State of the Union Aftermath: Did Trump Shift the Political Momentum? Doug Schoen & Buck Sexton Weigh In

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bill O’Reilly’s No Spin News and Analysis
Episode: State of the Union Aftermath: Did Trump Shift the Political Momentum? Doug Schoen & Buck Sexton Weigh In
Date: February 26, 2026

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Main Theme

The episode centers on the political fallout and key takeaways from President Trump's record-long State of the Union Address. Bill O’Reilly assesses whether Trump shifted the national political momentum toward the GOP, dissecting the speech’s strategy, public and media reactions, and the implications for the upcoming midterms. Democratic strategist Doug Schoen and conservative commentator Buck Sexton join to provide contrasting perspectives on the speech’s effectiveness and its broader impact on party politics and American public opinion.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Analysis of Trump’s State of the Union Address

• Historic Length and Tone

  • Trump’s address was the longest ever (1 hour, 48 minutes), surpassing previous records.
  • O'Reilly notes the expectation it would be boring but commends its structure and strategic use of “traps” for Democrats.
    • "The speech was 1 hour, 48 minutes, the longest State of the Union ever...It wasn’t boring. Because what the Trump speechwriters did was kind of lay traps for the opposition." [00:46]

• Patriotism and Public Support

  • Trump wrapped himself in patriotism, introducing the men’s Olympic gold medal hockey team for a “feel good” moment. O'Reilly notes frustration that media failed to capture Democrats’ reaction on camera, calling it "maddening."
    • "I’m embarrassed for my profession...We don’t know how the Democrats reacted to having the American hockey team go in there. It’s maddening." [03:44]

• Policy Focus and Shift to Attacking Democrats

  • Early segments focused on domestic policies, then pivoted to sharply criticize Democrats, a strategy O'Reilly describes as election season positioning.
    • "About 15 minutes in, the tone of the speech changed from here's what Republicans are going to do to here's what Democrats have done." [02:16]
  • Trump set up a moment, urging legislators to stand for protecting Americans over illegal aliens—Democrats didn’t stand, giving Trump an opportunity to admonish them.
    • "The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens." (Trump) [05:56]
    • "Democrats didn’t stand...Trump knew they weren’t going to stand and he scolded them." [06:32]

• Targeting Obamacare and Insider Trading

  • Trump attacked Obamacare as a “rip off” and pitched a new healthcare plan.
    • "I’m also confronting one of the biggest rip offs of our times. The crushing cost of health care caused by you since the passage of the Unaffordable Care act, sometimes referred to as Obamacare." [11:47]
  • He called for ending insider trading by Congress members, specifically referencing Nancy Pelosi.
    • "As we ensure that all Americans can profit from a rising stock market, let’s also ensure that members of Congress cannot corruptly profit from using insider information. They stood up for that. I can’t believe it. Did Nancy Pelosi stand up?" (Trump) [08:54]
    • O'Reilly repeatedly criticizes poor TV direction for not showing Democrats' reactions.

• Fact-Checking and Exaggerations

  • O'Reilly acknowledges Trump’s tendency to exaggerate statistics but downplays these inaccuracies as political theater.

2. Democratic Division, Radicalism, and Leadership Crisis

• O'Reilly critiques Democrats for lacking clear leadership, suggesting the party is beholden to its radical fringe (AOC, Omar, Talib, etc.).

  • "There’s no leadership within the Democratic Party. None. Trump knows that. The last effective Democratic leader was Nancy Pelosi." [07:47]
  • Predicts AOC could beat Schumer in New York due to the state’s shifting politics. [07:59]

• Reaction to Trump’s Attack Strategy

  • O’Reilly argues Trump’s strategy of painting Democrats as radical leftists will be the GOP’s main campaign theme.
    • "What Trump did last night was he put down a marker...And he’s talking to independent voters now, they’re worse. So we gave you a tax cut. They want to raise taxes. We’re protecting Americans from illegal alien criminals. They don’t want to do that." [14:38]

3. Reactions from Doug Schoen (Democratic Strategist)

• Schoen acknowledges Trump delivered a “virtuoso performance” and dominated the national conversation, but doubts it will meaningfully shift midterm outcomes long-term.
  • "Where you’re right is that Trump’s performance was a virtuoso one. He dominated the dialogue...I just am skeptical whether there’s enough juice in the arguments to hold the House." [15:57]
• Warns that anger is more pronounced among Democrats and independents, which could drive turnout against the GOP.
  • "Those that are most likely to vote are those that are most angry. And right now, that is Democrats and independents who are...frustrated with Trump." [17:55]
• Expresses alarm over the Democratic party’s internal leftward drift.
  • "The Democrats, which have moved so far to the left that they are unimaginable from the party I joined many, many years ago." [19:17]
  • "AOC could get the nomination and that would be very scary." [20:45]

4. Reactions from Buck Sexton (Conservative Commentator, Author)

• Sexton sees the Democratic Party as engaging in “mass delusion,” facilitated by their control of the media.
  • "I think that the Democrats are completely insane...what they’re presenting...is an alternative reality, dare I say a delusion." [24:35]
• Discusses his book and the concept of “manufacturing delusion”—drawing parallels between propaganda in authoritarian regimes and tactics used in the US via social and mass media.
  • "To create delusion in people’s minds, you’ve got to first sweep reality away…That’s much easier in totalitarian, as you just said, than in a free country." [26:34]
• Asserts that while outright state violence isn’t prevalent, confusion and degradation (core propaganda tactics) are being used by the left in America to control discourse.
  • "When you see the way that Democrats try to confuse issues as well as confuse their followers to degrade people by lying to their faces or forcing them to be a part of a lie...this is a self-reinforcing cycle." [32:02]
• Sexton and O’Reilly agree on the existential risk this poses to the Democratic Party, predicting it will eventually collapse under the weight of radicalism.
  • "Now the radicals control the Democratic Party which I think is going to lead to the demise of that party." (O’Reilly) [30:55]

5. Media Reaction and Epstein Distraction

• O'Reilly and guests criticize CNN and others for shifting focus to peripheral issues (like bringing up Epstein) to avoid acknowledging Trump’s effective address.
  • "I used to have respect for her, no longer...They go down and down and down...No semblance of fairness whatsoever on the network? None." [14:16]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Party Dynamics:

  • O’Reilly: "When you see your opponent get unhinged, you know you’ve won." [23:22]
  • Doug (on leadership): "No idea." [19:49]
  • O’Reilly (on AOC): "AOC is too dumb to be elected president." [20:35]

• On Speech Strategy:

  • "Trump knew they [Democrats] weren’t going to stand and he scolded them." (O’Reilly) [06:32]
  • Trump: "Isn’t that ashamed? You should be ashamed of yourself not standing up." [06:58]

• Buck Sexton, on mass delusion:

  • "How mass mind control can be achieved without bayonets up against everybody’s throat. And that’s something that we’re certainly seeing in this country." [26:02]
  • "You say what happened to the party of jfk? It keeps getting worse because their strategies rely on lying to people, on living by lies." [32:02]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• 00:46 – O’Reilly’s opening analysis of the State of the Union
• 03:44 – Reaction to the hockey team’s appearance and the missing Democratic response
• 05:56 – Trump’s “stand up” moment, scolding Democrats
• 08:54 – Insider trading applause, Pelosi reference
• 11:47 – 12:23 – Trump attacks Obamacare, pitches new healthcare plan
• 15:57 – 19:17 – Doug Schoen analyzes speech impact and party divisions
• 24:35 – 32:57 – Buck Sexton discusses “manufactured delusion” and propaganda
• 33:28 – CNN asks Kamala Harris about running again

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Episode Tone and Style

• O’Reilly’s signature “no spin” approach: Direct, often combative, rich with irony and barbed observations.
• Schoen is measured, providing Democratic realism and party concerns.
• Sexton leans ideological, focusing on propaganda and cultural delusion.

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Conclusion

Bill O’Reilly frames Trump’s State of the Union as a pivotal, well-executed political event that put Democrats on the defensive and energized Republicans, at least for now. The Democratic Party’s lack of clear leadership and its radical leftward shift are offered as its Achilles heel. There is consensus among the panelists that Trump’s performance was strategically effective, though the long-term impact—especially for the midterms—remains uncertain. The episode is a blend of political strategy breakdown, media criticism, and warnings about the dangers of polarization and manufactured realities in American democratic life.

Transcript

[Bill O'Reilly]

Foreign. Here. Welcome to the no spin news. Wednesday, February 25, 2026. Stand up for your country. Big victory for the Republicans last night in the State of the Union. Not a partisan statement based on facts. We'll prove it to you. And we have a Democrat and a Republican to react to what I'm saying and to what President Trump said. And that is a talking points memo this evening. So advantage gop because the momentum has shifted, at least temporarily, into President Trump's zone. Now, the speech was 1 hour, 48 minutes, the longest State of the Union ever. Only William Henry Harrison gave a longer speech. It wasn't called the State of the Union, it was an inauguration speech. And then he died after he gave it because he caught pneumonia. So he was outside, it was freezing, and just William Henry wouldn't stop. You can read about that in confronting the president. But anyway, longest State of the Union. And it wasn't boring. I thought it would be. It wasn't. Because what the Trump speechwriters did was kind of lay traps for the opposition and they spent much of the time denigrating Democrats rather than propping up Republicans. But it worked. Let us walk through it. So about an hour and 20 minutes was spent on domestic policy. All right? And that's the key because people are feeling squeezed financially. So president came out and said, and they all do this. Every president does it. I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that, I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that. Okay, Standard issue. The last 30 minutes was spent on a little foreign policy, but other things. But about 15 minutes in, the tone of the speech changed from here's what Republicans are going to do to here's what Democrats have done. Very, very important for you to understand this. Okay? So it was, you may not like all of the Republican policies, but these people, the Democrats are way worse. That will be the theme for the next 18 months till the midterms come. Okay? So the president, as he always does well, wraps himself in the flag. Patriotism. Because patriotism is very emotional. Roll a tape.

[Donald Trump]

But now we're winning too much. And I say, no, no, no, you're

[Donald Trump (continued speech)]

going to win again. You're going to win big. You're going to win bigger than ever. And to prove that point, to prove that point, here with us tonight is a group of winners who just made the entire nation proud. The men's gold medal Olympic hockey team. Come on in.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Okay, so it was predictable that that would happen. And that is a feel good moment here's the most frustrating thing. I couldn't see how the Democrats were reacting to that because the camera was not on that crew. And I expected some of the reporters in the room would write about how the Democrats reacted to the hockey team coming in to the rapturous applause on the part of the president's supporters. Nothing. We couldn't find anything. We don't know. I'm embarrassed for my profession. We don't know how the Democrats reacted to having the American hockey team go in there. It's maddening. And I was watching it last night. I said, where is the react shot on the Democrats? Where is never came. It's stunning because that is important. Okay. All right. So the president, he basically was telling the American people, and some of them obviously don't believe it, that this is the golden age of America. We're in it. Up to you. Up to you. Now there are people who hate Trump. They'll never believe anything he says. People who love him will believe everything he says. But the big middle. Up to you. You think it's the golden age? I think we have momentum this country. I do. Golden age. Not yet. Okay. So the key moment, the whole thing, and this was a well laid plan and the Democrats should have anticipated something like this was going to happen. Roll it.

[Donald Trump]

One of the great things about the State of the Union is how it gives Americans the chance to see clearly what their representatives really believe. So tonight I'm inviting every legislature to join with my administration in reaffirming a fundamental principle. If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support. The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Democrats didn't stand. Okay. If I were a Democrat, I would have stood because under the Constitution, the first duty is to protect Americans. Democrats didn't stand. Trump knew they weren't going to stand and he scolded them. Roll the tape.

[Donald Trump]

Isn't that ashamed? You should be ashamed of yourself not standing up.

[Donald Trump (continued speech)]

You should be ashamed of yourself. That is why I'm also asking you to end deadly sanctuary cities that protect the criminals.

[Bill O'Reilly]

All right, and then you have Congresswoman Omar, Minnesota and Talib of Michigan screaming at Trump, screaming that he's killing Americans on and on. This is not a good look for the Democratic Party. These radical members of the party are, are damaging the Democrats among independent voters. Radicalism is not what the majority of Americans want. And these are as radical. These are people who want to just blow up everything. And to see them scream at the president doesn't help. The Democratic Party. And that's becoming more and more comment now. There is no leader. There's no Democratic leader. So Schumer is the top guy in the Senate. Jeffries is the speak minority guy in the House. They're ciphers. They get run over. In fact, Cortez is going to challenge Schumer, who I don't think will run again. She'll beat him in New York. She'll beat Chuck. Okay. Because it's New York. So there's no leadership within the Democratic Party. None. Trump knows that the last effective Democratic leader was Nancy Pelosi. And here's what Trump said about her. Go.

[Donald Trump]

As we ensure that all Americans can profit from a rising stock market, let's also ensure that members of Congress cannot corruptly profit from using insider information. They stood up for that. I can't believe it. I can't believe it. Did Nancy Pelosi stand up? If she's here,

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Doubt it.

[Donald Trump]

Pass the Stop Insider Trading act without delay.

[Bill O'Reilly]

So an NC Pelosi worth about 300 million. Okay. And she was there. But of course, once again, a camera didn't. Couldn't find her. Boy, that was poorly shot. Whoever was in charge of that awful. Because that camera should have been right on Pelosi on that one. Okay, so then Trump knows he has momentum. And here's an aside. I'm a professional broadcaster. As you know, Donald Trump spoke for nearly two hours. He did not stumble once. That's almost impossible for a human being to do. He rode right through that whole thing.

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[Bill O'Reilly]

Yeah, he rehearsed it but two hours everybody stumbles. Not him. Then he goes after the Democrats signature achievement, Obamacare. Go.

[Donald Trump]

I'm also confronting one of the biggest rip offs of our times. The crushing cost of health care caused by you since the passage of the Unaffordable Care act, sometimes referred to as Obamacare. Big insurance company has gotten rich. That's why I introduced the great healthcare plan. I want to stop all payments to big insurance companies and instead give that

[Donald Trump (continued speech)]

money directly to the people so they can buy their own health care which will be better healthcare at a much lower cost.

[Bill O'Reilly]

All right, so you can see he's dismantling the opposition step by step and it was effective. The President does exaggerate. Everybody knows that CNN spent all his time fact checking him. Some of the fact check was accurate, some of them wasn't. You can manipulate crime stats, economic stats all day long. It's easy to do. I just give you one example. So the President says In the last three months of 2025, inflation was 1, 7, 1.7%. It was 2.4. But he's got his own numbers and he can try it out. Something. I don't pay attention to that anymore. I know what inflation is. It's running a little over 2% isn't bad. Not bad. Okay. Now in the end it got down to the point where the Democrats didn't know what to do and you could see that when they walked out of the chamber that they were in disarray. So now here's what you can expect. Epstein, you think it was bad before, now it's every time you turn around the Democrats, Epstein, Trump, even though there's not a shred of evidence. Not a shred. Okay. You're going to hear it and hear it and hear it. And CNN kicked it off last night right after the speech. Go.

[CNN Correspondent]

He didn't make any mention of Jeffrey Epstein during that speech. Despite the fact that there were some survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's in the chamber.

[Jackson Hewitt Advertiser]

Many were.

[CNN Correspondent]

What did you make of that moment?

[Bill O'Reilly]

Well, it was again,

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

I don't even

[Bill O'Reilly]

know if that was state of the nation speech. I don't know what she's talking about. Collins, he didn't made any image. Why would he make any mention of Epstein? Why? I mean she's just. I used to have respect for her. No longer. Zach and cnn, I don't know what the deuce they're doing over there. They go down and down and down and down and down. They don't care. They don't care. No semblance of fairness whatsoever on the network? None. Okay. Finally, the midterm election is, as I said, a much more contained than a presidential election. But what Trump did last night was he put down a marker there, no matter how you look at Republicans. And he's talking to independent voters now, they're worse. So we gave you a tax cut. They want to raise taxes. We're protecting Americans from illegal alien criminals. They don't want to do that. On and on and on, one after the other after the other. That will be the theme for the next eight months. And that is the memo. All right, let's get some reaction from two very smart guys. First, Doug. Sean joins us from Miami, a Democrat political strategist. Where am I going wrong here, Doug?

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Bill, I don't think you're going wrong. If I can just add that it's going to be hard to change the dialogue in the extent and to the degree you're estimating in light of public opinion, which now strongly favors the Democrats, largely because of the affordability crisis, which in the 2025 elections proved to be paramount. But where you're right is that Trump's performance was a virtuoso one. He dominated the dialogue. You did accurately describe what the themes will be of the midterm. I just am skeptical whether there's enough juice in the arguments to hold the House. The Senate, I think, is more likely than not to stay in the Republican hands. The House, I think, is more likely than not to go Democratic.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Well, the polls are going to shift in Trump's favor big time in the next two weeks. You wait and see. Because whether it lasts is the big question, though. But remember now, you got tax refunds coming up, okay? So that's going to juice the economy. Trump is serious about getting the health care insuring costs down. Democrats will stand in the way of that. They're not going to support that. So a lot of things going to happen. You're going to have Iran come to a head in the next two weeks, and that probably will go America's way, whether it's a treaty or whether it's military action. So right now, you couldn't deny, unless you were, you know, dishonest, working in the national corporate media, couldn't deny that Trump changed the momentum in the country, political momentum.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Don't question that at all, Bill. But in midterm elections, and we've discussed this before, those that are most likely to vote are those that are most angry. And right now, that is Democrats and independents who are, for a variety of reasons, frustrated with Trump because of overreaching by ICE and the continued issue with prices. So I'm not disputing anything you're saying. I'm just not sure it's going to last.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Okay, well, you know, the, what most anchormen say is we'll see. I would fire any anchorman who said that if I were the boss. It's not. My job is to pinpoint what's happening, not say we'll see. A five year old can say that. What is likely to happen is that the Republicans are going to go out and say these people running against me are radical leftists. Even if they're not, they'll tag them. Okay. And they are dangerous people for the uninformed voter. And there are a lot of them. That is a very effective way to.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Bill Weir, I think you're right is the Republicans have a tough time making an argument that they have performed well enough to deserve to hold both houses. Where their argument is stronger, as you're suggesting, is on a comparison or a contrast with my party, the Democrats, which have moved so far to the left that they are unimaginable from the party I joined many, many years ago.

[Bill O'Reilly]

They're demonized. So who's the leader of your party, Doug?

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

No idea.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Aoc, Bernie Sanders disturb you? There's no leader.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

The idea that AOC could beat Schumer, I'm not going to cry crocodile tears for him. But candidly, Bill, she is a competitive presidential candidate against people like Gavin Newsom. And that is extraordinary, just extraordinary that somebody on the far left with Bernie Sanders in premature has a theoretical chance and a practical chance of getting the Democratic nomination, having been in the House for I think, what, four terms now with a prior work record that was largely in the hospitality industry.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Well, let me, let me soothe your mind, Doug. AOC is too dumb to be elected president.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Well, she could get the nomination and that would be very scary.

[Bill O'Reilly]

I don't think so. Newsom would beat her. Newsom would beat her in a debate. Newsom is more than she is. I mean, I don't think it would be close. I don't think it'd be close.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Well, she gets 40% or gets, you know, 3 in 10, 4 in 10 Democrats sympathizing with her. That makes winning any election for the Democrats far more difficult, regardless of who's nominated. That to me is a devastating blow to my party.

[Bill O'Reilly]

So I was on Hannity's radio program today and Hannity was making the argument that the Republicans are going to swamp the Democrats and we have that on billoriley.com and I don't concur. I say what's going to hurt the Democrats is themselves the 20%, maybe 22 or 3 that are radical left. And the rest of the Democratic Party isn't radical left. But because of the money flow. Yeah, because of the money flow, the radicals call the shots.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

That's correct.

[Bill O'Reilly]

And AOC is a radical. So if only 22% of Democrats are radical and the rest of the country doesn't want radicals, AOC has no chance for the presidency.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

But in a Democratic primary, among actual voters, the far left is about 40 to 45%. Those that turn out and low turnout primaries donate money.

[Bill O'Reilly]

There wouldn't be low turnout, though. If you get somebody that radical, everything is going to.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Bernie Sanders did pretty darn well for at least two presidential races. Hillary stole one from him and he came pretty darn close in 2020. I don't.

[Bill O'Reilly]

People hate Hillary. Newsom is a very slick campaign.

[Doug (Democratic political strategist)]

Hillary. They were voting for Bernie because Joe Biden hadn't made a deal with Clyburn yet to get.

[Bill O'Reilly]

No, I got it. I got the inner workings. But Sanders never had a chance, in my opinion. All right, Doug, always a pleasure. Thank you for telling us. Out. Very good conversation. Okay. So unhinged. When you see your opposition doesn't matter whether it's politics or sports or chess or whatever. When you see your opponent get unhinged, you know you've won. And this is what happened last night. Go.

[Jim (Liberal commentator)]

We have a nut job wannabe king who's doing everything he can to censor opinions he doesn't want to hear.

[Bill O'Reilly]

He.

[Jim (Liberal commentator)]

He has his goons arresting, incarcerating, and killing American citizens. He's got funding for cancer research at children's hospitals while he rakes in literally billions of dollars for himself and his family. He's coming after our right to vote.

[Bill O'Reilly]

You know, do you think that helps, Jim? You think what you're doing helps your party? My God. All right, joining us now from Miami, same place Doug was, because these guys are not tough enough to take the weather in the Northeast. Shone and Buck Sexton, who has a book out Manufacturing Delusion, how the Left Uses Brainwashing, Indoctrination, Propaganda against you. You know, he is on the radio with the Clay and Buck program, which I do occasionally. So, Sexton, where am I going wrong? Where's shown going wrong? What are we missing here?

[Buck Sexton]

Missing with what? I mean, I think that the Democrats are completely insane. I think that Jimmy Kimmel and what they're presenting to the American People is an alternative reality, dare I say a delusion. I mean, you mentioned my book and Bill, one thing I've learned from doing the research of this is that the problem is fitting in all of the delusions. The problem is getting all of the unreality onto the page that we're forced to live in day in and day out. But I didn't just want to make this a screed about what's going on today. Although certainly we get into, in the book, I get into the transgender madness, the BLM madness, Covid. Obviously it's not a Covid book, but there's some reflection on the craziness that happened during COVID But I wanted to go back to some of the people who are the, honestly, the biggest experts of the last hundred years in the fields of psychiatry, of coercion, of psychological operations. And look at how do people in totalitarian states, where this really became something of an evil art form, how do they seize minds? And what I kept coming into, Bill, was even the great experts, people like Joost Meerloo, who was a Dutch American psychiatrist who was fighting against the Nazis, then joined the Dutch army in exile during World War II and was doing psychological operations for the British. He said, look, I've studied the Nazis. I've debriefed some of the worst of the ss. How they control minds involves a lot of force, a lot of violence, but there are pathways that are similar to even Western countries and the left and the totalitarian impulse. And I think people need to understand that. So I unpack some of those tactics and get into some of the realities of how mass mind control can be achieved without bayonets up against everybody's throat. And that's something that we're certainly seeing in this country.

[Bill O'Reilly]

But it happens on both sides. There are right wing kooks, too, but the left has, has perfected it here with the tremendous help of the corporate media, which, if you watched the State of the Union, and I always do this, I whipped on CNN as soon as it was over, okay? So I know what Fox is going to say. And then they already started on Epstein, already started. Boom. They couldn't. They didn't have any kind of defense against Trump's speech because it was effective. So they right away try to divert. And that's one of the things in your book, and I did read your book. To create delusion in people's minds, you've got to first sweep reality away. Yes, real life has, right? Real life has to leave the building. And that's much easier in totalitarian, as you just said, than in a free country. So I don't think that's ever going to happen here on a mass level. Mass delusion. But when you saw last night the traps that the Republican Party laid for the Democrats, I was stunned. The Democrats weren't prepared for those traps. How did you see it?

[Buck Sexton]

No, I think, Bill, that the Democrats got what they deserved and got what needed to be said when Trump just called them out for being crazy. I mean, this party, and I think there's a number of reasons why it has gone in this direction. But you mentioned the corporate media control they had. And most notably until Elon's purchase of X and the breakthrough of the second Trump administration of social media in a whole range of ways, the stranglehold they had over information online, I think created a left that was increasingly authoritarian. And I would, if I could push back just a little bit on we won't have mass delusion in America. I mean, I would argue that the shutting down of schools and the double masking while you were sitting at your chair, but not while you were or rather you're getting up to go to the bathroom at the restaurant, but not while you were sitting in your chair and getting six shots and the genuflection of I'm so happy I got Covid, but I'm vaccinated, all these things. I mean, that, that was a mass delusion that we were going through.

[Bill O'Reilly]

But remember, that wasn't a, that wasn't a partisan delusion that Donald Trump was president and that Fauci, who's a villain in your book, worked for Trump. So it wasn't that. It was just one party pushing it. The whole federal government kind of coalesced around these erroneous things. And many of them were the social distancing, the mask, which didn't provide any protection. But now you've got a radical movement in this country that controls the Democratic Party. I don't see that spreading much more than it has. Go ahead.

[Buck Sexton]

So let me give you an example of where I think it spreads. And to be clear, now, we could talk about, well, what's a mass delusion? I mean, when we're saying mass, are we talking about 80% of the country? Are we talking about 10 million people or a million people or even a few hundred thousand people who believe something and then can have enormous effect on the rest of the country? An example of this would be the transgender madness. Now, we could say, OK, well, is that really a mass delusion? Because only 20% of the country based on a lot of the polls really buys into this stuff. But a manufacturing delusion I get into. Well, hold on a second. It's not just the people in the mass, it's also the institutions. Right. It's the old seizing of the telegraph office paradigm. It's who's parroting this stuff in the media. Who has something that I talk about in the book and manufacturing delusion, the fire hose of falsehood at their disposal. Who can just inundate, can flood the zone with those lies. So even if you don't have the numbers, I mean Bill, as you know the Bolsheviks were never the majority in Russia.

[Bill O'Reilly]

Neither were the nonvicts were actually a Hitler never got faction among. Right, right.

[Buck Sexton]

A faction among factions.

[Bill O'Reilly]

And so you were. And one of the fascinating things about your book Buck is that Buck did work for the CIA and he went to these places and he saw the delusion that was growing. But in America we don't have. You either see it my way or you're going to get the hell beat out of you by the SA thugs. That's not happening here. But I don't want to argue that. What I want to argue is my. I think the Democratic Party is almost destroying itself at this point. Put Trump and the Republicans aside. Just concentrate on what's happening within the Democratic Party, the party of jfk. Okay. Who is really the last true Democrat. Carter was and Carter had no idea what he was. All right, Barack Obama was pretty left. Kennedy was not close to being Barack Obama. But now the radicals control the Democratic Party which I think is going to lead to the demise of that party. But I don't know if it's going to happen in November. Last word, Bill.

[Buck Sexton]

In manufacturing delusion I get into a couple of the tactics that are essential to both. Not just a totalitarian society. When they have the gulags and they have the truncheons and the thugs but can be used in a propagandistic way to control people in a society like our own. And it's confusion and degradation. And when you see those, those are two traits, two very important things that experts have identified. When you see the way that Democrats try to confuse issues as well as confuse their followers to degrade people by lying to their faces or forcing them to be a part of a lie, a whole range of issues. This is sort of a self reinforcing cycle where they can't self correct. And I think that's what you're identifying. You say what happened to the party of jfk? It keeps getting worse because their strategies rely on lying to people, on living by lies.

[Bill O'Reilly]

And their goals are much different. Their goals are tear down traditional America. Whereas Kennedy was not close to that. All right. Book. The book is Manufacturing Delusion. Get it anywhere. We really appreciate it. Buck, thanks for having me on your radio program as well. And we'll talk anytime soon.

[Jim (Liberal commentator)]

Thank you.

[Bill O'Reilly]

So Kamala Harris services. She's on promoting a book or something on some kind of social media. And here's what happened. Go.

[CNN Correspondent]

Last question. Everybody here wants to know the answer. Will you run again?

[Jackson Hewitt Advertiser]

I haven't decided.

[CNN Correspondent]

You're still thinking about it.

[Bill O'Reilly]

I might gift to the Republicans now. She should be the leader of the Democratic Party, Kamal Harris, because remember, when Trump lost his run, he remained the leader of the Republican Party. In the four years under Biden, Trump was the leader. She's in Malibu. I don't know what she's doing, but I might. Man, every Republican in the country went. Yes. Final thought about me in a moment. Here's the final thought of the I will not be here tomorrow because I have to get medical maintenance. As you know, I tell you, you need three things in life. You need a doctor who cares about you, an attorney who cares about you, and a financial advisor who cares about you. I've got them. So I got to check in with my doctors on a regular basis now. Fighting a good fight. But I got an appointment tomorrow in the city. Got to do it. So I'm not going to be here. But we will be on it as we always are. It'll be a column on Sunday and we'll be back on Monday. Next week is a big week with the return of the Factor on News Nation. Huge thank you for watching and listening on our radio affiliates tonight. I'm Bill O'Reilly. We'll see you on Monday.