Minnesota AG Crashes & Burns in Senate Testimony Covering up Fraud plus Dems Cause Largest Sewage Spill in History

Summary

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Verdict with Ted Cruz

Episode Summary: Minnesota AG Crashes & Burns in Senate Testimony Covering up Fraud plus Dems Cause Largest Sewage Spill in History
Date: February 13, 2026
Hosts: Senator Ted Cruz and Ben Ferguson

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Overview of the Episode

In this episode, Senator Ted Cruz and Ben Ferguson dissect three major stories:

1. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s explosive and combative Senate testimony concerning massive fraud in his state.
2. The largest sewage spill in US history—nearly a billion gallons of raw sewage dumped into the Potomac—and the silence from Democratic officials and media.
3. The current status of the “Save America Act,” a GOP-backed election integrity bill, and Ted Cruz’s push to force a talking filibuster in the Senate.

Throughout the episode, Cruz and Ferguson focus on government accountability, Democratic leadership, and election laws, applying a pointed, often humorous conservative critique of their subjects.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Keith Ellison’s Senate Testimony & Minnesota Fraud

(Main Segment: 05:38–18:55)

• Context: Minnesota’s AG, Keith Ellison, answers questions in the Senate regarding billions in fraud from programs like “Feeding Our Future.”
• Josh Hawley’s Interrogation: Senator Hawley aggressively confronts Ellison with allegations—based on tapes and transcripts—that Ellison pledged to help fraudsters evade investigation and accepted a $10,000 donation from individuals later indicted in the scheme.

Memorable Exchanges & Quotes:

• [07:23] Josh Hawley: “You familiar with the $9 billion in historic fraud out of your state, including the $250 million in the Feeding Our Future program alone?... Every single sentence is caught on tape. Here’s what you said…”

• [09:09] Josh Hawley (to Ellison): “I will tell the truth.”
  Hawley: “Good. Be a nice change.”

• [12:27] Hawley: “You helped fraudsters defraud your state and this government of $9 billion. And you got a fat campaign contribution out of it. You ought to be indicted.”

• [13:16] Hawley: “Because we were in the hundreds of millions of dollars to terrorist groups, to transnational criminal organizations, to the drug trade, to drug trafficking, to child trafficking. And you took $10,000.”

• Ellison repeatedly denies the allegations as “lies,” leading to repeated verbal sparring.

• Cruz's Take:
  [10:33] Ted Cruz: “The reality is Keith Ellison doesn’t want anything resembling the truth. Josh is right. That entire conversation is on tape… And the Attorney General, this left wing Democrat… said, sure, I’ll help you.”

• Antisemitism Questions: Later, Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno grills Ellison on his refusal to explicitly condemn Louis Farrakhan’s antisemitism. Ellison dodges, insisting the hearing should stay on immigration policy.
  [15:58] Moreno: “Will you condemn Louis Farrakhan’s comments saying that Judaism is a dirty religion?”
  [16:03] Ellison: “No, no, no, I thought I was talking about immigration policy.... I think there should be some scope to this hearing.”

• Immigration Discussion: Moreno presses Ellison on whether Mexico and Canada are “safe countries” for asylum.
  [18:21] Moreno: “So that somebody seeking asylum could certainly be safe in Canada and Mexico?”
  [18:27] Ellison: “No. Now, so like if somebody… we do know that in Mexico… there have been cases of persecution.”
  [18:50] Ben Ferguson: “He didn’t like answering those questions at all, did he?”

Tone & Takeaway:
Cruz and Ferguson underscore Ellison’s evasiveness, labeling his testimony as “angry, bitter, and partisan,” and a “train wreck.” They highlight how he dodged responsibility and refused to address serious allegations.

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2. The Largest Sewage Spill in US History

(Main Segment: 18:55–26:30)

• Story:
  A sewer pipe failure in Maryland released nearly a billion gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac—the largest such spill in US history.

• Key Points:

  • No prominent Democrat official addressed or acknowledged the incident.
  • Major media coverage is absent, in contrast to how similar disasters are reported when they occur in conservative-run cities.
  • Texas and Florida are supplying pumps for the cleanup, underscoring DC’s lack of preparedness.

Memorable Exchanges & Quotes:

• [19:56] Ben Ferguson: “This is like a massive oil spill except it’s raw sewage in the Potomac River. …But on this one they’re like, let’s just be quiet and act like it’s not happening…”
• [20:31] Ted Cruz: “Billion gallons of human waste of human excrement was dumped into the Potomac River. And Democrats, look, Democrats’ answer to everything is government… And the dirty little secret… is Democrats are really, really bad at government.”
• [24:45] Ted Cruz: “...But fortunately the government is in charge, so it’s cheap and efficient. Give a listen.”
• [25:21] Ben Ferguson: “[The number] is still going up, by the way, as we’re speaking. I just want to be clear about that.”
• [25:56] Ben Ferguson: “If this happened in a conservative run city, it would be on the nightly news. PETA would be out there losing their minds. …But because it’s Democrats, no one knows what’s going on. And probably unless you’re listening to this.”

Discussion Tone:
Cruz and Ferguson deploy sarcasm and hyperbole, railing against Democratic incompetence and the lack of accountability or media outrage when the error happens “on their watch.”

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3. The Save America Act & Senate Filibuster Strategy

(Main Segment: 29:55–37:46)

• Story:
  The House passes the Save America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo ID to vote. Only one Democrat voted in favor.

• Ted Cruz’s Stance & Filibuster Plan:
  Cruz describes his plan to force Democrats into an old-fashioned “talking filibuster” (using the two-speech rule), with the aim of outlasting their resistance and passing the bill. He emphasizes the popularity and common sense behind election ID laws.

Key Quotes & Explanations:

• [30:13] Ted Cruz: “Passed [the Act] with only one Democrat vote. Every Democrat but one voted against it. …Requires proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and it requires a photo ID to vote. It’s a very simple, straightforward, common sense bill.”
• [32:30] Ted Cruz (video, paraphrased):
  • “The vast majority of Americans support photo ID, and yet Senate Democrats are doing everything they can to block it because they want more voter fraud.”
  • “We should require them to talk as long as they can. …Go back to an old style talking filibuster like Jimmy Stewart did, and Mr. Smith goes to Washington… force them to keep talking and talking and talking. And when they can’t talk anymore, then we should pass the Save America Act.”
• [35:56] Cruz: “[If] the Democrats had succeeded in nuking the filibuster… they would have passed legislation… making every illegal alien … a U.S. citizen… given them immediate voting rights.”
• [37:46] Cruz: “I’m urging my colleagues, let’s stand and fight for voter integrity.”

Ferguson's Questions Clarify:

• What is “nuking” the zombie filibuster vs. regular filibuster?
• Would this procedural stand-off be “worth it” and could it be applied just once or on every vote?

Takeaway:
Cruz appeals to GOP senators to use every procedural weapon, cast the fight as central to the future of election integrity, and frames Democrat resistance as an agenda to “rig the game” for permanent power.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• [07:38] Josh Hawley to Ellison:
  “You familiar with that? Don’t turn to the pages in your book to get your potted answers… Are you familiar with it? Yes or no?”

• [10:09] Hawley:
  “You tell the truth and I’ll let you answer.”
  Ellison: “I will tell the truth.”
  Hawley: “Good. Be a nice change.”

• [12:27] Hawley:
  “You helped fraudsters defraud your state and this government of $9 billion. And you got a fat campaign contribution out of it. You ought to be indicted.”

• [16:02] Ellison:
  “I thought I was coming here to talk about immigration policy.”

• [20:31] Cruz:
  “Billion gallons of human waste of human excrement was dumped into the Potomac River. And Democrats… are really, really bad at government.”

• [24:00] Cruz & Ferguson:
  “They’re going to save the liberals from their own, like, feces. Got it.”
  “They’re sending large pumps to pump liberal feces.”

• [32:30] Cruz:
  "The vast majority of Americans support photo id, and yet Senate Democrats are doing everything they can to block it because they want more voter fraud... We should require them to talk as long as they can…"

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• Podcast start & banter: 01:20–05:32
• Minnesota AG Keith Ellison testimony: 05:38–18:55
• Largest sewage spill in US history: 18:55–26:30
• Save America Act and Senate filibuster: 29:55–37:46

(Sponsored messages, show credits, and non-content sections are omitted.)

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Episode Tone & Style

The conversation is fast-paced, combative, and often dripping with sarcastic humor. Cruz and Ferguson use pointed jokes and cultural references (e.g., “You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth!” and “pumping liberal feces”) to underscore perceived hypocrisy, government failure, and the stakes of partisan legislation.
Attribution is clear throughout; major allegations and exchanges are read almost verbatim from Senate testimony and news sources, with Cruz and Ferguson providing color commentary.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode is a trenchant critique of Democratic governance, with particular focus on accountability in government welfare fraud and emergency response, juxtaposed with a robust defense and explanation of conservative election reform proposals. The Keith Ellison Senate testimony is laid bare through dramatic, verbatim exchanges, and the sewage spill is described in detail, with reflections on media double standards and government competence. The segment on the Save America Act provides a clear civics lesson on filibuster strategy and the bill’s intent, while urging grassroots pressure and political will.

For an unfiltered take on these headlines, this episode delivers high-energy play-by-play, memorable soundbites, and clear arguments for conservative listeners.

Transcript

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[Ben Ferguson]

What do you have to lose?

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[Ted Cruz]

It's so weird.

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[Ted Cruz]

Is pretty good, but I couldn't get the car loan.

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[Ted Cruz]

No, it's some other company.

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[Keith Ellison]

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[Keith Ellison]

Your credit goal, including your FICO scores.

[Ted Cruz]

Used for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.

[Public Investing Sponsor Voice]

Visit myfico.com or download the MyFico app.

[Ben Ferguson]

To get started today, welcome. It is Vertic with center, Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you as well. And if you're listening on the radio, welcome. So nice to have you. And if you like the show, you'll love the podcast that we do three days a week. So make sure you download Verdict with Tech Cruise wherever you get your podcasts. Also, it's on YouTube as well. Center, as we start, I. I rarely get to give you a hard time, so we're just going to start with that. You are now officially on Tick Tock and I just love the number of followers that you have because I don't get to give you a hard time. But it's very low, center, like extremely low. Forget the fact we just started the page. I just want to say hello. It is. So if you want to, like, actually be seen when you follow Center Cruise, like, you could be the first one, like second one, third one. You could actually see their name. Like, it could actually be there.

[Ted Cruz]

It is terrifying. It is. It is pitiful. So. So we just opened a TikTok account two days ago. I am at a measly 2000 followers. Which. Which is. Which is. Which is. Look, it's two days into it, but, you know, I got to say, my teenage daughters have already told me I'm not nearly cool enough to be on TikTok. I will not be doing teenage dance moves, although I will neither confirm nor deny. I may have done them at their requests home, but those videos are suppressed forever.

[Ben Ferguson]

We're also trying to bribe them for said videos so that we can put them on TikTok. There's a full court press from the staff.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, look, I have deliberately stayed off TikTok because when the Chinese communists controlled it, I didn't want to be subject to their surveillance or propaganda. But because President Trump got the deal through and moved them to American ownership and control, we've opened up yet a TikTok account. So now we're communicate on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram.

[Ben Ferguson]

And you are going to dance for Mardi Gras, though I was told that's like one of the things, like certain holidays, you'll do things. Right. That's.

[Ted Cruz]

Ben, let me. Let me be clear. No matter how many beads you give me, the answer is no.

[Ben Ferguson]

No matter how many beads that TC gets, Center Cruise gets. That's the. I like that. Now we're gonna. I'm gonna test you here. Do you know what your handle is right when you set it up. Do we know? Do you know?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it's Ted Cruz. This.

[Ben Ferguson]

Oh, wow. I'm shocked no one took that from you. I thought the Chinese would registered that years ago. Okay. It's not at Ted Cruz. America. Ted Cruz Flying Eagle. I thought we were gonna have to get creative there.

[Ted Cruz]

I like Ted Cruz. Same. Same thing. My Twitter handle is. Which is Ted Cruz.

[Ben Ferguson]

I like it. So there you go, dad. Ted Cruz on Tick Tock. You can be one of the first ones to get on.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah. Now Twitter, we're. We're north of 10 million between the two accounts, so.

[Public Investing Sponsor Voice]

But.

[Ted Cruz]

But we're just at 2000 on tick tock, so we got some work to do.

[Ben Ferguson]

This.

[Keith Ellison]

Just.

[Ben Ferguson]

Just north of 10 million. I'm glad. I love how that was.

[Keith Ellison]

That.

[Ben Ferguson]

That is what you call a congressional flex there. That's exactly what that was.

[Josh Hawley]

Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

I promise. I promise the family. That was your rebuttal at home as well, when they said you weren't cool enough for Tick Tock. I love it. So follow there.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

Welcome to the crazy world of Tick Tock. And you can make them go forward and backwards of the boomerang thing. There's lots of things. It's going to be exciting to see what's out there. I can tell you're excited about that aspect of it. All right.

[Ted Cruz]

I may be doing every Tick Tock with a cat filter on, although I think that's like seven generations ago.

[Ben Ferguson]

That's very true. So we got a lot to talk about on today's show. What are we gonna. What are we gonna be? There's some big news. So let's go through what we're gonna talk about today.

[Ted Cruz]

All right, so Keith Ellison, the Attorney General of Minnesota, testified in the Senate this week. It was a train wreck, falling off a bridge on fire and exploding. I think that is the understated way to put how well his testimony went. We're gonna give you some excerpts of that. He refused to take responsibility for any of the massive fraud in his state. He refused to take responsibility for his own wrongdoing. He was angry, bitter, and partisan. So it was exactly what you would have expected from Keith Ellison. We're also going to talk about that Democrats are responsible for the single largest spill of sewage in American history. And that is not a joke. I am not making that up. And the press is not telling you about it. Well, Ben and I are. And finally, we're going to. We're going to talk about the Save America act, where it is, what the Senate needs to do. To pass it, how we protect integrity in our elections. All of those are in today's pod and today's show.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it's going to be a good one. So make sure you download Verdict with Ted Cruz also wherever you get your podcast. And you can also watch, as I mentioned earlier on YouTube and even some of the shorts on TikTok as well. All right, so let's start with Ellison testifying and really fail to take accountability for Minnesota and the fraud there. It is not surprising that he wanted to deflect in a major way. That's what he's decided to do. Obviously, Senator, and, and, and I get the strategy, but it didn't really work out for him when he had to answer real questions. You can only dodge so much.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, it did not work out at all. We're going to start with, with, with Josh Hawley, my colleague who questioned Keith Ellison. Did, did a very good job. Ellison was battling and dodging the whole time. But, but, but this was fiery, to put it mildly. Give a listen.

[Josh Hawley]

Try another question. Are you familiar with the $9 billion in historic fraud out of your state, including the $250 million in the feeding Our Future program alone? You familiar with that? Don't turn to the pages in your book to get your potted answers. Are you familiar with it? Yes or no?

[Keith Ellison]

Yes, I am familiar with it.

[Josh Hawley]

Very familiar, aren't you? Because the people who ran the Feeding Our Futures program came to you in your official office in the State Capitol of December 11, 2021, and asked for your help in getting investigators off their backs. They complained to you for upwards of an hour about state investigators going after them, and they begged you to help them. And you agreed to it, amazingly, and we know you did because it's all caught on tape. Every single sentence is caught on tape. Here's what you said. Let's take a look. You said, it's not a question. You said to them, send me the names of all these folks who are investigating them. You said to them, send me their names and I'll take that list and I'll call the person over at Education who is investigating them and say, what's going on? Why am I getting these complaints? Then he went on to say, I already have my team working on this. What day should we get together to discuss it again? You made pledge after pledge to them. You said, we've got to make sure this guy who's investigating them stops it. You said, you have my attention. I'm concerned about this. You said, let's go fight These people, meaning the people who are investigating the fraud. Why'd you do it? Why'd you help them?

[Keith Ellison]

Are you going to let me answer?

[Josh Hawley]

Please. We're all here.

[Keith Ellison]

So first of all, you're cherry picking quotes out of there.

[Josh Hawley]

Why did you help?

[Keith Ellison]

I thought you were going to let me answer.

[Josh Hawley]

Why did you?

[Keith Ellison]

Let me answer.

[Josh Hawley]

Why did you help?

[Keith Ellison]

You let me answer and I'll answer.

[Josh Hawley]

You tell the truth and I'll let you answer.

[Keith Ellison]

I will tell the truth.

[Josh Hawley]

Good. Be a nice change.

[Keith Ellison]

So no that. Now, see, Mr. Chairman, I didn't come here to be insulted. I came here.

[Josh Hawley]

You came here for the truth. Let's have it. Why did you help? The police are here. They're in black and white. And every member of this audience into the recording is 54 minutes long. It's all in public. You can Google it right now and listen to it.

[Keith Ellison]

And listen to.

[Josh Hawley]

Why did you help them?

[Keith Ellison]

First of all, I didn't help them.

[Josh Hawley]

You did.

[Keith Ellison]

No, I did not. I certainly didn't.

[Josh Hawley]

You're saying you didn't do anything for them? You didn't. You didn't.

[Keith Ellison]

Well, wait a minute.

[Josh Hawley]

I already have my team working on this again. That's not you.

[Keith Ellison]

I have my team. My team assisted with the information that led to the prosecution and conviction of these people.

[Josh Hawley]

You didn't. You didn't look.

[Keith Ellison]

Yes.

[Josh Hawley]

Finger to prosecute them. No, you did not.

[Keith Ellison]

No.

[Josh Hawley]

Because they were federal. You had all bs. You had whistleblowers.

[Keith Ellison]

You're the one talking bs.

[Josh Hawley]

Hey, listen, it's my time.

[Keith Ellison]

Doesn't know what you're talking about.

[Josh Hawley]

Oh, you know, sir, you now have encountered the truth and you don't like it. Why'd you take your money, Senator?

[Ben Ferguson]

You're a movie guy. What? Let's see how good you are. What's the movie where you can't handle the truth?

[Ted Cruz]

Yes. Okay. Ben, you and I have been doing this too long. It is the greatest missed opportunity it is the greatest missed opportunity in the history of Senate hearings that Keith Ellison didn't say, you want the truth? You can't handle the truth.

[Ben Ferguson]

I was like, come on.

[Ted Cruz]

Oh, I mean, it was screaming for him to say it. But listen, the reality is Keith Ellison doesn't want anything resembling the truth. Josh is right. That entire conversation is on tape. And it is the criminals coming to the Attorney General saying, would you stop the people who are investigating us to find our crimes. And the Attorney General, this left wing Democrat who was getting elected by these criminals said, sure, I'll help you. It's all on tape. Josh Hawley's question. Why'd you take the money? Let's. Let's listen to that question and what the facts are. And spoiler alert. Ellison's just going to lie. Give a listen.

[Josh Hawley]

Why'd you take your money? Why'd you take their money?

[Keith Ellison]

I didn't.

[Josh Hawley]

You took $10,000.

[Keith Ellison]

That's a false state.

[Josh Hawley]

$10,000. Nine days after the meeting.

[Ted Cruz]

False.

[Josh Hawley]

You took $10,000. Here's what happened. They went to your office. They solicited money from you. They solicited help from you.

[Keith Ellison]

That's also wrong.

[Josh Hawley]

They came to your office. It was your official office. You met with them for 54 minutes.

[Keith Ellison]

No.

[Josh Hawley]

They asked you for help. You pledged it to. Talked repeatedly about money. In fact, it's all they talked about. Money, money, money, money. They said, we will put our dollars in the right place. We will support candidates that will fight to protect our interests. You replied. That's right. They said, you are securing your donor base and securing your power base. You can act the way you want. You replied. Money is freedom. They said, the amount of money circulate. I'm reading the transcript. The amount of money circulating in our community today is powerful, and we haven't realized it in a meaningful way. And you said, give me the specifics. And nine days later, you took $10,000.

[Keith Ellison]

That's a lie.

[Josh Hawley]

From people who were then indicted. It's in your reports. Why'd you do it, sir?

[Keith Ellison]

This.

[Josh Hawley]

Was it worth it?

[Keith Ellison]

You know what this is? A theatrical 10,000.

[Josh Hawley]

This is the truth. This is what accountability looks like, of which you've had none. You helped fraudsters defraud your state and this government of $9 billion. And you got a fat campaign contribution out of it. You ought to be indicted.

[Keith Ellison]

Well, that's the truth. I think we've made the point.

[Ben Ferguson]

Let's keep the. Well, just for the record, I'll ask how I.

[Keith Ellison]

He's lying. And that's. And that's the truth.

[Josh Hawley]

Oh, no, this is all on the record. You bother. Did you bother to investigate where the money that you facilitated their fraud for where it went? Do you know where it went? What it was used for, the fraudulent money? I do. Because we just heard testimony about it yesterday. Because we were in the hundreds of millions of dollars to terrorist groups, to transnational criminal organizations, to the drug trade, to drug trafficking, to child trafficking. And you took $10,000.

[Keith Ellison]

That's a lie.

[Josh Hawley]

And helped them do it. You know, the other thing is whistleblowers came to you as early as 2019. Let's look. As early as 2019. Whistleblower. Don't talk over me. As early as 2019. It's my hearing, pal. As early as 2019. Don't call me whistleblowers came. Well, I should call you prisoner because you ought to be in jail.

[Keith Ellison]

Well, we'll see what you can.

[Josh Hawley]

In 2019, whistleblowers came to you in your office and referred to you fraud allegations from feeding our futures, and you blew them off. Listen. Your own state newspaper. That's a lie. The Minnesota Star Tribune. The Partners in Nutrition brought its concerns to the Attorney general's office in 2018 and in 2019. And you did nothing. You did nothing for years. The only action you took is once all these fraudsters came to your office and asked you to get involved and offered you money.

[Keith Ellison]

Did not come to my office.

[Josh Hawley]

Then you got involved. Then you took the money and then you got involved.

[Keith Ellison]

They did not come to my office. You're completely wrong about.

[Josh Hawley]

You met with. I did not see anybody minutes. And you took $10,000. And they also gave your family money. They gave your family thousands of dollars in campaign contributions.

[Keith Ellison]

They gave false statement.

[Josh Hawley]

Let's put the.

[Keith Ellison]

This is, you know, this is completely.

[Josh Hawley]

The New York Post.

[Keith Ellison]

Yeah, we know the New York Post.

[Josh Hawley]

Minnesota, Keith Ellison, AG, accepted campaign donations from individuals linked to the $250 million Covid fraud scheme after they were in your office. Donations came on December 20, sir. You met with them on December 11. And on January 20, the FBI knocked over their headquarters. No, no, that's the sequence of events here.

[Keith Ellison]

No, it's not.

[Josh Hawley]

You've been right at the center of this fraud, not the sequence of enabled it. And sir, the false. You should resign.

[Ben Ferguson]

I mean, you look at this hearing and he's like, you know, good luck with that. Basically putting me in jail. He does seem incredibly arrogant and cocky for a guy that's being accused of all these things, but I guess they've just. Right, like, who cares?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, he's never been called to account. And his response is just a lie. Say that's a lie. That's a lie. That's a lie. By the way, he doesn't have any facts to the contrary. And when Josh lays out the receipts that he actually received the contributions, received them nine days after meeting with the fraudsters and promising to help them, he has no response other than scream, liar, Liar, liar. But look, it's not just that. Keith Ellison, like the rest of the Minnesota Democrats, is extreme and radical. Listen to him here. Refusing to condemn Louis Farrakhan's bigotry and anti Semitism. This is Bernie Moreno, Senator from Ohio, questioning him. Give a listen.

[Keith Ellison]

I speak against anti Semitism. I condemn it as Republican and wrong.

[Bernie Moreno]

Let's pause there. You speak against antisemitism. Will you condemn Louis Farrakhan's comments saying that Judaism is a dirty religion?

[Keith Ellison]

You know, sir, I thought I was coming here to talk about immigration policy.

[Bernie Moreno]

That was a layup question.

[Keith Ellison]

No, no, no. I thought I was talking about immigration policy. I didn't know that we were going to be talking about all these matters. I mean, I'm reluctant to just sort of. I mean, we already had one thing where we didn't mention immigration policy at all. I'm fine with you asking about questions around asylum and things like that. That makes a lot of sense to me. But now we're going off in all kind of different directions. I think there should be some scope to this hearing. And so thank you for your interest. And we both share a need to condemn anti Semitism.

[Ben Ferguson]

Senator, I love how it's almost like he's trying to steal a line from Donald Trump there, like, thank you for your attention to this matter. You can't make it up.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, and of course, he was completely unwilling to condemn Louis Farrakhan's vicious antisemitism. Keith Ellison is Muslim. Louis Farrakhan is Muslim, and they both have reveled in bigotry. Look, a related. He said he was willing to talk about immigration. Well, yeah, when it comes to the anti ICE protesters in Minnesota, you remember the ones that burst into the church service and disturbed the Christian church. Well, Keith Ellison did an interview about that where he said, quote, I think that protest is fundamental to American society. You know, it's freedom of expression. People have a right to lift up their voices and make their peace. And none of us are immune to the voice of the public. And then he says they're getting tender about a church service now. So he is, of course, siding with the anti ICE protesters who are disrupting a church service, which, by the way, is a violation of federal law, the Federal Face Act. And his statement, they're getting tender about a church service. That's just how intolerant he is. Just a minute ago, he refused to condemn Louis Farrakhan's bigotry and anti Semitism. And instead he said, can we talk about immigration policy? Well, that wasn't the best idea either. Bernie Moreno did ask him about immigration policy, and it didn't go so well. Give a listen.

[Bernie Moreno]

Mexico and Canada, do you consider those to be safe countries or.

[Keith Ellison]

No, generally I do. But there are certainly you.

[Ted Cruz]

Do.

[Bernie Moreno]

You border Canada? Don't insult your neighbors to the north?

[Keith Ellison]

No, I love my neighbors to the north.

[Bernie Moreno]

So is it a generally safe country?

[Keith Ellison]

Generally, yes.

[Bernie Moreno]

So that somebody seeking asylum could certainly be safe in Canada and Mexico?

[Keith Ellison]

No. Now, so like if somebody, we do know that in Mexico, which is another country, I truly admire and think it's a wonderful country, but there have been cases of persecution.

[Bernie Moreno]

People who have legitimate freedom aren't safe in Mexico. Refugees cannot be safe in Mexico.

[Keith Ellison]

Some might not be. And I think, and what I'm saying.

[Bernie Moreno]

We shouldn't have a free trade agreement with them then.

[Keith Ellison]

I didn't say that.

[Ben Ferguson]

Senator. He didn't like answering those questions at all, did he? After he already said he wanted to bring up the topic?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, no, he did not. He did not like, like those questions at all. And I gotta say, his, his testimony was, was nothing but a bunch of crap. Now that actually happens to be highly relevant because our next story is really an amazing story that deals with Democrats and a bunch of crap.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Cruz]

Democrats in Washington D.C. and Virginia and Maryland are responsible for the largest sewage spill in American history. I want to read a headline to you. The failure in a section of a 72 inch sewer pipe in Maryland has released close to a billion, that's with a b a billion gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac river just inside the Beltway. It's now considered the largest spill of wastewater in US History. Maryland and Virginia. Democrats haven't said a word.

[Ben Ferguson]

Nothing. They don't want you to know about it. They don't want you to know. This is, this is like a massive oil spill except it's raw sewage in the Potomac River. It is going to have an impact on, on like everything there, including the fish and the crabs and the whole list goes on and on. And usually the left is like the scream and yell and show up for the wildlife and PETA and all of that when you have things happen that they don't like. But on this one they're like, let's just be quiet and act like it's not happening in a billion gallons is going in of sewage is going into the Potomac. Right. Like we just won't cover it. We'll talk about it.

[Ted Cruz]

Billion gallons of human waste of human excrement was dumped into the Potomac River. And Democrats, look, Democrats answer to everything is government. We want government in charge. We want government in charge. And the dirty little secret, whether it's Minnesota or whether It's Maryland and D.C. is Democrats are really, really bad at government.

[Ben Ferguson]

They like power, especially when they're in charge. Look at Mondani, New York in like two weeks. He's like, can't figure out how to get trash or melt ice or deal with the rat problem. Like that's what happened in a few weeks.

[Ted Cruz]

And by the way, DC for the last two weeks has been buried in snow. They can't figure out how to shovel the sidewalks. I mean, they're completely confused. I did an event with President Trump at the Treasury Department. I think it was two weeks ago, where to get into the Treasury Department. I literally had to scale basically this snow bank that was about 4ft high because there was no break in it. Apparently nobody in the Washington D.C. government can figure out where a sidewalk is.

[Ben Ferguson]

That's what people want on TikTok. You should have taken that video. That would have gone viral.

[Ted Cruz]

And my press secretary was in 4 inch spike high heels and she managed to scale that icy snowbank. I thought she was going to, going to break her neck. And the problem is she would have sued D.C. and D.C. is judgment proof. They have no money because they're run by Democrats. But, but listen to some more details on this sewage spill, because I'm curious, has this been on the six, six o' clock news on any of the networks?

[Ben Ferguson]

No. No one's talking about this. Yeah. I mean, until we decide we go through the rundown. I didn't know about this until we were planning the show for today. Had not heard about it at all.

[Ted Cruz]

The news is completely ignoring it. Here, here's the headline. Or here, here's a little bit of the details. DC Water CEO David Gattis resolved to do everything possible to reclaim the Potomac river after last month's disastrous sewer pipe break. He said in an open letter to the community Wednesday the failure in a section of 72 inch sewer pipe known as the Potomac Interceptor resulted in the release of hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into the river just inside the Beltway along the C and O Canal in Montgomery County, Maryland. It's considered the largest spill of wastewater in U.S. history. Quote, the Potomac river is a shared natural treasure, and in any event, and any event that threatens its health understandably causes concern, frustration and a sense of loss. Those feelings are not only valid, they are also shared by all of us at DC Water, Gadda said in the letter, not mentioning, that's why Democrats are dropping a billion gallons of crap into the water that you care about. The letter went on to explain that on January 19, crews noticed unusual activity in security cameras monitoring an odor control facility along the C and O Canal. I would imagine that would. That would cause some unusual activity.

[Ben Ferguson]

A billion gallons. If you can't smell that, you got a problem.

[Ted Cruz]

Upon inspection, the crews discovered the break. In the days since the discovery, D.C. water personnel and contractors work to, quote, contain the overthrow overflow, protect public safety and begin repairs. A bypass system was constructed to pump waste around the damaged area of the pipe and reinsert it into a section of the structure downstream. Complicating the repairs was the discovery last week of a large rock dam blocking a significant section of the pipe. About 30ft south of the break, DC Water is waiting for five large capacity pumps to arrive. From where do you think they're coming from?

[Ben Ferguson]

Where's Texas and Florida?

[Ted Cruz]

Texas and Florida.

[Ben Ferguson]

Okay.

[Ted Cruz]

To increase. We have two pumping capacity.

[Ben Ferguson]

They're going to save the liberals from their own, like, feces. Got it.

[Ted Cruz]

They're sending large pumps to pump.

[Ben Ferguson]

Pump liberal feces.

[Ted Cruz]

Billion gallons of crap.

[Keith Ellison]

Yeah.

[Ted Cruz]

That the Democrats have dumped into the water.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Cruz]

They then plan to build a bulkhead near the break to divert more water so workers can safely remove the boulders. Apparently no one had noticed the boulders until then. D.C. waters expects this to take an extra six weeks to accomplish.

[Ben Ferguson]

By the way, no way. In the private sector it would take six weeks. I just want to be very clear about that. Like in the private sector, it would not take you six weeks. And in the private sector they would work 24, 7 to get it fixed. Can I get an amen on that one?

[Ted Cruz]

They would, but, but, but fortunately the government is in charge, so it's cheap and efficient. Give a listen.

[Mint Mobile Sponsor Voice]

Yes.

[Ted Cruz]

Gaddis noted that DC Water will be dedicating resources not only to the repairs, but also to an environmental restoration program to mitigate the damage that' been done. The letter detailed a $625 million investment to rehabilitate the Potomac Interceptor as part of a 10 year, $10 billion capital improvement program. A $10 billion capital improvement program. Except for the minor detail of dumping a billion gallons of crap into the water. Gaddis pointed out, number is still going.

[Ben Ferguson]

Up, by the way, as we're speaking. I just want to be clear about that.

[Ted Cruz]

Gattis pointed out that several tunnels they built along the northeast boundary are currently building along the Potomac have resulted in billions of gallons of combined sewage being prevented from entering the Anacostia and Potomac rivers through the Utilities Clean Rivers Project. So what he's saying is, well, yeah, we've spilled a billion gallons, but we could have spilled billions more. I mean, look at all the crap we could have dumped in the river. And it's only the worst, the worst sewage leak in the history of the United States of America.

[Ben Ferguson]

And it's not leading on the nightly news. Let's just go be clear. If this happened in a conservative run city, it would be on the nightly news. PETA would be out there losing their minds. All the environmental groups would be out there losing their minds. It would be on the front page of the newspapers nationally if it was a conservative place where the largest sewer spill in history had happened. But because it's Democrats, no one knows what's going on. And probably unless you're listening to this.

[Ted Cruz]

Show and look the consistency of the incompetence of Democrat leaders of government, whether it's Keith Ellison not able to stop fraud and in fact being complicit in fraud because he's profiting from it, whether it's the D.C. mayor who can't shovel snow on the sidewalk, whether it is D.C. and Maryland who dump a billion gallons of sewage into the river and into the water, or whether it's Gavin Newsom who when you're facing the worst wildfires ever, has dumped the water into the Pacific Ocean so it's not available in the fire hydrants and everyone's houses burn. And by the way, the Marxist mayor of la, Karen Bass, who's in Africa during the fire and is so focused on DEI that she doesn't actually have the resources to fight the fire and California won't let them do fire mitigation strategies, all of this, there is a thread throughout it all and it is incompetence and people paying the price.

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ben Ferguson]

Senator, let's talk about a big piece of legislation that a lot of people are very focused on this country. A lot of voters voted on this issue specifically and it deals with the Save America act and what has happened this week. Let's give an update to that.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, the House of Representatives passed the Save America Act. Passed it with only one Democrat vote. Every Democrat but one voted against it. The Save America act Requires proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and it requires a photo ID to vote. It's a very simple, straightforward, common sense bill. It's now gone over to the Senate. I am leading the charge, pressing hard to get the Senate to take it up to use every procedural tool we have to force the Senate to vote on it and pass it. This week I put out a video explaining the issues concisely and the video went viral. It has over over a million views. Give a listen, give a watch. The House just passed the Save America Act. The Senate needs to take it up and pass it. I'm an original sponsor of the Save America Act. This is common sense legislation. This is legislation that requires proof that you're an American citizen in order to register to vote, and it requires a photo ID to go in and vote. Texas already requires a photo id. It's an easy common sense step to avoid voter fraud. The vast majority of Americans support photo id, and yet Senate Democrats are doing everything they can to block it because they want more voter fraud. How do we take it up and pass it in the Senate? What I am urging my colleagues is that we should use every procedural tool we have to defeat a Democrat filibuster. And in particular, we should nuke what's called the zombie filibuster. Under the Senate rules, everyone has a right to filibuster, to talk as long as they want. We should require them to talk as long as they can. Go back to an old style talking filibuster like Jimmy Stewart did, and Mr. Smith goes to Washington like I did in 2013, for 21 hours on the floor of the Senate. We should use the procedural rules to force the Democrats to do a talking filibuster and force them to keep talking and talking and talking. And when they can't talk anymore, then we should pass the Save America Act. That's what I'm urging my colleagues to do. It's what President Trump wants us to do, and it's what I hope and pray we accomplish.

[Ben Ferguson]

Senator, you said it, I think, perfectly there. And explain a little bit more about what it would mean to nuke the zombie filibuster so that we get more context for that, so people understand, in essence, what they would be advocating for.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, for most of the history of the Senate, the filibuster involved talking, involved standing up and talking and talking and talking. And in recent decades, the Senate has allowed simply whoever is filibustering to say we're going to filibuster. You cast a procedural vote and then you're done and it's treated as blocked. But we don't have to do that. We can force them that. There is what's called a two speech rule in the Senate that list limits every member of the Senate to two speeches on any legislative topic. And what I've been advocating, and Mike Lee has been advocating and Rick Scott has been advocating and Ron Johnson has been advocating, is that we force them to give the speeches, force them to talk, and when they're done talking, then you can vote on it. But the thing is, there's a price to that because they can fight back. And in particular, they can do what's called suggest the absence of a quorum. That means we have to be able to produce 50 senators on the floor. There are 53 of us. That means we need 50 bodies. It would entail very long hours. It would entail all nighters. It would entail 50 of us being willing to stand together. It's not clear right now that we have 50 Republicans willing to do that. I'm trying to make the case this is a fight worth fighting. But, but it, it would, would be a massive and extended. This could extend days or even weeks. But I think we should be fighting with everything we got. I think this issue is important enough, it merits fighting. And so I'm trying to make that case to my colleagues.

[Ben Ferguson]

All right, let me ask you a question. If you nuke it the way that you described it, is it just for this one issue and then things go back to the regular order of business, how it works normal now, or would that change it moving forward? Explain that.

[Ted Cruz]

So this is different from nuking the filibuster. So nuking the filibuster, that phrase involves breaking the Senate rules to change the Senate rules. So what happens? And we saw, for example, the Democrats nuked the filibuster for cabinet appointees and judicial appointees. And the way they did it, the Senate rules made it clear in the terms of the Senate rules that a nomination required 60 votes to go forward to proceed to it. However, what happened was Harry Reid, when he was majority leader, any ruling of the chair can be challenged on the floor of the Senate, and 51 senators can overrule the ruling of the, of the chair. And so Harry Reid inquired of the chair, what is the rule? And was told the rule is 60 senators. And then he said, I appeal the ruling of the chair. And the Democrats all voted party line. And when they did that, that becomes a binding precedent. So they broke the rules of the Senate to change the rules of the Senate. It is still in the Senate rules that a filibuster can be used to stop legislation. And I will say we have used that. Republicans have used that to stop terrible legislation from the Democrats. I think that's an important safety.

[Ben Ferguson]

So it's valuable is the point that we, like people, need to also understand it's very valuable.

[Ted Cruz]

If the Democrats had succeeded in nuking the filibuster when Joe Biden was president, when they had the House and Senate, they would have passed legislation, number one, striking down every photo ID law in the country and striking down every election integrity law in the country. Number two, making D.C. and Puerto Rico, both states and electing four new Democrat senators. Number three, making every illegal alien in America a U.S. citizen and giving them immediate voting rights which would have among other things turned Texas bright blue instantaneously. And number four, they would have packed the US Supreme Court and added four left wing justices immediately to it. I think that would have been, I don't wanna be hyperbolic but I think that would have been essentially the end of the republic. There's no way to turn that around if they do that. And so yeah, how do you put.

[Ben Ferguson]

That back in Pandora's like once that box is open, it's game over.

[Ted Cruz]

It's that agenda. Notice the Democrats top policy agenda is all to rig the game and make it impossible to ever defeat Democrats again. There's nothing they value more than staying in power. That's what they wanted to do. This is not nuking the filibuster in terms of changing the Senate rules. This is using the existing Senate rules and just enforcing them, making them stand up and speak. And one of the advantages of it is if they're standing up and speaking for hours and hours on end trying to stop, stop requiring proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, trying to stop photo ID. Look, both of those popular policies are incredibly popular. 70, 80% of Americans agree with photo ID for voting. More than 70% of African Americans agree with it. More than 70% of Hispanics agree with it. More than 70 percent of Democrat voters agree with it. And so this is a fight we should be having. And I'm urging my colleagues, let's stand and fight for voter integrity.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, great point there. Don't forget we do this show as a podcast Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Hit that subscriber auto download button wherever you get your podcast. Also follow us on social media, on Tick Tocks and a cruise there now at TechCruise. We're also both on Instagram and on X and Facebook as well. And you can watch the show on YouTube as I mentioned earlier. So make sure you do that if you've been listening on the radio. Thank you for joining us. You'll see us back here on this station next week and we'll see you on the podcast all week long.

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