The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Episode: Hour 1 - Get Out and Vote!
Date: November 3, 2025
Podcast: iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

On the eve of critical elections, Clay Travis and Buck Sexton dive into the high-stakes political landscape, especially focusing on mayoral and gubernatorial races in New York City, Virginia, and New Jersey. The hosts emphasize the necessity of voter turnout, dissect current polling data, and discuss the broader implications for the post-Trump political era. They also touch on media transparency, the legacy of live broadcasting, masculinity in America, and a breaking announcement about Nancy Pelosi's retirement.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Urgency Around Upcoming Elections

Hosts: Clay Travis, Buck Sexton

• Both hosts stress the unprecedented importance of the week ahead, particularly due to mayoral and gubernatorial races:

  • New York City Mayoral Race: Concerns about the likely election of a far-left candidate, Momdani.
  • Virginia & New Jersey: Focus on competitive races, possible Republican upsets.
  • Call to Action: Both stress every listener must get out and vote—even in local, down-ballot races.

• Clay on New York City:

  • Shares a personal anecdote (01:05) about a waitress (Suzette), reflecting on local concerns:

    “She said, ‘Do you really believe that New York City is going to elect this crazy Marxist?’ And I said, unfortunately yes.”

  • Presents early voting breakdown:
    • 74% Democrat, 14.5% Other, 12% Republican (03:05)
  • Predicts a leftist win due to math, split opposition, and lack of GOP turnout.

2. Voter Data & Predicting Outcomes

• Early voting data in NYC shows overwhelming Democratic turnout, making a Republican win nearly impossible unless an unprecedented GOP surge occurs (03:05).
• Virginia Gubernatorial Race: Margin will be critical in down-ballot results, particularly for Attorney General candidate Jason Miares.

3. The Power—and Pitfalls—of Political Polling

Memorable Segment: The Ann Seltzer Iowa Poll Debacle

• Discusses pollster Ann Seltzer’s infamous miss: predicting Kamala Harris would win Iowa by 3, when Trump won by 13 (07:07, 24:04).
• Buck's humor:

  "Instead of a walk-off home run, it’s like a walk-off after the bat slips out of your hands and knocks out the ball boy in the dugout." (07:20)

• Rachel Maddow played celebrating the poll, highlighting media echo chambers and wishful thinking (24:04).

4. Media Manipulation & the Value of Live Content

Clay & Buck dissect the Trump 60 Minutes interview and issues with edited media:

• Trump’s insistence on full, unedited releases is lauded.
• Clay urges for more live, unedited interviews to allow authentic representation: (09:19)

  “Stop editing interviews... Post the whole thing. Let me actually have the opportunity... Make everything that you produce actually visible and instead of cutting and deciding what you think is newsworthy, give us everything.”

• Buck expands with examples of misleading edits from The Daily Show and Katie Couric’s documentary, showing how “fabrication” passes as news when it serves an agenda (10:34, 11:50).
• Both argue that the decline of legacy media is partly due to this increasing visibility of their editorial bias, and champion the communal appeal of live events and programming (12:08, 13:30).

5. Breaking News: Nancy Pelosi Announces Retirement

• Clay (22:32):

  "Nancy Pelosi has announced that she is officially retiring. She is not going to seek reelection. She is hanging it up at 85 years old…Trump is going to outlast Nancy Pelosi, one of his top foes."

• Marks a symbolic shift in generational leadership and further evidence of political change.

6. Theme of Masculinity and Book Promotion

• Clay introduces and promotes his new book "Balls":
  • Explores the crisis of masculinity, societal views on men, and the need for positive male role models.
  • Touches on pop culture’s shift away from representing strong, competent fathers, referencing classic shows (“Family Matters”, “Little House on the Prairie”, etc.) (35:06–36:33).
  • Book proceeds to be donated to charity; personal investment in the topic as a father of three sons.
  • Advocates for broader conversations about restoring balance in gender roles and responsibilities (32:26–34:35).

7. Voter Turnout Advocacy

• Both hosts repeatedly reaffirm: Everyone should vote, regardless of odds or pessimism.

  “Let nothing that we say dissuade you in any way from going to vote.” (27:24) “If you listen to us, you should be voting.” (42:51)

  • Emphasize importance of local elections (alderman, mayor, school board).

8. California's Proposition 50

• Brief call-in (Dennis, 41:34): Alerts listeners to vote No on Prop 50 to prevent redistricting that could cost Republicans five House seats.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the NYC Mayor’s Race

  • Clay: “The numbers out there…this might be the most votes that have ever been cast for mayor in New York City based on the early voting numbers that are out.” (03:05)
  • Buck: “You’d have to have like three times as many Republicans show up on election day as anyone has ever seen...” (07:45)

• On Media Editing

  • Clay: “I love live radio, I love live television because they can’t edit anything.” (09:21)
  • Buck: “They would splice it up to make the person look like an abject moron…” (10:34)
  • On Trump/press interactions: "If she comes at him and he slats her down... it’s going to be out there even if they don’t choose to highlight it.” (14:34)

• On Masculinity

  • Clay: “How did we go from, hey, it’s good for men and women to be equal to toxic masculinity as a thing and being a man as a bad thing?” (32:26)
  • Buck: “We can’t have a dad that is in pop culture that you also as a dad can look at and be like, yeah, that’s how we do it.” (35:44)

• On Voting

  • Buck (16:21): “If I can vote for the mayor of Miami Beach, you can…”
  • Clay (26:29): “If Republicans show up in big numbers, then he’s going to win.”
  • Buck (27:11): “New York City… is full of lunatic libs.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Election stakes & New York anecdote: 01:05–03:05
• NYC early voting breakdown: 03:05–05:57
• Discussion of polling failures (Seltzer/Iowa): 07:07–07:45, 24:04–25:29
• Media editing/60 Minutes/Trump: 09:19–14:23
• Pelosi Retirement Announcement: 22:32–23:01
• Book promotion/masculinity discussion: 31:18–36:33
• Pop culture & fatherhood: 35:06–36:33
• California Prop 50 (listener call): 41:34–42:47
• Voter turnout/closing thoughts: 42:48–43:29

Tone and Style

• Conversational, humorous, sometimes self-deprecating
• Blunt, unapologetic opinions interspersed with earnest calls to action
• Peppered with vivid analogies and quick-witted banter

Takeaways for Listeners

• Participate: No matter the race or perceived odds, voting is essential at all levels—national, state, and local.
• Media Literacy: Demand transparency and full, unedited coverage from media outlets—don’t trust selectively edited content.
• Political Trends: The current elections serve as an early test of the post-Trump landscape and may signal broader realignments.
• Masculinity Conversation: The cultural discussion around manhood, gender roles, and positive role models is critical for the country’s future.
• Stay Informed on Local Measures: Ballot initiatives like California’s Prop 50 can have national impact—inform yourself before voting.