Verdict with Ted Cruz - June 14, 2025


The Human Trafficking Maryland Man, 'Don’t Believe Your Lying Eyes' watching Cars Burn & Behind the Israel Strike on Iran Week In Review


Episode Stats


Length

29 minutes

Words per minute

162.8589

Word count

4,757

Sentence count

347

Harmful content

Misogyny

6

sentences flagged

Toxicity

39

sentences flagged

Hate speech

29

sentences flagged


Summary

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

A Maryland man has been charged with human trafficking and is coming home. Also, the media is trying to convince you that what you're watching on TV is not rioting, it's peaceful. We call them out. And finally, Senator Cruz talks to the ambassador from Israel moments after the attack on Iran.

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 .
00:00:00.000 This is an iHeart Podcast.
00:00:02.660 Guaranteed human.
00:00:04.340 Welcome.
00:00:05.000 It is Verdict with Ted Cruz.
00:00:06.640 Week in Review.
00:00:07.640 Ben Ferguson with you.
00:00:08.560 And we had some major stories that you may have missed that we talked about this week.
00:00:11.940 First up, remember the famous Maryland man, the Maryland father that the Dems demanded
00:00:17.660 be brought back to America?
00:00:19.560 Well, he's coming back to America to face human trafficking charges.
00:00:23.300 We'll have those details on that in just a moment.
00:00:25.260 Also, the media is trying to convince you that what you're watching on TV is not rioting.
00:00:31.100 No, it's just peaceful. 0.93
00:00:32.740 Don't believe your lying eyes.
00:00:34.420 We call them out and we've got the proof of exactly what they're saying and how it's wrong.
00:00:39.360 And finally, Senator Cruz talked to the ambassador from Israel moments after the attack on Iran.
00:00:45.980 What did he have to say?
00:00:47.060 We'll break all that down for you.
00:00:49.140 It's the Week in Review and it starts right now.
00:00:51.700 Democrats have been obsessed with the Maryland father, the Maryland man, who just happened
00:00:57.480 to get deported, who was an illegal immigrant, who was caught human smuggling through my home
00:01:02.260 state of Tennessee, and they act like it never happened.
00:01:05.960 And now all of a sudden, we're like, they were demanding you bring him home, bring him
00:01:09.660 back to America. 0.89
00:01:10.340 Well, guess what?
00:01:11.280 The dude's coming home.
00:01:12.740 He is indeed.
00:01:14.320 And he has been brought to be prosecuted.
00:01:19.600 He has been indicted.
00:01:20.900 He has been indicted for human trafficking.
00:01:24.200 Wait, I thought he was just a Maryland dad, not a human trafficker.
00:01:26.900 Well, I will tell you, I'm holding the indictment in my hand and it is stunning.
00:01:31.820 So how long was he a human trafficker?
00:01:34.180 Well, according to the indictment, from in or around 2016 through in or around 2025.
00:01:43.200 So for nine years.
00:01:44.220 That's a pretty good career.
00:01:45.200 Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia and others known and unknown to the grand jury conspired to bring
00:01:53.720 undocumented aliens to the United States from countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador,
00:01:59.000 Honduras, Ecuador, and elsewhere, ultimately passing through Mexico before crossing into
00:02:03.940 Texas.
00:02:04.320 Very nice.
00:02:04.860 Very nice.
00:02:04.960 They came into Texas.
00:02:06.260 The co-conspirators knew the undocumented aliens did not possess authorization to enter the United
00:02:12.340 States.
00:02:13.300 They used cell phones.
00:02:15.040 They used social media applications.
00:02:16.760 The indictment also alleges Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia was a citizen of El Salvador, was not a United
00:02:26.060 States citizen, was living in the United States, and was also a member and associate of the
00:02:34.600 transnational criminal organization MS-13.
00:02:39.640 No, he's a dad.
00:02:40.960 Hold on a second.
00:02:41.880 You can't say that.
00:02:42.880 This is just a Maryland dude.
00:02:44.460 Maryland dad.
00:02:45.200 Maryland man.
00:02:45.840 And by the way, they accurately describe MS-13.
00:02:49.860 MS-13 was a criminal enterprise engaged in, among other activities, acts and threats involving
00:02:55.640 murder, extortion, narcotics trafficking, firearms trafficking, alien smuggling, and money laundering.
00:03:03.000 MS-13 operated throughout North and Central America, including in El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico,
00:03:08.240 the United States, including in Texas, Maryland, New York, Tennessee, and elsewhere.
00:03:11.780 Now, how many illegal aliens do you think he's charged with smuggling?
00:03:19.040 I'm assuming zero because he's just a Maryland man.
00:03:21.260 He's just a Maryland dad.
00:03:22.840 He's a Maryland dad.
00:03:24.160 I want to read this paragraph.
00:03:27.600 Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, as detailed further below, used his status in MS-13 to further his
00:03:36.520 criminal activity.
00:03:37.460 Right.
00:03:37.640 Not his status as a father or dad, as a MS-13 gang member.
00:03:42.100 Over the course of the conspiracy, the co-conspirators knowingly and unlawfully transported, wait for
00:03:50.980 it, thousands of undocumented aliens, many of whom were MS-13 members and associates.
00:04:01.680 So you're bringing in people that are now a member of a terrorist organization into the
00:04:07.060 country.
00:04:07.700 So not just random people paying.
00:04:10.100 He was smuggling in members of the terrorist organization in the United States of America
00:04:13.680 for not one year, not two, not three, not four, not five years, but nine years.
00:04:18.420 Yes.
00:04:19.060 And look, the fact that DOJ brought this indictment means presumably they have the evidence
00:04:24.920 to prove this indictment.
00:04:26.040 They're going to put on that evidence.
00:04:27.240 They're going to put on that evidence that this guy was a gang member for nine years,
00:04:33.780 that he was part of a conspiracy that smuggled thousands of people illegally, including other
00:04:38.960 gang members.
00:04:41.340 You think the media is going to apologize for any of their stories when they're attacking
00:04:44.600 Trump and saying that he just sent a Maryland dad, a Maryland man?
00:04:47.840 And understand, this is the same illegal immigrant that my colleague Chris Van Hollen, Democrat from
00:04:54.800 Maryland, flew down and had really what was a very sweet margarita with.
00:05:01.000 I mean, it was a bro man holding.
00:05:02.900 It was a moment.
00:05:03.560 It was a bro moment.
00:05:04.580 It, you know, as I tweeted out at the time, you know, find somebody who looks at you the
00:05:10.900 way Democrats look at illegal alien MS-13 gang members.
00:05:14.320 Like, the sweet nothings in his eyes as he looked on.
00:05:21.300 And by the way, you saw Democrat House members, you know, all on a parade to go down there.
00:05:26.300 They wanted to use your tax dollars to go see the Maryland man.
00:05:29.040 This is the face of the Democrat Party.
00:05:31.500 This is who they stand for.
00:05:32.960 So look, you ought to ask yourself at home.
00:05:34.600 Am I an MS-13 gang member who's a human trafficker who smuggles in thousands of illegal aliens
00:05:42.120 who smuggles in gang members?
00:05:43.980 If so, the Democrats are the party for me.
00:05:46.940 If you're not, if you kind of think we don't want human traffickers and gang members in America,
00:05:52.660 well, then I don't know what the Democrats have to say.
00:05:54.280 Is this like the ultimate FAFO, like, moment?
00:05:56.880 Because for Democrats, and I want people to understand the funniest part of the story.
00:06:01.960 Democrats demanded we bring him back.
00:06:04.760 He's coming back, going to go to jail for a long time.
00:06:07.960 And then after he serves his time, apparently, we're going to send him right back to the country
00:06:12.060 where he just came from.
00:06:13.180 Like, it didn't just go from bad to worse.
00:06:15.280 Like, he would have been better off just staying where he was.
00:06:17.980 Democrats actually are putting this man in jail.
00:06:20.060 And these facts, the facts that prove he was a human trafficker,
00:06:24.880 the facts and evidence that DOJ is going to put on,
00:06:28.040 I hope and believe the American people need to know those facts.
00:06:30.820 Because they need to know, look, we've already in this podcast cover
00:06:34.140 how the guy is allegedly a wife beater, that he has a long history of criminality.
00:06:39.920 We played the audio of him being caught human trafficking.
00:06:44.420 But at the time, we didn't know that there was a decade worth of thousands of people
00:06:49.960 being trafficked, including other gang members.
00:06:53.800 Count for what you wish for, right?
00:06:55.120 And by the way, to understand, look, I don't know specifically what this gang member did, 0.96
00:07:01.780 but I'll tell you, MS-13, when they are human trafficking, they are raping women, 0.99
00:07:06.740 they are raping children, they are abusing women and children, 1.00
00:07:11.220 they are abusing little boys, little girls. 1.00
00:07:15.400 They're soulless. 0.98
00:07:16.420 They do not care about human life or using human life. 0.85
00:07:19.340 It is, MS-13 is evil.
00:07:23.300 And in Texas, we see the atrocities they carry out.
00:07:27.420 I fully expect the evidence that comes out in this trial to be nothing short of horrifying.
00:07:32.640 And I got to say, if you're a Democrat,
00:07:36.140 and you've decided the entire future of your party is defending this guy,
00:07:40.780 you know what's weird, Ben?
00:07:43.140 I'm not sure the Democrats are worried right now.
00:07:45.160 I don't think they are.
00:07:46.020 I mean, that's the strangest thing, is in the face of this.
00:07:51.320 There used to be in politics moments where you knew you screwed up,
00:07:53.980 where even your party, they're all in on California and still on defending this guy.
00:07:58.340 Their position is, is that one Democrat congresswoman said,
00:08:02.380 law enforcement, get the F out. 0.98
00:08:04.400 That's their message.
00:08:05.780 No cops, no ICE, no border patrol.
00:08:08.180 We don't defend.
00:08:09.180 We don't defend California.
00:08:10.380 We don't arrest bad guys. 0.82
00:08:12.080 But gang members and murderers, you're a peeps.
00:08:15.100 Amazing. 0.94
00:08:15.500 Now, if you want to hear the rest of this conversation,
00:08:18.540 you can go back and listen to the full podcast from earlier this week.
00:08:22.100 Canadian women are looking for more. 1.00
00:08:24.700 More out of themselves, their businesses, their elected leaders, and the world around them.
00:08:29.140 And that's why we're thrilled to introduce the Honest Talk podcast.
00:08:32.780 I'm Jennifer Stewart.
00:08:34.040 And I'm Catherine Clark.
00:08:35.280 And in this podcast, we interview Canada's most inspiring women.
00:08:38.960 Entrepreneurs, artists, athletes, politicians, and newsmakers,
00:08:42.580 all at different stages of their journey.
00:08:44.760 So if you're looking to connect, then we hope you'll join us.
00:08:47.760 Listen to the Honest Talk podcast on iHeartRadio or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
00:08:53.800 Now on to story number two.
00:08:56.040 None of what you said can be true because I have a montage of the media saying that what
00:09:02.100 you just described is a lie.
00:09:04.680 It's not rioting.
00:09:06.100 It's not looting.
00:09:07.660 It's not burning of police cars.
00:09:10.100 Here's the media saying you're just wrong.
00:09:12.380 The L.A. County police say that they have it under control.
00:09:17.560 Carrying a flag is not illegal, as you know.
00:09:21.360 What did happen in 1992 was so different from what we're seeing now.
00:09:25.520 I mean, that was a real riot.
00:09:29.500 Video after video has shown that these agents are the ones provoking protesters
00:09:35.200 and also making up, you know, aggression by these protesters that later video shows
00:09:42.500 people were not aggressive.
00:09:44.360 We are having an administration that's targeting peaceful protests,
00:09:48.220 people that are there to protest.
00:09:49.940 The president is sending the National Guard because he doesn't like the scenes.
00:09:53.400 He doesn't like the scenes of people peacefully protesting.
00:09:56.600 Unrest is isolated.
00:09:57.880 L.A. is home to millions of people, most of whom are having a normal day here on Sunday.
00:10:02.840 You know, you've heard reports that there are riots on the streets of Los Angeles.
00:10:05.940 That is not what's happening across the city of Los Angeles.
00:10:08.660 Governor Newsom's right.
00:10:09.720 There wasn't anything like a riot happening on Friday, Saturday.
00:10:12.300 We just witnessed a protester thanking a National Guardsman for his service here in California.
00:10:19.240 LAPD, by most estimates, had this under control last night.
00:10:23.840 No, I don't think the National Guard is needed now.
00:10:26.740 Things in L.A. are calm.
00:10:28.580 There was a protest that got a little unruly late at night.
00:10:32.440 There had been no violence where anybody that was protesting hit anybody,
00:10:38.100 shot anybody, threatened anybody.
00:10:40.800 Nothing had happened.
00:10:42.360 What is just a bunch of people having fun watching cars burn?
00:10:46.120 Most of those demonstrations were very peaceful.
00:10:48.980 They were chanting, they were shouting, people were driving by, honking their horns.
00:10:53.140 I mean, that's just normal life out there.
00:10:55.500 You know, they were just having fun watching cars burn.
00:10:57.980 You know, that's just good old-fashioned entertainment.
00:11:01.340 Like, get out your popcorn, you know, light some police cars on fire, you know.
00:11:05.900 You see, next time you and I are just hanging out, you know, we should just maybe just, I don't know,
00:11:12.000 find a car and just sit on fire and watch it burn.
00:11:14.260 We're not doing anything illegal.
00:11:15.620 Everything's fine.
00:11:16.400 So, to give you a sense of just how much propaganda the media is desperately trying to spin,
00:11:25.040 I'm going to read you four headlines.
00:11:27.140 All right, so this is a headline from the New York Times.
00:11:29.260 Quote,
00:11:30.280 The Mexican flag becomes a potent L.A. protest symbol.
00:11:34.700 Trump officials have cast demonstrators waving the Mexican flag as insurrectionists.
00:11:39.740 But for many protesters who are Mexican-American, the flag represents pride in their heritage.
00:11:45.420 Now, mind you, they're waving the flag saying,
00:11:48.160 Dear God, whatever you do, do not send me back to Mexico.
00:11:50.900 That is their message.
00:11:52.360 But apparently it's pride in their heritage simultaneously.
00:11:55.260 Here's CNN.
00:11:56.060 Quote,
00:11:57.220 Trump is acting like an authoritarian.
00:12:01.140 California's crisis now rests on what he does next.
00:12:04.860 That's CNN.
00:12:05.680 Nice and objective.
00:12:07.260 All right, how about the Washington Post?
00:12:09.740 Quote,
00:12:10.540 He's waging a war on us.
00:12:13.000 As Trump escalates,
00:12:15.560 Angelenos defend their city.
00:12:18.560 Across this vast metropolis,
00:12:20.440 residents denounce what they consider an attack on the very fabric of their city,
00:12:25.520 on their neighbors, coworkers, family members.
00:12:28.140 That's the Washington Post.
00:12:29.840 And finally, NPR.
00:12:31.360 NPR, which, by the way, you and I are paying for,
00:12:33.680 every one of us who listens is paying for it through our tax dollars.
00:12:36.540 Here's what NPR says.
00:12:37.620 Quote,
00:12:38.780 Trump using National Guard in L.A.
00:12:41.360 is an abuse of power,
00:12:43.400 says national security expert.
00:12:45.900 That's the media.
00:12:47.260 Well, and with the media doing everything they can to deny the truth,
00:12:52.280 to lie, to obfuscate,
00:12:53.860 to pretend that this is all peaceful,
00:12:56.080 that there's no violence,
00:12:57.500 never mind the violence that is unfolding in front of our eyes.
00:13:00.780 You know, Maxine Waters said, 0.52
00:13:01.920 don't believe your lying eyes.
00:13:03.140 I'm telling you, there's no violence. 0.86
00:13:05.060 What is Gavin Newsom doing?
00:13:06.240 Is he protecting the people of California?
00:13:08.220 No.
00:13:09.380 Instead, he's suing President Trump
00:13:11.400 to stop the president
00:13:13.720 from protecting the people of California.
00:13:16.720 Gavin Newsom tweeted out,
00:13:18.140 quote,
00:13:18.620 I have formally requested the Trump administration
00:13:21.180 rescind their unlawful deployment of troops in Los Angeles County
00:13:24.620 and return them to my command.
00:13:27.540 We didn't have a problem until Trump got involved.
00:13:30.540 This is a serious breach of state sovereignty
00:13:32.840 and flaming tensions
00:13:34.000 while pulling resources from where they're actually needed.
00:13:37.740 Rescind the order.
00:13:39.200 Return control to California.
00:13:41.980 So, Gavin Newsom is not upset
00:13:44.040 that illegal immigrants 1.00
00:13:48.140 have flooded into this country
00:13:50.000 for the last four years across open borders.
00:13:52.280 He's not upset
00:13:53.080 that murderers and rapists 0.97
00:13:55.460 and child molesters and gangbangers 0.72
00:13:57.100 have been released.
00:13:57.880 He's not upset that Californians are being murdered, 0.55
00:14:01.520 are being violently assaulted by illegal immigrants. 0.80
00:14:04.020 None of that dismays him.
00:14:05.420 He's not upset at the looting.
00:14:06.680 He's not standing with the poor small business owners
00:14:09.440 and shop owners
00:14:10.160 whose stores were destroyed by the violent crime.
00:14:12.340 None of that upsets him.
00:14:13.920 Instead,
00:14:15.120 Gavin Newsom's problem is, 0.99
00:14:16.580 damn it, number one, 0.99
00:14:18.240 Trump is arresting illegals 1.00
00:14:19.840 and we're the Democrats,
00:14:20.980 we're the party of illegals.
00:14:22.680 And number two, 0.60
00:14:23.540 even worse,
00:14:25.320 Trump is sending in federal officers,
00:14:28.120 sending in the National Guard
00:14:29.340 to keep communities safe,
00:14:31.920 to protect families,
00:14:33.060 to protect homes.
00:14:34.400 That is unacceptable
00:14:35.900 because if there's one thing
00:14:37.080 the Democrats stand for
00:14:38.160 beyond illegal immigrations and crime,
00:14:41.440 it is preventing the police
00:14:43.060 from doing their job,
00:14:44.340 preventing them from keeping you safe.
00:14:46.140 I think that really sums up
00:14:48.380 the lunacy of where the left is today.
00:14:52.780 Final question on this one.
00:14:54.280 I don't think there's any near end in sight.
00:14:58.100 I think this is going to continue to grow.
00:15:00.140 Do you agree?
00:15:01.080 I do.
00:15:01.900 And let me say,
00:15:03.400 we started by saying
00:15:04.640 this went where we predicted,
00:15:05.880 that this spreads nationally,
00:15:07.780 that we see these protests
00:15:09.420 and these riots
00:15:10.160 in cities across the country.
00:15:11.780 And I think we need to follow the money.
00:15:14.120 And that's certainly
00:15:14.820 what I am urging the president,
00:15:16.140 urging the Department of Justice to do
00:15:17.640 is follow the money.
00:15:19.040 And anyone who is funding this,
00:15:20.660 this is just like
00:15:21.340 the anti-Semitic protests
00:15:22.420 on college campuses.
00:15:23.480 By the way,
00:15:24.200 I suspect it's the same people
00:15:25.960 who funded the anti-Semitic protests,
00:15:28.880 who funded the Antifa
00:15:30.040 and Black Lives Matter riots.
00:15:32.640 It is the same radicals 0.96
00:15:35.160 who hate America.
00:15:37.880 Many of them are openly Marxist.
00:15:39.860 Black Lives Matter is openly Marxist.
00:15:42.520 They're rabidly anti-Israel.
00:15:44.400 They're rabidly anti-capitalism.
00:15:46.140 They're rabidly anti-police.
00:15:47.640 They're rabidly anti-law and order.
00:15:49.560 They're rabidly pro-criminal.
00:15:51.020 They're rabidly pro-violence.
00:15:52.860 But we need to follow the money
00:15:54.780 and prosecute anyone
00:15:56.960 who is funding riots
00:15:58.300 across this country.
00:15:59.280 And I hope that's exactly
00:16:01.000 what the Trump administration does.
00:16:02.500 Yeah, no doubt about it.
00:16:03.720 Before we wrap,
00:16:04.700 I got to just hit pause.
00:16:06.520 And you got a really cool letter
00:16:08.720 from a kid.
00:16:11.200 This inspires me.
00:16:12.820 It makes me happy.
00:16:13.540 It reminds me when I got into radio
00:16:14.980 when I was 12 years old.
00:16:16.720 And I want you to just tell us
00:16:18.340 about this letter.
00:16:19.220 And I want to read it
00:16:20.100 for everybody that listens to Verdict.
00:16:21.300 It's awesome.
00:16:22.460 Well, listen,
00:16:22.960 I had a member of my staff
00:16:24.540 who was down in Texas
00:16:25.820 this past week
00:16:27.120 and was at Fort Cavazos,
00:16:29.680 which actually just got renamed
00:16:31.220 back to Fort Hood.
00:16:32.220 and he was there at Fort Cavazos
00:16:36.800 and there was a major
00:16:37.640 who stationed there
00:16:39.100 who gave him a letter
00:16:40.680 and gave him a letter.
00:16:42.280 It was a letter
00:16:42.860 from his 10-year-old son.
00:16:45.740 And I'm going to read it.
00:16:46.820 I'm not going to give you
00:16:47.540 his last name,
00:16:48.880 but I'm going to read the letter
00:16:50.500 that I was handed today.
00:16:52.660 Dear Senator Cruz,
00:16:54.760 my name is Justin
00:16:56.340 and I am a student
00:16:57.760 at Hill Country Christian School
00:16:59.140 of Austin
00:16:59.660 and I am pro-God,
00:17:01.840 pro-life,
00:17:02.940 and pro-gun Republican
00:17:04.220 who loves America,
00:17:05.940 Jesus,
00:17:06.660 and politics.
00:17:08.100 I want to write to you
00:17:09.180 to say thank you
00:17:09.920 for everything you have done
00:17:10.880 for Texas and America.
00:17:13.040 There's a paragraph
00:17:15.040 that's really nice
00:17:16.000 and praising me,
00:17:17.340 which I'm going to skip
00:17:18.040 because that seems
00:17:18.920 a little self-centered
00:17:20.860 to read a paragraph praising me,
00:17:22.520 but here's the paragraph
00:17:23.360 I wanted every verdict listener
00:17:25.080 to hear.
00:17:26.700 I listen to your podcast,
00:17:29.440 Verdict,
00:17:30.720 every week.
00:17:32.740 I have learned so much
00:17:34.680 from you
00:17:35.180 about how government works
00:17:36.400 and all the things
00:17:37.520 you are doing
00:17:38.120 to stop the radical left agenda
00:17:40.200 and help President Trump
00:17:41.560 pass the America First agenda.
00:17:44.340 You have helped me
00:17:45.300 to want to be a politician
00:17:46.660 when I'm older.
00:17:48.200 Thank you for everything you do.
00:17:49.820 Sincerely, Justin.
00:17:51.240 H10.
00:17:52.060 As before,
00:17:53.000 if you want to hear
00:17:53.680 the rest of this conversation
00:17:54.920 on this topic,
00:17:56.180 you can go back
00:17:56.900 and download the podcast
00:17:58.220 from earlier this week
00:17:59.080 to hear the entire thing.
00:18:01.180 Canadian women
00:18:01.920 are looking for more.
00:18:03.320 More out of themselves,
00:18:04.320 their businesses,
00:18:05.260 their elected leaders,
00:18:06.220 and the world around them.
00:18:07.420 And that's why
00:18:07.880 we're thrilled
00:18:08.400 to introduce
00:18:09.040 the Honest Talk podcast.
00:18:11.160 I'm Jennifer Stewart.
00:18:12.340 And I'm Catherine Clark.
00:18:13.580 And in this podcast,
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00:18:26.300 Listen to the Honest Talk podcast
00:18:27.680 on iHeartRadio
00:18:28.680 or wherever you listen
00:18:29.640 to your podcasts.
00:18:30.360 I want to get back
00:18:33.280 to the big story
00:18:34.460 number three of the week
00:18:35.400 you may have missed.
00:18:36.600 One of the things
00:18:37.300 I love about doing this show,
00:18:38.500 Senator,
00:18:38.800 is moments after
00:18:40.440 this attack took place,
00:18:42.760 Israel on Iran,
00:18:44.460 you were actually
00:18:45.320 on the phone
00:18:45.740 with the ambassador
00:18:46.540 from Israel.
00:18:47.820 What did he tell you
00:18:49.140 about this attack?
00:18:50.220 How long had they
00:18:51.060 been planning this?
00:18:52.320 What was the final decision
00:18:53.700 that made this happen
00:18:54.800 in the last several hours?
00:18:56.740 Well, understand,
00:18:58.660 this show happens
00:18:59.960 real time.
00:19:00.860 It happens real time
00:19:01.840 in real life.
00:19:03.120 You and I are recording this
00:19:04.400 early in the morning,
00:19:05.600 Friday morning.
00:19:06.300 This podcast will come out
00:19:07.540 later in the day on Friday,
00:19:08.740 so some of you will be
00:19:09.560 listening to this on Friday.
00:19:11.120 Others of you will be
00:19:12.200 hearing this on radio
00:19:13.140 on Saturday or Sunday.
00:19:15.100 And so the world
00:19:16.000 may have changed.
00:19:16.880 48 hours at the time
00:19:18.400 when a war is initiating
00:19:20.180 is a mountain of time.
00:19:22.500 And what I can tell you
00:19:23.500 is late Thursday night
00:19:25.940 as Israel was launching
00:19:27.380 its attacks
00:19:28.300 before Iran has engaged
00:19:30.080 in a counterattack,
00:19:31.740 I was on the phone
00:19:33.680 with the Israeli ambassador
00:19:35.200 to the United States
00:19:36.000 and he told me
00:19:36.860 that the attack,
00:19:39.480 at least so far,
00:19:40.340 had gone extraordinarily well,
00:19:41.900 that they'd taken out
00:19:42.800 senior leadership
00:19:43.620 of the IRGC.
00:19:45.060 And I've got to say,
00:19:45.740 by the way,
00:19:46.380 that's a huge victory
00:19:48.140 for the United States
00:19:49.100 of America.
00:19:49.480 The IRGC has murdered
00:19:51.900 over 600 American
00:19:53.960 servicemen and women.
00:19:56.300 They are grotesquely hostile
00:19:58.880 to the United States
00:20:00.520 and for Israel to take them out 0.77
00:20:02.400 is an enormous benefit
00:20:03.760 to America.
00:20:04.940 But at the same time,
00:20:06.260 the Israeli ambassador
00:20:07.100 told me that the instruction
00:20:09.500 had gone out in Israel
00:20:10.680 to the people of Israel,
00:20:12.400 go to a bomb shelter, 0.80
00:20:14.440 either be in a bomb shelter
00:20:15.780 or be very near a bomb shelter
00:20:17.680 because they are anticipating
00:20:19.740 early in the morning,
00:20:21.120 Friday morning,
00:20:22.260 that Iran is going to launch 0.99
00:20:24.340 a massive counterattack
00:20:26.380 with ballistic weapons.
00:20:28.940 And Israel has extensive
00:20:31.120 anti-missile defenses,
00:20:33.080 but Iran has sufficient volume
00:20:35.520 that if they launch everything,
00:20:37.000 they have the capacity
00:20:37.820 to overwhelm the defenses.
00:20:39.800 And so there is
00:20:40.960 a very real possibility
00:20:42.060 the people of Israel
00:20:42.920 are braced.
00:20:43.460 They understand.
00:20:44.180 Look, look,
00:20:45.580 they're not playing games.
00:20:49.440 They are playing
00:20:50.520 with real stakes.
00:20:51.700 They're playing
00:20:52.140 with live rounds.
00:20:53.300 The people of Israel
00:20:54.380 understand right now,
00:20:56.480 as you and I
00:20:56.980 are recording this,
00:20:58.420 that we may see 0.99
00:20:59.260 Israelis die right now 1.00
00:21:01.040 because Iran 0.99
00:21:01.760 has enough missiles
00:21:03.100 that if they launch
00:21:03.980 them all,
00:21:05.480 there will be 1.00
00:21:06.420 Israelis murdered 1.00
00:21:07.460 in the minutes 0.98
00:21:09.000 and hours ahead of us.
00:21:10.460 But at the same time,
00:21:12.360 Prime Minister Netanyahu
00:21:13.320 who made the decision,
00:21:14.260 it's a decision
00:21:14.860 I agree with,
00:21:15.620 it's a decision
00:21:16.200 that I think was right,
00:21:18.120 which is the risk
00:21:19.780 of Israelis dying
00:21:21.860 and of Americans dying
00:21:23.440 if Iran acquires 0.99
00:21:25.560 a nuclear weapon
00:21:26.440 is qualitatively different,
00:21:28.140 that we could face
00:21:29.920 with an Iranian
00:21:31.360 nuclear weapon,
00:21:33.240 we could face
00:21:33.980 millions murdered.
00:21:36.120 And so, listen,
00:21:38.060 I want to underscore
00:21:39.260 what I said
00:21:39.800 at the beginning
00:21:40.180 of this podcast.
00:21:41.300 Pray for the people
00:21:42.200 of Israel
00:21:42.680 and pray for our
00:21:44.320 servicemen and women
00:21:45.120 in harm's way
00:21:46.200 because this is a
00:21:47.240 very, very dangerous
00:21:48.280 time right now.
00:21:49.760 Well, let's talk about
00:21:50.600 who is targeted
00:21:51.420 and what this looks like
00:21:52.720 moving forward
00:21:53.540 from the standpoint
00:21:54.420 of Israel.
00:21:55.100 I mean,
00:21:55.380 the objective here
00:21:56.920 is clearly to put them
00:21:57.860 back when it comes
00:21:59.300 to their nuclear program,
00:22:00.380 but they also went
00:22:01.340 after people that
00:22:01.960 were involved
00:22:02.440 in that program,
00:22:03.120 which is a really
00:22:04.020 big way to move
00:22:04.980 things backwards.
00:22:06.660 Yeah, look,
00:22:07.360 this was a
00:22:08.000 decapitation strike.
00:22:09.200 It was targeted
00:22:10.260 at the senior
00:22:11.200 military leaders
00:22:12.360 in Iran.
00:22:13.200 It was targeted
00:22:14.360 at the nuclear
00:22:15.160 facilities in Iran.
00:22:16.740 It was targeted
00:22:17.680 at the anti-air
00:22:20.320 assault facilities
00:22:22.080 in Iran.
00:22:23.260 It was a very
00:22:24.640 targeted but massively
00:22:26.520 effective strike.
00:22:27.580 Now, Iran is going 1.00
00:22:29.260 to strike back.
00:22:30.260 Understand that.
00:22:31.180 That's not a possibility
00:22:33.160 or a probability.
00:22:34.840 It is a certainty
00:22:36.040 that Iran will hit back.
00:22:37.420 Now, what I hope Iran 1.00
00:22:39.220 understands is they
00:22:40.320 should not hit back
00:22:41.200 at America.
00:22:42.380 Hitting back at America
00:22:43.460 would escalate this
00:22:44.680 dramatically.
00:22:46.360 And I will say,
00:22:48.480 the Secretary of State,
00:22:49.520 Marco Rubio,
00:22:50.160 he put out a statement
00:22:51.180 Thursday night.
00:22:51.960 Let me read his statement.
00:22:53.480 Quote,
00:22:54.360 Tonight,
00:22:55.760 Israel took unilateral
00:22:57.100 action against Iran.
00:22:59.000 We were not involved
00:23:00.280 in strikes against Iran
00:23:01.960 and our top priority
00:23:03.540 is protecting American
00:23:04.620 forces in the region.
00:23:05.600 Israel advised us 0.94
00:23:07.780 that they believe
00:23:08.540 this action was necessary
00:23:09.820 for its self-defense.
00:23:11.880 President Trump
00:23:12.560 and the administration
00:23:13.460 have taken all
00:23:14.440 necessary steps
00:23:15.460 to protect our forces
00:23:17.180 and remain in close
00:23:18.800 contact with our
00:23:20.220 regional partners.
00:23:21.800 Let me be clear.
00:23:23.400 Iran should not target
00:23:25.140 U.S. interests
00:23:26.600 or personnel.
00:23:28.560 Now, look,
00:23:30.300 I'm glad that the
00:23:31.560 Secretary of State
00:23:32.240 was putting out
00:23:32.800 that statement
00:23:33.360 defending our
00:23:34.020 servicemen and women.
00:23:34.880 I wish there had been
00:23:36.880 more in that statement
00:23:37.840 saying we stand
00:23:38.680 with Israel.
00:23:39.340 That was missing
00:23:40.560 from the statement
00:23:41.200 and it shouldn't have been.
00:23:43.820 From my perspective,
00:23:45.060 we stand unequivocally
00:23:46.500 with Israel,
00:23:47.060 but I understand
00:23:47.800 why the Secretary of State
00:23:49.080 didn't do that,
00:23:50.560 which is that
00:23:51.800 he's concerned
00:23:52.600 that Iran may strike
00:23:55.140 at U.S. military forces.
00:23:56.980 Now, in my view,
00:23:58.000 the way to prevent that
00:24:00.260 is not to say to Iran,
00:24:01.680 hey, we had nothing
00:24:02.420 to do with that,
00:24:03.340 which was the main theme
00:24:05.260 of the Secretary of State's
00:24:07.140 statement,
00:24:07.920 but rather to say
00:24:10.100 if you attack U.S. forces,
00:24:12.200 the consequences
00:24:13.200 will be overwhelming.
00:24:15.140 I think Iran responds 0.99
00:24:16.620 more to stick
00:24:19.100 than to carrot,
00:24:20.300 but we shall see,
00:24:21.700 and it is,
00:24:22.740 any way you look at it,
00:24:24.300 an unbelievably dangerous time.
00:24:27.940 Senator,
00:24:28.520 let's talk about
00:24:29.360 some of the people
00:24:29.920 that have been taken out here.
00:24:30.860 There's two aspects
00:24:32.240 of these strikes.
00:24:33.280 One,
00:24:34.300 nuclear scientists
00:24:35.160 are being reported
00:24:35.880 that they were targeted
00:24:36.940 and have been killed, 0.89
00:24:38.080 and that is the brains
00:24:39.700 of the nuclear program.
00:24:41.860 If you want to stop Iran 1.00
00:24:43.360 from doing this,
00:24:44.600 taking out nuclear scientists
00:24:46.020 is absolutely brilliant.
00:24:47.880 It's the computer system,
00:24:49.320 the nervous system
00:24:50.080 of everything
00:24:50.760 they're trying to accomplish.
00:24:52.280 That's incredible,
00:24:53.420 but we also now know
00:24:54.840 from virtually every news agency
00:24:57.180 is reporting this,
00:24:58.080 that the IRGC terror chief Salami
00:25:01.260 has also been eliminated.
00:25:03.580 That is significant as well.
00:25:05.580 Well, we now know
00:25:06.700 that Hussein Salami
00:25:07.760 is lunch meat,
00:25:09.800 and I feel a little cheesy
00:25:12.220 making fun of him,
00:25:13.240 but then again, 1.00
00:25:14.240 the guy is a racist, 1.00
00:25:17.640 genocidal, 1.00
00:25:19.020 homicidal lunatic, 1.00
00:25:20.660 so I hope after Salami, 1.00
00:25:23.340 bologna,
00:25:23.960 and pastrami
00:25:24.660 both get eliminated as well,
00:25:26.220 and if you look at the head
00:25:28.980 of the IRGC,
00:25:30.660 he has responsibility
00:25:31.840 for murdering
00:25:33.920 over 600 U.S. servicemen
00:25:36.760 and women. 0.98
00:25:38.040 So, if you love
00:25:40.240 the men and women
00:25:40.860 of the armed services,
00:25:41.900 if you are grateful
00:25:42.740 for friends, family,
00:25:44.360 loved ones
00:25:44.900 who have served
00:25:46.000 defending this nation,
00:25:47.600 then you ought to say tonight
00:25:49.400 to the nation of Israel,
00:25:50.780 thank you.
00:25:51.260 Thank you for taking out
00:25:52.360 the head of the IRGC
00:25:53.680 that is responsible
00:25:55.320 for murdering
00:25:56.220 hundreds of American
00:25:58.180 servicemen and women.
00:25:59.880 President Trump,
00:26:00.780 when he was president
00:26:01.380 the first time,
00:26:02.400 he took out
00:26:03.300 General Soleimani,
00:26:04.640 and now, today,
00:26:06.460 the Israelis
00:26:07.040 have taken out
00:26:08.040 Salami,
00:26:09.500 a successor
00:26:10.940 who is the terror chief
00:26:13.060 of the IRGC,
00:26:14.840 and he is now
00:26:16.120 with his 72 virgins,
00:26:17.840 although I will tell you
00:26:18.700 much to his dismay,
00:26:20.380 those virgins 1.00
00:26:20.940 are all Gomer Pyle,
00:26:22.120 and it's not
00:26:22.920 what he hoped for.
00:26:23.920 I gotta say,
00:26:24.900 one of the best parts
00:26:25.640 about this story,
00:26:26.560 just side note,
00:26:27.320 if you look up
00:26:28.640 Salami on his pages
00:26:30.760 on Wikipedia,
00:26:32.740 it already says
00:26:33.660 he's like the former guy
00:26:35.080 in charge of the IRGC.
00:26:37.140 I love the internet
00:26:38.100 when they get it right
00:26:38.900 really quickly, Senator.
00:26:39.920 It is amazing
00:26:41.600 to see this moment
00:26:42.700 in history,
00:26:43.120 because this is a moment
00:26:44.060 in history,
00:26:44.760 and I gotta ask you this,
00:26:46.940 Iran now is gonna respond, 0.71
00:26:48.940 I'm sure,
00:26:49.240 in some way.
00:26:49.780 I'm sure Israel
00:26:50.980 is expecting that.
00:26:52.860 You made it very clear
00:26:53.880 tonight,
00:26:54.320 America's warning,
00:26:55.420 and from this administration,
00:26:57.400 what happens next,
00:26:59.880 and what is Israel
00:27:01.300 expecting in your mind?
00:27:03.300 Well,
00:27:03.900 it depends on the escalation.
00:27:05.500 I think it is
00:27:06.380 100% certain
00:27:07.520 that Iran will respond 0.98
00:27:09.540 by firing missiles
00:27:10.540 at Israel.
00:27:11.800 Israel gets that, 0.94
00:27:12.900 they understand that,
00:27:13.800 they're ready for that.
00:27:14.800 There is some real possibility
00:27:17.420 that Iran will respond 0.98
00:27:19.320 by firing missiles
00:27:20.240 or other weapons
00:27:21.080 at Americans,
00:27:22.920 and I think if they do that,
00:27:24.320 they will dramatically
00:27:25.240 escalate this conflict.
00:27:26.720 I think they will provoke, 0.81
00:27:28.200 if they murder 0.96
00:27:29.000 American servicemen 0.97
00:27:30.000 and women, 1.00
00:27:30.480 I think you will see
00:27:31.380 President Trump respond
00:27:32.940 with devastating force,
00:27:34.880 and so again,
00:27:35.860 my message to the Ayatollahs 0.90
00:27:37.300 do not do that.
00:27:39.480 Their response to Israel, 0.73
00:27:41.000 I don't know what it will be.
00:27:42.840 There is a risk
00:27:44.180 that their response
00:27:45.580 is devastating,
00:27:46.960 that it is overwhelming.
00:27:48.680 They have a massive number
00:27:50.460 of ballistic missiles,
00:27:51.720 so if they fire them all,
00:27:53.800 the odds are significant
00:27:55.040 that we will see
00:27:55.980 a very large number 0.99
00:27:57.280 of Israelis murdered.
00:27:59.300 What I'm saying,
00:28:01.380 Prime Minister Netanyahu
00:28:02.440 understands.
00:28:03.160 He knows that.
00:28:04.180 He knows that,
00:28:05.360 but by virtue of engaging
00:28:06.560 in this attack tonight,
00:28:08.180 there is a real risk
00:28:09.500 of a significant number
00:28:10.580 of Israelis being murdered,
00:28:11.740 but he did this
00:28:12.780 because he knows
00:28:15.260 that if Iran has
00:28:16.180 a nuclear weapon,
00:28:17.580 many, many more Israelis
00:28:19.520 and many, many more Americans
00:28:20.900 are at risk
00:28:21.560 of being murdered.
00:28:23.000 Look,
00:28:24.340 the Ayatollah chants 0.79
00:28:25.760 death to America 0.98
00:28:26.760 and death to Israel. 0.93
00:28:27.880 I believe he believes that, 0.59
00:28:30.220 and so acquiring
00:28:31.680 a nuclear weapon
00:28:32.480 is not just an academic question.
00:28:34.040 If he gets a nuclear weapon,
00:28:35.660 I believe he is trying
00:28:37.200 to acquire one
00:28:38.120 because he wants
00:28:39.100 to carry out
00:28:39.840 his promises
00:28:40.560 of death to Israel 0.97
00:28:42.200 and death to America, 0.94
00:28:43.300 and that's precisely 0.54
00:28:44.380 why Israel 0.88
00:28:45.220 has launched this attack
00:28:46.940 to stop him
00:28:47.740 from getting that capability.
00:28:49.620 As always,
00:28:50.580 thank you for listening
00:28:51.760 to Verdict
00:28:52.580 with Senator Ted Cruz,
00:28:53.820 Ben Ferguson with you.
00:28:54.720 Don't forget
00:28:55.140 to download my podcast
00:28:56.400 and you can listen
00:28:57.140 to my podcast
00:28:57.780 every other day
00:28:58.320 you're not listening
00:28:58.900 to Verdict
00:28:59.280 or each day
00:29:00.080 when you listen
00:29:00.480 to Verdict afterwards.
00:29:01.740 I'd love to have you
00:29:02.700 as a listener
00:29:03.200 to, again,
00:29:04.140 the Ben Ferguson podcast,
00:29:05.260 and we will see you
00:29:06.180 back here
00:29:06.800 on Monday morning.
00:29:08.960 This is an iHeart Podcast.
00:29:11.860 Guaranteed human.