WEBVTT 1 00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:29.199 And welcome to the Big Podcast. How are you on 2 00:00:29.239 --> 00:00:33.280 this Thursday? Today's the second day of April, Year of 3 00:00:33.280 --> 00:00:36.320 Our Lord, twenty twenty six. My name is Tom Sullivan. 4 00:00:36.439 --> 00:00:41.359 So we had a perfectly good show put together for 5 00:00:41.479 --> 00:00:45.679 today reaction to the President's speech last night and all 6 00:00:45.799 --> 00:00:50.079 of those matters going on, and then all of a 7 00:00:50.119 --> 00:00:54.200 sudden middle of the day today we find out that 8 00:00:54.280 --> 00:00:58.159 Pam Bondi, the Attorney General of the United States, is 9 00:00:58.200 --> 00:01:03.560 now the former in general. She was fired by President Trump. 10 00:01:04.400 --> 00:01:09.120 And this is I guess the timing of it is 11 00:01:09.159 --> 00:01:12.200 somewhat of a surprise, but I have said on this 12 00:01:12.280 --> 00:01:15.040 podcast I'd have to go search for it. I know 13 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:19.000 I've done it at least twice where I have speculated 14 00:01:19.239 --> 00:01:22.319 on the fact that Pam Bondy is on the wrong 15 00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:26.879 side of President Trump and he's not happy with her. 16 00:01:27.359 --> 00:01:31.760 And primarily it was around remember the remember the Epstein story. 17 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:36.640 I know that kind of disappeared, hasn't it. But it'll no, 18 00:01:36.840 --> 00:01:43.680 it'll come back, I presume. But in the meantime, when 19 00:01:43.719 --> 00:01:47.040 she was saying that I've released everything, and then they 20 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:50.560 found out they hadn't, and she looked bad, and she 21 00:01:50.680 --> 00:01:53.400 looked like she was covering up and then I thought 22 00:01:53.480 --> 00:01:56.200 she was going to be given the acts. Well today 23 00:01:56.239 --> 00:01:59.840 it happened, and the President untruth's social I will read 24 00:01:59.879 --> 00:02:04.159 it to you. Pam Bondy is a great American patriot 25 00:02:04.439 --> 00:02:09.039 and a loyal friend who faithfully served as my Attorney General. 26 00:02:09.120 --> 00:02:12.800 Over the past year. Pam did a tremendous job overseeing 27 00:02:12.840 --> 00:02:17.520 a massive crackdown in crime across our country, with murders 28 00:02:17.840 --> 00:02:24.719 plummeting to their lowest level since nineteen hundred. We love 29 00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:28.240 Pam and she will be transitioning to a much needed 30 00:02:28.319 --> 00:02:32.879 and important new job in the private sector to be 31 00:02:32.960 --> 00:02:36.879 announced at a date in the near future, and our 32 00:02:36.879 --> 00:02:40.520 Deputy Attorney General and very talented and respected legal mind, 33 00:02:40.639 --> 00:02:45.599 Todd Blanche will step in to serve as acting Attorney General. 34 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:51.360 Thank you for your attention to this matter, President Donald J. Trump. So, 35 00:02:52.919 --> 00:02:58.840 I I don't know what it was that caused this 36 00:02:59.400 --> 00:03:01.120 kind of came out out of the blue, even though 37 00:03:01.159 --> 00:03:03.840 a lot of people were expecting her to be the 38 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:06.199 first one in her cabinet to be fired. Instead, it 39 00:03:06.240 --> 00:03:09.560 was Christy Nome, which we'll get to in a minute. 40 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:14.080 But this is the way that usually when somebody's fired, 41 00:03:14.120 --> 00:03:17.960 they say yes, they're looking forward to their next career 42 00:03:18.240 --> 00:03:23.360 advancement and that will be announced soon. In other words, 43 00:03:23.439 --> 00:03:28.719 she doesn't have anything lined up, but apparently she's getting 44 00:03:28.759 --> 00:03:32.240 nothing but kisses on the way out the door. John Yu, 45 00:03:32.680 --> 00:03:37.439 who was a former deputy Attorney General, said this about 46 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:39.280 the exit of Pam Bondy. 47 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:46.719 Excellent point, Sancho about the timing, because maybe that's when 48 00:03:47.120 --> 00:03:50.680 Trump finally made up his mind, because it looked he 49 00:03:50.759 --> 00:03:53.879 had to leave that oral argument thinking that he's going 50 00:03:53.919 --> 00:03:56.000 to take a loss on what is one of his 51 00:03:56.360 --> 00:04:00.919 core central policy agendas and immigration. He just lost a 52 00:04:00.960 --> 00:04:03.800 tariff case at the Supreme Court a few weeks ago, 53 00:04:04.400 --> 00:04:07.199 and maybe after sitting in the courtroom watching how his 54 00:04:07.240 --> 00:04:10.879 attorney general was in charge of representing these positions at 55 00:04:10.879 --> 00:04:13.360 the Supreme Court was doing, he said, maybe we need 56 00:04:13.800 --> 00:04:18.240 a change. Maybe I was persuaded to take these risky 57 00:04:18.319 --> 00:04:20.879 cases up to the Supreme Court. And now that I 58 00:04:20.920 --> 00:04:23.279 see that we're on the lose. We've lost tariffs, we 59 00:04:23.360 --> 00:04:26.920 might very well lose on birthright citizenship. Maybe I need 60 00:04:26.959 --> 00:04:28.360 to have different lawyers. 61 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:28.480 Now. 62 00:04:28.560 --> 00:04:32.519 Look, being President Trump's lawyer is not a long term job, right, 63 00:04:32.639 --> 00:04:36.040 It's not about tenure. He switches lawyers like people switch 64 00:04:36.319 --> 00:04:39.720 shirts and clothes. So we shouldn't say at pambond he's 65 00:04:39.759 --> 00:04:43.240 somehow been singled out. You know, remember at this time 66 00:04:43.240 --> 00:04:45.439 in his first term, right, he was about to get 67 00:04:45.519 --> 00:04:48.800 rid of Attorney general sessions or replace them with Bill Barr. 68 00:04:49.000 --> 00:04:51.279 And that's the interesting question next is what kind of 69 00:04:51.360 --> 00:04:54.759 person is he going to replace Pam Bondi with. Is 70 00:04:54.759 --> 00:04:58.000 he could go for some inside Washington person of experience 71 00:04:58.279 --> 00:05:01.240 like Bill Barr, or go out outside Washington like he 72 00:05:01.319 --> 00:05:03.000 did with Pam Bondy in the first place. 73 00:05:03.480 --> 00:05:06.639 So John, you brings up the question outside of Washington 74 00:05:06.920 --> 00:05:10.959 or Washington insider. And with all the problems, if the 75 00:05:10.959 --> 00:05:15.560 House goes to the Democrats, then there's a high speculation 76 00:05:15.680 --> 00:05:20.680 that they will launch an impeachment. And you've also got 77 00:05:20.759 --> 00:05:24.319 to get somebody through the Senate confirmation to be your 78 00:05:24.360 --> 00:05:29.800 next attorney general. And the Senate theoretically should stay Republican. 79 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:33.560 But it's close, it's very close. So in order to 80 00:05:33.639 --> 00:05:37.879 play it safe, let's see if John Hugh's thinking along 81 00:05:37.959 --> 00:05:38.839 the same line. 82 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:42.800 That's exactly what I was thinking to If President Trump 83 00:05:42.800 --> 00:05:46.040 and his visors think that they're going to lose the House, 84 00:05:46.519 --> 00:05:48.560 I have every expectation that the House is going to 85 00:05:48.639 --> 00:05:51.519 launch an impeachment inquiry, just like they did in his 86 00:05:51.600 --> 00:05:54.319 first turn, and they will try to remove him from office. 87 00:05:54.360 --> 00:05:56.959 You would want someone, i think, who is more of 88 00:05:57.000 --> 00:06:00.720 an inside Washington, DC person who's gone through this before, 89 00:06:01.240 --> 00:06:03.720 someone like a Bill Barr from last time, someone who's 90 00:06:03.920 --> 00:06:08.120 already had experience fighting or working on impeachments, because that's 91 00:06:08.160 --> 00:06:11.920 going to drag down install the Trump administration again just 92 00:06:12.000 --> 00:06:14.879 like it did in his first arm. You need experienced hands, 93 00:06:15.279 --> 00:06:17.360 I think, to mount an effective defense. 94 00:06:18.560 --> 00:06:22.360 And the politics of it also plays into the hand 95 00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:24.439 here for both the Senate and the House. 96 00:06:25.519 --> 00:06:27.800 That's an important issue for the White House to consider, 97 00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:30.759 because of course they want to get it done before 98 00:06:30.839 --> 00:06:33.720 the November elections, because even though the odds aren't high. 99 00:06:33.800 --> 00:06:35.879 You know, our friend's Carl Rove, who's out of the 100 00:06:35.879 --> 00:06:38.399 studio to in Austin. He'll tell you, right, there's some 101 00:06:38.560 --> 00:06:42.199 chance that the Democrats could take the Senate. If that's true, 102 00:06:42.199 --> 00:06:43.959 you don't want to have a confirmation hearing for the 103 00:06:43.959 --> 00:06:47.160 Attorney General with the Democrats in charge. So they got 104 00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:48.720 to get it through it seems to me by the 105 00:06:48.800 --> 00:06:49.480 end of the summer. 106 00:06:50.240 --> 00:06:53.199 So what does Byron York think about all this with 107 00:06:53.279 --> 00:06:54.560 the Washington Examiner. 108 00:06:55.399 --> 00:06:58.720 Well, you know, up until last month when the President 109 00:06:58.759 --> 00:07:01.879 fire Christy Nome, he had he had a remarkably stable 110 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:06.240 first year in office. By this time in his first 111 00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:10.199 term in office, he had fired three cabinet secretary as 112 00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:13.639 a Secretary of State Health and Human Services and the 113 00:07:13.720 --> 00:07:16.839 Veterans Affairs Secretary, and he'd moved another one, the Homeland 114 00:07:16.839 --> 00:07:20.199 Security Secretary, out of office to replace the White House 115 00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:23.079 Chief of Staff whom he had also fired. So there's 116 00:07:23.120 --> 00:07:25.040 been a lot of turnover, and there had been a 117 00:07:25.079 --> 00:07:27.360 lot of comment this time around that it was a 118 00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:31.000 much for stable administration. I think one thing that happened 119 00:07:32.040 --> 00:07:35.279 with the Christi non firing is that it went really 120 00:07:35.319 --> 00:07:39.639 well that the President did it. He found a good replacement, 121 00:07:40.279 --> 00:07:43.879 the replacement was quickly confirmed in the Senate, and things 122 00:07:43.920 --> 00:07:46.399 are moving now and they're not not a big drama. 123 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:49.240 So I think the president has seen that perhaps he 124 00:07:49.279 --> 00:07:52.439 can make changes he wants without having a whole lot 125 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:53.439 of hoopla around it. 126 00:07:53.480 --> 00:07:57.879 And speaking of hooplaw, apparently there are people in the 127 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:01.160 conservative media ranks that are afraid to talk about this. 128 00:08:01.279 --> 00:08:04.639 But Christine nom was back in the news with a 129 00:08:04.639 --> 00:08:11.279 bunch of hooplaw this past week. Her husband never Nobody 130 00:08:11.279 --> 00:08:14.639 could figure out all these accusations about Christinome having an 131 00:08:14.680 --> 00:08:19.639 affair with Corey Lewandowski, and nobody could figure out what 132 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:23.040 about the husband, he's right there. What's his story? Well, 133 00:08:23.079 --> 00:08:28.720 the story is that he has been a cross dresser 134 00:08:28.879 --> 00:08:34.720 for some time. He dresses up and puts fake boobs 135 00:08:34.879 --> 00:08:40.600 under his shirt, communicates with other crossdressers online, has paid 136 00:08:41.600 --> 00:08:46.200 dressing models men that are dressed up as women money 137 00:08:46.279 --> 00:08:49.440 to the tune of about twenty five thousand dollars. And 138 00:08:49.519 --> 00:08:54.000 Christineoam said that she and her family are devastated. She 139 00:08:54.159 --> 00:08:57.000 had no idea, but you can't help but think maybe 140 00:08:57.039 --> 00:09:00.919 she did. And that's marriage wasn't all that great, which 141 00:09:00.960 --> 00:09:03.799 is you tie the whole thing together. But it's a 142 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:10.120 big hooplaw and no, I mean, who knows what goes 143 00:09:10.159 --> 00:09:14.000 on in somebody's house. She wound up shooting a couple 144 00:09:14.039 --> 00:09:17.799 of her animals. And this guy is running around dressed 145 00:09:17.879 --> 00:09:19.799 up and he's not trying to hide his face, and 146 00:09:19.879 --> 00:09:22.679 a bunch of photographs have come out of him dressed 147 00:09:22.759 --> 00:09:26.720 up as a woman, wearing women's clothes, and it's and 148 00:09:26.759 --> 00:09:30.440 his face is clear as of Belle. So a couple 149 00:09:30.480 --> 00:09:35.240 of problems in the Christinome household. But back to the 150 00:09:35.279 --> 00:09:39.600 problem today with Pam Bondy. Shannon Breem, who covers the 151 00:09:39.720 --> 00:09:42.879 Supreme Court she is a lawyer, had this to say. 152 00:09:43.159 --> 00:09:45.399 Yeah, Ben, I think that the Democrats are definitely going 153 00:09:45.440 --> 00:09:47.360 to push the envelope on that as much as possible. 154 00:09:47.399 --> 00:09:49.960 And listen, we've seen this on both sides of the aisle. 155 00:09:50.039 --> 00:09:53.120 Remember it was a bipartisan vote and threat of potential 156 00:09:53.159 --> 00:09:55.840 contempt that got the Clintons to sit down and have 157 00:09:55.919 --> 00:09:59.960 conversations that they were under congressional subpoena to have as well. 158 00:10:00.080 --> 00:10:03.200 I would imagine that Democrats are most certainly going to 159 00:10:03.240 --> 00:10:06.240 push to hear from Pam Bondy, whether they're referring her 160 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:08.879 to her as the former AG or as a private citizen. 161 00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:10.720 They have a lot of questions for her, and we've 162 00:10:10.759 --> 00:10:12.399 seen a lot of back and forth. We saw what 163 00:10:12.480 --> 00:10:15.679 happened with Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon when they refuse 164 00:10:15.799 --> 00:10:18.320 to go testify. So a lot of new precedents have 165 00:10:18.440 --> 00:10:20.639 been set with them with the Clintons. So I don't 166 00:10:20.639 --> 00:10:22.960 think Democrats are going to give up on that conversation easily. 167 00:10:23.759 --> 00:10:27.399 So, in other words, expect the hooplaw involving Pam Bondi, 168 00:10:27.440 --> 00:10:30.799 even though she's out as ag that they'll do a 169 00:10:30.840 --> 00:10:34.480 circus as much as I can, especially if they retake 170 00:10:34.600 --> 00:10:36.840 the House. They will have all kinds of hearings to 171 00:10:36.840 --> 00:10:40.320 bring Pambondi, and she has been pushing back hard on 172 00:10:41.039 --> 00:10:47.000 them in prior testimony, so I think they're eager to 173 00:10:47.000 --> 00:10:51.080 try and make her come back and be tough on her. 174 00:10:51.320 --> 00:10:54.759 And then one more Mark Penn, who's the democrats strategist 175 00:10:54.799 --> 00:10:59.480 and polster, also had a sense that this was going 176 00:10:59.559 --> 00:11:00.279 to happen. 177 00:11:00.559 --> 00:11:05.519 Well, no surprise from the Hill, Republicans giving her mostly 178 00:11:05.559 --> 00:11:08.799 mild praise but raising some questions about the Epstein files, 179 00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:13.679 and Democrats trashing her as much as possible and just 180 00:11:13.759 --> 00:11:16.360 using it as kind of a way to attack the president. 181 00:11:16.480 --> 00:11:19.639 So I don't think you're getting anything unexpected here. I 182 00:11:19.679 --> 00:11:23.480 think really that the President does most likely doing this 183 00:11:23.639 --> 00:11:26.279 now because he thinks he could get a pick through 184 00:11:26.440 --> 00:11:30.080 in the Senate, you know, during this time, and of 185 00:11:30.080 --> 00:11:32.200 course the Democrats are going to take whatever pick he 186 00:11:32.320 --> 00:11:35.120 makes and try to discredit it and blow up an 187 00:11:35.159 --> 00:11:38.799 issue and say how he's politicizing Justice Department. All of that. 188 00:11:38.879 --> 00:11:41.000 It's just kind of the natural flow of events in 189 00:11:41.120 --> 00:11:42.120 Washington these days. 190 00:11:42.240 --> 00:11:45.919 That was the surprise news story for the day. We 191 00:11:45.960 --> 00:11:50.440 didn't see that one coming about the speech last night. 192 00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:52.720 Oh and let me go back one more thing about 193 00:11:52.799 --> 00:11:57.720 Pam Bondi. The President was frustrated with her because he 194 00:11:57.799 --> 00:12:01.000 wanted her he said so in oh on certain words 195 00:12:01.240 --> 00:12:04.440 on his true social He wanted her to go out 196 00:12:04.519 --> 00:12:08.919 and prosecute Leticia James, the Attorney General of New York, 197 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:16.960 James Comy, former FBI director, and also to defend his 198 00:12:18.000 --> 00:12:22.879 desire for tariffs in court, and all of those were lost. 199 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:27.759 There wasn't a case the courts throughout Leticia James and 200 00:12:27.879 --> 00:12:31.679 James Comy's cases, and on tariffs, the Supreme Court ruled 201 00:12:31.679 --> 00:12:34.440 in favor of the fact that he's got to go 202 00:12:34.519 --> 00:12:37.200 through Congress. We haven't heard anymore on that. And by 203 00:12:37.320 --> 00:12:41.399 the way, it's been one year and one day. Liberation 204 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:45.879 Day wasn't April first, April second of last year anyway, 205 00:12:45.919 --> 00:12:49.720 It was a year since the tariffs have been put 206 00:12:49.799 --> 00:12:54.919 in place. So the question then becomes, how have they done? 207 00:12:55.360 --> 00:12:59.480 Have they changed anything as far as our trade deficit, 208 00:13:00.120 --> 00:13:05.639 are we getting more business with our foreign friends around 209 00:13:05.639 --> 00:13:10.720 the world. Well, Jamison Greer, the trade representative, had this 210 00:13:10.799 --> 00:13:12.759 to say in an interview earlier today. 211 00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:16.080 Well, you know, Trace, it's not what I think, it's 212 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:18.840 what the facts show. When you look over the past year, 213 00:13:19.320 --> 00:13:22.240 manufacturing productivity has gone up to the highest level it's 214 00:13:22.279 --> 00:13:25.159 ever been. The past two months, we've had record breaking 215 00:13:25.360 --> 00:13:28.120 export numbers for the United States, over three hundred billion 216 00:13:28.159 --> 00:13:31.000 dollars in exports in January and February. We've seen the 217 00:13:31.039 --> 00:13:33.879 trade deaths that go down by twenty four percent since April. 218 00:13:34.120 --> 00:13:36.679 So Americans are making more stuff, they're getting paid more 219 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:38.919 to make it, and they're selling more of it overseas. 220 00:13:38.960 --> 00:13:42.240 So on every account, it's been a big WINDID. 221 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:43.240 Listen to me at any length of time. You know, 222 00:13:43.279 --> 00:13:45.600 I'm not a fan of tariffs, because again it's not 223 00:13:45.759 --> 00:13:49.279 my opinion, it's the facts. I'll use what Jamison said. 224 00:13:49.720 --> 00:13:55.639 The facts are clear, trade death trade tariffs are a 225 00:13:55.720 --> 00:13:59.320 negative for the economy for about any way you measure it. 226 00:13:59.759 --> 00:14:03.600 So I'm going to take Jamison's career to task because 227 00:14:03.919 --> 00:14:07.679 he says our manufacturing productivity is way up. Well, that's 228 00:14:07.679 --> 00:14:12.639 because there's most manufactured, not most. Many manufacturing jobs have 229 00:14:12.720 --> 00:14:17.480 been lost. Manufacturing employment is way down. So if you 230 00:14:17.639 --> 00:14:22.120 now have producing a product and you used to have 231 00:14:22.399 --> 00:14:26.639 five people working for you, now you've only got two 232 00:14:26.679 --> 00:14:30.960 people working for you, productivity looks like it's increased, but 233 00:14:31.360 --> 00:14:36.679 manufacturing jobs are way way down. As far as record exports, 234 00:14:36.679 --> 00:14:41.039 he couched it by saying over the last two months, well, 235 00:14:42.360 --> 00:14:47.279 two months, isn't much of a trend. Are exports? Yes, 236 00:14:47.399 --> 00:14:50.759 they are up exports. Let me look at my list 237 00:14:50.799 --> 00:14:58.720 here for February three hundred and fourteen billion. Last April, 238 00:14:58.840 --> 00:15:02.080 when the tre deficits were put in, our exports were 239 00:15:02.080 --> 00:15:05.240 two hundred ninety one billion, So our exports went from 240 00:15:05.240 --> 00:15:07.720 two hundred ninety one billion up to three hundred and 241 00:15:07.720 --> 00:15:12.279 fourteen billion, not a big increase. Most of it was 242 00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:18.679 gold and natural gas exports. As far as imports go, 243 00:15:19.600 --> 00:15:23.720 our trade deficit for the month of February, which just 244 00:15:23.799 --> 00:15:29.440 came out, fifty seven billion dollars more that we bought 245 00:15:29.519 --> 00:15:32.399 of their products than they bought of ours. So we're 246 00:15:32.480 --> 00:15:38.480 upside down by fifty seven billion. A year ago we 247 00:15:38.480 --> 00:15:41.600 were upside down by sixty billion. So can you say 248 00:15:41.639 --> 00:15:44.039 it's improved. He said that what do you say, trade 249 00:15:44.080 --> 00:15:47.679 deficits dropped by twenty four percent, It's dropped from sixty 250 00:15:47.759 --> 00:15:52.679 billion to fifty seven billion. I don't know. You you 251 00:15:52.720 --> 00:15:54.960 can rank that however you want. It doesn't look like 252 00:15:55.600 --> 00:15:59.879 the tariffs have really done that much one way or 253 00:16:00.080 --> 00:16:04.720 the other over the last year. And speaking of economic 254 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:07.600 news coming out today, first time jobless claims, now, this 255 00:16:07.720 --> 00:16:10.679 is good news. Two hundred and two thousand first time 256 00:16:10.759 --> 00:16:13.840 jobless claims two hundred and two thousand people who got 257 00:16:13.879 --> 00:16:16.799 pink slips in the last week. That's not good, but 258 00:16:16.879 --> 00:16:19.759 it's a lot better than it has been. So that's 259 00:16:20.200 --> 00:16:23.919 starting to slow down. In other words, firing of people 260 00:16:25.240 --> 00:16:29.720 is starting to slow down, which is a good thing 261 00:16:30.360 --> 00:16:32.960 as far as interest rates go. A lot of this 262 00:16:33.120 --> 00:16:36.240 is because of the havoc going on, the chaos and 263 00:16:36.279 --> 00:16:39.200 in the world regarding oil prices and so forth. But 264 00:16:39.360 --> 00:16:43.559 our mortgage rates were announced this morning by Fanning Freddie 265 00:16:43.600 --> 00:16:46.919 Mack and they went up to They've been going up 266 00:16:46.960 --> 00:16:49.919 for five weeks in a row. We're up to the 267 00:16:50.159 --> 00:16:54.440 average mortgage rate in this country now six point four 268 00:16:54.440 --> 00:16:58.519 to six percent. A year ago it was six point 269 00:16:58.679 --> 00:17:02.759 six four percent, So basically about the same. That's where 270 00:17:02.759 --> 00:17:06.119 it was a year ago, but it's going the wrong direction. 271 00:17:06.200 --> 00:17:10.720 It's going higher, which is just not good news. So 272 00:17:10.839 --> 00:17:14.240 let's get to the story I was planning on starting 273 00:17:14.279 --> 00:17:17.559 with today, which was did you watch the President's speech 274 00:17:17.640 --> 00:17:20.799 last night? It was eighteen minutes in the White House, 275 00:17:21.519 --> 00:17:23.960 which is kind of interesting, Pam BONDI was at that 276 00:17:24.039 --> 00:17:27.839 speech last night. But any case, a lot of reaction 277 00:17:28.119 --> 00:17:34.200 to the President's speech. I was surprised that it was 278 00:17:34.240 --> 00:17:39.839 a little bit of going over what has been done. 279 00:17:41.000 --> 00:17:43.920 President does that alloted to his speech writer, likes to 280 00:17:43.960 --> 00:17:47.799 go back over what was done. I don't know what 281 00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:51.880 was new other than the fact that he said that 282 00:17:51.920 --> 00:17:54.839 there are going to be another two to three weeks 283 00:17:54.920 --> 00:17:58.759 roughly of where we're going to be bombing them. He 284 00:17:58.839 --> 00:18:01.319 said back to the own age if they don't open 285 00:18:01.400 --> 00:18:05.279 up the straight of horror moves, so he was threatening 286 00:18:05.359 --> 00:18:08.640 but also saying basically, we got a couple two or 287 00:18:08.640 --> 00:18:11.799 three weeks more. In any case, I thought the speech 288 00:18:11.920 --> 00:18:16.160 was fine. It was just again kind of marking place 289 00:18:16.279 --> 00:18:21.319 with where we were. Let's start with Brett McGirk. I 290 00:18:21.400 --> 00:18:26.240 find him to be very informed. He was former NSA guy, 291 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:28.880 for the Middle East, for Iran in that whole area. 292 00:18:29.160 --> 00:18:33.240 He's worked for four different presidents, so he's pretty apolitical. 293 00:18:33.319 --> 00:18:35.519 Let's see what Brett McGirk thought about It. 294 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:38.480 Started with the necessity. We talked about the necessity, the objective, 295 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:40.440 that what's the plan. I thought the necessity laying out 296 00:18:40.720 --> 00:18:43.000 the bill of particulars in Iran was fairly effective, not 297 00:18:43.160 --> 00:18:45.559 entirely accurate, as he just pointed out. I think it's 298 00:18:45.559 --> 00:18:47.680 important to remind people of what Iran is about. It 299 00:18:47.759 --> 00:18:49.599 is a real threat. There are reasons to be doing 300 00:18:49.599 --> 00:18:52.079 what we're doing. I thought when he laid out the 301 00:18:52.119 --> 00:18:54.720 objectives and the plan, I don't think we heard too much. 302 00:18:54.759 --> 00:18:56.839 And my takeaway was that we might be in for 303 00:18:56.880 --> 00:18:59.359 an escalation of this war. I mean, he said, if 304 00:18:59.359 --> 00:19:02.119 there's not a d he put back on the table, 305 00:19:02.200 --> 00:19:04.880 not said he said, I deal good, the energy targets, 306 00:19:04.920 --> 00:19:08.559 everything else he'd been talking about. So if we were 307 00:19:09.359 --> 00:19:11.720 thought we might hear a de escalatory speech. So we're 308 00:19:11.720 --> 00:19:13.200 going to wrap this up in a couple of weeks. 309 00:19:13.759 --> 00:19:16.680 Actually heard something quite different that and he said he 310 00:19:17.039 --> 00:19:19.000 visits the family's at Dover and he said we must 311 00:19:19.000 --> 00:19:22.400 honor them by completing the mission, and then he basically 312 00:19:22.480 --> 00:19:25.680 threatened Iran that there's that we're going to prepare to 313 00:19:25.720 --> 00:19:28.839 send you back to the Stone Age. So I think 314 00:19:28.839 --> 00:19:30.839 this war's going to continue for some time. That's what 315 00:19:31.240 --> 00:19:33.799 That's what I heard, well, and that's inconsistent. I mean, 316 00:19:33.839 --> 00:19:36.880 one thing, he complained about the abomdministration and sanctions relief 317 00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:39.079 and everything. But if if Iran comes out of this 318 00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:41.319 controlling the Strait of her moves and being able to 319 00:19:41.359 --> 00:19:43.079 meet our ships that go through there and taking a 320 00:19:43.079 --> 00:19:45.440 cut of every ship, they're going to make hundreds of 321 00:19:45.480 --> 00:19:48.160 millions and billions of dollars. So that if that is 322 00:19:48.200 --> 00:19:50.680 the outcome here, strategically, that is not good if our 323 00:19:50.680 --> 00:19:53.279 objective is to contain Iran. Yeah, he called on our 324 00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:55.839 allies to come in and help in the Strait, and 325 00:19:55.839 --> 00:19:57.279 we might be willing to help, but I heard him 326 00:19:57.279 --> 00:19:59.200 say we kind of would lead that mission from behind, 327 00:20:00.119 --> 00:20:02.000 hoping that our allies might step up, which I'm not 328 00:20:02.000 --> 00:20:03.839 sure they're going to do. Becau it's a difficult mission, 329 00:20:03.839 --> 00:20:06.240 he said, it's easy, it's not. You got to have 330 00:20:06.279 --> 00:20:09.839 assets that can Caitlin shoot down anti ship missiles and drones. 331 00:20:09.880 --> 00:20:10.279 It's hard. 332 00:20:10.400 --> 00:20:12.359 We did this in the Red Sea with a small coalition. 333 00:20:12.400 --> 00:20:16.599 It's a very difficult military mission and strategic equation. I 334 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:18.960 and the way we're talking about our allies every day, 335 00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:21.079 I don't see the allies really signing up to take 336 00:20:21.079 --> 00:20:23.039 on those mission. They should, I mean they should, It 337 00:20:23.039 --> 00:20:25.160 isn't they're interest to do it. I which just stay 338 00:20:25.160 --> 00:20:26.599 on them. But I think the straight up her news 339 00:20:26.680 --> 00:20:29.799 remains a very unresolved issue here. I didn't really hear 340 00:20:29.839 --> 00:20:30.279 an answer. 341 00:20:30.559 --> 00:20:33.720 So McGirk thinks that this may escalate, that it may 342 00:20:33.799 --> 00:20:37.240 go bigger and last longer. And the big question everybody's 343 00:20:37.240 --> 00:20:40.920 asking is, since they sent ten thousand marines plus twenty 344 00:20:40.920 --> 00:20:45.720 five hundred sailors plus there's already fifty thousand troops in 345 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:51.400 the region US military troops in the region, are they 346 00:20:51.440 --> 00:20:54.599 sending them just for show or are they going to 347 00:20:54.759 --> 00:20:58.200 actually do boots on the ground. And that nobody had 348 00:20:58.240 --> 00:21:02.400 an answer to. Let's see Mark Short, former chief of staff, 349 00:21:02.440 --> 00:21:04.480 to Mike Pince, this is what he thought. 350 00:21:04.640 --> 00:21:06.880 I think he has a lot of support Leland. I 351 00:21:06.880 --> 00:21:08.680 think what you've seen is that there's a lot of 352 00:21:08.799 --> 00:21:12.319 influencers who proclaim that they speak for Magan and demonstrated 353 00:21:12.319 --> 00:21:14.759 they don't have a lot of influence that the majority 354 00:21:14.759 --> 00:21:18.039 of the President's support follow him personally and support him personally, 355 00:21:18.079 --> 00:21:20.400 and I think that flows throughout the Republican Party. I 356 00:21:20.400 --> 00:21:21.960 think he's got a lot of latitude there. 357 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:25.799 So from Mark Short to former chief of staff for 358 00:21:25.880 --> 00:21:27.920 the President Mick mulvaney, Oh, I. 359 00:21:27.880 --> 00:21:29.440 Think they're worried about it because they think they know 360 00:21:29.519 --> 00:21:32.319 he can deliver. The question is are his threats still credible? 361 00:21:32.359 --> 00:21:34.039 The answer is absolutely they are. 362 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:34.519 Yes. 363 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:37.160 He's keeping the Iranians general guessing. He's keeping everybody guessing. 364 00:21:37.160 --> 00:21:39.559 That's how Trump works, right. But as long as the 365 00:21:39.880 --> 00:21:42.200 Iranians know we have the ability to do all of 366 00:21:42.200 --> 00:21:44.640 these things that he says, you have to take those 367 00:21:44.680 --> 00:21:49.079 threats credibly, including troops on the ground. I think he 368 00:21:49.119 --> 00:21:51.279 wants a deal. I think I think that's his preferred 369 00:21:51.440 --> 00:21:53.240 end game here. In fact, it's the quickest way to 370 00:21:53.319 --> 00:21:55.920 end things. I think the quickest way to open the straits, 371 00:21:55.920 --> 00:21:58.160 for example, is to just have a deal tomorrow to 372 00:21:58.200 --> 00:22:00.319 open the straits. If you have to do it arly, 373 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:02.440 it could take weeks, if not months. 374 00:22:02.319 --> 00:22:04.759 Segment to do that. But look, I. 375 00:22:06.279 --> 00:22:08.200 Think that first of all, I'm not sure how many 376 00:22:08.200 --> 00:22:10.480 people in around actually would see the speech, it would 377 00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:12.599 just be the leadership. But they have to take the 378 00:22:12.640 --> 00:22:14.880 threats credibly. So when he says I want to talk 379 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:16.559 or I'm going to blow you back in the stone Age, 380 00:22:17.039 --> 00:22:18.680 there is credibility. 381 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:19.759 To that threat. And I think that's a you. 382 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:21.599 Know, we're looking at Bill. He was responding to the 383 00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:24.839 fact that there are some so called mega influencers that 384 00:22:24.880 --> 00:22:27.559 are turning on the president and Mark Short doesn't think 385 00:22:27.599 --> 00:22:32.599 that's real. A guy who's been involved in international negotiations, 386 00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:35.519 General tith Tellogg looked at it this way. 387 00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:39.119 Full credit to President Trump. He's a first president that 388 00:22:39.240 --> 00:22:41.960 had the guts to do what he's done, and then 389 00:22:42.400 --> 00:22:45.240 the world breathes a lot easier because of that. But 390 00:22:45.319 --> 00:22:49.319 I think that theocratic government of Iran needs to be addressed. 391 00:22:49.359 --> 00:22:53.799 It's revolutionary. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards is a lot different 392 00:22:54.079 --> 00:22:57.200 than the army. They are two shepherd organizations, and as 393 00:22:57.240 --> 00:22:59.640 long as you got people like that in charge, with 394 00:22:59.720 --> 00:23:02.599 all conditioning they've had for the last forty plus years, 395 00:23:02.799 --> 00:23:04.920 I think there needs to be a complete change of government. 396 00:23:05.200 --> 00:23:07.400 You know, when you move from one to another, there's 397 00:23:07.440 --> 00:23:10.039 still radical and it's a radical government that it must 398 00:23:10.079 --> 00:23:12.839 be changed because you can always re arm, you can 399 00:23:12.839 --> 00:23:15.480 always try to rebuild something for the lord. As long 400 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:18.960 as they have that theocratic government, that radical government in charge. 401 00:23:19.160 --> 00:23:20.960