christine Blasey Ford, a professor at Stanford and Palo Alto universities was a well-respected but mostly private individual. Soon she’ll be as ubiquitous in the news as Donald Trump.
Happy Tuesday. The public’s introduction to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, has just begun. The biostatistics and psychology professor is known to colleagues as a serious and well-respected professional. She teaches and does consulting for pharmaceutical companies. By Monday, when the 51-year testifies before the Senate, her privacy will be a fond memory. [SanFranChronicle]
Topping the news: The LDS Church is calling for a special session of the Legislature to legalize medical marijuana this year. But backers of the popular ballot measure on marijuana see the faith’s sudden urgency as a ploy to defeat the initiative. [Trib][DNews][KUTV2]
-> Sen. Orrin Hatch said Monday that Christine Blasey Ford must be mistaken in her allegations of sexual assault against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh nearly four decades ago. Kavanaugh is a good man, he said. [Trib][DNews]
-> During a debate at Dixie University on Monday, Rep. Chris Stewart touted the economic growth under President Trump. Democratic challenger Shireen Ghorbani said Trump is a national security threat. [Trib][Fox13][KSL]
Tweets of the day: From @BillOReilly: “No outsider knows what really happened 37 years ago. Yet a variety of people have already convicted Kavanaugh. Please remember all of those who make a mockery of due process. They are undermining perhaps our most important protection - the presumption of innocence.”
-> From @BenWinslow: “The latest @UtahPolicy poll surprised a lot, putting @ShireenGhorbani within 10 points of @RepChrisStewart. So the race suddenly got a lot more competitive. Also, this is the ONLY debate between the two (incumbents usually don't agree to a lot of them). #utpol #utdebates”
-> From @ShireenGhorbani: “We cannot get any traction on healthcare solutions because our congress is bought and sold by pharma. I just said it and I mean it.”
Happy Birthday: To Weber County Auditor Ricky Hatch.
In other news: The LDS Church has released a second memo analyzing the legal risks associated with Proposition 2′s framework for medical marijuana. [Trib][DNews][Fox13]
-> The Love-McAdams race for House of Representatives has taken a negative tone, with Rep. Love being the first to push out negative ads. [DNews]
-> The Utah Attorney General wants to seize $1M in assets from pawn shops associated with ties to a polygamous sect, the Kingston Group. [Trib][Fox13]
-> Some members of the Salt Lake County Council have joined calls for the Inland Port Authority Board to make their committee meetings public. Councilman Michael Jensen, a member of the inland port board, defends them being closed for now. [DNews]
-> The Marijuana Policy Project, the nation’s biggest marijuana activist group, will be hosting fundraising events for supporters of Proposition 2. [Fox13]
-> ‘FanX’, formerly Salt Lake Comic Con, has filed an appeals case after being sued and losing to San Diego Comic Con in California’s state courts. [Fox13]
-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke contends that, although Wanda Barzee’s release from prison is concerning, she did her time after pleading guilty and serving a 15-year sentence. [Trib]
-> Pat Bagley illustrated conservatives on the Judicial Review discussing old times in lieu of sexual assault allegations towards Judge Brett Kavanaugh. [Trib]
Nationally: Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and his accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, have agreed to testify in a Senate hearing set for Monday. [WaPost][Politico][NYTimes][WSJ][BBC]
-> In response to China not meeting President Trump’s expectations for trade agreements, he has announced that tariffs will be raised by 10 percent on $200 billion more of Chinese goods. Businesses have recoiled at this move. [Politico][WSJ][BBC]
-> President Trump has ordered some documents about the Russia investigation to be declassified, despite warnings from law enforcement officials that it could threaten national security. [NYTimes][Politico]
-> Former New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg is considering running for president in 2020 as a Democrat. Historically, he has been an independent or Republican candidate. [NYTimes]
-> U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions declared on Monday that the Justice Department will actively oppose college campuses that attempt to stifle free political expression. [NYTimes]
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-- Dan Harrie and Cara MacDonald
https://twitter.com/danattrib and Twitter.com/carammacdonald
Follow @sltribpolitics