Transcript

5.7.26 · Washington Post

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the reading of two days Washington Post for Thursday,
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the seventh of May of twenty twenty six. Your reader
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is Alistaina, with the reminder that RADIOI is for those
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blind with other difficulties in holding a reading printed material.
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And I will start with the front page, far left,
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messages of faith by US leaders, poll poorly broad rejection
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of Trump and Hegseth statements, positive ratings for Pope by
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Michelle Bornstein and Scott Clement. And then across the top
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four columns of the paper are twelve squares with circles.
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Red circles in each of the squares looking and targeting
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certain portions of various naval and air supp facilities all
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over everywhere, and those are a part of trump threatens
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higher level attacks. He dials up pressure for a peace
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deal as Tehran reviews US framework. Karen DeYoung and Susannah
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George these are naval support places, quite a few air
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bases all around the area of that Middle East area.
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And on the far right of the front page wide
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damage for US assets far larger than publicly admitted. Satellite
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imagery exposes hundreds of Iran strikes.
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Speaker 2: This article is.
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Speaker 1: Evan Hill, Jared Leigh, Alex Horton, Somebody Cup and Dan Lemouth. Oh,
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and I think that's the airstrikes. This goes with the
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article on the right. Those pictures do below the fold
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on the left in Fighting at Kremlin Signals Rift among
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Elite by Catherine Belton. And then a picture of cable
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T visionary who created CNN. It's a picture of Ted
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Turner who died. He was eighty seven years old, born
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nineteen eighty three, died in twenty twenty six. His sprawling
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legacy encompassed conservation, philanthropy, and professional sports by Alan Bernstein.
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And the picture of him, it's not a very complimentary
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picture of him.
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Speaker 2: He's in a dark coat like a brown vest.
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Speaker 1: Below blue shirt and tie with multiple colors in squares
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on and the picture says Ted Turner's Belakosti and Bravado
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earned him the nickname.
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Speaker 2: Use both of the South.
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Speaker 1: His personality made him one of the most captivating public
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figures of his generation by Adam Bernstein. And Pro Israel
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Consensus is collapsing in both parties by Isaac Arensdorf. And
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that's the last article on the front page. All right,
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this is the truth of the article. It's an exclusive
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to the Washington Post, Iran has hit far more US
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military assets than reported. Satellite images showed. Imagery published by
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Iranian state affiliated media and verified by the Post shows
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damage to at least two hundred and twenty eight structures
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or pieces of equipment at US military sites.
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Speaker 2: Again.
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Speaker 1: The article is by Evan Hill, Jared Lay, Alex Horton,
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Terror Copp and Dan Lemouth. Iranian asteriks have damaged or
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destroyed at least two hundred and twenty eight structures or
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pieces of equipment a US military sites across the Middle
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East since the war began, hitting hangars, barracks, fuel depots,
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aircraft and key radar, communications and air defense equipment. According
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to a Washington Post analysis of satellite imagery, the amount
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of destruction is far larger than what has been publicly
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acknowledged by the US government or previously reported. The thread
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of air attax rendered some of the US bases in
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the region too dangerous to staff at normal level, and
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commanders moved most of the personnel from these sites out
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of the range of Iranian fire at the start of
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the war, officials have said. And it shows a map
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of damaged US military sites in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and
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up in Iraq with Iran at the top and to
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the right of the building there's Saudi Arabia, or there's
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a place in Saudi Arabia Guitar and the UAE, and
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it's a widespread area. Since the start of the war
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on February twenty eighth, seven service members have died in
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strikes on US facilities in the region, six in Kuwait,
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in one in Saudi Arabia, and more than four hundred
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troops have suffered injuries. As of late April, the US
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military said, while most of the wounded return to duty
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within days, at least twelve suffered injuries that military officials
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classified as serious. According to US officials, who, among others,
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spoke on the condition of animnity do the sensitivity of
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the issue, Satellite imagery of the Middle East is unusually
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difficult to acquire at present. Two of the largest commercial providers,
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Vantore and Planet, have complied with the requests from the
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US government, their biggest customer, to limit delay or indefinitely
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withhold the publication of imagery of.
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Speaker 2: The region while the war is ongoing.
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Speaker 1: Making it difficult or impossible to assess around's counter strikes.
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Those restrictions began less than two weeks into the war.
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Iranian state affiliated news agencies, however, have from the start
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regularly published high resolution satellite imagery on their social media
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accounts that claimed to document damage to US sites. For
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this examination, one of the first comprehensive public accounts of
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the damage to the US facilities in the region, the
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Post reviewed more than one hundred high resolution Iranian released
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satellite images.
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Speaker 2: The Post verified the.
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Speaker 1: Authenticity of one hundred and nine of those images by
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comparing them with lower resolution imagery from the European Union
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satellite system Copernius, as well as high resolution images from
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planet were available. The Post excluded nineteen Arandian images from
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the damage analysis because comparisons with the Copernius imagery were inconclusive.
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No Iranian imagery was found to have been manipulated. And
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it shows pictures of the original and the other section
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to verify what really happened. And there's one from the
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beginning of February and verified damage on March the eighth,
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and you can see one, three, six, nine, ten, eleven
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buildings in one image on February twenty second, and you
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see blackened images of those eleven on March eighth, and
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those were nine fuel bladders of Al al Salim Air
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Base in Kuwait that were damaged. In a separate search
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of planet imagery, POST reporters found ten damaged or destroyed
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structures that were not documented in the imagery released by Iran.
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In all, the Post found two two hundred and seventeen
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structures and eleven pieces of equipment that were damaged or
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destroyed at fifteen US military sites in the region. Experts
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who reviewed the Post analysis said the damage at the
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site suggested that the US military had underestimated Iran's targeting abilities,
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not adapted sufficiently to modern drone warfare, and left some
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bases under protected.
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Speaker 2: The Iranian tacks were precise.
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Speaker 1: There are no randomocraters indicating MISSUS, said Mark Kansian, a
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senior advisor with the Center for Strategic and International Studies
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and a retired Marine Corps colonel who reviewed the Iranian
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images at the POST request. The Post previously revealed how
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Russia provided Iran with intelligence to target US forces. Some
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of the damage may have occurred after US troops already
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left the ban, making protection of the structures less vital.
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Cansi and and other experts said they do not believe
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the attacks have significantly limited the US military's ability to
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conduct its bombing campaign in Iran. US Central Command, which
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has responsibility for the Middle East, decline to address a
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detailed summary of findings from the Post. A military spokesperson
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disputed the characterization of based damage by experts as extensive
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or evidence of failures, saying assessments of destruction are complex
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and can be misleading in some cases, but decline to
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provide specifics.
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Speaker 2: Military leaders will.
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Speaker 1: Be able to provide fuller context for the Iranian attacks
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after the conflict ends, the spokesperson said in caps in
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bold the damage in the first weeks of the war,
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several news outlets published reviews of damage, including The New
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York Times, which strikes at fourteen US military sites or
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air defense installations. In late April, NBC News reported that
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an Iranian jet bombed a US base in Kuwait, the
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first time in years that an enemy fighter plane has
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hit a US base, and cited research it said showed
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one hundred targets have been struck by Iran across eleven bases.
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CNN reported last week that sixteen US installations have been damaged,
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but the review by the Post based on imaging dating
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from the war's start through April fourteenth, reveals that scorers
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of additional targets were struck at the sites, which are
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predominantly used by the US military but shared with the
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host nation's military forces and the US show. The images
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show that air strikes damaged or destroyed what appear to
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be numerous barracks, hangars or warehoses at more than half
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of the US bases that the Post reviewed, and again
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there are more pictures of bases with big circles in
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areas that have been hit. The Iranians have deliberately targeted
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accommodation buildings across multiple sites with the intent to inflict
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mass casualties, said William Goudhand and investigated with the Open
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Access Research Project Contested Ground, who reviewed the imagery, adding
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it is not just equipment, fuel storage and air base
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infrastructure under fire, but also soft targets such as gyms,
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food hauls, and accommodation. Also found that the attacks hit
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a satellite communications site at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar,
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Patriot missile defense equipment at Rifa and Issa air bases
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in Bahrain, and Ali Al Salim Air Base in Kuwait.
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A satellite dish at that navals support activity Baran, which
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serves as the headquarters of the US fifth Fleet, a
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power camp at Camp Buring in Kuwait, and five fuel
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storage bladder sites across three bases. The Iranian Imagery also
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documented previously reported damage or destruction of raydomes at Camp
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Ariphun and Al Ali al Salim air Base in Kuwait,
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and at the fifth Fleet Headquarters, Terminal High Altitude Area
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Defense THAD THHAA D missile defense radars and equipment at
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Wafi Saliti Air Base in Jordan, in two sites in
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the United Arab immirants, a second satellite communications site at
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Al Udeid Air Base, and an E three century command
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and control aircraft and a refueling tanker at Prince Sultan
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Air Base in Saudi Arabia. More than half of the
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damage reviewed by the Post occurred at the fifth Fleet
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headquarters and the three bases in Kuwait. Ali Al Salim
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Air Base, Camp Aire Fajan and Camp during Camp Airevdan
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is the US Army's regional headquarters. Some Persian Gulf nations
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have refused to allow the US military to conduct offensive
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operations out of their bases. A US official set bases
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in Bahrain and Kuwait were two of the hardest hit,
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possibly because they permitted attacks from their territory, including the
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use of high mobility artillery rocket systems that can fire
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missiles at ranges exceeding three hundred and ten miles. The
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Post's review represents only a partial count of the damage
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based on available satellite imagery. Some of the damage could
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have been the result of US choices or deception, Cansian said.
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To help preserve valuable interceptors, US forces can choose to
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allow an incoming missile to strike if it seems likely
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to hit an unimportant target, he said, and it's also
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possible commanders sought to deceive Iranian forces by making emptied
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based locations appear occupied. Some of the damage could have
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been the result of US choices or deception, Cansian said.
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To help preserve valuable interceptors, U s forces can choose
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used to allow an incoming missile to strike if it
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seems likely to hit an unimportant target, he said, and
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it's also possible commanders sought to deceive Iranian forces by
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making emptied based locations appear occupied. In bold a changed battlefield,
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experts say the vulnerability of the military sites to Iran's
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attacks was likely the consequence of numerous factors. Chief among them,
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experts said, is that Iranian forces have been more resilient
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than the Trump administration may have anticipated. Kelly Greco, a
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senior fellow at the Simpson Center, a think tank, said
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plans to destroy Iran's missile and drone forces fast enough
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to prevent them from inflicting serious damage underestimated the depth
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of Iran's preposition targeting intelligence on fixed US infrastructure. Greco
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said the strategy also failed to account for the degree
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to which US and Israeli air defenses had been used
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up during the twelve day conflict in June between.
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Speaker 2: Iran, Israel, and the United States.
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Speaker 1: According to an estimate from the Center for Strategic and
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International Studies, the military used at least one hundred and
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ninety third interceptors and one thousand sixty patriot interceptors between
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February twenty eighth and April eighth, representing fifty three percent
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and forty three percent of their pre war inventories, respectively.
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Justin Bark, senior research fellow for Air Power and Technology
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at the Royal United Services Institute based in London, said
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US and Allied air defenses had done an impressive job
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intercepting attacks, but at an enormous cost in terms of
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service to air missile interceptors and air to air air missiles.
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In addition, experts said the U. S Military had not
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adequately adapted to the use of one way drone attacked drones,
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something they said planners should have learned from observing the
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war in Ukraine.
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Speaker 2: While drones have.
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Speaker 1: Small payloads, some of these did not do that much damage.
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They are more difficult to intercept and much more accurate,
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making them a much bigger threat to U. S forces,
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said Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at the Center
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for Naval Analysis. They also pointed to structural challenges, including
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a short fall of fortified shelters that could protect troops
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and equipment at key positions and likely targets. For example,
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the Tactical Operations Center in Kuwait, where six U S
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service members were killed by an Iranian drone attack in
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early March, offered little overhead protection or concealment, one of
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several issues being examined by Democratic lawmakers probing the facilities.
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Speaker 2: In one case, it.
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Speaker 1: Appeared that the E three century Command and control aircraft
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at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia was destroyed
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after being repeatedly parked in the same location on an
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unprotected taxiway. Satellite imagery shows U S Central Command declined
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to address questions on experts analysis of the damage. The
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strikes on U S bases in the region have left
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military planners considering new trade offs, said Maximilian Brema, a
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non resident fellow at the Stimson Center and retired Air
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Force officer, pulled troops back to safer locations and limit
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their ability to fight or maintain the bases as they were,
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and accept the potential.
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Speaker 2: Of future casualties.
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Speaker 1: A US official said that damage at the naval support
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activity is extensive and that the headquarters they are relocated
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to McDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, the home
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of US Central Command. It is unlikely that troops, contractors,
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or civilian employees will return to the base any time.
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Speaker 2: Soon, the official said.
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Speaker 1: Two other officials said US forces may never return to
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regional bases in large numbers. The no final decision has
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been made. We have moved from an age of stealth
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to one where the entire battle space is translucent and
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increasingly transparent, said Bremer, adding it feels like we should
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be on a but we are definitely by playing defense
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around these bases. Pro Krimlin lawyer's turn against Putin reveals
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rift in Russian power circles. Iliya Rameslov was put in
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a psychiatric hospital after criticizing Vladimir Putin. Now free, he
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said that he will not stop his crusade against the
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Russian president.
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Speaker 2: By Catherine Belton.
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Speaker 1: When Iliya Rameslo, a longtime Krimlin attack lawyer and propagandist,
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first turned against Vladimir Putin in March, posting publicly that
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the Russian president should resign and be brought to justice
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as a war criminal and a thief, the Russian authorities
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rapidly carded Rameslo off against his will, to a Saint
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Petersburg's psychiatric hospital, But in a highly unusual development for
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a regime that is notorious for incarcerating its critics for years,
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Rameslo was freed after thirty days. Now, the pro Kremlin
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henchman and blogger who worked for the presidential administration for
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a better decade smearing opposition activist, is vowing to remain
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in Russia and continue a public anti Putin fight.
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Speaker 2: I said from the beginning that I'm not going to stop.
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Speaker 1: I decided that this is the work of my life,
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Rameslov told The Washington Post in an interview. As cracks
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appear in the Russian elite over the war against Ukraine,
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the deteriorating Russian economy, and repressive restrictions, including limits on
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internet access, Rameslov's turnabout and continuing open defiance signify a
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broader divide in the upper reaches of Kremlin power, according
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to a Russian official, a prominent opposition figure analysis. The
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Russian official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss
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sensitive matters. The scale of dissatisfaction is colossal, Rameslo said
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in the interview with the Post, his first with an
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international media organization since his release. I have the impression
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that part of the system is already starting to work
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against Putin.
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Speaker 2: Dot dot dot. It's essentially dot dot dot.
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Speaker 1: Similar to what happened at the end of the Soviet Union,
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when people hated the Communist Party and did everything for
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it to end. Putin's Russia will follow the same path
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as the Soviet Union. Everything is being repeated in recent weeks,
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Putin's approval rating fell to its it's lowest levels since
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Russia began its full scale invasion of Ukraine in February
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twenty twenty two, according to CIOM, the state controlled polling firm,
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A chorus of other voices have started speaking out against
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the government's handling of the economy and the internet rules,
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which are set to tighten the head of Moscow's annual
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Victory Day parade on Saturday as Judus mote about the
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Ukrainian drone attacks. Krimlin watchers say the criticism is part
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of an internal conflict between a faction and the Russian
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presidential administration led by Rameslov's former boss, Scherji Kiryenko, the
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technocrat first deputy Krimlin chief, who oversees Russia's political apparatus,
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and the Federal Security Service FSB, where Putin built his career.
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Speaker 2: The security services are.
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Speaker 1: Widely believed to be behind the clampdown on Internet access,
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fearing it can be used to target Putin and to
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mobilize an anti government apposition. Some of Putin's political advisers, however,
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see the restrictions as stoking anti government anger in Russia's
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highly digitalized society.
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Speaker 2: A very big battle for power is going.
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Speaker 1: On, Rameslo said, noting he remains in contact with some
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former allies in Russian power structures, adding the fb FSB
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and the administration are very much in conflict. Putin does
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not have a single fist which only works for him.
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They are all working against each other. Krimmin's spokesman Dmitri Peskov,
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did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mikhail Kordorovsky,
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the former oil tycoon who was once Russia's richest man
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and is now a leading Russian opposition figure based in London,
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said Ramleeslo's release was a sign that factions in the
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Kremlin were supporting him. And there is a picture of
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the exiled Figia Mikhail Kordorovsky in a courtroom in Moscow
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on May thirtieth in two thousand and five. He's in
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that cage, it looks like, with his arms folded, wearing
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jeans and the black shirt.
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Speaker 2: You see pictures like this often.
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Speaker 1: There is an absolute clear conflict between the presidential administration
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and the Second Directorate of the FSB, Kordorovsky said, referring
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to the f FSB unit responsible for combating terrorism and
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defending the Russian constitution. These guys have gotten a lot
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of authority and have started tightening the screws very strongly.
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Speaker 2: Kordovsky added.
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Speaker 1: The presidential administration is trying to somehow let Putin know
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the lid could blow off the can. One person familiar
27:11
with the situation said the growing standoff ahead of parliamentary
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elections in November evokes memories of a Kremlin power struggle
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before Russian President Boris Yeltsen was re elected.
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Speaker 2: In nineteen ninety six.
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Speaker 1: Then hardline has wanted to make sure Yelson remained in
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power by imposing martial law and canceling or postponing the vote,
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while Russia's more progressive Olik arch class wanted to bankroll
27:39
Yeltson's election campaign and control it as much as possible.
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In some senses, the same story is being repeated, the
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person familiar with the situation said, speaking on the condition
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of anonymity, to discuss the sense of political rivalries. Kerrie
27:59
and Oh and his team are trying to convince Putin
28:02
that he can keep control of the situation in the
28:05
country through political technologies, and the second Service of the
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SB is trying to convince Putin that the only way
28:13
to stabilize this situation in the country is through brutal
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methods and through tightening the screws. In a sign of
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the standoff, one of Kerryenko's closest, Lieutenant Sergei nik Novikov,
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head of the Kriminalin Department for Social Projects, told a
28:33
conference on demographics that in Russia it is already impossible
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demands something, a statement interpreted as referencing the Internet rules
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everywhere we can see chaos and management processes. Alexander Bonov,
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a political analyst with the Carnegie Russian Eurasia Center, wrote
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last week in a report about the growing divide in
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the Russian elite. Berulov said relations towards Putin are changing,
29:06
economic optimism in the everyday patriotism connected to it or disappointing. Finally,
29:13
the impossibility of winning a war, which has changed and
29:17
reduced Russia's advantages to a minimum, is recognized. It's as
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if the content of the air has changed in Russia,
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he wrote, as Ukrainian drones reach ever deeper into Russian territory,
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seriting oil refineries and terminals ablaze and this week hitting
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a high rise building just three and a half miles
29:41
from the Kremlin, public anxiety is rising, and Putin appears
29:47
to be increasing his own personal security. A report by
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European intelligence agency, published in full on Munde by the
29:56
independent Russian investigative outlet Istoreries and reported simultaneously by The
30:02
Financial Times and CNN, said Putin's Federal Protection Service or
30:08
FS has significantly boosted security protocols around the president since
30:14
early March, apparently worried that Putin could be targeted in
30:18
a drone attack, including by members of Russia's on elite.
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The FSO has tightened security checks on those visiting Putin,
30:28
while those working with him are forbidden from using mobile
30:30
phones or any other devices connected to the Internet, and
30:35
are banned from traveling on public transport, according to the
30:39
European intelligence report.
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Speaker 2: The Washington Post did.
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Speaker 1: Not independently obtain the intelligence report, but in the interview
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Ramoslo described its findings as broadly accurate.
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Speaker 2: Since the beginning of.
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Speaker 1: The war, Putin has increasingly run Russia from a remote
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system of underground uncles, and more recently, he has cut
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back public visits. The periodic shutdown of communications systems in
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Moscow is in part connected to Putin's security fears. The
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report said a blame game erupted over failed security measures
31:18
in December after a senior Russian general, Fanil Sarava was assassinated,
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the latest in a series of Ukrainian linked attacks. The
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report said the US Israeli assassination of Around's Supreme leader
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Ayatola al Kamini, who was a long time Putin ally,
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may have further increased Putin security fears and opened the
31:44
way for the security services to clamp down on access
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to the Internet. Kodorovovsky said in Moscow Kaminese Kameni's killing
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was seen as the Americans using Internet technology for remote surveillance,
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and since the Russian network is open for this type
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of remote surveillance, they got worried. Kodorovsky said Putin had
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been tightening his own personal security ever since his one
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time close ally, Virginy Progozin, the late leader of the
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Wagner Mercenary Group, launched an aborted mutiny against the Russian
32:25
president in June twenty twenty three, but protocols were strengthened
32:29
even thorover the two months ago.
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Speaker 2: Maslov said.
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Speaker 1: Ramaslov was once part of a team of Kremlin propagandists
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who targeted Russian opposition figures, including most prominently the late
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opposition Alexei Navali. Ramaslov used his background as a lawyer
32:50
to testify against the opposition figures in court and smear
32:54
them online. In an interview last week with Kinsia Sobotek,
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television celebrity and the daughter of Putin's one time political
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mentor us Saint Petersburg mayor anatole subject, Ramosola said that
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he paid a pension a to file a lawsuit against Navali,
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alleging fraud related to donations to Navali's anti corruption foundation.
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The allegations were part of a case that landed Nevali
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a nine year jail sentence in March twenty twenty two.
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Navali was serving that sentence in a remote Arctic penal
33:34
colony when he died in February twenty twenty four, killed
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by a rare poison. According to Western governments, rameslos that
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he now regrets his involvement in the Kremlin's persecution of
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Navali and wants to rectify that by speaking of it
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against Putin, and hopes that other prominent figures will join
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him in opposing the increasingly oppressive regime. The disappointment with
34:01
Putin was a graduate process, he said, first, as his
34:05
realization grew that the war against Ukraine initially intended to
34:09
topple Ukraine President Volodimir Zelensky in days would dragg o
34:15
far beyond the original plan, and later when the Russian
34:19
president retreated from view during Prozovzingj's botched uprising and left
34:24
others to deal with the crisis evidence, he said, of
34:28
the president's personal cowardice, I understand that this is not
34:33
the president I voted for. It is not a person
34:36
who is brave or courageous.
34:39
Speaker 2: It's a completely different.
34:40
Speaker 1: Person who just fears a real opponent who represents a
34:44
threat to him, Rameslov said. For a long time, Rameslo
34:49
said he hesitated to make any public statement, hoping negotiations
34:54
with President Donald Trump's administration would succeed in ending the war.
34:59
Speaker 2: But in when it became clear these.
35:02
Speaker 1: Talks were going nowhere and Putin was being buoyed to
35:06
extend the war by oil prices that were surging because
35:09
of Trump's own war against Iran, Ramuslov said he decided
35:13
he had to speak out. It was necessary to try
35:17
and stop him. It was necessary to speak against him,
35:21
Rameslov said, adding I decided that if I do it,
35:26
other people would see and it would lead other people
35:29
to speak too, because I know that people around me,
35:33
people from the administration, they think exactly the same. Rameslo
35:39
said he believed that about half the criminal administration shares
35:42
his view, according including his former voice Karienko, as well
35:48
as some officials from the top ranks of the Russian
35:50
security services and Defense ministry who are more progressively minded
35:56
than those driving the repressions. Rameslov said, in the administration
36:02
there are good people.
36:04
Speaker 2: They snicker at.
36:04
Speaker 1: Putin and say he's very primitive and that he's doing
36:07
everything to lead the country.
36:09
Speaker 2: Into an abyss.
36:11
Speaker 1: He added, of course, publicly, they are scared to say this,
36:16
because of course they will be put in jail and
36:18
all their assets will be taken. The European Intelligence report
36:23
single former Defense Minister Seragi Shogu, who now serves as
36:28
Secretary of the National Security Council, as a subject of
36:32
particular criminal concern because he maintained considerable influence in the
36:38
military command and is associated with the risk of a
36:42
state coup attempt. The report did not provide evidence for
36:46
the claims against Shargu, a long time Putin ally the
36:51
arrest of Shagu's former deputy minister, RUSLM. Tasilikov on corruption
36:57
charges could pose a personal threat to Chogu. The report
37:02
said of You, shared by Verum Lemsoe, who said he
37:07
believed Shogugu would be certain to take measures to defend himself.
37:12
Speaker 2: A spokesperson for the Russian Security.
37:14
Speaker 1: Council did not respond to a request for comment about Shogu.
37:19
Putin will be toppled at some moment by his own
37:23
circle when he stops being convenient for them completely. This
37:28
is the result that is awaiting him. Rum Lemslow said.
37:35
Paul finds broad rejection of religion related messages from Trump.
37:41
Hegseeth Americans rate Pope Leo positively, but are deeply critical
37:47
of the president's social media post that appeared to depict
37:51
him as Jesus. The post, ABC IPSOS poll found and
37:56
there are separate pictures of both Trump and Pope Leo,
38:00
and they are positioned like they are facing each other
38:03
in a standoff. One says President Donald Trump has been
38:08
critical in recent statements about Pope Leo. The Fourteenth by
38:13
Michelle Bornstein and Scott Clement Americans are deeply uncomfortable with
38:19
recent religion related statements by President Donald Trump and Defense
38:24
Secretary Pete Hegseath, a striking rebuke in a closely divided country,
38:29
according to a Washington Post ABC News IPSOS poll. The
38:35
poll finds positive ratings for Pope Leo the Fourteenth, who
38:38
has criticized US actions on immigration and in Iran, drawing
38:43
criticism from Trump that the President.
38:45
Speaker 2: Repeated on Tuesday.
38:48
Speaker 1: Eighty seven percent of Americans have a negative view of
38:52
Trump's social media post appearing to depict himself as Jesus.
38:56
According to the poll, sixty nine percent like Hegxeth praying
39:01
at the Pentagon for overwhelming violence of action against those
39:06
who deserved no mercy. Both expressions drew criticism even from
39:12
Republicans and Trump voters, unusual at a time of deep
39:16
political tribalism. Eighty percent of twenty twenty four Trump voters
39:21
had a negative reaction to Trump's Jesus post, as did
39:24
seventy nine percent of Republicans.
39:27
Speaker 2: On Hegseth's prayer.
39:28
Speaker 1: More than forty percent of both groups reacted negatively. There
39:33
is only one Jesus. I found the post to be
39:36
inappropriate and offensive. Humility is at the core of being Jesus,
39:42
said Kimberly Chopin, a fifty seven year old Catholic who
39:46
lives in suburban Baton Rouge and voted for Trump. She
39:50
added that Hexath's prayer calls for violence made her extremely uncomfortable.
39:56
That kind of language sounds like the language of the
39:58
Al Qaeda. Trump deleted the AI generated image of himself
40:04
as Jesus after widespread backlash, including allegations of blasphemy, from
40:09
the religious right.
40:11
Speaker 2: For more than a.
40:12
Speaker 1: Decade, Trump has presented himself as a champion of the
40:15
deeply religious. He has been rewarded with broad support from
40:19
white Christians, some of whom compare him with biblical heroes.
40:24
The new poll shows a decline in their approval, however,
40:28
as Trump's administration faces criticism from not only the Pope,
40:32
but multiple high ranking US Catholic clerics as well as
40:36
leaders of other conservative faiths for aspects of his immigration
40:40
crackdown and the war in Iran. While nine and ten
40:45
white Evangelical Protestants, the most pro Trump religious block of Americans,
40:51
have a negative view of Trump posting the Jesus like image,
40:56
the vast majority of that group, about ten seven out
41:00
of ten still approved of Trump's overall performance as president.
41:05
That is a drop of ten percentage points from his
41:08
approval rating among white Evangelicals in the poll in February
41:12
twenty twenty five. Trump is said publicly that he was
41:16
responsible for putting the image on social media and that
41:19
he thought it depicted him as akin.
41:21
Speaker 2: To a doctor or Red crossworkers.
41:25
Speaker 1: Despite the president's statements, Christine Roffe, an Evangelical Protestant who
41:30
voted for Trump, said she doesn't believe he posted the image.
41:34
Speaker 2: He's a strong man.
41:36
Speaker 1: He stands up for what he believes in, and he
41:38
believes in protecting America, said Rolf, sixty seven, who lives
41:42
in Missouri and retired last year from a job working
41:45
for the state with it disabled. I don't think of
41:49
him as a champion for Christians, but to me, he
41:52
has good values. Trump won the white Catholic vote by
41:57
more than a twenty point margin in the twenty twenty
41:59
five presidential election, but his approval rating with that group
42:04
is down in the new poll at forty nine percent
42:07
compared with sixty three percent in February twenty twenty five.
42:11
His approval rate stands at thirty eight percent for all Catholics,
42:15
at ten point drop since then. Among the public overall,
42:20
Trump's approval rating has dropped from forty five percent in
42:23
February twenty twenty five to thirty seven percent. Americans seem
42:28
to feel more warmly toward Leo, the first US born pope,
42:32
who succeeded Pope Francis last year. In recent months, Leo
42:38
and some of his surrogates in the US have expressed
42:41
criticism and disapproval of some US military and immigration enforcement actions.
42:47
In response, Trump has lashed out at the Pope. In
42:51
the poll, two of three Americans react positively to Leo
42:56
asking Americans to contact Congress to work for peace and
42:59
reject wool.
43:01
Speaker 2: Nearly six and ten have a negative.
43:03
Speaker 1: Reaction to Trump's false claim about the pope, saying It's
43:07
okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon. Trump's criticism
43:13
of Leo says, Chopin left a bad taste in my mouth.
43:18
Catholics make up the largest Christian denomination in the country.
43:22
Why when you at least want to engage in a
43:24
positive way. Here's the leader of the Catholic Church, a
43:28
respected one and the first American. I just felt there
43:32
should be discussion, Chopin, said. Rolfe, who said she had
43:38
strongly negative views of Leo, repeated false Trump's false claim
43:44
that the Pontiffs at Aran should be able to have
43:47
nuclear weapons. She also disapproves of what she sees as
43:51
Leo's too welcoming approach to LGBTQ plus people. I have
43:57
no problem with their community, but if you go by
43:59
the religious leaders accepting them as though they are going
44:03
to heaven, as though it's all peaches and roses, and
44:07
it's not, Rulfe said. Among Americans who are familiar with him,
44:14
Leo has a positive image forty one percent of favorable,
44:18
compared with sixteen percent who are unfavorable. A sizeable forty
44:22
three percent of Americans are still unfamiliar with the Pontiff. However,
44:27
Leo is popular on American Catholics, including Catholic Republicans and
44:32
Trump voters, the poll found, and overwhelmingly popular among Democrats
44:37
and those who voted for Democrat Kamala Harris.
44:40
Speaker 2: In twenty twenty four. Cindy Luna twenty eight.
44:45
Speaker 1: An about a Republican who voted for Trump, said the
44:48
president's social media post and hegsas Sprayer are typical of
44:52
the reasons she in recent years has felt more skepticism
44:56
for politics in general, as well as the Republican Party.
45:01
Speaker 2: He can disagree with the.
45:03
Speaker 1: Pope, that's fine, but he doesn't understand who the Pope is,
45:08
said Luna, who is a Hispanic Catholic and stay at
45:11
home parent. She said that as someone who sees herself
45:14
as consistently pro life, she respects Leo for his dances
45:19
against the war and on helping the disenfranchised, including migrants.
45:24
He's not a politician, so he'll call a spade a spade,
45:28
Luna said, adding he's going to disagree when it goes
45:32
against their teaching and call it out. The Jesus image,
45:36
added to other controversial Trump posts, have made me realize
45:41
politicians are just human and they are tempted by other
45:45
vices as well, Luna said. The post ABC Ipsos poll
45:51
also asked about a post by Trump made while his
45:54
administration was in negotiations with Iran. The post, which said
46:00
a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought
46:03
back again, seemed to suggest the use of nuclear weapons.
46:08
It triggered extensive public debate, including for moral theologians and
46:13
philosophers who study ethics and war. Seventy six percent of
46:19
Americans reacted negatively to that post, including fifty three who
46:24
did so strongly. Going inside, why the odds keep rising
46:32
for the strongest El Nino in a century. El Nino
46:37
patterns are correlated with food shortages, water impacts, and even
46:42
civil conflict in tropical countries by ben Knowl, chances arising
46:49
that in al Nino expected to form soon would become
46:52
one of the most powerful such events on record. According
46:56
to new data release this week, the latest outlook from
47:00
the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast shows water
47:05
temperatures in the key region of the Central Ecuadorial Pacific
47:09
Ocean potentially reaching three degrees celsius that is, five point
47:14
four degrees fahrenheit above average late in the year. That
47:19
could approach or even surpass the current records set in
47:23
eighteen seventy seven and twenty fifteen and exceed the threshold
47:29
for a super El Nino. Confidence is clearly shifting higher
47:34
on potentially the biggest El Nino events since the eighteen seventies,
47:39
wrote Paul Rowndee, a professor of atmospheric science at State
47:44
University of New York at Albany. Records for El Nino
47:48
began in eighteen fifty. It's the third consecutive month that
47:53
multiple models have predicted that are potentially record breaking. Alnino
47:59
could drive global temperatures to new highs and shift patterns
48:03
of droughts, floods, heat, humidity, and sea.
48:08
Speaker 2: Ice across the planet planet.
48:12
Speaker 1: The coming conditions could have significant consequences for agriculture, health,
48:17
and the economy across the planet. The odds for a
48:21
powerful al Nino were boosted by a rare triplet cyclone
48:25
pattern in the Pacific last month, which caused a record
48:29
raating burst of wind that created a freight train of
48:32
warm weather beneath the ocean surface that's reached seven degrees
48:37
celsius or twelve point six degrees fahrenheit above average. That's
48:43
a major anonymously in the ocean, which typically takes a
48:47
long time to warm up and cool down. Alninio patterns
48:51
are correlated with food shortages, water impacts, and even civil
48:56
conflict in tropical countries. So these natural patterns of variability,
49:01
as short lived as they are, still have a profound
49:05
impact on human society and human well being, said climate
49:10
scientist Katherine Heho. Al Nino is gradually beginning to affect
49:16
weather patterns, with NOAA National Organization of Atmospheric Association data
49:24
suggesting the phenomenon made fully.
49:26
Speaker 2: Formed by July.
49:29
Speaker 1: Some of the weather impacts predicted to unfold through November
49:33
are at least partly connected to the developing al Nino one.
49:38
Tropical storm and monsoon activity. Reduced hurricane activity in the
49:43
Atlantic Ocean and possible dried in the Caribbean Islands, Increased
49:48
hurricane in typhon typhoon risk and the Pacific Ocean, including Hawaii, Guam,
49:53
and parts of Eastern Asia. Reduced rainfall from the monsoon
49:58
in central and northern India as well. Elevated odds for
50:01
extreme heat, which could cause roats that impact agricultural production,
50:07
two droughts and floods. Increased chances for developing droughts and
50:12
portions of Central Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, the Philippines,
50:18
some South Pacific islands, Central America, and stretches of northern
50:23
South America, including northern Brazil, particularly later in the year.
50:28
Elevated risks for heavy rain that could cause flooding in
50:32
parts of Peru, and Ecuador, southern Brazil and parts of
50:36
northern and eastern Africa, the Middle East, the Ecuadoria Pacific,
50:40
as well as the southern United States, especially later in
50:44
the year. Three heat and humidity. Above average summer and
50:50
fall temperatures in the western US, possibly coming with unusual humidity, downpours,
50:57
and tropical storm remnants in the southwest and inter Mountain West,
51:01
but dryness impossible drought in the Northwest. Warmer than average
51:06
summer temperatures favored across the southeast and mid Atlantic. Four
51:12
heat waves, higher frequency of heat waves across large parts
51:17
of South America, the western, Central and southern US, Africa, Europe,
51:23
parts of the Middle East, India, and eventually Indonesia and Australia.
51:29
Five record temperatures. New global temperature records, especially in twenty
51:35
twenty seven, probably breaking records set in twenty twenty four.
51:42
In bold letters. One major impact to watch record warmth.
51:49
The strongest El Nino events almost always cause a record
51:54
warm year. That's because Alnino releases heat from the ocean
51:59
into the atmosphere, and then global wind patterns and weather
52:04
systems act like conveyor belts, moving that heat around the
52:09
world and in twenty twenty sixth as extra heat compared
52:14
to the past. This can contribute to milder winter temperatures
52:21
in the US, as well as big storms along the
52:25
West Coast and the drought stricken South. As Alnino's impacts
52:30
reach a peak from the end of the year into
52:32
early twenty twenty seven, climate scientist Zeke Housefather wrote that
52:38
twenty twenty six is on track to become the planet's
52:42
second warmest year on record. The stronger al Nino becomes,
52:48
the higher the chances will be for a record warm year,
52:52
especially in twenty twenty seven, because the air temperature increases
52:56
lags slightly behind al Nino's development and peace. There's currently
53:01
a seventy three percent chance that twenty twenty seven will
53:05
become the planet's warmest year on record, according to house Father. Meanwhile,
53:13
worldwide interest in the Supernino phenomenon appears to be at
53:17
a height. Since two thousand and three. The term has
53:21
been included in one hundred and forty nine research papers
53:25
available on the American Meteorological Society website, a number that
53:30
may rise as the effect of another potential super el
53:34
Nino takes hold.
53:37
Speaker 2: And I'll finish with Ted.
53:40
Speaker 1: Turner, cable TV visionary who created CNN, dies at eighty seven.
53:47
His sprawling legacy encompassed conservation, philanthropy, and professional sports, and
53:53
his belicosity and bravado earned him the nickname Mooth of
53:58
the South by Adam Bernstein. Ted Turner, a mercural tycoon
54:05
in Godfliw, visionary whose superstation TBS was a cornerstone of
54:10
cable TV's early success, whose twenty four hour news channel
54:15
CNN revolutionized TV journalism, and whose sprawling legacy encompass conservation,
54:21
philanthropy and professional sports, died Wednesday at his home near Tallahassee.
54:27
Speaker 2: He was eighty seven. His wealth was confirmed.
54:31
Speaker 1: His death was concerned by Philip Evans, a spokesman for
54:36
Turner Enterprises. Mister Turner revealed in twenty eighteen that he
54:41
had Louis Body dementia, a progressive brain disorder. A serial
54:47
entrepreneur known as the Mouth of the South for his
54:51
belicosity and bravado, mister Turner took over his family's Georgia
54:56
based billboard company at twenty four after his father's suicide,
55:02
and transformed the business into a media joggernaut that would
55:06
forever alter broadcasting CNN really heralds the world of Twitter
55:13
and social networks and interactivity, said ken Aleta, a Turner
55:19
biographer and media writer for The New Yorker. A letter added,
55:24
during the Persian Gulf War, you had a live war
55:27
for the first time, without commercial breaks. You'd see bombs
55:32
dropping and people screaming and fire engines roaring. Everything is immediate.
55:37
It's the world we live in today. He's the father
55:40
of that world. Mister Turner's achievements transcended journalism and business,
55:46
and his much publicized personality charming, vulgar, daring, impulsive, idealistic,
55:53
titanically self regarding, made him one of the most captivating
55:58
public figures of his general he presented himself as a
56:03
Southern gentleman, but he also boasted of being a ferrari
56:07
in the bedroom, and with his incessant philandering, he burned
56:10
through three marriages, including his last to actress Jane Fonda.
56:17
The billionaire mister Turner championed a world free of conflict,
56:23
but it was on friendly terms with dictators and despots,
56:27
including Saddam Hussein and Vladimir Putin. A goldwater Republican turned
56:32
unabashed liberal, he had friends running against the political government,
56:37
from former President Jimmy Carter to Senator Jesse Helms, Republican
56:42
of North Carolina, from televangelist Jerry Fouldwell to communist Cuban
56:47
leader Fidel Castro, who became a duck hunting companion on
56:54
his cable channels TBS and TNT, Mister Turner delivered wholesome
56:59
family fee including sports and black and white reruns, but
57:03
in his prime he was a self confessed to absentee
57:06
father and husband, with family below business and sailing on
57:11
his list of priorities. As skipper of the yacht Courageous
57:16
in nineteen seventy seven, mister Turner won the America's Cup,
57:20
sailing's most prestigious trophy.
57:24
Speaker 2: He also brought his.
57:25
Speaker 1: Competitive drive to ownership with the Atlanta Braves, the long
57:29
hapless baseball team he bought in nineteen seventy six. The
57:33
team rewarded his vigorous support and patients with the World
57:37
Series victory in nineteen ninety five over the Cleveland Indians.
57:42
His interest in ambition seemingly boundless, mister Turner became one
57:46
of the largest private landowners in the Western Hemisphere, and
57:50
he used his more than two million acres from Montana
57:54
to Argentina to preserve endangered flora and fauna, wrote foundations
58:01
that campaigned and championed against nuclear arms proliferation and for
58:06
such causes as population control, solar energy, and debt forgiveness
58:11
for developing countries. And that ends today's reading of The
58:16
Washington Post for the seventh of May of twenty twenty six.
58:20
It's going to be cool but nice today.
58:23
Speaker 2: Get out.
58:24
Speaker 1: If you can, please continue listening to RADIOI and I'll
58:29
be back on Saturday.
58:31
Speaker 2: Bye.