Democratic Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams claimed success over Republican Rep. Mia Love Monday after new Salt Lake County results showed her trailing by 739 votes in the 4th Congressional District race. "I am eager to get to work," McAdams said at a hastily called news conference held at his Millcreek marketing campaign headquarters. He said he has not tried to contact the two-term congresswoman. "I really do want to give her the space," McAdams said, anticipating her effort required time and energy for you to review the quantities released Monday evening. "I think she's eligible to that."
Love's effort did not immediately react to McAdams' news conference. A day before counties have been put to reevaluate results of the Nov. 6 election, appreciate has 134,151 votes to 134,890 for McAdams throughout the district, which includes portions of Salt Lake and Utah counties as well as Juab and Sanpete counties. Earlier Monday, really like had gained 2,224 votes in the conservative stronghold of Utah County to 1,127 for McAdams, expanding the lead that she first took within McAdams on Friday from 419 votes to 1,516 in the district. McAdams, who spent last week in Washington, D.C., attending the orientation for new members of Congress, tweeted Monday that clerks from Salt Lake and Utah counties "are working around the clock" to get votes counted accurately. He explained in his conversation, "Whatever the outcome, thank you! However, can we alter the loading screen on the county clerk page from Election Night Reporting into Election Month Reporting?" Scott Hogensen, Utah County chief deputy clerk auditor, said Monday's launch is the last before counties certify election results on Tuesday. He explained "not significantly" remains to be counted other than any ballots that show up in the email box. A final vote canvass by their state is scheduled for Nov. 26. Utah doesn't have automatic recount legislation, but candidates who lose 0.25 percent or less can request that the ballots be recounted. Love has recently challenged the vote-counting process in Salt Lake County, at which in fact the longtime county clerk, Sherrie Swensen, is a Democrat, but the litigation has been dismissed the afternoon when it was heard in third District Court last week. The issue raised by enjoy's attorneys during the hearing has been how the county matched voter signatures. Voters had before 5 pm Monday to respond to questions raised about their signatures from the clerk's office. Additionally Monday, McAdams signed up a letter along with 1-5 Democratic House members pledging to vote against House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., becoming House speaker when Democrats take control in January. During the effort, McAdams experienced promised he would not encourage the California Democrat Speaker because really like repeatedly informed voters voting for him was a vote for Pelosi. McAdams's effort manager, Andrew Roberts, said the letter was in keeping with his promise not to vote for Pelosi. "From the moment Ben got into the race,'' he is called for bipartisanship in Washington and has been clear about the demand for new leadership on each side of the aisle," Roberts said.
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Record imports in Oct drove the U.S. trade shortage into the highest level in a decade. The Commerce Department said Thursday that the gap in between the United States sells and what exactly it purchases from foreign countries hit $55.5 billion in October, the fifth-largest consecutive increase and greatest since October 2008.
The politically significant deficit in the exchange of merchandise with China climbed 7.1percent to a record $43.1 billion. The goods gap with the European Union increased 65.5 percent to a file $17.6 billion. Directed by shipments of medicine and vehicles and trucks, overall imports climbed 0.2% to a file $266.5 billion. Exports fell 0.1% to $211 billion. President Donald Trump campaigned on the pledge to slash America's longstanding trade deficit with the Remaining Portion of the Planet. Despite his import taxes on steel, aluminum and Chinese merchandise, the deficit up to now this year is running 11.4% previously mentioned January-October 20 17. U.S. exports of soybeans, targeted for retaliatory tariffs by China, dropped 46.8% in oct. Trump sees the lopsided trade numbers as an indication of U.S. economic weakness and the result of awful exchange deals and abusive practices by U.S. trading partners, especially China. He has slapped tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports in a dispute over the approaches Beijing is using to challenge American technological supremacy. These include the theft of trade strategies and forcing U.S. companies to pay technology in exchange for entry into the Chinese market, the U.S. expenses. In a meeting over the weekend, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping consented to a ceasefire in the trade dispute. Details are uncertain, but the White House claims that it decided to delay a projected tariff increase on $200 billion in Chinese goods for 90 times to buy time for much more purposeful negotiations. Mainstream economists view trade shortages as the result of an economic fact unlikely to yield to changes in exchange coverage: Americans obtain more than they create, and imports fill the difference. The strong U.S. economy additionally encourages Americans to obtain greater foreign products. U.S. exports will also be hurt from the American buck's role as the world's currency. The buck is usually in popular because it is used in numerous worldwide transactions. That means that the dollar is persistently strong, raising charges of U.S. products and putting American companies at a disadvantage in foreign exchange markets. In October the U.S. conducted a 22.6 billion surplus in the trade of services such as banking and tourism. But that was offset by a listing $78.1 billion shortage in the trade of merchandise including as cellphones and machinery. Poland's President Andrzej Duda and the first Lady will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Sept. 18, Duda's aide said Tuesday. U.S. First Woman Melania Trump will sponsor her Polish counterpart Agata Kornhauser-Duda for a meeting. Krzysztof Szczerski said that Duda's very first visit for the White House will include one-on-one talks with Trump on security in Central Europe and on strengthening the U.S. army presence in the region, which is concerned about intensifying Russian army activity. Poland was seeking an increase in the number of U.S. soldiers stationed on its territory since early 2017. Broader talks will deal with commerce fractures and the partnership between our two NATO allies. Duda will additionally meet with U.S. senators and toss an event on the occasion of a hundred years of Poland's independence, that has been retained as a result of its aid from President Woodrow Wilson. A statement from the White House reported that the presidents "will deal with approaches to bolster the United States-Poland strategic partnership" and intend to discuss "military, trade, and security matters." Poland has been Trump's first destination during his European trip last year and Poland's right-wing government attaches great importance to the relationship. One sore point is that the visa requirement for Poles going to the U.S. but Szczerski did not confirm that the matter will be discussed. Jaimie Torres keeps a very close eye on her bank account which proved lucky a few weeks ago. She almost instantly noticed a surprise charge. $378 left her bank to some company she'd never heard of before called “Venmo.”
Venmo is an app that allows users to send and receive money transferred directly to or from the user’s bank account. The transaction from Torres’ account is fraud, she said. Still, getting her money back wasn't easy. "We tried calling Venmo, they just directed us to our lending institute." Torres’ bank eventually gave her a refund and got her set up with a new bank account. A spokesperson from Venmo (PayPal) wrote that "fraud prevention" is a "top priority for us." Venmo also said that the solution to cybercrime and identity theft using its app is for consumers to do exactly what Torres did: watch her account closely and “immediately change their bank account username and password,” when fraud is detected. But, all of this got Torres wondering: with the new slew of money-transfer-apps tied directly to the places we store our money, how safe are they? Consumer Reports recently conducted a study, rating five of them, focusing on privacy and security. They didn’t find any of the services were “so bad you shouldn’t use them.” Still, there are differences consumers should know about. Apple Pay for instance was the only one to score top marks for data privacy. It tries to take the least amount of data and keep the least amount of data to keep your privacy protected. However, it’s only available if both the sender and the receiver use an Apple smart phone, watch, or tablet—and a newer version at that. In fact, that’s one thing to note with P2P in general. You have to use the same service to exchange funds. “So if I have to have Zelle, you have to have Zelle,” was said of a similar money transfer app. “If I have to have Venmo, then you have to have Venmo as well.” If you do sign up for a service, Consumer Reports recommends you opt for the highest app privacy and security settings possible. Adding, for instance, a PIN or fingerprint authentication is a good idea. Also, as fun as the feed may be, with Venmo you should really set it to keep your transactions private! Most importantly, Consumer Reports says these apps should NEVER be used to send money to strangers. You should only pay people that you know. Here is an example of why Utah businesses must be extremely careful to what they say or share both publicly and privately!
Papa John's will initiate diversity training for employees, three months after the company founder used a racial slur during a conference call. John Schnatter, who had resigned as CEO last year after blaming poor sales on how the NFL handled player protests, resigned as chairman after the incident was reported by Forbes in July. Clashes between Schnatter, who is still Papa John's largest shareholder, and executives at the pizza chain are ongoing. He is suing the company, alleging that his treatment was unfair. CEO Steve Ritchie said in a letter posted on the Papa John's website Friday that the company's leadership team recently completed diversity training, which will now be rolled out companywide for its 120,000 workers. In a video tweeted to its more than half a million followers, Papa John's showed some of the angry tweets it received and said "We heard you." It thanked customers for their honesty and concluded: "It is making us better." Linda McMahon, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, visited small businesses in Utah as part of a two-year national outreach campaign. "I’m here because Utah is one of the best states in the country for small businesses, and that’s just fantastic". President Donald Trump appointed McMahon to lead the SBA last December. The position places McMahon as a member of the president's Cabinet. She and her staff toured Manuel's Fine Foods, a local company in Woods Cross. "I want to take all the questions and all the information I get back to Washington and really advocate in behalf of all small businesses," McMahon said. One of the employees, Emilio Torres, is the great-grandson of the company's founder. He started working at the family business mowing lawns. After moving up the ranks, he now works as a quality assurance technician. "It’s great to see something that my great-grandpa started, not knowing where it was going to go, to see it turn out how big it is today". His great-grandfather, Manuel Torres, opened Manuel's Fine Foods in 1938, a Latino-owned business that manufactures tortilla products for Mexican restaurants and private labels like Don Julio and Kroger Private Selection brands. Torres brothers Paul, Mike and Orlando own and run the family business. "We’re appreciative that (McMahon) came into town," said company President Orlando Torres. "We had our building add-on financed through the SBA and Wells Fargo, and we're excited to be able to expand our warehouse.” McMahon also visited Porcupine Pub and Grille in Salt Lake City and spoke with company co-owner Bryan O'Meara. "The Small Business Administration really helped us make this whole thing possible," O'Meara said. The pub and eatery opened at the mouth of Cottonwood Canyon in 1998, followed by an additional location near the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. "The help we got and the fact they were able to be flexible enough to make a deal like this happen for us in a time frame that was not on their normal schedule is above and beyond." Over the next two years, McMahon plans to tour the country and visit other small businesses, as well as stop by the 68 SBA district offices. "I know what that takes," she said of running a small business. "I know the good times and the bad. I know what it’s like to go through bankruptcy and lose everything and come back from that." She and her husband are co-founders of World Wrestling Entertainment, which grew from a regional operation to a global enterprise. McMahon is the company's former CEO. McMahon said she chose to tour Manuel’s Fine Foods as the company was recently approved for an SBA 504 loan. In addition to granting loans to small-business owners, she said the SBA has three additional goals: provide education for business owners, ensure 23 percent of federal contacts go to small businesses and advocate for small businesses in Washington. "We want to educate more of the community about all of the things that SBA does, not only through our guaranteeing of loans but through our counseling and helping get people access to capital." More than half of all American workers are employed at small businesses, according to the SBA website (https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/manage-your-finances). There are nearly 28 million small businesses across the country. "We want to first listen. I want to hear what small businesses have to say to me!" Internet searches for fraud produce abundant references to cases with Utah connections. In fact, there are many which refer to the Beehive State as the “fraud capital of the world!"
While we'd all like to think we are smart enough to not become a victim of fraud, in truth, some of these schemes are so sophisticated they can dupe the brightest consumers. Fortunately, there are ways people can protect themselves, such as checking out potential buyers, sellers, contractors, service providers and investment providers at the Better Business Bureau. Verifying business legitimacy is important, even when you know and trust the people involved. In 1986, a panel discussing the reasons behind Utah’s high rate of affinity fraud concluded that religious connections often played a role, as did a cultural focus on appearances. After all, people focused on keeping up with the Jones' across the street are more likely to fall prey to get-rich-quick schemes. In years since, experts have also noted that close-knit groups of religious affiliates may also be a breeding ground for scams, fraud and marketing schemes, according to The Economist. The scope of the problem is bigger than many realize. In 2010, the Salt Lake office of the FBI reported active fraud cases at that time totaled $1.4 billion in losses. There are too many Ponzi schemes and large-scale frauds with Utah connections to name, but here are a few of the more prominent cases to date:
If these instances of fraud make you nervous or worried that you too could fall victim, your concerns are valid. Fortunately, you can help prevent becoming another victim. Visit the Better Business Bureau’s website to see if any company, individual or project before you spend money or invest. From deceptive sales practices by fraudulent home security or solar energy reps, to talent agency scams, to too-good-to be-true investment opportunities, the Better Business Bureau provides tools and information to help you avoid becoming a victim yourself. Three years ago, two businessmen eating in a Los Angeles restaurant came up with an idea to start a residential program that would help homeless people, chronic criminal offenders and substance abusers learn life skills.
Later, at the airport, the two split up to go through separate security lines, and one of them said, "I'll see you on the other side." That is how The Other Side Academy came about. "Community is the key to healing. No matter how broken you are … the key is always community. It is always connection," Joseph Grenny, the nonprofit's chairman, said Thursday as he explained The Other Side Academy's origins during a ribbon-cutting celebration for its new expansion. The nonprofit recently purchased an apartment building at 35 S. 700 East in Salt Lake City that will add more than 100 beds and double its capacity. "This is the beginning of better days for thousands in Utah," Grenny said. Forty percent of the funding for the property came from donors, and Ally Bank financed the rest through a Community Reinvestment Loan, according to Other Side Academy CEO Tim Stay. “There is one additional aspect of this loan that is unique to our model. Rather than having the loan paid for by donors, it will be paid for by the efforts of the very students who will be benefiting from the additional housing," Grenny said. "The students run training companies at The Other Side Academy that generate revenue to repay the loan, while learning vocational and life skills key to their futures," he explained. The Other Side Academy is privately run on self-sustaining funds. It is free to students, who are asked for a two-year commitment to the program, according to academy officials. There, they learn life and job skills. They provide services including helping people move, working at a thrift boutique, or in construction, corporate development or food services, among other occupations. In the 2 1/2 years since it started, the academy has helped 82 students. Nineteen students have already graduated from the program and found employment, according to the academy's CEO. Before buying the new building, the academy had capacity for 92 students. Officials from The Other Side Academy have estimated the new beds will save taxpayers $300 million over the next 40 years, adding up what it would otherwise cost to incarcerate the students, Stay said. "This is something that transcends politics and policy disputes that we have," said Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox, who spoke at the ceremony Thursday. He said he has spent some time there, talking to students and graduates, and has seen a transformation in the students. "We talk often about the Utah way," he explained. "We believe in redemption, we believe in second chances, we believe in self-reliance." The Other Side Academy is giving people second chances "without the government's oversight," Cox said. He noted the Beehive State is learning that simply putting people in jail doesn't solve the problem. The same issues exist when they get out, he explained. The state can save money and not have to continue building larger prisons and jails if individuals receive the help they need, and the free market can provide ways to accomplish that, he said. In February, The Other Side Academy received permission to tear down a dilapidated building at 46 S. 700 East. Demolition will begin next month, Stay said, and in about two years the academy will begin construction of a building that will house offices, computer labs and a training center for its students. Originally, the academy planned to build housing at that location, but it would've taken several years to complete. The academy was already reaching capacity, and they didn't want to turn away students, Stay said. The Other Side Academy officials then reached out to the owner of the apartment building at 35 S. 700 East and discovered he was willing to sell, Stay explained. Robust, substantial, considerable---pick your adjective for Mitt Romney’s financial holdings.
His campaign released a disclosure report on Friday, which it submitted to the Senate---and it’s filled with many zeroes. The Associated Press is reporting Romney may be worth up to $270 million. In a Goldman Sachs IRA, the report showed Romney has four mutual funds, each valued between $5,000,000 and $25,000,000. While those are the largest amounts listed, other holdings linked to Romney and his wife Ann may easily tally into the tens of millions. Romney’s speeches, alone, have often paid more than Utah’s median family income for the entire year, which is roughly $62,500. Since February 1, 2017, the campaign said he gave twenty speeches. One for NBC Universal paid $137,082, another at Blue Cross Blue Shield $100,000, and another at Deutsche Bank in the UK $122,000. His campaign said it will also release Romney’s tax returns for 2017 and previous years, once the latest return is filed. In the meantime, Republican Senate candidate Larry Meyers---one of 11 in the GOP who filed to run against Romney for the party nomination---has issued a challenge to him, which Meyers called the “Contract with Utah Voters.” Meyers wrote it, which calls on Romney to “swear…he will not run for another public office during his term in the U.S. Senate and, specifically, will not campaign against President Donald J. Trump in the 2020 Republican primaries.” Romney has said he is done running for president. When told that, Meyers said, “Put it in writing.” The population of Bald Eagles in Utah peaks around this time of year before many migrate to Canada and Alaska for the summer.
There will be several free public viewing events around the state, planned by Utah’s Division of Natural Resources. Make sure to do your part to see these wonderful and magnificent creatures! |
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