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<v Speaker 1>Hi, It's Brian Thomas here with Senator John Houston. Welcome

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<v Speaker 1>back to the program. John, It's always a pleasure having

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<v Speaker 1>you on. Boy. There's a flurry of activity going to

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<v Speaker 1>coming out of Washington, DC. Very impressed by what the

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<v Speaker 1>Trump administration has been able to accomplish, and personally happy

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<v Speaker 1>to see the Big Beautiful Bill get passed. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>I was hoping, and I think my listeners were hoping

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<v Speaker 1>for more cuts, recognizing some of the work that Doge

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<v Speaker 1>had done. We expected, you know, a much larger slice

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<v Speaker 1>of the government to be cut out. But a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of great was accomplished in the Big Beautiful Bill, most

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<v Speaker 1>notably the tax increase or the tax cuts have been

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<v Speaker 1>made permanent, and that, despite what the Democrats keep saying,

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<v Speaker 1>that is a benefit to a huge swath of Americans

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<v Speaker 1>and of course Ohioans.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, small businesses, manufacturers, all of them benefit by knowing

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<v Speaker 2>what the rules are. They know they can plan, they

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<v Speaker 2>can plan a capital investment knowing that they're going to

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<v Speaker 2>be able to deduct the cost of that in this

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<v Speaker 2>year's taxes, which means they have predictability, and then they

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<v Speaker 2>can hire people, they can grow. This kind of stuff

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<v Speaker 2>is very important, but it's also important for middle class

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<v Speaker 2>working families. And I want to dig into that. No

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<v Speaker 2>tax on tips, no tax on overtime, you know, bigger

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<v Speaker 2>deduction for Social Security recipients, a child tax credit for

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<v Speaker 2>working families, not one that's rebatable to people that don't work,

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<v Speaker 2>but for people who actually work. All of that fantastic

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<v Speaker 2>stuff for working families in Ohio.

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<v Speaker 1>And so they just recently found out, you know, everyone

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<v Speaker 1>on the left side of the ledgers screaming about how

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<v Speaker 1>everyone's going to die because they're going to have their

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<v Speaker 1>Medicaid taken away from them. I just saw an article

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<v Speaker 1>on the Wall Street Journal I talked about earlier in

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<v Speaker 1>the program yesterday, and fourteen billion dollars in fraud waste abuse,

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<v Speaker 1>most notably people signed up in multiple states. It didn't

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<v Speaker 1>take them that long to apply modern computer technology to

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<v Speaker 1>cross reference to these people and find out that they're

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<v Speaker 1>registered in multiple states double dipping. That was an easy fix.

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<v Speaker 1>How come it took so long to come up with

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<v Speaker 1>that one.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, Frankly, one of the problems is is the federal

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<v Speaker 2>government pays the bill and the states administered, so many

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<v Speaker 2>states have no incentive to actually go track this down,

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<v Speaker 2>and we did that with SNAP saying, hey, if you're

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<v Speaker 2>gonna have a fraud and abuse, then the states that

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<v Speaker 2>have it, you're going to pay a little bit more

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<v Speaker 2>of the cost of doing these programs. That's certainly the

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<v Speaker 2>case with Medicaid. You have people who are ineligible, who

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<v Speaker 2>are on there, people who are registered in multiple states.

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<v Speaker 2>And what does that matter? Because you have insurance companies

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<v Speaker 2>Medicaid manage care companies that pay states pay premiums. The

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<v Speaker 2>federal government pays premiums in both states. So that's a

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<v Speaker 2>huge cost of covering multiple people even though they should

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<v Speaker 2>only be or multiple states, even though showed me in

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<v Speaker 2>one state that stuff matters. It adds up to billions

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<v Speaker 2>of dollars. And nobody was doing it before, and that's

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<v Speaker 2>a big difference. It's like, you can identify these things,

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<v Speaker 2>but what are we doing about it? Were doing something

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<v Speaker 2>about it in this bill. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>One thing we all have learned of late there is

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<v Speaker 1>no follow through to find out what happens after the

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<v Speaker 1>money goes out the door in Washington. Does it actually

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<v Speaker 1>accomplish anything? All these non governmental organizations with their hands

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<v Speaker 1>in the cookie jar of the taxpayer money, we don't

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, like the Doge identified projects. We don't know

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<v Speaker 1>if even the Sesame Street program in Iraq or whatever

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<v Speaker 1>was even done. The money did go towards something that

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<v Speaker 1>was labeled as that, but nobody follows up and tracks

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<v Speaker 1>the taxpayer dollars. So I think it's a refreshing thing

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<v Speaker 1>that the Trump administration is doing along those lines, at

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<v Speaker 1>least trying to make sure the money's doing something and

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<v Speaker 1>accomplishing something on behalf of the American taxpayer. Now, one

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<v Speaker 1>of the problems, well.

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<v Speaker 2>There was a there was a let me just say

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<v Speaker 2>something on that. There's a big message sent. We stayed

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<v Speaker 2>up till two thirty in the morning doing the recisions

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<v Speaker 2>package to take back literally nine billion dollars in spending,

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<v Speaker 2>not a huge amount. You would think that would be easy. Finally,

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<v Speaker 2>cutting things like Sesame Street and Iraq and transgender surgeries

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<v Speaker 2>in Guatemala. We cut those packages. And the message to

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<v Speaker 2>the bureaucracy is this, Brian, don't do stupid things and

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<v Speaker 2>you'll be fine, But if you do stupid things, we

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<v Speaker 2>are actually willing to cut your budgets. So that was

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<v Speaker 2>a big message. It was sent.

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<v Speaker 1>That amazing concept John EUSt did. Now I saw Donald

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<v Speaker 1>Trump sign the Halt Fentanyl Act into law. I wanted

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<v Speaker 1>to pivot over to that. I think we and Ohio

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<v Speaker 1>have a problem with fentanyl like all the other states.

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<v Speaker 1>And of course I think the main problem is the

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<v Speaker 1>Chinese Communist Party and sending all the precursor elements out

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<v Speaker 1>into the world to be turned into fentanyl. Whether or

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<v Speaker 1>not Trump accomplishes, getting that shutdown would go a long

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<v Speaker 1>way to stopping the fentanyl problem. But how is the

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<v Speaker 1>Halt Fentanyl Act going to help us here in Ohio.

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<v Speaker 1>It's going to give.

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<v Speaker 2>Law enforcement more tools to go after people. A lot

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<v Speaker 2>of times they would hide these ingredients under you know,

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<v Speaker 2>technicalities in the law. This just cleans it up, gives

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<v Speaker 2>law enforcement more power to go after the bad actors.

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<v Speaker 2>But it's also important in the trade fight with China.

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<v Speaker 2>There's a premium in there on a tariff, a twenty

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<v Speaker 2>percent additional tariff until China takes care of these is

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<v Speaker 2>shoes around fentanyl. So they're going to, you know, if

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<v Speaker 2>they're going to keep turning a blind eye to the

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<v Speaker 2>problems that they're creating in this country and the sort

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<v Speaker 2>of the modern day opium opium more, Uh, we're going

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<v Speaker 2>to have to continue to push back on them and

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<v Speaker 2>giving law enforcement more tools with Halt, fent and al

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<v Speaker 2>and all. They think that it's a terrible tragedy that

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<v Speaker 2>comes with it. It's also the human trafficking and all

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<v Speaker 2>that from drug addicted people that ends up happening, from

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<v Speaker 2>the gangs and the people coming across the border illegally.

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<v Speaker 2>It's just a whole mess that was created by the

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<v Speaker 2>Biden administration that we're still trying to sort out. And

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<v Speaker 2>this is just one more tool for law enforcement, those

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<v Speaker 2>men and women who go out there every day and

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<v Speaker 2>put their lives on the line to protect us.

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<v Speaker 1>Senni Houston pivoting over to the cafe standards something in

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<v Speaker 1>trouble administration wants to get rid of. I think it's

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<v Speaker 1>a pointless thing to have laws of supply and demand

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<v Speaker 1>should be in effective. If I want to drive a

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<v Speaker 1>car that gets eight miles to the gallon and I don't,

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<v Speaker 1>I should be able to buy one. But these cafe

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<v Speaker 1>standards create artificial miles per gallon that are forcing manufacturers

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<v Speaker 1>to old electric vehicles that apparently the population does not want.

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<v Speaker 1>They're losing money, they're hemorrhaging the tax credits, are disappearing,

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<v Speaker 1>so there's fewer there's lessons centive to buy an electric vehicle.

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<v Speaker 1>Can't we just scrap the whole process and let the

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<v Speaker 1>market forces dig dictate what we drive and what are

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<v Speaker 1>miles per gallop happened to be.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, we're in the process of scrapping a lot of that. Yes,

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<v Speaker 2>on cafe standards. That also, we repealed the California ev

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<v Speaker 2>mandate that seventeen other states had joined. If you remember,

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<v Speaker 2>they were going to say all cars in California in

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<v Speaker 2>seventeen other states had to be electric vehicles by twenty

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<v Speaker 2>thirty five. Think about that, every new car had to

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<v Speaker 2>be an electric vehicle by twenty thirty five. And we

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<v Speaker 2>repealed that Biden era regulation that allowed them to do

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<v Speaker 2>that that kind of stuff. I mean, frankly, we saved

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<v Speaker 2>them from themselves. Yeah, there's no way that the people

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<v Speaker 2>of those states would have rebelled if you were going

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<v Speaker 2>to force them to have to buy electric cars. But

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<v Speaker 2>common sense and a Republican majority prevailed in that one,

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<v Speaker 2>and we repealed it. But all of those things skew

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<v Speaker 2>the markets. Companies go out and make investments not on

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<v Speaker 2>what the consumer wants, but what the government regulations say

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<v Speaker 2>they must do, and that skews the whole landscape, and

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<v Speaker 2>eventually you ping pong it around because it's it's one

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<v Speaker 2>administration gets in, they set rules. The next one comes in,

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<v Speaker 2>they set a different set of rules. Just clean the slate.

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<v Speaker 2>Let the car companies respond to the consumers. Technology will

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<v Speaker 2>drive better environmental and outcomes and emission achievements.

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<v Speaker 1>Good ideas. Great ideas do not require force or tax incentives. John,

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<v Speaker 1>that's my point.

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<v Speaker 2>On that, and that is right, and every day we

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<v Speaker 2>get new lessons about that.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, real, briefly, I know we're out of time. Just

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<v Speaker 1>one final question, where are you on the Epstein files?

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<v Speaker 1>I hate to go over that diversion paying no attention

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<v Speaker 1>to the man behind the curtain kind of thing. But

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<v Speaker 1>are you in favor of releasing this? I think most

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<v Speaker 1>of my listening audience like, just let it out, get

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<v Speaker 1>over with and uh yeah.

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<v Speaker 2>Well yeah, we can do this. Look turnover all you can.

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<v Speaker 2>Don't turn over anything that would undermine a potential prosecution

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<v Speaker 2>if there is somebody who deserves to be prosecuted, yes,

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<v Speaker 2>and also protect the victims. We don't want victims' names

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<v Speaker 2>out there. They didn't do anything wrong. If you recall

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<v Speaker 2>in the Prince Andrew case, the woman who who got

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<v Speaker 2>outed in this Epstein saga, she committed suicide. We want

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<v Speaker 2>to protect the victims, but everything else, get it out

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<v Speaker 2>there and get this let's move on by by being transparent.

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<v Speaker 1>Amen to that, and Senator Houston, you know, I think

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<v Speaker 1>they would go a long way to solving this so

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<v Speaker 1>called crisis. If the Justice Department say, we do have

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<v Speaker 1>ongoing criminal investigations, which is why we can't release the information.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that would satisfy a lot of people and

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<v Speaker 1>at least put the whole issue to bed.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and then and then prosecute someone.

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<v Speaker 1>Amen.

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<v Speaker 2>You can't imagine that only those two, you know, the

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<v Speaker 2>Epstein and the Epstein girlfriend, were the ones, the only

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<v Speaker 2>ones involved committing a crime here. You'd have to think

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<v Speaker 2>that there's someone else too that deserves to be prosecuted.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that's a safe conclusion. Senator Hughes that it

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<v Speaker 1>has been a real pleasure. Thank you for the time

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<v Speaker 1>you spent with my listeners to me this morning. I

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<v Speaker 1>truly appreciate. Keep up the great work.