FED UP Military Vet WARNS of Trump WAR PREP

What this episode is about

A military veteran critiques Donald Trump's aggressive military stance and contrasts it with their own experience in conflict resolution, highlighting the dangers of elite politicians pushing for war without understanding its impact on working-class families. The veteran advocates for war powers reform, emphasizing the responsibility of citizens to hold leaders accountable in matters of military engagement.

Key takeaways

• When it comes to settling wars, Trump’s record is more theatrical than tactical—he plays chess while others play checkers.
• Putin's praise for Trump's 'peace deals' suggests that irony is the new currency in international relations.
• Congressional power to declare war is more like a concealed weapon—reform it now or risk losing the constitutional fight.
• Sending troops to fight cartels in Mexico? Sounds like a 19-year-old's thought bubble—seriously unhinged foreign policy.
• America's top general: ‘War is not a video game,’ but Trump seems to want to hit the reset button every week.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Ken Harbaugh (Host) · 7 min speaking
• Chris Goldsmith (Guest) · 5 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Donald Trump, Jim Harbaugh, Congressman Jason Crowe, Midas Touch Network
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Donald Trump, Chris Goldsmith, Congressman Jason Crowe
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Battle Buddies, Donald Trump, Jim Harbaugh, Valor Media Network
4. 9:00 – 12:00: Donald Trump

Notable quotes from "FED UP Military Vet WARNS of Trump WAR PREP"

• I settled eight other wars. India, Pakistan. I settled other wars that were Vladimir Putin called me.

  about Vladimir Putin · at 0:00

• Congressman Jason Crowe, who we had on the show last week, just called out this hypocrisy beautifully.

  about Congressman Jason Crowe · at 0:57

• Week, and I thought when it came out, it would be the only thing that people were talking about, but Trump is also talking about invading Greenland, right? So, there's only so…

  about Donald Trump · at 6:20

• Back and it's going to come in a way that Americans are absolutely not prepared for and none of us want. It's Ken Harbaugh with a quick break to tell you about something new.…

  about Jim Harbaugh · at 7:33

• Figured out how to stay friends. Check out Battle Buddies today. Two vets, two views, One Nation. Find us on the Valor Media Network. the links below. Thanks.

  about Valor Media Network · at 8:24

• Trump and Pete Hegsth have a 19-year-old's idea of what good foreign policy looks like. That was part one of my conversation with Chris Goldmith. In part two, out tomorrow, we…

  about Chris Goldsmith · at 11:30

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Donald Trump — Person · Primary referenced political figure (subject of critique) · 7 mentions · first at 0:52
  Central figure in the segment: his claims about having 'settled' wars and his administration's alleged military actions are used to argue for war powers reform and to criticize escalation/overreach.
• Jim Harbaugh — Person · Host / narrator · 2 mentions · first at 0:50
  Introduces the segment, frames the critique of Trump’s war claims, references Rep. Jason Crow’s comments, and interviews Chris Goldsmith about the reported plan to use US military force in Mexico.
• Chris Goldsmith — Person · Main guest (interviewee) · 1 mention · first at 4:29
  Brought on to unpack reporting about potential U.S. military action in Mexico against drug cartels; provides a veteran's perspective and argues against escalation and for demand-side solutions.
• Congressman Jason Crowe — Person · Referenced lawmaker / quoted speaker · 2 mentions · first at 0:57
  Cited as calling out Trump's 'hypocrisy' and advocating war powers reform; used to support the episode's argument about Congress reasserting constitutional authority over war-making.
• Vladimir Putin — Person · Referenced foreign leader (in Trump's anecdote) · 1 mention · first at 0:05
  Appears in Trump's quoted story as the person allegedly calling to praise Trump's conflict-settling claims; used as part of the segment debunking/examining those claims.

Companies & orgs

• Midas Touch Network — Company · Affiliated with · 1 mention · first at 0:50
  The network associated with Ken Harbaugh, mentioned as the platform for the podcast.
  It's Ken Harbaugh with the Midas Touch Network. Donald Trump has not settled eight wars. He's actually starting them.
• Valor Media Network — Company · Affiliated with · 1 mention · first at 8:29
  Mentioned as the network hosting the Battle Buddies show.

Products & tech

• Battle Buddies — Product · Secondary owned · 2 mentions · first at 7:42
  A weekly show hosted by Ken Harbaugh, aiming to find common ground with a conservative friend, discussed as part of the podcast's content.
  Prepared for and none of us want. It's Ken Harbaugh with a quick break to tell you about something new. Battle Buddies is my latest weekly show where I try to find common…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 I settled eight other wars. India, Pakistan. I mean, I settled other wars that were Vladimir Putin called me. Armenia, Abber Baijan. He said, "I can't believe you settled that one. They were going on for 35 years. I settled it in one day." Then President Putin called me. He said, "You know, I can't believe I worked on that war for 10 years trying to settle it. I couldn't do it." I said, "Do me a favor. Focus on settling your war. Don't worry about that one. What does the United States get out of all of this work, all of this money, other than death, destruction, and massive amounts of cash going to people who don't appreciate what we do. They don't appreciate what we do.

0:50 It's Ken Harbaugh with the Midas Touch Network. Donald Trump has not settled eight wars. He's actually starting them. Congressman Jason Crowe, who we had on the show last week, just called out this hypocrisy beautifully. As a three-time combat veteran, I get pretty damn hot when a fivetime draft dodger like Donald Trump pounds his chests and bang the war drums in Washington talking about sending boots in the ground. We're not even a year into this administration and President Trump has bombed seven countries. He doesn't seem to see a problem that isn't think he can bomb his way out of. I learned years ago that when elites like Donald Trump bang the war drums and pound their chests in Washington DC and talk about sending troops into the ground or into combat. He's not talking about his kids. He's not talking about all of his minions kids. He's talking about kids like me and the people that I

1:49 grew up in workingclass areas, rural places around the country that have to pick up rifles, jump in the tanks or helicopters, and do the thing and do the tough work. Well, America is over it. We're going to push for war powers reform. We're going to reassert our constitutional authority because it is not just our right. It is our duty to stand in the breach and take the votes and tell any president, Republican or Democrat, that you can't continue to send our men and women around the world into harm's way without a debate and vote in this body.

2:24 As for the conflicts Donald Trump says he's ended, those ridiculous claims have made him and the US an international laughingtock. Here's a group of world leaders, including the president of France, laughing behind Donald Trump's back, mocking him because they failed to thank him for ending wars he didn't end.

2:45 You should you should make an apology to to us because you didn't congratulate us on the peace deal that President Trump made between.

2:58 I am sorry for that. Yeah. You worked very hard. You worked very hard and we had

3:04 one of the failures of our Congress in this moment is exercising its constitutional prerogative to declare wars to serve as a check on the executives war making powers. Democrats like Jason Crowe are trying to remedy that. But the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives seems to be giving Donald Trump yet another blank check to send America to war. Right now, we have US Navy warships steaming towards Iran, ready to drop more bombs there to bring peace. I'm not saying that we don't live in a dangerous world and that sometimes we got to go after bad guys. I was a US Navy pilot. I get it. But I no longer trust this president to place America's national security first. At every turn, he has weakened America's standing in the world and undermined our security. And now, a story broken by the New York Times reveals that the Trump regime is pushing to use the US military inside Mexico to

4:01 go after drug cartels. We're talking about boots on the ground in a part of the world with historic memories, bad ones, of US interventionism. This would be a terrible idea for most administrations. For this one, it's a recipe for disaster. I asked Chris Goldmith, US Army vet, founder of Veterans Fighting Fascism, and host of the On Offense podcast, to come on the show to help unpack this for us. Here's our conversation.

4:29 Chris, welcome to the show. Are we doing the war on drugs again? Is that what's going on? Because it feels like it.

4:35 We We are living the fantasies that I had as a 19-year-old when I was in Iraq. I'm I remember sitting in Iraq and my parents used to send me the News Day. I'm born and raised in Long Island, New York. And they used to they'd send me the news day. It would take a few weeks to get to me. And I was reading about this surge in heroin deaths back in 2005, which was unlike my childhood, right? It felt like things at home were changing. there was, you know, allegations of cartels and and, you know, the drugs were obviously coming from overseas. And I remember think sitting in a combat zone in the third year of what turned out to be a nearly two decade long war in Iraq, thinking, why am I not in Mexico right now, right?

5:20 I was 19 years old. I I I had a high school education and and that's it, right? that my solution to the problem of people dying domestically of drugs was let's go invade our our next door neighbor. Um I can tell you now with uh my life is twice as long as it was back then that that was a silly and childish uh version of a good idea. But that is what the Trump administration is trying to do right now. It appears what Trump himself is asking for, like this is his 19-year-old fantasy, the idea of having American boots on the ground, seems to be coming from Trump. And no doubt Hegathth is like feeding it, right? This does not seem to be the DoD or the intelligence community saying, "Yeah, we need Americans fighting in Mexico."

6:16 Yeah. So, this is a story that was an exclusive with the New York Times last week, and I thought when it came out, it would be the only thing that people were talking about, but Trump is also talking about invading Greenland, right? So, there's only so much that the Sunday news shows can talk about. When the when the New York Times reached out to the Pentagon for comment, and they did, the Pentagon responded, and the Pentagon said to the questions like, "Are you planning to put troops on the ground?" and and fire hell fire missiles into Mexico. The answer from the Pentagon on the record was we stand ready and waiting for the president's orders.

6:58 So that that is that is what Trump wants to do. He wants to bring a hot war to to our borders in the United States. And while I can understand because I was there, you know, 20 years ago when I was a kid thinking that this was a good idea, but now now I understand that violence doesn't stay where you put it. and and putting violence instigating more violence, you know, 10 miles, 60 mi, 100 miles south of of our border of Texas. That violence is going to come creeping back and it's going to come in a way that Americans are are absolutely not prepared for and none of us want. It's Ken Harbaugh with a quick break to tell you about something new. Battle Buddies is my latest weekly show where I try to find common ground with a conservative who I consider a true friend. David Bellavia, the only surviving Medal of Honor recipient from the war in Iraq. A Navy vet, an Army vet from opposite ends

7:58 of the political spectrum, engaging in a civil conversation like we used to have. From the ICE immigration crackdowns to Trump's takeover of Venezuela, David and I take on the toughest issues of the day with genuine respect for each other in spite of our very different perspectives. They're not always easy conversations, but they're always important. And that's something we need more of. Respectful dialogue between people who disagree, but who have figured out how to stay friends. Check out Battle Buddies today. Two vets, two views, One Nation. Find us on the Valor Media Network. the links below. Thanks.

8:42 The whole approach ignores the most important side of the equation, which is the demand.

8:49 During the operations, they may still be ongoing. We're so distracted now. But during the operations against the Venezuelan boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, which wasn't fentanyl, by the way, another lie by the Trump regime, it was cocaine and marijuana. But even as we're blowing boats out of the water in the Caribbean carrying uh cocaine, the price of cocaine on the street was going down. There is going to be an unlimited supply if you have that kind of demand. And blowing up warehouses in Mexico is doing nothing to stem the demand in the US, which is really the more important half of the equation.

9:34 Yeah. I mean, we have had drug companies that have been fueling an epidemic of addiction, right? I I have had addiction in my family. I I am, you know, an alcoholic, right? textbook def definition I drink more than I should drink more than than is healthy for me right I am an addict so I understand this problem from a very personal level something I I lost my father to a life of addiction so this is something that I take personally and that's why when I thought I was you know when I was 19 20 years old I was like [ __ ] it let's go invade Mexico because we need to like go get the bad guys but again with age I have come to understand that addiction is a disease and You can't treat it with hellfire missiles like that. That is not without stemming the demand for these for these drugs for these deadly deadly drugs. You're not going to stop the flow by ratcheting up the violence. However, you're going to increase the likelihood

10:35 that cartels are going to engage in retaliatory attacks. cartels are, you know, uh, a government almost, right? They they have an immense amount of resources. And this is I'm just stating facts. I'm not saying this is a good thing. If we start to put pressure on by putting American troops on the ground, we h we better hope that no American gets identified because if any Americans on the street get identified. what happens to their families back home is going to be absolutely disgusting and it is going to be something that we do not as as a as a people have the stomach for and I don't want to see American military families getting butchered here in the United States because Donald Trump and Pete Hegsth have a 19-year-old's idea of what good foreign policy looks like. That was part one of my conversation with Chris Goldmith. In part two, out tomorrow, we talk about how cartels have actually been

11:45 dismantled in other countries by supporting local efforts. See you then. Love this video? Support independent media and unlock exclusive content. Add free videos and custom emojis by becoming a paid member of our YouTube channel today. You can also gift memberships to others. Let's keep growing together.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "FED UP Military Vet WARNS of Trump WAR PREP"?

Ken Harbaugh (Host), Chris Goldsmith (Guest).

What is "FED UP Military Vet WARNS of Trump WAR PREP" about?

A military veteran critiques Donald Trump's aggressive military stance and contrasts it with their own experience in conflict resolution, highlighting the dangers of elite politicians pushing for war without understanding its impact on working-class families. The veteran advocates for war powers reform, emphasizing the responsibility of citizens to hold leaders accountable in matters of military…

What is mentioned in this MeidasTouch episode?

8 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Donald Trump, Jim Harbaugh, Chris Goldsmith, Congressman Jason Crowe, Battle Buddies, Vladimir Putin. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "FED UP Military Vet WARNS of Trump WAR PREP"?

The episode runs 12 min; the transcript is about 1,958 words in 19 timestamped sections.

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