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<p><span style="font-weight:400">Charlie Kirk’s assassination stands before a judge, President Donald Trump hit the New York Times with a hefty defamation suit, and he continues his big city crime crackdown in a new destination.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">It’s Wednesday, September 17, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:</span></p>
<p><amp-youtube layout="responsive" width="1170" height="658" data-videoid="H9oow-_736U" title="Kirk Investigation Expands &; Operation Viper Greenlit"><a placeholder href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9oow-_736U"><img src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/H9oow-_736U/hqdefault.jpg" layout="fill" object-fit="cover" alt="Kirk Investigation Expands &; Operation Viper Greenlit"></a></amp-youtube></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:</span></p>
<p><iframe style="width:100%;max-width:660px;overflow:hidden;border-radius:10px" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kirk-investigation-expands-operation-viper-greenlit/id1576594336?i=1000727171096" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe></p>
<h2 style="text-align:center"><b>Prosecutors Seeking Death Penalty For Suspected Kirk killer</b></h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-973217 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Kirks-alleged-killer-charged.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px"/></div>
<p><span style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;padding:0px"><strong>Topline:</strong> 22-year-old Tyler Robinson appeared in a Utah court on Tuesday, where he was formally charged with seven counts, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, witness tampering, and obstruction of justice.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Utah County District Attorney Jeff Gray determined that Robinson targeted conservative activist Charlie Kirk for his political beliefs and announced that he would seek the death penalty.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">“I do not take this decision lightly, and it is a decision I have made independently as county attorney based solely on the available evidence and circumstances and nature of the crime,” </span><a href="https://x.com/realDailyWire/status/1968018720820981764" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">said</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> Gray.</span></p>
<p><b>The evidence:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> Prosecutors released chilling </span><a href="https://x.com/Breaking911/status/1968026479037747546" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">text messages </span></a><span style="font-weight:400">between Robinson and his trans-identifying boyfriend from the hours after the shooting. When asked why he shot Kirk, Robinson allegedly responded: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Robinson also appears to have confessed to the crime on Discord, an online messaging platform. Robinson allegedly wrote two hours before he was taken into custody: “Hey gurobinys, I have bad news for you all…It was me at UVU yesterday. I’m sorry for all of this.”</span></p>
<p><b>Stolen villainy:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> 71-year-old George Zinn was taken away in handcuffs immediately after the shooting. Reports circulated that he was the one responsible for shooting Kirk, but police later clarified that he was not the shooter and was being held on obstruction of justice charges.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Zinn, a well-known left-wing activist in Utah, prompted his own arrest by claiming to an officer on scene: “I shot him, now shoot me.” Only after arriving at the police station did Zinn confess he was not the shooter and was only trying to “draw attention from the real shooter.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">FBI agents who interviewed Zinn also discovered child sex abuse material on his phone, so he is now facing four additional charges.</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align:center"><b>Trump Sues The New York Times</b></h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-973219 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Trump-sues-the-Times.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px"/></div>
<p><b>Topline:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> President Trump on Monday filed a $15 billion defamation and libel lawsuit against The New York Times. He has accused the newspaper of a years-long campaign to destroy his reputation and undermine his political success.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Trump filed the suit Monday in a U.S. District Court in Florida. The complaint targets four of the Times’ most prominent journalists — Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Michael Schmidt, and Peter Baker. It also names Penguin Random House, which published a book based on the Times’ reporting.</span></p>
<p><b>The evidence:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> An investigative series and book titled “</span><i><span style="font-weight:400">Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success,</span></i><span style="font-weight:400">” alleges that Trump committed tax fraud in inheriting his father’s real estate empire and built his wealth on deceptive practices</span><i><span style="font-weight:400">. </span></i><span style="font-weight:400">That series was written by Craig and Buettner, and Penguin Random House released it just before the 2024 election.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">The suit also targets an interview by Schmidt with retired Gen. John F. Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, who said that the president met the definition of a fascist and posed a dictatorial threat.</span></p>
<p><b>Trump’s view: </b><span style="font-weight:400">The president calls these claims “repugnant distortions and fabrications.” He also says the Times’ reporting deliberately minimized his contributions to the success of his television show, “The Apprentice,” and instead solely credited producer Mark Burnett.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Trump argues that all these examples meet the legal definition of defamation because the paper’s coverage was engineered to inflict “enormous economic losses” on his businesses and personal brand.</span></p>
<p><b>The Gray Lady fights back:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> A spokesman for The New York Times said the lawsuit “lacks any legitimate legal claims and is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting.” Penguin-Random House similarly called it meritless, arguing that the lawsuit is part of a broader effort to intimidate media organizations criticizing Trump.</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align:center"><b>Trump’s Crime Crackdown Moves South</b></h2>
<p style="text-align:center"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-973221" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/Operation-Viper-Strikes.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px"/></p>
<p><b>Topline: </b><span style="font-weight:400">President Trump has officially directed a crackdown on crime in Memphis, Tennessee, using a strategy similar to the one deployed in Washington, D.C.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Trump signed a </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/09/restoring-law-and-order-in-memphis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">memo</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> Monday that establishes the Memphis Safe Task Force, whose objective is to “end street and violent crime in Memphis to the greatest possible extent” through hypervigilant policing, aggressive prosecution, and other efforts. Federal agencies such as the ATF, DOJ, HHS, HUD, and the Department of War will be involved and coordinate with local and state law enforcement. This will supplement “Operation Viper,” an FBI-led mission already working in Memphis to target violent offenders.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">According to Trump, the situation in Memphis is </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDIptQsoA48" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">dire</span></a><span style="font-weight:400">: “In 2024, Memphis had the </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/09/12/trump-deploy-national-guard-memphis-crime-rate?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">highest crime rate</span></a><span style="font-weight:400">, the highest property crime rate, and the third-highest murder rate of any city in the nation – other than that, they are doing quite well, thank you. A person is 4 times more likely to be murdered in Memphis, Tennessee, today than in Mexico City. There were 249 murders, 429 rapes, 5,616 burglaries, and 12,522 violent assaults in just the last little while in 2024 and pieces of 2025.”</span></p>
<p><b>Room for negotiation:</b> <span style="font-weight:400">Memphis Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat, said he doesn’t want the National Guard in his city, but understands that it’s not his call and will be working with authorities on this matter.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight:400">Other local Democrats have also expressed opposition to this intervention. That said, there appears to be considerable support as well. CBS spoke to some business owners in the area and </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p22syVrpYOw" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight:400">reported</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> that they welcome the National Guard and are excited to see some changes.</span></p>
<p><b>What’s next:</b><span style="font-weight:400"> Trump said on Tuesday that Chicago is “probably next” to get the D.C. treatment. He said it’s a “great city” and will be “great again.” He made these comments despite opposition from both Illinois Democratic Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Democrat Mayor Brandon Johnson.</span></p>
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<br /><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/morning-brief-death-penalty-in-kirk-killing-trump-sues-nyt-memphis-gets-the-trump-treatment">Source link </a></p>
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Death Penalty In Kirk Killing, Trump Sues NYT & Memphis Gets The Trump Treatment
