Latest news with #OrrinHatch
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Elaine Hatch, wife of late Senator Orrin Hatch, dies at 91
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Elaine Hansen Hatch, wife of late Senator Orrin G. Hatch, has passed away. She was 91. The Hatch Foundation is expressing condolences after the death of Elaine, who passed away Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Utah. She was reportedly surrounded by family during her passing. 'Elaine was the consummate mother and grandmother of the Hatch family. She was the steady foundation, the quiet strength behind Senator Hatch's decades of public service, and a source of warmth and kindness to all who knew her,' said Matt Sandgren, Executive Director of the Hatch Foundation. 'Her life was defined by faith, service, and love for her family. While her husband's public work took him across the country and around the world, Elaine was his anchor. As we grieve, we find comfort in knowing she is reunited with her beloved Orrin in the faith they both shared. Our hearts are with the Hatch family as we honor the remarkable life she lived.' RELATED: Senator Orrin G. Hatch dies at 88 Elaine was born to Sydney Hansen and Edries Nelson on September 27, 1933, according to her obituary. The Hansen family was made up of wheat farmers out of Newton, Utah. Elaine graduated from North Cache High School in Logan, Utah, teaching elementary school after graduating from Brigham Young University. She met Orrin at BYU, and the couple would go on to married on August 28, 1957 in the Salt Lake Temple. 'Elaine said her favorite career was being a mother,' her obituary states. 'When Orrin decided to run for the U.S. Senate, Elaine, despite not wanting to move from Utah to Washington, D.C., wholeheartedly supported him and continued to do so for 42 years.' According to her obituary, Elaine wasn't influenced by political life, instead focusing on her children and life in church. She reportedly served in the temple weekly for 29 years, naming it her favorite place outside of home. She was an ambassador of her faith abroad and 'rarely talked about herself, despite the amazing life she lived,' her obituary states. When Orrin Hatch retired as a Utah senator in 2019, his service in the role beginning in 1977, Elaine was 'excited to live near family again.' Orrin would pass away on April 23, 2022. She and Orrin are survived by six children — Brent, Marcia, Scott, Kimberly, Alysa, and Jess — 23 grandchildren, and 44 great-grandchildren (with two more on the way). Funeral arrangements are pending at this time. Interstate 15 temporarily shutdown near Timpanogos Highway in Lehi Two people injured in rollover crash near Cedar City Elaine Hatch, wife of late Senator Orrin Hatch, dies at 91 Suspect in fatal Salt Lake City hit-and-run crash charged with homicide Ogden residents experiencing brown running water, officials say Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Daily Mail
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Trump praised for sweet interactions with kids at Easter egg roll after years of awkward Biden moments
Donald Trump was handing out high fives and celebrating the holiday with children at the annual White House Easter egg rol l, earning favorable comparisons to predecessor Joe Biden. The 78-year-old president already mocked Biden earlier in the day, referencing the 2022 ceremony when the Easter Bunny 'rescued' a confused-looking Biden. The president was nearly as popular as the bunny at this year's egg roll, seen in clips high fiving and drawing with children. Trump at one point exclaimed: 'I'm really into this!' While some found his high five with one child awkward, most of social media felt it was a welcome reprieve from the Biden-era, who baffled onlookers by his odd, touchy and even 'sniffing' behavior around young people. 'If nothing else, we have a POTUS you can trust around kids, and that's a major improvement,' wrote one. 'He is so great with kids, but in an appropriate non-sniffing way,' added another. One supporter said: 'The kids ran toward him like he was Santa, Superman, and recess all rolled into one. That's what leadership with presence looks like.' Some liberals tried to take away from Trump's sweet moments with the youth on Monday, by referring to his eyebrow-raising comments over the years about girls and women. During a 2020 event in Florida, Biden told a group of underage female dancers: 'I'm coming back and I want to see these beautiful young ladies, I want to see them dancing when they are four years older too!' In 2019, he told a 10-year-old girl: 'I'll bet you're as bright as you are good-looking.' He has also been photographed over the years kissing and touching young girls and women during public events. Joe Biden had notorious moments with the Easter Bunny, including an odd moment in 2022. Biden was filmed speaking with reporters and guests at the cheerful holiday event when he began discussing Afghanistan, eight months after he presided over the US military's chaotic withdrawal from Kabul that ended 20 years of American boots on the ground there. The former president, now 82, started to answer Afghan reporter Nazira Karimi's question and was heard saying: 'Pakistan should not and Afghanistan should be — people should be free...' But Meghan Hays, the former White House press official and director of message planning who was dressed as the Easter Bunny, quickly interrupted him and ushered him away in a desperate bid to avoid another gaffe in 2022. Republican operatives on Twitter mocked the silly moment, at the time. 'How bad does the White House staff have to think Biden is to calculate that sending in the EASTER BUNNY to interrupt a gaggle is better optics than whatever he was about to say on Afghanistan?' former Orrin Hatch aide Matt Whitlock said. Meanwhile, Trump won laughs from his wife Melania with a cheeky joke about the Easter bunny at the White House 's annual egg roll on Monday. With crowds gathered and the Easter bunny primed, the President couldn't resist an opportunity to prod his predecessor. 'Remember when the Easter bunny took out Joe Biden?' he said, harkening back to an awkward Easter Monday in 2022, when the bunny 'rescued' a confused-looking Biden. 'He's not going to be taking Trump out!' the president mused today. Melania, who was hovering nearby, giggled at the jab. The First Lady dazzled fans on the White House lawn in an effortlessly chic beige trench coat.
Daily Mail
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Trump praised for sweet interactions with kids at Easter egg role after years of awkward Biden moments
Donald Trump was handing out high fives and celebrating the holiday with children at the annual White House Easter egg role, earning favorable comparisons to predecessor Joe Biden. The 78-year-old president already mocked Biden earlier in the day, referencing the 2022 ceremony when the Easter Bunny 'rescued' a confused-looking Biden. The president was nearly as popular as the bunny at this year's egg role, seen in clips high fiving and drawing with children. Trump at one point exclaimed: 'I'm really into this!' While some found his high five with one child awkward, most of social media felt it was a welcome reprieve from the Biden-era, who baffled onlookers by his odd, touchy and even 'sniffing' behavior around young people. 'If nothing else, we have a POTUS you can trust around kids, and that's a major improvement,' wrote one. 'He is so great with kids, but in an appropriate non-sniffing way,' added another. One supporter said: 'The kids ran toward him like he was Santa, Superman, and recess all rolled into one. That's what leadership with presence looks like.' Some liberals derisively replied by referring to Trump's comments over the years about his daughter Ivanka. Biden has a history of making eyebrow-raising remarks about girls and women. During a 2020 event in Florida, Biden told a group of underage female dancers: 'I'm coming back and I want to see these beautiful young ladies, I want to see them dancing when they are four years older too!' In 2019, he told a 10-year-old girl: 'I'll bet you're as bright as you are good-looking.' He has also been photographed over the years kissing and touching young girls and women during public events. The president has also had notorious moments with the Easter Bunny, including a moment in 2022 where his comments to people at the White House 's Easter egg roll were interrupted on Monday by none other than the Easter Bunny itself. Biden was filmed speaking with reporters and guests at the cheerful holiday event when he began discussing Afghanistan, eight months after he presided over the US military's chaotic withdrawal from Kabul that ended 20 years of American boots on the ground there. The president, 79, started to answer Afghan reporter Nazira Karimi's question and was heard saying: 'Pakistan should not and Afghanistan should be — people should be free...' But Meghan Hays, a White House press official and director of message planning who was dressed as the Easter Bunny, then quickly interrupted him and ushered him away in a desperate bid to avoid another gaffe. Republican operatives on Twitter mocked the silly moment. 'How bad does the White House staff have to think Biden is to calculate that sending in the EASTER BUNNY to interrupt a gaggle is better optics than whatever he was about to say on Afghanistan?' former Orrin Hatch aide Matt Whitlock said. Trump won laughs from his wife Melania with a cheeky joke about the Easter bunny at the White House 's annual egg roll on Monday. With crowds gathered and the Easter bunny primed, the President couldn't resist an opportunity to prod his predecessor. 'Remember when the Easter bunny took out Joe Biden?' he said, harkening back to an awkward Easter Monday in 2022, when the bunny 'rescued' a confused-looking Biden. 'He's not going to be taking Trump out!' the president mused today. Melania, who was hovering nearby, giggled at the jab. The First Lady dazzled fans on the White House lawn in an effortlessly chic beige trench coat. It is her first public appearance for several weeks.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
There Will Be No Winners in the Supreme Court's Next Big Abortion Decision
Sign up for the Slatest to get the most insightful analysis, criticism, and advice out there, delivered to your inbox daily. The Supreme Court's next big abortion decision might barely mention the word abortion. That was clear during oral argument in Planned Parenthood of South Atlantic v. Medina this week. In 2018, South Carolina's Republican governor prohibited any provider that offers abortions from participating in the state's Medicaid program. That order applied to Planned Parenthood—and by design. It also triggered litigation about a familiar question: whether part of the Medicaid statute allowing patients to choose their own qualified providers is actually enforceable in federal court. It was hard to get a read on which direction the justices were leaning on that question in this week's oral argument. But whatever happens in Medina, the decades-long fight to defund Planned Parenthood will go full steam ahead. Anti-abortion leaders became obsessed with Planned Parenthood in the early 1980s, as the organization emerged as both a major provider of reproductive health services and a political powerhouse. Conservative politicians like Sen. Orrin Hatch considered proposals to gut Title X, a federal family planning program, partly with an eye to wounding Planned Parenthood. Conservatives also proposed an investigation into whether Planned Parenthood was misusing Medicaid money for abortion. And in 1988, the Reagan administration also took aim at Planned Parenthood with what was called the gag rule, which barred Title X recipients from counseling people about or referring them for abortions. At the time, defunding Planned Parenthood particularly interested the movement's absolutists, like James Sedlak, the founder of a group called Stop Planned Parenthood (STOPP), which tried to undermine the organization's work on contraception and sex education. But President Bill Clinton rolled back the gag rule, and for decades, the fight to defund Planned Parenthood went relatively quiet. Anti-abortion absolutists despised Planned Parenthood because its affiliates offered services beyond abortion, but that limited the appeal of the defunding campaign for a movement trying to build enough political support to overturn Roe. Defunding Planned Parenthood became more central to the anti-abortion movement after 2006 when an undergraduate at UCLA named Lila Rose released a video that she claimed showed a Planned Parenthood affiliate uncritically willing to offer an abortion to a victim of statutory rape. More videos would follow. The clips were heavily edited, but it didn't matter: They stirred up a political scandal. Conservative states began trying to bar Planned Parenthood from receiving Title X or Medicaid dollars. The Tea Party, which became a household name after the 2010 midterm, took up the fight to defund Planned Parenthood, led by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, the future vice president. But it wasn't clear if states could simply shut Planned Parenthood out of Medicaid. The Medicaid statute includes a provision stating that any beneficiary 'may obtain such assistance from any institution, agency, community pharmacy, or person, qualified to perform the service or services required.' Beneficiaries argued that this provision gave them the right to pick any qualified provider, including Planned Parenthood, and to enforce that right in federal court. States like South Carolina responded that Congress didn't intend to make the right to choose a qualified Medicaid provider enforceable in federal court—or at least, that the statute wasn't clear about the subject. Litigation on the issue has raged on for decades, but the Supreme Court didn't take up the question of the meaning of the choice-of-provider statute until the new conservative supermajority took shape. In the meantime, the court weighed in on other parts of the Medicaid statute, explaining that they do confer a right to sue in federal court. In Medina, South Carolina insisted that this section of the Medicaid statute was different. Arguing for the state, John Bursch, who works with the Alliance Defending Freedom (the most prominent group in the conservative Christian legal movement), contended that the choice-of-provider provision simply wasn't clear enough because it didn't use the words right, privilege, or entitlement. Planned Parenthood responded that the statute was more than clear enough—as most circuit courts had already concluded. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who could cast a deciding vote, seemed convinced that the circuit courts were still confused on the matter—and that requiring Congress to use magic words like right may clear the matter up. Some of the court's most conservative justices, including Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, seemed to share his view. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett were harder to read, although they seemed at least somewhat sympathetic to Planned Parenthood's position. All of that makes it challenging to predict exactly how the Supreme Court will resolve the case. What is clear is that Medina won't be the end of conflicts about Planned Parenthood's funding. For example, the Supreme Court in Medina is not addressing whether Planned Parenthood is a qualified Medicaid provider—the right to a choice of provider applies only to those medical professionals who meet that definition. Relevant regulations establish that states can set 'reasonable' standards for who counts as a qualified provider. In 2016, the Obama administration issued a letter explaining that providers weren't qualified if they couldn't meet relevant medical standards or if they defrauded patients. Political targeting—like disqualifying providers who performed abortions—was out of bounds. The Trump administration rescinded that letter in 2018. Even if the Supreme Court resolves Medina in Planned Parenthood's favor, states like South Carolina will almost certainly try a new justification for defunding Planned Parenthood, arguing that it isn't a qualified provider in the first place. All of that raises the question of why abortion opponents are still so fixated on defunding Planned Parenthood. The answer may seem easy: Planned Parenthood is the nation's largest abortion provider, and one of the most politically powerful advocates for reproductive rights. But the kind of move South Carolina is making won't really gut Planned Parenthood. State affiliates are the ones who rely disproportionately on Medicaid dollars, and these providers already don't perform Medicaid-funded abortions because of the Hyde Amendment. Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood's national office has a track record of raising prodigious amounts of money when conservative states threaten the organization, and under Planned Parenthood's bylaws, most of that money goes to the very kind of political and legal work that infuriates anti-abortion leaders. The upshot of a South Carolina win in Medina could well be less money for facilities in already underserved areas, and potentially more money for political advocacy for reproductive rights. So what's in that for the anti-abortion movement? The answer is simple: political ammunition. Since at least the late 1970s, the anti-abortion movement has argued that abortion providers in general—and Planned Parenthood in particular—have prioritized profits over patients and delivered subpar care. This argument about 'abortionists' has fueled any number of restrictions and bans, and now, after the fall of Roe, the same arguments are at the center of the first post-Roe prosecutions of abortion providers. Trump administration officials have gestured to similar concerns in calling for an investigation of mifepristone, a drug used in more than half of all the nation's abortions. Defunding local affiliates creates financial stresses that could make it harder to deliver quality care. And if that happens, anti-abortion leaders will point to those struggles as evidence that abortion providers across the country cannot be trusted. Besides, the anti-abortion movement is still on the hunt for common ground with the Trump administration, which for the most part has been reluctant to deliver on the movement's wish list. Cutting money for Planned Parenthood seems like a perfect fit in the era of the Department of Government Efficiency. The irony is that if this effort works, the result may not be a hobbled Planned Parenthood, least of all in national politics. More likely, patients who already struggle to find a gynecologist or primary care doctor will be the ones holding the short end of the stick.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Utah's dubious destiny in nuclear power development
Union Electric Callaway Nuclear Power Plant in Missouri. (Photo by) In February, 2025, in remarks delivered to the Nuclear Industry Council's showcase in Salt Lake City, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox outlined Utah's future as a national leader in nuclear power development: 'We believe that Utah is uniquely positioned to lead the nuclear renaissance in the U.S.' At a conference in Park City in October 2024, Utah Senate President Stuart J. Adams went Cox one better and said, 'We want to establish Utah as an expert here for energy innovation . . . we want to be the world leader. And to do that, nuclear is going to be a big part of it.' Another Utah politician eyeing the moon while jumping on a pogo stick, Utah Congressional Rep. John Curtis (now Utah Senator) said at the same Park City venue, 'We want to be a big part of this. We're ready for nuclear facilities here in our state.' Unclear about referencing the state or the nation, he also said, 'We're not talking about dozens of nuclear facilities. We're talking about hundreds of nuclear facilities.' Utahns have heard this before — big promises, big plans, out-of-this-world expectations, and fizzling results. A parade of top Utah leaders have long excelled in making thrilling predictions about the state. For example, a Utah attorney in 1976 promised to sweep corrupting long-term power out of Utah's future. Orrin Hatch criticized then-incumbent Senator Frank Moss' 18-year tenure in the Senate, saying, 'What do you call a Senator who's served in office for 18 years? You call him home.' Hatch argued Moss had lost touch with his constituents after so long a time gulping down the muddy waters of the Potomac River. Orrin Hatch won the election that year and promptly lost touch with his constituents for the next 42 years as he became the longest running elected U.S. Senator up to that time, serving seven six-year terms in office. His treacherous contribution to the political landscape helped to lay the basis of the Senate's current House of Lords-style lifetime service model, devoted primarily to serving the interests of an autocratic occupant of the White House rather than the people of this country. Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt made promises and predictions during his 11 years in office about education that neither he nor the Legislature could bring to pass: reducing class sizes, raising up students in poor areas of the state, and improving educational achievement by handing out special grants to 'Centennial' schools. He and the state could not manage to improve the state's ranking of dead last in per student spending among the 50 states. Furthermore, Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores under Leavitt slid backward for 5th and 8th graders. The aforementioned Utah Senate President Stuart Adams glibly promised the people of Utah that Utah would lead the nation out of the pandemic. However, Utah, with all its anti-vax religious libertarians leading the way, arguably led Utah and the nation back into another round of pandemic illness and death. Now, along comes Gov. Spencer Cox in the prime of his fame and power in 2025. It seems to have slipped the governor's mind that Utah was the recipient of drifting nuclear mushroom clouds during the atom bomb testing beginning in 1945 at the Nevada Test Site. This tidy little underperformed piece of history produced an American Chernobyl with cascading cancer deaths from generation to generation as a result of the 'downwinder' effect on southern Utahns. Cox also seems not to have taken to heart another nuclear warning story that comes to us from Utah's west desert. That part of the state is a holding place for some of the US military's deadliest materials. One article cites, 'Everything from compacted urban trash to nuclear reactor waste seems to end up there among the tumbleweeds, alkaline salt flats, and jackalopes. Even the Deseret News once called it 'a place to store and burn and bury our country's toxic trash.'' The Dugway Proving Ground located there became one of the centers of the nation's chemical and biological weapons testing and a dumping ground for nuclear waste. Dugway ran into trouble in 1968 when testing a new nerve agent that accidentally killed 6,000 sheep grazing in the desert. In another slap to the face of Utah's megalomaniacal ambitions is that Utah is not even mentioned in the short list of states who are leading the way in developing nuclear energy, a list which includes only Virginia, Michigan, and Wyoming. It is hard to know from what source Utah politicians are taking their delirious political prompts. It certainly is not necessary in an authentic democracy to always be first and best in everything.
