← Deadline: White House
Deadline: White House
“Speculation of insider trading”
00:41:18
Nicolle Wallace covers new Wall Street Journal reporting which points out the ‘well-timed’ bets mystery traders have made on platforms like Polymarket, resulting in them raking in millions of dollars, right before drastic policy changes from the Trump administration.
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Hi there everyone. It's good to be back. It's 4 o' clock in New York. It is day 31 of the war with Iran, and here's where things stand. As gas prices nationwide are set to top $4 a gallon, and as the oil supply crisis cost the country at least 10,000 jobs a month, according to one estimate, there are signs that a select group of insiders are reaping big rewards. As for the war itself, Donald Trump is considering putting boots on the ground and once again threatening strikes on Iranian power plants. Both options represent a major escalation in a war that is already deeply unpopular with the American people. Donald Trump today said there has been, quote, great progress in talks, but warning that if the US And Iran do not strike an agreement, the United States will launch strikes on civilian infrastructure, including power plants and desalination plants, which would threaten the water supply for millions. It's also something that is prohibited under international law. If you're getting any sense of deja vu, it's not you and you're not alone. New York Times reports this, quote the president has repeatedly threatened such attacks in recent weeks, only to back down as the global economy reels from the risk to energy supplies. Now all that is happening, as US Officials tell the Wall Street Journal this quote Trump is weighing a military operation to extract nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium from Iran, a complex and risky mission that would likely put American forces inside the country for days or longer, experts warning that, quote, any move to seize the uranium by force would be complex and dangerous, ranking among the most challenging operations ordered by Trump. The potential operation which would likely trigger retaliation from Iran, could also lengthen the war well beyond the four to six week time frame that Trump's team has publicly outlined. US Officials telling the Washington Post this, quote, the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran. Any potential ground operation would fall short of a full scale invasion and could instead involve raids by a mixture of special operations forces and conventional infantry troops, according to officials. All this reporting in both the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Washington Post about troops on the ground, all of it flies in the face of what Trump has promised and has been saying publicly. For his part, he told the Financial Times today that he had achieved his goal of regime change, even though the head of the regime is the son of the last leader. He told Bloomberg that Iran wants to, quote, settle and that the war is going unbelievably well. Now, if any of that is the case, you might wonder why ground operations are being considered in this, the fourth week of the war when the war was supposed to end after, quote, four or five weeks. As Donald Trump told the New York Times on March 1, Trump's bluster and threats and conflicting public messages and the Trump administration's ongoing planning to send ground troops into Iran also flies in the face of what the American people say they want. A poll out today shows that just 29% of Americans approve of the war with Iran as it is now, and just 8% support sending ground troops into Iran. Those horrific poll numbers for Donald Trump should come as no surprise given that at no stage in any of this has Donald Trump addressed the country or tried to communicate with the country about what we're doing in Iran, why we're there, how long we plan to be there, what the metrics for success will be. He's not tried to sell the war to the public, even as Americans continue to experience incredible economic distress and pain because of the war. Sure to add to the fury voters are feeling about $4 gas and rising prices and weakened job prospects. Is this reporting from NBC News? Quote, a flurry of bets made prior to major announcements about the Iran war have ramped up speculation that individuals or groups with advanced knowledge of US Military plans are cashing in on insider information. Data suggests traders with advanced knowledge of geopolitical events may have collectively pocketed millions from recent bets on polymarket. Last month, in the run up to the latest round of American and Israeli attacks on Iran, some $529 million was traded on the platform tied to the timing of the strikes, end quote. Growing concerns about an escalation in the war with Iran, even as the economic pain from Donald Trump's war of choice deepens is where we start today. Senior video and national security correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, Shelby Holiday is back. Also joining us, retired U.S. army Brigadier General Steve Anderson's here. And political analyst former Senator Clarence McCaskill is here as well. General, I start with you. Your thoughts on on where the conversation between the president, the commander in chief and the country stands right now.
- [06:14]
D
Well, thank you, Nicole. It's great to be with you again. And the president and his advisors are in the midst of, I believe, the greatest geopolitical disaster in the history of our country. And they have completely mismanaged this war. And to even talk about putting boots on the ground in any capacity, be it Carg island, be it the Straits of Hormuz or God help us if they try to go into Isfahan or Fordeau to try to retrieve nuclear material, I mean, it would be an absolute disaster. But we have the basic problem in this entire campaign is when I was a cadet At West Point 50 years ago, we studied Sun Tzu and one of the things he said was know the enemy as yourself. We do not know this enemy. The IRGC are committed religious fanatics, you know, and there's no fanatic like a religious fanatic. These people, 200,000 strong running the IRGC, are absolutely committed and they are in a holy war against us, the Great Satan. They're not fighting for Iran. They're fighting for Allah. They're fighting for Islam. And we have not recognized that. They are in the middle of an existential threat to them. It's a kill or be killed situation. They're going to do everything possible to beat us and to outlast us. And if we think that we're going to be able to go take Carg island and we're going to diminish their revenues, that they care about that and is ludicrous. The CIA studied these people and they have an assessment of regime change, the likelihood of regime change. One of the things that they study is what is the likelihood that the regime is willing to kill its people at an industrial level. Industrial level. That's exactly what the Iranians have demonstrated back in January when they killed 30,000 of their own people. The CIA's assessment is that regime change would be extremely unlikely in that kind of a situation. So we are in an incredible fight and we owe it all to Donald Trump.
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C
What does it mean, given what you just laid out about the enemy for those ground troops? If Donald Trump does What Donald Trump said he's thinking of doing, sending ground troops into Iran.
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D
What it means is Americans are going to die. Americans are going to die in a place like Carg Island. It is a very, very difficult fight. This is going to be a contested assault, be it the 31st Mew, be it the 82nd Airborne. I mean, I have no doubt that the military will prevail. Ultimately. I have great confidence. I mean, they've been performing superbly. But this is an example of Trump once again using the army and using the military as his own personal militia versus Americans military. What he needs to do is be focused on conducting diplomacy, but instead he's using the military because they're acquiescent, because they have to, because they were raised like I was, to be responsive to civilian leadership. And he's taking advantage of that and he's going to put boots on the ground. It's going to get people killed. Now, the Iranians know that we're coming. So think about everything they're doing at Carg island right now, okay? They're building booby traps. When I was in Iraq, we have these explosive formed projectiles, EFPs, roadside bombs that Senator McCaskill knows very, very well killed hundreds and hundreds of Americans using this kind of technology that they developed 20 years ago. They're going to have all kinds of roadside bombs spread out across that island. They have caves, they have tunnels, they have asymmetric threats. They got boats, speedboats. They can ram into our to the USS Tripoli and the other amphibious vehicles that are coming on board. They're going to be within artillery range. So they're going to 15 miles away. So they're going to be rol out howitzers from these caves, these mountainous areas that are surrounding Carg Island. They're going to use missiles. The Secretary, excuse me, the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Kaine suggested earlier that about 90% of the missile capability missile launches have been knocked out. That's not true. Now we found that there's really only a third of their missile capability has been degraded and only a third of their drones. They're going to be firing drones. I mean, it's going to be a very, very difficult fight. They're going to use all their capabilities to, to, to beat us. They're going to mine the harbors, they're going to be mining all the landing sites. It's going to be a tough, tough fight. And for what? So that we can get control of the oil. To try to somehow acquiesce or change this regime to, to change their tenor towards us. It's not going to happen. This is going to be a terrible, terrible mistake if they do this.
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C
General, let me show you one more sort of public statement about what could come to pass. This is not someone whose statements we do a lot of platforming of, but this is Trump donor and Blackwater founder Erik Prince. He was at CPAC warning of the haunting images of burning warships if Trump tries to force open the Strait of Hormuz.
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D
I don't share the optimism of the administration that there's going to be a peaceful stop to this. They will burn it down. And my real concern is that if they try to put boots on the ground force the Straits of Hormuz, you will see imagery of burning American warships in the next couple of weeks. And I don't think people are really prepared for that.
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C
A horrific thought. And the American people aren't prepared for any of this because Donald Trump has not, as of yet addressed the nation about what we're doing, why we're doing it, what the strategic objectives are and what the tactical plans are. What do you make of that prediction? Is that something? Do you share that assessment from Erik Prince?
- [12:32]
D
I totally share that assessment from Erik Prince. Nicole. You know, it's sad that we, you know, not only did the American people not convinced of this, but the Congress, the United Nations, I mean, all the things say what you want about George Bush, but you know, he spent six months prepping the battlefield before he launched his attacks in Afghanistan and Iraq. We got none of that, you know, and, but Erik Prince is spot on target. I mean, think about the political fallout from a burning of ship in the United States, you know, the USS Tripoli or one of the other ships from the 31st Mew or the 11th Mew that's inbound from California will be there in about another two weeks. Think about shutting down, how easy it's going to be to shut down the Strait of Hormuz just by firing one or two missiles a day to take out an oil tanker. You know, this is a terrible, terrible situation and there's going to be no relief if we are not able to somehow negotiate some sort of a settlement. Because I believe that the Iranians are holding the cards at this point and the United States is struggling to try to keep up.
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C
Claire McCaskill It's a fascinating moment where some of the loudest and most specific critics of the war in Iran and its conduct are coming from deep inside the MAGA coalition.
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B
Yeah, it's interesting to me that we have A situation where the people who know best what a terrible collision course our country is on right now are by and large silenced. I mean, we have people like the general speaking out and other retired members of the military. But I have to think that there is a cold wind blowing through the Pentagon right now, because if you look at what they say the objective is now, they're actually saying the objective now is to open the Straits of Hormuz. In other words, our objective of this war is to fix the problem this war caused. And the notion that everyone is kind of thinking, and I think it's really important that General pointed this out. The idea that Iran with a more hardened, extreme leadership now than before we started the war. This isn't a regime change. This is a hardening of their extreme views. Their views that this is for Allah and not for the people of Iran. This is worse, not better, this regime. And the idea that they're sitting around twiddling their thumbs waiting for us to come in, not with boots on the ground. These are human beings on the ground, men and women, sons and daughters of America. Do they actually believe, like he said, they're setting them up. They are preparing for an incursion in their country and they want to kill every American person who sets foot on their soil and they will not be careful about it. And the idea, what do they think this uranium, they think they haven't solidified the protections around this enriched uranium? Of course they know we're coming after the enriched uranium. So you think it's going to be there on a shelf somewhere that they can just roll in and take. Take it like they snatched Maduro out of his bedroom? No, that's not what's going to happen. This is the worst decision militarily that I think our country has ever made. And I think our country feels it. I think our military knows it and I think the Republicans in Congress know it and they don't know what to do about it.
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C
Shelby, 8% of Americans support what is being publicly batted around for the next phase of the war in Iran. What do your sources say who are trying to defend what they're doing? I mean, the goal of regime change hasn't been realized in that Khamenei's son is more hardline than the father. The goal of obliterating their nuclear sites was, according to Donald Trump, achieved last summer. So it's not clear that that's the goal. The goal of knocking out the ballistic missiles is depending on who you talk to. Again, just, just take what the Trump folks are saying either partially, somewhat, or not yet. I mean, what is, what do they think is going?
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E
Well, that's a really good question. And I think part of this, when you just step back and look at the big picture of all the things we've been talking about, is that the US has essentially kicked the hornet's nest. And it's very difficult to go into a country once you've done that. It's also very difficult to leave. If you leave right now, there's no guarantee that Iran stops firing missiles, stops firing drones, stops attacking U.S. bases, stops attacking U.S. allies. And so you're looking at a lot of very difficult options. The military is looking at, as the Journal reported, a potential operation to go get the highly enriched uranium. That's an effort that would take days, if not weeks. It would require you flying to the sites, securing the sites, bringing in excavators, bringing in special teams that can handle that material. Incredibly risky, incredibly challenging. Not a short and sweet thing. Some of the other options are taking Carg island, which, again, very, very difficult. And yes, Iran is prepared to fight back, potentially taking some islands in the Strait of Hormuz. That would give you leverage over the Strait, but wouldn't necessarily forcibly open it. So, you know, I think one of the biggest challenges right now is just what comes next. Understanding what President Trump's priorities are this morning seemed to indicate opening the strait is a priority because that's what he's threatening Iran over. If you don't open the strait, we're going to bomb all this oil infrastructure. So just a big challenge is even understanding the goal of the day. But I think when you're looking at defending this operation, those who really believe in it believe Iran was posing a huge threat. We saw, I believe it was a week ago that they, they fired an intermediate range ballistic missile capable of reaching Europe. That was something wasn't publicly known that they could do until they showed their hand and revealed that capability. And so people point to that and say, look, they are building missiles that can reach longer and longer. They're working on enriching uranium to put on those missiles as warheads to reach Europe and possibly beyond. And this has to be stopped now.
- [18:50]
C
And so do those people, though, think that attacking Iran was a better way to protect Europe or maybe aiding Ukraine?
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E
You know, they don't, like military sources, are very, very by the books and follow the chain of command. And they don't opine on. They don't answer political questions, they don't give their political opinions. But I do think strategically, when you're talking them about what's next, I think all options are difficult. There's no slam dunk. If there was a slam dunk, it would have been done by now. It's tricky.
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C
It's an amazing dynamic. And maybe that's why there aren't a lot of political defenders of what's happening outside of FOX News. All right. No one's going anywhere. We'll have more on the insider trading possibility. That part of the story on the other side. Also ahead for us on the other side, the polls, every one of them, illustrated clearly. Special election results have illustrated it as well. And if you needed one more proof point, millions upon millions of Americans, some who had never participated in a political poll protest, came out and marched over the weekend to illustrate it as well. Americans do not approve of Donald Trump. They have tired of the Trump show, and they are demanding change. We'll speak with an organizer of the no Kings protest about what it takes to sustain the momentum through the midterms and presidential elections and where voices should speak out next. Plus, Donald Trump's war in Iran may have exposed the cracks that are forming among Republicans, but that's just one of several reasons Trump's voters are feeling betrayed by him in his second term. We'll show you how deep the DOP cracks really are. And later in the show, Donald Trump and his FCC head touting that they're, quote, winning their attempted media takeover, what they really mean by that and what the end game might be. All that and much more when Deadly in White House continues after a quick break. Don't go anywhere.
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E
Why have we asked our contractor we found on Angie.com to be our kids legal guardian? Because he took such good care when redoing our basement that we knew we could trust him to care for our kids, all eight of them should something happen to us.
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C
Are you my dad now?
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D
Uh no, sorry. I do basements connecting homeowners with skilled pros for over 30 years Angie the one you trust to find the ones you trust. Find pros for all your home projects@angie.com
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C
we're back with the General and Shelby and Claire. Claire, let me read you this reporting in the Wall Street Journal. The well timed trades made moments before Donald Trump's policy surprises. Quote in late December and early January, a mystery trader placed about $34,000 on Venezuela related bets, mainly on contracts that would pay off if Maduro lost power by the end of January. The final wager was placed at 9:58pm Eastern time on January 2nd. That's less than an hour before Donald Trump's order. Soon after US And Israeli forces began to strike Iran, Blockchain analytics from Bumble Maps identified a group of suspected Insiders who made $1.2 million by wagering on a U.S. strike through polymarket. Most of the accounts had been on a strike by February 28, which turned out to be the exact date of the operation. Most recently, there was a mysterious flurry of trading activity in oil and S&P 500 futures about 15 minutes before Donald Trump de escalated tensions with Iran with a Monday morning post on Truth Social which sent oil prices tumbling and stocks rallying. In a statement, a White House spokesperson named Kush Desai said, quote, all federal employees are subject to government ethics guidelines that prohibit the use of non public information for financial benefit. Benefit, blah, blah, blah. What is the American consumer paying more for gas every time they drive by to make of all these people getting cuckoo rich? Seemingly potentially, possibly based on inside information?
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B
Well, it shouldn't be a surprise to anybody. I mean, we're talking about the most corrupt administration in the history of our country, the enriching of his family on the backs of American policy and American power. If you looked at what his sons are doing right now, they're racing around the globe leveraging their father's position for billions and billions of dollars in profit. The crypto and the meme coin and all of this stuff that he's doing, and then you add on that the whipped cream and cherry on all of this ugly ice cream sundae is his pardoning power. So if you are close to the president and you have information, you're not worried about going to jail, he's going to pardon anybody. I will say this. If the Democrats take the House and the Senate, they will be busy. They would be busy full time, just going after all the corruption in this administration. They wouldn't have time to do anything else if they went after all the corruption in this administration. And it gets pushed to the back of the closet because we have breaking news every day that is terrible. So we don't focus on the level of corruption. But believe me, inside this administration, they know about it. I mean, you go to prison, you pay somebody a million dollars, you get out of prison and you're pardoned. They're paying Mike Flynn, who pled guilty to a felony, they're paying him for that now with our tax dollars. They're giving him money at the Department of Justice because he pled guilty for something. It's just unbelievable. So it's not shocking this is going on. The question is, couldn't these people be put in prison for doing this? And hopefully they can if we can get past the pardon. Lollapalooza. That is the Trump White House.
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C
What's amazing, Shelby, is that they barely deny it. Right. It's almost like Trump's articulation in 2015 in the Republican primaries when he refused to turn over his. Why would I? But this will end, and you won't always have a Justice Department populated by his stooges. What is the legal exposure for people who could be engaged in this? Based on the Journal's reporting, I can't
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E
answer the question about legal exposure. I do think there's a lot of sketchy stuff going on that needs to be looked at. And I think the poly market betting is just one piece of it. You can also look at energy markets, you can look at defense companies. You can look at all of the things that could be potentially manipulated by a war like this, where the US Is burning a bunch of munitions, dropping thousands and thousands of bombs. All those things will need to be replenished. People who knew about this ahead of time likely knew that that would be the case and that, you know, it might be nice time to invest in certain defense companies that make Patriot interceptors. So I think there's. It's definitely a good question. Clear as. Right. There's so much to cover. There's so much to talk about. This is just almost something we pay attention to on the side. But, yes, major implications for this. And the question is, like should we even be able to bet on military operations in the first place? How do we. How unethical and disgusting does that seem?
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C
Very.
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E
I can't imagine that changing soon, but
- [27:04]
C
hopefully someday because the Republicans are in control.
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E
I just don't think there's a lot of pushback on it. Yeah, nobody's challenging it.
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C
How do the men and women of the military feel, would you guess, General, about being pawns and bets?
- [27:19]
D
Nicole? They're disgusted. They're disgusted by it as I am. I mean, the hallmark of this administration is arrogance and ignorance and might throw in their corruption because there's so much that they do that is so corrupt and it's so, so wrong. I mean, American soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines might very well be dying in places like Iran and Carg island and whatnot, but Trump and his cronies are happy because they can make money on the stock market or crypto bets or whatever. Americans are going to pay more at the gas pumps so that Trump and his rich buddies can get richer. It's pretty sad. American soldiers, sailors, airman, marines like me, former members of the military like me, are truly disgusted by what's going on. And that's why we really want to see something change.
- [28:21]
C
It's absolutely, it's a shocking. So it's a shocking story. And it's shocking what you said, Claire, and what you said, Shelby, that we treat it sort of as a second story. It's incredible. Thank you both for having this conversation with us. Shelby, thank you for starting us off. Jeremy, thank you for starting us off. Claire sticks around a little bit longer. When we come back, pick your policy. The mass deportation debacle, tariffs debacle, or with Iran could become a debacle. Whatever your reason, Donald Trump's approval rating on all those issues and more has actually hit another record low. And Americans were out in the streets registering their disapproval of him all across our country. This weekend, we'll talk about what comes next for his critics after a quick break.
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If you're a parent and want to help set up your child for success, then IXL is right for your family as an effective and affordable online learning program. IXL covers math, language arts, science and social studies using interactive practice problems for kids from Pre K to 12th grade. Listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today@ixl.com 20. Visit ixl.com 20 to get the most effective learning program out there at the best price.
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- [30:02]
E
Why have we asked our contractor we found on angie.com to be our kid's legal guardian? Because he took such good care when redoing our basement that we knew we could trust him to care for our kids, all eight of them, should something happen to us.
- [30:14]
C
Are you my dad now?
- [30:18]
D
No, sorry. I do basements connecting homeowners with skilled pros for over 30 years. Angie the one you trust to find the ones you trust. Find pros for all your home projects@angie.com
- [30:32]
C
Just one year and a little bit into his second year of his second term as president, Donald J. Trump's approval rating has hit a historic low of 33%. That's according to a national poll conducted by UMass Amherst. And this is what a 33% approval rating looks like. Millions of Americans spending their weekend in the streets to show their opposition and disapproval of Donald Trump. According to organizers of the no Kings protests, at least 8 million people took to the streets in all 50 states. They were there for a variety of reasons, but mostly to voice their anger at what Donald Trump is doing to our country. It is again what a 62% disapproval rating looks like in America. In New York City, legendary actor Robert De Niro is joined by our friend and colleague, the Reverend Al Sharpton and New York's Attorney General Letitia James to lead a march through the streets, saying now is not the time to sit on the sidelines. In Minnesota, where the Trump administration and its immigration agents attempted a cruel and brutal occupation of that city which claimed the lives of two American citizens, two of their own citizens, Renee Nicole Goode and Alex Preddy, hundreds of thousands of people came out for a protest which featured a performance from Bruce Springsteen. Here's some of that.
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D
Here at home they killed and roamed in the winter of 26 will remember the names of those who died on
- [32:06]
C
the streets of Minneapolis. I want to bring into our coverage one of the organizers of the no Kings protest, Hunter Dunn, is back. He's the spokesperson and national press coordinator for the grassroots organization 5051. Claire McCaskill is still here as well. I know you don't rest on your laurels, but if we could look back before we look forward, what do you think worked on Sunday other than literally wall to wall images of Americans of all age, of all ethnicity of all sort of different issues based on the signs they were carrying, being out there, largely united on the streets.
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D
Yeah.
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F
As you said, this past Saturday, over 8 million people gathered together at more than 3,300 protests across the country to show the entire world that we the people do not bow to want to be kings or tyrants in America. What's special about this time is that we had over 600 more protests than in October, cutting deep into red and rural areas. Also like in the furthest north community in Alaska, and solidarity rallies as far south as in Antarctica. I went to a protest in what is called the county of Reagan, Orange County, California, where I grew up, a historically very conservative area. And there were hundreds of people there. It shows that we're really reaching everyone. It's not just left versus right, it's working people of this country versus the billionaire class.
- [33:43]
C
What do you think? I was born in Orange county myself. And it is always amazing when you see anyone protesting a Republican administration in Orange County, California. What do you think is driving people not just to sort of privately be unhappy and make a pledge to vote in a different way in an election, but to do that next step of being out in the streets on a weekend?
- [34:07]
F
Yeah. Well, this administration is unlike any of recent memory. Right. It's rounding up our neighbors and throwing them in camps. It's waging an illegal and evil war against Iran. It's cutting our health care and hollowing out our government to line the pockets of billionaire class. And it's covering up the President's personal connections with the Epstein sex trafficking ring. And past that, it's allowing masked men on their payroll to murder Americans in the street and trying to do nothing about it. What's different this time is the level in scale of the UN American regime, of the complete giving over of our country to corruption and fascism. But even more importantly, with the way that things spread virally over social media and with the power that we built up over the past year through mutual aid networks and resistance movements and mass mobilizations, we're able to reach more people and we're able to empower people who otherwise wouldn't stand up to take the first step and get involved in a mass protest like no kings, but also to take the next step to get involved locally.
- [35:12]
C
Let me you know the right loves to smear celebrities. I was once on the right and it's usually a projection, not an actual good faith critique. But Jane Fonda and Robert De Niro are not celebrities. They are sort of steeped in activism and let me show you what both of them had to say. Jane Fonda read a letter from Renee, Nicole Goode's widow.
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B
I did not ask to be thrust into the spotlight or to be expected to speak out. It's a circumstance I unfortunately found myself in. But regardless of how I arrived here, I feel it's my responsibility to send a message that hate has divided us and destroyed so many lives and families. But we can choose something else. We can choose radical kindness. So let's do this.
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D
Trump has to be stopped. And that's what no Kings is all about, because he can't do all the up things that he's been doing without the collusion of Congress and the goons in his administration. They're bound to him by fear of losing their own jobs, their own power. It's diabolical.
- [36:34]
C
Claire McCaskill it's not a fixed point, though, right? I mean, I think that what Robert De Niro is articulating there is exactly right, the collusion of Congress. But there has to be a point where his approval rating, I mean, on his handling of inflation, which was one of the drivers that led to his victory In October of 2024, just 24% of Americans approve of the job he's doing there. On the question of jobs, 30% of Americans approve of the job he's doing in creating jobs. On immigration, which was, again, his calling card, along with the economy, just 35% approve. And on tariffs, another one of his signature economic issues other than inflation, the lowest number he gets. On an economic question, what are the Republicans doing?
- [37:24]
B
Yeah, well, they're in trouble. You know, they're fighting amongst themselves. What's going on in Congress right now is the Republicans in the House are fighting the Republicans in the Senate about whether or not they should fund the organization that is supposed to be protecting America from Iranian terrorists at a time that we're at war with Iran. So it's a mess. And I will say about the no Kings thing, I think that's really interesting is the most important part of this, is that this is growing and not shrinking.
- [37:54]
D
Yeah.
- [37:54]
B
Typically when you have, if you remember, the outpouring of emotion after Trump was elected the first time, but that wasn't sustained through the entire first administration. These protests are growing, and where they're growing is most important. They're growing in suburban and rural America. And I watched firsthand counties that voted for me, that voted for Barack Obama, swing hard. Right. And when you see people in these smaller communities around America coming out and publicly being against what Donald Trump Represents that gives other people in those smaller communities permission. Because when you're in a small county, a small town, it is hard to swim upstream to go against the grain. So the fact that you're seeing these outcroppings of people out on the streets in small towns that are less than 10,000 people, that says a lot. And I would remind everybody that the protesting on the streets is so important. But imagine what would happen if every single person that protested over the weekend registered five people to vote. We're talking 40 million new voters. We're talking about 40 million people that would agree with the people who are protesting. And that's how you move the needle. Everyone is frustrated that Democrats aren't fighting hard enough. They're not doing enough. Well, you can't fight if you don't have the numbers in Congress. You have to have the numbers, and to get those numbers, you have to win elections. And that's why this is all an important lead up to the midterms.
- [39:35]
C
All right, well, we'll have that conversation on the other side of a break. I mean, there's also, I think, a big question about how the movement is covered and how seriously it's taken as a political force. You look at the treatment and the obsession with the Trump voter that went on for literally the four years of his term as president. You look at the way the Tea Party sort of got in the head of Republicans and Democrats. This movement is bigger, it's more diverse. And to your point, Claire, it has sustained itself longer. I want to put that question to both of you as well. Hunter and Claire, stick around. We're going to sneak in a very short break. We'll all be right back. So, Hunter, jump in there. What do you do with the two parts of, I think what Claire and I have raised. One, telling the story of the diversity and the span and the permission structure that has been created for everyone and anyone to express their discontent with Donald Trump. And two, how do you make sure it translates into actual voter behaviors in November?
- [40:34]
F
Yeah, well, to start off with, there were more protests than there are counties in this country. There were 30 plus protests in the 77 counties of Oklahoma based on last. Last of what I checked. But when it comes to making a difference, when it comes to mass mobilization, when it comes to activating people, it's about more than just the midterms. Voting is incredibly important, but it's about the local organizing, both registering people to vote, but also anti ICE actions, mutual aid networks, election defense, community defense, labor organizing, ICE watch and Putting pressure on your elected representatives. There are local community organizations, sometimes dozens or more, at your local no Kings protests. And part of the whole point of no Kings protests is more than just solidarity. It's about getting you involved and connected with those local organizations, because that work over days, weeks, months and years will have a much larger impact than just one day of protest ever could.
- [41:29]
C
Claire, what are you hearing and what is your sense of sort of the power of the diversity of the protest?
- [41:36]
D
Right.
- [41:38]
C
Everyone can find someone that reflects their issues and the issues they vote on or the issues that they never thought they'd have to worry about, like people being protests and people being gunned down and killed for protesting.
- [41:51]
E
Yeah.
- [41:51]
B
Interesting. You know, the Republican reaction to this, the White House reaction to this is so, so much echoes some of the reaction to the Tea Party movement that I had a front row seat for. And it used to drive me crazy when some of my colleagues in Congress who weren't on the front lines watching what was going on with the Tea Party when they said, oh, these are paid protesters or these are just the fringe far right. I was seeing who these people were in these communities. And they were not paid protesters. And they were, in fact, ordinary people who were really mad at Washington, D.C. and we saw what happened. They had a massive success in that midterm election after the Tea Party really took root. What you're seeing now is an echo of that, but it's bigger. And the more the White House dismisses these people as people who hate America, or these are left wing radicals or these are all communist lovers or whatever they say, the more people hear that because they see who these people are in their community and they know they're the person who checks them out at the grocery store. They're the person that they drop their dry cleaning off with. They're the person they see at the soccer field over the weekend with their kids. They know these are real folks that are very upset, and that really makes a difference. And it allows this thing to take root in a way that can result in election differences in November.
- [43:19]
C
All right, I love talking to both of you. Henry Dove, thank you for being here after such a busy weekend. Claire, thank you for spending the whole hour with me. Up next for us, Donald Trump revealing what he says is behind his new massive ballroom. Quick break and then we'll tell you about it. Someone's feeling a little defensive about his not so pretty ballroom. Donald Trump showing reporters some design changes last night and telling the reporters the project is, quote, ahead of schedule and under budget End quote. Trump also saying, quote, a lot of people are giving it really good reviews, end quote. Trump then revealed to reporters that the United States military is building a, quote, massive complex under the new ballroom. Air Force One display came after an embarrassing bit of reporting in the New York Times that poked some holes in his $400 million project. New York Times analysis flagged a number of issues, including fake windows on the north facing wall to conceal a row of bathroom stalls, an oversized portico and columns that will block views from the inside. And, of course, a staircase that leads to nowhere. That's right, a grand staircase to nowhere. New York Times founds that it leads to nothing. The National Capital Planning Commission is scheduled on Thursday to take a final vote to approve Trump's Ballroom. We'll stay on top of that after the break. Is Donald Trump's once massive, unbeatable, mighty coalition crumbs with every breath he utters and every policy pronouncement out of the White House? We'll ask that question when Deadly White House continues after a quick break.
- [45:08]
D
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F
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F
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