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Situational Analysis | December 16, 2025
It’s Tuesday and National Chocolate Covered Anything Day
It’s also Jane Austen’s 250th birthday. 🎉🎈🎂
What you need to know
3 Utah governors say the country ‘desperately needs more of Utah’ ... in the White House. Former governors Mike Leavitt and Gary Herbert spoke alongside current Gov. Spencer Cox at an event on Monday and reiterated a call for Gov. Cox to run for president. He declined, but did say that “The country desperately needs us, more of us, more of Utah right now. People are tired of the divisiveness. They’re desperate for something different — in both parties. There’s a market failure in our politics today.”
Rapid Relevance
Bond granted for Utah man detained by ICE during final green card interview; former Gov. Herbert calls out Pres. Trump for his post about the death of director Rob Reiner
Utah Headlines
Political News
University of Utah athletics private equity deal catches the attention of Congress (Deseret News)
Salt Lake City Council member Eva Lopez Chavez launches bid for Utah’s new blue district (Deseret News)
Cox and former Govs. Herbert, Leavitt speak on need for a 'higher standard' in politics (KSL)
Here’s why Utah’s auditor dropped the lawsuit she just filed over efforts to evict her from her Capitol office (Salt Lake Tribune)
Two road rage gun incidents renew questions about Utah’s new law (KUTV)
What Utah leaders say about Trump’s preemption on AI state regulations (Utah News Dispatch)
Ute Tribe alleges Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz engineered secret meetings over Tabby Mountain land (Salt Lake Tribune)
Municipal
Frustrated Salt Lake County residents seek referendum on 14% tax increase (KSL)
Service/Kindness/Christmas
Utah
At a Utah debate tournament, teen refugees find their voices and build their confidence (Salt Lake Tribune)
Teen's windshield shattered by object thrown from passing car in Herriman (KUTV)
Utahns are getting turned away from ‘The Nutcracker’ amid ‘dramatic spike’ in fake ticket sales (Salt Lake Tribune)
Biz/Tech/AI
Stryker Utah expansion expected to bring over $615M in investments, 862 new jobs (KSL)
Crime/Courts
Culture/Community
Midvale Jewish community lights menorah while mourning after Bondi Beach tragedy (ABC4)
Education
Utah prepares school employees to act as first responders in active shooter situations (KUTV)
Will private equity turn college athletics into pro sports? (Deseret News)
Opinion: A fearless university does not shelter students from ideas (Deseret News)
Environment/Energy
Why this Utah location is key in the race for AI data centers and other forms of energy (Deseret News)
Utah leaders are hindering efforts to develop solar despite a goal to double the state’s energy supply (Salt Lake Tribune)
Even an average snowpack this year could spell trouble for Lake Powell (KUER)
Faith
Pew report: Why people leave, and stick with, religion (Deseret News)
Latter-day Saints are retaining faith at uniquely high levels in a secularizing society (Deseret News)
Health
What to expect with a new flu strain this winter (Deseret News)
Opinion: The Utah Way — helping neighbors near and far by supporting global health programs (Deseret News)
Silver linings: Navigating dementia with grace (Deseret News)
‘Stamp Out Suicide’: How a Utah man is using a newspaper to save lives (KSL TV)
Voices: Utah men are slipping through the cracks. We need mental health support, and we need it now. (Salt Lake Tribune)
Utahns with pre-existing conditions face existential choices with ACA premium hikes (KUER)
Housing
1,000 Utahns could lose housing under Trump’s homelessness priorities (KUER)
Here’s how apartment owners are competing with each other to win renters (Building Salt Lake)
National Headlines
General
What will happen when Erika Kirk and Candace Owens finally meet? (Deseret News)
Increased military presence in the Caribbean leads to near-collision between commercial jet and Air Force tanker (Deseret News)
Political News
Jay Evensen: Would you spearfish with a political rival? (Deseret News)
Trump sues the BBC for defamation over editing of January 6 speech, seeks up to $10 billion in damages (Reuters)
Pentagon plan calls for major power shifts within U.S. military (The Washington Post)
Republicans could gain nearly 200 state legislative seats in voting rights case, report finds (Utah News Dispatch)
Trump administration says White House ballroom construction is a matter of national security (AP)
Trump has signed more executive orders in 2025 than in his entire first term (Washington Post)
U.S. strikes three more alleged drug boats in eastern Pacific, killing 8 (Washington Post)
Immigration
Republicans divided on policy toward Afghan immigrants after shooting (NPR)
Growing shares say the Trump administration is doing ‘too much’ to deport immigrants in the U.S. illegally (Pew Research)
Ukraine/Russia
World
Australian Leader Pledges Stricter Gun Laws After Deadly Bondi Shooting (New York Times)
Bondi gunmen were inspired by Islamic State, had travelled to the Philippines, Australia police say (Reuters)
Kast’s Victory in Chile Is Another Win for Global Right-Wing Movement (New York Times)
Number of the Day
News Releases
Statement from members of Salt Lake County Council and Mayor Wilson in response to the citizen referendum application
A referendum that overturns a property tax increase will have serious implications for funding critical county operations— including public safety, our largest statutory obligation. Overturning a county tax increase does not eliminate the underlying county costs or mandated responsibilities. Rather, it simply shifts how and whether the county can meet them, ultimately forcing reductions in critical services, especially for our most vulnerable–and will eventually lead to the need for an even greater tax increase down the road. As the most populous county in the state, the increased revenue for our general fund is critical to meeting the growing needs and interests of our residents. (Read More)
National experience informing local solutions: Salt Lake County partners with Judge Steve Leifman
Salt Lake County, the state, local city leaders, and service providers convened Monday with Judge Steve Leifman and The Leifman Group. The gathering is part of the next phase of a multi-year effort to strengthen how the region responds to behavioral health crises, homelessness, and justice system involvement. Judge Leifman is a national leader in behavioral health and criminal justice reform, having spent more than two decades helping implement one of the nation’s most successful models for diverting individuals with serious mental illness from the justice system into treatment and recovery in Miami-Dade County. (Read More)
Holy Cross Hospital – Jordan Valley earns 2025 Leapfrog Top Hospital award for outstanding quality and safety
Highlighting its nationally recognized achievements in patient safety and quality, Holy Cross Hospital – Jordan Valley was named a Top Hospital by The Leapfrog Group. This award is one of the most competitive honors hospitals and surgery centers in the United States can receive for their commitment to safety and quality. HCJ leaders will be presented with their award today as part of Leapfrog’s 2025 Annual Meeting and Awards Dinner. Over 2,400 hospitals were considered for the award. HCJ was one of 52 general hospitals nationwide to receive the top hospital designation. (Read More)
Tweet of the Day
Upcoming
Jan 8 — Men and Boys Wellbeing Symposium with the Sutherland Institute, 8:30 am - 1:00 pm; RSVP here
Jan 12 — Utah Taxpayers Association Legislative Outlook Conference, 9:00 am, Little America Hotel, Register here
Jan 20 — 2026 Legislative Session begins
Feb 4–7, 2026 — Summit with Silicon Slopes and Visit Salt Lake
Mar 6 — Legislative session ends
On This Day in History
1773 - Boston Tea Party: Disguised as Mohawk Indians, a group of colonists board three British ships and dump 342 chests of tea into the Boston harbor.
1901 - Margaret Mead is born. She became a renowned cultural anthropologist, author, lecturer and for 28 years, the curator at the Museum of Natural History
1907 - As a gesture of the US's new presence as a world power, President Theodore Roosevelt sends the 'Great White Fleet' on a two-year, round-the-world voyage
1924 - Hiram Bingham, the first white man to see Machu Picchu, is elected to serve in the US Senate - after serving as the governor of Connecticut for just one day.
1944 - The Battle of the Bulge begins, the last major German offensive of WWII
1950 - President Truman declares state of emergency over Korean War
1953 - First White House Press Conference is held with President Eisenhower & 161 reporters
1980 - Colonel Harland Sanders, founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken, dies at 90
1998 - President Bill Clinton orders air strikes against Iraq
2009 - The blockbuster sci-fi film “Avatar” opens in theaters
Quote of the Day
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
On the Punny Side
What do snowmen eat for breakfast on Christmas morning?
Ice krispies!
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