President Donald Trump declares a blockade on Venezuelan oil tankers, then addresses the nation in a rare primetime Oval Office speech, and Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest Conference kicks off under a new kind of spotlight.
It’s Thursday, December 18, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251218-member-exclusive">video version can be seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Begins ‘Blockade’ Of Venezuela</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1016735" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Oil-Tanker-Blockade.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
President Trump has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-orders-complete-blockade-of-sanctioned-oil-tankers-moving-in-and-out-of-venezuela">announced</a> a “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers coming in and out of Venezuela. It comes as the United States escalates a pressure campaign against the Maduro regime. The president is now putting pressure on the state-run oil industry of Venezuela and declared that Maduro’s government is a foreign terrorist organization. Trump warned that this “will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before.” The U.S. Navy in the region is expected to receive orders in the coming days to escalate operations. The president said the blockade of Venezuela will continue until Maduro returns “all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us.”
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Addresses The Nation</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1016733" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Touts-Wins.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
President Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/live-updates-president-trump-addresses-nation-from-white-house">gave</a> a much-anticipated address to the nation late Wednesday night. The address was short on new announcements and read more like an attempt to set the tone for the midterms as the end of the year approaches. The most notable portion of the night came when the president announced the “Warrior Dividend,” a $1,776 payout for American service members, and said it would be paid to more than 1.4 million people before Christmas. This comes weeks after the possibility of a dividend payout to Americans from tariffs was floated, but this is the first time an element of that policy has materialized. The president also primarily focused his remarks on the economy, including the concept of affordability. Affordability has become a key topic and nearly a buzzword touted by Democrats and slammed as hypocritical by Republicans, including the president, in recent months as Biden-era inflation has cooled.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">AmFest Kicks Off</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1016737" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/AmFest-Carries-On.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
TurningPoint USA’s annual AmericaFest conference <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/daily-wire-to-stream-tpusas-america-fest">kicks</a> off Thursday, marking the first major TurningPoint event since the assassination of its founder, Charlie Kirk. Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, and members of the TurningPoint team have made it clear that they want Kirk’s mission to advance conservatism and his legacy to continue. Leaders have described this year’s AmFest as a “powerful celebration of faith, freedom, and the legacy of … Charlie Kirk.” Erika, who’s stepped in as TurningPoint’s CEO, is expected to speak, as are prominent conservatives including Vice President JD Vance, Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, and The Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, and Michael Knowles. TurningPoint leadership seems to be stressing unity and free speech, despite the background noise over the past few months.

MRN_251218_V1

Morning Brief: Venezuelan Oil Blockade, Trump’s Address To America, & TPUSA’s AmFest Kicks Off

Morning Brief: Venezuela Blockade, Trump’s White House Address, & AmFest Kicks Off

AMFEST

Donald Trump

Morning Wire

Nicolas Maduro

Turning Point USA

Venezuela

White House

The White House unveiled new plaques beneath the portraits of American presidents on its Presidential Walk of Fame on Wednesday, with some of the plaques including President Donald Trump&#8217;s jabs at former Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama.
The Presidential Walk of Fame, which is located along the outside wall of West Wing, includes biographies for every U.S. president. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump, &#8220;as a student of history,&#8221; wrote some of the descriptions himself, which is evident, as much of the sentence structure and grammar is reflective of the president&#8217;s unique style usually seen in his social media posts.
Instead of a photo of Biden for the former president&#8217;s portrait, the White House displays an image of an autopen. The text beneath the image reads, &#8220;Sleepy Joe Biden was, by far, the worst President in American History. Taking office as a result of the most corrupt Election ever seen in the United States, Biden oversaw a series of unprecedented disasters that brought our Nation to the brink of destruction. His policies caused the highest Inflation ever recorded, leading the U.S. Dollar to lose more than 20% of its value in 4 years. His Green New Scam surrendered American Energy Dominance and, by abolishing the Southern Border, Biden let 21 million people from all over the World pour into the United States, including from prisons, jails, mental institutions, and insane asylums. His Afghanistan Disaster was among the most humiliating events in American History, and resulted in the murder of 13 brave American Servicemembers, with many others gravely wounded. Seeing Biden’s devastating weakness, Russia invaded Ukraine, and Hamas terrorists launched the heinous October 7th attack on Israel.&#8221;
“Nicknamed both ‘Sleepy’ and ‘Crooked,’ Joe Biden was dominated by his Radical Left handlers,&#8221; the biography continues. &#8220;They and their allies in the Fake News Media attempted to cover up his severe mental decline, and his unprecedented use of the Autopen. Following his humiliating debate loss to President Trump in the big June 2024 debate, he was forced to withdraw from his campaign for re-election in disgrace. Biden weaponized Law Enforcement against his political opponent, while also prosecuting many other innocent people. He left office issuing blanket pardons to Radical Democrat criminals and thugs, as well as members of the Biden Crime Family — But despite it all, President Trump would get Re-Elected in a Landslide, and SAVE AMERICA!”
The plaques for President Obama refer to him as &#8220;one of the most divisive political figures in American history&#8221; and blast his handling of foreign policy and Obamacare.
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Obama&#8217;s plaques reads, “Barack Hussein Obama was the first Black President, a community organizer, one term Senator from Illinois, and one of the most divisive political figures in American History. As President, he passed the highly ineffective ‘Unaffordable’ Care Act, resulting in his party losing control of both Houses of Congress, and the Election of the largest House Republican majority since 1946. He presided over a stagnant Economy, approved the terrible Iran Nuclear Deal, and signed the one-sided Paris Climate Accords, both of which were later terminated by President Donald J. Trump.”
“Under Obama, the ISIS Caliphate spread across the Middle East, Libya collapsed into chaos, and Russia invaded and took Crimea, in Ukraine. He crippled small businesses with crushing regulation and environmental red tape, devastated American coal miners, and weaponized the IRS and Federal bureaucracies against his political opponents. Obama also spied on the 2016 Presidential Campaign of Donald J. Trump and presided over the creation of the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, the worst political scandal in American History. His handpicked successor, Hillary Rodham Clinton, would then lose the Presidency to Donald J. Trump.”
Trump&#8217;s plaque for President George W. Bush was far more friendly, but it still took a shot at Bush over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
&#8220;The son of former President George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush was the Governor of Texas when he won the hotly contested 2000 Election for President. His Administration was largely defined by the events of September 11, 2001 — The destruction of the World Trade Center, after which he led the war on terror. President Bush created the Department of Homeland Security, but started wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, both of which should not have happened. He also enacted Tax Cuts, expanded Medicare, signed the No Child Left Behind education bill, and launched the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Shortly before the end of his Administration, a Global Financial Crisis and major Recession took place.”
For President Bill Clinton, Trump&#8217;s plaque highlights the economic boom in the 1990s, but it also mentions the &#8220;scandals that plagued his presidency.&#8221; The end of Clinton&#8217;s biography states, &#8220;In 2016, President Clinton’s wife, Hillary Clinton, lost the Presidency to President Donald J. Trump!&#8221;
President Ronald Reagan&#8217;s plaque reads, &#8220;Ronald Reagan won the Cold War, and transformed American politics and the Conservative Movement. Before entering the White House, Reagan was a Hollywood actor, President of the Screen Actors Guild, Governor of California and, for decades, a leading voice in American Conservatism. As President, he enacted Tax Cuts, presided over a thriving Economy, and rebuilt the American Military. He survived being shot by an assassin, and confronted the Soviet Union with striking moral clarity, labeling it an &#8216;evil empire,&#8217; and putting unprecedented pressure on the Communist menace. Known as &#8216;The Great Communicator,&#8217; he was re-elected in a landslide in 1984, and left office with high approval, having restored National Confidence, Spirit, and Will. He was a fan of President Donald J. Trump long before President Trump’s Historic run for the White House. Likewise, President Trump was a fan of his!&#8221;
Of course, the most admiring biography was for Trump, with the president&#8217;s plaques reading, &#8220;On January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump became the first President in 132 years to be sworn into office for a second non-consecutive term, following his Historic Victory in an Electoral College landslide, 312 to 226. Overcoming unprecedented Weaponization of Law Enforcement against him, as well as two assassination attempts, he won all battleground States by millions of votes, was the first Republican in decades to win the Popular Vote, BIG, and won 86% of Counties in America, 2,700 to 525. All 50 States shifted toward the Republican Party for the first time ever. At his Inauguration, President Trump announced the beginning of the &#8216;Golden Age of America,&#8217; and he delivered, ending eight wars in his first eight months, securing the Border, deporting gang members and migrant criminals, making our Cities safe, helping our Farmers, defeating Inflation, reducing Energy costs, and drawing Trillions of Dollars of new Investment, a RECORD, into the United States.&#8221;
&#8220;President Trump signed the Largest Tax Cuts in American History, the Largest Spending Cuts in American History, and implemented the Largest Ever Regulation Cuts,&#8221; a second plaque adds. &#8220;He obliterated Iran&#8217;s nuclear enrichment capacity with Operation Midnight Hammer, convinced NATO Countries to agree to increase contributions from 2% to 5% of GDP, reformed the Global Trading System, and made America Rich with Historic Tariffs, removed Critical Race Theory and transgender insanity from public schools, and banned men from women&#8217;s sports. He began the construction of the Golden Dome missile defense shield, renamed the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, and has built, right here at the White House, the magnificent Trump Presidential Ballroom after a 225 year wait—but THE BEST IS YET TO COME!&#8221;

US-POLITICS-TRUMP

Trump Adds Descriptions For Every President On Presidential Walk Of Fame. You Need To Read Them.

Barack Obama

Bill Clinton

Executive

Joe Biden

Politics

Ronald Reagan

President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he will address the nation from the White House at 9:00 p.m. ET Wednesday.
The address will focus on highlighting some of the Trump administration&#8217;s biggest accomplishments in 2025, while also &#8220;teasing some policy that will be coming in the new year,&#8221; according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. The president is closing in on the end of the first year of his second term, which has been marked by an aggressive agenda on immigration and foreign policy and unprecedented actions on trade.
&#8220;My Fellow Americans: I will be giving an ADDRESS TO THE NATION tomorrow night, LIVE FROM THE WHITE HOUSE, at 9 P.M. EST. I look forward to &#8216;seeing&#8217; you then. It has been a great year for our Country, and THE BEST IS YET TO COME!&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115730644486071082">wrote</a>.
Leavitt <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/live-blog/trump-congress-hegseth-rubio-venezuela-jobs-health-bill-live-updates-rcna249037/rcrd94626?canonicalCard=true">added</a>, &#8220;The best is truly yet to come, as he often says, and so he’ll be addressing the country about all of his historic accomplishments over the past year and maybe teasing some policy that will be coming in the new year, as well as we head into this Christmas season,&#8221; Leavitt said.
The White House has aggressively touted Trump&#8217;s economic policies in recent weeks as Democrats latch onto economic issues to energize their base and reach disaffected voters ahead of the vital 2026 midterm elections. Last week, Trump traveled to Pennsylvania for his first stop on a speaking tour to address the economy.
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During the event in Pennsylvania, Trump ripped Democrats for pushing the &#8220;affordability crisis&#8221; narrative, which he has called a &#8220;hoax.&#8221;
“They say, ‘Affordability,’ and everyone says, ‘Oh, that must mean Trump has high prices.’ No, our prices are coming down tremendously,” Trump said last Tuesday. “They have a new word. They always have a hoax. The new word is ‘affordability,’ so they look at the camera and they say this election is all about affordability.”
The economy will likely remain a major topic for the administration in the months to come as Trump awaits a major ruling from the Supreme Court that will decide whether he has the authority to impose hefty tariffs on countries around the world.
Trump&#8217;s first year back in office has also been defined by his attempt to crack down on crime in U.S. cities and his deportation operation. The address comes as the administration faces multiple issues on the foreign policy front, including the ongoing peace negotiations with Russia and Ukraine and the U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean as Trump pressures Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Trump&#8217;s remarks on Wednesday night will be his first address to the nation from the White House since September, when he addressed the nation following the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. Trump released a taped address from his Mar-a-Lago estate on November 26 after two National Guard troops were shot in Washington, D.C.

Trump To Address The Nation Wednesday Night, Tease Policies Coming In 2026

2026 Midterms

Trump Administration

WASHINGTON—White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles issued a scathing statement Tuesday in response to a forthcoming Vanity Fair profile of President Donald Trump&#8217;s cabinet, a story replete with unflatteringly close-up photos of top Trump officials and surprisingly candid statements from Wiles herself.
&#8220;The article published early this morning is a disingenuously framed hit piece on me and the finest President, White House staff, and Cabinet in history,&#8221; Wiles wrote Tuesday in response to an excerpt of the piece published in the New York Times. &#8220;Significant context was disregarded and much of what I, and others, said about the team and the President was left out of the story.&#8221;
&#8220;I assume, after reading it, that this was done to paint an overwhelmingly chaotic and negative narrative about the President and our team,&#8221; Wiles added. &#8220;The truth is the Trump White House has already accomplished more in eleven months than any other President has accomplished in eight years and that is due to the unmatched leadership and vision of President Trump, for whom I have been honored to work for the better part of a decade. None of this will stop our relentless pursuit of Making America Great Again!&#8221;
Vanity Fair&#8217;s story is written by Chris Whipple, who claims to have interviewed Wiles &#8220;amid each moment of crisis&#8221; throughout Trump&#8217;s second administration. The publication describes the story as &#8220;an unflinching, up-close look at power — and peril.&#8221; Of all the insights that Whipple gained from his interviews with Wiles, the Vanity Fair writer focuses on the most sensational pieces of their conversations.
<blockquote>&#8220;Trump, she told me, &#8216;has an alcoholic’s personality.&#8217; Vance’s conversion from Never Trumper to MAGA acolyte, she said, has been &#8216;sort of political.&#8217; The vice president, she added, has been &#8216;a conspiracy theorist for a decade.&#8217; Russell Vought, architect of the notorious Project 2025 and head of the Office of Management and Budget, is &#8216;a right-wing absolute zealot.&#8217; When I asked her what she thought of Musk reposting a tweet about public sector workers killing millions under Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, she replied: &#8216;I think that’s when he’s microdosing.&#8217; (She says she doesn&#8217;t have first-hand knowledge.)&#8221;</blockquote>
Whipple later elaborates that Wiles is comparing Trump&#8217;s aggression and strong personality to that of an alcoholic whose personality is &#8220;exaggerated when they drink,&#8221; explaining that Trump, who is sober, &#8220;operates [with] a view that there’s nothing he can’t do. Nothing, zero, nothing.”
<div id="attachment_1015597" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/susie-wiles-slams-vanity-fair-over-disingenuously-framed-hit-piece/president-trump-meets-with-visiting-israeli-pm-netanyahu-at-the-white-house-16" rel="attachment wp-att-1015597"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1015597" class="wp-image-1015597 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2197662238-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2197662238-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2197662238-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2197662238-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2197662238.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)</div>
The piece includes a number of other candid comments from Wiles that are making headlines.
“There is no client list, and it sure as hell wasn’t on her desk,&#8221; Wiles is quoted saying of Pam Bondi&#8217;s handling of the Epstein files, and regarding Ghislaine Maxwell&#8217;s transfer to a minimum-security prison: “The president was ticked. The president was mighty unhappy. I don’t know why they moved her. Neither does the president.”
She also reportedly said of the president&#8217;s attitude towards Venezuela: “He wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle. And people way smarter than me on that say that he will.” Vanity Fair suggests that the quote indicates that the Trump administration is lying about their reasoning for blowing up the narco-terrorist boats, as Whipple writes: &#8220;Wiles’s statement appears to contradict the administration’s official stance that blowing up boats is about drug interdiction, not regime change.&#8221;
On Elon Musk&#8217;s dismantling of USAID, Wiles reportedly told Whipple: &#8220;No rational person could think the USAID process was a good one. Nobody.&#8221; And as for Musk himself, Whipple writes that when he asked Wiles about one of Musk&#8217;s more controversial social media posts, she responded: “I think that’s when he’s microdosing,&#8221; allegedly saying “he’s an avowed ketamine” user.
When the New York Times asked her about this statement, she reportedly responded: “That’s ridiculous. I wouldn’t have said it and I wouldn’t know.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was quick to defend her colleague on Tuesday, tweeting in support of Wiles and the work she has done.
&#8220;Chief of Staff Susie Wiles has helped President Trump achieve the most successful first 11 months in office of any President in American history,&#8221; Leavitt wrote. &#8220;President Trump has no greater or more loyal advisor than Susie. The entire Administration is grateful for her steady leadership and united fully behind her.&#8221;
Her show of support was echoed by other current and former Trump administration officials, including Harrison Fields, who formerly served as a White House spokesman.
&#8220;I have worked under three chiefs across two Trump administrations, and without a doubt, Susie Wiles has led the most effective, efficient, and unified White House and administration — second to none,&#8221; he said in an &#8220;X&#8221; post. &#8220;Her service to the President is selfless, and her mandate to serve is rooted in allegiance to God, the President, and the millions of Americans who elected him. Any attempt to selectively or maliciously attack her leadership is shameful and entirely without merit.&#8221;
Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, whom Wiles mentioned in her interviews as &#8220;a right-wing absolute zealot,&#8221; similarly praised Wiles, saying that she is an &#8220;exceptional chief of staff.&#8221;
&#8220;I have had the privilege of working in President Trump&#8217;s White House for every single minute of his two terms,&#8221; he said in a Tuesday morning post. &#8220;Let me be very clear: It has never worked this well or been more oriented towards accomplishing what he wants to accomplish. In my portfolio, she is always an ally in helping me deliver for the president. And this hit piece will not slow us down.&#8221;

President Trump Meets With Visiting Argentine President Milei At The White House

Susie Wiles Unloads On Trump Team, White House On Defense

Susie Wiles

President Donald Trump on Friday honored members of the U.S. men&#8217;s ice hockey team who beat their Soviet rivals in what was called the &#8220;Miracle on Ice&#8221; during the 1980 Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid.
Trump hosted the players in the Oval Office and signed a bill to award congressional medals in the team&#8217;s honor. All were wearing white cowboy hats, and Trump briefly donned one, too. The team wore the hats during the opening ceremony of the 1980 Winter Olympics.
&#8220;This was one of the biggest moments that I&#8217;ve ever seen in sports &#8230; These are the men that gave us one of the most storied athletic wins of all time,&#8221; Trump said.
The event, with 13 members of the gold medal-winning team, included captain Mike Eruzione, goaltender Jim Craig and forward Buzz Schneider. The son of deceased coach Herb Brooks was also in attendance.
One of the team&#8217;s members, Ken Morrow, told Trump that the &#8220;USA! USA!&#8221; chant, now common at Trump rallies, originated in Lake Placid. &#8220;That&#8217;s right! I tried to take credit for that,&#8221; Trump responded.
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Captain Eruzione praised his team for not just winning against the Soviets but also in the final game versus Finland. &#8220;A lot of us take great pride in knowing that we closed the deal,&#8221; he said.
The squad of U.S. college players ended the Soviets&#8217; reign as four-time Olympic champions with a 4-3 triumph that many consider the greatest upset in the history of sport.
The U.S. beat the Soviet team 4-3 in the semi-finals, winning the gold two days later against Finland.
The game captivated Americans during bitter Cold War tensions between the U.S. and Soviet Union. The American players were inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1983.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Ken Ferris)

Trump Honors ‘Miracle On Ice’ Hockey Players Who Defeated Soviets In 1980

Hockey

Russia

Sports

U.S.

Democratic attorneys general in 19 states, led by California and Massachusetts, are suing the Trump administration over its $100,000 fee for H-1B visas.
The lawsuit announced on Friday argues that the fee imposed by the administration goes far beyond the actual cost for an H-1B application, and goes against the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act.
“As the world’s fourth largest economy, California knows that when skilled talent from around the world joins our workforce, it drives our state forward. President Trump’s illegal $100,000 H-1B visa fee creates unnecessary — and illegal — financial burdens on California public employers and other providers of vital services, exacerbating labor shortages in key sectors,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement Friday.
“The Trump Administration thinks it can raise costs on a whim, but the law says otherwise,” Bonta continued.
The visa is meant for a limited number of jobs, and there are only 65,000 new ones doled out annually. However, 20,000 more H-1B visas are issued for those who have a “master’s degree or higher” from a college within the United States.
According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, there have been “enough petitions” sent to the federal government for both caps for fiscal year 2026.
“President Trump promised to put American workers first, and his commonsense action on H-1B visas does just that by discouraging companies from spamming the system and driving down American wages, while providing certainty to employers who need to bring the best talent from overseas,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told The Daily Wire in a statement.
“The Administration’s actions are lawful and are a necessary, initial, incremental step towards necessary reforms to the H-1B program,” she continued.
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A September presidential proclamation stated that the program “has been deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor” and it has veered off from its original intention.
The proclamation added that companies “have abused the H-1B statute and its regulations to artificially suppress wages, resulting in a disadvantageous labor market for American citizens, while at the same time making it more difficult to attract and retain the highest skilled subset of temporary workers, with the largest impact seen in critical science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.”
The lawsuit comes at a major tipping point for immigration nationwide, as the Trump administration recently stopped immigration processes for people from 19 &#8220;high-risk&#8221; countries following the shooting of two National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., by an Afghan national who entered as part of a refugee program following the botched 2021 troop withdrawal from the Middle Eastern nation. In addition, deportation efforts are still underway as the Supreme Court will soon be tackling whether or not birthright citizenship is constitutional.

D6D02C5F-008E-4A27-A9F4-F345022ACA74_1_201_a

Dems Sue Trump Admin Over Major Fee For H-1B Visas

California

Economy

Immigration

Massachusetts

Visas

Last week, the White House convened an education roundtable with U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon titled, “Biased Professors, Woke Administrators, and the End of Free Inquiry on U.S. Campuses.”
Secretary McMahon opened the event by <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-secretary-of-education-linda-mcmahon-participates-white-house-roundtable-left-wing-ideological-capture-of-universities">stating</a>, “It was an honor to be at the White House today with this dedicated coalition of students, faculty, institutional leaders, and policy advocates to highlight the issue of woke ideology and the capture of our institutions of higher education. DEI policies have turned universities from free marketplaces of ideas to purveyors of manufactured ideological conformity, chilling free speech and undermining academic rigor.”
She <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-secretary-of-education-linda-mcmahon-participates-white-house-roundtable-left-wing-ideological-capture-of-universities">explained</a>, “We are committed to working with higher education leaders to reverse course from these decades of decline.”
The Secretary highlighted actions taken by the Trump Administration, including dissolving DEI programs, enforcing merit-based practices, and guiding universities to comply with federal law, noting that over 400 institutions have made substantive changes. The U.S. Department of Education is working to incentivize universities to operate with fairness, academic rigor, and civil discourse.
Providing strong, positive leadership, Secretary McMahon <a href="https://www.ed.gov/media/document/secretary-mcmahon-white-house-remarks-12325-112619.pdf">shared</a>, “We want to provide every opportunity for colleges to recommit themselves to principles like non-discrimination, open discourse and neutrality, financial responsibility, resisting foreign influence, and putting students first.” She called for a recommitment to principles of reason, individual excellence, and non-discrimination to create a “golden age” of higher education.
This was the second in a series of higher education roundtables. The first roundtable was held at the White House on November 19, titled “Administrative Bloat and Low-Value Programs: How U.S. Universities are Failing American Families and How They Can Reform.” It addressed higher-education affordability and key components of President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including new caps on graduate loan borrowing aimed at reducing costs and boosting accountability.
Undeniably, the Trump Administration is providing pivotal leadership to reform public higher education. As Eric Bledsoe, Special Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy with a focus on education, explained at last week’s roundtable, “universities serve a public interest and must be held accountable by the public.” Bledsoe also noted that higher education should be about “cultivating mature citizens who are prepared for the workforce.”
It’s common sense 101, and thankfully for the American people, this administration is working overtime to change the status quo and cultivate a return to normalcy in public higher education, which has been overtaken by wokeness.
In October, the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” was released by the Trump Administration and sent initially to nine institutions. It outlined eight “priorities of the U.S. government in its engagement with universities that benefit from the relationship.” It clearly <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Compact-for-Academic-Excellence-in-Higher-Education-10.1.pdf">notes</a> that “Institutions of higher education are free to develop models and values” other than those outlined “if the institution elects to forego federal benefits.”
The priorities are as follows: equality in admission, marketplace of ideas and civil discourse, non-discrimination in faculty and administrative hiring, institutional neutrality, student learning, student equality, financial responsibility, and foreign entanglements.
The Compact <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Compact-for-Academic-Excellence-in-Higher-Education-10.1.pdf">reads</a>: “The leadership of an academic institute is directly responsible for its strategy, success, and adherence to legal and governmental requirements.” More specifically, each year, the institute’s President, Provost, and Head of Admissions will be required to certify that the university abides by the principles outlined in the Compact.
Violators — whether willfully or negligently — will lose benefits for at least one year. Repeat offenders will lose benefits for at least two years. Additionally, funds advanced to the university by the federal government during the year of violation must be returned. Most <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Compact-for-Academic-Excellence-in-Higher-Education-10.1.pdf">notably</a>, “any private contributions to the university during the year(s) in which such violation occurred shall be returned to the grantor upon the request of the grantor.”
Universities collectively receive hundreds of billions of dollars each year, yet do not deliver soundly on their mission. This much-needed accountability is a major step in the right direction.
As Secretary McMahon <a href="https://www.ed.gov/media/document/secretary-mcmahon-white-house-remarks-12325-112619.pdf">communicated</a> at the most recent White House education roundtable, she is inviting those leading higher education institutions to join her in “creating a golden age of academe — committed to reason, not racial preferences. Merit, not marginalizing the so-called ‘oppressor.’ Individual excellence, not ideological indoctrination.”
University leaders would be wise to get out of the business of indoctrination and discrimination and instead focus on fulfilling their institution’s mission of open inquiry and excellence in academics. Even if they do not align with the Trump Administration, agree with the Compact, or value meritocracy, their institution’s bottom line will be better for it. And most importantly, so will their students and our nation.
* * *
Dr. Keri D. Ingraham is a Senior Fellow at Discovery Institute, Director of the American Center for Transforming Education, and a Senior Fellow at Independent Women’s Forum.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
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Universities II. Google Gemini design.

Ending The Woke Monopoly: White House Takes Aim At Higher Ed’s Ideological Capture

American Universities

College

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Education

Ivy League

Linda McMahon

Opinion

Public Schools

Woke Culture

We’ve never had a pop culture force in the White House quite like President Donald Trump.
Yes, even the Gipper himself, President Ronald Reagan, didn’t grasp star power the same as Trump. Granted, Reagan’s Hollywood days gave him a unique take on culture and the arts and earned him the moniker, “<a href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/permanent-exhibits/evolution-great-communicator">The Great Communicator</a>.”
President Trump understands that realm, too, along with our new social media age.
Now, Trump is using his leverage to make movies great again. Or, at least, one franchise in particular.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-pushes-for-rush-hour-comeback-and-hollywood-delivers-report">Reports say</a> Trump had a hand in the “Rush Hour” franchise revival at Paramount. The saga’s director, Brett Ratner — canceled during the MeToo movement for unproven sexual assault allegations — is also directing the upcoming Melania Trump documentary, &#8220;Melania&#8221; (January, 2026).
Those ties likely helped make a fourth “Rush Hour” film happen.
<div id="attachment_1008703" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1008703" class="size-large wp-image-1008703" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248407527-864x576.jpg" alt="WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 25: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during the 78th annual National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation in the Rose Garden of the White House on November 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump will pardon Gobble and alternate turkey Waddle, who were both raised in North Carolina and will live out the rest of their lives under the care of the Prestage Department of Poultry Science at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248407527-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248407527-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248407527-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248407527.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Heather Diehl/Getty Images</div>
In an era when Hollywood studios cast a wary glance at right-leaning audiences, President Trump is using his bully pulpit to shape pop culture.
That gives him a golden opportunity to do more than revive a stalled franchise.
So, which other film projects are deserving of a presidential nudge?
It’s cinematically sacrilegious to remake “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” but what about a sequel starring a middle-aged Ferris? The sequel could find Matthew Broderick’s character saddled with a mortgage, two ungrateful kids, and a marriage to Sloan that has long lost its spark.
Yet, for one glorious day, the older Ferris finds his inner teen, goes on a grand adventure, and realizes the beauty lurking within adulthood. The only issue could be if the John Hughes estate would allow it – the late Hughes wrote and directed the 1986 classic. It’s still worth a try, if merely for the Reagan-era nostalgia.
<div id="attachment_1008711" style="width: 383px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1008711" class="size-large wp-image-1008711" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Ferris-Bueller-poster-373x576.jpg" alt="Paramount Pictures. 1986. " width="373" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Ferris-Bueller-poster-373x576.jpg 373w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Ferris-Bueller-poster-194x300.jpg 194w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Ferris-Bueller-poster.jpg 520w" sizes=" (max-width: 373px) 100vw, 373px" />Paramount Pictures. 1986.</div>
The 1994 comedy “PCU” was both ahead of its time and, sadly, a box office misfire with <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0110759/?ref_=bo_se_r_1">under $5 million</a> from stateside theaters. The comedy skewered the growing “politically correct” movement in American universities, one that presaged a full-blown woke revolution 20 years later.
The comedy still landed some stingers, especially given the academia targets on display. Why not remake the film from today’s college prism? Could the material cover everything from absurd college courses on “<a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/01/02/taylor-swift-101-college-classes-about-singer/71976599007/">Swiftology</a>” to darker riffs on college antisemitism?
If a direct remake doesn’t make sense, what about a sequel to “Old School?” That frat-style comedy found grown men starting their own Greek-style fraternity. Maybe an “Old School” spin where characters try the same shtick today but run into a furious woke mob rebuffing their efforts to party like it’s 1999?
Comedy has struggled since woke took over Hollywood. Even Variety magazine <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/variety-accidentally-confirms-woke-killed-movie-comedies/">inadvertently admitted as much</a>. Signs suggest its stranglehold on the culture is waning. That gives Team Trump a chance to bring back bawdy, R-rated comedies to a film landscape in dire need of a laugh.
And while blockbuster films often struggle to make a profit due to their gargantuan budgets, screen comedies are infinitely cheaper to produce.
Trump is reviving Ratner’s career with the “Rush Hour” project. He also could reach out to “The Hangover” director Todd Phillips while he’s at it. Phillips famously said he stopped making comedies (he also directed “Old School” and “Road Trip”) <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/10/joaquin-phoenix-cover-story">due to woke’s censorious nature.</a>
Coax Phillips back into the comedy business and see what happens next.
We may not need-need a fourth “Rush Hour” film, but its existence is a thumb in the eye to the woke mind virus sufferers. The saga’s willingness to poke fun at cultural stereotypes typified a better time.
<div id="attachment_1006399" style="width: 997px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1006399" class="size-large wp-image-1006399" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/Rush-Hour-987x576.jpg" alt="Rush Hour" width="987" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/Rush-Hour-987x576.jpg 987w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/Rush-Hour-300x175.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/Rush-Hour-768x448.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/Rush-Hour.jpg 1200w" sizes=" (max-width: 987px) 100vw, 987px" />Hulton Archive via Getty Images</div>
If wisecracks about Asians and black people truly were offensive, stars Chan and Tucker might have said something mid-production, no? Earlier this year, USA Network got offended on behalf of those communities. The cable channel <a href="https://www.worldofreel.com/blog/2025/7/4/rush-hour-trigger-warning">inserted a trigger warning</a> before the first “Rush Hour” feature:
<blockquote>We all love our buddy comedies, but this movie was created in a different time. FYI certain depictions, language and humor may seem outdated and at times offensive. </blockquote>
Do you understand <a href="https://tenor.com/search/do-you-understand-the-words-coming-out-of-my-mouth-gifs">the words</a> coming out of our mouths?
Which brings us to Phillips’ “Hangover” saga. Once again, the third installment showed the formula was wearing thin. Some franchises should call it a day, no matter how profitable they may be. That third “Hangover,” the weakest of the trilogy, made $362 million globally.
<div id="attachment_1009127" style="width: 399px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1009127" class="size-large wp-image-1009127" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the-389x576.jpg" alt="Warner Bros. Legendary Pictures. Green Hat Films." width="389" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the-389x576.jpg 389w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the-202x300.jpg 202w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the-768x1138.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the-1037x1536.jpg 1037w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Hangover-the.jpg 1382w" sizes=" (max-width: 389px) 100vw, 389px" />Warner Bros. Legendary Pictures. Green Hat Films.</div>
A revival would do more than give its studio a boost. It would signal the woke era’s official collapse. After all, the film followed four straight white males who drank too much, ogled women, found themselves in deep trouble on multiple fronts, but ended up living happily ever after.
No lectures. No Girl Boss characters dressing them down. No forced diversity measures – co-star Ken Jeong stole scenes on his own, thank you. Just R-rated high jinks, the kind that used to power endless dumb but hilarious comedies.
And, yes, the usual media suspects would tsk-tsk these projects, telling us how problematic they are and why no one should laugh at them. And most Americans would give those articles a shrug, at best.
Some might even laugh out loud while reading them.
No one person can lift Hollywood out of its current, sorry state. At the very least, President Trump could Make Hollywood Funny Again.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic, and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
* * *
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Trump movies

‘Rush Hour 4’ Is A Go. What Else Can President Trump Greenlight?

Comedy

Entertainment

Film

Hollywood

Movies

President Trump stands by War Secretary Pete Hegseth and the drug boat strikes as the Cabinet convenes once again, the administration threatens to withhold tax dollars over illegal commercial driver&#8217;s licenses, and a New Jersey probe into a pro-life pregnancy center winds up in the Supreme Court.
It’s Wednesday, December 3, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251203-member-exclusive?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+Show+Episodes+Carousel">video version</a> can be seen on The Daily Wire:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trump-defends-hegseth-duffys-minnesota-ultimatum-12-3-25/id1576594336?i=1000739476338" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Backs Hegseth In Cabinet Meeting</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1008973 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Cabinet-Meeting-No.-9.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
Topline: President Trump gathered his cabinet Tuesday and defended Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, vowing to continue his strikes against narco-terrorists.
All eyes on Hegseth: The War secretary has come under fire for allegedly ordering airstrikes targeting survivors of a drug smuggling boat that had been destroyed by an initial strike. The White House has rallied around Hegseth, reiterating that these suspected cartel members have been designated as terrorists, and are essentially enemy combatants of the United States. On Tuesday, Hegseth <a href="https://x.com/AndrewKolvet/status/1995921305728942204?s=20">struck</a> a defiant tone, vowing to continue the strikes.
The original reporting on the alleged illegal strike story is now facing a flood of scrutiny. The New York Times published a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/01/us/hegseth-drug-boat-strike-order-venezuela.html">story</a> this week refuting the main allegation against Hegseth — that he specifically ordered a second strike to kill survivors.
The Times cited five anonymous U.S. officials who each said separately that Hegseth did order a strike to kill the drug smugglers, but “his order was not a response to surveillance footage showing that at least two people on the boat survived the first blast,” and he did not address what should be done if there were survivors.
Latest on National Guard Shooting: In one of the cabinet meeting’s more somber moments, Attorney General Pam Bondi honored the life of slain National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom and offered an update on Andrew Wolfe, the guardsmen fighting for his life in the hospital.
&#8220;I was there where when the surgeons came in and [his parents] wanted you to know this — he&#8217;s a miracle, and if everyone in this country can continue to pray for that family. He&#8217;s got a long road ahead of him, but he is a miracle,” <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1995918866606698520?s=20">said</a> Bondi.
The alleged shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, appeared virtually in court on Tuesday from a hospital bed, where he was formally charged with murder and a slew of other crimes. Lakanwal pleaded not guilty to all charges. He’ll be held without bond throughout the trial. Bondi said the Justice Department intends to seek the death penalty.
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Minnesota’s Illegal License Loophole</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1008975 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Minnesotas-CDL-Ultimatum.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
Topline: Minnesota is facing federal pressure after an audit found widespread improper licensing of foreign drivers, underscoring broader immigration-oversight issues.
The Trump administration has presented some pretty jaw-dropping findings and is now taking action. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the federal government will withhold more than $30 million in highway funding from Minnesota.
The state can avoid the penalty if Democratic Governor Tim Walz revokes a large number of commercial driver’s licenses that were issued illegally to drivers whose immigration or residency status did not comply with federal law. Duffy gave Walz 30 days to fix it, or the funding would be withheld.
What Walz thinks: Officials in the Walz administration say they are reviewing this letter from the Department of Transportation, and claim that they take “safety” on their roads “seriously.” 
Step back: Commercial drivers licenses for illegals or people with improper status have been a focus for months now, due to some devastating crashes that have killed Americans. The Daily Wire’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-trucker-with-california-license-accused-of-killing-newlyweds-in-tragic-collision?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Illegal+Immigrant+Trucker+With+California+License+Accused+Of+Killing+Newlyweds+In+Tragic+Collision">Jennie Taer</a> reported that a newlywed couple was tragically killed in a collision allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant truck driver with a California license. The Indian national involved in the crash has been charged with criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment. 
The Department of Transportation has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-trucker-with-california-license-accused-of-killing-newlyweds-in-tragic-collision?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Illegal+Immigrant+Trucker+With+California+License+Accused+Of+Killing+Newlyweds+In+Tragic+Collision">found</a> that California authorities have issued some 17,000 non-domiciled Commercial Driver’s Licenses to foreign drivers. The Trump administration is similarly threatening to withhold tens of millions of federal dollars from California. A number of other states, including red states, are being scrutinized over this issue, too.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">SCOTUS Case On Pro-Life Targeting</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1008977 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/SCOTUS-Presses-Platkin.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
Topline: The Supreme Court heard <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JysOCj6Dq0g">arguments</a> Tuesday on a case involving a state allegedly “intimidating” and “harassing” a pregnancy center for not conducting abortions. The case, First Choice Women’s Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin, could set precedent on states&#8217; ability to similarly target pregnancy centers and pro-life organizations.
Erin Hawley, general counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom and one of the attorneys representing First Choice, spoke to Morning Wire about the case. (The following interview has been edited for clarity.)
Morning Wire: This case stems from New Jersey’s Democrat Attorney General Matt Platkin creating a “strike force” that targeted pregnancy resource centers. He issued a statewide “consumer alert” against them — and then specifically issued a subpoena to First Choice that was extremely intrusive, including asking for donor information. We’ve just heard oral arguments before the Supreme Court. By the line of questioning from the justices, do you have a sense how they appear to be leaning? 
Hawley: I&#8217;ll have to paraphrase an old boss of mine. After arguing, he would say, I would rather be on our side than their side. And I think that&#8217;s definitely true after this oral argument. If you think about some of the questions the justices were asking, Justice Barrett, for example, pointed out the hostility that New Jersey has shown toward pregnancy care centers.
Justice Kagan took a really practical view of the case. She&#8217;s not one that you would maybe expect to be ideologically aligned with First Choice, and yet she made the common sense point, if I receive a subpoena that demands donor names, I don&#8217;t want my name and address and phone number out there. And so she was saying that this is going to chill the First Amendment rights of recipients in sort of a common sense way. It seemed like a majority or certainly several members of the court were really understanding the effect that subpoena had both on First Choice Women&#8217;s Resource Center, as well as its donors.
Morning Wire: That seems pretty promising for First Choice. Were there any particularly surprising moments to you in the arguments — anything you weren’t anticipating? 
Hawley: One kind of highlight of the oral argument was the fact that we had hoped to sort of highlight, but that&#8217;s the fact that the New Jersey attorney general has never said that he received a single complaint against First Choice by anyone. Justice Thomas really leaned into that and asked the New Jersey attorney, why did you investigate First Choice? Did you receive a complaint? Like, did anyone tell you that they didn&#8217;t like them? And the New Jersey attorney general had to answer no. They had received no complaints about First Choice.

MRN_251203_V2

Morning Brief: Trump Backs Hegseth, Minnesota Issues Illegal Licenses, & SCOTUS Takes On Pro-Life Targeting

Morning Brief: Trump Backs Hegseth, MN Illegal License Loophole, And SCOTUS On Pro-Life Targeting

Department of Defense

Minnesota

Pete Hegseth

SCOTUS

WASHINGTON — The self-described most transparent administration in history once again threw its doors open to the public with a three-hour live-streamed Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, one in which the president once again made it clear that he stands by his Secretary of War.
The meeting, at times meandering and broad in its focus, nevertheless allowed the White House to firmly and publicly defend its most recent moves: in Venezuela, on the southern border, and with regard to domestic policy priorities. But the highlight of the meeting came when the president and Pete Hegseth addressed news reporting about the September 2 strikes on drug cartel boats in the Caribbean.
The Washington Post reported this week that Hegseth had personally given a &#8220;spoken directive&#8221; to &#8220;kill everybody,&#8221; citing two people who allegedly had &#8220;direct knowledge&#8221; of the matter. The report framed the situation as if Hegseth and his commanders saw smoke from the wreckage clear, observed two men still alive, and then the commander ordered a second strike in order to &#8220;comply with Hegseth&#8217;s instructions.&#8221;
The New York Times reported Tuesday, however, that Hegseth&#8217;s directive ordering the strike on the boat did not specifically address what should happen if the first missile didn&#8217;t fully complete the job, and his order was not responding to footage showing that two people had survived. The Times noted that Admiral Mitch Bradley ordered both the initial strike and several follow-up strikes that killed survivors and sank the boat, and during the operation, Hegseth did not give him any other orders.
But the initial Washington Post reporting suggested Hegseth had violated the laws of war, prompting wild speculation from reporters and Democrats that <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/30/war-crimes-hegseth-venezuela-strikes-00671160">Hegseth had committed war crimes and could be removed from his post</a>. On Tuesday, during his cabinet meeting, the president briefly defended the War Department, but let Hegseth take the lead in his response, leading to a remarkable moment where the public could watch both the face of the president and that of the Secretary of War as they dealt with the high-profile topic.
<div id="attachment_1008693" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-and-hegseth-in-lockstep-as-cabinet-convenes-to-celebrate-wins/president-trump-meets-with-his-cabinet-at-the-white-house-12" rel="attachment wp-att-1008693"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1008693" class="wp-image-1008693 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2249600799-864x576.jpg" alt="Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (2nd-L) speaks during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on December 02, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2249600799-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2249600799-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2249600799-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2249600799.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (2nd-L) speaks during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on December 02, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)</div>
As Hegseth spoke, the president nodded in agreement. He had seated Hegseth directly to his left, in an apparent show of support.
&#8220;We sunk the boat and eliminated the threat,&#8221; Hegseth explained. &#8220;It was the right call, we have his back, and the American people are safer because narco-terrorists know you can&#8217;t bring drugs through the water, and eventually on land if necessary, to the American people. We will eliminate that threat and we are proud to do it.&#8221;
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&#8220;So you didn&#8217;t see any survivors?&#8221; pressed a reporter. &#8220;To be clear, after that first shot.&#8221;
&#8220;I did not personally see survivors,&#8221; Hegseth said. &#8220;The thing was on fire &#8230; this is called the fog of war.&#8221;
The Secretary of War proceeded to tear into the reporter, as the president grinned and nodded along in support.
&#8220;This is what you in the press don&#8217;t understand,&#8221; Hegseth said. &#8220;You sit in your air-conditioned offices or up on Capitol Hill, and you nitpick, or you plant fake stories in the Washington Post, about &#8216;kill everybody,&#8217; phrases on anonymous sources not based on anything, not based on any truth at all, and then you want to throw out really irresponsible terms about American heroes, about the judgment they made &#8230;&#8221;
&#8220;President Trump has empowered commanders to do what is necessary, which is dark and difficult things in the dead of night on behalf of the American people,&#8221; he added. &#8220;We support them, and we will stop the poisoning of the American people.&#8221;
When the reporter pressed again, asking how long after the first strike the second strike occurred, Hegseth responded, &#8220;I couldn&#8217;t tell you the exact time,&#8221; adding with clear annoyance when the reporter continued to press, &#8220;I already stated my answer quite clearly.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Let’s make one thing crystal clear:
Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my 100% support. I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made — on the September 2 mission and all others since.
America is fortunate to have such men protecting…
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1995643490152128919?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
Earlier on Tuesday, War Department Press Secretary Kingsley Cortes said in a press briefing that Hegseth has been very clear in every statement that the strikes were &#8220;presidentially directed and the chain of command functions as it should.&#8221;
&#8220;We make sure that commanders on the ground, their positions are taken into account, and they are able to tell us and make decisions if they see things that need to be flagged,&#8221; she explained. &#8220;But at the end of the day, the secretary and the president are the ones directing these strikes and any follow-on strikes like those which were directed by Admiral Bradley, the secretary 100% agrees with.”

Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth

Trump And Hegseth In Lockstep As Cabinet Convenes To Celebrate Wins

Department of War

The White House released First Lady Melania Trump’s theme for the holiday season yesterday, and it inspired viewers to reflect on the debacle of 2023 and the major bullet our country dodged last November.
The first lady teamed up with her longtime designer and stylist Hervé Pierre to bring an elegant, traditional look to the White House, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/melania-transforms-white-house-for-christmas-with-ten-thousand-butterflies?author=Brecca+Stoll&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=11&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Melania+Transforms+White+House+For+Christmas+With+Ten+Thousand+Butterflies">reported</a>. This stands in stark contrast to the “woke clowns” that Jill Biden showcased while her husband was still in office in December 2023.
Melania Trump’s theme for 2025, “Home Is Where the Heart Is,” features 10,000 blue butterflies. Many social media users have juxtaposed the classy promo video just released by the White House with the frenetic, colorful chaos from Biden&#8217;s Christmas video two years ago.
“There’s no comparison between the Biden White House and the Trump White House Christmas,” one commenter <a href="https://x.com/Sassafrass_84/status/1995529566580855075">posted</a> on X. “Melania is pure class. Love my Flotus.”
“A return to elegance at the White House,” another <a href="https://x.com/T_Q_Gardner/status/1995559798100857262">said</a>.
“Flashback: Jill Biden made a mocked Christmas by featuring woke clowns in her Christmas decorations! Just announced: We&#8217;re so back!!!” another user <a href="https://x.com/Huberton/status/1995537729270988802?s=20">added</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
First Lady Melania Trump has released a video for this year’s Christmas at the White House: &#8220;Home is Where the Heart Is.&#8221;
Flashback: Jill Biden made a mocked Christmas by featuring woke clowns in her Christmas decorations!
Just announced: We&#8217;re so back!!! 🇺🇸✝️ <a href="https://t.co/U0pXkVX65Y">pic.twitter.com/U0pXkVX65Y</a>
— AJ Huber (@Huberton) <a href="https://twitter.com/Huberton/status/1995537729270988802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I love Melania Trump, and her impeccable taste! Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas,&#8221; another user <a href="https://x.com/MaryandBessie/status/1995531044846784612">gushed</a>.
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At the time, Biden’s holiday decorations were dubbed “bizarre,” “freaky,” and “cringey.” The Dorrance Dance group website also encouraged support of organizations like Black Lives Matter and advocated for a group called “Showing Up For Racial Justice” that “moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice,” as The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/white-house-blasted-for-bizarre-freaky-christmas-video">reported</a> at the time.
Some commenters pointed out that if Kamala Harris had won in 2024, the White House Christmas decor would more closely resemble 2023, in all likelihood.

White House Christmas

Melania Praised For ‘Impeccable’ White House Christmas Decorations After Biden’s ‘Woke Clowns’

Melania Trump Praised For 'Impeccable' White House Christmas Decorations After Biden's 'Woke Clowns'

Christmas

General

Jill Biden

Melania Trump

Washington D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Advocates and angel families who lost children to the opioid epidemic applauded news Monday that President Donald Trump had signed the SUPPORT Act, legislation that strengthens resources for Americans facing substance use disorders.
Trump signed the legislation into law on Monday afternoon, reauthorizing and revising programs within the Department of Health and Human Services addressing substance use disorders, overdoses, and mental health.
Sandy Snodgrass, the mother of a victim named Bruce, and co-founder of Fentanyl Fathers and Angel Army, said simply: “The SUPPORT Act and Bruce’s Law will simply save the lives of young Americans.”
Another bereaved father, Greg Swan, thanked the president for listening to the story of his grieving family, noting that Trump created the original SUPPORT Act back in 2018. Monday&#8217;s action renewed the law with the addition of &#8220;Bruce&#8217;s Law,&#8221; written by Snodgrass, he said.
&#8220;Now we are empowered and backed by the Support Act to go into all 26,727 reluctant USA High Schools and preach the dangers of fentanyl as a bereaved army, the Angel Army,&#8221; said Swan, who is co-founder of Fentanyl Fathers and Angel Army. &#8220;110,000 lives will be saved by youth alone &#8211; and you can double that by the number of bereaved parents who WILL NOT have to have an empty chair for their &#8216;Tiny Tim.&#8217;”
Drew Siegel, co-founder of Victoria&#8217;s Voice, said that his organization is &#8220;forever grateful&#8221; to Trump and his administration for &#8220;answering the prayers of millions of bereaved parents, siblings, friends, and families across our country.&#8221; Drew&#8217;s sister, Victoria, is also a victim of a drug overdose.
&#8220;This is for you, Victoria,&#8221; he said simply. &#8220;We love you, and we miss you every day.”
<div id="attachment_1008249" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/angel-families-praise-trump-for-signing-law-to-combat-substance-abuse/president-trump-speaks-on-progress-made-combatting-opiod-crisis-in-east-room-of-white-house" rel="attachment wp-att-1008249"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1008249" class="wp-image-1008249 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-1052957848-864x576.jpg" alt="U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an East Room event at the White House October 24, 2018 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosted an event to mark the one-year anniversary of the administration's declaration of combating the opioid crisis. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-1052957848-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-1052957848-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-1052957848-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-1052957848.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an East Room event at the White House October 24, 2018 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosted an event to mark the one-year anniversary of the administration&#8217;s declaration of combating the opioid crisis. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)</div>
Robert Branner, co-founder of Fentanyl Fathers, described the legislation as &#8220;a lifeline for American families.&#8221;
&#8220;It is an Act designed to save lives, strengthen communities, and protect our children from a crisis that is touching every corner of this nation,&#8221; he argued. &#8220;I stand here as a Father who lost a daughter because she did not know the dangers of taking a pill that was not prescribed to her. She didn’t know it could be laced with fentanyl. She didn’t know one single pill could stop her heart. She didn’t know because she was never taught.&#8221;
Branner says the new law matters for all Americans, recognizing that &#8220;prevention is protection.&#8221;
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&#8220;It invests in education, awareness, treatment, and support,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It brings resources to schools, families, and communities so our children do not grow up uninformed, unprotected, and unaware. If my daughter had received the education that the SUPPORT Act encourages, if she had been taught early about the dangers of unprescribed opioids she might still be here today. And I know I am not alone. Families across this country have the same story, the same pain, the same loss.&#8221;
&#8220;The SUPPORT Act is an equalizer,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It doesn’t pick and choose which families to help. It reaches across race, class, background, and zip code because addiction and fentanyl do not discriminate. Education, prevention, and support should not either. &#8230; It saves lives. It strengthens families. And it gives our children the knowledge they need to survive in a world where one pill can take everything.”

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