SCOTUS Allows Trump's Transgender Military Ban, plus USAID Corruption & NPR Extremism

Summary

Verdict with Ted Cruz: Episode Summary Release Date: May 7, 2025

In this compelling episode of "Verdict with Ted Cruz," hosted by Senator Ted Cruz alongside co-host Ben Ferguson, the duo delves into three major news stories impacting America: the Supreme Court’s decision on Trump’s transgender military ban, a shocking corruption case within USAID, and the ongoing efforts to defund NPR and PBS. The discussion is rich with insights, analysis, and notable quotes that shed light on these critical issues.

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1. Supreme Court Upholds Trump’s Transgender Military Ban

Timestamp: [02:40]

Senator Ted Cruz opens the episode with a significant political victory: the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Trump administration’s ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. This ruling marks a fulfillment of a key promise made by President Trump and addresses concerns about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the armed forces.

• Supreme Court Decision: The Court ruled 6-3 in favor of allowing the ban to take effect, reversing the lower court’s preliminary injunction. The dissenting justices included Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

• Impact on the Military: Cruz emphasizes the importance of maintaining a cohesive and combat-ready military, free from what he describes as “DEI woke crap.” He argues that the military’s primary role is to defend America, not to serve as a testing ground for social experiments.

Notable Quotes:

• Ted Cruz [02:59]: “This was a big victory for the Trump administration on a major issue. And it's good for America.”

• Co-host [07:36]: “That is a big victory for the military. It's a big victory for President Trump. It's a big victory for America.”

• Ted Cruz [09:05]: “It was not close. That is a big victory for the military. It's a big victory for President Trump. It's a big victory for America.”

Discussion Highlights:

• Policy Details: The ban targets individuals with gender dysphoria or those who have undergone gender transition medical procedures, aiming to restore what the administration views as the military's primary focus: national defense.

• Military Recruitment: Cruz links the policy reversal to an uptick in military enlistment, highlighting a January 2024 report of 6,531 new contracts, the highest January total since 2010. He contrasts this with the lower recruitment goals under previous administrations, attributing the increase to renewed interest from those committed to defending America without ideological constraints.

• Critique of Opposing Views: The hosts criticize the previous administration's approach, suggesting that initiatives promoting inclusivity have detracted from the military’s core mission. They argue that such policies have led to decreased enlistment and weakened the armed forces’ readiness.

---

2. Corruption Scandal within USAID

Timestamp: [15:06]

The episode transitions to an alarming corruption case uncovered by the Daily Wire, involving Matthew Zahui, the Chief Financial Officer of the African Development Foundation, a USAID-adjacent agency. This scandal highlights systemic issues of self-dealing, procurement violations, and illicit financial transactions.

Key Points:

• Allegations: Zahui is accused of steering nearly $800,000 in contracts to Ganyum Ltd., a company owned by his long-time friend Maena Gakure. These contracts were awarded without competitive bidding, raising suspicions of favoritism and corruption.

• Financial Transactions: Investigations revealed that Gakure had wired over $10,000 to Zahui’s personal bank accounts, coinciding with the awarding of contracts to her company. This reciprocal exchange suggests kickbacks and improper influence.

• Obstruction of Oversight: Zahui reportedly resisted audits by the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), refusing access to financial records and leading to a legal showdown. Despite a dramatic takeover of the agency by Doge officials, control remains contested due to ongoing litigation.

Notable Quotes:

• Ted Cruz [15:26]: “There is a level of corruption that is shocking… this looks like straight out corruption. This looks like straight out kickbacks, hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

• Co-host [19:50]: “By the face of it, this stinks. This looks like straight out corruption. This looks like straight out kickbacks, hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

• Ted Cruz [22:26]: “When you look at these recruitment numbers… we had real challenges there. The army reduced its recruitment goal because people did not want to serve under the Biden administration.”

Discussion Highlights:

• Investigative Reporting: The Daily Wire exposed the corruption, emphasizing the failure of oversight bodies to act on previous allegations for years. The hosts critique mainstream media for ignoring such stories, positioning their platform as a necessary alternative for uncovering the truth.

• Consequences and Accountability: Cruz and Ferguson express frustration over the lack of immediate accountability, questioning whether Zahui will face prosecution or merely be removed from his position. They stress the need for serious investigations and potential legal action to deter similar future misconduct.

• Broader Implications: The discussion extends beyond the individual case, suggesting that such corruption could be indicative of deeper systemic issues within government agencies. They highlight the importance of transparency and accountability in maintaining public trust and effective governance.

---

3. Efforts to Defund NPR and PBS

Timestamp: [29:39]

In the final segment, Cruz and Ferguson tackle the controversial move by the Trump administration to defund NPR and PBS, citing concerns over taxpayer money supporting what they perceive as biased and extremist content.

Key Points:

• Executive Order: President Trump signed an executive order to end tax-free subsidies for NPR and PBS, aiming to repurpose these funds away from what the administration labels as "partisan propaganda outlets."

• Criticism of Content: The hosts provide multiple examples of NPR’s reported biased and unorthodox content, ranging from articles on cannibalism and gender studies to segments on "genderqueer dinosaur enthusiasts," which they argue reflect a broader agenda to indoctrinate listeners with far-left ideologies.

Notable Quotes:

• Co-host [30:08]: “NPR approaches indoctrination through our tax dollars. And now accountability may be coming to NPR.”

• Ted Cruz [32:14]: “This is what they're writing. They are radicals, they are zealots. By the way, they're entitled to be idiots and radicals and zealots. But Ben, why should you pay for that? Why should I?”

• Co-host [33:06]: “NPR is clearly out of line with traditional American values, pushing a radical agenda funded by our hard-earned taxes.”

Discussion Highlights:

• Examples of NPR Content: Cruz and Ferguson cite specific NPR stories that they interpret as evidence of biased reporting, including controversial takes on the Declaration of Independence, gender pronouns, and the promotion of what they term "gender-affirming care" for children.

• Political Grift: They argue that NPR and PBS are misusing taxpayer funds to propagate a far-left agenda, undermining their role as objective public broadcasters. The hosts call for the reallocation of these funds to prevent further ideological indoctrination.

• Public Accountability: The discussion emphasizes the importance of holding public institutions accountable to taxpayers. Cruz advocates for the removal of funding to organizations that do not align with conservative values, positioning this move as a necessary step to preserve the integrity of public media.

---

Conclusion

Throughout the episode, Ted Cruz and Ben Ferguson provide a fervent critique of current policies and institutional practices they perceive as detrimental to American values and national security. From the Supreme Court’s decision on the transgender military ban to uncovering government corruption and challenging public media biases, the hosts aim to inform and energize listeners about issues crucial to conservative causes and the future of America.

Final Notable Quote:

• Ted Cruz [38:01]: “There may be accountability coming very, very soon when it comes to the issue of NPR. This is something that the President's talked about a lot.”

This episode of "Verdict with Ted Cruz" serves as a comprehensive analysis of pivotal events shaping the political landscape, delivered with passion and a call to action for its audience.

Transcript

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[Ted Cruz]

Welcome. It is VERDICT with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. And Senator, there's a big win we get to start off today with for the president of the United States of America on one of his promises, which was to get DEI out of our military and actually go back to what they're supposed to be doing, which is keeping us all safe.

[Unknown Host]

Well, that's exactly right. President Trump started his administration by putting in place a ban on transgender service members serving and immediately got sued. And the lawsuit you had judges that ordered the ban not to go in effect. It went to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court this week allowed the ban to go into effect. Six, three. The Supreme Court said, yes, this ban can go into effect. That was a big victory. On top of that, we've got an amazing story about a foreign aid official who refused to allow a Doge officer to enter his agency to examine his financial records. And actually, we've discovered a reason for this, which is that he steered illicit contracts to a friend who sent him secret payments. It is a level of corruption that is shocking. We're going to explain that to you as well. And finally, the president is going all in to defund npr. Npr, National Public Radio. It is long past time to defund npr. We're going to break down what the president is doing and just how rabid and political and biased NPR is. We're going to cover that as well.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, definitely. It's a really big story and it's one that could save taxpayers an awful lot of money. Hey, I want to tell you real quick about the international fellowship of Christians and Jews. And did you know, just like here in the US Israel has their own Independence Day. In case you missed it this year, Israel's Independence Day was a few days ago on May 1. But for the people of Israel, freedom is nothing more than a daily struggle just to survive. There's no real peace, only terror, no joy and just suffering. At the moment, the Israeli government recognizes the international fellowship of Christians and Jews for ongoing help to make sure that the elderly, the sick, the wounded, soldiers and impoverished families don't fall through the cracks. And that is where your help is needed. Your gift to the fellowship today will provide life saving aid, medicine, hearty meals, safety and comfort. I believe that when we bless the people of Israel, we unlock God's blessing in our lives as well. So show your support for Israel's independence by making a Life saving gift today. You can call them at 888-488-IFCJ. That's 888-488-4325. Or go online to ifcj.org that's ifcj.org all right, so let's start center with this big story. And look, the Supreme Court giving Trump a big win on the Pentagon transgender policy. This is something the president campaigned on. It is something the left tried to beat him up on. And clearly the American people back the president and the Supreme Court now giving him a win. A lot of people were worried maybe it wouldn't happen this way, but it did, thank goodness. And now Trump says, look, we get to go back to what we do well, and not all this DEI woke crap.

[Unknown Host]

Yeah, that's right. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court entered an order that upheld the Trump administration's order banning transgender military service members from serving. And the order that the Trump policy bars individuals with gender dysphoria or those who have undergone gender transition medical procedures from serving in the armed forces. And of course, the instant the policy was put in place, there was a lawsuit, a lawsuit that was brought challenging it. And U.S. district Judge Benjamin Settle granted a preliminary injunction blocking the Department of Defense's policy from taking effect nationally. And that was in March. And he ruled that the hardship the government said allowing transgender people to serve would inflict, quote, pales in comparison to the hardship imposed on those service members. This was in the Ninth Circuit, which is the most liberal federal court of appeals in the country, on the West Coast. And a panel of Judges in the 9th Circuit declined to stop the injunction, so left it in place. And the Trump administration appealed to the US Supreme Court. And the Supreme Court on Tuesday reversed that injunction. It was 6, 3. The three left wing justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented. But all the other justices said the policy could go into effect. And so this is a big, big victory for the Trump administration on a major issue. And it's good for America.

[Ted Cruz]

When you look at what this means for our military, it means that the idea that we were going to have before, which was the Biden dream and Obama's dream as well, that we're going to try all these social experiments. Pete Edge, Seth, has made it clear, the president's made it clear that is not the job of the military. We want to be ready. We want cohesion. We want there to be a service that works well together. This is not supposed to be a melting pot of experience, of experiments, especially when we need to be ready at wartime.

[Unknown Host]

So, Ben, more simply, the job of the military is to defeat our enemies. It's to defend America. It's to be the most badass fighting force on the face of the planet. And unfortunately, under radical Democrats, they decided that was not the job of the military. They wanted the military to be a transgender experimental pool where, I'm sorry, look, if you're suffering from gender dysphoria, if you're a man who thinks he's a chick, if you're a chick who thinks she's a dude, that. I'm sorry, that you are struggling with those issues. But at the end of the day, the job of the military is not to provide mental health counseling to you. The job of the military is to defend America and the Supreme Court. It was six. Three. It was not close. That is a big victory for the military. It's a big victory for President Trump. It's a big victory for America.

[Ted Cruz]

Let's just remind people of where our military was before Donald Trump was reelected. This was the US Air Force Academy hosting a transgender Pentagon official. So this is someone in the top level of our Pentagon for a symposium on, quote, inclusion. They did this. It was caught on tape. Here is what that transgendered individual in our military, high ranking, had to say at the time.

[Unknown Military Official]

All too often, I hear leaders talk about providing everyone with dignity and respect like it's an aspirational goal. That's not good enough. Dignity and respect is the bare minimum. It's the floor of where we can be. We must set our sights higher and focus on intentional inclusivity because there are still far too many people out there, not just LGBTQ individuals that feel marginalized, shut out, or discriminated against. So for all of you out there, I ask you to set out your symbols of pride, share your pronouns in your email, particularly if you're a person who doesn't think they need to initiate difficult conversations about racial and gender barriers and share a bit of your vulnerability in a way that draws others in. You all have the power to take intentionally inclusive actions to ensure the multiple perspectives that we know make us stronger as we devise winning war fighting strategies get heard.

[Unknown Host]

Let me ask you, if you're a Russian general, if you're a Chinese general, if you are a North Korean general, if you're a Venezuelan general, if you're an Iranian terrorist and you hear that, are you scared?

[Ted Cruz]

No, not at all.

[Unknown Host]

Like, what the hell are these people doing? Like, proclaim your pronoun no. Go, like, train on weapons and get really badass, in great shape and get really smart and learn to use weapons to defend America. That's the job of the military to be so ready to kill our enemies that frankly they don't need to because our enemies are scared out of their mind. And I gotta say, the fact that the Democrats not only lost sight of that, but didn't care about that, they viewed the most important thing to do in the military is let's all be transgender and have sex change surgeries. And by the way, Ben, there is a reason military enlistment plummeted. Because you know what? The big old strapping dudes in Texas and Mississippi and Alabama and across the country who said, I want to defend America, they looked at that and said, okay, that ain't for me. If that's what serving in our military is, no thank you. And it is striking. In the first three and a half months of the Trump administration with Pete Hegseth there, Pete is a friend of yours, A friend of mine. He is someone who is focused on defending the war fighters. We're seeing military enlistment numbers skyrocketing because once again, young men and women say, yes, dammit, I want to defend America. I just don't want to be on this social experiment for radical woke left wing ideologues.

[Ted Cruz]

You look at December of 2024. The army reported its most productive month in 15 years with an average of 346 enlistments per day. The momentum continued into January of this year with 6,531 new contracts signed, making it the highest January total since 2010. And you look at these gains, we had real challenges there. The army reduced its recruitment goal from 65,000 in 2023 to 55,000 2024 because they knew they weren't going to hit their target because people did not want to serve under the Biden administration. If this is. And again, I go back to the audio we just played of you a second ago. If this is the military, right, the US Air Force ac of me hosting a transgender Pentagon official for a symposium on inclusion, you say, nah, maybe I'm not want to serve in this level. You look at these recruitment numbers. Now, it goes back to what you mentioned earlier. The Trump administration's emphasized emphasize one simple thing. We want to have a military that's ready. We want to have a military that's ready to take on anybody that we need to in the world. We want them to be effective. We want them to be proud of being, you know, Americans and having a strong military and none of the DEI stuff. Is in here for us right now.

[Unknown Host]

Look, we want warriors prepared to defend America. And by the way, there are a ton of young men and women who want to be warriors prepared to defend America. And that's exactly. I'm a big believer, as Reagan put it in peace through strength, that if you're strong enough, if your military is strong enough, the bad guys don't want to screw with you. This is one of the things the left gets wrong. They think the way you avoid war is being weak, is engaging in appeasement, is giving your enemies whatever they want. And it's exactly backwards. I've joked more than once, there's a reason nobody goes and studies and gets a degree from the Neville Chamberlain School of Foreign Affairs. Appeasement doesn't work. Weakness doesn't work. And Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer and Kamala Harris and the Democrats, they are the party of appeasement and weakness and what they did to the military. They look at badass warriors and they're like, get out. No, no, no. We don't want anyone who could actually win a fight. We want people who could emote and say, I just want you to tell me your pronouns. I don't give a damn about your pronouns. I want you to defend America. And you know what? A whole lot of young men and women, they want to be in the military that's doing that.

[Ted Cruz]

Which brings us center to one of our other stories. It's a very interesting one, and it is one that I think a lot of people are going to be upset about. A foreign aid official who resisted doge, we now have learned, took secret payments after steering Africa money to a friend.

[Unknown Host]

Yes, this is a story Daily Wire broke. And actually, the reporter there, Luke Rosiak, is someone. He was the one who broke the story about Loudoun county and the incredible, the shocking abuses in Loudoun county where you had a sexual predator, a boy dressed as a girl in a skirt, who sexually assaulted a teenage girl. And the school district covered it up. And it was a great example where Daily Wire, which is not the New York Times, it's not the Washington Post, it's not abc, NBC, cbs, they drove the news. This story, we're going to cover this story. And it's one of the reasons, Ben, you and I do this podcast, because the corporate media is so corrupt, they don't cover stories that are counter to the narrative. So this Daily Wire story is a bombshell. And yet I'm going to wager you. Are you going to take a bet? 100 bucks, CNN won't cover this. You want the other side?

[Ted Cruz]

Actually, yeah, I'll take that. They're not going to cover. There's no way.

[Unknown Host]

No, no, I'm on that side.

[Ted Cruz]

I'm See, you always stack the deck against me on this. No, of course they're not going to cover this. No bet. No.

[Unknown Host]

Nobody will cover it. Nobody will cover. Okay, so that's what this podcast is for. So. So here's the Daily Wire story. Let me just read you the beginning of it. A foreign aid official who refused the Department of Government Efficiency access to his agency's financial records may have had a reason to keep auditors out. He steered illicit contracts to a friend who sent him secret payments. According to a law enforcement affidavit obtained by the Daily Wire, Matthew Zahui, chief financial officer of the African Development foundation, refused to grant Doge access to its books and told the White House that the agency would not acknowledge President Donald Trump's appointee as chairman of the board. After a dramatic showdown in March, Doge physically took over the building with U.S. marshals, but control of the agency is now subject to a lawsuit objecting to swooping in with Doge staff demanding access to sensitive information systems, an objection that reads differently in light of the criminal probe. For years, workers at the small USAID adjacent federal agency focused on Africa have told oversight bodies about allegations of self dealing, procurement violations and mysterious offshore bank accounts, many of them involving Zaoui. But little was done about it, several told the Daily Wire. One action that raised eyebrows was Zahui's insistence on directing both grants and contracts to a company in Kenya called Ganyum Ltd. According to spending records, it was awarded nearly $800,000 in contracts without competition. For example, a one year, $350,000 contract for, quote, travel, transport and relocation services was executed in March of 2020 when few people were traveling or holding conferences because of coronavirus. According to a search warrant application uncovered by The Daily Wire, USAID's inspector general established by August of 2024 that the company's owner had secretly wired money to Zahui's personal bank account at times to match up with the federal contracts. To date, the Department of Justice has not charged either man with a crime. I want to repeat that sentence again because it is stunning. According to a search warrant application uncovered by The Daily Wire, USAID's inspector general established by August 2024 before the election, that the company's owner had secretly wired money to Zahui's personal bank accounts at times that matched up with the federal contract. So this guy is sending federal taxpayer monies, hundreds of thousands of dollars to his buddy and his buddy is wiring money back to him. And when Doe shows up, he blocks them and says no, you can have no access to our records. It is, on the face of it, it certainly appears to be massive corruption, which is why the media won't cover it.

[Ted Cruz]

So the question everybody's that's listening now, senators asking themselves like, all right, well is there actually going to be accountability here? Will this individual be prosecuted or is this just somebody that's just going to get fired and we the road or maybe doesn't even get fired, right? They're just maybe move them around somewhere. When is there going to be hell to pay for this type of corruption?

[Unknown Host]

Look, if this was corruption, this person should be fired number one, but number two, prosecuted. We don't know that for sure, but the allegations on the face of it are deeply concerning if you're giving hundreds of thousands of dollars to a buddy of yours. And by the way, the person who got these contracts. I'll read a little more from the article. Ganium limited is owned by Maena Gakure, whom Zahui has known for decades. Both worked at the Department of Veterans affairs in San Diego and later moved to Fairfax, Virginia. Gakuri had been in charge of awarding contracts to the VA and then created his own company designed to get government construction contracts by taking advantage of minority preference programs. It was called Ghanium LLC and was based out of a house in Virginia. Gakuri similarly created a company based in Kenya called Gakuri Limited The African Development foundation is permitted by law to give grants only to African entities. In January 2024, Inspector General agents interviewed Zahui about the Ghanium contracts and he acknowledged having known Gakouri personally since 1999 and having been to his apartment. He quote, could not explain why the contract with Ghanaian was sole sourced instead of being competitively bid, the agents wrote. Zahui was named chief financial officer of the federal agency after he declared bankruptcy and had his house foreclosed on. He acknowledged to investigators that the travel contract was executed after Covid had already shut down travel. He told them the contract was actually used for IT services. But since Ganium had no expertise in subcontracted to a different company, a Department of treasury contracting official told the agents that was not allowed. Zahui continued to give more contracts to Ghanium without competition, which he justified by saying he was, quote, lazy. By the way, that's his defense. I'm lazy.

[Ted Cruz]

I'm lazy, right? I'm just lazy. It works.

[Unknown Host]

I want to find a new vendor. Zahui stated he did not receive any direct or indirect benefits from Gakoury, but agents found text messages showing at least eight instances of wire transfers or electronic payments from Gakuri to Zahui's bank of America totaling over $10,000. Those payments coincide with US ADFS awarding of sole source contracts to Ganium. Look, I gotta say, I don't know all the evidence, but on the face of it, this stinks. This looks like straight out corruption. This looks like straight out kickbacks, hundreds of thousands of dollars. I got to say, by the way, the guy is cheap. You're giving hundreds of thousands of dollars in contracts and you're only getting 10 grand back. Like, it's one thing to be corrupt, but corrupt for like, next to nothing is astonishing. My hope we have a serious investigation. And if these allegations are true, this individual should be fired, should be prosecuted, and should go to jail.

[Ted Cruz]

So how concerned should we all be that this is in fact, not just an outlier, but that there's all sorts of corruption like this happening all within our government for years on end, and we're just now starting to find some of it. Because if this is like, how the government did it and no one was paying attention, I mean, part of this, like, how did this guy get away with this for so long?

[Unknown Host]

Well, look, I think he got away with it because the culture was, nobody's going to look. This is expected. It's an amazing thing. Democrats have normalized that when they take control of government, that what they're going to do is pay off their buddies. They're going to give millions of dollars, billions of dollars. You look at the epa, which had a contract with an NGO that Stacey Abrams was one of the leaders of. Stacey Abrams was the failed Democrat candidate for governor in Georgia. $2 billion. You and I, on this podcast, we interviewed Lee Zeldin, the Permian Basin. He talked about how the Biden administration, EPA officials, after Trump won in the couple of months between the election and swearing in, they wanted to get rid of as much money as possible. And it was the Biden administration officials that referred to it as throwing gold bars out the windows. $20 billion, $2 billion to this nonprofit that Stacey Abrams was one of the leaders of. And. And on the face of it, it looks like pure political grift. What did the nonprofit, what was it charged with doing? Spending $2 billion buying appliances, buying stoves and refrigerators and ovens for Georgians. Now, the last I checked, spending $2 billion to buy votes to get people to vote for Democrats. That ain't the job of government. And yet there's a culture in the Democrat Party. When they have control, they reward their friends and they punish their enemies. By the way, to be clear, Republicans don't do that and we shouldn't do that. And yet the Democrats, I think they believed nobody would ever look. It would always be in darkness. There would be no accountability. I'm hopeful and I'm thankful that under Trump there's finally going to be accountability.

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You know that just like here in the U S, Israel has their own Independence Day? In case you missed it this year, Israel's Independence Day was a few days ago on May 1. But for the people of Israel, freedom is nothing more than a daily struggle to survive. There's no real peace, only tear, no joy, just suffering. The Israeli government relies on the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews for ongoing help to make sure the elderly, the sick, the wounded, soldiers and impoverished families don't fall through the cracks. That's why your gift to the Fellowship will provide such important life saving aid, medicine, hearty meals, safety and comfort. I believe that when you bless the people of Israel, we unlock God's blessing in our lives as well. So to show your support for Israel's independence, you can make a life saving gift today. You can call 888-488-IFCJ. That's 888-488-4325. You can also go online to ifcj.org.

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[Travis Holloway]

I'm Rodney Williams.

[Rodney Williams]

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

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And that's exactly why we created the wealthbreak. 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.

[Travis Holloway]

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.

[Rodney Williams]

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.

[Travis Holloway]

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

[Rodney Williams]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app.

[Ted Cruz]

There may be accountability coming very, very soon when it comes to the issue of npr. This is something that the President's talked about a lot. Taxpayers don't like it. It's been pretty obvious that at npr, in pbs, there's a lot of our tax dollars are going to activists and to those in the far left that want to indoctrinate people through our tax dollars. And now accountability may be coming to npr.

[Unknown Host]

Well, that's right. So the President signed an executive order ending the tax fair subsidy of NPR and pbs, both of which received millions from taxpayers. And they're just partisan propaganda outlets. The order reads as follows. By the authority vested me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States. It is hereby ordered NPR and pbs, they will be shut down from cash. And let me read some facts on npr. So NPR ran a story entitled, quote, cannibalism, it's perfectly Natural, in which the author, like, by the way, how am I saying this? How is this real? The author describes eating another's humans placenta. So let me read this excerpt for this is from an NPR story. In the book, you describe getting invited over for dinner by one of your sources to eat her placenta. How was that? Was it good? Yeah, it was really the prep that made it taste good. Granted, the husband was a chef, so he knew how to prepare it Ossobuko style, used a really nice wine I had bought. It smelled great, it didn't taste bad. I wouldn't do it again. I don't have any regrets I did this. So I just want to go back to the title, NPR Cannibalism, It's Perfectly Natural. All right, in 2021, another story, NPR said the Declaration of Independence was a document with, quote, flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies. Here's what they wrote. The Declaration is a document with flaws and deeply ingrained hypocrisies. It also laid the foundation for our collective aspirations, our hope for what America could be. So in that spirit, here again is the Declaration of Independence as read by the NPR staff. So that was 2021, where they just crapped on the Declaration of Independence and then they read it. You know what they did in 2022?

[Ted Cruz]

What's that?

[Unknown Host]

They said, we're not going to read the Declaration of Independence anymore. So it was a long tradition. And in 2022, they tweeted the this July 4th, we break with tradition. Instead of reading the Declaration of Independence, we examine what equality means and is meant in this document. Important segment about our past and future that. So the Declaration of Independence is apparently no longer allowed on NPR because apparently Hating America is NPR's mission.

[Ted Cruz]

Yet again, your tax dollar is hard at work here. So there's going to be pushback, right? There's going to be fighting here. Ultimately, what are the chances that this sticks and that we actually say, hey, you're not getting the tax dollars for this radical agenda that you're pressing and and trying to indoctrinate on so many people.

[Unknown Host]

So look, I am hopeful. I want it to happen. I'm fighting for it happen. Let me give you another example. NPR issued an editor's note warning that the Declaration of Independence is, quote, a document that contains offensive language and Here, this was in 2022. Editor's note. On July 8, 2022, the story quotes the US Declaration of Independence, a document that contains offensive language about Native Americans, including a racial slur. That was what they were saying. The declaration they find offensive in the NPR Also in 2019, they apologized for calling illegal immigrants illegal and they posted, quote, sorry, that was a mistake. NPR's policy is not to characterize people as illegal. By the way, in federal law, an illegal alien is referred to as an illegal alien. That is in the United States code. But NPR says we slip up from time to time, but we'll keep working hard to get it right. They also here was another story. NPR sounded the alarm about young men who abstained from masturbating to pornography. And here was the headline of the story At NPR in 2024, masturbation abstinence is popular online. Doctors and therapists are worried, like, what the hell? Here was another story. NPR featured a Valentine's Day story around, quote, queer animals in which it suggested the make believe clownfish in Finding Nemo would have been better off as a female and that, quote, banana slugs are hermaphrodites and that, quote, some deer are non binary. The title of the story was Manny Loves Cayenne plus five Facts about Queer Animals for Valentine's Day. Okay, these people are freaks. What Queer animals for Valentine's Day. This is what they're writing. By the way, a year ago, this was 2024, Valentine's Day, they also devoted a panel to what it means to be woke and to quote, white privilege. And the title was Stay Woke. This is, this is. All right, I'll give you another story. They routinely promote chemical and surgical mutilation of children, calling it, quote, gender affirming care without mentioning the irreversible damage caused by these procedures. And finally, in 2021, a PBS program aired a, quote, children's program. So this is what they're talking about to kids featuring a drag queen lame named Little Miss Hot Mess. And and here's drag queen Little Miss Hot Mess sings the hips on the drag queen go swish, swish, squish to a virtual child audience on an episode of let's Learn. This is who they Are. By the way, I okay, one more that I that there are two more. There's so many, they keep piling up. NPR educated the nation on, quote, the whole community of genderqueer dinosaur enthusiasts and trans ceratops. So here's a quote from the story. Many people who are queer, whether they are trans or some other form of genderqueer or whatever it is. We love dinosaurs. Along with being a dinosaur expert, Riley is herself transgender. According to Riley, there is a whole community of genderqueer dinosaur enthusiasts online. We had no idea, so we checked it out. Sure enough, they're there. We found dozens of paleo artists online that identify as queer type dinosaur into the LGBT subreddit. Hundreds of results with pride dinos, rainbow dinos, dino moms, dino dads, and lots of puns like Ali Soros. And then, all right, here, here are the last couple. Then PBS White House correspondent Yamichi Alcindor characterized President Trump's patriotic 2020 Mount Rushmore speech as a love letter to, quote, white resentment that promoted the myth of America. And then, all right, NPR suggested that art. Here's something nutty. Doorway sizes are based on, quote, latent fat phobia. They also said they assigned reporters to investigate how the thumbs up emoji is racist. They have a story. Which skin color emoji should you use? The answer can be more complex than you think. These people are idiots. They are radicals. They're zealots. Now, by the way, they're entitled to be idiots and radicals and zealots. But Ben, why should you pay for that? Why should I?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, that's exactly the point that the president's making as well, and why there's a good chance we may actually get a big victory on this one. Don't forget, we do this show Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Hit that subscriber auto download button on those in between days. Grab my podcast, the Ben Ferguson Podcast. I'll keep you updated on the latest breaking news there as well. And the center and I will see you back here on Friday Morning.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm Rodney Williams.

[Rodney Williams]

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

[Travis Holloway]

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

[Unknown Advertiser]

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

[Rodney Williams]

And we're not stopping at success stories.

[Unknown Advertiser]

What happens when it doesn't go right? How do you cope with it?

[Travis Holloway]

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

[Rodney Williams]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app.

[Unknown Advertiser]

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[Unknown Advertiser]

This podcast is supported by Talkspace.

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Talkspace works with most major insurers, including Tricare. Match with a licensed therapist [e-mail] military go to talkspace.com military to get started today. That's talkspace.com military you're listening to an iHeart podcast.