Morning Wire - Unvaccinated Troops Reinstated & Super Bowl LIX Matchup | Afternoon Update | 1.27.25

Episode Date: January 27, 2025

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This episode is brought to you by Black Rifle Coffee. Head to Black Riflecoffee.com and use code DailyWire for 20% off your purchase. That's Black RifleCoffy.com code DailyWire. I'm Georgia Howe with DailyWire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's Monday, January 27th, and this is your Morning Wire afternoon update. Military service members who were discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine may soon join the ranks again. Daily Wire reporter Amanda Presta-Jacquimo has the latest. President Trump is set to sign an executive order today that will restore over

8,000 troops back to their previous rank with full back pay and benefits. This comes after the troops were removed under the Biden administration's vaccine mandate between 2021 and 23. Defense Secretary Pete Hexeth confirmed the move while calling it a step toward rebuilding military readiness and morale. Trump is also set to sign orders banning diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the military and reversing policies allowing transgender individuals to serve openly. President Trump has signed an executive order today that will restore over 8,000 troops back to their previous rank with full back pay and benefits. Meanwhile, the CIA is taking a closer look at the origins of COVID-19.

Over the weekend, CIA director John Ratcliffe revealed in an interview that the agency now assesses a lab-related incident in Wuhan as the most likely cause of the outbreak. He emphasized that the findings based on an assessment conducted during the Biden administration aimed to rebuild public trust and avoid political controversy. Ratcliffe was asked if the virus was released intentionally and here's what he said. I think we'll get to the point where every intelligence agency in the United States will agree with the CIA's assessment that the most likely outcome was from a lab in Wuhan. And we'll get more intelligence as time goes by and we'll be transparent with the American people

about what that intelligence says. Days after withdrawing from the World Health Organization, President Trump says he's open to rejoining it, but there would need to be some significant reform. Daily Wire Deputy Managing editor Tim Rice reports. Speaking in a rally in Las Vegas, Trump criticized the WHO for unfair financial contributions, pointing out that the United States previously paid $500 million annually

while China contributed just $39 million. Here's Trump. You know what the hell of we? have. Does anyone like? We have so many people pouring in. We have no idea. We go up, but we're going down a little bit now. You don't mind that. It's going to take some bad ones out. I would do four years ago, but Biden immediately went back for even more money. Trump says the WHO offered to reinstate U.S. membership at the lower rate, but he initially declined. However, he suggested the possibility of rejoining if the organization implements reforms. Trump's remarks echo his calls for

NATO allies to increase their defense spending, saying the U.S. should reconsider its financial commitments if other countries don't contribute fairly. The president withdrew from the WHO with an executive order soon after taking office. Tensions are on the rise between the U.S. and the Taliban. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called for bounties to be placed on the heads of Taliban leaders as long as they're holding Americans as prisoners. This comes as two Americans remain in Taliban custody and follows a deal that sent two home in the beginning hours of Trump's presidency. The Taliban's ambassador to Qatar warned Rubio against threats while saying that the Taliban prefer resolving issues through dialogue,

pointing to Qatar's role in securing the recent release of a Canadian prisoner. This episode is brought to you by Shopify. Sign up for your $1 per month trial period at Shopify.com slash morningwire, all lowercase. Established in 2025 has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? Head over to Shopify.com slash morningwire to start something. with Shopify today. TV host Dr. Phil McGraw witnessed ICE arrests on a weekend

ride along with agents in Chicago. Among them was the arrest of a Thai national convicted of child sex crimes. Dr. Phil was embedded with ICE and Trump's border czar Tom Holman. The suspect smugly brushed off questions but admitted he was in the U.S. illegally.

Where you from? Where I was born or where I'm from? Where you born? Thailand. You've been deported before from the United States? No. Never been deported. Ice has ramped up enforcement averaging nearly 1,000 arrests daily since Trump took office. Officials say the crackdown will continue with the goal of expelling millions of undocumented migrants.

Dr. Phil called the operation a high-risk mission targeting serious offenders. Stocks took a dive today as a new Chinese AI product rattled investors. The NASDAQ plunged 3.5%, with the S&P 500 down nearly 2% as Chinese AI startup Deepseek gained traction globally. Shares of Nvidia fell more than 15% leading declines in tech. Part of DeepSeek's rapid rise is fueled by its open source model and lower development costs. Its success is cast doubt on U.S. dominance in artificial intelligence. Experts say the Chinese firm still lags behind OpenAI and Google, but it's gaining ground fast. And Super Bowl 59 is set and many people aren't happy about it.

The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles will face off on February 9th in New Orleans. And while social media is buzzing, it's mostly with frustration. Fans online are expressing disappointment with memes and jokes, criticizing the lack of variety as the Chiefs make their fifth Super Bowl appearance since 2020. Despite the backlash, Chiefs and Eagles fans, however, are celebrating their shot at the championship. Thanks for tuning in. We'll be back tomorrow morning with another full edition of Morning Wire.