speaker. at home we re watching a major test of former president trump s influence over the republican party. in the five states where voters are headed to the polls today to vote in primary elections, all eyes will be on the slate of candidates who the former president endorsed and have embraced the big lie that the 2020 election was stolen. will that message resonate with republican primary voters? today will also be a big test for these three house republicans who were among the ten who voted to impeach the former president. will they survive after taking a critical stand? one of today s biggest tests will happen in kansas where abortion rights are on the ballot for the first time since the supreme court overturned roe v. wade. we ll have the latest into the massive implications of that vote. let s get right into it with nbc s steve kornacki at the big board. steve, what are you looking for this morning? a couple things, jose, you touched on. i think this referendum in
good morning. and welcome to way too early. on this monday, august 1st. i m jonathan lemire. thanks for being with us. we begin with the situation in ukraine. in a significant breakthrough this morning, a ship carrying ukrainian grain set off from the port of odesa to for the first time since the war started back in february. ukraine s minister of infrastructure tweeted this video of the vessel which is carrying more than 26,000 tons of corn and is on its way to lebanon. the ship is expected to reach istanbul on tuesday where it will be inspected before being allowed to proceed. the move is part of an internationally brokered deal between kyiv and moscow, to release millions of tons of grain to foreign markets, and ease a growing food crisis. ukrainian officials say 16 more ships are waiting to depart odesa s port as part of that deal. meanwhile, russia advances have slowed, almost to a standstill, as newly-delivered western weapons are helping ukrainian forces re-claim
kick russian out of ukraine. there is no question that president xi is watching. putin is watching to see if the west, if the united states and europe lose interest in ukraine and if we do, then i think it potentially gives him a green light. so, we are on the cusp of the post world war ii order where big nations didn t change their borders through force coming apart. and i think right now the most important thing that we could do to stop china from making a move on taiwan is to make clear to the ukrainians we re with them today and in the future to make sure they regain their own sovereignty. senator chris murphy, thank you very much for being on this morning. we will be in touch. so we are well into the fourth hour of morning joe right now. let s talk more about the bills to help veterans that republicans blocked. joining us now, retired sergeant ted corcoran. he s a disabled veteran and a veteran advocate who suffers from the effects of burn pits. he s now organizing
26,000 tons of corn from ukraine is expected to reach istanbul later today. this is the first shipment to leave the country s port since russia s invasion began in february. nbc correspondent morgan chesky is live in kyiv with more. morgan, what s the latest on that shipment? reporter: yeah, jose, good afternoon. this is a trial shipment that is expected to arrive in istanbul later today where this ship will be inspected by u.n., turkish, russian and ukrainian inspectors making sure that the only thing on board is in fact that grain before it sets sail for its final destination in the port city of tripoli, lebanon. but as you mentioned, this is the first ship. there are hopefully many more to follow. ukraine officials say that they plan on having about three ships depart daily from the port city at odesa. and what makes it so remarkable is this in fact is kind of a
good morning. and welcome to way too early. on this monday, august 1st. i m jonathan lemire. thanks for being with us. we begin with the situation in ukraine. in a significant breakthrough this morning, a ship carrying ukrainian grain set off from the port of odesa to for the first time since the war started back in february. ukraine s minister of infrastructure tweeted this video of the vessel which is carrying more than 26,000 tons of corn and is on its way to lebanon. the ship is expected to reach istanbul on tuesday where it will be inspected before being allowed to proceed. the move is part of an internationally brokered deal between kyiv and moscow, to release millions of tons of grain to foreign markets, and ease a growing food crisis. ukrainian officials say 16 more ships are waiting to depart odesa s port as part of that deal. meanwhile, russia advances have slowed, almost to a standstill, as newly-delivered