Episode 5367: SPLC Business Of Monetizing Hate; Hate For MAHA Continues

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bannon’s War Room

Episode 5367: SPLC Business Of Monetizing Hate; Hate For MAHA Continues
Date: May 12, 2026
Host: Stephen K. Bannon (WarRoom.org)

Episode Overview

This episode addresses several interlocking themes: government budget priorities under President Trump, infighting and accountability at the FBI, the Southern Poverty Law Center’s (SPLC) alleged targeting of Christian organizations, ongoing legal scrutiny of SPLC’s practices, media criticism of the health freedom movement and vaccines, the U.S.-China-Iran crisis, and the U.S. dollar’s contested global dominance. The conversation features fiery exchanges, policy critiques, and ongoing debates about the political and economic direction of the U.S.

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Key Topics & Insights

1. Federal Budget & FBI Leadership Clash

(00:00 – 03:20)

• Senator Cash Patel criticizes President Trump’s budget for prioritizing military spending (“war”) at the expense of “law and order” and public safety. He questions FBI leadership and insists on trustworthy, justice-focused management.
• FBI Director (also Cash Patel) rebuts by listing FBI achievements under his tenure: homicide reduction, human trafficking and gang arrests, and capturing fugitives. He fiercely counters allegations of misconduct, suggesting his accuser was guilty of similar behavior (“the only person that was slinging margaritas...was you”).
• Stephen K. Bannon interjects to press further on FBI allegations, seeking clarification.

Notable Exchange:

• Director Cash Patel: "Keep the target on me, as I've always said. But the mission has never been better." (01:39)
• Sen. Cash Patel: "If you want to pass out liquor or pop bottles in a locker room, stick to podcasting." (00:49)

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2. Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) Under Fire

(03:31 – 12:48)

A. SPLC’s 'Hate Map' and Christian Groups

• Tyler O'Neill (author and SPLC critic) explains how SPLC equates conservative Christian groups with hate groups by including them on its “hate map.”
• SPLC recently placed “Focus on the Family” on the hate map, contradicting previous denials of targeting Christian organizations.

Notable Quote:

• Tyler O'Neill: "They [SPLC] are the tip of the spear when it comes to demonizing conservatives and Christians in America today." (05:55)

B. Legal Scrutiny & State Investigations

• O'Neill reports on subpoenas and legal actions by state attorneys general (Florida and Alabama), probing whether SPLC committed wire/bank fraud by paying informants within extremist groups.
• Serious allegations of deceptive fundraising, offshore accounts, and lack of transparency.
• SPLC retains high-profile legal counsel (Abby Lowell) to fight federal and state actions.

Timestamps:

• SPLC’s shifting rationale and website language: (03:31 – 06:38)
• Alabama & Florida legal probes: (08:08 – 10:53)
• SPLC’s financial resources & offshore accounts: (11:36 – 12:48)

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3. Mainstream Media & Vaccine/Health Freedom Movement

(16:24 – 24:44)

A. New York Times and RFK Jr.

• Mary Holland (Children’s Health Defense) critiques the NYT’s “obsession” with attacking RFK Jr. and defending Big Pharma, accusing the paper of fear-driven propaganda and ignoring a “chronic disease epidemic.”
  • Mary Holland: “We are living through a massive epidemic of vaccine injury. ... The New York Times won’t even talk about it. ... It is always slanted." (17:34, 19:48)

B. Health Freedom Movement & Political Clout

• Discussion of the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement. Politico reports claim stalled progress, but Holland argues the movement is gaining strength and remains a political force.
  • Mary Holland: “There are millions of Americans who are going to vote to be able to make their own decisions about their own medical choices. ... It's not changed one iota.” (22:54)

C. Liability Protection for Pharma

• Both host and guest highlight the lack of vaccine liability as an "80/20 issue," contending most Americans oppose special protections for pharmaceutical companies.
  • Mary Holland: “It’s an 80/20 issue that pharma should not have liability protection for vaccines.” (24:01)

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4. U.S. Strategic and Economic Leadership: Iran, China & The Dollar

(26:42 – 52:34)

A. U.S. Strategy Toward Iran and China

• Sam Faddis, Captain James Fennell, and Jack Posobiec advocate for stronger action against Iran and assert that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is an active enemy, not a competitor.

  • Sam Faddis: "We're not hurting these guys enough... go for the jugular, up the pain level dramatically." (30:13)
  • Captain Fennell: “[Xi Jinping] has made it very clear he opposes the U.S. and wants to confront and defeat us.” (34:15)

• Calls for economic decoupling from China and re-industrialization in the U.S.

  • Jack Posobiec: "They can't innovate the way we innovate. ... If President Trump actually brings our manufacturing flooding back ... we can be the ones in the driver's seat." (37:04)

B. U.S. Dollar’s Global Status

• Scott Bessant & Philip Patrick analyze U.S. efforts to sustain the dollar as the global reserve currency.

• The U.S. is extending currency swap lines to allies (UAE, Japan, South Korea) to maintain the dollar’s dominance and stymie China's moves to elevate the yuan.

  • Scott Bessant: “We are actively fighting now to defend the dollar’s dominance. The world is clearly now starting to look for alternatives.” (47:20, 50:27)
  • Stephen K. Bannon: “With the amount of debt we have... you have to stick with [the dollar reserve role] and you have to defend it.” (51:32)

• The rise in gold and crypto is referenced as a hedge against wavering trust in fiat currencies.

  • Philip Patrick: “Dollars settle transactions, but gold settles trust...” (50:26)

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5. Memorable Quotes & Moments

On Political Hypocrisy & Accountability

• FBI Director Cash Patel: "The only person that ran up a thousand dollar bar tab in Washington D.C. to lobby was you." (02:22)

On Media Spin & Misinformation

• Mary Holland: “This is vintage New York Times propaganda. ... If vaccines are so safe and so effective... let’s take away the liability shields.” (17:34, 18:52)

On SPLC’s Stance

• Tyler O’Neill: "The SPLC puts conservative Christian groups on the hate map for the sin of disagreeing with LGBTQ ideology." (06:40)

On the Health Freedom Movement’s Growth

• Mary Holland: “We are so close to a tipping point. ... because we are really getting to be a majority of the population.” (24:01)

On U.S. Economic Power & Security

• Scott Bessant: “By defending the dollar, we do create more obligations for ourselves. ... People eventually start to ask: how strong is the dollar, really, if it needs defending in this way?” (50:27)

On the Chinese Communist Party

• Captain James Fennell: “They are trying to destroy us. It's not my words, it's their words." (34:15)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• FBI Budget & Accountability Fight: 00:00 – 03:20
• SPLC & Hate Map Controversy: 03:31 – 12:48
• Media, Vaccines & Health Freedom: 16:24 – 24:44
• Iran, China, and U.S. Strategy: 29:52 – 43:19
• Dollar Dominance & Global Economics: 45:45 – 52:34

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For Further Information

• Tyler O’Neill: Book – Making Hate: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center; X (formerly Twitter): @axyler2ONeill
• Mary Holland: childrenshealthdefense.org; X: @childrensHD
• Philip Patrick & Birch Gold: birchgold.com/Bannon; Text "Bannon" to 989-898

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Overall Tone & Takeaways

The episode’s style is combative and polemical, blending policy discussion, political critique, and culture war commentary. The hosts and guests position themselves as counterpoints to both mainstream media narratives and establishment institutions, focusing on the urgency of defending conservative—and specifically MAGA and health freedom—interests in law, public health, and economic sovereignty. The recurring call is for aggressive defense of American values, economic leadership, and civil liberties in the face of perceived progressive elite overreach and foreign hostility.

Transcript

[Senator Cash Patel]

Tell we need a serious budget, but we also need serious leadership. And I will say this. There is one clear priority in Trump's overall budget, and it isn't law and order. It is war. Because while Trump is proposing cuts to programs that really do keep people safe, he wants to increase war spending by half a trillion dollars. And I don't need to tell anyone here we are not going to bomb our way to safer communities. So I intend to help rip that budget up and write bills that keep families safe. But beyond that budget, we need serious leadership at the FBI that the American people can trust. And I am deeply concerned about the reports that your leadership has not been serious. We need somebody at this agency who's focused on solving criminal cases, not passing out branded bourbon or jetting around the globe. Your job is to be reachable. And I know Senator Van Hollen asked you about this, but I got to say, if you want to pass out liquor or pop bottles in a locker room, stick to podcasting. Leave law and order to people who really do care about justice and appearances. That is really critical and it's what I am really deeply concerned about and so are many people. Thank you. Mr. Chairman.

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

Can I respond? This is what real leadership looks like at the FBI. Every one of you was given it. This is what's happened under my tenure at the FBI and the Trump administration. 20 point drop in the homicide rate. 45,000 violent offenders arrested last year. Twice as many as 2024, 2450 criminal gangs disrupted. That's a 322% increase from 2024. 6900 child victims have been located since I've been in the seat. That's 144% increase. 2,900 child predators and human traffickers arrested. That's a 70% increase. And we've arrested eight of the top 10 most wanted fugitives in the world in 14 months. That's twice as many in the four years combined. That is what the men and women of the FBI are doing. Well resourced. Everyone should take a look at this. If people want to continue the baseless, fraudulent, false personal attacks at me, that's great. Keep the target on me, as I've always said. But the mission has never been better. Unlike, unlike baseless reports. The only person that was slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar with a convicted gang banging rapist was you.

[Scott Bessant]

You know the.

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

The only person that ran up a thousand dollar bar tab in Washington D.C. to lobby was you.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

The only individual in this room allegations

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

drinking on taxpayer Dime during the day

[Stephen K. Bannon]

polygraphing you, Director Patel. Come on. These are serious allegations that were made against you.

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

Allegations are filed. You drinking margaritas with a gang just goes to show you running a $7,000 bar tab at the lobby bar has been filed by your own office goes to show during the day that's you. This is the ultimate example of hypocrisy.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Chairman.

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

I will not be tarnished by baseless allegations, fraudulent statements from the media.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

The fact that you mentioned that indicates you don't know what you are talking about. Now here directly.

[FBI Director Cash Patel]

Thing I know is you're the one drinking margaritas with fence.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Actually, that's a false statement. And I'm asking you about your statements. I've answered them and I'm asking you about a particular report. We have a lot of things to discuss. I wouldn't say Iran is one of them, to be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control. We're either going to make a deal or they're going to be decimated.

[Tyler O'Neill]

One way or the other, we win. Did the Southern Poverty Law center just admit that it's anti Christian? A quick recap. The SPLC publishes a hate map that plots mainstream conservative and Christian groups alongside KKK chapters, suggesting a similar hatred between Klansmen and people who believe marriage is between one man and one woman. The FBI has cited this map. Critics said the SPLC is anti Christian. The SPLC said no to. To clear up this major misconception, the SPLC put this language on its website, noting that it doesn't put Focus on the Family on the hate map. Well, this year, you guessed it, SPLC added Focus on the Family to the hate map. And that language clearing up the misconception disappeared from its website. SPLC staffer R.G. cravens went on to explain why they put Focus on the Family on the map.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

And like other hate groups at Split, they weaponize Christian rhetoric against LGBTQ people. And I think that's really important to mention because they sow division and ideas

[Captain James Fennell]

that tear families apart by perpetuating political

[Stephen K. Bannon]

notions that LGBTQ people can't be, for example, truly Christian unless they deny who they are.

[Captain James Fennell]

And that's one, just patently false.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

And two, it's really dangerous because it sets families against one another.

[Tyler O'Neill]

So it's both false and dangerous to say that you can't be a Christian if you disagree with the Bible and Christian tradition. You can't celebrate pride and be a Christian. And if that's the standard for a hate group, then every right thinking Christian church is a hate group. What do you think? Is the SPLC anti Christian?

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Okay, a lot to get through. President is wheels up, en route to Alaska. And then Beijing said right there in the not going to discuss Iran. Don't know about that. But we'll figure all that out. Steve Pertez and Philip Patrick are going to join us, talk about the economics of all this. And some of the numbers came out today. Also an update on South Carolina. We'll get to that in a moment. And the redistricting awards. Want to start with Tyler o'. Neill. Tyler, in Alabama, I guess the attorney general of the state of Alabama is now engaged in, engaged in this. And we'll get to your article in a minute. But just explain this little video that's up. Explain the audience what's going on with our favorite target, the Southern Poverty Law Center.

[Tyler O'Neill]

Yeah, so the SPLC is the worst of the worst. I've long said they are the tip of the spear when it comes to, to demonizing conservatives and Christians in America today. And that video particularly highlights one of the worst examples to me where, you know, I grew up listening to Adventures in Odyssey. I think many of us on the conservative side know that Focus on the Family is this long standing conservative Christian organization that calls for, that pushes for family values, that encourages parents to raise their children in the admonition of the Lord. And all of this is conservative Christian,

[Stephen K. Bannon]

but

[Tyler O'Neill]

it has implications and good lessons for those outside of the Christian community. But the Focus on the Family is the longest most well known conservative Christian nonprofit in America. And the SPLC for a long time said that they're not anti Christian. And the only ever piece of evidence they put for that was that they didn't put Focus on the Family on the hate map. So essentially by their own reckoning now, you know, last year they put Focus on the Family on the hate map. They deep sixed that language, protecting themselves from the anti Christian charge. And then they had this guy, R.G. cravens, come out and justify putting Focus on the hate map. And his justification essentially says what we've all known for years, that the SPLC puts conservative Christian groups on the hate map for the sin of disagreeing with LGBTQ ideology.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Talk to me about what does this mean in Alabama with an attorney general? Because you've been saying, hey, you've done the analysis, you wrote the book, you've come out with these great articles, this piece right here about Focus on the Family. But is there action? You know, we had the federal, the federal issue, the warrants there, the Indictments there. But what about, what about the state level, the state of Alabama getting involved here? Because they're headquartered in Alabama, correct?

[Tyler O'Neill]

Yes. So the SPLC's headquarters is in Montgomery. Actually, this isn't the first Attorney General to get involved after the indictment. First we had Attorney General Utmeyer in Florida who filed an action here, also a subpoena demanding records for how the SPLC sells itself to donors and then where the SPLC takes that donor money and whether, you know, how much of that donor money ever went to these so called informants. These really, they're, they're called field sources. In the indictment, these are the members of the Ku Klux Klan and other groups that the SPLC says they exist to help dismantle where the SPLC was actually paying these people. The SPLC says that it was all just, you know, conformance so that they could prevent violence from these people later on. And they have a couple of examples where there were federal charges against people in these groups that the SPLC says this was a tip from an SPLC informant. But the indictment also shows that people like an organizer of the Charlottesville Unite the Right rally were not just being paid by the SPLC, but also had their racist posts supervised by the splc. So, you know, we have to see exactly what the full truth is. And that's why it's good that we have these attorneys general taking action in addition to the federal indictment demanding from the SPLC donors. Because in these situations, the splc, it doesn't just stand accused of committing wire fraud and bank fraud and conspiracy, but the facts of the indictment, the pleadings in the indictment lead to a reasonable suspicion that they're also violating deceptive practices acts in state level. On the state level. So particularly in Florida, particularly in Alabama, the SPLC has other offices throughout the South. So I'm, I'm curious to see if there, if we're going to see more attorneys general issuing these subpoenas. But this one, since it is Alabama and the SPLC is headquartered there, really underscores how serious this investigation is.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

The Attorney General of Alabama could be very aggressive here, could they not? I mean, it's their headquartered there, they're domiciled in Alabama. They have access to, they could have access to all the information. I mean, do you anticipate that they're going to take the cutting edge of this investigation, at least at the state level?

[Tyler O'Neill]

Yeah, I think, look, we have a deadline here of June 1st where the SPLC has to hand over this information before the, before the attorney General goes to court and gets a court order to mandate it. I highly doubt the SPLC is just going to cooperate and turn over the information. But we'll have to see. I mean, the SPLC are smart lawyers. They're going to see exactly how they can massage this. They've already hired Abby Lowell, by the way, to represent them on the federal level. So we're going to have to see if they're fighting back on the state level as well.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Oh, no, they're going to hire the best. How much cash are they sitting on, sir?

[Tyler O'Neill]

Yeah, they're sitting on. And I think this is based on different parts of the 990 because I've always been focused on this $740 million figure. That's their endowment. I think there's another section in the 990 that talks about $820 million in either case. This is an obscenely wealthy organization. And this organization, you know, they could run for years and years without raising another cent. And they also have offshore accounts in the Cayman Islands. They have money and investments offshore that raise a lot of serious questions. I mean, if you're a 501C3 nonprof, why do you have offshore accounts? That's a question that I hope we're going to see an answer to in this federal indictment and in the investigations following. But there are many other things to look at the SPLC for, particularly. There are also important defamation lawsuits from the conservatives who have been branded hate groups and put on a hate map with chapters of the Ku Klux Klan, essentially for disagreeing with the SPLC's agenda.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Tyler, you're doing the Lord's work here. Where do people go to keep up with all where they go? You wrote the definitive book on this. Where do they go to get all of your content, sir?

[Tyler O'Neill]

Thanks so much, Steve. You can follow me on axyler2, the number two O' Neill, where you'll see there I have the Woketopus, which is my newer book. But Making Hate the Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law center was my first book that I wrote it back in 2020. We have a new update about to come out and I'm in talks with the House Judiciary Committee to testify later this month. So stay tuned for that as well.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Fantastic. Tyler, doing a great job. Daily Signal doing a great job. Thank you, sir. Appreciate you. The merchants of hate at the Southern Poverty Law Center. Speaking of merchants of hate, Mary Holland joins us. Mary, I got a minute on this side. I'm going to hold you through the break. You're Correct. You said the New York Times is obsessed with Bobby Kennedy. Vaccines in Defense of Big Pharma. Just talk to me about this article. We only got like 30 seconds. I'm gonna hold you because this is too good. You told me the last time you were on that they have a unhealthy obsession with Children's Health Defense. Vaccines in defensive Big farmer Bobby Kennedy. And boy, did you prove it. They had another article they out the other day. Just insane. Mary Holland from Children's Health Defense. Just like Tyler o', Neill. These people are hammering, hammering, hammering every day. Philip Patrick's also going to join us later in the show. Birchgold.com promo code Bannon I got that right. God, I blew that this morning. Promo code Bannon End of the dollar empire. I think that's going to be on the table for discussions. Remember the Chinese Communist Party trying to destroy the United States dollar, destroy the petrodollar. President Trump says, hey, we're not going to discuss Iran. I don't know. Never know what's going to happen. Philip Patrick will be on later. Short break. Mary Holland, next, Everyone's focused on how the conflict in the Middle east is raising oil prices. But there's another grim reality to this contention. Oil isn't the only resource being constrained. About one third of global fertilizer trade happens through this region. And with spring planting season on top of us, American farmers are sounding the alarm with some saying they can't afford to plant their fields. When one piece of the supply chain gets hit this hard, you know what comes next? Higher fruit prices, reduced availability, maybe even panic buying. That's why having an emergency food supply at home makes so much sense. And that's where our friends at my Patriot Supply come in. Right [e-mail] that is preparewithbannon.com we've set up an entire just site for the war room posse. You go to preparewithbannon.com that's all one word. Preparewithbannon.com you get a three month emergency food supply. They'll include a free mega protein Upgrade, an incredible $200 bonus you don't want to miss. It's a simple way to protect your family from whatever comes next. Go to preparewithbannon.com that is preparewithbannon.com to get your emergency food supply today. That's preparewithbannon.com do it today. Go check it out.

[Stephen K. Bannon (Host)]

War Room, here's your host, Stephen K. Band.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

So Mary Holland joins us from the Children's Health Defense. Mary, you're so nice. You come on, you've been coming on for years now. I think five or six years, ever since the pandemic. You're always, you know, you're so nice, you're generous, you're calm, your demeanor, everything but you get. You always hammer it. When you left last time, you kind of had a toss away line. You said, you know, because we were talking about the New York Times going to Bobby Kennedy and all the falsehoods in the reporting in their defense of big Pharma. And you said, hey, you know, they have an unhealthy obsession with Bobby Kennedy and particularly in defense of the undefensible. This about vaccines, about defending big Pharma. And lo and behold, they come up. This is the folks. This is the headline of the New York Times story. RFK Jr. Is driving a vast inquiry into vaccines. Despite his public silence. I said, hey, the guy, he doesn't say anything and they still gotta go after him. Talk to me about this article, ma', am, because this shows you. You're correct. They're unhinged about this topic. Why is that?

[Mary Holland]

This is vintage New York Times propaganda. This is based on reporting from six anonymous sources. Listen, they are basically a front for pharma here. You know, we are living through a massive epidemic of vaccine injury. We call it mevy. Half of kids are sick, over half of adults are on some kind of pharmaceutical product. We have a chronic disease epidemic that the New York Times won't even talk talk about, Steve. So instead they're talking about, you know, his positions are unpopular and even if he's silent, he's got people working on this issue. Guess who he is working on this, Steve. He has Martin Koldorff, who left his position at Harvard. He's a biostatistician. He is like even the opposition, even pharma says this guy is a top not vaccine safety scientist. And what's so funny is the New York Times and pharma want to say the vaccines are safe and effective. They're safe and effective. And you know, these people are crazy. You know what if they're so safe and so effective, like just let's take away the liability shields. Let's just do away with the 1986 National Vaccine Injury Act. Let's just do away with the PREP act of 2005. And we're all good. Because you know what? When there's no liability shield for these products, they're going to be decimated by a market. Decimated.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

That's the reality. But this is what I think People, the disconnect. And even with me sometimes when we think of the New York Times, besides being the paper of record of our beloved republic, it's liberal, it's progressive. Wasn't it years ago that they were the people warning about big corporations and Big Pharma? How did it flip that maga, the working class and middle class in this country are saying something's not right here. But the New York Times is obsessed by protecting Big Pharma and quite frankly, not having a conversation. But destroying this is the politics in the media, personal destruction. How did that flip when the most progressive liberal paper in the country that used to, I thought before I was in politics used to go after big pharma and all the big corporations all the time. They're now the lead. They're the tip of the spear of going on offense to destroy anybody that would actually bring this topic up.

[Mary Holland]

Steve, I think there's a book to be written there. I still am perplexed by this transition. I used to read the New York Times and think that it was really based on fact. But being a parent of a young man with autism, I have followed the New York Times on pharma and on autism for 25 years. It has never told the truth. It is always slanted. And it is, I think, you know, it's a deep state project, right? This is government and pharma and then the media coming in, the universities, the medical profession, they're afraid of the truth. They're afraid of the liability. They will be afraid that they will be shown to have been complicit in this massive epidemic of vaccine injury. Vaccines are dysregulating people's immune system. They're causing death, they're causing severe injuries of all kinds. Covid made this much more obvious to the American public. But, you know, this isn't the first time that medicine and government have been in collusion of really dangerous things like the opioid epidemic. This is really a redux of the way that the opioid epidemic went down. So I don't know the exact way in which it shifted, but I can tell you that for the last 30 years, they've been miserable on accountability for the vaccine injury that we see.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

But can the audience take that? Bobby is. There's a team there and we're still grinding through on all objectives. President Trump agrees with to get to the bottom of this vaccine problem.

[Mary Holland]

I believe that President Trump really cares about the childhood vaccine schedule. I think he really cares about autism. I know that Bobby Kennedy cares deeply about Those issues. And Bobby has said, and he means it, if vaccines are safe and effective, he's going to be the first person to take them. It's just that there's ridiculous clinical trials. They don't test them against true placebos. There's no adverse event reporting, and there's no part post marketing real surveillance. So none of the pillars of safety that you'd have to have for compulsory medicine with no liability, none of those safety provisions are there. And that's why, you know, both Bobby and Trump, I think, really do want to get to the bottom of this. Who wants to see babies be injured? And why can't we look at this and talk about this as civilized adults? You gotta be suspicious when they're like, oh, everything is perfect. We have a chronic disease epidemic. But it's not compulsory medicine that has no liability. I mean, it's, it's, it's, it's ridiculous.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

And six anonymous sources, perfect fake news, New York Times reporting. Okay, my other favorite, my other favorite, Politico, has not one. Do they have two. They have two articles today. One, how Congress has shut you guys down on all the junk food issues that you want to do right, the processed foods. And number two, the entire rest of the Maha agenda is stalled on Capitol Hill. And principally because the Maha movement, which is their new, you know, the media's obsession, you literally have no political stroke. Your response, ma'?

[Mary Holland]

Am, I think that's wishful thinking, Steve. I definitely think that the health freedom movement is very strong and is only gaining members and gaining strength. MAHA has been more explicitly political. And I think you could say that there have been some fissures in, in Maga. Maha. I think you could legitimately say that you cannot say that about the strength of the health freedom movement. There are millions of Americans who are going to vote to be able to make their own decisions about their own medical choices. And that's not changed one iota. And they have every reason to be afraid of a multimillion person voting bloc when it comes to health freedom.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

And you know, it's a tell when Politico puts some of their best reporters on and they have two in one day, in fact, two within a couple hours. It shows you the powers that be in this country, the corporate powers are quite concerned about what you guys are revving up. And is it. When I read the articles, the polling's the exact opposite. It's almost like 50% of the people. This is a number one top priority for them.

[Mary Holland]

So it's like at least 10 million people, this is a top priority. It's an 8020 issue that pharma should not have liability protection for vaccines. That's an 8020 issue based on a poll that ZOGHB did for Health Freedom Defense Fund and for brownstone. But Politico's own poll, Steve, like not three weeks ago, is that 46% of Americans do not approve of medical mandates and they don't trust mainstream vaccine science. So we are so close to a tipping point. So it's not so surprising that they'd be coming out with kind of, you know, misguided fake news right now because we are really getting to be a majority of of the population.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Mary, where do people go to find out more about children's health defense? All the work you're doing, I know you're putting up voluminous work. You've got your own TV channel. Where do folks go to get all your content?

[Mary Holland]

Thanks, Steve. We go to childrenshealthdefense.org, no apostrophe and children's HD on X.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Thank you, ma'.

[Sam Faddis]

Am.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

I appreciate you. Appreciate you punching back.

[Mary Holland]

Thank you, Steve. Appreciate you.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

This is just a story the other day about in Louisiana that when the media targets that, you realize they've got a problem, they know something is building momentum. I tell you, the Make America Healthy again in the health freedom movement is just at the very beginning stages of building political power. But it is quite powerful and it's absolutely essential for the midterm elections. So they did the other day in Louisiana. Oh, you never hear about it. It's Internet thing. I couldn't disagree. Of course, Politico with two of those articles in South Carolina, the vote is no. Okay. That didn't agree to extend this session to have the possibility of having a special session. I think the five we identified today, the five individuals we identified today, all voted no. We'll have more on that if I can't get Caroline Renner to grass up in this hour. We'll have him back first thing in the morning. Also, Orin Cass is going to join us. We're going to talk about this, some economics, China, also this. There's a housing bill that is coming forward now by the White House that's going to really focus on about young people being able to buy to buy their own house. So, Steve Cortez, we had some, we had some inflation numbers today. I know you've been running some math. Talk to me about President Trump said, hey, before if this thing would have been 1.7 if we hadn't gone to war. Is that correct? Is he getting the right information from a Navarro and Bessant in the team?

[Steve Cortez]

Listen, I think the pre war trajectory for the economy was terrific. Real wages were growing very well, not as quickly as we wanted but we were going in the right direction both on prices and in wages. And those are the two things that matter most to most Americans. Not the stock market, not asset prices. But unfortunately, because of this war of choice, we're heading to the exact, exact opposite direction now. And real wages are now diving south in a very significant way. We got a very troubling inflation report today. The bond market sold off hard in price meaning yields up 10 year yield at 4.46 right now as we speak. As I've told you before, this has been the, the level that has held the market in recent months. I believe we get above four and a half. We've got a very serious problem. I think we quickly then get above 5%. 30 year yield is already above 5%. If we look at most forward looking inflation gauges and I'm talking real world ones, not you know, economist opinions, they are foreboding right now. So I think this just adds to the impetus that we need to wrap up this war as quickly as possible. Because I do not believe that Americans who are already in a foul economic mood pre war are going to long sustain this kind of economic movie pain for a mission that has not been sold to them as existential and truly necessary to the United States.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Yeah, I think that President Trump said he was not going to discuss it in, in China. I think the way you get a solution that doesn't drag out through the midterms because the Persians right now, whether they do or not, they believe they have the upper hand and they're going to try to drag this thing out as long as possible. Philip Patrick and Birch Goldstein. Steve Cortez on economics and capital markets. On the other side, the dollar's convertibility into gold ended in 1971. Gold was fixed at $35 an ounce. Well fast forward to today and the US dollar has lost over 85% of its purchasing power. Gold on the other hand, is increased in value by over 12,000%. That's why Central banks are buying gold at record levels. That's why major firms like Vanguard and Blackrock hold significant positions in gold. And that's why I encourage you to consider diversifying your savings with physical gold from Birch Gold Group. But it starts with education. Birch Gold just announced their Learn and Earn precious metals event. This free Online event rewards you for learning the basics of investing in precious metals. Sign up to get a free silver on your next purchase. Get even larger incentives as you go. The more you learn, the more you can earn. But you must act now as this special event only runs through April 30th. The dollar lost its anchor in 1971. You don't have to lose yours. Text my name, Bannon B A N N O N to the number 989-898. To join Birch Gold's Learn and Earn Precious Metals event by April 30th. Text Bannon B A N N O N to 989-898 and do it today.

[Stephen K. Bannon (Host)]

Here's your host, Stephen K. Bannon.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Sam Fadis, you've dealt with the Persians for much of your career in service to your country, including a lot in country. You wrote some on and magazine the other day that I think would be a great thing for President Trump have in his back pocket when he sat down with XI about what his battle plan is. Can you walk us through your recommendations to the President, United States of dealing with the Iranians, sir?

[Sam Faddis]

Yeah, look, the bottom line here, Steve, in my opinion, is we're not hurting these guys enough. We imposed a blockade. We're waiting for them to come to the table and make a deal. They just told us to pound sand again. So as I wrote the article, go for the jugular, up the pain level dramatically. They got six land border routes from Pakistan into Iran. The Chinese are sending in everything to support the war effort. Look at every one of those routes. Take out bridges, take out the roadways. Shut that off. They're moving oil out into Iraq. They being the Iranians, they're mixing it with Iraqi oil and then they're selling it with false documents on the world market as Iraqi oil. So they're still, they're still getting money. Take out all of those border crossings. I'm talking on the Iranian side. Shut them off. Seal off their land borders. As of yesterday, there were something like 28 supertankers parked off the coast of Malaysia in this anchorage that are all carrying Iranian oil that they basically banked there before we blockaded the straits and it's all being sold to the Chinese. Seize every one of those tankers and sail it away and sell the oil and keep it for ourselves. I mean, take down their comms internally, knock out television, knockout radio, impose a no fly zone. I have no idea why there are planes taking off and landing from Tehran airport in the middle of this war. Seal these guys off, cut off, cut off every contact with the outside world. They think they can hold out longer than us. Right now we have to change that calculus.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

One thing you brought up twice in this, Sam Fatis, is the. Is China both in the overland routes, right, Coming overland to supply them because they ain't getting that from Azerbaijan or Kazakhstan. Right, Kazakhstan. They're getting it from the ccp. Also, about this ghost fleet of ships that are somewhere, I don't know, around Indonesia or something, that's also what they're using to supply the CCP with oil. Should. Is it your recommendation that the president should put that on the table and have a blunt conversation with Xi?

[Sam Faddis]

Yeah, 100%. There's no reason we should be dancing around. I mean, the bottom line is the Iranians haven't missed a paycheck yet. The regime, because they stashed all this oil in these supertankers off the coast of Malaysia and Indonesia. And it's about four months worth of oil they banked, and they're selling it, essentially 95% of it anyway, to the Chinese. So the Chinese are, you know, helping them make their rocket fuel. They're giving them their electronics for their drones. They're giving them the targeting data to kill our people. And they're paying the Iranians. They're keeping the regime afloat.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

So we're the Chinese Communist Party. Sam Faddis, given your professional experience in the CIA for 30 years, in your professional opinion, is the Chinese Communist Party a competitor or peer competitor to the United States or are they an enemy to the United States of America?

[Sam Faddis]

Yeah, without question they're an enemy. We're at war with these guys. They started this war a long time ago, and they're just keeping ramping up the level. I mean, they are now actively helping the Iranians kill and wound Americans servicemen. We shouldn't. Why are we pretending otherwise? Why are we pretending like the goal is to get along with them?

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Captain James Finnell, you spent your professional career, in fact, you gave up your career on this very topic. The Chinese Communist Party in their military focus. Do you agree with Sam Fadis that the Chinese Communist Party is not a peer competitor or not trying to be a competitor of the United States. They're an existential threat and an enemy of the. Of the Lao, Beijing, their own people, the citizens of this country and the United States of America?

[Captain James Fennell]

100%, Sam is correct. And I was working on a paper today, and I was reviewing Xi Jinping's 2021 speech in July for the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party. And in that speech, he says, those who try to oppose us, we will bash their heads in on the steel of China. So he has made it very clear that he opposes the United States of America and wants to confront us and defeat us. And that's what he's working towards. He could help and stop Iran from doing what they're doing, but he's not going to do it. He'd rather work around another way to get oil. As Sam said, he's got active reserves there for several months. He's got his own strategic petroleum reserve that he's had built up. So he would rather see us get mired down in that than do anything to help us. Just like with fentanyl, just like with the economy, just like with every other issue, they are trying to destroy us. It's not a. It's not up for debate. It's not my words. It's their words. They're coming after us. And I think President Trump understands that. And I think he's going to go over there in private and remind them who's actually in control in terms of economic and military power. And I think that's the, the hope that I have for this visit. I wish he wouldn't have gone, but he's. He's going. So I think he's going to go and remind them. And I would suggest that what we saw, remember in the first term when he had G in Mar? A Lago and he went up and took out Soleimani and put that in the face of Xi, we could very well see everyone saying that Trump won't do anything with Iran kinetically while he's in China, we very much well could see President Trump show that to Xi and say, guess what? While I'm in your country, I'm going to restart kinetic operations. That's entirely possible, and I hope he does it and does and follows the targeting plan that Sam has laid out in that piece. And I would go one step farther and Arclight make sure.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Yeah, Hangers said that wasn't. It wasn't Soleimani. That's where they hit Syria for the Syrian gas attack, which turned out to be fallacious. But it was at the time President Trump was told it was true. But that was where she was eating a piece of chocolate cake and President Trump dropped it on him in Mar? A Lago. Jack Bosobic, do you agree? Captain Fennell just said that we're militarily and economically superior. President Trump's got those cards, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, everything. I'm reading is that, oh, we're kind of the supplicant here. We're on our back foot. The rise of China, China's manufacturing is unincredable, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Are the unhumans in the Chinese Communist Party superior to us, sir?

[Stephen K. Bannon (Host)]

STEVE no, they're not superior to us. And it's really simple. They can't innovate the way that we innovate. They can't create the way that we create. Their system is this unhuman system and that was built on the backs of the slave labor of the Chinese people, the slave labor of the Lao Beijing, the slave labor of the hundred hundreds of millions of Chinese people who are still living in day to day poverty. They live in the shadows because of the Hukou system and they don't even have papers to be able to work in places like Shanghai and Shenzhen as opposed to these impoverished areas which are still all across the entire countryside. There are protests all the time within China that are put down. You don't hear about it because it doesn't make any of the western papers. But they do exist. And so that's why the CCP needs to continue their crackdowns the way that they do internally. But if President Trump actually works to put the American people to work by bringing our manufacturing flooding back, bringing those jobs flooding back down the Mississippi river, up to the Great Lakes like it used to be with Detroit and all the rest, then we can be the ones in the driver's seat. We have the money. We are currently the consumer power. But if we become the manufacturing power as well, they get shut out. That's why decoupling is so important. They try to play this game with raw earth, by the way. Well, guess what? We just found massive lithium deposits in Appalachia. And guess where else is a huge amount of rare earths? Greenland, baby. So you look at what President Trump's doing and you put it all together, they don't have the leverage over us that they think they do. And all of this pie in the sky stuff that's coming out of the, you know, the, the, the stenography that the Wall Street Journal is doing for the U.S. chamber of Commerce is just that these are marketing plays, these are pitches. This is what they want. Their wish casting for what they want Trump to do. But he has the ability to put the American people and our country in the driver's seat, not just now, but for the next hundred years of American growth.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Jim Captain Fennell, under Jack's point, you know the 2019. In May of 2019, the most important geopolitical month still in this century, when the Chinese Communist Party said, no, we're going to decouple from the Americans because Trump's too much, launch a bioweapon. Then they came in and took over 18 states. We know that they took the voter rolls. They got access to voter rolls to defeat Trump. They were actively engaged in trying to throw the 2020 election to Joe Biden because Joe Biden was on their payroll. They're still trying to decouple today. Yet the business delegation he took over there are the people that want to triple down on some sort of unity of our two systems, although the Chinese Communist Party doesn't play by the rules. Your thoughts?

[Captain James Fennell]

Right. That's the, that's the balancing act that I think the President has, is he's got people that still want to, you know, do business internationally, and they're still embedded in China. So I think the President is trying to balance that out in terms of I've got to have some business there. While we don't want to necessarily make ourselves dependent on China, these companies obviously are there, and then some of them are trying to get out. And so how do you get out without losing your entire company? I think that'll be part of that process. But I think Jack is right. We need to return manufacturing back to America and shut out China. They are dependent upon us as consumers and the rest of the Western world as consumers, and we need to shut that off. We need to shut them off from access from foreign domestic investment. That's what they want. If you read everything that the Chinese have put out this last week in the run up to this summit, it's been two things. FDI they want. They want cash, they want US Dollars, and they want some kind of statement on Taiwan. And I don't think we should give them either one.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Sam Fadis, the intelligence services, what do you think the intelligence. How, how they frame this, particularly in Taiwan? Do you think that they're telling. Oh, there is some rhetorical. There are some rhetorical softening you can have with Taiwan without triggering a crisis?

[Sam Faddis]

God, I hope not, Steve. But, you know, given. Given what the IC has been doing, entirely possible. I mean, look, the. One of the things we're definitely going to get pressure by from Xi is, is to soften and begin to back away from Taiwan. So if he doesn't invade, he can at least shove them into taking the Hong Kong bargain. Right. Which is the infamous one nation, two systems lie that he foisted on Hong Kong and then obviously we know what happens there. So there shouldn't be any softening on softening on anything. I mean, we need to be going the other direction, taking a harder line with these guys and be prepared and just recognize the reality. They started a war with us a long time ago.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Jim, for now we got about a minute. I'm gonna hold you guys through the break. Are we, if we soften the rhetoric at all, our defense of Taiwan, do we jeopardize losing the entire first island chain? Sir?

[Captain James Fennell]

I think there's a risk to that in terms of perception. So I agree with Sam. We should not weaken in any way. In fact, the Taiwan's last Friday just passed a 25 billion dollar US billion dollar procurement budget on their own to demonstrate to President Trump and I think the administration that they're in on this, that they're willing to defend themselves. So I don't see there's a need for us to back off. And given what we're seeing going on with Iran and what's going on in the Ukraine, I think President Trump now can actually question in his mind where he maybe in the first term he thought, well, they'll never be able to defend Taiwan. The Chinese can just take it. It's just right there. Well, maybe not. And so I think these other events are providing him maybe some information to suggest that he can relate to Xi, which is to say, hey guess what, you're not going to be able to take Taiwan and here's why. And run down the list in private.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Okay, got, hang on. We're going to hold you guys to the break. Chapter you need to get your arms around your Medicare plan. Go to a Data Company. Chapter 845 War Room. A totally free consultation, no obligation. They will walk you through every alternative you've got in getting a Medicare plan that is right for you. Eight, four, five, War Room. A number just for the war Room. Do you owe back taxes or you haven't filed your taxes in years? Now is the time to resolve your tax matters. With the national conversation around abolishing the income tax, the IRS is fighting back and proving it's here to stay by becoming more aggressive than ever before. They're sending out more collection notices, filing more tax liens and collecting billions more in recent years. If you owe, the IRS can garnish your wages, levy your bank accounts, seize your retirement and even your home if you owe or haven't filed. It's not a question of if the IRS will act. It's a question of when it will act. Right now, Tax Network USA is offering a completely free IRS research and discovery call to show you exactly where you stand and what they can stop before it's too late. Their powerful programs and strategies can save you thousands or even eliminate your debt entirely if you qualify. Don't make a costly mistake representing yourself or calling the IRS on your own waives your rights and cost you more money. They are not, and let me repeat, the IRS is not on your side. Get protected the right way with Tax Network USA and start the process of settling your tax matters once and for all today. Call 1-800-958-1000. That's 1-800-958-10000 or visit tnusa.com Bannon for your free discovery call with Tax Network USA. Let me repeat, 800-958-1000. Tell them Bannon sent you. Don't let the IRS be the first to act. Take advantage of first mover advantage. You move.

[Stephen K. Bannon (Host)]

War room. Here's your host, Stephen K. Band.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Okay, breaking news. The Supreme Court just supported the state of Missouri in the map, the redrawn map that we fought so hard for. I think there may be even another seat in Missouri. I'll get to that tomorrow. Gonna have Degrasse and Carolyn Wren to the degree we can free them up from the ramparts to be on on this redistricting war, folks. Bad news out of South Carolina, but there's still a way we can get to those six. Walk you through that tomorrow. We started the show with one of our former hosts and colleagues and contributors, Cash Patel, getting hammered but giving as good as he got in the Senate today, which is pure cash. In fact, he notified me, said, hey, that was pure war room there. So that's why he played that great clip at the beginning. We're going to end it today with also one of our contributors, the current Secretary of Treasury, Scott Bessant. Philip Patrick has been a contributor now for five or six years. So there's a piece in the New York Times and this piece is about how the US Is trying to ensure the dollar's dominance during economic turmoil. Subheadling. As the government has been devising plans to keep the dollar dominant, China has been making its own moves to increase global influence in the Chinese currency, the yuan. You just said we used to have a monopoly. Scott Bessant is basically telling people that, hey, one of his principal responsibilities as secretary of treasury is defense of the dollar as the prime reserve currency. We are now in contested dominance. Is that the phrase you used. And is this the type of activity you expect to see in a world where this is now contested dominance? Sir, this is exactly it.

[Scott Bessant]

And I think this story in on itself was very telling because it's saying now the quiet part out loud. We are actively fighting now to defend the dollar's dominance. Besant's been discussing currency swap lines for a while. I know we had a temporary one with Argentina. Now he's looking at it in the Gul and Asia specifically. Now for the UAE to make sure that they have access to enough US dollars for trade and particularly oil trade. What a swap line is. For those who don't know, it's fairly simple. We give another country dollars and in return we get their local currency. And the idea is instead of letting China, as you mentioned, come in and say, hey, you can use our Chinese yuan, we kind of fill that gap. Now the UAE isn't broke, they just don't have ready cash right now. Obviously oil sales are getting hit shorter term. So a swap line is a way to give them liquidity today. Otherwise they may choose to do something else. Sell, for example, longer term US dollar exposure like Treasuries, which would put significant pressure on the bond market. So the point essentially is to keep the country inside of the dollar based system. This is definitely smart moves from Besson. Right? This is economic statecraft in action. I think Trump and Besson understand very well that when oil starts trading outside of the dollar, America starts to lose enormous leverage. And as I've said before, it's really encouraging starting to see the administration using carrots along with sticks. And Besson ultimately is doing what his number one job is, which is to defend the the US Dollar. However, we have to understand that there are risks with this as well. By defending the dollar, we do create more obligations for ourself. Right? If Washington is constantly borrowing, constantly printing, constantly sanctioning, and now backstopping foreign dollar markets, people eventually start to ask the question, how strong is the dollar really if it needs defending in this way? Now, as we've said many times, China's not replacing the dollar. The yuan has its own problems, lack of liquidity being probably the major one. But the world is clearly now starting to look for alternatives. You can see it in gold, you can see it in crypto, local currencies, bilateral trade systems, and that's why gold is becoming more and more important. Dollars settle transactions, but gold settles trust ultimately. So when confidence in paper system starts to fracture, central banks, investors, they move towards assets that don't depend on promises. So that's why we're seeing such an uptick in precious metals. It's why we're seeing central bank demand hitting record highs. And like I said, I think what Besson is doing is very smart and I think it's slowing down. What is, as time passes, starting to feel more and more inevitable. So he's working with the tools he has.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

But like I said, the fact that

[Scott Bessant]

we're having to defend the dollar shows us that the problem is mounting.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

The problem is mounting, but this is why you're now in contestant dominance. Scott being very smart, made a big deal. Alexander Prietis comms team made a very big deal that he was not going on Air Force One with the president. He was going in advance and he was going to Japan first and then South Korea to talk to the finance ministers. Signal did that send to Beijing, sir,

[Scott Bessant]

listen, Beijing know that these guys know what they're doing. It's not a fight that they want to get into. And ultimately, I think coordination is the way out. We still have allies, Japan, South Korea. And I think ultimately, if we want to deal with the ccp, it's going to be through strength and through alliance. So it's encouraging to see what Besson is doing. This guy under understands the problem better than almost anybody else. Like I said, I don't envy his job. I couldn't do anywhere near as good a job as him. This is about the best man we could have with about the toughest job anybody could have.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

He is for this time. It's the reason we pushed him so hard. He was on the show as a contributor and part of that was to get media training and media savvy. We are very fortunate to have Scott Bessant as the Secretary of Treasury. Somebody that knows capital markets and particularly knows this part and has strong relationships for years as a. As a fund manager with the senior levels of South Korea's government on the finance side and the Japanese, because there's a, you know, to defend the dollar. Like I said, we can have a national conversation about should we be the prime reserve currency or not. But quite frankly, with the amount of debt we have and what we have to do right now, you have to stick with it and you have to defend it real quickly. Where do they go to get you, Philip? Because people want to be able to contact you over at Birchgold.

[Scott Bessant]

Very simple. Birchgold.com forward/Bannon Again birchgold.com Bannon or text Bannon to 989-898 and just get the information okay.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

No obligation, totally free. Get to meet Philip Patrick and the team. The ownership of physical gold in times of geopolitical and financial turbulence. It's been a pretty good hedge for 3,000 years of man's recorded history. Philip Patrick, thank you. Why do we cover this so much? And why did we start on the end of the dollar empire six years ago or five years ago? We knew this day was coming and we knew it was important for a blue collar and middle class audience to understand it and have access to that information. And bang, guess what worked out. It's one of the reasons the show is as powerful as it is, because without understanding currency and capital markets and money, you can't understand power. Once you understand money and power, you can use your agency to leave a big imprint on the political world. Stick around. Second hour of the War Room. We're going to do a special on trade in China from the eyes of an entrepreneur next. Just a moment, Fellow patriots. The Federal Reserve has portrayed America for over a century. Printing fiat, inflating away your savings, serving globalist masters. But President Trump is ending it. President Trump is wielding a 112 year old law to reclaim control from the rogue Federal Reserve. He's replacing Jerome Powell, slashing rates, igniting America's re industrialization. Now this is not theory. Government backed industry plus low rates unleashes super cycles. History does repeat. Gold's already exploding. Miners are up over 400% in the last year. What Rickards is calling Trump's gift is wealthy for American patriots, not global handouts. Now it's America's turn. Jim Rickards, former CIA and Pentagon veteran says act now. Go to insider2026.com that is insider2026.com to get Jim Rickard's strategic intelligence newsletter today. Strategic intelligence based upon predictive analytics. It's what chairman and CEO throughout the world read and you should too.