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--:-- Georgia Howe: Welcome to Morning Wire. I'm Georgia Howe, and I'm here with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with us, Georgia.
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--:-- John Bickley: With less than two months left in his presidency, Biden authorizes Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles against Russia. It's another step up the escalation ladder, and nobody knows where this is going.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's Tuesday, November 19th, and this is Morning Wire. Dave McCormick has been declared the winner of his Pennsylvania Senate race, but a controversial recount has begun. There's no mathematical way for this recount to have any meaning whatsoever.
--:-- John Bickley: And the trial of the illegal immigrant accused of murdering Lakin Riley continues in Georgia. We have the latest.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
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--:-- John Bickley: With just two months remaining in his term, President Biden has for the first time authorized Ukraine to use long-range missiles for strikes within Russia. Here with the political and international fallout is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So Cabot, a consequential development here. What's the latest?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, on Monday, it was reported that President Biden has given the green light for Ukraine to start using U.S.-supplied long-range missiles to strike territories within Russia. Specifically the southern region of Kursk. Now, to this point, the Biden administration has done everything possible to keep Ukraine from launching such strikes across the border. The fear was that it could escalate the conflict and result in Putin targeting larger population centers in Ukraine like Kiev. Now, with that in mind, Pentagon officials have reportedly been lobbying the White House against that decision for months, saying the potential payoff was not worth the risk. But ultimately, Biden pushed forward. And it's worth noting, this is not the first time we've seen the president backtrack on red lines set for Ukraine. Remember, he initially said the U.S. would not supply Patriot missiles, F-16 fighter jets, or Abrams tanks. But one by one, he gave Ukraine each of those weapons. So, million-dollar question, how do we expect Moscow to respond?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, that is the big one. Now, Ukraine has made some incursions across the border in the past. And they've also launched a handful of attacks deep within Russian territory. But this would certainly be an escalation, especially given America's involvement. For their part, officials in Moscow accused President Biden of quote throwing oil on the fire and escalating the conflict. And it's worth noting back in September Putin offered a really ominous warning regarding the use of weapons like these, suggesting he could respond with nuclear weapons if Russia was struck directly by conventional missiles, and added that such an attack supported by a NATO ally would mean, quote, the United States and European countries are at war with Russia. So there's certainly a risk attached with this strategy. So why is Biden making this move right now? Well, first, North Korea recently supplied Putin with more than 10,000 of their best soldiers who were deployed to the front lines. And according to Bloomberg, Kim Jong-un is prepared to send up to 90,000 more. South Korea has to this point refrained from sending weapons directly to the Ukrainian war effort. But now they are reconsidering. From the U.S. perspective, the White House is hoping these new missiles will strengthen Ukraine's standing and deter North Korea from sending more men to the conflict. But there is no doubt this month's election results certainly played into the move as well.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, why would the election affect this? So back in the summer, Ukraine launched a counteroffensive across the border into Western Russia. They took territory in the Kursk region. Now, Putin has only taken back around half of that territory. But right after Trump was elected, he launched a new counter-offensive to try and get all of it back, flooding the front lines with new troops. And that timing is no coincidence. Donald Trump has made clear that he wants a quick end to this war and will force Zelensky and Putin to the negotiating table once he's in office. The general expectation is those negotiations will result in Russia withdrawing from Ukraine, but keeping some chunks of the territory they've already taken. U.S. officials say Putin wants to regain Kursk and drive the Ukrainians back across the border before Trump takes office to basically ensure he does not lose any of his own territory once those negotiations begin. The Biden administration is hoping these missiles will help Ukraine hold the territory so Zelensky can use it as a bargaining chip in the future. And to that point, Zelensky himself said Friday the war, quote, will end faster with Trump taking office because, quote, this is their approach, their promise to their society. And it's also very important to them. He went on to add, quote, we must do everything to ensure that the war ends next year through diplomatic means. Well, for sure, a Trump presidency is going to change the dynamic.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A recount in Pennsylvania's Senate race began on Monday after Republican Bob McCormick narrowly defeated Democrat Senator Bob Casey. Casey has so far refused to concede the race, though his chances of re-election are extremely slim. Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce is here to talk about the recount and why Casey has faced accusations of election denial from both sides.
--:-- Tim Pierce: So first, why has this recount been triggered? The recount is just because the margin of McCormick's victory was less than half a percent. So the law in Pennsylvania is that any race within that window heads toward a mandatory recount. That said, McCormick leads Casey by over 20 votes. That's a nearly insurmountable gap when you consider that recounts typically change races by a few hundred votes at most. In the meantime, the major outlets have already called the race in favor of McCormick. Right. So if the odds are so small why is Casey still sort of holding out hope that he can win?
--:-- Tim Pierce: Because Casey has been trying to have ballots counted that were excluded from the initial results. The state Supreme Court has ruled several times that mail-in ballots must be properly dated and signed to be counted. The court reiterated that in another ruling on Monday. We'll see if that's a final word. But four counties in Pennsylvania, Bucks, Center, Montgomery, and Philadelphia, have previously ignored the court's orders and moved to count ballots with those errors. Here's one election official. Democrat Commissioner Diane Ellis Marseglia of Bucks County openly defying the court. I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn't matter anymore in this country, and people violate laws anytime they want. So for me, if I violate this law, it's because I want a court to pay attention to it.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Casey is also challenged to have ballots counted that have been filed by people not on the state's voter rolls. Casey's allies have tried to accuse McCormick of being a hypocrite on this issue because he forced a recount in the 2022 GOP primary. Here's Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman saying that. It's very, very close. And I guarantee you, if Dave McCormick were in the opposite situation where he was down 15 to 17,000 votes, he would absolutely want to have every last vote counted as well, too. But as the Washington Post's editorial board pointed out, there's hypocrisy on both sides of this dispute, but that's irrelevant to the legal merits. The Post says it's time for Democrats to end this charade and admit that those votes are illegal. Even some Pennsylvania Democrats are getting tired of the drama. Here's former Lieutenant Governor Mark Single on CBS 21 saying it's time for Casey to concede. It's time to get on with this. He's had a good, distinguished career, and it's time to continue to move on.
--:-- Tim Pierce: It's worth noting that even if Casey got his way here with the ballots, it's still unlikely that he would get the votes he needs to change the outcome of the race. Again, he'd have to get over 20,000 votes more than McCormick. Right. Now, obviously, every Senate seat is crucial and election denial is a hot-button issue. What has the reaction in Washington been to all this? Well, there's been resistance from Democrats to welcome McCormick into the Senate. But after that initial hesitancy, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer did invite McCormick to new senator orientation last week. Meanwhile, some Republicans are accusing Casey of trying to steal an election. Utah Republican Mike Lee pointed out that the Senate is able to refuse to seat members and could do so in this case if Casey tries to claim victory on the basis of illegal ballots. The Republican Party has launched an aggressive legal attack to stop those illegal ballots from making it into the final tally. According to Fox News, senior Republican officials on Monday filed a dozen lawsuits in Pennsylvania to fight the recount.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Let's hope this gets wrapped up cleanly. Tim, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The trial has begun for the illegal immigrant accused of killing Georgia nursing student Lakin Riley. Jose Ibarra, the suspect, waived his right to a jury trial and will instead have his fate decided by a judge. Here to discuss the trial is Daily Wire senior editor Ash Short.
--:-- Ash Short: So Ash, what can you tell us about the first couple of days of this trial? So the opening statements took place on Friday, and the prosecution really painted a picture of Riley's terrifying fight for her life and her ultimate death. Here's what the prosecution said during opening statements. He went hunting for females. And when Lakin Riley refused to be his rape victim he bashed her skull in with a rock repeatedly. Ibarra and his brothers are in the country illegally from Venezuela and lived in an apartment just half a mile from the park where Riley went running the day she was killed. Now, Ibarra had been arrested multiple times prior to Riley's death. In September 2022, he was detained after entering the U.S. illegally. He then ended up in New York and was arrested in August 2023 and charged with, quote, acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17. He was released by the New York Police Department before immigration officers could issue a detainer for him. On Monday, one of the roommates in Ibarra's apartment explained that they were flown to Georgia from New York, where they currently reside. In Manhattan, we requested for a humanitarian flight to come here to Atlanta. And their flight was paid for by U.S. taxpayers. Now, there was a 911 call played for the court on Friday, and that was a very significant moment in this trial. Tell us about that call.
--:-- Ash Short: It was a heartbreaking moment in the courtroom when Riley's call was played. It was a short call lasting less than a minute, but you could hear a man's muffled voice on it as Riley fought for her life. Her mother was seen sobbing in the courtroom. The call featured a 911 operator repeatedly asking if Riley could hear them, followed by chilling silence. When the operator called back, no one answered. The call was placed just eight minutes after Riley left her home to begin her jog.
--:-- Ash Short: Now, what evidence does the prosecution have against Ibarra? Well, they initially apprehended Ibarra within 24 hours because they were able to trace him to his apartment with surveillance footage. On Monday, Officer Rafael Sayen testified that Ibarra tried to claim he had just had a scratch on his arm when police questioned him about Riley's death. He actually had multiple scratches on his hands and arms, and the prosecution says those are from Riley fighting for her life. The prosecution told the judge on Friday that Ibarra's DNA was found under Riley's fingernails. It's believed that Riley fought her attacker for 18 minutes before she died. The prosecution will likely present evidence that Riley and Ibarra's DNA was found on a discarded jacket and other forensic evidence tying Ibarra to the attack.
--:-- Ash Short: So what's the defense's case? Ibarra's defense attorney said during his opening statements that there was not enough evidence to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that his client murdered Riley. Here's what he said. The evidence in this case is graphic and it's disturbing. People have used this case for their own personal gain, financial gain, political gain. The evidence in this case is very good that Lakin Riley was murdered. The evidence that Jose Ibarra killed Lakin Riley is circumstantial. And Ibarra's defense attorney also suggested that it was Ibarra's brother Diego who wore the hat prosecutors say was on the killer the day of Riley's murder and cast doubt on the DNA evidence in the case.
--:-- Ash Short: Well, this was a despicable crime and it really struck a chord with people. Ash, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back this afternoon with more news you need to know.
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