Giuliani surrenders in Georgia

Laura L. Davis, USA TODAY
·4 min read
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Rudy Giuliani surrendered in Georgia and was arrested on elections charges. The stage is set for the first Republican presidential primary debate. And India became the fourth country to land a spacecraft on the moon.

👋 Hey! Laura Davis here. It’s Wednesday. Ready for the news?

But first: Buckle up. Mercury is officially in retrograde. 😵‍💫 How does Mercury retrograde affect us? Here's an astrologer's guide for each zodiac sign.

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Rudy Giuliani surrenders at Georgia jail on election charges

Rudy Giuliani, a campaign lawyer for Donald Trump who was indicted with him in Georgia, surrendered Wednesday and was booked at an Atlanta jail on 13 charges related to trying to overturn the 2020 election. Giuliani was released pending trial on a $150,000 bond and placed under similar restrictions as others in the case. Giuliani, who is among 19 defendants in the case, is charged with racketeering, three counts of soliciting lawmakers to violate their oaths of office, three counts of making false statements and six conspiracy counts dealing with the recruitment of fake electors. Giuliani is a former U.S. attorney who prosecuted members of the mafia under a federal version of the racketeering statute under which he is charged. Follow our live coverage.

Rudy Giuliani speaks to reporters as he leaves his apartment building in New York on Wednesday.
Rudy Giuliani speaks to reporters as he leaves his apartment building in New York on Wednesday.

Let the debates begin

Mock debates. Campaign staffers pretending to be opponents. Playbooks full of strategies and talking points. As the first Republican primary debate approaches on Wednesday in Milwaukee, the crowded field of GOP hopefuls are pulling out the stops to get ready to make their pitch to voters − and target their rivals on a national stage. The lineup is set, but there will be one notable absence: former President Trump, who said he will skip the debate, citing his big lead in the GOP polls.

How are the candidates preparing? What are their strengths? Weaknesses? 🔎 Here's a peek at their plans.

👉 And what about if the unexpected happens? North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum was injured while playing basketball and taken to a Milwaukee emergency room the day before the debate. It's unclear if he'll be on stage Wednesday night.

What everyone's talking about

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Mercenary leader Prighozin killed in plane crash, Russian agency says

Mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a brief armed rebellion against Russia earlier this year, was killed in a plane crash Wednesday, the Russian aviation agency Rosaviatsia said. The private jet crashed en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg, some 60 miles north of the Russian capital, killing all 10 people on board. Exactly two months ago, Prigozhin led a short mutiny against the Russian military that President Vladimir Putin denounced as “treason” and a “stab in the back.” The Russian leader vowed to avenge it – but the charges against Prigozhin were soon dropped, and the Wagner chief was allowed to retreat to Belarus, while reportedly popping back in Russia from time to time. 👉 Follow our live coverage.

This photograph posted on a Wagner-linked Telegram channel on Wednesday shows burning plane wreckage near the village of Kuzhenkino, Tver region, Russia.
This photograph posted on a Wagner-linked Telegram channel on Wednesday shows burning plane wreckage near the village of Kuzhenkino, Tver region, Russia.

India lands its first spacecraft on moon

A lunar success! India's Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft landed on the moon Wednesday, etching the nation into history as the fourth country to land on the lunar surface. The Indian Space Research Organization launched Chandrayaan-3 over a month ago with the goal of landing near the lunar south pole, where it made a soft landing at about 8:33 a.m. EDT Wednesday. The mission marks the first landing of any country near the south pole and the first lunar landing for India. 🌙 Here's everything we know.

An image from the Indian Space Research Organisation live feed on Wednesday shows the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft seconds before its successful lunar landing.
An image from the Indian Space Research Organisation live feed on Wednesday shows the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft seconds before its successful lunar landing.

A break from the news

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hello: laura@usatoday.com. This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rudy Giuliani surrenders, GOP debate, India moon landing: Wednesday's news