IHIP News Podcast — Episode Summary
Episode Title: Elon Screws Trump Over, Outs MAGA X Users as Frauds On Purpose
Hosts: Jennifer Welch & Josh (subbing for Angie “Pumps” Sullivan)
Date: November 24, 2025
Overview
In this episode, Jennifer Welch and guest host Josh dissect the brief but explosive update to Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) that inadvertently revealed prominent “America First” and MAGA accounts as being operated from overseas. The hosts deliver a fiery, comedic, and incisive take on the implications for Trump, MAGA supporters, and American democracy itself, arguing that foreign actors have long been behind much of the right-wing social media outrage machine. They also explore the failures of Democrats to understand and fight against the propaganda war, the hypocrisy of MAGA leaders, and how everyday Americans are being manipulated.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Elon Musk’s X Update Exposes MAGA Bots
- Musk rolled out a new X feature displaying account locations, briefly unmasking MAGA influencers as being based in places like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Russia.
- Jennifer: “All of these massive MAGA accounts… hundreds of thousands or millions of followers, are in Pakistan or Bangladesh or, or Russia.” [01:43]
- Musk quickly removed the update, but the damage was already done, fueling speculation about his motives—was it incompetence or subtle sabotage of Trump?
2. Was Musk Sabotaging Trump On Purpose?
- Josh: “Did Musk do this on purpose for a day just to take a jab at Trump, or is he just sat in confidence?” [01:57]
- The hosts suggest that the Musk-Trump relationship has always been transactional and antagonistic, with both men using each other for political and financial leverage.
- Jennifer: “Musk needed Trump… Kanks needed Musk because he was a convicted felon… Now he's a multi billionaire because he's, you know, fleecing the government.” [02:23]
3. Evidence of Foreign Troll Farms
- The update exposed not just MAGA accounts, but also “America First” social media being orchestrated from troll farms in places like Nigeria and South Asia.
- Quotes and tweets (e.g., Jane Kiev, MAGAscope) confirm long-standing suspicions of coordinated foreign influence intended to sow division.
- Jennifer: “Here is magascope. All of these MAGA first, we could show you account after account after account based in Nigeria. And all of their tweets are like, deport Zoran Momdani, I'm an America First American.” [03:48]
- Josh: “You see probably these congressmen or senators or people in policymaking positions who will or will not tweet certain things based on the backlash... and the backlash is coming from Nigeria.” [04:33]
4. Manipulation of the American Electorate
- The hosts argue that rural, church-centered, and patriotically inclined voters are especially vulnerable to foreign propaganda, due to limited exposure and time.
- Jennifer: “There is a percentage of the electorate that has been looked over… You have basically the same conversation with the same type of person your entire life. A white Christian Republican.” [07:14]
- Josh: “People don't have two to three hours to ferret through what's truthful… so you see these bots... you just think, oh, gosh, that's being said… and then your nationalism takes over.” [08:23]
5. Notable Revelations: The Joe Rogan Bot Account
- A major “Joe Rogan Podcast News” account with 1.8 million followers was also run from East Asia, underlining the irony of pro-America, anti-immigrant messaging delivered by non-Americans.
- Jennifer: “Joe Rogan podcast news… where is Joe Rogan podcast news based? East Asia, in the Pacific… The whole Joe Rogan, Mr. America… his whole fan club is overseas. It’s just insane...” [10:05]
6. Democratic Failures to Counter the Information War
- Citing Jim Stewardson: Democrats failed to recognize and counter the scale of the propaganda war, letting Musk weaponize X to sway public opinion with foreign power.
- Jennifer: “This right here is why Democrats lost in 2024. We refused to understand the war we are fighting… The Biden administration ignored it and let people get brainwashed into an alternate reality.” [12:35]
- The hosts critique Biden’s choice of Attorney General and the pattern of playing “integrity politics” rather than fighting fire with fire.
7. Republican Hypocrisy and Self-Dealing
- The episode highlights not only the hypocrisy of anti-immigrant rhetoric from immigrant tech moguls like Musk but also the audacity of Republican demands, e.g., seeking damages for being investigated.
- Josh: “Trump is so aggressive, he's asking that he be paid damages for having to go through DOJ investigation… He wants to be paid for being investigated for trying to overthrow the government.” [16:47]
- The conversation points to jaw-dropping legal maneuvers by GOP politicians—like Senator Lindsey Graham suing the government for DOJ seizure of his phone records and potentially being paid from taxpayer money.
8. Accountability, Propaganda and the Need for Regulation
- The hosts call for more aggressive government regulation of online misinformation (“regulating the Internet is not censorship, it’s safety”).
- They urge Democratic leaders to call out the lies and manipulations directly to the public.
- Jennifer: “Every Democratic candidate should get in front of a camera… and say, you have been lied to for decades… These billionaires are making you get mad at the people who own the Mexican restaurant down the street…” [20:25]
9. Memorable Analysis: The Constitution and Trump
- Josh: “A respected attorney named Ty Cobb... said that the Constitution was not built for someone to resist the efforts of someone as evil as a person like Trump… No one envisioned a person this diabolical.” [21:55]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Jennifer [01:43]: “All of these massive MAGA accounts…hundreds of thousands or millions of followers, are in Pakistan or Bangladesh or, or Russia.”
- Josh [01:57]: “Did Musk do this on purpose for a day just to take a jab at Trump, or is he just sat in confidence?”
- Jennifer [03:48]: “All of their tweets are like, deport Zoran Momdani, I'm an America First American. And at some troll farm overseas that's being paid probably by Putin.”
- Jennifer [10:05]: “Joe Rogan podcast news… The whole Joe Rogan, Mr. America… his whole fan club is overseas. It’s just insane that all of these pro America people... are getting hustled by foreign actors.”
- Jennifer [12:35]: “This right here is why Democrats lost in 2024. We refused to understand the war we are fighting.”
- Josh [16:47]: “Trump is so aggressive, he's asking that he be paid damages for having to go through Department of Justice investigation... He wants to be paid for being investigated for trying to overthrow the government.”
- Jennifer [20:25]: “Every Democratic candidate should get in front of a camera… and say, you have been lied to for decades… These billionaires are making you get mad at the people who own the Mexican restaurant down the street…”
Timestamps for Important Segments
- 00:34: Elon Musk’s X update exposes MAGA accounts as foreign actors
- 01:57: Debate over whether Musk sabotaged Trump on purpose
- 03:48: Discussion on Russian/Nigerian troll farms running MAGA accounts
- 07:14: Dissection of how rural Americans are vulnerable to propaganda
- 10:05: Revelation about “Joe Rogan Podcast News” account’s foreign origins
- 12:35: Jim Stewardson’s critique of Democratic failings in the information war
- 16:47: Discussion of Trump and GOP figures demanding damages over DOJ investigations
- 20:25: Call to Democratic leaders to aggressively confront right-wing lies
- 21:55: Ty Cobb’s warning that the Constitution was not designed for someone as malicious as Trump
Final Thoughts
The episode fuses sharp analysis, biting humor, and a sense of urgency about the threats facing American democracy from online manipulation and the Democratic Party’s failure to adapt. The hosts call out foreign troll farms propping up right-wing movements, the cynical machinations of billionaires like Musk and Trump, and the persistent naiveté of Democratic leadership. Above all, the episode’s through-line is a demand for accountability, transparency, and a more combative defense of truth against domestic and foreign misinformation.