Senate Returns, Impeachment of Texas AG, Antiterrorism Case in Canada
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The senate returns to washington .

today on its long to do this disaster aid for states struck by.

I can't imagine .

congress .

say we're not to help .

and there's another battle over .

government in astronomy. This is a first from P. R. news. An impeachment trial begins today in texas. After years of investigations can packed in faces the texas senate.

we have a duty and an obligation to protect the citizens of texas from elected officials that abuse their office and their power for personal game.

Will his party spare him? And jury .

selection begins in canada today for a trial that's expected to test the country's anti terrorism laws. The killing of a muslim family gripped the country, and the trial may as well. So stay with us. We've got a brief news round up to start your day.

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The senate returns to washington today after a monthlong August recess.

There's a lot on the agenda. First step is a fight over government funding that could turn into a potential shutdown. Yes, feels like we've been here before. And the senate top republican, which mechano faces questions after another episode when he throws at a public event.

npr congressional correspondent, dear, dear, walls joins us now. Good morning.

Good morning. Can congress .

avoid a shutdown? You know.

once again, they're going to be racing the clock. Federal agencies run out of cash on september thirty eighth, and the house and senate haven't agreed on any of the twelve annual spending bills. The problem is that two chAmbers aren't even working off of the same math how speaker Kevin mcArthur, president by and negotiated a debt ceiling deal in may that set overall government spending levels.

But a group of house conservatives who didn't like that deal forced the speaker to craft bills at a lower level. The senate is sticking to the deal. So essentially the two are on a collision course.

There's brought agreement that congress needs to pass a short term bill to avoid a shutdown. They're working on what's called the continuing resolution, or C, R, to keep agencies funded at the current levels through this fall. But even that C R is going to be a fight. Some far right conservatives have issued demands about attaching items, things like a paris and border security bill. So they're still party far apart.

okay? And besides avoiding a ut down, what else is on the agenda?

Disaster ate in money for ukraine are the two big things. The by administration wants congress to pass. This fall, the White houses asked for about sixteen billion dollars in emergency aid to respond to the recent disaster needs coming out of mali after the fires and the floods and the hurricanes that hit several states this summer. The other big ask is about twenty billion dollars for ukraine, even though others bipartisan support for continuing aid for ukraine on the hill, some conservative still don't want to approve any money.

Let's talk about top senate republic c in mch meconic. L, he froze up, struggled to speak for about thirty seconds at a precedent. Ent, uh, this the second time that happened in two months. How is he doing?

Mean, that's the big question. The capital physician has cleared my condo to work. But this latest episode de, combined with the other one you mentioned, we're just really daring and there's still a lot of questions. In march, macao fell and suffered a concussion, and the capital physician said light headiness was a symptom of recovering from that concussion. So far, some republican colleagues have supported the eighty one year old senator, but there's can be so much attention on his appearance on the floor later today and in his weekly press conference tomorrow.

the house returns next week, and speaker Kevin mccarthy is signal an impeachment inquiry is moving ahead. So what basis is there of possible high crimes? Are mister miners by the present houses?

Republicans haven't presented one yet. They haven't uncovered any evidence of wrong doing by president biden. Some are alleging corruption were related to his son, hungary's business deals during the time biden was vice president, but they haven't shown that the president himself received any financial benefit.

My carty's coming under increasing pressure from conservatives, especially after the new indictments of former president trump over the summer. But there is a split. Some republican moderator do not want to move ahead without concrete events, and a carthy did say to a conservative outlet, he won't start impeachment with out of vote. It's unclear what he has those votes right now.

And P. R, dear jo, thank you.

Thank you.

In texas today, the impeachment trial of suspended attorney general kn. Paxton begins in the state senate.

Paxton faces twenty charges, including obstruction of justice, conspiracy, abuse of office and bribery, mostly surrounding his release 大 ship with an Austin real estate developer and packs in campaign or so。

What can we expect today? Let's go to cereal Martina's beltron, political reporter for the texas news room. He's been following the story very closely. Good morning. See you.

Good morning.

No twenty charges are. wow. What is he accused of doing?

I am. That is pretty long. Uh, paxton has been accused of using his office to protect and show the political donor from an FBI investigation. Uh, this man is named any paul. He is someone who was recently indeed on aid felony counts of making false statements to margate lenders and other financial institutions, and person allegedly asked his staff staff to help pull and even kill the federal investigation.

So all of this has LED to pack, to be impeached on seven counts of disregarding his official duties, three counts of making false statements in official records, two counts each of constitutional river and obstructions of justice. He's also been accused of my supplying and me preparation public resources, conspiracy or attempted spiracle the region of duty on fitness for office. And i've using the public trust.

That's a math. okay. So we're going to hear opening arguments today. The first witnesses will take the stand who is testifying.

so we are expecting to hear from those former employees who warned pakistan to stay away from the ball and who ultimately reported pakia to the FBI. They said there was criminal behavior happening within the office of the attorney general. This whistle blowers were either fired or pushed by paxton shortly after, and they are very credible witnesses.

They know because when they are career lung public servants, but also because pakistan, despised by democrats on those on the left. But the whistle blowers are all conservative republicans, and some were even recruit by paston. Personally, we are also expecting to hear from one of factions, closest aides, who overheard a conversation that house investigators say show paul was paying for pakistan's home renovations they said is already being considered a star witness.

And and what is paxton defense for this?

Well, he wasn't. He rally over the weekend in calling county h. That's a place for payton rose to prominence, but he couldn't say much because there's haaga order in place. But in the past, he has denied any allegations of wrongdoing and has gone after the republicans. Aker of that takes us house for moving forward with the impeachment proceedings in that chAmber.

In term of legal defense, one of the mean arguments used by his team is a vg rule they call the prior term doctrine pretty much thr saying that pakia cannot be impeached for actions committed prior to his most recent election. So twenty twenty two, a lot of these allegations stem from actions that happened from twenty nine to twenty twenty. So under that idea, claiming nineteen out of twenty articles of impeachment should be dismissed.

Now the texas constitution does say that a person cannot be impressed for actions committed before the election to office, but it's not as explicit as paxson steam is making IT sound. IT doesn't say most recent election. So that argument is something that look at government or that patric, who serves as a presiding officer of the court of impeachment, and the senators will have .

to consider how long is trial gonna.

So we're expecting you will take a few weeks at what we know right now is that each side will have twenty five hours to make their case that IT is not including cross examination. So sources tellis, it'll take three to four weeks. okay?

We will be following. So here, Martinez ultron in Austin, texas. Thanks so much. You come.

Jury selection begins today in canada in a case that will test the country's anti terrorism laws.

Yeah, anthonio vault man is accused of killing three generations of the official family. They were walking in london, ontario, two years ago when a pickup truck jumped to curb and moved the family down. Prosecutors say they were targeted because of their muslim faith.

Genuine masa is a freeLance journalist based in canada, and SHE joins us now. Good morning.

Hi morning. So three .

generations of a family killed. I'm looking at a beautiful photo. Of them are now they're dressed in pastel colors. Who were they all?

Daniel, this was a family that was out for a walk. I was the height of code. And and you have to remember that ontario had some of the strictest locked down laws.

Uh, during the pandemic, walking outside is pretty much the only thing you could do a, as you said, a pick up truck jumping the curb while they were at an intersection. Those who were killed were a mother and father. They are fifteen year old daughter.

And the mother of the most, notably a nine year old boy, was the only survivor. He was left orphant. His parents, his sister and his grandmother killed.

So this was, you know, an incredibly heinous crime that shook the community two summers ago. And in the following days, police were quick to call this a hate motivated attack that the family was targeted because of their faith. You know, in that photo, the mother wearing a his job, a headscarf. They were originally from pakistan, visibly muslim, visible minorities. So, you know, this was incredibly troubling to the community and Sparked a conversation about a islamophobia and about anti o some hate in canada, because this isn't the first attack of its kind four years before six men killed in the london mosque when a man opened fire.

And what do we know about the defendant?

So the accused of annual feltman, he was twenty years old at the time of his arrest. He's facing for murder charges in one attempted murder charges, but he is also facing terrorism related charges. We know that he was arrested willingly in a mall parking lot about four and a half miles from the scene.

He was wearing a military style. How met when police took him in and the door DRAM truck was found with extensive damage to its front and and smoke coming out of the engine. Now we don't know what valpy said to police when he was taken into custody. We don't know if he had admitted to killing the family because of their faith that information remains under a publication ban, but partially and seal documents do reveal that he may have access the dark we B2Consume Whi tey pre mises and hat e rel ated mat erial onl ine. So no doubt that we will learn more about the possible motives as this trial and fold over the next twelve weeks.

And then what significance does this case have nationally in canada?

So this is the first time that a jury in canada is considering terrorism charges. There were two other cases where they were applied by the accused had guilty, so they never went to trial, those cases being a hammer attack in twenty twenty that left a woman dead. The accused, or confessing he was motivated by ISIS.

The other was the murder of a woman and a missa's parler. But that one was related to the insects l movement massaging isc anti women movement in seller short for involuntary celibate. But what's interesting is where the cases, uh, where terrorists weren't applied, notably that quebec mos killing that I mentioned as well, in twenty twenty and men stabbed outside the tron to mosque, no terrorist charges there.

And in another in cell case of van attack in the tantor's a that killed eleven people h. So IT raises questions about the uneven application of this law when IT should be applied and when IT isn't. But it's worth noting that IT doesn't necessarily result in harsh ire. Charges are different sentencing, because first degree murder Carries A A life sentence with no possibility of perl is really just about the message that IT stands about who's a terrorist and .

who is in the mass of freeze ance journalist in canada. Thank you. Thank you. And that's up first for tuesday, september fifth. I'm Daniel estrin .

and for today's episode of up first was edited by Christiana of calamo lisbor er allies Whiter and Peter grannett IT was produced by shelba hawkins chat cambell and the at butch we get engineering support from carly strange, and our technical director is Josephine the oni. Join us again tomorrow.

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