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Ben Ferguson
Welcome. It is Verdict with Senator Ted Cruz, Ben Ferguson with you. And Senator, we are finally getting some intel from the Harris campaign on exactly how they're going to run this presidential campaign through election day. And it seems like they're taking a play out of the playbook of Joe Biden's election just four years ago.
Senator Ted Cruz
Well, that's right. We're 88 days out from election day and it is now clear how Kamala Harris and the Democrats intend to run this campaign. Kamala Harris has effectively entered witness protection. They're doing everything they can to shut her up, to keep her silent. Since she became the presumptive Democratic nominee, she's done a total of zero media interviews. She's done a total of zero press conferences. She doesn't answer questions. She doesn't ad lib. And look, there's a reason why she doesn't ad lib. We've all seen a million different clips of her saying bizarre things, saying things that are unintelligible, laughing, bizarrely. The Democrats don't want any of that. So here's what the next 88 days are going to entail. The next 88 days are going to entail Kamala reading from a teleprompter. She's going to read from a teleprompter, word for word, speech after speech, rally for rally. She's going to read what they type out for her to say. Beyond that, she's not going to talk to any reporters. She's going to stay in the basement. For all I know, it may be the basement next to Joe Biden who's tied up in the basement. And their plan, their plan that they believe they'll win on is for the corporate media to spend billions of dollars doing a massive PR campaign. It is cynical. It is a cynical basement strategy and it is a basement strategy that has a potential to work. And so we need to understand just how formidable it is. We're going to break it down. We're going to talk about what it means for this campaign.
Ben Ferguson
Yeah, it's really interesting to see this strategy, especially since she's able bodied and supposed to be the young, vibrant candidate, how they're going to sell this, the American people of her in hiding. And it's for different reasons than they hid Joe Biden. Let me also tell you real quick about my friends over at Ammo Squared. And if you're like me and you love to be able to shoot and hunt and practice shooting and you don't want to run out of ammo and you experience what Everybody did. During COVID you couldn't find ammo. And when you did find it, it was outrageously priced. Well, now you don't have to worry about that ever again when there's the next crisis. Because Ammo Squared helps, you stock up on ammunition automatically. It's truly automated. Set it and forget it. Ammo purchasing program. You pick your calibers, you set your budget, you select a shipping trigger, and bam, that's it. Your ammo grows over time and is stored for free as it builds up. And it's shipped with a click of a button or automatically, however you want to do it. Now look, it's basically ammunition subscription on steroids because you aren't forced into a set budget or a shipment every month. Instead, you decide your budget. You schedule when you want your ammo to arrive. Ammo Squared offers more than 60 different caliber options. And if you ever change calibers while you're storing up that ammo, you can trade it in and get another caliber. Now here's the other cool thing. Let's say ammo prices go through the roof and you want to capitalize off of your investment, you can sell your ammo back for big profits. Everything's managed online. And I want to give you some free ammo right now. Go to ammo squared.com Ben and you are going to get free ammo in your account today. That's ammo squared.com Ben. Remember, there's no minimum to buy, no memberships needed and no extra fees. Customers can buy ammo on a small budget and then watch it grow over time, just like a savings account. It's amazing. Ammo squared.com Ben today to get free ammo in your account. Senator, there was two interesting headlines that really, I think encompass what's happening with Harris campaign and hiding her. One of them was Harris, quote, refuses to comment on Trump's debate challenge. Then she refused to comment about doing an interview. Then the campaign, quote, declined requests for comment about why Harris declines request for comment on the issues of the campaign. That is a headline you cannot make up.
Senator Ted Cruz
Well, and this is going to be their strategy for the next 88 days. And listen, if you're a Democrat, understand why this is attractive. To be honest, this was their strategy in the last election. Joe Biden four years ago already had severe mental diminution. He was not mentally up to the campaign. And what did they do? They literally locked him in the basement. I don't know if the White House has a basement, but if they have, it wouldn't surprise me if they had him chained to a wall. I mean, he was not allowed out. He was not allowed in camera sight. He was not allowed to speak to a microphone. And I think they put Kamala in the same cell. And it's, you know, from the Democrats perspective, if your candidate is really good, if your candidate is impressive, if your candidate is charming, if your candidate has powerful and profound things to say, then you want to get your candidate out there. You want to inspire people. You want to show this is our candidate's vision for America. So there's a problem for Kamala Harris, for Democrats, their vision for America is terrible. It is radical. It is extreme. Kamala's vision for America is open borders for four more years. Kamala's vision for America is trillions more in spending, trillions more in debt, and as a result, inflation skyrocketing. Kamala's vision for America is releasing violent criminals from jail. Kamala's vision for America is undermining our friends and allies, especially the state of Israel. Kamala's vision for America is continuing to show weakness and appeasement to our enemies, to Hamas, to Hezbollah, to Iran, to Venezuela, to North Korea, to China, to Russia, to all of them. And if you're thinking about it, that's not a very attractive campaign to actually try to win in November. So they don't want to do any of that. What they want to do instead is scripts that are sort of vaguely affirming. Remember, look, Obama ran on a campaign of hope and change. They're trying to have Kamala running a similar campaign. Hope and change. Hope and change. Don't ask what the hope is. Don't ask what the change is. You know, in. In her speech that's written for. It's starting to say. She's starting to say, I'm going to take on the big corporations and drive down inflation. Now, never mind that she is part of the incumbent administration. She and Joe Biden are the sitting vice president and president of the United States. So if there's some magic wand that the president has, presumably she and Joe would be waiving it. It's empty rhetoric. But I got to tell you, Bennett is dangerous. Because I think from the press's perspective, there's a very real possibility not only are they going to let her get away with it, they're going to be actively complicit, because basically what they're doing is they're punting to the press and saying, you guys got this. We got 88 days. Tell the message every day. And to be honest, at least A couple of weeks into it, it's working from Kamala's perspective, things are going much, much better than they were just a couple of weeks ago. And, Ben, let's also pause and think what a four weeks we've had in politics. In four weeks in politics, we've seen President Trump shot at and nearly assassinated. We've seen Joe Biden, the sitting president, unceremoniously removed from the presidential ballot. We've seen Donald Trump pick his vice presidential nominee. We've seen Kamala Harris pick her vice presidential nominee. That's all happened in four weeks. And I got to say, the entire race has been turned topsy turvy, and now they want to keep Kamala muzzled and hidden at all times.
Ben Ferguson
You know, you look at the headline, and this one is one of those that just. It's a. It's a head scratcher quote, Kamala Harris vows to schedule an interview before the end of the month. Traditionally, Senator, when you're running for office, especially when you're running for the presidency, you want to do interviews. You want to be seen. You want people to be listening to your messaging, your agenda, your plan, right. Your goals and aspirations for the country. That's part of campaigning. But when you walk into this thing and you're Harris, and you are a radical, you're a socialist, communist, Marxist, and maybe your agenda isn't that palpable to the American people. Is that part of the strategy now? Why they're like, okay, look, we can hide her and we don't do the interviews, right? Maybe we do one here or there. We'll pick somebody that'll be easy on us, and we'll just let the media write the story. Donald Trump, bad. Kamala Harris, not as bad. And that might get us to election day.
Senator Ted Cruz
Well, and it's difficult to overstate how strange that is. Like, in a campaign, doing media interviews is, number one, I think, a responsibility you owe. But number two, it's a vehicle, typically for getting your message out. So as you and I are sitting here right now recording this, it is 12:22 in the morning, and I am on the highway driving back from Austin to Houston. I'm in the middle of a campaign, so I'm campaigning just today, on Thursday. I've done multiple media interviews that. That's what one does when one's running for reelection for Senate, much less if you're running to be president of the United States. And it is striking that we are weeks into her campaign, and she's done none. Now, look, I fully expect she's going to get a couple of servile journalists to come up and give her some softball interview and tell her, Madam Vice President, tell us now. And this is the really important question. The American people want to know. Are you more beautiful or are you more brilliant? How do you answer that? That I'm sure they'll do. They'll tee up some fawning sycophants. If we had a functioning press, right? Let's take for example, this week. This week we had a really consequential set of primaries in Missouri. And in particular, Cori Bush, one of the members of the squad, Cori Bush, was beaten in a Democrat primary. Now, Cori Bush's views are noxious. They're radical, they're extreme. Cori Bush, like Kamala Harris, has been a leading voice for abolishing the police and defunding the police. Cori Bush, like Kamala Harris, has been viciously anti Israel, has courted the pro Hamas wing of the Democrat party. In fact, she is the pro Hamas wing of the Democrat party. Cori Bush was beaten and was beaten significantly at a Democrat primary and, you know, hadn't said a word about it. Kamala Harris, not a word. Nothing to say about it. Nothing to see here. Now, if you actually had reporters that said, you know, I got a job, I'm actually a reporter, I'm supposed to ask not the questions that the campaign wants me to ask. I'm supposed to ask the difficult question someone would have asked Kamala Harris before the primary on Tuesday. Hey, Kamala, what do you think of Cori Bush? Should she win her primary or not? Nobody asked that. She didn't answer that. After Cori Bush is beaten. Hey, Kamala, what do you think about one of the squad members being beaten? What do you think about the fact that she's the second squad member beaten this year? Jamaal Bowman in New York was beaten earlier this year again in a Democrat primary. What do you think about that? By the way, Cori Bush, when she lost, gave this vicious anti Israel, anti Semitic speech where she blamed aipac. Now that, if you're a hardcore leftist, is the best villain imaginable. Aipac. Oh, you're envisioning like, like, like Mephistopheles twirling his mustache as you say, aipac. That's who she blamed. Does anyone ask Kamala Harris, say, kamala, who are you with? Are you with Cori Bush or do you agree with apac? That's true. AIPAC raised a bunch of money against Cori Bush. Why? Because Cori Bush has been viciously anti Israel and AIPAC is a group that raises money to strengthen the U. S. Israel relationship. But Kamala is trying to walk a tightrope where she wants the support of the squad. She wants the support of the squad supporters. She wants the support of the rabid anti Semites in Dearborn, Michigan. She wants the support of the rabid anti Semites in Minnesota in the democrat party. But she also doesn't want to alienate the other votes she needs. And right now the media is perfectly okay with nothing to see here. Let's get back to saying what a great, wonderful, historic candidate you are. And oh, oh, oh, did you see the crowds at her rallies? Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Hosanna. Hosanna. Hosanna.
Ben Ferguson
So. So let's go to Tim then. How important is he as a VP candidate if they're going to hide her? Because he hasn't exactly had the best roll out either. He is a radical, far left guy. They've tried to turn him into some sort of, you know, moderate individual that's been backfiring in an incredible way. He's someone that has repeatedly called, for example, for universal healthcare. That's really come to be an issue over the last 24 hours. He also says he wants to raise taxes on Americans in a big way, saying that the rich need to pay their fair share. And then just some of his radical beliefs now that he's having to answer questions about abortion on demand, you know, voter ID that he didn't want to have, and allowing illegal immigrants to be involved in politics at a local level. He'd even mentioned before. These are things that are coming back to, I think, haunt the campaign in a sense. Do they hide him as well?
Senator Ted Cruz
Well, listen, historically, vice presidential picks have not made a huge difference. That's something Trump has said a number of times. And he's right in that historically, presidential elections are about the presidential nominees. And the VP typically has a very marginal impact on the edges. A VP can make a difference in a given state sometime. But I will say right now, I think the folks on the right are very focused on Tim Waltz. That's fine. But the biggest value of Tim Waltz is to illustrate how radical Kamala is. Because Kamala is the nominee. And understand Kamala is a wild eyed leftist. As the nonpartisan GOVTRAC website identified. She was in 2019 the single most liberal United States senator out of 100. She was number 100, the most extreme, to the left, to the left of Bernie Sanders, to the left of Elizabeth Warren. So it is not Surprising that she picks as her VP not Josh Shapiro, a perceived moderate Democrat who could potentially deliver a swing state, but it would piss off the pro Hamas core of the Democrat Party because he's Jewish. And by the way, it really speaks volumes just how bad. And actually here on this point, I want to play a segment from CNN because I want you to listen to cnn, the commentators talking about how that they're kind of glad that Kamala didn't take Josh Shapiro. Why? Because it would tick off the radicals in the pro Hamas base of the Democrat Party. And they said, well, that'd be bad. We don't want to tick them off. And Jake Tapper, I gotta say, and I wish this was one of our video episodes. It's just audio. I wish you could see it. But you ought to just listen because he is so uncomfortable because the CNN commentators are basically saying, well, she obviously couldn't pick a Jew because the leftists in the Democrat Party would get really mad if her nominee was Jewish. And you can see Jake Tapper going, no, no, stop, stop saying this. But, but give a listen to this exchange because it really shows, number one, how poisoned and extreme the Democrat Party has been as reflected by their mouthpieces on cnn. But number two, it shows the Tim Waltz pick, I think, is very revealing of who Kamala Harris is. Give a listen.
C
And I think ultimately Shapiro, I think fit is important. But, you know, I also think that when you look at the principle of do no harm, maybe they did say in a state like Minnesota, do we want to those 100,000 uncommitted voters who came out about the Gaza war, do we want to antagonize those voters? Those are all parts of part of the questions as well.
D
So can I just say, Tim Walsh.
E
Also spoke conciliatorily towards those people. He said, look, that uncommitted vote is significant and those people should be heard. So having that kind of response, I think is probably more of an open door to the parts of the party that have been very frustrated with the Democrats.
D
So, but just to one point, on the, on the, on the Gaza war, Shapiro has the same position on Israel that Governor Walls, that Senator Kelly has. He's actually been more critical of Netanyahu than the other two. But he is Jewish.
E
He's also the face of the crackdown on the protests.
Senator Ted Cruz
Right.
E
He spoke very vehemently about those campus protests as being anti Semitic.
D
Not all of them. The ones that were anti Semitic, he criticized as being anti Semitic.
E
He was out front on the issue. So, so I'M wondering if that's the kind of thing that, again, for the activist wing of the party was a slap in the face.
Ben Ferguson
Senator, you hear that? And I have to think that this is going to start hurting Harris and Waltz's campaign if you just alienated Jewish voters like this. But not just that. Those that also stand with Israel. And I do have friends that are liberal that stand with Israel and are proud to stand with Israel. This is not gonna sit well with them either.
Senator Ted Cruz
Well, and look, look, CNN is reporting there. And again, I wish you could see Jake Tapper. You and I both know Jake Tapper. But if you watch the video of this, Tapper is so painfully uncomfortable with what the CNN commentator is saying. Because the CNN commentator is like, well, you know, there are a bunch of voters in Minnesota that voted uncommitted. Why? Because they were mad at Joe Biden that he wasn't anti Israel enough. Yes, he'd undermined Israel from day one, but he was willing to provide some weapons to Israel, and they were mad. And so maybe this was a wise decision to go with Waltz and not Shapiro. And it's interesting, Tapper goes, well, wait a second. On the policy positions, Shapiro stated, policy is the same as Waltz's, is the same as Mark Kelly's. Is the difference that he's Jewish. And the commentator doesn't answer, but the answer is basically, well, yeah, no, no, no, they're mad. They don't want anyone Jewish on the ticket. Like, it's not the policy, it's the fact that he's Jewish. And then so she actually goes back to. She's like, no, no. She tries to dodge and she says, no, no, it's that he denounced the anti Semitic protests on campus. And Tapper's like, well, yeah, the ones that were anti Semitic. And the commentary is like, well, well, well, you just, you don't want to make the people mad who like anti Semitic protests. Like, that was. Her argument is because he, A, is Jewish. She didn't admit that, but that was obviously what she meant. And B, because he dared say viciously anti Semitic protester. Wrong. That the risk was too high for him to be on the ticket. And so where instead did Kamala go? And she went to Tim Waltz. And listen, again, I think we should not obsess about Tim Waltz. He's not going to matter a whole lot at the end of the day. Now, the media, as much as they're trying to turn Kamala into St. Kamala, they're trying to turn Tim Waltz into Andy Griffith. He is A Midwestern coach. He's a dad. He's gosh, golly gee, woo hoo. I mean, he's just a nice old feller. He, like, pets himself some dogs and he's just, gosh, Grandpa Joe and this guy. Okay, I'm gonna give some unsolicited advice to the Trump campaign. Focus on the substance of Kamala Harris's record and Tim Waltz's record. Both of them are radical and extreme. Don't get distracted. Don't go down a digression. The media wants you to go down a digression. These two are the most radical two people ever nominated by a major party to be president and vice president. Their records are identical. The reason Kamala Harris picked Tim Waltz is she wanted a fellow radical. And actually, one illustration that I think really speaks volumes. You know, you look at you, and I've talked about this before. Bernie Sanders, my colleague in the Senate, when he got married, he made the decision to honeymoon in the Soviet Union. Now that's bizarre. Like, I don't know who says, okay, I'm on my honeymoon. Where do I want to go? The Soviet Union, comrade. That's where I want to be. Look, Heidi and I, we went to St Thomas. We went to the beach. It was really pretty. We had some margaritas, Doc. Daiquiris. We walked barefoot in the sand, like. Like that's what you do. Where did you guys go in your honeymoon, Ben? And if you say the Soviet Union, we went down.
Ben Ferguson
We didn't win. Yeah, we went down to Mexico. Exactly. It was like, hey, where's a direct flight out of Houston? It was stopped at San Juan Teno for a week, and then I surprised her with a second week. She thought we were flying home. And I called her boss at St. Jude and I said, look, I'm only going to get two weeks off my whole life one time. Can I please surprise her? And we went the second week to Cabo.
Senator Ted Cruz
You are a romantic. Son of a gun. I've never been to say what day. All I know is it's where Tim Robbins was going to go in Shawshank Redemption. And it sure looked pretty in the film, but I haven't been there. What was it? Gorgeous.
Ben Ferguson
You put it on your list. It's. It is one of the most gorgeous places I've ever been in my entire life.
Senator Ted Cruz
Okay, so let me ask you. Do you regret instead of going to Zayu Adnejo and walking in the sand, that you didn't go to the Soviet Union and pay homage to Marx and Lenin and Stalin? And the heroes of the revolution. Like, that's bizarre.
C
Yeah.
Ben Ferguson
You know, it was a toss up, right? It was a big toss up. Which one would, which one would be better of a surprise? Go to go to Russia and maybe never come back or go to Mexico and hang out on a beach. Yeah.
Senator Ted Cruz
So the reason it's relevant to talk about where Bernie went on his honeymoon is it shows what his values are, what he, what he admires, what he cares about, who he wants to be. Well, Tim Waltz on his honeymoon went to communist China. Now that's a little weird, but there's a second piece and we talked about the fact that he went to communist China on Wednesday's pot. But the second piece that broke on Thursday, that I didn't know for Wednesday's pot. Do you know what day Tim Waltz chose to get married on?
Ben Ferguson
See, when this, when this broke, I was immediate, like, this is going to be some Internet, like rumor. It's going to get fact check. It's not going to be real. I was like, there's no way. And then, sure enough, it is real. And you can tell the audience exactly what you're talking about.
Senator Ted Cruz
He chose to get married on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. The Tiananmen Square where you had hundreds of thousands, if not millions of Chinese standing up for freedom, standing up against oppression, standing up against the oppressive communist bastards. And the Chinese tyrannical government sent in tanks, mowed them down. And it was an incredible moment of heroism on the part of the students and the young people, standing up against tyranny. And it was an incredible moment of brutality on the part of the regime, stomping them down. And I gotta say, the only word I know to describe somebody who chooses to get married on the anniversary of Tiananmen Square and then honeymoons in communist China. The only word I know to describe is weird, which is really funny because Tim Waltz, like, the only thing anyone knows about him is he started running around saying Donald Trump and J.D. vance are weird. And it's like, dude, that is weird.
Ben Ferguson
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Senator Ted Cruz
Well, look, Trump came out and challenged her to three presidential debates. And that's a very normal thing to do. If you look in history at modern times, there have typically been three presidential debates and usually one vice presidential debate that's been the history for a long time. And so what Trump challenged her to. He challenged her to it on three different networks. That was a very reasonable challenge. I don't think she'll accept. My prediction is we will see one presidential debate between Trump and Kamala. I think her team would love that to be zero. But I think they will probably make the judgment that that zero would project so much weakness that it would be a problem. I think the chances that they agree to three are essentially zero. Because from their perspective, why would they. Every day they are getting tens of millions of dollars of free press and the press is just running a 24 hour infomercial for her. So why would she do anything to take the Kamala Harris infomercial off to tv? The press wants her to win. I think they will feel like we got to do one. And by the way, and we'll talk about this as the debate approaches. Look, that debate has risk for both of them. It has risks for her because when she's unscripted, when she's ad libbing, she can say all sorts of zany things that are not terribly impressive. But it also has risks for Trump and in particular, it has risks for Trump of being too aggressive, too mean. And that has a potential to backfire. Kamala is not Joe Biden. And so, you know, from the Democrat perspective, I think they would hope that Trump would come across as a bully or mean because I think they would be calculating that doing so might well push swing voters to Kamala. And so where I think we'll end up is one debate, September or October. I think Trump rightly will keep pushing.
Ben Ferguson
Well, and ABC News has apparently. Yeah, well, ABC News has now apparently confirmed that both Trump and Harris, quote, have agreed to basic terms for their debate on September 10th. So you're saying you believe there's a very good chance that may be the only debate they do.
Senator Ted Cruz
And remember, that was the previously agreed debate that Joe Biden had also agreed to that Trump initially was pushing back and not wanting and saying, how about we do Fox instead? And Kamala didn't want to do that. It's. They both now said, okay, we'll do ABC on September 10th. I'd love to see three debates. I think it would be better for democracy. I think it would be better for the American people, for the voters. But I think Kamala Harris and the Democrats do not give a flying flip about democracy, don't give a flying flip about the voters. They every single day that she does nothing, the media is campaigning for 24 hours a day. And I think their entire strategy is don't get in the way of the media campaign unfolding right now.
Ben Ferguson
So let me ask you this. And I look to Vegas every once in a while because it just, I find it fascinating to see where they and how they rank the race. You look at this media propaganda that is historic on its scale for Harris and all of the money that's flown in to boost her and the ads that have been that are running, everyone, I think, has seen them now. She is now only at even odds with Trump in Vegas. This after they've thrown everything that they have at Harris to try to save the Democratic Party. And the question is, is the Kamala honeymoon over? If it is, if it's straight up 49, 49 in Vegas right now, is this now going to turn into somewhat of an actual and real campaign look?
Senator Ted Cruz
I hope so. I still believe Trump is going to win in November and that we're going to see a very good election where Republicans win the White House, we win the Senate, and we win the House. That's what I think is likely to happen. That being said, the chances of that today are significantly less than they were three weeks ago. Three weeks ago in Milwaukee. And you and I did several podcasts from Milwaukee, live from the convention in Milwaukee. The feeling was exuberant. In fact, you and I talked about on this podcast at the convention. I was worried. I said at the time, I think Republicans are overconfident, that we feel like the race is over. We're celebrating. You and I had conversations with people there that were already handing out cabinet positions. And my view is the time for celebration is after the election, not before now. The reason there was such a sense of exuberance is because Joe Biden was the opponent. And I think if Joe Biden had stayed the opponent, Trump would have won easily. And the problem was Democrats came to that same conclusion. Oh, crap, we're going to lose if Biden's the president is the nominee. So they yanked him out of the way and pushed him aside and replaced him with Kamala. Right now, three weeks later, we've seen three weeks of relentless propaganda for Kamala. And we have also seen so Trump, for much of his presidential time and much of his campaigning time, has been able to dominate. The free media narrative, has been able to drive the stories. The past three weeks, the free media narrative has all been about Kamala. And I think one challenge that I'm sure the Trump campaign is focused on right now is how they drive the free media narrative in a way that highlights how radical and extreme Kamala is. And I would say I think it's a mistake for them to get into personal issues, issues that are unrelated to Kamala's extreme record and in particular, how it impacts people. Listen, every election, I think, is decided.
Ben Ferguson
So give it. Give us an example of what you mean by that. Give us an example. Because you said not getting into the personal stuff.
Senator Ted Cruz
Every election, I think, is decided by the same basic question. Are you better off today than you were four years ago? I think the Trump campaign ought to be discussing every single day how ordinary people's lives are worse. How young people coming out of school look newly married, looking to buy their first home, are discovering that if you try to buy a home with a 7 or 8% mortgage instead of a 2.5% mortgage, you get half the house you used to be able to get four years ago. Talking about seniors who are discovering every one of their bills has gone up and yet their income is not keeping pace. Talking about families who are scared because illegal immigrants are being released every single day. As I said on the stage in Milwaukee, every damn day, an American is murdered, a woman is raped, a child is assaulted and brutalized by illegal immigrants released by Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and I think the Trump campaign should focus on how to drive the narrative every day, both their paid messaging, but also, as much as possible, the earned media on how people's lives are worse now because of the failures. Kamala Harris should not be able to run on the hypothetical of what a Harris presidency would look like, because, you know what? She and Joe have been in office for four years. We know exactly what it looks like, and it's a train wreck. And the Trump campaign, I think, needs to make that the topic of discussion as much as possible every day between now and Election Day.
Ben Ferguson
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Senator Ted Cruz
Look, I think you focus on substance. Her policies are extreme, her record is extreme, her record is a failure, her record is hurting you. Your life is worse off. You know, if you look at across the country, virtually no one answers the question yes, are you better off today than you were four years ago? Unless you happen to be a big tech billionaire or a Mexican drug lord. And by the way, if you're a Mexican drug lord, you ought to vote for Kamala and Waltz. They're clearly the candidate for you. If you're a big tech billionaire, they're your candidate too. But, but, but if you're a steel worker. If, if you're a suburban mom, if you're a young person, if you're somebody, if you're a senior, if you're somebody who loves America, if you're somebody who wants your kids safe, if you're someone who wants your grandkids safe, if you're someone who wants to see peace and prosperity in the world and not not chaos, then you ought that then the choice is a lot clearer. And that's what I think the Trump campaign needs to be looking every day to make that real and personal and why it matters to you.
Ben Ferguson
Yeah, great point. Don't forget, we do this show Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Make sure you hit that subscriber auto download button. And on those in between days, grab my podcast, the Ben Ferguson Podcast, and I'll keep you up to date on the latest breaking news. The senator and I will see you back here Saturday morning for our week in Review. Anything that you may have missed this week, we do that on Saturdays as well. We'll see you back there then.
Episode: Kamala Harris Enters Witness Protection
Release Date: August 9, 2024
Host: Ben Ferguson
Guest: Senator Ted Cruz
In this episode, host Ben Ferguson engages in an in-depth discussion with Senator Ted Cruz about the Democratic party's current presidential campaign strategy under Kamala Harris. The conversation critically examines Harris's approach as she allegedly adopts tactics reminiscent of Joe Biden's previous campaign, emphasizing minimal media interaction and controlled messaging.
Senator Ted Cruz begins the discussion by highlighting the Democratic strategy:
“Kamala Harris has effectively entered witness protection. They're doing everything they can to shut her up, to keep her silent.”
[00:22]
Cruz elaborates on Harris's limited media presence:
“She's done a total of zero media interviews. She's done a total of zero press conferences. She doesn't answer questions. She doesn't ad lib.”
[00:22]
Cruz criticizes the Democrats' use of teleprompters and scripted speeches, suggesting that this approach stifles Harris's ability to connect authentically with voters:
“The next 88 days are going to entail Kamala reading from a teleprompter, word for word, speech after speech, rally for rally.”
[00:22]
He draws parallels to Biden's campaign, implying that such strategies may hinder genuine voter engagement:
“Joe Biden four years ago already had severe mental diminution. He was not mentally up to the campaign. And what did they do? They literally locked him in the basement.”
[01:58]
Cruz argues that the controlled media presence is a double-edged sword, providing the Democratic party with extensive free media coverage while limiting authentic discourse:
“Every day they are getting tens of millions of dollars of free press and the press is just running a 24 hour infomercial for her.”
[22:11]
He expresses concern that this strategy may lead to Harris appearing disconnected and insincere, potentially alienating voters:
“If you're running to be president of the United States, and you're hiding, it's not a very attractive campaign to actually try to win in November.”
[01:58]
The discussion shifts to Kamala Harris’s vice-presidential nominee, Tim Waltz, whom Cruz describes as a radical choice. He critiques Waltz's political stance and personal decisions, questioning the wisdom of pairing him with Harris.
“Tim Waltz... is very revealing of who Kamala Harris is.”
[16:58]
Cruz points out Waltz's controversial honeymoon date:
“He chose to get married on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.”
[23:53]
He uses this example to illustrate what he perceives as Waltz's questionable judgment and alignment with extremist views:
“The only word I know to describe somebody who chooses to get married on the anniversary of Tiananmen Square and then honeymoons in communist China is weird.”
[24:09]
Focusing on the upcoming presidential debates, Cruz anticipates limited participation from Harris due to her controlled media strategy. He predicts that only one debate may occur, which could be strategically disadvantageous for both candidates.
“I think Kamala Harris and the Democrats do not give a flying flip about democracy, don't give a flying flip about the voters.”
[31:23]
Cruz emphasizes the importance of substantive policy discussions over personal attacks, advising the Trump campaign to focus on real issues affecting Americans:
“Are you better off today than you were four years ago? ... How ordinary people's lives are worse.”
[34:27]
The conversation addresses recent polling data from Vegas, indicating a tightening race between Trump and Harris. Cruz expresses optimism about the Republican prospects but acknowledges the shifting dynamics due to Harris’s media-heavy campaign.
“I still believe Trump is going to win in November... but the chances of that today are significantly less than they were three weeks ago.”
[32:12]
Senator Cruz concludes by urging the Trump campaign to emphasize the tangible impacts of Harris's policies on everyday Americans, rather than engaging in personal or trivial attacks. He advocates for a focus on policy failures and their consequences to effectively challenge Harris’s campaign narrative.
“The Trump campaign needs to be looking every day to make that real and personal and why it matters to you.”
[38:50]
Controlled Campaign Strategy: Kamala Harris's campaign is characterized by limited media interaction and scripted messaging, a strategy criticized for potentially alienating voters.
Vice Presidential Nominee Controversy: Tim Waltz’s nomination is viewed as a strategic misstep, given his perceived radical views and controversial personal choices.
Debate Participation: The likelihood of multiple debates is low, with the potential for a single debate that may not significantly alter the campaign dynamics.
Polling and Momentum: Recent polls suggest a more competitive race, though Cruz remains confident in a Republican victory.
Strategic Focus: Emphasis on policy impacts over personal attacks is recommended to challenge Harris's campaign effectively.
This summary encapsulates the critical analysis and insights shared by Senator Ted Cruz and Ben Ferguson regarding Kamala Harris's presidential campaign, highlighting strategic decisions, media interactions, and potential implications for the upcoming election.