F-Yall-icans

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand: Episode “F-Yall-icans” – Detailed Summary

Release Date: May 19, 2025

In the episode titled “F-Yall-icans,” hosts Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty delve into the tumultuous landscape of American politics, offering sharp critiques, biting humor, and in-depth analysis of recent political developments. The conversation weaves through topics ranging from presidential health scandals to partisan conflicts over fiscal policies, all while maintaining the duo's characteristic wit and candor.

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1. Presidential Health Scandal

Timestamp: 03:12 – 07:05

The episode opens with a heated discussion about President Joe Biden's health, specifically allegations surrounding his prostate cancer diagnosis. Armstrong shares personal insights from his own battle with cancer, highlighting the misleading use of the term "aggressive cancer" in mainstream media narratives. He states:

“Using that word every single time in every story is meaningless.” ([04:02])

Joe Getty builds on this by suggesting that Biden may have been concealing his cancer for years, referencing hints dropped by Joe Scarborough on his show. They speculate that Biden might have known about his condition long before it became public knowledge, raising questions about transparency and media responsibility.

“It’s just a big news story I adopted for humor...they kept saying aggressive cancer as if that absolutely means something.” ([03:12])

2. Media Failures and Political Cover-Ups

Timestamp: 05:53 – 10:12

Armstrong laments the media's failure to uncover Biden's health issues earlier, criticizing both mainstream outlets and specific journalists like Maureen Dowd and Dan Balz for their oversight. Getty echoes this sentiment, labeling it one of the "great cover-ups in American history" and accusing the media of complicity.

“It's the biggest failure of the media ever, period.” ([07:23])

They also discuss the ramifications of such cover-ups on public trust and the integrity of political institutions.

3. Trump’s Diplomatic Maneuvers and Ukraine Conflict

Timestamp: 10:12 – 18:09

The hosts shift focus to former President Donald Trump's role as a "master dealmaker," particularly regarding his interactions with Vladimir Putin amidst the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Armstrong expresses skepticism about the potential outcomes of Trump’s high-stakes phone call with Putin, fearing it may lead to further instability.

“There is no chance of a good outcome.” ([10:51])

Getty concurs, emphasizing the futility of negotiating with parties that have no genuine interest in peace, such as Hamas, and doubts Trump's willingness to exert the necessary pressure on Putin to achieve meaningful results.

4. House Budget Committee Passes "Big Beautiful Bill"

Timestamp: 14:42 – 30:31

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to analyzing the recent passage of a sweeping tax and immigration package by the House Budget Committee, dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill.” Armstrong and Getty critique the bill as a "legislative monstrosity" that exacerbates the national deficit.

“The Republican Party with both houses of Congress and the White House are going to grow the deficit. It’s undeniable.” ([20:47])

They explore the internal conflicts within the Republican Party, highlighting the tension between fiscal conservatives and the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus. The discussion underscores the party's drift towards policies that favor tax deductions for high-tax states like California and New York, which they argue unjustly shift fiscal burdens to other states.

“It's morally indefensible as a Republican reason.” ([25:22])

The hosts express deep frustration with the party’s direction, leading them to contemplate the formation of a new political party, humorously named "F-Yall-icans."

5. Republican Party’s Internal Struggles and Fiscal Policies

Timestamp: 22:35 – 31:02

Armstrong and Getty delve deeper into the Republican Party’s advocacy for increasing the state and local tax deduction, which they argue disproportionately benefits wealthier states while burdening others. They criticize this stance as a betrayal of conservative fiscal principles and express disillusionment with the party’s inability to adhere to its foundational values.

“The idea that we have a federal system where states can do what they want and they should do what they want... it's a horror.” ([25:27])

Getty elaborates on the unsustainable nature of such policies, highlighting the growing national debt and the party's role in perpetuating fiscal irresponsibility.

6. Media Coverage and Public Perception

Timestamp: 33:19 – 37:00

In the mailbag segment, Armstrong and Getty address listener feedback, including a discussion on the "Gelman Amnesia Effect," where experts distrust media reports on topics outside their expertise. They commend listeners for sharing personal anecdotes about media shortcomings and reinforce their skepticism towards mainstream reporting.

“Engineers read a news report about engineering and think these people don’t have any idea what they’re talking about.” ([33:19])

This segment underscores the hosts' ongoing critique of media reliability and their commitment to providing unfiltered political commentary.

7. Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Timestamp: 36:30 – End

Wrapping up the episode, Armstrong and Getty reflect on the state of American politics, expressing a sense of hopelessness regarding the current partisan divide and fiscal mismanagement. They advocate for moving beyond traditional political parties, suggesting that elections have devolved into "advance auction sales of stolen goods," a nod to shifting allegiances and compromised values within the political sphere.

“There are no political parties. There’s just whoever emerges as the candidate cycle by cycle.” ([27:04])

The episode concludes with a mix of humor and frustration, leaving listeners contemplating the future of American governance and the potential for new political movements.

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Notable Quotes with Attribution and Timestamps:

• Joe Getty: “It's the biggest failure of the media ever, period.” ([07:23])

• Jack Armstrong: “Using that word every single time in every story is meaningless.” ([04:02])

• Joe Getty: “Love this one from Ayn Rand. Civilization is the progress toward a society of privacy...” ([32:07])

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Final Thoughts

“F-Yall-icans” encapsulates Armstrong and Getty’s unabashed critique of contemporary political and media landscapes. Through a blend of personal anecdotes, sharp analysis, and unapologetic honesty, the episode challenges listeners to question established narratives and consider the broader implications of partisan politics and media complicity in shaping public perception.

Transcript

[Jack Armstrong]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.

[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Joe Getty]

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln radio studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty. Armstrong and Getty. And now he's Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

Live. Dang it.

[Joe Getty]

Dang it, dang it.

[Jack Armstrong]

I thought I could make it through it without coughing.

[Joe Getty]

Live from Studio C, sesing your a.

[Jack Armstrong]

Dimly lit room deep within the bowels of the Armstrong and Getty Communications compound. And to kick off a brand new week. Oh, boy. New week. Headed into Memorial Day, this could be a big week for your life today. Today you're under the tutelage of our.

[Joe Getty]

General manager, the Republican Party, both houses of Congress and the White House. And they're going to grow the deficits and leave bloated entitlements alone. What's the point anymore?

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow.

[Joe Getty]

I'm forming a new political party. I've given up.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow. Coming out. Angry. Hot on a Monday morning.

[Joe Getty]

Exactly. Well, offended. Righteously angry. Not like I lost my temper because I'm drunk angry. No. Righteous indignation at the stupidity, that hypocrisy, the lack of principle. I got three names for a new party.

[Jack Armstrong]

So not I lost my temper because I'm drunk angry. Like, not like a bad golf shot.

[Joe Getty]

Now I'm helicoptering my club angry. No, this is righteous biblical anger. How about.

[Jack Armstrong]

How about the doordash was so slow. By the time the yogurt got to me, it was all melted angry, which I had yesterday.

[Joe Getty]

That's legit to me. I mean, that man pays for yogurt. He's, you know, expects it to be nice and chilly. All right, so I got three possible names for our new political party. I assume you'll join me on this quest. Angritarians. Referencing my. My being pissed off. Enough is enough. Ocrats.

[Jack Armstrong]

Gotcha.

[Joe Getty]

Or finally F y' all again.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's pretty good, too. I'd wear that T shirt. And whatever the flag looks like, I'm flying it in the back of my truck.

[Joe Getty]

F y' all again.

[Jack Armstrong]

I thought the general manager would be Joe Biden's prostate.

[Joe Getty]

No no. An old man has cancer. There's, there's no humor there.

[Jack Armstrong]

It's just, it's terrible. Didn't have to be humorous. It's just a big news story I adopted for humor. I'll tell you something though, interesting wrinkle on this that just happened and I want to get to it before you hear it somewhere else.

[Joe Getty]

Do tell.

[Jack Armstrong]

That came up on Morning Joe with Joe Scarborough and he didn't state it outright, but he was certainly hinting at it strongly. So it turns out according to the doctor they had. Well, there's a whole bunch of stuff I could say about this as a guy who had cancer. The reporting on everything that happens in the mainstream news is so horrible. But, but as usual with this, there are a number of things I keep hearing over and over again. They keep saying an aggressive cancer as if that absolutely means something. And it doesn't at all. Having had cancer and talked to doctors before back in the day, many, many, many years ago, in general, aggressive was bad and non aggressive was good. But not anymore. My cancer was worse because it was not aggressive. Because it.

[Joe Getty]

Which I found fascinating at the time.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, because it wouldn't take the bait. As my doctor said, you're trying to poison the cancer with the chemotherapy and it wouldn't take the bait like trying to catch a rat with, you know, rat poison. It wouldn't take the bait because it was so slow moving and aggressive cancer. He told me will grasp onto the. Because we're gonna get you and grasp onto the poison and die faster. So often that is better. So that, that using that word every single time in every story is meaningless. So there you go. Let's.

[Joe Getty]

But it's exciting.

[Jack Armstrong]

But the interesting thing is that I learned from, from Scarborough show today and again, this is what they kept hinting at. He's had it for probably a decade at least through his presidency. Absolutely. Minimum several years, but probably a decade. And it's impossible they either, well, almost certainly they just didn't test for it or just didn't do anything or just.

[Joe Getty]

Kept it quiet because as we've said many times, the president decides what to reveal from that presidential exam, what not to reveal. It is the ultimate. This tells us nothing possible that they did that.

[Jack Armstrong]

Although you'd had to keep it quiet every year for many, many, many years because the president gets a yearly physical and everything like that. And did he get tested for it every year and keep it quiet throughout his entire presidency, probably years before his presidency so that he could maybe run again or whatever or, or this is what I think Scarbo was hinting at. It's just his overall medical health, including his brain. They just didn't test for things. They just didn't ask any questions about anything because it was all going to be bad news and they didn't want to have to discuss anything. So better just to not know.

[Joe Getty]

I think that is by far the most likely theory. And I hate to steal the thunder of our own featurette, but we got this note from Jacob that I was gonna include in mailbag later on in the hour. He says, hey guys, do you remember that speech where President Biden randomly said, I just found I have out, I have cancer or something like that? Then he moved on and nobody commented on it and the White House climbed down. Do you remember that?

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, that. That's right.

[Joe Getty]

I think he accidentally let it slip.

[Jack Armstrong]

Although there's no way he just found out he had cancer because he's had it for a very, very long time.

[Joe Getty]

But Chris, unless they just gave him a PSA test for the first time ever or whatever, possibly, although we're going.

[Jack Armstrong]

To play some of the her tapes later. He didn't know when he was president or vice president or when his son died by years. So him saying, I just found out I got cancer, who knows what that means? That could have been him remembering from 10 years ago. But I'm talking about his brain. The fact that, you know, him having prostate cancer and hiding it or whatever, I find that kind of a non story, actually. But the fact that it fits in with just the overall ignoring everything about his body and brain, I think is pretty interesting.

[Joe Getty]

Well, and how widespread the knowledge was. And I read a great piece, we'll share it with you later, about why this all matters. Now, this is not just looking in the rearview mirror and kicking Democrats for the fun of it. This is one of the great cover ups in American history.

[Jack Armstrong]

All right, Mark. Mark Halpert keeps making it about the media, which I think is a good thing. It's the biggest failure of the media ever, period. I don't know what second place would be. Biggest failure of the media, period. And again, I just think it's mostly interesting from the hiding his brain thing. And over the weekend, Maureen Dowd in the New York Times, who's the. The guy they always quote in the Washington Post, the senior man. We had him on the show when we were out there in Chicago. Dan Balls, like some of the biggest heavyweight hitters, wrote some major pieces over this weekend about how awful it is that this was hidden for all this time, kind of like they're discovering it, which is weird, but shocking. I mean, it's really come to the top of everybody's consciousness as a what the hell sort of story, Right? Well, more on that later. It's just. It's absolutely amazing. But wow. So I wonder, see, he got Crazy Jill involved. You got to go to Crazy Jill and. And the artist hunter, who's also crazy. They might have just been saying, no, dad, honey, no tests. Let's just do no tests. No tests about anything. And then. Then we don't have to lie. And then we can just go out there and say everything's fine.

[Joe Getty]

It is gratifying and somewhat shocking to look back and see how right we were about all of this. Not that we had any unique knowledge. Look at the polls at the time. And I say this not to pat ourselves on the back, but virtually everything we said about Jill is the evildoer in this. You can tell Dr. Jill, not a real doctor.

[Jack Armstrong]

She's a crazy person. She's a for real crazy person.

[Joe Getty]

Yes, she is absolutely unhinged. But everybody in the cabinet who knew and was silent or denied it vociferously. Chuck Schumer, who's a congenital liar. I don't know why anybody ever listens to him on any topic. He couldn't tell the truth unless he accidentally did it. You know, Mayor Pete, you know, all of these people who continue to be significant, you know, persons in American politics, we cannot just let them get away with it. They should never be in office again. They should never be entrusted with power again.

[Jack Armstrong]

God, who's the guy? I don't remember his name. Democrat. He's the chair of the Armed Services Committee, like, you know, a big committee. Never talked to Joe Biden once.

[Joe Getty]

Right.

[Jack Armstrong]

Which is just incredible.

[Joe Getty]

Well, because he, in previous administrations had regularly talked to the president as the head, of course, important defense committee. Yeah, of course you would.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. So anyway, there's a lot on that. Joe Biden's prostate, you know, hope they get him a treatment and he's fine and all that.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, he's. He's. Come on. He's on dsd. Anyway, true store one foot.

[Jack Armstrong]

Trump's about to talk to Vladimir Putin. That's going to happen while on the air. I don't know if we'll get any details about that or not, but that's a big deal. Yes. Michael, will Putin play the power play.

[Joe Getty]

Where he makes Trump wait?

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't know. I'm actually nervous about this just because I don't want to I don't, I don't. I just don't want to have to deal with it. With. I hope Trump doesn't handle it in a really horrible way.

[Joe Getty]

There is no chance of a good outcome. There you go.

[Jack Armstrong]

War wise.

[Joe Getty]

Reality. Enjoy it. Roll it around in your mouth for a while. You'll get used to the taste. Little bitter.

[Jack Armstrong]

You mean just the war or are you talking about us having to talk about Trump and how he handles Putin today?

[Joe Getty]

Well, that too, actually. No, I was talking about the call and the quote, unquote peace process. This is, this is a dry hole. Nothing will come of this call except deception. And it's terrible.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, he got. Right after Trump announced the phone call with Putin, Putin launched the largest drone attack on Ukraine since the war started.

[Joe Getty]

So that targeting civilian targets.

[Jack Armstrong]

So that happened over the weekend specifically. Let's start the show officially. I'm Jack Armstrong. He's Joe Getty on this. It is Monday, May 19, year 2025. We're Armstrong and Yeti and we approve this program.

[Joe Getty]

One final thought on that. While Putin has the phone with Trump to his right ear, Xi Jinping will be in his left ear. He may even hold two phones up to his head in classic movie gag fashion from back in the day. Anyway, worth remembering. All right, let's begin the show officially. Now, according to FCC rules and regulations. Here we go. Leaping into action at Mark.

[Jack Armstrong]

No, I'm not here to testify for the Diddy trial that I know of posted on my Instagram that I was here in New York and enjoying myself because I wanted to make it clear to everyone that I am not here testifying. You, you could potentially be in danger. You definitely don't travel openly and let everyone know where you're staying and who you're with. You said in all. So I thought I was like, yeah. In danger from whom? I mean, New York is Diddy city. A potential witness in the trial who said they won't travel to New York unless they can let everyone know where they are because it's too scary because it's Diddy city. Well, that's interesting. They might get rubbed out like the mob or something.

[Joe Getty]

That was some pop culture curiosity from back in the day.

[Jack Armstrong]

So we've got the Diddy trial going on. Some of the details that came out on Friday, maybe today. The why is the Mexican navy attacking our bridges? We've got to get to that, right?

[Joe Getty]

This means war.

[Jack Armstrong]

We're under attack. And. And a lot of other stuff. Katie's headlines on the way. Our text line 415295, KFTC Armstrong and Getty.

[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

And the fact that my 13 year old notices the difference in quality with Omaha Steaks.

[Joe Getty]

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[Jack Armstrong]

There's a headline you don't have, Katie. Sean Davis, a well known, provocative Twitter sort of person, tweeted out. It's amazing the media did not discover Joe Biden's prostate cancer earlier given how far up his butt they have been for the last several years.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, yes, I've seen that from a couple of quarters.

[Jack Armstrong]

That is not helpful. I don't feel like that's helpful, that.

[Joe Getty]

Sort of commentary medically accurate enough. Yes. So great stuff to talk about as usual today. Let's get right into it. Who's reporting what? It's the lead story with Katie Green.

[Katie Green]

Katie, starting with NBC, Trump set to push Putin to end the, quote, bloodbath in Ukraine in high stakes phone call.

[Jack Armstrong]

We'll see.

[Joe Getty]

Trump, the great dealmaker, approaching a deal that neither side wants. That's a tough deal.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, yeah, yeah, yeah. If you were just plain coming at it from the standpoint of how do you solve this problem. But if he says something very harsh about Putin to Putin, it'll be the first time. So we'll see what happens.

[Joe Getty]

It could be a turning point, no doubt.

[Katie Green]

From Reuters, Iran says nuclear talks will fail if United States pushes for zero enrichment.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, according to Marco Rubio yesterday on one of those shows that's mandatory.

[Joe Getty]

Speaking of posturing before negotiations. Posture away, Mullers. You got nowhere to fetch.

[Katie Green]

From abc, Trump's quote, big beautiful bill passes House Budget committee vote last night.

[Jack Armstrong]

It did, yeah. Made the first step. Okay.

[Joe Getty]

The big beautiful Bill. Is a horrific betrayal. Bill. I'm so sickened by it, I don't even want to think about it.

[Jack Armstrong]

Joe's going to explain it later because you are. What, what is your mood for the day?

[Joe Getty]

Just angry, I think.

[Jack Armstrong]

No, you mentioned it a little bit ago.

[Joe Getty]

It's angry and betrayed. Horrified.

[Katie Green]

He's an F Y Olican is what I believe.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, that's the party.

[Joe Getty]

He's my new political party.

[Katie Green]

And like you guys just discussed. From News Nation, urologist says Biden likely knew he had cancer for a very long time.

[Jack Armstrong]

He might not have known if he didn't get tested. If he didn't get tested. It was on purpose, though.

[Joe Getty]

Here's. Here's one thing I think we can all agree on. Absolutely nothing that is being said about this at this point. Point can be trusted. Even 10%. They lie and they lie and they lie.

[Katie Green]

From the Washington Post, seven escaped inmates still at large after three day manhunt in New Orleans.

[Jack Armstrong]

This story is amazing.

[Katie Green]

I just love that they let everybody know. Yeah, a couple of them are murderers. But don't worry, you're not in any danger, really.

[Jack Armstrong]

I mean, they escaped old timey Shawshank style.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

And then left behind an illiterate note. We'll get to that later.

[Katie Green]

From Breitbart, Organizers are planning a nationwide protest for Trump's birthday. It'll be called no Kings Day.

[Jack Armstrong]

All right, all right.

[Joe Getty]

Gee money. Maybe they can have Bruce Springsteen play slash lecture us.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, yeah. Trump blasted Bruce over the weekend. We got to get to that. Later.

[Katie Green]

From the New York Post, LA business owner blasts the song Baby Shark on repeat to ward off homeless encampments.

[Jack Armstrong]

I'd do it.

[Joe Getty]

Whatever it takes.

[Katie Green]

The bums say it's driving them nuts.

[Joe Getty]

A little sentinel will knock that back. You'll be fine.

[Katie Green]

And finally, from the Babylon Bee, ghost of Pete Rose bets on hall of Fame induction.

[Jack Armstrong]

How much time I got, Michael?

[Joe Getty]

25 seconds. Darn it.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's not enough time. I want to tell you my favorite thing from the opening of Saturday Night Live. We don't even need the clip. I just want to tell you what it is because I was so funny. Later. But Joe, who's embittered? That's the word you used, embittered?

[Joe Getty]

Yes.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, explain to us why he's embittered. I can't wait to hear that.

[Joe Getty]

Do you even want to hear it? I don't want to drag anybody down with me.

[Jack Armstrong]

I'll keep us. I'm in a good mood. I'LL keep us pumped up no matter how embittered you are.

[Joe Getty]

All right. Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

Trump loves these rich Arab guys.

[Joe Getty]

They set up a mobile McDonald's there.

[Jack Armstrong]

A little different up there than McDonald's. The Happy Meal toy is a little bone saw. Made me laugh.

[Joe Getty]

Did you write him that joke?

[Jack Armstrong]

Here's the funniest thing. I thought that happened on the Saturday Night Live open with the guy who does Trump. He was talking about anyway in Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi Abidabi do like the late, great French Flintstone. I thought that was so funny.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, boy.

[Jack Armstrong]

Ah, the late, great Fred Flintstone. So I saw the news yesterday that they were going to have a a voting session on the big beautiful bill at 10 o' clock Sunday night. And because it's the weekend and I'm a normal human being, I didn't like take a second to look into that because I thought what the hell kind of a procedural deal is a Sunday night at ten o' clock thingy? But I just did see that the four holdouts went along with whatever and it passed. So there you go.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, the, the four holdouts went along with whatever is a pretty good description of it. I will be a bit more detailed and this is the reason I'm disgusted and embittered. This is the most sausage of sausage making. If you're familiar with the the old reference to politics, here's your headline from the WA Poll. I'm going to read you just a little bit because it's kind of revealing of at least a couple of things. Trump's Tax and Immigration Bill clears Hurdle after Late Night vote the House Budget Committee passed a massive tax and immigration package central President Trump's agenda late Sunday overcoming opposition from hard line consent conservatives overspending Four fiscal conservatives, all deficit hawks aligned with the ultra conservative House Freedom Caucus changed their vote to present allowing the legislative monstrosity. I injected that package to be recommended favorably to the House by a vote of 17 to 16. But their hesitance to vote for the one big beautiful bill act out of committee is a reminder that the far right flank of the Republican conference remains skeptical.

[Jack Armstrong]

I think I see where you're going here.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Now it could just be your typical WaPo journalistic bias, although the WaPo has improved somewhat lately. A little bit anyway. I think it's unfortunately closer to true than I'm comfortable with that there are only a handful of like lunatic hardliners who are against the following headlines. This is from the Richard Rubin writing in the Wall Street Journal. The stark math on the GOP tax plan. It doesn't cut the deficit, it grows the deficit. The Republican Party with both houses of Congress and the White House are going to grow the deficit. It's undeniable. Next headline National Review. Republicans should stay the course on reducing Medicaid spending. They're not going to. They're running in the other direction, partly because the incredibly smart calculating. What is he up to? Josh Hawley of Missour is all of a sudden this is the guy now who led the charge to repeal Obamacare. He's now out Schumering Schumer, saying that the wall, the party's Wall street wing, a noisy contingent of corporate Republicans want to slash health insurance for the working poor.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, he's we mentioned that on Friday. He wrote that op ed piece that the Republicans need to back off cutting Medicare any.

[Joe Getty]

Well, it's a reform of Medicaid. Any reforms are a hidden tax on working poor people because and he's referring to a $35 copay for able bodied adults covered by Obamacare Medicaid for a Visit to the doctor. $35 copay is some sort of hidden tax on working poor people.

[Jack Armstrong]

And that's just the calculation that Republicans are now the party of the working class and they feel like they got enough working class that are on Medicaid that they Josh Howley at least doesn't want to mess with it.

[Joe Getty]

And a. Yeah. Now the party of pandering to and writing checks to people to win their votes.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, I was going to say that it's interesting they call these people ultra conservative of right wing when not very many years ago you would have been the center of the Republican Party. I mean that would have, I mean that's like what the Republican Party was. It was, it was, it was a term you would have used to define the party.

[Joe Getty]

In fact, it was so intrinsic to the Republican Party you'd feel silly even repeating what you just repeated.

[Jack Armstrong]

There's no need fiscally conservative. But I suppose in reality, given where most of the party is, they are ultra right wing or ultra conservative because the bulk of the party doesn't care apparently and apparently not voters.

[Joe Getty]

So spending your children grandchildren into tax and spend oblivion.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, all right. Well, this story got repeated a lot over the weekend that we got downgraded on one of our credit scores by one of the major organizations that does that sort of thing.

[Joe Getty]

Organization. Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

And over the weekend it kind of got put out there that it was like a Trump thing because of tariffs or whatever. It was basically around the fact that Our debt is just so high. It's just like what happened to you if you go to the bank and, and, and they take a look at your, well, you've got, with your car payments now you bought like eight cars and two houses and you're just, you're just overmaxed.

[Joe Getty]

So we have $80,000 in credit card bills and you only make 90 a year.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right, right. So they just downgraded because you just spent more than you make. That's what happened. That didn't happen just in the last hundred days under Trump. We've been building this for a long time.

[Joe Getty]

And the final reason I am completely embittered about the Republican Party and politics and America and democracy and life on earth is, is the fact that, and it's a, it's a two part horror show. Part number one is that there are a bunch of swing district Republicans from big blue states, California and New York, most notably, who are not only trying to defend the idea of the salt deduction, the state and local tax deduction, they want to raise it from $10,000 to at least $30,000 and maybe $50,000. Meaning if you live in a tax and spend lunatic state like say California, all of those incredibly high taxes you're paying, you can deduct from your federal tax return. So the other states will subsidize the tax and spend lunacy of New York and California.

[Jack Armstrong]

So my brothers in Kansas pay some of my taxes because I live in California. That makes sense.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. You get a giant subsidy from the other states, you pay a lower federal tax rate, significantly lower depending on, you know, how much money you make than folks in fiscally responsible states as indefensible. Morally, it's indefensible as a, for Republican reason, not the party. But the idea of we have a federal system than states and the states can do what they want and they should do what they want. It's fine. If Massachusetts states wants to have a 65% income tax, go ahead. I'm not living there, but go ahead. But then to transfer that profligacy to the other states is, it's a horror. And as a conservative slash Republican, he says, trying not to vomit because of my embitteredness, the idea that that is a plank of the Republican Party, I'm done.

[Jack Armstrong]

It's, it's hard to swallow. I mean, it, you know, it would help Joe and I if this happens financially, but it's awful, absolutely awful. You, I mean, you can't defend it.

[Joe Getty]

No, it's, it's, it's It's. I am horrified. I don't care how much it would benefit me. God bless me. I have principles. It's really held me back in life. Jack, too. I just. I. I'm done. I'm done.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, it's. Well, like I said last week, Sarah Isger of the Dispatch, I heard her on a podcast. They're having this discussion about parties, and she said, there are no political parties. What are we talking about here?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, I need to seek that out, because I think she nailed it.

[Jack Armstrong]

Absolutely 100%. There are no political parties. There's just whoever emerges as the candidate cycle by cycle, and then whatever they believe the party goes along with. And it's true on both sides. So the idea that there are parties that stand for something, we need to all move past that.

[Joe Getty]

I want to get this quote every. I'm sorry. I want to get this quote exactly right from my hero, H.L. menken. Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods. That's always been true. There was a time when a certain party had certain principles that I admired. Do you have. Time has passed. You know what? My high school sweetheart, college sweetheart, my wife of 40 years, when she's not turning tricks, she's killing people for the mob. Okay? She's not the woman I felt. This is, by the way, a fictional illustration. Has nothing to do with my beloved bride, Judith. She's not the person she was.

[Jack Armstrong]

Forget it.

[Joe Getty]

It's over.

[Jack Armstrong]

So move on.

[Joe Getty]

Get out. Get an AI girlfriend like a normal person and a love bot or something.

[Jack Armstrong]

A girlfriend like a normal person. So the. The four holdouts that, like, still care about not having the country. Remember, it was quite a few years ago now that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs announced the biggest threat to national security is our debt. Correct. I mean, that's what's gonna bring us down as a country. Anyway, the four holdouts that voted present last night so this could move along. What's their thinking? What's what?

[Joe Getty]

They're just beaten down. There's no. They abandoned the Alamo. There's. There.

[Jack Armstrong]

You know, there's no winning the fight.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Yeah. Who knows what they were promised or threatened. Well.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Yeah. Some. Some. If Trump sausagey backroom agreement was struck or.

[Jack Armstrong]

Or if Trump or someone below Trump wanted to, you know, turn full MAGA on you as a holdout. Your life gets pretty hard pretty fast.

[Joe Getty]

By the way, credit where it's due. Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina. Way to stand up for South Cackalack, Ralph Josh Breach in of Oklahoma and Andrew Clyde of Georgia were blocking the bill because it urged lawmakers to stop talking and get it done. I'm through. Yes.

[Jack Armstrong]

Because they thought you shouldn't keep spending more than you take in. You can't do that forever on top.

[Joe Getty]

Of already terrifying debt. Yes.

[Jack Armstrong]

And the fact that we now spend more money on just the, I mean, if you've ever gotten into credit card trouble where you're like, you look at your interest payment is all you can, you know, your minimum payment. That's what we are as a country. Our interest payment is more than defense.

[Joe Getty]

Now know it's crazy and growing and.

[Jack Armstrong]

Growing and we're going to grow it next year.

[Joe Getty]

And four extremist, ultra conservative, far right wing mad men attempted to slow that down.

[Jack Armstrong]

And there's some sort of Wall street something or others, according to Josh Holly.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, Holly's lost his mind.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, he's just a political calculator. He wants to stay in office and be powerful.

[Joe Getty]

He is a, he is a crocodile, a very, very smart crocodile.

[Jack Armstrong]

At some point, I'm not defending it, but at some point you can. He could make the argument for people like him, hey, that's where the country is now. You're supposed to lead people a different direction if they're in the wrong place. But he might just be saying, hey, that's where the country is.

[Joe Getty]

And Joshua is again, again, extremely bright and savvy. Would probably say, hey, dude, if I can get the reins of power, I figure I can pull this back about 2, 3%. Anything more than that, the American people are gonna toss me out of office because that's where the country is, brother. Right.

[Jack Armstrong]

Dang it, that is tough. Okay, man, we got lots to talk about today. Stuff that happened over the weekend. That horse race was pretty interesting. I don't usually watch horse races, but that one was kind of exciting. And Caitlin Clark knocked a good, knocked her nemesis down on the court on the first game of the season. That I thought, I find that very exciting.

[Joe Getty]

You gotta set the tone.

[Jack Armstrong]

You do. Well, you actually do, I think. And we got Mailbag coming up next. Stay here.

[Joe Getty]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

For some reason, I'm feeling no need to be the least bit decent about this, so I'll just go full throated on this. There seems to be some hinting that the Biden family has had this cancer thing in their pocket for like a decade perhaps and have trotted it out right when the heat is getting the hottest. On the Hurt Report, the Tapper book, the everything else to get the maximum amount of sympathy. Hey, leave us alone. We're dealing with cancer.

[Joe Getty]

That fits their modus operandi, their character, lack of it. That fits that weird statement he made like a year ago, year and a half ago in a speech, I just found out I have cancer that nobody ever commented on. Again, it all fits. Despicable. Here's your freedom loving quote of the day. Love this one from Ayn Rand. Civilization is the progress toward a society of privacy. The savage's whole existence is public, ruled by the laws of his tribe. Civilization is the process of setting man free from men. Interesting thought. Yeah, yeah. It's probably not a hundred percent true, but again, great thought. Starter. Mailbag Drop us a note. Mailbagarmstrongegetti.com is the email address. Drew, the Millennial frequent correspondent writes I discovered something. Had a couple of thoughts this weekend as I was fixing my boat. Because that's what you do when you have a boat. You fix it. A lot. Anyway. Firstly, you often discuss the fact that reporters and journalists report on all topics, and we tend to trust them. However, it isn't until they report on a topic you happen to be an expert in that you discover that they have no idea what the hell they're talking about. 100 there's actually a term for this.

[Jack Armstrong]

This.

[Joe Getty]

The Gel man amnesia effect.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yep.

[Joe Getty]

G, E L or gel man amnesia effect.

[Jack Armstrong]

I became aware of this fairly recently. We. We talked about this for years.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

Huh.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. And it's funny. Even as we recognized it, it's hard to believe. It's. It's completely true. Universally true. Engineers read a news report about engineering and think these people don't have any idea what they're talking about. But I'm sure their coverage of the radio industry is accurate, you know, and vice versa. Yeah. Anyway, I like this note from the lovely Lindsay, Jack, and Joe, longtime listener since I was 19 years old, now a divorced woman in her mid-40s.

[Jack Armstrong]

We're old.

[Joe Getty]

I finally decided to ask ChatGPT to help me with many unanswered questions about building a vegetable garden, an irrigation system where Google never gave me any answers to my specific questions and circumstances. Chat GPT understood what I needed in three seconds, told me exactly how to do it it and provided an illustrated schematic to help. Seems like Chat GPT is filling the mail gap in my life and I probably don't need to worry about dating anymore. Thanks guys.

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't.

[Joe Getty]

Yes.

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't know that term. What was that word before the garden?

[Joe Getty]

Vegetables. I'm not familiar with that term she signs off. K G W R T E T H R. Keep giving women a reason to end the human race. Love you guys. Love you.

[Jack Armstrong]

Why you're gonna give up on women or on men entirely? Because chat GPT could tell you how to garden.

[Joe Getty]

Okay, that is too bad. Another frequent correspondent, the great JT in Livermore. Trump may be the master dealmaker, but I think a huge critical mistake he and others are making is that you can't make a deal when one or both parties don't want a deal.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Joe Getty]

New York real estate, where Trump made his bones. There's always a buyer and a seller or a union boss and a business interest. When there are two parties who want to make a deal, if it's the right deal and having a master deal makers possible. But Putin, Russia, Palestinians, they don't want to make a deal. Certainly Hamas doesn't. So there's not a master deal making to be made.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, you can pressure people into a deal though, either militarily or economically, possibly, but you have to be willing to pressure them. And I'm not sure he's willing to pressure Putin at all.

[Joe Getty]

Well, and I would say, you know, a couple of those examples, Putin and Hamas, the pressure would have to be very, very intense.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yes, yes, it would.

[Joe Getty]

And violent and expensive. Coast to coast allergies attacking Americans. Stay tuned. And risky as well. It would open various Pandora's boxes. So yeah, I too am skeptical about some of this. Let's see. With our president having the best doctors, writes Chris, how did Biden get such a late cancer diagnosis? Mean Jake Tapper has had his head up Biden's bleep for the last five years.

[Jack Armstrong]

So I see, I see. That is an ongoing joke. Okay, there you go. Yeah, the why they telling this now when it's probably been known for some time? That is an interesting question. We got a lot to come. If you miss a segment, get the podcast Armstrong and Getty on demand.

[Joe Getty]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

You're listening to an I heart podcast.