← Rebel News Podcast
Rebel News Podcast
EZRA LEVANT | Canada's Auto Industry in Peril as Stellantis Closes Shop
00:50:22
Ezra questions whether companies would invest in Ontario or the U.S., arguing the U.S. offers a better economic future due to Trump's "build them in America" policy.
Loading summary
Transcript121 lines
- [00:00]
Ezra Levant
Hello, my friends. I'm going to try and cover three things because I was away and I just, I'm glad to be back at our world headquarters. I want to talk a bit about Gaza and how they're still butchering each other, but since it's Hamas that's doing it, no one seems to care in the world. I want to talk about Stellantis. That's the name of a really big car manufacturer that has decided to move jobs from Canada to the United States. And I want to show you our friends Tommy Robinson and Abi Amini in Israel together. Lots to show you today, which is why I'd like it if you got what we call Rebel News. Plus, it's the video version of this podcast. You gotta see these things, especially what's going on with Tommy and Avi in Israel. Just go to rebelnewsplus.com, click, subscribe. It's eight bucks a month. I know that might not be a lot of dough to you, but it sure adds up for us. Helps us pay the bills. That's rebelnewsplus.com all right, here's today's show. Hey, Toronto Rebel News fans, listen up. Rebel News is celebrating 10 years of fearless journalism with our 10th birthday birthday.
- [01:00]
Benji
Bash and you're invited to join us.
- [01:03]
Ezra Levant
Last week, hundreds of Rebel fans packed.
- [01:05]
Benji
Our Calgary party for an unforgettable night.
- [01:08]
Ezra Levant
Of music, food and fun. Now it's Toronto's turn. Join us on Thursday, October 16th at 6pm near Black Creek and Lawrence for.
- [01:20]
Benji
A night you will not forget.
- [01:23]
Ezra Levant
Expect a lively evening with Rebel News journalists and crew, past and present. Cocktails, hors d' oeuvres, and of course, a birthday cake.
- [01:39]
Benji
Happy birthday. Happy 10 years, rebel. There you go.
- [01:43]
Ezra Levant
That's what we're talking about tonight. Thoughts on Canada's auto industry being moved to the United States and thoughts on a Gaza war that still rages. But nobody cares. It's October 15th and this is the Ezra Levant Show. Shame on you, you Sensorian bug. Hey, everybody, it's great to be back in Toronto. I was just on a whistle stop visit to the UK where I covered Tommy Robinson's trial under the Terrorism Act. I hope you enjoyed some of that coverage. I really feel like we play an important role there and not just our journalism and supporting Tommy Robinson, but actually, if you saw what happened yesterday, the fact that I'm a citizen journalist that was not credentialed by the left wing National Union of Journalists turned into a bit of a kerfuffle and the judge addressed me personally. And first he banned me from live tweeting and then he said I could, but others couldn't. It's really the rebel in our sweet spot doing the news, but also fighting to make the world a better place, a freer place. And by the way, I've got an idea for how to help make the UK freer. I know most of our viewers are in Canada, but I think if we could help the mother country get a bit freer, I think it would be a wonderful thing. Anyhow, I'll leave that story for another day. I'll talk in a moment about Gaza and I'll show you some footage of Tommy Robinson in Israel with Abi Amini. One of the things that was on Tommy's mind in his trial is if he was convicted and sent to jail right away, he couldn't take up the Israeli government on their invitation for him to visit Israel, where he is today. And our Avi Amini is there and they're already making very interesting videos together. But first, I want to talk about something that's of great importance to obviously auto workers and I think the Ontario economy in general. And it is one of our larger exports. It's nowhere near the size and value of the oil and gas industry, but still our Ontario's auto industry has been an important part of that province. Coming up on 100 years, the news is a company called Stellantis. Now, it's not as well known a word as Fiat or Chrysler or Jeep. Those are some of the various brands that have been conglomerated under the company called Stellantis. It's quite a large automaker. It had, you know, made more than 5 million cars last year. Its revenues were up quarter of a trillion dollars. It really is one of the biggest automakers out there, even if you might not know the name Stellantis. Canadians unfortunately have gotten to know Stellantis a little bit because of the huge corporate welfare checks being sent to them by Doug Ford and Justin Trudeau. I don't know if you were paying attention to it, but for the last two years, Ford and Trudeau, and it's continued by Mark Carney, they think that if they give tens of billions of dollars to these super rich, super, you know, they've got more money than Canada does, but they give tens of billions of, I think it totals something like $52 billion the governments of Ontario and Canada paid or promised to pay to these super rich automakers to develop electric vehicle batteries in Ontario. I don't think there's any natural reason for that to be the thing that's done in Ontario, I could be wrong. But if you have to put in $50 billion of a subsidy, that's sort of telling me that you're doing something. The market itself doesn't believe it. I mean, Silicon Valley doesn't need billions or $50 billion worth of subsidies to locate in America or in Silicon Valley. They can raise whatever money they need and they'll go where it's best for them. The that these huge companies were willing to take free money from Canada, I think just shows how stupid our side is. Trudeau and Doug Ford, not particularly known for their negotiating skills. Anyways, Canada and Ontario gave Stellantis and 52 billion. And I don't know if they've produced a single electric vehicle battery from him. But when you don't, you know, when you don't really have a master plan, when you don't really know how wealth is created and your entire strategy, just give money away, Maybe you don't negotiate that hard. But here's the crazy thing. Despite being given a huge amount of money, and I mean 11 figure checks by taxpayers, Stellantis has decided to leave, or at least to take hundreds of jobs away from their Brampton and possibly Windsor plants and move them to the United States, in part to get around Donald Trump's threats of tariffs. Anyways, here's Doug for just raging about it. And I can understand, frankly, this is one of the most important industries in Ontario and Doug Ford is just watching it slip away. It's really happening. It's not just threats anymore. Stellantis is leaving.
- [06:54]
Doug Ford
That guy, President Trump, he's a real piece of work. You know something? What My message to the Prime Minister when I meet him on Thursday is if he can't get a deal, let's start hitting him back. Let's start hitting the US back hard because all Trump does is continue. We're nice, nice, nice, play nice in the sandbox. And today is another tour. Yesterday he's 10% on softwood lumber. After it was 35%, he increased at 10%. And then he all of a sudden, one day out of the blue, someone must have told him cabinet makers and we should ship a lot of cabinets down there. And all of a sudden now there's a tariff there. I am sick and tired of sitting and rolling over. We need to fight back, folks. We are an economic powerhouse. We buy $356 billion of goods Canada does off the U.S. we're the number one customer to the U.S. no one in the world buys more goods than what we do. We need to start hitting back and hitting back hard. That's the only thing this person understands. Sir. I just get pumped up talking about this guy. He drives me absolutely crazy. He does. And we aren't going to roll over. He's not good. I'm not going to let him roll over Ontario, I'll tell you that.
- [08:06]
Benji
This will be the last reporter.
- [08:11]
Doug Ford
Thank you.
- [08:11]
Ezra Levant
Matt Kennedy here for CTV News.
- [08:13]
Benji
Hi, Matt. Hi, Premier.
- [08:16]
Ezra Levant
I'm wondering, are you still committed to the billions committed to the Stellantis EV deal in Windsor, given what the commute.
- [08:23]
Benji
What the company has done in Brampton?
- [08:24]
Doug Ford
I'm not going to give him a penny because it was tied in to making sure Windsor and keep Brampton going and we haven't given them a penny for Brampton yet. We gave him about 55 million out of the couple billion that the feds and I and the companies agreed. You know, it's disappointing. They said they're going to keep Brampton open. I had a conversation with the president of Stellantis yesterday. He said, well, we're going to postpone it for a year. We're going to find a new model. You know, I don't understand. They're investing 13 billion in the U.S. we're, you know, an auto manufacturing powerhouse here. They're going to transfer 1500. The only good news, there's no good news, but only good news is they're adding a third shift in Windsor and they're going to try to transfer 1500 People from Brampton down to Windsor. But we're competitive. We can produce the best vehicles anywhere in the entire world right here in Ontario. So I'm going to keep pushing like they've never seen before.
- [09:25]
Ezra Levant
I really don't know what Doug Ford is trying to do other than to put on a performance of grief and rage. Here he is calling Donald Trump a tyrant. I know what that word means and I know it's ancient meaning in the Roman sense. You know, it might be accurate. I don't think it is. But I know this. It's probably not going to help the trade negotiations. Here he is calling him tyrant.
- [09:48]
Doug Ford
My number one job is make sure we protect the people of Ontario. I need to protect the communities against that tyrant south of the border, which drives me absolutely nuts. And we'll always be there to protect the families and businesses who call our province home.
- [10:05]
Ezra Levant
I see that Melanie Jolie has chimed in. I don't even know what position Melanie Jolie has anymore in the government. I don't really think it matters. I don't think she's an actual decider. I think she's there for demographic reasons. A francophone woman who is, you know, compared to other politicians, attractive and young, I guess. I don't think she was of any use in her foreign affairs portfolio. I think she's just there as a hanger on. It's sort of shocking to me that Mark Carney continued to have her in cabinet, but, you know, most of the cabinet is reheated. But here she is with her deep thoughts.
- [10:40]
Benji
Well, let me be clear on Stellantis. I'm extremely disappointed about this decision. And not only am I disappointed, it's completely unaccept. So we will fight for these jobs. We will fight for the jobs at Brampton. We'll fight for the jobs that were committed by Stellantis, and we'll fight for our auto sector. I've been in contact with Lana Payne, the head of Unifor, yesterday and today. I've been in contact with Flavio Volpe, who's an important voice in the sector. We've been working hand in glove also with the Ford government. And we're one strong team, Canada together. And the company has commitments under different types of agreements with the government, including the fact that we provided support for the retooling of the very Brampton facility that right now is sitting idle. So we will make sure that we push the company and we hold them to account.
- [11:38]
Ezra Levant
I have a real question for you. If you had $13 billion like Stellantis has, would you invest it in Ontario or would you invest it in the United States? Put everything else aside, like where do you think the economic future is stronger? I mean, we all know that the market is in the U.S. that's what Trump is doing. He's saying, if you sell your cars in America, you should build them in America. And there's sort of a basic logic to it. I know there was logic behind the auto pact and I know there were other reasons to have the production on both sides of the border. But I'm just saying, even whatever industry you're in, it doesn't have to be cars. It could be any industrial or tech or health company. If you had a choice to put it in Ontario or to put it in the United States, which do you think is the more promising economy? I just don't know how many people would say, yeah, Carney and Ford's Canada with out of control spending and taxes and out of control social problems and crimes. That's the future for business. I Just don't think it is. I think that Canada's sort of impotent these days, and what could you do? I mean, Doug Ford, I think, looks like an oaf, and I don't think he's making any friends in the White House. Not that he's part of the negotiating team, he's a provincial premier. I mean, he has about as much relevance as a mayor, but what can he do, really? Trump is saying, if you want to sell cars in America, build them in America. And the car companies are saying, all right, even if we don't like this, this, we can't fight it. I want to show you the press release that the White House put out. They sent it around and they posted a website. Let me read to you the part about Stellantis. Stellantis announced a $13 billion investment in the United States, the largest single investment in the company's history. The automaker plans to expand its US based production by 50% over the next four years, reopening its plant in Belvedere, Illinois and adding production at its Toledo, Ohio, Warren, Michigan, Detroit, Michigan and Kokomo, Indiana plants. The investment will bring 5,000 new jobs and the production of five new vehicles to the U.S. i mean, in Canada, the debate is, do we get our, you know, 12 or 15 billion back from the electric vehicles? So in Canada, the only debate is who gets the government grant. In America, the debate is, oh, wow, Stellantis is bringing in their largest investment in history. And that's sort of been Trump's theme. Trump isn't announcing what Canadian politicians call investments, that is government grants. He's announcing investments. Foreign companies saying, yeah, we want to put money in America, open factories, hire people. I honestly don't know how to stop that. You know, Ontario has no electoral college votes. It makes economic sense for these countries to go in the United States, but it also makes political sense to them. And if you're Donald Trump, you care about Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Those are battleground states. I just don't know what Canada can do. Maybe it's something asymmetrical. Maybe Canada can be valuable, can be powerful vis a vis the United States in a strategic way, doing something else. There are probably creative ways to get around this, because sheer GDP to gdp, economy to economy battles, we're not going to win that. I think that in the past, we've gotten along with strong American leaders through personal charm, by the way. I mean, Brian Mulroney and Ronald Reagan had a shared Irish roots. And I remember when they had that famous summit where they were Both singing when Irish eyes are smiling. I mean, that was a valuable connection. Even when the two leaders disagreed, like Barack Obama and Stephen Harper, both men really tried to make the relationship work. I think it's fair to say that Mark Carney has been abusive in his language towards Donald Trump. I'm not saying it's not a two way street, but Mark Carney's entire political promise was I'm gonna be tough on Donald Trump and I'm gonna be elbows up and I'm gonna sock it to him. That worked enough to convince enough Canadians to vote liberal. But if you know, whether you like him or you hate him, I just think we can all agree that doesn't work with Donald Trump. I think that you can reach out to him on a personal level. I think you can reach out to him on a strategic level. Remember when the president of El Salvador, which is a tiny country, did something really useful and valuable to Donald Trump? You know that supermax terrorist prison that El Salvador made, and they basically arrested every gang member and every drug dealer in the country and put him in this supermax prison, one of the largest prisons in the world. It's very interesting. And he did. And Nayibukele, the president of El Salvador, did it for Salvadorans. But then he knew that America had a need, where are you going to put your Ms. Thirteen deportees? He said, I'll take them. And he did Trump a political favor, frankly, an economic favor, a legal favor. And so Trump, I think, smiles on El Salvador not because El Salvador is a mighty economy, but because they actually helped them out. Maybe there's something Canada could have done, should have done in that vein, even if it was just not trying to step on the negotiations for the Hamas Israel peace deal. You know, in the middle of tense negotiations, Mark Carney says, you know what, I'm just going to reward Hamas by saying that I support the independence of Palestine. Is, is that ingratiating you with. I mean, every American leader said that made it, that made it tougher. There are ways Canada can be useful. I think oil and gas is the most important way to make America independent of OPEC oil. But of course that's against the liberal agenda. Hey, did you see how Trump showed his support for Argentina's Javier Milei yesterday? Now this is just rhetorical support, but you can see the two men had some sort of a connection. And I don't know what Javier Milei has actually managed to get from the United States, but he certainly got the personal affection of Donald Trump. Trump has trouble remembering Mark Carney's name. Here's Trump on melee.
- [17:59]
Benji
I'm with this man because his philosophy is correct. We're going to work very much with the president.
- [18:06]
Ezra Levant
We think he's going to win.
- [18:07]
Benji
He should win. And if he does win, we're going.
- [18:10]
Ezra Levant
To be very helpful.
- [18:10]
Benji
If he doesn't win, we're not going to waste our time. The president's party will and the coalition.
- [18:16]
Ezra Levant
Will do well in the election.
- [18:18]
Benji
And this aid is predicated on robust policies. And going back to the failed Peronis policies would cause a U.S. rethink.
- [18:29]
Ezra Levant
Now, I don't know, maybe that's going to backfire in Argentina. But I think that, you know, obviously Javier Milei has been able to get Trump to work with him, to work to support him. I don't think that Mark Carney has done so. And it doesn't matter if their personalities clash. Your job as Prime Minister, especially in this age, is to find a way to make it work. And Mark Carney is being Prime Minister for more than 200 days and he has not done so. And the thing is, that's his core promise. He was elected on stopping this whole thing from happening. He's had more than half a year and he hasn't moved things forward an inch. He had a meeting with Trump and nothing came from it. Now, I'm not happy that good jobs are moving from Canada to the United States. Of course I'm not. But it's also hard to understand why Canada, especially Mark Carney and other premiers, don't allow other good jobs to be created in Canada, especially in oil and gas. That is a huge global industry, $10 trillion a year market. And the thing about oil and gas production, you can't move it across the border, you can't move it to the US like you can with the production of cars. The production of oil and gas has to happen where the oil and gas is. And it is in Canada, especially in Alberta. You can sell it to the US you can pump it to the US you can even sell raw material and they'll refine it down there. Sure. But the primary jobs of exploration and production remain in Canada. But Mark Carney and the rest of the establishment, especially premiers in Quebec and B.C, will not let that happen. So, yes, it's worth crying over several thousand jobs in Ontario, absolutely. But what about 100,000 jobs in Alberta? Just a disaster. Now, I wanted to talk about that because it's a crisis for Ontario, but again, the Feds have killed 10 times as many jobs and 10 times as much investment in Alberta's oil patch. I mean, any one pipeline, Northern Gateway Energy, East Keystone xl, the new one proposed by Alberta, any single pipeline project out there, and I just named four, are larger than the amount that Stellantis just pledged to the United States. You could do all four of those pipelines. Just that. And by the way, you don't need government investment like you do for a fake electric vehicle battery plant. There are private companies ready to build them with their own money. Oh, and to pay tax on them, but we don't allow that in Canada. But you're supposed to grieve over the auto sector, just not for the oil and gas sector. Statistically speaking, can you save 90% of your grief for what Trudeau and Carney have done to Canada themselves? By the way, in case you're wondering, the value of Canada's oil and gas exports to the United States is about triple the value of our car trade with them. All right, I want to talk about a second thing, if I may. A completely different subject. Just because I've been away a bit and this has been driving me crazy. I don't know if you know this, but despite or actually because of the peace deal that Israel signed. There are hundreds of Palestinians being killed in Gaza. I don't know if you've seen this, but the murders are being done by Hamas against other Palestinians. So nobody cares. Certainly not the media, certainly not Palestine activists. Donald Trump calls himself the President of peace. And frankly, who can deny it? I mean, seven wars he has helped negotiate, the end of. The most complex one, I think, is Israel, Gaza. I mean, how do you put together Pakistan and Turkey and Saudi Arabia and Egypt and Hamas, Qatar and Israel. Now, I say Hamas, Qatar, because with Qatar on board, Hamas sort of has to be on board because Qatar is sort like their surety, their guarantor. You know, if they don't do it, Trump's going to lean on Qatar. It looks like Trump was victorious both in Israel, when the hostages came in, when they were released finally, and in Egypt, where the Muslim and Arab countries came together. Oh, and a few white, non, Muslim, non Arab leaders, too. Keir Starmer from the United Kingdom, Emmanuel Macron from France, Mark Carney from Canada. They had nothing to do with the peace deal. Like I say, all of them gave an enormous diplomatic win to Hamas with nothing in return. No consequences, no compromise, no conditions. They say, we recognize you as a country. What, before they had done anything, before they had given the hostages back, they actually rewarded their terrorist behavior. But Trump had them there and they lied about their important role. They all endorsed Palestine as sovereign under Hamas without any movement from there. And now they're trying to take credit for Trump's move that they undermined. Here's a British Cabinet minister just full on lying about it.
- [23:12]
British Cabinet Minister (possibly a UK government official)
We have played a key role behind the scenes in shaping this. It's right that we do so because it's in all of our interest, including our own national interest, that we move to a lasting peace in the region.
- [23:22]
Tommy Robinson
Well, when you say behind the scenes, like what I mean, it seems to everybody else in the world that this has been done by Trump and the Israelis and Hamas. What part did we play?
- [23:34]
British Cabinet Minister (possibly a UK government official)
These are complex matters of diplomacy that we are involved in. But we do welcome and recognize the critical role that the American government played in moving us to this point. What matters now, of course, is how we move beyond this immediate end to the war, moving towards that lasting peace that we all want to see. That is why we've recognized a Palestinian state, but why? Alongside that, we're committed to making sure that a safe and secure Israel.
- [23:59]
Tommy Robinson
The reason I ask this is because, as you say, we recognize a Palestinian state. Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, said that actually made it more difficult to land the deal. What's really going on here? I mean, was that some sort of clever strategic double bluff? I mean, the Americans say we made it more difficult. You're saying that we played this key part. What's true?
- [24:25]
British Cabinet Minister (possibly a UK government official)
Well, we believed as a government, that it was the right thing to do to recognise the Palestinian state because of the way in which the conflict had developed over the last two years, that if that hadn't happened, we would be in a position where there would no longer be that viable option of a Palestinian state.
- [24:40]
Tommy Robinson
But the Israelis were furious with us. The Americans said that we actually hampered the deal. What was the positive role that we played?
- [24:47]
British Cabinet Minister (possibly a UK government official)
It was the right thing to do, and we will always act as a government in that manner. I do obviously understand that not everyone agrees with that decision, but given the scale of the conflict and what needed to happen, we felt it was the right thing to do to recognize that Palestinian state.
- [25:01]
Ezra Levant
But, yeah, the U.S. ambassador to Israel couldn't help himself. Here he is tweeting that she's just, quote, delusional. I think my favorite moment. I know I follow the UK a little bit much, but here's Trump introducing and then unintroducing Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister. On the stage in. Starmer thought he was going to be asked to talk, and Trump looked at them and sort of said, yeah, no, take a look at this little interaction.
- [25:28]
Benji
United Kingdom. Where's the United Kingdom? Where's reference?
- [25:33]
Ezra Levant
Come here.
- [25:35]
Benji
Is everything going good?
- [25:36]
Tommy Robinson
Very good.
- [25:37]
Benji
That's very nice to hear.
- [25:38]
Ezra Levant
These people all came in like 20.
- [25:42]
Benji
20 minute notice and I think it's fantastic. And we have so many others and just so many others.
- [25:48]
Ezra Levant
And yeah, he flew all the way there for that. I don't even think he mentioned Mark Carney. But why are Macron, Carney and Starmer there? Like, why would Trump have them there? They were of no use or ornament to get the deal done, I think. Put on your Trump hat, put on your art of the deal hat and maybe it becomes clearer. Trump wants to rebuild Gaza. He wants to demilitarize Gaza. He wants to, if possible, turn it into a sort of Dubai. I'm very skeptical that it can be done, but it's going to need hundreds of billions of dollars and it's going to need some sort of boots on the ground to demilitarize and police the place. Well, that's why Macron and Starmer and Carney were invited because to get back with the cool kids to make it up to Trump for trying to scupper his deal. Don't you think Trump is going to demand from Macron, from Starmer and from Carney tens of billions of dollars, maybe $100 billion and maybe soldiers on the ground? And do you doubt that these leaders are going to provide it? I think in the end, there will be no U.S. troops in Gaza and no U.S. money. I think Trump, to allow these people to hang out with them, is going to say you have to pay for it. Hey, Saudi Arabia. Hey, Qatar. Hey, United Arab Emirates. Hey, France, Canada and UK we need you guys to put together half a trillion dollars to rebuild the rubble here. That's Trump the dealmaker, don't you think? Anyways, I want to let you know that my friend Tommy Robinson is in Israel because of course, his verdict in the Terrorism act trial won't be until November 4th. Here's a clip of Avi the other day before Tommy arrived, when the hostages were coming home.
- [27:35]
Benji
Avi Amini for Rebel News at Hostage Square in tel Aviv. For TheTruthAbouthewar.com we're here, I guess, to circle back and round off our reporting that started in October 2023 for the Truth about the War.com where myself and Benji flew here just to cover what was happening, to tell the other side of the story. And we're back here now in Israel to end the story. And it ends here at Hostage Square with Trump has just declared the war is over. Today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent.
- [28:05]
Ezra Levant
The sirens are still. And the sun rises on a holy land that is finally at peace.
- [28:11]
Benji
A land and a region that will live, God willing, in peace for all eternity. And the hostages are being released as we speak. We're here to find out how Riley's. I feel it. How are you feeling? I can't even describe in words. We are so excited.
- [28:42]
Ezra Levant
We have the first seven.
- [28:44]
Benji
We're waiting for the next. They're 13 or 15, hopefully 15.
- [28:48]
Ezra Levant
And.
- [28:51]
Benji
It'S amazing.
- [28:52]
Ezra Levant
It's finally here.
- [28:53]
Benji
Amazing feeling.
- [28:55]
Ezra Levant
Great.
- [28:56]
Benji
Bring back the hostages.
- [28:57]
Ezra Levant
Thank you, Trump. There you go.
- [29:01]
Benji
I think that kind of sums up how Israelis are feeling. I'm happy. Did you believe this was going to happen? Yes. You knew the whole time they were coming home?
- [29:09]
Ezra Levant
Yes.
- [29:10]
British Cabinet Minister (possibly a UK government official)
Wow.
- [29:11]
Benji
Great, wonderful day. Did you believe this day is going to come? Yes, of course. You believed it was 100%?
- [29:19]
Ezra Levant
Yes.
- [29:20]
Benji
I can't explain it. It's the most incredible joy.
- [29:23]
Tommy Robinson
We've been waiting for this day for so long.
- [29:25]
Benji
And I was sitting in my home in a suburb of Tel Aviv about an hour from here, and I just. I just couldn't be there.
- [29:31]
Ezra Levant
Just came here.
- [29:32]
Benji
Yeah, you came as soon as you saw that it's happening now. I was watching at home from my television screen. I'm like, how can I be there? I need to be here. So here I am. Your T shirt.
- [29:42]
Ezra Levant
How you doing?
- [29:42]
Benji
We're loving your T shirt. Why are you wearing that today?
- [29:45]
Ezra Levant
Here?
- [29:45]
Benji
Why am I wearing this? For the best president ever. Show us the keeper. I don't really need to get it. Do you think that today, the fact we've already got seven hostages out now that Trump has not only made America great again, it sounds like it's making Israel great again again. He's making the world great again. He's the king of peace. King of peace. When, when, when did it become real for you? Is it today? Or has it been since the deal was signed? And today we are so. Lots of smile, lots of tears, of course. And that's all.
- [30:27]
Ezra Levant
Yeah.
- [30:27]
Benji
What do you want to say to the world watching this now? I'm so happy that they are coming, coming back home. Sadly, not everybody are alive. The one that they are alive that they're going to bring back them to recover and they're dead to be buried in. Aubrey. And some of them go back home because there are some foreigners that they have been kidnapped and I'm so happy that it's happened. We are in historical moment, that this moment is happening after two years and six days that we're waiting them to come back home. And I'm so thrilled. I'm so. The last few days, I'm. Tears all over, you know. These are now the vans of the hostages coming into Israeli territory. And the crowd here is going absolutely wild. On one side side of the screen, Trump on the other side, the hostages returning home. What a historic moment. Another group of hostages have just been announced that they are on their way to the Israeli forces and back to their families. Can I ask you how you feel today? Amazing, Amazing, amazing. Hey, Talani, come on, girl. That's why I brought the dog. You know, it's. The whole people of Israel are happy and that includes the dogs. And we don't leave anybody behind. So this feels really, really, really good. I follow you on the Internet.
- [32:03]
Tommy Robinson
You're doing an amazing job, really.
- [32:04]
Benji
And it's. It's missed in the entire world.
- [32:07]
Tommy Robinson
And it's really, really.
- [32:08]
Benji
It's kadosh for us. Forget about me. What's today? How are you feeling today? Very special, Very special. I have no words. It's like. It includes a lot of emotions, so it's not like it's very. It's very complicated. Celebratory moment. We're very, very happy. We've been waiting for this moment since October 7th. Obviously, the job isn't done until all the hostages, living and dead, are here, but this is a great step forward. I feel the fact Trump has put all of his weight into making sure the war is over.
- [32:42]
Ezra Levant
Over.
- [32:42]
Benji
It's not just a ceasefire, it's not just a hostage deal, but it's actually full end to this war. He's fully committed to that and he made sure that now, understand that really opens up the opportunity for this to be an actual moment on a way forward for a better future for our kids, for a better future for this region, for a better future for the Palestinians as well. And that just makes this day all the more sweet, because it's not just about this moment, it's about what's to come. Relieved, have you been watching? You've been here the whole time?
- [33:14]
Ezra Levant
Everything. Almost many weekends I've been here.
- [33:17]
Benji
I've been here on Saturday and now I'm here today. And you can see the energy.
- [33:21]
Ezra Levant
Look at the sunlight. The energy is really positive.
- [33:24]
Benji
There's a sense of relief. Can I ask you?
- [33:26]
Ezra Levant
A sense of breath, really something that's.
- [33:29]
Benji
Off of your chest and this euphoria. I feel very emotional. I don't live here, but to be here with them and I mean, it's like really a big revelation for me because I think I can sense the joy but also the, you know, the sadness in them. And it's heartbreaking and it's not finished, maybe, I guess. I hope I can speak. How are you feeling today? I. I am so excited. We've been here for the last two years. Every Saturday night we came out to try and get them back. And it's just so amazing that it's finally happened. I feel like I'm going to start crying and I'm never going to stop.
- [34:31]
Ezra Levant
Until we see them all.
- [34:33]
Benji
It's extremely emotional. After two years of living this reality, it's honestly hard to believe that we're here. I think now that we've got seven over the line and 13 more. I mean, that's what it's all about is getting these people home to their families. Now, I don't know if you've been following what's been happening in Australia during this period as well. Have you seen what. Because you've been living here. Yeah, yeah. I've been here nearly a decade, but yeah, of course. I mean, how can you not. It's probably one of the most publicized broadcasts globally about the anti Semitism that's going on. Can I ask how you're feeling today? Yeah. Why is it so emotional? President Donald J. Trump has just officially landed in Israel to a welcome, a warm welcome by the entire nation, so happy, filled with gratitude that he is here today. Only seven hostages have been released as there's at least another 13 live hostages that are supposed to be released in the next next hours with Donald Trump here in Israel. The screen basically is showing on one side Trump, the other side, the hostages in a convoy. And the crowd is thanking the president, everybody unanimously agreeing that President Donald Trump is the one who deserves at least most of the credit for this deal today.
- [36:20]
Ezra Levant
Well, that's come and gone and I'll have some more video about the new things we're recording, namely Tommy Robinson's visit. Navi was there to greet him. I think there's a prospect for peace. I think that Iran and its proxies are dashed. Two years ago, you had Iran itself that was armed to the teeth. They were colonizing Syria with Bashar Assad. Lebanon's Hezbollah was really running the country, not the Lebanese government. And of course, you had Hamas in Gaza. Israel really was surrounded by a military machine that Iran had spent 40 years building. But things have turned around so quickly, even that. Indonesia comment. Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world, in case you didn't know who. Take a look at what their leader said the other day. We must also recognize, we must also respect and we must also guarantee the safety and security of Israel.
- [37:19]
Benji
Only then we can have real peace. Real peace.
- [37:24]
Ezra Levant
Thank you. Things are turning around, isn't it? All those countries that surrounded have basically been destroyed or cut down to size. I mean, Iran itself, the bulk of their ballistic Muslim nuclear program was wiped out with American help. Hezbollah was totally decapitated, their leadership destroyed, including with exploding pagers. The colonization of Syria is over. Bashar Assad is now in exile in Moscow. They say he's playing video games by the day. And Hamas is in full retreat now in Gaza. Israel has knocked its threat down to size and Israel is interested in peace. I believe within months you will see the second phase of the Abraham Accords. I expect Saudi Arabia itself will join. It wouldn't be something if Indonesia was in there. But here's my point. The first phase of the peace deal for Trump was getting the hostages back and Israel releasing hundreds of terrorists in return. But Hamas is already breaking their deal by not returning all the dead hostages body. But mainly they're taking advantage of Israel's withdrawal. I don't know if you saw the plan. Step one is for the hostages to be returned to Israel dead or alive. Step two, Israel pulls back to certain lines. But that has taken the pressure off of Hamas, which has flooded into the zone and they have begun to massacre their rivals. You can imagine for the past two years, a lot of people have been grumbling who decided to invade and slaughter Israel on October 7, 2023. And look what they have brought to Gaza. And who hides beneath schools and hospitals. Don't think that there wasn't rage and anger against Hamas. And some people had the courage to speak out over the last two years. Well, now it's reckoning time. And Hamas is massacring entire clans. Entire family names are being killed by Hamas. These are Muslim Arabs, by the way. Hamas is calling them collaborators. Yeah, no, not everyone's a collaborator. That's just what you call people in Gaza before you kill them. So there have been an enormous number of brutal murders. And I mean murders, not battles, not war, but outright murder on the streets committed by Hamas. But complete silence from the West. Just brutal executions in the streets. No one seems to care. Now why don't they care? Don't they care about Gazans? I don't actually think so. I'm not sure if they ever did. Now, was it really a genocide? I don't think so. The population of Gaza has actually gone up. Israel could have flattened the whole place instead of being more careful about how they went. Building by building. The first genocide that the alleged victims of the genocide could have stopped anytime simply by handing over the hostages. Was it a famine? I don't think so. I think the images show a lot of very well fed people. So all these things, suddenly the world doesn't care anymore. But why not? Because no one is stopped by this deal. Not Hamas, not Hamas supporters. They still hate Israel. That's what it was always about. It wasn't about stopping the war in Gaza, that was just a swamp that Israel got stuck in. But they absolutely continue to hate Israel full force. In fact, the biggest rally ever in London other than the rally against Tony Blair 30 years ago, the biggest rally in London for Palestine or Hamas was this weekend. After the deal, there's been not a moment's break in pro Hamas activity anywhere in the West. I don't actually think it's about Gaza. I think it's only about getting the Jews and when they were trapped in Gaza, the Israeli Defense Forces, that was a great way to get at Israel and the Jews. But now that they're no longer in there and now that there's peace in the region, or hopefully there is, that hasn't stopped the anti Jewish, anti Semitic, anti Israel attacks. Here's a young man in Oxford after the peace deal. That is the key point here. Listen to him.
- [41:46]
Benji
Upright, a steadfast and a noble resistance in Palestine and in Gaza to look to, to be inspired by.
- [41:54]
Tommy Robinson
And I don't want to yap for.
- [41:56]
Benji
Too long but a chant that we've been workshopping in Oxford that maybe you guys want to join in, it goes. Gaza, Gaza, make us proud Put the Zyos in the ground Gaza, Gaza, make us proud Put the Zos in the.
- [42:13]
Ezra Levant
Ground Gaza, Gaza, make us proud Put the Zos in the ground Gaza, Gaza.
- [42:21]
Benji
Make us proud Put the Zos in the ground Gaza, Gaza, make us. Thank you.
- [42:32]
Ezra Levant
What an absolute nutter. What a. I can't believe that that kind of person is in Oxford University. What a disgrace. I understand he's been suspended. I mean he's basically calling for murder. I mean he's basically calling for the stabbing attack that happened in Manchester a week ago where two Jews were killed. I've always said the problem is far worse here in Canada than in Israel, because at least in Israel they know what the problem is here in Canada. We turn a blind eye to it. I mean, for starters, why are we still taking Gaza refugees in Canada? Why haven't we sent the Syrian refugees home now that there's peace there? I think Tommy Robinson is actually morally clear on these things. Certainly clearer than Mark Carney or Keir Starmer. Here's some footage from his trip with Avi.
- [43:20]
Benji
Tommy Robinson has just landed in Israel on an official invitation from Israel's Minister of the Diaspora Affairs, a.m. shikli. A major moment for free speech and truth telling on the world stage. We'll be following him all along the way. For Tommy in Israel Dot com. Shalom. Shalom.
- [43:40]
Tommy Robinson
Shalom.
- [43:40]
Ezra Levant
Shalom.
- [43:40]
Benji
How are you feeling?
- [43:42]
Tommy Robinson
I'm happy to be here, mate. I'm honored to be here.
- [43:44]
Benji
What are you hoping from this trip?
- [43:46]
Tommy Robinson
I'm hoping to show solidarity with real strong leadership. I wish our country had a leader like Netanyahu. We have weak cowards. Our government have recognized a terrorist state and that government are not elected on a mandate. They are elected with 20% of the public vote. So I don't want people in Israel to think that the other 80% of people, not even the majority of Labour, support them, support recognizing a terrorist state. So I'm here to show solidarity with the Jewish people and the Israeli people for a strong and hopefully form good friendships and understand, because Israel is surrounded by jihad, Britain is going to be surrounded by jihad.
- [44:21]
Ezra Levant
Yeah.
- [44:21]
Tommy Robinson
The problems that Israel faces here are the same problems that we're going to face of the security issues that Israel has and Jews have in. In the state of Israel we're all going to face in Europe. It's coming to the whole of Europe because we have allowed and empowered Islamic extremism. We have leaders who have gotten their knees to them and appease them and they still think they can appease them. Obviously, Israel understands now they can't appease them or. I remember a time when Jews were dragged out of Gaza. Jews were dragged out of Gaza as part of a peace deal that would somehow give peace, which everyone knows it doesn't bring peace. So, yeah, I'm here. I'm here as a friend of Israel. Look, I'm happy to be here and I'm privileged to be here. So listen, I'm taller than you, Abby.
- [44:58]
Benji
Not sure about that part, but the truth is the Mossad ran out of money, so they've sent me to come here. And we're not getting $7,000 a post.
- [45:07]
Tommy Robinson
I want to.
- [45:07]
Ezra Levant
Absolutely.
- [45:08]
Doug Ford
I said if.
- [45:08]
Tommy Robinson
If anyone's paying $7,000. I'm owed millions. The truth, the truth. The truth is I don't do this. I've never been paid a penny from. From Israel. I do it because I see Israel as an ally, as a partner, as the only place where we are now surrounded. This is a beacon of freedom and democracy, of rights, of all the things that we as British people hold dear. And all the places surrounding this are human rights violations. Terror states, jihad states, states.
- [45:34]
Benji
So, yeah, look, and we're not being paid by anyone to be here and cover it. To be honest, I think it's important for Rebel to be here because we know BBC, sky and the rest of the fake news are going to run a certain. Hammer me a certain narrative about this house. So we've actually set up a website like rebel does. Tommyinisrael.com you'll be able to get a front row seat to Tommy's actual tour here in Israel. Bookmark it and if you want to help us with the $7,000 a post, you can do it there. Tommyinisrael.com Mate, welcome. We're really excited. I've been trying to get him here for so long. It took Amiche Chikli from the Diaspora. Mate, you're here on a state visit. Enemy of the state to friend of the state.
- [46:15]
Tommy Robinson
Enemy of the state in Britain, friend of the state in Israel, but not just friend of the state in Israel, because I believe now I'm a friend of the state in many countries. I don't know if you heard was what happened in Panama?
- [46:24]
Benji
No, no, no.
- [46:24]
Tommy Robinson
So I went to Colombia and they refused me entry and they deported me. I landed in Panama and they were deporting me there. And then the mayor of Panama saw it online and he sent a security truck, a cyber truck to come and pick me up and apologize. And he sent me, look, he sent me a beautiful message, just saying, I can't believe that I'm getting to meet you like this. So. And that. That's in Panama. So I've had.
- [46:45]
Benji
It's spreading.
- [46:46]
Tommy Robinson
I feel the shift spreading.
- [46:47]
Benji
America, mate, I could tell you now, everybody that's seen our camera here in the airport asked, who were you waiting for? Tommy Robinson. They're like, really? The entire country knows you, knows who you are and are excited. And to be honest, even people on the left at some of these protests are like, I like him. That's. That's what I feel. You're going to get that welcome that Trump kind of gets here, which is, thank you for being a real Friend.
- [47:11]
Tommy Robinson
Trump was here 72 hours ago, wasn't he? 48 hours ago. Wish I was here at the same time, but yeah. I just think that so many people now in our government and the cowardly leadership have hung the Jews out, especially in Britain. It must be a scary place.
- [47:26]
Benji
Tommyinisrael.com you can follow along the whole tour. We're going to give you everything and make sure to subscribe and hit the notification bell on YouTube because I'll probably be going live with him through this tour as well. But most importantly, if you can help us out, it has has cost us a packet to get here. Mend Benji's flights alone were five and a half thousand dollars each show or just under. So ten and a half thousand dollars I think between us ten, six and then the rest of it. We're paying for our own hotels, no government, no NGOs. We're paying for everything ourselves. So we rely on you guys, our viewers, to help make it happen. Tommyinisrael.com.
- [48:07]
Ezra Levant
Hey, welcome back. Don't mind me rambling over several subjects. There's just so much going on and I was away for a day. Let me read to you from premium subscriber comments on my trip to cover Tommy Robinson's trial. John Bedbrook says Britain is broken. Canada as well, you know, it's not totally broken and I think it's worth trying to fix both of them. And in some ways it's never been worse, but in other ways I feel like it's never been stronger. I mean, I was just reminiscing that a few years ago when I would cover Tommy Robinson in court, I would be the only person there that was a journalist or an activist. I would be the only person outside the court reporting my thoughts afterwards. Now there's 20 citizen journalists all fired up. So that's a sign of hope, isn't it? Matt Abraham says there's no such thing as a BBC journalist. They are all propagandists like the so called CBC journalists. Yeah. This is the third time a BBC journalist had tried to get me in trouble. Not through writing something but by tattling. I don't know if you remember, a few years ago a BBC journalist actually reported me to the British police. To the police. James Demer says, great job Ezra. And Rebel. When you rattle the state media, you know you're doing a good job. Well, that does make me feel good because the only reason the BBC would try and stop me is if I was having some sort of impact. And I had about eight and a half million views on my tweets on Monday and about five and a half million on Tuesday. You add that together, 14 million views. Even if those numbers are inflated in some way, even if it's only 10% of that, that's more viewers than I tell you. Read the BBC journalist comments. And I think that's why he dabbled on me, because he was mad that I was getting so many views from my opinion, which was the wrong opinion. Anyways, I'm glad the judge in the end, accepted my Canadian journalism credentials, but it still upsets me that he kept so many others out. That's our show for the day. Until next time, on behalf of all of us here at Rebel World Headquarters, to you at home, good night and keep fighting for freedom.