J.D. Can't Sell This

Summary

Podcast Summary: Part of the Problem – "J.D. Can't Sell This"

Host: Dave Smith
Co-host: Rob Bernstein
Date: June 30, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode of Part of the Problem, Dave Smith and Rob "Robbie the Fire" Bernstein delve deep into recent U.S. foreign policy, with a focus on the Iran war, the Trump administration's attempts to frame the outcome as a victory, and the ailing credibility of the US-Israel alliance. They dissect the new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the US and Iran, scrutinize J.D. Vance's attempts to sell the deal to the public and media (especially his performance on Bill Maher), and express frustration at political spin, institutional dishonesty, and the broader inability of politicians to come clean about failed policies.

The episode’s title, "J.D. Can't Sell This," underscores their assessment that the administration’s attempts to cast the Iran outcome as a “win” are fundamentally unconvincing—both to the public and anyone paying attention.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Personal Check-In and Gripes with Rentals (02:00 — 07:25)

• Dave and Rob open with personal stories about their current travel and vacation woes, broken rental blinds, and hotel complaints.
  • Dave humorously philosophizes about “poetic justice” regarding a three-year broken-blinds saga at his vacation rental, ultimately blaming himself but still feeling aggrieved.
  • Rob briefly commiserates with Dave and talks about his own hotel struggles.
  • Occasional playful banter and self-deprecating jokes set a casual, relatable tone for the start.

2. Brief Tour Announcements (06:32 — 07:25)

• Quick rundown of upcoming stand-up dates for both comedians.

3. The Resumed Iran Conflict and The Farcical “Ceasefire” (07:30 — 13:20)

• Dave details how, after supposed "ceasefire" or peace, Israeli strikes on Gaza persisted and deaths outnumbered those from the original October 7th attack.
• Notable quote:

  "Israel has killed more Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire, than were killed on October 7th... The event that is horrific enough to justify all this—worse than that, we can call a ceasefire." (08:10, Dave Smith)

• They note that the U.S.-Iran “ceasefire” mirrors this ambiguity—ostensibly peace, but with ongoing violations and no true settlement.

4. The “Big Bluff” & the US-Israel Relationship at a Tipping Point (09:29 — 13:18)

• Dave argues the U.S. is facing a high-stakes moment where its power, and the influence of Israel and its lobby, is being tested.
• The administration’s public statements reflect a tacit admission of American limits—particularly regarding the economic consequences of continued escalation.
• Quote:

  "We're really, really in a fascinating moment right now, a very fascinating little moment right now where a... big bluff is being called... Not just the bluff of US military might itself, but the bluff of, in a lot of ways the US-Israeli relationship." (09:29, Dave Smith)

5. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU): Surrender, Spin, and Sleight-of-Hand (13:20 — 18:30)

• Rob and Dave agree the Trump administration has essentially surrendered in the Iran conflict, but desperately tries to spin the deal as a win.
• The MoU grants substantial concessions to Iran—including future rights to toll the Strait and resume oil trade—while the U.S. gets little of consequence.
• Dave identifies a pattern of "signing a surrender, spinning it as a victory," and then breaking their own agreements in public statements.

6. Iran Deal Analysis and the Never-ending Pattern (18:31 — 25:54)

• Dave describes the three phases of the Iran war: the initial military campaign, the blockade/counter-blockade, and the current MoU "endgame."
• They note how mainstream voices confidently predicted regime collapse, sanctions-driven bankruptcy, etc.—all proven wrong.
• Both hosts assert that “all the people warning against this war were right,” and the entire war was essentially for nothing but the whims of the Israel lobby.
• Quote:

  "Why do we have a beef with Iran, Rob? Like, what's the fundamental reason here? ... I'm sorry, it is the entire reason we're in this conflict at all." (22:57, Dave Smith)

7. Speculation on the Limits of Israel’s Influence (24:00 — 25:54)

• Dave wonders if the oft-discussed “Israel lobby” may ultimately lose in a clash of true U.S. interests—"If the goddamn President... says this is going to tank the global economy, done. We're not doing it.”
• They acknowledge the possibility of rapid political realignment, likening it to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

8. “Walking Away” vs. Bad Deals (28:01 — 33:26)

• Rob and Dave contemplate whether simply walking away from the Iran conflict would be better than signing a bad deal.
  • The deal's terms allow Iran to collect tolls, enrich uranium, and recover frozen funds with no meaningful concessions.
  • Dave suggests the U.S. does not need an arms-length “deal”—just an end to pointless conflict and sanctions.

9. J.D. Vance as the Iraq Deal Salesman – “This Puppy Don’t Fly” (33:24 — 36:21)

• Dave hammers home the absurdity of J.D. Vance’s assigned role as the administration’s public “salesman” for the Iran deal.
• Quote:

  “Whatever you're doing here... I’m sure there’s got to be like a term... where at a certain point, you just have to pull the plug on an idea. Like, this just isn’t going to sell.” (32:57, Dave Smith)

10. Critiquing JD Vance on Bill Maher (36:24 — 53:00)

• Dave and Rob critique J.D. Vance’s appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher, focusing on his attempts to defend Trump’s record, the Iran deal, and the 2020 election claims.
• They play and analyze clips:
  • Vance pivots from “election fraud” to “tech censorship,” evading the core falsehoods Trump purveys.
  • Bill Maher is criticized for his own hypocrisy and for focusing on trivialities compared to the real suffering caused by failed wars.
• Quote:

  “You're claiming that the election was stolen. That is a fucking serious goddamn claim... now that you're in, you're doing nothing about it.” (50:19, Dave Smith)

11. Trump’s Leadership and Accountability (47:37 — 56:35)

• Rob and Dave criticize Trump for making bombastic claims (about election theft, Jan 6, deep state conspiracies) without using the powers of office to act on them.
• The hosts argue such empty rhetoric only weakens public confidence and avoids genuine accountability.

12. Final Thoughts: Truth and Responsibility vs Spin (61:57 — End)

• The hosts lament that, rather than honest reckoning, politicians prefer to spin losses as wins, creating the conditions for future mistakes.
• Dave worries that Trump, after this embarrassment, might seek a quick win against a weaker target (like Cuba) to save face.
• Both agree: Americans deserve honesty about failed wars; pretending loss is victory is dangerous and corrosive.

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Notable Quotes

• On the war’s outcome:

  “This is too blatant, it's too obvious of a loss... all the people warning against this war, you know, I mean, Rob, think about it... What did we get for it? Nothing.” (64:20, Dave Smith)

• On the real reason for U.S.-Iran conflict:

  “I’m sorry, it is the entire reason we’re in this conflict at all... Iran has been since 1979, certainly vocally, the loudest supporters of the Palestinians and condemners of the Israelis. Why do we have a beef with Iran, Rob? There isn’t anything.” (22:57, Dave Smith)

• On J.D. Vance’s impossible role:

  “It reminds me of Joe Biden sending Kamala Harris to the border... There is no lane here.” (34:51, Dave Smith)

• Summing up the farce:

  “You can’t sell this as a victory. You accomplished nothing. This is... a fucking war, for God’s sake. People die. Human beings are dead. What did we get for it? Nothing. You launched a war. You lied through your teeth the entire time and you lost. Good luck trying to spin this as a victory.” (65:42, Dave Smith)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Broken blinds and personal check-ins: 02:00 – 07:25
• Middle East “ceasefire” critique: 07:30 – 13:20
• US-Israel bluff & global economic threat: 09:29 – 13:18
• MoU analysis and spin: 13:20 – 18:30
• Phases of Iran war & reality check: 18:31 – 25:54
• Limits of Israel lobby speculation: 24:00 – 25:54
• Best-case "walk away" scenario: 28:01 – 33:26
• J.D. Vance attempts “the sell”: 33:24 – 36:21
• J.D. Vance on Bill Maher – Election claims & Iran war defense: 36:24 – 53:00
• Trump’s rhetorical leadership gap: 47:37 – 56:35
• Final thoughts on truth, loss, and the danger of spin: 61:57 – end

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Tone & Language

The discussion is conversational, irreverent, and direct—frequently laced with sardonic humor, strong language, and emotional candor. Both hosts are unapologetically critical of US foreign policy, dismissive of mainstream political narratives, and insistent on the need for honesty and accountability.

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In Summary

This episode is a thorough, scathing examination of the Trump administration’s Iran policy, the impossibility of “selling” a clear defeat as a win, and the profound costs—moral, political, human—of lies at the highest level. The hosts call for tough honesty, not PR sleight-of-hand, and urge listeners to demand more from their leaders than hollow victory speeches and poorly spun narratives.

Transcript

[Dave Smith]

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[Rob Bernstein]

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[Rob Bernstein]

Please.

[Dave Smith]

So we're. This, this house that I'm at, this is like the third year in a row that I've gotten this house. Like we rent this house on the same week. You kind of. It's like the way these things work. You get in on your week, on your time, on your house. I like the house. It's a nice house. Okay, so it's like the same time we've been back here. And tell me this about. There's a nice little like questioning yourself of how much of like a shitty person you are. So the room that I'm in right now, this is. You know, three years ago I recorded podcasts with you from here. Two years ago I recorded podcasts from you. And then here we are again. Three years ago I broke the blinds. I broke them. It's trying to get them Open, yanked them too hard, snap the thing. They never said nothing about it. Never did. I don't think they noticed. Three years later, blinds are still broken. And now I'm just getting furious at them because like, how do you not. What do you not do in your job? Like, do you not check on your rental property at all? Do you not know, like, I'm coming in here, I got the last guy broke the blinds and now I gotta live with the last guy's mess. Like, it's literally. It's an unbelievable thing where like I am. If you, if you like compartmentalize part of your life, like if you just cut this sliver out away from that. I have a legitimate complaint. But when you add in the past action, it's really, I mean, it's poetic justice. I deserve to be dealing with this, this broken, these broken blinds. But it's amazing how quickly in your mind you go to like, yeah, but I'm cutting that part out. They have no way of knowing that. So leave that information out and go. I paid you good money for this place. Fix your goddamn blinds.

[Rob Bernstein]

I'll take the other side of this. My friend, That's a normal wear and tear on a rental unit. I don't know you to be in a incredibly strong individual that I think you are maliciously trying to break blinds. And years later, you know, they should be taking care of these units. You're renting it. That's on them.

[Dave Smith]

I swear, you're turning me into an anti Semite. In real time. Like in real time as you say that, I'm going, no, there just aren't any good ones. Like there aren't any good. You think Rob's one of the good ones. And then it's just in him. He's like, I would write a letter, a strongly worded letter about the blinds.

[Rob Bernstein]

Yeah. Anyway, I might.

[Dave Smith]

I did break them and they have been here for three straight years. Listen, it's not, I'm not completely crazy to say, like they. Someone should have noticed that that is kind of an issue. You should be checking on your rental property. You should make sure that nothing's been

[Rob Bernstein]

broken or it's a three year running gag. I bet. I feel like it's a three year running gag of that's always been broken. And they like to get every guest thinking that they broke the blinds. Maybe the one guy that actually calls them to go, hey, sorry, I broke the blinds. They got a big prize for dude, imagine.

[Dave Smith]

Now listen, I'm going to say this. All the blinds match. They're all identical. And this is likely not the case. But just imagine, whoever the owner of this, this house is the pettiest human being in the history of the world, and he knows that I broke the blinds. He brings back in that one broken blind every.

[Rob Bernstein]

Oh, just for you, Just for my week.

[Dave Smith]

I like this guy just to go, hey, this is. We're all living in a world where we pretend nobody broke these blinds, Right? So here. All right.

[Rob Bernstein]

I don't think I would love it. I would. I would love it if it's true. And, you know, you probably should have said all this out loud on a podcast.

[Dave Smith]

That's true, Rob. We are just asking questions on this show. That's what we're known for on this show. We just ask questions. We don't claim to have theory of any kind.

[Rob Bernstein]

If it makes you feel any better, I'm out of Myrtle beach for two more days. Fantastic, fantastic run of porches. And I'm staying at the Marriott Mildew where I showed up and it was so horrifying, I actually had to go back to the desk and they're like, sorry, we're totally sold out. And it was already three in the morning, so I was like, all right, I guess we're sleeping in this room for tonight. And then the next morning they got me a new room.

[Dave Smith]

It was that bad that you had to, like, be like, yeah, it was. Ooh, jeez.

[Rob Bernstein]

It was. Literally, I got back to the hotel at 2:30 in the morning, hadn't checked in. You know that. What am I going to do? And then they gave me a new unit directly above that other room with the exact same problem. And I was like, all right, I guess. I guess this is my life for two days. But I'm getting them back because I got the AC on 60 and the window open, so you know it's going

[Dave Smith]

to be their electric bill just to just.

[Rob Bernstein]

No, because I'm trying not. I'm trying not to smell the mildew or sit in 100 degree room.

[Dave Smith]

All right, well, that sucks. I'm glad the shows are good. At least. At least makes the trip.

[Rob Bernstein]

And. And I got more of them coming at you. Firstly, I'm opening up for you in Houston, Texas this weekend. Then I got my own porch tour in Galvinson, Texas on Sunday. And then you and I have the Nashville weekend along with that other random town where I think NASA's at. And then Lebanon, Temasek, Chickamauga, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia, Sandpoint and Seattle, Washington, and more coming at you. So I'm Getting busy.

[Dave Smith]

We got. That's right, Houston is June 9th, 10th and 11th, by the way.

[Rob Bernstein]

Oh, yeah, right.

[Dave Smith]

Good point for that. But June, June 9th through 11th. Yep, that's Houston and then it's Huntsville, Alabama. The Levity Live out there. And then we're doing the Zanies in, in Nashville. Comic Dave Smith for all those tickets and then Porch tour for, for all Rob shows. Porch tour dot com. Excuse me, for all of Rob's. For all Rob's gigs.

[Guest/Caller]

Yeah.

[Dave Smith]

Looking forward to all of this kind of. We still got a lot of, a lot of fun gigs left on the calendar for this year. All right, let's get into some stuff. So where are we here, Rob? Well, the war's back on, kind of, I don't think really. But of course, as Donald Trump himself had described. Right. What did he say? At one point he was like, well, it's a Middle east ceasefire and Middle east ceasefires means there's less firing than during non ceasefire times. You know, I read the other day, I can't remember if I'm getting like it doesn't matter essentially, but I can't remember the exact detail of this statistic that I read the other day that it was something, I can't remember if it was the number of civilians or the total number of dead or something like that. But there's been more. Israel has killed more Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire, then were killed on October 7th. So like, so since the end of the war or you know, since, since the end of the genocide, the end of the destruction, whatever you want to call it, since then they've killed more people than, than hamas killed on October 7th. So it's like, it's still so like, like anyway, I guess just the point of that being that the event that is horrific, horrific enough to justify all of this. Worse than that we can call a ceasefire. We can say that's not, you know what I mean? Like, that's, that's peace times. And look, I mean the cease fire with Iran has been no different. I don't know exactly what to say. I, you know, I'd say right now at this point, I, we're really, really in a fascinating moment right now, a very fascinating little moment right now where a lot of kind of like

[Guest/Caller]

a

[Dave Smith]

really big bluff is being called in a sense, not just the bluff of the US military might itself, but the bluff of, in a lot of ways the US Israeli relationship. It really does seem to me. Rob, give me your thoughts. But it really does seem to me that when Donald Trump is saying now that the global economy was going to tank and we have to get this straight open and the economic pressures we're dealing with. I think that's him. I think that's right. I think that's essentially him telling the truth, slash admitting on some level, you know, the defeat of the whole thing. But if that's, if we're really looking down the barrel at like impending doom, if we continue this thing, then no matter what Israel has over you, it's up against impending doom. And so, okay, but that means we might find out, like, theoretically, we might find out what do they have, if they have anything, what are the levels, levers of power that they can, you know, like. And so you're gonna, we're gonna find that out in real time. Are they able to draw us back into this war or are they not able to. To do that? Are we able to check them a little bit or are we not able. We're like right about to find these things out. And in this moment, it's, I don't know. You're, we're going to, you know what I'm saying? Like, we're going to find out does Donald Trump go this way or that way. But as of right now, you look at the, you know, the state of the thing, we are blatantly violating the, the Memorandum of Understanding. Donald Trump. It's a very strange dynamic where Donald Trump essentially signed a surrender document, is trying to spin it as a victory document, but then is openly, you know, Rob, I mean, I don't know if you, you know, you've seen, right. Like, I'm sure you've been reading the news a bit over this weekend. He's out here making claims that they. Essentially he's threatening them, which is already violating the Memorandum of Understanding. He's saying that it's just, it doesn't matter. He's essentially saying our signature doesn't mean anything. We can go back to destroying them tomorrow if we want to. That already is violating the Memorandum of Understanding by saying that. He's claiming that they're violating it by talking about charging tolls into the future of the strait. But, Rob, we can see the thing that you put your signature to. Donald Trump is claiming that they're violating the memorandum by claiming that after the 60 days they can put tolls in there. But I'm sorry, no, that's what the thing says. The thing only restricts them having tolls for 60 days. So I don't know, you've got this thing, you're violating it but you obviously don't want to go back to war, so that's where we are. All right, guys, let's take a moment and thank our sponsors for today's show, which is Ultra pouches. I've been telling you about these guys for a while now. They're great. I'm a big pouch. So if you like pouches but you want the guilt free pouch, you gotta go check out Ultra. They make the pouches, but they're just made with nootropics, things that are good for you. They're just good for energy and focus and things like that. And there's no nicotine, no caffeine, so it's a pouch you don't gotta feel bad about. And now they have their sleep pouches out. Everybody uses pouches for increased focus and energy, but Ultra took that idea and they flipped it. Now they have pouches that help you wind down, fall asleep, and stay asleep. They deliver better, deeper sleep. And they're all proper, properly dosed, and made from nothing but natural ingredients. New customers can use the promo code problem and get 15 off@take ultra.com. that's Take Ultra. And for 15 off, use the promo code problem. All right, let's get back into the show.

[Rob Bernstein]

All right, I gotta. I got a slightly different read here, but I do want to preface this with at this point, I have no idea what the hell is going on. It's been three months of constantly trying to figure it out. And I would say this is when my little snow globe of the way I usually analyze these things is completely shooken up. And I don't know, but I. All right, someone needs to finally admit they lost. Iran's not doing it. Donald Trump can do it. But that means that Iran is likely tolling slash or doing fees of the strait. We'll be able to sell its oil and will be allowed to enrich uranium, but probably has to make some sort of a pledge that they're not getting the bomb. Donald Trump sends in, signs an MOU that basically grants Iran all the things that says, yes, America lost Iran. You can have all these things that you said you need for us having had this war with you. Donald Trump, though, then turns around and undermines everything in the deal, says, I'm not actually sending you guys money. I will buy. I will spend your money for you to buy American farm goods and American medical equipment. And I will send it over. There goes, oh, clearly they're never getting a bomb. I never would have made a deal if they're getting a bomb. So it's clear that that's true. Then on a big one, Iran walks away from the deal thinking that in two months they're going to start charging fees from the strait. We're going to work with Oman, we're going to work this out. And then boats are just going through and Iran goes, hey, guys, we got. We control the straits. You have to coordinate with us. The boats don't coordinate with us with them. So then Iran strikes a boat. I think Donald Trump was trying to sneaky, sneaky there and just be like, look, we just reopened the straits and just basically have the straits open. I see one of two things happening here, actually. 3. I'll just lay out the three possibilities. Either Trump was just once again trying to push for a victory and trying to walk back all of the clauses in the agreement he just signed and hoping that Iran would go with it. And once again, he realizes he doesn't want war, and so he's actually going to stick with the framework of the MoU and give Iran what they want. I don't really think he's looking to do that, though. I think maybe what he was looking to do is to rig the. The oil markets, get some oil through, and whatever he was seeing on how much they've drawn down stock, maybe enough oil got through that, that's not as much of a problem. Or he's going to find the next thing that he can do to SP to convince people not to be bidding up the price of oil so that he doesn't have his major problem of prices going up or a stock market crash or. The last and most chaotic option is it's starting to feel a little bit like when you're dealing with a angry divorced wife and you finally say, hey, you can take the house.

[Guest/Caller]

And.

[Rob Bernstein]

And I'm wondering if he's trying to make such a mess out of this situation that people are like, can you just bomb the shit out of them already? I've had enough of this. We don't care about their humanity, just level the whole country. Um, it just. There's something about the way he's operating with the MOU that he seems to be trying to underline, undermine it, weaselly his way out of it. And I don't think the Iranians are going to stand by it. And I don't think Donald Trump is actually. It just doesn't seem to me, unless maybe this was one last shot at a victory of signing the MOU and seeing if you could trick the Iranians into not actually taking any of the Things you agreed to. But it seems like Donald Trump, since he signed that thing, has just done everything he can to be like, that's not actually what I meant.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, well, I mean, I think, you know, my, my read on it is that what, what you're watching is Donald Trump grapple with the politics of this decision. And it's rough. It's. It's a tough one, you know, so

[Rob Bernstein]

he's trying to just delay the reality setting settling in. And.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, I mean, like, not admit, not admit how bad. I mean, look, dude, they wouldn't release it for days before they signed the thing. And we're out there saying, don't believe any of this hype about what's in it. It was exactly right. I mean, like, again, maybe not exactly right, but if you go look at, like, what had been leaked, it was basically the memorandum of understanding with maybe like one or two minor adjustments. But all of the big things were, the things that they were saying aren't actually in it. Like, all of that was in, you know, I look at it like this, dude. There's basically been, if you want to break this war down, there's been three phases of the war. There was the, the military, the initial military campaign. Then there was the blockade and the, you know, the competing blockades. Blockade and the blockade of the blockade. And then after that, there's been this memorandum of understanding. I mean, it looks to me like Donald Trump launched a war, got fucked up in that war after a month of it, immediately went to like, no, we're pivoting to this other thing because we don't want to go tit for tat anymore with them. Now, again, when I say got fucked up, I mean, did more damage to them. But talk enough that it was like, whoa, we're actually really getting touched here. We immediately pivot to this blockade of the blockade, the logic of which was just insane. And, you know, I had to be on public debates with people like Wilt Chamberlain. Like, literally two months ago, were on a debate on Piers Morgan's show, and he's, he's explaining to me how this blockade, of the blockade is going to bankrupt the country and lead to the collapse of this regime.

[Guest/Caller]

His.

[Dave Smith]

If you remember, I teased him after the month was up. Now it's like two months. But his, his line was, I'll be shocked if the regime is still standing in another month. And then I said, well, when the regime is still standing in another month, you'll move the goalpost to something else and I'll still be sitting Here saying the same thing. Whatever. None of that, it didn't blockade. And I think Donald Trump blinked in this game of chicken. And so I think that what you're seeing is like, yeah, he's trying to, he's trying to still work around the edges and get whatever he can. And I think that will go on. Like, I don't. Rob, do you really think the Iranians are getting access to $300 billion? Is that really happening? I mean, I don't know. I mean, maybe, maybe. Is the US going to come through on its promises after we're going to have a brief 60 day window to try to negotiate some type of JCPOA part two? Rob, is that going to happen in two months when it took two years last again? You know, seems, seems unlikely. Possible, I suppose. But you know, one of the things that's frustrating, ma', am, is that the situation with Iran and this has always been the case, right, like since I found, I found ron Paul in 2007 and got obsessed with libertarianism and politics and all this stuff, you know, whatever. It's almost 2027 now, so it's almost 20, almost 20 years ago. And this, this has been a thing the whole time, the whole time I've been here, I've been in this libertarian that, you know, whatever the non interventionist, right wing libertarian world. We've been opposing the war in Iran. There was 2001 when George W. Bush put them on the axis of evil, him and David Frum. So the whole time the thing that's been so goddamn frustrating is that a deal is right there to be made. The deal is so obvious, like the entire time, you know, it's like, it's so obvious what they want and it's so obvious what we want. It's so obvious what's in their country's interest and it's so obvious what's in our country's interest. You know, if you think about, I know Horton, you know, talks about this a lot, as usual, he's right. But when you go, dude, the whole, the whole nuclear threshold state business is a deterrent to not attack. It's like, wait a minute, so you're saying you, you really want us to not attack you and we really want you to not make nuclear weapons? The deal's right there, Rob. Right? I mean, is it a non aggression pact in exchange for a promise to not make nuclear weapons? I mean like the deal. And even here you have a situation where like Donald Trump is like, okay, I really need this Strait of Hormuz to be open, okay. The Iranians really need what, sanctions relief, non aggression guarantees, like, you know what I mean? Like, it's, it's very clearly that's in their interest and very clearly it's in our interest to have. But the problem is what the problem's always been. You know, it's that you got this goddamn Israel and their lobby and their, and you know, people can, people can try to divert attention from it. But I'm sorry, it is the entire reason we're in this conflict at all. There's just nothing else about this. You know, there's. Iran has been, I think, since 1979, certainly vocally. I think from the beginning they've been the loudest supporters of the Palestinians and condemners of the Israelis. And you know, this is the, there's a pretty clear reason why they have beef, right? And there's, there's a pretty clear, the, the relationship between Hezbollah and Iran is a very close relationship. Hezbollah is the fighting force that grew up out of the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon, the ones who beat the Israelis ass and drove him out of the country twice. Okay, I understand why those countries have a beef. Why do we have a beef with Iran, Rob? Like, what's the fundamental reason here? There's, there isn't anything. Not like we. And you know, the truth is, Robin, I'm sure you know this, right, but if just left at all to market, you know, incentives, if the market was left to its own devices, come on, man, we got a bunch of businessmen in here who'd love to go shake hands and sign contracts with a bunch of those Shiites over there in Iran, do all types of multibillion dollar deals to refine their oil out of the ground for them and all this, you know what I'm saying? So, like, there's just no reason why we couldn't just all be friends anyway, that, look, if again, as I said at the beginning here, that's kind of one of the things that's cool about this moment that we're entering into now. We're going to find out some of this stuff. Like if I'm right about what I'm saying, like what I suspect that you know where Donald Trump is at. Well, if that's the case, then he's really going to have to stand up to Israel on this one. And I'm not sure. Again, Rob, me and you have kind of. We've talked about this a lot on the show, and I think we're one of the, one of the shows in, out here in the world of the Internet, that doesn't. I think we're kind of honest about when we're speculating versus when we, you know, have more authority to know something. Everybody kind of speculates over how the Israel lobby and how they're. How they're so effective at what they do in exerting influence over US Politics, but we don't actually know that. It's like the craziest conspiracy. You know what I'm saying, Rob? Like, we don't actually know that. It's like whatever your mind goes to is, like, the craziest way that Mossad controls the US we don't know exactly what it is. We know some of it. I'm saying it's quite possible that it's not the worst version of that conspiracy. And that actually, Rob, when it comes down to it, if the goddamn President of the United States of America, the commander in chief of the US Empire, if he says this is going to tank the global economy, done. We're not doing it. It's possible. Netanyahu has to listen, you know, like, it is possible. A lot of things are changing right now. And this is. I mean, it's a. It's a big moment. Like I said. Like I said when I was interviewing Ryan Grimm, there's something about this war. It feels like watching the Berlin Wall fall, you're like, whoa, things are changing. Things are realigning. And that is what happened in the 20th century, right? Like the. With the exception of the United States of America, the most powerful country in the history of the world was the Soviet Union. Debatable, at least. And it collapsed. I'm not saying, like, America is about to collapse, but the idea that the US Israeli relationship just has to be what it is, always forever, is not true. And we should, you know, kind of be aware of the fact that,

[Guest/Caller]

you

[Dave Smith]

know, to some degree, politics might be a lagging indicator in with a lot of these cultural shifts. And, you know, the fact that, like, say, public opinion on Israel has collapsed by 50 points over the last years, over the last three years. All right, well, like, that might, at some point have an influence on something. Maybe not. Doesn't seem to have had much of an influence so far, but it might. And, yeah, I don't know. I really don't know. And then I'll say on the other side of it, if I'm getting this all wrong, and Donald Trump, you know, we could be in a week back in a major war, and then I'd have to go, well, okay, I guess that's not the case. I guess he was willing to go that route with it. We'll see. Rob. All right, guys, let's take a moment and thank our sponsor for today's show, which is Quince. I love this company. I wear a bunch of their stuff. I love, love Quince. I've ordered several articles of clothes from them that I very much enjoy and I wear regularly. You've probably seen me in some of their stuff on the podcast. And they've got great stuff for summer. Quince's 100% European linen pants and shirts are breathable, easy to throw on and the summer upgrade your rotation needs. And they're starting at just $34. Their tees are soft enough to live in all day and the lightweight cotton sweaters are exactly what you want when summer nights cool down. They got a bunch of great stuff to wear for the summer. I love this. As I said, I, I have ordered a lot of stuff from them and I really enjoy it. I wear a bunch of their hoodies. I got some of their shirts. I got one, a pair of linen pants from them. They got a bunch of great stuff for the summer. What I love about Quinn is it's stuff that you're going to look good in. It's nice and casual, but you're going to look good. And it's stuff that really doesn't break the bank. So make your summer wardrobe easier by going to quince.com potp for free shipping on your orders and 365 day returns now available in Canada as well. That's Q U I n c.com potp for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com/potp all right, let's get back into the show.

[Rob Bernstein]

Yeah. The one thing that really just doesn't make sense to me is if, and there's a bunch of ifs here, but if the administration really thinks that their nuclear capabilities are nearly non existent at the moment because of our previous bombing campaigns and that they don't even access to their centrifuges and if they also think that they would have the ability to rebomb in the event that Iran were to try and to go back to like if that's actually a targeted thing that can be hit and I don't really know nuclear bunkers or whatever they can do to I guess do that deep enough underground that America wouldn't know about it, but I would almost think just walk away without the deal then like this deal is clearly a bad deal. If the Straits are going to Be open and told anyways, just leave. Like, you know, if you're, unless you actually think you're going to get to a JCPOA type arrangement, if you now give them $300 billion, all of their money back and let them tow the straights, but like, if you're gambling on even getting that, so then just leave.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, no, I, I, well, look, this is what Jeffrey Sachs was, was arguing for for a while was just walk away, don't make a deal. And there's a really strong argument to that. And part of it is that we really, for US national interests, like, whatever that even means, I know that's the term they like to use, but for like the American people, broadly speaking, we don't need a deal. We need to be out of this war. And if you walk away, even absent a deal, that's going to immediately put pressure on Iran to open the strait.

[Rob Bernstein]

It just means they're going to toll, everyone's going to have to pay a toll. But that's going to be the system in two months anyways.

[Dave Smith]

Right? That's what you're agreeing to with this anyway. So you're kind of in a similar spot there. You don't have to worry about the fund, you know, do whatever you want to do with sanctions or whatever. But yeah, you wouldn't have to worry about that. The thing is that what Donald Trump, I think, wants and you know, again, take this with a grain of salt because like it was reported that he, he had said a few weeks ago, there's like, just get any deal and I'll sell it. You know, just whatever the deal. If I have a deal, then I can go out and say, hey, I made a really brilliant, wonderful deal. Doesn't matter what the deal is. And that does to me kind of sound like something Trump might think or say. But if I think at least like theoretically, you know, if you throw enough money at him, maybe you would get some, some type of concessions like them diluting their enriched uranium or like them doing something, you know, that doesn't really cost them that much anyway to do. But, and, and if he were to get something like that, then perhaps that would be something he could sell as a victory. So it's really only, it's only for reasons of politics that were even, you know what I mean, like that you even have to have a deal at the end of this. That being said, politics is reality and if that's what's going to end the war, I'll take a deal over the war continuing. If that you know, if that makes sense. But I agree with you. Walk away option is still probably the best thing America could do here. And you know, honestly, in terms of like, I don't really think the Iranians need America to back or guarantor some fund of Arab Gulf countries or something like that, just like remove sanctions and business will take care of what business does.

[Rob Bernstein]

And, you know, that money, I don't think that money's going to them unless we're actually funneling it through those other countries to get it there.

[Dave Smith]

Oh, yeah, no, for sure they're not getting it directly from. Well, that's right. Because, I mean, not that it even matters, but just because Donald Trump can't take that public of an obvious L. So he's got to, you know, whatever. It's just, I will say, though, I do, which I think, I guess we're going to, you know, pivot to now is that that whole dynamic of what you're, you're getting out there of where like Donald Trump, you know, is trying to, they're trying to walk this line between blasting Obama for giving them money, but then saying now it's okay because it's not US Taxpayer money, even though when Obama did it, it also wasn't U.S. taxpayer money. But now it's really okay because also this, you know, like the argument is that like, also this time it comes with like, conditions and they're not getting the money unless they do all of these things. And it's like, yeah, but you haven't even laid out what the things are. There are what things. What is it that Iran is obligated to do under the Memorandum of Understanding, Enter into nuclear discussions for 60 days? That's all they've committed to. They haven't committed to doing anything. And it's already, Donald Trump's already walking back on the nuclear dust. He's already walking back on the,

[Rob Bernstein]

on

[Dave Smith]

enrichment, you know, at low level enrichment. So, like, it's not even. So anyway, my point being this, Rob, was it this puppy don't fly? I don't know how else to say it. It's just like whatever you're doing here, there's got to be, I'm sure there's got to be like a term for it in like marketing, like some advertising, advertising agency or something where there's just like, at a certain point, you just have to pull the plug on an idea. Like, this just isn't going to sell. This is not going to sell Bud

[Rob Bernstein]

Light with trans people.

[Dave Smith]

There you go. This is, I'm so It's great that the Trump administration hired a PR lady from Williamsburg, but, no, she does not have her finger on the pulse of the Bud Light drinking community. And, I mean, I just don't know what to say. This is just. It's too. Look, it's not often you get to say this about our fellow Americans, but this is too dumb for them. They are not dumb enough to fall for this. And I got to say, I think that has been one of the major themes of the week. Is that because we're going to pivot into talking about J.D. vance a little bit here, this is like, it's just an impossible situation that they're in, trying to sell this as, like, yeah, we did a thing, and this is what it ended in. And great.

[Guest/Caller]

It's.

[Dave Smith]

So now it's okay to give a radiance billions of dollars. Like, it's just. It's too absurd. And of course, more than anyone else, JD Vance has been tasked with this responsibility of selling. I mean, it's. It's like. I don't even know. It's said there was. They're like, imagine someone told you, Rob, you have to fight seven Jon Joneses, just seven of them, versus you, one on one. You're like, dude, I mean, one of them is an impossible task. So there's just no chance. And I don't know, that's just what it feels like, sending J.D. vance out to go defend this stuff.

[Guest/Caller]

What is.

[Dave Smith]

I don't even. It. It feels. I mean, I know. I think I said this on the show last week. It reminds me of Joe Biden sending Kamala Harris to the border. Like, it's just hanging your guy out to drive. There is no lane here. There's no lane. There's no lane. To be the kind of like the critic of Israel and the Israel lobby and forever wars while defending the war in Iran. What lane is that, Rob? Defending the war that only the Israel lobby wanted. While. While attacking the Israel lobby because they're doing precisely what all of us who are against the war told you they would do. So all of us who sat here and said, Israel is dragging America into a needless, costly war. We sat here, you guys smeared all of us, said, screw. You were with the Israel lobby that's dragging us into war. Then you got dragged into the war. The war is a disaster. Now you're trying to get out of the war, and you're going, hey, guys, these. These jokers are trying to drag us back into this thing. Yeah, no kidding. I don't know I don't know, Rob. It just this, man, this is what we kind of knew from the beginning that this is going to be. I'm glad he's doing it. I'm glad they're doing it. But, man, this is painful. This is a painful l for this administration to take.

[Rob Bernstein]

Well, I'm not going to argue on that.

[Dave Smith]

All right, let's. Let's play. So JD Vance went on Bill Maher show and for.

[Rob Bernstein]

For having the impossible task. And even though I didn't agree with a lot of what he was saying, he. And it might just be that Bill Maher is so stupid, you actually get a guest that knows what he's talking about and just says something. And Bill Maher is like, oh, well, you know, I'm just walking the middle over here. But at least J.D. j.D. Vance, I didn't agree with him, but he held his own from a political standpoint and came across well.

[Dave Smith]

He's good at this. This is one of the things JD Vance is good at. Like Bill Maher type shows, CNN type shows. He's good at that. I think there's a lot of little things that, like, allow that to be the case. You know, Rob, like, in the same way that I, you know, I know I made a big deal about saying this about Dan Bongino, and I know, oh, he was talking shit. Cause I know it hurt us. I said it on Tucker's show, and I know I knew it would get to him, but, yeah, bugged him. But I said that. I was like, well, you know, forget me. It's like, I'm not saying, like, Dan Bongino's a coward because he won't come debate me or something like that. I'm saying, like, he's. The rest of his life he's sentenced to being a coward of everyone. Like, Dan Bongino can never do a contentious interview. He can never do a debate. I mean, he could debate, but it would have to be, like, someone to the left of him or to the. To the right. More establishment than him. He's got to be in. Because you're only like, one question away from his entire thing falling apart. Like, hey, what's up with the 180 you did on Epstein? You were saying this. Then you said this. What'd you see? You know, just. It's very easy to turn. But you said you can guarantee he killed himself. The files are declassified. Where's the evidence? You know, he's got.

[Rob Bernstein]

No.

[Dave Smith]

And in a similar way, I think J.D. vance can do well on Bill Maher, I don't think he can ever do well with, you know, this is a very big world that you're cutting out now where even, I mean, he went on Theo Von show, but even Theo Vaughn brought up Gaza a lot and made him kind of uncomfortable and pushed him into a kind of uncomfortable area. There's all of the, the. If you wanted to do Tim Dillon or Joe Rogan or Andrew Schultz or Theo Vaughn or if you want to do any of those, J.D. vance is going to have a much, much tougher time. He's in an environment here where Bill Maher, the host, is a dedicated, rabid Zionist who was on board with this war and recognizes that kind of didn't work out, which probably end it now. So that is about the friendliest environment that J.D. vance could have if you ask me to go do a show like this. So I, you know, anyway, let's, let's play the. We got two clips from the show here. Let's play them. Natalie, make sure to, you know, do whatever we can do so they don't. Because HBO messes with us for putting these up sometimes. But come on, man. Bill Ma. It's Bill Maher. I love Bill Maher. Bill Maher had a huge impact on me. I always do kind of admire the guy for that. But, man, he is a liberal and it is difficult to swallow at times. Anyway, here, let's, let's get into the first clip. Can you tell me you will do that? Will you bring us back to the middle, at least on that, where we concede elections, where it's not either one of those two options?

[Guest/Caller]

Okay, Bill, so this is where I'm probably gonna lose you here. But here's.

[Dave Smith]

That happened about eight minutes ago.

[Guest/Caller]

Look, I don't think that we should not concede elections, but I don't think that's what's going on. I think that if you go back, if you go back to the president's core argument, he was making an argument about problems that existed in 2020. And here's the problem that I'm most focused on the President. I have talked a lot about this and I think we share a perspective here. But set to the side, the stuff that really gets you and your audience very angry about whether the count was legitimate in Georgia or Pennsylvania or any of these other states, is it true that large technology companies, some of whom have financial interests that exist outside the United States of America, were they censoring information in the run up to an election and set to the side again, the Georgia stuff But that was litigated dominion.

[Dave Smith]

The Fox News paid us.

[Guest/Caller]

Well, I'm actually, I'm trying to make the more middle ground argument here. The biggest criticism I had at the 2020 election is that you had technology companies that were quite literally censoring negative information about the left and promoting negative information about the right. So in a fundamental sense, like if the First Amendment says that we have a free and open debate and then the American people judge based on that free and open debate, the sense in which I think the election in 2020 was rigged. I'm sorry, is that you had technology companies that were putting their thumb on the scale in a way that completely obliterated the real open.

[Dave Smith]

Let's pause it here for a second. This is, you know, Rob, first of all, it's just ridiculous that we're even talking about this. And the fact that Bill Maher even brings this up, this is what is so, it's so infuriating about liberals. And it is just like there's no one else who's quite like this other than liberals. Like leftists aren't this way. It's a liberal thing where they like, listen, part of this is, you know, the fish doesn't know that it's in water type of deal. The Bill Maher is just. And I am not. Again, we're not leftists here. So don't get the impression that I'm saying this as inherently negative. Bill Maher has been rich and famous forever. Forever. You know, Bill Maher is rich. I saw Bill Maher when I was 16 and was like, whoa. Being a stand up comedian who's talking about politics, that's a really cool thing to be. You know what I mean? I'm that now. I am that. I'm a grown. I have a mortgage and children and not even babies anymore, like children who I have conversations with. He's been rich and famous this whole time. You know, the whole time. Rich. And there is just something. And look, we all have this to some degree, right? Because in a way we're all rich. We all like there were kings who existed in human history who never had a hot shower in their life. You have luxury that the, the 1% of the 1% of the 1% for most of human history couldn't have dreamed of. You essentially have magic compared to what, what. How they lived lives. So we all, and we take that for granted. You know, like, and it becomes things where. When you take a lot of what you have for granted, there's a tendency to lose perspective on things that that irritate you and compare them to how big a deal they actually are. And look, I mean, this is a huge, huge component of why every institution in this country has had their credibility shattered, including just things like the New York Times and Meet the Press and cnn. Like, nobody trusts them, nobody watches them, reads them anymore. And it's because of shit like this. Like, it's like, I'm sorry, Bill Martin, does this. Did January 6th offend your sensibilities? Did Donald Trump denying the results of an election? Listen, the guy just led us into the most unpopular war in American history and lost. And lost as a global catastrophe. What he just did. The. You know what people in this country care about. They care about the fact that groceries are unaffordable. They cannot afford anymore to go grocery shopping. They're putting. They're putting necessities on credit cards. You're upset about the 2020 election. What the fuck are we even talking about? Of course, there's been a clip circulating today about what, you know, Bill Maher and Keith Olbermann denying the 2016 election, claiming Russia interfered and all that. So, you know, it's okay. So he's a hypocrite on top of it. But just like, honestly, like, who cares at this point? But then. And then, I'm curious to get your thoughts on any of this, Rob. But then also, JD Vance is just like, this is the weakest. Like, you guys are also kind of full of shit, too, because it's like, what are you even talking about here, man? Now you're making a claim about tech censorship. It's like, okay, fine, that's a good argument to make, but that's a completely different claim than the claim that Donald Trump's been making for six and a half years. He's been saying that, like, the election was stolen, that there were more votes in Georgia that should have gone to him, that he's been talking about voting machines and voter fraud and things like that. That's totally different than tech censorship. And honestly, the admit the administration and J.D. vance and Republicans and all of them would be in a much stronger position if they were just saying what J.D. vance says. Now just make that the claim. You know, it's like, it's a lot. It's like a lot of the 911 truth stuff. And I know, but, God, I'll get hate on this in the comments section because I know I always get those. Dave still so stupid. He thinks AL Qaeda did 911 or whatever. But it's like there were so many real conspiracies and really like important, important pieces of information, important truths about 9, 11 that all get completely blown away when you start saying it's just holograms and missiles and shit and it's not planes or whatever, then, oh, okay, well, then I guess it doesn't matter. You know, there's one of the points I think that Scott made on your podcast when he was talking about that, where he was like, oh, well, like it doesn't matter anymore that Muhammad Atta was radicalized by, not by Natalie Bennett calling in these strikes in Lebanon and killing these, these little girls. That doesn't matter anymore. If he was never even in the plane and there wasn't a plane and it wasn't, and there was a controlled demolition anyway, when you, so you create that when Donald Trump starts making all these claims about voting machines, it's almost like you let the real scandal get away. And then J.D. vance could be sitting here as me and you were for years going, yeah, okay, sure, there's no evidence that they actually, like, cheated, but here's all the ways that they rigged the whole system in the year of 2020. And then you have a really strong argument on your hands. But what you're doing now is you're like, you're doing this weasel thing where you're trying to weasel in the strong argument while not admitting that obviously your boss has been making a whole bunch of claims that are complete bullshit and you're too much of a bitch to just say that, even though you know, and we all know know it, you

[Rob Bernstein]

can't keep your job and oppose Donald Trump. So that's why he's pulling this little pivot and going, I'm not going to address those things. But let me tell you, the election was in fact stolen because largely, I guess the biggest one is they censored the Hunter Biden laptop story. And I gotta say, one of there's a lot to complain about Donald Trump about. But recently, you know, his tax thing was ridiculous. That his family's off for taxes and that he managed to cut that they're not gonna be audited. And he managed to cut a deal with his own government, with his personal lawyer, Todd Blanche, who's now the head of the ag, writing those carve outs for the irs, and that he was suing himself. That whole thing was ridiculous.

[Dave Smith]

You got one thing, you got an issue with that.

[Rob Bernstein]

The one thing I really liked about it was that there was one person in government saying, you know, the people on January six were done very dirty. And I think that they deserve compensation because of the corruption of the Biden administration. It was kind of funny that that was the red line for the Republicans, was not the agreement that was made, but that we can't be sending money. I mean, they. Apparently there was like a behind closed doors screaming match. And that's one of the few times I've seen Donald Trump walk something back and go, all right, I didn't realize this was that important to you. But then he was on the. He was on. I saw him on some news show where he goes, I think that the FBI orchestrated that day. And I'm watching that and I'm like, well, if there's one person that I guess could get out there and prove that it's you. And so on both the election storyline of an election being stolen. You were president at the time. You're president now. If we don't actually have honest elections in this country, where's the FBI department that is working that case right now and is gonna prove it and is gonna clean it up? If you actually think the Dominion machines are being run by the Democrats and are flipping votes, what are you doing about that right now? Why aren't you exposing that storyline? And on the January 6th one, if you think that the FBI actually works against the American people to pretend that there's threats of domestic terrorism and that they had agent provocateurs that opened up doors and, you know, didn't staff the day properly with security and manufactured an entire incident to undermine your presidency, that would be a really powerful story to educate people about how the deep state operates and how they're working against your interests. Why aren't you, like, it just gets to align with Donald Trump that, you know, he's not just a podcaster. He can't. It's ridiculous when he just says, well, I believe.

[Guest/Caller]

I believe.

[Rob Bernstein]

I think it happened. That's it. Well, you're the guy. You're the one person in the entire country that can actually take an agency, go research it and actually prove the story. And the fact that you're not, you know, it just. Either you're just lying or you don't actually care.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, no, that's right. I mean, look, dude, you're. You're making. It's like everybody. The rhetoric on all sides has been dialed up so high over the last few years that it's just. But it's like, dude, you're claiming that the election was stolen. That is a fucking serious goddamn claim. You're claiming that. That the United States of America was stolen from Its people. I mean, this is like a crazy. And that we were essentially forced to have Joe Biden, who did not win the election, be President of the United States for four years and be a disaster, as you point out. And all of these things we had like. Okay, so then you're telling me. And this is why even. It's like, if you follow the administration's own logic, the only conclusion is that you guys are all weak and useless. You know, you're saying that you came back into the presidency now you, that the Democrats stole America, they stole the overthrew the Constitution and you know, essentially had a coup in the United States of America. And now you are in the presidency with a Republican Congress and your own picked Supreme Court and you're going to do nothing about it. Everyone who did that's going to get away with that. No one's being publicly executed. No one's going to jail for the rest of their life. There was a coup in the United States of America. The victim was you, sir. The sitting President of the United States of America. And we're not going to do, we're not going to follow up on that. I mean, throw that, you know, like, that's the most ridiculous one really. And we probably don't focus on that one as much because we've never really just been believers that the 2020 election was stolen. It was rigged in the way that J.D. van says. Yeah, yeah. They ran essentially a color coded revolution on us.

[Rob Bernstein]

Yes.

[Dave Smith]

They had riots in the streets and they stuffed ballots with write in voter, you know, Raiden mail in ballots. But again, this isn't a conspiracy. This was all done out in front of everybody. We all watched it together. It wasn't like the censorship regime wasn't a secret censorship regime. They booted people off in front of all of us. We all watched them. There was someone who got kicked off Twitter. Oh yeah, you, the President of the United States of America got censored off of Twitter. Right. So anyway, it's not. But you've been making this very, this, this really wild claim for all these years and now, yeah, now that you're in, you're doing nothing about it. That's the position that you're here to defend. It's just too weak. Everything, everything from defending the war to just defending the administration's take on 2020, it's just all. I don't know, man. It's just too, it's too wrong. None of it's right. You're like, none of this is, it doesn't have the energy of like, oh, yeah, because it's just such bullshit. All right, guys, let's take a moment and thank our sponsor for today's show, which is Hexclad. I've been telling you about Hexclad for a while. If you want to level up your kitchen game, you gotta check out their stuff. And now, introducing Hexclad's barbecue collection. Hexclad is bringing its hybrid technology outdoors with products specifically designed to make grilling easier, especially when you're cooking foods that normally don't cooperate on a traditional grill. The hexclad barbecue grill plan combines the searing power of stainless steel, the durability of cast iron, and the convenience of non stick all in one versatile grilling pan. They've also launched their new barbecue grill topper, which gives you even more control when cooking delicate foods. Veggies, seafood, multiple portions at once. Those are the trickier things to do on the grill. I know I've been. It's. It's barbecue season here where I live in New Jersey, and I know I use hexclad for their pots and pans. Their knives are all really great, so definitely check them out. There's nothing better than being behind the grill during the summer, so don't make it harder than it needs to be. Stop losing food through the grates, stop fighting cle up and upgrade your backyard cooking setup with hexclad's barbecue collection. And for a limited time only, our listeners can get 10% off your order with our exclusive link hexclad.com problem just head over to hexclad.com problem and get your 10% off. Make sure to let them know that we sent you. All right, let's get back into the show.

[Rob Bernstein]

I was very open to the election was stolen story, and the reason why was I watched all of these committee hearings of. Of these guys testifying that they were working on, like, the counts. And then someone told them there was free lunch and they walked outside and then got locked out and they'd like, put up and it just like testimony. I watched a lot of them and then like, the election just. They just went certified. And then like, that part never got reported on. But. And so I was like, there's clearly some goofiness going on here. But I kind of felt like Donald Trump was telling us all the way up to the election that the thing was going to be stolen. He didn't use his power and resources to prevent it. He didn't use his power and resources to then prove it from What I understand the court cases that they put together was never had substance to. It was basically just to generate the news stories to give him some cover to claim the election was stolen. And now, after I've seen him lie through his teeth in the second administration, I'm more open to the idea that Donald Trump had absolutely nothing to go on when he was making those claims. But just to bring it home, I still stand by. You're the one guy, if you actually think that the FBI did the January 6th people dirty, please prove it. If you actually think an election was stolen and elections can be stolen, please prove it. That's how you can actually change and make our country better. You just getting on television and making claims, especially when it's in mixed up with claims like the straits will naturally reopen themselves. Oh, the Iran, Iranians completely defeated, they don't have a navy anymore. You know, you've just made too many claims that were completely ridiculous that you just 100% swear by that. I guess, you know, the storylines that I'm more interested in, such as we don't actually have a democracy and elections are stolen, or hey, the feds did people dirty on the day, which I even believe to be true. But like the fact that Donald Trump saying it is a meaningless statement.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, no, it's. In some ways it's worse than not saying it. It's like, oh, so you know this and you're not doing anything about it. All right, here, let's play the end of that little clip, see if there was anything else in there and then go to the other one.

[Guest/Caller]

Exchange of ideas. Now, by the way, it didn't happen in 2024, but it happened in 2020 and it was a problem.

[Dave Smith]

Well, you're going to get a big pat on the back when you go back to the White House. Okay, let's go to the other clip.

[Rob Bernstein]

Those.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, I guess we had gone through

[Guest/Caller]

you is fundamentally, it says the straits are going to be open, the oil is going to flow. We're seeing that happen already. It's also a cease fire, which as you pointed out, is always going to be a little messy when you're dealing with the Iranians. But if we make the final deal, then great. If we don't make the final deal, their nuclear program is still destroyed. They're still much weaker as a country. So my attitude is America wins either way. But I do think that what the President has done is asked us to do something that frankly, nobody in 47 years of dealing with the Iranians has done. Which is offer them an opportunity to fundamentally transform how they behave with the West. They've been the largest state sponsor of terrorism basically since they began as a nation or at least as an Islamic Republic 47 years ago. He's saying, look, if they're willing to change, we're willing to change too. If they're not willing to change, we still fundamentally have all the cards and I think that's a good place for us to be.

[Dave Smith]

But their program isn't destroyed, the nuclear program isn't destroyed. I mean, I don't know, I don't know any of our objectives.

[Guest/Caller]

And look, I said, what part is not destroyed?

[Dave Smith]

Well, we didn't get in there. The whole thing was we have to get in there and see, otherwise we wouldn't be doing this.

[Guest/Caller]

Well, let me say first of all, so a nuclear program, and I'm hardly a nuclear scientist, I'm a lowly politician, but the thing that you have to destroy is their ability to enrich uranium which has been destroyed. You have to destroy their ability. Well, because you need functioning centrifuges that can actually spend all the time.

[Dave Smith]

We've got to get in there and we got to get the dust, ok, and we didn't get in there, so how do we get the dust?

[Guest/Caller]

So that's actually a separate question. So there's the highly enriched stockpile, which by the way was allowed to accumulate over 20 years of previous administrations. That enriched stockpile is something that we want to get. But Bill, if we never get it and the President wants it and we are going to get it, but if we never got it, it's buried deep underground and they don't have the ability to turn it into a nuclear weapon. So the program is functionally destroyed by, we're just talking about can we set them back even further through these negotiations.

[Dave Smith]

I mean, what a load of bullshit. Just all of it. I mean, it's just pure lies. Pure lies. I mean, even for him to say that the, the, that stockpile of uranium was built up over the last 20 years. Well, no, that's not really true. And in fact, from everything we know, these are verified IAEA reports. No, it wasn't until Donald Trump tore up the jcpoa. In fact, it wasn't until a bit after Donald Trump tore up the JCPOA and there were a couple of Israeli attacks before they started enriching up to 60%, which is what the whole thing was this whole bullshit was always about from last summer to this summer. And no to say the he's, he's essentially trying to use the brag of the 12 Day War to justify this war. And so we degraded their nuclear program and sent it back. Rob, you're trying to sell this as this is a good deal because. And what's the only win he can point to? The straight is open. And that's not even true. And whatever we get, it certainly seems right now, Rob, that this was one of the things that was being reported out by the drop site guys. I do got to give them credit every opportunity I get. Jeremy Scahill and Ryan Grimm, man, they run a real deal news organization over there and they were on that Iran is not backing down off charging a fee for the Strait of Hormuz. And this is the big fight that's going on right now. This is what their reporting has been saying from the very beginning has been the position of the Iranian government. And this was kind of codified in the Memorandum of understanding. I'm sorry, it's pretty heavily implied if you say you're not allowed to toll this straight for the next 60 days, that you are allowed to after that. Otherwise you wouldn't specify that you can't do it for these 60. And the, you know, to celebrate any victory about the Strait of Hormuz. Like, we had a Strait of Hormuz where it was open and Iran wasn't charging fees before you idiots launched this war. I'm sorry, man. It's like, I want to be in the position here where I'm defending them getting out of this catastrophe, but them lying doesn't really make that good of a defense. You know, Rob, I'd be willing to take one for the team, but it actually is a stronger argument for ending the thing to just tell the truth and admit that it was a huge, giant mistake, you know, like Donald Trump, rather than having J.D. vance in some way, he'd be better off having somebody who could just tell the truth and wasn't scared of getting fired by Donald Trump. You know, you'd just be like, oh, but if you didn't get anything, then why'd you launch the war? You'd be like, oh, yeah, that was idiotic. Trump, listen to Netanyahu. What a dumb decision. Anyway, we got to get out of this now. Like, it's just, I think it's more effective to just say that.

[Rob Bernstein]

I think if they were honest, we could let it go because then that's actually cleansing. We get some truth of what were the bad mistakes that led us into this war and prevent them in the future. But if you're just gonna go, yeah, we totally won. It was the greatest victory. We got the greatest deal. You're kind of just leaving the. All the door open for Donald Trump to make the next giant, huge mess and pretend like it's the greatest. It's the greatest thing that ever happened to us.

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, yeah, no, that's true. And that is a real concern, too.

[Rob Bernstein]

And, you know, doesn't matter what I do. They all love it.

[Dave Smith]

Well, governments like this, you know, they, they're, you know, government always either screws you coming or going. And so there's like this, this thing where, you know, you have something like Venezuela, and he thinks that's a big success. So then he goes, okay, now I want to go do Iran because I'm hot. Then you have Iran, and he humiliates himself. And I got to say, I'm worried that his response to that will be, I gotta go get a win. Let's go do Cuba. You know, Cuba can't, you know, do what Iran can do. They're not. I don't think so. I don't think they got anything. I mean, I don't know, honestly, that much about the extent of what Cuba could, like, disrupt shipping patterns. But no, I don't think. I don't think they don't have anything like, you know, the stockpile of, of of missiles and drones that, that Iran has. They're a tiny, little poor country. And, you know, I mean, not that Iran is rich compared to us, but they are compared to Cuba.

[Rob Bernstein]

Just don't. Up Key West. I like that place.

[Dave Smith]

Oh, yeah, you keep your hands off me and Rob's. Key west, we love. We love going down there. Sure. Yeah, you can't sleep past 5:45am because there's a rooster crowing in your ear. But it's a cool. It is a fun town. All right, any other thoughts on JD Vance remarks here before we wrap this up? Rob? I mean, I guess I would just, you know, to crystallize, like, what I've been saying. There is. This is too blatant, it's too obvious of a loss. You know, I gotta say, I've had this as I started the podcast by saying it's like a little bit of a weird moment right now. And I was talking, you know, I mean, I'm on family vacation with the family or whatever, and so I'm out here, and I talked to Scott Horton on the phone this morning for a little bit, and I was talking to him, and he was like, I think he was supposed to go on Piers Morgan today, but then it got moved or something and he told me that and I was like, oh, you know, I haven't gone on Piers Morgan in a couple of weeks. And I was, you know, I haven't done like a big debate in a while. And I almost didn't like, as I was thinking about that, I was like, oh, dude, I don't. What are we even debating about at this point? What, you know, like what are we even arguing? I'm going back. Like, I feel like if me. And what am I gonna do? Like I was telling you, like, I mean, it wasn't the last time. I guess it was a couple times ago, but I was on there with, with Wilt Chamberlain arguing to me that the Iranian regime was gonna collapse in a month.

[Rob Bernstein]

They're waiting for these guys to get new talking points so they can have you back on to argue with someone. I know they don't have, they got nothing right now.

[Dave Smith]

What I'm supposed to come back and get into another debate and we're just going to pretend that like that last one didn't ha. Like, like, it's just, can we just make these things like you just admit you're wrong and then. I don't know. I don't know. It's just very, it's, it's, it's very bizarre. It's kind of surreal. It's like, look, man, all the people warning against this war, you know, I mean, Rob, think about it. I know this isn't the first time. I'm saying this probably won't be the last time. But if you think about the way they tried to drag everyone over, the, the predictions that Tucker Carlson and John Mearsheimer made over the 12 day war, that, that didn't come to fruition. And then they all happened in this war. It's like everybody who was warming, I don't know how many people used to mock me, Rob, for using the term escalation dominance so much. They used to go, yeah, yes, yes, we know Dave's position on Iran late in nuclear deterrent. Escalation dominance, like does that. Because I would always talk about how we don't have escalation dominance over Iran. It's a major goddamn problem. You launch a war and you don't have escalation dominance, it means things can happen like what we're living through. Anyway, the more meta thought about the J.D. vance thing is just that this puppy don't fly, Rob. You can't sell this. You can't sell this as a victory. You accomplished Nothing. This is. It's a fucking war, for God's sake. People die. The human beings are dead. Lives are ruined and family members are going on without their loved ones right now. You know the total cost of thing is going to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars. What did we get for it? Nothing. You say their nuclear program is set back something. Nothing. They never had a bomb. They weren't making a bomb. This is all bullshit. You launched a war. You lied through your teeth the entire time and you lost. Good luck trying to spin this as a victory. And this is on the easiest environment to do it on. You know, somewhat psychotic Zionist show. Anyway. All right, that's it for us. One more time.

[Guest/Caller]

Rob.

[Dave Smith]

Where's your. Where's your.

[Rob Bernstein]

Everyone check out my podcast, the run your mouth podcast and go over to port tour.com you can see a whole slew of dates. Still adding more, but I already got all the dates up through August, so a lot of porches all over the country. Come, come hang out.

[Dave Smith]

All right, sounds good. Kind of course. Comicdabesmith.com Houston, Texas are our next stop. So Comicdab Smith.com for all those tickets. All right, catch you next time.

[Guest/Caller]

Peace.