The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Daily Review with Clay and Buck – October 21, 2025
Podcast Host: iHeartPodcasts
Episode Theme: Clay and Buck break down the nation’s most pressing political stories with their signature blend of intellect and humor. Main topics today include the New York City mayor’s race, the ongoing government shutdown, culture war controversies around free speech and cancel culture, Trump’s White House ballroom renovations, and post-pandemic reflections.

Episode Overview

This episode centers on the complexities of the New York City mayor’s race, the ramifications and politics of the ongoing federal government shutdown, the enduring effects of COVID-era governance, and recent controversies regarding speech and conduct in public life. Through witty banter and pointed debate, Clay Travis and Buck Sexton dissect headlines, highlight absurdities, and spar over political strategy, offering both local insight and national implications.

Key Topics and Discussion Points

1. New York City Mayor’s Race: Sliwa, Cuomo, and Mamdani

(See ~02:05–14:58, 22:31–26:57)

• Curtis Sliwa’s Refusal to Drop Out

  • Sliwa, Republican candidate, is under pressure (tabloids, GOP allies) to drop out to avoid splitting the anti-Mamdani vote.
  • Sliwa asserts Democrats created the conditions for the current predicament and refuses to “save” them (11:11).
  • “How dare you people who know nothing about politics suggest that everybody who's going to vote for me is suddenly going to be reborn. We love Andrew Cuomo. He killed all these elderlies...He told conservatives and Republicans...you need to leave. This is the result of the Democrats’ self destruction.” – Curtis Sliwa (11:11)
  • Clay and Buck debate whether Sliwa’s continued campaign ensures a far-left win or unwittingly helps the larger GOP cause.

• Risk and Ramifications:

  • Buck posits Mamdani’s victory could both doom NYC while helping Republicans elsewhere by painting Democrats as radicals.
  • Clay notes this “let the island go under” perspective forces leftist policies’ consequences to play out:
    • “Part of the problem is that leftists have a much higher tolerance for inflicting pain on the masses than a lot of the sane people realize.” – Clay Travis (13:17)
  • Sliwa’s best defense: protecting down-ballot GOP candidates.

• Polling and Election Realities:

  • Citing polling, Clay says there’s no realistic scenario for a GOP or moderate win, with Mamdani all but inevitable (24:16).

2. Government Shutdown: Causes, Tactics, and Political Spin

(See 02:05–05:13, 52:53–58:55)

• Democrats vs. Republicans Blame Game:

  • Clay: “Democrats view the obstruction...what they used to call it when you didn't do whatever President Obama wanted...Obstruction is their only game plan right now.” (02:05)
  • Discussion of how Schumer and the Democrats frame the shutdown as a GOP/Trump stunt, while Buck and Clay argue the Dems are equally culpable.
  • “Our country is staring down the barrel of a health care catastrophe. And Republicans will spend this week either vacationing or holding pep rallies at the White House...” – (Schumer, paraphrased by hosts, 55:24)

• Shutdown as Leverage:

  • Trump, according to Clay and Buck, uses the shutdown and OMB Director Russ Vought ("Darth Vader") to surgically cut Democrat priorities (53:52).
  • “We have Darth Vader...he’s cutting Democrat priorities and they're never going to get them back.” – Trump (52:53)

3. Culture Wars, Cancel Culture, and Speech in Public Life

(See 27:31–35:44)

• Controversial Teacher at “No Kings” Protest:

  • Clay addresses the viral video of a teacher making a throat-slashing gesture toward a Trump-identified vehicle, invoking debates on free speech vs. professional morality.
  • Listeners call in; opinions range from support for teacher’s free speech to Clay’s stance on professional boundaries.
    • “If we employed someone on the Clay and Buck show that celebrated Charlie Kirk’s assassination...the First Amendment doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences for your behavior.” – Clay (30:53)
    • “It's always situational with leftists. They want what they want, how they want it, when they want it. There's no principle, no rule...” – Clay (31:41)
  • The hosts discuss similar cases—if the gesture had targeted left-leaning figures, the outrage (and job risk) would be swift.

• Broader Cancel Culture Hypocrisy:

  • “You don't get to make a free speech argument [for job protection] if you’re advancing leftist ideology...cancel culture was about irrational firings for things half the country agrees with.” – Buck (32:48)

4. COVID Policy and Hindsight: Political and Cultural Accountability

(See 35:44–40:42)

• Reappraising COVID Hawks:

  • Reflections on Cuomo’s disastrous COVID policies (nursing homes, no-bail policies), and how these are overlooked as he’s recast as “savior” of NYC.
  • “How were they during COVID? It was the stress test in all these respects...Cuomo...really set the tone of panic and authoritarianism alongside it that all these other states followed.” – Buck (38:00)

• Athletes Defying COVID Mandates Praised in Retrospect:

  • Stephen A. Smith credits Kyrie Irving for standing up for medical autonomy:
    • “Kyrie said no, props to him, but I didn't view it that way [at the time].” – Stephen A. Smith (39:26)
  • Clay and Buck note few in the media will acknowledge such dissenters were right in hindsight (40:20).

5. Trump’s White House Ballroom, Kennedy Lore, and Media Myths

(See 46:37–51:09)

• Trump’s Ballroom Renovation:
  • Trump touts a private-funded renovation project to create a new East Wing ballroom (47:16).
  • Tells colorful stories about JFK and the “swimming pool,” with Clay clarifying historic rumors about JFK hosting women there (48:08).
  • Clay and Buck riff on enduring myths about the Kennedy dynasty and media complicity:
    • “If you actually look at the conduct of JFK in the Oval Office...this idea that he was this strapping, handsome, all-American guy...is all a fabrication.” – Clay (50:12)
  • Discussion turns to other examples where media covered for presidential frailty—from FDR’s wheelchair to Woodrow Wilson’s wife running the White House (51:09).

6. Healthcare Policy and Economic Lessons

(See 57:45–58:42)

• Jon Stewart’s Critique of Democratic Subsidies:
  • Stewart is quoted on government subsidies inflating costs:
    • “...when the government promises endless funds to insurance companies or private universities without any cost controls and Trump seems to understand this, prices rise far beyond the rate of inflation.” – Jon Stewart (57:55)
  • Buck endorses this “rare lucid point,” noting Democrats often lack economic understanding, raising costs for everyone.

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• Curtis Sliwa Defiant:

  “How dare you people who know nothing about politics suggest that everybody who’s going to vote for me is suddenly going to be reborn. We love Andrew Cuomo. He killed all these elderlies...He told conservatives and Republicans...you need to leave. This is the result of the Democrats’ self destruction.” — Curtis Sliwa (11:11)

• Clay’s Take on Leftist Pain Tolerance:

  “Part of the problem is that leftists have a much higher tolerance for inflicting pain on the masses than a lot of the sane people realize.” — Clay Travis (13:17)

• Trump on the Shutdown Strategy:

  “We have Darth Vader...he’s cutting Democrat priorities and they're never going to get them back.” — Trump (52:53)

• Teacher/Free Speech Debate:

  “...I think most people would not want their kids’ elementary school teacher to be a stripper. And I can’t believe it, but we have been deluged by people that actually disagreed with me.” — Clay Travis (27:31)

• Stephen A. Smith on COVID Dissenters:

  “Obviously, in hindsight, the brother, right...for having the foresight to see that we didn’t see at the time...Kyrie said no, props to him.” — Stephen A. Smith (39:26)

• Jon Stewart on Economic Realities:

  “The democratic solutions have never been to directly provide. It's always been a subsidy...prices rise far beyond the rate of inflation.” — Jon Stewart (57:55)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 02:05 – Show begins: shutdown, Trump’s White House ballroom, Hamas ceasefire, NYC mayor’s race intro
• 07:57–11:11 – Curtis Sliwa fires back at critics; rips Democrat “self destruction”
• 12:00–14:58 – Analysis: Sliwa, Cuomo, Mamdani, and the best/worst outcomes for each party
• 22:31–26:57 – NYC tabloids attack Sliwa; polling, election odds, the grim math for GOP
• 27:31–35:44 – Culture war flashpoint: teacher’s “no Kings” protest gesture, calls/clips, cancel culture philosophy
• 35:44–40:42 – COVID in hindsight: Cuomo’s record, Stephen A. Smith on athletes/mandates
• 46:37–51:09 – Trump on JFK/White House lore, Kennedy myths, media coverups
• 52:53–56:39 – Trump on shutdown strategy, Schumer’s blame game
• 57:45–58:42 – Jon Stewart, cost of subsidies, economics lesson

Episode Final Thoughts

Clay and Buck deliver a rollicking, opinionated ride through the week’s dominant headlines, blending inside-baseball election analysis with wide-ranging cultural and political critique. The bitter medicine of New York’s mayoral politics, the slow burn of the shutdown, and the echoes of COVID-era battles underscore their case that American political life remains deeply turbulent, tribal, and unexpectedly comedic.