Thursday morning news: January 12, 2023

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

Biden responds to classified document discovery » The White House says President Biden is fully cooperating with the Justice Department as it looks into potentially classified documents found at his old Washington office.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre:

PIERRE: He sees it very seriously when it comes to taking classified documents and information.

She echoed the president’s remarks one day earlier when Biden said he had been unaware of the documents.

BIDEN: I was briefed about this discovery and surprised to learn that there were any government records that were taken there.

His attorneys found documents with classified markings as they cleared out an office Biden used before moving into the Oval Office.

Republican Congressman James Comer:

COMER: Now we found out that the documents that Joe Biden had that were classified, some of them pertained to Ukraine. I mean there are so many questions here.

The Justice Department is currently investigating former President Trump for allegedly hanging onto classified documents.

Republicans are demanding a thorough probe of this incident as well.

Agencies to probe flight outage » The Department of Transportation is investigating a computer error that grounded all domestic flights yesterday.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

BUTTIGIEG: We are now pivoting to focus on understanding the causes of the issue. And the main thing I want everybody to understand is that every step of the way, safety is going to be our North Star, as it always is.

The problem arose when a software program that warns of runway problems went down temporarily.

The flight-tracking website FlightAware says the error led to more than 1,200 flight cancellations and 8,500 delays by early afternoon.

Authorities say there is no evidence of a cyberattack.

CA weather » In many California communities, residents are taking it upon themselves to clean up the streets after major flooding.

Governor Gavin Newsom.

NEWSOM: The owners of these businesses said people just showed up, said they just needed one thing, which was gloves, and they took it upon themselves to help clear out the debris and try to get this community back on its feet.

The state has experienced at least 17 weather-related deaths in the past week and the federal government has listed every county in the state as a disaster area.

Heavy rains have flooded major highways and blocked others with rocks and mud. Meanwhile, winds have knocked down trees and battered electrical lines across the state.

Recovery from the storms could cost billions.

D.Hamlin back home » Buffalo Bills Defensive Back Damar Hamlin is home from the hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest on the football field last week.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott.

McDERMOTT: You know, obviously grateful, first and foremost, that he's home and with his parents and and his brother, which is great. I'm sure it's felt like a long time since he's been able to be home naturally there and I'm sure it's a great feeling.

McDermott did not provide a timeline for when Hamlin is expected to play again, saying that his recovery is the main priority right now.

Prayers poured in from around the country following Hamlin’s collapse. Doctors called his recovery “remarkable.”

Calls for Santos to quit » REPORTER 1: Congressman Santos will you resign?

SANTOS: I will not.

REPORTER 2: Congressman Santos will you step down?

SANTOS: I will not.

Freshman GOP Congressman George Santos says he’s not going anywhere. Even as calls for him resign grow louder on both sides of the aisle.

Santos has admitted to lying about much of his personal and professional history during his campaign for Congress.

Republicans from his home state of New York denounced him today.

Jen DeSena is a town supervisor on Long Island:

DeSENA: Today, I am calling on George Santos to immediately resign from Congress for the third district. The lies George Santos told are too numerous to count.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Santos should not be seated on any top committees. The House Ethics Committee is now investigating Santos’ conduct.

Afghan attack » In Afghanistan, authorities are investigating an explosion near Foreign Ministry that killed at least five people yesterday. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER, REPORTER: The ISIS affiliate in the region has claimed responsibility for the attack. It has carried out numerous attacks against the new Taliban government and the country’s Shiite population.

More than 40 injured people received treatment at a nearby surgical center run by a humanitarian group.

Officials at the hospital said more people succumbed to their injuries.

And authorities expect the death toll to climb.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

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

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.