Verdict with Ted Cruz - June 09, 2026


BONUS POD： Reading, Writing…Failing—Pandemic Fallout Leaves Kids Falling Behind Fast

Topics
UNRWA corruption and terrorist ties
Hosted by
Ted Cruz
Mentioned
Joe Getty Jake Radio Keith Ellison Tim Walsh Ronald Reagan Ben Ferguson
California Crazy-LA's Maddening Mayor Race plus Iran & Israel Fire More Missiles at Each Other Historic Drone Rescue of American Soldiers Shot Down in Iran, plus Minnesota Dems Hired Private Investigators to Target Fraud Whistleblowers

Episode Stats


Length

21 minutes

Words per minute

140.45

Word count

3,058

Sentence count

187

Harmful content

Misogyny

1

sentences flagged

Toxicity

1

sentences flagged

Hate speech

2

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

In this episode of The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson, Ben Ferguson and Jack Armstrong talk about the devastating effects of the COVID lockdowns, and how the lack of education reform has affected our children and the future of our country.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Toxicity classifications generated with s-nlp/roberta_toxicity_classifier .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
Topics generated with Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct.
Hosts, guests, and mentioned names generated with spaCy (en_core_web_sm), reconciled against Wikidata.
00:00:00.000 This is an iHeart Podcast.
00:00:02.660 Guaranteed human.
00:00:04.180 Why should you listen to Armstrong and Getty On Demand?
00:00:07.840 We're not boring.
00:00:08.840 A lot of news is boring.
00:00:09.820 And tedious.
00:00:10.700 And depressing.
00:00:11.300 And makes you angry.
00:00:12.660 You don't want to live your life like that.
00:00:14.920 Hey, I'm Jack Armstrong.
00:00:16.000 He's Joe Getty.
00:00:16.640 We're Armstrong and Getty.
00:00:17.760 We try to bring you the truth.
00:00:18.900 And help you figure out this crazy modern world.
00:00:21.300 How about something about a comedic tone?
00:00:25.780 We have a winner.
00:00:27.300 Yes.
00:00:27.700 Listen to Armstrong and Getty On Demand on the iHeartRadio app,
00:00:31.420 Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
00:00:34.540 Turn someday into right now with Body by Jake Radio.
00:00:38.340 Nonstop workout music and expert tips 24-7.
00:00:41.120 Hey, head over to iHeart.com, search Body by Jake Radio,
00:00:44.460 and stream it for free right now.
00:00:46.620 Awesome health and wellness tips 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
00:00:50.200 Remember, stick to the fight.
00:00:51.320 When your heart is hit, it's when things seem worse that you must not quit.
00:00:54.720 Don't quit.
00:00:55.180 Body by Jake Radio, where hope meets momentum.
00:00:58.720 Search Body by Jake Radio and stream it for free.
00:01:01.460 Have a great day.
00:01:02.240 I heart radio.
00:01:06.140 The House Republicans on the Oversight Committee have released this report on fraud in Minnesota,
00:01:10.900 targeting Tim Walsh, targeting Keith Ellison.
00:01:13.620 Do you think that this is just about trying to get at those two figures,
00:01:17.040 or do you think that there's actually something that Ellison and Walsh have to say for themselves?
00:01:21.180 House Republicans are not serious about rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the United States of America.
00:01:26.720 You know why?
00:01:27.240 Because the biggest fraud being perpetrated on the people of this country right now is coming out of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
00:01:38.620 You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson.
00:01:42.620 Good Tuesday morning.
00:01:43.620 It's so nice to have you with us on the 47 Morning Update, and we've got two big stories for you.
00:01:48.520 First up, the damage that was done to America's future with our kids being the ones that had the most to lose during the COVID lockdowns.
00:01:58.340 And now we're seeing the disaster of the education system we set up and how it's going to have lasting effects on this country.
00:02:05.620 Up next, we have an update, and it's really shocking, about more corruption with UNRWA,
00:02:12.220 direct ties to terrorist organizations, and how your tax dollars have been going to pay the salaries of these terrorists.
00:02:19.960 But before we get to that, I want to take a moment and ask you to help the people in Israel
00:02:24.680 with my friends at the IFCJ working right now on the ground for all those in need.
00:02:30.560 From America's Revolutionary War to Israel's fight for survival in 1948,
00:02:37.000 both nations have faced moments that tested their courage, yet freedom endured.
00:02:42.040 In October of 1985, President Ronald Reagan delivered these remarks about America's commitment to stand with Israel.
00:02:49.100 In our talks, we paid special attention to two issues,
00:02:52.120 our commitment to Israel's security and well-being,
00:02:54.560 and our shared desire to move forward together toward a just and lasting peace between Israel
00:02:59.620 and all its Arab neighbors. A strong, secure Israel is a shared interest. As America celebrates
00:03:05.720 its 250th anniversary, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews reflects on the friendship
00:03:12.040 between the United States and Israel, two democracies built on faith, liberty, and hope.
00:03:18.220 Sign up to receive a free USA-Israel flag pin when you go online to flagpinifcj.org.
00:03:27.820 That's flagpinifcj.org.
00:03:32.460 It's the 47 Morning Update, and it starts right now.
00:03:36.160 Story number one.
00:03:37.460 There were warning signs when COVID was going on.
00:03:40.800 There were warning signs from people that were being silenced as well,
00:03:45.180 saying that no one was understanding the harm that was being done to our children academically
00:03:50.300 by having, quote, remote learning.
00:03:53.260 You remember when kids stayed home for a couple of years and were having school over their iPads.
00:03:59.620 Well, now we are seeing real data of just how much damage was done to the future of this country
00:04:05.680 and our children that should have probably just been held back instead of socially promoted.
00:04:12.420 Well, not only was children's well-being a decline during that time,
00:04:16.780 but now we're seeing a decline nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic,
00:04:22.160 with children now in 29 states, worse off in 2024 than in 2019,
00:04:29.480 according to a new report out from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
00:04:34.740 Now, the report comes as families struggle with higher costs for food, housing, and other necessities.
00:04:41.260 Advocates warn that cuts to government safety net programs could worsen conditions for children,
00:04:46.980 and so they want you to spend more money.
00:04:49.940 But the research is showing something very different.
00:04:53.220 In fact, the research shows that kids who are healthy, safe, fed, educated,
00:04:58.060 and surrounded by strong family relationships have a much better chance to thrive
00:05:03.440 and contribute as independent adults.
00:05:06.900 The foundation's vice president saying this to Axios,
00:05:10.120 We know that today's children are tomorrow's workforce,
00:05:14.240 so the strength of the economy is the future.
00:05:17.640 And that is directly tied to the well-being of kids today.
00:05:21.440 The foundation's 2026 Kids Count data book
00:05:25.240 measured children in four different categories,
00:05:28.560 and this should make every American furious.
00:05:31.180 economic well-being, then education, then health, and then family and community.
00:05:36.940 The national score fell from 553 to 547 from 2019 to 2024.
00:05:46.820 In fact, five of the top seven states were in the Northeast,
00:05:50.780 while 11 of the 15 lowest ranked states were in the South.
00:05:55.160 Still, eight Southern states actually improved, including South Carolina,
00:06:00.080 which posted the nation's biggest gain at 38 points.
00:06:05.640 The share of children, by the way, living in households burdened by housing costs
00:06:09.620 rose from 30 to 31 percent.
00:06:12.240 That affects more than 22.4 million children.
00:06:16.240 It was the first increase since 2010, according to the data as well.
00:06:20.880 And the report revealed sharp declines in health and education scores,
00:06:24.820 even though we have, quote, Obamacare.
00:06:27.680 Child and teen deaths actually rose 8%, so much for Obamacare saving kids' lives.
00:06:35.040 Well, health scores fell from 624 to 607.
00:06:40.060 And then the education part comes in.
00:06:43.300 Education scores took the biggest hit in any category, plunging from 518 to 417,
00:06:50.240 driven by massive declines in reading and math proficiency in 47 different states they said the
00:06:59.960 rise in child and teen deaths reflect a youth mental health crisis as well that was a real
00:07:06.020 problem during covid some states have moved to put more mental health professionals in schools
00:07:11.360 and family and community scores improved from 518 to 608 while economic well-being rose to 551
00:07:19.060 all the way up to 557. Now here's the part that's really interesting about this.
00:07:25.100 The safety net programs including the temporary 2021 child tax credit expansion may have actually
00:07:32.060 helped cushion families but recent Georgetown University data actually showed fewer children
00:07:38.720 enrolled in Medicaid and more uninsured even though Obamacare is out there. Raising concerns now
00:07:46.800 about what was going to happen in terms of child well-being
00:07:50.180 and outcomes for children with a system that is clearly broken
00:07:54.440 and heading in the wrong direction,
00:07:56.980 particularly around the economic security
00:07:59.040 in a time when we know costs are rising for food and housing and basic necessities.
00:08:05.640 Now, New Mexico, for example, ranked 49th,
00:08:08.280 but improved by 22 points largely on economic gains.
00:08:12.600 Mississippi ranked last overall but saw stronger education results after a 2013 third grade reading law
00:08:20.540 and continued funding in schools, teacher training, and early childhood education.
00:08:26.660 All of those things obviously are really, really, really, really, really important.
00:08:32.140 Now that's positive proof that when we make direct investments in families and children,
00:08:38.540 that children then do well. The teen birth rate, by the way, also fell 24%. I'm going to say that
00:08:45.380 again. The teen birth rate fell 24% during the study period. It's the direct results of decades
00:08:52.980 of investment in trying to ensure that teen pregnancy rates actually decline, the study says.
00:08:59.140 Now, you put all this into perspective right now, and here's what we know for a fact. We know that
00:09:05.260 COVID and having children stay home not only literally cost kids their lives with mental
00:09:11.000 health issues, but it also took away the quality education or even maybe the bare minimum education
00:09:17.440 they were receiving. It made it all worse. And now we have a major economic problem on the horizon.
00:09:25.080 Too many kids that don't even know how to read going into college. Let me say that again. The
00:09:31.640 New data also shows that more kids are going to college without being proficient in reading.
00:09:38.900 How is that even possible?
00:09:40.920 Welcome to social promotion of our government schools. 0.99
00:09:44.440 It's clearly defrauding kids of their future.
00:09:47.400 And the fact that we socially promoted countless children all across the country
00:09:52.400 is now really coming back to haunt us, and it will haunt us in the workforce as well.
00:09:57.780 All because Democrats wanted to shut down the schools
00:10:01.340 And remember the big lie?
00:10:03.460 Oh, it'll only be for two weeks
00:10:05.140 We now know it's going to have a lifetime of repercussions
00:10:08.300 For so many kids that were in our public school systems
00:10:12.100 Next, story number two
00:10:13.780 It's time to give you an update on the new UNRWA scandal
00:10:17.360 That is rocking the United Nations
00:10:19.240 And American taxpayers funded it
00:10:22.280 For years, you and I were told that the United Nations Relief and Work Agency
00:10:27.240 better known as UNRWA, was a humanitarian organization just helping the Palestinian
00:10:33.200 refugees with schools, medical clinics, food assistance, and social services, all things
00:10:39.260 obviously that you should be in favor of. Washington then sent billions of dollars of
00:10:46.520 your tax dollars to support these, quote, operations. And American taxpayers were also
00:10:52.880 assured that these funds were helping innocent civilians and promoting stability in one of the
00:10:59.420 world's most volatile regions. Well, over the last several years, a very different picture has emerged
00:11:06.500 and now we're seeing just how bad it really was. Investigators have uncovered evidence that many
00:11:14.120 of the UNRWA facilities were allegedly being used by terrorists. Yes, by the actual terrorists
00:11:20.920 that are killing innocent people weapons were found near schools questions emerged about
00:11:28.080 educational materials promoting anti-israel rhetoric then came the shocking allegations
00:11:34.880 that some of the unruh employees which then turned into more than some themselves had actually
00:11:41.680 participated in the hamas october 7th terrorist attack against the people of israel now comes
00:11:49.760 perhaps the most explosive revelation on top of all of that. According to a new investigative
00:11:56.180 summary that was released by USAID and the Office of Inspector General, more than 100 current and
00:12:05.340 former UNRWA employees have been referred to the U.S. State Department for suspension
00:12:10.440 or debarment because investigators have now found clear evidence directly tying them to Hamas
00:12:19.000 or participating in the October 7th massacre.
00:12:23.880 Now, let me go over this again in a different way.
00:12:27.200 You have now proof of more than 100 UNRWA employees who are being paid by our tax dollars
00:12:38.120 and are supposed to be doing humanitarian work that are actually straight-up terrorists
00:12:44.500 or directly working with terrorists who are killing and planning the October 7th attack.
00:12:52.800 Not only that, many of these employees actually participated in the attack
00:12:59.040 and the planning of October 7th, and you and I were paying them their salaries.
00:13:04.980 Now, if they weren't actually doing their job, then you have to ask yourself another question.
00:13:10.160 Just how bad is the actual corruption to know that they're basically being paid to train for a terrorist attack?
00:13:18.860 And again, this would be you and I, our tax dollars, going to what we were told was humanitarian aid,
00:13:26.840 instead was going to aid and abet and support the training of terrorists to kill innocent Jews.
00:13:35.020 Now, just let that sink in for a moment. 0.84
00:13:38.100 This wasn't just one person. It wasn't 10. It wasn't 20. It was more than 100 UNRWA employees.
00:13:45.840 And these weren't obscure employees hidden somewhere in the bureaucracy. That's something
00:13:50.440 else you need to understand. According to the investigators, those referred included school
00:13:56.720 principals, teachers, counselors, medical workers, security personnel, and administrators.
00:14:07.900 This is how bad the terrorist control and the terrorist ties are within this area in
00:14:15.960 the world in Palestine.
00:14:17.520 Now, the inspector general's report also lays out allegations that sound almost unbelievable.
00:14:26.720 investigators identified a school deputy principal who allegedly served as a Hamas
00:14:32.960 military commander. And you and I were helping pay for his salary. Another deputy principal
00:14:40.540 allegedly served as a squad leader in a Hamas infantry battalion. Again, that would be a
00:14:46.280 terrorist organization. One teacher allegedly worked in Hamas intelligence operations,
00:14:52.040 tracking explosive devices.
00:14:55.400 Another allegedly served as a platoon commander for the terrorist organization.
00:15:00.860 And one teacher was reportedly identified as a Hamas, well, master sniper. 0.80
00:15:06.340 That's who our tax dollars were going towards. 0.92
00:15:09.160 There was also another one that received orders involving anti-tank missiles
00:15:14.060 during the October 7th attacks.
00:15:17.540 Now, these are not accusations involving political opinions
00:15:20.980 or even social media posts these are allegations involving direct participation in a designated
00:15:28.420 terrorist organization and in some cases direct involvement in the deadliest terrorist attack
00:15:33.720 in israel's history the inspector general says its investigation has now produced referrals
00:15:41.560 involving 108 individuals and that additional referrals could also be quote forthcoming
00:15:48.160 The report also notes that potential criminal referrals remain possible as investigators continue reviewing the evidence.
00:15:57.160 And here's why you should care.
00:15:59.540 For decades, the United States was one of the largest funders, largest financial backers of UNRWA.
00:16:07.840 American taxpayers contributed not millions, but billions of dollars over the years to fund the agency's operations across Gaza.
00:16:16.560 and the line that we were sold was, hey, this is no-brainer for America.
00:16:22.260 We're helping civilians that would reduce the instability in that part of the world
00:16:26.280 and create conditions for peace instead of war.
00:16:29.400 But instead, now what we find out is American taxpayers, you and I,
00:16:34.800 were actually helping fund an organization that failed to prevent extremists
00:16:40.100 from embedding themselves inside of its workforce.
00:16:43.600 And in fact, it's pretty clear they were allowing it to happen on purpose.
00:16:48.580 Now, the allegations, thank goodness, are fueling outrage on Capitol Hill.
00:16:53.140 Many lawmakers have spent years warning that Unruh's oversight mechanisms were inadequate
00:16:57.760 and that the agency had become vulnerable to be infiltrated by Hamas.
00:17:02.940 Those warnings, by the way, were often dismissed as, you know, political attacks.
00:17:07.900 Well, those critics are pointing to the latest investigation and asking a simple question.
00:17:12.680 How did this happen?
00:17:13.580 How did individuals connected to Hamas end up working as teachers, principals, counselors, and administrators inside an organization receiving international support?
00:17:25.140 How were these individuals able to remain employed while holding positions inside of a terrorist organization at the highest levels?
00:17:35.240 And perhaps even more important than that, what safeguards failed or were they purposely not used?
00:17:43.460 Now, UNRWA has consistently denied institutional support for Hamas, but their employees, well, they tell a very different story.
00:17:52.020 They, of course, point to internal investigations and employee screening efforts.
00:17:57.240 The organization has said it takes allegations seriously and has terminated employees when credible evidence emerges.
00:18:04.340 The United Nations has also conducted, they claim, investigations into previous allegations involving staff members' ties to terrorism.
00:18:12.060 Now, the latest development is different because of the scale, and this is the part that matters.
00:18:18.040 The number is no longer a handful of employees.
00:18:20.640 The number is now over 100.
00:18:23.060 And what makes this such a political moment is this.
00:18:27.860 The USAID inspector general says these referrals are intended to prevent these individuals.
00:18:33.540 from receiving future benefits through U.S.-funded aid programs.
00:18:38.120 Now, one former UNRWA school principal previously received a government-wide debarment
00:18:44.420 after investigators linked him to Hamas activities directly connected to October the 7th.
00:18:50.880 Investigators say we are continuing to, quote,
00:18:53.040 review approximately 1,500 UNRWA personnel and their records,
00:18:58.580 and additional referrals will be forthcoming.
00:19:01.740 That means what I'm telling you right now in this story, well, it's far from over.
00:19:06.280 And politically, it arrives at a moment when many Americans are already demanding greater scrutiny
00:19:11.980 over how our taxpayer dollars are being spent not overseas, but actually in this country
00:19:17.920 with massive fraud and corruption.
00:19:21.060 Supporters of the foreign aid, of course, they're saying, no, no, no, we've got to keep sending the money.
00:19:25.760 Well, why would you send our tax dollars directly to terrorists?
00:19:29.340 because that's exactly what we're looking at now.
00:19:32.720 And this is also a story about lack of accountability
00:19:35.440 or previous administrations deliberately looking the other way,
00:19:39.740 knowing exactly what was going on.
00:19:42.180 The story is also about oversight,
00:19:43.800 like why were so many people in Washington asleep at the wheel on this?
00:19:48.300 And it's also a story about whether American taxpayers can really trust our government
00:19:53.040 and knowing that billions of dollars were sent overseas
00:19:56.120 that are actually reaching the people they claim to be reaching,
00:19:59.680 well, instead, no, no, no, it's going to the terrorists.
00:20:02.920 Now, the USAID Inspector General's investigation is, quote,
00:20:06.100 ongoing and robust.
00:20:08.580 More referrals are expected, more evidence, they say, is being reviewed.
00:20:12.900 And lawmakers in Washington are already signaling that they want real answers.
00:20:18.220 Now, one thing is certain, the pressure on UNRWA has never been greater.
00:20:22.240 And after this latest bombshell report, the questions surrounding the agency are only getting louder.
00:20:52.240 And tedious.
00:20:53.020 And depressing.
00:20:53.600 And makes you angry.
00:20:54.980 You don't want to live your life like that.
00:20:57.260 Hey, I'm Jack Armstrong.
00:20:58.300 He's Joe Getty.
00:20:58.960 We're Armstrong and Getty.
00:21:00.060 We try to bring you the truth.
00:21:01.220 And help you figure out this crazy modern world.
00:21:03.600 How about something about a comedic tone?
00:21:08.080 We have a winner.
00:21:09.600 Yes.
00:21:10.620 Listen to Armstrong and Getty on demand on the iHeartRadio app,
00:21:13.720 Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
00:21:16.420 Turn someday into right now with Buddy by Jake Radio.
00:21:20.380 non-stop workout music and expert tips 24 7 hey head over to iheart.com search body by jake radio
00:21:26.600 and stream it for free right now awesome health and wellness tips 24 hours a day seven days a
00:21:32.180 week remember stick to the fight when your heart is hit it's when things seem worse that you must
00:21:36.240 not quit don't quit body by jake radio where hope meets momentum search body by jake radio
00:21:42.260 and stream it for free have a great day
00:21:44.440 iHeartRadio