July 18, 2026 • 29 mins
1. Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and the Democratic Party
- The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has become increasingly influenced by Marxist, communist, and Marxist-Leninist factions.
- These factions allegedly have growing influence within Democratic Party politics.
- Progressive politicians such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) are discussed as examples of the party's ideological shift.
- The speaker argues that Democratic leadership failed to prevent more radical ideological elements from gaining influence.
Socialism, Marxism, and communism are direct threats to American democracy and freedom, drawing comparisons to historical communist governments such as the Soviet Union, Maoist China, Cuba, and Cambodia.
2. Government Fraud and Congressional Oversight
- A Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on fraud involving taxpayer-funded programs.
- Allegations of large-scale fraud in programs such as childcare assistance and pandemic-related aid.
- Claims that Democratic senators did not attend the hearing.
- Arguments that stronger oversight, verification procedures, and anti-fraud measures are needed.
3. Ukraine-Russia War
- Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian energy infrastructure.
- Damage to Russian oil refineries, fuel depots, logistics hubs, and transportation systems.
- Reports of fuel shortages and economic disruptions inside Russia.
- The argument that Ukraine's strategy is increasingly targeting Russia's economic capacity rather than only battlefield objectives.
4. Lindsey Graham and Russia
- Questions raised about whether Russia could have been involved in the death of Senator Lindsey Graham.
- Statements attributed to former President Donald Trump dismissing such speculation and pointing instead to medical causes and family health history.
- Discussion of Russian political instability and speculation about increasing pressure on Putin from Russian elites.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, there's a new warning and a new article
from the Free Press that is reigniting the long running
debate about the direction of the Democratic Party and specifically
now the massive influence and the massive number of candidates
that the Democratic Socialists of America known as DSA are
actually having and when it comes to influence in its
(00:21):
leadership on American politics.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Now, this article.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
Now has come out saying that quote, the majority of
the National Political Committee for the Democratic Socialists of America,
that is, the organization's elected governing body, all right, publicly
identifies with or belongs to, quote caucuses that embrace Communists, Marxists,
(00:46):
or Marxist Leninist traditions. Now, the article argues this represents
a significant ideological shift within the organization's leadership compared with
previous years. Now, for decades, many Americans assume that the
term Democratic Socialists was like a fringe idea, that it
(01:06):
was like a very small number of people in the
Democratic Party, nothing to really worry about. Well, that assumption
is now wrong, because Democratic Socialists now refers primarily to
what is a European style welfare state. All right, It
expanded government programs massively. That's why Democrats like it.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
The Free Press is now saying that within the DSA itself,
the organized communist factions have gained increasing influence over the
entire Democratic Party and also over the internal elections and
policy directions of the Democratic Party.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
The article also notes that several caucuses represented in the
leadership now openly describe themselves as not just like communists. Okay,
straight up, Marxists, are Marxist Leninists. Others are reporting that
this is a growing role of these factions within the
entire Democratic leadership in general. That's now why you're seeing
(02:07):
so many extremist candidates that are actually running and winning. Now,
this also raises another important question. If the leadership in
this organization has become this powerful, what does that mean
for the Democratic Party in general? Well, it means that
there is chaos within the Democratic Party. They don't know
(02:29):
how to stop the Marxist Leninists from taking over, and
that is what they're doing. Okay, you can identify as
a Democrat, as a as a Marxist. They don't have
a problem with you as a socialist, and I have
a problem with you if you're a communist. They don't
have a problem with you. But that is the problem,
the fact that the Democrats did not fight this within
(02:50):
their own family, and now it is festered into a
massive cancer. They don't know how to stop it because
now these crazies are actually in charge and they're picking
the candidates that are running.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Now.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Marxism has developed, by the way, by Karl Marx called
for quote, replacing capitalism with collective ownership of the means
of production. They also envisioned what they described as a
classless society.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Everyone's the same.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So governments would then say, all right, we're going to
have policies that say everyone must be equal. Think about
how that changes America. You look at the Soviet Union
under Lenin and Stalin, all right, You look at Malan China.
You look at Cuba under Castro, You look at Cambodia
all right under rogue. They all became authoritarian states, right,
(03:43):
and they committed widespread human rights abuses to gain the
power that now the communists in America are begging for. Historians,
by the way, also say this, find us a country
that has actually flourished under communism, socialism, Marxism.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
It doesn't exist. Now.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
You look at Russia for example, Right now, you have
political repression, you've got restrictions on civil liberties, and you
even have mass deaths of their own people. You can
apply that to any other country. By the way, that
socialist communists are Marxists. So why is the Democratic Socialist
Party of America having the success right now? Because they
(04:24):
were not policed or stopped by the Democratic Party. And
that is the heart of why this matters today.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Now.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
The Free Press also argued, this isn't simply a matter
of labels. It contends that communist aligned causes now run
or play a significant role in shaping the leadership and
the agenda of the left. That is a threat to
American democracy, American freedom, our constitution. And because several, by
(04:52):
the way, elected officials around the country have now been
affiliated and endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, you
have to look at them and say, hold on, how
did the Democratic PARTI as a whole and not get
a hold of this. How do they not stop it?
Maybe they didn't want to. By the way, if you
think about the most democratic elected officials right now in
this country, the newest ones, they are radical socialists and Marxists.
(05:16):
The Democratic Party has not figured out a way to
stop them from growing, including the leadership like Chuck Schumer.
You have the rise of AOC and Mandannie and others
like that. And so even some former DSA members have
expressed concerns about the organization's trajectory.
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Let me give you an example.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
There was a recent opinion piece by the former DSA
member Jake Aultman, and he argued that the organization has
shifted from a broader Democratic Socialist coalition towards one increasingly
influenced by more ideologically rigid Marxists and Linen tendencies. If
they're warning you, and I'm talking about former members of
(05:55):
the board about how radical they become, you know we've
got a real problem now for voters. The larger question
and the lesson may be this, you need to look
at your candidates, right, because this is much bigger of
a problem than basic campaign slogans or even party labels.
All right, you look at the organizations that candidates belong to.
(06:18):
That tells you who they really are. You need to
look at the platforms that they support. By the way,
if you want to see how radical the Democratic Socialism
America are, go to their website, read what they believe
in and you're going to say, oh my gosh, Ben,
this isn't real, and I'm going to say I wish
it wasn't, But guess what it actually is. You can
see who they endorse, and then you know who is
(06:39):
a threat to our freedoms in this country. And these
people they're shaping not only the candidates we get, but
they're also now reshaping the Democratic Party as a whole. Now,
let me just explain to you how radical I'm saying
they become. You know, AOC the daring of the left,
(07:01):
she's a radical. Well, the Democratic Socialists of America have
now officially pulled their support for AOC, not because she's
too radical, but because they say she's actually too moderate.
The loss of a socialist endorsement by AOC, like, that's
the point where you're like, all right, did hell freeze over?
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Let me read their own statement.
Speaker 1 (07:24):
The national leadership of the Democratic Socialists of America have
pulled their endorsement of AOC. They cite her pragmatic approach
to party unity, her fundraising for establishment Democrats, and her
careful positioning regarding the war in Gaza as proof that
she had quote moderated, therefore losing their support now this
(07:45):
is who is running the Democratic Party right now. These
are the people that are picking the candidates. And I
tell you this because you need to understand. This is
now where the Democrat Credit Party is. They are radical,
they are extreme, and the majority of them in the
Democratic leadership say they're either a socialist, a Marxist, a Stalinist.
(08:11):
In their approach, all of those things equal one main theme.
They want to destroy America from within. They believe America
is evil. They believe America is a threat to their
belief system, and they want to destroy this country and
rebuild it where they have all the power. And every
one of us is poor and incompetent, and our children
(08:34):
have bad educations, and none of us have any money
to stand up to them. That is their plan. When
they tell you it's their plan, and they put it
on their website, I will say it again, believe them.
Typically in Washington, DC, you've got shouting matches on the
Senate floor, on the House forlor right. But well, something
(08:56):
else happened in Washington yesterday and it involved something much
quieter and arguably more telling. The Senate Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs Committee held a major hearing. You did not
hear about this at all. I'm guessing it was an
important hearing, by the way, examining fraud against you, the
(09:17):
American taxpayer. According to Committee Republicans, not a single Democratic
member attended the hearing that involved taxpayers being defrauded. The
hearing focused not on how millions, but how tens of
billions of taxpayer dollars have been lost to fraud and
what Congress can do to stop it. Translation, Democrats don't
(09:42):
want to stop it at all because many of the
fraudsters are the ones paying them to look the other way.
Americans are paying taxes at every level. You have your
federal taxes, you got your state taxes, you got your
local taxes, and families have been dealing with inflation. They've
been dealing with higher interest rates and obviously rising costs.
(10:04):
So you would think the Democrats would want to expose
fraud against taxpayers and also make sure that your dollars
are going to be aple that actually need the money
unless you're on the take. And Democrats, well, they were
completely empty. None of them showed up. Now, one of
the reasons they didn't show up is because one of
(10:26):
the star witnesses was that independent journalist Nick Shirley. His
investigation into the Minnesota Childcare Network showed massive fraud, including
the Quality Leering Center, which helped draw attention to allegations
that the organization received roughly ten million in taxpayer dollars
despite having no children in attendance. That is what exploded
(10:51):
into a much bigger story of fraud. Senator Jenny Urst
used the hearing to argue that this case demonstrates how
easily bad actors are exploiting government programs when oversight is
virtually nonexistent, especially when Democrats looked the other way, and
literally they were looking so far the other way they
would even show up to the hearing.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
About the fraud.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Now, according to Center Earns, the federal government lost up
to five hundred and twenty one billion dollars every year.
I'm going to say that again, federal government, meaning your
tax dours, your tax dollars, they're wasting through fraud five
hundred and twenty one billion every year to various programs.
(11:36):
That's not just waste, it's money that could otherwise go
towards legitimate services, or give you a massive tax break,
or also pay down our national debt. Now, the hearing
also revisited the broader series of fraud scandals in Minnesota.
Republicans pointed to investigations alleging that more than nine billion
(11:57):
a loon in fraud had been un covered across some
multiple state administer programs in recent years.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Now.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
Those figures include the well known Feeding our Future case,
the pandemic related fraud, childcare fraud allegations, and other investigations
that have led to numerous criminal charges and arrests. Senator
Ernst argued that these cases exposed as systemic failure and
it's not just isolated criminal acts. She also discussed legislation
(12:28):
she has introduced that would require stronger verification before tax
payer money is distributed, require reimbursements only after services are
actually provided, and then strengthen the record keeping requirements as
well as expand auditing authority. Her argument was straightforward, don't
just spend money faster, verify where it's going before writing
(12:51):
the check at all. And the broader hearing also looked
at how fraud is evolving nationwide. Again, the Democrats weren't
in the room for any of this, and the media
is not reporting on it either, but witnesses discussed increasingly
sophisticated identity theft, digital fraud schemes, and weakness and government
verification systems where there have been warnings but no changes. Experts,
(13:16):
by the way, also testified that we need much stronger
identity verification and also we should be using modern anti
fraud technology that the private sector uses. They say just
that alone could help stop billions in fraudulent payments before
the money leaves the government coffers. Again, all of this
(13:37):
was at the hearing that no Democrats showed up four. Now,
you may say they just don't care. Well, Democrats may
have had reasons for not attending beyond that. They of
course claimed it was scheduling conflicts or disagreement about the
committee's focus that was some of their big lines. But
what you really have to look at is the Democratic Party.
(13:59):
Many the members receive money connected to many of the
fraud abusers. So this isn't just about politics, This is
about optics, and they didn't want to have to answer
questions about the money that's come into their own campaigns. Now, Republicans,
they are furious, and this is exactly what Donald Trump
(14:20):
had been talking about for months on end. He believes
that every dollar is strown through fraud is a dollar
that hard working Americans have earned and then sent to
Washington expecting it to be used responsibly. But when criminals
exploit the government programs, the taxpayers don't just pay once,
they now pay twice. Not only they lose the money,
(14:42):
but they're often asked to pay even more taxes to
keep those same programs funded. And that is why the
President said he's had enough now. This hearing also comes
as Washington continues debating deficits government spending in the national debt,
which is clearly out of control. So if lawmakers are
actually serious about fiscal responsibility, many would argue that preventing
(15:06):
fraud should be one of the easiest places to start.
You don't have to cut benefits to stop fraud, you
don't have to raise taxes to stop fraud. You simply
have to make sure taxpayer dollars actually reach the people
and purposes they're intended for. Now, whether today's hearing ultimately
leads to Biparson reforms, I can promise you that ain't
(15:28):
going to happen. But Republicans clearly intend to make government fraud,
and the absence of the democratic participation in today's hearing
a political issue ahead of the midterms, as they should.
It's also estimated that now we're talking about hundreds of
billions of dollars that could have been saved through stronger oversight.
(15:50):
Democrats knew this, and they chose to push fraud and
make it bigger. They also knew we needed better verification
and they were warned. But what do they do who
They made sure there wasn't verification, why so the fraudsters
could continue to do their schemes. And they also knew,
of course I'm talking about the Democrats, that we needed
(16:11):
more effective enforcement when people broke the rules. But instead
what they do they made sure there was virtually no enforcement. So,
for all of you taxpayers listening right now, the question
that we all should be asking is this, If Congress
can't agree on almost nothing else, why can't they even
agree on protecting the money that American families have worked
(16:34):
so hard to earn. The answer, unfortunately, is clear. Democrats
would rather steal your money have it come back from
the fraudsters into their campaigns. That's what they're really all about.
It's crazy to think it's now been more than four
years since the war in Ukraine started Vladimir Putin has
(16:57):
not gotten what he thought was going to happen.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
Out of that world.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
He certainly has not taken over all of Ukraine, and
Ukraine has largely been defined by the battles on Ukrainian soil.
But something has changed over the past several months. Increasingly
Ukraine has been taking the fight deep inside of Russia. Now,
not with massive ground invasions with troops or machinery. Instead,
(17:24):
they've been doing it with long range drones flying very
low and targeting the actual infrastructure that keeps the Russian
economy and military running. Now, to be clear, that's actually
one thing, well two, if you really want to get
down to it, oil and gas. And now there are
new reports coming out saying that Ukraine's new battle plan
(17:45):
is working incredibly well. The coverage now being highlighted in
a lot of Europe. Ukrainian strikes have not only hit
oil refineries, but also fuel depots as well as ports
and logistics of across Russia. That has resulted in massive
now fuel shortages that has turned into long lines at
(18:07):
gas stations in Russia and now official rationing in some regions.
Now there's growing pressure on Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin
in general. Reuters and now the Associated Press are also
reporting quote significant disruptions to Russia's fuel production and distribution
(18:28):
following the latest wave of attacks on their energy infrastructure.
Now this matters because wars aren't fought on the battlefield alone.
They're literally fought with logistics and manufacturing and transportation and
then public morale as well as money and cash that
Russia desperately needs, and it comes from oil and gas. Now,
(18:50):
Russia remains one of the world's largest oil producers. That
is how Vladimir Putin keeps his power. But now it's
dealing with these shortages, and they're dealing with them, not
to sell abroad, they're dealing with them at home because
of the repeated strikes on the refinery capabilities. Reuters reported
(19:10):
that gasoline production had fallen quote well below seasonal demand
after several major refineries were damaged and forced offline altogether. Now,
if you imagine what that means, one of the world's
largest superpowers is struggling to keep enough gasoline flowing to
meet their domestic demand. That is a remarkable development, especially
(19:33):
because it's happening at the hands of Ukraine. Now across
parts of Russia. There's also reports that are describing motorists
waiting in extremely long lines for fuel, and then there's
export restrictions that have been put out. There's also emergency
imports and regional efforts to manage the shortages. The Associated
Press is now describing the situation as quote unprecedented for
(19:57):
modern Russia and for Vladimir Putin, the challenge isn't simply
the military issue. It's now become a political one for him.
Throughout his years in power, Putin has cultivated an image
of stability. Russians could tolerate sanctions, they could tolerate inflation,
many even tolerated the prolonged four year war. But the
(20:19):
shortages change everything. And that's exactly why Ukraine is doing
what they're doing now, because now you have ordinary citizens
that literally can't fuel their cars, Their businesses are struggling
to operate, deliveries are slowing down, Agriculture has become much
more difficult, and that is where the frustrations become publicly visible. Ukraine,
(20:41):
by the way, they clearly seem to understand this. So
rather than focusing only on the front lines, Kieva has
increasingly targeted what military analysts call Russia's war sustaining infrastructure,
oil refineries and storage facilities, then the logistics networks, and
then the transportation links, and the objective is actually incredibly simple.
(21:04):
It's not only to reduce Russia's military capability, but also
to increase the economic cost of continuing the war with Ukraine.
Now that doesn't mean Russia is on the verge of collapse.
In fact, I think it's fair to say it's far
from it. But what Russia still understands is that when
people on the ground get angry, things can change quickly,
(21:25):
and it can also change the way the oligarchs act
towards Vladimir Putin. Now, Russia still possesses enormous military resources,
they have significant industrial capabilities, and they have substantial financial reserves.
But these strikes are demonstrating that the war is affecting
ordinary Russians more directly than before, which can change the
(21:46):
tide certainly for Vladimir Putin, and not in a good way.
But Russia has another pr problem problem, and it relates
to Lindsey Graham, and I want to play that for
you in a moment, but before we get to that,
I want to talk to you real quick about way
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All right, I want to play for you a very
interesting question that was asked to President Donald Trump, and
it was one ask on Newsmax. Greg Kelly ask President
(23:57):
Trump whether he thinks Russia might have been avolved played
a role in the death of Senator Lindsey Graham. And
I want you to listen to what the President had
to say.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
We've heard a lot of your comments.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
He lost a big friend.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
I saw him in Ukraine on his way back, and
we all saw the video. He didn't look so hot,
I'm told by those who know him. Maybe he looked
a little off, he was tired. Look, the Russians have
they have a habit of poisoning people they don't like.
And Lindsey Graham wants called for Putin to be you know,
taken out.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
You have any suspicions or worries.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Do you think we know the whole story about his death?
Speaker 4 (24:34):
Well?
Speaker 2 (24:34):
I think we do.
Speaker 4 (24:35):
We've had great doctors and they talked about, you know,
in a certain part of his body literally blew up.
And that's a condition I believe his father had. Also,
his father died very very young from heart complications and
that's what Lindsay had. And it's something that's number one,
is very tough to.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
See and even if you see it.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
It's hard to fix, very hard to fix. And you know,
he had a problem with otteries and I thought he
was like a seventy percent blockage. I said, Lindsay, you're
gonna have to go and take care of that.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
But this was not that problem. This was a different.
Speaker 4 (25:07):
Problem that wasn't really related. So he called me and
I said, how you know, he just got back from Ukraine.
He's he was a worker, He was always suplace and
he loved it though, he really loved it.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
He was good, He was a good he was really.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
A great politician actually. But he just got back and
I said, how you doing and he said, well, I'm
doing good, but I'm tired. And within you know, a
short period of time after that call.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Uh, he was gone.
Speaker 4 (25:34):
Amazing actually, but he was. I don't think, you know,
just to answer the conspiracy there, I don't know. I'd
love to say yes, but I think he had some
problems and very very difficult and his father died just
about at the same age. From you know, I'm a
believer in the racehorse theory. You know, if you have problems,
you have problems, and he had some problems that were
(25:58):
a little bit deep seed and not easy to find.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
The president there answering that question about could Russia be involved? Now,
I bring that up because obviously this is playing into
a lot of the issues that Vladimir Putin is having
right now in Ukraine. It's also interesting to see there
was an article written in the Daily Mail and this
is what it said, Putin and his family might jump
out a window. Russian leaders undergrowing pressure from the oligarchs
(26:26):
as Ukraine strikes spark more petrol shortages and chaos. It
goes on to say Putin and his family might be
murdered as the Krimin dictator rapidly loses support across Russia.
A senior Estonian minister has said. Foreign minister made the
comments in an interview with a Dutch newspaper on the
topic of Russia's faltering performance in the war with Ukraine,
(26:49):
saying this, even among the oligarchs, more and more doubting
Putin's war. Many who spoke of victory a year ago
no longer believe it now it comes to Ukraine is
striking Russian energy infrastructure at an unprecedented rate. Zelenski's intense
drone campaign is now triggering Moscow's worst fuel crisis in decade.
The Daily Mail continues. More than half of Russia's regions
(27:11):
have now been forced to impose strict limits on fuel sales,
with disgruntled residents. Well, they're sitting for hours and getting
in even to dramatic brawls at petrol stations. Putin could
change his goals at enter into serious negotiations if he
acts rationally. The leader from Essonia said in the interview.
(27:34):
He also wanted to say it's just as possible that
one day he'll jump out a window with his family.
After all, things like that happened quote unquote in Russia. Now,
since the beginning of twenty twenty six, Russia's refineries have
been hit at least one hundred and ninety four times.
That is an elevenfold increase from the same period the
previous year. That according to data from a Polish analytical
(27:58):
group monitoring the war. And in June keep it Moscow
so oil refinery several times that sparked huge blazes and
send clouds of smoke billowing over the capitol and Russia.
And so clearly the Ukrainian leadership have said, we've got
an idea here. We're going to have a forty day
influence operation. We're going to use our long wearing strike units,
(28:21):
and we're going to try to force Putin to the
negotiating table. And by now they say every Russian fills
this war isn't happening somewhere far away, but now it's
reaching them directly. So here we are Vladimir Putin having
a day where he's going to have to decide does
he keep going forward and then risk getting in serious
(28:42):
trouble with the Russian people and even the oligarchs, or
does this change is calculus and actually talk about a
cease fire. We'll keep covering it in the days ahead
of us, so make sure you don't forget. Grab our podcast,
The Ben Ferguson Podcasts wherever you get your podcast as well,
hit that subscriber rough or download button so you don't
(29:03):
miss any of the breaking news.
All right, there's a new warning and a new article
from the Free Press that is reigniting the long running
debate about the direction of the Democratic Party and specifically
now the massive influence and the massive number of candidates
that the Democratic Socialists of America known as DSA are
actually having and when it comes to influence in its
(00:21):
leadership on American politics.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Now, this article.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
Now has come out saying that quote, the majority of
the National Political Committee for the Democratic Socialists of America,
that is, the organization's elected governing body, all right, publicly
identifies with or belongs to, quote caucuses that embrace Communists, Marxists,
(00:46):
or Marxist Leninist traditions. Now, the article argues this represents
a significant ideological shift within the organization's leadership compared with
previous years. Now, for decades, many Americans assume that the
term Democratic Socialists was like a fringe idea, that it
(01:06):
was like a very small number of people in the
Democratic Party, nothing to really worry about. Well, that assumption
is now wrong, because Democratic Socialists now refers primarily to
what is a European style welfare state. All right, It
expanded government programs massively. That's why Democrats like it.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
The Free Press is now saying that within the DSA itself,
the organized communist factions have gained increasing influence over the
entire Democratic Party and also over the internal elections and
policy directions of the Democratic Party.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
The article also notes that several caucuses represented in the
leadership now openly describe themselves as not just like communists. Okay,
straight up, Marxists, are Marxist Leninists. Others are reporting that
this is a growing role of these factions within the
entire Democratic leadership in general. That's now why you're seeing
(02:07):
so many extremist candidates that are actually running and winning. Now,
this also raises another important question. If the leadership in
this organization has become this powerful, what does that mean
for the Democratic Party in general? Well, it means that
there is chaos within the Democratic Party. They don't know
(02:29):
how to stop the Marxist Leninists from taking over, and
that is what they're doing. Okay, you can identify as
a Democrat, as a as a Marxist. They don't have
a problem with you as a socialist, and I have
a problem with you if you're a communist. They don't
have a problem with you. But that is the problem,
the fact that the Democrats did not fight this within
(02:50):
their own family, and now it is festered into a
massive cancer. They don't know how to stop it because
now these crazies are actually in charge and they're picking
the candidates that are running.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Now.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Marxism has developed, by the way, by Karl Marx called
for quote, replacing capitalism with collective ownership of the means
of production. They also envisioned what they described as a
classless society.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Everyone's the same.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So governments would then say, all right, we're going to
have policies that say everyone must be equal. Think about
how that changes America. You look at the Soviet Union
under Lenin and Stalin, all right, You look at Malan China.
You look at Cuba under Castro, You look at Cambodia
all right under rogue. They all became authoritarian states, right,
(03:43):
and they committed widespread human rights abuses to gain the
power that now the communists in America are begging for. Historians,
by the way, also say this, find us a country
that has actually flourished under communism, socialism, Marxism.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
It doesn't exist. Now.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
You look at Russia for example, Right now, you have
political repression, you've got restrictions on civil liberties, and you
even have mass deaths of their own people. You can
apply that to any other country. By the way, that
socialist communists are Marxists. So why is the Democratic Socialist
Party of America having the success right now? Because they
(04:24):
were not policed or stopped by the Democratic Party. And
that is the heart of why this matters today.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Now.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
The Free Press also argued, this isn't simply a matter
of labels. It contends that communist aligned causes now run
or play a significant role in shaping the leadership and
the agenda of the left. That is a threat to
American democracy, American freedom, our constitution. And because several, by
(04:52):
the way, elected officials around the country have now been
affiliated and endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, you
have to look at them and say, hold on, how
did the Democratic PARTI as a whole and not get
a hold of this. How do they not stop it?
Maybe they didn't want to. By the way, if you
think about the most democratic elected officials right now in
this country, the newest ones, they are radical socialists and Marxists.
(05:16):
The Democratic Party has not figured out a way to
stop them from growing, including the leadership like Chuck Schumer.
You have the rise of AOC and Mandannie and others
like that. And so even some former DSA members have
expressed concerns about the organization's trajectory.
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Let me give you an example.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
There was a recent opinion piece by the former DSA
member Jake Aultman, and he argued that the organization has
shifted from a broader Democratic Socialist coalition towards one increasingly
influenced by more ideologically rigid Marxists and Linen tendencies. If
they're warning you, and I'm talking about former members of
(05:55):
the board about how radical they become, you know we've
got a real problem now for voters. The larger question
and the lesson may be this, you need to look
at your candidates, right, because this is much bigger of
a problem than basic campaign slogans or even party labels.
All right, you look at the organizations that candidates belong to.
(06:18):
That tells you who they really are. You need to
look at the platforms that they support. By the way,
if you want to see how radical the Democratic Socialism
America are, go to their website, read what they believe
in and you're going to say, oh my gosh, Ben,
this isn't real, and I'm going to say I wish
it wasn't, But guess what it actually is. You can
see who they endorse, and then you know who is
(06:39):
a threat to our freedoms in this country. And these
people they're shaping not only the candidates we get, but
they're also now reshaping the Democratic Party as a whole. Now,
let me just explain to you how radical I'm saying
they become. You know, AOC the daring of the left,
(07:01):
she's a radical. Well, the Democratic Socialists of America have
now officially pulled their support for AOC, not because she's
too radical, but because they say she's actually too moderate.
The loss of a socialist endorsement by AOC, like, that's
the point where you're like, all right, did hell freeze over?
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Let me read their own statement.
Speaker 1 (07:24):
The national leadership of the Democratic Socialists of America have
pulled their endorsement of AOC. They cite her pragmatic approach
to party unity, her fundraising for establishment Democrats, and her
careful positioning regarding the war in Gaza as proof that
she had quote moderated, therefore losing their support now this
(07:45):
is who is running the Democratic Party right now. These
are the people that are picking the candidates. And I
tell you this because you need to understand. This is
now where the Democrat Credit Party is. They are radical,
they are extreme, and the majority of them in the
Democratic leadership say they're either a socialist, a Marxist, a Stalinist.
(08:11):
In their approach, all of those things equal one main theme.
They want to destroy America from within. They believe America
is evil. They believe America is a threat to their
belief system, and they want to destroy this country and
rebuild it where they have all the power. And every
one of us is poor and incompetent, and our children
(08:34):
have bad educations, and none of us have any money
to stand up to them. That is their plan. When
they tell you it's their plan, and they put it
on their website, I will say it again, believe them.
Typically in Washington, DC, you've got shouting matches on the
Senate floor, on the House forlor right. But well, something
(08:56):
else happened in Washington yesterday and it involved something much
quieter and arguably more telling. The Senate Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs Committee held a major hearing. You did not
hear about this at all. I'm guessing it was an
important hearing, by the way, examining fraud against you, the
(09:17):
American taxpayer. According to Committee Republicans, not a single Democratic
member attended the hearing that involved taxpayers being defrauded. The
hearing focused not on how millions, but how tens of
billions of taxpayer dollars have been lost to fraud and
what Congress can do to stop it. Translation, Democrats don't
(09:42):
want to stop it at all because many of the
fraudsters are the ones paying them to look the other way.
Americans are paying taxes at every level. You have your
federal taxes, you got your state taxes, you got your
local taxes, and families have been dealing with inflation. They've
been dealing with higher interest rates and obviously rising costs.
(10:04):
So you would think the Democrats would want to expose
fraud against taxpayers and also make sure that your dollars
are going to be aple that actually need the money
unless you're on the take. And Democrats, well, they were
completely empty. None of them showed up. Now, one of
the reasons they didn't show up is because one of
(10:26):
the star witnesses was that independent journalist Nick Shirley. His
investigation into the Minnesota Childcare Network showed massive fraud, including
the Quality Leering Center, which helped draw attention to allegations
that the organization received roughly ten million in taxpayer dollars
despite having no children in attendance. That is what exploded
(10:51):
into a much bigger story of fraud. Senator Jenny Urst
used the hearing to argue that this case demonstrates how
easily bad actors are exploiting government programs when oversight is
virtually nonexistent, especially when Democrats looked the other way, and
literally they were looking so far the other way they
would even show up to the hearing.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
About the fraud.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Now, according to Center Earns, the federal government lost up
to five hundred and twenty one billion dollars every year.
I'm going to say that again, federal government, meaning your
tax dours, your tax dollars, they're wasting through fraud five
hundred and twenty one billion every year to various programs.
(11:36):
That's not just waste, it's money that could otherwise go
towards legitimate services, or give you a massive tax break,
or also pay down our national debt. Now, the hearing
also revisited the broader series of fraud scandals in Minnesota.
Republicans pointed to investigations alleging that more than nine billion
(11:57):
a loon in fraud had been un covered across some
multiple state administer programs in recent years.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Now.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
Those figures include the well known Feeding our Future case,
the pandemic related fraud, childcare fraud allegations, and other investigations
that have led to numerous criminal charges and arrests. Senator
Ernst argued that these cases exposed as systemic failure and
it's not just isolated criminal acts. She also discussed legislation
(12:28):
she has introduced that would require stronger verification before tax
payer money is distributed, require reimbursements only after services are
actually provided, and then strengthen the record keeping requirements as
well as expand auditing authority. Her argument was straightforward, don't
just spend money faster, verify where it's going before writing
(12:51):
the check at all. And the broader hearing also looked
at how fraud is evolving nationwide. Again, the Democrats weren't
in the room for any of this, and the media
is not reporting on it either, but witnesses discussed increasingly
sophisticated identity theft, digital fraud schemes, and weakness and government
verification systems where there have been warnings but no changes. Experts,
(13:16):
by the way, also testified that we need much stronger
identity verification and also we should be using modern anti
fraud technology that the private sector uses. They say just
that alone could help stop billions in fraudulent payments before
the money leaves the government coffers. Again, all of this
(13:37):
was at the hearing that no Democrats showed up four. Now,
you may say they just don't care. Well, Democrats may
have had reasons for not attending beyond that. They of
course claimed it was scheduling conflicts or disagreement about the
committee's focus that was some of their big lines. But
what you really have to look at is the Democratic Party.
(13:59):
Many the members receive money connected to many of the
fraud abusers. So this isn't just about politics, This is
about optics, and they didn't want to have to answer
questions about the money that's come into their own campaigns. Now, Republicans,
they are furious, and this is exactly what Donald Trump
(14:20):
had been talking about for months on end. He believes
that every dollar is strown through fraud is a dollar
that hard working Americans have earned and then sent to
Washington expecting it to be used responsibly. But when criminals
exploit the government programs, the taxpayers don't just pay once,
they now pay twice. Not only they lose the money,
(14:42):
but they're often asked to pay even more taxes to
keep those same programs funded. And that is why the
President said he's had enough now. This hearing also comes
as Washington continues debating deficits government spending in the national debt,
which is clearly out of control. So if lawmakers are
actually serious about fiscal responsibility, many would argue that preventing
(15:06):
fraud should be one of the easiest places to start.
You don't have to cut benefits to stop fraud, you
don't have to raise taxes to stop fraud. You simply
have to make sure taxpayer dollars actually reach the people
and purposes they're intended for. Now, whether today's hearing ultimately
leads to Biparson reforms, I can promise you that ain't
(15:28):
going to happen. But Republicans clearly intend to make government fraud,
and the absence of the democratic participation in today's hearing
a political issue ahead of the midterms, as they should.
It's also estimated that now we're talking about hundreds of
billions of dollars that could have been saved through stronger oversight.
(15:50):
Democrats knew this, and they chose to push fraud and
make it bigger. They also knew we needed better verification
and they were warned. But what do they do who
They made sure there wasn't verification, why so the fraudsters
could continue to do their schemes. And they also knew,
of course I'm talking about the Democrats, that we needed
(16:11):
more effective enforcement when people broke the rules. But instead
what they do they made sure there was virtually no enforcement. So,
for all of you taxpayers listening right now, the question
that we all should be asking is this, If Congress
can't agree on almost nothing else, why can't they even
agree on protecting the money that American families have worked
(16:34):
so hard to earn. The answer, unfortunately, is clear. Democrats
would rather steal your money have it come back from
the fraudsters into their campaigns. That's what they're really all about.
It's crazy to think it's now been more than four
years since the war in Ukraine started Vladimir Putin has
(16:57):
not gotten what he thought was going to happen.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
Out of that world.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
He certainly has not taken over all of Ukraine, and
Ukraine has largely been defined by the battles on Ukrainian soil.
But something has changed over the past several months. Increasingly
Ukraine has been taking the fight deep inside of Russia. Now,
not with massive ground invasions with troops or machinery. Instead,
(17:24):
they've been doing it with long range drones flying very
low and targeting the actual infrastructure that keeps the Russian
economy and military running. Now, to be clear, that's actually
one thing, well two, if you really want to get
down to it, oil and gas. And now there are
new reports coming out saying that Ukraine's new battle plan
(17:45):
is working incredibly well. The coverage now being highlighted in
a lot of Europe. Ukrainian strikes have not only hit
oil refineries, but also fuel depots as well as ports
and logistics of across Russia. That has resulted in massive
now fuel shortages that has turned into long lines at
(18:07):
gas stations in Russia and now official rationing in some regions.
Now there's growing pressure on Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin
in general. Reuters and now the Associated Press are also
reporting quote significant disruptions to Russia's fuel production and distribution
(18:28):
following the latest wave of attacks on their energy infrastructure.
Now this matters because wars aren't fought on the battlefield alone.
They're literally fought with logistics and manufacturing and transportation and
then public morale as well as money and cash that
Russia desperately needs, and it comes from oil and gas. Now,
(18:50):
Russia remains one of the world's largest oil producers. That
is how Vladimir Putin keeps his power. But now it's
dealing with these shortages, and they're dealing with them, not
to sell abroad, they're dealing with them at home because
of the repeated strikes on the refinery capabilities. Reuters reported
(19:10):
that gasoline production had fallen quote well below seasonal demand
after several major refineries were damaged and forced offline altogether. Now,
if you imagine what that means, one of the world's
largest superpowers is struggling to keep enough gasoline flowing to
meet their domestic demand. That is a remarkable development, especially
(19:33):
because it's happening at the hands of Ukraine. Now across
parts of Russia. There's also reports that are describing motorists
waiting in extremely long lines for fuel, and then there's
export restrictions that have been put out. There's also emergency
imports and regional efforts to manage the shortages. The Associated
Press is now describing the situation as quote unprecedented for
(19:57):
modern Russia and for Vladimir Putin, the challenge isn't simply
the military issue. It's now become a political one for him.
Throughout his years in power, Putin has cultivated an image
of stability. Russians could tolerate sanctions, they could tolerate inflation,
many even tolerated the prolonged four year war. But the
(20:19):
shortages change everything. And that's exactly why Ukraine is doing
what they're doing now, because now you have ordinary citizens
that literally can't fuel their cars, Their businesses are struggling
to operate, deliveries are slowing down, Agriculture has become much
more difficult, and that is where the frustrations become publicly visible. Ukraine,
(20:41):
by the way, they clearly seem to understand this. So
rather than focusing only on the front lines, Kieva has
increasingly targeted what military analysts call Russia's war sustaining infrastructure,
oil refineries and storage facilities, then the logistics networks, and
then the transportation links, and the objective is actually incredibly simple.
(21:04):
It's not only to reduce Russia's military capability, but also
to increase the economic cost of continuing the war with Ukraine.
Now that doesn't mean Russia is on the verge of collapse.
In fact, I think it's fair to say it's far
from it. But what Russia still understands is that when
people on the ground get angry, things can change quickly,
(21:25):
and it can also change the way the oligarchs act
towards Vladimir Putin. Now, Russia still possesses enormous military resources,
they have significant industrial capabilities, and they have substantial financial reserves.
But these strikes are demonstrating that the war is affecting
ordinary Russians more directly than before, which can change the
(21:46):
tide certainly for Vladimir Putin, and not in a good way.
But Russia has another pr problem problem, and it relates
to Lindsey Graham, and I want to play that for
you in a moment, but before we get to that,
I want to talk to you real quick about way
You can make a difference in this country each and
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(22:08):
and that is your cell phone provider. The stakes right
now couldn't be higher. And we finally have a president
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we as conservative lose focus right now, the same people
who create this mass are ready and really waiting to
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All right, I want to play for you a very
interesting question that was asked to President Donald Trump, and
it was one ask on Newsmax. Greg Kelly ask President
(23:57):
Trump whether he thinks Russia might have been avolved played
a role in the death of Senator Lindsey Graham. And
I want you to listen to what the President had
to say.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
We've heard a lot of your comments.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
He lost a big friend.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
I saw him in Ukraine on his way back, and
we all saw the video. He didn't look so hot,
I'm told by those who know him. Maybe he looked
a little off, he was tired. Look, the Russians have
they have a habit of poisoning people they don't like.
And Lindsey Graham wants called for Putin to be you know,
taken out.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
You have any suspicions or worries.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Do you think we know the whole story about his death?
Speaker 4 (24:34):
Well?
Speaker 2 (24:34):
I think we do.
Speaker 4 (24:35):
We've had great doctors and they talked about, you know,
in a certain part of his body literally blew up.
And that's a condition I believe his father had. Also,
his father died very very young from heart complications and
that's what Lindsay had. And it's something that's number one,
is very tough to.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
See and even if you see it.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
It's hard to fix, very hard to fix. And you know,
he had a problem with otteries and I thought he
was like a seventy percent blockage. I said, Lindsay, you're
gonna have to go and take care of that.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
But this was not that problem. This was a different.
Speaker 4 (25:07):
Problem that wasn't really related. So he called me and
I said, how you know, he just got back from Ukraine.
He's he was a worker, He was always suplace and
he loved it though, he really loved it.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
He was good, He was a good he was really.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
A great politician actually. But he just got back and
I said, how you doing and he said, well, I'm
doing good, but I'm tired. And within you know, a
short period of time after that call.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Uh, he was gone.
Speaker 4 (25:34):
Amazing actually, but he was. I don't think, you know,
just to answer the conspiracy there, I don't know. I'd
love to say yes, but I think he had some
problems and very very difficult and his father died just
about at the same age. From you know, I'm a
believer in the racehorse theory. You know, if you have problems,
you have problems, and he had some problems that were
(25:58):
a little bit deep seed and not easy to find.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
The president there answering that question about could Russia be involved? Now,
I bring that up because obviously this is playing into
a lot of the issues that Vladimir Putin is having
right now in Ukraine. It's also interesting to see there
was an article written in the Daily Mail and this
is what it said, Putin and his family might jump
out a window. Russian leaders undergrowing pressure from the oligarchs
(26:26):
as Ukraine strikes spark more petrol shortages and chaos. It
goes on to say Putin and his family might be
murdered as the Krimin dictator rapidly loses support across Russia.
A senior Estonian minister has said. Foreign minister made the
comments in an interview with a Dutch newspaper on the
topic of Russia's faltering performance in the war with Ukraine,
(26:49):
saying this, even among the oligarchs, more and more doubting
Putin's war. Many who spoke of victory a year ago
no longer believe it now it comes to Ukraine is
striking Russian energy infrastructure at an unprecedented rate. Zelenski's intense
drone campaign is now triggering Moscow's worst fuel crisis in decade.
The Daily Mail continues. More than half of Russia's regions
(27:11):
have now been forced to impose strict limits on fuel sales,
with disgruntled residents. Well, they're sitting for hours and getting
in even to dramatic brawls at petrol stations. Putin could
change his goals at enter into serious negotiations if he
acts rationally. The leader from Essonia said in the interview.
(27:34):
He also wanted to say it's just as possible that
one day he'll jump out a window with his family.
After all, things like that happened quote unquote in Russia. Now,
since the beginning of twenty twenty six, Russia's refineries have
been hit at least one hundred and ninety four times.
That is an elevenfold increase from the same period the
previous year. That according to data from a Polish analytical
(27:58):
group monitoring the war. And in June keep it Moscow
so oil refinery several times that sparked huge blazes and
send clouds of smoke billowing over the capitol and Russia.
And so clearly the Ukrainian leadership have said, we've got
an idea here. We're going to have a forty day
influence operation. We're going to use our long wearing strike units,
(28:21):
and we're going to try to force Putin to the
negotiating table. And by now they say every Russian fills
this war isn't happening somewhere far away, but now it's
reaching them directly. So here we are Vladimir Putin having
a day where he's going to have to decide does
he keep going forward and then risk getting in serious
(28:42):
trouble with the Russian people and even the oligarchs, or
does this change is calculus and actually talk about a
cease fire. We'll keep covering it in the days ahead
of us, so make sure you don't forget. Grab our podcast,
The Ben Ferguson Podcasts wherever you get your podcast as well,
hit that subscriber rough or download button so you don't
(29:03):
miss any of the breaking news.
Host
Ben Ferguson
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