The Truth about the Hantavirus Cruise Ship Outbreak

0:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards!

0:01 Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco show.

0:03 You daily dive into the news.

0:05 It is Thursday.

0:06 What a week it's been.

0:07 I can't even be bothered to lean in today.

0:09 I'm going to sit back.

0:10 I recommend you do as well, because we have a lot to talk about today.

0:13 Starting with this.

0:15 the FBI just raided Virginia state Senator Louise Lucas's Portsmouth office

0:18 and her cannabis dispensary for reasons we still don't know yet.

0:21 he hasn't been charged with anything so far.

0:22 But you do have some reports saying that this is tied to an ongoing

0:25 investigation of corruption and bribery

0:27 that actually started during the Biden administration.

0:28 right.

0:29 It's believed this might be related to her cannabis business.

0:31 But the specifics, they're kind of shaky right as far as the response

0:34 to all of this, everyone from Governor Abigail Spanberger to Virginia,

0:37 as attorney general to Senator Lucas,

0:39 they appear to be just as clueless as we are.

0:40 because again, no charges, no details.

0:42 And as far as we know, no evidence points to any crime.

0:45 So everyone kind of seems to be in the dark here.

0:46 But some people, including lawmakers,

0:47 they're starting to say that none of that even matters,

0:50 because this is more about the power play than the investigation itself.

0:52 fact, you had Lucas responding to the raid on social media,

0:54 saying today's actions by federal agents are

0:56 about far more than one state senator.

0:58 They are about power.

0:59 And who is allowed to use what we saw.

1:01 It's a clear pattern from this administration.

1:03 When we challenged.

1:04 Then they tried to intimidate.

1:05 also had Representative Robert C Scott saying it must

1:08 be acknowledged that this FBI raid occurs in the broader

1:10 context of President Trump's repeated abuse of the Department

1:13 of Justice to target his perceived political opponents.

1:15 with that, you have a lot of people nodding along because as we've seen,

1:18 it really doesn't take any real evidence for Trump to bring out the FBI.

1:21 Just yesterday, you had a judge shooting down

1:22 a request to return the balance of the FBI.

1:23 Took from Fulton County in connection with his six

1:25 year obsession with his loss in 2020.

1:27 and again, I want to stress we do

1:29 not know if Lucas was actually engaged in corruption.

1:31 We're not saying anything there, but right now,

1:32 you've got a lot of people saying that anyone who

1:34 is not kissing the ring could get an FBI visit.

1:36 At this point.

1:37 and a lot of people pointing to those who have,

1:39 or they've bent the knee all of a sudden getting a pardon of a sudden,

1:43 that problem disappears.

1:44 and then you've got people pointing to the fact that Lucas

1:45 is one of Virginia's top lawmakers with 30 years in the game,

1:48 and she's not afraid to let the Trump administration have Rich.

1:50 She has been a very vocal proponent of Virginia's redistricting referendum.

1:53 so you've got Lucas saying this raid was

1:55 basically Trump making an example out of her.

1:57 The lesson here, talk shit, get raided.

1:59 however, in her statement,

2:00 she also said she was proud to lead that effort and that she's never been afraid

2:03 to stand up to Donald Trump or anyone

2:05 else that has tried to undermine our democracy.

2:07 but then also on the note of redistricting,

2:08 we then have to talk about how Tennessee voters were raising hell Right.

2:11 They were at the legislative hearing about the new maps

2:13 they just passed that split up the state's only Democratic district,

2:16 which just so happens to sit on a majority black city, Memphis.

2:24 Is there anything I can do or say to get you to leave?

2:29 There you go.

2:30 Time to go.

2:31 right.

2:31 And this coming after the Supreme Court gutted

2:33 the Voting Rights Act and started this a domino

2:34 effect of states trying to redraw their maps

2:36 that critics say watered down Democratic votes.

2:38 though their state House speaker says that this was

2:40 a move to make redistricting more colorblind.

2:42 but there you had Tennessee Democrats, you know,

2:44 not buying We know the intention here is to be racist.

2:46 It is to take the only majority

2:48 black district out of the United States Congress, and it is to allow for white

2:53 representation and white majority districts to exist.

2:55 Period.

2:55 regardless of your opinion, they're Tennessee Republicans,

2:57 they have made their endgame clear.

2:59 We want Republicans to maintain control of the House of Representatives.

3:03 so no surprises there.

3:04 They they are saying that Tennessee is a conservative state,

3:06 and their congressional delegation should reflect that.

3:08 but Democrats in the state, they're saying something very different.

3:10 Our needs are nowhere near the same as a rural

3:13 community and nowhere near the same as other parts of Tennessee.

3:16 And that's why we have our own congressional district.

3:18 also the bigger issue that people are calling out is that no one

3:20 had any idea what these maps could actually look like up until this point.

3:23 This process has been done completely in secrecy,

3:26 to deny the public and representatives and elected

3:29 officials the opportunity to understand what's really going on.

3:31 This has been done entirely in secrecy.

3:33 And what, you're doing something wrong.

3:34 That's what you do.

3:35 You hide what you're doing.

3:36 We were making the most fundamental decision that affects

3:40 the people who gets to speak for them.

3:43 And we're doing in a room where

3:45 the people were entirely now we're finally seeing

3:47 the new maps split Memphis into three

3:49 parts and will likely push the Democratic representative,

3:51 Steven Cohen, out of a seat.

3:53 and so now you've got many wondering if those representatives are going to have

3:55 any incentive to actually pay attention

3:57 to those voters or any attention to the city.

3:59 by breaking up our district

4:00 into three different separate congressional districts,

4:02 there's no way you get fair representation.

4:04 and now that the new maps have passed,

4:06 Tennessee is the 13th state with an all Republican

4:08 congressional delegation adding to the GOP's red while that wall,

4:11 I will say is very likely safe, there are cracks among the base.

4:16 and it involves even Republicans wondering if

4:18 democracy is holding up under Trump second term,

4:20 if the Republican Party can be anything more than

4:23 a cult of personality that is connected to Trump.

4:25 it's becoming yet another front in the MAGA civil war.

4:28 that's actually something that we saw Tucker Carlson,

4:30 who's become one of the biggest soldiers in that war,

4:32 hitting on in the most recent episode of a show

4:34 where he interviewed representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky.

4:36 because Massie has become one of Trump's main targets within

4:38 his party after he split on a number of issues.

4:40 though easily the biggest nail in the coffin is that Massie

4:42 has been leading the charge to get the Epstein files released.

4:44 Trump, he's launched an all out crusade against Massie,

4:47 calling him disloyal and a loser while repeatedly pushing

4:49 for him to be defeated in his upcoming May 19th primary.

4:52 mean, Trump literally created a whole pack just devoted to defeating Massie.

4:55 And outside groups have spent millions of dollars on this one single primary.

4:59 but also say Trump's war on Massie.

5:00 It sparked significant backlash from members

5:02 of his MAGA base who agree with Massey's points.

5:04 people who think that it's crazy that the president

5:06 is trying so hard to destroy him

5:07 just because he doesn't blindly agree with everything

5:09 Trump says and wants to release the Epstein files.

5:11 And that's something that you would.

5:12 Tucker.

5:12 Really highlighting in the show,

5:13 arguing that Trump's betrayed the Americans who brought him back to power,

5:17 and young voters in particular.

5:18 or with Carlson noting that young people voted

5:19 for Trump because he ran on his whole anti-establishment platform,

5:22 predicated on standing up to the system and draining the swamp.

5:25 now Trump's just fully swimming in it.

5:27 so you have Tucker saying that those voters,

5:28 they really want someone like Massie who will stay

5:31 true to their values and stand up against the establishment.

5:33 Thomas Massie has made good on the promises

5:36 that Donald Trump made to the nation,

5:38 to these very same people who supported him in 2024.

5:42 And he stuck with it.

5:44 Thomas Massie is a better standard bearer for Trumpism,

5:48 for the America First ideology that Donald Trump ran on three times.

5:53 The Donald Trump is And so you would think at this point,

5:56 Thomas Massie would have the full

5:58 support of the Republican establishment in Washington.

6:02 Oh, no.

6:03 Just the opposite.

6:04 he has become the number one enemy of the Trump administration.

6:07 right.

6:07 And then he went on to claim that Massey first began to fall

6:09 from Trump's graces two years ago after doing an interview on Tucker Show.

6:12 during that interview,

6:13 Massey talked about how he refused to bend the knee to a PAC,

6:16 the main pro-Israel lobby.

6:17 And you, Tucker arguing it.

6:18 Those remarks ignited a sweeping effort by various

6:21 pro-Israel interests to oust Marcy from office.

6:22 All of which leads to where we are right now,

6:26 which is a moment where a Republican congressional primary in Kentucky

6:32 is the single most important political race of the year,

6:39 because if they are successful in doing this, crushing a man,

6:43 defaming a man, slandering a man,

6:45 attacking his family purely for the crime of telling the truth about them,

6:50 about how they operate, about the nature of the Epstein class.

6:55 Then you have to wonder, why are we voting in the first place?

6:58 What is the point of all of this?

6:59 That's not democracy.

7:02 It's it's not even it's not even a poor facsimile of democracy.

7:08 It's just straight up, teeth bared oligarchy.

7:12 It's shut up and obey.

7:13 with Tucker then going even further,

7:15 essentially arguing that Massey's primary is not

7:16 only an important litmus test for the midterm

7:18 elections and Trump's control over the Republican

7:20 also for the future of America.

7:22 this primary is more than a primary.

7:24 It's a window into what MAGA has become, and it's a referendum.

7:28 I would argue, on democracy itself.

7:30 and specifically Carlson noting that Massie won his last few

7:33 primaries with massive amounts of the vote over 70 and 80%.

7:36 But now he's leading the poll by one percentage point.

7:38 and with that, you had Massey arguing

7:40 that the only thing that's changed in this primary

7:42 is that pro-Israel groups have spent millions

7:44 of dollars campaigning against So the real reason

7:47 that this race is a serious race and I may lose is because a foreign lobby is

7:53 has fully funded it to the extent that they've

7:57 never done in any Republican race ever before.

8:01 My opponent And so you're right, this is a referendum.

8:04 It's a referendum.

8:05 The question we're putting to the people is,

8:08 are you going to let a foreign country or lobbyist for that foreign country,

8:13 buy a seat in Kentucky from and displace the one

8:17 congressman who will tell you what's in the bills, who will explain his vote.

8:23 I explain all of my votes,

8:25 especially on controversial bills on social media, too, where anybody can see.

8:31 So your position is that it's not your position as much as it's

8:35 the fact you're willing to disclose what's actually happening behind the scenes.

8:39 Correct.

8:39 The crime is transparency.

8:41 It's not obstructionism beyond that, you also had Massie accusing Trump of going

8:44 after him for staying true to his positions that Trump himself once held,

8:47 but then flip flopped on.

8:49 in all of these circumstances that I'm going to describe to you,

8:52 where I don't vote with the party,

8:54 I'm actually taking a position that Donald Trump had less than two years ago.

8:58 look at the president's own children.

9:00 The vice president, the FBI director,

9:02 and the president himself said that they would release the Epstein files.

9:06 And now I worked harder than anybody else to get it done and got it done.

9:11 and on the topic of Epstein,

9:12 Massey said that this whole thing is another one of the biggest reasons

9:15 that Trump's turned on claiming that when

9:16 he first introduced the Epstein Transparency Act,

9:18 he had dozens of Republican co-sponsors,

9:20 but most all of them chickened out because of pressure from and then he also

9:24 gave us this little bit where he

9:25 said that he heard something from Marjorie Taylor

9:27 Greene about a conversation she had with Trump

9:29 regarding the He also told her that if

9:31 she insisted on following through this with this, she

9:34 was going to hurt his friends.

9:36 She told me the day he told her that hurt.

9:40 Who's friends?

9:40 The president, Trump's when Tucker asked why Trump

9:43 had become so belligerent about releasing the files,

9:46 something that he literally campaigned on, we saw Massie

9:49 say It's the people who are funding the ballroom,

9:52 the people who are funding the arch,

9:55 the people who are funding the rebranding of the Kennedy Center.

9:58 These are the people who are also funding my opponent.

10:02 These are the people who have the ear of the president.

10:04 These are the people who are changing, dominating our foreign policy decisions.

10:09 They're the billionaires.

10:10 And these are also the same people who are in the Epstein files by large part,

10:16 or their friends are with this.

10:18 Both Massie and Carlson say that most

10:19 Republican voters agree with Massie, not Trump,

10:21 on these key If you'd asked most Fox News voters, viewers who were Trump voters,

10:27 if you'd asked them two years ago, like state what you believe on the issues,

10:33 I'd think there would be pretty close

10:35 to 100% overlap between you and those people.

10:37 Absolutely.

10:38 Yeah.

10:39 So I don't feel like your views have changed, might have never changed.

10:43 Regardless of who the president is or who the speaker is.

10:48 But Trump's have changed dramatically,

10:50 at least the disconnect between what he said he was going to do.

10:53 What he's doing is, is shocking.

10:55 with Massie also arguing that the funding that he's

10:56 received for his campaign in this cycle is

10:58 further evidence that Trump is out of touch

11:00 with the MAGA I've got and this is miraculous.

11:02 I think, you know, you called it a referendum.

11:05 I think it may be a movement within the MAGA movement is what we're seeing,

11:10 because I've got over 33,000 donors

11:12 and the average donation is less than 94 bucks.

11:15 These people, they don't have a lot of money to give,

11:18 but they can't be intimidated right, by the white House.

11:21 now.

11:22 As far as hard dollar campaign money from real people,

11:26 I've raised over $5 million this election cycle,

11:29 which is probably more than I've raised

11:32 in the entire time that I've been in Congress.

11:34 But of course, we're gonna have to wait

11:35 to see how the May 19th primary plays Well Trump

11:37 proved that he has a chokehold over the party

11:39 that when combined with millions of dollars from outside sources,

11:41 is strong enough to sway elections against Republicans who

11:44 is there enough of a base in Kentucky's fourth district,

11:46 or pissed off at Trump who believe that he betrayed them?

11:49 Who see what Massey's doing

11:50 as what they're actually Massey's primary specifically,

11:53 is going to be very consequential in many Ready will

11:56 give key insights into whether this war actually poses an existential

11:59 threat to the Republican Party in Trump's administration though then

12:01 also actually on the note of threats to the administration.

12:04 That brings me to another very important piece of news

12:06 that we have to talk about Because the Atlantic.

12:08 Right.

12:08 The magazine.

12:09 They just fired another shot in their escalating war

12:11 with FBI Director Cash with it all starting, of course,

12:13 after they put out an article setting over

12:15 two dozen sources who said that Patel drinks excessively

12:18 is often missing or difficult to wake up

12:20 in the morning and is prone to erratic and Patel

12:22 then sued The Atlantic and its reporter Sarah

12:24 Fitzpatrick for though that also doesn't seem like where

12:26 it ends because according to miss now the FBI

12:28 opened a criminal leak investigation into the article,

12:30 even though none of the information that was published was actually classified.

12:33 well now after all of that, Fitzpatrick apparently went, oh so you want more?

12:37 and she just published another article citing eight sources who

12:40 claimed that not only does Patel have a drinking problem,

12:42 he favors a specific drink that I can really only describe as well.

12:46 Let's call it cringe, very on brand, very fucking Patel.

12:49 Personalized bottles of bourbon engraved

12:51 with the words cache Patel, FBI director.

12:54 His nickname cash with a dollar sign for the ass and an FBI

12:57 shield in the talons of an eagle with the number nine,

13:00 presumably because he's the ninth FBI director.

13:02 and you can actually see it right here in this photo,

13:04 because one of the bottles popped up at an auction site in the Atlantic,

13:07 bought and according to the sources that Fitzpatrick

13:09 heard from, it is not unusual for Patel

13:11 to travel with supply of these things and hand them out as gifts to FBI's staff,

13:15 as well as just civilians, even while in official business, in fact,

13:18 they say that he's even used a Department

13:19 of Justice plane to transport the whiskey.

13:21 For example, when he flew to Milan to chug beer with the U.S.

13:23 men's hockey but also despite what appears to be his generosity.

13:27 Apparently Patel can sometimes get possessive over his Right.

13:30 Because Fitzpatrick reports that back in March, he brought at least one case,

13:33 suburban, to the FBI's training facility in Quantico.

13:35 And in the words of one source,

13:37 it quickly turned into a shit they were reportedly there for a training seminar,

13:41 which really just meant UFC fighters teaching martial arts to FBI agents,

13:44 because, you know, that's how you keep America you had sources reportedly saying

13:47 that at one point at least one of Patel's precious bottles went missing,

13:50 which caused him, to, quote, lose his mind.

13:52 with one retired agent telling Fitzpatrick

13:54 that multiple others contacted him for legal guidance.

13:56 After Patel began threatening to polygraph

13:58 and prosecute his staff over the missing bottle.

14:00 and you have attorneys, adding that they've gotten similar calls

14:02 from FBI employees regarding concerns about Patel's bottles.

14:05 now, it is unclear whether a Patel ever found this bottle

14:07 or if he is still searching for it till this day.

14:10 But what is clear is that if this is true.

14:12 this is a clear pattern of frat bro alcoholism,

14:15 crave and self-promotion and petty childish paranoia.

14:17 At the very least, it's unbecoming of an FBI

14:18 director and undercuts the agency's culture of quiet professionalism.

14:21 and at most, it sounds like an insane place that can derail very,

14:25 very important business that keeps people

14:27 Cash sounds like he's having the cringey drunk uncle midlife crisis and that's

14:31 as the FBI's traditionally taken a zero tolerance

14:33 approach to unauthorized use of alcohol on the job and the misuse off

14:36 which is also probably why you had

14:38 one agent telling Fitzpatrick that it's demoralizing,

14:39 saying that Patel's conduct suggests one set of standards

14:42 for the director and another for the rest of the and they

14:44 added that many agents worry that if Patel offered

14:46 them a bottle and they didn't accept it enthusiastically,

14:49 they're going to get polygraph for loyalty.

14:50 And that said, in response to all this, you

14:52 had an FBI spokesperson not denying Patel's bottle gifting practice,

14:55 but they argued that, hey, it's normal saying Senior bureau

14:58 officials have long exchanged commemorative items

15:00 and formal gift settings consistent with ethics

15:03 with that you had Fitzpatrick writing

15:04 when I reached a former longtime senior FBI official to ask whether

15:08 he'd ever seen personally branded liquor

15:09 bottles distributed by a previous FBI director, he burst out laughing.

15:13 and she says that several other sources back that up,

15:15 saying that it is simply unheard but again.

15:17 And you know this, especially if you've

15:19 listened to our Patel coverage in the past, it's not just the bottles.

15:21 right.

15:21 One senior official who's suing the bureau

15:23 for wrongful termination claim that Patel gave him

15:25 an abnormally large challenge coin with the words

15:28 director on top and cash with the dollar sign.

15:30 Patel on the bottom.

15:31 another source told Fitzpatrick that Patel sent

15:33 out cash branded merch boxes containing hats,

15:35 socks and other items depicting the Punisher comic book character.

15:38 and still to this day,

15:39 an online merch store that he co-founded sell stuff like fight with cash,

15:43 Punisher scarves, and government gangsters playing you know,

15:46 stuff super cool guys would probably Oh, man.

15:49 If you ever meet someone that's wearing cash Patel merch,

15:52 please just ask them what their wife's boyfriend's

15:54 name they'll either have an answer for you,

15:56 or they're too stupid to realize you're dunking on And then

15:59 there's more we've got to dive into in just a minute.

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17:02 and then diving right back into the news.

17:04 The world is, you know, anxiously waiting to find out whether the US

17:07 and Iran are actually about strike a deal.

17:09 And also the people of Lebanon and Gaza.

17:11 They're waiting to find out where the Israeli military is going to strike next.

17:14 Even as ceasefires officially remain in place

17:16 and talks but starting with the US and Iran,

17:18 at least as of recording Iran's reviewing the latest

17:20 US proposal to end this war and soon

17:22 expect to deliver its response via neither country

17:25 is said what is included in this proposal.

17:27 You had Axios reporting that the two sides

17:29 were nearing an agreement on a one page,

17:31 14 point memorandum of understanding to gradually

17:33 open the Strait of Hormuz over 30 days, while also hammering out a more detailed

17:37 and long term sources saying that the memo

17:39 provided a framework for this or which

17:40 they suggested would involve Iran agreeing

17:42 to restrictions on its nuclear program

17:43 and the US lifting at sanctions and releasing

17:45 billions of dollars in frozen Iranian

17:47 but while we wait for the official response,

17:49 you've also had some Iranian officials suggesting that the regime

17:51 is just still unwilling to agree to Trump's though notably,

17:54 they specifically called out the terms as told

17:56 to Axios by unnamed with one key lawmaker,

17:58 for example, describing them as more of an American wish list than a reality,

18:02 and is propaganda aimed at justifying

18:04 Trump's retreat from his recent hostile action.

18:06 and then you would.

18:07 Iran's chief negotiator expressing a similar sentiment,

18:10 we'll call it on Twitter, writing.

18:12 God, we're gonna all look so stupid in the history Operation.

18:15 Trust me, bro.

18:16 Now back to routine with Operation folk CEOs.

18:19 the first of those seeming to reference Project Freedom,

18:21 which was the operation that Trump announced on Sunday

18:23 to guide commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz,

18:25 though we did that only to then suddenly

18:27 paused that mission roughly 36 hours after it reportedly,

18:30 only two merchant vessels made their way through under US

18:33 They followed two naval destroyers along with other American naval assets.

18:36 They thought of Iranian attacks that also targeted other commercial ships,

18:39 residential building in Oman, and an oil facility in the UAE.

18:42 but still you had the white House putting Defense

18:44 Secretary Pete out there to hype up Project Freedom,

18:46 saying if the lane was clear.

18:48 but then only a few hours later, you had Trump hitting that kill switch,

18:50 saying the decision was actually based

18:52 on the request of Pakistan and other countries,

18:54 on the tremendous military success of the US has had against Iran,

18:57 and the fact that great progress had been made toward a complete and final

19:01 agreement with but you've since I didn't see news reporting that Trump's sudden

19:04 reversal might have actually had more to do with the reaction from Saudi

19:07 with them reporting that his announcement

19:09 of the nation surprise and angered the country's leaders,

19:11 leading them to deny the American military use

19:13 of its bases and airspace to carry out the operation.

19:15 and reportedly even a call between Trump and his buddy Mohammed Bone saw,

19:19 failed to resolve that issue, so he backtracked.

19:21 And while you've since had a Saudi source telling

19:22 the Guardian that it's not true that his country denied access,

19:25 you also had another one telling the Associated

19:27 Press that it is side note, isn't it fun?

19:29 And by fun I mean stupid and horrifying

19:32 that at the highest levels of everything.

19:35 It still all feels like high it's just that instead of, like,

19:37 prom and the high school quarterback, it's like.

19:41 Cold or active wars with the threat of nuclear weapons and war criminals.

19:45 but I digress, right?

19:47 That it would just kind of be

19:48 the latest example of the administration taking action,

19:50 potentially affecting allies without letting them

19:52 though there even people in his administration,

19:54 they're seeming to have a hard time staying on the same page as who, by the way,

19:58 has been continuing to claim, as he has for weeks,

20:00 that the war could end very soon,

20:01 that Iran wants to make a deal very, very badly,

20:04 and if a deal isn't reached with the United States,

20:06 that it's going to go back to bombing the country

20:08 even more aggressively than with them also somehow take an issue

20:10 with the claim yesterday that Iran has refused to You're facing

20:13 an opponent right now in Iran that has refused to submit.

20:17 You seem optimistic now that you may be closer to a deal.

20:20 What's different about this moment now than

20:22 in other moments where a deal has seemed close?

20:25 Well, why do you say they refuse to submit?

20:27 You don't know that.

20:28 You don't know what's going on.

20:29 U.S.

20:29 ships a few days ago and a few days ago.

20:31 It's a long time ago.

20:33 You know, in the world of war a few days ago.

20:36 Know they want to make a deal badly.

20:38 And we'll see if we get there.

20:39 as we wait to see, you know, whatever happens,

20:41 you reportedly have several people close

20:42 to Trump that are pushing him to, quote,

20:44 finish the job in Iran by seeking out the rest

20:46 of the regime's conventional military and they're apparently even

20:48 arguing that this could be done before Trump travels

20:50 to China next week for a meeting with XI Jinping.

20:52 and as far as Trump, you know,

20:53 while it's not clear if he's open to attacking again,

20:55 though, he threatens a lot.

20:56 He has previously argued that his blockade is more though I will say notably,

21:00 you just had to Washington Post reporting today

21:01 that his own intelligence assessment suggests that Iran can survive

21:04 the US naval blockade for at least 3 to 4

21:07 more months before facing more severe economic and again,

21:09 also finding that Iran retains significant ballistic missile capabilities.

21:12 which is reporting that stands out because you

21:14 had Trump claiming yesterday that Iran probably only has

21:16 18 or 19% of its missiles one official told

21:18 the post that they might have 75% of its

21:21 pre-war inventories of mobile launchers and about 70%

21:23 of its pre-war stockpiles and there's also reportedly evidence

21:25 that the regime has been able to recover

21:27 and reopen almost all of its underground storage facilities,

21:30 repair some damage missiles, and even assemble new missiles that were

21:32 almost complete when the war And so yeah.

21:34 While Iran may really want a deal.

21:36 It also might not be desperate enough to compromise

21:38 as much as Trump wants them in the meantime,

21:40 you have Pakistan still pushing for peace,

21:41 with a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry saying we

21:44 hope the settlement will be soon rather than and later

21:46 you had Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson saying Iran was

21:48 reviewing messages mediated by the Pakistani side and adding,

21:50 we have not yet reached a conclusion

21:52 and no response has been given to the American

21:54 side but while we wait for an update on that, we should also talk about

21:57 the potential progress in negotiations between Israel

21:59 and Because you had news breaking today that officials

22:01 from both sides will meet for a third round of talks next week in Washington.

22:04 and you had Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying this week

22:06 that he thinks that a peace deal is imminently achievable,

22:09 while also the problem with Israel and Lebanon is not Israel or Lebanon.

22:13 It's saying what has to happen in Lebanon?

22:15 What everybody wants to see is that you have

22:17 a Lebanese government with the capability to go after Hezbollah

22:20 and take Hezbollah but notably some in the Lebanese government

22:23 which actually declared Hezbollah's military activities illegal on March 2nd,

22:26 argue that their efforts to disarm the group,

22:29 they've been undermined by Israel's continued attacks

22:30 on the because as we've talked about,

22:32 despite the cease fire, the Israeli military and Hezbollah,

22:34 they have continued to exchange fire in southern

22:36 but you've also had Israeli troops occupying territory,

22:39 destroying homes, infrastructure, entire villages.

22:41 And ultimately, according to many experts,

22:43 applying what's become known as the Gaza and with all

22:45 this, the Israeli military may be targeting one group in particular,

22:48 Shiite they make up the majority of southern Lebanon,

22:51 and they're part of the same branch of Islam as and with all this, even

22:53 though Israel issued blanket evacuation guidance when

22:55 the fighting began a couple of months ago,

22:57 publicly urging all civilians to flee to the north.

22:59 Israeli officials reportedly delivered a very

23:01 different message in reportedly told various Christian and Druze communities

23:04 that they could stay inside the evacuation

23:07 while also calling on them to force out any Lebanese

23:09 from the neighboring Shiite Muslim communities

23:11 who've taken refuge in these communities.

23:12 As the Israeli military demolishes their own towns.

23:15 so, of course, with all that, you have rights groups arguing that at least

23:17 some of Israel's actions may amount to war overall since the cease fire began.

23:21 The death toll in Lebanon since early March

23:24 has risen from around 2300 to roughly 2700,

23:26 including hundreds of women and children,

23:28 according to the Lebanese Health and with that, you have

23:30 the Israeli military claiming to have killed 220 Hezbollah members over

23:32 that and that's as you have Israeli authorities saying that the overall

23:35 death toll on their side since early March is 20,

23:37 including 17 soldiers, a security person and two civilians.

23:40 and also while during this cease fire keep doing

23:42 air quotes Hezbollah is mostly refrain from attacking Israeli territory,

23:45 and Israel's refrain from striking Lebanon's capital,

23:47 that appears to be at least until now,

23:49 with Israeli forces striking Beirut's southern suburbs yesterday

23:51 for the first time since the cease fire

23:53 with that, they claimed to have killed the commander

23:55 of Hezbollah's most elite fighting you had his Reilly,

23:57 Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu,

23:58 saying in a statement alongside the country's defense no terrorist has immunity.

24:01 The long arm of Israel will reach every enemy and so

24:04 even though these talks are technically moving forward, for many,

24:07 it doesn't look like there's any reason to suggest that Israel is going

24:10 to stop anytime especially when you consider

24:11 what's still happening in with an Israeli airstrike

24:13 there this week killing the son of Hamas's top negotiator and the US led

24:17 talks that are taking place right now

24:18 in Egypt involving Trump's so-called Board of right.

24:20 That son, he's actually this guy's fourth

24:22 kid to have been killed in Israeli attacks.

24:24 And he himself has reportedly survived multiple assassination attempts.

24:27 right after this latest, you had him saying the Zionist attacks

24:30 and violations clearly indicate that the occupation does

24:32 not want to abide by a cease fire or by the first the referring there

24:36 to the 20 point peace plan that was announced by Trump back in in the first

24:39 phase of that plan led to the exchange of those held captive by either side,

24:42 and also called for a surge in humanitarian aid and end

24:45 to the fighting and the partial withdrawal of Israeli the second phase,

24:48 which officially started in January.

24:49 It's meant to involve disarmament and demilitarization

24:52 and the transition to governance and reconstruction.

24:54 but the disarmament is the sticking point in current or with Hamas,

24:57 claiming that Israel's never implemented the first phase,

24:59 including by failing to ever actually stop attacking.

25:01 because, according to local medics, Israeli attacks have killed at least

25:05 830 Palestinians since the ceasefire took right.

25:07 And that's while Israel says that militants have

25:09 killed four of their soldiers over the same

25:10 period and claims that it strikes are aimed

25:12 at stopping attacks by Hamas and other militant though,

25:14 apparently the Israeli army is also

25:16 regularly targeting police forces under Hamas authority,

25:18 with rights groups accusing Israel of trying

25:20 to throw the territory into even greater chaos.

25:22 and then at the same time, there's also the situation in the occupied West Bank,

25:25 where Israeli settlers have continued ramping up attacks,

25:28 reportedly killing 13 Palestinians.

25:29 Just since the start of the war against Iran,

25:31 as well as injuring and driving hundreds from their there's

25:33 reportedly an average of nearly seven attacks occurring every day.

25:36 And the violence is often involving beatings, arson, theft and vandalism.

25:40 had one expert explaining to the New York Times at the center layers,

25:42 they see an opportunity as so many eyes are looking elsewhere.

25:44 saying.

25:44 It's a chance to escalate pogroms on Palestinians while

25:47 the world is distracted adding their goal is to expel

25:49 Palestinians from their lands and make them their and it

25:52 doesn't appear to just be some extremist settlers.

25:54 reportedly had the Israeli army chief in the West Bank saying in a closed

25:57 forum recently that his troops were killing like they haven't killed since 1967,

26:01 him reportedly saying they had shot

26:02 42 Palestinians for throwing stones last year, calling them terrorists,

26:05 and even while also saying that the army

26:07 didn't shoot Jewish settler militants for doing

26:09 the same and he also reportedly said

26:10 at the barrier dividing Israel in the West Bank,

26:12 it is currently permitted to detain a suspect by shooting

26:15 him at the knee or below to create barrier awareness,

26:18 arguing this is justified on the grounds

26:19 that each illegal Palestinian worker was a potential terrorist.

26:22 Right.

26:22 But then bouncing from that, let's let's do two final things first up.

26:26 It's really quick breather.

26:27 Congratulations to Dwayne.

26:28 Be your seeks latest weekly winner who just scored

26:30 $500 in tickets and is going to go see beats.

26:33 I got so excited for you I started stuttering,

26:34 but for the rest of y'all, that is right.

26:36 See, geek is still giving away $500 in tickets and you

26:39 should definitely answer today if you haven't Imagine daydream being the next

26:42 winner in snagging $500 for seeing your favorite artists sporting event

26:45 or there's like over 70,000 events to choose I just used it.

26:47 When my mom came to town, we went to see a Braves got those really nice seats,

26:51 but they just, like, give you snacks for free.

26:53 My mom filled up her whole Like so the point.

26:55 I don't know what she was thinking.

26:56 She had she had three melted ice cream sandwiches

26:58 when we for the rest of y'all, just remember,

27:00 add code to Franco to your seeking app

27:02 profile for a chance at the weekly $500 prize.

27:04 No purchase Right.

27:05 And then two, the final thing that we

27:07 need to talk about today is there's another

27:08 global mess of the US might not be prepared to deal with, at least for us.

27:11 States are now monitoring passengers who are on the hunt

27:14 for virus cruise and Marjorie Taylor Greene already

27:16 touting ivermectin as a cure for the Those are

27:19 just some of the latest updates regarding this outbreak.

27:20 And I know that what I'm saying probably it sends Covid

27:24 PTSD chills down your and so what I'm going to do

27:26 is I'm going to start with this message that an epidemic

27:28 expert at the World Health Organization delivered this this is not coronavirus.

27:32 This is a very different virus.

27:34 We know this virus Hunter viruses have been around for quite a while.

27:38 This is not SARS-CoV-2.

27:40 This is not the start of a Covid pandemic.

27:42 This is an outbreak that we see on a this is not the same situation we

27:45 were in six years you have other immunologists

27:47 echoing all of this, noting that close contact,

27:49 like sharing food or living spaces,

27:51 is generally needed for human to human transmission upon to so.

27:54 It is far less likely to spread into a major outbreak like But of course,

27:57 with all of that said,

27:58 it is understandable why these headlines are spiking such a global concern.

28:00 It is very, very serious.

28:02 This is a serious And so we should break down what is happening,

28:05 starting with how people are being monitored in a handful

28:07 of countries all over the world for possible right.

28:09 And that includes people in at least for us states,

28:11 Arizona, Virginia, Georgia and California,

28:12 though so far none are showing all of those people,

28:16 they were passengers on the ship, but they got off on one of its stops,

28:18 and it actually looks like more passengers than previously thought were

28:21 able to get off of the ship after the first Hunter virus

28:23 Apparently around 30 to 40 people left the boat when it

28:26 stopped at the island of Saint Helena in according to Dutch authorities,

28:28 we do not know where every single one of those people went next.

28:31 But we do know that one passenger who got off there has

28:34 since tested positive for the virus in he's receiving care in Zurich.

28:37 As officials work to contact trace anyone who may have

28:40 been exposed during his infectious you also had Dutch officials saying

28:42 that a flight attendant was being hospitalized and tested for Hans

28:45 virus after coming into contact with one of the passengers,

28:47 who later died of the illness.

28:48 they were reportedly trying to board a flight from South Africa to Amsterdam.

28:51 But the crew didn't allow her to travel

28:52 because of her medical and as things stand now,

28:54 three people have died from the virus,

28:55 including a Dutch couple and a German national.

28:57 Also several others are sick.

28:59 And it's officially been confirmed that we are

29:01 specifically dealing with the Andy strain of the virus.

29:03 Because human human transmission of the virus is incredibly rare.

29:06 You usually get it from coming into contact with rat droppings.

29:08 But this strain which is found

29:09 in countries like Argentina where the cruise departed,

29:11 it's among the rarest and most severe and the only

29:14 strain where humans can give it to other right.

29:15 And it also has a fairly long incubation period as long as eight weeks.

29:19 and right now, you know, it's too soon to know exactly how this outbreak began.

29:22 Before boarding the ship,

29:23 that Dutch couple that died went on a bird watching trip in Argentina

29:26 that included sites home to species of rat known to carry the one

29:29 of the main running theories is that they had contracted the virus before

29:32 they even got on but also because we live in a post 2020 world,

29:35 we are definitely seeing other theories, some wackier than others,

29:38 about this whole and among the things you're seeing out there, I mean,

29:41 they're already viral posts questioning why Moderna is working

29:43 on a hunt a virus vaccine prior to this outbreak, which to that, you know,

29:46 I'm someone that is not trusting a big pharma,

29:48 but, you know, just to kind of say the obvious,

29:50 it is normal for researchers to try

29:51 to develop vaccines for known deadly diseases.

29:53 you've got people like Marjorie Taylor

29:55 Greene already jumping in to spread misinformation

29:56 about this vaccine that doesn't actually even

29:58 exist saying they manipulate the virus bioweapon, make the vaccine poison,

30:02 and then make the profits because they

30:04 own the vast majority of your elected leaders.

30:06 I'll go ahead and say it.

30:07 Fuck all the way off.

30:09 so for those of us who have been like, oh man,

30:11 Marjorie Taylor Greene, she's been making so much more sense these days.

30:14 It's good to get it's good to get a taste of OG mtg, You know what I mean?

30:18 So, like, we know that she wasn't body and this is a quick detour.

30:20 But it is something I want to when

30:22 you have a Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson,

30:24 so many of these other people and you're like, wow,

30:26 they just said something that makes sense that I agree with.

30:28 No, they on some of these issues agree with you.

30:30 It is broken clock given enough time a broken clock can be write.

30:34 I say it that way because I don't want to say it the other way,

30:36 which makes it sound like Marjorie Taylor Greene

30:38 is right twice a think we might be overshooting with that but as far as what

30:42 she thinks a solution for this virus is,

30:44 well, it turns out that the the anti-vaxxers and the vaccine skeptics,

30:47 they're back on the ivermectin ready,

30:49 got touted by a bunch of big podcasters and such as a Covid cure.

30:53 And while it is approved for some use in humans as an anti parasitic one,

30:56 studies do not show that it actually helps with and two.

30:59 And this is such a weird thing to have to say.

31:00 You need a prescription for human ivermectin.

31:03 And some were taking the animal version of the right,

31:05 which isn't tested on humans.

31:06 And it was one of the reasons you had medical experts out there saying,

31:09 like, please talk to your doctors.

31:11 This is a no no.

31:12 but already people talking about ivermectin.

31:14 And you had MTG saying that she spoke

31:15 to a health expert to ask how we can treat hantavirus.

31:18 And the answer was, ivermectin.

31:20 Also vitamin D and zinc.

31:21 Those of us who refuse to lock down,

31:23 mask up and get vax took the good ol horse paste

31:26 and also developed natural and so yeah with that you know it's 2026.

31:30 I'm in a much different mental space now.

31:32 I say if Marjorie Taylor Greene wants horse space, give her a horse oh my God,

31:36 how scary would it be to actually have to go through a full blown like what?

31:40 What the Covid pandemic was now with RFK as the head of the HHS.

31:44 Honestly, the number of stories about him and animals.

31:46 And there was a picture like in the last week

31:48 where he just he had a bird in his hand.

31:50 I'm like maybe half made onto but that now

31:54 lingering fear that's just going to grow.

31:55 If this if this whole situation gets worse.

31:58 Aside, as far as what's going to happen with this hantavirus.

32:00 Cruz like, where is that heading like we talked about earlier this week.

32:03 It was initially going to dock in Cape

32:04 Verde but then the country basically said,

32:06 oh hell it's a Spain stepped up and said

32:08 that the boat could go to the Canary Islands,

32:09 and it's expected to arrive this Right.

32:11 And on Monday, passengers are expected to begin evacuations.

32:14 also the leader of the Canary Islands.

32:15 He is not happy that they're getting stuck

32:17 with this saying I am not going to blindly

32:19 jeopardize the safety of the Canary Islands population

32:21 with a government that is not behaving loyally.

32:23 right.

32:23 So seeming to suggest that Spanish leaders

32:25 didn't consult with them about the decision.

32:26 and you're seeing a number of the people that live there feeling the same,

32:29 with one telling Reuters, we are a community that's already quite flexible when

32:32 it comes to helping others and being accommodating to people,

32:34 but I think this is excessive.

32:36 People are scared, people are worried.

32:37 Spain is a huge country with plenty of ports where the cruise ship

32:41 could Because even though you have officials

32:42 insisting this is not the next Covid,

32:44 if you're on that ship or if the ship is heading your way,

32:47 this feels like a very different, very scary situation.

32:49 all while there are also concerns about

32:51 the US's ability to respond to something like right,

32:53 as you've had the Trump administration making tons of cuts impacting

32:56 public and some think that the administration's

32:58 sluggish communications and response here,

32:59 it's more alarming than the virus right.

33:01 Because staffing cuts impacted the CDC,

33:03 there are fewer people able to put boots on the ground.

33:05 And because Trump pulled us out of the World Health Organization,

33:07 we don't get regular information about health threats like members but for now,

33:11 that is where we are.

33:12 And we're gonna have to wait to see what happens or whether it be.

33:14 What happens when the ship docks, how all the countries,

33:16 including the United States,

33:17 respond when they inevitably receive more passengers,

33:19 and where things just generally go from But that my friends,

33:21 you beautiful bastards, is the end of your Thursday Philip DeFranco course.

33:25 I'd love to know your opinions, your reactions to anything that stood out

33:27 to you today in those comments down also if you don't feel when hundred percent

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33:39 But hey, no matter what you do, let me just say thank you for watching.

33:41 I love yo faces and I'll see you right back here next