Shapiro Interviews Zelensky & Tren De Aragua Smuggling | Afternoon Update | 4.24.25

0.129 - 20.838 Narrator

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24.38 - 44.333 Georgia Howe

Daily Wire's own Ben Shapiro presses Ukraine's leader on his handling of the war. The Trump administration accuses Venezuela of helping Tren de Aragua, and a Texas bill could open the door to more colony-ridge-like developments. I'm Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Thursday, April 24th, and this is your Morning Wire Afternoon Update.

45.41 - 68.638 John Bickley

Daily Wire editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro sat down with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to press him on the handling of the war and U.S. taxpayer money. Zelensky insisted that Ukraine would be fully transparent on how American funds are spent, claiming U.S. aid has gone to weapons and battlefield support, not salaries or pensions. He's also invited full inspections and maintained that no U.S.

68.698 - 70.279 John Bickley

weapons have been misused or sold.

70.922 - 86.357 Ben Shapiro

What kind of transparency can you provide to the American people to guarantee that their taxpayer dollars are being used in the best possible way to fight Russia, to defend Ukraine, and to ensure that if the United States wants, wouldn't ought to be possible by the United States of where those dollars are going?

87.657 - 111.008 Vladimir Zelensky

Yes, most of those money were in the form of weapons. Now, that's first thing. All of those weapons came. The money were paid to the transportation of those weapons. Ukrainian companies were not allowed to transport this money. That's why we haven't received, not in the public, not in the private sector, the money for the transportation.

111.588 - 130.034 Vladimir Zelensky

different assistance programs, the training of Ukrainian soldiers abroad. There's many things. I'm documenting and registering what we have. I understand there could be different calculations, different assistance programs or aid programs, but this is like an audit, really.

130.934 - 137.336 John Bickley

While Zelensky denied cracking down on faith groups, he said churches tied to Russian intelligence have no place in Ukraine.

138.078 - 162.323 Vladimir Zelensky

So it's not only about the ties at the level of intelligence. There was a legal connection, legal ties for many years, but that shouldn't be the case. We shouldn't be having disputes or controversies around whose church is older than the others. And Ukraine is not really, shouldn't be. speaking about this. Look, we're sitting here close to the Sofia Cathedral.

162.783 - 175.947 Vladimir Zelensky

Sofia is older than Russia's capital city and any churches they have. This building is older than that. That's the answer. We shouldn't have any disputes. We have scientific evidences.

176.788 - 180.049 John Bickley

The first half of the interview was released on The Ben Shapiro Show today.

209.864 - 229.49 Tim Pierce

The strike comes amid mounting tension between the United States and Russia, as Putin secured a deal to open a naval base in war-torn Sudan. The Trump administration is urging Sudan to back away, warning that cooperation with Moscow's defense sector could trigger sanctions. The base, which would likely hold Russian warships and nuclear subs, could give Russia a strategic foothold in the Red Sea.

230.55 - 252.199 John Bickley

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration's directive dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion in K-12 schools. The ruling comes after lawsuits from the NEA and ACLU, claiming the guidance violates teachers' First Amendment and due process rights. The Education Department had warned schools to drop DEI practices or risk losing federal funding.

253.257 - 271.18 Georgia Howe

The FBI says Venezuela's Maduro regime may be aiding the infiltration of trained de Aragua gang members into the U.S. They say it's all part of a plan from the regime to target Venezuelan dissidents on American soil. The Trump-designated terror group is allegedly being used as a proxy to destabilize U.S. communities.

271.78 - 281.742 Georgia Howe

While a recent Intel report disputes direct ties to Caracas, Trump officials say the threat is real, vowing strict action to prevent violence and uphold national security.

285.029 - 297.225 Narrator

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300.953 - 321.495 John Bickley

California Governor Gavin Newsom is backing up the Trump administration's push to keep an illegal immigrant and convicted killer behind bars. Oscar Eduardo Ortega Anguiano is convicted in the death of two teens. He was under the influence when he hit their car at nearly 100 miles per hour. Now he's set for early release after serving just three and a half years of a 10-year sentence.

321.976 - 334.27 John Bickley

Newsom is now saying the state will honor a federal ICE detainer and efforts to bring new felony immigration charges. U.S. Attorney Bilal Asseli says these types of cases are something he'll be focusing on moving forward.