Vulnerable House Republicans walking a fine line with President Trump. Officials say heroin overdoses are down. Lee opposes bill to fix national parks, citing costs without cuts.
Happy Tuesday. With just 35 days to go until the midterm elections, some vulnerable House Republicans are walking a fine line: Touting their conservative ideals, the work they’ve done in Congress and not saddling up with President Donald Trump or criticizing him either. In some districts with tough races, Trump polls ahead of the GOP candidates but they can’t be seen as in his pocket because it may alienate independent voters. [Politico]
Topping the news: Utah officials announced Monday that there has been a 14.5% decrease in heroin overdose deaths this year, marking the first decrease in deaths due to the drug in six years. Opioid deaths also saw a decline in 2017. [DNews][ABC4][KSL]
-> Sen. Mike Lee opposes a bill seeking to use some royalties earned from drilling and mining on public lands to perform necessary maintenance needs at America’s national parks. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke as well as Utah’s House members support of the bill. [Trib]
-> The Inland Port Authority aims to become more transparent and accountable as it works on executing Utah’s biggest economic project- - an inland port which will be a distribution hub for goods to be imported into the state via train, plane and truck. Their attempts have seemed to be “operating in the shadows”, a concept which became literal last week as the power went out during a board meeting. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: From @pdmcleod: “Just saw a crowd of young people outside the Capitol freak out with excitement upon seeing Bernie Sanders. They took selfies with him and he left. One moment later they freaked out for, and took selfies with, Ted Cruz. I am very confused.”
-> From @ryanbeckwith: “Happily Ever NAFTA”
In other news: The Interior Department has been working on a new management plan for the shrunken Bear’s Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments, but House Democrats are seeking to halt the plan until lawsuits surrounding the boundaries of the lands have been settled. More than 60 House Democrats sent letters to Secretary Zinke on Monday urging him to put the plan on hold. [Trib]
-> Gov. Gary Herbert appointed lawyer David Williams as a judge in the 2nd district court. The appointment is subject to the approval of the Senate, but Herbert believes that he will be “unbiased and bring honesty and integrity to the bench.” [DNews]
-> A group of Republican lawmakers called on House candidate and Democrat Ben McAdams to stop airing ads against Rep. Mia Love which they say are “blatantly deceptive." Critics also claimed that McAdams was taking credit for things during his time as Salt Lake Co. Mayor that he didn’t have control over. [DNews]
-> Salt Lake County Councilwoman Ann Granato and her son are being sued by Madbrook Donuts for allegedly executing a coordinated attack against the company. Madbrook claims that it is owed over one million dollars by Granato and her company. [Fox13]
-> Pat Bagley illustrated a new trail of tears. [Trib]
Nationally: After striking a trade deal with Canada Sunday night, President Donald Trump plans to rip up NAFTA and replace it with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Some believe he might be settling his multi-front trade war in order to fortify against a single enemy: China. [NYTimes][BBC][WSJ][CNN]
-> More than 800,000 people registered to vote on September 25th, National Voter Registration Day. The number surpassed the previous record set during the 2016 election, and far exceeded their goal of 300-400,000 people. [Time]
-> Trump said that the FBI can question “anybody” about Kavanaugh in order to reach a comprehensive investigation, but he asked that it not be turned into a “witch hunt." [BBC][CNN]
-> As pressure on immigrants increases, detention centers and prisons are taking in more and more undocumented migrants who are caught entering the United States illegally. A huge part of this business involves detaining undocumented migrant children in federally contracted shelters with guard brutality, unpleasant food, and a lack of healthcare. [NYTimes]
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-- Thomas Burr and Cara MacDonald
https://twitter.com/thomaswburr and Twitter.com/carammacdonald