The Philip DeFranco Show - Trump’s Ceasefire Is Already Falling Apart

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Starting point is 00:00:46 Here's to WestJetting since 96. Travel back in time with us and actually travel with us at westjet.com slash 30 years. A ceasefire between the U.S., Israel, and Iran is now in effect, but it's also barely holding on, looks like it's fallen apart, as Israel's taken its chance to ramp up its assault on Lebanon. And even if the ceasefire doesn't fall apart, right now it's far from clear if a long-lasting peace can actually be reached. Which may or may not be all that surprising to you,

Starting point is 00:01:10 since yesterday, it started with Trump vowing that a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. That was yesterday, which I don't know about you. That felt like a week yesterday. Right, and it also was coming after his repeated threats to destroy Iran's power plans and other civilian infrastructure if it didn't reopen the straight-of-homuz by 8 p.m. Threats that, it's not just me, experts have said,

Starting point is 00:01:27 amounted to threats to perpetrate war crimes on a massive scale. And then of course, the promise to wipe out an entire civilization, you have many saying that amounted to a call for genocide. Well, you've had the president's defenders saying, oh, that's a bad faith interpretation. Really? The threat that made even die-hard Trump supporters, like Alex Jones say that he needed to be removed with the 25th Amendment. That's just people having a bad faith interpretation.

Starting point is 00:01:47 But also, it wasn't just Alex Jones and some of his biggest supporters. Dozens of Democrats called for Trump to be removed from office, either through impeachment or the 25th Amendment. It even led to Pakistan's prime minister, pleading with Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks while asking Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture. And then, around an hour and a half before his self-imposed deadline, you had Trump agreeing on truth social, subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran, agreeing to the complete, immediate, and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing

Starting point is 00:02:13 and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks. He was adding this will be a double-sided ceasefire and saying, the reason for doing so is that we have already met and exceeded all military objectives. You then also claimed that the U.S. received a 10-point proposal from Iran that provided a workable basis on which to negotiate and added, almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two-week period will allow the agreement to be finalized. But of course, this isn't the first time he claimed that a deal was imminent. He previously claimed that Iran had agreed to many of the provisions in a 15-point proposal that was developed by his administration. And now we appear to be talking about some

Starting point is 00:02:43 version of the 10-point proposal that Trump previously rejected and said wasn't good enough, right, in which a very angry U.S. envoy, Steve Whitkoff reportedly told mediators on Monday was a disaster and a catastrophe. And that's because it reportedly includes a number of demands that the US has flat out rejected in the past, things like continuing Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz and U.S. military withdrawal from the Middle East. It also actually calls for the lifting of all primary and secondary sanctions on Iran and end to attacks on Iran and its allies, the release of frozen Iranian assets and a UN Security Council resolution making any deal binding. And then also very notably in the version released in Farsi, Iran also included the phrase

Starting point is 00:03:14 acceptance of enrichment for its nuclear program. But for reasons that aren't clear right now, the language was missing in the English versions that were shared by Iranian diplomats. In fact, you've also since had a White House official, claiming that the 10-point peace plan that Iran released differs from the plan that Trump said was a workable basis on which to negotiate. With White House press secretary Caroline Levitt adding at a press conference later that the original proposal was fundamentally Unserious and completely unacceptable. It was literally thrown in the garbage by President Trump and his negotiating team. And then you also had Trump angrily posting on social media last night.

Starting point is 00:03:44 Numerous agreements lists and letters are being sent out by people that have absolutely nothing to do with the negotiation in many cases They are total fraudsters, charlatans and worse. And saying they will be rapidly exposed after our federal investigation is completed and adding, there is only one group of meaningful points that are acceptable to the United States, and we will be discussing them behind closed doors during these negotiations. Right, and with that, he also mentioned reporting from CNN that he had already attacked, claiming that the outlet published a fake statement from Iranian leadership celebrating victory over the United States. So there, you had CNN defending itself, noting that the statement came from Iranian spokespeople,

Starting point is 00:04:15 known to the outlet and was reported on multiple Iranian state media outlets. But still, that didn't stop Trump, FCC chair Brendan Carr from also accusing CNN of outrageous conduct and saying, time for change at CNN. But you know, with all this, whatever the case may be regarding the 10-point plan, it looks like the gap between the two sides, it's still pretty big. In the two weeks, you have many experts saying that's not a lot of time to close it. I mean, for comparison's sake, it took two and a half years for the Obama administration to negotiate the 2015 nuclear deal, which led to Iran shipping 97% of its nuclear fuel out of the country. But then, remember, Trump withdrew the United States from that agreement in 2018. And to Iran,

Starting point is 00:04:46 they built their stockpile back up. And if Trump fails to get the nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium that it's enriched to 60% during that time, along with, with much greater quantities of less enriched nuclear fuel out. He will have arguably accomplished less in this multi-billion dollar war that resulted in 13 dead Americans and more casualties than Obama got done 11 years ago, at least regarding Iran's nuclear capabilities.

Starting point is 00:05:05 Now, with all that said, in another post today, you had Trump claiming there will be no enrichment of uranium and the United States will, working with Iran, dig up, and remove all the deeply buried nuclear dust. With them then going on to claim that they're now talking tariff and sanctions relief with Iran

Starting point is 00:05:17 and adding that many of the 15 points have already been agreed to. This time referring to the US proposal that is also apparently being used as a basis for talks. We also had Heggseth saying at a press conference that the issue would be dealt with. But what's clear, what the Iranian, the new Iranian regime knows is they'll never have

Starting point is 00:05:32 a nuclear weapon or the capability to get a path to one. But many experts, they've speculated that this war, it may have just given Iran more reason to pursue a nuclear weapon. And even if Iran does give up its uranium, they could turn to allies like North Korea for help developing one, at least according to a former Israeli military official

Starting point is 00:05:46 who told the New York Times, if the Iranians decide the only thing that will protect the regime as a nuclear weapon, especially after being incapable of defending themselves during the war, they have pathways to that beyond the 440 kilograms. But still, despite that take, you had Pegseth claiming, Operation Epic Fury was a historic and overwhelming victory on the battlefield. With General Dan Kane then adding,

Starting point is 00:06:06 Over the course of 38 days of major combat operation, the Joint Force achieved the military objectives as defined by the president. Ring Kane listed some stats with that. He said that the military had destroyed 80% of Iran's air defense systems, 800 one-day attack drone storage facilities, 450 ballistic missile storage facilities, and more than 150 ships. He also said that the campaign destroyed Iran's industrial base, meaning that it would take years to rebuild. But also, despite all that, it's not clear that the U.S. has actually achieved any of its objectives,

Starting point is 00:06:32 at least not decisively. Or besides pledging to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, Trump promised at one time or another to destroy its missile capabilities, eliminated Iran's regional proxies as a threat, obliterate its navy, and create the conditions for regime change. While Trump and other officials, they've now fully taken up the position that regime change has actually occurred, while backtracking on the claim that that was actually an objective, there's just no evidence of that. The Revolutionary Guard actually appeared to have more influence now. Also, as far as missiles, at the end of last month, the U.S. could only confirm that about a third of Iran's missile arsenal was destroyed,

Starting point is 00:06:59 and recent intelligence assessments reportedly suggest that the regime retains significant capabilities. Also, Iran's proxy forces, they're weakened, but they're not defeated. While Iran's navy's arguably destroyed, that hasn't kept the regime controlling the Strait of Hormuz, which is actually the next thing we need to talk about. Because while he arguably doesn't look like he's met his military objectives, this is where Trump's created a whole new problem that didn't exist before. The closure of the strait. It's the reason he resorted to those horrifying threats, and his only demand for not falling through on them was that Iran reopened the strait. But now he's trying to take another victory lap at another post. He called today a big day for world peace and claim that the US will be helping with the traffic buildup in the street of her moves and then saying, there will be lots of positive action. Big money will be made. Iran can start the reconstruction process. We'll be loading up with supplies of all kinds and just hanging around in order to make sure that everything goes well. But there are at least a few problems with what Trump's saying. One, like we just talked about, this is only a two-week ceasefire, and it's not clear.

Starting point is 00:07:47 that a deal can actually be reached in that time to make the straits reopening permanent. Two, if a deal isn't reached, two weeks isn't enough time for the global economy to bounce back. Three, it's not clear that the US and Iran are actually on the same page about what reopening the straits going to look like. And four, this ceasefire, it might not even last through the day anyway. But, you know, some of you have known me for over a decade, you're like, Phil, you're an optimist. So we're going to start, literally no one's saying that. But let's start with the best case scenario. Even if the strait is open, prices are unlikely to return to their pre-war levels anytime soon.

Starting point is 00:08:13 And that's partly because dozens of refineries, storage facilities, and oil and gas fields, in at least nine countries have already been targeted in strikes, contributing to at least 10% of the world's oil supply getting turned off. And then getting operations going again, that's going to require not only safe passage through the Strait-Hormuz, but also inspecting and replacing equipment, as well as bringing back employees and ships that have left the region. And actually with all this, after the ceasefire announcement, oil prices did drop to about $95 per barrel, but that's also still 30% higher than before the war. All while, gas prices in the United States have continued to rise, reaching $4.16 a gallon on average, according to AAA. And they may actually keep going up for months,

Starting point is 00:08:45 according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. But then also, right, moving on, despite the strait allegedly being open, traffic still really hasn't picked up because of the continued uncertainty. In a statement from Iran's foreign minister confirming the ceasefire on behalf of the country's Supreme National Security Council, he said, for a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran's armed forces and with due consideration of technical limitations. Then with that, you had the Wall Street Journal reporting that Iran was still requiring all

Starting point is 00:09:10 ships to request permission from its military forces to transit the Strait of Hormuz. And then you had the Associated Press, reporting that Iran and Oman will be allowed to charge fees on ships passing through. And with all that, while we have seen a couple of ships trying their luck, at least a few major shipping companies have said they're not going to start sending boats through just yet. Meanwhile, the leaders of seven European countries along with Canada, the European Commission, and the European Council said that their governments will contribute to ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Starting point is 00:09:33 But again, as of right now, details on what that might look like, they're extremely limited. And today, Leavitt wouldn't answer repeated questions about who currently controls the Strait of Hormuz, also attacking reports that the Strait was closed as false, but then also calling for the Strait to be reopened immediately. And it might all become irrelevant as the ceasefire appears to be hang on by a thread. Right, you had Iranian state media reporting that an oil refinery in the country was struck this morning with officials also claiming that a hostile drone had entered Iranian airspace in violation of the truce. And you also had Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE, all reporting that missile and drone attacks have continued. But easily, the biggest issue right

Starting point is 00:10:03 now, maybe Israel's continued assault on Lebanon. When Pakistan's prime minister made his announcement about the ceasefire, he said that it applied to everywhere, including Lebanon and elsewhere. But then you had Israeli Prime Minister B.B. Netanyahu, while saying that he supported the ceasefire with Iran, claimed that it did not include Lebanon. New had analysts arguing that Israel might actually intensify its operation since it would no longer be fighting a war on multiple fronts. And actually, it appeared like they were proven right almost immediately, as Israel announced that it had launched the largest wave of strikes across Lebanon since the current war began, by hitting 100 targets across Lebanon in a span of just 10 minutes.

Starting point is 00:10:34 And that reportedly killed 254 people and wounded over 1,000 across the country, according to Lebanon's health ministry, bringing the overall death toll to around 1800. And then actually after that, we started seeing multiple reports saying that the White House agrees with Israel, that Lebanon is not included in the deal, which was confirmed by Levitt in a press conference. And that came, even after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened a military response of attacks on Lebanon are not immediately halted, saying that its retaliation would target aggressors in the region. And that's as, reportedly, Iranian officials told mediators that it would only join planned talks with the U.S. and Islamabad if a ceasefire is reached in Lebanon.

Starting point is 00:11:05 And you would Iran's foreign minister writing on Twitter that the ceasefire terms are explicit, saying the U.S. must choose ceasefire or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both. But despite that, you would Leavitt saying that Trump's disbursed batching his negotiating team, led by Vice President J.D. Vance, along with Steve Whitkoff and Jared Kushner, to Islamabad for talks saying that the first round will take place Saturday morning. Although after that, you had Iran's speaker of parliament throwing water on that fire, denying the White House's claims that there was a different 10-point proposal to the one it had shared publicly and arguing that the U.S. and Israel had actually already violated three of its key provisions

Starting point is 00:11:34 by continuing to attack Lebanon, violating Iran's airspace and denying Iran's right to enrichment. And so for now, as far as what happens next, no one really knows. Words are words, actions or actions, and especially with this situation, the two don't always line up. And so again, it brings up those questions of who's lying here, who's misrepresenting things, who's misunderstanding things? Is there an adult at the table? In the meantime, let me know your thoughts, opinions, reactions, and maybe even predictions for what's next. And then there's more we've got to dive into today. But first, let me thank a sponsor and say, you know, you ever look at your phone bill and think, there's no way this should cost this much.

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Starting point is 00:13:11 they expanded the liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and they've been flipping mayoral seats in Omaha, Miami, and Boca Raton. But also, the Republican in Georgia still won. Trump's endorsement still carried the day, and you have voters still showing up to say that, you know, Trump endorsed him, and so that's good enough for me. So you have this question of, is the blue wave real, or is it just noise? And well, at least part of the answer, it's gonna depend on whether the war in Iran keeps eroding Trump's golden ticket before November.

Starting point is 00:13:31 Right, so where we'll start is with Georgia, where Republican Clay Fuller won the special runoff to keep Marjorie Taylor Green's old seat red. There's probably one more man that I should say thank you to, I'm sure all of y'all I'll probably heard of his name before. His name is President Donald J. Trump for elevating my candidacy in our campaign. And I will be on Capitol Hill as a warrior to have his back each and every day. But as you're well aware, because you're a beautiful bastard and you watch the Monday, Philip DeFranco show, the story isn't that a Republican won in a Ruby Red District.

Starting point is 00:13:59 The story is how close it got. This race had no right being a race that anyone should have really even been looking at. Democrat Sean Harris, he pushed the needle 25 points to the left. Lloyd County, it saw a roughly 30-point shift to To the left. And in addition to movers, Harris outright won Cobb County, which Trump and Green carried in 2024. The Republican Party had to spend almost $2 million in a smear campaign to get this win. They should never have to spend money on a ruby red district. That tells you that things are changing here in northwest Georgia. And Harris is right there. They had to pour

Starting point is 00:14:36 tons of money into a district that should have been a shoe with. That's not a sign of strength. That is a warning. Wisconsin, you have the people delivering multiple wins for Democrats. In Waukesha, it historically read Milwaukee suburb where Trump's margin victory has been closing. Democrat Alicia Halvin's Laban beat Republican Scott Allen for mayor. And this one was interesting because the city's current mayor is an independent who left the Republican Party in 2021 and was endorsed by Kamala Harris. And you report saying that this is a Dem win now, it could be a turning point for the suburb. Then you have the Wisconsin Supreme Court race with Democrat Chris Taylor backed by Barack Obama and Wisconsin Democrats beating Maria Lazzar, expanding the liberal majority on a court currently sitting on questions of congressional redistricting and union rights.

Starting point is 00:15:09 Tonight, the people of Wisconsin stood up for our rights and freedoms, our democracy, our elections, and a strong state Supreme Court that will protect the independence of our beloved state. Once again, Wisconsin showed the entire nation that we believe that the people should be at the center of government. And the priority. And the priority of our judiciary, not the billionaires, not the most powerful and privilege, but the people. So that could make a significant dent and hot button issues and undo some right-leaning laws passed during the court's 15-year conservative majority. And that's also as Wisconsin Democrats are eyeing two congressional seats in a governor's race in November. And then as far as the national picture, right, because this is not just Georgia and Wisconsin, Democrats, they've been flipping mayoral seats in Omaha, Miami, and Boca Raton, along with successful runs in special legislative elections across the country.

Starting point is 00:16:11 Now of course, special elections, they have a smaller turnout than general election, so you can't draw, you know, a straight line from these results to November. But the pattern we are seeing is consistent. Democrats are outperforming expectations in red and purple territory and Republicans are spending money defending seats. They really shouldn't need to defend. And while he is still very, very toxic to many and actually an increasing number of people, Trump's endorsement is still the most powerful force in Republican primaries. He's essentially been handpicking winners across the country. President Trump is the most critical factor in our election. And he has made sure that we were going to win.

Starting point is 00:16:40 He made sure that he was the ultimate Trump card. And some voters, you know, they just don't need anything else. I'm not that familiar with him and his politics. I mean, I'm just not. I know that Trump supports him and that he's the Republican. So that's the way we voted this time. Trump endorsed him. That's good enough for me.

Starting point is 00:17:01 But that influence, it's also been starting to sour as the war has been dragging on. It just seems so insane based on what he ran on. I mean, this is why he'll a lot of people feel betrayed, right? And he ran on No More Wars and these stupid senseless wars. It feels like there's this war machine. And then our soldiers are put into these spaces. And they're just there to serve in America that they believe in.

Starting point is 00:17:22 It just feels like it's causing a lot of pain and fear. Americans can't afford health care. Like, why do they don't care about what's happening in Iran? It's wrong with dumb enough to do it. He also had Iranian Americans in Wisconsin, speaking about the personal toll. Because of the blackout, there's no way to call them. So they're calling us directly by the phone lines, and the quality of the call is terrible. And the confusion showed up at Georgia polls too.

Starting point is 00:17:51 It's very confusing. I don't know why we're there, honestly. But there are still voters standing behind him. I do wish we could get rid of the Aradians. We have a very good president that I think is going to end this war quickly, and we're going to be a better off for it. You know, all of this, it matters primarily for two reasons. One, there's the immediate things like the people that are actually being elected

Starting point is 00:18:13 and what they're going to be able to do in those positions. And then two, it gives us an idea of what this means for November. But it also gives us an idea of what this does not mean for November. Democrats are flipping seats. They're closing margins. They're winning courts and forcing Republicans to spend money in districts that should be safe. But you cannot immediately expect a 25-point swing during the midterms themselves. And while the Democrats, they have the momentum, nothing actually matters if people do not still go out and vote.

Starting point is 00:18:36 So if you are assuming victory, ah, do I really. really need to add my vote, you might end up looking super foolish. Republicans have the incumbency, they have structural advantages, the war in Iran is a big variable that could tip the whole thing because it impacts so many other things. And of course, people are very fickle. And when we are seeing a meaningful trend here and people are showing up, yesterday's successes and failures do not dictate tomorrow's results. It's eight months to November and everything's in place.

Starting point is 00:18:58 Be excited, be hopeful, but do not take your fucking foot off the gas. And that actually brings us to the next big thing that we got to talk about today. The frontrunner in the California governor's race is denying sexual misconduct allegations before they've even been formally made. You had Representative Eric Swallow going to a town hall last night calling the claims being made against him falls and saying it's not a coincidence that they're servicing 27 days before early voting starts. And that's all while that the governor's race itself has just been a mess with two Republicans still leading most polls in the biggest bluest state in the country and Trump just endorsed one of them which might actually help the

Starting point is 00:19:28 Democrats. But starting with the allegations, for weeks you've had left-leaning influence or suggesting that a group of women are going to accuse Swalwell of a pattern of inappropriate behavior. Right this This week you had Cheyenne Hunt, director for Gen Z for Change, writing, I have been working with a number of women who are in the process of coming forward and sharing their stories of sexual harassment and even alleged abuse at the hands of Eric Swalwell. And adding, we have secured pro bono legal representation for them and they are in the process of sharing information with reporters and ensuring that they are physically and legally safe. Also other accounts have made similar claims, though providing no further details on the

Starting point is 00:19:56 allegations, but still accusing Swalwell of wrongdoing. You've then also had conservatives latching on, the Daily Caller, for example, running an article claiming a shocking number of women are prepared to accuse him. Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna writing, if this is true, it is horrifying. And asking, can you all stop molesting your staff? But also as of right now, you have Politico describing these as vague allegations

Starting point is 00:20:14 that have not been vetted and published in the media or levied by anyone claiming firsthand knowledge of the purported behavior. And you're saying a number of people saying that's an important distinction, saying that right now the claims are circulating online, but no alleged victim has gone public. No media outlet has published a vetted account, and the allegations exist in the space between accusation and evidence.

Starting point is 00:20:30 And so with all that, at first, Swallowed it and address, anything directly, just making broad posts about controversy without engaging specifics. But then last night, he changed course right at that town hall. He called the claims false, said that it's not a coincidence that they service 27 days before early voting. And a campaign representative told Politico that this outrageous rumor is being spread by flailing opponents who have sadly teamed up with MAGA conspiracy theorists because they know Eric Swalwell is the frontrunner in this race. With the campaign adding, in 13 years, not a single ethics complaint by any staff in his office or any other office has ever been launched. And with this,

Starting point is 00:20:59 you've seen some defending him, Senator Rubin Gallego, pointing out that that some of the accounts pushing the claims are very new and only started posting days ago writing, when you were in first place is when they target you. But you then also have the creators behind the allegations pushing back, calling it gross to suggest that the women who they say have built careers in democratic politics teamed up with MAGA and added,

Starting point is 00:21:17 attempts to paint survivors and those coming forward as political operatives is an intimidation tactic. But for now, we're gonna have to wait to see how this specifically plays out, as you had a Swallow campaign advisor telling the early times, we're speaking out now because we have nothing to hide from. We know how the new media ecosystem works, we know how misinformation spreads.

Starting point is 00:21:32 Right, and then as far as far as, the governor's race itself, it's a lot. You know, we've been covering it. California uses a jungle primary where all candidates from both parties compete in the top two advance to the general, regardless a party. And that Democratic field there, it is crowded, but there's only two Republicans. Fox News commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. They've been leading most of the polls. Last month, you had a poll showing Hilton at 17%, Bianco at 16% and Swalwell at 13%. Also another showed Swalwell and the lead with the two Republicans right behind him and then the Democrats kind of just being scattered. Very notably with us,

Starting point is 00:22:00 you had an expert in California politics building a model estimating the probability of a two Republican general election. And as of this morning, it sits around 15%, which is down from 20% a week ago, but you know, it's still enough to make Democrats sweat. Though, like I touched on for a second, Trump might have actually helped Democrats recently. Trump endorsed Steve Hilton. And so in a jungle primary, that could consolidate Republican support around one candidate, meaning Bianco falls behind, which opens more room for a Democrat to finish in the top two. And that ends up being kind of a worst case scenario for the Republicans because California is going to pick a Democrat over a Republican. Especially if it's any Democrat versus a Trump pick.

Starting point is 00:22:31 And so yeah, Trump may have done the Democrats work for them because, I mean, Democrats were reportedly considering spending money to boost one of the Republicans themselves. Like, they want the Republican support to consolidate around one Republican. But for now, we're going to have to wait to see what happens on both fronts. Yes, what happens with the jungle primary, but of course, what happens with Swalwell. Is he weakened by the allegations? Do the allegations grow? Does information come out? Do victims come forward?

Starting point is 00:22:53 All while, there's a ticking clock here. Early voting starts in 27 days. But for now, I'd love to know your thoughts, opinions, reactions. and those comments down below. 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, you ever open a stack of resumes and immediately think, cool, so this is just my entire day now.

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Starting point is 00:23:55 And now you can try for free at ZipRecruiter.com slash DeFranco. that ZipRecruiter.com slash DeFranco, meet your match on ZipRecruiter. After 19 years, they're back. Frankie Munes, Brian Cranston, and the rest of the family reunite in Malcolm in the middle,

Starting point is 00:24:11 life's still unfair. After 10 years avoiding them, how and lowest demand Malcolm be at their anniversary party, pulling him straight back into their chaos. Malcolm in the middle, life still unfair. A special four-part event,

Starting point is 00:24:23 streaming April 10th on Hulu on Disney Plus. Then, diving right back into the news for our final story of the day. We've gotta talk about how Trump's new Attorney General literally just confessed his love for the president on live TV. If he chooses to nominate somebody else and asks me to go do something else,

Starting point is 00:24:37 I will say thank you very much, I love you, sir. So that is acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, formerly just the deputy AG, who replaced Pam Bondi after Trump gave her the boot last week. The Dow was over $50,000. I don't know why you're laughing. While Bondi, yes, was reportedly fired for everything Epstein-Files related.

Starting point is 00:24:52 Reports have also said that it was primarily for failing to prosecute Trump's political enemies aggressively enough. So the very first question that Blanche got during his very first press conference as acting AG was about whether he would do that. If you're someone who is concerned that America is rapidly sliding into autocracy, his answers aren't going to fix your fears. We have thousands of ongoing investigations and prosecutions going on in this country right now.

Starting point is 00:25:12 And it is true that some of them involve men, women, and entities that the president in the past has had issues with and that believe should be investigated. That is his right. And indeed, it is his duty to do that. People say the president wants to go after his political enemies. No, the president has said time and time again that he wants justice. And to be clear, the idea that it's the president's right and even duty to give the Justice Department names to specific people or entities that he wants investigated,

Starting point is 00:25:40 that is definitely not normal. In fact, the prevailing norm since Nixon's been that the DOJ and Attorney General should operate more or less independently from the president, something which one reporter pointed out later. Since Watergate, there's been a kind of a firewall, if you will, on criminal investigations between the White House and the Justice Department. I mean, that is the most false statement. I've ever heard in my life.

Starting point is 00:25:58 There is always communication between a president and his priorities and what the Department of Justice should be focused on and not focused on. That is not a new thing in this administration, although I know it sounds fun to say that it is. So as far as whether we would take a referral from the White House or take a referral from you even. Yes. I mean, yes, if somebody knows about fraud, please tell us.

Starting point is 00:26:20 And so if the president of our United States says, I have heard that there is ongoing fraud in Minneapolis, Minnesota, like any president before him, I hope that the Attorney General would absolutely say, yes, we'll investigate that. So yeah, Trump's former private defense attorney who just told the president, I love you, is going to be taking direct orders from him on who to investigate. And while some reports have suggested that Trump's considering his EPA head, Lee Zeldon for his official nominee for AG, in the meantime, it looks like Blanche is here to stay. So I guess we'll have to wait to see whether he does better than Bondi because, you know, most of the cases that heard DOJ brought against Trump's enemies, James Comey, Letitia James, Jerome Powell, several

Starting point is 00:26:55 Democratic lawmakers, they've all stalled or fallen apart. Even the probing to whether Biden and his AIDS broke the law by using the autopen, it ended up going nowhere with prosecutors quietly shelving the case. While apparently Trump wants a more effective AG, I mean, you had a New York Times analysis, I think, kind of looking at the issue and talking about it pretty well. Writing the fault lies and not the shirking weakness of those he has called upon to execute his will, but rather in the impossibility of his request to bring criminal charges against political targets with little to no evidence or legal justification. In fact, when it came to Bondi, you can't say she didn't try. But reportedly in the weeks before her firing, she desperately tried to satisfy Trump by moving against his opponents.

Starting point is 00:27:27 We're talking about people including Obama's CIA director, John Brennan, as well as another figure that we've got to talk about Cassidy Hutchinson. She was a top aide to Trump's first term chief of staff, Mark Meadows, and she gave one of the most explosive testimonies to the January 6th committee. I was in the vicinity of a conversation where I overheard the president say something to the effect of, you know, I don't effing care that they have weapons. They're not here to hurt me, take the effing mags away, let my people in, they can march the capital from here, let the people in. There was also what I'll just call the catch-up incident. I first noticed there was ketchup dripping down the wall and there's a shattered porcelain plate on the floor. The valet had articulated that the president was extremely angry at the attorney general's AP interview and had thrown his lunch against the wall. Perhaps most infamously, though, this is one story

Starting point is 00:28:20 that's disputed by other testimony. There was the story that she said that she said that She heard secondhand from the Secret Service agent driving Trump's limo. The president said something to the effect of, I'm the effing president. Take me up to the Capitol now. To which Bobby responded, sir, we have to go back to the West Wing. The president reached up towards the front of the vehicle to grab at the steering wheel. Mr. Engel grabbed his arm.

Starting point is 00:28:47 Said, sir, you need to take your hand off the steering wheel. We're going back to the west wheel. swing, we're not going to the Capitol. So now reportedly, Trump's DOJ is investigating Hutchinson for lying to Congress, though, strangely, that case is being handled by its civil rights division. Because as the name suggests, it's normally focused on systemic civil rights abuses,

Starting point is 00:29:04 like police, misconduct, and racial discrimination. Whereas a case like Hutchinson's, a alleged perjury in front of Congress, it would normally go to the US Attorney's Office in Washington, which is run by Trump loyalist, Janine Piro. But Piro, like Bondi, has struggled to move cases forward recently. So instead, they're going to civil rights,

Starting point is 00:29:17 which is led by another Trump loyalist, Harmy Dillon. And this, even the reports say that some DOJ officials have been skeptical from the outset about whether there is a viable criminal case to be made at all. But then that's also not where it ends, because this week, Trump announced that they're also looking into whoever leaked the story about the U.S. airmen that was missing in Iran.

Starting point is 00:29:31 But we have to find that leaker because that's a sick person. Would you know not the most outrageous thing? The government often goes after leakers. But then you had Trump explaining how they're going to do it, and that's when all the First Amendment lawyers ears perked up. So whoever it was, we think we'll be able to find it out because we're going to go to the media company that released it, and we're going to say,

Starting point is 00:29:52 National security, give it up, will go to jail. The person that did the story will go to jail if he doesn't say. And the White House later confirming that an investigation is underway, and Todd Blanche explaining that this is going to be standard policy for the Trump administration. To the extent that we have seen a series of leaks that necessarily involve classified information and putting the lives of our soldiers at risk or the lives of agents at risk, that is something that we will always investigate. And we will investigate if it means sending us to be.

Starting point is 00:30:22 that's exactly what we should do and that's exactly what we will be doing. Now this isn't totally out of the blue, right? Last year, Trump's DOJ rescinded a Biden-era policy that's safeguarded journalists from subpoenas during leak investigations. And then remember in January, the FBI raided a Washington Post reporter's home and seized her devices. Though a federal judge in February blocked the government from actually searching them. But still, reporters and free press advocates warn that this kind of thing, if not outright illegal, is at the very least deeply illiberal. Because if the government, they can compel journalists to give up their sources, then sources are going to stop going to journalists with information.

Starting point is 00:30:50 So with that, you had Bruce Brown, president, Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, telling NPR. Some of the most consequential reporting in U.S. history, from Watergate to warrantless wiretapping after 9-11, was and continues to be made possible because reporters have been able to protect the identities of confidential sources and uncover and report stories that matter to people across the political spectrum. But that, my friend, you beautiful bastard, is the end of today's Wednesday, Philip DeFranco show, but not the end of the ride.

Starting point is 00:31:12 Because you, you're just a click or tap away from watching today's brand new episode of crashing out. My podcast with myself and Alex Perlman. It's a very cathartic experience, especially if you feel like you've been going crazy for the past 72 hours. No matter what you do, let me just say, thank you for watching. I love yo faces, and I'll see you right back here tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:31:28 A whole civilization will die tonight. That is not a tweet from the Joker or Lex Luther. That was a tweet from the president. The president of the United States has chosen death and destruction over life and education. But also then complaining directly to children about Joe Biden's auto pen. What are you doing? Pam Bondi. Are you dumb, stupid, or dumb, huh?

Starting point is 00:31:47 We all got to enjoy everybody bouncing on Christy Nome's husband. Big old gritties. I just feel insane. Hell yeah. Hell yeah, baby.

The Philip DeFranco Show - Trump’s Ceasefire Is Already Falling Apart

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