Friday morning news: August 25, 2023

Trump » Former President Donald Trump has been booked in the Fulton County, Georgia, jail on charges that he and 18 of his associates illegally attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing and says the prosecution is politically motivated.

SOUND: [Trump supporters]

Supporters of the former president gathered outside the Fulton County Jail. They held signs saying he won the election and calling the charges against him a “witch hunt.”

The former president’s legal woes came up at this week’s GOP presidential debate, which he did not attend.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie:

CHRISTIE: Donald Trump said it's okay to suspend the Constitution. Now, the vow you take is to preserve, protect and defend not suspend.

Most of the other candidates said they would support Trump if he won the GOP presidential nomination, even if he is convicted of a crime.

Trump’s bail had been previously set at $200,000 dollars.

COVID-19 » The Justice Department says it has recovered almost one and a half billion dollars of stolen COVID-19 relief funds, and that it is determined to recover more.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco addressing investigators who helped cracked the case:

MONACO: Collectively you've pursued civil investigations into more than 3,000 individuals and entities for alleged misconduct in connection with pandemic Relief Loans, totaling more than $7 billion. And together, we've seized nearly $1.4 billion in stolen relief funds.

Earlier this week, the Department announced that in some of its latest actions it had secured convictions or guilty pleas from almost 120 of the roughly 370 people it brought charges against for allegedly defrauding COVID-19 relief programs.

Prigozhin » U.S. officials say they suspect foul play in the death of the leader of Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder:

RYDER: I'll say right up front. First of all, our initial assessment is that it's likely Prigozhin was killed. We're continuing to assess the situation.

Prigozhin died in a plane crash in Russia earlier this week along with nine other people. U.S. officials described the crash as the intended result of an explosion.

But Ryder did say the cause of the explosion was likely not a surface-to-air missile, contrary to some reports.

Prigozhin staged a brief and mostly peaceful uprising against the Kremlin in June.

PUTIN: [Speaking Russian]

Russian President Vladimir Putin saying that he knew Prigozhin for decades. He called the general-for-hire a talented businessman and said that Prigozhin made, in Putin’s words, serious mistakes in life.

BRICS recap » The BRICS coalition of emerging economies says Argentina and five other countries are joining the group.

The original members of the bloc are Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. They are welcoming multiple Middle Eastern and African nations, including Iran and Saudi Arabia.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres spoke at the BRICS summit this week in Johannesburg.

GUTERRES: The climate crisis is spiralling out of control. A global cost of living crisis is raging. Without a global architecture to deal with them and geo political divides and conflicts are multiplying with profound global implications, especially the impacts from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Leaders such as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took the opportunity to express anti-Western views at the summit.

California shooter » The shooter at a biker bar in Southern California on Wednesday was an ex-police officer. Three people were killed in the shooting.

Orange County Fire Chief Brian Fennessy:

FENNESY: Paramedics treated and transported six people to a local Trauma Center, five of which had reported gunshot wounds. The other four or two of the six people we transported are in critical condition. This tragic incident weighs heavy on our community and the first responders.

Deputies arrived at the scene just two minutes after the first 911 call came in and exchanged fire with the suspect, who was later announced dead at the scene.

The Orange County district attorney’s office identified the shooter as a former police sergeant for Ventura County. His estranged wife is one of the surviving victims.

Ukraine in Crimea » Ukraine continues to target the Crimean Peninsula as part of its counteroffensive against Russian forces.

Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Officials in Kyiv said yesterday that their special forces launched a raid on the region Wednesday night.

The news came as Ukraine celebrated Independence Day yesterday.

ZELENSKYY (Ukrainian): Today we celebrate the 32nd anniversary of our independence - the independence of Ukraine. This is a value for each of us. And this is what we are fighting for.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying the country is still fighting for independence.

Zelenskyy says Russia must agree to return all of Ukraine’s territory before he is willing to engage in peace talks.

I’m Paul Butler.

Straight ahead: Culture Friday with John Stonestreet. Plus, a faith-based baseball movie.

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