Wednesday morning news: September 27, 2023

Trump ruling » A judge ruled Tuesday that Donald Trump and his family business committed fraud by deceiving banks, insurers, and others.

Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that the Trump Organization is liable for overvaluing assets on paperwork used in business deals.

Democratic state Attorney General Letitia James filed the civil suit last September. She wants Trump’s company to pay $250 million dollars in penalties. The judge has yet to rule on that.

Trump’s lawyers say they will appeal the ruling.

SOUND: [Picket line]

Biden in Detroit » President Biden joined autoworkers on a picket line outside General Motors plant near Detroit Tuesday.

Biden wore a ballcap emblazoned with the United Auto Workers union logo and grabbed a bullhorn, telling picketers that U.S. carmakers are doing “extremely well.”

BIDEN: You should be doing incredibly well too. [Applause]

He told striking workers to “stick with it” until they get the pay raises and other benefits the union is demanding.

The White House and Biden’s reelection campaign say the visit is further proof that Biden is the most pro-union president of our time.

Former President Donald Trump is slated to speak to a crowd of union members today in suburban Detroit.

Debate preview » Trump flew to Michigan as his Republican rivals flew to California for tonight’s second presidential debate, which Trump is once again skipping. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN: At the Reagan Library in Simi Valley seven lecterns await the candidates who qualified to take the stage tonight.

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson did not make the cut this time around.

Former governor and ambassador Nikki Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy will look to build on their performances in the first debate. Both have since enjoyed a bounce in the polls … now 3rd and 4th place, respectively, with just over 5% support.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will be the only participant now polling in the double-digits. Trump still has a commanding lead.

The debate will air on the Fox Business network and stream online at 9 p.m. Eastern.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

DEA fentanyl » Attorney General Merrick Garland says the Justice Department will never stop working to hunt down and prosecute anyone who brings fentanyl into the country.

He spoke to the families of fentanyl overdose victims at the headquarters of the DEA in Arlington.

GARLAND: We will remember them and we will remember all of the victims of the poisoning and overdose epidemic. We will never give up our efforts to pursue justice for them and for you.

Authorities say the drug killed more than 110,000 Americans last year.

Garland promised hundreds of millions of dollars of funding to fight the fentanyl crisis.

U.S. sues Amazon » The U.S. government and 17 states are suing the biggest online marketplace in the world in a landmark monopoly case.

The suit accuses e-commerce king Amazon.com of illegally throttling smaller competitors.

Connecticut Attorney Gen. William Tong says the company effectively chooses whom we buy from and that sellers pay massive fees.

TONG: They pay effectively an Amazon tax, and these fees are passed on to all of us. And the sellers that don’t play by the rules, they get punished by Amazon.

The suit also accuses Amazon of burying lower-price listings from other sites and favoring its own brands over alternatives.

But Amazon says the plaintiffs are “wrong on the facts and the law” and that if the suit is successful, it would mean higher prices and fewer options for consumers.

Missouri pro-life ballot rejected » A Missouri judge has rejected a pro-life description of a measure legalizing abortion on the state’s 2024 ballot. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher reports.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: Cole County Judge Jon Beetem sided with the Missouri ACLU and allowed the group's pro-abortion wording to remain on the ballot.

The bill would legalize and protect abortions under the State's constitution.

But on the ballot, it will be described as “the right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion …”

The judge rejected Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s proposed revised wording. It would have asked voters whether they want to approve “dangerous and unregulated abortions until live birth.” Ashcroft is appealing the ruling.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: A trip to Iowa on Washington Wednesday. Plus, helping delinquent youths in small town America.

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