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- [00:00]
Donald Trump
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:04]
Eric
To grab the bell. We can see what's going on on Wall Street. It's been an interesting day to say the least. The good news is most of the indices were up. The Dow is down at one point, is down 2, 300 points. Ends up down only about 60 points. S&P up 24. It's a nice move of the S and P. Nasdaq also up meaning both of those that hit record territory. Both of those have been very, very good across the board. Oil earlier I saw it up a touch and yet it's 60, 62 dollars a barrel. Gold was strong again. Yet another strong day for gold. Up $78 to the ounce. Really approaching the $4,000 per ounce level for the first time ever. And you're gonna like the guys in the control. We're gonna like this silver. Just ripping at $48. $48 of silver. Amazing, amazing. And then crypto. I'm watching it all night watching Bitcoin trade. 122, 124, 125. We got almost, we did, we, we breached 126,000 level in Bitcoin. That's great news. Ethereum 4720. Very, very strong. Solana up. CRO up. All right, folks. Americans were watching the justice system with growing concern. Remember we watched Donald Trump being treated the lawfare by the left. Did he clean it up? He got in there. He wants to change things. And they are, they are. But we're watching it with growing concern. From Washington to Wall street to the heart of Te and more people are asking the same question, is the law still blind? You know what that means, you know, and that, that little scale where lady liberty, lady law is blind because you're not supposed, doesn't matter who you are, it should be treated equally. Or has the law become a political weapon? One long running bankruptcy case we want to talk about may hold the answer. The case involves Highland Capital Management, a Dallas based investment firm that once managed billions upon billions of dollars. Six years ago, Highland entered bankruptcy after a 100 million dollar arbitration dispute. Since then, more than 850 million dollars has been paid out. 850 million paid out. The company remains solvent. Yet the bankruptcy drags on generating over $260 million in fees, lawyers fees, likely and professional fees and expenses. Many Americans see this as a system completely out of control. One that punishes those who play by the rules while rewarding those who manipulate the rules. Think lawfare, think Trump. They point to what's happened to Highland's founder, James Dondero, a man pushed out of the company he built from the very ground up. Even a $300 million charitable investment fund created through Highland has been dismantled, its assets assets redirected through a maze of settlements and legal rulings that few can even follow anymore. At the center of the controversy is the U.S. bankruptcy judge. Her name is Stacy Jernigan. She was appointed in 2006. She's faced sharp criticism for writing and selling novels that portray hedge fund managers in harsh, fictionalized terms, the same types of figures appearing before her in court. So she's judging these cases with subjects, plaintiffs, defendants who are the same people she's writing negative books about. Legal observers say that the blur between the line between art and impartiality raises serious questions about whether personal opinions have influenced judicial decisions, especially there. Attorney Michael Edney of Hunton Andrews Kurth says, we're urging the court to adopt rules that ensure the perception and the reality of an impartial judiciary. A judge should not simultaneously preside over cases and write books portraying the industries and litigants before her in a negative light. It just doesn't work. Across the country, Americans are seeing lengthy, high cost legal campaigns that appear to push political outsiders or business leaders who don't fit the establishment mode. It pushes them into a corner. They see it in the courtroom and the battles involving former presidents. Hello, Trump. And they see echoes of it in cases like Highlands, where process itself becomes the punishment. You can wipe people out by just keeping them in the process. They have to defend themselves. Lawyers cost a ton of money. That's what this case is. That's what this case is really. It's raising these grave questions, including whether insiders traded on non public information, whether mandatory financial disclosures were ignored, and whether sweeping legal releases insulated powerful players from accountability. If those allegations proved true, it would mark one of the most expensive and politically charged bankruptcies in modern history. For millions of Americans who've already lost faith in the fairness of of the courts, Highland stands as a symbol of what happens when power and politics replace transparency and, more importantly, justice. For many, it's not about one businessman or one company. It's about the principle of fairness itself. A justice system that can bankrupt the solvent, silence dissent and protect insiders is a system that ordinary citizens can no longer trust. The Highland capital case is still moving through the courts, but its implications reach beyond, far beyond any one firm. Many Americans now believe that without real transparency and accountability, confidence in our justice system will continue to erode. When any courtroom can Appear political. No matter who's on trial or who's on the bench, every citizen's rights are at risk. Restoring faith in the rule of law isn't a partisan goal. It shouldn't be. It's an American one. The first step, many say, is demanding a system that's truly fair and. And impartial accountability to those people. It serves blind justice. It's called, Folks, Heartland in Texas. My first guest was a TV anchor for the ABC affiliate in Illinois when she learned of Charlie Kirk's assassination. She went on to give a heartfelt nonpartisan tribute to Charlie Kirk. Take a look.
- [05:58]
Benny Ray Harmony
Tuning into Marketplace today. So I want to talk about something for a minute, and it is heavy, so please bear with me. I want you to know that it's okay if you feel sadness. It's okay if you feel you're grieving. Two days ago, I lost a mentor, my first boss, the first person who made me believe in myself. That encouraged me to chase this dream that you're watching right now, Charlie Kirk. There's a lot of. There's a lot going on in our world right now, in our country, But I want to say one thing. Lean on your neighbors. Speak up for what you believe in. I don't care what it is. I want to share with you one of my favorite sayings that Charlie would always tell us at the office. He would yell it from the mountaintop. So please listen. When conversations stop happening, when individuals become wordless, that's when violence begins. So if you do one thing today, make it be with passion, with conviction. Stand up for your friends, stand up for your beliefs, and speak loudly, even if your voice shakes. Your words have meaning, your values have purpose. Never forget that. Thank you, ck. You changed my life.
- [07:13]
Eric
Well, right after that newscast, she was suspended by the company. She decided she wasn't going to take that, and she resigned, which is fortunate because she's now part of our RAV Team. Welcome. Benny Ray. Harmony. Benny, really good to have you. Why do you think your previous network. By the way, which aff. That was in NBC affiliate. Who was the affiliate? Oh, it was abc. Was ABC affiliate.
- [07:35]
Benny Ray Harmony
Yes.
- [07:36]
Eric
And so you're. You come off the set with that heartfelt emotional plea to think about Charlie Kirk and tell us what happened.
- [07:44]
Benny Ray Harmony
So I came out of the studio and, Eric, it was. It was almost a Holy Spirit moment. When I was walking to the studio that day, something inside of me almost told me that this was going to be my last walk to the studio. But I just felt this overwhelming sense of peace in this idea that it wasn't planned. This was not. There was no plan to this. And when I got behind that desk and I knew that red light turned on and it was time for me to talk, I couldn't not say anything for the past. The two days before that. I was visibly upset, and viewers even noticed it. People were reaching out, saying, are you okay? What's wrong? Something going on? And I felt it was my duty to tell my viewers what was happening and the importance that Charlie Kirk played in my life. But when I was leaving the studio that day, I did feel liberated. And I felt like. I said my piece and I spoke truth, and that was all that mattered to me in that moment, was honoring and highlighting someone that meant a lot to. To me. And. And the. The events that occurred after that, I was not expecting.
- [08:56]
Eric
Well, tell us, because you went viral with that. People saw it, they clipped it, they shared it. We all shared it. And we thought it was terrible that they suspended you. So when you resigned, were they trying to stop you from resigning, or are they all right with it?
- [09:09]
Benny Ray Harmony
Yeah, so it was that Friday. My show was 11 to 12. And so that was at the. In the last bit of the 11 o' clock hour. And so after the show, I actually had a shoot where I had to go interview some people. And I turned my phone on, do not disturb, and it pinged. I got a message from my direct supervisor, who said, are you in the building? Can you please come speak to me? And I said, I'm not there at the moment, but I will when I get back. I went into his office. He informed me that I had to. All he said was, you need to delete that video you just posted. And I was like, I post everything. I'm very active on social media. I said, post what video or delete what video?
- [09:48]
Donald Trump
The.
- [09:49]
Benny Ray Harmony
From literally from my show. You want me to delete that? I post everything from the show? And he said, yes. And I said, okay, can you tell me why? He said, I don't know why. He goes, I was just told to tell you that you need to remove that video or there will be consequences. And I said, well, I'm not. I'm not removing a video from my personal page. So let me know what our general manager, you know, decides, because I'm not deleting it. So the weekend happened. I go in first thing on Monday morning. My direct supervisor, he reaches out to me and he says, can you come into my office again? And I'm fully glammed. I'm fully ready to go on air. And my direct supervisor says, you are not having a show today. You are off air until further notice. He said, I don't have any details. All I know is that you're not to have a show today because you wouldn't delete that video. And when he said that to me, in that moment, all I could feel was Charlie. And I kept thinking, what would Charlie do? And he would stand up and say, I'm not standing for this. We're not doing this. I'm noti wasn't going to wait for the punishment to happen because in two to three days, I most likely would have been fired. There's a lot more internally at that station, Rencon Broadcasting, than what has been said. And I've purposely stayed pretty quiet about everything, everything, because I'm not really sure how I want to handle it there. There are some really dirty and corrupt stuff happening there.
- [11:16]
Eric
Interesting. We can get into it. Maybe you come back and we'll dig in.
- [11:20]
Benny Ray Harmony
I'll be back, Eric.
- [11:22]
Eric
Well, yeah, here's how it works, folks. So this is an ABC affiliate, which means ABC is kind of responsible for the content of what the, what the, the owners, the actual station owners and operators. Owners and operator of the station. So Rincon is an ABC owner and operator. ABC owns the actual intellectual property. Disney owns abc. Bob Iger, same guy who put Jimmy Kimmel back on air after what he said about Charlie Kirk as well. So you got a problem, folks, watching. Talk to Disney, talk to Bob iger, talk to ABC and talk to Rincon Broadcasting. Very quickly, you're in D.C. with Rav. Tell us what you're going to be doing.
- [12:00]
Benny Ray Harmony
So I am going to be congressional correspondent. I'll be helping Brian Glenn at the White House as well. So, so you all will be seeing a lot more of me in the political atmosphere and just right here in our beautiful, amazing, clean and safe capital. I needed to say that, Eric, because this is the first time I've been back for a couple of years now, and I can see great changes and I'm looking forward to being on the ground right here with rav.
- [12:24]
Eric
Well, welcome to the RAV community. Thank you for your time, Benny Ray, Harmony, and we will see you again very, very soon. Thank you. Alrighty, folks, let me be blunt. Gold up almost 50% this year alone. Not speculation. That's real, real data, real hard numbers. And if a portion of your savings isn't diversified into gold, well, you're missing the boat. Here are the facts. Inflation is still too high. The US Dollar still too weak and getting weaker. And the government debt is insurmountable. $37 trillion. This is why central banks are the ones flocking to buy gold. They're the ones driving prices up to record highs. But it's not too late to buy gold from Birch Gold Group and get in the door. Now Birch Gold will help you convert an existing IRA or 401k into a tax sheltered IRA. In gold, you don't pay a dime out of your pocket. Just text America to 989-898 and claim that free info kit. No obligation, just useful information. The best indicator of the future is the past. And gold has historically been a safe haven forever for a millennia. What else can we say about that? Text America that word America to 989-898 right now to claim your free info kit on Gold. That's America. 989-898. Protect your future today with the only, the only group in gold. You got to do this with Birch Gold Group, folks. All right, we will be back two and a half minutes.
- [13:57]
Donald Trump
In commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the birth of the United States Navy. It is really jaw dropping. Thank God I'm an American. Bo, is the military getting weak? The answer is no. This is about unity. Morale here is great.
- [14:24]
Benny Ray Harmony
We couldn't be more thrilled and excited to be here today.
- [14:28]
Donald Trump
God bless United States of America and go Navy beat army. We will fight, fight, fight. We will win, win, win. Congratulations once again on 250 years of total dominance. Stay strong. Thank you. God bless our sailors and God bless the United States of America. Thank you very much. Every real America's voice was the go to place today. Thank you guys for doing this.
- [15:30]
Eric
Hi folks. We're gonna. It's four o' clock and you know who loves the four o' clock hour as much as I do? Your President Trump.
- [15:36]
Doug
The tons of copper required for that. Even a single family home today may have as much much as 400 pounds of copper in a home. And we have as a nation under the in the past basically gotten out of the mineral, mineral energy and mining area. President Trump, when he said drill baby drill, he also was mine, baby mine. We've got to get back in the mining business. China controls 85 to 100% of all the mining and refining of the top 20 critical minerals. And in this mine area up there we got copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, gallium, germanium, so rich in all of the minerals that we need to win the AI arms race against China and to prosper as a country. And so again today, this was his history being made. When some of this was set aside in 1980 by Jimmy Carter, there was a special authority created for presidents to decide if there was a dispute. And so, for the first time in history, a president is actually using that authority. President Trump, as he does, using his authority for the benefit of the American people. And the appeal came in from the state of Alaska, asking that this road be built. Alaska is not a colony, they're a state. They have an opportunity to build roads like any other state. With this signing, President Trump, Alaska can go ahead and build this road. It will be a toll road, not a public road. It's a toll road, so it'll be controlled in terms of traffic. It's a gravel road. It will be sensitive to the environment. There will be collaboration with the Native Alaskan corporations in terms of how it's built and how it's used, supporting the Alaskan native tribes with subsistence hunting regulations on either side of this. But this opens up a wealth of resources. In addition, there's going to be an announcement made later today that is part of this announcement that the Department of War, the United States government, is making an investment in Trilogy Minerals. They're one of the companies that has mining claims in this area that is a remote wilderness right now. And again, making that investment so we can make sure that we're securing these critical mineral supplies and that ownership in that company will benefit the American people. With that, I'll kick it over to Chris Wright.
- [17:55]
Donald Trump
Thank you, Doug. And huge thank you to the president today.
- [17:59]
Doug
This is a tremendous achievement for the people of Alaska. We were in the north slope of Alaska a few months ago, celebrating energy development there. They want jobs and opportunity to develop the resources on their lands. This is another major step forward.
- [18:14]
Donald Trump
We say energy is the lifeblood of society.
- [18:17]
Doug
The circulatory system, minerals and metals. There's a skeletal infrastructure, the physical upholding of everything we do, everywhere we walk and operate.
- [18:27]
Donald Trump
Your cameras, everything you hold are made.
- [18:30]
Doug
Out of metals and minerals.
- [18:32]
Donald Trump
President Biden thought it was appropriate to.
- [18:33]
Doug
Offshore both of these industries outside of our country. That has not left us in a strong place.
- [18:39]
Donald Trump
President Trump in his first term and.
- [18:41]
Doug
Even more strongly in his second term is bringing those industries back to our country. America was a mining powerhouse for a.
- [18:48]
Donald Trump
Long, long time, and our mining industry got squelched. Now we're seeing it come back to life.
- [18:53]
Doug
You saw the president's truth not long ago about a deal for lithium production in Nevada just a week or so ago. This will more than tenfold increase American lithium production.
- [19:06]
Donald Trump
And this infrastructure, this mining road to the Ambler mining district will just have.
- [19:10]
Doug
Immense impact on fewer mining opportunities for our country's security and economic opportunity opportunities for the people of Alaska. Our critical minerals and mining expert within.
- [19:21]
Donald Trump
The administration is standing right next to me, David Copley. I'll see if he wants to add any words. This is a really big deal for.
- [19:26]
Doug
The American mining industry. And I think it shows the president's seriousness about getting this industry going, making sure we have the critical minerals we.
- [19:32]
Donald Trump
Need for our defense industrial base, for our broader economy. Thank you very much. And I think we want to get this going by a certain time. So I signed it and well, I'm going to give it to you and you get it filed. Yes, sir. Good job. Thank you, sir. It's a big job. Thank you very much. So we created a great deal of wealth for that part of the world and that part of our country by doing this long, very difficult road to build. And we'll be talking about that sometime later. But it's been. It's a great deal for the, for our country. It's a great deal for the people of our country and for the taxpayers of our country. And if you have any questions on that, let me know. Steve, for the road to be constructed, I mean, how quickly will they get underway?
- [20:21]
Doug
This road as an industrial road, it will have ownership. It will likely be split between the state of Alaska, the federal government and the Native Alaska corporations. We would expect that construction would begin next spring with planning throughout this winter. The 211 mile long road will be a gravel road with a solid design base to handle the weight of the trucks that are going in and out. This is typical design that far north because asphalt with a freeze thaw cycle, very difficult with asphalt or concrete. So gravel, a fantastic gravel road is going to have the least impact on the environment. Going to be the best suited purpose. Alaska's done this in the past with the Red Dog mine. They built a toll road that again has ownership. The companies that use the road pay to transit that road. So this is an economic model used around the world in mining districts. We'll apply it right here. And again it's going to generate revenue for the American people and for the citizens of Alaska as opposed to a cost.
- [21:23]
Donald Trump
And also two bridges. We're going to build two bridges that will be able to. And we'll get them up very quickly. And how long to complete? I mean 211 miles. That's a lot of. That's a lot Less than a year.
- [21:35]
Doug
It's going to come in three. Yeah, three phases. The first road, as President Trump said, will go quickly, which is. They call it a pilot road. We'll build a single lane, a single lane gravel road through the full duration of it. That'll be then expanded into a second phase and then a third phase over time. But again, we want to get that pilot road built because then we can help get materials back to help the mine get started quickly as well.
- [21:59]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President, there's negotiations happening with your team in Egypt right now over your proposed peace plan. It was reported by Access over the weekend that you had a call with Prime Minister Netanyahu where you told him to stop being so negative and to take the win when it came to Hamas response to that. Is that true? And what else did you say to him?
- [22:16]
Donald Trump
He's been very positive. He's been very positive on the deal. Everybody is. I think every nation is. We have just about every nation working on this deal and trying to get it done. Something that you could say 3,000 years, if you look at it in certain ways, or you could say centuries. But this is a deal that incredibly. Everyone just came together. They all came together. No, Israel has been great. They've all been good.
- [22:39]
Benny Ray Harmony
Caitlin, and in the negotiations, do you have any red lines in terms of Hamas disarming and whatnot, or are there any places you're willing to negotiate?
- [22:48]
Donald Trump
Certain things aren't met. We're not going to do it, but I think we're doing very well. And I think Hamas has been agreeing to things that are very important. Mr. President, if the vote today fails.
- [23:02]
Benny Ray Harmony
In the Senate, will that trigger layoffs?
- [23:05]
Donald Trump
It could. At some point. It will. And you know, the Democrats are the ones that started this. And if you think about it, it's about health care to a large extent. It's. But we want great health care for people. We don't want to give the money away to other people that come pouring into our country. And they've already poured because nobody is coming into our country. Now we have the border totally stopped. In fact, numbers we just announced, again, we're at another zero. So we have zero for four months in a row. Zero people coming into our country illegally. That's a pretty good number. I'm not sure even I can believe that, Doug, if you want to know the truth, zero. We went from millions of people to zero. But. But it's pretty close to that number. And we. The way you stop them is not to give away, not to announce that you're giving everybody free health care, free this or that. But what that does is it affects the American people because the American people are unable to get good health care. Obamacare has been a wreck, as you know. And to do that, we have to keep it propped up and keep, do the best you can with it. It's a mess. But things are, a lot of things are going on in that. You know, we talk about Hamas, then we talk about negotiations that we have going on right now. We have a negotiation going on right now with the Democrats that could lead to very good things. And I'm talking about good things with regard to health care.
- [24:22]
Benny Ray Harmony
Are you speaking with Democratic leaders? What kind of negotiations are going on?
- [24:25]
Donald Trump
I wouldn't say that, but we are speaking with the Democrats and some very good things could happen with respect to health care.
- [24:32]
Benny Ray Harmony
Would you make a deal with them on the ACA subsidies if we, if.
- [24:36]
Donald Trump
We made the right deal? I'd make a deal, sure.
- [24:38]
Benny Ray Harmony
So you wouldn't be willing to, I.
- [24:39]
Donald Trump
Mean, you have right now subsidies. You have subsidies. That's the problem with Obamacare. The subsidies are so much. It's billions and billions of dollars is being wasted and we can have a much better healthcare than we have right now. And we're talking to them. I mean, I'm not saying that's going to happen because this has also been going on not for 3,000 years, but it's been going on for a long time. But yeah, we're talking to the Democrats.
- [25:01]
Benny Ray Harmony
You would work to make a deal with them on Obamacare subsidies to reopen the, to reopen the government.
- [25:06]
Donald Trump
I want to see great health. I'm a Republican, but I want to see health care much more so than the Democrats, Mr. President, on all of this. As you know, the American people are experiencing a lot of pain with any kind of government shutdown. And while you're dealing with Democrats and of course Republicans are standing their ground, what is your message directly to the American people who may encounter some of this pain, pain and despair? How do you give them hope? Well, up till now there hasn't been a great deal of pain. There could be a great deal of pain, but up till now there hasn't been. I will say this, just hang in there because I think a lot of good things are going to happen. That's all I can say. I mean, I think a lot of good things could happen and that could also pertain to health care.
- [25:46]
Eric
A follow up question, Mr. President?
- [25:47]
Benny Ray Harmony
Well, I've seen a surge in attacks on ICE agents across the country, including the shooting in Dallas and over the weekend in Chicago, we saw 10 cars boxing in on ICE agents and another one ramming into an ICE vehicle. We have heard Secretary Noem saying that some of these attackers are actually organized and they're planning to kill and ambush these officers. What are the consequences for these very.
- [26:09]
Donald Trump
We're going to have very severe. We're going to find out who's going after our federal agents. So when you look at Chicago, they've had probably 50 murders in the last six or seven months. Eight months. Many, many people shot. Like 30, 40, 50 people shot, didn't die, but they've been shot. It's like a war zone. And then I listen to the governor and the mayor get up and say how they have it under control. They don't. It's. It's probably worse than almost any city in the. In the world. You can go to Afghanistan, you can go to a lot of different places, and they probably marvel at how much crime we have. Then you go to Memphis, where we are right now. Now it's. It's just like in Washington, Washington, D.C. right now. You people know better than I do because you have to live right inside. And so many of the press have come to me, they've said, I can't believe it. It's changed so much. We have a safe city in Washington. Memphis will very soon have a safe city. Chicago can be very, very safe. It's going to be very safe, but Chicago is going to be very safe. And you say, why is it that a governor wouldn't accept free help from regardless. I mean, whether it's National Guard or the military or anybody. I mean, if women raped and beaten and knocked to hell, and the same with men, where they're being shot all over the place in large numbers. I mean, we had a week in Chicago where 11 people were murdered and 38 people were shot. And then we have a governor get up and say, oh, it's safe. We can handle it. He can't handle it. He's an incompetent guy. That's why they threw him out of the family business. They threw him out. I knew the family business very well, and they threw him out. And now he's a governor, and he should say, we'd love to have a safer place. Chicago's a great city, potentially. You know, I told you, the head of the Union Pacific Railroad said, sir, save Chicago. It's a great city. It's going to be lost if you don't do it. We have no choice but to do this. And when judges give us rulings that, you know, you don't have to do it. Portland is, is on fire. Portland has been on fire for years. And not so much saving it. We have to save something else. Because I think that's all insurrection. I really think that's really criminal insurrection. So I appreciate the question. These are unsafe places. We're going to make them safe. So you see what's going on in Memphis. Not pretty. But you know what? We're doing a pretty job because it's going to be a very safe place in a little while. And the people of Memphis are so happy that we're there. And the people of Chicago. So you have black women with MAGA hats on in Chicago, all over the place. They want the guard to come in or they don't care who comes in. They just want to be safe and they really don't care. You know, there was one woman, and she was great today. She said, you know what? I don't care if it's a National Guard, the Army, the Marines, the Air Force. I don't care who comes in, as long as we're safe. And that's the way most of the public feels. We're going to make Chicago really great again, and we're going to stop this crime. Then we're going to go to another one, and we're going to go city by city. We're going to have safe cities. And it was so great that we started with our nation's capital, one of the worst. I mean, so, so many people, every week somebody was killed. They'd come from Iowa, they'd come from Indiana. They want to see the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial. They want to see something. And they'd get shot. And you'd call their parents, I'm sorry, but your son is dead. And they go, what do you mean he's dead? Came to Washington, D.C. not anymore. That's not happening anymore. We have a safe place. We have a safe capital. It's as safe as we have, probably almost just about in the country. And if you look back six months ago, seven months ago, this was a death trap. You look back during the Biden, I mean, what, what they did, how badly they managed things. And almost all of these cities, most of these cities are Democrat run and we don't care. Democrat, Republican, we're going to make them safe. So we have to save Chicago. It's very important. And you can't have a governor getting up and saying it's good. When 11 people were shot over a weekend.
- [30:28]
Benny Ray Harmony
The Insurrection Act. Under what conditions or terms would you.
- [30:31]
Donald Trump
Well, I'd do it if it was necessary. So far it hasn't been necessary. But we have an Insurrection act for a reason. If I had to enact it, I'd do that. If people were being killed and courts were holding us up, or governors or mayors were holding us up, sure, I do that. I mean, I want to make sure that people aren't killed. We have to make sure that our cities are safe and it's turning out. And we started with D.C. it's been so successful. Think of it. People wouldn't go to restaurants. The restaurants were closing. We were losing a lot of restaurants, as you all know. And now restaurants are opening and they're thriving. And I went two weeks ago and it was great. I'm going to go again. I felt very safe, very safe. Forgetting about guards and secret Service. I would have gone. It would have been very safe. D.C. is a great. And look at the cleanliness of D.C. look at how it's clean. You don't have tents all over the place. We had parks where you couldn't even walk through the park. You had people from tents and there were violent people. Some of these people were violent people. We have a great safe capital again. And if you look at it, in six months from now, it'll be the most beautiful anywhere in the world. It's being cleaned. The graffiti is all gone now, the tents are all gone. It's, it's. We have a capital that you can be proud of. But it'll only get better with time.
- [31:53]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President.
- [31:54]
Donald Trump
Mr. President. October 7th, the two year anniversary of the original Israeli attack. You expect the Gaza till tomorrow or any ship sort of hostage. I think we're going to have it soon. I think we're going to have a deal. I. Look, I. It's a hard thing for me to say that when for years and years they've been trying to have a deal with Gaza. But I mean literally for centuries. Okay, if you really think about it. But we're going to have a Gaza deal. I'm pretty sure you. Well, I'm the one that got the hostages back. Remember that. You know, I'm the one that ask you that. Yeah, I got him back. Israeli citizens are celebrating what you've accomplished in this deal. Should it come through, there will be a lot of celebration on the streets of Israel. The hostages families, have they been in contact with you with regard to this deal? That could have. They're so, they're so happy about it. It's like, they can't breathe. One said, I can't breathe. You know, it's very sad because you have hostages and you have people that are no longer living, but the parents. And I've said this to you many times, the parents want the bodies of their boy back, the bodies of, you know, their loved one back. In most cases, they're young men and they're dead. And there's probably 32 or so about that number. Nobody knows exactly what the number is. They want that body back as much as if their son were alive. And I've been with them. You know, many have come to the White House, to the Oval Office. I've been with many of the people that I got released. We have a fantastic group working on it. Steve Witkoff has been amazing. Jared, I have Jared. I took Jared out because Jared's a very. You don't find anybody more capable. And we have. We have the A plus team working on it. I think we're. I think we've made tremendous progress. And you have the people of Israel. The people of Israel want it to happen, but the people related to hostages, I mean, you see in Israel, tens of thousands of people, they really want the hostages back and they really want things to end. And I think Hamas now has been. All I can say is they've been fine. They've been fine. I hope it's going to continue that way. I think it will. I really think we're going to have a deal. We have a really good chance of making a deal, and it will be a lasting deal. We want to have peace. This is beyond Gaza. Gaza is a big deal, but this is. This is really peace in the Middle East. And the amazing thing is we have every Arab country, every Muslim country, we have every country surrounding. They all want. I spoke with President Erdogan of Turkey. He's fantastic. He's been pushing very hard. He's a very powerful guy, and he's been pushing very, very hard to get this deal done. And Hamas has a lot of respect for him. They have a lot of respect for Qatar. They have a lot of respect for UAE and Saudi Arabia. We have. Everybody is on our side to get this deal done. There's never been anything like it. Nobody's ever seen it. There's always been like, 80% of them don't want something done. I think virtually, we even had a signal, a very strong signal, as you know, from Iran. They'd like to see this done.
- [35:16]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President, Governor Abbott offered up the Texas National Guard to you. Have you had any Other conversations with other red state governors.
- [35:26]
Donald Trump
They're willing to offer. Every one of them is willing to offer whatever we need. We thank Governor Abbott of Texas. Every one of the red state, as you call them, red state governors is willing to give whatever we need because they want our agents protected. You know, these ICE agents have a tough job. They have to go in and get, in many cases, stone cold criminals, hardened criminals, longtime criminals. And every essentially Republican governor has offered up whatever we need. And some Democratic governors also. Daniel? Yeah.
- [35:58]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President.
- [35:59]
Donald Trump
Thank you.
- [35:59]
Eric
Quick question on the subject of the order. The Biden administration, previously speaking, they shut.
- [36:05]
Donald Trump
Down Alaska for business.
- [36:07]
Benny Ray Harmony
You reversed that.
- [36:08]
Doug
Reversed it on day one.
- [36:09]
Eric
You opened it up going after all the critical minerals. This mission of yours, Secretary Burgum, Secretary.
- [36:15]
Donald Trump
Wright, to boost our own independent production of critical minerals. Well, it's necessary.
- [36:21]
Eric
How important that is over the next four years, sir?
- [36:25]
Donald Trump
Well, it's very necessary. You know, in the past we were able to go to other countries, buy whatever we want, but all of a sudden, if those countries are hostile. And by the way, China hasn't been. We made deals with China. You know, they approved the TikTok deal. Everyone said you'd never get the TikTok deal approved. They approved it, and we have great people buying it. American, big, strong American companies are buying it. The most prestigious companies there are, actually. And they're going to make sure everything's good. But President Xi was great. He approved it. So I'm not saying hostile, but it's good to have our own minerals. And, you know, we created tremendous value by creating a road. We build a road that only we can do because we have the rights to do it, number one. And we have the power to do it. And so we build a road that's over 200 miles long through a very beautiful area of the world, actually. It's incredible when you look at it, it's incredible. But a rough area from the standpoint of building. So we get a road done, and with that, we unleash billions and billions of dollars of wealth. It's pretty amazing when you think of it. And it's wealth that we need if we're going to be the number one country. You know, we're number one now with AI you probably read well, we're beating everybody with AI at levels that nobody ever thought even possible. And one of the reasons we are is because of energy. So our grid is old and tired like most grids are. They get old with time. I mean, you know, the older you are, the older the grid gets Right. But I've allowed the people building AI or other plants are the types of plants, but air particular because they need so much electricity. I've allowed them to build their own power. And it's been amazing. They're building massive plants and with the plant, they're building their own electricity. They've become a utility in a sense. I said, maybe you'll do better with the utility than you do with the AI, I don't know. But we're letting them build their own electricity. So we don't have to worry about the grid. We don't have to worry about it anything. And they're going to build it in such a way that if they have excess capacity, they're going to put it back into the grid. It's pretty amazing. So when they build, we're giving them permits to build their own electric power plants. And it's incredible when you see what they're doing. And because of that and other things that we're doing, we're leading every country. Nobody's even close to us with AI. And AI seems to be the big thing. I don't know. I can't tell you that. There are a lot of people building and a lot of people are. Have high stock prices because of AI. So a lot of people think it's great stuff. And I think it's great stuff. I look at it, it's amazing what it can do in terms of medical, in terms of medical costs, in terms of knowledge. It's basically information. And information at a level that nobody thought possible before. So we'll see. But they're building plants where you saw the one overlay that I did, where in this case, it's meta. One of their plants is essentially the size, almost the size of Manhattan. And that's a building, you know, it's a building that covers Manhattan. So it's big stuff. And nobody's even close to us. We're leading AI by so much.
- [39:32]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President.
- [39:34]
Donald Trump
Yeah, go ahead, please.
- [39:35]
Benny Ray Harmony
Since the start of your administration is a lot more American wanting to join ice. And as we're seeing more attacks on them right now, what's your message to rank and file ICE agents who are trying to do their jobs but facing a thousand percent increase in attacks.
- [39:48]
Donald Trump
I love your questions, you know, I like you. So who are you with?
- [39:51]
Benny Ray Harmony
I'm with ntd.
- [39:52]
Donald Trump
Very good.
- [39:53]
Benny Ray Harmony
The one who got mugged.
- [39:54]
Donald Trump
You were the one. That's what I thought. You got mugged. You're not getting mugged anymore. She was really lucky to be with us with that deal that happened, I know all about that. No, not anymore. You feel a different world out there right now. Oh, good. Well, you're safe now. You're not. Nobody's going to be hurting you in any way. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you very much. Thank you. So the bottom line on your question, we're just going to make things real safe. We're going to make. We're going to have a country that you can be proud of, not a country that you read about every day where somebody gets mugged from behind or hit over the head with a baseball bat. Those people aren't with us any longer. Yeah, please. Thank you very much. Thank you. Mr. President, on today's call with Lula from Brazil, are you considering lower, lowering tariffs after the. Well, I had a great talk with the president of Brazil, who was a good man. I met him actually at the United Nations. I was going up to make a speech and I didn't have a teleprompter. I was walking up to my teleprompter, I said, you know, I don't have a teleprompter. But just before that, I met with President Luna and I found him to be very good. I mean, we had a very good talk for about, you know, two minutes. And then I went up to make the speech and I was surprised to see. How would you like that one, Doug? I've got every leader in the world sitting out there. My teleprompter isn't on. You know why, Daniel? Because it was a rigged deal. But fortunately I made a better speech than I would have if I read it off a teleprompter, which is pretty easy to do. So it was quite a day. That was a big day. But we met and we liked each other and yeah, we had a great conversation. Yeah, we'll start doing business and I think at some point I would. And he'll, he's going to come here. We talked about that Follow up question on Israel government has been arresting and.
- [41:44]
Benny Ray Harmony
Deporting activists that were traveling to Gaza today.
- [41:48]
Donald Trump
Granted, Thunberg, for instance, also, she's a troublemaker. You know, I mean, she's, you mean she's no longer into the environment now she's into this. She's a troublemaker. She has an anger management problem. I think she should see a doctor. She needs anger. If you ever watch her, she's a young person, she's so angry. She's so crazy. Now you can have her. You can have. She's just a troublemaker.
- [42:10]
Benny Ray Harmony
Yeah, it's term today. Mr. President, the Supreme Court is back in such a. They rejected today an appeal by Ghislaine Maxwell to overturn her conviction. That means her only chance at getting out of prison is a pardon from you. Is that something you're open to doing, Maxwell?
- [42:28]
Donald Trump
You know, I haven't heard the name in so long, I can say this, that I'd have to take a look at it. I would have to take a look. Did they reject that she wanted to.
- [42:36]
Benny Ray Harmony
Appeal her conviction and what happened that they were not going to hear her appeal?
- [42:40]
Donald Trump
I say, well, I'll take a look at it. I'll speak to. I will speak to the doj. I wouldn't consider it or not consider. I don't know anything about it, so. But I'll speak. I will speak to the doj. I don't know. I mean, I'd have to speak to the doj. I'll look at it. I'll. I have. A lot of people have asked me for pardons. I call him Puff Daddy has asked me for a pardon.
- [43:02]
Benny Ray Harmony
But she was convicted of child sex trafficking.
- [43:04]
Donald Trump
Yeah, I mean, I'm going to have to take a look at it and I have to ask for doj. I didn't know they rejected it. I didn't know she was even asking for it, frankly. Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine or sell them to NATO. Yeah, I've sort of made a decision, pretty much, if you consider. Yeah, I, I think I want to find out what they're doing with them. Yes. You know, where are they sending them? I guess I have to ask that question. That war should never have started, would have never started. Such bad judgment was used there, I think, on both sides, by the way. But nobody, nobody looks good with the war with Russia and Ukraine. Nobody. That's been a horrible. This week. They lost over 7,000 soldiers between the two of them. This is. Every week they're losing 7000, 8000, 5000. They have a range of about 50, 1500 miles or something. And so they'd be able to attack deep enough. I would, I would ask some questions. I want to see what's. I'm not, I'm not looking to see. I'm not looking to see escalation. Yes. And tomorrow you're meeting with the Canadian Prime Minister. What's on the agenda for that? Mr. President asked about tariffs because a lot of companies from Canada are moving into the United States. You know, everybody's moving back into the US and he's probably going to be asking about tariffs. They're losing A lot of companies in Canada, they're coming into the. They left here. They left here 20 years ago when presidents had sat right at this desk, weren't doing their job properly. They were probably good politicians, but they weren't good at business. And they allowed these companies to leave. And all they had to do is do what I'm doing right now. And, you know, I'm not saying it's the easiest thing to do, but it is. It's is effective. We're a rich country again. We're a powerful country because, you know, I've ended seven wars. At least half of them was because of my ability at trade and because of tariffs. If I didn't have tariffs to throw around a little bit, you would have at least four wars raging right now with thousands of people a day being killed that aren't happening. We settled, you know, we settled seven. We're getting close to settling aid. That would be a big one. And that's something that could happen. But. So I think he's coming probably to talk about tariffs because a lot of companies are leaving Canada to come into the US and they're leaving Mexico, and by the way, they're leaving China, they're leaving all over the world to come into the U.S. nobody's actually seen anything like it. Would you shift your position on terrorists? And in response to whatever he says? Look, my positions turned out to. Everybody said, I'm right. They find billions of dollars that they didn't even know they had recently. They said they found billions of dollars and they couldn't understand. I said, check the tariff shelf. And they come in the next hour and they said, sir, you're right. It was from the tariffs. We're a rich, really rich country again. But more importantly, maybe influence. If I didn't have the power of tariffs, you would have at least four of the seven wars raging. I use tariffs to stop wars. If you look at India and Pakistan, they were ready to go at it. Seven planes were shot down. They were ready to go at it. And then nuclear powers. And I don't want to say exactly what I said, but what I said was very effective. They stopped. And that was based on tariffs. It was based on trade. Tariffs are very important for the United States. We are a peacekeeper because of tariffs. Not only do we make, you know, hundreds of billions of dollars, but we're a peacekeeper because of tariffs. Mr. President, shutdown.
- [46:53]
Benny Ray Harmony
Mr. President, the shutdown that occurred during your first term lasted 35 days. How long do you expect this shutdown.
- [47:00]
Donald Trump
To level well, you don't know. Look, I can say this, that it would have not happened except for the Democrats. The Democrats are very foolish. They've lost their way and they have. We have a new, new thing now. When you look at. It's called crime. It's called absolute, as Biden would say. Well, I won't say what he would have said. Remember when he said it's a three letter word. No, remember that one? Everybody say, what was that all about? He probably meant exclamation point or something after the word. But this is a five letter word. Crime. C, R, I, M, E. And we want to put it out and are putting it out and they don't, they don't seem to care about it. But they do care. I believe that Pritzker and this mayor of Chicago that like to say about we have it. They don't have it under control. Not only is it not under control, it's the opposite. And I believe they're afraid. They're scared for their lives. I believe that the Portland people are scared. You look at what's happened with Portland over the years, it's. It's a burning hellhole. And then you have a judge that lost her way, that tries to pretend that like there's no problem. Actually, she's not even saying that. There's a huge problem in Portland. I'll tell you what the problem is. Crime. Okay? Crime. There's a huge problem in Chicago. It's called crime. And we want to put out the crime and they want to inflame the crime. And why they want to, I don't know. But it could be that Pritzker is scared for his life. Yeah.
- [48:34]
Benny Ray Harmony
You have an update on the investigation into what happened to you at the UN last month? And also what's your message to Americans who are concerned about your and your family's safety as you're very out.
- [48:47]
Donald Trump
Yeah, I am out there. There's no question about it. Well, at the UN we had a problem with the teleprompter. We had another problem that nobody has actually talked about. The people in the room didn't hear my speech. Did you know that the people in the room, they didn't have any loudspeakers and they didn't hear my speech. And I thought I made a really good speech. I mean, considering I didn't have the use of a teleprompter, which is unusual, but I made a speech. I could have walked off the stage. I guess most people, Doug, I think most people would have just said, we'll see you in about a half an hour. Right. But, you know, they. They obviously turned off the tell. I think they turned off the teleprompter, but there was a reason that it didn't work. I actually know the reason. They didn't let the teleprompter person into the room. Okay. Which is essentially the same thing. So I made a speech. It turned out to be a very good speech. Got good reviews. I went out to the audience after the speech. I saw my wife. I said, how good was that speech? Was that unbelievable or what? She said, I didn't hear a word you said. I said, what do you mean? She was sitting in the front. I said, what do you mean? She said, you couldn't hear anything that you said. The speakers were turned off. So I think that's pretty bad stuff. Right? Especially since we support most of the United nations, and yet I still want to keep it in New York because people. I think the United nations has tremendous potential. If properly run, the United States has tremendous potential. But think of this. I settled seven wars. I never spoke to the United nations about it. Not one of them you look at. And those were wars that were raging a long time and in many cases. And I settled seven. I never heard from the United. They didn't help me. They should be able to settle the wars. I shouldn't have to be settling those. Yeah, please. Last week you signed the security guarantees for Gutter. Do you see any role for the Senate in that? Did they have to vote on that.
- [50:44]
Doug
Or do you think a president.
- [50:45]
Donald Trump
I would mind if they did. If they want to. They'd let me know. Nobody said that. That. But, you know, Guitar has been very, very helpful to us in this process. And I think you'll find that. I think maybe the most influential, the very influential, very strong with Hamas. They're very strong. And Turkey has likewise been helpful. I mean, honestly, uae, Saudi Arabia, everybody has been helpful. I just spoke today with the king of Jordan, and he's been terrific, too. We have. I can't think of any country that's been negative about this. This is why it should happen. I mean, everybody wants it to happen. And usually when everybody. It was, including, I think, Hamas. And when they want it to happen, it's going to happen.
- [51:35]
Benny Ray Harmony
James Comey is being arraigned on Wednesday, obviously after his indictment. Are you worried that your own statements calling for his prosecution could help him actually, in his defense of this case?
- [51:44]
Donald Trump
I think he's a crooked guy. He's a dirty cop. Comey. I think he's a dirty cop. He's recognized by many people to be a dirty cop and dishonest guy. So all I have to do is. I mean, I have nothing to do with the case. I just say.
- [52:01]
Benny Ray Harmony
But you called him on to prosecute him and oppose him.
- [52:04]
Donald Trump
No, no, I don't call anybody. You know what? I'm allowed to do that if I wanted to do that. But Comey's a crooked guy. He has been for years. And he got caught. Look, he lied. This is just a simple case. He totally lied. And then he confirmed the lie. On, I guess, numerous occasions or at least one occasion, he confirmed the lie. He said, that's what I said, and I stand by it. And, you know, I mean, the guy, he didn't say. To the best of my knowledge, he didn't say, well, I don't remember. He made a very definitive statement and a very important statement concerning him, and he got caught in an outright lie. And that's why a group of people. Was it me that voted. They voted to indict him. But he's a crooked guy, in my opinion. And we'll find out. The court's going to determine that in a little while, I guess. Yeah. Some farm stuff this weekend with members of the Navy yesterday celebrating their 250th. Can you talk about that? And as we get closer to America's 250th, you've initiated a prayer initiative as well. Talk to me about both of those events and why they're so important, particularly the prayer initiative going forward to the celebration. And we're dealing, as you know, with all of the different. And not just evangelicals, Christians. We've. We're dealing with lots of different faiths, religions. And I felt for a long time that, you know, if you don't. If a country doesn't have religion, doesn't have faith, doesn't have God, it's going to be very hard to be a good country. You know, there's no reason to be good. I want to be good because you want to prove to God that you're good. So you go to that next step, Right? So that's very important to me. I think it's really very important. And yesterday was amazing. We went out, we went to the naval base, the largest in the world, actually. And I saw things that were incredible. The level of just. I don't want to use the word weapons, but they are weapons. The technology on these planes or the carriers and all of the different things that we saw. They gave us missile display they did the whole. I don't think they've ever done anything like it, but it was really impressive. And the talent of the pilots, where they can land. You know, the aircraft carriers look massive, but when you put them in the middle of, like, the Atlantic or in this case, pretty far off the coast of Virginia, and it's sitting in a big ocean and it was pretty calm yesterday, but it's still a little bit testy. Right. And you have these guys land right on a thing and come to a sudden screeching halt. And they're really something. They were taking off yesterday. And they look over. Yes, sir. And then you see them and, you know, you see them just get ripped back into the seat because the G forces are so great. And actually, if you're not in great shape, because they were doing maneuvers that were incredible yesterday, and the admirals were explaining that if you're not in really good shape, you. You don't make it because you pass out. You know, these guys and women. I met some women pilots that. I mean, it's incredible what they're able to do. So we saw something that was great, and you saw the spirit, because we had, for a couple of thousand, I think they had probably 20, 22,000, largely sailors, all dressed in the most beautiful white. There wasn't a spot on any of those uniforms. I looked at them. It was just a wave of white. And it was a great crowd and great reception. So, you know, getting back to a very important question that was asked when you go back a year ago. People weren't joining the armed forces. They weren't joining the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, the Coast Guard, Air Force. If you look at, you know, any of them, they weren't joining Space Force. And now we're setting records, recruitment. And that goes for the police and fire. Now they want to be policemen. They want to be firemen and firemen. People don't mention them. They're incredible. I know so many of them. They're brave as hell. I wouldn't want to do it. But they weren't able to recruit. The police weren't able to recruit, and the military wasn't able to recruit. We were really off. And I got elected, and it really started on November 5th. I got elected. And somehow the country developed a spirit financially, yes, but also with the military. And now we have record levels of people wanting to be in. Every force is filled. We have waiting lists to get into the Marines, to the army, to the Navy, to the Air Force. We have Coast Guard. We have waiting lists to get in. It's amazing, actually, what's happened. We have a country that's. It was a dead country. And I say it all the time. We had a dead country one year ago. Now we have the hottest country anywhere in the world. And it's nice to see you. I've watched you for years on television. So it's nice to meet you. Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you, press.
- [56:57]
Benny Ray Harmony
Thank you, press.
- [56:58]
Donald Trump
Let's go. Thanks, guys.
- [57:00]
Benny Ray Harmony
Thank you, guys. Thanks, guys.
- [57:01]
Donald Trump
Let's go, let's go.
- [57:02]
Benny Ray Harmony
Let's head out. Thank you, guys. Thanks, guys.
- [57:06]
Donald Trump
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. All right.
- [57:11]
Eric
Well, that was President Trump. Not exactly sure what he was talking about. I think some energy things. We heard a little bit about getting hostage released, but I heard a whole heck of a lot of Caitlyn Collins for some reason from cnn. Okay, sorry. Had to do it. We do what we got to do. We don't have a lot of time. I don't even know if we have time for voicemail. We got just about a minute left. Mad Dog, I don't think we have a quick, short voicemail, do we? We, we can make time for it. Okay, good luck. Try it if you want.
- [57:44]
Donald Trump
Here it is.
- [57:45]
Eric
Hey, Bowling, this is Chris from Gilbert, Arizona. Yeah, I was watching the shutdown, but I said just before the shutdown, if.
- [57:53]
Donald Trump
America's got to take no money, then.
- [57:55]
Eric
Why don't senators and congressmen take no money?
- [57:58]
Donald Trump
That would get them back to the table a whole lot faster. Ever have a shutdown? No money for nobody. Also think about this. Why doesn't term limits have on Congress? Senators and congressmen have no term limits.
- [58:13]
Eric
I wonder why.
- [58:15]
Donald Trump
See you, Bowen. Bye. All right.
- [58:17]
Eric
Well, the reason why is because the founding Fathers put that into the Constitution. They actually outlined the term limits in the Constitution. Takes a lot to overturn the Constitution and agree with you. Don't let senators and congressmen get paid. I think everyone should accrue their pay. The people, the military that we owe the money to, other people working for the government. But those people who make the decisions pull it. They don't get paid. If you can't keep the government open, that's it. We'll leave you right there. Ban and Worm coming up.
- [58:43]
Donald Trump
This is an iHeart podcast.