Ken Harba (4:08)

Let's play it.

Ben (4:10)

Secondly, the person we're negotiating with, Vladimir.

Host (4:15)

Putin, is he a war criminal?

Marco Rubio (4:20)

Well, I think you can look at instances that have happened there and certainly characterize them as war crimes. But our intent is to end the war.

Host (4:26)

Is he a war criminal?

Marco Rubio (4:27)

We can't end the war without talking to Mr. Putin.

Host (4:28)

That's pretty simple. Is he a war criminal? This man we're negotiating with, Vladimir Putin, is he a war criminal?

Marco Rubio (4:34)

That's what I'm trying to answer your question by telling you that we're trying to end the war.

Ben (4:39)

Go ahead.

Host (4:40)

No, you are equivocating, sir.

Ben (4:42)

Just answer the question.

Marco Rubio (4:43)

I'm answering your question. And the answer is that war crimes have been committed, no doubt. And who is responsible for that? There will be time and place for that accountability. But right now, wow.

Host (4:53)

Because that's the exact opposite, of course, what Rubio was saying when he was a senator and he was asking Rex Tillerson, who was then Donald Trump's Secretary of State, who's previously in the job that Rubio now has. And of course, Tillerson called Donald Trump during that first term, I think like the dumbest piece of shit I've ever seen in my life, were words to words to that effect. And he had a short tenure. But just take a look at this.

Marco Rubio (5:21)

Let me ask you this question. Is Vladimir Putin a war criminal?

Host (5:26)

I would not use that term.

Marco Rubio (5:28)

Well, let me describe the situation in Aleppo and perhaps that will help you reach that conclusion. In Aleppo, Mr. Putin has directed his military to conduct a devastating campaign. He's targeted schools, markets, not just assisted the Syrians in doing it. His military has targeted schools and markets and other civilian infrastructure. It's resulted in, in the death of thousands of civilians. This is not the first time Mr. Putin is involved in campaigns of this kind. Back when he was just appointed prime minister, before he was elected, and I'm sure you're aware of that period of time, there was a series of bombings and they blamed it on the Chechens. And Mr. Putin personally said that he would punish them. And so he ordered the air force to bomb the Chechen capital of Grozny. They used Scud missiles to hit hospitals, the city's main outdoor market packed with shoppers. 137 people died instantly. They used thermobaric and fuel air explosive bombs. These are the.

Host (6:20)

So he goes on and on and on to say Putin is a war criminal there. And that was before Putin unlawfully invaded Ukraine. It was right around the time of Crimea, was a few years before that. But that was right before the invasion of Ukraine a few years back. Let me just show you this last clip here of Donald Trump with the President of South Africa saying how upset he is that Putin is not part of the G7. Donald Trump said he would like a G8, by the way, with the President of South Africa there. And Donald Trump has no understanding of the dynamic of the BRICS bloc and what he's actually indicating there and the amount of weakness that he's showing. Your playlist clip coming and are you preparing to come?

G (7:09)

So without the United States, the G20, just like the G7 used to be, the G8, but brilliantly they threw Russia out. Would have been a lot better if Russia was in. You know, a lot of people would say, oh, that's not it, because if Russia was in, you probably wouldn't have this war. And if you had a different president, you wouldn't have the war either.

Host (7:27)

But you got the President of South Africa saying, what the heck is going on? I want to bring in Ken Harbour. You all know Ken from the Midas Touch Network. He's also started a venture called Valor Media as well. Ken, as a Midas Touch correspondent, is in Ukraine while this is airing. We are shooting this before. He's going to be in Ukraine, but he's going to be there doing reports for the Midas Touch Network and Valor. He's going to be giving them exclusively to us, fact finding, humanitarian based, and he's going to be doing a lot of work there. So Ken, Ken is also a veteran of the Navy, a Navy pilot. Ken, comment, if you can, on the videos I just showed you.

Ken Harba (8:12)

I mean, it's absolutely outrageous, the mental and moral gymnastics that people like Marco Rubio and in fact, everyone in Trump's orbit have to put themselves through to keep the alpha in the White House happy, who turns out not to be an alpha at all. As you see every time he genuflects before Vladimir Putin, I think the saying goes, every bully at heart is a coward, right? Donald Trump is a coward. And when he looks at someone like Putin and says, that's the kind of power I want, it should terrify us all, because that's what he is signaling. He wants the kind of power to intimidate his political opponents. He's grabbing for it.

Host (8:56)

You know, and if you look at where he's also impressed at the Middle east authoritarians, the royal families, the Saudis, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, you know, he'll say things like, they're the richest that there are, they're the most powerful that there are. And they objectively aren't like you look at Qatar, $200 billion annual GDP. The royal family takes a lot of that money for themselves. And it's a very small population as well there. But you look at the GDP of, say, just California alone, and it is, what, 50x Qatar in California, which he attacks, you know, which has like a four and a half, $5 trillion GDP. Canada's GDP is $3 trillion. So for him, weak is strong, strong is weak. And his whole framework, winning is losing, losing is winning. The whole framework is out of whack.

Ken Harba (9:51)

Well, what he admires are the gilded jets and the ability to wield power, to intimidate, which I think leads us to the inevitable conclusion that he doesn't see his fellow Americans as compatriots, he sees them as subjects. And he really wishes we would comply. He looks at the power that someone like MBS has, whose nickname, by the way, is Mr. Bonesaw, because this is the man who ordered the dismemberment, the murder and brutal dismemberment of an American resident, an employee of the Washington Post. And there Donald Trump is sitting with him, calling him one of America's best friends. Look I know we need allies around the world, but that is very different from gripping and grinning like President Trump does and just embracing these brutal tyrants and. And looking up to them, wanting to be like them. That is our takeaway.

Host (10:47)

Look, you've done a number of trips to Ukraine since Russia's unlawful invasion. You've done a lot of humanitarian work there. You've done a lot of reporting for the Midas Touch Network there. I know there's things you can share and can't share about this particular trip, but whatever you can share about it, if you can, let the people know what you want to try to accomplish. And it could be even at a general level, because I know a lot of these things have to be dealt with carefully.

Ken Harba (11:16)

For sure, we're going to. We're going to be clean on OPSEC here, not Pete Hegseth version of clean. We're not going to share times and locations, but in general, we are bringing a convoy of ambulances to frontline units. Because an ambulance in Ukraine lasts an average at the front of 11 days. They need a lot of them. And that's not just collateral damage. That is because the Russian military intentionally targets ambulances. If you're still wondering who the bad guy in this conflict is, it's Putin. The way he deploys his military. I mean, Marco Rubio knew this a few years ago, right? He seems to have forgotten it all. But there is a clear aggressor, a clear villain in this conflict, and it's Putin and Russia. I'll also be reporting from the front for Midas Touch Network and Valor Media. But, look, the Ukrainians are in this fight whether we have their backs or not. I think it might help some Americans to understand what an existential fight actually looks like. Just because Donald Trump is gonna walk away from it doesn't mean they're gonna stop fighting for their freedom. And I sure wish Americans would get back in the fight and not leave it to our allies to be the bulwark of freedom. Because if Ukraine falls, it won't be the last one. Putin has his eye on Estonia, Lithuania. He's going to keep rolling.

Host (12:40)

And before we go, Ken, this is going to be airing around, approaching Memorial Day. You know, any messages that you have as a veteran.

Ken Harba (12:50)

Thanks. Another important thing to remember is that Memorial Day is for the fallen. It's not the same as Veterans Day. And look, I understand that we sometimes get carried away on Memorial Day with the mattress sales in the backyard barbecues. And that's fine. My buddies who did not make it home. They paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we could have that kind of a life. And I actually don't even begrudge people who say happy Memorial Day on that day as long as they take a minute to realize what it means and what it stands for. Every morning on Memorial Day, this morning will be a little different because I'll be downrange. But typically I go to the water, go to the lake, and I watch the sunrise and I think about, I think about my buddies who didn't make it home. And then I do my best the rest of that day to live the kind of life they would want me to live, to spend time with my family. I would add that this Memorial Day is going to feel a little bit different, not just because I'm in Ukraine, but because it feels like the whole country is looking to veterans for guidance, for inspiration on how we resist, how we defend our democracy when the threat this time is from within. So it's got a different feel to it, and I sure hope we meet the moment.

Host (14:17)

Ken Harba from the Midas Touch Network and Valor Media, thanks for joining us and thanks for all you do.

Ken Harba (14:23)

Thanks, Ben.

Host (14:24)

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