All Episodes
Previous Next
Aug. 15, 2021 - Epoch Times
18:21
Massive Anti-Communist Protests Spread Throughout Island; Crackdown by Regime | Facts Matter
| Copy link to current segment

Time Text
Good evening.
Over in Cuba, protesters have filled the streets in cities and towns across the country, calling for both freedom as well as an end to communist dictatorship.
Meanwhile, over in Arizona, the state senate has just announced that they will be counting the 2020 ballots once again, meaning that the ballots will be counted for a third time.
And lastly, over in Pennsylvania, The State Department came out in opposition of the forensic audit, and they released this directive right here, telling counties to not allow third parties to examine the voting machines or any of their components.
Now, what does that exactly mean for the forensic audit?
Well, let's explore that together.
This is your semi-daily Facts Matter update, and I'm your host, Roman, from the Epoch Times.
Now let's begin today's discussion over in Arizona.
But actually, just before we do, as a super quick aside...
Right there at the top of the description box is a link to Epic TV, our brand new no-censorship video platform where you can find all of the awesome Epic Times video programs, like Counter Culture with Danielle D'Souza, Cash's Corner with Cash Patel, Real Talk with Wayne Dupree, California Insider, China in Focus, and our show Facts Matter, and on there we publish exclusive episodes that you just won't find here on YouTube because I don't feel comfortable publishing it on YouTube due to the censorship.
So again, that link right there will be at the top of the description box at Epic TV. I hope you check it out.
And now let's really move on over to Arizona.
As we've already discussed in several previous episodes, the large-scale audit of the 2020 election over in Maricopa County, it has been underway for over two months now, and it's currently in the home stretch.
However, the Arizona State Senate, they just announced that they will be counting all of the ballots from Maricopa County for a third time.
Now what does that exactly mean?
Well, when the actual election occurred back in November of 2020, the county election officials, they tabulated all of the ballots as normal, and that was the first count.
Then, over the last two months, the audit team, which has been led by the Cyber Ninjas, they have recounted all of the ballots by hand, and that was the second count.
And most people assumed that that was it.
However, the state senate, they just announced that they will do their own recount as well.
Why?
Why?
Well, they say that it will give them a number that they can compare to both the county tabulation as well as the count from the auditors.
Here's what Ken Bennett, who is the audit liaison, here's what he told us when we had a chance to ask him about it.
Maricopa County says there's 2,089,563 ballots.
We did the hand count, and they're finalizing that number.
But we just wanted a third number to tie everything together.
Make sure we have more.
The more data points, the better.
Now, it's worth noting that unlike the first two tabulations, This third count will focus on the number of ballots exclusively.
They're not going to be actually counting the votes.
They are just literally going to once again count the number of paper ballots.
They're just going to see how many sheets of paper there are to make sure that it's approximately 2.1 million.
According to Karen Phan, who is the Arizona Senate president, she said that the Senate recently purchased two counting machines from a company called U.S. Paper Counters.
Those machines, the ones that they purchased, have the capability to count 2,000 sheets per minute each.
Here's what Karen Phan specifically said about their count.
We're going to run all the ballots through to see how they match up.
If there ends up being a difference, we'd have another count.
Now, this third count is taking place over at the Wesley Bolin Building, which is where both the ballots and the tabulation machines were moved to after the contract with the original venue, which was the Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
It expired last month.
And for your reference, by the way, the Wesley Bolin Building is just about two miles south of the Coliseum.
Now, besides this third count, the audit teams are also wrapping up the other portions of the audit as well.
For instance, they are working to check the signatures from the mail-in ballot envelopes against images from the county, and then another team is examining high-resolution images of the ballots themselves to make sure that they were authentically filled in by a real person rather than just photocopied or Xeroxed.
And in terms of when we can expect to see a final report, well, that is still slated to come out sometime in August, so next month.
And so, we'll just have to wait until then to see what the audit actually reveals.
However, if you would like to read more about this third recount, or about some of the other details in this process, the link to that will be in the description box below this video for you to check out.
However, since we're on the topic of forensic audits, let's discuss the one that's happening now over in Pennsylvania.
Sorry.
What's this?
Well, that's a great question, Roman.
And the answer is that it's today's sponsor, which is an awesome messaging company called Secure.
And it's awesome if you're the type of person that actually cares about your privacy.
Because it goes without saying that both government actors as well as big tech companies can spy on your documents, your emails, and your chat messages.
I mean, I'm sure you've experienced that before where you're messaging someone or emailing someone about a certain product or service, and then suddenly you're seeing ads for that exact same product or service.
I mean, it's pretty obvious what's going on behind the scenes.
However, with Secure, they have an answer to that problem because they have their own proprietary encryption technology, which allows you to send text messages, documents, as well as emails, and keep them safe and private.
And largely, that's because they have their servers and their data center over in Switzerland.
Now, why is that important?
Well, Switzerland has the strictest data privacy laws in the entire world.
That's what they say.
And therefore, your messages are not subject to the Intrusive Cloud Act.
And if you're interested to know what the Cloud Act is, you can go over to their website to secure his website and have a great explanation for it.
And in my opinion, the best thing about secure over the other messaging apps that are out there is that you can communicate securely even if the recipient of your message does not use secure.
Basically, you send the message to them.
Let's say you send a text and it sends them a link.
They click on that link and it establishes a secure connection that goes through Switzerland so that you can chat with them securely and privately even if they don't have secure themselves.
So go on over to secure.com which is S-E-K-U-R dot com and use promo code Roman to save 25% off.
Their services don't cost that much.
It's only $5 for the messenger and $10 for the email and the messenger package and you can even save 25% off when you use the promo code Roman.
Now Secure, thank you so much for sponsoring our episode.
Now Roman in the studio, back to you.
And now let's talk about Pennsylvania.
As we've already discussed in a previous episode, at the end of last week, a state senator out in Pennsylvania, he sent letters to several counties and officially triggered a probe of the 2020 election.
He triggered a forensic audit.
In that letter, the senator, who, by the way, is named Doug Mastriano, he's a Republican, he requested all of the documents, all of the records, as well as all of the voting machines, as well as the tabulators that were used during the 2020 contest.
However, it looks like the executive branch of the government, which in Pennsylvania is currently in the hands of the Democrats, has different ideas.
That's because three days ago, Pennsylvania's Department of State, which is the agency that's in charge of elections, they issued this directive right here, which directs the local counties in Pennsylvania, that they, and this is a quote, that they shall not provide third parties with any access to allow them to examine either the voting machines or any of their components, that they shall not provide third parties with any access to allow them to examine either
Furthermore, this directive says that if the counties do hand over their voting machines for inspection, then the equipment will, and this is a quote, will be considered no longer secure or reliable to use in subsequent elections.
They are basically saying that they would decertify the equipment if the county were to hand it over for a forensic audit Which would then force the county to purchase new equipment, which can cost millions of dollars in taxpayer money.
Now, in terms of their reasoning, here is what the State Department wrote.
And just for your reference, by the way, this letter was written by Pennsylvania's Secretary of State, and she's a Democrat.
And here's what the letter says.
Such access by third parties undermines chain of custody requirements and strict access limitations necessary to prevent both intentional and inadvertent tampering with electronic voting systems.
It also jeopardizes the security and integrity of the systems and will prevent electronic voting system vendors from affirming that the systems continue to meet Commonwealth Security Standards and U.S. Election Assistance Commission certification.
Now, Pennsylvania has a similar situation to Arizona, which is that while the Secretary of State's office is Democrat, the legislature is majority Republican.
And so in response to this letter, which essentially says that the election equipment cannot be forensically examined, the president of the Pennsylvania Senate, Mr.
Jake Corman, he's a Republican, he made this statement.
This directive is an attack on the General Assembly's power to review, investigate, and legislate in matters within its legislative authority, which includes Pennsylvania's election system.
The legislature has clear authority, both statutorily and constitutionally, to provide oversight and issue subpoenas.
This directive tramples those rights which were specifically put in place to prevent potential abuses and overreach by the executive branch.
Now, regardless of this directive right here that was issued by the Secretary of State's office, the counties have until July 31st to either hand over the equipment or provide a plan for handing it over.
If they don't comply by July 31st, which is of course at the end of this month, what will likely happen is that the Pennsylvania Senate will issue subpoenas in order for them to be ultimately handover.
Now, we here at the Epoch Times, we wanted to get an idea of what the counties are ultimately going to do, whether they're going to hand over these machines or not, and so we reached out to them for comment.
And one of the counties got back to us.
Officials over in Philadelphia counties, they sent us an email as a response, and here's part of what it said.
And so it looks like they are still considering their options.
Also worth noting is that Pennsylvania's Attorney General, Mr.
Josh Shapiro, he's a Democrat, and he said that he is prepared to go to court in order to block the audit of the Pennsylvania's election equipment.
And so it looks like we might see a situation similar to what happened over in Arizona, where just getting the forensic audit started, we're just getting it off the ground, took about five to six months of legal back and forth.
Now, of course, we'll keep you abreast of the story as it's developing.
And if you'd like to read more about what's happening, rather what's happened so far, including if you'd like to read this full letter right here from the State Department, all that will be in the description box below this video for you to check out, which, by the way, is that same little description box that is right below that like button that I hope you take a quick moment to smash.
Because it goes without saying that videos that are like this, talking honestly and openly about what is happening in this world, are routinely censored by big tech giants like YouTube.
However, when you smash that like button, you are forcing the YouTube algorithm.
You're forcing basically the same algorithm that suppresses our videos You're forcing that algorithm to share our video out to potentially thousands of more people, letting the truth be known far and wide.
And now let's talk a bit about Cuba.
Just yesterday, thousands of people took to the streets in several cities and towns across Cuba to protest against the Communist Party's human rights abuses, against the general lack of freedom, and against the disastrous economic situation that has been present in Cuba over the last six decades, but has dramatically worsened over the last several weeks.
In short, the Cuban people are protesting against 62 years of socialist and communist repression by the ruling regime.
Now, to give you a bit of context about what has been happening in Cuba over the last six decades, in case you're not aware, our team, a few months ago, we actually went down to Miami and we created a short video to set the stage for you.
Take a look.
Because many Cuban Americans who are living in Miami either escaped from communist Cuba or had parents who did.
And as a result, they are deeply suspicious of leftist policy positions.
They remember that before the communist revolution in 1959, Cuba was a relatively rich country.
Certainly there were some deep inequalities, particularly between the cities and the countryside, as well as between different racial groups, but Cuba is still ranked fifth in the hemisphere in per capita income, third in life expectancy, second in per capita ownership of cars, and first in TV ownership.
But within two years of the revolution, Castro's regime confiscated more than $25 billion worth of private property owned by Cubans.
And today, Cuba ranks second to last in economic freedom in the Americas, only ahead of Venezuela.
Many of the Cuban Americans who are living in Miami were among the half a million that ended up fleeing Cuba over the last two decades post-revolution.
When people go, they usually go just to Havana and they see like the beautiful touristy part that's actually up, the government does keep up and It's pain and everything, but once you go inside to the actual streets of Cuba, you see the buildings are crumbling.
I'm Barbara Lopez and I'm a second generation Cuban American.
You know, these are buildings that should be condemned and unlivable, but the Cuban people have no other choice than to live in these.
Because they don't have any money.
They don't have any way, anywhere else to go.
And, you know, they don't, there's what they call pagones.
Every night for a certain amount of time, I think it's like four or five hours, that the whole Cuban country, like different provinces, they shut off the lights, electricity, completely.
And that's supposed to save money and the water.
You see how they live, you know, they're drinking dirty water, their clothing, everything.
They're given to their senpai, their families here.
And now, as of just yesterday, Cubans across the country are rising up.
Take a look.
There are many videos uploaded online which appear to show demonstrations in several towns and cities, including even Havana, which is the capital of Cuba.
And people can be heard chanting things like, we're not afraid, we want freedom, and even calling for the end of the dictatorship.
One group of protesters appears to have actually taken over a local Communist Party office.
And then in Havana, outside of the Communist Party headquarters, they're chanting simply, Cuba isn't yours.
And the protests appear to be extremely widespread, as even in small towns and cities, people can be seen marching through the streets with a Cuban national flag and chanting libertad, which means liberty.
Now, down in Florida, the Cuban-American community here in America, down in Miami, they were celebrating what's happening over in Cuba.
And they're seeing on the streets celebrating, waving both the American as well as the Cuban national flag.
And furthermore, the mayor of Miami, he came out yesterday and he said this, The regime must end now.
It is not negotiable.
We ask for an international intervention led by the United States to protect the Cuban people from a bloodbath.
Cubans are worthy and ready to rule themselves without tyranny.
It can end today, and it must end today.
Now, in that speech, he referred to a bloodbath.
And unfortunately, although frankly as expected, the current president of Cuba, Miguel Diaz-Canel, he's also the first secretary of the Communist Party, he came out and he used the often repeated Marxist government talking point that these protests were initiated by an American smear campaign.
Basically, it's foreign interference, and he labeled all of these protesters as insurrectionists.
Furthermore, he said this while speaking on state-run TV. The order of combat is given.
The revolutionaries take to the streets.
And indeed, according to video footage that we were able to find online, the Cuban security forces, they came into action, and they began to disperse the demonstrators, beat the protesters, as well as arrest them and take them away.
For instance, here's one video shared by Marco Rubio, which shows some of these security forces, and above the video he wrote, Here come the communist repression squads in Cuba, still largely being ignored so far by the U.S. corporate media outlets.
Now, this is a very large and developing story.
In fact, it's happening right now as you're probably watching this video, definitely as we're making this video.
And...
Unfortunately, they have been labeled as insurrectionists.
They're being detained.
And like I mentioned earlier, the internet looks like it's coming down.
People are not able to communicate with either each other or get things out into the outside world.
However, we will be keeping a close eye on what's happening in Cuba and reporting to you any developments as they're coming about.
And I'd like to mention something.
As you're watching what's unfolding over in Cuba, keep in mind two things.
First of all, if they are successful in getting rid of the communist regime, which again has been in power for 62 years, that would change the very dynamics of what is happening across Latin America.
That's because the Castro regime has, for decades now, supported communist insurgencies over in Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Nicaragua, and so on, and many other countries.
If the Cuban Communist Party were to indeed fall, then the Marxist and the socialist groups scattered around Central and South America, they would lose their major backer.
And then the second thing to remember is that as the United States currently is flirting with socialism, consider what's happening over in Cuba.
Consider also what's happening in Hong Kong as well, or look into the situation in China or North Korea.
There's a really great, in my opinion, saying that I once heard, although I looked into it and I was never able to figure out who initially said it, but it's a very wise saying.
And the saying goes, you can vote your way into communism, but your grandkids will have to shoot their way out.
And when you look at history, there's a lot of truth to that statement.
Now, if you'd like to follow what's going on in Cuba right now, I'll throw a link to some resources down there in the description box below this video for you to check out.
And lastly, I'd like to mention, as I already mentioned in several previous episodes, on the very same day that Joe Biden was sworn into office, YouTube made the unilateral decision to demonetize our program.
We can now no longer run any ads before, during, or after our episodes, and the Super Chat feature has just been disabled.
They essentially are snuffing out our ability to monetize our content, which, in my opinion, is an act of trying to snuffing out our independent journalism.
However, we here at the Epoch Times, we did not take this lying down.
We took action, and we created something very cool.
It's called EpicTV.
It's our brand new no-centorship video platform where you can find all of the awesome Epoch Times video programs, like the Larry Elder Show and a bunch of new programs, like Counter Culture with Danielle D'Souza, Cash's Corner with Cash Patel, Real Talk with Wayne Dupree, California Insider, China in Focus, and, of course, there's our show, Facts Matter, and on there China in Focus, and, of course, there's our show, Facts Matter, and on there we'll publish exclusive episodes that, frankly, I just don't feel comfortable publishing here on YouTube due So, again, the link to EpicTV will be right there at the top of the description box.
I hope you click on it.
I hope you check it out.
And I hope that you join us on this journey of exploring this beautiful, beautiful world through honest journalism that is based in truth and tradition.
Now lastly, if you haven't already, smash that like button for the YouTube algorithm.
Subscribe to this YouTube channel if you haven't already in order to get honest news content delivered directly into your YouTube feed while you still can.
If you have an Instagram account, follow me at EpicTimesRoman for behind-the-scenes stuff as well as research as I'm working on it.
Also, you know what?
If anything ever happens here on YouTube, we have a newsletter that you can subscribe to as well.
I'll throw a link to it in the description box below.
Just subscribe to it.
We don't spam you with too many messages, but if anything ever happens here, we can send you links to our videos wherever we decide to publish them later.
And then, later, until next time, I'm your host, Roman, from the Epoch Times.
▲
Export Selection