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Steve Bannon
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Come on. No, it's just a golf lesson, champ. Loosen up.
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Steve Bannon
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Steve Bannon
Deal's so right it almost feels wrong.
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Martha Stewart
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 Kitchen's countertop prep paper. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Available in the Reynolds Wrap aisle at Walmart.
Steve Bannon
Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile with a message for everyone paying Big Wireless Way too much. Please, for the love of everything good in this world, stop with Mint. You can get premium wireless for just $15 a month. Of course, if you enjoy overpaying, no judgments. But that's weird. Okay, one judgment anyway. Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment
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Steve Bannon
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Neil Irwin
by not treating me like somebody who
Steve Bannon
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Ying Chen
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Steve Bannon
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Steve Bannon
this is the primal scream of a dying regime. Pray for our enemies because we're going medieval on these people. Reasons I got a free shot on all these networks lying about the people. The people have had a belly full of it. I know you don't like hearing that. I know you try to do everything in the world to stop that, but you're not going to stop it. It's going to happen. And where do people like that go to share the big lie?
Levi Browdy
MAGA MEDIA I wish in my soul,
Steve Bannon
I wish that any of these people had a conscience. Ask yourself, what is my task and what is my purpose? If that answer is to save my country, this country will be saved.
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War ROOM here's your host, Stephen K. Ban.
Steve Bannon
Okay, Tuesday the 24th of March, year of our Lord 2026. Thank you for the second, sticking around for the second hour, first hour, we did oil markets, commodity markets and these negotiations President Trump's trying to get rolling. I want to pivot now to something that I think just like artificial intelligence, kind of the, the big issues that don't get taken head on. Neil Irwin joins us from Axios. Neil, I remember coming first acquainted with your writings back in the financial crisis of 2008 and things have only gotten worse and the political class have really not ever addressed what the situation is with our fiscal crisis. As you talk about, you talk about a fiscal cliff. Now, Scott Bessant, when Scott came in and you know, he was a contributor here for years at the war, I mean, he used to talk about, hey, my plan is, you know, I can't this whole debt and the debt spread out of control. But if I can get the annual deficit, the 3% of GDP through cuts in revenue increases, then somehow I think we've got something manageable, we can go forward. As we look through the first year, given a whole host of reasons, it looks like we're not going to hit that. So what is your concern? Your article, just walk people through it. Why America appears to be with the pedal to the metal driving over the fiscal cliff, sir.
Neil Irwin
Yeah. So we're running deficits of about 6% of GDP. That's the largest we've ever seen other than in major wars, financial crises, depressions, recessions. So what's unprecedented is to be running 6% deficit of GDP in a time of, of not having those huge one off expenses. And Scott Bessant's exactly right. If you got to 3% of deficit to GDP, that would be a manageable target. That would be sustainable given the growth path the US is on. What's not happening in Washington is any sense of urgency getting there. Look, if the tax law from last year unleashes amazing growth deregulation, all these great things create the kind of rapid growth that people in the administration want to see. That's fantastic. That would help solve the problem. But what we're seeing so far is those numbers are not coming in that way. We're seeing numbers more like 6%. And you see it on both sides of the aisle. Democrats wanting to kind of cut taxes for their base. So there's not a lot of incentive and urgency around in Washington around the idea that these deficits are unsustainable. And Social Security is going to hit a point in the early 2000-30s when, when its finances are strained.
Steve Bannon
That's what I think it was. The, the Wharton center, they have this budget center and the guy came out the other day and said, hey look, and Everybody talks about 38 trillion and you know, 100 days later or 180 days later, we're 39 trillion. But he makes the calculation that our number's really 100 trillion. And that's what we have to be focused on. Do you believe that? That. And we just had this article. I'll get it up, I'll put it up. After the show of another take on things that says, hey, America's insolvent. It kind of does our balance sheet right. And it's maybe not totally accurate because it looks like it's government accounting, maybe not GAP accounting, but there are a lot of smart people coming out right now and saying, hey, this time we mean it. It looks like we could hit the wall. How would you break all that down?
Neil Irwin
Yeah. So think about it. Of entitlements, Social Security, Medicare. We know because you can project these things out pretty accurately over long time horizons. By 2032, 2033, those trust funds are empty. Congress has to do something. It either has to cut benefits. That's what happens automatically. If they don't do anything, nobody really wants to see that. Or they have to find some way to make those programs solvent and pay for them. And then you have Social Security and Medicare in competition with the rest of the budget, the Defense Department, everything else the government does. And so that's not that far away. That used to be this distant problem. But you know, the people being elected to the Senate this coming November are going to be dealing with that problem at the end of their six year term. So this is not some far off problem. This is a here and now kind of problem. And again, the discourse wouldn't reflect it. You know, we're about to have a $200 billion Defense Department request for the Iran conflict. This is a situation where you wouldn't guess that we're facing this real cliff, this real difficult situation from the way people talk about financial options in Washington.
Steve Bannon
You know, Scott had said before he became Secretary Church and then after he said, hey, look, this is our last chance for a supply side tax cut. And whether you believe that theory, supply side or not, but the theory was hey, we get a tax cut to bring jobs back, increase manufacturing, we have to grow our way out of this. We get growth of 5% or more. I get the deficit down to 3%. That's the way you start chipping away at this thing is one of the reasons that you see the lack of urgency. I mean the bond market now the 10 year treasuries are what? 4, 4 or 4? 3. It's kind of popped since this war, particularly since it shifted to the Persian Gulf away from Tehran. But is it the bond market and is it because we're still the prime reserve currency and people just have to hey, suck on this. No matter what the brics nations say or whatever the alternative like you see right now, as soon as the guns start firing, they all come to the US Dollar is the lack of urgency of the political class because the capital markets really haven't forced their hand here.
Neil Irwin
I think there is a lot of that. Look, we're still historically, as you say, 4% and change on the 10 year treasury, nothing to that's not a crisis. That said, those numbers are going to creep. The debt service costs are going to be creeping up year by year as we run these $2 trillion deficits every year. That increases the total stock of debt. And so whatever rate the US is paying, the government's paying is coming out of everything else. So in The CBO forecast, 10 years from now, 2035, 4.6% of GDP, nearly 5% of GDP, going to just pay interest on the debt, that's going to squeeze everything else. Again, whatever you care about, whether it's on the defense side, whether it's on retirement benefits, things like that, it will be squeezed by these interest costs if we keep rising total debt on the path we're on. And that's assuming there's not a fiscal crisis, there's not a reset of rates significantly higher. That's assuming they stay in the kind of moderate range they've been in the last couple of years. And there are no guarantees. That's the case. If the bond market starts to freak out and say, we're afraid there's going to be financial repression, we're afraid there's going to be inflation, that the US Is going to try and inflate its way out of this crisis,
Steve Bannon
what do you think it's going to take? Because we've had commissions. Last year, when McCarthy got tossed for cutting the deal with Biden, people were talking about we have to have another commission come together. We've had a series of commissions. They've made reports that have implemented, might have helped to stave this off, but they were just, they were, they were never taken seriously. They didn't become part of any political action plan of either party. What do you think it's going to take, absent a fiscal crisis, where then you have to go into crisis mode to get not just both parties but any one party to take it seriously right now? Because the Democrats, their spending thing is out of control. Of course they want to. They want to tax the wealthy, but their spending is really the problem. That's what Scott Bessen keeps saying. But on Capitol Hill, we see this at every appropriations process. The Republicans just kind of tap this along. And these commissions don't work because people have done it for years, done it for decades. They come out with these good results and they're just put into the file. What do you think it's going to take to get the political class to focus on something has to be done here?
Neil Irwin
Yeah. Do you remember Erskine Bowles and the Simpson bowles commission in 2010? In the last 20 years, that's kind of the closest there was to a big deal on entitlements. But ultimately, then as now, if there's not a crisis moment, if there's not a sense of urgency, why would you make that unpopular vote? If you're a Democrat looking to having to cut Benefits. If you're a Republican looking to raise taxes, those are not votes you want to make unless something forces your hand. And that's why I think, look, there are different forms of crisis. Crisis doesn't have to be something like 2008 where it's a catastrophe. But if rates rise even a couple hundred basis points, if we get the 10 year treasury up to 5, 6%, that might be the thing that forces attention. And if not that, look, once again, Social Security trust fund is up in 2032, 2033. Something must be done in order to keep there being if you don't do anything, there's a 25% cut to Social Security benefits. That would be catastrophic. That would be bad for a lot of retirees, that would be unpopular in both parties. So that may be the thing that forces a deal absent a fiscal crisis of the types you see in emerging markets.
Steve Bannon
You see right now, I think when the rates popped over four, four three four four, mortgages went to seven. I think you're saying, hey, if these go to five or six, not saying it is, but if it does, mortgages popped at 9 or 10%. That's when the folks back home are going to say, start burning up the phone line saying something's got to be done here. That's when you may see some movement on this.
Neil Irwin
I do. I mean we saw a little of this in the fall of. It was fall of 2024 when yields did rise. The 30 year got to 5%, I believe. And that really did actually, no, the 10 year got to 5%, the 30 was higher than that. And you did see a focusing of attention. You saw a lot of people saying maybe this is the thing that is the bond market telling us we need to reset the finances going forward. Look, there are ways out of this that don't involve the AI revolution. If there's a productivity surge, you could see things on the revenue side. That's what you mean when you say a supply side burst, that really helps solve this problem. And it'd be great to see some of that. Great to see supply side improvements that really
Steve Bannon
if we cut. But if you cut through it, this is what I say all the time. We're like a leveraged buyer, we're highly leveraged play on artificial intelligence right now. I mean, is that not the business model of our country? And even the executives in the country that had Dario on for Anthropic. I'll play the clip later. It says 50% of all entry level, which we have said here, all entry level White collar managerial jobs, legal, all of that are going to be wiped out in the next couple years. Aren't we just right now a highly leveraged bet on artificial intelligence. And if artificial intelligence doesn't come in with productivity, which means young generation wiped out with their jobs when they need them the Most, in their 20s, when they're learning their craft or the profession, that's essentially the business model. It's a dice roll of a highly leveraged company making a bet on a new technology that could turn their business model around. Is that not where this country is right now?
Neil Irwin
Yeah, I think there's something to that. If you look at the GDP numbers, if you take out investment in software, investment in data centers, it's basically flatline. We're treading water. The growth we're having is coming from this AI investment surge. And look, that's good in terms of the GDP accounts. That's if you're a white collar worker, worry about losing your job. That's more worrying. The question is, is this set of advances going to play out similarly to the invention of the personal computer? The electricity rollout is the kind of thing that generates broad benefits and higher wages, higher incomes, or is the job loss so rapid? It's more like the China shock. It's more like you have a situation where lots of people lose their jobs. The reallocation process is slow. It doesn't happen rapidly. People are not able to recapture the income they once had. It hollows out certain communities, certain industries. That's the fear is that this is less the personal computer, less electricity, less the railroads, and more like the China shock in the early 2000s.
Martha Stewart
Thousands
Steve Bannon
last thing, as long as we can sell the bonds. I mean, Scott's got to refinance a third, I think of the national debt every year. As long as the dollar, even though it's had a massive drop in purchasing power during the inflation, the Biden years, and then some. As long as people have to need dollars. As long as the dollars are prime reserve currency. Can we stagger through this?
Neil Irwin
I think so. There's no reason to think this is going to flip overnight. One thing I'm watching with this Iran situation is does this acc the pursuit of alternatives for other countries for trade in oil and other commodities? If you're China and the US is in a war with Iran, does that make you all the more add urgency to trying to create alternatives to the dollar and does that weaken the dollar's role in the global economy? That's speculation at this point. The dollar is holding up reasonably well on currency markets. Actually up since the war. So that's not happening today. But it's something around the corner that I think we're all watching for.
Steve Bannon
No, that's a flight to safety. And you're right, that alternative to the petrodollar, particularly the Chinese, these long term contracts they did in their own currency with people hedging the risk is key. Neil, where do people get you over at Axios? What's your social media? You've been doing this for a long time and been pretty accurate in those years. Eventually people are going to listen to the warning. Where do folks go?
Neil Irwin
Go to axios.com, axios Macro is a daily newsletter I write with Courtney Brown on global economic trend. It's free every day at noon.
Steve Bannon
Thank you sir. Appreciate you appreciate the reporting and the thinking. I want to make sure everybody gets that it's free at Axios. I want to make sure everybody gets this article today about going over the fiscal cliff and everything's associated with it. Also I'm going to put up right after the show this Yahoo Finance article about insolvency. Like I said, it's not totally correct because I'm kind of looking at the balance sheet. I think unlike you would do it if you're using gap accounting. But the point they're trying to make and the point that the Wharton, I'm trying to get the Wharton guys on if you can't do it this week at CPAC next week to say there's maybe the 39 trillion is just what's the iceberg above the water? The part of the iceberg above the water. If you don't want to be the Titanic, you got to understand the entire part of the iceberg, particularly under the water. As you know, we've tried to use this to walk you through that's what the end of the dollar empire is. It's now in print, the Patriots edition. You can get it by going to birchgold.com promo code Bannon. You can get this. Seven installments now bound. It's taught at a major university. I shouldn't say it's taught. It's one of the textbooks they use because it makes it accessible to understand capital markets and the strains on the US Dollar.
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Support for the show comes from public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index. With AI it all starts with your prompt from renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers, growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com disclosures this
Martha Stewart
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 Kitchen's countertop prep paper. Wet it, set it, prep it, done. Available in the Reynolds Wrap aisle at Walmart.
Steve Bannon
I think when you're diagnosed with cancer you crave a semblance of normalcy and control and so work allowed me to be me.
Holly Kessler
So I think it's really important that companies stay flexible.
Steve Bannon
Cancer in a diagnosis can be all consuming, but it doesn't have to be. Research shows there is a significant connection between the ability to continue to work and cancer recovery. We can make work a better place for healing.
Holly Kessler
Learn more and sign the pledge@workingwithcancerpledge.com here's
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your host, Stephen K. Band
Steve Bannon
okay, the President Trump just reposted moments ago as we were talking on the fiscal situation. Shabazz Sharif a tweet Pakistan welcomes and fully supports ongoing efforts to pursue dialogue to end the war in the Middle east in the interest of peace and stability in the region and beyond. Subject to the concurrence by the United States and Iran, Pakistan stands ready and honored to be the host to facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks for a comprehensive settlement of the ongoing conflict. And the President of the United States, Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces reposted that. I think folks we ought to get that out to the Warren posse and just put that in your file about this war. Because like you said today, and that's why we open up with Kurt, all these different alternatives. Just once again, the president is very close to Field Marshal. I think it's Murren. He was at the White House when I was back there in June. He was at the White House with the president, spent a lot of time with him. President, he's the chief of staff of the field marshal and chief of staff of the Pakistani army armed forces. And President Trump thinks very highly of him. And I think that may be one of these paths that President Trump is pursuing. Michael Kunstler, the founder of All Family Pharmacy. So we had war, the rumor war, global oil markets, which ain't looking great. Then the physical cliff. Oh, that by the way, we're driving off of with the pedal to the floor. You're my upside, baby. You're the sunlit uplands. And the reason is, Michael, we monitor the feedback of the Warren posse and once they go to your site and learn a little bit, but really talk to one of your customer service reps, the feedback's been tremendous. So just walk us through the company. What's the idea behind it and why? And why should people go today and start to get involved and talk to your customer service reps? Sir?
Michael Kunstler
Yes. So All Family Pharmacy is a pharmacy here in Boca Tone, Florida, based on medical freedom, giving access to patients on medications that are essential to their needs, whether it be a cosmetic medication or emergency medication or just a traditional maintenance drug. We're going to give you access to all of the different medications, a physician to guide you in that direction of safety and effectiveness, as well as a pharmacist to help you in that return as well. So you could go directly to our pharmacy allfamilypharmacy.com website, backslash Bannon. And today we're going to have a 25 off coupon. It's Bannon 25. We're actually going to extend this to the end of March due to all this war talk, energy pricing going up, all the negative in the world. We're going to try to bring a little bit of positive light to it if you want to stock up on essential medications. Because if you're worried about this war in Iran, now is the time to do it. 25% off the entire order, whether it's Ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, whether it's a thyroid drug, a maintenance medication, or maybe it's a Weight loss drug or NAD plus or methylene blue, one of our anti aging drugs, we're going to give you access to it, 25% off. We'll give you access to the physicians and the pharmacist as well. Please give us a call if you have questions or if you need assistance. Our customer service reps are ready, stand by all day long to help you, to walk you through the ordering process. They can even take the order for you, submit it over to the physician on your behalf.
Steve Bannon
And you got physicians and pharmacists that approve this and make sure people get the medicines and drugs that they need. When I first met you and we were doing due diligence, you told me something that stuck with me. It was very powerful. I want you to explain it to the audience. You say, hey look Steve, as much as people, you know, bitumen about big pharma and all this, you don't have true medical freedom until you have the ability to deal with a pharmacy that you can actually talk to people about what you need that the pharma, the, you know, the McKesson's of the world, the big, you know, distribution companies and then the individual pharmacies, all these big chains work against your medical freedom. Explain that to me for a second because I think as I talk to people and we talk to you talk about all family pharmacy during the week, it resonates with people. What do you mean by that?
Michael Kunstler
Yeah, when you walk into your doctor's office, when you walk into one of these chain pharmacies was the last time you had an in depth conversation with a medical professional that you're essentially paying for? Right. And so here at all family pharmacy, you have full access to what we have, pharmacists, customer service, pharmacy technicians, as well as medical providers or physicians who are licensed in every state here in the United States. So we push medical freedom because we want you to come to to us with questions, with concerns, because we want to guide you in the direction that's going to have your medication safe and effective. It's not going to hurt you, it's only going to help you. So having access to a pharmacy that is willing to have a conversation, I don't know when the last time this people have been able to walk into a chain pharmacy and have a conversation. Outside of vaccines, you go to Publix, you go to CVS, you go to Walgreens or Walmart. 90% of the conversations the pharmacists are going to bring up is have you been vaccinated recently? That should not be the topic of conversation. The topic of conversation should be, how's your health? What's going on? What do you need? How, how is this drug helping you? Are you seeing side effects there? There are more questions that need to be asked other than do you need updated vaccines? It's kind of curiating to see that. When you walk into a pharmacy.
Steve Bannon
No. This is what the people that have made contact with you guys are so enthusiastic about. So where do people go right now if they want to do this? What's the phone number, what's the website and what do they do?
Michael Kunstler
Phone number is 561-717-6794. And the website is allfamilypharmacy.com backslash bannon. Again, use the banded 25 coupon code. You can save 25 off your entire order. Place the orders now up until March 31st. The coupon will be effective. We're giving you 25 off. It's a great time. It's travel season. Summer's around the corner. Allergy season is here. I suffer from allergies. So it's a great time for those who need medications, who want to stock up for a peace of mind so they don't have to worry, now's the time to do it. And use the coupon code. So you save 25%.
Steve Bannon
25% off because of oil in the war. Thank you, sir. And interest rates popping. Thank you, Michael. Appreciate you doing that for the Warren posse. 25 off. So let's hit it today. Thank you, brother. Appreciate you. Holly Kessler. Okay, so there is some good news. There's good news all over. Number one in Virginia, the grassroots in Virginia are hammering. I think it's the 21st of April. This special referendum we're going to have Jeff Reyer hopefully on in the next couple of days. The grassroots there are hitting new poll out. Paxton up by 8. In Texas, that follows. I think polls maybe internal 17, 18, but PAX now there's a trend. Ken Paxton's up. Folks are fighting all over the place. There's a lot of good news out there where people have been so grim about the midterms and guess what? The midterms are going to be brutal and going to be tough and going to be a fight. But in Georgia, Holly Kessler joins us. Holly, you've been recommended by Caroline Jeffords. And so many people is like somebody's got their hand on the pulse in Georgia. We have a huge hearing on Friday on the evidence because you know the Abbey Lowell's the world. And the MSNBC's in the Mark Elias has got to get that evidence back. So we're going to be covering that. We're going to get all the experts on that. But what is happening in Georgia, it seems like. Are the Kemp guys not on board with this? Because the situation down there is pretty dire, not just for the 2020 elections, but what happens going forward, Ma', am, it is.
Holly Kessler
You're right. And we do have the evidentiary hearing coming up on Friday in Fulton county that's in regards to the FBI raid. We are in a very critical emergency situation because we had passed a bill back. Gosh, what was it, 2022, 2023. It was making the QR codes illegal. They're illegal. And that was part of Burt Jones, you know, in the Senate that did that. Senate Bill 189. And so now we're coming up to July 1st of 2026, and we still don't have a fix. And so, yeah, you talk about Kemp, Raffensperger, ag, Carr, I mean, all of them, it's the entire executive branch, minus the lieutenant governor. He's the only one that's actually been fighting for it, you know, and trying to help on the election front. But we have a big problem here. And so now all they're wanting to do is continue to kick the can down the road, and I don't know what it's going to take. It's very frustrating. You know, we had ES and S on the ground the other day, and they were, you know, giving their little demo. And. And of course, I'm sitting here thinking, okay, so we're getting rid of one and we're going to get another. You know, the machines really, they just, they got to go. President Trump wants it. You talk about the grassroots. We have a very active grassroots group here in Georgia. We've been pushing it. We've shown them all the issues. They've seen it complaint after complaint. And again, the Secretary of state just acts like everything is wonderful. And Chris Carr's all, you know, he's. He's just silent and, you know, missing in action half the time. So. So he doesn't really do anything when it comes to election integrity. But there are clear issues. And one of the biggest concerns is Fulton County. You know, we keep seeing what they're doing, and they keep trying to hide information, cover up information, delay, giving the state election board information. And they've had problems forever. You know, so they're. They're pretty consistent in the clown show that they have going on but, yeah, we have a problem, Mr. Steve, and I don't know how we're getting out of this, but like you said, the midterms are. Midterms are coming up and we've got to get this thing figured out and figured out quick.
Steve Bannon
Hollywood. Holly, the leftist sent a flare out. I'll get to what's going on with the tsa because this has been a resounding success with ICE there. But they sent a flare up. They wouldn't send Norm down there and they wouldn't send Abbey Lowell, two of their biggest top guns, to have this massive fight. Norm Eisen and Lowell have this massive fight over getting the evidence back of the stolen 2020 election. Right. And President Trump's made this a priority. You've got Tulsi Gabbard's made a priority. Cash Patel also made his priority. We know that the grassroots and the grassroots in Georgia kind of dominate the situation, and they're pure maga. What is the political class? Why are they holding back on this? What is it? Is it because elections have been run, been won in the past, and they're part of that, that they not want the scandal? It's just shocking that you got Bert Jones and one or two others, but it just seems to be quiet when this is an issue. It's on fire at the grassroots level, ma'. Am.
Holly Kessler
It is. And here's the deal. You know, we, we're pushing, we're educating. I get it. Some people don't want to touch it. But when it comes to those that are not willing to actually do something about it and stand up and fight, fight for it, there's only one thing that I can think of at this point because, you know, Mr. Steve, we've been doing this for how many years? And so it's the COVID up. It's part of the COVID up. I think, you know, when you really start looking at things and tying it all in together and looking at it from a timeline perspective, it's very interesting to see. And just like you said, they would not bring in the big dogs, you know, to fight this fight if there wasn't more to it. So, and those guys there, I mean, they're good. You know, we've got good, good counsel on our side, too. But, you know, they're crafty and creative. Although I will say Garrett Ziegler did beat Abby Lowell.
Steve Bannon
Hang on one center. I want to give the punchline on the other side. Holly Kessler with us on this situation in the great state of Georgia.
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Support for the show comes from Public the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index. With AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com disclosures this
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 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.
Steve Bannon
People at work supported me while I was going through treatment.
Neil Irwin
By not treating me like somebody who
Steve Bannon
was going through treatment.
Ying Chen
Treatment sucks. Cancer sucks.
Steve Bannon
Being engaged with work really helped to oh, I just knew I was going to beat this thing. Research shows there is a significant connection between the ability to continue to work and cancer recovery. We can make work a better place for healing.
Holly Kessler
Learn more and sign the pledge@workingwithcancerpledge.com War
Public Podcast Announcer
Room here's your host, Stephen K. Band.
Steve Bannon
Okay. If you want to look at positive developments in politics, it's grassroots. It's you, this audience that are making things happen. We got The Sharia law Prop 10 passed in overwhelmingly in Texas. And there's going to be so many more developments this week in cpac. Big part of CPAC is going to be talking about that. What's going on in Texas. Ken Paxton's up, I don't know, eight points in the latest poll, 16 at 17 I think in other polls. So the grassroots making difference there I cannot compliment enough the grassroots effort in Virginia and the Commonwealth overwhelmed with money spent, they've self organized. Jeff Ryan I think it's just such a great thing to see where they get a grassroots guy into the chairmanship of a Republican party and great things happen. We're going to spend more time on that and of course we're hurtling towards this evidentiary hearing. Georgia, I think is the key that picks the lock here. You've had John Solomon on. We know Tulsi's on it. This stinks to high heaven. This 2020 election was stolen. There's no doubt about that. Holly, we're going to have you back on. I just once again want to give a shout out to the Patriots have been fighting this for six years now against threat of jail, bankruptcy, all of it. You guys are the best. And the reason we even have a fighting chance here is not the political class down in Georgia that somehow something's fishy. Why they haven't stepped in here, why they're avoiding this. And I think when everything's revealed there's going to be a lot of accountability that's going to have to happen. Holly, your social media, where do people go and get you, ma'?
Ying Chen
Am.
Holly Kessler
So I'm on X Facebook substack. I've been whipping out some sub stacks lately but yeah, my ex account probably is the easiest and the best but it's all the same. Holly Kessler, same picture and everything. So yeah, I would appreciate the follow and I'll keep everybody updated.
Steve Bannon
Thank you ma'. Am. Appreciate you coming on here.
Holly Kessler
Thank you.
Steve Bannon
Okay. The Chinese Communist Party, their active participation in the media's cover up of their torment of Lao Beijing in China but also the United States. Ying Chan Chen joins us this morning. And Levy, Brody Yang, tell us first off, what is your position? How do you fit in this story? Because the New York Post it was the lead for a while yesterday, kind of a Shocking development of the Chinese Communist Party trying to shut down this classic kind of ballet, opera, dance that's gone throughout the nation with seven or eight troops that talks about China before communism. And the CCP can't handle that. So they're taking active measures to torment you all and to shut it down. Can you explain to us what's happening?
Ying Chen
Yes. Thank you, Steve. So my name is Ying Chen. I'm a conductor and vice president with Shen Yun Performing Arts. And Shen Yun is actually an American company created in New York in 2006. And our mission is to revive our authentic traditional culture, which has been suppressed by the CCP for decades. We want to really show the world the beauty and wisdom in this amazing culture. At the same time, our performances always also present the human rights atrocities that are still ongoing in China. Shen Yun was actually created at the time when many of our family members, myself included, and our friends in the Falun Gong community were severely persecuted in China. And actually that persecution is still going on. So for the last 20 years, this year, Shen Yun is celebrating our 20th anniversary, and we've grown tremendously from one troop to eight troops that are performing simultaneously in, you know, the major continents, everywhere, basically, in the world, seen by over a million people every year. But because of what we talk about in the show, we are not subject to the CCP's censorship. We definitely talk about the issues in today's China as well. So we have been under attack for the last 20 years. We have faced bomb threats for. For so long that we've almost gotten used to it, which is not right. Right. And this year, the last two years have been especially crazy. I think recently, six states, heads of state, including Canada, Denmark and Australia have received bomb threats and basically saying, if you allow Shane to perform, we'll blow up your residents. And something like that. And as a result, the Australian Prime Minister was forced to evacuate from his. His residence. So. But these things have been. I. I feel like the Shen Yun story is truly a coincidential story of how Beijing tried. Tries to dictate what stories are told here, what the narratives they're. Try to impose their narratives on the American people.
Steve Bannon
Hang over one second. Because if you look at the histories have been written by a lot of fellow travelers about everything came out of the Chinese Communist Party. You know, China was just a backward run by corrupt emperors for thousands of years. The peasants were abused. That the reason you have this modern industrial middle class that's building every year is all because of the Chinese Communist Party in Shen Yun, which has all this beautiful traditional dance and music. Your tagline is China before Communism. What do you mean by that? And how do you counter them? By saying, when they say, look, everybody was starving, it was oppressed, the emperors were the worst people on earth and we essentially gave freedom or chance for freedom to the Chinese people to Lao Beijing, ma'.
Mike Lindell
Am.
Ying Chen
Yeah, because I think when the Communist Party wanted to impose communism on people, they had to do away systematically with all the real culture of China, all the, all the spiritual foundations. You know, you're talking about Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, that those have been the pillars of Chinese civilization for thousands of years. So in order for them to impose Marxism on people, they had to do away with all these. Both of my parents were with the Central Philharmonic Orchestra in Beijing for 30 some years. They were first class musicians in China. However, we knew firsthand that everything is censored and basically even all these performing arts company in China were propaganda tools for the ccp. So it was not until I came to this country and gradually realized, wait a minute, this is not our true culture. I grew up in China and I had no appreciation, appreciation of the Chinese traditional values and culture when I, you know, when I was there, until I came to this country and learned the truth about our true history and the, the spiritual foundation of all of that. So with Shen Yun, we're trying to revive all of those amazing heritage and share it with the world.
Steve Bannon
And that's why. Yeah, that's why the CCP hates it. I mean, the Cultural Revolution was to destroy any connection with the Chinese people. Was that the five bads to any connection to their traditional culture Hangerside. Levi, there's a film coming out tonight. You guys are gonna be part of the premiere. You've got this story in the New York Post and it's by Chadwick Moore, who did the great biography of Tucker Carlson we had on the show a year or so ago. The story in the New York Post. It also implies that American media companies, particularly some big American media companies, have not. Because we do this story a lot and we know it has huge traction with the war on posse, particularly as they have these strong feelings for Lao Beijing or kind of the war and posse of mainland China, but major media companies have actually gone out of their way to suppress this story. Is that true?
Levi Browdy
Absolutely. And unfortunately this goes back to the beginning of when Falun Gong was first persecuted. You know Falun Gong, the Buddhist based spiritual practice that Yagan mentioned. One history that people forget, is it widely popular in China Tens of millions of people were practicing. It was ubiquitous around the country. It was sort of their renaissance in many ways, their spiritual and cultural renaissance. And it wasn't until 1999 that the dictator at the time, Jiang Zemin, ordered it eradicated. And one of the really sad chapters of the last 26 years, aside from the atrocities, rampant detention, torture, death by torture, and of course, forced organ harvesting, one of the real tragedies has been American media. And Western media, by and large, have really dropped the ball, or in some cases seem to behave in a way that's complicit, taking Beijing's propaganda points and using that to frame the story, ignoring the forced organ harvesting atrocity almost entirely. And so a lot of the problem of the world not understanding what has happened to Falun Gong and why that's very important for understanding the CCP really, I think, lies at the feet of Western media, unfortunately. And the movie tonight, as you mentioned, is this very deep investigation. I mean, it's both a human story. Looking at the artists of Shenyon and how they go through going on tour, facing bomb threats, facing Chinese spies that have been put in jail by our government because they've tried to bribe US Officials to open up an investigation against them, how they've faced all that on a human level. But then also looking at the failures or the really probably worse than failures on some of the major media, including the New York Times, and this entire campaign that now Xi Jinping, it appears, is behind trying to sabotage and destroy Shenyan on the world stage.
Steve Bannon
Do you think the New York Times went out of their way with their Moscow correspondent back in the 1930s in Ukraine, you had this massive things called the Holodor. Five million people starved to death in essentially what is Kansas of Europe. Do you believe it's at that level? The New York Times has gone out of the way with certain reporters to actually suppress the reality of the brutality of the dictatorship of the Chinese Communist Party, particularly against Falun Gong, but broadly against all of Lao Beijing.
Levi Browdy
Sir, I think it's approaching that. I mean, here's one thing that's undeniable. And look, I'm not in the back rooms of the New York Times when making these decisions, but what is crystal clear is that they have achieved, wittingly or not, the propaganda goals of Beijing. And I think if I were at the New York Times and my newspaper had done that, I think there needs to be some real soul searching. How did we get here? How is that now the end result that we're having on the American readership and the global readership. But if you look more broadly at the Times coverage, this wasn't just a Shen Yun issue, or in the last few years we did. My nonprofit did a huge study studying every single article from 1999 to the present on the New York Times coverage of human rights issues, Falun Gong issues. And the results are shocking. They're shocking in terms of how many times they frame things in terms of. From Beijing or standpoint on the victims, how they've just rewritten some basic facts of the Falun Gong history, how they've completely swept under the rug the forced organ harvesting atrocity in the face of. With overwhelming evidence. And so there is a systemic failure at the New York Times and to some extent, some other medias, but particularly New York Times when it comes to Falun Gong specifically. And that is undeniable. That's crystal clear that that's happened.
Steve Bannon
Well, this goes back to the New York times in the 1940s, when the United States of America handed to this small group the Chinese Communist Party, China, when it didn't have to happen. I mean, that's one of the great scandals of the 20th century. I want to have you guys back on about the premier denial again in a second, but Shen Ying just before. And I want you guys hold through the break. Everybody I've sent to Shen Yun comes out with kind of a glow. It's a beautiful evening. The music is beautiful. The dance is unparalleled. People just have a great feeling about it. Why is the Chinese Communist Party so obsessed with destroying, which really gives, I think, people a really good feeling about China overall and the Chinese people.
Ying Chen
That's right. When people see this show, they're like, oh, I'm so proud of your culture. And it's so amazing. And we are too. We just by sharing this with the world, it gives me so much joy and inspiration to be part of this process. So it's unthinkable, you know, why somebody would hate this show, but the pure fact that in the show that we are, we're not shy about telling people that people of faith are still being persecuted in China to the extent of taking organs from live people and to make money from it, it's just unspeakable crime. So we do talk about that. And of course it's not, you know, we've been on the side of the CCP for all these years as a result, but we have, you know, continued undeterred. And we really, I think it only strengthens our resolve to share these stories with the world's people and and they need to see what the true nature of the ccp.
Levi Browdy
But just if I can interject we
Steve Bannon
look at it is leave out leave out leave a Hang on one second. I'll just take a short commercial break. I don't want to run you guys up against the hard out. We'll have you back here in a minute. Just stick around. The Chinese Communist Party Evil always hates the good and the Chinese Communist Party may be the most evil of all. Short break.
Public Podcast Announcer
Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures available at public.comdisclosures Ever wonder
Martha Stewart
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 and Walmart.
Steve Bannon
I think when you're diagnosed with cancer, you crave a semblance of normalcy and control. And so work allowed me to be me.
Holly Kessler
So I think it's really important that companies stay flexible.
Steve Bannon
Cancer in a diagnosis, diagnosis can be all consuming, but it doesn't have to be. Research shows there is a significant connection between the ability to continue to work and cancer recovery. We can make work a better place
Holly Kessler
for healing, learn more and sign the pledge@workingwithcancerpledge.com here's your host, Stephen K. Banner.
Steve Bannon
Levi, you had some closing observations and I want to tell people where to go see this film.
Levi Browdy
Sure. So just on that question of why the Chinese regime is going after Shen Yun, it is not uncommon for us to get leaked documents, speeches and such from the ccp. And they say in their own words, they call for specific strikes against Shen Yun in the United States, around the world. And so to them it almost rises to the point of an existential threat where you have this performing arts company that has become the fastest performing arts company in American history, all going all over the world showing what real Chinese culture looks like and what the real persecution of Falun Gong looks like. That's a message that they consider a huge threat. And so I think that's really typifies why, why they're going after Shenyan. This. This.
Steve Bannon
I agree.
Holly Kessler
Yeah.
Steve Bannon
Where do people see the film? Where do people go see. I agree 100% with you. Where do people go see the film?
Levi Browdy
So the best place to go watch the film would be on NTD.com it'll be starting tonight at 7pm It'll for free for the next three weeks before it goes behind a paywall. So NTD.com will get you a chance to watch the film.
Steve Bannon
We'll make sure in our five and six o' clock hour we'll send people over there. Levi. Thank you, Ying. Where do people. Shen Yun is so beautiful and such a great evening of not just entertainment but cultural enrichment. And you come out there with a great feeling. I want to send as many people there as possible to go see it. Where do people go?
Ying Chen
Thank you, Steve. So if you're in the New York area, we actually starting at performing at the David Koch Theater at the Lincoln center for three weeks starting tomorrow. But if you're in other places of the world, we're also performing in Sydney, uk, Spain, I think, also California, Canada, France. So go to Shenyun.com S-H-E-N-Y-U N.com and you can get the full schedule over there. And I would definitely encourage you to go attending person. It's a great experience and you won't regret it.
Steve Bannon
It's, it's, it's a great experience. Great experience. And by the way, doing in Lincoln center at the Koch Theater, not too shabby. One of the best theaters in the world. Guys, thank you so much. Look forward to seeing the documentary tonight. We'll push it out hard. Look forward to having you back.
Levi Browdy
Thank you much.
Neil Irwin
Steve.
Steve Bannon
This show is just full of heroes. I mean, you get the Holly Kesslers. You got the grassroots in Georgia. They've served in the grassroots in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the grassroots in Texas. It's upon you that all of it rests right, right now. CNN and everybody. I'll do it this afternoon. They're breaking big stories about what we talked about to start the show. The Pakistan President Trump's relationship with the field marshal in Pakistan stepping up. That looks like a thing. Of course, they're talking about 5,000 Marines heading to North Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman for a potential assault. Guess who those are. The sons and daughters of. That would be you. The patriotic infrastructure foundation of this nation. Make sure go call patriot mobile right now. 972patriot. Talk to the team over there to support your value. Is going to be with us at cpac, kind of a joint. Got a Patriot Mobile booth that's part of the RAV studio and the RAV studios going to be incredible. If you haven't gotten your ticket, go to cpac.org worm17bucks and come and enjoy us. It's going to be great. All the RAV personality is going to be there. It's going to be incredible. Uplifting, full energy. Mike Lindell, you're going to join us. You're going to be there. You're coming off the campaign trail to preach the gospel of my pillow, sir. And what you've done with that company and how that company's been under assault and you spent, I don't know, 50, 60, $70 million of your money to get to places like on Friday when we had this big fight over evidence because you knew the 2020 elections were stolen and that's why they have spent the last five or six years. You see, Lindell, what was amazing is they never bothered you before you stood up and said, hey, this election was stolen. And quite frankly, you didn't really have, I don't think, a big interest in politics. But when you saw this happen to your country. You said, hey, I can't let this go, that we don't have a country if we do this. You dedicate your life to that. Now you're running for governor because you're trying to sort out the mess up in Minnesota. But I think the reason people admire you, you were as bad, as apolitical as you could get until you saw your country being stolen by very dangerous forces. Part of that, the Chinese Communist Party. Mike Lindell, what do you got for us coming to cpac? Also, the war on Posse with all that. They want to talk about deals. They want to hear a deal. Sir.
Mike Lindell
Well, there's a couple things going on. Yeah, I'm going to be at cpac, everybody. I just heard this morning. I'll be speaking on Friday morning and there. And CPAC is endorsing me as governor of Minnesota. So I, you know, I feel honored that they're going to be doing that. And so I'm looking forward to getting there. Steve, with y' all and you guys this morning, Arctic Frost. They had a senate hearing going on this morning about Arctic Frost. They call it the modern day Watergate. The number one attacked person and company on there was myself and my pillow. So I would shut up about all the election platforms, but I did, as you know, and my pillow is still here. And it's all because of you and the grace of God, everybody that you've supported us through, through this fight and with our own government turned on my pillow, besides all the lawfare. So what we're doing right now, you guys, we have. We. You. As you all know, over the last six weeks, we moved into a new factory on the old factory. We, we have one more day left to get the product out of there that we didn't want to move. Twice that we put on sale exclusive for the War Room Posse. And here it is. Our mattresses, our mattress toppers. These big ticket items. We lowered them as low as we can go at 99.98 for as low as that for the mattress topper. Free shipping right now in the next 24 hours on your entire order so we don't have to move them twice. Go to mypillow.com warro and you're gonna see all the products we have there. That there's about 25 left of the clothing line we're closing out. All the stuff is still in that warehouse. You guys do your shopping now. Get free shipping and 80 up to 80% off all those product lines that we're closing. Out not to move them to the new factory. So you guys it's a win win win. And then we have right now we also have remember this collided with our our mega sale our mega 2.0 sale for the second annual mega sale. So you can also get your our flagship products your six piece towel sets 34.98 you get our Giza dream sheets as low as 29.9. Are my pillows 14.98 for the standard get do all your shopping right now. Get that free shipping promo code war room mypillow.com and then call my my operators and my employees standing by to take your calls. 8008-7310-6280-0873-1062. They have stood. They've stood with the everything that withstood these attacks over the last five years and you guys have helped us get us through and protect their jobs in Minnesota. So give them a call. 800-873-1062. Promo code WAR room the most powerful promo code in the in history.
Steve Bannon
We'll see you on the afternoon show, Mike. Keep fighting. We'll have some of those clips from Arduk Frost Charlie Kirk show nooks next poso after that posto is going to be in Texas with us. Mike Lindell. Everybody's going to be there. We'll bring back at 5:00 clock 5 to 7 live tonight. See you then. This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.
This episode of The War Room, hosted by Steve Bannon, is an unfiltered dive into urgent national and international issues. The show transitions from U.S. fiscal concerns and the global economic outlook with Neil Irwin (Axios), to election integrity and grassroots activism in Georgia with Holly Kessler, and then to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) efforts to suppress Shen Yun and the persecution of Falun Gong, featuring Ying Chen (Shen Yun Performing Arts) and Levi Browdy (Falun Dafa Information Center). The discussions are candid, energetic, and marked by Bannon’s signature combative style.
Segment: 04:06–16:15 | Guest: Neil Irwin (Axios)
Unprecedented Deficits: The U.S. is running a deficit of about 6% of GDP in non-crisis times, a level only seen before during wars or major recessions.
Quote:
"We're running deficits of about 6% of GDP. That's the largest we've ever seen other than in major wars, financial crises, depressions, recessions."
— Neil Irwin (05:23)
Lack of Political Urgency: Neither party prioritizes deficit control. Irwin notes that Democrats focus on spending and tax reliefs for their base, Republicans pay it lip service but don't act, and both ignore realistic solutions.
Entitlement Crisis Looming: Social Security and Medicare trust funds could run dry by 2032-33, forcing either benefit cuts or funding solutions. Quote:
"That's not that far away. That used to be this distant problem... We're about to have a $200 billion Defense Department request for the Iran conflict. This is a situation where you wouldn't guess that we're facing this real cliff."
— Neil Irwin (07:09)
Debt Service Squeeze: In a decade, interest on the debt could consume nearly 5% of GDP, squeezing out room for spending elsewhere.
AI and Economic Growth Gamble: Bannon paints the U.S. as "a highly leveraged bet on artificial intelligence," warning that if AI-driven productivity does not come through, “the young generation [will be] wiped out with their jobs.”
Quote:
"We're like a leveraged buyer, we're highly leveraged play on artificial intelligence right now... if AI doesn't come in with productivity... young generation wiped out."
— Steve Bannon (13:26)
Potential Triggers for Urgency:
Notable Moment (12:21):
Neil Irwin underscores that only a real crisis, financial or political, is likely to force bipartisan action on the debt crisis.
Segment: 26:31–37:06 | Guest: Holly Kessler (Georgia grassroots activist)
Election Law Stalemate: Kessler reports state officials and the political class (except the lieutenant governor) refuse to meaningfully address illegal voting machines, despite grassroots pressure and prior legal mandates. Quote:
"We are in a very critical emergency situation... all they're wanting to do is continue to kick the can down the road, and I don’t know what it’s going to take. It’s very frustrating."
— Holly Kessler (28:19)
Political Class Resistance: Bannon infers state GOP leaders are hesitant because exposing issues might implicate their own past victories or reveal larger problems in 2020 and beyond.
Grassroots Persistence: Despite official resistance, Kessler says the grassroots in Georgia are mobilized and relentless, making election integrity a litmus test for politicians.
Notable Moment (35:15):
Bannon lauds the grassroots as “the reason we even have a fighting chance here... it's not the political class down in Georgia.”
Segment: 37:06–54:03 | Guests: Ying Chen (Shen Yun), Levi Browdy (Falun Dafa Info Center)
Shen Yun's Mission and Persecution:
"We have faced bomb threats for so long that we've almost gotten used to it, which is not right."
— Ying Chen (37:54)
CCP Campaign Against Traditional Culture:
Western Media Complicity:
"They have achieved, wittingly or not, the propaganda goals of Beijing. And... if I were at the New York Times... there needs to be some real soul searching."
— Levi Browdy (45:40)
Shen Yun's Appeal in the West:
"When people see this show, they're like, 'Oh, I'm so proud of your culture.' And it’s so amazing. And we are too."
— Ying Chen (47:44)
Notable Moment (52:49):
Levi Browdy points to CCP internal documents explicitly calling for “specific strikes” against Shen Yun worldwide, as a sign of how threatening cultural revival is to the regime.
Grassroots Victories Highlighted:
Shen Yun Film Screening:
Closing Message on Political Engagement:
| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------| | 04:06–16:15 | America’s fiscal/entitlement crisis w/ Neil Irwin (Axios) | | 26:31–37:06 | Georgia election integrity and grassroots with Holly Kessler | | 37:06–54:03 | CCP suppression, Shen Yun, US media complicity, China policy | | Selected Quotes | See bulleted lists above for attribution and time |
This episode is a charged and deeply skeptical view of U.S. fiscal prospects, focuses on the citizen, not the elite, as the driver of reform, and amplifies the defense of traditional culture and human rights in the face of both American bureaucratic inertia and Chinese state oppression. The show's language is frank, sometimes alarmist, but rooted in a call to action for its audience.