Morning Wire XX
[0] The battle over tens of billions of dollars in foreign aid comes to a head on Capitol Hill as the GOP -led House approves funding for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.
[1] I think we did our work here, and I think history will judge it well.
[2] What happened to border security funding?
[3] And will these bills cost Mike Johnson his speakership?
[4] I'm Daily Wire, editor -in -chief John Bickley.
[5] Georgia Howe is on maternity leave.
[6] And joining me as co -host this week is Sage Steel, host of the Sage Steel Show.
[7] Welcome, Sage.
[8] Hi, John, good to be here.
[9] It's Monday, April 22nd, and this is Morning Wire.
[10] The Biden administration makes seismic changes to Title IX, adding transgenderism and other LGBT identities to its sex discrimination rules.
[11] We discussed the implications in the backlash.
[12] And federal officials face mounting pressure over a rash of tragic deaths caused by illegal immigrants.
[13] He's been deported eight times.
[14] He's committed 20 crimes.
[15] He's had seven different names, and now he's charged with murder.
[16] Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire.
[17] Stay tuned.
[18] We have the news you need to know.
[19] Hey guys, producer Brandon here.
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[28] On Saturday, after months of bitter debate, the House overwhelmingly passed a $95 billion foreign aid package that will include funding for Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel.
[29] Here with the details is Daily Wire Senior Editor Cabot Phillips.
[30] Hey, Cabot.
[31] So a hotly contested piece of legislation here that ultimately gained bipartisan and support, though a lot more Democrat.
[32] Tell us how we got here.
[33] Yeah, well, members finally came together in a rare showing of bipartisanship to pass that foreign aid package totaling $95 billion.
[34] The package was ultimately broken up into four separate portions, which were voted on back -to -back Saturday night.
[35] They included $65 billion for Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid in the Middle East, and $8 billion for the Indo -Pacific, Taiwan in particular.
[36] Now, as the final votes were being counted, a large number of Democrats, along with some Republicans, could be seen waving Ukrainian flags on the House floor in celebration.
[37] As Ukrainian president, Vladimir Zelensky, posted on social media, quote, democracy and freedom will never fail as long as America helps to protect it.
[38] He added that the aid package will, quote, keep the war from expanding, save thousands and thousands of lives, and help both of our nations to become stronger.
[39] Now, this is a stunning reversal from a few weeks ago when it seemed this bill was dead in the water.
[40] What were the final vote counts on each side?
[41] Yeah, well, first, it's worth noting that Speaker Johnson himself had spent most of the year in opposition to this very package, but ultimately became the biggest cheerleader on the right.
[42] The Speaker said he changed his mind after seeing secret reports from the U .S. intelligence community regarding the state of the war in Ukraine and the threat posed by Russia moving forward.
[43] But it was actually Democrats who pushed it over the finish line.
[44] All 210 Democrats voted in support of the funding, while the final count among Republicans was 101 Yays and 110 Mays.
[45] So deeply divided there.
[46] So still plenty of dissenters on the right who think the money should be spent here at home, particularly on border security.
[47] They argued the war is none of our business and nothing more than a financial black hole.
[48] Now, for their part, those in support claim that stopping Russia will prevent a wider conflict.
[49] Throughout the weekend, a number of those members compared Putin to Hitler and those against Ukraine funding to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, who famously opposed war with Germany in favor of appeasement.
[50] History will judge us all.
[51] by our actions here today and now.
[52] So as we deliberate on this vote, you have to ask yourself the question, am I Chamberlain or am I Churchill?
[53] So the real battle here was among Republicans.
[54] How did Johnson, in the end, win over enough Republican support to get this passed without border funding?
[55] Yeah, that's an important point.
[56] Johnson had initially assured his party that any foreign aid package would also include new funds, lending to secure the border, but that did not happen.
[57] However, he was able to sweeten the pot just enough to win over enough of his colleagues.
[58] Among other things, the bill includes new sanctions for Iran, and it also got the ball rolling on a measure that would begin selling off frozen Russian assets to help fund the war in Ukraine.
[59] Those are two popular elements on the right.
[60] Johnson also included in the package a law that targets TikTok, the wildly popular social media platform that the Pentagon says is controlled by the Chinese government and poses a national security risk.
[61] Zooming out, though, while Speaker Johnson did ultimately score passage of this massive bill, it remains to be seen what the political costs for him will be.
[62] Yeah, about that.
[63] Walk us through some of that political blowback.
[64] Well, despite the fact that members from both parties helped pass this bill, voters in both parties are far more split.
[65] While 75 % of Democrats in a new CBS poll this week said they support additional funding for Ukraine, 61 % of Republicans say they oppose it.
[66] With that in mind, a number of hardline conservative lawmakers have accused Speaker Johnson of essentially being out of step with Republican voters.
[67] And some, including reps Marjorie Taylor Green, Thomas Massey, and Paul Gossar, have publicly indicated they support a motion to vacate.
[68] In other words, an effort to remove Johnson from the speakership.
[69] It just gives you an idea of the divide within the Republican Party on this issue.
[70] Looking ahead, though, the final package is expected to pass the Senate easily in the coming days, where it'll then head to the desk of President Biden for final approval.
[71] A tumultuous journey indeed for this set of bills.
[72] Kabbat, thanks for reporting.
[73] Anytime.
[74] The Biden administration announced new Title IX policies on Friday that redefine sex discrimination to include gender identity.
[75] The sweeping new rules, which could allow biological males to compete in girls' sports and apply for women's scholarships or sparking outrage.
[76] Here with more is Daily Wire Culture Reporter Megan Basham.
[77] Hi, Megan.
[78] Hey, Sage.
[79] Good to hear a new voice.
[80] Thank you.
[81] glad to be here.
[82] Clearly, with this topic, there's been a lot of outcry, a ton of pushback about these new rules.
[83] And then what John just mentioned there, those are only a few of the changes being implemented.
[84] So first, can you give us a rundown of the full scope of these new policies?
[85] Sure.
[86] So as you said, they're going to include with the administration as calling new protections for the LGBTQ community.
[87] Now, the White House says they're intended to prevent federally funded programs from discriminating on the basis of gender identity and sex characteristics.
[88] What that means in practice is if a male student claims to be a woman and wants to compete in women's sports or apply for scholarships that are reserved for women, while he can do that.
[89] Schools will not be allowed to deny him or under these rules, they'll be guilty of discrimination.
[90] Now, under that same policy, biological males can't be discriminated against if they want to use women's restrooms or locker rooms.
[91] Now, the issue with these rules is that they fly directly in the face of a number of state laws.
[92] 24 states right now ban men from competing in women's sports, and at least 10 ban them from using women's intimate spaces.
[93] So Morningweyer spoke to Sarah Partial Perry, who is an attorney with the Heritage Foundation.
[94] Here's what she told us.
[95] Well, because I know and have done a thorough reading of the 1500 -page rule, there are 31 references to athletics within the actual text of the new rule.
[96] And in addition, it prohibits gender identity discrimination.
[97] in any extracurricular activity.
[98] Well, you can imagine sports are an extracurricular activity.
[99] So to say that it doesn't include sports is really very duplicitous on the part of the administration.
[100] So we can assure all of the individuals who are interested in this issue that sports are going to be included.
[101] And then there's also some free speech concerns because these new rules also ban harassment based on gender identity.
[102] there's a question of whether that could compel schools that accept any public money to have to use things like preferred pronouns.
[103] Speaking of harassment, Megan, how about the part of these new rules that deal with sexual assault claims on campus?
[104] Yeah, so the new rules also change how colleges and universities have to handle that as well.
[105] Going forward, accused students who are usually men will no longer have the right to cross -examine their accusers or the witnesses against them.
[106] Obviously, the right to question witnesses is part of our Sixth Amendment protections, but the Biden administration says campuses aren't courts.
[107] And these new rules are necessary to protect abuse victims from experiencing trauma.
[108] Now, it's noteworthy that these policies were initially put in place by the Obama administration, but then they were rolled back during the Trump era over concerns that they violate due process rights.
[109] We also asked Perry about the overturning of those Trump policies.
[110] We've gone back now under this administration's rule to what's called the single investigator model.
[111] We like to call these lovingly or not so lovingly kangaroo courts, which is to say that a single unelected college bureaucrat, many of whom are just out of college or just out of grad school themselves, gets to determine whether or not an individual who is charged with sexual assault or sexual harassment has actually committed that offense.
[112] So these new rules are set to take effect on August 1st, but a number of legal groups, including the Alliance Defending Freedom, are promising to challenge them in court long before then.
[113] It is hard to predict how Skodos would respond if it gets that far.
[114] But, Megan, people were passionate about this very, very upset.
[115] Yes.
[116] It's going to be interesting to see how it plays out from here.
[117] Megan, thank you for reporting.
[118] Anytime.
[119] As Cabot reported earlier, the House passed billions of dollars in foreign aid for Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel, but has not yet acted on border security here in the U .S. This comes after a rash of fatal crimes involving illegal immigrants, crimes that have the Biden administration under pressure to answer questions on border security.
[120] Republicans have focused in particular on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who recently escaped a likely embarrassing Senate trial over his impeachment.
[121] Here with Morris Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce.
[122] Hey, Tim, so a lot of mounting frustrations over deadly incidents with illegal aliens.
[123] Right.
[124] Those frustrations were on display in Congress recently when Secretary Mayorkas had to testify on his department's budget for the year.
[125] Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri was one of his toughest questioners.
[126] Here's Holly pressing Mayorkas on the recent death of Georgia nursing student, Lake and Riley.
[127] So this is your policies in action, Mr. Secretary.
[128] A criminal is permitted into this country on grounds flatly, not permitted, flatly contradictory to the statute.
[129] He commits a crime against a child and then he gets a work permit.
[130] You want to know why all of the jobs in the last two or three years have gone to illegal migrants?
[131] Working people in this country can't get a job.
[132] Their unemployment rates high.
[133] Why?
[134] Because of things like this.
[135] And then what's he do?
[136] Well, we all know.
[137] Then in February, he commits the heinous crime against Lake and Riley.
[138] Is this a record that you are proud of?
[139] Senator, you've misstated some facts.
[140] I have read from the parole file, which you have said, you don't recall, don't have, you miscited, I'm reading from it.
[141] It is right here.
[142] And I've just pursuant to the speech and debate clause, I have just read it into the record.
[143] And the reason is you have lied repeatedly to Congress and to the American people about this.
[144] They deserve to know.
[145] And the only way they're going to know is if I tell them, I've just told them, it's in the record now.
[146] I've read it verbatim from the parole file.
[147] Senator, I am confident that justice will be vindicated in the criminal prosecution of the case.
[148] Well, hopefully he'll get more of a trial than you got.
[149] Otherwise, there'll be no justice for anyone at all.
[150] So as you heard, Mayorkas in the hot seat.
[151] Yeah.
[152] Now, another case that has been in the news recently actually involves a sitting U .S. Senator.
[153] What can you tell us about that situation?
[154] Right.
[155] It involves U .S. senator from Nevada, Catherine Cortez Mastow.
[156] Her senior advisor, Kurt Englehart, was killed in a car accident.
[157] earlier this month in a crash that involved an 18 -year -old illegal immigrant.
[158] According to the Department of Homeland Security, Elmer Rueda Linares entered the U .S. illegally in March 2021.
[159] He was arrested but released several months later on his own recognizance.
[160] Police arrested him after the crash and ICE put a detainer on him for deportation.
[161] We've also seen a variety of other incidents hit headlines as well.
[162] ICE agents in Boston arrested four illegal aliens who are alleged child rapists and one more who is a suspected MS -13 gang member.
[163] The migrants entered the country illegally and Massachusetts ignored their iced detainers.
[164] What kind of response have we seen from the administration on this situation?
[165] As November gets closer, we've seen Biden hint at taking executive action to secure the border, but action signal otherwise.
[166] The Department of Justice is currently in litigation with Texas to try and stop Governor Greg Abbott from policing the border.
[167] Meanwhile, we have seen the numbers of illegal crossings dropped somewhat this year, though Border Patrol encounters have stayed at historically high levels like they have since Biden took office.
[168] We'll see what happens between now in November.
[169] Tim, thanks for coming on.
[170] Thanks for having me. Before we sign off today, Sage, it's been fun to have you.
[171] We got a chance to interview you before you launched your new show, the Sage Steel Show.
[172] And we're excited to learn that you were a fan of Morning Wire.
[173] Your first episode is wrapped up here.
[174] What'd you think?
[175] Oh, absolutely loved it.
[176] And again, it's an honor for me because you all have helped me. so many times.
[177] Just get the news the day that I need and then go on with my day.
[178] So it's an honor.
[179] Thank you.
[180] And you're not rid of me yet.
[181] We have a couple more days of this.
[182] Well, we're certainly glad to hear that.
[183] If you want to learn more about Sage's story and her new show, listen to our interview, which aired on March 31st.
[184] It's titled Sidelines to Spotlight Sage Steal's new chapter.
[185] Thanks for waking up with us.
[186] We'll be back this afternoon with more news you need to know.