June 19, 2025 - The Benny Show - Benny Johnson
53:16
Participants
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| Speaker | Time | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Right now, the president is getting an intel briefing inside the White House, and he and his team are weighing their options on whether the United States should join Israel's attacks on Iran. | ||
| One U.S. official has already told Fox the president has been asking questions to his aides about bunker-busting bombs. | ||
| Exactly what are they, what do they do, get into it, how many would you need? | ||
| Iran says it would make the U.S. and its allies legitimate targets. | ||
| The White House says all options are on the table and you know Trump means it. | ||
| And according to the president, a ceasefire is not an option. | ||
| I don't want to get involved either, but I've been saying for 20 years, maybe longer, that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. | ||
| I've been saying it for a long time. | ||
| And I think they were a few weeks away from having one. | ||
| And they had to sign a document. | ||
| I think they wish they signed it now. | ||
| It was a fair deal. | ||
| And now it's a harder thing to sign, you know. | ||
|
unidentified
|
It's a lot of water over the dam. | |
| But, you know, I say it very simply. | ||
| A rat can't have a nuclear weapon. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Not a yes sir, not a follower. | |
| Fit the box in the mold, have a seat. | ||
| Oh yeah, pick a number. | ||
| I was lightning before the thunder. | ||
| Thunder, thunder. | ||
| Lightning and the thunder. | ||
| Lightning and the thunder. | ||
| Ha! | ||
| It'll never get old. | ||
| I just freaking love it. | ||
| It just totally works. | ||
| I don't know how Jay comes up with these things. | ||
| It just totally works, ladies and gentlemen. | ||
| Just like General Flynn in our morning show, man. | ||
| That guy just let a rip for an hour. | ||
| Okay, we see a little action there. | ||
| Here's the White House press dais. | ||
| Someone coming out and getting seated. | ||
| But it looks like they're going to be a hair and a touch late today from the White House. | ||
| We, of course, wait. | ||
| Carolyn Levitt, which will be a rowdy. | ||
| Rowdy White House press briefing. | ||
| There's so much going on in the world right now. | ||
| I'm expected to be heavily focused on President Trump and much of his comments and much of his actions at the White House as it pertains to the war in Iran, but then also perhaps a war within MAGA, which we are very proud to say Donald Trump's doing an unbelievable job keeping the coalition together. | ||
| We're going to talk through that in just a second, but polling shows that Donald Trump, like let's say there was a MAGA war right now. | ||
| And we're going to have Mark Mitchell from Rasmussen join us probably either on Friday or Monday on our shows. | ||
| I think he's already booked. | ||
| Yeah, I think he's booked on Monday. | ||
| But Mark Mitchell from Rasmussen, who's our favorite pollster, is like straight up with like polling today saying, well, if there's a magazine of a war, it's not affecting Trump. | ||
| Trump's at 56% right direction, 56% approval, 90% right direction within the Republican Party. | ||
| No, as we've said many times in this program, Donald Trump is the red beating. | ||
| Bloody heart of the MAGA movement. | ||
| Of course, there are people who are constructing an entire constellation of what America First actually means. | ||
| Those battles are good. | ||
| One of the best books ever written is called Team of Rivals about the Lincoln White House. | ||
| How important it was for there to be people who spark off each other and have good and strong opinions. | ||
| Ladies and gentlemen, President Trump having good and strong opinions in his last time on camera yesterday. | ||
| With the installation of a massive White House flag. | ||
| And we didn't get a chance to cover this in the morning show. | ||
| This is too much breaking news and a lot of dark news. | ||
| And so we're going to get there today. | ||
| First, since we are live to watch Carolyn Levitt, and here's a live shot of the press briefing room right now, I wanted to play you Peter Doocy's stand-up from inside of the room. | ||
| It's always important to sort of like see the A place called Pebble Beach there, outside of the White House, where reporters stand and chit-chat. | ||
| It's important to see what the setup is going to be inside of the room. | ||
| Peter Doocy will have a front row seat, and we'll ask the question, so he's setting the narrative right here. | ||
| Most of the questions to be about this, John, and we are learning that there is a big practical problem with the Iranian proposal to send Iranian negotiators here to the White House next week. | ||
| they're stuck in Iran. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Yeah, I mean, they asked if they could come. | |
| We'll see if that happens. | ||
| It's not that easy for them to come. | ||
| They can't get out. | ||
| You know, they're in Iran, and in one case, that went to come so badly, but he can't get out because his bomb's dropping all over them. | ||
| Democrats are with President Trump about stopping Iran from building a nuclear weapon, but they still want him to pursue diplomacy for a little bit longer. | ||
|
unidentified
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I do not believe Iran can have a bomb. | |
| The question here is, how do we deny them that bomb for the long term? | ||
| I believe military strikes may get us a year, three years. | ||
| It's not the solution. | ||
|
unidentified
|
I actually support President Trump's initial approach of diplomacy to get a deal. | |
| According to the president himself, whatever he has settled on, as of this very moment, can change. | ||
| I have ideas as to what to do, but I haven't made a final. | ||
| I like to make the final decision one second before it's due, you know, because things change. | ||
| I mean, especially with war, things change with war. | ||
| It can go from one extreme to the other. | ||
|
unidentified
|
War is very bad. | |
| As President Trump weighs his options, I've been told by a U.S. official that he has been asking military planners whether or not Bunker Buster bombs would be able to accomplish the objective of getting underground and taking out fully these Iranian nuclear laboratories that are hidden underneath a mountain. | ||
| We don't yet know what exactly he has been told or if he is satisfied with the answers, but we should learn a little bit more about that when this briefing starts any minute. | ||
| John. | ||
| All right, ladies and gentlemen, the briefing starting any minute in the shadow of this kick-ass massive flag that President Trump installed at the White House. | ||
| I don't want to lose. | ||
| I don't want to lose it. | ||
| I don't want to lose this news cycle. | ||
| This is amazing. | ||
| This happened yesterday. | ||
| Look how beautiful that is. | ||
| Look at that. | ||
| From our boy, Dan Scavino. | ||
| Such an awesome dude. | ||
| You got to follow Dan if you don't already. | ||
| The digital voice of Donald Trump online. | ||
| Dan Scavino, a real proper homie. | ||
| Look at that photo. | ||
| Man, look at this. | ||
| Look at that beautiful flagpole and the rainbow. | ||
| God's promise that he will not flood the world again, that all life on earth shall not perish again, and that he will give us a new covenant. | ||
| That is what that rainbow is. | ||
| A new covenant, not the old covenant, the new covenant of God's promise. | ||
| Ah, it's beautiful. | ||
| Look at that incredible shot from yesterday. | ||
| It's amazing. | ||
| Here's another one of this monster flagpole. | ||
| How tall is it, boys? | ||
| Look at that. | ||
| You got the double rainbow. | ||
| Double God's promise. | ||
| Look at that amazing. | ||
| Look at that amazing shot. | ||
| Just incredible. | ||
| President Trump installing this flagpole yesterday. | ||
| 88 feet. | ||
| Okay. | ||
| President Trump installing the flagpole yesterday. | ||
| Chewing it up with the working class man who was there to install this beautiful flagpole. | ||
| President Trump having a bit of a laugh, talking about how he's not going to call it an erection. | ||
| We have that clip, Glenn? | ||
| Yeah, let's go. | ||
| Donald Trump, I refuse to call it an erection. | ||
| Trump walking up to the press right here. | ||
| You think this man, does this man look like he's broken, bowed, or scared right now? | ||
| Does this man look like he's panicking? | ||
| Here we go. | ||
| They call it a lifting. | ||
| They also use another word, but I'm not going to use that word. | ||
| You know what that is? | ||
| The word, it starts with an E. You know what the word is? | ||
| If I ever used it, I'd be run out of town by you people. | ||
| All right, so enjoy it. | ||
| Doug, you're going to get some good. | ||
| He's going to win another Nobel Prize, I think, for this picture. | ||
| So maybe the flag will be even more exciting, but this is pretty exciting. | ||
| That's some equipment, I'll tell you what. | ||
| Yeah, in case you're wondering if Democrats have a hard-on for President Trump, the number of times that they said President Trump Incited an erection! | ||
| Boy, there's a supercut sitting there waiting to be made. | ||
| Here's Donald Trump cutting it up with the working class man. | ||
| And they just love it. | ||
| Look at him. | ||
| Look at him grinning from ear to ear. | ||
| Donald Trump, a builder by heart. | ||
| They love him. | ||
| Here's the flag being installed yesterday. | ||
| It's being installed in front of President Trump. | ||
| Most powerful man on earth. | ||
| Has more demands on his time than any single person alive right now. | ||
| And here's President Trump sitting there watching the flagpole get installed. | ||
| Taking the time. | ||
| It's a beautiful thing. | ||
| It's amazing. | ||
| And then he sits there and he, again, chews it up, grips and grins with the actual construction crew that does it, a man of the people, unintentionally hysterical crane operator who fell asleep. | ||
| Hungover or what, I'm not sure. | ||
| There's a freaking great meme there. | ||
| And anyway, here's something that we didn't actually know about this glorious flag. | ||
| And here's the flag being raised up for the first time. | ||
| The flag being minted here. | ||
| First time at the White House, Donald Trump saluting as the flag gets raised for the first time from this poll. | ||
| Donald Trump paid for this himself in a historic first, something that no president has ever done. | ||
| Donald Trump paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for this out of his own back pocket. | ||
| President Trump saluted the quality and the detail of a pair of 88-foot flagpoles that he's installing at the White House, lauding their size, shape, and even the stand that will encase them. | ||
| For Trump, the flagpole is more than just flagpole. | ||
| It's a dream deferred. | ||
| Trump showed one of them to reporters on the South Lawn, and he said this is a dream that he's always long had. | ||
| I felt for a long time, in the first term, I laid it out, but you guys were after me. | ||
| I was the hunted, and now I'm the hunter. | ||
| And there's a big difference, Trump said. | ||
| He compared the quality of the flagpoles to his Florida clubs in Doral and Mar-a-Lago. | ||
| Ken vouched that flagpole is monstrous. | ||
| It goes nine feet down. | ||
| There's nothing in there. | ||
| Just a tube that goes nine feet down. | ||
| They fill it with sand. | ||
| It's absolutely perfect. | ||
| Pure sand. | ||
| Ladies and gentlemen, and here's Carolyn Levitt up and ready. | ||
| Let's lock and load. | ||
| President Trump's powerful efforts to secure our homeland are working. | ||
| According to newly released numbers, last month, Border Patrol saw a 93% decrease of illegal aliens crossing the southwest border between ports of entry from May 2024 under Joe Biden when they encountered more than 117,000 illegal aliens. | ||
| And this particular statistic is absolutely astounding. | ||
| In the month of May, under the Trump administration, zero illegal aliens were released into our country. | ||
| Let me say that again. | ||
| Not a single illegal alien was released into the interior of the United States of America last month under this administration. | ||
| Let's contrast that to Joe Biden's failed leadership where immigration officers were wasting their finite time and resources processing dangerous illegal aliens for release into the United States. | ||
| President Trump immediately terminated that reckless Biden-era practice that undermined the rule of law. | ||
| Jeopardized public safety and our national security and diverted critical resources away from stopping deadly drugs and violent criminals from entering our country. | ||
| That's the reason why not a single illegal alien was released into the interior of the United States in the month of May. | ||
| And as a result, we now have a border that is reaching unprecedented levels of operational success. | ||
| The efforts by President Trump to stop the illegal immigrant invasion and secure the border in this short amount of time represent one of the greatest achievements by a presidential administration in the history of our great country. | ||
| With illegal entries being overwhelmingly halted, the Trump administration is dramatically ramping up efforts to arrest and deport all of the millions of criminal illegal aliens that Joe Biden let into our country over the past four years. | ||
| President Trump has directed all of our ICE officers to do everything in their power to carry out the single largest mass deportation operation in history. | ||
| Illegal criminals who are hiding in America's largest so-called sanctuary cities will be increasingly targeted for removal. | ||
| Radical Democrats will no longer be allowed to shelter illegals who threaten public safety to expand political power. | ||
| Drain the American taxpayer and artificially lower wages and steal American jobs. | ||
| ICE officers are courageous heroes upholding the rule of law and keeping our citizens safe. | ||
| And they have the full and unwavering support of this president. | ||
| In economic news, President Trump's pro-growth agenda is delivering for the American worker. | ||
| Through the first five months of the Trump administration, real blue-collar wages are up nearly 2%. | ||
| It's the strongest growth in nearly 60 years and a stark contrast from the negative wage growth seen during the first five months of the Biden administration. | ||
| Since the Big Beautiful Bill is passed, this positive trend will only accelerate. | ||
| Senate Republicans are continuing to push this critical legislation forward. | ||
| The One Big Beautiful Bill will drive growth and supercharge the American economy. | ||
| The Council of Economic Advisers found that the One Big Beautiful Bill will raise take-home pay By nearly $14,000 a year for the average family of four. | ||
| The CEA also found that the One Big Beautiful Bill will increase wages as much as $11,000 for the average worker in America. | ||
| The One Big Beautiful Bill expands the child tax credit and makes it permanent for more than 40 million families with children. | ||
| And the bill will deliver no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and substantial tax cuts for our incredible seniors. | ||
| Simply put, the one big beautiful bill is a massive win for middle-class Americans. | ||
| When nearly 80 million Americans sent President Trump back to this White House, they were doing so expecting these popular policies to be enacted. | ||
| Republicans in Congress have a mandate to deliver, and President Trump demands they send this historic bill to his desk for signature by Independence Day, July 4th. | ||
| The American people are fully behind President Trump. | ||
| According to brand new polling from Insider Advantage, a clear 54% majority of Americans approve of the job President Trump is doing. | ||
| That's because this president is keeping his promises and taking action every day to improve their lives. | ||
| And passing this bill will help fulfill a number of President Trump's core campaign promises. | ||
| Now, regarding the ongoing situation in Iran. | ||
| I know there has been a lot of speculation amongst all of you in the media regarding the President's decision-making and whether or not the United States will be directly involved. | ||
| In light of that news, I have a message directly from the President, and I quote: "Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks." That's a quote directly from the President for all of you today. | ||
| So we'll kick it off for questions here in our new Mediacy. | ||
| We have Eli Lake from the Free Press. | ||
| Eli, go ahead. | ||
| Thank you so much for having us. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| The Free Press. | ||
| The decision to extend the, I guess, delay in enforcing the TikTok ban. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Sure. | |
| Can you talk about how the White House understands its constitutional party in light of the Supreme Court's decision in January that said that the president had to enforce the ban? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Sure. | |
| Well, as all of you know, because the president put it out on his Truth Social today, he did sign an executive order to extend the TikTok ban for 90 days, so in the effort to make a deal. | ||
| And White House counsel and the Department of Justice have reviewed this executive order, and I can get it for you. | ||
| I think it's on our website by now. | ||
| If it's not, my team will now put it up immediately. | ||
| And you can read the language in that executive order. | ||
| and the White House Counsel's Office and the Department of Justice strongly believe in the legal rationale for this executive order. | ||
| They wouldn't have the president's pen hit it if they didn't. | ||
| And the political reasoning for this, of course, is because the president made a promise to keep TikTok on. | ||
| There are a hundred million Americans who use this app. | ||
| It's wildly popular. | ||
| He also wants to protect Americans'data and privacy concerns on this app, and he believes we can do both things at the same time. | ||
| So he's making an extension so we can get this deal done. | ||
| Can I get a follow-up? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Sure. | |
| A few weeks ago, Tucker Carlson reported on a meeting between the President, Mark Levin, and others at the White House. | ||
| Is there a leak investigation? | ||
| Can you say who else was in that meeting? | ||
| I'm not aware of a leak investigation at this time. | ||
| I, for one, do not reveal details about the president's private meetings without his permission to do so. | ||
| But certainly, the president does not like when people leak. | ||
| He takes that very seriously. | ||
| This entire administration takes that seriously. | ||
| And that's why you've seen at agencies, some of the cabinet secretaries have been given the authority by the president to let go of staff who are engaged in such leaks, especially those that risk American national security. | ||
| Sure, go ahead. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Caroline, thank you. | |
| So, Rhino warmonger Lindsey Graham, she recently called on the U.S. Go All In. | ||
| That's quite the lead to a question. | ||
|
unidentified
|
What's your message to everyday Trump supporters? | |
| Not the Tucker Carlson's or other big names, but everyday Trump supporters, grassroots, who voted for President Trump to stop the wars, rejected this in the primary, going into another war, but voting against Nikki Haley. | ||
| And they want to see non-U.S. | ||
| involvement in this war. | ||
| What's your message? | ||
| Trust in President Trump. | ||
| President Trump has incredible instincts. | ||
| And President Trump kept America and the world safe in his first term as president in implementing a peace through strength. | ||
| Foreign policy agenda. | ||
| And with respect to Iran, nobody should be surprised by the president's position that Iran absolutely cannot obtain a nuclear weapon. | ||
| He's been unequivocally clear about this for decades, not just as president, not just as a presidential candidate. | ||
| But also as a private citizen. | ||
| In fact, I have some quotes for you. | ||
| In 2011, President Trump said, America's primary goal with Iran must be to destroy its nuclear ambitions. | ||
| We cannot allow this radical regime to acquire a nuclear weapon that they will either use or hand off to terrorists. | ||
| In 2015, the president said the problem is that Iran poses an existential threat to Israel, our Middle Eastern allies, and the United States. | ||
| And of course, the president has repeated that in his first term as president and his second term as president as well. | ||
| And it's why he has given great latitude and given a lot of effort to achieving a diplomatic solution. | ||
| But he's been very clear. | ||
| Iran went for 60 days when he gave them that 60-day warning without coming to the table. | ||
| On day 61, Israel took action against Iran. | ||
| And as I just told you from the president directly, he will make a decision. | ||
|
unidentified
|
I'll follow up. | |
| Sure. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Go ahead, Natalie. | |
| Thanks, Caroline. | ||
| Can you confirm whether Steve Witkoff has been in touch with the Iranian foreign minister? | ||
| And does Witkoff plan to go to Geneva tomorrow for talks? | ||
| I am not tracking that on Mr. Witkoff's travel schedule, but I can certainly check in with him to be sure. | ||
| As for correspondence between the United States and the Iranians, I can confirm that correspondence has continued. | ||
| As you know, we were engaged with six rounds of negotiations with them in both indirect and direct ways. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Just to clarify the president's statement just now, when he says that he'll make a decision in the next two weeks, is he saying that if Iran does not come back to the negotiating table within the next two weeks, that the president will strike? | |
| The president is saying that he will make a decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks. | ||
| It's very clear and direct. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And is he seeing any signs of progress? | |
| He obviously is holding out hope for negotiations, but is he seeing any inklings of progress? | ||
| Give him that hope that talks are still possible. | ||
| Well, that's why he said in the statement that I just read for all of you based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place. | ||
| With Iran in the near future, he will make that decision within the next two weeks. | ||
|
unidentified
|
What makes you think there's still a substantial chance, is my question. | |
| I'm not going to get into the reasoning and the rationale. | ||
| The President believes that, but that's his position, and he will make a decision within the next two weeks. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thanks, Caroline. | |
| President Trump has said previously in regard to Russia, he's used this phrase about two weeks several times in terms of like, How can we be sure that he's going to stick to this one on making a decision on the Rams? | ||
| Well, in those deadlines, as you've seen in respect to Russia-Ukraine, might I add, these are two very different complicated global conflicts, as you know, that the president inherited from our previous incompetent president in the weakness of the previous administration. | ||
| And the president has spent a tremendous amount of time and effort cleaning up these crises that were caused by the last administration's just complete dereliction of duty on the world stage in American weakness. | ||
| Now we have American strength again. | ||
| With respect to Russia and Ukraine, because of that American strength. | ||
| And the president's leadership, we have seen these two sides engage in direct negotiations. | ||
| And the last time the president said two weeks, you saw Russia and Ukraine have direct negotiations for the first time in years. | ||
| And so the president is always interested in a diplomatic solution to the problems and the global conflicts in this world. | ||
| Again, he is a peacemaker-in-chief. | ||
| He is the peace-through-strength president. | ||
| And so if there's a chance for diplomacy, the president's always going to grab it. | ||
| But he's not afraid to use strength as well, I will add. | ||
| Thanks, Caroline. | ||
|
unidentified
|
What exactly would a deal with Iran need to entail? | |
| No enrichment of a uranium, and Iran is absolutely not able to achieve a nuclear weapon. | ||
| The President has been very clear about that. | ||
| And by the way, the deal that Special Envoy Whitcock proposed to the Iranians was both realistic and acceptable within its terms. | ||
| And that's why the president is sent that deal to them. | ||
|
unidentified
|
To follow up on what you told Natalie, are the talks that the United States is currently having with Iran direct or are those through intermediate? | |
| Out of respect for the ongoing discussions and negotiations, I'm not going to get into the details of them. | ||
| We've provided you confirmation for now. | ||
| Go ahead. | ||
| Sure. | ||
| And then behind you two. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thanks. | |
| Sorry. | ||
| On the topic of negotiations and talks, does the president have any hopes or specific expectations for the talks tomorrow between European foreign secretaries and their Iranian counterpart? | ||
| Well, certainly the entire world is on the president's side when it comes to the fact that Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon. | ||
| This is something that pretty much all of humanity, except for the Iranian terrorist regime themselves, agree upon. | ||
| And so the president expects that Europe will deliver that message directly to the Iranians. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Why does President Trump believe that this 90-day extension on TikTok will provide more runway, perhaps, than the previous extensions that haven't led to a divestment deal? | |
| Because it's more time, more time to make a good deal. | ||
| Simple question. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Dasha? | |
| Thank you so much. | ||
| I know things are going day by day right now. | ||
| The president wants maximum optionality. | ||
| Is the possibility of the U.S. getting involved in regime change in Iran at all on the table at this point? | ||
| Sure. | ||
| The president's top priority right now is ensuring that Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon and providing peace and stability in the Middle East. | ||
|
unidentified
|
On Medicaid, Caroline, the Senate put forward Medicaid provisions, particularly a lower cap on state provider taxes that hospitals have said would lead to mass closures, particularly in rural communities. | |
| Is the president willing to sign a bill that includes those provisions that Republican senators like Josh Hawley say will lead to hospital closures? | ||
| Look, the bill hasn't been sent to the president's desk yet. | ||
| There's more room for change. | ||
| The president, for one, I will reiterate, has been very clear on his priorities with respect to Medicaid. | ||
| He wants to see waste, fraud, and abuse ridden from the system to protect it for taxpaying citizens who deserve those much-needed benefits. | ||
| He wants to prioritize the sick, the needy, the poor in this country who deserve those benefits, not the 1.4 million illegal aliens who are receiving them. | ||
| And he wants to make sure this one big, beautiful bill kicks those illegal aliens off of this program to preserve it and protect it and strengthen it for the American people. | ||
| And the president has been very clear in that message to his friends in the Senate. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Jackie. | |
| Thank you, Caroline. | ||
| Sure. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Logistically, if the Iranians are getting to Geneva, does that mean they've found a way to get to the White House? | |
| I am not going to get into hypotheticals, but as you heard from the president yesterday, they have expressed interest in doing so. | ||
|
unidentified
|
There's a lot of pressure on the president to come to the aid of Israel. | |
| There's a lot of pressure on him to finish the job with force. | ||
| How is he balancing the concern that if He doesn't choose to do that, that it would send a message to Xi Jinping about the US commitment to Taiwan. | ||
| Well, the president enjoys a very respectful and cordial relationship with China's president. | ||
| He has long maintained that, even in his first term. | ||
| And China and the United States share many strategic interests, both in terms of economics and also, of course, global affairs and foreign policy as well. | ||
| However, when it comes to balancing these different viewpoints, the president is balancing a lot of viewpoints. | ||
| And he is listening, not just to other world leaders, but to his advice. | ||
| And I think that's what makes this president such a great leader is his ability to listen and make a good decision on behalf of the American public based on his instincts and his experience. | ||
| Don't forget, this is a president who was here before, and the world was a much more peaceful and stable place when he left office than when he came back in after the past four years of complete incompetence by the previous president. | ||
| Philip, go ahead. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The President says Iran is very close to a nuclear weapon. | |
| Is he relying on U.S. intelligence or intelligence sharing from an ally to make that assessment? | ||
| It is a fact, and the United States government maintains this fact, that Iran has never been closer to obtaining a nuclear weapon. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And if the U.S. were to take some type of military action, would the President go to Congress to seek war authority? | |
| I'm not going to engage in hypotheticals. | ||
| I gave you the statement from the president. | ||
| He'll make a decision within two weeks. | ||
| Sure. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Go ahead. | |
| Thanks, Caroline. | ||
| Mary, and then Elizabeth. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Two questions. | |
| One on Iran, and then the second on something Benjamin Prokett said this morning. | ||
| So given that we know the Iranian government did order an operative to assassinate the president, is there concern that Iran might respond with non-traditional military ways to some kind of strike on Iran, such as another assassination attempt? | ||
| And has the Department of Justice looked into this last? | ||
| Attempt on the president's life. | ||
| I believe Secret Service and the FBI have looked into the two assassination attempts that took place against the president, both of which were sad days in our nation's history. | ||
| So I would defer you to the Department of Justice on where those investigations stand. | ||
| But as for your question regarding Iranian retaliation, I'm not going to engage in hypotheticals again, but I can assure the American public and the world that this administration is prepared and ready to defend American. | ||
| Interests and assets, not just in the region, but here on our homeland as well. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And then really quick on Jasmine Crockett. | |
| She said, I believe, that Trump supporters are mentally ill before calling for bipartisan support against the president. | ||
| Can you respond to that, especially considering she's a rising star in the Democrat Party right now? | ||
| She is a rising star. | ||
| It's quite something to behold, actually. | ||
| I hope that she continues to be a rising star for the Republican Party at least. | ||
| I think it's The last time I checked, Jasmine Crockett couldn't dream of winning such a majority of the public as President Trump did. | ||
| And the America First movement, which President Trump has built, is filled of hardworking patriots, the forgotten men and women, business owners, law enforcement officers, nurses and teachers, and middle America, as we all know from where you all grew up, outside of this beltway. | ||
| that's who makes up this president's movement and jasmine crockett should go to a trump rally sometime and she can see it for herself One on North Korea and one on China. | ||
|
unidentified
|
On North Korea, they launched some rockets into the ocean today. | |
| What does the White House make of that? | ||
| Do you read any meaning into the timing of that launch? | ||
| And then on China, do you have any reaction to Xi Jinping's offer of intervening in Iran diplomatically? | ||
| And are you seeing any signs that China would get involved militarily to support Iran? | ||
| I don't believe we're seeing any signs of that at this moment in time. | ||
| As for Xi Jinping's offer, I will leave it to the president to respond to that himself. | ||
| As for your question about North Korea, we are monitoring the situation. | ||
| The Trump administration is in close contact with our new South Korean counterparts as we work together to deter our adversaries and preserve a free and open Indo-Pacific. | ||
| And no matter where, our adversaries and our allies alike know that President Trump will not tolerate threats against our interests on his watch, even as he works to resolve the wars that he inherited. | ||
| Alex, go ahead, and then I'll come to you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| Is the president concerned about the economy if farms and hotels, et cetera, struggle to find workers? | ||
| President's always concerned about the economy. | ||
| That's on his mind every day. | ||
| He wakes up. | ||
| He checks the markets. | ||
| He checks wage growth. | ||
| As I pointed out, it's a record high today for middle class and American workers. | ||
| So the president's always wanting to ensure that we have a strong and robust economy for the American people and worker. | ||
| And we do. | ||
| As for the specific concerns regarding jobs, look, the president has made it very clear we need to remove public safety threats from the interior of our country. | ||
| And that remains the focus and the priority of this administration when it comes to deportations, no matter where somebody works. | ||
| If they're an illegal alien rapist or murderer that was allowed into this country in the past four years by this administration, the American people want those types of criminals to be deported from our country. | ||
| And that's what the president is backing ICE to do. | ||
|
unidentified
|
There was an apparent skirmish between the Chinese and the Philippines in the South China Sea. | |
| Do you have any reaction to that and if the steps you're taking towards the Middle East right now are reducing your capacity to deal with that situation? | ||
| I believe that happened as I was preparing and coming out here, so we'll get you a response to that. | ||
| Certainly we have one and our teams are always monitoring situations all around the globe. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And one more, just on Iran. | |
| Just over the past 24 hours, we've seen some Israeli strikes on Natanz, Isfahan, and Comdat nuclear facilities. | ||
| Is there any assessment just of how effective or what the result of those strikes will be? | ||
| What I can share is that the IDF in Israel, I think, have exceeded a lot of people's expectations in their ability to really hinder Iran's nuclear facilities, but also they've taken out key people in the Iranian regime's So this is something, of course, we are monitoring and watching every day. | ||
| And the president was just in an intelligence briefing. | ||
| He continues to be briefed by his National Security Council, and he will throughout the duration of this war and conflict. | ||
| And he also remains in constant communication with our Israeli counterparts, most notably Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Netanyahu. | |
| We have heard from a number of US officials who say that Iran doesn't want to make a deal, but they are just stringing the United States along. | ||
| What is to say that they are not going to continue to do so if we If we continue to give them extensions now two weeks before 60 days. | ||
| Look, Iran is in a very weak and vulnerable position because of the strikes and the attacks from Israel. | ||
| And with respect to the president's statement, I shared that with all of you. | ||
| And he has been very direct and clear. | ||
| Iran can and should make a deal. | ||
| We sent a deal to them that was practical, that was realistic, or they will face grave consequences. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Why is Steve Whitcoff not participating in the talks this week? | |
| I can ask Mr. Whitcoff why he is not. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thanks, Carlin. | |
| Does the President's objective Israel attempt its own operation against Fordow in the next two weeks? | ||
| I won't decide that for the President, nor will I share that. | ||
| Here, I'll let him speak to that. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Just another one. | |
| Iran is apparently warning Europeans that if it's struck by the U.S. it may withdraw from the nuclear proliferation treaty that will result in throwing out inspectors and taking the program dark. | ||
| What does the president think of the value of having Iran as a full signatory of that treaty? | ||
| Well, that's reckless rhetoric, but I understand the Europeans are meeting with the Iranians tomorrow, so we'll see how that meeting goes. | ||
|
unidentified
|
One more on Juneteenth. | |
| Does the president plan to commemorate the holiday today or make any comment on it? | ||
| I'm not tracking his signature on a proclamation today. | ||
| I know this is a federal holiday. | ||
| I want to thank all of you for showing up to work. | ||
| We are certainly here. | ||
| We're working 24 /7 right now. | ||
| Nikki, go ahead. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Actually, that was my question. | |
| Will he plan to mark Juneteenth in any way, either today or with it? | ||
| Sure. | ||
| I just answered that question for you. | ||
| Go ahead. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you very much, Caroline. | |
| The fact that this president is giving some time and space for diplomacy, another two weeks, does it mean that the president is trying his best to avoid a direct conflict with Iran? | ||
| I think the president has made it clear he always wants to pursue diplomacy. | ||
| But believe me, the president is unafraid to use strength if necessary. | ||
| And Iran and the entire world should know that the United States military is the strongest and most lethal fighting force in the world. | ||
| And we have capabilities that no other country on this planet possesses. | ||
| Owen. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Good afternoon. | |
| The Supreme Court, as you know, has upheld Tennessee's ban on transgender medical procedures for minors, truity blockers, hormone therapy, etc. | ||
| The White House reaction to that, please. | ||
| It's a huge victory for America's children, and it's obviously something this administration believes strongly in, that young minor children should not be allowed to be subjected to chemical castration and mutilation. | ||
| The president himself has signed very strong executive orders on this, and we are grateful for Tennessee's efforts to protect our children, and we are grateful the Supreme Court ruled on the side of the law, but also on the side of protecting America's innocent children. | ||
| Elizabeth, go ahead. | ||
| Sorry I skipped you earlier. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you so much. | |
| Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced new vetting procedures on student visas. | ||
| Will this serve as a model for vetting other foreign visas? | ||
| For all foreign visas, yes. | ||
| As you know, the President signed an executive order, I think it was one of the first he signed in the first week, to strengthen our vetting requirements and our vetting system here in the United States. | ||
| For all visas, he directed the Secretary of State to do that. | ||
| There was a pause in some of that vetting, as you all know, recently, especially with respect to students from some certain countries. | ||
| But the vetting has continued, and it's stronger than ever before. | ||
| As for specifics on how the vetting process has changed, I would defer you to the Thank you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
To what extent is this two-week delay with Iran, the result of interventions by the likes of Tucker Carlson, Marjorie Taylor Greene, or the entreaties of European leaders who want to de-escalate? | |
| Look, the president hears all voices across the country, and he makes decisions based on his instincts. | ||
| And he has always said diplomacy is his first option. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And is he still planning to attend the NATO summit next week? | |
| He is, yes. | ||
| We will be departing from Washington on Monday morning, and hopefully we'll see some of you there. | ||
| Akela. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thanks, Akela. | |
| Oil prices have been spiking over the last week. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Is the president watching the oil market, and is that factoring into its decision-making in the Middle East? | |
| Again, as I said to, I think, Alex's question previously, the president is always watching, and this administration is doing more than any in history to bring oil prices and gas prices here at home down for the American population. | ||
| They have been plummeting since President Trump's inauguration because of the executive action and the federal action this administration has taken on the home front. | ||
| But yes, of course, he's paying attention and monitoring that. | ||
| But as for whether it's weighing into his decision, there's a number of factors that, of course, are. | ||
| And as I said, he will make that decision in the next two weeks. | ||
| Can't reiterate that enough. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Luija. | |
| Caroline, thank you. | ||
| With regard to a potential deal, Iran has said it will not negotiate under duress. | ||
| Does the president believe there should be a That's not what he said in the statement he dictated to me, so I won't get ahead of the president or add anything additional to the statement that he gave me the liberty to share with all of you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And just to follow up on how close Iran is to a nuclear weapon, can you clarify when the president said a few weeks away, Did he mean obtaining enough enriched uranium to start building a weapon or did he mean Iran is a few weeks away from completing the production of a weapon? | |
| I'm glad you asked that, Ouija. | ||
| It's an important question, and it's one, frankly, the media has been getting wrong. | ||
| Let's be very clear. | ||
| Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon. | ||
| All they need is a decision from the Supreme Leader to do that. | ||
| and it would take a couple of weeks to complete the production of that weapon, which would, of course, pose an existential threat not just to Israel, but to the United States and to the entire world. | ||
| And that is something that the entire world, including countries like Russia, is in agreement with, that Iran should not and cannot obtain a nuclear weapon. | ||
| Michael. | ||
|
unidentified
|
It's the former, just to be clear. | |
| Correct. | ||
| They have the components. | ||
| Correct. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| Michael. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Caroline, as we look forward to the NATO summit next week, Spain right now is threatening not to oblige the president's request for all NATO countries to spend at least 5% of their GDP. | |
| Does the president take issue with this, with Spain right now? | ||
| I didn't see Spain's comments. | ||
| I'll make sure the president sees them, and I can assure you he wants to see all European countries pay their fair share and meet that 5% threshold. | ||
| It's only fair considering the American taxpayers have given a significant chunk of money to the tune of billions of dollars to support our mutual interests and our assured defense. | ||
| So I will let him speak to that, but he's made his priorities for our European allies quite clear, including Spain. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Carolyn, one last question. | |
| When it comes to the president's position on foreign policy in general, is there a phrase that the White House has coined? | ||
| Is there a Trump doctrine? | ||
| Does the president like to talk about this? | ||
| Anyone here in the White House talking about this? | ||
| And if so, if there is something akin to a Trump doctrine, how would you define it? | ||
| America first, always. | ||
| And with that, I think I'll leave you. | ||
| I know there's a lot of news in the world right now. | ||
| As you know, our team is always here to answer your questions, and the President, I am sure, will take more questions from you guys at some point this week, as he always does in the effort of transparency. | ||
| I appreciate your being here on a federal holiday, and we'll see you later. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| Well, ladies and gentlemen, going in hard at Jasmine Crockett, saying that she hopes she stays the face of the Democrat Party, is Carolyn Levitt. | ||
| And then asserting, probably the top line news here, is asserting that Donald Trump wants to make a deal. | ||
| He wants America first, foreign policy, and he wants to make a deal with Iran. | ||
| And he wants to bring the Ayatollah to the Oval Office for a public flogging. | ||
| That would be the greatest thing in the history. | ||
| When you think it can't get any better, drag the Ayatollah into the Oval Office, have Trump dim the lights, and have movie time with the Ayatollah. | ||
| The most entertaining outcome is the most likely, obviously. | ||
| All right, ladies and gentlemen. | ||
| I just wanted to finish a couple of really quick thoughts here on this. | ||
| President Trump is doing... | ||
| I, you know, whether it's, whether it's that kind of, like, I just want to take a step back. | ||
| No good, like, are you observing, like, a master at work with Carolyn Levitt in these press conferences? | ||
| The Juneteenth question was obviously a charged question to try and get President Trump. | ||
| In some type of, like, racially charged manner to, like, step on some third rail, right, and electrocute himself or whatever it is. | ||
| You can obviously see the construction of the question. | ||
| And it was asked multiple times. | ||
| And just, like, the smoothness and the ability of Carolyn Levitt to just, like, pop, pop, pop, and keep it going, and not get trapped, it's incredible. | ||
| In fact, she's the one who's doing the trapping. | ||
| The hunters have become the hunted. | ||
| It's amazing. | ||
| In the press room, there used to be this, like, absolute violence. | ||
| And aggression and fomenting towards, you know, you saw it with Sarah Sanders. | ||
| You saw it with Kayleigh McEnany. | ||
| And they did their best to, like, stave it off. | ||
| Carolyn Levitt is in control of that room. | ||
| She has an iron grip on that room. | ||
| She doesn't get flustered. | ||
| It's like shadowboxing, just really smooth. | ||
| And, of course, God, help us. | ||
| You can't even put Cringe Jean Pierre. | ||
| Cringe Jean Pierre is just in, like, a different galaxy, right? | ||
| Sarah Sanders, Kayleigh McEnany. | ||
| Carolyn Levitt. | ||
| And then you have cringe Jean-Pierre, who's just like, the lightest possible criticism would send her spiraling and flipping through her notebook and shrieking hair on fire. | ||
| It's just a beautiful thing. | ||
| We'll just say, I'm just like, I'm just really proud to witness it. | ||
| It just shows the extreme competency and surgical nature of the Trump team. | ||
| Okay. | ||
| Surgical nature of President Trump's team. | ||
| As we were reading here, Donald Trump. | ||
| Is the only man to have ever spent his own money to improve the White House. | ||
| He's very proud of that. | ||
| Again, he spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to install these flagpoles. | ||
| The White House opened at about $1,800. | ||
| A little before that, Trump sat outside of the building. | ||
| I've always said how it doesn't have a flagpole. | ||
| Why it doesn't have a flagpole? | ||
| One thing's for certain, the flagpole Trump is having installed are very big. | ||
| They're about 100 feet. | ||
| The White House Press Secretary said the exact height is 88 feet. | ||
| This is the largest you will ever see, and it's tapered. | ||
| It's quality. | ||
|
unidentified
|
You guys rarely get to see up close. | |
| We have one going up there, identical, President Trump said, referencing another flagpole being installed on the North Lawn. | ||
| So we'll have one on each side of the building, and we'll have one on the side of the building, properly placed. | ||
| In case we have a lot of choices putting up on that hill over there. | ||
| It's a beautiful poll. | ||
| We thought we'd put it near. | ||
| Anyway, Donald Trump has spent, again, his own cash money to get these installed. | ||
| And it's just looking beautiful. | ||
| I'm paying for it, says Trump. | ||
| Each poll costs $50,000, he says. | ||
| There was just one word Trump wasn't inclined to use when speaking of erecting the poll. | ||
| Saying I'm not going to call it an erection. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Okay. | |
| All right. | ||
| It's pretty neat to see, and it deserves, like, it just deserves the credit that it's due. | ||
| It's glorious that you have a president that actually cares enough to do this. | ||
| When's the last time the president reached into his back pocket for anything? | ||
| A reminder that Donald Trump doesn't take a salary. | ||
| So he's reaching, not only that, he's the only person to ever lose money while becoming president. | ||
| Elon Musk, to his deep and abiding forever credit, lost $100 billion plus. | ||
| The exact estimates, according to Forbes, is $117 billion Elon Musk lost by serving at Doge. | ||
| Not to mention just the insurmountable incoming that he got. | ||
| From the absolute demons and goblins on the other side. | ||
| Late night stroll to check out the new installation of the flags at the White House, says Cary Lake. | ||
| Look at these beauties. | ||
| Look at that. | ||
| Looking sharp. | ||
| President Trump loves the American flag. | ||
| Flying old glory. | ||
| This is Donald Trump taking out his credit card and paying for the flags. | ||
| Trump hugs the flag and he sees the teeny little flag on top of the White House. | ||
| He takes out his credit card and he adds two giant flags. | ||
| I like it. | ||
| $100,000 personal project. | ||
| You've never seen a president do anything like this. | ||
| You've never seen a president ever, ever do anything like this. | ||
| Every president only ever enters the office of the presidency. | ||
| Completely broke. | ||
| Obama and Clinton did this. | ||
| They were broke as a joke. | ||
| And then they leave. | ||
| Filthy rich. | ||
| Donald Trump, with these just absolutely... | ||
| Iconography. | ||
| Look at that. | ||
| Boy, it's just gorgeous. | ||
| Boy, it's just beautiful. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Yeah! | |
| There you go. | ||
| Very well done. | ||
| Yeah, well done. | ||
| It's a thing of beauty, and it just deserves some credit and some shout-outs. | ||
| Okay, President Trump did use this opportunity and the White House and the installation of this flag to roast Joe Biden. | ||
| And to roast his regime and say that it was a fake presidency and that he's the real deal. | ||
| Here we go, ladies and gentlemen. | ||
| Four years, I mean, we're working on, I mean, so much of our effort goes to getting people out of the country that should have never been here in the first place. | ||
| What he's done to this country is not him. | ||
| He had no idea what was going on. | ||
| Everybody knows that. | ||
| It's other people. | ||
| It's Lisa and this one and all these people, all this scum that was around the Oval Office or around the beautiful Resolute Desk telling this guy, here, do this, do that, and not even telling him. | ||
| They'd just go over to the auto pen and sign whatever the hell they wanted to sign. | ||
| Because say what you want about Biden. | ||
| He wasn't for open borders. | ||
| He wasn't for transgender for everybody. | ||
| He wasn't for men playing in women's sports. | ||
| But he has no idea what the hell. | ||
| He has no idea. | ||
| And they were very upset. | ||
| They wanted Bernie Sanders. | ||
| And after about a week of this guy, they said, wait a minute, we just hit gold. | ||
| This guy has no clue. | ||
| He'll do anything we tell him. | ||
| And then they realized. | ||
| They don't even have to get permission. | ||
| They just go up to the auto pen. | ||
| That's a subversion. | ||
| That's a takeover of our government. | ||
| And you people ought to start looking at it. | ||
| That's a takeover. | ||
| Not only did they cheat. | ||
| I guess you saw yesterday came out with China and the license plates. | ||
| Tens of thousands of cards. | ||
| They used those cards to vote on the second election. | ||
| My second. | ||
| The one 2020. | ||
| Because as everybody here knows, I won that election by a lot. | ||
| But the only good thing I can say is this is a much more historic term than I think I could have had as a second term. | ||
| This is a much more historic election. | ||
| And now we're going to put up a beautiful flagpole and we're going to put up a flag. | ||
| And I hope you enjoy it. | ||
| And let's see how real people work. | ||
| These are real people. | ||
| You're not real people. | ||
| Your job is too easy. | ||
|
unidentified
|
okay oh yeah Yeah, look at this. | |
| This is the Rose Garden. | ||
| Donald Trump's roasting yesterday. | ||
| Does that man look nervous to you? | ||
| Does he look upset, nervous to you? | ||
| This is what's called the Rose Garden. | ||
| In the White House, President Trump is going to be turning the Rose Garden into what concept art sort of looks like a banquet area, right? | ||
| So this is like the concept art for it, where you could maybe have like a band up here, have a banquet hall in the area. | ||
| Trump's upset because there's no space to ever entertain at the White House. | ||
| No space to entertain. | ||
| The White House is really small. | ||
| We were just at the White House two weeks ago. | ||
| It's just really tall, small. | ||
| It's just really tight and closed in. | ||
| And so the improvements, like improvements to the actual country, improvements to the actual White House, all paid for by President Trump, who also doesn't take a salary, and lost nearly everything, including his life and his businesses and his family when the feds raided Melania's closet. | ||
| With a kill order, they raided his son's bedroom. | ||
| Baron's 18. His 18-year-old son's bedroom with a kill order. | ||
| Got it? | ||
| The guy who lost virtually everything, or at least had everything on the line, is now improving the White House himself. | ||
| It's just a beautiful thing. | ||
| One of the best stories ever. | ||
| Also another great story right here. | ||
| Breaking as of right now. | ||
| J.D. Vance, I'm proud to announce that with Secretary Kennedy and Jay Bhattacharya, the Trump administration is launching a program to study long-term health effects of the chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, to help residents access the care that they need. | ||
| East Palestine, we will never forget you. | ||
| This is also what America First looks like. | ||
| You want to know what America Last looks like? | ||
| Right there. | ||
| I'm so glad you found this photo. | ||
| line. | ||
| This just reminds you of where we've been. | ||
| Remember, this was what This was what the Biden regime put up to tell you what was real in your country. | ||
| I know. | ||
| Just how depressing. | ||
| Just incredibly depressing. | ||
| Just so much evil in one photo. | ||
| And this is who they put forward in order to calm you and tell you that the adults are back in charge. | ||
| Goodness gracious. | ||
| We're thankful for that, ladies and gentlemen. | ||
| We're thankful for not having to ever listen to Corinne Jean-Pierre say anything ever again. | ||
| Ladies and gentlemen, we're always honored to go live during this, the Golden Era. | ||
| We are your front seat to the Golden Era. | ||
| Join us, like, share, subscribe to the channel, and make sure that you are along for the trip, because in the end, we win. | ||
| All right? | ||
| All right. | ||
| See you, ladies and gentlemen, and we'll do Ask Benny and Super Chats tomorrow. | ||
| Lock and load. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Not a yes sir, not a follower, fit the box, the mold, have a scene. | |
| Oh yeah, take a number, I was lightning before the thunder. | ||
| Thunder, thunder. | ||
| Lightning and the thunder, thunder, feel the thunder. | ||
| Who do you think you are? | ||
| Dreaming about being a big star. | ||
| This is a baby show, we're the children Truth gon' be, faith and freedom on your TV screen Stand up strong, battle through the night The Benny Show's here, bringing liberty to life. | ||
| From the speeches to debates, Benny's sharp like a blade. | ||
| Coming through the lies, watch the truth cascade. | ||
| With the warrior's heart, this man never fades. | ||
| You know it's primetime when Benny invades. | ||
| From saving the nation to stories untold. | ||
| The Benny Show's a storm, see the truth unfold. | ||
| Stay in the loop, let freedom take hold. | ||
| Salt on all the libs, soul never sold. | ||
| It's the Benny Show, where the truth gon' be. | ||
| Faith and freedom on your TV screen. | ||
| Stand up strong. |
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