President Donald Trump’s vision of building a gleaming Trump Tower in the heart of Soviet Moscow was born in the 1980s and never died throughout his presidential campaign. And his refusal to give up that ambition in 2016 now colors his public embrace of Russian President Vladimir Putin and criticism of the leader’s adversaries. “Russia is one of the hottest places in the world for investment,” Trump said in a 2007 deposition. “We will be in Moscow at some point.” [WaPost]
Happy Friday.
Topping the news: Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. John Curtis think the United States should pull out of the war in Yemen, which has been blamed for tens of thousands of deaths. [Trib]
-> Following passage of companion legislation in the House, Lee and Sen. Orrin Hatch introduced a bill Thursday to name a North Ogden Veteran’s Affairs center after fallen soldier and former North Ogden Mayor Brent Taylor. [Trib]
-> Salt Lake County Councilwoman Jenny Wilson plans to formally declare her candidacy Friday for the county mayor seat Rep.-elect Ben McAdams will vacate. [Trib]
Tweets of the Day: From @pourmecoffee: “In a way, we’ve all handcuffed ourselves to the Twitter office.”
-> From @PetriDishes: “Glad to see that as usual the internet is having a big cow.”
-> From @srl: “California Takes Its Time Counting Ballots. Paul Ryan Thinks That’s Really Weird.”
Behind the Headlines: Tribune reporters Bethany Rodgers, Taylor Stevens and Peggy Fletcher Stack, as well as columnist Robert Gehrke join KCPW’s Roger McDonough to talk about the week’s top stories, including a public hearing on the Utah Cannabis Act. 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.
Friday Quiz: Last time we were here, 97 percent of you knew medical marijuana advocates are threatening to sue the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but only 47 percent knew about who would be at Qualtrics’ $1,400-per-ticket conference. Think you kept up with the news this week? Take our quiz to find out. A new quiz will post every Friday morning. You can find previous quizzes here. If you’re using The Salt Lake Tribune mobile app, click here. [Trib]
In other news: Utah County is suing Gov. Gary Herbert over declining to select one of their nominees for the new Utah Transit Authority board, but the state is now arguing the county was at fault. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13]
-> Utah’s rate of uninsured kids was among the highest in the nation this year, according to a Georgetown University study. [Trib] [KUTV]
-> Salt Lake City is seeking help creating a new flag to replace the city’s current forgettable one. [Trib] [KUTV]
-> The Utah Supreme Court’s ruling on a controversial development from the Cottonwood Mall site earlier this week has sparked concerns about the prospect of more high-density residential projects being approved by cities, then overturned at the polls. [Trib] [Fox13]
-> House Speaker Paul Ryan said Sen.-Elect Mitt Romney will take on a role as a moral pillar for the Republican Party in the coming years. [DNews]
-> Around two-thirds of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nationwide voted Republican in the midterm elections, but Trump continues to slip out of favor among members of the faith. [APviaTrib]
-> Pat Bagley illustrates the things collectors of early LDS memorabilia should be wary of. [Trib]
Nationally: Trump abruptly cancelled a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, citing the country’s ongoing naval standoff with Ukraine as a deterrent.
-> His decision came shortly after news that Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, was negotiating with Russia to build a tower there during the 2016 elections and lied to Congress about it. Cohen pled guilty on Thursday. [NYTimes] [BBC] [CNN] [Fox] [WSJ]
-> Trump said a presidential pardon is “not off the table" for his former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, who was charged over the summer with multiple felony offenses and was revealed to have lied under oath during interviews as part of the special counsel investigations. [NYPost] [NYTimes] [CNN]
-> After ending its cyber spying efforts to obtain U.S. technology under President Barack Obama’s administration, China has picked up its espionage efforts over the past year in light of escalating trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies. [NYTimes]
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-- Taylor Stevens and Cara MacDonald
https://twitter.com/tstevensmedia and Twitter.com/carammacdonald