The Ben Shapiro Show

Episode: Why I Don’t Regret My Vote For Trump
Date: April 25, 2026
Host: Ben Shapiro (The Daily Wire)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Ben Shapiro makes a comprehensive case for why he does not regret voting for Donald Trump in the 2024 election. He addresses the current political climate, debunks criticisms from both the left and hesitant conservatives, and systematically compares the Trump administration’s record to what he terms as the “Kamala Harris alternative.” With his characteristic rapid-fire style and sharp commentary, Shapiro examines policy achievements in immigration, DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), the culture wars, economics, and foreign policy, and argues that these are the reasons he remains confident about his vote.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. No Regrets Over the Trump Vote – Framing the Choice

• Shapiro opens the episode declaring his lack of regret for voting Trump in 2024, calling the alternative (“President Kamala Harris”) “confusing.”
  • Quote (01:02):

    “I do not regret my vote for President Trump in 2024. Not one iota, not one bit.”

• He frames the election as a binary choice and asks why people are surprised by Trump delivering on promises he has made for decades.
• Shapiro’s argument: The Trump presidency is a fulfillment of stated conservative priorities, not a betrayal or surprise.

2. Immigration Policy Under Trump vs. Prior Administrations

Segment: 01:35–03:00

• Shapiro recalls the Biden administration’s “fully open border” and claims a massive drug influx, citing his personal experience at the southern border.
• Asserts that Trump “closed the border,” resulting in net loss of immigration for the first time in modern history.
  • Quote (02:19):

    “...for the first time in modern history, we actually have a net loss in terms of the people coming into the country. People are leaving the country faster than they are coming in.”

• Dismisses claims that Obama deported more people, accusing such arguments of statistical manipulation.
• Argues Trump’s actions on the border justify the vote.

3. DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and Federal Policy

Segment: 03:00–04:35

• Contrasts what he calls Biden/Harris’s pro-DEI federal agenda with Trump’s abolition of DEI initiatives.
  • Shares Harris’s own words emphasizing “equitable treatment” (audio clip included at 03:32).
  • Kamala Harris (03:32):

    “Equitable treatment means we all end up at the same place.”

• Applauds Trump for removing DEI programs from federal government and pursuing legal action against race-based university admissions and federal contractors.
• Sees DEI as antithetical to meritocracy and MLK’s vision.
  • Quote (04:05):

    “DEI is basically the statement that your race ought to matter more than your individual merit. It is a rejection of the ethos of Martin Luther King Jr...”

• Warns that a Democrat government would re-institute and strengthen DEI policies.

4. The Culture Wars: Gender & Social Policy

Segment: 04:35–06:20

• Criticizes the Biden era’s embrace of gender identity policies, recounting controversies around pronoun use, trans athletes, and government funding for gender-affirming care.
  • References “Trans Visibility Day” coinciding with Easter at the White House (05:35).
• Praises Trump for reversing these policies, issuing executive orders, and enabling legislative pushback at state level.
  • Quote (05:40):

    “President Trump reversed all of that. President Trump reversed the trans issue. He said that Democrats were for they/them and he was for you.”

5. Economic Policy: Tariffs, Taxation, and Growth

Segment: 06:20–07:45

• Admits personal disagreement with Trump’s tariffs but argues that the overall economic policies of the Biden administration (taxes, regulation, inflation) would have been worse.
  • Supports Trump’s deregulatory and tax stability measures.
  • Praises American successes in AI due to “light hand regulations.”
  • Quote (07:18):

    “There’s a reason AI is being developed in the United States and not in Europe...the United States is winning the AI war.”

• Contrasts Trump's “creation of prosperity” with what he calls Democrats’ focus on “redistribution of poverty.”

6. Judiciary & Religious Freedom

Segment: 07:45–08:33

• Applauds Trump for his judicial appointments, especially in relation to religious liberty and state control over abortion policy.
• Warns that Democratic control would have negatively affected the Supreme Court’s composition and direction, threatening religious freedom.

7. Foreign Policy: Strength, Israel, Iran, and Global Leadership

Segment: 08:33–10:18

• Pushes back on the narrative that Trump’s foreign policy is isolationist, emphasizing “peace through strength.”
• Highlights:
  • Trump’s arming and support of Israel during conflict with Hezbollah and Hamas.
  • Bombing of Iran’s Fordo nuclear facility, setting back their program by “decades.”
  • Disruption of Venezuelan regime by sanctions and oil chokeholds.
• Contrasts these actions with what he describes as Obama/Biden/Harris weakness, resulting in increased aggression from Russia and Iran.
  • Quote (09:30):

    “President Trump is the first president in any of our lifetimes to take truly seriously the threat of Iran to the extent necessary to actually set them back decades in their pursuit of nuclear weapons...”

8. National Security & Domestic Threats

• Cites successful DOJ actions against foreign influence networks and philanthropies with ties to adversarial states (e.g., George Soros funding network, the Singham network).

9. Summing Up – No Regrets, Only Affirmation

Segment: 10:18–End

• Ben reiterates he is “very, very happy” with his vote and predicts history will vindicate him on all major fronts discussed.
  • Quote (10:32):

    “For all of the reasons that I just said. For all of those reasons, I’m very, very happy that I voted for President Trump. And when history is written, all of those things are going to be in the books.”

• Dismisses calls to “regret” his vote and leaves listeners with a challenge to consider the real alternatives:
  • Quote (10:50):

    “Cackling Kamala Harris, is the thing that you regret not voting for that truly? Well, I guess you’ll have your chance to vote for Democrats in 2026. And good luck to you.”

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps):

• (01:02) Ben Shapiro: “I do not regret my vote for President Trump in 2024. Not one iota, not one bit.”
• (02:19) Ben Shapiro: “...for the first time in modern history, we actually have a net loss in terms of the people coming into the country.”
• (03:32) Kamala Harris (audio clip): "Equitable treatment means we all end up at the same place."
• (04:05) Ben Shapiro: “DEI is basically the statement that your race ought to matter more than your individual merit. It is a rejection of the ethos of Martin Luther King Jr...”
• (05:40) Ben Shapiro: “President Trump reversed the trans issue. He said that Democrats were for they/them and he was for you.”
• (07:18) Ben Shapiro: “There’s a reason AI is being developed in the United States and not in Europe...the United States is winning the AI war.”
• (09:30) Ben Shapiro: “President Trump is the first president in any of our lifetimes to take truly seriously the threat of Iran to the extent necessary to actually set them back decades in their pursuit of nuclear weapons...”
• (10:32) Ben Shapiro: “For all of the reasons that I just said. For all of those reasons, I’m very, very happy that I voted for President Trump. And when history is written, all of those things are going to be in the books.”
• (10:50) Ben Shapiro: “Well, I guess you’ll have your chance to vote for Democrats in 2026. And good luck to you.”

Structure & Tone

• Style: Fast-paced, assertive, combative, laden with direct rhetorical questions.
• Approach: Shapiro systematically addresses each area where criticism might arise and offers both statistics and anecdotal evidence.
• Language: Clear, persuasive, reflectively conservative, sometimes mocking (“cackling Kamala Harris”).

Recap

For listeners seeking a reasoned defense of Trump’s presidency from a conservative perspective—or an understanding of the main arguments being made by “never regret” Trump voters—this episode provides a comprehensive summary of Shapiro’s case, complete with policy highlights, culture war soundbites, and pointed rhetorical flourishes.