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--:-- John Bickley: This episode is brought to you by LifeLock. When you visit the doctor, you probably hand over your insurance, your ID, and contact details. It's just one of the many places that has your personal info. And if any of them accidentally expose it, you could be at risk for identity theft. LifeLock monitors millions of data points a second. If you become a victim, they'll fix it, guaranteed, or your money back. Save up to 40% your first year at LifeLock.com slash podcast. Terms apply.
--:-- John Bickley: Ukraine President Zelensky makes an appearance at the G7 summit in Japan and calls on allied countries to do more. Is Russia gaining ground, as they claim? And is President Biden reversing course on sending F-16s to Ukraine?
--:-- John Bickley: For today, the moment is only in our hearts. There is nothing on this place. She has drowned and a lot of dead Russians.
--:-- John Bickley: I'm Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Monday, May 22nd, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Montana has issued a first-in-the-nation statewide ban on Chinese app TikTok. TikTok will actually be fined $10,000 for violating this rule for operating in the state. Why is the state taking this aggressive action, and is it enforceable?
--:-- Georgia Howe: And more information about the Biden family's business dealings comes to light. These are not clear-cut financial transactions that go from A to B. They're run through a number of LLCs.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We talked to the president of the Government Accountability Institute about the latest findings and allegations. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
--:-- John Bickley: Over the weekend, Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky met with President Biden and other world leaders at the G7 summit, pleading for more weapons and funding in their war against Russia.
--:-- John Bickley: Here with more on the meetings and the state of the war in Ukraine is Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, on Sunday, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky made a last-minute appearance in Japan at the G7 summit, where leaders from the world's largest democracies were gathered.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Zelensky used the appearance to plead for more weapons and stronger sanctions against Moscow. He also reiterated his stance that he would not agree to any peace deal that involved Russians retaining Ukrainian territory, saying in a statement Sunday that, quote, as long as invaders remain on our land, no one will sit down at the negotiating table with Russia. The colonizer must get out.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: For his part, President Biden affirmed the U.S. commitment to supporting Ukraine, announcing another $375 million in U.S. military support. That brings the total U.S. financial commitment in Ukraine to over $114 billion.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Together with the entire G7, we have Ukraine's back, and I promise we're not going anywhere.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, another important question has been whether the U.S. would supply Ukraine with F-16s.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, Zelensky has long called for allies to supply the latest version of the F-16, saying they'd help ensure air superiority in the region. But to this point, the White House has been reluctant to supply the planes, fearing the Ukrainians would use them in attacks on Russian cities and escalate the conflict further.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But over the weekend, President Biden reversed course, saying he would work to get the planes and begin training Ukrainian pilots stateside on how to use them.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Here he is speaking Sunday when asked why he changed his mind: What assurances do you have that providing F-16s won't escalate this war?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: I have a flat assurance from Zelensky that they will not use it to go on and move into Russian geographic territory. But wherever Russian troops are within Ukraine and the area, they would be able to do that.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, Ukraine isn't a member of the G-7, so what precipitated this visit?
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Well, Zelensky's appearance at the G7 comes at a fraught time for Ukraine as the war there enters its 14th month.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Over the weekend, Vladimir Putin announced that Russian forces had gained control of Bakhmut, a large city in the eastern part of Ukraine.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: In addition to the city's strategic importance, both sides view it as crucial from a symbolic standpoint, and it's been home to the bloodiest and longest battle of the war.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Bakhmut is located in the Donbass region, which Putin has vowed to liberate from the beginning of the invasion.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So he wanted the city as a sign to his people that Russia is gaining ground. The Ukrainians are well aware of that fact and have concentrated massive resources there.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: One of the rallying cries from the beginning has been Bakhmut holds. And Zelensky has referred to the city as the battle that would, quote, change the trajectory of the war.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: But on Sunday, Putin claimed victory there, saying Russian forces had, quote, liberated the city. But Zelensky says that's not the case.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, this is interesting. He is disputing that claim. Speaking at the G7 on Sunday, Zelensky said, quote, Bakhmut is not occupied by the Russian Federation as of today, and that he, quote, cannot share the technical details of what is happening.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: The Ukrainian military released a separate statement later in the day, phrasing it a bit differently, saying, quote, the fight for the city is continuing.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, because of the fog of war, it is difficult to know who exactly is in control. But the Kremlin, says Zelensky, is trying to save face and exaggerate their success to win further support from allies, especially with these meetings going on.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So it'll probably be a few days before we know for sure who really controls the city. But regardless, Zelensky's visit comes at really an inflection point in the war.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: All right. Well, thanks so much for reporting.
--:-- John Bickley: That was Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips.
--:-- John Bickley: Coming up, Montana issues a statewide ban on TikTok.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Last week, Montana became the first state in the nation to outright ban TikTok. A group of content creators are already suing over the new law.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here to tell us why Montana took this step and the grounds for the lawsuit is Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- Megan Basham: So, you know, it's a lot of things that we've talked about here before. There's that the platform is owned by a Chinese company. And that that does allow the Communist Chinese Party to access American user data.
--:-- Megan Basham: And then there's also been some allegations that China uses it to spread information as well. So last year, some former TikTok employees said a news app on the platform called Top Buzz had actually been forwarding pro-China propaganda to millions of American accounts.
--:-- Megan Basham: So those are the kinds of things that Montana Governor Greg Gianforte has been pointing to.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, initially, the state had just banned the app on government devices, and that's really not unusual. About half the states in the country have already done something like that, as has the federal government.
--:-- Megan Basham: And of course, there have been talks of a federal ban, but it really hasn't gained much traction so far.
--:-- Megan Basham: So what Montana is doing here is really venturing into some untested territory as far as state powers go.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now the ban is scheduled to take effect until January 1st next year. And the way it will work is downloads of TikTok will be prohibited in the state.
--:-- Megan Basham: And if an app store is caught providing TikTok to Montana residents, it will be fined $10,000 per day for each infraction.
--:-- Megan Basham: So it's not the users who are gonna see penalties here, it will only be the app stores who are penalized.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, TikTok is saying the ban is unlawful and infringes on the rights of Montana residents.
--:-- Megan Basham: And it's saying it's going to, quote, defend the rights of our users.
--:-- Megan Basham: So it does sound like they're planning to take the state to court.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, speaking of legal issues, let's talk about the lawsuit that content creators have filed.
--:-- Megan Basham: What's their argument?
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, primarily they're saying that it's a violation of their First Amendment free speech rights.
--:-- Megan Basham: And you are seeing groups like the ACLU already arguing that there were lesser ways that Montana could have addressed any concerns about privacy or security.
--:-- Megan Basham: On Friday, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, otherwise known as FIRE, well, they released a, what you kind of have to call a cheeky video on social media, addressing that question of constitutionality.
--:-- Megan Basham: First of all, it's overbroad. You shut down a whole platform, no good. It's a prior restraint. You're telling people to not use a communication platform before they even speak, no good. It's just a mess.
--:-- Megan Basham: This one's going to be fought and Montana is going to lose. You can't shut down TikTok just because you're scared of China.
--:-- Megan Basham: But Governor Gianforte has been out refuting that argument.
--:-- Megan Basham: This was what he said on Fox News. They're just wrong. The Montana Constitution has a very broad protection for individual privacy. And TikTok violates that.
--:-- Megan Basham: It probably will be challenged. That's OK. We've looked at it from all facets. And we believe we're going to stand up and protect the people here in Montana.
--:-- Megan Basham: I think that's what Americans want. And we've taken this decisive action to do so.
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, it'll be interesting to see what kind of precedents these lawsuits set.
--:-- Megan Basham: Thanks for reporting.
--:-- John Bickley: That was Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- John Bickley: Scrutiny of the business dealings of the Biden family has intensified, with Republicans saying they have evidence of apparent corruption and foreign influence.
--:-- John Bickley: Joining us to discuss is Peter Schweitzer, president of the Government Accountability Institute and host of the Drill Down podcast.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Hey, Peter.
--:-- John Bickley: So all the accusations swirling around about the Biden family are reaching sort of critical mass in recent weeks. Republicans say they've found evidence of what appears to be a network of LLCs used to funnel money to family members from foreign entities.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Essentially that the Bidens received tens of millions of dollars. I believe it's $31 million for no discernible reason. They had no service, no product they were selling to these Chinese individuals.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: The money was funded through some LLCs that are essentially pass-throughs. These LLCs don't really have employees or anything of the sort. And the question is, is what are the Chinese expecting in return for that money?
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: And that's where the concern comes about the policies that President Biden has carried forth with regard to China.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Republicans have gained access to the records from four banks involved in the transfer of some $10 million. But you're saying there's far more than that.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: That's correct. There are 12 banks, it's believed, that the Bidens did financial transactions with. So far, only four have shared the financial information with the Bidens.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: So I expect the $10 million figure to climb substantially. Part of it going to be connected to Hunter Biden being given ownership of a management company set up by the Chinese state called BHR.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: That in and of itself is valued I think at $1 billion according to the University of Chicago Business School.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: So the number is going to rise rapidly, far beyond $10 million.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Is there any possible justification for the creation of all these LLCs and that much money, the tens of millions being funneled to them?
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: No, I think the rationale here is to hide the origins of the funds. I mean, there's no other way to explain the fact that the money comes from individual A who transfers it to LLC B, then it goes to LLC C, which is owned by a Biden family member, who then maybe disperses it to LLC D, E, and F, which is owned by other Biden family members.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: They're run through a number of LLCs. That's the classic definition of trying to obscure the sources of money and even potentially money laundering.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: The legacy media has attempted to dismiss these allegations by saying Republicans have not provided evidence yet that directly implicates President Biden himself.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Is that a fair response?
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: I don't think it is, but I think the investigation is going to take another critical term.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: We found in the Hunter Biden laptop that Hunter Biden and his business associates had been paying for a private phone for Joe Biden while he was vice president of the United States.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: That was the phone line that they used to communicate with him. Those records are being subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee, and our expectation is that that will yield some very interesting results as to who Vice President Joe Biden was talking to on this private line, not only limited to Hunter Biden and his business associates, but probably other foreigners as well.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Final question. A whistleblower from the IRS has now come forward alleging that the IRS, under pressure from the DOJ, has shut down an investigation into Hunter Biden.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Do we think that the administration is going to take further action like that to block investigative efforts?
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: I think they've essentially drawn the line in the sand and said that they are going to protect the interests of the family at all costs.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: It is blatantly against the law to fire or to move somebody that's a government employee who has been officially declared a whistleblower by Congress to move them away from a job in which they have expressed concerns.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: There's also been concerns that some of the other whistleblowers are being silenced or seemingly are unavailable.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: So I think we should expect more to this. And it's further evidence to me that with their smoke, there's fire.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: They would not go to this extent to cover up except for the fact that they are hiding something very significant.
--:-- Peter Schweitzer: Well, thanks so much for talking with us and all the great work you're doing at GAI.
--:-- John Bickley: That was GAI president and Drill Down host, Peter Schweitzer.
--:-- John Bickley: This week, President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will resume negotiations on Monday on a deal that would raise the federal debt ceiling and avoid default.
--:-- John Bickley: If a deal is not made to raise the country's borrowing limit, then funding may start to run out by early next month.
--:-- John Bickley: And for the first time since being charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death of homeless man Jordan Neely, Marine veteran Daniel Penny broke his silence.
--:-- John Bickley: In a sit-down with the New York Post released this weekend, Penny said the choking death of Neely, who was acting erratically and threatening subway passengers, was a result of a broken justice system, not racism.
--:-- John Bickley: Penny faces up to 15 years in prison for the charges.
--:-- John Bickley: That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- John Bickley: We'll be back later this afternoon with more news you need to know.
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