In 12 hours Thursday, President Donald Trump stoked a conspiracy, tweeted contradictory statements and commented about ‘s---hole’ countries. Utah Rep. Mia Love urges Trump to apologize for his vulgar comment. A businessman agrees to pay for the Utah GOP’s legal expenses.

Happy Friday. Yesterday was a bit of an absurd day for President Donald Trump. He started the morning by tweeting contradictory statements about a surveillance program. Then he called Haiti, El Salvador and African nations “s---hole countries.” And the day ended with The Wall Street Journal publishing an interview with the president, who fueled a new conspiracy theory by accusing an FBI agent of “treason.” Here’s a complete rundown of those 12 hours. [WaPost]

Topping the news: Utah Rep. Mia Love, the only Haitian-American in Congress, wants President Donald Trump to apologize for the vulgar comment he made Thursday about immigrants. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4 [Fox13] [KSL]

-> Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, voted to extend a controversial surveillance program. [Trib] [DNews] [KSL]

-> Entrata chairman Dave Bateman agreed Thursday to cover the expenses of the Utah Republican Party’s lawsuit against a state election law. [Trib] [KUTV]

Tweets of the day: From @petersagal: “All of our ancestors came from s---hole countries. If it wasn’t a s---hole, you’d be reading this there.”

-> From @davidaxelrod: “It is jarring when the evening news begins with a disclaimer suggesting to Americans that they might want to excuse their kids lest they hear the vile, racist language the @POTUS used today.”

-> From @leannuh_renay: “I picture an NSA Office, full of computer nerds, starting their day off with a giggle as they listen to Sting sing ‘I’ll be watching you’”

Happy Birthday: On Monday to former state Rep. Steven Mascaro.

Programming note: Political Cornflakes will be off Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day but back in your inboxes and on your computer screens bright and early Tuesday morning.

Behind the Headlines: Tribune reporters Emma Penrod, Brian Maffly and Lee Davidson, as well as columnist Paul Rolly, join KCPW’s Roger McDonough to talk about the week’s top stories, including House Speaker Greg Hughes’ decision not to run for re-election and air pollution. Each Friday morning stream “Behind the Headlines” online at kcpw.org or tune in to KCPW 88.3 FM or Utah Public Radio for the broadcast.

In other news: Salt Lake County Republican delegates elected Brian Zehnder to the state Senate Tuesday to replace Brian Shiozawa, who resigned to become the regional director of the Department of Health and Human Services in Denver. And Republican delegates in Provo elected Adam Robertson to take Dean Sanpei’s place in the state House, who also resigned to work in Colorado. [Trib]

-> State Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, is sponsoring a bill that could end Utah cities’ ability to control land use in mountain watersheds used for drinking water. [Trib]

-> Odyssey House, a substance-abuse program, opened 83 residential drug-treatment beds Thursday. Increasing this program’s capacity is a major step forward for Operation Rio Grande, a plan created by Utah leaders to combat crime in the homeless community. [Trib] [DNews] [ABC4]

-> UTA announced last month that it had created 10-year contracts with Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University to provide passes for all students, faculty and their family members. One UTA board member said this action creates an extreme discount for passes and violates the rules. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13]

-> Millcreek City celebrated its first anniversary Wednesday. [Trib]

-> Pat Bagley shows the difficulty Walmart employees are facing with the closure of multiple stores. [Trib]

-> Robert Gehrke traces House Speaker Greg Hughes’ political development and his next possible moves. Hughes announced Wednesday he will not seek another term. [Trib]

-> Michelle Quist reviews state issues that Attorney General Sean Reyes could be taking care of in addition to his work to combat human trafficking. [Trib]

Nationally: President Donald Trump referred to Haiti and some African nations as “s---thole countries” in a Thursday meeting focused on an immigration deal. [NYTimes]

-> Trump’s administration made it possible Thursday for states to require people to work or prepare to work in order to receive Medicaid benefits. [WaPost]

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