Wednesday, September 23 | By Joshua Feldstein and Claire Leibowitz
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It’s Wednesday, and the show goes on at the United Nations General Assembly.
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- Pezeshkian addresses UNGA
- Missouri maps return to Supreme Court
- Miller's attorney targets Poindexter
- GOP senators demand Taiwan security assistance
Programming note: We're Joshua Feldstein and Abigail Walker, filling in for Cate today. Please send us your tips, comments and story ideas to jfeldstein@thehill.com and awalker@thehill.com.
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US walks out as Pezeshkian fires back at Trump: |
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered a scathing speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday morning.
"Yesterday, the United States President described us as terrorists. We have been the victims of terrorism. I come from an Iran in which our esteemed Supreme Leader was assassinated without any legal framework or reason," Pezeshkian said.
The Iranian leader also addressed the U.S. missile strike on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school in February, which killed 175 people.
"Those who are terrorists and train and protect terrorists describe us as such," he added.
The American delegation then left the room, as Pezeshkian criticized the U.S. and Israel for their actions in the Gaza Strip and for their continued attacks against his country.
He told the body to listen to President Trump’s own words on Tuesday, when he threatened to “annihilate” Iran.
Pezeshkian said, “Everything uttered about our country goes against the very essence and charter and the spirit of the United Nations.”
“Iran must be understood by Mr. Trump and those who seek to bully us that we are ready for dialogue and diplomacy and negotiations without accepting the language of force,” he added.
But Pezeshkian said Iran would never “bow our head” and give up its nuclear program.
“We say it clearly: No nuclear weapons and no limitations to peaceful nuclear technology,” he said.
How are those talks going? Special Envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday said that he and other U.S. officials "engaged in lengthy talks with the Iranian delegation through the mediators." He added his hopes that the conversations would lead to "constructive and promising" outcomes.
Ahead of the talks, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News, “Whether something productive will come out of it, it’s harder to tell because the ultimate decisionmaker in Iran is the supreme leader, and the supreme leader is a radical Shia cleric."
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Just when you thought Missouri's map fight was over: |
The contentious battle over Missouri's congressional map has returned to the Supreme Court for the third time as the GOP attempts to execute its redistricting plan only 41 days before the midterm elections.
The court has ruled against Republicans twice already, directing Missouri to adhere to its existing boundaries.
But a Monday decision from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found it unconstitutional to reinstate the older map, given that primaries were conducted using the newer version.
The latest ruling goes into effect next week — unless the Supreme Court intervenes.
“This Court’s stays are not invitations for a lower court to repackage the same relief and try again,” wrote attorneys from a referendum organizer fighting the GOP.
“The result is chaos on both sides of Election Day: confusion over how to conduct the election now, and uncertainty over the rules governing its results,” they also added.
💬 Follow today’s live blog
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The Department of Justice (DOJ) laid out its legal case defending President Trump's decision to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico press from the White House.
According to The Hill's Finya Swai, the DOJ argued in filings submitted to the U.S. District Court in D.C. on Tuesday night that Trump had the lawful ability to remove the three outlets from the White House, citing national security concerns.
DOJ senior counsel Michael Velchik wrote on the matter that, "After all, access to the White House is a privilege — not a right."
Pressing the press ban: Trump has said he expects Judge Timothy Kelly to decide against him — consistent with predictions from legal experts, who say the media outlets have a strong constitutional case for access.
A court hearing on the ban is set to take place Wednesday afternoon on the press ban, but Trump has declined to say whether he would follow Kelly's decision if he ruled against the ban.
"I think we have a right to clean out fake news," Trump said Tuesday during a bilateral meeting at the U.N. General Assembly with U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham. "And by the way, they said they weren't going to be here [the UNGA], but they came here. I knew that would happen."
CNN, MS NOW and Politico filed their lawsuit against the Trump administration on First Amendment grounds. The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld and Sophie Brams, writing in today’s The Gavel newsletter, say court watchers shouldn’t overlook the Fifth Amendment in the case.
The outlets will have until 5 p.m. Friday to challenge the decision before it becomes final, according to the DOJ filing.
🔎 Read more on the press ban ahead of Wednesday's court deci
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Max Miller didn't want this ad to hit the airwaves: |
GOP Rep. Max Miller's (Ohio) attorney, Alejandro Brito, reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to executives from WKYC-TV in Cleveland last week for airing an ad from Democrat Brian Poindexter (Ohio) attacking the Republican lawmaker.
Brito noted that the ad included "false and defamatory" statements on Miller's alleged abuse of his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, according to The Hill's Max Rego.
TV stations were not cowed: WKYC-TV and three other Cleveland news stations still aired the political ad on Tuesday, according to a Politico report.
Poindexter shared the ad on X. It shows a local sheriff talking about Moreno's alleged restraining order against Miller and details other abuse allegations.
Poindexter said in a video on the social platform X that "Max Miller used his money and fancy lawyers to get himself out of his trouble his whole life," and ripped up Brito's cease-and-desist letter.
Poindexter is looking to unseat Miller in Ohio's 7th Congressional District, where President Trump won by 11 points in the 2024 presidential election.
➤ DONALDS DUCKS TRUMP:
Florida's GOP gubernatorial nominee Rep. Byron Donalds — who has been a close ally to President Trump — removed mentions of Trump from his campaign website.
The old layout of Donalds's website once said, "Chip in to Support Trump endorsed Byron Donalds at the top," with the text "TRUMP ENDORSED" below it.
The website only showed the president's endorsement in a box next to other endorsements from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) and more.
The move comes after Trump's approval rating has dipped to 35 percent and his recent bans on CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters from the White House, but is unknown if there is any correlation.
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— Republican Sen. Roger Wicker (Miss.) bashed Chinese President Xi Jinping Tuesday ahead of his arrival to the U.S., saying that he would have suggested Trump not invite Xi to Washington, D.C.
— Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan declined surrogate McKenna West's bid to intervene in a custody fight where the biological parents told her to get an abortion, and left for Texas instead. Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar had demanded that West abort the then-unborn child under their surrogacy agreement.
— GOP Sens. Mitch McConnell (Ky.), John Cornyn (Texas), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Thom Tillis (N.C.) signed a letter calling on Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to release billions of dollars in national security assistance for Taiwan.
— The Cook Political Report shifted the Kansas and South Carolina Senate races toward Democrats. Kansas's race between Sen. Roger Marshall (R) and challenger Adam Hamilton (D) shifted from "likely Republican to "lean Republican." South Carolina's race between Sen. Darline Graham (R) and Democrat Annie Andrews moved from "solid Republican" to "likely Republican."
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Associated Press: Grail's DNA-based cancer test faces high-stakes FDA review
Politico: Burnham passes his first Trump test — but papers over the cracks
New York Times: Many Americans Use GLP-1 Drugs Without a Medical Reason, Study Shows
NBC News: This year’s El Nino-driven heat could cause nearly half a million more deaths, group says
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The House is out and Senate is in. President Trump is in Washington. (All times EST)
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2:30 p.m.: Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearings to examine Flock’s AI surveillance network
3:30 p.m.: District court hearing on CNN, MS NOW and Politico ban
6 p.m.: Trump greets Xi Jinping at Joint Base Andrews
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😋 Celebrate: Today is National Snack Stick Day. So many options and they all taste about the same: Slim Jim, Chomps, Jack Link’s, take your pick.
🎥 The official trailer is out for “You Can See Everything,” the new documentary by Nathan Fielder about Elizabeth Holmes.
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