Monday morning news: November 6, 2023

SOUND: [Israel defense system]

Israel » Israel’s Iron dome defense system heard there shooting down more incoming rockets …

SOUND: [Gaza explosions]

… as explosions continue to rock Gaza City.

SOUND: [Gaza sttrikes]

Israeli airstrikes hit two refugee camps in the Gaza Strip on Sunday. Local officials claimed scores of people died in the strikes.

Dr. Marwan Abusada is chief of surgery at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. He said his emergency room …

ABUSADA: It is well, overwhelmed with a huge number of people as you see here. It is a horrible situation.

AUDIO: [Daniel Hagari speaking]

Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said IDF troops have encircled Gaza City and are targeting terrorist infrastructure. Hamas militants embed their operations in residential areas.

Blinken on Israel » Meantime, Secretary of State Tony Blinken is on a mission in the Middle East trying to contain the regional fallout from the war.

Many Arab leaders are calling for a cease-fire. But Blinken is making the case that Israel must continue its mission to destroy Hamas.

BLINKEN: Senior Hamas officials said that it was their intent to do October 7th again, and again, and again.

October 7th was the date Hamas launched a terror attack on Israel from Gaza.

Blinken says the United States is working with Israel toward a more limited humanitarian pause …

BLINKEN: This is a process. Israel has raised important questions about how humanitarian pauses would work. We’ve got to answer those questions.

He’s meeting today with leaders in Turkey … after stops in several Middle Eastern countries … as well as a surprise meeting with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas.

Congress funding for Israel, Ukraine » House Speaker Mike Johnson is pressing Senate Democrats to take up a bill that House Republicans passed last week to pay for billions of dollars in aid to Israel.

JOHNSON: That’s exactly what was requested, $14.5 billion dollars. What they don’t like is that in the House, we’re trying to be good stewards of the taxpayer’s resources.

The White House asked for that aid as a part of a much larger package that would also fund aid to Ukraine, among other things.

Johnson says the House will address those needs separately.

The GOP bill would also cut some newly expanded funding for the IRS to pay for the aid to Israel.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer described it this way:

SCHUMER: This stunningly unserious proposal. Unserious at a time like this?!

He said his chamber is crafting its own legislation that will include aid to Ukraine.

Ukraine latest, Zelenskyy remarks » And a Ukrainian missile strike reportedly hit a shipyard on the annexed Crimean Peninsula, damaging at least one Russian ship.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told NBC’s Meet the Press that Ukraine has fiercely defended the Black Sea region. And …

ZELENSKYY: That was a signal that we can manage this war, even against such terrorist organizations like [the] Kremlin.

Zelenskyy again made the case for continued aid from the West.

He said Ukrainian soldiers are fighting on the front lines against a Russian assault on Europe.

GOP politics » Several Republican White House hopefuls are gearing up for this week’s presidential debate, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who rallied supporters near Orlando over the weekend.

DESANTIS: We’ve blown winnable elections year after year over the last three election cycles. The brand of Republicans has become toxic — very difficult to attract people to the party. So Florida has shown the way forward for the Republican party.

DeSantis remains in second place in national GOP polls with 13 percent. Former governor and ambassador Nikki Haley is third with 8 percent.

But Donald Trump has continued to pull away from the pack. He now enjoys 60 percent support, nationally, among Republicans.

Five GOP candidates will face off in the third debate. Trump, once again, will skip the event.

NBC News will host the debate in Miami at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday.

DeWine on Ohio abortion measure » Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is speaking out against an upcoming ballot measure that could enshrine abortion rights in the states’ constitution.

The Republican told Fox News: Sunday …

DeWINE: It's a radical proposal and whether you're pro choice or pro life. It just goes much, much too far.

The amendment would allow all abortions at least up till the moment when a baby can live outside the womb.

It would also prevent the state from acting—quote—“directly or indirectly [to] burden, penalize or interfere with” abortion rights.

Pro-life groups say that could nullify state laws requiring parental consent for abortions performed on minors and eliminate safety standards for abortion facilities.

Ohioans will vote on the measure tomorrow.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: free speech and social media on Legal Docket. Plus, the Monday Moneybeat.

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