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--:-- John Bickley: Welcome to Morning Wire. I'm John Bickley with Georgia Howe.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- 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.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Over 100 people are feared dead after record-breaking tornadoes tore through six states over the weekend. We'll talk about the frantic recovery efforts and hear from survivors on the ground.
--:-- John Bickley: New data from the Labor Department shows that Americans are suffering the worst inflation in nearly 40 years. We'll dig into the numbers and hear how the Biden administration is attempting to change the economic narrative.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And week two of the Ghislaine Maxwell trial wrapped up on Friday. In a surprise move, the government rested more than a week early without calling several scheduled witnesses. With the defense set to open its case, we'll talk to our reporter who's been on the scene at the courthouse.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know. This show is sponsored by Birch Gold Group. Inflation is destroying the dollar. Birch Gold Group can help protect your IRA or 401k with a precious metals IRA. Text WIRE to 989898 to claim a free info kit on physical gold and silver. There's zero obligation. Text the word WIRE to 989898 to protect your savings today.
--:-- Georgia Howe: At least 90 people are dead after dozens of tornadoes ripped through six states early Saturday morning, including Tennessee, Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, and Kentucky. Now as recovery teams sift through the rubble, officials say the death toll is certain to rise above 100.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, so late Friday night into early Saturday, a massive storm system made its way across the Midwest, which was experiencing unusually warm weather, which created the perfect conditions for tornadoes. Six deaths have been reported in Illinois and another four in Tennessee. But like you said, it's Kentucky that was the hardest hit by far. One tornado in particular there traveled over 220 miles, which, if confirmed, would make it the longest traveled tornado in recorded history.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear spoke with CNN on Sunday about the damage. This is the deadliest tornado event we have ever had. I think it's going to be the longest and deadliest tornado event in U.S. history.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: What do we know about the victims? We don't have a ton of details on that right now, as most of the resources are going towards rescue efforts for victims who still might be alive. But what we do know is that the majority of the deaths in Kentucky occurred at a candle factory in the town of Mayfield. Workers were there overnight trying to meet the Christmas season demand, and sadly, we're right in the path of that large tornado, which decimated the factory.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Last we heard, just 40 of the 110 people working there had been accounted for. We saw a similar situation in Illinois, where an Amazon warehouse was hit, killing at least six. And those numbers are expected to go up, as right now it's tough to tell who's even missing.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Governor Beshear again described that problem on Sunday. And it going to take us time I mean you think you go door to door to check on people and see if they okay There are no doors The question is, is somebody in the rubble of thousands upon thousands of structures? I mean, it is devastating.
--:-- Georgia Howe: You don't typically think of December as being tornado season. Is this out of the ordinary?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah. On that point, a lot of people were quick to blame climate change for the storms, including FEMA chief Deanne Criswell. Here's what she told CNN about the role of global warming. This is going to be our new normal, and the effects that we're seeing from climate change are the crisis of our generation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, those comments did receive quite a bit of pushback from people who pointed out that tornado outbreaks in December have occurred numerous times over the last decade. And even according to the NOAA's National Severe Storm Laboratory, There's been no increase in the frequency or intensity of tornadoes over the last six decades. And they say, quote, we don't know if climate change plays a role.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So kind of conflicting messaging back and forth there. The Daily Wire was on the ground in Mayfield over the weekend. Tell us about that.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, we talked to Damian Roberts and Robert Miller. They were in a house that was partially destroyed in Mayfield and barely made it to safety. Listen to their story.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Got real calm. And then I heard something like a freight train. And, you know, I've always watched documentary stuff. So the whole hall of power went out. And I've seen, like, the tornado looked blue from the electricity. And it was probably about two streets over that way. That's when we seen it. Entire portions of the roof in their house were ripped off. And the interior room where they were hiding had pieces of debris lodged in the walls. There was a two-by-four buried a foot deep in one wall. And outside debris, including car parts, were on their kitchen floor by the end of the night.
--:-- Georgia Howe: They told us about running to help their neighbors in the aftermath. About three houses down, I heard someone screaming. It was a little old lady. I stuck under this rubble. I tore it, tore me up. But it was cool to help her get out, man. But it was definitely an adrenaline rush. They also told a heartbreaking story about seeing a young boy die while his family tried to perform CPR. So just devastating stuff. But one encouraging thing is just seeing how much people have been helping each other. Kentuckians from across the state were pouring into the affected areas to just offer whatever help they could.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, we're praying for everyone impacted by this, Cabot. Thanks for the reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime. That's Daily Wire's Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Coming up, inflation hits a 40-year high. You can get this show and all of the content you love wherever you are, all on the Daily Wire app. Even if you're not a Daily Wire member, you'll be first to know what's trending with mobile notifications for the latest news. And you'll get content from all your favorite Daily Wire shows. Download the Daily Wire app and keep up with the facts no matter where your day takes you.
--:-- Ian Howarth: New government data shows that the economy continues to struggle with record levels of inflation hitting ordinary Americans. But despite these numbers, the Biden administration is working to present these economic downturns in a positive light.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So Ian, first off, what new data do we have?
--:-- Ian Howarth: Well, the latest numbers show that the economic woes we're all experiencing in some way are only getting worse. On Friday, the government released a report that consumer prices had skyrocketed by 6.8% just over the last year. That's the highest inflation rate of its kind in almost 40 years. These huge cost spikes are being seen in basic necessities that millions of Americans depend on as they go about their daily lives. I'm talking about food, energy, housing, cars, and clothing. Gas, for example, is up 58% in a year. Used cars are up 31 while new cars are up 11 Utilities in general are 25 percent and basic food items have increased too like eggs which are up 8 percent coffee up 7 percent and milk up 7 percent.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We've been tracking those number increases for a few months now, but what are we hearing from the White House about this?
--:-- Ian Howarth: Well, it's hard to disagree that these latest numbers stand in glaring contrast to the narrative being pushed by the Biden administration, that they are steering the country through a successful economic recovery. Often this has involved celebrating increased wages, even though these wages are being outpaced by inflation, or by lauding reduced unemployment rates, even though this is often because people aren't leaving or changing jobs at usual rates. Even after accounting for rising prices, the typical American family has more money in their pockets than they did last year. And last week, Biden shared a graphic on social media which tried to present his job numbers as a record for a new president, claiming that his administration has created nearly 6 million jobs. The key word here, though, is new. Biden came into office when the country was deep in the red after around 9 million people were forced out of their jobs due to COVID-19 policies. So to call the return of around two-thirds of these jobs new is really a stretch.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, that's true. There is definitely an effort to massage the narrative around these numbers. Last week, it was reported that the Biden administration was meeting with journalists behind the scenes to lobby the legacy media for more favorable coverage on the economy. CNN, for example, reported that, quote, the White House, not happy with the news media's coverage of the supply chain and economy, has been working behind the scenes trying to reshape coverage in its favor. And according to sources, Biden officials were briefing newsrooms across the country. And as if by magic, it looks like some of them were quick to oblige. CNBC's Jim Cramer was one example. To me, we have the strongest economy. And CNN's Don Lemon was another. He celebrated the Biden administration for apparently causing the high gas prices we've seen across the country to ease up. Big economic relief for millions of Americans who have been dealing with soaring energy prices. Cost of the pump, finally easing up. With a national average for a gallon of regular falling to $3.35, the lowest since October. Just look at that.
--:-- Ian Howarth: So there are two takeaways here. The first is that by all available metrics, the economy is not in good shape. The second is that there is a distinct and coordinated effort to spin this failure into a success, regardless of how bad the outlook is as we approach the Christmas break.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Right. Well, in the end, people's bank accounts are probably going to be the thing that tells the real story.
--:-- Ian Howarth: Yeah, that's true. Ian, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks, Ian. That's Daily Wire's Ian Howarth.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The prosecution wrapped up its case in the Ghislaine Maxwell trial in federal court on Friday. Three accusers of Maxwell and her former boss and lover Jeffrey Epstein took the stand to lay out their experiences with the powerful pair. David Marcus was on the scene at the courthouse reporting for the Daily Wire.
--:-- David Marcus: So, David, why did the government rest its case so much earlier than expected?
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's a great question, and nobody except the prosecutors themselves know for sure, but it could be that they think they've already presented sufficient evidence to the jury to prove their case. It may also be that the remaining witnesses who won't be called speak more to Epstein's actions than to Maxwell's. That's a balance. It's been a struggle for the government in this trial.
--:-- David Marcus: The aura of Epstein hovers over the trial like a ghost And the government has made a great case against him but he not the one on trial Maxwell is On Friday for example alleged victim Annie Farmer testified it was 90% about Epstein, 10% about Maxwell, who wasn't present for a lot of what was described. So, you know, what did she know and what did she facilitate?
--:-- Georgia Howe: But Maxwell was accused by two witnesses in court last week of groping them when they were underage, right?
--:-- David Marcus: Well, that's correct, but it's not what she's on trial for. She isn't accused of abuse. She's accused of trafficking young girls across state or international borders. We saw some flight logs from Epstein's private plane and some emails, but no smoking gun in that regard.
--:-- Georgia Howe: What should we expect from the defense this week?
--:-- David Marcus: Maxwell's attorneys will argue that her relationship with Epstein has been overblown, that she was basically an employee who had a brief romantic relationship with him. They'll likely try to paint her almost as another Epstein victim who had no idea the scale and scope of his alleged abuses. But there have been some patterns. In testimony, for example, that Maxwell groomed the girls, teaching them how to rub Epstein's feet and pleasure him in, well, other ways. But even if the jury thinks her actions were terrible, the question remains, has it been proven she trafficked, which is to say arranged for the transportation and movement of the girls?
--:-- Georgia Howe: Have we seen any big names involved with Epstein brought up in the trial so far?
--:-- David Marcus: Not much, no. And I think those looking for that will be disappointed. Implicating powerful figures in Epstein's orbit likely doesn't do much for either side in this case. And so really, they have no reason to go down that rabbit hole.
--:-- Georgia Howe: When do we think this thing might wrap up now? Any indication?
--:-- David Marcus: I think it depends how confident the defense feels. The scuttlebutt at the courthouse is that they have reason for cautious optimism, but guessing what a jury will do is like betting on hockey, you know, bouncing puck and throw everything off. That having been said, even with the Christmas break, this trial seems likely to conclude by the end of December or early in January.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, thank you so much, David. Sure thing. That was David Marcus, who will be in the courtroom all week for The Daily Wire.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Other stories we're tracking this week. According to a new ABC poll, just 36 percent of Americans support President Biden's handling of crime, down from 43 percent in the same poll in October. The fluctuation in approval comes on the heels of a spate of smash and grab robberies in multiple states and a 30 percent rise in homicide since 2020.
--:-- Georgia Howe: As of December 10th, the WHO reports there have been no documented deaths associated with the Omicron variant worldwide. The first documented American case of the new variant was identified in San Francisco on November 29th. However, the California Department of Public Health reports that wastewater in at least one county in California contained traces of the variant as early as November 25th.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And journalist Chris Wallace announced Sunday he's leaving Fox to join CNN+. a new streaming platform debuting in 2022. Wallace has been with Fox for 18 years and notably moderated the first 2020 presidential debate between President Biden and President Trump, for which Wallace was widely criticized.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you liked this episode and are interested in hearing more, subscribe to Morning Wire on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening, and give us a five-star review. That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know. If you like this podcast, get the Morning Wire newsletter delivered straight to your inbox when you join at dailywire.com slash subscribe.
