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Yes, I am.
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Here I am. Yeah.
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So exciting to be part of a new show for
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a new day.
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Mark.
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Yeah, I'm a little... I'm overwhelmed by buttons right now
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because they're not in the normal spots. You know, I
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broke my ankle, so I'm now having to sit during
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the show. And so my position... in relation to all
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the buttons I normally press, is different. That's a little
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kind of explaining why I'm, you know, it is what
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it is here.
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Mark, are you here?
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Yes, he's here. Hello, Mark. I am excited about Jared
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Yates Sexton, who joins us today. Yeah, great writer, great
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political analyst, and John Rothman, the learned one.
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Yeah.
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The professor joins us in a few moments as well.
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The Middle East is back into a hot war situation.
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We'll update that. The Democratic Party is in its own
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little hot war with the left. And it looks as
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though I get it that the results in Massachusetts. Put
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an 80-year-old in the winner's circle in that primary. But
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it's less about age and more about progressivism. So we
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will talk about that. I also am going to take
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you to the Milo Yiannopoulos change in.
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Well, total change in position on Donald Trump. Yiannopoulos is
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hardly someone who I would... Well, I'd never positioned him
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as someone who should be revered in any way or
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even respected in any way for his positions that are,
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I think, pretty loathsome on many levels. He was the
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controversial college campus lecturer who was protested by many, and
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he became this kind of lightning rod. You know, he's
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sort of a— what would you call him— I don't know
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what an analog to Milo Yiannopoulos would be, but maybe
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you in the chat can tell me. But one of
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those controversial figures who, again, was loathed by many, but
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really out in front, really a big Trumpy, really worked
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to organize for Trump to get the word out for Trump. Well,
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now he has buyer's remorse, like so many others.
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Well, he got deported.
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That happened. Didn't help with his attitude. He thought they
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were talking about everyone but him.
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Nope.
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You too, pal. Sayonara. Some stuff from Mike Johnson today.
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Some clap back from El Sayed and Scott Besant, the
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president's Secretary Treasury, who really rolls over and plays dead
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for Donald Trump on any number of issues, is explaining
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the inflation problem in America without really acknowledging the elephant
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in the room, which is the Iran war. So I
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will get to that as well. The Texas Senate race,
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legit in play. And I will touch on that as
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well with... John Rothman. You know, the Democrats and Republicans
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in Texas face an issue with voting that's associated with
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voter suppression. They've done a lot of things associated with
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removing many of the polling places in Democratic districts, and
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they've also found other inventive ways to suppress the vote.
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And as a result, They're hoping that between the voter
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suppression and a big play to the base that they
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can get to the finish line and drag a corrupt
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Ken Paxton, maybe one of the most corrupt GOP candidates ever.
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And that says a lot. I mean, because Rick Scott,
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who was another GOP Senate candidate, was part of the
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biggest Medicare fraud in history. So when I mean, this guy, Paxton,
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I think, can go toe to toe with him. But anyway,
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they're trying to drag him across the finish line and
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they're making a call out to Trump to do it.
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So all of that stuff still to come. And we'll
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get to a bunch of it with John Rothman. We'll
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get to it with Jared Yates Sexton. Tony is with
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us today. And Tony is mourning the loss of someone
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who was quite notable. Tony, please share.
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Well, you know, last week we had Dolly, Tim, Prairie died,
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but also Peter Cullen died. So that one sucks.
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Peter Cullen, the voice of?
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Optimus Prime in the Transformers, but also the voice of Eeyore.
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Oh, wow. That's right. I didn't know he was the
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voice of Eeyore. That's incredible.
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Like two of my favorite cartoon characters growing up.
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As a kid.
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It's like, boys with the same guy. You know? I
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wish we had a piece of his. Oh, there he is.
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Yeah.
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He was a wonderful guy, apparently. A wonderful guy.
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Nothing but nice things always hurt about him.
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And actors were... He was one of those actors who
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never lost the humble and sort of the gratefulness that
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was associated with his success. Actors, you can be super talented.
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If you don't get your break, you just... go away
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in obscurity. I mean, sadly, you have this craft. And
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if you don't have the opportunity to show it, you
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can never really achieve success. And he was one of
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those actors who seemed to understand that would always speak
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about the fact that he felt so fortunate that he
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got the opportunity.
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Well, he says the voice like, you know, he gets
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this role and he's like, I'm voicing a toy truck.
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What do I do? You know, it's a truck that talks.
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I don't know.
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But he's also a military guy. And then his brother
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is the one who, like, I guess gave him the
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inspiration of, like, if you're going to– oh, man, now
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I forget the quote. But be gentle enough to be
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strong or strong enough to be gentle, essentially. That's what
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he used to influence his Optimus Prime character.
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Just such a wonderful person. And so Tony's under his name.
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You see, what does it say under your name? Till
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All Are One.
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That was a quote he had in the cartoons and stuff.
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So just whatever, you know. Very, very cool.
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All right.
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Nice job, man. Rest in peace. And we move on.
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All right.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I will tell you that Iran is back on the
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hot war. Thank you, Laura. Laura, not a cat, smashed
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the like button already. If you are just joining us,
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we're a live show. 2.30 Eastern Time. Shout out to
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the East Coast. And on the West Coast, it's 11.30.
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And these are times I wouldn't set my watch by them.
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They are rough approximations of the time we actually start
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the show. It's odd that days after Scott Besant was
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making it clear that it was Economic D-Day in Iran,
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that the nature of the sanctions, the nature of the blockade,
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the nature of the withering hold that America has on
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Iran's economy, the nature of that was going to become
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even more intense, even more robust. And for that reason,
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we could step back from the hot war and lean
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into the economic sanction war, as I say. Well, again,
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Days later, we're back at it. We're taking out strategic positions, supposedly,
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if you believe the Department of Defense, missile positions that
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are associated with sending these explosives into the Strait of
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Hormuz such that when you mine the Strait, it becomes
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not navigable in any way. And so that began what
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was then a retaliation from Iran. on American military bases
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in other Middle Eastern countries. And this is a big deal.
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We'll talk to John Rothman about this. He knows a
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bit about this world of the Middle East particularly. And
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this is where American military personnel are exposed to the
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retaliation of the part of the Iranians, even though they're
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not in the area that's the head of the spear.
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So in other words, if you're in Jordan somewhere, You're
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at an American military base, and all of a sudden
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there are incoming missiles from Iran. It's because of the
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strikes within the Strait that the Americans are perpetrating on
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the Iranians. So the Iranians realize now that these retaliations
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on American military bases can be quite effective. So we're
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back into this tit-for-tat that followed this declaration of economic D-Day.
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Here's what's happening in Iran right now.
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Are flaring right now. U.S. allies in the Gulf are
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facing strikes from Iran. Tehran says it's retaliation for these
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attacks you see now from the U.S. Central Command says
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American forces hit several targets connected to the regime. State
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Department says the U.S. has been clear it's applying maximum
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pressure on Iran.
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We are going to set the remaining lifelines, the remaining
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economic lifelines the Iranian regime has.
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We're going to sever the regime from them.
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And so we're seeing a continuation of this maximum pressure
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policy taken to.
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The next level.
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Senior National Security Correspondent Charlie Daggett joins us from London. Charlie,
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the administration says it's taking the conflict to another level.
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What are we seeing at this hour?
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Good morning, Errol.
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What we're seeing is this on-again, off-again war is back on.
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President Trump called the latest round of airstrikes large and powerful,
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warning there's more to come, while Iran's supreme leader vowed
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to retaliate with unforgettable lessons in his first statement since
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this renewed round of fighting began.
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The U.S.
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Military says forces went after multiple targets in Iran for
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the second time this week, striking air defense sites, radar systems,
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mine laying capabilities and communication sites near the Strait of Hormuz.
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President Trump warned the U.S. would hit even harder if
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Iran retaliates. But just hours later, Iran did just that,
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claiming to target U.S. assets in Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain
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and the UAE. The return to fighting comes as the U.S.
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is also trying to wage economic warfare on Iran with sanctions.
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President Trump said.
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The reason the MOU did not work, they were not
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ready for a deal. My job is to make sure
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that they want to have a deal.
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Part of that deal relies on rallying America's allies to
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economically isolate Iran. Yet Tehran is still finding.
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Support from powerful partners.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Iranian president Tuesday
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and told him, quote, Russia is standing in full solidarity
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with the people of Iran. While right in the middle
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of this major conflict, there's also growing uncertainty in the
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highest ranks of the military after Army Secretary Dan Driscoll
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abruptly resigned. He's one of more than 20 military or
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civilian leaders who have been fired, forced out or resigned
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since Pete Hegseth became secretary in January last year. And
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that's drawing criticism even from some Republicans.
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The secretary has gone overboard on the firings.
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Current and former U.S. official told CBS News that Secretary
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Hegseth also removed at least 10 Army officers from promotion list,
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either one-star or two-star generals in the past few weeks.
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And those sources said half of those removed are either
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females or minorities.
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Yeah, so there you have a summary of the situation
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both in Iran and at the Pentagon. We've spoken a
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bit yesterday with Debbie Kay Johnston. about what's happening at
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the Pentagon. You have a guy who is running amok
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in Pete Hegseth. He's in way over his head. And
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now he's really just surrounding himself with loyalists. And they're
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harder to find. So the top people in the military
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are pushing back on Hegseth and pushing back on the
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strategy of a prolonged presence militarily in the Strait or
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even in this Iran situation. They're saying, hey, we just
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don't have the hardware, the manpower. It will stress our
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military out. beyond acceptable limits for us to do this
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and continue to be there. So this is what's happening
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in a microcosm. And of course, the economic effects are
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talked about by someone you saw in that piece, Scott Besson,
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who instead of really talking about the Iran situation, I mean,
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he mentions it, but listen to how Scott Besson blames
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the inflation in America on Ukraine first. And the fact
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that they are bombing Russian oil depots before he even
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gets to Iran. It's cut nine.
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And we are going through an energy shock right now
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due to both the war in Ukraine. Because Ukraine has
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decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets
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and refine products. So that is creating upward price pressure
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on a global basis. And then the conflict in Iran
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and the conflict in Iran will end and prices will
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come down overall.
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Oh, and the and the crisis. Yeah. The conflict in Iran.
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Sure.
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By the way, as noted in that piece, this is
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the last thing on this, and then I'll move on.
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I'll bring it up with John Roth, and we'll talk
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about it more. But as noted in that piece, the
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Russian leader, that's right, Vladimir Putin himself, met with the
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president of Iran and said, we are with you. The
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Russians are providing intelligence. The Russians are providing material support.
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to the Iranians. This, as Trump, Donald Trump, our president,
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has asked and did ask, and it was indeed followed
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through upon, the Russian presence be part of the G20 summit.
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So you had a, again, Russia's not part of the G20.
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They invited, Trump did, this Russian official to be part
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of the G20 in this bizarre and otherwise inexplicable invitation
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that Trump extended to Russia. Again, the warming of relations
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between America and Russia seems to be completely one-dimensional. It's
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all Trump to Putin. So it's an astounding thing. I will...
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get to, uh, some comments from Timothy Snyder. And even
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he relates some of this that's going on to, um,
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a general, uh, general flow in this country toward the
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clear authoritarian grip. That may be hard to get out
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from under, but, uh, we'll do that in a moment. Um, uh,
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first I.
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Wanted to, uh, the Mark Thompson show.
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I wanted to, uh, I wanted to touch on something
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that is actually splashing back onto JD Vance. We had
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a mention of JD Vance yesterday because he's become very chirpy,
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you know, very chatty. He's showing up on podcasts. He's
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showing up in interviews everywhere. He was kind of the
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president's explainer for a while. That's sort of what he
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was doing. But now you can see he's getting out
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in a way that maybe suggests, hey, I want to
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get my name out there. I want to kind of
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get into the zeitgeist for my political aspirations, which include
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being president of the United States. But now, in addition
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to everything else he's talking about, he's also got a book,
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I think. He is talking about the end times, and
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he makes a brief reference, but it's clearly kind of
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the way that this religiosity informs so much of the
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way he thinks, and I'd suggest Mike Johnson and many
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of these other GOP leaders think. It's cut six.
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What I'm trying to focus on is doing as much
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of God's work as possible right now, and if that
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leads to the end times, okay.
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I mean, I think, you know, you don't want to
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check off on the end times if you're a politician,
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and apparently others agree. I mean, his statement about the
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end times was not greeted with great warmth by others
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in the political sphere. I mean, it's scary when the
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number two guy in the country is saying, you know,
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we got to do what we got to do. And
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if it leads to the end of things, well, then
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that's the way it goes. I mean, it's truly alarming.
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He also went on to say in that same interview
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that as a Catholic, he was commanded to try to
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make the word of God the word and to make
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the world what God wants the world to be. What
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I'm trying to focus on is as much of God's
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work as possible right now. You heard him say it.
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I just think you've got to kind of try to
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have an attitude of the end times may be coming.
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In fact, they are coming. It's just a question of
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whether they're coming thousands of years down the road or
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a few months down the road. And we've got a
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lot of work to do right now. I mean, this
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is Outrageous. Absolutely outrageous chatter. It's incredible that this guy,
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who is a total fraud, I mean, he has sold
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his principles, whatever meager principles he had, calling Trump a racist,
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calling Trump a xenophobic moron. I mean, find the J.D.
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Vance clips. We've run a supercut of it not too
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long ago. where J.D. Vance is saying all this stuff
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about Trump, it was when Trump was just a candidate, obviously.
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I mean, I'm talking about the 2016 election. And he
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so pivoted, so completely changed course, that now he's stumping
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for Trump, and then he's passing that slop off as
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some kind of higher ideal to which he is trying
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to answer. It's God's plan that we might only be
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around for a few months, or maybe it'll be thousands
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of years. But if it's a few months, I'm okay
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with that because I've got my Catholicism, and I've got
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my belief, and I know there's a better place. It's obscene. really.
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It's obscene that a leader of a country with a true,
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I'd say historic, secular course, the separation of church and state,
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where you didn't have government officials invoking the name of
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Jesus Christ, invoking the notion of Christ and end times.
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I mean, it's grotesque that that has changed. And that
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now there's this, in the case of Trump, it's a
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one-dimensional kind of tip of the hat to Christianity. He
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doesn't care about Christianity. You know that. But then you
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have others who are true believers in his cabinet and
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at the vice presidency. He's getting some blowback on this comment,
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but it's revealing for how he feels. So that's a
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bit of where J.D. Vance is today as he pitches
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his book.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I'll get to John Rothman in a second. One of
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the guys who is sorry that he ever backed Donald
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Trump is Milo Yiannopoulos. He says that he's ashamed of
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his support of Trump. He's a far-right guy. Again, he
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was visiting college campuses and this super controversial figure. He
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had to get security as he toured these campuses. Well,
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he was arrested by ICE. And in Louisiana, he was
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taken into custody and then deported to the United Kingdom. Well,
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now that he is in the United Kingdom, he has
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gotten chirpy about how he feels about Trump. And he
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has buyer's remorse. And he shared some of that with
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Piers Morgan, the British broadcaster who has a show there.
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and talks a bit about the fact that he didn't
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realize that Trump was actually going to follow through on
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the sort of institutionalized brutalization associated with his immigration policies
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and beyond. Here is Milo on Pierre's show.
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The promise and hope and joy and anticipation of Trump 2016,
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could sort of, you know, over the course of 10 years,
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collapse into this ugly, warmongering, you know, taken as a
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whole mentally ill heap of crazy, with some of the most,
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you know, unstable and, you know, lunatic people seemingly directing
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the president's actions. If I had any clue that anything
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remotely unusual like this, you know, was even possible, I
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would never have got involved in supporting Trump in the
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first place.
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And I'm very ashamed that I did.
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If I had any clue, what kind of clue did
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you need? It seems clear. Donald Trump was someone who,
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through his life, through the decades, is defined by promises
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broken by the great American BS machine. There's never been
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anything like what I'm going to do. I'm going to
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end the Russian Ukraine war on day one. I may
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not even need to get into power right after the election.
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I can stop this war with a phone call. I'm
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going to cure the American debt. No more forever wars.
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I mean, This is a guy who wrapped himself in
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the flag, wrapped himself in the military, fetishized the military,
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wanted a military parade. This is all in season one
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of Donald Trump, the first four years. Somehow Milo just
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didn't get the memo. You didn't see the people who
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he was surrounding himself with. This is a guy who
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wanted the Justice Department to state openly that there was
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a problem with the election so that he could stay
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in power in 2020. He said, just say there are
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irregularities and there are questions about the election and I'll
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do the rest. You don't actually have to do an investigation.
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He said that to his attorney general. I get that
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some of you have buyer's remorse, some of you former
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MAGA folk, but man, I do not know how you
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were taken in. And I must say, and then I
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will get to John, The idea that somehow Trump was
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a pacifist, you know, as he ramped up to the
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2020 election is even more indefensible when you actually look
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at his first four years, as I say, with the
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military parade, with taking out Soleimani as he did. He
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took out, I mean, this is, again, unprovoked in sort
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of the grand scheme of things, except for the fact
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that Iran is a terrorist state, etc. He took out
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their top military official. And, again, it was a power flex.
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It was a military flex. To me, what's happening with
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Trump in the military was completely predictable. And I don't
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think I was showing any great insight in that prediction. So, Milo,
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what can one say? It's a disappointment.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I am. Why was a guy this stupid and ignorant
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lecturing at colleges? Yeah, I mean, you know, a lot
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of this is charisma. Yeah, a lot of it. You know,
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look at the way that someone who transforms themselves. What's
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his name? Kim, who is so hot. The former Fox
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News guy, Tucker Carlson. I mean, he's transformed himself. You know,
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that's all. It's all presentation, you know. And if, again,
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and this is really effective and you'll see it in
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this election, if the candidate or the speaker hates the
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same things that you hate, maybe it's DEI, maybe it's
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the way that liberalism has taken hold of our cities
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and there's homelessness and there's squalor everywhere. You can't bust
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anybody for anything. Everything seems illegal. There are junkies that
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are shooting up in public. This is really happening. And
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if you get a guy in there who is as
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outraged about that as you are, then you think, yeah,
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that's my guy. So basically just by listing the things
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that are outrageous in life, you can make your way
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in without any real solutions. I mean, Trump had no
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real solutions. He had no policy solutions for any of
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the stuff he laid out. All right, I'm making John wait.
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I'm sorry about that. So Rothman is standing by. This
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is an immensely learned man. And I bring him on
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the show. And he's my former colleague at KGO Radio.
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And because he's learned it, he can skip from topic
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to topic and duds. It's oftentimes difficult to keep him
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on topic. And then when I push him forcibly, rhetorically,
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with a shove... Back to his topic, I get emails saying,
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how can you have him on and shove him around
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or yell at him the way you yell? Well, first
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of all, he's like family. He's the only guest who's
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like family who I really feel I can yell at.
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And that's another great reason to have him on, in
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addition to, as I suggested, his knowledge base. But today,
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when John drifts off topic, and he's shared with me
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the topics that he wants, when he drifts, Tony has
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been deputized to hit a buzzer. And that buzzer will
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be a signal to John to return to the topic, John. Now,
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we'll be, Tony, try to be, you know, don't be
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too tough. Let him go a little bit. But if
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he can't get a digression back to the main thing,
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it is, yes, thank you. All right, without any further delay,
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he has a podcast called Around the Political World with
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John Rothman. He is the brilliant historian and political analyst
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John Rothman.
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I want Tony to know I do not blame him
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for the buzzer.
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I know who to blame, Mark.
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Well, if you don't respect the buzzer, we're going to
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look into an electric shock. OK, so let's try.
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To let ice involved in this at all. All right.
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Now, I want to start in Iran. You've written a book.
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Did you get that the glove? I wanted to digress
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the minute you said shock.
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Yeah, the shot gloves that the ICE agents... Hey, Tony, hit.
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The buzzer, will you? I just went off topic.
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All right, all right. The buzzer's obnoxious, Tony. Don't take
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orders from Rothman. All right. Rothman sounds a little broken up.
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Is his audio okay, Tony, or not? Speak for me, John.
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Yeah, my audio should be fine. At least I'm here.
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Oh, there it is. It does sound good. Okay, sorry.
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Tell me about... what's happening. Give me your take on
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the Iran situation now, John. You know, we had first
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the D-Day, the economic D-Day with the sanctions and with
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the stronghold that the Americans had on the Iranian economy.
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And it was a legit stronghold, but it was suggested,
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I mean, you know, the inflation there is like 700%.
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But the suggestion is that they can wait that out.
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And now.
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the idea that was proffered by Besant was, hey, this
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is going to be instead of any kind of hot war,
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we're just going to wait out this economic war. Now
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we're back into a hot war. We've been tit for
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tat now for about four days. Speak to what's happening
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in Iran, please. An unmitigated disaster.
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The president of the United States said the war was over.
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We had won overwhelmingly. Iran was incapable of responding. Just
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talk to our friends in Jordan. Talk to our friends
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in Kuwait. And by the way, Take a look at
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the price of oil. Have you taken a look at
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the Strait of Hormuz lately? It's closed, no matter how
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often Donald Trump or Pete Hegseth suggest it's open. So
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what you're dealing with, and that's why I appreciated your
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monologue a few moments ago, because you're spot on. This
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is the most incompetent administration in American history, not to
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mention the most corrupt. So when you talk about Iran,
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there is no end in sight. Donald Trump said he
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wanted unconditional surrender. The Mullahs are never going to surrender.
477
00:30:59.309 --> 00:31:02.880
And anybody who understood the psychology of the Iranian revolution
478
00:31:02.900 --> 00:31:07.599
would understand that completely. The complete ignorance of the Trump administration.
479
00:31:07.819 --> 00:31:10.079
And if some of you are saying, but John, you're
480
00:31:10.119 --> 00:31:15.279
being so harsh. No, I'm being absolutely spot on accurate.
481
00:31:15.740 --> 00:31:19.329
And I say this with deep regret. One other quick
482
00:31:19.430 --> 00:31:23.349
note on topic, just so you're aware. And that has
483
00:31:23.369 --> 00:31:27.230
to do with Congress. They're completely pass it. In 1966,
484
00:31:27.230 --> 00:31:30.950
Bill Fulbright held a hearing on Vietnam that shook the nation.
485
00:31:31.380 --> 00:31:34.259
Have you seen the Republicans who control Congress, who are
486
00:31:34.299 --> 00:31:36.059
now on recess, by the way?
487
00:31:37.039 --> 00:31:39.799
It's an extraordinary thing. They came in for a super
488
00:31:39.859 --> 00:31:42.180
short time, and then they went back out on recess,
489
00:31:42.200 --> 00:31:45.380
as John says. In fact, to John's point, play cut seven.
490
00:31:45.400 --> 00:31:48.839
This is Mike Johnson being confronted in the hallway about
491
00:31:48.900 --> 00:31:51.509
the fact that the Iran war continues to go on
492
00:31:51.549 --> 00:31:53.809
and on, and Congress doesn't seem to be doing anything
493
00:31:53.849 --> 00:31:57.269
about it. People are getting hurt still at the pump.
494
00:31:57.769 --> 00:32:00.849
Should the American people not also judge you on your
495
00:32:00.890 --> 00:32:03.210
projections here that were clearly off base?
496
00:32:03.529 --> 00:32:05.930
Manu, that is one of the stupidest questions you've ever asked.
497
00:32:05.970 --> 00:32:06.650
Why is that stupid?
498
00:32:06.730 --> 00:32:08.569
I have nothing to do with the prosecution of the
499
00:32:08.609 --> 00:32:09.750
war across the globe.
500
00:32:10.650 --> 00:32:12.470
You are responsible.
501
00:32:12.569 --> 00:32:15.109
You are selling this to the American public, are you not?
502
00:32:15.150 --> 00:32:16.509
So should the House.
503
00:32:16.230 --> 00:32:19.289
Speaker be held responsible for the duration of a military
504
00:32:19.349 --> 00:32:20.230
conflict around the globe?
505
00:32:20.730 --> 00:32:21.650
You answer that question.
506
00:32:22.539 --> 00:32:27.839
Well, I mean... Sadly, yes, is the answer to that question. Absolutely, yes.
507
00:32:28.140 --> 00:32:31.599
Absolutely. Because there are no House hearings. There is no
508
00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:36.940
chairman or chair of the Foreign Relations Committee who stands
509
00:32:37.009 --> 00:32:39.349
up and says we have to hold hearings. And there
510
00:32:39.410 --> 00:32:42.269
is no accountability. So when you ask me about the
511
00:32:42.309 --> 00:32:45.670
Iran war, it is a failure on a variety of levels.
512
00:32:46.369 --> 00:32:50.089
One is the administration has no defined policy. Two, Congress
513
00:32:50.170 --> 00:32:52.640
is not asserting itself. And let me, I know you're
514
00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:54.799
going to raise, and forgive me if I jump ahead,
515
00:32:55.240 --> 00:32:57.180
the purge of the American army.
516
00:32:57.200 --> 00:32:58.859
Yeah, I was just about to get to that. So
517
00:32:58.900 --> 00:33:03.039
you're saying that there's a connection to the incompetence of
518
00:33:03.059 --> 00:33:06.400
the war also reflects directly the incompetence of the Pentagon.
519
00:33:07.119 --> 00:33:09.740
Well, what has happened is that Pete Hegseth, who is
520
00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:13.779
the Secretary of Defense, is an incompetent. Look at the
521
00:33:13.839 --> 00:33:19.539
number of people, people who are, people trained in the military, generals, admirals,
522
00:33:19.880 --> 00:33:21.930
people who are coming up. Take a look at this.
523
00:33:22.109 --> 00:33:23.910
Take a look at the graphic you have up right now.
524
00:33:24.390 --> 00:33:31.349
High profile Pentagon military departures. It's overwhelming. We don't have
525
00:33:31.390 --> 00:33:35.079
a secretary of the army. We don't have a system
526
00:33:35.119 --> 00:33:39.220
in place. And what he has Seth and Trump have
527
00:33:39.240 --> 00:33:42.980
done is to gut the American military. It is a crime.
528
00:33:43.299 --> 00:33:46.019
And I use the term purge because that's what it is.
529
00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:50.210
Unless you agree with Donald Trump, And Pete Hegseth, ideologically,
530
00:33:50.490 --> 00:33:54.220
you're out. And please note, minorities and women are the
531
00:33:54.339 --> 00:33:59.160
overwhelming majority combined of people who are departing. So what
532
00:33:59.200 --> 00:34:01.980
do you do? I mean, I have a long history
533
00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:04.119
of dealing with people in the military. I gave the
534
00:34:04.140 --> 00:34:07.460
baccalaureate address at the United States Air Force Academy many
535
00:34:07.500 --> 00:34:10.219
years ago. I've dealt with people in the military. This
536
00:34:10.260 --> 00:34:12.309
is the most shocking, the most disturbing part of it.
537
00:34:12.599 --> 00:34:15.519
And the worst thing is the fact that the Congress
538
00:34:15.659 --> 00:34:19.429
is completely passive. There is no investigation. There is no discussion.
539
00:34:19.829 --> 00:34:23.150
There is nothing. And I would commend to all of you,
540
00:34:23.510 --> 00:34:26.239
if I were Speaker of the House of Representatives, or
541
00:34:26.280 --> 00:34:29.199
if I were President of the Senate, I would want
542
00:34:29.480 --> 00:34:33.920
Dan Driscoll, who just left as Secretary of the Army, resigning,
543
00:34:34.119 --> 00:34:36.860
by the way, I would call him and say, what
544
00:34:36.909 --> 00:34:39.909
the heck is going on here? Why did you do it? Instead,
545
00:34:39.949 --> 00:34:42.690
we get all of these obfuscations. That's a big word.
546
00:34:42.730 --> 00:34:44.349
It's a ding word. I just want to point that out.
547
00:34:44.750 --> 00:34:49.039
All these All these obfuscations, thank you, all these obfuscations
548
00:34:49.360 --> 00:34:53.070
from the Trump administration. And may I, just because I
549
00:34:53.110 --> 00:34:56.429
want to do this, your point about the Vice President
550
00:34:56.449 --> 00:35:00.210
of the United States is spot on. Can you imagine
551
00:35:00.769 --> 00:35:05.630
that this man, J.D. Vance, is a heartbeat away from
552
00:35:05.670 --> 00:35:10.710
the presidency, given his view of Armageddon, the end of times?
553
00:35:11.050 --> 00:35:13.269
And I'm so glad you point that out, Mark. One
554
00:35:13.289 --> 00:35:15.550
of the things that makes your program so important and
555
00:35:15.590 --> 00:35:18.190
why people should support the Mark Thompson program is because
556
00:35:18.429 --> 00:35:20.550
where else are they going to hear this? And so
557
00:35:20.750 --> 00:35:21.570
three cheers for you.
558
00:35:21.989 --> 00:35:24.929
Thank you, sir. And just to tie the two together,
559
00:35:24.949 --> 00:35:27.389
the Pentagon is also a place where you find that
560
00:35:27.489 --> 00:35:31.860
same kind of rhetoric. You find Pete Hegseth invoking the
561
00:35:31.980 --> 00:35:37.199
name of Jesus Christ as he is speaking to his
562
00:35:37.320 --> 00:35:42.480
group briefing on the military. I'm not talking about his prayer.
563
00:35:42.940 --> 00:35:46.039
He has a weekly prayer group. I'm not talking about that.
564
00:35:46.340 --> 00:35:50.920
I'm talking about the daily Pentagon briefings at which Pete
565
00:35:50.940 --> 00:35:55.030
Hegseth briefs the media, the media that's all been cleared.
566
00:35:55.340 --> 00:35:58.150
He's dry-cleaned the media of any kind of resistance. So
567
00:35:58.429 --> 00:36:01.829
you have to agree to have all of your copy
568
00:36:02.110 --> 00:36:04.989
and everything you say cleared by the Pentagon in order
569
00:36:05.010 --> 00:36:08.579
to even report, even to get clearance from at the Pentagon.
570
00:36:08.619 --> 00:36:12.699
So those reporters to whom he's speaking, they are getting
571
00:36:12.840 --> 00:36:16.940
a daily report. And in the daily report, he speaks
572
00:36:17.079 --> 00:36:23.719
about the warriors, again, working and being blessed by Jesus Christ.
573
00:36:23.739 --> 00:36:26.659
He said a prayer. Now, I don't know that he
574
00:36:26.699 --> 00:36:30.199
does it all the time, but again, it informs what's
575
00:36:30.300 --> 00:36:32.579
happening at the Pentagon. So in a way, the two
576
00:36:32.639 --> 00:36:35.449
are linked. I'm talking about the vice president, this extreme
577
00:36:35.849 --> 00:36:39.070
religiosity that is informing people like Mike Johnson as well
578
00:36:39.510 --> 00:36:43.750
and J.D. Vance and Pete Hegseth. I want to move
579
00:36:43.929 --> 00:36:46.690
on to– before I leave the purge though, you know, John,
580
00:36:46.710 --> 00:36:51.309
something that struck me was the generals, as you say,
581
00:36:51.449 --> 00:36:54.179
so many of them– I'm talking about generals and top
582
00:36:54.239 --> 00:36:58.260
military officials across the board in all the different arms
583
00:36:58.320 --> 00:37:02.940
of service– branches of service, I should say, they pushed
584
00:37:03.059 --> 00:37:10.050
back in the twice-monthly report on military assets and military
585
00:37:10.139 --> 00:37:13.929
presence of the U.S. around the globe. They pressed back
586
00:37:14.570 --> 00:37:18.849
on the extended presence of the American military in Iran,
587
00:37:18.889 --> 00:37:22.909
and they noted that they thought it was unsustainable. And
588
00:37:23.210 --> 00:37:26.889
to me, it wasn't just that it's incompetence at the top.
589
00:37:27.300 --> 00:37:30.199
It was that many of those generals, as I say,
590
00:37:30.239 --> 00:37:34.119
and top military officials are not happy with Hegseth to
591
00:37:34.159 --> 00:37:37.300
the point that they are leaking the fact that they're
592
00:37:37.320 --> 00:37:40.960
pushing back. It's not unprecedented that many of these top
593
00:37:41.159 --> 00:37:46.730
officials would take issue with various determinations as to where
594
00:37:47.190 --> 00:37:49.869
assets should be. But for the word to get out
595
00:37:50.650 --> 00:37:53.090
in such a big way, it means that they want
596
00:37:53.130 --> 00:37:55.210
the word out that this guy doesn't know what he's doing.
597
00:37:55.670 --> 00:37:58.769
Well, look, it's very simple. If all of these people
598
00:37:58.789 --> 00:38:01.469
who've been fired would get together and be able to
599
00:38:01.510 --> 00:38:04.070
hold a press conference. But you know what Trump and
600
00:38:04.139 --> 00:38:07.820
Hegseth are threatening? If they speak out, they'll be summoned
601
00:38:07.860 --> 00:38:11.059
back and court-martialed. Oh, yeah.
602
00:38:11.179 --> 00:38:13.059
Look what they're doing to Mark Kelly.
603
00:38:13.559 --> 00:38:14.179
Yeah.
604
00:38:14.199 --> 00:38:16.320
He didn't do anything. He didn't speak out against the administration.
605
00:38:16.360 --> 00:38:20.400
He just said, don't honor an order if it is unconstitutional.
606
00:38:20.599 --> 00:38:21.929
And they're going after him.
607
00:38:22.360 --> 00:38:24.989
But do you understand, in a normal time, and this
608
00:38:25.050 --> 00:38:29.239
is not a normal time, No one would tolerate this
609
00:38:29.300 --> 00:38:32.019
kind of action. And I think that is the thing
610
00:38:32.039 --> 00:38:34.019
that disturbs me the most. You and I have gone
611
00:38:34.059 --> 00:38:38.449
around and around on my belief in the system. Maybe,
612
00:38:38.780 --> 00:38:42.929
just maybe you're right, because the system is failing and
613
00:38:43.050 --> 00:38:46.190
we are the victims. And may I say, the people
614
00:38:46.250 --> 00:38:49.190
of Iran are the victims. You know, this president promised
615
00:38:49.230 --> 00:38:52.710
the liberation of Iran, and we've come nowhere near that.
616
00:38:53.309 --> 00:38:59.030
And if you're watching our allies, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, all
617
00:38:59.110 --> 00:39:04.590
under attack. How can one say that Iran no longer
618
00:39:04.630 --> 00:39:06.150
has military capability?
619
00:39:06.789 --> 00:39:07.670
It's absurd.
620
00:39:07.730 --> 00:39:10.639
It flies in the face of reason and fact. But
621
00:39:10.699 --> 00:39:12.679
then so does the Trump administration.
622
00:39:15.059 --> 00:39:20.179
Now to SCOTUS and the green light that apparently SCOTUS
623
00:39:20.199 --> 00:39:24.429
has given Donald Trump and the administration to keep building
624
00:39:24.789 --> 00:39:30.519
this apparently illegal data center, military bunker, and ballroom. And
625
00:39:30.559 --> 00:39:35.239
these are changes to the Kennedy Center and surrounding Washington.
626
00:39:35.519 --> 00:39:38.559
This is a, you'll correct me if I'm wrong, but
627
00:39:38.579 --> 00:39:43.170
I think it's normally something that requires in protocol and law,
628
00:39:43.809 --> 00:39:48.829
Congress to green light. And still- 100%. SCOTUS has greenlit it,
629
00:39:49.070 --> 00:39:51.349
and they haven't even spoken about whether it's legal or not.
630
00:39:51.650 --> 00:39:54.429
No, no, let me correct you. Forgive me for doing that.
631
00:39:54.510 --> 00:39:57.550
I hate to correct Mark Thompson. The Chief Justice of
632
00:39:57.570 --> 00:40:01.650
the United States, who voted with a 5-4 minority, he
633
00:40:02.889 --> 00:40:06.210
voted against this process, said in his dissent that this
634
00:40:06.289 --> 00:40:10.409
is illegal. This is the Chief Justice of the United States,
635
00:40:10.889 --> 00:40:12.789
with whom I have many disagreements.
636
00:40:13.429 --> 00:40:17.840
Let me just correct your correction. You're right about that.
637
00:40:18.400 --> 00:40:21.179
But I guess what I'm saying is SCOTUS in the decision, though,
638
00:40:21.880 --> 00:40:24.780
didn't say that it was illegal. And their final decision,
639
00:40:24.860 --> 00:40:27.380
obviously the dissenters said a couple of things. But yeah,
640
00:40:27.579 --> 00:40:28.449
please continue. Sorry.
641
00:40:28.510 --> 00:40:30.929
Well, it's just that it's the Chief Justice. It's the
642
00:40:30.969 --> 00:40:35.170
Chief Justice of the United States. And this is to me,
643
00:40:35.309 --> 00:40:37.590
I think this is one of four occasions when he's
644
00:40:37.670 --> 00:40:41.900
really dissented publicly with Donald Trump. But do you understand?
645
00:40:42.320 --> 00:40:44.739
And I want all of our listeners to understand, I'm
646
00:40:44.780 --> 00:40:47.739
a presidential historian. I could pull out a book and
647
00:40:47.780 --> 00:40:50.860
show you my White House guide, which is signed by
648
00:40:52.460 --> 00:40:55.880
seven former first ladies and three presidents. It is one
649
00:40:55.900 --> 00:41:00.010
of my most treasured possessions. To show that to you
650
00:41:00.110 --> 00:41:04.909
and then to say, Donald Trump has absolutely violated everything.
651
00:41:05.329 --> 00:41:08.789
You know, John Adams, when he was president, had carved
652
00:41:08.829 --> 00:41:12.579
into the area of the White House which is still there,
653
00:41:12.619 --> 00:41:15.119
that only good and honorable people should sit in this house.
654
00:41:15.880 --> 00:41:18.019
If John Adams were alive, he'd be rolling over in
655
00:41:18.059 --> 00:41:18.519
his grave.
656
00:41:18.920 --> 00:41:20.960
Well, if he were alive, he wouldn't be in his grave, John.
657
00:41:21.639 --> 00:41:25.510
All right. But he might be rolling over. Okay. Finally,
658
00:41:25.610 --> 00:41:27.550
I want to get to... Finally?
659
00:41:27.650 --> 00:41:30.269
You mean you're cutting me off again? I just had
660
00:41:30.289 --> 00:41:32.110
to throw that in.
661
00:41:32.489 --> 00:41:36.289
I want to get to this topic that you wanted
662
00:41:36.309 --> 00:41:39.619
to touch on, which is the Michigan Attorney General... and
663
00:41:39.699 --> 00:41:41.519
comments made. And then I want to, I don't want
664
00:41:41.539 --> 00:41:45.239
to broaden this after you're done to the elections and
665
00:41:45.760 --> 00:41:49.599
the primaries and what this might point to for the future.
666
00:41:49.639 --> 00:41:51.079
But go ahead, start with the Michigan AG.
667
00:41:51.400 --> 00:41:52.980
Anna Nessel is the attorney general.
668
00:41:53.840 --> 00:41:55.300
And her statement was simple.
669
00:41:55.719 --> 00:42:01.250
The needs of the world should take precedence over Jewish survival.
670
00:42:02.829 --> 00:42:04.989
And she is a Jew, by the way. I was
671
00:42:05.170 --> 00:42:08.980
so offended by this. And my thoughts immediately went to
672
00:42:09.019 --> 00:42:12.320
David Ben-Gurion's comment, the former prime minister of Israel, when
673
00:42:12.360 --> 00:42:14.269
the British imposed the white paper, we will fight the
674
00:42:14.289 --> 00:42:16.969
white papers if there were no war, and we'll fight
675
00:42:17.010 --> 00:42:19.489
the wars if there were no white paper. The simple
676
00:42:19.670 --> 00:42:23.369
reality is that Jews feel threatened. And I want everybody
677
00:42:23.409 --> 00:42:31.239
to understand, if you read the commentary on Dana, D-A-N-A, Nessel, N-E-S-S-E-L,
678
00:42:31.780 --> 00:42:35.960
the overwhelming response is one of shame and fury that
679
00:42:36.159 --> 00:42:41.280
this attorney general, would say, well, Jews are less important
680
00:42:41.500 --> 00:42:44.670
than the world. The whole point, I think, is that
681
00:42:44.710 --> 00:42:47.289
the world is dependent on each other. And when you
682
00:42:47.349 --> 00:42:50.909
allow discrimination, when you allow that kind of statement to stand,
683
00:42:51.210 --> 00:42:54.050
you do tremendous damage. So that was my comment.
684
00:42:54.250 --> 00:43:00.780
I always think, regardless of the minority group, I always
685
00:43:00.840 --> 00:43:03.980
think about how that would play if you substituted a
686
00:43:04.139 --> 00:43:08.099
different minority group. Absolutely. I always think, okay, so... The
687
00:43:08.159 --> 00:43:13.480
needs of the survival of the Muslims are not– I
688
00:43:13.519 --> 00:43:15.400
don't– you know the quote. But I mean– or the
689
00:43:15.440 --> 00:43:18.570
blacks or the– you can fill the Latinos. Fill in
690
00:43:18.610 --> 00:43:22.230
the minority group. And I think it wouldn't wash. There
691
00:43:22.269 --> 00:43:25.269
really is a rise in Jew-hating, John. And it's a
692
00:43:25.429 --> 00:43:30.309
sad fact that Israeli policy is being conflated. with a
693
00:43:30.369 --> 00:43:33.510
general disposition toward the Jewish community. And this is what
694
00:43:33.550 --> 00:43:36.190
I've talked to you about before, which is the reputational
695
00:43:36.230 --> 00:43:39.829
damage done to Israel and even to the Jewish community,
696
00:43:39.869 --> 00:43:43.210
which it's not fair that the Jewish community bear that burden,
697
00:43:43.269 --> 00:43:45.090
but they bear it whether they want it or not.
698
00:43:45.110 --> 00:43:47.789
We're about to enter the high holidays. I invite anyone
699
00:43:47.809 --> 00:43:50.389
who's listening, simply drive by a synagogue or a Jewish
700
00:43:50.409 --> 00:43:53.679
community center and see how security is doubled or crippled.
701
00:43:54.119 --> 00:43:55.980
There will be an election in Israel at the end
702
00:43:56.000 --> 00:43:58.440
of October, and you and I will be talking about that.
703
00:43:58.519 --> 00:44:01.440
I know it will be major news. And one of
704
00:44:01.480 --> 00:44:03.139
the things that the people of Israel will have to
705
00:44:03.179 --> 00:44:06.239
decide is what direction they want to go in. And
706
00:44:06.280 --> 00:44:09.570
that's why whatever flaws or failures it has, just like
707
00:44:09.590 --> 00:44:11.889
the United States, Israel.
708
00:44:11.630 --> 00:44:13.090
Remains a democracy.
709
00:44:13.590 --> 00:44:15.570
And I must say that even when I'm critical of
710
00:44:15.590 --> 00:44:18.590
Donald Trump, and we haven't touched on the elections, which
711
00:44:18.650 --> 00:44:20.230
I won't do because I don't want to hear the buzzer,
712
00:44:20.690 --> 00:44:24.130
the fact that this administration continues to raise questions about
713
00:44:24.150 --> 00:44:27.510
the legitimacy of an election, I'm giving a lecture next
714
00:44:27.570 --> 00:44:29.730
week on this very subject, And all I can tell
715
00:44:29.750 --> 00:44:32.610
you is it's shameful and ought to be repudiated by
716
00:44:32.690 --> 00:44:35.349
Democrats and Republicans alike. OK, you had a last point.
717
00:44:36.090 --> 00:44:38.090
I had a last point, and that was the elections.
718
00:44:38.150 --> 00:44:42.349
Let's look quickly at the election result in Massachusetts.
719
00:44:43.590 --> 00:44:46.550
Yeah, it was fascinating. Here you have a guy who's
720
00:44:46.550 --> 00:44:47.610
80 years old.
721
00:44:47.889 --> 00:44:48.909
That's Marky.
722
00:44:49.150 --> 00:44:53.369
Marky, 64.9 percent. And Seth Moulton, who, by the way,
723
00:44:54.050 --> 00:44:59.929
very reasonable, very well-respected person, 35.1. The age issue didn't matter.
724
00:45:00.429 --> 00:45:04.010
And I just want to be clear, they're both very
725
00:45:04.130 --> 00:45:09.210
liberal Democrats. They really have very similar stands. But what
726
00:45:10.250 --> 00:45:14.250
Senator Markey did was to say, I've proven myself and
727
00:45:14.289 --> 00:45:17.030
I deserve another term. And he got it. And I
728
00:45:17.050 --> 00:45:20.719
think you're seeing this division in the Democratic Party, which
729
00:45:21.739 --> 00:45:24.420
may have to do with youth and the transfer of power.
730
00:45:24.880 --> 00:45:29.309
But the old timers are like Senator Markey, not only survived,
731
00:45:29.329 --> 00:45:31.820
but survived with an overwhelming vote. It was a landslide.
732
00:45:32.110 --> 00:45:34.280
Well, the one note I would make on that is
733
00:45:34.340 --> 00:45:39.719
that his progressivism probably did well for him in Massachusetts.
734
00:45:39.760 --> 00:45:41.260
Wouldn't you agree? I'm talking about Markey.
735
00:45:41.880 --> 00:45:44.840
Well, sure. Remember, Massachusetts, the only state that voted for
736
00:45:44.889 --> 00:45:49.989
George McGovern in 1972. So Massachusetts has a history. And
737
00:45:50.010 --> 00:45:53.489
of course, the first African-American elected to the United States
738
00:45:53.530 --> 00:45:56.800
Senate after the Civil War was was my old friend
739
00:45:56.880 --> 00:46:01.949
Ed Brook. So there is a progressive, important element to
740
00:46:01.989 --> 00:46:04.869
what happens in Massachusetts. And I think the fact that
741
00:46:04.909 --> 00:46:09.659
Markey won is important. And I was relieved in a way,
742
00:46:10.079 --> 00:46:12.800
because the fact that you're almost 80, and I'm not
743
00:46:12.860 --> 00:46:16.360
speaking about anybody in particular on this podcast, should not
744
00:46:16.420 --> 00:46:18.780
disqualify you from having a significant voice.
745
00:46:20.219 --> 00:46:22.760
John, because you've been so well behaved, I'm going to
746
00:46:22.800 --> 00:46:24.989
extend your time. Oh, no.
747
00:46:25.110 --> 00:46:25.449
What?
748
00:46:25.710 --> 00:46:28.449
Yeah, I know.
749
00:46:28.590 --> 00:46:28.929
What?
750
00:46:29.070 --> 00:46:32.090
Okay, everybody. Just by a minute or two, I want
751
00:46:32.110 --> 00:46:35.230
to touch on, because you did mention SCOTUS, the Supreme
752
00:46:35.329 --> 00:46:42.210
Court undoing the lower court ruling that had blocked key
753
00:46:42.269 --> 00:46:46.829
components of Trump's plan with the U.S. Postal Service and
754
00:46:47.469 --> 00:46:51.989
the idea somehow that Trump can manage who gets mail
755
00:46:52.150 --> 00:46:56.699
in ballots because now you'll have to be approved essentially
756
00:46:56.800 --> 00:46:59.820
by the U S government. And you can even, you know,
757
00:47:00.820 --> 00:47:03.760
be less polite about it and say by Trump, by
758
00:47:03.800 --> 00:47:07.079
the president of the United States to receive, uh, the,
759
00:47:08.000 --> 00:47:08.980
the mail in ballot.
760
00:47:09.699 --> 00:47:12.829
Uh, it's, it's shocking and, and has to be repudiated.
761
00:47:13.110 --> 00:47:16.090
The American people have to repudiate it. Remember here in California,
762
00:47:16.730 --> 00:47:20.199
where we are based, uh, that, uh, 80% of the
763
00:47:20.239 --> 00:47:24.699
votes are cast by mail. And if you remember in 2016,
764
00:47:24.679 --> 00:47:27.699
it was Donald Trump who said, oh, 3 million illegal
765
00:47:27.719 --> 00:47:31.480
immigrants invaded California. And that's the reason he lost the state.
766
00:47:32.219 --> 00:47:36.519
This kind of nonsense, that there is election tampering or
767
00:47:36.539 --> 00:47:39.719
that elections are fixed. I can tell you there are
768
00:47:39.760 --> 00:47:41.679
things that happen in elections that we may not like.
769
00:47:42.409 --> 00:47:46.610
But what Donald Trump is claiming, rigged elections, is absolute nonsense.
770
00:47:47.530 --> 00:47:48.789
I'm going to tell you, you and I are going
771
00:47:48.809 --> 00:47:49.269
to watch this.
772
00:47:49.929 --> 00:47:50.750
If in November, a.
773
00:47:50.869 --> 00:47:56.489
Thousand Justice Department investigators are set out around the country,
774
00:47:56.590 --> 00:47:59.179
please note that the chairman of the Joint Chiefs said
775
00:47:59.510 --> 00:48:03.559
no military will be involved. Not excluded from that number
776
00:48:04.000 --> 00:48:07.460
are the thousand election monitors. And that scares the living
777
00:48:07.500 --> 00:48:10.679
beekeepers out of me. And I hope everyone listening to
778
00:48:10.699 --> 00:48:14.889
the sound of my voice, liberal, conservative, Democrat, Republican, pro-Trump, anti-Trump,
779
00:48:15.170 --> 00:48:21.070
you understand that when a national election is held when
780
00:48:21.110 --> 00:48:23.980
it's really a state by state election, because that's what
781
00:48:24.000 --> 00:48:26.199
the elections are. And you have a president of the
782
00:48:26.239 --> 00:48:30.619
United States claiming national jurisdiction. We are in deep trouble.
783
00:48:31.500 --> 00:48:35.579
And really all Trump wants is chaos, everyone. I mean, that's,
784
00:48:35.760 --> 00:48:41.739
he doesn't care that his plan to ruin the mail-in vote,
785
00:48:41.980 --> 00:48:45.480
to disrupt the mail-in vote, to question the mail-in vote.
786
00:48:45.889 --> 00:48:50.170
is completely successful. Even if it's partially successful, the chaos
787
00:48:50.469 --> 00:48:53.750
allows him to claim that there's a problem with the election,
788
00:48:53.829 --> 00:48:56.510
something that he's been doing since the very beginning of
789
00:48:56.530 --> 00:48:59.849
his candidacy. And just on John's point, I'll play you
790
00:48:59.869 --> 00:49:03.710
this and then I'll let you go. The other presence
791
00:49:03.840 --> 00:49:07.340
beyond just those monitors that you've talked about, that is
792
00:49:07.360 --> 00:49:11.880
the election monitors, is maybe associated with ICE.
793
00:49:13.420 --> 00:49:13.760
I have.
794
00:49:14.750 --> 00:49:18.300
Mark Wayne Mullen talking about the fact that ICE is
795
00:49:18.360 --> 00:49:20.940
not going to be at the polling places tomorrow. unless
796
00:49:22.039 --> 00:49:25.340
there might be some questions as to who was voting.
797
00:49:25.360 --> 00:49:26.360
Let's cut to, please.
798
00:49:27.320 --> 00:49:30.159
I was being very, very clear when I said ICE
799
00:49:30.300 --> 00:49:33.219
isn't there to patrol the polling places. We're there to
800
00:49:33.280 --> 00:49:36.579
enforce specific threats. The only reason why we would be
801
00:49:36.639 --> 00:49:39.239
at polling places if there is a threat to that
802
00:49:39.280 --> 00:49:46.409
polling place or we're serving a warrant on someone that
803
00:49:46.449 --> 00:49:48.469
we have been actively tracking down.
804
00:49:50.090 --> 00:49:53.429
And this is what's so absolutely an abuse of power.
805
00:49:53.829 --> 00:49:56.050
You talk about reasons to impeach people.
806
00:49:56.849 --> 00:49:58.769
In the House and convict in the Senate.
807
00:49:59.670 --> 00:50:03.250
The numbers in this administration of abuses of power on
808
00:50:03.369 --> 00:50:06.949
so many levels, we haven't touched on the Kennedy Center.
809
00:50:07.349 --> 00:50:08.989
But let me remind everyone, and I want to do
810
00:50:09.010 --> 00:50:13.030
this before we close, that the Kennedy Center was designed
811
00:50:13.070 --> 00:50:14.800
as a tribute to John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
812
00:50:15.599 --> 00:50:16.420
We were in mourning.
813
00:50:16.679 --> 00:50:20.460
We were weeping in this country on November 22nd, 1963.
814
00:50:20.460 --> 00:50:23.059
And so the official flower, if you will, was the
815
00:50:23.099 --> 00:50:27.380
weeping willow. You may not know this, But the president
816
00:50:27.400 --> 00:50:30.860
of the United States ordered the removal of all of
817
00:50:30.900 --> 00:50:35.500
the weeping willows this week. You can see it. And
818
00:50:35.619 --> 00:50:39.679
I must tell you, this is an indication of what
819
00:50:39.719 --> 00:50:41.940
we're dealing with. So for those of you who think
820
00:50:42.119 --> 00:50:47.000
I suffer from Trump derangement syndrome, nonsense. I am a
821
00:50:47.079 --> 00:50:52.619
practical analyst who understands what's happening and what Donald Trump
822
00:50:52.679 --> 00:50:54.840
is doing, what he's threatening in relation to the election.
823
00:50:55.320 --> 00:50:57.679
We'd all better be on our toes. And, Mark, I
824
00:50:57.699 --> 00:51:00.440
am available to you any time to talk about this,
825
00:51:00.480 --> 00:51:03.840
whether it's a Wednesday or another day, because this is
826
00:51:03.900 --> 00:51:05.500
so serious to our democracy.
827
00:51:06.360 --> 00:51:09.500
John, you stuck the landing. Congratulations. Very well done. I
828
00:51:10.179 --> 00:51:12.840
will invite you all to listen to John's podcast. It's
829
00:51:12.889 --> 00:51:17.210
a daily offering, and it's mercifully short, which is what
830
00:51:17.250 --> 00:51:17.789
I like about it.
831
00:51:17.789 --> 00:51:23.530
What? You know, I love coming on here, ladies and gentlemen.
832
00:51:23.840 --> 00:51:25.800
The abuse is just marvelous.
833
00:51:26.659 --> 00:51:30.539
By the way, this is no picnic. No summer camp.
834
00:51:30.579 --> 00:51:34.900
Tim and Tony get high marks in my book. And Mark,
835
00:51:35.559 --> 00:51:36.139
you're not bad.
836
00:51:36.340 --> 00:51:38.739
Don't suck up to my staff, John. Get out of
837
00:51:38.780 --> 00:51:41.659
here already and go do a podcast. Robin didn't get
838
00:51:41.699 --> 00:51:45.639
the buzzer even once. No, he really didn't. And Tony,
839
00:51:46.110 --> 00:51:49.880
here's why Tony was particularly judicious about the buzzer. And
840
00:51:49.900 --> 00:51:56.320
judicious is a ding word. He was judicious because John
841
00:51:56.460 --> 00:52:01.320
did very slightly... He was starting with the... We were
842
00:52:01.340 --> 00:52:04.079
talking about the elections and ICE and the presence. And
843
00:52:04.199 --> 00:52:10.039
then he went to the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center
844
00:52:10.059 --> 00:52:14.750
for Performing Arts. And Tony could have buzzed him there, but...
845
00:52:15.369 --> 00:52:17.369
The reason he didn't, I think, is because it was
846
00:52:17.449 --> 00:52:21.730
such a solemn remembrance of JFK. And so I think
847
00:52:21.750 --> 00:52:24.090
you very cleverly got around a buzz there.
848
00:52:24.190 --> 00:52:26.610
But it was in the queue. Notice you had the
849
00:52:26.679 --> 00:52:27.940
photographs that we needed.
850
00:52:28.019 --> 00:52:31.420
Yeah, no, Tony is incredible. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But it
851
00:52:31.460 --> 00:52:35.980
was your solemnity, sir. It was the power of your
852
00:52:36.019 --> 00:52:37.760
presentation that got you. All right, I got to let
853
00:52:37.780 --> 00:52:42.289
you go. Thank you. John Rothman, everybody. Thanks, John. All right.
854
00:52:43.170 --> 00:52:43.570
We continue.
855
00:52:46.420 --> 00:52:47.559
The Mark Thompson Show.
856
00:52:49.780 --> 00:52:50.789
It was great. I loved it.
857
00:52:50.900 --> 00:52:53.699
How would you handle this?
858
00:52:54.099 --> 00:52:55.360
We could try ignoring it, sir.
859
00:52:56.539 --> 00:52:56.880
Morning.
860
00:52:58.199 --> 00:52:59.789
You cannot say you love your country.
861
00:53:00.550 --> 00:53:02.250
Where are my weed smokers at?
862
00:53:02.309 --> 00:53:03.630
Stay at home and get baked.
863
00:53:05.070 --> 00:53:07.289
All right, everybody. We're a live show every day, Monday
864
00:53:07.309 --> 00:53:10.670
through Friday. We start at 2.30 Eastern Time. Great to
865
00:53:10.710 --> 00:53:14.130
have everybody in. Please hit the, you know, the What
866
00:53:14.190 --> 00:53:16.889
is it? The notification bell, the thumbs up, all the
867
00:53:16.929 --> 00:53:19.210
YouTube stuff. Smash it with your iron rod. Smash it
868
00:53:19.250 --> 00:53:24.360
like a boss. Come on. And hit the notification bell
869
00:53:24.380 --> 00:53:26.880
and you'll know whenever there's a new video. And I
870
00:53:27.460 --> 00:53:29.480
do want to, before I get to Jared Yates Sexton,
871
00:53:29.500 --> 00:53:31.579
I want to talk about the election and all this
872
00:53:31.599 --> 00:53:33.590
sort of stuff. When I say all this sort of stuff,
873
00:53:33.610 --> 00:53:36.670
I'm talking about the stuff of messing with the election,
874
00:53:37.010 --> 00:53:40.929
voter suppression, even some of the results, and the fact
875
00:53:40.969 --> 00:53:42.570
that Texas is back in play. I want to talk
876
00:53:42.590 --> 00:53:44.260
about all that with Jared. But I do want to
877
00:53:44.300 --> 00:53:48.650
just mention one of our dear partners. I mean, this
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is the longest sponsor, our only real sponsor. They are
879
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890
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895
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Yeah, you don't want to be without your favorites.
904
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That's not fake.
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913
00:55:28.980 --> 00:55:30.539
All right. CoachellaValleyCoffee.com.
914
00:55:31.920 --> 00:55:32.940
The Mark Thompson Show.
915
00:55:34.159 --> 00:55:35.909
So happy we get a chance to visit with this
916
00:55:35.969 --> 00:55:38.750
guy every Wednesday. He kind of takes us back to
917
00:55:38.809 --> 00:55:42.889
Magnetic North on so many things. So it will be
918
00:55:43.710 --> 00:55:46.909
this day. Check out his sub stack, which I will
919
00:55:46.969 --> 00:55:49.909
link to under this video and under all of Jared's videos.
920
00:55:49.969 --> 00:55:54.269
We have his sub stack. He does live chats. His writing,
921
00:55:54.289 --> 00:55:56.610
he's a great writer. And he's had two books. There
922
00:55:56.630 --> 00:55:58.309
are links to his books under this video as well.
923
00:55:58.550 --> 00:55:59.710
Jared Yates Sexton, everyone.
924
00:56:00.949 --> 00:56:02.429
Mark, it's so good to see you, man.
925
00:56:02.789 --> 00:56:05.849
Look at you. Nice to see you, pal. Georgia's where
926
00:56:05.869 --> 00:56:07.550
you went to school, as I recall. Is that right?
927
00:56:08.110 --> 00:56:09.469
No, I taught down in Georgia.
928
00:56:09.510 --> 00:56:10.840
Oh, you taught down there, right? I taught.
929
00:56:10.929 --> 00:56:12.699
I'm a Hoosier through and through. I need to correct
930
00:56:12.780 --> 00:56:13.280
this record.
931
00:56:13.300 --> 00:56:16.360
Okay, sorry. Yeah, yeah. You grew up there in Hoosier country, yeah?
932
00:56:16.539 --> 00:56:17.900
I grew up a Hoosier, yes.
933
00:56:17.980 --> 00:56:23.730
Yeah, yeah. Very cool. Well, now lay some knowledge on us.
934
00:56:25.389 --> 00:56:28.789
I'm struck by a couple of things in this election.
935
00:56:29.510 --> 00:56:32.880
First of all, I'm struck by how aggressively there is
936
00:56:33.079 --> 00:56:37.840
a move to create chaos in the election, to question
937
00:56:37.860 --> 00:56:40.880
the mail-in voting is sort of Trump's cornerstone. That's what
938
00:56:40.920 --> 00:56:44.340
he's been doing. These elections are unfair. They've always been unfair,
939
00:56:44.619 --> 00:56:49.030
sort of setting up for the protest of any result
940
00:56:49.070 --> 00:56:52.750
he's not happy with. And now he seems to have,
941
00:56:52.809 --> 00:56:55.650
of course, a concierge Supreme Court in league with him
942
00:56:56.150 --> 00:56:59.860
that is allowing him to pursue these kinds of plans
943
00:57:00.199 --> 00:57:04.119
that might involve voter rolls having to be blessed by
944
00:57:04.280 --> 00:57:06.980
Trump or the feds. They literally are going to go
945
00:57:07.119 --> 00:57:11.559
after all the voter rolls state by state. I think
946
00:57:11.619 --> 00:57:15.570
it's just an effort to, again, create the chaos, create
947
00:57:15.590 --> 00:57:18.610
the question, create the cloud of questioning around something that's
948
00:57:18.750 --> 00:57:22.090
never had any questioning associated with it. And it's all
949
00:57:22.130 --> 00:57:26.050
in service of trying to manipulate and steal the outcomes.
950
00:57:27.050 --> 00:57:29.530
Absolutely. And I mean, we have to start, first of all,
951
00:57:29.570 --> 00:57:32.369
with the authoritarian playbook, which is, Mark, you know this.
952
00:57:32.889 --> 00:57:35.510
They don't want elections. They do not want to be
953
00:57:35.550 --> 00:57:38.590
held responsible. They do not care about popular mandate. They
954
00:57:38.630 --> 00:57:40.670
don't care about the will of the people. And if
955
00:57:40.710 --> 00:57:43.469
they can get away from elections, whether or not that
956
00:57:43.590 --> 00:57:48.269
is sabotaging and ending elections or simply creating manageable elections,
957
00:57:48.349 --> 00:57:50.710
you know, anybody who pays attention to what happens in
958
00:57:50.769 --> 00:57:54.420
illiberal countries. Russia, they still have elections, Mark. It turns
959
00:57:54.539 --> 00:57:57.820
out that Vladimir Putin is extremely popular, getting 98 to
960
00:57:57.820 --> 00:57:59.179
99 percent of the vote.
961
00:57:59.280 --> 00:57:59.480
Right.
962
00:57:59.940 --> 00:58:03.300
So we we know that authoritarians want to get past
963
00:58:03.320 --> 00:58:06.610
the point of democracy. They consider it an impediment. And
964
00:58:06.659 --> 00:58:09.349
we also know the problem in this country is actually
965
00:58:09.489 --> 00:58:14.760
non participation in elections. And so if Trump can both
966
00:58:14.940 --> 00:58:18.019
interact with this election, try and rig it, and also
967
00:58:18.159 --> 00:58:21.159
sow the idea that elections don't matter at all, we're
968
00:58:21.199 --> 00:58:24.090
not only talking about the possibility of not having free
969
00:58:24.130 --> 00:58:26.750
and fair elections. We're talking about the lack of trust
970
00:58:26.809 --> 00:58:30.789
in institutions growing intentionally. So as we're getting ready for
971
00:58:30.809 --> 00:58:33.710
these midterms, every time somebody asks me, I say, I
972
00:58:33.750 --> 00:58:35.139
don't know that they're going to be held and I
973
00:58:35.179 --> 00:58:36.719
don't know that they're going to be free and fair.
974
00:58:37.110 --> 00:58:38.929
And if you're a realist, you have to wrap your
975
00:58:38.949 --> 00:58:41.030
head around that, that this is not, you know, the
976
00:58:41.050 --> 00:58:43.690
game as usual. This is an attempt to try and
977
00:58:43.730 --> 00:58:44.710
undermine democracy.
978
00:58:45.550 --> 00:58:49.429
Yeah. For the reasons you note, I think and maybe
979
00:58:49.449 --> 00:58:52.530
I could be budged off of this, but I think
980
00:58:52.550 --> 00:58:55.619
there'll be elections. It's just of the sort that you've
981
00:58:55.639 --> 00:58:58.429
described that is the goal, which is manageable elections. And,
982
00:58:58.440 --> 00:59:02.130
of course, the most manageable elections are not the Donald
983
00:59:02.130 --> 00:59:06.579
Trump or GOP candidates have won by 98 They're the
984
00:59:06.760 --> 00:59:10.340
GOP candidate just edged out the opposition. I mean, that's
985
00:59:10.420 --> 00:59:12.679
the sort of high ground you want. You want to
986
00:59:12.699 --> 00:59:15.980
manipulate so that you've just gotten the edge because that's
987
00:59:16.469 --> 00:59:19.409
more believable than the 98%, as you say, which is
988
00:59:19.449 --> 00:59:24.110
kind of comical. But there are so many different ways
989
00:59:24.150 --> 00:59:28.659
that are now being employed. So this bizarre, I've always
990
00:59:28.679 --> 00:59:31.210
said that The Trump administration has no sleight of hand.
991
00:59:31.889 --> 00:59:34.300
They're showing it to you right up front. And so
992
00:59:34.320 --> 00:59:36.960
that's the USPS thing, the Postal Service stuff. But look
993
00:59:36.980 --> 00:59:40.000
at the other ways. Play me cut to with Mark
994
00:59:40.039 --> 00:59:43.659
Wayne Mullen, because the ice thugs that they're going to
995
00:59:43.719 --> 00:59:46.599
put at different polling places, or at least there is
996
00:59:46.639 --> 00:59:49.750
a suggestion they might show up, they'll have a chilling
997
00:59:49.789 --> 00:59:52.909
effect as well. Even for those who have nothing to
998
00:59:53.070 --> 00:59:57.230
fear from ICE legitimately, but just fear the fact that
999
00:59:57.269 --> 01:00:00.449
they're thugs and they don't care if you have appropriate
1000
01:00:00.489 --> 01:00:03.969
identification or whatever. They'll throw you into one of their vans.
1001
01:00:04.449 --> 01:00:06.210
Play him a bit of Mark Wayne, if you would.
1002
01:00:06.369 --> 01:00:09.199
I was being very, very clear when I said ICE
1003
01:00:09.320 --> 01:00:12.239
isn't there to patrol the polling places. We're there to
1004
01:00:12.320 --> 01:00:15.599
enforce specific threats The only reason why we would be
1005
01:00:15.639 --> 01:00:18.260
at polling places if there is a threat to that
1006
01:00:18.300 --> 01:00:25.429
polling place or we're serving a warrant on someone that
1007
01:00:25.469 --> 01:00:27.489
we have been actively tracking down.
1008
01:00:28.130 --> 01:00:30.469
Yeah, so you see, there are reasons they'd be there.
1009
01:00:31.210 --> 01:00:32.650
You know what I'm saying, Jerry? They're not just going
1010
01:00:32.670 --> 01:00:33.730
to be there for no reason.
1011
01:00:34.829 --> 01:00:37.739
Yeah, I don't want to discredit Mark Wayne Mullen. What
1012
01:00:37.760 --> 01:00:42.219
an incredible public servant. You know, it's basically it comes
1013
01:00:42.260 --> 01:00:45.010
down to this. It is creating one crisis after another,
1014
01:00:45.090 --> 01:00:48.989
which allows some sort of authoritarian overreach. And I'll tell you, Mark,
1015
01:00:49.210 --> 01:00:53.670
I have been in my fair share of meetings, Democratic nonprofits,
1016
01:00:53.730 --> 01:00:56.599
think tanks, institutes. They're all holding war games.
1017
01:00:57.059 --> 01:00:57.260
Right.
1018
01:00:57.300 --> 01:01:01.320
They're all preparing for every possibility. And it's not just
1019
01:01:01.420 --> 01:01:03.619
getting rid of the mail in vote. It's not just
1020
01:01:03.840 --> 01:01:08.010
ICE or the National Guard intimidating voters. It's not seating people,
1021
01:01:08.090 --> 01:01:11.230
not recognizing results, you name it, up and down the board.
1022
01:01:11.750 --> 01:01:16.539
And so then the question becomes, why are Democrats preparing
1023
01:01:16.599 --> 01:01:19.659
for the litigation battle as opposed to getting out ahead
1024
01:01:19.679 --> 01:01:22.429
of this thing? So the only people who are talking
1025
01:01:22.469 --> 01:01:26.050
about the possibility of democracy being impeded here are people
1026
01:01:26.090 --> 01:01:28.639
like yourself, other people in the media who are saying, hey,
1027
01:01:28.719 --> 01:01:31.940
they are telegraphing this entire thing. They have not been
1028
01:01:32.039 --> 01:01:35.239
quiet about this. It is very obvious. So why are
1029
01:01:35.260 --> 01:01:38.500
we preparing right now for a litigation battle, which, by
1030
01:01:38.519 --> 01:01:40.559
the way, we've already seen what happens when that goes
1031
01:01:40.599 --> 01:01:42.579
all the way at the top. I'm old enough that
1032
01:01:42.659 --> 01:01:45.320
I remember an election in 2000 that was stolen at
1033
01:01:45.380 --> 01:01:49.039
the Supreme Court, and that Supreme Court was much less
1034
01:01:49.139 --> 01:01:51.610
overt about who it is and what it believes and
1035
01:01:51.650 --> 01:01:54.489
what it supports than this one is. So why aren't
1036
01:01:54.530 --> 01:01:56.510
we getting ahead of this thing? Why aren't we having
1037
01:01:56.550 --> 01:01:59.590
conversations about the type of mobilization that would be needed?
1038
01:01:59.929 --> 01:02:02.190
Because this battle isn't going to be won in a courtroom.
1039
01:02:02.590 --> 01:02:04.909
This battle, if it comes to pass, is going to
1040
01:02:04.929 --> 01:02:07.289
be won not just at the ballot booth, but out
1041
01:02:07.329 --> 01:02:07.829
in the streets.
1042
01:02:08.309 --> 01:02:11.110
Well, I think that's such a great point that this
1043
01:02:11.130 --> 01:02:15.610
sort of after the fact action just doesn't work. In fact,
1044
01:02:15.650 --> 01:02:18.969
they're kind of counting on that. And yet, you get
1045
01:02:19.269 --> 01:02:22.250
entreaties like this one from Ted Lieu, playing me cut four.
1046
01:02:22.570 --> 01:02:25.400
And to be fair, I think Lieu's trying to make noise.
1047
01:02:25.659 --> 01:02:29.360
You'll find he uncorks an F-bomb here. I think that
1048
01:02:29.380 --> 01:02:31.860
was sort of to kind of light a fuse of
1049
01:02:32.019 --> 01:02:35.420
virality under this video. And it worked. I mean, we're
1050
01:02:35.460 --> 01:02:38.699
running it. But it speaks to how I think the
1051
01:02:38.739 --> 01:02:41.360
general message is kind of let's get out in four
1052
01:02:41.380 --> 01:02:44.760
so it's too big to rig. That isn't really enough.
1053
01:02:44.880 --> 01:02:45.480
Here's Cutford.
1054
01:02:46.980 --> 01:02:48.639
Just go fucking vote.
1055
01:02:48.840 --> 01:02:51.039
Now, some of you may have seen an article today
1056
01:02:51.360 --> 01:02:54.679
about a whistleblower at the United States Postal Service saying
1057
01:02:54.780 --> 01:02:57.860
that the Postal Service is trying to implement Donald Trump's
1058
01:02:58.059 --> 01:03:02.559
executive order on mail ballots, even though right now the
1059
01:03:02.639 --> 01:03:06.449
courts have said that that order is unconstitutional. So Leader
1060
01:03:06.489 --> 01:03:10.550
Jeffries earlier this year established a task force with ranking
1061
01:03:10.570 --> 01:03:14.440
member Joe Morelli to look at different scenarios where the
1062
01:03:14.480 --> 01:03:16.760
Trump administration is going to try to suppress the vote
1063
01:03:17.000 --> 01:03:17.840
of the American people.
1064
01:03:18.400 --> 01:03:19.920
This is one of the scenarios.
1065
01:03:19.460 --> 01:03:20.219
That they envisioned.
1066
01:03:20.619 --> 01:03:22.360
One of the messages I want to give the American
1067
01:03:22.380 --> 01:03:25.840
people is the democratic caucus is on this. We're working
1068
01:03:26.039 --> 01:03:27.980
to fight back. The other message I want to give
1069
01:03:28.639 --> 01:03:31.880
is just go fucking vote. The Trump administration is going
1070
01:03:31.900 --> 01:03:33.780
to try to suppress your vote.
1071
01:03:34.139 --> 01:03:34.340
Yeah.
1072
01:03:34.380 --> 01:03:41.050
Thanks, Tony. That's good. Um, yeah. So, uh, yeah. All right. Um,
1073
01:03:41.730 --> 01:03:44.050
And he notes what we talked about, which is, you know,
1074
01:03:44.110 --> 01:03:49.630
the whistleblower report and the clear evidence of a manipulation
1075
01:03:49.949 --> 01:03:53.519
of voter rolls. But at the end of it, it's
1076
01:03:53.579 --> 01:03:56.880
just this is your power as a citizen. Just go
1077
01:03:56.940 --> 01:03:57.420
out and vote.
1078
01:03:58.380 --> 01:04:01.320
I mean, no disrespect to Ted Lieu or Joe Morelli.
1079
01:04:01.360 --> 01:04:05.570
That's not exactly the caucus, you know, 18. Like, if
1080
01:04:05.650 --> 01:04:08.550
this is an actual problem, if you actually care about
1081
01:04:08.570 --> 01:04:11.239
the validity of elections— You're not going to have to.
1082
01:04:11.369 --> 01:04:14.030
And by the way, all you know, I'll give all
1083
01:04:14.050 --> 01:04:16.570
kudos to Ted Lieu. He has spent the last 10
1084
01:04:16.570 --> 01:04:19.389
years going on social media, constantly making a name as
1085
01:04:19.429 --> 01:04:21.550
the person who's outspoken in all of this. He is
1086
01:04:21.590 --> 01:04:25.050
not a powerful congressman. He is not among the leadership
1087
01:04:25.130 --> 01:04:27.929
of the Democratic Party. You know, Hakeem Jeffries should take
1088
01:04:27.969 --> 01:04:30.719
the bat off of his shoulder and actually spearhead these
1089
01:04:30.780 --> 01:04:32.559
things and get out in front of it. But the
1090
01:04:32.599 --> 01:04:35.659
Democratic Party does not talk about all of this. Because
1091
01:04:35.860 --> 01:04:39.000
much like everything from ICE to the tariffs to corruption
1092
01:04:39.380 --> 01:04:42.239
now to this, they're not interested in getting rid of
1093
01:04:42.260 --> 01:04:44.760
the veneer of the status quo. They do not want
1094
01:04:44.800 --> 01:04:47.079
to talk about the actual threats that are going on
1095
01:04:47.119 --> 01:04:49.949
because if there are actual threats, it would take actual action.
1096
01:04:50.349 --> 01:04:53.289
But putting Morelli or Liu in there and having them
1097
01:04:53.349 --> 01:04:56.130
talk about it, it allows the social media space of
1098
01:04:56.230 --> 01:04:59.369
liberals to talk about it. but it's not actually doing anything.
1099
01:04:59.449 --> 01:05:01.630
And again, as somebody who's been in these meetings, Mark,
1100
01:05:02.030 --> 01:05:04.969
they're not taking the actions that are required if they
1101
01:05:04.989 --> 01:05:08.159
take this seriously. So either they don't take it seriously
1102
01:05:08.199 --> 01:05:11.460
and they're foolish, or they're taking it seriously and they're
1103
01:05:11.500 --> 01:05:13.320
not providing the actions that need to be taken.
1104
01:05:14.099 --> 01:05:19.800
Yeah. It's a palliative somehow. It soothes you to get
1105
01:05:19.920 --> 01:05:23.650
out on social media to see Ted Lieu, get angry
1106
01:05:23.769 --> 01:05:27.969
for you. But the result, as you suggested, is nothing happens.
1107
01:05:28.590 --> 01:05:33.659
It's funny you mentioned Jeffries because apparently he went out
1108
01:05:33.679 --> 01:05:40.099
to go after two Democrats who voted with Republicans to
1109
01:05:41.409 --> 01:05:47.889
get the floor of the House open. It's an interesting thing.
1110
01:05:47.929 --> 01:05:51.269
They kind of broke with leadership because of this procedural vote.
1111
01:05:51.980 --> 01:05:55.260
And the procedural vote was important because there's a legislative agenda,
1112
01:05:55.280 --> 01:05:58.380
I guess, that was associated with a bunch of GOP
1113
01:05:58.440 --> 01:06:02.030
things that wouldn't have ever gotten off the ground had
1114
01:06:02.050 --> 01:06:04.369
it not been for these two going over. And you
1115
01:06:04.389 --> 01:06:05.969
know more about this stuff than I do, I think,
1116
01:06:06.090 --> 01:06:12.570
on a level that you can explain. It's so reflected
1117
01:06:12.949 --> 01:06:17.480
a frustration with a lack of solidarity that Jeffries felt
1118
01:06:17.559 --> 01:06:21.210
he had to clap back at the two and really
1119
01:06:21.369 --> 01:06:24.530
wants to have some kind of other way in which
1120
01:06:24.610 --> 01:06:27.809
they can be punished politically for having broken with the party.
1121
01:06:28.610 --> 01:06:31.050
See, I actually think this is a twisted mirror version
1122
01:06:31.300 --> 01:06:34.340
of solidarity, as opposed to these two members of the
1123
01:06:34.380 --> 01:06:37.400
Democratic Party stepping out of line. They had a weird
1124
01:06:37.460 --> 01:06:40.280
decision to go and support the Republican Party. This is
1125
01:06:40.320 --> 01:06:44.519
what I call the Kirsten mansion, which is any time
1126
01:06:44.929 --> 01:06:47.590
that there is some legislation or a procedure that needs
1127
01:06:47.630 --> 01:06:50.530
to get passed, and the Republicans don't quite have enough votes.
1128
01:06:50.889 --> 01:06:54.139
It's weird, Mark. Just the right amount of Democrats show
1129
01:06:54.239 --> 01:06:56.400
up and vote against the party. And all of a sudden,
1130
01:06:56.440 --> 01:06:59.110
Hakeem Jeffries is like, there's going to be a serious response.
1131
01:06:59.650 --> 01:07:02.449
And the point of it is, it's all theater. They
1132
01:07:02.489 --> 01:07:05.460
are all figuring out ways to make this thing happen.
1133
01:07:05.559 --> 01:07:07.480
And they'll look at the people who make the votes,
1134
01:07:07.539 --> 01:07:10.059
the people who cross the aisle, and they'll say, OK,
1135
01:07:10.119 --> 01:07:12.880
are these people safe in their future races? Are these
1136
01:07:12.940 --> 01:07:15.989
people safe from being primaried? Who is most in danger
1137
01:07:16.030 --> 01:07:19.429
right now? And basically, it's like duck, duck, goose. You
1138
01:07:19.489 --> 01:07:21.210
are the person who's going to go ahead and make
1139
01:07:21.250 --> 01:07:23.269
sure the Republicans are able to pass this or this
1140
01:07:23.369 --> 01:07:26.510
unpopular legislation is going to get passed. And then Hakeem
1141
01:07:26.550 --> 01:07:29.360
Jeffries is just like, oh, I'm very angry about this.
1142
01:07:29.900 --> 01:07:31.940
And what's going to happen? I mean, yeah, there's a
1143
01:07:31.960 --> 01:07:34.739
bunch of public things that happen on Politico. But the
1144
01:07:34.780 --> 01:07:38.010
people who make the vote, they are actually helped by
1145
01:07:38.050 --> 01:07:40.630
the Democratic leadership being mad at them.
1146
01:07:41.170 --> 01:07:41.429
Right.
1147
01:07:41.750 --> 01:07:45.309
Which gives them the ability to reach out to Republicans
1148
01:07:45.369 --> 01:07:49.630
or moderates because they themselves are centrist or center right Democrats.
1149
01:07:49.989 --> 01:07:52.750
So it's all this sort of game in which it's
1150
01:07:52.809 --> 01:07:56.050
incredible that a Kyrsten Sinema or a Joe Manchin could
1151
01:07:56.090 --> 01:07:58.460
suddenly be the deciding vote that's going to bring this
1152
01:07:58.480 --> 01:08:02.469
thing over the line. But this is actual solidarity, unfortunately.
1153
01:08:02.769 --> 01:08:06.050
It just so happens it's not Republican versus Democrat solidarity.
1154
01:08:06.190 --> 01:08:07.309
It's class solidarity.
1155
01:08:08.489 --> 01:08:13.579
As the progressives rise in power in the Democratic Party,
1156
01:08:13.599 --> 01:08:18.000
they win these primaries. Even the older progressives, you know,
1157
01:08:18.039 --> 01:08:20.180
it's always sort of played out as like these are
1158
01:08:20.239 --> 01:08:25.909
young insurgents. But Markey's not a young guy. Here are
1159
01:08:25.930 --> 01:08:29.449
the Massachusetts results, cut 10. I mean, both these guys–
1160
01:08:29.739 --> 01:08:33.699
Moulton isn't like, you know, he's not a lefty, but
1161
01:08:33.800 --> 01:08:36.079
he's a Democrat, right? This is a Democratic primary. And
1162
01:08:36.260 --> 01:08:40.130
Markey thumped him, and Markey's probably more the progressive. I mean, even,
1163
01:08:40.149 --> 01:08:43.470
you know, I get it. He may not sing from
1164
01:08:43.489 --> 01:08:47.510
the hymnal as strongly as Syed does or El Syed,
1165
01:08:47.569 --> 01:08:53.189
but I think his bona fides is there. And I'm
1166
01:08:53.229 --> 01:08:56.880
wondering to what extent You feel the– I probably asked
1167
01:08:56.899 --> 01:08:58.899
you this question last week. Maybe you can comment again
1168
01:08:58.920 --> 01:09:01.380
i'll probably ask you three or four more times even
1169
01:09:01.439 --> 01:09:05.319
as we approach the the election uh the the progressivism
1170
01:09:05.380 --> 01:09:10.159
that is prevailing will be integrated into the democratic message
1171
01:09:10.199 --> 01:09:13.050
because they've seen it seen it effective and they've seen
1172
01:09:13.090 --> 01:09:13.529
it win.
1173
01:09:14.199 --> 01:09:16.220
Well, first of all, I am so happy that Seth
1174
01:09:16.279 --> 01:09:19.239
Moulton had his pants pulled down and humiliated on the
1175
01:09:19.279 --> 01:09:22.800
national stage. An absolute coward. And I'll say this. He
1176
01:09:22.840 --> 01:09:26.449
deserved to lose because immediately he licked his finger, put
1177
01:09:26.489 --> 01:09:28.010
it up in the air, and he thought, oh, I'm
1178
01:09:28.029 --> 01:09:30.789
going to go after trans people. And guess what? In
1179
01:09:30.850 --> 01:09:34.670
this period, particularly as fascism is growing, if you show
1180
01:09:34.770 --> 01:09:38.420
a willingness to throw vulnerable populations under the bus... People
1181
01:09:38.479 --> 01:09:41.159
don't just hear that you're throwing trans people under the bus.
1182
01:09:41.420 --> 01:09:44.449
They understand if you're going to throw out vulnerable people,
1183
01:09:44.649 --> 01:09:47.550
you're not going to fight for me. And in this case,
1184
01:09:47.630 --> 01:09:50.270
I think everybody gets lost, whether it comes to age
1185
01:09:50.289 --> 01:09:52.989
or who does this or who does whatever. Americans want
1186
01:09:53.149 --> 01:09:56.210
fighters right now. They want somebody who is going to
1187
01:09:56.270 --> 01:10:00.819
show political courage, who shows morality and ethics. And truthfully,
1188
01:10:01.079 --> 01:10:03.659
every single issue that happens right now, it is a
1189
01:10:03.739 --> 01:10:07.569
test of morality and ethics. And Seth Moulton failed. Seth
1190
01:10:07.590 --> 01:10:10.500
Moulton revealed who he was and what he was willing
1191
01:10:10.560 --> 01:10:12.739
to do and who he was willing to hurt and abandon.
1192
01:10:13.100 --> 01:10:15.279
And in this case, I think this was a situation
1193
01:10:15.600 --> 01:10:18.939
Massachusetts knows who Marky is. They know who he is,
1194
01:10:19.020 --> 01:10:21.520
what he does and whatever. And in this case alone,
1195
01:10:21.640 --> 01:10:23.460
I think that Seth Moulton, I think he dug his
1196
01:10:23.520 --> 01:10:25.390
own grave and I hope that he is sitting with
1197
01:10:25.399 --> 01:10:27.079
this failure today because he deserves it.
1198
01:10:27.649 --> 01:10:31.350
So the broader message though, on the progressive side, do
1199
01:10:31.869 --> 01:10:34.569
you feel that is something that's going to be integrated?
1200
01:10:34.609 --> 01:10:37.539
That to which you've referred? I mean, that, uh, You know,
1201
01:10:37.920 --> 01:10:40.850
these cultural wedge issues like the trans issue that you
1202
01:10:40.869 --> 01:10:44.289
talked about, they've really made political hay of that, the GOP.
1203
01:10:44.430 --> 01:10:46.560
I mean, it's insane. I was in Tennessee and I
1204
01:10:46.560 --> 01:10:48.159
was sitting around with a bunch of people who seemed
1205
01:10:48.180 --> 01:10:52.760
otherwise reasonable, and somehow we get into a conversation around politics,
1206
01:10:53.199 --> 01:10:55.649
and the first thing they bring up is the trans thing.
1207
01:10:55.670 --> 01:10:58.010
I'm thinking, you guys have got to be kidding. I mean,
1208
01:10:58.390 --> 01:11:00.350
how many people are really affected by this? Why are
1209
01:11:00.369 --> 01:11:03.789
you going after this already? I can't imagine a tougher
1210
01:11:03.829 --> 01:11:08.229
life than having to transition your gender, and you guys
1211
01:11:08.289 --> 01:11:11.630
cannot let these people alone. Anyway, I'm just wondering to
1212
01:11:11.649 --> 01:11:15.600
what extent these cultural wedge issues like that still will
1213
01:11:15.659 --> 01:11:17.800
find an effectiveness on the part of the GOP and
1214
01:11:17.819 --> 01:11:20.300
the progressivism to what extent that will be integrated.
1215
01:11:20.939 --> 01:11:25.560
Well, these wedge issues are completely artificially created. If you
1216
01:11:25.649 --> 01:11:28.069
actually track where they come from, all of these sort
1217
01:11:28.090 --> 01:11:31.390
of flashpoints, they're designed at think tanks and institutes that
1218
01:11:31.409 --> 01:11:34.329
are being paid for by billionaires and millionaires. They are
1219
01:11:34.390 --> 01:11:38.090
designed in order to cut across solidarity and also issues
1220
01:11:38.149 --> 01:11:41.569
that involve a supermajority. You know, if you actually look
1221
01:11:41.600 --> 01:11:44.770
at the major actual issues in this country, 60 to
1222
01:11:44.770 --> 01:11:48.260
80 and sometimes 90 percent of Americans agree on things.
1223
01:11:48.659 --> 01:11:51.159
They slice and dice them in order to find the things.
1224
01:11:51.460 --> 01:11:54.140
And when it comes to trans stuff, the simple answer
1225
01:11:54.199 --> 01:11:56.300
to it is not to debate about it. It's why
1226
01:11:56.359 --> 01:11:59.560
are you so freaking obsessed with this? What is it
1227
01:11:59.640 --> 01:12:03.199
about you that is so worried about people's genitals? What
1228
01:12:03.279 --> 01:12:06.699
is it about you that's worried about trailing women into
1229
01:12:06.770 --> 01:12:09.930
bathrooms and seeing what's underneath their pants? It is, as
1230
01:12:10.350 --> 01:12:14.890
somebody just said, it's a complete non-issue outside of someone's
1231
01:12:14.949 --> 01:12:18.140
protections and liberties being taken from them. And so what
1232
01:12:18.180 --> 01:12:20.039
has happened for years now, and I feel like I've
1233
01:12:20.060 --> 01:12:23.529
had this conversation so much, it's like Groundhog Day. Why
1234
01:12:23.609 --> 01:12:26.729
is it the Democratic Party always agrees to the framing
1235
01:12:26.770 --> 01:12:29.449
that is being designed by the Republican Party and the
1236
01:12:29.520 --> 01:12:32.300
think tanks and the institutes? And when it comes to
1237
01:12:32.340 --> 01:12:34.920
whether or not this stuff will be adapted, the question
1238
01:12:34.960 --> 01:12:37.659
is whether or not there's courage on behalf of candidates.
1239
01:12:37.720 --> 01:12:41.140
We're seeing it right now in Michigan. Abdul El-Sayed. is
1240
01:12:41.239 --> 01:12:44.619
being challenged every single day to distance himself from a
1241
01:12:44.699 --> 01:12:48.600
Twitch streamer that maybe 5% to 6% of the American
1242
01:12:48.640 --> 01:12:54.279
population even knows who he is. So they're trying to
1243
01:12:54.359 --> 01:12:57.119
beat him with this to install discipline, saying, oh, I
1244
01:12:57.140 --> 01:12:59.159
know you're a radical. I wonder if you'll play ball.
1245
01:12:59.600 --> 01:13:02.800
People are watching Al-Sayed to see if he will actually
1246
01:13:02.880 --> 01:13:04.779
stand up for what he believes or whether or not
1247
01:13:04.819 --> 01:13:07.140
he'll go ahead and play along with this. And you
1248
01:13:07.159 --> 01:13:09.300
want to talk about midterms, if they're free and fair,
1249
01:13:09.460 --> 01:13:12.960
if they're held. I think his victory, if it happens,
1250
01:13:13.260 --> 01:13:15.689
will happen if he shows that he's willing to stand
1251
01:13:15.810 --> 01:13:17.989
up to these attacks because people don't believe in them.
1252
01:13:18.649 --> 01:13:24.829
Well, he's so effective at pivoting. And when I say pivoting,
1253
01:13:24.949 --> 01:13:27.489
I don't mean pivoting to change the subject. I mean
1254
01:13:27.770 --> 01:13:32.069
to returning people. to the things that really affect Michiganders.
1255
01:13:32.189 --> 01:13:34.409
And this is true across the board. I'd say it's
1256
01:13:34.430 --> 01:13:38.890
true in Maine. Susan Collins could have her own problems. Wisconsin.
1257
01:13:39.189 --> 01:13:42.050
These are border states that are affected by the policies
1258
01:13:42.069 --> 01:13:47.550
with Canada that Trump has completely created. This insane trade war.
1259
01:13:47.789 --> 01:13:50.720
But more to the point on El Sayed. Play, Jared,
1260
01:13:50.770 --> 01:13:53.000
in my last minute or so with him, cut five.
1261
01:13:53.319 --> 01:13:55.220
This is El Sayed, and this is what I'm talking about.
1262
01:13:55.479 --> 01:13:57.619
As you suggest, they try to drag him into something
1263
01:13:57.970 --> 01:14:00.789
And he pivots pretty beautifully from the things that J.D.
1264
01:14:00.829 --> 01:14:03.720
Vance has said, from the smears of others. And he
1265
01:14:03.760 --> 01:14:06.699
kind of returns to the subjects and the populist message
1266
01:14:07.060 --> 01:14:10.239
that people really spark to. Go ahead.
1267
01:14:10.500 --> 01:14:11.800
Thank you, sir, for being here.
1268
01:14:11.859 --> 01:14:13.899
First off, do you want to respond to what the
1269
01:14:13.939 --> 01:14:17.039
vice president said today, saying that there is something that is, quote, very,
1270
01:14:17.199 --> 01:14:19.050
very evil about you?
1271
01:14:21.390 --> 01:14:23.760
Well, let me tell you what's evil about. Evil is
1272
01:14:23.800 --> 01:14:26.539
the idea of starting wars when there's peace. Evil is
1273
01:14:26.560 --> 01:14:29.260
the idea of stripping away people's health care when they
1274
01:14:29.380 --> 01:14:33.119
absolutely have no other option. What's evil is to do
1275
01:14:33.159 --> 01:14:35.619
that so that you can pass a tax cut for billionaires.
1276
01:14:35.659 --> 01:14:37.539
What's evil is putting a data center that people don't
1277
01:14:37.579 --> 01:14:42.420
want in their backyard despite them. What's evil is corrupting
1278
01:14:42.460 --> 01:14:45.979
yourself because you want a little bit more power. And
1279
01:14:46.000 --> 01:14:48.279
at the end of the day, this whole conversation, frankly,
1280
01:14:48.319 --> 01:14:52.020
it's a distraction. The distraction from Michiganders are really worried about.
1281
01:14:52.180 --> 01:14:54.239
They're worried that they can't afford their gas because of
1282
01:14:54.279 --> 01:14:56.930
this trade war with Canada or because of this hot
1283
01:14:56.979 --> 01:14:59.770
war with Iran that they got us into. They're worried
1284
01:14:59.930 --> 01:15:01.810
that they can't see a doctor because they're about to
1285
01:15:01.869 --> 01:15:04.789
lose their Medicaid. They're worried that their kid is being
1286
01:15:04.850 --> 01:15:08.250
priced out of playing baseball. So if the vice president
1287
01:15:08.289 --> 01:15:10.789
would like to actually get on to governing, he's welcome
1288
01:15:10.850 --> 01:15:11.270
to do that.
1289
01:15:11.689 --> 01:15:14.689
But to come to Michigan from Ohio, where he's from,
1290
01:15:15.109 --> 01:15:17.250
to tell us that we ought to pay for a.
1291
01:15:17.229 --> 01:15:22.069
Vanity trade war that his president is spiking with Canada, well,
1292
01:15:22.130 --> 01:15:24.350
that's a little bit beyond the pale. And I think
1293
01:15:24.369 --> 01:15:26.930
he can go take himself back to Ohio, where apparently
1294
01:15:26.949 --> 01:15:27.880
they like politics like that.
1295
01:15:28.840 --> 01:15:31.880
If I could stand, my broken ankle won't permit me
1296
01:15:31.920 --> 01:15:34.420
to do it, I would give him the standing ovation.
1297
01:15:34.619 --> 01:15:36.760
I just felt like he stuck that landing.
1298
01:15:37.560 --> 01:15:39.359
Well, you know, what's funny about that, Mark, is that
1299
01:15:39.479 --> 01:15:44.689
obviously he understands the sports political culture of Michigan and Ohio.
1300
01:15:44.710 --> 01:15:47.970
I mean, continually saying Ohio there. That's very, very good.
1301
01:15:48.369 --> 01:15:50.430
But I do want to say one of the things
1302
01:15:50.470 --> 01:15:53.510
that's happening with El Saed there, for instance, you and
1303
01:15:53.630 --> 01:15:56.449
I are having a conversation right now about deeper politics.
1304
01:15:56.850 --> 01:15:59.680
What is actually at play? Why people vote the way
1305
01:15:59.739 --> 01:16:03.420
they do? Why parties do or don't do things? That's
1306
01:16:03.520 --> 01:16:05.800
not what you're supposed to go on to cable news
1307
01:16:05.899 --> 01:16:08.340
and do. You're supposed to go on cable news and
1308
01:16:08.380 --> 01:16:11.470
there's a script that you're supposed to follow, right? There's
1309
01:16:11.560 --> 01:16:15.079
sort of an acceptable Overton window you're supposed to behave in.
1310
01:16:15.489 --> 01:16:19.409
There's a reason why El-Sayed has become popular despite all
1311
01:16:19.470 --> 01:16:23.199
kinds of impediments to him. It's because he's actually talking
1312
01:16:23.260 --> 01:16:26.319
in a way that Americans want a politician to talk,
1313
01:16:26.380 --> 01:16:29.819
which is to not participate in this script anymore. You
1314
01:16:29.890 --> 01:16:31.949
cannot see him go on one of these shows, and
1315
01:16:31.989 --> 01:16:35.050
he continually goes, without being asked about Piker, without being
1316
01:16:35.130 --> 01:16:39.670
asked about whether or not he's anti-American. 9-11, Islamicism, whatever
1317
01:16:39.729 --> 01:16:41.890
the hell it is at that point. But if you
1318
01:16:41.949 --> 01:16:44.310
don't play along with the script, you're not going to
1319
01:16:44.350 --> 01:16:47.029
get establishment support, but you are going to get the
1320
01:16:47.050 --> 01:16:49.430
support of a base that is tired of all of this.
1321
01:16:49.829 --> 01:16:52.560
And that is where actual power starts to change.
1322
01:16:53.859 --> 01:16:56.609
It's funny, I equate it almost to the.
1323
01:16:58.100 --> 01:17:00.420
Way in which people are sick of government as usual,
1324
01:17:00.539 --> 01:17:02.739
sort of as you suggested, sort of the kabuki theater
1325
01:17:02.760 --> 01:17:05.039
of government where we end up going in this one
1326
01:17:05.060 --> 01:17:07.359
direction whether we want it or not, and despite whatever
1327
01:17:07.399 --> 01:17:11.619
rhetorical protestations about what's happening, it is also the case
1328
01:17:11.659 --> 01:17:16.180
that people like the fact that there's a disappointment with
1329
01:17:16.739 --> 01:17:19.319
cable news and these panel shows, etc., when somebody comes
1330
01:17:19.399 --> 01:17:22.210
out like El-Sayed and kind of breaks the mold a
1331
01:17:22.250 --> 01:17:26.310
little bit, it sticks out, and it maybe gets some virality.
1332
01:17:26.649 --> 01:17:30.199
He's a very very good candidate. He is such a
1333
01:17:30.380 --> 01:17:34.239
potent force. And I really hope he, you know, he's
1334
01:17:34.989 --> 01:17:37.329
even more relevant than just the race that he will
1335
01:17:37.390 --> 01:17:38.569
win in November.
1336
01:17:38.590 --> 01:17:41.670
Well, and it's even, it's amazing, Mark, we were told
1337
01:17:41.710 --> 01:17:44.649
that he's unelectable. We were told like he was going to,
1338
01:17:44.710 --> 01:17:46.810
he's already ahead in all of these polls that we're
1339
01:17:46.850 --> 01:17:51.789
seeing actual reputable polls. And so it looks like, call
1340
01:17:51.810 --> 01:17:54.210
me crazy, that if you have a candidate who actually
1341
01:17:54.250 --> 01:17:56.850
speaks out for the things that Americans want, they might
1342
01:17:56.939 --> 01:17:57.880
actually get some support.
1343
01:17:58.539 --> 01:18:04.199
All right, now I'm going to use my extended play
1344
01:18:04.859 --> 01:18:07.279
credit to ask you to comment on one more thing.
1345
01:18:07.699 --> 01:18:09.859
I feel like I'm keeping a little over time. Because
1346
01:18:09.899 --> 01:18:12.680
we're talking about this and candidates that weren't supposed to win,
1347
01:18:12.699 --> 01:18:15.760
you made me think of it. The Texas primary vote
1348
01:18:16.420 --> 01:18:22.560
is very much suggestive of what could be a real
1349
01:18:22.760 --> 01:18:25.939
flip in a state that seemed unflippable. I mean, I
1350
01:18:25.970 --> 01:18:30.720
get that... Beto O'Rourke, it was talked about as he
1351
01:18:30.739 --> 01:18:32.979
was on the cover of every magazine and seemed like
1352
01:18:33.279 --> 01:18:37.020
the it guy. But now it seems as though Tallarico
1353
01:18:37.100 --> 01:18:41.310
really may do something. Show me the– we have the
1354
01:18:41.369 --> 01:18:43.710
Texas– Texas I guess is one of the– here's the
1355
01:18:44.149 --> 01:18:47.409
Texas primary turnout. So you can see there are more
1356
01:18:47.449 --> 01:18:49.949
Democrats in the state. I don't know that necessarily the–
1357
01:18:50.000 --> 01:18:53.729
this matters, except for the fact that the GOP is
1358
01:18:54.119 --> 01:18:58.529
now calling for help. They're like basically radioing back to
1359
01:18:58.550 --> 01:19:02.289
the mothership to say, bring us more money and bring
1360
01:19:02.350 --> 01:19:05.369
us Donald Trump. Because they want to get that GOP
1361
01:19:05.710 --> 01:19:07.689
base that you see there on the bottom, they want
1362
01:19:07.729 --> 01:19:10.750
to get them to show up. Play Jared Cut One.
1363
01:19:10.789 --> 01:19:14.430
This is John Thune who is pitching for money and
1364
01:19:14.489 --> 01:19:17.670
for Trump to come to Texas and bring out the base.
1365
01:19:18.210 --> 01:19:22.460
Texas is an incredibly expensive state and obviously one that
1366
01:19:22.539 --> 01:19:24.479
we need, that we've got to hold. If we're going
1367
01:19:24.500 --> 01:19:25.920
to keep the United States in, if we're going to
1368
01:19:25.939 --> 01:19:28.720
keep a majority, Martha, with Texas, that is... We absolutely
1369
01:19:28.760 --> 01:19:31.420
have to win that race. So everybody is all in
1370
01:19:31.479 --> 01:19:34.460
for Ken Paxton. The primary is over. We're focused now
1371
01:19:34.500 --> 01:19:37.439
on the general election. But because Texas is such an
1372
01:19:37.500 --> 01:19:40.659
expensive state, we're going to need the president and his
1373
01:19:40.680 --> 01:19:43.909
team to be engaged there and to be putting resources
1374
01:19:43.949 --> 01:19:44.510
into that race.
1375
01:19:44.909 --> 01:19:48.609
So Ken Paxton, who's maybe one of the most corrupt
1376
01:19:48.689 --> 01:19:51.649
candidates in the history of the country. But you can
1377
01:19:51.670 --> 01:19:54.670
see that the bat beam is going up for GOP help.
1378
01:19:55.720 --> 01:19:59.369
Yeah, I mean, Paxton is a subterranean creature. I mean,
1379
01:19:59.409 --> 01:20:02.109
that helps the case right there. But I want to
1380
01:20:02.130 --> 01:20:04.890
point out, in the clip that you just played, as
1381
01:20:04.949 --> 01:20:08.859
they're talking about needing more resources in Texas because Tallarico
1382
01:20:08.939 --> 01:20:13.460
could possibly win this race, you're watching another natural disaster
1383
01:20:13.539 --> 01:20:17.890
bearing down on Texas. You're watching yet another storm getting
1384
01:20:17.949 --> 01:20:20.170
ready to hit Texas. And this is one of the
1385
01:20:20.210 --> 01:20:22.270
things I think that gets lost in all of this.
1386
01:20:22.729 --> 01:20:26.529
First of all, Texans, they are around immigrants all the time.
1387
01:20:26.829 --> 01:20:29.970
They work with them. They know them. They're their neighbors.
1388
01:20:30.329 --> 01:20:33.529
Eventually over time, they're kind of like, these people aren't monsters.
1389
01:20:33.890 --> 01:20:36.750
This is the guy in the family next door. Second
1390
01:20:36.770 --> 01:20:43.109
of all, Texas gets hit by so many natural disasters constantly. Flooding, storms.
1391
01:20:43.680 --> 01:20:47.119
Ice storms that kill people at some point or another.
1392
01:20:47.189 --> 01:20:49.949
They look around and even if it's unconscious, they're like,
1393
01:20:50.029 --> 01:20:52.810
you know what? Our leadership isn't taking care of this.
1394
01:20:53.369 --> 01:20:55.710
Something is going on that needs to change. Of course,
1395
01:20:55.829 --> 01:20:57.409
I want to point out one last thing, because I
1396
01:20:57.449 --> 01:21:00.569
do think Tallarico has has a chance at this. Another
1397
01:21:00.609 --> 01:21:03.130
thing most people don't know about Texas, some of the
1398
01:21:03.310 --> 01:21:06.960
dirtiest politics that you will ever come across in the
1399
01:21:07.000 --> 01:21:09.960
United States of America. And if there is a possibility
1400
01:21:09.979 --> 01:21:14.159
of a Democrat winning a statewide office for senator, you
1401
01:21:14.220 --> 01:21:17.859
are going to see them try everything, throw every piece
1402
01:21:18.000 --> 01:21:20.840
of their artillery and corruption at it. So I think
1403
01:21:20.899 --> 01:21:23.079
this is going to be one of those races. we're
1404
01:21:23.100 --> 01:21:25.470
not only going to watch the possibility of a Democrat winning,
1405
01:21:25.829 --> 01:21:28.229
we're going to see the full thrust and power of
1406
01:21:28.270 --> 01:21:30.909
the corrupt Republican system in Texas being thrown at it.
1407
01:21:31.609 --> 01:21:34.930
It's an extraordinary thing to see this guy. And as
1408
01:21:34.970 --> 01:21:39.739
you say, it might just be the perfect lineup. Paxton
1409
01:21:39.779 --> 01:21:43.319
is so compromised and Tallarico seems to speak so well
1410
01:21:43.800 --> 01:21:47.130
to the concerns of Texans. But But he's getting muddied
1411
01:21:47.229 --> 01:21:48.970
up in every way they can. You know, they've called
1412
01:21:48.989 --> 01:21:52.939
him everything from– well, they've called him– they concoct everything
1413
01:21:52.960 --> 01:21:54.739
to call. And, of course, the national media in the
1414
01:21:54.779 --> 01:21:57.920
form of Fox News really helps out. And maybe with
1415
01:21:57.939 --> 01:22:00.390
an influx of money– I mean, Tallarico has out-raised them
1416
01:22:01.270 --> 01:22:03.250
so far. But with an influx of money, maybe they
1417
01:22:03.270 --> 01:22:05.350
can get more of that smear out in the form
1418
01:22:05.390 --> 01:22:09.460
of messaging. I've kept you way over time. Very generous
1419
01:22:09.500 --> 01:22:12.000
of you to hang out, man. I love our talk,
1420
01:22:12.039 --> 01:22:12.680
so we'll do it again.
1421
01:22:12.779 --> 01:22:14.220
I'd do this for hours, Mark.
1422
01:22:14.279 --> 01:22:19.850
All right. Jared Yates Sexton, a link to his sub
1423
01:22:19.869 --> 01:22:24.399
stack under this video. Thanks, my friend. See you next week. Bye-bye, pal.
1424
01:22:25.340 --> 01:22:25.680
Right on.
1425
01:22:27.359 --> 01:22:30.560
The Mark Thompson Show. All right.
1426
01:22:30.770 --> 01:22:32.170
I need to get to comments. I need to get
1427
01:22:32.189 --> 01:22:32.829
to Belinda.
1428
01:22:32.850 --> 01:22:33.189
I know.
1429
01:22:33.270 --> 01:22:34.270
Your comments.
1430
01:22:34.310 --> 01:22:34.789
Exactly.
1431
01:22:34.850 --> 01:22:41.680
Jim Slayton with a $ 9. 99, $ 10 super chat, we'll call it.
1432
01:22:42.890 --> 01:22:45.220
Thanks for being a member of our channel. By the way,
1433
01:22:45.270 --> 01:22:50.060
if you are a contributor, I've said this before, at
1434
01:22:50.319 --> 01:22:53.500
Patreon or PayPal, there are links to both under this
1435
01:22:53.560 --> 01:22:56.939
video and under all our videos. I want to thank you.
1436
01:22:57.079 --> 01:23:00.319
And if you make a comment in the show, in
1437
01:23:00.340 --> 01:23:02.810
the live feed, just put a P at the beginning
1438
01:23:02.829 --> 01:23:04.829
of your comment, and then I'll recognize you as a
1439
01:23:05.329 --> 01:23:09.369
Patreon or PayPal subscriber or supporter. It's probably the better word.
1440
01:23:09.869 --> 01:23:11.859
And I just want you to know that I will
1441
01:23:12.199 --> 01:23:16.199
try to acknowledge it publicly. We acknowledge publicly the... channel
1442
01:23:16.220 --> 01:23:17.920
membership because it's there for us to see. But if
1443
01:23:17.939 --> 01:23:19.880
you put a P in front of your comment, I
1444
01:23:20.359 --> 01:23:22.659
promise I'll try to acknowledge you in that way. If
1445
01:23:22.699 --> 01:23:24.960
that's important to you, I want you to get that.
1446
01:23:25.420 --> 01:23:27.760
The end times have been discussed since the beginning of time.
1447
01:23:27.819 --> 01:23:33.359
It's true. Yeah, it is true. They're always referred to,
1448
01:23:33.460 --> 01:23:39.619
but it does feel oddly discomforting when you have a
1449
01:23:40.159 --> 01:23:43.930
leader with his finger on the button who was talking
1450
01:23:43.949 --> 01:23:45.750
about the fact that now if they happen, they happen,
1451
01:23:45.789 --> 01:23:48.789
could happen the next few months. Richard Delamater with a
1452
01:23:48.789 --> 01:23:52.569
$ 2 super chat in the seventies, the doomsday clock was
1453
01:23:52.750 --> 01:23:56.609
at two hours plus now it's at 35 seconds. Yeah.
1454
01:23:57.069 --> 01:23:59.380
Doomsday clock. I never know how to digest that. Was
1455
01:23:59.420 --> 01:24:03.819
it really a two hours plus in the seventies? Maybe
1456
01:24:03.840 --> 01:24:05.680
you could check that. I'm not sure that that's true.
1457
01:24:05.720 --> 01:24:06.939
I always felt like it's a Google.
1458
01:24:06.960 --> 01:24:07.060
Yeah.
1459
01:24:07.079 --> 01:24:10.439
I don't know. Maybe that is true though. I don't know. Um,
1460
01:24:13.609 --> 01:24:17.789
And Randy says, I've seen reports that Texas is just
1461
01:24:17.850 --> 01:24:20.050
removing a lot of people from their voter registration list
1462
01:24:20.369 --> 01:24:22.619
for no reason. Yeah, I saw that as well. I
1463
01:24:22.659 --> 01:24:25.720
don't know to what extent that that is happening. I'd
1464
01:24:25.739 --> 01:24:27.420
like to see some more reporting on it, but it's
1465
01:24:27.460 --> 01:24:30.039
clearly being done. I mean, I always felt Georgia was
1466
01:24:30.100 --> 01:24:32.779
the state that took that to high art, but maybe
1467
01:24:32.819 --> 01:24:36.930
Texas is not far behind. Texas did away with more
1468
01:24:37.430 --> 01:24:40.729
ballot boxes today, of course, in mainly Democratic areas. Yeah,
1469
01:24:40.750 --> 01:24:43.039
that has been their move to suppress the vote. They
1470
01:24:43.079 --> 01:24:45.859
take away those ballot boxes. So the place that you
1471
01:24:46.020 --> 01:24:49.649
ballot drop-offs, the place where you can drop off that ballot,
1472
01:24:49.970 --> 01:24:52.510
it becomes farther and farther away from wherever you are.
1473
01:24:53.970 --> 01:24:57.949
So is that it? Because I have Belinda waiting. All right.
1474
01:24:59.569 --> 01:25:02.100
Smash the like button, if you would, everybody. Smash it
1475
01:25:02.159 --> 01:25:04.439
with your iron rod. Smash the like button, hit the
1476
01:25:04.460 --> 01:25:06.939
notification bell, and please subscribe to the show. All those
1477
01:25:06.979 --> 01:25:09.649
things are free. And that keeps us in your feed.
1478
01:25:10.090 --> 01:25:12.270
Do make sure you refresh your feed to make sure
1479
01:25:12.289 --> 01:25:14.770
you are subscribed to the show. Smash it with your
1480
01:25:15.020 --> 01:25:20.159
iron rod. Do some smashing. All right. On Wednesdays, we
1481
01:25:20.180 --> 01:25:22.579
like to look at the planet. And we do it
1482
01:25:22.619 --> 01:25:25.739
with someone who's an eco-journalist and gives us a lot
1483
01:25:25.760 --> 01:25:29.229
of good news, which seems as though it's in short supply,
1484
01:25:29.399 --> 01:25:33.390
and also some of the tough medicine. We do it
1485
01:25:33.430 --> 01:25:36.720
in a segment we call It's the Planet, Stupid. The
1486
01:25:36.770 --> 01:25:37.699
planet Earth.
1487
01:25:38.180 --> 01:25:41.859
Some call me nature. I am very passionate about the planet.
1488
01:25:42.060 --> 01:25:42.199
Earth.
1489
01:25:42.739 --> 01:25:46.199
A living, breathing planet capable of sustaining whatever life forms
1490
01:25:46.239 --> 01:25:48.140
we see fit to deposit on it. Spock.
1491
01:25:48.680 --> 01:25:51.199
Judging by the pollution content of the atmosphere, I believe
1492
01:25:51.239 --> 01:25:52.890
we have arrived. It's the planet stupid.
1493
01:25:52.899 --> 01:25:55.170
No, no, no. It's the planet stupid.
1494
01:25:57.949 --> 01:26:04.789
Our guide for the It's the Planet Stupid, eco-journalist Belinda Weymouth. Hello, Belinda. Belinda,
1495
01:26:05.229 --> 01:26:09.100
I always tout the fact that you have good news.
1496
01:26:09.140 --> 01:26:13.760
It seems regularly somehow in the ashes and horror of
1497
01:26:13.779 --> 01:26:17.430
what we're doing to the planet, you find some morsels
1498
01:26:17.770 --> 01:26:21.329
of goodness. And so it is today, I believe out
1499
01:26:21.369 --> 01:26:22.710
of South Dakota, right?
1500
01:26:23.130 --> 01:26:25.270
South Dakota. And this is really unusual because this is
1501
01:26:25.329 --> 01:26:30.829
a tribal win. So this is huge. Um, So this
1502
01:26:31.189 --> 01:26:36.270
all started in February with our National Forestry Service doing
1503
01:26:36.329 --> 01:26:41.699
something they shouldn't do. They granted an exemption, supposedly this
1504
01:26:42.340 --> 01:26:44.979
waiver that you can give to a one-year mining project,
1505
01:26:45.520 --> 01:26:47.119
but they gave it to a company that had a
1506
01:26:47.180 --> 01:26:52.449
three-year project. They slipped it in very quietly. to a
1507
01:26:52.590 --> 01:26:56.930
local company, Pete Lean and Sons, who are in the
1508
01:26:57.010 --> 01:27:01.229
construction materials and mining business for limestone and for concrete.
1509
01:27:01.270 --> 01:27:04.340
That's what they supply. But this time, they were going
1510
01:27:04.359 --> 01:27:07.760
to be drilling 18 holes looking for graphite. And where
1511
01:27:07.779 --> 01:27:09.300
were they going to be doing it? Well, they were
1512
01:27:09.479 --> 01:27:12.539
going to be doing it on the sacred prairie. It's called,
1513
01:27:12.619 --> 01:27:14.979
and I'm going to not say the name correctly, but
1514
01:27:15.119 --> 01:27:18.539
Pei Sla, I think is how you say it. And
1515
01:27:19.180 --> 01:27:22.399
So this is the Oglala Lakota. They're part of the,
1516
01:27:22.479 --> 01:27:28.479
you know, sort of the Sioux tribe umbrella. And, you know,
1517
01:27:28.760 --> 01:27:33.220
just there was an attractive land that was categorized as
1518
01:27:33.260 --> 01:27:37.329
this will be a buffer. The sacred central meadow is
1519
01:27:37.390 --> 01:27:42.329
here off this prairie. You know, it's been sacred for
1520
01:27:42.369 --> 01:27:45.180
thousands of years. It needs to be protected. 10 of
1521
01:27:45.220 --> 01:27:48.100
the 18 boreholes were going to be inside this buffer zone.
1522
01:27:48.140 --> 01:27:50.399
That's how egregious it was. And just to let our
1523
01:27:50.520 --> 01:27:55.380
audience know what happens with mining is that the world over,
1524
01:27:55.380 --> 01:28:01.619
50% of the mines that are looking for copper, lithium, graphite, cobalt,
1525
01:28:01.619 --> 01:28:05.800
50% of them are either on or near tribal lands.
1526
01:28:05.880 --> 01:28:08.659
So all the decimation that comes from all that mining,
1527
01:28:08.699 --> 01:28:13.090
all the poisoned water, the open pits that are left,
1528
01:28:13.189 --> 01:28:17.970
the bad health comes health outcomes that are a residual,
1529
01:28:18.060 --> 01:28:21.050
you know, effect of it are left and all the
1530
01:28:21.109 --> 01:28:24.689
profit goes somewhere else. So it's just, it's just awful.
1531
01:28:24.930 --> 01:28:28.989
And anyway, what happened was this, this was sort of
1532
01:28:29.069 --> 01:28:34.729
this amazing kind of coalition of tribes, you know, advocacy groups,
1533
01:28:34.869 --> 01:28:37.949
all these tribes, you know, going to court saying, you know,
1534
01:28:37.970 --> 01:28:39.829
we need to stop this. This is wrong. What are
1535
01:28:39.850 --> 01:28:41.840
you done is illegal. Because what you find is when
1536
01:28:42.380 --> 01:28:45.500
it's been this sort of high speed permitting, there's always
1537
01:28:45.539 --> 01:28:47.699
something that they've done wrong. And the thing that they
1538
01:28:47.720 --> 01:28:49.319
found that they've done wrong was that, you know, you
1539
01:28:49.439 --> 01:28:51.560
can do a one year waiver, but not something on
1540
01:28:51.600 --> 01:28:55.439
a three year project. And so the tribes were fighting
1541
01:28:55.460 --> 01:28:58.880
them in court And this was all happening at the
1542
01:28:58.920 --> 01:29:02.020
beginning of April. And then on April 30th, two scouts
1543
01:29:02.199 --> 01:29:05.310
went out and they took a drone and they said,
1544
01:29:05.319 --> 01:29:06.930
you know, they saw an eagle in the sky. They
1545
01:29:06.970 --> 01:29:09.010
saw a deer, you know, and they said, was it
1546
01:29:09.050 --> 01:29:11.470
a coincidence, you know, that led them there? But the
1547
01:29:11.510 --> 01:29:15.250
mining had started already. They were already drilling before, you know,
1548
01:29:15.609 --> 01:29:18.090
the due process had happened. You know, Pete Lean and
1549
01:29:18.130 --> 01:29:21.189
Sons was, you know, out there doing the drilling. And
1550
01:29:21.350 --> 01:29:26.310
they acted really quickly by May 4th, So they were
1551
01:29:26.409 --> 01:29:28.689
fighting in the courts saying we need a restraining order.
1552
01:29:28.729 --> 01:29:30.949
But then they put their bodies on the line and
1553
01:29:30.970 --> 01:29:34.270
they took 40 of them went. They blocked the mining road.
1554
01:29:34.289 --> 01:29:36.689
They went up at night. It was freezing. The ground
1555
01:29:36.729 --> 01:29:40.609
was frozen. They so they used their bodies like this.
1556
01:29:40.649 --> 01:29:45.000
It was completely nonviolent. They bolted themselves. You can see
1557
01:29:45.060 --> 01:29:47.819
there in the photo. He's got a red bandana on.
1558
01:29:48.039 --> 01:29:50.399
The temperatures got down to 10 degrees, by the way,
1559
01:29:50.439 --> 01:29:53.779
at night. They bolted themselves onto the drilling equipment. They
1560
01:29:53.819 --> 01:29:58.090
set up prayer altars on the drilling pads and they
1561
01:29:58.250 --> 01:30:01.270
slept up there. And it was, you know, super cold,
1562
01:30:01.369 --> 01:30:03.869
no fires because there'd been droughts. So you couldn't light
1563
01:30:03.930 --> 01:30:07.010
any fires. And the first day of nonviolent protests went
1564
01:30:07.069 --> 01:30:09.189
so well, they went, hey, you know, maybe we'll stay
1565
01:30:09.210 --> 01:30:12.510
because it's also, you know, you're telling a story about
1566
01:30:12.550 --> 01:30:14.489
this is what's happening on our land. And they also
1567
01:30:14.529 --> 01:30:17.609
knew the optics. If you tried to drag off two
1568
01:30:17.770 --> 01:30:21.649
indigenous you know sort of actual ceremonial prayer altars off
1569
01:30:21.689 --> 01:30:25.399
a mountain the optics on that would be terrible and
1570
01:30:25.520 --> 01:30:28.300
also as the local news was calling the protested you
1571
01:30:28.340 --> 01:30:31.960
know armed and dangerous they were you know filming themselves
1572
01:30:32.039 --> 01:30:34.119
and sending it out live this is what we're doing
1573
01:30:34.159 --> 01:30:36.569
we're just we're doing a Gandhi we're sitting here you
1574
01:30:36.590 --> 01:30:43.710
know cross-legged and praying um and Uh, you know, it worked.
1575
01:30:43.810 --> 01:30:46.619
And then what happened was a federal judge came in
1576
01:30:46.779 --> 01:30:49.220
and looked and saw what the, the, you know, I mean,
1577
01:30:49.279 --> 01:30:53.520
our national forestry service under this administration, it's just so awful.
1578
01:30:53.619 --> 01:30:58.909
All this precious, precious, you know, American forestry, you know, land, uh,
1579
01:30:58.949 --> 01:31:03.270
they found that it was illegal. And, um, the company
1580
01:31:03.479 --> 01:31:06.979
decided like this is going to be a long and
1581
01:31:07.100 --> 01:31:10.500
hard fight and to try and come back from doing
1582
01:31:10.579 --> 01:31:12.699
something that's now been found illegal and to do the
1583
01:31:12.739 --> 01:31:16.640
process again, is it worth it? And then I do
1584
01:31:16.659 --> 01:31:19.359
have to add this because this is sort of the
1585
01:31:19.520 --> 01:31:22.020
irony is the thing that they were boring, you know,
1586
01:31:22.039 --> 01:31:26.529
doing these boreholes, these exploratory boreholes for was for graphite
1587
01:31:26.590 --> 01:31:30.590
and graphite is something that goes in electric car batteries. So,
1588
01:31:31.439 --> 01:31:37.479
So it's sort of horribly ironic that you're looking for
1589
01:31:37.520 --> 01:31:39.789
something that's going to help save the planet, but you're
1590
01:31:39.810 --> 01:31:41.850
wrecking the planet while you're looking for that thing.
1591
01:31:42.090 --> 01:31:42.670
I see.
1592
01:31:42.729 --> 01:31:47.390
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So your point is that the mining
1593
01:31:47.430 --> 01:31:48.979
company decided it's just not worth it.
1594
01:31:49.770 --> 01:31:53.090
They decided it wasn't worth it. I think the optics
1595
01:31:53.130 --> 01:31:55.649
were so bad for them, and they realized that the
1596
01:31:55.750 --> 01:31:59.350
legal fight, and because what had happened was illegal. This permitting,
1597
01:31:59.369 --> 01:32:03.020
this waiver that they got was illegal. And they haven't
1598
01:32:03.529 --> 01:32:06.119
made any comments. They just quietly withdrew.
1599
01:32:06.380 --> 01:32:13.100
And this is something that is common, as you suggested,
1600
01:32:13.640 --> 01:32:17.760
the leasing now of public lands for mineral exploitation of
1601
01:32:17.819 --> 01:32:20.239
all sorts, for logging, et cetera. That's something. But the
1602
01:32:20.350 --> 01:32:24.689
other thing is what's happening with Native American tribes. I mean,
1603
01:32:24.710 --> 01:32:30.119
this is happening. It happened in Arizona. Yes. This mining,
1604
01:32:30.880 --> 01:32:37.609
this voracious appetite for eating up the land associated with
1605
01:32:37.649 --> 01:32:42.750
the Native American sacred sites, it's happening all over. I mean,
1606
01:32:42.810 --> 01:32:45.250
Tony's got a map up right now.
1607
01:32:45.270 --> 01:32:45.340
Yes.
1608
01:32:46.590 --> 01:32:50.149
You know, when this goes south, you understand, when this
1609
01:32:50.210 --> 01:32:52.489
goes bad, that is to say when they are allowed
1610
01:32:52.550 --> 01:32:55.649
to mine, you get what you're talking about, Belinda. You
1611
01:32:55.689 --> 01:32:59.560
get the poisoning of water systems. You get these open pits.
1612
01:32:59.600 --> 01:33:03.239
You get tremendous health effects in the negative. I mean,
1613
01:33:03.539 --> 01:33:07.180
cancers and all the rest. This is a really dirty business.
1614
01:33:07.640 --> 01:33:11.729
And the idea that there's sort of a I think
1615
01:33:11.869 --> 01:33:15.239
the idea– this might be my sensitivities to Native Americans
1616
01:33:15.279 --> 01:33:17.699
and what we've done to them from the very beginning
1617
01:33:17.720 --> 01:33:20.399
of our presence. But I don't want to say our presence.
1618
01:33:20.479 --> 01:33:24.210
I wasn't here. But you know what I mean. The U.S.
1619
01:33:24.229 --> 01:33:29.800
government has really destroyed their lives in so many ways historically.
1620
01:33:30.119 --> 01:33:33.909
And then there's sort of this– implied thing which is
1621
01:33:34.350 --> 01:33:36.100
oh and of course we can go back in anytime
1622
01:33:36.140 --> 01:33:40.260
we want and okay some mineral rights and some mineral
1623
01:33:40.319 --> 01:33:44.380
exploitations and I mean it's it's outrageous I mean hands
1624
01:33:44.439 --> 01:33:46.140
off the Native Americans already.
1625
01:33:45.859 --> 01:33:50.680
Yeah yeah yeah no it is so egregiously outrageously I
1626
01:33:50.699 --> 01:33:53.579
mean it's just it's so criminal I saw this piece
1627
01:33:53.619 --> 01:33:55.840
of art I've just texted it to you and to
1628
01:33:55.859 --> 01:33:56.579
Kim I don't know.
1629
01:33:56.500 --> 01:33:58.079
If you can throw it up on the show but
1630
01:33:58.479 --> 01:34:00.899
yesterday my daughter and I were at LACMA and And
1631
01:34:00.920 --> 01:34:03.560
there was this great piece. Now, I didn't take down
1632
01:34:03.579 --> 01:34:08.079
the artist's name. The indigenous person in it looks more
1633
01:34:08.319 --> 01:34:13.050
Aztec-ian to me than Native American. But he is pointing
1634
01:34:13.069 --> 01:34:16.250
his finger a la Uncle Sam saying, who's the illegal
1635
01:34:16.369 --> 01:34:24.130
alien pilgrim? And one of the women from the nonprofit
1636
01:34:24.270 --> 01:34:28.569
advocacy group in South Dakota, this woman, Dr. Valeria Big Eagle,
1637
01:34:28.630 --> 01:34:30.510
she said this great thing. She said, you know, we're
1638
01:34:30.529 --> 01:34:33.029
the people used to being screwed over by the government
1639
01:34:33.409 --> 01:34:37.010
at every level. So what a surprise that we won. And,
1640
01:34:37.369 --> 01:34:39.380
you know, the awful thing is when you go in
1641
01:34:39.479 --> 01:34:42.340
and you do exploratory mining for one thing, you might
1642
01:34:42.380 --> 01:34:45.039
not find that one thing, but you might find something else.
1643
01:34:45.729 --> 01:34:48.369
And that mine that they've just been allowed to do
1644
01:34:48.550 --> 01:34:51.649
in Arizona, that's going to be the biggest mine. It's
1645
01:34:51.720 --> 01:34:55.380
for copper. And it will be the biggest mine and,
1646
01:34:55.449 --> 01:34:58.500
you know, mining pollution. The tribes there are fighting it
1647
01:34:58.560 --> 01:35:04.720
as well. But it is, it's just so unbelievably terrible.
1648
01:35:04.779 --> 01:35:08.319
And when I read the statistic that, you know, that
1649
01:35:08.319 --> 01:35:10.199
50% of the mines the world over are either on
1650
01:35:10.239 --> 01:35:13.199
indigenous land or very near it. And that all the money,
1651
01:35:14.329 --> 01:35:16.930
Even when it's happening on indigenous land, you're not getting
1652
01:35:16.970 --> 01:35:19.579
the money. That mining company that got the rights from
1653
01:35:19.600 --> 01:35:24.220
a corrupt U.S. forestry service, I mean, they shouldn't be
1654
01:35:24.239 --> 01:35:26.720
able to sleep at night, those officials who allowed that
1655
01:35:26.760 --> 01:35:30.880
to go through. And I actually wonder if Pete Lean
1656
01:35:30.920 --> 01:35:32.779
kind of went, oh my, you know, like we really.
1657
01:35:32.619 --> 01:35:33.140
Did something wrong.
1658
01:35:33.159 --> 01:35:34.899
Yeah, Pete Lean is the company, the mining company.
1659
01:35:34.939 --> 01:35:37.380
Yeah, the mining company in North South Coast.
1660
01:35:38.060 --> 01:35:39.340
I only have a couple of minutes left, so I
1661
01:35:39.359 --> 01:35:41.710
want you to, oh, there it is. Who's the illegal
1662
01:35:42.010 --> 01:35:45.409
alien pilgrim? Exactly. I mean, this has been since the
1663
01:35:45.430 --> 01:35:46.729
beginning of time, you know.
1664
01:35:46.750 --> 01:35:48.850
Yeah, no, it's terrible.
1665
01:35:48.890 --> 01:35:50.430
There's sort of, I guess what I was trying to
1666
01:35:50.470 --> 01:35:52.789
get at was there's sort of this presumption that you
1667
01:35:52.829 --> 01:35:56.800
can still go back to Native American lands and plunder land.
1668
01:35:57.069 --> 01:35:59.529
you know, for your, your own ends. I mean, you know,
1669
01:35:59.609 --> 01:36:02.470
I'll give you a, everybody, this is a documentary. You
1670
01:36:02.489 --> 01:36:04.470
can find this on YouTube. It's a, I think there've
1671
01:36:04.489 --> 01:36:06.810
been several documentaries done on this. It's like a 45
1672
01:36:06.810 --> 01:36:10.829
minute watch on YouTube about the Dan sisters. And if
1673
01:36:10.850 --> 01:36:16.079
you want to see a compelling documentary about what we're
1674
01:36:16.119 --> 01:36:18.600
talking about, which is the U S government coming in
1675
01:36:18.659 --> 01:36:22.140
and just having their way with a land that has
1676
01:36:22.180 --> 01:36:26.039
been recognized by treaty. I mean, they had the treaty there.
1677
01:36:27.680 --> 01:36:30.579
as protected land. And the government comes in and says,
1678
01:36:30.640 --> 01:36:32.539
we want to buy that land now. And they say, no,
1679
01:36:32.539 --> 01:36:34.600
we don't want you to buy it. It's our land.
1680
01:36:34.739 --> 01:36:37.939
It's our sacred land. We let the horses run wild here.
1681
01:36:38.000 --> 01:36:40.930
This is what we want. And the government comes in anyway.
1682
01:36:41.149 --> 01:36:44.710
And I won't give away too much, but it's really compelling. It's, again,
1683
01:36:44.770 --> 01:36:48.789
the Dan sisters in Nevada. And I'd love for you
1684
01:36:48.829 --> 01:36:50.609
to watch that. And then tell me you watched it.
1685
01:36:50.649 --> 01:36:52.689
Send me an email and tell me your thoughts. But
1686
01:36:52.989 --> 01:36:57.210
what I think is revealed immediately with the Dan sisters
1687
01:36:57.289 --> 01:36:59.430
and which is also revealed in the story you told
1688
01:36:59.449 --> 01:37:01.289
him what we were talking about is that there's this
1689
01:37:01.409 --> 01:37:04.800
sense of, uh, again, it's almost like this manifest destiny
1690
01:37:04.859 --> 01:37:07.119
kind of presumption. We can go wherever we want. We
1691
01:37:07.140 --> 01:37:10.060
can take whatever we want. We can continue to plunder
1692
01:37:10.640 --> 01:37:15.310
and already plundered people for more. And it's really despicable.
1693
01:37:15.390 --> 01:37:19.979
It's the worst of America. So now, um, thank you
1694
01:37:19.989 --> 01:37:23.199
for letting me make that speech. So now let me
1695
01:37:23.579 --> 01:37:25.899
ask you to take us out with one other thing.
1696
01:37:25.939 --> 01:37:27.539
I think you have one other story and I'd love to.
1697
01:37:27.539 --> 01:37:30.100
Well, the other thing I sent you guys a link to,
1698
01:37:30.119 --> 01:37:32.539
which I think is amazing, is we're always talking about
1699
01:37:32.579 --> 01:37:34.500
solar panels and if you just put them everywhere you
1700
01:37:34.539 --> 01:37:37.140
possibly can. So now look where they are. They're between
1701
01:37:37.260 --> 01:37:42.239
railway lines. And this is unbelievable. They're doing this pilot project.
1702
01:37:42.319 --> 01:37:45.489
It's in Switzerland. They've got 3,000 miles in between their
1703
01:37:45.510 --> 01:37:50.149
little alpine villages in Geneva and Zurich. And it takes
1704
01:37:50.590 --> 01:37:53.810
a worker 10 minutes, they say, to put one in,
1705
01:37:53.829 --> 01:37:55.770
to take one out. They just use these pistons to
1706
01:37:55.789 --> 01:37:59.569
hold them in between the two, the actual tracks. They're
1707
01:37:59.590 --> 01:38:02.060
going to do it in France. Do you know that
1708
01:38:02.079 --> 01:38:07.939
in France, the National Railway Company, that's SNFC, they use
1709
01:38:08.000 --> 01:38:11.640
more electricity than any other user in France. And they
1710
01:38:11.680 --> 01:38:14.239
also are the biggest landowner. And they're saying, hey, we
1711
01:38:14.260 --> 01:38:16.180
want to do this as a pilot project because we're
1712
01:38:16.590 --> 01:38:19.630
They can supply such a huge amount of the electricity
1713
01:38:19.710 --> 01:38:22.350
they need. South Korea is going to do it. Italy
1714
01:38:22.369 --> 01:38:24.569
is going to do it. Everyone is looking at this
1715
01:38:24.649 --> 01:38:27.489
and saying, yes, this is an amazing use of a
1716
01:38:27.649 --> 01:38:29.729
piece of land that we then don't have to go
1717
01:38:29.789 --> 01:38:32.760
in and take you know um uh you know a
1718
01:38:32.840 --> 01:38:35.880
prairie that belongs to an indigenous tribe and put our
1719
01:38:35.920 --> 01:38:37.899
you know solar panels there we can actually use it
1720
01:38:37.939 --> 01:38:41.340
on land we already have and so i think this
1721
01:38:41.399 --> 01:38:48.180
kind of um innovative, you know, application with solar, you know,
1722
01:38:48.359 --> 01:38:50.239
on every roof, you know, I mean, Jake said to
1723
01:38:50.279 --> 01:38:53.020
me the other day, my funny husband, do you know
1724
01:38:53.079 --> 01:38:55.359
about balcony solar? I was like, Jake, I've already talked
1725
01:38:55.399 --> 01:38:57.050
about it on the show. Of course I know about
1726
01:38:57.119 --> 01:39:00.170
balcony solar. Dude, what do you think I'm doing? But,
1727
01:39:00.529 --> 01:39:02.750
you know, balcony solar, you live in an apartment, you
1728
01:39:02.770 --> 01:39:05.229
can put, you can throw one out on your balcony,
1729
01:39:05.250 --> 01:39:07.430
you can plug it in inside, you know, into your
1730
01:39:07.470 --> 01:39:09.649
house and you can be, you know, charging all your
1731
01:39:09.670 --> 01:39:12.399
devices on it. I mean, It's just becoming.
1732
01:39:12.039 --> 01:39:13.560
More and more accessible. Well, you showed us in Europe,
1733
01:39:13.600 --> 01:39:16.159
you showed us how many balconies have just what we're
1734
01:39:16.180 --> 01:39:19.020
showing right now, that balcony solar. And it's everywhere.
1735
01:39:19.199 --> 01:39:21.859
Yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly. And the thing that I also
1736
01:39:21.939 --> 01:39:24.539
love about this, you know, and pardon the pun, take
1737
01:39:24.579 --> 01:39:29.369
back the power, people. You know, it's like we can decentralize.
1738
01:39:29.409 --> 01:39:31.529
We can do it ourselves. You can put a solar
1739
01:39:31.550 --> 01:39:34.170
panel anywhere. I mean, you know, your backpack is going
1740
01:39:34.189 --> 01:39:37.170
to become a solar panel if it isn't already there. um,
1741
01:39:37.409 --> 01:39:39.170
you know, you can wear a sun hat with, you know,
1742
01:39:39.189 --> 01:39:42.060
it's going to have solar, you know, like, you know, fabric. Um,
1743
01:39:42.720 --> 01:39:47.819
it's just, you know, the, the energy revolution is happening
1744
01:39:48.340 --> 01:39:53.340
and we just need to shut down the fossil fuel industry.
1745
01:39:54.020 --> 01:39:57.390
You just need some buy-in. And unfortunately right now where
1746
01:39:57.869 --> 01:40:02.399
America is just, uh, where these troglodytes just living in
1747
01:40:02.439 --> 01:40:05.039
another age, it's just crazy. But yeah, there it is.
1748
01:40:05.079 --> 01:40:08.359
There's solar on somebody's backpack. There's solar everywhere. I mean,
1749
01:40:09.140 --> 01:40:11.840
you can recharge your phone with these solar packs that
1750
01:40:11.859 --> 01:40:15.939
they give you now. I mean, yet we have this
1751
01:40:16.020 --> 01:40:19.130
death grip on, it's worse than a death grip on
1752
01:40:19.729 --> 01:40:25.409
dirty fossil fuel energy. We're going after, aggressively going after
1753
01:40:25.449 --> 01:40:28.710
and trying to derail, if you'll pardon the expression in
1754
01:40:28.750 --> 01:40:31.619
this case, all of these efforts at wind and solar
1755
01:40:32.579 --> 01:40:35.659
supplementing the main grid. I mean, as a country, we're
1756
01:40:35.739 --> 01:40:37.680
as a government, we're going after them. We're trying to
1757
01:40:37.720 --> 01:40:40.220
make it deliberately harder for these things to happen.
1758
01:40:40.960 --> 01:40:43.960
But this is the now, and this is not the forever,
1759
01:40:44.180 --> 01:40:46.159
you know, Mark, this is what's happening right now. And
1760
01:40:46.199 --> 01:40:48.680
this is not our forever. You know, this will change.
1761
01:40:48.739 --> 01:40:51.439
It will absolutely change. It has to, you know, and
1762
01:40:51.479 --> 01:40:53.029
we saw it change the last time we had a
1763
01:40:53.069 --> 01:40:56.170
change of administration, you know, I mean, Biden got in there,
1764
01:40:56.210 --> 01:40:58.029
you know, he created the IRA and he put that
1765
01:40:58.050 --> 01:41:00.300
money in there. I mean, the, Terrible thing that happens
1766
01:41:00.310 --> 01:41:02.899
here is this ridiculous push-pull from one of those institutions.
1767
01:41:02.920 --> 01:41:04.399
Yeah, they undo what Biden did, exactly.
1768
01:41:04.420 --> 01:41:05.699
Yeah, yeah.
1769
01:41:06.460 --> 01:41:11.420
I was seeing that Portugal, the country, the whole goddamn
1770
01:41:11.460 --> 01:41:15.029
country is powered 80% on renewables.
1771
01:41:15.390 --> 01:41:16.609
Yeah, and you know what drove that?
1772
01:41:17.229 --> 01:41:17.630
Ukraine.
1773
01:41:17.750 --> 01:41:21.609
The Russians' invasion of Ukraine and the drying up of that,
1774
01:41:21.710 --> 01:41:23.729
you know, the natural gas that the rest of Europe got,
1775
01:41:23.770 --> 01:41:25.520
they all went, oh my goodness, you know, we need
1776
01:41:25.529 --> 01:41:28.329
to go To, you know, to solar and to renewables.
1777
01:41:28.569 --> 01:41:30.229
And remember the thing we talked about a couple of
1778
01:41:30.270 --> 01:41:33.710
weeks on the show about how the Spanish president can
1779
01:41:33.789 --> 01:41:37.069
say what he thinks of Trump because he doesn't need
1780
01:41:37.109 --> 01:41:40.529
the gas and the oil because there are renewables. You know,
1781
01:41:40.609 --> 01:41:42.949
whereas Italy, she has to keep, you know, doing this
1782
01:41:43.050 --> 01:41:45.630
with Trump because they need the gas and the oil.
1783
01:41:45.670 --> 01:41:47.630
But if you don't, then you don't have to count out.
1784
01:41:49.000 --> 01:41:51.260
You can find Belinda. Is there any other place they
1785
01:41:51.279 --> 01:41:53.739
can find you? I mean, you sent some email saying,
1786
01:41:54.279 --> 01:41:56.079
you know, if you want to update something. I didn't
1787
01:41:56.100 --> 01:41:57.079
know what you meant by that.
1788
01:41:57.539 --> 01:41:59.520
Oh, well, I'll do that with you privately. It was
1789
01:41:59.550 --> 01:42:03.869
my bio. Mo last week introduced me with my bio,
1790
01:42:03.949 --> 01:42:05.630
and it needs a little updating.
1791
01:42:05.789 --> 01:42:07.590
I see. No, yeah, I don't use your bio.
1792
01:42:07.630 --> 01:42:08.989
No, no, you know me.
1793
01:42:09.090 --> 01:42:11.409
I just basically, you know, slap your name on the
1794
01:42:11.449 --> 01:42:13.710
segment and, you know, get you off to the races.
1795
01:42:13.810 --> 01:42:16.850
So I call you an eco-journalist. I feel like that
1796
01:42:16.890 --> 01:42:19.869
pretty much covers it. But we will then we'll spruce
1797
01:42:19.909 --> 01:42:21.569
that up because I didn't know what that meant. I
1798
01:42:21.710 --> 01:42:24.590
am always delighted to spend time with you. And I'm
1799
01:42:24.630 --> 01:42:26.609
a bit downcast. I'll be honest with you.
1800
01:42:26.630 --> 01:42:27.510
Yeah.
1801
01:42:27.909 --> 01:42:31.949
That your husband, who I really love, never seems to
1802
01:42:32.010 --> 01:42:33.149
watch you on this show.
1803
01:42:33.289 --> 01:42:33.569
What?
1804
01:42:34.010 --> 01:42:36.520
I know. I mean, I'm just like, why is he
1805
01:42:36.569 --> 01:42:39.479
too busy at jujitsu or whatever the F he's doing
1806
01:42:39.779 --> 01:42:40.720
to watch his own wife?
1807
01:42:41.220 --> 01:42:44.739
Here's the thing I just need my segments if you
1808
01:42:44.760 --> 01:42:46.100
give me my segments then I.
1809
01:42:46.079 --> 01:42:48.229
Can put them up on my YouTube the rest of
1810
01:42:48.239 --> 01:42:49.909
the show isn't important okay you know what I've had
1811
01:42:49.949 --> 01:42:52.890
enough I just need my segments Mark just send me
1812
01:42:52.930 --> 01:42:58.350
my segments that is it say hello to Jake she's
1813
01:42:58.390 --> 01:43:03.390
the wonderful Belinda Weymouth it's the planet stupid for today more.
1814
01:43:03.170 --> 01:43:05.680
It's the planet stupid no no no it's the planet
1815
01:43:05.979 --> 01:43:06.960
stupid next.
1816
01:43:06.819 --> 01:43:09.439
Time only on the Mark Thompson show.
1817
01:43:11.840 --> 01:43:12.699
The Mark Thompson Show.
1818
01:43:12.760 --> 01:43:14.800
Everybody's got attitude today. I don't know what the attitude.
1819
01:43:14.819 --> 01:43:18.310
Everybody's got attitude. Correction, not two hours plus. Google says
1820
01:43:18.310 --> 01:43:22.770
10 minutes. My bad. Yeah, that's what I thought. I
1821
01:43:22.909 --> 01:43:27.850
don't know. The clock, you know, was never at two hours.
1822
01:43:28.729 --> 01:43:31.250
This is the clock. Tony's got it up through the,
1823
01:43:31.369 --> 01:43:36.229
you know, this is the doomsday clock. And when India became,
1824
01:43:37.430 --> 01:43:38.949
these are the various things. You can see them on
1825
01:43:38.989 --> 01:43:41.250
the right. For those just listening, I'll just kind of summarize.
1826
01:43:41.850 --> 01:43:45.479
passing the salt agreement. That was, uh, again, the, um,
1827
01:43:46.189 --> 01:43:49.380
agreement between the U S and the Soviets that would, uh,
1828
01:43:49.800 --> 01:43:52.399
kind of chill out the arms race. It was the
1829
01:43:52.420 --> 01:43:57.840
strategic arms limitation, uh, treaty. I think I said the salt.
1830
01:43:57.859 --> 01:44:01.319
Is that what it was? Um, and then, uh, again,
1831
01:44:02.260 --> 01:44:05.920
by 1980, it got worse. Rehating the cold war, uh,
1832
01:44:06.020 --> 01:44:08.739
stalemate and star Wars. These are all things made by 1988. Uh,
1833
01:44:10.770 --> 01:44:13.689
And then 1995, there was a close call. 1998, I
1834
01:44:14.210 --> 01:44:16.810
don't want to take it all through. But anyway, you
1835
01:44:16.869 --> 01:44:22.449
get it. And now we are into, I think, a
1836
01:44:22.489 --> 01:44:27.210
kind of adversarial relationship with the world. And they have
1837
01:44:27.250 --> 01:44:30.909
us at 85 seconds to midnight. Russia, China, the United States,
1838
01:44:31.710 --> 01:44:34.609
these are the nuclear powers, but there are other major
1839
01:44:34.680 --> 01:44:38.020
countries that have become increasingly aggressive, as they've noted here.
1840
01:44:39.079 --> 01:44:43.300
And A lot of the understandings, even between the Russians
1841
01:44:43.340 --> 01:44:48.399
and the Americans, have been undone by the Trump administration. So, yeah. Anyway,
1842
01:44:48.420 --> 01:44:51.020
that's the nuclear. Is it the nuclear clock or the
1843
01:44:51.050 --> 01:44:56.489
doomsday clock? The doomsday clock? That's it. Anything else I
1844
01:44:56.510 --> 01:44:58.729
need to do? Do we get to all comments? Because
1845
01:44:58.850 --> 01:45:00.789
I want to make sure we get to all comments.
1846
01:45:00.810 --> 01:45:01.329
Your comments.
1847
01:45:01.350 --> 01:45:01.609
I don't know.
1848
01:45:01.630 --> 01:45:05.250
I can't see because when we do a comment, Why
1849
01:45:05.270 --> 01:45:07.289
are they left up here? When you leave them up here,
1850
01:45:07.390 --> 01:45:09.649
it looks like you've got a bunch of comments to do.
1851
01:45:09.949 --> 01:45:11.699
I don't know what to do.
1852
01:45:11.699 --> 01:45:15.380
Whoever is reducing this thing has no idea what they're doing.
1853
01:45:15.500 --> 01:45:17.340
I don't get it. I don't know what you're talking about.
1854
01:45:17.380 --> 01:45:19.479
You mean when I leave star comments?
1855
01:45:19.500 --> 01:45:21.279
You don't know what I'm talking about. I blame you.
1856
01:45:21.319 --> 01:45:23.750
That's how I know. You know what I'm talking about.
1857
01:45:24.609 --> 01:45:26.949
What I'm talking about is after we do a comment,
1858
01:45:27.850 --> 01:45:31.079
why don't you– unstar it or get rid of it
1859
01:45:31.140 --> 01:45:33.000
so that I don't, so when I look at all
1860
01:45:33.020 --> 01:45:34.680
the comments, I don't look like I have, I'm thinking,
1861
01:45:34.699 --> 01:45:36.819
because I'm thinking, oh my God, I've got 15 comments
1862
01:45:37.119 --> 01:45:38.039
and I'm running behind.
1863
01:45:38.079 --> 01:45:40.539
Oh, so what happens is when I like one of
1864
01:45:40.579 --> 01:45:43.199
your comments, I'll put it in a special little file
1865
01:45:43.340 --> 01:45:45.600
with a star by it. But these are comments that
1866
01:45:45.659 --> 01:45:47.420
I thought were good that we haven't put up on
1867
01:45:47.460 --> 01:45:49.439
the screen yet. Not that you have to do them,
1868
01:45:49.739 --> 01:45:51.460
but if we needed them for some reason, they would
1869
01:45:51.479 --> 01:45:51.779
be there.
1870
01:45:52.899 --> 01:45:54.560
I don't think I really understand, actually.
1871
01:45:55.659 --> 01:45:56.560
It's very complicated.
1872
01:45:56.850 --> 01:45:58.489
I guess it is. I mean, I guess it is.
1873
01:45:58.689 --> 01:46:00.090
You just don't get it.
1874
01:46:00.149 --> 01:46:00.550
I don't.
1875
01:46:00.970 --> 01:46:01.350
You don't.
1876
01:46:01.470 --> 01:46:03.220
I don't. I don't get it. Like this one.
1877
01:46:03.340 --> 01:46:06.100
We haven't dealt with the issue yet, but if you
1878
01:46:06.119 --> 01:46:09.140
were to mention Venezuelan oil, here I have Randy's comment
1879
01:46:09.180 --> 01:46:09.699
regarding Venezuela.
1880
01:46:09.720 --> 01:46:11.699
Okay, so I guess the plan with Venezuela all along
1881
01:46:11.720 --> 01:46:14.130
was to take their oil, says Randy. I guess that's
1882
01:46:14.170 --> 01:46:18.189
why Trump didn't support Maria Corina Machado, because she would
1883
01:46:18.270 --> 01:46:23.439
be more popular and wouldn't have sold out. I would
1884
01:46:23.479 --> 01:46:26.079
say this about that. Of course, you're right. I mean,
1885
01:46:26.140 --> 01:46:29.710
this is the whole plan. We install our person. And
1886
01:46:30.449 --> 01:46:33.430
this is a mobster deal. I talked about it yesterday.
1887
01:46:33.609 --> 01:46:37.210
It's a total gangster move. You go in and, you know,
1888
01:46:37.550 --> 01:46:40.069
we now have a great relationship with Venezuela, is what
1889
01:46:40.090 --> 01:46:44.250
the president said, a great relationship at gunpoint. And now
1890
01:46:44.710 --> 01:46:48.149
he's made a bunch of claims about Exxon going in
1891
01:46:48.189 --> 01:46:51.680
and other major oil companies going in that. Are completely
1892
01:46:51.720 --> 01:46:54.939
fictitious so far. Chevron is there and apparently they're redoubling
1893
01:46:54.960 --> 01:46:59.760
their effort to use, I guess, the resources there in Venezuela.
1894
01:46:59.779 --> 01:47:03.600
But it's a gangster move to take over the state
1895
01:47:03.619 --> 01:47:07.600
of Venezuela. And I would say this just on your
1896
01:47:07.800 --> 01:47:13.279
specific comment. It probably would have happened no matter who
1897
01:47:13.319 --> 01:47:16.520
was president. That's what this administration is about. You know,
1898
01:47:16.539 --> 01:47:18.260
we're going to go into gunpoint anyway. You want to
1899
01:47:18.279 --> 01:47:18.779
play ball?
1900
01:47:18.819 --> 01:47:19.039
Great.
1901
01:47:19.319 --> 01:47:21.300
You should read the, it was in the 60s, I think,
1902
01:47:21.340 --> 01:47:24.520
maybe the early 70s, the book came out. Confessions of
1903
01:47:24.560 --> 01:47:27.439
an Economic Hitman. Many of you probably have read it.
1904
01:47:27.979 --> 01:47:30.199
It really goes into this. We used to do it
1905
01:47:30.239 --> 01:47:34.020
with more sleight of hand. This crew just goes in
1906
01:47:34.119 --> 01:47:38.310
guns blazing, you know. It'd be tough if something would
1907
01:47:38.329 --> 01:47:41.789
have happened to your beautiful country. It's such a gorgeous country, Venezuela.
1908
01:47:44.170 --> 01:47:44.470
All right.
1909
01:47:46.680 --> 01:47:49.020
Oh, speaking of Venezuela oil, Trump says it's going into
1910
01:47:49.060 --> 01:47:52.000
our strategic oil reserve, which is BS. Venezuela oil is
1911
01:47:52.039 --> 01:47:54.239
too heavy to go into our petroleum reserve. Yeah, this
1912
01:47:54.300 --> 01:47:56.760
is the BS about that. I don't even know that
1913
01:47:56.779 --> 01:47:59.539
Trump knows that. I mean, I think he just I
1914
01:47:59.579 --> 01:48:01.119
think he's not told about a bunch of stuff and
1915
01:48:01.159 --> 01:48:04.619
it's really struggling. Venezuelan oil is extra dirty. Yes. Jeff Carter.
1916
01:48:04.680 --> 01:48:09.899
It's true. It's true. Nellifidian says Trump likes coal and
1917
01:48:10.060 --> 01:48:12.319
oil because they pay him. Yeah, that's true. In fact,
1918
01:48:12.359 --> 01:48:15.750
he indicated that in the ramp up to his winning
1919
01:48:15.770 --> 01:48:18.630
the presidency, right? That he said, if you give me
1920
01:48:18.670 --> 01:48:20.409
a billion dollars, I'll give you a billion dollars. whatever
1921
01:48:20.470 --> 01:48:24.569
legislation you want he literally said that so and now
1922
01:48:24.890 --> 01:48:30.640
your comments no we've done the comments alright I am
1923
01:48:31.199 --> 01:48:36.500
going to call it then living in Trump gangster paradise
1924
01:48:36.619 --> 01:48:41.329
true yeah it is that It's a gangsta scene. Who's
1925
01:48:41.369 --> 01:48:43.170
on the show tomorrow, Kim McAllister?
1926
01:48:43.569 --> 01:48:47.189
Oh, we have some good guests coming up on the show.
1927
01:48:47.229 --> 01:48:48.220
We have David Katz.
1928
01:48:48.640 --> 01:48:52.739
Also, one of your favorite comedians, and David Katz is
1929
01:48:52.800 --> 01:48:55.619
a former federal prosecutor, now defense attorney, J.L.
1930
01:48:55.680 --> 01:48:57.359
Covan will be on the show.
1931
01:48:57.399 --> 01:49:00.880
Yeah, J.L. Covan is going to be here tomorrow. I'm
1932
01:49:01.079 --> 01:49:06.279
loving it. What a show. Tony, it's sad. This is
1933
01:49:06.319 --> 01:49:10.340
goodbye for you for the week. Till Monday. Until Monday.
1934
01:49:10.699 --> 01:49:12.479
But you're going to miss a good one. You should
1935
01:49:12.520 --> 01:49:15.130
dial it on up on your little magic device there.
1936
01:49:15.149 --> 01:49:16.770
I'll have it on in the background while I'm working.
1937
01:49:17.109 --> 01:49:20.569
Labor Day, we are dark. And September 11th, a special show.
1938
01:49:20.590 --> 01:49:23.329
We'll be live, but I've got a special interview on
1939
01:49:23.750 --> 01:49:25.680
September 11th that I want you to check out. It'll
1940
01:49:25.720 --> 01:49:27.079
be really something special.
1941
01:49:27.159 --> 01:49:27.659
And now.
1942
01:49:27.960 --> 01:49:30.560
I'm Shadow Stevens for the Mark Johnson Show.
1943
01:49:31.399 --> 01:49:31.680
Bye-bye.
1944
01:49:31.939 --> 01:49:35.000
Thank you, Tony. Thank you, Kim. Thank you, everybody, for participating.
1945
01:49:35.039 --> 01:49:35.460
Out of time.
1946
01:49:35.560 --> 01:49:36.199
Bye-bye.
1947
01:49:36.300 --> 01:49:36.850
Out of time.
1948
01:49:36.859 --> 01:49:37.520
Bye-bye.
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Yes, I am.
2
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Here I am. Yeah.
3
00:00:05.080 --> 00:00:10.039
So exciting to be part of a new show for
4
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a new day.
5
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Mark.
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Yeah, I'm a little... I'm overwhelmed by buttons right now
7
00:00:17.019 --> 00:00:19.160
because they're not in the normal spots. You know, I
8
00:00:19.179 --> 00:00:21.539
broke my ankle, so I'm now having to sit during
9
00:00:21.579 --> 00:00:25.160
the show. And so my position... in relation to all
10
00:00:25.219 --> 00:00:29.239
the buttons I normally press, is different. That's a little
11
00:00:29.440 --> 00:00:33.100
kind of explaining why I'm, you know, it is what
12
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it is here.
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Mark, are you here?
14
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Yes, he's here. Hello, Mark. I am excited about Jared
15
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Yates Sexton, who joins us today. Yeah, great writer, great
16
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political analyst, and John Rothman, the learned one.
17
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Yeah.
18
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The professor joins us in a few moments as well.
19
00:00:54.920 --> 00:00:57.920
The Middle East is back into a hot war situation.
20
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We'll update that. The Democratic Party is in its own
21
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little hot war with the left. And it looks as
22
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though I get it that the results in Massachusetts. Put
23
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an 80-year-old in the winner's circle in that primary. But
24
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it's less about age and more about progressivism. So we
25
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will talk about that. I also am going to take
26
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you to the Milo Yiannopoulos change in.
27
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Well, total change in position on Donald Trump. Yiannopoulos is
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hardly someone who I would... Well, I'd never positioned him
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as someone who should be revered in any way or
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even respected in any way for his positions that are,
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I think, pretty loathsome on many levels. He was the
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controversial college campus lecturer who was protested by many, and
33
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he became this kind of lightning rod. You know, he's
34
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sort of a— what would you call him— I don't know
35
00:02:08.090 --> 00:02:12.000
what an analog to Milo Yiannopoulos would be, but maybe
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you in the chat can tell me. But one of
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those controversial figures who, again, was loathed by many, but
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really out in front, really a big Trumpy, really worked
39
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to organize for Trump to get the word out for Trump. Well,
40
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now he has buyer's remorse, like so many others.
41
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Well, he got deported.
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That happened. Didn't help with his attitude. He thought they
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were talking about everyone but him.
44
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Nope.
45
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You too, pal. Sayonara. Some stuff from Mike Johnson today.
46
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Some clap back from El Sayed and Scott Besant, the
47
00:02:56.469 --> 00:03:02.050
president's Secretary Treasury, who really rolls over and plays dead
48
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for Donald Trump on any number of issues, is explaining
49
00:03:06.169 --> 00:03:13.699
the inflation problem in America without really acknowledging the elephant
50
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in the room, which is the Iran war. So I
51
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will get to that as well. The Texas Senate race,
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legit in play. And I will touch on that as
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well with... John Rothman. You know, the Democrats and Republicans
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in Texas face an issue with voting that's associated with
55
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voter suppression. They've done a lot of things associated with
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removing many of the polling places in Democratic districts, and
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they've also found other inventive ways to suppress the vote.
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And as a result, They're hoping that between the voter
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suppression and a big play to the base that they
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can get to the finish line and drag a corrupt
61
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Ken Paxton, maybe one of the most corrupt GOP candidates ever.
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And that says a lot. I mean, because Rick Scott,
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who was another GOP Senate candidate, was part of the
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biggest Medicare fraud in history. So when I mean, this guy, Paxton,
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I think, can go toe to toe with him. But anyway,
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they're trying to drag him across the finish line and
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they're making a call out to Trump to do it.
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So all of that stuff still to come. And we'll
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get to a bunch of it with John Rothman. We'll
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get to it with Jared Yates Sexton. Tony is with
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us today. And Tony is mourning the loss of someone
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who was quite notable. Tony, please share.
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Well, you know, last week we had Dolly, Tim, Prairie died,
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but also Peter Cullen died. So that one sucks.
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Peter Cullen, the voice of?
76
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Optimus Prime in the Transformers, but also the voice of Eeyore.
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Oh, wow. That's right. I didn't know he was the
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voice of Eeyore. That's incredible.
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Like two of my favorite cartoon characters growing up.
80
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As a kid.
81
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It's like, boys with the same guy. You know? I
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wish we had a piece of his. Oh, there he is.
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Yeah.
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He was a wonderful guy, apparently. A wonderful guy.
85
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Nothing but nice things always hurt about him.
86
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And actors were... He was one of those actors who
87
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never lost the humble and sort of the gratefulness that
88
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was associated with his success. Actors, you can be super talented.
89
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If you don't get your break, you just... go away
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in obscurity. I mean, sadly, you have this craft. And
91
00:05:52.980 --> 00:05:55.339
if you don't have the opportunity to show it, you
92
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can never really achieve success. And he was one of
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those actors who seemed to understand that would always speak
94
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about the fact that he felt so fortunate that he
95
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got the opportunity.
96
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Well, he says the voice like, you know, he gets
97
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this role and he's like, I'm voicing a toy truck.
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What do I do? You know, it's a truck that talks.
99
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I don't know.
100
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But he's also a military guy. And then his brother
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is the one who, like, I guess gave him the
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inspiration of, like, if you're going to– oh, man, now
103
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I forget the quote. But be gentle enough to be
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strong or strong enough to be gentle, essentially. That's what
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he used to influence his Optimus Prime character.
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Just such a wonderful person. And so Tony's under his name.
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You see, what does it say under your name? Till
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All Are One.
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That was a quote he had in the cartoons and stuff.
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So just whatever, you know. Very, very cool.
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All right.
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Nice job, man. Rest in peace. And we move on.
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All right.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I will tell you that Iran is back on the
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hot war. Thank you, Laura. Laura, not a cat, smashed
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the like button already. If you are just joining us,
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we're a live show. 2.30 Eastern Time. Shout out to
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the East Coast. And on the West Coast, it's 11.30.
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And these are times I wouldn't set my watch by them.
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They are rough approximations of the time we actually start
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the show. It's odd that days after Scott Besant was
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making it clear that it was Economic D-Day in Iran,
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that the nature of the sanctions, the nature of the blockade,
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the nature of the withering hold that America has on
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Iran's economy, the nature of that was going to become
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even more intense, even more robust. And for that reason,
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we could step back from the hot war and lean
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into the economic sanction war, as I say. Well, again,
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Days later, we're back at it. We're taking out strategic positions, supposedly,
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if you believe the Department of Defense, missile positions that
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are associated with sending these explosives into the Strait of
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Hormuz such that when you mine the Strait, it becomes
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not navigable in any way. And so that began what
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was then a retaliation from Iran. on American military bases
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in other Middle Eastern countries. And this is a big deal.
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We'll talk to John Rothman about this. He knows a
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bit about this world of the Middle East particularly. And
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this is where American military personnel are exposed to the
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retaliation of the part of the Iranians, even though they're
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not in the area that's the head of the spear.
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So in other words, if you're in Jordan somewhere, You're
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at an American military base, and all of a sudden
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there are incoming missiles from Iran. It's because of the
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strikes within the Strait that the Americans are perpetrating on
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the Iranians. So the Iranians realize now that these retaliations
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on American military bases can be quite effective. So we're
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back into this tit-for-tat that followed this declaration of economic D-Day.
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Here's what's happening in Iran right now.
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Are flaring right now. U.S. allies in the Gulf are
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facing strikes from Iran. Tehran says it's retaliation for these
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attacks you see now from the U.S. Central Command says
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American forces hit several targets connected to the regime. State
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Department says the U.S. has been clear it's applying maximum
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pressure on Iran.
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We are going to set the remaining lifelines, the remaining
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economic lifelines the Iranian regime has.
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We're going to sever the regime from them.
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And so we're seeing a continuation of this maximum pressure
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policy taken to.
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The next level.
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Senior National Security Correspondent Charlie Daggett joins us from London. Charlie,
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the administration says it's taking the conflict to another level.
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What are we seeing at this hour?
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Good morning, Errol.
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What we're seeing is this on-again, off-again war is back on.
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President Trump called the latest round of airstrikes large and powerful,
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warning there's more to come, while Iran's supreme leader vowed
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to retaliate with unforgettable lessons in his first statement since
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this renewed round of fighting began.
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The U.S.
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Military says forces went after multiple targets in Iran for
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the second time this week, striking air defense sites, radar systems,
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mine laying capabilities and communication sites near the Strait of Hormuz.
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President Trump warned the U.S. would hit even harder if
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Iran retaliates. But just hours later, Iran did just that,
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claiming to target U.S. assets in Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain
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and the UAE. The return to fighting comes as the U.S.
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is also trying to wage economic warfare on Iran with sanctions.
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President Trump said.
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The reason the MOU did not work, they were not
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ready for a deal. My job is to make sure
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that they want to have a deal.
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Part of that deal relies on rallying America's allies to
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economically isolate Iran. Yet Tehran is still finding.
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Support from powerful partners.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Iranian president Tuesday
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and told him, quote, Russia is standing in full solidarity
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with the people of Iran. While right in the middle
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of this major conflict, there's also growing uncertainty in the
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highest ranks of the military after Army Secretary Dan Driscoll
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abruptly resigned. He's one of more than 20 military or
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civilian leaders who have been fired, forced out or resigned
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since Pete Hegseth became secretary in January last year. And
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that's drawing criticism even from some Republicans.
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The secretary has gone overboard on the firings.
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Current and former U.S. official told CBS News that Secretary
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Hegseth also removed at least 10 Army officers from promotion list,
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either one-star or two-star generals in the past few weeks.
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And those sources said half of those removed are either
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females or minorities.
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Yeah, so there you have a summary of the situation
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both in Iran and at the Pentagon. We've spoken a
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bit yesterday with Debbie Kay Johnston. about what's happening at
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the Pentagon. You have a guy who is running amok
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in Pete Hegseth. He's in way over his head. And
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now he's really just surrounding himself with loyalists. And they're
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harder to find. So the top people in the military
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are pushing back on Hegseth and pushing back on the
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strategy of a prolonged presence militarily in the Strait or
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even in this Iran situation. They're saying, hey, we just
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don't have the hardware, the manpower. It will stress our
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military out. beyond acceptable limits for us to do this
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and continue to be there. So this is what's happening
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in a microcosm. And of course, the economic effects are
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talked about by someone you saw in that piece, Scott Besson,
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who instead of really talking about the Iran situation, I mean,
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he mentions it, but listen to how Scott Besson blames
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the inflation in America on Ukraine first. And the fact
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that they are bombing Russian oil depots before he even
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gets to Iran. It's cut nine.
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And we are going through an energy shock right now
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due to both the war in Ukraine. Because Ukraine has
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decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets
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and refine products. So that is creating upward price pressure
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on a global basis. And then the conflict in Iran
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and the conflict in Iran will end and prices will
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come down overall.
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Oh, and the and the crisis. Yeah. The conflict in Iran.
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Sure.
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By the way, as noted in that piece, this is
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the last thing on this, and then I'll move on.
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I'll bring it up with John Roth, and we'll talk
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about it more. But as noted in that piece, the
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Russian leader, that's right, Vladimir Putin himself, met with the
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president of Iran and said, we are with you. The
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Russians are providing intelligence. The Russians are providing material support.
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to the Iranians. This, as Trump, Donald Trump, our president,
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has asked and did ask, and it was indeed followed
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through upon, the Russian presence be part of the G20 summit.
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So you had a, again, Russia's not part of the G20.
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They invited, Trump did, this Russian official to be part
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of the G20 in this bizarre and otherwise inexplicable invitation
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that Trump extended to Russia. Again, the warming of relations
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between America and Russia seems to be completely one-dimensional. It's
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all Trump to Putin. So it's an astounding thing. I will...
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get to, uh, some comments from Timothy Snyder. And even
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he relates some of this that's going on to, um,
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a general, uh, general flow in this country toward the
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clear authoritarian grip. That may be hard to get out
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from under, but, uh, we'll do that in a moment. Um, uh,
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first I.
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Wanted to, uh, the Mark Thompson show.
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I wanted to, uh, I wanted to touch on something
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that is actually splashing back onto JD Vance. We had
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a mention of JD Vance yesterday because he's become very chirpy,
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you know, very chatty. He's showing up on podcasts. He's
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showing up in interviews everywhere. He was kind of the
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president's explainer for a while. That's sort of what he
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was doing. But now you can see he's getting out
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in a way that maybe suggests, hey, I want to
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get my name out there. I want to kind of
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get into the zeitgeist for my political aspirations, which include
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being president of the United States. But now, in addition
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to everything else he's talking about, he's also got a book,
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I think. He is talking about the end times, and
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he makes a brief reference, but it's clearly kind of
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the way that this religiosity informs so much of the
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way he thinks, and I'd suggest Mike Johnson and many
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of these other GOP leaders think. It's cut six.
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What I'm trying to focus on is doing as much
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of God's work as possible right now, and if that
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leads to the end times, okay.
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I mean, I think, you know, you don't want to
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check off on the end times if you're a politician,
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and apparently others agree. I mean, his statement about the
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end times was not greeted with great warmth by others
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in the political sphere. I mean, it's scary when the
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number two guy in the country is saying, you know,
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we got to do what we got to do. And
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if it leads to the end of things, well, then
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that's the way it goes. I mean, it's truly alarming.
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He also went on to say in that same interview
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that as a Catholic, he was commanded to try to
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make the word of God the word and to make
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the world what God wants the world to be. What
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I'm trying to focus on is as much of God's
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work as possible right now. You heard him say it.
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I just think you've got to kind of try to
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have an attitude of the end times may be coming.
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In fact, they are coming. It's just a question of
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whether they're coming thousands of years down the road or
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a few months down the road. And we've got a
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lot of work to do right now. I mean, this
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is Outrageous. Absolutely outrageous chatter. It's incredible that this guy,
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who is a total fraud, I mean, he has sold
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his principles, whatever meager principles he had, calling Trump a racist,
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calling Trump a xenophobic moron. I mean, find the J.D.
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Vance clips. We've run a supercut of it not too
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long ago. where J.D. Vance is saying all this stuff
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about Trump, it was when Trump was just a candidate, obviously.
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I mean, I'm talking about the 2016 election. And he
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so pivoted, so completely changed course, that now he's stumping
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for Trump, and then he's passing that slop off as
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some kind of higher ideal to which he is trying
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to answer. It's God's plan that we might only be
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around for a few months, or maybe it'll be thousands
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of years. But if it's a few months, I'm okay
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with that because I've got my Catholicism, and I've got
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my belief, and I know there's a better place. It's obscene. really.
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It's obscene that a leader of a country with a true,
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I'd say historic, secular course, the separation of church and state,
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where you didn't have government officials invoking the name of
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Jesus Christ, invoking the notion of Christ and end times.
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I mean, it's grotesque that that has changed. And that
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now there's this, in the case of Trump, it's a
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one-dimensional kind of tip of the hat to Christianity. He
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doesn't care about Christianity. You know that. But then you
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have others who are true believers in his cabinet and
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at the vice presidency. He's getting some blowback on this comment,
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but it's revealing for how he feels. So that's a
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bit of where J.D. Vance is today as he pitches
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his book.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I'll get to John Rothman in a second. One of
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the guys who is sorry that he ever backed Donald
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Trump is Milo Yiannopoulos. He says that he's ashamed of
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his support of Trump. He's a far-right guy. Again, he
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was visiting college campuses and this super controversial figure. He
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had to get security as he toured these campuses. Well,
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he was arrested by ICE. And in Louisiana, he was
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taken into custody and then deported to the United Kingdom. Well,
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now that he is in the United Kingdom, he has
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gotten chirpy about how he feels about Trump. And he
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has buyer's remorse. And he shared some of that with
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Piers Morgan, the British broadcaster who has a show there.
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and talks a bit about the fact that he didn't
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realize that Trump was actually going to follow through on
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the sort of institutionalized brutalization associated with his immigration policies
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and beyond. Here is Milo on Pierre's show.
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The promise and hope and joy and anticipation of Trump 2016,
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could sort of, you know, over the course of 10 years,
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collapse into this ugly, warmongering, you know, taken as a
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whole mentally ill heap of crazy, with some of the most,
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you know, unstable and, you know, lunatic people seemingly directing
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the president's actions. If I had any clue that anything
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remotely unusual like this, you know, was even possible, I
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would never have got involved in supporting Trump in the
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first place.
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And I'm very ashamed that I did.
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If I had any clue, what kind of clue did
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you need? It seems clear. Donald Trump was someone who,
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through his life, through the decades, is defined by promises
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broken by the great American BS machine. There's never been
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anything like what I'm going to do. I'm going to
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end the Russian Ukraine war on day one. I may
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not even need to get into power right after the election.
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I can stop this war with a phone call. I'm
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going to cure the American debt. No more forever wars.
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I mean, This is a guy who wrapped himself in
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the flag, wrapped himself in the military, fetishized the military,
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wanted a military parade. This is all in season one
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of Donald Trump, the first four years. Somehow Milo just
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didn't get the memo. You didn't see the people who
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he was surrounding himself with. This is a guy who
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wanted the Justice Department to state openly that there was
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a problem with the election so that he could stay
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in power in 2020. He said, just say there are
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irregularities and there are questions about the election and I'll
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do the rest. You don't actually have to do an investigation.
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He said that to his attorney general. I get that
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some of you have buyer's remorse, some of you former
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MAGA folk, but man, I do not know how you
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were taken in. And I must say, and then I
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will get to John, The idea that somehow Trump was
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a pacifist, you know, as he ramped up to the
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2020 election is even more indefensible when you actually look
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at his first four years, as I say, with the
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military parade, with taking out Soleimani as he did. He
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took out, I mean, this is, again, unprovoked in sort
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of the grand scheme of things, except for the fact
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that Iran is a terrorist state, etc. He took out
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their top military official. And, again, it was a power flex.
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It was a military flex. To me, what's happening with
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Trump in the military was completely predictable. And I don't
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think I was showing any great insight in that prediction. So, Milo,
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what can one say? It's a disappointment.
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The Mark Thompson Show.
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I am. Why was a guy this stupid and ignorant
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lecturing at colleges? Yeah, I mean, you know, a lot
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of this is charisma. Yeah, a lot of it. You know,
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look at the way that someone who transforms themselves. What's
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his name? Kim, who is so hot. The former Fox
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News guy, Tucker Carlson. I mean, he's transformed himself. You know,
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that's all. It's all presentation, you know. And if, again,
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and this is really effective and you'll see it in
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this election, if the candidate or the speaker hates the
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same things that you hate, maybe it's DEI, maybe it's
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the way that liberalism has taken hold of our cities
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and there's homelessness and there's squalor everywhere. You can't bust
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anybody for anything. Everything seems illegal. There are junkies that
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are shooting up in public. This is really happening. And
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if you get a guy in there who is as
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outraged about that as you are, then you think, yeah,
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that's my guy. So basically just by listing the things
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that are outrageous in life, you can make your way
407
00:27:10.559 --> 00:27:13.619
in without any real solutions. I mean, Trump had no
408
00:27:13.680 --> 00:27:16.539
real solutions. He had no policy solutions for any of
409
00:27:16.579 --> 00:27:20.140
the stuff he laid out. All right, I'm making John wait.
410
00:27:20.160 --> 00:27:24.180
I'm sorry about that. So Rothman is standing by. This
411
00:27:24.240 --> 00:27:28.700
is an immensely learned man. And I bring him on
412
00:27:28.740 --> 00:27:33.329
the show. And he's my former colleague at KGO Radio.
413
00:27:34.049 --> 00:27:37.230
And because he's learned it, he can skip from topic
414
00:27:37.250 --> 00:27:41.210
to topic and duds. It's oftentimes difficult to keep him
415
00:27:41.470 --> 00:27:45.390
on topic. And then when I push him forcibly, rhetorically,
416
00:27:45.990 --> 00:27:50.019
with a shove... Back to his topic, I get emails saying,
417
00:27:50.079 --> 00:27:52.890
how can you have him on and shove him around
418
00:27:52.950 --> 00:27:55.309
or yell at him the way you yell? Well, first
419
00:27:55.329 --> 00:27:58.490
of all, he's like family. He's the only guest who's
420
00:27:58.509 --> 00:28:00.750
like family who I really feel I can yell at.
421
00:28:01.589 --> 00:28:03.930
And that's another great reason to have him on, in
422
00:28:03.970 --> 00:28:07.670
addition to, as I suggested, his knowledge base. But today,
423
00:28:09.059 --> 00:28:12.400
when John drifts off topic, and he's shared with me
424
00:28:12.460 --> 00:28:16.440
the topics that he wants, when he drifts, Tony has
425
00:28:16.480 --> 00:28:22.119
been deputized to hit a buzzer. And that buzzer will
426
00:28:22.180 --> 00:28:26.589
be a signal to John to return to the topic, John. Now,
427
00:28:26.619 --> 00:28:29.950
we'll be, Tony, try to be, you know, don't be
428
00:28:29.970 --> 00:28:31.890
too tough. Let him go a little bit. But if
429
00:28:31.910 --> 00:28:34.109
he can't get a digression back to the main thing,
430
00:28:34.349 --> 00:28:37.650
it is, yes, thank you. All right, without any further delay,
431
00:28:38.710 --> 00:28:40.670
he has a podcast called Around the Political World with
432
00:28:40.690 --> 00:28:43.519
John Rothman. He is the brilliant historian and political analyst
433
00:28:43.539 --> 00:28:44.140
John Rothman.
434
00:28:45.119 --> 00:28:47.920
I want Tony to know I do not blame him
435
00:28:48.019 --> 00:28:48.640
for the buzzer.
436
00:28:48.660 --> 00:28:51.089
I know who to blame, Mark.
437
00:28:51.309 --> 00:28:54.589
Well, if you don't respect the buzzer, we're going to
438
00:28:54.630 --> 00:28:57.069
look into an electric shock. OK, so let's try.
439
00:28:56.910 --> 00:29:00.509
To let ice involved in this at all. All right.
440
00:29:00.569 --> 00:29:03.690
Now, I want to start in Iran. You've written a book.
441
00:29:03.769 --> 00:29:05.690
Did you get that the glove? I wanted to digress
442
00:29:05.730 --> 00:29:06.710
the minute you said shock.
443
00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:10.819
Yeah, the shot gloves that the ICE agents... Hey, Tony, hit.
444
00:29:10.740 --> 00:29:12.940
The buzzer, will you? I just went off topic.
445
00:29:12.960 --> 00:29:19.269
All right, all right. The buzzer's obnoxious, Tony. Don't take
446
00:29:19.349 --> 00:29:23.829
orders from Rothman. All right. Rothman sounds a little broken up.
447
00:29:23.890 --> 00:29:27.630
Is his audio okay, Tony, or not? Speak for me, John.
448
00:29:28.049 --> 00:29:30.910
Yeah, my audio should be fine. At least I'm here.
449
00:29:30.970 --> 00:29:33.380
Oh, there it is. It does sound good. Okay, sorry.
450
00:29:33.859 --> 00:29:36.859
Tell me about... what's happening. Give me your take on
451
00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:39.799
the Iran situation now, John. You know, we had first
452
00:29:39.920 --> 00:29:45.440
the D-Day, the economic D-Day with the sanctions and with
453
00:29:45.480 --> 00:29:48.720
the stronghold that the Americans had on the Iranian economy.
454
00:29:48.740 --> 00:29:51.309
And it was a legit stronghold, but it was suggested,
455
00:29:51.329 --> 00:29:54.210
I mean, you know, the inflation there is like 700%.
456
00:29:54.210 --> 00:29:57.630
But the suggestion is that they can wait that out.
457
00:29:57.970 --> 00:29:58.630
And now.
458
00:29:59.930 --> 00:30:04.029
the idea that was proffered by Besant was, hey, this
459
00:30:04.089 --> 00:30:06.559
is going to be instead of any kind of hot war,
460
00:30:06.599 --> 00:30:09.680
we're just going to wait out this economic war. Now
461
00:30:09.720 --> 00:30:11.759
we're back into a hot war. We've been tit for
462
00:30:11.779 --> 00:30:14.480
tat now for about four days. Speak to what's happening
463
00:30:14.519 --> 00:30:17.200
in Iran, please. An unmitigated disaster.
464
00:30:17.720 --> 00:30:19.880
The president of the United States said the war was over.
465
00:30:19.980 --> 00:30:24.200
We had won overwhelmingly. Iran was incapable of responding. Just
466
00:30:24.240 --> 00:30:26.170
talk to our friends in Jordan. Talk to our friends
467
00:30:26.230 --> 00:30:28.779
in Kuwait. And by the way, Take a look at
468
00:30:28.819 --> 00:30:30.799
the price of oil. Have you taken a look at
469
00:30:30.839 --> 00:30:34.440
the Strait of Hormuz lately? It's closed, no matter how
470
00:30:34.599 --> 00:30:39.109
often Donald Trump or Pete Hegseth suggest it's open. So
471
00:30:39.309 --> 00:30:41.690
what you're dealing with, and that's why I appreciated your
472
00:30:41.849 --> 00:30:45.049
monologue a few moments ago, because you're spot on. This
473
00:30:45.109 --> 00:30:48.990
is the most incompetent administration in American history, not to
474
00:30:49.029 --> 00:30:52.230
mention the most corrupt. So when you talk about Iran,
475
00:30:52.269 --> 00:30:54.910
there is no end in sight. Donald Trump said he
476
00:30:54.950 --> 00:30:58.950
wanted unconditional surrender. The Mullahs are never going to surrender.
477
00:30:59.309 --> 00:31:02.880
And anybody who understood the psychology of the Iranian revolution
478
00:31:02.900 --> 00:31:07.599
would understand that completely. The complete ignorance of the Trump administration.
479
00:31:07.819 --> 00:31:10.079
And if some of you are saying, but John, you're
480
00:31:10.119 --> 00:31:15.279
being so harsh. No, I'm being absolutely spot on accurate.
481
00:31:15.740 --> 00:31:19.329
And I say this with deep regret. One other quick
482
00:31:19.430 --> 00:31:23.349
note on topic, just so you're aware. And that has
483
00:31:23.369 --> 00:31:27.230
to do with Congress. They're completely pass it. In 1966,
484
00:31:27.230 --> 00:31:30.950
Bill Fulbright held a hearing on Vietnam that shook the nation.
485
00:31:31.380 --> 00:31:34.259
Have you seen the Republicans who control Congress, who are
486
00:31:34.299 --> 00:31:36.059
now on recess, by the way?
487
00:31:37.039 --> 00:31:39.799
It's an extraordinary thing. They came in for a super
488
00:31:39.859 --> 00:31:42.180
short time, and then they went back out on recess,
489
00:31:42.200 --> 00:31:45.380
as John says. In fact, to John's point, play cut seven.
490
00:31:45.400 --> 00:31:48.839
This is Mike Johnson being confronted in the hallway about
491
00:31:48.900 --> 00:31:51.509
the fact that the Iran war continues to go on
492
00:31:51.549 --> 00:31:53.809
and on, and Congress doesn't seem to be doing anything
493
00:31:53.849 --> 00:31:57.269
about it. People are getting hurt still at the pump.
494
00:31:57.769 --> 00:32:00.849
Should the American people not also judge you on your
495
00:32:00.890 --> 00:32:03.210
projections here that were clearly off base?
496
00:32:03.529 --> 00:32:05.930
Manu, that is one of the stupidest questions you've ever asked.
497
00:32:05.970 --> 00:32:06.650
Why is that stupid?
498
00:32:06.730 --> 00:32:08.569
I have nothing to do with the prosecution of the
499
00:32:08.609 --> 00:32:09.750
war across the globe.
500
00:32:10.650 --> 00:32:12.470
You are responsible.
501
00:32:12.569 --> 00:32:15.109
You are selling this to the American public, are you not?
502
00:32:15.150 --> 00:32:16.509
So should the House.
503
00:32:16.230 --> 00:32:19.289
Speaker be held responsible for the duration of a military
504
00:32:19.349 --> 00:32:20.230
conflict around the globe?
505
00:32:20.730 --> 00:32:21.650
You answer that question.
506
00:32:22.539 --> 00:32:27.839
Well, I mean... Sadly, yes, is the answer to that question. Absolutely, yes.
507
00:32:28.140 --> 00:32:31.599
Absolutely. Because there are no House hearings. There is no
508
00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:36.940
chairman or chair of the Foreign Relations Committee who stands
509
00:32:37.009 --> 00:32:39.349
up and says we have to hold hearings. And there
510
00:32:39.410 --> 00:32:42.269
is no accountability. So when you ask me about the
511
00:32:42.309 --> 00:32:45.670
Iran war, it is a failure on a variety of levels.
512
00:32:46.369 --> 00:32:50.089
One is the administration has no defined policy. Two, Congress
513
00:32:50.170 --> 00:32:52.640
is not asserting itself. And let me, I know you're
514
00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:54.799
going to raise, and forgive me if I jump ahead,
515
00:32:55.240 --> 00:32:57.180
the purge of the American army.
516
00:32:57.200 --> 00:32:58.859
Yeah, I was just about to get to that. So
517
00:32:58.900 --> 00:33:03.039
you're saying that there's a connection to the incompetence of
518
00:33:03.059 --> 00:33:06.400
the war also reflects directly the incompetence of the Pentagon.
519
00:33:07.119 --> 00:33:09.740
Well, what has happened is that Pete Hegseth, who is
520
00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:13.779
the Secretary of Defense, is an incompetent. Look at the
521
00:33:13.839 --> 00:33:19.539
number of people, people who are, people trained in the military, generals, admirals,
522
00:33:19.880 --> 00:33:21.930
people who are coming up. Take a look at this.
523
00:33:22.109 --> 00:33:23.910
Take a look at the graphic you have up right now.
524
00:33:24.390 --> 00:33:31.349
High profile Pentagon military departures. It's overwhelming. We don't have
525
00:33:31.390 --> 00:33:35.079
a secretary of the army. We don't have a system
526
00:33:35.119 --> 00:33:39.220
in place. And what he has Seth and Trump have
527
00:33:39.240 --> 00:33:42.980
done is to gut the American military. It is a crime.
528
00:33:43.299 --> 00:33:46.019
And I use the term purge because that's what it is.
529
00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:50.210
Unless you agree with Donald Trump, And Pete Hegseth, ideologically,
530
00:33:50.490 --> 00:33:54.220
you're out. And please note, minorities and women are the
531
00:33:54.339 --> 00:33:59.160
overwhelming majority combined of people who are departing. So what
532
00:33:59.200 --> 00:34:01.980
do you do? I mean, I have a long history
533
00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:04.119
of dealing with people in the military. I gave the
534
00:34:04.140 --> 00:34:07.460
baccalaureate address at the United States Air Force Academy many
535
00:34:07.500 --> 00:34:10.219
years ago. I've dealt with people in the military. This
536
00:34:10.260 --> 00:34:12.309
is the most shocking, the most disturbing part of it.
537
00:34:12.599 --> 00:34:15.519
And the worst thing is the fact that the Congress
538
00:34:15.659 --> 00:34:19.429
is completely passive. There is no investigation. There is no discussion.
539
00:34:19.829 --> 00:34:23.150
There is nothing. And I would commend to all of you,
540
00:34:23.510 --> 00:34:26.239
if I were Speaker of the House of Representatives, or
541
00:34:26.280 --> 00:34:29.199
if I were President of the Senate, I would want
542
00:34:29.480 --> 00:34:33.920
Dan Driscoll, who just left as Secretary of the Army, resigning,
543
00:34:34.119 --> 00:34:36.860
by the way, I would call him and say, what
544
00:34:36.909 --> 00:34:39.909
the heck is going on here? Why did you do it? Instead,
545
00:34:39.949 --> 00:34:42.690
we get all of these obfuscations. That's a big word.
546
00:34:42.730 --> 00:34:44.349
It's a ding word. I just want to point that out.
547
00:34:44.750 --> 00:34:49.039
All these All these obfuscations, thank you, all these obfuscations
548
00:34:49.360 --> 00:34:53.070
from the Trump administration. And may I, just because I
549
00:34:53.110 --> 00:34:56.429
want to do this, your point about the Vice President
550
00:34:56.449 --> 00:35:00.210
of the United States is spot on. Can you imagine
551
00:35:00.769 --> 00:35:05.630
that this man, J.D. Vance, is a heartbeat away from
552
00:35:05.670 --> 00:35:10.710
the presidency, given his view of Armageddon, the end of times?
553
00:35:11.050 --> 00:35:13.269
And I'm so glad you point that out, Mark. One
554
00:35:13.289 --> 00:35:15.550
of the things that makes your program so important and
555
00:35:15.590 --> 00:35:18.190
why people should support the Mark Thompson program is because
556
00:35:18.429 --> 00:35:20.550
where else are they going to hear this? And so
557
00:35:20.750 --> 00:35:21.570
three cheers for you.
558
00:35:21.989 --> 00:35:24.929
Thank you, sir. And just to tie the two together,
559
00:35:24.949 --> 00:35:27.389
the Pentagon is also a place where you find that
560
00:35:27.489 --> 00:35:31.860
same kind of rhetoric. You find Pete Hegseth invoking the
561
00:35:31.980 --> 00:35:37.199
name of Jesus Christ as he is speaking to his
562
00:35:37.320 --> 00:35:42.480
group briefing on the military. I'm not talking about his prayer.
563
00:35:42.940 --> 00:35:46.039
He has a weekly prayer group. I'm not talking about that.
564
00:35:46.340 --> 00:35:50.920
I'm talking about the daily Pentagon briefings at which Pete
565
00:35:50.940 --> 00:35:55.030
Hegseth briefs the media, the media that's all been cleared.
566
00:35:55.340 --> 00:35:58.150
He's dry-cleaned the media of any kind of resistance. So
567
00:35:58.429 --> 00:36:01.829
you have to agree to have all of your copy
568
00:36:02.110 --> 00:36:04.989
and everything you say cleared by the Pentagon in order
569
00:36:05.010 --> 00:36:08.579
to even report, even to get clearance from at the Pentagon.
570
00:36:08.619 --> 00:36:12.699
So those reporters to whom he's speaking, they are getting
571
00:36:12.840 --> 00:36:16.940
a daily report. And in the daily report, he speaks
572
00:36:17.079 --> 00:36:23.719
about the warriors, again, working and being blessed by Jesus Christ.
573
00:36:23.739 --> 00:36:26.659
He said a prayer. Now, I don't know that he
574
00:36:26.699 --> 00:36:30.199
does it all the time, but again, it informs what's
575
00:36:30.300 --> 00:36:32.579
happening at the Pentagon. So in a way, the two
576
00:36:32.639 --> 00:36:35.449
are linked. I'm talking about the vice president, this extreme
577
00:36:35.849 --> 00:36:39.070
religiosity that is informing people like Mike Johnson as well
578
00:36:39.510 --> 00:36:43.750
and J.D. Vance and Pete Hegseth. I want to move
579
00:36:43.929 --> 00:36:46.690
on to– before I leave the purge though, you know, John,
580
00:36:46.710 --> 00:36:51.309
something that struck me was the generals, as you say,
581
00:36:51.449 --> 00:36:54.179
so many of them– I'm talking about generals and top
582
00:36:54.239 --> 00:36:58.260
military officials across the board in all the different arms
583
00:36:58.320 --> 00:37:02.940
of service– branches of service, I should say, they pushed
584
00:37:03.059 --> 00:37:10.050
back in the twice-monthly report on military assets and military
585
00:37:10.139 --> 00:37:13.929
presence of the U.S. around the globe. They pressed back
586
00:37:14.570 --> 00:37:18.849
on the extended presence of the American military in Iran,
587
00:37:18.889 --> 00:37:22.909
and they noted that they thought it was unsustainable. And
588
00:37:23.210 --> 00:37:26.889
to me, it wasn't just that it's incompetence at the top.
589
00:37:27.300 --> 00:37:30.199
It was that many of those generals, as I say,
590
00:37:30.239 --> 00:37:34.119
and top military officials are not happy with Hegseth to
591
00:37:34.159 --> 00:37:37.300
the point that they are leaking the fact that they're
592
00:37:37.320 --> 00:37:40.960
pushing back. It's not unprecedented that many of these top
593
00:37:41.159 --> 00:37:46.730
officials would take issue with various determinations as to where
594
00:37:47.190 --> 00:37:49.869
assets should be. But for the word to get out
595
00:37:50.650 --> 00:37:53.090
in such a big way, it means that they want
596
00:37:53.130 --> 00:37:55.210
the word out that this guy doesn't know what he's doing.
597
00:37:55.670 --> 00:37:58.769
Well, look, it's very simple. If all of these people
598
00:37:58.789 --> 00:38:01.469
who've been fired would get together and be able to
599
00:38:01.510 --> 00:38:04.070
hold a press conference. But you know what Trump and
600
00:38:04.139 --> 00:38:07.820
Hegseth are threatening? If they speak out, they'll be summoned
601
00:38:07.860 --> 00:38:11.059
back and court-martialed. Oh, yeah.
602
00:38:11.179 --> 00:38:13.059
Look what they're doing to Mark Kelly.
603
00:38:13.559 --> 00:38:14.179
Yeah.
604
00:38:14.199 --> 00:38:16.320
He didn't do anything. He didn't speak out against the administration.
605
00:38:16.360 --> 00:38:20.400
He just said, don't honor an order if it is unconstitutional.
606
00:38:20.599 --> 00:38:21.929
And they're going after him.
607
00:38:22.360 --> 00:38:24.989
But do you understand, in a normal time, and this
608
00:38:25.050 --> 00:38:29.239
is not a normal time, No one would tolerate this
609
00:38:29.300 --> 00:38:32.019
kind of action. And I think that is the thing
610
00:38:32.039 --> 00:38:34.019
that disturbs me the most. You and I have gone
611
00:38:34.059 --> 00:38:38.449
around and around on my belief in the system. Maybe,
612
00:38:38.780 --> 00:38:42.929
just maybe you're right, because the system is failing and
613
00:38:43.050 --> 00:38:46.190
we are the victims. And may I say, the people
614
00:38:46.250 --> 00:38:49.190
of Iran are the victims. You know, this president promised
615
00:38:49.230 --> 00:38:52.710
the liberation of Iran, and we've come nowhere near that.
616
00:38:53.309 --> 00:38:59.030
And if you're watching our allies, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, all
617
00:38:59.110 --> 00:39:04.590
under attack. How can one say that Iran no longer
618
00:39:04.630 --> 00:39:06.150
has military capability?
619
00:39:06.789 --> 00:39:07.670
It's absurd.
620
00:39:07.730 --> 00:39:10.639
It flies in the face of reason and fact. But
621
00:39:10.699 --> 00:39:12.679
then so does the Trump administration.
622
00:39:15.059 --> 00:39:20.179
Now to SCOTUS and the green light that apparently SCOTUS
623
00:39:20.199 --> 00:39:24.429
has given Donald Trump and the administration to keep building
624
00:39:24.789 --> 00:39:30.519
this apparently illegal data center, military bunker, and ballroom. And
625
00:39:30.559 --> 00:39:35.239
these are changes to the Kennedy Center and surrounding Washington.
626
00:39:35.519 --> 00:39:38.559
This is a, you'll correct me if I'm wrong, but
627
00:39:38.579 --> 00:39:43.170
I think it's normally something that requires in protocol and law,
628
00:39:43.809 --> 00:39:48.829
Congress to green light. And still- 100%. SCOTUS has greenlit it,
629
00:39:49.070 --> 00:39:51.349
and they haven't even spoken about whether it's legal or not.
630
00:39:51.650 --> 00:39:54.429
No, no, let me correct you. Forgive me for doing that.
631
00:39:54.510 --> 00:39:57.550
I hate to correct Mark Thompson. The Chief Justice of
632
00:39:57.570 --> 00:40:01.650
the United States, who voted with a 5-4 minority, he
633
00:40:02.889 --> 00:40:06.210
voted against this process, said in his dissent that this
634
00:40:06.289 --> 00:40:10.409
is illegal. This is the Chief Justice of the United States,
635
00:40:10.889 --> 00:40:12.789
with whom I have many disagreements.
636
00:40:13.429 --> 00:40:17.840
Let me just correct your correction. You're right about that.
637
00:40:18.400 --> 00:40:21.179
But I guess what I'm saying is SCOTUS in the decision, though,
638
00:40:21.880 --> 00:40:24.780
didn't say that it was illegal. And their final decision,
639
00:40:24.860 --> 00:40:27.380
obviously the dissenters said a couple of things. But yeah,
640
00:40:27.579 --> 00:40:28.449
please continue. Sorry.
641
00:40:28.510 --> 00:40:30.929
Well, it's just that it's the Chief Justice. It's the
642
00:40:30.969 --> 00:40:35.170
Chief Justice of the United States. And this is to me,
643
00:40:35.309 --> 00:40:37.590
I think this is one of four occasions when he's
644
00:40:37.670 --> 00:40:41.900
really dissented publicly with Donald Trump. But do you understand?
645
00:40:42.320 --> 00:40:44.739
And I want all of our listeners to understand, I'm
646
00:40:44.780 --> 00:40:47.739
a presidential historian. I could pull out a book and
647
00:40:47.780 --> 00:40:50.860
show you my White House guide, which is signed by
648
00:40:52.460 --> 00:40:55.880
seven former first ladies and three presidents. It is one
649
00:40:55.900 --> 00:41:00.010
of my most treasured possessions. To show that to you
650
00:41:00.110 --> 00:41:04.909
and then to say, Donald Trump has absolutely violated everything.
651
00:41:05.329 --> 00:41:08.789
You know, John Adams, when he was president, had carved
652
00:41:08.829 --> 00:41:12.579
into the area of the White House which is still there,
653
00:41:12.619 --> 00:41:15.119
that only good and honorable people should sit in this house.
654
00:41:15.880 --> 00:41:18.019
If John Adams were alive, he'd be rolling over in
655
00:41:18.059 --> 00:41:18.519
his grave.
656
00:41:18.920 --> 00:41:20.960
Well, if he were alive, he wouldn't be in his grave, John.
657
00:41:21.639 --> 00:41:25.510
All right. But he might be rolling over. Okay. Finally,
658
00:41:25.610 --> 00:41:27.550
I want to get to... Finally?
659
00:41:27.650 --> 00:41:30.269
You mean you're cutting me off again? I just had
660
00:41:30.289 --> 00:41:32.110
to throw that in.
661
00:41:32.489 --> 00:41:36.289
I want to get to this topic that you wanted
662
00:41:36.309 --> 00:41:39.619
to touch on, which is the Michigan Attorney General... and
663
00:41:39.699 --> 00:41:41.519
comments made. And then I want to, I don't want
664
00:41:41.539 --> 00:41:45.239
to broaden this after you're done to the elections and
665
00:41:45.760 --> 00:41:49.599
the primaries and what this might point to for the future.
666
00:41:49.639 --> 00:41:51.079
But go ahead, start with the Michigan AG.
667
00:41:51.400 --> 00:41:52.980
Anna Nessel is the attorney general.
668
00:41:53.840 --> 00:41:55.300
And her statement was simple.
669
00:41:55.719 --> 00:42:01.250
The needs of the world should take precedence over Jewish survival.
670
00:42:02.829 --> 00:42:04.989
And she is a Jew, by the way. I was
671
00:42:05.170 --> 00:42:08.980
so offended by this. And my thoughts immediately went to
672
00:42:09.019 --> 00:42:12.320
David Ben-Gurion's comment, the former prime minister of Israel, when
673
00:42:12.360 --> 00:42:14.269
the British imposed the white paper, we will fight the
674
00:42:14.289 --> 00:42:16.969
white papers if there were no war, and we'll fight
675
00:42:17.010 --> 00:42:19.489
the wars if there were no white paper. The simple
676
00:42:19.670 --> 00:42:23.369
reality is that Jews feel threatened. And I want everybody
677
00:42:23.409 --> 00:42:31.239
to understand, if you read the commentary on Dana, D-A-N-A, Nessel, N-E-S-S-E-L,
678
00:42:31.780 --> 00:42:35.960
the overwhelming response is one of shame and fury that
679
00:42:36.159 --> 00:42:41.280
this attorney general, would say, well, Jews are less important
680
00:42:41.500 --> 00:42:44.670
than the world. The whole point, I think, is that
681
00:42:44.710 --> 00:42:47.289
the world is dependent on each other. And when you
682
00:42:47.349 --> 00:42:50.909
allow discrimination, when you allow that kind of statement to stand,
683
00:42:51.210 --> 00:42:54.050
you do tremendous damage. So that was my comment.
684
00:42:54.250 --> 00:43:00.780
I always think, regardless of the minority group, I always
685
00:43:00.840 --> 00:43:03.980
think about how that would play if you substituted a
686
00:43:04.139 --> 00:43:08.099
different minority group. Absolutely. I always think, okay, so... The
687
00:43:08.159 --> 00:43:13.480
needs of the survival of the Muslims are not– I
688
00:43:13.519 --> 00:43:15.400
don't– you know the quote. But I mean– or the
689
00:43:15.440 --> 00:43:18.570
blacks or the– you can fill the Latinos. Fill in
690
00:43:18.610 --> 00:43:22.230
the minority group. And I think it wouldn't wash. There
691
00:43:22.269 --> 00:43:25.269
really is a rise in Jew-hating, John. And it's a
692
00:43:25.429 --> 00:43:30.309
sad fact that Israeli policy is being conflated. with a
693
00:43:30.369 --> 00:43:33.510
general disposition toward the Jewish community. And this is what
694
00:43:33.550 --> 00:43:36.190
I've talked to you about before, which is the reputational
695
00:43:36.230 --> 00:43:39.829
damage done to Israel and even to the Jewish community,
696
00:43:39.869 --> 00:43:43.210
which it's not fair that the Jewish community bear that burden,
697
00:43:43.269 --> 00:43:45.090
but they bear it whether they want it or not.
698
00:43:45.110 --> 00:43:47.789
We're about to enter the high holidays. I invite anyone
699
00:43:47.809 --> 00:43:50.389
who's listening, simply drive by a synagogue or a Jewish
700
00:43:50.409 --> 00:43:53.679
community center and see how security is doubled or crippled.
701
00:43:54.119 --> 00:43:55.980
There will be an election in Israel at the end
702
00:43:56.000 --> 00:43:58.440
of October, and you and I will be talking about that.
703
00:43:58.519 --> 00:44:01.440
I know it will be major news. And one of
704
00:44:01.480 --> 00:44:03.139
the things that the people of Israel will have to
705
00:44:03.179 --> 00:44:06.239
decide is what direction they want to go in. And
706
00:44:06.280 --> 00:44:09.570
that's why whatever flaws or failures it has, just like
707
00:44:09.590 --> 00:44:11.889
the United States, Israel.
708
00:44:11.630 --> 00:44:13.090
Remains a democracy.
709
00:44:13.590 --> 00:44:15.570
And I must say that even when I'm critical of
710
00:44:15.590 --> 00:44:18.590
Donald Trump, and we haven't touched on the elections, which
711
00:44:18.650 --> 00:44:20.230
I won't do because I don't want to hear the buzzer,
712
00:44:20.690 --> 00:44:24.130
the fact that this administration continues to raise questions about
713
00:44:24.150 --> 00:44:27.510
the legitimacy of an election, I'm giving a lecture next
714
00:44:27.570 --> 00:44:29.730
week on this very subject, And all I can tell
715
00:44:29.750 --> 00:44:32.610
you is it's shameful and ought to be repudiated by
716
00:44:32.690 --> 00:44:35.349
Democrats and Republicans alike. OK, you had a last point.
717
00:44:36.090 --> 00:44:38.090
I had a last point, and that was the elections.
718
00:44:38.150 --> 00:44:42.349
Let's look quickly at the election result in Massachusetts.
719
00:44:43.590 --> 00:44:46.550
Yeah, it was fascinating. Here you have a guy who's
720
00:44:46.550 --> 00:44:47.610
80 years old.
721
00:44:47.889 --> 00:44:48.909
That's Marky.
722
00:44:49.150 --> 00:44:53.369
Marky, 64.9 percent. And Seth Moulton, who, by the way,
723
00:44:54.050 --> 00:44:59.929
very reasonable, very well-respected person, 35.1. The age issue didn't matter.
724
00:45:00.429 --> 00:45:04.010
And I just want to be clear, they're both very
725
00:45:04.130 --> 00:45:09.210
liberal Democrats. They really have very similar stands. But what
726
00:45:10.250 --> 00:45:14.250
Senator Markey did was to say, I've proven myself and
727
00:45:14.289 --> 00:45:17.030
I deserve another term. And he got it. And I
728
00:45:17.050 --> 00:45:20.719
think you're seeing this division in the Democratic Party, which
729
00:45:21.739 --> 00:45:24.420
may have to do with youth and the transfer of power.
730
00:45:24.880 --> 00:45:29.309
But the old timers are like Senator Markey, not only survived,
731
00:45:29.329 --> 00:45:31.820
but survived with an overwhelming vote. It was a landslide.
732
00:45:32.110 --> 00:45:34.280
Well, the one note I would make on that is
733
00:45:34.340 --> 00:45:39.719
that his progressivism probably did well for him in Massachusetts.
734
00:45:39.760 --> 00:45:41.260
Wouldn't you agree? I'm talking about Markey.
735
00:45:41.880 --> 00:45:44.840
Well, sure. Remember, Massachusetts, the only state that voted for
736
00:45:44.889 --> 00:45:49.989
George McGovern in 1972. So Massachusetts has a history. And
737
00:45:50.010 --> 00:45:53.489
of course, the first African-American elected to the United States
738
00:45:53.530 --> 00:45:56.800
Senate after the Civil War was was my old friend
739
00:45:56.880 --> 00:46:01.949
Ed Brook. So there is a progressive, important element to
740
00:46:01.989 --> 00:46:04.869
what happens in Massachusetts. And I think the fact that
741
00:46:04.909 --> 00:46:09.659
Markey won is important. And I was relieved in a way,
742
00:46:10.079 --> 00:46:12.800
because the fact that you're almost 80, and I'm not
743
00:46:12.860 --> 00:46:16.360
speaking about anybody in particular on this podcast, should not
744
00:46:16.420 --> 00:46:18.780
disqualify you from having a significant voice.
745
00:46:20.219 --> 00:46:22.760
John, because you've been so well behaved, I'm going to
746
00:46:22.800 --> 00:46:24.989
extend your time. Oh, no.
747
00:46:25.110 --> 00:46:25.449
What?
748
00:46:25.710 --> 00:46:28.449
Yeah, I know.
749
00:46:28.590 --> 00:46:28.929
What?
750
00:46:29.070 --> 00:46:32.090
Okay, everybody. Just by a minute or two, I want
751
00:46:32.110 --> 00:46:35.230
to touch on, because you did mention SCOTUS, the Supreme
752
00:46:35.329 --> 00:46:42.210
Court undoing the lower court ruling that had blocked key
753
00:46:42.269 --> 00:46:46.829
components of Trump's plan with the U.S. Postal Service and
754
00:46:47.469 --> 00:46:51.989
the idea somehow that Trump can manage who gets mail
755
00:46:52.150 --> 00:46:56.699
in ballots because now you'll have to be approved essentially
756
00:46:56.800 --> 00:46:59.820
by the U S government. And you can even, you know,
757
00:47:00.820 --> 00:47:03.760
be less polite about it and say by Trump, by
758
00:47:03.800 --> 00:47:07.079
the president of the United States to receive, uh, the,
759
00:47:08.000 --> 00:47:08.980
the mail in ballot.
760
00:47:09.699 --> 00:47:12.829
Uh, it's, it's shocking and, and has to be repudiated.
761
00:47:13.110 --> 00:47:16.090
The American people have to repudiate it. Remember here in California,
762
00:47:16.730 --> 00:47:20.199
where we are based, uh, that, uh, 80% of the
763
00:47:20.239 --> 00:47:24.699
votes are cast by mail. And if you remember in 2016,
764
00:47:24.679 --> 00:47:27.699
it was Donald Trump who said, oh, 3 million illegal
765
00:47:27.719 --> 00:47:31.480
immigrants invaded California. And that's the reason he lost the state.
766
00:47:32.219 --> 00:47:36.519
This kind of nonsense, that there is election tampering or
767
00:47:36.539 --> 00:47:39.719
that elections are fixed. I can tell you there are
768
00:47:39.760 --> 00:47:41.679
things that happen in elections that we may not like.
769
00:47:42.409 --> 00:47:46.610
But what Donald Trump is claiming, rigged elections, is absolute nonsense.
770
00:47:47.530 --> 00:47:48.789
I'm going to tell you, you and I are going
771
00:47:48.809 --> 00:47:49.269
to watch this.
772
00:47:49.929 --> 00:47:50.750
If in November, a.
773
00:47:50.869 --> 00:47:56.489
Thousand Justice Department investigators are set out around the country,
774
00:47:56.590 --> 00:47:59.179
please note that the chairman of the Joint Chiefs said
775
00:47:59.510 --> 00:48:03.559
no military will be involved. Not excluded from that number
776
00:48:04.000 --> 00:48:07.460
are the thousand election monitors. And that scares the living
777
00:48:07.500 --> 00:48:10.679
beekeepers out of me. And I hope everyone listening to
778
00:48:10.699 --> 00:48:14.889
the sound of my voice, liberal, conservative, Democrat, Republican, pro-Trump, anti-Trump,
779
00:48:15.170 --> 00:48:21.070
you understand that when a national election is held when
780
00:48:21.110 --> 00:48:23.980
it's really a state by state election, because that's what
781
00:48:24.000 --> 00:48:26.199
the elections are. And you have a president of the
782
00:48:26.239 --> 00:48:30.619
United States claiming national jurisdiction. We are in deep trouble.
783
00:48:31.500 --> 00:48:35.579
And really all Trump wants is chaos, everyone. I mean, that's,
784
00:48:35.760 --> 00:48:41.739
he doesn't care that his plan to ruin the mail-in vote,
785
00:48:41.980 --> 00:48:45.480
to disrupt the mail-in vote, to question the mail-in vote.
786
00:48:45.889 --> 00:48:50.170
is completely successful. Even if it's partially successful, the chaos
787
00:48:50.469 --> 00:48:53.750
allows him to claim that there's a problem with the election,
788
00:48:53.829 --> 00:48:56.510
something that he's been doing since the very beginning of
789
00:48:56.530 --> 00:48:59.849
his candidacy. And just on John's point, I'll play you
790
00:48:59.869 --> 00:49:03.710
this and then I'll let you go. The other presence
791
00:49:03.840 --> 00:49:07.340
beyond just those monitors that you've talked about, that is
792
00:49:07.360 --> 00:49:11.880
the election monitors, is maybe associated with ICE.
793
00:49:13.420 --> 00:49:13.760
I have.
794
00:49:14.750 --> 00:49:18.300
Mark Wayne Mullen talking about the fact that ICE is
795
00:49:18.360 --> 00:49:20.940
not going to be at the polling places tomorrow. unless
796
00:49:22.039 --> 00:49:25.340
there might be some questions as to who was voting.
797
00:49:25.360 --> 00:49:26.360
Let's cut to, please.
798
00:49:27.320 --> 00:49:30.159
I was being very, very clear when I said ICE
799
00:49:30.300 --> 00:49:33.219
isn't there to patrol the polling places. We're there to
800
00:49:33.280 --> 00:49:36.579
enforce specific threats. The only reason why we would be
801
00:49:36.639 --> 00:49:39.239
at polling places if there is a threat to that
802
00:49:39.280 --> 00:49:46.409
polling place or we're serving a warrant on someone that
803
00:49:46.449 --> 00:49:48.469
we have been actively tracking down.
804
00:49:50.090 --> 00:49:53.429
And this is what's so absolutely an abuse of power.
805
00:49:53.829 --> 00:49:56.050
You talk about reasons to impeach people.
806
00:49:56.849 --> 00:49:58.769
In the House and convict in the Senate.
807
00:49:59.670 --> 00:50:03.250
The numbers in this administration of abuses of power on
808
00:50:03.369 --> 00:50:06.949
so many levels, we haven't touched on the Kennedy Center.
809
00:50:07.349 --> 00:50:08.989
But let me remind everyone, and I want to do
810
00:50:09.010 --> 00:50:13.030
this before we close, that the Kennedy Center was designed
811
00:50:13.070 --> 00:50:14.800
as a tribute to John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
812
00:50:15.599 --> 00:50:16.420
We were in mourning.
813
00:50:16.679 --> 00:50:20.460
We were weeping in this country on November 22nd, 1963.
814
00:50:20.460 --> 00:50:23.059
And so the official flower, if you will, was the
815
00:50:23.099 --> 00:50:27.380
weeping willow. You may not know this, But the president
816
00:50:27.400 --> 00:50:30.860
of the United States ordered the removal of all of
817
00:50:30.900 --> 00:50:35.500
the weeping willows this week. You can see it. And
818
00:50:35.619 --> 00:50:39.679
I must tell you, this is an indication of what
819
00:50:39.719 --> 00:50:41.940
we're dealing with. So for those of you who think
820
00:50:42.119 --> 00:50:47.000
I suffer from Trump derangement syndrome, nonsense. I am a
821
00:50:47.079 --> 00:50:52.619
practical analyst who understands what's happening and what Donald Trump
822
00:50:52.679 --> 00:50:54.840
is doing, what he's threatening in relation to the election.
823
00:50:55.320 --> 00:50:57.679
We'd all better be on our toes. And, Mark, I
824
00:50:57.699 --> 00:51:00.440
am available to you any time to talk about this,
825
00:51:00.480 --> 00:51:03.840
whether it's a Wednesday or another day, because this is
826
00:51:03.900 --> 00:51:05.500
so serious to our democracy.
827
00:51:06.360 --> 00:51:09.500
John, you stuck the landing. Congratulations. Very well done. I
828
00:51:10.179 --> 00:51:12.840
will invite you all to listen to John's podcast. It's
829
00:51:12.889 --> 00:51:17.210
a daily offering, and it's mercifully short, which is what
830
00:51:17.250 --> 00:51:17.789
I like about it.
831
00:51:17.789 --> 00:51:23.530
What? You know, I love coming on here, ladies and gentlemen.
832
00:51:23.840 --> 00:51:25.800
The abuse is just marvelous.
833
00:51:26.659 --> 00:51:30.539
By the way, this is no picnic. No summer camp.
834
00:51:30.579 --> 00:51:34.900
Tim and Tony get high marks in my book. And Mark,
835
00:51:35.559 --> 00:51:36.139
you're not bad.
836
00:51:36.340 --> 00:51:38.739
Don't suck up to my staff, John. Get out of
837
00:51:38.780 --> 00:51:41.659
here already and go do a podcast. Robin didn't get
838
00:51:41.699 --> 00:51:45.639
the buzzer even once. No, he really didn't. And Tony,
839
00:51:46.110 --> 00:51:49.880
here's why Tony was particularly judicious about the buzzer. And
840
00:51:49.900 --> 00:51:56.320
judicious is a ding word. He was judicious because John
841
00:51:56.460 --> 00:52:01.320
did very slightly... He was starting with the... We were
842
00:52:01.340 --> 00:52:04.079
talking about the elections and ICE and the presence. And
843
00:52:04.199 --> 00:52:10.039
then he went to the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center
844
00:52:10.059 --> 00:52:14.750
for Performing Arts. And Tony could have buzzed him there, but...
845
00:52:15.369 --> 00:52:17.369
The reason he didn't, I think, is because it was
846
00:52:17.449 --> 00:52:21.730
such a solemn remembrance of JFK. And so I think
847
00:52:21.750 --> 00:52:24.090
you very cleverly got around a buzz there.
848
00:52:24.190 --> 00:52:26.610
But it was in the queue. Notice you had the
849
00:52:26.679 --> 00:52:27.940
photographs that we needed.
850
00:52:28.019 --> 00:52:31.420
Yeah, no, Tony is incredible. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But it
851
00:52:31.460 --> 00:52:35.980
was your solemnity, sir. It was the power of your
852
00:52:36.019 --> 00:52:37.760
presentation that got you. All right, I got to let
853
00:52:37.780 --> 00:52:42.289
you go. Thank you. John Rothman, everybody. Thanks, John. All right.
854
00:52:43.170 --> 00:52:43.570
We continue.
855
00:52:46.420 --> 00:52:47.559
The Mark Thompson Show.
856
00:52:49.780 --> 00:52:50.789
It was great. I loved it.
857
00:52:50.900 --> 00:52:53.699
How would you handle this?
858
00:52:54.099 --> 00:52:55.360
We could try ignoring it, sir.
859
00:52:56.539 --> 00:52:56.880
Morning.
860
00:52:58.199 --> 00:52:59.789
You cannot say you love your country.
861
00:53:00.550 --> 00:53:02.250
Where are my weed smokers at?
862
00:53:02.309 --> 00:53:03.630
Stay at home and get baked.
863
00:53:05.070 --> 00:53:07.289
All right, everybody. We're a live show every day, Monday
864
00:53:07.309 --> 00:53:10.670
through Friday. We start at 2.30 Eastern Time. Great to
865
00:53:10.710 --> 00:53:14.130
have everybody in. Please hit the, you know, the What
866
00:53:14.190 --> 00:53:16.889
is it? The notification bell, the thumbs up, all the
867
00:53:16.929 --> 00:53:19.210
YouTube stuff. Smash it with your iron rod. Smash it
868
00:53:19.250 --> 00:53:24.360
like a boss. Come on. And hit the notification bell
869
00:53:24.380 --> 00:53:26.880
and you'll know whenever there's a new video. And I
870
00:53:27.460 --> 00:53:29.480
do want to, before I get to Jared Yates Sexton,
871
00:53:29.500 --> 00:53:31.579
I want to talk about the election and all this
872
00:53:31.599 --> 00:53:33.590
sort of stuff. When I say all this sort of stuff,
873
00:53:33.610 --> 00:53:36.670
I'm talking about the stuff of messing with the election,
874
00:53:37.010 --> 00:53:40.929
voter suppression, even some of the results, and the fact
875
00:53:40.969 --> 00:53:42.570
that Texas is back in play. I want to talk
876
00:53:42.590 --> 00:53:44.260
about all that with Jared. But I do want to
877
00:53:44.300 --> 00:53:48.650
just mention one of our dear partners. I mean, this
878
00:53:48.769 --> 00:53:52.769
is the longest sponsor, our only real sponsor. They are
879
00:53:52.829 --> 00:53:55.389
Coachella Valley Coffee. That's why I'm holding up my coffee
880
00:53:55.409 --> 00:54:03.179
cup for those who are just. And each cup of
881
00:54:03.239 --> 00:54:05.519
coffee is a bit of heaven, really is something. It's
882
00:54:05.539 --> 00:54:06.900
the best coffee I've ever tasted. I was drinking it
883
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902
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run out.
903
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904
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Wow.
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That's not fake.
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913
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All right. CoachellaValleyCoffee.com.
914
00:55:31.920 --> 00:55:32.940
The Mark Thompson Show.
915
00:55:34.159 --> 00:55:35.909
So happy we get a chance to visit with this
916
00:55:35.969 --> 00:55:38.750
guy every Wednesday. He kind of takes us back to
917
00:55:38.809 --> 00:55:42.889
Magnetic North on so many things. So it will be
918
00:55:43.710 --> 00:55:46.909
this day. Check out his sub stack, which I will
919
00:55:46.969 --> 00:55:49.909
link to under this video and under all of Jared's videos.
920
00:55:49.969 --> 00:55:54.269
We have his sub stack. He does live chats. His writing,
921
00:55:54.289 --> 00:55:56.610
he's a great writer. And he's had two books. There
922
00:55:56.630 --> 00:55:58.309
are links to his books under this video as well.
923
00:55:58.550 --> 00:55:59.710
Jared Yates Sexton, everyone.
924
00:56:00.949 --> 00:56:02.429
Mark, it's so good to see you, man.
925
00:56:02.789 --> 00:56:05.849
Look at you. Nice to see you, pal. Georgia's where
926
00:56:05.869 --> 00:56:07.550
you went to school, as I recall. Is that right?
927
00:56:08.110 --> 00:56:09.469
No, I taught down in Georgia.
928
00:56:09.510 --> 00:56:10.840
Oh, you taught down there, right? I taught.
929
00:56:10.929 --> 00:56:12.699
I'm a Hoosier through and through. I need to correct
930
00:56:12.780 --> 00:56:13.280
this record.
931
00:56:13.300 --> 00:56:16.360
Okay, sorry. Yeah, yeah. You grew up there in Hoosier country, yeah?
932
00:56:16.539 --> 00:56:17.900
I grew up a Hoosier, yes.
933
00:56:17.980 --> 00:56:23.730
Yeah, yeah. Very cool. Well, now lay some knowledge on us.
934
00:56:25.389 --> 00:56:28.789
I'm struck by a couple of things in this election.
935
00:56:29.510 --> 00:56:32.880
First of all, I'm struck by how aggressively there is
936
00:56:33.079 --> 00:56:37.840
a move to create chaos in the election, to question
937
00:56:37.860 --> 00:56:40.880
the mail-in voting is sort of Trump's cornerstone. That's what
938
00:56:40.920 --> 00:56:44.340
he's been doing. These elections are unfair. They've always been unfair,
939
00:56:44.619 --> 00:56:49.030
sort of setting up for the protest of any result
940
00:56:49.070 --> 00:56:52.750
he's not happy with. And now he seems to have,
941
00:56:52.809 --> 00:56:55.650
of course, a concierge Supreme Court in league with him
942
00:56:56.150 --> 00:56:59.860
that is allowing him to pursue these kinds of plans
943
00:57:00.199 --> 00:57:04.119
that might involve voter rolls having to be blessed by
944
00:57:04.280 --> 00:57:06.980
Trump or the feds. They literally are going to go
945
00:57:07.119 --> 00:57:11.559
after all the voter rolls state by state. I think
946
00:57:11.619 --> 00:57:15.570
it's just an effort to, again, create the chaos, create
947
00:57:15.590 --> 00:57:18.610
the question, create the cloud of questioning around something that's
948
00:57:18.750 --> 00:57:22.090
never had any questioning associated with it. And it's all
949
00:57:22.130 --> 00:57:26.050
in service of trying to manipulate and steal the outcomes.
950
00:57:27.050 --> 00:57:29.530
Absolutely. And I mean, we have to start, first of all,
951
00:57:29.570 --> 00:57:32.369
with the authoritarian playbook, which is, Mark, you know this.
952
00:57:32.889 --> 00:57:35.510
They don't want elections. They do not want to be
953
00:57:35.550 --> 00:57:38.590
held responsible. They do not care about popular mandate. They
954
00:57:38.630 --> 00:57:40.670
don't care about the will of the people. And if
955
00:57:40.710 --> 00:57:43.469
they can get away from elections, whether or not that
956
00:57:43.590 --> 00:57:48.269
is sabotaging and ending elections or simply creating manageable elections,
957
00:57:48.349 --> 00:57:50.710
you know, anybody who pays attention to what happens in
958
00:57:50.769 --> 00:57:54.420
illiberal countries. Russia, they still have elections, Mark. It turns
959
00:57:54.539 --> 00:57:57.820
out that Vladimir Putin is extremely popular, getting 98 to
960
00:57:57.820 --> 00:57:59.179
99 percent of the vote.
961
00:57:59.280 --> 00:57:59.480
Right.
962
00:57:59.940 --> 00:58:03.300
So we we know that authoritarians want to get past
963
00:58:03.320 --> 00:58:06.610
the point of democracy. They consider it an impediment. And
964
00:58:06.659 --> 00:58:09.349
we also know the problem in this country is actually
965
00:58:09.489 --> 00:58:14.760
non participation in elections. And so if Trump can both
966
00:58:14.940 --> 00:58:18.019
interact with this election, try and rig it, and also
967
00:58:18.159 --> 00:58:21.159
sow the idea that elections don't matter at all, we're
968
00:58:21.199 --> 00:58:24.090
not only talking about the possibility of not having free
969
00:58:24.130 --> 00:58:26.750
and fair elections. We're talking about the lack of trust
970
00:58:26.809 --> 00:58:30.789
in institutions growing intentionally. So as we're getting ready for
971
00:58:30.809 --> 00:58:33.710
these midterms, every time somebody asks me, I say, I
972
00:58:33.750 --> 00:58:35.139
don't know that they're going to be held and I
973
00:58:35.179 --> 00:58:36.719
don't know that they're going to be free and fair.
974
00:58:37.110 --> 00:58:38.929
And if you're a realist, you have to wrap your
975
00:58:38.949 --> 00:58:41.030
head around that, that this is not, you know, the
976
00:58:41.050 --> 00:58:43.690
game as usual. This is an attempt to try and
977
00:58:43.730 --> 00:58:44.710
undermine democracy.
978
00:58:45.550 --> 00:58:49.429
Yeah. For the reasons you note, I think and maybe
979
00:58:49.449 --> 00:58:52.530
I could be budged off of this, but I think
980
00:58:52.550 --> 00:58:55.619
there'll be elections. It's just of the sort that you've
981
00:58:55.639 --> 00:58:58.429
described that is the goal, which is manageable elections. And,
982
00:58:58.440 --> 00:59:02.130
of course, the most manageable elections are not the Donald
983
00:59:02.130 --> 00:59:06.579
Trump or GOP candidates have won by 98 They're the
984
00:59:06.760 --> 00:59:10.340
GOP candidate just edged out the opposition. I mean, that's
985
00:59:10.420 --> 00:59:12.679
the sort of high ground you want. You want to
986
00:59:12.699 --> 00:59:15.980
manipulate so that you've just gotten the edge because that's
987
00:59:16.469 --> 00:59:19.409
more believable than the 98%, as you say, which is
988
00:59:19.449 --> 00:59:24.110
kind of comical. But there are so many different ways
989
00:59:24.150 --> 00:59:28.659
that are now being employed. So this bizarre, I've always
990
00:59:28.679 --> 00:59:31.210
said that The Trump administration has no sleight of hand.
991
00:59:31.889 --> 00:59:34.300
They're showing it to you right up front. And so
992
00:59:34.320 --> 00:59:36.960
that's the USPS thing, the Postal Service stuff. But look
993
00:59:36.980 --> 00:59:40.000
at the other ways. Play me cut to with Mark
994
00:59:40.039 --> 00:59:43.659
Wayne Mullen, because the ice thugs that they're going to
995
00:59:43.719 --> 00:59:46.599
put at different polling places, or at least there is
996
00:59:46.639 --> 00:59:49.750
a suggestion they might show up, they'll have a chilling
997
00:59:49.789 --> 00:59:52.909
effect as well. Even for those who have nothing to
998
00:59:53.070 --> 00:59:57.230
fear from ICE legitimately, but just fear the fact that
999
00:59:57.269 --> 01:00:00.449
they're thugs and they don't care if you have appropriate
1000
01:00:00.489 --> 01:00:03.969
identification or whatever. They'll throw you into one of their vans.
1001
01:00:04.449 --> 01:00:06.210
Play him a bit of Mark Wayne, if you would.
1002
01:00:06.369 --> 01:00:09.199
I was being very, very clear when I said ICE
1003
01:00:09.320 --> 01:00:12.239
isn't there to patrol the polling places. We're there to
1004
01:00:12.320 --> 01:00:15.599
enforce specific threats The only reason why we would be
1005
01:00:15.639 --> 01:00:18.260
at polling places if there is a threat to that
1006
01:00:18.300 --> 01:00:25.429
polling place or we're serving a warrant on someone that
1007
01:00:25.469 --> 01:00:27.489
we have been actively tracking down.
1008
01:00:28.130 --> 01:00:30.469
Yeah, so you see, there are reasons they'd be there.
1009
01:00:31.210 --> 01:00:32.650
You know what I'm saying, Jerry? They're not just going
1010
01:00:32.670 --> 01:00:33.730
to be there for no reason.
1011
01:00:34.829 --> 01:00:37.739
Yeah, I don't want to discredit Mark Wayne Mullen. What
1012
01:00:37.760 --> 01:00:42.219
an incredible public servant. You know, it's basically it comes
1013
01:00:42.260 --> 01:00:45.010
down to this. It is creating one crisis after another,
1014
01:00:45.090 --> 01:00:48.989
which allows some sort of authoritarian overreach. And I'll tell you, Mark,
1015
01:00:49.210 --> 01:00:53.670
I have been in my fair share of meetings, Democratic nonprofits,
1016
01:00:53.730 --> 01:00:56.599
think tanks, institutes. They're all holding war games.
1017
01:00:57.059 --> 01:00:57.260
Right.
1018
01:00:57.300 --> 01:01:01.320
They're all preparing for every possibility. And it's not just
1019
01:01:01.420 --> 01:01:03.619
getting rid of the mail in vote. It's not just
1020
01:01:03.840 --> 01:01:08.010
ICE or the National Guard intimidating voters. It's not seating people,
1021
01:01:08.090 --> 01:01:11.230
not recognizing results, you name it, up and down the board.
1022
01:01:11.750 --> 01:01:16.539
And so then the question becomes, why are Democrats preparing
1023
01:01:16.599 --> 01:01:19.659
for the litigation battle as opposed to getting out ahead
1024
01:01:19.679 --> 01:01:22.429
of this thing? So the only people who are talking
1025
01:01:22.469 --> 01:01:26.050
about the possibility of democracy being impeded here are people
1026
01:01:26.090 --> 01:01:28.639
like yourself, other people in the media who are saying, hey,
1027
01:01:28.719 --> 01:01:31.940
they are telegraphing this entire thing. They have not been
1028
01:01:32.039 --> 01:01:35.239
quiet about this. It is very obvious. So why are
1029
01:01:35.260 --> 01:01:38.500
we preparing right now for a litigation battle, which, by
1030
01:01:38.519 --> 01:01:40.559
the way, we've already seen what happens when that goes
1031
01:01:40.599 --> 01:01:42.579
all the way at the top. I'm old enough that
1032
01:01:42.659 --> 01:01:45.320
I remember an election in 2000 that was stolen at
1033
01:01:45.380 --> 01:01:49.039
the Supreme Court, and that Supreme Court was much less
1034
01:01:49.139 --> 01:01:51.610
overt about who it is and what it believes and
1035
01:01:51.650 --> 01:01:54.489
what it supports than this one is. So why aren't
1036
01:01:54.530 --> 01:01:56.510
we getting ahead of this thing? Why aren't we having
1037
01:01:56.550 --> 01:01:59.590
conversations about the type of mobilization that would be needed?
1038
01:01:59.929 --> 01:02:02.190
Because this battle isn't going to be won in a courtroom.
1039
01:02:02.590 --> 01:02:04.909
This battle, if it comes to pass, is going to
1040
01:02:04.929 --> 01:02:07.289
be won not just at the ballot booth, but out
1041
01:02:07.329 --> 01:02:07.829
in the streets.
1042
01:02:08.309 --> 01:02:11.110
Well, I think that's such a great point that this
1043
01:02:11.130 --> 01:02:15.610
sort of after the fact action just doesn't work. In fact,
1044
01:02:15.650 --> 01:02:18.969
they're kind of counting on that. And yet, you get
1045
01:02:19.269 --> 01:02:22.250
entreaties like this one from Ted Lieu, playing me cut four.
1046
01:02:22.570 --> 01:02:25.400
And to be fair, I think Lieu's trying to make noise.
1047
01:02:25.659 --> 01:02:29.360
You'll find he uncorks an F-bomb here. I think that
1048
01:02:29.380 --> 01:02:31.860
was sort of to kind of light a fuse of
1049
01:02:32.019 --> 01:02:35.420
virality under this video. And it worked. I mean, we're
1050
01:02:35.460 --> 01:02:38.699
running it. But it speaks to how I think the
1051
01:02:38.739 --> 01:02:41.360
general message is kind of let's get out in four
1052
01:02:41.380 --> 01:02:44.760
so it's too big to rig. That isn't really enough.
1053
01:02:44.880 --> 01:02:45.480
Here's Cutford.
1054
01:02:46.980 --> 01:02:48.639
Just go fucking vote.
1055
01:02:48.840 --> 01:02:51.039
Now, some of you may have seen an article today
1056
01:02:51.360 --> 01:02:54.679
about a whistleblower at the United States Postal Service saying
1057
01:02:54.780 --> 01:02:57.860
that the Postal Service is trying to implement Donald Trump's
1058
01:02:58.059 --> 01:03:02.559
executive order on mail ballots, even though right now the
1059
01:03:02.639 --> 01:03:06.449
courts have said that that order is unconstitutional. So Leader
1060
01:03:06.489 --> 01:03:10.550
Jeffries earlier this year established a task force with ranking
1061
01:03:10.570 --> 01:03:14.440
member Joe Morelli to look at different scenarios where the
1062
01:03:14.480 --> 01:03:16.760
Trump administration is going to try to suppress the vote
1063
01:03:17.000 --> 01:03:17.840
of the American people.
1064
01:03:18.400 --> 01:03:19.920
This is one of the scenarios.
1065
01:03:19.460 --> 01:03:20.219
That they envisioned.
1066
01:03:20.619 --> 01:03:22.360
One of the messages I want to give the American
1067
01:03:22.380 --> 01:03:25.840
people is the democratic caucus is on this. We're working
1068
01:03:26.039 --> 01:03:27.980
to fight back. The other message I want to give
1069
01:03:28.639 --> 01:03:31.880
is just go fucking vote. The Trump administration is going
1070
01:03:31.900 --> 01:03:33.780
to try to suppress your vote.
1071
01:03:34.139 --> 01:03:34.340
Yeah.
1072
01:03:34.380 --> 01:03:41.050
Thanks, Tony. That's good. Um, yeah. So, uh, yeah. All right. Um,
1073
01:03:41.730 --> 01:03:44.050
And he notes what we talked about, which is, you know,
1074
01:03:44.110 --> 01:03:49.630
the whistleblower report and the clear evidence of a manipulation
1075
01:03:49.949 --> 01:03:53.519
of voter rolls. But at the end of it, it's
1076
01:03:53.579 --> 01:03:56.880
just this is your power as a citizen. Just go
1077
01:03:56.940 --> 01:03:57.420
out and vote.
1078
01:03:58.380 --> 01:04:01.320
I mean, no disrespect to Ted Lieu or Joe Morelli.
1079
01:04:01.360 --> 01:04:05.570
That's not exactly the caucus, you know, 18. Like, if
1080
01:04:05.650 --> 01:04:08.550
this is an actual problem, if you actually care about
1081
01:04:08.570 --> 01:04:11.239
the validity of elections— You're not going to have to.
1082
01:04:11.369 --> 01:04:14.030
And by the way, all you know, I'll give all
1083
01:04:14.050 --> 01:04:16.570
kudos to Ted Lieu. He has spent the last 10
1084
01:04:16.570 --> 01:04:19.389
years going on social media, constantly making a name as
1085
01:04:19.429 --> 01:04:21.550
the person who's outspoken in all of this. He is
1086
01:04:21.590 --> 01:04:25.050
not a powerful congressman. He is not among the leadership
1087
01:04:25.130 --> 01:04:27.929
of the Democratic Party. You know, Hakeem Jeffries should take
1088
01:04:27.969 --> 01:04:30.719
the bat off of his shoulder and actually spearhead these
1089
01:04:30.780 --> 01:04:32.559
things and get out in front of it. But the
1090
01:04:32.599 --> 01:04:35.659
Democratic Party does not talk about all of this. Because
1091
01:04:35.860 --> 01:04:39.000
much like everything from ICE to the tariffs to corruption
1092
01:04:39.380 --> 01:04:42.239
now to this, they're not interested in getting rid of
1093
01:04:42.260 --> 01:04:44.760
the veneer of the status quo. They do not want
1094
01:04:44.800 --> 01:04:47.079
to talk about the actual threats that are going on
1095
01:04:47.119 --> 01:04:49.949
because if there are actual threats, it would take actual action.
1096
01:04:50.349 --> 01:04:53.289
But putting Morelli or Liu in there and having them
1097
01:04:53.349 --> 01:04:56.130
talk about it, it allows the social media space of
1098
01:04:56.230 --> 01:04:59.369
liberals to talk about it. but it's not actually doing anything.
1099
01:04:59.449 --> 01:05:01.630
And again, as somebody who's been in these meetings, Mark,
1100
01:05:02.030 --> 01:05:04.969
they're not taking the actions that are required if they
1101
01:05:04.989 --> 01:05:08.159
take this seriously. So either they don't take it seriously
1102
01:05:08.199 --> 01:05:11.460
and they're foolish, or they're taking it seriously and they're
1103
01:05:11.500 --> 01:05:13.320
not providing the actions that need to be taken.
1104
01:05:14.099 --> 01:05:19.800
Yeah. It's a palliative somehow. It soothes you to get
1105
01:05:19.920 --> 01:05:23.650
out on social media to see Ted Lieu, get angry
1106
01:05:23.769 --> 01:05:27.969
for you. But the result, as you suggested, is nothing happens.
1107
01:05:28.590 --> 01:05:33.659
It's funny you mentioned Jeffries because apparently he went out
1108
01:05:33.679 --> 01:05:40.099
to go after two Democrats who voted with Republicans to
1109
01:05:41.409 --> 01:05:47.889
get the floor of the House open. It's an interesting thing.
1110
01:05:47.929 --> 01:05:51.269
They kind of broke with leadership because of this procedural vote.
1111
01:05:51.980 --> 01:05:55.260
And the procedural vote was important because there's a legislative agenda,
1112
01:05:55.280 --> 01:05:58.380
I guess, that was associated with a bunch of GOP
1113
01:05:58.440 --> 01:06:02.030
things that wouldn't have ever gotten off the ground had
1114
01:06:02.050 --> 01:06:04.369
it not been for these two going over. And you
1115
01:06:04.389 --> 01:06:05.969
know more about this stuff than I do, I think,
1116
01:06:06.090 --> 01:06:12.570
on a level that you can explain. It's so reflected
1117
01:06:12.949 --> 01:06:17.480
a frustration with a lack of solidarity that Jeffries felt
1118
01:06:17.559 --> 01:06:21.210
he had to clap back at the two and really
1119
01:06:21.369 --> 01:06:24.530
wants to have some kind of other way in which
1120
01:06:24.610 --> 01:06:27.809
they can be punished politically for having broken with the party.
1121
01:06:28.610 --> 01:06:31.050
See, I actually think this is a twisted mirror version
1122
01:06:31.300 --> 01:06:34.340
of solidarity, as opposed to these two members of the
1123
01:06:34.380 --> 01:06:37.400
Democratic Party stepping out of line. They had a weird
1124
01:06:37.460 --> 01:06:40.280
decision to go and support the Republican Party. This is
1125
01:06:40.320 --> 01:06:44.519
what I call the Kirsten mansion, which is any time
1126
01:06:44.929 --> 01:06:47.590
that there is some legislation or a procedure that needs
1127
01:06:47.630 --> 01:06:50.530
to get passed, and the Republicans don't quite have enough votes.
1128
01:06:50.889 --> 01:06:54.139
It's weird, Mark. Just the right amount of Democrats show
1129
01:06:54.239 --> 01:06:56.400
up and vote against the party. And all of a sudden,
1130
01:06:56.440 --> 01:06:59.110
Hakeem Jeffries is like, there's going to be a serious response.
1131
01:06:59.650 --> 01:07:02.449
And the point of it is, it's all theater. They
1132
01:07:02.489 --> 01:07:05.460
are all figuring out ways to make this thing happen.
1133
01:07:05.559 --> 01:07:07.480
And they'll look at the people who make the votes,
1134
01:07:07.539 --> 01:07:10.059
the people who cross the aisle, and they'll say, OK,
1135
01:07:10.119 --> 01:07:12.880
are these people safe in their future races? Are these
1136
01:07:12.940 --> 01:07:15.989
people safe from being primaried? Who is most in danger
1137
01:07:16.030 --> 01:07:19.429
right now? And basically, it's like duck, duck, goose. You
1138
01:07:19.489 --> 01:07:21.210
are the person who's going to go ahead and make
1139
01:07:21.250 --> 01:07:23.269
sure the Republicans are able to pass this or this
1140
01:07:23.369 --> 01:07:26.510
unpopular legislation is going to get passed. And then Hakeem
1141
01:07:26.550 --> 01:07:29.360
Jeffries is just like, oh, I'm very angry about this.
1142
01:07:29.900 --> 01:07:31.940
And what's going to happen? I mean, yeah, there's a
1143
01:07:31.960 --> 01:07:34.739
bunch of public things that happen on Politico. But the
1144
01:07:34.780 --> 01:07:38.010
people who make the vote, they are actually helped by
1145
01:07:38.050 --> 01:07:40.630
the Democratic leadership being mad at them.
1146
01:07:41.170 --> 01:07:41.429
Right.
1147
01:07:41.750 --> 01:07:45.309
Which gives them the ability to reach out to Republicans
1148
01:07:45.369 --> 01:07:49.630
or moderates because they themselves are centrist or center right Democrats.
1149
01:07:49.989 --> 01:07:52.750
So it's all this sort of game in which it's
1150
01:07:52.809 --> 01:07:56.050
incredible that a Kyrsten Sinema or a Joe Manchin could
1151
01:07:56.090 --> 01:07:58.460
suddenly be the deciding vote that's going to bring this
1152
01:07:58.480 --> 01:08:02.469
thing over the line. But this is actual solidarity, unfortunately.
1153
01:08:02.769 --> 01:08:06.050
It just so happens it's not Republican versus Democrat solidarity.
1154
01:08:06.190 --> 01:08:07.309
It's class solidarity.
1155
01:08:08.489 --> 01:08:13.579
As the progressives rise in power in the Democratic Party,
1156
01:08:13.599 --> 01:08:18.000
they win these primaries. Even the older progressives, you know,
1157
01:08:18.039 --> 01:08:20.180
it's always sort of played out as like these are
1158
01:08:20.239 --> 01:08:25.909
young insurgents. But Markey's not a young guy. Here are
1159
01:08:25.930 --> 01:08:29.449
the Massachusetts results, cut 10. I mean, both these guys–
1160
01:08:29.739 --> 01:08:33.699
Moulton isn't like, you know, he's not a lefty, but
1161
01:08:33.800 --> 01:08:36.079
he's a Democrat, right? This is a Democratic primary. And
1162
01:08:36.260 --> 01:08:40.130
Markey thumped him, and Markey's probably more the progressive. I mean, even,
1163
01:08:40.149 --> 01:08:43.470
you know, I get it. He may not sing from
1164
01:08:43.489 --> 01:08:47.510
the hymnal as strongly as Syed does or El Syed,
1165
01:08:47.569 --> 01:08:53.189
but I think his bona fides is there. And I'm
1166
01:08:53.229 --> 01:08:56.880
wondering to what extent You feel the– I probably asked
1167
01:08:56.899 --> 01:08:58.899
you this question last week. Maybe you can comment again
1168
01:08:58.920 --> 01:09:01.380
i'll probably ask you three or four more times even
1169
01:09:01.439 --> 01:09:05.319
as we approach the the election uh the the progressivism
1170
01:09:05.380 --> 01:09:10.159
that is prevailing will be integrated into the democratic message
1171
01:09:10.199 --> 01:09:13.050
because they've seen it seen it effective and they've seen
1172
01:09:13.090 --> 01:09:13.529
it win.
1173
01:09:14.199 --> 01:09:16.220
Well, first of all, I am so happy that Seth
1174
01:09:16.279 --> 01:09:19.239
Moulton had his pants pulled down and humiliated on the
1175
01:09:19.279 --> 01:09:22.800
national stage. An absolute coward. And I'll say this. He
1176
01:09:22.840 --> 01:09:26.449
deserved to lose because immediately he licked his finger, put
1177
01:09:26.489 --> 01:09:28.010
it up in the air, and he thought, oh, I'm
1178
01:09:28.029 --> 01:09:30.789
going to go after trans people. And guess what? In
1179
01:09:30.850 --> 01:09:34.670
this period, particularly as fascism is growing, if you show
1180
01:09:34.770 --> 01:09:38.420
a willingness to throw vulnerable populations under the bus... People
1181
01:09:38.479 --> 01:09:41.159
don't just hear that you're throwing trans people under the bus.
1182
01:09:41.420 --> 01:09:44.449
They understand if you're going to throw out vulnerable people,
1183
01:09:44.649 --> 01:09:47.550
you're not going to fight for me. And in this case,
1184
01:09:47.630 --> 01:09:50.270
I think everybody gets lost, whether it comes to age
1185
01:09:50.289 --> 01:09:52.989
or who does this or who does whatever. Americans want
1186
01:09:53.149 --> 01:09:56.210
fighters right now. They want somebody who is going to
1187
01:09:56.270 --> 01:10:00.819
show political courage, who shows morality and ethics. And truthfully,
1188
01:10:01.079 --> 01:10:03.659
every single issue that happens right now, it is a
1189
01:10:03.739 --> 01:10:07.569
test of morality and ethics. And Seth Moulton failed. Seth
1190
01:10:07.590 --> 01:10:10.500
Moulton revealed who he was and what he was willing
1191
01:10:10.560 --> 01:10:12.739
to do and who he was willing to hurt and abandon.
1192
01:10:13.100 --> 01:10:15.279
And in this case, I think this was a situation
1193
01:10:15.600 --> 01:10:18.939
Massachusetts knows who Marky is. They know who he is,
1194
01:10:19.020 --> 01:10:21.520
what he does and whatever. And in this case alone,
1195
01:10:21.640 --> 01:10:23.460
I think that Seth Moulton, I think he dug his
1196
01:10:23.520 --> 01:10:25.390
own grave and I hope that he is sitting with
1197
01:10:25.399 --> 01:10:27.079
this failure today because he deserves it.
1198
01:10:27.649 --> 01:10:31.350
So the broader message though, on the progressive side, do
1199
01:10:31.869 --> 01:10:34.569
you feel that is something that's going to be integrated?
1200
01:10:34.609 --> 01:10:37.539
That to which you've referred? I mean, that, uh, You know,
1201
01:10:37.920 --> 01:10:40.850
these cultural wedge issues like the trans issue that you
1202
01:10:40.869 --> 01:10:44.289
talked about, they've really made political hay of that, the GOP.
1203
01:10:44.430 --> 01:10:46.560
I mean, it's insane. I was in Tennessee and I
1204
01:10:46.560 --> 01:10:48.159
was sitting around with a bunch of people who seemed
1205
01:10:48.180 --> 01:10:52.760
otherwise reasonable, and somehow we get into a conversation around politics,
1206
01:10:53.199 --> 01:10:55.649
and the first thing they bring up is the trans thing.
1207
01:10:55.670 --> 01:10:58.010
I'm thinking, you guys have got to be kidding. I mean,
1208
01:10:58.390 --> 01:11:00.350
how many people are really affected by this? Why are
1209
01:11:00.369 --> 01:11:03.789
you going after this already? I can't imagine a tougher
1210
01:11:03.829 --> 01:11:08.229
life than having to transition your gender, and you guys
1211
01:11:08.289 --> 01:11:11.630
cannot let these people alone. Anyway, I'm just wondering to
1212
01:11:11.649 --> 01:11:15.600
what extent these cultural wedge issues like that still will
1213
01:11:15.659 --> 01:11:17.800
find an effectiveness on the part of the GOP and
1214
01:11:17.819 --> 01:11:20.300
the progressivism to what extent that will be integrated.
1215
01:11:20.939 --> 01:11:25.560
Well, these wedge issues are completely artificially created. If you
1216
01:11:25.649 --> 01:11:28.069
actually track where they come from, all of these sort
1217
01:11:28.090 --> 01:11:31.390
of flashpoints, they're designed at think tanks and institutes that
1218
01:11:31.409 --> 01:11:34.329
are being paid for by billionaires and millionaires. They are
1219
01:11:34.390 --> 01:11:38.090
designed in order to cut across solidarity and also issues
1220
01:11:38.149 --> 01:11:41.569
that involve a supermajority. You know, if you actually look
1221
01:11:41.600 --> 01:11:44.770
at the major actual issues in this country, 60 to
1222
01:11:44.770 --> 01:11:48.260
80 and sometimes 90 percent of Americans agree on things.
1223
01:11:48.659 --> 01:11:51.159
They slice and dice them in order to find the things.
1224
01:11:51.460 --> 01:11:54.140
And when it comes to trans stuff, the simple answer
1225
01:11:54.199 --> 01:11:56.300
to it is not to debate about it. It's why
1226
01:11:56.359 --> 01:11:59.560
are you so freaking obsessed with this? What is it
1227
01:11:59.640 --> 01:12:03.199
about you that is so worried about people's genitals? What
1228
01:12:03.279 --> 01:12:06.699
is it about you that's worried about trailing women into
1229
01:12:06.770 --> 01:12:09.930
bathrooms and seeing what's underneath their pants? It is, as
1230
01:12:10.350 --> 01:12:14.890
somebody just said, it's a complete non-issue outside of someone's
1231
01:12:14.949 --> 01:12:18.140
protections and liberties being taken from them. And so what
1232
01:12:18.180 --> 01:12:20.039
has happened for years now, and I feel like I've
1233
01:12:20.060 --> 01:12:23.529
had this conversation so much, it's like Groundhog Day. Why
1234
01:12:23.609 --> 01:12:26.729
is it the Democratic Party always agrees to the framing
1235
01:12:26.770 --> 01:12:29.449
that is being designed by the Republican Party and the
1236
01:12:29.520 --> 01:12:32.300
think tanks and the institutes? And when it comes to
1237
01:12:32.340 --> 01:12:34.920
whether or not this stuff will be adapted, the question
1238
01:12:34.960 --> 01:12:37.659
is whether or not there's courage on behalf of candidates.
1239
01:12:37.720 --> 01:12:41.140
We're seeing it right now in Michigan. Abdul El-Sayed. is
1240
01:12:41.239 --> 01:12:44.619
being challenged every single day to distance himself from a
1241
01:12:44.699 --> 01:12:48.600
Twitch streamer that maybe 5% to 6% of the American
1242
01:12:48.640 --> 01:12:54.279
population even knows who he is. So they're trying to
1243
01:12:54.359 --> 01:12:57.119
beat him with this to install discipline, saying, oh, I
1244
01:12:57.140 --> 01:12:59.159
know you're a radical. I wonder if you'll play ball.
1245
01:12:59.600 --> 01:13:02.800
People are watching Al-Sayed to see if he will actually
1246
01:13:02.880 --> 01:13:04.779
stand up for what he believes or whether or not
1247
01:13:04.819 --> 01:13:07.140
he'll go ahead and play along with this. And you
1248
01:13:07.159 --> 01:13:09.300
want to talk about midterms, if they're free and fair,
1249
01:13:09.460 --> 01:13:12.960
if they're held. I think his victory, if it happens,
1250
01:13:13.260 --> 01:13:15.689
will happen if he shows that he's willing to stand
1251
01:13:15.810 --> 01:13:17.989
up to these attacks because people don't believe in them.
1252
01:13:18.649 --> 01:13:24.829
Well, he's so effective at pivoting. And when I say pivoting,
1253
01:13:24.949 --> 01:13:27.489
I don't mean pivoting to change the subject. I mean
1254
01:13:27.770 --> 01:13:32.069
to returning people. to the things that really affect Michiganders.
1255
01:13:32.189 --> 01:13:34.409
And this is true across the board. I'd say it's
1256
01:13:34.430 --> 01:13:38.890
true in Maine. Susan Collins could have her own problems. Wisconsin.
1257
01:13:39.189 --> 01:13:42.050
These are border states that are affected by the policies
1258
01:13:42.069 --> 01:13:47.550
with Canada that Trump has completely created. This insane trade war.
1259
01:13:47.789 --> 01:13:50.720
But more to the point on El Sayed. Play, Jared,
1260
01:13:50.770 --> 01:13:53.000
in my last minute or so with him, cut five.
1261
01:13:53.319 --> 01:13:55.220
This is El Sayed, and this is what I'm talking about.
1262
01:13:55.479 --> 01:13:57.619
As you suggest, they try to drag him into something
1263
01:13:57.970 --> 01:14:00.789
And he pivots pretty beautifully from the things that J.D.
1264
01:14:00.829 --> 01:14:03.720
Vance has said, from the smears of others. And he
1265
01:14:03.760 --> 01:14:06.699
kind of returns to the subjects and the populist message
1266
01:14:07.060 --> 01:14:10.239
that people really spark to. Go ahead.
1267
01:14:10.500 --> 01:14:11.800
Thank you, sir, for being here.
1268
01:14:11.859 --> 01:14:13.899
First off, do you want to respond to what the
1269
01:14:13.939 --> 01:14:17.039
vice president said today, saying that there is something that is, quote, very,
1270
01:14:17.199 --> 01:14:19.050
very evil about you?
1271
01:14:21.390 --> 01:14:23.760
Well, let me tell you what's evil about. Evil is
1272
01:14:23.800 --> 01:14:26.539
the idea of starting wars when there's peace. Evil is
1273
01:14:26.560 --> 01:14:29.260
the idea of stripping away people's health care when they
1274
01:14:29.380 --> 01:14:33.119
absolutely have no other option. What's evil is to do
1275
01:14:33.159 --> 01:14:35.619
that so that you can pass a tax cut for billionaires.
1276
01:14:35.659 --> 01:14:37.539
What's evil is putting a data center that people don't
1277
01:14:37.579 --> 01:14:42.420
want in their backyard despite them. What's evil is corrupting
1278
01:14:42.460 --> 01:14:45.979
yourself because you want a little bit more power. And
1279
01:14:46.000 --> 01:14:48.279
at the end of the day, this whole conversation, frankly,
1280
01:14:48.319 --> 01:14:52.020
it's a distraction. The distraction from Michiganders are really worried about.
1281
01:14:52.180 --> 01:14:54.239
They're worried that they can't afford their gas because of
1282
01:14:54.279 --> 01:14:56.930
this trade war with Canada or because of this hot
1283
01:14:56.979 --> 01:14:59.770
war with Iran that they got us into. They're worried
1284
01:14:59.930 --> 01:15:01.810
that they can't see a doctor because they're about to
1285
01:15:01.869 --> 01:15:04.789
lose their Medicaid. They're worried that their kid is being
1286
01:15:04.850 --> 01:15:08.250
priced out of playing baseball. So if the vice president
1287
01:15:08.289 --> 01:15:10.789
would like to actually get on to governing, he's welcome
1288
01:15:10.850 --> 01:15:11.270
to do that.
1289
01:15:11.689 --> 01:15:14.689
But to come to Michigan from Ohio, where he's from,
1290
01:15:15.109 --> 01:15:17.250
to tell us that we ought to pay for a.
1291
01:15:17.229 --> 01:15:22.069
Vanity trade war that his president is spiking with Canada, well,
1292
01:15:22.130 --> 01:15:24.350
that's a little bit beyond the pale. And I think
1293
01:15:24.369 --> 01:15:26.930
he can go take himself back to Ohio, where apparently
1294
01:15:26.949 --> 01:15:27.880
they like politics like that.
1295
01:15:28.840 --> 01:15:31.880
If I could stand, my broken ankle won't permit me
1296
01:15:31.920 --> 01:15:34.420
to do it, I would give him the standing ovation.
1297
01:15:34.619 --> 01:15:36.760
I just felt like he stuck that landing.
1298
01:15:37.560 --> 01:15:39.359
Well, you know, what's funny about that, Mark, is that
1299
01:15:39.479 --> 01:15:44.689
obviously he understands the sports political culture of Michigan and Ohio.
1300
01:15:44.710 --> 01:15:47.970
I mean, continually saying Ohio there. That's very, very good.
1301
01:15:48.369 --> 01:15:50.430
But I do want to say one of the things
1302
01:15:50.470 --> 01:15:53.510
that's happening with El Saed there, for instance, you and
1303
01:15:53.630 --> 01:15:56.449
I are having a conversation right now about deeper politics.
1304
01:15:56.850 --> 01:15:59.680
What is actually at play? Why people vote the way
1305
01:15:59.739 --> 01:16:03.420
they do? Why parties do or don't do things? That's
1306
01:16:03.520 --> 01:16:05.800
not what you're supposed to go on to cable news
1307
01:16:05.899 --> 01:16:08.340
and do. You're supposed to go on cable news and
1308
01:16:08.380 --> 01:16:11.470
there's a script that you're supposed to follow, right? There's
1309
01:16:11.560 --> 01:16:15.079
sort of an acceptable Overton window you're supposed to behave in.
1310
01:16:15.489 --> 01:16:19.409
There's a reason why El-Sayed has become popular despite all
1311
01:16:19.470 --> 01:16:23.199
kinds of impediments to him. It's because he's actually talking
1312
01:16:23.260 --> 01:16:26.319
in a way that Americans want a politician to talk,
1313
01:16:26.380 --> 01:16:29.819
which is to not participate in this script anymore. You
1314
01:16:29.890 --> 01:16:31.949
cannot see him go on one of these shows, and
1315
01:16:31.989 --> 01:16:35.050
he continually goes, without being asked about Piker, without being
1316
01:16:35.130 --> 01:16:39.670
asked about whether or not he's anti-American. 9-11, Islamicism, whatever
1317
01:16:39.729 --> 01:16:41.890
the hell it is at that point. But if you
1318
01:16:41.949 --> 01:16:44.310
don't play along with the script, you're not going to
1319
01:16:44.350 --> 01:16:47.029
get establishment support, but you are going to get the
1320
01:16:47.050 --> 01:16:49.430
support of a base that is tired of all of this.
1321
01:16:49.829 --> 01:16:52.560
And that is where actual power starts to change.
1322
01:16:53.859 --> 01:16:56.609
It's funny, I equate it almost to the.
1323
01:16:58.100 --> 01:17:00.420
Way in which people are sick of government as usual,
1324
01:17:00.539 --> 01:17:02.739
sort of as you suggested, sort of the kabuki theater
1325
01:17:02.760 --> 01:17:05.039
of government where we end up going in this one
1326
01:17:05.060 --> 01:17:07.359
direction whether we want it or not, and despite whatever
1327
01:17:07.399 --> 01:17:11.619
rhetorical protestations about what's happening, it is also the case
1328
01:17:11.659 --> 01:17:16.180
that people like the fact that there's a disappointment with
1329
01:17:16.739 --> 01:17:19.319
cable news and these panel shows, etc., when somebody comes
1330
01:17:19.399 --> 01:17:22.210
out like El-Sayed and kind of breaks the mold a
1331
01:17:22.250 --> 01:17:26.310
little bit, it sticks out, and it maybe gets some virality.
1332
01:17:26.649 --> 01:17:30.199
He's a very very good candidate. He is such a
1333
01:17:30.380 --> 01:17:34.239
potent force. And I really hope he, you know, he's
1334
01:17:34.989 --> 01:17:37.329
even more relevant than just the race that he will
1335
01:17:37.390 --> 01:17:38.569
win in November.
1336
01:17:38.590 --> 01:17:41.670
Well, and it's even, it's amazing, Mark, we were told
1337
01:17:41.710 --> 01:17:44.649
that he's unelectable. We were told like he was going to,
1338
01:17:44.710 --> 01:17:46.810
he's already ahead in all of these polls that we're
1339
01:17:46.850 --> 01:17:51.789
seeing actual reputable polls. And so it looks like, call
1340
01:17:51.810 --> 01:17:54.210
me crazy, that if you have a candidate who actually
1341
01:17:54.250 --> 01:17:56.850
speaks out for the things that Americans want, they might
1342
01:17:56.939 --> 01:17:57.880
actually get some support.
1343
01:17:58.539 --> 01:18:04.199
All right, now I'm going to use my extended play
1344
01:18:04.859 --> 01:18:07.279
credit to ask you to comment on one more thing.
1345
01:18:07.699 --> 01:18:09.859
I feel like I'm keeping a little over time. Because
1346
01:18:09.899 --> 01:18:12.680
we're talking about this and candidates that weren't supposed to win,
1347
01:18:12.699 --> 01:18:15.760
you made me think of it. The Texas primary vote
1348
01:18:16.420 --> 01:18:22.560
is very much suggestive of what could be a real
1349
01:18:22.760 --> 01:18:25.939
flip in a state that seemed unflippable. I mean, I
1350
01:18:25.970 --> 01:18:30.720
get that... Beto O'Rourke, it was talked about as he
1351
01:18:30.739 --> 01:18:32.979
was on the cover of every magazine and seemed like
1352
01:18:33.279 --> 01:18:37.020
the it guy. But now it seems as though Tallarico
1353
01:18:37.100 --> 01:18:41.310
really may do something. Show me the– we have the
1354
01:18:41.369 --> 01:18:43.710
Texas– Texas I guess is one of the– here's the
1355
01:18:44.149 --> 01:18:47.409
Texas primary turnout. So you can see there are more
1356
01:18:47.449 --> 01:18:49.949
Democrats in the state. I don't know that necessarily the–
1357
01:18:50.000 --> 01:18:53.729
this matters, except for the fact that the GOP is
1358
01:18:54.119 --> 01:18:58.529
now calling for help. They're like basically radioing back to
1359
01:18:58.550 --> 01:19:02.289
the mothership to say, bring us more money and bring
1360
01:19:02.350 --> 01:19:05.369
us Donald Trump. Because they want to get that GOP
1361
01:19:05.710 --> 01:19:07.689
base that you see there on the bottom, they want
1362
01:19:07.729 --> 01:19:10.750
to get them to show up. Play Jared Cut One.
1363
01:19:10.789 --> 01:19:14.430
This is John Thune who is pitching for money and
1364
01:19:14.489 --> 01:19:17.670
for Trump to come to Texas and bring out the base.
1365
01:19:18.210 --> 01:19:22.460
Texas is an incredibly expensive state and obviously one that
1366
01:19:22.539 --> 01:19:24.479
we need, that we've got to hold. If we're going
1367
01:19:24.500 --> 01:19:25.920
to keep the United States in, if we're going to
1368
01:19:25.939 --> 01:19:28.720
keep a majority, Martha, with Texas, that is... We absolutely
1369
01:19:28.760 --> 01:19:31.420
have to win that race. So everybody is all in
1370
01:19:31.479 --> 01:19:34.460
for Ken Paxton. The primary is over. We're focused now
1371
01:19:34.500 --> 01:19:37.439
on the general election. But because Texas is such an
1372
01:19:37.500 --> 01:19:40.659
expensive state, we're going to need the president and his
1373
01:19:40.680 --> 01:19:43.909
team to be engaged there and to be putting resources
1374
01:19:43.949 --> 01:19:44.510
into that race.
1375
01:19:44.909 --> 01:19:48.609
So Ken Paxton, who's maybe one of the most corrupt
1376
01:19:48.689 --> 01:19:51.649
candidates in the history of the country. But you can
1377
01:19:51.670 --> 01:19:54.670
see that the bat beam is going up for GOP help.
1378
01:19:55.720 --> 01:19:59.369
Yeah, I mean, Paxton is a subterranean creature. I mean,
1379
01:19:59.409 --> 01:20:02.109
that helps the case right there. But I want to
1380
01:20:02.130 --> 01:20:04.890
point out, in the clip that you just played, as
1381
01:20:04.949 --> 01:20:08.859
they're talking about needing more resources in Texas because Tallarico
1382
01:20:08.939 --> 01:20:13.460
could possibly win this race, you're watching another natural disaster
1383
01:20:13.539 --> 01:20:17.890
bearing down on Texas. You're watching yet another storm getting
1384
01:20:17.949 --> 01:20:20.170
ready to hit Texas. And this is one of the
1385
01:20:20.210 --> 01:20:22.270
things I think that gets lost in all of this.
1386
01:20:22.729 --> 01:20:26.529
First of all, Texans, they are around immigrants all the time.
1387
01:20:26.829 --> 01:20:29.970
They work with them. They know them. They're their neighbors.
1388
01:20:30.329 --> 01:20:33.529
Eventually over time, they're kind of like, these people aren't monsters.
1389
01:20:33.890 --> 01:20:36.750
This is the guy in the family next door. Second
1390
01:20:36.770 --> 01:20:43.109
of all, Texas gets hit by so many natural disasters constantly. Flooding, storms.
1391
01:20:43.680 --> 01:20:47.119
Ice storms that kill people at some point or another.
1392
01:20:47.189 --> 01:20:49.949
They look around and even if it's unconscious, they're like,
1393
01:20:50.029 --> 01:20:52.810
you know what? Our leadership isn't taking care of this.
1394
01:20:53.369 --> 01:20:55.710
Something is going on that needs to change. Of course,
1395
01:20:55.829 --> 01:20:57.409
I want to point out one last thing, because I
1396
01:20:57.449 --> 01:21:00.569
do think Tallarico has has a chance at this. Another
1397
01:21:00.609 --> 01:21:03.130
thing most people don't know about Texas, some of the
1398
01:21:03.310 --> 01:21:06.960
dirtiest politics that you will ever come across in the
1399
01:21:07.000 --> 01:21:09.960
United States of America. And if there is a possibility
1400
01:21:09.979 --> 01:21:14.159
of a Democrat winning a statewide office for senator, you
1401
01:21:14.220 --> 01:21:17.859
are going to see them try everything, throw every piece
1402
01:21:18.000 --> 01:21:20.840
of their artillery and corruption at it. So I think
1403
01:21:20.899 --> 01:21:23.079
this is going to be one of those races. we're
1404
01:21:23.100 --> 01:21:25.470
not only going to watch the possibility of a Democrat winning,
1405
01:21:25.829 --> 01:21:28.229
we're going to see the full thrust and power of
1406
01:21:28.270 --> 01:21:30.909
the corrupt Republican system in Texas being thrown at it.
1407
01:21:31.609 --> 01:21:34.930
It's an extraordinary thing to see this guy. And as
1408
01:21:34.970 --> 01:21:39.739
you say, it might just be the perfect lineup. Paxton
1409
01:21:39.779 --> 01:21:43.319
is so compromised and Tallarico seems to speak so well
1410
01:21:43.800 --> 01:21:47.130
to the concerns of Texans. But But he's getting muddied
1411
01:21:47.229 --> 01:21:48.970
up in every way they can. You know, they've called
1412
01:21:48.989 --> 01:21:52.939
him everything from– well, they've called him– they concoct everything
1413
01:21:52.960 --> 01:21:54.739
to call. And, of course, the national media in the
1414
01:21:54.779 --> 01:21:57.920
form of Fox News really helps out. And maybe with
1415
01:21:57.939 --> 01:22:00.390
an influx of money– I mean, Tallarico has out-raised them
1416
01:22:01.270 --> 01:22:03.250
so far. But with an influx of money, maybe they
1417
01:22:03.270 --> 01:22:05.350
can get more of that smear out in the form
1418
01:22:05.390 --> 01:22:09.460
of messaging. I've kept you way over time. Very generous
1419
01:22:09.500 --> 01:22:12.000
of you to hang out, man. I love our talk,
1420
01:22:12.039 --> 01:22:12.680
so we'll do it again.
1421
01:22:12.779 --> 01:22:14.220
I'd do this for hours, Mark.
1422
01:22:14.279 --> 01:22:19.850
All right. Jared Yates Sexton, a link to his sub
1423
01:22:19.869 --> 01:22:24.399
stack under this video. Thanks, my friend. See you next week. Bye-bye, pal.
1424
01:22:25.340 --> 01:22:25.680
Right on.
1425
01:22:27.359 --> 01:22:30.560
The Mark Thompson Show. All right.
1426
01:22:30.770 --> 01:22:32.170
I need to get to comments. I need to get
1427
01:22:32.189 --> 01:22:32.829
to Belinda.
1428
01:22:32.850 --> 01:22:33.189
I know.
1429
01:22:33.270 --> 01:22:34.270
Your comments.
1430
01:22:34.310 --> 01:22:34.789
Exactly.
1431
01:22:34.850 --> 01:22:41.680
Jim Slayton with a $ 9. 99, $ 10 super chat, we'll call it.
1432
01:22:42.890 --> 01:22:45.220
Thanks for being a member of our channel. By the way,
1433
01:22:45.270 --> 01:22:50.060
if you are a contributor, I've said this before, at
1434
01:22:50.319 --> 01:22:53.500
Patreon or PayPal, there are links to both under this
1435
01:22:53.560 --> 01:22:56.939
video and under all our videos. I want to thank you.
1436
01:22:57.079 --> 01:23:00.319
And if you make a comment in the show, in
1437
01:23:00.340 --> 01:23:02.810
the live feed, just put a P at the beginning
1438
01:23:02.829 --> 01:23:04.829
of your comment, and then I'll recognize you as a
1439
01:23:05.329 --> 01:23:09.369
Patreon or PayPal subscriber or supporter. It's probably the better word.
1440
01:23:09.869 --> 01:23:11.859
And I just want you to know that I will
1441
01:23:12.199 --> 01:23:16.199
try to acknowledge it publicly. We acknowledge publicly the... channel
1442
01:23:16.220 --> 01:23:17.920
membership because it's there for us to see. But if
1443
01:23:17.939 --> 01:23:19.880
you put a P in front of your comment, I
1444
01:23:20.359 --> 01:23:22.659
promise I'll try to acknowledge you in that way. If
1445
01:23:22.699 --> 01:23:24.960
that's important to you, I want you to get that.
1446
01:23:25.420 --> 01:23:27.760
The end times have been discussed since the beginning of time.
1447
01:23:27.819 --> 01:23:33.359
It's true. Yeah, it is true. They're always referred to,
1448
01:23:33.460 --> 01:23:39.619
but it does feel oddly discomforting when you have a
1449
01:23:40.159 --> 01:23:43.930
leader with his finger on the button who was talking
1450
01:23:43.949 --> 01:23:45.750
about the fact that now if they happen, they happen,
1451
01:23:45.789 --> 01:23:48.789
could happen the next few months. Richard Delamater with a
1452
01:23:48.789 --> 01:23:52.569
$ 2 super chat in the seventies, the doomsday clock was
1453
01:23:52.750 --> 01:23:56.609
at two hours plus now it's at 35 seconds. Yeah.
1454
01:23:57.069 --> 01:23:59.380
Doomsday clock. I never know how to digest that. Was
1455
01:23:59.420 --> 01:24:03.819
it really a two hours plus in the seventies? Maybe
1456
01:24:03.840 --> 01:24:05.680
you could check that. I'm not sure that that's true.
1457
01:24:05.720 --> 01:24:06.939
I always felt like it's a Google.
1458
01:24:06.960 --> 01:24:07.060
Yeah.
1459
01:24:07.079 --> 01:24:10.439
I don't know. Maybe that is true though. I don't know. Um,
1460
01:24:13.609 --> 01:24:17.789
And Randy says, I've seen reports that Texas is just
1461
01:24:17.850 --> 01:24:20.050
removing a lot of people from their voter registration list
1462
01:24:20.369 --> 01:24:22.619
for no reason. Yeah, I saw that as well. I
1463
01:24:22.659 --> 01:24:25.720
don't know to what extent that that is happening. I'd
1464
01:24:25.739 --> 01:24:27.420
like to see some more reporting on it, but it's
1465
01:24:27.460 --> 01:24:30.039
clearly being done. I mean, I always felt Georgia was
1466
01:24:30.100 --> 01:24:32.779
the state that took that to high art, but maybe
1467
01:24:32.819 --> 01:24:36.930
Texas is not far behind. Texas did away with more
1468
01:24:37.430 --> 01:24:40.729
ballot boxes today, of course, in mainly Democratic areas. Yeah,
1469
01:24:40.750 --> 01:24:43.039
that has been their move to suppress the vote. They
1470
01:24:43.079 --> 01:24:45.859
take away those ballot boxes. So the place that you
1471
01:24:46.020 --> 01:24:49.649
ballot drop-offs, the place where you can drop off that ballot,
1472
01:24:49.970 --> 01:24:52.510
it becomes farther and farther away from wherever you are.
1473
01:24:53.970 --> 01:24:57.949
So is that it? Because I have Belinda waiting. All right.
1474
01:24:59.569 --> 01:25:02.100
Smash the like button, if you would, everybody. Smash it
1475
01:25:02.159 --> 01:25:04.439
with your iron rod. Smash the like button, hit the
1476
01:25:04.460 --> 01:25:06.939
notification bell, and please subscribe to the show. All those
1477
01:25:06.979 --> 01:25:09.649
things are free. And that keeps us in your feed.
1478
01:25:10.090 --> 01:25:12.270
Do make sure you refresh your feed to make sure
1479
01:25:12.289 --> 01:25:14.770
you are subscribed to the show. Smash it with your
1480
01:25:15.020 --> 01:25:20.159
iron rod. Do some smashing. All right. On Wednesdays, we
1481
01:25:20.180 --> 01:25:22.579
like to look at the planet. And we do it
1482
01:25:22.619 --> 01:25:25.739
with someone who's an eco-journalist and gives us a lot
1483
01:25:25.760 --> 01:25:29.229
of good news, which seems as though it's in short supply,
1484
01:25:29.399 --> 01:25:33.390
and also some of the tough medicine. We do it
1485
01:25:33.430 --> 01:25:36.720
in a segment we call It's the Planet, Stupid. The
1486
01:25:36.770 --> 01:25:37.699
planet Earth.
1487
01:25:38.180 --> 01:25:41.859
Some call me nature. I am very passionate about the planet.
1488
01:25:42.060 --> 01:25:42.199
Earth.
1489
01:25:42.739 --> 01:25:46.199
A living, breathing planet capable of sustaining whatever life forms
1490
01:25:46.239 --> 01:25:48.140
we see fit to deposit on it. Spock.
1491
01:25:48.680 --> 01:25:51.199
Judging by the pollution content of the atmosphere, I believe
1492
01:25:51.239 --> 01:25:52.890
we have arrived. It's the planet stupid.
1493
01:25:52.899 --> 01:25:55.170
No, no, no. It's the planet stupid.
1494
01:25:57.949 --> 01:26:04.789
Our guide for the It's the Planet Stupid, eco-journalist Belinda Weymouth. Hello, Belinda. Belinda,
1495
01:26:05.229 --> 01:26:09.100
I always tout the fact that you have good news.
1496
01:26:09.140 --> 01:26:13.760
It seems regularly somehow in the ashes and horror of
1497
01:26:13.779 --> 01:26:17.430
what we're doing to the planet, you find some morsels
1498
01:26:17.770 --> 01:26:21.329
of goodness. And so it is today, I believe out
1499
01:26:21.369 --> 01:26:22.710
of South Dakota, right?
1500
01:26:23.130 --> 01:26:25.270
South Dakota. And this is really unusual because this is
1501
01:26:25.329 --> 01:26:30.829
a tribal win. So this is huge. Um, So this
1502
01:26:31.189 --> 01:26:36.270
all started in February with our National Forestry Service doing
1503
01:26:36.329 --> 01:26:41.699
something they shouldn't do. They granted an exemption, supposedly this
1504
01:26:42.340 --> 01:26:44.979
waiver that you can give to a one-year mining project,
1505
01:26:45.520 --> 01:26:47.119
but they gave it to a company that had a
1506
01:26:47.180 --> 01:26:52.449
three-year project. They slipped it in very quietly. to a
1507
01:26:52.590 --> 01:26:56.930
local company, Pete Lean and Sons, who are in the
1508
01:26:57.010 --> 01:27:01.229
construction materials and mining business for limestone and for concrete.
1509
01:27:01.270 --> 01:27:04.340
That's what they supply. But this time, they were going
1510
01:27:04.359 --> 01:27:07.760
to be drilling 18 holes looking for graphite. And where
1511
01:27:07.779 --> 01:27:09.300
were they going to be doing it? Well, they were
1512
01:27:09.479 --> 01:27:12.539
going to be doing it on the sacred prairie. It's called,
1513
01:27:12.619 --> 01:27:14.979
and I'm going to not say the name correctly, but
1514
01:27:15.119 --> 01:27:18.539
Pei Sla, I think is how you say it. And
1515
01:27:19.180 --> 01:27:22.399
So this is the Oglala Lakota. They're part of the,
1516
01:27:22.479 --> 01:27:28.479
you know, sort of the Sioux tribe umbrella. And, you know,
1517
01:27:28.760 --> 01:27:33.220
just there was an attractive land that was categorized as
1518
01:27:33.260 --> 01:27:37.329
this will be a buffer. The sacred central meadow is
1519
01:27:37.390 --> 01:27:42.329
here off this prairie. You know, it's been sacred for
1520
01:27:42.369 --> 01:27:45.180
thousands of years. It needs to be protected. 10 of
1521
01:27:45.220 --> 01:27:48.100
the 18 boreholes were going to be inside this buffer zone.
1522
01:27:48.140 --> 01:27:50.399
That's how egregious it was. And just to let our
1523
01:27:50.520 --> 01:27:55.380
audience know what happens with mining is that the world over,
1524
01:27:55.380 --> 01:28:01.619
50% of the mines that are looking for copper, lithium, graphite, cobalt,
1525
01:28:01.619 --> 01:28:05.800
50% of them are either on or near tribal lands.
1526
01:28:05.880 --> 01:28:08.659
So all the decimation that comes from all that mining,
1527
01:28:08.699 --> 01:28:13.090
all the poisoned water, the open pits that are left,
1528
01:28:13.189 --> 01:28:17.970
the bad health comes health outcomes that are a residual,
1529
01:28:18.060 --> 01:28:21.050
you know, effect of it are left and all the
1530
01:28:21.109 --> 01:28:24.689
profit goes somewhere else. So it's just, it's just awful.
1531
01:28:24.930 --> 01:28:28.989
And anyway, what happened was this, this was sort of
1532
01:28:29.069 --> 01:28:34.729
this amazing kind of coalition of tribes, you know, advocacy groups,
1533
01:28:34.869 --> 01:28:37.949
all these tribes, you know, going to court saying, you know,
1534
01:28:37.970 --> 01:28:39.829
we need to stop this. This is wrong. What are
1535
01:28:39.850 --> 01:28:41.840
you done is illegal. Because what you find is when
1536
01:28:42.380 --> 01:28:45.500
it's been this sort of high speed permitting, there's always
1537
01:28:45.539 --> 01:28:47.699
something that they've done wrong. And the thing that they
1538
01:28:47.720 --> 01:28:49.319
found that they've done wrong was that, you know, you
1539
01:28:49.439 --> 01:28:51.560
can do a one year waiver, but not something on
1540
01:28:51.600 --> 01:28:55.439
a three year project. And so the tribes were fighting
1541
01:28:55.460 --> 01:28:58.880
them in court And this was all happening at the
1542
01:28:58.920 --> 01:29:02.020
beginning of April. And then on April 30th, two scouts
1543
01:29:02.199 --> 01:29:05.310
went out and they took a drone and they said,
1544
01:29:05.319 --> 01:29:06.930
you know, they saw an eagle in the sky. They
1545
01:29:06.970 --> 01:29:09.010
saw a deer, you know, and they said, was it
1546
01:29:09.050 --> 01:29:11.470
a coincidence, you know, that led them there? But the
1547
01:29:11.510 --> 01:29:15.250
mining had started already. They were already drilling before, you know,
1548
01:29:15.609 --> 01:29:18.090
the due process had happened. You know, Pete Lean and
1549
01:29:18.130 --> 01:29:21.189
Sons was, you know, out there doing the drilling. And
1550
01:29:21.350 --> 01:29:26.310
they acted really quickly by May 4th, So they were
1551
01:29:26.409 --> 01:29:28.689
fighting in the courts saying we need a restraining order.
1552
01:29:28.729 --> 01:29:30.949
But then they put their bodies on the line and
1553
01:29:30.970 --> 01:29:34.270
they took 40 of them went. They blocked the mining road.
1554
01:29:34.289 --> 01:29:36.689
They went up at night. It was freezing. The ground
1555
01:29:36.729 --> 01:29:40.609
was frozen. They so they used their bodies like this.
1556
01:29:40.649 --> 01:29:45.000
It was completely nonviolent. They bolted themselves. You can see
1557
01:29:45.060 --> 01:29:47.819
there in the photo. He's got a red bandana on.
1558
01:29:48.039 --> 01:29:50.399
The temperatures got down to 10 degrees, by the way,
1559
01:29:50.439 --> 01:29:53.779
at night. They bolted themselves onto the drilling equipment. They
1560
01:29:53.819 --> 01:29:58.090
set up prayer altars on the drilling pads and they
1561
01:29:58.250 --> 01:30:01.270
slept up there. And it was, you know, super cold,
1562
01:30:01.369 --> 01:30:03.869
no fires because there'd been droughts. So you couldn't light
1563
01:30:03.930 --> 01:30:07.010
any fires. And the first day of nonviolent protests went
1564
01:30:07.069 --> 01:30:09.189
so well, they went, hey, you know, maybe we'll stay
1565
01:30:09.210 --> 01:30:12.510
because it's also, you know, you're telling a story about
1566
01:30:12.550 --> 01:30:14.489
this is what's happening on our land. And they also
1567
01:30:14.529 --> 01:30:17.609
knew the optics. If you tried to drag off two
1568
01:30:17.770 --> 01:30:21.649
indigenous you know sort of actual ceremonial prayer altars off
1569
01:30:21.689 --> 01:30:25.399
a mountain the optics on that would be terrible and
1570
01:30:25.520 --> 01:30:28.300
also as the local news was calling the protested you
1571
01:30:28.340 --> 01:30:31.960
know armed and dangerous they were you know filming themselves
1572
01:30:32.039 --> 01:30:34.119
and sending it out live this is what we're doing
1573
01:30:34.159 --> 01:30:36.569
we're just we're doing a Gandhi we're sitting here you
1574
01:30:36.590 --> 01:30:43.710
know cross-legged and praying um and Uh, you know, it worked.
1575
01:30:43.810 --> 01:30:46.619
And then what happened was a federal judge came in
1576
01:30:46.779 --> 01:30:49.220
and looked and saw what the, the, you know, I mean,
1577
01:30:49.279 --> 01:30:53.520
our national forestry service under this administration, it's just so awful.
1578
01:30:53.619 --> 01:30:58.909
All this precious, precious, you know, American forestry, you know, land, uh,
1579
01:30:58.949 --> 01:31:03.270
they found that it was illegal. And, um, the company
1580
01:31:03.479 --> 01:31:06.979
decided like this is going to be a long and
1581
01:31:07.100 --> 01:31:10.500
hard fight and to try and come back from doing
1582
01:31:10.579 --> 01:31:12.699
something that's now been found illegal and to do the
1583
01:31:12.739 --> 01:31:16.640
process again, is it worth it? And then I do
1584
01:31:16.659 --> 01:31:19.359
have to add this because this is sort of the
1585
01:31:19.520 --> 01:31:22.020
irony is the thing that they were boring, you know,
1586
01:31:22.039 --> 01:31:26.529
doing these boreholes, these exploratory boreholes for was for graphite
1587
01:31:26.590 --> 01:31:30.590
and graphite is something that goes in electric car batteries. So,
1588
01:31:31.439 --> 01:31:37.479
So it's sort of horribly ironic that you're looking for
1589
01:31:37.520 --> 01:31:39.789
something that's going to help save the planet, but you're
1590
01:31:39.810 --> 01:31:41.850
wrecking the planet while you're looking for that thing.
1591
01:31:42.090 --> 01:31:42.670
I see.
1592
01:31:42.729 --> 01:31:47.390
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So your point is that the mining
1593
01:31:47.430 --> 01:31:48.979
company decided it's just not worth it.
1594
01:31:49.770 --> 01:31:53.090
They decided it wasn't worth it. I think the optics
1595
01:31:53.130 --> 01:31:55.649
were so bad for them, and they realized that the
1596
01:31:55.750 --> 01:31:59.350
legal fight, and because what had happened was illegal. This permitting,
1597
01:31:59.369 --> 01:32:03.020
this waiver that they got was illegal. And they haven't
1598
01:32:03.529 --> 01:32:06.119
made any comments. They just quietly withdrew.
1599
01:32:06.380 --> 01:32:13.100
And this is something that is common, as you suggested,
1600
01:32:13.640 --> 01:32:17.760
the leasing now of public lands for mineral exploitation of
1601
01:32:17.819 --> 01:32:20.239
all sorts, for logging, et cetera. That's something. But the
1602
01:32:20.350 --> 01:32:24.689
other thing is what's happening with Native American tribes. I mean,
1603
01:32:24.710 --> 01:32:30.119
this is happening. It happened in Arizona. Yes. This mining,
1604
01:32:30.880 --> 01:32:37.609
this voracious appetite for eating up the land associated with
1605
01:32:37.649 --> 01:32:42.750
the Native American sacred sites, it's happening all over. I mean,
1606
01:32:42.810 --> 01:32:45.250
Tony's got a map up right now.
1607
01:32:45.270 --> 01:32:45.340
Yes.
1608
01:32:46.590 --> 01:32:50.149
You know, when this goes south, you understand, when this
1609
01:32:50.210 --> 01:32:52.489
goes bad, that is to say when they are allowed
1610
01:32:52.550 --> 01:32:55.649
to mine, you get what you're talking about, Belinda. You
1611
01:32:55.689 --> 01:32:59.560
get the poisoning of water systems. You get these open pits.
1612
01:32:59.600 --> 01:33:03.239
You get tremendous health effects in the negative. I mean,
1613
01:33:03.539 --> 01:33:07.180
cancers and all the rest. This is a really dirty business.
1614
01:33:07.640 --> 01:33:11.729
And the idea that there's sort of a I think
1615
01:33:11.869 --> 01:33:15.239
the idea– this might be my sensitivities to Native Americans
1616
01:33:15.279 --> 01:33:17.699
and what we've done to them from the very beginning
1617
01:33:17.720 --> 01:33:20.399
of our presence. But I don't want to say our presence.
1618
01:33:20.479 --> 01:33:24.210
I wasn't here. But you know what I mean. The U.S.
1619
01:33:24.229 --> 01:33:29.800
government has really destroyed their lives in so many ways historically.
1620
01:33:30.119 --> 01:33:33.909
And then there's sort of this– implied thing which is
1621
01:33:34.350 --> 01:33:36.100
oh and of course we can go back in anytime
1622
01:33:36.140 --> 01:33:40.260
we want and okay some mineral rights and some mineral
1623
01:33:40.319 --> 01:33:44.380
exploitations and I mean it's it's outrageous I mean hands
1624
01:33:44.439 --> 01:33:46.140
off the Native Americans already.
1625
01:33:45.859 --> 01:33:50.680
Yeah yeah yeah no it is so egregiously outrageously I
1626
01:33:50.699 --> 01:33:53.579
mean it's just it's so criminal I saw this piece
1627
01:33:53.619 --> 01:33:55.840
of art I've just texted it to you and to
1628
01:33:55.859 --> 01:33:56.579
Kim I don't know.
1629
01:33:56.500 --> 01:33:58.079
If you can throw it up on the show but
1630
01:33:58.479 --> 01:34:00.899
yesterday my daughter and I were at LACMA and And
1631
01:34:00.920 --> 01:34:03.560
there was this great piece. Now, I didn't take down
1632
01:34:03.579 --> 01:34:08.079
the artist's name. The indigenous person in it looks more
1633
01:34:08.319 --> 01:34:13.050
Aztec-ian to me than Native American. But he is pointing
1634
01:34:13.069 --> 01:34:16.250
his finger a la Uncle Sam saying, who's the illegal
1635
01:34:16.369 --> 01:34:24.130
alien pilgrim? And one of the women from the nonprofit
1636
01:34:24.270 --> 01:34:28.569
advocacy group in South Dakota, this woman, Dr. Valeria Big Eagle,
1637
01:34:28.630 --> 01:34:30.510
she said this great thing. She said, you know, we're
1638
01:34:30.529 --> 01:34:33.029
the people used to being screwed over by the government
1639
01:34:33.409 --> 01:34:37.010
at every level. So what a surprise that we won. And,
1640
01:34:37.369 --> 01:34:39.380
you know, the awful thing is when you go in
1641
01:34:39.479 --> 01:34:42.340
and you do exploratory mining for one thing, you might
1642
01:34:42.380 --> 01:34:45.039
not find that one thing, but you might find something else.
1643
01:34:45.729 --> 01:34:48.369
And that mine that they've just been allowed to do
1644
01:34:48.550 --> 01:34:51.649
in Arizona, that's going to be the biggest mine. It's
1645
01:34:51.720 --> 01:34:55.380
for copper. And it will be the biggest mine and,
1646
01:34:55.449 --> 01:34:58.500
you know, mining pollution. The tribes there are fighting it
1647
01:34:58.560 --> 01:35:04.720
as well. But it is, it's just so unbelievably terrible.
1648
01:35:04.779 --> 01:35:08.319
And when I read the statistic that, you know, that
1649
01:35:08.319 --> 01:35:10.199
50% of the mines the world over are either on
1650
01:35:10.239 --> 01:35:13.199
indigenous land or very near it. And that all the money,
1651
01:35:14.329 --> 01:35:16.930
Even when it's happening on indigenous land, you're not getting
1652
01:35:16.970 --> 01:35:19.579
the money. That mining company that got the rights from
1653
01:35:19.600 --> 01:35:24.220
a corrupt U.S. forestry service, I mean, they shouldn't be
1654
01:35:24.239 --> 01:35:26.720
able to sleep at night, those officials who allowed that
1655
01:35:26.760 --> 01:35:30.880
to go through. And I actually wonder if Pete Lean
1656
01:35:30.920 --> 01:35:32.779
kind of went, oh my, you know, like we really.
1657
01:35:32.619 --> 01:35:33.140
Did something wrong.
1658
01:35:33.159 --> 01:35:34.899
Yeah, Pete Lean is the company, the mining company.
1659
01:35:34.939 --> 01:35:37.380
Yeah, the mining company in North South Coast.
1660
01:35:38.060 --> 01:35:39.340
I only have a couple of minutes left, so I
1661
01:35:39.359 --> 01:35:41.710
want you to, oh, there it is. Who's the illegal
1662
01:35:42.010 --> 01:35:45.409
alien pilgrim? Exactly. I mean, this has been since the
1663
01:35:45.430 --> 01:35:46.729
beginning of time, you know.
1664
01:35:46.750 --> 01:35:48.850
Yeah, no, it's terrible.
1665
01:35:48.890 --> 01:35:50.430
There's sort of, I guess what I was trying to
1666
01:35:50.470 --> 01:35:52.789
get at was there's sort of this presumption that you
1667
01:35:52.829 --> 01:35:56.800
can still go back to Native American lands and plunder land.
1668
01:35:57.069 --> 01:35:59.529
you know, for your, your own ends. I mean, you know,
1669
01:35:59.609 --> 01:36:02.470
I'll give you a, everybody, this is a documentary. You
1670
01:36:02.489 --> 01:36:04.470
can find this on YouTube. It's a, I think there've
1671
01:36:04.489 --> 01:36:06.810
been several documentaries done on this. It's like a 45
1672
01:36:06.810 --> 01:36:10.829
minute watch on YouTube about the Dan sisters. And if
1673
01:36:10.850 --> 01:36:16.079
you want to see a compelling documentary about what we're
1674
01:36:16.119 --> 01:36:18.600
talking about, which is the U S government coming in
1675
01:36:18.659 --> 01:36:22.140
and just having their way with a land that has
1676
01:36:22.180 --> 01:36:26.039
been recognized by treaty. I mean, they had the treaty there.
1677
01:36:27.680 --> 01:36:30.579
as protected land. And the government comes in and says,
1678
01:36:30.640 --> 01:36:32.539
we want to buy that land now. And they say, no,
1679
01:36:32.539 --> 01:36:34.600
we don't want you to buy it. It's our land.
1680
01:36:34.739 --> 01:36:37.939
It's our sacred land. We let the horses run wild here.
1681
01:36:38.000 --> 01:36:40.930
This is what we want. And the government comes in anyway.
1682
01:36:41.149 --> 01:36:44.710
And I won't give away too much, but it's really compelling. It's, again,
1683
01:36:44.770 --> 01:36:48.789
the Dan sisters in Nevada. And I'd love for you
1684
01:36:48.829 --> 01:36:50.609
to watch that. And then tell me you watched it.
1685
01:36:50.649 --> 01:36:52.689
Send me an email and tell me your thoughts. But
1686
01:36:52.989 --> 01:36:57.210
what I think is revealed immediately with the Dan sisters
1687
01:36:57.289 --> 01:36:59.430
and which is also revealed in the story you told
1688
01:36:59.449 --> 01:37:01.289
him what we were talking about is that there's this
1689
01:37:01.409 --> 01:37:04.800
sense of, uh, again, it's almost like this manifest destiny
1690
01:37:04.859 --> 01:37:07.119
kind of presumption. We can go wherever we want. We
1691
01:37:07.140 --> 01:37:10.060
can take whatever we want. We can continue to plunder
1692
01:37:10.640 --> 01:37:15.310
and already plundered people for more. And it's really despicable.
1693
01:37:15.390 --> 01:37:19.979
It's the worst of America. So now, um, thank you
1694
01:37:19.989 --> 01:37:23.199
for letting me make that speech. So now let me
1695
01:37:23.579 --> 01:37:25.899
ask you to take us out with one other thing.
1696
01:37:25.939 --> 01:37:27.539
I think you have one other story and I'd love to.
1697
01:37:27.539 --> 01:37:30.100
Well, the other thing I sent you guys a link to,
1698
01:37:30.119 --> 01:37:32.539
which I think is amazing, is we're always talking about
1699
01:37:32.579 --> 01:37:34.500
solar panels and if you just put them everywhere you
1700
01:37:34.539 --> 01:37:37.140
possibly can. So now look where they are. They're between
1701
01:37:37.260 --> 01:37:42.239
railway lines. And this is unbelievable. They're doing this pilot project.
1702
01:37:42.319 --> 01:37:45.489
It's in Switzerland. They've got 3,000 miles in between their
1703
01:37:45.510 --> 01:37:50.149
little alpine villages in Geneva and Zurich. And it takes
1704
01:37:50.590 --> 01:37:53.810
a worker 10 minutes, they say, to put one in,
1705
01:37:53.829 --> 01:37:55.770
to take one out. They just use these pistons to
1706
01:37:55.789 --> 01:37:59.569
hold them in between the two, the actual tracks. They're
1707
01:37:59.590 --> 01:38:02.060
going to do it in France. Do you know that
1708
01:38:02.079 --> 01:38:07.939
in France, the National Railway Company, that's SNFC, they use
1709
01:38:08.000 --> 01:38:11.640
more electricity than any other user in France. And they
1710
01:38:11.680 --> 01:38:14.239
also are the biggest landowner. And they're saying, hey, we
1711
01:38:14.260 --> 01:38:16.180
want to do this as a pilot project because we're
1712
01:38:16.590 --> 01:38:19.630
They can supply such a huge amount of the electricity
1713
01:38:19.710 --> 01:38:22.350
they need. South Korea is going to do it. Italy
1714
01:38:22.369 --> 01:38:24.569
is going to do it. Everyone is looking at this
1715
01:38:24.649 --> 01:38:27.489
and saying, yes, this is an amazing use of a
1716
01:38:27.649 --> 01:38:29.729
piece of land that we then don't have to go
1717
01:38:29.789 --> 01:38:32.760
in and take you know um uh you know a
1718
01:38:32.840 --> 01:38:35.880
prairie that belongs to an indigenous tribe and put our
1719
01:38:35.920 --> 01:38:37.899
you know solar panels there we can actually use it
1720
01:38:37.939 --> 01:38:41.340
on land we already have and so i think this
1721
01:38:41.399 --> 01:38:48.180
kind of um innovative, you know, application with solar, you know,
1722
01:38:48.359 --> 01:38:50.239
on every roof, you know, I mean, Jake said to
1723
01:38:50.279 --> 01:38:53.020
me the other day, my funny husband, do you know
1724
01:38:53.079 --> 01:38:55.359
about balcony solar? I was like, Jake, I've already talked
1725
01:38:55.399 --> 01:38:57.050
about it on the show. Of course I know about
1726
01:38:57.119 --> 01:39:00.170
balcony solar. Dude, what do you think I'm doing? But,
1727
01:39:00.529 --> 01:39:02.750
you know, balcony solar, you live in an apartment, you
1728
01:39:02.770 --> 01:39:05.229
can put, you can throw one out on your balcony,
1729
01:39:05.250 --> 01:39:07.430
you can plug it in inside, you know, into your
1730
01:39:07.470 --> 01:39:09.649
house and you can be, you know, charging all your
1731
01:39:09.670 --> 01:39:12.399
devices on it. I mean, It's just becoming.
1732
01:39:12.039 --> 01:39:13.560
More and more accessible. Well, you showed us in Europe,
1733
01:39:13.600 --> 01:39:16.159
you showed us how many balconies have just what we're
1734
01:39:16.180 --> 01:39:19.020
showing right now, that balcony solar. And it's everywhere.
1735
01:39:19.199 --> 01:39:21.859
Yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly. And the thing that I also
1736
01:39:21.939 --> 01:39:24.539
love about this, you know, and pardon the pun, take
1737
01:39:24.579 --> 01:39:29.369
back the power, people. You know, it's like we can decentralize.
1738
01:39:29.409 --> 01:39:31.529
We can do it ourselves. You can put a solar
1739
01:39:31.550 --> 01:39:34.170
panel anywhere. I mean, you know, your backpack is going
1740
01:39:34.189 --> 01:39:37.170
to become a solar panel if it isn't already there. um,
1741
01:39:37.409 --> 01:39:39.170
you know, you can wear a sun hat with, you know,
1742
01:39:39.189 --> 01:39:42.060
it's going to have solar, you know, like, you know, fabric. Um,
1743
01:39:42.720 --> 01:39:47.819
it's just, you know, the, the energy revolution is happening
1744
01:39:48.340 --> 01:39:53.340
and we just need to shut down the fossil fuel industry.
1745
01:39:54.020 --> 01:39:57.390
You just need some buy-in. And unfortunately right now where
1746
01:39:57.869 --> 01:40:02.399
America is just, uh, where these troglodytes just living in
1747
01:40:02.439 --> 01:40:05.039
another age, it's just crazy. But yeah, there it is.
1748
01:40:05.079 --> 01:40:08.359
There's solar on somebody's backpack. There's solar everywhere. I mean,
1749
01:40:09.140 --> 01:40:11.840
you can recharge your phone with these solar packs that
1750
01:40:11.859 --> 01:40:15.939
they give you now. I mean, yet we have this
1751
01:40:16.020 --> 01:40:19.130
death grip on, it's worse than a death grip on
1752
01:40:19.729 --> 01:40:25.409
dirty fossil fuel energy. We're going after, aggressively going after
1753
01:40:25.449 --> 01:40:28.710
and trying to derail, if you'll pardon the expression in
1754
01:40:28.750 --> 01:40:31.619
this case, all of these efforts at wind and solar
1755
01:40:32.579 --> 01:40:35.659
supplementing the main grid. I mean, as a country, we're
1756
01:40:35.739 --> 01:40:37.680
as a government, we're going after them. We're trying to
1757
01:40:37.720 --> 01:40:40.220
make it deliberately harder for these things to happen.
1758
01:40:40.960 --> 01:40:43.960
But this is the now, and this is not the forever,
1759
01:40:44.180 --> 01:40:46.159
you know, Mark, this is what's happening right now. And
1760
01:40:46.199 --> 01:40:48.680
this is not our forever. You know, this will change.
1761
01:40:48.739 --> 01:40:51.439
It will absolutely change. It has to, you know, and
1762
01:40:51.479 --> 01:40:53.029
we saw it change the last time we had a
1763
01:40:53.069 --> 01:40:56.170
change of administration, you know, I mean, Biden got in there,
1764
01:40:56.210 --> 01:40:58.029
you know, he created the IRA and he put that
1765
01:40:58.050 --> 01:41:00.300
money in there. I mean, the, Terrible thing that happens
1766
01:41:00.310 --> 01:41:02.899
here is this ridiculous push-pull from one of those institutions.
1767
01:41:02.920 --> 01:41:04.399
Yeah, they undo what Biden did, exactly.
1768
01:41:04.420 --> 01:41:05.699
Yeah, yeah.
1769
01:41:06.460 --> 01:41:11.420
I was seeing that Portugal, the country, the whole goddamn
1770
01:41:11.460 --> 01:41:15.029
country is powered 80% on renewables.
1771
01:41:15.390 --> 01:41:16.609
Yeah, and you know what drove that?
1772
01:41:17.229 --> 01:41:17.630
Ukraine.
1773
01:41:17.750 --> 01:41:21.609
The Russians' invasion of Ukraine and the drying up of that,
1774
01:41:21.710 --> 01:41:23.729
you know, the natural gas that the rest of Europe got,
1775
01:41:23.770 --> 01:41:25.520
they all went, oh my goodness, you know, we need
1776
01:41:25.529 --> 01:41:28.329
to go To, you know, to solar and to renewables.
1777
01:41:28.569 --> 01:41:30.229
And remember the thing we talked about a couple of
1778
01:41:30.270 --> 01:41:33.710
weeks on the show about how the Spanish president can
1779
01:41:33.789 --> 01:41:37.069
say what he thinks of Trump because he doesn't need
1780
01:41:37.109 --> 01:41:40.529
the gas and the oil because there are renewables. You know,
1781
01:41:40.609 --> 01:41:42.949
whereas Italy, she has to keep, you know, doing this
1782
01:41:43.050 --> 01:41:45.630
with Trump because they need the gas and the oil.
1783
01:41:45.670 --> 01:41:47.630
But if you don't, then you don't have to count out.
1784
01:41:49.000 --> 01:41:51.260
You can find Belinda. Is there any other place they
1785
01:41:51.279 --> 01:41:53.739
can find you? I mean, you sent some email saying,
1786
01:41:54.279 --> 01:41:56.079
you know, if you want to update something. I didn't
1787
01:41:56.100 --> 01:41:57.079
know what you meant by that.
1788
01:41:57.539 --> 01:41:59.520
Oh, well, I'll do that with you privately. It was
1789
01:41:59.550 --> 01:42:03.869
my bio. Mo last week introduced me with my bio,
1790
01:42:03.949 --> 01:42:05.630
and it needs a little updating.
1791
01:42:05.789 --> 01:42:07.590
I see. No, yeah, I don't use your bio.
1792
01:42:07.630 --> 01:42:08.989
No, no, you know me.
1793
01:42:09.090 --> 01:42:11.409
I just basically, you know, slap your name on the
1794
01:42:11.449 --> 01:42:13.710
segment and, you know, get you off to the races.
1795
01:42:13.810 --> 01:42:16.850
So I call you an eco-journalist. I feel like that
1796
01:42:16.890 --> 01:42:19.869
pretty much covers it. But we will then we'll spruce
1797
01:42:19.909 --> 01:42:21.569
that up because I didn't know what that meant. I
1798
01:42:21.710 --> 01:42:24.590
am always delighted to spend time with you. And I'm
1799
01:42:24.630 --> 01:42:26.609
a bit downcast. I'll be honest with you.
1800
01:42:26.630 --> 01:42:27.510
Yeah.
1801
01:42:27.909 --> 01:42:31.949
That your husband, who I really love, never seems to
1802
01:42:32.010 --> 01:42:33.149
watch you on this show.
1803
01:42:33.289 --> 01:42:33.569
What?
1804
01:42:34.010 --> 01:42:36.520
I know. I mean, I'm just like, why is he
1805
01:42:36.569 --> 01:42:39.479
too busy at jujitsu or whatever the F he's doing
1806
01:42:39.779 --> 01:42:40.720
to watch his own wife?
1807
01:42:41.220 --> 01:42:44.739
Here's the thing I just need my segments if you
1808
01:42:44.760 --> 01:42:46.100
give me my segments then I.
1809
01:42:46.079 --> 01:42:48.229
Can put them up on my YouTube the rest of
1810
01:42:48.239 --> 01:42:49.909
the show isn't important okay you know what I've had
1811
01:42:49.949 --> 01:42:52.890
enough I just need my segments Mark just send me
1812
01:42:52.930 --> 01:42:58.350
my segments that is it say hello to Jake she's
1813
01:42:58.390 --> 01:43:03.390
the wonderful Belinda Weymouth it's the planet stupid for today more.
1814
01:43:03.170 --> 01:43:05.680
It's the planet stupid no no no it's the planet
1815
01:43:05.979 --> 01:43:06.960
stupid next.
1816
01:43:06.819 --> 01:43:09.439
Time only on the Mark Thompson show.
1817
01:43:11.840 --> 01:43:12.699
The Mark Thompson Show.
1818
01:43:12.760 --> 01:43:14.800
Everybody's got attitude today. I don't know what the attitude.
1819
01:43:14.819 --> 01:43:18.310
Everybody's got attitude. Correction, not two hours plus. Google says
1820
01:43:18.310 --> 01:43:22.770
10 minutes. My bad. Yeah, that's what I thought. I
1821
01:43:22.909 --> 01:43:27.850
don't know. The clock, you know, was never at two hours.
1822
01:43:28.729 --> 01:43:31.250
This is the clock. Tony's got it up through the,
1823
01:43:31.369 --> 01:43:36.229
you know, this is the doomsday clock. And when India became,
1824
01:43:37.430 --> 01:43:38.949
these are the various things. You can see them on
1825
01:43:38.989 --> 01:43:41.250
the right. For those just listening, I'll just kind of summarize.
1826
01:43:41.850 --> 01:43:45.479
passing the salt agreement. That was, uh, again, the, um,
1827
01:43:46.189 --> 01:43:49.380
agreement between the U S and the Soviets that would, uh,
1828
01:43:49.800 --> 01:43:52.399
kind of chill out the arms race. It was the
1829
01:43:52.420 --> 01:43:57.840
strategic arms limitation, uh, treaty. I think I said the salt.
1830
01:43:57.859 --> 01:44:01.319
Is that what it was? Um, and then, uh, again,
1831
01:44:02.260 --> 01:44:05.920
by 1980, it got worse. Rehating the cold war, uh,
1832
01:44:06.020 --> 01:44:08.739
stalemate and star Wars. These are all things made by 1988. Uh,
1833
01:44:10.770 --> 01:44:13.689
And then 1995, there was a close call. 1998, I
1834
01:44:14.210 --> 01:44:16.810
don't want to take it all through. But anyway, you
1835
01:44:16.869 --> 01:44:22.449
get it. And now we are into, I think, a
1836
01:44:22.489 --> 01:44:27.210
kind of adversarial relationship with the world. And they have
1837
01:44:27.250 --> 01:44:30.909
us at 85 seconds to midnight. Russia, China, the United States,
1838
01:44:31.710 --> 01:44:34.609
these are the nuclear powers, but there are other major
1839
01:44:34.680 --> 01:44:38.020
countries that have become increasingly aggressive, as they've noted here.
1840
01:44:39.079 --> 01:44:43.300
And A lot of the understandings, even between the Russians
1841
01:44:43.340 --> 01:44:48.399
and the Americans, have been undone by the Trump administration. So, yeah. Anyway,
1842
01:44:48.420 --> 01:44:51.020
that's the nuclear. Is it the nuclear clock or the
1843
01:44:51.050 --> 01:44:56.489
doomsday clock? The doomsday clock? That's it. Anything else I
1844
01:44:56.510 --> 01:44:58.729
need to do? Do we get to all comments? Because
1845
01:44:58.850 --> 01:45:00.789
I want to make sure we get to all comments.
1846
01:45:00.810 --> 01:45:01.329
Your comments.
1847
01:45:01.350 --> 01:45:01.609
I don't know.
1848
01:45:01.630 --> 01:45:05.250
I can't see because when we do a comment, Why
1849
01:45:05.270 --> 01:45:07.289
are they left up here? When you leave them up here,
1850
01:45:07.390 --> 01:45:09.649
it looks like you've got a bunch of comments to do.
1851
01:45:09.949 --> 01:45:11.699
I don't know what to do.
1852
01:45:11.699 --> 01:45:15.380
Whoever is reducing this thing has no idea what they're doing.
1853
01:45:15.500 --> 01:45:17.340
I don't get it. I don't know what you're talking about.
1854
01:45:17.380 --> 01:45:19.479
You mean when I leave star comments?
1855
01:45:19.500 --> 01:45:21.279
You don't know what I'm talking about. I blame you.
1856
01:45:21.319 --> 01:45:23.750
That's how I know. You know what I'm talking about.
1857
01:45:24.609 --> 01:45:26.949
What I'm talking about is after we do a comment,
1858
01:45:27.850 --> 01:45:31.079
why don't you– unstar it or get rid of it
1859
01:45:31.140 --> 01:45:33.000
so that I don't, so when I look at all
1860
01:45:33.020 --> 01:45:34.680
the comments, I don't look like I have, I'm thinking,
1861
01:45:34.699 --> 01:45:36.819
because I'm thinking, oh my God, I've got 15 comments
1862
01:45:37.119 --> 01:45:38.039
and I'm running behind.
1863
01:45:38.079 --> 01:45:40.539
Oh, so what happens is when I like one of
1864
01:45:40.579 --> 01:45:43.199
your comments, I'll put it in a special little file
1865
01:45:43.340 --> 01:45:45.600
with a star by it. But these are comments that
1866
01:45:45.659 --> 01:45:47.420
I thought were good that we haven't put up on
1867
01:45:47.460 --> 01:45:49.439
the screen yet. Not that you have to do them,
1868
01:45:49.739 --> 01:45:51.460
but if we needed them for some reason, they would
1869
01:45:51.479 --> 01:45:51.779
be there.
1870
01:45:52.899 --> 01:45:54.560
I don't think I really understand, actually.
1871
01:45:55.659 --> 01:45:56.560
It's very complicated.
1872
01:45:56.850 --> 01:45:58.489
I guess it is. I mean, I guess it is.
1873
01:45:58.689 --> 01:46:00.090
You just don't get it.
1874
01:46:00.149 --> 01:46:00.550
I don't.
1875
01:46:00.970 --> 01:46:01.350
You don't.
1876
01:46:01.470 --> 01:46:03.220
I don't. I don't get it. Like this one.
1877
01:46:03.340 --> 01:46:06.100
We haven't dealt with the issue yet, but if you
1878
01:46:06.119 --> 01:46:09.140
were to mention Venezuelan oil, here I have Randy's comment
1879
01:46:09.180 --> 01:46:09.699
regarding Venezuela.
1880
01:46:09.720 --> 01:46:11.699
Okay, so I guess the plan with Venezuela all along
1881
01:46:11.720 --> 01:46:14.130
was to take their oil, says Randy. I guess that's
1882
01:46:14.170 --> 01:46:18.189
why Trump didn't support Maria Corina Machado, because she would
1883
01:46:18.270 --> 01:46:23.439
be more popular and wouldn't have sold out. I would
1884
01:46:23.479 --> 01:46:26.079
say this about that. Of course, you're right. I mean,
1885
01:46:26.140 --> 01:46:29.710
this is the whole plan. We install our person. And
1886
01:46:30.449 --> 01:46:33.430
this is a mobster deal. I talked about it yesterday.
1887
01:46:33.609 --> 01:46:37.210
It's a total gangster move. You go in and, you know,
1888
01:46:37.550 --> 01:46:40.069
we now have a great relationship with Venezuela, is what
1889
01:46:40.090 --> 01:46:44.250
the president said, a great relationship at gunpoint. And now
1890
01:46:44.710 --> 01:46:48.149
he's made a bunch of claims about Exxon going in
1891
01:46:48.189 --> 01:46:51.680
and other major oil companies going in that. Are completely
1892
01:46:51.720 --> 01:46:54.939
fictitious so far. Chevron is there and apparently they're redoubling
1893
01:46:54.960 --> 01:46:59.760
their effort to use, I guess, the resources there in Venezuela.
1894
01:46:59.779 --> 01:47:03.600
But it's a gangster move to take over the state
1895
01:47:03.619 --> 01:47:07.600
of Venezuela. And I would say this just on your
1896
01:47:07.800 --> 01:47:13.279
specific comment. It probably would have happened no matter who
1897
01:47:13.319 --> 01:47:16.520
was president. That's what this administration is about. You know,
1898
01:47:16.539 --> 01:47:18.260
we're going to go into gunpoint anyway. You want to
1899
01:47:18.279 --> 01:47:18.779
play ball?
1900
01:47:18.819 --> 01:47:19.039
Great.
1901
01:47:19.319 --> 01:47:21.300
You should read the, it was in the 60s, I think,
1902
01:47:21.340 --> 01:47:24.520
maybe the early 70s, the book came out. Confessions of
1903
01:47:24.560 --> 01:47:27.439
an Economic Hitman. Many of you probably have read it.
1904
01:47:27.979 --> 01:47:30.199
It really goes into this. We used to do it
1905
01:47:30.239 --> 01:47:34.020
with more sleight of hand. This crew just goes in
1906
01:47:34.119 --> 01:47:38.310
guns blazing, you know. It'd be tough if something would
1907
01:47:38.329 --> 01:47:41.789
have happened to your beautiful country. It's such a gorgeous country, Venezuela.
1908
01:47:44.170 --> 01:47:44.470
All right.
1909
01:47:46.680 --> 01:47:49.020
Oh, speaking of Venezuela oil, Trump says it's going into
1910
01:47:49.060 --> 01:47:52.000
our strategic oil reserve, which is BS. Venezuela oil is
1911
01:47:52.039 --> 01:47:54.239
too heavy to go into our petroleum reserve. Yeah, this
1912
01:47:54.300 --> 01:47:56.760
is the BS about that. I don't even know that
1913
01:47:56.779 --> 01:47:59.539
Trump knows that. I mean, I think he just I
1914
01:47:59.579 --> 01:48:01.119
think he's not told about a bunch of stuff and
1915
01:48:01.159 --> 01:48:04.619
it's really struggling. Venezuelan oil is extra dirty. Yes. Jeff Carter.
1916
01:48:04.680 --> 01:48:09.899
It's true. It's true. Nellifidian says Trump likes coal and
1917
01:48:10.060 --> 01:48:12.319
oil because they pay him. Yeah, that's true. In fact,
1918
01:48:12.359 --> 01:48:15.750
he indicated that in the ramp up to his winning
1919
01:48:15.770 --> 01:48:18.630
the presidency, right? That he said, if you give me
1920
01:48:18.670 --> 01:48:20.409
a billion dollars, I'll give you a billion dollars. whatever
1921
01:48:20.470 --> 01:48:24.569
legislation you want he literally said that so and now
1922
01:48:24.890 --> 01:48:30.640
your comments no we've done the comments alright I am
1923
01:48:31.199 --> 01:48:36.500
going to call it then living in Trump gangster paradise
1924
01:48:36.619 --> 01:48:41.329
true yeah it is that It's a gangsta scene. Who's
1925
01:48:41.369 --> 01:48:43.170
on the show tomorrow, Kim McAllister?
1926
01:48:43.569 --> 01:48:47.189
Oh, we have some good guests coming up on the show.
1927
01:48:47.229 --> 01:48:48.220
We have David Katz.
1928
01:48:48.640 --> 01:48:52.739
Also, one of your favorite comedians, and David Katz is
1929
01:48:52.800 --> 01:48:55.619
a former federal prosecutor, now defense attorney, J.L.
1930
01:48:55.680 --> 01:48:57.359
Covan will be on the show.
1931
01:48:57.399 --> 01:49:00.880
Yeah, J.L. Covan is going to be here tomorrow. I'm
1932
01:49:01.079 --> 01:49:06.279
loving it. What a show. Tony, it's sad. This is
1933
01:49:06.319 --> 01:49:10.340
goodbye for you for the week. Till Monday. Until Monday.
1934
01:49:10.699 --> 01:49:12.479
But you're going to miss a good one. You should
1935
01:49:12.520 --> 01:49:15.130
dial it on up on your little magic device there.
1936
01:49:15.149 --> 01:49:16.770
I'll have it on in the background while I'm working.
1937
01:49:17.109 --> 01:49:20.569
Labor Day, we are dark. And September 11th, a special show.
1938
01:49:20.590 --> 01:49:23.329
We'll be live, but I've got a special interview on
1939
01:49:23.750 --> 01:49:25.680
September 11th that I want you to check out. It'll
1940
01:49:25.720 --> 01:49:27.079
be really something special.
1941
01:49:27.159 --> 01:49:27.659
And now.
1942
01:49:27.960 --> 01:49:30.560
I'm Shadow Stevens for the Mark Johnson Show.
1943
01:49:31.399 --> 01:49:31.680
Bye-bye.
1944
01:49:31.939 --> 01:49:35.000
Thank you, Tony. Thank you, Kim. Thank you, everybody, for participating.
1945
01:49:35.039 --> 01:49:35.460
Out of time.
1946
01:49:35.560 --> 01:49:36.199
Bye-bye.
1947
01:49:36.300 --> 01:49:36.850
Out of time.
1948
01:49:36.859 --> 01:49:37.520
Bye-bye.
