--:-- [Theme music fades out]
--:-- 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: CBS is making headlines again over claims they selectively edited an interview, this time with House Speaker Mike Johnson. Wait a minute. Wait, just a minute. It's not me undermining it. It's the actions of the Biden-Harris administration in some of these states. What are Johnson and Republicans saying, and how has the network responded? I'm Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe.
--:-- Georgia Howe: It's Wednesday, October 16th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: The Harris campaign is pulling out all the stops in their effort to appeal to black male voters, including promising preferential treatment. Now that we're 20 days until November 5th, now she wants to run out there with a specific agenda. And as recreational marijuana use gains more popularity, dangerous side effects emerge from the smoke.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
--:-- John Bickley: In today's digital age, your personal information is under constant threat. Hackers can expose your home address, contact info, and even your social security number in seconds. But there is a solution. Cloaked. Cloaked identifies and removes data threats that generate on-demand aliases to disguise your phone number, email address, and credit card number. Sign up for Cloaked today by visiting cloaked.com and receive 20% off your subscription when you use code DailyWire at checkout.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's 20% off at C-L-O-A-K-E-D dot com when you use code DailyWire.
--:-- John Bickley: Kamala Harris unveiled her opportunity agenda for black men this week. As polling shows, the vice president's struggling with minority voters, especially black males, who are gravitating toward Donald Trump. Here to discuss the agenda is Daily Wire reporter Amanda Presta-Giacomo.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: So we briefly referenced this plan earlier this week, but you've dug into this a little deeper. First, what is Harris promising?
--:-- John Bickley: Quite a lot. For one thing, Harris says she's going to give out $1 million fully forgivable $20,000 loans to Black men and other minorities to start businesses. Basically, these would be de facto grants funded by the taxpayer, including taxpayers, some of whom apparently wouldn't qualify because of their skin color. She also wants to legalize recreational marijuana nationwide. And within that new industry, Harris is promising to give preferential treatment to black males, seemingly those with drug-related criminal offenses.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: Harris is also promising to regulate cryptocurrency to better protect specifically black men. She also wants to create a national health equity initiative that's going to focus on health issues that disproportionately affect black males. She wants to invest in training and mentorship programs and create a pipeline of Black male teachers by way of student loan forgiveness and other incentives.
--:-- John Bickley: And there were also a number of other promises, like tripling the number of Black first-time homebuyers in her first year, stopping the supposed bias in home appraisals for Black owners, and banning some businesses from assessing Black applicants' criminal arrest records.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: Now there have already been a lot of questions raised about the legality of some of these promises due to the racial discrimination element. It's unconstitutional for example to hand out federal funds or in this case loan forgiveness based on race. It would be in violation of the Civil Rights Act.
--:-- John Bickley: Democrats tried to hand down loan forgiveness to non-white farmers through a COVID bill in 2021, for example, and they were shot down by numerous judges and the DOJ never appealed.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: So obviously this plan is an overt play for black males, but it does also reflect Harris's ideology regarding equity over equality. Now, Harris and some other progressives now view equal outcomes as the true measure of fairness, not equal opportunity.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So this plan obviously comes as Harris struggles in the polls with black men in particular. Just how bad is that looking for Harris?
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: It's pretty dire for Harris. A recent New York Times Siena College poll shows that the VP has 78% support from Black Americans. Now, while that might sound high, that's 12 points lower than Joe Biden showing in 2020. That deficit is mostly due to Black men, with whom Harris only has 70% support.
--:-- Georgia Howe: There was also an NAACP poll from September that showed one in four younger Black males supported Trump over Harris.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: Harris is also running against Trump's record. The former president hit record low unemployment for Black Americans. Paychecks did go further under his administration, and Trump had a lot of success with his Opportunity Zone initiative for low-income areas.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That entailed tax benefits for investors. And Trump right now is polling far better with Black and Hispanic voters than any Republican presidential nominee in decades.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: And lastly, Harris's camp is just struggling to connect with men in general. Democrats have been criticized for neglecting to offer any real outreach to traditionally masculine men.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here's what CNN commentator Scott Jennings had to say about that strategy. It's a real problem, and you see the Democrats reacting to it. A lot of men think Democrats care more about dudes who want to become women than dudes who just want to be dudes.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: And no hunting, cosplay, or cringey videos is going to change if the bed is made.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, as the clock winds down, Harris had a discussion with popular New York City radio host Charlemagne Tha God this week, hoping to, again, reach black men. She made headlines in that interview when she signaled that she's open to racial reparations. She's also reportedly in talks with Joe Rogan for a podcast appearance. Rogan is the number one podcaster in the world with a huge young male audience.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: Well, less than three weeks to go. We'll see if any of this manages to drum up any more support.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Amanda, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Amanda Presta-Giacomo: You're welcome.
--:-- John Bickley: Imagine having a crystal ball for future events. That's Kalshi, America's first legal prediction market in a century. It's not about luck. It's about using your knowledge to make informed decisions on everything from elections to economic trends. Kalshi's event contracts let you take positions on future events, giving you a chance to profit from your insights or hedge against potential risks.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Ready to put your knowledge to the test? Sign up today at Kalshi.com slash wire. That's K-A-L-S-H-I dot com slash wire. Deposit $100 and you get $20 free to trade.
--:-- John Bickley: House Speaker Mike Johnson is accusing CBS of deceptively editing his interview with Face the Nation on Sunday. This comes on the heels of the network being accused of editing their interview with Vice President Kamala Harris to cast her in a more favorable light. Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham is here now with more.
--:-- Megan Basham: So, Megan, just a couple of days ago, a new Gallup poll showed that Americans' trust in media is still at a record low. So I have to imagine this latest controversy with CBS is not helping. What happened?
--:-- John Bickley: So Face the Nation anchor Margaret Brennan asked Johnson about two hot button issues. The first one the federal government handling of Hurricane Helene And then the second Republican efforts to ensure that non-citizens aren't voting in this election
--:-- Megan Basham: Now you know due to time constraints, it's not unusual for outlets to edit down interviews that have been pre-recorded. And of course, we do it sometimes on this program. The issue here is whether CBS cut key information out of Johnson's answers.
--:-- John Bickley: So I want to play you a couple of clips. This was what CBS aired. So that's a different accounting than this 2% you say was distributed. Yeah. So they've obligated some funds, but they've only distributed 2%. The rescue and recovery effort's still going on. And then we address the rest of it.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, here's the part of that answer that CBS cut. So they've obligated some funds, but they've only distributed 2%. And when I was there on the ground and you should go, I mean, bring the cameras and talk to the people there. They'll tell you, don't take politicians words for this or the administration's word, they had not been provided the resources almost two weeks out from the storm that they desperately needed.
--:-- John Bickley: And when I was there 13 days post the storm hitting that state, people are still being rescued.
--:-- Megan Basham: So you can hear there that in the full answer Johnson gave, there was much more specific evidence for his claim. And presumably something similar happened with the answer regarding securing voter rolls?
--:-- John Bickley: Yes. So Brennan asked Johnson about the SAVE Act, and that bill would have required proof of citizenship to register to vote.
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, CBS kept Johnson's general response, but it cut out the part where he gave a specific example.
--:-- John Bickley: Now, he pointed out that the Biden administration, which of course includes Vice President Harris, is suing the state of Virginia due to a proof of citizenship order that Governor Glenn Youngkin recently issued.
--:-- Megan Basham: Johnson said that the administration's move to block that order, quoting here, creates a lot of doubt and concern in the minds of a lot of the American people.
--:-- John Bickley: Well, CBS also cut out part of another answer from Johnson, where he pointed out that Chuck Schumer and the Democrats blocked the SAVE Act entirely, and where he noted that millions of illegal immigrants have entered the country since Biden and Harris took office.
--:-- Megan Basham: So altogether, CBS cut around five minutes, and he says that those selective edits coming in the middle of his answers were meant to, again, quoting, promote Democrats and undermine Republicans.
--:-- John Bickley: Now, for those who didn't catch it when we aired this other story, what happened with CBS's interview with Kamala Harris?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, it's kind of the inverse of what we just talked about. So back on October 8th, 60 Minutes asked Harris about Israel.
--:-- John Bickley: In the full interview, she gave what I think you can at best call a pretty meandering and confusing answer.
--:-- Megan Basham: But what CBS ultimately aired had been pared down into something that was far more concise, far more comprehensible.
--:-- John Bickley: So in this case, GOP critics say that CBS was trying to save Harris with those edits.
--:-- Megan Basham: Since then, there have been a lot of calls for CBS to release the full transcript. But so far, the network is ignoring them.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Right. Well, we obviously understand on this show it's crucial to cut some things for time. But you never want to change the nature of what people are saying.
--:-- Megan Basham: Megan, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Megan Basham: Anytime.
--:-- Georgia Howe: With recreational marijuana now legal in nearly half of all states, a rising number of people are experiencing serious side effects, including psychosis. Daily Wire investigative reporter Maraid Elordi is here with the details.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Hi, Georgia. So as more and more people use more and more powerful, genetically modified forms of marijuana, dangerous side effects are finally coming to light. This is a new report from the New York Times.
--:-- Georgia Howe: According to the Times emergency rooms are seeing more people present with cannabis hyperemesis syndrome This condition can cause extreme dehydration seizures kidney failure cardiac arrest and even death
--:-- Maraid Elordi: According to the Times at least eight people have died in the U from the condition Dr Borislav Stoev the emergency services chairman at St Peter University Hospital in New Jersey, spoke about this last year.
--:-- Georgia Howe: He said they're seeing an uptick in people presenting with this syndrome. There's certainly a lot more widespread use of marijuana and cannabinoids, and also all the different products now available, such as edibles, are contributing to that.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: So now we can see it certainly a lot more frequently. Because THC is fat-soluble, it can build up in the body over months or years until it reaches a point of toxicity. This can be confusing for daily users who feel like their symptoms began out of the blue.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, we've also reported that younger people are using marijuana more than in the past. Are they also experiencing this?
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Yes, and according to last year's National Survey on Drug Use and Health, younger users especially tend to misuse the drug.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And the numbers are staggering. The survey found that nearly 17% of people 18 to 25 have cannabis use disorder, meaning they continue to use the drug despite significant negative effects on their lives.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: More than 4.5 million of these young people use the drug every day or almost every day. A Massachusetts psychiatrist said she's seeing more cases of schizophrenia related to cannabis use.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Even temporary psychosis from marijuana use can last months in some cases. The National Institutes of Health published a study last year that found cannabis use by young men aged 21 to 30 significantly raises the risk of developing schizophrenia. 30% of those cases were preventable by avoiding cannabis use.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: This is also concerning since marijuana use affects brain development, which continues until around age 25.
--:-- Georgia Howe: As far as adults generally go, a huge portion of users are experiencing some degree of dependence. A new data analysis of the 2022 U.S. National Drug Use Survey showed that about 18 million people, nearly a third of all adult users, reported symptoms of cannabis use disorder.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Also, more people use marijuana to ease anxiety and depression amid rising rates of those mental health disorders.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, what's the legal status of marijuana nationwide?
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Well, recreational marijuana is now legal in 24 states, although it's still illegal under federal law.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Initially, advocates pushed to legalize medical marijuana to ease the suffering of chronically ill people. However, blue states soon pushed for recreational legalization, spurred by activists who opposed keeping people convicted of lower-level marijuana offenses in prison, particularly Black offenders.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Marijuana is now a $33 billion industry in the U.S., and we should also note that new products are much more potent than the versions of the drug that were around several decades ago.
--:-- Georgia Howe: In the 1990s, marijuana had about 5% THC, the substance that causes the drugs high. Today, some products sold include concentrates with as high as 99% THC.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Only two states even attempt to limit the amount of THC in recreational marijuana products.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So this is a huge factor in why more people are experiencing much more serious health consequences.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Well, I used to see this a lot when I was an ER nurse in Los Angeles. The hardest part was convincing people that the THC was the problem if they'd been smoking for years and years.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Mairead, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Maraid Elordi: Thanks, Georgia.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back this afternoon with more news you need to know.
--:-- John Bickley: It's stressful knowing you can't control the election's outcome, but you can take control of protecting your savings by diversifying into gold with Birch Gold Group. In the past four years, the U.S. dollar's buying power has declined significantly, while gold's price has increased an impressive 40%. Birch Gold will help you convert an IRA or 401k into a physical gold IRA, safeguarding your hard-earned wealth.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Text WIRE to 989898 to get your free, comprehensive info kit on gold investing. Trust Birch Gold, as I do, to protect your savings and secure your financial future. Again, text WIRE to 989898 today.
--:-- [Theme music fades in]
