The President's Daily Brief - August 30th, 2022. Climate Activists Want You to Stop Eating Meat, Will They Get Legal Backing? Two Updates from Ukraine.

Episode Date: August 30, 2022

It’s August 30th. You’re listening to the President’s Daily Brief. Your morning intel starts now. ------ It’s a Special PDB this morning. The Main Brief today and all week is chosen by you — things we’ve discussed before but updated with new information, new data, and fresh analysis. SO, FIRST UP THIS MORNING,  Governments around the world want to stop climate change by slaughtering cows or taxing them out of existence. That was a story from New Zealand that I brought you in early June. Since then, we’re seeing the same thing in The Netherlands and Ireland as well. So we’ll talk about what’s going on globally, why you should care. As always, I’m keeping an eye out for developing stories. Put these two on your radar. Ukraine is punching back against the Russians this morning. We’ve got two related radar briefs. First, Russia is releasing their natural gas into the atmosphere rather than sell it to Europe. I’ve got those details. Second, the European people are preparing for a very cold winter without Russian natural gas. I’ll share their plans to keep warm. And, as always, a question from a listener. It has to do with the CIA and who’s a better driver: men or women. Oh boy. ------ Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of the President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's August 30th. You're listening to the President's Daily Brief. I'm your host and former CIA Officer Brian Dean Wright. Your morning intel starts now. It's a special PDB this morning. The main brief today and all week is chosen by you, things that we've discussed before, but updated with new information, new data, and fresh analysis. So first up this morning, governments around the world want to stop climate change by slaughtering cows or taxing them out of existence. That was a story from New Zealand that I brought you in early June. Since then, we've seen the same thing in the Netherlands and in Ireland as well. So we'll talk about what's going on globally and why you should care here.

As always, I'm keeping an eye out for developing stories. Put these two on your radar. Ukraine is punching back against the Russians this morning. We've got two related radar briefs. First, Russia is releasing their natural gas into the atmosphere rather than sell it to Europe. I've got those details. Second, the European people are preparing for a very cold winter without Russian natural gas. I'll share their plans to keep warm.

And as always, a question from a listener. It has to do with the CIA and who's a better driver, men or women? Oh, boy. But first, let's get started with today's main brief. If you like to eat meat, beef, pork, chicken, whatever it might be, this brief is for you. because there are a lot of people all around the world who don't want you to eat meat anymore. And not only that, but they want farmers and ranchers who raise that meat to be out of business. Now, it might sound alarmist to say this, maybe even conspiratorial,

but I'm going to provide you the facts this morning from three very different countries, New Zealand, the Netherlands, and Ireland, plus what we're doing here in America. And then you can decide, as always, what's likely to come next. So here's what we know. And you might want to grab a map to help guide you through this mental trip around the world. Climate change activists want to curb two gases that they claim are heating the planet, carbon dioxide and methane. Now, the first one gets a lot of attention. It's what you get when you burn fossil fuels, when you see a wildfire or when a volcano erupts.

Now, the other gas, methane, that comes mostly from bodies of water, like rivers and ponds and wetlands, and also from some agricultural industries, most especially the growing of rice of all things, but also a bit from animals like cows. Now, it is a very small percent of the overall emissions picture, about 4 percent of America's emissions, just for an example. But as small as that number is, it's got a very big target on its back. So let's start with America. Do you remember the Green New Deal? It came out a few years ago, promoted by Alexandria Ocasio Cortez. She is a socialist representative from New York City.

She and other Democrats came up with this Green New Deal law as a way to fight climate change, and had lots of ideas to include the banning of airlines. The goal, they said, was to ensure that, quote, air travel stops becoming necessary, end quote. Now, Ocasio Cortez and others felt the same way about cows. America's entire herd of cattle had to be. slaughtered, they said, because of the gas that they pass. The gases, of course, from their burps and flatulence. Now, that plan got shelved because it was viewed as too extreme, but it's legislative cousins, the Democrat Build Back Better Program and Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act,

well, those two embraced many of the same goals from the new Green Deal. By the way, the Inflation Reduction Act passed. It's now law, just a couple of days back. Now, it was mostly focused on renewable energy, but it also had agricultural provisions. For example, there's about 8.5 billion for farmers and ranchers to adopt practices that reduce their carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions. Now, what exactly does that mean? Details to come. Still, the facts here are pretty clear. Democrats are very serious about climate change, and they very much believe that cows are part of the problem. The solutions, well, they're going to be wide range. And to include slaughtering all American cows.

Speaking of, let's grab those mental maps and now head to New Zealand. It is a beautiful island nation, rugged romantic mountains, clear water, pristine beaches, and 10 million cows. Double the number of people there, actually. And it's those cows who are in trouble. The government of New Zealand released a plan back in early June, the one that I actually told you about, that would tax farmers and ranchers for animal gas emissions,

starting in 2025. There would be different charges for different kinds of gases and different animals, and they're still working on how exactly to measure the burps and flatulents. But the goal is the same. Reduce herd sizes and reduce greenhouse gases. To be fair, ranchers and farmers can opt to lower their tax bill from these emissions if they mix in certain feed additives that help reduce gases, or they can plant some trees on their farms,

to reduce their carbon footprint. But if that doesn't work, there's debate about whether the cattle and sheep owners would be forced to reduce their herds by culling, which is a nice way of saying slaughtering. And that takes us to our next country, the Netherlands. And what a beautiful place it is. The windmills, the tulips, and yes, the dairy cows. And here's something that you might not know. The Netherlands is the world's second largest exporter of agricultural goods.

value second only to the United States. But climate change activists and the Dutch government want to put an end to that part of their economy. Last June, the government presented plans to cut in half the gases that livestock release through their urine and feces. According to the Dutch government, that means over 11,000 farms would have to close. Plus, over 17,000 farmers and ranchers would have to reduce their herds, slaughter them, all to meet the clans. climate goals. That's pretty incredible because consider this. There are roughly 52,000 Dutch agribusinesses, and you're talking about closing 11,000 of them. And those businesses employ 150,000 people, and there are no really good plans on how to employ those individuals elsewhere.

Well, as you can probably guess, area farmers and ranchers were absolutely outraged when these plans were announced in June. In fact, you might recall all the protests. They blocked highways with their tractors. They dumped manure on government buildings. But in response, the government's justice minister said at the time, quote, where possible, the police will track you down, he said to protesters. A criminal record has consequences. Use your brain. Well, that did not go over very well with farmers or the public. In a recent poll, nearly two-thirds of the Dutch population said that they're actually sympathetic

with the farmer's concerns. So what comes next in the Netherlands? Well, there's a little bit of a pause in fighting right now, if I can say it that way. The foreign minister said in an interview that the goal of reducing emissions, well, it's not really set in stone. He's waffling here because his political party, the Christian Democrats, traditionally wins votes amongst farmers and in rural communities, and that support has collapsed. Now, if you thought that maybe the fight in the Netherlands would give other countries pause, You would be wrong. Consider the latest out of Ireland.

Now, right as the Dutch were protesting, the government of Ireland announced a similar push to reduce its gas emissions. Now, all sectors of the Irish economy were going to have to cut, but the ag industry was going to be forced to find a 25% cut from, well, somewhere. And all eyes went to the cattle industry. One report puts the number of cows to be slaughtered at 1.3 million. Now, the total number of cows in Ireland is 7.3 million, so we're talking about 20% of the nation's entire herd. Well, as in the Netherlands, farmers and ranchers in Ireland were outraged and uncertain of what will come next. Most are just in a state of shock and disbelief. They'd never thought such a thing would ever come. You know, as I was researching this, I couldn't help but

contrast the strategy of kill all the cows with this following quote from a third generation dairy farmer named Donald Scully. So he said, quote, there is an enjoyment for me to come out and look and see how healthy and happy all these cows are. Every single one has her own personality. They're all individuals. And that is quite a disconnect from policymakers trying to solve this problem. Anyway, folks, as you were requested, there is the latest on this global phenomenon of killing cows and taxing the cattle industry to death. It's actually similar to what is being done with the oil and gas industry if you've been following that debate. But regardless, if you were in the White House this morning

wrestling with what to do, I would encourage you to remember these three things. First, when you destroy farms and ranches, where exactly will your food come from? Because this isn't just about meat. The meat industry, the people, the equipment makers, the seed and feed and fertilizer companies, it's all tied together with other ag businesses, including fruit and vegetable growers. And if you don't understand that, the potential ripple effect, I recommend that we put a full stop to all of this until we properly understand. Second, when you're killing a nation's cattle herd, you're not just killing an animal. You're killing families, communities, communities, communities, and entire regions of countries.

I mean, look, let's just say for argument's sake that we have to do this, kill all the cows, what's the plan to bring those families and communities and regions back to life after you kill their way of life? And I don't mean the promises made to people. I mean concrete plans with budgeted money because what American farmers and ranchers have heard again and again

is that they must sacrifice for spotted owls, back in the 1990s and now climate change in the 2020s. But there's been no real plan to help anyone along the way. The government always walks away eventually and rural America pays the price. Finally, if any of this is actually about climate change and science, let's consider this. If you combine all the greenhouse gas emissions from the countries that we just mentioned, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Ireland, plus all the rest of the entirety, of Europe and the United States and Canada and Australia, well, all of those countries combined

are still less than the emissions from China. And China has increased their emissions now for years and plans to do so for more years to come. We've talked a lot about that on the PDB. In other words, folks, as we coal and slaughter and destroy people and farm animals to save the planet, the world's biggest polluter, China, goes in the opposite direction. So whatever progress we make, such as it is, well, it's undone by Beijing. There's no net benefit. So does that make sense to you in terms of smart energy or smart agricultural policy? As always, that's your call.

But it strikes me as absolute madness. Coming up, ladies and gentlemen, a closer look at what's on my radar. Two quick briefs for you, both on Ukraine. We'll be right back. Kayak gets my flight, hotel, and rental car right, so I can tune out travel advice that's just plain wrong. Bro, Skycoin, way better than points. Never fly during a Scorpio full moon.

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put these two on your radar, both related to Ukraine. We're doing quick briefs this morning on Ukraine because reports suggest that Kiev is launching a massive counteroffensive in southern Ukraine. Now, that area, including the city of Kersan, is very important because it controls water, water that flows into the farms in central and southern Ukraine. In other words, there is no Ukrainian breadbasket if you don't control Kersan. And that is the big reason for why Ukraine's President Vladimir Zelensky is focused on recapturing it. So with that in mind, let's dig into two related radar briefs on this war of attrition and the natural gas wars between Russia and the West.

And these are briefs that you should care about because you are paying for it with your tax dollars to prop up Ukraine plus higher utility bills for all that very expensive natural gas. So let's start with this. recent satellite photos taken over Russia show that the state natural gas company gas prom is wasting massive amounts of natural gas. Instead of sending it to Europe, they're just burning it. So according to analysis from a Norwegian energy company called Rysstad, Russia is burning off an estimated $10 million worth of natural gas every single day. For my environmental friends, that's about 9,000 tons of carbon dioxide directly into the atmosphere every day. It's the same amount produced by over 1,000 American homes over a year. And by the way, the process of burning off natural gas is actually common in the oil industry.

It's called flaring. But the amount of gas that Russia is burning is outrageously high. They're doing it on purpose. It's like dumping water down the drain while a thirsty man in Europe watching. It's nasty stuff, but that is war. Speaking of folks who are thirsty, let's talk about our European friends who are watching that gas that they need float into the air. As listeners know, European nations are desperately trying to cut their gas views heading into the fall and the winter to deal with Russia's energy squeeze. Now, we're starting to get a better picture of what that looks like exactly for the average person in their day-to-day lives.

Let's start with Germany. German offices will have to lower their heat to no more than 66 degrees. Some public buildings are going to have to actually shut off their heat entirely this winter. Good luck with the plumbing. By the way, if you were thinking of sightseeing in Germany this winter, you might want to reconsider. They're banning most outdoor lighting for buildings, including tourist landmarks. Meanwhile, in France, stores are being told to reduce their heating temperatures to 62 degrees of heat during peak shopping hour. They'll also need to reduce in-store lighting by about 30%.

Supermarket chains are being told to turn off their store lights at closing. In Italy, they're adopting many of these same measures too. Reduced lighting in public areas like parks and landmarks, less light in stores and office buildings. In Denmark and Sweden, they're doing all of this plus a limit on hot showers, the number you can take, the length of the showers, all of it. This is just a small sampling of the measures that are being taken across the entire continent of Europe, but we can see a clear pattern, less heat and less light. What I'm wondering is how these actions might actually harm Europe in unexpected ways.

For instance, spies and criminals like to operate in the dark. So you cut lights across the continent for months on end. Well, how will that affect crime rates? Bottom line, folks, is that it's likely going to be a very cold and very dark winter for Europe if this war in Ukraine doesn't come to an end soon, which is exactly what Putin is hoping for. He's looking to freeze his way to victory. And with that, a listener question before I let you go. We'll be right back.

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Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I've got one more thing before I let you go. Cindy from Alabama wrote in, and here's what she asked. Did you get trained in invasive driving techniques, or is that just for Hollywood? I see a lot of cool maneuvers when I watch spy movies. So what can you tell us? Cindy, the answer is yes. We get trained on how to use a car to evade or escape

and also how to use it as a weapon. And I will be honest with you, for me, it was one of the coolest parts of the training. So much fun. In fact, I've got a story for you. So my fellow trainees and I were watching each other learn how to drive in this Hollywood-like way. And it started to get a little bit,

it competitive. And as these things happen, it became a battle of who was better at driving, men or women, lots of jokes and giving each other a hard time. Well, Cindy, I was feeling pretty confident about my abilities, and I'm going to be honest with you. I performed pretty well, if I can brag. So the boys were slapping me on the back, but there were a handful of ladies that still had to go after I was finished. And Cindy, well, I'm not. I'm not. I'm a lot of I watched them tear up that driving course like they were a bunch of NASCAR drivers. So I lost, and the fellas and I were humbled. The ladies absolutely wrecked us.

Well, of course, we couldn't be gracious losers. No, no. We had to get in our digs. So, we told them, naturally, crazy drivers would excel at a crazy driving course, so that's why we lost. Well, the ladies rolled their eyes and weren't having any of it. They savored every bit of their victory. Anyway, it was a lot of fun, and what a great memory. Thank you, Cindy, for reminding me of it.

I hadn't thought about it in years, and it gave me a real good laugh. And with that, ladies and gentlemen, I conclude your morning brief. As always, we close out the show, reminding each other of why we are here, talking about our country and our world. It's the creed of every good spy and every smart American. It's from John chapter 8, verse 32. And you shall know the truth. And the truth shall make you free.

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