Morning Wire - Evening Wire: Don Lemon Arrested & More Epstein Files Released | 1.30.26

Episode Date: January 30, 2026

Former CNN News anchor Don Lemon gets arrested, the DOJ releases roughly 3 million more pages related to Jeffrey Epstein, and Trump announces his pick to chair the Federal Reserve. Get the facts first with Evening Wire. - - - Ep. 2608 - - - Today’s Sponsor: Lean - Get 20% off when you enter code WIRE at https://TakeLean.com - - - Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3  - - - Privacy Policy: morning wire,morning wire podcast,the morning wire podcast,Georgia Howe,John Bickley,daily wire podcast,podcast,news podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Former CNN news anchor Don Lemon gets arrested. The DOJ releases roughly 3 million more pages related to Jeffrey Epstein, and Trump announces his pick for chair of the Federal Reserve. I'm Georgia Howe. John Bickley is off this afternoon. It's Friday, January 30th, and this is Evening Wire. Former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested in Los Angeles on Thursday night while covering the Grammy Awards. Daily Wire immigration reporter Jenny Tear has the details.

Lemon was arrested allegedly for violating the law in his role in an anti-ice protest at a Minnesota church earlier this month. Lemon had joined a group of leftist riders for a January 18th protest organized and promoted by the racial justice network and Black Lives Matter Minnesota. Here he is confronting the church pastor during the protest. Listen, we live in a, there's a constitution in the First Amendment to freedom of speech and freedom to assemble and protest. We're here to worship. We're here to worship Jesus because that's the hope of these cities. That's the hope of the world is Jesus Christ.

That's very respectful. Please don't push me, though. The mob targeted City's Church in St. Paul because one of its pastors allegedly worked with ICE. President Donald Trump said that those behind the protests, quote, should be thrown in jail. And his administration roundly rejected Lemon's claim that his activities were protected under the First Amendment. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Harmeet Dillon, said the Justice Department would, quote, pursue Lemon to the ends of the earth. ICE says the Ecuadorian consulate in Minneapolis is shielding. an illegal immigrant with a criminal record, allowing him to evade ICE arrest.

Officials say Jorge Miguel Bravo Urales fled the Ecuadorian consulate Tuesday as agents attempted to arrest him. Authorities say his record includes a DUI conviction, a sexual assault arrest, and multiple assault cases. Ice says agents did not enter the consulate but accused staff of blocking the arrest. Bravo Urales remains at large. Ecuador's government called the incident an attempted incursion and filed a diplomatic protest, saying consular officials acted to protect. the facility. Lake and Riley's killer, Jose Ibarra, is seeking a new trial. His lawyers claim he was not mentally competent to stand trial in 2024. Here's Daily Wire reporter Lyndon Blake with the developing story. Abara is currently serving life in prison without the possibility of parole after being

found guilty on all 10 counts in November 24 for the killing of Lake and Riley. The illegal immigrant attacked Riley who was 22 at the time while she was running on the University of Georgia campus. prosecutors say Riley died in the violent struggle. Abarra is scheduled to appear Friday in Athens-Claught County Superior Court in Georgia. Abara's attorneys have already obtained a mental evaluation as part of the appeals process and will make arguments before Judge Patrick Haggard, who presided over the original case and handed down the maximum sentence. The hearing today will focus on whether alleged errors during the original proceedings justify

a new trial. A federal judge in New York has dismissed the federal murder charges against Luigi Mangione, which means the death penalty is now off the table. Daily Wire Reporter's Actual has the details. He still faces a state murder charge and two federal counts of stalking. Lawyers from Mangione argued that the prosecution didn't properly show an underlying violent crime, which is needed for the firearm-related federal murder charge. Mangione is accused of shooting United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson at point-blank range in New York

after traveling from out of state to commit the alleged murder. Prosecutors claimed the underlying crime was stalking, but the defense argued that stalking doesn't always involve violence, which is how they got the charge dismissed. The defense also requested to block evidence found in Mangione's backpack, including a gun and notes criticizing the health insurance industry, but that was rejected by the judge. Mangione was arrested five days after the shooting at a McDonald's in Pennsylvania

after being recognized from a wanted poster. His federal trial is expected to begin in September. The DOJ has released another massive tranche of records related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche says roughly 3 million pages of material are being made public today, including 2,000 videos and 180,000 images. Blanche was asked about whether the identities of those guilty of abusing the women are within these documents. Here's what he said. There's this built-in assumption that somehow there's this hidden tranche of information of men that we know about,

that we're covering up or that we're not, we're choosing not to prosecute, that is not the case. Officials say some records remain sealed to protect victims and block the release of child sexual abuse material. The disclosure follows the Epstein Files Transparency Act signed into law last year requiring unclassified records to be released. The Justice Department says more documents are still under review and additional releases are expected. A judge sentenced a man to prison on Thursday for falsely claiming to have shot Charlie Kirk moments after the conservative activist was assassinated. Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce has the details. Seventy-year-old George Zinn was sentenced with up the 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to several charges. According to the Salt Lake

Tribune, he was charged on one third-degree felony charge of obstruction of justice and two second-degree felony charges of sexual exploitation of a minor. Immediately following the September assassination of Kirk, Zinn falsely claimed to have shot the conservative commentator. The Utah County Sheriff's Office said Zinn began to yell, quote, I shot him, now shoot me. As Zin was detained, law enforcement asked him for the murder weapon. When they searched him, law enforcement found child sexual abuse materials on his phone. Zen will serve his sentences for all charges concurrently, with the longest term being for the sexual exploitation charges, one to 15 years. A parole board will ultimately decide how much time Zin will serve in prison.

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Adding lean to my daily routine as I've been getting back into the gym and eating right has given me the confidence that I'm optimizing my wellness routine and setting my body up for success. Let's get you started with 20% off and free rush shipping so you can add lean to your healthy diet and exercise plan. Visit takeleen.com and enter Wire for your discount. That's promo code wire at takelein.com. President Donald Trump has announced his pick to chair the Federal Reserve. The president said in a post on Truth Social that former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh will go down as one of the great Fed chairman, maybe the best. Trump's nominee will now have to face the Senate for approval.

GOP Senator Tom Tillis, who chairs the banking committee, called Trump's pick a qualified nominee with a deep understanding of monetary policy. But noted that he will not vote to confirm any nominee to chair the Fed until the DOJ's inquiry into Chairman Powell is fully and transparently resolved. Meanwhile, Trump says Warsh wants to cut rates, something Trump has pushed Powell to do. Did Kevin Warsh commit to you that he will push to cut interest rates if he is confirmed? No, but we talk about it, and I've been following them, and I don't want to ask. ask him that question. I think it's inappropriate. I want to keep it nice and pure, but he certainly wants to cut rates. I've been watching it for a long time. Israel is set to reopen the Rafa crossing that connects Gaza to Egypt for pedestrian traffic. Israel's defense ministry said on Friday that

the checkpoint will be monitored in coordination with Egypt and overseen by a European Union monitoring mission. Residents of Gaza who want to return to the enclave from Egypt can do so, but it will only be allowed for those who left after the war began and who have received prior approval from Israel. The opening of the Rafa crossing is part of the U.S. brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas from last year. President Trump has reportedly received a slate of options for military action against Iran. According to The New York Times, the proposals include potential strikes aimed at Iran's nuclear and weapons facilities, as well as undercutting the power of Iran's supreme leader. The new slate of options come as Trump has pushed the regime to cut a deal on the future of its

nuclear program. Meanwhile, the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group recently arrived in the Middle East, bolstering U.S. forces in the region. In a victory for President Trump, the High Court of Panama has voided the contract of a Chinese-linked company that operated entry ports of the Panama Canal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on social media that the United States is encouraged by the recent Panamanian Supreme Court decision to rule port concessions to China unconstitutional. The Panama Ports Company, which operated terminals at each end of the canal, called the decision inconsistent with the relative legal framework and the law. The Trump administration has leaned on Panama to end Chinese influence over the canal, which is one of the most important choke points in global shipping. Chinese President Xi Jinping has dramatically purged top leadership of the Chinese military.

Daily Wire senior editor, Joel Needler, has the latest. Most notable among those ousted is General Zhang Yo Shah, China's highest-ranking military official, and chief deputy to Xi. The public firing of Zhang sends a harsh message as the general at 75 years old could have just as easily been quietly forced into retirement. The firing, along with accusations of corruption and insubordination, served to make Zhang a pariah among Chinese leadership. While the exact reasons for the firing remain unknown, rumors claim that Zhang may have passed on Chinese military secrets to the United States. Following the purges, Xi himself and one other officer became the only remaining members of China's Central Military Commission.

Sam Altman's OpenAI is reportedly planning to go public in quarter four of this year. Reports claim that OpenAI has been taking informal meetings with bankers to explore avenues for an IPO, racing to get ahead of AI tech rival Anthropic. After a relative drought of large public offerings over the past few years, Wall Street analysts expect 2026 to be a big year with companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and SpaceX, all reportedly pursuant. IPOs. OpenAI could face some challenges going public, however, due to remaining questions over the viability of AI products, relatively high turnover at the startup, and fierce competition. Actors and comedian Catherine O'Hara has died. She was 71. TMZ confirmed the news with sources

close to her family. Her cause of death was not released. O'Hara was best known for her iconic roles in Home Alone, Beetlejuice, Best in Show, and as Moira Rose from Schitts Creek, a performance that earned her an Emmy in 2020. Born in Toronto, O'Hara built a career spanning more than four decades across film, television, and comedy. She survived by her husband and two sons. Joe Rogan says he wasn't snubbed by the Golden Globes. He opted out.

On his podcast, Rogan revealed organizers invited him to submit for the new best podcast category, but required a $500 entry fee. The $500 is like for paperwork or whatever I said, no. I don't care. I already won. Like, you can't tell me I didn't win. I've been number one for six years in a row. All of a sudden, you're going to have a contest in front of all these people wearing tuxedos,

and you're going to say now I'm not number one? Like, fuck off. The award went to Amy Poller's podcast, which launched last year. Rogan brushed off the outcome saying popularity matters more than trophies and that he's already won with his audience. And in a wild caught-on-camera moment, an Atlanta airport bystander took out a TSA breach suspect by a body slam. The video from last October was released Thursday, showing a man, Russian, past a TSA checkpoint at Hartsfield Jackson Airport and then knocking an officer to the ground. But then, in an absolutely crazy moment, a bystander stops him by picking him up and slamming him

on the ground. Police identified the suspect as 40-year-old Fabian Leon, who was later charged with simple battery and evading security. Authorities say Leon admitted to drinking alcohol and using drugs before the incident. Those are your drive home updates this evening. To learn more about these stories, go to dailywire.com. And in case you missed it earlier today, we covered some major stories, including Borders'R Tom Holman putting anti-ice activists on notice, Congress narrowly averting a shutdown over immigration enforcement, and a federal contracting program banning more than a thousand companies. Thanks for tuning in. We'll be back tomorrow morning with a weekend edition of Morning Wire.