Securing America with Frank Gaffney Podcast

Paula Broadwell, Gordon Chang

Author of “All In: The Education of David Petraeus” Paula Broadwell takes three segments to explain her new book and what the former Army general did to help advance Afghan security. The book is a case study in transformational leadership and explains how the COIN strategy has helped to increase security while decreasing insurgency attacks. Are we giving our enemies a better option in life than to fight Americans? They need money and they want a sense of belonging, but there must be a better way to make money and feel accepted than fighting us. A difficult aspect to gaining security in Afghanistan is trying to explain western law to a society ruled by Sharia. How do we get people to wrap their minds around the idea of a free and fair legal system?

General Petraeus worked hard to build relationships in the Middle East as well as working with current allies in order to build a stronger coalition against jihad and those that wage it. Our allies do not want us to dumb down our efforts in the region, nor will we, but will our gains be reversed if we leave the country too quickly? As of right now, Afghan security forces are leading 50% of the operations in country, while participating in 100% of them with US forces. Are they ready to take control of their own country?

Why is China buying up gold? The past five months have seen record purchases of gold by China, is it because the government fears the slow down and even reversal of the Chinese economy? Money is leaving the country very quickly and the government is slow in a response, will this cause tougher economic restrictions and if so will the populous turn on the government as a result? This might even cause China to devalue their currency even more, which could prevent a collapse of their economy in the short term but in the longer run will make the demise of the Chinese economy more devastating. China is now taking a hard-line stance against the Philippines growing military relationship with America, what are the implications of an unhappy Beijing? Gordon Chang answers these questions and more in his analysis of the region.

Fred Grandy, Monica Crowley, Randy McDaniel, Christian Whiton

This week, CAIR, a defacto Islamist lobby front group pressured the NYPD police chief, Ray Kelly, to resign.  Reuters reported yesterday that progressive group, VoteVets, wants West Point to ban General William Boykin from speech at a prayer breakfast.  Each group takes issue with free speech under the condition that it addresses the threat doctrine animating terrorism in government counter terrorism training if such speech is associated with Islam in any way.  Former Congressman and Center for Security Policy's Executive Vice President, Fred Grandy, brings his unique expertise on these matters in today's show. Monica Crowley follows Fred in the line up with an up close New Yorker's take on CAIR's attack on Ray Kelly and the NYPD counter terrorist capability.  "What CAIR and other Muslim Brotherhood front groups do in America and do in the West is intimidation." From Monica there is a depth of understanding about why the NYPD is so successful and what it is about there counter terrorism training that has CAIR's ire.  In Kelly's case, it has to do with a film of increasing curiosity called The Third Jihad. These interviews and more are right here! From today's show prep: Christian Whiton segment : North Korea Not A Democracy In its first reaction to news that Kim Jong Il—North Korea’s “Dear Leader” and maximum tyrant—was dead, the White House said that President Obama reaffirmed our “strong commitment to the stability of the Korean peninsula.” This presages continuing an unbroken, bipartisan streak of bad policy in regard to the rogue nuclear state. As usual, when the watchword is “stability,” the result is anything but. First off, expect many in the West to get the transition wrong. Kim Jong Un—the recently deceased dictator’s third son—may be the formal face of the regime. But it’s extremely unlikely the 27-year-old, who wasn’t even groomed for leadership until recently, is going to run the mafia government of North Korea. Kim Jong Il was more than 50 when he took power and had been a longtime understudy of his own father.

Victor Davis Hanson, Walter Pincus,Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin, Roger Noriega

Victor David Hanson weighs in on the President’s State of the Union speech, specifically focusing on the question of whether or not the U.S.  is really on a decline, or as the President put it “anyone who thinks that the United States is on a decline knows nothing.” Hanson then evaluates the current defense budget cuts by the current administration. Is it really a wise way to reduce the deficit? Can the U.S. maintain its military superiority? Can our allies trust and depend on us? Do we owe them any responsibilities?

Walter Pincus sits with Frank to evaluate and analyze the reliability and dependability of the Predator,Reaper and other unmanned vehicles that the government is spending billions on. Are they really reliable and dependable? Who is responsible for the lack of quality control of such important vehicles used to fight one of the most important wars for America? How does China play a role in this issue?

Retired Lt. Genral Jerry Boykin talks about the recent raid in Somalia by the Navy Seals. Should the United States troops be involved in such missions; and how would the recent defense budget cuts affect such operations? Is lily pad strategy the right solution to these dilemmas?

According to President Obama’s State of the Union address, “our ties to the Americas are deeper… anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn’t know what they’re talking about. ” In 2011 Iran has enjoyed more influence in Latin America than ever. In recent years (since 2005) Iran has expanded and intensified the relations and mainly their cooperation among some Latin American countries, such as Venezuela, Cuba, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Bolivia and Brazil. Roger Noriega addresses these situations and provides a deeper analysis about the situation in Latin America, the influence of Iran with special concern in Venezuela and Brazil, and the United States role as in all of these.

Rebecca Heinrichs, Amb. John Bolton, Jim Hanson, Peter Pham

Rebecca Heinrichs expresses her views on the repercussions of Secretary of State Hilary Clinton’s agreement on the European Union’s “Code of Conduct” relating the rules in space. Why would the United States join such a code of conduct? Could this make the U.S. vulnerable in space, and how?

John Bolton, former UN ambassador sits with Fred Grandy to analyze and discuss whether the U.S. is safer and more respected around the world. Is the United States stronger than it was under the last administration? If the U.S. is indeed a stronger and respected nation, why has Iran continuously disregarded the United States’ “no nuclear weapons” warning? Ambassador Bolton analyzes about the consequences of Iran’s threat to shut down the Strait of Hormuz. How will it affect the U.S.? Can the United States avert this threat?

Jim Hanson evaluates the situation in Afghanistan. Has the U.S. crushed the Taliban momentum? Will Afghanistan again become a leader in terrorism around the world? Will Afghanistan attack the United States? Hanson then examines the issue of Afghan security forces turning on and killing their U.S. and NATO trainers.

Dr. Peter Pham sheds light on the matter of an overwhelming onslaught of radical Islam in Nigeria and the terror unleashed by Boko Haram, an Islamist terrorist group in the country. Are there ties between Boko Haram and Al-Shabab? Should the U.S. and the world intervene and provide aid of any kind to Nigeria to deal with this problem?

Tim Sumner, Rep. Todd Akin, Thomas Donnelly, Andy McCarthy

How can a government send its troops to fight an unconventional war against an unconventional enemy and then call them criminals for defending themselves? A Marine unit came under direct fire from al-Qaeda insurgents in the town of Haditha, Iraq and those insurgents were using a local house as their central command for this attack. The Marines were taking heavy casualties (7 KIA and 1 WIA) therefore they stormed the house and killed the insurgents, which is what they were trained to do, but unfortunately 3 civilians were killed in the process. Insurgents use civilians as human shields, which is a war crime itself, yet US troops are held accountable when those civilians become casualties of war. The Rules of Engagement are ambiguous at best when it comes to this situation so how can we question a split-second decision that is made in the heat of combat while your friends are being killed? US Army Sgt. Tim Sumner (Ret.) gives his take on the tragic outcome to this tragic event.

Congressman Todd Akin explains the separation of powers and the Constitutionally divided government of the United States, as well as how Obama is showing his willingness to ignore federal law and the Constitution. How can Congress stop this administration from hurting the US even more? Listen to the interview and found out how our military will be in bigger trouble if Obama gets his way.

The president is accelerating America’s retreat from the world stage and he is not passing the ball to another country, he is just dropping the ball and letting nations fend for themselves. The world has been a relatively peaceful place since America has taken the lead on global security and in order to maintain this level of peace America must stay in the lead. Our national debt will rise under the Obama Administration’s policies and we cannot attempt to offset these rising costs on the back of our national defense. The president wants to cut the DOD by over a trillion dollars, which in terms of defense is huge, but in terms of our overall deficit it is just a spit in the bucket. Tom Donnelly of AEI explains more in his interview with Frank.

Are young Americans ignorant to the threats their country faces? Ron Paul and people like him have a skewed idea of the threats that face America and therefore he cannot assume the role of Commander-in-Chief even if his domestic policies are sound. Liberals are making warfare political and therefore harder to win and that is the point of war. America will keep facing longer engagements and greater casualties because the Left tries to keep putting constraints on our brave men and women in uniform. Andy McCarthy gives a further analysis to this situation.

Ralph Peters, Ehud Yaari, Diana West, Gordon Chang

Lt. Col. (Ret.) Ralph Peters gives an in-depth analysis of the growing threat from Iran. The prospect of some country attacking Iran’s nuclear program is real and almost inevitable. If Israel were to attack Iran unilaterally, Iran would turn to Hezbollah in a counterattack against Israel and then could close the Strait of Hormuz eliciting global pressure against Israel. Israel has the military capability to start a war, but not finish it whereas American has the ability to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities cleanly and can win any conflict against Iran. A war would last a minimum 3-6 months, but with America achieving victory although Iran will inflict some damage to US forces.

Israel relinquished the Gaza Strip in 2005 allowing Hamas to gain control of this region by 2007. Hamas has been able to extend their terrorist activities into the Sinai Peninsula to a point where “Toyota pick-up trucks with machine guns in the back have replaced the camel in the region as the means of transportation for the Bedouin militias.” The radicalization of the populous within the Sinai has rapidly increased since the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. What impact will this have on Israeli security? Ehud Yaari gives his take on this growing threat and its implications beyond the Sinai.

Green-on-blue is a term used to describe Afghan security forces turning on and killing their Western trainers, mostly Americans. Diana West has uncovered over 50 cases of this horrific instance in the last 2 years. As a result of the most recent attack on French trainers, France has suspended their training operations in Afghanistan. It is the policy of both NATO and ISAF not to discuss this issue and essentially “cook the figures” in regard to this matter because they want the public to think the threat in Afghanistan has been mitigated. There are some politicians that do not want to admit there are serious security issues in Afghanistan because they want to push their own political agendas. Hear what else Diana West has to say about this grievous lapse in security.

Who is truly calling the shots in the Chinese government? There is a partial disintegration of China’s central government, giving rise to military officials making policy. China’s thoughts on the nature of warfare against the US are clear, they believe America is vulnerable to financial attacks. Yet on the other hand, China is becoming more dependent on US trade in light of the economic crisis in Europe therefore their economy is surviving on exporting products to America. There are plenty of countries that are willing to give money to the US, making China’s holding of American debt irrelevant. The question is, will China try to engage in economic warfare if given the opportunity? Listen to Gordon Chang’s analysis of the growing Chinese threat and how America can combat the “Red Dragon.”

Fred Grandy, David Yerushalmi, Elbridge Colby, Bill Gertz

Fred Grandy starts today’s show with his weekly wrap-up. Fred gives his analysis on the recent presidential debate as well as Newt Gingrich’s statement pertaining to Sharia. Fred also explains that Afghan Security Forces are turning their weapons on their instructors, US, NATO or French forces. This breach in security needs to be addressed; America is essentially running a de-facto jihad training camp because these jihadists are using American training to kill Americans. Is now really the time to start pulling out of Afghanistan?

David Yerushalmi explains the need for the American Freedom Law Center, which he just founded, as the first Judeo-Christian public interest law firm. The law center focuses on offensive as well as defensive lawfare against the threat from Sharia and the Muslim Brotherhood. Is the threat so great that America needs such organizations? Sharia is an existential threat around the world; it motivates the global jihad and groups such as CAIR, the OIC and the Muslim Brotherhood. The OIC wants to establish anti-blasphemy laws in America, which is the first step to a Sharia compliant government. Will the American government institute such a law that is in direct conflict with the First Amendment? Have there been instances where Sharia has found its way into American courts?

Nuclear arms expert Elbridge Colby spends time with Frank to explain the need to maintain America’s strategic triad, which is our deterrence from a nuclear strike. The triad consists of submarines, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM) and B-52 and B-2 bombers. America must think long term; we do not know what future threats there will be therefore we must maintain this triad to ensure security for America and our allies. Each leg of the triad is used to ensure a quick counterstrike to an attack against homeland America, our forces or our allies. No one can attack America without reprisal and that security must be maintained. We cannot be the only country without nuclear weapons and we cannot convince other nations to remove their weapons, so we must maintain ours. Isn’t it necessary to be able to counter an attack on America?

The triad is cheap in comparison to other programs and force resources. America has not tested a nuclear weapon since 1992, how affective are they at this point? We need to test these systems to ensure they are in proper working condition as well as modernize our force structure. Mr. Colby finishes the interview with his take on the need to develop modern bunker buster bombs as another deterrent so enemies don’t feel they can hide after an attack.

Washington Times columnist Bill Gertz takes us “Inside the Ring.” US military officials are showing concern of the possibility that the president may sign the European Unions’ Code of Conduct, which would curtail American military space technology. What is the real situation with the Code of Conduct? Will the administration sign this agreement and what will that mean for American security? Finally, Bill shares his opinion about the Iranian nuclear situation and the US governments’ passive role on it.

Roger Noriega, Marc Thiessen, Rep. Buck McKeon, Gordon Chang

Ambassador Roger Noriega joins Frank to analyze the role of Iran in Venezuela and the rest of the Latin American region, and how this relationship could affect the United States. Will Latin America wake up and realize that Iran is the real aggressor? Also, Ambassador Noriega talks about the threat to the United States from the relationship between China and Panama. What will happen if the United States loses its allies in Latin America? Can we afford to ignore this threat in our own backyard?

Marc Thiessen sheds light on the incident of Al-Qaeda’s training manual magazine ‘Inspire’ being found at Guantanamo Bay, with one of the Al-Qaeda detainees. How did this anti-U.S. magazine get into a secure facility? Who is responsible for smuggling it to the detainees? Are the detainees at Gitmo getting more privileges than they should? If yes, is it justified? He concludes with his thoughts on the military tribunals under the new guidelines by the administration.

Congressman Buck McKeon, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, spends time with Frank to give his analysis on the president’s recent hollowing out of the military. You can’t just take money from the military because you don’t like what they do or because you want to give people more benefits. America has global responsibilities and our military needs to meet them. The president took the money out of the defense budget, and then built a strategy around what was left instead of making a strategy and building a budget around that. Obama is not saving money; he is just putting it into other programs so how is that really helping our deficit? What is the cost to American security as a result of the president cutting into the bone of the defense budget?

Gordon Chang, expert on Asian affairs, weighs in on the recent rumors of coup attempts in China and provides a brief ‘behind the scenes’ analysis. Is the Chinese military gaining more power over the civilians and diplomats? What does this mean for the U.S.? Gordon then goes on to talk about the implications of the recent nuclear cooperation deal between China and Saudi Arabia; as well as the Obama Administration’s Keystone pipeline decision.  With the current government increasing its dependability on the Middle East for oil, will China be the ultimate winner in this situation? Would sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Iran have serious repercussions on Chinese financial institutions?

Rep. Louie Gohmert, Andy McCarthy, Jim Hanson

United States House of Representatives Louie Gohmert from Texas just came back from leading important discussions overseas in defense our interests in Afghanistan. He starts by explaining the situation in Afghanistan and the incredible work the United States military has done by defeating the Taliban, and how the Obama Administration seems to discount all the hard work of our troops by releasing high ranking Taliban leaders. Representative Gohmert clearly states what will happen if the US releases the Taliban leaders, and the danger it will bring, not only to the United States, but to Afghanistan as well. Will the president follow through with this horrific lack of judgment and release these dangerous terrorists?

Andy McCarthy explains the critical healthcare and foreign policy factor in the current GOP presidential race. Being a former federal prosecutor, McCarthy provides a legal perspective and a sanity check on the recent Marine video and war crimes. Is this truly a war crime or just an immoral act? Is this any worse than how our enemies treat our soldiers?

Jim Hanson shares his opinion about the recent Marine video showing Marines desecrating dead Taliban fighters and what this could mean for the U.S. cause and effort in the region. Hanson gives his analysis on the “Stop Online Privacy Act” and explores alternatives other legislation to provide content security. Could this legislation provide an effective and profitable business model? He concludes the interview with remarks on why men in uniform support Ron Paul’s candidacy over the other GOP presidential nominees.

Kevin Freeman

Financial expert Kevin Freeman spends an entire hour with Frank to explain the idea of Economic Warfare and Financial Terrorism. Was the 2008 financial collapse a result of economic terrorism? There was an unprecedented loss of wealth as a result of this collapse, $13 trillion in US wealth and $53 trillion in global wealth. Back in the 90s, the Chinese military knew they could not fight America in a conventional battle and therefore resorted to economic warfare in order to negate American might. The collapse was a result of Bear Raids where a weak financial house is the target of an attack, in this case Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns. There were some anonymous people who were betting against these financial institutions and ultimately against the market right before the collapse. Was this a planned event? Evidence points to investors in the Middle East as being behind the Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns attacks. Who was responsible and who knew there would be a financial collapse? Kevin Freeman explains the need to deregulate business in order to encourage people to develop their own small business, as well as regulate foreign influence in American markets. There is also no single agency that is tasked with protecting American businesses and markets from financial terrorism. Is America susceptible to another financial attack?