Capitol Report Full Broadcast (Aug. 19)

And good evening and welcome to the Capitol Report on Entity Television. I'm Steve Lance. Coming up, peace talks, security guarantees and the media coverage of the recent historic summits. All front and center at today's White House press briefing. And what will the U.S. commitment for security assistance to Ukraine ultimately look like? And is there support in Congress to fund it? We'll hear from Congressman Rich McCormick coming up. And the State Department revoking over 6,000 student visas this year will bring the reaction coming out of the Department of State. And our panel tonight is the public getting an accurate picture of crime statistics, particularly in the nation's capital. What will come out of Trump's push to eliminate mail-in ballots? We'll discuss with our panel Ashwani Jain and Malik Abdul. This is Capitol Report, live from our global headquarters in our nation's capital. Here's Steve Lance. The White House confirming the next phase in the Russia-Ukraine peace talks, clarifying whether U.S. troops will be involved in security guarantees. For the latest, we now go live to Entity's White House correspondent, Mari Otsu, who is at the White House. Good evening, Mari. So what's the latest that you're hearing on these peace talks? Good evening to you too, Steve. It's nice to be with you. Yeah, as President Trump today is pushing for the next phase in these peace talks. The White House today touted Monday's progress and said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised to do a direct meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky in the coming weeks. This is after yesterday President Trump had a late night call with Vladimir Putin. This is after he hosted European leaders and Zelensky at the White House. Take a look. Across the board, every leader credited President Trump for his decisive leadership that has reignited the dialogue in hopes of finally bringing this war to a peaceful conclusion. But did Putin promise to do a meeting with Zelensky, a direct meeting in the coming weeks? He has, and he agreed to begin the next phase of the peace process, a meeting between President Putin and President Zelensky, which would be followed, if necessary, by a trilateral meeting. On security guarantees, the White House today doubled down on the president's commitment that he voiced earlier today that there will be no U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine. Now, this is a notable change from the president's position yesterday when the president did not rule it out as an option to the media. Here's what Levitt said in her briefing earlier today. Watch. The president has definitively stated U.S. boots will not be on the ground in Ukraine, but we can certainly help in the coordination and perhaps provide other means of security guarantees to our European allies. That said, the White House is not ruling out air support and other military options. Steve. So, Mari, we know that this administration has a complicated relationship with the media, perhaps one might call it the mainstream media. Did the White House have anything to say about the media's coverage of these peace talks thus far? Yes, Press Secretary Levitt had quite a lot to say today at the briefing about the media coverage. She criticized the media coverage of President Trump and his foreign policy accomplishments, calling it negative and downright false. Here's the press secretary. Watch. The media said President Trump was making a grave mistake by, quote, legitimizing Putin. They were aghast that President Trump would treat another world leader like a world leader. The media relentlessly attacked President Trump and claimed he suffered a, quote, major defeat for not immediately emerging with a final agreement. Diplomacy is a delicate process. And instead of reporting the facts about what is happening here at this White House and what is happening between this president and other leaders around the world, many outlets in this room continue to try to actively undermine the president and sabotage the efforts towards peace. Levitt also highlighted a specific narrative that when President Trump was flying back from Anchorage, Alaska to D.C. this weekend, he was working late into the night at 2 a.m. He was on a call with European leaders and NATO while the press secretary said staffers and the media were sleeping. And President Trump posting to Truth Social on Sunday said that even if he got Russia to give up Moscow as part of the deal, the, quote, fake news would say he made a very bad deal. Steve, back to you. And to these Mario to live from the White House, thank you, Mario. And as the White House plans the next steps in the Ukraine peace talks, how much support is there in Congress for long term security assistance to Ukraine? Joining me now to discuss these developments is Congressman Rich McCormick, who sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee in the House of Representatives. Congressman, thanks so much for joining. The White House is saying that there won't be any U.S. troops in Ukraine. Let's have a listen. The president has definitively stated U.S. boots will not be on the ground in Ukraine, but we can certainly help in the coordination and perhaps provide other means of security guarantees to our European allies. So, Congressman, what is your reaction to yesterday's high stakes meetings at the White House with the Ukrainian president and European leaders? Well, I think we still have a long ways to go if you're hearing no boots on the ground from the United States and Putin clearly said we'll have no NATO troops in Ukraine to have a peace process. That means no foreign forces there. If you want to talk about air cover, it sounds great on the surface. But the last time I saw any United States and and Russian aircraft going against each other wasn't direct. I love Top Gun, but it's not real. I just don't think that that's realistic. So I'd be curious to see exactly what those security guarantees are going to be, especially since back in 1994 with the Budapest Accords, the United States, Russia, Great Britain and several other countries actually signed an accord that said we would come to their aid if they were attacked by somebody, especially since they gave up their nuclear arms. I don't know how much trust there's going to be in the next process. And I think with Putin saying, I'm only going to be satisfied if you give me more land than I already have. And when he says you have to lose land, we still have a ways to go. Really an excellent point, Congressman, when it comes to the Budapest Accords versus Article five, a NATO style agreement, if you could talk to us what some of the fundamental differences are that make one more enforceable than, say, just more of a political, you know, agreement. And what do you expect real security agreements to look like for the US's commitment to Ukraine? Well, one of the excuses that Putin used to invade Ukraine is that they were worried that Ukraine was going to become a NATO nation. Matter of fact, a nation cannot join NATO if they're in dispute of their territories, which, of course, they were the minute that Russia invaded. The fact that he is very concerned that Ukraine would have a future involvement with NATO is a big part of this. And he also said by involving NATO troops there and invoking Article five, which means that if one NATO countries attack, all NATO countries come to the aid of that country. That's the Article five inclusion. And he wants to make sure that has nothing to do with this peace process. Once again, guaranteeing that if you don't have US troops there, you don't have NATO troops there. It means Ukraine, which has about one fifth the people and one tenth the economy and who would be always at a disadvantage versus a Russia that now has advanced bases in about 20 percent of their current landmass would really be a big disadvantage. So once again, I'm not sure what the compromise is going to be, but I hope we get to it because I know that President Trump is getting very frustrated. I'll be curious to see who he takes that out on. If Putin doesn't agree on this, because we can make it very, very difficult on Russia, a country that's using nine percent of its GDP to fund its military right now, who could be cut off from energy purchases from China, India and Europe. If we really get serious about that, we can lean on them hard tariffs and make this very, very difficult for Russia to continue this war. It's another great point you make, you know, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte saying that US involvement is a breakthrough. We might have some sound of him. The fact that you have said, I'm willing to participate in the security guarantees is a is a is a big step is really a breakthrough and it makes all the difference. So also, thank you for that. Your previous point, we still don't know what that looks like and how effective air support would be ultimately. And, you know, looming above all of this, Congress would still need to approve funding for it. How much support do you think there is for long term security assistance in the in the Congress? I think there's some I think also Europe could step up and be a big purchaser of arms, Ukraine could also make that deal that we talked about before with their natural resources to purchase about 100 billion dollars worth of military equipment. And when you talk about drones and advanced advanced technology, you can make it very tough on Russia to do what they've been doing. But remember, Russia has ten times the economic power of Ukraine. But Europe collectively has about ten times more economic GDP than Russia by itself. As a matter of fact, Germany by itself has two and a half times the GDP of Russia, about five trillion dollars versus two. Germany alone could take on Russia if they really wanted to. As a matter of fact, tongue in cheek. I saw one Twitter post which said, let me just get this straight. You want Germany to build up an army, march through Poland and fight Russia? I just want to put that down on paper. And when you put it that way, it sounds a little bit absurd. But of course, NATO has been asked to build up to five percent of GDP investment in their military, which would make it a lot more imposing for Russia to get away with what they've been doing lately. You mentioned China earlier. China has ultimately funded Russia's war effort in various ways, both directly and indirectly, all while the West, including the US, has sanctioned Russia. Would a peace deal open up trade with Russia and start to weaken that partnership with China when that ultimately be in the best interest of the United States? It could be. I think once there's peace, the purchasing of Russia is going to go up, their economy will actually improve dramatically. China will lose their their cheapest oil source. It'll be interesting to see how this rebalances out between Europe, the United States and China, kind of that trilateral agreement that we have right now. I just got back from Korea. Korea and Japan and the United States are also in trilateral agreements trying to work out their trade and their military presence in the Far East. We have a lot to work out. These are troubling times when the entire world is basically building up arms and debt at the same time. This could be interesting. Certainly, there's a lot at stake. South Korea, that relationship with China. Congressman Rich McCormick, thanks so much for sharing your insights with us today. And turning our attention now to Hurricane Erin, powerful storm making its way toward the United States, turning up life threatening rip currents and flood risks along much of the eastern coastline. While Hurricane Erin is not expected to make landfall in the U.S., forecasters are saying that it will push high waves onto the shoreline, which could go up to 20 feet, even higher. The storm has now been downgraded to a category two hurricane as of earlier today, but according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center, Erin is expected to grow larger as it moves over the western Atlantic throughout the week. State of North Carolina declaring a state of emergency this afternoon and evacuations currently underway in parts of the Outer Banks. Beaches in several eastern states, including New York, New Jersey and Delaware, will be staying closed until later this week. And the latest target in immigration enforcement, the Trump administration revoking over 6,000 student visas so far, among the reasons support for terrorism. And today's Washington correspondent, Jack Bradley, has the details. Over 6,000 student visas have been canceled so far this year. That's according to a State Department spokesperson who told me that 4,000 of those student visas were revoked for breaking the law. The vast majority being for assault, burglary and DUI, and a significant portion, including visa overstays. But perhaps the most noteworthy here is that two to 300 of those visas were revoked for students who supported terrorism. That's as the Trump administration has been targeting foreign students that attend anti-Israel protests at American universities, saying their actions were anti-Semitic. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced this week stricter visa vetting for those suspected of ties to terrorism, particularly Hamas. There is evidence been presented to us by numerous congressional offices that some of the organizations bragging about and involved in acquiring these visas have strong links to terrorist groups like Hamas. And so we are not going to be in partnership with groups that are friendly with Hamas. So we need to we're going to pause those visas. The State Department has enhanced its screening of international students. They're now looking at social media accounts and posts as part of student visa applications. Since April, federal authorities consider anti-Semitic posts on social media as grounds for denying immigration benefits. Congressional Democrats have criticized the administration's crackdown on student visas, saying it's a violation of free speech. But the State Department maintains that issuing visas is a privilege and not a right. Where in the Constitution does it say that the secretary of state can override the First Amendment protections of free speech? Is there a footnote that I missed? There's no constitutional right to a student visa. There's a statute that says the secretary of state gets to determine whether someone is a threat. We deny visas every day all over the world. And they do. Reporting by Jack Bradley, NTD News. And coming up, President Trump doing away with mail in voting. How does America's system compare to that of other countries that use mail in ballots? We'll discuss with our panel Ashwani Jain and Malik Abdul when we get back. I can't get a hold of my mom. I'm sure it's nothing. I've called her five times. I'm sure she's fine. Is Grandma OK? Help. I've fallen and I can't get up. Don't worry, ma'am. We're sending help right now. Hello? Hello. This is Life Alert. Your mother had an emergency and we dispatched paramedics to her home. Oh, my gosh. What happened? She had a fall, but don't worry, she is safe. And the paramedics are helping her right now. Thank you. Life Alert saves a life every 11 minutes with one simple touch of a button. Life Alert sends help immediately, whether it's to report a fall, a medical emergency or an intruder. Life Alert sends first responders fast. For a free brochure, call 800-382-9846. 800-382-9846. That's 800-382-9846. So at the age of five, I was sexually molested. I had my first child at the age of 15 and became homeless at the age of 16. 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Joining us live to discuss Democratic strategist and author of the Project 2027, Ashwani Jain, along with GOP strategist and radio host Malik Abdul. It's great to have both of you with us. So Ashwani, we'll start with you. What is your reaction to this move and what kind of impact do you think it will have across the nation? Well, thanks for having me back on your show. Look, Trump keeps calling mail-in voting corrupt, but he's also used it himself. So which is it? Is he lying or is he part of the fraud? Let's also not forget, this is the same guy who refused to accept the 2020 election results, tried to find votes that didn't exist and got indicted for trying to rig an election he lost. Meanwhile, our mail-in voting system is actually more secure and transparent than many other democracies. In countries like France and the UK, voting is centralized, meaning one breach can compromise the entire system. In the U.S., our elections are decentralized, run by 50 different states and thousands of local officials. And so that makes widespread fraud nearly impossible. And the facts prove that. So, Malik, I guess the whole question about whether or not to do this is because of the unknowns and what we don't know is taking place. So are there real concerns about voter and election fraud? And where are we seeing the strongest pushback? And, you know, what do you say to the, you know, the idea that this is all voter suppression to that argument? This is something that people, many people on the right have lashed themselves onto when it comes to the issue of mail-in voting. It started really in earnest around 2020, around COVID, when during the election, many out of necessity areas around the country had they started doing mail-in voting. Yes, there is a concern among many people on the right about the issue. But whether or not there is actual fraud, it's simply another story. I imagine that what Donald Trump is doing in this case is simply appeasing a specific set of the on the right, maybe the MAGA base. But overall, Donald Trump, and like my colleague said, it's not just that Donald Trump has benefited from mail-in voting. It is also members of Congress and governors all around the country. This is even in red states who increased their percentages from 2020, the 2020 election, now in 2024, last year. So it literally benefits Republicans. But I imagine that Donald Trump is doing this to kind of appease a segment of his base. But as Congress, as you've seen, are not going to do anything with it. But Ashwani, to the point that Republicans and the president use mail-in voting, it would be it wouldn't be wise of them to just sit back and not use it while it's there, while the other side uses it. So that could be the argument as to why they're doing it when it's here. But that doesn't mean that not having it wouldn't be better in their mind for the election system in the country. And around the world, you know, only 13 countries allow all voters to use mail-in ballots. Well, 21 or so allow some voters and 170 countries don't allow any form of mail-in voting. President Trump often references France, which is very strict in terms of their voting laws. Same day count by hand. This is according to intergovernmental organization, international idea. So Ashwani, how does America's mail-in voting system compare to other countries? Why are we seeing other countries reluctant to to use these mail-ins? Well, like I spoke about earlier, there's a difference between a centralized system and the system that we have right now. But like my colleague said, mail-in voting helps both Democrats and Republicans. And in fact, there was a 2020 working paper from Stanford that found no partisan advantage from mail-in ballots. It simply makes voting easier for everyone. Again, Democrats and Republicans alike. I'll also mention there was a comprehensive study done by the Heritage Foundation, which is a conservative think tank that found only 0.0002% of voter fraud over the last 20 years. So that's only 1200 instances of voter fraud, over 600 million votes cast. So this whole notion that it is a corrupt system, as Trump keeps alluding to, even though he uses it himself, just doesn't make any sense. I would argue that the other counterpoint to that is that, you know, the whole point of bringing this to the table is there's a lot of unaccounted for fraud that we simply perhaps don't know about. The Department of Justice, you know, is now reportedly investigating on another issue that's trending, whether D.C. crime statistics were manipulated, specifically whether police officials in the Metro PD falsified data to make crime rates appear lower than they are. Caroline Levitt today at the briefing also said half of D.C. arrests, recent arrests are in high crime areas. Ashwani, we'll go back to you. If that's true, what changes in oversight or policy are needed to ensure crime stats reflect reality? Well, the fact of the matter, it's not true. Republicans keep saying this is about law and order, but the facts are proving otherwise. Trump's own Department of Justice that's now suddenly opening up a new investigation, they have shown that violent crime is down in D.C. while red states like Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee consistently rank among the most violent. And so if Trump really cared about safety, why is he not deploying the National Guard over there? And why did he also just slash 20 million dollars from D.C.'s local security funding? So let's be honest, this is not about safety. It's about control. Because if Republicans were serious about reducing crime, they would be supportive of universal background checks, invest in more mental health and also raise the minimum wage. All specific policies proven to reduce violence. The real threat is not blue cities or peaceful protesters. It's Republican hypocrisy. Malik, does this raise broader concerns about how crime is reported in cities and whether the public is getting an accurate picture of the safety on the ground? And what do you how do you respond to Ashwani? Yeah, you you're absolutely right. It does raise some concerns. And she mentioned Caroline Levin mentioned Ward seven and eight in Washington, D.C. I live in Ward eight, which is D.C.'s most dangerous ward. What I do know is that and according to what the Trump administration said just in April, violent crime is down about 25 percent. There's a bit of a different story now. And I do believe that some of the things that the Trump administration doing is doing is for very theatrical purposes, you know, calling in hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of National Guard. We know because Donald Trump himself did it back in 2020. Donald Trump partnered with state and local officials. Specifically, there was an initiative called Operation Legend, which was in reference to a young guy, a young boy who was killed. So the federal government has been partnering with state and local governments all along. What this means about these numbers, there was a recent settlement here with our Metropolitan Police Department, where a former employee of NPD filed a suit back in 2020, accusing them of actually clicking the numbers. So that actually has been done. But what we're seeing now and it's important for people to realize is that even with the arrest that Caroline Levin is talking about in Ward seven and eight, NPD averaged about 56 arrests per day. Well, I just want your audience, as they're listening to these numbers, to kind of look at where the pockets are and the efforts that they're taking. But I would much rather as a native of Jackson, Mississippi. I'm pretty sure. And I talked to my mom before coming on the show, and she wanted me to say that she would love for the National Guard and federal police to actually go to Jackson, Mississippi, where she is now. Well, I will say that living in Washington, D.C., myself frequently walking down Pennsylvania Avenue between the Capitol and the White House on a daily basis, really. Things have changed. There's there's no more homeless encampments, which there were plenty on the most kind of notable street in the world, arguably Pennsylvania. So in my humble opinion, that at least is an improvement. Ashwani Jain, Malik Abdul, really appreciate your insight. And coming up, the crackdown on slave labor imports being expanded to include steel, copper and other items targeting Chinese goods. And with President Trump vowing to eliminate mail in voting ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, we'll hear from folks right here in D.C. when we get back. My 15 year old son, Ethan and I had a fun and relaxing morning. We returned home and Ethan walked to his best friend's house an hour later. I heard the ambulance scream by the street carrying my beautiful boy. Ethan was shot in the head in his best friend's house with an unsecured gun. He had zero chance of survival. The father of the gun owner, he stored his three guns and bullets in a shoebox. How do you feel? That has to be the most horrific experience that a human could ever have. David, would you give any advice? First thing you do is not keep your ammunition with your weapons and that your weapons need to be locked at all times. I debate all day. It's what I do. But there are some things that are undebatable, like your mental health. My own mental health. I was in a dark place when my brother passed away in a car accident. I've never been more devastated than the day I lost my mom. I was depressed, miserable in ways I never imagined. I reached out. My sisters came, my pastor, my therapist. They helped me get through it. I found that the more I spoke up, the healthier my mind became. The chaos that was in me began to subside. I was more focused, clear. When you love your mind, you can go so much further. It's not up for debate. Find mental health resources at loveyourmindtoday.org. When I arrived in the US at 19, I struggled to find job opportunities without a high school diploma. My name is Ariel, and my entire life changed when I took a chance and I got my high school diploma at age 22. Everything I have, my education, my career, my marriage, I owe to the Adult Literacy Center and my teachers. They were with me every step of the way, helping with my English and math, making sure I pushed through all the challenges. So Ariel, we made this year good for you, as noted by all of the people that are here. All your feelings are so much more than you can ever imagine. Your achievement has set an example for so many students. Most importantly, your daughter. Education was the key that allowed all my opportunities. When you graduate, they graduate. Visit finishyourdiploma.org to find free and supportive adult education centers near you. And welcome back to the Capitol Report on NTV television. I'm Steve Lance. The Hamas terrorist group now agreeing to a ceasefire proposal currently waiting for Israel's response in another development. Israel accusing the UN, the United Nations of using incomplete data to describe the humanitarian situation on the Gaza Strip. And today's Jason Perry has more. Egypt and Qatar have both played key roles in mediating the talks for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. And on Tuesday, Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson gave an update that I've never come up with them. We have a positive response from Hamas. That positive response, according to what we know, is almost all that was agreed before by Israel in previous iterations of these talks. He added that the ceasefire proposed by Hamas is almost identical to the plan proposed by U.S. envoy Steve Whitcock, which is the proposal that Israel had previously agreed to. Qatar added that they were still waiting for a response from Israel. But will Israel accept Hamas's ceasefire proposal? President Trump recently said on Truth Social that defeating Hamas is the only way to return the remaining hostages. The White House commented on the latest proposal from Hamas. I don't think it's a coincidence that Hamas accepted this proposal after the president of the United States posted a very strong statement about this conflict on Truth Social yesterday. As for this proposal that Hamas has now accepted, the United States continues to discuss it. And I'll let the president weigh in on it definitively. The father of a deceased hostage said he didn't have all the details of Hamas's ceasefire proposal, but he understands that he can't keep quiet. Hostages come out. Before everything else, even before dismantling Hamas, releasing the hostages, all the 50 should supersede and should be prioritized than getting the dismantling of Hamas. The dismantling of Hamas could happen in the future as well. But what we won't get is the 50 hostages back. And in the Gaza Strip, a resident shared her thoughts on the situation. We have no choice but to be optimistic and hopeful. It doesn't matter if it's only for 60 days just to get back, breathe and feel a little alive. We hope it works. Meanwhile, the United Nations Human Rights Office is accusing Israel of not letting enough aid into the Gaza Strip to prevent widespread starvation. However, Israel says the U.N. is using incomplete data on the aid going into the Gaza Strip, while the U.N. says only about 3500 trucks entered Gaza since May. Israel says that more than 9000 trucks carrying aid entered Gaza. Israel says the U.N.'s numbers don't include aid deliveries by various countries, the private sector, airdrops and the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Jason Perry, NTV News. India facing scrutiny now from the U.S. for buying Russian oil comes amid talks with China to ease border tensions and boost trade in their region. You can find out more tonight on China in Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 9 p.m. Eastern time. She'll be breaking down what's happening on both fronts. And a crackdown on slave labor imports is being expanded now to include steel, copper and other items targeting goods from China. Meantime, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and the Department of Justice providing updates on the crime situation here in Washington. NTV's Washington correspondent Jason Blair brings us more. Steel, lithium, copper, caustic soda and red dates coming to the U.S. from China are now considered high priority for inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The move is in line with the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act. The Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says the use of slave labor is repulsive and we will hold Chinese companies accountable for abuses and eliminate threats. Its forced labor practices pose to our prosperity. U.S. Secretary of Labor Laurie Chavez de Ramirez says in a statement, America first means keeping foreign goods made with forced labor off our shelves and ensuring American businesses aren't put at a disadvantage. The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor are members of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force. The task force published updates to the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act strategy aimed at preventing importing goods, quote, mined, produced or manufactured using forced labor from China. Also, Secretary Noem gives updates on the ongoing crackdown on crime in Washington, D.C. Noem says that robberies are down 46 percent since the federal government took over D.C.'s police. You can already see and feel the difference in D.C. She also told Fox News that I'm so glad that there are states that are stepping up and being willing to activate National Guard troops to help as well. On Monday, Mississippi, Tennessee and Louisiana joined West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio in sending National Guard troops to the nation's capital. On Tuesday, the Department of Justice says that four hundred and sixty five arrests have been made with 68 guns seized. Reporting in Washington, D.C., Jason Blair and TD News. And the White House is expanding scrutiny for immigrants applying for U.S. citizenship. The new policy calling for a more holistic approach in deciding whether applicants have good moral character. The good moral character clause has been a requirement for those seeking American citizenship, according to a memo by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Officers must look for positive attributes going forward rather than just the absence of misconduct. That includes community involvement, stable employment records and educational attainment, as well as compliance with U.S. tax law. President Trump says he's working to eliminate mail in voting. That's ahead of the 2026 midterm. So what do everyday Americans think about this proposal? And TD Sam Wong was out in the National Mall right here in D.C. to hear from the folks. President Trump says he's working to get rid of mail in ballots. What are your thoughts on it? I agree. If it can eliminate fraud, corruption and voting process, why not? We need mail in ballots. I think we need to make it possible for more people to vote. I think the key is that everyone's voice is heard. You have to have like an like an appropriate resolution for it. You can't just be like, no, we're done with it. So just give everybody equal access to being able to do this online or something where you can validate your identity that way. I think he should. I think you don't know who's really mailing it in. There's no ID. I actually think that when you go vote, you should ask for a picture ID. I mean, people get 20, 30 ballots mailed to their apartment from years in the residence years in the past, and then they'll fill them out and mail them in. There's no signature verified. We need to make sure that each everybody who who should get a vote gets to vote. And those who are, you know, being the system, so to speak, that that should not happen. Some people are saying that, you know, mail in ballots are more susceptible to being stolen or forged or being changed. What are your thoughts on that? Do you think there's merit to the argument? I do. I really do. Because a Trump supporter here, I think his election was stolen four years ago. Oh, absolutely. I'm sure that it's easily done. I was in the military and that was, I don't know, a long time ago. And that was how we voted. I don't think there's been an issue with it. As far as I know. My understanding is there's been no proof of no substantial proof of progress. I think it is a secure way to do it. And if there are ways to make it more secure, I would support that. And there is evidence of people bringing boxes of mail in ballot ballots and dropping them in a mailbox and they're back in an hour with another hundred. And they drop those in. You know, I mean, and they're getting paid for them. A lot of people are getting paid to turn in mail in ballots. I see nothing wrong with having to show your ID to vote. I mean, we need to show our ID for everything else. An ID to vote should not be any different. And coming up, no U.S. boots on the ground in Ukraine, that's what President Trump says about any security agreements with Ukraine. Our panel of retired U.S. Air Force officers and national security experts, Glenn Ignazio and John Tykert will break it down for us when we come back. What if you could whiten your teeth by simply brushing your teeth? Now you can with Smile Actives, the teeth whitening breakthrough that safely gets your teeth white and keeps them white every day just by brushing your teeth. I never thought that whitening my teeth could be so easy. I just put the gel on the brush, the toothpaste on it, brush, and I can see my white teeth. Simply add Smile Actives to any toothpaste. 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He's a retired Air Force Special Operations Commander. And John Tykert, Brigadier General in the United States Air Force, retired. It's great to have you both with us. So until recently, the president was under the impression that, you know, this meeting was going to take place. He's still saying that he's confident that it's going to take place. He also talked about the future security guarantees for Ukraine, which he said will be provided by Europe in coordination with the U.S. To what degree? We know it's not going to be boots in the ground as of now. Glenn, do we have any president for this? And what do you expect to see in America's future security guarantees for Ukraine? Well, first, I think it's going to be very interesting if you see just Putin Zelensky meet. I think that's one of the things that President Trump is saying. I'd like to see what is going to happen with them and what their personalities are. So that is going to be actually a challenge. As far as the security guarantees, having no boots on the ground is absolutely the best thing he did mention. And it would be very interesting of how this would be executed about having airpower, airpower, air support. As far as any of the entities that may be boots on the ground, as long as it doesn't represent a NATO or a NATO organization. So I think you're going to see like one or maybe two countries be able to provide some of those troops if they actually do go in, but not representing it as a NATO organization. I think that would be a pushback that Putin would not accept. And like I said, we need to see it actually carry out. But there has to be some guarantees to hold Russia at bay in the future after this president. General Tykert, the president of Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, described the event yesterday as very much symbolic. Let's take a listen. The fact that we're around this table today is very much symbolic in the sense that it's Team Europe and Team United States helping Ukraine. And the progress that we're looking out of this meeting is about the security guarantees, which are a big part of this. So given Europe's stakes in that situation, will it increase its share of defense spending? Steve, I think it's interesting that that clip was from the leader of Finland who wasn't a member of NATO until Putin made this aggressive action against Ukraine. And it's just one of those many examples about how Putin has strategically lost here because he has brought NATO and Europe together as a more consolidated force. They are raising their defense spending. They have added two additional members. And I do think that yesterday was massively symbolic because it demonstrated that the batch of allies and partners that we've had for several decades now can work together to solve a very difficult security problem. And I think not only was Putin watching, but China and others were watching because we have this unique American advantage of this big, trusting network of allies and partners that none of our adversaries have. And the fact that they were all there yesterday is a great demonstration about how Putin has lost and about how America and her allies and partners are still massively strong and consolidated. And Major, how do you see Europe and the U.S. coordinating on security guarantees? Yeah, I have to agree with the general. I think it was one of the very powerful statements to say that is Team U.S. and Team EU. I think that is definitely proposed as far as U.S. weapons being able to go to NATO and then NATO giving that into Ukraine. So it does have to be a cohesive effort. It has to be everybody has to have a consensus, which is always the difficult part about how to approach things in Ukraine. So I think that's going to be the the the effort also being the close proximity that, of course, EU has compared to United States. I think that a lot of these security initiatives that are being put forward, there is another attribute to this is that as we have said that the United States is part of the minerals program that we've agreed with with Ukraine, is that there's going to be U.S. personnel that are going to have to be in there to rebuild the infrastructure. It requires a lot of energy to do mining, and that's going to increase to be a large, again, organization of Americans. So I think that you're going to have the protection of American employees there. So you're going to have some kind of link. But again, EU, as far as any boots on the ground or have an immediate reaction to anything for Russia moving forward, that's really going to be the play as far as how this unfolds going in the future. General, if you could talk to us about the nuanced differences between security guarantees and NATO Article five protections and also when people are bringing up the Budapest Accords. Now, Steve, I think going back specifically to Budapest, that was an agreement in 1994 where Russia made a commitment that they would never threaten or attack Ukraine. They clearly broke that agreement, which is why we need an iron clad security guarantee to make sure that Putin and Russia do not cheat again. And frankly, now the pressure needs to continue to be on Putin because he has yet to demonstrate that he is negotiating in good faith. Just the opposite. He's been negotiating and acting in bad faith. I think that he would love to see these negotiations drag out, which is why we've got to set timelines and again, very clearly remember that Putin started this war. He has sustained this war and we must hold him accountable for ending it and doing so in a way that meets a time frame and a timeline. That is robust, but also including those security guarantees so that he can't keep going. President Trump appeared to be optimistic about a potential prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, saying that it's just a matter of time. Could even happen immediately. Let's have a look at that. I know there's over a thousand prisoners and I know they're going to release them. Maybe they're going to release them very soon, like immediately, which I think is great. But we will we're going to set that up today after these after this meeting. Major Agonzio, how are you reading this? Will there be a full prisoner exchange? And what might that entail and how significant would that ultimately be? Yeah, I think there's going to be an extent to that, as far as we each has, because when when things were fine, at least happening in Turkey and of course, you know, Putin didn't show up at that event either. But at least the prisoner swap swaps were something that were were negotiated and actually did carry out. And that's that that is fine. And it's, you know, definitely understandable that that'll be one of the things that both countries can get. I think one of the things that was also alluded to, and of course, you see the first lady involved is about the children, the children being there in person, trying to stop some of that, that traffic and the children is rather significant. And that is something that's really one of the, I would say, sensitive parts for Ukraine. This is also the reason why Putin has a warrant from the ICC. So while that portion for the soldiers has occurred, and I think will continue in the future, the children really are a key part. And we've talked about 13 or 18000. I can tell you that's a lot more, more than double than that. So it's a combination of those two. And that's a very delicate subject that really needs to have attention and fixed. General Tyker, what do you think are some of the biggest questions that still remain in these negotiations? And when it comes to actually putting it into practice, how complex is it really to hash out these fine details for it to really make sense? Steve, the primary reason for the meeting yesterday was that it was a strategy session that those European and American leaders went through the tradeoffs that are going to include geography, security and economy to see what is within the realm of the possible. But really, what I think we should all be watching for is to see if Putin actually is willing to start negotiating either in a bilateral way with Zelensky or as a trilat that includes President Trump. But you already start to see signs from Russian spokespeople that say that he is not willing to quickly start jumping into those negotiations, which is just a great reminder to all of us that he is dragging his feet. He is not negotiating in good faith, regardless of the terms. And the president of the United States needs to hold him account for that. And if he doesn't meet certain timelines like the end of August, then you need to start imposing costs to make it convincing to him that he needs to start negotiating in good faith. Retired Major Glenn Ignazio and retired General John Tykert, really appreciate both of you joining. Some popular slang words made from the leap from social media gibberish to the Cambridge Dictionary. The terms are among the more than 6,000 new words added to the world's largest online dictionary coined by a YouTube creator. The nonsense word that can also mean cool or bad. Trad wife is a contraction of traditional wife. And there's a bunch of other ones in here that I can't even pronounce. So these are all used to describe various beliefs and fantasies. And it's really an interesting thing. The Cambridge Dictionary says it uses a database of more than two billion written and spoken English words to monitor the use and context of new words. A lexical program manager at Cambridge Dictionary says internet culture is changing the English language. And you can look into that a little bit more. That's all we have for you tonight on The Capital Report. Around the clock original coverage. Visit us at ntd.com slash live. And download the entity mobile app from Washington. I'm Steve Lance. Have a great evening. See you back here tomorrow.