in. who is next 1234. wouldn t you are like to know. plus the plea deal that allowed the michigan state gunman to legally buy guns. oonand will the lawyers put murdaugh on the stand in his own defense? former south carolina governor nikki haley is kicking off her bid for the presidency in a matter of hours. she will become the first major rival to challenge donald trump for the gop nomination. it is time for a new ew generation of leadership to rediscover fiscal responsibility, secure our border and strengthen our country, our pride and our purpose. the haley campaign launch gets under way today in charleston. kylie atwood is there. i m nikki haley and i m running for president. reporter: nikki haley telling her story to the american people as a presidential candidate for the first time. i was the proud daughter of indian immigrants. not black, not white. i was different. but my mom would always say your job is not to focus on the differences but the similar
all right. welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world, i m christine romans. this is early start. we begin with ukrainian forces struggling to hold on in the eastern city of bakhmut, as russian troops close in from three sides. ukrainian officials say the situation in bakhmut has grown much tougher. they say their forces may need to retreat to avoid being trapped by encircling russians. cnn s scott mclean is tracking this story for us from london. and, scott, what are the chances the ukrainians will be able to turn this around? and if they can t, does that mean russia is back on the offensive. so, christine, good morning. it really depends on who you ask. because last week there were plenty of indications that the ukrainians may in fact be forced to withdraw from that area. a drone reconnaissance university has been ordered to retreat from the area. you also had a key bridge by the russians kiting off the ukrainians final supply routes in and out. a
good morning, everyone. it is wednesday, march 15th. thank you for waking up with us. here are five things to know this morning there are new tensions between the u.s. and russia over the downing of a u.s. surveillance drone. they clipped the drone over the black sea forcing it to crash. russia denies the accusation claiming the drone fell on us own. yeah. and another day of jitters over the fate of america s banking system seem to be easing slightly. stocks of some regional banks bouncing back after suffering declines. fallout is far from over. doj and scc investigating the collapse of silicon valley bank. also this morning high stakes case over abortion pills set to get its day in court. a federal judge in amarillo, texas, will hear arguments over a lawsuit that could disrupt access to the pills nationwide. protests are planned outside the courthouse. also the faa is convening a rare safety summit after seven close calls at airports. the faa says the flight cros