GLENN

Is the Intelligence Community Systematically Targeting People Who Mislead the President?

Michael Flynn is not the first person the intelligence community has taken out of Trump's circle of influence. He's the second, at least by Glenn's count.

"Paul Manafort was the first. You remember, Paul Manafort, he has direct relations with some of the worst of the worst in the Dugin/Putin circle. And he was taken out early," Glenn said Wednesday on radio.

So what's going on with the intelligence community?

Jason Buttrill, former military intelligence personnel and current chief researcher for TheBlaze, joined the program to talk about his take on Flynn's removal and what it means for the Trump administration.

Enjoy the complimentary clip above or read the transcript below for details.

GLENN: I want to bring us -- I want to bring us to a different level and a different point of view on Russia and the General Flynn story.

 

I don't want to dwell on "he said, she said" why this is happening. I want to dwell on the facts that we do know.

 

Flynn is not the first person the intelligence community has taken out of the administration. Flynn is the second. At least by my count.

 

Paul Manafort was the first. You remember, Paul Manafort, he has direct relations with some of the worst of the worst in the Dugin/Putin circle. And he was taken out early. And that just kind of went away.

 

Flynn is now -- is now out. And this is the intelligence community hopefully making sure that we're not in bed with the bad guys over in Europe. But I don't know. I don't know exactly what's going on.

 

We have Jason Buttrill, who is former military intelligence and chief researcher for the program, who we have been working on Dugin and Russia for, how many years?

 

JASON: Oh, gosh. At least two, three.

 

GLENN: Oh, yeah. Easy. Easy three. Maybe four.

 

Been watching them and warning against some of the things that are now starting to come out. And so let me just get an update from you on how you read the situation in Washington.

 

JASON: Well, it's funny. I got a -- I sent a tweet out, I think yesterday, a couple days ago, where I was look, "Good. You know, my boys, the intelligence community, are starting to do their job." And I got a firestorm of tweets coming back form people saying, like, "I find it hard to believe that, you know, some Obama-era appointees are joining forces to undermine Trump."

 

And I'm like, "No, that's not the issue. That is not the issue." This whole thing started when the intelligence community came to Trump and said, "Look, this is what's going on."

 

You know, they are -- we have a high probability, using the spy talk, high probability that they are involved in some of the hacking involved with the DNC and the election. There's very high probability.

 

But what he did was, he was listening to his advisers and said, "I don't care what you're saying. I don't care what you're saying. Basically, we've already got an agenda." Now, his mistake there was you cannot call out the intelligence community and just dismiss it because you have other policy -- you know, avenues that you're chasing. You cannot do that.

 

So what the intelligence community is doing, it's not because they like Obama or they're Obama appointees. What they're doing is saying, "Okay. Fine." I don't even think they necessarily think it's Trump's fault here. I don't think it is.

 

I think they're saying, "If you're not going to accept our intelligence, based off of the advisers you have around you, then we are going to specifically target those advisers that are giving you bad information."

 

This is a good thing. They're actually doing their job. Now, they don't have a responsibility to say, "We pledge unyielding allegiance to this man because he was voted in as president." That's not their job. Their job is to protect the United States and the Constitution. That is their job. And that's exactly what they're doing here. They're systematically targeting the people that are misleading and misguiding the president, and I think we should all be grateful for what they're doing.

 

GLENN: I am. Because that's the way I read it as well. And I -- like you said, I don't think Trump is involved at this level. I don't think he understands.

 

Stu and I were talking off the air a few minutes ago. Bannon does. Bannon gave a speech in Rome, where he spoke about Dugin cryptically, but he spoke about Dugin and what's going on, in glowing terms

 

STU: I wouldn't say it's glowing terms. I mean, he I think was aware of the danger. But overall liked the idea of -- of these movements.

 

GLENN: Correct. Of burn the place down to rebuild something new.

 

STU: And so I -- you know, it's worth seeing -- I mean, if you have time, I can tweet it out @worldofStu. But the entire thing is worth reading, if you want to look at the direction. Because Bannon has thought about this stuff for a long time. Unlike Trump who is obviously the public face of this. And, you know, he has real ability to move people and, you know, deal with the media and all those things. Where someone like Steve Bannon has been thinking about these things for a really long time in-depth and has talked about them publicly for a really long time.

 

So if you want to kind of see where the, you know, the movement is going or where the direction might be going behind the scenes, it's important to understand what he believes.

 

JASON: Yeah, and it's so important. Like you said, we pointed this out years ago. And at the time, when we pointed this out, they were like, "Who is this crazy guy that Glenn Beck is talking about? You know, this Dugin guy. And why should we care about what's going on in Europe and what Russia is doing over there?" I mean, I advise you to go back and look at some of those shows. They're still on TheBlaze: Red Storm Rising.

 

Go back and watch those. Because you can see, we pointed out, look, there's this guy named Aleksandr Dugin. He's an adviser to Putin. He's the one that initiated the invasion into Georgia and into the Ukraine. He's the one that was reaching out to all these far right groups over in Europe. And, again, people are like, "Why should we care?"

 

Well, the speech that Bannon gave, he was using the same exact lingo and language that they're using, that you'll hear Marine Le Pen using. That you'll hear Jobbik in Hungary using. All of these groups that are now -- Bannon was talking about UKIP before UKIP was even popular. This was way beyond Brexit even happened. This is way beyond Trump was even considered an actual legitimate candidate. Way beyond all that stuff. His language is exactly the same that Dugin and his group are using.

 

Now, during that speech, they were like, well -- and, again, you can hear these in a Dugin speech that was given I think in Hungary back in 2014, they said specifically, "There are things to be taken advantage of. There's movements in the world that we can take advantage of to seize power."

 

Now, they don't care if it's a far left movement. They don't care if it's a far right movement. They don't care if it's communism -- there's a rebirth of communism that's going to sweep the world. They're looking for a geopolitical advantage.

 

GLENN: In fact -- in fact, they don't believe in fascism, communism, and capitalism. They don't believe it. They believe there's a fourth way. And in Dugin's words, it is the combination of the best of capitalism, communism, and fascism.

 

JASON: Which can only happen after the rebirth, after this all burns down.

 

GLENN: Correct. I mean, it's very apocalyptic. It's very apocalyptic. And when you know that -- when you know that Bannon believes the whole world is going to burn down. You just want to be the guy who is standing there with the plan, you want to ask: What is your plan? What is your plan?

 

STU: Yeah.

 

GLENN: And the plan is not the Constitution. It's not a reset. It is -- and I can't say for Bannon that it's this fourth political theory. But it's not the Founders theory, I can promise you that.

 

And we have to understand -- I've said this for years. The entire -- the rules and the borders, everything, are all being redrawn. Right now, there are people who are standing in those rooms, looking at the maps and saying, "I'll take this. You take that. You'll do this. I'll do that." Those things are happening.

 

And best case -- least conspiratorial model is that somebody is around the sanest leaders of the world, and they're saying, "Look, this is what's happening in some of these really dangerous areas. And, look, the banking system is about to collapse. And, look, people have unrest." You know, we might want to pull the plug ourselves. We might want to be the ones that come out and be in front of this thing because maybe we'll be able to control the events as they begin to unfold. That never works. But you would be disappointed if somebody wasn't having that conversation with the president of the United States. They are doing those things now. And unfortunately, this is why, you know, Jason has said the -- the intelligence community is doing their job. They're taking bad guys away from the president.

 

Now, are they really away from the president? We asked this question with Van Jones. Or do they become more powerful?

 

JASON: I'm -- I'm concerned.

 

GLENN: Your mic just went off for some reason. I don't know why. Can we get mics to work in here? It's worried. It's only a national show.

 

STU: Shake it or something.

 

GLENN: The other thing I really want to talk about on this -- no, it's not working. Jeffy, could you --

 

JEFFY: Yeah.

 

GLENN: -- give a microphone again.

 

The -- the -- the other thing is, Bannon is trying currently to get -- I think is trying to get rid of Reince Priebus.

 

STU: That is the -- I mean, when you start seeing, we have White House sources at Breitbart who are saying, "You know who needs to go is Reince Priebus." Where do you think that's coming?

 

STU: Yeah.

 

GLENN: Inside sources say that Reince Priebus is not -- is next to go because there's real problems and internal squabbling over Reince.

 

Well, where do you think that inside source is?

 

STU: The guy who used to run the website, potentially.

 

GLENN: Yeah, I mean, maybe it would be that guy.

 

STU: Or one of his underlings. He has several that he's brought over there.

 

GLENN: Right. I mean, so the next target of the Bannon crew seems to be Reince Priebus.

 

GLENN: Now your mic is still not working. Please, for the love of God.

 

PAT: You need to turn it on.

 

STU: He got a new mic by the way.

 

GLENN: Yeah, it should be on.

 

STU: Yeah. Still not working?

 

GLENN: Tell you what, we're going to take a break. And then we're going to try this new microphone thing out.

 

STU: I mean, is it just possible that the audience all kind of mentally voted and they didn't want to hear more from Jason?

 

GLENN: It could be. It is possible.

 

STU: Is it possible. Okay. Okay. Good.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Are Epstein's "Blackmail Videos" Being Used for Leverage RIGHT NOW?

What was Jeffrey Epstein's operation all about. If he was at the center of a massive blackmail operation to compromise those in positions of power, who is in possession of that information now? Glenn Beck and ATF Whistleblower John Dodson analyze the details of this situation and give their thoughts on what is the most likely reality surrounding Epstein.

Watch Glenn Beck's FULL Interview with ATF Whistleblower John Dodson HERE

TV

WARNING: How America Elects a Socialist President in 2028 | Glenn TV | Ep 444

The rise of Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old socialist who just won the Democratic primary for mayor, is not just a political earthquake shaking New York City — it’s a warning for the rest of America. Backed by Bernie Sanders, AOC, and the Democratic Socialists of America, Mamdani promises free everything, to tax the rich, and to dismantle capitalism. There’s nothing new about this tired strategy, but the media is propping him up as a new political genius. And with Democrat leaders lining up behind him, it’s clear: This radicalism isn’t fringe anymore. It’s the Democratic Party’s future. Mamdani’s rise is part of a larger movement that’s rewriting America’s values. Glenn Beck explains how New York is the prototype for the Left’s socialist makeover of America. Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Standford, gives a terrifying prediction on Mamdani’s mayoral race chances and warns the revolution is coming for mainstream Democrats. He also dives into MAGA’s frustration with the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein files.

RADIO

Did CLOUD SEEDING cause the Texas floods?

Did cloud seeding cause the 4th of July Texas floods? Rainmaker founder and CEO Augustus Doricko, who has been blamed for the flooding, joins Glenn Beck to make the case that it’s impossible for his July 2nd operation to have caused the disaster.

RADIO

INSIDE Trump’s soul: How a bullet changed his heart forever

“I have a new purpose,” then-candidate Donald Trump told reporter Salena Zito after surviving the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. Salena joins Glenn Beck to reveal what Trump told her about God, his purpose in life, and why he really said, “Fight! Fight! Fight!”, as she details in her new book, “Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America's Heartland”.

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: Salena, congratulations on your book. It is so good.

Just started reading it. Or listening to it, last night.

And I wish you would have -- I wish you would have read it. But, you know, the lady you have reading it is really good.

I just enjoy the way you tell stories.

The writing of this is the best explanation on who Trump supporters are. That I think I've ever read, from anybody.

It's really good.

And the description of your experience there at the edge of the stage with Donald Trump is pretty remarkable as well. Welcome to the program.

SALENA: Thank you, Glenn. Thank you so much for having me.

You know, I was thinking about this, as I was ready to come on. You and I have been along for this ride forever. For what?

Since 2006? 2005?

Like 20 years, right?

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah.

SALENA: And I've been chronicling the American people for probably ten more years, before that. And it's really remarkable to me, as watching how this coalition has grown. Right?

And watching how people have the -- have become more aspirational.

And that's -- and that is what the conservative populist coalition is, right?

It is the aspirations of many, but the celebration of the individual.

And chronicling them, yeah. Has been -- has been, a great honor.

GLENN: You know, I was thinking about this yesterday, when -- when Elon Musk said he was starting another party.

And somebody asked me, well, isn't he doing what the Tea Party tried to do?

No. The Tea Party was not going to start a new party.

It was to -- you know, it was to coerce and convince the Republican Party to do the right thing. And it worked in many ways. It didn't accomplish what we hoped.

But it did accomplish a lot of things.

Donald Trump is a result of the Tea Party.

I truly believe that. And a lot of the people that were -- right?

Were with Donald Trump, are the people that were with the Tea Party.


SALENA: That's absolutely right.

So that was the inception.

So American politics has always had movements, that have been just outside of a party. Or within a party.

That galvanize and broaden the coalition. Right? They don't take away. Or walk away, and become another party.

If anything, if there is a third party out there, it's almost a Republican Party.

Because it has changed in so many viable and meaningful ways. And the Tea Party didn't go away. It strengthened and broadened the Republican Party. Because these weren't just Republicans that became part of this party.

It was independents. It was Democrats.

And just unhappy with the establishment Republicans. And unhappy with Democrats.

And that -- that movement is what we -- what I see today.

What I see every day. What I saw that day, in butler, when I showed I happen at that rally.

As I do, so many rallies, you know, throughout my career. And that one was riveting and changed everything.

GLENN: You made a great case in the opening chapter. You talk about how things were going for Donald Trump.

And how this moment really did change everything for Donald Trump.

Changed the trajectory, changed the mood.

I mean, Elon Musk was not on the Trump train, until this.

SALENA: Yeah.

GLENN: Moment. What do I -- what changed? How -- how did that work?

And -- and I contend, that we would have much more profound change, had the media actually done their job and reported this the way it really was. Pragmatism

SALENA: You know, and people will find this in the book. I'm laying on the ground with an agent on top of me.

I'm 4 feet away from the president.

And there's -- there's notices coming up on my phone. Saying, he was hit by broken glass.

And to this take, that remains part of this sibling culture, in American politics.

Because reporters were -- were so anxious to -- to right what they believed happened.

As opposed to what happened.

And it's been a continual frustration of mine, as a reporter, who is on the ground, all the time.

And I'll tell you, what changed in that moment.

And I say a nuance, and I believe nuance is dead in American journalism.

But it was a nuance and it was a powerful conversation, that I had with President Trump, the next day. He called me the next morning.

But it's a powerful conversation I had with him, just two weeks ago.

When he made this decision to say, fight, fight, fight.

People have put in their heads, why they think he said it. But he told me why he said that. And he said, Salena, in that moment, I was not Donald Trump the man. I was a former president. I was quite possibly going to be president again.

And I had an obligation to the country, and to the office that I have served in, to project strength. To project resolve.

To project that we will not be defeated.

And it's sort of like a symbolic eagle, that is always -- you know, that symbol that we look at, when we think about our country.

He said, that's why I said that. I didn't want the people behind me panicking. I didn't want the people watching, panicking.

I had to show strength. And it's that nuance -- that I think people really picked up on.

And galvanized people.

GLENN: So he told me, when he was laying down on the stage.

And you can hear him. Let me get up. Let me get up.

I've got to get up.

He told me, as I was laying on the stage. I asked him, what were you thinking? What was going through your head? Now, Salena, I don't know about you.

But with me. It would be like, how do I get off the stage? My first was survival.

He said, what was going on through his mind was, you're not pathetic. This is pathetic.

You're not afraid. Get up.

Get up.

And so is that what informed his fight, fight, fight, of that by the time that he's standing up, he's thinking, I'm a symbol? Or do you think he was thinking, I'm a symbol, this looks pathetic. It makes you look weak.

Stand up. How do you think that actually happened?

SALENA: He thinks, and we just talked about this weeks ago. He -- you know, and this is something that he's really thought about.

Right? You know, he's gone over and over and over. And also, purpose and God. Right? These are things that have lingered with him.

You know, he -- he thought, yes.

He did think, it was pathetic that he was on the ground. But he wasn't thinking about, I'm Donald Trump. It's pathetic.

He's thinking, my country is symbolically on the ground. I need to get up, and I need to show that my country is strong.

That our country is resolute.

And I need people to see that.

We can't go on looking like pathetic.

Right?

And I think that then goes to that image of Biden.

GLENN: You have been with so many presidents.

How many presidents do you think that you've personally been with, would have thought that and reacted that way?

SALENA: Probably only Reagan. Reagan would have. Reagan probably would have thought that.

And if you remember how he was out like standing outside.

You know, waving out the window. Right?

After he was shot.

GLENN: At the hospital, right.

SALENA: Had he not been knocked out, unconscious, you know, he probably would have done the same thing.

Because he was someone who deeply believed in American exceptionalism.

And American exceptionalism does not go lay on the ground.

GLENN: And the symbol.

Right. The symbol of the presidency.

SALENA: Yeah. Absolutely. And I think that affects him today.

GLENN: So let me go back to God.

Because you talked to him the next day. And your book Butler.

He calls you up.

I love the fact that your parents would be ashamed of you. On what you said to him.

The language you used. That you just have to read the book.

It's just a great part.

But he calls you the next morning. And wants to know if you're okay.

And you -- you then start talking to him, about God.

And I was -- I was thinking about this, as I was listening to it. You know, Lincoln said, I wasn't -- I wasn't a Christian.

Even though, he was.

I wasn't a Christian, when I was elected. I wasn't a Christian when my son died.

I became a Christian at Gettysburg.

Is -- is -- I mean, I believe Donald Trump always believes in God, et cetera, et cetera.

Do you think there was a real profound change at Butler with him?


SALENA: Absolutely. You know, he called me seven times that day. Seven times, the take after seven.

GLENN: Crazy.

SALENA: Talked about. And I think he was looking for someone that he knew, that was there. And to try to sort it out.

Right? And I let him do most of the talking. I didn't pressure him.

At all. I believed that he was having -- you know, he was struggling. And he needed to just talk. And I believed my purpose was to listen.

Right? I know other reporters would have handled it differently. And that's okay. That's not the kind of reporter that I am.

And I myself was having my own like, why didn't I die?

Right?

Because it went right over my head.

And -- and so I -- he had the conversation about God.

He's funny. I thought it was the biggest mosquito in the world that hit me.

But he had talked profoundly about purpose. You know, and God.

And how God was in that moment.

It --

GLENN: I love the way you -- in the book, I love the way you said that as he's kind of working it out in his own he head.

He was like, you know, I -- I -- I always knew that there was some sort of, you know -- that God was present.

He said, but now that this has happened.

I look back at all of the trials.

All of the tribulations. Literally, the trials.

All of the things that have happened. And he's like, I realized God was there the whole time.

SALENA: Yes. He does. And it's fascinating to have been that witness to history, to have those conversations with him. Because I'm telling you. And y'all know, I can talk. I didn't say much of anything.

I just -- I just listened. I felt that was my purpose, in that moment.

To give him that space, to work it out.

I'm someone that is, you know, believes in God.

I'm Catholic. I followed my faith.

And -- and so, I thought, well, this is why God put me here. Right?

And to -- to have that -- to hear him talk about purpose, to hear him say, Salena. Why did I put a chart down?

I'm like, sir. I don't know. I thought you were Ross Perot for a second.

He never has a chart. And he laughed. And then he said, why did I put that chart down?

By that term, I never turned my head away from people at the rally. That's true.

That relationship is very transactional. It's very -- they feed off of each other.

It's a very emotive moment when you attend a rally. Because he has a way of talking at a rally. That you believe that you are seeing.

And he said, and I never turn my head away.

I never turn my head away.

Why did I turn my head away?

I don't remember consciously thinking about turning my head away. And then he says to me, that was God, wasn't it?

Yes, sir. It was. It was God.

And he said, that's -- that's why I have a new purpose.

And so, Glenn. I think it's important, when you look at the breadth of what has happened, since he was sworn in.

You see that purpose, every day.

He doesn't let up.

He continues going.

And it brings back to the beginning of the book.

Where you find out, that there was another president that was shot at in Butler.

And that was George Washington. And how different the country would have been, had he died in that moment.

And now think about how different the country would be, had President Trump died in that moment. There would be --

GLENN: We're talking to -- we're talking to Salena Zito. About her new book called Butler. The assassination attempt on President Trump. And it is riveting.

And, you know, it is so good. I wish the press would read it. Because it really explains who we are, who Trump supporters are. Who are, you know, red staters. It is so good at that. She's the best at that.