Human Events Daily with Jack Posobiec - Celebrating The 250th Birthday of the U.S Marines Live From Philadelphia

00:00:00.000 I want to take a second to remind you to sign up for the Poso Daily Brief.

00:00:05.420 It is completely free.

00:00:06.760 It'll be one email that's sent to you every day.

00:00:08.640 You can stop the endless scrolling, trying to find out what's going on in your world.

00:00:11.720 We will have this delivered directly to you totally for free.

00:00:14.960 Go to humanevents.com slash Poso.

00:00:17.240 Sign up today.

00:00:18.460 It's called the Poso Daily Brief.

00:00:20.160 Read what I read for show prep.

00:00:21.740 You will not regret it.

00:00:23.320 Humanevents.com slash Poso.

00:00:25.060 Totally free.

00:00:25.780 The Poso Daily Brief.

00:00:30.000 This is what happens when the fourth turning meets fifth generation warfare.

00:00:39.200 A commentator, international social media sensation, and former Navy intelligence veteran.

00:00:45.940 This is Human Events with your host, Jack Poso.

00:00:48.880 Christ is king.

00:00:50.600 Sunday's vote was the first clear sign that a bipartisan deal had been reached after a roughly 40-day stalemate.

00:00:57.140 The Senate voted 60-40 to back a revamped GOP funding bill that would keep the government open until the end of January.

00:01:05.140 Eight Democrats joined Republicans to pass the bill, including Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, Senators Tim Kaine, Catherine Cortez Masto, and Jackie Rosen, among others.

00:01:15.340 Overnight, the aviation industry facing its worst day of cancellations since the shutdown began.

00:01:20.420 I was coming from Tampa, and that flight got delayed, delayed, delayed, then it was canceled.

00:01:27.000 Almost 8% of flights canceled as of Sunday night.

00:01:29.840 New backlash as the Trump administration moves forward with a plan to introduce 50-year mortgages.

00:01:34.780 Over the weekend, Trump's sharing this image comparing the proposal to the 30-year mortgage policies championed by FDR nearly a century ago.

00:01:42.280 The move could potentially kickstart the now stagnant real estate market.

00:01:46.240 You said affordability was a common job, and you didn't want to, you said last night you didn't want to talk about affordability.

00:01:51.680 I talked about it, when did I, when did I not want to talk about it?

00:01:54.860 I talk about it all the time.

00:01:56.340 We are much better than Biden and all of them.

00:02:00.440 Now, just so you understand, do you remember that the Biden administration had the highest inflation in 48 years, but most people say ever recorded?

00:02:09.820 Do you remember that? Right? Do you remember it?

00:02:13.740 Did they have the highest inflation in 48 years?

00:02:17.400 Did they? Just answer me the question. You know the answer. The answer is yes.

00:02:21.280 In a social media post, President Trump says people who don't support tariffs are, quote, fools. 0.96

00:02:26.260 Trump says the U.S. is taking in trillions of dollars and will soon start paying down $37 trillion in debt. 0.83

00:02:33.020 He also says a dividend of at least $2,000 would be paid to everyone, but not including, quote, high-income people.

00:02:40.900 For 250 years, Marines have celebrated their birthday on November 10th.

00:02:48.480 This day has always been a time to celebrate our history.

00:02:52.300 But at every pivotal moment in our country's history, when our nation has needed the might of the Marine Corps, Marines have celebrated with a true fighting spirit.

00:03:07.460 Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard.

00:03:10.400 Today's edition of Human Events Daily, live in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:03:14.480 I am here in Philadelphia, right where I grew up, on November 10th, 2025, Anno Domini.

00:03:22.720 And why are we here today?

00:03:24.980 Because I'm not the only one from the Philadelphia area.

00:03:27.520 Because today is the 250th birthday of the United States Marine Corps, which was born right here in Philadelphia.

00:03:33.500 Not very far from where I sit right now.

00:03:37.020 Now, we're down here at Penn's Landing, and if you hear the cacophony around me, that's because I'm at a gathering of Marines who are Vietnam veterans that are here celebrating their, I believe it was their 41st reunion that they've come together.

00:03:51.760 Their entire company has come out, and we're going to be on with some of the generals, actually, Marine generals that served in Vietnam that are here today.

00:04:00.500 And I'm so gracious and honored to even be invited to cover an event like this.

00:04:04.680 But let me tell you a little something about the story of the founding.

00:04:07.720 So back in Philadelphia, remember, the Second Continental Congress is getting done.

00:04:11.400 This is pre, even before the Declaration of Independence.

00:04:14.480 The Marine Corps is actually older than the country itself.

00:04:18.360 The resolution was approved on November 10th, 1775, dedicating a landing force to serve at sea and on shore.

00:04:28.160 That resolution was approved November 10th, 1775, by the Second Continental Congress, which is, of course, right down the street from where we are at.

00:04:37.000 And if you see right behind me, you can actually see the great battleship New Jersey, and that's the Delaware River across.

00:04:42.740 You're looking into Camden, New Jersey, right there.

00:04:45.060 First Commandant of the Marine Corps was Samuel Nichols.

00:04:48.220 The resolution commissioned him, who was a prominent local innkeeper as the first Commandant and Captain of the newly formed Marine Corps.

00:04:56.640 Now, this is the part where it gets really good.

00:04:59.640 Right down here, just blocks away from where I'm sitting, at an alley near Penn's Landing on the corner of Water Street and Tunn Alley, there was an establishment called Tunn Tavern.

00:05:10.920 And Tunn Tavern, which was owned by Nicholas's friend, Robert Mullen, he went in there and he walked in to this tavern that evening,

00:05:19.920 which they saw as a natural gathering place for the colonists, for the Americans.

00:05:25.580 And, of course, as the story goes, he walked in looking and went into that tavern on that night, November 10th, 1775,

00:05:32.980 and said, we're looking for a few good men to serve in the Marine Corps of the United States of America.

00:05:41.540 And, of course, hundreds of men, 300 men by March joined up for the United States Marine Corps,

00:05:48.400 where the very first recruiting drive was held in a tavern just blocks away.

00:05:52.700 And you can imagine the colonists sitting there, pounding their ales, saying, you know something, we're going to get in there.

00:05:58.440 We're going to go and get in the fight.

00:06:00.300 That's the people of Philadelphia.

00:06:01.860 That's the people of the United States Marine Corps.

00:06:04.220 Those are the men that founded this country.

00:06:07.460 The United States was not founded through debate society.

00:06:10.900 The United States was not founded by people, you know, just arguing out in the marketplace of free ideas.

00:06:17.300 No, the United States of America was founded by men of action.

00:06:21.700 And when George Washington was looking for men of action, who did he turn to?

00:06:25.500 He turned to the United States Marine Corps.

00:06:28.040 And when you look at our country and when our country has faced its darkest hours, its darkest moments,

00:06:35.280 whether those moments were here at home, like the battle for our own revolution, our own independence,

00:06:40.380 War of 1812, World War I, World War II, who did the United States turn to in all those times?

00:06:48.740 It was the United States Marine Corps.

00:06:50.540 And yes, even in Vietnam, and we're going to talk about Vietnam today because we're here with the Vietnam veterans

00:06:55.540 and we're going to talk about the fact that the amount of KIAs,

00:06:59.540 and we were at the memorial service which was held this morning outside of the Vietnam memorial,

00:07:03.560 the amount of KIAs with this unit, and I've got, oh, the brochure, it's over here.

00:07:08.740 I was showing it this morning on War Room, seven pages, single-spaced, of men killed in action.

00:07:17.580 We need to take it seriously because there's nothing more serious and there's nothing more deadly than a Marine in combat.

00:07:24.780 We'll be right back. Jack Posobiec, live, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:07:26.780 And our way in our golden age has just begun.

00:07:30.140 This is Human Events with Jack Posobiec.

00:07:31.900 Now it's time for everyone to understand what America First truly means.

00:07:36.360 Welcome to the second American Revolution. 0.56

00:07:44.360 All right, folks.

00:07:45.380 Jack Posobiec, we're here live back, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:07:48.620 Human Events daily.

00:07:50.300 Today is the birthday of the United States Marine Corps, which was born in Burke.

00:07:54.480 The first recruiting drive just blocks away.

00:07:56.340 Ton Tavern right here at Penn's Landing where we're all sitting right now.

00:08:00.140 I'm in a room surrounded by Marines, so I'm simultaneously in the safest place I've ever been and the most dangerous place I've ever been.

00:08:09.760 But, folks, did you know that in the last six weeks, 86 million AT&T users had their name, address, and social security numbers leaked?

00:08:18.140 Or that the CCP is harvesting massive volumes of Americans' personal data to train DeepSeq and other AI systems?

00:08:25.540 Now, while you're online doing the work like I am, you need digital camouflage.

00:08:30.020 And that's why I've partnered with our newest show sponsor, Patriot Protect.

00:08:34.040 Patriot Protect removes your personal data from the Internet.

00:08:36.560 Whether it's Google, Amazon, or Apple, your personal data will be wiped so that scammers and cybercriminals and swatters like the ones that tried to come after the Poso family will not and cannot find your data, and you can take back your security and privacy.

00:08:50.760 Once Patriot Protect scans and scrubs your personal information, they'll continuously monitor your info to make sure every new instance of a possible data breach is eliminated immediately.

00:09:00.900 I'm talking 24-7 protection for the cause to keeping the porch lights on.

00:09:04.740 The only thing that's worse than getting hacked is knowing that you could have stopped it, but you didn't take action, when you could have gone to Patriot-Protect.com slash Poso and used promo code Poso for 15% off a yearly description.

00:09:25.180 Patriot-Protect.com slash Poso.

00:09:28.220 All right, now, since we're here on Human Events Daily, and we've always got a Navy veteran, believe it or not, there's been a Navy veteran on almost every single episode of Human Events Daily.

00:09:40.380 However, today's all about the Marine Corps, which is a certain lesser-known department of the Navy.

00:09:47.160 Just got to get that in there.

00:09:48.140 But, of course, I wanted to bring on one of my good friends.

00:09:51.440 You guys know him.

00:09:52.660 Dan Caldwell, he's a former senior advisor over at the Pentagon, the Department of War, and, of course, a proud United States Marine veteran.

00:10:02.380 Dan, how are you?

00:10:03.500 I'm doing great.

00:10:04.300 And, Jack, you set it up, so I just got to go for it.

00:10:06.920 When you say we're part of the Department of the Navy, you're correct.

00:10:09.560 We're the men's Department of the Navy.

00:10:11.060 Now, Dan, I just wanted to let you know that when you're in the green room here at Human Events Daily, I know you might get a little bit hungry, so I've let out a couple of packs of Crayola crayons for you to gnaw on if, you know, if you get your appetite up a little bit.

00:10:27.340 Well, I appreciate that.

00:10:28.480 I am getting hungry.

00:10:29.520 I hope you have the green.

00:10:30.360 That's my favorite flavor.

00:10:33.520 That's so weird.

00:10:34.160 We keep running out of the greens, and now I think I know why.

00:10:36.440 But, Dan, we're here with, you know, we're here with the Vietnam veterans.

00:10:42.440 We're here with my company, and one of the things that this memorial earlier today that really struck with me was the intensity of the Vietnam conflict and how intense it was for the Marines.

00:10:55.820 Seven pages, single spaced of KIAs that they read through a single bell rung after each one, and it took quite some time to get through the entire list because they read the names out.

00:11:06.440 And you realize that, wait a minute, that's just one company.

00:11:09.420 So walk through, for me, the intensity of Vietnam for the Marine Corps and part of the Marine Corps history, and also just the understanding that it gives those who have served when it comes to those discussions of perhaps sending Marines into the fire all around the world yet again.

00:11:28.360 So, yeah, this is important, Jack.

00:11:31.200 And first of all, I enjoyed watching part of the ceremony that you posted today.

00:11:36.840 I just want to say, you know, when I was going through basic training in the Marine Corps, I was always told that we walk in the shadows of giants.

00:11:44.660 And the Vietnam Marines were definitely those giants for us, junior Marines.

00:11:48.800 We always looked up to them.

00:11:51.480 And, you know, we were well-educated on our history in Vietnam, and you cannot overstate the intensity of the Marine experience in Vietnam.

00:11:59.360 So first and foremost, it's important to know that most of the Marines of Vietnam served in I Corps, which is the military unit that controlled all the U.S. military assets in the northern part of South Vietnam.

00:12:12.680 So they were right on the border with North Vietnam, the DMZ, and then they also controlled areas all the way out to the border with Laos.

00:12:20.420 So that's where you had places like Khe Sanh, where there was a famous battle fought, where the Marines really distinguished themselves, basically held out in a siege for several months.

00:12:28.340 And then out more towards the sea, you had Hue City, where the Marines fought the famous battle in 1968, the Battle of Hue City.

00:12:35.240 So this is where you had the North Vietnamese, the V.C., they were closest to their safe havens, they were closest to their supply lines.

00:12:42.540 So that is where you saw some of the most intense combat of the war.

00:12:46.540 And so that is why you had very high Marine casualties.

00:12:50.000 You had a lot of very intense combat.

00:12:53.400 And you had a tremendous amount of terrorism from Marines that served throughout that war.

00:12:57.940 And so it's unfortunate that I don't think a lot of the Marine history in Vietnam has really been highlighted.

00:13:04.900 You've had great books like Fields of Fire, The Nightingale Song, I've talked through that.

00:13:09.540 But it really, it's nothing compared to what I went through in Iraq.

00:13:13.920 And it's nothing compared to, again, there's a lot of brutal fighting and heroism in Afghanistan, but it's really nothing compared to that.

00:13:20.580 It was significantly worse by every measure.

00:13:22.980 And so, Dan, I could see that from, you know, it connected with me today because as they read the names, so many of, they also read the dates.

00:13:36.540 They read the dates of their sacrifice.

00:13:39.920 And so many of the men, you know, the dates would line up.

00:13:43.440 It was the same day that they were all killed.

00:13:45.180 And so you realize these battles that were coming back day after day after day were just so intense.

00:13:52.240 And this was totally different from what we even saw.

00:13:55.460 And obviously, I remember the Iraq-Afghanistan era as well.

00:13:59.640 But it was just a magnitude larger.

00:14:03.400 Dan, you know, you and I talk about this all the time.

00:14:06.220 But, you know, obviously, the United States Marine Corps is willing to go wherever Uncle Sam sends them.

00:14:11.820 But isn't this also, on the flip side, why we need to be very, very careful and honor their service and willingness to do that if we are to then call them into, say, you know, Iran or Venezuela or one of these places?

00:14:26.120 You know, just because you have a highly trained, well-equipped, lethal United States Marine Corps does not mean that you should send it around the world to fight in every conflict or solve every problem.

00:14:42.140 Military force should always be the last resort.

00:14:45.240 And too often, especially in the post-Cold War era, our policymakers have deployed, not just Marines, but soldiers, sailors, airmen, to conflicts that are not of our national interest.

00:14:57.720 And the Marines and all other service members distinguish themselves well in those conflicts.

00:15:03.460 But let's just, you know, Jack, let's just quickly talk about what's going on today at the White House.

00:15:07.740 At the White House today, there is a former leader of al-Qaeda meeting with President Trump.

00:15:13.400 Al-Shara, also known as Jelani, is now the president of Syria.

00:15:18.440 I think, to be clear, it's very good that President Trump is engaging with this guy.

00:15:22.180 He clearly wants to do business with us.

00:15:24.540 Instead of starting another civil war in Syria, we should engage him, and I applaud the Trump administration for doing that.

00:15:29.700 But let's think of the symbolism of that for a second.

00:15:32.000 This guy fought United States Marines in Iraq.

00:15:35.100 He was a leader of al-Qaeda.

00:15:36.260 And he essentially joined al-Qaeda because of the Iraq War and because of our overreach in the region.

00:15:43.400 And so we've invested all this blood and treasure in these wars, and the end result is our enemies winning.

00:15:50.960 And it's because, in most cases, we didn't need to fight those wars.

00:15:54.420 We didn't need to deploy the Marines.

00:15:55.800 So I think that's an important lesson that we should absorb.

00:15:59.240 Again, we need a well-trained Marine Corps, well-trained Navy, Air Force, Army.

00:16:02.880 But we should absolutely use them as a last resort.

00:16:06.600 And just them existing isn't a reason that we should send them around the world to serve as the world's policemen.

00:16:12.720 And that's exactly right.

00:16:18.380 You know, when you have a fighting force that's willing to do that, that's willing to go into harm's way.

00:16:23.280 And by the way, and I'm just going to say it, that, you know, even though the Vietnam War, and there's obviously a lot of questions about the Vietnam War, many which I hold.

00:16:32.340 But people need to remember as well, the Vietnam War was about fighting communism.

00:16:37.420 Yes.

00:16:37.700 And that when you talk to the men who came back from Vietnam, that is the number one reason they give for why they fought.

00:16:44.600 They said, I was fighting communism.

00:16:46.780 That's why we went over there.

00:16:48.240 And so you don't hear that from, you know, many of the sort of anti-Vietnam War stories that are told.

00:16:55.260 Now, that being said, it also stands to reason that we asked the question, did it make sense?

00:17:01.400 And, you know, for the conduct of war, et cetera, et cetera.

00:17:04.160 And so when you look at all these things together, it really begs the question, right?

00:17:10.840 It always begs the question of, did we get into something for the right reasons, or are we going in and creating more problems because of our interventions?

00:17:20.340 And you just mentioned Syria, for example, something where the United States did intervene.

00:17:24.920 Now, obviously, we were not directly involved in the civil war, but we certainly were indirectly.

00:17:29.960 And that was a civil war that led to this al-Qaeda, you know, quote, unquote, former al-Qaeda leader now becoming a head of state over there.

00:17:37.580 And there are serious questions about what's going on on the ground of the Christians underneath al-Jelani.

00:17:44.240 And I'm going to continue to call him al-Jelani, by the way, because that's his name.

00:17:47.660 And questions that, unfortunately, you know, we're having a lot of trouble getting answers for.

00:17:52.680 Absolutely.

00:17:53.120 I want to go back to something you said about Vietnam.

00:17:56.600 I think it was Senator Jim Webb, former Secretary of the Navy, wrote Fields of Fire.

00:18:01.340 He said that he could make a better argument for intervening in Vietnam in the context of the global Cold War than he could in Iraq.

00:18:09.060 Regardless of how bad Vietnam became, how detached from, you know, core objectives in terms of containing communism it became, I believe that.

00:18:19.420 You can make a better argument for Vietnam in the Cold War context than Iraq in 2003.

00:18:24.200 But here's something.

00:18:25.500 You mentioned the protesters, too.

00:18:27.400 If you think about people who protested that war or avoided service in that war,

00:18:32.300 a lot of them became leaders in the national security space after the Cold War and, like, the Clinton administration and the Bush administration.

00:18:40.880 And it was that generation, the anti-war protesters were the ones who really drove a lot of our bad foreign policy,

00:18:48.180 whether it was, like, the humanitarian interventionism or people like John Bolton,

00:18:51.840 who proudly dodged the draft in Vietnam, pushing the Iraq war, because they never absorbed those lessons,

00:18:58.240 because they never fought.

00:18:59.220 They were too cowardly, you know, to go and serve the United States.

00:19:03.580 Or, in some cases, they thought the communists were the heroes. 0.90

00:19:06.680 And so that's an important point, too.

00:19:07.940 Dan Caldwell, we're on.

00:19:09.360 Today is the birthday of the United States Marine Corps.

00:19:11.580 We're here live in Philadelphia, PA.

00:19:12.960 Human Events Daily.

00:19:13.580 Right back.

00:19:20.500 Talk about influences.

00:19:22.000 These are influences.

00:19:23.860 And they're friends of mine.

00:19:26.240 Jack Prasovic.

00:19:27.760 Where's Jack?

00:19:28.660 Jack.

00:19:29.680 He's done a great job.

00:19:31.580 All right, Jack Prasovic, we are back live here.

00:19:37.840 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:19:40.780 Human Events Daily.

00:19:42.060 We're here for the birthday of the United States Marine Corps on this day, 250 years ago,

00:19:47.960 and a tavern just steps away.

00:19:49.860 The tavern had burned down in the 1700s, but there is actually a plan afoot to kind of restore it and rebuild it.

00:19:57.480 And, of course, we'll be checking back in on that as soon as it's up.

00:20:00.480 Folks, I want to tell you, though, ever since COVID, millions of Americans have started buying preparedness supplies, and especially emergency food.

00:20:08.980 Now, that's a good thing, because there's a big mistake most people make with their emergency food supply.

00:20:14.760 They don't have any way to cook it in a real emergency when the power goes out.

00:20:19.440 That's why our friends over at My Patriot Supply created their Black Friday survival special.

00:20:25.080 And, yes, Black Friday's coming, folks.

00:20:26.800 It comes with a four-week food supply plus $150 worth of free gifts, including everything you need to prepare your emergency meals.

00:20:34.160 We're talking a cook stove, fuel, fire starter, plus a water purifier, bug-out bag, and so much more.

00:20:39.640 It's the complete survival kit your family needs to ride out natural disasters, civil unrest, or anything worse.

00:20:45.120 It also makes a great Christmas gift.

00:20:47.460 So, folks, it's only available through Black Friday.

00:20:50.600 You can get it now.

00:20:51.600 Go through Black Friday.

00:20:52.920 Head on over to mypatriotsupply.com slash jack to check out everything that's included.

00:20:58.420 With all the uncertainty in the world right now, we simply can't afford to be unprepared.

00:21:02.180 So go to mypatriotsupply.com slash jack and get prepared today.

00:21:06.760 That's mypatriotsupply.com slash jack.

00:21:09.420 I want to go back on with former Pentagon senior official Dan Caldwell, a United States Marine veteran himself.

00:21:15.200 And, Dan, we were talking about the Vietnam War, putting it into context.

00:21:21.740 It was certainly done with the context of containing communism.

00:21:26.320 And that is the argument that was done for it.

00:21:28.480 When we wrote our anti-communist history book last year, myself and Joshua Lysak, that's exactly the way that we framed it.

00:21:36.240 And we sort of left the other debate, you know, sort of for another time.

00:21:39.880 But it really does speak, I think, to the conduct not only of how the United States gets into wars and also how the United States conducts those wars once we get into them.

00:21:52.140 Because, Dan, when you really look at it, you know, when the United States got, quote, unquote, got into Vietnam, did it really achieve the result that we were looking for?

00:22:01.400 Thank you, Dan.

00:22:31.400 Now, at the end of the day, global communism lost.

00:22:34.860 And thankfully, Vietnam is coming around to our side, has, in a lot of ways, come around to our side. 1.00

00:22:40.320 The Secretary of War, Pete Hegseff, was there just last week.

00:22:43.760 We're signing military deals.

00:22:46.000 And there's an alignment, and I think it's a good thing, emerging between Vietnam and the United States on some key issues.

00:22:52.580 I also think it's one of the important lessons of Vietnam, though, that a lot of people forget is that in 1975, if you go back to that time, a lot of people thought that global communism is now on the march.

00:23:07.360 You know, you saw a lot of communist victories in Africa to Latin America and places like Nicaragua, obviously at Angola and Africa.

00:23:15.940 And in 1979, then you had the Soviets move in Afghanistan.

00:23:21.240 What happened 10 years later, the Cold War ended.

00:23:23.800 And so I think the lesson from—one lesson from Vietnam is that one military defeat does not mean the end of American military—or the end of American power.

00:23:39.760 And that it—you know, like people were talking about Afghanistan, the fall of Afghanistan, you know, being this absolute disaster for American power.

00:23:48.480 And it wasn't a great look.

00:23:49.920 It wasn't good for our credibility.

00:23:52.460 And then people tried to connect it to the Russian Invasion Act of Ukraine, which I believe is wrong.

00:23:57.680 You know, cards on the table.

00:23:59.740 But at the end of the day, it didn't really impact our ability to do things in Europe or to do things that we need to do in the Pacific.

00:24:07.500 That was our own policymakers' bad decisions.

00:24:10.640 Luckily, after Vietnam, with Ronald Reagan and others, guided by a lot of Vietnam vets, I'd noted, the United States military rebuilt, retooled, and by the end of the Cold War had recovered from Vietnam and became a very powerful force that was able to deter the Soviet Union and ultimately help secure a victory in the Cold War.

00:24:34.980 Yeah, that's exactly right.

00:24:36.400 And so we look at the history of these things, and it should give us pause.

00:24:42.580 I just always think that if you understand the history of warfare in the United States, especially in the post-World War II era, it should always give us pause when we question about whether or not we should get involved in yet another armed conflict, and especially putting boots on the ground.

00:24:59.140 Because you look at the history of Korea, look at the history of Vietnam, and now the history of Iraq and Afghanistan, and you have to wonder, okay, did this make sense?

00:25:09.940 Was the juice worth the squeeze?

00:25:12.280 Was it worth it for all those seven single-spaced pages of KIAs in Vietnam to hand the Soviets a support base there in Southeast Asia? 0.60

00:25:22.360 I'm not sure, and you talked to a lot of the guys who came out, and they said, well, we could have won this thing, but we were told to pull back, and we were asked about rules of engagement.

00:25:31.120 And it has nothing to do with the valor and the bravery and the courage of the men who fought.

00:25:36.400 It has to do with the political decisions made both before, during, and after the conflicts.

00:25:42.540 And that is always where the problem seems to be.

00:25:45.020 But I'll tell you what, Dan, when I go and I meet with the veterans or even the current service members, I don't think the problem is with the United States Marines.

00:25:52.800 No, absolutely not, and it is still a fantastic group of war fighters, and they carry the spirit of the Marines you're with right now in Vietnam.

00:26:05.900 That same spirit that motivated Marines in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam is still within every Marine currently serving in the United States Marine Corps.

00:26:17.140 You know, there's a lot of this talk about, oh, the Marines of today are softer, and, you know, that stuff's been going on since the founding of the Marine Corps.

00:26:25.920 You know, the Marines that were fighting in, you know, World War II, they're probably their salt dog.

00:26:34.220 World War I veterans are probably saying the same thing.

00:26:36.640 It goes back generations.

00:26:37.880 But let me tell you, you have an incredible Marine Corps that's able to do incredible things, and their training is superb, and they're motivated.

00:26:47.380 And on top of that, they're innovative.

00:26:49.060 That's an important part of the Marine Corps history is that this is the branch of innovation.

00:26:52.540 That's key. Dan, we're out of time because I got to cut you off because the general is coming up next.

00:26:58.220 Dan Caldwell.

00:26:59.020 Go give him a follow at Dan Caldwell.

00:27:01.020 Where's Jack?

00:27:13.340 Where's Jack?

00:27:15.480 Where is he?

00:27:16.740 Jack, I want to see you.

00:27:20.420 Great job, Jack.

00:27:21.920 Thank you.

00:27:22.660 What a job you do.

00:27:24.080 You know, we have an incredible thing.

00:27:25.240 We're always talking about the fake news and the bad, but we have guys, and these are the guys who should be getting policemen.

00:27:34.180 All right, folks.

00:27:35.000 Jack Kosobik, we're back here.

00:27:36.180 Live, Human Events Daily, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:27:39.220 We're here for the birthday, 250th birthday, United States Marine Corps.

00:27:43.480 Folks, I want to tell you, if you're a homeowner in America, you need to listen to this.

00:27:49.340 The FBI has been warning about a type of real estate fraud that's on the rise, and this is called title theft.

00:27:54.540 And your equity is the target.

00:27:57.000 Here's how it works.

00:27:58.020 Criminals forge your signature on a signal document. 1.00

00:28:00.520 They use a fake notary stamp and file it with the county.

00:28:03.440 And just like that, on the record, they own your home.

00:28:06.880 Using your ownership, they can take out loans against your equity or even sell your property.

00:28:11.280 And you won't know about it until foreclosure or collection notices show up in the mail.

00:28:15.640 That's why I've partnered with Home Title Lock so you can protect your equity and find out today if you're already a victim.

00:28:21.620 Use my promo code POSO at HomeTitleLock.com, and you'll get a free title history report and a free trial of their million-dollar triple lock protection.

00:28:30.320 That's 24-7 monitoring of your title records, urgent alerts to any changes, and if fraud occurs, their U.S.-based restoration team will spend up to $1 million to fix it.

00:28:40.220 Find out why I trust Home Title Lock protect yourself, like I did.

00:28:44.040 Don't be a victim.

00:28:44.900 Protect your equity today.

00:28:46.620 All right, folks, so it's a true honor to be on here today, this special guest that we have.

00:28:52.760 This is Lieutenant General Paul K. Van Riper.

00:28:55.800 He was the commanding officer of my company during 1968 to 1969, a student of Naval War College up at Newport, Rhode Island,

00:29:06.680 and then later assumed command at the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment before commanding the 4th Marines.

00:29:13.140 Lieutenant General, thank you so much for joining us today.

00:29:15.020 Good to be here.

00:29:17.360 Reflect with me, if you can, what is it, when you got to Vietnam, was your first time in theater in 1968, was that when you first arrived?

00:29:27.640 No, that was my second tour.

00:29:29.080 That was your second tour.

00:29:29.880 In my first tour, I was an advisor with the Vietnamese Marine Corps, was wounded after about four months and evacuated, so this was my second tour.

00:29:38.920 So this was your second tour.

00:29:41.180 How did you see, oh, okay, I see it here.

00:29:42.680 So 65 was your first tour, and then 60, and I'm reading this, by the way, you were wounded while attacking an NVA machine gun in a rice paddy outside of Saigon.

00:29:52.860 The Vietnamese unit I was with was the 3rd Battalion.

00:29:57.040 They were going after a base camp of the Viet Cong south of Saigon, and I was with the lead element.

00:30:04.500 And as I was calling in Army helicopters to try to take this out, it got shot in the stomach at that time.

00:30:12.420 Now, when you got hit with that, did they take you, did we have, in 65, did we have those mass units, did we have a U.S. military there, or was it the Vietnamese you had to go into?

00:30:21.680 No, there was a very brave couple of Army-worn helicopter pilots, they took that, it was a Huey with guns on the side, they brought it right around, set it down, they took some rounds through the cockpit, they picked it up and turned their tail back towards where the enemy was, I crawled over and got in and they took off, took me straight into the

00:30:42.420 Army's 3rd Army Field Hospital, so I was probably in the operating room within about 30, 45 minutes after I was wounded.

00:30:51.140 Well, that's an incredible turnaround to be able to get in, get out, from a hot battle zone to be able to get to the hospital unit so quickly, and it really speaks, I think, to the competency of the men that were there on the ground.

00:31:06.080 I read a manual about the First World War and said stomach shots were always fatal, so it was good to be a little further along in time.

00:31:15.740 You were breaking the mold on that one, breaking the odds on that, but that really also became sort of the story of Vietnam, is that there was so much medical innovation that came out of these intense conflicts, these intense situations.

00:31:31.760 We called it the golden hour, if you could stabilize a Marine and get them out to a medical facility within the golden hour, the odds of surviving were much higher.

00:31:42.540 Yeah, so that was about one hour, so then you get wounded, you come back, what was it like getting, you know, being on the mend and then coming back three years later as a commanding officer?

00:31:53.180 Well, coming back to the States wasn't pleasant, because that's when the anti-war elements were pretty high.

00:32:00.680 My parents, for example, there was a picture of me in a local paper, they got those papers with obscenities written over sent to them and things like that, so it wasn't pleasant coming back into the States.

00:32:13.100 But going back out as a company commander was almost a dream come true.

00:32:18.680 I'd always wanted to, I'd commanded a platoon, I always wanted to command a rifle company, so to have that opportunity, I valued it.

00:32:26.140 And just for, until we get it out, what was your age, 1965? How old were you?

00:32:30.840 I was 29 years old. I'd been in the Marine Corps since I was 18. I'd been enlisted for a couple of years, so I had a good bit of experience and felt pretty confident.

00:32:42.300 That's incredible. And I want to ask you about that. So you get wounded. You take a wound in a conflict that you didn't start yourself, but you'd been ordered to go to, and your parents were getting obscenities about you even coming home after being wounded in combat.

00:32:59.900 Yes.

00:33:01.300 What did your parents say when they got that?

00:33:03.180 I think they were upset, and to give an indication of what it was like, when I came home from the second door with my company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, my wife had to change her phone number to an unlisted number because she got harassing calls.

00:33:21.320 It was just things that shouldn't have been done.

00:33:24.380 No, it's absolutely things that shouldn't have been done. And you look at the history of it, and I was really, you know, I mentioned before that I was really moved that, you know, when we were going through the booklet here, and they read the names, it's seven pages, single spaced, name after name after name of the Marines that didn't make it back.

00:33:45.520 Yes.

00:33:45.820 And realizing the intensity, and that's just this company.

00:33:49.620 It is. A lot of casualties. Now, in terms of commanding that company, I often tell folks, if it wasn't for the separation from my family, and if it wasn't for the casualties, that would be my groundhog day.

00:34:03.320 I would lead that company for my entire life. Some fantastic Marines and Navy Corpsmen, they're living on the edge.

00:34:10.880 There's a certain excitement to it, and just some great people around you, both in terms of their professional skills and their courage.

00:34:19.980 So the casualties are obviously something that's just a tragic, a tragic part of being in the military.

00:34:28.220 Well, that's exactly right. And I appreciate so much that you and the men and the families are still here, even today, all these years later, that are commemorating, that are standing.

00:34:38.740 And it is about honor, but it's also an act of duty, isn't it?

00:34:43.620 It is. What most folks don't think about, they think about camaraderie in the military, but it's actually a love, a love for each other.

00:34:52.940 And what we find in the reunions is the first time someone comes, they're a little leery the first afternoon or evening.

00:34:59.860 The second day, they get into discussions, look at photos that were taken there, begin to talk to whatever squad or platoon they were in.

00:35:09.220 By the Sunday morning, when they get ready to leave, everybody's in tears. It's just a real emotional event.

00:35:16.340 But there's no way to really explain it unless you've lived it and have that feeling.

00:35:22.940 But it doesn't matter what your walk of life is, anything about your ethnic or religious background, none of that matters.

00:35:29.560 You are a United States Marine and you've been in combat together. That's what counts.

00:35:34.940 And you've been United States Marine, once a Marine, always a Marine.

00:35:38.360 And I would have loved, I know that the tavern, they're working on getting it back together.

00:35:42.740 It would be just about a couple of blocks from where we are.

00:35:45.240 We are in the city where the Marine Corps was born in 1775.

00:35:49.820 John Adams had a maritime commission that they were studying whether we needed a Marine Corps.

00:35:55.840 They decided that we did.

00:35:57.740 They informed the Second Continental Congress and there was a resolution that established two battalions of American Marines.

00:36:05.320 And Samuel Nichols was the first commissioned officer and he began to recruit Marines, sent drummers and fifers throughout the town and got the first Marine.

00:36:18.060 So this is, Philadelphia is the home of the Marine Corps.

00:36:21.560 What does it mean to you that, do you think that the Marine Corps, the first recruiting drive, was in a tavern?

00:36:28.340 Well, that's appropriate. That's where it should have been. No doubt about it.

00:36:31.960 Now, do you think if we went into Philadelphia taverns today, we'd find some ready and willing and able Marines?

00:36:40.280 Well, what the Marine Corps always tells these young men, you're not good enough.

00:36:43.900 And then they've got to prove themselves.

00:36:45.980 That's right.

00:36:46.500 One of my favorite stories is of a recruiter that, recruiters from all the services go into high school.

00:36:52.680 And each of the other services talk about the benefits, the training, what you're going to get out of it.

00:36:59.900 And the Marine recruiter walks up there and looks out over the student body and says, I don't think any of you are good enough to be Marines.

00:37:07.600 But if you think you are, I'll be in the back. Come back and see me.

00:37:10.880 And that's how we get the kind of folks we want.

00:37:13.320 And that's the kind of folks you want.

00:37:14.840 And then the pull-up bar comes out and the push-up competitions begin and all the rest of it.

00:37:20.700 And, no, it's absolutely appropriate.

00:37:22.540 And that's the Marines.

00:37:23.860 Cut from a different cloth, but that's how you get the few and the proud.

00:37:28.200 We're coming up on a quick break here.

00:37:30.580 And I'm looking at the comments here.

00:37:34.780 General, are you able to stick with us for another segment?

00:37:36.740 I can stay here as long as you want me.

00:37:38.060 All right.

00:37:38.600 He's staying here, folks.

00:37:39.540 We're in Human Events Daily.

00:37:41.580 We're here live, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:37:43.820 We've got General Van Riper, who's here with us.

00:37:46.520 He was the commanding officer of my company there in Vietnam, 1968, 1969.

00:37:52.380 He's telling the stories of the Corps.

00:37:54.100 He's telling the stories about what it was like when he was there facing off against those godless commies in the Viet Cong. 0.99

00:38:00.160 We'll be right back here.

00:38:01.160 Human Events continues.

00:38:01.900 Jack is a great guy.

00:38:09.720 He's written a fantastic book.

00:38:11.480 Everybody's talking about it.

00:38:12.640 Go get it.

00:38:13.740 And he's been my friend right from the beginning of this whole beautiful event.

00:38:17.720 And we're going to turn it around and make our country great to get to him.

00:38:21.020 Amen.

00:38:25.280 All right, Jack Posobiec.

00:38:26.480 We're back here live, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

00:38:28.300 We're on with General Paul Van Riper, the commanding officer of Mike 3-7.

00:38:34.280 And, General, I had to ask you, so Mike 3-7, am I correct in understanding that this is the most decorated unit for the Vietnam War?

00:38:43.180 I'm not absolutely sure of that, but it certainly was one of the most decorated.

00:38:47.700 Saw some of the heaviest combat.

00:38:49.400 Went into Vietnam in July of 1965 and didn't leave until October of 1970 and was involved in some of the heaviest fighting.

00:39:02.140 I know when I was there, what we called the post-offensive, the casualties were pretty high.

00:39:08.820 It was a great unit, a great unit.

00:39:10.700 That's incredible.

00:39:11.320 Well, and, General, I want to thank you for your time today.

00:39:13.740 I want to get one of your predecessors here, another former CO of Mike 3-7.

00:39:18.460 But I wanted to say thank you.

00:39:19.840 And if you don't mind hearing it from a Navy guy, Semper Fi.

00:39:23.000 Okay.

00:39:23.420 Well, it's a Navy-Marine Corps team.

00:39:25.260 That is right.

00:39:25.740 And Tom Drotty here is an old friend.

00:39:27.280 So I'm glad to pass the mic to you.

00:39:29.120 All right.

00:39:29.720 Well, let's get him in.

00:39:30.860 Thank you, General.

00:39:31.520 All right.

00:39:31.620 Another general coming up here because we've got a number of Marines here joining us on Human Events daily today.

00:39:41.260 I want to get him in.

00:39:44.080 And it's just an incredible and absolutely incredible.

00:39:47.080 General, thank you so much for joining us here.

00:39:48.720 We'll get you sitting down.

00:39:50.040 Great to meet you as well, General.

00:39:51.220 We'll get your mic right there.

00:39:52.780 And you can just look right at me.

00:39:53.880 You don't need to worry about looking at the camera.

00:39:55.560 But do people see?

00:39:56.600 I promise, General.

00:39:57.380 Now, so I'm looking over here.

00:39:58.980 Now, you are the commanding officer.

00:40:00.380 So prior to Paul getting there, you were the commanding officer going back for my company in 1966.

00:40:08.600 So you were there prior to that.

00:40:10.640 Now, let me ask you.

00:40:11.680 Who had the tougher job?

00:40:12.680 Was it you or Paul?

00:40:14.820 Well, you see, in the Marine Corps, there's only two good jobs.

00:40:19.400 Right.

00:40:20.060 The one you just came from and the one you're going to.

00:40:24.020 But there could be no better job in Vietnam than to command my company. 0.96

00:40:28.260 Is that right?

00:40:29.080 Absolutely.

00:40:29.480 Absolutely.

00:40:30.380 Loved them.

00:40:30.940 They're tremendous.

00:40:32.340 I still talk to them to this day.

00:40:34.680 We met each other in 1963.

00:40:38.420 And we kind of grew up together.

00:40:40.300 So it's just a many ways a father-son relationship.

00:40:44.300 I quoted the other night there from Sun Tzu.

00:40:48.180 And that's the relationship that we had with my company in many ways for my son before I had children.

00:41:08.740 But they're my sons, but they're my sons and will be till we die.

00:41:13.240 Amen.

00:41:13.840 And you went into those valleys and you went into those jungles with them and they went with you.

00:41:17.680 All the way, absolutely.

00:41:19.680 All the way, absolutely.

00:41:20.780 But it was just an honor to command a company like Mike and to be a part of, you know, to make history.

00:41:31.960 Oh, they're asking me if you can hold the mic just a little bit that way, better audio.

00:41:36.900 So when you're with the veterans, when you speak to Marines today, you know, people who are thinking about getting into the Marine Corps or maybe, you know, your E1s,

00:41:50.560 what advice do you have to them as someone who's seen it all?

00:41:56.120 Just be proud of being a Marine.

00:41:58.420 Our core values are courage, honor, and commitment.

00:42:01.960 And those are the things that we expect and are produced by the Marines. 0.53

00:42:06.920 Great training out of boot camp, preparation for whatever assignment will be in the Marine Corps.

00:42:13.300 And every MOS is important.

00:42:14.920 And so I'm an infantry officer, but we had to rely upon artillery and aviation and tanks and all the rest of them.

00:42:22.580 So it's truly a team.

00:42:25.240 And, you know, once a Marine, always a Marine.

00:42:28.220 It's just always the case.

00:42:29.440 Oh, that's right.

00:42:30.040 And they say that, and you'll have to correct me if I've got the story wrong.

00:42:34.460 It's coming from a Navy guy.

00:42:35.440 But if I remember correctly, it was German dispatches in World War I that were intercepted.

00:42:41.440 And they said there's a new kind of fighting force that the Americans have sent over.

00:42:46.060 We're not sure who they are.

00:42:47.500 They're not soldiers and they're not sailors, but they fight like a pack of devil dogs. 0.78

00:42:53.080 Teufelhunden. 0.92

00:42:53.960 Yeah, absolutely.

00:42:55.180 Yeah.

00:42:56.040 And who was that again?

00:42:58.820 And that was the United States Marines.

00:42:59.940 Oh, yes.

00:43:00.720 The Teufelhunden. 0.78

00:43:01.900 The Teufelhunden. 0.78

00:43:02.720 Yeah. 0.97

00:43:03.020 The devil dogs.

00:43:04.100 And that, of course, has gone and become, as I said, the Marines found that,

00:43:08.240 and they immediately adopted that as the nickname throughout time because even the German Huns were willing to say that.

00:43:14.280 Yeah.

00:43:14.620 What a great nickname, huh?

00:43:15.940 Oh, it's incredible.

00:43:17.340 And when you look for it, what makes a good Marine?

00:43:21.980 What would you say?

00:43:22.580 Well, the number one thing is integrity, and that is you're always expecting to do the right thing for the right reasons.

00:43:35.540 And that integrity expands to those that you're serving with, your fellow Marines, or now sister Marines as well,

00:43:44.180 but that they can rely upon you and you can rely upon them.

00:43:47.420 And I mentioned last night that in the summer and fall of 1966, over half the company was wounded or had been wounded.

00:44:02.840 So just tremendous actions, and General Van Riper has described some of them already, all the way until 1970.

00:44:11.220 And my company was always in the thick of it, and, again, we're not sure who's the most decorated unit,

00:44:17.200 but as far as I'm concerned, the one that is near to my heart and will be until the day I die is my company.

00:44:24.300 And Mike 3-7.

00:44:25.520 When you look out there and you look back at the history of it,

00:44:29.720 what do people get wrong about the history of the experience of the Marines in Vietnam?

00:44:34.840 I think, and I taught a course on Vietnam, and I think what the problem is that for many Americans,

00:44:44.600 they mixed up the war with the warrior.

00:44:48.920 And if they didn't like the war, they had a tendency to take it out of the warrior.

00:44:53.820 And that's just wrong, and the way some of the veterans were treated when they returned, you know, is inexcusable.

00:44:59.620 But, you know, we got over it.

00:45:01.900 The people understood eventually that we had a job to do, and we did it.

00:45:06.040 So I think that's one of the things that always stayed with me is that when you want somebody to fight,

00:45:14.980 you send in the Marines.

00:45:16.860 I mean, there's not – and we can do demonstrations and feints and all the rest of it,

00:45:20.900 but when it comes time to fix bayonets and charge, as I once said, the opportunity to give that command,

00:45:30.280 then you fix bayonets and you charge.

00:45:32.800 You expect it to.

00:45:33.920 Wait, you were – hold on a second.

00:45:35.340 You were still using bayonets in 1966.

00:45:38.700 Oh, yeah.

00:45:39.740 That's a great weapon.

00:45:41.660 When it came time to take a position that was a reinforced battalion and my company going up against it,

00:45:52.880 used every supporting arm I could, artillery and aircraft.

00:45:56.340 So the sun is going down.

00:45:59.160 You don't want to attack a position where they know where they are, but you don't know where they are.

00:46:04.080 So I said, there's only one thing you can do is fix bayonets.

00:46:07.560 And when the bayonets went on, it was this amazing resolve that came over the company.

00:46:13.260 It was like, this is as grisly as it's going to get.

00:46:17.540 You know, we're not going to shoot somebody at 300 yards or we're going to smash or slash or beat to death another human being.

00:46:25.500 And at the end of that, at one end of this rifle, at the other, there's going to be someone alive and someone dead.

00:46:32.500 And you hear a story – and I've read so many accounts of the close quarters combat,

00:46:37.180 at the tunnel combat that happened.

00:46:39.900 Tunnel rats, yeah.

00:46:40.600 The tunnel rats, yeah.

00:46:41.400 I've read quite a bit.

00:46:42.880 And it doesn't get more harrowing than being up close and personal.

00:46:46.680 And, you know, a bayonet is not exactly effective at 300 yards.

00:46:49.900 No.

00:46:50.360 More about three feet.

00:46:51.720 Yeah, or less.

00:46:53.160 Or less.

00:46:54.060 General, we're just about out of time.

00:46:56.200 Final minute to you.

00:46:57.380 What does it mean that America is turning its face towards the Marine Corps today on the 250th birthday?

00:47:03.620 I think that the first thing should be the gratitude for having a corps of Marines that is most ready when the nation is least ready.

00:47:17.600 And in these days where we can't predict the future, we just have to be absolutely ready for the next step.

00:47:24.940 And that means staying prepared, staying trained, staying in shape, modernizing equipment, and so forth.

00:47:30.940 But all of that depends on one commodity, and that's the Marine who is holding that weapon, operating that drone, whatever the case may be.

00:47:41.380 And that's where our confidence must be.

00:47:45.280 And it's our duty to make sure that our nation always has that confidence in us.

00:47:51.140 Amen to that, General.

00:47:52.180 The power of a single Marine rifleman defending the United States of America means the United States will never fall.

00:47:59.720 Ladies and gentlemen, as always, you have my permission to lay ashore.

Human Events Daily with Jack Posobiec - November 10, 2025

Celebrating The 250th Birthday of the U.S Marines Live From Philadelphia

Episode Stats

Summary

Transcript