VOLUME 4 ISSUE 31
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WWW.NSJONLINE.COM |
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2019
Sports Hurricanes trade Faulk to Blues, page B4
RICHARD DREW | AP PHOTO
U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019.
the Wednesday
NEWS BRIEFING
UNC BOG chair resigns The chairman of the UNC Board of Governors says he’s stepping down early from his position but will remain on the board. UNC said in a news release Tuesday that Board of Governors Chair Harry Smith of Greenville is resigning effective Oct. 1. Smith plans to remain as a board member through the end of his term in 2021. He tells media outlets that he’s resigning because of the overwhelming demands of being the chair while running businesses.
Judge OKs Duke University paying $54M in hiring lawsuit A federal judge is closing a lawsuit that Duke University is settling over claims that it and nearby University of North Carolina conspired to hold down salaries of thousands of medical workers by not hiring staff away from each other. U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles on Tuesday finalized the deal in which the Durham university will divide more than $50 million among current and former employees. Their payouts will average around $6,000 depending on salary and how long they worked at Duke or UNC’s Chapel Hill campus. UNC was dropped as a defendant last year because the public institution could invoke constitutional limits on federal lawsuits against states.
NC wild herd lost 28 horses in Dorian A North Carolina wild horse manager says more than half of one herd is thought to be dead after Hurricane Dorian storm surge slammed their island home. Manager Woody Hancock said 28 of the 49 horses on Cedar Island, between the Outer Banks and the mainland, are suspected dead. He says the herd is lesser-known than the Corolla heard on the northernmost parts of the Outer Banks. That herd didn’t suffer any losses. He said 21 of Cedar Island’s horses survived, some managing to swim to safety. But dead horses have been washing up on beaches, while others remain missing.
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Pelosi orders impeachment probe
Trump rejects globalism, urges pressure on Iran President addressed United Nations Tuesday The Associated Press NEW YORK — President Donald Trump stood before the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday and rejected “globalism” and liberal immigration policies while exhorting the world to act against Iran’s “bloodlust.” Trump took aim at China, Venezuela and what he called a “growing cottage industry” of radical activists intent on pushing for open borders that harm national security and sovereignty. In a later meeting
with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, he fended off fresh questions from reporters about a growing movement by Democrats to impeach him. As he addressed the General Assembly, Trump lambasted the World Trade Organization for giving China preferential treatment that he said was undeserved. He slammed socialism for bringing ruin to Venezuela. But he reserved much of his ire for Iran, which he called “one of the greatest threats” to the planet. “Not only is Iran the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, but See UNITED NATIONS page A2
The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi launched a formal impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump on Tuesday, acquiescing to mounting pressure from fellow Democrats and plunging a deeply divided nation into an election year clash between Congress and the commander in chief. The probe centers on whether Trump abused his presidential powers and sought help from a foreign government for his reelection. Pelosi said such actions would mark a “betrayal of his oath of office” and declared: “No one is above the law.” Pelosi’s brief statement capped a frenetic stretch on Capitol Hill, as details of a classified whistleblower complaint about Trump burst into the open and momentum shifted swiftly toward an impeachment probe. The charge was led by several moderate Democratic lawmakers from political swing districts, many of them with national security backgrounds and serving in Congress for the first time. After more than two-and-ahalf years of sharp Democratic criticism of Trump, the formal impeachment quest sets up the party’s most urgent and consequential confrontation with a president who thrives on combat — and injects deep uncertainty in the 2020 White House race. Trump has all but dared Democrats to take this step, confident that the specter of impeachment led by the opposition party would bolster his political sup-
“You will see it was a very friendly and totally appropriate call.” President Trump port. Trump, who was meeting with world leaders at the United Nations, previewed his defense in an all-caps tweet: “PRESIDENTIAL HARRASSMENT!” Pelosi had barely finished speaking as he began a mini-blizzard of tweets assailing her announcement. At issue are Trump’s actions with Ukraine. In a summer phone call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, he is said to have asked for help investigating Democrat Joe Biden and his son Hunter. In the days before the call, Trump ordered advisers to freeze $400 million in military aid for Ukraine — prompting speculation that he was holding out the money as leverage for information on the Bidens. Trump has denied that charge, but acknowledged he blocked the funds. Ahead of Pelosi’s announcement, Trump authorized the release of a transcript of his call with Ukraine’s president, predicting it would show no evidence of wrongdoing. The transcript is to be made public on Wednesday. “You will see it was a very friendly and totally appropriate call,” Trump said.
Linberg asks court to dismiss federal charges Insurance executive was indicted for attempted bribe By David Larson North State Journal RALEIGH — Months after being at the center of an insurance industry bribery case that ended with his indictment, political donor and insurance magnate Greg Lindberg’s legal team asked the court to dismiss charges. On Wednesday, Sept. 18, lawyers for Lindberg filed a motion to dismiss the indictment against him “for failure to state an offense,” because the offense he is charged with, they believe, defines “official acts” by a government official too broadly. The indictment states that Mike Causey, while commissioner of the N.C. Dept. of Insurance, asked Lindberg for campaign contributions in exchange for reassigning a deputy who was overseeing Lindberg’s business. Lindberg agreed to give the payments, not knowing that Causey was working with the FBI and was recording their conversations. Lindberg is charged, along with John D. Gray, John V. Palermo and former N.C. GOP Chairman Robin Hayes, with conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and bribery conSee LINBERG, page A2