Wednesday morning news: January 10, 2024

Debate preview » Tonight’s presidential debate in Iowa, now just hours away, will be the first head-to-head matchup. The only two Republicans on the stage will be Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former ambassador Nikki Haley.

Foreign policy is expected to factor strongly in this debate including the issue of sending more aid to Ukraine.

HALEY: Russia said once they take Ukraine, Poland and the Baltics are next. Those are NATO countries. That puts America at war. This is about preventing war.

Haley heard there at a campaign event this week in Iowa.

CNN will host the debate at 9p.m. Eastern from the campus of Drake University.

Donald Trump will also be in Des Moines tonight, but not at the debate. Instead, he’ll hold a separate town hall event hosted by Fox News.

Trump immunity » On Tuesday, Trump was in a Washington courtroom where his lawyers did not appear to have much luck in persuading federal appeals court judges that he was immune from prosecution. As Trump looked on, attorney John Sauer argued:

SAUER: If a president has to look over his shoulder—or her shoulder—every time he has to make a controversial decision — or after I leave office, am I going to jail for this when my political opponents take power — that inevitably dampens the ability of the president.

The hearing was related to a case accusing Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election.

Assistant special counsel James Pearce argued:

PEARCE: Never in our nation’s history until this case has a president claimed that immunity from criminal prosecution extends beyond his time in office. The president has a unique constitutional role, but he is not above the law.

The panel of three judges, two of whom were appointed by President Biden, also questioned whether they had jurisdiction to consider the appeal at this point in the case.

That raised the prospect that Trump's appeal could be dispensed with on more procedural grounds.

TONY BLINKEN: Good evening.

Blinken in Israel » Secretary of State Tony Blinken addressed reporters in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

BLINKEN: This is my fourth trip to Israel since the horrific Hamas attacks of October 7th.

The stop was part of a larger tour through the Middle East. Blinken said the regional leaders he’s talked to in recent days say they want to see a lasting peace in and around Israel, but that a pathway to a Palestinian state is a must.

The secretary also denounced South Africa’s push to charge Israel with genocide against the Palestinian people. He called that accusation “meritless.”

BLINKEN: It’s particularly galling considering that those who are attacking Israel —Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, as well as their supporter, Iran — continue to openly call for the annihilation of Israel and mass murder of Jews.

Pentagon Israel » But Blinken also stressed that Washington continues to urge Israel to take every possible step to minimize harm to civilians in Gaza.

And at the Pentagon, Defense Department Press Secretary Pat Ryder said the U.S. supports Israel’s right to defend itself.

RYDER: But again, we will continue to actively discuss and to expect that they conduct those operations in accordance with international laws of armed conflict and international humanitarian law.

U.S. officials say Hamas could have prevented a war in Gaza from ever taking place by not using civilians as human shields.

White House/Austin latest » Ryder also said the Pentagon is now conducting an internal review of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s failure to notify the White House or Congress of his recent hospitalization for several days.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the White House that President Biden was kept in the dark.

KIRBY: He was not informed until last Friday that Secretary Austin was in the hospital. He was not informed until this morning that the root cause of that hospitalization was prostate cancer.

Kirby said the handling of the situation was “not optimal.” But he noted that the Pentagon is taking steps to ensure it doesn’t happen again, and wished Austin well in his recovery.

The defense secretary has reportedly resumed his duties from a private hospital room.

Menendez response » Embattled Democratic Senator Bob Menendez delivered a defiant speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday, framing himself as a victim and calling his prosecution a persecution.

MENENDEZ: The sensationalized allegations are now creating a rising call for my resignation, despite my innocence and before even a single piece of evidence has been introduced in a court of law.

The New Jersey lawmaker faces a slate of felony corruption charges. He tearfully denied the most recent accusations that he took bribes from the government of Qatar.

He already stood accused of working as an unregistered foreign agent for the government of Egypt.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: Getting ready for the Iowa caucuses on Washington Wednesday. Plus, World Tour.

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