into space. for more news, download the cbs news app on your cell phone or connected tv. i'm dan lieberman, cbs news, new york. it's wednesday, september 21st, 2022. this is the "cbs morning news." center stage. president biden will address world leaders today at the u.n. general assembly. we have a preview of his speech. class action lawsuit. migrants take legal action against florida governor ron desantis after being flown to martha's vineyard. brazen scheme. prosecutors call it the largest case of pandemic relief fraud yet. how dozens allegedly stole $250 million. good morning, and good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. we begin with breaking developments in the war in ukraine. in a rare televised speech,

russian president vladimir putin announced a partial mobilization of his military reserves. he warned the west that russia is intent on protecting its sovereignty. the total number of reservists drafted in the partial mobilization is 300,000 according to officials. it's russia's first mobilization since world war ii. putin also warned that moscow would use the might of its vast arsenal if the west continued with so-called nuclear blackmail. his speech comes as ukrainian forces have regained territory on the battlefield in nearly seven months of fighting. president biden is expected to focus on the invasion of ukraine when he addresses the general assembly this morning. the administration says mr. biden will lay out his vision for u.s. foreign policy as he tries to rally allies to stand firm in backing ukraine's resistance. ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy will also speak to the general assembly today, but he'll do it virtually. bradley blackburn is at the u.n. with more. good morning.

>> reporter: good morning. the president's speech here at the u.n. today is important because there's concern about growing ukraine fatigue among some in the international community just as ukraine makes real progress in its fight against russia. president biden arrived in new york ahead of his address today at the u.n. general assembly. the president's annual speech before world leaders is expected to offer a firm rebuke of russia for its war on ukraine, europe's biggest conflict since world war ii. this comes as russian-controlled regions of eastern and southern ukraine announced plans to begin voting this week to become integral parts of russia. >> these are an affront to the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that underpin the international system and let lie at the heart of the united nations charter. >> reporter: russian president vladimir putin today announced a partial mobilization of citizens in the reserve in russia as moscow loses ground on the battlefield in ukraine. he also warned the west that, quote, it's not a bluff that russia would use all the means

at its disposal to protect its territory. ukraine's president will also address the assembly today, the only world leader given permission to do so virtually, via a prerecorded video, despite russia's objections. administration officials say president biden will also make a significant announcement about efforts to fight global food insecurity as well as ilow the u.s. has, quote, restored its global leadership, and the integrity of its word on the world stage. in what's set to be a long day for the president of the u.n. he has several key meetings including talks with britain's new prime minister liz truss. and tonight president biden and the first lady will host the so-called leaders reception where they have invited almost every head of delegation from around the world. and this is the first fully in-person general assembly in three years due to the pandemic. so president biden will be meeting face to face with some of those world leaders for the first time. anne-marie? >> bradley blackburn at the u.n. thank you very much.

all eyes are on the federal reserve today as the central bank is expected to announce its latest interest rate hike to try and control inflation. it's expected the fed will raise its key short-term rate by .75% for the third time in a row. some analysts believe the increase could be a full percentage point, which would be its biggest since 1984. meantime, hurricane fiona gains strength this morning. it is now a powerful category-four as it approaches category four hurricane with winds of 130 miles per hour as it approaches bermuda. fiona slammed into the turks and caicos yesterday dumping heavy rain, toppling trees and power lines, and triggering floods. on monday the hurricane barrelled into the dominican republic killing at least two people. it caused heavy flooding, damaged roofs, destroyed crops, and forced more than 12,000 people from their homes. in puerto rico, floodwaters are receding after fiona battered the island with strong winds and nearly three feet of rain.

at least four people were killed. it destroyed homes, washed out roads, and swept away bridges. more than one million customers are still without electricity. crews are working to again repair the island's power system that was obliterated by hurricane maria five years ago. >> we're fixing the grid. we're not just going over there and clicking one branch and that's it. we're making a more permanent fix. >> puerto rico's governor says that he hopes that most customers will get their power back by the end of today. there's now a class-action lawsuit against florida governor ron desantis. it was filed by venezuelan migrants who were flown from texas to martha's vineyard last week. it alleges migrants were falsely told that they were going to boston or washington and lured with mcdonald's gift cards. in a statement to fox, desantis' office called the lawsuit, quote, political theater. meantime, the immigration battle took another turn yesterday after reports that a

plane carrying migrants was heading to an airport near president biden's vacation home in delaware. manuel bojorquez has the latest. >> reporter: officials in delaware scrambled to prepare for a possible flight with asylum seekers headed to an airport near president biden's beach house. that so far hasn't arrived. >> we want to make sure that we provide that humanitarian support to them. these are folks who have been probably on a very long journey, and this would be another leg to that long journey. >> reporter: it's the same plane that carried 48 migrants to martha's vineyard last week, prompting a criminal investigation by a texas sheriff. florida governor ron desantis would not confirm whether he organized this latest flight and instead criticized the president. >> if you believe in open borders, then it's the sanctuary injures -- injure dictions that should bear the brunt. >> reporter: more than two millions have come from

venezuela and nicaragua, countries where president biden said returning them is, quote, not rational. >> we're working with mexico and other countries to see if we can stop the flow. >> reporter: in el paso, this migrant shelter taking in 400 people a day is not enough. some are at motels like these women from venezuela. >> denver, chicago. >> reporter: they're trying to reach relatives in cities and await a bus ride there. you wouldn't have the money here pdingcr we spoke with the mayor. are you concerned that the numbers will continue to rise at this point? do you see them slowing down at any time? >> i'm very concerned. yesterday we had 1,833. on friday we had almost 2,000. so you know, when you're talking about a couple months ago we had 200, 300, to 2,000, absolutely. >> reporter: manuel bojorquez, cbs news, el paso. dozens of people in minnesota are facing charges in what federal prosecutors call

the largest pandemic relief fraud case in the u.s. 48 people were charged with conspiracy, money laundering, bribery, and other crimes for allegedly stealing $250 million from a federal program that provides meals for low-income children. authorities say they created companies that claim to be offering food and then asked for reimbursement. >> these individuals believed they could steal tens of millions of dollars from a federal child nutrition program by claiming to serve food to needy children when they were not. >> the defendants are accused of using the money to buy luxury cars, properand welry. coming up, fiery crash. a truck goes off an overpass in texas, landing on the road below. and baby formula investigation. why the fda says it fumbled its response to the shortage. this is the "cbs morning news." don't mind me. i'm just the flu.

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dash cam video shows the moment a tractor-trailer fell off a highway overpass and burst into flames in texas. it happened yesterday in the dallas suburb of allen. the truck driver was killed. police say the big rig apparently collided with a car before it veered off the road and exploded. the driver of the car was not hurt. the fda is admitting mistakes in the baby formula shortage, and there are new details about a large explosion in chicago. those are some of the headlines on the "morning newsstand." the "chicago tribune" reports at least eight people were injured in an explosion at an apartment building. yesterday's blast tore through the top floor of the four-story building. seven people in the building were hurt. another person in a building across the street was also injured, and a car on the street below was crushed by falling debris. >> i live right here on the corner. and i was on my phone laying in the bed, and i heard a big explosion. then my bed shook almost like an earthquake.

>> cbs news confirmed the building has failed ten inspections over the last decade. the most recent is in 2022, and it cites an issue with a gas appliance connection. the owner of the building said the issues had been resolved. the cause of the explosion is now under investigation. the "associated press" says the fda acknowledged issues in its response to the nationwide infant formula shortage. an fda report says that its response to the ongoing shortage was slow by delays -- was rather slowed by delays in processing a whistleblower complaint and test samples from the nation's largest formula factory. it comes after abbott nutrition's michigan plant was closed due to safety concerns. a company whistleblower tried to warn the agency of problems at the plant last september, but government inspectors waited months to investigate. and nasa is set for a fueling test of its "artemis 1"

moon rocket. the agency tried to launch its a prlem with a liquid hydrogen leak. it was traced to a faulty seal. repairs were made and the test is supposed to determine if they work. nasa is hoping to launch the rocket next week. still to come, betty white fans, get ready. personal items belonging to the "golden girls" star will soon up for auction. we'll show you what you can bid on. soon up for auction. what you can bid on.

here's a look at the forecaso ♪ new safety measures are coming to the subway system in new york say. governor hochul announced that transportation officials will

install two cameras in every subway car. the goal is to reduce crime and increase ridership. passenger traffic is about 60% of pre-pandemic levels. >> do you think big brother's watching you on the subways? you're absolutely right. that is our intent to get the message out this we are going to be having surveillance of activities on the subway trains, and that is going to give people great peace of mind. and if you're concerned about this, best answer is don't commit any crimes on the subways. >> transit officials hope to install all the cameras by 2025. all new vehicles could soon check drivers for alcohol use, and american airlines is making an upgrade for high-paying travelers. dan lieberman has those stories and more in today's cbs "money watch" report. >> reporter: wall street ended lower on tuesday with the federal reserve meeting set for today with another large interest rate hike expected. the dow was down 313 points. the nasdaq lost 109.

the s&p 500 dropped 43 points. the national transportation safety board wants all new vehicles to test drivers for alcohol use. the agency is calling for new cars to be equipped with alcohol monitoring systems that can stop a drunk person from driving. alcohol-related crashes are one of the biggest causes of highway deaths nationwide with nearly 43,000 people killed last year. the greatest number in 16 years. the stock market woes have hit billionaire mark zuckerberg the hardest. his worth plummeting by nearly $71 billion this year according to bloomberg. he's gone from number three to number 22 on the billionaires list. and airlines announcing premium seats on its long haul flights which will have privacy doors, up front more storage space, and a new premium economy seat, too. the new flagship suites will fly in 2024. there's no word on how much the new seats will cost. that's your cbs "money watch" report for wednesday morning. i'm dan lieberman, cbs news, new

york. starting friday, you'll have a chance to own a piece of television history. more than 1,500 pieces of personal items that belonged to the late comedian betty white are being auctioned off. the items include clothes, awards, jewelry, and even the first script she read for the "golden girls." the lot is valued at around $2 million. betty white died last december just days shy of her 100th birthday. well, up next, swinging for the history books. the latest home run by aaron judge of the yankees ties him with another baseball legend. y with another baseball legend. dad, we got this. we got this. we got this. we got this. we got this. yay! we got this. we got this! life is for living. we got this!

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here's a look at the forecast in some cities around the country. ♪ and here's the three-one. drove deep to left field. there it goes! number 60! >> with the crack of a bat in the bronx, new york yankee aaron judge tied babe ruth's single season home run record. his 60th homer sparked a rally to beat pittsburgh. judge has 15 games left to surpass roger maris' american league record of 61. our country's newest military branch, the u.s. space force, has unveiled its official song.

♪ we're the mighty watchful eye guardians beyond the blue ♪ ♪ the invisible frontline war fighters brave and true ♪ >> the song is titled "semper supra," latin for always above and also the space force motto. two former service members wrote and composed the song. and brad pitt is debuting his new work, but it has nothing to do with movies. the 58-year-old is showing off his sculptures and ceramics as part of an art exhibit in finland. pitt says that he began creating ceramic art after his divorce in 2017. he has nine pieces on display, and this is the first time he's showing his art in public. coming up on "cbs mornings" now, a new documentary about actor sidney poitier. gayle king talks with the film's producer, oprah winfrey, as well as the director and three of

poitier's daughters. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news." " welcome to my digestive system. it's pretty calm in here with align probiotic. you see... your gut has good and bad bacteria. and when you get off balance, you may feel it. the bloating, the gas - but align helps me trust my gut again. plus, its recommended by doctors nearly 2x more than any other probiotic brand. just one a day naturally helps promote a balanced gut. and soothe occasional bloating gas and discomfort. align probiotic. welcome to an align gut. shingles. the rash can feel like an intense burning sensation and last for weeks. it can make your workday feel impossible. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. 50 years or older? ask your doctor about shingles.

>> good morning. it is wednesday, september 21st. > >> right now, a firefighter injured battling a fire in san o

san diego. > >> oakland leaders sounding the alarm after 18 hours of violencn the city. police admitting this morning they are outnumbered. > >> in oakland, how a pair of won with just two ropes are trying to turn the community into a ber place. > >> we are warming up for the first day of. > >> as we continue to celebrate hispanic heritage month, this morning, we look at one artist who hopes to bring about change. change. > >> to a developing story out of san leandro where firefighters have been fighting a three-alarm three-alarm fire overnight. one firefighters sent to the hospital with minor injuries. this is at 139th and washington in san leandro. that ladder truk ladder truck spraying the water on the fire. it was reported jut before 10:00 p.m.