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Political Cornflakes: New tell-all book written by former White House staffer describes scenes of chaos within the Trump administration

President Donald Trump speaks about the partial government shutdown, immigration and border security in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A new book by a former White House staffer claims that employees within President Donald Trump’s administration are “absolutely out of control” at times. The tell-all titled “Team of Vipers,” which is set to hit shelves next week, describes the browbeating, dysfunction and dissatisfaction experienced within the White House during the first part of Trump’s time in office. The author, Cliff Sims, writes that former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly said in frustration that “this is the worst [expletive] job I’ve ever had.” He recounts an instance in which Trump wandered out of a room and began watching television as former House Speaker Paul Ryan was trying to discuss a Republican health-care bill with him. And he depicts the turbulent 11-days when Anthony Scaramucci was White House communications director. “Can you believe this guy?” Trump is quoted saying of Scaramucci. “He’s completely out of his mind — like, on drugs of something — totally out of his mind. We’ll figure it out, but the guy is crazy.” [WaPost]

Happy Tuesday.

Topping the news: The Utah Transit Authority is looking at extending TRAX lines to Lehi. This announcement comes despite four years of promises from UTA officials to direct future expenditures towards an improvement in the bus system rather than spending on big rail projects. [Trib]

-> According to research by The Salt Lake Tribune, nine out of every 10 Utah legislators are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Latter-day Saint supermajority particularly comes into play for issues such as alcohol, gambling, marijuana, assisted suicide, immigration and gay rights. Non-LDS Utahns make up about 38 percent of the state’s population. [Trib]

-> The Weber County Commission discussed the detrimental effects of the government shutdown on the county with Sen. Mitt Romney, who said action to break the federal impasse must come from the president and House speaker. The meeting was originally closed to the press but a Tribune reporter was able to enter by citing Utah’s Open and Public Meetings Act. [Trib]

Tweets of the day: From @joshtpm: “I’m setting up a new crisis PR firm specializing in work for affluent suburban catholic all boys schools because i don’t feel like I’ve saved enough yet for retirement.”

-> From @KimFoxxforSA: “I’m so excited that @KamalaHarris has decided to run for president. I would not be where I am today without her guidance during my first run for political office, and she has continued to mentor me as I work to reform the criminal justice system in Cook County.”

-> From @tribelaw: “Trump has gotten some quids for his pro-Putin quos but don’t assume the deal is done. Putin may want still more vis-a-vis NATO and Ukraine; and Trump is still beholden to Putin and may STILL want that Moscow Tower after he’s Citizen Trump again.”

In other news: Utah Rep. Cheryl Acton introduced a controversial bill that would ban abortion after 15 weeks with some exceptions. A similar piece of legislation was passed by the Mississippi legislature last year but later struck down by a federal judge. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke discusses the cost to taxpayers of passing abortion bans that get overturned by the courts. [Trib]

-> Utah women took to the streets in this year’s Women’s March, boasting a large number of younger participants, thanks in part to the contribution of college-aged activist group People for Unity. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4]

-> In her State of the City address, Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski — who is up for re-election this year — touted past accomplishments while focusing less on future goals. The mayor stated that 2019 would be dedicated to the implementation of the foundations that were put into place by herself and the city staff. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Salt Lake County Council’s newly appointed chairman, Richard Snelgrove, credits past success to the collaborative efforts between Republicans and Democrats on the council. The most pressing issue on the council’s plate, according to Snelgrove, is the the negative effects that the government shutdown is having on Salt Lake County. [Trib]

-> In an interview with the Tribune, prominent feminist and proponent of the Equal Rights Amendment, Sonia Johnson, says she is happy with her life’s work and credits The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with making her who she is. [Trib]

-> Reports indicate that Utah was fourth in the nation in job creation in 2018, with a growth rate of 3.1 percent. It was surpassed only by Nevada, Arizona and Texas. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Only 4.1 percent of Utah workers were members of a union in 2018, while the national average stands at 10.5 percent. This means Utah has the third-lowest rate of labor union membership in the nation. [Trib]

-> Utah’s newest congressman, Ben McAdams, held his first town hall meeting Saturday, discussing the government shutdown, border security, health care and public lands. The audience remained peaceful despite the heated nature of the topics, and McAdams encouraged audience members who had not voted for him to not hold back in voicing their concerns. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Rep. Brad Daw is among the Utah lawmakers who are sponsoring a bill aimed at tweaking the way that ballot initiatives work. The bill would delay implementation of the ballot initiatives once they have passed. [Fox13]

-> Pat Bagley imagines Martin Luther King Jr.’s perspective on the debate over a border wall. [Trib]

-> Pat Bagley illustrates the state of sex education in Utah. [Trib]

Nationally: Democrats declined to accept Trump’s proposal to end the shutdown. The president wants Democrats to approve $5.7 billion for a border wall in exchange for the restoration of temporary protections for some undocumented immigrants. [NYTimes] [Politico]

-> There was no official event at the White House to celebrate Martin Luther King Day. But President Trump made a brief visit to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, telling the press that it was a “beautiful day.” [NYTimes]

-> The New York Times compiled a list of potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates, from those who have already entered the race to those who are likely or unlikely to run. [NYTimes]

-> Controversy ensued after video footage went viral showing students from an all-male Catholic high school in Kentucky, cheering loudly while surrounding a Native American Vietnam War veteran outside of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. [NYTimes] [WaPost]

-> Republicans plan to create a rival platform to the Democratic fundraising apparatus, ActBlue, which raised more than $700 million in small-dollar donations during the 2018 campaign. [Politico]

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Bethany Rodgers and Christina Giardinelli

twitter.com/BethRodgersSLT and twitter.com/Ninetta89