Shadowing Practice: ‘TERROR’: This should be ‘VERY ALARMING’ for Americans, says Todd Blanche - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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We're joined by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
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We're joined by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
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General Blanche, good to have you with us today.
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Thank you for joining me.
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Of course.
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So tell me a little bit about how he was arrested,
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al-Sayedi, and how he, was he brought to this country?
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Was he already in the United States?
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What can you share on that, Attorney General?
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This was a remarkable effort by our FBI,
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Director Patel leadership, and our international partners.
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And we were able to intercept
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and get in the middle of this man's attempts to wreak havoc and terrorize not only the United States, Canada, Europe.
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And so we were able to introduce an undercover working with our law enforcement partners.
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So I think what our U.S attorney just said is dead on,
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that President Trump's leadership around the world allows us to have the credibility
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and the partnerships to allow us to work with folks overseas.
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And that's what happened here.
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So he was brought here and appeared in court earlier today.
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And it is a, on the one hand,
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should be very alarming to the people in this country
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that there are men around the world trying to exact this sort of terror.
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On the other hand, it shows the success of good law enforcement work
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and good police work and working hard to protect our borders,
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which is what we do every single day.
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And so this investigation is ongoing.
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It's just a complaint.
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I expect the next steps will be an indictment.
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And obviously, we're still investigating and gonna make sure that anybody
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that was involved with him will be brought to justice as well.
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Was he picked up in Iraq?
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And when was he brought to the United States?
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He was recently brought to the United States.
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I want to be careful talking about the operation,
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so I don't put anybody in danger.
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But it's enough to say that this was an effort that included not only the FBI,
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but our law enforcement partners overseas as well.
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Yeah, great work on their part.
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Can you tell us how imminent this synagogue attack in New York City was?
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And we understand that there were many plans that he was overseeing.
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But how imminent was this attack?
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Well, if you look at what the complaint alleges,
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and again, it was with an undercover.
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And so we were able to introduce an undercover.
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But there was an expectation that this would happen very,
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very soon and that it would happen,
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you know, not in years to come, but now.
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And so
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if you accept the complaint talking about how his goal was
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to try to stop the United States from the work that we're doing in Iran,
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then obviously he wanted it done as soon as possible.
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So this was a real serious terrorist threat to this country.
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And I want to thank the FBI.
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And we should all thank the FBI
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and the prosecutors in New York for really putting together a good case and stopping this.
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Yeah, we're showing some images of the arrest
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and the movement by the FBI of this suspect that we just got in, Attorney General.
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It also says in the complaint at least one other expected to be brought to and arrested by the SDNY.
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What can you tell us about that?
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Well, as the complaint lays out there,
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he was not acting alone.
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We don't believe that.
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And it wasn't just the undercover.
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And so co-conspirators were obviously actively investigating and going to try to bring everybody to justice.
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And I don't want to get ahead of the men
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and women of the FBI doing their work and tip our hand there.
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But I assure you that in the coming days and weeks,
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to the extent that there's other folks that we catch involved,
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you will hear from us.
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Yeah.
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I mean, obviously, this is a huge concern because Iran feels pushed back on their heels.
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There have been, you know,
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these tremendous attacks that have decimated their conventional military.
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And we know just in their own history
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and their DNA is to resort to terrorism and to use these proxies to do exactly that,
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to attack Americans.
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So what would you say to the American public?
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Should they change their behavior in any way?
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As you look at the,
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you know better than the rest of us,
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the dimension of this threat.
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Look, this is exactly why President Trump is doing what he's doing,
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why he's protecting the American people.
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He has said that there is no scenario under which he will allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.
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Why is that?
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Well, at least in large part,
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It's what we saw today,
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because we have a country that for decades and decades has wanted nothing more than to destroy the United States of America.
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And so President Trump is saying, stop it.
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And not surprising, there's resistance to that.
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And this was one example of that today.
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But the resolve of our military,
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the resolve of President Trump and this administration is done exactly to stop this type of conduct.
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And so this is a stark reminder of why we're doing what we're doing.
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Yeah.
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Well, it looks like a great operation,
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and we hope that it's fruitful in terms of bringing in anyone else who's linked to it,
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because clearly this is a very obvious and prevalent threat that we face here as Americans.
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I want to ask you about the Raul Castro indictment and where that stands.
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We know that John Ratcliffe,
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the head of the CIA,
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was in Cuba on the ground with some of of Castro's folks,
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let's say, the other day.
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Where is this going, Attorney General?
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Well, there's absolutely no public information around any indictment that's been leaked or discussed on various news outlets.
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And I assure you and I assure the American people that
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if and when there's a time to talk about that, we will.
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Obviously, what we are doing in Florida,
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what we're doing here with respect to Cuba is something that's been happening for a long time,
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and we're not slowing down.
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And you've heard our Secretary of State and President Trump talk about what we're doing in Cuba.
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But as far as any rumors around that indictment,
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I can't comment on that.
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All right.
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Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche,
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thank you very much, sir.
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Great to have you with us today.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.

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Why practice speaking with this video?

The video featuring Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche addresses a critical event concerning national security, making it an engaging and relevant resource for English learners. Watching and practicing speaking with this video allows you to not only improve your language skills but also to gain insight into important global issues. By practicing with content that discusses current events, you develop your vocabulary in context and enhance your ability to articulate thoughts on serious topics.

Furthermore, discussing subjects such as terrorism and law enforcement stimulates deeper conversations, allowing you to practice both formal and informal English. Using "shadowspeaks" and "shadow speak" techniques to repeat phrases will help solidify your understanding and increase your fluency. As you learn English with YouTube, you also work on your listening skills through the nuanced tones and expressions used by the speaker.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

In this video, Todd Blanche uses several key grammatical structures and expressions that are valuable for learners:

  • Past tense verbs: The speaker uses phrases like "was able to intercept" and "was brought here," showcasing the importance of understanding past tense for recounting events. This is essential for learners to effectively narrate experiences.
  • Conditional phrases: The phrase "if you look at what the complaint alleges" is a great example of how conditional statements are used to hypothesize about situations. Grasping this structure allows students to express conditions and possibilities in English.
  • Expressing urgency: The phrase "imminent attack" illustrates how to describe immediate threats. Using terms that indicate urgency can add intensity to your speaking, making your arguments more persuasive.
  • Transition phrases: Words such as "on the other hand" help articulate contrasting ideas clearly. Learning to use transitions will make your speech more cohesive and fluent.

Common Pronunciation Traps

As you practice with this video, pay close attention to some specific pronunciation challenges:

  • Imminent: This word is often mispronounced. The correct pronunciation is “IM-min-ent,” with the emphasis on the first syllable.
  • Credibility: This can be tricky; ensure you pronounce it as “cred-ih-BIL-ih-tee,” clearly articulating all syllables.
  • Wreak havoc: It's common to mispronounce “wreak” as "reek." Remember, it should rhyme with “sneak,” rather than “peek.”

By focusing on these pronunciation aspects while shadowing the speech, you can enhance your spoken English skills significantly. Incorporate this knowledge into your daily practice to refine your articulation and overall language comprehension as you engage with pressing issues like those presented in this video.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

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