Epstein, Trump & WSJ-MAGA Battle Explodes, plus Congress Defunds NPR & PBS and Stephen Colbert Canceled

Summary

The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson Episode: Epstein, Trump & WSJ-MAGA Battle Explodes, plus Congress Defunds NPR & PBS and Stephen Colbert Canceled
Release Date: July 18, 2025

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1. The Epstein Files and the Call for Transparency

Ben Ferguson opens the discussion by addressing the ongoing controversy surrounding Jeffrey Epstein's files and their purported connections to former President Donald Trump. Emphasizing the demand for greater transparency, Ferguson outlines four key principles essential for addressing the issue:

1. Support and Demand Transparency
   “Transparency is good. We should support transparency. We should demand transparency. We should fight for transparency.” [03:04]

2. Protect the Victims
   Ferguson highlights the need to safeguard the privacy and dignity of Epstein's victims, referencing conversations with Pam Bondi about the sensitive nature of the evidence.
   “Nobody wants to see children being sexually assaulted, having their privacy violated.” [04:00]

3. Release All Information
   Advocating for the complete disclosure of all relevant materials, Ferguson insists that withholding information only fuels distrust.
   “Release it all. That should be the basic standard.” [04:30]

4. Prosecute Predators
   The necessity of holding perpetrators accountable is stressed, ensuring that justice is served for those harmed.
   “Predators should be prosecuted. Anyone who sexually assaulted a child should be prosecuted and they should go to jail.” [05:00]

2. The Trump vs. Wall Street Journal Legal Battle

A significant portion of the episode delves into the tumultuous relationship between Donald Trump and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The WSJ reported that a purported letter from Trump to Epstein was authentic, prompting Trump's vehement denial and threats of legal action.

Ferguson scrutinizes the credibility of the WSJ's report, highlighting inconsistencies that cast doubt on its authenticity: “If any of us have a BS meter, it ought to be flashing. So here's what the Wall Street Journal reported... It doesn't seem like Donald J. Trump.” [09:45]

Trump's response was unequivocal: “The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch personally were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they were printed by President Trump to Epstein was a fake... Trump will be suing the Wall Street Journal.” [16:35]

Ted Cruz supports Trump's stance, drawing parallels to past instances where Trump successfully challenged misleading media narratives: “When he sued, he's been right.” [17:16]

Ferguson further reinforces Trump's position by presenting additional arguments:

1. Lack of Evidence in Biden's Tenure
   “If there were evidence of Donald Trump in the Epstein files, Biden would have released it.” [17:16]

2. Jeffrey Epstein's Democratic Ties
   Emphasizing Epstein's connections to Democrats, including a peculiar detail about a painting in Epstein's residence.
   “Jeffrey Epstein was a Democrat. He was a friend of Bill [Clinton].” [18:09]

3. Trump's Pursuit of Transparency
   “Based on the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein, I have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent grand jury testimony subject to court approval.” [18:45]

3. Congress Defunds NPR and PBS

A landmark legislative move saw Congress, with significant input from conservative factions, successfully defund NPR and PBS, marking a major victory for conservatives after decades of efforts.

Ferguson narrates the arduous battle to achieve this outcome: “Right before the election... the Senate finally voted to cut off to zero out taxpayer funding. We're no longer paying for left-wing propaganda.” [25:08]

Ted Cruz elaborates on the motivations behind this decision, arguing that public broadcasting has become overtaken by partisan activism: “Public broadcasting has long been overtaken by partisan activists. NPR and PBS have revealed their left-wing bias time and time again.” [28:05]

Key Points Raised:

• NPR's Alleged Liberal Bias:
  “NPR has always had a liberal bent. They don't have an audience that reflects America.” [28:10]

• PBS's Skewed Coverage:
  “PBS coverage of last year's DNC was only 12% negative. The RNC, a staggering 72% negative.” [29:00]

• Call for Balanced Media Consumption:
  Ferguson urges taxpayers to seek politically diverse media sources instead of funding perceived propaganda outlets.
  “If you want to publish articles like this, that is your right as an American... but we're not for taking $500 million every single year and giving it to these stations.” [32:00]

4. The Cancellation of Stephen Colbert's Show

The episode takes a noteworthy turn discussing the abrupt cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s long-running late-night show, portraying it as a casualty of his increasingly partisan demeanor.

Ferguson criticizes Colbert for abandoning the traditional role of late-night hosts as neutral comedic commentators: “Stephen Colbert is a vicious, dishonest, partisan leftist. He despises more than half of America.” [35:04]

He reminisces about the earlier days of his own appearances on various late-night shows, contrasting them with the perceived decline caused by Colbert: “None of the late-night shows have Republicans on anymore. They don't invite anyone.” [37:00]

Ted Cruz echoes these sentiments, attributing the cancellation to Colbert’s failure to maintain comedic neutrality: “His show became this sanctimonious woke lecture every night attacking half of America.” [38:25]

Ferguson juxtaposes Colbert’s approach with what he views as healthier comedic formats: “Team America, World Police... making fun of both sides. That's comedy.” [41:26]

5. The MAGA and Trump Supporters' Internal Struggles

The podcast addresses the perceived internal conflicts within the conservative movement, particularly between MAGA supporters and Trump's base. Ferguson reassures listeners that a civil war between these groups is unlikely, despite media portrayals: “Millions of conservatives... the media has been just beside themselves trying to flame a civil war. They’re hoping that all of the elements of the conservative movement... will consume each other. I don’t think that’s going to happen.” [06:35]

He advises maintaining composure and adhering to the outlined principles to navigate the turmoil: “Part of my advice to everyone is just breathe. Count to 10. We're gonna make it through this.” [07:00]

6. Media Critique and Call for Responsible Journalism

Throughout the episode, Ferguson and Cruz present a critical view of mainstream media outlets, accusing them of bias and prioritizing sensationalism over factual reporting.

Ferguson highlights specific instances where NPR allegedly failed to cover significant stories, implying political motivation: “After the New York Post broke the Hunter Biden laptop story, NPR ran political cover for the Democrats, refusing to cover the story.” [28:20]

Cruz concurs, emphasizing the need for the media to uphold truthful and unbiased reporting: “The press has to learn to be truthful and not to rely on sources that probably don't even exist.” [17:00]

7. Conclusion and Forward Look

Closing the episode, Ferguson reiterates the successes of the current administration, including border security measures, ending specific policies, and securing legislative victories like defunding NPR and PBS. He maintains an optimistic outlook on the future of the conservative movement and its influence on American politics.

“We won. We won. The Senate voted to cut off to zero out taxpayer funding. We're no longer paying for left-wing propaganda.” [34:30]

Ted Cruz wraps up by encouraging listeners to stay engaged through the podcast and upcoming episodes: “Make sure you subscribe to Verdict with Ted Cruz. Wherever you get your podcast, have a fabulous week.” [42:56]

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Notable Quotes

• Ben Ferguson on Transparency:
  “Transparency is good. We should support transparency. We should demand transparency. We should fight for transparency.” [03:04]

• Trump’s Response to WSJ Report:
  “The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch personally were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they were printed by President Trump to Epstein was a fake... Trump will be suing the Wall Street Journal.” [16:35]

• Defunding NPR and PBS:
  “NPR and PBS have revealed their left-wing bias time and time again.” [28:10]

• Cancellation of Stephen Colbert:
  “Stephen Colbert is a vicious, dishonest, partisan leftist. He despises more than half of America.” [35:04]

• Media Critique:
  “After the New York Post broke the Hunter Biden laptop story, NPR ran political cover for the Democrats, refusing to cover the story.” [28:20]

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This episode of The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson provides a comprehensive examination of the intersection between high-profile political scandals, media accountability, and legislative actions shaping the conservative landscape in America. Through incisive commentary and strategic interviews, Ferguson and his guests navigate the complexities of power, transparency, and ideological battles defining the current political era.

Transcript

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[Ted Cruz]

Welcome. It is Verdict with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. Senator, we have got so much to talk about on the show, including a lot that deals with the Epstein quote, files and people are demanding transparency.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, there's an absolute battle playing out in Washington, D.C. and you've got a battle about the Epstein files, President Trump, the Wall Street Journal, Pam Bondi, Cash Patel, Dan Bongino. It is chaos. We're going to do our very best to break down what's going on, what to expect, what's going to happen next. We're also going to talk about really important legislation that just passed. Congress passed the Senate, defunding pbs, defunding npr. This is a major conservative victory. We've been trying to do this for decades and we finally got it done. And finally we're going to talk about something that I'm going to confess is just beautiful. Stephen Colbert has been fired. He's been cancelled. We're going to break that down, talk about what's going on. A lot is happening right now.

[Ted Cruz]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, I think millions of conservatives, millions of Americans have been frustrated in the last week because the media has been just beside themselves trying to flame a civil war. They wanted a civil war between MAGA and Trump, and they're hoping that all of the elements of the conservative movement, all of the elements of President Trump and his supporters will consume each other. I don't think that's going to happen. So. So part of my advice to everyone is just breathe. Count to 10. We're gonna make it through this. Now, let me give you some. Some ways to think through this. I'm gonna give you four principles. Number one, transparency is good. We should support transparency. We should demand transparency. We should fight for transparency. That's important. Number two, protect the victims. A couple of months ago, I had dinner with Pam Bondi. Pam is a good friend. We were talking about the Epstein files and what had been released. What she told me then is she said that there were hundreds, even thousands of hours of tapes. The tapes were explicit. She said they were explicit of children being abused. And she said it was taking time to edit those videos to make sure you protect the victims. Look, nobody wants to See children being sexually assaulted, having their privacy violated. So I think it's important to protect the victims. It's not their fault. Number three, and this is a principle, I have said for years on this issue, release it all. That should be the basic standard. Put it out there, release it all, make it public. That's what I've encouraged the president to do, the White House to do, the Department of Justice to do, the FBI to do. I think that is a simple and straightforward standard. And then number four, predators should be prosecuted. Anyone who sexually assaulted a child should be prosecuted and they should go to jail. This is a simple and straightforward standard. This is what we should be demanding. Now, we're going to break this down in this show. We're going to talk about what's going on, but understand the media. You were on CNN earlier tonight. CNN is so excited. They're so excited because they're seeing strong supporters of the president who are criticizing the president. CNN doesn't care about the truth. If they cared about the truth. By the way, Joe Biden had these files. He had these files for years. Did CNN ever mention the words Jeffrey Epstein? They didn't want Joe Biden to release the files. They didn't want Merrick Garland to release the files. They, they're not concerned about the substance. They're just excited about the civil war among President Trump and his supporters. That should tell you something. We're going to break that down even further. But understand, at the end of the day, the people cheering on for this to get ugly, many of them, the Democrats and the corporate media, have been proven to be utter and complete hypocrites. Because if they didn't say a word when Joe Biden was president, then they need to be quiet right now and stop pretending they care about this.

[Ted Cruz]

Let's talk about what transparency looks like. And this was one of the big debates, as you mentioned, CNN obsessed over this. And I said, look, this has to be done a responsible way. I also think the American people need to understand Donald Trump cannot just sign and everything go out to the public. There are judges that will have to decide what is made public in a lot of the information we have on Jeffrey Epstein. And they're trying to act like Donald Trump's the one that's not allowing anything to happen. That's not the case.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, that's right. And listen, the media and the Democrats have been eager to fan a dispute between Pam Bondi, Cash Patel and Dan Bongino. Not now. I want to caution everyone, do not take as true everything reported in the media. I've read the same things you are. That Dan Bongino screaming at Pam Bondi that there's a civil war, that he's threatening to resign, that Cash Patel's threatening to resign. I don't know. I have not been in these meetings. I'll tell you, all three of them are friends of mine. I like Pam Bondi, I like Cash Patel, I like Dan Bongino. I've known all of them for a decade. I believe they're good people. I believe they're principled people. I believe they're trying to do the right thing. And my hope is the Trump administration will follow the four principles I laid out and handle this the right way. But do not get carried away with the media excitement of the people who hate President Trump, hate his administration, and want his administration to be in a civil war. I very much hope, I do not know, but I hope that Bondi, Patel and Bongino come together and they do the right thing together and do not believe the exaggerations of a civil war.

[Ted Cruz]

Right now, Senator, I want to get in also to another big story that came out. It dealt with Epstein and the Wall Street Journal report. The president punching back extremely hard on this reporting.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, the Wall Street Journal reported this week that there was a book prepared for Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday, and it had letters from a number of prominent people, and that one of the letters was from Donald Trump. And this was a breathless article. And you're right, President Trump is punching back hard. He says it is fake. He says it is false. He says he's going to sue the Wall Street Journal. Now, Ben, you don't know the truth on this. I don't know the truth on this. I'll tell you what the Wall Street Journal reported just on the text of it, I got to admit, this thing sounds weird. And, and, and if any of us have a BS meter, it ought to be flashing. So here's what the Wall Street Journal reported, reported the letter said, quote, voiceover, there must be more to life than having everything. And then it's this weird dialogue. DONALD yes, there is. But I won't tell you what it is, nor will I, since I also know what it is. DONALD we have certain things in common. JEFFREY yes, we do. Come to think of it, DONALD enigmas never age. Have you noticed that? JEFFREY As a matter of fact, it was clear to me the last time I saw you. DONALD A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret. And then Underneath that is a hand drawn, pretty shoddy drawing of a naked woman and the now very famous signature of Donald Trump drawn on top of the hand drawn naked woman. Now look, I don't know if this is real or not, but I gotta say that doesn't sound like Donald Trump to me. I've known President Trump a long time. That exchange just sounds strange. I've seen online, I've never heard President Trump use the word enigma, as in enigmas never age. That's not the language President Trump speaks in this sort of weird, existential, self reflective dialogue out of Camus. That ain't the Donald J. Trump I know. And I gotta say, President Trump's response on this, it was not ambiguous, it was not slight, it was not conflicted. Here's what President Trump said in response to this. He said on truth, quote, the Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch personally were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they were printed by President Trump to Epstein was a fake, all caps, and if they print it, they will be sued. Mr. Murdoch stated that he would take care of it, but obviously did not have the power to do so. The editor of the Wall Street Journal, Emma Tucker, was told directly by Caroline Levitt and by President Trump that the letter was a fake, all caps. But Emma Tucker didn't want to hear that. Instead they're going with a false, malicious and defamatory story. Anyway, President Trump will be suing the Wall Street Journal News Corps and Mr. Murdoch shortly. The press has to learn to be truthful and not to rely on sources that probably don't even exist. President Trump has already beaten George Stephanopoulos, ABC, 60 Minutes, CBS and others, and looks forward to suing and holding accountable the once great Wall Street Journal. It has truly turned out to be a, quote, disgusting and filthy rag. And writing defamatory lies like this shows their desperation to remain relevant. If there were any truth at all on the Epstein hoax as it pertains to President Trump, the information would have been revealed by Comey Brennan, Crooked Hillary and the other radical left lunatics years ago. It certainly would not have sat in the file waiting for Trump to have won three elections. This is yet another example of fake news. Now, I gotta say, President Trump is not being shy or subtle or restrained on that. He's saying it's an absolute lie. And look, I think we'll see this play out in the days ahead. But on the face of it, like the strange drawing of a naked woman that seems like it's drawn by about a 12 year old. That doesn't seem like anything I've ever seen President Trump do. And so, and it's kind of very conveniently signed with the same signature we've seen on pictures, on laws, on executive orders, on pardons. It has a lot of appearances of being fake. We'll see what happens.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, and the clear point the President was making was he's saying it's not real, and I'm going to sue suing. By the way, the company owns Fox News. That's a pretty bold statement. I also think that, you know, goes to the heart here where he's saying, this is not a real story. This is. And, and let's also be clear, when the President digs in, traditionally, we have seen when he says this is not a real story. Russia collusion is a great example of that. He, he's been right. And when he sued, he's been right.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, and let me make three points that are critical in analyzing this battle between Trump and the Wall Street Journal. Number one, the most compelling argument he made this in his, in his truth is if there were evidence of Donald Trump in the Epstein files, Biden would have released it. Biden had this. Merrick Garland had this. They were in the middle of a nasty fight. If they had anything to implicate Donald Trump, we would have seen this on the front pages of the paper in October of 2024, right before the election. The fact that they didn't, I think, is the single most compelling piece of evidence to suggest that this is not real. Number two, and I want to underscore this, don't forget Bill Clinton. Jeffrey Epstein was a Democrat. He was a friend of Bill. You know what was hanging in Jeffrey Epstein's living room in his Manhattan brownstone?

[Ted Cruz]

Ah, the famous Bill Clinton blue dress painting.

[Ryan Seacrest]

No, that's exactly right. It was a painting of Bill Clinton in a blue dress, wearing red pumps. It was weird. And that's what Jeffrey Epstein had hanging on his wall. He was a huge Democrat donor. He supported Chuck Schumer and Democrats. And so don't forget Bill Clinton. And there's a lot of effort to paint this Democrat scumbag as, as, as a Trump guy. And a final point, here's what President Trump truthed this week. Quote, based on the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein, I have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent grand jury testimony subject to court approval. This scam perpetuated, perpetuated by the Democrats should end right now. Bravo. Release it. All that was right in the Principles we said right up front. The following is an ad paid for by Kirk Elliot Precious Metals.

[Ted Cruz]

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[Bubba Wallace]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Bubba Wallace]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Bubba Wallace]

Thanks, Ben. I appreciate your trust. We're here to help people move forward with confidence, no matter what the headlines say or the world throws at us.

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[Ted Cruz]

Amen to that. And let's talk about some winning that's been taking place center. It's been amazing what the President has been able to do with Benjamin.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Are you tired of winning?

[Ted Cruz]

I'm not. I'm not tired. I'm not tired of winning, that's for sure.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I'm not tired at all.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, you look at just the last six months, the Trump administration, we've secured the border, they've launched ICE raids, they've ended child gender surgeries, they designate the cartels as terrorist organizations, they've kicked out DI out of government and then the big one, which should make so many taxpayers happy, they have defunded NPR with your help and leadership.

[Ryan Seacrest]

They.

[Ted Cruz]

That is amazing.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, I gotta say this, this week was a very important week. So at 2:20 in the morning, late Wednesday night, early Thursday morning, the Senate voted and we voted to defund NPR and defund pbs. Now as a conservative, I have been fighting to defund NPR and PBS as long as I can remember. Npr, PBS have been left wing propaganda outlets forever. And as bad as they were, look when we were kids, when it was Sesame street and Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, okay, that was fine. But in recent years they have been radicalized. They always lean left. But in recent years they've been open outlets for left wing propaganda. And I gotta say, the left was certain we could never defund them. And I will tell you on the Senate floor, as we were taking up the rescissions package, so President Trump sent a package of some $9 billion of rescissions federal spendings to Call back. We were battling on the floor and we had, it was beyond 2 in the morning. It was very unclear if we were going to prevail because I got to say there were several Republicans who were wobbly. There were several Republicans who were threatening to vote with the Democrats. And as late as about 2 in the morning, I didn't know if we were going to win. We did prevail. And I got to say, what a testament to the President and what a testament, let me give it just a shout out to Senate Republicans and House Republicans for coming together, for pushing past their differences. Defunding NPR and PBS is the right thing to do. And the Senate finally, finally, finally voted to do that this week.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah, this, this is such a big message, I think, to taxpayers that we're no longer in the business of just completely abusing your tax dollars and actually using your tax dollars to go for political purposes. Which is the scariest part of all of this, is how political these dollars had become. Advocating for radical, extreme things against family values. And by the way, I don't want our tax hours going for conservative things, of course, broadcasting either. That's, that's, I want to make that very clear. Like that's not what we're advocating for at all.

[Ryan Seacrest]

We, the government should not be in the propaganda business. This is the argument I made on the Senate floor. So listen to what I stood up and urged my colleagues late Wednesday night, early Thursday morning. Give a listen.

[I]

Public broadcasting has long been overtaken by partisan activists. Plain and simple. This isn't just an abstract critique. NPR and PBS have revealed their left wing bias time and time again when blowing the whistle on npr. Uri Berliner, a former senior editor, himself a left wing Democrat, wrote that NPR has always had a liberal bent. An open minded spirit no longer exists within npr. We don't have an audience that reflects America. Exhibit A. After the New York Post broke the Hunter Biden laptop story, NPR ran political cover for the Democrats, refusing to cover the story. Quote, we don't want to waste listeners and readers time on stories that are just pure distractions. Mind you, the story was true. That's why they didn't want to cover it. As for PBS, its coverage of last year's DNC was only 12% negative. The RNC a staggering 72% negative. If you want to watch left wing propaganda, turn on msnbc. But the taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize it. I urge a no vote on this.

[Ted Cruz]

Amendment that obviously was very powerful and the facts that you laid out there are Also incredibly accurate.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Look, the principle is simple and I'll say it again. If you want to watch left wing propaganda, turn on MSNBC or for that matter, CNN or for that matter, read the New York Times or any of a host of corporate media outlets. But you know, what we shouldn't be doing is using your taxpayer money to subsidize it. And I gotta say I'm gonna give a shout out to my colleague John Kennedy. John is a good friend, but he also has a fabulous sense of humor. I want you to listen to John Kennedy talking about npr, some of the most radical stories they've run.

[J]

I want to give you a few examples of stories that NPR has published using taxpayer money. I'll just read the headlines. First headline, NPR News Service Michael Avenatti, quote, a profile of the media savvy attorney. They love Michael Avenatti. You know where Michael Avenatti is today? He's in jail. You know why? He's a crook. But for a while he was a media darling on npr. Here's another headline from npr, how racism became a marketing tool for country music. I kid you not. American taxpayers are spending half a billion dollars a year to pay a local station to buy content that says country music is racist. Here's another headline from npr, Donald Trump's long embrace of Vladimir Putin. Remember the Russiagate, the Steele dossier? NPR was right in there promoting it. Couple more headlines that NPR is putting out there using your tax dollars. This headline, monuments and Teams have changed names. Let me say it again. Monuments and teams. Presumably sports teams have changed names as America reckons with racism. Birds are next. I don't know any birds that are racist. Here's another headline, Eating Less Beef is a Climate Solution. Eating less Beef is a Climate Solution. I don't have anything against vegetarians. I'm a semi vegetarian myself. I eat beef and beef. Cows eat grass, so that makes me a semi vegetarian. But that's my choice. Not on npr. Eating less beef is a climate solution. Here's why that's hard for some American men. Here's a final headline I could go on the rest of the evening. How the Taliban adds to Afghanistan's woes when it comes to climate fueled disaster. Boy, I can tell you that's on the mind of every person in Afghanistan today is climate change and the Taliban. I can guarantee you I don't have a problem with these headlines. This is America. If you want to publish articles like this, which no person with a brain above a single cell organism would call fair and balanced, if you're a news outlet and you want to publish this kind of stuff, that is your right as an American. We have freedom of the press. We have the First Amendment. You're not freeing our country if you can't say what you think. You're not freeing our country if you can't express yourself. I'm all for this if that's what these outlets want to do, but I'm not for taking $500 million every single year and giving it to these stations at the, to the exclusion of everybody else so they can do it.

[Ted Cruz]

Amen to that, Senator. I couldn't agree with your colleague and good friend Senator Kennedy more.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I love John Kennedy. I will say he said something in that. As you know, I'm married to California vegetarian. Her entire family are all vegetarians. And an argument I make with my in laws often is I say, listen, all the animals I eat, they're all vegetarian. And I will say, you've owned a barbecue restaurant. I am a proud carnivore. John Kennedy is fantastic. But NPR and PBS are a joke. And we have reason to celebrate because despite a massive battle, we won. We won. We won. The Senate voted to cut off to zero out taxpayer funding. We're no longer paying for left wing propaganda.

[Ted Cruz]

Senator, there is just some news that shocked the left. I, I don't know how this could be true, but the Late show has been destroyed by Stephen Colbert. The point where they're like, we're not even just firing you, we're just canceling the entire brand that has been a staple in American culture, an iconic show for decades and now they're just like, yeah, we're done. I, I mean, it's amazing, right? You, you, you alienate half the country, you hate half the country, you mock half the country could have seen this coming.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, look, I got to say, what you and I talked about just a few minutes ago, I'm not tired of winning yet. Stephen Colbert is a vicious, dishonest, partisan leftist. He is utterly consumed with Trump Derangement syndrome and he hates, he despises more than half of America. He thinks we're idiots. He thinks we're racist. He thinks we're morons. He is a condescending, arrogant jackass. Now look, I say this with direct experience. I've been on Colbert show. There used to be a time. Listen, I'm someone, I love comedy. I love late night comedy. I grew up watching an snl. I grew up watching Johnny Carson and Jay Leno and like really fun late night comedy. And by the way, if you got a sense of humor. You can laugh at both sides. I'm okay with late night comics making fun of Republicans, making fun of Democrats. Look, both sides are funny. There's lots of jokes to tell. There used to be a time I've been in the Senate 13 years. When I got there, it was part of the job. I've done just about every late night show. I've done Jay Leno, I've done Colbert, I've done Jimmy Kimmel, I've done Jimmy Fallon. It was a fun part of the job. It's disappeared. None of the late night shows have Republicans on anymore. They don't invite anyone. In fact, it was really fitting. Stephen Colbert's show where he announced, I've been canceled. I'm pulled off the air. You know who his guest was? Adam Schiff, because. Of course it was Adam Schiff, because. And Colbert's the worst of them. He's a vicious, nasty. So I remember when I first did a show, you know, you know, the hosts come by and they talk to you in the green room and they chat with you. And, you know, I said, look, like all of these late night comics, they think they're gonna be, you know, they're gonna be this like, meet the press, like, we're gonna ask you really tough questions. By the way, Democrats, they have love fests. They laugh, they, they joke, they kid around. But with the Republicans, they're gonna nail you to the ground. And I'm like, look, you want to ask tough questions, that's fine. But you go on a late night comedy show to humanize, to say a little bit of who you are, to laugh. And Colbert just got angry. He's just like, I want to prove you are evil. You are the devil. And by the way, they don't even do that anymore. They just don't have Republicans on. And Colbert, of all of them, was the worst. By the way, Jimmy Fallon of the late night guys is the best. Fallon. You know, it's interesting. Fallon inherited Jay Leno's audience. Jay Leno inherited Johnny Carson's audience. Their audience is a lot of Midwestern conservatives. And so Jimmy Fallon, like, I had a great time. I did Jimmy Fallon back when I was running for president. He had a very funny skit where he dressed up as Donald Trump and called me and went back and forth. But he was the one late night host who was not a jerk. Actually, Leno wasn't either, but that was, that was early on. Colbert is directly responsible, along with his compatriots, with destroying late night Comedy. And I want to play, by the.

[Ted Cruz]

Way, it's because it wasn't humor.

[Ryan Seacrest]

It's not funny. It's just. I hate you. I hate you, I hate you is not funny.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah. It's also, by the way, the reason why I think Shane Gillis was at the ESPYs, because His goodness, like humor, humor is actually back. And Colbert turned his show into this, like sanctimonious woke lecture every night attacking half of America.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, and let me prove it. I want to play just, just a, a, a selection of, you know, he became this, this like scold for. You must get the COVID vaccine. And here are a couple of examples of this bizarre song he did. You're going to listen to it. I wish you could see the videos because the videos have him dancing like a fruitcake nut dressed as a human syringe. But just listen to it because you can get a sense of just how sanctimonious he was. Give a listen.

[J]

Find out the way the vaccine is changing. The scene in our new recurring segment, the vac scene.

[Ted Cruz]

Cha, cha, cha, cha.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Longer, longer stall. Why the can. Can you ask? I asked that myself.

[Bubba Wallace]

The answer public domain.

[Ryan Seacrest]

It's the answer to most things, really.

[J]

The vaccine, the vaccine.

[Ted Cruz]

We are the vaccine.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Get your shot right now in your arm.

[Ted Cruz]

It won't hurt.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Then go hug your mom.

[Travis Holloway]

Get your shot.

[Ted Cruz]

Hug your mom.

[Travis Holloway]

Get your shot.

[Ted Cruz]

Hug your mom. But by the way, I just wonder like, how many of those segments had vaccine commercials from pharmaceutical companies in there. And it's like, hey, I got you. I'll do a big thing. They.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I am Stephen Colbert. Sponsored by Pfizer.

[Ted Cruz]

Right, Exactly. They put this thing out, it's 10 minutes and 49 seconds long, by the way. I say they literally. The video we just played from you was the quote, vaccine. The box set, the Late show with Stephen Colbert. They put this out themselves and were that proud of it?

[Ryan Seacrest]

No, they were proud of it. And it's, it's vicious, it's nasty and it's not funny. Like, I'm fine with a comedy host that makes fun of everyone. That, that's, you know, one of my favorite movies. And we didn't include this when we did on July 4th, our movie section. But one of my favorite movies was Team America, World Police. Did you ever see that, Ben?

[Ted Cruz]

Oh, yeah. Great movie.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hysterical movie. And it's done. It is. It's puppets and it makes fun of both sides. It makes fun of Republicans, but it makes fun of Democrats. And it's. Now, I will warn you it is profane. I had the incredibly poor judgment to play this video for my in laws on a family vacation. And I will tell you, about nine minutes into it, when they had dropped the 32nd F bomb, I was like, okay, wow, this was a really bad idea. And my mother in law is frowning at me and I'm like, wow, okay, nevermind. But unbelievably funny because it's actually comedy. It's making fun. Just watching Stephen Colbert saying I hate Donald Trump. Yes, Stephen, we got you. But you know what? Stephen Colbert is now unemployed. He's been canceled. And he's been canceled because oddly enough, Americans don't like to listen to someone screaming at them. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I'm smarter than you. I'm a left wing elitist, I make millions of dollars and I despise you. And so I gotta say, in response to his musical medley urging everyone, you must get the vaccine, I have a different musical medley that I want to say not just to Stephen Colbert, but also to NPR and to pbs. Here's my musical response.

[Ted Cruz]

Truly amazing. You gotta love that song right there. Don't forget, we do this podcast, this show, I say as a podcast three days a week. So make sure you subscribe to Verdict with Ted Cruz. Wherever you get your podcast, have a fabulous week. The center and I will see you back here on this radio station wherever you are next weekend. And hopefully you'll hear us three days a week on the podcast. Have a great one.

[Ben Ferguson]

Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest. Life comes at you fast, which is why it's important to find some time to relax a little.

[Travis Holloway]

You time.

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Travis Holloway]

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[Ted Cruz]

Oh, hey.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hey. Thanks for meeting me here. It's just you're my only lawyer friend and I need your professional opinion. Do you see that brand new Hyundai Tucson out there? That's all I paid for it.

[Travis Holloway]

Ah, let me get back to you on that deal. So right it almost feels wrong. At the Hyundai Getaway sales event, get 0% apron for 60 months plus zero payments for 90 days on all Hyundai Santa Fe models. And check out our other great deals at your Hyundai dealer today. Offer end September 2nd. Call 562-314-4603 for details.

[Christiane Amanpour]

This episode is brought to you by Navy Federal Credit Union. Navy Federal offers a Home Buyer's Choice loan that can open the door to affordable home ownership. Because the Homebuyer's Choice loan has no down payment options available, which means you don't have to wait years to save. Plus, you may be able to lower your rate in the future without refinancing with their no refi rate drop. Learn more@navy federal.org Navy Federal Credit Union terms and conditions apply. Equal housing lender loans subject to approval and eligibility requirements. Learn more at Navy Federal.

[Jamie Rubin]

I'm Christiana Manpour, and I've been on the front lines and interviewing world leaders for more than 30 years.

[Ryan Seacrest]

And I'm Jamie Rubin, a former advisor to both Presidents Clinton and Biden.

[Jamie Rubin]

We were married for 20 years and divorced for seven. Now we've joined forces on the X Files to make sense of how we ended up with no world order. Listen to Christiana Manpour presents the X files on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

[Ryan Seacrest]

This is an iHeart podcast.