Hunter Melts Down, Targeting the Funders of Riots across America & Combating the Threat of Drone Attacks in Coming Decades

Summary

Verdict with Ted Cruz: Episode Summary Release Date: July 23, 2025

In this compelling episode of "Verdict with Ted Cruz," Senator Ted Cruz and co-host Ben Ferguson delve into three critical issues shaping the national discourse: Hunter Biden's controversial interview, the introduction of the Stop Funders Act targeting the financiers behind recent riots, and the escalating threat of drone attacks posing significant national security risks. The discussion is enriched with insightful commentary, notable quotes, and a detailed analysis of each topic, providing listeners with a comprehensive understanding of these pivotal subjects.

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1. Hunter Biden's Meltdown Interview

Timestamp Reference: [02:39] – [17:16]

The episode opens with a heated examination of Hunter Biden's recent interview, which has garnered significant attention due to his vehement criticisms of prominent Democrats and his apparent presidential aspirations.

Key Points:

• Hunter Biden's Outburst: Hunter Biden's interview is characterized by his aggressive dismissal of figures like George Clooney and David Axelrod, reflecting deep-seated frustrations within the Democratic Party.

• Senator Cruz's Critique: Cruz describes the interview as a "train wreck," highlighting Biden's frequent use of expletives and deranged remarks as indicative of broader issues within the party.

• Impact on the Podcast: The intensity of Biden's language necessitated increased efforts from the production team to censor inappropriate content, underscoring the unpredictability of such high-profile interviews.

Notable Quotes:

• Ted Cruz ([02:39]): "Hunter Biden utterly and completely melted down. He is the face of the Democrat Party. He embodies everything today's Democrats stand for."

• Hunter Biden ([07:35]): "I don't have to be nice. Number one. I agree with Quentin Tarantino. George Clooney is not an actor. He is a like, I don't know what he is."

• Ted Cruz ([08:36]): "In the last four seconds that he can remember, it was the most successful he can remember because he's blocked out the current administration."

• Hunter Biden ([10:33]): "I would pick up the phone and call the president of El Salvador and say, you either send them back or I'm gonna f. Invade. It's a crime what they're doing."

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2. Stop Funders Act: Combating the Financing of Riots

Timestamp Reference: [17:16] – [26:16]

Transitioning from personal outbursts to legislative action, Senator Cruz introduces the Stop Funders Act, aimed at dismantling the financial networks supporting recent violent protests and riots across the nation.

Key Points:

• Legislative Objective: The Stop Funders Act seeks to expand the RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) statute to include rioting as a predicate crime, thereby targeting the financiers behind these disruptive activities.

• Patterns of Violence: Cruz outlines a pattern of orchestrated riots from movements like Black Lives Matter and Antifa, asserting that these are not spontaneous but rather funded and organized efforts to destabilize communities.

• Call to Action: Emphasizing the importance of "following the money," Cruz advocates for prosecuting those who finance these riots instead of solely focusing on the street-level participants.

Notable Quotes:

• Ted Cruz ([17:16]): "We saw violent protests, typically in Democrat cities, started in Los Angeles, spread across the country in favor of illegal immigrants... These are not organic... there is money behind these."

• Ted Cruz ([20:18]): "They are paid for, they are funded, they are well organized. Senator, everyone can see it."

• Ted Cruz ([22:43]): "The real driver behind this is the money. It's the funders, and we need to go after and cut off the money."

• Ted Cruz ([26:16]): "Every policy that the Democrats adopted was a disaster... Open borders, 12 million people invading this country... The Democrats showed weakness and appeasement."

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3. The Escalating Threat of Drone Attacks

Timestamp Reference: [31:47] – [39:23]

Shifting focus to national security, Cruz addresses the burgeoning menace of drone technology in modern warfare and criminal activities, emphasizing the urgent need for robust legislative measures.

Key Points:

• Drones in Warfare: The conflict in Ukraine has highlighted the strategic use of drones, enabling asymmetric warfare that poses significant threats to military and civilian targets alike.

• Criminal Exploitation: Criminal organizations, including cartels, are leveraging drones for smuggling, surveillance, and even direct attacks, outpacing current law enforcement capabilities.

• Legislative Gaps: Cruz points out the deficiencies in existing laws, noting that federal and state authorities lack sufficient tools to effectively counter drone threats, necessitating immediate legislative action.

Notable Quotes:

• Ted Cruz ([33:10]): "Drones right now are outpacing our law enforcement at every turn. In our prisons, drones drop weapons, phones, and fentanyl."

• Senator Cruz at Judiciary Committee Hearing ([35:31]): "Cartels today have more drone capability than American law enforcement."

• Ted Cruz ([37:03]): "We need legislation that gives law enforcement the authority to protect us, to take out drones that pose a threat to civilians."

• Ted Cruz ([38:43]): "This ought to be an issue that brings us all together."

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Concluding Insights

Senator Ted Cruz's in-depth discussions provide a critical lens on significant national issues, advocating for accountability, legislative reform, and enhanced security measures. By dissecting Hunter Biden's controversial statements, proposing actionable legislation against riot funders, and highlighting the urgent threats posed by drone technology, the episode underscores the need for vigilant and proactive governance to safeguard American values and security.

Listeners are encouraged to engage with these topics, reflecting on the broader implications for democracy, public safety, and the rule of law in the United States.

Transcript

[Ted Cruz]

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[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Ben Ferguson]

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[Jamie Rubin]

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[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Jamie Rubin, a former advisor to both Presidents Clinton and Biden.

[Jamie Rubin]

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[Travis Holloway]

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[Ted Cruz]

Oh, hey.

[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

Welcome. It is Verdict with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. It's nice to have you along with us today. And Senator, you've run for president before and Hunter Biden may be calling you because apparently he's thinking about running for president as well in this new interview. On top of the fact he's very angry with rich Democrats that helped his dad get elected the first time.

[Ted Cruz]

I gotta say we've seen bad interviews, but wow, like Hunter Biden utterly and completely melted down. There's an old line that a gaffe in Washington is when a politician actually says something they believe, well, Hunter Biden let loose. He is the ID of the Democrat Party. He's announced apparently he's launching a campaign for president. I actually think he'd be a fantastic representative of today's Democrat Party. He embodies everything today's Democrats stand for. We're going to break down this train wreck of an interview and actually that's not fair to train wrecks because they're usually more disciplined, more orderly and result in less chaos than this interview. We're also going to talk about legislation that I've introduced this week called the Stop Funders act to go after the people who are writing the checks that are funding these pro illegal immigrant riots, that are funding anti semitic riots, that are funding antifa riots, that are funding black lives matter matter riots. We're going to talk about following the money. And finally we're going to talk about a growing national security threat and law enforcement threat, which is drones. We're seeing criminal cartels using drones. We're seeing terrorists using drones. And right now the current legal system, the federal government is not prepared to keep us safe. We're going to talk about the threat of drone warfare, the next generation of threats our families in our country are facing.

[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, I got to say, one of the consequences of, of this interview, it's actually had a real impact on the verdict podcast because it's forced us to increase our compensation for Diaz, our producer, because the amount of time that he's had to put in just to bleeping the F bombs. Yeah, I mean it really is.

[Ryan Seacrest]

He went pro in it.

[Ted Cruz]

There are overtime limits. We're going to play this. And let me say thank you to Diaz for hitting bleep, bleep, bleep. You got to be really fast on this. Give a listen to Hunter Biden's careful nuanced assessment of George Clooney, of David Axelrod, of the graybeard eminences in the Democrat party here. Give a listen.

[Hunter Biden]

I don't have to be nice. Number one. I agree with Quentin Tarantino. George Clooney is not a actor. He is a like, I don't know what he is.

[Ted Cruz]

You.

[Hunter Biden]

What do you have to do with anything? Why do I have to listen to you? What right do you have to step on a man who's given 52 years of his life to the service of this country and decide that you, George Clooney, are going to take out basically a full page ad in the New York Times to undermine the President at a time in which, by the way, what do people care about the most? Why do you think that the Republicans have an advantage over us? Because they're unified. They will go along with anything. I wasn't asking anybody to go along with anything. I was asking people to go along with this, the most successful administration in my lifetime.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I mean, Senator, it was successful. Hunter Biden said so. And he wasn't asking anybody to go along with anything. Unless you were sending money from Ukraine or from Russia or from China outside of that, or buying some of his artwork. I mean, this was just a straight shooting guy, right?

[Ted Cruz]

Look, it was the most successful administration of his lifetime. Now, to be clear, Hunter has a memory of about four seconds. So in the last four seconds that he can remember, it was the most successful he can remember because he's blocked out the current administration. You look at. Listen, even Democrats are not making arguments that Joe Biden was a successful administration. It was a train wreck. Joe Biden gave us a new Trump presidency. He gave us a Republican Senate. He gave us a Republican House. And it's because every policy that the Democrats adopted was a disaster. Open borders, 12 million people invading this country. The American people didn't like the victims of crime. The American people didn't like the disastrous war on American energy that drove inflation, drove up the cost for working people across the country. The American people didn't like. And as bad as all the domestic policy was, the foreign policy was even worse. Every friend of America, Joe Biden and the Democrats abandoned every enemy of America, Joe Biden. And the Democrats showed weakness and appeasement. So Biden and the Democrats inherited peace and prosperity. And we were given instead two wars. We were given the war on Ukraine and the absolute disaster of October 7th. Why? Because Joe Biden and the Democrats gave $100 billion to Iran that they used to fund the death squads on October 7th. That is the legacy of the Biden presidency. There is not a single Democrat in the Congress that I know of that is defending the Biden presidency. But To Joe Biden and to Hunter Biden. The problem is George Clooney. That clearly is the problem. But I gotta say, Hunter went further than that. And I want to listen to. I want you to listen to what he had to say about El Salvador because he's really, really mad that President Trump is deporting violent, criminal, illegal alien Venezuelan gang members. Listen to Hunter Biden's solution to stop this.

[Hunter Biden]

But these guys think that we need to run away from all values in order for us to lead. I say you, how are we getting those people back from El Salvador? Because I'll tell you what, if I became president in two years from now or four years from now or three years from now, I would pick up the phone and call the president of El Salvador and say, you either send them back or I'm gonna f. Invade. It's a crime what they're doing. He's a dictator thug.

[Ted Cruz]

Kelly or Trump?

[Hunter Biden]

Both.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Biden 2028 campaign right there. Slogan, I'll invade El Salvador and anybody else that makes me blank and angry. Right.

[Ted Cruz]

So to be clear, you're doing some math there because you said it's Biden 2028. And let. Hunter was clear. He said, if I became president in two years or four years or three years. Apparently he doesn't know when the presidential election was. Maybe it's 27, maybe it's 28, maybe it's 29, maybe it's 42. You know, math.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Speaking at Birdie's, at the White House when he was there. Does it really matter what election year it is? Right.

[Ted Cruz]

I do like that he broke the news that apparently Hunter is running. It is 128. You're right. That that's at least what they'll print on the bumper stickers. And by the way, does anyone better represent the mess that is today's Democrat Party? The corruption, the anger, the. Listen to what he just said. If he were president, he would invade El Salvador. He would send the military to invade El Salvador. To what end? To bring back criminal illegal aliens. To bring back murderers and rapists and child molesters who were ms.13 gang members. Because he would send the army to say, you know what? We don't have enough criminals and murderers and rapists. I'm going to send the army to bring us some more. That is today's Democrat Party. But holy cow.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah, it makes sense. I kind of. I'm kind of digging the honesty here. Right. And this is coming from the same. Now, let's be also be clear. Joe Biden said Hunter Biden was the smartest man he knew. So this is the guy that's like, watch this. Here's foreign policy. If you want to know who was running the White House. What does worry me is how much Hunter Biden was around the White House on emails.

[Ted Cruz]

He was plugged in. If there was any foreign despot, if there were any enemy of America, Hunter Biden was plugged in. Why? Because he would then shake down people for tens of millions of dollars. This guy. Look, we are watching one of the great businessmen of modern times because he has figured out he could sell access to daddy and favors from daddy and make tens of millions of dollars. And look, you listen to his answer just a minute ago where he said if he were president, he would send in the military to invade El Salvador to bring back illegal immigrants. You might think this guy loves illegal immigrants. He just has a warm spot. He has a heart for immigrants. He thinks they're wonderful, incredible people. Well, not so much. Listen to this clip where he describes what he really thinks of the illegal immigrants that daddy let into this country.

[Hunter Biden]

People are really upset about illegal immigration.

[Ted Cruz]

You.

[Hunter Biden]

How do you think your hotel room gets cleaned? How do you think you have food on your table? Who do you think washes your dishes? Who do you think does your garden? I would pick up the phone and call the president of El Salvador and say, you either send them back or I'm gonna invade. It's a crime what they're doing. He's a dictator.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, look, that is what Hunter thinks of immigrants. They clean hotels. They clean your dishes. It reminds me of that wackadoodle Democrat congresswoman from Vermont who said, if we don't let in illegal. Illegal immigrants, who's gonna wipe your ass? I mean, it is a level of contempt and condescending racism one on one, isn't it? Yeah. Look, look, they. They look down on the illegals that they allowed to flood into this country, but they think they're dumb enough that they will end up voting for Democrats ultimately. So it's all about political power. But this is the condescension and contempt. And Hunter is not unique. He is today's Democrat Party that they have, everything is politics and partisan politics. They are willing to endanger your family and my family if they believe it will elect more Democrats.

[Ryan Seacrest]

The takeaway from this interview was, for me, two big themes. Number one, it is scary who had access to this White House and influence over the president, especially when he was in such a cognitive decline. That terrifies me that Hunter Biden was around and Flying on Air Force One and involved in meetings and was read in and was on all the email chains that we've, we've witnessed recently. That's number one. But number two, it also tells you, I think, about just the disarray of the Democratic Party and the fact that they turned so quickly on Joe when they saw the debate. And now he's like, well, I want to burn it all down and everybody that didn't stand with my dad. How dare you. And I may even come back, like, there's a derangement aspect of the Biden family at this moment.

[Ted Cruz]

And listen, I don't fault Hunter for defending his dad. I actually support familial loyalty. But he is lashing out in a way that is unhinged and unconnected to reality. He's mad at George Clooney. He's mad at David Axelrod. He's mad at the Democrats. And one exchange, he explains, he actually broke some news. He said the person who was responsible for his father being pulled from the ticket, and it turns out, according to Hunter, it was Nancy Pelosi here. Give a listen.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah.

[Hunter Biden]

And you would have the speaker at emeritus that would say, well, you know, I'm going to leave it up to. But I don't know. And, and, and they had already made a decision. They had clearly made a decision. And when I say they, I'm, I mean the speaker. And, you know, I, I heard Alexander Pelosi say something, call my, my, like, put your big girl pants on to my something. And I kind of feel like saying, who the do you think you are? I would never speak about your mom that way.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Hunter Biden]

I would never speak about your father that way. I would never insult your parents that way.

[Ryan Seacrest]

He would never. He. But he's really mad about it right now.

[Ted Cruz]

He would never. Except for the moment that he is.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah.

[Ted Cruz]

All right, let's shift to the next topic, which is violence in America. Look, the last five years, we've seen a pattern of riot after riot after riot. We saw in 2020, the Black Lives Matter and antifa riots. We saw cities all across this country lit on fire. We saw police cars firebombed. We saw stores looted. We saw people murdered. We saw following October 7th anti Semitic riots and hostile protests on college campuses all across this country, especially in bright blue liberal states. And now this year, we've seen violent protests, typically in Democrat cities, started in Los Angeles, spread across the country in favor of illegal immigrants, in favor of Venezuelan gang members, opposing deportation, saying, we want as many criminal illegal aliens in this country, there is a pattern behind all of these, which is these are not organic. These are not just people who got pissed off and decided, I'm going to go protest. There is money behind these. Checks are being written that are funding them. And so I introduced legislation this week called the Stop Funders Act. And what the Stop Funders act does is very simple. It adds to the list of predicate crimes for RICO rioting. Now, what does that mean? RICO is legislation that is used to go after racketeering. And it's very powerful legislation that, that prosecutors have used to go after the mob. And it goes after a criminal enterprise, a criminal organization. Right now, rioting is not one of the predicate crimes. But in this instance, if you want to go after. For five years we have seen these violent riots. And look, I'm not the only person in the country who noticed that the anti Semitic riots on college campuses, that many of the protesters had matching tents. Yeah, there are clearly checks being written. Some of them, I believe, are from foreign nations like Qatar or Iran. But others are from radical left wing organizations. And during the Biden administration, you and I on this podcast repeatedly called on the Department of Justice to Follow the Money with Pam Bondi and Cash Patel. I've told both of them, follow the Money, prosecute the people who are writing checks. Not just the thugs who are on the street who are attacking police officers, who are attacking innocent people, but the people who are paying for it all. And going after the money is the best way to stop these violent riots. And if we don't, they will continue because understand the radical left wants them to continue.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah, this is one of those where, as you mentioned, Follow the Money, it's very clearly well organized. We're seeing this even over the last two weeks when they've gone after the President of the United States of America and we see all these protests that they try to act like they're spontaneous. No, they're paid for, they're funded, they're well organized. Senator, everyone can see it. And so the question people, I'm sure going to say, well, hold on a second. If I want to spend my money to support a protest, why should I be held accountable for that? If they decide to get angry or violent on their own, how do you separate those two things?

[Ted Cruz]

Well, you have to demonstrate under RICO that you're part of a criminal enterprise. And the predicate act, rioting is different from protesting. Peaceful protest is protected by the Constitution. But rioting is not. When you're using violence, when you're using Weapons. When you're intimidating, when you're threatening, when you're hurting, when you're murdering people. And many of these riots have involved people being killed. That is fundamentally different. And I'll use an example, one we've talked about occasionally on this podcast. Last year, for a period of about nine months, Heidi and I had every Saturday morning pro Hamas protesters at our house. Yeah, they would show up at 7am they would leave at 8. When they showed up, they would scream. They would bang cowbells. They would blow missiles. Whistles, rather. Thankfully, they did not blow missiles, but whistles.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That would have been. That would have been intense.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, that. That would have been different. They would scream curse words. They cursed as much as Hunter Biden did. They dropped f bombs over and over and over again. Look, we have teenage daughters. There are few things that can tick teenagers off more than waking them up at 7am on a Saturday. Teenagers like to sleep in. Certainly my girls do.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah.

[Ted Cruz]

And it was week after week after week. Now, what was striking this was a job it was clearly paid for. They showed up at 7am they left at 8amthat was what they were paid for. One hour, boom, they were done. And then after nine months spent, it just stopped. And it didn't trickle off. It didn't occur only occasionally.

[Ryan Seacrest]

It was like the money was over.

[Ted Cruz]

The instant the money was over, it was done.

[Ryan Seacrest]

In other words, these weren't actual protesters. These were paid agitators.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, look, this is apparently the living they have is they go to places where people pay them to scream and yell and be obnoxious and. And in the case of the riots, you have people who are criminals who will engage in violence. But the real driver behind this is the money. It's the funders, and we need to go after and cut off the money.

[Ryan Seacrest]

So if you cut off this money, how long does it take for this to become a thing where people are then afraid to fund these types of things, these extremist riots? And how fast could these RICO laws be used if this becomes reality?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it doesn't take long. Look, one or two people writing checks gets prosecuted, gets put in jail, and people will be very reluctant. It's much like funding terrorism. Look, you and I and normal people don't write checks to Hamas, because if you write checks to Hamas, they will prosecute you and put you in jail. And so there is a high threshold. The Department of Justice has brought a lot of cases for people funding terrorist organizations. These violent riots, they're not organic. They're not just occurring if you look at it at the college campuses where they've arrested people, they typically find about half the people there are not students and not affiliated with the university. They've showed up because their business is rent a riot. And listen, I'm interested in the thugs who are engaging in violence, but I'm more interested in the people who are sitting there funding this and saying, we're going to tear down our country, we're going to tear down our universities, we are going to promote radical hatred, hatred of Jews, hatred of America, hatred of our Constitution. And the key is going after the money. By the way, it speaks volumes. In the entire Joe Biden presidency, they did not indict anybody for funding these protests. They did not prosecute anybody for funding these protests. And the reason, Ben, is the same people writing checks and funding these protests are the same people writing checks and funding Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and the Democrats. And they're not going to go after their donors because their donors are paying the bills. And by the way, these are also the people that funded Mandani's campaign in New York, who is an open Marxist, he's not a socialist, he's not a leftist, he is a communist. And that is who is funding this, is people who support destroying this country. We need serious, focused law enforcement and all the tools to go after the people who are paying to undermine this country.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah, it's a great point. What are the chances you think this becoming a reality, by the way, for people that are excited?

[Ted Cruz]

I don't know. Right now we have no Democrats supporting it. We have a number. We have seven Republicans who are supporting it. We have no.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I wonder why. Right? No Democrats. I wonder why.

[Ted Cruz]

Because these are their donors. These are the people that fund their campaigns. My hope is I'm going to press for us to have a vote. I want to put the Democrats on record. My guess is most, if not all the Democrats will vote no. I don't want to go after the funders of these, these riots because they won't say this, but because we, the Democrats, support the riots. But let's put them on record, let's have them take a position because this ought to be a simple common sense position. And my suspicion is every Democrat will vote no. But if they do, that will be highly, highly revealing.

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah, that's really a big deal. And the question is, how do people get started?

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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Thanks, Ben. I appreciate your trust. We're here to help people move forward with confidence, no matter what the headlines say or the world throws at us.

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[Jamie Rubin]

I'm Christiane Amanpour and I've been on the front lines and interviewing world leaders for more than 30 years.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Jamie Rubin, a former advisor to both Presidents Clinton and Biden.

[Jamie Rubin]

We were married for 20 years and divorced for seven. Now we've joined forces on the X Files to make sense of how we ended up with no world order. Listen to Christiana Manpour presents the X files on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm Rodney Williams.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the Wealth Break.

[Rodney Williams]

Let's be honest, building wealth doesn't look the same for everyone. It's not just about saving. It's about investing. It's about navigating systems that weren't built for you, embracing your hustle and relying on your community to create something bigger.

[Travis Holloway]

And that's exactly why we created the Wealth Break. We made something different, something more human. It's not just another financial podcast. It's a conversation about real life, real struggles and real wins.

[Rodney Williams]

We're here to talk about the journey. You're hearing from people who've broken barriers, found creative ways to succeed, and learn to build wealth on their terms. Whether it's the first time homeowner, a gig worker, or someone turning a side hustle into a six figure business, we're bringing you their Stories.

[Travis Holloway]

And we're not stopping at success stories. We're breaking down the realities, like what it means to take risk, how to navigate failure, and why resilience matters. Because wealth isn't about money. It's about creating a life where you can thrive and help others to do the same.

[Rodney Williams]

So if you're ready for a podcast as much as about people as it is about money, you're in the right place.

[Travis Holloway]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I wanna move to something else. And this is about securing our skies. Law enforcement and drones and public safety are something I think a lot of people are paying attention to, especially since we really exposed this on Verdict, where we were talking about how the cartels have got an amazing ability to use drones. Now, they are heavily advanced and invested in this technology for drones to be able to see what we're doing on our side of the border. See when Border Patrol agents are going one direction or the other so they can get people across, drugs across, it's incredible. There's also another national security standpoint on drones as well. We've witnessed what drones have become in this war with Russia and Ukraine. And it terrifies me what we're seeing now with drone technology and how drones are changing warfare. And unfortunately, you're seeing it have a massive impact on the number of casualties between Russia and Ukraine. You combine those two things, the cartels, the drugs, the human trafficking, sex trafficking, child trafficking, the fentanyl, and the war aspect of this. And there's nefarious individuals, isis, al Qaeda, the list goes on and on. You guys are looking at this from an issue of we gotta secure our skies with this new legislation that you're advocating for. Talk about that.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, war often foreshadows the next threats we will face. The next threats we will face from terrorism, the next threats we will face from criminal attacks. And you're right, the war in Ukraine right now, if you look at how drones are being used, it illustrates the profound threat. We had a hearing this week in the Senate Judiciary Committee. I raised some questions on this. I laid this out. Give a listen to what I had to say in the Judiciary Committee hearing this week. In 2024, Thomas Crooks flew a drone over a Trump rally site for 11 minutes, scouting the grounds before his attempted assassination of President Trump. That same year, drones hovered over Naval Air Station Fort Worth for more than two hours, unintercepted at our southern border. Cartels now operate drone fleets, smuggling fentanyl, coordinating illegal crossings and jamming U.S. surveillance. They form specialized drone units. They've dropped bombs, they've deployed jammers. Drones right now are outpacing our law enforcement at every turn. In our prisons, drones drop weapons, phones, and fentanyl, arming inmates and fueling the deadliest drug epidemic in American history. And here's the most damning part. Cartels right now have more drone capability than American law enforcement. Let me repeat that. Cartels today have more drone capability than American law enforcement. Mr. Hardy, you work at the intersection of law and policy regarding drones at the doj. Is it true that only a handful of federal agents, under narrow legal authority, can intercept or disable a drone? Thank you, Senator. That is generally true under the 2018 act that gives DHS and DHS DOJ authority to conduct detection and mitigation operations.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That's shocking, Senator. That. That's. That's it. Like, that's. We are. You want to talk about being behind the eight ball? Like, good grief, yes.

[Ted Cruz]

And it's not just at the hearing, we also got into the fact that federal law enforcement is highly limited. And actually, state and local law enforcement is even more limited. So understand the threat we're going to face. We are going to see a major terrorist attack carried out by drones. We are going to see people killed via drones. We may see a drone flown into a commercial airline. We are going to see, I believe, political leaders assassinated using drones. The threats are massive. And right now, the authority of law enforcement to take out a drone, if there's a drone that is over a sports stadium for a football game, a baseball game, a World cup game, right now, there is extremely limited, almost no authority to take out that drone, even moments before it detonates a bomb or distributes a bioweapon or engages in some other act of terrorism.

[Ryan Seacrest]

This is the most scary, I think, part about red tape with government is if you see a threat and it's there, it's almost like you have to hope that law enforcement will just say, I'll deal with whatever the consequences later, because I know I'm doing the right thing. And you worry that people are like, well, hold on a second. You can't do that. You don't have the authority. And then the worst case scenario happens.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, look, and this hearing is driving. We need legislation that gives law enforcement the authority to protect us, to take out drones, take out drones that are a threat to airplanes. I am very concerned about an aviation accident of a drone getting in the way of a commercial aircraft. We need authority to take out drones that pose a threat to civilians, pose a threat to sports gatherings, pose a threat. As I laid out the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, the assassin who shot President Trump used a drone initially to scout it out. This is coming and it is dangerous. And I think we have a responsibility to act and to act. You know, there's a long phenomenon that when it comes to warfare, generals far too often fight the last war rather than the next war. If you look at the war in Ukraine, it gives us a window into the future because drones allow for asymmetric attacks. For those who lack power to use a $400 drone to take out a multimillion dollar tank or a multimillion dollar fighter jet, that asymmetry is dangerous. And I think we need real leadership, real leadership on the part of the Trump administration, real leadership on the part of Congress to enhance our ability to stop dangerous drones and to recognize this is the next frontier for warfare, for terrorism and for threats of violence against civilians across this country.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Final question on this, do you believe this is at least one of those issues where you can get bipartisan support that this won't be Republican and v. Democrat and make this so hard to do? Are Democrats on board with this because it's a national security issue.

[Ted Cruz]

So I hope so. I don't know yet if Democrats will be willing to work together. It should be. I mean this ought to be a level of common sense that people would recognize this threat is not a partisan threat. It's not a right wing threat or a left wing threat. It's a vulnerability we have as a society. And so I'm certainly going to try to get Democrats and Republicans to come together. But I will say it as early so we don't know for sure, but this ought to be an issue that brings us all together.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Yeah, it's a great point. Don't forget we do this show Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Hit that subscribe or auto download button wherever you get your podcast so that you don't miss a single episode of Verdict with Ted Cruz and the center. And I will see you back here on Friday morning.

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ted Cruz]

Let's go, baby.

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Jamie Rubin]

I'm Christiane Amanpour and I've been on the front lines and interviewing world leaders for more than 30 years.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Jamie Rubin, a former advisor to both Presidents Clinton and Biden.

[Jamie Rubin]

We were married for 20 years and divorced for seven. Now we've joined forces on the X Files to make sense of how we ended up up with no world order. Listen to Christiana Manpour presents the X files on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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[Rodney Williams]

I'm Rodney Williams.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the wealthbreak Podcast, a real conversation about finance.

[Rodney Williams]

Let's be honest, building weft doesn't look the same for everyone.

[Ted Cruz]

I feel like sometimes being broke is a cycle and that we might have.

[Travis Holloway]

To revisit that and we're not stopping at success stores.

[Lisa Booth]

What happens when it doesn't go right?

[Ted Cruz]

How do you cope with it?

[Rodney Williams]

Because wealth isn't just about money, it's about creating a life where you thrive and help others do the same.

[Travis Holloway]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartradio app.

[Ted Cruz]

This is an iHeart podcast.