{"id":6028,"date":"2026-03-20T23:34:36","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T23:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/pentagon-200b-for-iran-4500-more-marines-to-mid-east\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T23:34:36","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T23:34:36","slug":"pentagon-200b-for-iran-4500-more-marines-to-mid-east","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/pentagon-200b-for-iran-4500-more-marines-to-mid-east\/","title":{"rendered":"Pentagon: $200B for Iran. 4,500 More Marines to Mid-East."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm\/?e=\" width=\"100%\" height=\"210\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><b>Joe Kent Speaks Out. Polls Get Worse. Is Colombia Next? Where\u2019s VA\u2019s Budget Request? Cesar Chavez Exposed. Drones Over Hegseth &amp; Rubio\u2019s Homes. HBD Iraq War. RIP Chuck Norris. Madness is AMAZING.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>It&#8217;s episode 470 and Paul Rieckhoff is solo in New York on the first day of spring, bringing his trademark mix of independence, insight, and righteous outrage as March Madness tips off across America. From Curtis Blow\u2019s \u201cBasketball\u201d to bracket-busting Cinderella stories like 12-seed High Point, Paul lays out his \u201cfab five\u201d vibes\u2014integrity, independence, information, inspiration, and impact\u2014and explains why this tournament is one of the few things still uniting the country. But he also exposes a much darker kind of March madness: Trump\u2019s escalating war with Iran, the Pentagon\u2019s stunning 200 billion dollar funding request, and the hidden lifetime costs of traumatic brain injuries and VA care that the White House refuses to own.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Paul rips into Acting \u201cSecretary of Culture War\u201d Pete Hegseth\u2019s propaganda briefings, selective right-wing media access, and dangerous religious extremism from the Pentagon podium, while highlighting the veterans, journalists, and unlikely allies\u2014from Joe Kent to Sean Ryan to Marjorie Taylor Greene\u2014who are beginning to break with Trump\u2019s forever war machine. He connects it all to attacks on the free press, the plan to keep National Guard troops in DC through 2029, new targets like Colombia, the fight for open primaries in Alabama, the breaking scandal around Cesar Chavez, and the explosive growth of America\u2019s 45 percent of independents. Along the way, Paul previews an emotional upcoming conversation with WWE legend Mick Foley, celebrates the life and complicated legacy of Chuck Norris, salutes everyday toughness, and invites you to join Independent Veterans of America, Defiance.org, and a rising independent movement that is done with forever wars\u2014and determined to stay vigilant.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>-WATCH <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/C-bFDtpnnIA\"><span>full video of this episode here<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>-Join <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/independentveteransofamerica.org\/no-more-forever-wars\/\"><span>IVA and stand up to Trump\u2019s Forever Wars<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>-Learn more about Paul\u2019s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/independentveteransofamerica.org\/\"><span>Independent Veterans of America<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>-Learn more about <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/americanveteransforukraine.org\/\"><span>American Veterans for Ukraine here<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>-Learn more about<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/theheadstrongproject.org\/\"><span> The Headstrong Project <\/span><\/a><span>for Veterans, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.taps.org\/\"><span>Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS)<\/span><\/a><span>, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.va.gov\/health-care\/health-needs-conditions\/mental-health\/\"><span>Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area<\/span><\/a><span>. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It\u2019s a show of strength. <\/span><span>If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Connect with Independent Americans:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>Subscribe on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@independentamericans\"><span>YouTube<\/span><\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0F1lzdRbTB0XYen8kyEqXe\"><span>Spotify<\/span><\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\/id1457899667\"><span>Apple Podcasts<\/span><\/a><span>, and all podcast platforms<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Read more at<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/independentamericans.substack.com\"> <span>Substack<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>Support ad-free episodes at<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/independentamericans\"> <span>Patreon<\/span><\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Connect: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/\"><span>Instagram<\/span><\/a><span>\u00a0 \u2022 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/indy_americans\"><span>X\/Twitter<\/span><\/a><span> \u2022 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/indyamericans.bsky.social\"><span>BlueSky<\/span><\/a><span> \u2022 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/\"><span>Facebook<\/span><\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/PaulRieckhoff\"><span>X<\/span><\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/paulrieckhoff\/\"><span>Instagram<\/span><\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.com\/@paulrieckhoff\"><span>Threads<\/span><\/a><span>, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/rieckhoff.bsky.social\"><span>Bluesky<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>&#8211;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/independentamericans\/posts\"><span>Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community<\/span><\/a><span> of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>&#8211;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/independentamericans.us\/merch\/\"><span>And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch<\/span><\/a><span> now in time for the new year.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/righteous.us\/\"><span>Righteous Media<\/span><\/a><span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>And now part of <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bleav.com\/shows\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\/\"><span>the BLEAV network<\/span><\/a><span>!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href=\"https:\/\/pcm.adswizz.com\">pcm.adswizz.com<\/a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s episode 470 and Paul Rieckhoff is solo in New York on the first day of spring, bringing his trademark mix of independence, insight, and righteous outrage as March Madness tips off across America. From Curtis Blow\u2019s \u201cBasketball\u201d to bracket-busting Cinderella stories like 12-seed High Point, Paul lays out his \u201cfab five\u201d vibes\u2014integrity, independence, information, inspiration, and impact\u2014and explains why this tournament is one of the few things still uniting the country. But he also exposes a much darker kind of March madness: Trump\u2019s escalating war with Iran, the Pentagon\u2019s stunning 200 billion dollar funding request, and the hidden lifetime costs of traumatic brain injuries and VA care that the White House refuses to own.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6029,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-episodes","entry"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470-300x300.jpg",300,300,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470-1024x1024.jpg",750,750,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ia-promo-square-ep470.jpg",1400,1400,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/author\/admin\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/category\/episodes\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Episodes<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"It's episode 470 and Paul Rieckhoff is solo in New York on the first day of spring, bringing his trademark mix of independence, insight, and righteous outrage as March Madness tips off across America. From Curtis Blow\u2019s \u201cBasketball\u201d to bracket-busting Cinderella stories like 12-seed High Point, Paul lays out his \u201cfab five\u201d vibes\u2014integrity, independence, information,&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6028","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6028"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6028\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6029"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}