The Daily Signal - Shutdown Showdown, Disney Drama, MAHA Caucus | Dec. 20, 2024

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Starting point is 00:00:25 We'd love to talk. Business. We're just hours away from a federal government shutdown with all eyes on Capitol Hill. I'm your host, Rob Bluey, and this is the Daily Signal's Top News in 10 for Friday, December 20th, 2024. After the second must-pass bill to fund the government failed in the House of Representatives Thursday night, Republicans spent much of Friday seeking agreement on a path forward. The federal government would officially shut down at midnight otherwise. Lawmakers are considering a plan that would strip the debt limiting,

Starting point is 00:01:07 from the bill, an idea that President-elect Donald Trump wanted to dress now rather than next year. Dropping the debt limit would appease many of the 38 Republicans who opposed the funding bill Thursday night. Trump's insistence on extending or eliminating the debt limit was a curveball many on Capitol Hill didn't expect. Without the debt limit, the new funding bill would essentially be a clean continuing resolution until March of 2025, plus disaster relief for hurricane victims and a one-year extension of the farm bill. Congressman Chip Roy of Texas spoke to Fox News about the latest negotiations. Look, President Trump is absolutely right. We need to deal with the debt ceiling.

Starting point is 00:01:47 We need to get it off the table so that he can proceed to do what he needs to do without Chuck Schumer rattling the markets with threats of default. That's what Chuck Schumer has said publicly and to people in the Senate he wants to do. So President Trump is right. The question is how we get there. The first bill that was negotiated obviously was a non-examination. starter. Once the American people saw everything that was in, 1,550 pages. So we've moved the needle forward to a better bill, but it was a bill and you asked, why did I oppose the bill last

Starting point is 00:02:13 night? 38 Republicans opposed it was because it came with two-year extension of the debt ceiling, which would be about $5 trillion lift in our credit card without any structural spending reforms. So our position is, Mr. President, we want to deliver for you on a debt ceiling increase to get it out of the way. Chuck Schumer can't, you know, abuse it, but we need spending restraint. So what we've been doing for 48 hours is meeting, meeting with the vice president, meeting with a lot of folks in his incoming administration. I think we've got the outlines of something that would work, but we're still discussing it as we speak. I think we can get something done that will make everybody happy. We're working hard to do it. We'll be closely following the story.

Starting point is 00:02:54 You can track the latest developments at DailySignal.com or on our ex account at DailySignal. Religious Liberty law firm Alliance Defending Freedom will meet with the Walt Disney Company in early January to question its collusion with a now-defunct advertising giant known to censor news outlets and personalities. ADF partnered with Boyer Research and patron partners who represent Disney shareholders to file a shareholder resolution against Disney. Disney agreed to a meeting in January, leading ADF to withdraw its resolution. At issue is the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, which the House Judiciary Committee says violated federal antitrust laws by censoring and boycotting the speech of conservative news outlets and personalities. Disney became a member of Garm sometime after its founding in 2019 and before its dissolution in 2024. ADF Senior Council Jeremy Tedesco says Disney needs to be held accountable for these kinds of actions until Americans see a change in behavior. The Daily Signals Elizabeth Mitchell, who reported this news,

Starting point is 00:03:58 joins me in studio to talk about the story. Thanks, Elizabeth. Thanks for having me. What is the Alliance Defending Freedom hoping to accomplish from this meeting? They're hoping to stop companies from engaging in woke practices like censoring conservatives and Christians. So Garm, according to the House Judiciary Committee, has a history of discrimination like that, silencing people like The Daily Wire, the Babylon Bee. And as a result, Alliance Defending Freedom has sent letters like,

Starting point is 00:04:25 this resolution to a number of companies who are known to engage in these practices in hopes of getting them to change course and not censor anyone. So that's what Alliance Defending Freedom is aiming at accomplishing here. Is ADF surprise that Disney responded in the way that it did? They are. When I spoke to the lawyer Jeremy Chidesco, he said it was a very pleasant surprise that Disney was willing to have this meeting because they sent out a lot of these letters and it doesn't always go that way. So that shows a level of openness from Disney to this. Now Disney has been under fire for its work practices for a while now. Just this week, Disney had to pull a trans storyline from one of its children's shows due to parental backlash. So it seems like they're

Starting point is 00:05:05 really feeling the fire from those opposed to such things. Elizabeth, that is a notable change that Disney made. Do you think that's a short-term decision to appease those who were complaining about this particular show? Or is it more of a long-term trend that Disney might actually be responding to that pressure? I hope that it is a long-term. term response to parents who don't want their children learning about these really intense issues from TV shows. They'd rather them learn about it from them, not from others, not from school, and certainly not from Disney. So I hope that they're waking up to what consumers and shareholders really want. Well, as a parent myself, I hope you're correct.

Starting point is 00:05:46 There's a new caucus on Capitol Hill dedicated to making America healthy again. Senator Roger Marshall, a Republican from Kansas, says the new caucus will focus on nutrition, access to affordable, high-quality nutritious foods, improving primary care, and addressing the root causes of chronic diseases. Marshall practiced medicine for more than 25 years. He joined Fox and Friends this morning. 60% of Americans have a chronic disease. 20% of our kids are on some type of medication.

Starting point is 00:06:13 So let's put air beneath RFK Jr.'s dream. And this is my dream, too. I've been working on this since a freshman medical student. So let's put wind beneath the RFK Jr.'s wings. let's make America healthy again. And I think that starts with food as medicine. It starts with a healthy diet. It starts with declaring war on chronic diseases.

Starting point is 00:06:31 We don't know why we had this high incidence of chronic disease. You know, is it environmental toxins? Is it because half of our food is from packaged packages of some sort that it's processed? We don't know if it's our biome. Is it because we've given kids too many antibiotics at a young age? So let's figure out what's causing it. Let's declare war on chronic diseases. These are the same moms who came.

Starting point is 00:06:53 out during COVID, they came and approached me when no one else was outside campaigning but me, and they came to me and said, I don't want to give my child this COVID vaccine. Now parents are taking control of their children's health and they're questioning what's been the norm for decades. President-elect Donald Trump selected Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. After abandoning his own presidential bid, Kennedy endorsed Trump during the 2024 election and embraced Maha as a rallying cry for a healthier America. Kennedy spent the week meeting with senators on Capitol Hill. His confirmation is expected to be one of the more contentious,

Starting point is 00:07:30 given his plans to shake up the medical industrial complex. At least four other senators have signed up to join the Maha Caucus, including Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Rick Scott of Florida, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin. Now let's hit our news flash for Friday. A man drove into a crowded Christmas market in Germany today,

Starting point is 00:07:52 resulting in several deaths and injuries. The individual was arrested at the scene. Questions immediately began to surface online about Germany's liberal immigration policies and why the suspect was motivated to attack a peaceful gathering. Our prayers are with the victims and their families. Party City is going out of business after 40 years, closing down all of its stores effective immediately. Meanwhile, retailer Big Lots is planning to close its 963 stores after a bankruptcy deal fell through. Big Lots will hold a going out of business sale at its remaining locations in the coming days.

Starting point is 00:08:29 Both companies blamed high inflation for their financial woes. College football fans finally get their wish with a newly expanded playoff format that kicks off Friday night with a first round matchup between Notre Dame and Indiana. Saturday slate includes Penn State versus Southern Methodist University, Texas against Clemson, and Ohio State, which hosts Tennessee. The games will be broadcast on either ESPN or TNT. And that'll do it for today's episode. Thank you for listening to Top News in 10. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button so you never miss out on new episodes. And be sure to catch our weekend Deep Dive Edition tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:09:08 Coming up, Virginia Allen interviews Allison Wynn about Governor Gavin Newsom's plan to Trump-proof California. Be sure to listen right here in this podcast feed. Today's episode was edited by Tyler O'Neill and produced by Tim Kennedy and Joseph Fonsp Thanks again for listening and have a great night. The Daily Signal podcast is made possible because of listeners like you. Executive producers are Rob Lewy and Katrina Trinko. Hosts are Virginia Allen, Brian Gottstein, Tyler O'Neill, and Elizabeth Mitchell. Sound design by Lauren Evans, Mark Geinney, John Pop, and Joseph Von Spakovsky.

Starting point is 00:09:48 To learn more or support our work, please visit DailySignal.com.

The Daily Signal - Shutdown Showdown, Disney Drama, MAHA Caucus | Dec. 20, 2024

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