Morning Wire XX
[0] The immigration crisis on the Texas border worsens, with Texas security personnel being forced to contain the area as thousands of migrants converge on Del Rio.
[1] We'll talk with Texas officials, including Governor Greg Abbott, about how the state and the federal government are handling the crisis.
[2] We are arresting in jailing anybody who comes across those fences because that is aggravated trespass.
[3] I'm John Bickley with George.
[4] Georgia Howe.
[5] It's Wednesday, September 22nd, and this is Morning Wire.
[6] The new Texas heartbeat law gets its first potential test.
[7] A Texas doctor is being sued by two out -of -state plaintiffs after he admitted to performing an illegal abortion in the state.
[8] We're getting a glimpse of what a post -row world would look like.
[9] We'll look at what this means for the future of the new pro -life law and how it could affect its enforcement.
[10] Border Patrol refutes claims that agents are mistreating Haitian migrants at the Texas border.
[11] What prompted the allegations and what is Border Patrol saying actually happened?
[12] And before we get into our first story, a significant update on a case that's gained national attention.
[13] Autopsy results released Tuesday determined that the body found Sunday in Wyoming was, in fact, the remains of Gabby Petito.
[14] Final autopsy results are still pending, but the initial cause of death has been ruled a homicide.
[15] The 22 -year -old disappeared while on a cross -country trip with her fiancé, Brian Laundry.
[16] Her family reported her missing on September 11th.
[17] The FBI searched the home of Laundry's family in Florida on Monday.
[18] Go to DailyWire .com for up -to -the -minute details.
[19] Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire.
[20] Stay tuned.
[21] We have the news you need to know.
[22] This show is sponsored by WioTech.
[23] WioTech, one of the nation's leading auto and diesel training schools, sees the trades as America's front lines.
[24] WioTech is shaping young men, women, and veterans to build careers and businesses.
[25] America is built on the trades, and WioTech is leading the way in training.
[26] Visit wyotech .edu to subscribe and donate to the future technicians of America.
[27] The small town of Del Rio, Texas, has been in the headlines over the last week, due to a surge of 14 ,000 migrants, mostly from Haiti.
[28] John, you spoke to some Texas officials, including Governor Greg Abbott, and Congressman Tony Gonzalez, who represents that district.
[29] Yeah, I spoke with both of them about the crisis, and they revealed some rather eye -opening details.
[30] Both said the whole situation as being mishandled badly by the Biden administration and that state and local officials are being left to basically deal with a fallout.
[31] I asked Governor Abbott how he's handling the crisis, and here's what he had to say.
[32] Texas alone is spending $3 billion for border security, including building a wall so things like this will not be.
[33] happen in the future.
[34] But we are going to do our part to try to prevent any of these people from getting loose and getting into the state of Texas.
[35] We are putting up fencing and other things right there on the border.
[36] And we are arresting in jailing anybody who comes across those fences because that is aggravated trespass because I declared it a disaster.
[37] The criminal penalties are doubled, and people can be put in jail for up to a year for trespassing in the state of Texas.
[38] We opened up multiple jail facilities where we can jail thousands of people.
[39] And as opposed to the Biden administration that uses catch and release, we arrest in jail people coming across the border illegally.
[40] The governor noted that the Biden administration is starting to fly some of the migrants, the Haitian migrants, back to their home country.
[41] But he said what's taking place is not nearly enough.
[42] Again, we're talking 14 ,000 people here, like you mentioned.
[43] He also said that the administration is not being transparent about who exactly is being flown out versus who's being allowed to stay.
[44] They may be sending back the adults who are men, who are traveling alone, but not sending back the family units.
[45] Where are they sending these family units?
[46] No one knows.
[47] This seems to be cloaked in secrecy.
[48] Congressman Gonzalez went to the border himself to document what was happening after reporters were prohibited from the area.
[49] What is happening is just pure chaos.
[50] I mean, you have a small, sleepy town that is just essentially just been overrun with all these different issues.
[51] The flights out is one thing, but I'm also hearing that there's going to be a lot of people, you know, over 10 ,000 people that are going to be processed and released.
[52] You know, that part of the equation isn't helpful, you know, because all that does is attract more people to come over in this dangerous track.
[53] And he said he's hearing 10 ,000 will stay.
[54] Right.
[55] That's what he's hearing, but it's important to note that's not confirmed.
[56] I asked Gonzalez about how locals in Del Rio were responding to the whole mess.
[57] Here's what he told me. You know, when this first started, when this border crisis first started, it was, you know, somewhat about politics.
[58] And then it quickly turned away from that.
[59] You know, people didn't care about Republicans, Democrats, independents.
[60] everybody was furious.
[61] You know, everyone kind of feels abandoned.
[62] It's probably the best word to put it.
[63] And everyone's just trying to do everything they possibly can.
[64] You know, local, I'm in contact with the mayor of Del Rio and the county judge of Del Rio, the sheriff.
[65] And everyone's just trying to do the best they can.
[66] But you can see this coming a mile away.
[67] The congressman also urged President Biden to just listen to the people dealing with this situation on a daily basis.
[68] What I'm getting at is this administration, needs to listen to those that are on the border that live it every single day and they need to respond to it.
[69] Well, I guess we'll see how many people end up being flown out versus end up staying.
[70] Right.
[71] Yeah.
[72] And if we ever get those official numbers.
[73] Right.
[74] Coming up, the new Texas heartbeat law gets its first big legal test.
[75] If you're with Verizon, AT &T, or T -Mobile, you're paying too much.
[76] Switching to Pure Talk saves the average family over $800 a year.
[77] Right now, get unlimited talk, text, and six gigs of data for just $30 a month.
[78] Find the plan that's right for you at puretalk .com.
[79] A doctor in Texas has been sued after he publicly admitted to performing an illegal abortion violating the state's new pro -life law, which bans most abortions after six weeks.
[80] Here to discuss the situation is Daily Wire's Charlotte Pence -Bond.
[81] So Charlotte, tell us what's happening with these two lawsuits.
[82] Sure, so two disbarred lawyers, one in our own.
[83] Arkansas and another in Illinois, filed two separate lawsuits against Alan Braid, an OBGYN in San Antonio who wrote an op -ed saying he provided an abortion to a woman who was beyond the state's new limit.
[84] Right.
[85] Remind us about the details of this law and how it works.
[86] Yeah, so it outlaws abortions after fetal cardiac activity can be detected, or around six weeks of pregnancy.
[87] And more notably, it essentially allows private citizens to sue people who break the law, including those who aid and abet illegal procedures.
[88] Mallory Quigley, with the pro -life group Susan B. Anthony list, she explained this enforcement strategy to me. The enforcement mechanism is very controversial in that it allows people from inside Texas and even out of state to file these lawsuits.
[89] But the enforcement mechanism, you know, that is part of the eagerness of state lawmakers in Texas to find a way to protect unborn children.
[90] So what we're seeing here is the law being enforced how it's supposed to be enforced by citizens?
[91] Right.
[92] The doctor was sued by a man from Arkansas named Oscar Stilly, who did an interview with the New York Times where he actually said he isn't even pro -life.
[93] He's taking legal action against the doctor simply because the doctor violated the law.
[94] He said, quote, we pride ourselves on being a nation of laws.
[95] The complaint describes Stilly as a disbarred and disgraced former Arkansas lawyer serving a 15 -year federal sentence on what he claims are fraudulent federal charges.
[96] of tax evasion and conspiracy.
[97] Local media also reported that the doctor was sued by Felipe Gomez, another disbarred lawyer from Illinois.
[98] He describes himself in the lawsuit as a pro -choice plaintiff and reportedly asks the judge to order the law is unconstitutional and violates Roevi -Wade.
[99] So what we've got here is people filing suits that aren't coming from a pro -life perspective, in fact, the opposite, and one's even trying to overthrow the law.
[100] Right.
[101] I mean, it's always hard to say for sure what someone's motives are, but it doesn't.
[102] doesn't appear these men are doing this for moral reasons.
[103] Stillie even told the times that he believes in a woman's right to abort her unborn child, but he saw the lawsuit as a win -win for him.
[104] He said he wants his $10 ,000 and he aims to collect it.
[105] Now, some on the pro -life side aren't happy about these lawsuits.
[106] I spoke to National Right to Life President Carol Tobias about them.
[107] The attorneys that have filed the lawsuit against Dr. Brade have already said that they support abortion and they think this law is ridiculous, so they are going to do everything they can to overturn it.
[108] I just, you know, I don't know what's going to happen, but I certainly hope it fails because this is certainly a ridiculous effort.
[109] The law was put into place to save lives.
[110] They're just trying to make a joke of the law, and they need to fail.
[111] John Sego is the legislative director for Texas Right to Life and has said he believes the reason Brade published his op -ed was to attract these kinds of lawsuits.
[112] He told me pro -lifers should proceed with caution since it's not entirely clear if Brade really broke the law based on how he published the op -ed.
[113] Interesting.
[114] Yeah, the broader implications for these lawsuits could actually end up swinging against the cause of pro -life advocates who push for the Texas law in the first place.
[115] Depending on how the lawsuits turn out, it could end up undermining the law and allow those performing abortions to find loopholes to get around it.
[116] But on the other hand, though, there's always the chance that it goes the opposite.
[117] exit way, and we see abortions blocked by this legal action.
[118] Well, either way, these are the first of what we expect to be many lawsuits.
[119] Yeah, for sure.
[120] Thanks for the reporting, Charlotte.
[121] DailyWire's Charlotte Pence -Bond.
[122] Photos and videos circulated on Sunday that some reports claimed showed border patrol agents whipping Haitian migrants as they crossed the Rio Grande to enter the U .S. illegally.
[123] The image is spread quickly, producing sharp criticism.
[124] Here to discuss the situation is Daily Wire edited.
[125] Ash Short.
[126] So, Ash, what exactly are the allegations here?
[127] Well, when the pictures first emerged, numerous reporters and media outlets claim they showed agents using whips to round up Haitian migrants, with one outlet claiming an agent, quote, swung his whip menacingly.
[128] Border Patrol agents have blasted the claim, saying that they don't carry whips, and what was seen in the videos and photos were actually just rains, which are used to direct the horse.
[129] So where did the claims of whipping actually come from?
[130] It's pretty clear that a lot of people in the media don't know much about horseback riding.
[131] Border Patrol agents use western saddles and bridles, which use split rains, meaning the rains are attached to the bit, but not tied or clasped together.
[132] That means that long strips of leather hang down on either side of the horse's neck.
[133] So if a horse moves quickly to the side, this strip of leather will naturally flow out, which is what we saw in those photos.
[134] Reporters saw those images and jumped to pretty horrific conclusions.
[135] And what about the videos?
[136] The videos show agents on horseback attempting to block migrants.
[137] At one point when a migrant approaches the agent's horse, the agent swings the reins around in a circular motion.
[138] This was described as whipping.
[139] But a border patrol agent said this is done to keep migrants from getting too close to the animal.
[140] And it doesn't appear as though contact was made between the reins and the migrant.
[141] Well, this story really got around and a lot of media outlets were reporting it.
[142] Have any of them issued corrections about this?
[143] No, not at all, though it does appear some outlets have changed their wording to avoid the whipping claim.
[144] The New York Times, for example, wrote that the photos and videos showed, quote, agents on horseback grabbing and chasing down Haitian migrants.
[145] While the Washington Post said the images showed, quote, agents on horseback grabbing migrants.
[146] So we went from initial reports of agents using whips on migrants to the more mundane claims of them apprehending illegal immigrants while riding horses, which is, of course, their job.
[147] Right.
[148] Well, and the Biden administration actually weighed in on this.
[149] What did they say?
[150] They're citing with those claiming the Border Patrol agents acted inappropriately.
[151] Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas initially denied the use of whips to reporters in Del Rio, Texas.
[152] But when he spoke to CNN, Tuesday morning, Miorka said he was horrified by what he saw in the images.
[153] He also said DHS would investigate the matter, so a bit of a shift in messaging there.
[154] Right, just a bit.
[155] Ash, thanks for reporting.
[156] You're welcome.
[157] That's Daily Wire editor, Ash Short.
[158] Another story we're tracking this week.
[159] President Biden addressed the United Nations General Assembly for the first time on Tuesday and said the U .S. has turned the page on Afghanistan despite thousands of Americans and allies remaining in the country.
[160] I stand here today for the first time in 20 years of the United States not at war.
[161] We've turned the page.
[162] The president also suggested that the U .S. is not seeking a new cold war with China.
[163] The United States is ready to work with any nation that steps up and pursues peaceful resolution to shared challenges, even if we have intense disagreements in other areas.
[164] If you liked this episode and are interested in hearing more, subscribe to Morning Wire on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening, and give us a five -star review.
[165] That's all the time we've got this morning.
[166] Thanks for waking up with us.
[167] We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
[168] If you like this podcast, get the Morning Wire newsletter delivered straight to your inbox when you join at Dailywire .com slash subscribe.