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--:-- 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.
--:-- John Bickley: Support for Biden's presidential campaign continues to waver as Nancy Pelosi and George Clooney make public comments on his fitness for office.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I want him to do whatever he decides to do. And that's that's the way it is.
--:-- John Bickley: Will the president be able to hold on to the nomination? I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor in chief John Bickley. It's Thursday, July 11th, and this is Morning Wire. Daily Wire editor emeritus Ben Shapiro testifies on Capitol Hill about how companies were strong-armed into not advertising with conservative outlets.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We all know what these government actors are doing. You're using the tacit threat of government action to compel private companies to throttle viewpoints you don't particularly like. And the critical battleground state of Wisconsin reinstitutes drop boxes just 17 weeks before the presidential election.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know. dot com slash wire cards issued by Sutton Bank and Celtic Bank member FDIC terms and conditions apply.
--:-- Georgia Howe: With the election clock ticking, President Biden is struggling to fight back efforts from within his own party to replace him. Here with more on the internal battle in Washington is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So Cabot, walk us through the latest on this historic power struggle.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, we said yesterday that Biden appeared to have weathered the worst of this storm, but there are still dark and ominous clouds in the sky and they could open up at any moment. On Tuesday morning, Nancy Pelosi, arguably the most influential Democrat not in the White House, appeared on MSNBC to discuss Biden's future. The former speaker started by praising his speech to NATO, which she called spectacular and energetic, but then refused to offer any real endorsement of his candidacy.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short. So not exactly a ringing endorsement.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Exactly. And you'll notice there Pelosi said she wants him to make a decision. Well, President Biden has already made his decision clear. He said repeatedly that he's going to run. And she's obviously aware of that.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Many Democratic lawmakers interpreted her words as she wants him to make a different decision. And the fact she's refusing to truly back Biden could be an indication of how she thinks this will all shake out.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And it's worth noting a number of other Democratic lawmakers followed Pelosi's lead later in the day and offered similar messages saying Biden has to make a decision.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Here's former Hillary Clinton running mate Senator Tim Kaine. I have complete confidence that Joe Biden will do the patriotic thing for the country and he's going to make that decision. He's never disappointed me. He's always put patriotism and the country ahead of himself.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And I going to respect for this issue But again it going to take more than passive aggressive comments like that and closed door vent sessions from Democrat lawmakers for Biden to bow out It likely going to take high-profile voices coming out on the record
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For their part, the Biden campaign is continuing their effort to prevent that from happening. Not by convincing them President Biden is still fit to serve. If that were the case, he'd be sitting for more interviews and holding press conferences.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Their main strategy to this point has essentially been intimidating lawmakers into silence, telling them he's not going anywhere and their efforts would be useless, and daring them to try and challenge him at the convention.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: It is a high-risk strategy. But to this point, it has worked. The dam has not broken.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So we've seen Democrat politicians come out against Biden in the past 24 hours, though. But it was a Democrat celebrity that got the most attention for doing so. Tell us about that.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, this is interesting. So on Wednesday, George Clooney, who himself is a longtime Democratic donor and fundraiser, published a brutal op-ed in the New York Times calling for a new nominee.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Remember, Clooney just last month co-hosted that star-studded Hollywood fundraiser for Biden alongside Barack Obama and Julia Roberts. But he's now striking a very different tone, writing, quote, It's devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe Biden of 2010.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: He wasn't even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, Clooney is more than just a big name actor. He's hosted some of the Democrats' largest fundraisers in history over the last decade. And more importantly, is very close to power players within the party.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: There is little chance he published that piece without consulting those folks first. And that's important.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, all of this, though, comes amid a flurry of favorable polls for Trump that Republicans are really salivating over. Walk us through those.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So at latest count, Donald Trump holds a five-point lead in the national polls when third-party candidates are included on the ballot.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: That's not only his largest lead to date. It's also the first time in more than 20 years that a Republican has been ahead in the polls at this point in a presidential race.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And on top of all that, the respected Cook Political Report announced five changes to their 2024 forecast, all of them in favor of Trump.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And moved three states, Arizona, Georgia, and Nevada, from toss-ups to leans Republican, and moved two more, Minnesota and New Hampshire, from likely Democrat to leans Democrat.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So by all accounts, the list of battleground states appears set to expand come November.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, losing Hollywood is really a canary in the coal mine.
--:-- John Bickley: Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime.
--:-- John Bickley: There is, in fact, an informal pressure system created by Democratic legislators, this White House, legacy media advertisers, and pseudo-objective brand safety organizations. That system guarantees that advertising dollars flow only to left-wing media brands.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: That was Daily Wire host and editor emeritus Ben Shapiro testifying before Congress yesterday. The hearing covered allegations that companies that are a part of a brand safety coalition colluded to ensure advertising dollars don't flow to conservative news outlets.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: That includes the Daily Wire, which produces the show. Here with more is Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- Megan Basham: Hey, Megan.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, this hearing focused on evidence that conservative outlets like ours were blacklisted by major advertising groups and House Republicans alleged this likely violated antitrust law.
--:-- Megan Basham: What evidence did they present for that?
--:-- Megan Basham: So the World Federation of Advertisers, based in Brussels, is a global coalition of the world's top brands and national associations. And it controls an estimated 90% of all global ad dollars. So pretty influential.
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, in 2019, the WFA launched the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, otherwise known as GARM. And it touts itself as a flagship project of the World Economic Forum. It stated purpose is to and I quoting here from their material safeguard the potential of digital media by reducing the availability and monetization of harmful content online
--:-- Megan Basham: But what they seem to find harmful were conservative views So the House report found that GARM and its members discussed a strategy of putting news outlets like Fox News, The Daily Wire, Breitbart, and some other right-leaning and conservative media outlets on exclusion lists.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: Obviously, it shuts down the marketplace of ideas, which is largely the intent. The complete lack of transparency with which GARM treats both the member companies as well as the consuming public is one of the major problems.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: If they simply wish to levy a boycott against a right-wing source, they should simply say that's what they're doing. Hiding behind fake standards in order to project objectivity is a major problem in transparency for the market.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: One item the House report points to is an email from a top executive associated with this coalition stating that he hated the ideology and BS of these conservative outlets.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: And when Elon Musk bought Twitter promising to make it a free speech platform, GARM organized an advertiser boycott against it and boasted that they managed to cause an 80% decline in excess revenues.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: And then another email between GARM leaders showed disdain for free speech advocates, as well as comments criticizing the U.S. Constitution.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: So House Republicans say this activity violates the Sherman Act, which outlaws conspiracies against commerce or restraint of trade.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, Democrats were also at this hearing, of course. How did they respond to these claims and evidence?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, during the hearing yesterday, I would say that their arguments seem to suggest that some ideas expressed in conservative media are deserving of suppression.
--:-- Megan Basham: For example, the questions coming from California Congressman Eric Swalwell took a pretty personal turn when he asked Shapiro about his religious beliefs.
--:-- Eric Swalwell: I'm just asking, is it a sin to be gay? Is it a sin to be gay? I mean, if the basic idea is that Sexual orientation is up for government regulation. I'm not in favor of the government regulating the private consenting sexual activity of adults.
--:-- Eric Swalwell: But again, just you to me, is it a sin or not?
--:-- Ben Shapiro: From a religious Jewish perspective, orientation is not a sin, but activity is. That's also the same perspective of most major religions, so far as I'm aware.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: Now, I asked Shapiro about this moment, and he told me that it was strange, to say the least. I'm not sure what he was trying to get at.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: And I think in any other context, it would be seen as somewhat religiously discriminatory to ask my personal religious beliefs about certain kinds of activities.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: Religious, I believe a whole wide variety of activities are sinful.
--:-- Megan Basham: Several Democrats spoke about the right of advertisers to ensure that their brands aren't appearing alongside objectionable content.
--:-- Megan Basham: And what are some of the solutions to this blacklisting that we're hearing from conservatives?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, right now, The Daily Wire, along with The Federalist and the state of Texas, are suing the State Department over its funding of NGOs that develop these advertising blacklists for groups like GARM.
--:-- Megan Basham: In May, a federal judge ruled that that suit can go forward. But in the meantime, Shapiro says that lawmakers should also consider new legislation to prevent the federal government from pressuring private sector entities, something known as jawboning, to suppress, or in this case, financially starve certain viewpoints.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: I mean, I think that you would see a ban from Congress on executive branch agencies doing exactly the kind of jawboning that you're talking about.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: I think that what you would see is an attempt to use subpoena power to uncover whether there has been some sort of coordination between government executive branch agencies or foreign governments and organizations like GARM.
--:-- Ben Shapiro: And he also believes that there may need to be investigations into whether these companies are violating their fiduciary duties to shareholders
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, likely a lot of investigation yet to come on this.
--:-- John Bickley: The Wisconsin Supreme Court will permit the use of ballot drop boxes in the crucial swing state ahead of the 2024 election. Here to discuss the decision is Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So Amanda, what exactly did the court rule here?
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So this decision to allow ballot drop boxes was actually a reversal of a previous decision from the court. The liberals on the court, who now hold a four to three majority after the last election, they said the drop boxes, no matter where they are, are effectively a drop off to municipal clerk and therefore do comply with the state statute in question.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Just two years ago, though, the then-conservative majority court said the opposite. Writing in a dissent, the conservatives really went at the liberals and criticized them for, quote, forsaking the rule of law in an attempt to advance its political agenda, and they accused them of trying to tip the scales in future elections.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, was this decision a surprise? No, this was pretty expected. Our listeners might remember the election for a seat on this court last year, and that flipped the court from conservative to a liberal majority.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Democrats were accused of running openly partisan ads for the seat, which is technically nonpartisan, and they won. It was the most expensive state judicial election in U.S. history at over $50 million.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Democrats were largely able to bring in big outside money by zoning in on abortion during that campaign.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: And also expectedly, the Wisconsin court has already paved the way to hear challenges to the state's abortion ban.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So Democrats have applauded this ruling on ballot boxes. Just how much does this potentially benefit them over Republicans?
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Well, Democrats overwhelmingly participate in early voting in general. This started back in 2020 when the way Americans vote was radically changed during the pandemic.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: In that election, about 70% of all votes were cast early. And of the absentee in mail voting, 40% of the time, drop boxes were used.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, breaking that down by party, Biden voters cast their ballots by mail at nearly double the rate of Trump supporters.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, Wisconsin specifically, there were more than 500 drop box locations for the 2020 election. Biden won that by a very small margin, just over 20,000 votes.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: And it's worth repeating that this is a significant swing state. The presidential candidate who has captured Wisconsin has gone on to win the White House in the past four presidential elections.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: I mean, notably, it was also vital to Trump's win against Hillary Clinton in 2016.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Right. So even though COVID lockdowns are gone, we still are going to continue with the COVID era drop boxes, at least for the 2024 election. Right.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: And most of the 2020 election changes have stayed in place.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Republicans have, though, launched some efforts to legally and legislatively try to limit or ban drop boxes.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: They argue that they can be unlawful, create chaos, and they're just not as secure as in-person voting.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Democrats, on the other hand, they want the expansion of what they call voting access, and they generally oppose any kind of measure to increase security, and that includes voter ID requirements.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So in Pennsylvania, this is a good example. We saw competing lawsuits culminate with the state Supreme Court weighing in, and now some counties in PA will have numerous drop boxes, while others don't.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Another key state, Georgia, has reduced the number of drop boxes, but every county will have at least one.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: And then you can look at a state like Florida. Drop boxes can now only be placed in early voting sites or elections offices, and they must be monitored by in-person elections office employees.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Florida's new system seems to be a pathway for other red states, since it really doesn't seem like these drop boxes are going away anytime soon.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Well, another permanent change from the COVID era.
--:-- John Bickley: Amanda, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: You're welcome.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back this afternoon with more news you need to know.
