Labor Market Stumbles & Trump Primes Subs | 8.4.25

Summary

Morning Wire Episode Summary: Labor Market Stumbles & Trump Primes Subs | August 4, 2025

Published on August 4, 2025

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Introduction

In this episode of Morning Wire, hosted by Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley and co-host Georgia Howell, the discussion centers around significant developments in the U.S. labor market, President Trump's strategic military maneuvers in response to Russian provocations, and the ongoing cultural debates surrounding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies. The episode provides insightful analysis, notable quotes, and expert opinions to keep listeners informed on pressing national issues.

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1. Labor Market Stumbles

Overview: The episode opens with a critical analysis of the latest jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which has led to President Trump's decisive action.

Key Points:

• Revised Jobs Numbers:

  • John Bickley (00:32): Announces President Trump’s firing of the BLS chief following a dramatic downward revision of job numbers.
  • Georgia Howell (00:38): Highlights the significant reduction in job additions, dropping from an initial report of nearly 300,000 jobs added over two months to just 33,000—a 90% overestimation.

• Expert Analysis:

  • Cabot Phillips, Senior Editor (02:58): Explains that the initial jobs report is based on surveys and often subject to revisions. However, the current revision is among the largest ever recorded.
  • John Bickley (03:53): Queries the unprecedented inaccuracy of the reports.
  • Cabot Phillips (03:58): Details the methodology of job reporting and notes the unusual magnitude of the revision.

• Political Repercussions:

  • Cabot Phillips (04:27): Reports President Trump’s accusation that the jobs data was manipulated to discredit him and the decision to fire Erica McIntar, the BLS chief.
  • Megan Basham (04:55): Points out the potential for perceived partisan bias due to the consistent downward revisions.

• Democratic Response:

  • Georgia Howell (05:20): Emphasizes the integrity of the BLS processes and refutes claims of manipulation.

• Labor Market Health:

  • Cabot Phillips (05:41): Discusses concerns over employer pessimism and the rise in long-term unemployment, noting that 1.8 million Americans have been unemployed for at least 27 weeks, the highest excluding the pandemic in nearly a decade.

• White House Counterpoints:

  • Cabot Phillips (06:11): Highlights the White House’s stance that job growth has been concentrated among American-born workers in the private sector, attributing improvements to Trump’s immigration policies and private sector initiatives.

Notable Quotes:

• Georgia Howell (04:18): “These numbers are put together by teams of literally hundreds of people following detailed procedures that are in manuals. There's no conceivable way that the head of the BLS could have manipulated this number.”

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2. Trump Primes Submarines in Response to Russian Provocations

Overview: The episode delves into the recent escalation between the United States and Russia, focusing on President Trump’s strategic deployment of nuclear submarines following provocative statements from Russia's former President Dmitry Medvedev.

Key Points:

• Russian Provocations:

  • Luke Rosiak (08:22): Details Medvedev’s inflammatory comments, including a veiled reference to nuclear responses, which have heightened tensions.
  • Georgia Howell (08:46): Emphasizes the necessity of the U.S. response to protect its interests.

• Trump’s Response:

  • Luke Rosiak (08:52): Reports President Trump's order to deploy two U.S. nuclear submarines to strategic regions as a show of strength.
  • Tim Pierce (08:10): Questions the implications of Medvedev’s statements and Trump’s military response.

• Submarine Capabilities:

  • Luke Rosiak (09:11): Provides an overview of the types of U.S. submarines, highlighting the strategic importance of Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines capable of carrying Trident missiles with a range of approximately 4,600 miles.

• Strategic Implications:

  • Tim Pierce (10:31): Explores the potential consequences if Russia does not engage in negotiations by the set deadline.
  • Jay Vance (10:39): Outlines Trump’s ultimatum for Russia to enter peace talks by August 8th, threatening sanctions and increased military support to Ukraine if unmet.

• Comparison with Previous Administration:

  • Luke Rosiak (09:19): Contrasts Trump’s assertive stance with former President Biden’s more cautious approach to avoid nuclear escalation.

Notable Quotes:

• Luke Rosiak (08:46): “We had to do that. We just have to be careful. And a threat was made.”

• JD Vance (10:46): “I'm going to make a new deadline of about 10, 10 or 12 days from today. There's no reason in waiting. There's no reason in waiting. It's 50 days. I want to be generous, but we just don't see any progress being made.”

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3. DEI Debates and the Sydney Sweeney Ad Controversy

Overview: The episode shifts focus to cultural debates ignited by an American Eagle advertisement featuring actress Sydney Sweeney, amidst the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle DEI policies.

Key Points:

• Trump Administration’s DEI Actions:

  • JD Vance (12:07): Outlines President Trump’s aggressive moves to eliminate DEI mandates in the federal government, including orders to terminate illegal DEI mandates and prevent federal contractors from showing preference based on sex, sexuality, or ethnicity.
  • Cabot Phillips (12:53): Mentions the successful challenge to a rule affecting skills-based testing for job applicants.

• American Eagle Ad Controversy:

  • JD Vance (13:00): Connects the DEI policy dismantlement to the backlash against the American Eagle ad featuring Sydney Sweeney, which sparked allegations of promoting eugenics and cultural shifts toward whiteness.
  • Megan Basham (14:07): Criticizes the media’s overreaction, suggesting that the ad merely featured a beautiful girl in a jeans commercial without any malicious intent.

• Media and Public Reaction:

  • JD Vance (14:41): Points out that media outlets have escalated the controversy despite polling showing 70% of people like the ads.
  • Megan Basham (14:44): Argues that the media’s extreme responses are attempts to control cultural norms and that such tactics will backfire in upcoming elections, especially among young American men.

• Sydney Sweeney’s Position:

  • JD Vance (15:28): Notes that Sydney Sweeney has not publicly responded to the controversy, suggesting that media pressure is an attempt at cancellation.

• Broader Cultural Implications:

  • Megan Basham (15:50): Emphasizes that the backlash against the ad reveals the Democratic loss of influence over cultural narratives and criticizes their readiness to label supporters as extremists.

Notable Quotes:

• JD Vance (13:24): “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My genes are blue cities.”

• Megan Basham (14:07): “It actually reveals something pretty interesting about the Dems, though, which is that you have like a normal, all American, beautiful girl doing like a normal jeans ad… We're going to attack people as Nazis for thinking Sydney Sweeney is beautiful.”

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Conclusion

In this episode of Morning Wire, John Bickley and Georgia Howell navigate through critical updates on the labor market, President Trump's strategic military deployments in response to Russian provocations, and the heated cultural debates surrounding DEI policies exemplified by the controversial American Eagle ad. Through expert analysis and engaging discussions, the hosts provide listeners with a comprehensive understanding of these multifaceted issues, highlighting the interplay between economic data, international relations, and cultural dynamics in the current political landscape.

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Notable Advertisements Skipped:

• Helix Sleep promotion (00:00 - 00:32)
• Ollie Dog Food advertisement (07:03 - 08:01)
• Zocdoc commercial (16:00 - 16:42)
• Home Title Lock promotion (16:12 - 16:42)

Note: Advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections have been excluded from this summary as per request.

Transcript

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[John Bickley]

President Trump fires the chief of the Bureau of Labor Statistics after the jobs numbers are revised down dramatically.

[Georgia Howell]

She came out with these beautiful numbers trying to get somebody else elected. Then right after the election, I think on the 15th, she had an 8 or $900,000 massive reduction.

[John Bickley]

I'm Daily Wire executive editor John Bickley with Georgia Howell. It's Monday, August 4th, and this is Morning Wire.

[Georgia Howell]

A threat was made by a former president of Russia and we're going to protect our people.

[Tim Pierce]

Trump sends more nuclear subs as Russia defies his calls for peace and his deadline for Putin fast approaches.

[John Bickley]

And Vice President Vance weighs in on the racial debate surrounding Sydney Sweeney and the Trump era. Shift away from DEI and cancel culture.

[Megan Basham]

So you have a pretty girl doing a jeans ad and they can't help but freak out. It reveals a lot more about them than it does us, no question.

[Tim Pierce]

Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.

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[Tim Pierce]

A dismal jobs report has rattled stock markets and raised new concerns over the strength of the labor market.

[John Bickley]

Daily Wire senior editor Cabot Phillips is here to break it down for us. Hey, Cabot. So let's get to these numbers first. Then we'll talk about the drama that unfolded when they were released. What are we looking at?

[Cabot Phillips]

Yeah, coming into last weekend, President Trump was really riding high. Massive trade deals were being knocked out, consumer confidence was on the rise, and inflation was remaining low. But on Friday, the Labor Department released a bombshell jobs report that showed the US economy added just 73,000 jobs in July. And even more alarming, they announced enormous revisions for the last two reports before that. So if you look back, originally, the department said we added 291,000 jobs between May and June. When those numbers came out, they were celebrated by the White House and Wall street alike as proof that the labor market was humming. People were fired up. But on Friday, we learned those reports had been revised. And Instead of nearly 300,000 jobs being added over those two months, the real number was just 33,000. So they overestimated by 90%. Now, to be fair, it's not uncommon for the initial report to be revised down later on after the fact, but this is among the largest single month revisions that we've ever seen.

[John Bickley]

Yeah, it really is stunning, to say the least. So how could they be so inaccurate this time?

[Cabot Phillips]

Yeah, it's helpful to note the initial jobs reports are essentially based on a giant poll of employers and households. The Labor Department surveys thousands of businesses and households and extrapolates that data out to get their number. But usually it takes a few weeks for the hard data to come in, and oftentimes there are then big discrepancies between the survey and the final numbers. Right.

[John Bickley]

And we reported on that during the Biden administration. We saw some major discrepancies, but not to this extent.

[Cabot Phillips]

Correct.

[John Bickley]

There's been a strong response from Trump to. To this report. Tell us about that.

[Cabot Phillips]

So almost immediately, the president responded with the statement saying, quote, the jobs were rigged in order to make the Republicans and me look bad. He then went a step further, firing Erica McIntar, that's the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which conducts these reports. According to Trump, McInter had released similarly inaccurate jobs reports just before the 2024 election, quote, in the hopes of getting Kamala elected. Here's National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett explaining Trump's decision yesterday when the data.

[Megan Basham]

Are unreliable, when they keep being revised all over the place, then there are going to be people that wonder if there's a partisan pattern in the data. What we need is a fresh set of eyes at the bls, somebody who can clean this thing up.

[Cabot Phillips]

Now, for their part, Democrats say that Trump didn't seem to have a problem with these reports when they showed good news, and he's only changing his tune now because they're bad for him. Other critics, like former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, argue that jobs reports are impossible to manipulate.

[Georgia Howell]

These numbers are put together by teams of literally hundreds of people following detailed procedures that are in manuals. There's no conceivable way that the head of the BLS could have manipulated this number.

[John Bickley]

So let's get to the health of the labor market more broadly. What are the takeaways here?

[Cabot Phillips]

Well, we'll start with the bad news first. The sluggish job growth is really raising concerns that US Employers are more pessimistic about the economy than we thought. And they could be waiting to see how Trump's terror tariffs will impact their business long term. We also learned that in July, the number of Americans who've been unemployed long term, that's at least 27 weeks, reached 1.8 million. Excluding the pandemic, that is the highest number in almost a decade. But the White House says that important aspects of the labor market are being overlooked.

[John Bickley]

Yeah, the White House has its own take on these numbers. What are they saying?

[Cabot Phillips]

Well, first, 100% of the net job growth under President Trump so far has been among American born workers. Under President Biden, the exact opposite was true. 100% of the net job growth was among foreign born workers, while the number of American born workers in the workplace plunged by more than a million. The White House says that the reversal is due in large part to Trump's mass deportation efforts, which they say have opened up jobs for American citizens. And second, all of the job growth so far under Trump has been in the private sector. Now, for context, from 2023-24, about 25% of all jobs added were in the government. Since Trump took office, the number of government jobs overall has actually fallen by 3%, meaning 100% of jobs added have been in the private sector.

[John Bickley]

All right, so some silver lining there, but still a lot of concerning numbers to keep an eye on in the coming months. Kevin, thanks so much for reporting.

[Cabot Phillips]

Absolutely.

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[John Bickley]

President Trump has ordered two US nuclear submarines to the appropriate regions after inflammatory comments from former Kremlin leader Dmitry Medvedev.

[Tim Pierce]

Here to break down the escalation between the United States and Russia is Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce. So Tim, some concerning statements from Russia. First, what did Medvedev say and what is President Trump doing in response?

[Luke Rosiak]

Yeah, Medvedev made some pretty provocative comments and made reference to the N word as Trump calls it. He means nuclear. Anyway, Trump on Truth Social said he ordered the submarines into position just in case Medvedev's foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. The president added that words are very important and can often lead to unintended consequences. And here he was talking to reporters on Friday.

[Georgia Howell]

We had to do that. We just have to be careful. And a threat was made.

[John Bickley]

What did Medvedev say to you that.

[JD Vance]

Made you really mad?

[Georgia Howell]

Well, you just have to read what he said.

[Luke Rosiak]

Medvedev often serves as a provocateur of sorts for the Kremlin. Last week he recommended Trump watch the post apocalyptic show the Walking Dead. And then he made a reference to a last ditch nuclear weapons response that could be triggered even if a country's leadership is destroyed.

[Tim Pierce]

So some saber rattling at the very least from a former Russian president. Now do we know where Trump is sending these subs?

[Luke Rosiak]

We don't know where they are or really what kind they are, and that actually means quite a bit for their capabilities. The US Navy only has three types of submarines. They're all nuclear powered. But just One of them is loaded with nuclear weapons, and that one would be the Ohio class ballistic missile submarines. The US has 14 of them, and each can carry up to 20 Trident ballistic missiles with multiple nuclear warheads. A Trident a range of about 4,600 miles. So it's unlikely one would have had to move to be able to strike Russia with that range. One of those subs could hit Moscow from the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian or Arctic oceans. The other two types of subs are guided missile submarines and fast attack submarines. Both deadly, but neither has nearly the range or firepower that the ballistic missile subs have. But setting aside what we don't know, this is clearly a signal from Trump that he won't tolerate threats from Russia, serious or otherwise. He's taken a much harsher stance to Russia's provocations than former President Biden did. Biden was always concerned with escalation, the potential for a nuclear shootout between the US And Russia. So Biden was hesitant to respond to certain threats. Trump seems to think a harder line will better him Russia in rather than a more accommodating posture.

[Tim Pierce]

Now, speaking of that harder line, Trump recently moved up the deadline for Russia to enter negotiations with Ukraine. What happens if Russia doesn't meet that deadline?

[Cabot Phillips]

Right.

[Luke Rosiak]

Trump has given Russian President Vladimir Putin until August 8th to come to the negotiating table. Here's Trump last week talking about that.

[Georgia Howell]

I'm going to make a new deadline of about 10, 10 or 12 days from today. There's no reason in waiting. There's no reason in waiting. It's 50 days. I want to be generous, but we just don't see any progress being made.

[Luke Rosiak]

Trump has clearly grown frustrated with Putin. If Russia misses the deadline for peace talks, Congress just gave Trump massive sanctions authority that Trump could slap on Russia. There's also the chance that the United States could increase weapon shipments to Ukraine and this an even more deadly war for Russia.

[Tim Pierce]

Well, let's hope neither of those are necessary. Tim, thanks for reporting.

[Luke Rosiak]

Thanks for having me on.

[Tim Pierce]

As the Trump administration has continued to dismantle DEI policies, an ad campaign for retailer American Eagle featuring actress Sydney Sweeney has become a cultural battleground. Now, even Vice President JD Vance has weighed in.

[John Bickley]

Joining us now to discuss the DEI debates and why this ad has become such a hot topic is Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham. Hey, Megan. It's been a while.

[JD Vance]

It has. I missed you guys. I'm so happy to be back.

[John Bickley]

Missed you, too. So we all had a healthy debate about whether the Sydney Sweeney saga was segment worthy. But it's really become a flashpoint in this larger Trump era shift. Let's start with what the Trump administration is doing with dei and then we'll get to Sydney Sweeney. What is the latest there?

[JD Vance]

Yeah, you know, we've really seen the Trump administration making aggressive moves to dismantle really decades of these DEI policies. Immediately after taking office, the president signed an order terminating all illegal DEI mandates in the federal government. Another order requires federal contractors to comply with anti discrimination laws, meaning that they can't show preference on the basis of sex, sexuality, or ethnicity. Colleges and universities have also been put on notice that they will lose those federal grants if they employ DEI in admissions or financial aid or hiring. And then just a couple of days ago, the administration successfully challenged a rule that had blocked the government from using skills based tests for job applicants due to claims of racial bias.

[John Bickley]

Right. Daily Wire reporter Luke Rosiak has a piece on that on the site right now. So how does this all relate to an ad for denim?

[JD Vance]

Well, you know, what I really think is that this dust up highlights the cultural move away from dei. You know, in recent years, we saw all the major fashion brands, everyone from Calvin Klein to Gap, really touting those DEI bona fides. Well, then this American Eagle ad came out and it featured a traditionally beautiful actress and included a play on the word genes.

[Luke Rosiak]

Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My genes are blue cities.

[Georgia Howell]

Winnie Casper King.

[JD Vance]

And after that, we saw what I think can only be described as a media freakout. So outlets like the Washington Post and Entertainment Weekly accused American Eagle of promoting eugenics. MSNBC ran a column saying it signaled a, quote, unbridled cultural shift toward whiteness. Some even called it Nazi propaganda. So really just some over the top responses. And that, I think, is what led Vice President J.D. vance to comment.

[Megan Basham]

It actually reveals something pretty interesting about the Dems, though, which is that you have like a normal, all American, beautiful girl doing like a normal jeans ad. They're trying to sell, you know, sell jeans to kids in America. And they have managed to so unhinge themselves over this thing. And it's like, you guys, did you learn nothing from the November 2024 election? Like, I actually thought that one of the lessons they might take is we're going to be less crazy. The lesson they have apparently taken is we're going to attack people as Nazis for thinking Sydney Sweeney is beautiful.

[Advertiser]

Great strategy, guys.

[Cabot Phillips]

That's how you're going to win the.

[Megan Basham]

Midterms, especially young American men.

[JD Vance]

And then the other reason that I think the media has pushed this controversy to such an extreme degree is that it also highlights their loss of power in controlling some of these cultural norms. So in the last few years, when brands like Pepsi or Starbucks or Victoria's Secret were accused of falling afoul of DEI standards, they were pretty quick to apologize. American Eagle has not done that. Yesterday afternoon, they posted a new image of Sweeney to their Instagram account. And a few days before that, they posted a statement saying they'll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their American Eagle jeans. Meanwhile, a source inside the company told TMZ that their polling shows that 70% of people like these ads.

[John Bickley]

What about Sweeney? Has she actually commented?

[JD Vance]

You know, not so far. And that's only led the media to further ratchet up the pressure on her. And it certainly looks like something of a cancellation attempt. So over the weekend, buzzfeed dug up the fact that she registered as a Republican in 2024, and you now have a lot of media outlets trying to stir up controversy from that.

[John Bickley]

Yeah, maybe not so surprising. Meanwhile, if she needs advice on that, maybe she can call up fellow Republicans Clint Eastwood and Sylvester Stallone. Megan, thanks for reporting.

[JD Vance]

My pleasure.

[Tim Pierce]

Thanks for waking up with us. And if you're watching on YouTube, please like and subscribe. We'll be back later this evening with more news you need to know.

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[Luke Rosiak]

These are questions that take cultures thousands.

[Georgia Howell]

Of years to answer.

[Luke Rosiak]

During Answer the Call, I take questions from people just like you about their.

[John Bickley]

Problems, opportunities, challenges, or when they simply need advice.

[Luke Rosiak]

How do I balance all of this grief, responsibility? How do you repair this kind of damage?

[John Bickley]

My daughter Michaela guides the conversations as.

[Luke Rosiak]

We hopefully help people navigate their lives.

[Advertiser]

Everyone has their own destiny. Everyone.