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Political Cornflakes: Senators in both parties oppose strict measures on press access during impeachment trial

(AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, talks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019.

The Senate plans to enforce strict measures on reporters’ access during President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial in an effort to avoid the spectacle of senators being yelled at in hallways — but not all Republicans are on board. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana called it a “huge mistake,” noting that U.S. senators “are grown women and grown men. If they don’t want to make a comment, they know how to say ‘no comment.’” [Politico]

Happy Thursday!

Topping the news: The cost of remodeling the Salt Lake City International Airport has grown to $4.1 billion, due in part to the addition and expansion of some facilities to handle extra growth. [Trib]

-> Rep. Rob Bishop said he isn’t concerned that Trump wants to take money from military projects and counternarcotics efforts to pay for a border wall along the U.S.-Mexican border. Instead he blamed Democratic “jerks” who refused to fund border security. [Trib]

-> The governor’s office has asked that risqué Utah-themed condoms for an HIV awareness campaign stop being distributed so the packaging messages can be reworked. [Trib] [KUTV] [Fox13]

Tweets of the day: From @aedwardslevy: “is it even really election season until you’ve had a thoroughly dumb campaign food controversy.”

-> From @BenWinslow: “If you know anything about the “Streisand Effect,” those Utah-centric condoms that are out on the free market are probably collector’s items now:”

-> From @juliaritchey: “At this rate, if we can’t even agree on condom wrappers, we’ll never get a new state flag.”

Happy Birthday: To former state Rep. Jim Bird and former GOP state Vice Chair Christy Achziger.

In other news: Gov. Gary Herbert asked youth in a juvenile detention center how the state could have helped them make better choices. [Trib]

-> Utah Inland Port Authority Executive Director Jack Hedge wants to outline the state’s commitment to sustainable development in the upcoming legislative session and to return to cities some of their land use authority within the boundaries of the development project. [Trib]

-> The community will now have more power in deciding which plates are removed from Utah roads after public anger over a license plate that says DEPORTM — though the Utah State Tax Commission hasn’t yet confirmed whether the plate will be repealed. [Trib] [DNews]

-> At a news conference at the state Capitol Wednesday, March for Our Lives Utah activists assigned letter grades to each lawmaker based on his or her positions on gun control issues in the 2019 session. [DNews]

-> Herbert announced Wednesday his appointment of Kelly Pehrson as interim manger of the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food following former manager Kerry Gibson’s resignation to run for Congress. [DNews]

-> Twenty-eight candidates have applied to fill the Salt Lake City Council seat left open by now-Mayor Erin Mendenhall. [KUTV]

-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke explains how he thinks state school board officials should be selected. [Trib]

Nationally: House Democrats carried the formal articles of impeachment against Trump to the Senate on Wednesday in a dramatic procession across the U.S. Capitol. [APviaTrib] [NYTimes]

-> Elizabeth Warren accused fellow Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders of calling her a liar on national television in an exchange after the debate Tuesday night. [CNN] [NYTimes]

-> Trump signed an initial trade deal with China on Wednesday, ending the first chapter of a prolonged and economically damaging fight. The agreement will open Chinese markets to more American companies and increase farm and energy exports, among other things. [NYTimes]

-> At the request of Democratic lawmakers, the Treasury Department is investigating a multibillion-dollar tax break under the Trump administration that became a windfall for the wealthy. [NYTimes]

-> Both chambers of Virginia’s General Assembly passed the Equal Rights Amendment Wednesday as part of a nearly century-long effort to add protections for women to the U.S. Constitution. [WaPost]

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-- Taylor Stevens and Zoi Walker