National Government

OGDEN -- U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, asked Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Wednesday to look into issues surrounding federal audits that resulted in the June removal of 32 Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees from Weber County Jail.

"I'm all for good conditions in our jails," Hatch said in a phone interview with the Standard-Examiner.

"If they are good enough for U.S. inmates, they should be good enough for criminal aliens."

WASHINGTON -- It sounds like a pretty good deal: Retire at age 38 after 20 years of work and get a monthly pension of half your salary for the rest of your life. All you have to do is join the military.

As the nation tightens its budget belt, the century-old military retirement system has come under attack as unaffordable, unfair to some who serve and overly generous compared with civilian benefits.

That very notion, laid out in a Pentagon-ordered study, sent a wave of fear and anger through the ranks of current and retired military members when it was reported in the news media this month.

WASHINGTON -- Crisis legislation to yank the nation past the threat of a historic financial default sped through the House Monday night, breaking weeks of deadlock. The rare moment of cooperation turned celebratory when Rep. Gabrielle Giffords strode in for the first time since she was shot in the head nearly seven months ago.

The vote was 269-161, a scant day ahead of the deadline for action. But all eyes were on Giffords, who drew thunderous applause as she walked into the House chamber unannounced and cast her vote in favor of the bill.

A final Senate sign-off for the measure is virtually assured today. Aside from raising the debt limit, the bill would slice federal spending by at least $2.1 trillion, and perhaps much more.

OGDEN -- The debate began in Weber County on Wednesday evening about whether to blend districts into Davis and Morgan counties, or keep as many within Weber as they can.

Utah is in the middle of drawing new congressional, Senate, House and school district lines to accommodate changes in population since the 2000 Census. Once population shifts are accounted for, Weber County could lose the equivalent of half a seat in the Utah House of Representatives to ensure that each district represents an equal number of voters.

Utah State lawmakers and legislative staff presented how they might draw the new lines at a public meeting in Ben Lomond High School on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner put partisanship aside, at least on the golf course, and teamed up to triumph on the final hole Saturday in their long-awaited links outing.

The match pitted the political rivals against Vice President Joe Biden and Ohio's Republican Gov. John Kasich. The match was won on the 18th hole, with the winning partners each pocketing a $2 prize.

The question now is whether a partnership forged on the tees, fairways and greens of a military base course can yield success in the policy arena. Obama and Boehner find themselves on opposite sides of everything from deficit reduction to the military campaign in Libya.

SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah legislators passed an immigration law they were confident wouldn't end up the same way Arizona's version did last year: tangled up in the courts.

But 14 hours after Utah's law went into effect this week, it, too, was before a federal judge.

As the case goes through the courts, other states grappling with illegal immigration are paying attention.