The Biden administration has now begun releasing Chinese illegal aliens into the U.S., according to reports. Fox News captured Border Patrol releasing Chinese nationals to an NGO in Brownsville, Texas on Tuesday. “CBP sources say they are being released w NTAs (notices to appear) because there are so many crossing and no more space to house them,” reported Fox News correspondent Griff Jenkins. FOX News captures exclusive video of Chinese nationals being released publicly to an NGO in Brownsville, TX. CBP sources say they are being released w NTAs (notices to appear) because there are so many crossing and no more space to house them Jenkins over the weekend reported that a group of Chinese nationals were apprehended at the Rio Grande Valley border. FOX News cameras were rolling as more Chinese nationals illegally cross into the RGV sector this morning… this group of 5 would not say how much they paid to smugglers. The RGV sector seeing a more than 900% increase in Chinese nationals since last year The region has also seen a 900% spike in Chinese nationals crossing the border. The CBP Nationwide Encounters report shows a massive spike in Chinese nationals in 2023 compared to the last three previous years. According to the report, Border Patrol agents apprehended nearly 5,000 Chinese nationals just between October 1, 2022, and February 28, 2023. Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Gloria Chavez claimed CBP apprehended 90 Chinese nationals illegally entering the U.S. last Thursday, the largest one-day apprehension of Chinese nationals at the border since 2010. Cartels have reportedly tapped into the Chinese smuggling market and charge them triple what they charge other migrants because they’re coming from an industrialized first world nation. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/25/biden-administration-is-releasing-horde-of-chinese-illegal-aliens-into-u-s/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

We’ve heard many heartbreaking stories of American tourists venturing into Mexico only to be kidnapped or, worse, killed in crazy cartel drug war battles. It appears these days, no one is safe across the southern border, not even US-owned companies.  Bloomberg reported that Mexican marines and police officers seized US construction firm Vulcan Materials’ port terminal near Playa del Carmen in southern Mexico. Footage from the seizure showed a long line of police and military units entering the property last Tuesday. In a statement, Vulcan Materials claimed that Mexican officials did not possess any legal documentation to warrant the seizure of the terminal. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/25/us-firms-no-longer-safe-in-mexico-as-mexican-army-seizes-us-owned-marine-terminal/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Over the weekend, amid populist howls of outrage that a bailout of SVB would promote moral hazard (in the end depositors did get bailed out with a full recovery, but other unsecured creditors oddly enough would get nothing, while the common stock is a doughnut), we said that while technically true, the events that toppled SVB and now SBNY as well, are really a subsidy for the big banks. Many view what’s happening as a question of moral hazard and a bailout of small banks. It’s really a subsidy of big banks: JPM was solidly green in Friday’s rout https://t.co/GAlJJ2iSLI— zerohedge (@zerohedge) March 12, 2023 Today, one day after many small banks nearly failed amid a surge in deposit outflows, we read that “after the back-to-back collapse of three smaller banks, their biggest US counterparts are seeing a rush of depositors fearful the crisis will spread.” According to Bloomberg, JPMorgan – or as we now call it JPMega – the largest US bank and about to become much, much bigger, alone received billions of dollars in recent days, and Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo & Co. are also seeing higher-than-usual volume. “The top six banks in the US are and have been too big to fail, the financial crisis over 10 years ago demonstrated that,” Michael Imerman, an assistant professor at the University of California Irvine’s business school, told Bloomberg. “So it’s safer to go with a name with higher degree of certainty.” Other banks are seeing increased deposit inflows as well. Citizens Financial Group Inc. announced Monday that it “has seen higher than normal interest from prospective new customers over the past few days,” and that it would temporarily extend branch hours to accommodate. Confirming BBG reporting, the FT writes that “Large US banks are inundated with new depositors as smaller lenders face turmoil“, which of course means that small bank deposits are getting drained. so… small financial institutions are losing deposits quickly https://t.co/suZVs39Rkm— zerohedge (@zerohedge) March 14, 2023 According to the FT report, “large US banks are being inundated with requests from customers trying to transfer funds from smaller lenders, as the failure of Silicon Valley Bank results in what executives say is the biggest movement of deposits in more than a decade.” This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/too-big-to-fail-banks-flooded-with-billion-of-dollars-in-deposits-as-small-bank-run-out-of-cash/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

As Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin once observed, “there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.” The bailout package for Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) introduced by US authorities shows that capitalism in America is “breaking down before our eyes,” billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin has reportedly stated. “The US is supposed to be a capitalist economy, and that’s breaking down before our eyes,” Griffin told a major British business journal during an interview on Monday. The statement came just one day after American regulators promised that all SVB customers — including those who had invested more than the $250,000 limit guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) — will be reimbursed in light of the bank’s collapse. Warning that there’s “been a loss of financial discipline with the government bailing out depositors in full,” Griffin put the blame on regulators, who he said were “the definition of being asleep at the wheel.” If the Biden administration had simply let the banks fail and only backstopped federally-insured accounts, it would have been “a great lesson in moral hazard,” according to the billionaire. Griffin is far from the only influential investor to blast the decision to bail out bankers who decided to bet the farm on the prospect that low interest rates would last for years. “What effectively happened over the weekend is that [Biden] nationalized the American banking system,” Canadian businessman and Shark Tank host Kevin O’Leary told a mainstream US outlet on Monday. “It’s no longer a risk, it’s no longer private in any sense. It is now backstopped by the government, ultimately, the taxpayer. So, it doesn’t matter how bad you are as a bank manager.” O’Leary had previously blasted SVB’s “negligent board of directors” and “idiot management” for the financial fiasco, asking on social media on Sunday, “why should taxpayers bail them out?” A senior Treasury spokesperson insisted Sunday that average Americans wouldn’t end up footing the bill for the bailout: “For the banks that were put into receivership, the FDIC will use funds from the Deposit Insurance Fund to ensure that all of its depositors are made whole. … The Deposit Insurance Fund is bearing the risk. … This is not funds from the taxpayer.” But according to conservative American commentator Liz Wheeler, that’s simply not the case. “The FDIC bailout IS a bailout,” she wrote on Twitter Monday. “It’s not directly from taxpayers. But FDIC is composed of banks. Those banks will foot the bailout bill. Then they’ll pass that cost to consumers. That’s you.” This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/american-capitalism-breaking-down-before-our-eyes-us-billionaire-warns/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

The average household no longer has any practical wealth, says billionaire investor Carl Icahn, who also said inflation is the worst thing an economy can have. Responding to the Silicon Valley Bank fiasco, Icahn pointed out the American economy is “breaking down.” “We’ve been on a spending spree and the rising tide the tide lifts all ships, but a lot of people in our economy are not doing well obviously,” Icahn said on Tuesday. “The net worth of the median household is nothing basically and you you just look at what is going on, I think Powell really has to raise interest rates sooner or later.” “Inflation is the worst thing an economy can have, and I think people underrate that,” Icahn added. “…You’ve gone out on a binge, you’ve spent the family wealth, and you just keep spending.” “At the end, you pay the price for it, and that’s what this country has done.” During another appearance on Fox Business, Icahn warned that the SVB collapse was a sign of things to come. “When things are good, the rising tide lift all boats. But when things start going down, then you see who’s naked,” he told Fox Business on Monday. “You’re going to see a lot of nakedness.” This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/inflation-wiping-out-families-as-economy-breaks-down-says-carl-icahn/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Six months before its collapse, Signature Bank chairman Scott Shay hosted a “know your pronouns” company seminar during which employers were lectured on how to pronounce “gender-neutral pronouns” such as “Ze” and “Hir”. Maybe they should have been concentrating on more important matters. Signature Bank was seized by the feds on Sunday after the closure of Silicon Valley Bank prompted nervous customers to withdraw more than $10 billion in deposits, with the bank’s failure representing the third largest in U.S. financial history. The “Know Your Pronouns” symposium was part of Signature Bank’s “Social Impact” series and also involved Finn Brigham, a Manhattan-based corporate consulate on gender issues who was described as a “genderqueer trans masculine person” during the event. Referring to former Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), Shay bragged about how Signature Bank was “the first bank in the United States to have an openly gay man on our board.” Staff were taught how to properly use the pronouns she, hers, he, his, they, them, ze, and hir by Brigham, who stated, “I don’t know if there’s anyone in the Signature Bank world, but probably you have clients that use ‘they’/’ them’ as pronouns. They’re gender-neutral pronouns on purpose.” “‘Ze’ is another gender-neutral pronoun,,” he added. “The other part of that would be ‘hir’ — spelled H-I-R.” Emphasizing its commitment to wokery, Signature Bank promoted “sustainability, diversity, equity, inclusion, community engagement, employee development, employee health and safety, and any other environmental, social, or governance-related initiatives.” As we highlighted yesterday, Signature Bank wasted millions of dollars creating cringeworthy, woke music videos & TV shows about themselves, prompting critics to ask whether the cash could have been used more wisely elsewhere. The bank’s commitment to regime narratives was also reinforced when it closed down Donald Trump’s accounts following the incident at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Maybe the lesson should be don’t put your money in woke banks, but given that virtually all of them are the same, that’s a difficult task to accomplish. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/signature-bank-gave-lecture-on-gender-pronouns-6-months-before-collapse/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Southern cartels are reportedly offering money to American teenagers via social media apps to smuggle illegal immigrants across the US border, Fox News claimed on Wednesday, citing various ads. According to the broadcaster’s assertions, criminals pay adolescents and young people at least $3,000 a ride to pick up a group of migrants approaching the US border. The “quest” is to pass checkpoints in a vehicle loaded with migrants and drop them off at a pre-specified location, from where the immigrants are purportedly taken by a cartel member to hiding places, scattered throughout the border. As Fox News also reported, children often use their parents’ cars without asking permission and adults sometimes are not aware of the child’s profitable “hobby.” The US Border patrol, distracted by an overwhelming influx of minor migrants, does not immediately react to such breaches, claims the media outlet story. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey announced on Tuesday that he would deploy 250 National Guard troops to the state’s border with Mexico “to support law enforcement efforts,” adding that there is “no action” foreseen from the federal government. Earlier, a number of Republican senators visited the Southern border and reported that they had encountered what they described as “human traffickers and cartel members,” taunting them from “the other side of the river.” The US border patrol has faced a huge wave of illegal immigration following the Biden administration’s relaxing of the former US president’s strict border policies. To date, the amount of people smuggled into the US is said to exceed statistics over the last 15 years, with recent estimates expecting 150,000 migrants to approach the US border on a monthly basis. Biden has not classified the border situation as a “crisis” despite tense public attention and no official visit to the border has been planned by top administration members. At the same time, Biden has not lifted refuge admissions, standing at 15,000 people per year, although he earlier promised to raise that figure to 62,500. The surge came amid Biden’s moves to overturn the previous administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. So far, the Biden administration has suspended US-Mexico wall construction, along with the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), and allowed unaccompanied migrant children to enter the country, prompting space and personnel shortages in temporary housing facilities. The influx of migrants is also believed to be partially triggered by devastating storms that hit Central America in November 2020, along an adverse economic situation due, in part, to the coronavirus pandemic. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://globalreportage524084185.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/cartels-offering-american-teens-money-via-tiktok-to-smuggle-migrants/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

New research in pre-print publication at the American Heart Association’s journal Circulation shows a link between free spike antigens produced by the mRNA Covid shots and a form of heart inflammation known as myocarditis. Harvard Medical School researchers examined 16 adolescents and young adults hospitalized at Massachusetts General Hospital or Boston Children’s with post-vaccination myocarditis from January 2021-February 2022. The subjects had “markedly elevated levels of full-length spike protein” in their blood, “unbounded by antibodies.” The medical researchers affiliated with the hospitals, however, did not find free-floating spike antigens in the 45 “healthy, asymptomatic, age-matched vaccinated control subjects,” despite “essentially indistinguishable” antibody profiling and T-cell responses between the groups. The medical study’s findings isolated the free spike antigens in the young subjects who developed post-shot heart inflammation. “Immunoprofiling of vaccinated adolescents and young adults revealed that the mRNA vaccine–induced immune responses did not differ between individuals who developed myocarditis and individuals who did not,” the researchers note. “However, free spike antigen was detected in the blood of adolescents and young adults who developed post-mRNA vaccine myocarditis, advancing insight into its potential underlying cause.” The study establishes further linkage between the mRNA shots and an increased risk of myocarditis in young people by providing a potential biomedical causal mechanism. In October, Florida’s State Health Officer & Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo, M.D., issued guidance that recommended against mRNA shots being given to healthy adults between the ages of 18 and 40. “The Florida Department of Health (Department) conducted an analysis through a self-controlled case series, which is a technique originally developed to evaluate vaccine safety,” Ladapo announced by press release. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Over the last several months, consumer debt has climbed at a steep, steady pace as Americans struggle with rising prices. November was no different, with consumers piling on another $27.9 billion in debt. With the 7.1% increase in consumer debt in November, Americans now owe a record $4.76 trillion, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve. This is a big problem for the Fed as it tries to battle rising prices with interest rate hikes. The inflation that the central bank created is forcing people to go deeper into debt. Meanwhile, the inflation fight is making debt more and more expensive. The Federal Reserve consumer debt figures include credit card debt, student loans, and auto loans, but do not factor in mortgage debt. When you include mortgages, US consumers are buried under more than $16.5 trillion in debt. Americans are running up credit card balances at a dizzying pace. In November, revolving credit increased by $16.4 billion. With that 16.9% increase, Americans now owe nearly $1.19 trillion in revolving debt. To put the increase into perspective, the annual increase in 2019, prior to the pandemic, was 3.6%. It’s pretty clear that with stimulus money long gone, Americans have turned to plastic in order to make ends meet as prices continue to skyrocket. The rapidly growing levels of credit card debt should raise eyebrows, but as ZeroHedge pointed out in a tweet, the real problem is the double whammy of rising debt and interest rates. Average credit card interest rates have eclipsed the record high of 17.87%. The average annual percentage rates (APR) currently stand at 19.59%. NBC News reveals just how much rising interest rates are costing indebted consumers. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2023/01/11/rising-consumer-debt-interest-rates-are-a-ticking-time-bomb/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Beijing’s Defense Ministry says deeper ties would help build a “China-Arab community with a shared future” The Chinese Defense Ministry has signaled its readiness to strengthen military cooperation with the Gulf states in order to promote “world peace.” The statement came weeks after President Xi Jinping attended the first China-Arab States Summit and the China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Saudi Arabia. When asked by a journalist on Thursday about the “eight joint actions” proposed by Xi at the meetings, Defense Ministry spokesperson Tan Kefei said: “The Chinese military is willing to work with the militaries of Arab countries” to “jointly promote global security initiatives,” among other things. Deeper ties would contribute positively to “the building of a China-Arab community with a shared future,” he added. Tan went on to describe the Chinese Army as well as those of Arab nations as “important forces for maintaining world peace and stability.” He noted that Beijing and regional powers have shared military technology and held joint drills in recent years. According to the ministry’s spokesperson, this “fruitful cooperation” has helped build “strategic mutual trust” between China and Arab countries. President Xi was on an official visit to Riyadh at the invitation of King Salman from December 7-10. Speaking at the Chinese-Arab summit, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman revealed that discussions had been held regarding the “creation of a free-trade zone between China and the countries of the Persian Gulf.” On top of that, the Gulf states and China confirmed plans to jointly work toward solving “problems of food and energy security,” as well as cooperating on supply chains, the crown prince added. Beijing and Riyadh signed a number of agreements and memorandums of understanding as a result. The Chinese head of state also held a separate meeting with his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/30/china-reveals-plans-for-military-cooperation-with-arab-states/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Boutique Ukrainian law firm T&M has launched an appalling new service allowing residents of Western European countries to “cleanse Europe of rashists,” a reference to the derogatory neologism used by officials in Kiev, which combines the words “Russian” and “fascist.” Titled “give in charge rashist” (apparently a bad translation of the Ukrainian title “turn in a rashist”), the webportal invites visitors who are “tired of potential invaders living near you” to “let us know and we will try to solve this issue in the legal field.” “We are a team of lawyers who decided to use legal methods to cleanse Europe of potential invaders,” the site explains. “No one will know who surrendered the rashist. It's completely free. You pay nothing, but you get a bonus to karma. You are making a personal contribution to a peaceful future.” Reporting a “possible aggressor” is said to be “easy.” Concerned citizens can easily use a form to anonymously submit the names and social media accounts of Russian citizens living in any European country, who may be “potentially dangerous” and a “carrier of propaganda and violence.” In return, the Lviv-based T&M “do everything to ensure that the relevant European authorities check the legality of such a person's stay in Europe,” and ”send a corresponding statement to the state authorities of the country in which the presence of a potentially dangerous rashist was reported.” The obvious desired end result is that the Russian in question will be arrested and deported, or perhaps even worse. A disclaimer at the bottom of the page states the service “is not intended to incite ethnic, racial, religious or other enmity,” and only serves to bring its stated targets “to justice.” This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/30/ukrainian-law-firm-runs-a-campaign-targeting-and-hunting-ordinary-russians-in-western-europe/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

The head of the country’s radiation protection office says the Ukraine conflict could cause a wide range of catastrophes Residents in Germany must make preparations for nuclear emergencies, the President of the Federal Office for Radiation Protection, Inge Paulini, warned on Wednesday. In an interview with Funke media group newspapers, Paulini pointed out that “radiation does not stop at the borders,” and claimed that the ongoing military conflict between Moscow and Kiev has “made it clear to the general public that we have to be and remain prepared for a wide variety of nuclear emergencies.” Russia has repeatedly insisted that it does not intend to use atomic weapons in Ukraine and has referred to its nuclear doctrine which only allows the use of such munitions in a retaliatory fashion or in the case the country is faced with an existential threat from conventional warfare. Paulini also criticized Germany’s neighbors who have not phased out nuclear energy from their power grid. “On the contrary, many of our neighboring countries are planning new power plants,” she said, warning of the risks of accidents at these facilities, which could affect all of Europe. Germany in recent years has launched an initiative to wean itself off of nuclear energy, with the country’s Green Party pointing to the potentially catastrophic risks associated with producing it. The nation only has three operational nuclear power plants remaining after MPs voted in November to extend their operations until April 2023 in light of the ongoing energy crisis in Europe. Meanwhile, vice president of the Bundestag and FDP member Wolfgang Kubicki has blasted the government’s refusal to revise its overall approach to nuclear power plants and has warned of a potential default unless something is done to address the energy crisis. “We don’t want gas and oil supplies from Russia any more, at the same time our ‘green’ friends are restarting coal-fired power plants, while preventing a reasonable extension of the life of nuclear power plants,” Kubicki said earlier this week. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/30/germany-tell-residents-to-prepare-for-nuclear-emergencies/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

The three-time World Cup winner is regarded by many as the greatest player of all time. The world of football is in mourning after it was confirmed that Brazilian legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pele, has died aged 82. Pele’s passing at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Brazil’s largest city follows a prolonged period of ill-health and a battle with colon cancer. The football icon had a tumor removed from his colon in September last year, and had been visiting the hospital on a regular basis. Fresh fears for his health emerged when he was readmitted for treatment in November. Reports followed that Pele had been moved to palliative care due to chemotherapy treatment no longer having the required effect. Doctors had announced earlier in December that the disease was progressing, prompting major fears surrounding the three-time World Cup winner’s condition. It was confirmed on Thursday that the football icon had passed away. Pele is survived by his third wife Marcia Aoki and seven children. A prolific goalscorer during his playing days, Pele is regarded by many as among the finest footballers – if not the finest – of all time. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/30/brazilian-football-icon-and-footballs-first-global-superstar-pele-dies-aged-82/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Ukraine’s corrupt oligarchs have diverted much of the financial support sent to Kiev Since the beginning of Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine, the US, EU, and their allies have provided Kiev with $126 billion worth of aid, a number almost equal to the country’s entire GDP. Moreover, millions of Ukrainians have found refuge in the EU, where they were given housing, food, work permits, and emotional support. The scope is huge, even by Western standards. Considering that the bloc has been funding Kiev while coping with an economic and energy crisis of its own, the assistance is perhaps especially notable. Kiev bases its endless funding requests on the collapse of its economy, due to the war, and its need to “resist Russian aggression.” But is the aid reaching its intended destination? While Ukraine has undergone a general mobilization affecting all men under the age of 60, many former and current high-ranking officials, politicians, businessmen, and oligarchs have moved to safety abroad – mainly to the EU. The mass flight of Ukrainian elites started even prior to the armed conflict. On February 14, 2022, 37 deputies from the Ukrainian president’s parliamentary faction (Servant of the People) suddenly went missing. Had MPs not been banned from leaving the country the very next day, others would have definitely joined them. Meanwhile, former officials and oligarchs enjoyed more freedom to move around. According to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, 20 business jets took off from Kiev’s Boryspol airport on the 14th as well. Tycoons were at the front of the line. Entrepreneur and MP Vadim Novinsky, businessmen Vasily Khmelnitsky and Vadim Stolar, Vadim Nesterenko, and Andrey Stavnitzer all left the country on charter flights. Millionaire politician Igor Abramovich booked a private flight to Austria for 50 people – taking relatives, business partners, and fellow party members aboard. Oligarchs flew from Kiev to Nice, Munich, Vienna,  Cyprus, and other EU destinations. Another group of businessmen took off from Odessa on private planes. The owner of Vostok Bank departed for Israel, while the head of the Transship group flew to Limassol. An ex-governor of the Odessa region, Stalkanat’s Vladimir Nemirovsky, also left the country. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/25/war-for-some-bentleys-for-others-as-americans-send-aid-ukraines-corrupt-elites-are-profiting-from-the-conflict/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

The news cycle has been dominated by coverage of the sudden collapse of FTX, one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, the arrest of its 30 year old founder Sam Bankman Fried and his unexplainable release on a 250 million dollar bond. The crash of FTX has shaken the crypto market, lost institutional investors billions – and individual customers millions – led to official investigations of FTX in several countries, and made some question whether the Bitcoin sphere might crash and burn outright, and perhaps cause wider problems for the financial system. Some take the view that FTX was a fraud all along, ever since its launch in April 2019. If that’s the case, it has grave implications for the US Democratic Party and Ukrainian government, as the company’s corrupt activity may have been used to fund both, openly and secretly. Where’s the money, Zelensky? On March 14, FTX launched a new online portal for cryptocurrency donations, Aid for Ukraine, in partnership with Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation. Through this, crypto traders, both large and small, could donate bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which FTX would convert into cash for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense to spend on weapons and other war-related expenses. Very rapidly, the fund claimed to have amassed “over” $60 million in donations. By April 14, it was reported that just over $45.15 million of that sum had been splurged on digital rifle scopes, thermal imagers, monoculars, rations, armor, helmets, military clothing, tactical backpacks, fuel, communication devices, laptops, drones, medical supplies, and a “worldwide anti-war media campaign.” This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/25/is-there-a-link-between-sam-bankman-fried-ftx-aid-to-ukraine-and-the-democratic-party/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Kiev’s demand for weapons and ammunition has outstripped the available supply The fighting in Ukraine has “exposed flaws in US strategic planning” and “revealed significant gaps” in the US and NATO military industrial base, the Washington Post reported on Friday. As Kiev’s forces consume more ammunition than the West can produce, the Pentagon seeks to cope by training them to fight more like Americans. “Stocks of many key weapons and munitions are near exhaustion, and wait times for new production of missiles stretches for months and, in some cases, years,” the Post noted, as part of a narrative about how the US has funneled some $20 billion in military aid to Kiev just this year. Only $6 billion of that has been in new weapons contracts, while the rest came from the Pentagon stockpiles. The US military-industrial complex can make about 14,000 rounds of ammunition for the 155-mm howitzers, the Post quoted US Army Secretary Christine Wormuth, while Ukrainian forces go through about 6,000 a day during heavy fighting. The US military-industrial complex is “in pretty poor shape right now,” Seth Jones of the Washington-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) told the Post. “We are really low… and we’re not even fighting,” Jones said, adding that in scenarios where the US is facing China or Russia in a conventional conflict, “we don’t make it past four or five days in a war game before we run out of precision missiles.” Washington’s allies in Europe are in similar shape, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. Michal Strnad, owner of a Czech ammunition conglomerate, said Ukraine chews through 40,000 rounds a month, while all of the European NATO members put together can produce 300,000 a year. “European production capacity is grossly inadequate,” Strnad said, adding that it would take up to 15 years to restock at current production rates, if the conflict were to somehow end tomorrow. Moscow has repeatedly warned the US and its allies that shipments of increasingly modern and long-range weapons could lead to a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO, and accused the West of prolonging the conflict and causing civilian deaths in Ukraine. While Western officials have demanded a ramp-up of production for months, recent EU legislation blocked many investments into weapons manufacturing by designating it “not sustainable,” according to the Journal. Germany is now in the process of funding a factory in Romania that could produce both NATO and Soviet-caliber ammunition for Ukraine. The Pentagon is trying to deal with the problem by training Ukrainian troops to “fight more like Americans” and use different tactics, according to the Post. “I think if we can train larger formations — companies, battalions — on how to employ fires, create conditions for maneuver, and then be able to maneuver like you’ve seen [the US military] maneuver on the battlefield, then I think we’re in a different place. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/24/nato-armies-drained-by-ukraine-conflict-media/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Members of Congress who declined to stand and applaud on cue for Ukraine’s leader have been branded as traitors, Matt Gaetz says Vladimir Zelensky’s speech to Congress on Wednesday night was a “North Korea-style act” in which US lawmakers were expected to stand and clap for the Ukrainian president or be branded as traitors, Representative Matt Gaetz has claimed. Gaetz (Florida) was among several Republicans, including Representatives Jim Jordan (Ohio) and Lauren Boebert (Colorado), who were called out by Newsweek and other media outlets for remaining seated while other lawmakers gave Zelensky multiple standing ovations. GOP Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri and others who didn’t attend the Ukrainian leader’s latest appeal for additional aid to fight Russia were also criticized. “When we say you shouldn’t send endless amounts of money to this place where we’re exacerbating death and conflict, it’s like we’re traitors to the movement because Lauren Boebert and I didn’t stand up in some sort of North Korea-style performance,” Gaetz said on Thursday night in a Fox News interview. Historian and NBC News contributor Michael Beschloss was among the media figures who condemned those who weren’t sufficiently enthusiastic about Zelensky’s visit to Washington. He demanded to know “exactly why” some members of Congress refused to clap. “I’d like to know why that was for two reasons,” he said on MSNBC. “Number one: You’re a public servant, we’re allowed to know those things. You’re supposed to tell us if you’re serving in Congress what the reason was. Do you love Putin, or are you just opposed to democracy, or is there something else?” On Thursday, the Senate passed a $1.7 trillion spending bill that included nearly $45 billion in new funding for Ukraine. Congress has now approved about $100 billion for US assistance to Ukraine since Russia launched its military offensive against Kiev in February. Gaetz speculated that congressional leaders saw Zelensky’s visit to Washington as “air cover” for an “indefensible” spending bill. “I feel no compunction to go out and applaud some foreign leader from a historically corrupt country who is begging for more than the $100 billion that the Congress has already set to send them.” This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/24/us-lawmaker-calls-zelenskys-speech-a-north-korea-style-act/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

A cursory look at the documents regarding the foundation of the Ukrainian state would make it appear quite European and democratic, which is exactly the reason why many might have dismissed Vladimir Putin’s talk about neo-Nazis in Ukraine as rhetoric and propaganda. The truth, however, is much more complicated and cannot be summarized by saying "Ukrainian president is Jewish, and thus all allegations are untrue". Tell me who your heroes are, and I will tell you who you are One historical figure who has emerged as a hero in post-Maidan Ukraine is Stepan Bandera, a leader and ideologist of the militant wing of the far-right Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN). Today, there are streets named after him, people sing songs in his honor and carry his portrait. Born in Galicia (at the time part of Austria-Hungary) on January 1, 1909, Stepan Bandera was tried on terrorism charges in Poland on multiple occasions. In 1934, he was sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. He served his sentence until 1939, when he was released following the German invasion of Poland. Bandera spent his younger years building a career in nationalist organizations. In 1928, he joined the Ukrainian Military Organization, and in 1929, he became a member of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists where he quickly gained influence. He was instrumental in the split of the organization into two factions in February 1940. Bandera became the leader of the more radical OUN-B, while more moderate members supported Andriy Melnyk's OUN-M. Both factions supported Hitler’s Third Reich and collaborated with the Germans during WWII. Bandera personally negotiated the creation of the "Ukrainian Legion" under German command that was finally organized as two units. One, commanded by Roman Shukhevych became known as Nachtigall Battalion, and the other, commanded by Richard Yary, was the Roland Battalion. Both were the subunits under command of the Abwehr (the German military-intelligence service) special operation unit Brandenburgers. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/25/the-uncomfortable-truth-about-nazi-influence-in-modern-day-ukraine/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

Juan Sinmiedo, who runs a popular Telegram channel documenting human rights abuses in Ukraine, published an explosive interview with ‘Boneface’ – real name Kent McLellan – a 32-year-old Neo-Nazi from Florida who joined the fascist volunteer Right Sector group during the Donbass war, and returned to fight alongside the Azov Battalion in January 2022. The discussion with McLellan shatters many myths and lies that have been circulated about the Maidan coup, the current conflict in Ukraine, and the disturbingly strong influence of nationalist movements within the country. McLellan, the son of the front man of Neo-Nazi rock band Brutal Attack, got involved with far-right activism while just a teenager, and had numerous run-ins with the law for subversive, racially-charged activities. He and other members of the racist organization American Front were detained by the FBI in May 2012, for preparing terrorist acts against ethnic minorities in Florida. It was this background that led him to travel to Ukraine in 2014. The American fascist circles he moved in had direct links and regular contact with nationalist groups at the forefront of the Maidan, which at the time were hosting large public events “nearly daily in every Oblast that wasn't seeing war.” As did far-right movements in many other nearby countries, including Finland, Georgia, and Latvia. It seems the US government approved of the presence of McLellan and others in Ukraine at that time. He says he got caught – it’s not clear by whom or what – teaching Ukrainians DNS poisoning, and the Americans “wanted to sit in and help.” “They didn't want names or anything, but they wanted to monitor the situation. Without this backing I would've been charged with violation of [the] American neutrality act,” McLellan claims. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://freedomreportage.com/2022/12/25/all-the-real-skinheads-went-to-ukraine-an-american-neo-nazi-outlines-the-crimes-of-his-ukrainian-colleagues/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support

The Ukrainian leader promised to handle American taxpayer dollars “in the most responsible way” Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky arrived in Washington in what US media described as a secretly arranged visit, though word of it was leaked to select outlets on Tuesday. He is expected to address Congress in the evening, urging the passage of a $1.7 trillion spending bill that includes $45 billion earmarked for Ukraine in 2023. In a video released on Tuesday, he said Ukraine was grateful for all the aid from the West but it was “not enough.” A battery of Patriot air defense missiles is among the $1.85 billion in military aid for Ukraine the Pentagon announced earlier in the day, though Biden pointed out that training Ukrainian troops to operate them, which is to take place at a US base in Germany, is “going to take some time.” Zelensky said that once the Patriots arrive, he will ask Biden for more of them. Zelensky addressed a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, urging US lawmakers to drop all their disagreements and unite behind Ukraine, while advocating for the passage of a $1.7 trillion spending bill that includes $45 billion in military and other aid earmarked for Kiev in 2023. The Pentagon has disclosed that the US has sent $20 billion worth of military aid to Ukraine just this year. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu noted earlier on Wednesday that Kiev has already received more than $97 billion worth of weapons and ammunition, and that Russia was already fighting the entire West. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asked all members to attend in person to hear the “historic” speech, which Zelensky delivered in English, repeatedly interrupted by standing ovations. After several minutes of applause, the former actor opened his speech by thanking “all those who value freedom and justice.” “It gives me great pleasure to share our first joint victory: We defeated Russia in the minds of the world,” the Ukrainian leader claimed. He thanked US lawmakers for supporting Kiev financially and militarily against Moscow, but reiterated that more arms are needed to defeat Russia on the battlefield. “We have artillery, yes, thank you… Is it enough? Honestly, not really,” he said interrupted by a burst of laughter. “More cannons and shells are needed.” Zelensky called for unity ahead of a power transition that will put Republicans in charge of the House next year. US congressional support for Ukraine aid has been largely bipartisan, but Republicans have been increasingly critical of the scale of the spending and the lack of oversight to prevent fraud. “Your money is not charity. It’s an investment in the global security and democracy that we handle in the most responsible way,” Zelensky told the audience, to another standing ovation. Earlier this month, the House of Representatives narrowly rejected a bill that called for an audit of Washington’s economic and military assistance to Kiev. The massive scale of US military aid to Ukraine even reportedly put the Pentagon’s own law enforcement agency on high alert for black market sales of weaponry and other potential fraud. Welcoming Zelensky to the Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Pelosi said the mammoth $1.7 trillion spending bill, which contains $45 billion in new aid for Kiev, will “hopefully” be passed within the next 48 hours. Earlier in the day, Zelensky met with President Joe Biden, who promised him that the American people will continue to support Kiev “as long as it takes.” However, when pressed by a reporter at a joint press conference on why the US cannot simply give Ukraine “all capabilities it needs” right away, Biden said the West wants to avoid a direct war with Russia. Moscow has repeatedly warned the US and its allies that shipments of increasingly modern and long-range weapons could lead to a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO, and accused the West of prolonging the conflict and causing needless deaths in Ukraine. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freedom-reportage/support