(0:06 – 0:42) Hello friends, Ashley Leppert here, author of The Hurricane Within, Volume 1 and 2. Take a moment and go to GeneValentino.com and subscribe so you can watch all the latest Grassroots Truthcast podcasts. See you soon friends. Today, in 2024, we find ourselves at a pivotal moment where the call for unity, freedom, and a better future is heard louder than ever.

(0:44 – 1:02) For more than 10 years, Patriot Mobile has been committed to supporting the values that make our nation great. With dependable plans and reliable nationwide coverage, Patriot Mobile isn’t just a wireless service. It’s a call to action for those who believe in the American dream.

(1:04 – 1:14) Because this year isn’t just a year. It’s the most important year since the founding of our nation. Choose a wireless carrier that shares your values.

(1:16 – 1:27) Choose Patriot Mobile. Well, hello and welcome back to Common Sense. And to Wendy Bell.

(1:28 – 1:40) You know, that debacle that happened three months ago this week. A lethal kinetic attack against narcoterrorists transporting drugs across the Caribbean Sea. Their vessel was obliterated, but two men survived the explosion.

(1:40 – 1:58) And according to The Washington Post, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth gave the order to kill them all. At this point, a special operations commander followed the Secretary’s orders. Team 6 finished the job, destroying the surviving drug traffickers out of the water.

(1:59 – 2:12) Sounds like a war crime, says Hakeem Jeffries. You can’t do that sort of thing, cried Senator Chris Van Hollen. And Senator Dick Blumenthal went so far as to suggest that Hegseth should resign.

(2:12 – 2:25) Or at least step away from his duties while the story is investigated. Oh, Dick. Why investigate when you can ask the Secretary yourself? Which one reporter did this week at a presidential cabinet meeting.

(2:26 – 3:13) Here it goes. Wow. That didn’t go well for The Washington Post, did it? Their fake news that Pete Hegseth said kill them all.

(3:14 – 3:22) He was even called out by Greece. Let’s go back to our panel. Gene Valentino hosts the Grassroots Truthcast podcast.

(3:23 – 3:30) Wendy Patrick hosts Today with Dr. Wendy on KCBQ Radio, The Answer. I just learned it by that. KCBQ.

(3:30 – 3:36) And Ike Wingate hosts the Ike Wingate Show podcast. He’s also a contributor here at Newsmax. It is great to have you back.

(3:37 – 3:47) Let’s start with you, Wendy. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. You heard what he said. I didn’t order the attack on the two survivors, but I support the admiral who did.

(3:47 – 3:59) Since when has the American military been criticized for finishing the job? Yeah. He really put his journalistic skills to use in responding to that. And he’s had to lately.

(3:59 – 4:06) He’s had to. Because you need good reporting to get to the bottom of this. And some of his detractors on the left do not like Pete Hegseth.

(4:06 – 4:20) They are not losing sleep over the fact that we’re bombing drug boats to prevent lethal doses of narcotics from reaching American soil and killing thousands and thousands of people. They don’t like Pete. They don’t like that he’s Secretary of War.

(4:20 – 4:40) They didn’t vote for him. They didn’t vote to confirm him. And now here, through the fog of war, we are second guessing what he could or could not see when he basically supported, we can call it finishing the job, we can call it anything you like, but this is not something that would have been objective, certainly, if the circumstances had been different and the tables had been turned.

(4:40 – 4:52) Because we are preventing something from reaching our soil that is going to destroy countless lives. Everybody’s for that safety. And Gene, listen to what The Washington Post has reported.

(4:52 – 5:03) It’s so crazy that now even The New York Times is debunking it. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a directive, according to two people with direct knowledge of the operation. And the order was to kill them all.

(5:05 – 5:17) One of them said, so, Gene, you have anonymous sources, you have hearsay, you have rumor. Those are Washington Post facts. War crime accusations are very serious.

(5:17 – 5:37) They can be demoralizing to the military. Is that the point, Gene? Look, Wendy, Barack Obama killed hundreds of innocent civilians in drone strikes. Not a word from the Libyans or anybody else about war crimes for them.

(5:38 – 6:06) Where was Blumenthal then when that was going on? Senator Cotton saw the private videos and said a second, third, and fourth assault would have been justified. It was within their legal permit. And here is Pete Hegseth and the president having to defend themselves from these counter attacks that, again, are going to take your attention off of their own screw up.

(6:06 – 6:23) These lawmakers need to get back to work and put in place some laws like a constitutional amendment to balance the budget that they’re screwing up. Not to mention six other things. I want to use that, Vexatious.

(6:23 – 6:47) Ike, you’re going to have to leave that in your answer to this next question. Has the fake news and the noise that Hegseth has endured for blowing up narcoterrorists and putting them on the floor of the oceans? Has it caught landing? Has the story had enough people to think that perhaps what the Secretary of War is doing is bad? Because the kind of data has dipped into the water to find out. Check this out.

(6:49 – 7:05) Pete Hegseth, I said it at the beginning of this, has generated so much interest, far more interest than the Secretary of Defense. I was only interested in the votes that asked the popularity rate of the Secretaries. There have been at least 10 in terms of Pete Hegseth. There was zero for Lloyd Austin. Esper had zero.

(7:06 – 7:25) Mad Dog, Jim Mattis, there were only two. This is extremely unusual for a Secretary of Defense to generate so much interest, especially when we are not in a time of war. Ike, aren’t they polling to see if their fake narratives are working? That is exactly what they are doing.

(7:25 – 7:49) They are testing the waters, if you will, to see if the Russian is working. Every veteran I’ve had a conversation with loved Pete Hegseth emphatically. And Gene, a special word there, is vexatio vexatio I can’t even say it, I’m not smart enough, that the Democrats are trying to tell us that these are fishing boats.

(7:49 – 8:19) I mean, the Democrats, remember, can’t even identify a woman. They say Biden was mentally competent and you look at the boat and there’s multiple speed engines off and barrels filled with material that came from a drug manufacturing area. For some reason, Democrats want to defend the drug dealers but I think if the Democrats were consistent, they would be arguing that these drugs are ruining fishing or something like that.

(8:19 – 8:28) At least, it would be on brand when they push a boat and there’s a fish walking with a box of cocaine in his mouth. At least, it would be credible. I get it.

(8:29 – 8:37) Wendy, I’ll give you my final 20 seconds. Things are totally insane, yes or no. Yes, and also, hold on a moment, I have 19 seconds left.

(8:37 – 8:50) Let me tell you that litigation is what we normally talk about. But what we’re talking about here and what ruins the boats is very, very different and what I’m saying is they have to have some other reason that they don’t take advantage of it. Nobody takes advantage of it.

(8:50 – 8:57) Do you want to take advantage of it with Peace Texas? It’s different. 100% and that is very well said. I tell you, she is much kinder than I am.

(8:57 – 9:07) Guys, thank you very much for being here. Throughout history, the spirit of patriotism has prevailed. The battles may have changed, but the values remain the same.

(9:08 – 9:43) Today, in 2024, we find ourselves at a pivotal moment, a moment where the call for unity, freedom, and a better future are stronger than ever. For more than 10 years, Patriot Mobile has been committed to supporting the values that make our nation great. With dependable plans and reliable nationwide coverage, Patriot Mobile is not just a service. It’s a call to action for those who believe in the American dream.

(9:44 – 9:53) Because this year isn’t just a year. It’s the most important year since the founding of our nation. Choose a carrier that shares your values. Choose Patriot Mobile.