--:-- [Upbeat music fades out, and the host, John Bickley, speaks]
--:-- John Bickley: This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible. Financial geniuses. Monetary magicians. These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds. Visit Progressive.com to see if you could save. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations.
--:-- [Music transitions to a new segment]
--:-- John Bickley: I'm Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Tuesday, January 9th, and this is your Morning Wire afternoon update.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's right, John. Let's dive into the news.
--:-- John Bickley: Ray Epps, the controversial figure in the January 6th saga, was sentenced to one year of probation today. Daily Wire reporter Amanda Prestigiacomo has more.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: The former Arizona resident pleaded guilty back in September to a misdemeanor charge, but he received no jail time and had no restrictions placed on his travel during his probation period. Epps was the center of several conspiracies suggesting he was a government agent who helped incite the riots, leading him to file defamation lawsuits against some outlets last year.
--:-- John Bickley: Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have backed up Epps' denial of being an FBI operative. They say Epps has never worked for the government beyond serving in the U.S. Marines from 1979 to 1983. Lawyers for Epps say he has faced backlash and threats leading him and his wife to sell their home and flee.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Some, though, see Epps' sentence as light compared to others who were at the Capitol that day and even some who weren't. Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, for example, was sentenced to 22 years, and he was not even in the Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.
--:-- Tim Pierce: According to Walter Reed Medical Center, Austin underwent a procedure called a prostatectomy last month to treat it. The defense secretary was then admitted to Walter Reed on January 1st due to complications from the procedure, including nausea with severe abdominal, hip, and leg pain.
--:-- John Bickley: The hospital did, however, say his prostate cancer was detected early, and his prognosis is excellent. The announcement of the secretary's diagnosis comes on the heels of a White House review of cabinet protocols after Austin's secret hospitalization.
--:-- Tim Pierce: The memo says that cabinet agencies must ensure they follow procedures in the event that a delegation of authority is required.
--:-- John Bickley: The Democrat-controlled Maine legislature voted down a Republican effort to impeach Secretary of State Shinna Bellows over her decision to remove former President Donald Trump from the state's ballot.
--:-- Georgia Howe: [reading from a news source] "Bellows made the assessment that Trump was disqualified from being on the ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. 60 have been voted in the affirmative. 80 have been voted in the negative. The motion fails."
--:-- John Bickley: In an 80-60 vote, the Maine House voted against the Bellows impeachment resolution. Republicans in the state say the decision made by Bellows disenfranchises more than 300,000 voters in Maine who chose Trump in the last election.
--:-- Ed Polworczyk: If allowed to stand, we are no longer free. This decision is indicative of the direction our state is moving. For decades, we have watched our freedoms nibble the way. This is a big bite out of our rights.
--:-- John Bickley: As the Iowa caucus approaches, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, and former President Donald Trump are all hosting town halls this week with Fox News.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Nikki Haley took the stage last night and went after her GOP opponents while remaining sharply critical of President Biden.
--:-- Nikki Haley: Biden in the meantime has been critical lately of a comment Haley made when she was asked about what caused the Civil War. Haley did not mention slavery in her answer.
--:-- John Bickley: Hours before Haley's town hall, Biden seemed to take aim at Haley while in her hometown of Charleston, South Carolina.
--:-- Joe Biden: Well, let me be clear for those who don't seem to know, Slavery was the cause of the civil war.
--:-- Nikki Haley: During last night's town hall, Haley gave Biden the following response.
--:-- Nikki Haley: I mean, first of all, Mother Emanuel Church is a sacred place. I mean, we had we lost nine amazing souls that night for just going to a Bible study. For Biden to show up there and give a political speech is offensive in itself. But the second thing I'll say is I don't need someone who palled around with segregationists in the 70s and has said racist comments all the way through his career, lecturing me or anyone in South Carolina about what it means to have racism, slavery, or anything related to the Civil War.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Millions of Americans woke up to severe weather across many parts of the country today with heavy rain and flooding risks in some areas and heavy snow in others.
--:-- John Bickley: Hundreds of thousands of people are still without power, many of whom reside in Louisiana, Georgia, and Florida.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The National Weather Service said heavy rain could cause flooding in areas spanning all the way from the Florida Panhandle to southern Maine.
--:-- John Bickley: The National Weather Service Seattle issued a rare blizzard warning for western Washington on Monday night. That's the first for the area since 2012.
--:-- Georgia Howe: For many Americans, the extreme weather is set to continue, and meanwhile, another major storm system heads for the eastern U.S.
--:-- John Bickley: Following a mid-air emergency on an Alaska airline flight Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board began an investigation into the event.
--:-- Jennifer Homendy: But the agency chief says it may be expanded as they learn more. After the door plug fell off of a 171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 plane on Friday, the NTSB found that the fittings at the top of the door plug fractured.
--:-- John Bickley: We don't know if the bolts were loose. We don't know if bolts were in there fractured or possibly the bolts weren't there at all.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Following Friday's incident, the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft for inspection. The pause affected about 171 planes worldwide.
--:-- John Bickley: And a man caught on cam jumping over a judicial bench and attacking a Nevada judge last week has been sentenced to four years in state prison.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Last week, Diabra DeLone Redden stated that he was in a, quote, better place mentally and didn't think he should be sent to prison. But when the judge made clear she was going to lock him up, he ran and leapt over the bench, landing on top of the judge and causing a bloody brawl.
--:-- John Bickley: Here's what the moment sounded like.
--:-- Judge: I feel like I should be giving him a shot. I appreciate that, but I think it's time that you get a taste of something else because I just can't with that history.
--:-- Georgia Howe: In accordance with the laws of the state of Addison.
--:-- John Bickley: When he went before the same judge for sentencing again yesterday, Redden was shackled and under heavy guard.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Today, he faces another judge for a variety of charges he could face decades in prison.
--:-- John Bickley: Those are your drive home updates this afternoon. To learn more about these stories, go to dailywire.com. And for more in-depth discussion of the biggest stories of the day, listen to the latest full episode of Morning Wire every morning.
--:-- [Closing music starts playing]
--:-- John Bickley: This episode is brought to you by Balance of Nature. Go to balanceofnature.com and use promo code WIRE for 35% off, plus a free fiber and spice in your first order as a preferred customer. That's balanceofnature.com, promo code WIRE.
