The President's Daily Brief - October 6th, 2023: Biden's Border Flip, Artillery Aid to Russia, and NATO's Aerial Drama

Episode Date: October 6, 2023

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: A major policy reversal by the Biden administration suggests a deeper crisis on the border. With the waiving of 26 federal laws in South Texas, border wall construction reminiscent of the Trump era is set to resume in Starr County, a focal point for illegal entry. As North Korea deepens its ties with Russia, it taps into its Cold War-era arsenal, sending artillery to back Putin's offensive in Ukraine. Satellite images reveal a strategic move by Russia's Black Sea Fleet, hinting at potential geopolitical shifts. And in our Back of the Brief segment, we discuss a friction point between NATO allies as an American F-16 intercepts a Turkish drone over Northern Syria. 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

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dog commander. But I hope you all had a most excellent week. And now, it's Friday, October 6th. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. Today on the PDB, we'll revisit the stories from this week to track their developments in what listeners around the globe now call follow-up Friday. Up first on today's show. We follow up on the situation at the U.S. border, where a policy reversal by the Biden administration hence at a more significant crisis than the White House has been willing to acknowledge. The administration has recently announced the waiver of 26 federal laws in South Texas to approve border wall construction, echoing the practices of the Trump era. Although details are limited, this construction

is scheduled for Star County in Texas, a hotspot for illegal entry. Sources report that President Biden is saying it's going to be a big, beautiful wall, the biggest wall. A little later in the program, the blossoming relationship between North Korea and Russia appears to be bearing fruit as the DPRK starts digging into its Cold War era stockpiles, sending artillery to support Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Plus, satellite imagery is showing a significant shift in Russia's naval assets as the Black Sea Fleet weighs anchor and sets a course for more secure waters. Finally, in today's back of the brief segment, a tense situation arises between NATO allies as a USF-16 downs a Turkish drone in northern Syria. And also, in the back of the

brief, we say goodbye to White House dog, Commander, a good boy who's been evicted because the Bidens, apparently, aren't good dog owners. But first, today's PDB spotlight. Earlier this week, we reported on a record-setting number of migrants crossing the southern border into the United States in September. Customs and Border Protection recorded over 260,000 encounters in that month, one month, 260,000 incoming encounters. And let's remember, we have no idea how many gotaways or non-encountered immigrants made their way across the border during the month. The crisis has reached a level that the Biden administration cannot ignore.

You could make a feature film-length montage of administration officials during the past many months talking about how the border is secure, how it's actually closed, how the president has taken historic, unprecedented steps to secure the border. The problem is, the pesky visuals and the coverage from the border tells a completely different story. and with a constant influx of immigrants being bused to sanctuary cities and city resources being stretched to the limit, the sanctuaries, well, they're not so welcoming anymore. So in a surprising policy reversal, the Department of Homeland Security, DHS, announced plans to start construction on a wall in Star County, Texas, along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The funding for this project was initially appropriated in 2019 under the previous administration. administration. DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas stated that there is, quote, an acute and immediate need for these barriers to prevent unlawful entries into the United States. Huh. Now, the administration isn't wasting any time, and to expedite the process, the government intends to waive 26 federal laws. The laws waived include provisions of the national environmental policy and the Endangered Species Acts. That's not likely to sit well. with the members of the Sierra Club, or, as they're sometimes known, Joe Biden's base. This decision contrasts sharply with President Biden's previous stance on the border wall.

You'll remember during his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden declared, quote, There will not be another foot of wall constructed in my administration. This, of course, is a classic example of self-righteous campaign rhetoric colliding with the realities of the actual world where humans live. The exact scope of the border wall that DHS aims to construct is still uncertain. A map released by Customs and Border Protection in June highlighted plans for an extra 20 miles of steel-ballered panel barriers, those of the long slats made of reinforced concrete and rebar.

While this might seem minimal, given the nearly 2,000-mile border between the U.S. and Mexico, the targeted area for construction is among the most active, potentially offering significant support to Border Patrol agents. In related news, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has started a tour of Central and South America with a clear message. He is visiting Colombia, Mexico, and Ecuador to communicate that New York City is, in his words, at capacity. Adams plans to appear on television, radio, and in newspapers, to discourage potential migrants from heading to New York. The surreal images of Mayor Adams visiting the Darien Gap during his southern swing, and the Gap is a key point in the pathway that immigrants take to get to the U.S. border, in order to tell would-be immigrants that there's no room with the New York

City in, will be amazing to watch. And the irony in the Biden administration now rushing to build a big wall will definitely not be acknowledged by the Democrat faithful. The lack of self-awareness, Okay, to be fair on both sides of the aisle, is painful and at the same time entertaining. All right, after the break, updates on two more stories we've been following closely. North Korea dives into its Cold War weapons locker sending artillery Russia's way, bolstering Putin's ongoing Ukraine invasion. Meanwhile, and this is a telling development, satellite intelligence reveals a significant shift,

with Russia's Black Sea Fleet, in part departing Crimea. Before we head off to break, a quick note. It is terrific to hear from each and every one of you. Here at the PDB, we've been delighted, and how often do you get to use the word delighted anymore at the questions, the comments, and the feedback that arrives in our mailbag every day. If you have comments, concerns, or questions you'd like answered on the air,

email them to PDB at thefirstTV.com. That's PDB at thefirstTV.com. We'll be starting up a regular weekly segment featuring your questions, your story, ideas, and comments that we're calling the mailbag. Or we may actually have a contest to come up with a name for the segment. I'll be right back. This is Euphoria Calvin Klein, the new elixir collection featuring three perfume intense scents, inspired by a unique orchid accord, paired with vanilla, each with its own distinct attitude, each with its own universe. Verse. Bold elixir. Sensual. Woody. Addictive. Magnetic elixir. Sweet and romantic like a lingering touch. Solar elixir. A radiant expression of joy. Ultra concentrated for amplified impact and lasting power.

Find your euphoria. Discover the euphoria elixir collection by Calvin Klein. Welcome back to the President's Daily Brief. We've been tracking the growing partnership between Russia and North Korea following last month's summit between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un. Well, it looks like that relationship is beginning to bear fruit, at least for Russia. U.S. officials are reporting that North Korea has begun transferring artillery to Russia, providing fresh support to Putin's forces amid their 20-month invasion of Ukraine. This move suggests North Korea might be tapping into its stockpiles of Cold War-era arms. That would include howards or barrels, complete artillery systems, as well as shells,

to replenish Russia's dwindling supplies. Of course, North Korea isn't giving these away out of any sense of generosity, and while we're not exactly sure what they're getting out of the bargain yet, it's widely believed that Kim is seeking advanced weapons technology, that could include advanced warships, satellites, or advanced nuclear technology. And on that front, we're getting some ominous news. South Korea's intelligence service has revealed that North Korea appears to have halted operations at a nuclear reactor within its Yongbian nuclear complex.

Now, this complex is North Korea's primary source of weapons-grade plutonium, and ceasing operations is the first step in extracting it. Unfortunately, this plutonium is most likely intended for the production of nuclear weapons. It's interesting to note that apparently North Korea decided not to heed stern warnings and possibly harshly worded memos from the U.S. administration regarding providing Russia with weapons and ammunition. You'll recall that during the Putin-Kim Jong-un summit, the U.S. admonished North Korea not to assist Russia with weapons, noting that such a move would be, and here I'm paraphrasing, but not much, unbecoming and not the gentlemanly thing

to do. Apparently the warnings didn't have the desired effect. All right, while Russia is seeing some progress in restocking its military hardware shelves, its efforts in Ukraine took a very interesting and significant turn. In recent weeks, we've witnessed a series of important developments concerning Russia's naval assets in Crimea, with Ukraine launching a number of high-profile attacks on Russia's naval assets in the port city of Sevastopol. These attacks targeted several warships dry docked in the city, as well as the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet. Now, what's really catching international attention here is that Russia seems to be losing control of the the skies above Sevastopol. Western officials and satellite images indicate that Russia has

withdrawn most of its Black Sea fleet from Sevastopol and from Crimea. Russia has relocated three attack submarines and two frigates from Sevastopol to other ports within Russia and Crimea. Additionally, reports from the Telegraph citing British intelligence suggests that Black Sea fleet activities may be shifting to the Russian port city of Novorazizk. This is a significant setback for Russia. Sevastopol had been a crucial and unrestricted naval base for the Black Sea Fleet, a primary reason behind Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. Before that, Russia had leased these facilities from Ukraine.

Apart from the optics, Sevastopol served as a vital logistics hub for supplying munitions and material for that land battle to the north. Without Crimea, Russia will have to rely on land routes to support its forces in southern Ukraine, a more perilous and less efficient option. These recent developments are reshaping the geopolitical landscape in the region. Now, if the Russian military calculation is that Crimea, at least around Sevastopol, is becoming undefensible, this portends a sea change in a possible endgame solution for the conflict. If Putin, by some chance, is imagining life without Crimea, that potentially moves the war closer to a possible settlement. However, frankly, it would be overly optimistic at this stage to say

that redeployment of part of the Black Sea fleet is a serious indicator of abandoning Russia's hold on Crimea. But we'll be keeping a close eye on this aspect of the war. All right, coming up in today's back of the brief segment, a rare instance of two NATO countries using force against one another as the U.S. shoots down a Turkish drone over the skies of northern Syria. I'll be right back. Some follow the noise. Bloomberg follows the money, whether it's the funds fueling AI or crypto's trillion-dollar swings. There's a money side to every story.

Get the money side of the story. Subscribe now at Bloomberg.com. Welcome back. In today's back of the brief segment, earlier this week, we reported on the bombing carried out by Kurdish militants. in the Turkish capital of Ankara. Subsequently, the Turkish government has intensified attacks against the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK,

the terrorist organization that's taken responsibility. Well, this escalation is inadvertently creating a tense situation between two NATO allies. On Thursday, a USF-16 fighter jet took down a Turkish drone that ventured over a base in northeast Syria where American forces operate, working against ISIS and other terrorist targets. This drone, identified as the Barakhtar TB2,

was armed with the air-to-ground missiles and posed a significant threat to our troops on the ground as well as to the Syrian Democratic forces, or SDF, that our troops are working with. And therein lies the issue. The SDF is a U.S.-backed alliance, made up of various ethnic and rebel groups that emerged during the Syrian Civil War.

That's where things get a little dicey, because while the U.S. backs the militant group, Turkey alleges that SDF has connections with the PKK, thus justifying its retaliatory strike against them. While the Turkish Defense Ministry currently denies that the drone belonged to them, it's worth noting that Turkey is the only country in the region known to operate this type of drone. It's likely that Turkey's denials are an effort to save face on the international stage. Finally, the Biden's German Shepherd Dog Commander has been officially evicted from the White House after 11 known biting incidents involving White House staff and Secret Service personnel. To be clear, Commander was the one doing the biting.

Here's my take. Commander is a good boy in a bad situation. The reason he's acting up is the same reason most dogs act up, a lack of training, attention, and boundaries. I don't want to sound cynical, but it is possible. Just possible that Commander was a public relations purchase, meaning, let's get the president a dog, so he seems more relatable, and let's make it at German Shepherd so the president also seems like a regular tough Joe. It would be interesting to know, not that we ever will know, just how much time the Biden spent with Commander, who trained him, did he have a person like all dogs want? Did they go on regular walks together and play? Hmm, my guess is, based on his behavior, probably not.

And don't forget, pets can take on characteristics of their owners. Now, I'm not saying the president never bid anyone, but he does seem to have thin skin and tends to get irritated and defensive when questioned. Perhaps commander was just trying to be like the commander-in-chief. Regardless, we wish him all the best and hope wherever he ends up, he gets the attention and the pets he deserves. I'm talking about the dog. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief for Fridays,

6 October. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us at PDB at thefirsttv.com. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back on Monday. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool. Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile, the message for everyone paying big wireless way too much. Please for the love of everything good in this world, stop. With Mint, you can get premium wireless for just $15 a month. Of course, if you enjoy overpaying, no judgments, but that's weird. Okay, one judgment. Anyway, give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Up front payment of $45 for three-month plan, equivalent to $15 per month required.

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