Good Thursday morning Utah! Thanks for reading “The Rundown”.
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Blake Moore draws the wrath of election conspiracy theorists
At a town hall meeting last week, Rep. Blake Moore was asked if he favored conducting an audit similar to the sham investigation into the 2020 election in Arizona. Moore’s answer did not please some members of a right-wing Weber County telegram group.
(Screenshot via Telegram)
(Screenshot via Telegram)
A representative from Moore’s office sent this statement to “The Rundown”:
“Rep. Moore does not believe Mike Lindell is a credible voice on election security. Rather, he listens to individuals like Weber County Clerk Ricky Hatch, which is why he welcomed Ricky when he testified at a House Administration Committee hearing. Rep. Moore has engaged on this topic on the local and national level. He has adamantly opposed HR 1 and HR 4, and he will continue to share Utah’s gold standard election security practices with his colleagues in Washington,” they said.
Here’s what you need to know for Thursday morning
🚨 Breaking overnight: The Supreme Court refused to block a controversial Texas law that bans most abortions after just six weeks. [WaPo]
🏛 Gov. Spencer Cox spoke with Utah lawmakers for several hours on Wednesday about the state’s growing number of COVID-19 cases. Earlier in August, Cox floated the idea of a mask mandate to legislative leaders but backed off because he worried lawmakers would immediately override that decision. [Tribune]
🌊 The remnants of Hurricane Ida caused massive flooding in New York and New Jersey. At least 8 people died from the storm. [NYT] The storm also spawned tornadoes, including one that passed over a bridge in New Jersey.
💵 The damage from Hurricane Ida will cost insurance companies an estimated $18 billion. [Bloomberg]
🥵 This summer was the hottest ever recorded in Salt Lake City. The average temperature for June, July, and August was 80.9 degrees, tying a record set in 2017. [Tribune]
🪖 U.S. officials estimate that most Afghan interpreters and others who applied for visas were left behind during the evacuation of Afghanistan. [WSJ]
🏛 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell wants voters to focus on the 2022 midterm elections instead of calling for President Joe Biden’s impeachment over the chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal. [WSJ]
⛰ Salt Lake County and City leaders said a plan to install a gondola in Little Cottonwood Canyon was the least effective way to decrease traffic congestion in the canyon. [Tribune]
⚖️ A federal judge approved a bankruptcy settlement that shields members of the Sackler family from any future lawsuits from the opioid crisis. The family owns Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin. [NPR]
🌪 A new study from the U.N. says weather disasters have become more common and costly but have killed fewer people over the past 50 years. [Axios]
💉 The Utah Department of Health is outsourcing most of its COVID-19 testing to private companies. [Tribune]
💉 Moderna started the process to gain approval for a booster shot for its COVID-19 vaccine. [The Hill]
📊 A new poll shows most vaccinated Americans want a COVID-19 booster shot. [Reuters]
💉 15 million COVID vaccines were thrown away in the U.S. since March. [NBC News]
😷 A first-of-its-kind study shows mask-wearing limits the spread of the coronavirus. The massive study found that mask-wearing caused a significant decrease in infections. [WaPo]
🦠 Podcaster and vaccine skeptic Joe Rogan was diagnosed with COVID-19. [NYT]
Can you tell how a person drives based on their license plate?
Users on the r/Utah subreddit think it’s possible. A hilarious poll this week asked which drivers in the Beehive State are the worst?
Drivers who sport the “In God We Trust” license plates were the runaway winner as the worst in Utah.
Thursday morning’s Utah news roundup
Utah
Grantsville police release the name of a man an officer shot and killed. [Tribune]
The first Afghan refugee has arrived in Salt Lake City. [Deseret News]
Battle brewing to save cherished Kaysville City Hall building. [FOX13]
Advocates say Pioneer Park is going downhill with ‘brazen lawlessness in broad daylight’. [KUTV]
West Nile detected in 4 Box Elder locations; more expected. [KSL]
COVID-19
New COVID-19 cases are at a level not seen since late January/early February. [Tribune]
This is what happens in Utah schools when a student gets COVID. [Tribune]
Logan Regional Hospital’s ICU beds are full — and so are many others in Utah. [Herald Journal]
Vaccination numbers stall in Washington, Iron counties despite rise in COVID-19 cases. [Spectrum]
Religion
‘Everything about temples reflects love’ — LDS leader who oversaw temple design and construction dies. [Tribune]
Man who set fire to LDS churches in St. George charged with three counts of arson. [Tribune]
Tech
Focusing on neurodiversity in tech, Auticon opens Utah office. [Tribune]
Utah driver licenses, IDs coming to Apple Wallet. [Deseret News]
Drought
Utah residents asked to cut back to once-a-week lawn watering. [FOX13]
Weber County’s flow of secondary water will soon start slowing. [Standard Examiner]
Rain helps Utah farmers, but drought impacts to be felt for years. [FOX13]
On the Opinion Pages
While Cox postures and legislators dawdle, Utahns are dying preventable deaths, Robert Gehrke writes. [Tribune]
Paul Loeb: Could Mitt Romney be the Bob Dole who saves voting rights? [Tribune]
Stefani Seeley: You can’t welcome others with open arms if you are wielding a musket. [Tribune]
Neal Davis: Children are becoming ill with COVID-19. [Deseret News]
🎂 You say it’s your birthday?!!
Happy birthday to former state Representative and current candidate for U.S. Senate Becky Edwards.
Got a birthday you’d like us to recognize in this space? Send us an email.
— The Tribune’s Connor Sanders contributed to this report.
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