Morning Wire - IRS Protects Hunter Biden & Social Media Harms Kids | 5.26.23

Episode Date: May 26, 2023

An IRS whistleblower alleges the DOJ interfered with a high profile investigation, US surgeon general warns social media is harming mental health of children and sanctuary cities can't handle the influx of illegal immigrants. Get the facts first with Morning Wire. Black Rifle Coffee: Get 10% off your first order or Coffee Club subscription with code WIRE: https://www.blackriflecoffee.com/ Genucel: 70% off Most Popular Package + FREE Shipping + Free Spa Essentials https://genucel.com/WIRE   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Nespresso. Hear that, that's your next obsession. Every coffee, a new world. Every sip, a new taste. This is the new Nespresso. One touch, endless possibilities. Iced, flavored, long, short. Because some days call for that espresso kick.

And sometimes, a smooth, silky latte just wins. It's exceptional but effortless. Like actually effortless. Simply press, brew, and explore. Nispresso, what else? Keep exploring at nespresso.com. An IRS whistleblower comes forward to claim that the Department of Justice interfered with his investigation into Hunter Biden. When I took control of this particular investigation, I immediately saw it and was way outside the norm of what I've experienced in the past.

Why was the IRS going easy on the president's son while seeming to target an independent journalist? I'm Daily Wire, editor-in-chief John Bickley, with Georgia Howe. It's Friday, May 26th, and this is Morning Wire. The U.S. Surgeon General has issued a dire warning about social media, linking it to sky-high rates of depression in young people. We're living in the middle of a youth mental health crisis in America. This is the defining public health issue of our time. And sanctuary cities are struggling to fulfill their promises, as some counties are taking steps to block more migrants from coming in. Sanctuary cities are crying over a minuscule number of illegal immigrants compared to what Texas is suffering. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire.

Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know. The IRS is under more scrutiny after a whistleblower and a journalist have accused the agency of political retribution. Here to discuss the growing controversy at the Federal Tax Collection Agency as Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce. So Tim, let's start with the Hunter Biden whistleblower. He revealed his identity on CBS News this week. Who is he and what did he say? Yeah, Gary Shapley is a supervisory special agent with the IRS's

criminal investigations department. He's a 14-year veteran of the agency, and he runs a unit of a dozen agents who investigate international tax and finance crimes. He spoke to CBS News this week, saying he wanted whistleblower protections from Congress because he had information on a high-profile IRS investigation, which he claims was interfered with by the Justice Department. There was multiple steps that were slow-walked at the direction of the Department of Justice. Had you ever encountered that before? I have not, no. These deviations from normal process, and each and every time, it seemed to always benefit the subject. Shappley wouldn't confirm if the subject was Hunter Biden. He's barred under tax privacy laws from revealing that. But CBS News was able to independently confirm that the subject is indeed the president's son. Shapley's unit has been taken off the case in what his attorneys called an act of retaliation. The decision to sideline Shapley came after he had a tense meeting with DOJ officials in October. Shappley said that meeting was his,

red line in his decision to blow the whistle. Now he's seeking protection from Congress so he can tell a story more fully. Shappley is expected to sit in a closed session with members of the House Ways and Means Committee later today. Well, we'll see what comes of that and follow up. Now these claims come as we also received more information on the IRS investigation into independent journalist Matt Taibi. That's another case with political implications. What did we learn there? So back on March 9th, the IRS sent an agent to Taibi's home. supposedly about his 2018 tax return. That visit was, coincidentally, on the very same day, Taibi testified before Congress about his work

on the Twitter files. In that testimony, he exposed extensive collusion between U.S. intelligence agencies and Twitter to censor Americans. After learning that the IRS visited Taibi's home, Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan asked the agency to explain itself. That's when the IRS stated it opened its investigation into Taibi on December 24th last year. That happened to be the very same day that, Taibi published what he thought was the most explosive story on the Twitter files.

Taiibi's December 24th story revealed that Twitter wasn't just cooperating with the FBI, but multiple other agencies as well. The story basically showed that a vast network of government agencies were pushing social media censorship, not just the FBI. Now, the IRS told Jordan that its investigation into Taibi was actually an attempt to protect the reporter because they thought he may have been the victim of identity theft. All right, so the agency was so concerned about Taibi that had opened an investigation on Christmas Eve. Yeah, Taibi didn't buy that explanation either. He told Fox News he believes the IRS was trying to intimidate him.

Well, very concerning for Americans less connected than Taibi. Tim, thanks for reporting. Coming up, the Surgeon General issues a health warning on social media. A new public health advisory from the Surgeon General is sounding the alarm on social media use among children and teens, deeming it a profound risk of harm for the nation's use. Here with more on the growing evidence of the threat posed by social media is Daily Wire Senior Editor Cabot Phillips. So Cabot, tell us about this new warning.

Well, on Wednesday, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, the nation's top health official, issued a 19-page advisory warning of the detrimental impacts of social media on the mental and physical well-being of young people. Amid a growing body of scientific literature on the subject and growing bipartisan concern in Washington, this is the federal government's strongest condemnation yet of the now ubiquitous technology. As Murphy put it, social media presents a, quote, meaningful risk of harm to youth, and quote, it is no longer possible to ignore social media's potential contribution to the pain that millions of children and families are experiencing. Here he is on MSNBC this week. The reason I'm issuing this advisory is I am very concerned now that social media is an important factor that is driving this youth mental health crisis. We can't say that social media is in fact safe for our kids. And in fact, what we do see is growing evidence of harms.

And it's important to understand just how pervasive social media use has become, especially among young people. According to a recent HHS study, up to 95% used it regularly, while two-thirds use it every day, and a third use it, quote, almost constantly. The average teenager is now on social media three and a half hours a day. Wow. So what does the science say about the impact of all that social media use? Yeah, the science is now clear. It's undoubtedly detrimental to the mental health of young people. That's really no longer up for debate. teenagers who use social media regularly are three times as likely to experience depression as those who use it sparingly,

while other studies have shown that social media use has the strongest link to depression among adolescents of any external factor. And if you look at depression and anxiety rates among teens, they've nearly doubled since the year 2010 when social media really burst on the scene. Now, critics initially claimed that kids with depression were more likely to seek out social media,

so the data may be skewed, but a number of studies show that when teens cut out social media use entirely, depression rates plummet, sometimes within a week or less. And one more note, studies also point to a correlation between regular social media use and decreased attention span, especially for kids under the age of 13. So there's just a slew of concerning data. What makes it so dangerous for young people? So health experts say a big factor is social comparison.

It's not rocket science. Millions of already self-conscious young people are now constantly exposed to heavily manipulated photos of perfect-looking people that are just impossible for them to replicate. and the harm caused by that social comparison is most noticeable among young girls, especially those using the app Instagram. One recent study found that girls who use the app more than two hours a day were 52% more likely to engage in self-harm and 55% more likely to be depressed compared to girls the same age who use the app less than two hours a day.

And from 2011 to 2021, there was a 60% increase in the number of teenage girls saying they felt persistently sad or hopeless. Experts also point to increased rates of cyberbullying. Up to 40% of teens say they've been the victim of bullying online. And these trends were already evident well before 2020. So it's not a problem that's expected to go away as lockdown's end and life returns normal. Now, what can parents realistically do to protect their kids when it comes to social media? Yeah, that is the big question.

The Surgeon General Advisory encourages parents to take simple steps to limit social media use, including turning off notifications on their kids' devices to limit distractions and taking part in screen-free family meals throughout the week. It also encourages parents to track their kids' screen time, closely monitor which apps they're using, and who they're talking to online. But it's worth noting. The advisory, it's not all negative on social media. The Surgeon General says that some use can be beneficial in helping kids find community, bond with their friends, and discover new interests. In their view, moderation is the name of the game, though for obvious reasons, it's a lot easier said than done. Yeah, you know, I become more radically anti-selfie every day. Might be good for your mental health.

Gavitt, thanks for reporting. Anytime. The border crisis is straining not just border communities but self-declared sanctuary cities, which once welcomed migrants but now say they can't handle anymore. Cities like New York and Chicago advertised their welcoming policies just a few years ago. Now they're burdened with the growing cost. Daily Wire investigative reporter Marade Allardy is here with the details for us. So Marade, what's the situation with these sanctuary cities?

Hi, Georgia. Well, much like what border communities have experienced, for years, illegal migrants are now streaming into sanctuary cities by the hundreds, sometimes even thousands. The situation is particularly dire in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Denver, but other sanctuary cities like San Francisco are bracing to be overwhelmed too. Floods of migrants are arriving in these cities needing food and shelter, and city leaders say they're draining the city's resources. Now, just for context, how many migrants have these cities received at this point? Well, it's a range. New York has

accepted more than 70,000 migrants in recent months, which is more than anywhere else. This has led Democratic Mayor Eric Adams to warn that the costs of the city is becoming unsustainable, even with federal aid from the Biden administration. It's also causing more rural counties in the state to pass preemptive resolutions declaring they won't be taking migrants if the city tries to send them. For example, Warren County North of Albany and several other counties declared a state of emergency to deal with New York City relocating migrants upstate. New York City has also taken over more than 150 hotels to shelter more than 41,000 asylum seekers, in some cases displacing paying customers, which has caused a lot of frustration.

New York Governor Kathy Hochel is also reportedly planning on housing up to 1,500 illegal migrants in dormitories at three state college campuses, including two in Buffalo and Albany. The college dorm plan has gotten pushback from Republican lawmakers. Adams and Hockel are also calling for expedited work authorizations, for migrants in New York. Just a few miles outside the city on Long Island, lawmakers are also trying to block the New York mayor from foisting the asylum seekers on them.

Here's Congressman Nick Lelota, a Republican. We here in Suffolk County are 2,000 miles from the southern border, but we are to become a border county because of the Biden administration's failed border policies and the sanctuary city policies of New York City. I say to the mayor of New York City, sir, put your money where your mouth is. The situation is creating a challenging political problem for Mayor Eric Adams, who is rumored to be considering a gubernatorial run.

The migrant crisis is unpopular with voters, but publicly blaming Democrats in the White House for not securing the border could make him a pariah in the party. What about Chicago? We saw a similar drama playing out there quite recently. Right. Chicago is scrambling as well. Migrants have been sleeping on the floors of Chicago police stations and overcrowded city shelters. The situation is an immediate emergency for Chicago's new Democratic mayor, Brandon Johnson, who took office last week. Chicago's old mayor, Lori Lightfoot, upset residents when she bust dozens of illegal migrants out of the city into a nearby suburb. Johnson has not said exactly how he plans to deal with the migrants long term, but the mayor's office said 400 migrants might be housed at a local college over the summer. Philadelphia, another sanctuary city is having the same crisis. Philadelphia's Democrat Mayor Jim Kenney blasted the Texas governor.

It is sad and outrageous. The Governor Abbott and his administration continued to implement their cruel and racist policies using immigrant families, including children, as pawns to shamelessly push their warped political agenda. It's a far cry from the situation in 2018 when Kenny was filmed dancing after a federal judge ruled Philadelphia could remain a sanctuary city and get $1.5 million in federal funding. Denver has several hundred migrants arriving daily. Last week, Denver ramped up its response to the emergency level. About 1,000 people are now staying in four shelters across the city.

So far, the city has spent 15.7 million on migrants since December, with less than 250,000 in help from the federal government. Now, so far, it's these major sanctuary cities that are dealing with the influx of migrants. But there are many smaller sanctuary cities across the country, right? Yes, there are at least 181 sanctuary cities and or counties, which tend to be clustered in blue or purple states, but some red states have sanctuary cities too. For example, New Orleans, Jackson, Mississippi, and Shelby County in Tennessee. There are also 11 designated sanctuary states, so it's possible that those locales will begin receiving migrants as some of these larger cities tap out. All right, well, Marade, thanks so much for reporting.

That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back this afternoon with more of the news you need to know.