Speaker 1: And we are back with another edition of the Federalist
Radio Hour. I'm Matt Kittle, Senior Elections correspondent at the
Federalist and your experience shirpa on today's quest for Knowledge.
As always, you can email the show at radio at
the Federalist dot com, follow us on x at FDR LST,
make sure to subscribe wherever you download your podcast, and
of course to the premium version of our website as well.
Our guest today is Representative Tim Burchett, joining us live
from the sewer as he fittingly describes the fetid pool
of corruption that is Washington.
Speaker 2: D C.
Speaker 1: Good afternoon, sir, Thank you so much for joining us
in the Federalist Radio Hour.
Speaker 3: Thank you for having me on. Brother.
Speaker 1: I'm a big fan, absolutely, and we are a big
fan of the good work that you are constantly doing
in said fetid swamp. Today, as we speak, you are
about to at least go into debate. I'm not sure
if there will be a vote on the floor if
that's been settled on the Save America Act. Can you
give us an update on where things stand, at least
in the House on that very important election integrity reform measure.
Speaker 4: Well, apparently it's been moved to tomorrow. But okay, now
we've just been told.
Speaker 3: But the bill is really simple.
Speaker 4: It just says that you have to you have to
prove American citizenship birth. I guess if you will. You know,
when you play Little League baseball, you have to show
a birth certificate and you go and then you go
to vote, you have to show a photo ID, a
valid photo ID. Now you buy some over the counter
cough medicines, you have to do that.
Speaker 3: You go to an R rated movie, you have to
do that.
Speaker 4: You buy a six pack of beer, you buy a
can of skull, you have to show a dad gum ID.
And then Schumer comes out and says that it's racist,
that it's you know that we're doing this, And to me,
it's the exact opposite. It's racist for him to say
that that our minority community could not produce a valid identification.
That is just bogus. And all they wanted to do
is protect corruption. And they're approving our point with these
stolen elections by their constant fighting over this. This is
something that pulls through the roof. Eighty ninety percent Republicans
support it, something like sixty five to seventy percent Democrats
support it. The only reason you would not support this
is if you were just completely ignorant, which I don't
think they are, or you're you know that elections will
be stolen with this and you need that to stay
in power. I suspect it's the latter.
Speaker 1: Well, that's I guess what inquiring minds want to know.
As you mentioned, this is an issue that virtually everyone supports.
It is your most definitive eighty twenty split out there.
And when you have something like this issue, such a
rare issue where Democrats and Republicans can come together, why
is it that the minority party would fight and fight
so desperately. I mean, they are fighting like they are
a cornered rabbitous raccoon to try to get out of
this vote that they do not want to take. And
they might just be successful in the Senate, where they
have not been in the House.
Speaker 3: That's completely correct. We've got some.
Speaker 4: Republicans, I guess they're Republicans claiming to want to block
it for whatever reason, and they don't really give a reason.
And that's another thing we've got We've got to fix.
Twelve percent of the population votes forty percent of so
called evangelical Christians do not vote. Thirty percent of gun
owners do not vote. You know, these are people that
should be our base and should be on board with
this kind of thing, but they just don't vote. They just,
for whatever reason. I think it's more arrogance than anything else,
they do not vote. And we're going to lose our country.
This is not this is not some tenfool hat wearing
kind of synopsis. This is the reality because if we
lose them, if we leave the Republicans, that is, we
lose the midterms, Washington d c. Will become the fifty
first state. They'll stack the Supreme Court, they'll reverse all
the borders things that we had, the reverse every one
of President Trump's executive orders, and frankly, we don't have
the guts to pass most of them, which is a disgrace.
But again I go back to and these Republicans just
do not get it. We have a very slim majority
of down to one in the House. And the reason
that is that we're not at a forty or fifty
is because we ran on some really stupid stuff. Honestly,
Trump ran on what he knows that America wants, and
he's tried to fulfill that the border, going after bad people,
not putting up with these third world dictators thumbing their
nose at America, things like that. But Congress is just
bogged down in their usual arrogance, and some of them,
I don't really think want to be in the majority.
They'd like to see it all fail so they could
get back in line and get their crumbs.
Speaker 3: But I'm one of those.
Speaker 4: We're forty trillion dollar argent debt and we need to
start paying attention to what's going on.
Speaker 1: Well, as you mentioned, I mean, it's another existential election
coming up these midterms, because if the Democrats take back
the House, and should they take back the Senate, it's
not only impeachment for Donald Trump. We know that's coming
from a Democrat controlled House. It's a conviction perhaps for
Donald Trump and removal of a president that a majority
of Americans voted for in twenty twenty four and the
vast majority of those to do what Donald Trump is
doing right now. So, as you say, if Democrats take control,
you know you mentioned Washington, d C. Is the fifty
first state, maybe bad Bunny becomes a governor of the
state of Puerto Rico at that time. I mean, you know,
Democrats will do anything to consolidate power. And again the
word is desperate, because that twenty thirty census is not
going to look real good for them if Republicans in
the majority can get their act together. But this is
the question you kind of touched upon it. The reality
is those gun owners that don't come out to vote,
those evangelical Christians that don't come out to vote, many
of them don't come out to vote because the people
who call themselves conservatives in Congress are anything but. And
you've got to give them a reason to come out
to vote. And if you can't even and I say
this generically, you know that, Tim, But if the Senate
cannot get its act together and pass this basic election
integrity reform that eighty percent of Americans want, what reason
do Republicans conservative Republicans have to come out in twenty
twenty six.
Speaker 4: They couldn't send it more any better, couldn't send it
any better.
Speaker 3: We are I just I'm very frustrated. Brother. If we
do not pay attention to what's going on around us,
will it will end?
Speaker 4: It will end, And as we know it, and I don't,
I'm not I do not understand why these groups do
not get motivated and start talking to their you know,
their congregations or whatever. I don't I don't want churches
out there endorsing anybody. But again, if they just preach
the gospel, I think if they talk against what's wrong,
they talk against things like transgender surgery, which is mutilation
of children, and you know, it's like we're we're sacrificing
these kids on the altar of Wokotopia or something.
Speaker 3: It's just it's it's.
Speaker 4: Unbelievable that we've allowed ourselvesselves to come this far. But
you know, I think the left has had a pretty
good plan all along there.
Speaker 3: They've infiltrated our schools.
Speaker 4: They they've they named me one thing that the left
has gotten a hold of that they've made better. Look
at healthcare, Look at our schools. Those are two things
that are just going down the tubes. When when Jimmy
Carter was president and they made they took education off
the and they made it a cabinet level position, and
then they started pumping the money to it, we were
at number one in the world.
Speaker 3: Now after all that off, after.
Speaker 4: Trillions of dollars of investment, we're twenty second or twenty
third in the world. And it's just their plan. And
if you attack it, oh, you're against education.
Speaker 3: No I'm not.
Speaker 4: I want our kids to be educated. I don't want
them full of this liberal garbage. And it's very tough
to get a majority of Republicans up here to you know,
they'll do it on election day, the day.
Speaker 3: Before the election, they're all about it.
Speaker 4: Then they get up here and they settle in and
it's just And I'll give you another example. All rights
goos non government organizations.
Speaker 3: They are anything but.
Speaker 4: Non government organizations, completely funded by the government.
Speaker 3: What happens is is there's.
Speaker 4: A legitimate maybe a legitimate group that was formed during
George W. Bush's times or something, and they metamorphosize into
different things. But they you see a billionaire put a
million dollars into one of these groups, and then then
some unelected bureaucrats sees that and it's got a great name,
you know, feed the children, and they will literally fund
those things. And you've got members of Congress whose wives
and or girlfriends work for these organizations. And then where
are we at. We're at it elon Musk. They've probably
stolen over a trillion dollars, and I have no reason
to doubt that after since I'm then the chairman of
the Doge Subcommittee, and which I've told people it's the
committee you go to die on because because both parties
do not like what we're talking about. But you know,
I'm pretty sure somewhere in the bows of leadership there
is a lot of hatred towards the things that we're
going to uncover and that we've already started talking about.
Because I'm going to bring legislation. It's not going to
just be some wrestling match on television. It's going to
be a full force committee and we're going to bring
legislation forward and I'm going to sponsor it, and I've
stated and I will publicly embarrass the chairman who try
to stop that legislation.
Speaker 1: We hear a lot, especially online, about conservatives attacking other conservatives.
Sometimes it even seems like conservatives are fighting each other
more than they fight the left. That's where the new
podcast Conservative Crossroads with Henry Olsen, Senior Fellow at the
Ethics and Public Policy Center comes in. It doesn't shy
away from these disputes, it leans into them. Putting two
conservatives who disagree about an important issue together to hash
it out on the air. Every other week, Conservative Crossroads
does what no other program does explore conservatisms disagreements without
name calling. Conservative Crossroads is the podcast for conservatives who
want to understand what's happening to their movement. Join Henry
Olsen and his guest at Conservative Crossroads every other Monday
as they hash out the ideas and principles that will
decide the future of the right. Download Conservative Crossroads from
our partner Ricochet or any platform where you get your podcast.
Conservatism is at a crossroads, which is why all conservatives
need Conservative Crossroads listen today. That is good because, as
you mentioned before, the account is continuously growing higher. It
is continuously more and more untenable, and we are continuing
to put that on the backs of our grandchildren and
our grandchildren's grandchildren, and that is an absolute sin. But
here is the question, Congressman, and that is we talked
a little bit about it before we started recording this podcast,
and that is what's the alternative. And I think maybe
the better question is do self satisfied Republicans rhinos whatever
you want to call them, sinos conservatives and name only
I don't know. I don't know what term you want
to use. You can use any one of those. But
have they gotten comfortable with the idea? Maybe it's delusion
of the question what is the alternative? Because I want
I want to play a little clip here. It is
audio from the House DHS Department of Homeland Security Committee
hearing where you have these grand standing, lying, demonizing Democrats
just hammering the hell out of federal immigration enforcement officers.
People who are sworn to uphold the laws of the land.
People are constantly breaking the laws of the land to
assault them, to threaten them, and they got to deal
with this stuff. But this is an exchange between a guy,
I know you're quite familiar with, a guy who has
higher political aspirations. That is Eric Swallwell of California, who
has a penchant for Chinese spies apparently. But he gets
up there and has a picture of one of the
biggest falsehoods that corporate media has perpetuated on the public,
and that is that five.
Speaker 3: Year old kid.
Speaker 1: It was a legal immigrant, you know, father who abandoned
him out in the field as he ran away from
ice agents. And this Swallwell is up there. Well, here,
let's have the exchange between Swallwell and DHS Undersecretary Lions.
Speaker 2: If you're staying on to lead ICE as a decision,
and I've read your background, you have a decorated career,
You've served in the military. You are what I would
call otherwise employable. I think most people would agree this
is not the only job that you can get. But
since you've been on this job, women have been dragged by.
Speaker 3: Their hair through our streets.
Speaker 2: A six year old child battling stage four cancer has
been deported and it turns out he was a US citizen.
People are running through the fields where they work, people
who've gone to the streets as allies have been shot
in publicly acute to me, it's a decision to stay
on at this point, and considering your honorable service in
the past, and the dishonorable acts that those who have
worked for you have conducted, and the disgraceful statements that
the leadership above you have said, you now have a decision.
Will you stand with the kids who you're supposed to
protect or will you side with the killers bringing terror
to our streets? Mister Lyons, will you resign from ICE?
Speaker 3: No? Sorry? Well why not?
Speaker 4: Because so that child that you're showing right there, the
men and women advice took care of him when his
father abandoned him in ram.
Speaker 3: Time has expired.
Speaker 1: So I got to ask you, having heard this, what's
going on in the Hill today? What do you what
do you think? Because the Democrats in this country, they
are so out of touch with the average American. Yet
do you have this narrative about you know, nasty ice
and all of these sorts of things. And of course
it's all pushed by these posers like Swallowell.
Speaker 3: Yeah, they're they're just lying and they call it.
Speaker 4: And thank goodness Trump's people have gotten the green light
to call them out on that, because I mean, clearly
when when he when he said all that, and then
the director came back and said, yeah, we were. We
took care of that kid while his dad ran off
and left him. And I think that that that needs
to be said, and we got to quit taking it
from these folks, especially when they lie about us they
get I.
Speaker 3: Got into it with a Democrat.
Speaker 4: I tweeted something about on my ex at Tim Burchett account,
and I said, you know she's lying, this is and
I explained why she came up to me on the
house floor was literally almost tears in her eyes. And
she said, why'd you say that? And I said, because
she lied, That's why I said, Yeah, but you can't.
I thought we were friends. And I'm like, now we're
still friends. Use a liar, and you know it, just
it just drives me crazy when we don't call these
people out and we let their lives stand. Because that
was his perfect little segue into whatever.
Speaker 3: He was more lies, and the director dropped.
Speaker 4: Him like a bad habit with that. I think he
got it him right there.
Speaker 1: He really did, and we have seen that over and
over again from Lions. He's excellent at what he does.
Speaker 3: On that.
Speaker 1: There are a lot of good Trump administration officials who
really do fight back and bite back. I think of
the Treasury Secretary, who is one of the best at that,
of course, But what is the message now that Americans
are really getting because there's so much noise out there,
and the accomplish media also has a great deal because
it rightly feels that it is under attack by the
president and the administration. It feels that way, but what
they're really feeling is accountability. Just like the people in
the old Biden Justice Department that weaponize the Department of Justice.
We get Democrats pointing fingers and saying, well, Trump is
weaponizing the Department of Justice and he's going after his
political enemies. They confuse accountability with a vendetta. And I'm
just curious what your folks in Tennessee are seeing, and
what do you think folks around the country are really seeing.
Speaker 3: I think they're angry.
Speaker 4: They saw four years of unchecked, unconstitutional activity, and you know,
the Democrats are calling it out as revenge and it's
not even a retribution, it's just justice because you know,
and they've they arrested many Trump allies, you know, in
the middle of the night, and CNN was out there
watching it.
Speaker 3: That was very clear to America what went on.
Speaker 4: And then when they elected Kamala and to her off
or you know, if you didn't really elect her.
Speaker 3: She never won an election.
Speaker 4: She just got appointed as the as the candidate, and
they took it away from Joe Biden. They you know,
they had no leg to stand on. And I think
the people in Tennessee see that they see the dishonesty
of this of the former administration, and they wish Congress
would do more and I'm very frustrated with Congress because
we've got we've been given so many opportunities from from
codifying executive orders to legislation, and we we you know,
we're we're six weeks behind on everything, on the polling,
on everything, and our messaging needs to improve. We've got
to improve on our messaging. That's that's where we're getting killed.
I think I think we've done some good things. I
think there's some great stuff in the big beautiful bill,
people paying less taxes, you know, And I'm and people
around the district.
Speaker 3: Are very happy about where the where the economy is go.
Speaker 4: And we've got some We've got to to circle a
few wagons though we've got it. There's some stuff we
need to take care of. But that's what we should
be doing. Instead, we're gonna we're going to blow another
week up here, and and I'm afraid we're going to
you know, we focus on one thing. They always want
to focus on one bill, and America's ready.
Speaker 3: We need to.
Speaker 4: Rapid fire because that's what the Democrats do to us.
They hit us with a bunch of stuff and we're
responding to to one or two and they're already on
four or five, and so I think we've we've got
to pick up our game in that respect, and it
goes back. I can't tell you enough about how important
messaging is to the American public with the Internet and
what's going on.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 4: I was arguing with somebody yesterday about they were talking
about the importance of local television and how that they're
you know, if we can we can talk to them
and they're on our side. I said, well, no, they're not.
They're owned by the same people that are trashing us
at the.
Speaker 3: National level exactly, you know.
Speaker 4: And it was just I was like, holy cow, this
guy's got a million dollars you know, they got millions
of dollars in this in this organization, and they're not
They don't they don't get it. They don't get that
the media hates our guys. And these young kids they're
bringing up are just little young socialists or Marxists that
are involved in the media and they're just wanting to
stick it to somebody because that's all they know, that's
all taught. And I was I left very frustrated from
that meetings, as I do a lot of them. But
these people should have known better and and they're you know,
they're still wanting us to my billboards when you know
the the the media is right there in your cell phone,
and we can control that, and we could just get
our messaging down.
Speaker 1: We could we could educate the public to what's really
going on. Oh, that messaging question is I couldn't agree
with you more. It's uh. That is a real problem
for the GOP and the Republicans. And there are too
many who still believe that the New York Times is
going to give them a break, is going to give
them fair coverage.
Speaker 4: Yeah, and I tell you a quick story about that
if I couldn't want to. When I was mayor in
Knox County, I was I was fighting a bunch I'm
always was always fighting the big boys, the chambers of commerce,
who are not our friends, who endorsed a bunch of
pelosis people. And that's why they ended up back in
the majority of a while back. And they we we
just now recently took it from him. My father was
a World War Two marine. He was down at the
nursing home and he was dying. I mean he would
he'd meet Jesus face to face. Just in a few
weeks after this and he had had a massive stroke
and he couldn't talk very well, but he could grunt out,
and Mama and I understood what he was saying, and
I said, I said, he grunted out of that. And
I walked in there because I was mayor and I
was fighting, and there was editorial cartoons and front page
articles attacking me and all this stuff. And he said,
and I'll never forget this. He said, are they after
you again, buddy?
Speaker 3: And I said, yeah, Daddy, they are.
Speaker 4: And then I said, and then he said, do you
really want that bunch for you? I thought, wow, that
is a very profound statement. And I'm going to say that.
And I've thought about that many times when I'm getting
busted on CNN or I'm getting busted New York Times
or whatever whoever.
Speaker 3: And I think about that, because no, I do not
want that bunch for me.
Speaker 4: And when they're for you, that means you're on the wrong.
Speaker 3: Side of that issue.
Speaker 4: And that's exactly what's happening with our people. They think,
you know, and then they'll do some moderate to liberal
editorial or something, and you know, somebody will say something
nice about them, and they think, oh gosh, this is
great reality as you just sold yourself to them.
Speaker 5: How has consumer confidence fallen to the lowest level in
over a decade? Watched Out on Wall Street podcast with
Chris Markowski. Every day Chris helps unpack the connection between
politics and the economy and how it affects your wallet.
The media income is eighty four thousand dollars, but people
feel like they need one hundred and thirty thousand just
to feel like they're getting ahead. Until housing and insurance
costs go down, will there be more of the same.
Whether it's happening in DC or down on Wall Street,
it's affecting you financially.
Speaker 3: Be informed.
Speaker 5: Check out the watch Dot on Wall Street podcast with
Chris Markowski on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1: The gush all over that kind of rare applause, if
you will, or at least tolerance from the you know,
the tolerance, the so called tolerance group, the coexist group,
and you know, I think, with a context and perspective,
the fact that your your dad was so close to
meeting Jesus, what an important last life lesson that he
gave you that I think was sent directly from the Lord. Yes,
and I think that was that's something we all should heed.
Just a final quick question for you. I know you've
got to get back to the floor and back to work,
but back to the Save Act. What do you think
of the talking filibuster? And what are you hearing from
the usual suspects in the Senate, the likes of Susan
Collins from Maine or Lisa Murkowski from Alaska. I'm hearing
some other senators are They don't They don't want to go.
Speaker 3: Through this battle.
Speaker 1: What do you think of it all?
Speaker 2: Now?
Speaker 3: They don't and they turned their back on America.
Speaker 4: Is what they've done again. Twelve percent of the population.
These people need to be primary and but I.
Speaker 3: Doubt they will.
Speaker 4: If they are, it'll be such a small amount, and
the party will support them because they don't want to.
Speaker 3: They want to expensive prime. They don't want to, you know,
they want to keep.
Speaker 4: Them strong and and uh, you know, people'd rather they'd
rather reign in hell than serve in heaven.
Speaker 3: I think.
Speaker 4: And that's that's part of the problem up here. And
nothing changes. You know, we waste a bunch of money
on some of this. What our side does I think
on military spending? And they waste a ton of it
a lot more actually on whatte stuff all over the world,
and we're still spending the same money.
Speaker 3: And everybody just wants to be in power.
Speaker 4: And they they liked the entourage, they like the suburbans,
I like going to the front of the line. They like,
you know, at the music events, the sporting events, sitting
in the skybox and all the beautiful people come by
and kissing their hand. And it's got to stop. We've
got to start addressing this. We can do better. We've
got the power to do that, and it's at that
ballot box. But currently there's no real effort to educate
people or to register people. And we and we always
get mad at the Democrats because they know how to
play the game, you know.
Speaker 3: They do the the after.
Speaker 4: Vote thing and all that, and we don't know that's
went on dirty our hands, well, that gum, and it's
the rules. And I remind all my conservative Christian folks,
Jesus didn't ask them to leave the temple.
Speaker 3: That gummy threw them out. And it's by force.
Speaker 4: And we better start paying attention because we they're just
it is slipping away as fast as it is you
can imagine.
Speaker 1: Right now, and time to throw out the money lenders
first and foremost on that side of things in the Temple.
And and just to put an exclamation point on all
of that, if you can't get this Save Act or
Save America Act, whatever it's going to finally be, I
do believe you're going to see Democrats twenty twenty style
election administration. And you know well what that means for repositors. Yeah, yes,
well we will keep watching. As always, much appreciated to
your time and your perspective from the sewer. We very
much appreciate that. Thank you, brother, you bet thanks to
my guest today, Representative Tim Burchett. You've been listening to
another edition of the Federalist Radio Hour. I'm Matt Kittle,
Senior Elections correspondent at the Federalist. We'll be back soon
with more. Until then, stay lovers of freedom, anxious for
the frame.
Speaker 3: Hearn the fab easier, and then it faded away.
Speaker 4: Mm hmm