Utah Governor Gary Herbert is continuing his push to promote Utah’s economy with a trip to New York City. Unemployment in the state is hovering around seven and a half percent. What’s his reaction to President Obama’s jobs speech Thursday night, and what plans does he have to offer Utahns who don’t have a job and put them back to work?
As the business sector anticipates President Obama’s job creation speech to Congress Thursday night, Democratic Utah Representative Jim Matheson is hoping to see some specific plans. But how much of an impact can a speech, or the federal government itself, have on the economy? KCPW’s Jeff Robinson asked Matheson for his thoughts on what President Obama needs to say in his address.
Former Secretary of State James Baker had strong words for Utah’s senior community Monday. Speaking during an annual conference for seniors hosted by Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, Baker, who served under Presidents Ford, Reagan, and both Bushes, told the audience that the nation is in bad shape. And as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, he says now is the time Americans need to change the direction it’s headed.
Is a Bachmann-Huntsman ticket within the realm of possibility? Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman told CNN earlier this week he’d willingly be the vice presidential nominee alongside Michele Bachmann, though a pairing between the two would likely make “The Odd Couple” look completely normal. Every Friday, we talk with Thomas Burr, Washington Correspondent for the Salt Lake Tribune and author of Political Cornflakes, a daily, online round-up of Utah politics.
While Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz is out of the running for U.S. Senate, a Republican lawmaker is still considering a challenge against longtime incumbent Senator Orrin Hatch. State Senator Dan Liljenquist of Bountiful was first elected to the Utah Legislature in 2008.
A Holladay Republican who took on Senator Bob Bennett in the 2010 election is stepping back into the political limelight to run for Congress. Cherilyn Eagar says the Senate race gave her the ability to travel into Utah’s most rural communities, where she says her ideas for restoring the American dream resonated with both parties.
Responding to privacy concerns, the Transportation Security Administration has changed the way it does full-body scanning at many airports. KCPW’s Jeff Robinson reports on the new technology, which was just installed here in Salt Lake City.
Utah Republicans are celebrating a federal appeals court ruling that struck down the health insurance mandate in the federal health care reform law. The state is one of 26 that are suing to block the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The attorney general’s office counts the win as a tool in Utah’s arsenal, but as KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, others are convinced the law will prevail once it reaches the U.S. Supreme Court.
Utah Congressman Jason Chaffettz says a bill that’s intended to protect children from Internet pornography will only step on the privacy rights of law-abiding citizens, and a local Internet service provider agrees. As KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, Chaffettz didn’t vote for the bill when it passed out of a House committee last month, but Senator Orrin Hatch supports the concept, and is sponsoring similar legislation in the Senate.
U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis was in Utah today as part of a heat illness prevention campaign. As KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, she toured a Sandy facility responsible for studying workplace hazards, and introduced a new smart phone application designed to keep outdoor workers safe in the heat.
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