Honoring Vietnam Veterans and the Politics of Border Security

On December 16, 2024, Doyle Glass and Brian Joondeph joined the show. Glass discusses his mission to honor Vietnam veterans through his book documenting the Marines of Mike 3-5, urging Americans to thank veterans and record their stories before they pass Joondeph analyzes how Democrats reversed their border security positions and how Trump is using special envoys to bypass Senate confirmation delays.

Preserving the Stories of Vietnam Marines

Start listening at 15:01 – Hour 1

Doyle Glass launches a national campaign to make his book Swift Sword a bestseller as part of an effort to honor Vietnam veterans. The book documents one day of intense combat during the Vietnam War, specifically the battle on September 4, 1967, in the Que Son Valley. Glass interviewed 50 veterans and family members of fallen Marines to create an authentic account of what these men experienced.

Glass explains that when the World War II generation was being honored, he realized the historical record was largely empty of similar stories about Vietnam veterans. Lieutenant J.D. Murray, who commanded Glass’s company during Operation Swift, charged him with creating a book as authentic as E.B. Sledge’s With the Old Breed. Glass describes how Lance Corporal Jack Swan’s eagle eye as point man saved his entire company when he spotted a camouflaged NVA soldier moments before what would have been a devastating ambush.

The author encourages families to record their veterans’ stories before they pass, noting that many veterans found the interview process healing rather than traumatic.

“When these men pass, their stories pass with them, and they won’t be here for future generations. And we need them. Our country needs them.”

Doyle Glass, Author of Swift Sword

Democrats’ Border Policy Reversal and Trump’s Strategic Appointments

Start listening at 27:35 – Hour 1

Brian Joondeph exposes the dramatic shift in Democratic positions on border security in his American Thinker article “Move Over, Tom Homan, Hillary Clinton for Border Czar.” Joondeph documents how Hillary Clinton once advocated for tough border measures when running for president, noting that the party has lurched far left under Obama’s influence. The Biden administration’s decision to sell unused border wall components at a fraction of their cost demonstrates the extent of this shift.

Joondeph warns that the outgoing administration is laying traps for the incoming Trump administration, from changing employee classifications to extending COVID emergency declarations for five more years. He catalogs the sabotage efforts including continued meddling in Ukraine and Syria designed to leave Trump with multiple fires to extinguish before implementing his agenda.

The columnist notes that Trump has learned from his first term and is positioning himself strategically with special envoys like Rick Grenell who can bypass the Senate confirmation process. Mike Johnson has become part of Trump’s inner circle, appearing at events from the Army-Navy game to Madison Square Garden, signaling unity between the executive and legislative branches that was absent with Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell.

“Trump did learn his lesson and he’s not going to play that game again.”

Brian Joondeph, American Thinker Columnist