2/27/25: SCOTUS Saves Trump Cuts, Trump Tells Cabinet To Back Elon Or Get Out, Elon Agrees To Jon Stewart Interview

Summary

Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar – Episode Summary (02/27/25)

Podcast Information:

• Title: Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar
• Hosts: Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti
• Publisher: iHeartPodcasts
• Description: Breaking Points is a fearless anti-establishment multi-week YouTube and podcast series that holds the powerful accountable, hosted by Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti.
• Episode Title: SCOTUS Saves Trump Cuts, Trump Tells Cabinet To Back Elon Or Get Out, Elon Agrees To Jon Stewart Interview
• Release Date: February 27, 2025

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1. Supreme Court's Temporary Stay on USAID Funds

Timestamp: [04:46] - [12:43]

Key Discussion: Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti delve into the recent Supreme Court decision where Chief Justice John Roberts issued a temporary stay allowing the Trump administration to keep certain USAID foreign aid funds frozen. This decision interrupts orders from multiple federal judges mandating the unfreezing of these funds, specifically targeting contracts where work has been performed but payments are pending.

Notable Insights:

• The Trump administration has employed various legal rationales to justify the freezing of funds, resisting compliance with court orders.
• The Supreme Court's intervention is seen as a strategy to maintain the status quo while allowing more time for the administration to formulate its legal arguments.
• This move is part of a broader attempt to challenge the Impoundment Control Act, aiming to consolidate the executive branch's control over federal funding.

Notable Quotes:

• Krystal Ball: "This is the first time the Supreme Court weighed in on this issue, signaling a potential showdown over executive power." ([04:46])
• Saagar Enjeti: "There's a lot to say about how the administration is navigating these court orders, and it’s a prelude to a significant Supreme Court battle." ([08:30])

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2. Trump Pressures Cabinet to Support Elon Musk

Timestamp: [16:04] - [24:34]

Key Discussion: The conversation shifts to a pivotal cabinet meeting attended by Elon Musk, where President Trump issued a stark ultimatum: support Elon Musk's directives or face removal from the cabinet. This unprecedented move places Musk in a dominant role within the federal government, effectively sidelining traditional cabinet officials.

Notable Insights:

• Trump’s direct endorsement of Musk signals a significant power shift, with Musk overseeing major federal agency cuts.
• The administration's strategy includes reducing USAID contracts by 90%, impacting vital programs like PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief).
• The dynamics within the cabinet reveal a merger of executive authority under Musk’s leadership, bypassing established governmental protocols.

Notable Quotes:

• Saagar Enjeti: "Donald Trump has settled the Elon question, effectively placing Elon at the helm of these federal cuts." ([16:04])
• Krystal Ball: "Elon is now the primary decision-maker, overshadowing even the President in certain aspects of governance." ([24:34])

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3. Elon Musk's Role in Federal Government Reorganization

Timestamp: [24:34] - [38:19]

Key Discussion: Elon Musk's influence extends beyond mere advisory roles, as he spearheads significant restructuring within federal agencies. His approach emphasizes massive staff reductions and privatization, aligning with his anarcho-capitalist ideology.

Notable Insights:

• Agencies like the Social Security Administration and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission face drastic staff cuts.
• Musk aims to streamline federal operations by converting government functions into private sector entities, reducing regulatory oversight.
• The administration's focus on deficit reduction underscores Musk's broader goals of fiscal control and efficiency, albeit at the cost of essential services.

Notable Quotes:

• Krystal Ball: "Massive cuts to Medicaid and other social safety nets are part of Musk’s broader agenda to privatize government functions." ([28:50])
• Saagar Enjeti: "Elon's willingness to override traditional government structures marks a radical shift in federal governance." ([38:19])

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4. Potential Cuts to Medicaid and Federal Agencies

Timestamp: [42:28] - [45:06]

Key Discussion: The hosts explore the implications of the proposed $2 trillion spending cut on federal programs, with a particular focus on Medicaid. Despite promises from Trump to protect Medicare, the administration targets Medicaid for significant reductions through measures like work requirements.

Notable Insights:

• Work requirements and fraud prevention serve as justifications for cutting Medicaid, impacting millions of beneficiaries.
• The administration faces challenges in balancing budget cuts with promises not to touch certain programs, leading to political and public pushback.
• Town hall meetings reveal growing dissatisfaction among Republican constituents over these austerity measures, indicating potential electoral repercussions.

Notable Quotes:

• Saagar Enjeti: "Medicaid is likely the primary target for cuts, despite public assurances to the contrary." ([43:08])
• Krystal Ball: "The administration's fig leaf is rooting out fraud, but the reality is millions are being removed from Medicaid." ([44:02])

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5. Political Implications and Public Response

Timestamp: [45:06] - [57:07]

Key Discussion: Krystal and Saagar discuss the political fallout from the administration's aggressive spending cuts and restructuring efforts. They highlight how these actions could influence Republican voter turnout and the broader political landscape.

Notable Insights:

• Republicans face challenges in maintaining support as cutting popular programs like Medicaid could alienate their base.
• Town hall resistance in strongly Republican districts signals internal conflicts and potential losses in upcoming elections.
• Public sentiment is increasingly negative due to economic concerns, such as rising consumer anxiety and stock market instability, further complicating the administration's position.

Notable Quotes:

• Krystal Ball: "These cuts are part of a pro-oligarch agenda that prioritizes the wealthy over the social safety net." ([28:50])
• Saagar Enjeti: "The administration’s spending cuts without a comprehensive plan are creating a chaotic economic environment." ([28:50])

---

6. Elon Musk's Potential Interview with Jon Stewart

Timestamp: [52:10] - [57:28]

Key Discussion: The episode concludes with a discussion about Elon Musk's conditional agreement to appear on Jon Stewart's show. The conditions include broadcasting the interview on X (formerly Twitter), raising questions about the likelihood of the interview taking place.

Notable Insights:

• Musk's stipulation reflects his strategic use of media platforms to control narrative and avoid traditional broadcasting constraints.
• The interview's potential could offer unprecedented insights into Musk's role in government and his future plans.
• Krystal and Saagar speculate on the dynamics of such an interview, highlighting Jon Stewart's capability to challenge high-profile figures effectively.

Notable Quotes:

• Krystal Ball: "An interview between Jon Stewart and Elon Musk would be a fascinating head-to-head that could expose the complexities of Musk's government role." ([52:10])
• Saagar Enjeti: "Musk’s conditions suggest he may be trying to navigate around standard media protocols to maintain his control over the conversation." ([52:45])

---

Conclusion

Throughout this episode, Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti provide a comprehensive analysis of the Trump administration's legal maneuvers, the unprecedented empowerment of Elon Musk within the federal government, and the resulting political and economic ramifications. The discussion underscores the tension between executive power and judicial oversight, the potential weakening of social safety nets, and the shifting dynamics within the Republican Party. The possible interview between Jon Stewart and Elon Musk caps off the episode, promising further exploration of these critical issues.

Final Thoughts: This episode sheds light on the precarious balance of power within the U.S. government and the profound implications of merging corporate influence with executive authority. It serves as a crucial discourse for listeners to understand the evolving political landscape and its impact on governance and societal welfare.

Transcript

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[Sagar Enjeti]

Hey guys, Sagar and Krystal here.

[Krystal Ball]

Independent media just played a truly massive role in this election and we are so excited about what that means for the future of this show.

[Sagar Enjeti]

This is the only place where you can find honest perspectives from the left and the right that simply does not exist anywhere else.

[Krystal Ball]

So if that is something that's important to you, Please go to BreakingPoints.com, become a member today and you'll get access to our full shows unedited ad free and all put together for you every morning in your inbox.

[Sagar Enjeti]

We need your help to build the future of independent news media and we hope to see [e-mail] Good morning everybody. Happy Thursday. Have an amazing show for everybody today. What do we have?

[Krystal Ball]

Crystal jam packed show today. We're gonna try to rip through as much news as we possibly can. So last night around midnight, we got the first Supreme Court weighing in. Not really a ruling, but a temporary stay weighing in on some Doge activity. So break all of that down for you. What it means, what is going to happen next. Also, big cabinet meeting yesterday that Elon Musk was at. Some very interesting things happened there. We'll show you some of the highlights. Sagar really wanted to sound off on the Trump golden visas. Ryan Emily covered it yesterday, but we had a bit of a different view. So we wanted to express that as well. Obviously important in the context of sort of like philosophically and what is this country and how do we want to pursue immigration, et cetera. More airplane near misses. Absolutely terrifying. Two coming in, very close session. We'll show you some really shocking footage from one of those near misses. There's a new Biden book that is going to be coming out. It is the inside story of his decline and the COVID up. Jake Tapper is involved. So that's led a lot of people to ask whether he is the right person to be doing the reporting there, whether he was himself in on part of that cover up. And Jeff Bezos making it plain that the Washington Post is not going to brook any dissent from the pro oligarch agenda. So we'll talk to you about that and the fallout that commenced afterwards.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yeah, there's a lot to say about it. It's just so hilarious to me the way that how naked, how all of these people are and more. It actually fits well with guests that Counterpoints had on yesterday. Really excited to be able to bring this to everybody. They got to sit down with the CFPB's former Rohit Chopra, who was behind the scenes working at the Biden administration. Rohit Chopra previously has not yet responded publicly to a lot of the allegations made against him by Mark Andreessen and by Mark Zuckerberg, we will be exclusively dropping that for our premium subscribers early. So if you want to go ahead and subscribe, you can. But we're gonna give you a little teaser of what that looks like. Let's take a listen. When it comes to debanking, I don't think people should ever lose their account because of their exercising their religion speech. And I'll tell you, one of the first things I did years ago was to put forth a stronger policy that made it clear when that type of discrimination or debanking ran afoul of the law. Guess who sued to block it? Who's that? It was actually the bank lobby and the Chamber of Commerce. So if you want to hear the whole thing early breakingpoints.com and support the type of journalism that we're able to do here. Thank you very much. But that. Well, why don't we get to the mini block, Crystal?

[Krystal Ball]

Yeah. So some news, some court news, legal news coming out last night. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts weighing in on whether or not the Trump administration needs to immediately unfreeze these USAID funds. Let's go ahead and put the tariff sheet up on the screen. Headline here from Politico. Chief justice allows Trump administration to keep foreign aid frozen for now. And this actually applies specifically to foreign aid contracts where the work has already been performed and people are waiting on payment. So it specifically applies to those payments. This is part of a back and forth that's been going on that we've been tracking here about USAID that has been working its way through the court system. Multiple federal judges have said to the Trump administration, you have to unfreeze this aid. And rather than try to do that, the Trump administration has repeatedly come up with different legal rationales why they believe, like, oh, we are complying and we just have now a new, different legal theory for why this aid can be frozen. A federal judge yesterday had said, listen, I'm done. You've been playing these games for weeks now. You have until midnight to unfreeze these funds. The Trump administration basically came back and said, we literally can't do that. They appealed to the Supreme Court. This is not any sort of a final decision or final ruling. This is just to preserve the status quo. John Roberts weighing in and saying, okay, we're going to give you some more time and asking for new filings to be put into this case by Friday. So Supreme Court almost certainly ultimately going to weigh in on this, but really significant because like I said, it's the first time the Supreme Court weighed in. And also, of course, we've been tracking this building crisis of whether or not the Trump administration was going to comply with the court orders that are coming down now. So far, like I said, they haven't been in compliance. And there have been multiple judges on this case specifically who have said, you aren't in compliance. But at this point, they're not just openly defying those court orders. They are coming up with legal theories for why they think they are justified in continuing to freeze this aid. In addition, as part of this filing, the latest legal theory that they've put in front of the courts is, okay, well, you said we couldn't do this blanket freeze. Now we've gone through line by line and we've decided that we wanna freeze some 90%, we wanna cancel some 90% of these contracts with regard to USAID specifically. So now they're saying, well, it's not a blanket freeze anymore. We just have gone through and decided that 90% of these contracts want to be cut. That in and of itself, Sagar, of course, is very significant because it includes some of the things that had previously actually gotten waivers. So included in that 90% cut is things like PEPFAR funds for people, largely in Africa, who have HIV and aids. It's gonna tie in with some comments that Elon Musk made with regard to the Cabinet meeting on Ebola. There's a lot of pieces here, obviously, when you cut something by 90%, that come into play. And this is all building up ultimately to that showdown where they wanna take a case of the Supreme Court and make the argument that they should be able to unilaterally cut funds as executive branch, even things that have been appropriated by Congress. This is part of that unitary executive theory. This is part of them wanting to deem the Impoundment Control act unconstitutional so that Congress effectively, in their view, sets what is a ceiling for funding. But then the executive branch can come in and say, but we don't like that program. We don't like that program. We don't like that program. And effectively consolidates the power of the purse largely within the executive branch, that we're one step closer to that eventual showdown. And I think it's anybody's guess which way the Supreme Court's gonna rule it.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yes, very good summation, as we said. So it's that this is just to stay. It's to stay. That will refer the matter to the Supreme Court, which will allow it to happen. Before they can make that, I will say there's some interesting, actually stuff also happening at the same time when the House of Representatives is continuing a resolution to fund the government. Now, theoretically, that continuing resolution would do what? It would continue to fund these very programs which have been paused by Doge. So there's actually an interim House maneuver which would both fund these, perhaps adding more to House. SCOTUS will have to weigh it with the current Congress actually funding the programs right now. So legally, as I understand that, that will add to some of the argument, obviously, for congressional power over the purse, but it will go to the full Supreme Court. I mean, I said here before, while you said it's definitely anybody's guess, I don't think Roberts would likely rule on behalf of the impoundment clause in the way that the Trump administration wants. The people with the most expansive views of. Of presidential power are Justice Kavanaugh and Justice Alito. Justice Thomas is kind of a, you know, kind of a wildcard in this regard.

[Krystal Ball]

Oh, really? I thought he'd be on board.

[Sagar Enjeti]

So you would think theoretically. But again, as I understand it, in his like, very small C conservative views previously in the way they've been applied, from a Federalist Society person I spoke to, he's more of a wild card. And Justice Gorsuch actually would be the number one person. Justice Gorsuch and Amy Barrett both come from a similar, more libertarian school. If you look at some of the past rules rulings Gorsuch has made in this, it would seem to indicate he'd likely to side with the liberals. So it's not a slam dunk by the Trump administration at all. They're trying to get this as early as possible so that it can obviously inform what their stuff, what actions they can continue to make in the future. So it's interesting nonetheless, and it is the latest thing, as you said, it's a relatively routine legal maneuver. We see SCOTUS stays all the time, whenever before they want to decide a full movement at the court. And you were talking also about the midnight deadline. It's like, well, you know, in terms of actually be able to comply with a literal midnight deadline with all these crazy governmental systems doesn't seem particularly realistic. So they also want to set up some sort of showdown just on that.

[Krystal Ball]

Totally. And I think that's an important part of it. I mean, I do think it was probably impossible for them to comply by midnight, which is what they were saying, like, we literally can't do this because the government is not just a switch you can flick on and off. On the other hand, the petitioners would say you've had weeks and weeks at this point to get it together and try to unfreeze these funds. And instead of taking any action in that direction, instead you've spent your time trying to come up with new legal rationales that would justify you defying this court order. So that's what this came down to. But you know, you have to keep in mind if you're Chief Justice John Roberts, if you're the Supreme Court, you really want to maintain your legitimacy. So if you're weighing in and saying, no, no, no, I agree, you have to unfreeze these funds by midnight. And you know that that's probably impossible to accomplish. Well then you're already in the a total head to head showdown with the executive branch. And they know that the second that the executive branch, if they were to go down the path of open defiance, then the Supreme Court as an institution is on, let's just say, very shaky ground. So that's part of the dynamics that play in here is they want to preserve their legitimacy. And if there's a credible threat, which I think there is, that the executive branch is just going to defy orders that they don't like and don't want to comply with, then that puts pressure on them to weigh in on the side of the Trump administration so that they can preserve the appearance of their own power. So that's one of the dynamics that go in here. And you've made the FDR comparison before. I think there is an apt comparison here because part of why the Supreme Court ultimately decides, like, all right, we'll let some of your programs go through that they were previously blocking is because they had threatened to pack the court, they knew that their sort of like power and legitimacy was on the line. And that's part of what applied pressure to them to go ahead and back what he was doing. And I think there is a kind of a similar dynamic that could play out here as well.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Absolutely. There's a book, I'm totally blanking on the name right now, which I highly recommend. Okay. Supreme Power, that's what it is, by Jeff Social. I read it several years ago. It's called Supreme Power, Franklin Roosevelt versus Supreme Court, which goes into this. I should probably reread it for some of these before the decision comes down. But if anybody's interested, that will give you some parallels.

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[Sagar Enjeti]

So extraordinary cabinet meeting. I guess that's one way to put it. Everybody else is in sin.

[Krystal Ball]

Unprecedented. We'll say.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Elon's in a dark MAGA hat wearing an overcoat and a T shirt. Okay, yeah, got it. That's definitely how we dress inside of the White House. Don't ask me why. Well, what the most interesting part was, Trump basically settled the Elon question with his cabinet, which is who has the authority over this email and compliance? And previously I really thought that that email was a very important ju. Because I was like, the cabinet's really asserting itself here as the executive. They're the people who have been Senate confirmed to run these government departments. But here is what Trump had to say. He said, if you're against Elon, we'll throw them out of here. Let's take a listen.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

I just wanted to ask you that. President Trump put out a truth social today, saying that everybody in the Cabinet.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Was happy with you.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

I just wondered if that.

[Sagar Enjeti]

If you had heard otherwise and if you had heard anything about members of.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

The Cabinet who weren't happy with the.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Way things were going, and if so.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

What are you doing to address those. Any dissatisfaction?

[Krystal Ball]

Let the Cabinet speak just for a second. If you are, we'll throw them out of here.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Is anybody unhappy? They are.

[Krystal Ball]

They have a lot of respect, respect for Elon and that he's doing this. And some disagree a little bit. But I will tell you, for the most part, I think everyone's not only happy, they're thrilled.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Okay, all right. I mean, settle the question. There you go. You have got there. Trump basically endorsing it 100%. And he said, well, if anybody disagrees with it, get outta here. Elon also expanded. This is more in terms of the relationship. This is why it's important during the meeting where he expanded on why he decided to send that email in the first place. And as Trump had said previously, it was at his own urging. Here's what Elon had to say.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

Like, last week, the president encouraged me via Truth Social and also via phone call to be more aggressive. And I was like, okay, you know, yes, sir, Mr. President, we will indeed do that. The president is the commander in chief. I do what the president asks. So. And I said, can we send out an email to everyone just saying, what did you get done last week? The president said, yes. So it did that. And, you know, we got a partial response. We're going to send another email, but our goal is not to be capricious or unfair. It's. We want to give people every opportunity to send an email. And the email could simply be what I'm working on is too sensitive or classified to describe. In fact, literally just replace. That would be sufficient. You know, I think this is just common sense.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

And what is your target number for how many workers, employees you're looking to cut total?

[Unknown Speaker 4]

We wish to keep everyone who is doing a job that is essential and doing that job well. But if they're. If the job is not essential or they're not doing the job. Well, they obviously should not be on public health.

[Sagar Enjeti]

So I just think it's important to say Trump has settled Elon question. It's like, all right, this is what the future is conceivably looks like now, and he is in control in terms of his ability to send these emails and whatnot. And I will fully admit I had no idea that this would ever be the dynamic. And I would never have predicted that Donald Trump would allow this kind of subsuming of his own presidency over this. If I were a Cabinet official, I would be furious, obviously. Cuz this is like, you know, I got confirmed by the Senate, my shit is all out there. I have to comply with all of these laws and sell stock and all these other, like, ethics things that you're allowed to do. Like, meanwhile, you know, somebody can just bigfoot and come on in here. But I do think at a certain point, we just have to be like, all right, this is what Trump wants. Like, it's no longer some sort of secondary project like Trump fully. He's had the information. It's February 27th, it's 37 days into Donald Trump's presidency. The fights and all of that have happened, and he has settled the question now that he wants Elon to at least be in charge of all of these cuts and basically of setting the guidance for federal agencies and so he can bear the consequences of that. Now, Donald Trump has made it clear that this is not some sort of fall guy or any of that. He's either endorsed some of the positions and or is basically saying he's the person who's in charge. And in a sense, that seems to be the point of that whole Cabinet show. When I covered the White House last time, Trump famously would have the cameras. He would bring them in here and force his cabinet officials to be like, Mr. President, you're the greatest president to ever serve in the history of mankind. And I do feel like this was the purpose of this entire gathering, especially to try and publicly be like, if anybody here has a problem, go ahead and get out of here.

[Krystal Ball]

Yeah, there we go. Yeah. And also to get on camera.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yeah, exactly.

[Krystal Ball]

Saying, oh, no, of course we love Elon, we do whatever. So, yeah, I mean, that's what's wild, is you're right. In the first administration, these gatherings of the cabinet secretaries, it was about Trump, were about licking the boots of Trump. This one was about licking the boots of Elon. So, yeah, I mean, I don't think anyone could have predicted that. I mean, I saw the dynamic developing pretty Quickly. I think the first real indication was over the H1B fight.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yes.

[Krystal Ball]

Where Trump really had to decide, are you gonna back Elon in an issue that he said he's gonna go to war over, or are you going to stick with the previous incarnation in your MAGA base and some of your longtime supporters, et cetera? He came down very clearly. He didn't equivocate. He came down very clearly on the side of Elon. And at every juncture he has handed power over to Elon Musk. And I don't think that there's any doubt that that trend is going to continue for the foreseeable future. Our friend Jeff Stein over at the Washington Post, who is doing fantastic reporting. He's also going to make an appearance in the Jeff Bezos blog because he went in there as well. But anyway, he's reporting. Major changes coming to the federal government led by Musk's Doge. Most significant move to dismiss federal workers now underway. This is the big one. Agencies must submit plans to significantly reduce staff size by March 13. Social Security Administration under instruction to cut staff in half. GSA says terminations there are imminent. The Labor Department is eyeing gutting the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Office by 90%. You mean the office that Elon Musk and his companies have run afoul of? How interesting they're gonna be gutted by 90% mass lease cancellations of federal buildings underway, which is also interesting, cuz everyone's been recalled to the office, but now they're not gonna have any office. They already don't actually have enough office space for everybody to be in the office. 100 IRS leases to be nixed per records. Helps make sense, Jeff says of why Musk and Trump wanted a unified front today with cabinet secretaries. And you know, I also just want to reflect a little bit on the optics here, which you referenced a little bit with, you know, everybody else is forced to be in their formal attire, everybody including Trump seated at the table. And there's Elon standing in the sort of commanding position and really kind of running the flow of this meeting, wearing whatever the hell he wants to marry and his own branded dark MAGA hat, which is not the original red Make America Great Again hat. He has created his own brand, his own following. And both of these individuals, Elon and Trump, their main genius really is around branding and symbolism. They think about what this imagery means. And so I think all of those pieces are very intentional. And Elon is the person in the government more than anyone, including Donald Trump, who holds the power and is making the decisions right now. And you're absolutely right, Sagar. Like if you're one of these cabinet secretaries who, this is your shot. And you get to run the show and you went through the Senate confirmation and you did all this and now you get in there and some 20 something year old doge kid actually has more power in your agency than you do, because they're Musk's apparatchik. That is a wild situation. And so at the beginning of the week, there was a real question. Are they gonna stand for this? Are they gonna dissent? Are they gonna revolt over this? And yesterday we got the definitive answer, and that is no. They're going to do what Elon Musk wants them to do.

[Sagar Enjeti]

And that's my thing now with Donald Trump and all of this. I thought maybe this is one of those times where you're gonna try and set somebody else to absorb this. But when you definitively endorse it and then order your people to comply and listen, that's your prerogative. You're the democratically elected leader. Okay. To build a little bit on your. For anybody who's never been in that room, if you ever get the chance you go on an Oval Office tour, one of the very first things they're gonna point out is in the Cabinet Room is that the President's chair is bigger than everybody else. Cause nobody's ever supposed to be taller.

[Krystal Ball]

Or bigger than the President.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Okay, all right. Interesting, right? In terms of who gets to stand and to speak. Look, am I reading too much into it? Not necessarily. It's more just, why are you allowing this to happen? Like, these are people who are branding and so called marketing experts. And I have no choice but to just say like, yeah, he believes it. This is something that he want. And now Trump will have to bear the consequences of that. So Elon also spoke a little bit about, quote, mistakes that have been made over at Doge. Let's take a listen.

[Unknown Speaker 4]

And I should say also, we will make mistakes. We won't be perfect, but when we make mistake, we'll fix it very quickly. So, for example, with usaid, one of the things we accidentally canceled very briefly was Ebola. Ebola prevention. I think we all want Ebola prevention. So we restored the Ebola prevention immediately. And there was no interruption. But we do need to move quickly if we are to achieve a trillion dollar deficit reduction in financial year 2026. It requires saving $4 billion per day, every day from now through the end of September. But we can do it and we will do it.

[Sagar Enjeti]

So there you go. In terms of the numbers that evolve, this is part of why I'm also starting to get very annoyed is listen, you can doge all you want. If Congress continues to fund it, then I mean, even if the government is not quote, spending the money immediately, like at least it's being printed and, or held or whatever in escrow by the government for the future, it's not like it's actually changed the stuff there. And also, as I understand it, the current way that the tax bill and all that is shaking out is we're Looking at some $4.5 trillion increase in the overall debt limit for what the cap that's being allowed. This is openly acknowledged. Like, I just want people to understand that it's not only a few hundred more billion in the continuing resolution, it's an extra hundred billion to be spent over at the Pentagon on top of a major tax cut. I mean, we've talked here till we're blue in the face about the Pentagon and how if you ever really wanna cut spending like it all exists right there, we can easily change procurement systems and all that we could spend. We could literally save hundreds of billions and all of that if we want to. I will say, I mean, on the popularity of this, I still have have no idea. I think it's now obvious that there is a blue MAGA backlash against this. The resistance is activated and it exists. And I don't think anybody can say that's deniable. What's open question to me is a similar question of Democrats and Obamacare back in 2009. Will this be depressing to overall Republican turnout? Will it be one of those things where Republicans are tacitly okay with it, but they're not enthusiastic about coming out, or will they actively turn against it? And that's one of those very open questions. I also wonder about the independence and all this. Attitudes around government institutional trust still remain very, very low. Maybe this will change their mind. I'm still not sure. I still think, of course the economy will be the number one determined factor out of all of this. But part of the issue is that at the very same time that all of this is happening, consumer sentiment is starting to tick down. Go take a look at the s and P500 and others and some of the reasons why, even though Nvidia beat its earnings yesterday, while you're still seeing some shaky results in the overall stock market, people are pretty worried about tariffs and about the economy. And without a big plan that kind of sells it to the American people, you kind of just get this chaotic feeling where feeling about the economy and savings and all that is bad. The fundamentals remain horrible obviously as we talk about here all the time for cost of living. And you could end up in a really bad situation.

[Krystal Ball]

Well, and it becomes increasingly clear it's a pro oligarch agenda. I mean when you're doing massive $4 trillion tax cut for the rich, we'll see whether they do any of the populist, no tax on tips or whatever. But even if they do, compared to the size of the 4 trillion that is going to the wealthiest, it's peanuts. So you've got that, you've got massive cuts to Medicaid which you're talking some 70 to 80 million people, many seniors, I don't know if people realize this many seniors who are in long term care. It's Medicaid that pays for that. Millions of births in this country paid for by Medicaid. Many rural hospitals are utterly dependent on this program. I saw a stat yesterday about the number of hospitals, rural hospitals in Alabama alone that would close were in the double digits. So huge cuts to social safety net programs, massive giveaway to the rich, the richest man on the planet running the government to his own benefit. And I just always think it's important as we go through all of these individual developments of he said this and he did that and here's where the cutting now and Social Security Administration is being hacked by 50%. I think it's really important to zoom out and try to understand what the big picture is. As Sager says, this isn't about cutting spending. We know that because of the bill that just passed the House with every Republican supporting it, Safer, Thomas Massie and Donald Trump behind it, okay. Which would massively increase the debt and the deficit. This is about Elon's ideology and personal goals. Number one, I think, you know, as best I can tell, he wants to suck up as much data from the federal government to feed his own AI to try to win that competition. Number two, he wants to use the federal government as his own personal piggy bank for his goal of getting to Mars and making humans an interplanetary species. Number three, I think Sager was right the other day. He wants to be a trillionaire. And so the plan here, which has been laid out by Curtis Yarvin and discussed by J.D. vance and Peter Thiel's behind it and Marc Andreessen as well, is to have Elon be the CEO, dictator of the country and Trump to be the chairman of the Board. And I don't think we've ever seen a clearer image of exactly that dynamic as we saw in this cabinet meeting this week. That's exactly the dynamic that was playing out there, where it's really Elon making the decisions. And yes, Trump gets to have some sign off and gets to be involved, but Elon is the, really the one who has taken charge. And of course, if you are taking the power of the purse from the. From Congress, if you are completely consolidating power within the executive branch, if you are flirting with. I mean, now they are. Are defying court orders, but they're not in technical, open defiance of court orders. But if you're flirting with that, all of those things are unconstitutional. All of that is illegal and unconstitutional. Now, how this is all gonna play out in the court system, how the Supreme Court's gonna respond when their own legitimacy is on the line, that also remains to be seen. But I also, just before we move on to the next slide, I have to also clarify that Elon, with this Ebola thing, it's not even true that they turned the funds back on. Yes, those funds are frozen, as are almost all the funds, actually, probably literally all the funds coming out of usaid, again, in defiance of court order, in defiance of even the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who had put out some waivers for things like pepfar and Doge came in over his head. This is a dynamic Ryan was talking about yesterday. It's still frozen. So it's not even the agency heads that have control. Here literally is Elon Musk and Doge, et cetera. But Ebola prevention has not actually been turned back on. And of course, this is not the only time when they've accidentally fired something that was really or frozen something that was absolutely critical. There was the people who were watching bird flu that they had to scramble and rehire. There was the nuclear safety guy that they had to scramble and rehire. There were some transportation safety people, There were some FDA people. All of these big mistakes that if you saw them unfolding in any other part of government, Elon would be calling for these people. Look at how incompetent they are. Look at how poorly they're doing their job. They would be fired immediately. But no, in fact, Ebola prevention aid has not been restored. It continues to be frozen, as is almost everything in usaid.

[Unknown Speaker 2]

They say healthy habits are hard. But you know what's harder actually getting sick, because I'm not taking care of myself. I'm Carl, the CEO of Bodies. That's body with an eye Losing weight and getting healthy is actually easier than you think if you do two things. Follow a fitness plan that tells you what to do day by day and feed your body right. What you need is what we call the total Solution and this is the best offer we've ever made. It's a full year subscription to all our body programs from 21 day fix to P90X, plus our healthy eating plans and a box of Shakeology, a shake packed with protein and superfood nutrition proven to help you feel great and curb cravings. Together, that's over $500 of value for just 129.95 plus free shipping. Your total solution. And if you don't lose at least 10 to 15 pounds in your first month, I'll give you your money back. Isn't it time to love your body? Go to bodi.com that's bodywithani.com ready to.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

Prioritize yourself in the new year? Your skin is a great place to start. Dime Beauty, founded by a master esthetician, is more than just a skincare company. With four skin conscious categories Skin Care, Beauty, Body Care and Fragrance. Daim offers simple, spa worthy products that will help you enter 2025 with confidence. Whether you're revitalizing your regimen with nourishing products or building one from scratch, DAIM makes it easy. The Work System Our all in one best selling routine includes a cleanser of your choice, toner serums and moisturizers. Taking the guesswork out of skin care for your healthiest, happiest skin yet, Dime's commitment to clean ingredients and sustainable packaging ensures every product is as gentle on your skin as it is on the planet. With thousands of glowing five star reviews and a loyal community, the results speak for themselves. Revive your skin and give yourself the routine refresh you deserve by visiting dimebeautyco.com that's dimebeautyco.com your best skin awaits.

[Krystal Ball]

Wasn't that delicious?

[Unknown Speaker 1]

So good.

[Unknown Speaker 2]

Your bill ladies.

[Krystal Ball]

I got it.

[Sagar Enjeti]

No, I got it.

[Krystal Ball]

Seriously, I insist.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

I insisted first.

[Krystal Ball]

Don't be silly.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

You don't be silly.

[Unknown Speaker 3]

People with The Wells Fargo ActiveCash credit card prefer to pay because they earn unlimited 2% cash back on purchases.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

Okay.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Rock, paper, scissors for it.

[Krystal Ball]

Rock, paper, scissors, Shoot, shoot.

[Unknown Speaker 2]

No.

[Unknown Speaker 3]

The Wells Fargo Active Cash credit card. Visit wells Fargo.com ActiveCash Terms apply.

[Sagar Enjeti]

The only thing I would quibble with there is I think that Elon's agenda is not nearly as aligned as you may think with Curtis Yarvin and or Peter Thiel, J.D. vance. I think all of these are a little bit more distinct. Elon is like a power in and of itself who probably likes the idea of the so called dictator. But if you really think about the CEO dictator model that Yarvin and others had put out, it's a lot more rooted in like actual small d democratic legitimacy and being like a popular figure who takes strong control of the government, not dismantling the government itself. Much more like.

[Krystal Ball]

I think that's true. I mean. Cause Yarvin talked about the rage like we hire all government employees.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Let me explain it. So rage is not a Javier Millay style thing. Rage is about deplacing the current regime by putting in a new restaurant. I don't think Elon wants a new regime.

[Krystal Ball]

Right.

[Sagar Enjeti]

That's kind of the point that I'm trying to explain. As in Steve Bannon. One of the reasons Steve Bannon is against the administrative state is because he thinks that the administrative state as it's currently constituted is against the like MAGA ideal. But Steve Bannon would not be against the idea of a MAGA administrative state.

[Krystal Ball]

Right.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Neither. I cannot speak for the JD or any of these other people. I don't think so just in terms of the stuff that they have said previously about government. I don't even think Yarvin would necessarily disagree with what I'm saying. I do think that Elon is against administrative state, period. And is much more in line with the privatized nature of where things are currently headed. And so that's where you can come at the same problem, attack vector and say we need to get rid of the current government employees. But then from there is the divergence point. And this is what Steve Bannon ultimately correctly sees is he sees this as an attempt to basically privatize out all of these things so that you can have no regulatory regime. As opposed to, I would say people probably more like Curtis and JD or other figures who would swim in these waters who would say no, we actually need our own like government mechanism to enforce like our abilities and, or control over like the broader market. So that's why I think it's still important to say why Elon is really his own strain of whatever the hell is going on.

[Krystal Ball]

I think that that's probably true. I think he's less like a true believer in the Dark Enlightenment and the neoreactionary movement and more finds it to be a very useful construct.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yeah, exactly.

[Krystal Ball]

For his own power grab. Yeah, I think that's true. But I mean, in the end, whether he's like a true believer. Or whether he's just using that ideology for his own ends, the outcome is basically the same. And you're right, Elon doesn't want there to. He is, because I think it's closest to say he's an anarcho capitalist. I mean, he believes that every function of the government should effectively be privatized. And that relates more to this other related idea of network states where they want to have these many states and they're already like there already are some of these cities that are set up this way that are basically private corporations and they are completely privatized. When Elon says he thinks every single federal government worker should be out of the public sector and into what he describes as more productive private sector jobs, what you're describing is an anarcho capitalist ideology, which is distinct from Russ vote. I think you would put more in the libertarian category where he wants a complicated one too. Libertarians want a small state, but they still think we should have a military and a police force and a court system to enforce private property right rights. Anarcho capitalists truly believe in privatizing literally everything, including security forces. And Elon appears to be much more in that camp. And as the richest man on the planet, even though he himself was the recipient of massive government aid. Washington Post, a great report on this. At critical times like Tesla and SpaceX probably would not even exist today were it not for loans and subsidies and the government ignoring him, missing milestones at SpaceX and a massive, almost $500 million loan that came into Tesla under the Obama administration at an absolutely critical time. So even though he personally has been a massive beneficiary of government support, he wants to, number one, make sure his competitors don't benefit from that same support. Number two, that the government is not powerful enough, that none of these regulatory agencies are powerful enough to rein in his power. And that's number three, to be able to have access personally and have the US taxpayer backstop his own net worth and fund his own ambitions. So if these ideas that are floating out there that have become very popular, like the neo reactionary movement, the Curtis Yarvin CEO dictator with the chairman of the board thing, whether it's that, whether it's the network state idea, whatever is out there in the ether that he can grab onto to pursue his own personal ideological interest goals and you know, one other thing, and I'm sorry I'm going on here, but I think it's important for understanding his ideology as well. Is he also is a believer in simulation theory. Like, I think it's. And I think that's.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Is Elon a simulation theory?

[Krystal Ball]

I believe he is.

[Sagar Enjeti]

That might be the lowest IQ thing that he does.

[Krystal Ball]

I think that part of how he sees himself is that we all, including the President of the United States, including all those cabinet secretaries, we are quote, unquote, NPCs non playable characters. And he is Ready Player One. He is the hero of the story. He is the only acting person with agency who is acting and creating this grand adventure of humanity. And if you internalize that, that that's the way he thinks of himself. I think his actions and his willingness, again, to do whatever to, you know, whether it's. He doesn't care about the kids in Africa with hiv, doesn't care about the thousands of veterans who've already been fired. He doesn't care certainly doesn't care about the laws or the Constitution or whatever. He is the ready player one who is going to save humanity by bringing us to Mars. And anything is justified in pursuit of that question.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Yeah, well, does remind me that the movie is also very good. Let's continue here, shall we? Let's put the next one up on the screen. This one is about Medicare and we're gonna go ahead and play. That was just reaffirming what you were saying about Ebola. But let's get to the Medicare part, because this is also important for what the future of DOGE and all of that will look like in terms of whether they're actually gonna be even able to achieve any cuts. Let's take a listen.

[Krystal Ball]

The funding bill that passed last night.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

Aims to cut $2 trillion. Can you guarantee that Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security will not be touched?

[Krystal Ball]

Yeah, I mean, I have said it so many times. You shouldn't be asking me that question. Okay, this will not be read my lips. There won't be read my lips anymore. We're not going to touch it now. We are going to look for fraud. I'm sure you're okay with that. Like people that shouldn't be on people that are illegal aliens and others criminals in many cases. And that's with Social Security. We have a lot of people. You see that immediately when you see people that are 200 years old that are being sent checks for Social Security.

[Sagar Enjeti]

All right, so there we go. Trump continues to say that he will not cut Medicare. As we said, the problem is that the current spending bill aims to cut $2 trillion. It's gonna be a difficult one if you. I mean, I was Talking with a tax expert just yesterday and we were like, okay, so how do we even get to 4.5 trillion if we're doing no tax on tips, no Social Security? We're also raising the salt cap up to 20%, which is not even what the New York delegation and all those other people want. And you extend all of it. It doesn't pencil like period, does not matter. And I'm not even talking about Medicare or Medicaid. That's leaving all that stuff untouched. So either they're lying or they're gonna have to cut something else. I'm gonna probably bet on lying. Speaker Johnson yesterday was on TV and was asked specifically about this. He says, yes, we won't cut Medicare or touch Medicare literally at all. But, but you know, we'll see. As I predict though, Medicaid is the.

[Krystal Ball]

One that's really on the block.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Sorry, Medicaid.

[Krystal Ball]

Well, Johnson is out there saying, we're gonna do work requirements. Yes, if you're a single mom or whatever, it'll be there for you. But if you are able bodied, you're gonna be kicked off. I mean, they are talking about significant Medicaid cuts and the numbers just, I mean the numbers just don't add up to make that level of cuts with adding money to the defense budget, by the way. And most of the federal government is military spending, healthcare spending, Social Security, and the bucket that they have targeted in particular for massive cuts is Medicaid. Now when I hear Trump saying that in that particular soundbite, what I hear is him giving himself some wiggle room of no, we're not going to cut benefits, but we're going to root out fraud. And I think that's going to be the fig leaf of we're not really cutting benefits to people who deserve it, but they're still kicking millions of people off of Medicaid that they decide are undeserving or they decide are quote unquote fraudulent. Because that's certainly the direction that things are headed in right now.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Honestly though, that's gonna be a much more difficult fight. Right. Because welfare reform, whatever you think of it, was very popular in 1996. So work requirements in general, from the polling and all that I've seen, are extremely popular. That would be an interesting way for them to square the circle. But I'm not yet sure. There was all these politics back in the day called dole politics. Absolutely fascinating. If people wanna go back and look, let's just look in terms of any potential blowback and what all this is, let's put this up there from NBC News. Guys, this is a six. Some House Republicans are currently hitting the brakes on town halls after some of the blowback over the Trump cuts to try and avoid some of those scenes that we've seen previously. And Crystal, you have one from your own district which you're gonna set up and tell us about.

[Krystal Ball]

This is a district I actually ran for Congress and they've since redistricted it. So I'm not technically don't live in this district anymore. But this is Republican Congressman Rob Whitman. He's really tried to position himself. He's a real kind of like backbencher, tries not to say too much, tries not to really rock the boat, et cetera, but just goes along with the party line he had. It wasn't even him. One of his staffers had some remote town hall and it was flooded with ultimately there were some hundred constituents there. It's a very mostly rural part of Virginia. It's quite Republican. He usually gets reelected pretty easily, pretty handily, etc. And they were quite upset that he wasn't there and demanding him to show up and answer their questions. Let's take a listen.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Where's Rob Whitney?

[Krystal Ball]

Where's Rob Whitney?

[Sagar Enjeti]

Where's Rob Whitman? Where's Rob Whitman?

[Krystal Ball]

Where's Rob Whitman? So flooding in even when he's not going to be there. And I predicted that they would just stop doing town halls. And I think that is certainly what's going to ultimately happen here because I think some of the early ones, these are Republicans in super red districts that thought they would be safe. But obviously even in very red districts, you still have Democrats, right? You still have in almost every district in the country, you still have a pretty significant number of Democrats who can show up. And I have no doubt, like there's been a lot of republic. Oh well, these are just astroturfed and they're just being organized to show up. I don't doubt that that's the case that Moveon and Indivisible and these other organizations and even just the local Democratic Party organizations are organizing people to go to these town halls. But that was the same case during the Tea Party era and there was a lot of Democratic cope at that time as well about the way this was funded by the Koch network, et cetera, et cetera. That was all true. But you have to have people who are upset and energized enough to listen when you send out your email blast saying show up at this town hall. And it takes extraordinary times for people to break out of whatever their normal routine is and show up at a congressional town hall to yell at their member of Congress. So I wouldn't dismiss it just because, yeah, of course it's organized and there's involvement from these activist groups. There still is a reflection here of genuine base energy. And when you're talking about a midterm election in particular, that ends up really, really mattering. And that's certainly what we saw in the party.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Obviously, they're being funded and. Or organized. It's like, okay, welcome to politics. That's how it all works. By that definition, the entire Trump campaign, half of which was privatized by Elon, was privately was organized to get out the vote. Okay, well, it still won. So are we gonna say that it was fake? Obviously not. Right? This is one of those where you're exactly right. Back in the day, it was such a Democratic talking point, I can't even still remember. I can still remember. They were like, the Tea Party was fake. It was all funded by. By the Koch brothers. I actually. I went to college here at that time, and I just remember all of the protesters flooding in from across the country. Did somebody pay for their transportation by busing or whatever? Yeah, maybe. Did that mean that they were any less activated and. Or organized whenever they went home to get people to vote for them? Absolutely not. These people were die hard. They would have paid for it if they could have, or they would have been at home cheering it on, on tv. So just so people understand, like, just because you fund something and bring people here and try and bring it into think does not make it fake, per se. It's still a reflection of something. So I would very much caution Republicans from trying to get themselves out of, like, the big money groups are paying for it. I'm like, yeah, well, that's what they always do. But you gotta have something to activate, you know, to be able. You have to have somebody there, be ready to organize. You can't just, you know, create it out of very thin air. So caution there for Republicans definitely could continue to be a problem.

[Unknown Speaker 2]

They say healthy habits are hard. But you know what's harder? Actually getting sick, because I'm not taking care of myself. I'm Carl, the CEO of Bodi. That's Bodi with an I. Losing weight and getting healthy is actually easier than you think. If you do two things. Follow a fitness plan that tells you what to do day by day and feed your body right. What you need is what we call the total solution. And this is the best offer we've ever made made. It's a full year subscription to all our body programs from 21 day fix to P90X plus our healthy eating plans and a box of Shakeology a shake packed with protein and superfood nutrition proven to help you feel great and curb cravings. Together that's over $500 of value for just $129.95 plus free shipping. Your total solution and if you don't lose at least 10 to 15 pounds in your first month month I'll give you your money back. Isn't it time to love your body? Go to bodi.com that's body with an.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

I.com ready to prioritize yourself in the new year, your skin is a great place to start. Dime Beauty, founded by a master esthetician, is more than just a skincare company. With four skin conscious categories Skin Care, Beauty, Body Care and Fragrance. DAIM offers simple spa worthy products that will help you enter 2025 with confidence. Whether you're revitalizing your regimen with nourishing products or building one from Scra, Dime makes it easy. The Work System, our all in one best selling routine, includes a cleanser of your choice, toners, serums and moisturizers. Taking the guesswork out of skincare for your healthiest, happiest skin yet. Dime's commitment to clean ingredients and sustainable packaging ensures every product is as gentle on your skin as it is on the planet. With thousands of glowing five star reviews and a loyal community, the results speak for themselves. Revive your skin and give yourself the routine refresh you deserve by visiting dimebeautyco.com, that's dimebeauty co.com your best skin awaits.

[Krystal Ball]

Wasn't that delicious?

[Unknown Speaker 1]

So good.

[Unknown Speaker 2]

Your bill, ladies.

[Krystal Ball]

I got it.

[Sagar Enjeti]

I got it. No, I got it.

[Krystal Ball]

Seriously, I insist.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

I insisted first.

[Krystal Ball]

Don't be silly.

[Unknown Speaker 1]

You don't be silly.

[Unknown Speaker 3]

People with the Wells Fargo Active Cash Credit card prefer to pay because they earn unlimited 2% cash back on purchases.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Okay, Rock, paper scissors for it.

[Krystal Ball]

Rock, paper scissors.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Shoot rock.

[Unknown Speaker 3]

No the Wells Fargo ActiveCash credit card. Visit Wells Fargo.comActiveCash terms apply.

[Sagar Enjeti]

Turning now to Elon Musk and a potential interview situation coming up, which I think all of us would like to see. Let's go ahead and put this up there on the screen. Elon, responding to a video claiming that he should go on Jon Stewart's show, replied, saying, I will do it if the show airs. Unedited Daily show quote, tweeted it and said, lonmusk, we would be delighted. So that could be very interesting.

[Krystal Ball]

He did add one more condition after this, which was like. He was like, oh, and it has to stream also on X, which feels to me like he's kind of trying to get out of it.

[Sagar Enjeti]

He's trying to throw up. Because from a copyright perspective, that would be probably really difficult. We're dealing with Comedy Central here, which is, like, archaic and stupid, the way that they handle their copyright stuff. So maybe that could be the way that he'll get out of it. Let's discuss that after, though. We see how Jon Stewart's been talking about Elon lately. Let's take a listen. And Tin is all of them, right? It would be embarrassing if it was.

[Krystal Ball]

A small drop in the bucket and.

[Sagar Enjeti]

That the American people didn't expect that we should negotiate for all their drugs because we've already paid for it with our subsidies. Are you fake? Come on.

[Unknown Speaker 3]

It's fine.

[Sagar Enjeti]

So he got so mad, he literally busted a cup in his own hands.

[Krystal Ball]

It was a good segment. It was one of his better, better ones, actually.

[Sagar Enjeti]

I think John's back, and for him, I feel like he. He's meeting the moment I found, obviously, you know, like, became a fan during the Bush administration. That's when I think he really became, like, a singular and very important force because he kind of did what we do, but before its time, almost 20 years ago, where he would both call out FOX and MSNBC and cnn, ridicule kind of the mainstream media, but directly take a very hard line against Bush and Cheney and a lot of the other bullshit claims. And he was really good in the Obama years, too, by basically countering not only, like, Tea Party idiocy from time to time, but he would give it to Obama and Nancy Pelosi and them just as much. And so I do feel like he's really made for this moment kind of to just ridicule everything. It makes sense that he had to come back for right now.

[Krystal Ball]

Yeah, most of that segment was focused on like, hey, if you wanna cut, here's a bunch of places you actually could, like, tax subsidies for the rich and oil and gas companies or the defense budget. Here's all kinds of places where if you're actually serious about this, let's do it. And it was very effective, which is why I think Elon felt the need to jump in and pretend like he's gonna do this interview, which I don't think is gonna happen, but we'll see. Somebody on Twitter was saying this might be another, like how Mark Zuckerberg Yeah, Elon and Mark Zuckerberg were supposedly gonna fight and then of course that never came to fruition. If he does, I mean, I would absolutely love to see it. Jon Stewart is a great interviewer. Underrated interview. That was one of the best parts of his Apple show was all these people would sit down with him because, oh, it's Jon Stewart, the VA secretary or whatever and he would just rake them across the coals or Janet Yellen. I mean all these high level people and he comes in prepared and serious and is a very smart person and was able to do a very effective job. So I think it would be. I think it would be very interesting and quite a. I think it would be quite good head to head combat for us to all watch, which is why I don't really think that Iman is going to go forward with it.

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