President Donald Trump congratulated Canada and Mexico on Oct. 1 for reaching a deal to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), lauding the new agreement as a boon for American manufacturers and farmers and a win for all three nations.
The deal, announced on Sept. 30, is a reworking of NAFTA—signed in 1994 by President Bill Clinton—and which underpins $1.2 trillion in trade between the three countries. Trump had described NAFTA as a bad deal for Americans and promised to eliminate it as part of his “America First” agenda.
The new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is aimed at bringing more jobs into the United States, with Canada and Mexico accepting more restrictive commerce with the United States, their main export partner.
Trump called the U.S. agreement with its neighbor to the north “wonderful” and “a historic transaction.”
White House Gives FBI Free Rein in Kavanaugh Investigation
Trump told reporters on Oct. 1 he wants a “comprehensive” FBI investigation of the sexual assault accusations against Kavanaugh.Trump said that he continues to support Kavanaugh. But he also wants the FBI to investigate the charges from Christine Blasey Ford and as many as two other accusers.
Kavanaugh has strongly denied the allegations, but the Senate directed the FBI to investigate them for up to a week.
Trump said he wants the FBI probe “to be comprehensive.” He also denied reports that the White House is limiting the scope of the probe, saying, “my White House is doing whatever the senators want.”
He said the one thing he wants is speed, because drawing it out is “unfair” to Kavanaugh’s family.
Trump Awards Soldier Medal for Heroic Action in Afghanistan
A former Army medic who received the nation’s highest military honor on Oct. 1 for braving heavy gunfire to save lives in Afghanistan was rejected by the military the first time he tried to enlist.“I can’t believe they rejected you. Boy that was a bad mistake. But they made up for it, right,” President Donald Trump told former Staff Sgt. Ronald Shurer II at a formal White House ceremony where 250 people gathered to laud Shurer for his heroic actions in 2008 in a remote part of Afghanistan.
Shurer, a native of Fairbanks, Alaska, was a senior medical sergeant in the special forces on April 6, 2008 when his team encountered machine gun and sniper fire and rocket-propelled grenades from militants.
Iran Fires Missiles Into Syria Over Parade Attack
Iran has fired missiles at militants in Syria it blames for an attack in southwestern Iran on Sept. 22, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Monday (October 1).The Guards said the operation was a sign of Tehran’s readiness to punish its enemies’ “wickedness.”
The strike took place at 2 a.m. local time and targeted the bases of “takfiri terrorists” in eastern Syria, the Guards said in a statement on Sepah News, the official news site of the powerful military force. Video footage was also released showing several missiles streaking into a dark sky during the attack.
Cattle Truck Tips, Cows Block Georgia Highway
A livestock truck tipped over on a highway north of Atlanta, Georgia, and much of the cargo wandered away from the scene of the accident.According to Georgia’s Department of Transportation, a truck carrying cattle was heading east on I-285 at the junction with I-75. The truck tipped over while negotiating a cloverleaf, spilling dozens of livestock onto the highway.
Highway workers had to cut open the fallen trailer to release the trapped cows before they could consider tipping it upright and hauling it away.
