--:-- [Upbeat music fades out]
--:-- Georgia Howe: Welcome to Morning Wire, I'm Georgia Howe.
--:-- John Bickley: And I'm John Bickley, Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief.
--:-- Georgia Howe: It's Thursday, September 21st. Today, we're discussing the highly anticipated and at times contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing where Attorney General Merrick Garland faced questioning from Republicans.
--:-- John Bickley: Joining us to break down the key arguments from both sides is Daily Wire contributor David Marcus.
--:-- David Marcus: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So, Dave, a somewhat combative hearing yesterday. What was the main thrust of the GOP questioning?
--:-- David Marcus: Committee Chair Jim Jordan really honed in on the fact that U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who's now the special counsel in this case, allowed the statute of limitations to run out on the tax cases for the years that Hunter Biden was being paid by Burisma.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's the energy company at the center of the influence peddling allegations against the Bidens. Hunter Biden was put on the board of Burisma, got paid a lot of money over those years.
--:-- David Marcus: Fact number two, he wasn't qualified to be on the board of Burisma. Not my words, his words. He said he got on the board because of his last name.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Fact number three, Burisma executives told Hunter Biden, We're under pressure. We need help.
--:-- David Marcus: Fact number four, Joe Biden goes to Ukraine, leverages our tax money to get the prosecutor fired who was applying the pressure. That all happened.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And what I'm wondering is why you guys let the statute of limitations lapse for those tax years that dealt with Burisma income?
--:-- David Marcus: Garland refused to go into specifics. That would be a recurring theme throughout the hearing, instead deferring to Weiss and generally stating that prosecutors make these decisions. And as attorney general, he was not involved.
--:-- Georgia Howe: At one point, Garland was pressed on allegations from whistleblower Gary Shapley. He alleges that Weiss stated that he did not have authority to bring cases outside of Delaware and was in fact turned down by U.S. attorneys in D.C. and California.
--:-- David Marcus: But Garland has maintained that Weiss always had that authority.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Did that get cleared up?
--:-- David Marcus: Yeah, not exactly. Garland testified that Weiss had the authority to bring a case in any district, even outside of Delaware, which is at odds with Shapley's claim that U.S. attorneys in Washington, D.C. and California had not supported bringing charges in their districts when Weiss asked.
--:-- Georgia Howe: But upon further questioning it became clear that this was a promise from Garland to allow Weiss that authority if he asked for it, as opposed to holding that authority on his own.
--:-- David Marcus: Weiss now has that power since being appointed special counsel, but Chairman Jordan asked why he needed to be made special counsel at all if he already had the power to indict outside his district.
--:-- Georgia Howe: To that, Garland hopped back on his rhetorical merry-go-round and said, that's a question for Weiss.
--:-- David Marcus: Mr. Garland, you said he had complete authority, but he'd already been turned down. He wanted to bring an action in the District of Columbia, and the U.S. attorney there said, no, you can't.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And then you go tell the United States Senate under oath that he has complete authority.
--:-- David Marcus: I'm gonna say again that no one had the authority to turn him down. They could refuse to partner with him. They could not—
--:-- Georgia Howe: You can use whatever language, refuse to partner is turning down.
--:-- David Marcus: Now, both Garland and the Democrats on the committee made several references to the fact that Weiss was appointed U.S. attorney for Delaware by Donald Trump.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Is that accurate? If so, does that give Republicans some assurance that he won't be biased?
--:-- David Marcus: It is technically true that Trump appointed Weiss, but it's more complicated than that because senators are given great deference in the selection of U.S. attorneys for their respective states.
--:-- Georgia Howe: According to Senator Ted Cruz, Weiss, quote, was personally selected by the two Democrat senators from Delaware, Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons, end quote.
--:-- David Marcus: These appointments are made or are supposed to be made above politics. So the idea that Weiss has some special fealty to Trump, it doesn't make a lot of sense.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, the committee, of course, has members who are Democrats as well as Republicans. What approach did Democrats take to this hearing?
--:-- David Marcus: Democrats largely defended Garland and the DOJ, also focused on threats from some GOP lawmakers to defund the FBI, arguing that it is Republicans, not Democrats, who actually want to, as the saying goes, defund the police.
--:-- Georgia Howe: In addition, they highlighted Garland's claims that harsh criticism of DOJ officials, including Weiss, puts them at risk.
--:-- David Marcus: He cited threats that have been received throughout the course of the Hunter Biden investigation and argued that too much scrutiny could put their lives at risk.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So scrutiny and criticism is some form of threat.
--:-- David Marcus: The next step in the process was supposed to be testimony before the committee from special counsel Weiss.
--:-- Georgia Howe: But during the hearing, Garland suggested that the committee would get answers after Weiss submitted his report on the case to Congress.
--:-- David Marcus: That means Weiss might not appear for months or even until after the 2024 election.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Whereas prior to his appointment as special counsel, he had been slated to appear this fall.
--:-- David Marcus: That's the space to watch. The committee wants Weiss. Whether they can get him or not, that's another question.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Got it. Dave, thanks for joining us.
--:-- David Marcus: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Coming up, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in the U.S. this week searching for more support for the war against Russia.
--:-- John Bickley: Here with more is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So Cabot, first tell us about this U address.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So this week the U.N. General Assembly gathered in New York and as expected they warned Ukraine dominated their conversation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: On Wednesday Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared before the body denouncing the Russian invasion but also taking aim at the UN itself for what he views as a lack of support for Ukraine.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Since the war began, the UN Security Council has taken little tangible action against Putin, in large part because Russia is a permanent member of the council and holds veto power on any resolution that they try to pass.
--:-- Georgia Howe: During his address, Zelensky called on the UN to suspend that power and take greater action, saying, quote, it is impossible to stop the war because all actions are vetoed by the aggressor.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Zelensky later touched on climate change, tying the war in Ukraine to global efforts to combat climate change in a moment that quickly went viral online.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Humanity is failing on its climate policy objectives. This means that extreme weather will still impact the normal global life, and some evil state will also weaponize its outcomes.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, while he's in the States, this morning Zelensky is also due to appear in Washington. He's going to meet with Congress.
--:-- Georgia Howe: What are we expecting him to talk about there?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, so it's interesting. When he spoke to Congress in December, he was greeted with a hero's welcome.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And while a number of influential lawmakers in both parties are still resolute in their support of Zelensky, have promised to continue funding the war.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: It's worth noting, there are a growing number of folks, particularly on the right, who've grown disillusioned with continued military and economic aid.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A CNN poll last month, for example, found that 55% of Americans now oppose Congress authorizing additional support for Ukraine.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For context, back in the early days of the war, 62% of Americans said the U.S. should be doing more to help.
--:-- Georgia Howe: While a lawmaker opposed to more support is Florida Congressman Byron Donalds.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Here's what he had to say ahead of Zelensky's visit. There's no money in the House right now for Ukraine. It's not there. You mean there's no support for money? No.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And to be blunt, we're running a $2 trillion deficit. Any money we give to Ukraine, we're borrowing from our future.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: It's not a good time for him to be here, quite frankly.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A number of other lawmakers expressed frustration at Zelensky ahead of the visit, accusing him of making misleading claims in an attempt to garner further American support for the war.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Earlier in the month, for example, a missile exploded in a town in eastern Ukraine, killing 17 civilians, including children, and injuring dozens more.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Zelensky immediately denounced the attack as a Russian terrorist attack and called for the West to take action.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But according to a recent New York Times investigation this week, that missile was almost certainly fired by Ukrainians by mistake.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So there are a growing number of people who you can kind of sense their patience growing thin, and they say his mistakes could draw the West into a war that it desperately wants to avoid.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, and that's very unpopular here.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The flood of migrants into the country from the southern border has increased dramatically in recent weeks, nearing record numbers of crossings every day.
--:-- John Bickley: Meanwhile, a development 40 miles north of Houston, known as Colony Ridge, has become what's believed to be the largest enclave of illegal immigrants inside the U.S. and a strategic hub for cartel elements.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here with the story is Daily Wire reporter Spencer Lindquist.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So, Spencer, the situation has definitely gotten the attention of several officials in the state, including Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: The second highest ranking official in the state of Texas. He went on a local Texas radio show recently hosted by Michael Berry and expressed concern over the growing development, saying he's going to urge Governor Abbott to take action.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm going to ask Governor Abbott to look at addressing some of these issues in a special session if we can.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: Now that Paxton's back on the job, I'm going to reach out to him today. We can't have entire cities of people who've come here illegally with basically no law enforcement.
--:-- Georgia Howe: In some cases, I'm told by running water, it's a very dangerous place to be.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: This is not what America was built on.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Have you spoken to the Lieutenant Governor Patrick about this?
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: I did. He said that he's known about Colony Ridge for years, and he's been asking the question, where does Biden think that these millions of people who've been let into the country are going to end up living.
--:-- Georgia Howe: He's also advocating for closing the border and he's calling on Congress to pass strong immigration laws.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: He even said that the federal government should reimburse the state of Texas for, quote, doing the federal government's job.
--:-- Georgia Howe: All right, so the lieutenant governor wants answers and action from the administration.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: What about the governor himself? One of the revelations in your initial piece is that Abbott received more than a million dollars in donations from the developer associated with Colony Ridge.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Has Abbott addressed that claim directly?
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: So we've reached back out to Governor Abbott's office for a comment on the situation. And so far, they haven't addressed the $1.4 million donation from William Trey Harris, that's the developer behind Colony Ridge, nor the $100,000 donation from Celeste Harris, the developer's wife.
--:-- Georgia Howe: But a spokesperson responded with a statement calling the potential wrongdoings at Colony Ridge unacceptable and pointing out actions that Abbott's office has already taken related to the development.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: They also directed us to an article defending Colony Ridge, saying it was not in violation of any state or federal laws and supposedly has sufficient law enforcement presence.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The email highlighted positive contributions from Colony Ridge as well, like donating land for a school and funding a local fire station.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: Now, you've also reached out to some U.S. representatives from the state. Tell us about how they're responding to this.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's right. Representative Chip Roy from Texas' 21st District told us that he is actively looking into the Colony Ridge development.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: There's also U.S. Congressman Brian Babin, who represents a district that includes Colony Ridge. He told us that he's been concerned about the situation for years and is calling for more action, particularly at the state and local level.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The bottom line here is that for the sovereignty of the United States, for the safety of every American, we've got to close the loopholes that allow for the exploitation of America's generous laws.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: This is a pressing problem that needs immediate attention, and I'll continue to use every avenue at the federal level to address it.
--:-- Georgia Howe: All right, so this is definitely on some lawmakers' radars, and they're looking for answers and for action.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: Spencer Lindquist, thanks for continuing to pursue this story.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We're definitely going to stay on it.
--:-- Spencer Lindquist: Yes, we will.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire reporter, Spencer Lindquist. Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- John Bickley: We'll be back later this afternoon with more news you need to know.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for listening to Morning Wire.
