VP Pence’s chief of staff calls for ‘purge’ of GOP lawmakers who don‘t support Trump. Congress won’t weigh in on gun silencer bill. Utah-born physicist wins the Nobel Prize.
Happy Wednesday. Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff proposed a “purge” of Republican lawmakers who don’t quickly get behind President Donald Trump and his policies. “Just imagine the possibilities of what can happen if our entire party unifies behind him,” Nick Ayers said, “if — and this sounds crass — we can purge the handful of people who continue to work to defeat him.” [Politico]
Topping the news: A third Utahn died of injuries sustained during the Las Vegas shooting. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4] [Fox13]
-> Congress has hit pause on legislation for gun silencers after that deadly mass shooting. [Trib]
-> Utah-born Kip Thorne is on the winning team for this year’s Nobel Prize in physics for his role in detecting gravitational waves. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: From @kelmej: “10/10 would watch Law & Order: Capitol Police.”
-> From @WarOnDumb: “A Joe Biden speech is like a Pixies song. It gets really soft, then it gets loud again before it’s over.”
Happy Birthday: To former state Rep. Roger Barrus.
In other news: In the wake of the Las Vegas shooting, the Red Cross in Utah has received an overwhelming amount of blood donations and encourages interested parties to schedule in advance. [Trib]
-> Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful, proposed a program which would allow low-income Utah women to receive birth control funded by the state and federal government. [Trib]
-> Three Utah ballot initiatives — legalizing medical marijuana, raising taxes for schools and creating an independent commission to draw political boundaries — are attracting big donations. [Trib]
-> Utah Democrats stand behind a lawsuit in the U.S. Supreme Court which could ban partisan gerrymandering. [Trib]
-> The Salt Lake County Council voted unanimously to fund two new prosecutors and a legal assistant for Operation Rio Grande. [Trib]
-> Westminster College was cleared of allegations that it mishandled a student’s sexual assault complaint. [Trib] [DNews]
-> LDS apostle Robert D. Hales’ funeral services will be held Friday in Salt Lake City. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4]
-> Robert Gehrke insists on action, not just polite words, after the tragedy in Las Vegas. [Trib]
Nationally: The Las Vegas gunman set up his own detailed surveillance, according to law enforcement officials. [NYTimes]
-> President Donald Trump visited Puerto Rico on Tuesday, throwing paper towels into a crowd and suggesting that Hurricane Maria’s destruction in the territory has put the national budget “a little out of whack.” [WaPost]
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-- Courtney Tanner and Karenna Meredith