Midterm Mania! New Insight & Reporting into the 2026 Races

Summary

Next Up with Mark Halperin

Episode: Midterm Mania! New Insight & Reporting into the 2026 Races

Date: May 14, 2026
Host: Mark Halperin
Guests/Co-hosts: Larry O’Connor, Kevin Walling

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Episode Overview

This episode of "Next Up" marks the debut of the new segment, "Midterm Mania," providing fresh analysis and reporting on the fast-approaching 2026 midterm elections. Host Mark Halperin delivers his take on key dynamics shaping the House and Senate races, examining polling, campaign strategy, fundraising, the impact of redistricting, and the major issues animating each party. The episode also introduces new morning meeting co-hosts, Larry O'Connor and Kevin Walling, who discuss the future of participatory media, their approaches to political commentary, and share personal stories in a light-hearted concluding segment.

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Key Sections & Major Discussion Points

1. Midterm Mania: State of the 2026 Races

(begins at 04:03)

Main Themes:

• Conflicting outlooks for Democratic success in the Senate vs. the House
• Historical patterns vs. current variables (approval ratings, money, issues)
• Strategic approaches and potential vulnerabilities for both parties

Insights & Analysis:

• Historical Constants:
  • President’s party usually loses seats in midterms
  • "There's a correlation between the president's approval rating and how his party does." (Mark Halperin, 05:13)
• Variables:
  • State of the economy, the Iran war, and candidate quality
  • Unprecedented GOP fundraising momentum, especially from billionaires and outside groups
  • Questions about whether Democrats can keep their small-dollar edge

Polling & Data:

• President’s approval consistently low (e.g., "approval down to 35%" – Mark Halperin referencing RCP average, 07:34)
• Democrats leading generic ballot, "it would be hard for them to lose the popular vote… but they could [still] lose the House." (Halperin, 06:55)
• The Iran war is particularly unpopular, negatively impacting the president’s numbers

Notable Quotes:

• “What’s fixed? Fixed is history… The president’s party loses seats in the midterm, sometimes a lot.” (Mark Halperin, 04:57)
• “Democrats are pumped up… they want to send a message to Donald Trump.” (Mark Halperin, 09:13)
• “The polling shows the Democratic brand is a mess.” (Mark Halperin, 11:13, on James Blair’s GOP strategy)

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2. Campaigns in Action: Messaging, Candidates, and Ads

(08:51 onward)

Democratic Strategy:

• Excited base, high volunteerism, Barack Obama on the campaign trail (e.g., in Texas with James Talarico)
• Candidates seeking to expand the electorate through energy and image

Republican Counter-Strategy:

• James Blair’s approach: paint Democrats as “woke, weak, and way too liberal” (11:04)
• GOP seeing potential with progressive Democratic nominees in swing states (e.g., Abdul El Sayad in Michigan)

The Role of Money and Redistricting:

• Unusually strong GOP fundraising from both traditional donors and small-dollar givers
• Supreme Court redistricting decisions (notably in Virginia) making the House landscape more favorable for Republicans

Notable Ads Highlighted:

• Abdul El Sayad (Dem MI Senate candidate) ad: "You are paying for Donald Trump's $200 billion war. Your money, their war." (12:46)
• Spencer Pratt (GOP mayoral candidate, LA) AI ad mocking Karen Bass: "Almost none of the needles in children's playgrounds have AIDS on them. If you like the last four years, you're gonna love the next four, vote Bass." (17:50)

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3. House and Senate Battlegrounds: The Math and the Maps

(14:00–18:00)

• Data from Cook Political Report currently gives Democrats a slight seat advantage but warns that GOP redistricting could flip the balance
• University of Virginia’s numbers indicate a close race: “211 seats… likely almost certainly to go Republican, 208 Democrat… Democrats need to pick up a number of the toss-ups.” (16:49)
• “If Democrats want a clear win, they’ll have to put Trump-won districts in play.” (Halperin, 16:23)

Prognosis:

• “You got to favor Republicans to win the House still… but this thing is up for grabs.” (Halperin, 18:13)
• “The Senate’s become more competitive for the Democrats, the House more competitive for the Republicans. Logically it doesn’t make sense, but you can see the reasons why.” (Halperin, 18:27)

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4. The Future of Participatory Media & The Morning Meeting

(22:36–30:00 and beyond)

Introduction of New Co-hosts:

• Larry O’Connor and Kevin Walling join as permanent hosts of the Morning Meeting on Two Way.
• Both bring diverse perspectives and a commitment to respectful dialogue.

Media Vision:

• The "Morning Meeting" is described as unique due to:
  • Real-time audience participation (“everybody’s on screen… and can participate in chat as well.” – Halperin, 28:47)
  • Focus on explanatory rather than debate style: “This is not a debate show. This is an explanation show where topics come up… I just try to explain where people with my political perspective are coming from.” (O’Connor, 31:05)
  • Respectful disagreement: “We’re going to disagree up, down, left, and center—but we do it respectfully and we learn from each other.” (Walling, 29:23)

Notable Quotes:

• “That is the sweet spot—when you’re getting attacks from the left and the right, you know we’re doing something right.” (Walling, 25:41)
• “People always say, ‘Oh you’re sucking up to Trump’—I’ve never worked for Trump. I mean, the extent of my relationship is that I like it when they come on my program so I can interview them.” (O’Connor, 32:54)

Behind-the-Scenes:

• Both hosts discuss their daily news intake and preparation
• Walling: “I’m active on X. John Ellis’s daily news brief is a must read… four screens on in the morning: FOX, CNN, CNBC, sometimes BBC, sometimes MSNBC…” (26:15)
• O’Connor: “I benefit from having this great team on my radio show… my work at Town Hall allows me to tap into that team of writers and editors…” (27:14)

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5. Personal Histories: Getting to Know Larry & Kevin

(34:00–54:00)

Larry O’Connor:

• Grew up in Detroit and suburban Plymouth, MI before moving to Orange County, CA
• Early theater and Broadway career, eventually becoming a conservative media figure through Andrew Breitbart’s Big Hollywood
• “I was always a conservative Republican… talk radio was my escape.” (O’Connor, 38:36)
• Transition into radio and commentary, credits Breitbart with key early support

Kevin Walling:

• Only child, raised in central New Jersey
• Early fascination with politics (grandmother was a mayor, mother’s family with WWII and Jesuit influences)
• Unique: “The worst thing I did to them [parents] was become a conservative Republican in high school… I terrorized my poor liberal parents for defending George W. Bush, John Ashcroft…” (Walling, 45:43)
• Shifted to Democrat after college, inspired by Barack Obama
• Capitol Hill intern, campaign work – maintains deep bipartisan social/political connections

Photos & Stories:

• Candid stories and banter about campaign experiences, family, and recognition in public
• Amusing remarks about being married to more conservative spouses: “Both Kevin and I married Southern Baptists who are conservative, probably more conservative than we are.” (O’Connor, 54:05)

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6. Pop Culture Lightening Round

(56:49–62:19)

• Fun, rapid-fire trivia contest where Kevin is quizzed on classic American pop-culture references by Larry and Mark
• Banter about failed NBC shows, Jack Lemmon drag trivia, Captain & Tenille’s biggest hits
• Revealed differences in generational knowledge, but also shared cultural touchpoints

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7. Closing Thoughts & Media Plugs

(62:19–64:37)

• Hosts share where listeners can catch their daily and weekly work
• Mark Halperin lauds his co-hosts: “Grateful to you both for being here, grateful to you both for being part of the morning meeting and honored to have you as my cohosts.”
• Episode closes with an invitation for listeners to become more engaged, “be part of it,” and share feedback for future Midterm Mania segments

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “Democrats are pumped up… they want to send a message to Donald Trump.” (Mark Halperin, 09:13)
• “James Blair’s strategy is attack, attack, attack, and when in doubt, attack some more.” (Halperin, 11:09)
• “This is not a debate show. This is an explanation show…” (Larry O’Connor, 31:05)
• “We get tagged all the time with clips from CNN and other outlets where you have people talking over one another… here, everyone learns something.” (Kevin Walling, 29:23)

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Memorable Moments

• Barack Obama Tacos Segment (08:18–08:51): Candid audio from the campaign trail with Obama and Talarico buying breakfast tacos.
• AI-generated Ad Highlight (17:50–18:13): Satire and campaign innovation with the “Karen Bass AI” ad.
• Hosts' playful pop culture quiz (56:49–62:19): Kevin’s broad but not always perfect cross-generational knowledge.

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Conclusion

This episode sets the tone for the campaign season with sharp, entertaining, and balanced political insight. The "Midterm Mania" segment will recur as the 2026 campaign heats up, with Halperin promising continued real-time analysis and the help of the show’s vibrant, participatory audience. The introduction of Larry O'Connor and Kevin Walling signals a commitment to civil, informed, and community-driven political conversation—delivered with plenty of wit and personality.

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Feedback, ad links, and interactive features have been omitted for brevity. For further Midterm Mania coverage, participation info, and all show episodes, listeners are encouraged to tune in live, subscribe, and reach out to the hosts.

Transcript

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[Mark Halperin]

Welcome to next up. It's summit week in Beijing and I'm sitting here in New York City. Mark Calperin with you, editor in chief of the live Interactive video platform 2way and your guide to everything next up at home and abroad. As they like to say. Thank you for being here, thank you for being an extra and part of our community. Happy that have you here and really excited about today's episodes because my two guests together are my new co hosts on the morning meeting on two way. Larry O' Connor and Kevin Walling join me every Monday, 9am Eastern time on two way and then the playback on Sirius XM111 Megan Kelly channel at 10 Eastern time. We've only been working together now for a couple weeks, although they've been on the show in the past and I'm still learning about them. And I'm excited to let you hear about their vision for media in the future. The future of two Way, but the future more broadly of participatory media and then also to learn a bit more about them. And I plan to ask some questions that I don't know the answers to, which is sometimes a little bit dangerous, but we'll see how it goes. Anyway, Larry and Kevin will be here in a bit and then shortly before that, we're debuting a new segment here. It's called Midterm Mania. We're going to show you the best ads, the best strategies, the best analysis of what's coming up not too far from now in November with early voting beginning well before election Day. In these all important midterms Elections. So quick break and then when we come back, next up is midterm mania right after this. Are you being lied to? They tell you to defer paying your taxes by saving in say, a 401k or maybe an IRA because you'll retire in a lower tax bracket. But think about it. If that were true, why are so many retirees now in the highest tax bracket of their lives? It's time now to get the truth and discover a better way to grow and protect your own money. Bank on yourself is the proven retirement plan alternative that banks and Wall street desperately hope that you never hear about. It gives you guaranteed predictable growth that doesn't go backward when the market drops. It can provide tax free retirement income under our current tax law, putting you in control of your future tax rate. You also have control of your money. Access it when you need to with no government penalties or restrictions. And your money, it keeps growing even when you use it. You can get a free report that reveals how you can bank on yourself and enjoy that tax free retirement income, guaranteed growth and control of your money. Just go to bankonyourself.com mark and get your free report. That's bankonyourself.com mark again. Go right now to bankonyourself.com Mark. All right, next up, the midterm elections and our new segment. We call it Midterm Mania. Mania. It's a crazy midterm. What's going on with the economy is a little unclear. What's going on with the Democratic brand, the Republican brand, the Iran war. And as we close in on November, we'll be tracking regularly for you, trying to figure out separate the signal and the noise and try to tell you the best reporting I can get you from both parties and independent analysts about where we stand going into November with control of both the House and the Senate at stake. Kind of a paradox here. I've become more confident on the Democratic side that they have a chance to take the Senate majority and at the same time less confident that the Democrats will win the House majority. Doesn't really make sense, does it? Well, I'll explain how we've gotten to where we are. And the most important thing is always is to remember there's the things that are fixed and then there's the things that change. What's fixed? Fixed is history. Historically, the president's party loses seats in the midterm, sometimes a lot of seats. Okay, what's fixed? There's a correlation between the president's approval rating and how his party does These, these two things are immutable and they create the environment in which you'd say Republicans are not going to have a good night in November on election night and the Democrats will likely take back the House. That's been the conventional wisdom and that Republicans have a chance, Democrats have a chance to take the Senate. Okay, that's fixed. What's variable? Well, first of all, what happens with the economy, what happens with Iran and then the campaigns themselves. Right. Candidates matter, campaigns matter and money matters. Another variable will be Republicans say now that they're going to for the first time in a while have more money than Democrats, not just the campaigns or the party committees, but these outside groups. But I'm still watching to see just how much money Democrats can raise from their billionaires. The Republican billionaires are energized. What about the Democrats? And then the small dollar contributions that we talk about so much here where Democrats have had an asymmetrical advantage. So let's talk first about why Democrats are very bullish on what's happening. First, the polls that have come out of later tell the same story. The war is unpopular. The president's approval rating overall and in general is quite low and by some measures by some polls the lowest it's been. Here's a CNN poll number. B1 please. Most Americans really are unhappy and asked has the president's policies affected them adversely? Not great. Same CNN poll you see here. B2 which party do you trust more on a variety of issues? Democrats are trusted on almost every issue. Not everyone, but almost everyone more than Republicans, including on the issues related to the economy that are so important to the voters. B3 the so called generic ballot. Which party do you plan to vote for? You see, if you're watching the video version of this, I'll tell you for those listening, Democrats have widened their lead to the point where it would be hard for them to lose the popular vote amongst the House in the House races. But they could because of gerrymandering, et cetera. Democrats could win the popular vote nationally on the House but not lose as many seats as you might suspect. Democrats are pumped up the President's approval rating. B7 President's approval rating is not great. This is a real clear politics average. And the president disapprove is again it's not the highest ever but the approval down to 35% again depends on the poll you look at. But Republicans are worried and until there's an end, if there is an end before the midterm election day to the Iran war, people are in the Republican Party are worried. So what does Democratic excitement mean? Democratic excitement means that they're giving money, they're signing up volunteers. And while we wait for the resolution of some of these primaries that will determine the strength of Democratic and Republican candidates in the fall, they're turning back to the man who's been the superstar of the party now for quite some time. Here's Barack Obama campaigning in Texas with James Talarico, the Democratic nominee, in a race that before I didn't think Democrats had a chance to win, but now I think they do, potentially. Here's James Tallarico and Barack Obama buying some tacos. This S6, please.

[Kevin Walling]

What I'm thinking is gotta get the street taco. I need maybe like a holy moly. I'll have a street taco, no onions. I think I know you order.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah.

[Kevin Walling]

Breakfast tacos, potato, egg and cheese. That's right.

[Mark Halperin]

I come here a lot, so.

[Kevin Walling]

She needs some Cheetos.

[Mark Halperin]

Oh, you got something there?

[Kevin Walling]

No, I'm, I'm fuzzing. I'm choosing. This looks like a table of troublemakers right here.

[DirecTV/Dish Commercial Announcer]

Who's this cutie?

[Mark Halperin]

This is my baby niece, Jane.

[Kevin Walling]

Hey, you.

[Mark Halperin]

And what's my name? That'.

[Kevin Walling]

Hey. She's been saying Barack Obama, so she's almost got it. That's better than most, dude.

[Mark Halperin]

So Barack Obama, as you, most of you know, he didn't love campaigning unless it's for himself and would later be in private life. But he's made it clear he's going to be out there. And Talarico is, is, you know, resembles Barack Obama. Vintage Obama, a young guy, an exciting guy, a guy who's trying to remake the electorate based on image as much as policy. Democrats are fired up about these midterms. They want to send a message to Donald Trump. They want to demonstrate that they can go into the next presidential election with a lot of momentum. And they look at the polling data and they see a very unpopular president, a very unpopular war. They look at the gas prices, they look at some of the inflation numbers. Democrats are fired up for these midterms. That's the case for why you'd think Democrats are going to do very well in this election. Here's the counter case, and it's made most explicitly and most passionately by James Blair. He's been the deputy White House chief of staff. He's leaving the White House to basically coordinate the entire operation to try to hold the Senate and hold the House. And James Blair has a theory of the case that I think is put in sharp relief why Republicans maintain, despite the president's poll numbers, despite the stalemate in Iran, why they remain confident that they can have a good night. James Blair, an interview with Politico this week, said this about the Democratic Party swing voters already think the Democratic Party's too far left and we're going to make sure voters know just how far left they are. They he means the Democrats are woke weak and way too liberal and the whole country will be reminded of that. Blair's strategy is attack, attack, attack, and when in doubt, attack some more. The best defense is a great offense. James Blair is right. The polling shows the Democratic brand is a mess. The Democratic Party, defined by people less by Barack Obama and more by some of the people like AOC and other far left people in the party. They're defining a party that is vulnerable. If the Republicans can make this not a referendum on Donald Trump and his stewardship, but a choice election between Democratic and Republican candidates. Karl Rove said the same thing in his column in the Wall Street Journal this week, pointing out that many of the Democrats, leading voices like aoc, like their Senate nominee Graham Platner in Maine, are vulnerable to attacks. And Republicans will have plenty of money and a lot of sophistication to remind voters of what they don't like about the Democratic Party and try to convince them, hey, you may not like everything about the Trump term, but you don't like the Democrats either. This is a James Blair specialty, is to use the modern techniques of campaigns, social media and digital and everything else to try to define the other side. We've got some primaries to play out, but Republicans will have money to do this. And a lot of the people who are the biggest stars in the Democratic Party, at least for the progressive wing, are vulnerable to being defined in a way that Republicans may be able to make this a different kind of midterm election. Again, not a referendum on the president, but a choice election. Here's one, one of the most interesting things. Democrats have a primary this summer in Michigan to run for an open Senate seat, U.S. senate seat. They've got three candidates. The most progressive of the candidates is a guy named Abdul El Sayad, who is very much in the mold of Mayor Mondame here in New York. Or maybe you say Talarico, or maybe Barack Obama. The guy's electric on camera and we've seen in the digital age, being electric on camera matters. The base loves him. And I make currently, based on the polling and conversations with people in Michigan, I make him the favorite to win if you've not seen this guy on camera, here's a short video he made. Very strong in terms of performance. Here's Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El Sayad

[Kevin Walling]

feeling that every single time you go to the pump, you are paying for Donald Trump's $200 billion war. Your money, their war.

[Mark Halperin]

I'm Abdul El Said.

[Kevin Walling]

I'm running for US Senate to end this war and to bring down your costs.

[Mark Halperin]

Great ad, great message, simple, great performer. He's got a medical background, a very likable, credentialed guy, but he's far to the left. He's the Bernie Sanders candidate in this race. And article in the New York Times this week pointed out that a shadowy super PAC or two are spending money in Democratic primaries trying to help the Democratic electorate choose the most progressive candidates in the race. The most far left candidates in the race. Democrats, centrist Democrats will cry and James Blair will rejoice if they get that candidate Abdullah Saad as their nominee for this Senate race because Michigan has not elected somebody that liberal to a statewide office in forever. So that's the strategy and it dovetails with for the House races, the extraordinary success that Republicans have had in the last couple weeks with a U.S. supreme Court decision and a Virginia Supreme Court decision on redistricting. There's still states to play out. We don't know what the final tally is going to be. And as we've told you before, just because a party redistricts a certain congressional district to their fate in their favor, it doesn't mean they'll win it. The voters may may have a different idea, but the current sense from political professionals in both parties is that Republicans now have a real opportunity. If they get the liberal Democratic candidates the nomination, if they, if they raise a lot of money, if they make it a choice election rather than a referendum, rather than a referendum on the president, they have a real chance to win. The person that the two people who put this in the sharpest relief one is a conservative columnist Henry Olson, who's writing about the House terrain and here's what he says. B10 please. Talking about redistricting and the successes Republicans have had with more to play out, Olson wrote this these moves significantly increase the chance that the GOP will retain control of the House come 2027. As of April 22 after the Virginia referendum, the Cook Political Report rated 217 seats as safe as likely are leaning Democrat compared with 202 rated that way for Republicans. Democrats would only need to win one of the 18 toss ups for majority. But that doesn't take into account that there have been big advances for the Republicans in other states and they may get more. Here's that Cook Political Report data and it's pretty striking. So the Cook Political Report is one of the agencies that looks at House races district by district. Another place that does that is University of Virginia, their institute there. And here's here are their numbers. They basically say 211 seats are likely almost certainly to go Republican, 208 Democrat. And so Democrats need to pick up a number of the toss ups in order to win. That means Republicans can really spend big in these remaining districts and they might get some more districts through redistricting. What Democrats are going to have to do to clearly win the House rather than eke it out, and if you got to eke it out, you may not get it, is they've got to put more seats in play. They have to take some districts that Donald Trump won by 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 points and put them in play to have a very big night. Now a few weeks ago I would have said that was possible. I've been on the bigger end of saying how many seats I think Democrats are going to win. But Republicans are going to have to put those districts in play. And James Blair and the big money and the redistricting have really narrowed the margin of error for Democrats. We shall see. The last thing that Republicans have going for them, which they didn't really have before, has been galvanized by their candidate in California. Spencer Pratt, running for mayor of Los Angeles, maybe won't win in a Democratic city, but what he's given Republicans is a sense of confidence that if they talk about how liberal the Democratic Party is, that they can have substantial success. And Pratt's done it and his supporters have done it with AI generated ads that speak in an authentic way about the weaknesses of the Democratic Party. What's their record on crime? What's the record on public safety? What's their record on taxes? What's their record on competence? There have been a lot of these. Some of you have probably seen them. Here's one of the latest ads from Spencer Pratt and it uses AI to mock the current mayor, Karen Bass. It's a little sophisticated, a little subtle, but if you're viewing this, you'll get it. It basically shows Karen Pratt in AI, the incumbent Democratic mayor bragging about her record while in the background you're seeing the post apocalyptic world of Los Angeles. Here's New York or LA mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt ad mocking the Democratic incumbent Karen Bass S1 our climate change policy

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is so strong, we've brought down energy use in the Palisades by 99%. Almost none of the needles in children's playgrounds have AIDS on them. If you like the last four years, you're going to love the next four vote Bass.

[Mark Halperin]

So again, it's meant ironic. It's not a Bass ad, it's a Spencer Pratt ad. But you hear Republican consultants all over the country saying, well, we want to take the techniques, we want to use AI, we want to use humor. But just as much or more is what's, what's giving them confidence, what's psyching them up is this notion that they can follow the James Blair playbook, the Trump White House playbook, and say, look at all these things you don't like about the Democrats, the very issues that Donald Trump ran on in 2016 and then ran again on 202420 to paint the Democrats as liberal. So what my reporting shows this week, ladies and gentlemen, about midterms, this mania will continue. The question of who will win the House and who will win the Senate. You got to favor Republicans to Democrats to win the House still. You got to favor Republicans still to hold the Senate. But this thing is up for grabs. The Senate's become more competitive for the Democrats. The House has become more competitive for Republicans. Logically, that doesn't make sense, but you can see the reasons why redistricting has given Republicans a chance. Whereas on the Senate side, the national environment is playing a larger role, at least for now. All right, that is it for my reported monologue Here for your midterm mania update. We'll keep tracking it. We'll keep the segment going all the way through November. Let me know what you think. What have I gotten right? What have I gotten wrong on midterm mania? What are the factors I'm overrating or ones maybe I left out? Send me an email nextup halpernmail.com Again, that's next up, halperinmail.com Let me know what you think. And if you see a great ad out there, something that really catches your attention, send it to me. Send me a link so I can see all the great ads. We can't track them all by ourselves. We need the help of Nexter. Subscribe to the program, please. On our YouTube channel, there'll be full episodes there. You get them as soon as they drop an exclusive bonus content. It's at YouTube.com@/at sorry, YouTube.com/@nextup halperin and of course you can listen to the show as a podcast as well. Check your downloads to make sure they are toggled on so you get every episode right away. All right, next up, super excited to introduce you to my new colleagues on two ways the morning meeting. I spend Monday through Friday, 9am Eastern time with them. They're two great guys and we're going to learn more about them together. Larry o' Connor and Kevin Walling are next up. Hey, did you know that high blood pressure is the number one risk factor for mortality? One in two adults has it and that means there's a 5050 chance that you are a walking time bomb. Here's the good news though. You can take control of your blood pressure naturally without relying on Big Pharma. 120 Life is a Blend of great tasting super fruit juices that have been shown to help lower blood pressure. It's backed by hundreds of doctors and trusted by thousands of people who've seen measurable results. And here's the best part. It's completely risk free. Try 120Life for two weeks and if you don't see a difference in your numbers, you get your Money back. Go to 120Life.com that's 120Life.com and and use my code NextUp to save 20% and get yourself free shipping. This is serious. This is your life we're talking about. 120 life can help.

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[Mark Halperin]

All right, next up and joining me now, I couldn't be more pleased, my good friends and colleagues Larry o' Connor and Kevin Walling. The three of us are co hosts of the morning Meeting you Can watch it every weekday 9am Eastern time on the two way platform and also hear it as a podcast and on Sirius XM channel 111, the Making Cali channel, every Monday through Friday at 10 East. Gentlemen, welcome. Happy to have you here.

[Larry O'Connor]

Hello, Mark.

[Kevin Walling]

Hey Mark.

[Mark Halperin]

You guys are both exactly. You guys have been regulars on the show, but now you're the, what we call in the television business the permanent co hosts. Larry, what's, what's been the reaction so far been like to your being named as part of the firmament on morning meeting?

[Larry O'Connor]

It's pretty good actually. I'm surprised because you know, listen, all of the other great right of center analysts that you've had, they all are very different than I am, Mark, because they've actually played the game. They've actually been in politics. They've held office of one sort or they've worked in the White House or they've worked dumb this or that. I'm merely a commentator. I merely, I merely watch it all happen and give my analysis and my opinion about it. So I'm humbled that I'm stepping into those footsteps and sort of lending my, my voice to it from not a perspective of actually being in the middle of the government game, but instead being a citizen just watching it all unfold. So you know, I'm, I'm humbled by that and I've been surprised at how supportive everyone is, especially the incredible two way community to, to let me into the party.

[Mark Halperin]

Kevin, you, you've appeared on TV for a long time but never as a, as a host of a show like this. You've been, you've been on other shows where you've been a part of the firmament. But what's it like for you to now be part of a daily show?

[Kevin Walling]

It's, it's fantastic and you know, the alarm goes off and you start reading right away in bed and the, you know, I don't know. A lot of community members say this to you, Mark. I don't know when you sleep because you're, you're texting late at night in terms of topics for the next morning and right. Right away is what I wake up to now. Less waking up with my husband. It's more waking up with Mark Halpern and his text and Larry too because of your morning coverage. So it's a great way to wake up. It's a great way to start the day and it's a great way to start the day on, on Game because again, you know, producing this daily show, you got to know what's going on and you got to engage with the community. And to Larry's point that that has been the least surprising and most surprising part about this is you've got a die hard group of two wayers, nexters that are heavily involved. But just hearing that getting the text messages, tweets, emails, has been incredibly encouraging and you have built something really special here, Mark. And I know I speak for Larry when I say it's just exciting to be a part of it.

[Larry O'Connor]

And I can also tell you you're hitting a sweet spot here. Kevin, do you get heat for the show being too mega? Because I get heat from my audience and my supporters saying, you know Larry, how do you put up with those two crazy liberals? And so I it's it. But, but you also hear from other people that it's too MAGA and it's that you're too conservative and Mark's too conservative.

[Kevin Walling]

So that is the sweet spot when you're getting attacks from the left and the right. You know we're doing something right.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, people ask me this all the time and I'm sure They ask you 9:00am Eastern Time is not, it's not that early. And of course Larry and I are up, Kevin, while you're still sleeping, doing actual production. But what do you guys read? How do you stay aware? Because I'm so impressed with not only do you bring great experience and judgment and analytics to this thing, but you both know every time a topic comes up, you both know all about it. So Kevin, what do you read besides text from Larry to know what's going on?

[Kevin Walling]

Well, that's significantly part of it in terms of what Larry flags and stuff like that. I read, you know, not to, you know, be have a Sarah Palin moment here where I just. Anything that's put in front of me. No, but I, you know, I'm active on X. Follow a lot of great, well sourced reporters and journalists with breaking news. John Ellis's daily news brief is, is a must read in terms of things that he flags every day. He's got his own subset so I certainly encourage folks to, to check that out. I know Brett Hume also talked in that conversation you had with Brett. That was one of the things you guys talked about too. So it's a bevy of different reports. And then of course when I wake up too, I got the four screen on so I want to see what the coverage is across the spectrum when Fox, cnn, cnbc, sometimes BBC but then also Ms. Now sometimes that flips out. So Also seeing what the conversation is happening online in terms of the four screen.

[Mark Halperin]

Larry, anything not on Kevin's list that's on your list?

[Larry O'Connor]

Yeah, I think, you know, I'm doing a three hour morning show from six to nine, right before we begin at nine.

[Kevin Walling]

So.

[Larry O'Connor]

Yeah, and we begin our show prep around five o' clock, or at least our, our rundown prep. We're doing show prep all the time. And I benefit from having this great team on my radio show and we're all contributing stories and ideas and stuff that we see. Also my work at Town hall allows me to tap into that great team of writers and editors who are always following the news cycle. But now I'm able to get the resource of the Two Way team. You know how it is, Mark. I mean, we've got these great teams and I now involved with three different production entities that all have teams of people who are looking at stories and looking at what's going on. So I just tap into those resources and rely on those great producers and researchers. And the big regret I have is that when I would come off the air on radio at 9, I would then plug into the morning meeting and I would, I would either listen to it in the car or I would watch it on my device. And now I've lost the morning meeting as a resource.

[Kevin Walling]

I just want some credit for going toe to toe. The only person I got backing me up is my husband, who's a Republican. So he's given me talking points from the right that are not helpful to me and to go toe to toe with with Larry every morning. And he's got an entire team and an entire makeup team. You find him?

[Larry O'Connor]

Yeah, yeah.

[Kevin Walling]

You know, I want some.

[Mark Halperin]

It really has resources, but you've got,

[Larry O'Connor]

when it comes to murder them and victims, you know, Kevin, you're right up there with Elizabeth Taylor in your.

[Kevin Walling]

You know, in our Catholic tradition there are things called bloodless martyrs. And that's what I consider myself.

[Larry O'Connor]

Yeah, offer it up, Kevin. Offer it.

[Mark Halperin]

So, so honored and grateful to be working with you two guys because the show is a different kind of show. And partly it's a different kind of show because we do take questions from the community. When we started Two Way, we just had a basic thing which is most contents. One way. This is an opportunity for people. Not just like in talk radio where people can call in once a month or whatever, but everybody's on screen, everybody's on camera, everybody can see and they can participate in the chat as well. Kind of parallel to what we're Doing Besides that fundamental two way feature, Kevin, what's different about the morning meeting compared to other video political content that you've, you've been on or that you watch?

[Kevin Walling]

Well, I think it's, it's the interaction between, you know, I would say sane, educated folks that aren't just talking heads but with real experience, you know. And in addition to Larry and I, Mark and the two way team have built a great list of contributors all, all on screen, all very familiar with the two way community, all, well, all well informed. And that element is so important not just for the morning meeting, but obviously the shows across the day that you, you have built this community of folks that aren't screaming at one another. We get tagged all the time with clips from cnn, other, other video outlets where you just have people talking over one another. No one's learning anything and everyone's going away mad. I don't know how people sleep after watching some of the shows, especially the evening shows. So I think that element of, you know, Larry and I are going to disagree up, down, left and center, but we do it respectfully and we learn from each other too. That's something that is sorely missing in the national dialogue and something that way the two way is all about including learning from community members that come live and ask really great, well informed questions. And oftentimes we engage in a dialogue with them too in terms of okay, you believe this, prove it and how do you back this up? And I think that's something really, really special.

[Larry O'Connor]

Kevin, you ignorant smut, you couldn't be more wrong about that.

[Mark Halperin]

Larry. I'm so impressed by both you guys in so many ways. You're both extraordinary listeners and most people on tv, on video. I keep saying TV because I'm old fashioned. They don't listen. They're just ready to jump in and say whatever it is they thought about saying in advance. But you're just an extraordinary listener.

[Larry O'Connor]

Well, well, thanks. Listen, I think that that is what sort of makes this platform different. Because you gotta listen, you don't know where it's gonna go, especially when the questions are coming from the community. Because I have the benefit of sort of knowing what direction you might be taking with the topic selection, Mark. But you never know what the community is gonna, gonna say and you gotta be plugged in and listening. I get caught sometimes when I'm chatting with the live chat and I miss something and that's always embarrassing. But I love being in a format here where, you know, people, I say, oh, there's a guy from the left, guy from the right, moderator, journalist. So it's a debate show. This is not a debate show. This is an explanation show where, where topics come up. We don't, I don't try to defeat Kevin or you, Mark, or for that matter, anyone in the community. I just try to explain where people with my political perspective are coming from, why we believe what we believe. There's nothing wrong with us. We're not, you know, fascists. We're not un American. We just have a different perspective. And this gives people who agree with me a platform to be able to hear somebody speak on their behalf in a respectful way and be respected by you guys. And it's shocking to say that that doesn't happen elsewhere, but it doesn't happen elsewhere.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, it's one.

[Kevin Walling]

And I think back to, I think back to one of the community member, two way community members from a few weeks ago, a woman on the West Coast, I think she was in San Francisco or Oakland, who does investor relations and business advising to corporations. And she tunes in because she wants up to date political fix in terms of what's happening in Congress, what the administration is doing through kind of the lens of both sides. And it's more informative to her and her investors and what she can share coming out of that conversation. I think that's so impactful and not just, again, talking heads going at one another trying to support political points. It's useful information, I think, to the larger community because we work hard to present that.

[Larry O'Connor]

And if I could just add to my comment earlier about how I don't work in government and I haven't worked for politicians, that actually, frankly, that's the one benefit I have here, is that when I give my opinion, I'm just giving my opinion. I don't, people always say, oh, you're sucking up to Trump. I've never worked for Trump. I don't suck up to Trump. I mean, the extent of my relationship with Donald Trump and people at the White House right now is that I like it when they come on my program so I can interview them because that's.

[Kevin Walling]

You're doing it to get, you're doing it to get POTUS box seats at the next Midshipman game in Annapolis. I know what you're, I know what you're trying to.

[Larry O'Connor]

I'm very happy with my seats at Navy and my Marine Corps Memorial.

[Mark Halperin]

I would like to see on the, on the Trump Kennedy center board. That would be a good point.

[Kevin Walling]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mark Halperin]

So again, we're talking to Larry o' Connor and Kevin Walling, newly minted co hosts of the Morning Meeting, the program that we do together every Monday through Friday, 9:00am Eastern time on the two way platform. You can listen to it as a podcast or watch it on YouTube live or on demand. Let's talk about your, your, your past and, and how you got to this point because you both have great accomplishments separate from your new role on the Morning Meeting. And let's start with young Larry. C9, please. This is Larry. Larry, tell us about, how was your childhood? Classic, classic American. Like what was about your circumstances of your birth, the circumstances of your childhood, teenage years? What's classic American? Where did you live? What was it like as compared to deviating from the norm of the cleavers?

[Larry O'Connor]

I want you to know that that makes me look a lot older than I really am. Doesn't that look like it was from the 30s or something?

[Kevin Walling]

We got, we got to colorize that. We got to colorize.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, here's, here's C11. This is, this is slightly older Larry. Looks either. Not that one. Sorry, C10. My apologies. C10, that's jumping ahead. This is either, this is either serial killer Larry or Scholarly Larry, depending on.

[Kevin Walling]

Look at that head of hair.

[Mark Halperin]

Goodness. So, Larry, tell us about your upbringing, what it was like.

[Larry O'Connor]

The first one was. That was my. I'm the youngest of four boys in Detroit, Michigan. And that picture was. The first picture was actually in Detroit.

[Mark Halperin]

Right in Detroit. Right in the city in Detroit.

[Kevin Walling]

The city Detroit.

[Larry O'Connor]

Now, when I was like three or four years old, we moved to the suburbs and I lived, but it was a very close to Detroit. I lived in a city called Plymouth, Michigan, which is basically right between Detroit and Ann Arbor.

[Mark Halperin]

Right.

[Larry O'Connor]

It's still in Wayne County. It's right there sort of in the metroplex. And I grew up there until I was 13. And then I moved to Orange County, California to live with my dad. My parents were divorced when I was 5. My dad lived in Orange county, so I went out to live with him. Now, this picture with all that beautiful hair, that is. Larry, I want to say that's 18 years old. 18 years old. And I.

[Mark Halperin]

So in what, in what, in what ways are you a Michigander? In what ways are you a product of Orange County?

[Larry O'Connor]

Well, I still root for the Michigan sports teams, that's for sure. I still love my Michigan Wolverines. I do love my Lions, my Tigers, my Red Wings. Not the Pistons as much, just because I don't really follow the NBA as much anymore. Yeah, but

[Mark Halperin]

do you love the auto industry do you have connections to?

[Kevin Walling]

I mean, you grew up in Plymouth. Plymouth.

[Larry O'Connor]

Strangely, I did not. Yeah, strangely all my neighbors were connected to the auto industry. My dad was a publisher for a magazine that it catered to the trucking industry. But not, not automotive per se, but. But sure. I mean, I love, I love my American cars. I have two beautiful American cars. They're Teslas, not, not the big three.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah. Were you as deeply unhappy as a child as you seem to be now?

[Larry O'Connor]

Oh, yes. Oh yeah.

[Kevin Walling]

I was skeptical of everything.

[Larry O'Connor]

Young four boys should say it all. I'm also a Michigander, by the way, because I do identify with the Midwest. I married a fine Midwestern woman from Oklahoma, Meredith. And I feel like I still reflect Midwest sensibilities. I never really fit in in Southern California. I love Southern California. I loved going to high school there. It was like fast times at Ridgemont High. That's why I'm so troubled in that picture because I'm reflecting on the last few years that I threw away in high school there in Newport beach. And I also in that photograph At 18, I'm about to move to New York to, to start my career in the theater industry because I grew up in high school doing plays and doing musicals and I was bit by the theater bug.

[Mark Halperin]

So how long did you work on Broadway and what did you do there in New York?

[Larry O'Connor]

I worked for five years and I worked for the Shubert Organization, which is the major Broadway producer and theater ownership concern. They own 17 Broadway theaters and I worked my way up through the company. After five years with a six month break working at Lincoln Center Theater. The theater entity was started by Greg Mosher and Bernie Gersten.

[Mark Halperin]

That's like a non profit entity. It's not right there.

[Larry O'Connor]

What's more, Beaumont Theater is a Broadway house.

[Kevin Walling]

What's more, cutthroat national politics, papal conclaves or the upper reaches of Broadway.

[Larry O'Connor]

I think it's a toss up, but.

[Mark Halperin]

Oh, I think from what I know, I think it's Broadway politics is more

[Larry O'Connor]

tolerant of people who disagree, that's for sure. But after five years on Broadway, the Shubert Organization moved me to Los Angeles to be the assistant manager for their LA theater in Century City, which is no longer there. And then six months after that, because of a couple of circumstances that happened with personnel, I became their general manager at a very young age, 24 years old. I was the GM of the Shubert LA and that's where I spent my 90s. It was a pretty heady time.

[Mark Halperin]

So how do you. What if we're making the film the Larry o' Connor Story, which someday could happen. What's the scene where you go from theater guy to content creator, political guy. What happens?

[Larry O'Connor]

Well, first off, I was always a conservative Republican. All through high school, I was a conservative Republican. These were the 80s and I was in Orange County, California. Ronald Reagan once called it, where good Republicans go to die. B1. Bob Dornan was my congressman. All right, so this is the culture I grew up in. Moving to New York, I didn't realize that, you know, we could talk. We couldn't talk politics openly in the office. I couldn't. And so I kept it to myself. But I was always a Republican. One day, as a nut, I loved talk radio. Talk radio was sort of my escape. I could turn on the radio station on a Walkman back when we had Walkmans, and I could work and listen to people, Rush Limbaugh and other conservative commentators. You know, finally saying the thing that I was thinking that I couldn't say out loud. And I heard this guy on the Dennis Miller show, his name was Andrew Breitbart. And Andrew Breitbart was talking about how he was working with Matt Drudge and he was, you know, part of the whole new media revolution. And he was starting a new website called Big Hollywood. It was all about conservatives who work in the entertainment business. And he said, anyone out there listening who work in the entertainment business, reach out to me and tell me your story. So strangely, on a lark, I sent him an email and I said, I live in la. I work in theater, not television and film, but I'm a conservative. Here's who I am. And he immediately sent me back his phone number. He said, call me. We talked for a while and he wanted me to write an article for him about David Mamet coming out as a conservative. Well, really, he wrote an article, said, why I'm no longer a brain dead liberal. That was the headline. And he said, write what you think the theater industry will do in reaction to this. And I did. And he said, you're in. And the first day the Big Hollywood went to press, the first week of January 2009, I was there under my assumed byline, I had to use a nom de plum mark. I was stage right. That's what I clever.

[Mark Halperin]

That's I love. Thank you.

[Larry O'Connor]

And I wrote for him for a year. And then I started doing a streaming audio show as an experiment because people I worked with in theater said that I had a good voice and I should do voiceovers. And since I love Talk radio. I started experimenting with podcasts and audio streams. Andrew liked it. I started streaming it on his websites. And before you knew it, I was guest hosting for radio hosts like Dennis Miller and Hugh hewitt. And by 2012, WMAL in Washington, D.C. hired me as their morning radio host co host at the time with Brian Wilson.

[Kevin Walling]

And is this building and building a national following too? That includes my sister in law who has listened, who has been a day one. She lives in Aiken, South Carolina, and the reach of the o' Connor media empire has reached her. And she starts her mornings with you. And we're so excited for this partnership.

[Mark Halperin]

Larry, is this what you feel you were meant to do?

[Larry O'Connor]

I feel like God's put me right where I'm supposed to be.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, I really do. What's your biggest unfulfilled professional ambition now?

[Larry O'Connor]

Oh, I haven't thought about that because I just got it. I wanted to be a national radio host and I was just honored to be brought into the Salem Radio Network. And so my show in D.C. so I'm gonna have to think about that probably. I want to do my show on the deck of a cruise ship. That would be fantastic.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, do you have. Do you have all your content in one place or is all mixed around now?

[Larry O'Connor]

It's. It's in the process of being consolidated right now, but it is a little bit mixed around. Yeah, I'm hoping that my sub stack will be a clearinghouse for all of it. That's Larry. VIP.com but. But now it's a little. Most of it is sitting at town [e-mail] because I'm the editor there. And that's where the radio and stuff goes.

[Mark Halperin]

Right. Tell us about one more photo. And then we're talking about Kevin C14. This is Larry with someone I believe you mentioned previously. Where is that? Who is that? And where is that?

[Larry O'Connor]

That's Andrew. That is me and Andrew Breitbart. That is at the radio row of CPAC. I want to say 2010, maybe 2011. It was, I think the last year it was at. Oh, you know what? This may have been 2012. We were. Andrew and I were filling in for Dennis Miller. We were doing the show from the Radio Row. If this was CPAC 2012, Andrew actually ended up passing away about three weeks later. I know this is. It was. It's definitely at the old Marriott wardman Hotel in D.C. before it moved to National Harbor. Kevin, Andrew.

[Mark Halperin]

Kevin knows everything and everybody but Kevin, am I right? You never met Andrew Breitbart.

[Kevin Walling]

Right. I never did. No, I never did.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah. He's incredible.

[Kevin Walling]

And still, his influence is still obviously shaped Larry and shaped a lot of people.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah.

[Kevin Walling]

And incredible guy. Still resonable guy.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, let's talk about young Kevin. Let's start with this C1. Kevin, tell us about the people.

[Kevin Walling]

Got to give the people what they want.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah.

[Kevin Walling]

I was fortunate enough to be an only child, raised by my mom and dad still together, beautiful family. Eileen and Peter, the pride of central New Jersey. The best part about being an only child is they, they took me everywhere. And my, my friends growing up are all my parents friends. So I, you know, you know, the references that I get all the time on, on the morning meeting is because I'm actually 74 in terms of my estimations and pop culture references.

[Mark Halperin]

So how are you, how old are you actually? Kevin?

[Kevin Walling]

I'm 40 years old. Turn 40.

[Mark Halperin]

And again, Kevin. Kevin gets references that are suitable for a 70 year old. It's are quite remarkable. You've explained why because you were, you were only kids. Like my son, he's an only child. If your parents hang out with you,

[Kevin Walling]

James is, James is to be pretty sophisticatedly well guided now because he has to get a bunch of references from, from mom and dad, you know.

[Mark Halperin]

So what was life? What was life growing up in New Jersey with your parents? Do you travel a lot? You reference travel, but. Well, like what kind of did you have a white picket fence? Like, what was life like?

[Kevin Walling]

It was ideal. Like we lived in cul de sac town outside of Princeton, outside of Trenton. Central New Jersey had a great, went to public school my whole life. Great group of friends, was involved in the, in the theater. I was not that good of an actor, so I was behind the scenes in terms of doing stage productions and stuff like that. But that was always a blast. But one of the formative things of course in growing up was 9, 11, because, you know, growing up in central New Jersey, so many of the moms and dads in the community commuted into New York City. So we were a commuter town, kind of feeder town to the city. I was a junior in high school when that happened and knew a number of parents that died that day. So that was, you know, kind of your high school was kind of wrapped up around that experience. Knew I always wanted to be, you know, study politics, love the politics. My grandmother was a big city mayor in central New Jersey as well, and she died before I was born. But her influence has kind of carried on with me as well. And then on the other side, being Raised by my mom and my mom's grandparents too. Both World War II folks. That kind of shaped me as well. So again, great experience growing up in Central Jersey public schools, going over there.

[Mark Halperin]

Any Republicans and. Sorry, any Republicans in your family? It's all Democrats.

[Kevin Walling]

The entire extended family, except for my mom and dad are Republicans. And the worst thing I did to them is not get a piercing, not get, you know, you know, a crazy haircut. Didn't dye my hair. I decided to become a conservative Republican in high school in this same outfit with this same comb over. It's been that way for 30 plus years. And terrorized my poor liberal parents for defending George W. Bush, John Ashcroft, everybody like that.

[Mark Halperin]

As a Democrat? As a Democrat, no.

[Kevin Walling]

As a Republican, No. I was a Republican in high school. I was a devotee. I was Alex McKean. I.

[Mark Halperin]

Then what happened?

[Larry O'Connor]

Well, what the hell happened to you?

[Kevin Walling]

I went to college and studied in D.C. at Catholic U and realized, you know, this was just an act of rebellion. And then obviously was super taken by Barack Obama and realized my brother and sister's keeper and big government Jesuits claim another one. Yeah, exactly.

[Mark Halperin]

Young, young Kevin. Young Kevin was playing at a high level of Democratic politics at an early age. Here he is, C3, triangulating with a super nice tux. How old are you in this picture, Kevin?

[Kevin Walling]

So that was in 2000. So I was 20.

[Mark Halperin]

And my dad own that tux or

[Kevin Walling]

rent it, I think I owned it, but it was from high school and it was a prom tux for sure. But my dad's uncle was the former Surgeon General of the Navy and started Tricare in the 90s, very close with a few folks at the VA and DOD. So I got to be his date for President Bush's reelection inauguration and took that photo back in 2005. So I miss that hair versus his hair from those C4.

[Mark Halperin]

Here's. Here's young Kevin with young Joe Biden. How did you, how did you meet Joe Biden? What's the circumstances of this?

[Kevin Walling]

So I was a kid intern. I fell in love with politics. Was a kid intern on Capitol Hill, work for a guy named Tom Carper, who was the other senator from Delaware. Former governor, great guy. He just retired not too long ago. Former Navy captain, just a great center, center kind of left guy. Former governor, kind of a. One of his best friends was Susan Collins in the Senate. They got a lot of stuff done. Chairing the Homeland Security Committee, back and forth. So that's. Those were the politics that shaped me and got to spend Some time played on. On the Tom Carper Joe Biden softball team in terms of the Senate softball league. So it was. It was a lot of fun.

[Mark Halperin]

You were unambiguously a handsome young man.

[Kevin Walling]

Tell you what. Look at that.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah,

[Kevin Walling]

I guess I took all of Joe Biden's pounds from that. He's. He's got a thin phase now. And I, you know, I had that thin face.

[Mark Halperin]

That's from your college years.

[Kevin Walling]

That's from my college years, yeah. So I started. I took my classes in the morning and at night starting sophomore year so I could commute to Capitol Hill. Went to Catholic U. And it was right on the red line. And that was the most formative experience, was literally working as a kid intern and then worked on a carpenter's reelection campaign on the finance team. And that was. That was the best education ever. Yeah.

[Mark Halperin]

Here's C8. This is Kevin with another Democratic president, Barack Obama. Kevin has a magical ability to have photos of all these moments. Like, I've met a lot of people.

[Kevin Walling]

And this is before. This is before the age of AI.

[Mark Halperin]

Where's that? Where's that?

[Kevin Walling]

So this is. This is at the Ravens had won the super bowl. And this was at the Ravens super bowl party on the saf long with the president.

[Mark Halperin]

How'd you get. How'd you get it?

[Larry O'Connor]

Yeah. What are you there for?

[Kevin Walling]

That's a good. I knew a bunch of folks in the Obama administration that were friends.

[Larry O'Connor]

Kevin. Kevin knows everyone who has the party list. Have you noticed?

[Kevin Walling]

And I took my. And I took my dad, and my dad was there. He's not in the picture, but I took my dad because he was a Ravens fan, and that was a great experience.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah. Kevin again shows up. He's like Zelig or Forrest Gump. Here he is. Sure. Z5. Here's Kevin with the monarch King of England from the reception a few weeks ago. Kevin, tell people about this one. This is C6, please. What are the circumstances of this one?

[Kevin Walling]

Yeah, so the previous photo was with King Charles iii. That was at a reception host by Sir Christian Turner, the. The new UK Ambassador at the most recent state visit of the King and the Queen. It was an incredible experience. Got just a few moments with him, but he was incredibly gracious. And we talked about that visit over the course of the days of it when it was happening, and it was just the thrill of a lifetime. Really, really great experience. And then this is the exiled Crown Prince of Iran. We were at Fox News together now a few months ago and had a great conversation. There Even before the lead up to the current war. So pulling for him and his people,

[Larry O'Connor]

do you hire a photographer to follow you around to capture?

[Kevin Walling]

So it's either Alex, my husband, who took the King, or a Booker producer friend, you know, that I just throw my camera to, and they're gracious enough

[Mark Halperin]

to follow up again. All right, let me.

[Kevin Walling]

I'm the only child. I got to get pictures with these

[Larry O'Connor]

people, by the way. I mean, I did not submit the photograph, but I do have the iconic guy standing next to Trump at the Resolute desk. Picture that everybody has, you know, where you look.

[Kevin Walling]

I don't.

[Larry O'Connor]

I don't.

[Kevin Walling]

I don't have that. I don't have that.

[Larry O'Connor]

But I was not expecting to be invited into the Oval. And I was interviewing the president. We were having a meeting, and so I looked awful. My hair looked terrible. I had. I had a beard at the time. And I don't know why. I was just going through this weird hippie phase back in 2019, I think it was. And so it's a terrible picture of me. But if people want to look for it, it's out there. All right, I. You will find it and put it in, I think.

[Kevin Walling]

Yes.

[Mark Halperin]

I think you both have mentioned your spouses. So let's close with this segment with that C7. This is Kevin and Alex. Kevin, how does Alex respond when you're stopped on the street and recognized what.

[Kevin Walling]

We both married up, and that's one of the key things that we have in common, Larry and I, in terms of our spouses. And I've been lucky enough because of this opportunity to get to know Meredith and excited for that. Larry's beautiful, brilliant wife. The pride of Oklahoma. This is Alex, the pride of South Carolina. He's made me a Southern gentleman now. Grew up in South Carolina, came up in South Carolina politics, ran the state party down here, the Republican state party. His grandfather was a close friend of Strom Thurmond. So it's like the two divergent worlds coming together. This was on our recent trip overseas. And he. He's the love of my life. Shapes everything. Smarter than I am, gets politics better than I do. One of the fun things the other week was Mark and his wife, and Alex and I got to spend some time together around correspondence weekend and just watching Mark and Alex swap stories about South Carolina politics, which is an extraordinary place. We're not doing it.

[Mark Halperin]

I need more time.

[Kevin Walling]

It was just fun for the both

[Mark Halperin]

of us to watch what happens when you're recognized. Does he like it? Does he think you Do a good job acknowledging the best.

[Kevin Walling]

The best week of my life and the worst week of his life was the Milwaukee Republican Convention. I was there doing a bunch of Fox coverage. I just co hosted the five and outnumbered the day before. So it was fresh in people's minds. And for that whole week, people were asking for photos. The loveliest time. I had a terrible time in Chicago. No one recognized me there. So Alex turned from husband to body man over the course of that week, and it was great to watch him do that.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, here's Larry on his wedding day. At least that's what it looks like to me. C11, please. Here's Larry and Meredith. And here's. And here's Larry. Kids. C12. Here's Larry with the kids. Larry, what does your family think of your celebrity?

[Larry O'Connor]

The. Well, Meredith, Meredith tolerates it. It's interesting because the, the recognize me thing is just now starting because of the, the added video of my life. Because being a radio guy, you can stay pretty anonymous. But Meredith does she, she goes to many listener events that we do in Washington. I've got one, two coming up this weekend. One on Friday and one on Sunday. And she's always asked the same question, you know, about, you know, did you listen all morning?

[Kevin Walling]

Do you just listen to is he insufferable? And at home as he is on

[Larry O'Connor]

air, very rarely do I get, maybe that's a you thing, Kevin. And the answer is always, she doesn't listen to the radio at all. So I can talk about her freely without worrying about the repercussions, which is great. And her answer is always, oh, I get the Larry O' Connor show 24 7. So I don't need to listen on

[Mark Halperin]

the radio on demand in real life.

[Kevin Walling]

All right, she doesn't have to pay for the ads either. She gets it. She gets a commercial free.

[Larry O'Connor]

By the way, Alec, the things we have in common, Kevin, that I learned, it's just terrifying, actually, because both Kevin and I married Southern Baptists who are conservative, probably more conservative than we are, 100%, definitely. In your case, both Republicans coming from a proud Republican family as well. Meredith's dad was the chairman of the Republican Party in Oklahoma and not the state in the Cleveland County, Oklahoma, and a big part of that party apparatus there. So we have so much in common. It's freaky how we got together for this show. Mark, did you do research on us? Did you have us followed?

[Mark Halperin]

All right, we're gonna take a quick break, and then next up, we're gonna test the limits of Kevin's knowledge of old trivia in pop culture. That's next up. Think for a minute about the last 30 bucks that you spent. Maybe on a streaming subscription you don't even watch or a lunch you've already forgotten. That's $30. That's gone forever. Acre Gold lets you turn that lost money into into something better, physical. 24 karat Swiss gold. You pick a plan, your balance builds and once you hit the price of a bar, they ship it straight to your front door. This is real gold in your hand at your house. And then over time, you're sitting on something that's been valuable since the dawn of civilization. And for the collectors out there, something really special. They just dropped the limited edition Hot Wheels collection. They are officially licensed by Mattel, strictly capped. And once they're gone, their history. So while you're checking that out, also claim your free entry in the speed club sweepstakes. They're giving away a 1 gram hot wheels gold bar plus a massive grand prize. The 10 gram 24 karat Gold Hot Wheels bar. Both come in the official collector packaging and they're up for grabs right now. Start stacking for just $30 at getacregold.com again, that's getacregold.com/mark. Subscribe today.

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[Larry O'Connor]

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[Mark Halperin]

all right, joining us now, next up, Larry and Kevin are back. My co hosts on the morning meeting on the two way platform. And as we mentioned earlier, Kevin is younger than we are but almost never fails to get our cultural references. So Larry, you'll do this off the top of your head because I didn't warn you we were doing it. Kevin, I'm going to name some pop cultural things and you tell us what they are. Ready?

[Kevin Walling]

Great.

[Mark Halperin]

Here we go. Shields and Yarnell.

[Kevin Walling]

Is that Mark Shields?

[Mark Halperin]

Nope.

[Kevin Walling]

No.

[Mark Halperin]

Bah. Larry, tell them who. Shields and Yarnell.

[Larry O'Connor]

They were street mimes that got famous doing the whole robot thing. Thing back in the 70s. They became guests on, like, Sonny and Cher and maybe the Flip.

[Mark Halperin]

And then they had their own show.

[Larry O'Connor]

They had their own. They had their own show.

[Mark Halperin]

Okay, all right, Kevin.

[Kevin Walling]

I was more of a. I was more of a Smothers Brothers kind of guy during those reality shows.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, Larry. Larry, give one off the top of your head. Give him something. See if Kevin knows what it is.

[Larry O'Connor]

Oh, give him a question like that. Okay, what was. Well, I mentioned Flip Wilson. What was Flip Wilson's character when he appeared in Dragon.

[Mark Halperin]

There you go. That's a great one.

[Kevin Walling]

I know Flip Wilson. That's a great.

[Mark Halperin]

Kevin, this. This is separating, literally the men from the boy. Because Larry. Larry and I know this. Like, we know anything, and you're just like, no idea. The correct answer. We were looking for Geraldine. Geraldine.

[Larry O'Connor]

Geraldine.

[Kevin Walling]

I know Flip Wilson. I didn't know that.

[Larry O'Connor]

He did drag, though, back when guys could put dresses on, be very funny, make people laugh, and not have it be this, you know, major cool, whole trop.

[Kevin Walling]

Okay, all right.

[Mark Halperin]

Well, here's.

[Kevin Walling]

Here's my. Here's my question. Okay. Jack Lemon famously did drag in a black movie, Some like it Hot. Where was it filmed?

[Larry O'Connor]

Tony Curtis. Charleston, South Carolina.

[Mark Halperin]

Charleston, South Carolina.

[Kevin Walling]

No. At the Hotel del Coronado. Oh.

[Larry O'Connor]

Oh, I didn't know that.

[Kevin Walling]

Your old stopping ground. So three can play this game. Three can play this.

[Mark Halperin]

Okay. Pink lady and Jeff.

[Kevin Walling]

Oh, Pink lady and Jeff. Yeah.

[Mark Halperin]

Doesn't ring a bell, does it? No, Larry, I'm doing these on top of my head.

[Larry O'Connor]

And I think these are all failed NBC shows, too.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, it's another failed TV show. It's a weird show.

[Kevin Walling]

Johnny Carson. Give me somebody on Johnny Carson.

[Larry O'Connor]

Duet of Japanese girls. Very pretty girls who sang and. And for some reason became a thing. I think the network execs at NBC decided they were going to be a thing.

[Kevin Walling]

I'm more of a Captain Antennial kind of gu. When it comes to two singing.

[Larry O'Connor]

And I couldn't tell you who Jeff was. I just remember he was like, a comedian.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, you mentioned Captain Tenille. Who wrote Captain Tenille's biggest hit? Kevin.

[Kevin Walling]

Burt Bacharach.

[Mark Halperin]

Incorrect. The song Love Will Keep Us Together. You don't know who wrote that? And again, Larry. And I know Larry. You don't know. You don't know. You don't know who wrote it. Brokeback's not a Bad guess, Larry. Exactly. Larry. Tell him who wrote level.

[Larry O'Connor]

I'm going with Neil Sedaka on that.

[Mark Halperin]

That is correct. Neil Sedaka.

[Kevin Walling]

Reason we just lost Neil.

[Mark Halperin]

We did. At the end of the song, their version. She sings Sadaka's back. That's a little Easter egg. Follow up.

[Kevin Walling]

Neil is. Neil is the father in law to what? TV and movie star?

[Mark Halperin]

Oh my goodness. I have no idea.

[Larry O'Connor]

I don't know.

[Mark Halperin]

That Neil Sad.

[Kevin Walling]

Jason Bateman.

[Mark Halperin]

Is that true? Wow, that's crazy.

[Larry O'Connor]

I'm Googling Justine Bman for that.

[Mark Halperin]

I'm Googling. I'm Googling that one.

[Larry O'Connor]

Hold on, Captain. And Tenel's second biggest hit, of course, Muskrat Love.

[Mark Halperin]

Muskrat Love was.

[Larry O'Connor]

Was a cover.

[Mark Halperin]

I think it's actually their third biggest hit, but keep going.

[Larry O'Connor]

That was a cover of what great bands. Actually original. The original version of Muskrat Love.

[Kevin Walling]

Oh, no, I got it wrong. It's Paul Ana. Paul Anka. Not okay. Easily confused.

[Mark Halperin]

I did not know that Muskrat Love was a cover, so I have no idea.

[Larry O'Connor]

It was a cover. America the. The great trio.

[Kevin Walling]

America the band players.

[Larry O'Connor]

America the band. They did Muskrat Love originally.

[Mark Halperin]

Interesting. Did not know that. All right, Kevin, we still think you know way more than most people, despite. Thanks. Despite stumping the band.

[Kevin Walling]

We need to. We needed some more. Some better references there, I think.

[Mark Halperin]

Really? You want some better ones?

[Kevin Walling]

Yeah, like give me like, you know, Jack Parr. Johnny, you know, Come on.

[Mark Halperin]

Ernie. What was the name of Ernie Kovac's late night show?

[Kevin Walling]

Oh, I know Ernie Kovac too. I didn't know the name of the show. The Gong Show.

[Mark Halperin]

Kind of a trick question. It's called the Ernie Kovac Show, I believe.

[Kevin Walling]

All right, all right.

[Mark Halperin]

The opposite of the opposite of a trick question. What. What city is David Letterman from?

[Kevin Walling]

He's from Indiana. Was it Indiana? Is he from Indianapolis?

[Mark Halperin]

Larry o'. Connor.

[Larry O'Connor]

I think it's Muncie, isn't it? I think he definitely went to Ball State, which is in Muncie, Indiana.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, maybe he's not. Maybe he's from Indianapolis. Let's see. Letterman, hometown. All this stuff is available in the Google machine.

[Larry O'Connor]

Mark, were you a Letterman guy or a Leno guy when everyone had Letterman?

[Mark Halperin]

Letterman all the way. Not even a close call. I got nothing against Jay Leno, but I respect Jay.

[Kevin Walling]

Yeah, well, that's. And that's who Johnny Carson wanted too. He was pissed.

[Mark Halperin]

My last question is something Larry and I are really interested in. Kevin gets invited to everything. If you read a Politico Playbook every day. At the end they got the big parties and then they put in bold face. Everybody is fun.

[DirecTV/Dish Commercial Announcer]

Kevin.

[Mark Halperin]

Kevin said everything. So, Kevin, what's this? What's your secret? Why are you. How do you get invited to everything?

[Kevin Walling]

The secret is to be fun at cocktail parties and not be weird. I mean, that's half the. Half the battle is.

[Mark Halperin]

Larry, we know now why we're not invited.

[Kevin Walling]

No, no, no, no. Half the battle is what a slam the battle is. I'm on Alex's arm and he is the most charming, engaging, he can talk to anybody. So most of the invites come to him. And then I'm just lucky enough to be like Jack Kennedy.

[Larry O'Connor]

So you're the plus one.

[Kevin Walling]

Jackie Kennedy Berlin.

[Mark Halperin]

Does it ever say, especially during the Trump administration, ever say +4 or +5? So we can come to.

[Kevin Walling]

If that's the case, then you are. You are my hot dates.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, guys, you're the ideal guest for a variety of reasons including. I don't need to do the promo. Larry, tell everybody where they can watch you.

[Larry O'Connor]

They can watch me every morning from 6 to 9 on the Salem News Channel or listen on the Salem Radio Network or if you're in Washington on WMAL, then they can watch me at 9am with these two fine gentlemen on the morning meeting. Did you just want me to plug the morning meeting, Mark? Now that I realize, I feel bad now.

[Mark Halperin]

I wanted you to.

[Larry O'Connor]

I'm doing the entire plug whole thing on the morning meeting, streamed live at 9am wherever you like. Although we would like you to come and join us in the, in the community.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, go to two way TV and join and be able to ask a question.

[Larry O'Connor]

And then I go live every day at noon on my YouTube channel for town hall media where I do a more of a monologue classic conservative right of center commentary on politics in the media. That's probably my most read meat show. And you can get that at noon every day.

[Mark Halperin]

And just to be clear, ladies and gentlemen, that means Larry's doing five hours of content every week.

[Kevin Walling]

How you do it?

[Mark Halperin]

Five hours. More than Mika Brzezinski, more than Regis. That's more than I think Larry more than anybody. Right?

[Kevin Walling]

And he does it. And he does it live. And he does it.

[Mark Halperin]

How long, how long is Brian Kilmeade's radio show? Is that an hour or two hours?

[Kevin Walling]

I think he has like two or three hours.

[Larry O'Connor]

I think. I think he's doing three. So kill me. So that's.

[Mark Halperin]

Kilmeade is six a day.

[Larry O'Connor]

Kilmeade is up there. Yep.

[DirecTV/Dish Commercial Announcer]

Hannity.

[Larry O'Connor]

But he's got co hosts and they do all the heavy lifting on FOX and Friends. Let's face.

[Mark Halperin]

Yeah, yeah. Nonetheless, nonetheless, nonetheless. Larry, you're right up there. You're gonna pass. Regis. Grateful to you both for being here to grateful to you both for being part of the morning meeting and honored to have you as my co host and look forward to having you back here regularly.

[Larry O'Connor]

Thank you.

[Kevin Walling]

Thank you, Mark.

[Mark Halperin]

All right, that's it for today's program. Back Tuesday with a brand new episode. Hope everybody has a great weekend. Hope you tell everybody that you got to know Larry and Kevin better than ever before. So tell your friends to become Nexters and be part of it. Subscribe on YouTube, subscribe to the podcast so you always know what's coming Next up.