George Alan Kelly is a 75-year-old rancher who lived for more than a decade on a 170-acre property in Kino Springs‚ Arizona‚ which is just over a mile from the southern border. On January 13‚ 2023‚ Kelly sent a text message to his son‚ telling him that he had spotted “33 drug runners” on the property. The message itself was nothing out of the ordinary. For years‚ Kelly had made similar complaints about illegal migrants trespassing at his ranch on their way into the United States. Sometimes‚ Kelly told his family members‚ these migrants were armed. But on this particular occasion‚ Kelly made an unusual request. He asked his son if he could drive up and help defend the property. His son replied‚ “Nope. Be careful.” Kelly’s next text: “Careful is not an option. It is either fight or run‚ and I’m too old to run. Mom is locked and loaded also.” Seventeen days later‚ yet another group of illegal migrants trespassed onto Kelly’s ranch. This time it was at least three people‚ probably more. Kelly told authorities that he was frightened because he had heard gunfire earlier in the day from a larger group of migrants. So‚ to warn this new group of migrants away‚ Kelly fired a series of warning shots with his rifle. One of those shots‚ authorities allege‚ killed a 48-year-old illegal alien from Mexico. This illegal alien had been arrested and deported several times from the United States‚ but he was able to keep coming back to this country because the White House decided not to enforce immigration law. This week‚ George Alan Kelly rejected a plea deal offered by prosecutors. They wanted him to plead guilty to negligent homicide and serve eight years in prison. But he told them no. So Kelly’s trial for murder will take place in a couple of months. Whatever you think of George Alan Kelly or his case — and personally I think the man shouldn’t spend one single second in jail for defending his property from invasion — there’s no denying that the Biden administration deliberately created the circumstances that led to the shooting. This is an elderly man with no criminal history‚ who was trying to protect his wife from criminals the Biden administration repeatedly encouraged to trespass on his property. No one disputes that. WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show Unsurprisingly‚ though‚ when he delivered a speech in South Carolina yesterday on the topic of systemic injustice in the United States‚ Joe Biden did not mention George Alan Kelly. In fact‚ as far as I can tell‚ Joe Biden has never mentioned Kelly a single time. Instead‚ Biden devoted his entire speech to what he calls the greatest threat facing this country: something called “white supremacy.” This white supremacy‚ Biden argued‚ is a far greater danger to the United States than the wide-open southern border‚ which allows foreign criminals to terrorize American citizens and invade their property. To that end‚ Biden spoke extensively about a mass shooting that took place in that church nearly a decade ago‚ in 2015. Watch: President Biden condemns white supremacy while speaking at the site of the 2015 racist massacre at a Charleston church: “White supremacy … it is a poison. Throughout our history‚ it's ripped this nation apart. This has no place in America — not today‚ tomorrow‚ or ever.” pic.twitter.com/XD69bUTIBp — The Recount (@therecount) January 8‚ 2024 White supremacy is a poison‚ Biden says. It’s tearing the fabric of this country apart. And to prove that point — to prove how pervasive and all-encompassing white supremacy is — Biden began talking about a mass shooting that occurred in 2015. There have been a lot of shootings and homicides since then. Well over 100‚000 homicides in the nine years since that shooting. A hugely disproportionate number of those victims have been black. But Biden isn’t interested in talking about that‚ because‚ of course‚ a hugely disproportionate number of the people killing those black people are also black. So instead we go back to 2015‚ to make the point about white supremacy. Biden is also of course not interested in talking about all the mass shootings that have been committed by trans-identifying mass shooters since 2015. There have been several of those. And Biden certainly isn’t talking about the killer who mowed down five people last year in Texas‚ including a nine-year-old boy. Yes‚ the killer had been deported four times before once again entering the U.S. illegally. But that’s not the point‚ Biden says. He doesn’t want you thinking about the preventable‚ systemic failures of his administration. Instead‚ he wants you to focus on the one mass shooting he pretends to care about‚ so he can demonize men who look like George Alan Kelly. At this point you have to ask — does anyone actually buy this anymore? It’s not 2020. Most people seem to have come down from the hysteria they experienced after George Floyd’s overdose death. Many people seem to have had some time to come to their senses. So does this still work? If I were to list the top 5‚000 problems facing the United States in 2024‚ white supremacy wouldn’t get close to making the list. Does anyone seriously think otherwise at this point? You’re not supposed to linger on what Biden said‚ of course. You’re supposed to get outraged about a church shooting from a decade ago‚ and conclude that white people are a big problem. Joe Biden’s handlers are going for emotion‚ not reason. But it’s important to dwell on this for a little bit‚ just to underscore how totally and completely dishonest Biden’s position is. Even if you use the Left’s data and pretend it’s all accurate‚ there’s still no conceivable argument that “white supremacy” is a significant threat in this country‚ or that any of our major problems can be traced back to it. Consider a report from Left-wing ADL‚ which is effectively an arm of the Democratic Party‚ from last year. The report states that: “All the extremist-related murders in 2022 were committed by right-wing extremists.” And of those murders‚ the ADL reports‚ 80% were committed by white supremacists. Well‚ that sounds pretty bad. Reuters certainly thought so. They wrote up a whole report with this headline: “White supremacists behind over 80% of extremism-related U.S. murders in 2022.” It’s all very scary‚ until you do what the ADL doesn’t want you to do‚ which is to look at the data for more than five seconds. For one thing‚ in all of 2022‚ there were a total of just 25 extremist-related murders that the ADL identified. That’s for the entire country of 330 million people. We’re talking about 25 murders here. For comparison‚ far more people are struck by lightning every year in the United States. Has anyone ever said that lightning strikes are the greatest threat facing Americans? It’s absurd. Here’s maybe a better comparison to put 25 into context. The city of Chicago does 25 murders in two weeks. That’s one city‚ in the span of a half of a month. But 25 alleged “extremist related murders” in the entire country‚ in the entire year‚ is a crisis. So with that context in mind‚ let’s look at the ADL’s language. They say that‚ “60% of the murders came from just two incidents—deadly shooting sprees in Buffalo‚ New York‚ and Colorado Springs‚ Colorado.” So for the most part we’re talking about a grand total of two incidents. And one of those mass shootings — the shooting in Colorado — was committed by a self-described non-binary individual whose lawyer demanded that the court respect his preferred pronouns. This is someone the ADL has coded as a “right-wing domestic extremist.” That’s because the ADL’s methodology has determined that‚ by definition‚ if someone commits a mass shooting‚ they are automatically a right-wing extremist. That’s the way it works with this kind of data. It’s not designed to withstand any kind of scrutiny. The point is to convince Americans that there’s an epidemic of white nationalists committing mass shootings‚ and to demonize the political enemies of the Biden administration‚ in order to lay the groundwork for their imprisonment or worse. That’s why they’re lying about “right-wing extremism.” It’s why they’re going after George Alan Kelly. It’s also why the Biden campaign just posted this graphic on social media‚ which explicitly compares Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler: This is not a coincidence pic.twitter.com/oaSDcb0yzs — Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) December 20‚ 2023 They list a bunch of Trump quotes and try to link them with Hitler quotes as clumsily as possible. In fact‚ they aren’t even full quotes. They are vaguely paraphrasing Trump‚ and Hitler‚ and then expecting us to be mind-blown by how closely the two align. The funny thing is that they say Trump is like Hitler because Trump has declared that forces within our country are worse and more dangerous than enemies outside of the country. But that’s exactly the sort of thing that the Biden administration says all the time. They are constantly warning that “domestic extremists” are a greater threat than foreign terrorists. That was the point of the speech Biden just gave yesterday. The only difference is that Trump generally identifies powerful people and institutions — like the media — as his enemies. Biden‚ on the other hand‚ goes after conservative voters. His bogeyman is “MAGA Republicans‚” which means the tens of millions of American citizens who support Trump. That’s the level of political discourse we’ve achieved in this country. It’s not subtle or intelligent or clever in any way. This is a campaign to dehumanize anyone who would vote against the Biden administration‚ so that they can be imprisoned or worse. And it’s been going on for quite some time. This week‚ The Washington Free Beacon reported that the Biden administration has once again begun distributing federal funds on the basis of race. You might remember that‚ all the way back in the beginning of the Biden administration‚ they tried to allocate farm aid based on the skin color of the farmers. The administration was going to make loan forgiveness payments to so-called “minority farmers‚” to the tune of $4 billion. A federal judge had to put a stop to that. But now they’re doing essentially the same thing again. According to the Free Beacon‚ there are hundreds of millions of dollars allocated in two pieces of federal legislation —the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The point of legislation‚ Biden said‚ was to “create new well-paying jobs” for workers who “helped build this country.” The idea is to provide financial support to industries that are going to be phased out as the Biden administration plunges headlong into its suicidal plan to shut down the nation’s coal industry by 2035. But if you read the fine print‚ as the Free Beacon did‚ you’ll find that White House bureaucrats have been insisting that only “majority minority” areas receive federal funding under this legislation. And they’ve rigged various bureaucratic rules to make that a reality. Majority white areas — like Gillette‚ Wyoming — are getting shut out of these grants entirely‚ even though they’re mining towns that would qualify for the money in every other respect. Too bad‚ they have the wrong skin color up in Gillette‚ so no money for them. Again‚ this is part of an easily observable pattern. Everywhere you look‚ the administration is doing what it can to demonize and humiliate Americans because of their race. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP As just one more part of that effort‚ Joe Biden’s National Park Service recently proposed removing the William Penn statue from a park in Philadelphia. William Penn is the founder of the state of Pennsylvania‚ and Biden wanted his memorial gone‚ because he’s white. This comes just a few weeks after the Biden administration ordered a century-old memorial to postwar reconciliation to be torn down in Arlington National Cemetery. In the case of the Penn statue‚ they wanted to replace it with something honoring Native Americans. Why? Because William Penn did great things. He founded the colony that became Pennsylvania. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London‚ without hesitation‚ for his faith‚ multiple times. He believed in religious freedom. And of course‚ he was white. Those were his sins‚ so they tried to take him down‚ just like the statues of Columbus and Teddy Roosevelt. But late yesterday‚ in a development we haven’t seen in many similar cases‚ the Biden administration suddenly backed off. People noticed how deranged this plan was‚ and they spoke up about it. And within just a few hours‚ the White House caved. The Penn statue can stay for now‚ they conceded. All it took was some social media backlash and complaints from a few politicians‚ and they folded. But the important fact is that they tried to do it in the first place. They may have backed away from their demolition plans for the William Penn statue‚ but they are not backing away from the underlying agenda. As we head closer to the election‚ you can expect to hear a lot more demonizing of white people‚ and many more warnings about the phantom dangers of white supremacy. Warnings that should be greeted with the same shrugs and eye rolls and confused head scratches that Biden would get if he said the greatest threat facing our country is a big evil dragon‚ who lives in a lair up in the mountains somewhere. He might as well be saying that. After all‚ we have to worry about white supremacy in this country about as much as we have to worry about evil dragons. But this is all that the Powers That Be have. It’s what they rely on. They need you scared‚ and angry‚ and resentful‚ and confused. That’s the only way they win.

Taylor Swift has continued her domination of the entertainment world from 2023 after setting a new record with the global success of her “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” movie‚ which is now the highest-grossing concert/documentary film of all time. The 34-year-old pop star’s film has grossed $261.6 million at the global box office and passed the previous record holder‚ Michael Jackson‚ whose 2009 posthumous documentary “Michael Jackson: This Is It‚” earned $261.2 million globally‚ not adjusted for inflation‚ according to The Hollywood Reporter. At the domestic box office‚ the “Shake It Off” hitmaker’s film earned north of $180 million since it was released in October‚ beating the previous record holder‚ “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” movie‚ which earned domestically $73 million for a total of $99 million at the global box office‚ not adjusted for inflation. Another record achievement for Taylor Swift: The “Eras Tour” movie is now the most successful concert film and doc ever. More: https://t.co/1g8Uam0u8t pic.twitter.com/0F4GGFiJ08 — Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) January 8‚ 2024 “On behalf of all of us at AMC Theatres‚ I send my congratulations and eternal gratitude to Taylor Swift for her remarkable and record-setting box office performance‚” said AMC Entertainment chair-CEO Adam Aron. “Her spectacular performance delighted fans around the world and serves as another strong reminder about the power of extraordinary filmmaking and magic of movie theaters‚” he added. Swift’s new record follows an incredible year professionally and personally where it seemed like the “Blank Space” hitmaker was in every headline. From performing her highly-anticipated “The Eras Tour” concerts at sold-out venues across the globe to being named Time’s 2023 “Person of the Year‚” she totally dominated the world of entertainment. In 2023‚ Swift took home numerous awards for her music. In February‚ she made Grammy history by being honored as the first artist to win the award for directing their own music video for “All Too Well.” Months later‚ she took home ten Billboard Music awards. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP The superstar singer reigned supreme in the music industry and ended up dominating the box office after she announced in August that her sold-out concert was headed to the big screen. In October‚ “The Eras Tour” movie brought in $92 million opening weekend‚ smashing prior records‚ per Axios. On the personal side‚ she also dominated the news after a source claimed Swift and Joe Alwyn had ended their six-year relationship weeks into “The Eras Tour.” In September‚ Swift rocked fans of the NFL when she showed up at Arrowhead Stadium to watch Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce after the NFL player had put Swift on blast on his podcast in July. By December‚ Swift dominated weeks of NFL coverage after showing up at multiple games to watch her new boyfriend play. In Time’s wide-ranging “Person of the Year” interview‚ Swift finally gave the timeline of her and Kelce’s relationship and said they were already a couple when she went to his first game on September 24.

Over two dozen Republican attorneys general are challenging a proposed rule from the New York Stock Exchange that they say would illegally implement a radical environmentalist agenda and harm national security. The rule from the NYSE would create a listing entity called a Natural Asset Company (NAC)‚ which would be empowered to control private and public lands by capturing “the intrinsic and productive value of nature” and block things like logging‚ herding‚ and drilling from happening on the land. The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering the proposal to approve NACs and is taking public comment until January 18. “If it approves the NYSE’s proposal‚ the Commission will have effectively enabled the NYSE‚ the most well-known and influential stock exchange on earth‚  to authorize the existence of entities that could ultimately be used to subordinate the interests of millions of Americans to the aims of environmental activists as well as to United Nations policies and mandates‚” a Tuesday letter from 25 Republican attorneys general led by Utah AG Sean Reyes and Kansas AG Kris Kobach said. The letter said that the proposal would violate federal securities laws‚ the Administrative Procedure Act‚ and the Constitution. The Republicans added that the rule is intended to fund a rule proposal from the Bureau of Land Management that is seeking to grant “conservation leases” on public lands. The letter said that it is not in “the public interest to facilitate a massive corporate takeover of public lands by private actors who owe no duty to the public and who are guided by their own financial and political interests. Yet that is precisely what the proposed rule does.” There would also be national security concerns if the SEC allows the NYSE to adopt its proposed rule. “Even more alarming‚ the proposed rule will enable foreign actors to obtain perpetual control over public lands‚ either directly through organizing and registering as NACs or through obtaining controlling interests in NACs. This raises serious national security concerns‚ particularly given the importance of energy production and natural resource availability to America’s geopolitical position‚” the letter said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Reyes said that the push for NACs is a “brutish vehicle to accomplish an activist political agenda.” “They deprive public use of land in multiple ways that will further jeopardize U.S. energy independence and grid stability while illegally opening management‚ use and ownership of these lands to private parties‚ including hostile countries or entities‚” he said in a statement. The letter was signed by the AGs of Alabama‚ Alaska‚ Arkansas‚ Florida‚ Idaho‚ Indiana‚ Iowa‚ Kansas‚ Kentucky‚ Louisiana‚ Mississippi‚ Missouri‚ Montana‚ Nebraska‚ North Dakota‚ New Hampshire‚ Ohio‚ Oklahoma‚ South Carolina‚ Tennessee‚ Utah‚ Texas‚ Virginia‚ West Virginia and Wyoming.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador apologized to a member of his own party on Tuesday after calling the trans-identifying lawmaker a “man dressed as a woman.” While answering questions during a press conference on Monday‚ 70-year-old Lopez Obrador was asked about an interaction he had with Salma Luevano at a public event when the president kissed Luevano on the cheek. “I also kiss men‚” the Mexican president said before referring to Luevano as “a man dressed as a woman‚” Spanish newspaper El País reported. Lopez Obrador apologized Tuesday for referring to the trans-identifying lawmaker as a man. “I want to… offer an apology to a colleague who identifies as a woman‚” said Lopez Obrador‚ according to Reuters. “Today the president @lopezobrador_ offered me an apology for making a bad generalization. This declaration is very important‚ because it makes visible a fight that has taken us decades‚” Luevano wrote on X. “I am a woman … and that is not up for discussion. Now to wait for the president to receive me.” Hoy el presidente @lopezobrador_ me ofreció una disculpa por malgeneralizarme. Esta declaración es importantísima‚ pues visibiliza una lucha que nos ha tomado décadasSoy una mujer‚ Diputrans y eso no está a discusión. Ahora a esperar a que me reciba el presidente @JesusRCuevas pic.twitter.com/tlDOJEcBNP — Salma Luévano Luna (@SalmaLuevano) January 9‚ 2024 Lopez Obrador was criticized before he was sworn into office in 2018 for kissing a female reporter on the cheek after she asked him a question‚ the Associated Press reported. The reporter‚ Lorena Garcia‚ said the kiss was “inappropriate” since she was in a professional setting trying to do her job. Luevano‚ 55‚ was elected to the Mexican legislature in 2021‚ one of two trans-identifying men who won seats in that election. Luevano became an LGBTQ activist after he was detained by authorities for wearing women’s clothing in public in the 1990s. In 2022‚ Luevano accused Gabriel Quadri‚ a member of the Mexican Chamber of Deputies‚ of threatening him with political violence after Quadri referred to Luevano as “sir” and said that “trans women are men who pretend to be women‚” according to El País. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP “That a trans woman arrives in these decision-making spaces normalizes what is normal‚” Luevano told El País earlier this year. “By educating‚ she raises awareness‚ if she raises awareness she creates empathy and by creating empathy she helps lower all hate crime statistics. That is why we cannot allow that door that has already been opened to be closed again.”

Yesterday‚ Michelle Obama — the Democrats’ Break-Glass-in-Case-of-Emergency candidate — sounded off on Joe Biden. Here’s what she said: Those are the things that keep me up because you don’t have control over them and you wonder where are we in this‚ where are our hearts? What’s gonna happen in this next election? I am terrified about what could happen because our leaders matter‚ who we select‚ who speaks for us‚ who holds that bully pulpit. It affects us in ways that I think sometimes people take for granted. So yesterday‚ Biden visited the Mother Emanuel AME Church in South Carolina. What was he doing there? He was speaking about the evils of white supremacy and the magic of diversity‚ equity‚ and inclusion‚ of course. Why? Because it’s election time‚ and Biden knows the only way he’s going to win reelection is if he has heavy black turnout at the ballot box. That’s been the secret sauce to Democratic electoral victory in recent elections. In 2000‚ just 53.5% of black voters showed up to vote. In 2008‚ when Barack Obama was on the ballot‚ that number jumped to 60.8%‚ and in 2012‚ it spiked to a record 62%. Then‚ in 2016‚ the percentage dropped back down to 55.9%. But in 2020‚ when Joe Biden won‚ it rebounded to 58.7%. Black voters went for Biden at a 92% clip. And voters of color overall represented four in 10 of his votes. WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show The black vote for Biden is going to be especially important because unlike other voters‚ who voted disproportionately by mail in 2020 — and who probably won’t this time — black voters were the subgroup most likely to show up and vote in person‚ which means their turnout may not drop as much as that of other groups. Now‚ it’s back to the old playbook: racial polarization. And Biden knows how to play that game. Remember that time he said Mitt Romney — yes‚ that Mitt Romney — was going to put black Americans “back in chains” during the 2012 race? So‚ it was time to head to a historically black church victimized by white violence and proclaim he’s going to stand up against all the evil white Americans who might vote for Donald Trump. Statistics show that between 2001 and 2013‚ the percentage of whites and blacks who thought race relations were good stayed steady. Then‚ after Black Lives Matter appeared on the scene in 2014‚ those percentages plummeted. They have continued to do so. Why? Because the more you talk about the polarization between races and the more you pretend that is the source of American conflict‚ the worse things get. And our political leadership‚ particularly Democrats‚ have a heavy stock in doing just that. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP

White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients launched a review of Cabinet protocols on Tuesday‚ Axios reported‚ largely in response to the fact that even President Joe Biden was left in the dark when his Secretary of Defense‚ Lloyd Austin‚ spent several days in the Intensive Care Unit. The White House was reportedly informed — just hours before the news went public — that Austin‚ who was said to be working from home‚ was actually hospitalized at Walter Reed Military Medical Center after “complications” arose from an elective procedure. It was later revealed that Austin had undergone a prostatectomy as part of treatment for prostate cancer. According to Axios’ report‚ Zients sent a memo to all cabinet secretaries directing them to “submit your existing protocols for a delegation of authority” — meaning who would immediately assume responsibility if the secretary was indisposed — no later than January 12. The White House chief of staff is also ordering Cabinet heads to notify his office if they ever can’t perform their duties. https://t.co/eyMvMlhJmi — ArmyTimes (@ArmyTimes) January 9‚ 2024 The memo comes amid calls for Austin’s resignation — which President Biden has already said that he would not accept — and a GOP-led effort to impeach the Defense Secretary‚ who remains hospitalized despite being moved out of the ICU. A memo was also sent out to Austin’s staff on Monday‚ directing Jennifer Walsh — Director of Administration and Management — to review records and communications alongside the General Counsel in order to determine what had transpired with regard to Austin’s hospitalization. While Austin apologized for his “lack of transparency” in a statement‚ a number of critics have argued that his failure to apprise the White House of the situation raised a red flag. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP MSNBC host Joe Scarborough addressed the issue on Monday’s broadcast of “Morning Joe‚” saying that while he understood Austin was under no obligation to inform the general public or even the media of his personal medical issues‚ it stood to reason that he did have a responsibility to inform the President of the United States. “I mean‚ it’s shocking that Joe Biden doesn’t — didn’t know‚ it’s shocking that Jake Sullivan didn’t know‚ it’s shocking that all of these people — that nobody in the White House knew‚” he said. “I don’t — I’m just going to say this — I don’t see how a guy disappears for three days and doesn’t tell the President of the United States‚ the Commander in Chief‚ the White House that he’s gone‚ and continues working in that position.”

John Kirby‚ Director of Strategic Communications for the National Security Council‚ confirmed on Tuesday that the White House was not informed of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s initial hospital stay for prostate cancer surgery. News broke over the weekend that Austin had been hospitalized on January 1 — and even spent some time in the Intensive Care Unit at Walter Reed Military Medical Center — due to complications from an elective procedure. And a short time later‚ the news broke that the White House had not been informed of the Defense Secretary’s hospitalization until several days later. When Austin’s doctors finally spoke to his condition on Tuesday‚ they revealed that he had undergone an initial procedure — during which he was under general anesthesia and spent the night in the hospital — on January 22. Big new update from Secretary Austin's doctors‚ who say that Austin was diagnosed with and treated for prostate cancer. in December‚ which led to an infection which he was treated at Walter Reed for last week: pic.twitter.com/mjlvjYnx7g — Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) January 9‚ 2024 According to Kirby‚ however‚ the White House was not informed of that initial hospital stay either. During Tuesday’s White House press briefing‚ both Kirby and Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre were questioned about Austin’s condition and what Biden had been apprised of and when. “So‚ the president has known for … five days … Secretary Austin was in the hospital‚ but he wasn’t informed why?” CBS’ Nancy Cordes asked. “He was not informed until last Friday that Sec. Austin was in the hospital. He was not informed until this morning that the root cause of that hospitalization was prostate cancer‚” Kirby said. “Is that because the WH knew and didn’t inform the president or because Secretary Austin chose not to share that with the president?” Cordes pressed. “Nobody at the White House knew that Secretary Austin had prostate cancer until this morning and the President was informed immediately after we were informed‚” Kirby replied. CBS’s @NancyCordes: “We learned also today that Secretary Austin when he went into the hospital for the first time on December 22‚ he knew he was going to be under general anesthesia‚ spending the night‚ and transferred authority to his deputy secretary. Was the WH informed then… pic.twitter.com/x4Fkd4WlJj — Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) January 9‚ 2024 “We learned also today that Secretary Austin when he went into the hospital for the first time on December 22‚ he knew he was going to be under general anesthesia‚ spending the night‚ and transferred authority to his deputy secretary‚” Cordes asked in a follow-up. “Was the White House informed then that the authority was going to be transferred?” CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP “No‚” Kirby replied.

The U.S. State Department paid for censorship practitioners from Germany‚ which does not enjoy the same freedoms as Americans do from the First Amendment‚ to train teachers in the United States how to police so-called “disinformation‚” records show. The records unearthed through the Freedom of Information Act by the Media Research Center (MRC) found that the State Department paid for trainings that were created mostly by German “disinformation” activists‚ and that that program was organized by an advocacy group that promotes similar laws in the United States‚ while sharing top officials and finances with a for-profit anti-disinformation firm that could profit from such laws. The “Medialogues on Propaganda” training sessions‚ funded by a grant from the U.S. Embassy in Berlin‚ consisted of 11 online meetings from June 2021 to April 2022‚ with an audience of 700 schoolteachers. The intent was to train teachers to “inoculate” students against disinformation and train them in “media literacy‚” a nebulous term that shifted between claiming that media sources that questioned the government or caused offense to liberals were not trustworthy‚ and that schoolchildren should create their own media parroting progressive activism. The MRC investigation‚ shared exclusively with The Daily Wire‚ found that a group at the University of Rhode Island‚ an activist nonprofit‚ and a for-profit censorship firm all shared top officials and projects. The three entities propped each other up to give a veneer of credibility to behaviors that were otherwise partisan or profit-seeking‚ MRC said. The anti-disinformation officials also allegedly violated their own purported tenets — misleading about their financial connections; promoting misinformation like the Trump-Russia hoax and censoring likely true information like the lab-leak theory; and opposing efforts to squash misinformation when it applied to leftist errors like the 1619 Project. The State Department sessions were used by its activist organizers to promote products from their for-profit “partner‚” Ad Fontes‚ as well as NewsGuard. The Daily Wire is suing the State Department for promoting the latter tool‚ which has been used to economically punish domestic media outlets with disfavored political opinions. A Three-Headed “Media Literacy” Monster The seminars were conducted by a team of three entities including Germany’s University of Würzburg’s Media Education &; Educational Technology Lab and the University of Rhode Island’s Media Education Lab‚ both government entities. The Rhode Island Media Education Lab has for years served as a center of liberal censorship efforts. It held a seminar for teachers on “how to teach students about the limits of freedom of expression.” It tried to confront the “white supremacy” of “digital blackface‚” or when white people use images featuring black people. But there was also the third entity in charge of the project: the nonprofit Media Literacy Now (MLN)‚ which as the “fiscal sponsor” played a central role. The Rhode Island Lab is arguably a front for the activist group with which it has frequently partnered‚ providing an academic veneer to a something that’s closer to partisanship‚ the Media Research Center report said. MLN lobbies for mandatory training in schools to fight “misinformation” and “online radicalization‚” boasting that it has helped convince 18 states to make laws on media literacy training. And while the Rhode Island Lab wrote an entire report on the importance of “media literacy” without ever defining it‚ MLN had spoken more clearly‚ calling it a “tool to create the society we all deserve: one that nurtures racial equity‚ social justice‚ and true democracy. Media literacy equals cultural change.” That missive came below the tagline “Justice now. Equality now. Democracy now‚” and a graphic of the MLN logo superimposed over a picture of a protest with signs such as “ACAB‚” the antifa slogan standing for All Cops Are Bastards. MLN promotes a World Health Organization statement that said that “An infodemic is an overabundance of information‚ both online and offline. It includes deliberate attempts to disseminate wrong information” and must be addressed by “the UN system‚ with Member States and with each other‚ and to… prevent the spread of  mis- and disinformation.” Continuing with the virus metaphor‚ MLN said it intends to “inoculate” children against “misinformation.” The founder of the Rhode Island Lab and advisory board member of MLN is University of Rhode Island communications professor Renee Hobbs‚ who attempted to push federal legislation creating $60 million in subsidies for anti-disinformation work like hers — legislation whose momentum rested on the idea that Russians caused Trump to win in 2016‚ itself a conspiracy theory. Hobbs hosted the State Department-funded seminars while she also chaired a National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) group that argued that English teachers should “move beyond” teaching children to write‚ and instead “disrupt classroom hierarchies” and focus on “consumerism‚ and economic injustice.” (True to form‚ Hobbs’ Rhode Island Lab used Legos to push teachers to talk with children about the “Capital Siege‚” a misspelled reference to the January 6 protest at the Capitol.) Washington Post education columnist Jay Mathews wrote that the group in charge of training 35‚000 English teachers had lost “its grip on reality” with its statement that “the time has come to decenter book reading and essay writing as the pinnacles of English language arts education” in favor of turning children into “change agents.” MLN immediately called for a reeducation camp for the Washington Post columnist. Hobbs called Mathews “smug” and “whiny.” Emails obtained by MRC show that MLN’s president‚ Erin McNeill‚ wrote that by not approving of Hobbs’ activities‚ Mathews — one of the most experienced journalists at one of America’s largest newspapers — had shown himself to be “desperately in need of media literacy.” McNeill also coached Hobbs to be more discreet‚ saying NCTE should “steer away” from saying that English should be replaced with “critical pedagogies” like Critical Race Theory because it makes it “evident” that they “have an agenda beyond literacy.” MLN advocated for Texas to mandate media literacy in schools‚ but when Texas lawmakers did just that but included the 1619 Project as an example of disinformation‚ it turned against the law. “Although it mandates media literacy within a teacher training program on civics education‚ it also takes some anti-free speech steps‚” said the group‚ whose mission is devoted to suppressing speech that‚ like the 1619 Project‚ is factually flawed. When asked why the State Department would fund a propaganda seminar aimed at Americans‚ the State Department told The Daily Wire that with its $30‚000 grant to Media Literacy Now‚ “the U.S. Embassy in Germany supported the participation of German participants in the media literacy program you are inquiring about.” But that doesn’t change who the target audience was. German “experts” were lecturing to an audience of mostly Americans‚ with the intent that they would carry the lessons back to their school districts. The conference organizers also didn’t recognize any such distinction in their final report. They wrote‚ “Thanks to a grant from the Public Affairs Section of the Berlin Embassy‚ we invited German‚ American‚ and global educators to gather online‚” though “our total number of German participants was smaller than we had hoped.” Ad Fontes The third head of the three-headed monster of interconnected “disinformation” groups is the for-profit media monitor‚ Ad Fontes. The company assigns purported “bias” ratings to news sources‚ rating conservative media as twice as unreliable as liberal sources. Then it charges tech firms for the list‚ and the firms use it to steer viewers away from supposedly unreliable content. MLN acknowledges that it has a “strategic affiliation” with Ad Fontes: the media monitor directs a portion of its income to MLN‚ which in turn advocates for laws that would steer millions of dollars to the for-profit firm and its peers. The president of MLN’s board‚ Jen Furlong‚ is the director of communications for Ad Fontes. Ad Fontes CEO Vanessa Otero is also on the advisory board of MLN. Otero was a speaker at the State Department seminars and used them as a platform for a sales pitch for her firm. She also said media literacy training should be “required for everyone from a very young age.” MRC interviewed Furlong and Otero‚ who denied that Al Fontes had ties to the government. Furlong said on her podcast‚ “Ad Fontes Media has zero ties to the federal government!” MRC concluded that “these statements are verifiably false.” “Furlong is president of Media Literacy Now’s board of directors‚ and Media Literacy Now organized the State Department-funded seminar‚” the group found. “Otero — in her official capacity as Ad Fontes CEO — was the featured speaker at said State Department-funded seminar‚ hosted by the State Department-funded Rhode Island Lab. Otero was celebrated by the seminar host Hobbs‚ who serves with Otero on Media Literacy Now’s board. Otero then proceeded to give a lengthy sales pitch for Ad Fontes products‚ all while concealing any of these facts from the audience.” Entity URI (Academic) MLN (Advocacy) Ad Fontes (Profit) Jennifer Furlong Board president Director of Communications Erin Otero Advisory Board CEO Renee Hobbs CEO Advisory Board State Department conferences Project Partner Project Partner Product promoted at Germany The seminars pushed a “Data Detox Kit‚” which instructs teachers to install NewsGuard‚ a similar product to Ad Fontes. NewsGuard is a for-profit firm that rates news outlets — red-flagging conservative news outlets while rubber-stamping liberal ones — and then sells the lists to advertisers with the threat that they could face boycotts if they place advertisements on a disreputable media outlet. Aside from the MLN speakers‚ most of the State Department speakers were European. The speaker who pushed the “Data Detox Kit” was Daisy Kidd‚ a self-proclaimed activist whose group‚ Tactical Tech‚ is partnered with George Soros-funded‚ left-wing groups as well as the Goeth Institute‚ which MRC calls “a propaganda wing of the German government.” The so-called kit trains kids to reject misinformation by using left-leaning factcheckers like Snopes and PolitiFact—which have repeatedly “debunked” factual articles that were critical of liberals — but tells them not to use the term “fake news‚” a colloquialism popularized by Trump. Kidd also used the sessions to promote a United Nations-funded curriculum called “The Glass Room‚” a game designed to train kids what to believe–including that it is “false or misleading” that “China was responsible for releasing the coronavirus.” Another speaker at the State Department seminars worked for a European group called MEET Tolerance. It lamented that on the internet‚ “it is not just progressive voices which are being spread‚” but also “ideologies which are based on hatred.” That group promotes a book called‚ “The New Racism: Conservatives and the Ideology of the Tribe.” The disinformation experts seem to believe that while media that does not serve their aims inherently lacks credibility — like the Washington Post article — media produced by young children would be credible. MEET teaches how to turn children into “media producers” who advocate “intercultural values and social justice.” Part of the curriculum was developed by socialist German politician Konstantin von Notz‚ who helps oversee Germany’s intelligence agencies and has given away balloons and stickers to recruit children to create the impression of support for an international censorship law to block “haters” and “right wing extremism‚” MRC said. The Self-Licking Ice Cream Cone In Germany‚ tech platforms are punished with steep fines for not censoring users’ content‚ and those who opposed the censorship measures were placed under government surveillance. Those efforts have been “horrifyingly effective” in Germany‚ and the U.S. State Department is now importing Europe’s most Orwellian techniques directly from the source‚ MRC said. American teachers were‚ in turn‚ paid to transform what they learned at the State Department sessions into lesson plans for children. For example‚ April Leach‚ a Florida schoolteacher‚ attended the sessions and used what she heard to create a “social emotional learning” lesson plan that promoted Ad Fontes. A left-wing foundation paid her $8‚000 through an “SEL in Action Award‚” according to the MRC report. Another attendee‚ a Washington State educator named Lauren McClanahan‚ illustrated the circular nature of the disinformation ecosystem. She attended the State Department seminar‚ and then created a curriculum that relied on NCTE’s call to pursue social justice instead of reading and writing to justify having students create “public service announcements (PSAs) about a social justice topic.” The videos featured children pleading with people to donate to leftist groups like Everytown for Gun Safety‚ whose subsidiary is a Rhode Island Lab “partner‚” MRC found. McClanahan was named an “affiliated faculty” of the Lab. The documents obtained under FOIA by the Media Research Center show how Hobbs‚ the Lab’s founder‚ often blurs the line between “media literary” and progressive politics that has nothing to do with disinformation. Her groups’ final report on the training sessions boasts that she used the State Department seminar to bring “media literary” to Austin‚ Texas’s police academy. That included making sure videos didn’t promote stereotypes and warning them not to raise an American flag for slain police officers because it might be offensive‚ MRC said. Furlong and Hobbs did not return requests for comment. MRC said that parents should ask their school board if Ad Fontes or NewsGuard are used in their schools‚ state legislatures must ban them from receiving funding‚ and attorneys general should investigate whether “activist” groups pushing “disinformation” laws are receiving kickbacks from censorship firms who would stand to profit off of such laws.

Elon Musk’s X announced three new partnerships with media personalities on Monday as the platform seeks to move heavily into original entertainment. The first partnership that X announced was with former CNN host Don Lemon‚ who was fired as the network sought to restore its credibility under then-CEO Chris Licht and amid reports of him allegedly disparaging women at work. “We’re delighted to announce a new content partnership with @DonLemon for his new project‚ The Don Lemon Show‚” X said in a statement. “The award winning TV journalist will share his unique and honest voice in 30 minute episodes‚ three times a week‚ covering politics‚ culture‚ sports and entertainment. The show will run exclusively first on X. Welcome Don!” Lemon‚ who has advocated in favor of censoring content on social media in the past‚ said in a statement that he was “back bigger‚ bolder‚ freer!” “My new media company’s first project is The Don Lemon Show‚” he said. “It will be available to everyone‚ easily‚ whenever and wherever you want it‚ streaming on the platforms where the conversations are happening. And you’ll find it first on X‚ the biggest space for free speech in the world. I know now more than ever that we need a place for honest debate and discussion without the hall monitors. This is just the beginning so stay tuned.” X then announced a partnership with former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) who the company said would “be sharing her unique POV through an exclusive series of documentary style videos and broader content on X.” “Freedom of speech is a fundamental right in America‚” Gabbard said. “Sadly we live in a time where debate‚ dialogue‚ and dissent can be cause for cancellation and censorship by those in power. To defend free speech‚ we must use it. I’m announcing a new partnership today with X where under @elonmusk leadership‚ free speech is not only protected‚ it is celebrated.” Gabbard said that she would be bringing viewers her opinion “about the truth of what’s happening in our country and world” today through a series of short films. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP X announced that it also signed sports commentator Jim Rome to a contract that will see him bring his show to the platform. “The show will stream exclusively on X‚ five days a week‚ starting after the Super Bowl‚” X said. “This show is the first of ten‚ as part of a multi-year partnership with Range Media Partners. Welcome to the team Jim!” Rome said that he was excited about the partnership and that being on the platform provided him with “an incredible opportunity for me to reach fans on the biggest‚ most dynamic platform in the world.”