The Young Turks - Ceasefire Fact Check

Episode Date: June 13, 2024

Jake Tapper lies and says that Hamas rejected the ceasefire deal. Gets corrected immediately by Barak Ravid. University of Minnesota pauses hiring of professor who called war on Gaza a textbook genocide. On the Israel-Lebanon border, a war is unfolding in slow motion. 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

You're listening to The Young Turks, the online news show. Make sure to follow and rate our show with not one, not two, not three, not four, but five stars. You're awesome. Thank you. Live from the Polly Market Studio in L.A. It's the Young Turks. What's up, everyone, welcome to TYT. I'm your host, Anna Kasparian, in for another solo first hour. But John Iderola will be joining me in the second hour of the show today, just like any other typical Wednesday. And I'm really looking forward to today's show. There's a lot to get to, including updates on how.

how the U.S. government continues to gaslight the American people and the international community about how these ceasefire negotiations are going between Hamas and Israel. So stick around for that. That'll be in the first segment. The House of Representatives continues wasting everyone's time with symbolic votes that will accomplish absolutely nothing. And I'll tell you what that's all about in just a moment. In the second hour of the show, there's some positive news out of the Washington Post in regard to inflation slowing down a little bit. But the Federal Reserve also had a news conference today and the results were not good. So we'll give you some of the statements from Jerome Powell

and what we can look forward to in regard to interest rates, whether they're going to go up, whether they're going to go down, lots to get to there. And as always, just want to encourage you all to like and share the stream. If you're watching us live, it's a free and easy way to spread the message of TYT and get some new eyeballs on the programming that we do here. And you can also become a member by smashing that join button on YouTube or going to t yt.com slash join to become a member. Well, let's start off with what the House of Representatives was up to today. As Americans are still struggling with inflation, as Americans are still struggling with a housing crisis, a border crisis that they alleged to care so much about but do nothing about.

All of those things, let's just brush that aside and instead focus on theater. So, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted today to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt. Now, this is largely a symbolic vote in that it urges federal prosecutors to investigate and file criminal charges against the attorney general, meaning typically the recommendation goes to the attorney general to file criminal. charges. In this case, it would be the Attorney General filing charges against the Attorney General. Obviously, that's not going to happen. That is ridiculous. But what is it all about? What does this alleged contempt revolve around? Well, it has to do with Robert Herr's investigation into Joe Biden and his mishandling of classified documents. Biden was in fact investigated for having classified documents. As we all know, Biden treated that situation very

differently from Donald Trump. And even Trump supporters should be able to accept that. Trump had multiple opportunities to return his classified documents, refused to do so. And as a result, the FBI searched his home in Mar-Lago, whereas Biden found that he had possession of classified documents, immediately alerted the federal government about it, and immediately returned the classified documents. But nonetheless, Biden was still investigated by Robert her. And after that investigation, Robert Hur decided that he would not press charges against the president and said that he comes across as an elderly man with poor memory. Now, Republicans are arguing that Her did not do an adequate investigation. And that is why they demand a video

of the interview that Hur did with President Biden. They claim they want to see what the the line of questioning was, they want to see the video. Keep in mind, they have a transcript of the video. So they have the entire exchange in print in front of them, but they want the video. Now why do you think they want the video? Again, they're alleging, oh, we don't think that Heard did an adequate investigation. Well, you could determine that by reading the transcript. Come on, guys, we all know why they actually want the video. They want the video because of the fact that Robert Hur declared that Biden comes across as an elderly man with poor memory. And they want something to campaign on, which is ridiculous because, yes, I get that Donald Trump was convicted in the hush money case for, you know, basically messing with the business documents, committing fraud with the business documents.

However, Trump is still leading Biden and the fact that you have Republicans like grasping at straws, doing whatever they can to get video to make Biden appear as an old senile man is hilarious to me. It's so unnecessary. And they're not going to get the video. There's just not. And again, this was a symbolic vote. So Republicans said that Garland was in contempt of Congress for not turning over those

audio tapes of the interview with President Biden that was conducted last year by Robert Hur. Now, the Justice Department had previously, according to the Washington Post, provided lawmakers with that transcript of the interview, but they refused to turn over the videotapes or the audio tapes. And they invoked executive privilege saying that it would set a bad precedent to share such audio for future high profile cases that do not lead to criminal charges. And so the contempt of Congress vote, again, means that lawmakers are recommending that the Justice Department file criminal charges against Garland. In previous instances, there were two instances previously of a sitting attorney general being voted by House members to be in contempt.

The U.S. attorney in Washington declined to pursue the case. And it is very likely that that will be the case here as well. But for anyone who's trying to allege that they want the audio tapes or they want video to see if there's something that maybe hasn't been reported or wasn't included in the transcripts. I'm not buying that for a second. I just think they want audio that is embarrassing for Joe Biden because he is in fact an elderly man. He does appear fragile every time he's in public. And that's one of the things that Republicans are going to really use to campaign against him to ensure that Donald Trump wins the general election. That's my analysis of it. So if you see that in the news, that's the real intention here by Republicans in the House of Representatives, which again,

I think is incredibly pathetic because I think, as I've said on this show multiple times, aside from Biden's age, he is a target-rich environment for Republicans right now. And they have actually done a pretty decent job campaigning against him, which is reflected in the polling. And we're talking about consistent polling that shows Biden losing to Trump in the the swing states. So we'll see how the election plays out, but just understand what the intentions are of House Republicans who demand these audio tapes. Now, with that said, let's move on to our next story. I wanted to give you all an update on the ceasefire negotiations and the gaslighting that you're likely hearing from our federal government.

Your choice of chicken or sausage McMuffin or McGrittles with a hash brown and a small iced coffee for five bucks plus tax. Available until 11 a.m. at participating McDonald's restaurants. Price excludes flavored iced coffee and delivery. Hamas has responded to the latest proposal for a hostage and ceasefire. deal and Hamas has rejected it. CNN political and foreign policy analyst Barack Ravid is breaking this. Did Hamas, Barack, give any explanation for its rejection? Hi, Jake.

So first, Hamas did not say that it rejected the deal. Hamas said that it gave a response to the Qatarian Egyptian mediators, that it gave several comments and remarks on parts of the Israeli proposal. Israel, the Israeli government, Israeli officials are the one saying that after they received Hamas's response and analyzed it, they treat it as a rejection. Oops, it must be kind of embarrassing to get corrected in real time by your guest. And that's exactly what happened with Jake Tapper as he declared that Hamas had rejected a ceasefire proposal. In reality, they're participating in the ceasefire negotiation. That's how negotiations work.

And we're actually not getting the truth from the United States government in regard to Israel's efforts in engaging in good faith negotiations. And so part of me feels a little bad for Jake Tapper because he probably just took what the federal government has been saying, you know, the likes of Anthony Blinken at face value. And if you are a journalist, you should never do that. You should maybe scratch beneath the surface a little more before you do your little segment on the ceasefire. Now, with that said, why don't we hear a little more from Barack Ravid on the ongoing negotiations of the ceasefire? I think we still need to hear from the mediators. And most importantly, from the White House that White House spokesman John Kirby said that the White is still analyzing and studying the Hamas response. So Hamas is saying he just gave a few comments.

Israel is saying Hamas rejected the deal. The White House still hasn't said anything of substance. I think we should wait and hear more what the White House says, what the Qataris say. Well, the U.S. has now issued some public statements about the ongoing negotiations. And unfortunately, Anthony Blinken is just going to parrot Israel's deceptive narrative while criticizing Hamas as the sole hold out during the press conference that he had in Tel Aviv just yesterday. Let's take a look at that. The proposal that President Biden put forward is the best way to do that. And I think, as I said just yesterday, you've had country after country make that clear and supporting

the proposal. And then yesterday, the United Nations Security Council, in effect speaking for the entire international community made it as clear as it possibly could be that this is what the world is looking for. 14 votes for, no votes against, something quite rare at the Security Council these days. And I think that speaks volumes too. So everyone's vote is in except for one vote. And that's Hamas. Not true. There is absolutely no statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Njahou declaring that he accepts the ceasefire. And there's a reason for that, which we will get to, so stick around. But what Blinken communicated that the proposal, like what Blinken is communicating, and you have to pay close attention to the wording,

because they try to get super squirrely with the rhetoric, makes it clear to me that what Biden has put out there and what the UN Security Council has voted in favor of isn't really a ceasefire. I want you guys to just understand what a ceasefire is. A ceasefire before this war on Gaza meant that they stopped fighting. Okay, the war is over. We have agreed to a ceasefire. It wasn't until this current war on Gaza that suddenly, maybe we do a pause. And then that pause got rewritten as a ceasefire.

So listen closely to what Blinken says in the next clip. We have the prospect of an immediate ceasefire, building toward an enduring one. Building toward an enduring one. Building toward an enduring. Listen, what that communicates is this ceasefire proposal starts off with a pause in fighting. And who's to say that after Israel gets everything that it wants? It won't just go back to doing aerial bombardments and mass slaughters of Palestinian civilians again. So if you are negotiating in good faith with the United States, with Arab partners, with Israel,

and the best offer you get from the United States government is, okay, let's do an honor system where we'll do a pause in fighting, where Hamas will give Israel everything that they want. And then after that, maybe, maybe, maybe there will be an enduring ceasefire. Maybe. Who here is really going to trust the far right wing government of Israel? Basilel Smotrich. Okay. Ben Gavir.

Netanyahu. Let's go to more video here because let me give you actually more details about what Biden has proposed. We've talked about this before, but I do want to give you a few more details so you understand what this is really about and why Hamas didn't just flat out reject the deal. They came back with what they would like to tweak in the framework that was offered by Biden. And this is what the Financial Times reports. In the first stage, this is Biden's proposal, there would be an immediate full and complete ceasefire during which some Israeli hostages would be freed in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

Let me just note that most of those prisoners have not been charged with a crime. They're just being held in prison. Let me continue. Israeli forces would withdraw from the populated areas of Gaza, not all of Gaza, the populated areas of Gaza. Gaza happens to be one of the most densely populated regions of the world, if not the most densely populated region of the world. So which area exactly isn't populated?

And there would be an influx of aid allegedly. Okay, so that would be phase one. Let's go to the second stage. The second stage would lead upon agreement of the parties to a permanent end to hostilities, the return of all the remaining hostages and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. The final stage would involve a multi-year reconstruction effort.

The U.S. has mentioned that we would contribute about $400 million in helping to rebuild Gaza, which, I mean, they've leveled the place. $400 million is nothing, especially when you compare that to what we've seen Israel receive in the form of funding for weaponry, the bombs that they've been dropping to level Gaza in the first place. And it's pretty damn clear that Blinken is in favor of allowing Israel to occupy Gaza permanently, which is obviously part of this ceasefire proposal, that Hamas is not okay with. Also opening prospects for Israel to build enduring security, which is what this country needs

and is wanted from day one of this existence. Yeah, so Israel's idea of enduring security is permanently occupying Gaza, as Netanyahu himself has repeated over and over again. Clearly, Hamas is not okay with Israeli troops, with the IDF permanently occupying the Gaza Strip. So as ABC News reports, Blinken rejected this suggestion Wednesday saying that Israel accepted the proposal as it was as it is. That is a lie. That is a lie. There is no indication at all. There is no proof at all that Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted the ceasefire at all. He has not made a public statement about it. And in fact, there is ongoing conflict within the government of Israel in regard to

the ceasefire proposal because the far right members of the parliament are not in favor of the ceasefire proposal, which is why Netanyahu has not put out a public statement accepting the proposal. Hamas responded to a U.S. back proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release with some remarks on the deal. That is not a rejection. Katari and Egyptian media. said Tuesday, Hamas, and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant group said they were ready to deal positively to arrive at an agreement and that their priority is to bring a complete stop to the war. They don't want a temporary pause. They don't want to pause for a few weeks and then maybe, you know, maybe they can hope for a permanent ceasefire. They're not interested in that. They want an actual timeline for a permanent ceasefire. The two parties disagree on whether the initial six-week ceasefire should be permanent as Hamas demands and whether Israel should

completely withdraw from Gaza with U.S. officials trying to bridge the wide divide. So I want to understand why did Blinken, while he was in Tel Aviv, feel the need to lie to the American people about where these negotiations currently stand? Because that's what he did. He gaslit the American people and lied to them about where Israel stands, where Hamas stands, and who is to blame for the lack of a C-spire right now. Why did he lie? And more importantly, why did Jake Tapper just take a U.S. government official's words at face value? Is that what journalism is?

How pathetic was that? How embarrassing is it to get corrected by your own guest on your own show? What are your producers up to, Tapper? Now, Israeli officials do not want a complete stop to the war. It's pretty clear to me. And the hardliners in the Israeli government did not like Biden's proposal. There are doubts over Israel's commitment to the deal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under pressure from right wing members of his government

to reject the U.S. back plan and from hostage families to embrace it. Now, Netanyahu has shown time and time again that he has far less concern for the hostage family members who have been protested. him for months and months, and he's far more swayed by the far right members of his government. And part of the reason why he wants to continue the war is because the second that war ends, I mean, he's going to have to deal with the consequences of his failures in keeping the Israeli people safe on October 7th. He's going to have to deal with his corruption charges. Homeboy wants to stay in power. Benjamin Netanyahu cares about Benjamin Netanyahu first and foremost. The Financial Times reports that the plan has sparked a backlash from far right factions in the Israeli government with two ultra-nationalist parties threatening to topple Netanyahu if he accepts it. And Netanyahu can't have that. You can't topple Netanyahu. He wants to stay in power. It is unbelievable to me. So with that said, I want to go to the next video because it's going to give you a little more.

insight on those far-right members of the Israeli parliament and what they have to say about Biden's deal. In the Israeli government, there is no consensus whatsoever surrounding any ceasefire plan just yesterday. Finance Minister Bezal Smotrich entered into a shouting match with families of hostages, telling them Israel would not commit collective suicide. And by collective suicide, Smotrich was referring to any deal that included the release of Hamas militants who he says have blood on their hands. And two days after the resignation of Benny Gans from Netanyahu's War Cabinet,

the likes of Smotrich now have even more power than ever. That's true. I mean, that is what we talked about earlier this week, how the more moderate, relatively moderate members of the Israeli government stepping down solidifies power behind those who are just far-right lunatics, who are just totally uninterested in peace. And finally, if you need more evidence that our government is lying to us about who's obstructing efforts to form a real ceasefire agreement here, I want you to hear from a representative of the Israeli government at that UN Security Council meeting. Because remember, the member states voted in favor of Biden's ceasefire proposal, of his framework. And you have someone from Israel there.

And you would assume, since Blinken's telling us that Israel's totally in favor of it, that individual should be clear in supporting Biden's framework. But here's what she had to say. Colleagues, Israel stands firm on our principles, and they have not changed. We will continue until all of the hostages are returned. and until Hamas military and governing capabilities are dismantled. These have been our goals from day one. Just as President Biden stated on May 31st, Hamas must not stay in power.

Israel will not let Hamas rearm or regroup so that Gaza can pose a threat to Israel. This is the unwavering goal that we are determined to achieve. This also means that Israel will not engage in meaningless and endless negotiations, which can be exploited by Hamas as a means to stall for time. Meaningless negotiations. That didn't sound like an acceptance of Biden's framework at all. But you wouldn't know it if you simply listen to CNN or if you simply listen to Anthony Blinkin's disgusting, deceptive press conference in Tel Aviv.

I'm here to tell you guys what's actually happening. And what's happening right now is. Gaslighting that honestly is so extreme, it goes beyond anything that we've reported on on this show. And that's saying a lot considering the type of government we're dealing with. We're going to take a break. When we come back, we'll talk about people losing their jobs because of their opinions on this ongoing war on Gaza. Don't miss it. We'll be right back. Welcome back to the show, everyone, Anna Kasparian with you. I'm going to do a little pause and just ask everyone watching live.

Have you liked the stream yet? Have you smashed that like button? I mean, if you have it, only takes a second, less than a second, and it really helps out the show, so please do it. And one other thing I just wanted to note is if you are subscribed to the channel, but you haven't rung the bell on our channel, then you're not going to get notifications when we update our content, when we post new things for you to watch. So just ring that bell and you'll get the notifications and it'll be great. Definitely do that. Now with that said, let's move on to our next

story because something happened at the University of Minnesota that I think is being replicated in other instances across the country. And it is cause for concern because, look, I think a university is supposed to be a place where ideas are debated and when you have someone whose whole expertise is on the topic of genocide, maybe that person has a little more credibility than individuals with hurt feelings on the issue of genocide in Gaza. So with that said, let's talk about what's happening. The University of Minnesota has placed a hold on hiring a Jewish professor over his views on the ongoing war on Gaza. In fact, not only is he Jewish, he's actually Israeli as well. Now the controversy centers on what Raz Segal, or Siegel,

who's an Israeli associate professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Stockton University in New Jersey, wrote in the Jewish currents on October 13th of last year. The mass or the assault on Gaza can also be understood in other terms as a textbook case of genocide unfolding in front of our eyes, he wrote. I say this as a scholar of genocide who has spent many years writing about Israeli mass violence against Palestinians. So there you have it. That is exactly what has led to controversy over him being chosen for the exact same role that he's currently serving in New Jersey. They wanted him to serve that role in the University of Minnesota, but it looks like that might not happen at all, as the hiring process has been put on hold indefinitely.

So in 2022, he also wrote about the reality of the system of Israeli apartheid, stating that just as the Israeli apartheid system denies Palestinians past, it also seeks to deny their future through an assault against Palestinian children. So as a result of takes like that, a spokesperson for the University of Minnesota said that the director selection process was, quote, put on hold to allow an opportunity to determine next steps. What are the next steps supposed to be? Either you're going to hire him or you're not. And if I were to predict what I think is going to happen, I think they're just going to avoid hiring him, hope that this story goes away, hope that the public will forget about it. And to be sure, stories like this have been popping up left and

right. And so I'm sure some people will forget about it. But I think it's an injustice to refuse to hire someone who was a great candidate for this position and who's literally an expert on genocide. That is what his expertise is in, and his views on Israel carrying out a genocide in Gaza is apparently something that has no merit, even though he's the expert on genocide and Holocaust. So members of the university community have come forward to express their interest in providing perspective on the hiring of the position of director of the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, the spokesperson who spoke. to Jewish insider said, because of the community facing and leadership role, the director holds, it is important that these voices are heard. Now, for those who are offended by, you know, his take on what Israel is doing in Gaza and how he believes it amounts to genocide, this is a fascinating debate to have, no? In what kind of environment? I would say an environment of higher

learning, an environment like a university campus. And look, I totally understand that a lot of major universities had become pretty homogenous in their thinking as of late, especially over like the last decade. And I do believe that that's a problem. You know, you'd have conservative speakers want to do speeches on campus. And then there'd be like mass protest because students didn't want to hear opinions they didn't like or found offensive. But we spoke out against that because I think universities are supposed to have these kinds of debates. These are the types of intellectual debates that should be had. And the idea that certain viewpoints should be censored entirely is ridiculous to me.

And it appears that's what's happening at the University of Minnesota. So after he was chosen, by the way, he was chosen for the center's new director by a woman named Anne Waltoner. She's the interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesota. After he was announced, after his name was announced, two of the professors at the university decided to resign in protest. One of those university professors said the following, quote, My understanding is that the core mission of the center is to educate locally and internationally on the specific history of the Holocaust and of genocide in order to raise awareness and prevent further dehumanization and violence. Professor Siegel, by justifying Hamas's atrocities, he's never done that.

He has never once justified Hamas's atrocities, but nonetheless, that's what he's alleging. Five days after they occurred via perverse allegation that Israel was committing a genocide, cannot fulfill the mission of the center. So understand that viewpoint that was just expressed. So under those kinds of standards, anyone who dare to criticize Israel, regardless of what the government does, right? Like if the government of Israel has decided to like drop a nuclear bomb in Gaza and you criticize Netanyahu for doing it, that means that you're justifying Hamas's atrocities. It's just so ridiculous to me. So what exactly is the red line for people like this professor who's so upset at a judge?

genocide expert declaring that what's happening in Gaza is a genocide. By the way, as we've also reported, co-founder of Human Rights Watch and a Holocaust survivor also told Farid Zakaria that he feels that what's happening in Gaza is a genocide. Is he also someone who justifies Hamas's atrocities? Like how disgusting and defamatory is that kind of statement? And what also likely ruffled some feathers was Siegel's views on the college encampments where students had demanded that their institutions divest from companies that support the ongoing war on Gaza. And so last month, he downplayed, according to the Jewish insider, the illegal anti-Israeli encampments that have engulfed campuses nationwide telling New Jersey spotlight news that claims of anti-semit

Semitism were baseless. And that's because overall, they are baseless. You might be able to find an instance or two of someone saying something reprehensible and disgusting. And they should be condemned whenever that arises, whenever anti-Semitism arises. But the protests had nothing to do with Jewish people. In fact, Jewish people were part of those encampments, part of those university protests. The fact of the matter is, I think that there is a bit of a generational divide. to some extent because young people are pretty unafraid to tell the truth as they see it. And older people are, I don't know, I don't know what's going on with older generations in this country, but they are under the impression that ever criticizing Israel just automatically means that you're an anti-Semite. And it's ridiculous, unfounded, and incredibly defamatory.

Because I think the statements and the concerns of the peace protesters are pretty clear. They want to ceasefire in Gaza. They want the slaughter to stop. Finally, this isn't just an isolated story that I'm bringing to your attention. There really is an effort to censor and shut down people who want to speak out about what's happening to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. And what's really concerning is that despite our first Amendment rights here in the United States, you have members of Congress, the House of Representatives voting on legislation that would punish the expression of those who have a problem with what Israel is carrying out in Gaza. And Thomas Massey, who is in the House of Representatives and voted against

that legislation, spoke about it during a recent interview with Tucker Carlson. So recently they brought a bill to Congress, and this was actually a binding bill, not a non-decent. binding resolution like this was going to have the effect of law and people would get you know prosecuted if they engaged in anti-semitism on campuses and the problem with this bill is they use some international definition of anti-cinematism on a website somewhere my first question is why don't you just put the definition in the bill why are you pointing to somebody's URL in a piece of legislation you are the congress right right we are the right the laws we should be Instead, we're referencing a website that's not even, you know, hosted in the United States.

And so, but so I went to this website and it's got a, you know, a fairly short definition, but it's also got examples of things that would be considered anti-Semitism. And some of these are actually passages in the New Testament. So members of Congress are willing to sell out our constitutional rights in order. order to virtue signal to a foreign government, Israel. Would they do that on behalf of any other government? I doubt it. And why is it? Why is it that our federal government, our members of Congress in the House of Representatives would be willing to do this? Well, I mean, you don't want to go against the Israel lobby. You don't want to go against APAC. Jamal Bowman, a congressman out of

New York, knows firsthand what APAC will do to you. Story that we'll cover on the show a little later today. He is now trailing in the primary for his district. And A-PAC has already pumped a lot of money in trying to destroy Bowman for having the audacity to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. These politicians are cowards. They're such cowards and they're so self-interested and they're so obsessed with their own political power that they will literally propose and vote on unconstitutional legislation that would punish American citizens for expressing their views on this ongoing war on Gaza. And all of those free speech warriors, all of those people who were crying and whining

about cancel culture day in and day out, those tend to be the figures, conservative figures that we're not hearing much from. Strange, isn't it? All right, we're going to take a break when we come back, some really bad news out of Lebanon and Israel. The ongoing scuffles with the Israelis and Hezbollah near Israel's northern border are escalating to levels that are definitely concerning and could lead to a broader regional war. So we've got details on that and more when we come back. I tend to cut into the second hour on Wednesdays, and I don't want to do it this week to my buddy, Jean. So as a result, let's get right to it.

Dozens of rockets into northern Israel, rather, most of which were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome. The attack is in response to an Israeli strike that killed one of the Iranian-backed militant group's top commanders. In a concerning report, tensions between the Israeli defense forces and Hezbollah in Lebanon burned even hotter as the Middle East teeters on the verge of another all-out war between Israel and Lebanon. Well, at least Hezbollah in Lebanon. Now, the Washington Post spoke to civilians, local officials, and soldiers near Israel's northern border with Lebanon to get a more well-rounded view into how the scuffles at that border have really escalated. And they reported that in the aftermath of October 7th, Hezbollah and IDF strikes were exchanged daily.

But things have gotten worse because now those strikes are actually happening every hour. So, Liron, which is the deputy commander of an IDF army squad, told the Washington Post that each week it's becoming more frequent and more intense. And that's because of the ongoing war in Gaza. The Hezbollah attacks didn't come out of nowhere. They started to basically attack Israel following the invasion into Gaza and the high number of civilians that were getting slaughtered in Gaza. Already too many lives have been lost in this conflict, at least, and right now we're specifically talking about the conflict in the northern border of Israel, right? At least eight Israeli civilians and 19 IDF soldiers have been killed by Hezbollah strikes, and at least 87 civilians and nearly 300 Hezbollah fighters have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, according

to figures compiled by the Washington Post. The UN, United Nations, says more than 94,000 people in the country have fled their homes. So in Lebanon, you have 94,000 people who have had to evacuate their homes as a result of these strikes. And look, same goes for Israelis on the Israeli side of that border, because 60,000 Israelis have been forced to flee their homes. They want to go back home. They want to live in peace. And it's impossible to do that as this war in Gaza continues. And as Hezbollah continues to retaliate as a result of that war in Gaza. Now luckily, for the most part, the Iron Dome has been protecting Israeli civilians. And as I just said, 60,000 of them who live near that border have been forced to flee their homes.

Hezbollah did initiate the attacks in the wake of October 7th. The group has stated that it will not stop fighting until Israel and Hamas reach a ceasefire agreement. Which is definitely concerning because it doesn't appear that there will be a ceasefire agreement. Don't believe anything that you hear in the media. Don't believe anything you hear from Anthony Blinken. Whenever they say, oh, Israel has accepted the ceasefire deal, they're lying to you. They lied the last time they said it, and they're lying this time. And Hamas, you know, they saw the ceasefire proposal by Biden.

And there were some concerns with the fact that it wasn't actually a permanent ceasefire, which is what they're demanding. They want a timeline for a permanent ceasefire. So they didn't outright reject it, but they did respond with some changes that they would like to see in the final outline of that ceasefire. Now, I do also want to remind you that Hezbollah during the week-long pause in fighting stopped attacking Israel. So when they say that they'll stop attacking Israel. I actually believe them. They did do that during the week-long pause. But today in the aftermath of their senior commander being killed, Hezbollah has now vowed to intensify the attacks. So on the other side, it seems that Israelis are actually ready to engage with a full-blown war

with Lebanon, which you guys want that great. How about you fund your own weapons and stop using the American citizens as your personal ATM for your ongoing war in Gaza and your potentially expanded war with other countries nearby. So a poll on Friday by the Hebrew language daily Mariv found that 62% of Israelis support the idea of a decisive attack on Hezbollah. Now, Hersey Halevi, who is the Israeli Defense Forces top commander, said last week that a decision on whether to launch a full-scale attack was close. The head of the Northern Command said the troops were ready. And look, there's no, there is no break on this car. Understand that.

Okay, all gas, no brakes. Because as long as the United States enables whatever the Israeli, government wants to do, the Israeli government is going to do whatever it wants to do. And Biden has made it clear that he's not really willing to condition the military aid to Israel in order to use that leverage to rein the Israeli government in. So if I were to bet money on it, I would bet that there will eventually be a full-scale attack, a full-blown war with Lebanon. Now last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin and Yahoo warned that Israel was prepared to mount an extremely powerful response to continuing attacks from Hezbollah during a visit to the border area. And Israel has increased the number of reservists.

It can call up from 50,000 to around 350,000, the Guardian newspaper reported. So just understand what Israel is signaling here. they are far more willing to expand this conflict, this war on Palestinians, to a broader regional war, rather than engage in a ceasefire negotiation in good faith. And the reason why is you have these deranged politicians like Ittamar, Ben-Gavir and Basel Smotrich, calling for further escalation of war. So last week, they called on Israel to full out invade Lebanon. Okay. Ben Gavir stated that Israel will only win after it enters all of Gaza and fights until victory. What exactly does victory mean?

Okay. And for victory, we need to go into the north and fight Hezbollah and destroy them. Smotrich called on Netanyahu to give the order and to go to war with Hezbollah. And look, Netanyahu is a little bitch when it comes to these far right members, the lunatics in that government because he wants to hold on to power and he's terrified that if he goes against them, they will topple his government. So he is completely at the whims of these crazy people, which is really interesting, right? Because what we keep hearing time and time again from those who want to defend Israel and say that they're not going to engage in genocide and they haven't engaged. in genocide is that the statements that you hear from the likes of Ben-Gavir and Smotrich shouldn't really matter because they're just two individuals within Israel's government.

But they're not just two individuals within Israel's government. Because clearly they have far more sway over what Netanyahu decides to do. And to be sure, Netanyahu has gone along with what they've wanted to do. So I think that this is foreshadowing. What they are saying is foreshadowing in regard to what the outcome in Lebanon is likely going to be. But if the IDF cannot defeat Hamas, which how do you defeat Hamas as you're slaughtering civilians and you're building resentment and hostility toward Israel? How do you defeat Hamas when all Israel has managed to do is increased support for Hamas? I mean, Israel has helped Hamas recruit.

But I feel like they know that. I think they know that. Well, the Israeli government would probably ask for the support of the United States government, home to politicians like Senator Lindsey Graham, who said the following in the immediate aftermath of October 7th. Let's take a look. Much more death and destruction do we have to take from the Iranian regime? If you harm one American in Syria by using your Iranian militia against us in Syria,

If you escalate the war by urging Hezbollah to attack Israel in the north, if Hamas kills one American and Israeli hostage, we're going to blow up your oil refineries and put you out of business. It is now time to take the war to the Ayatollah's backyard. So, I mean, this isn't the first time we've heard Lindsey Graham demand that we go to war with Iran on behalf of Israel. But like this is what our politicians are all about. I mean, they're getting paid political contributions by weapons manufacturers, okay, by private military contractors, Raytheon, Boeing, all of those companies, they own politicians like Lindsay Graham. Lindsay Graham has probably made money trading stocks related to private military contractors.

It's just so disgusting how our government really functions and what their genuine priorities are. Now, the Biden administration is allegedly trying to prevent further escalation. I'm not buying it. I don't think our government tries to check Israel or reign Israel in in any way, shape, or form. Wagging your finger at Netanyahu is not trying to prevent further escalation. But nonetheless, notable notorious liar, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, stated today that they are achieving a ceasefire in Gaza or achieving a ceasefire in Gaza is the best way to tone down the conflict between the IDF and Hezbollah. I agree with him on that. It's just that he's lying about Israel's negotiation tactics and whether they're actually negotiating in good faith. And I have a huge problem with that. But nonetheless, he told the times of Israel, it will take away a just that Hezbollah has claimed for the attacks, it has been engaged in and open a pathway to actually resolve this diplomatically. That's what we're determined to do, meaning implementing a ceasefire. If you're actually trying to engage in ceasefire negotiations in good faith, then the ceasefire should actually be a ceasefire, not a temporary pause in fighting that might build toward a permanent ceasefire.

Maybe, maybe if we can just believe Israel and go by an honor system. I just, it's scary. It is scary because you know that the U.S. government is going to get involved with a war that Israel wages against Lebanon or in Lebanon. You know the U.S. would get involved if Israel provokes Iran enough to engage in a hot war with Iran. And we would be doing that at a time when Americans need our government to work for us. We have so many issues here. The idea that all of these resources and all of our government's energy is going to be used in fighting more wars in the Middle East. It's just infuriating beyond words, especially when there are other options.

in order to really exercise those options, in order to find a pathway to those options, you would need the U.S. to use some leverage and get Israel to negotiate in good faith and to rein in the slaughter of innocent people in Gaza. But the Biden administration has shown that they're unwilling to do that. When we come back from the break, I want to give you an update on Jamal Bowman's re-election campaign, where he stands in the polling as he's being challenged by an establishment darling in the primary there. We don't have any good news. I'm sorry to say on that front. But later in the second hour with John Iderola, we're going to lighten things up. We'll have a little bit of fun. Don't miss it. All right, we got a fun new

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