The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 3.14 “THEY CANT JAIL US ALL!” Former Propagandist Exposes Putin's Lie Factory, Anna Sorokin, Gas Theft, &

Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup you beautiful bastards! Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show. If you are seeing this video, it is a miracle or it's not really a miracle It's more of a testament to how amazing my fucking team is. Still dealing with health stuff The only time my doctor can see me is in the middle of filming and I wasn't gonna go then my wife was like if you End up dying because you're like it's not that bad. I'm gonna double kill you So I don't even know what that is, but I don't want to find out So hey, welcome to the show hit that like button and let's just jump into it You know first up today but I don't want to find out. So, hey, welcome to the show. Hit that like button and let's just jump into it. You know, first up today, we need to talk about

Starting point is 00:00:26 this super disgusting and just disturbing story out of New York and DC. So on Sunday, police in the two cities said that a gunman had been hunting homeless people sleeping on the streets since March 3rd, primarily in lower Manhattan and Northeast Washington. Having shot at least five men, two of them fatally, and a sixth man was found dead in Manhattan Sunday evening

Starting point is 00:00:42 at the same moment a vigil was being held elsewhere for the previous victims. Though, authorities had not determined whether it was connected to the other cases. So then, both police departments linked up with the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to undertake a joint investigation. With the mayors of both cities telling unhoused residents to seek shelter to keep themselves safe, saying our communities in DC and New York City are heartbroken and disturbed by these heinous crimes in which an individual has been targeting some of our most vulnerable residents. But the good news as of this morning is that this may be over because a multi-state manhunt turned up a suspect in D.C. According to law enforcement sources, his name is Gerald Brevard III, a 30-year-old man with a history of mental illness

Starting point is 00:01:15 and an extensive rap sheet including several assault charges. With police now interviewing him and saying further information is forthcoming, though his motive is still unknown. Though on Monday, an Instagram account appearing to belong to the man posted a photo with the caption, feeling devilishly feeling godly. With his cousin, D'Aurel Charlie Brevard, telling the Daily Beast he's totally shocked by the allegations. And the suspect's father adding that he spoke to his son just hours before the arrest and he didn't say anything out of the ordinary. But also with this story, as people wait for more information, waiting to find out what was the motive, you have people charged by this moment wondering why are there so many people vulnerable? In the fiscal year 2021, over 100,000 homeless people slept in the New

Starting point is 00:01:48 York City Department of Homeless Services shelter system, with around a third of them being children. And that's not counting the thousands more left on the streets who were difficult to even count. What you have people saying highlights the lack of affordable housing, evictions, job losses, drug addiction, and the mental health crisis. People also pointing to New York Mayor Eric Adams being on a crusade in recent weeks to clear the subway system of homeless people. Drawing criticism from the Coalition of the Homeless, who say that these shootings are an urgent reminder that many unsheltered New Yorkers choose to bed down in the subways because that is where they feel the most safe in the absence of housing and low barrier shelters. And with that, calling on Adams to open

Starting point is 00:02:19 safe haven beds like he promised. But ultimately where I'll end this story is if you're interested in looking for ways to help, you can do things like donating to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, or I'll link to other advocacy organizations of your choosing down below. And in the meantime, we'll wait to see what change and information comes from this situation. And then let's talk about the major news and updates regarding Anna Delvey, aka Anna Sorokin, aka the Soho Swindler, aka the girl who's responsible for all your friends putting on hybrid German-Russian accents and saying, you're being so dramatic, the wild transfer's on the way. Every time you send them a Venmo request after grabbing dinner. Right now, if you haven't heard

Starting point is 00:02:54 of her or you haven't seen the Netflix series Inventing Anna, which just recently came out and made her famous scam blow up even more, she was convicted in 2019 of defrauding banks, hotels, stealing a private jet, and essentially conning elite New Yorkers into thinking she was an incredibly wealthy heiress. And she finished serving her four-year sentence in 2019 of defrauding banks, hotels, stealing a private jet, and essentially conning elite New Yorkers into thinking she was an incredibly wealthy heiress. And she finished serving her four year sentence in February of last year, but not long after her release, she was taken into ICE custody

Starting point is 00:03:12 and arrested for overstaying her visa. And since then, she's been fighting off deportation, but then based on reports from the past 24 hours, it seemed like she was unsuccessful, though information was pretty murky. There was some saying she was either facing deportation or had already actually been deported to Germany, but there were differing stories here.

Starting point is 00:03:26 And according to NBC News, her attorney has been unable to contact her, leading him to think that it's possible she may have in fact been deported. But he also said she should not be facing deportation until the 19th because they are still under her timeframe to appeal. You also had insiders saying she was set to leave jail

Starting point is 00:03:38 and board a plane yesterday, but again, her whereabouts are unclear. With some reports suggesting she still might actually be in the US, with that being notable because she was actually set to appear on the massive Call Her Daddy podcast in an interview from jail that was set to air tomorrow. With the Daily Mail chalking it up to a deportation mix-up, saying she's still in New York. Though that report also said the Call Her Daddy episode was previously recorded, so regardless of her deportation status, it should still be in the clear to air. With that, there is a lot of excitement for that interview. So for a while there were all these reports, it was kind of unclear until we saw an NBC news reporter tweeting out

Starting point is 00:04:06 that her lawyer says that Anna is still in fact in a New York detention center fighting deportation. So ultimately we're gonna have to wait to see what happens from here. And then, of course, we need to talk about gas prices surging to record highs last week as more and more countries continue to sanction Russia and ban imports of the country's oil and natural gas. Right, and while Russian oil only accommodates for a small fraction of US oil imports, because oil is priced in global commodity markets, the efforts have sent prices soaring all over the world. While the average nationwide costs have since fallen

Starting point is 00:04:30 in the US a little bit, they are still astronomical for most normal everyday people. So as a result, we've seen people finding, let's call it creative ways to get gas. And by creative, I mean, you know, stealing. They're stealing it. There's a way to call that creative. And we've seen reports of gas theft all over the country.

Starting point is 00:04:45 In LA, residents have claimed that people have literally just been siphoning gas directly from car gas tanks. And according to a lieutenant from the Pasadena Police Department, they say that thieves are also finding ways around special anti-siphoning devices put on more modern tanks. With that seemingly being backed up by the Everett Police Department in Washington State, which said in a statement on Facebook, while some thieves use rubber hoses to siphon fuel out, we are seeing modern-day thieves use power tools to drill a hole in the gas tank and steal fuel, which it kind of feels like you just gave everyone the instructions. Similar tactics have also been reported in Atlanta where police launched an

Starting point is 00:05:10 investigation earlier this month after car owners found holes drilled into their vehicles. But in other places some people have gotten even more ballsy. One family-owned gas station in the Houston area told a local outlet that thieves stole 1,000 gallons totaling $5,000 from them through an elaborate scheme. With one of the family members sharing surveillance video that he claims shows how the alleged perpetrators pulled it off, saying they had a trap door in their vehicle and they put a hose down there and suck it out of the pump. And adding that the alleged heisters hit his store three times last week and tried for a fourth,

Starting point is 00:05:36 sitting there each time for about 15 to 20 minutes with another car playing lookout. Right, so with the surging prices, we've seen a growing number of governors and state legislatures proposing cuts in gas taxes to drive down costs. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and top lawmakers in the state agreed last week to suspend the gas tax for 30 days. Legislators in Florida passed a similar measure last week that would suspend their state tax for 30 days,

Starting point is 00:05:54 but not until October when tourist season is over, so it's unclear if that's really gonna help anyone. Right, and these efforts have also been echoed in numerous other states. Meanwhile, some leaders have taken different approaches, like California Governor Gavin Newsom, who floated sending money back to taxpayers through rebates to offset prices. And according to reports, at least a dozen states have proposed measures or passed bills related to gas taxes in recent days.

Starting point is 00:06:13 Meanwhile, in Congress, two Democratic senators have proposed legislation that would suspend the federal gas tax until January. While that plan is reportedly gaining momentum, Democrats remain divided. Right, so as far as what happens from here, as well as with these state proposals, we're gonna have to wait and see.

Starting point is 00:06:24 But the real thing to watch out for will be how effective these suspensions will actually be at lowering prices, especially if they're short term and this issue persists for a while. But from that, I wanna take a second to thank the fantastic sponsor of today's show, Ridge. You know, I had a Ridge wallet

Starting point is 00:06:37 before they even became a sponsor. I love that Ridge is a minimalistic front pocket wallet that's slim, RFID blocking, and comes with a lifetime guarantee. Like, let's just face it, men's wallets can get bulky. With all the receipts, hotel room keys, empty gift cards, cash, it just, it doesn't make sense. It's not practical for the modern man or woman.

Starting point is 00:06:53 And the ridge helps you carry less, but always what you need. It comes in titanium, carbon fiber, and aluminum, and on top of that, there are tons of different styles and colors to choose from, making them the perfect gift for anyone in your life. And it's awesome sleek design, has to be what I love most. It is two metal plates bound together by a durable elastic band, so it's easy to get out what you want, easy to put in something new. And get this, in honor of

Starting point is 00:07:11 Ridge's ninth anniversary, if you head over to ridge.com slash defranco and you make sure you use code defranco, you'll get 15% off site-wide today until March 18th. And then, it's both amazing and terrifying that a country on the opposite face of the earth can have such profound impacts on our daily lives in the U.S. And no, I'm not actually talking about Russia yet. We actually have massive news coming out of China that could have serious implications for the U.S. With the Chinese government on Sunday locking down the technology hub of Shenzhen, home to 17.5 million people, to stem a recent surge in coronavirus cases in the city. As well as locking down another province yesterday that's home to 24 million people. And suspending bus services to Shanghai on top of other cities that were put on lockdown earlier in the city, as well as locking down another province yesterday that's home to 24 million people, and suspending bus services to Shanghai on top of other cities that were put on lockdown

Starting point is 00:07:47 earlier in the week. So now, for at least the next week, all businesses in Shenzhen, except those supplying food, fuel, and other necessities, must close or operate from home, which some might find crazy given that this is a response to just 60 new cases there on Sunday, when at the same time, in New York City, for example, there have been hundreds of infections every day recently, and they are relaxing restrictions, not tightening them. But also, infections in China have jumped considerably in recent days, more than doubling between Saturday and Sunday, and continuing to rise, making this the worst outbreak the country's experienced since 2020. And this is currently being driven by the new stealth Omicron variant. Itself, a variant of the Omicron variant, which

Starting point is 00:08:19 spreads faster than regular Omicron, itself spreading faster than Delta or the original variant. Notably, we're also seeing that variant causing spikes in multiple European countries. Cause I guess 2022 was like, Oh, you thought you were getting a break? You thought it was just the war? No. But still with these lockdowns,

Starting point is 00:08:32 you have some calling China's harsh measures authoritarian. We also have others arguing they're just effective policies with only 4,636 deaths being reported on the mainland since the pandemic began. Though I do want to note that you also have Hong Kong, which is not part of the mainland now being described as having the world's highest COVID-19 death rate. This largely because of low vaccination rates,

Starting point is 00:08:49 especially among the elderly. And while this is certainly consequential for millions of people in China, it could also affect us, starting with the economic side, where the province where the city is located accounts for 11% of the country's GDP, or a whopping $1.96 trillion. And last year, its exports represented 23%

Starting point is 00:09:03 of China's annual shipments, more than any other province. And so economists at Australia and New Zealand banking group estimate that China's lockdowns will affect half the country's GDP and population. And naturally this could ripple across the world economy, especially hitting global supply chains fed by tech and machinery out of Shenzhen. We're talking about factories that produce iPhones,

Starting point is 00:09:19 semiconductors, computers, and other products out of operation. And then finally, as promised, let's talk about Russia and Putin's deadly vanity project in Ukraine. Obviously, people continue to die as the Russian army pounds population centers, even as the two sides continuously meet for peace talks. Although, notably, it's actually the first time peace talks have gone on to a second day,

Starting point is 00:09:35 which has been interpreted by some as a hopeful sign. But otherwise, the military situation hasn't really changed since yesterday, other than Zelensky making yet another call for Russian troops to surrender. There's also been a notable act of support for Zelensky by the leaders of Poland, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic as they have taken a train to Kiev for talks despite the fighting. Then on the economic front, Russia continues to be a pariah

Starting point is 00:09:52 and effectively cut off from the world economy. So they've enacted some largely symbolic sanctions against President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, but those won't really affect them. Though there are also worries that there could be increased cyber attacks against banks and retaliation for Russia losing access to SWIFT, so expect those headlines soon. And Putin's last real lifeline looked like it was going to be China, but the U.S. has been trying

Starting point is 00:10:11 hard to dissuade China from letting that happen, with a State Department spokesperson giving this warning, saying, we are watching this very closely to the extent to which the People's Republic of China or any country in the world provides support material, economic, financial, rhetorical, otherwise, to this war of choice that President Putin is waging against the government of Ukraine, against the state of Ukraine, and against the people of Ukraine. We've been very clear, both privately with Beijing and publicly with Beijing, that there would be consequences for any such support. We also had American and Chinese officials meeting in Rome to discuss this issue, although we're not sure how those talks are going. Really, the only sign we have of China's position is from a

Starting point is 00:10:42 conversation Foreign Minister Wang Yi had with a Spanish Prime Minister yesterday, where he said, China is not a party to the crisis, nor does it want the sanctions to affect China. And so this has been seen as one of the most explicit statements the country has made about the issue, and led to some hope that China would join in on sanctions, or at the very least, just not help Russia avoid them. But without trying to be too much of a buzzkill, Foreign Minister Wang did give himself an out in those remarks, saying, China has has the right to safeguard "'its legitimate rights and interests.'" And adding that China always opposes the use of sanctions to solve problems, especially those not enacted by the UN.

Starting point is 00:11:11 And as far as what happens from there, we'll need to wait and see, but either way, China will likely have a central role and it knows that. Now, with that said, I wanna pivot and talk about some of the courage shown by Russians. And obviously there, I'm not talking about their soldiers, but everyday Russians who are protesting this war, despite full well knowing that they will be arrested.

Starting point is 00:11:26 I covered one prominent example of a news producer on my TikTok yesterday, where I'm talking about Marina Avsayanikova. This is a massive deal because Marina has been central in spreading government propaganda for years and years, and apparently regrets that decision. Deciding to run onto a broadcast for one of Russia's main stations,

Starting point is 00:11:41 carrying a sign that said no war in English and don't believe the propaganda, they're lying to you here in Russian. It also looks like she didn't expect to be able to say much after the protest, deciding to pre-record this message. . Going on to call it a fratricidal war and lamented of her time spreading propaganda saying,

Starting point is 00:12:04 . to call it a fratricidal war and lamented of her time spreading propaganda saying Unfortunately, in the last few years I have been working on the first channel, dealing with Kremlin propaganda. And I am very ashamed of it. And from here she's facing charges for organizing an unauthorized public event, may face charges for quote discrediting Russia's army. She was also hit with a $280 fine for her video message. And while it's of course amazing that she did this, she is also hardly the only Russian protesting this war with reportedly 14,000 anti-war protesters already being detained. And I am just amazed because it takes a certain kind

Starting point is 00:12:29 of courage to go out there often alone to protest this war, knowing that you are very likely going to get arrested, if not worse. Especially after Russia passed a series of laws that give even harsher sentences for discrediting Russian forces or spreading what they refer to as misinformation about the war.

Starting point is 00:12:43 If only for every protestor arrested, that was one less day Putin was on this earth. But ultimately, that is where that story and today's show ends. As always, thank you for watching, liking, subscribing, being a part of these daily dives into the news. Also, especially on days like today, let me know what you're thinking in those comments down below. It gives me something to scroll through while I just, you know, wait to get poked and prodded. But of course, as always, my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love yo faces and I'll see you tomorrow.

Your Ad Here

The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 3.14 “THEY CANT JAIL US ALL!” Former Propagandist Exposes Putin's Lie Factory, Anna Sorokin, Gas Theft, &

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.