Latest / The Ben Ferguson Podcast / Iran’s Leadership Crisis, who's Pulling the Strings plus Trump’s Midterm Warning Win or Watch It All Burn

Transcript

Iran’s Leadership Crisis, who's Pulling the Strings plus Trump’s Midterm Warning Win or Watch It All Burn · The Ben Ferguson Podcast

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Right now.
• 0:00
  Speaker 2: One of the biggest questions that I get asked on
• 0:03
  Speaker 2: a regular basis is who exactly is running Iran. The
• 0:09
  Speaker 2: truth is it is an incredibly complicated answer. For decades,
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: By the way, if you go back and look at history,
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: Iran had a very clear power structure. At the very
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: top was a supreme leader. Now, first it was the
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Iatola kohmaning after the nineteen seventy nine Islamic Revolution. I
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: mentioned this, by the way, on this show before, and
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: I'm going to say it again. If you've never watched
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: the movie Rgo, go watch it. True story of the
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: fall of the Shaw of Iran and then what happened
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: afterwards with the American hostage crisis.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: It's an incredible.
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: Movie and it just gives you a lot of perspective
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: on what's happening now and how we got to where
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: we are. So if you go back to seventy nine,
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: you understand the Islamic Revolution, and then for decades it
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: was the iotola, right who's in charge? The Supreme Leader
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: was ultimately the authority. That authority was even above the president,
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: it was above parliament, it was above the military. The
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: Iatola controlled the armed forces. That's how it gave him
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: the legitimacy to be able to do whatever you want
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: to do and to be crazy right. Intelligence services were
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: also under the Iola. State media was also under the Iatola.
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: Nuclear policy was also under the Iotola, and major foreign
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: policy decisions did not go to the President of Iran.
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: It went to the Ayatola.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: Now, after the Americans took out the leader the Iatola,
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: the chaos and fallout from the war with the US
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: and Israel, that is where RAN's leadership structure appears more
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: fractured and honestly more murky than any point in decades.
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: It's the reason why the president has also been well,
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: honestly so understanding in the negotiations and trying to keep
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: the ceasefire. You're really trying to figure out who actually
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: is in charge because after the reported death, chaos within
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: the ranks and the power struggle was real. Now, officially
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: the new supreme Leader is believed to be the son
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: of Ali Komani, but according to multiple reports, including Reuters
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: and other international analysts, there is another person that may actually.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: Be making the decisions instead.
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: Now many experts believe the real power is actually shifted
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard known as the RGC, and
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: that changes absolutely everything. Now you have to understand something.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: The IRGC is not just a military organization. They're more
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: than that. They're a terrorist organization. It is a political
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: empire with them as well. They control the intelligence operations
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: in Iran, They control the missile programs in Iran. They
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: also control and fund the proxy militious across the Middle East.
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: They also control and have massive business interests that fund them,
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: and much of Iran's internal security apparatus is run by
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: the IRGC. Now that means it has enormous influence inside
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: of the government. It's almost a government within the government.
• 3:23
  Speaker 2: But they have all the weaponry and the guns, the
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: power to blow things up. That's why many believe that
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: the IRGC is much more than a military organization. They're
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: running the show now.
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: For years.
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: To put in perspective, the Supreme Leader acted as the
• 3:39
  Speaker 2: referee between competing factions inside of the regime. Right, you
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: had the clerics, which were the religious radicals, the nuts.
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: You had the military, which was really a terrorist organization.
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: You then had the hardliners and the government as well.
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: You had the pragmatists that were trying to just say, hey,
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: can we calm down a little bit and live life
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: and enjoy it. We have a lot of resources. Then
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: you had Parliament and then you had the presidency. That
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: is a lot of people to deal with and a
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: lot of different perspectives that are all coming from radical ideology.
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: But now analysts.
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: Say the referee may be gone all together, which is
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: the most interesting point of all. Reuters for example, they
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: recently reported that Iran no longer has a quote single
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: undisputed clerical arbiter at the top of the system, and
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: that wartime power has consolidated around the IRGC commanders and
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: the Supreme National Security Council. In other words, what Reuters
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: is saying is, instead of one man calling the shots,
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: you may now have a committee style power structure that's
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: dominated by multiple generals and multiple security officials. Now that
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: is where the uncertainty becomes enormous. I want to take
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: a moment and ask you to help the people in Israel,
• 5:03
  Speaker 2: with my friends at the IFCJ working right now on
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: the ground for all those in need. When we talk
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: about Israel, we're not just talking about a place. We're
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: talking about a people connected to a promise, a promise
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: made by God. One he has never broken, and one
• 5:19
  Speaker 2: that continues even today. Because God's character doesn't change what
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: he begins, He sustains what he promises, he fulfills, and
• 5:29
  Speaker 2: that matters today. Right now in Israel, families run to
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: shelters as sirens sound. Now, this isn't just a crisis.
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: It's a call to respond for Christians. Caring for Jewish
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: people isn't rooted in politics. It's rooted in trust and
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: a God who keeps his word. So we don't stay distant.
• 5:49
  Speaker 2: We step in with prayer and practical help. The International
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: Fellowship of Christians and Jews is on the ground, bringing food,
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: caring for the vulnerable, and reminding people they're not alone.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: This is what it looks like to ligne your heart
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: with Gods, to pray, to show up, and to care.
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: So join us and praying for peace of Jerusalem and
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: for the people who need it right now. Visit pray
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: IFCJ dot org. That's pray IFCJ dot org. When countries
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: have unclear chain of commands, you've got a problem with
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: decision making and slowdowns. You have confusion over what decision
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: may have even been made, and then you have miscalculations
• 6:34
  Speaker 2: that become more likely within the government, especially than when
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: it's dealing with a foreign power like the United States
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: of America or Israel. And we're already seeing major signs
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: of that, especially over the last week. One report quote
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: officials saying that negotiations with.
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: Iran now take days longer.
• 6:53
  Speaker 2: Because there doesn't appear to be one single authority that
• 6:56
  Speaker 2: is capable of giving any answers me mediately. That's impossible.
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: So that's where the danger comes in. And this is
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: why you may be asking yourself the question why is
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: President Trump seeming so calm when dealing with the Iranians.
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: Well, look at the other side of this.
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: We're talking about nuclear negotiations, We're talking about negotiations on
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: the strain of war moves as is there's also a
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: tax happening on ships in the Strait. You're talking about
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: dealing with military and militia proxies. You're talking about missile
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: strikes and potential military escalation with the United States of
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: America or Israel. So that also becomes another question. Who
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: in Iran is giving the final order? Is it the
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: IRGC commander is the Supreme National Security Council is a
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: coalition of hardline generals, and the answer appears to be
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: this all of the above, and that's why intelligence agencies
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: around the world right now are not only watching around closely,
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: but they're all also trying to figure out who's really
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: calling the shots, because historically, authoritarian systems often become unstable,
• 8:08
  Speaker 2: especially during leadership transitions. You've got the power struggles happening
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: behind closed doors. You then have very different factions competing
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: for influence. You have military leaders that begin assessing and
• 8:22
  Speaker 2: asserting themselves into places where they normally wouldn't do so,
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: trying to gain power. And in Iran's case, you also
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: have ideology, and then you've got religion and military power,
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: all of them colliding exactly at the same time. That
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: is abnormal for Iran. Some analysts now say Iran has
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: shifted from a clerical dictatorship to what amounts to a
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: military security state. One expert described it this way, saying, quote,
• 8:51
  Speaker 2: we've gone from divine power to hard power, and that's
• 8:56
  Speaker 2: a massive transformation for any country, especially Iran, because for decades,
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: Iran's legitimacy came from religious authority, the iatolis. But now,
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: according to reports, the generals may be running the show
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: while the clerics provide symbolic legitimacy at best, and that
• 9:18
  Speaker 2: matters because military regimes often behave very differently than religious ones.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: Military leaders tend to prioritize survival and then deterrence and
• 9:29
  Speaker 2: then power projection, and they can also be more aggressive
• 9:33
  Speaker 2: because compromise may be viewed also as weakness if you're
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: wearing a uniform. And that's why some experts believe now
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: that Iran can become even more confrontational in the months
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: or weeks or days ahead, especially on nuclear issues and
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: regional military operations that can include attacks on their neighbors,
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: including Israel. Now, at the same time, Iran still is
• 9:58
  Speaker 2: maintaining the appearance of a civilian government. Technically, there is
• 10:03
  Speaker 2: still a president right now. Technically there's still a parliament
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: right now, there are still ministers, and there's still diplomats.
• 10:11
  Speaker 2: But most analysts agree these institutions only operate within limits
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: set by the security that's been established by the Supreme
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: Leader's office. So when Americans hear statements from Iran's president
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: or foreign minister, just remember it's important to understand that
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: you may not actually be listening to the ultimate decision
• 10:34
  Speaker 2: maker at all.
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: The real authority is.
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: Probably sitting inside of a military bunker somewhere where the
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: IRGC commanders can basically dictate because they have the true
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: power to do, in essence, whatever the hell they want
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: in Iran. Right now, President Donald Trump he is very
• 10:53
  Speaker 2: concerned about the midterm elections, and it's clear that he's
• 10:58
  Speaker 2: trying to be president of the United States America. But
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: he also understands that if he doesn't turn into Donald
• 11:04
  Speaker 2: Trump the campaigner right now, that we could have major
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: problems come November. Now, President Trump is making it very
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: clear that the Republicans better get their act together, saying
• 11:16
  Speaker 2: that the midterm elections are not just another political fight,
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: but in his words, they are make or break for
• 11:23
  Speaker 2: his presidency, his agenda in the future direction of the country.
• 11:28
  Speaker 2: We also are learning now that behind closed doors, it's
• 11:31
  Speaker 2: also getting really intense. Trump has been warning Republicans that
• 11:36
  Speaker 2: if they lose control of Congress, Democrats will immediately move
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: to cripple's second term with investigation, subpoenas, and potentially even
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: another impeachment effort. Democrats have said they're actually willing to
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: go further than Donald Trump and impede the Vice President j.
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: D Vance and also go after and try to impeach
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: cabinet members as well. There was a House Republican retreat
• 12:00
  Speaker 2: that happened earlier this year. Trump bluntly told the lawmakers,
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: you gotta win the midterms, and he warned that if
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: Republicans lose, they'll find a reason to impeach me. Now,
• 12:13
  Speaker 2: whether you love President Trump or hate him, there's no
• 12:15
  Speaker 2: denying the political reality behind what he's saying. This is
• 12:19
  Speaker 2: a party, and I'm talking about the Democratic Party that's
• 12:22
  Speaker 2: made it clear they are going to weaponize government to
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: subpoena and to destroy anyone that is around Donald Trump.
• 12:31
  Speaker 2: Why because that's all they have to run on. They
• 12:33
  Speaker 2: hate Donald Trump and it seems to make their base
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: want to show up to vote. The White House knows
• 12:40
  Speaker 2: that if Democrats retake the House, the next two years
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: will turn into non stop political warfare. And it's exactly
• 12:47
  Speaker 2: what they did back in twenty sixteen, twenty eighteen, and
• 12:51
  Speaker 2: really every year even when Joe Biden was in office.
• 12:54
  Speaker 2: There will be committee investigations. They will explode overnight. I'm
• 12:58
  Speaker 2: quoting Democrats. We've already said that hearings will dominate cable news.
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: It's not a legitimate agenda for America. It's a legitimate
• 13:08
  Speaker 2: agenda destroy the presidency of the United States of America.
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: And that's why Donald Trump has been aggressively pressuring Republicans
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: to unify around a simple message. We secure the border,
• 13:20
  Speaker 2: we strengthen the economy, we lower prices, we restore law
• 13:25
  Speaker 2: and order. And you compare that to the radical Democrat chaos.
• 13:30
  Speaker 3: Now.
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: The President also saying this about the midterms at the
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: White House earlier.
• 13:35
  Speaker 3: Okay, then I said, yeah, he's a dumb guy, and
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: then I said he's a Democrat. And I don't know
• 13:39
  Speaker 3: if people are gonna like that term or not. It
• 13:42
  Speaker 3: maybe catches on and maybe it doesn't. But it's true
• 13:44
  Speaker 3: that policies are insane and they would drive our country
• 13:48
  Speaker 3: into ruin. And we've got to do great in the midterms,
• 13:51
  Speaker 3: and if we don't, they will do everything they can
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: to destroy our country. There's something wrong with them. The
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: flow of deadly fenonel across our border is down, by
• 14:00
  Speaker 3: the way by over sixty percent, which is a record
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: nobody ever thought it was even possible. And coming in
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: by sea, it's down by ninety seven percent. And again
• 14:10
  Speaker 3: we're trying to find the three percent because we consider
• 14:13
  Speaker 3: them to be.
• 14:13
  Speaker 1: Among the bravest people anywhere in the world.
• 14:16
  Speaker 3: Anybody willing to get into one of those votes after
• 14:18
  Speaker 3: what they've witnessed, we would consider them to be among
• 14:21
  Speaker 3: the bravest in the world. These gains have been the result.
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: And what a job our military and others are doing.
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: With respect is.
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: That right, Paul, With respect to drugs coming in by sea,
• 14:33
  Speaker 3: meaning drugs coming in by water, by the ocean, by
• 14:36
  Speaker 3: the say, a lot of people don't know what I
• 14:37
  Speaker 3: mean by sea.
• 14:39
  Speaker 2: President Trump talking at the White House and again making
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: it clear the control of the House is literally going
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: to come down to just a handful of districts in
• 14:48
  Speaker 2: states like Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin, the swing states.
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: In many of those races, President Warrens will be decided
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: by suburban swing voters who have bounced back and forth
• 15:03
  Speaker 2: between Republican candidates and Democratic candates over the last several
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: election cycles. Trump is also facing another challenge presidents always
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: encounter in the midterms. There is a voter complacency. The
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: team that's in charge usually they stay home because they
• 15:20
  Speaker 2: feel like everything's fine, and the team that hates the
• 15:24
  Speaker 2: leadership in Washington. They show up, they're focused, they're angry,
• 15:28
  Speaker 2: and they want to get rid of conservatives. When your
• 15:31
  Speaker 2: side wins the White House, some supporters actually, well, they relax, right.
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: The opposition is energized, and as we know from the
• 15:39
  Speaker 2: Democratic leaders, they're angry.
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: Now. Democrats are already organizing around.
• 15:44
  Speaker 2: Abortion rights, healthcare costs, and accusations of course, that Trump
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: is abusing his executive power. Republicans now fear that there's
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: a real enthusiasm gap. I'm one of those, and that's
• 15:59
  Speaker 2: why Donald Trump is making it very clear he may
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: not be on the ballot come November, but his agenda
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: certainly is. He's essentially telling Republicans, if you want this
• 16:11
  Speaker 2: presidency to succeed, you have to treat the mid terms
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: like a presidential election. And behind the scenes, the stakes
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: are enormous. Trump's entire legislative agenda depends on Congress. We're
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: talking about things that matter to everyday Americans. The most
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: incredible tax cuts of our lifetime, energy independence and expansion
• 16:34
  Speaker 2: in the US, immigration reform, judicial appointments, which have been
• 16:39
  Speaker 2: phenomenal for President Trump. Budget fights, Yes, the President saying
• 16:44
  Speaker 2: we're spending too much money, getting rid of waste fraud,
• 16:47
  Speaker 2: and of use and military spending, which Democrats always hate.
• 16:51
  Speaker 2: You even have the fight over the Save Act electional
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: law changes, all of it becomes dramatically harder if Democrats
• 17:00
  Speaker 2: regain power. In many ways, Donald Trump is now saying
• 17:04
  Speaker 2: the twenty twenty six is literally the firewall protecting the
• 17:09
  Speaker 2: rest of his presidency. And there's another major factor here
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: as well. Republicans like to stay home when they're in
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: power historically, and what the President is saying is the
• 17:20
  Speaker 2: Democrats aren't going to stay home, so you shouldn't either.
• 17:25
  Speaker 2: We have two very interesting stories that we're going to
• 17:28
  Speaker 2: start off with today, and a lot of it deals
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: with China and just how much they're trying to infiltrate
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: and being successful at it in this country, possibly stealing
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: major national security secrets and government information, as well as
• 17:42
  Speaker 2: influencing the towns that many of you are living in.
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: Perfect example of this is what we've just learned about
• 17:49
  Speaker 2: a celebrated Democrat, a female California mayor, is now admitted
• 17:55
  Speaker 2: to being a secret spy for China, and she looks
• 17:59
  Speaker 2: very different to her photoshopped original images, which is part
• 18:03
  Speaker 2: of the story. Now, the mayor of the wealthy southern
• 18:06
  Speaker 2: California city has since resigned after admitting she secretly acted
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: as an agent for the Chinese government. According to the
• 18:14
  Speaker 2: federal plea agreement that was unsealed on Monday, the former
• 18:19
  Speaker 2: Arcadia mayor, just outside of La her name was Wang,
• 18:23
  Speaker 2: She's fifty eight, and she agreed to plead guilty to
• 18:26
  Speaker 2: felony charge of acting as an illegal foreign agent for
• 18:31
  Speaker 2: the People's Republic of China and helping push pro Beijing
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: propaganda inside the US. Now, you may ask yourself, why
• 18:41
  Speaker 2: would they want a random mayor. Well, let's be clear,
• 18:44
  Speaker 2: China wasn't getting a random mayor. They were getting a
• 18:46
  Speaker 2: mayor of a very wealthy suburb of LA and that
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: is exactly how she could help push pro Beijing propaganda
• 18:54
  Speaker 2: not only inside the US, but also with those that
• 18:57
  Speaker 2: have so much influence over our culture in law Los Angeles. Now,
• 19:01
  Speaker 2: the interesting part about the crime that she's been charged
• 19:04
  Speaker 2: with is it carries a sentence of up to ten
• 19:07
  Speaker 2: years in federal prison. The stunning case prompted immediate fallout
• 19:12
  Speaker 2: in Arcadia, where city officials confirm Wang stepped down from
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: both the city council and the Mayor's office on Monday.
• 19:19
  Speaker 2: Federal prosecutors alleged Wang spent years, let me say it again,
• 19:23
  Speaker 2: years working under the direction of Chinese government officials before
• 19:28
  Speaker 2: rising into elected office in Los Angeles County. They also
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: claim she used a Chinese language news website to distribute
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: propaganda favorable to Beijing while secretly coordinating with officials tied
• 19:43
  Speaker 2: to the Chinese Communist Party.
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: This wasn't a low level operation.
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: This was full influence on the Communist Party in China.
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: Authorities described the website as a fake news platform specifically
• 19:56
  Speaker 2: targeting Chinese Americans and that's where they find many of
• 20:00
  Speaker 2: their spies. Now the case is also triggered intense scrutiny
• 20:04
  Speaker 2: of Wang's carefully crafted public image. Again, China plays at
• 20:09
  Speaker 2: a different level. They've gone pro is the best way
• 20:12
  Speaker 2: I can describe it. Campaign photos and promotional images used
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: during her political rise depicted Wang and heavily polished and
• 20:20
  Speaker 2: retouched portraits that projected a glamorous and approachable persona to
• 20:25
  Speaker 2: the voters. I'll go back to the core point here.
• 20:29
  Speaker 2: China has gone pro in influencing America.
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: Now, the unedited.
• 20:35
  Speaker 2: Public images reveal a stark contrast to the stylized campaign
• 20:40
  Speaker 2: photographs that once appeared across city political materials and social media.
• 20:46
  Speaker 2: Her dramatic downfall came just hours after the City of
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: Arcadia announced Wang's resignation from the City Council and her
• 20:53
  Speaker 2: departure as the mayor. As a May eleventh, twenty sixteen,
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: Wang resigned from the Arcadia City Council, vacant her position
• 21:00
  Speaker 2: as mayor, the city said in a simple statement posted
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: online now. In its next meeting, the city Council says
• 21:07
  Speaker 2: they will select a new mayor and a Mayor pro
• 21:10
  Speaker 2: tem from among the remaining council members and will begin
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: discussing how Arcadia is District III will be represented until
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: next year's election cycle in November. Wang was elected to
• 21:21
  Speaker 2: the Arcadia City Council in twenty twenty two, and later
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: elevated to mayor through the city's rotating leadership system. According
• 21:29
  Speaker 2: to the Department of Justice, however, Wang's ties to Chinese
• 21:33
  Speaker 2: officials stretched back well before she ever took office, which
• 21:38
  Speaker 2: is exactly how they have so much influence in America
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: right now. Federal authorities say that from late twenty twenty
• 21:45
  Speaker 2: through twenty twenty two, Wang worked alongside her then fiance
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: under the direction and control of officials tied to the
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: Chinese government. Together, prosecutors say they operated the website called
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: us This News Center, which presented itself as a legitimate
• 22:03
  Speaker 2: Chinese American news outlet, while allegedly serving as nothing more
• 22:07
  Speaker 2: than a propaganda vehicle for Beijing, specifically to have major
• 22:11
  Speaker 2: influence in the US. According to the court filings, Chinese
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: officials sent Wang's articles and directives through the encrypted messaging
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: app we Chat, instructing her and others to publish content
• 22:24
  Speaker 2: that would be favorable to the Chinese Communist Party. One
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: of the most explosive examples outlined in the plea agreement
• 22:31
  Speaker 2: involved propaganda denying allegations of genocide and forced labor in China.
• 22:38
  Speaker 2: On June tenth, twenty twenty one, at Chinese government official
• 22:41
  Speaker 2: also allegedly sent Wang a pre written article. It was
• 22:44
  Speaker 2: titled China's stance on the of course forced labor issue.
• 22:50
  Speaker 2: Now there is no genocide. It started with there is
• 22:53
  Speaker 2: no such thing as forced labor in any production activity,
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: including cotton production, spreading such rumor as to defame China
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: and destroy the safety instability the message rate. According to prosecutors,
• 23:06
  Speaker 2: now we all know that there are many people that
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: are actually yes slaves and slave labor in China, like
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: the Wigers, which is a huge problem for China because
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: the world knows that many of them are enslaved against
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: their will and are being abused as.
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: We speak now.
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: The court document also says that Wang immediately reposted the
• 23:27
  Speaker 2: Chinese Communist Party propaganda to her website literally within minutes,
• 23:31
  Speaker 2: and then immediately sent the official link proving that it
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: had been published in America.
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: So fast.
• 23:37
  Speaker 2: Thank you everyone, the official responded. Authorities say Wang repeatedly
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: reported analytics and audience engagement data back to Chinese officials
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: after publishing the propaganda articles for years in the US,
• 23:51
  Speaker 2: and one August twenty twenty one exchange side in the
• 23:54
  Speaker 2: plea agreement, Wang sent screenshots showing an article had to
• 23:57
  Speaker 2: receive more than fifteen thousand views after officials requested edits
• 24:01
  Speaker 2: to the story, saying great, the official responded, According to
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: the prosecutors, thank you, leader, Wang replied now. Federal prosecutors
• 24:10
  Speaker 2: say Wang never disclosed that the Chinese government was directing
• 24:13
  Speaker 2: the content appearing on her website. The case became even
• 24:18
  Speaker 2: more alarming to investigators because Wang ultimately assented into public office.
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: Now this isn't the only story that should be shocking
• 24:26
  Speaker 2: you right now, which brings me to part two of
• 24:29
  Speaker 2: what I was saying about just how concern you should
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: be about what's happening with China. We now know from
• 24:35
  Speaker 2: a New York Times report that their headline pretty much
• 24:39
  Speaker 2: says it all.
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: Quote.
• 24:41
  Speaker 2: He offered a lawmaker's aid quick cash. Was he spying
• 24:46
  Speaker 2: for China? A staff member on the House China Committee
• 24:50
  Speaker 2: was promised ten thousand dollars for US policy insights on
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: issues like Venezuela and rare earth minerals. Identifying himself as
• 25:01
  Speaker 2: Chris Chen, reached out this winter to an aid on
• 25:05
  Speaker 2: the House committee focus on threats from China. He came
• 25:08
  Speaker 2: armed with a lucrative offer. The staff member, mister Chen
• 25:12
  Speaker 2: proposed could earn ten thousand or more by barely lifting
• 25:16
  Speaker 2: a finger. All he would need to do is agreed
• 25:19
  Speaker 2: to phone calls every other week to share information about
• 25:23
  Speaker 2: the committee's work and US foreign policy about China. Insights
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: into US trade or national security issues, including the Trump
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: administration's planned for Venezuela and the aftermath of the January
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: military operation there would be especially valuable mister Chen said.
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: To sweeten the pot, mister Chen reportedly promised to send
• 25:44
  Speaker 2: the aid two thousand dollars up front. The offer seemed
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: too good to be true. Instead of quietly accepting the deal,
• 25:51
  Speaker 2: the aid, whose identity The New York Times, agreed to
• 25:55
  Speaker 2: withhold because he works on sense of policy issues related
• 25:59
  Speaker 2: to China, he reported to his bosses on the House
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. The panel quickly
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: concluded mister Chin was not the Singapore based business consultant
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: he claimed to be, but instead likely a Chinese intelligence
• 26:13
  Speaker 2: officer or contractor seeking a new recruit. By framing the
• 26:18
  Speaker 2: initial offers a quote trial period, we learned mister Chang
• 26:23
  Speaker 2: dangled the expectation of a longer relationship, obviously with more
• 26:27
  Speaker 2: payments to come. It's a common recruitment offer to hook
• 26:31
  Speaker 2: up spies with real cash for those that are willing
• 26:34
  Speaker 2: to just drop a little information now. Rather than cut
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: off contact, the committee's Republican majority staff agreed to keep
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: talking to mister Chen. They record a series of calls
• 26:45
  Speaker 2: this winter to learn more about mister Chin's tactics as
• 26:49
  Speaker 2: well as his interests. Transcripts to those calls, which the
• 26:52
  Speaker 2: committee shared with The Times, alongside some of the recorded audio,
• 26:57
  Speaker 2: depict a determined and at times impatient individual eager to
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: earn the trust of his mark and get down to business,
• 27:08
  Speaker 2: meaning having results for the Chinese Communist Party. Mister Chin
• 27:13
  Speaker 2: mixed holiday greetings with elaborate questions about manufacturing, for example,
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: in Vietnam and Mexico, as well as the future of
• 27:21
  Speaker 2: Venezuela's oil industry. Now, what's truly incredible about this story
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: is the fact that the outreach by mister Chin to
• 27:29
  Speaker 2: an aid on the very committee that's responsible for investigating
• 27:34
  Speaker 2: Chinese national security threats appears to provide an unusually vivid
• 27:39
  Speaker 2: portrait of how Beijing spy services seeks to gain access
• 27:44
  Speaker 2: to sense of information from within the corridors of the
• 27:48
  Speaker 2: power in Washington. We also know about Chinese spies that
• 27:52
  Speaker 2: are sleeping with well former members of Congress while they
• 27:55
  Speaker 2: were in Congress. You may remember the guy from California
• 27:59
  Speaker 2: that was well sleeping with Fang Fang, the Chinese spy.
• 28:04
  Speaker 2: We also found out there was another Chinese spy that
• 28:06
  Speaker 2: for years, actually decades, was driving around a top Democratic senator.
• 28:11
  Speaker 2: So if you think this is a one off, it's not.
• 28:14
  Speaker 2: The scary part is right now there's hotelling how many
• 28:17
  Speaker 2: people are willing to take money from China to sell
• 28:20
  Speaker 2: out the United States of America, within our government, all
• 28:24
  Speaker 2: over the country.
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: We'll keep following this story.
• 28:27
  Speaker 2: I can promise you that we've got a lot more
• 28:29
  Speaker 2: that's going to happen the days ahead, So make sure
• 28:31
  Speaker 2: you don't forget. Grab our podcast, The Ben Ferguson Podcasts
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: wherever you get your podcasts as well, hit that subscriber
• 28:39
  Speaker 2: aught or download button so you don't miss any of
• 28:41
  Speaker 2: the breaking news.