Monday morning news: September 18, 2023

NATO meeting » Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit the White House this week where he’ll sit down with President Biden. Then on to Capitol Hill to meet with key lawmakers as he hopes to reinforce support for his country’s fight against Russian invaders.

GOP Congressman Mike Turner:

TURNER: The last time we had votes on the House floor on the issue of aid for Ukraine, nearly 300 members voted in the affirmative out of 435. A majority of Republicans voted in the affirmative, and I think that will continue.

Some Republican members say the United States can’t afford to keep helping Ukraine. Others argue that we can’t afford not to ensure that Vladimir Putin’s conquest fails.

The White House is asking Congress to green-light another $24 billion dollars in aid to Ukraine.

NoKo weapons to Russia » Moscow, meanwhile, is turning to North Korea for help. But America’s America’s top general says he is not terribly worried. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher reports.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s armored train departed southern Russia on Sunday after possibly sealing an arms deal with Vladimir Putin.

But U.S. General Mark Milley told NATO allies in Norway over the weekend … that Pyongyang’s help is unlikely to tip the sales in Russia’s favor.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman said North Korea will likely give Soviet-era 152 millimeter artillery rounds to Moscow.

But will that make a huge difference? Milley said he’s “skeptical of that.” He added that he does not believe it would be decisive.

In exchange for ammunition, the Kremlin could share advanced weapons technology with Pyongyang.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Libya update » Libyan authorities have opened an investigation into the collapse of two dams that sent walls of water crashing into a coastal city.

The floodwaters killed more than 11,000 people and thousands more remain missing.

Western countries are pitching in where they can. But British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly says it’s challenging.

CLEVERLY: Just at the tail end of last week, I was speaking with the Turkish Foreign Minister and Defense minister about what more we could do to support them. But the governance situation in Libya makes it incredibly difficult.

He explained that the the civil war in the country has "broken the infrastructure" the UK would otherwise use to deliver aid to those in neeed.

Biden impeachment inquiry » Republicans and Democrats clashed on Sunday talk shows over the new impeachment inquiry against President Biden.

House Republicans have been probing Biden family business dealings for months. And Speaker Kevin McCarthy says the inquiry gives House investigators new powers to access information.

MCCARTHY: That’s going to be bank statements. That’s going to be credit card statements. That’s going to be family members coming in and so the American public can know.

GOP Congressman Michael McCaul said they’ll also be able to subpoena grand jury material adding that executive privilege doesn’t apply in an impeachment inquiry.

But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told ABC’s This Week:

JEFFRIES: There are no facts on the record that show President Biden broke the law in any way, shape, or form.

He again called the inquiry “illegitimate.”

Paxton acquitted in impeachment trial » Meantime, in Texas, the impeachment trial of state Attorney General Ken Paxton is over.

PATRICK: This judgment will be filed with the secretary of state, and Attorney General Warren Kenneth Paxton hereby, at this moment, reinstated to office.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick heard there, presiding over the trial’s final moments.

Paxton faced 16 counts of alleged corruption.

The trial centered on allegations that he improperly used the powers of his office to protect a real estate developer, who was indicted in June on alleged financial crimes.

Two Republicans joined Democrats in voting to convict Paxton on at least some of those counts. But in the end, the GOP majority voted to absolve him on all counts.

UAW strike» Thousands of autoworkers are still picketing outside the plants of Ford, GM and Stelantis, demanding bigger paychecks, among other things.

United Autoworkers Union President Shawn Fain says, in his vew, Detroit’s big-3 automakers waited too long to get serious about labor talks.

FAIN: They chose not to negotiate for the 8 weeks we had. We started this back in July, and we told them then, don’t wait till the last minute or you’re going to find yourself in a bad position.

The union wants a 36% pay raise over the next four years with most of that starting immediately.

Chrysler owner Stellantis over the weekend said it had offered workers a roughly 20 percent pay raise with a 10% immediate pay raise.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: A deep dive into “lawfare” on Legal Docket. Plus, the Monday Moneybeat.

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