Couple Whose Baby Has Same Genetic Condition As Charlie Gard Speak Out and Raise Glenn's Spirits

A couple whose son has the same debilitating condition as Charlie Gard shared their story on radio Tuesday.

Russell Cruzan II and Michelle Budnik-Nap in Kalamazoo, Michigan, had no idea that their baby Russell would be born with mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome. In a one-in-a-million coincidence, both parents carry the same gene, and their baby had a very small chance of inheriting the gene from both of them.

“[Russell and Charlie] both have mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome; it’s just different gene mutations causing it,” Budnik-Nap explained.

Unlike Charlie, who was not allowed to leave the U.K. hospital that said he needed to die, baby Russell has options.

“We have the capability to get treatment wherever we want to right now,” Budnik-Nap said.

Cruzan and Budnik-Nap are working to get him to doctors doing experimental work with children who have this rare condition; one option is Boston Children’s Hospital.

“We were told there was no treatment and to take our son home to enjoy the time we have with him, as the disease typically takes children in early childhood,” the couple said on their crowdfunding page. “We have since learned that there IS experimental treatment out there that has shown GREAT success in others with similar conditions.”

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GLENN: Charlie Gard is this incredible story. In case you missed it, let me just quickly recap. He just died. It was a week before his first birthday. Chris Gard and Connie Yates had a son born. Everybody thought he was fine. He was normal. And then symptoms started to have an onset. And because they lived with socialized medicine, the hospital said, "There's nothing we can do," even though there is experimental and somewhat successful experimental procedures done here in America.

The hospital wouldn't let Charlie go. They fought in court. By the time the court case was coming to an end. It was too late. Doctors said here in America, it's too late for him. There's no more time left.

The parents sued the hospital said, "Please, let us just take him home so he can die at home." The hospital took them to court on that one and fought against it and somehow or another won, and he died in a hospice center.

But he did die with the parents. And both of them said, "We took Charlie out for a walk in a pushchair in the hospice park." We dressed him in babygrow with stars on it. He looked so beautiful and innocent. This is according to mom, Connie.

The hospital staff popped in. Those last five hours just flashed by. A woman said the moment we dreaded would happen in the next five minutes. Chris and I were both crying. We laid on the bed with Charlie between us, each of us holding a hand. We were both telling him that we were there and that we loved him and how proud we were of him.

Charlie opened his eyes at that moment and looked at us one last time and then closed them and passed away.

This story, the beginning of it, as far as the diagnosis is playing itself out again in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Russell and Michelle are two parents of a four-month-old. Russell Cruzan III. They refer to him as Bubby. He was born just like Charlie. Great, cute, healthy, and then he wasn't gaining weight. He wasn't eating. And doctors couldn't figure it out. And then finally diagnosed with the same disease that Charlie Gard had.

We have Russell Cruzan and Michelle Budnik-Nab on the phone. Parents of Bubby. How are you guys?

RUSSELL: Good how are you?

MICHELLE: Good. Good.

GLENN: Very good.

Can you tell us, first of all, how is Bubby doing today?

MICHELLE: He's doing pretty good. He's taking a nap right now. He -- yep.

GLENN: Okay. When you first found out -- had you -- did you know who Charlie Gard was?

MICHELLE: Not originally, no. Very shortly afterwards, yes. As soon as we -- you know, we were trying to do research into his condition, which, you know, they -- they both have mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome. It's just different gene mutations causing it. They're both encefalomyopic (phonetic). But as soon as we Googled, you know, his condition, of course, Charlie popped up. And we started looking into his story.

GLENN: Have you talked to the -- Charlie's parents?

MICHELLE: We did. We did originally when we first found out, me and Connie talked a lot back and forth. But obviously things have been very overwhelming for them. And, yeah, they're quite busy.

GLENN: So hopefully you were going to tell me that things are quite different here in America than they are overseas. Can you tell me about --

MICHELLE: So far, yeah, we have definitely found that things are quite different. We have the capability to get treatment wherever we want to right now. We've been inpatient at our local hospital a few times, and we love them.

And, you know, if we think that he needs to go somewhere else, or he thinks -- or, yeah, he needs to go somewhere else, and they're very willing to work with us to make that happen. Also, we're just -- we're free to make an appointment wherever we want, for him to see any specialist that we want.

GLENN: Have you reached out to the specialist that the Gard parents were trying to have take care of Charlie?

RUSSELL: Yes, yes, yes, we have. And he doesn't believe treatment of that sort at this time would do any good at all.

GLENN: So does that mean that it might later, or it just doesn't apply to yourself?

MICHELLE: As far as we know, it doesn't apply to -- to Russell. We're still hoping to look at it as an option. Right now, we are pursuing BCA treatment with Boston's Children's Hospital. We're hoping that he can be considered for a -- for a trial of the medication there.

GLENN: So what is the prognosis, Russell?

MICHELLE: The prognosis, I mean, with no treatment, the prognosis is pretty grim. With the prospect of treatment, we -- we really don't know because it's all experimental. But we're hoping that it could help preserve the healthy mitochondria that he has and help keep some of the toxic levels in his body down, the lactic acid and ammonia down, because those are kind of our number one dangers right now.

GLENN: So what is this? How did it first manifest? And what is the body doing?

RUSSELL: Basically, how it all starts is me and his mother are both carriers of a gene, a chromosome that's bad. Being one bad, one good.

GLENN: Did you know that in advance?

RUSSELL: No. The only way you can figure that out is through genetic testing, which nobody gets genetic testing unless there's an issue.

GLENN: Okay. Yes.

RUSSELL: But -- so we're both carriers for a bad chromosome, and we have a good chromosome. And then we both have the same bad chromosome, just a different mutation of it. So that's how he got it. There's like a one in a million chance that two people meet each other that they're like that. And then it's still like, oh, a 25 percent chance that one of your kids can get it.

GLENN: So when it started to manifest -- because I've seen pictures of Baby Russell. And, you know, he looks healthy. Like he's supposed to. A little porky. A little fat. You know, babies are supposed to.

And then I've seen recent pictures, and he's thin. Is that how it first -- you first noticed, was he wasn't eating? Or?

RUSSELL: Well, he actually -- he started out thin.

MICHELLE: Yeah.

RUSSELL: And then he just got -- he's porky now.

GLENN: Oh, so I've seen the pictures in reverse. Okay.

MICHELLE: When the disease originally started manifesting itself, it manifested as failure to thrive first. He wasn't eating on his own. We started with the NG tube. Now he has a G tube placed in his stomach, and that has really helped him thrive and get to the point to where he's a nice, chubby, plump little guy now.

GLENN: So do you guys have insurance?

RUSSELL: Yes, I carry insurance through work. And we also have Medicaid through the state.

GLENN: So does your insurance cover this?

RUSSELL: They have started to pay something.

(chuckling)

We're working on the treatment. That's what they're working on. Prior authorization for us to go there to be seen. And then the work on -- it all depends on how it's billed. If it's billed as experimental, more than likely not.

GLENN: Can I ask -- you don't have to tell me: Can I ask what insurance carrier it is?

RUSSELL: Yes, I carry Priority Health.

GLENN: I'm sure Priority Health wants to do the right thing and help you out.

RUSSELL: From everybody I've talked to, they're doing pretty good so far. They're trying.

MICHELLE: They're trying.

GLENN: Yeah. The -- the Medicaid is kicking in, for what?

RUSSELL: Anything state-wise. In-state. They've said they don't pay out of state.

MICHELLE: But they're being helpful -- very helpful right now picking up copays, deductibles.

RUSSELL: I haven't had to pay anything out-of-pocket yet.

GLENN: Good for you. What have you -- what do you guys do for a living?

RUSSELL: I -- well, she's a stay-at-home mother now because he requires so much work.

GLENN: Yeah. Right.

RUSSELL: But I do -- I'm in construction.

GLENN: And how is business?

RUSSELL: We're busy. We're busy. I don't know if I'm getting 60, 70 hours a week.

GLENN: Good. Good.

Is there a way to donate if people wanted to help, you know, cover any of the bills as they begin to mount up?

RUSSELL: Yes. There's a YouCaring. It's -- and if you go on YouCaring, you can just search up Bubby or Russell Cruzan. Russell Cruzan should get you directly to it.

GLENN: Okay.

MICHELLE: Right now, we're fundraising to cover some of the travel costs to Boston. If we are accepted into -- into the treatment trial, there would multiple trips to Boston. So, you know, those travel costs add up very quickly. We live in Michigan.

GLENN: You guys sound -- I mean, I have to tell you, I read about your story a couple of weeks ago. And so I've got about you. And as a family, we have prayed for you all. And I thought to myself, you know, gosh if -- if -- if my son was diagnosed with something that Charlie Gard had, at the time of the Charlie Gard story, I think I would lose my mind. And you guys both seem happy.

MICHELLE: We lose it all the time.

RUSSELL: Yeah, we do.

MICHELLE: We put -- we put on this brave face. I'm used to putting the brave face on for the specialists because I can't -- you know, when a specialist, doctor is trying to tell me what's going on with my son, you know, I can't be emotional. I have to put on my brave face and say, "Okay. Tell me what I need to do. Tell me what needs to be done to keep him as healthy as possible." So we try.

GLENN: And, Russell, how are you doing it?

RUSSELL: I look at my other three kids and see how they react. And I don't want them to be upset by seeing me upset. So, I mean, it's pretty much the other -- to see how strong he is. He's this -- I mean, he's the strongest person I've ever seen in my life.

MICHELLE: He's our superhero.

RUSSELL: So everything he's been through. And he still puts a smile on his face and laughs. That's how I do it.

MICHELLE: We cry in the shower.

(laughter)

Yeah.

GLENN: Hmm.

What a -- what a great couple. And thanks, strangely, for lifting my spirits. Thanks for making me feel good in talking to you both. We will keep you in our prayers. And please check in with us if there's something that you need or something we can do to help. Please feel free to call. You have our -- you have our -- all of our digits and our email. So you can get a hold of us.

If you would like to get involved and help the family, you can go to youcaring.com. If this just helps you remember, Bubby. B-U-B-B-Y. Bubby.

STU: We tweeted out from @worldofStu. It's up there. We're going to tweet it from @GlennBeck as well.

GLENN: Yep. And we will have it at GlennBeck.com. But please, if you -- if you can, help the family not have to worry about any kind of expenses so that they can do what they have to do. Guys, thank you so much. God bless.

MICHELLE: Thank you.

RUSSELL: Thank you.

GLENN: Isn't that great?

STU: You're right. Their attitude is like so positive. They are putting on a brave face if that is --

GLENN: They said -- you know, there's a difference between putting on a brave face and finding your way to joy.

STU: Hmm.

GLENN: They sound to me like it's not a brave face. It is -- and maybe it was just nervous laughter. Maybe that's what it was. But it seems to me that they have found a way to joy. And, boy, that's hard to do. Hard to do. God bless them.

What do clay pots have to do with to preserving American history?

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Editor's note: This article was originally published on TheBlaze.com.

Why should we preserve our nation’s history? If you listen to my radio program and podcast, or read my columns and books, you know I’ve dedicated a large part of my life and finances to sourcing and preserving priceless artifacts that tell America’s story. I’ve tried to make these artifacts as available as possible through the American Journey Experience Museum, just across from the studios where I do my daily radio broadcast. Thousands of you have come through the museum and have been able to see and experience these artifacts that are a part of your legacy as an American.

The destruction of American texts has already begun.

But why should people like you and me be concerned about preserving these things from our nation's history? Isn’t that what the “big guys” like the National Archives are for?

I first felt a prompting to preserve our nation's history back in 2008, and it all started with clay pots and the Dead Sea Scrolls. In 1946, a Bedouin shepherd in what is now the West Bank threw a rock into a cave nestled into the side of a cliff near the Dead Sea. Instead of hearing an echo, he heard the curious sound of a clay pot shattering. He discovered more than 15,000 Masoretic texts from the third century B.C. to the first century A.D.

These texts weren’t just a priceless historical discovery. They were virtually perfect copies of the same Jewish texts that continue to be translated today. Consider the significance of that discovery. Since the third century B.C. when these texts were first written, the Jewish people have endured a continued onslaught of diasporas, persecutions, pressures to conform to their occupying power, the destruction of their temple, and so much more. They had to fight for their identity as a people for centuries, and finally, a year after the end of the Holocaust and a year before the founding of the nation of Israel, these texts were discovered, confirming the preservation and endurance of their heritage since ancient times — all due to someone putting these clay pots in a desert cave more than 2,000 years ago.

I first felt a prompting to preserve our nation's history back in 2008, and it all started with clay pots and the Dead Sea Scrolls.

So, what do these clay pots have to do with the calling to preserve American history? I didn’t understand that prompting myself until the horrible thought dawned on me that the people we are fighting against may very well take our sacred American scriptures, our Declaration of Independence, and our Bill of Rights. What if they are successful, and 1,000 years from now, we have no texts preserved to confirm our national identity? What kind of new history would be written over the truth?

The destruction of American texts has already begun. The National Archives has labeled some of our critical documents, like our Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights, as “triggering” or “containing harmful language.” In a public statement, the National Archives said that the labels help prepare readers to view potentially distressing content:

The Catalog and web pages contain some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. NARA’s records span the history of the United States, and it is our charge to preserve and make available these historical records. As a result, some of the materials presented here may reflect outdated, biased, offensive, and possibly violent views and opinions. In addition, some of the materials may relate to violent or graphic events and are preserved for their historical significance.

According to this statement, our founding documents are either “outdated, biased, offensive,” “possibly violent,” or a combination of these scathing descriptions. I’m sorry, the Declaration of Independence is not “triggering.” Our Constitution is not “outdated and biased,” and our Bill of Rights certainly is not “offensive and possibly violent.” They are glorious documents. They should be celebrated, not qualified by such derogatory, absurd language. Shame on them.

These are only the beginning stages of rewriting our history. What if they start banning these “triggering” documents from public view because they might offend somebody? Haven’t we torn down “triggering” statues before? What if we are no longer able to see, read, and study the actual words of our nation's founding documents because they are “harmful” or “possibly violent”? A thousand years from now, will there be any remnant to piece together the true spirit behind the nation that our founders envisioned?

The Declaration of Independence is not “triggering.”

That is why in 2008, I was prompted to preserve what I could. Now, the American Journey Experience Museum includes more than 160,000 artifacts, from founding-era documents to the original Roe v. Wade court papers. We need to preserve the totality of our nation’s heritage, the good, the bad, and the ugly. We need to preserve our history in our own clay pots.

I ask you to join with me on this mission. Start buying books that are important to preserve. Buy some acid-free paper and start printing some of the founding documents, the reports that go against the mainstream narrative, the studies that prove what is true as we are continually being fed lies. Start preserving our daily history as well as our history because it is being rewritten and digitized.

Somebody must have a copy of what is happening now and what has happened in the past. I hope things don’t get really bad. But if they do, we need to preserve our heritage. Perhaps, someone 1,000 years from now will discover our clay pots and, Lord willing, be able to have a glimpse of America as it truly was.

Top 10 WORST items in the new $1.2 TRILLION spending bill

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Biden just signed the newest spending bill into law, and Glenn is furious.

Under Speaker Johnson's leadership, the whopping $1.2 TRILLION package will use your taxpayer dollars to fund the government through September. Of course, the bill is loaded with earmarks and pork that diverts money to fund all sorts of absurd side projects.

Here is the list of the ten WORST uses of taxpayer money in the recently passed spending bill:

Funding venues to host drag shows, including ones that target children

David McNew / Contributor | Getty Images

Money for transgender underwear for kids

Funding for proms for 12 to 18 year old kids

Bethany Clarke / Stringer | Getty Images

Border security funding... for Jordan and Egypt

Another $300 million for Ukraine

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

$3.5 million for Detroit's annual Thanksgiving Day parade

Icon Sportswire / Contributor | Getty Images

$2.5 million for a new kayaking facility in Franklin, New Hampshire

Acey Harper / Contributor | Getty Images

$2.7 million for a bike park in White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia, a town with a population of less than 2,300 people

$5 million for a new trail at Coastal Carolina University

$4 million the "Alaska King Crab Enhancement Project" (whatever that means)

FRED TANNEAU / Stringer | Getty Images

There is no doubt about it—we are entering dark times.

The November presidential election is only a few months away, and following the chaos of the 2020 election, the American people are bracing for what is likely to be another tumultuous election year. The left's anti-Trump rhetoric is reaching an all-time high with the most recent "Bloodbath" debacle proving how far the media will go to smear the former president. That's not to mention the Democrats' nearly four-year-long authoritarian attempt to jail President Trump or stop his re-election by any means necessary, even if it flies in the face of the Constitution.

Meanwhile, Biden is doing worse than ever. He reportedly threw a tantrum recently after being informed that his polls have reached an all-time low. After Special Counsel Robert Hur's report expressed concerns over Biden's obviously failing mental agility, it's getting harder for the Democrats to defend him. Yet he is still the Democratic nominee for November, promising another 4 years of catastrophic policies, from the border to heavy-handed taxation, should he be reelected.

The rest of the world isn't doing much better. The war in Ukraine has no clear end in sight, drawing NATO and Russia closer and closer to conflict. The war in Gaza is showing no sign of slowing down, and as Glenn revealed recently, its continuation may be a sign that the end times are near.

One thing is clear: we are living in uncertain times. If you and your family haven't prepared for the worst, now is the time. You can start by downloading "Glenn's Ultimate Guide to Getting Prepared." Be sure to print off a copy or two. If the recent cell outage proved anything, it's that technology is unreliable in survival situations. You can check your list of supplies against our "Ultimate Prepper Checklist for Beginners," which you can find below:

Food

  • Canned food/non-perishable foods
  • Food preparation tools
  • Go to the next level: garden/livestock/food production

Water

  • Non-perishable water store
  • Water purification
  • Independent water source

Shelter

  • Fireplace with a wood supply
  • Tent
  • Generator with fuel supply
  • Go to the next level: fallout shelter

Money

  • Emergency cash savings
  • Precious metals

Medicine

  • Extra blankets
  • Basic first aid
  • Extra prescriptions
  • Extra glasses
  • Toiletries store
  • Trauma kit
  • Antibiotics
  • Basic surgery supplies
  • Potassium Iodate tablets

Transportation

  • Bicycle
  • Car
  • Extra fuel

Information

  • Birth certificates
  • Insurance cards
  • Marriage license
  • Immunization records
  • Mortgage paperwork
  • Car title and registration
  • House keys, car keys
  • Passports
  • Family emergency plan
  • Prepping/survival/repair manuals
  • Go to the next level: copy of the Bible, the U.S. Constitution, and other important books/sources

Skills

  • Cooking
  • Gardening
  • Sewing
  • First Aid
  • Basic maintenance skills
  • Go to the next level: farming/ranching
  • Self-defense training

Communication

  • Family contact information and addresses
  • HAM radio

Miscellaneous

  • Flashlights and batteries
  • Lamps and fuel
  • Hardware (tools, nails, lumber, etc)
  • Extra clothes
  • Extreme weather clothes and gear
  • Gas masks and filters
  • Spare parts for any machinery/equipment

Is Trump's prosecution NORMAL?  This COMPLETE list of ALL Western leaders who served jail time proves otherwise.

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Mainstream media is on a crusade to normalize Donald Trump's indictments as if it's on par with the electoral course. Glenn asked his team to research every instance of a Western leader who was jailed during their political career over the past 200 years—except extreme political turmoil like the French Revolution, Napoleonic Wars, Irish Revolution, etc.—and what we discovered was quite the opposite.

Imprisoning a leader or major political opponent is not normal, neither in the U.S. nor in the Western world. Within the last 200 years, there are only a handful of examples of leaders in the West serving jail time, and these men were not imprisoned under normal conditions. All of these men were jailed under extreme circumstances during times of great peril such as the Civil War, World War II, and the Cold War.

What does this mean for America? Are Trump's indictments evidence that we are re-entering times of great peril? Below is a list of Western leaders who were imprisoned within the last 200 years. Take a look and decide for yourself:

Late 1800s

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Jefferson Davis: The nearest occurrence to a U.S. President to serve jail time was in the case of Jefferson Davis, the first and only president of the Confederate States of America. Jefferson was captured in Georgia by Northern Soldiers in 1865 and locked up in Fort Monroe, Virginia for two years. He was offered a presidential pardon but refused out of his loyalty to the confederacy.

Early 1900s

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Eugene V. Debs: Debbs, a Midwestern socialist leader, became the first person to run for president in prison. He was locked up at a federal penitentiary in Atlanta having been convicted under the federal Sedition Act for giving an antiwar speech a few months before Armistice Day, the end of World War I. Many of his supporters believed his imprisonment to be unjust. Debs received 897,704 votes and was a distant third-part candidate behind Warren G. Harding, the Republican winner, and James M. Cox, the second-place Democrat. Harding ordered Debs’s release from prison toward the end of 1921.

Nazi sympathizers and collaborators: After the end of World War II in 1945, several European leaders who had "led" their countries during the Nazi occupation faced trial and imprisonment for treason. This list included Chief of the French State Philippe Pétain, French Prime Minister Pierre Laval, and Minister-President of Norway Vidkun Quisling. The latter two were also executed after their imprisonment. President of Finland Risto Ryti and Prime Minister of Finland Johan Wilhelm Rangell were also tried and jailed for collaborating with the Nazis against the Allied Powers.

Late 1900s

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The end of the Cold War: The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was one of the pivotal moments that brought the Cold War to a close and marked the end of Communist East Germany. With the fall of the wall and the collapse of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), the former leaders were brought to trial to answer for the crimes committed by the GDR. General Secretary Erich Honecker and General Secretary Egon Krenz were both put on trial for abuse of power and the deaths of those who were shot trying to flee into West Germany. Honecker was charged with jail time but was released from custody due to severe illness and lived out the rest of his life as an exile in Chile. Krenz served 4 years in jail before his release in 2001. He is one of the last surviving leaders of the Eastern Bloc.

Lyndon LaRouche: Larouche was a Trotsky evangelist, public antisemite, and founder of a nationwide Marxist political movement, became the second person in U.S. history to run for President in a prison cell. Granted, he ran in every election from 1976 to 2004 as a long-shot third-party candidate. When he tried to gain the Democratic presidential nomination, he received 5 percent of the total nationwide vote. Even though in 2000 he received enough primary votes to qualify for delegates in a few states, the Democratic National Committee refused to seat his delegates and barred LaRouche from attending the Democratic National Convention.