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--:-- John Bickley: A new Department of Homeland Security memo warns that false or misleading narratives about COVID-19 could be fueling terrorism. What prompted the memo, and why are some medical doctors sounding the alarm over the provocative language? I'm John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Friday, February 11th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Inflation has hit another 40-year high. Food, gas, energy, and auto prices are all up double digits. Is recession in our future? It's hard to sort of find a silver lining in today's report when you've got 7.5% inflation and 6% core. And the latest updates from the Olympics, including allegations of doping by a Russian athlete and America's standing in the medal race. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We have the news you need to know.
--:-- John Bickley: A new bulletin issued by the Department of Homeland Security on February 7th warns that false or misleading narratives about COVID-19 could be fueling terrorism. It also says those who publicly question the government's protocols regarding mandates and restrictions are creating a, quote, heightened threat environment. The wording of the advisory has some doctors alarmed that federal authorities are trying to suppress their speech and limit scientific debate by accusing them of fomenting terrorism.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here to tell us more about the DHS Bulletin and reactions in the medical community is Daily Wire reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- Megan Basham: So Megan, let's start by detailing exactly what this advisory says. Does it specifically link COVID misinformation to terrorism?
--:-- Megan Basham: It certainly does. It warns, and I'm going to directly quote here, that false or misleading narratives are sowing discord and undermining public trust in U.S. government institutions. So then the guidelines give the example of, quote, widespread online proliferation of false or misleading narratives regarding COVID-19. And they specifically mentioned that on social media.
--:-- Megan Basham: So I think it's important to note that this bulletin doesn't explain exactly what qualifies as COVID misinformation. It only mentions vaccine and mask mandates. And as we've seen with those various big tech censorship policies, the facts on the ground have been shifting pretty substantially regarding both vaccine and mask effectiveness as new information has come in.
--:-- Megan Basham: So what qualifies as misinformation has been shifting a lot as well. Right. It has. Is this the first time Homeland Security has linked COVID debates to domestic violence? No, it's not, though it wasn't as pointed before. They issued a similar bulletin in August that specifically cited the questioning of vaccine effectiveness as a possible cause of terrorism
--:-- Megan Basham: Now that report said that extremists may use the potential reestablishment of public health restrictions think lockdowns or mask requirements as a rationale to conduct attacks Okay, but terrorists may use anything as a rationale, so that leaves a lot of room for interpretation.
--:-- Megan Basham: Have there actually been documented cases of terrorism spurred by COVID restrictions or COVID misinformation? Well, not that I've found so far. So when this latest bulletin came out a few days ago, I did start looking for reports like that. And so far, I have not turned up anything.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, that said, we do expect that DHS is going to have more information than the general public. But the fact that COVID debates haven't apparently been the driving factor of any widespread or especially notable violence is what has some of these doctors questioning what's really motivating the DHS to issue this bulletin.
--:-- Megan Basham: I mean, I've talked to some and what they're telling me is that they feel like there's more here than meets the eye. So one physician I spoke with, Kirk Milhone, he's a pediatric cardiologist who has advocated for early alternative COVID treatments. And he's also one of those people who's urged caution when it comes to giving COVID vaccines to children.
--:-- Megan Basham: This was his response to the bulletin. But when I read that, I thought, wow, you're going to now up the label on me as a now a terrorist because I question the safety and efficacy of vaccines in children. When I just looked at the data, wow, I'm shocked that I've risen to the level that they're using a term against someone who served in the military, who has a free medical clinic, who cares for people in all aspects of their life, and now I'm the enemy of the state?
--:-- Megan Basham: I mean, those are the terms they're using for someone like me. Now, one of the things he told me he's concerned about is if he and other doctors gather for a COVID summit to discuss their concerns concerning vaccinations in children or mask efficacy, could they be arrested under the auspices that they're fomenting violence? That's a real fear they have.
--:-- Megan Basham: And this was Dr. Melhone explaining a little bit more about that. Now, I would imagine that they can put me on a no-fly list. And I don't think I'm being hyperbolic here. I think that if you read that memo, they can stop you. And they didn't limit what they would do. And they basically said, we're watching you. We're watching everything you put on social media. And then we could label you a terrorist.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, the terrorism language here is really eerily reminiscent of the, you know, the school board memo. Right. Yeah.
--:-- Megan Basham: Megan, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Anytime.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire reporter Megan Basham. Coming up, inflation rises at historic rates. This show is sponsored by Naturally It's Clean. When it comes to cleaning your home, you want a cleaning product that is safe, effective and affordable. Naturally It's Clean provides the most effective hospital-grade cleaning products for your home while reducing the use of harmful chemicals. Their secret, powerful plant-based enzymes, nature's solution to cleaning.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Today, you can receive 15% off your essential four-pack at naturallyitsclean.com slash morningwire when you use the promo code WIRE. That's naturallyitsclean.com promo code WIRE.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Inflation has continued to climb in recent months, and many Americans are feeling the pain in their pocketbooks. Here to dig into the latest numbers is Daily Wire's Ian Howarth.
--:-- Ian Howarth: So Ian, we just hit another record for inflation. Yeah, the top line news this week is that inflation jumped by a massive 7.5% in the last year and is now at its highest rate in 40 years. This is all according to the latest consumer price data from the Labor Department.
--:-- Ian Howarth: When we look at the month-on-month numbers, inflation from December to January was 0 which was the same as the month before and far higher than economists had predicted This is on top of even larger month inflation in the previous months For example we saw a 0 increase from September to October and 0.7% from October to November. So we're seeing a steady uptick in inflation month-on-month, and then that's compounding to give us that 7.5 annual number.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Exactly. And this sort of inflation is having a big effect on Americans. It's basically hitting every corner of people's financial life. Let's first think about salaries. With 7.5% inflation in one year, that's basically wiping out any pay increases people may have received.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Based on survey data, US companies are expecting to pay an average 3.4% raise to workers this year, but that's less than half of the inflation rate. So when it comes to spending power, workers will still have less even after a raise. And that's before we dig a little deeper and look at the rise in cost of everyday goods.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Gasoline is up by 40%. Energy is up 27%. Basic foods like meat, fish and eggs are up 12.2%. And then when we think about transportation, which the vast majority of Americans depend upon to get to work, we're looking at an increase of 5.6% for transportation costs.
--:-- Ian Howarth: If you need to buy a car, you'll be paying more for that too. New car prices are up 12.2%, but that's nothing compared to used cars, which are up an unbelievable 40.5%. So in other words, even with modest wage increases, the sort of inflation we're looking at is more than erasing any positive steps U.S. workers are making.
--:-- Ian Howarth: So what's driving the inflation? Yeah, it's actually a lot of factors which are forming a perfect storm of sorts. First off, there is a general shortage of supplies and workers, which itself is caused by a variety of issues like supply chain breakdowns, unemployment or resignations.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Then there are the massive levels of federal spending, with trillions of dollars being artificially pumped into the economy, creating the simple issue of too much money chasing too few goods. Interest rates are also low, and for numerous reasons, people were spending more after COVID-19.
--:-- Ian Howarth: So what's going to be a point of concern for a lot of Americans is that the end to this sort of inflation isn't going to come anytime soon. And economists are warning that this could lead to further issues, including recession.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here's economic expert Peter Morisi. We simply never pull down this much inflation. without a recession or a major slowdown in the jobs market. Definitely concerning.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Now, one thing you mentioned that I wanted to unpack a little more is the issue of resignations. So what's going on there?
--:-- Ian Howarth: Oh, yeah, this is actually an interesting variable as part of skyrocketing inflation, which is often being ignored. Job openings in the U.S. are near an all-time high, but a record 4.5 million workers quit their jobs in November alone in what's being called the Great Resignation.
--:-- Ian Howarth: People are quitting because of COVID-19 concerns, childcare, burnout, or ironically, increased financial security following the pandemic. And not only is this causing a worker shortage, meaning that President Biden's administration is struggling to return the job numbers to anything like it was before COVID-19, it's also fueling inflation more broadly as companies are increasing salaries to try and attract workers, and the cost is then being passed down to the consumer and prices are going up again.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, Ian, thanks for breaking all that down for us.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Of course. Thanks for having me.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics have been more about politics than sport, but there's still competition occurring between some of the world's greatest athletes. Here to talk all things Beijing is Daily Wire sports reporter Joe Morgan.
--:-- Joe Morgan: Yeah well let start with some drama John On Wednesday in Beijing the medal ceremony for the team figure skating event was delayed due to a reported positive drug test from the gold medal Russian team On Wednesday it was reported that 15 Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance So this is yet another Russian doping scandal.
--:-- Joe Morgan: Yeah, that's certainly what it appears to be, John. According to Russian media, the substance is trim tozedin, which is used to treat chest pain and was found in a sample collected two months prior to the Olympics. It's unclear if its use has any athletic benefit, but Chinese swimmer Zun Yang did serve a three-month ban for testing positive for the same drug in 2014.
--:-- Joe Morgan: This is according to Reuters. Trim Tzedin is listed on the World Anti-Doping Agency's list of metabolic modulators and is prohibited both in and out of competition. It's used to treat severe chest pain and could improve endurance and increase blood flow.
--:-- Joe Morgan: Okay, so how does this impact the results? What does this mean for the results of the team event? Yeah, well, we're not quite sure yet, but the U.S. did finish with the silver and Japan with the bronze. The investigation isn't complete, but I'll have results as soon as they are announced.
--:-- Joe Morgan: And how is the U.S. team doing in terms of medals? It's been a slow start, correct?
--:-- Joe Morgan: Yeah, the United States Olympics team is picking itself off the mat finally after a slow start. In the first few days of events, the U.S. team had not secured a single gold medal, seemingly an afterthought, as you had mentioned, because of politics being almost more interesting than sport at these Olympics.
--:-- Joe Morgan: But Thursday in Beijing, the U.S. team got back to its winning ways. Snowboarding star Chloe Kim won her second straight gold medal in the women's halfpipe, scoring a 94 on her first run and becoming the first American woman to win two gold medals in the halfpipe event.
--:-- Joe Morgan: Kim won her first gold medal at the 2018 Games when she was just 17 years old. Also on Thursday, Nathan Chen became the first U.S. men's Olympic figure skater since 2010 to win a gold medal. Chen claimed the gold days after setting the world record score with the highest score in the history of the short program.
--:-- Joe Morgan: During that program, Chen landed a triple axel and two quadruple jumps in his routine vaulting the American to the top of the leaderboard. Chen's performance was a massive rebound from his disastrous results at the 2018 Games, where he was the favorite to win the gold medal but finished in fifth place.
--:-- Joe Morgan: So now with those two gold medals, where does that leave the U.S. medal count? Yeah, Team USA is now in fourth place with 11 total medals, and we now have four gold medals in Beijing. On Wednesday, Lindsay Jacob Ellis won Team USA's first gold of the games, winning the snowboard cross final. At 36 years of age, she became the oldest female U.S. Olympian to win a gold medal. This is her fifth Olympics.
--:-- Joe Morgan: Wow, really impressive stuff. Yeah, it is. Thanks, Joe.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks a lot, John. Data Wire sports reporter, Joe Morgan.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Other stories we're tracking this week. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said this week that if Republicans win the majority in the House this year, he'll create a committee on China to look into the origins of COVID-19. He also said they'll investigate whether the Biden family made millions in deals with the Chinese government while Joe Biden served as vice president.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And podcaster Joe Rogan discussed a viral video compilation of him using the N-word this week, slamming it on his podcast as a political hit job. You should apologize if you regret something. Yes. This idea that you should never apologize. Yes. Like if you regret something, I don't think there's anything wrong with apologizing, But I do think you have to be very careful to not apologize for nonsense.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you like this episode and are interested in hearing more, subscribe to Morning Wire on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening, and give us a five-star review.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you like this podcast, subscribe to our Morning Wire newsletter, available exclusively to Daily Wire members. Use code MORNINGWIRE to try a Reader's Pass membership and get your first month for only 99 cents.
