72% of Voters say "U.S. Out of Control", plus The Truth Behind Silicon Valley Bailout, & Religious Liberty Debacle at Walter Reed

Summary

The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson: Episode Summary

Release Date: April 26, 2023
Hosted by: Ben Ferguson, Premiere Networks

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Introduction

In this episode of The 47 Morning Update, host Ben Ferguson engages in a dynamic conversation with Senator Ted Cruz, delving into pressing political and societal issues facing the United States. The discussion centers around voter sentiments, President Joe Biden's administration, economic challenges, regulatory oversights, and the ongoing battle for religious liberties.

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Voter Sentiment: "U.S. Out of Control"

The episode kicks off with a discussion on a recent CBS News poll revealing that 72% of voters believe the "U.S. is out of control." Ben Ferguson highlights the subcategories contributing to this sentiment:

• 71% attribute the chaos to Joe Biden.
• 75% point to U.S. culture and values.
• 85% cite issues with the economy.
• 88% are concerned about the state of U.S. politics.

Quote:

"72% of respondents said that things in the US are out of control."
– Ben Ferguson [02:33]

Senator Cruz underscores the potential jeopardy this poses for Biden's reelection, especially considering that 33% of Democrats believe the current administration is the primary reason for the nation's turmoil.

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President Biden’s Re-election Announcement

Ben Ferguson criticizes President Biden's lackluster reelection announcement, describing it as a poorly executed video campaign lacking genuine engagement.

Quote:

"He had three minutes for him to read from a teleprompter... just getting the job done."
– Ben Ferguson [00:35]

The discussion further explores Biden's lengthy political tenure, with Cruz and Ferguson emphasizing his numerous years in office since being first elected to the Senate in 1972.

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Media and White House Responses

The conversation transitions to the White House's inability to provide substantial responses regarding Biden's reelection plans. Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House Press Secretary, is critiqued for her evasive answers during press briefings about the president's intentions.

Quote:

"I'm not going to get ahead of the President... I don't want to say much more than that."
– Karine Jean-Pierre [09:25]

Ferguson and Cruz express skepticism over the administration's transparency and strategic planning, suggesting that Biden's campaign lacks a coherent policy agenda.

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Silicon Valley Bank Bailout Controversy

A significant portion of the episode focuses on the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and the subsequent bailout by federal authorities. Senator Cruz and Ben Ferguson accuse the Biden administration of political favoritism, asserting that politically connected depositors received unlimited FDIC guarantees, unlike ordinary citizens.

Quote:

"They covered it from funds that are paid by everyone else's banks... only your politically well-connected are protected."
– Ben Ferguson [27:39]

Ferguson details his involvement in investigating the San Francisco Fed's oversight failures regarding SVB, highlighting bipartisan efforts with Representatives like Jim Jordan and Elizabeth Warren to enforce greater accountability.

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Biden’s War on Religious Liberty

The episode also addresses concerns over the Biden administration's policies impacting religious freedoms, specifically referencing the termination of Catholic pastoral care contracts at Walter Reed Medical Center.

Quote:

"Walter Reed Medical center... today does not have any Catholic pastoral care. So... there is no Catholic pastoral care at Walter Reed. That is outrageous."
– Ben Ferguson [34:46]

Ferguson criticizes the administration's prioritization of progressive ideologies over faith-based initiatives, arguing that such decisions marginalize religious individuals and undermine foundational American values.

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Economic Challenges and National Debt

Economic woes under Biden's administration are scrutinized, with rising inflation, energy prices, and national debt being primary concerns.

Quote:

"Currently, the national debt is $31.7 trillion... $94,000 per debt, per citizen."
– Ben Ferguson [38:14]

Ferguson warns of exacerbated economic conditions if Biden secures reelection, including potential gasoline price hikes driven by green energy policies.

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Sports and Personal Insights

Towards the end of the episode, Cruz and Ferguson share personal anecdotes about their passion for basketball and sports, adding a relatable and lighter touch to the intense political discourse.

Quote:

"I play twice a week... I'm a die-hard Houston Rockets fan."
– Ben Ferguson [40:22]

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Conclusion

The episode culminates with a reaffirmation of the show's commitment to addressing critical issues affecting America, emphasizing the need for leadership grounded in policy and accountability rather than partisan bias. Ferguson and Cruz urge listeners to stay informed and engaged as the nation navigates through turbulent times.

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Key Takeaways:

• Voter Discontent: A significant majority view the U.S. as being out of control, primarily blaming President Biden and his administration.
• Biden's Reelection Campaign: Criticized for lackluster execution and absence of substantial policy discussions.
• Regulatory Failures: Concerns over the Federal Reserve's oversight of Silicon Valley Bank, highlighting potential political favoritism in bailouts.
• Religious Liberty: The administration's actions are perceived as undermining religious freedoms, particularly for Catholic servicemembers.
• Economic Struggles: Rising inflation and national debt are pressing issues, with fears of worsening conditions under continued Biden leadership.
• Community and Accountability: Emphasis on the need for transparent and accountable governance to restore public trust and stabilize the nation.

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This episode of The 47 Morning Update provides a comprehensive analysis of the current political landscape, scrutinizing President Biden's administration through multiple lenses and advocating for a return to principle-driven leadership.

Transcript

[Ted Cruz]

Welcome. It is verdict with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. The big announcement drop. Senator Joe Biden announced with a massive live event, huge audience at a sold out auditorium that he was running for President of the United States of America today for re election. It was a big crowd. Let's just. Just kidding. No, none of that happened. It was a video that probably took about 100 hours to edit. You watched the video center. Your initial reaction to this lackluster announcement?

[Ben Ferguson]

Well, they had three minutes for him to read from a teleprompter. I'm sure it took 100 takes to get him to read those three minutes. And his three minutes were, let's keep getting the job done. And I got to say, that is a weird message. I mean, you look at the last two years, the disaster of what has unfolded under Joe Biden, let's take the economy. We have the worst inflation of our lifetime. So you have to go back to when you were sparkle in your daddy's eyes and I was a little kid to find a time when the inflation was this bad. You have crime rates exploding across the country, murder rates, carjacking rates all over the country. You have the worst illegal immigration in the history of our nation. You have a relentless assault on our constitutional rights, on religious liberties, on the second amendment, on the right to life. And then as bad as the domestic policy is, as bad as the foreign policy is, you have a national security policy that is an utter disaster. Every single region of the world is worse. We are facing the first major land war in Europe since World War II. We are facing China, stronger. North Korea, stronger. Iran, stronger. Cuba, stronger. Nicaragua, stronger. Every enemy of America stronger. And what does Joe Biden say? Give me four more years. Let's do more of this. Like, holy cow, how could you possibly want more of this? This is. If Madison Avenue put together an ad campaign that had zero to do with substance, it could not have been more apropos for this announcement video than what we saw today.

[Ted Cruz]

I rarely laugh at late night anymore, and you and I have talked about that before on this show. But last night someone sent me the clip of Jimmy Fallon and he said this idea that, you know, let's get the job done. Like Logan, he's like, you've had over 50 years, man. And the audience died laughing. A liberal audience sitting in, you know, with Jimmy Fallon, he's like, how much more time do you need to get the job done? You've been in office for 50 plus years and real polling is backing up that joke. And the sentiment of that CBS News poll has a new pull out. And the question was things in the US are out of control. 72% of respondents said that things in the US are out of control. Reasons that you think things are out of control, 71% said Joe Biden, 75% US culture and values, 85% the economy, and 88% state of US politics. The fact that 71% say the top answer among those who are thinking the reason's out of control, 71% say it's Joe Biden. The other thing that I think is going to be very interesting to see how this plays out is saying Biden is among the reason things are out of control. 33% of Democrats are. Respondents said they believe the reason why things are out of control is because the guy they voted for, Joe Biden, is the President of the United States of America. You've run for election. You look at internal poll numbers. If you're Joe Biden right now or his team, and you see 33% of your own party saying this, how concerned do you have to be?

[Ben Ferguson]

They should be very concerned. Listen, Joe Biden was first elected to the Senate in November of 1972. In November of 1972, I was one year and 11 months old. I was not even two. I was, I assume, still wearing diapers. Ben, you weren't alive then.

[Ted Cruz]

I was not 81, baby.

[Ben Ferguson]

I don't remember November of 1972. But Joe Biden charged in to Washington. You know, it's interesting trivia question. You know how old Joe Biden was when he was elected to Senate?

[Ted Cruz]

How old was he?

[Ben Ferguson]

So the constitutional minimum to be a senator is 30 years old. Take a guess how old Joe Biden was.

[Ted Cruz]

I'm gonna guess right at 30, then 29. There you go.

[Ben Ferguson]

He was elected at 29 and he turned 30 before he was sworn in. So he was a young guy, but he was a young guy when I was in diapers and you weren't alive. And he has been there since forever. Like 1972. He was there before disco, like, and he's been doing this forever. And he's like, let's finish the job. Seriously. Can you screw America anymore? Please do not finish the job of screwing America. And I'm going to ask a question, and I say this slightly tongue in cheek, but not much. If your objective. If you sat down and said, I've got a plan, I want to spend two years, I want to destroy this nation, Ben, what would you have done differently than Biden and the Democrats have done?

[Ted Cruz]

If you're going to destroy the country. You do exactly what his administration has done and they've done it to perfection.

[Ben Ferguson]

Look, it's actually a bizarre question because what we've seen the assault on jobs, the regulatory assault, the assault on US Oil and gas production, the assault on our national security, opening up our borders and creating the worst illegal immigration in history, the assault on law enforcement. Where do you think this crazy crime came from? Democrats saying defund the police, Democrats Supporting George Soros, DA's releasing violent criminals from jail, the assault on our fundamental constitutional rights, the assault on America as an institution, the assault on the Constitution, the assault on the Bill of Rights, the assault on look, every enemy of America Israel is a strong ally of America. Biden spent two years undermining Israel relentlessly. The United Kingdom is a strong ally of America. Biden spent two years under undermining the uk. China is an enemy of America. Biden spent two years giving weakness and appeasement to China. Russia is an enemy of America. Biden spent two years giving weakness and appeasement to Russia, including waving sanctions on Nord Stream 2. I say this in all seriousness, if your objective was to destroy the nation, I don't know what else you would do.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it's a great point. And the White House, by the way, they seemed lost as well about how they even got to the point where Joe Biden officially decided to run for reelection. I want to play that for you. Before we get that though, I want to talk to you about your cell phone. If you're sick and tired of giving your money to WOKE companies that are fighting against your values and you're ready to start embracing companies that actually stand by your ideals, then you can switch your cell phone to Patriot Mobile and you're going to know that you are actually making a difference because they take a portion of your bill every month at Patriot Mobile as America's only Christian conservative wireless provider and they stand up for and they support things that you agree with. We're talking about standing up for organizations that support free speech and religious freedom, the sanctity of life, the second Amendment and our military, veterans and first responders. That is why I want you to switch to Patriot mobile. They have 100 US based customer service team that makes switching easy as well and Patriot Mobile as the only American Christian conservative wireless provider, they offer you dependable nationwide coverage on all three major networks so you get the best possible service in your area without the WOKE propaganda pushed by leftists working hard to destroy this country. Make the switch today and make a difference with every phone call you make. Get free activation as well with the offer code verdict their number 878 Patriot that's 878-patriot or patriot mobile.com verdict use a promo code verdict for the best deals the day. 878 Patriot Center. There was something also that happened that was very weird and that was at the White House White House press secretary on the day that Biden announces he is going to run for reelection. This is her response to like, how did he get to this decision? She didn't have an answer.

[Karine Jean-Pierre]

Again, going to be very careful here. 2024 election. I actually don't have anything to share like behind the scenes on his decision making. I think the president spoke to this himself when he was asked before today about his intention to run and his plans to run. And so I will refer you back to what he has said more explicitly when he had those interviews. So I don't again, don't want to say say much more than that.

[Ted Cruz]

Say much more than that. Senator, it's almost like he didn't even know that he was running for reelection. They just threw a video together and said say these lines. And the White House staff didn't even know about it either.

[Ben Ferguson]

Look, the reason that I think Biden is running for reelect, I've actually thought for a year Biden would not run for reelect because he is so obviously diminished. He's too old to run. The overwhelming majority of Americans know that he's too old to run. His we talked about it in the last pod, just even in the last two years, his mental faculties have declined massively. The reason that I think Biden announced that he's running this week is I think something has happened in the last 60 days, which is that I think Democrats believe Donald Trump is going to be the nominee. And that's changed. I think 60 days ago, Democrats did not believe Trump was going to be the nominee. But the last two months have been very good for Trump politically. They have been not that great for Ron DeSantis politically. DeSantis numbers have gone down. Trump's numbers have gone up. And I think where Democrats are, if they thought they were facing a new nominee, anyone, frankly, who is not Donald Trump, I think Democrats would jettison Joe Biden. They'd say, okay, this guy, we need someone who actually can count to 10 and not get lost at about number six. But I think what Democrats have said, they believe Trump's going to be the nominee and they hate Trump. They live in a world where everyone they knows hates Trump. And so their, their view, I think, is okay, if Trump is the nominee, we're not going to run on Joe Biden's record. We're not going to talk about Joe Biden's record. We're not going to talk about anything for the last four years. All we're going to talk about is our guy is not Trump. That's their whole campaign. And by the way, they did that in 2020. They'll do it even more. I think their plan right now is Joe Biden will not leave the White House for the entirety of the campaign. They'll hide him in the basement.

[Ted Cruz]

But they don't have Covid this time, Senator, to hide him with. I mean, that was exchanged last time.

[Ben Ferguson]

They don't care. This last cycle, 2022, they didn't have Covid. And yet Katie Hobbs, the governor of Arizona, never did a debate. Josh Shapiro, the governor of Pennsylvania, never did a debate. They hid from the process. I believe if the electoral race is Joe Biden versus Donald Trump, Biden will leave the White House three times in the next two years. They'll hide him in the basement. They'll put out a periodic video like this little video where they have lots of time. He can read a teleprompter. And when he gets proof of life.

[Ted Cruz]

Right?

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, proof of life, yes, that's exactly that. And then he'll do one or two debates where they'll pump him full of enough drugs that he will seem marginally competent. He'll give a speech at the Democrat convention, and that'll be it behind the.

[Ted Cruz]

Scenes, by the way, so people know I'm gonna pull back the curtain. Usually the Senator and I, we will go over the show beforehan and I'll play him the audio clips that I'm thinking about playing. So we're all set to go for you guys. Every once in a while I hold one back because I don't want you to be able to pre plan for this too much. This is a real clip, Senator, from the White House press briefing today on a question. Does the President plan To serve all 8 years? Listen to the White House press secretary's response to that question.

[Ben Ferguson]

Does the President plan to serve all eight years?

[Karine Jean-Pierre]

I'm not, I'm just not going to get ahead of the President. That's something for him to decide. I'm just not going to get ahead of it. And there's a 2024 campaign. Anything related to that, I would refer you to that.

[Ted Cruz]

All right, I'm going to get your raw reaction to that.

[Ben Ferguson]

One like, holy cow, has there ever been a president. Imagine Donald Trump's press secretary being asked that. Imagine George W. Bush's press secretary being asked that. Imagine Barack Obama's press secretary asked that. Imagine George W. Bush's press secretary being imagined, asked that. It says something that even Karine Jean Pierre, who has now reached the hall of fame for lying from the West White House press briefing room, she's like, oh, I can't answer that. Because she can't say with a straight face, this is a guy who can't find his shoes. She can't say that five, six years from now he'll still be president. This is all about they hate Trump. The entire Democrat strategy. There is no policy strategy. Look, they can't run on ideas. The economy, they've screwed it all up. Safety and security, they've screwed it all up. The courts, they've screwed it all up. Foreign policy, national security, they've screwed it all up. Their entire campaign is our guy is not Donald Trump. By the way, their new epithet, MAGA Republicans, which is a bizarre, I'm sure they focus group that like crazy. It all comes down to we are Democrats, we hate Trump. That is their entire message. I think the key to winning, the key to winning the presidential, the key to winning the Senate this time around, the key to winning a bigger majority in the House is to focus on ideas and issues people care about. Focus on how you make people's lives better. And it's not about screaming MAGA Republicans want to destroy the republic.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah. The White House was also asked, and I want to know your reaction. Do you think the media is going to be tougher on a candidate Biden? This was a question at the White House press briefing today about the President's horrendous economic record. The rising prices, foods, basic services, the list goes on and on. And listen to the White House's completely out of touch response to that basic question as well.

[Ben Ferguson]

So Americans are seeing, when we talk about the economy in general, Americans are seeing energy prices up 24%, including electricity since President Biden took office. Food prices are up 18% in the last two years. Manufacturing lost jobs for the last two months in a row, and inflation is outpacing wages for 26 months in a row. How does the president then sell to the American people to keep going with these economic policies?

[Karine Jean-Pierre]

So look again, going to be careful about 2024. Anything that's related. No, no. I'm going to answer your question. Okay. I'm going to answer your question. Just want to be because you said moving forward. So just want to be very careful here. Look, the president always is very clear when he talks about the economy. He always says, one of the things that he says very frequently is that when it comes to inflation, when it comes to lowering costs, that is a priority for him and he has shown to do that. And if you talked about inflation, annual inflation has fallen over the last moderating. That is something that we have seen from the data that has come out. Wages are higher than they were nine months ago, incomes are up and consumer spending is strong. But he under, I mean, you can.

[Ted Cruz]

Hear her just rambling on there, Senator. He has a horrendous record on the economy. She's like, no, no, he understands he's doing a really good job.

[Ben Ferguson]

And understand clearly if, God forbid, Biden is reelected, everything will get worse. Mark my words, If Biden's reelected. Let me be clear. I don't think he will be. I think he will be defeated. I think the American people are fed up with the path we're on. But if he is reelected, we will see $10 a gallon gasoline. Remember this point. I hope that in a couple of years you and I are not on verdict saying, let's replay the clip from this day because if we hit $10 a gallon gasoline, understand that's what the green New Deal zealots in this administration want. We are facing the most fundamental assault. Listen, I get up every morning and I literally jump out of my bed. And when I come home, when I land in Texas, when I'm in the airport, when I'm in a shopping mall, when I'm in a restaurant, people come up to me and they're like, holy cow, what's going on? And my sort of standard line, I laugh, I say, look, we're in a crazy time. As they say in the military world, it is a target rich environment. But as I joke about that, the reality is I've never seen it this crazy in my entire lifetime. The reason I jump out of bed in the morning is I feel like I am going to the Roman Coliseum and I'm fighting the, fighting the barbarians, like these lunatics, these Marxists, the radicals in the Democratic Party. They hate America. They believe the Constitution is immoral. They believe the Bill of Rights is immoral. They want to tear it down. That's a fight worth fighting. We're not fighting, Ben, over little stuff. We're not fighting over little details. We're not fighting over whether the top marginal tax rate is 1% higher or 1% lower. We're fighting over whether America remains a free enterprise country or a socialist country. We're fighting over whether we have a border or our nation is invaded. We're fighting over whether the Bill of Rights remains the fundamental liberties of Americans or those rights are given up. That is a fight worth fighting.

[Ted Cruz]

You mentioned illegal immigration. And I think that's going to be a very center point of this election, especially with Trump being the frontrunner. He's obviously going to go back to border security and building the wall. The White House press secretary also got herself in trouble today when she was asked about the White House's failure at the border. Take a listen.

[Karine Jean-Pierre]

So the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security will have more to share soon. As you know, the Department of Homeland Security shared their plan back in January. And we have seen from the data, we have seen the, that the unlawful immigration is down. And so what they have put forth forth in their protocol and their processes is working. But they will have more to share in the upcoming days or weeks.

[Ted Cruz]

Just Senator, that's a lie. You've said this a hundred times on this show. You've said it on FOX News channel. Yes, 6.3 million illegal immigrants have crossed the border since Biden took office. And the White House press secretary, and I'm going to give you the quote, exactly quote, unlawful immigration is down. She said that. The White House podium today, lying to the American people.

[Ben Ferguson]

Every month we are setting records for the highest rate of illegal immigration in history. Month after month after month, over 6 million people have crossed illegally. Karine Jean Peer from the White House and look, the White House is hallowed ground. There's an obligation to the American people to tell the truth. She stands there and lies on Joe Biden's behalf. She claims, as she said before, people aren't just walking across the border. Yes, they are. Every day right now, whatever time of day. You're listening to this podcast, they're walking across the border because they're doing it every minute of every hour of all 24 hours a day, every single day. And she knows that and she is lying. It is horrific. Our country is being assaulted. And listen, I don't get angry about this stuff often, but I am pissed off.

[Ted Cruz]

And clearly, Senator, you're not the only one. 70% of Americans don't want Joe Biden to run. Yet here we are. He is the nominee for the Democratic Party. I want to move on to another important issue, and that is an issue that there's a letter that is going out from you, Senator and Representative Jim Jordans about the failure of the San Francisco Fed to watch what was happening with Silicon Valley Bank. Before we get into that, want to tell you about my friends at Augusta Precious Metals. If you are sick and tired of being stressed out over what's happening in the economy with your retirement account, with your 401k and you feel like you need to protect your hard earned assets, especially if you're either close to retirement or or in retirement, you need to call Augusta Precious Metals. If you've saved a hundred thousand dollars or more, they're also going to give you free gold. Yes, a free gold coin. You're going to like working with the guts of precious metals. I work with them and I use them. There is no time to make up losses if you're close to retirement and their goal is to preserve and protect your hard earned dollars. Now the other thing is the education side of things. Augusta Precious Metals does things very differently. Not only do you actually get a free guide to gold and Silver and IRAs, but they do a one on one conference with you so that you can ask questions and understand how gold and silver can help you protect your dollars. Call the gust of precious metals and get that peace of mind. 877-the-number4 Gold IRA. 877-the-number 4 Gold IRA. Or visit Augusta precious metals.com say I sent you and they'll pay your fees for up to 10 years as well. That's Augusta precious metals.com center. Let's talk about Silicon Valley bank and let's do a quick recap of what happened with Silicon Valley bank for everybody so they understand why you are sending this letter, the San Francisco Fed regarding this big tech liberal bank failure.

[Ben Ferguson]

Well, Silicon Valley bank had enormous assets primarily from venture capital firms in Silicon Valley, big tech firms that support Democrats, that are exceedingly liberal. Silicon Valley bank did not pay attention to fiscal stability, did not pay attention to actually having sound balance sheets. Indeed, here's an amazing thing. Silicon Valley bank for eight months did not have a chief risk officer. They literally didn't fill that position. So their balance sheet was filled with government bonds that had an enormous maturity risk because the Fed had jacked up interest rates so much that the bonds were worth much less than Silicon Valley bank had paid for them. But nobody at Silicon Valley bank was actually looking at the books and trying to protect their financial stability because instead you know what they did have? They did have a diversity equity and inclusion officer. They did focus on esg, on environmental and social goals. They were focused on left wing virtue signaling, but not on Actually watching the deposits, the deposits of their depositors. Now it's one thing to have some Silicon Valley bankers who lose sight, but who are the regulators? Who's in charge of watching the fox and the henhouse? Well, in the case of Silicon Valley bank, it was the San Francisco office of the Federal Reserve. They were the bank regulators that had supervisory authority. And the San Francisco office of the Federal Reserve didn't do a damn thing sat there while Silicon Valley bank had this enormous exposure, this enormous risk. By the way, the San Francisco office of the Federal Reserve was engaged in the same nonsense, the same esg, the same dei, the same politically correct virtue signaling instead of doing their damn job. So I'm the ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee. I sent an oversight letter announcing an investigation into the San Francisco Feds oversight of Silicon Valley Bank. The San Francisco Fed essentially said go jump in a lake, we're not going to answer your questions. So I just recently teamed up with Jim Jordan. Jim is in the House of Representatives, he is the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. And so the two of us together are demanding of Silicon Valley bank answer our questions. Did you know about this exposure? If so, why didn't you act? If you didn't know, why the hell weren't you doing your job? Why were you asleep at the switch? I can tell you Ben, on top of that, I've also joined, this is going to surprise you. I've joined in bipartisan legislation with Elizabeth Warren to make the regional offices of the Federal Reserve subject to foia, subject to the federal laws that makes them under the oversight of Congress and the American people. Right now they're exempt from foia. And I gotta say it's an amazing thing that Elizabeth Warren and I are on the same page saying these Fed banks that are laughing at Congress, that are laughing at the American people, that are saying we are unaccountable, even though a multibillion dollar cluster just unfolded on our watch, we need to hold them to account.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it's important legislation. Now the question is who's going to block it and why? There are a lot of Democrats that wanted to protect Silicon Valley bank because they were also a lot of the people that had their money. There were big donors of the Democratic Party. Is that going to be part of the politics that plays out in this?

[Ben Ferguson]

Unquestionably. And look, the dynamic we're in right now is Silicon Valley Bank. The Biden administration ran to step in and do a multi billion dollar bailout.

[Ted Cruz]

Why?

[Ben Ferguson]

Because the depositors were overwhelmingly politically well connected. Left wing Democrats, they were supporters of Joe Biden, they were supporters of the Democrats in the Senate and the Democrats in the House. And so immediately the White House said, all right, we got your back, you're fully covered. And by the way, when they covered that, they covered it from funds that are paid by everyone else's banks. So if you're not a politically well connected venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, if you're a Main street, if you run a dry cleaner, if you have a restaurant, if you have a car dealership, if you have a small business in Main Street America, you're paying for the Democrat bailout of Democrat donors. And the press of course doesn't want to cover that, but it is completely indefensible how they've decided, all right, if you're a well connected Democrat, we got your back. And by the way, one of the really negative consequences of this is we're seeing a flight of capital of individuals, of small businesses that have invested in, have their deposits in community banks, smaller and mid sized banks, and a very significant number of those depositors are taking their money out and moving it to one of the gigantic banks. Because the lesson they've taken from Joe Biden's response to this is if you're a giant bank that's too big to fail, all the deposits will be guaranteed. But if you're a mid sized or smaller bank, you're out of luck. And one of the great strengths of our economy is the thousands upon thousands of community banks we have. You look at other countries where they have three, four, five giant banks, that bank everyone, America is blessed. We've got thousands, tens of thousands of banks at the community level. And Joe Biden is happy to bankrupt all of them. And to benefit his buddies on Wall street, the handful of giant banks.

[Ted Cruz]

Quickly, for ref. For, for context point here, Senator. People that don't realize how the FDIC is supposed to work in ensuring your depositors, your deposits. It's only up to a certain amount of money. And what happened with Silicon Valley bank is it turned from a certain amount of money to unlimited money. And that's the reason why you mentioned it. A lot of people are saying, all right, well if I'm in a community bank or a smaller bank or a regional bank that doesn't have the political connections to these types of bailouts, I'm at much higher risk with my deposits than if I go to a woke bank or a massive bank. Like, like many are switching over because you're not supposed to have unlimited funds secured in these Banks. That's the whole point of having an up to amount, correct?

[Ben Ferguson]

Right? No, that's exactly right. When the FDIC was established, initially the threshold was 100,000 that your deposits up to 100,000 are guaranteed by the FDIC, guaranteed by the government. That was in recent years upped from 100,000 to 250,000. Now, $250,000 is a lot of money. Most of us don't have that much money in cash in a bank. But the FDIC guarantees to everyone, whatever bank you're at, if you have $250,000 or less, your deposits are guaranteed. What happened at Silicon Valley bank is you had depositors, both individuals and companies, that had millions of dollars, that had tens of billions of dollars, that had hundreds of millions of dollars. And the federal government stepped in and said, Never mind the $250,000 limit. We're going to guarantee all of it. Even though the depositors didn't pay attention when their bank went eight months without a risk officer, when their bank was not watching the stability of their balance sheets. And listen, if instead of Silicon Valley bank, this were Texas Oil and Gas bank, this were a bank that, that, that, that, that, that provided capital and liquidity to oil and gas drillers, the odds that the Biden administration would have guaranteed Those deposits are 0.0%. This was political favoritism. This was, if you're political allies and donors to Democrats, we got your back. And if not, you're screwed. And by the way, if you're neither, if you're just an ordinary individual or small business, you know what, the fees that your bank pays into the FDIC are going to go up to pay for the bailout of these Democrat donors.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it's almost like the response that you mentioning the banks. If it was a bank in Texas that was dealing with oil and gas, they'd be treated like the people were in Pennsylvania when you had that trail train derailment and it was, oh, it was Trump country, it's conservative, we don't have to worry about them. And that's why so many people, like you said, are switching banks right now. That's also not good for the system. I want to go to something else as well that I think people need to know about and get on their radar screen. And that is the Biden administration's war on religious liberty is continuing. And I want you to give people the update about that. Before I get to that, though, I want to tell you about our good friends over chalk. Now is the time to fight back against the war on losing your masculinity. And now you can do it with the patriots at chalk. They are here to help real men just like you maximize your masculinity by boosting testosterone levels up to 20% over 90 days. The male vitality stack I've been taking now for several months, it works. It will help you get back what you're missing. If you feel like you're just don't have that same energy level, you're feeling fatigued and tired at the end of the day, that is when you should take a look at chalk. Choq.com you can mask maximize your masculinity today and up your testosterone levels 20% over 90 days. Go online to Chalk.com use a promo code BEN for 35% off. Any Chalk subscription for life. Choq.com use a promo code Ben for 35% off. Senator, let's talk about the Biden's war on religious liberty. It is unfortunately been a theme of their administration virtually the entire time. And now you are demanding answers after Walter Reed Medical Center. I had the privilege of going there back when I was working with the Bush administration to watch President Bush go and see our men and women in uniform that had been fighting our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is an incredible facility. And you're now demanding answers because Walter Reed Medical center has ended a contract with a Catholic group. Fill us in on that.

[Ben Ferguson]

Well, Walter Reed Medical center is one of the premier military hospitals in America and in the world. And we have a great many of our veterans who are injured, who are ill, who are treated at Walter Reed. Now, one of the aspects of our military hospitals is that they have pastoral care. They have pastoral care because look, people who are facing horrific injuries, people who are facing life threatening illnesses, they are naturally thinking about end of life. They are thinking about the fate of their soul. And that has been an important part of caring for our veterans, caring for our active duty military from the beginning of the United States. Well, Walter Reed right now, today does not have any Catholic pastoral care. So look, Ben, you and I are not Catholics, but there are millions of Catholics in America. There are a great many Catholics in our military. Walter Reed had a contract with the Holy Name College Friary with a Catholic pastoral care organization that provided if you were a Catholic, you were a service member, you were activated, you were a veteran, you were at Walter Reed and you needed to pray with a priest. You were facing death, you wanted your last rites, they would have a priest who would show up and provide Catholic pastoral care. And what did the Biden administration do? It declined to renew its contract. So right now, there is no Catholic pastoral care at Walter Reed. That is outrageous. And by the way, Joe Biden says he's a Catholic. Like, explain to me why the hell a president who says he's a Catholic would preside over an administration that allows Walter Reed, a premier military hospital, to have zero Catholic pastoral care. It is wrong. And listen, do I think Biden knows about this? No, I don't think Biden knows what day it is. I don't think he knows what's going on. So I don't think this is his personal decision. But I think the zealots he's put in his administration hate people of faith. Part of it is the Democrat Party. When faced with a conflict, they have elevated the radical transgender ideology above all other groups. And so, because people of faith often have concerns about embracing either the radical transgender ideology or the radical abortion on demand ideology, the Democrat Party has decided faith is no longer acceptable. You know, you think back to John F. Kennedy. John F. Kennedy, a Democrat president, would have been chased out of the Democrat Party today because he was an observant Catholic. He believed in his faith. He defended principles of his faith. That is no longer allowable. And so I've sent a letter in my oversight capacity in the Senate to Walter Reed saying, why do you no longer have Catholic pastoral care? Our servicemen and women deserve that. If they are Catholic, they deserve to have a priest. If they're facing the end of life, they deserve to have last rites from a Catholic priest. And if the Biden administration valued religious liberty and religious faith, they would fix this, and they'd fix this yesterday.

[Ted Cruz]

As much money as we spend, you look at the national debt right now. And I go back to this. If they claim this is about money, Right. Look at the national debt clock. Right now, we're at 31,706,702,000,000. That's $94,000 per debt, per citizen, or 247,000 per taxpayer. Don't tell me we can't afford this. My point is, apparently this administration can afford anything and everything and run the debt up to the point that I just mentioned. What is their excuse? Have you gotten one yet?

[Ben Ferguson]

So I have not yet gotten an answer from Walter Reed, but I'll bet dollars to donuts, it's not about money. They don't care about money. This is an administration that spent $7 trillion last year. They blown the budget out. No amount of money matters to them. This is about faith. Doesn't matter to them. And the problem is they filled this administration not just at the cabinet level, but at the sub cabinet level with zealots who despise faith. And so if you ask a radical left wing zealot who hates faith, who hates Catholics, should we renew our contract with the Catholic Pastoral Care Group, their answer is of course, no. And it's not money. They don't care about money at all. If you ask them, do you support creating a giant pile of money, pouring gasoline on it and lighting it on fire, they'd probably say yes. This is about not valuing faith, not valuing people of faith, and having a deep seated animosity of faith. And that is really inconsistent with who we are as an American people.

[Ted Cruz]

Last thing doesn't deal with politics. Senator, I'm learning this about you. This is my first season doing this podcast with you during the NBA playoffs, which means you're a night owl staying up late. Who do you like so far? And you better at least mention my, my, my hometown, Memphis Grizzly.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, I'm gonna confess, honestly. So I love hoops.

[Ted Cruz]

You play several times a week. People may not know that.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, I play twice a week. I play typically. I play Sunday evenings in Houston with some, some good friends of mine. And then I play usually Tuesday afternoons. You and I are recording this late Tuesday evening. I will be playing at 7:30 in the morning. On Wednesday, from 7:30 to 9:30, I'll play. I typically play twice a week. Once a week in Houston, once a week in D.C. and listen.

[Ted Cruz]

And that's your workout? That's your exercise? This is, that's your passion?

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah. I mean, I go to the gym and I lift also, but, but I much prefer. I like sports. I get bored. I hate running. Running bores me. I feel like a gerbil on a treadmill. I like competition. You and I play tennis. We play tennis a number of times. Unfortunately, Ben is a thousand times better than I am because he was actually like a college tennis player at Ole Miss. But I enjoy it. I'm a very mediocre tennis player. I am a slightly less mediocre basketball player. I was an. Okay, I was a mediocre high school varsity basketball player. And I would say at 52, I've maintained those skills about the same. But I got to tell you, the truth of the matter is I am a die hard Houston Rockets fan. The Rockets are out of it.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

And so I'm vaguely watching the playoffs, but I don't really give a damn if the Rockets aren't in it. It's like I'll watch the finals when they happen, but I'm not watching the. You know you sent me a text the other day saying, holy crap, did you see Jimmy Butler's numbers? And I saw SportsCenter for a minute and I watched a little bit of it. But if the Rockets aren't in it, I find it. I'm hard pressed to watch the playoffs.

[Ted Cruz]

Look, we'll adopt you, no problem. Grizzlies will adopt you for the playoffs. We're down right now to the Lakers and I know you can't be a big Lakers fan, so tomorrow night, if you're bored, you should be rooting for my hometown Grizzlies.

[Ben Ferguson]

There you go.

[Ted Cruz]

I like it. Senator, always a pleasure. Don't forget we do the show Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. Make sure you hit that subscriber auto download button so that you get every single episode and we will see you back here in a couple of days.