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‘The Rundown’: Opening up the reader mailbag

Your Friday morning Utah political cheat sheet

"The Rundown" logo

Good morning Utah and TGIF! Thanks for reading “The Rundown”.

👂 I’m listening! Got a news tip? Some interesting political gossip? Just want to chat about politics? Send me an email or find me on Twitter @SchottHappens.

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Here’s what you need to know for Friday morning

🦠 Senate President Stuart Adams says monoclonal antibody treatment, known commercially as Regeneron, could be a way to reduce hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19. [Tribune]

🏛 Sen. Joe Manchin calls on Democrats to “pause” and cut their $3.5 trillion spending proposal. [WaPo]

⚖️ President Joe Biden blasted is launching a federal effort to respond to the new Texas law outlawing most abortions after 6 weeks. [CNN]

  • The Texas law could spawn copycat laws in several other states. [Politico]

    • 🏛 The committee probing the January 6 attempted insurrection asked telecom companies to preserve the phone records of several members of Congress, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. [Politico]

  • Democrats promote Republican Liz Cheney to vice chairwoman of the committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol. [AP]
  • The “QAnon Shaman” will plead guilty for taking part in the January 6 riot. [WaPo]

    • 📊 A new poll finds Americans support pulling troops out of Afghanistan, but not the chaotic way it was done. [WaPo]

    🗳 Jason Miller, an advisor to former President Donald Trump, says the likelihood that Trump will run for president again in 2024 is “somewhere between 99 and 100 percent.” [Twitter]

    🦠 One in every five COVID-19 cases in the U.S. last week were children. [USA Today]

  • Researchers are “keeping a very close eye” on a new coronavirus variant dubbed “mu.” [WaPo]

    • 😷 Students in Tooele County will have to wear masks if there’s an outbreak of COVID-19. [Tribune]

    💉 What can employers do if workers avoid the COVID-19 vaccine? [AP]

  • Federal employees can be fired or subject to jail time if they lie about their vaccination status. [Gov Exec]

    • 🗺 The Utah Legislature rolled out the public tool allowing citizens to draw and submit maps for redistricting. [Tribune]

    🏭 PacifiCorp, the Rocky Mountain Power parent company, plans to cut carbon emissions by 98% by 2050. Environmentalists say that’s not nearly soon enough. [Tribune]

    💰 Walmart is increasing pay for more than 565,000 workers by at least $1 per hour to keep them on the job ahead of the holiday shopping season. [CNBC]

    💵 Initial estimates say the damage from Hurricane Ida could cost insurance companies more than $15 billion. [WSJ]

    🚙 GM and Ford are halting some production lines due to the global shortage of computer chips. [ABC News]

    🎶 Swedish supergroup ABBA released two new songs, their first new music since 1981. The group will release a new album in November. [The Guardian]

    We get letters (or emails)

    To finish the week, I thought it would be a good time to go through “The Rundown” mailbag to share a few comments and answer a few questions.

    “We need a lot more Blake Moore’s in Congress. He’s a conservative voice that isn’t tainted by drinking too much orange kool-aid.” — Michael Lynch, in response to our report that Rep. Blake Moore was not buying into the misinformation around the 2020 election.

    Orange kool-aid was my favorite as a kid, but it couldn’t hold a candle to green Otter Pops. FIGHT ME!

    “I was disappointed to see you identify Jason Chaffetz as a ‘friend’ of your newsletter.” — Kent Gardner.

    Hey, I have so few friends, I’ll take them wherever I can get them.

    “I got to see the earlier (Springsteen) Broadway run twice. The second time I scored amazing seats. At the conclusion of the show, Bruce leaned over to my girlfriend and me in front-row center seats and shook our hands.” — David Bennett responding to my post about seeing Bruce Springsteen on Broadway.

    You sat front row center at a Springsteen show AND shook his hand? I. Hate. You. So. Much. This is probably the reason I have no friends.

    Send your emails, thoughts, complaints, insults, or stories about Bruce Springsteen to bschott@sltrib.com or DM me on Twitter. I’ll try to answer more in this space soon.

    Friday morning’s Utah news roundup

    Utah

  • ‘There is nobody to stop them’: First Afghan refugee in Utah describes ordeal at Kabul airport. [Tribune]
  • SLCPD to hold meetings with Pacific Islanders after arresting 15-year-old in drive-by shooting. [Tribune]
  • Utah gets more bar licenses, thanks to new census data. [Tribune]
  • Utah’s defense industry has doubled in recent years, new report says. [KSL]

    • COVID-19

  • Utah teenager dies of COVID-19. [Tribune]
  • Salt Lake City man hospitalized for 223 days with COVID-19 urges people to get vaccinated. [Tribune]
  • Utahns report frustrations and long waits trying to get tested for COVID-19. [Tribune]
  • Study shines light on effects of COVID-19 on working women’s health. [Daily Herald]
  • Caregivers gather for support while sharing tales of grief during pandemic. [Daily Herald]

    • Education

  • Dixie State will not require COVID-19 vaccines, for now. [Tribune]

    • Environment

  • Flash flood hits Hanksville with 6 feet of water. [Tribune]
  • Rocky Mountain Power’s parent company wants to reduce carbon by 98% by 2050 but environmental groups say that’s not enough to stop climate change. [Tribune]
  • High E. coli levels found at Hyrum Reservoir; recreators cautioned to stay out. [KSL]

    • On the Opinion Pages

  • Jackie Biskupski: Utah leaders misspend public funds, abandon Utah’s youth for fossil fuels. [Tribune]
  • Adam Bowman: Reducing an under-the-radar threat to Utah’s wildlife. [Tribune]
  • Curtis Price: Ending anti-LGBT discrimination can heal past harms. [Tribune]
  • Jay Evensen: 46 years ago, Americans didn’t want refugees; thankfully, that has changed. [Deseret News]

    • — The Tribune’s Connor Sanders contributed to this report.

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