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--:-- John Bickley: This episode is brought to you by LifeLock. Between two-factor authentication, strong passwords, and a VPN, you try to be in control of how your info is protected. But many other places also have it, and they might not be as careful. That's why LifeLock monitors hundreds of millions of data points a second for threats. If your identity is stolen, they'll fix it. Guaranteed or your money back. Save up to 40% your first year. Visit LifeLock.com slash podcast for 40% off. Terms apply.
--:-- John Bickley: The House issues subpoenas in the Epstein probe, the Coast Guard wraps up its investigation into the Titan sub-disaster, and a dozen states take junk food off the menu for food stamp users. I'm Daily Wire executive editor John Bickley. It's Tuesday, August 5th, and this is Evening Wire. House Republicans are moving full speed ahead in their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. Daily Wire deputy managing editor Tim Rice has more.
--:-- Tim Rice: Today, the Oversight Committee issued subpoenas to nearly a dozen former officials, including Bill and Hillary Clinton. Chairman James Comer says the public deserves transparency. The Justice Department has until August 19th to hand over unredacted records, while depositions for key figures, including the Clintons, are set for the fall.
--:-- John Bickley: Meanwhile, the Justice Department is weighing whether or not to release audio and transcripts from a recent interview with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Maxwell, who is now in a Texas prison, was questioned last month in Florida. Any release would likely be redacted to protect victims' identities.
--:-- Tim Rice: Weeks after new evidence of an Obama administration plan to sabotage President Trump, the Justice Department is taking action. The DOJ will convene a federal grand jury to investigate whether top Obama-era officials conspired to push false claims that Donald Trump colluded with Russia in 2016.
--:-- John Bickley: The move follows a referral from DNI Tulsi Gabbard, who declassified documents alleging the 2017 intelligence report was politically manipulated. Potential targets include former intel chiefs James Clapper, John Brennan, and James Comey. Former President Obama dismissed the allegations as bizarre and politically motivated.
--:-- Tim Rice: But as law professor Jonathan Turley tells Fox, Obama is likely in the clear here. He has immunity due to the recent Supreme Court decision. He can thank Donald Trump for that. But the rest of them are exposed. And there's a very long list, including Hillary Clinton.
--:-- John Bickley: It can be Clinton... Now the key to remember here is that even if the statute of limitations has run, these people are likely to be questioned again. The DOJ is putting nearly three dozen sanctuary cities on notice, warning legal action may come soon.
--:-- Tim Rice: Attorney General Pam Bondi accused the cities of putting Americans at risk by obstructing federal enforcement. The DOJ has already sued several states, including California and New York, with mixed results. But after pressure from the DOJ, Louisville, Kentucky changed its policy to cooperate with ICE detainer requests, a shift federal officials hope other cities will follow.
--:-- John Bickley: The Texas Democrats fleeing the state to avoid a redistricting vote has put the spotlight back on the last time they did it. Back in 2021, Democrats in the state also skipped town to avoid a vote, that time on election integrity measures.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Most of them hid out in D.C., but that ended up coming back to bite them as several of the fugitive lawmakers caught COVID. They ended up returning to the state a few weeks later, and the Republican-led legislature then passed the new election laws.
--:-- John Bickley: Massachusetts will now close its migrant housing shelters after spending nearly $1 billion on the program in fiscal year 2025. Daily Wire investigative reporter Mireta Lordi has the details.
--:-- Mireta Lordi: Governor Maura Healey tried to spin the closure as a success, but it was her state's sanctuary policies that caused the crisis. The Bay State's right-to-shelter law required housing for anyone without a home. That attracted thousands of illegal immigrants who make up the majority of the emergency housing occupants.
--:-- John Bickley: With more than 4,000 migrant families housed in hotels, community centers, and even prisons, the program was running at nearly $3,500 per family or $1,000 per person per week. No word on where the families have been relocated.
--:-- Mireta Lordi: Beachgoers in Granada, Spain, tackled a boatload of migrants attempting to enter the country. Wild video of the incident shows roughly a dozen individuals approaching the beach on a motorboat and diving into the water fully clothed.
--:-- John Bickley: The migrants, believed to be from North Africa, were then detained by civilians until law enforcement arrived. Several were apprehended.
--:-- Cassie Akiva: The United Nations admitted that 89% of its aid trucks to Gaza have been looted since May. According to UN data, only 300 trucks reached their intended destination since May 19th without being intercepted either quote peacefully by hungry civilians or forcefully by armed actors.
--:-- John Bickley: A spotlight on the data comes as Israel continues to face allegations of blocking aid to Gaza. UN figures show that Israel approved 112 aid requests in June and denied 38.
--:-- Cassie Akiva: There are currently 8,682 tons of aid sitting in the sun in Gaza at the border awaiting UN transport. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee had this to say about the Gaza situation on Fox News over the weekend.
--:-- Mike Huckabee: There is one reason that there is suffering in Gaza. It's the same reason that 1,200 people were massacred on October the 7th, and that's because of Hamas. They're a terror organization, and they've acted like it. And all of this time, Israel has done everything it can.
--:-- John Bickley: The Netherlands will become the first NATO country to fund the U.S.-made weapons for Ukraine under a new initiative backed by President Trump. Dutch officials announced a 500 million euro contribution to help get Patriot missile systems to Ukraine.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: The deal follows Trump's push for Europe to shoulder more of the Ukraine burden and comes ahead of a looming peace deadline with Russia. Ukraine's president thanked the Dutch, saying the aid strengthens Europe's air defenses.
--:-- John Bickley: The Titan submersible implosion was reportedly preventable. That's according to a report from the Coast Guard. The submersible imploded and killed all five passengers, including operator and company head Stockton Rush.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: The Coast Guard investigation found the company's safety procedures were, quote, critically flawed and said there were glaring disparities between safety protocols and actual practices. All of that the company ignored, according to the report.
--:-- John Bickley: Police say they have captured quadruple murder suspect Austin Drummond in Jackson, Tennessee. This comes after authorities had found a car last week that was believed to be Drummond's.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Police say he is suspected of killing four people in Tiptonville, all of whom were related to an abandoned baby found in the front yard of a random individual's house. Drummond faces various charges, including four counts of first-degree murder.
--:-- John Bickley: President Trump has ruled out Treasury Secretary Scott Besant as Federal Reserve Chair. The president has been unhappy with current chairman Jerome Powell, who's refused to lower interest rates.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: But Trump said he will not fire Powell before the chairman's term ends next May. Trump told CNBC Squawk Box that he has four people in mind for the position but Besant is not one of them.
--:-- John Bickley: 12 states have ended the use of food stamps on soda and candy. Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo has the latest.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has approved waivers from six additional states asking to limit purchases with food stamps. The latest states to join the Make America Healthy Again trend are Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia.
--:-- John Bickley: In total, 12 states are now approved to limit food stamps. The other six states are Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, and Utah. All states will ban or restrict soda purchases with food stamps. Eight states will ban or restrict candy purchases, and three states will also restrict energy drink purchases.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. applauded the move and said that taxpayers should not fund unhealthy foods. We all believe in free choice. We live in a democracy. People can make their own choice about what they're going to buy and what they're not going to buy.
--:-- John Bickley: If you want to buy a sugary soda, you ought to be able to do that. U.S. taxpayers should not pay for it.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: A Massachusetts woman says she had the strangest hit and run of her life when a bat flew into her mouth while stargazing in Arizona. She says she was snapping night sky photos with her dad when the surprise encounter left her scrambling for rabies treatment.
--:-- John Bickley: But the real shock, a $20,000 medical bill. She says her new health plan hadn't actually kicked in despite assurances that it had. Meanwhile, the bat flew off without swapping insurance information.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Oh, the things we read here.
--:-- John Bickley: Those are your drive home updates today. To learn more about these stories, go to dailywire.com. And in case you missed it this morning, we covered some major stories, including Texas Democrats fleeing the state, a net zero trend in immigration, and RFK Jr. banning a mercury-based preservative from vaccines.
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--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for tuning in. We'll be back tomorrow morning with another full edition of Morning Wire.
