UPDATED: ‘It is a horrifying place to be’: Glenn reflects on his visit to the Rio Grande River with Louie Gohmert

July 21, 2014

The Glenn Beck Program

Update: On Glenn's TV show Monday night, he played video from his visit with Rep. Gohmert:

Original Story:

Before the sun had even risen on Saturday, Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX) took Glenn to the border in McAllen, Texas. Met by a pungent stench and piles of discarded clothing and personal items, Glenn toured the scorpions and rattlesnake-ridden bank of the Rio Grande River. It took just a few moments for Glenn to realize anyone – politician or otherwise – claiming the border is secure is telling “the biggest lie.” On radio this morning, Glenn recounted the life changing impact of this 4am trip.

Below is an edited transcript of the monologue and some pictures from the border:

It was a powerful weekend for those of us here at Mercury and those who volunteered their time and went down to the border. We went down with Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). It was pretty shocking. And I want to take you through a few things.

I want to take you through, first, what we did when we first got there at 4 o’clock in the morning. We went to the border. Anything about anybody telling you that the border is secure is the biggest lie you've ever heard in your life. It is so far out of control. It's incomprehensible.

1407016_01_137 Photo Credit: George Lange/Lange Studio

Two hours before we got there, there were .50 caliber machine gun rounds were lobbed on to the American side by the drug cartels. .50 caliber machine gun. I don't know. Does that sound like a secure border? The reason why that was happening is they were laying down suppressing fire while they smuggled illegals in. And I want to ask you one question that I think will change your view of what's happening on the border.

Right now we all think about is what's happening with these illegals coming across and swimming across the Rio Grande. And we think about these people who have traveled 30 days on foot. And then they pay $7,000 for a family to go across the Rio Grande. Have we thought about that $7,000 and where that $7,000 is going? The things that our government is now encouraging through their lack of enforcement is reprehensible. So these families go across the river. How do they afford $7,000? They can't. So then how do they get across? They pay the drug lords $3,000 and the drug lords say, ‘Don't worry about it. You know what? You just get over and then we'll work it out.’ Now, what does that mean? I mean, it is Al Capone stuff. You owe us a favor, and so I'm going to call on you and you're going to do these things or I'll kill your whole family. Or they come in and they are doing the drug lords' business here in the United States. Those are two options. I'm sure there are more. But those are two options.

So how do we stop this? Well, we have to be clear on the border. We have to be clear that you don't stay here. But that's not happening anytime soon. Nobody in Washington has any interest. I shouldn't say nobody. The guys I was with, they have interest. But very few people have interest in actually stopping this, because there's a lot of money to be made. And there's a lot of political votes to be had before you just stop what's going on.

Here's the question that I asked. I haven't received an answer on this. We were driving underneath the International Bridge at 4 o’clock in the morning. We are in the woods. We're right at the river. We are looking over the river to Mexico. We're hearing the sounds of coyotes and chickens. I mean actual coyotes, not human coyotes, and chickens in the morning. We're hearing the wild dogs running through this area. It's hot. It's humid. It's 4am. We're seeing the rafts. We're seeing the little teeny children's life jackets that have been discarded all over, piles of them, all over the border. One of them had a scorpion on top of it. There are tarantulas and rattlesnakes. We were told, ‘Make sure you're wearing boots. Make sure you wear long sleeves and you button up your collars.’ It's horrible. It is a horrifying place to be.

1407016_01_089 Photo Credit: George Lange/Lange Studio

The border guards have to go and clean this area up all the time. They haven't had the time to go pick up the sacks of clothes that have been left by them after they cleaned it up. It is a mess. As we're in this area, there is this mile-long international bridge. And it goes from the Mexican side to the American side. And at the end of this bridge is the I.N.S., the border security. Now, we have been told the whole time, ‘All you have to do is come over and turn yourself in. They are seeking out our border patrol.’ Now, two hours before we got to the border, at 2:00am or midnight, somewhere in this area, there was suppressing fire fired into the American side with .50 caliber machine gun. Now, why is that happening? Hang on. Come back to the bridge for a second. They're smuggling people across the water, and those people are looking for the border patrol to turn themselves in and say, ‘I'm here because I'm escaping oppression.’ That's what we're told, right?

1407016_01_123 Photo Credit: George Lange/Lange Studio

Why are they going across the river when there's a bridge right there that is free? You don't have to pay anybody to smuggle you across the bridge, all you have to do is take your family and walk across the bridge and go to the same exact people and say, ‘I'm escaping oppression. I need help.’ And they let you in. Why are they coming across the river? They're coming across the river because the drug cartels benefit from it. The drug cartels will never hear any message except the message from the government of the United States of America. I said, ‘How can we tell the people to stop?’ And the border patrol laughed at me. You're not going to be able to. ‘Do you have the resources that the United States government or the drug cartels have?’ Well, of course not. You're not going to be able to beat the drug cartels with a message. The message the drug cartels want is, ‘Come to us. We will get you across.’ They're making money on this.

More importantly, why are they hitting us with .50 caliber machine gun rounds? Why are they doing it? Why are they on boats? They'll take the weakest swimmer, the one who cannot swim, and when they're coming across the boat with all of these people who paid them, they take the weakest swimmer and throw them out of the boat. They do it so the border agents have to swarm. They only throw that person down into the river so they'll die, so the border patrol – out of compassion – have to come. But then they have their people on the other side. It's called rocking. And what they do is they stand around with stones. And they start pelting our border agents with stones as they're trying to save that individual. They're trying to drive all the border patrol into that one area – misdirection – so people elsewhere can smuggle God only knows what across our border.

1407016_01_114 Photo Credit: George Lange/Lange Studio

So if you don't care about the border because of the people coming across, somebody on the left has got to care about the border because of what else is coming across. And if you don't care about securing our border, let me tell you two stories. Let me tell you about the 15-year-old boy that was found on the shores of the Rio Grande. The 15-year-old boy that was found dumped on the side of the river. Our side. Where was his parents? I don't know. Where was his family? I don't know. How did he get across? I don't know. He was strapped to a wheelchair, and he's a quadriplegic. He couldn't move anything but his head. Luckily, the border patrol found him, dumped off on the American side of the river. Everybody else had left. But the cartels or smugglers completed their contract. They dumped him and his wheelchair face down on the side of the river. The kid would have died had it not been for the border patrol that actually found him. It was 110 heat index when we were there. It's one of the hottest places I've ever been. You don't have water. You die.

Ask yourself: Why aren't people just coming over the bridge? Once you answer that question, you realize what's really going on. I'm going to give you another question: Why is it the president of the United States wants you to know there's a humanitarian crisis? He's the first one to declare it. ‘There's a humanitarian crisis on the border.’ Correct? We've all heard that. We've all heard the left making a very big deal out of it. Why is it no one in the press is allowed to see it? It has been something that has bothered me until I went down.

Critical theory destroys truth and justice

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

Critical theory once stood out as the absurd progressive notion that it is. Now, its maxims are becoming an integral part of ordinary political discourse. The more you repeat a lie, the more you will believe it, and this is the very dangerous place in which we find ourselves today.

Take this critical theory maxim as an example: If we desire justice, we must sometimes champion what may appear superficially as injustice. It's a necessary evil, if you will, the necessity of “controlled injustice.”

By using truth through fabrication and controlled injustice for justice, we’ll save the republic. We’ll be acting in a noble way.

This definition of justice is defined by the “oppressed,” not the “oppressor.” It is the greatest happiness for the greatest number. To achieve this justice, however, we need to endorse acts on occasion that, while seemingly unjust, serve a higher purpose. It will ensure the stability and the unity of our republic, and this may manifest in ways that seem contradictory to our values. But these are the necessary shadows to cast light on “true justice.”

And isn’t that what we are all after, anyway?

Here’s another critical theory maxim: Sometimes we find the truth through fabrication. Our pursuit of truth sometimes requires a strategic use of falsehoods. The truth is a construct that has been shaped and tailored to promote the well-being of the collective.

We sometimes need to accept and propagate lies designed by "the system” — not the old system, but the system that we’re now using to replace the old to get more justice through injustice and more truth through fabrication.

We’re engaging in a higher form of honesty. When we fabricate, it’s for the right reason. We are reaching up to the heavens fighting for a higher sort of honesty. To fortify the truth, we occasionally must weave a tapestry of lies. Each thread, essential for the greater picture, will ultimately define our understanding and ensure our unity under this infallible wisdom.

The election is coming up. Does this maxim sound familiar? Many think it is imperative that we secure our republic through election control to maintain our republic. Sometimes, we might need to take actions that by traditional standards might be questionable.

The act of securing elections requires cheating. It's not mere deception. It is a noble act of safeguarding our way of life. We're on the verge of losing this democracy, and without deception, we will lose it.

To ensure it doesn't fall into the hands of those we know will destroy it, we may have to make a few fabrications. We're fabricating stories to be able to control or secure the republic through our elections. By using truth through fabrication and controlled injustice for justice, we'll save the republic. Therefore, we'll be acting in a noble way. Stealing an election from those who wish to harm our society is truly an act of valor and an essential measure to protect our values and ensure the continuation of our just society.

If we desire justice, we must sometimes champion what may appear superficially as injustice.

I know it's a paradox of honor through dishonor. But in this context, by embracing the dishonor, we achieve the highest form of honor, ensuring the stability and the continuation of our great republic.

Let this be heard, far and wide, as a great call to patriotic action. As we advance, let each of us, citizens of this great and honorable republic, consider these principles. Not as abstract or paradoxical but as practical guides to daily life. Embrace the necessity of controlled injustice, the utility of lies, the duty to secure our electoral process, and the honor and apparent dishonor. These are not merely strategies for survival. They are prerequisites for our prosperity.

We all have to remember that justice is what our leaders define, that truth is what our party tells us. Our republic stands strong on the values of injustice for justice, honor through dishonor, and the fabrication of truths. To deviate from this path is to jeopardize the very fabric of our society. Strength through unity; unity through strength.

We've heard this nonsense for so long. But now, this nonsense is becoming an instituted reality, and we are entering perilous times. Don't be fooled by the narratives you will hear during the march to November. Never let someone convince you that the ends justify the means, that a little bit of injustice is needed to achieve a broader, collective vision of justice, that truth sometimes requires fabricated lies and narratives. If we do, justice will cease to be justice, truth will cease to be truth, and our republic will be lost.

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

Bill Hinton / Contributor | Getty Images

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