--:-- [Upbeat music fades out, and the host, John Bickley, speaks]
--:-- John Bickley: Why shop at Burlington? Maybe it's the deals that are new each time you drop by. Maybe it's the brand names you'll be shocked Burlington has in store. Or maybe it's the quality of the items, the amazing selection, and the newest trends. If you like to save, but also like to stay in style, Burlington is your answer. And the question you'll be asking yourself is, why go anywhere else? Burlington. Deals. Brands. Wow.
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--:-- John Bickley: Uncertainty and doubt are sending shockwaves up and down Wall Street as major stock indexes take a dive. All of the models pointed to the market being overbought, and so some of this is simply rebalancing. What has investors so spooked, and is this detox period just a phase? I'm Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Wednesday, March 12th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's right, John. We're going to dive into the market turmoil and what's behind it. But first, let's take a look at some of the other news making headlines. Ukraine agrees to a weeks-long ceasefire after peace talks with the U.S. and dueling drone attacks with Russia. Today, people will die in this war. They died yesterday, and sadly, unless there's a ceasefire tonight, they'll die tomorrow. The president wants that to stop. And New York's governor claims the wildcat prison strike is over after firing thousands of picketing corrections officers. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
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--:-- John Bickley: Markets continued to fluctuate Tuesday amid growing uncertainty surrounding tariffs and broad cuts to the federal government. Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips is here with the latest on the market downturn and what's behind it. Hey, Cabot, so Wall Street really taking a beating this week. What are we looking at here?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, most financial advisors will tell you not to look at your 401k too frequently. And that is especially sound advice this week. Since Monday morning, the Dow has fallen over 1,000 points, or over 2.5%. The S&P 500 has dropped about 2.7%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged by around 3%. The Nasdaq in particular had its worst day Monday since September of 2022.
--:-- John Bickley: All right, so significant dips. The obvious question, what's causing this market turmoil?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, it depends on who you ask. Many economists and lawmakers say the dip is a direct result of President Trump's tariffs, and in particular, the shifting nature of those policies. Markets hate uncertainty, and the on-again, off-again tariff threats do seem to have investors spooked.
--:-- John Bickley: For more on that, I spoke with E.J. Antony, an economist at the Heritage Foundation.
--:-- E.J. Antony: It's largely because people are having trouble planning for the future. They don't know how the tariff game is eventually going to shake out. Now, some of that, you could argue, has to do with different folks in the administration not singing from the same hymnal. But I would argue a lot of it has to do with the fact that as soon as we're talking about reciprocal tariffs, you now have a whole nother element that's completely outside of your control, which is what is the president of Mexico going to do? What is the governor of Canada going to do? We don't know. And because our reciprocal tariffs are based off of what those foreign leaders are going to do, we have to essentially wait and see. You can't plan on anything because you don't know what that foreign leader is going to do.
--:-- John Bickley: Others however say the market has been artificially propped up for years by excessive government spending and inflationary policies that have allowed the market to grow at a pace that was never aligned with economic reality. So now, as Trump is implementing federal spending cuts and vowing to cut the deficit and lower inflation, many investors are seemingly selling off. Here's Antony to that point.
--:-- E.J. Antony: In a lot of ways, the market was simply just overbought. For literally years, we had government debt fueling both government spending as well as consumer spending, government handing out welfare payments, for example, that were funded by borrowing. And all of those different things have helped to drive corporate earnings, but they didn't create any kind of sustainable growth within the private sector. And the result of that has been people thinking that this runaway so-called growth would last forever. And clearly that's not possible.
--:-- John Bickley: All right, so potentially a correction. That's the argument there. What's the message we're hearing from the White House? They argue that the unrest is temporary, but ultimately necessary in order to reorient America's standing in the global economy. Trump World has used the phrase detox to describe their trade policies, saying we've got to break our reliance on foreign manufacturing and force our allies and adversaries to implement more favorable trade policies, even if that does mean short-term economic disruptions. Here's Antonio with more on that so-called detox.
--:-- Antonio: Anyone who has had too much to drink and woke up the next day and had to deal with a headache knows exactly what this feels like. And so the solution is not to say, hey, I felt better when I was drinking, so I should go back to alcohol, right? And yes, the detox is a painful period. But look, the sins of the past always catch up to you, be they moral or monetary. What we're dealing with today is the result of all the runaway government spending and debt and other profligacies that we've had for several years now. So it will be painful to undo all of that mess. But that's the only way you get to long-term economic health.
--:-- John Bickley: This week, the White House published a list of a dozen companies that announced plans to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S., creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs. They say that it's proof the president's strategy is working and that our economy will be better prepared for the future as we decrease our reliance on foreign business. But in the meantime, markets have been on a bit of a roller coaster. The White House certainly hoping things settle down soon.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Meanwhile, I'll follow your advice and not look at my 401k for a bit. Yeah, it's tough. Yeah.
--:-- John Bickley: Kevin, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Anytime.
--:-- John Bickley: Ukraine agreed to a 30-day ceasefire with Russia on Tuesday after a long day of drone attacks on Russia and peace talks with the United States. Here to break it all down is Daily Wire Deputy Managing Editor Tim Rice. So let's start with this major news. What exactly did Ukraine agree to?
--:-- Tim Rice: Yeah, good morning, John. After a day of negotiations in Saudi Arabia led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Ukraine agreed to a 30-day ceasefire with Russia. In exchange, the Trump administration immediately lifted its paws on aid to Ukraine. Now, this is obviously a huge step forward, but there's a catch. Russia still has to agree to the ceasefire, and it's not entirely clear if they will.
--:-- John Bickley: Here's Rubio talking about the deal yesterday.
--:-- Marco Rubio: Today, we've made an offer that the Ukrainians have accepted, which is to enter into a ceasefire and into immediate negotiations to end this conflict in a way that's enduring and sustainable and accounts for their interests, their security, their ability to prosper as a nation. We'll take this offer now to the Russians, and we hope that they'll say yes, that they'll say yes to peace. The ball is now in their court.
--:-- Tim Rice: Certainly a big development and one that's especially shocking considering how the day began. Will you tell us about that drone strike?
--:-- John Bickley: Yeah exactly As you said Ukraine launched a massive drone strike on Russia early Tuesday a big show of strength targeted at Russian oil facilities Russia said it shot down 337 drones 91 of which were flying over Moscow Russia is reporting that three people were killed and 18 were injured, and Ukraine says those casualties were caused by Russian air defense and insists it only struck oil production and distribution centers.
--:-- Tim Rice: The Ukrainian military says it hit, quote, a number of Russian strategic objects enabling armed aggression. But more important than the attack itself is the timing. Ukraine hasn't landed a drone attack on Moscow since September, and this huge assault on the Russian capital seems like an effort to signal Ukrainian strength as peace talks ramp up.
--:-- John Bickley: Remember, this is coming on the heels of the explosive Oval Office meeting between Presidents Trump and Zelensky, and the first round of talks between the U.S. and Russia in Saudi Arabia, which did not include the Ukrainians. Rubio on Monday told reporters that while Ukrainians have suffered greatly during the war, it needed to accept that the war would not resolve without both sides making concessions.
--:-- Tim Rice: Now, obviously, the nature of those concessions remains to be seen, and on Monday, Zelensky said he was hoping this week's talk would yield practical outcomes. Andrei Yermak, one of Zelensky's top aides, told reporters Monday that the Ukrainian delegation was very open and hoping for a very constructive, deep, friendly partnership conversation with our American partners.
--:-- John Bickley: He also swapped his combat garb for a suit and tie, a clear response to Trump dressing down Zelensky for his appearance in the Oval Office. Yeah, probably a wise move there.
--:-- Tim Rice: And how is Russia responding to everything going on this week? Do we have any indication that they'll take this deal?
--:-- John Bickley: Well, we haven't yet heard anything from Vladimir Putin, but we will probably hear more from him later this week after he meets in Moscow with White House Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff. Witkoff was present for the first round of Saudi Arabia talks and was supposed to attend Tuesday's meeting, but wound up flying to Qatar to participate in Gaza ceasefire talks.
--:-- Tim Rice: This week's sit-down will be Witkoff's second meeting with Putin. He also met with the Russian leader in February when he flew to Moscow to secure the release of American hostage Mark Fogel. So it seems like the Trump administration may be positioning Witkoff as its primary go-between with Putin, while Rubio and his team negotiate directly with Ukraine.
--:-- John Bickley: One last thing on that front, Trump slammed Russia on Friday for absolutely pounding Ukraine on the battlefield amid negotiations, saying he was considering imposing sanctions on Russia until a peace deal is reached.
--:-- Tim Rice: Lots of moving parts here. And as Rubio said, the ball is now in Russia's court.
--:-- John Bickley: Tim, thanks so much for reporting.
--:-- John Bickley: Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul has fired thousands of striking corrections officers, a move that's exacerbated the significant understaffing issues already plaguing New York prisons. Here with the details is Daily Wire reporter, Amanda Prestigiacomo. So Amanda, can you briefly catch us up on this strike and then tell us about Hochul's move to fire these officers?
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Yeah, so about 15,000 officers and sergeants from nearly every single prison in New York went on strike last month. We've previously covered this here, but basically officers said that prisons had become totally unsafe for everyone following the implementation of the Democrat-backed Halt Act. In fact, just last year, more than 2,000 officers and almost 3,000 inmates were assaulted. This is all tied into low recruitment and massive understaffing. Before the strike even started, there were 2,000 vacant positions inside the prison system.
--:-- John Bickley: Now, despite a lot of pressure from Hochul and some pretty questionable tactics, thousands of officers remained on strike up until Monday, about 22 days since the first day of the strike. In turn, Hochul fired all of those still on strike, about 2,000 officers and sergeants. And in a widely criticized move she signed an executive order banning those employees from ever working for New York State again including even for county governments Hochul has now declared the strike over and she says she abide by a strike resolution deal that she offered back on March 6th though that deal was roundly rejected by the rank and file
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: So now the New York prison system is in the hole by several thousand officers on top of those issues they were already having. Right. And that doesn't even include these resignations that we haven't quantified yet. So what are the terms of the deal, and does it address what the officers were concerned about? I mean, I would say generally no, and that's because the deal was rejected by most officers. In fact, after Hochul struck this deal, initially 8,000 officers remained on strike.
--:-- John Bickley: Now, as for what Hochul is offering, there will be a 90-day suspension to some provisions in the HALT Act, a commitment toward ending these sometimes days-long work shifts for officers, and bumped up overtime pay. Hochul also said that she'll stop her lawsuit against officers who've returned to work. She said she was in the process of having hundreds of officers arrested for striking, saying that they were in violation of the Taylor Act.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, what sort of reaction has there been to all of this? Have we heard from officers or public officials about it? Yeah, we have. I'll start with the officers. The Daily Wire has spoken to numerous sources and officers from inside the New York prison system, and they've told us that they do not like this deal and that a lot more people would be continuing this strike if Hochul had not gone after their health insurance coverage. As we reported last week, Hochul canceled insurance for about 5,300 officers and their dependents. That sparked a lot of reports of children, pregnant wives, and other dependents battling cancer and other diseases being left without coverage.
--:-- John Bickley: In one case, the wife of an officer who was out on approved time off, not part of this strike, was unable to get her chemo treatment. Other officers who were out on approved time off also say they had their insurance pulled.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Now, it was that move specifically from Hochul that garnered the attention of Republican Representative Nick Langworthy. Last week, he called for a federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor into Hochul's harmful labor practices against these COs, and he cited the termination of health care and excessive mandatory overtime shifts. Additionally, New York rep Mike Lawler criticized Hochul for these mass firings. He called it a total failure of leadership. He noted that New York is simultaneously using taxpayer money to, quote, provide free housing, clothing, food, education, and healthcare to illegal immigrants.
--:-- John Bickley: Now, how are they manning the prisons? Are they still bringing in the National Guard? Yeah, so National Guard members are still in prisons today, and there's no end date on that. Hochul activated thousands of guardsmen on day two of the strike, and their inclusion on this has been controversial from the start. In some cases, they've been sleeping in gyms, and members have leaked photos of really rough conditions.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: New York State Senator Rob Ortt has expressed concern about their safety, specifically saying that these guardsmen are walking among criminals without any proper training. Other Republican lawmakers have expressed similar concerns, and there have been questions about the guardsmen's compensation. State Senator Daniel Stack has said that these members were activated on state orders by Hochul, so they're also ineligible for care from the VA if they were to get injured.
--:-- John Bickley: So all around, not a great situation. Right, and no easy resolution.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: Amanda, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Amanda Prestigiacomo: You're welcome.
--:-- John Bickley: Another story we're tracking this week. The stage has been set for a major shakeup at the Department of Education. Staff have been told to stay home today and the department's secretary, Linda McMahon, confirmed Tuesday that it's the first step towards shutting down the department altogether. Reports suggest that nearly half the department's workforce could face layoffs soon. Trump has pledged to eliminate the department arguing that education should be controlled by the states. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back later this afternoon with more news you need to know.
