Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti warned leftist activists not to defy the Volunteer State’s protection of kids from transgender procedures after securing a major victory at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. 
Skrmetti made the comments in an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-250618-member-exclusive?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+Show+Episodes+Carousel">interview</a> with Morning Wire just hours after the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of a Tennessee law that protects children from irreversible transgender medical procedures. In December, Skrmetti and his team defended the law before the court after the ACLU and the Biden administration sued to overturn it. 
“It is a really important ruling,” Skrmetti told The Daily Wire. “It affects an increasingly large number of kids. And the evidence that keeps coming in shows more and more that there is a huge risk to kids from these procedures with very little, if any, benefit. So it&#8217;s really important that our legislatures be allowed to follow the evidence and do what they need to do to make sure kids are protected.”
Skrmetti added that any state with “shield laws” to protect people sending in transgender drugs into Tennessee would end up in court. 
“The full faith and credit clause says that Tennessee&#8217;s laws are binding in Tennessee. Other states can&#8217;t get cute and try to find ways around that. We&#8217;ve seen a lot of states try to do this. I think it&#8217;s a bad idea. They shouldn&#8217;t do it and if they keep it up, they&#8217;re going to end up in court and they&#8217;re going to lose,” he said. 
Opponents of Tennessee’s law claim that it violates the 14th Amendment because it would allow boys to be prescribed testosterone to address developmental issues but not allow girls to be given testosterone for a so-called transition. 
Skrmetti said that this line of thinking was a “fatal flaw” in the arguments made by the law’s opponents. 
“With any medical treatment, you&#8217;re not just handing someone a drug, you&#8217;re giving them a treatment to treat a specific condition. And different drugs have different effects on different conditions,” he said. “And we differentiate between those purposes all the time. So I thought that was a fatal flaw in the argument on the other side.”
Dozens of states followed Tennessee’s lead after Governor Bill Lee signed its ban into law in March 2023. That came after Daily Wire host Matt Walsh published an investigation into the Pediatric Transgender Clinic at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, showing it had removed the breasts of girls who identified as boys and prescribed cross-sex hormones to gender-confused children.
Portions of the interview were included in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire?elementPosition=0&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=News+%26+Commentary&amp;rowType=Square+Show+Carousel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Morning Wire</a>’s Thursday episode, and the full interview will air this Sunday. 
<iframe loading="lazy" title="SCOTUS Upholds Trans Treatment Ban &amp; Iran Strike Looms?" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9OtOZrUF2Wc?list=PL7nd_lHY9IxA6E1unmjAilHmHfDPlfHPJ" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Supreme Court To Weigh Bans On Puberty Blockers, Hormones For Trans Teens

Tennessee Attorney General Issues Warning To Dem States After SCOTUS Victory On Trans Procedures

Bill Lee

Matt Walsh

Morning Wire

Supreme Court

Tennessee

Transgender

The Supreme Court upholds Tennessee’s ban on transgender medical procedures for minors. The 6–3 decision is a landmark victory for parents and conservatives, and a defining blow to transgender activism. The United States continues to fortify the Middle East as Trump ramps up the pressure on Iran to surrender. And, as Trump escalates deportation plans, Democrats make headlines by getting themselves arrested.
It’s Thursday, June 19, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>SCOTUS Upholds Gender-Mutilation Ban</h2>
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Topline: In a major win for conservative activists and parent groups, the Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a Tennessee law banning transgender drugs and surgeries for children.
In the case of United States v. Skrmetti — the justices decided that Tennessee’s law does not violate the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. The plaintiffs in the case — which included trans-identifying teens and their families — claimed that Tennessee’s law banning puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries for minors discriminated against them on the basis of sex. More than 20 states have bans similar to Tennessee’s.
Chief Justice John Roberts penned the court’s <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/23-477_2cp3.pdf">opinion</a> and rejected the plaintiffs’ argument. He also said the plaintiffs “contort the meaning of the term ‘medical treatment,&#8217;” writing, “Notably absent from their framing is a key aspect of any medical treatment: the underlying medical concern the treatment is intended to address.”
“The main argument from the other side when we did the oral argument in front of the court was if you have a boy who wants testosterone to resolve a developmental defect, then they can get it,”  Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti told The Daily Wire. “But a girl who wants testosterone to deepen her voice can&#8217;t. The dissenting justices thought that this was some sort of discrimination. But with any medical treatment, you&#8217;re not just handing someone a drug, you&#8217;re giving them a treatment to treat a specific condition. And different drugs have different effects on different conditions. And we differentiate between those purposes all the time. So I thought that was a fatal flaw in the argument on the other side.”
Roberts noted that the number of minors requesting “sex transition treatments” has increased in recent years, and meanwhile, European countries have cracked down on these procedures and drugs. Medical skepticism around these drugs and procedures is only growing – last month, the <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/gender-dysphoria-report-release.html">HHS</a> released a review saying the “science and evidence do not support” the use of these drugs and procedures for children.
Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in which he said, “there is no medical consensus on how best to treat gender dysphoria in children,” and “recent revelations suggest that leading voices in this area have relied on questionable evidence, and have allowed ideology to influence their medical guidance.”
Meanwhile, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote a dissent joined by the two other liberal-leaning justices, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sotomayor claimed that teens needing transgender drugs “can be a question of life or death.” Advocates of these drugs and surgeries have <a href="https://www.heritage.org/gender/report/puberty-blockers-cross-sex-hormones-and-youth-suicide">pushed</a> a similar line to parents of trans-identifying children for years, even as newer evidence has shown that these treatments do not improve children’s mental health.
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<h2>Iran Says It Will &#8216;Never Surrender&#8217; While Trump Teases Possible Strikes</h2>
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Topline:  As the war between Israel and Iran approaches its seventh day, the Ayatollah says his country will never surrender.
On Wednesday, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei let the world know he would never agree to President Donald Trump’s demand for an unconditional surrender. In a video statement, Iran’s theocratic leader said, “Those with wisdom who know Iran, its people and its history, never speak to this nation in the language of threats, because the Iranian nation will not surrender…The United States must know that our people will not surrender, and any military intervention by them will lead to irreparable consequences.” 
That video came a day after President Trump threatened to strike the Ayatollah, and as Israel continues to hammer Iranian nuclear and military facilities. To date, the Israelis have killed 11 of Iran’s 12 highest-ranking military leaders.
The expectation from military experts is that if Trump joins Israel’s offensive, the Iranians would respond by launching missiles at American military installations across the Middle East, particularly those in Iraq, Syria, and Kuwait, which are just across the border. 
“I may do it, I may not do it,” Trump <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1935338837695189018">said</a> at the White House on Wednesday. “Nobody knows what I’m gonna do. I can tell you this, that Iran’s got a lot of trouble. And they wanna negotiate. And I said, &#8216;Why didn’t you negotiate with me before all this death and destruction?'&#8221;
The president also made it clear that whatever course he takes, he intends to avoid a protracted war and is solely focused on preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. In the latest <a href="https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/trump_administration_second_term/57_favor_u_s_military_action_against_iran_s_nukes">Rasmussen polling</a>, 57% of Americans support American strikes to destroy Iran’s nuclear program, compared to just 30% who oppose them. But 69% of Americans say that even if they support airstrikes against Iran, they prefer the two sides negotiate an agreement.
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<h2>Immigration Pushback Continues As Trump Admin Sticks To Its Guns</h2>
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Topline:  Blue cities are in rebellion against Trump’s immigration agenda. Protests and riots threaten immigration officers, while Democratic officials openly challenge the federal government.
Most of the pushback against immigration enforcement is in major cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. The resistance involves everything from activist coordination to impeding ICE operations and local officials getting in between ICE and local law enforcement. 
Chicago has suspended an online portal for illegal aliens to apply for IDs. The CityKeys program was shut down after ICE subpoenaed its records. The Chicago city clerk then shut it down and told the <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/06/14/ice-subpoena-chicago-city-clerk-online-municipal-id/">Chicago Tribune,</a> “We’re going to fight giving over any data to the federal government.” Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson has been adamant that Chicago would “take to the streets” if it had to resist Trump. 
Comments like that haven’t stopped Trump from targeting these cities.
“Biden allowed 21 million people to come into our country,” Trump <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1934638998640537748">said</a> earlier this week. “Vast numbers of those people were murderers, killers, people from gangs, people from jails. They emptied their jails out into the US. Most of those people are in the cities, all blue cities, all Democrat-run cities, and they think they&#8217;re going to use them to vote. It&#8217;s not going to happen.” 
Local law enforcement is also cracking down on anti-ICE riots  – a bevy of new charges were announced Tuesday from state and federal officials. U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli and Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman outlined dozens of counts from curfew violations to assault of law enforcement. Hochman said that his district attorney’s office has charged at least 30 people. The U.S. attorney has brought an additional 20 counts. 
Lawmakers on both sides have condemned violence, but Democrats also seem to court their own run-ins with law enforcement. Earlier this month, New Jersey Congresswoman LaMonica McIver was charged after chaos erupted at an ICE detention center in Newark. More recently, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who is a candidate for mayor, was arrested outside an immigration court on Tuesday. Police say he was impeding law enforcement. Then last week, Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) had to be forcefully removed from a Homeland Security press conference in Los Angeles.

MRN 6.19.25 Thumbnail_V1

Morning Brief: SCOTUS Makes Trans Ruling, Iran Talks Tough, And Dems On Thin ICE

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Brandon Johnson

California

Chicago

Children

Donald Trump

Illinois

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Iran

Israel

Los Angeles County

Media

minors

New York

New York City

Politics

Riots

SCOTUS

transgender surgery

Trump calls for Iran to surrender, Senate Republicans investigate who was actually steering the ship under Biden’s presidency, and we speak to President Donald Trump&#8217;s sons on the 10th anniversary of that fateful escalator ride.
It’s Wednesday, June 18, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here: 
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Trump Weighs Iran Intervention &amp; Biden Coverup Investigated" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cbn6hw3bXwU?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>
If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>Trump Demands Unconditional Surrender From Iran, Weighs Military Options</h2>
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Topline: Trump warns Iran to surrender or face the consequences.
As the U.S. weighs intervention in Iran, President Trump is warning the Ayatollah that his patience is wearing thin. The fighting is showing no signs of slowing down as Israel targets Iran’s nuclear and military facilities and Iran targets whatever they can hit, including civilian populations.
On Tuesday, Israel said it killed Ali Shadmani, Iran’s senior military commander. Shadmani had only been in the position for three days after replacing his predecessor, who was killed in a separate strike Friday. The Israelis also launched successful strikes on the Natanz enrichment facility — a crucial part of Iran’s nuclear program. We’re still awaiting a full assessment of the damage, but one Israeli official told the Wall Street Journal the facility may have imploded.
Iran claims it struck an Israeli military intelligence center in Tel Aviv, though Israel says most of the strikes have targeted civilian areas. Elsewhere, Iranian missiles hit the Weizmann Institute of Science — Israeli officials say years&#8217; worth of medical and scientific research was destroyed in the strike.
Donald Trump is still weighing his options and seriously considering joining the war. The president convened his national security team for a Situation Room meeting Tuesday afternoon.
Just before that meeting took place, Trump posted on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114699514822488706">Truth Social</a>, “We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran. Iran had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment, and plenty of it, but it doesn’t compare to American made, conceived, and manufactured ‘stuff.’”
That use of the word “we” turned heads in Washington. While the White House says the president was referring to American weapons and not Americans directly, it’s quite the departure from a few days ago when the president said America was playing no role in the conflict.
The president also <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114699610769479275">wrote</a> on Tuesday, “We know exactly where the so-called &#8216;Supreme Leader&#8217; [of Iran] is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there &#8211; We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
<h2>The Senate Investigates Biden&#8217;s Cognitive Decline/Cover-Up</h2>
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Topline: Senate Republicans hold a hearing to investigate who was in charge during Joe Biden’s presidency.
The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on Wednesday as part of its investigation into what was going on behind the scenes during Biden’s presidency. Among the questions they’re asking: who was really running the country amid the president’s cognitive decline – and were media outlets colluding to cover it up?
“Everybody could see the clear decline of Joe Biden,” said Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO). “The media tried to dismiss it as &#8216;cheap fakes.&#8217; There was sort of one excuse after another. The Democrats were saying he&#8217;s sharper than he&#8217;s ever been, and they had the left-wing media parroting those talking points, too. And it just is a really dangerous kind of road to go down, to have the one person that&#8217;s elected by the entire country be mentally incompetent. … Personally, I think this scandal is bigger than Watergate, but everybody&#8217;s very eager to sweep it under the rug. And I just don&#8217;t think the American people should accept that.”
In February 2024, Special Counsel Robert Hur declined to prosecute President Biden for mishandling of classified documents, saying it would be difficult to convict him because “Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” That report was widely decried at the time, but more recently, whistleblowers from the Biden White House have come forward with their own stories about the former president’s mental decline and the concerted effort to hide it from the American public – notably in interviews with CNN’s Jake Tapper cited in &#8220;Original Sin: President Biden&#8217;s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,&#8221; which reignited the controversy.
Schmitt told The Daily Wire that the use of the president’s autopen would be a key subject of the hearing on Wednesday – there are claims that many of the executive orders issued by the Biden administration might have been signed by staffers without his knowledge, although Biden has publicly denied those accusations.
<h2>A Decade Of The Donald</h2>
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Topline: Don Jr. and Eric Trump open up to Morning Wire ten years after their father&#8217;s fateful escalator ride that launched his first successful presidential campaign.
Ten years ago this week, Donald Trump changed American politics forever by announcing a run for the White House. His two elder sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, celebrated that anniversary at an event in Manhattan, where they spoke to Daily Wire White House correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan about the MAGA movement and its impact on their family and the world.
Donald Trump Jr: &#8220;Before the fateful sort of escalator ride down, my father looked at me right in the eyes. He [said], &#8216;Now we find out who our real friends are.&#8217;… He knew how difficult it was gonna be. He knew his friends would turn on him, but more importantly, he knew that was gonna happen and he did it anyway.&#8221;
Eric Trump: &#8220;He’s done amazing things for this nation. And, as a son, I’m truly proud of his fight, of his tenacity, of everything that he’s given up for this country. I mean, they tried to kill him &#8212; multiple times. … He’s tough as hell, and hopefully he’s a great example to so many that will follow because that’s exactly what we need in America.&#8221;

MRN 6.18.25 Thumbnail V1

Morning Brief: Trump Wants ‘Unconditional Surrender’ From Iran, & Biden Cover-Up Investigation

Biden Administration

Donald Trump Jr.

Eric Schmitt

Eric Trump

Jake Tapper

Joe Biden

“No Kings” protests cause chaos as the Army celebrates its 250th anniversary, a Minnesota manhunt concludes following a political assassination, and President Donald Trump ups the pressure on Iran.
It’s Monday, June 16, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>&#8220;Mostly Peaceful&#8221; Protests And A Birthday Parade</h2>
<div id="attachment_934735" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-934735" class="size-large wp-image-934735" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2219848297-864x576.jpg" alt="SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUNE 11: Protestors gather in front of the Henry M. Jackson Federal building during a protest against federal immigration arrests on June 11, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. Protests against ICE raids have spread to cities across the nation after beginning in Los Angeles last weekend. (Photo by Rio Giancarlo/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2219848297-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2219848297-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2219848297-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2219848297.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Rio Giancarlo/Getty Images</div>
Topline: As President Trump presides over the celebration of the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary – “No Kings” protests erupt in violence.
Multiple rioters were arrested near Portland’s ICE facility over the weekend after police declared that a planned protest had devolved into a riot. The chaos in Portland, which left several officers injured, was part of a wave of anti-Trump protests across the country and coincided with Trump&#8217;s celebration of the Army’s 250th birthday.
The Portland &#8220;No Kings&#8221; protest included <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/multiple-arrests-near-portland-ice-building-after-police-declare-riot">tens of thousands of people</a>. While city officials touted the event as a &#8220;large-scale free speech gathering,” eventually the focus became on an ICE facility. Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/officers-injured-portland-rioters-breach-ice-building-explosives-rocks">told Fox News Digital</a> that the rioters broke glass and forcibly entered the building. During the attack, they threw rocks and launched fireworks and smoke grenades at federal law enforcement. Officials say at least four officers were injured.  Four rioters were initially arrested for what the Portland Police Bureau stressed was “violent activity,” and they said in a press conference early Sunday that more could be rounded up.
We saw yet <a href="https://apnews.com/article/no-kings-protest-trump-philadelphia-los-angeles-immigration-raids-a3b67d23733cd060f8d01aef1e391dbf">more violence</a> in Los Angeles, which has become the epicenter of these protests and riots. Law enforcement used tear gas and other crowd-control munitions to clear out rioters over the weekend. Then there was Salt Lake City, where a “No Kings” protest featured a shooting. Police said Sunday that three people were taken into custody, including the shooting suspect, and that the motive was still being investigated.
These “No Kings” demonstrations were planned nationwide in response to Trump holding that massive celebration of the U.S. Army. The military parade marked the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Army, which came a year before the Declaration of Independence. It also happened to coincide with Trump’s 79th birthday.
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<h2>Assassination Shakes Minnesota</h2>
<div id="attachment_934575" style="width: 840px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-934575" class="size-full wp-image-934575" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-14-at-10.47.41-AM.png" alt="" width="830" height="506" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-14-at-10.47.41-AM.png 830w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-14-at-10.47.41-AM-300x183.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-14-at-10.47.41-AM-768x468.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px" />MN State Senate//Melissa Horton via Facebook</div>
Topline: The assassin suspected of killing a Minnesota state lawmaker and critically injuring another was captured by authorities late Sunday night after a two-day search.
The nation was rocked over the weekend after a prominent Minnesota lawmaker and her spouse were gunned down in an apparent politically motivated assassination. Early Saturday morning, Democratic state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were left in critical condition after being shot inside their home. Police, fearing the crime was politically motivated, proactively checked the homes of several other lawmakers, including Melissa Hortman, the top Democrat in the State House. When officers arrived, they found what appeared to be a police SUV with flashing blue lights in the driveway, and a man dressed as a cop exiting the house. That man immediately opened fire on police before fleeing the scene on foot. When officers searched the home, they found Hortman and her husband dead. 
Footage from a home security system shows a man dressed as an officer approaching the front door, wearing a life-like rubber mask.
Immediately after the shootings, police issued a shelter-in-place order for a three-mile radius surrounding the home, but the killer was able to flee the area on foot and make it to another car he owned. Authorities quickly identified 57-year-old Vance Boelter as the suspect, a Minnesotan with no past criminal history. While Boelter escaped the crime scene, by Sunday afternoon, police had located his second vehicle 50 miles southwest of Minneapolis in Sibley County. By 10 pm Sunday, he was in custody after being caught hiding out in a patch of woods. 
Police say a manifesto was found in Boelter’s car, but they have not released it to the public, although they’re confident this was a politically motivated attack. Authorities say a list of potential targets was also found in Boelter’s car — it reportedly included a number of prominent Democrats, along with abortion providers in the state. The suspect’s roommate told reporters he believed Boelter voted for Trump, but was unaware of his views on state politics. 
 Boelter also had ties to Democratic Governor Tim Walz, who appointed him to the Governor’s Workforce Development Board back in 2019. Previous Democrat Governor Mark Dayton had appointed Boelter to the same position in 2016.
<h2>Iran vs Israel: Dueling Airstrikes</h2>
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Topline: As Israel and Iran trade blows, President Trump ratchets up the pressure on Tehran.
Things have changed rapidly since Israel launched its attack on Iran on Thursday, and the situation will likely keep changing fast. Since launching Operation Rising Lion, Israelis have carried out more than 700 different strikes against nuclear sites, military, and leaders of the Iranian regime. In retaliation, Iran has fired salvos of drones and missiles at Israeli population centers.
“These missiles have been coming in by the dozen over the last couple of nights,” Jonathan Schanzer, the executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, who has been sheltering in place in a bomb shelter inside Jerusalem, told The Daily Wire. “Last night there were a couple of direct hits, destroying buildings, destroying a full half of one building or even a half of a city block in one case. I think, you know, what we&#8217;re looking at is a potential war of attrition if things go the way that Iran would like them to go. The regime understands that there&#8217;s a finite number of missile defense interceptors that the Israelis can use. And they have a lot of ballistic missiles… The one kind of wrinkle that I&#8217;m watching right now is that the US is helping to defend the skies over Israel, and it appears that a number of Western countries may also be deploying assets to the region as well.”
American involvement in the broader conflict is uncertain. In the opening hours after the first Israeli airstrikes, officials from the Trump administration denied any American involvement in the operation. However,  they appear to have been given prior warning. 
Many of Israel’s key military platforms – including the F-16 and F-35 fighters, both of which have featured prominently in its air war against Iran – are American-made, and the two countries are close allies.
“I think there&#8217;s also a high degree of intelligence sharing,” Schanzer told The Daily Wire. “The fact that the Israelis attacked on day 61 after Donald Trump&#8217;s 60-day deadline does suggest that there was some degree of coordination here. The big question that I think everyone is asking right now is whether the United States will get involved.”
Some of Iran’s nuclear facilities, including an underground uranium enrichment facility at Fordow, appear to be hardened against conventional attacks, although larger “bunker buster” bombs in the American inventory could break through their defenses. Israel lacks an equivalent stockpile and has asked America to join its air campaign.
Publicly, President Trump continues to call for negotiations with Iran and has pressured Tehran to abandon its nuclear program in exchange for peace. “Iran and Israel should make a deal and will make a deal, just like I got India and Pakistan to make,” the president wrote on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114687664442020232">Truth Social</a> on Saturday. “We will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran! Many calls and meetings [are] now taking place.”

US-Army-250th-Celebration

Morning Brief: Minnesota Gunman Captured & ‘No Kings Riots’

assassination

Los Angeles

Military parade

Minnesota

Oregon

Portland

Protests

Israel launches preemptive airstrikes against Iran after nuclear talks break down. Leftist groups bankroll the L.A. riots and No Kings protests, and sanctuary state governors get blasted by Congress.
It’s Friday, June 13, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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And a quick programming note: Afternoon Update is back! Look for Evening Wire in your podcast feeds on weekdays at 5 p.m. Eastern Time!
<h2>&#8220;Bomb Bomb Bomb, Bomb Bomb Iran&#8221;</h2>
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Topline: Israel strikes targets across Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear missiles – how is the U.S. reacting?
Israel launched a massive air attack across Iranian territory on Thursday night after U.S.-Iran nuclear talks stalled. Israel targeted missile sites, as well as military command centers, research facilities, nuclear scientists, Iranian military leaders, and other high-ranking Iranian officials. Israel has also closed its airspace and declared a state of emergency in preparation for retaliatory strikes &#8212; an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson said that only &#8220;necessary&#8221; business should be conducted on Friday.
Hours before the attack, the United States had ordered non-essential personnel out of the Middle East over tensions with Iran. “[American personnel] are being moved out because it could be a dangerous place, and we&#8217;ll see what happens,” President Trump said on Thursday. “[Iran] can&#8217;t have a nuclear weapon. Very simply, they can&#8217;t … we&#8217;re not going to allow that.” President Trump has denied any American involvement in the strike, and despite the evacuation efforts in response to the possibility, the Trump administration was adamant in its warning to Iran not to direct its ire against the United States.
&#8220;Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,&#8221; Secretary of State Marco Rubio <a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/06/13/israel-strike-iran-trump-nuclear-talks">said</a> in a statement on Thursday. &#8220;Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense&#8230;President Trump and the Administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners. Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel.&#8221;
President Donald Trump on Friday urged Iran to reach a nuclear agreement to avoid further military conflict following Israel’s overnight strikes on Iran.
“I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal,” Trump said. “Certain Iranian hardliners spoke bravely, but they didn’t know what was about to happen. They are all DEAD now, and it will only get worse!”
Later Friday morning, Trump posted on social media: “Two months ago I gave Iran a 60 day ultimatum to ‘make a deal.’ They should have done it! Today is day 61. I told them what to do, but they just couldn’t get there. Now they have, perhaps, a second chance.”
On Thursday, a United Nations watchdog passed a censure vote against Tehran for the first time in two decades. The board of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tehran was out of compliance with its nuclear nonproliferation obligations. In response to the censure vote, Tehran said it will be activating a third nuclear enrichment facility.
It’s unclear how long it would take Iran to assemble a nuclear weapon, although some estimates suggest they could do so in a few months. Iranian proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis have routinely attacked the state of Israel for years and killed thousands of its citizens – Iran has also launched hundreds of drones and missiles directly at Israel last year. Israel is roughly the size of New Jersey, and even a handful of nuclear bombs could obliterate its major population centers. The Iranian regime has not been shy about calling for the destruction of Israel, as well as the United States.
“A nuclear Iran represents an existential threat to Israel,” U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff <a href="https://x.com/EllieCohanim/status/1932962109295309305">said</a>. “As does Iran with a large amount of missiles.”
The operation to disable Iran&#8217;s nascent nuclear capabilities is expected to take several days. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the campaign would continue &#8220;as long as it takes.&#8221;
<h2>Who&#8217;s Funding the Rioters?</h2>
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Topline: The FBI zeroes in on the groups bankrolling the nationwide anti-ICE violence.
As the riots in Los Angeles have resulted in the deployment of military forces, focus has turned to the groups organizing these violent protests, especially Indivisible, an activist organization funded by leftist billionaire George Soros. National Guard troops have been deployed to protect federal buildings and federal employees so ICE can do its work. 
A Daily Wire investigation found that Neville Singham, a tech billionaire living in Shanghai, is a key backer of the anti-ICE movement. He has been described as a financier of pro-Chinese Communist Party propaganda. He has allegedly funneled more than $20 million to radical groups linked to these riots and the anti-Israel protests.
Another key backer is Indivisible, a 501(c)(4) that has openly acknowledged its involvement and organized Tesla protests last month. The group has received some $9 million from George Soros’ foundation. It has received funding from Democratic fundraising platform Act Blue and the Barbara Streisand Foundation.
Authorities are now starting to arrest some of the leaders facilitating the unrest.
“We have made it a huge priority to try to identify, locate, and arrest those who are involved in organizing, supporting, funding, or facilitating these riots,” U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli <a href="https://x.com/MattFinnFNC/status/1933164121094295860">told</a> Fox News. “It appears they&#8217;re well orchestrated and coordinated and well funded.”
Around 1,800 “No Kings” protests backed by many of the same groups are scheduled for Saturday in 1,500 cities to coincide with Flag Day and President Trump’s birthday.
<h2>Sanctuary State Governors Grilled On Capitol Hill</h2>
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Topline: Sanctuary state governors face tough questions on Capitol Hill.
Three Democratic governors, Kathy Hochul of New York, JB Pritzker of Illinois, and Tim Walz of Minnesota &#8212; who was Kamala Harris’ running mate — appeared together before the House Oversight Committee on Thursday to testify about their states’ sanctuary policies. This hearing played out as anti-ICE protests continue in Los Angeles and other cities.
At one point during the hearing, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) read off a list of horrific crimes committed by illegal migrants to Governor Hochul, who struggled to respond:
<blockquote>STEFANIK: “Well, this is an illegal migrant in New York because of your sanctuary state policies. Do you know what crime he committed?”
HOCHUL: “I’m not familiar at this moment.”
STEFANIK: “I bet you’re going to be familiar when I remind you. He found a sleeping woman on the subway, lit her on fire, and burned her alive. This is in Kathy Hochul’s New York. And as I’m sure you are aware, and I’ll remind you, that ICE issued an order to detain this violent criminal, but that was rejected by New York officials due to sanctuary state laws. Now, do you know who Raymond Rojas Basilio is?&#8221;
HOCHUL: “I just want to say this. These crimes are horrific. In all of these cases, we worked with ICE&#8211;&#8220;
STEFANIK: “&#8211;Because of your sanctuary state policies, you did not in this case. They are walking on the streets because of your policies and your executive order that you signed three times.”</blockquote>
At another point, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) tried to get Governor Walz to answer whether he agreed with his own Minnesota attorney general, who said it was unlawful for counties to hold illegal migrants in custody for ICE, even with an immigration warrant.
<blockquote>BIGGS: “That’s his statement. It’s not yours. I just want to know if you agree with him.”
WALZ: “Well, I know you know this, congressman, that all 87 Minnesota counties follow federal law. … The attorney general is elected independently in Minnesota. Nothing in his opinion&#8211;&#8220;
BIGGS: “So are you telling me you disagree with him? I just want you to answer the question.”</blockquote>
Then, in an exchange with Rep. James Comer (R-KY), Governor Pritzker balked at answering whether he thinks a Guatemalan man who was arrested for crashing into two young women at a traffic light while driving drunk had a right to be in the country illegally. That migrant is also under federal indictment for having a fraudulent permanent resident card, Social Security card, and a passport.
<blockquote>COMER: &#8220;Should that criminal have been here in the first place? Did he have a right to be in this country illegally?”
PRITZKER: “If the person is a criminal of any sort, then they ought to be, uh&#8211;”
COMER: “So that person had a right to be in the United States?”
PRITZKER: “They ought to be given their due process rights, and they ought to be convicted.”</blockquote>
Hannah Davis, policy analyst at the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), told The Daily Wire that the number of sanctuary jurisdictions within the United States has risen rapidly in recent years.
“In 2018 was when FAIR did its last report and we found a little over 550. So it&#8217;s been a few years, but as of May of 2025, we found 1,003 sanctuary jurisdictions across the U.S.,” Davis said. “What began as a small movement initially surrounding the concept that non-citizens should be able to report crimes to local law enforcement without fear of deportation has been emboldening radical opposition to the enforcement of federal immigration policy.”

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Morning Brief: Israel Bombs Iran, The Money Behind L.A. Riots & Sanctuary State Govs Get Grilled

The United States and China agree to a trade framework, slashing tariffs and unlocking rare earth minerals. Inflation finally cools  — but L.A. remains hot. We break down the latest on the economy and the political unrest. And, as chaos erupts on the L.A. streets, the real battle is for the narrative – who’s winning the PR war?
It’s Thursday, June 12, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>Trade War Finale: We Have A Deal</h2>
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Topline: President Donald Trump announced that the United States has reached a trade deal with China. The news comes amid an uneasy truce after a series of retaliatory tariffs.
Early Wednesday morning, Trump shared on Truth Social that “Our deal with China is done, subject to final approval with President Xi and me.” This followed two days of negotiations between top economic officials from both countries in London. Trump said that the deal, as it stands, would impose 55% tariffs on Chinese goods entering the United States, but just 10% for American goods in China. China has also agreed to resume shipping magnets and rare earth minerals to the United States.
“Rare earths power $7 trillion US dollars of consumer goods every year,” Shaun Rein, the founder of the China Market Research Group, told The Daily Wire. “Without Chinese rare earths, our iPhones aren&#8217;t going to work. Our cars aren&#8217;t going to work. And importantly, our military defense weapons aren&#8217;t going to work. So without Chinese rare earths, America&#8217;s in a lot of trouble. What also people don&#8217;t realize is that about 95% of antibiotics actually [are] manufactured in China. And then all straight down everything you get out of Walgreens or CVS, whether it&#8217;s Advil or Tylenol, a lot of that is made in China.”
China is the second-largest economy in the world and is a major market for many American goods – $143.5 billion of U.S. goods were exported to China in 2024, although American imports of Chinese goods were far higher at $438.9 billion. Tariffs of 55% are comparatively high but much lower than the 145% imposed before the agreement was reached. The deal will allow Chinese students to resume attending American colleges and universities.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that this agreement would conclude trade negotiations with China and that deals from many other countries are close to locking in their own deals with the United States.
“We’re in good shape with lots of countries, but good shape isn&#8217;t good enough for the United States of America,” Lutnick told <a href="https://x.com/atrupar/status/1932819395077710148">CNBC</a>.”We want great deals that are fundamental to America, we can get them, we can get them done.”
And&#8230; Inflation rose just 0.1% in May compared to April — it’s now sitting at 2.4%, near a four-year low. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Anti-ICE Riots Spread As Politicians Spar</h2>
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Topline: The clash between President Trump and California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom escalated Wednesday, as anti-ICE riots continued to spread across the country. 
Protests continue to pick up steam nationwide:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">By Wednesday night, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and Seattle joined the growing list of cities being hit by demonstrations, many of which turned violent. </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">In Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott mobilized the National Guard before protests across the state turned violent, with officers in a number of cities left hospitalized. </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">In Atlanta, hundreds of rioters lobbed fireworks at police and attempted to shut down a highway — authorities responded with tear gas and finally got the crowd under control. </li>
</ul>
California is still the epicenter of the unrest. Demonstrations continued Wednesday night, as rioters defied curfews and clashed with police. At least one rioter, Emiliano Galvez, has been charged with attempted murder. Galvez, a previously deported Mexican national, allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail at police in Los Angeles County. 
&#8220;Since June 6, there have been 330 illegal aliens that have been arrested as part of these riots in Los Angeles,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1932853233954836599">told</a> reporters. “113 of those illegal aliens had prior criminal convictions.&#8221;
Governor Newsom has<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n77NFjDlBI"> voiced his support</a> for the demonstrations, telling Americans that it was time to “stand up” to President Trump, whom he blamed for provoking the unrest: “Donald Trump without consulting California law enforcement leaders commandeered 2000 of our state’s National Guard members to deploy on our streets illegally and for no reason. This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation…The founding fathers didn’t live and die to see this moment. It’s time for all of us to stand up.”
These anti-ICE protests aren’t likely to die out anytime soon — organizers are planning “No Kings” demonstrations in cities across the country on Saturday, June 14. That event will coincide with President Trump’s 79th birthday, along with a massive parade in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the Army’s 250th birthday. 
&#8220;We&#8217;re going to be celebrating big on Saturday,” President Trump <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1932480100026511650">said</a>. “And if there&#8217;s any protester that wants to come out, they will be met with very big force… These are people that hate our country. They will be met with very heavy force.”
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<h2>Protests &amp; PR</h2>
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Topline: As Los Angeles and other cities contain the anti-ICE riots, Democrats, Republicans, and the media battle over shaping the narrative.
Democrats and Republicans on the national stage have made the ongoing unrest a central part of their messaging since ICE raids began in L.A. last week. Democrats have slammed Trump for deploying troops against American citizens and blame his actions for sparking the riots, arguing that the threat of a militarized response escalated tensions on the ground and tracks with a broader pattern of authoritarianism.
Republicans, especially the president, have taken the opposite tack – decrying Democrats for being complicit in the ongoing violence and lawlessness and insisting that Trump&#8217;s quick and decisive deployment of troops was necessary to prevent further destruction.
“What&#8217;s going on looks really bad to the average American,” Mark Hemingway, Senior Writer at RealClearInvestigations, told The Daily Wire. “This is a very different time than 2020. And we went through months of riots in 2020. And I think now Americans have a very good and clear sense that these are not organic riots necessarily, these are not spontaneous.”
Hemingway seemed skeptical of the proposition that a majority of Americans would view the deployment of troops as escalatory.
“I think the American people are broadly sympathetic to Trump,” Hemingway said. “Trump campaigned on mass deportations. His immigration policy is still <a href="https://www.realclearpolling.com/stories/analysis/trumps-immigration-policies-remain-popular-polls">broadly popular</a>. And the idea that Democrats are attaching support of violent riots to that, or trying to make Trump look like the extremist, it&#8217;s just, this is not five years ago…at this point in time, I think the average American would, you know, trust the first 700 Marines in the phone book at 29 Palms over the elected leadership of Los Angeles to do what&#8217;s right for the people of that city.”

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Morning Brief: A China Trade Deal And More Riots

China

Communist China

Howard Lutnick

Inflation

Tariffs

Trade War

The following article was adapted from a “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1arnooNZK8">Morning Wire</a>” interview with “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/crain-and-company">Crain &amp; Company</a>” host David Cone that was released on Wednesday, June 11. 
A new era has dawned in the world of college sports. Something that was illegal just a week ago – schools paying players – is now the law of the land. 
Last week, a settlement was <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/2025/06/07/ncaa-revenue-sharing-settlement-questions/83221673007/">approved</a> in the case, House vs. NCAA, a class-action lawsuit that claimed the NCAA was illegally limiting the earning potential of college athletes. This agreement ends three separate antitrust lawsuits, and it means schools can now begin paying their athletes directly. 
Outkick’s Trey Wallace joined us over at “Crain &amp; Company” earlier this week to lay out how he believes this decision will affect college athletics going forward. Wallace said the settlement will eventually lead to some schools cutting certain sports.
“I hate to say it,” Wallace told us. “But you’re gonna see cuts in track and field, rowing, volleyball, mid-major softball programs. You can’t afford them anymore. You&#8217;re relying on football to pay the bills.” 
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With this settlement comes an annual cap, much like a salary cap in professional sports, and it is expected to start at roughly $20.5 million per school in 2025-26. It will then increase every year during the decade-long deal. These new payments are in addition to scholarships and other benefits the athletes already receive.
The first checks will be cut on July 1, so schools and conferences need to act quickly and establish the necessary infrastructure to enforce their new rules. And this doesn’t just affect current and future athletes; the NCAA will also pay nearly $2.8 billion in back damages over the next 10 years to athletes who competed in college at any time from 2016 through the present day.
In short, this is a shift from name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals student athletes made with companies and collectives to direct pay from the schools. So the cases of O’Bannon vs. NCAA and Alston vs. NCAA paved the way for college athletes to receive NIL money, but those payments were coming from third parties rather than from the athletic programs themselves. This settlement allows schools to share their revenue directly with athletes for the first time, and it also enables programs to create new rules designed to limit the influence of boosters and collectives. Starting this summer, any endorsement deal between a booster and an athlete will be vetted to ensure it’s for a &#8220;valid business purpose&#8221; rather than a recruiting incentive.
Now, what will be interesting to monitor is how each athletic director allocates that $20.5 million between their various sports, as Wallace hinted at in his interview with us. Another thing to watch for is how each program will continue to incorporate NIL deals on top of the revenue-sharing payments.
This development still won’t end the debates regarding how long athletes can compete at the college level, and whether or not they should be considered employees who are represented by a union for the purposes of collective bargaining. 
However, NCAA president Charlie Baker does believe this will help regulate what has been a very volatile market in college sports. In an <a href="https://www.ncaa.org/news/2025/6/6/media-center-a-letter-from-ncaa-president-charlie-baker.aspx">open letter</a> posted last Friday, Baker stated, “This is new terrain for everyone. Given the defendant conferences&#8217; new ownership of complicated pieces of rulemaking and enforcement, there will be a transition period and certainly bumps in the road. Opportunities to drive transformative change don&#8217;t come often to organizations like ours. It&#8217;s important we make the most of this one. We have accomplished a lot over the last several months, from new health and wellness and academic requirements to a stronger financial footing. Together, we can use this new beginning to launch college sports into the future, too.”

NCAA

A Landmark Settlement Rings In A New Era Of College Sports. Will The Tradition We Love Survive?

College basketball

College Football

College sports

Crain and Company

California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom moves to block the Marines and National Guard as anti-ICE riots continue in Los Angeles. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ousts an entire vaccine advisory panel, saying they’ve lost the public’s trust. And college athletes will now get paid to play.
It’s Wednesday, June 11, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here: 
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And here&#8217;s a quick programming note: You asked for it, so we’ve brought it back. Morning Wire’s Afternoon Update show is back – with a few slight tweaks. Look for Evening Wire in your podcast feeds on weekdays at 5 p.m. Eastern Time!
<h2>Anti-ICE Riots Spread</h2>
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Topline: As anti-ICE riots continue in L.A., more violent demonstrations have broken out in cities nationwide.
In the last day, we’ve seen the demonstrations spread. In San Francisco, for example, more than 150 people were arrested after a riot began outside of an ICE office, where cars and city buses were destroyed, storefronts vandalized, and police assaulted. In New York City, at least a dozen protesters were arrested outside Trump Tower after resisting police while attempting to shut down traffic. Anti-ICE organizers say they are planning demonstrations in Chicago, Austin, Dallas, Atlanta, and elsewhere.
But Los Angeles is still the epicenter of the unrest. A section of downtown is cleaning up after stores were looted and the area was vandalized, with a large Apple Store robbed by hundreds of rioters — we also saw jewelry and shoe stores looted as well.
&#8220;This is ridiculous,” one local business owner told <a href="https://x.com/bennyjohnson/status/1932473175679373387">NewsNation</a>. “This doesn&#8217;t look like they&#8217;re protesting for ICE or anything. &#8230; Just looting the stores.&#8221;
L.A.’s Democratic Mayor Karen Bass continued to downplay the riots, saying on Tuesday that the violence is only taking place in “several isolated streets in downtown Los Angeles. It is not even all of downtown Los Angeles.&#8221; Bass has made clear from the start that she places the blame on the Trump administration, which she says “provoked” unrest with their raids and threat of bringing in the National Guard. Bass has also said that the media has blown the situation out of proportion and that the LAPD has the situation under control.
However, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell <a href="https://x.com/TheChiefNerd/status/1931919309229392192">said</a> earlier this week that his force had been overwhelmed. “Tonight, we had individuals shooting commercial-grade fireworks at our officers. That can kill you. … We are overwhelmed as far as the number of people out there engaged in this activity. … There is no limit to what they are doing to our officers.&#8221;
President Trump has deployed 700 U.S. Marines and 4,000 members of the California National Guard to the area since the unrest began. Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump had a clear message for folks in the rest of the country: the ICE raids will continue, and if you riot, we will respond with force.
Democrats nationwide have continued to push back on Trump’s mobilizing of the National Guard and Marines, saying it is unnecessary and even fascist. Governor Newsom is suing the Trump administration, calling the mobilization of troops an “unmistakable step toward authoritarianism.” On Tuesday, he also filed an <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/newsom-files-emergency-motion-to-block-military-deployment-in-la/">emergency motion</a> requesting a restraining order to block the deployment of Guardsmen and Marines.
<h2>Vaccine Panel Gutted</h2>
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Topline: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired all members of a key vaccine advisory panel.
The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, known as ACIP, meets a few times a year and makes recommendations to the CDC; it basically sets the childhood vaccine schedule and makes other vaccine-related recommendations, like flu shots and COVID vaccines. ACIP also heavily influences which vaccines are covered by both public and private insurance.
On Monday, Kennedy announced that he’s “retired” all 17 members. In an op-ed submitted to The Wall Street Journal, Kennedy argued that ACIP had become a rubber stamp for all vaccines, and they weren’t appropriately diving into potential safety risks. He wrote that ACIP has “never recommended against a vaccine—even those which were later withdrawn for safety reasons,” adding that the panel “failed to scrutinize vaccine products given to babies and pregnant women.” Kennedy also highlighted conflicts of interest from ACIP and cited past investigation findings that said ACIP’s enforcement of conflict of interest rules was “weak to nonexistent” and said the panel didn’t offer transparency with their decision-making.
Thirteen of the 17 ACIP panelists were appointed by the Biden administration in 2024. Kennedy said that if he waited for them to serve out what is typically four years on the job, he wouldn&#8217;t be able to get a new panel until 2028, which is part of the reasoning for this swift “clean sweep.”
<h2>College Athletes&#8217; Pay Day</h2>
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Topline: College athletes can now be paid directly by their schools after a huge lawsuit was settled this week.
A new era has dawned in the world of college sports. Something that was illegal just a week ago – schools paying players – is now the law of the land.
A settlement in the case of House vs. NCAA, a class-action lawsuit which claimed the NCAA was illegally limiting the earning potential of college athletes, has been approved by U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken. This agreement ends three separate antitrust lawsuits, and it means schools can now begin paying their athletes directly.
The first checks will be cut on July 1. The settlement doesn’t just affect current and future athletes. The NCAA will pay nearly $2.8 billion in back damages over the next 10 years to athletes who competed in college at any time from 2016 through the present day. The settlement comes with an annual cap, much like a salary cap in professional sports, that is expected to start at roughly $20.5 million per school in 2025-26. It will then increase every year during the decade-long deal. These new payments are in addition to scholarships and other benefits the athletes already receive.
It will be interesting to see how each athletic department allocates that $20.5 million between their various sports, and how each program will continue to incorporate NIL deals on top of the revenue-sharing payments.
“If you’re a fan of a group of 5 school, if you’re a fan of one of these middle schools, get ready for hard times,” sports commentator Paul Feinbaum said in response to the deal. &#8220;Women&#8217;s sports will be hurt, Olympic sports will be crushed, football wins, basketball — other than maybe the Big East — takes a slight back seat.”
NCAA President Charlie Baker was more optimistic and said he believes the settlement will help regulate what has been a very volatile market in college sports. “Opportunities to drive transformative change don&#8217;t come often to organizations like ours. It&#8217;s important we make the most of this one.”

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Morning Brief: Anti-ICE Riots Spread, Vaccine Panel Gutted, & College Athletes Get A Big Payday

Gavin Newsom

Karen Bass

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Vaccines

The destructive anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles continue – and the state&#8217;s Democratic leaders are doubling down on their support. Democrats accuse Trump of overstepping his authority by using the National Guard to protect California – but America has a long history of “sending in the troops.” And, California taxpayers might be unknowingly funding the L.A. protests. We speak to a woman who says she has the receipts.
It’s Tuesday, June 10, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>California Leaders Fiddle As L.A. Burns</h2>
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Topline: Pockets of Los Angeles are still under siege by anti-ICE rioters &#8212; and now the Marines are stepping in.
After a weekend of riots, on Monday afternoon, President Donald Trump deployed hundreds of Marines expected to protect federal personnel and property. They will join the 2,000 National Guardsmen who’ve already been activated. 
The move came as the unrest entered its fourth day. The chaos continued over the last 24 hours with rioters downtown shutting down a highway, setting self-driving autotaxis on fire, and lobbing bricks, Molotov cocktails, and fireworks at police. In one incident, rioters smashed out the windows at LAPD headquarters. In another, a number of businesses, including a Jordan sneaker store, were broken into and looted. Dozens of arrests have been made, but violent crowds continued to form overnight, vowing to riot until federal agents cease their deportation raids.
Trump has thus far refused to back down. The president said on Truth Social that he would “deal with the violent, instigated riots in California” and that without his deployment of the National Guard, “Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated.”
However, Republicans have accused many California Democrats of offering tacit support to the rioters while blaming President Trump for the violence:
Governor Gavin Newsom wrote on <a href="https://x.com/CAgovernor/status/1931916549490929862">X</a>, “Donald Trump is putting fuel on this fire. Commandeering a state&#8217;s National Guard without consulting the Governor of that state is illegal and immoral,” and the governor has announced plans to sue the administration for deploying California’s National Guard without permission. In an interview with <a href="https://x.com/DOGE__news/status/1931911364487876934">MSNBC</a>, Newsom challenged Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, to arrest him. “Come after me. Arrest me. Let’s just get it over with, tough guy. I don’t give a damn.”
(For his part, Trump responded Monday by saying, “I would [arrest him] if I were Tom. Gavin likes the publicity.”)
Senator Alex Padilla characterized the protests as <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1932081379082129886">“peaceful” and “passionate”</a>. “The vast majority of protesters and demonstrators are peaceful. … When you come into a community like Los Angeles, the way the Trump administration has, you need to expect to be countered with people who are passionate about defending fundamental rights.”
California Congresswoman Maxine Waters falsely claimed on CNN that there has been “no violence,” and later <a href="https://x.com/Mrgunsngear/status/1931839150145069529">taunted</a> members of the National Guard, saying, “What are you gonna do, shoot some kids? You gonna shoot an elected official? If you shoot me, you better shoot straight. I don’t know why you’re in my city … this is Trump.”
The White House has argued these riots are proving their point — that illegal aliens are wreaking havoc on American cities.
<h2>National Guard Legal Dispute</h2>
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Topline: President Trump dispatched National Guard troops to Los Angeles this weekend despite the protests of local Democrat leaders. While disputes over National Guard deployments are unusual, they aren’t entirely unprecedented.
The federal government is typically barred from deploying military resources for law enforcement purposes in the United States – with one exception, found in the Insurrection Act, which says that the military can be deployed to enforce the law or quell rebellion. Constitutionally, its use relies on Congress’s authority to “provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.”
The last time the National Guard was called on to quell riots was, coincidentally, also in Los Angeles, when President George H. W. Bush called them in to crack down on the Rodney King riots. One big difference between 1992 and today is that Bush had the backing of California’s governor and the mayor of L.A. Trump has neither, and that has been a focus of criticism.
California filed a lawsuit against the federal government on Monday, arguing that Trump&#8217;s mobilization of the National Guard violated constitutional procedure and the state’s sovereignty.
“[Trump’s order] abused the federal government&#8217;s authority and violated the 10th Amendment and federal law,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta <a href="https://x.com/cspan/status/1932142229793239207">said</a>. “As a result, I, in partnership with Governor Gavin Newsom, [am] suing President Trump and asking the court to set aside the president&#8217;s unlawful action federalizing the California National Guard.”
Republicans have largely supported the president’s actions and condemned the ongoing unrest.
“I spent 20 years in the military,” Congressman Tony Gonzales (R-TX) told <a href="https://x.com/RepTonyGonzales/status/1931746619201827272">CBS</a> on &#8220;Face The Nation.&#8221; “I fought in two wars. I fought to give people the freedom to protest whatever the hell they want to. But what we&#8217;re seeing in L.A. are not advocates. We&#8217;re seeing anarchists, and the President of the United States should absolutely put down the mob as soon as possible.”
<h2>Activists Create Anti-ICE Infrastructure</h2>
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Topline: The anti-ICE protests sweeping through the Los Angeles area are being promoted and organized by left-wing activist groups, including a prominent nonprofit that receives tens of millions of taxpayer dollars from California.
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, or CHIRLA, has been identified as one of the key financial backers of the ongoing anti-ICE protests. <a href="https://x.com/LauraPowellEsq">Laura Powell</a>, civil liberties attorney and founder of Californians for Good Governance, told The Daily Wire that CHIRLA received $34 million from the state government in 2023, primarily from the California Social Services Department.
“There&#8217;s a rapid response network that was set up that is a coalition of various nonprofits, but [CHIRLA] seem[s] to be the central one because it&#8217;s their phone number that&#8217;s used as this hotline,” Powell said. “People on the street can call in to report when ICE is in the area and then they can deploy people to go to that area …and in some cases interfere with the officer&#8217;s work.”
In addition to tens of millions of dollars from the state government, CHIRLA received $450,000 from the Department of Homeland Security with the assistance of L.A. Democratic Mayor Karen Bass.
An investigation by Californians for Good Governance has also uncovered deep ties between CHIRLA and California’s Democratic establishment.
“Mayor Bass of Los Angeles is very connected to them. They&#8217;ve supported her. She&#8217;s bragged about helping them get federal funding in the past,” Powell told The Daily Wire. “They endorsed Kamala Harris, of course, Gavin Newsom, Adam Schiff. … They can&#8217;t directly endorse candidates because they&#8217;re a 501(c)(3), but they have a 501(c)(4) that they use for those candidate endorsements. They also sponsor a lot of legislation at the state level.”

MRN 6.10.25 Thumbnail V1

Morning Brief: L.A. Riot Round-Up

Illegal Immigration

Marines

Maxine Waters

National Guard

President Donald Trump deploys the National Guard to quell chaos in Los Angeles, the Trump-Musk feud continues, and gymnast Simone Biles calls out Riley Gaines over her stance on men competing in women’s sports.
It’s Monday, June 9, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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&nbsp;
If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
&nbsp;
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<h2>National Guard Deployed To L.A. To Control Anti-ICE Riots</h2>
<div id="attachment_930951" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-930951" class="size-large wp-image-930951" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-864x576.jpg" alt="PARAMOUNT, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 7: A shopping cart is seen on fire as protesters shield themselves from flash bang grenades shot by the Sheriffs Department after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers made raids of illegal immigrants in Paramount, California, United States on June 7, 2025. (Photo by Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images</div>
Topline: President Trump sends the National Guard to Los Angeles amid violent anti-ICE riots.
Chaos erupted over the weekend in the Los Angeles area as some anti-ICE protesters turned violent after false claims that ICE had conducted a “raid” on a Home Depot in the city of Paramount had circulated after a Home Depot in L.A. had been raided on Friday. To quell the riots, President Trump mobilized and deployed some 2000 members of the National Guard.
By Sunday, things spiraled even further out of control, with hordes of protesters blocking interstates, burning cars, and injuring law enforcement officers. In response, Northern Command said it was ready to send in 500 Marines to help keep the peace. But LA’s Democratic Mayor Karen Bass said federal authorities are making things worse – and that Trump is responsible for the widespread unrest.
“What we&#8217;re seeing in Los Angeles is chaos that is provoked by the administration,” Bass said. “When you raid Home Depot and workplaces, when you tear parents and children apart, and when you run armored caravans through our streets, you cause fear and you cause panic. And deploying federalized troops is a dangerous escalation… I call on all Angelenos to continue expressing your right, your anger, your outrage. But to do it peacefully.”
Dozens of people have been detained throughout the protests, and at least two law enforcement officers have been injured, according to a report from <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/national-guard-troops-los-angeles-immigration-protests/">CBS</a>.
“There were times when things were out of control in this situation and the local law enforcement didn&#8217;t have a total handle on what was going on,” Elex Michaelson, an anchor at FOX News&#8217;s L.A. affiliate, told The Daily Wire on Sunday. “My own colleague on Fox 11, Matthew Seedorf and his photographer, Sam Dubin, were out reporting in Paramount and their vehicle, their news vehicle was destroyed with people punching out the windows – spray-painting “F*** ICE” on it, slashing the tires, stealing stuff from their vehicle – as they were out doing their job. So that&#8217;s an example of criminals taking advantage of a situation and creating chaos.”
&nbsp;
<h2>Trump Vs Musk Part 2: Midterm Boogaloo</h2>
<div id="attachment_931111" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-931111" class="size-large wp-image-931111" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: After their public falling out last week, Trump is warning Elon Musk to stay out of the midterm elections as the president pushes forward on the passage of his signature budget bill. 
Elon Musk, who once said he “loved Trump as much as a straight man can love another man,” continued to slam the president over the weekend. While he has deleted some of his most inflammatory remarks on X, including an allegation that Trump was covering up Jeffrey Epstein’s client list to protect himself, he has put out new statements that have drawn more attention to the rift. Musk tweeted Friday that he would “apologize profusely as soon as there is a full dump of the Epstein files.”
Trump responded by calling Musk “the man who has lost his mind” — according to a report from <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/06/politics/musk-alleged-drug-use-trump">CNN</a> the president asked his aides if the outburst could be related to alleged drug use on Musk’s part, although publicly he has said, “I don’t want to comment on his drug use. I don’t know.. [<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/us/elon-musk-drugs-children-trump.html">The New York Times report</a> on the subject] sounded very unfair.”
Apart from personal digs, Musk could pose a more substantial risk to Trump’s electoral prospects. Writing on X, the billionaire asked his followers if it was &#8220;time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80% in the middle.&#8221; After his audience responded favorably, Musk said it was “fate” and that he would name it the “America Party.” Musk spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars during the 2024 election cycle, and third-party candidates with his backing could potentially act as spoilers in key races, jeopardizing the Republicans&#8217; narrow majority.
That has gotten Trump’s attention. Speaking to ABC News, the president said Elon will “have to pay very serious consequences” if he funds challenges against Republicans in 2026. 
Allies of both men have publicly and privately called on them to reconcile, but as of now, they remain at odds. President Trump said there was “no reason to” repair the relationship, which he “assumed” was over. However, stranger things have happened – Trump’s current vice president, JD Vance, was <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/jd-vance-once-compared-trump-hitler-now-they-are-running-mates-2024-07-15/">once</a> a “never Trumper” who compared the president to Adolf Hitler years before he became one of his supporters.
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<h2>Women&#8217;s Sports Spat Gets Personal</h2>
<div id="attachment_931109" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-931109" class="size-large wp-image-931109" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: An online debate has erupted between Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines over the question of transgender-identifying athletes competing in women’s sports.
The controversy began when Gaines, a vocal critic of transgender-identifying male athletes competing against women and girls, commented on a social media post from the Minnesota State High School League. The post celebrated Champlin Park High School’s girls’ softball state championship win. However, the team’s star pitcher is a boy who identifies as a girl – and he pitched a shutout in the 6-0 victory. Gaines noted that the team turned its comments off, posting on social media: “To be expected when your star player is a boy.”
Biles weighed in by calling Gaines “truly sick” and a “sore loser,” and she accused Gaines of bullying. But then, despite being known for supporting the “body positivity” movement, she mocked Gaines’ physique, telling Gaines to “bully someone your own size, which would ironically be a male.” Gaines is 5’5&#8243;, around average height for a woman.
Interestingly, though, some X users dug up an old<a href="https://x.com/Simone_Biles/status/918328165478666240"> post</a> from Biles in which she acknowledged men’s innate physical advantages over women. In 2017, she wrote, “Good thing guys don&#8217;t compete against girls or he&#8217;d take all the gold medals!!” Gaines also noted Biles and other gymnasts suffered under Larry Nassar, suggesting that the same system that failed them then is now negatively impacting female athletes by putting them in vulnerable positions, like allowing men in their locker rooms.
Both women have received their fair share of support online. With the support for Gaines, there’s a building outcry now for brands like Athleta to drop Biles as an ambassador for female athletes. On the flip side, legacy media and many left-wing pundits voice their support for Biles. There were a number of op-eds, including one from USA Today, cheering her as a hero.
Politically, however, this issue puts Democrats between a rock and a hard place. Many of those fervent and vocal supporters, including celebrities like Biles, are deeply committed to gender ideology and allowing trans-identifying men into women’s sports and women’s spaces. The overwhelming majority disagree – a February 2025 New York Times/Ipsos poll, for example, found that about 80% of respondents believe biological males should not be allowed to compete in women’s sports, including 67% of Democrats and 64% of independents.

Morning Brief: Trump Sends National Guard To L.A. & Trump-Musk Feud Continues

Elon Musk

Home Depot

Riley Gaines

Simone Biles

Transgender Athletes

Women's sports

President Donald Trump trades barbs with Elon Musk over the &#8220;Big, Beautiful Bill,&#8221; Trump implements a sweeping travel ban, and the president calls for an investigation into the Biden autopen controversy.
It’s Friday, June 6, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2>MAGA Civil War</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-930171" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_20_20.Still001.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_20_20.Still001.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_20_20.Still001-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: The relationship between President Trump and Elon Musk implodes on the public stage.
The once cozy relationship between President Trump and Elon Musk is quickly deteriorating – on Thursday, the two men traded barbs on their respective social media platforms. In a series of Truth Social posts, the president said Elon was “wearing thin” and claimed he asked him to leave the White House. Trump implied that Elon was not actually mad about spending increases in the &#8220;Big, Beautiful Bill&#8221; and is instead lashing out at the Trump administration for revoking the Biden administration’s electric vehicle mandate. Trump says the Tesla CEO “just went crazy” after he lifted the mandate, which “forced everyone to buy electric cars that no one else wanted.”
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Meanwhile, over on <a href="https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1930698237650026675">X</a>, Musk denied Trump’s claims, floated the idea of starting a new political party, and accused Trump of being in the Epstein files. He’s also pulling up past statements from Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) warning about the dangers of the national debt, essentially accusing both men of flip-flopping on what he’s now calling the “Big Ugly Spending Bill.”
The bill at the heart of the dispute narrowly passed through the House last month and is currently making its way through the Senate.
“I think the bill&#8217;s 90-95% there,” Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) told The Daily Wire. “The House has done a wonderful job trying to balance ultra-conservatives like me who want to work towards a balanced budget, as well as those people that are from blue or purple districts as well. I would like to see us cut a little bit more spending.”
The Congressional Budget Office says the bill will raise the deficit by $2.4 trillion over ten years – the White House disputes that figure, and argues that the CBO is under-predicting future economic growth and the additional revenue brought in by the president’s tariffs.
<h2>Travel Ban 2: Visas On ICE</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-930169" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_21_11.Still002.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_21_11.Still002.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_21_11.Still002-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: President Trump takes another swing at a sweeping travel ban. Will it survive legal challenges?
The president signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning nationals from 12 countries, including Afghanistan, the Congo, Haiti, Iran, Somalia, and Yemen, from entering the United States. That includes temporary visitors or those seeking permanent immigrant status. Seven more countries, including Venezuela and Cuba, will face a partial ban. While the order includes exemptions for existing visa holders and individuals whose entry “serves U.S. national interests” — presumably heads of state and other diplomats — just about everyone else looking to come from those countries will be kept out. The policy is reminiscent of a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/trump-signs-proclamation-banning-travel-12-countries-cbs-news-reports-2025-06-04/">previous travel ban</a> Trump implemented during his first term.
In a <a href="https://x.com/WhiteHouse/status/1930412786271547485">video</a> announcing the order, the president cited the terror threat posed by individuals from those countries, pointing to past attacks in Europe and the United States and arguing that the travel ban was a matter of national security. “Among the national security threats [the U.S. State Department] analysis considered are the large-scale presence of terrorists, failure to cooperate on visa security, inability to verify travelers&#8217; identities, inadequate record keeping of criminal histories and persistently high rates of illegal visa overstays,” Trump said.
The White House offered <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2024-10/24_1011_CBP-Entry-Exit-Overstay-Report-FY23-Data.pdf">specific numbers</a> on countries with particularly egregious rates of visa violations. For example, 29% of Afghans here on student or worker visas have overstayed those visas and now live here illegally. Likewise, 49% of B-1/B-2 visas issued to visitors from Chad resulted in similar overstays. Trump says those overstay rates are indicative of a “blatant disregard for United States immigration laws.”
“The list is subject to revision based on whether material improvements are made,” the president continued. “Likewise new countries can be added as threats emerge around the world, but we will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm and nothing will stop us from keeping America safe.”
The ban is part of a broader crackdown on immigration enforcement. President Trump has reportedly been dissatisfied with the number of criminal illegals being arrested — it’s been widely reported that top White House adviser Stephen Miller met with ICE officials and threatened to fire top brass if they did not begin detaining at least 3,000 illegals a day. In response, ICE appears to be ramping up its efforts. On Tuesday, the agency made <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/06/04/us-news/ice-arrests-surge-to-2200-in-one-day-after-trump-adviser-stephen-miller-pushed-to-dramatically-ramp-up-busts/">2,200 arrests</a> — their highest single-day total in history.
<h2>On Executives &amp; Autopens</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-930167" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_23.Still003.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_23.Still003.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_23.Still003-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: President Trump and Congress demand a probe into the Biden autopen controversy. Who signed off on major policies, and was Biden aware?
Trump has ordered an investigation into the Biden administration&#8217;s use of the autopen, following new revelations about the apparent cover-up of Biden’s mental and physical decline during his tenure. The president signed a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/06/reviewing-certain-presidential-actions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">memo</a> calling on Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead an investigation into the Biden administration&#8217;s use of this autopen, which mechanically signed Biden’s signature on official documents.
The investigation will look at whether staffers, who are not named, &#8220;unconstitutionally&#8221; exercised the president’s authority while deceiving the public about Biden’s mental and physical state. It will look at which policy documents were signed by the autopen, and who directed the autopen to be used.
“The autopen, I think, is the big scandal outside of the rigged election of 2020,” Trump said on Thursday.
The <a href="https://x.com/GOPoversight/status/1930351332856345072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">House Oversight Committee</a> also heard testimony this week on the validity of Biden&#8217;s executive orders and the possible abuse of the president&#8217;s autopen.
During Biden’s tenure, the White House issued more than 1,200 <a href="https://foxnews.com/category/politics/biden-executive-orders">presidential documents</a>, he appointed hundreds of judges to the federal bench, and issued more pardons and commutations than any administration in U.S. history. Trump’s memo also singles out Biden’s controversial decision to commute the sentences of dozens of dangerous criminals on federal death row, including mass murderers and child killers. Trump has previously highlighted Biden-era pardons, including that of Dr. Anthony Fauci, which he suggested was invalid because an autopen signed it.
In response, former President Joe Biden released a statement on Thursday that claimed he was the one who made the decisions about “pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations,” adding that “any suggestion that I didn’t is ridiculous and false.”

MorningWire-0428-3

Morning Brief: Trump And Elon Go To War, Travel Ban 2.0, & Biden’s Autopen Scandal

Afghanistan

Pardon

Travel Ban

Elon Musk and fiscal conservatives are pushing back on President Donald Trump’s new budget bill, warning it could add trillions to the national debt. The White House has officially replaced Pride Month with “Title IX Month,” focusing on protecting women’s sports and spaces. And, two Chinese nationals were arrested for attempting to smuggle a dangerous agricultural pathogen into the United States.
It’s Thursday, June 5, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Trump Cancels &#039;Pride Month&#039; &amp; Elon Musk Smears Trump&#039;s Bill" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s6KkecuSyyQ?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>
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>Budget Battles &amp; The &#8216;Big Beautiful Bill&#8217;</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-929519" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: The Senate takes up debate of Trump’s budget bill – while Musk raises concern over the massive debt.
 Elon Musk made waves this week with his criticism of President Trump’s big, beautiful bill, and budget hawks couldn’t be happier. 
On Wednesday, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the big beautiful bill would add $2.4 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. The Trump administration says this estimate is wrong — Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought says the CBO is “not using a realistic current policy baseline” and that the bill would actually reduce the debt by $1.4 trillion over 10 years.
Musk, who just stepped back from his government post last week, said Tuesday that the bill was a “disgusting abomination.” Republicans who opposed the bill, like Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), quickly joined Musk in slamming the bill. Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee took a different tack, saying that the bill that passed the House was flawed and that the Senate can improve it.
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Democrats joined the fight, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) <a href="https://grabien.com/story?id=530108">highlighting</a> that even “Trump’s buddy” doesn’t like his spending bill. “If even Elon Musk, who’s been part of the whole process and who’s Trump’s buddy, says the bill is bad, you can imagine how bad this bill is.”
Trump defended the bill but stopped short of slamming Elon, instead turning his ire on Senator Paul, saying: “Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas. His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can’t stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!”
Meanwhile, the White House sent Congress a $9.4 billion rescission package. This bill codifies a number of DOGE cuts, including federal funding for PBS and NPR. Members of the House Freedom Caucus are demanding a vote on this package immediately, and both House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) say they’re eager to call a vote on the bill as quickly as possible.
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<h2>Trump Administration Rebrands June</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-929517" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_17.Still002-2.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_17.Still002-2.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_17.Still002-2-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: Instead of Pride Month, the Trump White House announced that June will be dedicated to highlighting the protection of women’s spaces.
It’s June in Washington, D.C., but the Pride flags that have become ubiquitous in many of the city’s public spaces are notably absent. Under President Joe Biden’s administration, the White House issued an annual Pride proclamation celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex Pride Month. It hosted a now-infamous Pride celebration on the White House lawn, where a trans-identifying activist drew some serious backlash for posing for topless photos and videos. The White House was heavily decorated with rainbow-colored decor, and Biden and his wife, Jill, mingled with pro-trans activists. 
This year, however, things are looking different. The Daily Wire broke the news that the Department of Education would declare June “Title IX Month” rather than Pride Month. That move is intended to celebrate the 53rd anniversary of Title IX’s passage, and the Education Department plans to spend June highlighting what the Trump administration has done so far to reverse the Biden administration’s weaponization of Title IX. 
And the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights is investigating two significant cases that developed under Biden. One of those deals with a little girl who was allegedly forced to share a bed with a boy who identifies as a girl on an overnight trip. The other deals with a boy joining a sorority at the University of Wyoming, living in the sorority house, and ogling girls in their towels.
“The Biden administration just really muddied the waters on Title IX, tried to get all kinds of different things passed through relative to gender identification,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told The Daily Wire. “That has now been rolled back.&#8221;
The Pentagon announced in January that “identity months” are dead at the Defense Department, and it specifically said Pride Month would not be celebrated anymore. This week, sources tell The Daily Wire that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would order the renaming of a U.S. Navy ship named after gay rights activist Harvey Milk, a Navy veteran who was assassinated in 1978 after being elected to San Francisco&#8217;s Board of Supervisors. He has been repeatedly accused of grooming young boys.
The FBI also startled the world on Monday when it announced that it’s looking for tips on any hospitals, clinics, or practitioners performing transgender surgeries on minors. The bureau promised in a tweet: “We will protect our children and hold accountable those who mutilate them under the guise of gender-affirming care.”
Meanwhile, other Republicans are aggressively messaging against Pride Month and for celebrating traditional values. On Tuesday, Republican Congresswoman Mary Miller (R-IL) <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-gop-resolution-declares-june-family-month-instead-of-pride-month">introduced a resolution</a> declaring June “Family Month.&#8221; 
<h2></h2>
<h2>Chinese Nationals Arrested For Smuggling Pathogen</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-929515" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_16.Still003-2.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_16.Still003-2.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_16.Still003-2-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: Two Chinese nationals have been arrested for allegedly smuggling a dangerous pathogen into the United States.
This week, we learned that the FBI has arrested two Chinese nationals accused of attempting to smuggle Fusarium graminearum, a dangerous biological pathogen, into the United States. 
One of those individuals, Yunqing Jian, worked as a researcher at the University of Michigan. The FBI says she has expressed loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and has received funding from Beijing in the past to study similar pathogens in China. The other individual, her boyfriend Zunyong Liu, works at a Chinese university where he conducted similar research. 
According to the DOJ, Liu “made false statements&#8221; to federal authorities &#8220;about the purpose of his visit to the United States, and his knowledge of the existence of the biological pathogen in his possession.” But he later admitted that he planned on using his girlfriend’s access at the University of Michigan to conduct research. 
The two have now been charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements, and visa fraud. 
Fusarium graminearum is a noxious fungus that scientists consider a potential agroterrorism weapon. It causes head blight, a fungal disease that spreads among wheat, barley, maize, and rice crops, causing plants to shrivel and die, leaving behind infected kernels that can blow away and spread to the next field. The fungus is responsible for billions of dollars in ruined crops each year. Also, it poses a significant risk to humans and animals, causing vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects if accidentally ingested. 
FBI Director Kash Patel called the incident a “sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences… putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.”
While it’s not yet clear if this was part of a broader effort to unleash a bioweapon on American crops, it is clear that China is using students and researchers to steal American research from universities. In 2019, a Chinese professor at UCLA was convicted of trying to illegally obtain semiconductors with military applications so he could smuggle them back to China. Then, a year later, a Chinese national at <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/harvard-university-professor-and-two-chinese-nationals-charged-three-separate-china-related">Harvard</a> was caught attempting to smuggle 21 vials of cancer research from a medical lab back to China. Similar arrests have been made at the University of Kansas, Arkansas, and Texas A&amp;M.

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