Morning Wire XX
[0] As tensions between Russia and Ukraine grow, the question most are asking is how will the U .S. and its allies respond if Russia invades?
[1] No decisions have been made to deploy any forces from the United States at this time.
[2] We have the latest on Ukraine and how the U .S. withdrawal from Afghanistan is shaping the response.
[3] I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire Editor -in -Chief John Bickley.
[4] It's Tuesday, January 25th, and this is Morning Wire.
[5] Sarah Palin's defamation lawsuit against the New York Times is set to begin soon.
[6] Will the former Alaska governor be able to prove the newspaper acted with malice?
[7] And what effect will the case have on the media and the First Amendment?
[8] And is cancel culture coming for charitable giving?
[9] One group is pushing to expose the donation activity of private citizens.
[10] We have to make sure that we honor donor intent and donor privacy in this country to sustain this beautiful culture of philanthropy, which is really, unique in the world.
[11] Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire.
[12] Stay tuned.
[13] We have the news you need to know.
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[23] The Pentagon puts U .S. troops on higher alert as tensions continue to increase between Russia and Ukraine.
[24] Here to give us the latest on the threat of conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as well as the response of the U .S. and its allies, is Daily Wires Ian Howarth.
[25] So, Ian, what can you tell us about Russia and Ukraine?
[26] Well, to put it, basically, things are worse.
[27] Last week, White House Press Secretary Jensaki warned that Russia could invade Ukraine any time now.
[28] Since then, things have really devolved.
[29] Nearly 10 ,000 troops have been placed on alert, and on Sunday, the State Department ordered the families of all American personnel, as well as some non -essential staff at the U .S. Embassy in Ukraine, to leave the country.
[30] But just like Afghanistan, the Biden administration has also stated that they don't know how many Americans are currently in Ukraine.
[31] This means that if Russia was to invade, we simply wouldn't know how many Americans were left behind.
[32] We don't put a chip in Americans when they go to countries around the world and track their movements.
[33] Now, what is the official position of the United States when it comes to the threat of invasion?
[34] Yeah, this is actually another confusing situation, mainly because the messaging pushed by the president and his administration has been somewhat inconsistent.
[35] During his press conference last week, Biden so doubt on what could be a catalyst for a response to an invasion.
[36] If it invades, and it depends on what it does.
[37] It's one thing if it's a minor incursion, and then we end up having to fight about what to do and not do, et cetera.
[38] But since then, the Biden administration, more broadly, has tried to outline a much more aggressive position.
[39] For example, on Sunday, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken described the situation in much more black and white terms.
[40] If a single additional Russian force goes into Ukraine in an aggressive way, as I said, that would trigger a swift, a severe, and a united response from us and from Europe.
[41] And what would a response actually look like in that case?
[42] While most officials are threatening some form of response, it's not actually clear what this response would be.
[43] The most likely will be some form of economic sanctions placed on Russia.
[44] That's at least what UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson referred to when he spoke on the matter.
[45] And so what we're saying is that the UK is leading on creating the package of economic sanctions, working with our partners around the world, might be talking to them this afternoon's evening.
[46] And when it comes to a stronger reaction, there are reports that the Biden administration is considering deploying thousands of troops to Eastern Europe in the surrounding area, which, if true, would signal a pretty significant shift in messaging.
[47] But one final piece of the puzzle that we should consider is that, like most issues of foreign policy, Russia's increased aggression didn't happen in a vacuum.
[48] Kaley McEnany, who was White House press secretary under former President Trump, suggested that Putin was responding to weakness.
[49] He is a shark who tastes blood in the water, and he senses weakness in his foe.
[50] And his foe, make no doubt about it, is the United States.
[51] So one thing we'll be tracking here is how the Biden administration responds in terms of deterrence, which will likely be a major factor when it comes to Putin's next move.
[52] Biden met with other European leaders on Monday, so it'll be interesting to see if anything substantive comes from that.
[53] Right.
[54] Ian, thanks for reporting.
[55] Of course, thanks for having me. That's Daily Wires, Ian Howarth.
[56] Coming up, Sarah Palin faces off against the New York Times in court.
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[64] Sarah Palin's defamation lawsuit against the New York Times was postponed Monday after the former Alaska governor tested positive for COVID on the eve of opening statements.
[65] Palin is suing the paper over an editorial that falsely linked her political action Committee to the shooting of Representative Gabby Giffords.
[66] Here to discuss the ongoing lawsuit as Daily Wire Senior Editor Ash Short.
[67] So, Ash, this has been a lengthy legal saga.
[68] First, how do we get here?
[69] Yeah, well, this trial has been a few years in the making.
[70] Palin first filed a lawsuit against the Times in 2017, but a judge dismissed her case.
[71] Two years later, a federal appeals court revived the lawsuit, which has led to the trial that will take place over the next two weeks.
[72] So we're expecting a couple of weeks here.
[73] Right.
[74] Now, getting to the center of the case, what did the Times say about Palin in its editorial that sparked this lawsuit?
[75] The editorial claim that there was a clear link between a map that was circulated by Palin's PAC, which showed crosshairs over various political districts, to the 2011 shooting that left former representative Giffords with a severe brain injury and killed six others.
[76] Multiple media outlets tried to blame Palin's map for the shooting when it occurred, but no connection was ever proven, and the shooter turned out to be a mentally ill man who couldn't be defined as right -wing or left -wing.
[77] Though the link between Palin and the assassination attempt was only made by the legacy media and had no proof, the Times editorial included that accusation six years later.
[78] That's why Palin argues that the newspaper acted with actual malice when publishing.
[79] So the big question here, does Palin, actually stand a chance.
[80] We know these kind of cases are tough to win.
[81] They are tough, and it's unlikely she'll succeed, as the Supreme Court has ruled that a public figure must prove an outlet operated with actual malice when defaming them.
[82] That's a notoriously difficult and high bar for most public figures to prove.
[83] Also at issue for Palin is the fact that the Times corrected the claim in the editorial and issued an apology two days after publication.
[84] The Times maintains that it was just an inaccuracy to link Palin to the shooting, and it will be difficult for Palin to prove otherwise.
[85] If a jury decides against Palin, what are her options?
[86] Palin has indicated she'll take her case to the Supreme Court in an effort to get them to reconsider the 1964 ruling.
[87] Notably, that case was called the New York Times v. Sullivan.
[88] Two Supreme Court justices, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, have each suggested the Sander and Sullivan needs to be revisited.
[89] So significant legal precedent could really be on the line here.
[90] It could.
[91] Ash, thanks for keeping us informed.
[92] Anytime.
[93] That's Daily Wire's senior editor, Ash Short.
[94] A coalition of activist groups is pushing a prominent charitable fund organization to expose private individuals who donate to conservative groups.
[95] Here to tell us more is Daily Wire's Charlotte Pence Bond.
[96] So Charlotte, what is this group called Unmasking Fidelity?
[97] So Unmasking Fidelity is a coalition of activists that have joined together to apply pressure to another organization called Fidelity Charitable, or we'll call it FC.
[98] Fidelity Charitable is a 501C3 organization associated with Fidelity, the investment firm, and it basically streamlines charitable giving, primarily for investors who use the Fidelity Investments platform.
[99] So basically, investors are able to set up a charitable giving account and manage that in conjunction with their other investments.
[100] Fidelity Charitable is actually the top grantmaker in the country, and they gave out $9 .1 billion to charities in 2020.
[101] Okay, and unmasking fidelity is now going after this organization.
[102] Right.
[103] So this activist group has issued a list of demands.
[104] Among other things, they've asked FC to publicly disclose all contributions and fees related to those contributions over the last five years relating to 10 specific organizations.
[105] Keep in mind, exposing those contributions would potentially expose the donation activity of private individuals.
[106] So which organizations are they upset about exactly?
[107] Well, they're mainly going after conservative organizations.
[108] The activists claim these groups promote, quote, rhetoric and policies that enable white supremacist and fascist violence.
[109] For example, one organization on the list is Alliance Defending Freedom, which is a legal fund that focuses on religious liberty, and which we should note, partnered with the Daily Wire in its lawsuit against the Biden administration over the employer vaccine mandate.
[110] Another is Turning Point USA, which is a campus organization for conservative students.
[111] And the Family Research Council is also on the list.
[112] The full list was published in the Wall Street Journal.
[113] So the activist group is not alleging legal wrongdoing here.
[114] For example, they're not alleging there's been discrimination against left -wing or progressive causes on FC.
[115] No, they specifically acknowledge that FC is cause -neutral, regarding which charities they donate to.
[116] In fact, they're actually calling on FC to change that stance and become more discriminatory in the name of social responsibility.
[117] As of now, FC primarily relies on the IRS to regulate which charitable organizations can receive funds, and they don't apply any ideological litmus tests.
[118] Individuals who use the program freely choose which charities to donate to as long as their IRS approved.
[119] The activist group sees this as an opportunity to financially suppress non -operative.
[120] profits with whom they disagree politically.
[121] Here's Fatima Ahmad, executive director at Muslim Justice League, speaking in a September webinar about the initiative.
[122] And we know that if we win this campaign, we could cut off massive amounts of funding.
[123] And how has FC responded to the activist pressure?
[124] Well, a group of over 1 ,800 professionals who were connected with Fidelity actually sent a letter to Fidelity Investments and Fidelity Charitable Leadership, demanding that they refer to.
[125] refuse to give in to the activist pressure.
[126] Essentially, giving into the activist demands would expose private individuals giving history.
[127] And the authors of the letters say would potentially put individuals in a position to be threatened or even doxed if they're caught donating to a charity that the activist don't approve of.
[128] Morningwire actually spoke to one of the people who signed that letter.
[129] Here's president of Heritage Foundation, Dr. Kevin Roberts.
[130] What they're doing is trying to make transparent, to use a sweet word, that would have really bad meaning.
[131] The donor privacy, the list of donors that are giving to 10 organizations, and the key thing is, if you look at that list of 10 organizations, they're all organizations who work on issues like the pro -life issue, like the marriage issue.
[132] So among other things, the activists potentially want a list of names of people who have donated to those 10 specific organizations.
[133] Right.
[134] But thus far, Fidelity Charitable has not given in.
[135] Do we expect that to last?
[136] We'll see.
[137] The professionals in the letter argue that ethics.
[138] see has an opportunity and a responsibility to stand their ground against these activist demands.
[139] Charlotte, thanks for reporting.
[140] Thanks for having me. That's Daily Wires, Charlotte Pence -Bond.
[141] Other stories we're tracking this week?
[142] The Biden administration's order mandating that all federal employees be vaccinated against COVID or lose their jobs has been blocked by a federal judge.
[143] In his ruling Friday, U .S. District Judge Jeffrey Brown said that the case is about, quote, whether the president can with a stroke.
[144] of a pen and without the input of Congress require millions of federal employees to undergo a medical procedure as a condition of their employment.
[145] That, under the current state of the law, as just recently expressed by the Supreme Court, is a bridge too far.
[146] A male stowaway survived an 11 -hour flight in the wheel well of a cargo plane traveling from South Africa to the Netherlands on Sunday.
[147] It is not known whether the man was on board the entire 11 -hour journey or whether he climbed on board during the plane's stop in Nairobi.
[148] It's extremely rare for Strait of the plane's a ways to survive long flights due to low oxygen levels and sub -zero temperatures at high altitudes.
[149] The Supreme Court has agreed to hear cases on affirmative action programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina.
[150] The lawsuits allege that their admissions processes violate civil rights and equal protection laws.
[151] The arguments on the cases are expected to take place next term, which starts in October.
[152] In defiance of Virginia Governor Glenn Yonkin's executive order, the superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools ordered principals on Friday to deny students who refused to wear a mask access to in -person learning.
[153] And on Sunday, Taiwan intercepted dozens of Chinese military aircraft.
[154] The latest move by Communist China involved 34 fighters and four electronic warfare aircraft along with a bomber.
[155] Taiwan used combat aircraft as a warning and deployed missile systems to keep watch.
[156] And a new proposal by California lawmakers would allow children ages 12 and up to be vaccinated without their parents' consent.
[157] 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.
[158] That's all the time we've got this morning.
[159] Thanks for waking up with us.
[160] We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
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