Morning Wire - Epps Sues Fox News & Wray Testifies in Congress | Afternoon Update | 7.12.23

Episode Date: July 12, 2023

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I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's Wednesday, July 12th, and this is your Morning Wire afternoon update. A man accused of being an undercover FBI agent involved in the January 6th riots at the Capitol sued Fox News Wednesday for defamation. In the suit filed by Arizona resident Ray Epps, he claims that Fox News spread falsehoods about him when they say he encouraged a mob to invade the Capitol on January 6th, 2021. The lawsuit accuses recently ousted Fox News host Tucker Carlson of being a major proponent of the allegedly false smear against the Arizona man.

FBI director Christopher Ray testified before Congress today, touching upon a number of subjects, including the alleged FBI double standard toward the Biden family, the January 6th pipe bomb, and other matters. The hearing was the first time Ray testified on the hill since Republicans took control of the House. Do you know how the second bomb was found at the DNC? And when do you plan on answering our letter? Well, as to the letter, I will work with the department to make sure we can figure out what information we can provide. As you know, this is a very active, ongoing investigation, and there are some restrictions on that. Yes, we can handle classified information, and we fund your department, and so you need to provide that. Are you protecting the Bidens?

Absolutely not. The FBI does not. You won't answer the question. Hold on. You want to answer the question about whether or not. That's a shakedown. and everybody knows why you won't answer it. Because to the millions of people who will see this, they know it is. And your inability to acknowledge that is deeply revealing.

Microsoft and U.S. national security officials announced Wednesday that the Chinese Communist Party hacked into Microsoft email accounts belonging to the U.S. State Department and dozens of other U.S. and European government agencies. Senator Mark Warner, chair of the Select Committee on Intelligence, said Wednesday, quote, the Senate Intelligence Committee is closely monitoring what appears to be a significant cybersecurity breach

by Chinese intelligence. Warner added that it is, quote, clear that China is steadily improving its cyber collection capabilities directed against the U.S. and our allies. He vowed that the private sector and government would work together on this threat. This week, the California Assembly's Public Safety Committee

blocked a bill that would have made human trafficking of a minor, a serious felony. The bill noted that California consistently ranks number one in the nation and the number of human trafficking cases reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, and Human Trafficking is among the world's fastest-growing criminal enterprises, estimated to be a 150 billion a year global industry. The bill would have made human trafficking of a minor subject to California's three strikes law, and thus someone convicted twice could be sentenced to life in prison. In an interview with KCR3, the bill's co-author,

state Senator Shannon Grove slammed the Democrats who voted against it. You can pass a note to a bank and rob a bank. You can commit arson and that's considered a serious felony, but to traffic a minor child in the state of California is not. That's something wrong. I mean, I'm talking zero to 17

where the average age is 10, and they would not pass this bill. Iowa passed a bill on Tuesday, banning most abortions when an unborn child's heartbeat can be detected, usually around six weeks into the pregnancy. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds called a special session to address abortion after the Iowa Supreme Court blocked the state's 2018 Heartbeat Act last month

and will now sign the bill on Friday. And a jury decided this week that a handwritten will found under the late Aretha Franklin's couch cushions is valid and overrides an earlier version found locked in a cabinet. The decision comes amid a bitter legal battle over the legendary singer's reported multi-million dollar estate. Her son Ted White the second insisted that a notarized version of Franklin's Will from 2010

should override the 2014 version discovered in her couch because it was created in a more traditional way. All right, those are your drive-home updates this afternoon. To learn more about these stories, go to Dailywire.com and for more in-depth discussion

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