Will We Ever Return to Normal?

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Will We Ever Return to Normal?"

Podcast Information:

• Title: The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson
• Host/Author: Premiere Networks
• Episode: Will We Ever Return to Normal?
• Release Date: December 8, 2020

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Introduction

In the December 8, 2020 episode titled "Will We Ever Return to Normal?" of The 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson, hosts Ted Cruz and Michael Knowles engage in a candid discussion about the state of America amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. They explore themes such as governmental policies, the impact of lockdowns, political hypocrisy, and the broader question of societal norms in the face of unprecedented challenges.

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Key Discussion Points

1. The Concept of the "New Normal"

   The conversation kicks off with the central question: "When will we be able to return to normal?" asked by Ted Cruz at [00:28]. Both hosts express skepticism about the possibility of returning to pre-pandemic norms.

   • Michael Knowles emphasizes the temporary nature of crises, likening the situation to kidney stones: "This insanity will end." ([00:19])

   • Ted Cruz echoes this sentiment but raises concerns about the lasting changes imposed by political decisions: "Are we in the new normal?" ([00:28])

2. Political Hypocrisy and Lockdowns

   A significant portion of the discussion centers around perceived hypocrisy among Democratic politicians regarding COVID-19 lockdowns and personal behavior.

   • Michael Knowles criticizes Democratic use of the pandemic for political gain: "There was no doubt there were a lot of Democratic politicians using this crisis for political advantage by decreeing shutdown, shutting down churches, exercising extraordinary power." ([01:42])

   • Ted Cruz provides specific examples, such as the Governor of California dining at a restaurant despite advocating for closures: "He decrees all of these mandates and then goes to a very fancy restaurant..." ([04:19])

   • The hosts highlight incidents where politicians failed to adhere to their own guidelines, undermining public trust: "Don't go out. Stay home. This Thanksgiving, you need to stay home... he literally went from making that announcement, jumped on a private plane, flew to Mexico with a bunch of his buddies." ([05:02])

3. Impact of Lockdowns on Communities and the Arts

   The discussion delves into the detrimental effects of lockdowns on various sectors, particularly the arts and small businesses.

   • Michael Knowles laments the shutdown of Broadway and its impact on artists: "Broadway... it's been shut down for six months. And if you're a mega superstar, you'll be fine... what about all the lighting guys? What about the set designers?" ([17:45])

   • The conversation also touches on the struggles of family-owned businesses due to prolonged closures: "Bars, live event venues... two, three generations that have been obliterated." ([18:09])

4. Death Penalty and Justice System Reforms

   Moving beyond the pandemic, the hosts discuss the potential shifts in the justice system under a Biden administration.

   • Ted Cruz raises concerns about the Department of Justice enforcing stricter measures: "Attorney General Bill Barr has been behind the scenes... ramping up justice over the next month or two." ([19:26])

   • Michael Knowles advocates for the execution of individuals on federal death row, arguing against perceived leniency: "What you can't differ about is what current law is current law. In a number of states, the death penalty is the ultimate punishment." ([20:02])

5. Supreme Court and Long-Term Implications

   The hosts briefly discuss the long-term impact of political decisions on the judiciary.

   • Michael Knowles warns against the Democrats' efforts to influence the Supreme Court, suggesting it could cause "fundamental structural damage": "The most consequential thing is if the Democrats succeed In packing the U.S. supreme Court, I think that does fundamental structural damage." ([26:09])

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Notable Quotes

• Michael Knowles [00:19]: "This insanity will end."

• Ted Cruz [04:19]: "He decrees all of these mandates and then goes to a very fancy restaurant..."

• Michael Knowles [17:45]: "Broadway... it's been shut down for six months."

• Michael Knowles [20:02]: "What you can't differ about is what current law is current law."

• Michael Knowles [26:09]: "If the Democrats succeed In packing the U.S. supreme Court, I think that does fundamental structural damage."

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Insights and Analysis

Ted Cruz and Michael Knowles provide a conservative perspective on the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the political landscape. They critique the inconsistency and alleged misuse of emergency powers by Democratic leaders, highlighting instances where officials failed to adhere to the very rules they imposed on the public. This hypocrisy, they argue, erodes trust in government and complicates efforts to manage the crisis effectively.

The hosts also express concern over the long-term implications of political decisions, particularly regarding the justice system and the Supreme Court. They fear that a Biden administration could lead to significant shifts in policy and judicial appointments that may have enduring impacts on American society.

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Conclusions

The episode "Will We Ever Return to Normal?" underscores the uncertainty and frustration felt by many amidst the pandemic. Ted Cruz and Michael Knowles articulate a desire for a return to pre-pandemic normalcy but acknowledge the complexities introduced by political actions and societal changes. They advocate for accountability among leaders and caution against policies that may have far-reaching consequences beyond the immediate crisis.

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Final Thoughts

For listeners who missed the episode, this summary encapsulates the critical examination of governmental responses to COVID-19, the importance of maintaining trust in public institutions, and the broader implications for American societal norms and governance. The hosts’ perspectives offer a lens through which to evaluate current events and consider their potential trajectories in shaping the future of the United States.

Transcript

[Ted Cruz]

Lockdowns, executions, men in dresses. This is Verdict with Ted Cruz. I want to be very clear. Those things will not be occurring on Verdict with Ted Cruz. We will be discussing those topics.

[Michael Knowles]

I'm just being real clear. I ain't dressing in drag for you, Michael.

[Ted Cruz]

No. We'll do a lot for ratings, but we won't do that. I want to thank.

[Michael Knowles]

Of course I'll let you dress in drag.

[Ted Cruz]

I don't know. I gotta renegotiate my contract here. We do want to thank all of the subscribers. One thing is, this is always my fault. I run out of time. We don't get to enough mailbag questions. So I want to start the show today with a mailbag question. This is one that has been on my mind quite a lot from matthias, Senator and Mr. Knowles. When will we be able to return to normal? The masks, the lockdowns, the other stuff is just driving me nuts. Are we in the new normal?

[Michael Knowles]

No. You know, as they say about kidney stones, this too will pass. This insanity will end. You know, a couple months ago I did a TV interview where I said, I guarantee you if Joe Biden wins the presidential election, the week that after the election I saw this, Covid will be cured.

[Ted Cruz]

You got in a lot of trouble for this.

[Michael Knowles]

Well, actually at the time I gave the interview, I mean, it aired, but it didn't get a lot of attention. And then last week, it seemed every lefty journalist in America discovered it and went on TV ranting and raving about it.

[Ted Cruz]

I saw it, I said, why? Where did they dig this up? Are they all on an email chain together?

[Michael Knowles]

There clearly is a Commie Reporters of America listserv that they're all on because the word went out that we're pulling up this two month old interview. Look, I think. Well, to be clear, Joe Biden has not been elected president yet. He may be when this litigation is over, but it's still being litigated. But it's interesting, I think for some Democrats, there was no doubt as Covid was going on. And let's be clear, Covid is, is a real virus. It is serious. It can be life threatening. And all of us have taken significant steps to try to keep people safe. But there was no doubt there were a lot of Democratic politicians using this crisis for political advantage by decreeing shutdown, shutting down churches, exercising extraordinary power. What's interesting is some of those Democratic politicians, they're still doing it. And I don't know, it's almost like they have Stockholm syndrome or something that they repeated it so many times that they've convinced themselves, but there's two sides.

[Ted Cruz]

To it, because I agree, and I actually want to give you a little credit here. Your prediction, I know you'll resist that. Your prediction was right. What was it, three days or something? After the election, we have the announcement of a vaccine, 95% effective.

[Michael Knowles]

And what a crock. What an. Okay, that pissed me off. Pfizer, literally, the week after the election, said, hey, look, we've cured it now.

[Ted Cruz]

Convenient.

[Michael Knowles]

We have a vaccine. And it's like I'm trying to keep this PG rated. So I'm not gonna say actually what I wanted to say there. But they couldn't have announced it the week before the election. Of course they could have. And it's. Look, it's big Pharma being totally in the tank for the Democrats. I mean, it was nakedly political that. By the way, not only that, the media mocked President Trump for saying, we will have a vaccine in November, December. This is ridiculous. It's impossible. And of course we have it the week after the frigate election.

[Ted Cruz]

And that's not the extent of the politicization. You have a lockdown happening again. The reason I bring up this question.

[Michael Knowles]

For a while, and Pfizer said, by the way, it's the science. That's why we announced it. Well, they're right. It's a scientific fact. There was an election on November 3rd. That was the science.

[Ted Cruz]

Precision. You have it? Yes. No, the reason I bring this question up about the normal is we're locking down again. And yet you have, for instance, the LA supervisor coming out and saying, we need to lock down, we need to close down restaurants, it's a matter of safety. And then hours later going to a restaurant. We have my governor, Mr. Mussolini, in office out there, who says, just to.

[Michael Knowles]

Be clear, he's not your governor anymore.

[Ted Cruz]

That's right. Oh, talk about Stockholm syndrome. I keep going back to the California days, right? I left La La Land. He decrees all of these mandates and then goes to a very fancy restaurant, the French Laundry, and has a nice meal. And it goes on for a long time. No distancing, no masks. There are a lot of other politicians who are saying one thing and doing.

[Michael Knowles]

By the way, you know Gavin Newsom, when he was at the French Laundry having this fancy dinner, my understanding is he was with a bunch of not just lobbyists, but health care lobbyists.

[Ted Cruz]

That's right.

[Michael Knowles]

So, like this pandemic, we're told, you can't go to a restaurant, you can't be with your family. For Thanksgiving, the all powerful police state has spoken. And the hypocrisy, the blatant hypocrisy as they're yucking it up, crammed in a room, having dinner together. Look, the mayor of Austin told the people of Austin, you know, Austin's often described as a blueberry in a bowl of tomato soup. It's the bright blue city in Texas. But the mayor of Austin told everyone, don't go out. Stay home. This Thanksgiving, you need to stay home. You can't go out. The news just broke that apparently he literally went from making that announcement, jumped on a private plane, flew to Mexico with a bunch of his buddies. And it is.

[Ted Cruz]

There's something about it. It's funny, you know, you kind of laugh about it. It is so infuriating. It is so disrespectful to our intelligence and to our American people who have civil rights. And to see the politicians saying one thing and then flagrantly disregarding what they've just said is very frustrating.

[Michael Knowles]

Well, look, they know that the extremes they're advocating are a crock and the fact that they don't obey them. And of course, in today's politicized world, saying that quickly becomes, oh, my goodness, you don't think we should do anything? We should all, like, lick each other and just ignore that there's a virus. No, listen, all right, Thanksgiving, I was with my family with Thanksgiving. My parents are 81 and 86. We try to protect them. We try to keep them separated from other folks with some distance. Now, we still allowed them in the house and fed them turkey like there was.

[Ted Cruz]

You didn't shun your elderly parents on Thanksgiving, by the way.

[Michael Knowles]

That is one of the cruelest aspects of this COVID lockdown is particular seniors who've been alone, who've been isolated, you know, the people who have passed from COVID or from other things who've passed alone because hospitals won't let families in. I mean, that's. Those are heartbreaking tragedies.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, you know, NBC News just released this report. They said, shocking report. Elderly people who have been kept alone and away from all of their loved ones are dying of loneliness. And you say, you know, some people could have told you that. Actually, we did tell them that. You know, they call the people who take these other considerations into their mind, they call them science deniers. I like to call those people philosophy deniers or theology deniers or family deniers. There are other aspects that you're science.

[Michael Knowles]

Deniers and science deniers. Let's be clear. If you have elderly people and they don't go to the doctors and they don't get checkups for their heart, and they don't get other medical conditions treated, and they're alone and depressed, really bad things happen. That's called science. Like, this is. The left only believes in science when it suits their political agenda. Any science that is inconvenient for that is not science.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, you know, one scientific fact that is new is that, you know, men can become women at just the mere mention of it. And there was a big story that came out. An actress who I didn't even recognize, Ellen Page, is now identifying as a man. Elliot Page. But you have a tie in to this story, which is that back during the 2016 campaign, this woman, I don't think you recognized her. She approached you and had an impromptu debate that went viral. I remember the video. I didn't remember it was her.

[Michael Knowles]

So I was at the Iowa State fair. This is 2015 or 2016.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Michael Knowles]

And I was actually grilling pork chops. By the way, a bit of advice, if anyone listening to this podcast ever plans to run for president. Since presidential races are getting so crowded, we may have lots of listeners who are gonna run for president. One bit of advice that I was given is never, ever, ever eat the corn dog. And this is very good advice. So both Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann fell afoul of it, and you got photographs that, let's just say, were not the photographs they were hoping to characterize their campaign.

[Ted Cruz]

No, not flattering.

[Michael Knowles]

And my press secretary in 2016 was Rick Perry's press secretary four years earlier. And at the Iowa State Fair, we were walking through, and she looked over and pointed at, like, a corn dog stand, and she said, that's where it happened. So don't eat corn dogs, but you can eat a pork chop on a stick. It doesn't create the same phallic imagery.

[Ted Cruz]

No, no, not at all.

[Michael Knowles]

And so I was grilling pork chops, and I was eating a pork chop and a stick. I was, like, enjoying the Iowa State Fair, and as one does, and this actress, who I later learned was named Ellen Page, came up to me and started engaging me, and with a film crew that was there, and she was this young woman who began arguing with me about gay rights. And it was fine. I had a perfectly fine conversation. And then I discovered afterwards that she was this actress that was running around filming these things. And, you know, I have to admit, there's a Netflix series that she's in called the Umbrella Academy, which I've watched both seasons and it's. I watch a lot of. I like superhero movies, I like sci fi, I watch a lot of things. But Umbrella Academy's pretty good.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah. This is something I've noticed with conservatives is we can enjoy the work, particularly artwork made by radical leftists, even if we don't like their politics.

[Michael Knowles]

Well. And the alternative is don't enjoy any music, don't watch any sports, don't ever go to the theater, don't go to any movies, don't watch tv. Get that those worlds are. At least. The people who are vocal and outspoken are almost all leftist. But, you know, I like theater, I like movies, I like tv, I like sports, I like video games. And you don't have to embrace the politics of the people producing it.

[Ted Cruz]

There does seem to be an irony, though, that the left is always talking about how there are too many straight white men.

[Michael Knowles]

Let me just say for the record, this is the second time today I've seen proof that Michael is a New Yorker. Earlier he said quaffee, and there was a W in it. And just a moment ago, you said talking.

[Ted Cruz]

I know. This is really.

[Michael Knowles]

I'm sorry, I just had to.

[Ted Cruz]

You can take the boy out of New York. You can't take the New York out of the boy. This did occur to me, though, that Hollywood is always talking about how now you're self conscious. Now I know I am. I'm gonna start talking about how things are horrible as well. Hollywood is always talking about how there were too many straight white men in the movies. So it would seem that this news story about this actress who now identifies as a man would run afoul of their own orthodoxy. But as you point out, the left doesn't really seem to care about these points they make, whether it's on science, whether it's on gender theory. It seems as though if the left did not have double standards, they would have no standards at all.

[Michael Knowles]

Years ago, I was doing. I was on Squawk Box, which, by the way, is a great show. It's one of my favorite shows to do on CNBC because you get in really substantive interviews. And I've done a couple times where I've done the whole hour and talked about all sorts of things. But I was on one time, and it was the day of or the day after Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, came out as gay. And so one of the liberal hosts there asked, well, what do you think about that? I don't think anything of it. He's like, what do you Mean, you don't think. Aren't you upset?

[Ted Cruz]

Surely you stay up at night thinking about this question.

[Michael Knowles]

And, you know, I reached in my pocket, I said, look, Tim Cook is in charge of making my iPhone. I want him to keep making really cool iPhones, because I love my iPhones. And beyond that, like, what do I care?

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Michael Knowles]

And that made no sense to them.

[Ted Cruz]

Yes, of course. No, it is this obsession, and they sort of project that onto the rest of us. We're gonna get a lot more of that if Joe Biden does ascend to the presidency. You know, we started the show with that question about the new normal. It seems that now the definition of normal has changed. You know, mentioned men in dresses, but things have gotten way, way crazier than that.

[Michael Knowles]

And by the way, on that whole men in dresses things, I have to admit, prior to this week, I had absolutely no idea who this Harry Styles guy was. Candace Owen. I'm a big fan of. I like her. And she got in this Twitter dispute, and I was kind of like, okay, so some dude was on the COVID of. What is it? Vogue, I think. Yeah, I guess, in a dress. And I'm like, all right, who is he? And I Googled him to try to figure out who is this guy. And apparently he's like, I guess in some boy band or singer or something.

[Ted Cruz]

I guess some movie. I don't know.

[Michael Knowles]

And the back and forth, it's like, all right, you want to wear dresses? Knock yourself out, by the way. You know, people have been. You know, the Romans wore togas. I don't care. But the whole thing seems kind of silly.

[Ted Cruz]

It does seem silly, and it seems almost like a distraction because, sure, it's definitely. It's a little weird. The magazine cover is a little weird. But the shifting of normal that I am much more concerned with is the shifting of normal that we could get if we have Biden administration. They're already telling us they want mandates to wear the masks everywhere. They want a lockdown of the whole economy. They want.

[Michael Knowles]

Are you suggesting if Biden sworn in, that he'll wear a dress?

[Ted Cruz]

I think I'd rather wear the dress than be forced to lock down and wear the mask all the time.

[Michael Knowles]

You know what? Whoever sworn in on January 20, I can guarantee you the person swearing him in will wear a dress.

[Ted Cruz]

That's a very good point. That's true. And that's perfectly normal. All black could be a man. Absolutely. What can we look forward to in terms of the lockdown policy? Do you have any sense of this? I Want it to be clear. You made a good point at the top of the show. This is a hypothetical. We still don't have a president elect, the electors haven't voted. There's a contested election, there's a legal process. If the Trump disputes do not succeed, how bad is it gonna be with regard to the new normal?

[Michael Knowles]

So I genuinely don't know. Listen, I think if Joe Biden is sworn in as president, they want an economic recovery. They want to see something come back. I mean, it's why I always said everything will be magically cured. And thankfully, the reports we've gotten on vaccines, they're reporting, what, 95% effectiveness or greater. And so I would love to see a vaccine that's really effective where life can go back to normal. I do fear some of these little tin pot dictator Democrats. They've discovered the power to control businesses, lives to tell you who you can have at your dinner table for Thanksgiving. People don't give up power lightly.

[Ted Cruz]

Right.

[Michael Knowles]

And so, you know, and I think it'll vary place by place. So Texas, Texas has opened up substantially now. We've still got people who are sick, and we're dealing with it and confronting the crisis. But kids are back in school, most people are back at work. And so you're seeing some places that are moving the right way. The Californias of the world, the New Yorks of the world. I don't know.

[Ted Cruz]

Right, right. And I suppose that is the realistic possibility that we at least have to consider is that we're going to have this Biden administration and maybe different states are going to react differently. And so I do want to go to this worst case scenario.

[Michael Knowles]

So I'll give another example. We were talking earlier about the arts. You know, Eric Clapton and Ben Morrison came out with this thing to stop the lockdowns, and they said, you're destroying the arts. And I don't know their politics, but I sent out a tweet praising them and saying, look, good for you for having the guts to stand up and say this. And you look at the arts, I mean, there is an irony that these groups that are overwhelmingly leftists are being utterly destroyed right now by these policies. Broadway.

[Ted Cruz]

Oh, yeah, I love Broadway.

[Michael Knowles]

It's been shut down for six months. And if you're a mega superstar, you'll be fine. I mean, if you've got a home in Malibu and you've got $50 million in the bank, you'll weather the storm. But, you know, what about all the lighting guys? What about the set designers? What about the Makeup artists.

[Ted Cruz]

What about a regular run of the mill Broadway actor? I mean, you probably can't even afford a cup of coffee right now.

[Michael Knowles]

Yeah, that's how you know, look if you're in the chorus line of Cats. A good friend of mine, Michael Berry, who, talk show host, very good friend of mine, owns a country western bar in Houston called the Redneck Country Club. Great place. I've had multiple election night parties there. Michael shut it down. He shut it down because of COVID And they've been driven out of business. And it was a great institution, but there are a lot of family restaurants, two, three generations that have been obliterated. Bars, live event venues. And the weird thing is, so Democrats. When I responded like praising Clapton and Van Morrison for saying, stop destroying the music industry, lefties came back at me and said, well, no, no, just send them a government check. How about instead of printing money and just sending everyone government checks, you actually allow people to work, to do their.

[Ted Cruz]

Jobs, to perform their art? Right.

[Michael Knowles]

I think we will get there eventually, but I do. The radicals have been unleashed and how we get there could be bumpy.

[Ted Cruz]

Well, and I feel as though I'm the sort of pessimist in this episode just because I want to prepare for the worst. The legal challenges are going to play out on the election, but I want to prepare for the worst. I've noticed also some people in the government are making preparations in case it is a Biden administration, the honey badger. Our friend the Attorney General Bill Barr has been behind the scenes sort of making some changes in particular to the way that the death penalty will be carried out. And I think it hasn't gotten a lot of play in the media, but it would appear that the Attorney General is ramping up justice over the next month or two.

[Michael Knowles]

Well, the Department of Justice is doing something really quite radical which is enforcing the law. So listen, on the question of capital punishment, reasonable minds can differ. Americans are on both sides of that issue. What you can't differ about is what current law is current law. In a number of states, the death penalty is the ultimate punishment. And under federal law, the death penalty is the ultimate punishment. And there are, I think it's 53 or 54 federal inmates on death row during the Obama Biden administration, they just slow played him and wouldn't carry out the execution.

[Ted Cruz]

Right.

[Michael Knowles]

They just said, never mind the law. Now these are people, and these are people who, you know, terrorists who have committed horrific crimes.

[Ted Cruz]

This is not someone selling marijuana on the side of the road. I mean, these are horrific Criminals, you.

[Michael Knowles]

Know, these are people 1. And so I wrote an op ed this week on Fox News talking about this and going through some of the cases. One fellow who horrifically, systematically tortured his two year old daughter and ultimately murdered her, who committed just horrible crimes. One of the Boston bombers is on federal death row now. That case is being litigated and challenged. The white supremacist who murdered nine African Americans at the Mother Emanuel AME church is on federal death row. And you know what? The Obama Biden administration, they slow walk and don't enforce the law. And so Barr simply scheduled executions. The left is going nuts going how dare you action. These are people convicted by a jury pursuant to the law. And so what I urge Bill Barr to do before he leaves is for every single eligible capital murderer on federal death row, schedule an execution. Right, Schedule it now. Which means if Joe Biden becomes president and he puts lefty activists into the Department of Justice that if they want to ignore the law, they've got to cancel the execution. It changes the onus and I hope he does that.

[Ted Cruz]

That's a great idea. And they would have to explain for each case why they are going to let this person escape justice. If we do have a Biden administration, we're probably going to hear a whole lot of talk about social justice. Be good to get some real justice in there as well.

[Michael Knowles]

And look, we've seen a lot of sadly race baiting from the left. You look at the white supremacist who Charleston, South Carolina went into the church, prayed with the parishioners and then pulled out a gun and shot them. That's the embodiment of evil. When I was SG in Texas, Solicitor General I dealt with a lot of violent crime and murderers. And the worst are those that hurt kids who, I mean there's just a circle of hell for like adults that and I gotta say working in law enforcement, people do horrible, horrible things. And I think the death penalty is I believe appropriate and just and the right punishment for the very worst crimes.

[Ted Cruz]

I entirely agree.

[Michael Knowles]

And if Joe Biden disagrees, if the Democrats disagree, then man up and change federal law.

[Ted Cruz]

Right.

[Michael Knowles]

But don't just refuse to enforce the law.

[Ted Cruz]

Right, of course, of course. It's retributive, deterrent effects, rehabilitative. I say because hanging concentrates the mind. And if you're going to make a contrary argument, they have to make that argument. Now going on this theme of let's say there's a Biden administration, I do want to get to one mailbag question because this is going to be important if it ends up the case from Florida conservative. If Biden becomes president, what can and will the Senate GOP do to influence the Biden Cabinet and keep out the worst possible choices?

[Michael Knowles]

So I'm hopeful that if we keep a Republican Senate, that we will have a significant moderating effect on any potential Biden administration. If Democrats win in Georgia and Schumer's majority leader, they will confirm the most radical nominees you could imagine. I actually think that's one of the reasons why we've seen a handful of Biden nominees put forward, but we haven't seen most of them. And I have a suspicion that they're holding off to see what kind of Senate they're gonna have.

[Ted Cruz]

Right.

[Michael Knowles]

Because, look, it takes 50 votes plus the VP to confirm someone. Are there going to be some bad nominees if we have a Biden presidency that I will vote against? Yes. And will some of those get confirmed because some wobbly Republicans will join with the Democrats in voting for them? Yes. But with a Republican majority, I think we will be able to stop the most extreme and the worst. And, you know, a few days after the election, there were stories because Republicans shocked the press by not losing the Senate, by winning a lot of these close contested Senate races. You know, there's a big article in Politico about how the Biden team was going to have to be much more centrist because they'd have to get them through a Republican Senate. And so there's a deterrent effect of who can be nominated that is meaningful. And will there be bad nominees? I'm sure they would put forward, but they'd be a lot better with a Republican Senate than with a Democratic Senate.

[Ted Cruz]

Right. There are all these questions about what is the new normal. Is the new normal. Movie stars, men wearing dresses, is the new normal. These lockdowns is the new normal. Politicians disregarding their own mandates is the new normal? Who's the president going to be? We still have to figure that out. A lot is up in the air. That is going to be decided within the next couple of weeks, next month or so. And that could radically shape our country for not just for two years or four years. We're talking about generational shifts.

[Michael Knowles]

The most consequential thing is if the Democrats succeed In packing the U.S. supreme Court, I think that does fundamental structural damage. I hope it doesn't happen.

[Ted Cruz]

Yeah.

[Michael Knowles]

If we keep a Republican Senate, it won't happen. If Democrats take the Senate, I believe it will.

[Ted Cruz]

Let's hope things remain normal, whatever that word is, to mean, we'll have to leave it there. I'm Michael Knowles. This is Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[Michael Knowles]

This episode of Verdict with Ted Cruz is being brought to you by Jobs, Freedom, and Security pac, a political action committee dedicated to supporting conservative causes, organizations, and candidates across the country. In 2022, jobs, freedom, and Security PAC plans to donate to conserv candidates running for Congress and help the Republican Party across the nation.