Biden calls atrocities in Ukraine a 'genocide' for the first time

President Joe Biden said Tuesday the atrocities being uncovered in Ukraine qualify as genocide, a designation he'd previously avoided but that he now believes is warranted as scenes of devastation emerge from towns once overrun by Russian troops.

"I called it genocide because it's become clearer and clearer that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is just trying to wipe out even the idea of being Ukrainian. The evidence is mounting," Biden told reporters in Iowa after using the term earlier in a speech.

"It's different than it was last week, the more evidence that's...