The John Batchelor Show

Monday 7 October 2019

Air Date: 
October 07, 2019

JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
Co-host: Thaddeus McCotter, WJR, the Great Voice of the Great Lakes
 
Hour One
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 1, Block A: Tom Joscelyn, Senior Fellow, Foundation for Defense of Democracies; & Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal; and Bill Roggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re: Taliban’s eighteenth birthday. Mullah Omar, who after 9/11 refused to turn over al Qaeda or Osama bin Laden. “I consider the choice between a promise from God and a promise from President Bush.  . . . I pick the promise from God.”  In worldly affairs, America is very strong; we’re confident no one can harm us if God is with us.”
      Abdul Rashid Baluch*.  Opium and the poppy trade.  In 2017, Pres Trump loosened the rules of engagement in order to stem the poppy trade.  Khalilzad: desperately trying to restart the Taliban  talks (which closed down in Doha).   They got the Bo Bergdahl trade, and five guys from G’mo; even gong back to 1999, when a hijacked airliner was allowed to land inside Taliban territory.  Are we leaving behind drug lords who routinely murder locals, Americans, and anyone they feel like?
                 *Eleven Taliban leaders have reportedly been exchanged for three kidnapped Indian engineers. One of the newly-freed Taliban commanders is Abdul Rashid Baluch. The US designated Baluch as a terrorist in 2015, reporting that he "served as a Taliban liaison officer to al Qaeda (AQ) and was responsible for planning meetings between Taliban senior leadership" and al Qaeda "members in Karachi, Pakistan."
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 1, Block B: Tom Joscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re:  Northern Afghan province next to Kunduz, Taliban began an attack a week ago, which the Kabul govt initially denied. “The Taliban [have] launched an attack on Taluqan, the provincial capital of Takhar, and has been battling Afghan forces there and in several outlying districts over the past several days.  This is yet another example of the Taliban leveraging rural areas that it controls – areas that the US and coalition forces say do not matter – to threaten major population centers, including provincial capitals.”  Tom recently testified extensively at the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. Both parties were justifiably sceptical of Taliban promises; but Secy Pompeo has fully endorsed Khalilzad’s negotiations — foolish, and no one should believe that.
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 1, Block C: Michael Yon, Hong Kong reporter, & michaelyon on Facebook; and Gordon Chang, Daily Beast, in re: China 1, NBA 0.  Houston Rockets tweet: “Fight for freedom. Stand up for Hong Kong.” Beijing came down like a sledgehammer:  NBA in fear will fire the tweeter (the manager), and what we’re seeing is that China will use economic leverage  to weaponize basketball and force Americans to undermine each other.
      Carrie Lam forbad masks on the street – which was countered by talk of an ebola outbreak – and her edict has been ignored by Hong Kong protestors. All the ban did was anger people. Ordinary HK residents started wearing masks to say to their government, “We just won't listen to you.” Elderly people wearing masks. “The GIA – grandmothers intelligence agency, because the old ladies know everything.”   What’ll Carrie Lam ban next—sneakers?  Martial law is in effect: stopping buses, hauling everyone off to check their IDs.   HK is outside the Great Chinese Firewall. 
       PLA in Kowloon raised a yellow flag, as the  do just before firing off gas.  The GIA is very angry.  The thought is that at some point the PA will attack. A lot of people are saying they’ll fight and die – “Give me liberty or give me death” is inscribed all over.  A 14-year-old was shot last week; three killed in the Prince Edward Station.   MichaelYon on Facebook
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 1, Block D:  Claudia Rosett, Independent Women’s Forum, in re: Middle class is uncertain of the future. How are Hong Kong traders and bankers seeing events?  Extremely worried, esp since Carrie Lam refuses to do anything to accommodate the population.  A great city thrown into chaos by Communist China, with an idiot in charge and riot police going wherever they want.  Expect Internet shutdown.  If any leader emerges, China imprisons him. What do the people think the city will be like in three months? “We don’t know.”  Subway stations open and close; stores open irregularly.  A couple with a young daughter want to stay, are afraid they have to leave for her safety.   “Please have Congress pass the Hong Kong Freedom and Democracy Act.” 
 
Hour Two
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 2, Block A:  David M Drucker, Washington Examiner, & John Fund, NRO, in re: GOP and Democrats.  Impeachment.  President is said to be acting erratically, more reactive and impulsive than ever. Polling.  Nancy Pelosi moving methodically. 
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 2, Block B:  John Fund, NRO, & David M Drucker, Washington Examiner, in re: Marketwatch says:  Elizabeth Warren has overtaken Joe Biden in three straight polls.  Too early to say, “It’s hers to lose.”  There are multiple matters that might be of concern for her. 
Monday 7 October 2019/ Hour 2, Block C:  Malcolm Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents, in re: US says it’ll withdraw troops from Northern Syria, allowing Erdogan to move in and slaughter YPG Kurds.  Israel and Iran.
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 2, Block D: Indiana Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents, in re: Bronze Age city!
 
Hour Three
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 3, Block A:  Andrew C. McCarthy, senior Fellow at National Review Institute author, Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency; in re:
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 3, Block B: Andrew C. McCarthy, senior Fellow at National Review Institute author, Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency; in re:
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 3, Block C:   Lee Smith, RealClearInvestigations, and author, The Plot Against the President: The True Story of How Congressman Devin Nunes Uncovered the Biggest Political Scandal in U.S. History; in re: Ukraine under Poroshenko, during the civil war while Ukraine was understood to be a colony of the Obama Administration.  Alexandra Chalupa, Ukrainian-American consultant to the DNC in early 2016(?). She asked diplomats for information showing that the Trump campaign had ties to Russia. What an American did to an American political campaign.   Fusion GPS.   Paul Manafort’s earlier work for Yanokovich led Fusion GPS to accuse him of activities he did not do.  Manafort was encouraging Yanukovich to sign a trade deal with the European Union; Putin, seeing a serious threat, told Yanukovich to accept a $15bil loan package. We see facts turned on their head to try to show that Trump was a Russian asset.
Hunter and Joe Biden: in 2014, State and Biden helped usher the Ukrainian president out of office – regime change by Washington.  See the work of John Solomon. 2013-2016, deeply involving Biden, State, and Christopher Steele.
Also upside-down: that the Trump campaign was dong the bidding of the Kremlin to disarm Ukraine.  WaPo in July 2018, an inaccurate report that mil support for Ukraine was stripped from the GOP platform, See: Byron York to get an accurate report. 
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 3, Block D:   Lee Smith, RealClearInvestigations, and author, The Plot Against the President: The True Story of How Congressman Devin Nunes Uncovered the Biggest Political Scandal in U.S. History; in re:  Carter Page, the never-arrested, never-convicted “spy” for the Kremlin.  His visit to Moscow; Steele’s allegation that he was a go-between in a payoff. In fact, he went publicly to give a lecture; Steele says Carter had a secret mtg with an energy company, got a bribe to have DC lift sanctions on Russia, using Ukraine-related sanctions.  This is entirely invented and fictional.  Adam Schiff charges that Trump is withholding aid to Ukraine.  Same reporters, allegations, and director of the CIA – John Brennan, who’s been driving the Russiagate narrative for three or four years.
Danger in the US public/political sphere.    “Active intelligence community representative” is active in
Biden quid pro quo:  The notion that Trump sought help from the Ukrainian president with Attorney-General Barr’s collaboration: trying to discredit Pres Trump’s investigation and make a political witch hunt. 
 
 
Hour Four
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 4, Block A:  1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Turning Points in Ancient History), by Eric H. Cline
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 4, Block B: 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Turning Points in Ancient History), by Eric H. Cline
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 4, Block C: 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Turning Points in Ancient History), by Eric H. Cline
Monday 7 October 2019 / Hour 4, Block D:  1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Turning Points in Ancient History), by Eric H. Cline
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