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Tulsi's New Probe Turns Heads, Gas Price Crisis, Redistricting Showdown | 5/12/26 FIRST LOOK
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Hey everybody, I'm Dave Rubin and this is First Look. It's Tuesday, May 12, 2026. We've got a packed show for you today. Tulsi Gabbard launches a sweeping probe into more than 120 US funded bio labs overseas. The Trump administration says everything is on the table to lower soaring gas prices as tensions with Iran continue hammering energy markets. Alabama Republicans make a major Supreme Court move that could reshape congressional redistricting across the country. Let's dive in. We start with a bombshell story out of Washington. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is now investigating more than 120 biological laboratories across the world that were funded for years using American taxpayer dollars. And according to the Trump administration, many Americans were deliberately misled about what was happening inside these facilities. Gabbard says the goal of the investigation is straightforward. Figure out where these labs are, what pathogens they contain, what kind of research was being conducted, and whether dangerous gain of function experiments were taking place. With almost no public Oversight. And yes, this ties directly back to Covid. Gabbard said bluntly. The COVID 19 pandemic revealed the catastrophic global impact research on dangerous pathogens in biolabs can have. Then she took direct aim at the Biden administration, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and elements of the national security establishment. According to Gabbard, politicians, so called health professionals like Dr. Fauci and entities within the Biden administration lied to the American people about the existence of these US Funded biolabs. Now, the scale of this is enormous. Officials say the labs span More than 30 countries and including over 40 facilities in Ukraine alone. And that's important because during the early stages of Russia's invasion, the Biden administration repeatedly dismissed concerns about US Linked biological research facilities in Ukraine as Russian propaganda. But then, remember what happened? Victoria Nuland testified before Congress in March 2022 and admitted Ukraine has biological research facilities. She also acknowledged concerns that Russian forces could gain control of them. That statement completely contradicted earlier public messaging. And according to ODNI officials under Trump, the Biden administration intentionally tried to shape public perception using what was internally called an information resilience strategy, basically controlling the narrative to downplay U.S. involvement. Now here's another major detail. The defense department reportedly spent more than $1.4 billion on overseas experiments involving potential pandemic pathogens between 2014 and 2023. And according to federal watchdogs, officials often couldn't even determine exactly how many enhanced pandemic pathogens were being researched. That's unbelievable. Meanwhile, the now infamous Wuhan institute of virology, which received U. S. Linked funding between 2014 and 2021, was later found by the NIH to have conducted experiments that made bat coronaviruses 10,000 times more infectious. Again, 10,000 times more infectious. Officials still deny that research caused Covid. But the questions surrounding gain of function work have never really gone away. And honestly, one of the most chilling parts of this entire story comes from Fauci himself. Back in 2012, Fauci openly acknowledged the risks of gain of function research. In a scientific paper, he described a hypothetical scenario where a scientist becomes infected by during one of these experiments, triggering a global pandemic. And despite acknowledging that possibility, Fauci still argued the benefits outweighed the risks. Well after Covid, millions of Americans no longer agree with that calculation. Now, President Trump has already signed executive action banning federal funding for gain of function research in countries like China and Iran unless strict oversight exists. And defense secretary Pete Hegseth says this investigation is about exposing what previous administrations hid from the public. Hegseth said the prior administration bankrolled dangerous gain of function research and foreign biolabs with American tax dollars, then deliberately hid it from the American people. And politically, this matters because it goes directly to one of the biggest questions left unresolved and after the pandemic, how much did the American government know and how much was the public intentionally kept in the dark about now to the economy and specifically the pain Americans are feeling every time they pull into a gas station? Energy Secretary Chris Wright says the Trump administration is open to suspending the federal gas tax as fuel prices continue surging amid tensions involving Iran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking on NBC's Meet the Press, Wright said, we are open to all ideas. The federal gas tax currently sits at 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline, 24.4 cents per gallon for diesel. And while suspending it would require congressional approval, the administration is clearly signaling that lowering costs for consumers is becoming a major priority because right now, Americans are getting crushed. According to AAA, the national average for regular gas has climbed to $4.52 per gallon, and analysts warn prices could continue rising through the summer due to refinery constraints, reduced shipping traffic and instability in the Persian Gulf. Now, Wright refused to predict whether prices could hit $5 nationally, but he admitted energy costs may remain elevated for months while the Iran conflict continues. Still, he argued, the administration is aggressively trying to stabilize markets. Here's what they're already releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve coordinating releases with 30 allied nations revising EPA Summer Gasoline Blend regulations to boost refinery output Pressuring American refiners to shorten maintenance schedules so they can keep producing fuel. Wright also emphasized something the administration keeps repeating. The fastest path to lower energy prices is resolving the Iran situation, he said. Ending Iran's nuclear program is massively positive for the flow of energy. And that brings us back to the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important oil transit chokepoints. Shipping traffic there has sharply declined due to military tensions and uncertainty, creating ripple effects across global energy markets. Now, politically, this creates a huge contrast with the Biden years. Under Biden, strategic reserves were repeatedly drained, domestic energy production was restricted, pipeline projects were canceled, and inflation exploded. Trump officials are now arguing they're taking the opposite expand supply, increase production, remove regulatory barriers and use every available tool to bring prices down. Even some Democrats have shown openness to temporarily suspending the gas tax because of how politically dangerous rising fuel costs are becoming. But make no mistake, the White House clearly believes Iran is at the center of this entire energy crisis. And until the strait fully stabilizes, Americans are probably going to keep feeling it at the pump. And finally, a major legal battle is now brewing that could reshape congressional maps nationwide. Ahead of the midterms. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has filed a Supreme Court challenge aimed at overturning previous redistricting rulings that forced Republicans to redraw congressional maps based heavily on racial considerations. And Republicans believe they now have momentum because of a recent Supreme Court ruling that involving Louisiana. Known as the Calais decision. That ruling struck down Louisiana's congressional map and reinforced the idea that race should not dominate the redistricting process. Marshall says that directly undermines the legal framework previously used against Alabama. Now remember, back in the Allen vs. Milligan case, Alabama was forced to create a second majority black congressional district, effectively giving Democrats another favorable seat in an otherwise deep red state. Republicans argued at the time that the courts were prioritizing race over traditional redistricting principles. And now they believe the Supreme Court may be moving back in their direction. Marshall said Alabama deserves the right to use its own maps just like every other state. And he made another argument. Conservatives increasingly emphasize The Alabama of 2026 is not the Alabama of the 1960s. Marshall pointed out that many of the legal assumptions underlying Voting Rights act challenges were built around historical conditions that no longer exist in the same way today. Now politically, this could have huge consequences because if Alabama succeeds, Republicans could regain another House seat. Other Southern states could follow, and Democrats already narrow path to retaking the House becomes even harder. Meanwhile, Democrats are furious. Senator Cory Booker traveled to Alabama personally to oppose the Republican maps, accusing the state of trying to dilute minority voting power. But Marshall fired back by pointing to heavily Democratic states in the Northeast where Republicans effectively have no representation at all despite sizable GOP voter populations. And honestly, that's the broader Republican argument here. Democrats spent years aggressively gerrymandering blue states while accusing Republicans of being uniquely guilty of partisan map drawing. Now the legal environment is shifting and Republicans are fighting back. And with the 2026 midterms approaching fast, this battle could end up having national consequences. And that's your first look this Tuesday. Quick recap. Tulsi Gabbard launches a sweeping investigation into more than 120 U. S funded bio labs across the globe. The Trump administration says everything is on the table to lower gas prices amid the Iran energy crisis. And Alabama Republicans bring a major redistricting fight back to the Supreme Court. We'll keep following all of it. I'm Dave Rubin. Thanks for starting your day with first look. See you tomorrow.