00:01President Trump pulls back on military drills with South Korea, the North Korea calculation behind his decision, and why some
00:08lawmakers say it's a mistake.
00:10Plus, the USS Abraham Lincoln is finally heading home, but there's a new fight over what sailors have actually been
00:16dealing with on board.
00:18And actress Hayden Panettiere is dead at just 36. Well, we know this morning about her death.
00:26The stories that matter, clear and credible, from across the country to around the world.
00:32These are your Unbiased Updates from Straight Arrow.
00:38Hello everyone, I'm Simone del Rosario.
00:41This morning, joint military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea are underway.
00:46But President Trump has ordered the Pentagon to substantially reduce the planned 10-day training mission.
00:50Trump says South Korea declined to help denuclearize Iran, and that the exercises are costly, and send what he called
00:58a, quote,
00:59totally inappropriate and hostile signal to North Korea.
01:03Trump also pointed to his very good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
01:08It's not yet clear what the scaled-down exercises will look like.
01:12South Korea's president said this morning the two countries have maintained close coordination on joint training and exercises, and will
01:19continue to do so.
01:21Trump's order comes days after North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the sea,
01:26a test some experts say may have been a response to the planned U.S.-South Korea drills.
01:31And the scale back is drawing criticism on Capitol Hill.
01:34On ex-Democratic Senator Mark Kelly called it, quote, short-sighted and a mistake,
01:40saying North and South Korea remain technically at war,
01:43and the exercises help keep U.S. forces ready to defend South Korea if the North attacks.
01:49Foreign ministers from eight countries are condemning Israel's rejection of President Trump's 15-point peace plan for Gaza.
01:56The joint statement signed by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates,
02:05says Israel now bears responsibility for, quote,
02:09obstructing the efforts to bring peace in Gaza.
02:12It comes ahead of a meeting today between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
02:16and President Trump's son-in-law and Middle East envoy Jared Kushner.
02:20Kushner met with Hamas leaders in Egypt yesterday,
02:23discussing the group's disarmament and transferring control of Gaza to a new government.
02:28And in Iran, a 60-day window for the U.S. and Tehran to negotiate a broader deal expires today
02:34with no agreement.
02:36The memorandum, signed in June, called for talks to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz,
02:41but those negotiations have stalled.
02:44Now, a top official with Iran's Revolutionary Guard says Tehran could shift from a defensive to an offensive posture.
02:51And Iran's army chief is offering a $30,000 reward to anyone who kills or captures a U.S. soldier
02:59and delivers them to Iranian authorities.
03:02The leader of U.S. Central Command is weighing in on reports of poor conditions
03:06and mental health concerns aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.
03:09After seeing it with his own eyes, he says the reality is more complicated.
03:14Admiral Brad Cooper visited the Lincoln Saturday, which has been at sea for more than 200 days.
03:19The ship's been plagued with reports of food and supply shortages, water and plumbing problems,
03:25and deteriorating morale and mental health during its extended deployment.
03:30Cooper says many of the problems with food and hot water were reported months ago and have since been addressed.
03:36He also says that of the Navy's 11 active aircraft carriers,
03:41the Lincoln currently has among the fewest mental health cases.
03:44But, he acknowledged, quote,
03:47This doesn't mean all is perfect.
03:49Find any of the nearly 4 million Navy veterans in America today,
03:53and they will likely tell you that service at sea for long periods isn't for everyone.
03:58But Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego, a former Marine, told ABC News this week
04:03he's hearing something different from families connected to the ship.
04:06I was just speaking to a spouse just about three days ago, and this is the current problems right now.
04:11And then it really goes to the deep, deep, deep problem here is that this administration did not plan for
04:17this war.
04:18They did not plan how to get out of this war, did not really understand how this war was going
04:22to escalate.
04:23They were basically trying and hoping that this war would end up just like the war in Venezuela.
04:27The Lincoln has been deployed for nearly nine months supporting U.S. operations against Iran.
04:32That's more than a month beyond its original schedule.
04:35Former Joint Chiefs Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen told ABC he believes reports about conditions on board should not be dismissed.
04:43I also believe the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle.
04:47Some of these problems, I was connected with Admiral Cooper last night, who was on the ship yesterday,
04:53and he told me he had a really good visit.
04:55He said many of these problems were early in the deployment and they were solved.
05:00But these are morale issues on a ship, which you really have to focus on.
05:05And now the Lincoln is coming home.
05:08U.S. officials say the USS George Washington will replace it in the Middle East as part of a planned
05:13rotation.
05:14But we have some sad and shocking news to report this morning.
05:17Actress Hayden Panettiere has died.
05:20She was just 36.
05:22No cause of death has been announced.
05:24Her publicist says there is an open investigation into the circumstances.
05:29Panettiere's father, Skip, called his daughter an incredible light and a force of nature who brought joy to those who
05:35knew her.
05:36She spent more than three decades on screen, starting in commercials and soap operas as a child,
05:42before landing roles in Remember the Titans and A Bug's Life.
05:45But heroes made her a star.
05:48In 2006, she broke out as Claire Burnett, the cheerleader with superpowers,
05:52before later taking on another defining role as country singer Juliette Barnes in Nashville.
05:58Panettiere released a memoir in May about her life in the spotlight and the personal struggles she faced away from
06:03it.
06:04She would have turned 37 on Friday and leaves behind a daughter.
06:08Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear says he's still waiting to hear directly from Mitch McConnell,
06:13more than a month after first asking the senator to publicly address his health.
06:18McConnell was hospitalized June 14th after a fall in his Washington home,
06:22and for weeks his office released very little information about his condition.
06:26The 84-year-old later moved to a rehab center and said earlier this month that he's now back home
06:32continuing his recovery.
06:34Beshear first wrote McConnell in July, asking him to update Kentuckians on his health
06:39and whether he's able to continue serving.
06:42He later went further, calling on McConnell to speak directly to his constituents
06:46and provide proof he can still do the job.
06:49Here's what Beshear told CBS on Sunday.
06:52I've heard absolutely nothing back from Mitch McConnell.
06:55His boss are the people of Kentucky.
06:57And this is why the Senate, the Republican-controlled Senate, feels so broken.
07:02They feel like they're not accountable to anyone.
07:04All he needs to do is call into this show for two minutes or Fox News for two minutes
07:09or do a video for two minutes to the people he's supposed to serve.
07:12But you know what?
07:13He absolutely refuses to do it.
07:16McConnell is not running for re-election this fall.
07:19His office has released photos and written updates during his recovery,
07:22but he has not publicly said when he plans to return to the Senate.
07:27Finally this morning, Italian police are hunting for thieves who stole four Renaissance paintings
07:33from a museum in Sicily.
07:35The thieves targeted the museum in Messina Saturday, while much of the city's attention
07:39was on the annual religious procession that drew about 100,000 people.
07:43They stole three panels from the 15th century San Gregorio polyptych,
07:49along with a small double-sided devotional painting of the Madonna and child.
07:54All four are attributed to Renaissance master Antonella de Messina
07:58and were the only works by the artist still in his native city.
08:02The thieves actually took all five surviving panels,
08:05but left two near a fence outside the museum as they escaped.
08:09Police are now reviewing security video and looking for photos from people
08:13who reported seeing suspicious activity.
08:15Italy's culture minister said the stolen works are of extraordinary value.
08:20Well, Unbiased Updates is the fastest, fairest few minutes in news.
08:24You can watch us anytime at san.com or on our app.
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08:32At Straight Arrow, we fear no fact.
08:35Well, those are your Unbiased Updates for this Monday.
08:37Craig is going to be back here with you tomorrow.
08:39For all of us here at Straight Arrow, I'm Simone Del Rosario.
08:42Have a great day.
