The President's Daily Brief - September 19th, 2024: Exploding Beeper Blame Game, Blinken’s Diplomatic Struggles, Secret Service Failures

Episode Date: September 19, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: We’ll kick things off with the fallout from Hezbollah’s exploding communication devices. The companies behind the technology are scrambling to distance themselves from the attack on the terrorist group, denying any involvement. Later, we’ll look at how these events in Lebanon come at the worst possible time for Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who’s in the Middle East this week, still holding out hope for a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. Plus, new revelations about the attempted assassination of former President Trump, as the Secret Service admits agents failed to search the outskirts of his Florida golf course—where the alleged assassin was hiding. And in today’s Back of the Brief: The U.S. military has deployed 130 soldiers and mobile rocket launchers to an island in Alaska’s Aleutian chain, responding to increased Russian military activity, with planes and vessels nearing American territory. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail] 🏅 Patriot Gold: Call 1-888-870-5457 for a free investor guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. We'll kick things off with the fallout from Hezbollah's exploding communication devices. The companies, allegedly behind the technology, are scrambling to distance themselves from the attack on the terrorist group, denying any involvement. Later in the show, we'll look at how events in Lebanon have come at the, well, let's call it the worst possible time for Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who's in the Middle East this week, still holding out hope for a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. Now, one thing about Blinken and the U.S. negotiating team, they never run out of hopeful and oddly optimistic assessments of where things stand with the negotiations. Plus, new revelations about the attempted assassination of former President Trump. That would be the second attempted assassination, as the Secret Service admits that agents failed to search the outskirts of his Florida golf course where the alleged assassin was hiding.

Now, maybe it's just me, but from a security perspective, checking the perimeter, it seems like a solid choice. In today's back of the brief, the U.S. military has deployed 130 soldiers as well as mobile rocket launchers to an island in Alaska's Aleutian chain, responding to increased Russian military activity with planes and naval vessels nearing American territory. But first, today's PDB spotlight. I want to begin with a mystery regarding the origin of thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah that simultaneously exploded on Tuesday as part of an alleged Israeli covert operation targeting the terrorist group in Lebanon. This, of course, was followed a day later by the exploding walkie-talkies operation.

As I suspect you're aware, the detonation of the Pagers killed 12, including at least eight Hezbollah operatives, and injured nearly 3,000, including many of the group's fighters and associates. But with Israel staying quiet on their operations, which continued into Wednesday, speculation and contradictory reports regarding the source of the pagers have filled the airwaves. The New York Times initially reported late Tuesday, citing unnamed sources briefed on the operation that Israel hid explosive material inside a new batch of pagers ordered by Hezbollah in recent months from the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo. The pagers were reportedly implanted with explosive material sometime before they arrived in Lebanon, rigged to blow when they were received.

received a specific message. Following the revelation, Taiwanese prosecutors launched an investigation. But by Wednesday morning, representatives for Gold Apollo in Taiwan refuted claims that they were involved in manufacturing the pagers, instead pointing the finger at a firm named BAC Consulting in Budapest, Hungary. Gold Apollo claims that BAC consulting had a license to manufacture and sell pagers using Gold Apollo's branding in designated regions, but said their pagers were not involved in the alleged Israeli operation. That's according to a Bloomberg report. Officials with the Hungarian government were quick to hit back, however denying the claims made by Gold Apollo later on Wednesday, further, of course, muddying the picture. A spokesperson close to Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban said,

to quote, authorities have confirmed that the company in question is a trading intermediary with no manufacturing or operational site in Hungary. The spokesman added that the devices in question were never on Hungarian soil. The CEO of BAC consulting also chimed in and appeared to confirm Hungary's side of the story telling NBC news, quote, I don't make the pagers, I'm just the intermediate, I think you got it wrong, end quote. We should note, the operations of BAC consulting do raise some questions. The firm was founded in 2022 and is registered at the address of a two-story building in a Budapesth suburb, but the CEO appears to be the only employee.

She tells herself as a strategic advisor, and the firm is, quote, agents of change with a network of consultants. According to a report from the Times of Israel, oh, agents of change with a network of consultants. That's solid. I have to remember that one the next time I'm setting up a shadowy cover company. Little else appears to be known at this time about BAC Consulting's operations. Meanwhile, later on Wednesday, Taiwan's Economic Affairs Ministry cast further doubt on speculation that the Pagers originated in Taiwan,

noting there was no record of Gold Apollo exporting any products directly to Lebanon. Well, yeah, it's not likely that the Pagers would be sent directly to Beirut, addressed to Hesbila. There clearly was a more circuitous route. In a statement, the ministry said, quote, After reviewing media reports and pictures, we think it's very questionable that the model used is the company's product. Prosecutors in Taiwan said they continue to investigate the matter, adding, quote, if there is any illegality involved, it will be severely punished. We expect the picture to become even more confusing following the events in Lebanon on Wednesday.

As we discussed on yesterday's afternoon bulletin, thousands of handheld radios used by the terror group exploded across the country on Wednesday in what appeared to be a second wave. of covert attacks against Hezbollah by Israel. The explosion killed at least 14 people and injured another 450. Like the Pagers, sources with knowledge of Israel's operations said that Israeli operatives booby-trapped a recent shipment of the walkie-talkies for remote detonation before they arrived in the hands of Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. As a reminder, the pagers and radios were allegedly part of Hezbollah's pivot to low-tech devices, which they undertook, over fears that Israel would exploit their smartphones to mount further assassinations of their leadership. All right, coming up after the break, we'll examine how the crisis in Lebanon is complicating Secretary of State Blinken's efforts for a Middle East ceasefire.

Plus, new details on the attempted assassination of former President Trump, with the Secret Service admitting key oversights. I'll have those stories when we come back. I wrote a little song to remind you, Choice Hotels, get you more of the experiences you value. The Cambria Hotels got it all. A rooftop bar, have a ball. Cocktails up here feel just right.

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Welcome back to the PDB. Sticking with the fallout in the Middle East, the attacks against Hezbollah terrorists involving exploding pagers and walkie-talkies well, frankly, could not have come at a worse time for the Biden administration and U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. Blinken was in Egypt on Wednesday,

his 10th visit to the Middle East since these seven October attacks by Hamas which kicked off this conflict. In his latest attempt to advance ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas, and obviously they've been an impasse for more than a month in the latest negotiations. Blinkin's hopes for a day focused on this diplomatic push were, of course, upended by Israel's alleged covert attacks against Hezbollah on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Instead of fielding questions about the ceasefire talks, Blinken was inundated with inquiries regarding what the U.S. knew about Israel's alleged operations. He reiterated that the U.S. had no advanced knowledge of the attacks and was still gathering information on the incidents, that's according to a report from the Times of Israel. Appearing deeply frustrated with this situation, Blinken said such surprise escalations threatened to derail the negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza, which he maintained is the best way to tackle the, quote, humanitarian crisis in Gaza and to address risks to regional stability, end quote.

Well, no, I think, frankly, the best way to address regional instability is to get the Iranian regime and its IRGC to change their behavior and to rein in their terrorist proxies. That might do it. Blinken stated, quote, it's imperative that all parties refrain from any actions that could escalate the conflict. Blinken stressed that the negotiations involved long waits for messages to be passed between the parties and that such attacks were counterproductive to those efforts. While he did not directly criticize Israel or confirm their role in the attacks in Lebanon,

he lamented that time and time again, he said, when mediators believed they were making progress on a deal, quote, we've seen an event that threatens to slow it, stop it, or derail it, end quote. Regarding the ceasefire negotiations, Blinken said that 15 out of 18 paragraphs of a deal have been agreed to by all sides. But sources with knowledge of the talks say significant disagreements remain over the Strategic Philadelphia Corridor on the Gaza-Egyptian border.

Egypt themselves, along with Hamas, have opposed any deal that allows Israeli troops to maintain control of the corridor, and that's something that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu maintains as non-negotiable. Even if Egypt softens their stance, Hamas is not likely to offer concessions regarding the corridor. According to officials with knowledge of the talks, the U.S. is now drawing up alternative strategies to entice Hamas to scale back their demands and accept the current deal, including granting their leader Yaya Sinwar safe passage out of Gaza. We should stress that these possibilities all remain in the planning stage, and that's according to a report from Politico. Notably, this is the first Middle East trip for Blinken since the 7 October attacks that will not include a stop in Israel.

Given his close proximity from Cairo, the move has, of course, raised speculations that the Biden administration is losing patience with leaders in Jerusalem. Frank Lowenstein, a former special envoy for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, told the New York Times, quote, Blinken, skipping Israel is a reflection of the Biden administration's realization that trying to pressure Beebe is pointless, end quote. Blinken will instead head from Cairo to Paris on Thursday to meet with the foreign ministers of France, Italy, and Britain, regarding the war in Ukraine. All right, shifting focus to the failed assassination attempt on former President Trump. The second one, that is, the acting director of the Secret Service made a major admission that the agency failed to sweep the perimeter of Donald Trump's Florida golf course before the attempt on Trump's life on Sunday. Acting director, Ronald Roe, acknowledged that Trump's visit was not on his official schedule, classifying it as, quote, off the record, contributing to a lack of security measures.

Now, this incident comes during growing scrutiny of the Secret Service, as you can imagine, which has been under fire since a prior assassination. attempt on Trump in July during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The agency's former director, Kimberly Cheeto, resigned shortly after, citing that she fell short of the agency's mission to protect the nation's leaders. On Sunday, the perpetrator Ryan Ralph set up a sniper's nest within the shrubbery lining Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach. Federal prosecutors say Ralph remained hidden for 12 hours before Trump arrived for a round of golf. The Secret Service's failure to conduct a full perimeter sweep allowed Ralph, of course, to position himself undetected.

Defending the agency, acting director Roe explained that because the 45th president's visit wasn't on his official schedule, agents didn't perform a full-scale search. What? Okay, now that's an odd explanation. Given the obvious threat level here, it shouldn't matter whether his activity is on an official schedule or not, they need to be more tailored and proactive in assigning resources and managing events. In a press briefing, Roe stated the president wasn't even supposed to go there. Despite this, Roe emphasized that agents acted swiftly once they became aware of the threat,

successfully stopping Ralph before he could fire his weapon. The assassination attempt on Trump unraveled when Secret Service agents spotted the muzzle of Ralph's weapon, poking through the shrubbery surrounding the golf course. One agent opened fire forcing Ralph to flee in an SUV. Now, law enforcement officials later apprehended him on the interstate. While Ralph was captured before executing his plan, the fact that he was able to set up a sniper's nest, so close to Trump, put the agency's readiness in the spotlight. No, you think? Acting Director Rose's comments were part of his efforts to reassure the public and federal officials that the Secret Service can still prevent such incidents. Oh. His acknowledgment

that the off-the-record nature of Trump's visit contributed to the oversight, well, did little to stem the criticism. When asked in a press briefing, if the agency had enough time to secure the area properly, well, the acting director sidestepped, stating only that agents acted swiftly when the threat became apparent. Despite the glaring lapse, acting director Roe praised the agents who spotted the suspect's rifle and responded in time to prevent harm. He also defended the agency's overall handling of the situation, pointing out that Ralph was arrested without injury to Trump or others. An outcome that the acting director said proves the security plan the agency devised for Trump's unofficial golf outing worked. Well, except if the agent hadn't spotted the weapon's barrel, well, we've got a potentially vastly different outcome. So I don't know whether you can attribute the outcome to security planning or perhaps old-fashioned luck.

All right, coming up in the back of the brief, the U.S. military is deploying additional troops to Alaska following a surge in Russian military activity near American territory. I'll have those details when we come back. USAA knows dynamic duos can save the day, like superheroes and sidekicks or auto and home insurance. With USAA, you can bundle your auto and home and save up to 10%. Tap the banner to learn more and get a quote at USAA.com slash bundle. Restrictions apply. In today's back of the brief, the U.S. military deployed over 100 soldiers and mobile rocket launchers to an island in Alaska's allusion chain following a rise in Russian military planes and

vessels approaching American territory. This action comes after an increase in Russian military activity near Alaska. Just last week, eight Russian planes and four Navy vessels, including submarines, were detected near Alaska in the state's air defense identification zone. It's according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command. While none of the planes involved breached U.S. airspace, the frequency of such incursions has drawn the attention of military officials who continue to monitor the situation closely. Well, that's a good thing. In response, on 12 September, the U.S. Army made a decisive move, stationing 130 soldiers and two high-mobility artillery rocket systems, known as High Mars, on Shemya Island. The island, home to an Air Force station,

dating all the way back to World War II, is about 1,200 miles from Anchorage. The military described the operation as a, quote, force projection effort designed to demonstrate U.S. readiness. Last week now was not an isolated incident. As we've been tracking on the BDB, a Coast Guard vessel on routine patrol in the Chokchee Sea on Sunday encountered four Russian Navy ships, two submarines, a frigate, and a tugboat, operating 60 miles northwest of Point Hope, Alaska. Although these ships briefly crossed into U.S. waters to avoid sea ice, their presence underscored the proximity of foreign military forces to U.S. territory. This incident follows Russia and China's Ocean 24 joint military drills,

which lasted through the first half of the month. The broader pattern of Russian military activity in the Arctic is fueling concern. Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska has called for a larger military presence in the region, advocating for reopening the Navy base at ADAC. Alaska, which closed in 1997. Sullivan emphasized the Arctic strategic importance and the ongoing power struggle between the U.S., Russia, and China. Pentagon spokesman, Major General Pat Ryder, has assured the public that there's no immediate cause for alarm, but reaffirmed that the U.S. is prepared to respond as necessary. So, don't panic. The Russians aren't coming. Yet. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief for Thursday, 19 September.

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And of course, as you've probably heard from celebrity gossip, to listen to the show ad-free, well, become a premium member of the president's daily brief by simply visiting PDB premium.com. I told you it was simple. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. Not loving your AT&T or T-Mobile bill. Yeah, we've been hearing that a lot. Good news.

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