1 00:00:01,800 --> 00:00:02,880 Speaker 1: Also media. 2 00:00:05,200 --> 00:00:08,319 Speaker 2: All right, welcome to it could happen here. And what 3 00:00:08,360 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 2: it is today is me James and Mia Wong. Hi mere, hello, Hi. 4 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:16,239 Speaker 2: What we're here to talk to you about today is 5 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:20,080 Speaker 2: something else, which, despite my positive tone of voice, is 6 00:00:20,079 --> 00:00:20,960 Speaker 2: sad and depressing. 7 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:21,760 Speaker 3: Yeah. 8 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:24,320 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's just a lot of that, and like we 9 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:27,600 Speaker 2: don't want you to be too sad. It doesn't bear 10 00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 2: moping around, you know, like we've got time to get 11 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:32,320 Speaker 2: organized and that's what we should be doing. 12 00:00:32,400 --> 00:00:34,600 Speaker 3: And also like just get. 13 00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:36,280 Speaker 2: Out and go outside and see your friends and do 14 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 2: things that bring you joy. Like we'll work out how 15 00:00:38,680 --> 00:00:41,519 Speaker 2: to get through it. So you know, like, yeah, I 16 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:44,080 Speaker 2: think it's really easy. And I found myself doing this 17 00:00:44,080 --> 00:00:46,040 Speaker 2: stay at home and be sad, but don't Like I 18 00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:47,880 Speaker 2: went out with some friends for a hike on Friday, 19 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:49,960 Speaker 2: and I feel so much better. So I would advise 20 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:51,840 Speaker 2: you to do that. Maybe you're listening on your hike. 21 00:00:52,159 --> 00:00:54,560 Speaker 2: That would be fun. Actually, I think if I was hiking, 22 00:00:54,560 --> 00:00:56,280 Speaker 2: I would I would skip this one and listen to 23 00:00:56,320 --> 00:00:56,800 Speaker 2: the birds. 24 00:00:57,040 --> 00:01:01,120 Speaker 3: And you know, well, I mean. 25 00:01:01,120 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 4: You know, if you want the ideological framing event, the 26 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:06,919 Speaker 4: ideological framing of it is that morale is a terade 27 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 4: a struggle, yes, and it is very easy to lose 28 00:01:11,720 --> 00:01:13,800 Speaker 4: if in morale is absolutely terrible. 29 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:16,440 Speaker 3: So yeah, we got four years. 30 00:01:16,440 --> 00:01:20,199 Speaker 2: We can't be being moping around like we will get 31 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:20,480 Speaker 2: through it. 32 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:22,160 Speaker 3: We will find ways to make it better. 33 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 2: And part of the way we do that yet is 34 00:01:24,880 --> 00:01:26,959 Speaker 2: keeping amoral up and doing things that bring us joy. 35 00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:30,520 Speaker 2: Thing that brings me joy is talking about roch Java, 36 00:01:30,720 --> 00:01:34,840 Speaker 2: the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, and we're 37 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:36,399 Speaker 2: going to talk about that today. So we're talking about 38 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:40,120 Speaker 2: Donald Trump's foreign policy in his second term. So his 39 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:43,920 Speaker 2: previous foreign policy was a pretty mixed bag, and he 40 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:46,559 Speaker 2: bombed the shift out of the Islamic State, right cool 41 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:49,720 Speaker 2: based he also bombed the shit out of thousands of 42 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:51,200 Speaker 2: Syrian and Iraqi civilians. 43 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:52,600 Speaker 3: Not so cool. 44 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:56,640 Speaker 2: Also, we should note, not so different from every other 45 00:01:56,640 --> 00:02:00,880 Speaker 2: president this century. Bombing civilians has been pretty much the 46 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:03,160 Speaker 2: the through line of American foreign policy in that part 47 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:05,840 Speaker 2: of the world for a very long time. In particular 48 00:02:05,920 --> 00:02:08,000 Speaker 2: in the Trump administration I'm want to talk about, there 49 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:11,720 Speaker 2: was a single US strike cell called Talent Anvil. I 50 00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:14,840 Speaker 2: think they were mainly like CAG guys from what I read, 51 00:02:15,040 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 2: so Delta Force guys Army Special Forces guys who were 52 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:23,800 Speaker 2: making these decisions. They hired office building in Syria, and 53 00:02:23,800 --> 00:02:27,400 Speaker 2: these guys were constantly looking at drone feeds and various 54 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:30,520 Speaker 2: other information and then calling in strikes on various targets. Right, 55 00:02:30,880 --> 00:02:32,680 Speaker 2: I'm not sure if they had the CAG guys in 56 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:36,280 Speaker 2: the watching computers. I'm not entirely sure, and like, well 57 00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:39,960 Speaker 2: they didn't have someone else who knows, But this strike, 58 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:42,680 Speaker 2: Celle dropped more than one hundred and twenty thousand bombs 59 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:47,800 Speaker 2: and Jesus Christ, yeah, yeah, the amount of ordinance we 60 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:51,600 Speaker 2: dropped on Syria is insane. Its circumvented procedures are in 61 00:02:51,600 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 2: place to prevent Philian death. In order to do so, 62 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:57,920 Speaker 2: they had embedded lawyers who were supposed to approve the strikes. 63 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:00,280 Speaker 2: But these lawyers tried to raise the alarm that some 64 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:03,960 Speaker 2: of these strikes were reckless. They weren't hitting things that 65 00:03:04,040 --> 00:03:07,600 Speaker 2: were actual targets, and they sort of ran into an 66 00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 2: organizational brick wall. At some point, pilots even refused to 67 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 2: engage targets because they didn't think of Jesus, Yeah, which 68 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 2: is it's not usual. 69 00:03:16,919 --> 00:03:20,080 Speaker 4: Yeah, like that'd be pretty fucked for a fighter pilot 70 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 4: to be like, no, I don't think I've ever heard 71 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:24,200 Speaker 4: of that before. 72 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,240 Speaker 2: No, So I found this out in uh well, I 73 00:03:27,280 --> 00:03:30,480 Speaker 2: think it was the New York Times. New York Times, 74 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:32,680 Speaker 2: a pretty good investigation which we linked in our sources. 75 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 2: And yeah, it's like a throwaway line, but I would 76 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:38,440 Speaker 2: love to hear more about that. It could have been 77 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:40,800 Speaker 2: a drone pilot too, which is slightly different. Gig, I 78 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:44,280 Speaker 2: guess you know, if you're sitting north of Las Vegas, 79 00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:46,560 Speaker 2: they're flying a drone kind of kind of a different scene. 80 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:50,280 Speaker 2: So in the battle to defeat the Islamic State, thousands 81 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:53,800 Speaker 2: of innutescent people lost their lives as we reached the 82 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:56,640 Speaker 2: end of that battle. Donald Trump, who's president at a time, 83 00:03:56,960 --> 00:04:00,400 Speaker 2: personally called urda one who's the president of circuit right. 84 00:04:00,440 --> 00:04:03,160 Speaker 2: In late twenty eighteen, Trump asked the third one, if 85 00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:04,920 Speaker 2: we withdraw our soldiers, can you. 86 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:06,760 Speaker 3: Clean up isis? That's a quote? 87 00:04:06,880 --> 00:04:10,760 Speaker 2: According to an unnamed Turkish official interviewed by Reuters, at 88 00:04:10,880 --> 00:04:15,080 Speaker 2: one replied that Turkish forces were capable of a mission. Quote, 89 00:04:15,160 --> 00:04:18,200 Speaker 2: then you do it, Trump told him and us as 90 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:20,800 Speaker 2: National Security Advisor John Bolton, who was also on the 91 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:24,159 Speaker 2: call to quote start work for withdrawal of US troops 92 00:04:24,200 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 2: from Syria. What this resulted in was US troops pulling 93 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 2: out from some locations in Syria, right, local people throw 94 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:34,840 Speaker 2: tomatoes at them. Even worse than the tomatoes were the 95 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:39,000 Speaker 2: fact that it gave NATO's second largest army, which is Turkey, 96 00:04:39,080 --> 00:04:43,240 Speaker 2: of course, free reign to attack the Autonomous Administration North 97 00:04:43,279 --> 00:04:45,400 Speaker 2: in Essyria, which it did in twenty eighteen it did 98 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:49,040 Speaker 2: again at twenty nineteen. Those two operations to claim considerable 99 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:53,719 Speaker 2: ground in Syria cost countless civilian lives. Continue to perpetrate 100 00:04:54,200 --> 00:04:57,280 Speaker 2: human rights abuses to rehabilitate people from ISIS and other 101 00:04:57,360 --> 00:05:01,400 Speaker 2: Jahadi groups as Turkish Free Syrian Army, and they kill 102 00:05:01,480 --> 00:05:04,599 Speaker 2: some people who were people I care about, and I 103 00:05:04,680 --> 00:05:09,040 Speaker 2: continue to care about the cause of Rajava or Autonomous 104 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:12,200 Speaker 2: Administration in North New Syria very deeply, and and it 105 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 2: really fucking sucks to think about the potential of the 106 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:17,800 Speaker 2: US abandoning those people again, not that Biden has done 107 00:05:17,880 --> 00:05:22,520 Speaker 2: very much. Yeah, now, I think this anecdote, right of 108 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:25,000 Speaker 2: what Trump does with one tells us a lot about 109 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:28,120 Speaker 2: his approach to foreign policy, which is he really sees 110 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:31,080 Speaker 2: it as very transactional, which is no different from everything 111 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:33,719 Speaker 2: else he does. I guess like he's a very transactional person, 112 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:37,240 Speaker 2: and he seems really only to be concerned about what 113 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:39,640 Speaker 2: he can get out of it. So like in this case, 114 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:42,279 Speaker 2: I guess he wants to say he bought US troops 115 00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:45,120 Speaker 2: home from Syria, like he's anti war. This is one 116 00:05:45,120 --> 00:05:49,280 Speaker 2: of his things, he says now, right, but he's prepared 117 00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 2: to also in the case of the bombing, Right, he's 118 00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:56,080 Speaker 2: not so concerned with civilian casualties as long as he 119 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 2: can claim that he was the one who defeated ISIS. Right, 120 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:01,600 Speaker 2: abomber couldn't do it. He did it, and he did 121 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:04,440 Speaker 2: it on a pile of civilian remains, and also using 122 00:06:05,240 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 2: chiefly the Syrian Democratic. 123 00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:10,159 Speaker 3: Forces, right, not US forces. There were US forces on 124 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:10,560 Speaker 3: the ground. 125 00:06:10,560 --> 00:06:13,960 Speaker 2: They were engaged in combat, but in minuscule numbers compared 126 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:17,440 Speaker 2: to SDF, who lost fifteen thousand of their children in 127 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:21,000 Speaker 2: a battle against ISIS. I think Trump would be very 128 00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:24,599 Speaker 2: willing to admit that he's transactional, right, That's kind of 129 00:06:24,600 --> 00:06:27,880 Speaker 2: his brand, is like America first and fuck everyone else. 130 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:32,040 Speaker 2: So I think he'll probably be similar in this term. Right, 131 00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:35,160 Speaker 2: he will act unilaterally, He'll pivot whenever the fuck, he 132 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 2: feels like it. He will continue with his affection for 133 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:41,760 Speaker 2: strong men and dictators all around the world. But a 134 00:06:41,800 --> 00:06:44,320 Speaker 2: lot of stuff has changed since Trump's first term, and 135 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:46,599 Speaker 2: I think it's illustrative for us to think about how 136 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:48,880 Speaker 2: he will engage with things that have changed. 137 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:50,360 Speaker 3: So what has changed. 138 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:53,640 Speaker 2: There's a much larger conflict between Russia and Ukraine now, 139 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:57,560 Speaker 2: and that conflict has been seen massive and overt support 140 00:06:57,720 --> 00:06:59,719 Speaker 2: both from the USA and for the rest of NATO. 141 00:07:00,240 --> 00:07:03,799 Speaker 2: There's been a revolution in Mema. I suppose he doesn't 142 00:07:03,839 --> 00:07:04,200 Speaker 2: know that. 143 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:08,599 Speaker 4: Yeah, I really doubt maybe some of the like weird 144 00:07:08,680 --> 00:07:13,360 Speaker 4: pro coup meaning from the right guard to him, Yeah, perhaps. 145 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:15,320 Speaker 2: Or like, I mean, the parallels between the CO and 146 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:19,720 Speaker 2: Memma and January sixth are pretty obvious, right, Okay, Like 147 00:07:19,840 --> 00:07:21,720 Speaker 2: give January sixth to the landing. It lived a lot 148 00:07:21,760 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 2: like that, except that it was a military party not 149 00:07:24,120 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 2: just a political party. The Islamic State doesn't exist as 150 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:30,280 Speaker 2: a territory identity, but it very much does exist as 151 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:33,560 Speaker 2: a terrorist group, which continues to and has actually increased 152 00:07:33,600 --> 00:07:38,320 Speaker 2: its activity this month, with sleeper cells, continued suicide bombings, 153 00:07:38,360 --> 00:07:43,080 Speaker 2: continued attacks, and the SDF continue with their anti Issis 154 00:07:43,120 --> 00:07:48,160 Speaker 2: operations without US support, those would be harder. And so 155 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 2: we have to ask, I guess on what Trump's going 156 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:53,280 Speaker 2: to do with these things? And I want to look 157 00:07:53,520 --> 00:07:57,040 Speaker 2: at a few different issues and pick apart what Trump 158 00:07:57,160 --> 00:07:59,480 Speaker 2: said on his campaign website, pick apart what he said 159 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:02,240 Speaker 2: on the campaign trail, and then look at who he's 160 00:08:02,280 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 2: appointed so far. We're recording this on Tuesday the twelfth, 161 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:08,800 Speaker 2: So if someone gets appointed before you hear this, that's 162 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:11,920 Speaker 2: why we've missed them out. So I guess to start 163 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:14,840 Speaker 2: with Trump's foreign policy, we should talk about his number 164 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:18,000 Speaker 2: one like peer competitor, which is China in his eyes, right, 165 00:08:18,560 --> 00:08:21,760 Speaker 2: not a big China appreciator. So I looked at his 166 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:24,920 Speaker 2: campaign website for this, which really has some just incredible 167 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:25,960 Speaker 2: use of capital letters. 168 00:08:26,520 --> 00:08:29,440 Speaker 3: He just fucking does what he wants. It's wild to see. 169 00:08:29,800 --> 00:08:32,080 Speaker 2: So chiefly, one of the things that he's been on 170 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:35,120 Speaker 2: about for a while now is tariffs on Chinese make goods. Right, 171 00:08:35,160 --> 00:08:37,480 Speaker 2: as means the foreign policy, Yeah, we just we talked 172 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:40,200 Speaker 2: about this last episode. Yeah, you will have heard about 173 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:44,719 Speaker 2: tariffs at this point. Yeah, So, as we've previously mentioned, right, 174 00:08:44,920 --> 00:08:47,120 Speaker 2: he's talked about the tariffs. These tariffsould cost a lot 175 00:08:47,120 --> 00:08:50,040 Speaker 2: of money, and they would increase the cost of you 176 00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:50,959 Speaker 2: going shopping. 177 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:53,959 Speaker 4: Yeah, and they would probably destroy vast whilst of the 178 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:58,240 Speaker 4: global economy, yes, both the Chinese and the American economy, Yes, yes, 179 00:08:58,520 --> 00:08:59,600 Speaker 4: sort of implode. 180 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:02,600 Speaker 2: And then all these countries in Africa and you know, 181 00:09:02,679 --> 00:09:04,960 Speaker 2: me and La for instance, exports a lot of these 182 00:09:05,200 --> 00:09:07,439 Speaker 2: rare earth metals to China, right, and a lot of 183 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:11,120 Speaker 2: countries in Africa do too. Aside from the economic sort 184 00:09:11,160 --> 00:09:14,800 Speaker 2: of aggression, it stands on, Taiwan is weird, which is 185 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:17,280 Speaker 2: normally where we would like expect to see the most 186 00:09:17,320 --> 00:09:22,360 Speaker 2: like physical friction between US and China. Right. Mike Pompeo 187 00:09:22,720 --> 00:09:25,560 Speaker 2: has pressed for the USA to formally recognize Taiwan before, 188 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:28,640 Speaker 2: which would be a step, but you know that there'd 189 00:09:28,679 --> 00:09:31,160 Speaker 2: be a pretty big swing. Trump, on the other hand, 190 00:09:31,679 --> 00:09:34,560 Speaker 2: seems to want Taiwan to pay the United States for 191 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:36,680 Speaker 2: being into ally right now. 192 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:38,760 Speaker 4: Yeah, then this is like one of his big sort 193 00:09:38,760 --> 00:09:43,000 Speaker 4: of foreign policy principles is like try to get people 194 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:46,480 Speaker 4: to pay him for stuff, because that's sort of the 195 00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:49,120 Speaker 4: only way his brain works. But Rember, this was NATO 196 00:09:49,160 --> 00:09:51,079 Speaker 4: a lot, whereas this whole line on NATO that like 197 00:09:51,160 --> 00:09:54,040 Speaker 4: NATO should be like paying us because people like you're 198 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:55,840 Speaker 4: not spaying enough on defense, so we're like paying all 199 00:09:55,880 --> 00:09:58,079 Speaker 4: the defense budgets. This is like one of his kind. 200 00:09:57,880 --> 00:09:59,960 Speaker 3: Of Yeah, it's been his like hobbyhole. 201 00:10:00,360 --> 00:10:03,040 Speaker 4: Yeah, like floats around at his brain sort of colliding 202 00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:04,160 Speaker 4: with its walls. 203 00:10:04,400 --> 00:10:07,280 Speaker 3: Yeah, empty space. Yeah. Yeah, like a big bung ball. 204 00:10:07,640 --> 00:10:10,920 Speaker 2: Ironically, like in the time that Trump's been out of 205 00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:14,559 Speaker 2: of is Russian aggression has led native members to spend 206 00:10:14,559 --> 00:10:17,680 Speaker 2: more on defense, yeah, rather than Donald Trump lambasting them. 207 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:20,439 Speaker 2: So one of his big things is that Taiwan should 208 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:23,840 Speaker 2: pay the United States. But it would seem very unlikely 209 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:26,679 Speaker 2: that he if he's not going to abandon Taiwan, I 210 00:10:26,760 --> 00:10:29,240 Speaker 2: think because it gives him a place to grandstand on China. 211 00:10:29,880 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 4: Yeah, and also, like you know, I mean, one of 212 00:10:31,559 --> 00:10:33,320 Speaker 4: the things about Trump is that one of the best 213 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:36,120 Speaker 4: ways to sort of influence him is just get a 214 00:10:36,160 --> 00:10:40,679 Speaker 4: world leader in a room with him alone. Yes, but unfortunately, 215 00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:44,199 Speaker 4: well fortunately for us, Trump does not speak Chines easy, 216 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:47,559 Speaker 4: and she doesn't seem to like him very much. 217 00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:50,920 Speaker 2: So yeah, yes, we won't be here. We won't be 218 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:54,760 Speaker 2: joining the PRC anytime soon. China, along with Russia right 219 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:57,840 Speaker 2: to countries we've spoken about. Most of both make big 220 00:10:57,840 --> 00:11:01,480 Speaker 2: plays in Africa. Russia has re branded what was Wagner 221 00:11:01,520 --> 00:11:05,560 Speaker 2: it's Africa Core, and they're sort of providing support to 222 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 2: regimes that lack en afflegitimacy to exist otherwise. Yeah, they 223 00:11:10,600 --> 00:11:15,119 Speaker 2: are like classic mercenary shit, like it's your state illegitimate 224 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:16,920 Speaker 2: and does it lack the capacity to do the violence 225 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:21,239 Speaker 2: it needs to maintain itself. Don't worry hereris herism psychopaths 226 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:21,920 Speaker 2: from Russia. 227 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:23,800 Speaker 4: Yeah, And there's just a lot of people, I think 228 00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:27,680 Speaker 4: because like a lot of these sort of governments will 229 00:11:27,920 --> 00:11:31,280 Speaker 4: kind of like do their like like put a red 230 00:11:31,320 --> 00:11:33,880 Speaker 4: beret on and start doing their anti imperialist cosplay. And 231 00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 4: then you like read the like the fine print of 232 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:40,160 Speaker 4: the contracts they've signed with like Africa Core, a thing 233 00:11:40,240 --> 00:11:43,040 Speaker 4: that like you expect to be spelled like Africa and 234 00:11:43,080 --> 00:11:48,520 Speaker 4: Core with a K like ko rps like and it's like, oh, okay, 235 00:11:48,600 --> 00:11:51,160 Speaker 4: so like they've signed away a bunch of the country's 236 00:11:51,160 --> 00:11:53,559 Speaker 4: mineral rights, Like they've signed away a bunch of these 237 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:56,880 Speaker 4: specific minds to these mercenary groups. It's like, oh okay, 238 00:11:56,920 --> 00:11:59,960 Speaker 4: so this is like also this is also just imperial 239 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:02,160 Speaker 4: it's just new management. 240 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:04,800 Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly, Yeah, it's just different imperialism. And then China 241 00:12:04,920 --> 00:12:08,080 Speaker 2: has big plays in Africa too, right, Like I've personally 242 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:10,679 Speaker 2: seen a lot of Chinese own minds in Africa, Chinese 243 00:12:10,720 --> 00:12:14,680 Speaker 2: roads in Africa. China does also like offer infrastructure. Chinese 244 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:16,600 Speaker 2: has a kind of quid pro quo. It doesn't come 245 00:12:16,600 --> 00:12:19,520 Speaker 2: in like with the violence like Russia does. It comes 246 00:12:19,520 --> 00:12:21,280 Speaker 2: in with that will build your hospital if we can 247 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:25,320 Speaker 2: have all your natural resources. US policy in Africa is 248 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:29,240 Speaker 2: pretty much to stop those two countries getting too much influence. 249 00:12:29,800 --> 00:12:33,880 Speaker 2: The Biden administration is as many liberals are right, there's 250 00:12:33,920 --> 00:12:35,720 Speaker 2: actually not that much difference between what Biden and Trump 251 00:12:35,760 --> 00:12:38,160 Speaker 2: will do in Africa. The difference is Biden is smart 252 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:40,880 Speaker 2: enough not to say it. Trump's ability to do anything 253 00:12:40,960 --> 00:12:42,720 Speaker 2: useful in Africa is going to be masked by his 254 00:12:42,800 --> 00:12:46,800 Speaker 2: massive racism, Like when he says things like shithole countries. 255 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:49,520 Speaker 2: It becomes a lot harder for the US to do 256 00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:53,160 Speaker 2: anything in Africa that isn't tinged by that, right, Like, 257 00:12:53,280 --> 00:12:57,680 Speaker 2: it doesn't make that sort of imperialist ambition more obvious. 258 00:12:58,160 --> 00:13:01,160 Speaker 2: US politicians rarely talk about they were any campaign or 259 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 2: what they were going to do in Africa. And so 260 00:13:04,679 --> 00:13:06,440 Speaker 2: pretty much the only things we're going to hear from 261 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:08,960 Speaker 2: Donald Trump, but Africa, I would imagine, are going to 262 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:12,080 Speaker 2: be when he lets his racism out. Yeah, that will 263 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:15,079 Speaker 2: have results for like US credibility. Also, my guess is 264 00:13:15,120 --> 00:13:17,960 Speaker 2: we see intensifications of sort of US drone strikes, particularly 265 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:21,000 Speaker 2: in the Horn, and we see like like all of 266 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:23,720 Speaker 2: the stuff that Biden is doing, but worse and killing 267 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:27,120 Speaker 2: even more people somehow. Yeah, I would imagine that we 268 00:13:27,160 --> 00:13:29,960 Speaker 2: will see these more aggressive throne strikes, especially against like 269 00:13:30,040 --> 00:13:34,120 Speaker 2: Islamist groups in Africa. The US has special Forces deployments 270 00:13:34,120 --> 00:13:36,720 Speaker 2: in a few places in Africa, which will probably maintain 271 00:13:36,840 --> 00:13:39,400 Speaker 2: I would imagine, like, I don't think those are like 272 00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:42,920 Speaker 2: things that Trump would He wouldn't see any benefit from 273 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:44,720 Speaker 2: stopping them, I guess, and it. 274 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:46,000 Speaker 3: May not even know about them. 275 00:13:46,240 --> 00:13:50,240 Speaker 2: So yeah, I think we will see little change in Africa, 276 00:13:50,320 --> 00:13:51,160 Speaker 2: would be my guess. 277 00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:53,160 Speaker 4: Yeah, my oldly worse. 278 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:56,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I talk of mildly worse. 279 00:13:56,760 --> 00:13:56,960 Speaker 4: Mire. 280 00:13:57,240 --> 00:13:59,480 Speaker 2: The thing that makes these podcasts mildly worse is our 281 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:02,280 Speaker 2: obligation to pivot to advertisements, which we must do now. 282 00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:06,520 Speaker 3: That was a great one, holding out on you for 283 00:14:06,679 --> 00:14:08,960 Speaker 3: three years. You have a good ad pivots. 284 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:12,120 Speaker 2: Yeah, well, there it is. That's what we've got for you. 285 00:14:22,360 --> 00:14:25,240 Speaker 2: All Right, we're back. So I want to talk about Europe. 286 00:14:25,880 --> 00:14:27,880 Speaker 2: As you've heard in the Tariff's episode, right, he wants 287 00:14:27,880 --> 00:14:30,280 Speaker 2: to put tariffs on European goods. European Union is going 288 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:33,760 Speaker 2: to slap tariffs right back on American goods. That doesn't 289 00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:37,200 Speaker 2: really help anyone. It will make exporting from the USA 290 00:14:37,360 --> 00:14:40,240 Speaker 2: very very hard. One thing that the USA might stop 291 00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:44,520 Speaker 2: exporting is is weapons to Ukraine. It's a little unclear. 292 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:48,040 Speaker 2: Trump he called Olenski the greatest salesman on earth, but 293 00:14:48,080 --> 00:14:49,920 Speaker 2: it was also claimed that he can personally end the 294 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:52,720 Speaker 2: war in twenty four hours. I don't think that means 295 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:54,480 Speaker 2: that he will be deploying himself to the down Bass 296 00:14:54,560 --> 00:14:58,160 Speaker 2: like a like a like a gun dam. But he 297 00:14:58,400 --> 00:15:01,600 Speaker 2: claims he can do this with his negotiating skills. This 298 00:15:02,160 --> 00:15:05,200 Speaker 2: seems unlikely. To put it mildly, I don't think that 299 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:06,640 Speaker 2: it would be possible to end this war in twenty 300 00:15:06,640 --> 00:15:10,520 Speaker 2: four hours if both sides declared peace right now, getting 301 00:15:10,520 --> 00:15:12,960 Speaker 2: communications to their frontline troops would be a challenge in 302 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:17,160 Speaker 2: twenty four hours in some places. Yeah, So the way 303 00:15:17,200 --> 00:15:20,880 Speaker 2: I interpret this and I may be wrong here is 304 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:24,160 Speaker 2: that he is likely to leverage the support that the 305 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:27,600 Speaker 2: United States gives to Ukraine in order to force Zelensky 306 00:15:27,720 --> 00:15:32,120 Speaker 2: into an unfavorable settlement, which would achieve his goal of 307 00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:35,200 Speaker 2: a being able to say he stopped giving American money 308 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:37,240 Speaker 2: to Ukraine, which has been a big talking point for 309 00:15:37,280 --> 00:15:40,480 Speaker 2: the like every time you start with the western North 310 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:43,600 Speaker 2: Carolina right up to the hurricane or these Republicans sort 311 00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:45,400 Speaker 2: of talking points were like, oh, well, all the money 312 00:15:45,440 --> 00:15:49,520 Speaker 2: is in Ukraine, so we can't have fucking MREs for 313 00:15:49,560 --> 00:15:52,960 Speaker 2: people in western North Carolina, Like FEMA has no money 314 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:56,960 Speaker 2: because we sent Ukraine some memphors. This is very silly, right, 315 00:15:57,400 --> 00:15:59,440 Speaker 2: It's not a zero sum game. It's not really a 316 00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:02,760 Speaker 2: reasonable critique, but it's one that Trump has kind of 317 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:06,080 Speaker 2: managed to stick in the culture was his base seems 318 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:09,080 Speaker 2: to see the money going to Ukraine is directly coming 319 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:12,040 Speaker 2: from things that would otherwise be going to them, which 320 00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:14,600 Speaker 2: he would benefit from it if he could bring this 321 00:16:14,640 --> 00:16:17,920 Speaker 2: war to a close, right j d Vance has mentioned 322 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:21,560 Speaker 2: a demilitarized zone in between Russia. 323 00:16:21,200 --> 00:16:22,640 Speaker 3: And Ukraine, which. 324 00:16:23,920 --> 00:16:29,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, he's gonna minister the DMZ, Like yeah, like did 325 00:16:29,480 --> 00:16:31,560 Speaker 2: we really want this? Are we going to have troops 326 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:33,600 Speaker 2: out like we do in South Korea for you know 327 00:16:33,760 --> 00:16:36,880 Speaker 2: when when was a career around the nineteen fifty seventy years, right, 328 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:39,560 Speaker 2: And I don't think that's really really what they want. 329 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:42,400 Speaker 3: The think what DMC is. No one actually likes them. No, 330 00:16:42,520 --> 00:16:44,760 Speaker 3: this sucks, It sucks. Yeah, they're awful. 331 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 2: It's just a bit of land that you can yeat 332 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:50,320 Speaker 2: weapons over each other, like especially in like modern warfare, 333 00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:53,480 Speaker 2: that they're not that effective at stopping to be bull fighting. Right, 334 00:16:53,680 --> 00:16:55,800 Speaker 2: But very funny that North's career will be two for 335 00:16:55,880 --> 00:16:58,120 Speaker 2: two on DMZs in wars it has been involved with 336 00:17:00,600 --> 00:17:05,280 Speaker 2: huge up for them. He essentially seems to be advocating 337 00:17:05,320 --> 00:17:08,959 Speaker 2: for exactly the peace settlement that Putin has proposed and 338 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:12,560 Speaker 2: that has been rejected multiple times. Several sources I've seen 339 00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:15,760 Speaker 2: suggest that Trump has spoken to Putin quite a few 340 00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:19,879 Speaker 2: times since leaving office. This His plan for Ukraine certainly 341 00:17:19,880 --> 00:17:22,720 Speaker 2: seems closer to the Russian one than the Ukrainian one, 342 00:17:22,840 --> 00:17:26,560 Speaker 2: the Ukrainian one being stop invading us and go home, 343 00:17:27,320 --> 00:17:29,399 Speaker 2: and the Russian one being, well, we'll just keep all 344 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:31,520 Speaker 2: the stuff we've taken so far and then add a 345 00:17:31,520 --> 00:17:34,840 Speaker 2: buffer zone in between. And Ukraine can keep whatever's left 346 00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:35,399 Speaker 2: of its country. 347 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:35,680 Speaker 1: Right. 348 00:17:36,280 --> 00:17:40,720 Speaker 2: What's interesting to me is what other NATO members will 349 00:17:40,760 --> 00:17:43,760 Speaker 2: do in the event of the US reducing its AID. 350 00:17:44,440 --> 00:17:46,520 Speaker 2: I would suspect that they will try and step up 351 00:17:46,880 --> 00:17:50,919 Speaker 2: and meet that gap. It might also result in the 352 00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:53,240 Speaker 2: US put certain restrictions on its AID, right, how it 353 00:17:53,280 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 2: can be used, where it can be used crucially, Right, 354 00:17:55,520 --> 00:17:59,960 Speaker 2: they don't like Ukraine using things to attack in Russia proper. 355 00:18:00,680 --> 00:18:02,840 Speaker 2: They don't mind am using them to attack Russian forces, 356 00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:06,240 Speaker 2: but not within Russia. I did see a picture yesterday 357 00:18:06,280 --> 00:18:11,000 Speaker 2: of a I think it was three guys from Rogue 358 00:18:11,040 --> 00:18:12,879 Speaker 2: I think it's called, which is a unit within the 359 00:18:12,920 --> 00:18:15,840 Speaker 2: International Legion who had been killed within Russia. And they 360 00:18:15,840 --> 00:18:18,600 Speaker 2: had a lot of like eighty fours and things like that, right, 361 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:20,560 Speaker 2: like US or anti tank weapons. 362 00:18:20,600 --> 00:18:22,080 Speaker 3: But the United States. 363 00:18:21,840 --> 00:18:24,800 Speaker 2: Doesn't want Ukraine using the long range artillery and stuff 364 00:18:24,840 --> 00:18:29,320 Speaker 2: it's given it to yeat projectiles at Moscow. I can 365 00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:32,119 Speaker 2: see a situation where if the US draws down some 366 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:37,399 Speaker 2: bit AID, European allies of Ukraine might not play some 367 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:40,000 Speaker 2: of those restrictions on their AID, and that could lead 368 00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:44,119 Speaker 2: to some interesting complications for Russia. Right If Ukraine is 369 00:18:44,160 --> 00:18:45,920 Speaker 2: more effective, Like if they get more aid from Europe 370 00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:47,880 Speaker 2: and Europe doesn't place restrictions on the aid, they could 371 00:18:47,880 --> 00:18:51,159 Speaker 2: potentially strike Russia within Russia, which is not going to 372 00:18:51,200 --> 00:18:52,919 Speaker 2: be good for Putin and it's probably not going to 373 00:18:52,960 --> 00:18:55,920 Speaker 2: be good for like bringing I mean, unless they can 374 00:18:56,200 --> 00:18:58,800 Speaker 2: deal some really crippling blows, it might not be good 375 00:18:58,800 --> 00:18:59,920 Speaker 2: for bringing the war to an end. 376 00:19:00,040 --> 00:19:00,920 Speaker 3: But maybe it will. 377 00:19:00,960 --> 00:19:03,320 Speaker 2: Maybe they've they've done some pretty effective things with not 378 00:19:03,359 --> 00:19:04,600 Speaker 2: a huge amount so far. 379 00:19:04,960 --> 00:19:06,960 Speaker 4: I don't know, maybe get lucky on a strike on 380 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:08,119 Speaker 4: the Kremlin or something. 381 00:19:08,440 --> 00:19:11,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, yeah, just the one like I mean, yeah, 382 00:19:11,840 --> 00:19:13,960 Speaker 2: I'm sure that would be their strategy if they wouldn't 383 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:18,040 Speaker 2: have they didn't have restrictions, would be to just keep 384 00:19:18,359 --> 00:19:20,000 Speaker 2: pounding places they think Putin might be. 385 00:19:20,240 --> 00:19:22,879 Speaker 4: This is the history of Russian warfare. Dumber things that 386 00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:27,000 Speaker 4: have happened and have lost Russia wars. So yeah, yeah, 387 00:19:27,119 --> 00:19:30,040 Speaker 4: a lot dumber than that. So yeah, I don't think 388 00:19:30,080 --> 00:19:32,479 Speaker 4: that Ukraine will be screwed if the US pulls out. 389 00:19:32,520 --> 00:19:35,240 Speaker 4: I do think it will be a lot harder for them. Yeah, 390 00:19:35,320 --> 00:19:37,360 Speaker 4: And you know, if that's something, there are a lot 391 00:19:37,359 --> 00:19:40,119 Speaker 4: of US sits still fighting in Ukraine. Would be pretty 392 00:19:40,160 --> 00:19:43,680 Speaker 4: devastating to abandon Ukraine. And I think also just from 393 00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:48,880 Speaker 4: the sort of stopping Russian aggression standpoint, it's much better 394 00:19:48,920 --> 00:19:51,720 Speaker 4: stop it here than somewhere else. But yeah, we will see. 395 00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:54,960 Speaker 2: I guess European countries are really ramping up their defense, 396 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:58,160 Speaker 2: but they right now the US is like the heart 397 00:19:58,160 --> 00:20:01,440 Speaker 2: of the military industrial complex, and and Europe really can't 398 00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:04,680 Speaker 2: keep up with the US production. Of course, the US 399 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:06,560 Speaker 2: being the heart of the military industrial complex does mean 400 00:20:06,560 --> 00:20:08,760 Speaker 2: that a lot of Trump donors will probably be able 401 00:20:08,800 --> 00:20:11,639 Speaker 2: to leave ridge of their donations to his campaign, and 402 00:20:11,720 --> 00:20:13,880 Speaker 2: so we might not see as much of a drawdown 403 00:20:13,880 --> 00:20:18,040 Speaker 2: of Bay to Ukraine as we're worrying about here. May 404 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:20,520 Speaker 2: talking of launching things from a long distance at a 405 00:20:20,600 --> 00:20:23,320 Speaker 2: very small target, I would like to launch these advertisements 406 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:27,800 Speaker 2: from iheartman the advertising department directly to your ears. 407 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:40,760 Speaker 3: Heger. It's all so bad. 408 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:44,680 Speaker 4: As we were recording this, it's come out that the 409 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:47,760 Speaker 4: new Secretary of Defense is going to be Pete Hegseth, 410 00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:50,000 Speaker 4: who's like a Fox News guy who doesn't believe germs 411 00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:50,400 Speaker 4: are real. 412 00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:53,639 Speaker 2: Yeah, this guy who has not washed his hands in 413 00:20:53,680 --> 00:20:57,239 Speaker 2: ten years. Great, I mean, at least he might die 414 00:20:57,240 --> 00:21:00,240 Speaker 2: of COVID. Yeah, I was going to say he made it. Wow. 415 00:21:00,720 --> 00:21:03,400 Speaker 3: Sorry that that that hair is really something. Oh that's 416 00:21:03,480 --> 00:21:06,480 Speaker 3: not good at all. Yeah. 417 00:21:06,520 --> 00:21:12,400 Speaker 4: Wait what when June fourteenth, twenty fifteen, hag Seith accidentally 418 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:13,920 Speaker 4: hit a Westward juror. 419 00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:19,240 Speaker 3: With an act over a live cube Like, dad, I 420 00:21:19,280 --> 00:21:20,400 Speaker 3: think it was incredible. 421 00:21:22,440 --> 00:21:28,760 Speaker 2: Let's have that length pulled up. All right, this video 422 00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:31,520 Speaker 2: is unavailable. All right, No, we're finding this video that 423 00:21:31,600 --> 00:21:33,280 Speaker 2: nothing disappears from the internet. 424 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:35,000 Speaker 3: All right, here we go. 425 00:21:37,880 --> 00:21:57,520 Speaker 5: No mis fucking dog my god, this is just clown shit, Like. 426 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:54,480 Speaker 3: I need to write. 427 00:21:54,480 --> 00:21:57,520 Speaker 2: Listen, if you were hit in the dick and balls 428 00:21:57,560 --> 00:22:03,200 Speaker 2: by an axe thrown by Future Defense Secretary, please contact 429 00:22:03,400 --> 00:22:13,120 Speaker 2: cool Zone Media Atiheartmedia dot com. I hope the VA 430 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:14,840 Speaker 2: is paying for this man's benefits. 431 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:19,560 Speaker 4: It's the stupidest thing I've ever seen someone do, like 432 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:21,879 Speaker 4: in the course of reporting for this show. 433 00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:27,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, it's amazing, like very funny. Again, please contact us. 434 00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:33,280 Speaker 2: I hope you're okay. Service related injury. Yeah, so that's 435 00:22:33,560 --> 00:22:38,680 Speaker 2: that's peak. Hegseth right. Future sec Deef, also former reservist 436 00:22:39,040 --> 00:22:42,880 Speaker 2: who deployed to Guantanamo, was an induantry platoon leader at Guantanamo. 437 00:22:43,359 --> 00:22:46,920 Speaker 2: I think he also deployed to Afghanistan in twenty twelve, 438 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:49,560 Speaker 2: and previously he'd also deployed to Iraq. He'd a voluntary 439 00:22:49,640 --> 00:22:52,280 Speaker 2: two voluntary deployments or was in two locations in IRAQII. 440 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:56,080 Speaker 2: So he's hit the greatest hits of US foreign policy 441 00:22:56,080 --> 00:22:58,359 Speaker 2: in the last twenty years. I guess he's made his 442 00:22:58,440 --> 00:22:59,960 Speaker 2: career as a Fox News pandit. 443 00:23:00,359 --> 00:23:02,920 Speaker 3: Yeah, he's just like a right wing ghoul. Yeah. 444 00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:06,359 Speaker 2: I mean in the last Trump administration when he was punditing, 445 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:11,600 Speaker 2: he advised Trump had been considering pardoning several war criminals 446 00:23:11,840 --> 00:23:15,080 Speaker 2: and did pardon several war criminals, right, and Hexceth was 447 00:23:15,119 --> 00:23:17,040 Speaker 2: one of the people who A he talked about on 448 00:23:17,080 --> 00:23:18,960 Speaker 2: Fox News, Well he was advising Trump to do it, 449 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:21,920 Speaker 2: and b he was advising Trump to do its. Christ Yeah, 450 00:23:22,320 --> 00:23:24,600 Speaker 2: you can read up about the Trump pardons of war criminals. 451 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:27,199 Speaker 4: It's bad enough that a guy was getting turned in 452 00:23:27,320 --> 00:23:29,960 Speaker 4: by his own Special Forces unit. Like do you know 453 00:23:30,040 --> 00:23:32,800 Speaker 4: how bad, how like fucking hideous? The shit you have 454 00:23:32,880 --> 00:23:36,760 Speaker 4: to do is for like for like your own guys 455 00:23:36,800 --> 00:23:39,359 Speaker 4: in a special Forces unit to be like, holy shit, 456 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:42,680 Speaker 4: we have to stop this guy. Yeah, Like it's awful. 457 00:23:43,000 --> 00:23:45,399 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean if you should look up Clinton Rance's 458 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:50,119 Speaker 2: stuff as well, Like, yeah, LOI NC if you're interested 459 00:23:50,160 --> 00:23:52,920 Speaker 2: in this stuff. He was convicted I think of two 460 00:23:53,080 --> 00:23:56,240 Speaker 2: murder accounts for ordering his soldiers to fire and unarmed people. 461 00:23:56,800 --> 00:23:59,000 Speaker 2: And then yeah, the other one was a Green Beret 462 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:02,639 Speaker 2: named Matt Altsin who was also charged in the murder 463 00:24:02,680 --> 00:24:05,960 Speaker 2: of someone in Afghanistan, someone who had been making I DS. 464 00:24:06,560 --> 00:24:09,240 Speaker 2: So like, I think we can see where this guy 465 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:11,159 Speaker 2: is going. We've just found this out as well as 466 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:14,040 Speaker 2: we're recording for context. Like that's quite troubling. 467 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:14,480 Speaker 5: Yea. 468 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:18,080 Speaker 2: His other two foreign policy appointments that I've seen so 469 00:24:18,240 --> 00:24:20,240 Speaker 2: far have been less so. 470 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:22,199 Speaker 3: Look, i'd say less so. 471 00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:25,120 Speaker 2: Marco Rubio is a turd, right, Like, like, I think 472 00:24:25,119 --> 00:24:26,639 Speaker 2: we all know that we I share very little with 473 00:24:26,680 --> 00:24:27,640 Speaker 2: Marco Rubio. 474 00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:30,720 Speaker 3: On Turkey and Rajaba. He is good. 475 00:24:30,800 --> 00:24:34,000 Speaker 2: He is not a fan of Verta one. He's in 476 00:24:34,040 --> 00:24:38,080 Speaker 2: contact with googlanists. He kind of puts Turkey in the 477 00:24:38,119 --> 00:24:42,240 Speaker 2: in the bricks box is a good yeah, which which 478 00:24:42,320 --> 00:24:46,359 Speaker 2: leads us to the very funny idea of Marco Rubio 479 00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:48,000 Speaker 2: ordering a drone strike on airc Adams. 480 00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:50,280 Speaker 4: I mean, well, here's the thing though Good's dead now, 481 00:24:50,640 --> 00:24:53,480 Speaker 4: so so like there's like a secession crisis of like 482 00:24:53,480 --> 00:25:00,200 Speaker 4: who's gonna. 483 00:24:57,600 --> 00:24:59,760 Speaker 3: The goodinist anti Pope Marky Rubio. 484 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:03,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, that could be very good for Rajava at least 485 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:07,920 Speaker 2: right the big concern among those of us who carry 486 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:11,879 Speaker 2: deeply about Rajava has been that Trump will abandon them 487 00:25:11,880 --> 00:25:12,760 Speaker 2: as he did in the past. 488 00:25:12,840 --> 00:25:15,800 Speaker 3: Right, And so I guess we're looking for glimmers of hope. 489 00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:20,800 Speaker 2: And I think Ruby a kind of oddly weirdly was 490 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:24,080 Speaker 2: one compared to I was expecting more of the hegthf 491 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:27,480 Speaker 2: like Fox News commentator type people in foreign policy positions 492 00:25:27,800 --> 00:25:31,040 Speaker 2: because Trump fundamentally doesn't care about foreign policy, and like 493 00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:33,600 Speaker 2: it's an area where he can kind of give something 494 00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:38,159 Speaker 2: to those kind of like insane far right commentator types. 495 00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,480 Speaker 2: He also did appoint Mark Waltz, I think could be Wols. 496 00:25:42,640 --> 00:25:45,080 Speaker 2: He's one of the first special Army special Forces guys 497 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:49,080 Speaker 2: serving Congress, maybe the first as a national security advisor. 498 00:25:49,119 --> 00:25:52,399 Speaker 2: Walls as a member of the Kurdish Caucus in Congress. So again, 499 00:25:52,960 --> 00:25:56,840 Speaker 2: positive for a Java. Talking of Army special forces, there's 500 00:25:56,880 --> 00:26:00,600 Speaker 2: one more insane Trump foreign policy proposal that I want 501 00:26:00,640 --> 00:26:05,160 Speaker 2: to discuss and that is his desire to use the 502 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:09,680 Speaker 2: United States Army in Mexico. I'm just going to read 503 00:26:09,720 --> 00:26:13,399 Speaker 2: from his campaign website here. President Trump will take down 504 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:16,280 Speaker 2: the drug cartels just as he took down ISIS. He 505 00:26:16,320 --> 00:26:19,439 Speaker 2: will impose a total naval embargo on cartels, order the 506 00:26:19,440 --> 00:26:22,800 Speaker 2: Department of Defense to inflict maximum damage on cartel leadership 507 00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:27,399 Speaker 2: and operations, and designate cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and 508 00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:30,879 Speaker 2: choke off the access to the global financial system. President 509 00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:33,520 Speaker 2: Trump will get the full cooperation of neighboring governments to 510 00:26:33,520 --> 00:26:37,120 Speaker 2: dismantle the cartels or else expose every bribe and kickback 511 00:26:37,200 --> 00:26:39,760 Speaker 2: that allows these criminal networks to preserve their brutal rain. 512 00:26:40,359 --> 00:26:42,720 Speaker 2: He will ask Congress to ensure that drug smugglers and 513 00:26:42,760 --> 00:26:44,520 Speaker 2: traffickers can receive the death penalty. 514 00:26:45,280 --> 00:26:46,159 Speaker 3: There's a lot there. 515 00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:50,399 Speaker 2: The way that Donald Trump helped defeat ISIS was exclusively 516 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:54,480 Speaker 2: by bombing things and with some small contributions from US 517 00:26:54,560 --> 00:26:56,720 Speaker 2: ground troops. But we don't really have a partner force 518 00:26:56,760 --> 00:26:59,720 Speaker 2: in Mexico like that, and I think, especially with the 519 00:26:59,760 --> 00:27:03,360 Speaker 2: new administration in Mexico, and especially with Trump proposing one 520 00:27:03,440 --> 00:27:08,480 Speaker 2: hundred percent tariffs on Mexican goods, we're unlikely to find one, 521 00:27:09,080 --> 00:27:14,800 Speaker 2: which leaves the very strange kind of prospect of US 522 00:27:14,840 --> 00:27:20,240 Speaker 2: troops carrying out like unapproved, undeconflicted hits on Mexican nationals 523 00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:21,440 Speaker 2: in Mexico. 524 00:27:21,400 --> 00:27:23,480 Speaker 3: Which like its an act of war. 525 00:27:23,640 --> 00:27:26,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, you are invading Mexico, is what you're doing, I 526 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:28,919 Speaker 2: actould point out. And the Bortac under Biden did shoot 527 00:27:28,960 --> 00:27:33,480 Speaker 2: one Mexican national this year who was he was holding 528 00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:34,600 Speaker 2: up migrants with the gun. 529 00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:36,000 Speaker 3: He was, he's rubbing with a gun. 530 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:38,679 Speaker 2: It wasn't into place where I've been dozens of times 531 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:40,600 Speaker 2: where they shot him and they didn't seem to be 532 00:27:40,680 --> 00:27:43,960 Speaker 2: much fuffle about that. But that is not invading Mexico. 533 00:27:44,560 --> 00:27:46,960 Speaker 4: Yeah, Like if they're invading Mexico, like you know, as 534 00:27:47,040 --> 00:27:50,239 Speaker 4: as close as American Mexican sort of security cooperation has 535 00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:53,560 Speaker 4: been and as many people as that's killed from the 536 00:27:53,880 --> 00:27:54,960 Speaker 4: Mexican side, like. 537 00:27:54,960 --> 00:27:56,680 Speaker 3: That's oh boy. 538 00:27:56,960 --> 00:27:59,199 Speaker 2: Yeah, Like it remains to be seen how much of 539 00:27:59,200 --> 00:28:02,080 Speaker 2: this actually happened. Right, Mexico has a new president, the 540 00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:04,880 Speaker 2: United States has a new president. They're not exactly politically 541 00:28:04,920 --> 00:28:06,240 Speaker 2: fellow travelers, I'll say. 542 00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:08,959 Speaker 4: That, but yeah, I mean I will say like Armlow 543 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:12,400 Speaker 4: and Trump got along like decently well, yeah, largely off 544 00:28:12,400 --> 00:28:15,040 Speaker 4: of Omblos like anti immigrant policies, but I don't know 545 00:28:15,080 --> 00:28:16,800 Speaker 4: if that's going to work with China. 546 00:28:16,840 --> 00:28:19,959 Speaker 2: Bomb like and like in the final year of Armlow 547 00:28:20,040 --> 00:28:22,760 Speaker 2: like they definitely they did a lot to help Biden 548 00:28:22,840 --> 00:28:26,760 Speaker 2: within effectively enforcing US border policy by deporting people's South. 549 00:28:26,880 --> 00:28:28,679 Speaker 2: People I spoke to in the Darien series have been 550 00:28:28,720 --> 00:28:32,480 Speaker 2: sent south again this week. But Biden's had actually some 551 00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:37,160 Speaker 2: pretty high profile cartel arrests right within Cineloa cartel. He's 552 00:28:37,280 --> 00:28:40,720 Speaker 2: destabilized that cartel, but those happened within the US. They 553 00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:43,480 Speaker 2: didn't send teams into into Mexico. And the way that 554 00:28:43,520 --> 00:28:47,240 Speaker 2: the US has traditionally got hold of cartel leaders before 555 00:28:47,320 --> 00:28:49,160 Speaker 2: is him to be arrested in Mexico in cooperation with 556 00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:52,959 Speaker 2: Mexican government forces, be they police or military, and then 557 00:28:52,960 --> 00:28:56,120 Speaker 2: extraducted them to the US trial. And that doesn't seem 558 00:28:56,120 --> 00:28:59,600 Speaker 2: to be what Trump is proposing. But again, like the 559 00:28:59,600 --> 00:29:02,920 Speaker 2: Bomber rhetoric and the reality are sometimes very different. 560 00:29:03,400 --> 00:29:06,560 Speaker 4: Yeah, I have some vague memory that he, like last time, 561 00:29:06,640 --> 00:29:09,800 Speaker 4: he wanted to like send special forces guys to do this, 562 00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:11,840 Speaker 4: and his advisors were like, what the fuck are you 563 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:15,320 Speaker 4: talking about? We can't send yeah, like people in New Mexico. 564 00:29:15,720 --> 00:29:19,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, look, just to be real, those organizations have reached 565 00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:22,920 Speaker 2: inside the United States, and that would be an extremely 566 00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:27,520 Speaker 2: messy situation. Yeah, and like the way this would have 567 00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:29,200 Speaker 2: to be done, right, Like, I don't think you can 568 00:29:29,240 --> 00:29:30,960 Speaker 2: do this with drone strikes. That you have to do 569 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:33,320 Speaker 2: this with boots on the ground. And that's going to 570 00:29:33,400 --> 00:29:35,120 Speaker 2: be contrary to what he's promised to do, which is 571 00:29:35,120 --> 00:29:38,880 Speaker 2: not risk more US soldiers' lives. Who knows what this 572 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:39,760 Speaker 2: will actually look like. 573 00:29:39,840 --> 00:29:41,800 Speaker 4: Yeah, my guess is you will find a way to 574 00:29:41,800 --> 00:29:43,400 Speaker 4: get the maxim umber civilians killed. 575 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:46,840 Speaker 3: Yes, yeah, yeah, we de would himself. Yeah, it's that's 576 00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:49,840 Speaker 3: probably would be the result of this, Yeah, exactly. 577 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:51,800 Speaker 2: And I think as you sort of wear this down, 578 00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:54,880 Speaker 2: like civilian deaths are probably going to increase. Right, He's 579 00:29:54,920 --> 00:29:57,520 Speaker 2: never shown himself to be unduly concerned about those things. 580 00:29:57,760 --> 00:29:59,800 Speaker 2: He doesn't see that in the problem. The second thing 581 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:04,440 Speaker 2: the US will lose is what Joseph Nay called soft power, right, 582 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:08,040 Speaker 2: which is like the power to influence people without projecting force, 583 00:30:08,520 --> 00:30:10,520 Speaker 2: cultural power, cultural capitals. 584 00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:11,640 Speaker 3: Body you might have called. 585 00:30:11,440 --> 00:30:14,880 Speaker 2: It really getting heavy on the university shit at the 586 00:30:14,920 --> 00:30:16,160 Speaker 2: back half of this episode. 587 00:30:16,640 --> 00:30:18,600 Speaker 3: The US lost a lot. 588 00:30:18,480 --> 00:30:20,280 Speaker 2: Of that in the first Trump term, right, and it 589 00:30:20,320 --> 00:30:22,200 Speaker 2: will lose more of it in the second Trump term. 590 00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:25,880 Speaker 2: Some of that is, you know, the US maybe shouldn't 591 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:27,920 Speaker 2: be influencing, and the US has had some pretty malign 592 00:30:28,000 --> 00:30:29,240 Speaker 2: influence around the world. 593 00:30:29,680 --> 00:30:31,960 Speaker 3: You can listen to a song called Washington Bullets to 594 00:30:32,040 --> 00:30:32,880 Speaker 3: learn more about it. 595 00:30:33,240 --> 00:30:36,040 Speaker 2: But it will mean that, like there will be a 596 00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:39,960 Speaker 2: space for other bad actors, right, Russia, China. You know, 597 00:30:40,280 --> 00:30:43,400 Speaker 2: Russia has not shown itself to be any more concerned 598 00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:45,280 Speaker 2: with human rights, and probably less so than than the 599 00:30:45,360 --> 00:30:48,760 Speaker 2: United States went in it. And it's time in Syria, right, 600 00:30:48,920 --> 00:30:51,560 Speaker 2: it's been an unmitigated disaster for the Syrian people. The 601 00:30:51,640 --> 00:30:54,720 Speaker 2: Russian cooperation with your side regime. We do not need 602 00:30:54,840 --> 00:30:58,160 Speaker 2: more of that around the world. The WAGNSLA to Africa, 603 00:30:58,240 --> 00:31:02,360 Speaker 2: Core diplomas in Africa have been horrific in terms of 604 00:31:02,440 --> 00:31:05,440 Speaker 2: human rights, and this will open more spaces for that. 605 00:31:05,920 --> 00:31:09,880 Speaker 2: So yeah, I mean, it doesn't look great this secretive appointment. 606 00:31:10,120 --> 00:31:13,240 Speaker 2: Maybe we'll learn more about that in the coming days, 607 00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:16,880 Speaker 2: but that doesn't look great. There are some bright spots 608 00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:19,720 Speaker 2: for a Java. I guess there's some glimmers of hope there, 609 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:23,200 Speaker 2: which is a nice thing. Trump's policy on Gaza fits 610 00:31:23,240 --> 00:31:26,280 Speaker 2: with this general model of like he wants to end conflicts, 611 00:31:26,320 --> 00:31:29,320 Speaker 2: and the way he sees of doing that is doing 612 00:31:29,360 --> 00:31:33,960 Speaker 2: away with any restraint in terms of civilian casualties. And 613 00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,360 Speaker 2: so the way that he went after isis was to 614 00:31:36,440 --> 00:31:39,000 Speaker 2: just say bomb them all. I can see him doing 615 00:31:39,080 --> 00:31:42,200 Speaker 2: the same thing in Gaza, right, just saying like he 616 00:31:42,240 --> 00:31:43,600 Speaker 2: wants to claim that he bought an end to the 617 00:31:43,640 --> 00:31:46,000 Speaker 2: war and he doesn't care how many bodies he's standing 618 00:31:46,040 --> 00:31:49,560 Speaker 2: on when he says that. Yeah, same thing in Lebanon, obviously. So, yeah, 619 00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:53,800 Speaker 2: these are not great things. These are things that we 620 00:31:53,840 --> 00:31:56,480 Speaker 2: will have to deal with for decades to come, whatever happens. 621 00:31:57,160 --> 00:32:00,560 Speaker 2: And I guess the way that you can do something 622 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:02,200 Speaker 2: here like why a little glimmer of hope. It's like 623 00:32:02,800 --> 00:32:04,640 Speaker 2: you can reach out to people all around the world 624 00:32:04,640 --> 00:32:07,000 Speaker 2: and let them know that like even if America's foreign 625 00:32:07,040 --> 00:32:10,800 Speaker 2: policy is shit, you're not. I have sat in Rojaba 626 00:32:10,960 --> 00:32:14,040 Speaker 2: and i have seen them taking the children to the hospitals, 627 00:32:14,240 --> 00:32:16,400 Speaker 2: and I've watched the US soldiers sit in their bases 628 00:32:16,400 --> 00:32:20,760 Speaker 2: and do nothing, and like it didn't help. Really I didn't. 629 00:32:20,920 --> 00:32:22,640 Speaker 2: I wasn't able to do very much. I couldn't even 630 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:25,480 Speaker 2: give blood, but I was able to be there with them, 631 00:32:25,480 --> 00:32:28,360 Speaker 2: and maybe they're meant something, and like you can do 632 00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:31,440 Speaker 2: little things to show your solidarity around the world because 633 00:32:31,440 --> 00:32:33,480 Speaker 2: there won't be much of it coming from the government. 634 00:32:36,520 --> 00:32:39,000 Speaker 1: It could Happen Here is a production of cool Zone Media. 635 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:42,280 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website 636 00:32:42,320 --> 00:32:44,880 Speaker 1: fool zonemedia dot com, or check us out on the 637 00:32:44,920 --> 00:32:48,920 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 638 00:32:49,320 --> 00:32:51,200 Speaker 1: You can now find sources for it could Happen Here 639 00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:54,240 Speaker 1: listened directly in episode descriptions. Thanks for listening.