1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,440 Speaker 1: On Nigel. That's Jason Hammer right over there with a 2 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:06,040 Speaker 1: very special guest on the hotline, Mark Vargas. 3 00:00:05,720 --> 00:00:10,719 Speaker 2: Editor in chief of the Illinois Review, Newsmax contributor and columnist. 4 00:00:11,039 --> 00:00:13,840 Speaker 2: And he also served as a civilian within the Office 5 00:00:13,880 --> 00:00:17,880 Speaker 2: of the Secretary of Defense on a special Iraq task force. 6 00:00:18,280 --> 00:00:21,400 Speaker 2: Joins us now, Mark, thank you so much for the time, 7 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:25,079 Speaker 2: and I'll get right into it here. So far, your 8 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 2: thoughts and what you're seeing between the United States along 9 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 2: with Israel and Iran. 10 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:36,519 Speaker 3: Well, President Trump has shown the type of testicular virility 11 00:00:36,560 --> 00:00:40,960 Speaker 3: that we've been lacking in previous presidential administrations. You know, 12 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:45,440 Speaker 3: these strikes on Iran or not random, nor has Democrats 13 00:00:45,479 --> 00:00:48,040 Speaker 3: like to claim are they reckless? In fact, you know, 14 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:52,600 Speaker 3: this is a response to regime, a dangerous, brutal, vicious 15 00:00:52,640 --> 00:00:58,160 Speaker 3: regime that tortures its own residents. This talk about equal 16 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 3: rights for women, it doesn't exist. They're also tortured if 17 00:01:01,280 --> 00:01:05,279 Speaker 3: they don't dress or act accordingly. You know, over forty 18 00:01:05,319 --> 00:01:09,759 Speaker 3: thousand protesters have been murdered by the Iranian regime over 19 00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:13,959 Speaker 3: the last couple of months. But you know, they refused 20 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:19,440 Speaker 3: to hault their nuclear weapons ambitions and continue enriching uranium 21 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:23,959 Speaker 3: despite all of the international pressure, and they've been leading 22 00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:27,440 Speaker 3: the world in the state sponsor of terrorism, funding Hamas 23 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:31,160 Speaker 3: and Hesbala and the Huthi's destabilizing the entire region. And 24 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:33,839 Speaker 3: you think about this, and Secretary Rubio said this yesterday. 25 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:36,520 Speaker 3: The reason why we have military bases and that part 26 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:39,399 Speaker 3: of the world is protect those countries and their allies 27 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:41,920 Speaker 3: from Iran. And I'll tell you this. You mentioned the 28 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:45,839 Speaker 3: rock I was in Bagdad fourteen times as a civilian 29 00:01:46,480 --> 00:01:50,400 Speaker 3: between seven and ten. The technical term is TDY temporary 30 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:53,200 Speaker 3: duty station. And I'll tell you what the rockets and 31 00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 3: mortars that were flying into the Green Zone, where US 32 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 3: service members were, where US Pavilian personnel and US contractors 33 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 3: were stationed. All of those rockets looking to kill Americans 34 00:02:09,320 --> 00:02:13,200 Speaker 3: were all made in Iran. And so they've been targeting 35 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,800 Speaker 3: Americans and our allies for a long time, for decades. 36 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,880 Speaker 3: And it's again they've oppressed their own people, especially women. 37 00:02:21,919 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 3: Where the Democrats talking about women's rights, women's rights, nice 38 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:26,680 Speaker 3: to talk about that in the United States, What about 39 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:30,400 Speaker 3: when women are being tortured in Iran right and murdered. 40 00:02:31,160 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 3: And so, you know, the beauty is now we've got 41 00:02:33,639 --> 00:02:36,560 Speaker 3: a coalition of support from Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Kuwai, 42 00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:40,160 Speaker 3: the UAE that are engaged in these security efforts in 43 00:02:40,160 --> 00:02:43,519 Speaker 3: this battle against Iran. And you know, I think President 44 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:45,800 Speaker 3: Trump is going to be victorious. And Merlin, you know, 45 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:49,080 Speaker 3: anticipating this to be a short campaign up to four weeks. 46 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:52,520 Speaker 3: By that time, their entire infrastructure and leadership team will 47 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:54,560 Speaker 3: be completely decimated. 48 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:56,440 Speaker 1: Thanks to the Abraham Accords, by the way that Donald 49 00:02:56,480 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: Trump and Jared Kushner put together in his previous administration. 50 00:02:59,320 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 3: That was. 51 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:04,040 Speaker 1: What you were mentioning there, Mark, What do you go 52 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:06,280 Speaker 1: back to the Iranian people for a minute, maybe some 53 00:03:06,320 --> 00:03:09,040 Speaker 1: people call the Persians. What do you make of the 54 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:12,119 Speaker 1: reaction that you saw online? I don't know, man, I've 55 00:03:12,160 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: saw teenagers as bombings were going on and buildings were 56 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:20,320 Speaker 1: getting hit in the background in Iran, celebrating in the streets. 57 00:03:20,440 --> 00:03:24,960 Speaker 1: There were celebrations here in the United States of the 58 00:03:25,040 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: removal of the Ayatola and about I don't know, forty 59 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:32,079 Speaker 1: nine other leaders there in Iran. What do you make 60 00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:34,680 Speaker 1: of the reaction of the people. They're in the citizens. 61 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:40,160 Speaker 3: Everybody's celebrating except the Democrats. I mean that's the way 62 00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:43,400 Speaker 3: if you look at it, you know, CNN couldn't help, 63 00:03:43,440 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 3: but their interviews of Americans of Iranian descent all praising 64 00:03:49,320 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 3: President Trump's leadership and saying, I don't understand my own party, 65 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 3: my own Democrat party, and their opposition to this. The 66 00:03:58,120 --> 00:04:03,080 Speaker 3: Iranian people have been brutally tortured and have lived in 67 00:04:03,120 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 3: an absolute hell for decades. Their economy has collapsed, their 68 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:14,080 Speaker 3: dollar has collapsed, businesses have shuddered, you know, and now 69 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:18,440 Speaker 3: they've got a real chance at democracy. They've got real 70 00:04:18,560 --> 00:04:22,800 Speaker 3: hope now about a better and more prosperous future. Women 71 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:25,680 Speaker 3: now are looking at a future where there are equal rights, 72 00:04:25,680 --> 00:04:29,279 Speaker 3: where the playing field is now leveled again. You know, 73 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:32,000 Speaker 3: the celebrations that we've seen all over the world, from 74 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:37,360 Speaker 3: Spain to the UK, to Australia to places like Shake 75 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:41,000 Speaker 3: downtown Chicago where there was all of these pro Palestinian, 76 00:04:41,160 --> 00:04:43,920 Speaker 3: anti Israel protests, well I could tell you I saw 77 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 3: it firsthand, hundreds and hundreds of protesters crowding the streets 78 00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:53,599 Speaker 3: celebrating President Trump's actions in Iran. It's certainly remarkable, and 79 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:56,360 Speaker 3: the only people not paying attention appear to be Democrat 80 00:04:56,480 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 3: legislators in Washington. 81 00:04:58,240 --> 00:05:02,120 Speaker 2: Mark Vargas is our guest here on Hammer in Nigel Show. Mark, 82 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:05,000 Speaker 2: go back to your time that you spent in Iraq. 83 00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:10,320 Speaker 2: I've seen so many Democrats and even some Republicans come 84 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:13,800 Speaker 2: out and say, well, this is the groundwork for another 85 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:17,600 Speaker 2: Iraq war. We're going to spend billions and billions of dollars. 86 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:21,000 Speaker 2: We're going to have so many casualties and loss of life. 87 00:05:21,080 --> 00:05:23,080 Speaker 2: This is going to be just like Iraq. It's a 88 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:25,599 Speaker 2: Raq two point oh. What's your response to that. 89 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 3: It's far from Iraq two point oh. I mean we 90 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:32,840 Speaker 3: deployed tens of thousands of soldiers in Iraqi. It was 91 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:36,480 Speaker 3: a ground war. This is an aero campaign you've got. 92 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:40,440 Speaker 3: You know, we've got the best weapons, capabilities and technology 93 00:05:40,440 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 3: that the world has ever seen. We're showcasing weapons have 94 00:05:43,480 --> 00:05:48,000 Speaker 3: never been seen before, gigantic ships, the largest battleships in 95 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 3: the history of the world. There's no need for boots 96 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:55,440 Speaker 3: on the ground. Now that may change, however, because of 97 00:05:55,480 --> 00:05:59,000 Speaker 3: the advancement in technology. We've got drones. But I can 98 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 3: tell you this is not a rock. I was on 99 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:05,880 Speaker 3: the ground. There there was no direction. I mean, WMD's, 100 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:10,719 Speaker 3: where are the WMDs the intelligence was manipulated. We know 101 00:06:10,839 --> 00:06:13,520 Speaker 3: that that's not the case here in Iran. We know 102 00:06:13,640 --> 00:06:16,039 Speaker 3: that they were building out their nuclear weapons capability. You 103 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:18,560 Speaker 3: brought up the Abrahams Accords earlier. Could you imagine having 104 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:22,039 Speaker 3: to be Steve Whitcoff and Jared Kushner, two great patriots, 105 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:25,760 Speaker 3: for hours on end listening to the Iranians lie to 106 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:30,360 Speaker 3: their teeth. But you know this is far from Iran. 107 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:33,640 Speaker 3: We've got a real leader, and President Trump, who's got 108 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:35,960 Speaker 3: a plan, a strategy, said it's only going to take 109 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:39,120 Speaker 3: about four weeks or so until we decimate their entire 110 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:42,520 Speaker 3: leadership team, and then and then the Iranians are able 111 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:45,120 Speaker 3: to take over their government and they will be free 112 00:06:45,440 --> 00:06:47,719 Speaker 3: for the first time in decades. It's going to be 113 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:50,720 Speaker 3: a remarkable, historic time in world history. 114 00:06:51,080 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: Mark Vargas, the editor in chief the Illinois Review and 115 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:58,400 Speaker 1: a newsbacks, contribute during columnists. He served as a civilian 116 00:06:58,440 --> 00:07:01,320 Speaker 1: within the Office of the Secretary of Fence on a 117 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,520 Speaker 1: special Iraq task force. Can I just before we let 118 00:07:04,520 --> 00:07:09,080 Speaker 1: you go, Mark asked what you did specifically for the 119 00:07:09,240 --> 00:07:12,920 Speaker 1: Secretary of Defense, and you were awarded the Civilian Service Medal. 120 00:07:12,960 --> 00:07:14,680 Speaker 1: Tell us about your time there. 121 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:17,160 Speaker 3: Yeah, the global War on terrorism metal. Well, there's a 122 00:07:17,200 --> 00:07:20,920 Speaker 3: direct correlation between high unemployment and violence. And what our 123 00:07:20,960 --> 00:07:23,760 Speaker 3: team did is you win wars not by bullets, but 124 00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:25,920 Speaker 3: by putting people back to work. How do you confront 125 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:29,480 Speaker 3: a war zone, a warfront into a storefront. And that's 126 00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:34,720 Speaker 3: what we did, working with military service members, civilians, contractors 127 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:39,160 Speaker 3: alike to help put a rock back together, put people 128 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:41,520 Speaker 3: back to work. And as a result of people going 129 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:45,280 Speaker 3: back to work and unemployment dropping like a rock, it 130 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:51,040 Speaker 3: became safe. Terrorists organizations, terrorist cells thrive on high unemployment, 131 00:07:51,400 --> 00:07:53,960 Speaker 3: and they thrive in communities with a large number of 132 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 3: teenagers because they're so easy to recruit. But if everybody's working, 133 00:07:59,280 --> 00:08:02,760 Speaker 3: it's the worst case. It's the nightmare scenario for insurgents. 134 00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:04,840 Speaker 3: And so that's we'll begin to see that and I 135 00:08:04,840 --> 00:08:08,360 Speaker 3: think Phase two in Iran helping Iran to stand up 136 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:14,000 Speaker 3: and convert that brutally brutal region from a warfront into 137 00:08:14,040 --> 00:08:17,280 Speaker 3: a storefront. And that's how we keep these terrorist cells 138 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:18,640 Speaker 3: out of those locations. 139 00:08:18,760 --> 00:08:21,920 Speaker 1: Do you see like because the Iron GC they have weapons, 140 00:08:22,000 --> 00:08:25,560 Speaker 1: they're not afraid to kill civilians. Do you see the 141 00:08:25,600 --> 00:08:29,320 Speaker 1: Iranian people rising up and taking back over their country 142 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:31,600 Speaker 1: in the long term, I do. 143 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:33,960 Speaker 3: There's strength in numbers, and now they know they've got 144 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:38,000 Speaker 3: the support from the Gulf States, they've got support from 145 00:08:38,200 --> 00:08:40,640 Speaker 3: you know, in the brilliance of what President Trump did 146 00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:44,400 Speaker 3: with the peace the Abraham Accords first and the Hamas 147 00:08:44,440 --> 00:08:47,839 Speaker 3: Peace Deal. There's now a coalition of support in that 148 00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:51,760 Speaker 3: region that hasn't existed before. And so the Iranian people 149 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:56,280 Speaker 3: know they've got some really big, powerful, wealthy countries that 150 00:08:56,360 --> 00:08:58,720 Speaker 3: are backing them up. They've got a safety net, they've 151 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:02,319 Speaker 3: got a big brother watching over them, and they are 152 00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:05,320 Speaker 3: now free to take on their government head to head, 153 00:09:05,640 --> 00:09:08,520 Speaker 3: knowing that big brother is always watching. It's going to 154 00:09:08,559 --> 00:09:12,160 Speaker 3: be remarkable to see this transpire. Even General David Petrece, 155 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:14,320 Speaker 3: who I had to pleasure pleasure of working with in Iraq, 156 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:17,080 Speaker 3: he went on Fox News yesterday and said, this is 157 00:09:17,080 --> 00:09:21,320 Speaker 3: a remarkable and historic moment, and kudos to President Trump. 158 00:09:21,840 --> 00:09:26,360 Speaker 2: Mark Vargas, fascinating insight, great great breakdown Forrest, and we'd 159 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:27,920 Speaker 2: love to have you back. Thank you so much. 160 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:29,120 Speaker 3: Thank you. 161 00:09:29,320 --> 00:09:30,640 Speaker 2: It's The Hammer and Nigel Show.