Do Female Prisoners Have the Right to Not Have a 6'2" Man who is a Serial Rapist as a Cellmate? plus Michael Cohen ADMITS He's a THIEF

Summary

Podcast Summary: The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson
Episode: Do Female Prisoners Have the Right to Not Have a 6'2" Man who is a Serial Rapist as a Cellmate? plus Michael Cohen ADMITS He's a THIEF
Release Date: May 24, 2024

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Introduction

In this compelling episode of The 47 Morning Update, host Ben Ferguson engages in a robust conversation with Senator Ted Cruz, delving into critical issues surrounding the Biden administration's judicial nominations and recent developments in the Trump trial. The discussion is marked by fierce exchanges, insightful analysis, and controversial viewpoints that shed light on the current political landscape in America.

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Judiciary Nominations and the Sarah Netburn Controversy

The episode kicks off with Ferguson highlighting Senator Cruz's recent heightened profile on Capitol Hill, particularly his vigorous cross-examination of a Biden administration nominee, Sarah Netburn, for the Southern District of New York.

Key Points:

• Extreme Judicial Nominees: Senator Cruz criticizes President Biden for nominating what he describes as "extreme radicals" to the federal bench. He specifically targets Sarah Netburn, a magistrate judge in New York, accusing her of undermining women's safety in prisons.

  "Joe Biden has nominated a lot of extreme radicals to the bench... This year's nominee, Sarah Netburn, is a magistrate judge who has shown blatant disregard for the rights of women in prison." [00:19]

• Cross-Examination Highlights: The discussion centers around Netburn's handling of a case involving a serial child rapist who identified as a woman, resulting in his placement in a women's prison. Cruz asserts that Netburn prioritized political ideology over the safety and rights of female inmates.

  "This individual, six foot two, serial rapist with male genitalia... She said, great, puts ideology above the law, puts ideology above the rights of women." [10:03]

• Senate Process and Partisanship: Cruz elaborates on the partisan nature of the Senate's confirmation process, emphasizing that Democratic leadership, particularly Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin, strategically supports radical nominees to advance a leftist judicial agenda.

  "The Democrats are just like the politburo. They seek out radicals who align with their extreme viewpoints." [15:10]

• Impact on Judicial Integrity: The conversation underscores concerns about the impartiality and qualifications of judicial nominees, arguing that such extreme appointments could jeopardize the fairness of the legal system.

  "These are the people getting these jobs and then they get sit there for years on end affecting people's lives in a major way." [19:41]

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Analysis of the Cross-Examination

Ferguson and Cruz dissect the cross-examination of Judge Netburn, which went viral for its intensity and controversial questions.

Key Moments:

• Questioning Netburn's Priorities: Cruz challenges Netburn’s commitment to the rights of individual inmates versus her political ideology, questioning her rationale for placing a convicted serial rapist in a women's prison.

  "Do they have the right not to have a 6 foot 2 man who is a serial rapist put in as their cellmate?" [10:31]

• Senator Cruz's Accusations: He accuses Netburn of being more concerned with political activism than upholding the law, suggesting that her decisions reflect a broader agenda to prioritize transgender rights over women's safety.

  "To today's radical leftists, there's a hierarchy of whose rights matters. And to the left, transgender people rights matter more than women's rights." [15:10]

• Quotes from the Transcript: Cruz references Netburn’s judicial opinions that he believes showcase her radical ideology, emphasizing his belief that such biases disqualify her from a fair judicial role.

  "The record is devoid of evidence of incidents of violence or assault during petitioner's incarceration when she was the perpetrator, only the victim." [12:31]

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Michael Cohen’s Admission and Its Implications for the Trump Trial

Shifting focus, Ferguson and Cruz delve into the dramatic revelations from the Trump trial, particularly Michael Cohen's admission of financial misconduct.

Key Points:

• Cohen's Confession: Michael Cohen testified to stealing tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization, a revelation that could have significant repercussions for the ongoing trial.

  "Michael Cohen was the criminal. He testified and admitted that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization." [01:07]

• Impact on Donald Trump’s Case: Cruz argues that Cohen's admission undermines the prosecution's case against Trump, as it introduces doubts about the integrity of the charges and the prosecution's motives.

  "How is this trial not at that point, just immediately canceled, saying, hey, we're gonna have a mistrial. It's over?" [22:51]

• Media and Prosecution Bias: The discussion highlights what Cruz perceives as a coordinated effort by the media and the Manhattan DA’s office to target Trump, regardless of the evidence's validity.

  "Their objective, the radical left, has decided Donald Trump is the devil and they will do anything, anything, anything possible to get him." [27:02]

• Credibility of Witnesses: Cruz critiques the reliance on Cohen as a witness, pointing out his history of dishonesty and the incongruity of the prosecution continuing without addressing his theft.

  "Cohen's acknowledgment that he stole... potentially open him up to further criminal process? It's a great question." [26:06]

• Judicial Handling of the Case: Emphasizing judicial bias, Cruz discusses how the judge blocked key testimony that could have exonerated Trump, reinforcing his belief that the trial is fundamentally flawed.

  "The judge blocked him from testifying, Smith did an interview... the prosecutor's case is utter and complete garbage." [37:02]

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Media Representation and Public Perception

The episode also critiques the media's portrayal of the trial, arguing that biased coverage distorts the truth and undermines public trust.

Insights:

• Misleading Headlines: Ferguson and Cruz lament how media outlets like MSNBC and The New York Times frame Cohen's lies in a way that paradoxically enhances his credibility, a tactic they deem misleading.

  "The headline was how Michael Cohen's past lies make him a more credible witness. And they weren't the only ones to try to pull this, you know, Jedi mind trick on people." [41:20]

• Media's Role in Political Agendas: They assert that media organizations prioritize advancing a leftist agenda over factual reporting, contributing to political polarization and misinformation.

  "The media, unfortunately, regularly lies. They engage in lies. They view their role as propagandists." [41:20]

• Impact on Public Opinion: The biased media coverage, according to Cruz, manipulates public perception, making it challenging for listeners to discern the truth amidst partisan spin.

  "It just shows they're really bad liars." [42:07]

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Conclusion

The episode of The 47 Morning Update offers an intense examination of two pivotal issues: the Biden administration's controversial judicial nominations and the intricate developments in the Trump trial. Through Senator Cruz's critical insights and Ferguson's probing questions, listeners gain a deeper understanding of the perceived threats to judicial integrity and the political machinations that influence high-profile legal cases. The conversation underscores the ongoing struggle between partisan agendas and the quest for unbiased justice in America.

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Notable Quotes

• Senator Ted Cruz on Judicial Nominees:

  "Joe Biden has nominated a lot of extreme radicals to the bench." [00:19]

  "To today's radical leftists, there's a hierarchy of whose rights matters." [15:10]

• Senator Ted Cruz on Michael Cohen:

  "Michael Cohen was the criminal. He testified and admitted that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization." [01:07]

  "The Democrats are just like the politburo. They seek out radicals who align with their extreme viewpoints." [15:10]

  "The prosecution's argument is Michael Cohen is a liar, but he's a thief, too. Like, that's kind of a problem." [26:16]

• Ben Ferguson on Media Bias:

  "The headline was how Michael Cohen's past lies make him a more credible witness. And they weren't the only ones to try to pull this, you know, Jedi mind trick on people." [41:20]

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This episode serves as a critical commentary on the current state of the American judiciary and the Trump trial, offering listeners a perspective that questions the integrity of political appointments and the fairness of high-profile legal proceedings.

Transcript

[Ben Ferguson]

Welcome. It is Verdict with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. And Senator, it is a rock star week. I gotta say for you on Capitol Hill. You got feisty during some hearings and it's gone viral. What just happened with one of the radical nominees put up by the Biden administration?

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Well, that's exactly right. Joe Biden has nominated a lot of extreme radicals to the bench. This week we had a hearing with with a district court nominee who sent a serial child rapist, who is a man who decided that he was a woman, sent him into a woman's prison, disregarded the rights of the women. It is outrageous. I cross examine this nominee. We're gonna get into that. We're also gonna get into what happened at the Trump trial this week. We're gonna get into in particular the bombshell news that Michael Cohen testified about a crime. We finally found a crime at the Trump trial. It just happened to be Michael Cohen was the criminal. He testified and admitted that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization that might well be relevant for charging him, but it doesn't prove any crime on behalf on the part of Donald Trump.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, very important there. And it's shocking to find out those details. We'll have for you in a moment. Let me ask you a question real quick. If you knew that you were giving money to a company that was supporting hardcore lefties running for office, if you knew you were giving money to a company that was supporting Planned Parenthood, if you knew that you were giving money to a company that was giving money to take away your first and Second Amendment rights, would you keep doing it and do it every single month? Well, if you're with Big Mobile, that's exactly what is happening. You may not realize it, but now you know Big Mobile supports big leftist causes, including Planned Parenthood. And that's why I want you to make the switch to Patriot Mobile. For more than a decade, Patriot Mobile has been America's only Christian conservative wireless provider. And the number one reason why people don't switch cell phone providers, they think it takes forever. And it used to, used to have to go into a store. You had to sit there, you had to port your number over. It was exhausting. And so people were like, forget it. I'll just stick with what I've got. It doesn't work that way anymore. In fact, you can switch right now to Patriot Mobile over the phone. It is incredibly easy because of technology now. And you get to keep your same cell phone number you have, and you can keep the same cell phone you have in your hand right now or you can upgrade to a new one. Now here's the best part. When you switch to Patriot Mobile, they actually take about 5% of your bill every month at no extra cost to you. And they fight for the values that we believe in. That's right. Your bill every month goes to support free speech, religious freedom, the sanctity of life, as well as supporting our second amendment. And then they do something else that's amazing. They stand with our military veterans, our wounded warriors and our first responder heroes. So in essence, when you make a phone call, when you pay your bill every month, you're standing up for what you believe in. Just go to patriot mobile.com verdict, that's patriot mobile.com verdict or call them at 972-patriot. That's 972 patriot. And here's the other thing. You'll get free activation when you use the offer code verdict patriot mobile.com verdict or 972-patriot center. Before we get into you and the this incredible cross examination of this radical judicial nominee, I got a bone to pick with you. For four years you've been abstaining from going on CNN. And in the last four years, CNN's ratings have gone to hell in a hand basket so bad that they drew just 83,000 viewers ages 25 to 54 during the week 13th through the 19th. That is the lowest rating they've had since 1991 according to the Nielsen ratings. And then all of a sudden you showed up on CNN yesterday for an interview. Are you trying to save the network, sir? Because it's only going to help them.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Well, look, once Ben Ferguson left cnn, they were in a downward spiral.

[Ben Ferguson]

And I'm glad you remember that. That was about four years ago as well. Thank you.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

And the company's been hurting ever since. So, you know, I want to do what I can for a, a poor, struggling, drowning, fake journalistic network.

[Ben Ferguson]

In all fairness, you actually went on there to talk about the important piece of legislation that you've been pushing that deals with ivf. And they gave you a platform to talk about that for a moment before they then tried to come after you.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yeah, no, that's exactly right. And Caitlin, Caitlin Collins, we actually had the first segment. It's kind of funny. My team said this. I was going to be on for two segments. My team said the first segment, they'll play nice. They'll actually let you talk about what you're here to talk about and you'll have a reasonable conversation. And the second segment she'll get all nasty and she'll perform for all of their left wing stakeholders. And that's exactly what she did. And she was snarky and interrupted me and didn't want me to answer and, you know, played the same gotcha game that we're seeing the media do. Their favorite thing right now to do to Republicans is say, will you swear on a stack of Bibles? Actually, they don't say a stack of Bibles because lefties don't believe in Bibles. But if they did, they would say, will you swear on a stack of Bibles that no matter what, you will fully accept the election results in 2024? And, you know, I laugh and say, well, no, who on earth would do that? Of course I will accept them if they're legitimate. But we have, in every state, we have laws in place to challenge voter fraud when there are regularities. We have elections that are challenged all the time. The courts overturn election results when there's fraud. Like, what imbecile would say, even if something's illegitimate, I'll accept it anyway. I'll accept it if it. If it's fair, if it follows the law, absolutely. But I'm gonna fight to uphold the law. And they don't accept that answer. And so. So Kaitlan Collins had kind of a meltdown when I gave that answer over under.

[Ben Ferguson]

You're gonna be back in the next four years. That's what I really want to know.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Oh, I'll probably be back. You know, if nothing else, I sort of enjoy going round and round. You know, it gets the blood flowing.

[Ben Ferguson]

There you go. It's. Hey, it's something to do on a random Thursday. Right? You gotta love it. All right, let's get to the bigger issue here, and that comes up with the Biden nominee. You had one heck of a time with this Biden radical nominee. Sarah Netborn, I want you to set the stage for this nominee that was coming before you guys in the Senate. It's a nominee for the judge for the Southern District of New York. Obviously, that's going to be someone that's pretty liberal, but this went off the charts radical and is now putting women's lives at risk in prison because of decisions that this judge has made in the past.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yeah, that's exactly right. So we had a hearing this week with a total of five Biden district court nominees, and all five of them were quite left wing. And in fact, what Dick Durbin, who's the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, did is he stacked them all together because this one in particular was so egregious that I think Durbin knew that she would draw the fire and the other four would basically skate by because you only have a limited number of time to cross examine. And so this one's record was so bad that the others got very little scrutiny. But this particular judicial nominee is a woman named Sarah Netburn, and she is a magistrate judge in New York that Biden has nominated to be a federal district judge in New York. And that means she's the pick of Chuck Schumer. And I gotta say, even for Biden nominees, and Biden nominees have been hard left. They've been much more radical than, than Obama nominees ever were. Even for Biden nominees, this nominee was wildly outside the mainstream. And well, look, rather that, rather than relive it, we should just, just, just play the cross examination.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it's gone viral on social media. More than 38 million have watched this on X so far. Take a listen.

[C]

Well, Judge Netburn, I want to continue on this line of questioning in your court. What matters more, the rights of individuals or your political ideology?

[D]

I apply the law to the facts.

[C]

I asked a question which matters more.

[D]

My political ideology doesn't matter at all.

[C]

Okay, so I don't believe you. And I think this case demonstrates that you are willing to subjugate the rights of individuals to satisfy your political ideology. This case involves a male defendant who raped a nine year old boy. Was he guilty of that?

[D]

Yes, the petitioner pled guilty to that.

[C]

Okay, so he raped a 9 year old boy. He also raped a 17 year old girl. Was he guilty of that?

[D]

He pled guilty. The petitioner pled guilty to that crime as well.

[C]

So was he guilty?

[D]

I hope so because she pled guilty to it.

[C]

He was a he when he did this.

[D]

That's correct.

[C]

And also criminal deviant conduct, which the record doesn't, doesn't disclose what that was. Exactly. Then after serving in prison, Mr. McClain was released for parole, but then violated the terms of parole by having Internet and was sent back to prison. One year after being released again, he was convicted of having child pornography. Is that correct?

[D]

I'm unclear on exactly the timeframe that you're at, but the petitioner was convicted of distributing child pornography.

[C]

Child pornography that was images of adults violently raping children.

[D]

Abhorrent conduct.

[Ben Ferguson]

Okay.

[D]

For which there are real victims.

[C]

And this individual, six foot two, biologically a man. A minute ago you said that when this man decided that he was a she, you said this individual was, quote, I wrote it down. Sober and entirely a female. That phrase struck me as remarkable. Did this individual have male genitalia?

[D]

I think what I said, or at.

[C]

Least that is a verbatim quote.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Entirely a female.

[D]

Sorry. What I meant to say was hormonally a female.

[C]

Okay. But that's not entirely. Did this individual have male genitalia?

[D]

Yes.

[C]

So you took a six foot two serial rapist. Serial child rapist with male genitalia. And he said, you know, I'd like to be in a women's prison. And your answer was. That sounds great to me. Let me ask you something. The other women in that prison, do they have any rights?

[D]

Is that a question?

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yes.

[C]

The other women in that prison, do they have any rights?

[D]

Of course.

[C]

Do they have the right not to have a 6 foot 2 man who is a repeat serial rapist put in as their cellmate?

[D]

Senator Cruz, I considered the facts presented to me and I reached a decision.

[C]

I asked you a question. Do they have a right not to have a 6 foot 2 man who is a serial rapist put in as their cellmate? Do those women have a right to that?

[D]

Every person who's incarcerated has the right to be safe in their space.

[C]

But you didn't think so. You. You didn't think so.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

And in fact, I'm going to give.

[C]

Some quotes from your order because Senator Kennedy is right. This is not a judge's order. This is a political activist. By the way, the beginning of your order says at birth, people are typically assigned a gender. I got to say, that would astonish a lot of Americans. A lot of Americans think you go to the hospital, a baby is born, and you, congratulations, you have a little boy, a little girl. The assigned agenda. I know you went to Brown, but it sounds like it's in a college faculty lounge with no bearing on reality. The Bureau of Prison argued what I'm saying right now, that if you put this person in a female prison, there will be a risk of sexual assault to the women. And you know what you did? You said you didn't care about the women. I'm going to quote what you wrote. You wrote, quote, the Bureau of Prisons claim Pentagon interest in protecting female prisoners from sexual violence and trauma. This interest is legitimate. That's kind of you to say. But there are no signs that petitioner is at risk of reoffending. The record is devoid of evidence of incidents of violence or assault during petitioner's incarceration when she was the perpetrator, only the victim. A theoretical risk of sexual assault by the prisoner without more cannot support the BOP's position. No evidence. Theoretical. Have you dealt. In what universe is someone who is a serial repeat child rapist not at a risk of reoffending?

[D]

Senator, as I do in every case.

[C]

I know you've been told to repeat the line. I follow the law. I asked a question. In what universe is someone who is a serial repeat child rapist not at risk of reoffending?

[D]

Sir, I looked at the facts that were before me in this case. All of the evidence, including the statements of every warden who had supervised this petition.

[C]

You also wrote, the BOP also posits that permitting to live among women will be traumatizing and possibly dangerous to them. This concern is overblown. I have to say. If I were the father of one of those women and you decided that my daughter's cellmate was going to be a 6 foot 2 man who over and over and over again committed violent sexual assault, I would say the entire justice system is absurd.

[Ben Ferguson]

And.

[C]

And it is clear on your record your political ideology matters a heck of a lot more than the rights of those women that you endangered. I think you're a radical, and I think you have no business being a judge.

[Ben Ferguson]

Senator, I want to take a moment and explain to people the strategy when there is a judge that is nominated in this scenario. One of the first questions that the team that is supposed to be helping here, right, on the Biden side would say is, okay, hey, let's look at a record. Are there any liabilities out there? Are there any cases that you can't explain? Are there going to be things that are going to embarrass us or hold us up? Is that now, like, completely gone from the nomination process? If you're on the, on the, on the left, on the Democratic side, where, hey, it doesn't matter how radical you are, if we like you and we think you're one of us, we'll just nominate you no matter what you've done in your past.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

So, Ben, I'll say it's worse than that. The more radical you are, the more of a plus it is. They're deliberately looking for people who do things like this. The fact that this woman is a left wing radical who sees this transgender 6 foot 2 man who claims he's a woman and wants to be in a women's prison and says, great, puts ideology above the law, puts ideology above the rights of women. By the way, to today's radical leftists, there's a hierarchy of whose rights matters. And to the left, transgender people rights matter more than women's rights. And so the women's rights just don't matter at all. And you know, it's very easy for, for a privileged leftist to say this because you know what, this judge, she didn't have a cellmate who was a serial rapist. She was just subjecting other people to that. And so it made her ideology feel very good.

[Ben Ferguson]

But qualified her is what you're saying. This is that this is what qualified her.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Seek out people like this. This is who they're looking for. And I'll tell you, for a district judge, in all likelihood, this person was selected by Chuck Schumer. The way it works for district judges is the home state senators have enormous sway. So to give you a sense, for the past 12 years that I've been in the Senate, practically every district court nominee from the state of Texas, John Cornyn and I have submitted to the White House one name for each vacancy. And that's been true under Democrat and Republican presidents. As a practical matter, the senators typically pick the district judges.

[Ben Ferguson]

So they look at her or she looks at these cases and says, hey, I want to, I want to move up the ranks. I got to do something that signals to them that I'm an activist, I'm, I'm an extremist. And that gets me to the front of the line. Because if you're normal, insane, and you would say, of course I'm not going to put a serial rapist in a women's prison who's a six foot two dude, then you may get passed up by the entire Democratic administration.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Look, it's one of the striking things under Biden. The judicial nominees under Biden have been much, much, much more radical than they were under Obama. Listen, I was not a fan of Obama's nominees, to put it mildly. They were all quite left wing, but Biden has made them look positively middle of the road. They are seeking out radicals, they're seeking out people who are extreme. We had one another actually, New York District court nominee who described himself in his own words as a quote, wild eyed liberal who said every morning he wakes up motivated by hatred for conservatives. Well, apparently that's how you get selected by Chuck Schumer. He got nominated and I and others made the point. Look, there are actually some Republicans, some conservatives in the state of New York. If God forbid, you find yourself in this judge's court, how are you supposed to believe you can get a fair treatment and equal justice under the law from a judge who told you he woke up that morning motivated by his hatred for you? Well, it didn't matter. The Democrats all voted party line. They got behind him. He's now a judge in New York. He was confirmed by this Democrat Senate. There was another judge nominated in Connecticut. So the Connecticut senators decided they wanted this judge. She was a law professor. She signed a letter to the governor of Connecticut arguing during COVID that he should release every single prisoner from pretrial detention with no qualifications. So that included murderers, that included rapists, that included child molesters. All of them should be released from prison because of COVID That's just nuts. There was another judicial nominee from the central district of California who again, in a law review article, argued that the laws restricting where sexual predators can live should be struck down and pedophiles should be able to live next to daycare centers and kindergartens. Listen, I urge the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, I said, I get that it's a Democrat president. You're Democrats, you're going to confirm most of the nominees. You know, when Trump was president, we confirmed most of the nominees. But you know what we did when Trump was president? We rejected several of them because the Constitution gives the Senate the responsibility to advise and consent. And there were some of the nominees the Trump White House missed on. And even though he was a Republican, we said, nope, this is not gonna do. And they withdrew those nominees.

[Ben Ferguson]

The Senate better nominee right after that.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yes, we got much better nominees. That's actually the constitutional process that's doing our job. The Democrats are just like the politburo. And on this, this judge that said that you should not restrict where sexual predators live, I said, I don't care how blue a state you live in, whether New York or Connecticut or New Jersey or Hawaii or Vermont, whatever state you're in, I promise you, gather 50 or 100 year constituents, get them together and ask them, hey, do you think pedophiles should live next to a kindergarten? They're all gonna say no. No normal, rational person answers yes to that. But in this Biden White House with this Chuck Schumer, Democrat Senate, those are the kind of radicals they want to be federal judges.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it's a great point. And it's sad that these are the people getting these jobs and then they get sit there for years on end affecting people's lives in a major way. And we're gonna talk about the Trump trial in a minute. It's a perfect example of that. Want to talk to you real quick about something we started talking about about a year ago. I told you about a year ago about chalk. Now, if you're a guy and you're like me and you've gotten a little bit older and you feel like that you've lost that edge. You feel like you've lost some of your energy, your focus and you're not able to, to get up and work out and, and play sports and be active the way you used to. And you want to go back to that, then you need to check out what chalk can do for you. Low testosterone levels are now incredibly bad. In fact, they're, they're off a cliff historically at an all time low. And that is where chalk comes in. Chalk Choq. They're helping real American men just like you take back your right to proudly maximize your masculinity by boosting testosterone levels up to 20% over 90 days. Now in the last year, I have lost about 56 or 7 pounds so far. I got to tell you, taking chalk has had a huge difference on my ability to work out and to continue working out without that fatigue setting in. So if you are sick and tired of feeling sick and tired of just not feeling like yourself, you need to check out chalk. I've been taking the chalk Male vitality stack, like I said, for over a year now and that is what it's done for me. So it's manufactured right here in the US of A. Chalk's natural herbal supplements are clinically proven to have game changing effects on your energy, your focus, your mood. And you can maximize your masculinity today by boosting your testosterone levels up to 20% over 90 days by going to chalkchoq.com use the promo code Ben for a massive discount on any subscription for life. Choq.com promo code BEN for lifetime savings on any subscription. Limited time offer and subscriptions are cancelable at any time. Choq.com promo code BEN Senator, I want to move into the Trump trial now because I think it's a perfect example of the radicals that get on these courts and, and, and what can happen. We know that the federal government seven, eight years ago said no to even taking this case on. They thought it was ridiculous. They chose not to move forward with it because they didn't think there was anything there. And then you've got an activist judge or activist DA and Alvin Bragg who says, hey, hey, vote for me and I'll go after Trump. And then he finds the perfect judge, the perfect place in Manhattan where 90% of the people vote against Donald Trump. Last time you go to trial and all of a sudden we find a crime that's been committed. Now but it wasn't Donald Trump that committed that crime. It's the key witness for the government who had to admit in court that he took money, stole money from the Trump Organization. How is this trial not at that point, just immediately canceled, saying, hey, we're gonna have a mistrial. It's over?

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Well, listen, this has been a partisan circus from day one. As you noted, the district attorney is a hard left wing Democrat, partisan. He was elected with money from George Soros. He came in with an agenda, an agenda to get Donald Trump. And it didn't matter what the charge was. He was gonna try to take Trump down. So they got particularly creative in this case to create a prosecution where there was no crime. Now, we all know about the alleged affair with Stormy Daniels and the hush money, and that is salacious, but it's not, in fact criminal. So here's their argument, and it's a bootstrap on top of a bootstrap. They argue, first of all, that paying Stormy Daniels to keep quiet and not tell her story, that constituted a illegal campaign contribution under federal campaign finance laws. Now, if that were the case, it's not the Manhattan DA that prosecutes violations of federal campaign finance laws. It's the federal government. The federal government looked at this and concluded, nope, we're not gonna bring a case here. So that's a problem. They're, they're predicate crime. They don't have the jurisdiction to prosecute. So they then have a different New York statute that makes it a crime to keep fake fraudulent books. And the problem is that that crime is ordinarily a misdemeanor, but in this case, they elevate it to being a felony. How? By saying, well, the fraudulent books are in furtherance of a crime, in this case, the federal crime that the federal government declined to bring. And so it is literally a non crime on top of a non crime because the payment to the lawyers that went, that allegedly went out to Stormy Daniels were labeled as legal expenses. And that's what they're claiming is the crime of covering up the non crime of the campaign finance offense. Now, their star witnesses, Michael Cohen. This is a lawyer who has lied over and over and over again. He lied during the trial, he got caught lying during the trial. He's someone who has a long history of lying. But even with that long history of lying, I really didn't think he would sit on the stand and admit himself to being a felon to having stolen from Trump. And I'll tell you what, listen to what CNN's legal expert Ellie Honig said on this, I think the revelation, though.

[E]

This morning about the theft of $30,000, which was doubled because they covered his taxes. So $60,000, it came out in a glancing, unclear way on direct. It came out like a bomb earlier today. I don't know how much they can do to fix that. It just, at a certain point, it is the fact Michael Cohen did steal this money. And what makes that really so important, Wolf, is it's not as if Michael Cohen was just stealing on the side. That would be bad enough. The problem is he was stealing from the exact reimbursement at issue in this case. So the prosecution's core argument is Donald Trump knew what that $420,000 was all about. He was totally read in on it. Turns out Michael Cohen was stealing from him. Within that 420,000.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Does Michael Cohen's acknowledgment admission that he stole tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization potentially open him up, open him up to further criminal. Criminal process?

[E]

It's a great question. The answer is not anymore because the statute of limitations has run out. But it's a very fair question to ask. Chief folks of the jury. They gave him a free pass. He committed larceny. It's a higher degree of felony than what Donald Trump is charged with. Yet they gave Michael Cohen a free pass even though he's now admitted that he stole what amounts to $60,000. It goes to his credibility. It goes to his relationship with the.

[Ben Ferguson]

DA you look at his quote, and it's just obviously he knows he's got the get out of jail free card because it was a simple question. So you stole from the Trump Organization, question mark, Cohen? Yes, sir. It's almost like he's proud of it. He's like, yeah, I was stealing from the guy. And by the way, this is the one he admits to. We have no idea what else he may have done that we don't know about.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yeah, but look, the DA has an objective here. And it's not actually to prosecute crimes. It's not actually to enforce the law. It's to get Donald Trump. So the DA Is quite happy with he stole from Donald Trump because their objective, the radical left, has decided Donald Trump is the devil and they will do anything, anything, anything possible to get him. And by the way, the media is in terror. We at a prior pod covered Anderson Cooper freaking out how badly the trial's going. Take a listen to what Jake Tapper and Laura Coates said about this Michael Cohen testimony.

[F]

Yeah, no, it's fascinating stuff. And I have to say I'm still kind of reeling from the revelation that Michael Cohen stole money from the Trump Organization. And that wasn't, at least to my knowledge, that the prosecution didn't get that, get that out earlier, because it's not as though the prosecution's going to be helped by further evidence that Michael Cohen is a shady character. I mean, let's, I'll get to the newest stuff in a second. But, like, I mean, what's just, what's your reaction to that news? Because that was just kind of stunning.

[G]

I'm shocked that we are hearing it for the first time on day three of cross examination of Michael Cohen, that the prosecution did not take the sting out, did not front it, because it goes to the heart of the actual case. It's not just about establishing him as a liar. They've done that. The prosecution fronted that. We knew that he has convictions. But going to the heart of what you were telling your employer about what money you were owed and the extent of it, we're talking about $420,000. We've already seen the paper.

[F]

This is like 15 bucks.

[G]

It's not 15 bucks. And we, I mean, if you, if you go to the tablet, you can break down what was already known. We've known about what the breakdown of the money is. $130,000 to Daniels and her attorney. You've got $50,000. This Redfin. This is important here. This was mentioned today that he only gave Redfinch $20,000 and he handed them in a brown paper bag, by the way. Just thinking about how odd that is.

[F]

And just one quick note. Redfinch is this political organization that apparently, according to Michael Cohen, helped them goose these bogus Internet polls about which candidate is in the lead, et cetera, et cetera. And also, according to Lanny Davis, provided adoring fans for Trump's announcement of his candidacy in June 2015. Sorry.

[G]

Really important point to add. Why this is they only got 20,000 of it.

[F]

And even though the bill was for.

[G]

50, $50,000, and you have $180,000, which is again, the double of these two combinations, and then a bonus for Cohen. Remember, all that we have so far to link Donald Trump to these payments, in part, is the statement that, quote, unquote, he approved it. We also know, we have some, we have information about where the checks were, how it was signed. But remember McConney, that was one of the comptrollers of the Trump Organization taking notes from Allen Weisselberg about the money payment. So this is part of what we're talking about. Why this is so important here is because the heart of the matter is that Donald Trump was complicit, caused to have this happen and knew about the money that was going. And why, if they can establish Michael Cohen as somebody who is not to be trusted about the amount of money as well, then they might be able to suggest that Donald Trump had no idea what he was paying.

[Ben Ferguson]

So, by the way, I think it's pretty clear Donald Trump had no idea it was paying. Otherwise, why would you be giving this money to a guy that is all of a sudden a bunch of the money's disappearing, like, it completely blows the case out of the water.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

The prosecution's argument is Michael Cohen is a liar, but he's a thief, too. Like, that's kind of a problem. But you know what? The corporate media is so corrupt, they're trying to defend him. Listen to Lawrence O'Donnell from MSNBC trying to explain that the fact that Cohen was stealing from Trump, it's really not a problem. It's okay.

[E]

Inside the courtroom, even there, almost every.

[Ben Ferguson]

Day, you have the strength of beyond mortal men. But what was, what was worth it to you today? What did you see? What did you hear?

[H]

Well, you know, the courtroom is where I began as a writer and a reporter a long time ago. So this is a homecoming for me in terms of a workplace. The shocking thing at the end of that cross examination, and I just can't tell you how just how stunning it was, because it's the thing that I was waiting for. I saw everything. Todd Blanch. I've seen every minute of cross examination, seen every single question. He's. And he sat down and ended his cross examination without asking a single question about the $130,000 that appears on the Allen Weisselberg notes about how they were structuring the payment to Michael Cohen. He asked about the $50,000. That's irrelevant to the $130,000. And that's where he very effectively got Michael Cohen to say to agree that, yes, he stole $30,000. Later, when Cohen was asked about that on redirect by the prosecution, it didn't really sound like stealing $30,000. It sounded a lot like Michael Cohen doing the little that he could within that calculation to rebalance the bonus he thought he deserved. And it still came out as less than the bonus he deserves, thought he deserved on the bonus he'd gotten the year before.

[Ben Ferguson]

I. I mean, I love how he's, like, justifying the stealing because he thought he deserved.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Trying to rebalance the bonus. You, you know, if you steal from your employer, you're just trying to rebalance what they're paying you because you know you're worth more. So, so steal away. That is MSNBC's defense.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah. And. And it's not a big deal to pay people in brown paper bags for work. Right. That's also very normal, apparently, in the minds of MSNBC as well. So we'll completely overlook that as well. Final question on this. Donald Trump, you're right, not going to take the stand. That, I think is obviously a smart decision, as you described it. I think it was in the last podcast, the one before that. He's not going to.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Yeah. Which is what. What we predicted on this podcast before that decision was made. I said on this podcast, the chances that Donald Trump will go on the stand are 0.00%. Well, that was proven. Right. He's not going on the stand because his lawyers are not incompetent in committing malpractice.

[Ben Ferguson]

So when you're looking at this now, what do you think's gonna happen? What's your gut?

[Senator Ted Cruz]

I don't know. I remain worried. Listen, on the merits, this case is frivolous. And I will point out also that the judge, one of the things he did is he blocked the Trump campaign from putting on the witness stand the former chairman of the fec, Brad Smith. Brad Smith is a law professor, is one of the most well respected campaign finance experts in the country. Campaign finance law is famously complicated, and Brad Smith was prepared to testify that paying hush money does not constitute a campaign expense. If that's correct, the entire case goes out the window. And it's interesting. So, so after the judge blocked him from testifying, Smith did, did an interview, did an interview with the Washington examiner where he described what he would have testified to. And Smith said. Here's what Smith said. Quote, judges instruct the juries on the law, and they don't want a battle of competing experts saying, here's what the law is. They feel it's their province to make that determination. The problem, of course, is that campaign finance law is extremely complex. And just reading the statute to people isn't really going to help them very much. The goal of his testimony, Smith said, was, quote, to lay out the ways the laws has been interpreted in ways that might not be obvious. As an example, Smith cited the phrase, quote, for the purpose of influencing an election, which has been heard during much analysis of the trial. Quote, you read the law and it says that anything intended for the purpose of influencing an election is a contribution or an expenditure. Smith explained. But that's not, in fact the entirety of the law. There is the obscure and separate from the definitional part idea, personal use, which is a separate part of the law that says you can't divert campaign funds to personal use. That has a number of specific prohibitions, like you can't buy a country club membership, you can't normally pay yourself a salary or living expenses, you can't go on vacation, all those kinds of things. And then it includes a broader general prohibition that says you can't divert campaign funds to any obligation that would exist even if you were not running for office. What's the point of that? Quote, we would have liked to flag that exception for the jury and to talk a little bit about what it means. And also we would have talked about, quote, for the purpose of influence in an election is not a subjective test like what was my intention, it's an objective test. So hiring campaign staff is for the purpose of influencing an election. Renting space for your campaign office, buying ads, maybe doing polling, printing up bumper stickers, travel to campaign rallies, renting venues for campaign rallies. All those things exist only because you're running for office. But under the personal use rules, a lot of things candidates do running for office are not considered campaign expenditures. Things like paying for a weight loss program or a gym membership, nicer clothes, teeth whitening, or all that sort of thing. It may be true that you do those things in part to help get yourself elected, and you might not do them otherwise, but they are not obligations that exist simply because you're running for office. Lots of people do those things. And, and, and what he argued is, is, is that in this instance, I can tell you it is my personal belief is that clearly paying hush money or paying for a non disclosure agreement does not constitute a campaign expense. That's what the former FEC chairman would have testified to. Quote, to use an example I've often used, it's not a campaign expense. If a business person is running for office and his businesses are getting sued and he goes to his company's lawyers and say, I wish to settle these lawsuits against us. We've got some wage employment lawsuits and a woman is alleging sexual harassment. We've got 36,000 employees. We gotta make these three complaints and the press will make a big deal about them. So I want you to settle these. And the company lawyers say, no, these are great cases, we should win, we shouldn't settle them. He says, I don't care. I'm running for office. I don't want press stories on it. I want them. You to settle them quietly. Well, he cannot use campaign funds to pay that settlement, even though he's clearly doing it for the purpose of influencing his campaign. It's kind of similar to what went on here. Smith continued, quote, so my personal belief is that this clearly would not have been a campaign expenditure, never had to be reported, and therefore was not misreported. And you know what the judge said? The jury can't hear a word of that because it demonstrates. He didn't say this part, but because it demonstrates that the prosecutor's case is utter and complete garbage.

[Ben Ferguson]

Unbelievable bias in this case. And it's another example of that. I want to tell you real quick about an amazing organization that I want you to know about, and it is an organization called Preborn. When a mother with an unplanned pregnancy meets her baby on ultrasound and hears their heartbeat, it is a divine encounter that doubles a baby's chance at life. By six weeks, eyes are forming with a baby. By 10 weeks, a baby is able to suck his or her own thumb. And for just $28, you could be the difference between the life or death of a child. That is what preborn does. They give women the ability to hear their baby's heartbeat on ultrasound. It's just like putting your hand over your heart right now. You know that you're alive because you can feel that heartbeat. And the same as for a preborn baby, their heart begins to form at conception, and at just three weeks, it's already beating. At five weeks, a baby's heartbeat can be heard on that ultrasound. And that's why we partnered with Preborn, because we need to help these precious babies. Every day. Preborn's networks of clinics, they rescue 200 babies from abortion. That is why I want you to get involved. All gifts are tax deductible. You can donate by just dialing £250 and say the keyword baby. That's £250. Say the keyword baby. Or you can donate [e-mail] verdict. That's preborn.com verdict. Get in the game. Help fight back against what they're doing over at Planned Parenthood. Help the people at Preborn who are giving mothers a chance to hear their baby's heartbeat for the very first time. £250 on your phone and then use the keyword BABY or donate [e-mail] verdict. Lastly on this issue, Senator, the war on truth is really, I think, incredible. You can see it. And you mentioned this earlier in the media's coverage of the Trump case. You had msnbc, you and I were texting back and forth on this because it was. It was a headline that was so laughable. And the headline was how Michael Cohen's past lies make him a more credible witness. And they weren't the only ones to try to pull this, you know, Jedi mind trick on people. The New York Times had a headline. It says, when Michael Cohen's lies help the case against Trump, what world are we living in? Where this is. What the media comes up with afterwards is spin it.

[Senator Ted Cruz]

Well, listen, number one, the media, unfortunately, regularly lies. They engage in lies. They view their role as propagandists. It's not. They're not interested in the truth. They're not interested in reporting both sides. They're not interested in facts. They frame their mission as saving democracy, which means pushing this country to the left. And as it concerns Donald Trump, it means doing everything you can to destroy Trump and make sure, no matter what, that he's not reelected President of the United States. The spins are rather pitiful. The idea that, well, you know what? Cohen lies so much that he's really a believable witness. Like. Like that's just weird. And, And I gotta say, the media's lies about Cohen's lies making him more credible are so absurd. It just shows they're really bad liars.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah. And. And they're gonna continue to do this, to push this case. Like you said, there's still reason to be very concerned. We're gonna keep covering it. That we promise you. Don't forget, we do the show Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We have a week in review of things you may have missed during the week. On Saturdays as well, hit that subscriber auto download button. And on those in between days, make sure you grab my podcast. I'll keep you up to date. The Ben Ferguson Podcast. It is free. You can download it wherever you're listening to this show right now. And the center and I will see you back here for the weekend review on Saturday.