Smiths case . Plus, americans in iran, out of prison and now under house arrest. The rare move marking a bright spot in u. S. Iran relations. The new details were learning about the tentative deal to free them and what iran is getting in return. And senator joe manchin says hes seriously thinking about leaving his party as he weighs his own political future. Why manchin might be stepping away from the democrats and what it could mean for the Balance Of Power on capitol hill. Good morning and welcome to Way Too Early on this friday, august 11th. Im jonathan lemire. Thanks for starting your day with us. And well begin with breaking and tragic news out of hawaii where wildfires continue to ravage the Island Of Maui. At least 55 people are now confirmed dead, and that number is only expected to rise. Four major fires are currently burning across the island. Theyre being fueled by dry conditions and strong winds caused by a passing hurricane. The fires have destroyed Historic Buildings and
Because our allies are looking to see what the united states is going to do in this era, and putin, we think, is looking at the united states and thinking whether he can wait it out. so biden is going to congress and saying, fine, if you support, you know, the war against ukraine, war against russia excuse me this is your moment to say so. last month, 70 house republicans voted to strip all funding from ukraine. that s 70 out of a caucus of 220, you know, something like that, right? it s about a third. it s not obviously a majority of the republican caucus, not a majority of the house. if you get this funding bill to the floor of the house, you re likely to get it passed. the question is whether you can get it to the floor and, if so, what kind of leverage conservatives will ask in compensation, effectively. they want more money for border enforcement. they want more money for something else. so this is the beginning of an interesting dance to see both how the president handles t