Nick Shirley: Exposing Government Fraud, Suing California & Taking on the Media

hey besties if you were given 15 billion dollars what could you build the next paypal perhaps the next spacex the next google or would you build a high-speed rail this is the California high-speed rail that goes to absolutely nowhere and I mean absolutely nowhere I mean literally nowhere this is all California had to show for 15 billion dollars in 18 years of work in 2008 they said they were going to connect Los Angeles to San Francisco to this date they have connected literally nothing and now to finish this project they're estimated it's gonna cost a hundred to two hundred billion dollars and funny enough in 2008 China also created their own high-speed rail and they've connected the whole entire country of California and the rest of the world so it's gonna cost a hundred to two hundred billion dollars and funny enough in 2008 China also created their own high-speed rail and they've connected the whole entire country of rail and they've connected the whole entire country of China over 30,000 miles China over 30,000 miles China over 30,000 miles here in California they haven't connected here in California they haven't connected here in California they haven't connected a single town we're gonna be breaking a single town we're gonna be breaking a single town we're gonna be breaking down this entire thing from start to down this entire thing from start to down this entire thing from start to finish to show you guys what is actually finish to show you guys what is actually finish to show you guys what is actually happening with the California high-speed happening with the California high-speed happening with the California high-speed rail let's get into it now let's go talk rail let's get into it now let's go talk rail let's get into it now let's go talk to somebody who knows a lot about the to somebody who knows a lot about the to somebody who knows a lot about the most expensive infrastructure project most expensive infrastructure project most expensive infrastructure project happening in the world today the happening in the world today the happening in the world today the original estimates for California high original estimates for California high original estimates for California high speed rail was 33 billion dollars it speed rail was 33 billion dollars it speed rail was 33 billion dollars it then jumped to 126 billion dollars and then jumped to 126 billion dollars and then jumped to 126 billion dollars and now the newest estimate is 236 billion now the newest estimate is 236 billion now the newest estimate is 236 billion dollars this project is on track for one dollars this project is on track for one dollars this project is on track for one thing and that is to be the third most thing and that is to be the third most thing and that is to be the third most expensive infrastructure project in the expensive infrastructure project in the expensive infrastructure project in the history of the world number one is the history of the world number one is the history of the world number one is the interstate project of the 1950s number interstate project of the 1950s number interstate project of the 1950s number two is the International Space Station two is the International Space Station two is the International Space Station and now it is California high-speed rail and now it is California high-speed rail and now it is California high-speed rail the difference between those three the difference between those three the difference between those three projects is you can drive on i-5 or you projects is you can drive on i-5 or you projects is you can drive on i-5 or you can go on i-80 and drive across the can go on i-80 and drive across the can go on i-80 and drive across the entire country you can go to outer entire country you can go to outer space we will never ride California space we will never ride California space we will never ride California high-speed rail so it goes from there all high-speed rail so it goes from there all high-speed rail so it goes from there all the way to right here this is where the way to right here this is where the way to right here this is where it ends it is probably the most expensive it ends it is probably the most expensive it ends it is probably the most expensive piece of concrete known to man and often piece of concrete known to man and often piece of concrete known to man and often referred to here in the Central Valley referred to here in the Central Valley referred to here in the Central Valley as a modern-day Stonehenge how come they as a modern-day Stonehenge how come they as a modern-day Stonehenge how come they continue to say that they're gonna continue to say that they're gonna continue to say that they're gonna continue to build the high-speed rail continue to build the high-speed rail continue to build the high-speed rail when there's actually proof that it is when there's actually proof that it is when there's actually proof that it is quite literally impossible governor quite literally impossible governor quite literally impossible governor Newsome in a video himself from 2016 I Newsome in a video himself from 2016 I Newsome in a video himself from 2016 I believe actually admitted to all of us believe actually admitted to all of us believe actually admitted to all of us in a private video that he doesn't in a private video that he doesn't in a private video that he doesn't believe that this project will ever be believe that this project will ever be believe that this project will ever be done in our lifetime he said that okay done in our lifetime he said that okay done in our lifetime he said that okay the facts seem overwhelming that this the facts seem overwhelming that this the facts seem overwhelming that this project is not going to materialize in project is not going to materialize in project is not going to materialize in our lifetime and now this is a result of our lifetime and now this is a result of our lifetime and now this is a result of over 15 billion dollars who's taken the over 15 billion dollars who's taken the over 15 billion dollars who's taken the 15 billion dollars and where's the 15 15 billion dollars and where's the 15 15 billion dollars and where's the 15 billion dollars gone if this is all that billion dollars gone if this is all that billion dollars gone if this is all that they have to show for one-third of the they have to show for one-third of the they have to show for one-third of the entire cost of California high-speed entire cost of California high-speed entire cost of California high-speed rail has gone to this part called rail has gone to this part called rail has gone to this part called change order delays because they didn't change order delays because they didn't change order delays because they didn't know where the infrastructure was and or know where the infrastructure was and or know where the infrastructure was and or how to build this actual train how to build this actual train how to build this actual train contractors that got awarded a parcel to contractors that got awarded a parcel to contractors that got awarded a parcel to work on are owed a hundred and seventy work on are owed a hundred and seventy work on are owed a hundred and seventy thousand dollars a day five million thousand dollars a day five million thousand dollars a day five million dollars a month for every single day dollars a month for every single day dollars a month for every single day they can't work we just settled here in they can't work we just settled here in they can't work we just settled here in California very recently in February the California very recently in February the California very recently in February the largest settlement in a delay settlement largest settlement in a delay settlement largest settlement in a delay settlement for over half a billion dollars because a for over half a billion dollars because a for over half a billion dollars because a contractor couldn't work on the actual contractor couldn't work on the actual contractor couldn't work on the actual project they were owed a half a billion project they were owed a half a billion project they were owed a half a billion dollars what are some of the biggest dollars what are some of the biggest dollars what are some of the biggest examples of waste fraud and just examples of waste fraud and just examples of waste fraud and just complete incompetence by the government complete incompetence by the government when you see this high-speed rail when you see this high-speed rail when you see this high-speed rail California was supposed to buy the actual California was supposed to buy the actual California was supposed to buy the actual trains and the trains that would be trains and the trains that would be trains and the trains that would be considered high-speed rail the state considered high-speed rail the state considered high-speed rail the state didn't buy the trains didn't buy the trains didn't buy the trains my opinion because they know that there my opinion because they know that there my opinion because they know that there will never be a train on these tracks so will never be a train on these tracks so will never be a train on these tracks so California has not even bought the California has not even bought the California has not even bought the trains yet trains yet trains yet no if we would just buy one-way tickets no if we would just buy one-way tickets no if we would just buy one-way tickets at current ridership between San at current ridership between San at current ridership between San Francisco and LA which is the goal of Francisco and LA which is the goal of Francisco and LA which is the goal of California high-speed rail we could California high-speed rail we could California high-speed rail we could subsidize subsidize subsidize free tickets one way for the next 150 free tickets one way for the next 150 free tickets one way for the next 150 years years years now with the new estimate that now with the new estimate that now with the new estimate that California high-speed rail is going to California high-speed rail is going to California high-speed rail is going to be 236 billion dollars be 236 billion dollars be 236 billion dollars years so to me it would make more sense years so to me it would make more sense years so to me it would make more sense for all of us to just buy for all of us to just buy for all of us to just buy the flights from San Francisco to LA the flights from San Francisco to LA the flights from San Francisco to LA than it would be to build a train or than it would be to build a train or than it would be to build a train or whatever this is whatever this is whatever this is and spend more money doing that I mean it and spend more money doing that I mean it and spend more money doing that I mean it doesn't make any sense mathematically doesn't make any sense mathematically doesn't make any sense mathematically now we're on top of the high-speed rail now we're on top of the high-speed rail and there's not any rail that has been placed. It's actually just a bunch of cement. The high speed rail to nowhere. That's what they should call it actually. And despite the California high speed rail appearing to be impossible to finish, California has allocated $1 billion a year to finish the project while they actually need anywhere from $100 to $200 billion to finish it. And the high speed rail even becomes more interesting and you realize how impossible it is the further along the alignment you go. And later we'll be confronting the senator who's over the oversight committee for the transportation inside of California. We then saw some train tracks where the hub of the high speed rail is supposed to be. Hello. How are you guys doing? Is this the high speed rail though? No, the high speed rail. Where's that going to be the hub for the high speed rail? You don't know where the hub is going to be for the high speed rail? No. All right. And despite these guys saying this is not the hub for the high speed rail, which it really is, we then went down the alignment and this is what we found. So this location right here was actually bought in 2006 for developers to develop this land. And then they set forth the plan to actually go through with the high speed rail in 2008. In order for the high speed rail to actually happen, they're going to have to go through and buy each and every single one of these houses that is currently being built. Keep in mind right now, they're building the high speed rail while these people are building houses on the alignment. Let's go talk to a city manager right now. And how is it possible right now that here in California, you have a government who is spending billions upon billions of dollars for this high speed rail. Meanwhile, a construction site is right here where they're building houses on where that high speed rail is supposed to go. We don't really know. Typically, government buys all of the alignment up front. That way, you don't have cost of buying it once it's developed. Like this will bring it up 10 or 11 times what bare land value would be. So we don't really know. Communication is pretty sparse. So we're left mostly in the dark. Do you think that this high speed rail has just been some sort of fantasy for the people in California? I don't think so. I don't think so. I don't think so. I don't of Sacramento and the politicians of California? Look, you've got a project that duplicates Amtrak's current service route. I will tell you from a ground perspective, we don't understand why they're sticking two rail lines next to each other that are going to serve the same areas. And how many more cases of this do you think are inside of this alignment for the high-speed rail? I don't think this is atypical. I think this has happened quite a bit up and down the valley. California actually abandoned the route from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Now they're focusing from Merced to Bakersfield. And so the high-speed rail will actually not even be servicing people from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The high-speed rail bridge ends over there. It continues over here onto this road. But as you'll see, it then has to go through a bunch of farmland just like this. Now they have the road right here for the high-speed rail, but in other locations, do they have it? We're going to speak with a farmer right now. Now we're in the middle of an orchard right now. How will the farmers be affected from the high-speed rail? Ranchers that have been contiguous for hundreds of years will now be split. And that requires you now having to travel to both sides, right? Your infrastructure has to be pulled from one side to the other, whether it be irrigation, power supplies, and even just operationally, it's just going to make everything real inconvenient. When California brought about the plan for the high-speed rail, did you guys vote on it, or did you guys have any say so with it? Or do you even think it's going to happen? You know, all the voters had a chance to vote and it passed. But it was very vague on the ballot. No one knew where it was going to go. To me, they're putting in all the wrong spots. It was to serve two different populations in the north, the state, and the south. And where they're deciding to put it is it's going to impact an area that didn't need the high-speed rail to begin with. They're allocating millions and billions of dollars to this each and every single year. And now they're saying they're going to need almost $100 billion more, if not $200 billion. What could farmers of California do if they had $100 billion invested into them? Oh, man. It could revolutionize the state. I mean, agriculture has been the backbone of this state since its founding. And we're not investing in water infrastructure. We're not investing in energy infrastructure. And it's just, it's sad. Because we're worried about a train that's going to serve a small sector of the population. And what really needs to be done is something that's going to be good for all of us in the state. So pretty soon we could see a high-speed rail come right through here, where all these almonds are at, and people are going to be suffering because of it. Yes. And there'll probably be no one on the train. Now, we came here to Sacramento to go speak with the people at the California High-Speed Rail Authority office. It is 4:09 right now. And we just went inside, and nobody's here. How are we doing? Really? It says they're open. They close at 5:00 PM. However, they are not here, but we are going to go speak with a senator who just approved and passed a bill that's going to give $1 billion for the next 20 years to the California High-Speed Rail Authority. We're going to go talk to him and see why he approved that. Senator Cortese, how are you doing? Good. Good. My name's Nick Shirley. We're doing a little investigation on the high-speed rail, and we just want to ask, what made you want to secure $1 billion for the next 20 years for the high-speed rail? rail. I believe it's a good long-term commitment that we need to make. And do you think that it's actually ever going to happen here inside the state of California? It is happening. Have you been there? Yeah, I actually have. Well then you know it's happening. And there's actually not a single piece of rail or track that's been laid. They're getting ready to do that right now. And do you think in 20 years the high-speed rail will be done? This promise is gonna be done in 2020. Might be, might not. And Gavin Newsom even said in a private video like it's not even possible, essentially. I have a lot of transportation projects I've worked on for 20 years that are just finally getting started and they're all worth it. And do you believe as the chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, do you believe the high-speed rail Authority has been sufficiently accountable for the increase and delays that have taken place with the high-speed rail? Well we're trying to hold them accountable. And what can you give to people to make them believe that the high-speed rail is actually going to be built and finished in our lifetime? Or in your lifetime? It's not my commitment. My commitment is it's the greatest economic development project in the country. And people should be embracing that all the way to the federal government. There's no other economic development project that even comes close to that in this country. And it's a shame that you know certain people in the country aren't taking taking that seriously. So that's how we get things done is when the federal government, the state government work together. Build dams, build bridges, build highways, build high-speed rail. That's what needs to happen. And you do believe that we'll see the finish of the high-speed rail in our lifetime? There's 21 construction projects going on right now with thousands of workers, so you'll see it get done. Besties, don't be like the high-speed rail. Please welcome, Mick Shirley. Fuck yeah! What's up bro? Sacks, this is your guy. Get in there. Wow. Maybe a good place to start actually is that California was so afraid of what you're doing exposing their fraud that they actually passed a law to stop you from doing your investigations and you know your videos where you actually show up at these places that are stealing taxpayer money. Could you just, I mean, I'm still like shocked that they could get away with that. I know you're fighting it in court and I fully expect it will be unconstitutional in like 20 years whenever it makes its way through the court system, but could you just explain that? Yeah, so I exposed California for all the fraud that they've enabled here inside the state and they use what's called immigration support service providers and it quite literally means anybody who provides services to illegal immigrants or immigrants and that includes nonprofits and healthcare facilities. So actually today, this just happened literally today. I filmed all these daycares in San Diego and when I exposed it, Newsom came after me, but today they found 12 individuals who are all immigrants and they charged them up $10 million of fraud. That happened today. California did. California. That DOJ did. So underneath this new bill, this new law that they created, if these immigration support service providers were to give me a piece of paper saying, "Hey, you can't upload that video. I can't upload that video," and they only created that after this. Yeah. After I exposed the fraud. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Okay. First of all, what is an, was it immigration support services? Like what is that? Yeah, it means legal services, healthcare facilities, quite literally anything where your tax dollars go to provide the services for illegal immigrants or immigrants here inside the state of California. From the state of California. Yes. So the state of California is funding these businesses basically. Yes. To provide services to illegals. Yeah, it can be Medi-Cal. It can even be NGOs, nonprofits that receive grants from the government. For instance, the people who sponsored this bill is called CHIRLA. They've received $80 million, and they do the advocacy work for illegal immigrants here inside the United States. Wait, they got $80 million, sorry, million or billion? Million. Million. For nonprofit. Nonprofit. And then it sounds like they're, the law is written that any service to immigrants, you can't go do this work because they're trying to protect the community. So wait, but how do they stop you? So let's say you, so you can't do this work. So you go to one of these NGOs or businesses that's received this funding, you record it, and now they're saying you can't upload it? Yeah, so if they simply were enrolled in this service, then they give me a piece of paper saying, hey, you can't upload that video, a demand letter, I can't upload the video. And if I do, I'll get a $4,000 fine, and then I'll have to go to court, and I'll have to pay for their legal fees if they win. So $4,000 is just the minimum. If they have 10 employees in there who all are part of this service. But Nick, sorry, doesn't that violate your constitutional rights? Yeah, first amendment rights. And so do you sue the state of California? Yeah, I'm suing the state of California right now. To undo that bill? Yes. Obstensibly, by the way, Sax, this was all under the pretext of our favorite term, safety. Because what Nick Shirley was doing in knocking on a door and saying, is this business open or closed, was making people feel unsafe. And if you use that word, unsafe, well, then everybody has to rally around it. And they literally called this the Nick Shirley law. And I think this is the most amazing badge for you, and it's an award. The fact that they're creating laws to try to stop you from doing basic journalism means you're kicking fucking ass, Nick. Thank you. Don't stop. These first amendment cases, though, have been incredibly well litigated. So do they just pass this knowing that it will probably get overturned at the federal level, and then it's up to you to raise the money, find the comments? Is that what it is? Or do they actually legitimately think there's legal standing? Like, what does your team tell you about that law that's trying to stop you? Yeah, well, I don't think they thought Nick Shirley would hear about this bill, because they called it AB 2624. And unless an assemblyman dubbed it the Stop Nick Shirley Act, I probably wouldn't have heard about it. So California, they've pretty much passed all these laws. Like, it's called call me for you, call me for you for a reason. Like, to forget a bill passed in California in the legislature. But with the legislators, there's 40 senators, 30 of them are Democrats, 10 of them are Republicans, and it needs 21 votes to pass. So it's quite literally nearly almost impossible for a Republican to pass anything here inside the state of California. Let's be clear, Gavin Newsom signed this. Yeah. And who is the impetus of this bill? Like, is there a way that people are teasing out the funding cycle and the people that were behind this thing, or no? Well, CHIRLA, they're the co-sponsor of it, who received $80 million. The person who created this bill is the wife of the attorney general. So, meanwhile, the attorney general is supposed to prosecute the fraud, while his wife is creating laws to make it harder for fraud to be prosecuted and to go after and be exposed. How did you start? Let's take a step back, Nick, for the folks that don't necessarily know the origin story. How did you stumble into this? Yeah, when I was 15 years old, I started making YouTube videos, vlogs, and pranks. As I got older, I got more interested to see what was actually happening in the world. But at that time, around 2020, you couldn't make videos with the word Trump in the title, or if you talked about politics or talked about COVID, you might be dead. You might be demonetized, so you couldn't make any money. And so then I ended up taking a two-year break on a mission trip for our church and went to Santiago, Chile. I started learning about all these people that were fleeing Venezuela. They were going to Chile, and they were telling me about how people are going to the United States. So then when I got back to the United States, my mom was also keeping up to date with that. And then when I got back home, I went to the southern border, and I started interviewing people in Spanish, saying, "Hey, how'd you guys come over here? What's going on?" And I thought it was super sad that all these people were coming over, fleeing the country. And then I get this lady's WhatsApp, who was from Ecuador. She said she had no money at the border, and the next day she texted me saying she was in New York City. And I was like, "That's super strange." And so for the past two and a half years, I've been making a video every single week about something that's happening here inside the United States. And I went from 20,000 subscribers, nobody knowing me, to now having created one of the most viewed videos ever in internet history, exposing the fraudsters in Minnesota. And I only knew about that fraud because I had been there. I've been making a video every single week from across the world. What happens? Like, whistleblowers reach out to you and say, "Hey, Nick, go over here, go over there?" Yes. So, like, I rely heavily upon the people in these states to let me know what's going on. Like, I'm pretty much, like, I said, made a joke, I'm like a congressman for the entire United States who actually listens to the people. But I don't work for anybody. Right. What I really appreciate about what you're doing is Man on the Street is really challenging. It's really challenging. And I think it's a challenge. I think it's a challenge. and I've created a lot of change. - The audience reaction is a little polarized, right? There are obviously people like us who are like, you know, stealing is wrong. Then there's obviously fraudsters who can be angry at you. - Very angry. - But then there are passive viewers that actually really dislike what you're doing. - Yeah, I don't understand. - How do you unpack that? Like, why is that reaction happening? - Ultimately, I know what I'm doing's right, and for you to be defending a fraudster who opens up a layering center, I'm like, you might need to rethink something. - I can tell you what this is. - People say you're racist. - No, no. I can tell you what's happening here at Chamath. Having been a journalist and come up with these people. - Oh, here we go. - No, no, it's actually super important. - How long till Jason lectures Nick? - It's not a lecture, it's an insight, and you're lucky to hear it, so sit back. What you represent to them is a threat, because they came up, and they wanted to do what you're doing. They were idealistic, these journalists, and they wanted to be brave enough to uncover these things, and they've become captured and politicized, and they have picked a side. You haven't. That's why they criticize you, and the criticism they have of you is, oh, he wasn't fact-checking here, wasn't thorough enough here. Yeah, okay, fine. On the margins, you're learning on the job, and I've had conversations with you privately about little nuances of things that you need to tighten up. None of that is important. What's important is, that you find fraud. You find actual, real fraud, and you put the people on camera, and you fucking shame them, and then they get arrested, and you're forcing the AGs in this country to face it, and it's just you. It's just you and your pure desire and energy to do it, and that's what journalists hate about you, because they could do it, too, and they should be ashamed that they don't. This was the job of 60 Minutes and Frontline, and they forgot how to do their job, and you're picking up the mantle of what Frontline and 60 Minutes used to be. I agree. Give me some. Fuck yeah. That guy. Are the AGs taking up the cases? Well, I mean, I'll go expose it, and if they want to do something about it, I put all the information in the videos, and so that's one thing I have seen, is there actually has been change. They just found the 12 people today, the leaders in Minnesota. Most of them fled the country, I believe, but they got the head leader. Oh, is that right? So, give us the coda, actually, about the daycares in Minnesota. Yes, the daycares in Minnesota, that was the craziest thing, because I was just sitting in my room, I just posted that video. I had no idea it was going to be the biggest video ever. It got four billion views in seven days, which was pretty insane. So, I posted that video, and then there starts to be riots and protests. People start dying to cover for the leaders. The politicians were incentivizing people to go out and riot, because they knew the ICE was there, but they could distract everyone by getting people out to the street, to cover up for the fraud. Well, it didn't really work, because Tim Walz dropped out of re-election. But, in Minnesota, the head person of the leering centers, who had received four million dollars, she tried to go to London on a one-way ticket, and then she got caught for daycare fraud. And so, she was the head, like the head honcho of the leers. She got caught. She got busted. Then, the biggest autism bust of all time took place there, as well. So, I've been very productive. So, wait, so did she get prosecuted? Yes, and she pled guilty. She pled guilty? Yeah. Oh, wow, and what's the sentence? I don't know yet. Okay, maybe it hasn't happened yet, or? Yeah, did you see Bill Gurley's presentation? I watched a bit of it. It's kind of hard to hear backstage. Yeah, so, I mean, there's a point he was making, which is that journalists seem to have become selective in the stories that they're chasing, and the investigations that they're doing, and there seems to be a reason. That's this kind of politicized point. What's your view? Have you met with journalists and talked with them? Have any of them reached out? And do you have a sense on what goes on, what motivates them to say things, do things one way or not the other way? No one from the mainstream has reached out to me to say, like, hey, how are you doing this? Instead, they investigate me, and they'll write hit pieces on me. I'm like, okay, good for you. Investigating the investigator, yeah. Yeah. That shows you exactly how threatened they are by you, and I think where you are gonna be, just having known you for one year, and watching the improvements in the crispness, you are gonna be so dangerous when you have a modest amount of resources, and I think what we really need to do is commit to making sure you have more funding. And so I'm gonna, right after we get on here, I'm gonna subscribe, and I'm gonna put in, you know, whatever, a couple thousand dollars a month to support you, and I think everybody here should. You're doing great work. You need to have some researchers on the team. You need to have some backup, and you need to have security, 'cause what you're doing is truly a threat to criminals and the mob. Nick, you're the son that Jason has always wanted. No, no, I'll take it. What was that, Chamath, what was it? You are the son that Jason has always wanted. No, no, I mean, I have three great daughters, but I'm just, you're what I got in, when I got into journalism, what you're doing is why I got into it, which was the role of journalism, and I think Bill Gurley pointed it out so well in his talk, which was there are still great investigative journalists out there, there's just not enough of them. And I think it's fantastic that there's a new generation doing this, and that you're doing it independently. Well, is there a new generation, or are you-- Yeah, this is what I, so there have been a few others that have emerged since you came out. Minnesota Peace was such a big, maybe, inspiration, but it was also a beacon to a lot of people, like, oh, we can go do this, like you did. Are you seeing more of this? Do you think that they're being successful, and what do you think's changing? Yeah, I think a lot of people are taking it up, and they're seeing, like, with X, like, if it wasn't for Elon and X, like, none of this would have been possible. For instance, I post that video about the fraud on YouTube, it does well, it gets a few million views. On X, it got 140 million views, and the most important people in the world see it, and they're able to see, like, oh, we're not doing our job, let's go do what needs to be done. Like, the government, I caught them kind of backhanded on that, so they had to go step in. But I do think a lot of individuals, like, I do hope I am motivating a lot of kids, especially my generation, to be less of a complainer and be more of a doer. So, and I think journalism, people think of it as just, like, showing what's going on. Well, you can actually have massive, create massive change inside of the country and the areas that you live in. That's something that I've seen with my journalism. I'm like, I'm not just playing, like, the defense, like, I'm actually going out, showing people what's going on, and I'm not just leaving the story after it's done. Like, I'm continuing to follow through, because if it's real corruption, like, it needs to be taken down. - Right, and what other people don't realize, because you became, I think, pretty famous from the Minnesota video, but you had other stuff before where it wasn't about chasing down corruption. Like, you went into the favelas in Brazil, right? Which was incredibly scary. - Yes. - And you've done a lot of this stuff. Are you still doing those sorts of things, or is everything now about government corruption? - I would love to continue to do those videos, and I would love to do more these past eight months. Every morning, I'm waking up to something new about fraud and corruption, so I've kind of just, like, been spearheading that, but I would like to get more into that stuff. Like, I almost got kidnapped in the Brazilian favelas. I met up with the head of Comando Vermelho inside this favela in Rio de Janeiro, and literally, like, there's only a few things that could have happened with me and him in this broken-down shack on the top of the favela. Got also nearly taken hostage in Cuba, a two-star, communist general came down to try and figure out why I was in Cuba and why I was leaving early. So, like, that stuff's still super important. The fraud stuff's just kind of taken over my life recently, though. - What are the other big pockets of fraud that you are scratching at that you think exist, the big honeypots that you're gonna go chase down and uncover? - Like, welfare fraud here inside the United States is just absolutely-- - Welfare fraud. - Insane. Like, all of it. - Can you explain that? - For instance, like, food stamps. There's a, there's a strip club in Portland, Oregon, where you can use your Snap card. Like, the government, especially underneath Biden, they literally let open, like, the floodgates to fraud. I mean, Tim Walz was celebrating and using daycares in his debates against JD Vance. - Right. - So, all these social benefit programs have literally been looted, whether it be Snap, whether it be daycares, whether it be adult daycares. Like, literally, you name it, hospices. Like, all these things that have received government money are just full of fraud. - And so, now, you're just trying to pull the thread and uncover as much of it as possible. - Yeah, and it's hard now, 'cause, like, I have to have security. Like, people literally want to kill me. And so, I have to be super strategic and, like, what's gonna stop a fraudster from me knocking on his door and then him realizing that his time's up and him just shooting me so the video doesn't get posted? Like, that's, like, stuff I think about when I go to bed. Like, how do I go out and make these videos a bit differently? - Well, are there different ways that you can get the information you need to tell the story without actually having to confront the person in real time? - Yeah. - I don't want to see the person get confronted. - So, I mean, but this is what's so interesting, because what you're talking about is, like, at the end of the day, you're still fighting the attention mechanism that you live under, you know? Like, your incentive is to tell the truth, and then, but there's a last point where your incentive is, I must do something that will get views as well. - Yeah, like, that's how all this stuff's happened. - Well, you know, I'm gonna-- - That's part of it. - 60 Minutes, as an example, does undercover reporting, and it always has. And they would, if a subject would not come on 60 Minutes, they would go to their home and wait for them outside their office and home to confront them and ask those questions. They would tell them they're gonna do it. So I think you're well within your right to do that. I think as you professionalize your operation, and it's incredibly brave what you're doing, I think you have to ask for a bit more support from the audience. And, you know, right now, you can do a $5 subscription, but you should also ask people to be charter supporters, you know, at a $500 level, $1,000 level. That might allow you to do. And I think you should be very aggressive in asking for more support, because the government, heard from Vice President J.D. Vance, 10, 20% of our tax dollars are being wasted. If we support you to do this work, get a researcher, get an extra video editor, you just need about three or four people around you to support you, and this is really going to take off. If you have those three or four people, we're all going to save more money, and we need to, as a country, to get behind you and say, people who are stealing from the government, that is, they should carry double the sentence, because you're stealing from the actual society, right? And I don't care what country, it doesn't matter what state it is, immigrant or American, and they've been here, you're stealing from the actual country that is giving you, you know, the protection of living in these United States. It is really sinister to steal from the country. It really is, and just, I'm really upset that you are faced with security issues and a lack of support, and this criticism on the ticky-tacky things. Do not stop doing what you're doing. Thank you very much. And, like, if we can stop fraud, we can literally save the country. Like, that's something people don't understand. What's crazy is it's not just fraud. I think the California High Speed Rail Project, anyone can look at that objectively and say, that is the most insane thing on earth. Why are we doing this? $240 billion to go from Fresno to Modesto at three times the price of an airplane ticket. None of it makes sense. Literally, it's like, none of it makes sense. And the guy got paid half a billion dollars for non-work. It's a billionaire in Italy who got paid half a billion dollars for non-work. How much did he get paid? Half a billion. Did you say half a billion? Did you watch the video? Yeah. So after I saw that video, so Nick sent me that video, and then I traced down who got paid that half billion. And the ultimate owner is a billionaire in Italy. I didn't know that. And the whole story, when you kind of dig into this, so this isn't fraud, it's legal. It's a legal system. It's organized leakage. It's a legal system, and I think it falls under that idea of waste or some sort of corruption, but I think it is as relevant as it is. It's a legal system, and I think it is as relevant as it is. The fraud stuff, anyone can get behind, but this is the stuff where I think there's complacency, there's corruption, there's unaccountability, and these are the things that just trickled into this massive waterfall that we're drowning in right now, and I think it's really important what you're doing. And I think on behalf of a lot of people, I really appreciate the mission you're on. You're an incredible person. We thank you for the work. Thank you guys so much. Thanks for being supportive. Bravo, Nick. Fuck yeah. Thanks, brother. Appreciate it. Thank you, bro. Appreciate it. Thanks, Jason. Appreciate it.