You won’t believe why a former Speaker of the House just got indicted

Former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert was just indicted, and the circumstances are more than a little bizarre. Not only has he been accused of covering up `prior misconduct’ by paying $3.5 million to an unnamed person, he also tried to hide it by withdrawing the funds in amounts below $10,000 (also illegal) and lying to the FBI. Pat has the full story on radio and his reaction.

Get the latest from TheBlaze, and watch Pat's reaction below:

Below is a rough transcript of this segment:

PAT: Pat Gray in for Glenn on the Glenn Beck Program. He's back -- the show will be back together on Monday. 877-727-BECK.

A lot to talk about today as we get into the weekend. Of course, we have the former Speaker Denny Hastert being indicted on charges of -- this is bizarre. It's bank fraud, I guess, now to withdraw -- first of all, if you withdraw more than $10,000, it has to be reported to the federal government.

JEFFY: Right.

PAT: You know, they're looking for drug dealers. Terrorists.

JEFFY: But, my friend, if you withdraw less than $10,000 --

PAT: Then it still has to be reported because now you're skirting the law.

JEFFY: More times than one.

PAT: More times than one. Is that written into the law, that you can't withdraw more than $10,000 and you can't withdraw less than $10,000 more than once?

JEFFY: The indictment -- which is what he did -- the indictment charges him with one count of evading bank regulations by withdrawing -- well, he withdrew $952,000 in increments of less than $10,000 to skirt reporting requirements.

PAT: That's madness! How is that American?

JEFFY: It's not America.

PAT: It's my money. I can withdraw whatever increment I want and do with it whatever I want within the law.

JEFFY: Well, when the FBI comes to you, pal, and says, hey, Pat, what are you doing with that money? Why are you withdrawing it? And you don't tell them the truth, you can be indicted for it.

PAT: Well, the truth is, it's none of your business. I'm not going to tell you what I'm doing with my money. I'm doing whatever I want with my money. Shut up. That's not America.

JEFFY: One count of lying to the FBI about the reason for the unusual withdrawals.

PAT: Wow, that's bad. That is bad.

JEFFY: Each one of those counts, maximum penalty. Five years prison. 250,000 dollar fine.

PAT: Wow. That is crazy. So, anyway, he withdrew $950,000 in small amounts. So he did it over and over again. Now, I don't know what -- he's obviously being blackmailed by somebody.

JEFFY: Some kind of hush money. We don't know what for.

PAT: It would be interesting to know what he did to this unidentified person and they're blackmailing him and he's trying to silence them. So that's a separate issue. I don't know what he did. I don't know what happened there.

But the banking issue is outrageously ridiculous that you can't withdraw -- okay, so there is a regulation in place. We all understand it now. If you take out $10,000 cash, it's going to be reported to the government. But if I withdraw $9,999.99 cents in cash, it's none of your business what I'm doing with it. I don't have to report that. It's $10,000 or more. I didn't take out $10,000 or more. Get off me.

JEFFY: But you know --

PAT: And if I want to do that every day of the week for a year -- if I had that kind of money -- I should be able to.

JEFFY: Well, you can. You can.

PAT: They'll just visit you and ask you what you're doing with it. And it's none of your business what I'm doing with it.

JEFFY: All right. Put your hands behind your back.

PAT: That's exactly what would happen. That's why this is no longer America. That and so many reasons. That's a big one. I don't know what he's doing with the money.

JEFFY: Yeah, and it went way back to his hometown of Yorkville, I guess. Yorkville Illinois. Because it talks about the indictment -- it talks about the -- it said here that the federal prosecutors noted that -- about his ten-year in Yorkville. He was a teacher back in the mid-'60s into the early '80s. And it talked about individual A having known him for almost all his life. So it was something that happened, you know, early on in his life. We don't know what that was. I mean, it could be something someone related to him. It could be something about him. We don't know what that is. However --

PAT: We do know he's being charged with some kind of skirting bank regulation.

JEFFY: Right. Come on.

PAT: Which is madness. That's madness.

JEFFY: Come on.

PAT: We have to revisit that. We must revisit that law, I think.

JEFFY: Oh, my gosh.

PAT: I mean, if you're catching drug dealers, fine. How many drug dealers are --

JEFFY: Former Speakers of the House?

PAT: Not many. No, not many. If the transactions are -- if you're transferring money from the United States to Mexico and on your account it says, Gulf Cartel, maybe we look into that, I don't know.

[laughter]

But American citizens need to be left alone.

Top 5 MOST EVIL taxes the government extorts from you

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"In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes." -Ben Franklin

The injustice of taxation has been a core issue for Americans since the very beginning of our country, and it's a problem we have yet to resolve. This belief was recently reignited in many Americans earlier this month on tax day when the numbers were crunched and it was discovered that the government was somehow owed even more hard-earned money. As Glenn recently discussed on his show, it's getting to be impossible for most Americans to afford to live comfortably, inflation is rising, and our politicians keep getting richer.

The taxpayer's burden is heavier than ever.

The government is not above some real low blows either. While taxes are a necessary evil, some taxes stretch the definition of "necessary" and emphasize the "evil." Here are the top five most despicable taxes that are designed to line the IRS coffers at your expense:

Income Tax

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"It would be a hard government that should tax its people one-tenth part of their income." -Ben Franklin

On February 24th, 2024 we hit a very unfortunate milestone, the 101st anniversary of the 16th Amendment, which authorized federal income tax. Where does the government get the right to steal directly out of your paycheck?

Death Taxes

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"Now my advice for those who die, Declare the pennies on your eyes" -George Harrison

Not even in death can you escape the cold pursuit of the tax collector. It's not good enough that you have to pay taxes on everything you buy and every penny you make your entire life. Now the feds want a nice slice, based on the entire value of your estate, that can be as much as 40 percent. Then the state government gets to stick their slimy fingers all over whatever remains before your family is left with the crumbs. It's practically grave-robbery.

Payroll

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"The power to tax is the power to destroy." -John Marshall

What's that? The nice chunk of your paycheck the government nabs before you can even get it to the bank wasn't enough? What if the government taxed your employer just for paying you? In essence, you make less than what your agreed pay rate is and it costs your employer more! Absolutely abominable.

Social Security

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"We don't have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven't taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much." -Ronald Reagan

Everyone knows the collapse of Social Security is imminent. It has limped along for years, only sustained by a torrent of tax dollars and the desperate actions of politicians. For decades, people have unwillingly forked over money into the system they will never see again.

FICA

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"What at first was plunder assumed the softer name of revenue." -Thomas Paine

FICA is the payroll equivalent of Social Security. Your employer has to match however much you pay. It means it costs your employer even more to pay you—again, you'll NEVER see that money. At this point, are you even working for yourself, or are you just here to generate money for the government to frivolously throw away?

5 DISTURBING ways World War III will be different from previous wars

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Has World War III begun?

Over the weekend, Iran launched an unprecedented attack against Israel involving over 300 missiles and drones. This marked the first direct attack on Israel originating from Iranian territory. Fortunately, according to an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, 99 percent of missiles and drones were successfully neutralized by Israeli defense systems. Iran claimed that the operation against Israel had concluded and that no further offensive was planned, although the possibility of another attack is still present.

This has left many people, including Glenn, wondering the same thing: did we just witness the start of World War III?

Glenn recently had a World War II Air Force Veteran as a guest on his TV special, who told stories of the horrors he and his brothers-in-arms faced in the skies over war-torn Europe. This was a timely reminder of the terrors of war and a warning that our future, if it leads to another world war, is a dark one.

But, if Glenn's coverage of the Iranian attack revealed one thing, it's that World War III will look nothing like the world wars of the twentieth century. Long gone are the days of John "Lucky" Luckadoo and his "Bloody Hundredth" bravely flying their B-17s into battle. Over the weekend, we saw hundreds of autonomous drones and missiles clashing with extreme speed and precision over several different fronts (including space) simultaneously. This ain't your grandfather's war.

From EMP strikes to cyber attacks, here are FIVE ways the face of war has changed:

EMP attacks

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The entire modern world, on every level, is completely dependent on electricity. From your home refrigerator to international trade, the world would come to a grinding halt without power. And as Glenn has pointed out, it wouldn't even be that hard to pull off. All it would take is 3 strategically placed, high-altitude nuclear detonations and the entire continental U.S. would be without power for months if not years. This would cause mass panic across the country, which would be devastating enough on its own, but the chaos could be a perfect opportunity for a U.S. land invasion.

Nuclear strikes

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Nuclear war is nothing new. Many of us grew up during the Cold War, built fallout shelters, and learned to duck and cover. But times have changed. The Berlin Wall fell and so did the preparedness of the average American to weather a nuclear attack. As technology has advanced, more of our adversaries than ever have U.S. cities within their crosshairs, and as Glenn has pointed out, these adversaries are not exactly shy about that fact. Unfortunately, the possibility of an atomic apocalypse is as real as ever.

Immigration warfare

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The strategy of strangling an opposing nation's economy to gain the upper hand is a wartime tactic as old as time. That's why the Border Crisis is so alarming. What better way to damage an opponent's economy than by overburdening it with millions of undocumented immigrants? As Glenn has covered, these immigrants are not making the trek unaided. There is a wide selection of organizations that facilitate this growing disaster. These organizations are receiving backing from around the globe, such as the WEF, the UN, and U.S. Democrats! Americans are already feeling the effects of the border crisis. Imagine how this tactic could be exploited in war.

Cyber shutdowns

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Cyber attacks will be a major tactic in future wars. We've already experienced relatively minor cyber strikes from Russia, China, and North Korea, and it is a very real possibility that one of our adversaries inflicts a larger attack with devastating consequences on the United States. In fact, the WEF has already predicted a "catastrophic" cyber attack is imminent, and Glenn suggests that it is time to start preparing ourselves. A cyber attack could be every bit as devastating as an EMP, and in a world run by computers, nothing is safe.

Biological assault

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Don't trust the "experts." That was the takeaway many of us had from the pandemic, but something less talked about is the revelation that China has manufactured viruses that are capable of spreading across the globe. We now know that the lab leak hypothesis is true and that the Wuhan lab manufactured the virus that infected the entire world. That was only ONE virus from ONE lab. Imagine what else the enemies of America might be cooking up.

The government is WAGING WAR against these 3 basic needs

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The government has launched a full-on assault against our basic needs, and people are starting to take notice.

As long-time followers of Glenn are probably aware, our right to food, water, and power is under siege. The government no longer cares about our general welfare. Instead, our money lines the pockets of our politicians, funds overseas wars, or goes towards some woke-ESG-climate-Great Reset bullcrap. And when they do care, it's not in a way that benefits the American people.

From cracking down on meat production to blocking affordable power, this is how the government is attacking your basic needs:

Food

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Glenn had Rep. Thomas Massie on his show where he sounded the alarm about the attack on our food. The government has been waging war against our food since the thirties when Congress passed the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938. They started by setting strict limits on how many crops a farmer could grow in a season and punishing anyone who grew more—even if it was intended for personal use, not for sale on the market. This sort of autocratic behavior has continued into the modern day and has only gotten more draconian. Today, not only are you forced to buy meat that a USDA-approved facility has processed, but the elites want meat in general off the menu. Cow farts are too dangerous to the environment, so the WEF wants you to eat climate-friendly alternatives—like bugs.

Water

ALESSANDRO RAMPAZZO / Contributor | Getty Images

As Glenn discussed during a recent Glenn TV special, the government has been encroaching on our water for years. It all started when Congress passed the Clean Water Act in 1972, which gave the government the ability to regulate large bodies of water. As the name suggests, the act was primarily intended to keep large waterways clear of pollution, but over time it has allowed the feds to assume more and more control over the country's water supply. Most recently, the Biden administration attempted to expand the reach of the Clean Water Act to include even more water and was only stopped by the Supreme Court.

Electricity

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Dependable, affordable electricity has been a staple of American life for decades, but that might all be coming to an end. Glenn has discussed recent actions taken by Biden, like orders to halt new oil and gas production and efforts to switch to less efficient sources of power, like wind or solar, the price of electricity is only going to go up. This, alongside his efforts to limit air conditioning and ban gas stoves, it almost seems Biden is attempting to send us back to the Stone Age.

4 signs that PROVE Americans are hitting rock bottom

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As we approach the presidential election in November, many Americans are facing dire economic straits.

Glenn has shown time and time again that Bidenomics is a sham, and more Americans than ever are suffering as a result. Still, Biden and his cronies continue to insist that the economy is booming despite the mounting evidence to the contrary. But who is Biden fooling? Since the beginning of the year, gas has gone up an average of 40 cents a gallon nationwide, with some states seeing as much as a 60-cent per gallon increase. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Foreclosures and bankruptcies are on the rise, evictions are surging, and America is experiencing a record amount of homelessness. We can't survive another Biden term.

Americans across the country are hitting rock bottom, and here are four stats that PROVE it:

Evictions

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Across the country, people are being evicted from their homes and apartments. Between 2021 and 2023, evictions increased by 78.6 percent. With inflation driving up prices and employers struggling to raise wages to compensate, rent is taking up an increasingly larger percentage of people's paychecks. Many Americans are having to choose between buying groceries and paying rent.

Foreclosures

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Renters aren't the only ones struggling to make their monthly payments, foreclosures are on the rise. This February saw a 5 percent increase in foreclosures from last year and a 10 percent increase from January. More and more Americans are losing their homes and businesses.

Bankruptcies

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High interest rates and inflation have driven bankruptcies through the roof. Total filings have risen 13 percent and business bankruptcies rose 30 percent in 2023. It's getting harder and harder for businesses to stay afloat, and with California's new law requiring most restaurants to pay all employees a minimum of $20 an hour, you can expect that number to keep climbing.

Homelessness

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The result of all of these issues is that it is getting harder and harder for Americans to afford the basic necessities. January of 2023 saw a record-breaking 650,000+ homeless Americans, a 12 percent jump from the previous year. More Americans have hit rock bottom than ever before.