From the Courtroom to the Economy: Comey, Tariffs, and This Week's Winners and Losers

Summary

2WAY Morning Meeting Summary

Episode: From the Courtroom to the Economy: Comey, Tariffs, and This Week's Winners and Losers
Host: Mark Halperin, with Sean Spicer & Dan Turrentine
Date: September 26, 2025

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Overview

This episode centers around the seismic political and legal fallout from the federal indictment of former FBI Director James Comey—framed as a dramatic test of American governmental norms, presidential power, and the limits of retributive justice. The discussion also ranges across the latest economic indicators, the politics and merit of new Trump administration tariffs, partisan perspectives on mega-donors like Reid Hoffman and George Soros, and how these overlapping controversies could impact the upcoming elections. Regular features include predictions, “Winners and Losers of the Week,” and robust listener Q&A.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Indictment of James Comey ([03:00–17:24])

Media Framing & Reactions

• The indictment is portrayed as historically significant and norm-shattering.
• Network coverage focused more on concerns about “violations of norms” than questions of Comey’s actual guilt or innocence.
  • Mark Halperin: “Most of the coverage is just about the concern about violations of norms. CNN's and MSNBC in particular were along those lines.” [06:08]

Legal Analysis & Partisan Interpretation

• Mark highlights moments of “fair and balanced” coverage, notably CNN questioning if Comey's perjury was provable ([07:11]).
• Legal analysts (Danny Savalas, Elie Honig) noted the perjury charges are serious but often deployed for “ticky tack” offenses, sometimes disproportionately and for political ends.

Notable Quote:

• Danny Savalas, via Mark:

  "Section 1001 false statements is not a serious charge.” [08:30]

Hosts’ Debate

• Mark: Outraged by direct presidential orders to investigate political enemies, calls it “thoroughly outrageous.”
• Dan: Stresses the lack of legal clarity (“I don’t know. We’ll find out.”), but condemns presidential abuse of power and selective prosecution.
• Sean: Argues Comey definitely committed an offense (“did he do something illegal? Yes.”) but acknowledges the rarity of prosecution for such actions and sees the Trump team’s reaction as justified retribution for earlier investigations.

Notable Exchange:

• Mark: “Any American who cares...about the abuse of power by the President regarding the Justice Department should be outraged. And it’s an outrage that Republicans are not speaking up.” [14:09]
• Sean: “You're going to have a hard time making me feel bad about this.” [16:25]

Exit Question (Comey’s Fate)

[17:01]

• Mark: “Case gets thrown out, pleads guilty, acquitted, convicted?”
  • Dan: “Acquitted, acquitted.”
  • Sean: “I think he gets convicted; case will be thrown out.”

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2. Big Money in Politics: Soros, Hoffman, and the Climate of Intimidation ([17:24–21:18])

• The Trump administration attempts to tie mega-donors like Soros and Hoffman to “shadowy” influence and even violence.
• Dan: Moves are about intimidation, making smaller donors wary of participating, not actually about the billionaires themselves.
• Sean: Outcome depends on whether prosecutions are “surgical” (focused) or simply “throwing mud.”

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3. Congressional Shut Down & Partisan Gridlock ([21:18–22:03])

• General consensus: a government shutdown is likely imminent, with negotiations to eventually yield a temporary fix.
• Dan predicts the Comey situation will further embolden intransigence and lengthen any shutdown.

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4. Economic Update: Inflation, Tariffs, and Political Fallout ([22:03–26:03])

Data Snapshot

• Core inflation held at 2.9% (“as expected”).
• Trump announces a suite of new tariffs:
  • Pharmaceuticals may face tariffs as high as 100%
  • Furniture at 30%
  • Heavy trucks at 25%
    (Starting October 1)

Polling Trouble for Trump

• Despite relatively stable overall approval, Trump’s numbers are sliding on the economy and immigration.
• Dan underscores: “Voters don’t feel good right now,” especially among Latinos and young voters ([23:35]).

Tariff Politics

• Trump openly admits tariffs are hurting some key constituencies (“going to bail out farmers”).
• Sean, adopting a pollster’s perspective: the White House is betting on a long-term economic rebound heading into election season.

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5. Winners & Losers of the Week ([27:13–31:51])

Winners

• Sean’s pick: Turning Point USA for growth post-assassination of its leader.
• Dan’s pick: Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), who benefits from a scandal (her Navy personnel file leaked to campaign opponents) turning into a sympathetic story.
• Mark’s pick: The American people (and Jimmy Fallon for booking Taylor Swift).

Losers

• Sean: ABC, for “losing the week” with coverage controversies involving their anchors and an insensitive reporting of Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
• Dan: House Republicans, due to the Comey retribution narrative souring their brand.
• Mark: Jim Comey—a “man without a tribe” reviled by both left and right.

Notable Quote:

• Mark on Comey:

  "He’s a man without a tribe...the gap between the impression of him and his character...and the reality is massive.” [31:54]

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6. Listeners’ Questions & Broader Reflections ([36:37–51:54])

On Violent Content & Tech Company Responsibility ([36:37–40:38])

• Caller “Peter” voices astonishment at the prevalence of graphic violence viewable online after the Kirk shooting.
• Sean and Dan both decry the lack of tech accountability; the medical, psychological, and social implications are discussed, with children’s exposure to trauma highlighted.

Political Nihilism and Principle over Party ([41:58–43:44])

• Caller “Dan” worries about party “nihilism” and asks the hosts what issues they’d break with their party over.
  • Sean: “debt, deficit, China, the threat of big tech.”
  • Dan: “immigration, the way the parties handled crime, the way the party at the time handled Joe Biden.”

Democratic Strategy for Recapturing Congress ([44:56–46:30])

• Caller “Rebecca”: Can Democrats win the House/Senate with just “stop Trump” messaging, or do they need positive policy?
  • Dan: Dems will need a concrete, sane-sounding affirmative platform, not just “hold Trump accountable.”

TikTok Ban & Tech Policy ([47:10–51:05])

• A Rhode Island caller (“John”) asks about the status and efficacy of the TikTok executive order.
  • Dan: Skeptical that the law will have much practical effect, sees both parties avoiding the political risk of banning TikTok outright.
  • Sean: Sees TikTok as both a national security and health threat to children.

Notable Quotes:

• Sean: “We are ruining a generation of kids and creating a mental health crisis.” [49:01]

Republican Message Advantage, Climate of Distrust ([54:22–56:47])

• “Professor Kenny” notes that polling continues to favor Republicans on “crime, immigration, even the economy,” questioning Democratic prospects.
  • Dan: Acknowledges Dems aren't benefiting from Trump’s sinking numbers, stresses need for future-focus solutions on key issues.

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Memorable Moments & Quotes

• Mark: “If all you focus on is what a bad guy you think Comey is ... you are doing a disservice to America. What the president's done is outrageous. It's dangerous.” [15:02]
• Sean (regarding seeing graphic tragedy online): “I don’t know what the answer is, but I find it, you know, very odd, weird, and a little disturbing.” [39:59]
• Dan on TikTok: “This is a cancer on our kids. The next generation of Americans is suffering because of what’s happening.” [49:01]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–02:00 — Banter, plugs, daybook preview (skip)
• 03:00–17:24 — Deep dive: Jim Comey indictment, legal-norms debate, media coverage
• 17:24–21:18 — Mega-donors in the news (Hoffman, Soros), intimidation vs. lawbreaking
• 21:18–22:03 — Government shutdown looming, Comey’s impact on gridlock
• 22:03–26:03 — Economy check: inflation, tariffs, Trump’s polling
• 27:13–31:51 — Winners and losers of the week
• 36:37–51:54 — Listener Q&A: tech responsibility, party principles, TikTok
• 54:22–56:47 — Polling, Republican messaging strength, Democratic weaknesses

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Style and Tone

Classic 2WAY: irreverent but informed, combative but respectful, with a blend of banter and deep political analysis. Mark moderates brisk but balanced debate. Dan and Sean offer ideological counterpoints but meta-comment on the process and their own priors, with plenty of asides about cable coverage and political history.

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Conclusion

This episode dissects a pivotal political week in the U.S., with in-depth, sometimes heated but consistently wide-angled debate on the Comey indictment, presidential power and precedent, and hard-nosed economic realism. The team does not shy away from calling out “their own side,” wrestling with how American democracy absorbs the blows of extraordinary political events.

Listener calls round out the show with real-world worries about tech, kids, and political tribalism, making for an episode both timely and broadly resonant.

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For Further Listening:

Check out [2WAY] for daily “Morning Meeting” recaps and full episodes, especially if you want to listen to the hosts’ wrap-up on breaking news or tonight’s “Two Way Tonight” with guest Natalie Allison.

Transcript

[Mark]

Foreign from Los Angeles, where last night after midnight, my Uber driver said to me, I having trouble affording college for my kids. But what I'm really worried about is apparent violations of norms. It's all anybody here is talking about. And I'm sure Sean and Dan, you've experienced the same thing. The violation of norms is deeply troubling. I kid because this is a big deal, but we'll spend a lot of time talking about comey. But I will say I didn't wear this Fairway and green shirt on my flight yesterday, but I wore another one. And there are two things, gentlemen, I have to tell you. First of all, couldn't have been more comfortable. I slept like a baby. It was like PJs. And I got lots of comments. Oh. Two way morning meeting. Nice shirt, Sean. Look at you. What are you wearing today, Will Mark.

[Sean Spicer]

It'S Fairway Friday in the Spicer household. I'm glad you asked. Not only am I wearing the stylish polo with the morning meeting logo, but Mark, I'm wearing the Barofo merino long sleeve V neck sweater size large. Light charcoal. Comes in several flavors. Now, again, as we noted, Fairway and Green offers a variety of projects. Project. Sorry.

[Mark]

Show everybody your sleeve. Okay. There you go.

[Dan]

Dan, right there.

[Mark]

Want to join the the two Way Morning meeting club? And we're fine. Fairway and Green products just like this. Where can they go? And is there any discount available?

[Sean Spicer]

Mark, I'm glad you asked because I'm asking Friday. Oh, Dan.

[Mark]

Yeah. Damn.

[Dan]

Two way. Two way tv. Yeah. Slash fairway and get your two way tv. Sorry. Two way tv.

[Mark]

Yes.

[Sean Spicer]

We went over this. Dan.

[Dan]

Yeah.

[Mark]

What kind of. What kind of discounts available?

[Dan]

20%.

[Mark]

Is there. Is there a code they need to use?

[Dan]

Two way 22. The number two way W a Y 20.

[Mark]

Thank you.

[Dan]

20% off. And we have women's now.

[Mark]

Yeah. And slogans. Thanks to our friends at Fairway and Green. Very happy with all of this. And it's like having going to a school with a uniform. No longer have to figure out what to wear each day.

[Caller 1]

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[Mark]

Four, I use it. Five, my mom uses it. Are you playing me off?

[Caller 1]

That's what's happening, right? Okay, give it a try.

[Mark]

At mintmobile.com, switch upfront payment of 45.

[Caller 2]

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[Mark]

C mint mobile.com we'll run through the daybook, we'll run through the news, we'll talk a lot about Jim Comey, show you some of the reaction from around America and then we'll welcome your questions. If you're here in the two way platform already, a lot of hands up because unlike my Uber driver, you guys are interested in the violation of norms. It's just the question of whose norms are being violated. If you're watching on X or YouTube, please don't put smack in the chat. I got a very long email from one of you yesterday explaining in vivid detail why you put smack in the chat. This person just said, here's why I do it, here's why I have to do it. I hope you understand. No, no reason for smack in the chat. Vivid, vivid language. Good, spirited debate, great. But saying that Dan looks horrible and his fairway in green clothes.

[Sean Spicer]

No, not what I said. Not what I said.

[Mark]

That that is where I, that is where I draw the line. And peace, love and understanding, presumption of grace to all and a little, a little mercy for me because my, my flight landed at 1:00am Eastern time. I'm sorry, 1:00am local time here in Los Angeles, 4:00am Eastern. I pulled, I pulled the 24 hours. I was up at 4:00am eastern yesterday and landed at 4:00am Eastern time. So if I say something untoward, please understand. All right guys. The President, United States, a day after his Bet Noir was indicted by his Justice Department after he publicly ordered it to be. He's down to business. He's going to the Ryder Cup. President departs at noon and then goes to the Ryder cup, then back to the White House. Not there very long. So I'm not really sure why my tax dollar is going for this little mini boondoggle. But widely expected that he may talk on departure. So we'll all be watching closely when he leaves. Oh, I was reading this wrong. All right. He's there for a little bit, but still not very much. Anyway, he departs 9:50, so it's possible. Possible, ladies and gentlemen, if the president, like George W. Bush today, believes late is rude, he might speak during this program. So the very end of the program we'll all enjoy a presidential departure statement. Don't know what the Vice President's doing, but I bet he's not going to the Ryder Cup. House and senator still out, but the House Democratic Caucus is Gathering for a caucus meeting virtually today.

[Dan]

Yeah.

[Mark]

Some of their members back from Codells. And so they're all gathering and then had some economic news. Inflation report, personal income and personal spending came out. And let's put that up, please. CNBC headline core inflation rate held at 2.9% in August as expected. And it's high number. Dan tells me that was the expected number. So we'll talk about the economy in just a moment. But that's pretty much it for the daybook. It's a relatively quiet Friday, which will give the world hours and hours to chew over Jim Comey. Here's how the media on the cable, major cablers handled the Comey news at the top of their programs. 6am Eastern. Please roll 103. Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Virginia.

[Sean Spicer]

Another day, another titanic story. Former FBI Director James Comey is now the first former FBI director to face federal indictment. One outlet dubs it Trump's revenge strike. Another Trump's retribution campaign. After calling for in getting an indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, who might the president target this morning?

[Mark]

Do we have the Van Hollen thing or are you still working on that?

[Dan]

No, they do. 201.

[Mark]

Yeah. Okay.

[Sean Spicer]

By the way, the answer to that was John Bolton.

[Mark]

Yeah. So I watched a lot of cable news this morning and most and last night on the plane, most of the coverage from the dominant media is not about is Jim Comey innocent or guilty. Most of the coverage is just about the concern about violations of norms. CNN's coverage and MSNBC in particular were along those lines. But I'm going to show everybody one element from both networks that to their credit, to their credit, stand out as covering this in a way, dare I say, fair and balanced. Here is this morning, Chris Van Holland, senator from Maryland, with John Berman, who I used to work with. John asked a right question, which is Jim Comey, a history of known public lying on tape, seeming to say he never let, he never authorized leaking when we know he did. John Berman wanted to know from the senator of Maryland not how horrible is what Donald Trump did, but is it possible Comey's guilty? Listen to how Chris Van Hollen handled that. What do you think of the merits of the case? A grand jury did hand up an indictment saying that they believed there was enough evidence to go forward with that. Maybe James Comey lied to Congress.

[Dan]

Well, John, the issue here is not that a former FBI director was indicted. It's how this came about. And again, you had the president of the United States, essentially ordering the attorney general to prosecute him, even though the professional.

[Mark]

You get the point. He doesn't want to. He doesn't want to answer on the merits. John didn't follow. I wish he had one more. And, gentlemen. Well, he did ask you, Danny Savalas, like, who's the legal commentator on cnn? What's that guy?

[Sean Spicer]

Elliot honing?

[Mark]

Yeah, Elliot honing. So Danny Savalas and Elliot Honing, I give them credit. They're. They're legal analysts on liberal channels, but they. They'll. They're willing to tell the truth. So, for instance, I believe both of them were skeptical of some of the charges against President Trump. And listen to Danny Savas on way too early this morning. Listen to what he says about what he refers to as the ticky tack charge of this kind of perjury accusation. Roll that, please. Serious charge. Because I want to say right at.

[Caller 3]

The outset, Section 1001 false statements is not a serious charge.

[Mark]

And I say that knowing that for many years, when folks in Trump's orbit were charged with those crimes, like Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, Michael Cohen, George Papadopoulos, Rick Gates, I said it then, too. Even though a lot of people back then said, oh, these are very serious charges.

[Sean Spicer]

Sorry, they're not.

[Mark]

Okay, lots to discuss. Gentlemen. Dan, is Jim Comey guilty of a federal crime?

[Dan]

I don't know. We'll find out.

[Mark]

Sean.

[Sean Spicer]

Yes.

[Mark]

Okay. I'd like you two to discuss that because, I mean, obviously, we don't know, because I get Dan's your point. We want to be cautious. We haven't seen all the evidence. The indictments, relatively short. But, But, Dan, do you understand why at both legally and politically, it's. People on the right look at this and say, I'm against elective prosecution, just to be clear. But just based on the facts of the case, doesn't it seem like what he did was if. If at a minimum, just as bad or what he appears to have done just as bad as what Rick Gates did or Michael Flynn did or. Or. Or Manafort isn't. It isn't. Isn't. Like, why do you say. How do you. Why do you say with such certainty he didn't commit a crime?

[Dan]

I didn't say with such certainty he didn't commit a crime. I said, I don't know. I mean, we're gonna find out, right? So the Comey people are saying, no, he's innocent. He didn't lie.

[Mark]

Okay, but, Dan, have you seen the tape?

[Dan]

Yeah, I have. I mean, look how leaks are authorized on What? Like, look, this is going to get legal. They're going to try to parse words, I'm sure. Look, Mark, you're shaking your head. I don't know. So it certainly sounds like he may have perjured himself to Ted Cruz. But I have no doubt that what Comey is going to probably attempt to do is say, I did not authorize it.

[Mark]

Okay. I'll just say one thing, Sean, then I want to hear you at length.

[Dan]

I mean, I don't know.

[Mark]

We, we know that's what Comey did. Comey had these deputies, including a guy who didn't even work for the government, who he said, go tell the New York Times everything. It's well documented. I, I would, I, I'm frustrated. And again, I'm against elective prosecution. I think what the President did was outrageous, but at the same time, this, to me, this is an open and shut case.

[Dan]

So then, wait, but then, Mark, under that standard, all the charges against Trump were open and shut cases and he should have been prosecuted.

[Mark]

No, they weren't. They were ridiculous cases.

[Dan]

Hold on a second. Pick the charge that, that, that, that he did not.

[Mark]

Except for the Florida case, Dan.

[Sean Spicer]

Alvin Bragg was.

[Mark]

Sorry, the Alvin Bragg. Even the seat, the liberal legal in the Alvin Bragg.

[Dan]

Hold on a second. Did. Yeah, Mark, did Trump inflate stuff?

[Mark]

Not, not, not.

[Dan]

Hold on a second. Trump.

[Sean Spicer]

Wait, wait, hold on.

[Mark]

It's very, very simple. No one, well, no one would have been charged. No one would have been charged in the Bragg case except Donald Trump.

[Sean Spicer]

No, no, but there's a couple that.

[Dan]

Was not all guys. You're picking and choosing stuff here in.

[Sean Spicer]

In, in the Trump case, in the, in the Bragg situation, number one, the statute of limitations had expired. That's a fact. Okay.

[Mark]

He made up a charge.

[Sean Spicer]

Even if, even if he had done. No, no, even if he did. Number two, it was a misdemeanor charge. Right. That they combined additional charges to make a fake felony. The bottom line is it's not even a question of whether or not it was or not it expired. Right. So the bottom line is you couldn't have been charged with it without them making up and creating fake charges.

[Dan]

They didn't.

[Mark]

Okay, all right, hold on, hold on.

[Sean Spicer]

But let's just, let's get to Comey.

[Mark]

Focus on Comey.

[Sean Spicer]

Yes, I think, I think that, like here is, and this is what Danny Savalas was, was alluding to, which is, I think it is fairly, without having a law degree, fairly obvious to say, did he do something that was illegal? Yes. The issue is, and I think this is what Danny's alluding to and I think this is what most people will say is has similar to what we were just saying had do most people get charged with this? Is this normally how we go about business? And the answer would be no. But as Danny correctly pointed out, that was a pro. You know, it was good for the goose, it's good for the gander. I will read you verbatim a text I got this morning from one of my former White House colleagues. Tell your two way friends that this one feels good because we know what he was doing was illegal to us. We watched it, we lived it. Now we just have to watch him whether the media declaring him as being persecuted or worth it. Enjoy your legal bills, Lyon Comey. That's how a lot of us feel right now.

[Mark]

And I'm just going to put that in a time capsule. That is perfectly stated. That's the way the Trump world views this. It's perfectly stated. And, and, and that, you know, I don't want anyone selectively prosecuted. I don't want anyone on ticky tack charges. But if you're talking about the politics of this and why the President did what he did and why he ordered the just for him to do it, it's, it's all embodied right in that. What? Sean.

[Dan]

Yeah, but hold on a sec. You got to. Okay, let's unpack your statement. Start with the fact that he ordered it. Okay. Unprecedented.

[Mark]

Outrageous. Not unprecedented. Not unprecedented. Not unprecedented.

[Dan]

Okay. Richard Nixon. Who else?

[Mark]

I think Kennedy probably did. I'll smear the Kennedys.

[Dan]

Okay. So, so unprecedented. Biden did not order stuff. Mark.

[Sean Spicer]

That's not Garland.

[Mark]

Absolutely seem to encourage it.

[Dan]

So, okay, did Joe Biden go on X?

[Mark]

No, but it's not going to be apples to oranges.

[Sean Spicer]

Could Joe Biden go on?

[Mark]

I mean, could he? Dan, I don't want to go down this road because you're right. What the President did in many ways unprecedented. And filed U.S. attorneys, people fire them all the time. Thoroughly outrageous.

[Dan]

Not for that reason.

[Mark]

Thoroughly outrageous. Any American who cares and I joked about norms at the top. Any American cares about the abuse of power by the President. Regarding the Justice Department should be outraged. And it's an outrage that Republicans are not speaking up. 100% agree with you, Dan.

[Dan]

But you can't yada yada over this.

[Mark]

I did yada yada over this.

[Dan]

But I'm going to take 30 seconds to just say this. It is unprecedented for the President to order it. It is unprecedented to then blow out any U.S. attorneys that said, his own team said, no, there isn't anything there.

[Mark]

You don't know. You don't.

[Sean Spicer]

No, no, no, no, no.

[Dan]

All right, guys. Well, we don't know it. Hold on a sec. All we're going on is, is by the reports that, by the way, Pam Bondi hasn't come out and refuted it.

[Mark]

We just, just, just. You're asserting that you don't need that. Dan, the other stuff you said is 100.

[Dan]

Well, no, I'm gone.

[Mark]

Well, but, but, but don't go to stuff you don't know because it weakens your case on a platform dedicated to truth, love, and understanding. And I. I want everyone. Not yada, yada, yada. I want everyone to. To listen to what Dan said, because if all you focus on is what a bad guy you think Comey is and, and what just deserts this is, you are doing a disservice to America. What the president's done is outrageous. It's dangerous. And imagine a Democrat, imagine President Ro Khanna or President AOC saying to a U.S. attorney, you must indict this person. Find a way to indict them. I don't care what the career people say. If you don't find that one of the most dangerous things a president has ever done, then you're so partisan and so maga, you can't see straight. At the same time, Sean, do you want to say you think what the President did was outrageous or. No?

[Sean Spicer]

I think after what happened to us and all this is like the Kimmel thing in a way to me, which is everyone got outraged about Kimmel, but no one cared about us. Everyone getting outraged about. I was never a target, but I certainly sat in plenty of those rooms with, With. With Mueller's folks. And so I, I. No one gave a crap about any of us, what it was doing, financially, reputationally, whatever. And now suddenly it's, oh, Jim Comey let to walk and look at seashells together. I'm sorry. You know what? You're gonna have a hard time making me feel bad about this.

[Dan]

Okay, well, and look, I'll say this, too. It didn't work.

[Sean Spicer]

Went to prison. Peter Navaro went to prison like you guys. I'm sorry. Like.

[Mark]

Well, and. And they indicted Trump four times with one legit case.

[Dan]

That's your opinion. That one was. Was. Was select, but Was. Was. But I'll say this. It didn't work for Newt Gingrich and Republicans in 98 to try to get Bill Clinton. Didn't work for the Democrats when they Went after Trump. I have never seen this work for a political party.

[Mark]

Okay, exit, exit question on Comey. We got other stuff to cover. Again, raise your hand if you want to end the conversation.

[Sean Spicer]

Will he look good in orange jumpsuit? Yes.

[Mark]

No. Your three choices are. Well, your four choices. Case gets thrown out, pleads guilty, acquitted, convicted. Thrown out, pleads guilty, acquitted, convicted. Dan.

[Dan]

Acquitted, acquitted.

[Mark]

Sean. I think he gets convicted, case will be thrown out. All right. Yesterday the president talked about George Soros, who he talks about a lot, but he also talked about Reid Hoffman, who is given, I think, hundreds of millions of dollars to Democrat causes. In fact, I think he might have given more than Soros in politics. Not, not all the social stuff Soros does. And, and we talked last night on two way tonight. There's really not necessarily an analog for Reid Hoffman. I mean, he really has.

[Dan]

Oh, I mean, that's. There are people.

[Mark]

No, no, no. There people give a lot of money. There are. People give a lot of money, but I don't know that anybody's. Except the possible exception. Adelen of Adelson, with the possible exception of Adelson. But, but Reed's been involved in a different way. I don't want, I don't get the weeds on it. But, but there's not a lot of people in American, modern American politics like, let's just say that in terms of his checkbook. So, Sean, what will come of the President on this stuff? Stephen Miller talks about it. They, they talk in a shadowy way about how there's connection between these people's giving and violence. What will actually come of this?

[Sean Spicer]

I'm going to give you a Dan answer right now, which is I don't know. And I say that because I, I think the how is going to matter. If they just throw a bunch of mud at the wall, then my answer is going to lean towards not much. If they're actually surgical about this and go after some of the did they violate certain campaign finance laws, then I think something could come of it. But the how is going to matter.

[Mark]

Dan, let me ask you this. If you were an advisor to Reid Hoffman or to Soros and they said, you know, we don't want to go the pokey, we don't want to have our subpoenas, whatever, like what, what, who would you hire? What lawyers, what PR people, how would you approach this looming threat?

[Dan]

Well, I, I mean, I would tell them to hire good lawyers, which I'm sure they have. They're incredibly wealthy people. I would be surprised if they broke laws because they're incredibly wealthy, sophisticated people. I think you just, I don't think either them will stop doing what they're doing. And I think it's just an attempt to try to not harm George Soros or Alex Soros or Reid Hoffman. It's the lower ranked donors who don't want to spend a few million dollars because they're not billionaires and they can't afford this. All you're trying to do is intimidate and get people out of supporting Democratic causes. I mean, it's a raw politics move. I mean, that's all it is. And by the way, Miriam Adel or Sheldon Adelson, God rest his soul, before he died, I believe in 2016 spent over $100 million on Trump. I mean, they're, they're.

[Mark]

They'Re the closest. Reed has more operational involvement. That's, that's, that's why I think he's a little bit different. They just write checks. He's more of a, he's got, his political team is more, we'll say this.

[Dan]

Yeah, but both of them have people that they've hired ex, ex staffers that do this.

[Mark]

No, but the difference is I believe I may be wrong. It's based on my sensitive things. The Adelson's just right checks, they're just like, here's a check. Go spend the money. Reed's operation is more involved in. We need the latest technology. Who's, you know, who's.

[Dan]

Oh, sure, yeah, yeah. In that regard. Yeah. But I mean, look, to me this is, I mean, it's ridiculous. It's, it's like the whole thing about act blue. I mean it's just try to break the party.

[Mark]

Bibi speaking on the floor now. We'll continue to follow it. I'm glancing out of the corner of my. I haven't seen anything in the Chiron suggesting big, big news or surprise. Mayor Adams did not arrest him though, as the new mayor of the incoming mayor of New York says he would do. All right, nothing that's happened in shutdown world in the last 24 hours, including a very spicy interview that Hakeem Jeffries did with the folks at Punchbox suggests we're headed towards the solution. So briefly because none of us know, Sean, what's the most likely outcome now for the negotiations over shutdown?

[Sean Spicer]

I think we shut down Tuesday night at midnight. My guess is that we're probably going close to the weekend. I will say this, having watched a lot of the quote unquote reporting this morning on this. I mentioned this earlier if the people I'm talking to are correct, I know that the media is talking about apoplectic effects of the government. They are clearly aware of that and trying to minimize any impact, which is why I think it could go longer than suspected. But I do believe that once they start firing and doing stuff, Democrats are going to get real nervous and cut a short term deal, 30, 45 days just to keep it back open.

[Dan]

Dan, I think this, what's happening with Comey is only going to make the shutdown last longer.

[Mark]

Yeah, I agree with that. Bibi's got some charts he's holding up very Perot like and he's speaking directly the families of the hostages. Those are two things I could tell you. All right, we showed you the inflation numbers a little bit. There's been good and bad data on the economy that continues to be confusing. Yesterday the President announced some more tariffs put up by the Washington Post. Headline 110, please. Trump announces new tariffs on trucks, furniture and pharmaceuticals. President Trump said pharmaceutical products may face tariffs of up to 100%. Upholstered furniture 30% and heavy trucks 25% starting on October 1st. So there's a lot of debate about the data. Two sets of data. There's the economic data, which I said is confusing. And then there's the President's polling. His polling has not collapsed overall. His job approval continues as it has for 10 years, be within a pretty narrow band of floor and ceiling. But his approval rating on a variety of topics has gone down. And two, probably most notable would be on both immigration, which of course has been his signature issue where his numbers were pretty high. That's come down, I don't know exactly why. And then on the economy, his numbers have come down. And, and we've said this before, I think here, if his numbers are the way they are now, the Republicans will lose the House. I just, it's just, that's just a fact. So Dan, where are, where are we on the economy? Where, where are we on the President's political support?

[Dan]

Well, I think on the economy there's been some good news and I'm sure Sean will, will reference the statistics here. And there's been some bad news. I think what's the most important thing is voters don't feel good right now. And so if you look at the critical blocks, what is it? 113 here? There have been several polls now that show that Latino voters are souring on Donald Trump. And the number one issue they keep citing over and over again is the economy. You look at young voters, number one issue, the economy. They keep saying they're frustrated. So with all this noise going on, I think we all agree the economy will always be the number one issue in our elections. Trump and Republicans have a problem. One of the things Trump said yesterday in his like nonstop talking to the press was they're going to bail out farmers is what he's now talking about that he's going to use tariff.

[Sean Spicer]

Didn't that come up on one of our.

[Dan]

Yes, that if you listen to the morning meeting, Mr. Sean Spicer said, well that was his first time that they've really admitted again cuz it happened in the first term that this is hurting somebody. And you heard Democrats smartly come out and say what about manufacturers, what about small businesses? I mean this is the trap. So I think politically this continues to be a problem and if it doesn't start getting better by the spring, voters lock in and then you add this noise and you got problems.

[Mark]

Sean, put on your hat. That is half Tony Fabrizio and half Scott Besant. And give us your view. Where's the economy? Where's the President's poll standing?

[Sean Spicer]

Love both of those guys, but that's not an image I want in my head. I think that the White House, I believe correctly so and again so just to be clear, we got good GDP numbers yesterday, some great small business numbers the other day, some of the highest ever in terms of confidence in small business. So I think they survey 800 small businesses talking about their hiring and small business is the engine and the backbone of the economy. I think that they truly believe and again I this to me, I believe this as well. When these companies who are making massive investments and talking about building in the us Apple talking about the glass in Kentucky and you know, all of this kind of stuff, I believe that their view is okay, there might be a couple months between now and then where there's some churn. But you look 12 months out, especially ahead of a midterm, we're going to be in really good shape. I share that view.

[Mark]

Okay, we'll obviously keep talking about this, some BB updates and thanks to all of you peppering me, I might say bombarding in a different context with texts updating me on bb. First of all, there was a little bit of a walkout before he started speaking. Not surprising, I don't know how big. Second, he where's this thing? Prime Minister Netanyahu speaking announced that the IDF has taken control of the phones of Gaza residents and Hamas operatives and his speech is currently being Broadcast live through those devices that seems, that seems, you know, part of the course. And then he held up he. His quizzes with the boards. The one quiz was who shouts death to America? A, Iran, B, Hamasi Hezbollah, D, the Houthis. E, all of the above. And of course the answer is all of the above. And who does commits violence against the US And Israel? Same list, same answer. And he, he dramatically did. Little check marks there. Okay, just looking at one more thing.

[Dan]

Squarely aimed at holding MAGA is what you're telling me. Yeah.

[Mark]

Got a constituency. All right, we're gonna do winners lose the week, what to look for this weekend and then we'll get to your questions. So please, if you're here in the two way platform, do you want the rare honor, high honor, rare privilege of being able to ask two of America's leading thinkers. Sean Spicer. Dan turned on a question. Now's the chance to raise your hand. We look forward to that, Sean. Winner of the week.

[Sean Spicer]

My winner of the week is. It's a tough winner, but it's well deserved based on the circumstances. My winner of the week is turning point USA. They've announced now 120,000 new chapters and high schools and clubs. And again, it's hard to say someone's a winner after an assassination of a leader. But the movement that, that Charlie works so hard for is paying dividends right now. So congrats to them and everything that's coming of this.

[Mark]

Dan.

[Dan]

All right, this is gonna be a little bit gonna shock the two of you. My winner is Mickey Sherrill of New Jersey because for those who haven't seen it amongst the Comey stock, it the U.S. i think it's. The naval Department of Personnel has admitted that they leaked her personnel file to her opponent's staff accidentally, which combined with the Jim Comey stuff, which is just gonna, you know, set obviously has set Democrats on edge. She was gonna be my loser of the week, but this was the greatest set of news that could ever happen to her. It lets her flip the table now. And I.

[Sean Spicer]

But just, just so the audience has some background on the stand. And again, I haven't seen the news that you're sharing. But, but when she was at the academy, she was not allowed to walk with her graduating class because of a massive cheating scandal. And I didn't realize what you said. I hadn't seen that. That's the.

[Dan]

They've admitted that they accidentally share. So how does a personnel file accidentally.

[Sean Spicer]

Wind up in your apartment? Well, again, without. This is not. I will say, I don't know the details of what you're talking about, but I will say this is not the first time that people in the military have released files that were more than they should have because of just standard FOIA proceduring. So I don't know any of the details. I'll say if you start googling, you'll realize that this is not the first time that this kind of thing happened.

[Mark]

Winner of the week, the American people and Jimmy Fallon. Taylor Swift is booked for a few weeks from now on the Tonight Show. Sean, loser of this. Don't roll your eyes at me, Sean. Loser of the week, Taylor Swift on the Tonight Show. Sean, we need. We're due for a little good news here in America and when.

[Sean Spicer]

Okay, my loser of the week is ABC that I think the Kimmel thing really continued to dig in. I don't know if Paul can play this, but you know, between Matt Gutman, their quote unquote reporter saying that the texts with the assassin were very touching and this beautiful humdinger from Char. From Jonathan Carl. Take a listen.

[Mark]

The murder of Charlie Kirk was not a political act.

[Sean Spicer]

I think that combined between Kimmel, John Carl and Matt Gutman, ABC lost the week.

[Dan]

Damn House Republicans. Because the ad of a check in balance on Donald Trump just got a lot more salient next November.

[Mark]

Because all.

[Dan]

This Comey stuff, I mean this is the stock people hate. It just is all this retribution stuff. If you run an ad and say that Trump should have check and balances. Someone who works at the NRCC told me even in their own surveys it's.

[Mark]

70, 30. Who's the only other person besides Comey to be both a hero and villain of both red and blue America in the last decade? Who's the only other person to be both here?

[Dan]

I mean, John Bolton's not been loved by either side at varying.

[Mark]

Yeah, but he was Cheney. But he was. I thought about Bolton. He was never hero of the blue America.

[Dan]

Oh, he has been the last year.

[Mark]

I don't think I understand. I Bolton's. Bolton's a good answer.

[Dan]

Liz Cheney.

[Mark]

Liz Cheney. Oh, that's a good Cheney. Y There's one more, one more that I have. Fouchy Fauci. Possible but. But, but less so. Fauci was a hero, Sean. At the beginning of COVID the red Reds loved him. Elon. Elon. My loser of the week is Comey because having been both hero and villain now really no one likes him really Blue America because they're. They're constantly reminded that he's the father of the Trump presidency. And of course Red America doesn't like him. So although, although, you know, he likes his Instagram things that I find creepy and weird.

[Sean Spicer]

Don't you? I mean, honestly, I, I'm glad you.

[Mark]

Flagged that because he's a man without.

[Sean Spicer]

It really is creepy.

[Mark]

I'm glad you flagged a man without a tribe. I will say I'll, I'll break a little news here. It's not really news, but I was writing a book about the 2016 presidential campaign. Never, never got published. But the stuff that was there on Comey was incredible. And it's partly, it's part of why I'm so confident saying that he's a habitual liar and he's one of the gap between the impression of him and his character propagated by him and his propaganda machine and the reality is massive. It's as massive as anything I've seen. So someday I hope to write that book and tell everybody about the real Jim Comey. Sean, what are you looking for this weekend?

[Sean Spicer]

This is the first weekend I don't have any. I'm just going to look for early vote numbers in Virginia to see if what's going on now materializes because this is the first week honestly that I thought about this today that I didn't have something that was unequivocally, I really want to see this. So I'll just look for early vote numbers and maybe what's in my shed outside.

[Mark]

Yep. Dan.

[Dan]

All right, I, I'm gonna go a little bit light hearted, dad. Can the New York Mets hold on and make the playoffs? And can the U. S win the Ryder Cup?

[Sean Spicer]

Okay, Dan, by the way, my, my runner up loser of the week until this morning was the announcer for the Mets who went after Matt Shaw, questioning him his attendance at Charlie's funeral for being, quote, weird. So I'm glad you brought the Mets up.

[Mark]

That was all right, what I'm looking for. And I want you both to weigh in here and then we'll go to questions in a second. I'm looking to see what Hillary Clinton says about the Comey thing. So, Sean, if Hillary said. John, draft a tweet for me, what would you say?

[Sean Spicer]

We are not. We. We are not a dictatorship. No one is above the law. Like, this is not America. We all need to fight back and vote this year or something.

[Mark]

Dan workshop. Sean's.

[Dan]

Wait, say it again. Sorry, you asked me what would Hillary. What is Hillary Clinton?

[Sean Spicer]

What should she tweet out?

[Mark]

If Hillary says I have to tweet. Everybody's asking, what should I, what should she tweet out about the comey thing? You didn't listen.

[Dan]

I think, I think she would focus on. I don't think she'll say comey. She should focus on targeting your political opponents. She may even make a joke. That boy would Bill and I have loved to have had this power to call out and specifically fire people to go get our enemies. She may have fun with it like that.

[Mark]

Sean, I thought yours. I thought both those things and I would just, I would just say the thing. No one's above the law. Outrageous. Banana Republic. And then I do, btw you, Jim Comey.

[Sean Spicer]

Or she could have said, I. I never went after the right wing conspiracy. I just thought there was one.

[Mark]

Yeah, all right, again, if you want.

[Dan]

I just knew there was one.

[Mark]

If you wanna. Oh, my goodness. I'm sorry to laugh so hard at that, but I, I really, as several people have said to me since last night, just a high level of interest in whether, uh, Hillary Clinton ever, ever weighs in on this.

[Dan]

Because you should have asked Patty on next up. She might have.

[Mark]

I know, but it hadn't happened. Hadn't happened yet. All right, one more word from a sponsor and then your question. So again, please raise your hand if you want in on the conversation. And that is CB Distillery. Right now, some of you probably didn't get a great night's sleep. Maybe you're a little bit sore after exercise. Maybe you're dealing with issues of mood and focus. For many people, the answer is found in the products of CB Distillery. Highest quality, clean ingredients, no fillers, just premium cbd. Some of you probably don't even know what this is. Google it and you'll see this is something that works. Over 2 million people trust CB distilleries, products to deal with sleep, relaxation, pain, etc. Go now to cbdistillery.com 25 off your entire purchase if you use the promo code two way. Promo code two way. I'm assured. I'm supposed to say two way. Promo code, two way. Go to cbdistillery.com deal with all the promo code is Mark. Guys just keep telling me different promo codes. Is it Mark? Because I was told it was the promo code is Mark. Okay, I was. I, I keep asking. Don't use the promo code two way. It probably would work. Use the promo code mark to get 25 off your order. Use the promo code MARK. CBDistillery.com this episode is brought to you by Lifelock.

[Caller 1]

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[Mark]

It's just one of the many places.

[Caller 1]

That has your personal info.

[Mark]

And if any of them accidentally expose it, you could be at risk for identity theft.

[Caller 1]

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[Mark]

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[Caller 1]

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[Mark]

Save up to 40% your first [e-mail] podcast terms apply.

[Dan]

And now maybe a lot of Democrats ordering that to sleep this weekend.

[Mark]

Yeah. And now we go to your questions. Peter, welcome in.

[Sean Spicer]

You got to be careful if you're comey. I don't know that you want to be.

[Mark]

Peter, welcome in. Thank you for being part of the two way experience you've unmuted successfully. Now you're going to tell us where you are and what's on your mind. For America's lead thinkers, Dan Turntine and Sean Spicer.

[Caller 4]

Thank you. I appreciate it and I love everything that you guys are doing. So I'm in Monroe, North Carolina, kind of in the space at the edge of the suburb of Charlotte, almost in the rural parts outside of it. My question is. So I'm an attorney, I focus on data privacy, cybersecurity stuff. After the Charlie Kirk shooting, what's been a little surprising to me hasn't gotten any kind of real policy discussion is there used to be all this conversation about like online safety and all that stuff. And I understand, I'm a conservative, I understand why it kind of went, went off to the side when Republicans took control because it was often seen as a guy's for censorship. But we all watch someone get murdered. Like if you're on social media, oftentimes the videos would start playing before you knew exactly what was happening. I don't know, it seems to me like something that there's very, you know, pornographic and other type of material on there as well. It seems like there's, there's a space that there could be a lot of agreement on outside of something that could be used for censorship. And I'm a little surprised that, that those conversations haven't really.

[Mark]

Okay. Come up again, Peter, I want to let the guys react. Unfortunately, your audio is not the best, so that's okay. All good. Stand by, Sean. Or a reaction to what Peter said.

[Sean Spicer]

So, Peter, are you saying that you're concerned or shocked or whatever that the actual video of Charlie's assassination was, was on, was able to be seen? Is that, is that, what am I hearing you correct?

[Caller 4]

Yeah. So I mean, like the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the murder of Irina on the Charlotte Buses. The fact that these, these very violent videos are shown.

[Mark]

Yeah.

[Caller 4]

And you have to go in and affirmatively change whether or not you want them to autoplay.

[Mark]

Yep. Thank you, Peter. Sean?

[Sean Spicer]

Yeah, I, I think what's shocking to me, I agree with you. What, what I started to think about afterwards was all of the kids who are watching that happen in real life and it's, it's, it was one thing to your point, Peter, when, when you could see it on a video game and, and that was troubling in itself because there's, I believe that kids were desensitized to the issues of violence. But I do think that when you actually watch it now, that that's scary how many people look at it and, and, and the graphic nature of it is horrific. And so I don't know what the answer is, though. That's, and that's why I wish, you know, you're the lawyer. I wish I would have. You could have, you could come back at some point because I, I am troubled by it and how all of these people are going to see it forever and ever and ever. But I will say I don't know how you stop it either, because so many people had, you know, copies of the video. We're playing it over and over again. I, I don't know what the answer is, but I find it, you know, very odd, weird, and a little disturbing.

[Mark]

Damn.

[Dan]

Yeah. I mean, I think it was the first kind of mass tragedy that was really caught live on cell phones. And that is gut wrenching. I know all four of our kids saw it immediately, and I had not seen the most graphic one until they started sharing it because they, they, they saw it. I think one of the big things that's kind of somewhat remarkable is the tech companies have really escaped serious conversation here. You know, J.D. vance, early on took a shot saying they were all Democratic, which of course is ridiculous because they're all sitting at patio in the Rose Garden having dinner with the President every other week. But somehow the tech companies have escaped any real serious conversation about this stuff.

[Mark]

Thank you for your question, Dan. Welcome in. Thanks for being part of Two Way. Tell folks where you are, what's on your mind for a shot.

[Sean Spicer]

Thank you.

[Dan]

Good morning.

[Caller 1]

Thanks for calling on me. I'm in St. Louis, Missouri, first time, long time. And my question is toasted ravioli.

[Sean Spicer]

You like toasted ravioli?

[Caller 1]

I love toast and my kids love toasted ravioli. So I always have them get extra so that I can.

[Mark]

It's the best. It's the best. It is I drink. Go ahead.

[Caller 1]

Well, I, Yeah. Just so that other people can jump in. My, My question is not going to be about Charlie Kirk, but I want to say that I am in the cohort of people who barely knew who he was before he was killed and are. Have kind of been radicalized by the left's reaction to, to his murder. But I, but what I really want to say is on September 10th, that I, I came here because I wanted a sober and thoughtful discussion of what had happened. I, I could have gone a million places have been spun out of control to anger and stuff, but I came here. So thank you for having this place where we can be not crazy, you know, because there's not a lot of not crazy enclaves on the Internet.

[Mark]

But here's, here's my question. Dan. Grateful for that. I'm glad you obviously don't read the chat. So thank you for that.

[Caller 1]

I try not. I know what you mean. I try not to. I'm definitely not going to read what, what they're saying about me because thank.

[Mark]

You for those kind words and floor is yours.

[Caller 1]

Thank you. So I'm very concerned about nihilism taking over. And there's a really kind of dark nihilism that I think, you know, is reflected in, in these, these shootings and stuff. But there's in my view, another, another kind of like corporate nihilism between the, like the political parties where they seem, nobody really seems to believe in anything except power for its own sake. And, you know, all of a sudden the Democrats are really worked up about free speech when they, they didn't give a damn about it for, for the last five years. What drives me crazy about the Republicans, they're supposed to be the party of small government. They won't do a damn thing about the debt, which in my view is the biggest, possibly the biggest issue in this country. So, you know, what I try to do for myself is keep cognizant of the issues that, you know, the principles that matter to me, where, you know, regardless of what party's in charge, I'm going to stick to. And I can't think of anything more lame than this foam finger. My party's number one thing. So my question to Dan and Sean, who, who's who, I love listening to every morning, what's an issue or two that are a principle that you would hold to that even if the leader of your party went the other way, you would publicly, like, resist that direction.

[Mark]

Okay, and Dan, just for clarification, Dan Rhodes, do you want something that's that's plausible or that the, where they're already disagreeing with the party or just anything. Yeah.

[Caller 1]

If, if there's something that you're already disagreeing with, I, I do want to hear. I think it's and I know I'm kind of preaching to the choir on two way but you know, I think we should start like saying this is, this is I'm holding this line on this issue.

[Mark]

Great.

[Caller 1]

It's already out there.

[Mark]

Cool. Yeah. Sean, what are one or two things where you either are currently breaking with.

[Sean Spicer]

Your party or would debt, deficit, China, the threat of big tech. There's three.

[Mark]

Dan.

[Caller 3]

Awesome.

[Dan]

Boy. Let me choose here. So immigration, the way the parties handled crime and the way that the party at the time handled Joe Biden.

[Mark]

You guys are the best. Dan, thank you for that question. You don't have to answer. Obviously don't want to. How many times in the general election did you vote for Donald Trump?

[Caller 1]

Three times, reluctantly each time.

[Mark]

And have you ever voted for a Democrat for president?

[Caller 1]

Not for president, but I have voted for Democrats and basically every, at every other level.

[Mark]

Okay. Dan, thank you. Grateful.

[Dan]

Can I just ask Dan. Oh, sorry.

[Mark]

Go ahead.

[Dan]

Dan, where things are today, are you inclined to vote for JD Vance or are you kind of open when you think about 2028?

[Caller 1]

I'm very open. I, I, I'll throw this out there. I want Thomas Massie to, to lead us, but that, okay, maybe I just lost everybody.

[Mark]

Yeah, you definitely lost somebody. Dan, thank you. Grateful to you. All right, Rebecca, welcome back. Tell folks who don't know where you are what's on your mind for Dan.

[Caller 2]

And Sean over here in Texas. Winnie, Texas. Dan, quick question. If the Democrats want to do anything, take over the House, the Senate, don't they have to have something to run.

[Mark]

On.

[Dan]

To be a candid. They may not, I mean they may be able to just run on kind of holding the Trump administration accountable and to prevent some of the crazy.

[Caller 2]

You think that'll work though? I mean what about the, you know, the economy and everything else you that have.

[Dan]

Yeah, no, I mean look, they will come up with stuff. I imagine it's going to be relatively small. I think that Rebecca, is where you're this is going to already you can see the fault lines emerging and we talked on two way tonight last night, what Trump said about if Democrats get control, they're going to reopen the border. I mean that might as well have been an ad for next November. Like you're going to hear more of this, right? If they get Power back. They're going to impeach, they're going to reopen the border. You know, so to your point, Democrats are going to have to have, you know, here are our five things that we would do for you that are kind of sane and helpful. And, you know, the reality is if we had the House with Trump and the Republican Senate, likely we're not going to be able to do anything. But you need to tell voters like, hey, we are adults.

[Caller 2]

Yes.

[Dan]

Yes.

[Caller 2]

Yeah. Because we do need to have a Democrat and a Republican. You know, back in the day when y', all, we fought against policies, not who hated who the most.

[Dan]

Yep. I, I agree with you.

[Mark]

Yeah. Rebecca, thank you. Very grateful to you. Great question. Much appreciated. Okay. Sorry. Little flickery here. John, welcome in. Tell folks who don't know where you are what's on your mind for Sean, and.

[Caller 3]

I would say I am in Rhode Islandville.

[Dan]

Rhode Island?

[Mark]

Yeah.

[Dan]

Yeah.

[Caller 3]

I'm up in the, the northwest, the great northwest of Burlville.

[Sean Spicer]

But, you know, well, I, there's. I was about to tell you that I know some of your neighbors, but.

[Dan]

I was gonna say Sean's cousin here. Yeah, yeah.

[Sean Spicer]

There's some great shooting out there.

[Dan]

That's it.

[Sean Spicer]

That's, that's. Oh, yeah. Rhode Island. That's not like, I mean, it's, it's almost, you know, I don't think most people in Rhode island even know how to get up there.

[Caller 3]

That's true. Addieville east is my backyard. So I, I just, I wanted to say a couple of things about, you know, harkening back to the other gentleman who talked about, I really think, and I hear people calling in about their concerns about how and the degree to which social media, big tech play into this. And I don't know if out there, Mark, there's a place for you to have a show where people discuss this even, because I think it's an important discussion that needs to be had on its own. So that's one thing. And then playing off of it, I was just wondering if you guys could comment on the tick tock kind of deal that the executive order and the degree to which you guys think that that may actually kind of both be going through, but also meets what the letter of the law is, because it's unclear to me for that and I'd just love to hear your thoughts on it.

[Mark]

Great. Dan?

[Dan]

Yeah, I don't think it's going to meet the letter of the law. I think it's interesting the Chinese have been so quiet here. I think There may be, because some of these details they know. Don't put it out there. Look, it's remarkable. I mean, it's the whole thing that they passed the law that Trump has been kind of just. And Biden did the same thing. Nobody wants to actually go ahead with it. Kids are addicted to it. No politician wants to be the one who put the knife in the, in the, in the popular app. I don't believe that they're going to completely break off the algorithm. I think the Chinese, I mean, it's being leased. They're going to keep getting the information because they need it to strengthen the algorithm. I mean, you have to keep, keep going. So, you know, unfortunately, I don't think Democrats are going to take advantage of this because they do the same thing.

[Sean Spicer]

Yeah, there's. There's two things that I have a problem with TikTok on. Number one, it's, it is truly a national security threat. At least from what they've said publicly, it seems like they're quasi addressing that. I do have concern about China maintaining any kind of partnership ownership because at the end of the day, that's not how they do business. This isn't like a shareholder. So I, I do have concern on that. And then I think the second piece, which is less of a legal and like a, you know, or less in the law part that was passed about this, but I will say I, I do worry about what Dan brought up. It is, this is a cancer on our kids. The next generation of Americans is suffering because of what's happening. I think TikTok is the most prevalent. Snapchat is way up there. And what's happening, I think I, it's funny how many parents you talk to that'll say, well, I just didn't know what to do. And as if somehow the kid was in charge. And I. It's difficult and it's sad, but, I mean, I think we are ruining a generation of kids and creating a mental health crisis that in 5, 10, 15 years is going to be epic.

[Caller 3]

I know that right now. Oh, sorry.

[Mark]

Go ahead, John.

[Caller 3]

You know, I'm a, I'm a family doctor. I see kids. I have kids. And the paternalism that medicine has kind of brought since the pandemic certainly is undergoing some change right now. But even within that, I think there's blame to be placed on. Even, like the American Academy of Pediatrics hasn't come out and said anything about this is a problem. And I just, I still don't understand why that from my own standing in my profession is going on. And I agree that, that you know, it's a difficult line to play between those two avenues of like free speech versus are we actually, you know, where is there free speech is an algorithm, free speech and what kind of harm is going on here are all parts that I think we are still tangling with. And to the degree that medicine needs to like throw its weight behind it, whatever weight that might still have, I think that's an important place for.

[Sean Spicer]

So John, first of all, I so, so glad you brought that up because I have a, I have a long step, long time theory that like everything goes back to money and power. And I believe I would bet you if you look underneath the surface of the American Pediatric association there is a lot of donations from big tech to them. But to your point, this is a medical issue and it's not just the kids. I have been a big believer for the last six, seven months. I've tried to get into a practice of waking up, going out, getting sunlight and not looking at my phone for 30 minutes. And that's as an adult brain. And you can imagine what happens to a kid's brain much younger, where they're getting on and then seeing stuff, et cetera, et cetera. So I agree. I think it's what you just pointed out. I've heard so few people do it. I'm glad you did. Which is why is the medical community silent on this? And I've got to believe that money is the answer.

[Mark]

Quick, throw up cnn. Throw up CNN if you would. Constitutional officer Jamie Raskin's on. John, thank you for the question. Let's just see what Jamie's saying and then we'll go to the.

[Jamie Raskin]

Prosecution. So it's very hard to contemplate in the United States of America a former FBI director being convicted after such a completely contaminated process.

[Caller 2]

I also just saw that you've now sent a letter to the Attorney General Pambani demanding documents and communication regarding what happened with that acting U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, Eric Siebert. He resigned under pressure and then was replaced by the attorney you were talking about, Lindsey Halligan. What are you looking for in this request from to Pambandi?

[Jamie Raskin]

Well, we want the backroom correspondence which essentially backs up what everybody was able to see in public, which is President Trump had appointed Eric Siebert, who was recommended by the Republican governor of Virginia, endorsed by the Democratic senators from Virginia, a well respected prosecutor, and he got sacked. And it very clearly was because he refused to issue this indictment. That is not how justice works, works or has worked in the United States of America. There's always been a separation between the political function of the White House and the President and then the independent law enforcement function of the United States Department of Justice and the US Attorneys that operate under it. And suddenly the president essentially commanded one of his prosecutors to bring an indictment. And Mr. Siebert investigated it, did a full vetting of the situation, and said there simply wasn't sufficient evidence to bring a criminal indictment.

[Mark]

Thank you.

[Jamie Raskin]

Thank you for that against the former FBI director.

[Mark]

Thank you. Thank you. From one professor to another. Professor Kenny, welcome in. My first question to you is how much of the final grade is based on the essay and how much is based on today's episode and class participation?

[Professor Kenny]

Yeah, participation is definitely part of the grade, but it's always the final paper.

[Mark]

Okay, good to know.

[Professor Kenny]

Two way doesn't get brought up in my classes. Sorry, guys.

[Mark]

What's on your mind, sir?

[Professor Kenny]

Okay, here's what's on my mind. Yesterday on our Post show, I showed the Harry Enton polls from CNN about the trustability factor between Democrats and Republicans. And the Republicans still large leads in those polls in terms of crime, in terms of immigration, even in the economy. The polls show that the public trust Republicans more than Democrats. So I know we're only, you know, we still got a ways to go. I know we're a year out, but I've never seen anything like this with so much turmoil going on that one party still can't, you know, get their proverbial head out of, you know what in terms of trying to grab a message, Dan, when you say things like, well, Mikey, Sheryl, this is going to help her. I totally disagree. I think when they expose like what Sean said, that she was a cheater.

[Dan]

Well, no, yeah. What, what her, her answer is that she did not walk because she would not turn in classmates. So you're supposed to under the honor code, you are aware somebody cheated. You are supposed to say, you know, Bob, Bob cheated and she refused to do that. That's her.

[Professor Kenny]

Yeah. Well, it's just. Okay, so I stand corrected. I apologize. But Dan, what do you think about this? I mean, I know it's still a year out, but the. And now with mom dummy going to be the mayor of New York City, you know, I've sent you that message about that. What, what do you think about this? What's going to, you know, how, how are the Democrats going to regain some footing?

[Dan]

So it's a great point and it's one that we should not Lose sight of, which is that while Trump is losing altitude, Democrats are not inversely gaining altitude. Right. So today, Republicans are still preferred kind of across the board. I think there is a long way to go. I think the party knows they're going to have to do affirmative things. I think it ultimately will come down to what are the three or four issues that are most important to voters at the time. So if it's a check and balance, Democrats will be in, you know, better shape. If it is, who's going to handle crime better. Donald Trump may be, you know, and Republicans may be in better shape. So we have to see.

[Mark]

Yeah, hold on, I got to stop. Professor, thank you. We have to go in the weeds on something because I see now from Margo Martin's Twitter feed that the president's gaggling on the South Lawn before he gets on Marine One. They used to be able to be live from the South Lawn, but, Sean, what's the deal? Are they not cabled anymore?

[Sean Spicer]

No, they are. They should. They should be and they're.

[Mark]

It's not. I, I see him talking in the still photo. It's not on any cable channel. Why. Why are we not seeing live?

[Sean Spicer]

Well, let's go to the pool. Who's in? I mean, I, I was there the other day. I mean, the answer is yes, you can go live. And, and B, they should have a live view, whoever that that person is.

[Mark]

I know, but I'm watching. I'm watching every cable channel. Nobody's taking it live.

[Dan]

Maybe the ride. Hold on, hold on.

[Sean Spicer]

Just time it. It's not who's taking it. It's is the White House tv Pooler have that live viewing it.

[Mark]

Well, but that's what I'm, I'm saying they might, they must not, or they'd be taking it.

[Sean Spicer]

I get it.

[Mark]

Fox isn't taking. I find it very weird. Anyway, I'm just looking at tweets now. He said where. He said he got a question about the Middle East. He said, as he said 100 other times, we're close to a Gaza deal. But very disappointing to me because I could just see a still photo. It's a very nice tableau. Marine ones in the background. There's the president standing there. He's not wearing golf apparel. If he were, he'd be smart to wear clothes from fairway and green, but he's not. He's now wearing golf apparel. He's wearing a suit. I don't know. Would you guys wear a suit to the Ryder Cup?

[Dan]

He would. He wears a suit to every sport he.

[Sean Spicer]

Does he have a tie on?

[Mark]

It's a weird shot. It's like profiles. I think so because he's wearing a suit. I. I doubt he'd be wearing that without a tie unless he was getting off Air Force One at two in the morning like I did last night. Night one in the morning you got. Anyway. Well, no, I got off a plane anyway. I don't know what to make of us being up to see this. So far, all the tweets of what he's talking about say it's. It's about Gaza. In any event, is he going to.

[Dan]

Get Israel into the World Cup? Because that, that's that the latest little sports flashpoint.

[Mark]

The, the thing I. Yeah, the thing.

[Dan]

Is talking about banning them.

[Mark]

Bibi was bemoaning world support for Israel evaporating. But what's getting at least as much attention is this tech trick that they pulled akin to when they had all those pagers blow up. They somehow took over all the phones and allowed everybody or made everybody watch his speech in Gaza. Those guys are like, what's the name of the agent and James Bond Q who did.

[Dan]

Oh, yeah. Q. Yeah. With the. Yeah, all the gadgets.

[Mark]

The Israelis. The Israelis are just like a bunch of Q's. All right, we're not going to be able to tell you what the President said, but I predict if you turn over to cable, 9 o', clock, 10 o', clock, you'll probably see live coverage or full coverage of something that I don't understand. Let me check my calendar. No, it's not 1980 or 1770.

[Dan]

I think Trump would fire somebody if he knew he was not live on Fox right now.

[Mark]

This has happened. This has happened before, though they don't seem at times to be able to have. They have to be tape playback, as we call it, rather than. Mark, who's that?

[Dan]

We.

[Sean Spicer]

We did it at the beginning. Who is the. I'm looking as we go.

[Dan]

Who's. I don't think we did the pool today.

[Mark]

No, I mean. But it doesn't really matter because this has happened. It's not about who the pool is. It's it. Because everybody's got the same capability. TV pool, cnn, the most trusted name in news. They can't get a live S. They can't get a live signal out of the South Lawn. I don't understand it. I don't understand. It's still not on anywhere. But this is a very beautiful photo. Go to Margo Martin, 47, her Twitter feed. You can see this incredible shot with Marine One in the background. It's lovely. All right, we won't have that. Let me tell you about what's coming up here on the two way platform later today. Ethan Stress, 2pm Random Offense Guest Ryan Glass Beagle 2pm A front office Sports I've been reading about front office sports. They have an interesting business model.

[Dan]

Oh, they're fantastic.

[Mark]

Yeah. Really a really interesting operation. And then on two way tonight, 6:00pm Eastern time, final episode of the week, 6:00pm Eastern. I'll say 3:00pm Pacific time. My guest will be Natalie Allison of the Washington Post, one of America's great writers and political reporters, I believe making her two Way Tonight debut. Maybe I'm wrong, but I believe she's making her two Way Tonight debut. And a reminder, this program as well as two Way Tonight are both available as a podcast. If you haven't already downloaded and figured out how to like subscribe, share, please go to Spotify or Apple Podcasts or of course on YouTube. But if you're a supporter of the platform, we'd very much appreciate you going to those platforms and letting them know through all the various means. Sean, what do you have tonight?

[Sean Spicer]

First, I didn't make the cut, but I will say one of my big winners of the week, Dan Scavino, deputy White House chief of staff, long time.

[Dan]

Oh, he's leaving.

[Sean Spicer]

Buddy got engaged at the White House. Congratulations to them. That's if you're going to get engaged the Rose Garden, I highly recommend it. But we've got Victor Marks on tonight. He was a good friend of Charlie Kirk's. Charlie had asked him to mentor him. They were supposed to be in Colorado the day after the assassination. We're going to talk a lot about the life and legacy. But also beyond that, Victor Marks will be making a major announcement about his potential run for governor of Colorado.

[Dan]

Dan oh, this is the dark horse presidential candidate Michael Bennett.

[Mark]

Super messed up thing. I see on cable they're touting coming soon, awaiting Trump's departure from the White House. And I can tell you he's already.

[Sean Spicer]

Actually, Fox has got it now too. Now awaiting Trump departure.

[Mark]

That's what I'm saying. But it's happening. It's like this is all a big sham of a mockery of two shams of a mockery. I'll say everybody at 6, have a good weekend. And the three of us will be back Monday morning, 9:00am Eastern time. Because, Dan, if it's Monday morning, 9:00.

[Dan]

A-M. Eastern time, it's the morning meeting.

[Sean Spicer]

Have a good, have a good fairway Friday, guys. A good fairway.

[Dan]

US is getting killed in the Ryder cup, man.