Gov. Abbott Explains How This Will End for Texas Democrats

Summary

Ruthless Podcast Episode Summary: "Gov. Abbott Explains How This Will End for Texas Democrats"

Podcast Information:

• Title: Ruthless Podcast
• Hosts: Josh Holmes, Comfortably Smug, Michael Duncan, John Ashbrook
• Episode: Gov. Abbott Explains How This Will End for Texas Democrats
• Release Date: August 8, 2025

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Introduction

In this episode of the Ruthless Podcast, hosts Josh Holmes, Comfortably Smug, Michael Duncan, and John Ashbrook dive deep into the political turmoil unfolding in Texas. The focal point of the discussion is an exclusive interview with Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who addresses the ongoing conflict with Texas Democrats over redistricting and the recent catastrophic floods in the state.

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Governor Greg Abbott's Interview

Breaking Quorum and Accountability

Governor Abbott opens the discussion by condemning Texas Democrats for their unprecedented move to break quorum, effectively abandoning their legislative duties.

“If the average worker in the state of Texas did not show up to do their job, they would be fired. And yet these Democrats think they can break quorum...” ([00:00])

Impact on Flood Relief and Redistricting

Abbott emphasizes the dual focus of the special legislative session: redistricting and flood relief. The governor criticizes Democrats for fleeing Texas during a time of crisis, hindering essential recovery efforts.

“We are dealing with the travesty of the deadliest flood in the history of the state of Texas. And we have agenda items on this special session... These Democrats are going to be losing their job because they failed to show up...” ([09:03])

Legal Actions Against Absent Democrats

Abbott reveals legal strategies aimed at holding these absent Democrats accountable, including filing a lawsuit to remove legislators who have abandoned their posts.

“I filed a lawsuit in the Texas Supreme Court seeking the removal of the leader of this group of Democrats who have fled...” ([12:53])

Promises of Republican Gains

Looking ahead, Abbott projects that the Republican Party may gain additional congressional seats if Democrats continue their pattern of absenteeism.

“...we may make it six or seven or eight new seats we're going to be adding on the Republican side.” ([11:15])

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Discussion on Gerrymandering in Blue States

The hosts transition to a broader discussion on gerrymandering, comparing the tactics of Texas Democrats to those employed in traditionally blue states like Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, and California.

“...Democrats have been getting away with everything there forever... Now Americans have realized how gerrymandered all these blue states are.” ([08:24])

Notable Quotes:

• Josh Holmes: “It's like they did study abroad in a non extradition country so they could learn how to gerrymander better.” ([07:32])
• Greg Abbott: “The worst examples of gerrymandering are Democrat states... Americans have realized that.” ([09:03])

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Listener Engagement and Boomer Shirts

In response to listener comments, the hosts introduce a special merchandise segment celebrating the Boomer generation. They encourage listeners to purchase themed shirts as a gesture of appreciation.

“We have a new shirt. Thank a Boomer in the Ruthless podcast store... you can go to store.Ruthlesspodcast.com, buy that shirt...” ([03:08])

Notable Quotes:

• John Ashbrook: “Buy the shirt, start a conversation.” ([03:56])
• Michael Duncan: “They deserve our gratitude, honestly. They deserve a holiday.” ([03:40])

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Football Segment: Playful Rivalries

The podcast features a light-hearted exchange about college football, specifically Texas vs. Ohio State, highlighting the competitive spirit of the hosts.

John Ashbrook: “I think Texas has probably the best defense of all college football...” ([14:19])

Guest Appearance: Kevin Burkhart from Fox Sports

A special guest, Kevin Burkhart, joins to rib co-host John Ashbrook about his unwavering support for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Michael Duncan: “Bengals are gonna have to let their playing speak for them...” ([43:36])

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Comments on Media Figures: Jimmy Kimmel and The View

The hosts engage with listener comments critiquing media personalities like Jimmy Kimmel and The View, discussing their perceived shifts towards liberal stances.

Comfortably Smug: “Jimmy Kimmel will be the next domino to fall...” ([38:09])

Notable Quotes:

• John Ashbrook: “He's the biggest woke skull.” ([38:43])
• Josh Holmes: “He wasn't gonna be pressed. They don't actually care about what's right or fair...” ([17:35])

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Colonization Discussion: Ideological Vacuity

A heated segment delves into the concept of colonization, critiquing the left's usage of the term without historical context. The hosts argue that the left's aversion to the word reflects a lack of substantive ideology.

John Ashbrook: “It reveals how vacant all of their ideology is...” ([46:08])

Notable Quotes:

• Josh Holmes: “Colonization, that's negative. We know that...” ([45:33])
• Comfortably Smug: “Republicans are like, hey, maybe you shouldn't have to pay as much in taxes...” ([46:55])

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Biden-Harris Book Deals and Team Conflicts

The discussion shifts to the Biden-Harris administration, highlighting tensions and upcoming book deals aimed at political leveraging.

Michael Duncan: “A $10 million book deal for a book that is going to go unread...” ([50:06])

Notable Quotes:

• John Ashbrook: “He is going to stop doing deals with his son, with China...” ([52:15])

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Animal News: Blue Wild Pigs in California

The podcast addresses alarming reports about wild pigs in California developing bright blue skin due to pesticide exposure. The hosts express both concern and a dark sense of humor about the situation.

Michael Duncan: “They cut open some wild pigs... their skin is... neon blue...” ([54:30])

Notable Quotes:

• John Ashbrook: “I call that Avatar blue.” ([54:32])
• Michael Duncan: “Calls them straight up terrifying.” ([54:30])

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Drunk at Airport: Viral Incident

A viral video of a man driving an airport cart through a moving walkway sparks discussion on passenger frustrations and media coverage.

Josh Holmes: “Nobody knows his side of the story.” ([60:27])

Notable Quotes:

• Michael Duncan: “There are programs that are stood up absolutely exclusively for the unique challenges...” ([24:02])

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China News: Stress and Pacifiers

Briefly touching on international news, the hosts mention a report about stressed adults in China using pacifiers, linking it to broader socio-political issues.

Michael Duncan: “He knows weakness when he sees it...” ([61:46])

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Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Wrapping up the episode, the hosts reiterate their commitment to holding Texas Democrats accountable and encourage listeners to engage with the content through comments and subscriptions.

Josh Holmes: “Texas Democrats. Are you going to see justice?... It has been an absolute pleasure here at the Ruthless Variety program.” ([62:39])

Closing Remarks:

• Michael Duncan: “Absolute banger of an episode...” ([63:04])
• Josh Holmes: “Stay ruthless.” ([63:17])

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Notable Quotes Summary

• Governor Abbott: “Their voters are not going to look kindly upon them for this...” ([00:00])
• Michael Duncan: “Boomers are the greatest generation people want...” ([03:04])
• John Ashbrook: “It’s the hypocrisy, they are preserving democracy by denying democracy.” ([13:06])
• Josh Holmes: “Republicans are like, hey, maybe you shouldn't have to pay as much in taxes...” ([46:55])
• Comfortably Smug: “Stephen Colbert literally put two ridiculous, unexplainable Democrat held districts in front of JB Pritzker...” ([17:35])

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Key Takeaways

1. Political Accountability: Governor Abbott is taking decisive legal actions against Texas Democrats who flee the state legislature, emphasizing the importance of accountability and duty.

2. Gerrymandering Concerns: The episode highlights widespread gerrymandering in blue states, drawing parallels to Texas and exposing partisan manipulation of congressional districts.

3. Generational Respect: The hosts express deep appreciation for the Boomer generation, promoting merchandise as a token of gratitude.

4. Media and Ideological Critique: There is a strong critique of media figures and their perceived shifts towards liberal ideologies, with a focus on maintaining conservative integrity.

5. Humor and Light-hearted Segments: Despite heavy political discussions, the podcast intersperses humor through segments like the football banter and animal news, maintaining an engaging and entertaining atmosphere.

6. Listener Interaction: The hosts actively engage with listener comments, fostering a community that shares their conservative viewpoints.

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Note: This summary encapsulates the primary discussions, key points, and notable quotes from the podcast episode. For a comprehensive understanding and nuanced insights, listening to the full episode is recommended.

Transcript

[Greg Abbott]

If the average worker in the state of Texas did not show up to do their job, they would be fired. And yet these Democrats think they can break quorum, leave the job they have to do, go to Illinois, go to New York, wherever the case may be, and not do their job. Let me tell you something, their voters are not going to look kindly upon them for this.

[Michael Duncan]

His wife, Big Mike, a podcast with her brother where she was like, actually, Barack Obama sucks. Thank God I didn't have a son.

[John Ashbrook]

What?

[Michael Duncan]

But why are you out here dropping takes on redistricting. You need to take care of that.

[John Ashbrook]

Take care of your house. Big Mike's running wild.

[Michael Duncan]

America is back thanks to President Trump and Leader John Thune's working family tax cuts. We stopped the biggest tax hike in history, but that's only the beginning. The big beautiful bill also cuts taxes on tips and overtime, secures the border, finishes the wall, and protects Medicaid for Americans, not illegals. Leader Thune and Senate Republicans got President Trump's conservative agenda done, providing real relief for every hard working American that's up early and home late. We're bringing manufacturing jobs back home and making America great again. Tell Leader John Thune and Senate Republicans, thank you for delivering President Trump's agenda. Learn more@one nationamerica.org.

[Josh Holmes]

Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please.

[Michael Duncan]

Keep the fate, hold the line and own the lids.

[Comfortably Smug]

It's time for our main event.

[Josh Holmes]

Fun Time Friday here on the Ruthless Friday program. Thank you very much for joining us and Josh Holmes along with comfortably smug Michael Duncan. John Ashbrook, left to right across your radio dial as always. We got a very big show for you. We got the governor of the great state of Texas with us today, Greg Abbott, good friend of the program. Yeah, I guess, like third or fourth.

[John Ashbrook]

Time on here, guys. Making a lot of news.

[Josh Holmes]

He's making a lot of news. I don't think you could avoid it this week. In fairness, it's the libs in Texas that have been making the news. He's just trying to be responsible about it.

[John Ashbrook]

Well, in fairness, the libs make all our news here on the Ruthless Variety Program. And he's the beneficiary of. It's pretty much the biggest story in politics right now. It's a big get for the Ruthless Variety program.

[Josh Holmes]

No, absolutely, it's, it's, it's awesome. And I can't wait for you all to hear that. I will have to say they don't make all of our news. We make a little bit of it ourselves from time to time. We might have started a little bit of a generational war on Thursday's program, which was not intended. I think we were probably trying to make an observation about Howard Stern or maybe AI.

[Michael Duncan]

It is an AI thing. And so if you look at the comments, there are folks who are like, whoa, whoa, whoa. What's with the, like, Boomer tax? And I, I completely agree. I, I, there's no space for that whatsoever. Yeah, I think I've said it before on the show, and I stand with all Boomers. Boomers are the greatest generation people want. Everything that we have is because of them and their accomplishments. And thank God for the Boomers, which is why, I mean, I think we have a special announcement, right?

[John Ashbrook]

We do. People wonder if we actually read all the comments.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, they do.

[John Ashbrook]

When you submit your comments and you.

[Josh Holmes]

Lay them down, they thought we were bluffing, I think.

[John Ashbrook]

And then you get to opine. They thought we were bluffing, and we're not. We've read, we have heard from the Boomer community, and we're going to defend them with a special gift here on this variety program courtesy of Smug. That is courtesy of Smug. He did the stitching himself. We have a new shirt. Thank a Boomer in the Ruthless podcast store. All you gotta do is go to store. Ruthlesspodcast.com, buy that shirt, wear it with pride, enjoy it.

[Michael Duncan]

And that is because they deserve to be thanked for their accomplishments. They're maligned so much. They have all this blame for all these things that had nothing to do with. But they get no thanks for this country that they've built. And they deserve our gratitude, honestly. They deserve a holiday.

[John Ashbrook]

Buy the shirt, start a conversation.

[Josh Holmes]

An intergenerational discussion, if you will. Yeah. All right. So before we get to Abbott, a little bit of setup. So most of you already know the news that there is an attempt in Texas to do a redistricting to try to ensure that they have representation in Congress that is a representation of the state of Texas, much like many states do. And they're taking a look at all of that. They convened a special session, the governor did, to not just address that. It wasn't just the redistricting. They also, if you recall, like, less than a month ago, had the most catastrophic flood in the history of Texas. A real. We covered it several weeks. I mean, it was, it was awful. And the stories out of it were terrible. Part of that was to ensure that Texas was doing what it needed to do from a recovery standpoint. The other part was redistricting. Well, Democrats in Texas as they have been known to do decide that when they don't have the votes for something that they disagree with, they just flee the state, which is where we pick up with the governor. I want to welcome to the program a good friend of the program. I think this is third or fourth time here. Last time we saw him was in Milwaukee. He's got a lot going on. It's the governor of Texas, Greg Abbott. How are you, sir?

[Greg Abbott]

I'm doing great. Great to see you guys again.

[Josh Holmes]

Ah, it's great to see you too. I. Look, I wish we could just get into the yucks and have some jokes and, you know, tell stories, but it sounds like you got an awful lot on your hands down there. You've got a Democratic Party that basically refuses to participate in democracy.

[Greg Abbott]

Now we gotta round up a bunch of Democrats who decided to flee the state as opposed to doing their job. Listen, if the average worker in the state of Texas did not show up to do their job, they would be fired. And yet these Democrats think they can break quorum, leave the job they have to do, go to Illinois, go to New York, wherever the case may be, and not do their job. Let me tell you something. Their voters are not going to look kindly upon them for this. They don't like people not showing up for work. And that's exactly what the Democrats in Texas are guilty of.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, I hope they're punished for it by the voters and maybe other means as well.

[Michael Duncan]

I mean, can I say, I mean right now, Governor, you're like a personal hero of mine because so much of Democrats politics lately has been a escaping accountability. And it seems like you're one of the few people interested in actually holding them accountable. For the past years they've tried running away and you've drawn the line, said enough is enough.

[Greg Abbott]

Well, and candidly for Texans is even more embarrassing than that because in Texas we believe in standing and fighting, not running from a fight. And that's what the Democrats have done. Let's go back to the early days of Texas, the Battle of the Alamo. The reason why that's so cherished in Texas is because the Texans and the Alamo chose to stay and fight, not run away. And yet we have Democrats who are saying come and take it, but yet they're saying it from some other state. It doesn't work that way. We're trying to take it to them, but we can't track them down.

[Josh Holmes]

Well, where they have gone is also of interest. I want to play a clip for you, get your reaction. I think that they were thinking Governor of Illinois was going to the comfy confines of the Colbert show. This is how that went last night. If you're considering doing a little more redrawing in Illinois, you already have some.

[Michael Duncan]

Crazy districts in Illinois.

[John Ashbrook]

Take a look at this.

[Josh Holmes]

Look at 17 here. It does that. Then it comes up here and it sneaks around there and goes all the way up here and then goes right over there like that. And look at, look at, look at this one kind of goes whoop up there. It's like the stinger on a scorpion down here. Is this common for all states to do?

[John Ashbrook]

We handed it over to a kindergarten class and let them decide.

[Josh Holmes]

Okay, that's the.

[John Ashbrook]

Not.

[Josh Holmes]

That's the, the nonpartisan group that does.

[John Ashbrook]

This for you guys. That's our independent commission, you know, that is.

[Comfortably Smug]

Yeah, Josh, if I may, the two districts that Colbert pointed out are represented by Democrats drawn in some smoke filled room in Chicago. Who knows when. And so what I'd like to ask you is like, do you think that J.B. pritzker has the right idea here.

[John Ashbrook]

Or is he off the mark, meaning.

[Greg Abbott]

The right idea about having kindergarteners draw it? But I got to tell you guys this. So there was something unexpected that has surfaced because of all this dispute, and that is Americans have now realized how gerrymandered all these blue states are. They now see that, that map in Illinois, they see the map in New York where they see that 40% of the people in Massachusetts voted for President Trump and yet there are zero Republican congressional districts there. Look at what happened in California. The worst examples of gerrymandering are Democrat states. And now Americans have realized that.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, okay, Duncan.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah, no, I think it's great that they went to Illinois. It's like they did study abroad in a non extradition country so they could learn how to gerrymander better.

[Josh Holmes]

It's so good. So just tell me. I mean, the thing that I think has been lost, obviously this has become a redistricting fight. The former President Obama has weighed in, which, you know, we'll get started on that later. But this is also flood relief. This is stuff that's super important to Texans and they're just abandoning ship. I mean, tell me just what the general reaction in Texas has been to all that.

[Greg Abbott]

So Texans are angry. And listen, you're spot on in what you. The point that you raise, and that is we are dealing with the travesty of the deadliest flood in the history of the state of Texas. And we have agenda items on this special session. Agenda that Democrats are not addressing. In fact, the state cannot address them because of the missing Democrats. That alone may be a reason why many of these Democrats are going to be losing their job because they failed to show up and help provide relief and support protections who desperately need it.

[John Ashbrook]

So. So Governor, I'm curious here because I've seen these Democrats are raising money while they're AWOL from work. What's the status of that? I thought there were some rules and regulations when the Texas legislature is trying to be in session that they're not allowed to do that sort of fundraising. Can you clarify that for us?

[Greg Abbott]

So. So fundraising during a special session is not prohibited. However, that there's something that has occurred listed. There seems to be evidence of what I'm about to tell you and that is there have been people who have made offers to these legislators that if they break quorum and do not vote on this, they will be receiving money. Like that has happened. So yeah, you're getting it. So what? That violates both the Texas constitutional provision and a penal code statute. That is bribery under Texas law, if those are the facts.

[Josh Holmes]

Wow, that's incredible. So how does this thing end? I mean, I know that you guys are doing everything you can do to try to get these people back and I know that you're getting some what sounds like maybe federal help at this point to do it. Like where does this, how does this end?

[Greg Abbott]

The way it always does. And that is the Democrats always come back. It could be tomorrow, it could be next week, it could be next month. They're going to come back or we'll be able to track them down one way or the other. They're coming back and it's going to end with these maps being passed. And you know what I'm thinking now is if, if they don't start showing up, I may start expanding. We may make it six or seven or eight new seats we're going to be adding on the Republican side.

[Josh Holmes]

The wall just got 10ft higher. No, but you know, look, these guys have been so dare. This is not the first time that Texas Democrats have done this. I mean, I remember a couple of years ago they came to D.C. and they absolutely got crushed by the way. I mean, I mean nobody wanted to have them. They hung out with a bunch of left wing activists. Everybody tried to ship them back as fast cuz they were embarrassing the entire national party with what they were doing. But this seems to be somewhat of a pattern. They're preserving, quote, unquote, preserving democracy by not participating in it. Isn't that it?

[Greg Abbott]

Well, it is that hypocrisy, if you would. They are preserving democracy by denying democracy. And that's one reason. So a couple of days ago, I filed a lawsuit in the Texas Supreme Court seeking the removal of the leader of this group of Democrats who have fled, because I am saying that under Texas law, he has abandoned his office by refusing to show up and by denying the state the ability to pass these laws that are so very important. And so we're seeking to set a new president in Texas that will ensure that anytime they try to do this again, it will be abandonment of office, allowing their removal from office.

[Josh Holmes]

That is exactly what I wanted to hear. Because it seems like every time something like this comes up that they don't agree with, but they don't have the votes to beat, they just run away. And like, how do you stop that over a longer period of time? I mean, go ahead.

[Greg Abbott]

How embarrassing is that? I mean, that's something school kids do. You know, I'm losing the game. I'm just going to walk away and leave. That's not. That's not the way adults operate. It's not the way that employees operate. But know this, Texans, that's the way your Texas Democrats operate. And that's exactly why more and more Texans are voting Republican than ever before.

[Josh Holmes]

That's well said. So are we going to see Rangers fanning out across the country cuffing and stuffing some of these guys?

[Greg Abbott]

So we have Texas Rangers as well as Texas Department of Public Safety officers who are working with federal officials like they have done in years past. And we're working to seek and find them and hold them accountable.

[Michael Duncan]

Quick question. Is there a hotline or a website? If someone sees one of these Dems where they can pass along a tip.

[Greg Abbott]

They may show up on the backside of milk cartons.

[Josh Holmes]

The backside of J.B. pritzker, which is formidable, I might add.

[Greg Abbott]

It's formidable.

[John Ashbrook]

Governor, I think the only person in the state who has an approval rating as high as yours is Arch Manning. Curious. Good.

[Michael Duncan]

That's a good point.

[John Ashbrook]

Do you think that Texas has the stuff to beat Ohio State here in week one?

[Greg Abbott]

I do, and I'll tell you why. Texas has probably the best defense of all college football in this upcoming season. A couple that with Arch Manning, with great running backs, a good offense, they don't need to score 50 points. I think they can score 17 to 24 points, and that's going to be all they need. And remember this also, Ohio State is also rebuilding. They have a new Quarterback, a new offensive coordinator. And so they're starting from scratch more than Texas is here, man.

[Josh Holmes]

You're going to find out pretty quickly. Week one matchup, one, two. That's big stuff. I imagine the entire state, once they get through all this unpleasantness, that's what everybody's focused on.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah. And he's saying to every Democrat, the eyes of Texas are upon you.

[Josh Holmes]

Listen, Governor, we can't thank you enough for joining us. You're a good friend of the program. Back anytime. I'd love to hear an update from all of you once this whole thing is resolved, because you're doing the right thing down there.

[Greg Abbott]

Look forward to it. Thank you, guys.

[Comfortably Smug]

Thank you.

[John Ashbrook]

Thank you.

[Comfortably Smug]

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[Josh Holmes]

So Abbott's awesome. Yeah, a good friend of the program. Got his hands full with quite a situation. It sounds to me like he's very interested in resolving this thing soon again.

[Michael Duncan]

I gotta say, I could not be more thrilled. Accountability is the greatest fear of the left. They hate when someone's like, no, we don't have to follow laws. Why are you making us follow laws? Thank God there are people doing it. He did it from. I mean, we would not be in the situation we are now with the border effectively completely shut, zero people crossing. Also, there's people like Governor Abbott who shipped illegals to Martha's Vineyard and put that issue on the map. And he's doing it again. Like he said, people across this country with the Democrats trying to whine about redistricting and gerrymandering, they just made it obvious that blue states gerrymander like none other.

[Comfortably Smug]

And you are so right about no accountability for the left. I mean, Stephen Colbert Literally put two ridiculous, unexplainable Democrat held districts in front of JB Pritzker and is like, hey, how do you explain these? And Pritzker's like making a joke because he knew.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah.

[Comfortably Smug]

He wasn't gonna be pressed. That they're Democrats.

[John Ashbrook]

Exactly. And that's the whole thing, and that's what late night comedy has become, is like a Democrat can come on and put on the clown nose and then everybody, no accountability because they actually get the joke. They don't actually care about what's right or fair or democracy. They just want to be able to get away with it. And a guy like Governor Abbott's like, no, no, I'm not gonna back down. I'm not gonna cut some deal to get you to come back here. I'm not gonna water down any of my plans. I'm going to take this to the hilt and I'm gonna do it for all of Texas.

[Josh Holmes]

It's such a good point, cuz it's not just about congressional representation. It is about illuminating, as you said, an issue that may not affect everybody, but now you know about it. I mean, this redistricting that Democrats have done in blue states is unbelievable. That map of, I mean, you could hit a three wood across multiple parts of those districts to connect one Democratic thing to another in order to make it a Democratic district.

[Comfortably Smug]

And under what circumstances do you live in a county downstate in Illinois that voted like 75, 25 for Trump and your member of Congress is a Democrat? Only in the circumstances where J.B. pritzker is in charge and he makes sure that a Democrat represents that district and.

[Josh Holmes]

It'S all yucks until Republicans do it, which I love the fact that they're doing what they're doing because it is highlighting the issue. If you got a problem with it, all right, you want to start redrawing Illinois.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah.

[Michael Duncan]

And like you said, Massachusetts, 40% of the votes are for President Trump and there's zero GOP districts.

[John Ashbrook]

But Illinois, the fact that they went to Illinois is just like if you were a screenwriter, you couldn't have wrote this because no one would believe it. It's just perfect illustration of their hypocrisy. I mean, this is ground zero for Chicago style politics, like where power's the only thing that matters. Democrats have been getting away with everything there forever, including Barack Obama himself, who redrew his state Senate race so he could carve in a bunch of progressive, rich white people to fund his U.S. senate campaign and his run for president.

[Comfortably Smug]

Yeah, dude, you're exactly right. And then in the case of Massachusetts, we were talking about this the other day. Not a single member of Congress represents that state who is a Republican. And that hasn't been the case. No Republican has represented the state of Massachusetts in the House of representatives for 30 years.

[John Ashbrook]

Maybe if we send some more illegal. We sent some more illegal immigrants up there from Texas, maybe they'd change their mind.

[Michael Duncan]

Also. I'd be remiss if I didn't bring up the news broke this morning. When it comes to those Texas Dems that Soros funded, groups have been funding them.

[John Ashbrook]

I'm shocked.

[Michael Duncan]

Their travel, their hotels. It's like.

[Josh Holmes]

And this is what Abbott was talking about, the new revelation that looks as though.

[Greg Abbott]

Yep.

[Josh Holmes]

They have been taking financial resources in one form or another to not be in session.

[Michael Duncan]

Which is insane.

[Josh Holmes]

That he said it's in Constitution in Texas and there's statute. Throw em. Throw em in the brig. I mean, that's what's. If that statute, it's pretty cut and dry. If they're getting sitting in hotel rooms in Chicago that are paid for by George Soros. That's what it is.

[John Ashbrook]

It's the whole MO of the left and it always has been is their radical politics. And then working outside of the league. The legality of politics has always been underwritten by these billionaires, you know, and you got Hans Jorg Weiss in Switzerland trying to put state ballot initiatives in the 2024 election, you know, in places like Arizona and places like that. Soros and all these people have been funding all of their illegality for too long.

[Josh Holmes]

Totally. I also like that you threw a ball question in there.

[Comfortably Smug]

Yeah.

[John Ashbrook]

Knocked it out of the park.

[Josh Holmes]

I mean, we're serious about ball here in the program.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah, we know ball.

[Josh Holmes]

And it sounds like the governor's prepared for.

[John Ashbrook]

You got it in Texas.

[Josh Holmes]

Quite a season.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah.

[Josh Holmes]

Oh, man, it's so good. All right, so look, thank you again to the governor for, for coming on and giving us a little firsthand look. I know you've seen a lot of this on the news, but probably not quite like that. What's the White House's reaction to all of this? You recall in the first term, President Trump discussed this at some length and there was an effort to sort of address it in some way. It was unsuccessful ultimately, probably because it didn't have the kind of profile that people like Governor Abbott have given this entire situation to ensure that non residents, illegal immigrants weren't counted in a census. And this is the great coup the Democrats have been able to effectuate in the census process is that they count anyone who's here, whether legal or not. So when you open the borders, as Joe Biden did for four years, and allow 20 million people in here by Democrat standards, that counts.

[Comfortably Smug]

And their allies running cities establish a sanctuary city so that illegals go to the sanctuary city. And then by default, because of what they've done in the federal level, they will have more people in those cities that are run by Democrats.

[Josh Holmes]

And let me.

[John Ashbrook]

It's an important thing, I think Ashbrook is pointing out here, and that is because these cities are sanctuary cities. They are getting more resources from the federal government because they're counting those people. It means that it's. It doesn't. It doesn't just impact la. When LA declares itself a sanctuary city, you, dear taxpayer, pay for that regardless of where you live.

[Josh Holmes]

It's an apportionment issue.

[John Ashbrook]

Right. And it's what they hide behind on all this shit. They're such fucking cowards on all the Medicaid stuff, too. They use a budget gimmick and want to give free health care to illegal immigrants. And they cry foul when we're like, I think American people should get Medicaid, not illegal immigrants.

[Josh Holmes]

So just to put a fine point on it, what happens is they count these illegal immigrants for apportionment.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah.

[Josh Holmes]

They then award representation based on the counting of people who shouldn't be here in the first place. Federal resources are allocated by that apportionment. So it's not just representation in the House of Representatives. It's things like Medicaid. Right. It's federal assistance in every possible way. So you, as a taxpayer, are actually on the hook, double. One, your views aren't represented. And two, the resources that you pay into the federal government go to places that have these sanctuary policies.

[John Ashbrook]

Sanctuary policies. So you're talking about the worst people in the Democratic coalition.

[Josh Holmes]

Yes.

[John Ashbrook]

The furthest left people actually have like, twice as much voting power as you do. Yep. Right. Because they're counting all these other people who are illegal immigrants who don't vote. It makes their vote twice three times as powerful.

[Josh Holmes]

Yes, 100. That's 100%. So Trump is onto this. He's been onto it for years now. He can do something about it. And so this is an Axios. Yesterday, Trump demands a new census that excludes unauthorized residents. President Trump on Thursday announced that he had instructed the Commerce Department to immediately begin working on a new census. The big picture, the development comes as the White House is pushing red states to draw new congressional maps, more favorable To Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms, the Constitution requires the census every 10 years to apportion congressional districts. Driving the news. Trump in a Thursday truth social post put a finer point on this and sort of elaborated on what it was that we just discussed. But the point is what they want to say is like brass politics, right? It's like, oh, they want more Republican districts. What it is are more districts that represent Americans.

[Michael Duncan]

This feels like such a hit dog's holler situation honored where you see the media is being like, wow, they just want to do this to get more Republican districts. Hold up. Are you saying that allowing illegal aliens to have sanctuary cities means Democrats get more votes in Congress? Are you straight up admitting that's the whole game here? How could that you're just straight up saying that?

[Josh Holmes]

Okay, I was told that that wasn't the case. I was told that these were all fairly drawn by nonpartisan.

[John Ashbrook]

I think the Democrats will probably settle for three fifths representation so they can work on, on these, these strawberry plantations for their modern day slavery. How about that?

[Michael Duncan]

No, my kids, we need farms full of illegal immigrant children growing weed. Like that's I, I, if you can't.

[John Ashbrook]

It's what they want. If we're being honest.

[Josh Holmes]

Well, I mean, honestly, it's what I appreciated about the Hunter Biden interview. I mean amongst other things, him burning down the entire Democratic establishment. He speaks to this very clearly. It's like, okay, well if you don't want illegal immigration then you don't want your yard done or you're who's gonna.

[Michael Duncan]

Handle your garden or clean your hotel rooms. Yeah, no super in touch there.

[Josh Holmes]

That's what he was saying. But that's what the modern Democrat party believes. It's like, no, no, we need low skilled, underpaid work that we don't have to respect as a society. And unless we have that, our lives aren't going to be nearly.

[Comfortably Smug]

And they straight face that they do.

[Josh Holmes]

They do. At the same time they claim to be a party of civil rights.

[Comfortably Smug]

I mean it's just, we see right through it.

[Josh Holmes]

Absolutely disgusting.

[Michael Duncan]

I think this is such a critical point here is because if you make the census count only citizens, as it should be, it's the only reasonable way to go about this, then that also controls how resources start getting divvied up. Because if you, you know, us taxpayers are not paying for these sanctuary cities full of illegals, all of a sudden those cities are like, wait, what? We can't have a ridiculous unlimited budget that we never have to Balance. Because we'll just have federal taxpayers come take care of us because we want to use this as a power grab for Democrats.

[John Ashbrook]

Oh, oh. The federal government is not going to pay for our public schools, English as a second language programs. Because to make this a sanctuary city.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah. It's a compounding effect. Right. And there's one way to look at it. Which is. Well, there's more resources there for the rest of the country that actually pays taxes in this country. The other way to look at which is more accurate is the compounding impact that these cities have on federal resources, which is like you mentioned. I mean, there are programs that are stood up absolutely exclusively for the unique challenges that these cities have by being sanctuary cities.

[John Ashbrook]

They just can't be held, you know, faultless for their own decision making. They can't be insulated from the cost.

[Michael Duncan]

Bingo.

[John Ashbrook]

Of that stuff. If you're going to do a dance and say about how we are a sanctuary city, then you got to foot the bill.

[Michael Duncan]

It's like in the Abbott interview, it's like the one thing that Democrats in the left hate more than anything is consequences. That's what they hate. They run from it as much as possible.

[Greg Abbott]

Yeah.

[Comfortably Smug]

It is a compounding impact that affects so many things, especially when it's on spin cycle. It really affects Democrats voting ability. So like if you want to talk about money laundering, I'm telling you right now that you, the taxpayer are putting the coin in the machine and it comes out as a Democrat vote.

[Josh Holmes]

Is it bad that every time Ash Brick opens his mouth, I'm afraid a Pl is going to come out?

[Comfortably Smug]

You never know.

[John Ashbrook]

You might find out there's a lot more loopholes.

[Josh Holmes]

No, like every time he grabs the microphone, I'm. Now I'm like, oh my God.

[John Ashbrook]

If you didn't listen that last episode, it was a banger.

[Josh Holmes]

The last 30 minutes of that thing, it went so far off the rails. But now I, now I have like a, like a ptsd.

[John Ashbrook]

I'm worried.

[Comfortably Smug]

What I'm telling, what I'm telling you is you are, you are going to get truth that no one else will tell you right here on the ruthless variety program Life giving, Life enhancing Brotherhood.

[Josh Holmes]

You are right. That no one else will tell you. There is no question about that. So the former president weighed in. Barack Obama. I got several observations to make about this. Put up graphic one just so you know what it is that he said he's weighed in on the redistricting. He says we can't lose focus on what matters right now. Republicans in Texas are trying to gerrymander district lines to unfairly win five seats in the next year's midterm elections. That's a power grab that undermines our democracy. Like, never mind. The fact that, you know, the guy's from a state that has several districts that are drawn, I don't know, like, creatively gives it too much credit. I mean, it's. It's, like, incredible.

[Comfortably Smug]

We talked about this with the governor. I mean, if you look at District 5, 13, you look at District 17, under no circumstances would a normal person draw those lines. I mean, think about it, like, just step back for a second. If you're a county commissioner and you're like, well, who am I supposed to call? That's my representative to the federal government. I got three different representatives in my county who I'm supposed to call, like, because they're splitting these Trump counties like slivers so that they don't have to be represented by Republicans.

[John Ashbrook]

It turns out they want to disenfranchise Trump voters. Who would have thought?

[Josh Holmes]

Oh, weird, right? And it turns out, like, minute Bol could lay from one side to another one of those district lines and vote in two counties. What a poll. The new poll. Right.

[Michael Duncan]

Also, I mean, like, when you bring up Barack Obama in this context, it's also important to note that his, like, best friend Eric Holder has essentially turned this into, like, a cash cow.

[Comfortably Smug]

And as.

[Michael Duncan]

For years, kind of like setting up gerrymandering and crooked voting laws. Eric Holder is, like, secured the bag off of this.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, yeah. No question. But here's a larger point about Barack Obama. Like, aside from redistricting, I said this on X the other night. I find it fascinating every day. Whatever you think about George W. Bush and his administration, the Post presidency of 43 and 44 is an incredible, like, sociological experiment. Right. Where George W. Bush, whether you loved him or hate him, hated him. When he was done, he was done. He stopped weighing in on partisanship. He didn't, like, put his thumb on the scale on national debates. He thought it was classless to try to get involved with something he knew only a sliver about that was briefed in the news because he wasn't in the center of it anymore, as most presidents tend to do, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton notwithstanding. Yep.

[Michael Duncan]

And that's the thing, is because it was done to him, like, he had Jimmy Carter and all of them come out and tell the media that, like, oh, yeah, you know, these people, they hate this country.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, Right. But that's the way that everything was Envisioned that you're sort of, you inherit a statesman like role where you're a caretaker of the country, you can speak to larger issues when there are big things that come up. You can help provide leadership if the President of the United States, who's the current one, asks you to do so. And if not, you're like largely away from the scene. Not Barack Obama. This cat is weighing in on a redistricting state legislator debate. Like, there's no cause too small for this guy to get involved in. It is, it is the most demeaning, like complete tearing down.

[Michael Duncan]

And he's so concerned and worried about the state of democracy, he's got a Netflix production company that he spends his time on. His country's in peril. That's why I work for Netflix.

[Comfortably Smug]

Here's where I might disagree with you on the idea that there is no cause too small. Because I think that if Obama is weighing in, it tells you that this is the biggest, most important, important thing to George Soros right now.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah, I could see that 100%. I mean, it isn't just Holder as smug pointed out me, Mark Elias has made his whole career on filing.

[Josh Holmes]

All these people, Mark Elias and the rest of it, they're fucking hacks. All these people are like Democratic hacks, right? And the point is that regardless of whether you're a Republican president or a Democratic president, if you're president of the United States, you inherit a pretty unique space, right? There's only been 47 of them in this country. And like up to this point, it has always been assumed that you inherit a statesman like role and you do, you know, statesmanlike things. This cat, if it's responsive to George Soros, like that tells you everything.

[Comfortably Smug]

Quite the contrast. Your point, quite the contrast with W.

[John Ashbrook]

I think both of you are actually right in this, but you're, you're talking about two separate things. Things. It is the number one priority of the deep pocketed billionaires of the Democratic Party. But you're also right, and that is Barack Obama can't exist in the world unless he's the center of attention. And I mean, this is a guy who still puts out his Spotify fucking summer playlist and his reading list for the beach. I mean, this guy is desperate for attention. He's got his wife there tearing him down on a podcast. These people are so desperate for attention, to be influencers. It's fucking pathetic.

[Michael Duncan]

Big Mike, his wife, a podcast with her brother where she was like, actually, Barack Obama sucks. Thank God I didn't have a son What? Bro, why are you out here dropping takes on redistricting? You need to take care of that.

[John Ashbrook]

Take care of your house.

[Josh Holmes]

But big.

[John Ashbrook]

Big Mike's running wild.

[Josh Holmes]

But it's crazy to me, you know? I mean, we haven't been. It's not like we're 75 years old and we are working. I'm sorry. That's not a Boomer blast. Don't hit me up in the comments.

[John Ashbrook]

Hit him up.

[Josh Holmes]

But it's not like we're 75 years old and we're looking back on life. We're like, well, this is the way that things used to be done. Like, it's relatively recent history where people all kind of assumed that you should be a statesman.

[John Ashbrook]

I think it's a misreading by Barack Obama. I think most people in this country. The theater's been revealed of his presidency. The mythos of Barack Obama, statesman is gone. Nobody actually thinks that about him anymore.

[Michael Duncan]

He's a Netflix production guy now. It's like, wow. Yeah, that's what you've done. You're now on Netflix, dude.

[Josh Holmes]

Congrats. Business of Barack Obama is Barack Obama. Yeah, that's the end of it.

[Comfortably Smug]

I'd like to know what happened to the cook.

[Josh Holmes]

Oh, my God. Jesus.

[Comfortably Smug]

Never been answered.

[Josh Holmes]

We're laughing.

[John Ashbrook]

Parody. Parody. We're laughing.

[Josh Holmes]

We're laughing and joking and carrying on here on the Ruthless Friday program. And as we do, we do have a question of the day as it relates to this entire topic, which is, do you think these Texas Dems are going to the brig?

[Michael Duncan]

Any of them end up in jail? I hope so.

[Josh Holmes]

Are they gonna end up in jail? I mean, look, they've got statutes on the books that. You heard the governor talk about it. There are things that could compel these people to not only be arrested and drawn back to Texas, but if they're taking cash from George Soros.

[John Ashbrook]

Well, might I add one thing. We were on Will Cain's show on Fox yesterday, and before he had us on, he did a fantastic interview with one of these Democrats, and she was sort of in this nondescript white background, I assume in some hotel room somewhere, and towards the end of the interview, and Will did such a fantastic job of being forceful, but didn't make it a hostile interview. He was asking substantive questions about this entire thing. And it got to the end of the interview, and her connection mysteriously, yep, ended.

[Josh Holmes]

It was like, can't hear you. Oh, bad connection.

[John Ashbrook]

And Will said, my last question is, who's paying for all this? Yeah, where's your stipend. Who paid for the airfare? What is the room you're in?

[Josh Holmes]

They knew it was coming?

[John Ashbrook]

I think so.

[Josh Holmes]

And they couldn't answer it. I thought you were going to highlight the fact that we had both an abortion and jan6 joke about dogs in the first five minutes of that interview.

[Michael Duncan]

It's always awesome.

[John Ashbrook]

We're renaissance men.

[Josh Holmes]

You didn't think it could be done on the Fox News Channel? It was smug. Your leadership was invaluable in that regard.

[Michael Duncan]

It was. I'd love to give.

[Josh Holmes]

It was a great interview. We love Will so much. Gosh, he's so kind to have us on. I can't imagine that that goes over well everywhere, but I think the audience likes it. They certainly like Will. No question about it. So our last question of the day on Thursday was who next to get the axe from the liberal media? We mentioned Stern Colbert. Seems like the axes are following everywhere. And we asked for your opinions on all that. When you like and subscribe, we read all of your comments. And when we do that, we start with voice. Okay.

[Comfortably Smug]

First comment comes from Phil Sheridan. And Phil writes, jimmy Kimmel will be the next domino to fall. Interesting. Yeah. Market for Buttersoft 10 ply Trump deranged crybabies is seriously on the Wayne. I can't wait to watch him tear up again on national TV and make the pathetic case for how important his vote is.

[Josh Holmes]

I find Kimmel so fascinating. It's a guy that had the man.

[Comfortably Smug]

Show, which was great.

[Josh Holmes]

You know, he's like a stern guy. I mean, they were like edgy, funny.

[John Ashbrook]

Girls jumping on trampolines and bathing suits.

[Josh Holmes]

That was like his thing.

[John Ashbrook]

Yes.

[Josh Holmes]

And then all of a sudden, now.

[Comfortably Smug]

He'S just like, like against it.

[John Ashbrook]

It's like the lar. It's the. Not just against it. It's like, it's like the largest over correction in modern, modern media history. He became the biggest woke skull.

[Josh Holmes]

He's just a scold. That's what it is.

[John Ashbrook]

Fun.

[Josh Holmes]

No, there's nothing fun about it. It's just like, you shouldn't think this way. Anyway. Dunks, what do we got for comment?

[John Ashbrook]

Dude, we got John Koenigse. John writes, the next person to get the ax, I suspect, is the View. I see the viewership declining aside from clips that people use to mock them. That's true. Honestly, I think that's all of their ratings now, dude.

[Josh Holmes]

I do think it actually helps them.

[John Ashbrook]

For sure it does. Additionally, Sonny's initial question to Kamala, what would you do different than Biden proved to Be the initial nail in the coffin of her campaign. Go back and watch our episode, by the way, right after that View appearance. And we all called. This was the end of the thing. We kind of know what we're talking about.

[Josh Holmes]

Kind of do.

[John Ashbrook]

But the question who is next to be canceled? Is rife with numerous people and too hard to tell. Heck, I didn't realize Howard Stern was relevant. Fair enough. Fair enough. I love it.

[Josh Holmes]

All right, Smuggles, what do we got?

[Michael Duncan]

Comment 3 comes from Lori Loft. And Lori writes, please, please, by all that is holy, please let it be Jimmy Kimmel. No one has been more sanctimonious. He took a once funny show and made it unbearable to watch. Let us not forget the guy cried on election night when Trump won. This from a guy who hosted the man show. He's obviously lost his manhood. Please just go away, Jimmy. That's the thing. That's the thing is he has completely forgotten his job as a comedian and he's not funny. He cries. People are done with that.

[Josh Holmes]

There's a special anxiety for Kimmel.

[John Ashbrook]

Oh, yeah.

[Josh Holmes]

In the comments. At least amongst this particular audience, because.

[Comfortably Smug]

They know where he started. Everybody watches.

[Josh Holmes]

I love Ash Brooks. Now he's against it.

[John Ashbrook]

He is.

[Comfortably Smug]

Like, he and Carolla had something very funny. You know, it was unique. It was edgy and people tuned in. And now he pretends like now he's against it. Forgot about it.

[Josh Holmes]

All right, so a special flavor you only get here in the Ruthless Variety Program is us goofing on each other. And, well, our friend Michael here has taken upon himself here with football season.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah.

[Josh Holmes]

To have a extra commentary with our friend John about his team. Given that we've over indexed on Ohio.

[John Ashbrook]

I thought it was only fair.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah.

[John Ashbrook]

With all the Ohio talk, all the Bengals talk, especially all the Ohio talk, he wedged into a conversation with the Vice President United States, who's from Ohio. Oh, we got a limited amount of his time. Let's make 17 of the 20 minutes about Ohio. Unbelievable.

[Josh Holmes]

Just offensive.

[Comfortably Smug]

It's where he's from, but okay.

[John Ashbrook]

And so I figured just with the beginning of the football season, preseason started Thursday night.

[Josh Holmes]

Yep.

[Comfortably Smug]

I assume these aren't going to be Colts jokes.

[John Ashbrook]

No, they're not. So I have procured a special guest here on the Ruthless Variety Program to deliver a special message just to you, John. Can we play that?

[F]

John, what's up? It's Kevin Burkhart from Fox Sports. And football's around the corner, baby. Cannot wait. I know. You can't either. Big Bengals fan. And I'M really excited because we never get the Bengals on. On Fox, and I get to do a few of their games this year, and I can't wait for that, which is going to be different. Get a chance to see Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase up front. However, Duncan, your good buddy, wanted me to reach out, and he thinks you, your Bengals fandom, in fact, the entire state of Ohio sucks.

[John Ashbrook]

Let's go.

[Josh Holmes]

Let's go.

[F]

And really, we just like it all to. To stop. And he also thinks that the Skyline chili on pasta is the most disgusting thing on the planet. Gotta be honest with you. I agree with Duncan on that one. That is horrendous. But. But Cincy, great fans, great ice cream, great ribs. A lot of good positives. I don't know if the Cincy defense is one of them in the fray here. I mean, they're not gonna pay him. Or are they? They should. I don't know if they have any money left. You know, they're. They had issues. They bring in a new defensive coordinator. Sam Hubbard retires. We know they're gonna score, but can they stop anyone? Jon Duncan hopes not. Duncan, this is for you. John, your team sucks. I appreciate you watching, and I'll see you on the NFL on fox. Enjoy the football season.

[Michael Duncan]

That was awesome.

[John Ashbrook]

That was awesome, bro.

[Comfortably Smug]

To quote smug, what more can be said? Kevin Burkhart, the legend. What an absolute incredible dunk. Are you kidding me?

[Michael Duncan]

That was awesome.

[Josh Holmes]

Voice of football giving it to you straight.

[John Ashbrook]

I just figured you were tired of me saying it, so we had to bring in an expert.

[Michael Duncan]

I mean, that'll get you excited for NFL.

[Josh Holmes]

What a legend.

[Comfortably Smug]

It will. I mean, you know, to tell you the truth, Bengals are gonna have to let their playing speak for them. You know, there's no more talking that can be done. But I will tell you that one of the things that Kevin Burkhart said that caught my attention is the good ribs in Cincinnati, Ohio. And what I want to do right now is thank Montgomery in and Evan Andrews and Cincy favorites who provided some ribs for the fellas the other weekend. I will say, unfortunately, pal, you were out of town.

[Josh Holmes]

I'm aware of them, though. I've had them. The Andrews, fantastic.

[Michael Duncan]

They were phenomenal.

[Josh Holmes]

Ribs.

[John Ashbrook]

Shout out to Tommy Andrews as well. Great guy.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah. Good. Good. Dude, I'm sorry I missed that. But that. You're right about one thing.

[John Ashbrook]

Good ribs.

[Josh Holmes]

He's right about the chili. The Skyline thing.

[Comfortably Smug]

I love it. If you asked me my last meal on earth, that's what I would say.

[Michael Duncan]

No kidding.

[Comfortably Smug]

I love it.

[John Ashbrook]

I love it.

[Comfortably Smug]

I'm from my town.

[Michael Duncan]

I can't.

[Comfortably Smug]

I have nothing to hide. I like it.

[Josh Holmes]

It's like that in a glass of pool water, you know, Just disgusting.

[Comfortably Smug]

What an incredible. I mean, I did it for you. That's a surprise.

[Josh Holmes]

Nice work, pal.

[Comfortably Smug]

Kevin Burkhart.

[Josh Holmes]

Let me get to the rest of our little lightning round here. So, you know, on the left there's just this. If you say colonization, it's like a trigger word. They lose their mind. They just. It's like white supremacy equivalent. Yeah, basically. They like no historical context for any of it at all. The word in and of itself is white supremacy for them. You gotta see this clip of CBS because it just goes to a new level. Clip two places but if we want.

[John Ashbrook]

To keep growing a population or if we want to live forever, all right.

[Josh Holmes]

We'Re going to need.

[John Ashbrook]

We're going to need another planet.

[Josh Holmes]

So.

[John Ashbrook]

So is that the moon? Because A, I don't want to live on the moon. Right. Also, the moon's not a planet serve as a functional life source eventually for human beings.

[Michael Duncan]

And B, we know how the age.

[John Ashbrook]

Of colonialism worked on this planet. Should we be trying to colonize and saying that there's a keep out zone that not other countries can participate in in? The real problem with the colonization history in western civilization is that there were people already there, right? There are no moon beings that were displaced, as we know. As far as we know.

[Josh Holmes]

It's just so amazing to me for so many reasons, right? I mean, they're just a bunch of leftists talking about leftism things. And then they're like, but wait, colonization, that's negative. We know that. And like here you've got a rock floating around outer space. And they're like, do you think that there's moral hazard in that?

[John Ashbrook]

What it reveals is how vacant all of their ideology is, is that they know words but they don't know history. They know nothing. They hear a buzzword and they know they're supposed to oppose it and so they weave it into a sentence that makes no sense. You're making Neil Degrasse Tyson, who is an out and out liberty, laugh at you for being so ignorant.

[Comfortably Smug]

Also, I love the contrast between the left and CBS and normal people, okay? Republicans are like, hey, maybe you shouldn't have to pay as much in taxes so you can spend a little more on your family. And the libs are like, no, we should move to outer space.

[Josh Holmes]

But not. But not if you call it colonization.

[John Ashbrook]

Right? Also, I just Wanna say for the record, I think colonialism was good. I think it was actually on balance, great for the world, that it brought a lot of people into modernity. Think about Cortez showing up in Central America.

[Michael Duncan]

I still don't get how that's controversial.

[John Ashbrook]

And Mexico, what was the peace loving society he walked into? The people doing the ritualistic sacrifice and baby murder. Like that was the good place. That was the good place and he was the bad guy.

[Michael Duncan]

Well, there was that professor lady who went viral when she was like, no, actually the child sacrifices were good because it was like anti. Like, well, this is what college professors are teaching.

[John Ashbrook]

Look, I understand it's a complicated history and that people did bad things. You know what, at what point in history did people not do bad things also? And another thing, it's. It's an entirely selective history when it comes to the liberal left of who is actually guilty of this sort of colonialization. I mean, we talk about land acknowledgments in the United States, but I don't see the Arabs leaving North Africa. Has anybody called on them to leave Morocco?

[Josh Holmes]

How interesting.

[John Ashbrook]

They're going to leave Egypt. They're going to go back to the Gulf.

[Josh Holmes]

Turn about his fair play.

[John Ashbrook]

Well, all I'm going to say is, like, as I've said here previously on the variety program show me the date and time. Yeah, where is the date and time in the history of the world where everybody was exactly where they're supposed to be with the land that they deserve. It doesn't fucking exist. And all this is fake. And all of it really is, is to undermine capitalism, Western civilization. They don't actually care about anything. It's a vacant ideology.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, you had me at America. I feel like that worked out pretty well. It's pretty great.

[Comfortably Smug]

Pretty great.

[John Ashbrook]

The only reason we can even talk about colonizing the moon or anywhere else, even though it's not a planet. That guy's fucking stupid. Is because of the United States of America, because we went to the moon.

[Comfortably Smug]

Glory, glory, hallelujah.

[Josh Holmes]

There you go. I'm all. I'm with you. All right, so there's some dirt. The thing that we've covered here for, you know, basically the last nine months, a year, over a year now. The Biden, Harris sort of rift. It turns out the Biden team is starting to get a little. Oh boy, little frisky, little chippy about some suggestions by the Harris team about who they are and what they were doing. And so Fox News helpfully puts out a article. Biden team is ready to drop dirty on Harris if she comes after him. Political analyst Mark Halperin revealed last week that the former president Joe Biden's team is prepared to release unflattering stories about their efforts to prepare former vice president Kamala Harris for a potential run if she comes after him in her new book.

[John Ashbrook]

I, I love this.

[Josh Holmes]

I love it for so many reasons, not the least of which is the text is submitted. You know what I mean? There's no coming back now.

[John Ashbrook]

Well, what I love about it is it's Biden and Harris arguing they should make it a TV show. They can call it the Biggest Loser.

[Michael Duncan]

I like that.

[Josh Holmes]

This is about that 107 days thing that we talked about. Her book that's coming out on her short lived presidential campaign. Biden apparently reportedly signed a $10 million deal with Hatchet Book Group for his upcoming presidential memoir. Okay, I got some thoughts on that too. A $10 million book deal for a book that is going to go unread? Yep. I mean it. Either they're the dumbest people on the face of the planet or they are the same people that bought the paintings from Hunter Biden. Because there is no chance they recover $10 million on the sale of Joe Biden's book. Unless it's like Kamal is a whore. You know what I mean? Like the things that he has to.

[Michael Duncan]

Say, that's the thing.

[Josh Holmes]

In order to make it readable.

[Michael Duncan]

I mean, even for Kamala's book. This is such a fundamental misunderstanding of demand out there. No one, not even on the left, wants to read either of these people's books. The only way to make anyone care, and this is the wonderful part, is by throwing in something, throwing somebody under the bus. Like, if Joe Biden throws Kamala under the bus, his book will sell. If Kamala throws Joe under the bus, her book will sell. That's all people are interested in. They don't. No one in this country cares what Kamala Harris thinks. No one in this country cares what Joe Biden thinks. No one in this country thinks. Joe Biden can't think. You know what I mean?

[Comfortably Smug]

Which raises a question. Who will write the Biden book? Is it Jill Biden? Is that Hunter Biden? Is it Bruce Reed? Is it somebody from the media? You know, I really wonder who is actually putting pen to paper for the Biden book.

[John Ashbrook]

So I actually have a countervailing take on all this.

[Comfortably Smug]

Oh, you think he's going to write it?

[John Ashbrook]

No, I think Biden should get that $10 million for this book advance.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, but he's not going to do what you want him to do.

[John Ashbrook]

No, he is going to do what I want him to do.

[Josh Holmes]

And then.

[John Ashbrook]

And that is stop doing deals with his son, with China and foreign governments. You think the only way to stop the crime family lib should pay him from. From doing, you know, foreign collusion with governments and putting Hunter the crack addict on boards is to pad the pockets of Joe Biden so he can never. Family.

[Michael Duncan]

It's never enough.

[John Ashbrook]

I think you just give them $10 million so he doesn't compromise the United States of America. He's barely in control of the faculties in his brain. It's just feeding f. Literally, this is the cost of doing business. It's a good take. I mean, it's rational.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah. So one thing that we covered last week was the whole implosion at the Washington Post and Politico doing like a TikTok on everybody who's leaving, like, 100 different riders. There was a story in Fox yesterday about how all they're doing in the newsroom is having cake and farewell parties. Like, they say that, like, every afternoon. There's, like, a couple of cakes, some balloons. Thanks for your service. What a sad thing.

[Comfortably Smug]

That's good color.

[John Ashbrook]

Do they all get a cake themselves or do they share cakes? At this point, it just like, they're gonna have to start grouping them together if they have a big old cheat cake so it can fit a lot of names on it.

[Josh Holmes]

It's like a tragic comedy. Oh, it's not good.

[Comfortably Smug]

That one was written by none other than Joey Brackett.

[Josh Holmes]

Joey brackets.

[John Ashbrook]

Yeah, Wolfson.

[Josh Holmes]

Love that kid.

[Michael Duncan]

We love them.

[Josh Holmes]

You guys want some animal news?

[John Ashbrook]

Yes, always.

[Josh Holmes]

I think you came up with this one. Smug. He's a big animal purveyor.

[John Ashbrook]

He is.

[Josh Holmes]

He comes up with a lot of this stuff. Turns out, wild pigs. According to New York Post, wild pigs in California develop bright blue skin after exposure to pesticides and rat poison. Officials. What's the deal with this thing, Simone?

[Michael Duncan]

Can we get graphic? Look at this. Okay, so that's what happened. They cut open. Some wild pigs who've been eating some of these crops have been exposed to this rat poison. And their skin is. I mean, that is straight up blue. Like, for our folks who are on YouTube, this is one of the reasons you want to jump on YouTube. That looks like neon blue skin. That is terrifying.

[John Ashbrook]

I call that Avatar blue.

[Michael Duncan]

Yeah, dude, that is exactly what it looks like. It says here in the New York Post article, swarms of wild pigs in California develop blue flesh after ingesting pesticides containing rat poison. And officials warned other common game animals may also be infected. The feral hogs and feral hogs should be shot and killed by the way.

[Josh Holmes]

Or turned blue.

[Michael Duncan]

Killed, hopefully without turning them blue. I don't think the blue is a good thing, but turn them blue. The feral hogs in Monterey county were exposed to a type of pesticide bait containing the anticoagulant rodenticide dafasinone. A type of rat poison. Prevents blood clotting, forces internal bleeding.

[John Ashbrook]

Wait, so it stops blood clotting?

[Michael Duncan]

Yeah. So if you shoot one of those, they bleed out like a stunt pig.

[John Ashbrook]

Perfect.

[Josh Holmes]

What's wrong with this? Do we have a problem with this?

[Comfortably Smug]

No, but here's a question for you guys. You know, we have talked off the air many times about doing a ruthless special where we all go hella hogging.

[Josh Holmes]

Yep. Yes.

[Comfortably Smug]

And I think that we definitely need to do that so we can see for ourselves. We can open these pigs up and we can see the blue.

[Michael Duncan]

That's my suggestion. We had the governor of Texas, Governor Abbott, on, and Texas has a huge problem with these feral hogs attacking crops, destroying property. I would love to join the governor in a helicopter. We could go hella hogging. It's like a huge thing in Texas. Their pigs aren't blue to vinyl. I mean, they're not blue yet.

[Josh Holmes]

Turn them.

[Michael Duncan]

But I would love to help turn them blue.

[Josh Holmes]

Turn them blue.

[Michael Duncan]

I'd love to do our part and kill these hogs. I mean, there's nothing sounds more fun than being in a helicopter chain gunning these hogs and helping farmers.

[John Ashbrook]

The rope gun.

[Josh Holmes]

I'm confused. Am I supposed to feel like badly that they're blue?

[John Ashbrook]

No, I don't think so. It's just like if you're hunting them, you don't want to take a blue pig and process them and eat them.

[Josh Holmes]

I don't think you would process.

[John Ashbrook]

But you wouldn't, right? Because you're going to. Well, I've processed wild pig. I've killed. I've killed wild pig.

[Josh Holmes]

These things?

[John Ashbrook]

Yes.

[Josh Holmes]

Wait, you've eaten them?

[John Ashbrook]

Yes.

[Josh Holmes]

No way. I didn't know you could do that.

[John Ashbrook]

Yes, you can.

[Comfortably Smug]

Where do you make the first cut when you're processing?

[John Ashbrook]

You make them at the ankles when you put them on the stirrups and then you rip it down and then somebody, you know, takes out the entrails and the guts and you got.

[Josh Holmes]

I didn't know you ate these.

[John Ashbrook]

You can eat them. So what you do, you take them to a processing plant. They're going to throw in like a ton of, like, jalapeno and cheese, and they're gonna make sausage for you and stuff like that. You can eat it.

[Josh Holmes]

I mean, you can't do a rack out of this.

[John Ashbrook]

No, it's quite good. Well, they will give you the back strap.

[Josh Holmes]

Oh, okay.

[John Ashbrook]

You can eat the back strap. You know, by itself, it's okay. Everything else needs to be processed, though, because it's pretty gaming.

[Michael Duncan]

Yeah, I'm gonna be.

[John Ashbrook]

I'm gonna be honest.

[Josh Holmes]

I mean, it's a filthy animal.

[Comfortably Smug]

You don't want the back strap of this one that we put.

[John Ashbrook]

No, not the blue ones.

[Josh Holmes]

No, it's a blue one. Yeah, we don't want that. Okay. So have you guys seen the drunk guy at the airport?

[Comfortably Smug]

No, I have not.

[Josh Holmes]

Do you know how many times I've thought about this?

[Comfortably Smug]

I can't wait to see.

[Josh Holmes]

Like, just think about, you know, when you're in the airport. First of all, there are no rules. Like, if you're at the airport and you're delayed for a couple hours, the only place that you can reasonably go to an airport bar at like 8am Order a tip Topper and nobody gives you a second look.

[Michael Duncan]

I told you about that story when I was in Dallas airport. I got stuck there and it was six in the morning, and I was like, well, what am I going to do? I went to the bar, I was like, my usual drink, double ribbon, neat. And they were like, texas law is like, you have to order a food and we can serve you hard liquor at 6am and they're like, we have $1 bread. And so I'm sitting there with like a double of bourbon and a plate with like a slice of bread on it. And then I look like two seats over and it's a dude with like two martinis and a slice of bread. And it's like, if you're in Dallas airport six in the morning, look for the dudes with bread. They're having a good day.

[John Ashbrook]

That's a good loophole. Unlike Ashbrook's loophole.

[Comfortably Smug]

Well, that is not. This is the old Pl, the Democrats loophole. Let's be very clear. This is what they talk about. It's how they get away with it.

[Josh Holmes]

It's the old Pl. Anyway, what you're about to observe is somebody who is exercising a thought that almost all of us have had at one point after being stuck in an airport for a prolonged period of time. Clip 3. Tom Brennan of Cheektowaga says he was shocked by what he saw when he.

[Comfortably Smug]

Arrived at the Buffalo Niagara International Airport early Monday morning.

[Josh Holmes]

Brennan posting this viral video on social media.

[Comfortably Smug]

Now, the video has been viewed nearly 100,000 times. It shows a man driving an airport.

[Josh Holmes]

Cart through the moving walkway, causing extensive damage to the walkway's glass and the cart. NFTA police arrested 29 year old Kevin Sinning of Wyoming following that incident. Police say Sinning was visibly intoxicated.

[John Ashbrook]

So.

[Josh Holmes]

So this dude.

[Comfortably Smug]

Oh, my goodness.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, so this dude, he. He was stuck in the airport for a prolonged period of time and he decided. You know those carts that just like whiz by?

[Michael Duncan]

Yep. The ones that'll beep at you.

[Josh Holmes]

They beep at you and they act like there's a. Some kind of a roadway in the middle of a hallway where everybody's walking. And like, it's always kind of pissed me off, but I've always thought, like, what if I just drove one of those?

[Michael Duncan]

Here's my question is, did that like, you know, the like, horizontal escalator, things like moving walkways, was it broken? And was he like, I've had enough.

[Josh Holmes]

I'm driving it right down the middle of it. We don't have this side of the story.

[John Ashbrook]

That's what I can't possibly understand is the logic of this. You've already acquired a motor vehicle.

[Josh Holmes]

I think he had a couple.

[John Ashbrook]

You get faster than the people mover. Why are you also on the people movement?

[Josh Holmes]

He had a couple of bread orders before he died.

[Comfortably Smug]

Yeah, I get it, I get it.

[Michael Duncan]

Because it looks like the thing is broken down and he's had enough. And, you know, like, here's the thing.

[Josh Holmes]

Look at him.

[Michael Duncan]

Like, there's nothing worse than airliners and airports. And the way that they treat people is criminal and they should be held accountable. Sadly, they probably never will be held accountable. And this is why people flip out when they're in airports. It is treated like garbage.

[Comfortably Smug]

And what Josh said is, what's wrong with the media today? We do not have his side of the story.

[Josh Holmes]

We don't.

[Comfortably Smug]

Nobody. Nobody has.

[Josh Holmes]

Nobody knows.

[John Ashbrook]

Can I ask you one question, Smug? You mentioned this bread and double bourbon meat situation in Dallas. Was that dfw? Was that love?

[Michael Duncan]

Dfw? I don't fly Southwest. Are you insane?

[John Ashbrook]

I thought love was the Southwest. I thought I could slip you up.

[Michael Duncan]

Yeah. Heck no.

[John Ashbrook]

I was gonna get him to say love.

[Michael Duncan]

Not happening. Dude, I love you.

[Josh Holmes]

Just slow rolled that grenade in there.

[Michael Duncan]

See if it works.

[John Ashbrook]

I'm a professional operator.

[Josh Holmes]

Yeah, well, he is too.

[Michael Duncan]

I mean, DFW is not great, but, man, it's not Southwest.

[Josh Holmes]

Lastly, some news out of China. It's not great. Stressed adults is according to New York Post, stressed adults rely on pacifiers to soothe themselves. Quote, I feel a sense of safety from childhood. Not good folks. Not good. I don't know what that means of the state of affairs in China, but if they are happy to report, you know, they don't allow you to have conversations all that often with the American media. If the this is. Well, it was in the South China Morning Post at one point so it's got to get some approval. Apparently it's okay in China to have.

[Michael Duncan]

Pacifiers as I can't believe they put up with this.

[Comfortably Smug]

I don't. I mean our great president knows weakness when he sees it and I think this is why he is doubling down on the trade war against China. He knows he can win.

[Josh Holmes]

Might very well be the case. Anyway, you got to remember our question of the day, which is are they going to arrest these guys or not?

[John Ashbrook]

Yep.

[Josh Holmes]

Texas Democrats. Are you going to see justice? And I think it's an open question. I mean there's statutes on the books as the governor was talking about and if they just refuse to come back, Rangers are involved and I've heard now.

[Michael Duncan]

The FBI, it's the same thing Dems are always counting on. Like remember years ago when AOC got fake arrested where she put her hands behind her back like she was handcuffed and she wasn't. Like they think they've got the optics on this of like oh boy, if we get arrested we look like we're some freedom fighters.

[Josh Holmes]

Lock them up. I it's it look well said.

[John Ashbrook]

If any place can do it, it's the great state of Texas.

[Josh Holmes]

It's been a hell of a week. We've learned a lot.

[John Ashbrook]

A lot. Some things I didn't want to learn.

[Josh Holmes]

Everything from the old Pl to the helicopter man in the woods to you know, a lot of other stuff. And now we're talking.

[Michael Duncan]

I mean I would love to close it with some of these Texas Dems getting rusted. That'd be ice.

[Josh Holmes]

It would be very good. Anyway, thank you for joining us this week. It has been an absolute pleasure here at the Ruthless Variety program Like and subscribe. Leave your comments to the question of the day and we're going to see you next Tuesday. I think we did it fellas.

[Michael Duncan]

I think so. Absolute banger of an episode. Gentlemen. Thank you so much, Governor Abbott and thank you so much to our listeners. Remember, if you have not yet go to the YouTube hit the subscribe it's more fun and video. So until next time. Time, minions. Keep the faith, hold the line and own the libs. We'll see you Tuesday. Stay ruthless.