The Nation in Brief

A motorist travels in the oncoming lane along Old Turnpike Road in Drums, Pa., on Monday, to avoid a tree knocked down from a heavy rainfall and strong winds that have stalled in the area.
A motorist travels in the oncoming lane along Old Turnpike Road in Drums, Pa., on Monday, to avoid a tree knocked down from a heavy rainfall and strong winds that have stalled in the area.

Trump planning follow-up visit to Kim

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump has received a request from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a follow-up to their historic June summit, and planning is in motion to make it happen.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that no details had been finalized.

Trump told reporters last week that he was expecting a letter from Kim. Sanders said Trump has received the letter, which she described as "very warm, very positive." The White House will not release the full letter unless Kim agrees it should be made public, she said.

"The primary purpose of the letter was to request and look to schedule another meeting with the president, which we are open to and are already in the process of coordinating that," Sanders said. She cited the letter as "further evidence of progress" in relations between the leaders.

Relations between Trump and Kim have seemed to ebb and flow since Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader.

Trump recently called off a planned visit by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to North Korea, citing lack of progress toward eliminating its nuclear arsenal.

But on Sunday, the president offered fresh praise for Kim after a North Korean military parade that, unlike past parades, downplayed the missiles and nuclear weapons that brought North Korea to the brink of military conflict with the United States just a year ago.

Lawmakers reach $147B spending deal

WASHINGTON -- Republicans and Democrats in Congress said Monday they've reached a deal on the first of a series of government spending packages intended to avert a federal shutdown in October.

The $147 billion package would fund the departments of Energy and Veterans Affairs, the Army Corps of Engineers, military construction projects and the legislative branch. The House plans to vote on it this week. The new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell met last week with President Donald Trump in an effort to persuade him to sign bills funding most of the federal government this month and postpone a fight over funding for a wall at the Mexico border until after the Nov. 6 election.

Trump has suggested a 'good shutdown' may be needed to force Democrats to agree to his proposal for $5 billion in border wall funds for fiscal 2019.

Senate Democrats have said they would back $1.6 billion in border wall money, and they have the power to block a spending bill providing more, which would need 60 votes to advance.

California's I-5 open after fire clean-up

SHASTA-TRINITY NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. -- A major interstate that connects California and Oregon reopened Monday after a wildfire roared along the roadway and forced a six-day closure while burned trees and charred vehicles were removed.

One lane in each direction of Interstate 5 near the Oregon border was reopened with restrictions and warnings of slow traffic, California Department of Transportation spokesman Denise Yergenson said.

With the fire still burning, vehicles carrying flammable materials, including hay, wood chips, lumber and logs, will not be allowed along the 17-mile stretch in Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

"Motorists should anticipate long lines of vehicles and long delays," Yergenson said.

The stretch of highway that traverses the West Coast from Mexico to Canada and serves as a main artery for commerce had been closed since Wednesday, when a wall of flames descended from hills along the highway and forced motorists to abandon trucks and cars.

The blaze has chewed through 64 square miles of timber and brush. It was 5 percent contained Monday. The blaze was human-caused, officials said, without indicating whether it was arson or an accident.

DeSantis quits House seat to campaign

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Republican U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis resigned from Congress on Monday to focus on his bid to become Florida's next governor.

DeSantis sent a letter to House Speaker Paul Ryan and asked that his resignation be retroactive to Sept. 1 so he receives no pay for the month. The northeast Florida congressman won the Republican nomination Aug. 28 with the help of President Donald Trump's endorsement. Early polls show he is in a tight race with Democratic nominee and Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum.

"As the Republican nominee for Governor of Florida, it is clear to me that I will likely miss the vast majority of our remaining session days for this Congress. Under these circumstances, it would be inappropriate for me to accept a salary," DeSantis wrote.

The resignation also comes as The Washington Post reports on speeches DeSantis made at an annual event organized by the David Horowitz Freedom Center. Horowitz is known for anti-Muslim rhetoric. Other Republican congressmen, U.S. senators and governors have spoken at events organized by Horowitz, including U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions when he was still in the Senate and then-Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

The DeSantis campaign declined to comment on the report.

-- Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports

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AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee

A sheet explosive hidden in a mailing envelope is detonated during a live demonstration and training for local law enforce- ment and fire departments Monday at the Homestead Air Re- serve Base in Homestead, Fla. The course aids students with explosives identification and applications, explosives effects, IED component recognition, the difference between military and commercial explosives, and evidence collection.

A Section on 09/11/2018

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