Take a peek inside the Republican National Committee’s war room, where 60 GOP researchers, bookers and attack dogs spent their time churning out the ammunition that conservative media and Trump supporters use daily to pummel the president’s foes. Their work has been throwing Democrats off message for months, while stoking the daily fires of conservative outrage. “I understand their weaponry, and frankly I don’t underestimate it at all,” said one aide to a Democrat considering a 2020 campaign. [WaPost]
Happy Friday.
Topping the news: The Federal Election Commission gave a belated clearance to Rep. Mia Love for most of the $1 million she fundraised for a primary election that did not occur. In response, Love accused her opponent, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams, for unethical practices and suggested he should withdraw from the election. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13] [KUTV]
-> Former Utah congressman Jason Chaffetz posted a photo on Twitter of him next to a wooden statue of a Native American with the caption “At Disneyland today with Senator Elizabeth Warren” — mocking the Massachusetts Democrat for recently sharing results of her DNA test revealing ancestral Native American blood. [Trib] [DNews] [KUTV] [ABC4]
-> A new Tribune-Hinckley Institute of Politics poll found that support for Proposition 3, a ballot initiative that would expand Medicaid, has risen to 59 percent of Utah voters. That’s up from 54 percent in a poll conducted in June, indicating a significant growth in popularity despite the bill’s opposition from state legislators. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: From @WardSutton: “I’m sure ol' Brett Kavanaugh is happy to have his name being brought up by Trump as a parallel to the Saudis who killed Jamal Khashoggi. #Guilty”
-> From @RawStory: “‘It’s funny because you’re racist’: Twitter swamps Jason Chaffetz after he mocks Elizabeth Warren with Indian selfie.”
Happy Birthday: Today to former state Rep. Douglas Aagard and Saturday to former Rep. Chris Cannon and BYU’s David Magleby.
Behind the Headlines: Salt Lake Tribune Managing Editor Sheila McCann, government and politics editor Dan Harrie, Utah Investigative Journalism Project’s Eric S. Peterson and columnist Robert Gehrke join KCPW’s Roger McDonough to talk about the week’s top stories, including Rep. Mia Love’s claim that the Federal Election Commission has cleared her of illegal fundraising. Every Friday at 9 a.m., stream “Behind the Headlines”at kcpw.org, or tune in to KCPW 88.3 FM or Utah Public Radio for the broadcast.
In other news: A new study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy and Voices for Utah Children revealed that low- and middle-income Utahns pay taxes on a higher percentage of their income than the upper class does. [Trib]
-> International tariffs on trade imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration are having a serious impact on the bottom lines of small businesses in Utah, threatening the survival of some. [DNews]
-> Utah’s former chief deputy attorney general is suing Salt Lake County prosecutors, alleging he was wrongfully jailed as part of the public corruption case against former Utah Attorney General John Swallow. [Trib]
-> About 20 percent of Salt Lake County residents say their housing costs were not affordable this year, according to a new survey on public perceptions of housing affordability — and concerns about the issue has grown dramatically in Utah since 2015. [Trib]
-> There are five key things Salt Lake City voters should know before they vote on whether to execute a 20-year bond that would pay for all or most of the costs of improving city roads and infrastructure. No. 1: If the bond passes, your taxes will go up — slightly. [Trib]
-> Rather than turn a piece of the reduced Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument into a national park, as Rep. Chris Stewart has proposed, state lawmakers said they’d like to see it become Utah’s newest state park. [Trib]
-> A new study by Utah State University found that while skiing is a major “push” to the Cottonwood Canyons during the winter, bad air quality also serves as a factor as people yearn for clean air during inversion months. [DNews]
-> A leading critic of the Mountain Accord — a collection of local government entities, transportation agencies, environmental organizations and ski resorts — wants a federal investigation of the company’s top official and the Utah Transit Authority, alleging they devised transit hubs and land trades under a “cloak of secrecy." [DNews]
-> A recent study named Utah as the third most politically engaged state in the US, behind Washington D.C. and Maine. [KUTV]
-> Pat Bagley illustrates out-of-state donors dropping money to Republican candidates in Utah. [Trib]
Nationally: President Donald Trump acknowledged dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s death was likely at the hands of high-level Saudi Arabian officials, but he did not specify which official was responsible — despite most of the world pointing to the crown prince of the country as the culprit. [NYTimes]
-> U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis met with his Chinese counterpart, Wei Fenghe, on Thursday in an attempt to calm tensions that have arisen as a result of a trade war between Washington D.C. and Beijing. But the meeting did not show signs they would abate any time soon. [NYTimes]
-> A caravan of more than 3,000 migrants from around Central America, including El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, are headed north toward the U.S. border. Trump, in response, has instructed Mexico to stop the “onslaught” or said he will shut down the border with military force and impose sanctions. [BBC] [CNN] [WSJ]
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-- Taylor Stevens and Cara MacDonald
https://twitter.com/tstevensmedia and Twitter.com/carammacdonald