- 'Sup, you beautiful bastards?
Welcome back to "The Philip DeFranco Show."
Buckle up, make sure you're subscribing
because I'm gonna be giving away $10,000
to 10 lucky subscribed beautiful bastards this month.
And let's just jump into it.
The first thing that we're gonna talk about today
is about a problem that I think we all
kind of hoped would go away.
Though realistically, we knew that it wouldn't,
despite the fact that people have literally gotten killed
and people have been sent to jail for doing it.
And that is swatting, where someone often,
from a disguised number, calls 9-1-1.
They say there's a shooting somewhere.
Usually, at least the ones that we end up seeing,
it's someone streaming content on like Twitch or YouTube.
And then while that person's streaming,
law enforcement busts through.
And in the past 24 to 36 hours,
it's happened to two massively high profile streamers
in Adin Ross and IShowSpeed.
And I know for some they are polarizing figures,
but whether you love them or hate 'em, this is not okay.
Yesterday, Adin Ross was doing a stream with other people,
and all of a sudden you see cops on camera.
Everyone who was joining the stream shocked by it,
wondering what's happening,
though Adin quickly realizing he was being swatted
and eventually coming back to the live stream and saying.
- Whatever troll did it, you did it.
You officially did it.
(item clattering)
It's never happening ever again.
- Not long after that,
you had IShowSpeed getting handcuffed on camera
while the person recording claims that he was
also a victim of swatting.
- [Cameraman] Oh, they swatted you, bro.
They swatted you.
- [Cop] Step this way.
- [Cameraman] Okay, yeah, yeah.
- Bro, is that public?
- [Cameraman] Yeah, I got it good.
You good, you good, you good, bro.
- Bro, I didn't go, oh, bro.
Oh my God bro, I swear I didn't do nothin'.
- [Philip] With one officer seeming to try and get
the person that was streaming to step away.
At one point, even appearing to flip the camera over
so it no longer showed IShowSpeed.
But he then, in the back kind of only being able to hear
just bits and pieces from the conversation,
with him talking about swatting
and then what IShowSpeed was doing on his stream.
So officers eventually say that the camera has to turn off.
Now with this instance in particular,
online there was some speculating
that he had not actually been swatted,
with people saying that earlier in his stream
that he was prank calling the police
and they were simply responding to that.
There you had others saying no,
that's not what was happening.
IShowSpeed apparently has a friend labeled as 9-1-1
in his phone and he was just calling that friend,
not the real police.
At one point he calls this number and they respond, "Yo."
- It says 9-1-1 calling me back.
Hello?
- [Friend] Yo.
- And while it seemed like everyone agreed
that this is wrong, it shouldn't happen,
this is incredibly fucking dangerous,
you did have some people wondering,
is it the same person that's responsible
for both of these incidents?
We also saw Ross talking about the swatting
after the incident on social media.
- Traumatizing man, it's scary.
It's what comes with being in this position.
And we're still in shock.
- And the really unfortunate and horrifying thing here
is just this happening in general.
Yes, it is horrifying and it is traumatizing.
But I really don't think it's a question of
if a streamer is going to get killed from swatting.
It's just when and who?
Because remember these are just the latest two.
But some creators are having to deal with this stuff
over and over again, right?
xQc, for example, one of the biggest streamers
in the world having to move
because of constant doxxing and swatting issues.
And then just this morning, like this one's not getting
as much traction because it's a smaller creator.
But we learned that on Friday
a notable trans activist and streamer named Claris Rente
was actually arrested.
And that after someone impersonated her
and sent out a fake email saying she killed her mother
and was planning to shoot every cisgender person she saw
at her local city hall.
Miss Rente obviously just completely fed up saying.
- During the arrest,
the police officer referred to me by my dead name.
I was booked in the station under my dead name.
The police, when talking to my mother,
referred to me as her son.
Because there is no policy in my city against swatting,
there is no guarantee this will not happen again.
And my home is not safe.
- Not to mention if you've been
a long time viewer of the show,
we've talked about people literally being killed
because of swatting.
And while we've seen in the past
people responsible for this
being convicted, being sentenced,
it doesn't bring that person back.
Yeah, that's ultimately where we are with this story.
And we'll have to see what comes from here.
Also while we're talking about scary internet news,
we should talk about Belle Delphine.
And not because she herself is scary,
though there is like 10% of my brain
that thinks like she would smile while she stabs someone.
I don't know how to explain why I think that,
but I don't think I'm the only one.
The Belle recently popped into the news
because One Night With Belle Delphine
was being offered for $100,000.
The description of the offering saying,
"Spend a night with me and I will make
all your fantasies come true.
You can record everything that happens between us
on video as a souvenir".
with it then listing potential activities,
ranging from cultured conversation, a lunch date,
all the way to explicit sexual stuff, but then also adding
that you can keep the experience anonymous
by using the currency called Monero.
And that wasn't the only thing on the site.
It also lists things like GamerGirl Pee for $10,000,
with the description noting there was only one jar,
and also you shouldn't be drinking it.
It's only for sentimental purposes.
But here's the thing.
The reason that we're talking about this today
isn't because we're talking about the further evolution
of the Egirl to OnlyFans pipeline.
We're talking about it because it's a scam,
with this website getting enough attention
and presumably duping enough people
that it was a topic of discussion on the H3 Podcast,
with everyone that was talking about it
assuming that it was real.
- Well, she's got a new product on her website.
I guess it was secretly added, or quietly added I'll say.
- [Hila] $100,000 for one night.
(cash register ringing)
What do you think?
- With everyone discussing it
and talking about how big the price tag was,
wondering if people would actually spend that kind of money
on something like this.
Until they catch on to the fact that it's not real
as viewers speak up.
- 100% a scam, not her website.
- Wait, that wasn't her website?
- I mean, - - Wait, I thought that was.
that's what people are saying in the chat.
- Seriously?
Well, that's a (beeping) crazy ass scam then.
- This is getting enough attention
that Belle herself actually addressed it
in a tweet this morning, writing,
"Well, this is interesting.
Sadly, to let people know this website is fake
and nothing to do with me.
They also sell items you will never receive so be careful."
- [Philip] But then adding,
"however, don't get me wrong.
I do like the idea."
- What do you mean by that?
- RIP to anyone who spent $100,000 on nothing.
Yeah that is, I think the technical term is, Big Oof.
And I really do wonder if and if so,
how many people got ripped off?
That's probably unrelated.
But yeah, that's the situation.
And really the only question I have with this story,
would you, if legal,
sleep with some random internet person for $100,000?
But yeah, y'all, be careful out there.
If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Also, a quick side note.
I've been getting a lot of people going,
hey, is this you messaging me on YouTube
saying, hey, call me on this WhatsApp number?
That is not me.
That is just the ever growing number of scammers
on this fucking platform.
And then I've got fantastic news
for those of you specifically in my audience
who are babies, elderly people, or women living in Colorado,
which oddly, 87% of this audience.
But also for the rest of you
around the country and other states,
maybe you see this and you decide you wanna follow suit.
Because Colorado is doing away with state sales
and use tax on diapers, feminine hygiene products,
and adult incontinence products.
And this going into effect on Wednesday
after being passed with bipartisan support
earlier this year, though the lawmakers
who opposed the bill were all Republicans.
Now, as far as the specifics and why this is being done,
it's meant to make the necessities we talked about
more affordable for low income people,
which could provide a little help for the
Colorado families who spend an average of $15 per month
on period products for each member who needs them.
Plus the average $75 per month on diapers for each child,
with the state estimating that consumers
will save around $9.1 million annually.
So whether you need tampons, pads, menstrual cups,
sponges, sanitary napkins, panty liners, you name it,
hopefully, fingers crossed, it's gonna be cheaper for you.
Though some who are happy the state is doing this,
saying it's still not enough,
arguing that it shouldn't just be cheap.
They should be free.
They're saying any price tag on these basic necessities
is effectively a tax on women and parents.
But also of note here, this isn't the only law
that Colorado has implemented this week,
with others including a property tax exemption
for non-profit childcare centers
and up to $1,500 tax credit for early childhood educators
and an up to $1,000 tax credit
to help older residents pay for housing.
And all of that is on top of the existing products
that are already exempt from state sales tax in Colorado,
such as unprepared food, corrective eyeglasses,
contact lenses, hearing aids, medications, including Viagra.
And these new laws are just a few highlights
from the list of 100 policies Governor Jared Polis
and the state legislature have devised
to save Coloradans money.
It's just not often talked about
because it's dozens of little changes,
which add up to a very big thing.
But hey, now you know.
But from that, I wanna take a second
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And then, let's talk about Alex Jones.
(loud groaning)
Now Alex there either needs a lozenge
or he is reenacting the sound of all this money
getting siphoned out of his account.
Right, because where we last left things
with this gross and terrible individual
was the Sandy Hook defamation trial.
And we talked about so many of the bizarre moments.
The judge smacking him down,
his lawyers being fuckin' stupid.
And the really big news since we last talked about this
is that the jury ordered Jones to pay nearly $50 million
to the parents of six year old Jesse Lewis,
who died in the shooting nearly a decade ago.
And this of course after Jones
repeatedly spread false conspiracy theories
about Sandy Hook and the parents being crisis actors.
And while many saw this as a massive win for the families,
some thought it was still low.
And that because the family was seeking $150 million.
Also another notable aspect of all this
is that technically only $4 million
were awarded to the parents in compensatory damages.
But then in a follow up decision,
the jury tacked on another $45 million in punitive damages,
which are meant to punish defendants
for particularly egregious conduct.
Now as far as if this large penalty is going to ruin
or even dent Jones' business,
we do know that both Infowars
and its parent company, Free Speech Systems,
have recently filed for bankruptcy, which to be clear,
does not actually mean that they're bankrupt.
They just filed for it.
And during the trial, Jones claimed that damages
of more than $2 million would actually sink his business.
But an economist hired by the plaintiffs
testified that Jones and his business
are worth up to $270 million.
And we got even more insight into his finances
after his lawyer, like we talked about,
fucked up and sent his phone's entire digital profile
to the prosecution,
including records that reportedly showed Infowars
made as much as $800,000 per day at one point in 2018,
the same year that Jones got de-platformed.
And since then, the company's revenue
reportedly due, in part, to sales
for survivalist merchandise and supplements
brought in over $64 million last year.
And while all this is massive news,
this has now grown even bigger than
Sandy Hook and Jones as well.
Because since the news broke, the January 6th Committee
has taken an interest in his cell phone records,
which are now in the hands of the plaintiffs' lawyer.
And if you're thinking Alex Jones, January 6th,
what was the connection there?
- [Woman] Love you, Alex Jones!
- History is happening!
I salute you!
Tell everyone you know go to the other side of the Capitol!
That's where Trump's gonna be!
- That's Jones at the Capitol
right after Trump's morning speech,
telling people where the President will soon be.
And then the next day on January 7th,
he gets back on his show and says.
- The White House told me three days before
we're gonna have you lead the march.
The Secret Service, before Trump finished,
just 30 minutes before.
So we'll lead you to a point.
Take you outta the front row and lead you to the place
where they want you to start the march.
And Trump will tell people,
"Go, and I'm gonna meet you at the Capitol."
- But they reportedly later revealed
that he helped organize and fund the Stop the Steal rally,
at which both he and Trump spoke before the Capitol riot.
Which is also why late last year the January 6th Committee
subpoenas him, and he testifies later
saying that he pled the 5th nearly 100 times.
But unfortunately for him,
cell phone records do not have the right to remain silent.
So yesterday the Sandy Hook parents' lawyer
turned over more than two years of Jones' text messages
to the committee, except fortunately for him,
people familiar with the materials
say that the files do not include texts
from the day of January 6th or the weeks leading up to it,
with the most recent data reportedly being from mid 2020.
And as far as what we do know they contain,
most of the nearly 250 message recipients
are his employees, contractors, and family,
though some are former top Trump allies,
with the most prominent one we know about right now
being Roger Stone.
And today we found out what sort of stuff
they were talking about.
But as it turns out with this being from mid 2020, right,
was there a conspiracy to storm the Capitol,
plans to disrupt the vote count?
No.
Instead, according to the lawyer,
we learned that Jones reportedly sent
a nude photo of his wife to Roger Stone.
- Jones said that there was an intimate photo
of his wife on the phone.
That I can also confirm, that's true.
And I normally wouldn't talk about that in public,
but there is a public interest angle into this,
- [Interviewer] Mm-hm.
is that I'm a little concerned about it.
Because that intimate photo was sent to Roger Stone.
And I don't know if that was consensual.
And if it wasn't consensual,
Mrs. Wulff-Jones should know about that.
And there might be something
that needs to be done about that.
Then again, it could be totally consensual.
But when I see that,
and I don't see any indication that it was,
I'm concerned something might not be
on the up and up with that.
There are certainly laws in certain states about that.
- With Jones confirming the photo's existence,
though Stone denies he ever received it.
But ultimately, that's all we know so far.
We'll see if the committee digs up anything worthwhile
from those texts.
But for the most part, you can do with the information
with him and Roger Stone what you will.
But unless something from January 6th comes from this,
at the end of the day the real story
is about the punitive damages here
and the fact that Jones' lawyers are going to appeal.
And then finally today,
we need to talk about what's been dominating the headlines
since yesterday afternoon.
And that is the FBI's raid
on former President Trump's residence
at Mar-a-Lago early Monday morning.
Reportedly Trump himself was in his New York home
at the time of the raid,
although we didn't hear about it until the afternoon
when Trump issued a statement about it.
And while officially right now
we don't know why this happened,
there are really only two possibilities.
It's either in connection to the DOJ's investigation
into January 6th and the 2020 election,
or about a series of classified documents
that Trump reportedly took from the White House
that the National Archives wanted back.
And the vast majority of people
speculated that it was a latter.
And his son and lawyers seemed to have confirmed that,
saying that agents took out boxes of papers
from the residence,
and as Trump lamented in his statement, from his safe.
Now, one of the big questions.
Why are these documents so important?
Well, right now we don't fully know.
All we do know is that they were possibly classified
and taken without proper procedure,
which is arguably a felony
that could have Trump barred from running for office again.
And this after at least 15 boxes of classified documents
had already been found at the residence back in February.
However, the reasons why this happened
have been dwarfed by the conversation
about its ramifications.
Right, because the authorities executing a warrant
on a former President's residence is unprecedented,
with it leaving many bashing it
as a way to remove a political opponent.
And Trump himself writing that it was
"prosecutorial misconduct, the weaponization
of the justice system, and an attack
by radical left Democrats who desperately don't want me to
run for President in 2024 and who will likewise do anything
to stop Republicans and conservatives
in the upcoming midterms."
And that sentiment was echoed
by conservative politicians and pundits,
with the likes of House Minority Leader, Kevin McCarthy,
warning, "I've seen enough. The Department of Justice
has reached an intolerable state
of weaponized politicization.
When Republicans take back the House,
we will conduct immediate oversight of this department,
follow the facts, and leave no stone unturned.
Attorney General Garland, preserve your documents
and clear your calendar."
One of the biggest things
that Trump and his allies try to do
is compare this to Watergate, saying things like,
"What is the difference between
this and Watergate, where operatives
broke into the Democratic National Committee?
Here, in reverse, Democrats broke into the home
of the 45th President of the United States."
And "President Trump is right
when he compared this to Watergate.
This is the government using an agency
to spy on a potential opponent's campaign.
This is truly frightening and it is not
what our democracy stands for."
But with all this,
there are a number of things that need to be cleared up.
First, despite what Ronna McDaniel thinks
or is just publicly saying, this was not meant to spy
on Trump's potential 2024 presidential campaign.
That is just ridiculous.
Even Trump's own lawyers have confirmed
that it was linked to the top secret documents
that he allegedly mishandled.
Secondly, Watergate was nothing like this.
That was a president hiring people
to break into his opponent's for political gain.
This was a legal nonpartisan police raid
conducted by the FBI.
And there's no way that a raid on a former President
wasn't approved by Director Christopher Wray,
who notably is a lifelong Republican and a Trump appointee.
And Biden reportedly didn't even know
that the raid was going to happen
and found out about it on the news like the rest of us,
with Representative Carolyn Maloney saying,
"Presidents have a solemn duty
to protect America's national security,
and allegations that former President Trump
put our security at risk
by mishandling classified information
warrant the utmost scrutiny."
But all that still hasn't stopped Trump supporters
from calling the execution of this search warrant
a political tactic to silence an opponent,
with Trump and Senator Marco Rubio
warning that this tactic was used by third world countries
and saying that Biden is playing with fire
by using a document dispute to get the Justice Department
to persecute a likely future election opponent
because one day what goes around is going to come around.
And then we become Nicaragua under Ortega.
And that sentiment was even picked up outside of the US,
with the President of El Salvador asking,
"What would the US government say
if our police raided the house
of one of the main possible contenders
of our 2024 presidential election?"
But also you had people pushing back,
saying, yes, this is unprecedented
because we've never had a president
do what Donald Trump has done,
trying to stop the peaceful transfer of power,
doing what he did around January 6th,
taking classified documents.
- [Philip] And others arguing that just because
you are a former president
or a potential political opponent,
it does not suddenly make you immune to scrutiny
over alleged crimes,
and asking how would these politicians be held accountable
if any investigation into illegal acts
is suddenly an alleged tactic to silence them?
But ultimately where we're at right now
is you have a sizable number of conservatives
now calling for the dissolution of the FBI
and other intelligence agencies over this.
With that, of course, just being one thing.
I mean, some people are calling
for the dissolution of the US or civil war.
It's not just random Twitter accounts that are saying this.
We're talking about people with large followings.
While all of that is happening,
you go to some of these Trump forums
and you see people calling for people to take up arms,
calling for violence.
And quickly, this becomes something
that doesn't just affect the midterms or the 2024 election,
but we're talking about potential violence here,
especially with a number of these people
who have large audiences saying that
Trump was just the first, that you are next.
Which is an absolutely bizarre jump.
But ultimately that is the end of that story
and today's show.
Thanks for watching.
Make sure to subscribe for daily dives in the news.
I love your faces, and I'll see you tomorrow.