Morning Wire XX
[0] The chaotic situation in Afghanistan continues, as tens of thousands of Americans and allies attempt to evacuate the country.
[1] What's life like for civilians in the Taliban -controlled country, and our resistance efforts seeing any success?
[2] I'm John Bickley with Georgia Howell.
[3] It's Wednesday, August 25th, and this is Morning Wire.
[4] The mask wars continue in schools across the country, while new data related to mask mandates has come to light.
[5] We'll talk about the latest developments, as well as the new wave of parent activism growing around the lightning rod issue.
[6] And Australia's government has cracked down on protesters who are pushing back against the country's strict lockdown policies.
[7] While the prime minister has signaled the country should plan for reopening, local governments aren't ready to let go of the goal of zero spread.
[8] Is there any end in sight for the lockdowns in Australia?
[9] Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire.
[10] Stay tuned.
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[17] The chaos in Afghanistan continues, with tens of thousands converging on the Kabul Airport, in a desperate attempt to escape with widespread reports of Taliban violence.
[18] Here to talk about the volatile situation on the ground in Kabul, including the resistance effort against the Taliban, is national security analyst Ryan Morrow of the Clarion Project.
[19] Thanks for joining us, Ryan.
[20] Thanks for having me. So, Ryan, we've seen a lot of horrifying reports from Kabul as the Taliban have taken over.
[21] What's life like right now for people in and around Kabul?
[22] Life is hell in Afghanistan right now.
[23] It's full of fear and terror.
[24] And based on the reports I'm getting of people being killed and threatened and beaten, I believe that we're only getting maybe 10%, 20 % of the full picture of horror that is unfolding in Afghanistan right now.
[25] Really?
[26] Yeah.
[27] Our email inboxes are becoming full of desperate Afghans, asking for us to help get them out of the country as soon as possible.
[28] others saying if you can't get me onto a flight, have you received any tips on how I can go to other countries?
[29] How can I cross the border?
[30] How can I evade the Taliban?
[31] How can I defend myself?
[32] Is there a safe haven for me to go to?
[33] Right now, the only safe haven in the country is in the area of Pangyir, where the Afghan resistance continues to hold territory and hopefully can hold onto it long enough that they become a viable opposition force.
[34] Has there been any signs of success for the resistance efforts?
[35] The biggest underreported story out of Afghanistan right now is the success of the Afghan resistance, the amount of popular support that they have and the potential that they have for more tribes to join them.
[36] And the people who have fled from the Taliban, from the Afghan security forces that disappeared, are likely to reappear with the Afghan resistance if they are able to survive.
[37] They have repelled Taliban attacks.
[38] They are continuing to capture more and more territory outside of the Panjia area.
[39] And so this represents a really tremendous opportunity for the United States and other countries to quickly turn this situation around.
[40] But as of right now, we've gotten no signals from the Biden administration, no signals from Congress or anyone that they realize that this option exists.
[41] This has become a truly chaotic situation.
[42] Are there ways to take back control of the country?
[43] What I'm proposing is that the United States and its allies, set up a safe zone within Afghanistan.
[44] Much like we set up one for the Kurds in Iraq under Saddam Hussein, much like we set up one for the Kurdish -led Syrian Democratic forces in Syria, who were fighting ISIS and other terrorists.
[45] It's also the model that enabled us to defeat the Taliban in the first place.
[46] In October and November 2001, we allied with the Northern Alliance, forces that were fighting against the Taliban, and we were quickly successful.
[47] and if we have a safe haven for them, they won't be destroyed, and the refugees and the people fleeing the Taliban won't have to come to the United States, they won't have to go to Europe, they'll have a place within Afghanistan that they can go to to rebuild their lives and fight the terrorists for us.
[48] Is this idea gaining traction?
[49] Behind the scenes, I have been having talks with influential Republican officials and personnel about this plan.
[50] They believe that it is the best option out there.
[51] They're quite frankly shocked that they hadn't heard of this option before, but we are in a race against time.
[52] The longer that this crisis goes on and the longer that the United States is weak and surrenders its responsibility, the harder it will become to implement this option and turn the situation around.
[53] Well, let's hope we can get these people some help.
[54] Thanks, Ryan, so much for talking with us.
[55] Thanks for having me. National Security analyst Ryan Morrow.
[56] Coming up, the battle over masks and schools intensifies.
[57] According to a survey, over two -thirds of Americans are planning to travel this summer.
[58] This means that airlines, restaurants, and more have been ramping up their hiring.
[59] Who do they turn to?
[60] ZipRecruiter.
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[62] And right now, you can try ZipRecruiter for free at ZipRecruiter .com slash wire.
[63] As schools open for the fall semester, a growing number of districts have implemented mask mandates for students, a move that has sparked controversy nationwide.
[64] Here to tell us about the pushback from parents and how schools are responding is Daily Wire Managing Editor Cabot Phillips.
[65] Cabot, thanks for being here.
[66] Absolutely.
[67] So to start, can you give us a brief overview of where things stand with regards to mask mandates in schools?
[68] Of course.
[69] So 14 states, including California, New York, and Illinois.
[70] have issued statewide orders requiring masks for all students this fall.
[71] 24 states have some form of mask mandate for students, but it's being implemented differently from district to district.
[72] In Arizona, Florida, and Texas, the state's governors have outlawed school mask mandates altogether, though they're all being challenged at the moment.
[73] Utah is the only state to have passed specific legislation outlong mandates in schools, but that measure is also facing legal pushback at the moment.
[74] So basically, states with mandates are being protested and challenged in schools, court, and states without mandates are being protested and challenged in court.
[75] So exactly what sort of pushback have we seen against these policies, specifically for those opposing the mandates?
[76] It's been pretty intense.
[77] Parents are showing up by the hundreds to school board meetings, waving signs and chanting.
[78] Local officials around the country say they haven't seen an issue this polarizing in decades, and that school board meetings and town halls are drawing 10 or 20 times more parents than usual.
[79] And videos of these meetings have gone viral with parents.
[80] parents on both sides giving fiery speeches and often yelling at one another in the audience.
[81] In some cases, these protests have drawn the attention of law enforcement.
[82] In Texas, Utah, and California, multiple parents are facing charges varying from disorderly conduct and disrupting a public meeting all the way up to assault.
[83] What's been the main message of the parents who oppose mask mandates in schools?
[84] So the main thing we're hearing from these parents is that COVID just doesn't pose a strong threat to their children, whether they wear a mask or not.
[85] They point to data which shows that the mortality rate for elementary school children is just 0 .001%.
[86] One parent at a school board meeting noted that, according to government data, a kindergartner is more likely to be killed driving to school in the morning than by COVID.
[87] So they argue that masks are an overreaction to what for children amounts to a minor threat.
[88] Other parents argued that masks are harmful to a child's social development and that the decision to mask should just be left in the hands of parents and students themselves, not school boards.
[89] They basically view it as an individual decision, not a government one.
[90] The CDC published a study on masking in schools, and a lot of people are talking about it right now.
[91] Tell us a little bit about that.
[92] Yeah, there's actually a little controversy there.
[93] So back in May, the CDC published the results of a study that looked into how effective certain measures were at preventing COVID transmission in schools.
[94] That study didn't really gain any attention at the time, because the summary only really mentioned two key findings, that masking teachers and improving ventilation helped slow the spread.
[95] What they didn't include in the summary was that there was no difference they found between schools that required masks for students and those which didn't.
[96] So the CDC says masking teachers can be effective, but there's just not as much evidence for masking kids.
[97] Yeah, and the same also went for enforcing social distancing for students.
[98] In the words of the CDC, there was, quote, no statistically significant benefit for schools that mandated mask wearing and social distancing for those who didn't.
[99] And as you could guess, a lot of parents that oppose mask mandates from the start feel the study is kind of vindication for them.
[100] Interesting.
[101] Cabot, thanks so much for the update.
[102] Any time.
[103] Daily Wire Managing Editor, Cabot Phillips.
[104] After a week of significant lockdown -related news out of Australia, including crackdowns on protesters, the Prime Minister is talking about lifting restrictions.
[105] But some states are hesitant to give up on their strict zero -spritments.
[106] policies, even if the vaccine goals are met.
[107] Joining to fill us in on what's happening in Australia is DailyWire's Chrissy Clark.
[108] Morning, Chrissy.
[109] Good morning, John.
[110] So, Chrissy, you've been tracking this situation.
[111] Give us a rundown.
[112] It's important to emphasize how severe the lockdowns are in Australia.
[113] It's not really comparable to what we experience here in the U .S. For example, you can't leave your house unless you're doing an approved activity.
[114] You can't socialize with anyone outside of your household, except with one person, called a nominated visitor, which is an exclusive person you're permitted to interact with.
[115] You have to wear a mask outdoors unless you're exercising vigorously.
[116] You can't travel outside of your local government area or more than 10 kilometers.
[117] That's just about six miles from your home.
[118] And all of this is part of a national strategy of eliminating any viral spread.
[119] And people are extremely serious about it.
[120] For example, a local government council apparently decided to shoot multiple impounded dogs in order to prevent volunteers from leaving.
[121] their homes to come retrieve the dogs.
[122] Awful.
[123] Granted, that appears to be an isolated case, but still, there were less than 10 total cases in the state at the time, so it just gives you a picture into how seriously many Australians are taking this zero -spread approach.
[124] How much are authorities enforcing these laws?
[125] Quite a bit.
[126] A newscast went viral over the past few days, and it was kind of an amazing window into how draconian these measures are.
[127] For example, one rugby player made news when he was caught visiting a friend outside of his local government area, and he may face criminal charges for it.
[128] Sidelined Sharks player Josh Dugan denies lying to police when he was found a long way from Sydney.
[129] The 31 -year -old stopped at 1130 last night in Lithgow, where he allegedly told officers he was moving to the area and feeding animals before admitting to visiting a friend.
[130] The NRL is investigating and criminal charges could be laid.
[131] It's getting harder and harder to hide.
[132] It's if you're doing the wrong thing.
[133] The majority of citations are apparently given to people for leaving their homes without a reasonable excuse.
[134] Here's an announcement from the New South Wales Police Department.
[135] 681 penalty infringement notices issued in the last 24 hours.
[136] More than 400 of those notices were again for people being outside of their home without a reasonable excuse.
[137] So obviously the zero spread policies are extremely strict.
[138] How much longer can they keep going like this?
[139] Yeah, the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, is actually pushing to reopen, if they hit their vaccine goal, that is.
[140] He held a press conference about it on Monday.
[141] Once you get to 70 % of your country that is eligible for the vaccine, the plan sets out that we have to move forward.
[142] We must adjust our mindset.
[143] Cases will not be the issue once we get above 70%.
[144] Australia had a slow vaccination rollout, and right now, just 30 % of the population over age 16 are fully vaccinated.
[145] At the current vaccination rate, they expect to be able to open by December, but some local governments are pushing to stay locked down.
[146] They're committed to this zero -spread idea.
[147] For example, two states, Western Australia and Queensland, have indicated that they may continue with restrictions even once the vaccination target has been reached.
[148] So no end in sight for many.
[149] appears so.
[150] Thanks for the reporting, Chrissy.
[151] Thanks for having me. Daily Wires, Chrissy Clark.
[152] Other big developments that we're tracking?
[153] President Biden announced Tuesday evening that his administration would stick with their decision to withdraw all American personnel from Afghanistan by August 31st.
[154] Foreign leaders in the G7 have reportedly urged the president to reconsider the deadline, noting the number of American citizens and allies still trapped in the country.
[155] White House press secretary, Jen Saki told reporters the decision was made in part to avoid inflaming tensions with the Taliban, who have called the August 31st deadline a red line.
[156] If you like 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.
[157] That's all the time we've got this morning.
[158] Thanks for waking up with us.
[159] We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
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