Tuesday morning news: February 18, 2025

Ukraine talks update » Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top U.S. officials are in Saudi Arabia this morning, where they plan to meet face to face with Russian officials, opening high stakes negotiations about ending the war in Ukraine.

That comes after President Trump had this to say about his recent phone call with Vladimir Putin.

TRUMP:  I think he wants to stop. That was my question to him. Because if he's going to go on, that would have been a big problem for us. And that would have caused me a big problem. Because you just can't let that happen.

The Kremlin says the talks will focus not only on the war, but also on improving relations between the U.S. and Russia.

It is the most significant meeting between the sides since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor nearly three years ago.

Ukraine talks update » Ukraine will not be at the table for these initial talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that on Monday.

ZELENSKYY (Ukrainian): [up briefly, then under and slowly out]

He said the U.S. has every right to hold bilateral talks with Russia. But he added that Kyiv would reject any deal, if one were struck without Ukraine’s involvement.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Monday:

RUTTE:  It is my absolute understanding that Ukraine will be an integral part of those talks, which is only logical, because this is about Ukraine.

The Trump administration has said that both Ukraine and NATO leaders will be a part of negotiations to end the war.

Weekend storms » Floodwaters and falling trees killed at least 13 people through the weekend and into Monday across several states, including 11 deaths in Kentucky. Gov. Andy Beshear:

BESHEAR:  We are still in the search and rescue phase of this emergency. We are still, we still have multiple different missions that are underway. There are still people that are in harm's way.

A storm dropped 8 inches of rain in parts of the state, and knocked out power to more than 120-thousand homes.

And in Tennessee, emergency crews carried out more than 1000 high water rescues amid historic flooding.

Severe winter weather » And many states are now bracing for — or are already enduring — what authorities have described as life-threatening cold. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott:

ABBOTT:  There will be widespread freezing across almost the entire state of Texas. … And even temperatures down to near zero degrees with wind chill factors being below zero degrees.

Bitter cold is blasting the nation’s midsection as a polar vortex grips the Rockies and northern Plains. Forecasters warned that blizzard-like conditions could develop by Wednesday through Friday.

Legal battle over fired special counsel » The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to wade into a legal fight over a fired government watchdog. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN:  The Trump administration recently fired Hampton Dellinger … as head of the Office of Special Counsel of Federal Investigative Agency. That agency is tasked with investigating any alleged unfair treatment of government employees.

The administration gave no reason for his termination, but Dellinger was a Biden nominee, confirmed by a majority-Democrat Senate last year … for a five-year term.

Dellinger sued, saying his firing without a stated cause … was against the law.

The Justice Department says President Trump has the power to manage the executive branch.

The Office of Special Counsel is different than the attorneys that were named to lead investigations of President Trump and former President Biden.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

DOGE debate, court challenge » A federal judge is expected to rule today on whether to block the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing federal data to make spending cuts at government agencies. Fourteen Democratic-led states have sued.

But in a rare holiday hearing on Monday, the Obama appointed Judge Tanya Chutkan but did express skepticism about the argument that DOGE poses imminent harm.

DOGE has sparked a legal and political battle in Washington. GOP Congressman Mike Haridopolos:

HARIDOPOLIS: I  really applaud the president for creating the DOGE and using a mastermind like Elon Musk who understands computers and technology to root out this corruption.

But Democrats charge that DOGE itself is corrupt and illegal.

Delta crash landing » A terrifying incident at Toronto’s Pearson Airport on Monday. A Delta Airlines plane flipped upside down after landing, injuring 17 people.

Sound from air traffic control captured the scene:

SOUND Air traffic control): Yeah, we’ve got—the aircraft [SIC] upside down and burning.

Fire crews quickly extinguished the flames.

All 80 passengers and crew are accounted for, and as of last night, there were no deaths reported in the incident.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: recent talks between the US and Russia have intensified interest in finding a way to end the war in Ukraine.

Plus, caring for God’s creation as pet owners.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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