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Political Cornflakes: White House alerts Secret Service after Peter Fonda suggests caging Trump’s son

White House alerts Secret Service after Peter Fonda suggests caging Trump’s son. Poll: Romney has a 42-point lead over Kennedy. Cox’s tweet goes viral over border separations.

Happy Thursday. Actor Peter Fonda may have to answer to the Secret Service soon after the White House alerted the agency about his tweet calling for President Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron, to be locked up “with pedophiles … see if mother will stand up against the giant a--hole she is married to.” A spokeswoman for first lady Melania Trump called the tweet “sick and irresponsible.” [Politico]

Topping the news: Mitt Romney has a 42-point lead over state Rep. Mike Kennedy ahead of the Republican primary on Tuesday, a new Tribune-Hinckley Institute poll shows. [Trib]

-> Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox received international attention when a string of emotional tweets about separating children from their parents at the border went viral. [Trib]

-> A Provo man who fled Guatemala after kidnappers held him captive recalls being separated from his 3-year-old daughter for seven days at the U.S.-Mexico border. [APviaTrib]

-> House Speaker Greg Hughes is affiliated with companies that own land near the newly created inland port authority boundaries, which, according to Utah law, should disqualify him from serving on the port board. [Trib]

-> The Utah Safe Schools Commission issued a report on tips for protecting students, including mandatory mental-health reporting and allowing guns to be seized through court order. [Trib] [Fox13]

Tweets of the day: From @funder: “Trump literally signed an executive order to end Trump’s own policy. Mind blown.”

-> From @feministfabulous: "Donald Trump is taking credit for solving a crisis he created. Gaslighting at its highest form.”

-> From @petridishes: "’only I can break it and then claim credit for fixing it’ doesn’t have quite the same ring“

Trib Talk: Tribune reporter Benjamin Wood discusses border security and the separation of migrant families with Arturo Morales-LLan, a member of the Utah Republican Party’s State Central Committee, and Luis Garza, executive director of Comunidades Unidas.

In other news: A security guard for Citadel Security USA shot and killed a man outside a government building and is being charged with murder. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13] [ABC4]

-> State Sen. Jim Dabakis voted against a judicial nominee yesterday -- and says he’ll continue to do so -- over concern for a lack of diversity on the bench. [Fox13]

-> Utah will receive $35 million of a $15.7 billion settlement that Volkswagen was ordered to pay after the German automaker was found to have cheated emission tests for years. [Trib]

-> Lt. Gov. Cox and medical marijuana supporters are asking a judge to toss out a lawsuit trying to prevent the ballot initiative. [Fox13]

-> A 0.25 percent tax increase for Salt Lake County will be imposed after Draper and Sandy city councils voted in favor of the hike, despite opposition from Sandy City Mayor Kurt Bradburn. [Trib]

-> According to the National Park Service, there were 324 search and rescue operations at Utah national parks in 2017, a 68 percent jump from 2014. [Trib]

-> Democratic Navajo candidate Willie Grayeyes filed a lawsuit challenging San Juan County’s decision to end his campaign, arguing it was a racially and politically motivated attack. [Trib] [Fox13]

-> The LDS Church released a list of new guidelines for bishops conducting interviews with teenagers, including letting them know before the interview what they will be asked. [Trib]

-> Pat Bagley shows the “deficit deceit” that has been happening while everyone is focused by immigration reform. [Trib]

Nationally: In the face of bipartisan protest, President Donald Trump signed an executive order temporarily to temporarily halt the policy of separating children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. [Politico] [NYTimes]

-> Economists say the U.S.’s strong economy gives Trump an upper hand as he contemplates tariffs on China, Canada and Mexico. [NYTimes]

-> The White House is expected today to propose merging the Education and Labor Departments, a plan that is expected to include major changes to the way the government provides benefits for low-income Americans. [WaPost]

Got a tip? A birthday, wedding or anniversary to announce? Send us a note to cornflakes@sltrib.com.

-- Thomas Burr and Connor Richards

Twitter.com/thomaswburr and Twitter.com/crichards1995