Tuesday morning news: October 23, 2018

President Trump vows to cut aid to Central » President Trump renewed his promise Monday to cut aid to several countries  that failed to stop the growing caravan of Central American migrants traveling toward the United States.

In a series of tweets, the president blasted Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador and said the U.S. would “begin cutting off, or substantially reducing” their aid packages.

Meantime, the group of roughly 7,000 keeps pushing north through Mexico…

AUDIO: [Sound of caravan]

Most plan to apply for legal asylum in the U.S., as similar caravans of migrants have done in the past. But with more than a thousand miles to go before they reach the U.S. border, some say they underestimated how difficult the journey would be.

HERNANDEZ: Well, they’re learning. They’re learning right now because people start getting sick, and you know, when you walk, your legs hurt a lot. 

Nixon Hernandez is traveling with the caravan…

HERNANDEZ: We have to find a way to get through. I mean I know this is not going to be easy. 

President Trump continues to vow the caravan will not cross the border calling the situation a national emergency. He said he has “alerted Border Patrol and Military.”

The president also claimed once more that the caravan included criminals and, quote— “unknown Middle Easterners,” but did not provide evidence or explain further who they might be.

President Trump “not satisfied” with Saudi account of Jamal Khashoggi’s death » Also on Monday, President Trump said he’s not convinced by Saudi Arabia’s explanation for journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s death.

As he prepared to board a flight for a campaign rally, the president said he’s expecting reports from U.S. intelligence personnel in Turkey.  

TRUMP: And I will know very soon. And I am not satisfied with what I’ve heard.

The Saudi government now says a fistfight led to Khashoggi’s death inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. But pressure is mounting on the royal family as many world leaders aren’t buying it.

New surveillance video may show efforts to cover up the murder. The video appears to show a body double, apparently wearing Jamal Khashoggi’s clothes, walking out of the consulate just hours after Khashoggi was killed inside.

Turkish investigators believe it was a ruse to bolster the Saudi’s original claim that Khashoggi left the consulate alive.

Trump transgender definition » The White House is reportedly pushing to establish a legal definition of sex based on biology, and not gender identity. WORLD Radio’s Sarah Schweinsberg has more.

SARAH SCHWEINSBERG, REPORTER: A New York Times report this week cites a memo from the Trump administration that attempts to define “sex” biologically, under Title IX of the Civil Rights Act. That sparked a firestorm of angry responses from LGBT activists.

The Obama administration directed federal agencies to interpret “sex” to include a person’s preferred gender identity. That forced public schools and other federally funded institutions to let people choose which same-sex restrooms and locker rooms they wanted to use.

According to the report, the Trump administration’s memo argues for a uniform definition—quote—“on a biological basis that is clear, grounded in science, objective, and administrable.” That reportedly means defining sex as it’s listed on a person’s birth certificate.

Reporting for WORLD Radio, I’m Sarah Schweinsberg.

Hurricane Willa bearing down on Mexico’s Pacific coast » Hurricane Willa is bearing down on Mexico’s Pacific coast. It’ll make landfall today as a major hurricane—category 3 or stronger.

Daniel Brown with the U.S. National Hurricane Center says that means winds in excess of 110 miles per hour. But that’s not all it means.

BROWN: We are expecting an extremely dangerous storm surge, as well as the potential for flooding rainfall. These areas are very mountainous where it will be making landfall, and that can cause flash flooding and landslides. 

Willa will roar into a 140-mile stretch of coastline extending from the resort town of Mazatlan to San Blas. It’s expected to continue tracking to the northeast weakening to a tropical depression over the next couple of days as it pushes toward Texas.

Eugene Peterson dies » Pastor Eugene H. Peterson died Monday. He was 85. Peterson wrote 35 books, including a best-selling contemporary paraphrase of the Bible called The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language.

Peterson founded Christ Our King Presbyterian Church in Bel Air, Maryland, in 1962 where he served as pastor for nearly 30 years.

He later taught at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Despite the popularity of his many books, Peterson asked to be “remembered as a good husband, a good father,” and “a good pastor.”

World Series starts tonight » The World Series starts this evening with the Boston Red Sox hosting the LA Dodgers at historic Fenway Park.

The Dodgers lost to the Houston Astros in last year’s World Series in seven games.

They fought their way back to the Fall Classic this year despite posting a losing record through the first third of the season. Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts:

ROBERTS: So proud of our guys for enduring this, you know, roller coaster of a season. 

The last time the Dodgers won the World Series was 1988. The Red Sox have won it three times since 2004, most recently in 2013.

It’s been 102 years since these two franchises last met in the World Series.

Chris Sale will be on the mound for Boston in game-1. The Dodgers will send Clayton Kershaw to the hill. First pitch coming up a bit after 8 p.m. Eastern tonight.

I’m Kent Covington. Straight ahead: a look at Hurricane Michael recovery efforts. Plus, Cal Thomas on solving the nation’s debt crisis. This is The World and Everything in It.

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) President Donald Trump stops to talk to the media before walking across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Monday, Oct. 22, 2018.

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