March 1st • 3h 9m
Shownotes
Every new episode of No Agenda is accompanied by a comprehensive list of shownotes curated by Adam while preparing for the show. Clips played by the hosts during the show can also be found here.
Big Tech AI and The Socials
AI - Law and TOS
First off, that article is really good. It takes an appropriately cautious and conservative approach to an evolving problem that lawyers have discussed for a couple of years. But I don’t like the ruling at all. I think it’s subject to challenge even though Judge Rakoff is ten times smarter than I am. The Quinn Emanuel firm, which represented the defendant, is no slouch. Although the issue is brand new (this is the first case of its kind), I could see SCOTUS wanting to get involved early.
Quick background. We’re dealing with two parallel protections here. One is attorney-client privilege, which protects communications between lawyers and their clients. The other is the “work product” doctrine, which protects materials specifically prepared in anticipation of litigation. Here’s how Judge Rakoff ruled on these protections.
Attorney-client privilege. Judge Rakoff ruled that the AI chats were not privileged. That’s the right call—the defendant wasn’t communicating with his lawyers at all, so there’s no basis to assert attorney-client privilege. End of story.
Work product. Judge Rakoff also ruled that the chats did not enjoy the work-product protection. This is mainly because the defendant did the chats on his own volition, not at the direction of counsel. Judge Rakoff said that, if defense counsel had directed the defendant to do the chats, they _might_ have been considered work product. Some courts have gone the other way on this issue, finding that attorney involvement isn’t necessary. Judge Rakoff even cites one in his order.
What bugs me.
I’m bothered that Judge Rakoff found so easily that chatting with Claude isn’t “confidential” because of Claude’s terms of service. TOS are impenetrable almost by design, and few people read them, let alone understand them. Here’s the problem I see: Our smartphones are constantly spying on us and reporting back to the mother ship, as the TOS allow. Does that mean that my conversations with clients aren’t “confidential” because a cell phone is in the room? This issue is bound to be scrubbed out in the appellate courts.
Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 16(b)(2)(A) says that the government does not get to discover “reports, memoranda, or other documents made by the defendant, or the defendant’s attorney or agent, during the case’s investigation or defense.” Judge Rakoff says that this doesn’t apply because it’s a _discovery_ rule, and these chats were obtained through a _search warrant_, not through discovery. Now, Judge Rakoff has me outgunned here, but still—that’s not a very satisfying explanation. It just encourages the DOJ to obtain indirectly (through FBI raids) what it cannot obtain directly (through discovery). I don’t like it.
Bottom line. This is a brave new world brimming with uncertainty. Proceed with caution. If you must use AI to help with your case, consult with your lawyer first. When I need my clients to prepare a document, I instruct them to put “Prepared at Direction of Counsel” at the top of page 1. Even Judge Rakoff recognizes that talking to the AI at a lawyer’s direction might protect the resulting chats.
AI use and privilege concerns
A federal judge in NY recently ruled that AI chats conducted by a corporate representative asking about legal issues are NOT privileged – meaning that the entire chat can be discovered if litigation ensues on those issues. This is a groundbreaking ruling that is predicted to be followed in other jurisdictions. I am sharing an article about this below, which was published in the Texas Lawbook last week. I am happy to discuss if you would like but I wanted to make sure you and the team are aware of this so that you can plan/train accordingly. I have highlighted some of the critical takeaways below.
Your Client’s ChatGPT Strategy Session Just Became Government Evidence
February 18, 2026
It started the way these things often do: a sophisticated executive, a federal investigation closing in and the very human impulse to get ahead of the problem.
Benjamin Heppner, a financial services executive charged with defrauding investors at GWG Holdings — a Dallas-based, publicly traded company — had hired Quinn Emanuel, one of the most formidable defense firms in the country.
But before leaning on his lawyers, he did something that millions of people do every day without a second thought. He opened an AI chatbot and started thinking out loud.
Over the following weeks, Heppner used the consumer version of Anthropic’s Claude to analyze his legal exposure, stress-test potential defenses and draft approximately 31 strategy documents laying out arguments he might make in anticipation of an indictment. He later sent the materials to his attorneys, presumably treating them as a carefully organized briefing book. To anyone watching, it might have looked like exactly the sort of proactive preparation that good lawyers encourage.
It wasn’t. On Feb. 17, Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the Southern District of New York ruled that every one of those documents is fair game for federal prosecutors. Not protected by attorney-client privilege. Not shielded by the work product doctrine. Fully discoverable. In a written memorandum, the court was characteristically direct: The AI documents fail to satisfy “at least two, if not all three” elements required for privilege to attach. The ruling appears to be the first of its kind in the country. The answer to whether AI-generated legal strategy is privileged, unambiguously, is no.
For Texas lawyers and the corporate clients they serve, the implications are immediate. Texas is home to more Fortune 500 headquarters than any state except California, a sprawling energy sector accustomed to regulatory scrutiny and some of the most active federal dockets in the country. If your clients are using AI to think through legal problems before they call you, _United States v. Heppner_ is a five-alarm warning.
Why the Judge Said No — And Why the Reasoning Is Airtight
Judge Rakoff did not break new legal ground. He applied rules that have governed privilege disputes for decades to facts no court had previously encountered. That combination — settled doctrine, novel behavior — is precisely what makes the ruling durable and difficult to argue around on appeal.
_Claude Is Not Your Lawyer_
Attorney-client privilege protects communications with a licensed attorney who owes fiduciary duties and is subject to discipline.
Claude is none of those things. Anthropic’s own terms make it explicit: Claude does not provide legal services and using the platform creates no attorney-client relationship.
When the government asked Claude directly whether it could provide legal advice, it responded that it could not and recommended consulting a qualified attorney. That response was submitted as an exhibit and cited in the court’s opinion — the AI itself, in real time, disclaimed the very role the defendant was claiming it had performed.
_The Terms of Service Killed Confidentiality_
Privilege is also waived when a client discloses communications to a third party not bound to keep them secret.
Anthropic’s privacy policy — which users agree to as a condition of using Claude — states that the company collects users’ inputs and Claude’s outputs, uses that data to train the model, and reserves the right to disclose it to third parties, including governmental regulatory authorities.
The moment Heppner typed his legal strategy into the chat window, he disclosed it to a party whose written policies put him on clear notice that the information was not confidential. Most users of consumer AI tools — ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot — have never read those terms. Heppner makes the terms of use legally consequential.
_Forwarding It to Your Lawyer Doesn’t Fix It_
Even assuming Heppner created the documents to share with counsel — and even though he ultimately did — that transmission could not retroactively transform unprivileged documents into privileged ones.
This is the “no alchemy” rule: A document not privileged at the moment of creation does not acquire protection by being handed to an attorney afterward. The privilege inquiry looks backward. If the document wasn’t protected then, it isn’t protected now.
The work product doctrine failed Heppner for the same essential reason: His own lawyers confirmed on the record that the AI documents were prepared by Heppner on his own volition, without counsel’s direction and did not reflect counsel’s strategy at the time of creation.
What Texas Lawyers Should Be Telling Clients Right Now
The _Heppner_ case calls for action now. The ruling is clear, the reasoning is durable, and the behavior it describes is happening right now across Texas. Here is the practical guidance that should be flowing from outside counsel to clients, and from general counsel to business leadership, in the weeks ahead.
_The Simple Test_
Give clients a heuristic simple enough to remember under pressure: If you would not write it in an email that could be subpoenaed, do not type it into a consumer AI platform. A consumer AI conversation is, for privilege purposes, functionally equivalent to an email sent to an unrepresented third party. The terms say inputs can be logged. The privacy policy says they can be shared. The platform disclaims providing legal advice. Whatever sense of privacy the interface creates is an illusion courts will not honor.
_The Pre-Representation Danger Zone_
The most perilous period in any legal matter is the interval between when a client first suspects trouble and when outside counsel is formally engaged. Clients routinely reach for AI during exactly that window — researching exposure, drafting timelines, testing defenses. Heppner holds that everything created during that period on a consumer AI tool is almost certainly discoverable. The instruction is direct: before you open the chatbot, call your lawyer. That call is privileged. The chat session is not.
_Address the ‘Shadow Lawyer’ Habit Inside the Company_
The _Heppner_ problem lives inside corporate legal departments, in the habits that have quietly formed as AI tools have become ubiquitous. The HR director who asks AI to evaluate a termination decision, the compliance officer who stress-tests a regulatory position in a chat window, the manager who types an employee complaint into ChatGPT before escalating to legal — each of those conversations is potentially discoverable and none is privileged. General counsel need to draw an explicit line: General business tasks are a different matter from sensitive legal analysis, and the latter must flow through counsel using tools that operate under contractual protections the company has actually reviewed.
_The Enterprise AI Distinction — and Its Limits_
Enterprise AI tools deployed under negotiated agreements that exclude client data from model training and restrict third-party disclosure present a meaningfully lower risk profile than consumer platforms. But enterprise AI is not a safe harbor. It addresses the confidentiality problem and potentially supports a work product argument — it does not, by itself, create attorney-client privilege.
The safest configuration is one in which counsel selects the tool, directs its use and can demonstrate that the AI-assisted analysis reflects the lawyer’s mental processes rather than the client’s unilateral activity. Texas GCs negotiating enterprise AI contracts should push for explicit, enforceable data-protection terms and involve outside counsel in those negotiations before agreements are signed.
_Update Litigation Holds Now_
Most corporate litigation hold protocols were drafted before generative AI became a fixture of daily work and do not capture AI chat logs, prompt histories or exported AI-generated documents. That gap is legally significant in a post-_Heppner_ world. General counsel should review and update their standard hold templates immediately — and assess document retention policies to address how long AI interaction logs are retained, where they are stored, and who has access to them.
The Broader Picture
Heppner cuts both ways in litigation. Employees who used AI to research their legal rights, draft demand letters or strategize about claims have generated the same category of unprotected material that sank Heppner. Texas employment litigators and corporate defense counsel should be building AI discovery into their standard playbooks now — treating AI chat logs as a routine category of electronically stored information alongside emails and text messages.
Conclusion: The Chatbot Is a Third Party. Act Accordingly.
There is a version of this story that ends differently. Had Heppner’s lawyers directed him to use Claude as a documented component of the representation, Judge Rakoff suggested the outcome might have been different. But Heppner had a consumer chatbot, a standard privacy policy and the understandable but legally fatal impulse to prepare himself before calling his lawyers. Thirty-one documents later, the government had everything he had been thinking.
That is the story Texas lawyers need to be telling — to clients, corporate leadership, HR departments, compliance officers and every executive who treats an AI chatbot as a private space for working through difficult problems. The privacy the interface appears to offer is not real. The confidentiality the conversation feels like it carries does not exist. And the privilege a person might reasonably expect when the subject matter is their own legal exposure will not be recognized by a court applying rules that have governed this area of law for generations.
Update your litigation holds. Audit your organization’s AI usage. Establish governance protocols that route sensitive legal analysis through counsel. Train senior leadership with the specific facts of this case — not with abstractions about AI risk but with the story of a sophisticated executive, a federal judge and 31 documents that could not be taken back. And counsel every client, in every engagement where legal exposure is on the table, to call their lawyer before they open the chatbot.
Conrastive Parallelism
Trump Administration Dept of War VERSUS Anthropic, Claude AI - The Last Refuge
Trump Administration Dept of War VERSUS Anthropic, Claude AI - The Last Refuge
## Excerpt
A remarkable conflict has revealed itself amid the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) software, the United States Government (USG), the Dept of War (DoW) and the AI software company Anthropic. At the core of the issue is the USG contracting with Anthropic for the use of their Claude AI system for use in military operations. […]
Elites
Bohemian Grove celebrity member list allegedly revealed
Bohemian Grove celebrity member list allegedly revealed
## Excerpt
The membership list of Bohemian Grove — a private 2,700-acre campground in Sonoma County that hosts an annual two-week retreat and and has a clubhouse in San Francisco — was allegedly obtained by a…
Epstein
Exclusive Bill Gates Apologizes to Foundation Staff Over Epstein Ties - WSJ
Exclusive | Bill Gates Apologizes to Foundation Staff Over Epstein Ties - WSJ
## Excerpt
The Microsoft co-founder acknowledged he had two affairs and opened up about his mistake in associating with the sex offender.
FBI docs show their NYC office got "hacked" on Super Bowl Sunday 2023, right in the child sex crimes lab
(8) Mario Nawfal on X: "🇺🇸 FBI docs show their NYC office got "hacked" on Super Bowl Sunday 2023, right in the child sex crimes lab. Hackers accessed Epstein-related files → ~500TB data vanished, 100TB permanently erased. Agent's sworn declaration: Remote access was enabled, suspicious IPs popped https://t.co/LdiKtcP5Xa" / X
## Excerpt
To view keyboard shortcuts, press question mark
Massive trove of FBI ‘Epstein investigation’ data compromised in ‘cyber intrusion’ report - Raw Story
Massive trove of FBI ‘Epstein investigation’ data compromised in ‘cyber intrusion’: report - Raw Story
## Excerpt
A staggering 500 terabytes of FBI data – including data that pertained to the agency’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein – appears to have been compromised in 2023 in a “cyber intrusion,” according to a newly unearthed file released by the Justice Department last month.The file in question appears ...
Norwegian Noir Entire Press Corps In Norway Agreed To Repress News Of Former PM Jagland's Attempted Suicide In Wake Of Epstein Probe--One Week Ago
(8) Norwegian Noir: Entire Press Corps In Norway Agreed To Repress News Of Former PM Jagland's Attempted Suicide In Wake Of Epstein Probe--One Week Ago?
## Excerpt
According to Independent Norwegian News Outlet, They Quashed It On Agreement With Jagland's Lawyer. The Story Has Been Ghosted In All Norwegian Media
EU UK Ukraine and NATO
The Brits & French Want Ukraine To Go Nuclear Out Of Desperation To Hold Onto Donbass
The Brits & French Want Ukraine To Go Nuclear Out Of Desperation To Hold Onto Donbass
## Excerpt
Russia’s control over it, whether through Ukraine’s withdrawal or forcible expulsion, is considered to be the basis of the US’ peace plan that the Brits and French are dangerously trying to subvert.
Gen Z
The Grass is always Greener in Greenland – GenX Turns Fifty
The Grass is always Greener in Greenland – GenX Turns Fifty
## Excerpt
Will things ever be the same again? Europe – The Final Countdown Greenland is ice and Iceland is green. Go figure. Quite a month of February 2026 we’ve had. [BREAKING US AND ISREAL STRIKE IRA…
Iran
Bowen A dangerous moment, but US and Israel see opportunity not to be missed
Bowen: A dangerous moment, but US and Israel see opportunity not to be missed
## Excerpt
Israel and the US believe Iran's regime is vulnerable, dealing with an economic crisis and the aftermath of protests.
Sitrep Iran BOTG
Now that we know that big daddy is dead and most of the head honchos are.
The Iranian approach is changing somehow, which i believe is to pull GCC countries into confrontation or create pressure on the US with their allies asking for a stop to the hostilities.
Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Bahrain and Kuwait airports were targeted by drones.
In many cases, civilian infrastructure was directly impacted by drones, including hotels and high rise towers.
next , escalations could be targeting oil facilities or tankers.
I expect a change in the narrative now, mainly to create a friendlier portion within the Iranian government to work with.
This will also happen while you'll see a new narrative to single out the IRGC as a terrorist organization.
This will allow Iran to retain some structure, especially a military one to avoid a situation like Iraq, when the US disbanded the army and created thousands of militias. Unless they are arranging for the actual army to overthrow the IRGC.
Will keep you posted
The Iran Question Is All About China - by Zineb Riboua
The Iran Question Is All About China - by Zineb Riboua
## Excerpt
Why Operation Epic Fury Is the Opening Act of the Indo-Pacific Century
Israel
AIPAC compared to other lobbying groups
Saturation Lobbying: Models of Universal Congressional Coverage
[!SUMMARY]
While AIPAC is often highlighted for its "Key Contact" model, several other major organizations utilize a "saturation" strategy to ensure every member of the U.S. House and Senate has a dedicated liaison. This note explores the structural equivalents—most notably the National Association of Realtors (NAR)—and compares their spending and legislative success rates.
Organizations with 100% Congressional Coverage
A "saturation" strategy involves assigning a specific individual or team to every single elected representative to ensure consistent, personalized influence.
National Association of Realtors (NAR)
The NAR operates the Federal Political Coordinators (FPCs) program, which is the most structurally similar to the one-to-one lobbyist-to-representative model.
The Structure: One Realtor is assigned to every member of the House and Senate (535 total).
Selection: FPCs are typically influential Realtors from the representative's own district who have an existing personal or professional relationship.
The Mandate: They must contact their assigned legislator quarterly and respond to "Calls for Action," ensuring a local voice is always present.
American Medical Association (AMA)
The AMA uses the VIP (Very Influential Physician) program.
The Strategy: They pair "key contact" physicians with their respective members of Congress.
The Impact: By leveraging high-status constituents (doctors) from the home district, they ensure medical interests are heard directly by a familiar face.
American Bankers Association (ABA)
The ABA maintains a "Contact Banker" system.
The Structure: While they aim for 100% coverage, they prioritize saturation within the House Financial Services and Senate Banking Committees.
The Goal: Providing a constituent-led perspective on the "local economic impact" of financial regulations.
AARP
Unlike professional trade groups, AARP uses a volunteer-led model.
District Liaisons: They often have designated volunteer leaders for nearly every congressional district.
The Power: They represent the largest, most consistent voting bloc (seniors), making their coverage highly effective at town halls and local offices.
Divergent Strategies for Influence
Electoral Juggernauts vs. Policy Grinders
AIPAC and NAR: These groups excel in electoral power. In the 2024 cycle, both boasted win rates above 95%. AIPAC focused heavily on primary challenges, while NAR split contributions across party lines to ensure they always have a "friend" in the seat.
AARP and AMA: These groups focus on legislative power through regulatory "grinding." Their "wins" are often defensive—preventing unfavorable legislation from reaching a vote—or technical, involving minor language changes in massive bills that have significant industry impacts.
The ABA Strategy: They focus on "Technical Corrections," utilizing their 1:1 relationships to influence the specific wording of banking liquidity and fee structures.
Prop Bets
Kalshi accuses MrBeast editor of insider trading NPR
Kalshi accuses MrBeast editor of insider trading : NPR
## Excerpt
With prediction markets booming, so have concerns about insider trading. Now, Kalshi has disclosed its first public actions against accounts suspected of trading on confidential information.
Transmaoism
Harvard Bends Hiring Freeze for Lecturer in 'Latinx Studies' and Professor of Podcasting
Harvard Bends Hiring Freeze for Lecturer in 'Latinx Studies' and Professor of Podcasting
## Excerpt
Harvard has been publicly claiming that its clash with the Trump administration is threatening life-saving cancer research. A more reality-based view of what actually happens at Harvard is visible in the university’s job listings, where, despite an ostensible campus-wide hiring freeze linked to federal-funding-related uncertainty and austerity, Harvard is advertising in hopes of attracting a "Lecturer in Latinx Studies" and also someone to teach podcasting to graduate students in public policy.
Lack of Black History Month
Is it just me or has there really not been much mention of Black History month this year. I feel that perhaps since this demographic may no longer be as reliable for the left the media has no need to push this month’s theme. Perhaps they will get back on track come pride month.
Clip Sources
VIDEO - AJ - CIA Chief of Station Survives Deadly Microwave Weapon Attack SRS 283 - YouTube
AJ - CIA Chief of Station Survives Deadly Microwave Weapon Attack | SRS #283 - YouTube
## Excerpt
AJ is a former senior CIA operations officer and twice-selected Chief of Station who served across the full spectrum of clandestine operations, including war...
VIDEO - Brush With Digital Greatness 3 - YouTube
Brush With Digital Greatness 3 - YouTube
## Excerpt
Today I reminisce about meeting John C. Dvorak - and later being asked by him to write a blub for the cover of one of his books.#oldcomputers #dvorak #nerd #...
VIDEO - Epstein files Clinton hearings 'political theatre to distract public from Trump' • FRANCE 24 - YouTube
Epstein files: Clinton hearings 'political theatre to distract public from Trump' • FRANCE 24 - YouTube
## Excerpt
Former President Bill Clinton is testifying Friday before members of Congress investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a day after Clinton's wif...
VIDEO - Heavy fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan ignites neighbours - YouTube
Heavy fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan ignites neighbours - YouTube
## Excerpt
Pakistani air strikes hit at least 22 Afghan military targets, its military spokesperson said on Friday, after heavy fighting between the South Asian neighbo...
VIDEO - Iran forms interim leadership council - YouTube
Iran forms interim leadership council - YouTube
## Excerpt
Ali Khamenei became Iran's highest authority in 1989, following the death of the Islamic Republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. As supreme leader, ...
VIDEO - Iran says ships not allowed to pass through Strait of Hormuz DW News - YouTube
Iran says ships not allowed to pass through Strait of Hormuz | DW News - YouTube
## Excerpt
Iran's Revolutionary Guard has been sending radio transmissions to ships, warning them that "no ship is allowed to pass the Strait of Hormuz." That's accordi...
VIDEO - Iranian FM U.S. and Iran had been making progress toward a deal
Iranian FM: U.S. and Iran had been making progress toward a deal
## Excerpt
Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, tells NBC News that the U.S. and Iran had been making good progress toward a nuclear deal before U.S.-Israeli strikes were carried out Saturday.
VIDEO - Keir Starmer Gives First Statement Following U.S.-Israel Attack on Iran - YouTube
Keir Starmer Gives First Statement Following U.S.-Israel Attack on Iran - YouTube
## Excerpt
European leaders expressed their unease with President Trump’s attack on Iran, making clear they took no part in the attack and urging a return to diplomatic...
VIDEO - Transgender licenses now invalid - YouTube
Transgender licenses now invalid - YouTube
## Excerpt
KOLR 10 News. Regional and National news at 6pm.Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCimPtKZTASRv_OE8ylY1bMg Visit our website:...
VIDEO - Trump raises the possibility of a ‘friendly takeover of Cuba’ - France 24
Trump raises the possibility of a ‘friendly takeover of Cuba’ - France 24
## Excerpt
Issued on: 28/02/2026 - 13:09
VIDEO - Tucker Carlson Case For Iran War Built By Flooding The Zone With Provable Lies Video RealClearPolitics
Tucker Carlson: Case For Iran War Built By Flooding The Zone With Provable Lies | Video | RealClearPolitics
## Excerpt
Tucker Carlson warns that the current campaign to strike Iran's nuclear program again bears striking similarities to the prelude to the Iraq War, accusing pro-war voices within the Republican Party like Sen. Lindsey Graham and Fox host Mark Levin of "flooding the zone" with emotional propaganda.
"The United States may not have a choice about whether or not this war starts. Because, of course, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu could always act unilaterally, preemptively against Iran, and just do it," he said. "So it's possible that the U.S. government, while not anxious to go to war with Iran, is trying to find a way to contain the behavior of its closest ally, Israel, rather than sit back and wait for Bibi to do something that we have to clean up, that we're implicated in and then sucked into. It's possible that the U.S. government is attempting to steer this in a less destructive direction."
"This is their last chance, they believe. This presidency is the last presidency where they're going to have unequivocal bipartisan support, period."
"So the idea is to flood the zone, the information zone, to make sure that no Republican in Washington hears anything but that. And the proponents of this war are very intent on that. They've made no effort to convince you it's a good idea. They aren't staying up night and day convincing the decision makers it's a good idea," he said. "They're trying to shout down and threaten and defame and slander and exclude anybody who has a contrary view, who might pipe up and say, wait a second, are we sure this is a good idea?"
"And the truth is, it works because people are intimidated," Carlson said. "People around Donald Trump have been intimidated, understandably, by the level of pure aggression aimed at anybody who raises totally reasonable points about the downsides of a war with Iran. So they haven't said anything."
"And by the way, this is a message to anyone who knows Donald Trump, or has a good relationship with him, likes him, loves the United States. Now is the time to maybe call and say, whoa, wait a second, have some concerns here," he said. "Now is the time -- right now -- because the decision has not yet been made."
Iran does not have nuclear-tipped ICBMs, and they're not aimed at the United States," he said. "That is a lie. It is a provable lie."
"Now, why is he saying that? Not because he hopes to win an argument, but because he hopes to whip his listeners into such a frenzy of fear and rage that they will support something that will hurt them," Carlson said. "This will hurt the United States, almost without question, if it happens. This is not good for you."
TUCKER CARLSON: Iraq was a true disaster, and Trump was the first big political candidate to say that out loud. He knows this. He always has. So why would he even be considering a war with Iran?
Well, one way to think about it is that the United States may not have a choice about whether or not this war starts. Because, of course, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu could always act unilaterally, preemptively against Iran, and just do it. Just strike Iran. What would happen then?
Well, most likely the Iranians would strike Israel and then potentially strike American assets in the Gulf and then potentially strike energy facilities in the Gulf. And the United States would be, by definition, drawn in.
So it's possible that the U.S. government, while not anxious to go to war with Iran, is trying to find a way to contain the behavior of its closest ally, Israel, rather than sit back and wait for Bibi to do something that we have to clean up, that we're implicated in and then sucked into. It's possible that the U.S. government is attempting to steer this in a less destructive direction. It's possible.
None of this, of course, is filtered down to people paying attention -- the few who are paying attention to this -- because all the noise has been about Iran's nuclear weapons. They're on the verge of building a nuclear weapon any day now. Now, if you're semi-awake, you may remember that it was only about eight months ago, back in June of last year, during the short but hot 12-Day War against Iran, that the United States took out nuclear processing facilities deep underground and then announced we have ended the Iranian nuclear threat. And then without you noticing, while, you were on summer vacation or going to your kids' graduation or bringing them back to school or watching the Super Bowl halftime show with your jaw slack, while you were not tuned in. All of a sudden, that threat out of nowhere reemerged. And there's Benjamin Netanyahu on television or at the White House for a seventh time in a single year, making the case that we're right on the verge of a nuclear Holocaust. Any day now, the Iranian government will have a nuclear weapon.
And by the way, as noted, the president does not want Iran to have a nuclear weapon. That is one thing that takes very, very seriously. And he said that to the Iranians. And unfortunately, turns out, whatever side Iran is on, the current Iranian government is very hard to deal with.
...
But some number of Iranians protesting the Iranian government were apparently killed by the government, and we feel bad about that. And we legitimately do feel bad about that. Is that a good reason to topple the existing power structure and just let the country devolve into whatever happens next? Probably not. And the administration hasn't really made that case or really any case other than they can't have nuclear weapons. So you can at least feel satisfied that they're not trying very hard to lie to you.
They're basically just saying, it looks like we could have a war, because everybody knows the only reason we're having this war is because Israel wants it. This is their last chance, they believe. This presidency is the last presidency where they're going to have unequivocal bipartisan support, period. You can't primary every Thomas Massey, and there's a whole army of them coming at some point because everyone can see what's going on. And you could shut down X and you can just shut down the Internet. You can be like Great Britain and arrest people who protest Israel, but attitudes are not going to revert to what they were five years ago, sorry, and they know this. So this is their last chance.
What's so amazing is that Israel, which at least is acting in what it perceives to be its own national interest, is joined by its shills in the United States, of course. But really, the only other ally in this is the American news media, whose job it is to tell you the truth and informing you as to what's happening to tell you: Hey, wake up. The world could be changing and it's going to affect you and your family. That's their job.
Instead, they've been lulling you to sleep with the same variety of transparent lies and propaganda. And so just for fun, we decided we would pick a cross-section. And not just from a liberal media or right-wing media, but from all media, because it's not a left-right question.
Chuck Schumer is every bit as much in favor of an invasion of Iran, a regime change war in Iran, as, I don't know, pick a brain-dead Republican senator, which is almost all of them. They're all for it. And so we're all the Democrats. You don't see Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez making a real case against. She'll make a pro forma case because she knows that all of her constituents hate it. But is she really working to stop this? Of course not. Because they're all for it, because they're paid to be for it. And so are the media. So here's a quick cross-section.
Now, it goes to that saying that the Wall Street Journal, owned by the Murdoch family, has been by far the most egregious and the most stealthy. Because starting new regime change wars on behalf of Israel is like the whole reason to have the Wall Street Journal now, apparently. But here's just a few headlines. "The diminishing risk of an Iran attack," quote, "Two years ago there was a strong possibility the region would spiral out of control. Not anymore."
Really? Oh, really? What is the plan the day after we depose or kill the 87-year-old Supreme Leader or President Pezeshkian? What's the plan? Do you have a plan? No plan. But don't worry. It will not spiral out of control. The Wall Street Journal assures you of that.
Here's another: "A fractured Iran might not be so bad." Well, yeah, it could spiral out of control and break into different provinces and, you know, it could become Libya or Syria or Lebanon. That's not so bad because you know why, quote? "Its borders are artificial." Oh, they're fake! "And a breakup would frustrate the interests of China, Russia, and others." Okay. So our global rivals wouldn't like it, therefore it's good. And, quote, "its borders are artificial."
As compared to whose borders? All borders are artificial. God didn't draw them. Sorry, Mike Huckabee. They're drawn by people. Artificial. What? No, it's a country. Has been for a while. And if you blow it up into constituent parts and incite a civil war, there are going to be downstream effects of that. Again, like refugee crises into Europe and the Gulf States, probably the United States too, since it is the iron law of American foreign policy that once you start bombing people, you have to let all their angry kids into your country. That's how, by the way, we got the Boston Marathon bombing and many other acts of terror. Thanks, neocons.
And then there's this. John Bolton still exists, writing for the Wall Street Journal. "The Gaza ceasefire has diverted Western attention from the real threat, Tehran and its surrogates!" You'd really have to be John Bolton to think that Tehran and its surrogates or even in the top 100 issues Americans are worried about at the moment.
They're not. This is knowable. It's polled all the time by Gallup and others. Tehran and its surrogates are, admittedly, an issue of concern to Israel and to its shills here, but they're not actually a problem for a continent-sized country separated from the world by two great oceans. Not a problem. As long as you don't like start a war with Iran or something.
...
Now, one of the main cheerleaders for an invasion of Iraq and every other invasion and every other instance of shedding of human blood, just of killing in general, would, of course, be Senator Lindsay Graham of South Carolina. Now, if you don't watch Fox, you may have no idea what he actually says, when he goes on Fox, which is all the time. So we want to play you a short montage of Lindsay Graham and watch as you watch this, his eyes. And you can see that he is maybe for the first time that day, feeling elevated and light and happy, but also tantalized.
You can almost watch his mouth fill with saliva. Some people feel this way in strip bars, others in bakeries. Lindsay Graham is excited by killing. And if you think that's cruel, watch this.
LINDSEY GRAHAM: Change is coming to Iran. It'll be the biggest change in the history of the Middle East to get rid of this Nazi regime. Hit Iran. They have oil fields out in the open.
They have the Revolutionary Guard headquarters you can see from space. Blow it off the map. There's an opportunity to hit the Iran nuclear program in a fashion I haven't seen in decades. And I think it would be in the world's interest for us to decimate the Iran and nuclear. threat while we can.
Be all in President Trump in helping Israel eliminate the nuclear threat. If we need to provide bombs to Israel, provide bombs. If we need to fly planes with Israel, do joint operations.
So pray for our troops in harm's way. They're a risk associated with any operation. They joined the military to keep their country safe and to make the world a better place. And taking on the Ayatollah does both.
If I were you, Mr. President, I would kill the leadership that are killing the people.
And to the Ayatollahs, you need to understand that if you keep killing your people who are demanding a better life, Donald J. Trump is going to kill you.
TUCKER CARLSON: Now, you can look at that and say, you know, this guy's risking his soul talking like this. This guy's wrong on the evidence. This guy's clearly a buffoon with some kind of psychosexual problems that we're not qualified to diagnose, but that are totally evident.
But you should also keep in mind as you watch Lindsey Graham, he's taken very seriously by his colleagues in the Senate, not just the Republicans, but also the Democrats, and he's taken very seriously by Republicans in Washington more broadly. Of course he is. He's taken very seriously. This has an effect, and that effect could get us into, you know, certainly the worst war in 23 years.
So the idea is to flood the zone, the information zone, to make sure that no Republican in Washington hears anything but that. And the proponents of this war are very intent on that. They've made no effort to convince you it's a good idea. They aren't staying up night and day convincing the decision makers it's a good idea. They're trying to shout down and threaten and defame and slander and exclude anybody who has a contrary view, who might pipe up and say, wait a second, are we sure this is a good idea?
What would happen if the energy trade were shut down in the Persian Gulf? What would happen if Iran successfully lobbed some sort of armament into a U.S. aircraft carrier, and Americans died? What would happen? What would happen if Israel felt threatened enough to use nuclear weapons against Iran, which is a possibility, despite what they tell you? That's a possibility. What would happen? Once these things get going, you don't know where they wind up, but anyone who says he does know is lying, obviously.
So anyone who raises those, those people, you know, questions must be called a Nazi and an anti-Semite, and you want to kill Jews. No, don't want to kill anybody.
The game is to make sure that the only noise in the room comes from Graham and people like Graham. Until, of course, someone pushes play, and it's too late to stop it. And at that point, we can all pretend we were never for this, or they just did it wrong or whatever. We've seen this movie so many times, you know exactly what's going to happen if it goes south.
And the truth is, it works because people are intimidated. Donald Trump, to his great credit, listens to everybody. And by the way, in his speeches, when he starts rolling and ad-libbing and all that, the weave, as he calls it, he'll often say, I talked to this guy, and, like, he actually kind of listens to people. But people around Donald Trump have been intimidated, understandably, by the level of pure aggression aimed at anybody who raises totally reasonable points about the downsides of a war with Iran. So they haven't said anything. So keep in mind, and by the way, this is a message to anyone who knows Donald Trump, has a good relationship with him, likes him, loves the United States. Now is the time to maybe call and say, whoa, wait a second, have some concerns here. Now is the time right now because the decision has not yet been made.
...
But one last clip, and this is from, I think two days ago, and this is from a man at Fox, a weekend show host called Mark Levin. And really nobody has elevated his own visibility to a greater extent or worked harder to get the United States into war with Iran than Mark Levin has.
And he's done it not through brilliant argument, incisive analysis, basically through screaming. But as we get closer and closer and closer to the time where this war could actually start, Levin has decided to just make stuff up. And the clip you're about to hear is from his podcast, I believe, and you can check it two days ago. And it is grounds for dismissal from Fox News, immediate grounds for dismissal. And it's also, at the very least, grounds for, like, questions to him, like, what are you doing? What are you doing saying something like this? This is Mark Levin telling his listeners, such as they are, that Iran has nuclear-tipped ICBMs aimed at the United States. Watch this.
MARK LEVIN: They'd slaughter a million of their own people if it meant retaining power. That's not a government of a country. Those are terrorists that control a country. It is a police state that's slaughtering its own people to stay in power so it can slaughter us. It believes, as the 7th-century primitive barbarians believed, that they must destroy civilization. They believe today that they must destroy the West. Most prominently, the United States of America. Those nuclear ICBMs aren't aimed for Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. They're aimed for New York and Los Angeles and Chicago and everywhere in between and around, the United States of America.
TUCKER CARLSON: "The enemies of civilization." If you wake up in a world where Mark Levin is publicly identified with, quote, civilization, you are an upside-down world. Civilization begins with the acknowledgement that human life is sacred, that God created each person as an individual, that identity politics is therefore wrong, and that telling the truth matters because truth is absolute. You may get it wrong, but the idea that nothing is true is a form of nihilism and that attitude is the enemy of civilization. And yet that's exactly what you just saw.
Iran does not have nuclear-tipped ICBMs. And they're not aimed at the United States. That is a lie. It is a provable lie. Now, why is he saying that? not because he hopes to win an argument, but because he hopes to whip his listeners into such a frenzy of fear and rage that they will support something that will hurt them. This will hurt the United States, almost without question, if it happens. This is not good for you. It's not good for our actual allies, the energy-producing countries in the Middle East, which are our actual allies. Israel is in no sense our ally in this, and yet Mark Levin will not, and none of these people will address that debate. Instead, they're just lying to scare people into supporting something that will hurt them.
Mark Levin actually tweeted this. And if you're old enough to remember the Iraq War, this is going to make you laugh. Iran producing ballistic missiles with chemical and biological warheads. We mustn't delay any longer. They have WMD. Where did that information come from? Well, it came from the free press. No, I beg your pardon.
It did not come from the Free Press. Don't they probably repeated it. It came from another aligned publication in Washington. Is there any evidence of that? No, of course, there's no evidence of that. And I'd be willing to bet my house that that lie originated in the same place. The original WMD lie originated in 2002, before the Iraq War. In Israel, of course.
Tell Americans, tell the Congress, tell the White House that the country we want you to spend your money and your lives to overthrow so we can have a greater degree of control or hegemony in a region, that that country is a threat to you because they have weapons of mass destruction. That was a lie then. It's a lie now, but they're saying it.
VIDEO - U.S. and Israel carrying out joint strikes in Iran
U.S. and Israel carrying out joint strikes in Iran
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U.S. and Israel carrying out joint strikes in Iran
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Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
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World Economic Forum head Børge Brende steps down following pressure over Epstein links - YouTube
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World Economic Forum head Børge Brende said Thursday that he is stepping down after facing pressure over his contacts with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epst...
