The Benny Show: “Elon Declares WAR on Netflix, Stock COLLAPSES as Millions CANCEL | Dems HUMILIATED in Trump Meme War”

Host: Benny Johnson
Guests: Senator Mike Lee, Rep. Tim Burchett
Date: October 2, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode centers on two main themes:

1. The growing backlash against Netflix for “radical sexualized content” in children’s programming, catalyzed by Elon Musk's call for a mass cancellation of subscriptions.
2. Republicans’ dominance over Democrats in the ongoing “meme war” during the government shutdown debate, culminating in meme-driven tactics at the White House and coverage of the Democrats’ inability to counter.

Guests Senator Mike Lee and Rep. Tim Burchett join Benny to discuss these issues, the cultural implications, and strategies for winning the “culture war.”

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Netflix Backlash: Elon Musk’s “War” and Parental Outrage

• Mass Netflix Cancellations: Benny frames the episode around a purported exodus from Netflix, asserting “thousands and thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of people are cancelling Netflix as the woke company is losing billions.”

  • [00:01] Benny: “This is not like your average left, right, red, blue, communist versus capitalism, culture war thing. It's so much worse than that. … Nations that allow for the sexualization of children don't last, and those kind of societies collapse.”

• Moral (not just political) Concern: Benny insists the controversy transcends politics; it's a fundamental moral issue involving childhood innocence and “explicitly sexual conversations.”

  • He references Christian doctrine: “If you harm this little kid, it'd be better for a giant rock to be tied around your neck...”
  • Appeals to secular morality echo this: “If you consider yourself even a remotely moral person, then … doing this to children is wrong.”
  • [06:00–10:00] (Paraphrase): Benny rails against Netflix for “inserting radical gender ideology” and non-binary themes even in shows for toddlers.

• Specific Content Critiques:

  • Trans Cows & Robots: Benny fixates on cartoon segments where a cow or Transformer character discusses pronouns/non-binary identity.
    • [14:30] “Netflix is taking children's shows and even making the cows trans. I kid you not.”
    • Carrie Lake reference (milking a bull): “Farmers will tell you that you can't milk a bull.”
  • Song Critique: Benny mocks the “just be you” message in these cartoons as nihilistic and harmful to children’s sense of boundaries.
    • [19:33] “This is actually not the message that kids need to hear. Kids don't need to hear, just be me, like, and do anything you want to do. … What kind of nightmarish, collapsed society that you will have if everybody just did those things?”

• Parental Advice & “Culture War” Solution:

  • Benny shares a story about his own family (“my wife cancelled Netflix and wants baby #5”) as a prescription for winning the culture war:
    • [26:53] “This is how we defeat them. It's never been easier to win the culture war ever. We're the ones having all the kids, so you just must protect your children.”
  • Statistical arguments: Sharing data suggesting conservative, Trump-supporting voters are “out-breeding” liberals.
    • “We are literally out breeding the left.”
    • “If you wish to actually save your nation, the number one way you can do it is fall in love, get married, have a million kids, raise them with your values.”

• Stock Market Impact:

  • Benny attributes Netflix’s tumbling stock price to this backlash.
    • [34:44] "Netflix's stock is collapsing, guys… That's today. Holy moly. Look at this. This is now down 30 points."

2. Meme Wars: Trump, Republicans, and White House Tactics vs. Democrats

• Republican Meme Successes:

  • Benny explains how the “sombrero meme” (photoshopping sombreros on Democrat politicians) became viral and disrupted Democrats’ messaging during the government shutdown.
    • [44:24] “Democrats are trying to respond to the sombrero meme… Every time that Democrats try and do anything, we put a sombrero on them.”
  • Contrasts the “fresh” Republican memes vs. “stale,” outdated Democrat memes (example: cat memes, Minions).
    • [46:15] “They’re not using recent memes. Their stuff is just not fresh. … This has appealed to absolutely nobody.”
    • [48:31] “If my 2-year-old… They would love to make like minion, like they would like to make everything into a minion. So well done. You've outsourced to my 3-year-old your meme strategy.”

• White House Participation:

  • The White House press team plays meme music, runs the memes on repeat, and even updates voicemail to taunt Democrats.
    • [49:59] “Thank you for calling the White House comment line… Democrats in Congress have shut down the federal government because they care more about funding health care for illegal immigrants than they care about serving you…”

• Democrats’ Struggles:

  • Benny and guests argue this signifies a total “messaging war” defeat.
    • [73:38] “The vast majority of the polling… The American people clearly blame the Democrat Party. … They’ve lost the messaging war already.”

3. Guest Conversations: Senator Mike Lee and Rep. Tim Burchett

Senator Mike Lee

• On Meme Warfare and Politics:

  • Emphasizes memes as today’s “political cartoons” and major communicative tools.
    • [55:40] “Memes… are the present day, modern day and most effective form of the political cartoon. Donald Trump has mastered the art, as have you.”
    • Notable quote: “The reason libs can't meme, Senator, is because they are the meme.” (Benny, [56:51])

• On Government Shutdown:

  • Asserts Democrats are “willing to shut down the federal government” primarily over extending benefits to illegal immigrants.
    • [60:09] “They are willing to do all that so badly do they want to encourage and reward illegal immigration, that they're willing to do all of this now? This is absolutely absurd… every time Democrats do this in order to encourage and reward illegal immigration. This is inexcusable.”
  • Optimistically frames the shutdown as a chance to slash the federal bureaucracy:
    • [65:39] “Russ Vogt is a freaking genius… Thank you Democrats, for helping us trim the size of the federal payroll.”
    • Hints at the possibility of laying off “hundreds of thousands” of federal workers.

• On Culture War and Family:

  • Lee and Benny praise having large traditional families as the antidote to progressive cultural shifts.

Rep. Tim Burchett

• On Meme Culture & Democrats’ Response:

  • Mocks Democrats for being overly sensitive and unable to keep up with meme culture.
    • [87:13] “Hey, get over it. Get out from behind Chuck Schumer's skirt right now and find out what the heck's going on in this country because people are upset with them.”

• On Netflix, Law, and Oversight:

  • Calls for Congressional oversight of Netflix:
    • [97:29] “Yeah, they need to be brought in. We need to find out what their agenda is and why they're pushing this stuff.”
    • Raises questions about regulatory jurisdiction (FCC/cable).

• Cultural Concerns:

  • Denounces what he views as “recruiting” and “grooming” children via entertainment, linking these issues to broader trends of “demonic” influence and social collapse.
    • [99:01] “That right there is recruiting. That is grooming. That is the worst of the worst, because they're taking young minds, and they know they can do that. And there’s some kind of evil demonic thing going on in this country with this transgender thing.”

4. Tribute to Charlie Kirk and the Culture War

A major emotional throughline is remembrance of Charlie Kirk (recently deceased), with both guests and host vowing to continue his “culture war” legacy.

• [75:06] Mike Lee: “The message there… will keep being that we're down a Charlie Kirk. And when you need one of those, nothing else will do. Yes, but now that we're down at Charlie Kirk, we've got to create 10 million new Charlie Kirks...”

• The show concludes on an inspirational note about perseverance, faith, and passing on values to the next generation.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• Benny (on Netflix’s children’s content):
  “They are attempting to manipulate in a sexually grotesque, explicit, and utterly illicit way, our children... This is not hyperbole. This is something that we can prove.” ([09:30])

• On “Transing the cows”:
  “This is a cow. This is a cow. Netflix has trans the cows. Do you understand where we are here? Netflix is trying to milk a bull. Netflix says go milk the bull.” ([14:15])

• Sen. Mike Lee on meme warfare:
  “Memes… are the present day, modern day and most effective form of the political cartoon.” ([55:40])

• Benny, on Republican meme success:
  “Adding a sombrero to any lib that is having a meltdown is my new favorite meme template. And Democrats don't know how to respond.” ([45:45])

• Mike Lee, on Democrats and the shutdown:
  “They are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice here, having the government shut down and further empowering Donald J. Trump. Man, they must really like illegal immigration a lot.” ([60:50])

• Rep. Burchett, on parental and consumer action:
  “Cast our dollar votes elsewhere. Pull the plug. … We're going to bring you to your knees because we do not support this. And that's what we need to do with Netflix…” ([94:32])

• Rep. Burchett, on Netflix and oversight:
  “We need to find out what their agenda is and why they're pushing this stuff.” ([97:42])

Important Segment Timestamps

• [00:01]–[13:00]: Benny’s intro, Netflix criticism, and Elon Musk’s involvement.
• [14:00]–[21:00]: Showcasing controversial children’s programming clips from Netflix.
• [26:00]–[34:00]: “Culture war” via family, demographic arguments, and social commentary.
• [34:00]–[41:00]: Stock market reaction and cultural donations analysis.
• [44:00]–[56:00]: Meme war breakdown, sombrero memes, and contrast with Democratic counter-memes.
• [54:00]–[73:00]: Interview with Sen. Mike Lee: memes, shutdown, government size, and strategy.
• [86:00]–[105:00]: Interview with Rep. Tim Burchett: humor in politics, Netflix and regulation, culture war anecdotes, tribute to Charlie Kirk.
• [99:01]: “That right there is recruiting. That is grooming. That is the worst of the worst…”

Tone & Language

• Tone:
  Combative, irreverent, evangelical, culture-warrior, with humor, memes, and unapologetic advocacy.
• Language:
  Highly conversational, meme-centric, sometimes hyperbolic, infused with faith-based and populist rhetoric.

Summary

This episode epitomizes Benny Johnson’s brand: unapologetically anti-establishment, critiquing corporate media and “woke” culture. The Netflix controversy serves as a springboard for a broad condemnation of progressive culture, advocating for aggressive parental action, economic retaliation (cancelling subscriptions), and pro-family demographics as the path to victory in the culture war. The “meme war” is posited as a new, vital frontier in American political communication, with Republicans lauded for inventive, viral messaging and Democrats mocked for their supposed incompetence.

Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Tim Burchett elaborate on these themes, connecting them to legislative and cultural strategies, while the memory of Charlie Kirk, described as a “culture warrior,” serves as both inspiration and call to action for the movement.

For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

This episode is a deep dive into the right-wing perspective on cultural and political battles defining 2025, using Netflix and government shutdown memes as case studies for broader social struggles. The commentary is direct, unfiltered, and loaded with internet-native humor and rhetorical combativeness. The takeaway: Cancel Netflix, make babies, win memes, and join the fight for the soul of America.