1 Trump’s Impeachment Trial Day Arrives
The day President Trump has said is three years in the making has arrived as opening arguments in his Senate impeachment trial take place. And yes, Senators will have the chance to vote to call witnesses. That said, don’t expect a cavalcade of witnesses or an extended trial. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellhas released his proposed rules for the trial. Under the rules, a vote on whether to subpoena witnesses or documents would come after days of arguments from each side and periods for questions and debates. As you might imagine, Democrats are fuming - saying that by McConnell's plan, evidence will be offered in the dead of night. If witnesses are called, they’ll first have to be deposed before senators vote on which witnesses will testify in the impeachment trial. Of course, Democrats want Trump administration officials to testify on what they know of the Ukraine scandal, but only a few Republican members seem open to that idea.
2 Rockets Fired Into Baghdad's Green Zone
Iraqi police say several Russian-made rockets hit Baghdad's Green Zone today, but fortunately, no casualties were reported. Two of the rockets came down near the U.S. embassy. As you might know, the so-called “Green Zone” is a heavily fortified area in central Baghdad, which is home to a number of government buildings and foreign missions. It's unclear who fired the rockets and there were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attack. Protests are also continues surged in Baghdad with at least three people killed and dozens more injured during demonstrations. Officials say that 14 Iraqi police officers were among the wounded. This, as the United States is refusing the government’s request to leave.
3 Deadly Virus Being "Imported" From China
An outbreak of a deadly virus that’s prompted screenings at some U.S. airports is now spreading in China. Chinese officials have confirmed dozens of new cases of the coronavirus in more cities including Shanghai and Beijing. South Korea also reported its first case with additional patients in Thailand and Japan confirmed. Officials everywhere are very concerned – and the CDC has begun screening all passengers arriving in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles from Wuhan, China last week for signs of the illness. Federal health officials say the virus belongs to the same family of coronaviruses as SARS. For those who don’t recall, SARS killed about 800 people during a global outbreak nearly two decades ago. In this case, nearly 200 people in China and cases have been confirmed so far. The World Health Organization is planning to convene tomorrow to see if it can issue any recommendations about how the disease should be managed. They also want to determine if the outbreak constitutes an international health emergency. Symptoms of coronavirus are fever, cough and difficulty breathing.