← Real America’s Voice
Real America’s Voice
Just the News No Noise with John Solomon and Amanda Head, March 20th, 2026
00:50:00
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- [00:00]
Amanda Head
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.
- [00:04]
Martha Stewart
This is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. Getting Ahead of the Mess with New Reynolds Kitchens Countertop Prep Paper Just lightly wet the counter beforehand so the paper grips and stays in place. Then lay down the Reynolds Kitchen's countertop prep paper so drips and spills stay on the paper, not all over your kitchen counter. You can roll out dough, prep a party spread, or cook alongside family. When you're done, cleanup is as simple as lifting the paper and revealing that clean counter underneath. Effortless. You can use it for cooking and baking, prep and even crafting, especially when you need extra working space. Because when the mess is already handled, you can focus on what matters. The food, the people, and the moment. It may look effortless, but now you know. It's Reynolds Kitchens Countertop prep Paper. Take a tip from me. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Make it easy. Make it with Reynolds Kitchens Countertop prep paper available now in the Reynolds Wrap aisle in Walmart.
- [01:40]
John Solomon
Good evening America. Happy Friday. Welcome to the latest edition of Justin News. No Noise. I'm your host John Solomon reporting to you as always from the Nation's capital, Washington, D.C. so much to take a look at today in the world. Just a little while ago, a federal judge ruled that the Pentagon's new rules for reporters violated the First Amendment. It's a win for the New York Times, though it may not survive as it moves up the court change, but something we're watching atjust the news.com Be sure to go check that out. If you're hoping for an end to the partial government shutdown today, you'd be very disappointed. The Senate Democrats once again about a dozen times now blocked funding for the Homeland Security Department, meaning those long wait times at airports are going to get worse. And those hardworking TSA agents who keep us safe on flights will continue to pay work without any paycheck. It'll be now 35 plus days. What a. What a travesty for them and for all of us who travel in the airspace. Senate Democrats voted against the funding for the fifth time, which makes the current partial government shutdown tied for the longest shutdown in the history of a second longest shutdown. Excuse me, at 35 days, the vote to invoke cloture, which is the process that got there, failed in a 4737 split. But here's where everything could be coming to a head. The Senate is currently expected to break for a two week recess next Friday. Senators would normally return to their home districts to put in face time with their constituents. Especially with an election year coming up, that's valuable time. But Senate Majority Leader John Thune said not so so fast. That break may not happen. If there's no deal place to fund Homeland, you guys might have to stay here. That means the senators. Here's the worst part. Even after two terror attacks in recent weeks, we still can't get funding to help stop any potential future attacks. A lot of the agencies that are on the front lines of terrorism on the sidelines not being able to get paid. With that, I'm going to turn to my amazing co host Amanda Head. Amanda, you're watching a lot of other things today.
- [03:31]
Amanda Head
Yes indeed. On that topic. Actually saying on the subject of air travel to everyone out there, if you're flying to CPAC next week, everyone knows CPAC is happening next week. A word to the wise, do not fly into Houston or Austin because I'm hearing things are quite bad there. All right. I want to stay on the subject of Iran, there's a lot of conversation about how long this is going to last. Earlier today the president was asked why he claims that the US has already won the war militarily while others, like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insist that the war will likely need ground troops to fully topple the Iranian regime. So take a listen to the what the president had to say.
- [04:09]
John Solomon
He said the war was militarily won in Iran. What did you mean by that? Oh, I think we've won. We've knocked out their navy, their air force, we've knocked out their anti aircraft, we've knocked out everything. We're roaming free. From a military standpoint, all they're doing is clogging up the strait. But from a military standpoint, they're finished.
- [04:30]
Amanda Head
And while the Iranian military has dwindled to nearly nothing, as President Trump remarked, the only obstacle to ending the war is is the Strait of Hormuz. Especially since NATO countries refused to assist in the effort to reopen that key shipping lane. Here's the president on that topic. Vincey Graham has asked for you to
- [04:48]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
reconsider the American basis in Spain, in Germany, after what they have done in the Hormuz.
- [04:53]
Mark Morgan
What's your take?
- [04:54]
John Solomon
Well, it deserves he's right about asking that. And I think NATO's gone down a long way because they haven't. I mean they should be helping with the strait. They get much of their energy from the straight of our moons. And if Lindsey Graham said that and don't forget he was the big Naito guy for a while and now he's not. And a lot of senators and congressmen, they were big. They're very upset with the fact that NATO has done nothing.
- [05:19]
Amanda Head
And like President Trump pointed out, a very important issue. If other countries depend on the Strait of Hormuz for their energy, why on earth aren't they helping? While we discuss this and many topics with our first guest of the night, we are always honored to be joined by her. She is Iowa Congresswoman Marionette Miller Meeks. Check it out.
- [05:37]
John Solomon
All right, folks, we got a great way to kick off the show today. Joining us from the great state of Iowa, Congresswoman Marionette Miller Meeks. Congresswoman, great to have you back on the show.
- [05:46]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Good to be back. How are you both doing?
- [05:49]
John Solomon
We're doing well. We know your state has suffered a great loss. Some of the brave men and women killed in action in the Iran operation are coming home. Tell us a little bit about at this moment where we are in the Iran operation. Sometimes you read the mainstream media, you think it's going badly, then you listen to the actual data. Seems like we're winning pretty big.
- [06:11]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Well, it reminds me of the Vietnam War when militarily people felt we won the Tet offensive and we had turned the tides in the war, but politically we had not. And so that unfairness and coverage led to a change in public opinion. In this case, people are certainly concerned, concerned about, is this another Iraq? But when you look at everything that has happened, the degradation of launchers, the degradation of missiles, the expenditure of missiles, the degradation of naval vessels and ships, you know, military infrastructure, we have vastly destroyed that infrastructure and capacity to, for Iran to strike back, including strike back and allies in the Middle East. And their, you know, last efforts are to prohibit ships going through the Strait of Hormuz, which we know is problematic for a variety of reasons. The United States and President Trump has guaranteed passage of ships, provided insurance, which put Lloyd's of London in a challenging position. But militarily, it looks like this is a much shorter conflict than had anticipated, certainly very risky. I don't diminish the risk. And as you said, tomorrow is the funeral of two of our National Guards, men who are, excuse me, our reservists who were killed in action. And it's very sobering here in Iowa, very real. But as a military person, I can tell you that for 47 years, Iran has been at war with us. They have killed US Soldiers numerous places, Khobar Towers, Marine Corps barracks in Lebanon, two Embassies which are embassies, are guarded by our Marine Corps, the USS Cole, raiding and humiliating our military. And your words have to mean more, otherwise you continue to be attacked both here and abroad.
- [08:05]
John Solomon
No deterrence.
- [08:06]
Amanda Head
Well, and like you, I speak to a lot of service members who support this conflict because they know of what you've been speaking of. But there are a few but very loud people in the media space, particularly podcasters, who I think are really trying to highlight the disunity in the Republican Party in your state when you have flag draped coffins coming home. I can imagine that that has an effect on public opinion. But as you talk to your constituents, particularly heading into the summer of a midterm, do you get the sense that disunity abounds, or is it just a minority?
- [08:40]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
I think that there are very loud voices and people trying to influence the dialogue and undermine this president and undermine our actions in our military. We certainly have seen this happen before in the United States. This is an action that was necessary. And even on January 3, when the US and President Trump had a brilliant military operation to extradite Maduro back to the United States to face criminal charges for which he was indicted. I had mentioned at that time that this was also going to be a signal to Iran and China and Russia and Cuba and that we may see things change, especially in Cuba and Iran as well as Venezuela. And I think that you're certainly seeing that. And you can see our Middle Eastern allies, the Arab countries, came to the support of the United States early on. They do not want a nuclear armed Iran. And again, for, you know, seven presidents in my lifetime has said we could not have a nuclear armed Iran. But just voicing it and saying it over and over and over again does not prohibit military weapons. We allowed Iran to avoid sanctions on oil production. President Biden sent them money. President Obama sent them money they were violating. Even the International Atomic Energy Commission, they weren't allowed to inspect. So they were violating the terms of JCPOA that Obama had agreed to. They weren't slowing down in the development of nuclear weapons. That was their goal. And they already had 60% highly enriched uranium. And it's a very short timeline from 60% to 90%, which is weapons grade. And if. And President Trump in negotiations offered them nuclear energy for power that the United States would help to facilitate, but they rejected that. They declined to reject that. They wanted a nuclear weapon. And, you know, if you have peaceful purposes for nuclear energy, you don't have to be 200 to 300ft underground in A mountain. Hiding it and not letting the IAEA do proper inspections.
- [10:47]
John Solomon
Such a common sense thing. You're exactly right. If you have nothing to hide, why are you hiding it? Makes all the sense in the world. I want to turn to the SAVE Act. We one of the top priorities in the agenda for both Republicans and President Trump. Congressional Republicans through the House, no problem. The Senate a little bit trickier, but several senators we talked to, Senator Rand Paul, Senator Ron Johnson, Senator Kennedy separately making comments that there may be some negotiation and that the key elements of this will get in either in a rescission package or, excuse me, in a an omnibus bill or in a skinnier version of the Save America Act. What do you think about that opportunity?
- [11:28]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
I think as you said, we have passed the SAVE act, the Save America act twice through the House. There is tremendous bipartisan support among the American people for voter id. Again, it's a very common sense reform. In Iowa, we took the hard votes to do voter ID when I was in a Senate district that was not a favorable Senate district for Republicans, took those hard votes, put voter ID within our election integrity. We had several election integrity bills and every single time more people have voted. So it doesn't seem like it reduced voter turnout at all. And people had more confidence in their election. So this is common sense. But I think you have people, we may have a majority in the House and the Senate and a Republican president in the White House, but you have to have 60 votes in the Senate. So putting the Save America act or major portions of it in a reconciliation bill or in our year end FY27 appropriations bill, a must pass bill that seems to be a very logical step to take and something that I would agree with and support being put in other must pass legislation. I am in favor of doing another reconciliation bill not only for the Save America act, but for also some of the health care things that we want to do and some of the actions to take against fraud perpetrated by illegal immigrants in our benefit system, whether it's Medicaid or food stamps or other benefit systems, as we have seen in states.
- [13:02]
Amanda Head
Congresswoman, something that's very important to you and other Iowans, the farm bill. I know that you have been shouting from the rooftops about this and now it's being amplified by the President of the United States. We don't want farmers left in limbo. Talk to us about the implications of its passage.
- [13:16]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Well, you know, we passed significant portions of the farm bill in our first reconciliation bill, the working families tax cut last year, last term in 2324. The farm bill was had. We had it done in the House, but the Senate, which was controlled by Democrats, did not do tax. So we could not get the farm bill passed in 2324 because the Senate Democrat in charge of the Ag Committee didn't get it done, didn't do taxed. So we want to get the farm bill done. Chair Thompson has worked very diligently, worked with farmers, worked with all states. And we really need to get this done, especially with the stress in the farm and the ag economy right now. So we wholeheartedly agree with the president. Let's get this done and move it across the finish line.
- [14:02]
John Solomon
Yeah. It'll be a big moment for all of the middle of the country, which is what I think a lot of people look for another big win. Congresswoman, great to have you on the show today. Thank you for joining us.
- [14:11]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Well, great to be with both of you. And I just want to say that Amanda, I know, is very, you know, very keen on animals and animal safety. And the Bow Wow act passed yesterday to tackle animal cruelty in the state of Iowa. We have passed significant legislation on animal cruelty cruelty. And so this is a common sense thing that if you're trafficking illegal drugs and fentanyl and a service animal is harmed or a law enforcement animal is harmed or you abuse them, that there need to be penalties for that. And if you're coming across the border illegally with drugs, human trafficking and you abuse and harm an animal, you ought to be deported right back across the border, back to where you came from and fully support that. And, you know, I'm wondering if PETA and the, you know, the other animal rights organizations are come out and come out in support of this bill, common sense legislation.
- [15:04]
Amanda Head
I'm sure they are itching to come out in support of this bill.
- [15:07]
John Solomon
Let's hope they do important stuff. As always, Congresswoman, thank you so much for joining us.
- [15:12]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Thank you.
- [15:13]
John Solomon
Our hearts and condolences to those families in Iowa.
- [15:16]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Thank you.
- [15:17]
John Solomon
All right, folks, we got a quick commercial break. We're going to stay on the border for another topic. Now when we come back to the commercial break, the former acting Commissioner of the U.S. customs and Border Protection Agency, our good friend Mark Morgan, up next after these messages. Hey, folks, would you believe me if I told you that high blood pressure is the number one risk factor for for mortality? It's true. Half of adults, myself included, have it. And everyone knows someone in their life who deals with high blood pressure. And here's the dangerous part. It doesn't hurt. It just quietly damages over time. There is a lot in life we can't control. Your blood pressure isn't one of them. This isn't guesswork. Grab a home blood pressure monitor, drink 120 life daily and check your numbers. Many people see improvements in as little as two weeks, which is exactly why the product has become so popular. It fits into real life. And the powdered version has just one gram of sugar, making it a smart option for people watching blood sugar. Go to 120life.com that's 120life.com and use my code jtn for 20% off. That's a great deal. Try it risk free for two weeks. If your blood pressure doesn't come down, you'll get a full refund. Go to 120life.com and use the code jtn to save 20%. Don't wait until next month. Nothing to lose except high blood pressure right now. Go to 120life.com and use my code jtn for 20% off. Use that code jtn today.
- [16:38]
Martha Stewart
This is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. When prepping for cooking and baking, get ahead of the mess with new Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Just lightly wet the counter so the paper grips. Lay it down and drips and spills stay on the paper, not on your counter. Cleanup is as simple as lifting it away to reveal clean counters. Effortless it is thanks to Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Available in the Reynolds wrap aisle at Walmart.
- [17:27]
Amanda Head
Welcome back, everybody. President Trump has been making good on his promise so far to get the southern border under control and up the rate of deportations, especially of illegal alien criminals in this country. But there's always room for improvement. And our next guest has a plan to get to 1 million deportations this year. And he's one of the rare people in the country who can also speak on former FBI FBI Director James Comey getting subpoenaed. So joining us now to talk about all of that and more is former acting Commissioner of the U.S. customs and Border Protection as well as former FBI special agent. And he's also a partner in the Mass Deportation Coalition, Mark Morgan. Mark, great to see you. Thanks for being here.
- [18:06]
John Solomon
Amanda.
- [18:06]
Mark Morgan
John, thanks for having me as always.
- [18:09]
Amanda Head
We love having you. And I have been champing at the bit to get your opinion. Senator Mark Wayne Mullen making his way through through the confirmation process. A full floor vote coming up soon but what, what expertise do you think he brings to the role? Is he the right man for the job?
- [18:24]
Mark Morgan
Well, first of all, I would, if we would have this discussion a year ago and you would have told me that John Fetterman was going to be the deciding vote to push this forward, I would have taken that bet and thought I was going to be a rich man. So, you know, the other thing that I'll say about the hearings, unfortunately, is they're heavy on theatrics, very light on substance. So I think this is America's opportunity to really learn about someone who's going to lead one of the largest departments in our country. And it's unfortunate that it's more theatrics than substance. So there's still a lot we have to learn about him. But the one thing that, the one strength that I think he does bring is he does know Congress and he has apparently allies on both sides of the aisle. Look, DHS is a contentious mission. It's an important mission. It's a complex mission. And having that support and knowing people in Congress, that's definitely going to be a positive.
- [19:21]
John Solomon
So there are reports in the last couple days, Mark, that either President Trump or people around him think that maybe some of the optics of the deportation process have been bad. That doesn't mean the mission of deportation is bad. What advice? You and I have had these great conversations about what deportation 2.0 looks like. I think you have the best, most comprehensive plan out there. What should the new Homeland Secretary do to implement a steady stream of people exiting this country without maybe giving the Democrats so much ammunition?
- [19:52]
Mark Morgan
God, look, you summarized it best. You said it better than I could. If I had two minutes with the President, I would lead off with what you did. Look, we can't be. We can't allow how we carried out the lawful mission of removing people that are here illegally. We cannot let that distract us. We must continue on the mission of lawfully carrying out and removing people that are here in the country illegally. Look, I think we all agree there were some challenges with the how. Look, that person in charge is gone now. Let's move past that, but let's stay laser focused on what we should be doing. And that's why I'm part of this mass deportation coalition. We can do this without the chaos. We can do this without the pushback and notoriety that we've been seeing for the past year. And John, you and I talked about, and although the first year, what we call phase one, the mass deportation coalition, it was effective, I Mean, if you look today versus a year ago, there are fewer criminal illegal aliens walking the streets. That's a fact. And because of President Trump's effort the past year, our city streets are safer. That's also fact. But what we're saying is if we're only going to, if we're ultimately going to deincentivize illegal immigration and put integrity back in the package of immigration laws, we must move beyond a small subset of those that are in the country illegally. We're calling that phase two. We need to go after the 1.5 million illegal aliens with final orders of removal, the hundreds of thousands of visa overstays. We have to aggressively go after US Employers who knowingly and willingly hire illegal aliens so they can pay them cheap wages to marginalize an already marginalized US Born workforce. That has to be done. We have to open up the aperture and we can do it. And so we're going to release a playbook here in the next 10 days or two weeks or so where we're going to explain the why this needs to continue to happen, why we need to move to phase two. And more importantly, we're going to lay out a series of recommendations on how that can be done, how we can reach that 1 million legitimate apprehensions removals in interior within a year.
- [21:59]
Amanda Head
Incredible. Well, unless we forget, under Barack Obama it was what, 3.1 million deportations? Now that was over the course of his entire term, but the raw numbers, he deported more, at least at this point in President Trump's term. Let me ask you about the media's role in this because there is clearly a microscope from the media on this. If, if do you think that the media can turn their attention to something else? Sometimes I doubt our ability to walk in and chew gum at the same time. But if we take so much attention off of it, then that not only allows these agents to be more effective, but it also keeps the country from thinking that this is the only thing happening in the world.
- [22:36]
Mark Morgan
Amanda, you're, Again, I couldn't have said it better. You're spot on, both of those counts. Right. If we can take and remove the chaos that we saw in Chicago and Minneapolis, well, then it's not going to. We're going to be able to remove some of that rhetoric and that false narrative from the left and Democratic Party because again, they, what we're doing is we're kind of teeing it up for them to focus on the how. Right instead of the fact of the why we need to conduct mass deportation. And the other Thing that I'll say is they've been very effective at some of the Republicans, some of the conservatives that, that the media and what the Democrats are doing and the rhetoric, it's winning, it's pushing them back in the corner. That, you know, we're hearing reports, and I know you've reported on it, that we're wanting to walk away even from the phrase mass deportation. I remember in the the RNC when President Trump spoke and others like Tom Holman, and out in the audience there were signs mass deportation 2024. Look, and poll after poll is showing, don't believe the polls that the liberal media and the Democrats are showing that the Accountability Project under the Mass Coalition, Mass Deportation Coalition, we just sanctioned a new poll by McLaughlin that shows still the over like 87% of those who voted for Trump still want mass deportation. So don't believe the lie.
- [24:00]
John Solomon
Mark, I want to ask you about something that mystifies me and I think others who spend some time looking at the law. We have sanctuary cities, we have sanctuary states. We have prisons and jails and sheriffs that won't turn over illegal aliens under, under order to leave the country. And we have nonprofits that are bringing in and harboring those illegal aliens. There's a law, it's kind of generally called the illegal Alien harboring law. It says that anyone knowing or in a reckless disregard of the fact that there's an illegal alien in their presence, if they try to conceal, harbor or shield from detection, or attempts to conceal, harbor or shield from detection, such alien in any place, including a building or by means of transportation, can be prosecuted as a federal felony. Why hasn't the Trump administration used that to go after sanctuary cities, sanctuary states, and the nonprofits that are part of Illegal Migration Inc?
- [24:57]
Mark Morgan
I think that's a fair, reasonable, rational question that they should address. John, think about this. And you and I, Matt, we've talked about this for several years. Think about this. This should not be an extreme view. You're in the country illegally. You commit another crime against an American local law enforcement arrest you. And that local law enforcement, because they're in a sanctuary city, refuses to work with ICE to remove the criminal illegal alien. How can us wanting to do that be viewed as a radical opinion? That's, that's insanity. And so I believe, to your point, if you're asking me, I think DOJ should aggressively start going after some of these entities that are absolutely violating the law, as you just outlined. I mean, we've got to fight fire with fire. We can no Longer let this go on because this really is, it's beyond stupid. It's insanity and it's jeopardizing the safety and national security of our country.
- [26:01]
Amanda Head
Yeah, Mark, before we let you go, I want to bring Iran into the conversation because we've seen what, four terrorist attacks in the last three weeks here on US shores. And so everybody is thinking about sleeper cells and concerned that those are going to ramp up and increase. You are the perfect person to ask about this because of your position at cbp. How concerned are you that this is going to continue and possibly even accelerate?
- [26:23]
Mark Morgan
Oh, I think it is. I'm very concerned. So let's quickly look to the FBI and the greater U.S. u.S. Intelligence community. They have said that the heightened potential of a terrorist attack is greater than it's ever been since 9 11. They refer to it as a rogues gallery of terrorist organizations that are calling upon individuals to attack America. And they're able to do so through a decentralized methodology, meaning that they're trying to get people to self radicalize that are already here and to, to move from ideology to radicalization happens at the speed of social media and then you throw in an Internet intervening event like Epic Fury, you can move from that radicalization to action literally overnight. And look real quick. I believe facts matter. During the Biden administration we received and let in hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens that we call special interest aliens that come from countries that we know sponsor, harbor and facilitate terrorism to include, wait for Iran. We also know that we encountered over 400 illegal aliens on the terrorist watch list. The four years of the first Trump administration, that number was around five or six. So again, I keep saying this loud and clear. I hope somebody finally listens. But it's not if or when the lone wolf offender or sleeper cell is here, it's already here.
- [27:41]
John Solomon
So important, Mark, before we let you go real quickly, birthright citizenship before the Supreme Court. April 1. The big arguments this week, the new Jalisca cartel, a new Jalisca generation Cartel announced a U.S. citizen is its new drug kingpin. He got his citizenship through birthright citizenship by having his mother give birth to him here in the United States. He's a Mexican national now, probably one of the most notorious drug lords in the world. What does that say to the court? Is it exhibit A in the Supreme Court arguments?
- [28:12]
Mark Morgan
Yeah, look, I think so. You mentioned it earlier. The last attacks that we've seen right now, naturalized citizens. So it's something we don't talk about. Enough about, John, is assimilation simply because you were born here and look, albeit through illegal means, which again, I don't believe that was our forefathers principle that you could violate our law and then benefit from a violation. But more importantly, is it just simply because you're born here does not mean that you fully assimilated and does not mean your allegiance is to this country. So it's a righteous issue for the Trump administration to push back on.
- [28:48]
Amanda Head
Absolutely. And just look at the models of other countries who have done away with this as well. Absolutely. Former acting commissioner of U.S. customs and Border Protection, former FBI special agent and friend of our show, Mark Morgan. Thanks so much for being with us.
- [29:01]
Mark Morgan
Thank you both.
- [29:03]
Amanda Head
Absolutely. Absolutely. I love it. Coming up next, how economically free are we in America? Would it be shocking to learn that our neighbors to the north Canada score higher on an economic freedom index? It's true. We'll explain why after this.
- [29:23]
John Solomon
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- [30:19]
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks
this
- [30:19]
Martha Stewart
is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. Getting ahead of the mess with new Reynolds Kitchens Countertop prep paper. Just lightly wet the counter beforehand so the paper grips and stays in place. Then lay down the Reynolds Kitchen's countertop prep paper so drips and spills stay on the paper, not all over your kitchen counter. You can roll out dough, prep a party spread or cook alongside family when you're done. Cleanup is as simple as lifting the paper and revealing that clean counter underneath. Effortless. You can use it for cooking and baking prep and even crafting, especially when you need extra working space. Because when the mess is already handled, you can focus on what matters, the food, the people, and the moment. It may look effortless, but now, you know, it's Reynolds Kitchen's countertop prep paper. Take a tip from me. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Make it easy, make it with Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper available now in the Reynolds wrap aisle in Walmart.
- [31:40]
John Solomon
Welcome back, America. Joining us now, the acting director in chief economist at the Heritage foundation, one of the great economic thinkers in our country today, E.J. and Tony. E.J. great to have you back on John.
- [31:51]
E.J. Antoni
JOHN My pleasure. Thanks for having me again.
- [31:55]
John Solomon
I love so much of the work that Heritage does because it gives you data points and data matters. In an era of spin and short tweets, you just recently put out the 32nd edition of the Index of Economic Freedom, the US ranked 22nd. How does that happen? How's the land of the free end up at number 22?
- [32:13]
E.J. Antoni
Great, great question. You know, unfortunately, this is only the first year where we've had an increase in the last six years. In other words, in the previous five years, we were actually seeing declines year after year. Now, obviously, a lot of that had to do with the Biden administration, but we even had a decline in 2020. And that was because of COVID obviously, and some of the draconian measures that were implemented that year. But whatever the case, I think the real unsung hero of the last year has been the deregulatory efforts of the Trump administration where, you know, they actually got rid of a record number of burdensome regulations, cut a record amount of bureaucratic red tape. And that is really helping to not only increase economic growth and get those growth rates up, but it's also making people more free. It's increasing the number of options you're going to have for things like the kind of car you want to drive, where you want to work, what kind of appliances you want to be able to have in your home. All of these different things were seriously limited because of the kind of bureaucratic overreach that happened during the Biden years. And it's wonderful progress to see those things reversed.
- [33:27]
Amanda Head
Yeah. And I mean, this is, it makes me guffaw. Canada, the country who beat, debanked hundreds of men and women who, who just drove their trucks to Ottawa, that's the country that is ahead of us, along with 20 others, I suppose. So if we stay on this trajectory of deregulation, just the deregulation alone, how close can we get to number one when it comes to economic freedom?
- [33:51]
E.J. Antoni
Great, great question. We can certainly continue to move several points up in the index, particularly when you have some of those who are currently ahead of us, like Canada that you mentioned, America's hat, you know, they are essentially falling in the index. And the reason for that and the reason why I think they're gonna fall next year is because of what's going on right now in that nation and also several others where they aren't deregulating, they're adding regulatory burdens. You have nations that are actually increasing not just regulatory, but tax burdens as well. They're becoming more bureaucratic, not less. Government is getting more involved in the private sector and is decreasing people's economic freedom. But then on top of that, you look at so many of these different countries where they've really kind of, I guess you could say gone, woke in terms of their judicial system. And the judicial system is no longer there strictly to do things like protect people's property rights, to enforce contract law, but instead it is increasingly trying to engage in these kinds of weird social engineering on behalf of left wing causes. And the judicial system is actually in certain cases, and I guess the most extreme case, look at North Korea or the Chinese Communist Party, places like that, the judicial system is now just another arm of government bureaucracy and is really a way for the government to try to force its will onto people. And so again, as those different countries that are ahead of us unfortunately go down that route, they will fall in the rankings and the US Will continue moving up.
- [35:22]
John Solomon
Yeah, I want to turn to the Iran operation. Obviously, when war happens, energy prices, typically the wars in the Middle east go up. There's a peace dividend at the end of this. But right now, how bad can fuel prices get? And where will we be in September when people start thinking about who am I going to vote for in the fall election?
- [35:43]
E.J. Antoni
Great, great questions, John. And look, I got to say, there have been so many talking heads out there saying one of two things. Either one, oil's going to 200 or on the other hand, they're saying, no, no, oil's going to be back down to 70 in no time at all. And they're speaking as if, as if they know. They don't. Nobody has any idea, John. And the reason for that is because we don't know what's going to happen in the region in the next six hours, let alone six days or six weeks. We just don't know. That is why you have had Such extreme volatility in both crude oil and natural gas markets the last several weeks, we simply don't know. Just look at the escalation that happened just the last few days where Israel struck targets, natural gas targets in Iran, and then Iran responded by striking natural gas targets throughout the region. Well, the result of that was even more turbulence and even higher prices in natural gas markets. Obviously, though, before these strikes occurred, that wasn't priced in. So again, you just don't know so much of where oil and natural gas are going to go in terms of the price, John, is just dependent on two things. Number one, how long is the conflict going to last? And number two, how much damage is going to be done to infrastructure during that time. Case in point, Qatar came out with some, some data just within the last, I think, 36 hours saying that it is going to take between three and five years to fix some of the damage that has been done to some of their energy infrastructure. So that represents not just production that is temporarily taken offline because the Strait of Hormuz is closed, but it represents production that is taken offline for many years to come because of actual physical damage. So again, which way oil is going to go is going to depend on how long this conflict lasts.
- [37:31]
Amanda Head
EJ before we let you go, a few years ago, New York Governor Kathy Hochul was saying to wealthy New Yorkers, if you don't want to participate here, if you don't want to contribute here, sayonara, have a nice life in Florida and Texas. While just earlier this week she was singing a very different tune, seemingly begging New Yorkers to come back from the sunshine or the Lone Star state to New York. What do these people not get about taxing people into oblivion because now they're begging them to come back.
- [37:59]
E.J. Antoni
Well, well, well. You know, I actually wrote a study on New York tax increases. This was about four or five years ago. And it was done at the time because of the latest round of tax increases that we were seeing in New York City. And what I demonstrated in that research was that you were going to see hundreds of thousands of more people leave New York State in the years to come. And sure enough, that's exactly what's happened. In fact, the numbers have essentially been right on the money. What I'm getting at here is the fact that these public policies have very real consequences. People are leaving these high tax over regulated states, New York, California, Illinois. And where are they going? They're going to places like Texas, Tennessee, Florida and other states that again, have low tax rates and low regulatory burdens. And what these blue state governors are now realizing very, very painfully is the fact that their tax base has been so completely eroded by high tax rates that now they can't pay their bills. And it means the only, the only thing left to squeeze, so to speak, is the middle class. And that is where they're going to have to start extracting the next round of revenue. And that's bad news for middle class families who live in those states.
- [39:19]
John Solomon
Yep. Spend more, lose more. I have a funny feeling Virginia may be the next place where we start to see economic refugees. E.J. and Tony, what a great, great opportunity to have on the show. Thanks for joining us today.
- [39:29]
E.J. Antoni
My pleasure. Thank you for having me.
- [39:32]
John Solomon
Ah, great opportunity, my friend. We always love talking to you. All right, folks, we're gonna take a quick commercial break. When we come back, we're gonna explain why my new bed is not a piece of furniture. My mattress is not a piece of furniture. It's a sleep engineering system. I'm gonna prove it to you right after these messages.
- [39:50]
Martha Stewart
This is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. When prepping for cooking and baking, get ahead of the mess with new Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Just lightly wet the counter so the paper grips. Lay it down and drips and spills stay on the paper, not on your counter. Cleanup is as simple as lifting it away to reveal clean counters. Effortless it is thanks to Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Available in the Reynolds wrap aisle at Walmart.
- [40:40]
Amanda Head
Welcome back, everybody. Most people don't think about their mattress until pain forces them to stop thinking about your mattress. And as furniture, you spend a third of your life on it. That makes it one of the most important pieces of health equipment that you own. Today we are talking about why just okay. Sleep may actually be driving your frequent chiropractor visits or taking Tylenol or ibuprofen before bed, hoping to sleep better or wake up with less pain and stiffness. So joining us now to talk about this is the CEO of Ghostbed, Mark Werner. Mark, great to have you here.
- [41:11]
Mark Werner
Great. Thank you for having Ghostbed tonight. Hello, Amanda and John.
- [41:14]
Amanda Head
Absolutely. Great to see you. All right. I sleep on my back like a mummy. Give me a piece of plywood to lay on and I am perfectly happy. My husband sleeps on his side. He doesn't like a firm mattress. Is there a solution with Ghostbed?
- [41:27]
Mark Werner
There definitely is. So we've kind of pioneered the Split King adjustable. So it's two adjustable bases and then two mattresses that each person can pick out their own kind. So if you want a super cooling one that's firmer and your partner wants a medium cooling that's a little softer, we've got the solution. And with those adjustable bases, the head goes up, the foot goes up. You've got anti snore features, you've got massage, you've got lights, you've got USB connectors. So it's a great setup. And what's been happening, I think it's up to 20% of the country has what's called a sleep divorce. They literally sleep in separate bedrooms because they can't agree on the type of mattress that they want. And then there's a little bit of sometimes noise in there. So this is something that's become super popular with all age groups. And it's really the Rolls Royce of sleep experience. The Split King adjustable. We have them in a lot of different mattress selections.
- [42:26]
John Solomon
It's amazing. That solve a lot of marital problems, I think. Let me take you to something you just mentioned. The temperature changes. It is the very first thing I noticed sleeping in the ghostbed. As soon as I got it, I just felt cooler, more relaxed. I didn't. Matter of fact, when I got it was a warm day. How is it that you can get a bed to regulate and adjust to our temperature? I mean, I'd swear all that sounds like mystical. But then I slept. I was like, it's very real.
- [42:56]
Mark Werner
So we use cooling technology in the fabric itself, of the COVID of the mattress, and that pulls away your heat. And then we use something called phase change material, which is an organic material, usually on the top layer of the foam. And often we'll aerate it so the airflow will flow right through it. So with that phase change material, it's think of like water. When it's in the glass in the room, it's just room temperature. It's water. When it's in the freezer, it's ice. And it goes from ice to water and back and forth. That's how phase change works. It pulls that heat away from your person and just keeps you cool enough. And people think you don't need to be down 10 degrees. I always give the example when you were a little kid and you had a fever or something and you were saying to your mother, I'm dying here, and your mother takes your temperature and it turns out you're up one degree. And that's the whole crisis. Well, that's the same thing with sleep. If we can kind of get you down a point or point and a half in temperature, we've got you to a very neutral position. And you're going to sleep much easier and much more relaxed and you'll fall asleep deeper. And it's just great. So it's our cooling patented technology that really makes a difference and is a big winner. And it applies in our mattresses, it applies in our toppers, in our pillows, and in our sheets as well. It's a whole system and we're very proud of it. And I slept warm when I was all through my years and today, so I kind of was selfish, trying to solve a problem for myself. And I know over 60% of the country sleeps warm.
- [44:26]
Amanda Head
Yeah, absolutely. And I want to ask you about the inception of this because it wasn't a business idea when it started off. You were trying to solve a health problem, right?
- [44:35]
Mark Werner
That's correct. I did come, fortunately from the Werner ladder family. So I had a 100 year family behind me that taught me pretty much everything I know. And I've had three neck surgeries, two from the front, one from the back. And I couldn't find a pillow or a mattress that worked for my condition. So I decided, given that I grew up in that fiberglass world, that my dad invented the fiberglass ladder. So I had tremendous experience in polymer technology, polymer science. So I decided to make my own memory foam pillow and topper. And that was the start of it. And I did it with my wife 25 years ago. And we wanted to really recreate a family business and have our children involved. And having an American made family business is really important to us. That's been my culture forever and multiple generations. And that's how we got started. And it's been growing ever since.
- [45:26]
John Solomon
Amazing. Got about a minute left. Mark, before we let you go, could you tell us. I know what I experienced first. What's the most common thing people say after they buy a ghost bag? What's the first thing they notice?
- [45:37]
Mark Werner
They just love it. I mean, they just love it. And, you know, I'm a little biased because I see it, but I read all the reviews and we have over 100,000 reviews and they're on our website, go.com on Costco, big customer, and Sam's and Amazon, so independent platforms. And the feedback is absolutely great. And I consistently see feedback like this is life changing. And I know it's a really high quality product at an affordable price, but I love when people are telling me it's life changing. It helped with my fibromyalgia or my pregnancy or my hip problem or whatever. Whatever the problem is, it's just an immediate acceptance. And I also can tell we have a very low return rate in our mattresses, less than 5%. So I know we're really hitting the right type of product for the right kind of customer need. So it's a win, win.
- [46:26]
John Solomon
Pretty darn cool.
- [46:27]
Amanda Head
CEO of Ghostbed and Mark Warner, thanks so much for joining us tonight.
- [46:31]
Mark Werner
Thank you so much.
- [46:33]
Amanda Head
Of course. And to our viewers, if you want to get better quality sleep, risk free, visit ghostbed.comjustnews with the promo code just news for an extra 10% off. That's ghostbed.com just news with the promo code Just news for an extra 10% off. One last break and then we'll be back on the other side.
- [47:15]
Martha Stewart
This is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. Getting ahead of the mess with new Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Just lightly wet the counter beforehand so the paper grips and stays in place. Then lay down the Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper so drips and spills stay on the paper, not all over your kitchen counter. You can roll out dough, prep a party spread, or cook alongside family. When you're done, cleanup is as simple as lifting the paper and revealing that clean counter underneath. Effortless. You can use it for cooking and baking prep and even crafting, especially when you need extra working space. Because when the mess is already handled, you can focus on what matters, the food, the people, and the moment. It may look effortless, but now you know, it's Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Take a tip from me. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Make it easy. Make it with Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper, available now in the Reynolds wrap aisle in Walmart.
- [48:35]
Amanda Head
Welcome back, everybody. The power of prayer is something our country can never forget. President Trump and his administration have pushed it nationally, which is a welcome, welcome change to American politics in recent years. And especially in these times, we need it more than ever. So joining us now is someone who agrees with that sentiment. And he's launched the 714 initiative aimed at getting Americans praying for our country, George Pond. George, thanks so much for being with us.
- [48:58]
George Pond
Thank you very much.
- [49:00]
Amanda Head
Absolutely, sir. President Trump. Last year, following in the footsteps of our founders like George Washington and also former President Abraham Lincoln, President Trump signed a proclamation for a national day of prayer. And it sounds to me like you are looking to expand that. Tell us about It.
- [49:15]
George Pond
Yes, I am. And one of the reasons we want to do it is because of an important date coming up in 10 days, March 30th. And the reason we want to do would like for this proclamation which basically has two components to it. It has what Lincoln did in 1863 on March 30th. And I can read that to your excerpts of it. And then the second part of it is 2nd Chronicles 7:14, which basically says, if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, pray and seek my face, turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal the land. And we've been doing this for the last, since May of 2024. We've, we've been praying every day. We haven't stopped. May 2nd will be our 714th day. And we continue to pray. And a lot of it has to do with basically focusing on this and unpacking the principles built into this scripture based on a book by George Otis Jr. And it's a 52 day study that we pray every day.
- [50:36]
John Solomon
That is amazing, George. How many people are participating in this? I mean, this is very exciting.
- [50:41]
George Pond
Okay, well, the vision that was given to me back in the spring of 24 was pretty, pretty aggressive. It was 50 states with a minimum of 10 individuals. And these individuals the Lord laid on my heart would be really mature prayer warriors. We're not there at the 50 states, but we're in four time zones now. And our average is around 2010 was the minimum that God gave me because 10 is a minion. And in, in, in Judea synagogues, you can't really have a, a meeting or a worship until you have 10. So that was what the Lord laid on me. And it's growing also in Pakistan. Pakistan. And I'm hoping to get one started soon in Israel.
- [51:39]
Amanda Head
That's just beautiful, George. I'm a praying woman and I always pray for our president, no matter if he has an R or a D next to his name. So obviously, I think a lot of believers across this country pray for the President. But when it comes to healing our land, when you, when you find yourself prostrate and you are praying, what, what is the area of healing that our country needs the most, you think?
- [52:01]
George Pond
Well, if you look at the, in the Old Testament period, idolatry was something really not good in God's eyes, the spilling of innocent blood. Now in our more in our Christian era, as we've learned in the New Testament, especially from St. Paul, you know, he expands on the whole concept of sin in so many different ways. I can go into a lengthy description of it. But basically sin is sin. It keeps us from having a relationship with the almighty living God and he gives us a way to get back into his grace. First of all, we have in, in our faith with Christianity we have Jesus as our advocate and through his precious blood we have access to the, the heavenly courts. That's in Hebrews 10:19. But more importantly, as a nation, and especially the church, which really is what being asked here in 714 second chronicles, if my people, my people in this time would be the church. And so it's, everything starts with the church. I'm talking about the broad church, all denominations, all who profess Christ and, and, and based on that, a proclamation from the President at this particular time and why the 30th of March. And this is an interesting story here when Lincoln gave that proclamation which was basically, I'm going to read some parts of it. We have been the recipients of the choicest boundaries of heaven. We've been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched the strength and strengthened us. And we have vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our hearts that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and the preserving grace, too proud to pray to God that made us. It behooves us then to humble ourselves before the offended power and to confess our national sins and pray for clemency and forgiveness.
- [54:39]
Amanda Head
George, that's beautiful. I love what you are doing with the 714 initiative. Thank you so much for being with us and thank you for the service to our nation and for spending time in prayer for this nation. Thank you, sir.
- [54:50]
George Pond
Thank you very much.
- [54:52]
Amanda Head
Absolutely. All right everybody, that's all the time we have for this evening. Everybody. Have a wonderful weekend. We'll be back on Monday at 6pm Eastern.
- [55:07]
Martha Stewart
This is Martha Stewart from the Martha Stewart Podcast. Ever wonder how to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret. When prepping for cooking and baking, get ahead of the mess with new Reynolds Kitchens countertop prep paper. Just lightly wet the counter so the paper grips. Lay it down and drips and spills stay on the paper, not on your counter. Cleanup is as simple as lifting it away to reveal clean counters effortless it is thanks to Reynolds Kitchens. Countertop prep paper. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Available in the Reynolds wrap aisle at Walmart.