--:-- [Upbeat music plays in the background]
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--:-- [Music transitions to a more serious tone]
--:-- John Bickley: The prosecution rests in the Trump hush money case, but not before Michael Cohen does more damage to his own credibility. Once he has indicated both the conflicts in terms of him hating Trump, but then add on top of that, he's stealing from his client. I mean, this is a train wreck. How are defense witnesses poking holes in the New York DA's case?
--:-- John Bickley: I'm Daily Wire editor-in-Chief John Bickley. It's Tuesday, May 21st, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: As President Biden continues to grapple with historically low approval ratings, his team remains confident ahead of November. Biden has not eclipsed Trump, and I think that this is certainly going to be a nail-biter. And world leaders condemn an international court for seeking to arrest Israel's prime minister, while Iran deals with the death of its president. For the Iranian people's sake, I hope that they find a different, more enlightened leader. But as that leader will be selected by the Mullahs, that just will not happen.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more upbeat tone]
--:-- John Bickley: Is your business selling a little or a lot? Shopify helps you do your thing however you cha-ching. Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business from the launch your online shop stage all the way to the did we just hit a million orders stage Shopify helps you turn browsers into buyers with the internet's best converting checkout which is 36% better on average compared to the other leading commerce platforms get a $1 per month trial period at shopify.com slash morningwire that's shopify.com slash morningwire
--:-- John Bickley: The testimony of Michael Cohen wrapped up on Monday morning as Trump attorney Todd Blanche in his cross-examination revealed that Cohen stole $60,000 from the Trump organization. Here to discuss the case is Daily Wire contributor David Marcus.
--:-- David Marcus: Hey, Dave, so tell us about that. How did this theft take place?
--:-- David Marcus: The revelation about the theft of the $60,000 wasn't entirely new. It had come up briefly in direct examination by prosecutors, but not in a way that made it at all clear that this was basically larceny. The money was part of a combined payout to Cohen of about $450,000 over 12 months. And it included that reimbursement for the $130,000 that Cohen paid Stormy Daniels through her attorney, but also reimbursements to a company called Red Finch that Cohen admitted on the stand skimming money from.
--:-- David Marcus: This is key because the state alleges that Trump was fully aware of the fact that the payment to Cohen as sketched out by Trump CFO Alan Weisselberg, was this money for Daniels. But if Trump knew what all the money was actually for, he would have known that Cohen was stealing. So that really doesn't make a lot of sense.
--:-- David Marcus: Now that the prosecution has rested, how much evidence did they wind up presenting that directly ties Trump to hush money payoff and the alleged misreporting of it on financial records?
--:-- David Marcus: Honestly most of the direct evidence is in Cohen testimony As we pointed out last week the only other person who was supposedly in on this alleged conspiracy to call the payoff legal fees is Weisselberg And he's not testifying in this case which only leaves Cohen and Trump
--:-- David Marcus: The prosecutors in the early weeks of the trial sought to provide a bevy of documentary evidence that corroborates some of Cohen's claims, but not in regard to the central questions of how much Trump knew either about the arrangements for the nondisclosure agreement or how it was accounted for.
--:-- David Marcus: It is hard to see how the jury could arrive at a conviction if they don't believe at least some of Cohen's testimony. And not only did the jury hear about his cavalcade of past prevarications, Cohen lied or was at least misleading in his testimony during this very case in regard to his claim that he told Trump over the phone on October 24th, 2016, that Daniels had been paid and not mentioning that the phone call in question, at least some of it, was about a 14-year-old prank caller.
--:-- John Bickley: The testimony of Michael Cohen wrapped up on Monday morning as Trump attorney Todd Blanche in his cross-examination revealed that Cohen stole $60,000 from the Trump organization. Here to discuss the case is Daily Wire contributor David Marcus.
--:-- John Bickley: The first witness called by the defense was a paralegal from Todd Blanche's law office who was there to testify as to logging phone calls between Cohen and Robert Costello, who you may recall directly disputed Cohen's testimony in his own testimony before Congress, claiming that Cohen had told him he had nothing on Trump. And then, somewhat surprisingly, Costello himself was called. He testified briefly about his relationship with Cohen. He got a tongue lashing from the judge for, quote, staring him down as well as making snide comments regarding the judge's objection rulings. Costello will return to the stand to finish cross-examination today. And then there may be another minor witness or two, but the defense will likely close by lunch. and we'll see if there's any more fireworks before them.
--:-- John Bickley: Dave, thanks for joining us.
--:-- David Marcus: Thanks for having me.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more upbeat tone]
--:-- John Bickley: Making the decision to prioritize health can be tough, especially if you're not sure where to start. That's why I love my Lumen. Lumen is the world's first handheld metabolic coach. All you have to do is breathe into your Lumen first thing in the morning and you'll know what's going on with your metabolism, whether you're burning mostly fats or carbs. So if you want to take the next step in improving your health, Go to Lumen.com and use code WIRE to get $100 off your Lumen. That's L-U-M-E-N dot M-E and use code WIRE at checkout for $100 off.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks, Lumen, for sponsoring this episode.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more serious tone]
--:-- John Bickley: With Election Day fast approaching, President Biden has continued to struggle with dismal approval ratings, poor polling and a series of viral gaffes. But his team says they're still confident he's in the driver's seat. Here with the latest from the campaign trail is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Hey, Cabot, so walk us through where things stand with five and a half months to go.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, we've got a long way to go until November, but right now there's no doubt it's been a rough few weeks for President Biden. First, there were a series of gaffes on the campaign trail that quickly went viral, including this moment where he mistakenly read the words last name off of a teleprompter while telling a story. My theology professor at the Catholic school I went to was a guy named Riley, last name.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And then there was this really bizarre moment yesterday where Biden appeared to speak off the cuff about being vice president during the COVID pandemic, which not began until well after he left office. When I was vice president, things were kind of bad during the pandemic. And what happened was Barack said to me, go to Detroit and help fix it.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And over the weekend, Biden gave the commencement address at the historically black Morehouse College, telling students there he employed more graduates from the school than he knew what to do with. But according to fact checkers no graduate of the college has ever been on his staff
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now the problem for Biden is that voters are uniquely worried about his age and mental fitness According to the latest NBC polling 76 of Americans say they have concerns about his mental and physical health including, get this, 81% of independents and even 54% of Democrats. So the reality is minor gaffes like these really start to add up and reinforce concerns that voters already have coming into this race.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So let's get to another area where Biden is struggling. The polls, we've highlighted those in the past, but what are some of the latest numbers saying?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, the president did enjoy some minor momentum in the spring, pulling dead even nationally after trailing by as many as four points over the winter. But Trump has started to grow his lead again, especially in crucial battleground states. In Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, North Carolina, he's ahead by at least five points on average. He also holds narrower leads in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, obviously, that can change from now to November, but one thing that will be harder to reverse are Biden's approval ratings, which are historically low, sitting in the high 30s. That gives him the lowest approval rating of any incumbent president in modern American history. Put another way, no president in the last century has won re-election with approval ratings this low.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And that is especially concerning because unlike polls, which can be fickle and shift at the last minute, it's exceptionally rare for an incumbent to see a sudden uptick in approval ratings once voters make up their mind.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For more on what's behind those struggles, I spoke with Philip Wegman, White House reporter at Real Clear Politics. What we've seen is that while abortion has solidified Biden's base, that hasn't been enough of an issue to really slow Donald Trump. And instead, voters across the board are very concerned with inflation and the state of the economy.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And while the economy has improved and inflation has slowed, that is something that is reflected in a spreadsheet. It's not something that voters feel at the grocery store or the gas station. To that point, the Wall Street Journal posted a just devastating for the Biden campaign graphic with federal data that shows the economic disparity between Trump and Biden's first terms.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: When adjusted for inflation during Trump's first three years in office, the average American family's net worth increased 16%. For Biden, that number is 0.7%. In numbers that don't stack up well for the incumbent.
--:-- John Bickley: Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more serious tone]
--:-- John Bickley: Israel faces a number of crucial decisions while an international court seeks the arrest of Israel's prime minister and Iran names an interim presidential successor. Joining us now, reporting from the Middle East, is Aryeh Lightstone, former senior advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to Israel.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Welcome, Aryeh. So a lot going on now with Iran and Israel. First, what effect, if any, will the death of Ibrahim Raisi have on Iran, specifically in the Middle East more broadly?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: But specifically in Iran, it will have no net effect. The people of Iran are celebrating while the EU and NATO have actually sent condolences for the person called the Butcher of Tehran. The Iran leadership starts with the Ayatollah and does not move from the Ayatollah. It's been that way since 1979, and it will be that way until the reign of the Ayatollah is done.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: And so for the sake of the Iranian people, I hope that that will happen much sooner than later. Obviously, the U.S. has a fraught political relationship with Iran. Can you explain that relationship and the Iran nuclear deal's role in it?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Since 1979, Iran has been a threat. Most recently in the last 10 to 15 years, they've been the largest and greatest supporter of terror and malfeasance in the world. And the Democrats since the JCPOA known as the Iran deal have tried to appease Iran and welcome them into the community of nations And the Republicans especially led by Donald Trump said let bankrupt them so they cannot cause harm.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: And this disagreement has led to a split personality or a split policy vis-a-vis Iran. What it hasn't done, it has not helped Iran change their behavior. Iran continues to pursue a nuclear weapon. Iran continues to fund terrorism. Iran continues to try to create discord across the Middle East.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Now, turning to Israel, the ICC is calling for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and several Hamas leaders. What sort of enforcement power does the ICC have, and why are they calling for this now?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Well, they're calling this now because they are yet another international corrupt or bankrupt organization to call for the warrants for the arrest of the democratically elected prime minister and defense minister of a country that has its own judicial system that is independent and verifiable and robust. At the same time that it calls for the warrant for the arrest for the leadership of Hamas, a terror organization, is a horrendous form of whataboutism or moral equivalence, showing that, again, this court has lost its way.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: What power do they have? That really depends on the other countries, France and the UK and Belgium and Germany. Are they going to allow a red alert that will go out for Prime Minister Netanyahu or Defense Minister Yoav Gallant when they land there for diplomatic meetings and essentially create a boycott of Israeli leadership being able to go places in the past when they tried to do this?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: The United States of America let it be known to the ICC that if they do this, it will be the end of international legitimacy of the ICC under President Biden. I have not yet seen that happen.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: What's next for Israel in Rafah? Are they going to carry out their operation there?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Yes, Israel cannot complete the war against Hamas in Gaza without decimating the remaining part of the military of Hamas, which is in Rafah. They will do it with the United States of America or without the United States of America. But in order to bring their people home to the south, They must win the war. And winning the war means finishing the job in Rafa.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: The United States of America said, don't go into Gaza. You're going to have hundreds of deaths every day. They have not done that. They said you can't evacuate a million people. In two weeks, they've evacuated 950,000 people and are yet to report civilian deaths in Rafa.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: And then what happens to the land in Gaza once the war is over? What's the plan from Netanyahu's administration?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: There is no plan currently. And this is probably the most heated topic in Israel. who's going to run it. Israel does not want to run it, although there are small segments of the current ruling party that would like to re-settle the land of Gaza. The Palestinian Authority cannot run it. Hamas cannot run it. So who will run it? That's actually the dilemma that is facing Israel and its allies today.
--:-- John Bickley: Aryeh, thank you so much for joining us.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Thanks, Sean.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more upbeat tone]
--:-- John Bickley: That was Aryeh Lightstone, former senior advisor to the U.S. ambassador to Israel. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back this afternoon with more news you need to know.
--:-- [Upbeat music continues to play]
--:-- John Bickley: Is your business selling a little or a lot? Shopify helps you do your thing however you cha-ching. Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business from the launch your online shop stage all the way to the did we just hit a million orders stage Shopify helps you turn browsers into buyers with the internet's best converting checkout which is 36% better on average compared to the other leading commerce platforms get a $1 per month trial period at shopify.com slash morningwire that's shopify.com slash morningwire
--:-- John Bickley: Making the decision to prioritize health can be tough, especially if you're not sure where to start. That's why I love my Lumen. Lumen is the world's first handheld metabolic coach. All you have to do is breathe into your Lumen first thing in the morning and you'll know what's going on with your metabolism, whether you're burning mostly fats or carbs. So if you want to take the next step in improving your health, Go to Lumen.com and use code WIRE to get $100 off your Lumen. That's L-U-M-E-N dot M-E and use code WIRE at checkout for $100 off.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks, Lumen, for sponsoring this episode.
--:-- [Music transitions to a more serious tone]
--:-- John Bickley: In the park. Text WIRE to 989898 to talk to one of Birch Gold's experts and claim your free info kit on gold. That's WIRE to 989898 today.
