The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show – “An Exercise in Media Propaganda”

Date: November 18, 2025
Host: Buck Sexton (solo, Clay Travis on vacation)
Podcast: iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

In this episode, Buck Sexton helms the show solo, promising a deep dive into the day’s top political stories with his signature mix of analysis and humor. The hour focuses on media propaganda—particularly as it relates to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, attempts to link Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein, and the broader tactics used by the left-wing media and Democrat politicians to manipulate public perception. Buck also previews discussions with future guests, including Miranda Devine on the Trump assassination attempt and Eric Trump on politics and economics. He introduces his forthcoming book, “Manufacturing Delusion,” about the history and tactics of mass psychosis and propaganda in modern America.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Epstein Files Transparency Act and Media Spin

[03:09–06:44 | 11:10–12:51 | 12:51–19:05 | 22:11–23:00]

• Trump and the Epstein Files:

  • Buck highlights an imminent House vote on the “Epstein Files Transparency Act,” predicting that the vote will succeed and result in the release of more documents about Jeffrey Epstein.

  • Donald Trump’s stance: He’s stated repeatedly that he has nothing to hide and supports releasing everything. Buck emphasizes that Trump has distanced himself from Epstein, even banning him from Mar-a-Lago before Epstein's major criminal exposure.

    “Trump has been making the point: If there was more in the files specifically about Trump, you think they'd hide it until now? That's a crazy belief, right, that the Democrats would have had full control, full ability to go through this. They don't want to release it all as it pertains to actual transparency because they'd much rather have little bits and pieces to try to insinuate that Donald Trump did something wrong.”
    — Buck Sexton [08:25]

• Democratic Ties:

  • Buck calls out the mainstream media for focusing Epstein conjecture disproportionately on Trump and Republicans, rather than the deeper, more established Democratic connections (Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, Reid Hoffman).

  • Warns against guilt by association unless there is clear proof, noting the risk of unfairly destroying reputations without evidence.

    “If you were creating a...link tree off of [Epstein], how many would be prominent Democrats? All of them basically. Isn't that interesting?”
    — Buck Sexton [22:11]

• Trump’s Response Quotes:

  • Trump: “We have nothing to do with Epstein. The Democrats do. All of his friends were Democrats. You look at this, Reid Hoffman, you look at Larry Summers, Bill Clinton, they went to his island all the time and many others, all Democrats.” [12:13]

• Buck's Summary:

  • Buck insists the media’s focus on tying Trump to Epstein is itself an act of propaganda, and that the absence of bombshells implicating Trump after years of investigation is telling:

    “The evidence, the smoking gun evidence of criminality, we don't have that yet. If we had it, I think you would see charges, but at least I haven't seen it. And we have to be very careful here, too.”
    — Buck Sexton [07:45]

2. The Phenomenon of Manufactured Delusion & Buck’s Book

[24:01–31:53 | 31:53–40:54]

• “Manufacturing Delusion”:

  • Buck unveils his new book, “Manufacturing Delusion,” focused on how the American left uses mass delusion and psychological manipulation to mobilize and control segments of the population.

  • He traces the history of mind-control tactics from Pavlov through totalitarian regimes to modern American politics.

    “I think that left wing politics in America has created a, unfortunately a very dangerous new moment where mass delusion is the preferred weapon of mobilization. They make people crazy. They make them crazy on purpose… The history and science of mind control, it's a real thing.”
    — Buck Sexton [25:33]

• Trump Derangement Syndrome & Media-Induced Psychosis:

  • References a Fox News psychotherapist’s claim that 75% of his patients are hyper-fixated on Trump, suffering from trauma, loss of sleep, and anxiety about him.

    “This is a profound pathology, and I would even go so far as to call it the defining pathology of our time.”
    — Fox News guest Jonathan Alpert [Fox News clip, paraphrased by Buck, 31:53]

  • Buck links this mass fixation to deliberate efforts—akin to tactics in the Soviet Union or Maoist China—to induce conformity and break the public’s connection to reality:

    “This is a delusion that is being created intentionally for control, for political purposes. There are tactics, there is a playbook.”
    — Buck Sexton [33:15]

  • Examples Buck Cites:

    • Climate doomsday anxiety.
    • “Genocide” accusations around trans issues.
    • COVID-era groupthink.

  • Notable Analogy:

    “It’s not just getting them to do something, it’s getting them to change their perception of reality itself… There are people who are losing sleep at night because they think climate change is going to make us extinct. That’s a real phenomenon on the left. There’s no equivalent on the right.”
    — Buck Sexton [35:00]

• Call to Action:

  • Urges listeners to preorder his book, arguing the threat of “manufactured mass hysteria” is the greatest facing the country today.

    “Manufactured delusion, I think that manufactured mass hysteria is the single greatest threat to humanity globally and the single biggest threat to the American Republic right now.”
    — Buck Sexton [38:37]

3. Parting Thoughts on Trump, the Media, and Upcoming Guests

[44:32–46:37]

• Miranda Devine Preview:

  • Buck previews a segment with Miranda Devine about the would-be Trump assassin and failures in law enforcement’s monitoring.
  • He teases comments from Trump’s current Oval Office meeting, promising “spicy” soundbites in the next segment.

• Caller Insight:

  • A call-in message from Joseph in Georgia notes Trump’s growth in managing hostile reporters—a point Buck agrees with, suggesting Trump is “on offense” now and the media is running scared.

• Buck’s Promise:

  • He concludes Hour 1 promising more coverage on the Epstein files vote and a return to the story of the Trump assassination attempt in upcoming hours.

Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “Trump has been making the point: If there was more in the files specifically about Trump, you think they'd hide it until now? That's a crazy belief, right...”
  — Buck Sexton [08:25]

• “We have nothing to do with Epstein. The Democrats do. All of his friends were Democrats. You look at this, Reid Hoffman, you look at Larry Summers, Bill Clinton...”
  — Donald Trump [12:13]

• “If you were creating a...link tree off of [Epstein], how many would be prominent Democrats? All of them basically. Isn't that interesting?”
  — Buck Sexton [22:11]

• “This is a profound pathology, and I would even go so far as to call it the defining pathology of our time.”
  — Fox News guest Jonathan Alpert (via Buck) [31:53]

• “Mass delusion is the preferred weapon of mobilization... The history and science of mind control, it's a real thing.”
  — Buck Sexton [25:33]

• “Manufactured delusion... is the single biggest threat to the American Republic right now.”
  — Buck Sexton [38:37]

Important Segments & Timestamps

• Epstein Files Transparency Act/Trump sound and analysis:
  [06:05–12:51]
• Democratic Connections to Epstein & Propaganda:
  [12:51–19:05]
• Psychological Manipulation & “Manufacturing Delusion”:
  [24:01–40:54]
• Tease for Miranda Devine & Trump Oval Office update:
  [44:32–46:37]

Tone & Style

• Direct, analytical, and conversational: Buck moves seamlessly between hard-hitting political commentary and personal anecdotes.
• Skeptical of mainstream media: The hour’s through-line is the insistence that the media’s obsessive focus on “scandals” is a window into broader ideological manipulation.
• Occasionally humorous and sarcastic: Solo host Buck riffs on everything from “schmo” Democrats to “jalapeño” Oval Office moments.
• Urgent and persuasive: Particularly when discussing his book, Buck’s tone becomes more urgent, framing the subject as existential for the Republic.

Summary for New Listeners

If you missed this episode, Buck Sexton deftly dissected the latest in the Epstein files saga, called out the media’s relentless attempts to link Trump to scandal, and delved deep into how modern propaganda and mass hysteria are being weaponized in American politics. He introduced and promoted his upcoming book, “Manufacturing Delusion,” arguing that manufactured reality and media-induced mass psychosis are the greatest threats to the country’s future. If you want to understand how Buck sees the engine of modern media working—and why, in his view, so many on the left are losing touch with reality—this hour delivers a sharp, provocative overview.