News roundup: GOP has 60% shot at taking the Senate

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Forecast: GOP has 60% shot of taking the Senate. Trial over Oklahoma City bombing docs starts today. NY Times looks at the Trib-DNews battle.

Happy Monday. Republicans have the advantage right now headed into the midterm elections this fall, and could have a 60 percent shot of taking control of the Senate. New forecasts show the most likely outcome is that the GOP will gain six seats in the upper chamber, just enough to give the party a 51-to-49-seat majority. Though the political prognosticators also note that Republicans could pick up just four, or as many as eight seats. Either way, the GOP will be stronger in the Senate. [NYTimes] [WSJ]

Topping the news: Political analysts say it is unlikely that former Attorneys General John Swallow and Mark Shurtleff will be tried together in their seemingly entwined charges. [Trib]

-> Shurtleff and Swallow were also told a second time that they do not need to testify in Mark Sessions Jenson's case. [Trib]

-> In light of the Swallow and Shurtleff trials, take a look at this compilation of famous Utahns who received special privileges in their arrests. [StandEx]

-> A trial begins today in Salt Lake City over what records the FBI has concerning the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. A Utah lawyer thinks records will shine a light on what happened to his brother, but the FBI says it has searched and can find no such records. [Trib]

-> The New York Times takes a look at the fight to save The Salt Lake Tribune and notes how minority and gay rights advocates are helping to make the push. [NYTimes]

Tweet of the day: From @mattcanham: "GOP lawmakers went to BYU, Dems to UofU . . . shocking no one."

Opinion section: Cartoonist Pat Bagley depicts a future Utah where no land is our land after selling out to major corporations. [Trib]

-> Bagley shows the "wrecking ball" damage resulting from the two conflicting court rulings on Obamacare. [Trib]

-> Ilana Schwartzman, rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in Salt Lake City, says Bagley's political cartoons depicting the conflict in Israel were insensitive and one-sided. [Trib]

-> Paul Rolly examines a conspiracy behind the Common Core in public education, involving Gov. Gary Herbert and the Utah Eagle Forum's Gayle Ruzicka. [Trib]

-> Rolly also writes about two citizens' very different experiences at the DMV—one "silly" and the other considerate. [Trib] And the Trib columnist continues to tell the woes of those trying to use Salt Lake City's blue parking kiosks. [Trib]

-> George Pyle writes about when activists working for good causes are arrested, saying, "when the law is evil, good men belong in jail." [Trib]

-> The Tribune's Thomas Burr looks into traditions of the U.S. Senate, including one Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, wants to bring back, namely getting along with other senators. [Trib]

-> Maryann Martindale, executive director of Alliance for a Better UTAH, says the political system responsible for the misdeeds of Swallow and Shurtleff could use some remodeling. [Trib]

-> Joyce Kinkead, an author and a faculty member at Utah State University, asks Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to support a bill on a women's history museum. [Trib]

-> Steve Klemz, pastor of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, says we should be welcoming and kind to immigrant children seeking refuge. [Trib]

-> Alan Pruhs, executive director of the Association for Utah Community Health, feels Medicaid expansion is a must for the state because health centers cannot meet all of the demands of the local communities. [Trib]

-> Lynn Kennard Pershing, chair of the Yalecrest Neighborhood Council, says the new Miller Bird Refugee will help restore the natural environment in the area near Red Butte Garden. [Trib]

-> LaVarr Webb and Frank Pignanelli recreate Brigham Young's arrival to the Salt Lake Valley using social media. [DNews]

-> Former Sen. Bob Bennett says Hamas' effort to build tunnels to move around Gaza secretly shows it's not a humanitarian organization that wants to help the people there. [DNews]

Weekend in review: Kate Kelly, founder of the Ordain Women group, is working to appeal her excommunication from the LDS Church with a letter from her husband pointing out sexism within the religion. [Trib]

-> The San Diego Comic-Con has now become the evil villain to the Salt Lake Comic Con after asking them to change its name. [Trib] [DNews] [KUTV] [Fox13]

-> Utah residents are criticizing Rocky Mountain Power for its proposed "facilities charge" added to homes with solar panels. [Trib]

-> In Utah, 40 city and county governments are advocating for tax increases. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Utah facilities may be asked to house some immigrant children to reduce overcrowding at the border. [Trib]

-> Sen. Steve Urquhart, R-St. George, wants Utah to sell cannabis oil at state liquor stores so parents of children with epilepsy can purchase it more easily. [Trib]

-> A Utah county commissioner told a U.S. House panel that federal officials with the Bureau of Land Management abuse their federal enforcement power. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Now that drivers are required to prove their citizenship at the DMV, almost 6,000 immigrants using the wrong paperwork have been discovered in the state. [Trib]

-> Burt's Tiki Lounge may be the first to sell its liquor license in the state, as potential buyers express interest. [Trib]

-> More than 100,000 Utahns will receive a rebate check after their health insurers spent too little providing care. [Trib]

-> In seeking to limit the Tesoro Corp. from creating an underground pipeline, Summit County is now being sued by the company for allegedly ignoring state laws. [Trib]

-> Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes is working to oust marshals in Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. for their alleged affiliations with the FLDS Church. [Trib]

-> Ed Sweeney, the president of KCPW, resigned earlier this month to help with growing costs of running the station, saying "It was time to pass the baton . . . the decision was mine." [Trib]

-> The Miller Park Bird Refuge is currently closed to the public for construction, and tree-thinning, and residents aren't happy. [Trib]

-> A potential project could connect 900 East and 900 West in an effort to increase business sales and a sense of community. [Trib]

-> Utahns celebrated their ancestry with a parade honoring the pioneers and an American Indian dance-off. [Trib] [DNews] [KUTV] And non-Mormons got in on the Pioneer Day fun too by observing "Pie 'n' Beer Day" instead. [NYTimes]

Nationally: Two negotiators, one from the House and the other from the Senate, may have reached an agreement on a bill to restructure veterans hospitals nationwide after several investigations earlier this year revealed poor treatments and long waiting times for patients. [WaPost] [Politico] [LATimes]

-> Despite Secretary of State John Kerry's efforts in the region, peace in the growing conflict between Israel and Gaza is not long-lasting. [NYTimes] [WaPost] [WSJ]

-> President Barack Obama, not unlike former presidents, is spending considerable time running the fundraiser circuit and it is opening him up to criticism from Republican politicians who think he should spend his time elsewhere. [WaPost]

Where are they?

Rep. Jason Chaffetz travels to D.C. and votes in the evening.

SL Co. Mayor Ben McAdams meets with staff, talks with Deputy Mayor Nichole Dunn and speaks at the Alternative Substance Abuse Program's drug court graduation.

SLC Mayor Ralph Becker gives the welcome address at the National Conference of Public Treasurers and attends a Mountain Accord meeting.

President Barack Obama takes part in a town hall at the summit of the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders and presents the 2013 National Medal of Arts and the National Humanities Medal.

Got a tip? A birthday, wedding or anniversary to announce? Email us at cornflakes@sltrib.com. If you haven't already, sign up for our weekday email and get this sent directly to your inbox. [Trib]

— Thomas Burr and Courtney Tanner Twitter.com/thomaswburr and Twitter.com/CourtneyLTanner