Judging Freedom - Ray McGovern : Alaska From the Russian Perspective.

Episode Date: August 18, 2025

Ray McGovern : Alaska From the Russian Perspective.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

You know what doesn't belong in your epic summer plans? Getting burned by your old wireless bill. While you're planning beach trips, BBQs, and three-day weekends, your wireless bill should be the last thing holding you back. That's why millions have made the switch to MidMobil. With Mint, you can get the coverage and speed you're used to, but for way less money.

And for a limited time, MittMobil is offering three months of unlimited premium wireless service for $15 a month. So while your friends are sweating over data overages and surprise charges, you'll be chilling, literally, and financially. All plans come with high-speed, data and unlimited talk and text delivered on the nation's largest 5G network. This year, skip breaking the sweat and breaking the bank.

Get this new customer offer and your three-month unlimited wireless plan for just $15 a month at mintmobile.com slash john. That's mintmobile.com slash john. Use your own phone with any mint mobile plan and bring your phone number along with all of your existing contacts. Up front payment of $45 required equivalent to $15 a month. Limited time new customer offer for first three months only. Speeds may slow above 35 gigabyte on unlimited plan.

Taxes and fees extra. See Mint Mobile for details. Thank you. I'm going to be. Hi, everyone. Judge Andrew Napolitano here for Judging Freedom. Today is Monday, August 18, 2025. Ray McGovern will be here with us in just a moment. What's the mood in Moscow after the conference in Alaska? But first this. Why do so many financial experts call silver the most undervalued asset today? Because silver is essential to the future. From solar tech and electric vehicles

to the explosive growth of artificial intelligence. Demand is rising fast, and yet silver is still trading at a bargain. With billions pouring into AI, silver prices have only one place to go. Up. Robert Kiyosaki, the author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad, says silver may be the most overlooked opportunity on the market and could double or triple by 2026. I believe in hard assets like this bar of silver.

You can hold it in your hand or put it in your 401k or IRA. That's why I urge you to call my friends at Lear Capital and get their free report. The AI Revolution and see why silver prices are set to soar. Call 800511-4620, 800511-4620, or go to Learjudsonap.com. Don't wait. The government can print dollars, but it can't print silver. Ray McGovern, welcome here, my dear. dear friend what do you suppose is the likely mood in the kremlin this morning or afternoon now in

russia i think it's probably the same mood i have looks like we made considerable progress but will these europeans will the coalition of the willing so-called uh be able to saw a monkey wrench into the process poochin himself personally warned about that in his remarks in anchorage I don't know what the prospects are because it's impossible to predict what Trump is going to do. But if I was asked to guess, I would say, he will say, look, Zelensky, it's up to you now, you and your European friends. Incidentally, it looks like Zelensky will see the president at 215, or 115, I forget which, but the Europeans won't come until three. Okay, so the Riot Act will already have been read, in my view, and so let's go have to say, well, okay, he'll talk to the Europeans, and the Europeans will say, oh, my God, what about Big Daddy? Well, Big Daddy is a big daddy's not coming through. He's a deadbeat. He's a deadbeat. He's not even going to pay alimony. It's up to us now. What are we going to do? And that's what Trump is going to.

going to thrust on them. Every other paragraph had Trump's word that it's up to the Ukrainians now. And of course, last thing I'll add here, something not normally inverted to. But Putin made it abundantly clear that he gave, he gave Trump a lot of lecture on root causes. Okay, root causes and how this all came about it. And it was Biden's word. It was Biden, well, largely, okay? But then, what he didn't say, and what I'm sure happened, is he turned to either Lavrov or Ushokov and said, now, would you please show the president the situation on the battle lines now? And then for about 10 minutes in my imagination,

it was made very clear to Trump that Ukraine had lost badly and that it was just a matter of time before the Russians moved forward very brusquely and briskly and seized the whole part of the Ukraine to the east of the neighbor or whether they could slow it down and make it look that some kind of some kind of negotiated settlement could be reached a total settlement not just the ceasefire that's the other big point of course trump changed his mind this is really interesting if we look at the chronology okay here's trump going to anchor And he's on a plane, he talks to Brett Bayer, you know, he said, hey, Brett, you know, I'm going to be really, I'm going to be really disappointed if we don't emerge from this thing with some kind of a ceasefire. Okay. Now, Brett didn't keep that to himself. Who's out on the wire, as we used to say right away? So here's Putin saying, oh, my God, be prepared. He's going to raise the ceasefire. And Putin said clearly, nets, yeah.

no ceasefire first, we addressed the whole thing, okay? Now, that was the issue, in my view, that Trump said, well, we couldn't really get agreement on this one big issue, and didn't take a couple of hours before Trump caved and said, you know, I think that Putin's right, we should have a whole settlement here, we shouldn't begin with a ceasefire. That is so big, that changes all the rules, so that's what Zelensky and those Europeans, I'm going to try to argue against. And again, when you have the vice president saying,

look, we're done with supporting Ukraine with money and with arms. I mean, it's up to you guys. Well, there you have Big Daddy again, a deadbeat. And, you know, this is not short and coming. It's been long in coming. But they're not prepared. And they're rather desperate. Witness the fact that they're coming, en masse, so to speak.

the ones that they could be persuaded. I suggested in a tweet yesterday that Wittkoff tell the president, look, no Europeans without the Hungarian prime minister and the president of Slovakia. Those two should be included because they weren't included in these discussions at the European Council yesterday. And so don't let these other guys in the door. without some sensible people who are not brain dead. Now, I don't imagine that's happened,

but it's going to be very interesting this afternoon to see how things go. Here is President Putin's warning about the Europeans, and he actually, you don't know the Russian word, he actually says, I hope that they don't throw a wrench into the process. Chris, cut number 13. I would like to hope that the agreement that we've reached together will help us bring

closer that goal and will pave the path towards peace in Ukraine. We expect that Kiev and European capitals will perceive that constructively and that they won't throw a ranch in the works. They will not make any attempts to use some backroom dealings and to conduct provocations to torpedo the nascent progress. Overall, it's very important for our countries to turn the page to go back to cooperation. It is symbolic that not far away from here, the border between Russia and the U.S. there was a so-called international date line.

I think you can step over, literally, from yesterday into tomorrow. And I hope that's, will succeed in that. I hope will succeed in that. You and I know, neutral observers know, probably the military on the ground knows how bad off the Russian, the Ukrainian military is. does Zelensky know it and do the nationalists that we've been saying for months and even years now the ultra-nationalists that surround and control him

do they know it well if they don't know it judge it's deliberate avoidance of the problem here's a little for instance as we used to say in the Bronx there's a fellow named

Anatole Levin Okay. Now he's a big correspondent, big journalist, okay? But he's also sort of like a windsock. Now, in March, in the middle of March, 2022, he said, Ukraine has already won. Don't worry about it. Ukraine has already won. Why did he say that? Because his sources of the White House said the Russians stop outside Kiev. They're not going any further. And look, they're starting to withdraw. Why were they doing? that because there had been a deal struck between Ukrainian and Russian negotiators. I'd referendum, Putin and Zelensky themselves. In other words, they really involved personally, that there would be a deal,

and that was the Istanbul deal that was worked out at the end of March, early April. Well, what is Anatole even saying now? Always saying it looks like the Ukrainians are about to lose the war. Oh, isn't that interesting? So why do I cite that? Because he's a wind sock, okay? He's hearing now from his sources in Washington and London, the battle is lost, and so he's playing now trying to get ahead of the game.

He's ahead of the game this time, and this time he happens to be right. What do you think, Steve Whitkoff and the president were talking about when they said land swaps? Alster Crook is of the view that Whitkoff misunderstood. something translated to him from President Putin's Russian because in Alistair's view, and I want yours, it is inconceivable and illegal for President Putin to give up any Russian land as part of a peace agreement. Yeah, Alistair, as usual, is completely right. What have the Russians said about this kind of swap? Zero, okay? This is banter. This is

kind of low throwing things out we call them straw straws in the wind or whatever and you know it's not to be taken to the reality is number one there's not going to be any ceasefire immediately number two what about the sanctions oh oh we're going to have bro and crunchy sanctions not only on russia but on china and india what happened to them well as we know if we remember When Trump painted himself into this stupid corner, he said, hey, Steve Whitkoff, can you help me out? Go to Moscow and see if he can make a deal. It's really embarrassing. I have to back off this thing.

That was the 6th of August. The 8th was the deadline, right? And so the deal was struck, will divert all kinds of attention to what I was threatening or else, and we'll have a summit. Now, you can be very sure that Putin, contracted concessions in return for his agreement to do a summit, particularly in the United States. And now we see what they were. Now, Trump made one last attempt with Brett Baer to say, oh, we really needed a meeting ceasefire. Now he can say to the Europeans, look, I gave it a try. I gave it a try. And he said, no, here's what Putin told his principal advisors the next day.

We definitely respect the U.S. administration's position, which wants hostilities to stop as soon as possible. So we'd like to move forward with settling all the issues by peaceful means, okay? So we're going to settle all the issues, and of course, that is what Trump brought into the next day. The sanctions? Oh, sanctions. It's not going to be any. What about sanctions on China? Oh, well, they've been postponed for about 90 days or so. all about India. Now that's the real sad story. They're going forward in India. And who arrives in India today? But Wang Yi, the foreign minister of China. He could be there three days. But once again, have not, have the U.S.

politicos not just drawn Russia and China so much together that it's a virtual alliance, But now they've contributed to Indian Chinese Rapporchma under the pact of these un, you know, unwise, crazy sanctions on India, which, of course, India is not going to obey anyway. So that's a side issue, but it's just part and parcel of how ill-advised Trump has been on these things. Last thing I'll say is that, of course, General Kellogg didn't get to go to Alaska, and that's a very, very good omen because all of his crazy notions have been superseded now by the outcome, the outcome which we know with the proviso, that there's always the possibility. Trump will change his mind. Oh, no, no, maybe we will have, we should have, we should have immediate ceasefire before negotiations.

I don't think that's going to happen, but how can you rule that kind of thing out with a material guy like Trump? Here's one of the people giving Trump bad advice, very, very testy, unhappy Secretary of State being asked yesterday on national television is the only reason the EU leaders are coming here to prevent Donald Trump from bullying Vladimir Zelensky? Watch his answer. Cut number 14, Chris. President Trump told Fox News his advice to President Zelensky is make a deal. Russia's a very big power, and they're not. You know there is concern from the Europeans that President Zelensky is going to be bullied into signing something away.

That's why you have these European leaders coming as back up tomorrow. Can you... No, it isn't. That's not why they're coming us back. That's not true. We're trying to solve a problem. Don't tell us what we're going to feel.

I'm not telling you. Because you're no position to dictate that. Remember that you're in no position to dictate what we're going to feel. No, but that's not, why, why, that's not true. They're not coming here tomorrow to keep Zelensky from being bullied. They're not coming. In fact, they're coming here tomorrow's meeting in front of television cameras where President

Zelenskyy, you know how many meetings we've had since then? So that, but that's not true. They're not coming here tomorrow to keep Zelensky from being bullied. They're coming here tomorrow because we've been working with the Europeans. We talked to them last week. There were meetings in the UK over the fall of the previous weekend. And they said President Trump was going to demand a ceasefire. As early as Thursday.

No, no. But you said that they're coming here tomorrow. keep Zelensky for being bullied. They're not coming here tomorrow. This is such a stupid media narrative that they're coming here tomorrow because Trump is going to bully Zelensky into a bad deal. We've been working with these people for weeks. I feel sorry for Rubio. He can't be happy with the better part of his job being done by somebody else. Well, not only that, but the essence of his job being against his own inclinations. I mean, he's a, he's a neocon for God's sake. He shows great flexibility by saluting smartly, but he hates to do these things. Now, February in the Oval

office was an ambush. I mean, I don't like Zelensky, not one little bit, but I almost fell embarrassed for him. Yeah. Yeah, he sort of started it, but my God, you know. Same here. Same here. They jumped. So now this, he's going back to the scene of the crime, right? And all of a sudden, the Europeans want to come with him. Now, I was surprised that Trump said, all right, you can come. But then I saw that there was some method in his madness. You can come and you can wait until three o'clock. I'm going to talk about. 115 until 120. And that's all I'll take with Zelensky. Zillisky can go commiserate with you guys. You come back and I'll tell you just the same thing.

If you want the cameras on, I'll leave them on. So the president has thrown General Kellogg under the bus. Is he throwing the neocons onto the bus as well? Where's Lindsay Graham on this? Well, Lindsay will, you know, he'll salute as well. He'll make the base, he'll put the base on it. He's already done so when talking about Alaska.

And he'll support the president. Now, in his heart of hearts, probably has his, you know, his doubts or his real firm opposition. But look, Trump is acting like a president now who is unfettered by the usual fellows who, for example, during Russia Gate, kept him emasculated. And I used that term advisedly. He couldn't do a damn thing with respect to Russia. That was acknowledged pretty much at the summit. Otherwise, it was referred. to. You know, I couldn't do anything under this previous administration, says Bucci. And, you know, it really is that we agree with you, Mr. Trump. It's really Biden's war, not your

war. I mean, letting Trump off the hook, he's finished with it. Vance went to a whole week ago, he went to Europe and tried to persuade the Europeans. This is what's going to happen. And what do you get? They didn't get much satisfaction. Now, if Vance is there with Trump, two against one, Ruby will probably listen in with when Zelensky comes at 115. I mean, Zelensky is going to have to face the music. No more arms. You're losing. No more money.

If the Europeans want to help you, well, go talk to them after you talk to me and see what they're really prepared to do. They have no money. They have no arms. They have nothing but rhetoric and their fancy title coalition of the Willie. they don't really have what it takes, you know, Stalin asked the Vatican. So how many divisions does the Pope have? How many divisions do the Europeans have?

One or two, I think. Here's the president of France yesterday, not very happy. Chris cut number four. Do I think President Putin wants peace? The answer is no. If you want my personal conviction, no. Do I think President Trump wants peace? Yes.

I don't think President Putin wants peace. I think he wants Ukraine to surrender. That's what he proposed. If we are weak today with Russia, we will be preparing for tomorrow's conflicts, and they will affect the Ukrainians. And let's not kid ourselves. They can also affect us at the very moment when our country continues to be regularly attacked on the cyber front, on the information front,

or in contested areas, from maritime to space. So there is no weakness. Basically, what we are going to say tomorrow, we want peace. Everyone who is here tomorrow in Washington has been on the side of peace since day one. But we want a robust peace, a peace that can in no way be a capitulation, a peace that can in no way be achieved at the expense of the security of Europeans. I don't know what he can do if Ukraine agrees that the Oblasts and Crimea become part of Russia and NATO stays out of Ukraine. What is the president of France going to do?

Well, Crimea is a done deal. No sensible person thinks that even Zelensky expects to get that back, despite his rhetoric. Now, Macron, my God, you know, he follows this fellow O'Long. who purposely deceived the trick the Russians, he and Angela Merkel and have admitted it that when they committed to supervise the ceasefire in Ukraine, Minsk won in Minsk two, that that just was a way of buying time

for NATO to equip and train the Ukrainian army. And Angela Merkel, having admitted this, says, and look at the Ukrainian army now. There were nothing at 2000. and 14, for God's sake, now look at them, okay? So this is the tradition. Now, what did these people expect? Well, I don't know, but they're not very bright,

because when you look at this situation as a whole, it was they who provoked this war. That is indisputable. The evidence is very, very clear. The Secretary General of NATO said to the EU Parliament, And two years ago, Putin said, if you keep trying to get Ukraine into NATO, we will have to invade. And he had Storlberg says, so we said, no. And he invaded.

Meanwhile, we got Finland and we got Sweden. So we had enlargement of NATO anyway. My God, a million Ukrainian youth and Russian youth had perished by that time two years ago. So these are the kind of leadership you have at NATO. As I say, Ruta, now he's going to be there. He's the, again, the Secretary General of NATO, okay? Now, what's he already said? He says, oh, well, Daddy is here with us, no problem.

Well, I'll just say one time, one more time. Daddy is a dead bee. He's not going to pay alimony. He's not going to pay child support. He's not going to pay anything anymore. He's up to here. And the vice president has said, look, we're done. We're done with all.

arming Ukraine, and the money is going to stop as well. Once Trump has a chance to persuade those in the Senate and in the House that this is really the only way out, I think things will converge. I think terms will be worked out. And whether Zelensky is one of the people that helps work it out or not, really up to him to show a little bit more, a lot more flexibility than he has shown. here to four well we'll have a lot to talk about at the end of the week with larry thank you ray thanks very much thanks for your analysis you have a good week we'll see a friday all the best okay

thank you and the aforementioned larry at 1 30 excuse me at 11 30 at 11 30 as usual slot this morning at 2 o'clock this afternoon colonel douglas mcgregor switching over to the middle east about which we We can't forget, even when our eyes are on the ball in Alaska at 3 o'clock, Aaron Mante. Judge Napolitano for judging freedom. Thank you.