Routh Convicted on ALL Charges, POTUS Reacts plus Massive “Swatting” Network BUSTED!

Summary

The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson

Episode: Routh Convicted on ALL Charges, POTUS Reacts plus Massive “Swatting” Network BUSTED!
Date: September 24, 2025
Host: Ben Ferguson
Platform: Premiere Networks

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Overview

In this episode of The 47 Morning Update, Ben Ferguson delivers rapid-fire coverage of two major political stories:

1. The conviction of Ryan Routh for attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump, including Trump’s direct reaction to the verdict.
2. The Secret Service busting a vast telecommunications network tied to coordinated swatting attacks against conservative figures, with potential implications for national security.

Ben brings his signature blend of detailed reporting, behind-the-scenes context, and direct audio from key newsmakers.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Routh Conviction – Attempted Trump Assassination

[05:36–10:25]

Background on the Case

• Defendant: Ryan Routh

• Crimes/Charges: Attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate (Donald Trump), assaulting a federal officer, multiple firearms violations (including possessing a firearm with a removed serial number).

• Incident:

  • Occurred on September 15, previous year, at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago golf course while Trump was present.
  • Routh found with a semi-automatic rifle after doing prior surveillance and using burner phones.
  • Flight from Secret Service led to arrest.

• Trial Notes:

  • Routh represented himself in court and argued he never intended harm (“He literally represented himself at trial. He argued in closing that he didn’t intend to kill anyone and that no shots were ever fired.” [06:46])
  • Jury deliberated less than three hours, returning guilty on all federal counts.

• Dramatic Courtroom Moment:

  • After verdict, Routh attempted to stab himself in the neck with a pen in court, but was restrained by U.S. Marshals.
  • His daughter, present in court, shouted emotional pleas:
    • “dad, I love you. Don’t do anything. I’ll get you out. He didn’t hurt anybody.” [08:43]

• Sentencing: Scheduled for December 18; Routh faces life in prison.

Trump Responds to Verdict

[08:02–08:43]

• Trump, while at the United Nations, praised the justice process:

  “I'm very appreciative of the justice that was given and the way it was handled by Pam Bondi and Todd Blanche and everybody that it's been and their team of people. It was really well handled and it's very important. You can't let things like that happen. Nothing to do with me but a president or even a person. You can't allow that to happen…” (Donald Trump, [08:09]).

• Ben notes Trump did not mention or was not asked about Routh’s suicide attempt.

Ben’s Analysis

• Emphasizes need for political candidates’ safety:

  “We must stop having this type of violence in this country.” [10:20]

• Expectation of appeal noted, with advice that Routh may seek proper representation next time.

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2. Massive “Swatting” Network Busted – Threat to Conservative Figures

[10:25–16:19]

Overview of Threat

• What is Swatting?
  Fake, emergency (e.g., hostage) calls placed to law enforcement, sending SWAT teams to innocent targets—typically prominent conservatives or commentators, risking their lives.

• Network Details:

  • Over 100,000 SIM cards and 300 servers seized in NY area, believed controlled by foreign actors.
  • Network was used for “swatting” calls targeting figures like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Sen. Rick Scott, Nikki Haley, and Trump cabinet members.
  • Hardware capable of disrupting NYC cellular service—potential national security risk.

Official Secret Service Statement

[13:02–15:53]
Matt McCool, Special Agent in Charge, NY Field Office:

“The investigation led us to the New York Tri State area where investigators discovered tens of thousands of co-located and network cellular devices capable of carrying out nefarious telecommunications attacks. These devices allowed anonymous encrypted communications between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises…” [13:41]

“This network had the potential to disable cell phone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City. ... Given the sensitivity and complexity of this investigation, we are not able to go into specifics at this time. This is an open and active investigation and we have no arrest to announce today.” [14:28, 15:40]

• Secret Service coordination included Homeland Security Investigations, Department of Justice, and NYPD.
• Seizure preempted possible attacks during the UN General Assembly.
• Investigation ongoing, no arrests yet.

Ben’s Commentary

• Highlights professional, “non-amateur” sophistication of the seized equipment.
• Emphasizes the strategic threat to New York’s cellular infrastructure and the serious, organized intent behind these criminal acts.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On judicial process:

  “It was so professionally handled and it's great honor.”
  — Donald Trump ([08:34])

• Dramatic courtroom scene:

  “After the jurors exit...Ruth attempted to stab himself in the neck with a pen, prompting those marshals to drag him out of the courthouse. ... His daughter screamed, ‘dad, I love you. Don't do anything...He didn't hurt anybody.’” ([08:43])

• On the swatting network’s threat:

  "This network had the potential to disable cell phone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City."
  — Matt McCool, Secret Service ([14:28])

• Ben on broader implications:

  “This is not amateur and part of the reason why I think they're making it so clear how big of an issue this was and what was happening.” ([16:19])

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Important Timestamps

• [05:36] – Breakdown of Ryan Routh’s charges and trial highlights
• [08:02] – Trump’s first reaction to the conviction
• [08:43] – Courtroom incident: Routh’s suicide attempt, daughter’s reaction
• [10:25] – Transition to swatting story: explanation and background
• [13:02] – Matt McCool’s Secret Service announcement on network takedown
• [14:28] – Key quotes on scope and potential threat of the busted network
• [16:19] – Ben’s closing analysis on the sophistication of the operation

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Tone and Style

• Ben Ferguson’s tone is brisk, urgent, and direct. He emphasizes the implications of political violence and cybercrime for American democracy.
• President Trump’s statement strikes a tone of gratitude toward the justice system and broader concern for candidate safety, “not for me but...for every political candidate.”
• Secret Service communications are measured but grave, highlighting the seriousness of the swatting threat.

---

Summary

This episode of The 47 Morning Update presents two urgent developments with lasting impact on American political and cyber security. Ben Ferguson breaks down the historic conviction of Ryan Routh, including an emotional courtroom aftermath and President Trump’s reaction, illustrating the ongoing threats to political figures. The episode’s second major story uncovers a shocking swatting operation capable of crippling New York’s communications infrastructure—a plot swiftly intercepted by the Secret Service. With exclusive official statements and Ben’s pointed analysis, listeners get a front-row seat to news that could shape both politics and national security in 2025.

Transcript

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[A]

You want smart political talk without the meltdowns? We got you. And I'm Carol Markowitz. And I'm Mary Kathryn Ham. We've been around the block in media and we're doing things differently. Normally is about real conversations, thoughtful, try to be funny, grounded, and no panic. We'll keep you informed and entertained without ruining your day. Join us every Tuesday and Thursday Normally on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[C]

I'm Ben Ferguson.

[E]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz.

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Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

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Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[C]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

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So now a Verdict with Ted Cruz. Now, wherever you get your podcasts in.

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[B]

You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson.

[C]

Good Wednesday morning. It's nice to have you with us on the 47 Morning Update. And we've got two major stories for you. First up, Donald Trump reacts to the guilty verdict of a man who tried to assassinate him down while he was playing golf in Florida. You will not want to miss what the president had to say. Also, the Secret Service coming out in a shocking report taking down a telecommunications threat that was near the UN General Assembly. This also had connections to the swatting calls that were coming in against conservatives.

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47 Morning Update and it starts right now. Story number one, President Donald Trump responding now to the guilty vote verdict against Ryan Ruth. The president asked about it as he was in New York at the United Nations. Now, before I let you hear what he had to say, let me give you some of the background. The charges were federal charges. There were multiple counts, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate. At the time it was Donald Trump, assaulting a federal officer, a Secret Service agent, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a firearm with the serial number removed. Those were all of the major crimes he was charged with. Now you got to go back to September 15th last year when the Ruth was found in the shrubbery with a semi automatic rifle near Trump's West Palm beach golf course, Mar a Lago. And Trump was there golfing at the time. He had done surveillance, had burner phones. He was spotted by a Secret Service agent. He fled and then he was later arrested. Now, the defense stance was number one. Weird. He literally represented himself at trial. He argued in closing that he didn't intend to kill anyone and that no shots were ever fired.

[G]

Why?

[C]

Well, because they saw him and he decided to run. Now, his alibi there didn't work with the jury. He's now been found guilty. Jury deliberation time was actually less than three hours. Some sources say it was about two and a half hours. And the outcome was this. He was found guilty on all federal charges. The sentencing will now be second stage of this and he faces life in prison. The sentencing is now scheduled on December 18. Now that is when things got crazy. After he was found guilty immediately after the verdict was read. Then Ruth attempted to stab himself in the neck with a pen. He was quickly restrained by the U.S. marshals. He appeared uninjured afterwards with no visible blood. The Associated Press reported his daughter was present and reacted emotionally in the courtroom, calling out to him. Now there's also another big part of this story. The president has now responded and I want you to listen carefully to what he had to say at the United Nations.

[A]

Mr. President, Ryan Ruth, the man who tried to assassinate you, has been convicted and found guilty. What is your response to conviction?

[F]

I'm very appreciative of the justice that was given and the way it was handled by Pam Bondi and Todd Blanche and everybody that it's been and their team of people. It was really well handled and it's very important. You can't let things like that happen. Nothing to do with me but a president or even a person. You can't allow that to happen. And so justice was served and we'll see what happens. But I very much appreciate the judge, a jury and everybody on that. It was so professionally handled and it's great honor.

[C]

You also notice there the president did not either a no or was not asked about the attempted suicide. And let me get back to that part of the story that happened after the jurors exit the courtroom. And that's when Ruth attempted to stab himself in the neck with the pen, prompting those marshals to drag him out of the courthouse. The outlet also reported that his daughter screamed, dad, I love you. Don't do anything. I'll get you out. He didn't hurt anybody. She also continued to yell. Now, as I mentioned a moment ago, he is convicted of attempting to assassinate a major political candidate, presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon, and possessing a firearm without a serial number that was scratched off. He is 59 and he did not testify at his trial. In his closing argument, however, he told the jurors he didn't intend to kill anyone that day. He rested his case Monday morning after questioning just three witnesses, a firearm expert and two character witnesses. That all coming from the Associated Press. The jury clearly wasn't buying what he was trying to sell. And now we know the outcome. Now you can also expect an appeal. I am sure that is something that will be discussed and maybe next time he'll actually have legal representation in the courtroom. But as of now, the president, United States of America, as he put it, said, this is something we had to make sure happened, not for me, but for every political candidate, every presidential candidate. We must stop having this type of violence in this country.

[B]

Now, story number two.

[C]

Secret Service is now announcing that they have busted a massive network that has been used in swatting attacks against Republicans. Now, if you don't know what swatting is, I'll explain it this way. It's where you call in a fake crisis situation, a fake hostage situation. To the address of where a conservative lives, specifically an elected official or conservative commentator to then put their life at risk. With a massive response a SWAT team is sent in. The Secret Service has now announced they have uncovered this vast network of over a hundred thousand sim cards and 300 servers as well in the New York area believed to be used by foreign nation state threat actors and criminals for swatting calls targeting prominent conservatives including marginally Taylor Green. The amount of hardware seized in the bus could be used, they say to hamper cell service in New York City and the U. S. Secret Service. Uncovering this massive network of more than a hundred thousand SIM cards and 300 servers was located within a 35 mile radius of New York City. The operation, believed to be run by foreign nation state threat actors and criminals was uncovered during an investigation to a surge of squatting calls targeting high ranking government officials including members of Congress and members of the Trump administration. Now targets of swatting calls reportedly included Representative Green, Senator Rick Scott, Nikki Haley and the Secret Service's Advanced Threat unit in collaboration with various law enforcement agencies. Trace those squatting calls to several locations in the New York tri state area. Upon further investigation they found a sophisticated network of SIM servers capable of generating enormous amounts of phone traffic while rapidly switching out SIM cards to evade detection. I want you to take a Listen to Matt McCool. He is a special agent in charge of the Secret Services New York field office and the network as he described it posed an imminent threat to the agency's protective operations. They said the servers were strategically positioned around New York's cellular network infrast so that it could overwhelm the cell towers, disrupt cell service and put the entire city of New York at risk. Take a listen in his announcement today.

[B]

My name is Matt McCool and I'm the Special Agent in charge of the Secret Service New York field office. We are making this announcement as a matter of public interest given timing, amount and concentration of material recovered during a recent Secret Service protective intelligence investigation. Following multiple telecommunications related imminent threats directed towards senior US Government officials this spring the US Secret Service began a protective intelligence investigation to determine the extent and impact these threats could have on protective operations. This was a difficult and complex effort to identify the source of these fraudulent calls and the impact on the Secret Service protective mission. During this period we leveraged technical assistance and support of federal partners including Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of justice and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. We also received phenomenal support from our state and local law enforcement partners to include the nypd. The investigation led us to the New York Tri State area where investigators discovered tens of thousands of co located and network cellular devices capable of carrying out nefarious telecommunications attacks. These devices allowed anonymous encrypted communications between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises, enabling criminal organizations to operate undetected. This network had the potential to disable cell phone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City. These devices were concentrated within 35 miles of the global meeting of the United Nations General assembly now underway in New York City. Given the timing, location and proximity and potential for significant disruptions to the New York telecom system, we move quickly to disrupt this network. To be clear, these recovered devices no longer pose a threat to the New York Tri State area. We will continue working towards identifying those responsible and their intent, including whether their plan was to disrupt the UN General assembly and communications of government and emergency personnel during the official visit of world leaders in and around New York City. Forensic examinations of the equivalent of 100,000 cell phones worth of data is underway. Early analysis indicates cellular communications between foreign actors and individuals that are known to federal law enforcement. Given the sensitivity and complexity of this investigation, we are not able to go into specifics at this time. This is an open and active investigation and we have no arrest to announce today. Rather, this announcement is designed to safeguard critical infrastructure and responsibly provide the public what we can at this time. The Secret Service will continue to run down all leads until we fully understand the intent of the operation and identify those responsible.

[C]

Truly incredible there. From Matt McCool, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service in New York's field office. The pictures that have been released of these rooms that have been filled with these servers and these SIM cards and to overrun the cell towers was a level of sophistication that is of professionals. This is not amateur and part of the reason why I think they're making it so clear how big of an issue this was and what was happening.

[B]

Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson. Please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're listening to this podcast right now. And for more in depth news, also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson Podcast and we will see you back here tomorrow.

[A]

You want smart political talk without the meltdowns, we got you. I'm Carol Markowitz. And I'm Mary Kathryn Ham. We've been around the block in media and we're doing things differently. Normally is about real conversations. Thoughtful, try to be free, funny, grounded and no panic. We'll keep you informed and entertained without ruining your day. Join us every Tuesday and Thursday Normally on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[C]

I'm Ben Ferguson.

[E]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week, we do our podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[C]

Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

[E]

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[C]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

[E]

We arm you with the facts to be able to know and advocate for the truth with your friends and family.

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So download Verdict with Ted Cruz now. Wherever you get your podcasts.

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