Congress votes to certify Donald Trump’s electoral victory as the president-elect vows leniency to J6 defendants; Trump is set for sentencing this week after Judge Juan Merchan refuses to dismiss his case; and new evidence emerges in New Year’s attacks. Get the facts first with Morning Wire.Shopify: Shopify: "Get a $1 per month trial at https://www.shopify.com/morningwire"Black Rifle Coffee: Get 20% off your first order or Coffee Club subscription with code DAILYWIRE: https://www.blackriflecoffee.com https://www.blackriflecoffee.com
Chapter 1: What is Congress voting on regarding Trump today?
Congress is set to certify Donald Trump's presidential victory today as the country reexamines the legacy and aftermath of January 6th.
How has public sentiment about that day shifted? And will Trump pardon those charged in the riots?
They've been in there for years and they're in a filthy, disgusting place that shouldn't even be allowed to be open.
I'm Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Monday, January 6th, and this is Morning Wire. Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in the controversial hush money case this week after Judge Mershon denies his motion to dismiss.
This would be a case where you would not even normally see a sentence for incarceration. So I've always doubted that that would be coming out of this case.
And new details have come to light regarding last week's deadly terror attack in New Orleans. Why are some casting doubt on the lone wolf theory?
Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.
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Chapter 2: How has public opinion shifted about January 6th?
But in an appearance on Fox News yesterday, House Speaker Mike Johnson, fresh off his reelection, said he doesn't expect the blizzard to interfere with the vote.
Well, I hope we have full attendance. We got a big snowstorm coming to D.C. And we encourage all of our colleagues, do not leave town, stay here. Because, as you know, the Electoral Count Act requires this on January 6th at 1 p.m. So whether we're in a blizzard or not, we are going to be in that chamber making sure this is done.
Now, the House needs a simple majority of 218 members present to reach a quorum, and it seems like most members have stayed in town over the weekend. Marjorie Taylor Greene even said she would walk to the Capitol if need be.
So it seems like Johnson has every reason to be confident that come 1 p.m., Vice President Kamala Harris, acting as president of the Senate, will convene a joint session of Congress, at which point lawmakers will vote to certify Donald Trump's landslide victory.
Right, a very momentous occasion. And now this calls to mind, maybe forever, the last presidential certification vote on January 6th. We have Trump coming into office now, and he's been vowing to take action related to that. Tell us about that.
Absolutely. Some 1,600 of the president's supporters have been charged for their role in the 2021 riot, and hundreds have been sent to prison. Trump has said repeatedly that he's open to pardoning many of those charged and has frequently spoken out against what he says is very unfair treatment of mostly peaceful protesters. Here's what he said during an appearance on Meet the Press in December.
They arrested an old woman because she, I don't think she did anything. They don't even know what she did. These people have suffered. Their lives have been destroyed. And yet in Portland, Where they burn down half the city, they burn it down all the time. It's like a routine occurrence. They don't do anything.
Trump has indicated that he's not considering a blanket pardon, saying that there would be some exceptions for those found to have done something really criminal. But by and large, I wouldn't be surprised if pardoning January 6th defendants is one of the first big things Trump does in his second term.
Truly a remarkable prospect and a remarkable turn of fortune for potentially many of the defendants.
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Chapter 3: What is the latest on Trump's sentencing?
Now, Mershon signaled that he'd impose something called an unconditional discharge at this sentencing. What would that entail and what can we expect from Trump?
Yeah, an unconditional discharge would mean that Trump wouldn't serve any jail time or any probation. It would officially end the trial and Trump could move to appeal the 34 felony convictions. But it also would formally brand Trump as a convicted felon heading into the inauguration.
It's unclear what Trump's next move will be, but he could possibly seek an immediate appeal on the immunity claims that Mershon just rejected in this latest decision. Or he could show up virtually or in person on the 10th and, as I mentioned, go on to appeal those convictions. There's been a lot of reaction to Mershon's ruling. First, how has Trump responded? Trump swiftly condemned Mershon.
He said online that Mershon effectively made up these charges and he called him the most conflicted judge in New York State history. Trump also denounced New York's court system as corrupt and he said it's one of the reasons so many people and companies are fleeing the state. Some prominent legal scholars, honestly, weren't that far off in their criticisms of Merchan.
Chapter 4: What did Trump say about pardoning January 6th defendants?
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, for example, he called Merchan's recent decisions the, quote, final cathartic act for lawfare warriors. Turley said the sentencing date effectively provides the media with the inauguration day talking point that Trump will be the first person sworn into presidential office as a convicted felon.
Legal scholar Andy McCarthy, who formerly served as the assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, he made a similar argument. McCarthy said that the pre-inauguration day sentencing appears to be a bid by Mershon to ensure that Trump enters office as a formerly convicted felon. Now, before you go, this isn't the only case that Trump is dealing with.
What's the status of the others? Yes, the two federal prosecutions against Trump, one concerning J6 matters and the other classified documents, they've both been dropped and special counsel Jack Smith has quickly closed up shop. As for the Georgia election related case, Fulton County DA Fannie Willis and her office have been disqualified from prosecuting Trump.
Willis is now in the process of appealing that decision. If she were to win that, she could go after Trump, but she couldn't do that until after he's out of office. And if she loses her bid, the case would be kicked to somebody else. They could continue to go after Trump, or they could drop some or all of those charges.
Trump is also in the process of appealing a civil fraud judgment that totals nearly half a billion dollars. That case, which notably involves no victims, no injuries, and no losses, was brought by AG Letitia James. And finally, Trump is also appealing a civil verdict in the likewise highly controversial E. Jean Carroll case.
So still a lot of irons in the fire. Meanwhile, Marshawn's sentencing is just a few days away. Amanda, thanks for reporting. You're welcome. Nearly a week after a pair of attacks rocked New Orleans and Las Vegas, new details are coming to light regarding the suspects and their motives.
Here are the latest, including some Daily Wire exclusive information, is senior editor Cabot Phillips. Hey, Cabot, so let's start in New Orleans, where the death toll now sits at 14. What more have we learned in recent days?
Well, first, investigators say the man responsible, Shamsu Dinjabar, was wearing a pair of meta glasses equipped with a camera that could have allowed him to film a firsthand account of his attack. He also wore those glasses on a number of earlier visits to the French Quarter. It's believed he used footage gathered then to help plan out his attack.
We're also learning more about Jabbar's background. According to investigators, the 42-year-old from Houston originally contemplated attacking an ex-wife and other family members. but ultimately decided on a terror attack to focus on, quote, the war between the believers and disbelievers of Islam, that is. Tabar's brothers say he was raised Muslim but left the religion as an adult.
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Chapter 5: What are the details of Trump's hush money case?
He was involved with a rare bomb-making material that was not available in the United States. So I know that they're saying this is kind of a lone wolf type situation, but there seem to be some real ISIS connections here that need to be followed up.
Now this all comes amid renewed concerns over an ISIS expansion and resurgence. Talk to us about that.
Right. While ISIS was largely eradicated under President Trump's first term, the group has slowly rebuilt in recent years, claiming responsibility for numerous terror attacks around the globe in 2024. And national security experts have been warning in recent months that the turmoil in Syria could well open up a dangerous power vacuum that allows ISIS to regain an even larger foothold.
So as President Trump prepares to take office, he'll be faced with a seemingly resurgent ISIS. Now, the big question will be how aggressive of an approach he takes. As I mentioned, he's certainly shown a willingness to go after these groups hard, but he did campaign largely on staying out of the Middle East in his second term. So some very big consequential decisions.
Chapter 6: Why is the hush money case considered controversial?
Sure. Now, before we go, let's get to the latest from that separate bombing incident in Las Vegas. What do we know there?
So investigators are working to piece together what exactly drove Matthew Livelsberger, a 37-year-old Army Green Beret, to set off that car bomb outside Trump Hotel in Vegas, which ended up killing himself and injuring seven others. Police say one of Livelsberger's devices contained a journal entry urging veterans and all Americans to, quote, wake up.
regarding our government which he said was quote weak and only serves to enrich themselves he later allegedly added quote this was not a terrorist attack it was a wake-up call
Now, the Daily Wire also got some additional details about what happened before the incident. Tell us about that.
Right. So as the FBI works on the timeline leading up to the incident, the Daily Wire spoke exclusively with the owner of the Tesla Cybertruck that he used. He told us Livelsberger initially claimed to be visiting the Grand Canyon, but set the car to navigate to Trump Hotel from the very beginning. He also says the suspect asked him how to operate the power outlets in the trunk.
That's where the bomb was set and whether they could be turned on from outside the vehicle. And importantly, he says cameras in the truck showed the suspect making a stop at a sporting goods store before the incident, coming back to the car with loads of bags, potentially picking up materials used for bomb making.
No doubt investigators will be looking into all those details as they get to the bottom of this very strange, tragic event. Yeah, still more questions to be answered there for sure. Kevin, thanks for reporting.
Anytime.
Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back later this afternoon with more news you need to know.
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