Episode 5291: Talks For Peace Begin In Islamabad; Finding A Permanent Solution For Diego Garcia

What's your backup plan? You don't need a backup plan. We have the military is defeated. Their military is gone. They have, you know, we've degraded just about everything. They have very few missiles. They have very little manufacturing capability. We've hit them hard. Our military is amazing. The job they've done. Sorry, is this the one in downtown? Are you open to more talks after this? I don't know. I can't tell you. I have to see what happens tomorrow. They've been talking for 47 years with other presidents. And we're not doing much talking. Thank you very much. Nothing could be more confusing than looking at J.D. Vance, you know, writing a book about how the middle class and the working people were getting screwed over and then getting in power and not caring about them at all, calling Trump America's Hitler and then being his sidekick, you know, all of this and to stand. I'm so glad you raised that point. To stand next to Orban, who represents everything that we tell our children never to be. You know, a dictator who takes from the people who doesn't care about human rights. So, you know, all this aside, this is a really important moment for peace in the world. And frankly, I think it's best for Israel if this fighting stops. And that all of Iran's proxies and all the things they tell them to do to Israel, all that is brought to a table. And we can figure this out because I will tell you, I am so sad at what's happening to the reputation of Israel because of Netanyahu, in my opinion, in this great country of ours. I have never seen it. I served for so many years. And I always knew how critical it is to keep the American people behind Israel. The last point I'd make, in all the years that I spent in Washington and several many trips to the Middle East, I met with all the leaders. I never did meet with BB. That's a whole other funny story. But I met with most of them. And they always had a couple of things. Number one, Senator, we will always be a democracy and we will always care about human rights. And we will always need America and we will be America's strongest ally. But America will never have to fight our battles. And you know, I just see BB changing the whole scenario here and I worry so much about it. And with all my disagreements with JD Vance, I hope he succeeds. According to sources familiar with recent US intelligence assessments, China is preparing to send a shipment of weapons to Iran despite the ongoing fragile ceasefire, which it helped to broker. China says that these claims are untrue and that they have never provided any weapons to any country that's party to this current conflict. Two sources say that the weapons in China that the weapons in China is sending include shoulder fired anti-air missile systems. And these types of weapons pose a major threat to low flying aircraft. It would be a huge undertaking militarily. I'm not prepared to say that it couldn't be done militarily, but to do it and to sustain an opening, safe opening of the strait would require months and months of hard work by not just the United States military, but frankly, militaries in the region and hopefully even militaries who aren't in the region, such as our European allies. I mean, just the convoys alone, Jen, just I did that mission back in 88. That's time intensive, ship intensive. Well, we had 500 plus ships back then. We have only 300 or so now. We would need help to do it. And the convoys are slow and you've got to be constantly on your toes going through that narrow strait. But also you need eyes overhead. You're going to need constant intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance assets flying over the strait so you can see with an unblinking eye everything that's moving in that water 24-7. And you might even have to take militarily through land forces, some of those islands on both sides of the strait that the Iranians have been able to use to launch attacks from. It's a huge undertaking. Again, not impossible militarily, but huge. And there's really no way the United States could do it on its own for any sustained period of time. Breaking this evening now, the UK is apparently preparing a new version of a major plan to get the whole nation from the military and the police to hospitals and industry ready for a transition to war. That's what the head of the armed forces told Sky News. Well, just beg the question, doesn't it? Whose side would all those people be on? You can transition to war all you like, but we obviously have a load of people in this country that I think will just be on the side of whatever enemy is that we happen to be fighting. And if that wasn't enough, the telegraph are also reporting tonight that the Russian shadow fleet crews will be able to claim asylum in Britain if we seize their ships because, well, yeah, they just can't. That's the fear, apparently. I mean, it's ridiculous not sure how much more of this we can really take, can't we? Basically all because of international laws. US intelligence uncovered by the DC Bureau indicates that China is preparing for air defense shipments to Iran possibly within weeks. This is according to sources familiar with the intelligence. The systems are the shoulder fired anti air missiles known as man pads. That's what the sources were saying. And they're designed to target, as you said, low flying aircraft, including US jets. Similar weapons likely used to shoot down that F-15 last week according to President Trump. Iran claimed at the time that it used a new air defense system. That was according to a statement from Iranian state media. Shipments might be routed, these sources are saying, through third countries to hide their origin. China, obviously, wanting to distance itself certainly from any visible indication of providing weapons to Iran, considering that it has just been working the phones in recent days, including 26 calls from its foreign minister, Wang Yi, to regional allies and friends to try to defuse this situation. President Trump saying that Iran actually helped bring about this ceasefire. And of course, we are now hours away from these crucial talks that will be happening in Pakistan. This would mark a major escalation in China's support for Iran, sources say, if indeed this intelligence is correct, going well beyond the existing sales of dual use technology that China has been providing to Iran throughout this. But we know that China has incentives to try to assist Iran in ways that does not harm its standing with the global community. Obviously, China is heavily reliant on Iranian oil by some measures. They're purchasing 80% to 90% of the oil going through the Strait of Hormuz, up more than a million barrels a day. So trying to support Iran while maintaining deniability, these sources that my colleagues in Washington have spoken to say could be really crucial here. Iran might be using the ceasefire to replenish their weapons. Now, I want to read for you, because we do have a statement from the Chinese embassy in Washington. And I'm going to read it in full what we've published. China has never provided weapons to any party to the conflict. The information in question is untrue. Goes on to say, as a responsible major country, China consistently fulfills its international obligations. We urge the US side to refrain from making baseless allegations, maliciously drawing connections, and engaging in sensationalism. We hope that relevant parties will do more to help deescalate tensions. Obviously, we know, Pola, that Russia has been providing much more significant military support than dual use technology, even going so far as to provide Iran with intelligence of targets that they could strike across the Middle East. If this is true, if what my Washington colleagues have reported from their sources is correct, certainly it would seem that the help coming from China is much, much more than was at least originally believed. But again, a very firm denial of this reporting from the Chinese embassy in Washington. When you see what they're doing when it comes to Lebanon, where on this 10 point plan, Don't Bomb Lebanon was on there. The administration seemed to be OK with it. They're backing away from it now. But Israel is going, they're not at the negotiating table, but they're absolutely maybe the largest player when it comes to what happens next, especially when it comes to Lebanon. Now, you make a great point. We have these bilateral talks going on in Pakistan and another key player in this war. In fact, the only real ally right now that the United States has is not going to be present and wasn't present when the ceasefire was agreed to, which led to the confusion over Lebanon. The Israel's a sovereign state. They're looking at this situation from their lens and from their threats, the threats to their people. And they're going to act. I think we need to expect that Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israelis are going to act in their own self-interest here, no matter what happens in Islamabad. They view and they live in a tough neighborhood. They view Iran as an existential threat and certainly the proxies. And one of the things that the Israelis have been trying to do since before the war started and certainly over the last 40 days is break up the proxy network that Iran has available to them. It is because those proxies represent a very real and tangible threat to the Israeli people who has been firing rockets out of the north. Hamas is still exists. And of course, the Houthis can fire stuff from the south. So Israel has been very focused on the proxies more than the United States has been. The other thing the Israelis are going to be watching very, very closely is what happens to that enriched uranium and what has Iran allowed to do with respect to enriched uranium going forward. That's kind of been off the table as we all talk about the straight. But to the Israelis, that too represents an existential threat. So there is no guarantee that whatever is agreed to in Pakistan is going to be agreed to in Tel Aviv. And we'll have to watch and see exactly how the Israelis respond as these talks continue. We're dealing with a failed presidency called Joe Biden. The Iranians have flushed with cash because of Obama and Biden. Now they're on their back foot. And we're going to finish this job. I pray for a deal. But if they refuse a deal, just ask Maduro what happens when you turn down a good deal. Call him, but he's in jail. You won't be in jail. You're going to be dead. This is the primal scream of a dying regime. Pray for our enemies. Because we're going to medieval on this people. Here's the thing, I've got a free shot of all these networks lying about the people. The people have had a belly full of it. I know you don't like hearing that. I know you've tried to do everything in the world to stop that, but you're not going to stop it. It's going to happen. And where do people like that go to share the big line? Maga. Media. Maga. Media. I wish in my soul I wish that any of these people had a conscience. Ask yourself, what is my task and what is my purpose? If that answer is to save my country, this country will be saved. War Room. Here's your host, Stephen K. Bowne. It's Saturday, 11 April in the year of our Lord, 2026. Our weekend coverage today, obviously, we're going to talk about the talks. We're trying to find out if they've actually started. Because there are, you know, there's so many rumors going around, so many different news stories breaking. We're trying to cut through the fog of war here, the fog of negotiations to see what's real and what's not. Understanding that may not even have started because we're trying to get through the fog of war here, that may not even have even started because there may be a misunderstanding of what's going on in Lebanon and what's the agreement of Israel already to be at least party to this, not a direct negotiation, but that the ceasefire in Lebanon has to take hold. Also, all types of rumors about the Chinese Communist Party, they were absolutely very essential to get us where they are today. There may actually be a delegation in Islamabad, which reinforces the war room's position is that the deal, any deal that has any meaning at all will be cut between the President of the United States and Xi, President Xi, in a room in Beijing sometime during the state visit of President Trump in mid-May. You just heard right there, Admiral Kirby on two things. Number one, said, hey, doesn't make, whatever's agreed to in Islamabad and agreed to the Washington wants to do, it doesn't mean it's going to be agreed to in Tel Aviv. This is the whole situation with having an ally that's got its own strategic plan. Now having your own strategic plan is fine, but if it doesn't comport to your senior partner, then it's not great. And so this is all going to be worked out the next day or two. Also, Admiral Kirby giving, I think, an assessment from his perspective, particularly given the small size of the Navy, of what actually would have to do to convoy duty, the type of convoy duty that happened in the tanker wars in 86, 87 and 80, 80, instead of it take months of planning, we really don't have the resources to do it. You'd have to have the Royal Navy, you'd have to have French, Italian, NATO would really have to step up, which seems to be, they have no intention of doing because they don't have the resources, they don't have the Navy either. Although there is a report on one of these tracking services that a Navy destroyer, DDG 112, is the USS Michael Murphy, a destroyer guided missile destroyer is actually transiting the straight of her moves, even as we speak. So we'll get more into this. We've got a PAC show where we're going to do today, both the geopolitics and the negotiation and national security of what's happening in not just in the Middle East, but also with the Chinese Communist Party. But also we're going to look inside the wire, which we think is not getting enough focus, the war inside the United States for the security of the United States and to keep this Republic going. And we're going to go from Texas to Florida to many other locations and discuss all of this. I want to thank our sponsors, particularly on the weekend, Birch Gold, now more than ever, the end of the dollar empire. Go check out, we got the eighth free installment. This, we've been putting this up for five years. I think gold was, what we started with Birch Gold, and I think it was $1,200 an ounce. It was 1500, we first started launching into the dollar empire. BirchGold.com promo code BANON, end of the dollar empire, eighth free installment. You can order the book of this first seven installments, which is on back order because it's flown off the shelf. But get to Phillip Patrick and the team. That's who you need to talk to. It's not the price of gold. It's the process that drives the value of gold, particularly over the long term. Phillip Patrick's team at Birch Gold can give you all the answers. Short commercial break, we're turning the war room in just a moment. The American healthcare system is broken. And for most Americans, nothing changes. There's still delays, denials, high cost, insurance roadblocks. So when I find people doing things differently, I talk about it. All family pharmacy is not your typical big chain pharmacy. This is an independent family owned pharmacy that gives you access to over 400 medications delivered straight to your door. They've got ivermectin, antibiotics, antivirals, NAD+, even your daily maintenance medications and so much more. If you already have a prescription, your doctor can send it directly. If you don't, their doctor's handle it. As long as there is a medical necessity, they'll take care of you. And I'll tell you this, the feedback from people listening to this show and watching has been incredibly strong. People are using it, it's working for them and they're sticking with it. That's because it cuts out the delays, the middlemen and all the usual nonsense. This is about being ready before you need it. Go to allfamilyfarmacy.com, that's all one word, allfamilyfarmacy.com slash Bannon and use code BANNIN10 to save 10%. The healthcare system is broken. Your pharmacy doesn't have to be. War Room, here's your host, Stephen K. Bannon. War and the rumor of war. So we're gonna go from Iran and Islamabad, the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean to your Garcia and then talk about the Chinese Communist Party. As we tee up for this audience to keep you guys ahead of the curve, David Patrick Caracos joins us now. Special correspondent for the Daily Mail. David, thank you so much for joining us. You're one of the top, I would say, Iran experts in the world. The media's making a huge deal that since 1979, since the Shah of Iran got booted and with it the United States and they took over our embassy. This is the first time in 47 years there's ever been high level face to face between, and I think they've got a 12 or 14 man team with Vice President Vance and Jared and Steve Whitcoff. Just, we've been making the thesis here that one of the issues around this negotiation is forget what reality is. The reality that the regime believes is that not only are they winning this war, they think right now to date they've won it and they think they have the upper hand in these negotiations. Can you walk us through your understanding of the mindset of this regime and where we are right now as we kick off these negotiations in Islamabad, sir? Sure, look Steve, I think that is a very astute point that you've made. They think that they've won and that they're winning. I mean, I was looking at photos of those regime stooges walking in to the Islamabad negotiations. It's like a low grade reservoir dogs, all of them in their black suits strutting around. Look, what is happening right now is, Iran is the beneficiary of what I have come to term, what I call the despot dividend, right? What does this means? It means when democracies go to war with dictatorships, dictatorships always have a couple of advantages. One of them is informational, okay? Look, one thing we do know that the Americans and the Israelis have pounded Iran like it's never been seen before. And yet, because they're a dictatorship, they've cut all of the internet. There is an informational imbalance here, Steve, which is Iran is dark. On one side, all we hear are crowing, boasting Iranian leaders, those of them that are still alive. And on the other, the Iranians watch everybody in the West and the world hammering Donald Trump, hammering Benjamin Netanyahu, and it emboldens the Iranians. And that's the way it is, because obviously we don't wanna, you know, cut our meter off, do we? So what has happened is that every day the Iranians have survived, the discourse has moved towards them, and it has emboldened them. And this is where we are with the talks right now, but I would say one thing, and it's one thing I think you've said, Steve, one thing your viewers know, there is a long way to go here. Let's see how this plays out. Are the Iranians really in a position five, six, seven months from now to oppress their own people when half of their leadership is gone, when so much of their military infrastructure is wrong? I don't know, but let's see, this will take time, the effects of this war. And look, the Iranians may survive. I'm not saying that they've lost, what I'm saying is it's very early to say that they've won, especially you're dealing with the United States, and especially as you also say, Steve, the big relationship here is between the United States and China, and let's not forget that. Talk to us about, you know, one of the strategies of the regime, the military of the Revolutionary Guard is understanding that Israel in the United States, one day we're gonna come for them, and a decapitation was to disperse command and control, although it's been shattered to 31 military districts. The center of gravity of this battle shifted to the Persian Gulf and the Hormuz. There's a group in Islamabad right now, that they actually have, you think, operational control of that group that's down on Hormuz, it's a combination of Bedouins and Persians that are essentially pirates that run those islands and run those cliffs out on Hormuz. Do they actually have the ability to deliver a deal? That's a very good question. Look, Iran works upon a principle of mosaic defense, because they learn, the Iranians are smart, they learn. Think about the nuclear program. In 1981, the Israelis struck the Iraqi nuclear program, was a single above-ground reactor, the Iranians learn. Their nuclear program was disbursed underground across their country. They saw when the Americans came in with the Brits, but you guys, as soon as Saddam fell, the Iraqi regime crumbled. They learned from that. They built their regime on the ability on a mosaic structure. If you take out the leadership, cells work with semi-autonomous fashion. So yeah, what they have as well, this is a gangster regime. Don't forget, the lower down the food chain you get, the more they become like criminals, semi-organized criminals, gangsters, pirates. To answer your question, they have a loose exercise of control over them. This is not command and control like you get in the US military, but you guys in the end will come to heal for what the Iranians want. And don't forget, this is very low-tech, low-grade, disruptive processes. We're talking about guys in speedboats, possibly giving the order to go and kill themselves and drive themselves into an American vessel if need be. It's asymmetric, it's low-grade. In the short term, it can hold the world hostage. Let's see what happens as time passes. China needs that straight-up Hormuz flaying as well. Don't forget that. David, you had John Kerry, you had Hillary Clinton, you had Barack Obama, you had President Trump's negotiating team, you had the deal he cut. You've had then coming into President Trump's second term. The way the Persians negotiate, I think it's called market talk. It's basically kind of string you along because they've been doing this for thousands of years. These people are Persians. They fought Greece, they fought the Romans. They acquiesced to the British and now they're fighting the West as personified by the United States of America and Israel. But they got this concept, I think it's called market talk or market negotiations where it just, it takes forever, it's very bureaucratic. They negotiate on these small points to take forever. Is that what we're gonna see in Islamabad? I mean, what's the process that the Persians look at when they have to face the West in a negotiation? Again, another good question. My first book was on Iran's nuclear program. So I spent about 10 years, Steve, analyzing Iranian nuclear negotiations. And I used to go and see in Vienna, Steve, a man called Ali Ashgar Sultana. He was Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency. He was a lovely, charming man, would give me tea, would ask about my family and then proceed to lie to me for the entire hour of our interview. Very charming, never got a single word of truth now. It's the same principle. They'll be very charming. And another thing, every time you meet with Iranian diplomat, Steve, you have to spend half an hour, first 15 minutes of boasting, where they tell you how they're an ancient civilization and that they defeated the Persians and so on. Then there's another 15 minutes of them listing all their grievances against how the West has done this to them and that to them and how they've never started a war. In God knows how many hundreds of years. And you go on and on and on. And they will quibble and haggle over minutia. And let's not forget, this is all now being done under the auspices of the Pakistanis, which Steve, I personally think is like having an arsonist oversee a meeting of fire safety regulations. I find it absurd, but this is where we are. So be prepared, the Iranians will try to string this one out. You're absolutely right again. You're absolutely correct. You couldn't get a... And I realize President Trump's got a very strong relationship with the field marshal of the Pakistani army. That being said, if you had to pick in the world a worse group to be as mediators, it would be the Pakistanis. If nothing more than they're totally bought and paid for by the one belt, one road of the Chinese Communist Party. Give me your perspective of a China's influence in this. The specter of the Chinese Communist Party that hovers over this entire meeting in Islamabad, sir. Look, and that's one of the things I like about you and the war room, you don't forget China. China is a colossal actor that often stays in the background. Look, China needs Iranian oil, okay? I think it's 80 or 90% it buys. It is there in the background. It's in many ways keeping Iran afloat. Now in the short term, I think this benefits China. Right now, you know, energy prices, right now has that relationship with Iran. So if Iran's coming off the oil to other people, China will still keep flowing. Don't forget as well, it's seen a lot of Western military tech in action. It will be watching those American strikes, learning about American military capabilities. And now, you know, if it wasn't bad enough with the Pakistanis, we now have the Chinese looking statements like and talking about bringing peace. So they're going to be milking this for all it's worth. But again, over the medium to longer term, it starts to look worse for the Pakistanis. It's worse for them. You know, they need energy security. China imports so much of their stuff, they need the straits of Hormuz flowing. Okay, in the short term, it benefits them. But in the long term, if this continues, there's inflation, economic pressure. Don't forget how much China imports. So the Chinese have an interest in seeing this resolved. Again, it keeps coming back to, in the short term now, things might look very rosy for Iran because we can't hear the Iranian people. You think everyone's criticizing Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, imagine how the Iranian people feel about their regime. We know what they try to do in January. They try to rise up and they were slaughtered en masse. Let's see what happens as the weeks and months unfold. David, before I let you go, if you had a few in the room and having a cup of coffee with JD and Jared and Whitcoff before they go in and start this, what would be your guidance to the Americans about what to expect, what to anticipate and what to hopefully achieve in Islamabad? Look, you're dealing with, as we've discussed, a very sophisticated people used to negotiate and they don't negotiate in the Western way. With us, if I go into a meeting with you, Steve, you want me to get to the point? If I'm bloviating for 20 minutes, it's rude. The Iranians are gonna do it the other way and then they'll be all offended if they don't, if you don't acquiesce and we'll go on their timeline. I would say to JD Vance, don't forget who you are. You are America and Iran is Iran and the disequilibrium of power is colossal. I spoke to some people, security officials or sources, they estimate that the damage being brought on Iran is possibly $200 billion. This is huge. We can't see it right now and the Iranians aren't talking about it because they're all gagged. Don't forget that you have the upper hand here. Yes, you need to get those straights open. Don't forget who you are and don't forget who the Iranians are. Don't forget what they did to their people just in January. Reports of up to 30,000 being killed. You're the United States of America. Get the straights open. You're dealing with a rogue and criminal state and don't ever forget that. No matter how polite they are. David, where do people go to get your writings and special correspondent of the Daily Mail, your social media and your books? They're quite amazing. You're an expert in this field. Where do folks go? Daily Mail, the DailyMail.co.uk or DailyMail.com and my Twitter feed at D Patrick Haricost, Instagram the same and we're 140 characters, Nuclear Ron and I'm in the process of writing my third book, Steve and I shall give you a copy when it's out. Well, we look forward to having you on and promoting that book and have our audience read it. Thank you, David. Appreciate you and appreciate the Daily Mail. Take your phone out. Text BAN and B-A-N-N-O-N at 989898. Get the ultimate guide for investing in gold and precious metals from Birch Gold right now and get access to Phillip Patrick and the team. Nothing can be better for your financial. Do you owe back taxes or you haven't filed your taxes in years? Now is the time to resolve your tax matters. With the national conversation around abolishing the income tax, the IRS is fighting back improving it's here to stay by becoming more aggressive than ever before. They're sending out more collection notices, filing more tax liens and collecting billions more in recent years. If you owe the IRS can garnish your wages, levy your bank accounts, seize your retirement and even your home. If you owe or haven't filed, it's not a question of if the IRS will act. It's a question of when it will act. Right now, Tax Network USA is offering a completely free IRS research and discovery call to show you exactly where you stand and what they can stop before it's too late. Their powerful programs and strategies can save you thousands or even eliminate your debt entirely if you qualify. Don't make a costly mistake. Representing yourself or calling the IRS on your own waives your rights and cost you more money. They are not and let me repeat, the IRS is not on your side. Get protected the right way with Tax Network USA and start the process of settling your tax matters once and for all today. Call 1-800-958-1000. That's 1-800-958-1000 or visit tnusa.com slash bannon for your free discovery call with Tax Network USA. Let me repeat, 800-958-1000, tell them bannon sent you. Don't let the IRS be the first to act. Take advantage of first mover advantage, you move. War Room, here's your host, Stephen K. Bann. Okay, we're gonna go inside the wire into the United States of America, the great state of Texas here momentarily, but I got to get Cleo Pascal, who's one of our contributors. And just to, although maybe not tall in height, a giant among men of the effort you've done, correct me if I'm wrong, Cleo, because of you sounding the gong and allowing us to wake up certain people in the government and getting President Trump very focused as he has been over the last month or two, I believe that the situation of just essentially giving away Dagger Garcia, since it's such a major strategic, people realize how strategic it is, is off the table now, kind of semi-officially or close to officially, ma'am. Yeah, so this is a big win for the War Room and the Posse, and everybody who got involved in raising their voices and getting it through the wall and into the Oval Office, President Trump saying, no more, we are not going to let the UK give away this strategic, crucial base in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius, a country that's very close to China and that already was complaining about things like the US possibly basing nuclear weapons there and things like that. This became, the importance of Dagger Garcia became really clear in the lead up to the Iran War when the British wouldn't let the US use the base. And so not only did the importance of the base come to the fore, but the whole questioning of the relationship with the UK, because the UK also wouldn't let the US use bases in the UK itself. And when their base, the UK base in Cyprus was hit by Iranian drone, the UK didn't even have the capability to go and defend it. The French had to go send a ship to sort of stand guard offshore. So not only has the issue of Diego Garcia been sorted out for at least a short while now, but the whole question of looking at European allies and their possessions across the world and what their vacillation means not just in Europe, but for strategic positioning elsewhere. So for example, France in places like New Caledonia has come to the fore. So when we have a chance to take a pause and take a breath, the next job is gonna be first of all, a permanent solution to Diego Garcia. Yeah, yeah. But here's the key point. You were harping about Diego Garcia almost a year ago. It's the very beginning of the administration and people were very working on a number of different things, et cetera, et cetera. And there's some people in the administration, the permanent bureaucracy, we're gonna get to that. We're gonna have an author of a book in the second hour about the Russia hoax. It talks about the deep state. There were deep staters that were fine with this. And then we kept saying it. You came on here and argued that, hey, you can't depend on a bunch of people. The United States has to kind of be in control of this because our strategic plan with India and against the Chinese Communist Party, everything from the West Pacific, Diego Garcia is one of the linchpins in that. Now, President Trump became aware of that as he focused on it, said, what's going on here? You're giving us away. But what you did was actually foreshadow what's the issue in Hormuz. We just had Admiral Kirby on in the cold open. And Admiral Kirby said what I think is unfortunately, the reality given the size of our Navy and how we've let the Navy deteriorate over Biden and these Democrats, right? To be nowhere near what it was under President Reagan is that we don't have the convoy capacity. It's just not feasible. And you have these Europeans that are not prepared to step up right now for the straighter Hormuz, which is absolutely, and the Red Sea, which is absolutely essential. This is what you brought up in Diego Garcia. And we have to get our allies to do more, but there's certain situations you're gonna come down to where it's just gonna rest on the United States shoulders. And you have to plan for that and you have to prepare for that. And what you can't do is be asleep on the bridge. And just like these, if we had let Diego Garcia go, it would be such an incredible nightmare, legal nightmare, financial nightmare, strategic nightmare. And you, because you raised your voice and President Trump heard it, and President Trump as soon as he heard it, he says, we're not doing that. What are you doing? You're giving away these guys who are basically controlled by the Chinese Communist Party? It's not gonna happen. That should be a lesson that we should use that template and take it to the Western Pacific and take it to the three island chain and Hormuz because it's the reality. As long as we've got the backbone of US security, and you can see this in hemispheric defense, is based upon, you know, President Trump is a Mahanian, right? He believes in naval power. He believes in the importance of choke points. He believes this is his whole, he's not messing around in Greenland for his health. He understands Greenland's strategic necessity, the same in the Arctic, the same with the Panama Canal, the same with Venezuela and Guiana in the Caribbean, in the Gulf of America. And so this is what's so important. This victory is not a small victory. This is a massive victory because it speaks to larger issues, Cleo. Well, thank you. Yes, and if you thought I was annoying ranting on about Diego Garcia, wait until we get to the islands in the Pacific. He is, President Trump is not just a Mahanian. He knows McKinley. And McKinley was the president that after the Spanish-American war said, we're gonna need to keep Guam at least in the Philippines because otherwise we can't get across the Pacific. Our trade isn't safe and our Oregon and California coasts aren't safe. He specifically mentioned Oregon and California not being safe if the Spanish, which was the power then dominated the Western Pacific. So yes, we're back to an era of actually having to look at maps. And we had a really good run. I mean, talking about the West as exemplified by American power. From 1961 to 1981, every American president had served in the Navy and all of them, except Carter had served in the Pacific during World War II. So they knew what the Pacific was. And then that was followed by Bush Sr., who had of course also fought in the Pacific as vice president, then president. So they set up an architecture in the center of the Pacific, in the Western Pacific, including the Compact of Free Association with Palau, Federer States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, the Covenant with the Commonwealth of Northern Marianas, which allowed it to join the US, which created such a sense of security in the central Pacific that we've forgotten the geography. Their plan was so good and worked so well that it's just been left to drift. Now you have a situation where in US territory, Commonwealth of Northern Marianas, Chinese can arrive without a visa. They have, the Chinese have realized how important this area is to us, how important this geography is to the Western architecture that underpins the whole first island chain, second island chain, and keeping the new threat off of the Oregon and California and all the other coasts. And they have been systematically trying to undermine it. The McKinley in the 19th century, President Trump takes kind of guidance from McKinley on tariffs. We are a Pacific nation. The strategic heartland with McKinder, it was Central Asia and the control, this is what World War II was about. Could say what's World War I is about. Definitely World War II. The fight of the Germans and the Japanese to control the central heartland of the Eurasian landmass. One coming from Japan, coming East to India, or coming West to India. The other, the Germans striking through, wait for it. Ukraine and Belarus into Russia to control that. We won because we're a Pacific nation. The strategic heartland of the United States is that vast Pacific, which is larger than the Eurasian landmass. The giants of the late 19th century understood that. And President Trump understands that. You talk about America first and coming home. Go ahead, ma'am. Well, it's worth pointing out, McKinder was British. And the key point of the Eurasian heartland was India. So when you looked at, when they were talking about controlling the world and the Rimbland, he was talking about controlling as you're talking about, sort of from the Volga to the Yangtze, that's kind of their Eurasian landmass. But that was because they wanted to be in that position or have control in that position to be able to get down to there and secure their empire in India. So that's a whole different geography than America's geography. Where it was, you go west, you go to the coast, and then you put in place your trade lines out to Asia, which is fundamentally maritime, which is why Mahan was American. The whole framework of our geopolitical study has been colonialized by a British geography, which has been land-based, and based on colonies that they had, not on America developing as a completely different system and a completely different geography. That was like, for example, George Washington in the farewell address talking about the US being a detached and distant land. He wasn't talking about Eurasia. And then from there, it moved out west and then out through the Pacific. So it is a core part of America's, not only security, but mythology, and also obviously economy. Manifest destiny. Clearly we're gonna have you on a lot more to talk about this. Where do people go right now for this weekend? This is why I keep saying the Middle East, as far as the geostrategic necessity and importance of the United States, the Middle East is a sideshow, and Israel is a sideshow to a sideshow. The beating heartland of America first, and our vital national security rest in the entire Western Hemispheric Defense of President Trump coupled with the Central Pacific. We are a Pacific nation, manifest destiny, the great, the folks that followed on from the revolutionary generation and from the populist under Andrew Jackson and the folks that got us through the Civil War, they understood that. Secretary Hay, more than anybody with McKinley, Secretary Hay, who had been a 20 year old secretary was the basically quasi speechwriter and note taker for wait for it, Abraham Lincoln. Cleo, where do people get you, ma'am? I'm on X, just my name, Cleo Pascal, C-L-E-O-P-A-S-K-A-L, and I'm still lurking on Getter as real Cleo. You're amazing, Cleo. Small in stature, but big in heart, and you just had a big victory. So thank you very much for being at the forefront of this, thank you. Thank you, sir, and thank you to the Fosse. Cleo Pascal. So great. The people we have on here, their fighters are great. We got Brandon Hall now. Brandon, we got a couple of minutes here, I'm gonna hold you through the break. Get us an update on, because the Islamists are coming for your children, and they're coming through your, for your children through the education system. We have stopped them in Texas, is that correct, sir? Yeah, that's right, Steve. We normally went on the defense this week, we went on the offense, and we kept all of the Islamic indoctrination that they were attempting to put into our classrooms. Out, and we passed incredible social study standards with a Texas and America first emphasis. Brandon, how did you guys, give me a minute on this before we go to break, how did you guys do this? Our back was against the wall, just because people really didn't know about it. I mean, you had in November, I think, 91 people came and testified, 89 were Islamists, and I think two were Texans. How did this thing get turned around? I mean, this is a sweeping massive victory that's gonna resonate throughout this country and the world. How did it happen? Well, you and the Posse were certainly a big part of it, Steve, just bringing attention to this important issue, and nobody even knew that this fight was taking place at the State Board of Education, and of course, the media only reports one side of it, so just bringing attention to it. And when people found out that we had a designated foreign terrorist organization trying to influence the board and put their indoctrination to the social study standards, Texas Patriots rose up and roared like a lion, and we probably outnumbered them. Our Patriots who showed up at the board and testified, probably outnumbered the Islamists and the woke liberals who came and testified before the board. And I know certainly the amount of emails and phone calls that I've got telling me to vote for the right things to keep Islam out of our classrooms. Our Patriots definitely overwhelmed the other side, and I think this is a great model that we should use everywhere, which is we have to keep the people informed and let them know what's happening, and then we need our Patriots to put the right amount of pressure on politicians, because politicians respond to pressure. They're only getting it from the other side. They're gonna listen to the other side. Our people need to tell them to have that Texas and America first emphasis, and that's how we stop the rise of Islam, because of course they're coming for our classrooms, but not today in the state of Texas is the message that we sent them. Not today in the state of Texas, because Julie Pickering, yourself, Texans responded to the call. The Calvary arrived, folks, and guess what? You are the Calvary. This is a lesson that we have to embrace. Short break, Brandon Hall on the other side. The Calvacy Cp. Everyone's focused on how the conflict in the Middle East is raising oil prices, but there's another grim reality to this contention. Oil isn't the only resource being constrained. About one third of global fertilizer trade happens through this region. And with spring planning season on top of us, American farmers are sounding the alarm with some saying they can't afford to plant their fields. When one piece of the supply chain gets hit this hard, you know what comes next, higher fruit prices, reduced availability, maybe even panic buying. That's why having an emergency food supply at home makes so much sense. And that's where our friends at my Patreon supply come in. Right now at preparewithbanon.com. That is preparewithbanon.com. We've set up an entire just site for the war on posse. You go to preparewithbanon.com. That's all one word, preparewithbanon.com. You get a three month emergency food supply. They'll include a free mega protein upgrade, an incredible $200 bonus you don't wanna miss. It's a simple way to protect your family from whatever comes next. Go to preparewithbanon.com. That is preparewithbanon.com to get your emergency food supply today. That's preparewithbanon.com. Do it today, go check it out. War Room, here's your host, Stephen K. Bown. Branden Hall. Before you go today, and look, thank you, your ministry, your pastor, but you've stood up for the children of Texas. And every generation of Texan that's come before you, thanks you for that and Julie Pickering and all the other folks that stood in the breach in this Texas Education Board. These are fights that matter and they're fights that resonate. And I think that's what we're gonna do. We're gonna do that. We're gonna do that with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support and with all this support You have everybody squabbling, people yelling and screaming at each other and all the stuff's going on. It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. What matters is action. What matters is victory. Victory begets victory. We had lost this in Texas. You know, I'm not so sure how much the Proposition 10 of Banish-Rio Law would have mattered. Let's say this would have mattered a lot less. This is the personification or manifestation, maybe it was a better word, manifestation of populism. A lot of people can talk and a lot of people have got opinions, they're going to do this and they're going to do this and this is terrible. This person is saying this about me, this person is saying this about me. It doesn't matter. Why do you think I never talk about that kind of stuff on the show? It's a waste of time. What's important is action. And we have massive problems in this country. They're going to be solved by action. And you are the vanguard of a cadre of people that can get things done. And you see this in the Julie Pickrens and the Brandon Hall. I just want before you leave, the difference, because this is not a small thing, this is kind of everything, the difference between what you were advocating being in these textbooks to teach this generation and the next generation of young Texans versus what the Islamist wanted to put in these books, sir. Well the difference is Steve, we're going to teach the greatness of America. We're even going to teach manifest destiny. And the fact that manifest destiny was the motivating philosophy behind our great ancestor pioneers who took freedom, cultural advancement and prosperity from sea to signing sea. And we're actually going to teach that that was a positive thing in a good thing. We're no longer going to apologize for our greatness in the state of Texas and in America. And we're going to pass that great tradition and that great heritage down to our students. And it will have that Texas first focus instead of a global focus. And so our students will see themselves as Texans and Americans and part of that great story. And then we also teach factual history about the fact that it was the teachings of Jihad that motivated the conquest of Christian lands and motivated the killing of 3,000 Americans on 9-11. And so what we're finding out is that when you stand up to Islam, you stand up to the negative forces that are trying to come in and revise our history, that you can win. And we've reversed decades worth of historical revisionism that pain America as the bad guy. We're teaching that America is the good guy. We haven't always been perfect, but we have an incredible story here. And it's led to unparalleled levels of freedom and prosperity for America and also for the rest of the world. Where did they go, Brandon, to find out more about you, more about this Texas situation and Julie Pickering yourself, the members of the Education Board, people that brought this to everybody's attention. And then of course, the war on Posse and others that all joined in and had this massive turnout and let these politicians know and let these leaders of the education apprais in Texas know you're not backing down. We're not doing that. We're not teaching this globalism. We're not going to teach all this Islamist crap. We're going to teach the best values of Christendom in Western civilization as manifested in the state of Texas through manifest destiny. Where did they go, Brandon? Yeah, I want to thank you and the Posse and also my Republican colleagues for fighting this fight with me. We couldn't have won this victory without you. We have to come back in June and finally adopt this set of social studies standards. They can follow me at Brandon Hall TX on x.com and I'll keep everyone updated. Oh, yeah, don't think this fight's over. They're going to continue. They're going to come hard now. They understand people aren't going to back down and they're going to come hard. So this is all part of a fight. Brandon, thank you so much. Thank you for standing in the breach. Patriot and hero. Just amazing. Mike Lindell speaking of Patriots and heroes. How does this governor's deal going, sir? We need you. What's your first action you're going to take, Mike Lindell, after you take your hand off the Bible? Not the call. Right here on my notes today. I'm going to be an inaugurated governor. Amen, brother. Get my notes ready, you guys. I'm going in to speak here in southern Minnesota. Huge, huge event here with the governor debates. And then we go from here right to the heart of Minneapolis for another one. So I'm very excited. The Star and Tribune is here, the Minneapolis Star and Tribune. And you've got to realize the local media here, I just got done shooing them out. I said, you guys, you wouldn't even know I'm running for governor here in Minnesota because they don't want me, Steve, the Tribune and the local media. They know if they attack me, I get the word out. So you guys, you want to help out, it's MikeLindellgov.com. We're going to win this. I'm about to go in there and show them our pathway to beat Namie Klobuchar. And I got to play by play here of what we're going to do with rallies all across Minnesota. I'm building a team of just like I did with the Cosmomerica of Hundreds of Thousands Strong in every Senate district in Minnesota. I'm going to show them a campaign. Steve, it'll be the second biggest campaign in history. Which are great present. But I'll tell you, everybody, I couldn't be possible. It couldn't be possible if I was worried about my pillow. But because of you, I can sit here and be 100% all in for governor. As you all know, we moved our factory, all my employees, we moved into another factory, brand new factory. We've got now we're down to three semis of products we're closing out. These are earmarked for the war room policy. Once they're gone, we're not where they're gone for good. Look at that. One of them is our slippers. 80% off. The best slippers you will ever wear, $29.98 a pair. You guys get as many as you want. But once they're gone, that gets your sizes now. If you go to mypillow.com forward slash war room, there you're going to see the slippers. You see some of our flagship products, too. The Geese of Dream Sheets, the My Pillows we left on sale for the war room policy, $14.98. We have over, I think it's over 100 products on there, on those three semis that you guys can get up to 80% off. Don't forget the mattress toppers and the mattresses made in the USA free shipping right to your front door for those items. Use that promo code war room 800-873-1062. Say hello to one of my employees and use that promo code war room. Thank you, Mike Lindell. We'll see you tomorrow. If you're 65 or already on Medicare, listen up, folks, and grab a pen. Maybe even a number two pencil. Call 845 war room. That's 845 war room. Call it right now. I'm serious. Call it. Now, here's why. The insurance companies and their lackeys in the Washington swamp have built a Medicare system designed to confuse you and rip you off. Rising premiums, denied claims, fine print, nobody but a lobbyist understands. Millions of American seniors are paying too much and getting too little and worst of all, most don't even know it. Hey, that could be you. That's why if you're already on Medicare or will be soon, you need to talk to our friends at chapter. They have a team of advisors trained to serve American seniors, not the insurance companies. In under 20 minutes, they can find you the best plan for your needs at the lowest cost. Why? They're a data company. They have all the data on every plan. It's totally free. There's no pressure, no BS, just straightforward, honest help from fellow patriots. So don't wait. Call 845 war room right now. That's 845 war room. Tell them Bannon sent you. Now, listen, in the first couple of days of the launch of this company with the war in Posse, Posse members saved tens and up to hundreds of thousands collectively of dollars in these fees. Go check it out today. That's chapter. Call 845 war room. Do it today.