The grandson of the man who invented Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups is speaking out against The Hershey Company, accusing the multinational confectionery company of cheaping out on ingredients and spoiling the product his family created.
Brad Reese, 70, claims that real ingredients have been replaced with cheap, ultra-processed additives that have altered the taste of the popular candy.
“My grandfather, H. B. REESE (Who Invented REESE’S), built REESE’S on a simple, enduring architecture: Milk Chocolate + Peanut Butter. Not a flavor idea. Not a marketing construct. A real, tangible product identity that consumers have trusted for a century,” Reese shared in a LinkedIn post.
“But today, REESE’S identity is being rewritten, not by storytellers, but by formulation decisions that replace Milk Chocolate with compound coatings and Peanut Butter with peanut butter style crèmes across multiple REESE’S products,” the post continued.
“I can’t just let it go. They’re lowering the quality of ingredients, charging the same price and probably giving you a smaller product size,” Reese <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/02/18/business/grandson-of-reeses-founder-alleges-hershey-has-switched-to-cheaper-ingredients-sparking-family-feud/">told</a> The New York Post in a follow-up interview. “I’m really embarrassed as a member of the Reese family.”
The Hershey Company, based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, said in a statement that Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are made with real peanut butter and milk chocolate, but admits they’ve done “recipe adjustments.” 
“Our iconic Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are made the same way they always have been; starting with roasting fresh peanuts to make our unique, one-of-a-kind peanut butter that is then combined with milk chocolate,” a statement from The Hershey Company <a href="https://www.abc27.com/hershey/the-hershey-company-responds-to-allegations-over-reeses-ingredient-changes/">said</a>, per ABC27 News. 
“As we’ve grown and expanded the Reese’s product line, we make product recipe adjustments that allow us to make new shapes, sizes and innovations that Reese’s fans have come to love and ask for, while always protecting the essence of what makes Reese’s unique and special: the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter.”
According to the <a href="https://www.hersheyland.com/products/reeses-milk-chocolate-peanut-butter-cups-1-5-oz.html">website</a>, traditional Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups include: Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Chocolate, Skim Milk, Milk Fat, Lactose, Lecithin, PGPR), Peanuts, Sugar, Dextrose, Salt, and TBHQ &amp; Citric Acid (TO MAINTAIN FRESHNESS). 
Reese indicated that the spinoff versions of the classic candy are the culprits. The Florida resident said he recently purchased and tossed out a Valentine’s Day-themed bag of Reese’s Mini Hearts. 
“It was not edible,” Reese <a href="https://apnews.com/article/reeses-peanut-butter-cups-hershey-chocolate-1a66ec75247fd146888b7a747a740cd3">told</a> The Associated Press in an interview. “You have to understand. I used to eat a Reese’s product every day. This is very devastating for me.”

Reese’s

CANDY CIVIL WAR: Reese’s Heir Calls Out What’s Being Put In America’s Favorite Treat

Business

chocolate

Food

Pennsylvania

United States

Goldman Sachs plans to scrap its race, sex, and other DEI factors when considering potential additions to its board of directors.
The board’s governance committee made the decision to axe DEI metrics from its list of qualifications for new board members after striking an agreement with the National Legal and Policy Center, a conservative nonprofit, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/finance/goldman-sachs-board-dei-57fea527?mod=hp_lead_pos2">The Wall Street Journal</a>.
The committee has four broad factors it considers when looking for new board members, one of which is a demographic profile that includes viewpoints, military service, and other markers, as well as DEI variables such as a person’s race, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Going forward, the committee plans to strip away the DEI calculations from its rubric for board candidates.
The National Legal and Policy Center has a small ownership stake in Goldman Sachs and in September, proposed that the committee strip away the DEI component of its board member criteria. The center had requested that the bank share the proposal with shareholders ahead of its annual shareholder meeting scheduled for this spring, but Goldman Sachs struck an agreement with the center that involved pulling the proposal and the bank scrapping its DEI metrics anyway.
Goldman Sachs had last year dropped its DEI requirements for companies that wanted the bank’s help in listing for an IPO.
Goldman Sachs’ curbing of its own DEI policies comes as the Trump administration has pursued policies to push such metrics out of the federal government while wielding federal powers to push companies to distance themselves from DEI as well. President Donald Trump, on his first day of his second term, took a stand against DEI, ordering federal departments and agencies to begin cutting DEI positions in the government.
The president also directed federal agencies to look into companies with DEI policies for potential discriminatory practices. In February of last year, the president <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-targets-two-financial-firms-over-dei-and-esg-push">took</a> aim at two financial firms, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, that the president said were pushing racial quotas and climates activism on numerous other companies.
At the time, both firms had guidelines that had the potential to impact a wide swath of companies that encouraged them to adopt DEI criteria in promotions to their board. They also had similar guidelines directing companies to take steps to address climate change.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Goldman Sachs Will No Longer Judge Board Members By DEI Metrics

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Goldman Sachs

Social Issues

U.S.

A Super Bowl commercial that features Amazon’s Ring doorbell camera triggered tremendous backlash online, with many viewers worrying that it glorifies mass surveillance.
The &#8220;Be A Hero In Your Neighborhood&#8221; ad begins with a video of a young girl reunited with her dog before jumping to a fictionalized preview of when her family pet went missing. Ring founder Jamie Siminoff explains during the ad that 10 million dogs go missing every year. The clip then cuts into a montage featuring missing dog posters stapled to telephone poles.
The commercial then shows the family using &#8220;Search Party” from Ring, which “uses AI to help families find lost dogs.&#8221;
“Since launch, more than a dog a day has been reunited with their family,” Siminoff continues as a neighborhood of Ring doorbell cameras scans and analyzes the dogs wandering by. &#8220;Be a hero in your neighborhood with Search Party. Available to everyone, for free, right now.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Search Party from Ring | Be A Hero In Your Neighborhood" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OheUzrXsKrY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Social media users quickly noted the possible downside of all doorbell cameras being used for surveillance. 
“This [Ring] camera commercial played at #SuperBowl is something out of a dystopian thriller. Who would ever install these cameras after this? CREEPY AF!” one person <a href="https://x.com/leovanstaden/status/2020932261399626205">replied</a>. 
&#8220;Y’all, this Ring Doorbell Camera commercial was creepy as can be. They are not even hiding it anymore,&#8221; another commenter <a href="https://x.com/SollyinTexas/status/2020726405164626421">wrote</a>.
A third commenter <a href="https://x.com/BridgetPhetasy/status/2020681374261264861">echoed</a>, &#8220;Ring search party is terrifying and what’s most terrifying is that we opted into this like f**king idiots.&#8221;
“This is a huge problem disguised as a solution,” one of the YouTube comments says.
Others pointed out how surveillance is already happening everywhere, and that users could easily opt out of the “Search Party” feature. Others dismissed the commercial as harmless.
“The ring doorbell commercial about finding lost dogs is by far the best part of this entire Super Bowl. Well done Ring and Amazon,” one person <a href="https://x.com/ErlingStu/status/2020682280771977578">wrote</a>. 
Super Bowl LX took place on Sunday, February 8, and resulted in the Seattle Seahawks dominating the New England Patriots 29-13. There was a lot of controversy over Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny being selected to headline the halftime show despite not having any songs in English. 
TPUSA announced an alternative musical performance, The All-American Halftime Show, which aired at the same time as Bad Bunny’s set. The event, headlined by Kid Rock, attracted <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/millions-tune-in-for-tpusa-all-american-halftime-show-during-super-bowl">millions of viewers</a> who watched it live on multiple streaming platforms.

Young girl hugs a dog while looking out the window

Ring’s ‘Lost Dog’ Super Bowl Commercial Sparks Mass Surveillance Fears

Ring Doorbell 'Lost Dog' Super Bowl Commercial Sparks Debate

Amazon

Super Bowl

Surveillance

We are now witnessing a massive cultural retreat from the most controversial elements of activist-driven gender ideology aimed at children. And corporate America is a major part of that shift.
For years, the gender ideology narrative captured our society’s most prominent institutions. The notion that the provision of hormone regimens, puberty blockers, and gender transition surgeries was the only compassionate response to young people facing confusion about their gender morphed from a fringe theory into a near-unquestionable dictate during the last decade. In 2019, a doctor who believed in the Biblical and scientific notion of differences between the sexes was<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-49904997"> told</a> that his views were “incompatible with human dignity.” Parents of children struggling with gender dysphoria were often <a href="https://www.centerforbiblicalunity.com/post/would-you-rather-have-a-dead-daughter-or-a-live-son">presented</a> with a ghoulish, faux-paternalistic ultimatum by therapists and psychologists: “Would you rather have a dead daughter or a live son?”
Perhaps the most impactful driver of this narrative was the boardroom. The dictates of gender ideology were not only pushed forward by activists but also supported by some of the most recognizable brands on Earth. One of the most high-profile examples was Amazon: scholar Ryan T. Anderson, whose 2018 book When Harry Became Sally offered a thoughtful Christian response to gender ideology, had to fight through a <a href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-statement-on-when-harry-became-sally">book ban</a> and <a href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-statement-on-when-harry-became-sally">smears</a> of “hate speech,” before it could be sold in the world’s largest online market. Countless companies, from Apple to Target, were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-left-wing-activists-are-trying-to-save-corporate-wokeness">participating</a> with corporate activist organizations like the Human Rights Campaign, one of the major promoters of gender ideology in corporate America.
In the 2010s and early 2020s, it was perfectly reasonable to believe that the way major companies handled gender ideology was less about science and more about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/corporations-that-pushed-gender-ideology-owe-america-an-explanation?author=Isaac+Willour&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Corporations+That+Pushed+Gender+Ideology+Owe+America+An+Explanation">placating</a> goalpost-shifting activists. And then, as so often happens with activist movements, the goalposts got shifted too far. It wasn’t just adult choice that was the focus of gender ideology. It was about the attempted normalization of surgical interventions for children. That was when the momentum shifted.
Three recent occurrences illustrate just how quickly the tide is turning.
First, a 22-year-old ‘detransitioner’ — someone who regrets their gender transition — just <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-court-case-has-gotten-little-attention-but-just-changed-everything">won</a> a $2 million lawsuit against the New York doctors who approved her surgery. Fox Varian, who had a double mastectomy (surgical removal of both breasts) when she was just 16 years old, is the first detransitioner to take a medical malpractice case to trial and win.
That ruling came on January 30. On February 3, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons <a href="https://www.plasticsurgery.org/for-medical-professionals/health-policy/position-statements">released</a> a statement asserting that “there is insufficient evidence demonstrating a favorable risk-benefit ratio for … gender-related endocrine and surgical interventions in children and adolescents.” 
Days later, the American Medical Association <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/health/gender-surgery-minors-ama.html">announced</a> its agreement: “The AMA agrees… surgical interventions in minors should be generally deferred to adulthood.”
Let’s be clear about what that means: in the span of approximately a week, two absolutely critical points have been proven about gender ideology: (1) performing gender transition surgeries on children is a source of major legal liability, and (2) the medical consensus does not neatly support the necessity of such treatments.
These are precisely the arguments we have made to companies for years about their healthcare coverage. For companies that spent the early 2020s placating activists pushing gender ideology, the mid 2020s may be a painful reckoning with how out-of-touch with reality those activists truly were.
Activist groups like the Human Rights Campaign <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-radical-intolerance-behind-woke-corporate-activism?author=Isaac+Willour&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=11&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=The+Radical+Intolerance+Behind+Woke+Corporate+Activism">told</a> companies that covering hormone regimens and transition care were prudent ways to minimize risk. It’s incredibly apparent that this was a wild guess at best, and a cleverly worded activist ploy at worst. As the era of corporate wokeness comes to an end, companies seeking to stay politically neutral and avoid becoming entrenched in culture war issues (remember, companies have a fiduciary duty to do this) are taking a serious look at their healthcare coverage.
For companies that cover gender transition care for adults, do they also cover detransition care? If not, that hardly reads as politically neutral. Do companies have clear stances on not covering gender transition care for children? These are the questions that we, as corporate engagement professionals, are asking hundreds of companies.
Some companies are setting the standard. Walmart, the world’s largest company, <a href="https://me.walmart.com/content/dam/themepage/pdfs/AssociateBenefitsBook-2026.pdf">publishes</a> its full Associate Benefits Guide, which includes a clear carve-out prohibiting health plan administrators from providing transgender medical interventions to minors. The company has also been incredibly constructive in engaging with its shareholders on this issue. Other companies should follow Walmart’s example. You’d be amazed by how many haven’t. But the winds are blowing in our favor.
One major example of the large-scale retreat is the widespread drop in support for the Human Rights Campaign, whose ‘Corporate Equality Index’ grades companies in part by their adherence to activist criteria surrounding hormone regimens, transition surgery, and the like. In 2025, almost 380 Fortune 500 companies participated in the Index. In 2026? Fewer than 150. Many of the major names that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-radical-intolerance-behind-woke-corporate-activism?author=Isaac+Willour&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=11&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=The+Radical+Intolerance+Behind+Woke+Corporate+Activism">ceased participation</a>, including Capital One, Goldman Sachs, and Google (Alphabet), are companies we’ve engaged with surrounding these issues.
If these signs are any indication, there’s much more to come. As the consequences of such treatments become more widely understood, by major companies, providers, and especially insurers, we may well see the forming of a new consensus, the one that always should have been: the dictates of gender ideology, that promoted and supported major and often irreversible medical interventions for children, are being rejected by the brands that make up our capital markets. For the sake of America’s children, that rejection can’t come fast enough.
* * *
Isaac Willour is an award-winning journalist focusing on race, culture, and American conservatism, as well as a corporate relations analyst at Bowyer Research. His work has been featured at outlets including USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times Opinion, C-SPAN, and The Daily Wire. He is a member of the Young Voices contributor program and can be found on X <a href="https://twitter.com/IsaacWillour" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@IsaacWillour</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Wall Street Sign

Corporate America Quietly Backs Away From Gender Ideology For Children

American Medical Association

Children

Corporations

gender ideology

kids

Teenagers

transgender surgery

Peeling back red tape and eliminating redundant regulations sits at the heart of the Trump administration’s economic agenda. That mission went on the road Friday as the Office of Advocacy joined the House Committee on Small Business for the first stop of a new cross-country listening tour focused on small business owners. 
The Daily Wire spoke with Joe Krenzelok, with the Office of Advocacy, who is representing the agency at the tour&#8217;s opening stop, titled The Open Road: Small Business Conversations Across Main Street America. 
Krenzelok said the agency has flagged hundreds of regulatory concerns, adding that the difference this time is that those issues are receiving serious attention, creating what he described as a rare opportunity for lasting reform.
He went on to emphasize that the administration’s posture toward small business marks a meaningful shift from past approaches.
“President Trump values the input of small businesses,&#8221; said Krenzelok. 
Krenzelok will join House Committee on Small Business Chair Roger Williams to hear business owners&#8217; concerns directly.
He noted that a significant portion of the regulatory concerns raised by businesses stem from Environmental Protection Agency rules. Trump nominated Lee Zeldin to lead the EPA, praising him as a “true fighter for America First policies” with a strong legal background. 
Two months into his new role, Zeldin announced what he described as “31 historic actions in the greatest and most consequential day of deregulation in U.S. history.” The move launched sweeping reviews across the energy sector, including easing restrictions on coal plants, power plants, and oil and gas operations. Among the actions was a rollback of national emissions standards for hazardous air pollutants. 
Krenzelok told The Daily Wire he has already seen tangible effects in his region. 
“I met with a small trucking company that raised concerns about diesel emissions regulations,” he said. “The very next day, Administrator Zeldin came to Iowa and mentioned they would be making adjustments within that.&#8221;
“That told me that he’s very well in tune with what’s happening on the ground,” Krenzelok added. “It’s very evident to me that this administration is actively seeking input from the ground because they’re addressing issues in real time.” 
According to the Office of Advocacy’s first annual <a href="https://advocacy.sba.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/FINAL_First-Year-Report_012026.pdf">report</a>, the agency’s efforts have saved small businesses more than $110 billion in regulatory costs. The report states that, on an annualized basis, first-year savings during Trump&#8217;s second presidential term were more than 35 times those in Biden&#8217;s first year in office.

IMG_1076

Trump Admin Hits The Road To Hear Directly From Small Business

General

Small Businesses

Trump Administration

Kristin Cabot, the HR professional who went viral after being caught on camera in a loving embrace with the CEO of her company, is now cashing in on her fifteen minutes of fame.
The 53-year-old mother of two is listed as a keynote speaker at PRWeek’s 2026 Crisis Comms Conference in Washington, D.C., in April, with tickets priced between $750 and $875. Cabot will participate in a thirty-minute talk called “Taking Back the Narrative” alongside public relations CEO Dini von Mueffling.
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“This is the fourth year that we&#8217;ve run the crisis comms conference, and it&#8217;s been a sell-out every year because every day there is another brand, individual, or company that gets itself in crisis situations. I fully expect it to sell out again this year—not necessarily because of Kristin. It&#8217;s just, it&#8217;s such a hot topic,” Steve Barrett, VP and editorial director of PRWeek, <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/kristin-cabot-coldplay-scandal-keynote-speaker-crisis-conference-11468683">told</a> Newsweek.
Conference organizers told the outlet that Cabot was not being compensated for her appearance.
The internet has been obsessed with the alleged Astronomer affair scandal since it was made public following viral images from a Coldplay show last July.
A video showed company CEO Andrew Byron, then married, and Cabot embracing one another at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, when the kiss cam landed on them. The couple reacted immediately, with Byron letting go of Cabot and stepping out of frame. Cabot had a similar reaction, immediately hiding her face and turning away from the camera.
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin called out their reaction, saying, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy.”
The video was posted online and became part of the national conversation, inspiring references, spoofs, and commentary that lasted for months.
Byron had served as CEO of Astronomer since 2023, while Cabot had been a human resources executive with the company for less than one year. Both resigned from their positions following the scandal.
Cabot went on the interview circuit in December, expressing shock over the level of public outrage surrounding her alleged infidelity. She said it was her first time kissing her former boss and claimed their relationship was never sexual. 
The New Hampshire native also revealed that her then-husband, Andrew Cabot, was at the infamous concert. He said in a statement that the couple was estranged at the time of the incident.

Coldplay concert

Coldplay Kiss Cam Woman Headlining Crisis PR Conference

Coldplay Kiss Cam Woman Signs On As Keynote Speaker At Crisis PR Conference

Entertainment

viral video

Former Attorney General Bill Barr praised Minnesota business leaders on Tuesday for refusing to cave to “activist pressure” to denounce federal law enforcement following anti-ICE protests. 
Reacting to an open letter from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce urging cooperation between federal and state authorities, Barr told The Daily Wire that he was encouraged by the development. 
Barr was the attorney general from 2019 to 2020, when corporations lined up behind the Black Lives Matter movement. 
“I applaud business leaders who did not bow to activist pressure to refuse any cooperation with federal law enforcement,” he said. “Fidelity to the ‘rule of law’ demands all citizens to respect the authority of the federal government to faithfully implement federal law throughout the nation, even in communities where it is unpopular. Without that authority, as George Washington observed, there could be no true national government.”
Barr’s comments come after dozens of business executives signed onto an open letter urging peace and cooperation among local, state, and federal authorities following the deadly shooting of an armed protester by Border Patrol during anti-ICE protests. 
The open letter, signed by executives from major companies including Target and Best Buy, said business leaders were working behind the scenes to facilitate communication between the Trump administration and Minnesota officials. 
“These efforts have included close communication with the Governor, the White House, the Vice President and local mayors. There are ways for us to come together to foster progress,” they wrote on January 25. “With yesterday&#8217;s tragic news, we are calling for an immediate deescalation of tensions and for state, local and federal officials to work together to find real solutions.”
In recent days, leftist activists have pressured companies like Target to ban Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers from its parking lots and stores. 
Conservative commentators noted a stark contrast between how corporations responded in 2020 following George Floyd&#8217;s death and the more cautious, neutral approach many companies are taking amid the current anti-ICE protests. 
“It’s encouraging to see companies choosing restraint at a moment when political pressure from the left is often the loudest and most unhinged voice in the room,” Consumers’ Research Executive Director Will Hild wrote on X. “A business response prioritizing neutrality, safety and their core responsibility to customers and employees = commendable and a stark departure from 2020 escalatory statements from corporate America.”

MixCollage-27-Jan-2026-09-54-AM-1361

Trump’s Former AG Praises Business Leaders For Standing Firm Amid ICE Protests

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Minneapolis

Minnesota

Outdoor apparel brand Patagonia is suing a drag queen who sells merchandise under a name very similar to their company name, saying it causes customer confusion.
The lawsuit was filed in a California federal court against an individual named Wyn Wiley, who uses the stage name Pattie Gonia. The company argued that matters were further complicated by the fact that Wiley is also an environmental activist who promotes activities very similar to what the brand does, such as &#8220;motivational speaking services in support of environmental sustainability&#8221; and &#8220;organizing, arranging, and conducting trail and hiking events,&#8221; per <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/patagonia-sues-drag-queen-pattie-gonia-trademark-infringement-2026-01-21/">Reuters</a>.
“We want Pattie to have a long and successful career and make progress on issues that matter – but in a way that respects Patagonia’s intellectual property and ability to use our brand to sell products and advocate for the environment,&#8221; Patagonia said in a statement, the outlet noted.
The company stated in the lawsuit that Wiley agreed in 2022 not to use the name on any branded merchandise that may confuse consumers, but claims that promise has since been violated as the drag queen and LGBT activist has sold apparel with phrases like &#8220;Pattie Gonia Hiking Club.&#8221;
Attorneys representing the brand sent an email to Wiley last February, the lawsuit noted. “Patagonia remains supportive of your work but must insist that the Pattie Gonia persona not be commercialized and continue to adhere to the commitments made in 2022,” the email says.
“Unfortunately, these latest product sales force Patagonia’s hand and so I’m asking that you discontinue sales of t-shirts and stickers (or any product) using Pattie Gonia branding or designs substantially similar to Patagonia’s logos,” it said.
Wiley and his business partner said in reply that they “have never and will never reference the brand Patagonia’s logo or brand,” and <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/01/22/us-news/patagonia-sues-drag-queen-pattie-gonia-claiming-irreparable-harm/">claimed</a> there was room for Patagonia and Pattie Gonia to “play in this box.”
Patagonia noted that the lawsuit was filed in response to Wiley trying to trademark “Pattie Gonia.” They are seeking $1 in damages and court orders to prevent Wiley from continuing to use the name.
“While Patagonia seeks only nominal monetary damages, the harm Pattie Gonia has caused and will cause to the Patagonia brand is irreparable and cannot be remedied by money damages or other remedies short of an injunction,” the lawsuit says.
While Patagonia has not had any professional relationship with Wiley, he has worked with other major brands in the past. In 2022, the non-profit organization Audubon Society promoted a video of Pattie Gonia dressed as an elaborate bird while performing an interpretive dance to promote climate change awareness, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/audubon-society-teams-up-with-drag-queen-dressed-like-a-bird-for-climate-change-awareness">reported</a>.
Then in 2023, the outdoor sports gear brand The North Face <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-north-face-debuts-summer-of-pride-with-campy-drag-video-amid-ongoing-bud-light-target-backlash">debuted</a> an over-the-top “Summer of Pride” promotion on social media, which included Wiley performing as Pattie Gonia.

Pattie Gonia

Patagonia Sues Drag Queen ‘Pattie Gonia,’ Says He’s Caused ‘Irreparable Harm’ To Brand

Patagonia Sues Drag Queen 'Pattie Gonia,' Says He's Caused 'Irreparable Harm' To Brand

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The following is an edited transcript from &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1894-not-playing-games-trump-launches-investigation-into-minnesota-libs?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>.&#8221;
* * *
Michelle Obama went viral yesterday — on Martin Luther King Day of all days — for comments about shopping habits and race.
The viral description making the rounds, however, reads, &#8220;Michelle Obama says she is mindful to try to avoid white-owned brands&#8230;&#8221;
The question is whether what she actually said matches that description.
Let&#8217;s find out. Watch:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Michelle Obama says she is mindful to try to avoid white-owned brands and others also should be <a href="https://t.co/5MqY5gaxUv">pic.twitter.com/5MqY5gaxUv</a>
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) <a href="https://twitter.com/EndWokeness/status/2013356579802767412?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Credit: @EndWokeness/X.com
At a superficial glance, just hearing her words verbatim, you’d probably have to say the viral description isn’t entirely fair. Nowhere does she explicitly say “don’t shop at white-owned brands.” Nowhere does she say “shop at black-owned brands and not white-owned brands.”
And in defense of Michelle Obama — and I don’t generally defend her — that’s not literally what she said.
She said that if she sees a black-owned brand and she likes their stuff, she’ll choose that brand. But she stops herself. She doesn’t say, “and I won’t buy from anyone else.” She doesn’t say, “I only do it because it’s black-owned.”
But here’s the problem: she injects race into the decision. She’s saying, “If I like their stuff, and if it’s black-owned, then I especially want to buy it.” And when she says, “If you have the money to buy Chanel, you have the money to buy everybody,” she very carefully stops short of finishing the sentence. She doesn’t say “black-owned brands.” She says “everybody.”
What she’s doing is trying to privilege the black-owned brand while avoiding the explicit consequence of that choice. She wants to be a racial identitarian when it comes to the positive act of buying — of supporting a business — but she doesn’t want to be a racial identitarian when it comes to the negative act of not shopping somewhere else.
She never says, “Don’t shop at white brands.” Instead, she says you need to shop at black brands, and everybody needs to shop at black brands — but maybe not less at white brands.
It’s a kind of gobbledygook. And that’s why, ultimately, I think the viral description is basically fair, even if it’s not perfectly precise.
It’s like the IQ bell curve meme. At one end, people say she told people not to shop at white stores. In the middle, it’s “she said to shop at black stores but also shop at white stores.” And at the other end, what she’s really saying is: shop less at white stores. Her minor premise is wrong. She says if you have the money to buy Chanel, you have the money to buy everybody.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1894-not-playing-games-trump-launches-investigation-into-minnesota-libs?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">WATCH: The Michael Knowles Show</a></h3>
That’s simply not true. Money is a finite resource. Just because you can afford one expensive brand doesn’t mean you have infinite money. And even if you did have infinite money, you have finite closet space. You have a finite number of dresses you’ll wear. A finite number of days in the week. Where are you going to wear all these clothes?
This is the core problem with diversity ideology. If you privilege one thing, you necessarily disadvantage another. 
This is exactly the problem with affirmative action. Everyone says, “Oh, it’s great, we should help out black people.” And yes, for the vast majority of Americans, that sounds good. Who doesn’t want to help?
But affirmative action in practice means something very concrete. There are a finite number of spots at a university. A finite number of jobs. When you give an advantage to black people simply for being black, you are necessarily disadvantageous to someone else — often white people, or Asian people in the case of college admissions. There is discrimination happening. There is an injustice that comes with that, too.
The same logic applies here. When you say, “I’m going to shop at the black brand,” you are necessarily saying that, at the margin — the last dress that fits in your closet — you are not going to shop at the white brand. You are choosing not to go into that shop, not because you dislike the dress, but because of the race of the person who owns it.
That is discrimination on the basis of race. That’s what Michelle Obama is saying — without saying it. She doesn’t want to go all the way, but there is no other conclusion you can reach from her premises.
This ties directly into why people don’t really talk about Martin Luther King Jr. the same way anymore. Part of it is that the modern Left rejects him because he was too conciliatory and too egalitarian. But the other reason is that the practical politics don’t match the rhetoric.
Dr. King famously said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” 
And yet his successors say that in order to achieve that dream, we need affirmative action, DEI, and diversity ideology. Which, in practice, means judging people — especially white people — by the color of their skin.
Taken to its extreme, it means not shopping at white-owned businesses. And even if you agree with MLK’s premise, you are completely undermining it with these practical consequences.
So no, I don’t begrudge Michelle Obama for shopping at black-owned businesses. That’s fine. But if you’re going to say it, say it with your whole heart. Finish the sentence.
Tell people explicitly: shop at black businesses. Don’t shop at white businesses. Define what counts as ownership — 50% plus one ownership? Board seats? Stakeholders? I don’t know. But say it clearly.
And if you’re not willing to say that, then just buy the dress you like.

2025 Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival

Michelle Obama And The Logic Of ‘Mindful’ Shopping

Affirmative Action

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Michael Knowles

Michelle Obama

Opinion

Credit card interest rates are expected to be ordered to pause at 10% for one year starting January 20, President Donald Trump announced on Friday night.
“Please be informed that we will no longer let the American Public be ‘ripped off’ by Credit Card Companies that are charging Interest Rates of 20 to 30%, and even more, which festered unimpeded during the Sleepy Joe Biden Administration. AFFORDABILITY!” he posted to Truth Social.
“Effective January 20, 2026, I, as President of the United States, am calling for a one year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates of 10%. Coincidentally, the January 20th date will coincide with the one year anniversary of the historic and very successful Trump Administration. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” the president continued.
Credit cards typically carry an interest rate of 23.79%, according to LendingTree. As of Q3 of 2025, Americans have $1.23 trillion in credit card debt, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s <a href="https://www.newyorkfed.org/microeconomics/hhdc.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Center for Microeconomic Data</a>. Over 80% of Americans have a credit card, according to <a href="https://www.fool.com/money/research/credit-card-ownership-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Motley Fool</a>.
It’s unclear if there will be subsequent legal action against the order. The move is one of several major financial actions the president has taken in recent days. On Wednesday, he announced he would be taking action to prevent “institutional” buyers from purchasing single-family homes, writing on Truth Social that “people live in homes, not corporations.”
“For a very long time, buying and owning a home was considered the pinnacle of the American Dream. It was the reward for working hard, and doing the right thing, but now, because of the Record High Inflation caused by Joe Biden and the Democrats in Congress, that American Dream is increasingly out of reach for far too many people, especially younger Americans,” he stated.
Then on Thursday, he directed a purchase of $200 billion in mortgage bonds in another move intended to tackle the cost of home ownership.
“This will drive Mortgage Rates DOWN, monthly payments DOWN, and make the cost of owning a home more affordable,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly referenced “affordability” in his messaging on economic policy in recent weeks, as the phrase has quickly turned into a marquee campaign trail tenet for the November midterms used by both parties.

San Francisco Reopens Indoor Dining, Gyms As Coronavirus Cases Drop

Credit Card Interest Rates Could Be Capped At 10% For The Year, Trump Says

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A rep from Spotify confirmed that they are no longer airing recruitment ads for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after the last campaign ended in late 2025.
The update comes after left-wing organizations openly complained about the ads, which were run between songs for ad-supported free subscribers.
“There are currently no ICE ads running on Spotify,” a statement from the music streaming giant <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/09/spotify-no-longer-running-ice-recruitment-ads-after-us-government-campaign-ends">said</a>, per The Guardian. “The advertisements mentioned were part of a US government recruitment campaign that ran across all major media and platforms.”
Spotify previously addressed criticism of the ads, saying they did not “violate our advertising policies.”
“This advertisement is part of a broad campaign the US government is running across television, streaming, and online channels,” the company shared in a statement last October. “However, users can mark any ad with a thumbs-up or thumbs-down to help manage their ads preferences.”
Similar ICE recruitment ads have been running on other popular platforms including Hulu, HBO Max, YouTube, and Pandora since last spring.
The non-profit organization Indivisible Project, best known for organizing the nationwide “No Kings” protests, called for a boycott of Spotify in an <a href="https://indivisible.org/statements/indivisible-announces-campaign-cancel-spotify-streaming-services-over-ice-recruitment">open letter</a> shared in October.
“Spotify is exploiting the work of artists to line their pockets while recruiting for ICE – a secret police force that is terrorizing American communities. Spotify is actively amplifying the Trump regime’s drive to authoritarianism,” the letter said in part.
The organization took credit for Spotify no longer running the ads, writing in an update on Friday that “months of public pressure” resulted in the music streaming service no longer running ICE advertisements.
Some minor musical artists also removed their music from the platform in protest. This includes the Australian psych-rock band King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, the Canadian group Godspeed You! Black Emperor, indie band Deerhoof, and U.S. singer-songwriter Kadhja Bonet, per The Guardian.

Spotify

Spotify Confirms They’re Not Running ICE Recruitment Ads Anymore

Spotify Confirms They're Not Running ICE Recruitment Ads Anymore

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Warner Bros. Discovery has formally rejected the hostile takeover bid from Paramount amid their merger deal with Netflix, dubbing the proposed terms “inferior” to the Netflix partnership.
“Your Board negotiated a merger with Netflix that maximizes value while mitigating downside risks, and we unanimously believe the Netflix merger is in your best interest. We are focused on advancing the Netflix merger to deliver its compelling value to you,” the board wrote in a letter to shareholders Wednesday morning, per <a href="https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/warner-bros-discovery-rejects-paramount-skydance-ellison-latest-takeover-offer-1236624282/">Variety</a>.
The letter further stated that the Paramount offer “is not more favorable to WBD stockholders than the Netflix Merger and continues to be inadequate,” because of “insufficient value, taking into account price and numerous risks, costs and uncertainties.” 
The decision to reject the bid was said to be unanimous. This was the sixth offer made and rejected by Paramount.
“The Offer is entirely at [Paramount]’s discretion – [Paramount] can reduce the price, impose new conditions, or walk away entirely at any time prior to its acceptance of tendered shares,” Warner Bros. said of the proposal.
Paramount announced their latest bid days after the Netflix deal was announced in December.
“We believe our offer will create a stronger Hollywood. It is in the best interests of the creative community, consumers and the movie theater industry,” Paramount Chairman and CEO David Ellison said in a statement at the time, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/paramount-launches-hostile-takeover-bid-for-warner-bros-days-after-netflix-deal-announced?author=Amanda+Harding&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Paramount+Launches+Hostile+Takeover+Bid+For+Warner+Bros.+Days+After+Netflix+Deal+Announced">reported</a>. 
“We believe they will benefit from the enhanced competition, higher content spend and theatrical release output, and a greater number of movies in theaters as a result of our proposed transaction.”
President Trump remarked on the Netflix deal in December, saying it “could be a problem” from an antitrust standpoint. The president also mentioned being “involved” in reviewing the deal. The proposed merger has had bipartisan pushback from skeptics who warn it could turn into a “nightmare” for consumers and creatives. 
Many critics also worry that it could destroy the theater industry, as rumors persist that Netflix will push for a shorter theatrical release window for major films. Per <a href="https://www.avclub.com/netflix-warner-bros-17-day-theatrical-amc">reports</a>, the timing could be shortened to as little as 17 days, drastically reducing the industry standard of a 30 to 45-day delay before movies arrive on streaming services.

Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Rejects ‘Inferior’ Paramount Hostile Takeover Bid, Chooses Netflix

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