The Young Turks - Battle Of Bills

Episode Date: May 15, 2024

Rafah border closure strands American doctors in Gaza hospital. Bill Burr shuts down Bill Maher during debate on literal kids dying in Gaza. Live Updates: Cohen will continue testifying at the Trump trial after steady turn on stand. Vivek Ramaswamy says Ann Coulter’s belief he can’t be president because he’s Indian is "widespread" in America. Anti-feminist Hannah Pearl Davis - aka Pearly Things - says women won’t shut up as she relentlessly interrupts a man during debate. A Republican group takes the rare step of targeting a GOP incumbent who voted to oust McCarthy. Jon Stewart rips Nancy Pelosi and Hunter Biden in segment calling out "f*cking awful" corruption in politics. Roughly 5,000 hourly employees of the Alabama Mercedes factory are set to vote starting today on whether to join the United Auto Workers. Ex-staffers detail Nancy Mace's poisonous behavior behind closed doors. HOST: Ana Kasparian (@anakasparian) SUBSCRIBE on YOUTUBE: ☞ https://www.youtube.com/user/theyoungturks FACEBOOK: ☞ https://www.facebook.com/theyoungturks TWITTER: ☞ https://www.twitter.com/theyoungturks INSTAGRAM: ☞ https://www.instagram.com/theyoungturks TIKTOK: ☞ https://www.tiktok.com/@theyoungturks 👕 Merch: https://shoptyt.com ❤ Donate: http://www.tyt.com/go 🔗 Website: https://www.tyt.com 📱App: http://www.tyt.com/app 📬 Newsletters: https://www.tyt.com/newsletters/ If you want to watch more videos from TYT, consider subscribing to other channels in our network: The Watchlist https://www.youtube.com/watchlisttyt Indisputable with Dr. Rashad Richey https://www.youtube.com/indisputabletyt The Damage Report ▶ https://www.youtube.com/thedamagereport TYT Sports ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytsports The Conversation ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytconversation Rebel HQ ▶ https://www.youtube.com/rebelhq TYT Investigates ▶ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwNJt9PYyN1uyw2XhNIQMMA Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Have you smashed that like button yet? I mean, if you're not watching us on YouTube, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. But smash that like button if you're watching us on YouTube. I'm your host Anna Casper and you're watching TYT. And we have a banana show ahead for you today. Yes, that's that's exactly right, DJ Bart. You gotta smash it.

So we've got a massive show ahead for you today. Obviously, we're gonna gonna give you an update on the ongoing war in Gaza. We're also going to talk a little bit about the battle of the bills. Bill Maher versus Bill Burr on the student protesters and the ongoing war in Gaza. We're gonna talk about the second day of Michael Cohen's testimony in the Trump Hush Money criminal case. And later in the first hour, I'm also going to talk about a figure who's been in the media, who I've been, I'm going to admit it, ignoring for the most part. But she recently engaged in a debate about why marriage is a bad deal for men. And so, yes, we're going to get

into the public figure that is unfortunately known as pearly things. There's nothing pearly about her other than the fact that her first name is Pearl. So that'll be in the first hour as well. Second hour, Wazni Lombre will join us to cover the rest of the news. So without further ado, let's get started with our top story today, the ongoing war in Gaza and all the updates that entails. You've certainly had the chance to seek combat in Iraq and operate in Iraq. It's something that none of us probably have ever experienced. How does what you are seeing now in the conditions that you are operating in compare to other

war zones that you've lived through? You know, I've, I mean, I've seen combat and war wounds and have done surgery with humanitarian and disaster relief now for almost 20 years. And this is nothing like this. That was an American trauma surgeon who is currently trapped in Gaza following Israel's capture of the Rafa border crossing. Now, Dr. Adam Hamawi is the individual that you just heard from. And he's talking about the nightmarish experiences. He has had as a doctor in Gaza. And he's far from the only American doctor trapped in Gaza as we speak.

We're gonna give you more details on the others in just a moment. But I do think it's worth hearing a little more about what his experiences have been in the Gaza Strip during this ongoing war that has been waged against allegedly Hamas. But clearly when you look at the death toll, many Palestinians have perished as a result. a result of Israel's war on Gaza. Let's take a look at what else he has to say. I take care of more, you know, people under the age of 13 and I've ever taken care of before. I've done more amputations and seen more traumatic amputations of children that I've seen during my entire career in the last two weeks. And that's what's really making it difference. You know, in Iraq, there is some civilian casualties. Here, it's like primarily just

you know, children, women, elderly. I mean, today I took care of four children, one woman, and like two people over the age of, like, 60. And this is not, like, typical of, you know, the wars that I've, like, experienced in the past. So this is, like, you know, really the main, like, you know, this is like, this is not, like a war. This is just, like, a complete utter destruction. like left like I was able to actually venture out of the hospital and there's like nothing left in the area around this it's like just flattened completely flattened I mean everything that he said there is easily verifiable aerial footage of the Gaza

strip shows major portions of it being completely leveled you know you have the death toll which is mostly women and children and even the United States I mean Anthony Blinken confirmed that the United States and its newly released report indicates that far more civilians in Gaza have died as opposed to Hamas militants. Now, if you think that is the only American doctor who's currently trapped in Gaza, you would be mistaken because according to reporting by the intercept, there are as many as 20 American doctors and medical workers currently trapped in Gaza following Israel taking hold and control of the Rafa border crossing. And of course, the Rafa border crossing is on the southern end of the Gaza Strip.

And, you know, the intercepts Ryan Grimm doing incredible reporting, holding our government's feet to the fire, decided to question U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel about the American doctors that are currently trapped in Gaza. Take a look. Citizens, doctors who are at the European hospital in Kahn Yunus facing dehydration, and at least one of them is on an IV drip now. Our understanding is that relatives have been in touch with the State Department of U.S. administrations or anything you can say about efforts to get them out.

We're aware of these reports of U.S. citizens, doctors and medical professionals currently unable to leave Gaza. As I said before, we don't control this border crossing. And this is a incredibly complex situation. that has very serious implications for the safety and security of U.S. citizens. But we're continuing to work around the clock with the government of Israel, with the government of Egypt, to work on this issue, not just to address the very serious humanitarian assistance concerns that I just talked about.

What does it say about conditions more generally in Roffin and in Conunus, if American doctors only arrived there recently, are already suffering from dehydration and malnutrition? So look, we have not been unambiguous about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. It is a crisis. Let me get this straight. Let me get this straight. There's upward of 20 American doctors currently trapped in Gaza as we speak. And America's greatest ally, Israel, is making it difficult for us to allow the American

doctors to leave the Gaza Strip? Am I getting that correct? Is that correct? That is the story. It is a complicated, complex situation, according to the U.S. State Department, to allow American doctors to leave the Gaza Strip. Why is that complex? If Israel is our greatest ally, a shining democracy in a region full of terrible, scary Muslims and Arabs. This is insane. This is literally the like craziest update to what Americans are dealing with in the Gaza Strip. All right. Well, friend of the show, Ken Clippenstein, also is helping Americans, you know, kind of get a little more clarity on the Biden administration's alleged halt on weapon shipments to Israel. Now remember, just to give you a refresher on this portion of the story,

the Biden administration says, you know what? Rafa is our red line. We do not want Israel to do a ground invasion into Rafa, and in fact, we are going to withhold weapons to Israel if it becomes clear to us that they do intend on engaging in a ground invasion. Now to be sure, Israel's already bombing Rafa. So I love how this is reported and framed in the press as if like, ooh, Israel's thinking about it, but are they gonna do it?

They're already bombing Rafa. Okay, just last week, they asked 100,000 already displaced Palestinians who had been sheltering Rafa to evacuate. So they can bomb the region. Okay, so that's already happening. But you know, even here on this show, we've been very critical of the Biden administration, but we were willing to give them a little bit of credit for halting weapon shipments to Israel. And finally, for once, having a red line. Well, it's way more complicated than that. So let's go to Ken Klippenstein's reporting over at Substack. By the way, please subscribe to Ken's work. He's doing wonderful reporting as always.

So he writes that the most intense phase of the conflict involving air power. That means fighter jets that drop the bombs, Biden is threatening to suspend, has already occurred. Israel's second phase was a shift to more targeted attacks using drones, artillery, and infantry to root out Hamas fighters and attack the underground tunnel network. I feel like that's what they should have done in the very beginning and throughout this war. You know, the targeted attacks going after Hamas. But okay, Clippenstein also states what should be obvious to people who, you know, consider the fact that the bombings have already been taking place in Rafa.

So he writes that a move into Rafa city, Israel has already invaded Gaza and even Rafa State, wouldn't involve the type of weapons Biden has said he would suspend. And as the Israelis have alluded to, complaining about larger weapons being used, 2,000 pound bombs, while denying smaller ones makes no sense in terms of preserving Palestinian lives. More civilians are dying right now because of the humanitarian disaster created by the war, meaning the famine, the lack of humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip. More Palestinians currently are starting to die as a result of that, as opposed to the air. burial bombardments that were taking more Palestinian lives earlier in this war. So there's the lack of humanitarian aid, people dying of hunger, dehydration.

And then there's also in that paragraph, that excerpt I just read to you, the issue of the U.S. halting the shipment of smaller bombs, but continuing the shipment of the 2,000 pound bunker buster bombs, how does that make any sense? As Clippenstein writes, it doesn't make any sense at all. But according to U.S. officials, an assault on Rafa appears to be on the horizon, as if the assault on Rafa hasn't already been happening. The Israeli defense forces have amassed and prepared enough personnel on the edge of Rafa to suggest they could be ready to go into other areas of the densely populated city. Two anonymous U.S. officials said, but it is unclear whether Israel has made a final decision about when and how to proceed. Well, the IDF has been engaging in more military activity in the northern and central portion of the Gaza Strip.

You know, the areas where they said they had already effectively and successfully rooted out Hamas, turns out they didn't. Because what the current Israel military is doing with their current military actions is they're breeding more extremism, if you ask me. At least as a human being who knows how I would react to my entire family being wiped out, I can easily say that Israel's actions currently breed more extremism. The more innocent people who get killed, the more anger, rage, desire for retaliation arises. I mean, this is, again, human nature. Now, speaking of Biden, by the way, he shouldn't be surprised that Israel is going into Rafa despite his threats. After all, he's the one who said this just back in March.

What is your red line with Prime Minister Netanyahu? Do you have a red line? For instance, would invasion of Rafa, which you have urged him not to do, would that be a red line? It is a red line, but I'm never going to leave Israel. Okay, well, then why would Israel change any of its behavior? I mean, if you broadcast to the world that you're going to defend Israel no matter what, why would they change their behavior? Why would they take Biden's threats about invading Rafa seriously? I wouldn't.

And by the way, while Biden pretends to have a red line when he really doesn't, I do want to make clear that there are plenty of people in the United States, including in our military, who have a red line. And one of those individuals is a gentleman by the name of Harrison Mann. He's a U.S. Army major who is actually resigned from his post to take a stand against the United States. and it's unwavering commitment to Israel, regardless of how it carries out this war. And we ought to make that distinction real quick, right? Because there is a difference between not believing Israel should have the right to defend itself. Harrison man doesn't fall in that category. Like most people who have been critical of the war in Gaza, he has an issue with how this war has been prosecuted, how Israel has carried out their military operations in Gaza, which has killed far more.

Palestinian civilians as opposed to Hamas militants. So in November, the US Army Major Harrison Mann requested to resign over the government support of Israel, and he wrote a resignation letter that I want to read some excerpts from, bear with me, I know this is a lot of reading, but I think what he had to say was important. The policy that has never been far from my mind for the past six months is the nearly unqualified support for the government of Israel, which has enabled and empowered the killing and starvation of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians. This unconditional support also encourages

reckless escalation that risks wider war. We're actually incredibly lucky, by the way, that we're not engaged in war with Iran. We got real close. And luckily, Iran did not retaliate against Israel in a way that would lead to civilian casualties, to people dying. They damaged one building when they responded to Israel's attacks against Iran. And so luckily they didn't want to escalate the war. But I don't know how much longer Iran is gonna hold out. Hopefully, Netanyahu doesn't attack Iran again. But who knows? I mean, when I look at the current government of Israel, there's just a lot of belligerent behavior. without really considering how that behavior and how their actions against other sovereign

countries would escalate this into a much broader regional war, and it would drag the United States into that broader regional war. And if a war with Iran is sparked by all of this, you don't think the US wouldn't have boots on the ground in Iran? Of course they would. That is a formidable military. This isn't some easy war that, you know, the United States and Israel would snap their fingers and end in a day, it would be a drawn out bloody, devastating war.

But let me get back to Harrison Mann. He says, I hoped time and time again that the latest outrage would finally prompt a material shift in support for Israel. I told myself my individual contribution was minimal and that if I didn't do my job, someone else would. So why cause a stir for nothing? I know that I did in my small way, wittingly advanced that policy. And I I want to clarify that as a descendant of European Jews, I was raised in a particularly unforgiving moral environment when it came to the topic of bearing responsibility for ethnic cleansing. Harrison Mann is an incredibly brave person,

someone who actually has values and he's willing to put everything on the line in order to protect those values, to live out those values. And I just give him a tremendous amount of credit, Because again, I mean, he is causing a stir, and I can't imagine the kind of backlash he's dealing with. But to him, his integrity, his morals, his values are more important than staying quiet and continuing to do what was comfortable, the comfortable option. Don't stir the pot, don't critique what Israel's doing, don't criticize the U.S. support for Israel, regardless of what Israel does. He decided to take a stand, and he deserves a lot of credit for that. And man is not the only one who sees the horror in Gaza for what it really is.

Lately, IDF defenders have been singing the army's virtues, thanks to a recently revised report by the UN regarding the death toll in Gaza. I talked about this briefly on the show yesterday, but I wanted to dedicate a little more time to talk about it. Because unfortunately, this misinterpretation, intentional misinterpretation is spreading a lot of disinformation out. there in regard to the death toll and what the UN was trying to communicate. So the UN humanitarian agency, OCHA, published a report on May 8th with revised data regarding the number of Palestinian casualties in the war. The UN agency in its report reduced the number of women and children believed to have been killed in the war by nearly half.

So you read that as someone who's a fierce defender of Israel and you're like, yes, yes. A death toll, I mean that death toll number, that 35,000 person death toll number, that looked real bad. But look at the, the UN halved it, they halved it, yes. Anyone who by the way, had that feeling that, that celebratory air after reading this UN report is admitting that the actual death toll number of 35,000 people is really high and looks really bad. Okay, so let's just keep that in mind.

But let's also get into the details about what the UN was actually communicating, because they didn't literally have the number of the death toll, as is reported by the Palestinian Health Ministry. The number was reduced because the UN says it is now relying on the number of deceased women and children whose names and other identifying details have been fully documented, rather than the total number of women and children killed. Remember, there are still bodies, by the way, trapped under the rubble that aren't even accounted for when it comes to the Palestinian health ministries death toll numbers.

And so what the UN is trying to do is verify the identities of the Palestinians who have been killed. And so far, they have been able to identify the identities of about half the people who have been killed in Gaza. So as a result, the number of women and children listed on the the side appeared lower, okay, lower than previously reported because Ocho was listing only the breakdown of those who have been identified while still noting the larger overall death toll above it, the total number of dead also does not include the approximately 10,000 people who are still missing and trapped under the rubble, according to officials from the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Now, Farhan Haq, who works at the UN as the deputy spokesperson,

person for the Secretary General actually addressed the disinformation that's been floating around in regard to the UN's report. And so let's hear him clarify things. I want you to hear it from his mouth, from the UN itself. Let's see what he has to say. The overall number of fatalities that's been tallied by the Ministry of Health in Gaza, which is our counterpart on dealing with the death tolls, that number remains unchanged. And it's at more than 35,000 people since October 7th.

What's changed is the Ministry of Health in Gaza has updated the breakdown of fatalities for whom full details have been documented. There's about another 10,000 plus bodies who still have to be fully identified. And so then the details of those, which of those are children, which of those are women, that will be reestablished once the full identification process is complete. So please don't let anyone gaslight you about what the reality is on the ground in Gaza. There's a plethora of videos that you can watch for yourselves. Aerial footage that shows how the Gaza Strip has been pretty much destroyed.

Residential buildings completely demolished, hospitals destroyed. I mean, the list goes on and on and on and on. There's complete famine in the northern half of the Gaza Strip. It's just absolute devastation and rather than acknowledge the devastation and maybe reconsider the way the Israeli military is carrying out their military operations, I just feel like defenders of Israel want to pretend like what's actually happening on the ground isn't really happening because they don't want to have to be confronted with the truth. I mean, how can you defend the current Israeli government?

When you see what's actually happening on the ground in Gaza, and if you do see what's happening on the ground in Gaza, and you're fine with it. If you're fine with all those women and children, two thirds of those who have been killed, women and children, if you're okay with that and you think that it is a just war because, you know, Israeli lives are more important than Palestinian lives. Okay, well, then admit that. You might not be a great person in my eyes, but at least admit that. Take the mask off, stop pretending like you actually, you know, see both sides, the civilians on both sides as equal in terms of human lives that deserve to be protected. And just admit that one side consists of civilian lives and you don't care about. Honestly, that is the messaging that Democratic voters in America have been getting from the Democratic Party. So just to go back to James Carville's video where he's like pulling what, I mean, he doesn't

really have any hair on his head. But he's losing his mind over the fact that no one listens to Democrats anymore, that all the fear mongering about Trump isn't working anymore. How about you guys try listening to your constituents and what they have to say? More than two thirds of Democratic voters are not happy with the ongoing war in Gaza. Doesn't mean that they don't believe Israel has no right to defend itself. It means that they do not. not agree with 2,000 pound bunker buster bombs being dropped on a densely populated region of the world where people have nowhere to escape and nowhere to go for safety. How about the Democrats listen to those people?

Those are their voters. The difference between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party to be quite honest with you is it really does feel like Republican politicians are terrified of their constituents and actually listen to them. That's not the sense I get with Democrats. We got to take a break when we come back. We've got more news for you, including the battle of the bills, Bill Burr versus Bill Maher on the ongoing protest, student protests in the country in response to the war in Gaza. Smash it!

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Actually, I did watch that debate now that I think about it. That was the debate that had, I am forgetting the names of the other people who are part of it. But it was a good debate and Jank didn't lose his mind. Like sometimes he loses his temper and it kind of takes away from the debate in my opinion. But it was actually a great debate. So definitely check it out. Batya, Ungar Sargon was on the pro-Israel side. Jank and one other person. A libertarian guy, his name escapes me at the moment. They were on the pro-Palestinian side. So yeah, check that out.

All right, well, let's talk a little bit about a fascinating moment on Bill Maher's podcast recently. You don't realize that college campuses erupted with the kids demonstrating for Hamas? They are in with the terrorists. They were for the Palestinians. Well, it's sort of the same cause. Why, are you? I'm on the side of the kids. Did Bill Maher just say, like he just, like proudly conflated Hamas with Palestinian civilians.

It's the same cause. If you're protesting because you're enraged over the slaughter of literally, children in Gaza. Well that must mean that you support Hamas. That's what he said. But as you heard Bill Burr in that same clip, Bill Burr is siding with the student protesters. And I give him a lot of credit for saying that because unfortunately, public polling indicates that most Americans are not on the side of the protesters on college campuses. And there's a lot on the line for those who are willing to speak the truth, who are willing to speak out against the killing of innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip. And so Bill Burr, lots of respect for saying what he just

said in that clip. But he has more to say. Let's watch. Yeah, that's easy to say. You know, no one wants to see kids dead. This is a war. That was very brave you to say. This is a word. No, I'm the one who's actually brave on this. No, pat yourself on the back. It's easy to say, I'm for the kids. Who's not for the kids? Well, I don't- It comes down to real hard-nosed decisions. Like a country- I'm talking like you're a general. A country got attacked. Israel got attacked.

I'm not saying that they didn't have a right to go back. I'm just sitting there going like, how do I look at the one? The only country in the world that they get attacked and then as soon as they counter attack, it's like, well, we've got to stop this now. Don't attack them. It's a very simple solution to all this problem in the Middle East. Stop attacking Israel. Hey, you just solved it.

You just solved it. I actually did. There you go. That's fantastic. Anyway. I just want to quickly talk about how Bill Mar, an incredibly influential wealthy man who has sided with the power players in this country, on this war, thinks that he's the brave one for siding with the power players in regard to this war.

Okay, I'm talking about our governmental institutions, both political parties, deeply, deeply supportive of Israel, deeply in favor of anything Israel wants to do. Okay, you have the Israel lobby corrupting politicians on both sides of the political aisle to the point where Israel is the top recipient of U.S. foreign aid by a lot, okay? I mean, you have the United States government, Joe Biden circumventing Congress over hundred times in order to get military weaponry to Israel during this war. And obviously when you look at what's happening in Gaza, we're talking about a population of millions of people who have nowhere to go. It is a tiny strip of land. Okay, about five miles wide. And they're

being bombed. They're being displaced. Their homes have been destroyed. But hold on, It's brave to support the side that gets all the U.S. military weaponry, that has the Iron Dome as a defense capability to protect their civilians from missiles or rockets. It's brave of you to conflate innocent civilians who are getting killed on one side, the Palestinian side, who again have nowhere to go for safety. You defend what's happening to them, and that's the brave thing to do. Okay, now let's talk a little bit about the students. Apparently it's brave to trash the students, right? That's the brave take. Except what have we been hearing in regard to consequences for the students over and over again?

These are students who have been protesting the slaughter of innocent civilians in Gaza, and they no longer want their tuition money to be invested in the weapons manufacturers that are providing the weapons to Israel to cause all that carnage. That is what the protests are about, plain and simple. They have a problem with their money going to the Israel cause, considering what's happening to innocent civilians in Gaza. That is what's happening, okay. And what have they been met with?

Suspensions, in some cases expulsions, in some cases expulsions that are deserving. Okay, especially when you see a video of one of the Columbia students saying that Zionists don't deserve to live. Yeah, that guy deserved to get expelled, no problem with that. But obviously there was a very intentional effort to use those examples as the prime example of what all the protesters were like when obviously that couldn't be further from the truth. And so what kind of threats did the students get other than disciplinary action from the administrators at their universities?

Oh, they got all sorts of threats from employers. So you tell me who the brave person is. The powerful guy who's siding with the powerful people or the students who know that their future careers could be completely destroyed over having the courage to speak out on their campuses about this ongoing war. And I want to give you some examples like Kevin O'Leary. Let's listen to what he had to say about these student protesters. I'll see your resume. You may be a great candidate. Then I'll find that you were doing this or fighting the police or whatever it was. I'll put that resume on the left into the garbage because I know I can find someone else just as good as you, of which there are tens of thousands of candidates that didn't participate in this. You are trashing your future. Tom McLellan, who operates a financial news, a financial newsletter with his brother, says, attention job seekers, I will not hire any recent graduate of Columbia because that school is so tainted

that I will not be able to trust in the character nor the educational attainment of any of its students. Tom McClellan, apparently in favor of collective punishment, not only in Gaza, but also on college campuses around the country. Then there's the Canadian consultant Warren Kinsella who said at the firm I founded 18 years ago, and in the war rooms I've run for the past 31 years, I've employed hundreds of young people. I'll never hire one from Columbia. And of course, they're picking on Columbia because that's where the campus protests started. In addition to these three, a group of 13 right-leaning federal judges told Columbia University on May 6th that they will will not hire any graduates of their school.

Federal judges who won't hire Columbia graduates include Elizabeth L. Branch, James C. Ho, Matthew Solemson, Alan Albright, David Counts, and James Hendrix. There's more. Let's take a look at the second list. You've got Matthew Casmeric, you have Jeremy Kurnodal, Tillman Schelf. You guys get the picture. There's a bunch of right-leaning judges who are outraged, and they say that they will not hire anyone from Columbia as a result of the pro-peace protest that took place on that campus.

And among the 13 judges, at least seven, serve in Texas, they wrote in a letter to the Columbia president, as judges who hire law clerks every year to serve in the federal. judiciary, we have lost confidence in Colombia as an institution of higher education. Colombia has instead become an incubator of bigotry. As a result, Colombia has disqualified itself from educating the future leaders of our country. But it's not bigotry to continue supporting the slaughter of Palestinian women and children in Gaza. Okay, got it. Totally understand. But I do want to end on a high note because Bill Burr apparently can see things a little more clearly and understands that no, Bill Maher isn't the brave one, especially considering all the powerful people in this country and the most powerful lobbying group in this country sides with him. So what did you have to say to Bill Maher at the end of this little exchange? Let's take a look.

This is why this is not your thing. This is my. This is my thing. It's not your thing. It's what you. It isn't your thing. It isn't. You're like that guy that has a fantasy football team and thinks he's a GM. No. No. No. That's exactly what it is. Like, why am I listening to you? Like, you've done something. What have you done in Washington? Nothing. I don't think I could really add more to that. That was perfectly said. We got to take a break when we come back. The Michael Cohen testimony. Today, a second day of testimony in the Trump hush money trial. Welcome back to TYT. I'm your host, Anna Casparian, and have you smashed that like button yet? Have you? Smash it. Smash it.

Who is that? Who is that person? Michelle Bachman. Oh man, that's blast from the past. The one and only Michelle Bachman. Yes, blast from the past. Jeez. All right, well, you know, at least we could look at the silver lining of modern day politics,

knowing that she's no longer part of it. So yes. Anyway, let's talk about the hush buddy trial today. And Trump will be the president of law and order. He's going to secure up borders. He's going to have the back of our law enforcement officers. This is the number one defining issue. Going back to your first segment here, this is why the polls are rising for Donald Trump

because the people know that Donald Trump will be the president of law and order. Well, maybe, but first he's got to get through all these indictments. Are you worried about this New York trial? That was pretty incredible. I can't believe Maria Bartaromo of all people had that kind of response. Now Donald Trump, the embodiment of law and order is back in court today. Listening to his former fix it attorney, his former fixer, Michael Cohen, testify about the hush money illegally given to Stormy Daniels and the money paid to kill the Karen McDougal story.

Now the prosecution was able to finish up their questioning of their star witness Michael Cohen today. I want to do some updates on that, and then we'll go to what the defense attorneys were up to. Now, with the remainder of the prosecution's questioning, Michael Cohen doubled down on yesterday's testimony that Donald Trump was in fact in the no in regard to the hush money payment, but more importantly, in regard to the reimbursement to Michael Cohen, who by the way, took out an equity line of credit on his own home in order to get the phone. necessary to pay for the Stormy Daniels hush money. And then the allegation here and the charge that Donald Trump is dealing with has to do with him allegedly falsifying documents in order to reimburse Michael Cohen, but make it appear as though the money was meant to reimburse him or pay him for legal services, like typical lawyerly duties, you know, but in reality it was meant to conceal the crime that my Michael Cohen had committed of breaking campaign finance laws in paying that hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. Now Cohen said Tuesday that Trump had told him to work out how he would be reimbursed with Alan Weisselberg, the then chief financial officer of the Trump

organization. He said Trump reiterated that position when he met with Cohen in the Oval Office in 2017. Make sure you deal with Alan. Cohen quoted him as saying. Now I want to just pause and say this, it's important, it's really going to be up to the jury whether they find Michael Cohen to be a credible witness, someone that is being truthful in his testimony. And so this is a bit of he said, she said type of situation, because yes, Michael Cohen did provide some evidence which we showed you on the show yesterday, but there might be some elements of his testimony that the jury just decides is not credible. And to be sure, and as we will talk about in a bit, the defense attorney in their line of questioning really focused on

discrediting Michael Cohen so the jurors do not trust him or believe him. So Cohen also said during the questioning by the prosecution, that soon after he started receiving monthly $35,000 checks from Trump after he sent an invoice for legal services rendered. So prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked if he'd performed any legal services, right? So is this money at all for legal services? And he responds, no ma'am. Was this invoice a false record? She asked. Yes, ma'am, he replied. So that's important testimony. Again, whether the jury believes it or not is really up in the air. He also testified that he told Trump that he would, like he basically told Trump what he

would say publicly at the time, which was that Trump was not involved with the payment. When the federal election commission asked Cohen about the payment, he issued a statement saying, quote, I used my own personal funds to facilitate a payment of $130,000 to Daniels. Neither the, neither the Trump organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction, and neither reimbursed me for the payment either directly or indirectly. So that is relevant because there is a record of him, obviously lying, and what he did on the stand today was clarified that the reason why he lied was because at the time he was still working for Trump, and he was lying at the direction of Donald Trump, who had collaborated with him

on what his messaging would be. Trump told him that was good, Cohen said. Asked why he lied, he said, in order to protect Mr. Trump. And remember, at that time, when Cohen was still working for Trump as Trump's fixer, Cohen testified that he deeply admired Trump. It was almost as if he was constantly seeking Trump's validation. He wanted to make Trump happy. Trump was even involved in tailoring more of Cohen's messaging, public messaging.

Cohen said Trump had approved the statement ahead of time, and Cohen said it was both true and misleading. It was neither the Trump organization or the Trump campaign. It was Donald J. Trump himself, he said. Now remember, Cohen has served time behind bars because of that hush money payment to Stormy Daniels, and his home was also rated. So in April of 2018, the FBI executed search warrants on Cohen's home and law office taking his cell phones, tax records, and other documents. He said he felt his life had been turned upside down and he felt concerned, despondent, and angry. He said he reached out to Donald Trump, who called him back and told him, don't worry, I'm the president of the United States. There's nothing here. Everything's going to be

okay. Stay tough. You're going to be okay. Cohen said Trump reassured him that then attorney general Jeff Sessions was in his pocket. Oops. So look, Jeff Sessions, I was not a fan of. But to his credit, he actually wasn't in Trump's pocket. And in fact, Jeff Sessions, again to his credit, recused himself during the Russia collusion investigation, much to the chagrin of Donald Trump. And that's how he soured on Jeff Sessions.

Now, let's get to the defense and the line of questions coming from Trump's attorney. The defense started its much anticipated cross-examination of Michael Cohen this afternoon. And so the courtroom got real hat, like things heated up pretty quickly during this cross-examination. Because the lawyer representing Trump was trying to establish a pattern of Michael Cohen lying and speaking out on social media, despite the district attorney's office asking him to stop talking about the case while the trial is ongoing. Now, sparks flew pretty much immediately. Let's take a look. Remarkable exchange. So the first thing Todd Blanche asked, Michael Cohen, is you and I have never met.

Michael Cohen said, correct, we've never met. Blanche then asked, you went on TikTok and call me, and I'm quoting here, you went on TikTok and called me a crying little. At that point, there was an objection. The lawyers went to the sidebar, and the judge sustained, upheld the objection. And I think the reason why is Michael Cohen's feelings towards the lawyer are really irrelevant. And so that objection was sustained, meaning wipe the question off the books. So Cohen also said that he's been using TikTok to build an audience and blow off some steam.

You know, we've talked about that on the show. I actually think it's a bad idea and has been a bad idea for Cohen to constantly post on social media about the case, yes, but also his absolute deep disdain for Donald Trump. Because remember, what the defense is trying to do is cut his credibility down. And the way that they're doing that is by presenting him as this bitter, you know, former employee of Trump's, right, who's holding a grudge and just wants retaliation. He wants payback. And so I don't know how effective the defense was today in building that kind of narrative against Michael Cohen.

And you can understand why they would want to do that, considering Michael Cohen is the prosecution star witness. But, you know, if we rely on reporting, I think it's going to be skewed. I wish there were cameras in the courtroom. I wish that we can see for ourselves how the proceedings went down today. But based on news reports, it does appear that, you know, the defense tried to cut into his credibility. I don't know how effective they were. Now, Cohen's disdain for Trump might seem super irrelevant whether or not Trump, you know, as to whether or not Trump committed the crimes that he's been accused of, right, falsifying the documents. But I want you to hear from Ellie Honig once more because he's going to explain why it's

important to hear this testimony, right? So let's take a look at that. It's about more than just as Michael Cohen a good person or bad person. I mean, that matters. But really what this goes to is you have an intense bias in this case. You have one outcome that you've staked your professional future on. They're going to get to the T-shirt that Michael Cohen was wearing the other day, showing Trump behind bars. And I think that's really potent cross-examination. It's frankly insulting to the jury. It's their decision.

It's not up to Michael Cohen. This guy goes to jail or not. And it shows that Michael Cohen is sort of consumed by this white-hot hatred for the defendant, which is fair game. And that's what they want to get across. Reasonable doubt in the minds of at least one juror that Michael Cohen is so blinded by his head. hatred of the defendant that he cannot be trusted in terms of the testimony that he is given for allegedly falsifying documents. Yeah, that's right.

And I don't begrudge the defense for using that tactic. I think that's a common sense tactic to undercut Michael Cohen. And I don't think Michael Cohen did himself any favors by engaging in endless negative commentary toward Donald Trump, which makes it clear that he does, in fact, deeply despised Trump. But also to be fair to Michael Cohen, he's already served time behind bars for the hush money payment, whereas Trump has been able to skirt responsibility and consequences for it. So I can understand where that hatred comes from. But at the same time, you gotta think of the long game, you gotta think strategically,

and if you want Trump to suffer consequences, and if you want your testimony to be taken seriously, you can't come across as someone who has that white hot hatred for Trump and and wants to retaliate against him because there is some possibility that there is at least one juror who's going to be turned off by that and might not see Michael Cohen's testimony as credible as a result. All right, well, I want to move on to the final leg of this story because there's the whole gag order component which Trump has been complaining about from the very beginning, but he's found an interesting way to get around it, a loophole, if you will, and it involves a lot of simping. So while some elements of Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial do not bode so well for him,

there are other times when some of the testimony is more favorable to the defense rather than the prosecution. What Donald Trump has not had a good time with though is the gag order that has been attached to this case, he's not supposed to attack the jurors, he's gotten in trouble for doing so in the past, and he's been complaining about it. And so a state appeals court has dealt him yet another blow today denying his challenge to Judge Juan Mershan's gag order, barring him from attacking Michael Cohen, Stormy Daniels, and the judge's daughter. Also, individual prosecutors and other witnesses should not be attacked. That's part of the gag order as well.

So instead of breaking the gag order, again, he sent out his attack dogs slash boot lickers, complete with matching outfits to do his dirty work for him. Let's watch. We know that from the polls that have come out, even from the New York Times, Rasmussen interactive this week, President Trump is leading all over the country. And the conclusion you could draw from that is the American people have already accomplished. Quitted Donald Trump. Where's the crime?

There is no crime. The only crime that's happening here is this Democrat judge and the Democrat Party prosecuting their political rival right in the middle of a presidential election. This is nothing more than election interference at its finest. You are seeing where the weaponization of what was the Department of Justice, now the Department of Injustice has continued to be utilized against the American people. This is a politicized persecution that is nakedly apparent. This is garbage.

That is the best proof that you have, that if they're going to get him Cohen or get him coming, it's damned if you do, damned if you don't. This is a sham. This is not the United States of America. This is some third-rate banana republic. I'm here, and all of us are here as friends of Donald Trump supporting him in our personal capacity, sharing our opinions. That's why we're here today.

You know, it really is an injustice that the Republicans did not share the Amazon link for the exact same red tie with Vivek Ramaswamy. He should be really upset about it, okay? They're all matching, they've got the same red tone color tie. And poor Vivek, it's a little too on the burgundy side. Sorry Vivek, you're the outsider here. All right. So if you're wondering why they're lining up to defend Donald Trump right outside the courtroom is because they want to stoke his ego, right?

Like they, I mean, especially Burgum, who is angling for, dangling for VP pick. Of course, this is like his way of auditioning, so it doesn't surprise me. Trump has publicly complained that the MAGA faithful haven't descended, this is so pathetic, haven't descended on the court in droves, blaming law enforcement for restricting access to the area for blocks, which is false. Privately, he's griped about more prominent Republican lawmakers, including those he's considering for vice president, aren't showing their support.

Where are they? angrily groused earlier this month, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. You know what? I actually, I give Trump credit because he demands things and he gets what he wants. I mean, it's amazing to me. Like you would think that these men, these grown men would have like a little bit of self-respect. But the second Trump snaps, they run over and they do exactly what he wants. I mean, that is pretty incredible. A different source says that earlier this month, the former president noticeably annoyed, remarked that elite conservatives, he had endorsed weren't showing up to the trial to show moral and political support.

Trump, it's politics. Trump, it's politics. You think these people like you or care about you? No one in the realm of politics likes or cares about each other, okay? Period. Like, I can't believe that Trump is like, why aren't my friends here showing me support? They're not your friends. They're not your friends. Everything is transactional. Trump should know that. For Trump, everything is transactional, but he's like, where are my friends? Why aren't they here defending me? All right, there's more. The source also says that especially irritated Trump after he saw the following New York

headline from early May, after large rallies, Trump is greeted at courthouse by a single fan. Yeah, I mean, I could see that irritating him. But again, all he needs to do is snap his fingers and the bootlickers show up. They're like, oh, I'll defend you, Donald Trump. It's just Vivek, you got to coordinate a little better, okay? You got to make sure they share that Amazon link with you. You've got to get the same red tie. Got to be matchy, matchy when you're sucking up to Trump.

Anyway, so now U.S. senators, house members, state attorneys general, and former GOP, primary opponents, even the primary opponents, have all traveled to New York to support the former president during his criminal trial. And look, at the end of the day, it's not just about sucking up to Trump, it's about sucking up to Republican voters who overwhelmingly favor Trump. We saw it play out in the primaries, we see it playing out now in the polling. They're doing this because they want to appeal to Republican voters, and sucking up to Trump is the easiest way to do that. So there you have it. That was the second day of Michael Cohen's testimony and the latest. on the gag order debacle. We're going to take a break when we come back. Wazni Lombrey joins me for the second hour of the show.