Take 2 – 19-year anniversary of 9/11, COVID-19 relief bill, high wind damage



The discussion on the weekly Take 2 podcast began with solemn commemoration of the 19 year anniversary of 9/11, a day when a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamist terrorist group al-Qaeda against the United States included passenger airliners being hijacked and flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

Podcast host Heidi Hatch, and former lawmakers Jim Dabakis (D) and Greg Hughes (R), recounted where they were Sept. 11, 2001, during the attacks.

The discussion then turned to current matters, such as the Senate Democrats walking away from the COVID-19 relief bill presented by the GOP. Is the deal dead until after the election – 53 day away?

Sen. Mitt Romney stated of the legislation:

We have an opportunity to either take steps to build on the important provisions we passed as a part of the CARES Act or we can do nothing. This targeted relief package, while not perfect, includes many important bipartisan provisions which would secure federal unemployment benefits, restart the Paycheck Protection Program, help parents with the expenses of childcare and homeschooling, and help our schools keep kids safe. Families, businesses, and communities in Utah need assistance now, not weeks or months down the road. I’m disappointed that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would not at the very least vote to move forward with this legislation today so we could have a debate on the merits.

Sen. Mike Lee posted on Twitter that the bill wasn’t perfect but it is a start to “real reforms.”

Additional topics discussed are:

  • Trump knew it was worse than the flu. Does this change any minds?
  • Bob Woodward releases book “Rage.”
  • 5-15% undecided depending on poll.
  • Holy wind! Utah digging out from another mess. How are we doing at handling another crisis?
  • SLC schools push online start back a week with no power or WiFi.
  • Utah eliminates sexual assault backlog; 11,193 sexual assault kits tested, 5,025 DNA profiles entered into national database and 1,979 suspected identified through search of the DNA database. The turnaround time to process a kit is now 90 days instead of years
  • Western Wildfires: The left says climate change and the right says federal restrictions that don’t allow logging are to blame.
  • Real Housewives – Bravo releases the trailer. Who’s in to watch and is this good or bad for the great state of Utah?