The Philip DeFranco Show - The Epstein Files Are More Evil Than We Were Told & Mamdani’s Tax Problem Has Divided The Internet

Episode Date: February 18, 2026

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The Epstein files, according to UN experts, suggests the existence of a global criminal enterprise that carried out acts meeting the legal threshold of crimes against humanity. Despite the Trump administration's claims that there's nothing to see here, these experts, they say that the files do in fact contain credible evidence of the systematic abuse, trafficking and exploitation of women and girls. And in addition to saying they're suggestive of the existence of a global criminal enterprise, they added, so grave is the scale, nature, systematic character, and transnational reach of these atrocities against women and girls that a number of them may reasonably, meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity. Well, of course, it is very clear to most of us that Epstein was an inhumane monster. This is notable because we're talking about something with very specific criteria under international criminal law. Crimes against humanity are acts including sexual slavery, rape, enforced prostitution, trafficking, or murder, knowingly committed as part of a

widespread or systematic attack against any civilian population. And you have these experts suggesting that this criteria may have been met because, of course, the nature of their crimes committed, as well as the scale of them, but also because they were, quote, committed against a backdrop of supremacist beliefs, racism, corruption, extreme misogyny, and the commodification and dehumanization of women and girls from different parts of the world. One of the biggest points here is that Epstein's crimes and those of whoever else may have been involved, they weren't random. They may have been organized and they have been part of a sort of ideologically driven attack on women and girls by people who saw them as less than human.

Right in her memoir, Virginia Juffray wrote that Epstein liked to tell friends that women were merely a life support system for a vagina. We saw this kind of attitude again and again in the files that have been released. And they showed that Epstein had been screening young women from all over the world, ranking them based on their sexual attractiveness and other attributes, and ultimately bringing them in to his service. It was reportedly common knowledge that he often traveled with an entourage at girls who he also described in his correspondence as assistants or students, a group that billionaire Richard Branson referred to in one email as Epstein's harem. So much of this, it happened long after law enforcement first began investigating Epstein for child sexual abuse

back in 2005. I mean, a lot is missed or forgotten, but just as a reminder, way back then, federal officials eventually identified 36 potential victims, some as young as 14 years old. And his method had apparently been to recruit these girls to his home and persuade them to undress and massage him. And he would then force them to have sex and pay them cash, but he also avoided any real punishment by striking a deal and pleading guilty to lesser state-level charges, including soliciting prostitution from a minor. And with that, he ended up only serving 13 months and he got special treatment, including work-release privileges not given to other sex offenders. And then, of course, in the years that followed, as we well know now, he maintains and

acquired close ties to prominent people in politics, finance, academia, and business. He spoke to to many of them about massages and at least some seem to know for damn sure what he meant. Right, in 2010, for example, he sent an email to Boris Nikolich, the then-Science advisor to the Gates Foundation, saying that he was finishing up a massage. With Nikolich responding, with happy ending, I hope, and Epstein replying, I'm too impatient, happy beginning. But then another email chain between Epstein and the Emirati businessman, Sultan Ahmed bin Suleyam, they not only discussed a torture video, but then shared details of a personal masseuse. Then later, Catherine Ruhnler, a former White House counsel under President Obama, she seemingly

acknowledged that she knew the difference between a massage and Epstein's kind of massage. And then with all that, the emails also show that Epstein organized massages for friends and connected them with women or girls as favors or gifts. In 2017, for example, Deepak Chopra complained to Epstein about a crazy day and Epstein replied, I'm in Florida, but would like to send two girls. There are also dozens of messages that Epstein sent a billionaire Leon Black. Right, and in those, you can see that Epstein repeatedly asked for large sums of money and claimed to have helped Black make payments to a woman who accused him of sexual assault. These later documents further showing that Epstein encouraged Black to hire an investigator to track the woman's movements and that he was

receiving updates on other women to whom Black had made payments. And then with all that, the files also show that Epstein often sent cryptic messages to his contacts, suggesting that he had some kind of dirt on them or that they shared some kind of secrets. And this was also the case with yet another billionaire, Les Wexner, who was actually reportedly the source of hundreds of millions of dollars of Epstein's wealth, much of which Epstein allegedly stole from him. And so that led to a falling out, but Epstein later sent a message implying that he knew things that Wexner wouldn't want getting out.

And all of that, it becomes even more notable when you consider that Virginia Juffray once claimed that she had been trafficked to Wexner by Epstein. Also, a newly released FBI memo from 2019 listed Wexner as one of Epstein's possible co-conspirators, although it also said that there was limited evidence regarding his involvement. But also as recently as last year, you had the DOJ, including Wexner on a list of prominent names of interest in the Epstein investigation. And then with all that, Wetzner actually testified about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein before the House Oversight Committee today. And he denied wrongdoing as he's done before. And he blasted Epstein as a world-class con man.

But ultimately, what you have people like these UN experts arguing is that bring a, you know, a few of the most high-profile figures in the files that testify before Congress, that's not going to cut it. Instead, saying there should be independent, thorough, and impartial investigations into the allegations contained in the files as well. as inquiries to determine how such crimes could have taken place for so long and dadding. Any suggestion that it is time to move on from the Epstein files is unacceptable. It represents a failure of responsibility towards victims. And actually, on that note, while it's easy to get signed tracked by the files, it is very important to remember that some of the most damning evidence we have is from the survivors.

Virginia Juffray, she claimed in her memoir that she was lent out to scores of wealthy, powerful people, and she said she was habitually used and humiliated and in some instances choked, beaten, and bloodied. She even described being traffic to a man described as a well-known prime minister, who she said abused her so badly that for days it hurt to breathe and to swallow. And just this weekend, you had another survivor, Juliet Bryant, telling CBS about how she had been offered a modeling opportunity through Epstein. But he organized her travel to the U.S. from Australia only for her to have her passport taken before being sexually assaulted and then trafficked for years.

And, you know, when we ask ourselves, how this type of stuff could have happened. I mean, the man who we have president today, was first elected even after audio came out, showing that he once claimed that he could get away with grabbing women by the pussy because he was famous, and he was elected again even after being found civilly liable for sexual abuse. Right, and with that, you've got people out there like Nick Fuentes who have these massive following saying shit like this on a regular basis.

When you see guys saying stuff like 16, 15, that's a literal child. This is feminism. That's a feminist construct. Age of Consent, Feminist construct. Google it. It is literally a feminist. What does that even mean? No one even knows.

No one even thinks about it. Rape is something that is played up because of the way that women have, have politicized sexuality. Women want to have no consequences for their actions, so rape is always a convenient excuse. And then actually, with all this beyond the Epstein files, there are obviously other examples of the rich and powerful getting away with abuse.

And possibly one of the latest examples has come from Crystal Hefner, the widow of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, because she's alleged that her dead husband's foundation may be in possession of a decades-old collection of sexually explicit images of young women and possibly underage girls that were taken without consent. With her also claiming that she was fired as the Foundation's chief executive after raising concerns about the collection.

So she's now filed complaints with the California and Illinois Attorney General's offices and an attempt to prevent any potential distribution of those images. Right. And specifically, she said that the foundation is in possession of 3,000 personal scrapbooks containing thousands of nude images of women and Hefner's diary, which contains highly personal information regarding his sexual exploits, including names of women he slept with, notes describing the sex acts that they performed, and in some instances, even information tracking women's menstrual cycles. Crystal saying that she's concerned about possible plans to digitize the collection and adding, I am deeply worried about these images getting out. A single security failure could devastate thousands of lives. Saying this is a civil rights issue. Women's bodies are not property, are not history, and are not collectibles.

Now, with all that, as of recording, we haven't heard from the Hefner Foundation, so we're going to have to wait to see how this plays out. But, you know, while you can decide for yourself what you want to believe in the meantime, to transition, Stephen Colbert is telling you very clearly, do not believe CBS. Because Colbert slammed CBS on air for the second night in a row, literally comparing their legal defense to dog shit. Right, of course, all of this stemming from CBS, not letting a mayor's interview

with Texas Senate candidate James Tyler Rico on TV. And as we dove into yesterday, Tyler Rico is running in the damn primaries, and CBS claimed that they intervened because of the FCC's equal time rule, which states that if a broadcast network gives air time to one candidate, they have to offer time to their opponents.

But because talk shows are historically exempt from this rule, many saw this as corporate BS, corporate censorship, and CBS pledging blind loyalty to Trump by silencing Colbert and a Democratic candidate. And so Colbert, he still did the interview, but he uploaded it to YouTube instead. But now with all this, you've got CBS, defending itself, saying in a statement,

the late show was not prohibited by CBS from broadcasting the interview with Representative James Tilariko, saying the show was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal time rule for two other candidates, including Representative Jasmine Crockett, and presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled. And then claiming the late show decided to present the interview through its YouTube channel with on-air promotion on the broadcast rather than potentially providing the equal time options. And this statement was at the center of Colbert's show last night, where he literally equated this response to dog shit and then went on to say that the network

told me unilaterally that I had to abide by the equal time rules, something that I had never been asked to do for an interview in the 21 years of this job. I'm not a lawyer and I don't want to tell them how to do their jobs, but since they seem intent on telling me how to do mine, fellas, I am well aware that we can book other guests. I didn't need to be presented with that option. I have had had given to that option. I have had gotten to make that happen. Where Jesmond Crockett is one of the people that Talleyco is facing in the primaries and her most recent appearance on Colbert's show was nine months ago. And even though that was before she launched her Senate bid, you had people saying that it shows that he's clearly open to her being a guest and he has the contacts to make that happen if the equal time rule was really applicable here. But then all of that brings us to an FCC commissioner who released a statement saying that this is nothing to do with the real FCC rules and it was just censorship. Saying this is yet another troubling example of corporate capitulation in the face of this administration's broader campaign to censor and control speech. The FCC has no lawful authority to pressure broadcasters for political purposes or to create a climate that chills free expression. CBS is fully protected under the First Amendment to determine what interviews it airs, which makes its decision to yield to political pressure all the more disappointing. And while this whole situation, it is a bad sign for democracy, as I was talking about yesterday, and it turns out to be true, it ended up being so good for Taylor Rico's campaign.

But in addition to all the eyes on that interview, this morning, he announced that his campaign raised $2.5 million since his Colbert interview was blocked. Also with that, I'll say, you know, while that is a very impressive stat, Rico is not publicly celebrating. Instead, be set on MSNBC. It should be troubling to all of us, regardless of our political affiliations or our political beliefs, that the most powerful people in the country, the most powerful politicians, and the most powerful corporate executives are working together to sell out the First Amendment, to sell out our freedom of speech in order to protect their own power and their own wealth. Of course, Telerico is just one part of the Dem primary, and one of his opponents, Jasmine Crockett,

went on MSNBC to share her side of the story. And she said that she got a call claiming that CBS was told that they could move forward with a Tilariko interview if they offered her equal time. But I did not get a request from the Colbert show to go on. As you know, I've been on Colbert multiple times. And frankly, and, you know, if we would have gotten an offer, that would have been great. But we're in the middle of early voting. So I'm kind of focused on being in Texas at this moment.

And, you know, I don't know what to believe. that's for sure. With Crocett saying that she would have had no issue if the interview had just aired on the traditional broadcast and acknowledged that this whole controversy just gave Tilariko a lift in the race. I think it probably gave my opponent

the Abusi was looking for. So I think it's probably better that he didn't get on and that they went straight to streaming because we know that when we resist and when we know that it seems like they're trying to change the rules and been to the knee

or been the knee to this president that it backfires in a historic fashion. And it does feel like this hostile environment that the Trump regime has created, it did backfire. There were all those views, there's all that money that's been raised and Google searches are up for Tala Rico, and it's coming as early voting in the state just started. The timing of this boost is major,

and it's going to be very interesting to see what kind of impact it has as far as the actual voting. But again, if you are someone that's celebrating this backfiring, it should be a small celebration. Because as we talked about yesterday, this does not solve the bigger underlying problem. This is a dangerous and scary environment. This is supposed to have a chilling effect,

And most candidates, if they get this crackdown or they don't get the opportunities, they're very likely not going to get the strife and effect that we saw here. We get to see and celebrate the outliers, but most interviews that get killed, they stay killed. Most corporate censorship, it works. You know, CBS's behavior and their defense, which I think is insulting to your intelligence, claiming that they were just providing options. It shows what happens when networks prioritize regulatory relationships over journalism. And I think Colbert is correct when he compared their statement to dog shit.

And then there's more we've got to dive into in just a minute. But first, let me thank a sponsor and say, you know, matching outfits used to feel like something reserved for cheesy holiday folks. And yet here we are. Because today's sponsor, Mey Undy's somehow made matching actually cool. And yes, I mean, my wife and I are all in. But also it's not just for couples. I'm talking family, best friends, roommates, maybe chaos goblins you live with.

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It's dot com slash Philip DeFranco for up to 50% off me-undies. But then diving right back into the news, we've got to talk about how Zoranamom Dani just fired the opening shot what looks like a full-blown class war between Democratic Socialists and New York super rich. But it is dramatic, it is intense. And whatever the outcome, one thing's certain, someone is going to win and someone is going to lose. But first, to actually understand how we got here, we got to go back a couple of weeks to the moment that Mom Dani dropped this bomb. I will be blunt. New York City is facing a serious fiscal crisis. There is a massive fiscal deficit in our city's budget to the tune of at least $12 billion. This crisis has a name

and a chief architect. This is the ad of Adams budget crisis. Now for some context, I'm going to explain real quick how this all works. As mayor, you're required by law to balance the budget, which means making sure that revenue and expenses equal out. The thing is, though, you don't actually know exactly how much your expenses are going to end up totaling until you get the bill. So you just kind of have to guess how much they'll cost, which introduces a certain degree of honesty that New Yorkers have to count on from their mayor about the future. And Eric Adams, he was not exactly famous for his honesty. And in fact, Mom Dani, he claims that Adams intentionally, dramatically, and systematically under-budgeted

city services, or in other words, their projected actual cost was far higher than the numbers that he used. So that means that Adams could technically meet the legal requirement to balance the budget, and it would only turn out to be unbalanced later on, by which time it would then be the next administration's mess to clean up, and here we are with one very big mess. For reference, the budget gaps we are facing today are higher than they were at the height of the Great Recession. But also Mom Dhani says that Adams isn't the only one you have to blame, right? Because Andrew Cuomo also dug this hole during his decade as governor. We're alleging that Cuomo extracted city resources to shore up state level finances while withholding revenue from the city.

So that as a result. New Yorkers contribute 54.5% of state revenue and receive only 40.5% back. In fiscal year 2022, New York City sent $68.8 billion in revenue to Albany and received $47.6 billion back. But regardless of who's to blame, you have Mbemdane saying that he's whittled down that $12 billion deficit substantial. Right, explaining that by finding savings in the budget, updating revenue estimates, and drawing down in-year reserves, he got it down to $7 billion, and then you had Governor Kathy Hokel pitching in another $1.5 billion from the state, putting the final deficit at around $5.4 billion. And so that bomb, it's definitely way smaller than the one he initially dropped, but it's still

going to make a big boom. And so now the way that Mom Dani presents it is that there are two paths forward. Either Hogle and the state legislature in Albany raise income taxes by 2% on New York's 33,000 wealthiest residents who make over a million dollars a year, raise corporate taxes as well, and stop the drain on city resources to the state. Or they refuse, then he'll have no other choice but to raise taxes himself, except it won't be income taxes that go up, but rather, property taxes. And when Donnie was direct here, he said this option, it wouldn't just hit the richest of the rich.

This would effectively be a tax on working in middle-class New Yorkers who have a median income of $122,000. So that's a 9.5% tax hike on over 3 million single-family homes, co-ops and condos as well as over 100,000 commercial buildings. And you've got the Citizens Budget Commission estimating that that would amount to some $700 more dollars a year in taxes for the typical owner of a one, two, or three-family home. And then actually, in addition to that, the city would dip into its cash reserves and pull out nearly a a billion dollars for the next fiscal year alone. So that's why you have Maldane's saying it's that first path, the income tax path that will provide long-term stability, while the second path, the property tax path, is a last resort that he deeply hopes to avoid because it would cause significant pain. But because the first path is completely out of his hands, though the state has to

approve it, he's proposing a budget in the meantime that's based on the second path. A budget that would spend $122 billion for fiscal year 2026 and $127 billion for 2020. This preliminary budget increases city expenses by over $14 billion. Expenses that we have to fund because the Adams administration failed to a $14 billion, only $576 million is going to deliver new programmatic spending. Now with all this, this is where we kind of delve into the world of opinion. You may have noticed from the clips that I've shown you that he seems like he's opting for a governing style of complete and total transparency.

Whether or not you think he's actually being transparent, he does present himself that way like, hey, I'm not going to sugarcoat this, there are a lot of problems, these are the solutions. These are the best and worst case scenarios, but still you had one reporter asking, you know, what he would say to supporters who might feel betrayed. Saying you ran an uncompromising platform of making the city more affordable for working people, though. In his defense, you had, Mumdani is saying, like, hey, I'm doing everything possible with the tools of my disposal inside of the bounds of the law. And that includes going on a pressure campaign against the state government to force it down the first pass so that he doesn't have to take the second.

Which on the note, there's actually a tax the rich rally that's happening next week. In Albany, though, Mom Donny has reportedly told allies that he doesn't plan to attend. And all the while, like a big aspect of this is that Kathy Hochel's up for re-election this year. So she's facing a ton of political pressure from multiple directions to make the right calculation. But as far as the math there, Mamdani has already endorsed her, and he's so far avoided antagonizing her. Or you see him frequently thanking her for her cooperation, and then also at the same time, he's going to have to negotiate with the city council whose Democratic Speaker Julie Menon said, at a time when New Yorkers are already grappling with an affordability crisis,

dipping into rainy day reserves and proposing significant property tax increases should not be on the table whatsoever. The council believes that there are additional areas of savings and revenue that deserve careful scrutiny before increasing the burden on small property owners and neighborhood small businesses. And then also, at the same time, you have other critics arguing that that Mamdani's two paths are actually just a false choice saying that there is a third option, cut expenses from the budget. And actually in response to that, you had Mamdani saying that they've already come up with an aggressive savings plan, but if they cut any further, it's going to severely impact city services. But for now, we're going to have to keep our eyes on this and

see how it plays out because they have until June 30th to agree on a budget. And actually with that, well, not guaranteed, it's possible that other options are going to surface in that time, where, like, for example, if Wall Street gains, pushed projected revenues up even further than expected. But also, if nothing budges in Mamdani goes with the second path, many property owners could find themselves squeezed at both ends. Because not only would they have to pay more in property taxes, they might also make less in revenue thanks to the partial rent freeze that Momdani wants. Right. And that looks like it might be a reality soon because you had the Gotham is reporting that Mumdani's about to appoint five new members to the nine-member rent guidelines board,

including the board chair and reappoint one giving them a majority. And so when they hold their annual vote on how much rent-stabilized department owners can legally raise their rents, the answer may be a simple zero, which actually is something that's happened before, three times in fact, under former mayor Bill de Blasio. But you know, it is also still a hotly debated topic with one side warning that landlords need to raise rents to keep up with rising cause and the other side countering that the data shows that most affected landlords are doing just fine and the people who really need help are the poor tenants. And actually something you saw with this is that Eric Adams tried to just short circuit that debate by stocking the board with his own picks right before leaving the office

to hamstring Mom Donnie. But unfortunately from Mom Donny, two of his appointees withdrew. So you know now we could see the four consecutive rent freezes that he promised for his first term, knocking out yet another one of his core campaign pledges. Because he already got Hokkel on board with the nearly $1.5 billion child care expansion last month, though it's only two years, so he's going to have to figure out how to make it permanent after that. And that then leaves a few big boxes to check off, free buses, city-run grocery stores, and 200,000 new affordable homes. And so, you know, with lots and lots of play here, of course, yes, I want to know everyone's opinion, but if you live in New York, I would really love to know your thoughts on what we're seeing play

out here. But then, next step in the news, we've got to talk about how Trump is now moving closer to a major war with Iran, and you have sources telling Axios that it can come in weeks, maybe days. You have Iran saying that good progress was made in nuclear talk. So J.D. Van says that military options aren't off the table. And an unnamed Trump advisor said there is a 90% chance that we see kinetic action in the next few weeks. And of course, all of this is coming from involving a man who campaigned as anti-war. I'm not going to start a war. I'm going to stop wars. One of the reasons I was the only president in generations who didn't start a war is that I was the only president who rejected the catastrophic advice of many of Washington's generals,

bureaucrats, and the so-called diplomats who only know how to get us into conflict, but they don't know how to get us out. Take a look at the globalist warmonger and donors backing our opponents. That's because they're candidates of war. I am the president who delivers peace and its peace through strength. The war in Ukraine, I will stop the chaos in the Middle and I will prevent World War III from happening. Right, according to Axios, the military operation that sources described would likely be a massive weeks-long campaign that would look more like a full-fledged war than last month's pinpoint operation in Venezuela. They also added that the military operation would likely be a joint campaign

between the U.S. and Israel that would be, quote, much broader in scope and more existential for the regime than the 12-day war last June when the U.S. and Israel launched deadly strikes, targeting Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile sites, and personnel. And you know, these latest developments, they come after weeks of mounting tensions. Back in January, Trump came close to launching strikes in Iran amid the regime's brutal, deadly crackdown on widespread protests. What we had was Trump eventually backing down after Iranian authorities said that they canceled hundreds of executions with Israel and several Arab nations asking them to hold off. And so instead, you had Trump taking a two-pronged approach. Engage in military talks with Iran while building up a massive military presence in the region and repeatedly threatening Iran with military action if negotiations fail.

Since last month, Trump's been amassing what he has called a massive armada, which reportedly has grown to include two aircraft carriers, a dozen warships, hundreds of fighter jets, multiple air defense systems. But the U.S. has steadily been increasing firepower in the region, even as nuclear talks have continued. And as far as the negotiations on February 6, you had the U.S. and Iran holding indirect negotiations in Oman. You'd both sides leaving, saying things had gone well and more talks would be scheduled soon. Even Trump himself said that the conversations were very good, though he also warned Iran that there would be steep consequences if they failed to make a deal. And then, ahead of another round of indirect talks scheduled this week in Switzerland, you had both sides ramping up military posturing and rhetoric. See, for a while,

there was just one aircraft carrier in the region. On Friday, you had Trump confirming he was sending a second one, then on Monday, one day before the second round of talks was set to start. Iran held live military exercises in the straight of Hormuz. With experts arguing that the move was a show of power intended to warn the United States that if they escalate to full-blown war, Iran's prepared to disrupt a crucial shipping lane for oil and gas, which could upend energy markets globally. Satellite images have also showed Iran's been repairing and fortifying sensitive military sites that Israel and the United States have struck in the past. And so that includes missile bases, uranium enrichment sites, and one complex where experts say that Iran appears to be building

what could be a high explosive containment vessel, which is critical to developing nuclear weapons. And then even as the negotiations got underway yesterday, direct military posturing has continued from both sides. The U.S. reportedly sent another 50 fighter jets to the Middle East, while Iran fired missiles towards the Strait of Hormuz and the Ayatollah publicly threatened to sink American warships. But then also, as far as the talks themselves, it seems like the U.S. and Iran both left with slightly different understandings of how things went down. Right on one side, Iran's foreign minister told state television that good progress has been made and the countries now have a clear path ahead and datting. Ultimately, we were able to reach broad

agreement on a set of guiding principles based on which we will move forward and begin working on the text of a potential agreement. But then at the same time, you're at the U.S. presenting a more toned-down version of events, with Vice President Vance telling Fox. In some ways it went well, they agreed to meet afterwards. But in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines, that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through. So we're going to keep on working it. But of course, the president reserves the ability to say when he thinks that diplomacy has reached its natural end, We hope we don't get to that point, but if we do, that'll be the president's call.

Now with that, you know, both experts and people close to Trump have raised concerns that he's really not negotiating in good faith and he fully intends to launch a major military operation. And looking into this, there are a number of reasons to think that. First up, this is literally something we've seen Trump do before. He says he wants diplomacy and then he turns around and launches strikes. Or when Israel initially launched major strikes against Iran this summer, Trump said he was committed to a diplomatic resolution on the Iran nuclear issue. And then boom, 10 days later, he authorized strikes on three Iranian facilities.

But then beyond that, there's reason to believe that Trump's using the negotiations as a small, smoke screen to stop for time so that the U.S. can enhance its capabilities in the region. Many have speculated that one of the main reasons that Trump backed down from his initial threats to strike Iran last month was because the U.S. just didn't have the firepower in the region to launch a large-scale attack while still protecting American forces and allies. But now, the situation and more importantly, where things are and their capabilities, it's different. And actually, given the military buildup we've seen from Trump as well as his repeated threats against Iran, if the talks fail, you have places like Axios arguing that it's going to be hard for him to back down without

some serious concessions from Iran on its nuclear program. But then also with that, it seems almost impossible that Trump would actually get the concessions that he believes are big enough. And so if Axios is to be believed that this full-blown military operation could come very, very soon, or with him quoting an unnamed Trump advisor who said, the boss is getting fed up. Some people around him warn him against going to war with Iran, but I think there is 90% chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks. And while that was also echoed by Senator Lindsey Graham, who said that strikes could be weeks away, some sources have speculated it could be even sooner.

Or two Israeli officials told Axios that the Israeli government's preparing for a scenario of war within a matter of days. And if and when this happens, I agree with Axios, who said this could be the most consequential U.S. military intervention in the Middle East in in at least a decade. But then from that, finally today, I want to do two things. One is a congratulations, and the last is to talk about one more big story. So first up, congratulations to HashiP. Seekigieg's latest weekly winner who just scored $500 of tickets and will be attending a Padres game this coming season. And for the rest of y'all, that's right, Sea Geek is still giving away

$500 in tickets and you should definitely enter today if you haven't already. Imagine me in the next winner and snagging $500 towards seeing your favorite artist, sporting event or play. I mean, there's like over 70,000 events to choose from. And all you got to do is add code DeFranco to your Ckeek app profile for a chance of the weekly $500 prize, no purchase necessary. But with that said, it brings us to the final thing we need to talk about today, and that is DHS spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, is resigning after falsely claiming that a woman killed by ICE committed an act of domestic terrorism. With that, you have Trump praising her Democrats, celebrating and she's being replaced by

Lauren Biss, who's actually the woman from DHS's fact check videos calling journalists radical hacks. And this is really just the latest wave of what we'll call DHS turmoil, and you have many wondering what the agency is going to look like on the other side of this shutdown. Because you have McLaughlin officially resigning as assistant secretary of public affairs after just over a year serving under Secretary Christine Nome, and McLaughlin's also been a major voice for the Trump administration's hardline immigration agenda

and one of its most passionate defenders. She just spent a lot of her time at DHS, sparring with critics on social media and making appearances on Fox News, CNN, CBS, and NPR. She actually described her work to her hometown paper last month, saying, media is so much of the battle, so to speak, on the immigration issue. So much of the debate is a public relations debate. It's a PR war.

Josei also stands out because Trump recently had an interview where he said, you know, his immigration policy, it's essentially flawless, they just have bad PR. But also as far as McLaughlin, she's apparently been looking to get out for a while now. In fact, she was reportedly preparing to leave back in December, but she stayed on after the fallout from the killings of Renee Good and now it's pretty. Though it's also not like she did a great job there. A lot of her statements turned out to be skewed at best and outright false at worst.

And that includes her claims that Renee Good committed an act of domestic terrorism before she was shot and killed by an ice agent. Their unquestioning support of Trump and his immigration crackdown, it earned her allies, including Donald Trump himself. Just last month, you had Trump showering her with praise on truth social after she appeared on Fox, saying, great job by wonderful Trisha McLaughlin, DHS Assistant Secretary on the Sean Hannity Show. Many illegals from around our nation charged with serious crimes this week, Trisha really knows her stuff. And in her statement confirming McLaughlin's resignation, you had Christie Nome saying Trisha McLaughlin has served with exceptional dedication, tenacity, and professionalism.

She has played an instrumental role in advancing our mission to secure the homeland and keep American safe. You then also have Democrats and immigration advocates celebrating McLaughlin stepping down. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffrey saying another MAGA extremist forced out of DHS, Nome next. Also an attorney who's previously gone towed. tow with McLaughlin said we are pleased with this resignation, and adding, unless Pinocchio is applying for the position, we believe her replacement will be a great improvement and hopefully work to start repairing the credibility of DHS. But that then brings us to the person, deputy assistant secretary for media relations, Lauren Biss. Don't worry, you probably don't recognize that name,

but you may recognize her from the department's fact check videos on social media regarding ICE and law enforcement operations. Allegations that ICE engages in racial profiling are disgusting, reckless, and categorical falls. CNN should stop running cover for violent felons and start focusing on American victims of a legal alien crime. DHS will not cower to disgusting lies and smears from radical journalist hacks and sanctuary politicians. Secretary Nome's message to the rioters is clear, you will not stop us or slow us down. ICE and our federal law enforcement partners will not apologize for enforcing this nation's laws.

So you know, based on that, it's probably unlikely that things in the PR department of DHS are going to change that much. But also with this, you know, we got to know the timing of this shakeup. DHS is facing yet another wave of problems with their lapse in funding thanks to the partial shutdown. And right now, we don't know what the potential reforms for ICE and Customs and Border Protection where that's going to land. So, you know, we're going to have to wait to see where things land, how things play out. But also, I think Democrats might be a little bit premature in celebrating.

I understand why. But it almost appears like there's some accountability happening, which is an A word you don't hear a lot these days. And, you know, pressure campaigns work. DHS is replacing someone who lied to the public, though they're being replaced with someone who's likely just going to kind of do the same thing. Just maybe in a different font. I mean, McLaughlin's being replaced by someone who claims that any criticism of ICE is disgusting lies and smears.

He's already on the record, calling allegations of ICE racial profiling categorically false and demanding CNN stop running cover for violent felons. This is the same playbook McLaughlin used, attack critics, defend all actions, and frame any accountability as anti-American. But on that happy note, my friends, it brings us to the end of your Wednesday, Philip DeFranco show. But do not worry, nay, do not fret, because there's more for you to watch just to click away. Because it is Wednesday, which means there is a brand new episode of crashing out that podcast with myself and Alex Perlman. Well, I'm very biased. This week's episode was fantastic. I think you'll love it.

So definitely check it out. But no matter what you do, I'll see you right back here tomorrow. Stay safe. Stay informed. Stay angry. For some reason, everyone has to talk about clobicular. We'll get to him later. Contractually, we all have.

Yeah, I think we do. Here's a map right here. We're either 100% in fucking full agreement, or you can suck my... I remember TeamSpeak. I remember TeamSpeak. I remember TeamSpeak. We're going to TeamSpeak. Don't worry, $87 billion.

And we got all these facilities to make sure that we put all the voters in them.