
Loading summary
Ben Shapiro
Our sponsor, Acorns is the financial wellness app that cares about where your money is going tomorrow and with the Acorns Potential screen, you can find out what your money is capable of. Acorns is a smart way to give your money a chance to grow. It's incredibly easy to use. You can sign up in minutes and start automatically investing your spare money, even if all you've got is spare change. As your life evolves, Acorns grows with you, supporting your big and small goals across every life stage. Whether you're just starting out or thinking about settling down, the Acorns Potential Screen shows you the power of compounding and how your money could grow over time. You can quickly adjust how much you're investing every day, week or month to make sure you're building towards your goals. Best of all, Acorns is all in one, so you won't need finance apps cluttering up your phone. You can invest, save and give your money a chance to grow in one trusted place. Sign up right now. Acorns will boost your new account with a $5 bonus investment. Join the over 14 million all time customers who've already saved and invested over $27 billion with Acorns. Head on over to Acorns.com Shapiro or download that Acorns app to get started. Acorns Advisors, LLC Register Investment Advisor acorns.com True self reliance begins with taking control of your health. Our sponsor, Armor Colostrum harnesses nature's original blueprint for resilience. Our bodies face constant pressure from toxins, processed foods, relentless stress. Armor Colostrum is a bioactive whole food, a pure concentrate of bovine Colostrum that's sustainably sourced with a commitment to calf first sourcing. With over 400 bioactive nutrients, it fortifies your entire gut wall system and strengthens your immune system. From the cellular level up. This means balanced immune health, better digestion, less bloating and support for healthy metabolism and fat burning from the inside out. Elite athletes have been using Colostrum for years because it enhances nutrient absorption, builds lean muscle and speeds recovery. But the benefits go way deeper. Cellular level support for hair, skin energy, everything. This isn't processed or manipulated. It's pure, potent and natural, your body's blueprint for rebuilding itself the way it was designed to function. When you invest in your health, you invest in your ability to show up fully, think clearly and stay in control no matter what comes your way. We've worked out a special offer for my audience. Receive 30% off your first subscription order head on over to armor.com Shapiro or enter Shapiro to get 30% off your first subscription. Order that's A R M R A.com Shapiro President Trump draws a stark contrast with the Democrats at the State of the Union. And man, is it ugly for the Democrats. Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib just did terrible. Plus, the media have a total meltdown over President Trump's very successful State of the Union address. First, last night we brought you live coverage of the State of the Union. We were there all night long. Everybody from Cabot Phillips to me to Andrew Clavin to Matt Walsh, Michael Knowles and Isabel Brown were actually in the chamber. We talked with them afterward. We couldn't do all this kind of coverage without our members. You're the reason we're here today. DailyWire members fuel everything we do. If you value actual facts and trusted voices, head on over to DailyWire+.com become a member today. That's DailyWire+.com President Trump's state of the Union address last night when a whopping length, one hour and 48 minutes. But it was the moments that mattered most, because President Trump humiliated the Democrats. He humiliated them, or more precisely, they humiliated themselves. So the content of President Trump's speech was not really the centerpiece of President Trump's speech. President Trump, as I've said many, many times before, is a politician who does one thing very well and one thing not so well. What he is great at doing is making it hard to vote for his political opponents. He makes it very hard to vote for his political opponents. He is excellent at shredding the people who face him down. But when it comes to making himself more popular, that's more difficult. And so where Trump shines is in those moments when he can put in stark relief his own agenda and the agenda of the people who oppose him. This is where Trump is just masterful. And last night he did something that I've never seen a president do before during a State of the Union address or really ever in a public address. And that was he used the Democrats opposition to him, their anger at him, against them. He really jujitsu them in a masterful way. See, he knew President Trump knew for a fact that when he went into this address, when he gave the State of the Union address, that we would see the same spectacle that we've seen before in many years past, that he would say something, Republicans would stand up and cheer, and Democrats would sit there and do nothing. They would sit on their hands at the very least. And in recent Years, of course, Democrats have done more than that. Last year, during his faux State of the Union address, where I was in the chamber, Democrats dressed in white, they all color coordinated to demonstrate that President Trump hated women or some such nonsense. They yelled at President Trump from the gallery, heckled him. They jeered him. They did all these things that when all of us were growing up, were sort of unthinkable. I'm old enough to remember when Joe Wilson, a representative from South Carolina, yelled, you lie at Barack Obama. And this created a national firestorm. Well, now we basically have people throwing rotten eggs at the president from the Democratic side of the aisle, and it's considered perfectly normal. So Trump knew what he was walking into. He knew how the Democrats would act, that they would be incredibly performative, that they would be obnoxious. And so what he did, and again, this is, in broad strokes, what he likes to do politically. He took positions that are 80, 20 positions. He said things that are easy to understand for the American people and that unify Americans. And then he pointed at the Democrats over and over and over and said, why aren't you clapping? Why aren't you cheering? Why aren't you standing up in unity? And this is a great question, because again, if you go back to the Bush administration, Democrats hated George W. Bush, despised him. But when it came to the State of the Union address, they were politically savvy enough to understand that if George W. Bush said something that was generically good, they should stand up and clap. They're politically savvy enough to understand if the camera's on you and the President says, America's great, you should probably stand up and clap, even if you don't like that particular president. Democrats have lost their minds because of Trump derangement Syndrome. And so they have decided that it is more worthwhile for them to sit on their butts, flat on their butts, while the President does unifying and obvious things. And so the President came in last night and he knew. He knew they were going to do this, and he decided to use that tactic against them. See, this is where the President of the United States really understanding TV helps. The President is a visual creature. He understands innately where to put cameras, how to light things. If you've ever watched tape of the President in an interview, he will tell people in the room how to relight him from particular angles and where the camera should be placed to its best effect. So he knows that this is a great stage for him. And he also knows that the cameramen in the wings are going to be focusing in on Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who made absolute fools of themselves last night, which was the big story if you're looking for campaign ads. The President provided an enormous number of campaign ads for Republicans all across the country as Rashida Tlieb and Ilhan Omar screamed at him for saying baseline rational things as Democrats put on their sourest faces as he said things like boys are not girls. Democrats sat there while he paid tribute to actual, honest to God American heroes because they couldn't bring themselves to stand up if the President so much as uttered their name. And so the genius of what Trump did last night had very little to do with his policy discussion. There wasn't all that much. Policy discussion is the truth. Usually the State of the Union is a long list, a big litany of policy, and it gets pretty boring because of it. Last night, the President focused unusually heavily on people in the gallery, which I think was smart because it allowed him to demonstrate that he is sympathetic toward human beings. But more importantly, it made Democrats look unsympathetic toward human beings. If a Democrat is president and Democrat calls out an American hero in the wings or somebody whose daughter was murdered and pays homage to that person, it doesn't matter if the President's a Democrat. You get up and you clap. Obviously, Trump knew they weren't going to do it, and so he played that to its full effect. President Trump knew exactly what he was doing when he used the tactics he used last night. But you need to know what you are doing when you're building your business. And that means hiring better. You know, when we started the Daily Wire, we had like seven employees and we operated out of a pool house. And now we have hundreds of employees. When you are hiring up, you need to get from point A to point B with the least possible friction. And that means finding the best people for your jobs. And that's why you need Zip Recruiter. ZipRecruiter helps you find the best people for your jobs. It's as simple as that. Right now you can try it for free@ziprecruiter.com Daily Wire. You want people who can perform, solve problems, who can create, who can build. Because that's what drives growth in a company like ours and at your company too. If you're an employer who has adopted skills based hiring, the best way to ensure your applicants have the right skills is using Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter recommends smart screening questions to help you hone in on the perfect match for your role. So you're not wasting time on people who are totally wrong for the job. And I have a great team here around me, a great team up in Nashville as well. All of that has to be constantly refreshed. We constantly have to be upgrading and Zip Recruiter helps us out with that. That's help you too. ZipRecruiter's powerful matching technology finds qualified candidates fast. You can easily add those screening questions right to your job post so you get the highest quality applicants. And if you want to view candidates who've been recently active on the site rather than, you know, an old forgotten profile, Zip Recruiter will help you filter that as well. Let Zip Recruiter help you find amazing candidates with the skills you want. Four out of five employers who post on ZipRecruiter get a quality candidate within day one. And now you can try it for free at ZipRecruiter.com Daily Wire that ZipRecruiter.com/Daily Wire. Meet your match on ZipRecruiter. Now to go back to the beginning. The way the President knew that the Democrats were going to do this is not only from prior experience, but also because Democrats were performatively oppositional, even in the lead up to the State of the Union. So, for example, Ayanna Presley, the Ringo star of the squad, you know, the one that everybody forgets, she stood up right before the State of the Union holding a giant sign that said, the State of our Union is traumatizing our children. Well, the president knew that she was going to do this kind of performative stuff, that they were all going to do this sort of performative stuff. Representative Angie Craig she said that you'd rather stick a fork in her eye than watch the State of the Union or attend the State of the Union. And I'll just end with this. I would rather stick forks in my eyes than be here tonight to listen to Donald Trump talk about the State of the Union. But this is the People's House and I will not abandon the People's House. Okay, so this is what Trump knew he was facing down. When you have people openly announcing they would rather stick forks in their eyes than be there, but they'll be there anyway to be performatively oppositional. Well, that's a tool. That is a tool. Representative Ro Khanna, another performative Democrat, said, said that he was going to bring a heroic Epstein survivor named Haley Robson. Our FBI director, Keshe Patel, flew for the Olympics to Italy, drinking with our hockey team. Our Attorney General, Pam Bondi, is hurling insults to members of Congress, but they've forgotten about the survivors, the thousands of survivors who just want justice. Haley Robeson just wants justice. That's why I'm inviting her as my guest tomorrow at the State of the Union. She'll be speaking not just for herself, but for the thousands of survivors. She's a former Trump voter. It's not about politics.
Guest or Co-host
It's about making sure we're prosecuting those
Ben Shapiro
men who abused these young girls and who committed horrific crimes. Be quiet, Be quiet, Be quiet. But we don't need them. Ok. How oppositionally stupid is Ro Khanna? The. The person that he brought, Haley Robson, literally recruited other girls for Epstein. She was effectively a co conspirator, and he brought her because he wanted to humiliate Trump. So this is what Trump was facing. So he comes in, he gets the cheers from the Republicans, and he starts off with the big unifying moment and very close to the top, he brings in the men's hockey team, the men's Olympic hockey team that just defeated our communist neighbors to the north. And it was a great moment because guess what? The men's hockey team winning the gold is great. And if you don't like it, you can f off like it's great. I don't think there's a normal person in America, doesn't matter, the politics. Who wasn't ecstatic at the performance of the men's Olympic hockey team in what was one of the great gold medal games in Olympic history. So President Trump invites them in and of course, this stuff is unifying. The President was very funny about it. Here's what it sounded like.
Guest or Co-host
The men's gold medal Olympic hockey team.
Ben Shapiro
Come on in. I do love the journalists having to pretend that they don't care and not clapping or anything because, you know, they have to be very, very important. Important journalists. They're so journalists. They can't clap. Just clap, guys. It's fine. He said that was great. And then the President went into a detailed description of the game, which I thought was actually the most entertaining part of the evening. The President went into the saves that were made by Conor Holabuck, the. The goalie for the. For the US Men's Olympic team, and actually said that he was going to give him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Again, if you're a defenseman, I guess you just don't get one. But, you know, kind of great, kind of wonderful. And that's when the crazy began. So Democrats throughout the night could not stop their crazy. Al Green, who. Not the singer, the representative. So Al Green Last year, got booted from the chamber as well. So he got booted from the chamber this time because he was holding up a sign that said black people aren't apes. And pretty early on, he got his butt kicked out of the chamber for, for this, This is as President Trump was walking in, obviously the big moment came and the sort of announcement, the shot over the bow from the President is when he overtly, in the middle of the speech, challenged Democrats to stand in solidarity with Americans and not in solidarity with illegal immigration. And Democrats couldn't bring themselves to do it. And this is smart. It is smart. Optically, it is a very smart thing to do politically. It's a very smart thing to do. As I've said before, President Trump in a vacuum, pretty much any president in a vacuum, but Trump specifically, you see all the flaws, right? The President is perfectly authentic. Whatever enters his brain, exits his mouth, whatever he is thinking is on his face. And so what that means is when you just look at the president, well, you see all the flaws. But when you put him next to Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, suddenly he looks like a knight in shining armor. Because the Democrats are so awful. They're so God awful. So here was Donald Trump saying a very obvious proposition and daring Democrats to sit on their hands, which they, which they, they did.
Guest or Co-host
If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support. The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens. In.
Ben Shapiro
And look at the Democrats sitting there.
Guest or Co-host
Ashamed of yourself, not standing up. You should be ashamed of yourself.
Ben Shapiro
Okay, again, what are Democrats thinking? What are Democrats thinking? I don't get it. Like, truly, what do they lose if they stand and they say, sure, like, they don't give like the raucous cheers, but they, but they stand up and of course, I mean, duh, what else would the first duty of the American government to be to protect people who are not American citizens? What the hell are you talking about? Democrats sitting on their hands are what, a giant fail again? That was scripted, right? That was in the speech. There are certain things the President did last night that were not where he was having fun with the crowd. The President is basically a stand up comedian and he's an insult comic. And so he has a lot of fun batting it around with the Democrats. But that was written in. You can see it. He's, he's reading when he says this. And Democrats could not bring themselves to do the most obvious thing. Now, there are two possibilities for why this is. One is the nefarious possibility. And one is the stupid possibility. So the stupid possibility is the Democrats, on a generic level, agree that American citizens come first, but they hate Trump so much that they cannot bring themselves to stand up and cheer because they're afraid that their psychotic base will get angry at them for acknowledging the obvious. That is the stupid explanation. Then there's the nefarious explanation, which is they actually do not agree that Americans should come first, that American citizens are the top priority, that somehow they believe that illegal immigrants in the country ought to be treated exactly the same, as though they have not broken the law, as legally papered Americans as US Citizens, as green card holders and all the rest. And if they believe that, that's crazy, Towns. But it doesn't matter for optical reasons, doesn't matter why they're doing what they're doing. It's incredibly dumb. It's. And President Trump calling it out, this was just the beginning, because over and over and over, he beat them over the head with their own idiocy, with their own optic delusions. Truly, it was amazing. So there came a point where President Trump was talking about fraud. He mentioned the Somali community in Minneapolis, and he proceeded to get in a yelling match with Ilhan Omar, who could not hold it back. And again, these images are so bad for Democrats. My understanding is the Democrats had been told by leadership, if you want to show up and not clap, fine, but please don't provide performative spectacle for the President to rip off of. And they couldn't do it. They couldn't do it. The other thing that obviously makes a huge difference here is this is again where the President understands how visuals work. The President is standing on a dais. He is up. The members of Congress are in the. Are in the crowd. They're down. They do not have a microphone. He does have a microphone. So you can't even hear what they're yelling. You just hear them heckling the president and yelling at him, but you can't hear quite what they're yelling at him. And you can hear him slap them down because he's got the mic and he's got the physical position. And, like, what are they thinking here? And I understand what they're thinking. Ilhan Omar is thinking, I'm the resistance. I'm the hero. You looked awful. You looked terrible. Because, I mean, first of all, the bitterness against America is written all over Ilhan Omar's face. This is a person who despises the fundamental basis of the country, truly. And so does Rashida Tlaib, her cohort who is sitting next to her wearing watermelon earrings in solidarity with Hamas supporters. Now here's the President going at it with Ilhan Omar.
Guest or Co-host
You should be ashamed of yourself not standing up. You should be ashamed of yourself. That is why I'm also asking you to end deadly sanctuary cities that protect the criminals and enact serious penalties for public officials who block the removal of criminal aliens, in many cases, drug lords, murderers all over our country. They're blocking the removal of these people out of our country. And you should be.
Ben Shapiro
So now you have these two benighted women screaming at the President. Ilhan Omar giving like the full open hand to try and direct the sound. But I'm not sure that there is a more irritating image than these two caterwauling America haters screaming at the President of the United States. Truly, I'm not sure I've ever seen a more irritating image in politics. I've seen a lot of irritating images in politics. But Ilhan Omar, who has a constant face of disdain for the country that has given her everything on her face, pasted on her face. And Rashida Tlaib, who bitterly, bitterly despises America's place in the world, sitting there and screaming at the President while Rashida Tlaib is wearing a pin that, I kid you not, says f ice, but it's not blurred out. I mean, truly, Democrats, this is what you want your. Your future to look like. This is what you want it to be. You know, sometimes you have to wonder, why are Republicans so overconfident in the way they approach politics? Why do they get distracted by shiny baubles or nonsensical issues? Well, it's easy to get overconfident, frankly, when your opposition is Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, whose policies and approach are approved by their district and literally no one else in America. How radical are Talib and Ilhan Omar? Well, after this started, the crowd on the Republican side of the aisle started chanting usa. Look at what Rashida Tlaib. If you can see this, this is why you should subscribe so you can go watch the show. Look at what Rashida Tlaib appears to be mouthing while people are chanting at usa. Okay, well, it doesn't take an amazing lip reader to see what Rashida Tlaib and her watermelon earrings and her kafiyah are mouthing to Ilhan Omar. Kkk. So you got the Republican side of the aisle chanting usa, and she is chanting kkk. That's sick. That is sick. Our immigration system has Failed. Our legal immigration system has failed. When these people are in the United States. Seriously, our vetting system sucks. If not only are these people in the United States, but they're sitting in Congress. Truly people who despise the fundamental very basis of the country. All Trump said in the lead up to that again, was that America, our first priority is to defend American citizens. And that led to that. That's what led to that. Amazing stuff. Well, President Trump kept dunking on Democrats all night long, using their own radicalism against them. So he mentioned a story of a, of a little girl who had essentially been taken from her parents and socially transitioned. He's talking about the insanity of the trans issue. And at a certain point he just turns to the camera, he's like, these people are crazy and these people are crazy is a pretty great line because, I mean, they didn't show themselves to be not crazy last night.
Guest or Co-host
Nobody stands up. These people are crazy. I'm telling you, they're crazy. We're lucky we have a country with people like this. Democrats are destroying our country. But we've stopped it just in the nick of time, didn't we?
Ben Shapiro
And again, not on non controversial issues. Truly non controversial is Democrats refuse to stand. So everyone remembers the horrifying images of the murder of Irina Zarudska. Irina Zyritska, of course, was the young woman who had refugee status in the United States. She was riding the Charlotte light rail and she was stabbed in the neck from behind by a violent black felon with schizoid tendencies, apparently. And then people around didn't help enough. I mean, it was terrible. You can go back and watch the show. It was horrible. So the President was talking about violent crime in America's blue cities and he paid tribute to her mom. And Democrats would not even stand for this. I mean, come on, guys, do you have any, like, a grain of common sense? Like one small shred of common sense? Like a little bit. Like a little bit of common sense. Here's the President paying tribute to the mother of a murdered woman. And Democrats being, well, you know, he is saying a thing and I don't like him, so I'm just going to sit here.
Guest or Co-host
Mrs. Zaretzka, tonight I promise you, we will ensure justice for your magnificent daughter Irina. How do you not stand? How do you not stand?
Ben Shapiro
Again, the President, he found the, he found the tool to use against the Democrats and he used it over and over and over. And that is going to be, that is going to be the thing that hurts Democrats. That. Because in the End. What people remember is moments. Nobody remembers the policy proposals laid out by Barack Obama at his various State of the Union addresses. If you remember anything, you remember Joe Wilson and Barack Obama getting into it or Barack Obama insulting the Supreme Court justices. Nobody is going to remember what President Trump said about Trump accounts last night. I mean, I like the Trump accounts. I think they're good. But nobody's going to remember what he said. What they are going to remember is Democrats not standing for the mother of a slain woman. President Trump also called on members of Congress not to be able to stock trade. Elizabeth Warren actually got up and cheered, but many Democrats did not. And then the President went out of his way to slap Nancy Pelosi.
Guest or Co-host
Let's also ensure that members of Congress cannot corruptly profit from using insider information. They stood up for that. I can't believe it. I can't believe it. Did Nancy Pelosi stand up if she was here?
Ben Shapiro
Doubt it. Okay. I mean, that's just. It's a little funny. It's a little funny. Let's be real. The President also called on Erica Kirk. She, of course, attended yesterday the State of the Union Address. The entire political world in sympathy with Erica Kirk, except for Candace Owens, who of course is exploiting her husband's death in order to attack Erica Kirk for cheap clicks and grifty cash. The President called on Erica Kirk and talked about political violence. According to Michael Knowles, who is in the room. I believe he's the guest of the Speaker. Apparently there were some Democrats who wouldn't even stand for this one.
Guest or Co-host
I'm very proud to say that during my time in office, both the first four years and in particular this last year, there has been a tremendous renewal in religion, faith, Christianity and belief in God. Tremendous reward. This is especially true among young people. And a big part of that had to do with my great friend, Charlie Kirk. Great guy, great man. Last year, Charlie was violently murdered by an assassin and martyred, really martyred for his beliefs. His wonderful wife Erica is with us tonight. Erica, please stand. Thank you, Erica. Been through a lot in Charlie's memory. We must all come together to reaffirm that America is one nation under God and we must totally reject political violence of any kind.
Ben Shapiro
By the way, the polling on the speech, the instant polling from CNN, showed 63% support, 36% opposed. Now, Speaker Johnson had some words for the Democrats afterward. Here's what the speaker had to say about Democrats behavior during the State of the Union address. You know, it was shameful, really. And I came this close to Stopping them. We could have probably ejected them from the floor. But, you know, I thought, let them. Let their actions speak for themselves. The President handled it so well, of course, and if they'd gone a step further, we probably would have ejected them. But I think it was good for them to be there. I think it's good for the American people to see the shame that they brought upon their party and upon themselves. And what a stark contrast between them and between the Republican Party. I mean, again, he is right about that. Now, the President did have some policy talk last night. It was not all stories and metal awarding. He did some of that. He went after the Supreme Court very briefly, certainly in, I thought a better vein than he did in his immediate reaction to the Supreme Court decision last week that struck down his abuse of tariff power that had not been delegated to him. He kind of went after the Supreme Court. He called it disappointing, but he withheld his accusations of foreign meddling or stupidity from the Supreme Court.
Guest or Co-host
And then just four days ago, an unfortunate ruling from the United States Supreme Court. It just came down. It came down. Very unfortunate ruling. But the good news is that almost all, all countries and corporations want to keep the deal that they already made. Right, Scott? Knowing that the legal power that I as president have to make a new deal could be far worse for them. And therefore they will continue to work along the same successful path that we had negotiated before the Supreme Court's unfortunate involvement. So despite the disappointing ruling, these powerful countries saving, it's saving our country the kind of money we're taking in.
Ben Shapiro
Now, the other area of policy the President touched on that is interesting because it is unfolding in real time is of course, the possibility of a conflict again with Iran. Here is the President speaking about the Iranian government, what they've been pursuing.
Guest or Co-host
They've already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas. And they're working to build missiles, missiles that will soon reach the United States of America after Midnight Hammer. They were warned to make no future attempts to rebuild their weapons program, and in particular, nuclear weapons. Yet they continue starting it all over. We wiped it out. And they want to start all over again and are at this moment again pursuing their sinister ambition. We are in negotiations with them. They want to make a deal, but we haven't heard those secret words. We will never have a nuclear weapon. My preference, My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy. But one thing is certain. I will never allow the world's number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon can't let that happen.
Ben Shapiro
Now it's interesting because there are a couple of ways to read what he's saying and this is going to be pretty relevant for the negotiations that are slated to happen Thursday, possibly Friday. So there are really several issues that are on the table with regard to what the Iranian regime must do or should do. One, no nuclear program. Not no nuclear weapons, no nuclear program. Because of course a civilian nuclear program can be converted into a military nuclear program pretty quickly and easily. And the Iranians simply saying we won't build a nuclear weapon is no assurance they won't build a nuclear weapon. That's called the jcpoa. And Barack Obama did it. He also talked there about the ballistic missile development of Iran, but he did not really link that ballistic missile development to concessions that Iran must make. This has been sort of an open divide inside the administration. Some members of the administration are pushing the Iranians, they need to give up their ballistic missile program as well so they can't threaten surrounding countries and allies ranging from Israel to Saudi Arabia and all the way to Europe. Should that be part of the negotiation? There are some people who are saying, no, no, no, no, that shouldn't be part. Which of course I think is insane and ridiculous because they can attach not only nuclear weapons, but chemical and biological weapons to warheads that are capable of hitting populated centers in allied nations and as the President says, are building long range ICBMs, theoretically capable of even hitting American territory. And then there is the question of their treatment of their own population, the murder of 32,000 people in the streets, the support for regional and global terrorism. Are all of those things going to be on the table in the negotiations? Or is the United States going to seek an off ramp by basically cutting an even weaker version of Barack Obama's JCPOA deal? I don't think it's clear from what the President is saying right there which direction he's going to go. According to cnbc, the US And Iran are poised to hold further nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday. Again, he says that his preference is negotiated end point here. The question really in the end is going to be whether the President of the United States is too concerned about the possibility of a multi week air campaign against the Iranians to actually do it and the Iranians just bluff him. That's really all this is about. No one, again, no one is talking about a massive ground invasion of Tehran. No one is talking about a long term occupation of Tehran. Nobody is talking about hundreds of thousands of American boots on the Ground in theater. Nobody's talking about that. The question here for the President is what is the risk reward here for a multi week air campaign to defenestrate the IRGC and the ayatollahs and the mullahs in Iran? And then whatever happens, happens, because I will tell you that everyone else is watching. If the United States backs off of this and cuts some sort of unbelievably weak deal, the consequences will not just be for the Middle east, where Israel will be forced to ramp up its military even more and probably go and attack Iran itself, given Iran's capacity and increasing capacity in both nuclear and ballistic missile development and its renewed attempts to support terrorism. But aside from the Middle east, the Russians are looking on. The President has put a lot of pressure on the Ukrainians and not enough pressure on the Russians. They're probably thinking to themselves, the United States is backing off. They probably renew their offensive in Ukraine, redouble it, triple it. China probably looks at Taiwan and says, why not blockade Taiwan? Who's going to stop us? And the reality is that the United States remains extraordinarily dependent on the microchips that are produced in Taiwan. And if you're China, and if your window of opportunity is closing, which it is demographically, the Chinese have a massive demographic problem. They have a major debt problem. If your window of opportunity is closing, you're being out competed, particularly in the AI industry, then why not make a move on Taiwan? If you, if you no longer fear the big red button that President Trump holds, these are the consequences of foreign policy. We'll have to see how it plays out. Democrats did deliver a response last night. Abigail Spanberger, the new governor of Virginia. She is the face many Democrats are pushing because she is perceived as moderate. Again, Democrats are attempting. This is why last night was a failure for the Democrats. Because the question is, did you emerge from last night thinking Democrats look more like Abigail Spanberger in their politics or more like Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlai? If the latter, Democrats have a really rough road. If the former, maybe they have a better road. So Abigail Spanberger delivered her message. It was supposedly more moderate, but even Abigail Spanberger could not help but attack ICE as terrorizing Americans. And yet our president has sent poorly trained federal agents into our cities where they have arrested and detained American citizens and people who aspire to be Americans. And they have done it without a warrant. They have ripped nursing mothers away from their babies. They have sent children, a little boy in a blue bunny hat, children to far off detention centers and they have killed American citizens in our streets, and they have done it all with their faces masked from accountability. Every minute spent sowing fear is a minute not spent investigating murders, crimes against children, or the criminals defrauding seniors of their life savings. Our president told us tonight that we are safer because these agents arrest mothers and detain children. Think about that. Our broken immigration system is something to be fixed, not an excuse for unaccountable agents to terrorize our communities. Now, if Democrats think this is a winning message, I don't know what to tell you. If that's your moderate face, you got a problem. Well, most of the moderates were not on display last night, not only in the chamber, but also outside the chamber. Apparently, radical Democrats held what they called the People's State of the Union. It was. It didn't go great. It was held by MoveOn and it featured some kind of funny and awkward moments. Some good Michael Scott level comedy here. So Joy Reid and Katie Fang hosted this thing. And at one point, Joy Reid started to sing. Oh, no, it didn't. Oh, no, here we go. Tonight you are going to hear people that have been impacted directly by the bull of this administration. Amen. And because I'm also a church girl. Sorry, Joy, for my language. Oh, no. I'm a cussing Christian, sis. It's all good. I'm a cussing Christian. But we want to start off this night by doing something that I think is so important. Katie, please. And that is reclaiming the Christian voice from white Christian nationalism, which not only threatens our freedom, but also threatens a very important faith throughout this world. Christianity is not what you have been sold by Project 2025. Okay, good luck with that one. So Christianity is transgenderism, same sex marriage, abortion on demand. Yeah, that. That's. That's your. That's your pitch. Ooh, boy. Oh. And then Joy Reid also started to sing. It didn't go amazing. Al Green, if you can hear me, I so in. Come on here it. Keep it going. Whatever you. It's all right with me. The people, State of the Union, which I don't know which people I like. I like when left to say the people. The people. And what they really mean is just the people who agree with us. So Senator Ed Markey, who looks like he is straight from a. In some sort of nursing home at this point, Senator from Massachusetts got up there and started ranting about trans rights at the People's State of the Union, a thing at the top of everyone's concern list. Americans are deeply concerned about Ed Markey's. Views on chopping the penises off of healthy boys. I will not stand by while they
Guest or Co-host
target transgender people, demonizing trans kids, banning
Ben Shapiro
them from schools and sports, and trying to erase their very existence from public life.
Guest or Co-host
Trans rights are human rights.
Ben Shapiro
You got to feel a little bit bad for Ed Markey, who is sort of low rent Bernie Sanders, which I know it seems impossible because Bernie Sanders has never paid rent. He is a useless human being. But Ed Markey, he's, he's the one everyone forgets about. He's even got a little bit of that Ted Kennedy. We are saying that you must love the transgender ideology. He's got that, but nobody cares about him. So that was, that was a success. And then there was just the sheer anger. So James Carville, he delivered a personal message to President Trump. I think this is going to be an effective tactic for Democrats is, is to speak like James Carville does. I have a personal message for Donald John Trump. And you said, still, you son of a. When I'm telling you this, I'm going to tell you right where you are,
Guest or Co-host
you fat sorry sack of shit.
Ben Shapiro
People hate you. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. James Carville, groundbreaking stuff under the 75th Amendment to the US Constitution. If James Carville tells you that you are a fat sorry sack of bleep and that people hate you, you are no longer president. So I'm sure the President is sitting there and taking all that in and weeping this morning because James Carville said those mean, mean things to him. Jimmy Kimmel, who decided long ago that he would stop being funny in favor of just being a second rate politico, got up there, tears in his eyes as per our usual arrangement, and gave the real State of the Union address. So much smarm, so much, so much pain and angst. Here's Jimmy Kimmel. Here's the real State of the Union, okay? We have a nut job wannabe king who's doing everything he can to censor opinions he doesn't want to hear. He, he has his goons arresting, incarcerating and killing American citizens. He's got funding for cancer research in children's hospitals while he rakes in literally billions of dollars for himself and his family. He's coming after our right to vote. He's protecting pedophiles and won't explain it. He's lining the pockets of billionaires, all while neglecting the sick, the poor, the hungry. In the name of Jesus, by the way, who you could read all about a Donald Trump edition of the God bless the USA Bible that is made in China and available for $99.99. That is the state of the union. Wow. Wow. So much. Did you hear all the jokes in there? There are so many jokes. Whoa, What? Jimmy Kimmel. Rachel Maddow was similarly upset over at Ms. Now, as opposed to Ms. Then. And. And she. She said that Trump's speech was viol. I don't know what you're doing in your off hours, but. All right. For long stretches of the speech that were essentially sort of violence porn, he
Guest or Co-host
talked about people being covered in blood, gushing blood, blood pouring out of things. He talked about people being on the edge of death.
Ben Shapiro
He went into graphic detail on a number of different people's injuries of various kind. And in those moments, he slowed down, ad libbed a lot and tried to give seemingly as much sort of gory detail as he could. Talking about very bloody scenes. Don't say blood, guys. You're not allowed. When somebody is wounded during the snatch and grab of Nicolas Maduro, you must never talk about their bloody wounds ever. Ever. You must instead describe them the most antiseptic terms possible. Now, it never apparently occurs to Rachel Maddow that the reason that you describe these injuries is for the emotional effect of the thing. The reason why we pay tribute to heroes is because they have undergone tremendous suffering. And you must talk about that suffering in order to actually understand the level of the heroism. Or if you're talking about the victim of a crime, it doesn't suffice to say that someone was struck by a car. You actually have to describe their injuries if you wish to explain just how bad the injuries were. But apparently this is violence porn. To. To. Okay, that. That's a. That's a take as well. Again, Democrats have got a problem. They want to portray themselves as the great moderates of the American political scene. Last night demonstrated full scale that they are not. But it's not just at the State of the Union. They continue to make fools of themselves nationwide. Zoran Mamdani, the smuggest man on earth. Captain Smarm, a man who's smile is pasted on his face, plastered on his face in almost joker like Cesar Romero fashion. Well, Zaramdani yesterday announced there'd be no prosecutions against people who injured NYPD officers. We talked about this yesterday on the show. There's a situation in which NYPD officers arrived at Washington Square and people began pelting them with snowballs. And he said it was all fun and games. Don't you understand? They're just having a snowball fight. You know, like one would with an armed officer. Here is Zormandani just being predictably terrible.
Guest or Co-host
From the videos that I've seen, it looks like a snowball fight.
Ben Shapiro
I think that there were two officers who were facing lacerations on their face alter prosecution of those who pelted them.
Guest or Co-host
Look, I, I've, I've seen the videos of this snowball fight. I think that it was a snowball fight.
Ben Shapiro
Oh, it's just a snowball fight. Well, see here, here's the fun thing about snowball fights. Usually I've been in some with my kids. Usually the way that it works is that everyone is throwing snowballs. So unless the police officers were also throwing snowballs back at people in the crowd, and it was just a fun old good time, you know, people diving into snow banks and people enjoying that laughter and happiness. I mean, we do have video of the thing, and it is officers walking away from giant crowds of people who are walking after them hurling snowballs at them. You want to know why cops are quitting? You want to know why cops don't want to serve in the nypd? Because of the political leadership that says if you assault an officer and, and you do it with a snowball or an ice ball or whatever, then Zoran Mandani will come out and defend you as just a frisky snowball throwing kid. I wonder why so many people are like, hey, maybe law and order is in jeopardy here. Maybe law and order is in jeopardy. Meanwhile, AOC and Mamdani invited illegal immigrants to free childcare. In Spanish, there is that creepy, smarmy, pasted on grin from Zorani. I can't deal with it. I, honest to God can't deal with it. The rictus grin of Zoran Mamdani. Hola. She's saying that everybody is eligible pre K or 3K in New York City, but you must apply by February 27th, which is the deadline. And then if you just keep your eyes on Zormandani just grinning at the, at the camera. Oh, my God. Regardless of your occupation, income, or immigration status, free, free child care for the illegals. Oh, isn't that nice? Yay, New York. This is what you guys got yourself into. Congrats. You have AOC jabbering in Spanish at you and Zorn Mandani sitting there as though he fell into a vat of toxic waste. And now his face is frozen that way. Enjoy your multiple years of this sort of happiness. New York City. It'll. It'll go well. Well, at least The Democrats still have some national figures who are worth their salt, like Kamala Harris. Second look, fourth look at, seventh look at Kamala Harris. Is she making her great comeback or did they finally run out of wine at the Harris mansion? Well, here she was yesterday explaining the reason she lost was mis and disinformation and also his information and just information. All the informations. So here is Kamala Harris, the world's worst presidential candidate who failed upward into every job she has ever held, except for some of her original jobs where she was, you know, Willie Browning. It. And, and here, here is, here is Gamalaris. Who do you regard as your biggest opponent in this election? Was it time? Was it Trump? Was it the, the Biden administration? Who was your. The biggest foe? That's a wonderful way to think of it. Well, there were many, certainly there was the obvious one on the ballot, but I'd say probably almost in equal measure. Time and misinformation. Misinformation about what? Missing disinformation about a number of things, whether it be anything to do with what we were challenged with as an economy and what the source of those, what the source of those challenges are. Affordability. Mis and disinformation about who actually had a plan to deal with affordability. And I mean, frankly, I think one of the big issues that impacted the outcome of the election was my opponent told people on day one he was going to lower prices and he lied. And so the, the, and time also is, can work in conjunction with, or the lack of time can work in conjunction with mis and disinformation, meaning that there's not a sufficient amount of time to get the facts out, to get accurate information out. I mean, she is magnificent. How did she lose with that sort of extraordinary command of both the English language and the facts. How in the world did Kamala Harris lose? What were Americans thinking when they didn't make her president of the United States? She's asked a basic question like what kind of mis and disinformation? And she says nothing. She starts spinning like a top. You know, misinformation about, you know, like the economy and, and things in the, in the world. And the world's the place that is filled. It's filled with, with, you know, things happening in conjunction with, with time and the space time continuum. And, you know, the flux capacitor operates when you hit 88 miles an hour. But, but only in electric vehicle. That lady is either the front runner or the person who is second to Gavin Newsom in the primaries right now for Democrats she says she's thinking about running again. To which I say, do it. Yes. Yes, we. We all need more Kamala Harris in our lives. Except for Doug, but. But we all, the rest of us need more Kamala Harrison in our lives. Will you run again? I haven't decided. You're still thinking about it? I might, yeah. That's what I've been saying. That's what I. I closed the book. And I'm like, oh, she wants to. She's just thinking about it. About it, if that was my impression. By the way, it will be the most hilarious thing ever if Democrats run her again. It will be hysterically funny. I do not think that will happen. I think that the donors are not going to pour their money into that failed candidacy. I do not think they will do that. I don't think they're that stupid. On the other hand, are they that stupid? Maybe they might be that stupid. It's possible. All right, folks, the show continues for our members right now. We'll bring you the latest on the Nancy Guthrie story. I mean, this thing is going to get dark. It just is. Plus Bill Gates admitting to some sexual impropriety. Not with regard to Jeffrey Epstein, just generally, but also a little bit of regret on the Epstein stuff. We'll get into all the details. Remember, in order to watch, you have to be a member. And if you're not a member, become a member and use Code Shapiro at checkout for two months, free on all annual plans. Click that link in the description and join us. Okay. No, not even close. 2, 3, whatever. You know what? 2, 3, 4. I cannot believe we're back here again. Ben. If the Ben Shapiro shows him on. And Ben After Dark is a cool mom, you know, like, irresponsible. Your new home is now ready. Dr. Horton, America's builder has new homes that are ready today with new construction communities in Ellensburg and throughout the Greater Seattle area. Dr. Horton has the right home for you. At Dr. Horton, we're still building with flexible living spaces, smart home technology, and two and three car garages. More communities and more homes available every day. Find your new home in Ellensburg now ready@drhorton.com Dr. Horton, America's builder and equal housing opportunity builder.
Episode 2375 – CHECKMATE: Omar, Tlaib HUMILIATE Themselves, Trump SOARS at SOTU
Date: February 25, 2026
Host: Ben Shapiro (The Daily Wire)
In this episode, Ben Shapiro delivers a sharp, conservative recap and analysis of President Trump’s 2026 State of the Union (SOTU) address, focusing heavily on the confrontational optics between Trump and Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. Shapiro argues Trump “humiliated the Democrats” by smartly maneuvering the event to place maximum pressure on his political opponents while uniting his base around common-sense themes and national pride. He also dissects the Democratic and media responses, highlighting what he calls radicalism and performative opposition from the left.
Trump’s key skill, according to Shapiro, is making it extremely hard for people to support his political opposition.
He anticipated Democrats’ refusal to applaud, instead adopting “80-20 positions” (widely popular, obvious policy goals) that forced Democrats to visibly withhold their support.
Shapiro:
“He really jujitsu’d them in a masterful way... he decided to use that tactic against them.” (05:40)
Example: Trump bringing up the men’s Olympic hockey team, a unifying and apolitical moment, which was met with Democratic frostiness.
Use of visual stagecraft: Trump, always aware of how things appear on TV, set up moments with the camera focusing on Omar and Tlaib’s negative reactions.
“Trump shines...when he can put in stark relief his own agenda and the agenda of the people who oppose him.” (04:38)
“How oppositionally stupid is Ro Khanna?” (11:24)
Crowd Control:
Immigration and Law Enforcement:
“The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.” (15:04)
Omar & Tlaib’s Outbursts:
“What are Democrats thinking? ...Democrats sitting on their hands are, what, a giant fail...” (15:29)
“Moments matter...What they are going to remember is Democrats not standing for the mother of a slain woman.” (24:18)
Official Democratic Response (Abigail Spanberger):
“If Democrats think this is a winning message, I don’t know what to tell you.” (34:59)
People’s State of the Union (MoveOn Event):
“That lady is either the front runner or the person who is second to Gavin Newsom in the primaries right now for Democrats. ... Will you run again? I haven’t decided. You’re still thinking about it? I might...” (47:39)
| Segment | Topic | Timestamp | |---------|-------|-----------| | SOTU Key Takeaway & Trump’s Strategy | 03:40–08:00 | | Democratic Performative Opposition Examples | 09:00–13:00 | | Hockey Team Introduction & Unifying Moments | 12:26–13:30 | | Outbursts over Immigration | 15:04–16:00 | | Omar/Tlaib Spectacle & “KKK” Accusation | 19:00–21:00 | | “People’s State of the Union” Mocked | 39:32–42:00 | | Kamala Harris’ Media Tour | 46:20–48:20 |
Ben Shapiro maintains his signature rapid-fire, sarcastic, and caustic tone throughout, lacing the episode with biting humor, incredulity at Democratic behavior, and a sense of both exasperation and triumph over what he sees as political self-sabotage by the left.
He positions Trump’s State of the Union as a pivotal moment that made Democrats look out-of-touch and radical to the broader American public, with moderates marginalized and performative figures unintentionally aiding the president’s re-election optics.
Summary Takeaway:
For Shapiro, the night belonged to Trump, whose SOTU address turned the Democrats' own extremism and opposition into an effective campaign ad. Through sharp staging and common-sense appeals, Trump succeeded in “checkmating” his opposition—even as the Democratic and media response only underscored his point.