← Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
ICE Kills Again. Trump’s War with Iran is Back on. Again. Lindsey Graham Is Gone — Pass the Sanctions.
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No guests today — just Paul Rieckhoff, coming to you from a brutally hot New York City with the five I's to keep you cool: independence, integrity, information, inspiration, and impact. The top story is a shock: Lindsey Graham, the 71-year-old South Carolina senator and staunch Trump ally, has died. Paul reflects on a complicated legacy — the man who voted to send him to war, drilled in the reserves as a sitting senator, disappointed vets by voting against the post-9/11 GI Bill, and eventually folded fully into Trump land, but who stood with Ukraine when it mattered. His pitch: pass Graham's Russia sanctions bill now and name it in his honor. He also flags the deeper problem with naming an inexperienced family member to a Senate seat that votes on war and peace, checks in on a silent, recovering Mitch McConnell, and breaks down Trump's reignited Iran war — the worst ceasefire ever, 140 targets hit over the weekend, and "President Mayhem" at his peak while markets churn.
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ICE does need to be shut down. I don't think that's a partisan stance. I think that's a patriotic stance and it's one that we need to reinvigorate. We need to refocus. Because I think the protests are coming, folks. I think the controversy is coming, folks. I think the hammer of ICE is coming, folks. I think Trump wants it. Welcome to Independent Americans. Welcome to episode 5 73. I am your host, Paul Reichoff, and I'm coming to you from New York City, usa. And the weather here is hot, crazy hot. Supposed to get up to like 100 tomorrow. It is very, very, very hot. And it's a reminder that it's summer. And in summer it will be hot in more ways than one. And we're going to get into it in today's show and then some. Today's Artist the artist I share with my little boys each morning to introduce them to new music is the Loving Spoonful, the Canadian American folk rock band that was actually formed in Greenwich Village here in New York City in 1964. Their debut single was do youo Believe in Magic But I chose them today because they also did. Summer in the city, Hot town, Summer in the city. You know that one? It's what it is right now. It's hot in the summer in the city and in the country and everywhere in between. And I'm going to bring you the five eyes to help keep you cool through all of it. Independence, integrity, information, inspiration and impact. No guests today, just me and you. Keeping it hot going into another week and helping you stay vigilant. All right, we've been switching up the format a little bit and the timing a little bit. I am now dropping shows in the morning. So if you're on the east coast, when you wake up, there should be an episode waiting for you. We've gotten some feedback that some folks would prefer that. So we're going to try that. Let me know what you think. But you'll still get us on Apple and Spotify on our website, IndependentAmericans US and of course on YouTube. But every morning when you wake up, look for a brand new episode. You can take it with you on your way to work on your morning run if you're working an overnight shift, if you're deployed overseas, wherever you are. I'm going to try to continue to bring you new content this summer and make it a little less formal. You'll still get great guests, you'll still get my analysis. But let me know what you think. But I am back here in New York City to start a new week and I want to know what you think about this new week ahead. What do you want me to focus on? Tell me each week on social and I'll do that as well. But I was gone for this weekend. I was actually in the Poconos in Pennsylvania, about two hours from the city for the annual Pocono Invitational Father Son Basketball camp, which was really awesome. It was inspiring. It was tough. The kids worked really hard. We met dads from all different backgrounds from all across the country. We come together for three days. We of bonding, of swimming, of really hard basketball. I am taking a lot of Advil and working a lot of ice packs because I can't remember the last time I played full court concrete 10 minute halves. But I am back. And when I was there, I got the news only yesterday that Lindsey Graham has died, which is undoubtedly our top, top. All right, Lindsey Graham, as you know by now, the staunch Trump advocate, South Carolina senator, 71 years old. I was out of cell service when I got the news and it was definitely shocking. More upheaval in our politics Just when you think it can't get any more chaotic. I was actually standing on the basketball court and a guy said, you must have heard the news about Lindsey Graham. And I said, no. What? He. He said, he died. I said, are you fucking kidding me? He said, no, no, I'm serious. I was shocked. I'm not shocked. That Governor Henry McAllister of South Carolina has already named his sister, Darlene Graham Nardone, to replace him. Because they often name a family member to replace senators who die. Usually it's a spouse, but in this case, Lindsey Graham doesn't have a spouse. He and his sister were very close. Their parents died in a 15 month stretch and Graham raised his son, his daughter, I'm sorry, his sister, who was 13, almost like a daughter. And she introduced him when he launched his long shot bid for Republican president back in 2016. But she is a mother of two who has worked to help people with disabilities to find a job, but she has almost no political experience other than supporting a brother. And that part of this, separate from Lindsey Graham, it doesn't sit well with me. And it shouldn't sit well with you either, even if you're a Republican. A family member with no experience on national security issues, for example, is now going to vote whether or not we should go to war. Vote on issues of war and peace, votes on budgets. I mean, I know staffs are highly capable, but this is a really important time when every Senate vote matters. Obviously this will be someone who's in the bag for Trump and in the bag for the Republican Party, but I hope for someone who is at least competent and experienced. But let's talk about Senator Graham himself. I met Senator Graham a few times when I worked on the Hill doing veterans advocacy for over two decades, mostly when he was alongside John McCain, who I worked much more closely with. We didn't have a personal relationship, but Lindsey Graham voted to send me to war. And in the early days of the Iraq War, he was notably one of the few members in Congress that was still in the Reserves. He drilled and in in the Reserves, and at that time, I think he was a lieutenant colonel or a colonel. He was the only member of the Reserves that was also a senator. That always left me hoping that he'd get it more than most and fight the hardest for vets and for VA reform. And unfortunately, he'd often disappoint, including voting against the post 911 GI bill in 2008. And years later, he'd continue to disappoint with his hawkishly stubborn stances on Iraq and Afghanistan and eventual total compromise into Trumpland. Few have more importantly and consistently enabled Trump. And this is a political loss for Trump, no doubt. But Lindsey Graham did stand with Ukraine and especially and importantly in the last few months. And maybe that can be an opportunity for a cause that he cared about as America and the world is processing his passing and what comes next. He just left meeting with Zelensky in Ukraine. He was getting ready to go on Meet the Press. But his Russia sanctions bill is good, important, and long overdue for Ukraine and for America. I would say that it should be named in honor of Lindsey Graham and it should be passed asap. There's one way, I think this is one way, I think, to honor maybe the best and most timely part of Lindsey Graham's legacy and more urgently move forward world and national security and the global fight for freedom, which is something he cared about, something we should all care about, and something that continues always, especially in this very hot summer. And it's another reason to stay vigilant. All right, Lindsey Graham has died. Mitch McConnell lives. After much speculation and weeks of silence, Senator Mitch McConnell says he's recovering from a fall. And he released a photo, proof of life, if you will. It's not exactly encouraging. I'm not sure it wasn't doctored by AI, but there is proof that at least he's alive. He did apparently lose consciousness. He's admitted that he's been hospitalized, but no sign of Mitch McConnell. This is troubling for many reasons. Again, we've got senators who need to vote on issues of war and peace. We've got enemies who would love to see our elected leaders compromise. And I think it's another issue that Trump is on the ropes about. I mean, not having Lindsey Graham and not having Mitch McConnell right now when he just lost a War Powers act vote by one vote will stifle some of his momentum. But when it comes to having disruption and 85, 86, 87 year old senators who are in poor health, our enemies are celebrating. All right? They're also celebrating because the war in Iran is not dead. It lives on. And two of the biggest hawks were, of course, Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell. As the war has now escalated yet again, the worst ceasefire ever. I've covered this for months now, all the way back to when it first started. I said it probably wouldn't be over soon. And here we are. And over the weekend, just On Saturday, the US struck 140 targets during a new wave. Trump said, quote, we bombed the hell out of them as Iran responded with attacks in neighboring countries again, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Oman. So we are back to a fully engulfed region that is now facing war. The markets are in tumult, and this is what peak President mayhem looks like. And we're still only in the middle of July. Unfortunately, folks, I think it's going to get worse. It's going to get hotter, and our enemies will be celebrating. All right. Another reason that our enemies are celebrating. An issue we haven't talked about enough. But I warned you to keep an eye on ICE continues to run rampant all across America. Every day, more bad shit. It's time to bring back the ICE on Chris. Everybody knows that I got to go I T E G T F O Every, every everybody knows that ICE got to go don't believe the government, believe your eyes. Remember, these are the people. I have to remind people, I guess, that ICE is the group of people that gassed kids in Portland and busted into houses without warrants and detained citizens and cops and veterans and kids and kick puppies. Remember that one? But they're also the people who murdered Renee Good and Alex Preddy. There was no accountability for that. There's still not accountability for that. And I've long said if they can do that to them, they. They can do it to you. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention. And to quote Vanilla Ice, ICE is back with a brand new addition. They've now killed two more people in Maine and in Houston. And it's sparking pushback, it's sparking outrage, and it's pushing. Re Pushing demands for transparency that are long overdue. The latest shooting is in Biddeford, Maine. Of course, Maine is where we have one of the most pivotal Senate races in the country. The state's Office of the Attorney General has filed an initial statement claiming an immigration agent shot and killed a man as he fled from ICE agents. There's video that's been circulating. There's also. This comes days after another fatal shooting of a Mexican immigrant during a traffic stop in Houston. DHS has not released a statement. It's over a day later. And Department of Homeland Security has not even issued a statement. I'm going to reiterate what I've said before. ICE is ripping and tearing our country apart. Part it's unlawful. It's unacceptable. It's unauthorized. It's un American. Every day, more and more by the day. ICE does need to be shut down. I don't think that's a partisan stance. I think that's a patriotic stance and it's one that we need to reinvigorate, we need to refocus. Because I think the protests are coming, folks. I think the controversy is coming, folks. I think the hammer of ice is coming, folks. I think Trump wants it because the specter of imposing martial law, imposing the Insurrection act and putting more National Guard and troops in the street is something that he wants. He's stoking the violence and it will give him a reason to put the hammer down ahead of the circuit breaker. That would be the midterm elections. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention. Stay vigilant, independent Americans. The 2026 elections are taking shape and you hear about it on this show every single episode. You can trade on the biggest political races on Kalshi. On Kalshi you can trade major primaries, election outcomes and the biggest political storylines as they happen. It is election season leading up to the biggest midterms ever. And you can trade on, for example, who will control Congress, the Democrats or the Republicans. Right now the Democrats are trading at 82%, meaning a $100 trade would pay out $111.06. If it goes that way, you can trade on the main Senate election, the biggest election, I think, at least for the summer. Will the Democrats win this Senate race or will the Republicans and Susan Collins hang on? The Republicans are trading at 38%, which means a $100 trade on the Republicans would pay out $252.21 if they and Susan Collins win that election. You can put your money where you think it's going to go. You can also bet on the big one, who's going to be the 2028 Democratic presidential nominee or who the Republican nominee is. And there are other fun ones like you can pick Will Trump attend the World cup final? There is right now a 91.2% chance that he does. He likely will be there. If you bet a hundred dollars and he shows up, you get paid out $108.86. There's all kinds of stuff you can trade on on Cow Sheet. It's interesting, it's fun and if you listen to or watch the show, you are ahead of most folks on Kalsheet. You're trading against peers in a live market, which means there's no house. As the probability changes, you can buy in and out of your position for a limited time, download the Kalshi app and use the Code Independent for this show. The Code independent to get $10 when you trade 10 kalshi k a l s h I trade on anything 18 and older restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contracting trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices, values and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information, see kalsheet.com regulatory independent Americans, you can trade right now with other independent Americans and all Americans on Kalshee. Independent Americans, place your trades right now on Kalshee. All right, Trump is all gas, no brakes. He's going for it. He's going for it. He's going to put the pedal down and push overseas and here at home. And he's still waging war against the free press because he knows that's another circuit breaker. And the Trump administration has now issued subpoenas. The New York Times journalist who wrote about the new Air Force One saying they compromised national security. It's an escalation of pressure on the media that is totally anticipated. I could have told you this was going to happen. But obviously, Air Force One was not safe enough for him to fly in. That's why it was grounded. The new Air Force One that was given to him by a foreign country, it was not safe enough. It was grounded. Now the White House is arguing by reporting on this, the Times is violating national security. They're going to try to stifle any oversight. They're going to try to stifle any accountability, and he's going to continue to wage war on the press much more ferociously than he will on Putin or domestic terrorism or anyone else. Watch this space and don't let it fall below your radar. All right, there is some good news. The courts are punching back on Trump. It seems to be one area that consistently is holding the line. And now a judge has ruled that Trump sought to, quote, manipulate the judicial process with his IRS lawsuit and attempted $1.8 billion slush fund for insurrectionists. This is some good news. He may blow past the courts as well. But at least consistently, the courts have been holding the line for America, for our Constitution, and for our democracy. To all the judges out there that are listening to all the courts that are out there, please keep it up this summer. We need you. Stay vigilant. All right, primaries. It is a new week. I just want to give you a heads up on what's coming. July 21st will be the Arizona primary. Maine's big primary was. It will be July 25th officially. And Louisiana will have a primary in November. There are others coming up in August. But we are in kind of the quiet part of the primary season here before a few more kick in as we rush toward a general election where far too many elections have been already settled because of partisan primaries. Go back and check out all our recent episodes talking about open primaries. Check out our friends at Open Primaries and check out all the other links we have in our bio to resources. And go to independentveteransofamerica.org where we've got some amazing infographics about how many independent veterans continue to be shut out. More independent veterans have been shut out of primaries than have voted. That's something that you should read about, understand and check out. Go to independentveteransofamerica.org, will help you stay vigilant. All right, let's talk culture. It is a hot summer, but it's also the summer of New York City. I think the summer of New York City continues with amazing cultural moment. Jay Z did a star studded, studded three night residency at Yankee Stadium. I was out of town. I missed it. But he had all these amazing special guests that came rolling out into Yankee Stadium. Beyonce, Rihanna, Eminem, Nas, Usher, Pharrell, Slick Rick, Fat Joe. Of course, if it's happening in the Bronx, you know Fat Joe is going to be the Jada, Kiss clips and others. It was an amazing three days as J to Z goes on tour. No word on if he talked about any politics. So far, Trump has not attended. I don't think that's something he's going to attend, but boy would that be interesting. Watch that space folks and stay vigilant. Vigilant Vigilant Vigilant Vigilant. Happy Birthday America. It's time to celebrate and play your favorite Las Vegas casino games by American owned spinquest.com what's better than fireworks and American pie? Hitting a black tech in the palm of your hand and you won't lose your fingers. Over a thousand games including slots and live dealers and 30 point packs are on sale for 10 spinquest.com buy American players. For American players, Spin Quest is a free to play social casino. Boyd where prohibited. Visit spinquest.com for more details. Vigilant all right, sports two quick hits on sports. The World cup is now down to four amazing last round. Argentina and England, France and Spain. Holland, the new Viking superstar to Americans anyway, was knocked out in a great battle with England. We watched it in the Poconos in an unair conditioned rec room with about 25 kids and dads. It was really fun. It was a good break for some basketball. But underscoring that the World cup continues to bring people together. And the final will be, I said it's the summer of New York. It'll be in New York City and New Jersey at MetLife this weekend. And this week is also the Home Run Derby and the All Star Game. It kicks off on Monday night. It goes into Tuesday night. America 250 continues with an All Star Game in Philadelphia. And I want to big shout out to Ben Rice, the first baseman of the Yankees. He will be starting in the All Star Game and participating in the All Star Derby. He's a great guy. I had the opportunity to meet him. He's been very kind to my kids. He is a kid who went to Dartmouth and grinded his way up to the majors and is now turned into an aspiring superstar and one of the most popular Yankees and soon to be maybe one of the most popular players in the league. And that takes me to something good. Something good. All right. Something good today, folks. The Major League Baseball All Star Game. It's called the Midsummer Classic. My kids are really excited and I think everyone who likes baseball is excited. And even if you don't like baseball, you might be excited. Even though Ohtani and Judge are injured and won't play. It's like a fantasy league. It's like putting all your favorite players on the field and seeing what happens in baseball has never been better. Baseball continues to unify and a baseball All Star Game in Philly when baseball is so fun, is sure to be exciting. Trump is not attending, so he can't jinx either side. American League versus National League. Of course, I will be rooting for Ben Rice. Cody Bellinger starting also from the Yankees, and it's a fun one, but it takes me back to my childhood and it reminds me about how kids are so excited and optimistic, not just about baseball, but about the World cup and sports this summer and especially this All Star Game is something good. All right. It's also reason to stay vigilant. We're daily now. I'll try to drop these episodes in the morning. Thank you to Chris Rosenthal who helps make it happen. If you haven't gotten our merch, go to IndependentAmericans US. You can also subscribe on all platforms, which you must do. Please do that. Leave five stars on Apple Podcast. Let me know guests you'd like to see, topics you'd like us to cover. Of course, we've got the TMI Morning Independent newsletter that you can get for free. If you go to IndependentAmericans US, check out our supporters from Kalshee. Check out our supporters from Noble Mobile and our supporters from Independent Veteran News all linked in the BIO America's divide but 250 kind of brought us together. ICE is going to try to divide us again. The All Star Game can bring us together. That's what this summer is going to feel like. Up and down, back and forth, out and in. We're working to change it, to bring people together, to add light, to contrast the heat. Especially of all the other divisive political and corporate partisan shows. So if you're now among the 45% of Americans who are independent, even Phillies fans, this is your show. Our independent movement is bringing hope for the future. Just like the All Star Game, just like the home run Derby country over party, people over politics, light over heat. And our movement is growing and bringing the hope that is the oxygen of our democracy. If you like this episode and any of our recent episodes, please share them far and wide. I will have more great guests coming up. Invite others to declare their independence this Independence Day month. And stay vigilant my friends, because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. Now you're not alone and you're vigilant. We're all vigilant and we're all in this together. I'm your host, Paul Rykopf. Thank you for tuning in into Independent Americans. Enjoy the All Star Game week. I will see you tomorrow or you will hear me tomorrow. Happy All Star and World Cup Week. It's going to be hot. I'm going to try to keep you cool and let's all stay frosty and stay vigilant. America tells me the left and right Our dreams for those without a clue and when you wait it's time to grow and it's not cool to believe in school but if I can say one thing I've seen the children of the revolution and the good trouble they can bring he says the red and blue identity dependent is an attitude
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island in the sea of rhetoric and I can probably go he tells me the left and right Our dreams for those without a clue and when you wait it's time to grow Powered by Righteous Media if you like the show, please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe. It really does help the show to grow. Thank you for listening.