President Donald Trump lambasts Democrats as the shutdown grinds on, blue state governors form a “shadow” public health alliance, and one of the boldest heists of the century leaves the Louvre missing priceless jewels. It’s Wednesday, October 22, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here: If you would rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below: Brennan Referred And Shutdown Drags On Topline: President Trump is applying more pressure on Democrats as the government shutdown stretches on. Meanwhile, a major political opponent of Trump is referred for charges. Former CIA Director John Brennan has been referred for charges from the Justice Department. Similar to former FBI Director James Comey, he is in hot water over statements he made during the probe into Trump-Russia collusion. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) announced that his committee was recommending the charges on Tuesday. Jordan said that Brennan “knowingly made false statements” during sworn testimony last year. The Judiciary Committee says Brennan lied when he denied using the discredited Steele Dossier in drafting an intelligence assessment in 2017 – specifically, the Intelligence Community Assessment on Russian interference. Rose Garden lunch: Trump – in typical Trump fashion – surprised lawmakers on Tuesday with a Rose Garden lunch. No one really knew what the lunch was about, not even Republicans. A reporter asked Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana what the purpose of the lunch was, and he said, “I have no idea.” But Chuck Schumer and the Democrats saw things through a more sinister lens, calling the event a “Rose Garden pep rally” for the shutdown. Join us now during our exclusive Deal of the Decade. Get everything for $7 a month. Not as fans. As fighters. Go to DailyWire.com/Subscribe to join now. There was a pep rally element to the lunch. The president had just redone the Rose Garden and spoke excitedly about how it looks. YMCA blared over the speaker system prior to the president’s remarks. Despite the festive atmosphere, Trump and Senate Republicans were clear that they were there for business: the business of reopening the government. “From the beginning, our message has been very simple: we will not be extorted on this crazy plot of theirs. They’ve never done this before. Nobody has!” said Trump. “Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats need to vote for the clean, bipartisan CR and reopen our government. It’s gotta be reopened, right now. We’re not doing that. They are the obstructionists. The reason they’re doing that is because we’re doing so well.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) spoke with the press after the lunch concluded. He stressed that Republicans are united on Trump’s team. Senate Republicans are planning to hold a separate vote on paying troops and law enforcement agents for the remainder of the shutdown. It’s not clear if Democrats will join them. But there’s a chance that, if they manage to get those essential workers paid, it may empower both sides to dig in and keep the shutdown fight going even longer. Democrats’ ‘Shadow Public-Health Alliance’ Topline: More than a dozen Democrat governors have signed on to a new health alliance, in a direct challenge to the Trump administration’s federal health agencies.  The Governors’ Public Health Alliance is being pitched as “non-partisan” and “all about the science.” The claim is that the Trump administration, and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., in particular, is anti-science. Therefore, this organization is necessary to protect Americans. However, so far, the Governors’ Public Health Alliance is strictly partisan: only Democrat governors have signed on.  The alliance will dole out medical guidance that will likely challenge federal agencies such as the CDC and FDA, or at least lobby the federal government on these matters. It will make public health guidelines or offer “best practices” on vaccines and other measures. The allied states will share medical statistics, data, and advice on preventive care, and buy vaccines and supplies in bulk.  The Wall Street Journal called the alliance a “shadow public-health alliance” and said it’s the “largest move” so far “to create an alternative public-health universe outside the federal government.” Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois, a Democrat, signed on to this association and claimed that Trump and Kennedy have turned the CDC “into a misinformation machine.” California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom also signed on. He said “extremists” in the Trump administration are trying to “weaponize the CDC and spread misinformation.” Other states include Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and the territory of Guam. The residents in these states make up about one-third of the U.S. population. The Democrat health effort has to do mostly with vaccines. The governors who have signed on have highlighted vaccine “access” and attacked Kennedy for challenging orthodoxy. There was also mention of abortion “access.” The association is primarily funded by a nonprofit called Governors Action Alliance, known as GovAct. The nonprofit claims to be nonpartisan, but supports Democrat causes and generally teams up with Democrats to expand Medicaid and bolster abortion and voting rights. GovAct is behind the “Reproductive Freedom Alliance,” a coalition of 23 Democrat governors working to expand abortion. GovAct is also behind the “Governors Safeguarding Democracy” alliance that is like a Resist Trump 2.0 effort launched just days after Trump won the 2024 election. Trump admin’s response: HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon called out Democrat governors for “destroy[ing] public trust in public health.” He noted that Democrat-led states “imposed unscientific school closures, toddler mask mandates, and vaccine passports during the COVID era.” He said the Trump administration is rebuilding trust by “grounding every policy in rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science – not the failed politics of the pandemic.”  Louvre Heist Topline: Investigators are still scrambling for clues after priceless jewels were stolen from the world’s most famous museum during a daring, broad-daylight heist. On Sunday morning, a half-hour after the Louvre Museum in Paris had opened its doors, four thieves arrived in a construction truck with an electric ladder mounted on top. Two men, posing as construction workers, then ascended to a second-floor facade, where they used special disc cutters to slice holes through the windows. The thieves entered through the windows to the famed Galerie d’Apollon, home to some of France’s most priceless Crown Jewels. With stunned patrons watching, they smashed two display cases. They removed nine objects, including a large brooch, a pair of emerald earrings, a necklace, and other jewelry belonging to Empress Marie-Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte. The thieves then joined their accomplices on the street, where they escaped on motorbikes, fleeing along the banks of the Seine River. The operation lasted no more than seven minutes. As the heist went on, museum visitors were ordered to evacuate immediately. Many said they thought the building was on fire or had been struck by terrorists. French President Emmanuel Macron called the heist an “attack on a heritage that we cherish.” The biggest concern now is that the jewels may never be recovered. Experts say the thieves certainly know they’d likely get caught if they tried to sell them on the black market, so it’s a real possibility they could remove the stones and melt down the precious metals to sell piece by piece. One of the tiaras alone had more than 1,000 diamonds and dozens of sapphires. One official said the heist wasn’t an art crime, but a “commodity theft.” The jewels they took are of “inestimable worth,” according to the museum. The haul could have been even larger. In their haste to get away, the thieves abandoned efforts to take the crown of Empress Eugénie, which contained nearly 2,500 diamonds and more than 50 emeralds, though it was damaged during the robbery. The investigation: Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the robbery was “a major, highly organized operation” carried out by a team that had clearly done scouting. But at the moment, if they have any leads, they aren’t letting the public know. Speculation has been rampant. Many people wonder if this could’ve been part of an inside job – they want to know if someone on staff at the Louvre could have offered aid. The country’s foreign minister said they weren’t ruling out an inside job. Others have questioned why these specific jewels were targeted. In the same room they hit lies a display case housing the famous Regent Diamond, a $60 million stone. Even some French officials have expressed confusion over why the thieves, who clearly had done their research, seemingly ignored such a prime target just a few feet away. Heist hysteria: Just last week, a group of thieves stole a number of collectible clocks from the President Jacques Chirac Museum in the French town of Corrèze. Then last month, a separate heist saw thieves lift $700,000 worth of gold from the French Museum of Natural History. Weeks before that, $11 million worth of porcelain was stolen from yet another museum in the city of Limoges. This is only the latest heist to hit the Louvre. A diamond-studded sword was stolen back in 1976. Most famous of all, the Mona Lisa was lifted back in 1911. Ultimately, the world-famous portrait painting was located two years later.

A suspect was arrested on Tuesday night after crashing a car into a security barrier outside the White House.  The Secret Service said a man drove his car into a vehicle gate just outside the White House grounds at approximately 10:37 pm. His identity was not released, and officials have not said whether the crash was intentional. “The individual was immediately arrested by U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division officers, and the vehicle was assessed by Secret Service and the Metropolitan Police Department and deemed safe,” a Secret Service spokesman said.  Photos of the vehicle reveal that it was an Acura TSX with Maryland license plates. A bomb detection robot was utilized by law enforcement to clear the scene.  At the time of the crash, President Donald Trump was at the White House, the Secret Service said.  (Photo by Andrew Leyden/Getty Images) Join us now during our exclusive Deal of the Decade. Get everything for $7 a month. Not as fans. As fighters. Go to DailyWire.com/Subscribe to join now. The Secret Service has faced increased scrutiny after massive security failures at a 2024 campaign rally in Pennsylvania led to then-candidate Trump being shot in the ear. Last month, a Secret Service agent was placed on leave after reportedly falling asleep and leaving his weapon unattended while providing security at the United Nations.  Last week, the Secret Service discovered an elevated hunting stand in a tree with a clear view of the area where Trump routinely disembarks from Air Force One in Palm Beach, Florida. FBI Director Kash Patel said Sunday that the FBI was investigating the discovery. The finding led to Trump boarding Air Force One on smaller stairs due to “increased security measures.”

GOP Senator From Bush Era To Run For Old Seat — But First Must Take Down Another Ex-Lawmaker

'Stealth carbon tax'

Democrats are refusing to pay support staff and Capitol Police during the government shutdown, but still forced them to work overnight Wednesday so two lawmakers could rail against the Trump administration from an empty Senate chamber. Democratic Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley took to the Senate floor for a 14-hour-long and counting screed against President Donald […]

Happy Mondays came out of the working-class streets of Salford, England, in the early 1980s and went on to become one of the defining bands of the Manchester music scene. Formed in 1980, the group was led by charismatic frontman Shaun Ryder, with his brother Paul Ryder on bass, Mark Day on guitar, Paul Davis on keyboards, and Gary Whelan on drums. Dancer and percussionist Bez became an essential part of the group’s identity, known for his eccentric energy and stage presence. Happy Mondays began performing at local clubs, where their combination of funk, rock, and the emerging dance sound The post Complete List Of Happy Mondays Songs From A to Z appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

Today the Church celebrates the feast day of my hero: Carol Joseph Wojtyla, or, as we usually call him, Saint Pope John Paul II. When I arrived at the Vatican as a young Swiss Guard, I had a largely secular understanding of Catholicism. At that point, my faith was my parents’ and not truly my own, an “outsider” view that was both helpful and deceiving. Because of that perspective, I was able to meet and then interact with John Paul without any preconceived notion—meaning his impression on me was not filtered through my perception of his office. During his pontificate, we had an extraordinary example of human greatness, first with his apostolic vigor and then through his witness of faithfulness; even in his suffering and sickness, he pointed the way for us to an authentic human growth, fully human, a growth that was not only cultural but also economic, a growth nourished by spiritual food. John Paul was a special person, gifted with a brilliant intellect and with an enormous ability to communicate. Those of us who had daily contact with him were always struck by the richness of his intuitions, the depth of his spirituality, the example of his prayerfulness, and his immense humility, which was rooted in his intimate union with Christ. It was his utility which permitted him to continue to guide the Church and to give eloquent messages even when his physical strength was failing him. The longer he prayed, the more absorbed in the prayer he became, until he seemed completely taken up in it, as if nothing and no one in the room could pull him back from the place he’d gone. I remember clearly the intensity with which he celebrated the Eucharist, how he remained deeply recollected in prayer at the conclusion of Mass, and the devotion with which he spoke spontaneously of Jesus and Mary.  At the same time, he had an uncommon ability to speak to people, both privately and to a crowd, with a particular magnetism towards young people, many of whom declared themselves far from the Church. One particular image will remain forever impressed in my memory: I opened a side door to make a security check only to find him sitting, still vested for Mass, in a small room adjacent to Michelangelo’s famous Pieta, embracing a large crucifix just as a mother holds her baby, giving and receiving true love. I personally witnessed the Holy Father demonstrate that true joy is not a mere passing emotion but from knowing Jesus as one’s True Joy and True Love. It was through his witness that I was continually exhorted to serve others as Christ did, as one who came not to be served but to serve. John Paul impacted my young life in profound ways, laying the groundwork for my becoming a husband, father, grandfather, businessman, and, most importantly, a practicing Catholic. It was his example that inspired me, his words that gave me hope, and his ideas that provided direction to my life. I miss him very much! Saint Pope John Paul II, pray for us! The post The Man, the Pope, the Saint appeared first on The Daily Signal.