Monday morning news: November 14, 2022

Senate/House » With a runoff election in Georgia still looming, there’s one last Senate race left to decide. But either way, Democrats will keep control of the Senate after Senator Catherine Cortez Masto squeaked out a win in Nevada.

MASTO: I know what it takes to deliver for my home state. So when the national pundits said I couldn’t win, I knew Nevada would prove them wrong.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Republicans gave Democrats a gift by nominating candidates who questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election.

SCHUMER: This bothered the American people. They said what’s going on here? This is not the America we know and love, where we deny elections.

Republicans are still likely to capture control of the House, albeit by a much smaller margin than expected. Indiana Congressman Jim Banks on Sunday said a GOP–led House will hold the Biden administration accountable.

BANKS: Oversight is a primary function of the Congress. And for the last two years, there has been no oversight of the Biden agenda and the Biden administration.

He said that’s about to change.

Biden – Xi meeting » President Biden is meeting face to face with Chinese leader Xi Jinping today.

The White House says it wants to keep lines of communication open with China in hopes of avoiding conflict in the future over Taiwan and other issues. Biden said Sunday:

BIDEN: I’ve always had straightforward discussions with him. There’s never any miscalculation about where each of us stand.

The Biden administration says it doesn’t expect any concrete agreements to come out of the meeting.

The two will meet on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Indonesia.

Biden Asia » President Biden met yesterday with the leaders of Japan and South Korea to, in his words, “tackle the biggest issues of our time.”

BIDEN: Today, we’ll discuss how we can strengthen our supply chains and economic resilience, and how we can preserve peace and stability across the Taiwan straits.

He said they discussed threats to the global order, which includes China, and nuclear threats from North Korea.

Biden met with the leaders at a summit of Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Ukraine » Ukrainians are rejoicing in the city of Kherson, waving yellow-and-blue Ukrainian flags. During the Russian occupation, the national flag was contraband. One retired couple is driving around the city, flying their flag with the enthusiasm of teenagers — asking Ukrainian soldiers who liberated them to autograph it.

Moscow’s forces retreated, but left the city in rough shape, destroying infrastructure on their way out.

Many residents say Russian troops may have turned their lights off, but that has not dimmed their spirits.

AUDIO: Because now we have no electricity in the city, no water, no central supplied heating, no internet connection, but we have no Russians! And I’m extremely happy of that!

Kherson was the only provincial capital that Russia captured, seizing it in the invasion's first weeks.

Istanbul bomb » Flames and smoke rose over the heart of Istanbul on Sunday after a bomb rocked a major pedestrian avenue.

AUDIO: [Bomb]

The blast killed at least six people and wounded more than 80. The government said signs pointed to terrorism.

OKTAY: [Turkish]

Turkey’s vice president Fuat Oktay vowed to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Netanyahu » Cameras flashed in Jerusalem Sunday as Israeli President Isaac Herzog stood alongside Benjamin Netanyahu and displayed a document, officially tasking him with forming a new government.

That opens the door for his highly likely return to power.

NETANYAHU: [Hebrew]

Netanyahu vowed as prime minister to represent the interests of all Israelis, not just those who voted for his party.

NETANYAHU: [Hebrew]

The 73-year-old Netanyahu is set to return to power after a one-year hiatus. He’s already the longest-serving prime minister in Israel’s history.

Box office » At the weekend box office, the latest Marvel blockbuster just set a new record.

TRAILER: They came from the water. They have superhuman strength. He’s coming for the surface world. That can’t be good.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever just scored the highest opening ever in the month of November. It hauled in $180 million dollars domestically in its opening weekend.

Another superhero flick, Black Adam, finished second with another $9 million.

I'm Kent Covington. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org. 

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