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[Sheriff Coe VO] Being this    
         close to the border,

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we've always had          
         illegal immigration.

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It's well within our         
 constitutional right to protect

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the people of our county.

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This shows you what         
 Operation Lone Star, in action,

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really means.

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Federal immigration law is     
     under the federal government's

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authority.

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How does Governor Abbott get    
   away with Operation Lone Star?

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They're using the criminal      
   trespass statute in the Texas

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Penal Code.

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[Hunter VO] They had a couple   
      helicopters fly in and drop

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soldiers off.

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The Texas Military Department    
   brought their own film crew.

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How does that            
      deter an asylum seeker?

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Until the federal          
 government gets off their butt,

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we're on our own.

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dramatic tense music

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[Ben VO] Almost 16 months after   
 Russia's full-scale invasion of

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-Ukraine...            
              -[blast]

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how long can they keep this up?

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[groans]

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More and more            
     soldiers are pressing in.

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What do you think the       
         cost of this war is?

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dramatic theme music

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[shouting]

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Hoorah!

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[blasts]

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deep tense music

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So we were driving along the     
   Rio Grande and we just pulled

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over because a young migrant     
 woman has just been apprehended

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by both Border Patrol agents     
   and the Texas National Guard.

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We saw her getting into this    
 Border Patrol truck that's right

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behind me.

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But this shows you exactly     
     what Operation Lone Star,

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in action, really means.

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[Paola VO] In March 2021, Texas   
 Governor Greg Abbott announced

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Operation Lone Star -- or OLS -- 
 in response to what he referred

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to as "an invasion of migrants 
       at the southern border."

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Texas is sending          
             a message:

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we're ready,            
       we're waiting for you.

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If you dare step into        
        the state of Texas,

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Texas will use every tool      
 and strategy we can to make sure

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that the laws in the state of   
     Texas are gonna be enforced.

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[Paola VO] Abbott deployed     
      thousands of Texas National

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Guard members in the largest    
 show of force by the state since

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the Civil War, and empowered    
     State Troopers and local law

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enforcement to arrest       
          suspected migrants.

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His policy has been widely     
      criticized for effectively

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transferring power over       
     immigration matters from the

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federal government to the state.

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Kinney County Sheriff Brad     
 Coe is one of those tasked with

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carrying out            
         Operation Lone Star.

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He's a former            
         Border Patrol agent,

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and has fully embraced       
     Governor Abbott's initiative.

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Being this close to the       
 border, we've always had illegal

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immigration.

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But then after the Biden          
 Administration took over,

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we saw a huge increase in our     
 alien smuggling apprehensions.

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And the mission under Operation   
     Lone Star is specifically

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to go after these migrants?

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[Sheriff Coe] The whole point of 
 the mission is to try to secure

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the border to keep                
 them from coming.

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To deter them from coming.

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[Sheriff Coe] Right.

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My mission part of this is to    
   keep them out of the county.

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You can't sling a dead           
 cat without hitting a...

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-[Paola] Mm.            
     -Hitting a smuggling load.

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[Paola VO] Operation Lone Star 
     increased resources for state

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and local authorities to      
      enforce laws against crimes

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like trespassing and smuggling.

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Kinney County, which        
        sits along the border,

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received $3.2 million alone.

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So far, OLS has resulted in    
 the apprehension of over 300,000

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migrants, but Kinney County has   
 the most arrests in Texas under

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Abbott's program.

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[Paola] What are we         
      looking at right there?

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Another group of aliens walking   
   through somebody's property.

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And that appears to be some   
     migrants that are trespassing

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into private land?

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[Sheriff Coe] Oh yeah, they're   
    all definitely trespassing.

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Crossing the highway,        
   getting ready to be picked up.

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We got two small children.

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Daytime means a           
     couple of 'em are in camo.

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You got guys here in camo.

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Camo.

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We are looking for anybody      
 that's in violation of the law.

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How do you define what   
           Operation Lone Star is?

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Back in 2021, when we had      
   the big influx of the Haitians

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taking over the           
       Port of Entry Del Rio,

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we were under siege.

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The federal government's          
    not doing their job,

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so Governor Abbott                
    stepped up --

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"We will protect          
          our own border."

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Under the Constitution, he has   
     that authority to protect

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the people of the state.

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Which is a controversial thing   
   to say considering that federal

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-immigration law--         
             -Well, n--

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As it is known, is under   
        the federal government's--

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-[Sheriff Coe] Right.        
            -Authority.

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However, we're not         
     enforcing immigration law,

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we're enforcing criminal law.

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It's well within our         
 constitutional right to protect

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the people of our county.

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On average, how many migrants 
     have you arrested per month?

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I'd say between           
     100-- 120 to 150 a month.

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[Paola] 150 migrants a month.

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On a conservative side.

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But do you really believe      
 that these criminal trespassing

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charges actually deter       
       migrants from coming?

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I mean, how does that        
      deter an asylum seeker?

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The asylum seekers are       
       turning themselves in,

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but they're not--

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But surely, everyone in those    
   photos that showed me aren't

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criminals.

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-I mean, I saw children, I saw-- 
         -We saw children.

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But why are they           
     circumventing the system?

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If they're looking for asylum,   
   why aren't they going through

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the proper methods for asylum?

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Those people are not        
        looking for asylum.

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They're looking           
        for something else.

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2022 saw the highest rates of   
   border apprehensions on record.

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Mm-hm.

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Where is the data to show that 
    this operation actually works?

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Well, I mean, personally, I     
 think we can show the fact that,

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hey, we're arresting         
 people, this is still going on,

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and it's gonna continue.

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But until the federal government 
       gets off their butt...

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[Paola] Mm.

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And decides to do          
    something, we're on our own.

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[Paola VO] Instead of        
        compelling the federal

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government into action,

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Operation Lone Star        
        has diminished its role

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along the border.

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Texas RioGrande Legal Aid      
 defends migrants apprehended as

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a result of OLS, and found that   
 over 30 percent of its clients

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were handed over to local law   
 enforcement by federal agencies

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00:05:56,147 --> 00:05:58,358
like Customs and Border Patrol.

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CBP is charged with processing 
        migrants at the border.

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00:06:01,569 --> 00:06:04,322
Surrendering them to local     
     authorities removes migrants

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from the federal          
          immigration system.

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Instead, they're sent to      
       prisons across the state,

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which delays their         
        process to seek asylum.

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Rachel Garza is an attorney    
     representing migrants who have

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been charged with          
      misdemeanors by the state.

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So most of the arrests          
 are here in Kinney County,

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a few in Val Verde right here...

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Mm-hm.

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[Rachel] Maverick,                
 Webb, Jim Hogg...

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The prison is here                
 in Dilley, Texas,

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00:06:29,597 --> 00:06:31,349
which is in Frio County.

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[Paola] So all of these folks   
   are being transferred miles and

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00:06:33,935 --> 00:06:35,019
-miles away...           
           -[Rachel] Yup.

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00:06:35,061 --> 00:06:35,978
[Paola] From where they are.

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00:06:36,020 --> 00:06:37,772
[Rachel]                   
 Hundreds of miles away.

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00:06:38,022 --> 00:06:42,360
Operation Lone Star is       
 really a shadow criminal system.

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00:06:42,402 --> 00:06:43,569
Mm.

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00:06:43,611 --> 00:06:44,320
[Rachel] It's not a     
          criminal justice system.

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00:06:44,362 --> 00:06:46,406
We don't see justice happening.

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00:06:46,447 --> 00:06:50,159
Only the federal government has   
   sole power and authority over

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00:06:50,201 --> 00:06:51,744
these immigration matters;        
       is that correct?

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00:06:51,786 --> 00:06:55,998
Yes, and that's really because   
   we don't want different states

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00:06:56,040 --> 00:06:58,751
handling this            
         issue differently

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00:06:58,793 --> 00:07:03,256
when it's an issue that affects   
     the entire United States.

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00:07:03,297 --> 00:07:07,760
So if that's the case,         
 then how does Governor Abbott

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00:07:07,802 --> 00:07:09,177
get away with                  
 Operation Lone Star?

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00:07:09,220 --> 00:07:14,016
They're using state law to      
   enforce immigration policies.

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00:07:14,058 --> 00:07:15,601
Got it.

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00:07:15,643 --> 00:07:17,186
So they're using the criminal 
     trespass statute in the Texas

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00:07:17,228 --> 00:07:21,315
Penal Code to            
         arrest and detain

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00:07:21,357 --> 00:07:24,527
undocumented persons coming     
      into the United States.

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00:07:24,569 --> 00:07:26,946
So they have figured             
 out a loophole around--

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Exactly.

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[Paola] Federal                   
 immigration law.

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Exactly.

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It seems like there's a group     
 of people that are invisible

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00:07:33,661 --> 00:07:35,079
in this system.

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They're being transported all     
 around the state without the

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00:07:36,831 --> 00:07:39,375
federal government sort          
 of overseeing all of this.

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00:07:39,417 --> 00:07:41,085
Are they sort of                 
 lost in the system?

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Absolutely.

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We've even experienced where the 
   prison doesn't know where our

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client is.

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I have seen people    
            spend 100 days or more

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in prison.

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00:07:52,763 --> 00:07:56,601
But all of these individuals    
    are still entitled to their

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00:07:56,642 --> 00:07:59,437
constitutional rights --      
   their right to a speedy trial,

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00:07:59,479 --> 00:08:00,938
their right to be heard.

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00:08:00,980 --> 00:08:03,024
It's not set up to handle this.

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00:08:03,065 --> 00:08:05,192
[Paola VO] Governor Abbott     
 has promoted these arrests from

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00:08:05,234 --> 00:08:07,945
Operation Lone Star as       
        a sign of its success,

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00:08:07,987 --> 00:08:11,407
going so far as to campaign off   
 of the program during the 2022

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00:08:11,449 --> 00:08:12,240
gubernatorial election.

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[man VO] No other governor has 
     done more to secure our border

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00:08:15,703 --> 00:08:17,246
than Greg Abbott.

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00:08:17,288 --> 00:08:19,457
[Paola VO] But an investigation   
       last year revealed that

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00:08:19,499 --> 00:08:23,252
thousands of arrests attributed   
     to OLS occurred hundreds of

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00:08:23,294 --> 00:08:25,046
miles away             
           from the border,

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00:08:25,087 --> 00:08:27,256
having nothing to         
           do with migrants,

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00:08:27,298 --> 00:08:29,008
and the Department of       
         Justice is currently

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00:08:29,050 --> 00:08:32,261
investigating Operation Lone    
     Star for unlawfully targeting

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00:08:32,303 --> 00:08:34,597
individuals based on their race.

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00:08:34,639 --> 00:08:37,391
Even those deployed along the   
     border have called the program

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00:08:37,433 --> 00:08:38,893
into question.

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00:08:38,935 --> 00:08:40,811
-All right, y'all ready?      
           -[Paola] Yeah!

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00:08:40,853 --> 00:08:43,606
[Paola VO] Hunter Schuler, a    
 medic with Texas National Guard,

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00:08:43,648 --> 00:08:47,235
was deployed for eight months   
      under Operation Lone Star.

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00:08:47,276 --> 00:08:50,029
While at the border,        
     Schuler said many of his peers

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00:08:50,071 --> 00:08:53,366
complained about being squeezed   
      into bunk beds in trucks,

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00:08:53,407 --> 00:08:55,326
not having             
       electricity or plumbing,

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00:08:55,368 --> 00:08:57,036
and not getting paid on time.

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00:08:57,078 --> 00:08:59,705
[Hunter] The Guard today is a    
 lot different than what it was--

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00:08:59,747 --> 00:09:01,207
-[Paola] What it used to be?    
   -[Hunter] When I joined, yeah.

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00:09:01,249 --> 00:09:03,209
COVID and other things,

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00:09:03,251 --> 00:09:04,585
-like the border mission--     
          -Yes, of course.

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00:09:04,627 --> 00:09:06,420
Have shown that, like,        
 governors have sort of realized

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00:09:06,462 --> 00:09:09,006
that the National Guard has     
   become this "Easy" button for

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00:09:09,048 --> 00:09:10,800
-fixing a lot of problems.      
 -[Paola] Oh, interesting, yeah.

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00:09:10,841 --> 00:09:13,385
[Paola VO] In response, Schuler   
     unionized the Texas National

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00:09:13,427 --> 00:09:16,305
Guard, and contends         
       that from the beginning,

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00:09:16,347 --> 00:09:20,101
Abbott has been using guardsmen   
     as political pawns to rile up

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00:09:20,142 --> 00:09:21,644
his base.

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00:09:21,686 --> 00:09:24,063
Were the National Guardsmen   
     there trained to serve at the

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00:09:24,105 --> 00:09:25,273
-border?              
      -[Hunter] [chuckles] No.

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00:09:25,314 --> 00:09:26,899
[laughing] No, no, no, no, no.

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00:09:26,941 --> 00:09:28,484
We spent maybe...

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00:09:28,526 --> 00:09:32,071
not even 36 hours at Camp Swift   
 before turning around and going

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00:09:32,113 --> 00:09:33,447
to the border.

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00:09:33,489 --> 00:09:35,366
I mean, we didn't need       
    medic training to be medics,

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00:09:35,408 --> 00:09:38,369
but as far as,           
       like, what to do with,

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00:09:38,411 --> 00:09:41,539
you know, when you see        
      a migrant or something,

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00:09:41,581 --> 00:09:44,667
what the actual, like,        
 operational rules were and what

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00:09:44,709 --> 00:09:47,086
our responsibilities were         
    was sort of just made

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00:09:47,128 --> 00:09:48,254
as we went along.

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00:09:48,296 --> 00:09:48,879
There was a lot of         
       shooting from the hip.

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00:09:48,921 --> 00:09:51,299
Did you really understand 
            what your role was

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00:09:51,340 --> 00:09:51,841
when you were there?

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00:09:51,882 --> 00:09:56,512
Well, yeah, but in         
         a very jaded view.

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00:09:56,554 --> 00:09:58,180
Like, within a couple             
 weeks of being there,

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00:09:58,222 --> 00:10:00,099
we got our first                
 sort of major, like,

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00:10:00,141 --> 00:10:01,392
exercise assignment.

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00:10:01,434 --> 00:10:03,603
We went to Eagle Pass, and then   
 they wanted a bunch of Humvees

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00:10:03,644 --> 00:10:05,771
posted up there as          
       well with razor wire,

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00:10:05,813 --> 00:10:08,024
and then a bunch of         
     State Troopers showed up,

245
00:10:08,065 --> 00:10:10,026
and they had a couple        
    helicopters fly in and drop

246
00:10:10,067 --> 00:10:11,444
soldiers off.

247
00:10:11,485 --> 00:10:13,362
The Texas Military Department     
 brought their own film crew!

248
00:10:13,404 --> 00:10:15,573
They had guys with, like,        
 GoPros and drones out there,

249
00:10:15,615 --> 00:10:17,199
like, getting up           
      in our faces and, like,

250
00:10:17,241 --> 00:10:18,951
trying to do all          
        these cool shots of,

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00:10:18,993 --> 00:10:20,369
-you know--             
              -Yeah.

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00:10:20,411 --> 00:10:21,954
They were basically filming       
 a recruiting commercial or a

253
00:10:21,996 --> 00:10:24,540
promotional video that you       
 see on Twitter or Instagram,

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00:10:24,582 --> 00:10:29,462
and that really just cemented -- 
       at least in my mind --

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00:10:29,503 --> 00:10:30,630
what our purpose was there.

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00:10:30,671 --> 00:10:32,632
When you take 
                     a step back,

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00:10:32,673 --> 00:10:34,967
has the mission      
            succeeded in its goal?

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00:10:35,009 --> 00:10:37,470
Well, if the goal was to get    
    Governor Abbott re-elected,

259
00:10:37,511 --> 00:10:38,804
then yeah, clearly it succeeded.

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00:10:38,846 --> 00:10:40,473
But I don't know that        
 anybody ever really sat down and

261
00:10:40,514 --> 00:10:42,433
thought, like, "What            
 is our desired end state

262
00:10:42,475 --> 00:10:43,476
here at the border?"

263
00:10:43,517 --> 00:10:44,435
I think the             
       mission was political,

264
00:10:44,477 --> 00:10:45,603
and we did a             
       great job, obviously;

265
00:10:45,645 --> 00:10:48,814
Texas voters resoundingly      
      supported the mission,

266
00:10:48,856 --> 00:10:50,316
apparently.

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00:10:50,358 --> 00:10:51,817
Is Operation Lone Star a      
   good use of the National Guard?

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00:10:51,859 --> 00:10:53,653
[laughs] No!

269
00:10:53,694 --> 00:10:54,862
No, no, no.             
                No.

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00:10:54,904 --> 00:10:56,113
And what is the cost of that?

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00:10:56,155 --> 00:10:57,657
There's                   
 different kinds of cost;

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00:10:57,698 --> 00:11:00,534
there's the monetary cost -- it   
 has soared into the billions of

273
00:11:00,576 --> 00:11:03,579
dollars -- but there's           
 also a humanitarian cost.

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00:11:03,621 --> 00:11:07,416
[Paola VO] So far, Texas      
     has spent over $4 billion on

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00:11:07,458 --> 00:11:10,461
Operation Lone Star, and      
     additional funds are needed to

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00:11:10,503 --> 00:11:12,463
sustain the            
      personnel along the border.

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00:11:12,505 --> 00:11:15,633
But even more costly        
       has been the human toll.

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00:11:15,675 --> 00:11:19,095
30 migrants and at least 10     
     Texas National Guard members

279
00:11:19,135 --> 00:11:22,181
have died in connection to     
 Operation Lone Star as a result

280
00:11:22,223 --> 00:11:25,643
of suicides, friendly        
      fire, and other accidents.

281
00:11:25,685 --> 00:11:27,853
One of them was Bishop Evans.

282
00:11:27,895 --> 00:11:30,189
[Paola] What had he heard   
        about Operation Lone Star?

283
00:11:30,231 --> 00:11:31,857
What did you all know about it?

284
00:11:31,899 --> 00:11:34,193
Just the things that        
        you see on the news.

285
00:11:34,235 --> 00:11:36,862
I was more concerned             
 when he was in Iraq...

286
00:11:36,904 --> 00:11:39,240
-[Paola] Mm.            
     -Than I was at the border.

287
00:11:39,281 --> 00:11:42,493
[Paola VO] 22-year-old Evans    
     was a National Guardsman who

288
00:11:42,535 --> 00:11:45,538
drowned while trying to save two 
     migrants in the Rio Grande in

289
00:11:45,579 --> 00:11:47,039
April 2022.

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00:11:47,081 --> 00:11:49,875
Reports later revealed that    
     Evans wasn't outfitted with a

291
00:11:49,917 --> 00:11:51,711
life vest while on duty.

292
00:11:51,752 --> 00:11:53,879
His grandmother,          
           Jo Ann Johnson,

293
00:11:53,921 --> 00:11:55,715
is still grappling         
           with his death.

294
00:11:55,756 --> 00:11:57,675
What exactly      
              happened down there?

295
00:11:57,717 --> 00:11:59,051
[Jo Ann] I have no idea.

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00:11:59,093 --> 00:12:01,637
They saw him             
        going in the water,

297
00:12:01,679 --> 00:12:03,222
but they never saw         
          him coming out.

298
00:12:03,264 --> 00:12:06,517
Do you think Bishop was trained 
     to do something like that?

299
00:12:06,559 --> 00:12:10,646
Not that I know of, but not       
 from what I've been told and

300
00:12:10,688 --> 00:12:13,691
what we've found out.

301
00:12:13,733 --> 00:12:18,237
As far as Bishop, 22 years     
       doesn't seem like a lot,

302
00:12:18,279 --> 00:12:22,700
but I am so blessed

303
00:12:22,742 --> 00:12:26,162
to have had that 22 years.

304
00:12:26,203 --> 00:12:29,749
I don't know how I         
      could've done without that.

305
00:12:29,790 --> 00:12:32,376
Right...

306
00:12:32,418 --> 00:12:34,086
face!

307
00:12:34,128 --> 00:12:36,005
March!

308
00:12:37,256 --> 00:12:37,673
[Reginald VO] Thank        
         y'all for coming out.

309
00:12:37,673 --> 00:12:39,508
It really means a lot to us.

310
00:12:39,550 --> 00:12:41,886
Officially, this is        
           Bishop Evans Day,

311
00:12:41,927 --> 00:12:44,930
so we continue to remember him   
    and his legacy and what he's

312
00:12:44,972 --> 00:12:48,100
done for us, as he          
        lives in our heart,

313
00:12:48,142 --> 00:12:50,770
and what he's done         
           for our country.

314
00:12:50,811 --> 00:12:55,065
[cheering]

315
00:12:55,107 --> 00:12:58,319
[Paola VO] In May, prompted    
     by the expiration of Title 42,

316
00:12:58,360 --> 00:13:01,113
the pandemic-era rule that     
 allowed US authorities to expel

317
00:13:01,155 --> 00:13:03,699
migrants from the country,     
     Governor Abbott announced the

318
00:13:03,741 --> 00:13:07,745
creation of a new tactical unit   
     under OLS that he immediately

319
00:13:07,787 --> 00:13:09,163
deployed to El Paso.

320
00:13:09,205 --> 00:13:13,751
The Texas National Guard is     
    deploying specially-trained

321
00:13:13,793 --> 00:13:17,755
National Guard members for the   
    Texas Tactical Border Force.

322
00:13:17,797 --> 00:13:19,757
[Paola VO] We sent multiple    
     requests for an interview with

323
00:13:19,799 --> 00:13:21,592
the Governor that         
           went unanswered.

324
00:13:21,634 --> 00:13:24,762
If Governor Abbott was sitting 
    here and you could ask him one

325
00:13:24,804 --> 00:13:27,306
question about the      
        mission, what would it be?

326
00:13:27,348 --> 00:13:30,226
What are you trying         
         to accomplish --

327
00:13:30,267 --> 00:13:33,771
not from a                   
 political standpoint,

328
00:13:33,813 --> 00:13:38,567
but from a standpoint on how    
     it's gonna benefit the US,

329
00:13:38,859 --> 00:13:42,780
and how is it gonna benefit the   
     immigrants coming across?

330
00:13:42,822 --> 00:13:45,741
The heart of Operation Lone    
   Star is based on this idea that

331
00:13:45,783 --> 00:13:48,619
there is a massive    
             threat at the border.

332
00:13:48,661 --> 00:13:50,162
Do you feel that threat?

333
00:13:50,204 --> 00:13:51,664
Well... [sighs]

334
00:13:51,705 --> 00:13:53,791
not on a personal level,

335
00:13:53,833 --> 00:13:58,629
but when you group everybody as   
 "They're bad coming across the

336
00:13:58,671 --> 00:14:01,799
border," then I think        
     you're doing a disjustice

337
00:14:01,841 --> 00:14:05,427
to the people who really are    
    here to try to better their

338
00:14:05,469 --> 00:14:10,224
lives, and who want to           
 be hardworking citizens.

339
00:14:12,476 --> 00:14:17,523
tense theme music

340
00:14:18,065 --> 00:14:22,862
[engine rumbling]

341
00:14:24,530 --> 00:14:29,535
tense ethereal music

342
00:14:37,877 --> 00:14:42,673
This is a tiny team that just    
   does reconnaissance and small

343
00:14:42,715 --> 00:14:46,218
assaults all around this area    
 to try to assault the Russians.

344
00:14:46,260 --> 00:14:49,889
It's wet, it's muddy out here,   
    it's just been tore up from

345
00:14:49,930 --> 00:14:50,848
the mortar shells.

346
00:14:50,890 --> 00:14:53,309
This is a really           
        dangerous location.

347
00:14:53,350 --> 00:14:56,061
[Ben VO] The bloodiest and     
 most brutal fight in Ukraine is

348
00:14:56,103 --> 00:14:59,565
happening here, at the       
       southern edge of Bakhmut,

349
00:14:59,607 --> 00:15:01,984
a city in Eastern Ukraine     
      where the battle has become

350
00:15:02,026 --> 00:15:03,819
ground zero in this war.

351
00:15:03,861 --> 00:15:06,822
Commander Kurt is protecting the 
     southern flank from a Russian

352
00:15:06,864 --> 00:15:09,408
advance, but with         
           limited supplies,

353
00:15:09,450 --> 00:15:12,369
the unit is            
         slowly losing ground.

354
00:15:29,678 --> 00:15:34,725
intense music

355
00:15:46,946 --> 00:15:50,074
[blasts]

356
00:15:50,115 --> 00:15:52,701
[gunfire]

357
00:15:52,743 --> 00:15:53,911
[shouting]

358
00:15:53,953 --> 00:15:57,456
[gunfire]

359
00:15:57,498 --> 00:16:00,459
[Ben VO] Almost 16 months after   
 Russia's full-scale invasion of

360
00:16:00,501 --> 00:16:04,046
Ukraine, an estimated 20 to    
      50,000 artillery shells are

361
00:16:04,088 --> 00:16:07,091
being lobbed back         
          and forth each day.

362
00:16:07,132 --> 00:16:09,927
Nearly 10,000 heavy         
     weapons have been destroyed,

363
00:16:09,969 --> 00:16:12,846
and both countries continue to 
     invest billions and billions

364
00:16:12,888 --> 00:16:14,765
more each month.

365
00:16:14,807 --> 00:16:18,560
Neither side can afford to     
      show any signs of slowing.

366
00:16:18,602 --> 00:16:21,271
But the pace is unsustainable.

367
00:16:21,313 --> 00:16:24,692
Nowhere is that more apparent   
      than the fight for Bakhmut,

368
00:16:24,733 --> 00:16:26,151
which has become more       
         of a symbolic battle

369
00:16:26,193 --> 00:16:28,153
than a strategic one.

370
00:16:29,238 --> 00:16:31,115
[Ben VO] With Ukraine        
      having to ration its ammo,

371
00:16:31,156 --> 00:16:34,284
Kurt's team is forced to rely   
     on an old Soviet-era assault

372
00:16:34,326 --> 00:16:36,828
vehicle prone to malfunction.

373
00:17:15,159 --> 00:17:17,619
[Ben VO] The war has        
         come at a steep cost.

374
00:17:17,661 --> 00:17:19,788
The Ukrainian government shies 
     away from releasing casualty

375
00:17:19,830 --> 00:17:23,584
numbers, and Russian data      
     is grossly underrepresented.

376
00:17:23,625 --> 00:17:27,004
US officials estimate that more   
 than 300,000 in total have been

377
00:17:27,046 --> 00:17:29,131
killed or injured.

378
00:17:29,173 --> 00:17:34,011
tense music

379
00:17:34,053 --> 00:17:35,971
[man groaning]

380
00:17:36,013 --> 00:17:39,433
[men speaking foreign language]

381
00:17:39,475 --> 00:17:41,894
[groans and whimpers]

382
00:17:53,447 --> 00:17:56,033
Right now, we're at a        
 stabilization point just on the

383
00:17:56,075 --> 00:17:57,659
outskirts of Bakhmut.

384
00:17:57,701 --> 00:18:00,579
The numbers on how many soldiers 
 are being killed and injured in

385
00:18:00,621 --> 00:18:04,917
Ukraine is very murky, so we     
   came here to see one shift in

386
00:18:04,958 --> 00:18:07,795
real time to understand just how 
 many soldiers are being injured

387
00:18:07,836 --> 00:18:09,129
and killed here.

388
00:18:09,171 --> 00:18:11,340
As you can see, it's a lot.

389
00:18:11,381 --> 00:18:13,592
So what is it like         
        out there at the front?

390
00:18:25,521 --> 00:18:30,567
[man groaning]

391
00:18:31,026 --> 00:18:33,403
So this, this is another       
     injury that just came in.

392
00:18:33,445 --> 00:18:35,614
About half of his          
          leg is missing.

393
00:18:35,656 --> 00:18:38,826
This is the worst injury      
      we've seen today by far.

394
00:18:47,668 --> 00:18:50,295
[Ben VO] Dr. Serhiy is the     
      head trauma surgeon here.

395
00:18:50,337 --> 00:18:52,631
He's been at the front line     
     treating soldiers for months

396
00:18:52,673 --> 00:18:54,508
with no break.

397
00:18:54,800 --> 00:18:58,887
How difficult is it for       
      you to keep seeing this?

398
00:19:09,898 --> 00:19:13,152
How many of these          
   soldiers will return to fight?

399
00:19:26,331 --> 00:19:29,459
[Ben VO] In just a few hours,   
     we counted 48 wounded soldiers

400
00:19:29,501 --> 00:19:31,044
and six killed.

401
00:19:31,086 --> 00:19:33,922
The doctors said          
          it was a slow day.

402
00:19:33,964 --> 00:19:39,011
tense ethereal music

403
00:19:54,943 --> 00:19:57,112
[Ben VO] Denys is          
        one of the lucky ones.

404
00:19:57,154 --> 00:19:58,906
After a Russian          
           artillery strike,

405
00:19:58,947 --> 00:20:01,825
he came away with         
        only a mild concussion.

406
00:20:01,867 --> 00:20:05,162
Five men on his team        
        were killed beside him.

407
00:20:05,204 --> 00:20:06,955
Will you go back?

408
00:20:22,179 --> 00:20:25,265
Do you feel like you have the    
   support that you need there?

409
00:20:48,288 --> 00:20:50,249
[sighs]

410
00:20:50,290 --> 00:20:54,336
tender ethereal music

411
00:21:09,142 --> 00:21:13,188
[speaking foreign language]

412
00:21:13,230 --> 00:21:17,276
[Ben VO] A month after,       
 Bakhmut finally fell to Russia.

413
00:21:17,317 --> 00:21:19,695
[men cheering]

414
00:21:19,736 --> 00:21:22,114
The battle drained         
      resources from both sides,

415
00:21:22,155 --> 00:21:24,616
and has left            
        stockpiles razor thin.

416
00:21:24,658 --> 00:21:28,620
[drone buzzing]

417
00:21:28,662 --> 00:21:32,207
The West can't make and      
       send weapons fast enough,

418
00:21:32,249 --> 00:21:34,710
so the Ukrainians          
          have had to adapt,

419
00:21:34,751 --> 00:21:38,130
modifying things like amateur   
     racing drones into makeshift

420
00:21:38,171 --> 00:21:39,965
tank killers.

421
00:21:41,466 --> 00:21:45,804
And it all happens here,      
     in this secret DIY bomb lab.

422
00:21:46,888 --> 00:21:48,348
[Ben] So this is a boobytrap?

423
00:22:01,445 --> 00:22:03,905
[Ben VO] This man         
       goes by the name "Ghost."

424
00:22:03,947 --> 00:22:07,826
He's hiding his identity out    
 of fear of Russian retribution.

425
00:22:07,868 --> 00:22:09,786
[Ben] So explain to         
        me what these are.

426
00:22:22,716 --> 00:22:24,593
How much does it cost        
       to make one of these?

427
00:22:34,144 --> 00:22:36,188
How did you                  
 learn how to do this?

428
00:22:37,356 --> 00:22:39,232
[laughs]

429
00:22:43,236 --> 00:22:45,697
[Ben VO] With an army of 3D    
     printers and captured Russian

430
00:22:45,739 --> 00:22:50,160
munitions, Ghost and his team   
     are working around the clock.

431
00:22:50,202 --> 00:22:52,913
These cheap and improvised     
     explosives are helping to fill

432
00:22:52,954 --> 00:22:55,374
the munition shortages.

433
00:22:55,415 --> 00:22:56,792
[Ben] So what is this place?

434
00:23:14,935 --> 00:23:17,312
-[thud]               
         -[Ben] [chuckles]

435
00:23:17,354 --> 00:23:18,271
Semtex?

436
00:23:18,313 --> 00:23:19,606
Plastic explosives?

437
00:23:22,943 --> 00:23:24,152
-[Ben] Oh, wow.           
              -[thud]

438
00:23:25,570 --> 00:23:27,739
[Ben] So you're modifying      
 these mortars to attach to these

439
00:23:27,781 --> 00:23:28,990
drones?

440
00:23:30,450 --> 00:23:32,411
[Ben] And this                  
 could stop a tank?

441
00:23:36,373 --> 00:23:40,585
It's 3D-printed cap, it's a     
 pipe -- like a plumbing pipe --

442
00:23:40,627 --> 00:23:41,837
and then a zipline.

443
00:23:41,878 --> 00:23:43,630
Like, how much does             
 this cost, do you think?

444
00:23:46,466 --> 00:23:48,260
[Ben] That's, like,              
 less than ten dollars.

445
00:24:04,234 --> 00:24:05,944
[Ben] And how long do you      
 think you can keep making these

446
00:24:05,986 --> 00:24:08,405
to keep supporting the war?

447
00:24:13,201 --> 00:24:16,413
tense ambient music

448
00:24:16,455 --> 00:24:19,166
[Ben VO] That resolve to      
 fight means the bombs will keep

449
00:24:19,207 --> 00:24:23,670
falling, and the death toll    
      will continue to skyrocket.

450
00:24:28,049 --> 00:24:30,886
So right now, we're out       
 with a team of body collectors.

451
00:24:30,927 --> 00:24:33,889
They're saying just up the road   
 here is a group of bodies that

452
00:24:33,930 --> 00:24:36,057
have been left            
       over for over a year.

453
00:24:36,099 --> 00:24:38,101
All around here,           
       there are boobytraps,

454
00:24:38,143 --> 00:24:41,438
there are Russian mines, so it's 
 still really dangerous work for

455
00:24:41,480 --> 00:24:44,065
these guys to be digging around.

456
00:24:45,025 --> 00:24:49,237
tender ethereal music

457
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:01,958
[Ben VO] Misha is         
           a body collector,

458
00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:05,462
and has been working nonstop for 
     the past nine months straight.

459
00:25:05,504 --> 00:25:07,380
It's somber work, but       
        for Misha and his team,

460
00:25:07,422 --> 00:25:09,424
it's important to honor      
          the fallen soldiers

461
00:25:09,466 --> 00:25:11,343
and return them home.

462
00:25:29,152 --> 00:25:31,363
So what exactly is         
         the process here?

463
00:25:59,349 --> 00:26:01,059
[Ben VO] According to       
         leaked US documents,

464
00:26:01,101 --> 00:26:03,812
the death toll for Putin has    
     been nearly twice as high as

465
00:26:03,853 --> 00:26:05,689
Ukraine's.

466
00:26:06,189 --> 00:26:09,609
The toll is so immense, Misha   
 must also pick up the bodies of

467
00:26:09,651 --> 00:26:11,486
his enemies.

468
00:26:11,528 --> 00:26:14,281
Ukrainian officials say they    
     can use this mass grave of six

469
00:26:14,322 --> 00:26:17,534
Russian soldiers as potential   
       trading leverage for live

470
00:26:17,576 --> 00:26:19,744
Ukrainian captives.

471
00:26:29,379 --> 00:26:30,880
[Ben] So they've been        
    here for about an hour now.

472
00:26:30,922 --> 00:26:33,091
They've pulled out three bodies.

473
00:26:33,133 --> 00:26:35,510
You can see the dog tags      
       on some of these guys.

474
00:26:35,552 --> 00:26:39,097
They look like they've       
       been here for months.

475
00:26:39,139 --> 00:26:40,557
The smell around          
       here is really strong.

476
00:26:40,599 --> 00:26:42,934
I mean, you could smell that     
   there's bodies that have been

477
00:26:42,976 --> 00:26:46,062
decomposing here for        
         a long, long time.

478
00:27:03,538 --> 00:27:05,373
For all of the soldiers you're   
   seeing and all the dead you're

479
00:27:05,415 --> 00:27:08,293
seeing here, what do you       
   think the cost of this war is

480
00:27:08,335 --> 00:27:09,794
on both sides?

481
00:27:25,769 --> 00:27:28,521
[Ben] You're seeing so many of   
   these Russian young men dead.

482
00:27:28,563 --> 00:27:32,525
I mean, is it hard for you to    
 see these people that have died,

483
00:27:32,567 --> 00:27:35,612
even though they're the       
     invaders of your country?

484
00:28:08,395 --> 00:28:13,441
dark electronic music