Morning Wire XX
[0] More civilians killed in Ukraine as Russia widens its scope of attacks.
[1] With the death of an American journalist and the war edging closer to the Polish border, what's the likelihood of the U .S. being drawn directly into the war?
[2] We look at the latest developments in Ukraine.
[3] I'm John Bickley with Georgia Howell.
[4] It's Monday, March 14th.
[5] And this is Morning Wire.
[6] As the conflict rages on, what's the mood on the ground in Ukraine?
[7] We talk to our reporter on assignment.
[8] in the war -torn region.
[9] And amid skyrocketing inflation and spiking gas prices, a massive shift appears to be underway among minority voters.
[10] We look at new polling that shines a light on what's driving some traditionally Democratic voters in a different direction.
[11] Thanks for waking up with Morningwire.
[12] Stay tuned.
[13] We have the news you need to know.
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[26] As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, news is streaming in regarding the impact on civilians as they attempt to survive almost constant Russian attacks.
[27] Here were the latest updates from Ukraine as Daily Wires, Ian Howarth.
[28] Ian, things further escalated over the weekend.
[29] What can you tell us?
[30] Well, there's been a ton of news out of Ukraine since we last spoke, and it all comes as Russia ramps up the scale of attacks on Ukrainian cities, as well as key positions across the country.
[31] And as we expected, the casualty count continues to increase as more data comes in.
[32] According to Ukrainian officials, 85 children have been killed and more than 100 more wounded.
[33] Ukraine's prosecutor general said that this was coming as Russia delivered.
[34] deliberately and brutally sheled civilian areas, including hundreds of educational institutions.
[35] Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that another Russian airstrike targeted an Orthodox Christian monastery where 200 children were sheltering.
[36] When it comes to the capital city Kiev, it seems like Russian forces are looking to encircle the city and then use aerial bombardment to decimate and force the Ukrainian government to give in without having to enter the city and engage in a months -long guerrilla war.
[37] Here's General Jack Keene explaining Russia's strategy on Fox News.
[38] is to rubble as much of that city as they can, slaughter the people that are inside of it, and get a capitulation at a Selensky, without having to go into the city.
[39] And in terms of territory, we're seeing more Russian advances across the country, as well as news that a second Ukrainian mayor has been captured by Russian forces.
[40] Even more worryingly, the breadth of Russia's crosshairs has increased in recent days, hitting a Ukrainian military base just 15 miles from the Polish border.
[41] Given that Poland is a member of NATO, and Russia are using notoriously inaccurate and indiscriminate munitions, one wrong move from the border here, and Russia could effectively declare war on NATO, which would, according to the president, bring the United States into the fold.
[42] Yeah, it's definitely concerning, too, to see multiple Ukrainian officials abducted by the Russian military, let alone the prospect of war along the Polish border.
[43] There was also news this weekend that an American journalist was killed.
[44] Yeah.
[45] What happened there?
[46] Well, according to the Ukrainian national police, an American journalist was killed and at least two others were wounded when they were fired on by Russian forces near Kiev.
[47] Documents appear to show that the man is Brent Reno, a New York Times contributor, but the Times did confirm that he wasn't on assignment for them while in Kiev.
[48] Just awful to hear.
[49] Before you go, are there any updates on the impact of the economic sanctions imposed by the Biden administration?
[50] Well, yet again, to answer this, I want to put Russia's relationship with China under the microscope a little bit.
[51] On Sunday, Russia's finance minister said that the Russian government is going to be counting on China to help it survive the sanctions imposed by the U .S. and other Western nations.
[52] So even though nearly half of Russia's gold and foreign currency is now frozen, Russia has a significant amount of gold and other currencies held in China, which will only mean that they could survive under these sanctions for longer than the administration is claiming, but also that the relationship between two of the United States' greatest adversaries will become stronger as a result.
[53] That's definitely going to be a key piece of this issue moving forward.
[54] Thanks for your insight, Ian.
[55] Of course, thanks, John.
[56] Daily Wires, Ian Howarth.
[57] Coming up, we hear from our reporter on the ground in Ukraine.
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[63] Amid the ongoing Russian assault in Ukraine, a Daily Wire reporting team has been on the ground there to take stock of the defense efforts.
[64] Joining us now is Daily Wire correspondent Cassie Dillon.
[65] She's been in Ukraine speaking to various civilians who are joining the war effort to defend their country.
[66] Cassie, welcome.
[67] It sounds like you're on the road.
[68] If you're able, can you share where you are right now?
[69] Thank you.
[70] We're actually coming back from the Ukrainian Polish border where we just dropped another busload of refugees off to the refugee center.
[71] So how has the situation on the ground changed over the past 24 to 48 hours?
[72] And also, how's morale on the ground?
[73] Honestly, the situation is really starting to change quite dramatically.
[74] Just a week ago, Ukrainians saw Western Ukraine as sort of their safe haven.
[75] It was a place that they didn't think Russia would go touch.
[76] So people were traveling there from southern and eastern Ukraine to Western Ukraine for safety.
[77] But in the last 48 hours, Putin made it very clear that Western Ukraine is not out of his reach because he shot missiles at a training facility right outside the city of Leviv and very close to the Polish border.
[78] As to the morale, people are really coming together right now because there's a common enemy.
[79] And honestly, they realize that what's happening is bigger than how it's inconveniencing their own personal lives.
[80] And they're just focused on the present and what they can do to help.
[81] One woman I spoke to was a 21 -year -old college student named Anna who left her family in Ukraine to travel to Poland all by herself just to find safety.
[82] I was terrified, obviously, when the war started, I was terrified when I was thinking about it, but the moment I got to do things, like, I have a task, I have to back my things, I have to go to the railway station, I have to find the train.
[83] As long as I have these little tasks, the fear just, it doesn't exist because I can concentrate on those little steps.
[84] And right now I can tell you I'm calm as long as I don't start thinking about the future.
[85] While Anna is staying super positive, her journey to the border was still very daunting, and it's what a lot of other Ukrainians are going through.
[86] Because there are different waves of refugees coming depending on which cities Russia is attacking.
[87] And so as that keeps happening, people are waiting in extremely long lines just to escape their cities.
[88] Meanwhile, Ukrainian citizens are finding ways to contribute to the defense effort.
[89] One man actually turned his workshop where he used to make wallets and purses and backpacks into a place where he's now making body armor.
[90] And I met another guy who works at a brewery where they are taking their bottles from their beer and are turning it into Molotov cocktails with these really funny cartoons making fun of Putin.
[91] And I also met an Israeli NGO that is actually here to teach the Ukrainian people how to defend their nationhood and how to create their.
[92] nationhood.
[93] And they use the Israeli story to kind of influence that.
[94] And then finally, I got to meet chef Jose Andres, a celebrity chef who was awesome and is here with his NGO where they bring food to places impacted by natural and man -made disaster.
[95] And he told me that he is not leaving Ukraine until the war is over and the country is rebuilt.
[96] Now, we've seen reports of Russia bombing a base that's just 15 miles from Poland's border in Western Ukraine, which is very close to where you've been.
[97] What's the sense of threat level where you are?
[98] So the threat level in Lviv definitely is increasing.
[99] However, it's still one of the more safer cities in Ukraine.
[100] But I can speak from firsthand that it is getting worse.
[101] I was woken up at 3 .30 in the morning on Sunday to the sound of air sirens blaring.
[102] And I actually recorded my reaction at the time.
[103] It's 3 .35 in the morning.
[104] I was just woken up by air sirens going off in the distance.
[105] I'm in the city of Lviv.
[106] Ukraine's Still, you can hear the sirens blaring and there's noise going with the sirens telling you to get the safety.
[107] Scary stuff.
[108] Cassie, thanks so much for reporting and stay safe.
[109] We'll do.
[110] Thanks for having me. That's Cassie Dillon reporting for the Daily Wire from Ukraine.
[111] With midterm elections now just eight months away, new polling shows a massive partisan shift could be underway among voting blocks crucial to the success of Democrats.
[112] Here with more on what's causing the shift and how it could spell trouble for President Biden is DailyWire's Cabot Phillips.
[113] So Cabot, you've been keeping a close eye on all the latest data, but there was some new polling that really stuck out.
[114] Tell us about that.
[115] Yeah, a new poll from the Wall Street Journal really has people talking because it's showing a swing among minority voters that we haven't seen in decades.
[116] And it's bad news for Democrats.
[117] In the 2020 elections, exit polls showed Joe Biden winning well over 60 percent of Latino voters, who've historically been a key part of Democrat electoral success.
[118] In this new poll, though, there's been a 30 -point swing among Latino voters.
[119] And now it's actually Republicans who hold a nine -point advantage among Latinos when asked which party they'd support in the midterm elections.
[120] Now, we'd seen isolated incidents in Texas and Florida, where majority Latino districts have gone red, but this type of poll at the national level is really staggering.
[121] 30 points, yeah, it really is.
[122] We're also seeing evidence of a notable shift among black.
[123] voters as well, correct?
[124] Yeah, again, black voters have historically supported Democrats by overwhelming margins, but this Wall Street Journal poll says that solid base of support is starting to, in their words, erode.
[125] So back in November, the same poll found that Democrats had a 56 -point advantage with black voters.
[126] But now that just four months later, that advantage sits at 35 points.
[127] That is a 21 -point drop among black voters in just four months.
[128] 27 % of black voters now say they'd favor a Republican candidate this November, which may not sound significant, but keep in mind, Republicans typically only get around 10 % support among black voters.
[129] If that 27 % number holds in November and beyond, you're looking at a huge shift in the electoral map, which would favor Republicans.
[130] Yeah, it would be a significant change.
[131] Now, we've noted President Biden's struggles in the polls over the past few months.
[132] How much of this drop in Democrat support can be tied to that?
[133] Well, a lot.
[134] Typically, midterm elections are around.
[135] referendum on the president and have more to do with leadership at the top than specific down -ballot candidates like a congressman.
[136] And we see that correlation in the polls here.
[137] As support for Biden drops and has been dropping over the last few months, midterm voter preferences have also shifted.
[138] For example, President Biden won over 90 % of black voters less than a year ago and had an 86 % approval rating among that demographic coming in.
[139] But now, most polls show him only in the high 60s among black voters, which directly correlates with increased support for Republicans in midterm polling.
[140] So if you extrapolate that data out more broadly, President Biden now sits at 42 % approval and 57 % disapproval.
[141] And we know from years of data that for a lot of midterm voters, if they don't like the leader of the party nationally, they're willing to switch sides, or at least not vote, even if they don't mind their own member of Congress or don't really know anything about them.
[142] Down ballot candidates often get sort of caught in the crossfire of national political.
[143] battles, and that means bearing the consequences of, in this case, an unpopular president.
[144] Okay, now more broadly, I want to get to the specific issues that are driving this shift.
[145] Tell us about what the latest polling says there.
[146] Yeah, the latest shift in favor of Republicans is being driven by a few things, but number one is without a doubt, the economy.
[147] 50 % of voters now say inflation and the economy are their number one most important issue, and that's good for Republicans.
[148] Voters give them a 17 -point advantage when asked which party would better take on inflation.
[149] And more importantly, 63 % of voters disapprove of Biden's handling of the economy.
[150] The one issue where President Biden's performing relatively well is the war on Ukraine, which one in four voters now say is their most important issue.
[151] And even though the majority of voters say Putin would not have attacked if Trump were still in office, 47 % now say they approve of Biden's handling of the crisis compared to 46 % who disapprove.
[152] But while he's basically breaking even there, more broadly, voters, do still give Republicans a seven -point advantage when they were asked which party would better handle Russia.
[153] So a small silver landing for Biden, but the more you look into the data, the more concerning signs you see long -term and short -term for Democrats ahead of November.
[154] Yeah, it definitely seems like they've got an uphill battle ahead of them.
[155] Cabot, thanks for the reporting.
[156] Anytime.
[157] That's DailyWire's Cabot Phillips.
[158] Another story we're tracking this week.
[159] Multiple rockets were reportedly fired at the U .S. consulate in northwestern Iraq over the weekend.
[160] One official told AP that the missiles were fired from Iran.
[161] The attack follows an Israeli strike in Syria that killed two members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
[162] No injuries were reported.
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