This is Dan Capless and welcome to today's online podcast edition of the Dan Caplis
Show. Please be sure to give us a five star rating if you'd be
so kind, and to subscribe, download and listen to the show every single
day on your favorite podcast platform here on six thirty catch at W Denver.
This is Dan Caplis. Normally my show ends, including on six thirty catch
at W Denver at six o'clock each afternoon four to six tonight. We're staying
late because this farce of a so called big boy press conference continues and we
want to be able to continue to bring it to you this afternoon, and
so we're going to go back to it. At this point, Ryan,
where are we going to pick this up? Are we picking it up live
or with earlier questioning? Okay, so we're going to hand this just shows
what a first this thing is. We'll pick it up. This is a
bit delayed, and we'll play it through as close to the end as we
can. Fire away a lot of concern that Donald Trump may we can NATO
stop supporting Ukraine or push Ukraine to give up territories to Russia. They're correct,
and you yourself was warning just two minutes ago about it. So my
question is, do you think that Europe will be left on its own if
Donald Trump wins the election. What's your advice to European leaders to prepare for
possible US disengagement? Pullo? I think how can I say this about sounding
too self survey. I'm not having any of my European allies country say Joe,
don't run. What I hear them say is you've gotta win. I
can't. I come forward maybe a disaster, a peace and prosperity with that
before I think he said in one of his rallies, don't hold me to
this recently where NATO. I just learned about NATO or something to that.
Facts. No, what he said is foreign policy has never been his strong
point. Putin didn't go into Ukraine. He seems to have an affinity to
people who are authoritarian that worries as I tell you, from whole, that
worries Europe, that worries Poland. And nobody, including the people of Poland,
think that if he wins in Ukraine, is going to stop in Ukraine.
So that's going to be the end of it. And so what I
can say is, I think I'm the best qualified person to do the job,
to make sure that Ukraine is not fall, that Ukraine succeeds, that
the European Alliance stays strong. You may recall no one was talking about Finland
joining NATO. I remember talking to put and when right after we got elected
in Geneva, and he was talking about what we should do. We couldn't
be an Eastern europe at center. And I said, you're looking for the
fidelization of Ukraine, because you're going to get the natoization of Finland. And
about four weeks later I got a called, now that's not true, probably
five months later from the President of Finland. Could he kind of see me
in my office I had. I invited him to the Oval office. We
sat down and talked. He said he wanted to join NATO. Could I
help? And I did? Wasn't automatic. And then I got a call
from the Swede. He's just like filabuster. And so Finland joined NATO eight
hundred mile border as a significant and they're already to allen Lord, but they
weren't part of NAVIS. And you heard, I think you heard. Maybe
I can't recover he said a public in our clothes meeting. But he wouldn't
mind be repeated. He said, we decided in Finland, the people of
Finland decided they had to be part of NATO with our interest because of the
joint ability to be together just to suade any attack on Finland. And the
same thing with Sweden. It took a lot of selling to some folks,
particularly in Turkey and other places, to agree to the expansion, but they
expanded and they were held a lot stronger because of it. We're more secure
because of it. And by the way, I was able to get fifty
other nations fifty five zero to support Ukraine fifty. We were able to bring
about a coalition between of Europe and Asia, Japan and South Korea. I
just met with We talked about August and we talked about the relationship between Australia,
New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, the United States. We're making
the world safer instrum because we have to work with a new arrangement that exists
in the world. The Cold War is over, the post war era is
over. What is going to replace it? And I respectfully suggests I have
a pretty good idea what that should be. I've convince a lot of people
to follow it, and we're just going to get stronger. David Sanger.
Yeah, Putin didn't go into Ukraine on Trump's watching. Thank you, mister
President. Be nice David as President. The NATO declaration that was issued yesterday,
that was very notable because it described China as a decisive enabler of the
war in Ukraine for its provision of critical goods to the Russians. That's part
of a broader partnership that seems to have cemented in place in the past two
or three years. I think one that you were a little bit doubtful of
when we asked you about it some time ago. So I'd be interested to
know whether you have a strategy now of trying to interrupt the partnership between China
and Russia, and whether or not in a second term you would pursue that
if you could describe that strategy to us, and along the way, could
you also tell us whether you think, just to follow up on Felicia's question,
that if you were in a room with Vladimir Putin again the way you
were three years ago or with President that a few years from now you will
be able to go and negotiate with them handle them one on one look could
happened after the last one first, and I raised in the NATO summit and
others raise the future of China's involvement, what they're going to do, what
they're doing with Russia in terms of accommodating, facilitating them. They're getting access
to additional they're not supplying, they're not supplying weapons themselves, They're supplying mechanisms
for them to be able to get weapons. And China's position is basically and
I've spent more time with Ching than a world leader has over ninety hours since
being vice president, all the way through for real and by the way I
handed all my notes, I would explain Hunters deal. But my point is
that she believes that China is a large enough market that they can entice any
country, including European countries, to invest there and return for or commitments from
Europe to do ABC or D or not to do certain things. What's happened
is we had a long discussion about what we cannot. We have to make
clear. China has to understand that if they are supplying Russia with information and
capacity, along with working with North Korea and others to help Russia in armament
that they're not going to benefit economically as a consequence of that by getting the
kind of investment they're looking for. And so, for example, we're in
a situation where and we've a very established direct contact with China. After that
member of the balloon quote unquote going down and all of a sudden things came
to an end. Well, we set up a new mechanism. There's a
direct line between she and me and our military has direct access to one another,
contact one another or we have problems. The issue is that we have
to make sure that she understands there's a price to pay for undercutting both the
specific basin as well as Europe, and it relates to Russia and dealing with
Ukraine, and so we for example, if you want to invest in China,
as you know, you know this area really well, trying to invest
in China, you have to get a fifty percent Chinese owner. You have
to make sure that you do by their rules and you can't you don't have
the authority, and that you have to provide all access to all the data
and information you have. There was a while there, as we call the
last administration and other administrations where the access to that market was enticely enough to
get companies to come in because they had access to over a billion people in
a market, not a billion, but a lot of people in the market,
and so they were doing it. But that got curtailed when we started
saying we're going to play by the same rules. For example, the idea
they don't abide by the international rules related to subsidizing products by the government funding.
So strategy is just to put everybody able to export their electric vehicles to
the United States without a significant terror. Others are doing the same thing around
the world. But it is a concern. It is a concern that you
have both China, North Korea, Russia ran countries that are not necessarily coordinated
in the past, looking to figure out how they can have impact up that
impact here in sixty the kitchen of your Denver do. But I'm not prepared
to talk about the detail of it in public called boy press conference, which
has been a very thin you'll see that kind of first. In my opinion,
some of our European friends are going to be curtailing there involve investment in
Russia. I mean, excuse me, in China. As long as China
continues to have this indirect success help to Russia in terms of being able to
help their economy as well as as well as help them in as a consequence
that their ability to fight in in Ukraine. The other thing we talked a
lot about is that and I raised it and there was I didn't hear any
I can't swear that everyone agreed, because not everyone got to talk about it.
But we haven't. We need a new industrial policy in the West.
For example, we talked if you just joined us the EU, very very
NATO stage dements to be able to begin to build their own munition capacity list
to their own capacity for weapons and the ability to be came as a surprise
to some of us how we had fallen behind in the West in terms of
the ability to construct new material, new weaponry, and new new everything from
from vehicles to weapons systems, and so one of the things that came out
of this was we're going to be meeting again with a number of my colleagues,
my European colleagues, is what do we do to increase the capacity of
the West, particularly in Europe and Japan, to be able to generate kind
of ability to produce their own weapons systems, not sess for themselves, but
to be able to generate that it's the same less of service. But Russia
is trying to figure out that they went to Sisy kitchen w and this was
supposed to be in Korea Joe Biden big boys. Instead it's been a four
buster, tightly continued to have all the defense of very few questions or follow
ups about it as well. Is incapacity answered on whether you would be ready
to go deal with Putin and She two or three years from now. I'm
ready to deal with them now and three years from now. What a tough
question. The like I said, I'm dealing with She right now and direct
contact with I have no good reason to talk to Putin right now. There's
not much that he is prepared to do in terms of accommodating any change in
his behavior. But there isn't any world leader I'm not prepared to deal with.
But I understand that the generic point is Putin ready to talk. I'm
not ready to talk to Putins unless Putin's ready to change his behavior and the
idea. Look, Putin's got a problem, first of all, in this
war that he is supposedly have won. And by the way, I think.
Don't hold me the exact number, but I think that Russia had seventeen
point three percent of Ukraine that they've conquered now at seventeen point four. I
mean in terms of percentage of territory. They've not been very successful. They've
called horrible damage and loss of life, but they've also lost over three hundred
and fifty thousand troops military killed or wounded, if over a million people,
particularly young people with technical capability leading Russia because they see no future there.
They've got a problem. But what they do have control of is they are
very good at controlling and running the public outcry. That relates to how they
use mechanisms to communicate with people. They lie like health in the constituencies,
they lie like kill about what's going on. And so the idea that we're
going to be able to fundamentally change Russian in their term is not likely.
But one thing for certain, if we allow Russia to succeed in Ukraine,
they're not stopping the Ukraine. I recommend. I know you know this because
you've We've written about it. Read poop speech after they moved in. What
it was all about in Kiev. It wasn't about just anyway read what he's
an objective is didn't go in when he was present anyway. But so I
think that I'm prepared to talk to any leader who wants to talk, including
if Putin called me he wanted to talk. Last time I talked to Putin
was trying to get him to work on an arms control agreement related to nuclear
weapons of space. Yeah, and after that to Ukraine. So my point
is, I'm prepared to talk to anybody, but I don't see any inclination.
There is an inclination on the part of the Chinese to keep in contact
with me because they're not sure where this all goes. And look what's happened
in Asia. We have strengthened the Asian Pacific area more than anyone else has.
We you know, we just put together with today we had I brought
on. I asked my NATO allies that we bring on the group from the
South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, Japan In Yeah, Australia, I
I already mentioned in Australia and I met twice. Now I think with the
fourteen leaders of the Pacific island nations and we've slowed down. What's going on
there. We've slowed down China's reach because there's a lot of work to do.
This is a moving target and I don't take it lightly. I'm from
MPR here on sixt thirty kidsch It'll be a Denver. Thank you, mister
President us Mahalid with NPR. I have two questions. Earlier, you spoke
about the ceasefire plan between Israel and Hamas we're now looking at ten months of
war, and I'm curious if there's anything that you feel personally you wish you
would have done differently over the course of the war. And Then, secondly,
if I may, I want to ask you about your presidential campaign.
I remember covering your campaign in twenty twenty and there was a moment where you
refer to yourself as a quote bridge candidacy, a transition to a younger generation
of leaders. I want to understand what changed two things. So let's go
back to two good questions. When you talked about what I have changed anything
is happening with Israel and the Palestinians in the Palestine movement. The answers,
as you recall from the very beginning, I immediately I went to Israel,
but I also got a media contact of Ossisi in Egypt. I met with
the King of Jordan, I met with I met with most of the Arab
leaders to try to get a consensus going as to what had to be done
to deal with getting more aid and food and medicine into in into the Gaza
strip. And we pushed it really hard, and Israel occasionally was less than
cooperative. Number One, the Israeli Wark Cabinet. I've been I've been in
Israel since gold in my ear. I've some of the reporters around here covering
all the time. I've heard me say this. The last first time I
met a Golden Air, I sat across from her at her desk, and
her assistant was rabbi sitting next to me, and so far back I go.
I know Israel well, and I support Israel, but this Wour cabinet
is one of the most conservative war cabinets in the history of Israel. And
there's no ultimate answer the two state solution here. And so what was able
to be done in terms of the organ of the plan I put together was
it would be a process for a true state solution, and we'd get the
Arab nations to particularly from Egypt all the way to Saudi Arabia to be in
a position where they would cooperate in the transition so that they could keep the
peace in Gaza without Israeli forced sustained in Gaza. The question has been from
the beginning, what's the day after in Gaza? And the day after in
Gaza has to be the end of the day after. It has to be
no occupation by Israel and the Gaza strip, as well as the ability for
us to access get in and out as rapidly as you can, all that's
needed there. I've been disappointed that some of the things that I've put forward
have not succeeded as well, like the port reattached from papers. I was
hopeful that would be more successful. But that's why when I went to Israel
immediately after the massacres that occurred was the hands of Moss that the one thing
I said to Israel is a member with a work cabinet and with BB don't
make the same mistake America made after Bin Laden. There's no need to occupy
anywhere. Go after the people who did the job you may be calling.
I still get criticized for it, but I was totally opposed to the occupation
and trying to unite Afghanistan. Once we got once, once we got bin
Laden, we should have moved on because it was not in our No one's
ever going to united unite that country. I've been over every inch of that
not every inch, the entirety, from the poppy fields all the way to
the north. I said, don't make the same mistake we made. Don't
think that's what you should be doing is doubling down. We'll help you find
the bad guys sin War in company. And all was criticism about I wouldn't
provide when the weapons they needed. I have not provided them two thousand pound
bombs. They cannot be used in Gaza or any popular area without causing great
human tragedy and damage. But remember what happened when when you had the attack
on Israel from with rockets and ballistic missiles. I was able to unite the
Arab nations as well as as well as Europe, and nothing happened, nothing
got hurt. Sent an incredible lesson to what was going on from the the
least. So there's a lot of things in retrospect. I wish I had
been able to convince the israelis to do. But the bottom line is we
have a chance. Now. It's time to end this war. Doesn't mean
walk away from going after Sinemar and Hamas. And if you notice, you
know better than most there is a growing dissatisfaction in on the West Bank from
the Palestidians about Hamas. Hamas is not popular now, and so there's a
lot of moving parts. I just have to keep moving to make sure that
we get as much done as we can toward a cease fire, a cease
fire and get those And by the way, look at the numbers in Israel.
I mean, my numbers are better in Israel than our here, but
then again there are better than a lot of other people here too. But
anyway, Boss didn't go in Israel and Trump candidacy in twenty twenty. You
referred to yourself as being a bridge candidate for a younger, pressure generation of
democratic leaders. And I wanted to know what changed. What changed was the
good question gravity of the situation I inherited in terms of the economy, our
foreign policy, and domestic division. And I think I won't put words in
anybody's mouth. The most presidential story is give me credit for having accomplished more
than most any president since Johnson than maybe before that office. A major piece
of legislation passed. What I realized was my long time in the Senate had
equipped me to have the wi them't know how to deal with the Congress to
get things done. I got more majorsization passions, just as mot would happened.
All these other Democrats are incompetent that nobody can do the job. If
tomorrow or if if you've had a circumstance for everything, there is a lineup,
and I did have an inheritor what I did, and we just moved
things along. Anyway, it's going to change. Last question, Haley Bull
scripts no, Josh Weinegrove, I'm sorry. It isn't actually bad, Haley.
I'll do two more questions, thank you, mister President. Many of
your colleagues, Democrats in the Hill are watching tonight as they assess to see
how you're thinking of this right now. It seems like your answer is clear.
But they're watching how things go tonight tomorrow in Michigan, next week in
Texas and Nevada. Are you thinking that about whether how the next week or
two goes would inform you? Am I using that way. Are you thinking
that way about how the next two weeks ago Will that affect your decision?
Or are you fully determined on running in November as the party's nominee. I'm
determined on running, but I think it's important that I realized I lay fears
I've seen let them see me out there, let me see them. You
know, for the longest time it was Biden's not prepared to sit with us
unscripted. Biden's not prepared to in any way. And so what I'm doing
is I've been doing. I think we won twenty major events from Wisconsin to
North Carolina anyway to demonstrate that I'm going out in the areas where you think
we can win, where we can persuade people to move our way or people
already there. Look then, is we have the most extensive campaign organization if
anybody's had a long We have well over one thousand volunteers knocking on doors,
making phone calls, making tens of thousands of phone calls. We have headquarters.
I forget exactly how might I want to cite a number and then find
out I'm off, But we have scores of headquarters and all the toss up
States. We're organized, we're moving, and that's awful hard to replace in
in their term. And so here's the other thing. I was in the
sending a long time. I'm very proud of what I've done in the Senate.
I was chairman on the Formulations Committee for a long time, and I
was chairman of a ranking member and chairman of the Judiciary Committee. I'm going
to be going down to the Johnston Library anyway. I'm going to be going
around making the case of the things that I think we have to finish and
how we can't afford to lose what we've done, or our backslide on civil
rights, of liberties, women's rights, and that little button we have control
guns not girls. The idea we're sitting around this WKAMO is so good as
well. We're sitting around more children from him are killed at by a bullet
and any other cause of death. The United States of America? What hell
are we doing? What are we doing? We got a candidate said I
promise, and don't worry. I'm not going to do anything. I'm not
going to do anything. You got a Supreme Court vice most conservative court in
American history. Oh, this is ridiculous. There's so much we can do.
Still, I'm determined to get it done. It's about freedom. And
by the way, I'll end this right, Well, I'm not going to
do that, Haley. It has to come up to But the I remember
I made a speech on democracy in Philadelphia and Independence Hall speech and I'm not
being critical. Just observe you, the bulk of the press, what else
he talking about that for democrat? And you did. Democracy's not an issue.
Democracy is not an issue except the pulling down. So sixty percent of
the people knew I was right. I thought I was right. I'm not
asking you a question you don't have to answer, obviously, but do you
think our democracy is under siege based on this court? Do you think democracy
see based on Project twenty twenty five? Do you think he means what he
says when he says he's going to go away to the civil service, eliminate
the Department of Education? Makes you I mean, we've never been here before,
and that's the other another generation. I've got to finish this job.
I've got to finish this job because there's so much steak. You have the
discussions of the past few days with your press secretary about the question of health
exams, and you said you take a cognitive test every day in this job.
Are you open to taking another physical or test before the election? Governor
Whitmer of Michigan for ins instead, it wouldn't hurt to take a test.
Well, look two things. One, I've taken three significant and intense neurological
exams neurology in each case was recently February. And they say I'm a good
shape okay, although I do have a little problem with my left foot because
of father's sensitive because I broke my foot and didn't wear the boot. But
I'm good. I'm tested every single day by my neurological capaccity the decisions I
make every day. Yeah, And you think my staff all of you talk
to my staff sometimes my staff talks a lot. But the fact of the
matter is, I don't think you have them telling you that all the major
ideas we've undertaken haven't been in part initiated by me. I remember with the
staff, I said, I'm going to go to South Korea. We're going
to get that chip. What are you're doing? I'm going to get Japan
and Korea back together again after essentially having hostilities toward one another since the end
of World War Two. I'm going to move and see that we can expand
it. You know, the only thing aged does is help you with It
creates a little bit of wisdom if you pay attention. And so the point
I'm making is, I think it's important that if if mine is, a
neurologist tells me he thinks I need another exam. And by the way,
I've laid every bit of the record out, and the thing wrong, God
asked Trump for this, Okay, I laid it all out. Every single
day I'm surrounded by good docs. If they think there's a problem, I
promise you. Or if I don't think it's a problem, I think I
should have a neurological exam again, I'll do it. No one's suggesting that
to me. Now, no one to ask you another question. No matter
what I did, no one's going to be satisfied. Did you have seven
knocks? Did you have two? Would you have? Did you do this?
How many times you? So I am not opposed. If my doctors
tell me they should I should have another neurological exam, I'll do it.
But that's where I am uh Haley Bull scripts Haley got in. Thank you,
mister president. You're making decisions on a day to day basis when it
comes to support for Ukraine. Does that mean you have not closed the door
on further considering lifting restrictions for US made weapons inside Russia? And if I
met, your convention is coming up where your delegates are pledged to make you
the official nominee. If they have second thoughts, are they free to vote
their conscience? Good question. Obviously they're free to do another they want.
But I got overwhelming support, overwhelming support I won. How I forget how
many votes I won in the primary. Overwhelming And so tomorrow follow of a
sudden I show up at the convention, everybody says we want somebody else.
That's democratic process. It's not gonna happen. That's pretty big, right there.
You vote for someone else. Sure, Look, I'll end this with
us. I serve to to send it a long time. He said that
three times or more. I understand the impetus of candidate running for local office
and whether they think top if they can help them not. In my state
of Delaware, which was a very at least a purpose, it was a
red state when I started in terms of ware now talk red and blue.
I don't recall most of the Democratic presidents winning my state when I was a
candidate. The truth of the matter is, I understand the self interest in
a candidate. If they think that, you know, run over with Biden
the topic is going to hurt them, then they're going to run away.
I get it. But so far, go and look at the polling data
in their states. Look at the end, and by the way, I
think you'd all acknowledge. And you're all experts. I'm not bevious to listening
to about the president. There are your experts on this stuff. How accurate
does anybody think the polls are these days? I can give a serious of
poll where you have likely voters don't believe the meet versus Trump, where I
win all the time, but the unlikely voters that's all. The bottom line
is all a pulling data right now, which I think is premature because the
campaign really hasn't even started. I mean it hasn't started to earnest yet.
Most of the time it's done start till after September, after Labor Day?
What year are you living? In? A lot can happen, But I
think I'm the best call. I know, I believe I'm the best qualified
to govern, and I think I'm the best qualified to win. But there
are other people too. But it's also starts to start, start from scratch.
And you know we talk about you know, money raised, we're not
doing bad. Forget if I've two hundred and twenty million dollars in the bank,
we're doing well. So with that, you haven't even want to follow
up a that you just ask me. Yes, you earlier explained confidence and
your vice president if your team came back and showed you data that she would
fare better against former President Donald Trump, would you reconsider your decision to stay
in the race. No, let's think came back and said there's no way
you can win. Wow, me, don't say that, No bulls.
Wow. This ends tonight's press conference. Wow. Wow, Hey, thanks
for being with us. Normally you'll have Joe Pegs on now It's six thirty
Kids at W Denver. This is Dan Caplis. We stayed on obviously so
you could hear the end of that and will deep dive it. Michael Brown
will be on It's six thirty Kitsch at W his Great Morning Show tomorrow morning,
and then of course four to six tomorrow afternoon, will deep dive this.
Ryan Schuling does a great show on six thirty kitsch W two to four,
so lots of opportunities to deep dive it tomorrow. And thanks to management
for running this commercial free through this hour. I want to take just two
minutes. I know you have thoughts as well, Ryan, But in watching
that, first of all, we're proven right. We kept saying they're calling
it a big boy press conference because it won't be. This was just a
staged event and it wasn't a true test in any way, shape or form.
With that, Biden still had constant flubbs, and I don't think did
anything to reassure any reasonable person about his fitness to serve in office. But
as a guy who wants to see him stay in the race because it helps
Trump win, helps all Republicans win, I'm heartened. I'm heartened. I'm
hopeful this means that he's going to stay in longer. He won't be the
nominee, but I hope this means that he'll drag it out as long as
humanly possible. Seem to be his attitude tonight. I think his candidacy will
be over very very soon. But hopefully we get him a bit longer and
it makes things even tougher on the Democrats. I think that's starting by referring
to your vice president is Trump not the best start, especially after just referring
to Zelensky as Putin yep, and a lot more to break down tomorrow.
I just can't believe he's staying with this lineup. I don't need a cognitive
test. Nobody's asking for it. Yes they are. Everybody on your own
side is why not just go through the test show if you're that confident about
how you stand cognitively, and you're right the repeat of the mistake calling Zelenski
Putin saying vice President Trump, they showed a reaction shot on Twitter of his
cabinet members like blink and etc. And they just you could see their faces
drop. But what I heard, just to echo your sentiments real quickly,
Dan Tonight, was a guy that's committed to staying in the race. I
think he did just well enough to clear the bar of he's not completely out
there out to pasture, and he's going to have to be really talked out
of this, and I don't think that's going to be easy. So to
your point, he's in it. He's staying in it. I think he
bought himself some time tonight, and that's good news for Donald Trump. I
think he's right about one thing when he says, wait a second, every
day on this job is a cognitive test. I think that is true.
And I think that watching him in action the few times they allow us to
do that, because this has been one massive cover up of his inability.
Every time we get to see him, it is more valuable to us,
I think than a medical cognitive test. The point is he fails. He
fails those everyday tests. Ryan, I think he's done. I think he's
done very soon. Soon he'll announced, And what I mean by that is
he'll announced that he's no longer going to seek reelection. But let's hope that
tonight means he's going to drag it out. Even another week or two is
very helpful to Trump. So thank you Ryan for staying late. Thank you
to Dave Tepper and management for allowing this to go into Alet's conclusion. Please
join Michael Brown in the morning and six thirty KHW Denver Ryan Shuling at two.
I'll beyond Dan Kaplis. I'll be on tomorrow two to four look forward
to taking your calls in texts. Then have a great ev