--:-- [Theme music fades out]
--:-- John Bickley: Within days of the Roe v. Wade reversal, headlines began circulating about a pregnant 10-year-old girl in Ohio who was forced to cross state lines to get an abortion. Initially, some media outlets cast doubts on the veracity of the story, but now new facts have emerged. We have the details.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Friday, July 15th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: A seismic demographic shift is taking place among Democrats and Republicans. We take a closer look at the new look parties and what it means in the upcoming elections.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And tennis star Novak Djokovic has just won his seventh Wimbledon title. The next major is the U.S. Open. But will the world's number one player be allowed to compete while refusing to get vaccinated?
--:-- Novak Djokovic: I understand that not being vaccinated today, I'm unable to travel to most of the tournaments at the moment. And that's the price you're willing to pay?
--:-- John Bickley: That is the price that I'm going to pay.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know. You can get this show and all of the content you love wherever you are, all on the Daily Wire app.
--:-- John Bickley: Even if you're not a Daily Wire member, you'll be the first to know what's trending with mobile notifications for the latest news and you'll get content from all of your favorite Daily Wire shows.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Download the Daily Wire app and keep up with the facts no matter where your day takes you.
--:-- John Bickley: Claims about a 10-year-old rape victim who had to cross state lines to obtain an abortion now appear to have been confirmed. The story became the focus of the abortion debate this week after President Biden referenced it in comments to the press, sparking doubt and fact checks.
--:-- Megan Basham: So, Megan, obviously a really upsetting story here. What do we know for certain?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, what we know at this point is that a victim, a 10-year-old Ohio girl, has been identified. And according to the Franklin County Municipal Court, a 27-year-old man named Gerson Fuentes has been arrested and charged with felony rape of a minor under age 13.
--:-- Megan Basham: He is reportedly an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, and he's now being held on $2 million bond. So Columbus police said at Fuentes' arraignment on Wednesday that he had admitted to raping the young girl on at least two occasions.
--:-- Megan Basham: Police have testified that they first became aware of the situation in late June after a local children's services department called them on behalf of this child's mother.
--:-- Megan Basham: Telemundo claims to have spoken to that mother who told the outlet everything they're saying against him is a lie.
--:-- Megan Basham: The girl and her mother live in Columbus and with that Dobbs ruling, abortion became illegal in Ohio after a heartbeat is detected, which is usually around six weeks, though there is an exception in the state for the physical health of the mother.
--:-- Megan Basham: Detectives said Wednesday that this girl traveled to Indiana, where abortion is legal, to terminate her pregnancy on June 30th.
--:-- Megan Basham: Some other key witnesses here include Indianapolis-based OBGYN Dr. Caitlin Bernard. And she's now told several media outlets that she was contacted by the girl's Ohio doctor. And after that, she helped the girl get an abortion in Indiana.
--:-- Megan Basham: So according to Bernard, The girl was six weeks and three days into her pregnancy.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, when President Biden first referenced this situation on Friday, the story had not yet been confirmed. That sparked a fact-checking storm online.
--:-- Megan Basham: Right, Yeah it did
--:-- Megan Basham: And for reference here was what Biden said about that Just last week was reported that a 10 girl was a rape victim in Ohio 10 years old raped six weeks pregnant already traumatized was forced to travel to another state
--:-- Megan Basham: So that led some GOP politicians and various media outlets to question that claim.
--:-- Megan Basham: To give you one example, Ohio's Republican attorney general previously said there was not a whisper of evidence that this crime had occurred.
--:-- Megan Basham: And Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan, also a Republican, suggested that it could be a lie.
--:-- Megan Basham: Even the Washington Post fact checker, Glenn Kessler, though, said that he was unable to determine the story's veracities without more details.
--:-- Megan Basham: And after that, the Wall Street Journal's editorial board called it, and I'm going to quote here, an unlikely story from a biased source that neatly fits the progressive narrative but can't be confirmed.
--:-- Megan Basham: At that point, multiple Fox News hosts also treated the story with some skepticism.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now that it's been confirmed, though, some left-leaning outlets are accusing the right of, quote, post-Roe gaslighting.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, under Ohio law, there is an exception for the life of the mother. Would a 10-year-old pregnant child not be considered at high risk?
--:-- Megan Basham: You know, I asked Dr. Kirk Milhone, who is a pediatric cardiologist who once actually treated a 12-year-old rape victim who did carry twin babies to term about that issue.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, he said it all depends on the development of the young girl. If she's 10 years old, she has gone through puberty to a stent where that she can actually become pregnant, right?
--:-- Megan Basham: So she's not like a 10-year-old that you would think who's prepubescent. She is a 10-year-old who has precocious puberty to the point of being able to ovulate and become pregnant.
--:-- Megan Basham: If it's in a high-income country, Then the death rate is 1 in 5,400. Now that's a 99.9% survival.
--:-- Megan Basham: Milhoun said that the greatest risk in this case would actually be for the baby.
--:-- Megan Basham: So a lot of people questioned whether this case wouldn't qualify for that health exemption.
--:-- Megan Basham: But according to multiple doctors we talked to, this pregnancy could have been carried to term without any significant risk to the mother.
--:-- Megan Basham: This is, of course, a developing story, and I'll continue to follow it closely. Just an extremely difficult situation.
--:-- John Bickley: Megan, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Megan Basham: That was Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- John Bickley: Coming up, a major realignment is taking place in the two political parties.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: 99 cents. With less than four months remaining until crucial midterm elections, new data shows an unprecedented party realignment that could redefine the political landscape for years to come.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: The shift comes as new polling shows a near dead heat between Republicans and Democrats for control of Congress.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Here to break it all down is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So for decades now, the New York Times has been tracking the demographic makeup of each political party.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And for quite some time now, the data has shown that the Republican Party has typically relied on white and college-educated voters, while the Democrat Party was comprised of more minorities and working-class Americans.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For example, as recently as 2016, Democrats won over 70% of non-white voters, while the Republicans won the majority of white voters with a college degree.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But recently there's been a seismic shift that turning that narrative on its head
--:-- Cabot Phillips: This week for the first time ever the New York Times found that Democrats had more support from white college graduates than they did among minority voters.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Overall Democrats now lead with college-educated voters by a margin of 56 to 32, while it's Republicans who lead with non-college-educated voters 45 to 33.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: That's quite the reversal.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And at the same time, Republicans saw record levels of support among minorities, particularly Latino voters, as well as working class voters.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: As Axios put it, quote, Democrats are becoming the party of upscale voters, while Republicans are quietly building a multiracial coalition of working class voters.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, we'd already seen anecdotal evidence of this in Texas and Florida.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Remember, we talked on the show about the recent success of Republicans in majority Latino districts.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But to see further evidence in a national poll like this is striking.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, it really is.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So what's causing the shift?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, to answer that question, it's helpful to look at the issues voters say are most important to them.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: While college-educated whites, the ones swinging towards Democrats right now, are more likely to list abortion, gun control, and climate change as their top issues, more social issues, working class and minority voters are far more likely to say that the economy and inflation are their number one issue and it's not even close.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And most polling experts will basically say that the liberal college-educated voters care more about social issues because the economic ones are less likely to impact them personally.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: To that point, just 17% of white college-educated Biden voters say the economy is their top issue. That's the lowest mark of any other racial or educational demographic.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: To put it simply, they can afford to have different priorities.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And as Democrats have increasingly leaned into more cultural issues like abortion and LGBTQ topics, many working class and minority voters who used to comprise the party's base are starting to shift towards Republicans who are really honing in on the economy right now.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And it seems to be working.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, this poll had some interesting insights into the upcoming midterms.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: What can you tell us there?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, this part was fascinating.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For the better part of the year, Republicans had been holding anywhere from a three to six point advantage on the question of which party people wanted to control Congress.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But that appears to have tightened, with the latest polling showing a statistical tie.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: The main factors driving that gain for Democrats appear to be the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the recent string of mass shootings.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Since the Roe ruling, Democrats have gained about three points on average in most polls.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But it's worth noting, while there's good news for Democrats there, a number of other historic metrics still seem to indicate an uphill battle for the left in November.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For example, in midterm elections dating back to 1974, the party in control of the White House has lost on average 23 seats in the House.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And this year is by no means expected to be an average year given the state of the economy and unpopularity of President Biden.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Right.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: What other factors are at play here?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So it's also helpful to look at congressional approval ratings. They can often help give an idea of how strong incumbents will fare.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And right now, nationwide approval for Congress sits at 18 percent, 18, which obviously hurts those who are already in power.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And one more thing to note, among undecided voters, President Biden's job approval sits at 23 percent.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And historically, that metric signals a late break among undecided voters towards the other party, in this case, Republicans.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Definitely, there's some major shifts underway.
--:-- John Bickley: Cabot, thanks for coming on.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime. That's Daily Wire Senior Editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- John Bickley: The U.S. Open, which is the final tennis major of the year, has no plans to allow three-time winner Novak Djokovic to compete in this year's tournament, as long as he remains unvaccinated.
--:-- David Cohn: Here to tell us more is sports writer and Crane Company co-host David Cohn.
--:-- David Cohn: Thanks for coming on David.
--:-- David Cohn: First why was Djokovic allowed to compete at Wimbledon in the French Open but not here in America
--:-- David Cohn: So Djokovic's status comes down to current U.S. customs law, which still requires vaccination against COVID-19 for non-U.S. citizens to enter.
--:-- David Cohn: Now, Djokovic is not vaccinated. He has no plans to be vaccinated, and he's been very vocal about that, and that would bar him from competing in the final Grand Slam of the season.
--:-- David Cohn: Now, you are correct that Novak was allowed to compete in Paris for this year's French Open and in London for Wimbledon, which he won for the fourth straight year.
--:-- David Cohn: But remember, he was not allowed to participate in the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open, a tournament he has won nine times.
--:-- David Cohn: Novak and his team were under the impression that he would be allowed to defend his title in Melbourne due to a medical exemption.
--:-- David Cohn: But he was then detained by the Australian government and eventually deported.
--:-- David Cohn: Now, Djokovic has continued to speak out about his reluctance to be vaccinated, right?
--:-- David Cohn: He has. He has said, and I'm quoting here, the freedom to choose what I put in my body is worth more than any title.
--:-- David Cohn: He has also said missing competitions is, quote, the price I'm willing to pay, unquote.
--:-- David Cohn: Now, keep in mind, Novak is extremely religious. He comes from a very religious part of the world.
--:-- David Cohn: And he monitors, perhaps more closely than any athlete alive, what goes into his body.
--:-- David Cohn: But I've always represented and always supported the freedom to choose what you put into your body.
--:-- David Cohn: I've always carefully reviewed, assessed everything that comes in from the supplements, food, the water that I drink or sports drinks, anything really that comes into my body as a fuel.
--:-- David Cohn: Based on all the information that I got, I decided not to take the vaccine.
--:-- David Cohn: Now, as for the U.S. Open next month, any chance we see him take the court there?
--:-- David Cohn: I don't believe so, John. I mean, Kyrie Irving, the Brooklyn Nets starting point guard, was eventually allowed to play home games in New York once the NBA playoffs started.
--:-- David Cohn: So maybe there's a sliver of hope.
--:-- David Cohn: But this is what happens when an immovable object meets an unstoppable force.
--:-- David Cohn: Djokovic has said he will await good news from the U.S., but I am not vaccinated and I'm not planning to get vaccinated.
--:-- David Cohn: So unless there is a swift change in U.S. immigration law, I don't believe the 21-time Grand Slam winner will be present in Flushing Meadows, New York next month.
--:-- John Bickley: Yeah, I'm sure his fans are hoping that will change.
--:-- John Bickley: David, thanks for coming on.
--:-- David Cohn: Thank you.
--:-- John Bickley: That was sports writer and Crane & Company co-host David Cohn.
--:-- John Bickley: Other stories we're tracking this week.
--:-- John Bickley: Ivana Trump, the former wife of Donald Trump, died Thursday at age 73.
--:-- John Bickley: Ivana grew up under communist rule in Czechoslovakia before emigrating to America in the 1970s.
--:-- John Bickley: She is survived by her three children, Don Jr., Ivanka, and Eric, as well as her 10 grandchildren.
--:-- John Bickley: President Biden met with Israel's prime minister in Jerusalem Thursday.
--:-- John Bickley: The two leaders vowed to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
--:-- John Bickley: More than 500 women have filed a lawsuit against Uber, alleging that the rideshare drivers kidnapped, sexually assaulted, or raped them.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for listening to Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: We created this show to bring more balance to the national conversation.
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--:-- John Bickley: That's all the time we've got this morning.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- John Bickley: We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
