Episode 25 Show Notes- If You Think We Have Border Problems Now- Just Wait
Episode Description
The impeachment inquiry into the President has turned into a complete Schiff show. With no evidence or firsthand accounts, Congress is impeaching a President based on “I heard” not “I know” or “I witnessed.” As our failed news media is cheering on the impeachment, and the American public is distracted, there are troubling trends being ignored throughout Latin and South America. Are we witnessing a potential Arab Spring-like situation to the South? What does this mean for the United States and our border?
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Intro
Welcome everyone to another episode of The PAS Report Weekly Roundup Podcast. This is your host Nick Giordano.
After hearing the several witnesses and reading the released transcripts, I’ll provide a brief update on impeachment scam.
The major focus of this episode will be what is going on through Latin and South America. Unfortunately, our failed advocacy news media is ignoring the crisis, which has the potential to have severe ramifications throughout the United States. If you think our southern border is overwhelmed now, just wait as it can get much worse. I know that’s hard to imagine, but here at The PAS Report, we will cover real issues that have an impact and not just the gossip that the media wants to distract you with.
As always, if you want to see the show notes go to thepasreport.com.
Impeachment Update
So, to kick off the public impeachment hearings, last week we heard from diplomats Bill Taylor and George Kent, as well as former Ambassador Yovanovitch. So far this week, we heard from Lt. Col. Vindman, Jennifer Williams, Tim Morrison, and Ambassador Volker.
They were not impressive to say the least, and I used the words “we heard” on purpose because essentially “heard” was the main word used throughout the testimonies.
This is the scary part. None of the witnesses ever testified that “they saw,” “they discussed,” “they knew,” or “they witnessed.” Time and time again, these witnesses said they heard from other people, who in turn, heard from other people. All we heard was hearsay. In a normal court of law, hearsay is not allowed. I can imagine Judge Judy screaming at the television when watching the public testimonies.
While the impeachment inquiry is not an official court of law, impeachment in and of itself, is a legal proceeding, and similar standards should apply. But not according to those who are fervently pushing the impeachment narrative.
In fact, one moron who is an embarrassment to Congress, Congressman Mike Quigley, said hearsay is better than direct evidence and testimonies.
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How the hell do we elect these morons to Congress? He is directly lying by saying countless people have been convicted by hearsay. In fact, the Federal Rules of Evidence prohibit the introduction of hearsay and define hearsay in two parts. First, a person makes a statement. That statement is not made while testifying or filing an affidavit. Then another person takes that statement and offers it as evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted in the statement. (Federal Rules of Evidence- Cornell)
While there are exceptions to the hearsay rule, none would apply. Also, not one of these so-called witnesses could say that a crime was committed. In fact, these witnesses were asked point blank to name a crime committed, and they couldn’t provide an answer.
Remember what I said in last week’s episode. Adam Schiff and the Democrats went from quid-pro-quo to extortion to bribery. This whole impeachment measure is a failure and doing enormous damage to the country. As I have stated before, this investigation could have been done through the normal oversight process without invoking the nuclear option of impeachment.
Lt. Col. Vindman, arguably the strongest of Schiff’s witnesses, testified that since the President did not show any interest in Ukrainian corruption while on the phone with the Ukrainian President, and his logic is that the President never used the word corruption. He also said, the investigations President Trump wanted “have nothing to do with U.S. national security interests.”
Are these people friggin serious? For the last three years, I’ve had to listen to people tell me that election interference is the biggest threat to the Republic. I’ve had to listen to members of Congress tell me it is akin to an act of war and a 21st century version of Pearl Harbor. Now, this idiot is saying election interference has nothing to do with national security. This whole impeachment process is the dumbest thing in politics I’ve ever witnessed, and that’s saying a lot considering all the stupid stuff that goes on all the time.
Schiff has shown himself to be an incompetent moron who has no business in serving in the House of Representatives. Impeachment is about treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.
First, in order to get the American people on board, you need to start with your strongest witnesses, then you can put on the weaker witnesses and then wrap-up with strong witnesses to close it out. Obviously, they don’t have the strong witnesses otherwise they would have started with them. There is no there, there.
Impeachment is the most serious of processes, and those that try to weaponize the impeachment process, solely for political gain, should be held to account.
When debating impeachment, Benjamin Franklin stated that impeachment was a better process than assassination. With Franklin comparing impeachment to assassination, it shows the seriousness of the offenses that must be committed in order to impeach a President.
Bribery and treason are clearly defined, and neither can be used for today’s impeachment. Both clearly do not apply to this case for two reasons.
Treason is defined under Article 3, Section 3 of the Constitution.
“Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.” (U.S. Constitution)
Bribery is not defined, but if we examine English and American common law of the time, it is when one person offers another money and gifts in order to gain influence on the official’s behavior while in office. The current impeachment over Ukraine does not fit bribery. First, it wasn’t Ukraine directing policy over the U.S. In fact, it was the U.S. directing Ukraine policy. Second, if you look at page 3 of the transcript in the now-famous “do me a favor” paragraph. It’s clear the President was talking about the 2016 election and potential meddling on Ukraine’s behalf. The President can easily argue that investigating potential Ukrainian interference is in the interests of the U.S. He can actually use the Democrat’s own words that election interference is the biggest threat to the Republic and akin to a declaration of war.
Also investigating the Biden’s can be seen as the same. While it may hurt Joe Biden’s candidacy, and the President may have potential gain from that, so does every Democrat running against Joe Biden. If there is evidence of corruption between a former official, his family, and a foreign government, are we really supposed to say that shouldn’t be investigated? Isn’t it in the interest of the United States to make sure that public officials did not abuse power for financial or political gain? Isn’t that exactly what President trump is being accused of? So why should we investigate the President, but not the Biden’s?
So that leaves High Crimes and Misdemeanors. The founding fathers never specified what fails under a high crime or misdemeanor, and basically Congress has the ability to define it any way they want.
With that being said, here’s the problem with the current impeachment. In order to conduct an effective impeachment that doesn’t damage the system, it has to be bipartisan and you have to bring the American people on board. It is much easier to build support for impeachment when you can point to a criminal statute, name the title and code that has been violated, and explain what Article and Section of the Constitution a President may have violated. At the end of this, Americans will not support impeachment if Congress cannot clearly articulate exactly what crime was committed and they will do more damage to themselves.
I am concerned that the impeachment process has now been abused, and every future president is at risk of impeachment.
I am concerned that from the testimonies I have heard that many within the bureaucracy do not understand our Constitution and have failed to recognize that the President is the Chief Diplomat in the United States. The fact that these witnesses say that the President was going outside diplomatic channels is ridiculous. He can fire every diplomat in the State Department if he chooses. The President gets to determine the policy and how that policy is going to be carried out. It is not the State Department or any other department that makes policy. These ignorant, egotistical, narcissists believe that they get to make policy and have veto power over the President. Sorry, it does not work like that.
It is clear the first witnesses have a problem with the President’s management style. It sounds more like human resource grievance complaints. Not one witness has alleged any criminal wrongdoing. The President makes foreign policy and the President can recall any ambassador he wishes. This has been done under every administration.
You know prior to the public testimonies, I told the audience and my classes how the saga ends. I said that the President would be impeached and would not be removed from the Senate. I may have been wrong. After seeing the witnesses, I am not sure the house would actually vote to impeach the president based on what we saw. It was pathetic, and I certainly thought Schiff would have had more firepower. He has proven to be a fool.
Troubling Trends in Latin and South America
So, while we are all distracted with this impeachment nonsense, I hate to break it to our advocacy media, but there are actual important stories with far-reaching ramifications for the United States.
We have been witnessing a crisis on our Southern border that has the potential to get far worse. No one is paying attention to what is happening in Latin and South America, and my fear is that we may be witnessing the beginnings of an Arab-like Spring throughout the region. Instability has dramatically increased, and we are seeing civil unrest break out in multiple countries. The question is are these standalone incidents or is it a contagion where there is something bigger going on?
Let’s examine a brief overview country by country.
Chile
A few weeks ago, protests erupted in Chile. Tensions have been building for years as the elite ruling class continued to increase taxes and fees as wages remained stagnant. As the protests grew, the Chilean president, Sebastian Pinera, called a State of Emergency and deployed the Chilean military to the streets. Due to the government’s tone-deafness, we are seeing increasing calls for socialism type policies, if not for an outright socialist government taking over every sector of the economy in an attempt to redistribute wealth in the name of equity. The protests now include pensions, lack of education, and healthcare in addition to wealth inequality.
Here’s the danger, the Chilean protestors have received a major concession and that is to rewrite the constitution. More than 80% of Chileans want the Constitution to be rewritten and be a document that represents social peace. (NY Times) This is why the American Constitution is so important and we must reject anyone who claims the document needs to be rewritten. Most countries view their constitution as an amorphous document that can be restructured anytime. The problem is when you can easily rewrite a constitution and inject governing philosophies as opposed to describing the mechanics of government, it usually leads to the more authoritarian government in the name of social justice and equality.
Peru
Is another country facing civil unrest. In late September, the country’s president, Martin Vizcarra, dissolved the Peruvian Congress and assumed all powers as he called for new parliamentary elections. (CNN) Protestors came out supporting Vizcarra’s move as he claims to be fighting right-wing lawmakers obstructing his efforts. The military has also come out in support of Vizcarra. In the name of rooting out corruption, Vizcarro has taken a unilateral approach similar to how Hugo Chavez, and more like Nicolas Maduro, of Venezuela usurped power. This will remain a protracted political crisis that has the potential to end with an authoritarian government as President Vizcarro rides the wave of popular and military support.
Bolivia
Bolivian President Evo Morales fled the country and sought asylum in Mexico as he fears for his life. President Morales is a far-left quasi-socialist who has been in power for 14 years. Morales sought reelection for another term, and some argue that there were many irregularities and the election had been manipulated giving Morales another term.
Morales fled when the Bolivian armed forces turned against Morales and led to Morales fleeing the country. Upon Morales leaving the country, his supporters have taken to the streets and the protests have become violent. The head of the Bolivian Senate, Jeanine Anez, has offered to become interim president until a new election can be held, but the Bolivian military is now backing up police forces against the pro-Morales demonstrators. As the protests worsen, Bolivian will become an increasing source of instability within the region. (BBC) Food and fuel shortages have begun to plague Bolivia which will only deepen the crisis.
Ecuador
While Ecuador is being completely ignored, it is important to look at how civil unrest is rocking the country. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) imposed several requirements in order for Ecuador to receive a $4 billion loan due to Ecuador’s lack of liquidity. This has forced the country to implement major austerity measures including the rollback 40-year old fuel subsidies which President Moreno said was no longer affordable and necessary to ease Ecuador’s debt burden. In addition, Ecuador began making cuts to overall public spending impacting many public sector employees. (BBC)
The protests began with students and the transportation sector and quickly spread like wildfire throughout the country. The protests became violent, and several protestors were killed. This has caused the protests to become even more deadly.
The problems in Ecuador now go far beyond the fuel subsidy as President Moreno gave in to the protestor’s demand and reimplemented the subsidy. The indigenous peoples of Ecuador are now protesting government takeover of indigenous lands for development. Protestors are now demanding equality in wealth as they turn their ire on the countries wealthy. They believe they have been shut out of the economy. The Ecuadorian government is teetering on the brink as it has moved government headquarters out of the capital of Quito.
Brazil
Brazilian politics are always complicated and the situation seems to be getting worse. Brazil had rapid growth in the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s. In fact, many experts slated Brazil as a BRIC nation that had the potential to achieve superpower status in the 21st century. Those hopes have since been dashed as the Brazilian economy crashed.
Political violence has always been a part of life in Brazilian politics, but as poverty is increasing, the situation has grown tense. Former President Lula has been released form prison. He gathered supporters and is vowing to fight with the current President Bolsonaro. Lula is far-left and supports people like Maduro, Morales and the Castro regime. Lula will certainly take up the mantle of wealth inequality in an effort to unite Brazilians under leftists ideology.
Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador
If we examine Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador, the problems are different than those of previous countries, but also adds to the instability in the region.
El Salvador and Honduras rank in the top five homicide rates per capita in the world, and Guatemala ranks 16. Considered the Northern Triangle, these countries are plagued with violence and corruption. Many flee this region due to the homicides and lack of economic opportunity, and this region is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. According to the Center of Foreign relations, 60% of Hondurans and Guatemalans live below the poverty line. (CFR)
Mexico
Mexico has seen a surge in violence, and according to the Citizens’ Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice, 5 of the 6 most violent cities in the world are all in Mexico. (LA Times) In 2018, Mexico had over 33,000 homicides. To put the numbers in perspective, Syria, which is fighting a civil war, saw 20,000 deaths. Granted Mexico has a much larger population, considering Syria is at war, the numbers are staggering.
The Mexican cartels have gained enormous power over recent years, and Mexico has been plagued with corruption and violence for decades. In fact, corruption has reached the highest levels of government. During El Chapo’s trial, a witness stated that former President Pena Nito was paid a $100 million in bribes from the cartels. (NY Times) While I don’t know if that’s been fully verified, it would not be the least bit shocking.
The cartels have become so powerful that they control much of the Mexican territory. In fact, a Mexican investigative journal, Contralinea, posted a map given to President Obrador which shows that 57.5% of populated areas are controlled by the cartels, and 23.3% are seeing some level of cartel violence. Consider that the Taliban controls approximately 48% of land in Afghanistan. (NY Times)
Also, most heroin and fentanyl coming in to the United States is coming from Mexico. In fact, the number is 80% (Business Insider) While many believe China is the largest supplier of fentanyl, that’s no longer the case. These cartels make an enormous amount of money in the drug and the human trafficking trade. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), over 70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in the United States in 2017 alone. (CDC) Truly astonishing when you consider that we have been at war with al-Qaeda for the 9/11 attacks which killed 3,000 Americans.
Where is the outrage? Where is the response? It amazes me how this is going on directly to the South of the U.S. and not a peep from the politicians or the advocacy news media. Why Mexico won’t partner with the United States and use the Colombia model is beyond me. This violence is unsustainable, and we are now seeing the cartels attack and kill American citizens. A couple of weeks ago, 9 Americans were basically assassinated, and yet the media covered it for about 5 minutes.
Mexico should be one of the wealthiest countries in the world. They have vital natural resources. Great agricultural lands. Imagine what tourism could be if they were able to stop these powerful cartels? But because of the socialist policies of the Mexican government where many industries are nationalized, their economy remains weak and their leadership is virtually nonexistent.
If Mexico continues to collapse, what do you think is going to happen? Do you think it will benefit the United States?
Closing
I want to make it clear, this is a story the advocacy media should be focusing on, and it has massive implications for the United States if things keep spiraling out of control.
As civil unrest continues to unfold, the economies and productivity will certain drop. Through trade, the economic impact cannot be diminished.
Take Chile for instance. Chile is the 13 largest agricultural supplier to the U.S. We get a lot of produce, and if they are unable to maintain trade because of civil unrest, the price of produce will certainly increase. This has a dramatic impact here at home. Many families live paycheck to paycheck, and if they have to shell out an additional $30 a week because of the increase in price produce, that’s $120 a month that cannot be spent elsewhere.
Also, Chile is one of the few countries we actually have a trade surplus with. We import $11.4 billion in goods from Chile, and They import $15.3 billion of U.S. products giving us a surplus of $ billion. (U.S. Trade Representative) We have a $2.5 billion trade surplus with Peru. (U.S. Trade Representative) $30.6 billion trade surplus with Brazil. (U.S. Trade Representative) $3.4 billion surplus with Guatemala (U.S. Trade Representative)
Another issue will be the overwhelming of our Southern border. Our Southern border is already under immense pressure and about to collapse. For 2019, the U.S. had an average of 81,458 immigrant apprehensions and border crossings per month. This is almost double of 2018. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)
Imagine what would happen if there was a collapse in countries throughout Latin and South America. The numbers could easily double, and the United States doesn’t have the capacity or the capabilities to handle that. Our system is already at a breaking point.
Now picture what the situation will look like as some states are offering massive amounts of benefits to immigrants including health, education and welfare benefits. At the same time, you have all these Democrat candidates promising to give even more benefits, and it is a recipe for disaster.
It’s insanity that this story has not received more coverage. This situation can quickly spiral out of control, and while the causes of the civil unrest may be different in each country, thereby making it different than the Arab Spring, there is enough evidence that popular unrest is spreading rapidly. Also, this part of the world is not unfamiliar with dictatorships, communism, and instability.
The advocacy news media is failing us each and every day. They focus on gossip and have now devoted all their intention in helping the far-left impeach the President. While they focus all their energy on their hatred for President Trump, real world crises are happening with real world implications for the United States.
At The PAS Report, I will cover issues that matter. Issues that you may not be aware of but are important because of their potential to negatively affect our country, our communities, our lives, and our families. There are may good patriots that want truth and care about the direction of this country so share this episode with them.
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