Morning Wire XX
[0] I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire Editor -in -Chief John Bickley.
[1] It's Monday, June 12th, and this is your Morning Wire afternoon update.
[2] The U .K. Sunday Times has published a bombshell investigation, reporting that the COVID -19 virus was indeed created at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in collaboration with the Chinese military.
[3] The report also alleges that some of the funding came from the controversial EcoHealth Alliance, which is funded in part by American taxpayers through grants.
[4] The Times says it, quote, reviewed hundreds of documents, including previously confidential reports, internal memos, scientific papers, and email correspondence from the three years prior to the pandemic.
[5] The outlet, quote, also interviewed the U .S. State Department investigators, including experts on China emerging pandemic threats and biow warfare, who conducted the first significant U .S. inquiry into the origins of the COVID -19 outbreak.
[6] A recap of that investigation can be read on dailywire .com.
[7] The origin of the virus isn't the only part of the pandemic that remains controversial.
[8] U .S. federal investigators are still on the hunt for what happened to roughly $400 billion in COVID relief doled out to American businesses, organizations, and citizens during the years 2020 and 2021.
[9] Here with more is Daily Wire Senior Editor, Joel Needler.
[10] A new analysis by the Associated Press revealed that fraudsters allegedly stole more than $280 billion in COVID -19 relief funding.
[11] According to the analysis, an additional $123 billion was either wasted or misspent by the U .S. government.
[12] Federal spending skyrocketed due to the pandemic and taxpayers shelled out $4 .2 trillion in counting in COVID relief.
[13] Now, more than 2 ,000 individuals have been charged with pandemic -related fraud, and investigators are still searching for and filing new charges.
[14] Financial giant J .P. Morgan has agreed to pay victims of the late Jeffrey Epstein, a whopping $290 million in a historic class action lawsuit settlement.
[15] The bank was sued in 2022 by one woman on behalf of herself and other victims after it was discovered that the bank continued to do business with Epstein even after he was deemed a high -risk client.
[16] Epstein, a convicted sex offender, died in federal prison in 2019.
[17] Daniel Penny, the 24 -year -old Marine veteran who went viral for putting the homeless man Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold on May 1st, has spoken out, disputing several claims about the incident.
[18] I looked around, I saw women and children.
[19] He was yelling in their faces, saying these threats, I couldn't just sit still.
[20] Some people say that I was holding onto Mr. Really for 15 minutes.
[21] This is not true.
[22] I mean, between stops is only a couple minutes.
[23] So the whole interaction less than less than five minutes.
[24] Some people say I was trying to choke him's death, which is also not true.
[25] I was trying to restrain him.
[26] You could see in the video there's a clear rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he's breathing.
[27] I'm trying to restrain him from being able to carry out the threats.
[28] Penny was arrested and charged with manslaughter last month over the incident.
[29] The 24 -year -old veteran is due back in court, July 17th.
[30] Fox News has sent a cease and desist letter to its ex -prime host Tucker Carlson after he started airing a new show titled Tucker on Twitter on the social media platform.
[31] Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce has the latest.
[32] The legal action from Carlson's former home comes on the heels of Carlson's team teasing a new Tucker on Twitter episode on the federal indictment of former President Trump.
[33] Tucker Carlson is still being paid by Fox News and the network insists that Carlson's new show violates his contract's non -compete clause.
[34] Harmeet Dylan, one of Carlson's attorneys, said in a statement that Fox, quote, is now demanding that Tucker Carlson be silent until after the 2024 election.
[35] Dylan added, Tucker will not be silenced by anyone.
[36] Silvio Berlusconi, the former Prime Minister of Italy, has died at the age of 86.
[37] The news was confirmed Monday morning by Italian media company Media Set, which Berlusconi founded.
[38] Berlusconi, who once reportedly referred to himself as the Jesus Christ of politics, served longer than any Italian leader since 1946 when Italy became a republic.
[39] He founded the Forza Italia Party, which is described as center right.
[40] No cause of death was provided.
[41] The Toronto Blue Jays have cut pitcher Anthony Bass just over a week.
[42] after he apologized for sharing a video on social media that encouraged Christians to boycott Bud Light and Target.
[43] Bass posted a video on Instagram that made a biblical case against supporting businesses that push people, especially children, toward darkness.
[44] Blue Jay's manager, Ross Atkins, said they chose to cut Bass for a myriad of variables, including, quote, performance as well as being, quote, a distraction, saying it was a small part of it and something we had to factor in.
[45] Those are your drive home updates this afternoon.
[46] To learn more about these stories, go to dailywire .com.
[47] And for more in -depth discussion of the biggest stories of the day, listen to the latest full episode of Morning Wire every morning.