← Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Trump’s Forever War Hits Home. More Threats. And Another Ice Killing.DC Guard Extended Through 2029.
00:23:30
Trump's forever war isn't in Venezuela or Greenland anymore. It's on the home front. National Guard deployments in Washington have been quietly extended through 2029, ICE has killed two more people during vehicle stops in a single week, and Trump is now planning a prime-time address to reopen his case against the 2020 election. Paul Rieckhoff walks through why this is the moment — with Lindsey Graham gone, Mitch McConnell sidelined, and the midterms looming as the last real circuit breaker on executive power — that the pieces are being moved into place.
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This week, he's screaming it from the rooftops or across the airwaves. He's telling you that a big attack is coming this summer. He's going to use the FBI. He's going to use cash Patel. He might use ice. Remember Steve Bannon told you that using ice at the airports to check IDs was a warmup practice for ice to use those same tactics at the voting booths.
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Welcome to Independent Americans. Welcome to episode 574. I am your host, Paul Rykoff, and I'm coming to you from New York City, usa, where the weather is still hot and getting hotter. Almost 99 degrees this week, but there's a little bit of breeze, but it's going to be hot this summer. And today's artist is War, because they did a song called War Is Coming. War is Coming. You know them also from Low Rider and maybe Spill the Wine, why Can't We Be Friends, a lot of songs that kind of pasted the background of the 1970s. But war is on the horizon, a very different kind of war, an expansion of a war I've been warning you about that I think is going to hit this summer. And I'm going to talk about it in this episode coming up. And I'm going to bring you the five eyes. I bring you in every single show, no matter how hot or cold it gets. Independence, integrity, information, inspiration and impact. So as the summer heats up, as the World cup rolls on, as the All Star Game week unfolds, let's stay vigilant. All right, so as we barrel into July and this week especially, we've got the All Star Game, which has been a great distraction with the Home Run Derby especially, which I think is fun, especially when you get to see big leaguers get pitched to by their dads. I just love that. And the World Cup. The final four will now be down to the final two, culminating with a spectacular World cup final in New York and New Jersey this weekend. Trump will, of course, be there to contaminate it and things are hot. But above all, as it all starts to come together and as many people want to check out this week especially, I think there's one top topic. The top topic is that Trump's forever war is rolling on. And I don't think most of the media understands it. I don't think most Americans are tracking on it. And his war has been in other places, but it's back here now on the home front after Venezuela and Iran and threats to Greenland and all that. Trump's bringing his forever war back home, because that's where the threat to his power is the greatest. I've long said to you that the midterm elections could be a circuit breaker, a check on his power, a change that could provide accountability, even potentially impeaching him again or sending him and his minions to jail. Either way, a change in the Congress and the House, and maybe the Senate, too, would slow him down, would potentially stop him. So Trump is bringing his forever war back home, and he's leading it with ice. And there's now breaking news that ICE has been ordered to cease most vehicle stops after two killings in one week. We've covered this on the show. Agents shot a guy in Houston and another one in Maine, both inside their vehicles. Latest in a string of shootings during Trump's second term. And this escalation in the use of ice. Now, I don't know why ICE hasn't been shut down from doing traffic stops months ago, years ago, but I know why. Because Trump didn't want to. But he toggles with ice. I think it's really important to remember he toggled in to Minneapolis with ice. Then he toggled out. And I warned you that he was gonna go deeper into Texas, and I even said he was gonna go deeper and more aggressively into Maine, which has got all kinds of political challenges of its own right now with the Platner fiasco, Susan Collins still relatively unpopular, and we'll see how Maine continues to become an epicenter of our politics and our friction. But ICE is an extension of Trump's power. I've called it Plan B. If he wants to protect and preserve his power, Plan A is the military, Plan B is ice, and Plan C is all of his most dedicated minions who tried to overthrow the government last time. The same people he tried to pardon. But the military is Plan A, and he's cranking it up. There's news that's, I think, too far below the radar. He has extended National Guard deployments in Washington, D.C. until 2029. I've said, watch this space. But the expensive and lengthy deployments are now showing that he is going to expand his power into D.C. they're not leaving. When they first deployed there, I warned you that they would not be leaving because he wants them to stay through 2029, because that's always been the plan. Don't have a failure of imagination. If you were the president and you wanted to secure your power inside the White House, where's the first place that you would put your troops? You put them around you in Washington don't have a failure of imagination because he's always been focused on on the election and planning to wage a war on it. And now this week especially, he's ready to make his case for war to the country. There's breaking news that he plans to do a primetime speech on his allegations about the 2020 election this week. He's planning a primetime address on Thursday to, quote, reexamine the government's issues with election infrastructure and its vulnerabilities. Now, Trump has told reporters in the Oval Office he's going to elaborate on his concerns about voting machines. He said, quote, it will concern that subject. We'll have a couple of things to say, but I'd rather save it. But it's really, really big news. Now. There's no word on whether Trump is going to address his long standing allegations of foreign interference, potentially on the part of Venezuela or China or Iran. Who knows who he's going to blame it on? And he's also going to try to ask the networks for time. There's no word on whether or not yet the networks will accept his request for time, which I'm sure he'll ask for. But I hope they say no, because they shouldn't give him a platform to push out conspiracy theories and to undermine the public trust in our elections. Look, I've said that our primaries are definitely broken or even rigged, meaning that they're designed to favor one side or the other. But this is something different entirely. He wants to re litigate the 2020 election. The big lie. Now he's got a megaphone. Now he's got the airwaves. Now he's got Congress, at least for now. And he's gonna push the case. And he's always telegraphing his punches, always. And this week he's screaming it from the rooftops or across the airwaves. He's telling you that a big attack is coming this summer. He's gonna use the FBI, he's gonna use Kash Patel. He might use ice. Remember Steve Bannon told you that using ICE at the airports to check IDs was a warmup practice for ICE to use those same tactics at the voting booths this summer, using plan A, plan B and plan C. And I don't know who else in the media is laying this out for you, but I am, because I want to cover not just what's happening now, but what's happening next. And what's coming next is Big Trump's revelations or what he reveals or what he throws out. There may not be big, but the fact that he's doing this now, the fact that he's moving the pieces in place this summer when a lot of Americans are checked out, when his power might be a bit less because Lindsey Graham is gone, because Mitch McConnell can't vote, he knows his days are numbered if he doesn't make a move. And this is a very big move that I think is coming this summer. So stay very, very vigilant. All right? Also underscoring why he wants to do this, this week there is breaking news that E. Jean Carroll has received a $5.6 million payment from Trump in the civil case. A federal jury found that Trump is liable for defaming Ms. Carroll. He. He exhausted his. All his appeals last month, and now he's gotta get. She's gotta get paid. The money was held in escrow and it was dispersed to Ms. Carroll last week, meaning she finally got paid. Long overdue. Won't heal her wounds or write what was wrong, but at least he was made to pay. He definitely doesn't want to talk about that. He definitely doesn't want to talk about Epstein. He definitely doesn't want to talk about the economy, but he does want to talk about the elections. And that is coming soon. Don't let it fall below your radar and 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. 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? Who 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 $100 and he shows up, you get paid out $108.86. There's all kinds of stuff you can trade on on Kalshi. 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, value and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information, see kalshi.com regulatory independent Americans, you can trade right now with other independent Americans and all Americans on Kalshi. Independent Americans, place your trades right now on kalshi. All right, during the summer, I'm going to mix it up a bit on this show. We've been dropping episodes ahead of the morning. We're going to shoot for before 9am Eastern, so hopefully you got that today or whenever you're downloading this. I'm also going to make them a bit more evergreen. So it doesn't matter when you tune in if you've lost a couple of episodes. If you're on a long drive, you can power through them, you can share them, you can listen or, of course, watch on YouTube. But I also want to go deeper into issues that I don't think anybody else is covering, especially around our independent movement, because independent candidates and issues are at the forefront at the tip of the spear in terms of our democracy. I think that independents are the people's champions, whether they're candidates or they're voting. 45% of us are independent. And we're not just moving the needle. We are the needle. So today I'm gonna start a new special feature called Independence Under Attack.
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Independence.
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And I wanna focus on South Carolina and a lawsuit to lock out independent voters. Now, there's a link in the show notes to some really compelling graphics that Chris put together. But I'm going to lay it out for you because you need to know. One lawsuit could shut out 1.5 million South Carolina independents and an estimated 165,000 veterans out of elections that decide who governs, who's in charge. On July 4, 2026, just a couple of weeks ago, 10 days ago, the South Carolina Republican party asked a federal court to close the state's open primaries to let a party, not the public, decide who's allowed to vote in the elections that matter most. In a state with no party registration, that would force every voter to pledge to a party or lose their vote. Veterans, the most important or most sorry, the most independent voters in America would be hit first and hardest. That means 165,000 voters, independent veteran voters would be immediately locked out. Now, here's more. The political party is suing for the power to choose its own voters. This is like the players picking the referee and the rules and the playing field. And when the timeouts come and they're rigging it all for themselves. The Republican party filed this lawsuit against the state election commission to end South Carolina's open primaries. Party chairman Drew McKissick calls letting all voters participate, quote, a violation of our constitutional right to freedom of association. He thinks his constitutional rights are being impeded here. The filing argues that an open electorate risks, quote, selecting a weaker nominee or one, quote, less faithful to Republican principles. Put plainly, the party doesn't like who's showing up, so it's asking for a court to decide who's allowed to. Now, South Carolina has no party registration. Everyone would have to pick a side or lose their vote. Now, unlike most states, South Carolina doesn't register voters by party. All 3.49 million registered voters can vote in either primary today. But if you close the primaries, then every one of them would have to formally enroll in a party just to keep voting in races that actually decide who governs. Because in a state this red, the Republican primary, not November, is usually the whole ballgame. Fewer than 440,000 people voted in the last statewide primary, so that small self selected electorate would become the only one allowed in. Now, they only had 12.5% turnout. That's another important point which they want to keep. Now, I've made this case before and I'm trying to elevate and I hope you'll share this with folks who don't know, especially folks who live in South Carolina or. But the most independent voters in America lose the most 45% of us now call ourselves independent. And veterans are the single most independent cohort of all. South Carolina is one of the most heavily veteran centric states in the country, home to roughly 345,000 vets, 8.4% of every adult in the state, with bases from Parris island to Fort Jackson. Apply those rates to the closed primary lockout and it falls on an estimated 1.5 million in independent South Carolinians, including 165,000 vets, people who served under an oath to the Constitution, not to a party, and who would now be told to join one or forfeit the vote. The vote that they fought for, that their friends died for and that should be sacred. Now here's the bottom line. When a party picks its electorate, the voters stop mattering. Everyone of South Carolina's 3.49 million taxpayers helps pay for these primaries. It's public funding. The lawsuit would keep the bill public while making the ballot private. One party asking a court for the power to decide who's allowed into the elections that are driven by public funds. Open primaries keep the door open for everybody. In South Carolina, this suit would slam it shut and hand the keys to the party alone. Veterans especially defended the right to vote. They shouldn't have to surrender their independence to use it. So help keep South Carolina's primaries open to everyone who serves and everyone who votes. They swore an oath to the Constitution, not to a party they shouldn't have to join one to vote. If you agree, click the link in my show notes here and help join the fight to preserve our independence, to fight back against attacks like this. We shouldn't have to join a party to vote, and we as independent Americans can push back. I'm going to continue to bring your attention to these critical fights. Ask yourself did you know this was happening? Ask your friends, do they know what's happening in South Carolina on July 4th when lots of folks were barbecuing or hanging out at the beach and celebrating
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Being outside is good for us. It's that simple. And trails make it easy for us to walk, bike and be active outside in our own backyards. On the trail we see people moving, connecting with their communities, making the places where they live great. For 40 years, Rails to Trails Conservancy has led the way, creating trails across the country, making making it safer and easier for everyone to get outside. They want you to get involved. Find your trail and start your journey today at railstotrails.org iheart and follow railstotrails on social dependence.
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A small group of people, we're coming after it. I'm gonna help keep it on your radar. I ask you to join us and spread the word and always, especially now, stay vigilant. All right, let's finish with some sports. If you didn't see it, the All Star Game home run derby was awesome. My man Ben Rice for the Yankees did not win, but it was really special and cool to see him get pitched to by his dad. They went from the backyard to the big leagues and Jordan Walker won on a walk off stunner, beating Kyle Schwarber in the final. It was a one on one. It was a really, really fun night and the ending was absolutely awesome. Also great to see Jordan Walker's family come down on the field and check it out and celebrate him. If you haven't seen the highlights, go back and check it out. The All Star game week continues to be a lot of fun. And also in sports, the World Cup. As I record this, Spain is clashing with Argentina. Tomorrow, of course we will have England. Sorry, Spain is clashing with France. Tomorrow we will have Spain versus England so that by the time you hear this, it may be decided, but we're building up to an incredible final. Even if you're not a soccer fan, I urge you to tune in. And as a watcher of politics, you're probably going to have to because Trump will be there. But don't let him take your joy. Joy is a form of resistance and the World cup is something that's brought joy to the entire world. And this time it's been played in America. I got one more thing for you. That's something good.
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Something good.
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Feel the fire. All right, this is a bit random, but over the summer a lot of people are traveling. A lot of people who travel are big like me. I'm not a small dude. I hate traveling. And there's nothing worse than a middle seat. I fucking hate middle seats. Like up there with the highest of hates. And there's now news that United will remove the dreaded middle seat in some of the rows. The economy plus option will feature a center table that passengers on either side can share. Like, you know when you get on a plane and you find out there's a middle seat open, it's like bang, hitting the lottery.
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Woo hoo.
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Right? Or when my kids were little, I kind of felt that way, but the Washington Post had the story the United United Airlines is removing one of the most unpleasant experience in flying with a new economy option that replaces the middle seat. They're calling it part of their economy plus configuration. It'll debut later this year on the Airbus A321XLR. It's going to have a table stretching between the armrests. Passengers on either side can share. Maybe you can have a small stack or a board game. You can play cards. You can make a new friend. No word on how much it's going to cost, but I think it will hopefully make people a little bit happier. I think it's something good. Maybe it'll set a trend. It won't bring down fuel prices, but I think it's a little bit of something good. All right, it's a time for us all stay vigilant, especially this summer. Let me know what you think of this episode. I'm going to do an Ask Me Anything episode coming up. I know I've said that before, but send in any questions you'd like me to answer for an upcoming Ask Me Anything. You can ask me about politics, you can ask me about fatherhood, you can ask me about middle seats, whatever you want and I'll rip through your questions. We are daily now. I'm going to keep that up throughout the summer. We hit number 15 on the charts. Join our Patreon community. Check out the Morning Independent, our newsletter that's free. Check out our supporters from Kalshee and Noble Mobile, and Independent Voters, Independent Voter News, and of course go to IndependentAmericans US wherever you're listening. Do me a solid and be sure to subscribe. Leave us five stars and a review. I hope that this episode especially gives you information you can't get anywhere else, especially if you're now among the 45% of Americans that are independent. This is our show. This is our movement. Country over party, people over politics. You know the deal. Hope is the oxygen of our democracy and we are bringing it every day. If you enjoyed this episode, share it far and wide. Invite others to declare their independence, especially in South Carolina. If you're in South Carolina, share this far and wide. If you know people in South Carolina, share this episode especially and help them stay vigilant. Because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. You know, you're not alone in your vigilance. We're all vigilant and we're all in this together, especially this summer. Watch what Trump is doing. Don't check out. Don't tune out. There's a lot of fun stuff happening in the summer and a lot of us are just exhausted. That's what he's counting on. Can't let him. We got to Stay vigilant. I'm your host, Paul Rykoff. Thank you for tuning into Independent Americans. I hope you enjoy the All Star Game and enjoy all the buzz and positivity around the World Cup. I will see you for our next episode tomorrow. Happy Summer. Stay Vigilant America.
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He tells me the left and right are dreams for those without a clue and when you wait it's time to
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grow and it's not cool to believe
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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 I get it Independent is an attitude. And write our dreams for those without a clue and when you wait it's
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time to grow Powered by Righteous Media if you like the show, please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe.
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It really does help the show to grow. Thank you for listening.