Rebel News Podcast - July 12, 2018


Trump talks tough to NATO — while Trudeau takes selfies & cuts military spending (again)


Episode Stats

Length

42 minutes

Words per Minute

171.09486

Word Count

7,339

Sentence Count

379

Misogynist Sentences

18

Hate Speech Sentences

19


Summary

Donald Trump says that NATO allies are not pulling their fair share. Is he right? Well, yes he is. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, all the countries agree to spend 2% of their GDP on the militaries. In other words, the average American works about one day a month to pay for the U.S. military. In Canada, by contrast, we spend about 1.3% of our GDP on our military.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Tonight, Donald Trump talks tough to NATO allies who refuse to pay their fair share
00:00:04.740 while Justin Trudeau takes selfies and cuts our military spending again.
00:00:09.700 It's July 11th and you're watching The Ezra LeVant Show.
00:00:17.940 Why should others go to jail when you're a biggest carbon consumer I know?
00:00:21.800 There's 8,500 customers here and you won't give them an answer.
00:00:25.520 You come here once a year with a sign and you feel morally superior.
00:00:28.500 The only thing I have to say to the government about why I publish it is because it's my bloody right to do so.
00:00:39.160 Donald Trump says that NATO allies are not pulling their fair share.
00:00:43.240 Is he right?
00:00:44.380 Well, yes he is.
00:00:45.440 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, all the countries agree to spend 2% of their GDP on the militaries.
00:00:51.980 The U.S. spends almost 4% of their GDP.
00:00:54.140 In other words, the average American works about one day a month to pay for the U.S. military.
00:01:00.160 In Canada, by contrast, we spend about 1.3% of our GDP on the military.
00:01:05.680 U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Italy, in terms of raw amounts, we're number 6th.
00:01:10.560 In terms of a percentage of our GDP, we're not even in the top 10, though.
00:01:14.380 That's about to fall even lower.
00:01:15.660 We'll be number 16 next year.
00:01:17.260 But, hey, we'll still beat Luxembourg.
00:01:20.840 A NATO report said Canada is expected to spend an estimated 1.23% of our GDP on defense in 2018,
00:01:28.460 down from 1.36% last year, says the annual report, which looks at military investments for all member states.
00:01:35.180 That's from Global News.
00:01:37.200 Look, even the Toronto Star admits it.
00:01:38.740 Here's their headline.
00:01:39.440 I hate to say it, but Trump is right about Canada's military spending.
00:01:43.340 When the star says it, you know, it's true if they admit it.
00:01:47.420 Check out this tweet from Justin Trudeau, though.
00:01:50.200 Today, I'm proud to announce that continuing in Canada's long tradition of contributions and leadership at NATO,
00:01:57.020 we will be stepping up and taking command for the first year of NATO's new mission in Iraq,
00:02:03.780 a mission focused on capacity building and training, centered in Baghdad,
00:02:09.500 focused on the fact that now that we have degraded and even defeated Daesh on the ground,
00:02:14.340 we have to win the peace.
00:02:15.980 We have to build capacity.
00:02:17.540 We have to help governance.
00:02:19.140 We have to create strong institutions around Iraqi security
00:02:22.860 that are going to be able to support this fledgling democracy in the years to come.
00:02:27.160 Once again, Canada is stepping up and proud to do so.
00:02:30.620 Trudeau says we help build a more peaceful world.
00:02:32.620 So after the U.S. and U.K. military defeated ISIS,
00:02:37.280 Trudeau says that Canada will be there to build capacity.
00:02:40.180 I don't really know what building capacity means either,
00:02:43.000 other than Trudeau's endless capacity for BS.
00:02:46.080 He does the head bob thing again, which he does whenever he's BSing you.
00:02:50.860 He does that a lot when he's talking about groping girls.
00:02:54.180 Remember, Trudeau was the guy who, right after he was elected and Barack Obama first called him after his election in 2015,
00:02:59.620 Trudeau blurted out in the phone call that he was withdrawing our six CF-18 fighter jets from Iraq.
00:03:05.140 Obama pleaded with him not to do so, but Trudeau did anyways.
00:03:09.040 And now Trudeau's promising to do some capacity building, and he's so proud of that, isn't he?
00:03:14.180 I usually, let me show you one more tweet from Harjit Sajjan.
00:03:17.860 He says, I usually finish off the day with a run.
00:03:20.860 Nice to keep that up in Latvia with some of our women and men in uniform.
00:03:24.240 And if you scroll down, it's him jogging in the forested field.
00:03:31.720 That's obviously a photo op.
00:03:34.300 Just stop and think about that for a second.
00:03:36.980 When you go jogging, if you go jogging,
00:03:40.140 I mean, you can tell people about it,
00:03:41.220 but Harjit Sajjan and Trudeau and Freeland,
00:03:44.120 they had a photographer stand in place and then ready, set, go.
00:03:48.800 They ran to him in a posed photo op.
00:03:52.360 It was posed, and to state the obvious,
00:03:53.940 they flew that staff photographer in from Canada to Latvia.
00:04:00.280 So they spent thousands of dollars on that little photo op there.
00:04:03.980 I guess we should be grateful that Trudeau even had his shirt on,
00:04:07.120 unlike this photo stunt last week,
00:04:09.520 because who amongst us, when accused of sexual assault,
00:04:12.460 doesn't pose for a topless jogging picture?
00:04:14.940 Anyways, Harjit Sajjan and Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland
00:04:18.300 are really good at photo ops and selfies
00:04:20.400 because they have to be,
00:04:22.040 because they have to distract from the fact that Canada
00:04:23.900 is not living up to our promises to move towards 2% of our GDP for NATO.
00:04:28.020 We're going in the opposite direction.
00:04:29.920 Okay, enough of the photo ops.
00:04:30.860 Let's look at some stubs since here.
00:04:32.040 Here's Donald Trump doing what he does best,
00:04:34.960 saying the obvious truth so bluntly, so plainly,
00:04:38.040 that you can't dispute it.
00:04:39.180 You can haggle, you can quibble,
00:04:41.300 you can say you're outraged by how rude he is,
00:04:43.160 but please watch the next 60 seconds
00:04:45.180 and tell me a single factual error here.
00:04:47.960 Mr. President, which countries do you want to spend more on data in particular?
00:04:51.900 Just look at the chart.
00:04:53.180 Take a look at the chart.
00:04:55.000 It's public, and many countries are not paying what they should,
00:04:59.000 and frankly, many countries owe us a tremendous amount of money
00:05:02.640 for many years back where they're delinquent, as far as I'm concerned,
00:05:07.060 because the United States has had to pay for them.
00:05:09.640 So if you go back 10 or 20 years, you'll just add it all up.
00:05:12.520 It's massive amounts of money is owed.
00:05:14.880 The United States has paid and stepped up like nobody.
00:05:20.540 This has gone on for decades, by the way.
00:05:22.280 This has gone on for many Presidents,
00:05:23.720 but no other President brought it up like I bring it up.
00:05:27.660 So something has to be done,
00:05:29.140 and the Secretary General has been working on it very hard.
00:05:31.480 This year, since our last meeting,
00:05:34.600 commitments have been made for over $40 billion more money
00:05:37.840 spent by other countries.
00:05:39.680 So that's a step, but it's a very small step.
00:05:41.660 It sounds like a lot of money, and it is,
00:05:43.880 but it's a very small amount of money
00:05:45.480 relative to what they owe and to what they should be paying.
00:05:48.500 Yeah, it's true, and although Germany
00:05:51.860 is where so many U.S. military bases are,
00:05:54.360 and the whole point of NATO,
00:05:56.720 according to its first Secretary General,
00:05:58.760 Lord Ismay, was to keep the Soviet Union out,
00:06:02.280 the Americans in, and the Germans down.
00:06:04.980 That's right, and Donald Trump is in,
00:06:07.380 and American taxpayers are in,
00:06:09.220 but where's everyone else?
00:06:11.300 We Canadians free ride off the U.S. military.
00:06:13.320 We all know it.
00:06:14.680 We boast about our free health care,
00:06:16.020 or actually we don't really boast about it a lot anymore,
00:06:18.360 because by now we all know about the massive waiting lines
00:06:21.080 and sullen government workers
00:06:22.400 and old obsolete technology,
00:06:24.760 but we wouldn't have free health care at all
00:06:27.200 without the Americans paying for our security
00:06:28.820 for the past 50 years.
00:06:30.920 And all of our moral primping and preening
00:06:32.680 is because America foots our bill.
00:06:37.080 Sorry, it's true.
00:06:37.740 You can like that, you can dislike it,
00:06:39.060 but you cannot deny it.
00:06:40.880 And we're lucky that Trump doesn't focus on Canada
00:06:42.980 unless we keep provoking him,
00:06:44.380 which Trudeau bizarrely seems to want to do,
00:06:46.380 but here's Trump talking with the NATO Secretary General,
00:06:50.160 a Norwegian chap named Jens Stoltenberg.
00:06:53.220 And what's his job?
00:06:54.300 Well, it's to make NATO strong.
00:06:55.740 So he didn't take Trump's message as a scolding.
00:06:58.980 I think he loved it.
00:07:00.000 I think he was grateful for it.
00:07:01.660 Here, take a look.
00:07:02.860 And it's an unfair burden on the United States,
00:07:05.780 so we're here to talk about that,
00:07:07.700 and I'm sure it will be resolved.
00:07:09.440 I have great confidence in the Secretary General.
00:07:12.280 He's worked very, very hard on this,
00:07:14.740 and he knows it's a fact.
00:07:16.340 But I have great confidence in him and his representatives.
00:07:21.220 Would you like to say something?
00:07:23.560 First of all, it's great to see you again, Mr. President,
00:07:26.220 and good to have you here for the summit.
00:07:28.600 And we are going to discuss many important issues at the summit.
00:07:32.120 Among them is defense spending.
00:07:34.420 And we all agree that we have to do more.
00:07:36.720 I agree with you that we have to make sure
00:07:39.180 that allies are investing more.
00:07:40.680 The good news is that the allies have started
00:07:43.720 to invest more in defense.
00:07:46.460 After years of cutting defense budgets,
00:07:49.860 they have started to add billions to their defense budgets.
00:07:53.840 And last year was the biggest increase
00:07:56.640 in defense spending across Europe and Canada in a generation.
00:08:00.420 Why was that last year?
00:08:01.900 It's also because of your leadership,
00:08:03.480 because of your clear message.
00:08:06.340 They won't write that, but they won't.
00:08:07.740 No, I have said it before,
00:08:09.400 but the thing is that it really has,
00:08:13.060 your message is having an impact.
00:08:17.520 Of course it's true.
00:08:18.600 Do you doubt that Stoltenberg was grateful
00:08:20.240 that the U.S. president was speaking out loud
00:08:22.220 instead of whispering,
00:08:23.440 as Obama and Bush and Clinton did before him?
00:08:25.960 And that point by Trump that the media wouldn't report
00:08:28.020 that NATO was happy to hear it,
00:08:29.620 and Trump was having a positive effect.
00:08:31.000 Trump was 100% right, wasn't he?
00:08:33.340 So Trump was getting encouraged,
00:08:34.860 and so he just let it rip.
00:08:35.900 Here, listen to this gloriousness.
00:08:37.740 I'm going to let the tape run for three full minutes
00:08:40.640 because it's awesome.
00:08:43.500 And again, like it or dislike it,
00:08:45.340 can you quarrel with it?
00:08:46.720 Take a listen.
00:08:47.240 Now, I could cut this off after one minute
00:08:48.760 or after two minutes
00:08:50.040 because he makes his point that quickly.
00:08:52.420 Then he makes it again,
00:08:53.480 and then he makes it again and again.
00:08:54.940 And you can even see his chief of staff
00:08:57.240 squirm a little bit in his seat.
00:09:00.200 See his secretary of state
00:09:01.340 squirm a little bit in his seat
00:09:02.980 because Trump is just smashing the point again and again
00:09:05.780 because, frankly, it's so undiplomatic to speak that way,
00:09:09.600 which is exactly why Trump did it.
00:09:11.400 And if John Kelly and Mike Pompeo are uncomfortable,
00:09:16.560 well, imagine how Angela Merkel feels about this.
00:09:21.860 Well, I have to say,
00:09:22.780 I think it's very sad
00:09:25.720 when Germany makes a massive oil and gas deal with Russia
00:09:29.500 where you're supposed to be guarding against Russia,
00:09:32.860 and Germany goes out
00:09:33.980 and pays billions and billions of dollars a year to Russia.
00:09:37.840 So we're protecting Germany,
00:09:39.480 we're protecting France,
00:09:40.840 we're protecting all of these countries.
00:09:43.200 And then numerous of the countries go out
00:09:45.440 and make a pipeline deal with Russia
00:09:47.360 where they're paying billions of dollars
00:09:50.200 into the coffers of Russia.
00:09:52.440 So we're supposed to protect you against Russia,
00:09:55.040 but they're paying billions of dollars to Russia,
00:09:57.460 and I think that's very inappropriate.
00:09:59.020 And the former chancellor of Germany
00:10:01.080 is the head of the pipeline company
00:10:03.160 that's supplying the gas.
00:10:05.680 Ultimately, Germany will have almost 70% of their country
00:10:10.140 controlled by Russia with natural gas.
00:10:14.340 So you tell me, is that appropriate?
00:10:16.560 I mean, I've been complaining about this
00:10:18.420 from the time I got in.
00:10:20.100 It should have never been allowed to have happened.
00:10:22.380 But Germany is totally controlled by Russia
00:10:24.660 because they will be getting from 60 to 70% of their energy
00:10:28.660 from Russia and a new pipeline.
00:10:31.520 And you tell me if that's appropriate,
00:10:33.420 because I think it's not.
00:10:34.580 And I think it's a very bad thing for NATO,
00:10:36.800 and I don't think it should have happened.
00:10:38.880 And I think we have to talk to Germany about it.
00:10:41.000 On top of that,
00:10:42.320 Germany is just paying a little bit over 1%,
00:10:44.740 whereas the United States, in actual numbers,
00:10:47.460 is paying 4.2% of a much larger GDP.
00:10:52.200 So I think that's inappropriate also.
00:10:54.280 You know, we're protecting Germany,
00:10:55.660 we're protecting France,
00:10:56.600 we're protecting everybody,
00:10:58.660 and yet we're paying a lot of money to protect.
00:11:00.960 Now, this has been going on for decades.
00:11:03.400 This has been brought up by other presidents,
00:11:05.540 but other presidents never did anything about it
00:11:07.640 because I don't think they understood it
00:11:09.660 or they just didn't want to get involved.
00:11:12.000 But I have to bring it up
00:11:13.180 because I think it's very unfair to our country,
00:11:15.140 it's very unfair to our taxpayers.
00:11:17.520 And I think that these countries have to step it up,
00:11:19.940 not over a 10-year period,
00:11:21.100 they have to step it up immediately.
00:11:22.740 Germany is a rich country.
00:11:24.000 They talk about they're going to increase it
00:11:26.080 a tiny bit by 2030.
00:11:29.580 Well, they could increase it immediately tomorrow
00:11:32.500 and have no problem.
00:11:34.520 I don't think it's fair to the United States.
00:11:36.340 So we're going to have to do something
00:11:38.560 because we're not going to put up with it.
00:11:40.100 We can't put up with it,
00:11:41.100 and it's inappropriate.
00:11:43.560 So we have to talk about the billions and billions
00:11:46.980 of dollars that's being paid to the country
00:11:49.820 that we're supposed to be protecting you against.
00:11:52.140 You know, everybody's talking about it all over the world.
00:11:56.060 They'll say, well, wait a minute,
00:11:56.900 we're supposed to be protecting you from Russia,
00:11:59.740 but why are you paying billions of dollars
00:12:01.800 to Russia for energy?
00:12:03.740 Why are countries in NATO, namely Germany,
00:12:07.780 having a large percentage of the energy needs
00:12:10.340 paid, you know, to Russia and taken care of by Russia?
00:12:14.800 Now, if you look at it,
00:12:16.740 Germany is a captive of Russia because they supply it.
00:12:19.740 They got rid of their coal plants.
00:12:21.040 They got rid of their nuclear.
00:12:22.800 They're getting so much of the oil and gas from Russia.
00:12:26.760 I think it's something that NATO has to look at.
00:12:29.100 I think it's very inappropriate.
00:12:30.620 You and I agree that it's inappropriate.
00:12:32.660 I don't know what you can do about it now,
00:12:34.320 but it certainly doesn't seem to make sense
00:12:36.340 that they pay billions of dollars to Russia,
00:12:39.240 and now we have to defend them against Russia.
00:12:43.080 Let's cut that off just out of mercy.
00:12:44.840 Stoltenberg was pretty friendly, by the way.
00:12:46.840 Trump went for one more round.
00:12:47.940 I won't make you watch it.
00:12:49.820 But let me show you who Trump was talking about.
00:12:51.600 The former German chancellor, Gerhard Schrader,
00:12:55.260 he works for Putin now.
00:12:57.180 That's him in, what, 10 different poses with Putin?
00:13:00.360 He and Putin are pretty close.
00:13:03.020 They've met, what, 100 times?
00:13:06.180 They go to social events together,
00:13:07.680 birthday parties, that sort of thing.
00:13:08.960 I think it's pretty unseemly for the former German chancellor
00:13:13.860 to go to work for Germany's longtime enemy, Russia.
00:13:17.180 Don't you think?
00:13:17.760 It would be like if a former U.S. president
00:13:19.920 rent right to work for Russia, or to, let's say, Iran,
00:13:23.400 to sell out his own country.
00:13:25.020 That's the thing.
00:13:25.560 That's Schrader.
00:13:26.360 And he's still considered polite company in Germany,
00:13:28.700 and the whole world was supposed to pretend
00:13:30.920 it wasn't happening,
00:13:32.400 that Germany wasn't becoming beholden to Russia
00:13:34.920 and for its energy,
00:13:35.660 that Germany was paying its money to Russia for energy,
00:13:39.980 and that same Germany was banning fracking
00:13:42.660 for its own energy instead,
00:13:44.860 that Germany was shortchanging NATO.
00:13:47.380 We were all supposed to ignore that.
00:13:48.840 You weren't supposed to mention that.
00:13:49.920 Well, Donald Trump mentioned it big time,
00:13:51.560 and not just in passing, and not just once,
00:13:53.660 and not just in private.
00:13:55.680 That's amazing.
00:13:56.420 And again, if you think it is unfair,
00:13:57.700 then take it up with NATO.
00:13:59.420 Then maybe NATO shouldn't be around,
00:14:00.880 because that wasn't a U.S. demand.
00:14:03.080 It was a NATO promise.
00:14:04.160 The U.S. is more than meeting,
00:14:06.040 but no one else is meeting it other than the Brits.
00:14:08.540 Canada isn't.
00:14:09.380 We're shirking.
00:14:09.920 We're actually backsliding.
00:14:12.220 Donald Trump's probably going to whack us Canadians
00:14:14.500 with an auto tariff,
00:14:16.380 and Trudeau shrinking our military spending
00:14:18.720 will only make Trump more aggressive.
00:14:20.380 Trump sent letters to NATO
00:14:21.840 complaining about particular shirkers.
00:14:24.700 I tried to find the letter.
00:14:25.860 The best I could find was
00:14:26.880 the Wall Street Journal's report of it.
00:14:29.460 Let me quote,
00:14:30.620 Mr. Trump singled out Canada
00:14:32.260 in his letters to NATO leaders,
00:14:34.600 expressing, quote,
00:14:35.380 growing frustration
00:14:36.160 that key allies like Canada
00:14:37.720 have not stepped up
00:14:38.540 defense spending as promised.
00:14:40.740 Yeah, no doubt.
00:14:41.600 It's a Trudeau.
00:14:43.480 And I think Trudeau wants that fight.
00:14:45.820 Or at least Trudeau's boss,
00:14:47.140 Gerald Butts does.
00:14:48.040 Butts constantly tweets
00:14:49.340 passive-aggressive anti-Trump tweets.
00:14:51.460 It's constant.
00:14:52.120 You can only imagine
00:14:53.300 what he says to Trudeau in private.
00:14:54.620 Let me just give you one tiny example.
00:14:56.620 Here, he tweets a far-left,
00:14:58.240 socialist, radical,
00:14:59.420 open-borders Democrat candidate
00:15:00.920 in New York,
00:15:01.940 and he's cheering for her.
00:15:03.500 Her name is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
00:15:06.780 And she's really like Bernie Sanders,
00:15:09.260 if Bernie Sanders were
00:15:10.240 a 20-something Hispanic woman.
00:15:12.020 She's that far left.
00:15:13.080 She's that much of a Trump hater.
00:15:14.700 So, of course,
00:15:15.480 Gerald Butts supports her
00:15:16.460 because he's a Marxist, too.
00:15:17.480 But his open support
00:15:19.120 for Trump's enemies,
00:15:21.200 his open support
00:15:22.120 for U.S. Democratic partisans,
00:15:24.660 it's shocking and terrifying
00:15:26.580 coming from a man
00:15:28.120 who is at the center
00:15:28.820 of our government
00:15:29.460 and who is supposed
00:15:30.220 to be negotiating
00:15:31.040 NAFTA and NATO
00:15:32.200 and other things with America.
00:15:33.120 Of course,
00:15:33.900 we are going to have a trade war.
00:15:35.480 And as far as a war-war goes,
00:15:38.680 Trudeau will continue
00:15:39.700 to disarm
00:15:40.420 and only use our troops
00:15:42.060 for PR purposes,
00:15:43.180 like Molly Butts.
00:15:44.100 thinks he can turn that
00:15:45.760 into a winning campaign
00:15:46.680 in 2019,
00:15:47.800 running against Trump,
00:15:49.120 blaming Trump
00:15:49.620 for the recession
00:15:50.240 that will come
00:15:50.880 if we have a trade war,
00:15:52.180 claiming that all of
00:15:53.620 Trudeau's opponents
00:15:55.020 are just Trump lovers.
00:15:56.960 Angela Merkel
00:15:57.440 didn't insult Trump
00:15:58.520 today in Germany,
00:15:59.740 even after that tirade.
00:16:02.540 Neither did France
00:16:03.140 as Emmanuel Macron
00:16:04.020 because they don't want
00:16:05.120 trade wars.
00:16:06.400 They don't want
00:16:06.800 the whole place
00:16:07.280 to burn down.
00:16:07.880 They don't want America
00:16:09.020 to withdraw from Europe.
00:16:11.880 Our guy Trudeau does.
00:16:13.420 But hey,
00:16:14.100 have you seen him
00:16:15.020 jogging without a shirt lady?
00:16:16.480 He's so hot.
00:16:19.600 Stay with us for more
00:16:20.580 on this subject
00:16:21.100 with Lee Humphreys.
00:16:38.500 Welcome back.
00:16:39.300 Well, Donald Trump,
00:16:40.060 once again,
00:16:40.580 being very undiplomatic
00:16:41.880 in a diplomatic setting,
00:16:43.140 sort of like a child
00:16:44.820 saying the emperor
00:16:45.660 has no clothes,
00:16:46.560 undiplomatic,
00:16:47.320 but finally cuts
00:16:48.460 to the truth.
00:16:49.260 Well, joining us now
00:16:50.300 via Skype is our,
00:16:52.160 I don't want to
00:16:53.000 quite lay claim to him
00:16:54.420 as an official
00:16:55.200 rebel contributor,
00:16:56.280 but I feel like he is
00:16:57.260 because he brings
00:16:58.340 so much smarts
00:16:59.260 every time he's on
00:16:59.980 our show.
00:17:01.360 Lee Humphrey,
00:17:02.140 president of James
00:17:02.820 International Security
00:17:03.640 Consulting,
00:17:04.580 and now the Conservative
00:17:06.320 Party of Canada
00:17:07.340 nomination candidate
00:17:08.960 for Calgary Centre.
00:17:09.900 I'm very excited
00:17:10.400 to hear that.
00:17:11.300 Lee Humphrey,
00:17:11.860 great to see you again.
00:17:12.800 I want to sort of
00:17:13.560 lay claim to you,
00:17:14.400 but I know you
00:17:15.480 are,
00:17:16.600 you give your expertise
00:17:18.300 to any journalist
00:17:19.240 who asks,
00:17:20.020 and we're delighted
00:17:20.680 to ask you,
00:17:21.660 would you give me
00:17:22.660 your thoughts
00:17:23.420 on Donald Trump
00:17:24.720 talking about
00:17:26.680 different countries'
00:17:27.680 NATO commitments?
00:17:29.360 Well,
00:17:29.920 I think you summed it
00:17:30.980 up well,
00:17:31.760 Ezra,
00:17:32.200 in the sense that
00:17:33.000 Donald Trump
00:17:33.960 uses language
00:17:34.720 that isn't
00:17:36.440 very diplomatic,
00:17:37.160 but he's echoing
00:17:38.940 the language
00:17:39.820 of Presidents Bush
00:17:41.160 and Obama
00:17:42.000 in demanding
00:17:43.680 that NATO countries,
00:17:45.660 all NATO countries,
00:17:47.420 live up to the
00:17:48.300 agreements that
00:17:49.080 they signed on to
00:17:50.560 as part of their
00:17:51.840 commitment to NATO.
00:17:53.520 And it's a really
00:17:55.080 simple metric,
00:17:57.440 which is,
00:17:58.360 2% of your gross
00:18:00.140 domestic product
00:18:01.320 directly spent
00:18:02.700 on military.
00:18:06.020 Now,
00:18:06.680 NATO,
00:18:07.640 you know,
00:18:08.100 generously in 2014
00:18:09.480 when this commitment
00:18:10.280 was made,
00:18:11.420 changed the formula
00:18:12.380 significantly
00:18:13.300 to allow things
00:18:14.500 like veterans'
00:18:15.520 pensions
00:18:16.220 to be included
00:18:17.800 in that spending cap
00:18:19.420 so that all countries
00:18:20.480 could look just
00:18:21.220 a little bit better.
00:18:23.640 But,
00:18:24.060 you know,
00:18:24.800 Trump is making
00:18:26.380 a really important
00:18:27.640 point here.
00:18:28.420 If we are a collective
00:18:29.720 allied nation
00:18:31.860 group
00:18:32.600 of defense,
00:18:34.660 for defense,
00:18:35.800 then we must
00:18:36.900 all pony up
00:18:38.400 and share
00:18:39.640 that responsibility
00:18:40.640 fiscally as well
00:18:41.820 as in things
00:18:42.960 like manpower
00:18:43.740 and resources.
00:18:44.920 Yeah,
00:18:45.380 you know,
00:18:45.780 that's the point.
00:18:46.620 I mean,
00:18:46.840 if NATO is just
00:18:48.340 a code word
00:18:49.360 for America
00:18:50.600 is the world's
00:18:51.640 policeman
00:18:52.260 and guardian
00:18:53.000 and everyone else
00:18:53.840 just sort of
00:18:54.820 latches on,
00:18:55.760 then say so.
00:18:56.760 But NATO,
00:18:57.900 the countries
00:18:58.960 are equal.
00:18:59.540 They all,
00:19:00.420 all for one
00:19:01.000 and one for all.
00:19:01.620 It's sort of like
00:19:01.960 the three musketeers,
00:19:02.900 but it's what,
00:19:03.280 29 musketeers
00:19:04.280 or something.
00:19:05.080 If a country
00:19:06.020 is attacked,
00:19:06.620 all come to its aid.
00:19:08.280 We're all equal
00:19:09.260 within NATO.
00:19:10.680 So,
00:19:11.560 we should act like it
00:19:12.660 and go to that
00:19:14.340 2% rule.
00:19:15.180 Or,
00:19:15.720 just don't call it NATO.
00:19:17.040 Call it America
00:19:17.780 protecting everyone
00:19:18.840 out of the goodness
00:19:19.920 of their heart.
00:19:20.540 But Trump,
00:19:21.040 Trump's sort of
00:19:21.800 fed up with that
00:19:22.800 altruism,
00:19:23.880 I think,
00:19:24.400 isn't he?
00:19:25.720 Yeah,
00:19:26.180 absolutely.
00:19:26.840 I mean,
00:19:27.220 each NATO country,
00:19:28.600 unlike the UN,
00:19:30.080 each NATO country
00:19:31.160 has an actual vote
00:19:32.680 that matters.
00:19:34.020 So,
00:19:34.260 if NATO
00:19:34.700 is going to do
00:19:35.820 something collectively,
00:19:37.080 whether it is
00:19:37.740 a combat operation
00:19:39.200 or a combat support
00:19:40.300 operation,
00:19:41.360 all NATO members
00:19:42.580 must vote
00:19:43.600 and it must be
00:19:45.440 in agreement.
00:19:46.200 It's not a majority vote.
00:19:47.820 It must be
00:19:48.740 100% agreement,
00:19:50.400 all 29 nations.
00:19:51.500 So,
00:19:52.320 you can't have
00:19:53.180 a nation like Canada
00:19:54.520 with a tiny contribution
00:19:57.300 having an equal vote
00:19:59.540 for,
00:20:00.660 against,
00:20:01.220 you know,
00:20:01.520 something perhaps
00:20:02.340 America or the United
00:20:03.460 Kingdom
00:20:03.960 wants to do
00:20:05.760 or wants to be
00:20:07.120 involved with.
00:20:08.200 So,
00:20:08.700 unless we're going
00:20:09.460 to go to,
00:20:10.540 say,
00:20:11.620 a UN-type
00:20:12.780 circumstance
00:20:13.680 at the Security Council
00:20:14.860 where those countries
00:20:16.700 that are contributing
00:20:17.680 2% or more
00:20:18.920 of their GDP
00:20:19.680 get a veto power
00:20:21.700 or have some
00:20:22.920 extraordinary
00:20:23.760 power,
00:20:25.960 we want to stay
00:20:27.020 as an equal alliance,
00:20:28.260 then we all have
00:20:29.260 to contribute equally.
00:20:30.880 Well,
00:20:31.060 and that's the thing,
00:20:31.940 is,
00:20:32.580 this isn't Donald Trump
00:20:33.580 coming up here
00:20:34.880 to impose
00:20:35.840 his new
00:20:36.920 idea on us.
00:20:38.360 He's saying,
00:20:39.000 I want to hold you
00:20:39.920 to your promise
00:20:41.020 and I'm just going
00:20:42.220 to be a little bit
00:20:42.920 more blunt
00:20:43.420 than Obama
00:20:44.080 or George W. Bush
00:20:45.580 was.
00:20:46.000 It's,
00:20:46.500 Trump is the irritant,
00:20:47.900 he's the prickly guy
00:20:49.440 who says it
00:20:50.220 but he is not saying
00:20:52.000 I want you to
00:20:53.020 change your promise,
00:20:54.480 he's saying
00:20:54.760 I want you to keep
00:20:55.420 your promise
00:20:55.880 and I think
00:20:58.000 we could use
00:20:58.640 a bit of a kick
00:20:59.180 in the pants
00:20:59.800 because we,
00:21:00.820 you know,
00:21:01.100 and again,
00:21:01.460 we've been free riders
00:21:02.280 by our own definition.
00:21:04.700 Now,
00:21:05.360 Trump has said
00:21:06.300 he wants Canada
00:21:07.240 really boosted,
00:21:08.400 he's suggesting
00:21:09.120 doubling our
00:21:10.080 military budget,
00:21:11.300 I don't think
00:21:12.000 that's a starter
00:21:13.120 for a number
00:21:14.140 of reasons
00:21:14.640 but a NATO report
00:21:18.020 suggests Canada's
00:21:18.900 numbers actually
00:21:19.480 backsliding.
00:21:20.940 Can I show you
00:21:21.500 a clip from
00:21:22.080 Justin Trudeau
00:21:22.860 in,
00:21:24.040 at the NATO meeting
00:21:24.940 when he was asked
00:21:25.920 by reporters
00:21:26.660 about the doubling
00:21:28.460 of our budget?
00:21:29.340 Here's what he had
00:21:29.880 to say.
00:21:30.700 It's an important
00:21:31.420 metric amongst
00:21:32.300 many others
00:21:33.240 to gauge how
00:21:34.460 countries are doing
00:21:35.860 in terms of
00:21:36.540 contributors to NATO
00:21:37.580 but ultimately
00:21:38.840 the more important
00:21:41.340 metrics are always
00:21:42.500 you know,
00:21:43.120 are countries
00:21:43.840 stepping up
00:21:44.620 consistently
00:21:45.360 with the capacities
00:21:47.300 that NATO needs?
00:21:48.400 Are we leading
00:21:49.780 in different opportunities?
00:21:51.140 Are we contributing
00:21:51.900 the kinds of resources
00:21:54.160 and demonstrating
00:21:55.060 the commitment
00:21:55.580 to the alliance
00:21:56.380 that always needs
00:21:57.860 to be there?
00:21:58.520 And that's a metric
00:21:59.860 by which Canada
00:22:00.760 can be extraordinarily proud.
00:22:02.440 But no,
00:22:02.940 there are no plans
00:22:03.600 to double
00:22:04.320 our defence budget.
00:22:06.520 Now,
00:22:07.180 Lee,
00:22:07.600 to double
00:22:08.340 the defence budget
00:22:09.020 would be fiscally
00:22:10.460 probably impossible
00:22:11.460 to do unless
00:22:12.140 you did it
00:22:12.620 over a course
00:22:13.700 of five or ten years.
00:22:14.860 It's just such
00:22:15.280 a large amount.
00:22:16.540 But even over
00:22:17.560 five or ten years,
00:22:18.520 I don't think
00:22:19.120 Trump is demanding
00:22:20.680 double,
00:22:21.120 I don't think
00:22:21.760 he's that unrealistic.
00:22:23.020 I don't think
00:22:23.320 anyone is.
00:22:24.240 But if you listen
00:22:25.120 to Trudeau
00:22:25.600 and I'd love
00:22:25.960 your comment on this,
00:22:26.860 he says
00:22:27.300 there are more
00:22:28.560 important measurements.
00:22:30.180 He used the word
00:22:30.840 not equally
00:22:31.420 or other,
00:22:32.340 more important,
00:22:33.880 stepping up
00:22:35.120 and demonstrating
00:22:36.400 a commitment.
00:22:37.240 Those are not
00:22:38.000 quantifiable.
00:22:39.320 Hey guys,
00:22:39.900 we're stepping up.
00:22:40.760 That's a more
00:22:41.240 important commitment.
00:22:42.480 We're demonstrating
00:22:43.640 commitment.
00:22:44.520 Those are fuzzy words,
00:22:46.760 capacities.
00:22:47.980 I don't even know
00:22:48.740 what it means.
00:22:49.380 I know what
00:22:50.180 the takeaway is.
00:22:52.960 He'll give words
00:22:53.840 instead of dollars.
00:22:55.080 And it's not just
00:22:55.740 to Trump.
00:22:56.160 What about our own
00:22:57.060 troops who need
00:22:58.080 the equipment
00:22:58.600 and need the support?
00:23:01.220 All right,
00:23:01.500 enough of a rant
00:23:02.160 from me.
00:23:02.540 What do you make
00:23:02.980 of what he said,
00:23:03.600 Lee?
00:23:04.520 Well,
00:23:04.880 he utilizes
00:23:06.440 symbolism
00:23:07.240 over
00:23:08.540 fulfilling
00:23:10.720 our responsibility.
00:23:12.580 In the fall
00:23:13.280 of 1992,
00:23:14.140 we had three
00:23:16.100 infantry-based
00:23:17.760 battle groups
00:23:18.560 deployed,
00:23:19.660 one in Croatia,
00:23:21.280 one in Bosnia,
00:23:23.100 and one in Somalia.
00:23:25.020 We had a battalion
00:23:26.400 group in Cyprus.
00:23:28.480 We had two
00:23:29.620 infantry battalions
00:23:31.000 and all its
00:23:32.540 supporting elements,
00:23:33.520 which made up
00:23:34.940 a supersized
00:23:36.100 brigade,
00:23:37.080 in Germany.
00:23:39.060 Those were
00:23:40.120 well more,
00:23:42.320 those were
00:23:42.820 stepping up.
00:23:43.560 That's when
00:23:43.920 we were stepping
00:23:44.520 up.
00:23:45.380 What he's doing
00:23:46.200 now is sending
00:23:47.480 under-resourced,
00:23:49.400 under-equipped
00:23:50.220 troops in
00:23:51.720 symbolic ways
00:23:52.920 on a couple
00:23:54.040 of missions,
00:23:54.780 whether it's
00:23:55.260 to Latvia
00:23:55.840 to lead a
00:23:56.440 battle group,
00:23:57.340 not be a
00:23:58.700 battle group,
00:23:59.340 but lead a
00:24:00.060 battle group,
00:24:01.140 whether it's
00:24:01.980 moving the
00:24:02.580 contingent
00:24:03.200 from the
00:24:04.460 Erbil area
00:24:05.340 in Kurdistan
00:24:06.160 down to
00:24:06.900 Baghdad
00:24:07.680 after they
00:24:08.540 sat on their
00:24:09.140 hands,
00:24:09.520 some of our
00:24:09.940 best soldiers
00:24:10.580 sat on their
00:24:11.180 hands for a
00:24:11.840 year,
00:24:12.220 or whether
00:24:13.000 it's putting
00:24:13.680 an under-resourced
00:24:15.440 UN support
00:24:17.120 team into
00:24:18.320 Mali.
00:24:19.760 This is not
00:24:20.780 the Canadian
00:24:21.340 military stepping
00:24:22.420 up in meaningful
00:24:23.320 ways to support
00:24:24.360 NATO.
00:24:25.000 This is rhetoric.
00:24:26.600 So we're not
00:24:27.200 funding it
00:24:27.860 properly,
00:24:28.320 and we're not
00:24:29.320 stepping up on
00:24:30.320 the world stage
00:24:31.140 to support
00:24:31.700 NATO.
00:24:32.040 You can
00:24:34.040 understand why
00:24:34.940 some of the
00:24:35.360 other NATO
00:24:35.960 members may
00:24:37.540 be too polite
00:24:38.220 to say Canada
00:24:39.400 isn't stepping
00:24:40.220 up, and
00:24:41.320 Donald Trump's
00:24:42.280 not one of
00:24:42.780 them.
00:24:42.980 He is less
00:24:44.320 polite when it
00:24:44.940 comes to these
00:24:45.600 things, but
00:24:46.280 you're right.
00:24:47.580 We need a
00:24:48.100 kick in the
00:24:48.520 pants.
00:24:49.000 The Canadian
00:24:49.660 public needs
00:24:50.620 to understand
00:24:51.520 that no longer
00:24:53.000 are we punching
00:24:53.800 above our
00:24:54.400 weight, nor
00:24:55.360 are we
00:24:55.740 contributing
00:24:56.260 financially as
00:24:58.160 we've signed
00:24:59.860 on to do.
00:25:01.100 Yeah, and I
00:25:01.900 don't want
00:25:02.340 Canada to
00:25:02.960 do it for
00:25:04.380 Donald Trump.
00:25:05.040 I want
00:25:05.340 Canada to
00:25:06.040 do it for
00:25:06.780 ourselves, for
00:25:08.260 our publicly
00:25:09.620 expressed goals,
00:25:10.640 and frankly to
00:25:11.300 support our
00:25:11.780 troops.
00:25:12.060 I just can't
00:25:12.900 get over the
00:25:13.940 bizarre request
00:25:14.720 a few weeks
00:25:15.240 ago for
00:25:15.740 Canadian forces
00:25:16.820 to return
00:25:18.000 their sleeping
00:25:19.300 bags because
00:25:20.040 there's a
00:25:20.540 shortage in
00:25:21.120 the army.
00:25:22.200 And I was
00:25:23.680 looking at a
00:25:24.260 story that
00:25:24.900 Germany, in
00:25:26.280 some war
00:25:27.460 games, they
00:25:27.920 were painting
00:25:28.540 broomsticks
00:25:29.320 black and
00:25:30.020 attaching them
00:25:30.920 to vehicles
00:25:31.360 pretending they
00:25:31.880 were machine
00:25:32.260 guns.
00:25:33.280 They're rusted
00:25:34.360 out in their
00:25:34.900 military too.
00:25:36.140 Don't do it
00:25:36.820 for Trump.
00:25:37.360 Do it for
00:25:37.920 our own
00:25:38.840 self-respect.
00:25:39.620 Do it for
00:25:39.980 our own
00:25:40.280 capabilities.
00:25:41.340 Do it to
00:25:41.760 show respect
00:25:42.340 to our own
00:25:42.920 troops.
00:25:43.440 Don't pay
00:25:44.060 our troops
00:25:44.640 and equip
00:25:45.060 our troops
00:25:45.520 to please
00:25:46.340 Trump.
00:25:47.200 Do it
00:25:47.720 because that's
00:25:48.300 what we ought
00:25:49.480 to do and
00:25:50.000 we said we
00:25:50.560 would do.
00:25:51.180 He's just
00:25:51.880 shaming us
00:25:53.140 frankly because
00:25:53.780 we're not doing
00:25:54.500 what we said
00:25:55.080 we would do
00:25:55.540 and the media
00:25:56.760 hasn't held
00:25:57.620 NATO to
00:25:58.620 account.
00:25:59.060 Trump is
00:25:59.480 doing it.
00:26:01.380 I don't know
00:26:02.440 what objection
00:26:03.100 one could make
00:26:03.780 to Trump
00:26:04.160 because he's
00:26:05.220 asking us to
00:26:05.960 live up to
00:26:06.360 our own
00:26:06.800 promises, not
00:26:07.500 to his
00:26:07.820 promises.
00:26:08.440 Last word to
00:26:09.060 you, Lee.
00:26:09.480 I guess my
00:26:10.340 point is I'm
00:26:11.020 not doing this
00:26:11.620 out of my
00:26:12.020 affection for
00:26:12.760 Trump.
00:26:13.540 I'm doing
00:26:13.920 this for my
00:26:14.340 affection for
00:26:15.060 what our
00:26:15.740 Canadian
00:26:16.060 armed forces
00:26:16.640 should be.
00:26:18.340 I think as
00:26:20.160 a last word
00:26:20.880 let's stop
00:26:22.780 making this a
00:26:23.460 partisan issue.
00:26:24.740 For over 50
00:26:25.520 years governments
00:26:26.320 of both sides
00:26:27.220 have used
00:26:28.040 the opportunity
00:26:29.020 whether we
00:26:30.380 were cutting
00:26:31.340 spending or
00:26:32.540 we were in
00:26:33.540 a period of
00:26:34.000 growth to
00:26:34.520 either increase
00:26:35.160 or decrease
00:26:35.780 our commitment
00:26:36.340 to the military
00:26:36.960 but for over
00:26:37.560 50 years
00:26:38.200 we haven't
00:26:39.240 met that
00:26:39.800 2% of
00:26:40.900 GDP.
00:26:42.380 In the past
00:26:43.620 what some
00:26:44.160 governments have
00:26:44.800 done is
00:26:45.740 they've deployed
00:26:46.480 a whole lot
00:26:47.560 of Canadians
00:26:48.120 to punch above
00:26:48.940 our weight
00:26:49.400 to make up
00:26:49.980 for that
00:26:50.380 and NATO
00:26:51.060 was extremely
00:26:51.780 happy to have
00:26:52.560 that level
00:26:53.040 of professionalism
00:26:54.020 that Canada
00:26:54.580 can bring
00:26:55.080 to the
00:26:55.360 battlefield
00:26:55.740 even if
00:26:56.840 it is in
00:26:57.300 smaller numbers.
00:26:58.580 What we're
00:26:59.040 seeing now
00:26:59.640 is the worst
00:27:00.240 of both
00:27:00.720 worlds
00:27:01.140 and I'm
00:27:01.740 hoping where
00:27:02.340 this leads
00:27:03.260 is that
00:27:04.740 the Conservative
00:27:05.880 Party this
00:27:06.620 summer as
00:27:07.160 part of its
00:27:07.680 policy plank
00:27:08.460 will put
00:27:09.260 forward a
00:27:09.760 plan and I
00:27:10.300 believe they
00:27:10.780 will to
00:27:11.800 outline a
00:27:12.440 way we can
00:27:12.960 get to that
00:27:13.460 2% over the
00:27:14.540 next 5 to
00:27:15.280 7 years
00:27:16.160 as well as
00:27:17.880 taking into
00:27:18.860 account inflation
00:27:19.760 and that
00:27:20.700 we will
00:27:20.980 stop using
00:27:21.820 things like
00:27:22.400 procurement
00:27:23.120 or military
00:27:24.380 deployments
00:27:25.360 as political
00:27:28.340 opportunism
00:27:29.380 to make
00:27:30.280 a government
00:27:30.960 look good
00:27:31.580 and then
00:27:32.060 cut them
00:27:32.680 the minute
00:27:33.080 that they're
00:27:33.560 no longer
00:27:34.080 needed.
00:27:35.160 So we
00:27:35.880 have an
00:27:36.320 opportunity
00:27:36.800 here at
00:27:37.660 least as
00:27:38.340 the Conservative
00:27:38.900 Party because
00:27:39.660 the Liberals
00:27:40.140 just failed
00:27:40.700 to take
00:27:41.080 that opportunity
00:27:41.920 to stop
00:27:42.900 playing games
00:27:43.620 with our
00:27:43.940 military and
00:27:45.180 to start
00:27:45.560 living up to
00:27:46.220 our international
00:27:46.920 obligations of
00:27:47.900 being the
00:27:48.360 country that
00:27:49.040 you know
00:27:49.500 the Canada
00:27:50.620 that we're
00:27:51.100 all so proud
00:27:51.920 of on the
00:27:53.260 international
00:27:53.740 stage.
00:27:55.360 Well I
00:27:56.060 certainly hope
00:27:56.780 that we
00:27:57.980 come back to
00:27:58.520 that path
00:27:58.900 and you're
00:27:59.220 right it
00:28:00.000 ought not
00:28:00.420 to be a
00:28:01.040 partisan
00:28:01.400 thing.
00:28:04.000 And I
00:28:05.160 hope that
00:28:05.440 the Conservative
00:28:05.920 Party really
00:28:06.460 embraces this.
00:28:08.240 It's the right
00:28:08.640 thing to do
00:28:09.360 just for our
00:28:11.020 own national
00:28:11.760 interests and
00:28:12.280 our national
00:28:12.700 pride.
00:28:13.080 It's always
00:28:13.460 great to
00:28:14.200 have your
00:28:14.560 point of
00:28:14.900 view and
00:28:15.180 as always
00:28:15.760 you bring
00:28:16.140 a lot of
00:28:16.460 historical
00:28:17.120 knowledge too
00:28:18.340 about what
00:28:18.900 Canada was
00:28:19.400 like and
00:28:19.840 1992 was
00:28:20.800 not that
00:28:21.240 long ago
00:28:21.820 and we
00:28:22.580 were in
00:28:23.620 different
00:28:24.080 theaters and
00:28:24.780 that was the
00:28:26.260 golden age of
00:28:27.140 Canada in
00:28:28.180 these multilateral
00:28:29.520 actions what
00:28:32.400 Trudeau talks
00:28:33.160 about but what
00:28:33.800 he doesn't do.
00:28:34.560 Anyways I tell
00:28:35.240 you I could go
00:28:35.680 on this topic
00:28:36.360 all day.
00:28:36.740 It's great to
00:28:37.060 have you on
00:28:37.400 the show Lee.
00:28:38.940 Thanks very
00:28:39.580 much Ezra.
00:28:40.140 I appreciate it.
00:28:40.840 Alright well
00:28:41.260 it's our
00:28:41.540 pleasure.
00:28:42.340 There you have
00:28:42.680 it.
00:28:42.880 Lee Humphrey
00:28:43.480 he's the
00:28:43.820 president of
00:28:44.320 James
00:28:44.520 International
00:28:44.980 Security
00:28:45.440 Consulting and
00:28:46.380 I'm very
00:28:46.720 excited to
00:28:47.260 learn that
00:28:47.980 he's throwing
00:28:48.440 his hat into
00:28:49.040 the ring for
00:28:49.820 a nomination for
00:28:51.320 the conservative
00:28:51.940 party.
00:28:52.540 Boy I hope he
00:28:53.640 gets that.
00:28:54.320 They could use
00:28:54.860 his experience and
00:28:56.640 wisdom in that
00:28:57.620 party.
00:28:58.380 Stay with us.
00:28:59.680 More ahead on
00:29:00.240 the rebel.
00:29:12.120 Welcome back.
00:29:13.180 Well I pine for
00:29:14.140 the days when
00:29:15.760 Canada's media
00:29:16.840 party would go to
00:29:18.420 the mat, would go
00:29:19.440 to the wall over
00:29:20.800 a $16 orange juice
00:29:23.640 that a federal
00:29:25.580 cabinet minister
00:29:26.180 named Bev Oda
00:29:27.260 expensed.
00:29:28.560 I think she did
00:29:29.280 it from a hotel
00:29:30.180 minibar.
00:29:30.860 Those are
00:29:31.100 notoriously
00:29:31.900 overpriced.
00:29:33.320 $16.
00:29:35.280 There must be
00:29:35.800 a thousand stories
00:29:36.900 on that $16
00:29:37.680 orange juice and
00:29:38.560 she was eventually
00:29:39.320 drummed out of
00:29:40.700 cabinet.
00:29:41.380 Well those were
00:29:42.820 the days eh?
00:29:43.780 Because the
00:29:44.280 Canadian Taxpayers
00:29:45.180 Federation has
00:29:45.940 news on some of
00:29:47.080 the spending under
00:29:47.720 the Trudeau regime.
00:29:50.080 How I long for
00:29:51.000 those $16 orange
00:29:52.140 juices.
00:29:53.520 If you have a
00:29:54.200 $16 orange juice
00:29:55.400 what kind of cup
00:29:56.600 would you drink it
00:29:57.760 out of?
00:29:58.120 Well here's the
00:29:59.320 good news.
00:29:59.900 Justin Trudeau's
00:30:00.980 liberals are
00:30:01.620 buying glasses
00:30:02.900 little champagne
00:30:04.700 flutes and
00:30:05.300 cocktail glasses.
00:30:06.500 The actual
00:30:07.140 glasses themselves
00:30:08.320 cost on average
00:30:09.500 are you ready for
00:30:10.080 this?
00:30:12.420 $117.
00:30:13.760 And joining us
00:30:14.280 now via Skype
00:30:14.980 is our friend
00:30:15.860 Aaron Woodrick
00:30:16.600 the federal
00:30:18.260 director of the
00:30:18.940 Canadian Taxpayers
00:30:19.760 Federation.
00:30:20.380 I just scratched the
00:30:21.340 surface there Aaron
00:30:22.100 but $127,000 spent
00:30:26.920 on crystal glassware
00:30:28.200 an average of
00:30:29.280 $117 a glass
00:30:31.400 that's insane.
00:30:34.940 Those are pretty
00:30:35.740 pricey glasses.
00:30:36.660 So they bought
00:30:37.040 a thousand of them
00:30:38.020 as or over the
00:30:38.740 last couple of
00:30:39.760 years.
00:30:40.820 They're customized
00:30:41.700 as well.
00:30:43.040 And you know the
00:30:43.620 funny thing is we
00:30:44.340 didn't really know
00:30:45.120 how much those
00:30:45.800 glasses would cost.
00:30:46.820 We thought what's
00:30:47.440 a really high end
00:30:48.580 comparison.
00:30:49.040 So we went to
00:30:49.680 the Tiffany
00:30:50.140 website, Tiffany
00:30:51.100 & Co, their
00:30:52.320 Canadian website.
00:30:53.400 You can buy a
00:30:53.940 wine glass from
00:30:54.760 Tiffany Ezra for
00:30:56.140 55 bucks.
00:30:57.680 So these glasses
00:30:58.580 that Global
00:30:59.140 Affairs has bought
00:30:59.760 are actually twice
00:31:00.600 as expensive as
00:31:02.180 Tiffany Crystal.
00:31:03.540 Yeah and that's
00:31:04.340 if you're a retail
00:31:05.320 customer buying
00:31:06.160 from Tiffany's.
00:31:06.740 I can imagine
00:31:07.220 if you said to
00:31:07.820 Tiffany I want
00:31:08.860 to buy a thousand
00:31:09.960 glasses they'd
00:31:10.860 probably give you
00:31:11.400 a bit of a bulk
00:31:12.140 discount.
00:31:14.140 The chutzpah
00:31:15.240 of this, Canada's
00:31:18.080 running a massive
00:31:18.600 deficit.
00:31:19.160 I remember
00:31:19.400 Justin Trudeau
00:31:20.020 telling a wounded
00:31:20.720 veteran in Edmonton
00:31:21.720 that veterans are
00:31:22.900 just asking for
00:31:23.560 more than we can
00:31:24.180 give.
00:31:24.960 But when it comes
00:31:25.660 to the lips
00:31:26.900 of our diplomats
00:31:27.840 nothing is good
00:31:28.880 enough for them.
00:31:32.140 Unbelievable.
00:31:33.080 And I just
00:31:33.580 I tell you
00:31:33.940 why don't we
00:31:35.040 let me I mean
00:31:35.560 great story
00:31:36.480 and I saw some
00:31:37.220 coverage of it
00:31:37.740 today in the
00:31:38.080 media.
00:31:38.440 Congratulations
00:31:38.800 to you.
00:31:40.180 But it's
00:31:41.020 nowhere near
00:31:42.060 the mania
00:31:43.020 that was around
00:31:44.480 Bev Ota's
00:31:45.180 $16 orange juice.
00:31:46.640 I mean this is
00:31:47.820 $117 a glass
00:31:50.580 and the media
00:31:53.060 party just
00:31:53.600 doesn't seem
00:31:54.140 to be revved
00:31:54.740 up about it.
00:31:56.500 Yeah it is
00:31:57.240 really strange.
00:31:58.220 You know this
00:31:58.520 is more money.
00:31:59.960 It's not one
00:32:00.640 glass of orange
00:32:01.280 juice.
00:32:01.540 It's a thousand
00:32:02.380 crystal glasses
00:32:04.000 here.
00:32:04.900 And you know
00:32:05.720 it's frustrating.
00:32:06.800 This is certainly
00:32:07.600 not going to be
00:32:08.000 the last one
00:32:08.780 from Global
00:32:09.460 Affairs.
00:32:09.880 I can tell you
00:32:10.600 we actually had
00:32:11.700 there's a
00:32:12.060 conscientious person
00:32:12.960 inside Global
00:32:13.900 Affairs and an
00:32:14.660 honest person
00:32:15.200 who sent us
00:32:15.660 some tips.
00:32:16.320 So there's at
00:32:16.880 least one good
00:32:17.580 person in there
00:32:18.220 that realized
00:32:18.960 that this was
00:32:19.400 ridiculous and
00:32:20.320 sent us this tip
00:32:21.220 on where to
00:32:22.160 look and this
00:32:23.580 is not going to
00:32:23.980 be the last
00:32:24.540 example.
00:32:25.100 So I certainly
00:32:25.540 hope due
00:32:26.560 attention is paid.
00:32:27.560 You know we
00:32:27.840 gave Bev Ota a
00:32:28.720 hard time for her
00:32:29.400 orange juice but we
00:32:30.140 think this is on a
00:32:31.420 whole other level
00:32:32.180 in terms of waste.
00:32:33.480 I mean I think
00:32:34.040 that in any
00:32:34.940 corporation the
00:32:35.700 corporate culture
00:32:36.300 is largely set by
00:32:37.360 the leader.
00:32:38.620 And I know you
00:32:39.800 guys are non-partisan
00:32:40.820 and I'm not going
00:32:41.480 to ask you to weigh
00:32:42.880 in on partisan
00:32:43.520 matters but Stephen
00:32:44.420 Harper was a bit
00:32:45.500 of a penny
00:32:45.900 pincher.
00:32:46.360 He lived in
00:32:46.840 24 Sussex Drive.
00:32:48.060 He didn't go for
00:32:48.880 the big renos.
00:32:50.940 A fairly modest
00:32:52.260 lifestyle and I
00:32:53.780 think that trickled
00:32:54.440 down to the
00:32:54.900 government and
00:32:55.600 compared to
00:32:57.040 Justin Trudeau for
00:32:57.960 whom 24 Sussex
00:32:59.020 Drive is not
00:33:00.260 nice enough he
00:33:01.400 has his chef work
00:33:02.480 there but that's
00:33:03.640 it.
00:33:04.200 He has two
00:33:04.920 nannies on the
00:33:05.920 government dime.
00:33:08.480 He jets around
00:33:10.200 luxuriously.
00:33:11.320 So I think that
00:33:12.040 everyone in oh
00:33:13.620 and I remember
00:33:14.520 when Gerald
00:33:15.100 Butts his
00:33:15.600 principal secretary
00:33:16.340 moved down the
00:33:16.960 highway from
00:33:17.500 Toronto to Ottawa
00:33:18.720 he billed almost
00:33:19.500 200 grand in
00:33:20.200 moving expenses.
00:33:22.100 If the leader's
00:33:23.300 office parties like
00:33:24.460 a rock star it's
00:33:26.360 not surprising that
00:33:27.540 everyone around him
00:33:28.340 says oh that's how
00:33:29.840 we do it under
00:33:30.540 Trudeau we get
00:33:31.560 while the getting's
00:33:32.200 good.
00:33:32.600 It's no surprise to
00:33:33.660 me that these
00:33:34.580 people are ordering
00:33:35.440 a hundred thousand
00:33:36.240 bucks worth of
00:33:36.860 glasses because that's
00:33:38.540 how Trudeau rolls
00:33:39.440 right?
00:33:39.740 Yeah look I
00:33:41.280 think the political
00:33:42.320 leadership sets the
00:33:43.180 tone right?
00:33:43.940 You remember when
00:33:44.420 the Hartford
00:33:44.780 government came in
00:33:45.580 I remember Monty
00:33:47.360 Solberg one of the
00:33:48.200 cabinet ministers he
00:33:49.700 expensed the lunch
00:33:50.520 for his staff they
00:33:51.180 went to Subway they
00:33:52.340 went to Subway and
00:33:53.160 they had a very
00:33:53.660 modest lunch and we
00:33:54.600 thought that was a
00:33:55.280 great example of
00:33:56.420 setting the right
00:33:57.080 tone and you'll
00:33:58.660 recall when Justin
00:33:59.580 Trudeau won the
00:34:00.680 election and he
00:34:01.260 showed up at then
00:34:02.520 foreign affairs
00:34:03.160 building there were
00:34:04.360 cheers and you
00:34:05.280 really got the sense
00:34:06.120 from a lot of folks
00:34:06.760 in there that they
00:34:07.660 thought okay now it's
00:34:08.760 time now we can
00:34:09.660 turn the taps on now
00:34:10.800 it's time to spend so
00:34:11.880 we really hope that
00:34:13.080 this sort of thing
00:34:13.940 you know this
00:34:14.960 government needs to
00:34:15.560 do something about
00:34:16.160 it they've got a
00:34:16.700 17 billion dollar
00:34:17.480 deficit and it looks
00:34:18.460 like a good place to
00:34:19.700 start looking for
00:34:20.320 savings is somewhere
00:34:21.160 like global affairs.
00:34:22.280 Yeah I want to
00:34:22.680 one more example
00:34:23.980 because you released
00:34:25.440 this as well I'm
00:34:27.640 sitting on a chair
00:34:28.520 here I think we
00:34:29.620 bought it new most
00:34:30.420 of our office
00:34:31.020 furniture is used
00:34:31.940 it's a cushiony
00:34:33.260 chair it's really
00:34:33.740 comfy on the
00:34:34.440 tush maybe the chair
00:34:36.700 cost 180 bucks from
00:34:38.260 office depot or
00:34:39.560 whatever I don't
00:34:40.140 know I know that
00:34:41.220 it wasn't expensive
00:34:43.120 but it's plenty
00:34:44.000 comfy I sit in it
00:34:44.880 for hours a day
00:34:45.680 you have an access
00:34:47.740 to information
00:34:48.300 request also from
00:34:49.640 global affairs that
00:34:51.340 shows that Ottawa
00:34:52.660 or and this is what's
00:34:54.180 so weird about it
00:34:54.860 they ordered seat
00:34:56.540 cushions for the
00:34:58.320 Canadian embassy
00:34:59.240 down in Mexico
00:35:00.600 they ordered those
00:35:02.740 cushions from
00:35:04.200 Regina they spent
00:35:07.100 24,000 dollars on
00:35:10.020 86 seat cushions
00:35:11.420 that works out to
00:35:12.200 286 bucks per
00:35:14.780 cushion and that
00:35:15.560 doesn't include
00:35:16.160 shipping a cushion
00:35:19.480 286 just for the
00:35:21.460 cushion and then
00:35:22.800 there's the chair and
00:35:24.740 when you're in
00:35:25.240 Mexico City who
00:35:26.220 doesn't think I want
00:35:27.200 to ship those
00:35:27.860 cushions in from
00:35:28.800 Regina like because
00:35:30.800 I guess there's no
00:35:31.500 place in Mexico or
00:35:32.620 the United States
00:35:33.440 that's clear what on
00:35:35.840 earth are they
00:35:36.380 thinking dropping
00:35:38.100 24 grand on seat
00:35:39.800 cushions I don't
00:35:40.460 even get it you
00:35:42.520 know you couldn't
00:35:43.080 even come up with a
00:35:43.880 better story that
00:35:44.720 just underscores the
00:35:46.280 lack of common sense
00:35:47.520 when it comes to
00:35:48.800 ordering this stuff
00:35:49.660 as you say I'm
00:35:50.740 pretty sure you can
00:35:51.480 find comfortable
00:35:52.320 cushions in Mexico
00:35:53.380 City it doesn't make
00:35:54.160 sense to order them
00:35:55.200 from Regina and
00:35:55.900 ship them down and
00:35:56.940 beyond that frankly
00:35:58.060 as far I don't even
00:35:58.880 know where you'd find
00:35:59.920 a cushion for 286
00:36:01.560 dollars I don't know
00:36:03.220 where I would begin to
00:36:04.020 look for a cushion
00:36:04.760 that expensive but
00:36:05.700 apparently somebody at
00:36:06.880 Global Affairs knows a
00:36:07.880 place where you can
00:36:08.540 spend far more than you
00:36:09.800 have to but why not
00:36:10.920 it's not your money
00:36:11.660 it's just taxpayers
00:36:12.380 money and they don't
00:36:13.580 seem too fussed about
00:36:14.400 it and I don't even
00:36:15.260 get it I mean you have
00:36:16.700 a chair that has a
00:36:18.180 cushion on it to yet
00:36:19.740 did you have chairs that
00:36:20.860 didn't have cushions
00:36:22.020 how much is the chair
00:36:23.720 is this a chair cushion
00:36:24.880 combo I just I've never
00:36:26.900 heard of ordering 86
00:36:28.700 chair cushions and I mean
00:36:31.660 okay you go to Ikea you
00:36:32.860 can buy a little cushion
00:36:33.960 or a pillow 10 bucks 20
00:36:36.200 bucks 50 bucks I don't
00:36:38.840 even what is in a 286
00:36:41.440 dollar is it like stuffed
00:36:43.220 with goose down or like
00:36:45.440 unicorn fur or something
00:36:47.540 must be I mean I know
00:36:49.440 they're leather cushions so
00:36:50.720 they're nice cushions but
00:36:51.840 how you get the price up to
00:36:53.280 286 bucks is it's really
00:36:55.300 beyond me you know you've
00:36:58.000 identified just two tiny
00:36:59.540 examples glasses and
00:37:00.980 cushions but there must be
00:37:02.740 a thousand different line
00:37:04.140 items like this and I'm not
00:37:05.340 saying our our diplomatic
00:37:06.700 staff should not have tools
00:37:08.180 to do their job and
00:37:09.540 sometimes their job involves
00:37:11.100 you know hospitality and and
00:37:13.820 sometimes you have to be
00:37:15.180 fancy in the world of
00:37:16.840 foreign affairs although I
00:37:17.720 don't know why 86 seat
00:37:18.860 cushions come into it but I
00:37:20.760 just think that the culture
00:37:21.800 is get everything while you
00:37:23.280 can money's no object throw
00:37:25.700 another bail of hundred dollar
00:37:26.900 bills on the fire I truly don't
00:37:28.800 think there's a single
00:37:29.820 countervailing force in this
00:37:31.680 entire government that speaks
00:37:33.520 up for taxpayers whether it's
00:37:35.280 in the bureaucracy with the
00:37:37.220 spending or in the cabinet
00:37:38.920 table I don't think there's a
00:37:40.640 single person in this
00:37:41.840 government who's a grown-up who
00:37:43.720 would say whoa whoa whoa whoa
00:37:45.100 whoa shake your head what are
00:37:47.700 you doing you're spending the
00:37:49.480 public's money as if it's your
00:37:50.720 own private money I don't is
00:37:52.460 there a single force within
00:37:53.600 government that's a
00:37:54.360 countervailing pressure on this
00:37:55.640 well we know of the one person
00:37:58.160 inside global affairs but they
00:37:59.700 choose to remain anonymous for
00:38:01.260 obvious reasons yeah but you
00:38:03.000 know that's that's why we're
00:38:04.000 here we do the digging we work
00:38:05.660 hard to expose this sort of
00:38:06.920 thing and you know it's the
00:38:08.080 only way as where it's the
00:38:09.120 only way to create a
00:38:10.420 countervailing force you know
00:38:11.600 sometimes it feels like we're
00:38:12.880 playing whack-a-mole you nail
00:38:14.960 down spending on some area and
00:38:16.600 the government just spends it
00:38:17.460 somewhere else but you've got to
00:38:18.760 keep at it Canadians have to
00:38:20.180 keep at it it's it's the only way
00:38:21.860 you get change in Ottawa is you
00:38:23.200 shame them and make them pay
00:38:24.820 politically for it and
00:38:26.000 they're they're forced to do it
00:38:27.220 even if they don't want to
00:38:28.000 yeah well I hope you're right I
00:38:29.640 just wonder where the rest of the
00:38:30.740 media party is I it's just so
00:38:33.280 strange to me I mean there have
00:38:34.860 been some pickup of your news and
00:38:36.720 I grant it but this should be a
00:38:38.860 firestorm it's it's a little puff
00:38:40.800 of smoke and it and you're you're
00:38:42.380 doing the right thing I'm just
00:38:43.600 wondering where's where's the
00:38:44.740 CBC leading the national news as
00:38:46.880 they did with Bev Oda Aaron
00:38:48.160 congratulations to you and the
00:38:49.260 taxpayers we're a fan of what you're
00:38:50.420 doing keep it up
00:38:51.480 thanks a lot all right there you
00:38:53.600 have it Aaron Woodrick he is the
00:38:54.780 federal director of the Canadian
00:38:55.760 Taxpayers Federation I wonder what
00:38:57.960 my tush would feel like if I was
00:38:59.460 sitting on a $286 cushion all day
00:39:02.280 maybe it would just you know maybe I
00:39:04.040 would just I don't know have a
00:39:05.960 spring in my step or something who
00:39:07.700 knows maybe it's a massage cushion I
00:39:09.820 don't know I'll have to I'll have to
00:39:11.140 google that stay with us more ahead
00:39:13.000 on the rebel
00:39:13.440 hey welcome back on my monologue
00:39:25.940 yesterday about Trump's Supreme
00:39:27.060 Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh
00:39:29.280 Paul writes
00:39:29.940 Brett Kavanaugh sounds like a great
00:39:32.140 pick Trump may have two more Supreme
00:39:33.840 Court judges before he's done as long
00:39:36.300 as the picks are dedicated to upholding
00:39:37.820 the Constitution most should be happy
00:39:39.660 with it
00:39:40.140 well no no no most conservatives and
00:39:43.220 Republicans would be happy with it
00:39:44.380 but remember the courts want to
00:39:46.080 undermine the Constitution they want
00:39:48.680 to move to a living tree doctrine
00:39:51.080 where judges can invent new things all
00:39:53.840 the time and find discover new laws
00:39:56.720 within the Constitution that's how we
00:39:57.840 do it in Canada
00:39:58.480 Tammy writes
00:40:00.560 Ruth Bader Ginsburg is long past her
00:40:03.020 expiration date her public comments
00:40:04.600 about Donald J Trump reveal she is
00:40:06.500 incapable of being impartial and behave
00:40:09.620 in such a way to respect the Supreme
00:40:12.420 Court of the United States
00:40:14.380 yeah it really was unprofessional
00:40:16.200 of her and you know Donald Trump
00:40:18.300 you poke him
00:40:18.940 he pokes you back twice as hard
00:40:20.520 and he fired right back in the campaign
00:40:22.360 she'll hold on as long as
00:40:25.400 she can
00:40:26.840 we talked to Joel Pollack about this
00:40:28.580 and he says that literally
00:40:29.700 they are there for life
00:40:31.420 even if they are medically
00:40:32.460 infirm
00:40:33.960 on my interview with Erica Kasrayi
00:40:37.200 John writes
00:40:38.600 praying for the end of the insane
00:40:40.640 Islamic revolution in Iran
00:40:41.920 that burdens, persecutes and punishes
00:40:43.660 the great Persian people since 1979
00:40:45.980 I wish Sting, Bono, Trudeau, Madonna
00:40:48.680 all feminists or anyone in Hollywood
00:40:50.000 of the CBC would speak up for Ma'eddeh
00:40:52.720 I think we will only hear crickets
00:40:54.720 from the left for her
00:40:55.940 thanks for the story Rebel Media
00:40:57.860 yeah I mean it's such an easy story
00:41:00.900 to get behind
00:41:01.460 you don't have to be technical
00:41:03.120 you don't have to know your history
00:41:04.900 or geography or politics
00:41:06.920 here's a young teenage gal
00:41:08.960 who's apolitical
00:41:10.360 she likes to dance in her bedroom
00:41:12.060 occasionally she show her belly button
00:41:14.280 in a belly dance
00:41:15.340 but nothing more flagrant than that
00:41:18.080 sings and dances
00:41:19.900 but that is a crime in Iran
00:41:22.000 she was arrested
00:41:23.020 forced to make a jailhouse style apology
00:41:26.700 and I didn't quite get her sentence
00:41:30.340 we know the other lady
00:41:31.720 was sentenced to 20 years
00:41:33.240 for taking off her hijab
00:41:34.660 but the story of Ma'eddeh
00:41:36.800 the 19 year old girl
00:41:37.980 how can anyone not get behind that
00:41:39.740 you don't have to be an expert
00:41:40.900 in anything
00:41:41.680 to say there's a girl
00:41:43.320 who's just doing some
00:41:44.100 Instagram dancing
00:41:45.000 and she was arrested
00:41:46.360 by cops in Iran
00:41:47.300 that's wrong
00:41:48.060 how easy is that to say
00:41:49.400 you're not right wing
00:41:50.080 you're not left wing
00:41:50.760 you're not Republican
00:41:51.960 you're not Democrat
00:41:52.680 you're not even
00:41:53.380 prescribing any solution
00:41:55.240 you're just saying
00:41:55.860 something wrong is going on
00:41:57.600 over there
00:41:57.940 and yet I haven't heard
00:41:58.680 a peep from Hollywood
00:41:59.480 you'd think
00:41:59.960 I mean she's an attractive girl
00:42:01.360 singing western songs
00:42:02.620 how easy is that
00:42:04.160 for some Hollywood lovey
00:42:05.840 to get behind
00:42:06.760 not a peep
00:42:07.360 not a peep
00:42:08.140 well that's our show for today
00:42:09.900 until tomorrow
00:42:10.660 on behalf of all of us here
00:42:12.060 at Rebel World Headquarters
00:42:13.000 good night
00:42:13.420 and keep fighting for freedom
00:42:15.140 so
00:42:16.780 we'll see you next time
00:42:17.580 get on
00:42:18.140 STEVE
00:42:18.520 we'll see you next time
00:42:18.640 at Abendoni
00:42:23.680 We'll be right back.