--:-- Georgia Howe: This episode is brought to you by LifeLock. When you visit the doctor, you probably hand over your insurance, your ID, and contact details. It's just one of the many places that has your personal info. And if any of them accidentally expose it, you could be at risk for identity theft. LifeLock monitors millions of data points a second. If you become a victim, they'll fix it, guaranteed, or your money back. Save up to 40% your first year at LifeLock.com slash podcast. Terms apply.
--:-- Georgia Howe: This episode is brought to you by Black Rifle Coffee. Start your morning with America's coffee from BlackRifleCoffee.com. Four American citizens were kidnapped after crossing the southern border into Mexico on Friday. And the FBI is seeking the public's help. What do we know about the kidnappings and why do security specialists predict an uptick in this type of crime? I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's Tuesday, March 7th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: A new bill would limit stock trading by members of the executive branch. What prompted the proposal? And what are the chances of it becoming law? And leaked messages shed a disturbing light on UK health officials, appearing to show that they wanted to scare Brits into lockdown and vaccine compliance. We have the details. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Four American citizens were kidnapped after crossing the border into Mexico on Friday. The FBI is seeking the public's help, putting out a hefty $50,000 reward for the return of the victims and arrest of those involved. Here to discuss is Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo. So, Amanda, tell us, what do we know so far about this kidnapping?
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Hey, Georgia. The names of the victims were released late Monday night. Latavia McGee, Shaid Woodard, Zendell Brown, and Eric James Williams. McGee and Woodard are cousins and they're friends with Brown and Williams. That's according to McGee's mother. The American citizens were in a white minivan with North Carolina license plates. And soon after the vehicle crossed over the border into Matamoros, Mexico, they were shot at by unidentified gunmen and forced into another vehicle that fled the scene.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: U.S. officials said the victims were traveling to the area for medical procedures and possibly medicine. That's based off receipts that were found in the vehicle. McGee's mother has also said that her daughter was getting a medical procedure in Mexico. It's suspected that the American citizens, who so far reportedly have no concerning criminal history of their own, were actually assaulted and taken in a case of mistaken identity. It's believed a Mexican drug cartel confused the Americans for Haitian drug smugglers.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: There's also been some circulation of photos and video purportedly from the incident showing a woman being directed into a white pickup truck by men with long guns. And three other men appearing lifeless and lying in the street being dragged into the truck next to the woman. We've also learned that the incident resulted in the death of an innocent Mexican citizen, according to U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now what do we know about Matamoros Mexico? Where is it located and is this a dangerous area? It's on the southern bank of the Rio Grande just over the border from Brownsville Texas. Now Matamoros is in Tamaulipas a Mexican state the U State Department has on its do-not-travel list for U.S. citizens, and they've cited the risk of crime and kidnapping. The State Department website notes of common organized crime activity, which I think we can safely tie to cartel activity in the area.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: The city is also a hotspot for migrants, largely from Venezuela and Haiti, who are hoping to make it over to America. Now, what are the authorities saying that they're currently doing to get these people back? We know the FBI, federal partners, and Mexican law enforcement agencies are investigating the matter. And notably, the feds have solicited the public's help offering a $50,000 reward for the return of the victims and the rest of those involved.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: As far as the White House goes, Press Secretary Corrine Jean-Pierre merely said President Joe Biden is, quote, aware and has been informed. She added that Mexico is viewed as an important ally to the U.S. Ambassador Salazar on Sunday said in a statement that officials from various U.S. law enforcement agencies are working with Mexican authorities to, quote, achieve the safe return of our compatriots.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, this seems to play into a larger theme that we've reported on before about the issue of crime along the Mexican border, often relating to cartels. Tell us a little bit about that.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Yeah, that's right. I mean, first of all, we have to mention the opioid crisis in America is funneled through Mexico. So we have this indirect violence from our bordering neighbor. A glaring example that sticks out is that horrific scene in Goshen, California back in January where six family members, including a six-month-old baby, were shot execution style. The two arrested suspects were reportedly members of a gang that worked with one of the most notorious Mexican cartels, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I also recently spoke to Ed Calderon, a security specialist and former Mexican cop who told me Americans should unfortunately expect more cartel-related violence in the States as top cartels like the Sinaloa and New Generation start to battle it out for territory.
--:-- Georgia Howe: All right. Well, Amanda, thanks so much for reporting, and hopefully we can get the safe return of these citizens.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo.
--:-- John Bickley: A new bill in Congress looks to ban officials in the executive branch from owning or trading stocks. The legislation comes after a new report found thousands of government officials investing in companies whose industries they regulate. Here with more on the controversial law and why it's being proposed now is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: All right, Cabot, a stock-owning ban for executive officials. What do we need to know here?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, on Monday, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley introduced a bill that would ban certain government officials working in the executive branch from owning or trading individual stocks. Now, at the moment, federal law does prevent officials from trading certain stocks, but the language is vague, saying they must only refrain from investing in stocks where they have a substantial financial interest. Obviously, that's relatively subjective.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: This bill would make the parameters much more clear. Upon being hired, officials would have six months to either divest their stocks or move them into a blind trust. And the law would also apply to their spouses as well. Now, this would not apply to every employee in the executive branch, only those deemed senior level, meaning career and political officials earning over a certain pay grade. But that's still thousands of employees.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: As Holly put it, quote, senior members of the executive branch who have access to privileged information shouldn't be using it to get rich. So what are the main arguments we're hearing from each side on this law and others like it?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well for years critics on both sides of the aisle have said that government officials and lawmakers have an unfair advantage when it comes to investing and that they often trade based on information not available to the average American. Imagine you a government official working on an executive order offering tax credits for people driving electric cars. You can make a lot of money buying up EV stocks before that order is announced.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And because many officials are often working on confidential matters, even if they are accused of insider trading, ethics lawyers say they have a difficult time proving it because of the secretive nature of their jobs. Supporters of the law say this problem could be solved by eliminating the ability to trade altogether.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, the main argument from critics is that laws like this deter successful people from working in the government because their earning potential likely goes down with this sort of law. They also say government officials should have a stake in the economy and that if they do well, it means their constituents do well also.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, this all comes as a new report is shining a light on the stock investments of employees in the executive branch. Tell us about that report.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, the Wall Street Journal first discovered back in the fall that more than 2,600 officials working in the executive branch were investing in companies that were actively lobbying their respective agencies for favorable policies. Others were investing in companies directly impacted by regulations that they had a hand in crafting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Among those 2,600 were both Republican and Democrat officials in the Commerce, Labor, and Treasury departments. There were 200 EPA officials buying stocks and companies actively lobbying the EPA, including oil and gas stocks. Then there were dozens of FDA officials buying food and drug stocks, DOD officials investing in individual defense companies.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: There were even dozens of officials in the Department of Justice who bought or sold stocks in companies right before the DOJ brought charges against those very companies. In total, roughly one in five senior officials in the federal government were investing in companies related to their work. And that's just what we know about.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, this isn't the first time we've seen an effort like this. What other bills have been floated in the past?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Right. Last year, Senator Hawley and Georgia Democrat John Ossoff proposed similar legislation that would have banned members of Congress from trading individual stocks. While that measure initially gained bipartisan support, it did not get passed the Senate.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Initially, that bill gained steam as Americans became more aware of just how much money politicians were making in the stock market. For example, last March, Nancy Pelosi and her husband bought over $3 million worth of Microsoft stock. And then 12 days later, the federal government announced a $22 billion deal with Microsoft. And their stock jumped about 11%.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So there's already been a steady drumbeat on this issue. Now the question will come is whether this latest measure is able to get past the finish line.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, it's easier proposed than passed. Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire Senior Editor, Cabot Phillips.
--:-- John Bickley: New leaked messages show that Britain's former health secretary and other officials discussed scaring the public with news of a new COVID strain to encourage better compliance with lockdowns and mandates. Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham is here to tell us more about these leaked messages.
--:-- Megan Basham: So Megan, to start, who was sending these text messages and what did they say?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, this was over 100,000 WhatsApp messages between various UK officials. And what they largely demonstrated was that they were strategizing the best way to spin developing COVID news in order to ramp up public fear for the purpose of ensuring compliance with their policies.
--:-- Megan Basham: In one message from December 2020, former health secretary Matt Hancock and a media advisor discussed how to, quote, deploy the announcement of a new coronavirus variant so as to scare the public into changing their behavior. The advisor, a man named Damon Poole, told Hancock that conservative parliament members were, quote, furious already about the prospect of more stringent mandates.
--:-- Megan Basham: So he suggested that they could roll pitch with a new strain. Hancock agreed with that and said the government needed to quote frighten the pants off everyone so they would comply with lockdowns. Now Poole agreed with that strategy and he replied yep that what will get proper behavior change.
--:-- Megan Basham: So then in later messages in January of 2021, Cabinet Secretary Simon Case said that, quote, the fear factor would be vital in stopping the spread of the virus. That message came just as the government was initiating more stringent lockdowns nationwide.
--:-- Megan Basham: So where did this leak come from? It came from the journalist Isabel Oakeshott. She was co-writing a book with Hancock called The Pandemic Diaries, The Inside Story of Britain's Battle Against COVID. So for that, he had given her access to his files. She then leaked them to the Daily Telegraph.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, there's some debate about why Oakeshott did that. Some have accused her of having a falling out with Hancock over some part of their business arrangement. And they say that it was an act of revenge. This was Oakeshott defending herself on Piers Morgan uncensored this week.
--:-- Megan Basham: Let me just ask you, to the specifics which Hancock has said by way of response, did you sign an NDA which pledged not to use these messages? Yes. So you've deliberately broken that? I have, in the public interest. And there could be legal consequences for you? I think the public interest is overwhelming.
--:-- Megan Basham: Whenever you break a big story, which is in the national interest, and I've done a few of them, It can be a rocky road. It can be a bumpy ride. Look, I know that I'm going to get a few knocks over this. I'm prepared to do this because I think that the national interest is so utterly compelling.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Megan, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Megan Basham: My pleasure.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- John Bickley: Another story we're tracking this week. A night of fire and violence at the future site of a police training center in Atlanta on Sunday led to the rest of 35 people. Here with more is Daily Wire reporter Daniel Chaitin.
--:-- Daniel Chaitin: Police said a group of violent agitators wearing all black clothing attacked the construction area of the Atlantic Public Safety Training Center, which critics have dubbed Cop City. People threw large rocks as well as Molotov cocktails during the clash, and some construction equipment caught fire. 35 people were detained, and authorities released a list showing 23 individuals, most of whom are from out of state, have been charged with domestic terrorism.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back later this afternoon with more news you need to know.
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