Morning Headlines - Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022

U.S. and World Headlines

Former President Donald Trump Announces A White House Bid For 2024

Former President Donald Trump, aiming to become only the second commander-in-chief ever elected to two nonconsecutive terms, announced Tuesday night that he will seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.

“In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States,” Trump told a crowd gathered at Mar-a-Lago, his waterfront estate in Florida, where his campaign will be headquartered.

Surrounded by allies, advisers, and conservative influencers, Trump delivered a relatively subdued speech, rife with spurious and exaggerated claims about his four years in office. To evoke nostalgia for his time in office among Republicans who have shown signs of Trump fatigue following the midterms, he frequently contrasted his first-term accomplishments with the Biden administration’s policies and the current economic climate. Many of those perceived accomplishments – from strict immigration actions to corporate tax cuts and religious freedom initiatives – remain deeply polarizing to this day.

FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried Collapse Compared To Enron, Madoff

The collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX amid reports that at least $1 billion in client funds disappeared, impacting potentially around a million customers, has prompted comparisons to some of the most notorious financial scandals in recent decades, yet the magnitude of customers impacted is much larger.

FTX, which at its peak was the third-largest cryptocurrency exchange, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections on Friday, and the company confirmed over the weekend that millions of dollars worth of assets are unaccounted for.

The company's founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, faces allegations that he secretly transferred $10 billion from FTX to Alameda Research, his hedge fund that also filed for bankruptcy. The company is facing a criminal probe in the Bahamas, and on Tuesday, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, called on Bankman-Fried to appear before his panel.

McCarthy Wins GOP Vote For Speakership Handily Over Right-Wing Challenge

House Republicans nominated Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) to be Speaker in a closed-door conference meeting on Tuesday after he faced a last-minute protest challenge from Rep. Andy Biggs (Ariz.), a former chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

McCarthy won easily, 188 to 31, in the internal conference meeting. But in the eyes of Biggs and his supporters, the goal was merely to demonstrate that McCarthy lacks the support to seize the gavel when the full House meets to choose the Speaker early next year.

The 31 votes opposing McCarthy easily met that threshold, raising immediate questions about how McCarthy — who had failed to ascend to Speaker in 2015 — will make up the difference between now and then. 

The secret-ballot House Republican Conference vote is just the first step for McCarthy to take hold of the gavel. He must win a majority in a public vote on the House floor — at least 218 votes, assuming a fully sworn-in House — on the first day of the next Congress on Jan. 3.

Biden Convenes Emergency Meeting Of World Leaders After Missile Crosses Into Poland

President Joe Biden convened an emergency meeting of world leaders on the explosion in Eastern Poland that resulted in the deaths of two Polish citizens, the result of a missile that crossed into Poland on Tuesday. Afterward, he told reporters that it was "unlikely" that the missile had been fired from Russia, based on its trajectory.

But the president added that the investigation is ongoing, and "we'll see." He said of the escalation in missile attacks by Russia in Ukraine that it's "totally unconscionable what they're doing" and noted that the "scores and scores" of missile attacks in Western Ukraine were taking place as the world was coming together at the G20 summit to urge deescalation.

The Polish foreign ministry said earlier the missile, which landed in the Polish village of Przewodów, near the border with Ukraine, was Russian-made, but President Andrzej Duda was more cautious about the origin of the missile. Duda said that officials did not know for sure who fired it or where it was made. He said it was "most probably" Russian-made but that is being still verified.

Marijuana Smokers Are More Likely To Develop Lung Disease Than Cigarette Users, Shock Study Finds

Marijuana smokers are slightly more likely to develop lung disease than cigarette users, a shock study suggests.

Researchers looked at roughly 150 adults in Canada who were about 50 years old on average and were either pot users, tobacco smokers or non-smokers.

Three-quarters of marijuana users had emphysema - a lung disease which leaves sufferers struggling to breathe - compared to two-thirds of tobacco users.

Just one in 20 non-smokers suffered from the condition, which kills more than 120,000 Americans each year.

Study author Dr Giselle Revah, a cardiothoracic radiologist and assistant professor at the University of Ottawa, said she was surprised by the results.

She said the findings suggest 'marijuana has additional synergistic effects on the lungs above tobacco'.

The researchers said tobacco cigarettes are usually filtered, whereas marijuana is smoked unfiltered, meaning that more irritants reach the airways.

Wisconsin Headlines

Farrow Won’t Seek Reelection As State GOP Chair

State GOP Chair Paul Farrow won’t seek a full two-year term at the party’s Executive Committee meeting next month, telling WisPolitics.com he is focusing on his spring reelection bid as Waukesha County exec.

Farrow said he informed the Executive Committee in August that he didn’t plan to seek a two-year term. Several people had asked him since to reconsider. But Farrow said he couldn’t commit the time needed to the chair’s role while running for reelection.

Farrow, a former state lawmaker, won the county exec’s office in 2015 and was unopposed in his 2019 reelection bid.

“A lot of my energy and focus the next four months will focus on that, and it will hinder our preparation for the spring election cycle,” Farrow said.

The party constitution requires the selection of officers within 45 days of the November elections in even-numbered years, and the Executive Committee is scheduled to meet Dec. 10.

Attorney General Josh Kaul Announces $3.1 Billion Agreement With Walmart Over Opioid Epidemic Allegations

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul today announced that the executive coalition of states, attorneys representing local governments, and Walmart have reached an agreement to resolve allegations that Walmart contributed to the opioid addiction crisis by failing to appropriately oversee the dispensing of opioids at its stores. The agreement will provide more than $3 billion nationally and will require significant improvements in how Walmart's pharmacies handle opioids. The agreement is now being sent to other states for review and approval.

“This agreement will support efforts to fight substance use disorder and require Walmart’s pharmacies to make changes that will help prevent this from ever happening again,” said Attorney General Kaul. “We will continue working to obtain recoveries from companies whose actions allegedly contributed to the opioid epidemic.”

  The agreement will include:

• $3.1 billion to be divided by states that sign on, local governments, and tribes, which must be used to provide treatment and recovery services to people struggling with opioid use disorder.
• Broad, court-ordered requirements, including robust oversight to prevent fraudulent prescriptions and flag suspicious prescriptions.

Darrell Brooks Sentencing, Shooting Threat Interrupts Courtroom

The sentencing for Darrell Brooks, the man convicted in the Waukesha Parade attack, began Tuesday until a threat of a mass shooting halted proceedings, the sheriff's department says.

More than 40 people delivered verbal victim impact statements in-person to the court on Tuesday. Around half a dozen of those were children under the age of 18. They were not shown on camera per court order.

The victims and family members speaking were organized into four groups. The state had just gotten through the first group when the court suddenly took a recess. The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department later said they received a phone call from an unknown person who threatened a mass shooting inside the courthouse on Tuesday.

Sheriff's officials tell TMJ4 News they don't believe it to be a swatting incident and are investigating. Judge Jennifer Dorow said they resumed sentencing after the sheriff assured her "that the building is quite safe," and that he had taken "all reasonable measures to secure the courthouse."

What Trump’s Announcement Means For Wisconsin

Former President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will mount a third White House campaign, launching an early start to the 2024 contest.

“In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States,” said Trump. “I am running because I believe the world has not yet seen the true glory of what this nation can be.”

Longtime Republican strategist Brian Schimming weighed in on what a third presidential race from Trump could mean for Wisconsin.

“For anybody who runs, they run if they think they can win, and if the polling shows there’s support out there, still in the polling, you see he’s very competitive with Joe Biden, especially in Wisconsin,” said Schimming.

Schimming says he does not see the move dividing the Republican party headed into the 2024 Presidential Election but does anticipate Wisconsin to be another battleground state for the race.

3 People, 56 Dogs OK After Plane Goes Down In Wisconsin

Three adults and dozens of dogs on board a twin-engine plane are OK after an emergency landing on a golf course in southeastern Wisconsin on Tuesday, according to sheriff’s officials.

The people on the plane that went down on the back green of the Western Lakes Golf Club in the Waukesha County community of Pewaukee had injuries that were not life threatening, according to Lake Country Fire and Rescue Assistant Chief Matthew Haerter.

Fifty-six dogs were being transported from New Orleans, Louisiana to shelters in Wisconsin. Humane society employees were waiting for their arrival on the Waukesha airport and went to the golf course to retrieve the animals. Authorities say the dogs were not seriously injured.