Tuesday Afternoon Breaking News Updates with Ben - 3/24/26

Summary

The MeidasTouch Podcast: Tuesday Afternoon Breaking News Updates with Ben – 3/24/26

Episode Overview

This episode, hosted primarily by Ben Meiselas with contributions from a co-host and guest commentator Katie Fang, delivers a real-time, unsparing breakdown of escalating conflict between the U.S., Iran, and Israel, the chaotic role of Donald Trump in the crisis, and broader implications for U.S. politics and global geopolitics. The episode delves deeply into misinformation, market manipulation, U.S. military activity, and the moral stakes of political leadership, all delivered in the hallmark style of the Meiselas brothers: sharp, urgent, and peppered with boundary-pushing analogies and critique. The latter half of the show welcomes Katie Fang to discuss her new live show, the media ecosystem, and the values underpinning the MeidasTouch Network.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump, Iran, and the Strait of Hormuz: Fiction vs. Reality

[03:07–16:46]

• Trump’s “Deranged Press Conference”:
  Ben reports on Trump’s bizarre Oval Office press event, where Trump claims to have received a "very secret prize" from Iran, refusing to specify what it is but calling it “very valuable.”

  • “Donald Trump held a deranged press conference in the Oval Office where he bragged about how Iran gave him a very secret prize, a very valuable gift … he got a present, he said.” (Ben, 03:07)

• Mockery from Iran:
  The Iranian regime is trolling Trump, posting memes and doctored images—like a car with a baby steering wheel for Trump—mocking the idea of shared control over the Strait of Hormuz.

  • “They [Iran] mock Donald Trump having a conversation with himself on Signal … it's basically left on read.” (Ben & co-host, 05:20)

• Shift in Iranian Military Tactics & Escalation:
  U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian energy facilities in Isfahan and other regions; Iran counters by hitting Kuwait, Israel, with some ballistic missiles evading Israeli interceptors.

  • “Intercepts provided by the U.S. to Israel are effective. But a lot of these Iranian missiles have been able to evade the interceptor systems.” (Ben & co-host, 08:55)
  • “Iran responds, strikes energy facilities in Kuwait. Also, Iran's been striking Israel … they've been able to strike kind of in the heart of Tel Aviv, in Haifa.” (Ben & co-host, 08:21)

• Iranian Power Structure Hardening:
  Discussion covers the replacement of Iranian leadership with even more hardline elements, and the entrenchment of the Revolutionary Guard’s power—parallels are made to decentralized leadership and robust underground military networks.

  • “We’re seeing a further entrenchment of power in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard.” (Co-host, 12:40)
  • “Iran has an entire underground network, almost like underground malls … hundreds of thousands of shahid drones … ballistic missiles underground that they can bring up with impunity.” (Co-host, 13:27)

• Diplomacy in Shambles:
  U.S., Israel, and Iran are nowhere near productive negotiations; Trump is "begging" other regional actors to mediate.

  • “I don’t think we’re having productive mediated or settlement conversations, although Donald Trump is begging Pakistan and Turkey and others.” (Ben, 15:24)

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2. U.S. Military Build-Up & Regional Tension

[15:35–16:46]

• Thousands of U.S. paratroopers (86th, 82nd Airborne) and Marine expeditionary forces are being deployed to the Middle East, with notable assets like the USS Tripoli and Boxer mobilized.

  • “Paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne … ordered by the Pentagon to deploy to the Middle East.” (Ben, 15:52)
  • “You have this staging taking place where you have thousands of troops that are going to be near Iran shortly.” (Ben & co-host, 16:21)

• Summary:
  “That’s just the data. … We shouldn’t bend them. The facts don’t lie.” (Co-host & Ben, 16:36)

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3. Announcement: Katie Fang’s New Show

[16:52–19:43; 38:42–41:35]

• Ben excitedly announces the launch of Katie Fang’s live show “Sidebar with Katie Fang,” premiering 5:30pm ET Tuesdays on YouTube.

  • “Your fearless voice is needed now more than ever, Katie. … Sidebar with Katie Fang—your live show is officially launching.” (Ben, 17:22)

• Katie’s Vision:
  Katie emphasizes interactivity, going deeper on news, focusing on politics, the law, and culture with real-time chat engagement.

  • “I want this to be an experience where we are going through the news together and actually focusing on the issues that make a difference in your life.” (Katie, 18:26)
  • “It’s just like the name Sidebar … you’re going somewhere and you’re going deeper, and that’s exactly what I want to do.” (Katie, 39:34)

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4. Dissecting Trump’s PR, Misinformation, & Market Manipulation

[19:43–38:42]

• Trump’s Market Moves:
  Trump accused of using public statements to manipulate financial markets, with Iran directly calling out his actions as “market manipulative.”

  • “He’s trying to manipulate the markets. That’s all this is about.” (Ben, 19:43)

• Absurdity of Trump’s Statements:
  Play-by-play of Trump’s Oval Office comments about negotiating with Iran and receiving “prizes.”

  • [21:30] Trump (clip): “…They gave us a present and it was a very big presentation worth a tremendous amount of money. … it was a very significant prize and they gave it to us.”
  • Ben: “What we’re watching there is vomit. Like, we’re watching just vomit in the Oval Office.” (22:19)
  • Katie: “He’s like a toddler that’s like, I shit my pants. But I’m not going to really tell you when.” (22:46)

• Bloodlust & Toxic Militarism:
  Discussion of Pete Hegseth’s “we negotiate with bombs” and warmongering narrative.

  • Pete Hegseth (clip at 27:42): “We negotiate with bombs. … as we loiter over the top of Tehran … destroy the enemy as viciously as possible.”
  • Katie: “It’s not the Department of Offense. … Whatever happened to the soft power of American moral right?” (29:27)
  • “Allowing a dictatorship to thrive … the west is here to bomb you down.” (Katie, 29:40)

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5. The Epstein Files, Israel, and the Real Reasons for War

[31:36–34:25]

• The hosts allege that escalating violence is partly a distraction from the Epstein files, as Netanyahu and Trump deflect from damaging disclosures by manufacturing crisis.

  • “All of the Epstein files are coming out. Donald Trump’s name all over him. … Netanyahu, I think, knew the moment to make the phone call—said, we’re going in right now.” (Ben, 31:36)

• Missed Opportunities for Peace:
  Reference to mediated peace discussions via Oman FM—disrupted by sudden escalation.

  • “There were productive mediated discussions by the Oman foreign minister … What a breakthrough.” (Ben, 32:22)

• Layers of Motive:
  U.S. involvement is framed as a response to pressure from regional actors (Israel, Saudi Arabia’s MBS), with Trump’s business interests intertwined.

  • “Now you’re intertwined personally and financially with this guy, MBS in Saudi Arabia. MBS is like, you can’t do a deal right now.” (Ben, 33:13)

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6. Human Consequences: Regional War, Civilian Suffering, and U.S. Domestic Fallout

[34:25–38:42]

• Civilians as Casualties:
  Discussion shifts to massive loss of civilian life in Gaza, Lebanon, and the wider region.

  • “Let’s just not forget the basic humanity of individuals and innocent lives lost … we need to reflect basic humanity and recognize what’s taking place.” (Co-host, 34:27)
  • Katie: "This has led to thousands of people losing their lives, property damage in the billions. ... No transparency ... a lack of priorities from this regime." (34:48)

• Contrasting Priorities: Ukraine vs. Middle East:
  Katie notes the stark contrast in U.S. commitment to Ukraine versus the Middle East engagement.

  • “I don’t see this energy for Ukraine at all. And I think that’s a big freaking tell.” (Katie, 36:40)

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7. Technology, Drones, and Proxy Warfare

[37:06–38:42]

• Ukraine’s development of drone interceptor tech is highlighted as more cost-effective than current U.S. strategy against Iran's Shahed drones.
  • “It’s like $60 million to go after a $20,000 drone. … How many dummy drones do you think Iran has been sending purely to draw out $60 million?” (Co-host, 37:36)

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8. Media Attacks, the MeidasTouch Network, and What “Far Left” Means

[48:41–59:54]

• Hiring Scott McFarland and White House Attack:
  MeidasTouch gets called “far left” by White House comms after recruiting veteran reporter Scott McFarland; Ben takes issue with the term.

  • “I like when they go like ‘far left.’ … with wanting to support humanity and empathy … requires congressional authorization.” (Ben, 49:05)
  • “I was Colin Kaepernick’s lead lawyer.” (Ben, 51:28)

• Values of the Network:
  Ben stresses their agenda is about humanity—affordable healthcare, education, civil rights—not “left” or “right.”

  • “I just want to make your life easier and fight for ways for you to afford things. I want to talk about things that matter to your life and how we can help you.” (Ben, 56:53)
  • “If all of that makes me a radical left, call me radical, I guess. Call me the radical Midas mighty, I guess.” (Ben, 59:54)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Ben Meiselas on Trump’s Reality Distortion:

  • “It’s an impressive quality that quite literally, all you spew all day is an imaginary world … forcing others to bend to the reality of your imaginary world.” (06:18)
  • “What we’re watching there is vomit. … just vomit in the Oval Office.” (22:19)

• Katie Fang’s Trump Analogy:

  • “He’s like a toddler that’s like, I shit my pants. But I’m not going to really tell you when.” (22:46)

• Pete Hegseth’s Militarist Posturing:

  • “We negotiate with bombs. You have a choice. As we loiter over the top of Tehran … destroy the enemy as viciously as possible.” (27:42)

• Katie, on War Rhetoric:
  “It’s not the Department of Offense. … The west is not here to build you up, the re. The west is here to bomb you down.” (29:27)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:07] – [16:46]: Real-time breakdown of Trump/Iran/Israel conflict: press conference, memes, military escalation, Iranian strategy.
• [16:52] – [19:43]: Introduction and pitch for Katie Fang’s new show; the importance of live, interactive news.
• [19:43] – [38:42]: Trump’s market manipulation, further press conference mockery, analysis of toxic militarism, Epstein distraction theory, explanation of regional war motives.
• [38:42] – [41:35]: Katie plugs her show; vision for deep-dive, participatory journalism.
• [48:41] – [59:54]: MeidasTouch responds to “far left” labeling; Ben’s personal and network values; redefining the mission of independent news.

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Conclusion

This episode of the MeidasTouch Podcast is a rapid-fire, unfiltered deconstruction of the U.S.–Iran–Israel crisis, a callout of Trump’s reality-bending narratives and their real human costs, and a passionate defense of values-based independent journalism. The Meiselas brothers and Katie Fang use biting humor and blunt analogies to cut through disinformation, all while highlighting the urgent need for ethical leadership and truth-telling in American media and politics.

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Next Up:
Automatic handoff to Sidebar with Katie Fang (Tuesdays, 5:30pm ET on YouTube)

Notable Quote to Close:
“If all of that makes me a radical left, call me radical, I guess. Call me the radical Midas mighty, I guess.” (Ben, 59:54)

Transcript

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[Ben Meiselas]

I'm Ben Meiselas and this is your breaking news. Moments ago, Donald Trump held a deranged press conference in the Oval Office where he bragged about how Iran gave him a very secret prize, a very valuable gift that Donald Trump says he was very grateful for. Doesn't want to talk about what the gift is, but he got a present, he said. Now, this follows 24 hours before where Donald Trump said his plan is to

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

create a joint venture agreement, like an

[Ben Meiselas]

llc, if you will, with the Ayatollah to jointly control the Strait of Hermuz. Donald Trump and his new buddy, the Ayatollah working together. Donald Trump said to the press when he was on a tarmac heading to Tennessee, where he went to Graceland, and in a very deranged fashion, I did a video on it, started autographing Elvis's guitar and started acting as though Elvis was alive today. It was very, very bizarre. You had Pete Heth at this press conference in the Oval Office saying that basically we don't negotiate except with bombs. That's how we negotiate with bombs. And meanwhile, the Iranian regime is, like, mocking Donald Trump and his regime. They've been posting photographs of like, like a car that has, like, the steering wheel. I'll read you this one in a moment. There's another one where they have, like, a car with like, an actual steering wheel, but then like the baby steering wheel on the passenger side.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And they're like, Donald Trump and the Ayatollah will, will work on the Strait of Hermuz together.

[Ben Meiselas]

Then the Iran Embassy from South Africa, they posted like, a fake signal message. And the reason, of course, why they use signal is because they probably have hacked into all of these signal messages of the Trump regime officials.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But regardless, they say good and productive

[Ben Meiselas]

talks with Iran and they mock Donald Trump having a conversation with himself on

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

signal, where Donald Trump's like, hey, Ayatollah, let's talk about the straight for sure. Oh, that's good to hear. Okay, I will cease attacks for five days. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

[Ben Meiselas]

And it's basically left on red. Like, there is no response to Donald Trump's message. If you pull it up one more time, it actually says on top, it says president of peace is who he's is, is, is, is who it's from.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

President of Peace.

[Ben Meiselas]

I mean, again, that's what they're doing in Iran.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I mean, we can look at some of the objective facts because we know

[Ben Meiselas]

that Donald Trump lies about everything and, or does this to manipulate the markets.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Both. The guy lies about every.

[Ben Meiselas]

Every word.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You know, I suppose if there was

[Ben Meiselas]

a superpower, although I don't mean it in a positive sense, it's that how

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

could literally every word and syllable be

[Ben Meiselas]

laced with a lie?

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It's an impressive quality that quite literally all you spew all day is an imaginary world, but that it is based on forcing others to bend to the

[Ben Meiselas]

reality of your imaginary world.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And I guess the frustration will be putting it lightly. The panic that the Trump regime is having with Iran is Iran is saying, no, we're not. We're not doing that. We're not agreeing to any of these things. No, we're not going to give up the Strait of Hormuz. Why would we? We control it with an iron fist. Now, you've already removed sanctions on our oil, which we never had lifted before. We're making billions of dollars. We created a toll in the Strait of Hormuz. Countries like India have to negotiate with us bilaterally right now, and then their ships can pass. China negotiating with us bilaterally. We are increasing our penetration rate of ballistic missiles. And Iran has rolled out these cluster munitions right now that they've been using where they shoot less missiles by far.

[Ben Meiselas]

And one of the reasons is the US has been able to strike a lot of the ballistic missile launchers in Iran.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But Iran also has shifted tactics and they figured, why do we even need

[Ben Meiselas]

to shoot so many ballistic missiles if

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

we can just shoot one or two a day at the right location, be more precise with it, and disrupt massive amounts of trade? We're just going to keep on doing that every day while we control the Strait of Hormuz.

[Ben Meiselas]

And so last night in Isfahan and Kashmir, Miranda, the United States and Israel were able to strike energy facilities of Iran.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Iran responds, strikes energy facilities in Kuwait.

[Ben Meiselas]

Also, Iran's been striking Israel, in addition to other areas that we talked about earlier this week where Israel's nuclear weapons are. I mean, they've been able to strike

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

kind of in the heart of Tel Aviv, in Haifa. And we're not getting a lot of

[Ben Meiselas]

the information out because Israel is suppressing a lot of video footage and information about just how bad it is there.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But from people who live there, they've never seen it this bad ever. And the interceptors provided by the US

[Ben Meiselas]

To Israel are effective.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But a lot of these Iranian missiles

[Ben Meiselas]

have been able to evade the interceptor systems.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Like I'm showing you video footage right

[Ben Meiselas]

now of what transpired, where you're able to see these ballistic missiles evade the Israeli interceptor system where before Israel's interceptor systems were able to, you know, kind of strike and strike these ballistic missiles all the time. So this video footage is showing a failed interception of Iranian medium range ballistic missiles that struck earlier near the city of Safed in northern Israel. But whether it's northern Israel, southern Israel, central Israel, Iran continues to strike there, continues to strike around the Arab nation, neighbors as well. So that's objective data.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

So I show that to you because when Donald Trump's like, they're crushed. They don't have weapons, they don't have anything, they don't have leadership. Not only do they have leadership, they have leadership that are trolling you with memes right now. Not only that, you have, for example, Ali Larajani, who the Trump regime and Netanyahu killed, recently replaced by a more extreme person.

[Ben Meiselas]

Ali Laranjani, very extreme person, let's be very clear about that, was very much involved in massacring protesters in January where Trump promised that he would save the protesters and lied and got them massacred.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

We should never forget Donald Trump's great

[Ben Meiselas]

betrayal of actually the democracy protesters.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Since Donald Trump betrayed them, they're not coming out. Why would they come out? Especially if Donald Trump's talking about doing joint venture agreements with the Ayatollah or working with the Islamic Republic, if that's ultimately the end game here was a much stronger Iran and a weaker United States.

[Ben Meiselas]

That's what this, that's what the goal

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

of all of this was right now. But you have Muhammad Bager Zagdar, who's now been appointed as the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, replacing Larajani. So you got a more extreme Lara Johnny in the Lara Johnny position. And this is the case throughout the regime. So, sure, you killed a group of people, were in leadership. Yeah. But they were replaced by more extreme leadership.

[Ben Meiselas]

And now one of the things I

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

think we're seeing as well is the

[Ben Meiselas]

Islamic Revolutionary Guard, the army itself, solidifying

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

and forming a kind of army dictatorship that's asserting more power than it ever did before. I mean, I know Donald Trump didn't

[Ben Meiselas]

study Iran's bifurcated leadership structure, but if

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

you look at their leadership structure, it's decentralized. They frequently refer to it in Iran as their mosaic architecture of defense, meaning there's lots of different levels and layers, I guess think a jigsaw Puzzle of autonomous control with set targets already and set leadership structures and succession structures already kind of in place.

[Ben Meiselas]

I don't want to necessarily compare it

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

to, like, federalism in the United States, but you have all of these kind of regional leaders within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard and also within their kind of secret police domestic forces that are both empowered to kind of strike. And now we're seeing, I think, a further entrenchment of power in the Islamic

[Ben Meiselas]

Revolutionary Guard side of things.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

So things are getting worse. You know, Arab mediators are saying they have a lot of skepticism that they're anywhere close to a deal because Iran feels emboldened.

[Ben Meiselas]

Iran sees the deranged statements that Donald Trump is making.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

They view it as weakness because they know it doesn't bear any resemblance to reality. Let's state the facts. Yes, the United States and Israel have seriously bombed and degraded traditional forces within Iran. Iran's navy, you want to say that's obliterated. It's traditional navy. Sure.

[Ben Meiselas]

Iran's navy obliterated.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You want to say that Iran's tanks

[Ben Meiselas]

and some of its missile facilities that

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

were above ground, obliterated. Sure, I think that that's accurate. But let's be clear. What. Iran has an entire underground network, almost like underground malls that are filled with hundreds of thousands of shahid drones that they can bring up from underground at this point with impunity. And they have all of these ballistic missiles underground that they can bring up that are very mobile and that they are utilizing now with less frequency but with more precision, with a higher penetration rate in some days, 25 to 30% penetration rate versus the interceptors. So Iran is saying we're digging in. Okay. We think that any deal has to have no sanctions against Iran. We control the Strait of Hormuz. An apology by the United States. Remove United States bases in the Arab nations and we have the right to produce ballistic missiles. Will agree, as we did before, we won't develop nuclear weapons, but we will develop civilian nuclear weapons. Sorry, civilian nuclear material. Not weapons grade.

[Ben Meiselas]

Be very clear.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Not weapons grade. Civilian nuclear purpose energy. So that's what Iran is saying, and Donald Trump is saying it's 15 points. They're totally obliterated. They have to surrender. They've given up everything. They need to say no more missiles. We control the Strait of Hormuz. And it's like, if you're, if you're Iran, why would you do that? You've gotten rewarded so far in this war. So we have that taking place.

[Ben Meiselas]

I don't think we're having productive mediated or settlement conversations, although Donald Trump is

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

begging Pakistan and Turkey and others in

[Ben Meiselas]

the region to get involved.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And then you have, as the title

[Ben Meiselas]

of this show discusses, you have these

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

paratroopers from the 86th, 82nd Airborne Division being sent there. The commanding General of the US Army's 82nd Airborne Division, Major General Brandon R.

[Ben Meiselas]

Tegtimer, and his command element, members of

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

his headquarters staff have been ordered by the Pentagon to deploy to the Middle east as several thousand power troopers with 82nd Airborne divisions, immediate response forces prepare

[Ben Meiselas]

to deploy to the region.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

So you add the USS Tripoli, Marine Expeditionary Forces. There are thousands there, the USS Boxer,

[Ben Meiselas]

thousands of Marine Expeditionary Units there leaving from San Diego, which will take a few weeks for them to get there.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You have this staging taking place where you have thousands of troops that are

[Ben Meiselas]

going to be near Iran shortly, the

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

paratroopers that are going to be in

[Ben Meiselas]

the region shortly under kind of the CENTCOM region of command.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And that's what you have. That's what you have happening there. So that's just the data. That's just the facts. You can do with the facts what you want, but we shouldn't bend them.

[Ben Meiselas]

The facts don't lie. We should be telling the truth about what's happening here.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And that's what the Midas Touch Network is all about. And so as the Midas Touch Network continues to grow, it is such an incredible honor to expand this network, to grow this network and to work with legends in the field like Katie Fang as an example. And I want to bring on Katie Fang right now.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I think Katie Fang is one

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

of the best examples of what Midas

[Ben Meiselas]

Touch Network I think is going to

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

be in the present and in the future. Your fearless voice is needed now more than ever, Katie. And we have a great announcement to make as well, that sidebar with Katie Fang. Your live show is officially launching on the Katie Fang News channel on YouTube at 5:30pm Eastern Time on Tuesdays. So guess what? Today's a Tuesday. And that means as soon as this show ends, the audience here will automatically be brought into sidebar with Katie Fang. Or you can just go there on your own. But everybody make sure you subscribe to Katie Fang's YouTube channel. And such an incredible honor to have

[Ben Meiselas]

you on this network, Katie, to work with you. An incredible job that, that you did,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

co anchoring the Midas Touch Networks, people. State of the Union, let's get into it. First, why don't we just talk about your show because I want people to know about it and let's Talk about some of the news.

[Katie Fang]

Well, I don't know why we don't do this more often, Ben. You and I hanging out together. It would be a lot of fun. I'm excited to launch Sidebar with Katie Fang. One of the things I did when I was in mainstream media is my show was live. And so there was the element of kind of having to deal with things on the fly as they came along. But what I really missed, Ben, about a live show component is the ability to interact with viewers, which is why I'm thrilled that part of what we're going to be doing at sidebar is we're going to be going through the major headlines like we do on Midas and like we do at Katie Fang News. But because it's live, we're also going to have our subscribers be able to participate in the chat. So not only are they going to do what they get to do on Midas, which is interact with each other, but they're also going to be able to interact with me. I want this to be an experience where we are going through the news together and we're actually focusing on the issues that make a difference in your life. Of course, a lot of it will be focusing on politics and the law, but there's also going to be a component of it that deals with culture and other relevant topics. And so I'm thrilled. 5:30 Eastern. And I would be honored to have the privilege of everybody who listens to you, Ben, to be able to come and hang out with me at 5:30.

[Ben Meiselas]

Everybody, make sure you hang out with Katie Fang. Make sure you're subscribed to Katie Fang's YouTube channel. I want to talk about some of the news of the day with you and I want to share with you this Oval Office presser that was held before we went live where Donald Trump, in my opinion, once again to manipulate the markets after Iran has repeatedly said we're not talking to them, they're trying to manipulate the markets. That's all this is about. In fact, that guy who leads the Iranian parliament gallop. He said very specifically, this is market manipulative.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I mean, this is so strange to see them call it out, you know, you know, you know, in that way

[Ben Meiselas]

and saying that's all this is about. And by the way, that Golubov guy who leads their parliament. Yesterday, Trump was leaking to Politico and Axios and others that this guy Golubov was hot.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

The Trump regime said he's a hot

[Ben Meiselas]

option is what Dasha Burns was reporting. He's our hot option, that this is the guy that they claim that they want to lead Iran. And if anybody knows about this guy, Golubov, I mean, he may be hot

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

in the sense that he wants to lob ballistic missiles at you, but he's not hot in the sense that he's America's guy. Like, what are you talking about? But let me show you what Donald Trump said.

[Ben Meiselas]

I want to get your reaction to

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

it, because again, he does this. Like, this is some like, like, like, like a riddle, like, the people are unimportant because that's how he feels.

[Ben Meiselas]

And he's like, I've got a gigantic prize from Iran.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

They gave me a present, a present. And it's like, what are you talking about? This is life and death. Be normal. What do you mean, you got a present?

[Ben Meiselas]

Here, play this clip.

[Donald Trump (clip)]

Because they're going to make a deal. They're going to make a deal. They did something yesterday that was amazing, actually. They gave us a present and the President arrived today, and it was a very big presentation worth a tremendous amount of money. And I'm not going to tell you what that president is, but it was a very significant prize and they gave it to us and they said they were going to give it. So that meant one thing to me. We're dealing with the right people. No, it wasn't nuclear related. It was oil and gas related. And it was a very nice thing they did. But what it showed me is that we're dealing with the right people. Because, you know, you don't know, because,

[Ben Meiselas]

I mean, when you watch that, I know that's what he's like every day, and that's how he behaves.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But

[Ben Meiselas]

what we're watching there is vomit. Like, we're watching just vomit in the Oval Office.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It's incoherent.

[Ben Meiselas]

You got it.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You're getting a prize.

[Ben Meiselas]

I know objectively what's happening in the war.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I. I see it in the region.

[Ben Meiselas]

There are videos. We can see what's happening. But you're talking about getting presents and prizes.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And I'll tell you, the American people are suffering right now.

[Ben Meiselas]

And that's what he's saying.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It's deranged, Katie.

[Katie Fang]

Yeah. And you know how he is looking like he's trying to play coy. He's like, posing his body at the podium. He's like a toddler that's like, I shit my pants. But I'm not going to really tell you when. I mean, that's how he is. And yet 175 plus civilians, mainly 170 of which were children, died on the first day of this, of this war with Iran, which they still haven't admitted as a war. I mean, this just goes to show that we have no business as Americans supporting somebody like Donald Trump who has his literal finger on the button to be able to deal with something on a nuclear level. And the fact that he's like, well, it's not nuclear. Well, according to you, we eradicated all of the nuclear capabilities of Iran in the summer, so why would it even be nuclear related? And here's the thing you talked about that hot commodity. I thought we weren't doing regime change, Ben. Last I checked, we weren't supposed to be doing regime change. But of course, nobody in Congress actually has been told the truth. And that is why what we're doing here, what you're doing is so important. We have to give the people this information and let them understand what's at stakeholders and have them understand that what we're seeing is a train wreck in real time.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Right.

[Ben Meiselas]

So Donald Trump creates this imaginary world where I mentioned earlier in the show, if you want to call it a superpower, and I don't mean it with any positive light, I just mean it's impressive in a way that a human being could have every word out of your mouth and every syllable embedded therein be tainted by a lie. Everything spewed the entire day. Because if I fib a little bit,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

whether it's, you know, I'll be back in five minutes and I know it's

[Ben Meiselas]

going to be 10, the, the human

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

being reaction is to like feel something

[Ben Meiselas]

and to be like, oh, okay, maybe

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I should have said 10, whatever it

[Ben Meiselas]

is, but to lie on matters where people are being massacred and there's death

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

and just to fully detach. And I think the issue, and one

[Ben Meiselas]

of the big problems though is in

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

fabricating this imaginary world, others who inhabit it are bending to this made up fictional place that doesn't bear a relation to the way we've all existed in a civilized society. So I'll give you an example right here. So after fabricating and manufacturing fake settlement

[Ben Meiselas]

agreements that aren't happening, he then goes

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

a step further and then describes the drama within this fake, within this fiction that he's created where everybody was happy that we were doing the selling, which isn't even taking place except Hegseth and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Kane, and they're upset because they want to bomb more. And then it's like he goes so far in this plot that's a made up thing that is like people get lost in. You're just making all of this up. None of this is even happening. And also what a deranged thing to say that your defense secretary and chairman of the Joint Chiefs want to just

[Ben Meiselas]

keep on bombing people here.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Let's just play this clip and let's talk about that.

[Pete Hegseth (clip)]

And that's exactly what we're doing in historic fashion. Thank you, Mr. President.

[Donald Trump (clip)]

Thank you. Appreciate it. Thank you, Richard. You're the only two people that were quite disappointed. I don't want to say this, but I have to. I said Pete and General raising Cain. I think this thing's going to be settled very soon. Here they go. Oh, that's too bad. Pete didn't want it to be settled. It's, it's. These guys are doing a great job. That's a good attitude though. Tom, Rick, they were not interested in settlement. They were interested in just winning this thing. Yeah.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Please, Mr. President, can you.

[Katie Fang]

Well, that's kind of true, Ben. I mean, let's be. I think Hegseth, his bloodlust. I mean, I think that's legit. I got to be honest with you. I think Hegseth thinks that it's the only place he can get credibility in any professional space is if he keeps on pushing this pro toxic bro, you know, chest thumping, bloodlust agenda. And because he gets such a wide, long leash from his master, he's able to do this. But the skill, smiling and the smirking and the joking, that level of disrespect for American life and American dollars, let's be. Let's be frank, right? It's not just the loss of life. It's the investment of American dollars in a failed mission where they know. They know that this is not going to end the right way for the United States.

[Ben Meiselas]

And speaking of Hegseth, in this press conference when he spoke. I'll rewind to prove your point right there. He says the way we negotiate is with bombs. Here, let's play this clip.

[Pete Hegseth (clip)]

The air campaign that we've conducted, that Israel's conducted alongside us, was one for the history books, truly. And it's because we have a President United States, that when he sends his war fighters out to fight, he unties their hands to actually go out and close with and destroy the enemy as viciously as possible from moment one. And that's why we see ourselves as part of this negotiation as well. We negotiate with bombs. You have a choice. As we loiter over the top of Tehran, as the president talked about, about your future president has made it clear that you will not have a nuclear weapon. The War Department agrees our job is to ensure that. And so we're keeping our hand on that throttle as long as, as hard as is necessary to ensure the interest of the United States of America are achieved on that battlefield.

[Ben Meiselas]

This is positive to you in a moment. But he, let's break down some of those words. He says we're doing this viciously. We negotiate with bombs, we loiter over Iran. That's what we at the War Department do. And we're going to throttle as long as it's hard. Okay. Those were the words that he used right there.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

So is he writing the script for

[Ben Meiselas]

the propaganda campaign for Iran to say,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

you know those Epstein class people, here's

[Ben Meiselas]

what they're saying that they want to do to you.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Here's what they are treating the, not just the regime.

[Ben Meiselas]

They make no distinction between the republic,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

the Islamic and the people of Iran. And it plays right into what the Islamic Republic is going to tell their people. Look, look what they're. And Iran is using it to say, look what they're saying. And it makes us weaker and it harms our troops. What do you make of that, Katie?

[Katie Fang]

It's, it's very incestuous, is it not? It, it's something that drives the state run propaganda machine which is the quote, War Department, which I don't even want to call it that. Right. It's, it's the Department of Defense and it's not the Department of Offense. Last I checked, it wasn't the Department of Warmongering, it was the Department of Defense. One, two, Hexif knows that it feeds the flames of the ego of that, you know, megalomania, which is convicted felon Donald Trump who's standing there again like the toddler, like just standing there swinging his arms like as if he's bored having to be a part of this. And then to your well taken point, whatever happened to the soft power of American moral right? Whatever happened to the soft power of saying to the people of Iran who want a true, a true infrastructure that would allow them to, to grow and prosper and succeed, we are here to help you in that regard. Now what they're doing is just allowing, allowing a dictatorship to thrive because they're saying, yep, look, this is what the west wants to do. The west is not here to build you up. The re. The west is here to bomb you down. And they have also seen in that region what has been happening with Gaza. Right. And they've seen what's going on. But the interesting thing is this. It is not leading them to capitulation. In fact, we've seen decidedly around saying we're not playing ball because this is not a version of negotiation when you're saying that you have the throttle on full thrusters to be able to just bomb Tehran all day long. For what I am sitting here been with you, and I still have not heard the, the reason why the United States has deployed in any fashion in Iran. I haven't heard why the Pentagon needs another $200 billion to achieve what mission. And because we don't have a clear answer, this is just a distraction that actually benefits only the Epstein elite.

[Ben Meiselas]

Right. And I think the honest answer was what they had to walk back right away when Rubio said Netanyahu on that Friday night. All of the Epstein files are coming out. Donald Trump's name all over him. Trump in a very vulnerable position. Everybody talking about Epstein, Epstein, Epstein. Netanyahu, I think knew the moment to make the phone call, said, we're going in right now. That same day, there were productive mediated discussions by the Oman foreign minister between the United States and Iran. Remember, the Oman foreign minister went on CBS and said, we have a deal in principle. What a breakthrough.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

This deal is better than Obama's deal,

[Ben Meiselas]

which, even though you and I are probably fans of Obama's leadership, although we may disagree with some things that he did, but overall, I thought Obama's leadership is something to be admired and a great example.

[Donald Trump (clip)]

But.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I thought the Obama deal was a good deal.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But if Trump did a better deal,

[Ben Meiselas]

objectively, even though I am very critical of Trump's policy, I'd have to still applaud it.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Yeah, we'll say you did a pretty good deal.

[Ben Meiselas]

And, you know, and, okay, let's see

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

if it's real, let's see if it holds.

[Ben Meiselas]

But with the confluence of those factors, I think Israel, as Israel sees right now, no, we can't have them do a deal that puts us in a position that we don't want to be. And right. That's what Israel saying, even right now, you can't do that. You can't do the deal. And by the way, mbs, Trump's bud, who invests in Kushner and Trump, and this is why we have an emoluments clause provision, because now you're intertwined personally and financially with this guy, MBS in Saudi Arabia, MBS is like, you can't. You, you can't do a deal right now.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

What are you talking about? You know, you either need to obliterate Iran, like actually, or we're not say goodbye to all of, you know, Saudi

[Ben Meiselas]

Arabia's help for you down. So that's going on right now.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But anyway, that's why the US Got

[Ben Meiselas]

involved, you know, in this thing, because Netanyahu said, we're going to get involved in it. And then when you're going to get attacked, so you better join us.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And Netanyahu has been doing that with past administrations. The past administration just said, okay, no,

[Ben Meiselas]

we're, we're not going to do that.

[Katie Fang]

Good luck, we have some autonomy.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

See you later. And then to your point, and I'll toss it back to you, Iran also says to their people, look at Gaza, look at what's happening right now in

[Ben Meiselas]

southern Lebanon, in Beirut with hospitals being destroyed, suburban areas there, not just Hezbollah,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

but innocent people being killed en masse, just like in Gaza. And Iran saying, you see that, you see the Epstein cover up, you see all of that, and it, it morally compromises us, which means we're weaker and

[Ben Meiselas]

our troops are imperiled by this.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

That's what this outcome ultimately is. And let's just not forget the basic humanity of individuals and innocent lives lost and human beings who have a heart, who have a pulse, who are dying in mass in Gaza and in Lebanon. We need to reflect basic humanity and recognize what's taking place. Katie?

[Katie Fang]

Yeah, this has become a regional, quote, conflict, although I only use the word conflict because that's the, the phrase that is used. This has led to thousands of people losing their lives, property damage in the billions. And what you just put up, Ben, that Osint post on X, you'll see that there's a phrase there that shows that the deal would fall well short of, quote, Israel's objectives, end quote. Why in the actual, you know, what are we prioritizing Israel's objectives? It just goes back to square one. There has been zero clarity provided, no transparency. There is a reason why we have members of Congress leaving classified briefings saying, I have now gotten the 20th excuse that matches excuse number four that was provided to me three days ago. That doesn't actually track with the realities of what is happening in the Middle East. There's a reason why they don't want to go to Congress. This administration doesn't want to have to explain what it's doing to Congress because they'd actually have to provide real reasons, ration rational, logical explanations as to what is happening. Meanwhile, meanwhile, people in the United States, on the most superficial level, are being forced to deal with skyrocketing prices, which do pose a real existential threat to some American families they're dealing with. Again, maybe it's a superficial example, but they're waiting in lines of four hours because this administration won't approve deals that will fund critical federal agencies. I mean, it just shows that there is a lack of priorities from this regime and that at the end of the day, this has always been about convicted felon Donald Trump, his family, his cronies, his billionaire buddies, and also him always kowtowing to Netanyahu. And that is an established fact that we have seen. And look, I don't have a problem helping an ally, but I will go back to something I've been stressing for a long time now. I don't see this energy for Ukraine. I don't see this energy been for Ukraine at all. And I think that's a big freaking tell is what I think it is.

[Ben Meiselas]

Can you think of anyone who is trying to help us more than Ukraine on their own? They develop the drone interceptor technologies.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You know, the way to stop these

[Ben Meiselas]

Shahi drones are interceptor drones, not the Patriots or the Thaads. When Ukraine saw what the US and these Arab nations who were using US

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

training were doing, Ukraine's like, you're using

[Ben Meiselas]

nine Patriot missiles to shoot down one Shahed drone in.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It's like $60 million to go after a $20,000 drone. How many dummy drones do you think Iran has been sending purely to draw out $60 million? Why would Iran even need to strike a 60 million or $100 million building if they can just get $100 million chasing a $20,000 drone? It's the most obvious thing that's going

[Ben Meiselas]

on that America's like, well, we need

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

billion dollar weapons rather than funding our health care. Zelensky wants to help. And all Trump has done endorse Orban, who's working with Putin, remove the sanctions against Russian oil. Giving Russia a critical lifeline right now which they'll just use to fund the war. Removing the sanctions from Iran's oil and then saying that that was jujitsu ing Iran. How's it jiu jitsuing around the stupidest thing I ever hear. So talk to talk about that. K. I just want to remind everyone we got a big audience. So when this episode ends, you will

[Ben Meiselas]

be brought to Katie Fang's channel.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

You should all make sure you subscribe to Katie Fang's channel. It's called Sidebar with Katie Fang is the name of her live show. It's on Tuesdays at 5:30pm Eastern Time meeting. As soon as this show ends, you'll get to that show right there. And Katie, before we go, why don't you, why don't you plug the show one more time, tell people what they'll see on your channel. And I'll just say this. You know, as the Midas Touch network

[Ben Meiselas]

is growing, I mean, it's just the

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

biggest honor for me ever.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I'm so humbled to have the trust of people like you.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

We just brought on Scott McFarland and his YouTube channel, the Scott McFarland news that's been growing. And to have legends just crushing, it is such an honor. But let's talk about your channel before we go and what people can expect to see if they subscribe to your channel and sidebar.

[Katie Fang]

Yes. So the channel right now, until we have launched Sidebar Live with Katie Fang has been episodes that have been taped and they are either just me speaking or interviews with policymakers, lawmakers, newsmakers. And the reason why I wanted the Live was to be able to interact with all of you, all of you subscribers that have put your trust in me to be able to give you the info straight, no chaser. And so what you can expect is just like the name sidebar when you are even though it's a legal concept, it can go anywhere. But in the law, when you do a sidebar, you're going somewhere and you're going deeper. And that's exactly what I want to do with all of these topics. I want to actually look at the headlines and I want to go deeper on those headlines because I think it's important. I think right now we are living in an attention economy and it is a commodity to be able to have time to know what is really going on. And so we're going to cut through all of that noise like we do at Midas, like we do at Katie Fang News, like Scott's going to do at his channel. And we are going to make sure that you know what's critically important about these headlines so that you can be what I like to call a high information American. We are creating a media ecosystem here in independent media where our Americans that are focusing and even our international friends that are focusing on all of these issues that y' all actually have the facts, only the facts and the truth, and then you can disseminate that information. So we're going to go on a sidebar deeper on all of these issues, and we're going to do that right after they hang out with you. Ben here.

[Ben Meiselas]

Well, Katie Fang. The Show's called sidebar 5:30pm Eastern Time on Tuesday. So we're going to take our first and only quick break of the show. Katie is going to get ready to prepare for her show.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

We should definitely do this more often.

[Ben Meiselas]

Katie, I'd love to have you on the show that we do, especially in the lead in to your show. Would be great. Katie Fang everybody, right here on the Midas Touch Network. And make sure you subscribe to Katie Fang's YouTube channel and watch Sidebar.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Thanks Katie.

[Katie Fang]

Thanks guys.

[Ben Meiselas]

And we'll take our first quick break of the show. When we come back. We still have a lot to discuss. The latest Reuters Ipsos poll showing that Donald Trump's approval the lowest in presidential history, the lowest of any of his terms. We'll talk about that, talk about much more.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

First and only quick break of the show. We appreciate you.

[Ben Meiselas]

Let's keep growing this network, whether you're

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[Ben Meiselas]

Yes, there were three ads right there back to back to back.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But those were good ads though, and

[Ben Meiselas]

those were great products that I think

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

that you you'll actually use.

[Ben Meiselas]

And Jordy, who's your favorite Mycellus brother, he negotiated some great discounts with each

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

of those sponsors and they help keep the show going. So the discount codes in the description

[Ben Meiselas]

below I knew we threw three in

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

there, but they're great sponsors.

[Ben Meiselas]

They help the show, they help us build the network, and they're great discount codes. So on balance, I think it's a win. And check out, and check out those sponsors. So as I'm sure you know by now, as the Midas Touch Network continues to expand, I think the White House was a bit unhappy with our latest hire as well. The Midas Touch Network brought on Scott McFarland. Make sure, by the way, you are all subscribed to Scott McFarland's YouTube channel. You search @Scott McFarlane, Farin News. What? In 24 hours, that channel's got basically 75,000 subscribers. I think we'll hit a hundred thousand subscribers by tomorrow. Help us do that if you can.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But Caroline Levitt, the chief propagandist at the White House, she posted the following

[Ben Meiselas]

message to us today.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Veteran CBS reporter joins far left media company Midas Touch. As Anchorage says, they share the same North Star. I like when they go like far left because I'm sure that everybody who

[Ben Meiselas]

watched this episode today would say, wow,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Ben, you are a super far lefty

[Ben Meiselas]

with wanting to support humanity and empathy

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

and make sure things are more affordable for people and saying that if we

[Ben Meiselas]

go to war, it requires congressional authorization

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

and condemning wars that don't have clear or any objectives at all, and standing up for our troops and wanting to make sure that Americans have access to health care and better educations and aren't psychologically tortured, living paycheck to paycheck. What a, what a radical lefty, all of these, the radical left. I mean, it's just so fascinating to

[Ben Meiselas]

me when people hoist these labels upon you. I mean, look, I'll say this. You know, my entire life, I've never been a Republican. There are some people who I guess, don't know the origin of the Midas Dutch network.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And they'll be like, were these the former Republicans and the former right wing people? I was never, I was never that.

[Ben Meiselas]

If you looked at all of my views going back and what I did as a civil litigator, I, I was

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

a civil rights lawyer, right?

[Ben Meiselas]

And I practiced a lot in Bakersfield and in Fresno, representing families who lost loved ones to excessive force and police brutality cases. We were leading some of the biggest cases there. When Bakersfield in Kern county was referred to as killing county had the highest

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

police shooting deaths per capita in the nation.

[Ben Meiselas]

And one of the things that we exposed when I was doing these civil

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

rights cases with the courageous families of Bakersfield, that They had police officers in the Bakersfield Police Department who were taking the drugs that they confiscated and working with the drug dealers to sell the drugs on the streets. And they would keep confidential informants off the books in order to help them basically deal drugs and to build a basically drug cartel. And there were a number of officers who we found through the cases that I was litigating who were involved as drug dealers. They were put in jail, they were put behind prison. So I was handling cases like that. Then I met Colin Kaepernick.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I was Colin Kaepernick's lead lawyer in his various cases.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Then I was Colin Kaepernick's transactional lawyer.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I built Colin Kaepernick's media businesses with him.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And then I created the Midas Touch networks. My entire life, if you wanted to

[Ben Meiselas]

throw labels on it, my, my views and values would be viewed as like progressive if you were going to give

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

it like a label. But for me, it was always defending

[Ben Meiselas]

people who were being bullied and standing

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

up for humanity and fighting for people and using my law background from Georgetown Law and as a civil trial litigator to help people. That's what I've tried to do my entire life.

[Ben Meiselas]

And I was blessed to have a

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

successful legal career doing that, which I

[Ben Meiselas]

turned into a professorship over at usc,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

where to this day I still teach law at usc and then building this network with my brothers and with this great community here at the Midas Touch network. And so it just, it's fascinating. I never, when I was a lawyer,

[Ben Meiselas]

I never asked my clients, you know, especially in Bakersfield where there's a lot

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

of people who are Republicans. And I know, are you a Democrat or are you a Republican? I never, I never viewed things in those terms. And you know, I don't. When you watch my reporting on a

[Ben Meiselas]

day to day basis,

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

it just to me is in line with what my career was before this. Just standing up for human beings and standing up for common sense and empathy and leadership. And I'm not like randomly against Donald

[Ben Meiselas]

Trump because he's Trump.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I'm like, oh, I hate this guy named Trump. There are a lot of billionaires out there who do bad things and there's a lot of people who do bad things. A lot of people, right. You know, so why Trump?

[Ben Meiselas]

Because he has, I think, destroyed the stability of our nation, where while certainly imperfect, I found that the ark of was heading in the right direction directionally. Although a lot of work needed to be put into making a more perfect union here in the United States.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But I just think that he's ripped

[Ben Meiselas]

to shreds our Constitution.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

And I even think more significantly than

[Ben Meiselas]

that, a value system and this idea

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

of order and leadership and, and ripped it apart for kind of anarchy and destruction and hate. That to me is what I call out more than being like, oh, I like this Democrat versus that Democrat. And this is my favorite Democrat. That is the least interesting thing for me.

[Ben Meiselas]

I think you all know that watching

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

this network, the most interesting thing for me is connecting with human beings at a values and principle level and fighting for that, Fighting for health care. Not because it's a Democrat issue, but I believe it's a human rights issue. Fighting for your health care, fighting for your education. I believe these are universal rights. Fighting for you to have a job where you can get paid with dignity, where marginalized communities are supported. That's the value system of this network. So I just find it fascinating to see the attacks of far left, this far left that you had. Brendan Carr, who is the commissioner of the fcc, he responds to Caroline Levitt and says, same job, new duty station. You know, it's funny because Scott McFarland responded and he's like, I guess by same job you mean reporter.

[Ben Meiselas]

Yes, I'm a reporter, so that's what I do. My, by the way, Scott has full editorial independence. Will never tell him or anybody write

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

this or write that ever. In fact, if you've learned about the

[Ben Meiselas]

model we've been building at the Midas Touch network, when we bring people on at the Midas Touch Network, they then

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

have their own channels, their own media companies, and they control and own 100%

[Ben Meiselas]

of their intellectual property. And so we just facilitate and help

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

them grow their channels. But in terms of like their ip, that's theirs. Their editorial control, that's theirs. And if we can lend our support, that's great. And so I've seen some of Scott's reports today. Have you seen some of his reports? I mean, the one that he did from Capitol Hill today with Pablo Manriquez as we've grown our Washington D.C. bureau. Go and watch it on Scott McFarland's channel as well. After you watch Katie Fang's show. First, we're four minutes away from Katie Fang show, so I want to make sure you all have the opportunity to watch Katie Fang show. But it's just fascinating. Stephen Chung, the communications director over at the White House, says every reporter who leaves more like fired from their outlet always comes out as a deranged liberal. Every single damn time. Just goes to show how biased media has become. I mean, again, go back and watch this video, watch any of the videos that I do. Frankly, where is the deranged liberal aspect of this?

[Ben Meiselas]

I mean, I think that you could

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

be a conservative farmer right now in Iowa and you're probably suffering as a result of Donald Trump's trade war against the world. And now the fact that fertilizers are

[Ben Meiselas]

either inaccessible or so incredibly expensive.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

I don't know if you're a right wing person in Oklahoma and you got to fill up the gas tank right now, it got a whole lot more expensive. Not sure it's a deranged liberal saying that that's outrageous. Right now. If you got your health care ripped away and you're a right wing person in Orlando, you know, say goodbye to your health care. I'm trying to make sure you have access to your health care. If you can't afford things and you're in Nebraska, I don't think that that's a liberal position. I just want to make your life easier and fight for ways for you to afford things. I want to talk about things that matter to your life and how we can help you. That's what my focus is here on the Midas Touch Network and amplifying voices that provide solutions to you. So I don't see any of that. Oh, by the way, you want to get an mri. Good luck. If the helium supply runs out, because a lot of our helium used in MRIs comes from the Middle East. There are third and fourth and fifth layer consequences that even if this war ended today, even if it ended today, then there would be massive problems. Wait until we get the new inflation numbers out. Right. Inflation was already surging. Could you imagine what the next inflation report is going to be?

[Ben Meiselas]

I probably can imagine.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It'll be on a trajectory for 5%. That's where I think it heads. I think we'll see a very hot reading near the fours. And I think in no time it'll be five, six or even. How could it not be? We know what the price of gases and that's going to pull everything up with it. And it's not just gas, it's food supply. It's, it's, it's all, it's all of these other, it's all of these other things as well. And that's one of the things that we're focused on. Joe Concha over at State Regime Media, which calls itself Fox says, in which Scott will also reveal himself to be much a partisan as Lemon Acosta, Chuck Todd, Terry Moran, Katie Couric, to name a few. He's joining the Midas Touch, the most. The most far left news organization in the country that literally ran a protest during the Trump state of Union. It wasn't a protest. It was a people state of the Union. It was a counter to it, where we talked about the issues that matter to the people. All of those issues, I just mattered. That's what we were talking about. Rather than having to listen to somebody blabber about transgender sports or whatever the hell in order to bully people. We were talking about affordability. We were talking about helping people find better jobs and we were talking about manufacturing. That's what the speeches that we were talking about were all about. I guess that makes me a far left. The most. The most far left. The most far left there is. I. I learned something new about I'm the most far left there is. But heck, if being the most far left means that we stand up for human rights, human dignity, civil rights, affordability, health care, women's rights, the rights of

[Ben Meiselas]

marginalized communities, that we focus on diversifying

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

our energy sources in case there are oil shocks, that we focus on helping people get jobs with dignity, that we take care of people here in the United States, that we support unions. If all of that makes me a radical left, call me radical, I guess. Call me the radical Midas mighty, I guess. All right, Katie Fang show is about to start. We're going to bring you to Katie Fang show right now. You don't have to do anything. Stay here. You'll automatically get transferred to sidebar with Katie Fang when you get there. Say hello to Katie from Ben. Say Ben says hi, Katie. You'll all be joining sidebar with Katie Fang now. And if for whatever reason it doesn't transfer you there, just search on YouTube Katie Fang and join the live right now. I can't wait to watch Katie Fang's first live show. Sidebar with Katie Fang begins right now. Link is in the description. Also link is in the description. Katie Fang Sidebar Begin now.

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[Katie Fang]

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