The president’s legal team continues its back-and-forth with investigators looking at Russia’s influence and involvement in the 2016 election. The two sides have been at odds over questions special counsel Robert Mueller would like to ask President Donald Trump for months. Salt Lake City will look to hire an employee to focus specifically on making sure underserved people are counted during the 2020 U.S. Census as federal officials plan to ask about immigration status. And an officer was not justified in shooting a woman suspected of breaking into cars in southern Utah this summer.
Happy Tuesday.
President Donald Trump’s legal team is pushing back against the special counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election as the investigation approaches the president. Robert Mueller wants to ask Trump about possible obstruction of justice related to the investigation, according to the Washington Post and Rudolph Giuliani, Trump’s attorney in the matter. Trump has called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to end the investigation that has led to charges against multiple campaign officials. [WaPost]
Topping the news: Salt Lake City recently approved funding for a full-time employee to work specifically on coordinating the 2020 U.S. Census and ensuring hard-to-count populations are contacted. The action comes in response to President Donald Trump’s announcement the census will include questions about immigration status. [Trib]
-> After months of arguing between Holladay city officials over whether to approve a high-density mixed development at a vacant field that was once a mall, the city notified an opposed community group that its 8,000-signature petition to vote on the issue is ineligible for a spot on November’s ballot. A judge will now decide whether a special election should be held to decide the matter. [Trib]
-> Enoch Police Corporal Jeremy Dunn was not justified when he shot a woman at a Parowan truck stop on June 28, Iron County prosecutors said Monday. The woman was suspected of breaking into cars and was combative, the video shows. But she didn’t pose an immediate threat when Dunn shot her twice. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: From @jimsciutto: “I have seen some cold stares in my life but watching Paul Manafort stare down his former deputy, arms crossed, as Rick Gates recounted the long list of his alleged crimes was remarkable.”
-> From @kenklippenstein: “Alex Jones flew too close to the chemtrails”
-> From @byrdinator: “Reminder for a particular department of the US government: ‘off the record no comment’ is not a thing.”
-> From @MEPFuller: “Governor Jerry Brown must allow the Squirtle Squad to put out the California widlfires. Squirtles can also be used as fighting pets. Very effective against ground type Pokémon too - no Brainer!”
Happy Birthday: To Daryn Frischknecht, communications director for Rep. Chris Stewart.
In other news: Members of Utah’s Asian community are worried that a plan to build more than 650 residential units, two hotels, an office tower and a retail space in downtown Salt Lake City would effectively wipe away the historic Japantown neighborhood. [Trib]
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, considered a Democratic presidential front-runner for 2020, made a campaign-style swing through the West this summer that included a fundraising event at an upscale Salt Lake City restaurant. [DNews]
-> Robert Gehrke demands a rematch after finishing second in the Tribune’s race to find the fastest method of downtown transportation. [Trib]
-> More than 20 young people ages 4 to 22, from countries including Mexico, Peru and Kenya, took the oath of citizenship and were naturalized as U.S. citizens at a ceremony in West Jordan. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4] [KSL]
-> Five animal rights activists, who face 60 years in prison after allegedly taking a dying piglet from a factory farm in 2017, demanded that they be allowed to inspect the facility to see if living conditions have improved. [Fox13]
-> Pat Bagley thinks Trump’s decision to roll back emission standards will affect Utah’s already poor air quality. [Trib]
Nationally: The Trump administration announced it will reimpose economic sanctions against Iran that were lifted in 2015, putting into question relations with both Iran and America’s European allies. [NYTimes] [NPR] [TheGuardian]
-> Rick Gates, Paul Manafort’s former business partner, testified that he had been involved in criminal activity with President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman. Gates said he and Manafort had also worked for pro-Russia political forces in Ukraine. [NYTimes] [WaPost] [Politico]
-> Media platforms including YouTube, Spotify, Facebook and Apple removed podcasts by right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who runs the website Infowars, for violating policy and community standards by promoting violence and hate speech. [NYTimes] [WaPost] [LATimes] [TheGuardian]
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-- Connor Richards and Taylor W. Anderson
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