Hour 1 - Massie vs. MAGA

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Episode: Hour 1 - Massie vs. MAGA
Date: May 18, 2026
Hosts: Clay Travis & Buck Sexton
Podcast: iHeartPodcasts

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the state of the Republican primaries and the ongoing influence of Donald Trump on the party, using the recent surprising loss of Senator Cassidy in Louisiana as a key example. The hosts analyze Trump’s continued dominance over primary outcomes, the targeting of Representative Thomas Massie in Kentucky, and broader dynamics heading into a contentious midterm. The episode also weaves in discussions about redistricting battles, the implications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision on the Virginia congressional map, Democratic messaging on race and voting rights, and foreign policy, particularly regarding Iran.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Primary Shake-Ups and Trump's Influence

• Louisiana Upset:

  • Incumbent Senator Cassidy failed to make the runoff—a rare defeat, with Clay noting, "I believe this was the first time since 2012 that an incumbent United States senator lost his primary in the early goings" ([03:50]).
  • Trump’s endorsement of Julia Letlow was decisive, further showcasing his grip on the party.

• Trump’s Political Clout:

  • Clay: "President Trump is still by far leading the Republican Party when it comes to decisions even as he begins the backstretch of his second term" ([04:38]).
  • Indiana’s results reinforced the point: state senators who resisted redistricting lost resoundingly.
  • Focus shifts to Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky, with Trump targeting him next and prediction markets showing momentum for challenger Ed Galrine ([05:30]).

• Voter Engagement in Primaries:

  • Buck emphasizes primary participation:
    • "If you are in a red state and you don't actually vote in the primary ... you're like the keeper of the rhinos" ([07:35]).
    • MAGA’s ability to organize at the primary level continues to "shape the trajectory of the overall election and with it, of course, the Congress" ([07:56]).

2. Upcoming Primary Landscape and Midterm Outlook

• States Voting Tomorrow: Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon, and Pennsylvania.
• Key Senate and House Battlegrounds:
  • Clay lists battlegrounds and presumptive nominees in states like Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Texas, Iowa, and Maine, hinting at the "big battleground that ... will officially be locked in" over the coming weeks ([09:09]).
• Turnout and Party Approval:
  • “This is a double hater environment ... lots of people are unhappy. The number one thing ... is cost,” Clay observes, emphasizing inflation and dissatisfaction with both parties ([10:45]).
  • Encouraging numbers for Republican turnout in California suggest a potentially energized GOP base ([11:39]).

3. Massie vs. MAGA – Dynamics and Symbolism

• Massie’s Cross-Ideological Appeal:
  • Buck: "A lot of the very worst people are very pro Massie right now ... they view him as part of the dissension among MAGA" ([12:03]).
  • Clay argues, "Because Trump is opposed to him, they [the left] are in favor of him" ([12:46]).

4. Foreign Policy: Trump and Iran

• Possible New Strikes on Iran:
  • Clay shares inside reporting: "President Trump has got a meeting tomorrow ... it seems like he is inclined to begin strikes anew on Iran" ([13:12]).
  • He offers analysis on Trump’s diplomatic patterns, suggesting potential for both negotiations and military action.
• Economic Ramifications:
  • Discussion on how gas and oil prices, driven by foreign policy moves, impact U.S. interest rates and the midterm electorate ([16:23]).
  • Clay: "If I were asked right now, I would say declare a short term victory, let things kind of get back to normal, let the midterms happen and then really go to town" ([17:06]).

5. Supreme Court and Congressional Maps

• Virginia Redistricting Ruling:

  • Supreme Court declined to intervene, keeping the status quo ("no dissent to the Supreme Court choosing not to take up this case"—[22:14]).
  • Clay details the partisan impact of various redistricting rulings across states, noting a "scorching" take that Republicans may keep the House due to favorable map changes ([27:13]).

• Analysis of Partisan Balance:

  • "It is unlikely that we're going to see some sort of seismic tsunami like impact ... I think we're talking about eight to ten seats that are moving one direction or the other" ([28:55]).
  • The Senate is more of a toss-up battleground than the gerrymandered House ([29:24]).

6. Democratic Messaging on Voting Rights and Race

• Race as a Political Wedge:

  • Clips of Democratic leaders (Ayanna Pressley, Cory Booker, Andy Beshear) are played to highlight Democratic claims that redistricting is about suppressing black voter representation ([31:26–34:37]).
  • Buck and Clay push back, arguing this rhetoric is divisive and outdated, citing rising black voter registration rates in the South and evidence that "Racism goes in every direction now. ... The things that you don't choose to do ... are your least interesting attributes." ([37:42]).

• Affirmative Action and Identity Politics:

  • Debating whether group-based electoral or admissions advantages are justified or still legally acceptable, referencing recent Supreme Court decisions ([39:09]).

• Notable social commentary:

  • Clay: "Your race and your gender are two of the least interesting things about you because you have absolutely nothing to do with what your race or your gender is." ([37:42])
  • Buck: "More and more lawsuits are just going to show that this is being done. And that's how it's going to have to stop. ... You actually don't get to have special rights forever. That period has passed and that is what all these Democrat politicians are fighting against." ([40:09])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “President Trump is still by far leading the Republican Party when it comes to decisions... even as he begins the backstretch of his second term.”
  – Clay Travis ([04:38])

• “If you are in a red state and you don't actually vote in the primary ... you're like the keeper of the rhinos.”
  – Buck Sexton ([07:35])

• “Because Trump is opposed to him, they [the left] are in favor of him.”
  – Clay Travis ([12:46])

• “If you can somehow seize the nuclear dust, prove that they had it, and bring it out of Iran, that is a clear victory.”
  – Clay Travis ([15:34])

• “It is unlikely that we're going to see some sort of seismic tsunami like impact ... I think we're talking about eight to ten seats that are moving one direction or the other.”
  – Clay Travis ([28:55])

• “Your race and your gender are two of the least interesting things about you because you have absolutely nothing to do with what your race or your gender is.”
  – Clay Travis ([37:42])

• “We actually don't care what the skin color is. That's the Republican way...”
  – Buck Sexton ([41:22])

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Important Timestamps

• [02:50] – Clay introduces the primary election landscape and outlines main topics.
• [03:50] – Analysis of Louisiana’s primary and the end of Senator Cassidy's career.
• [05:30] – Spotlight on Trump targeting Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky.
• [07:35] – "Keeper of the Rhinos": Importance of primary participation in shaping the party.
• [09:09–12:03] – Preview of Senate battlegrounds and deeper discussion of turnout/motivation.
• [12:03–13:12] – Why the left supports Massie; intersection of internal GOP struggles.
• [13:12–17:14] – Iran foreign policy discussion, gas prices, and midterm implications.
• [22:14–27:13] – Supreme Court leaves Virginia’s map unchanged; redistricting wars and implications for House control.
• [31:26–34:37] – Democratic leaders’ statements on race, voting rights, and redistricting.
• [37:42–41:22] – Deep dive on identity politics, affirmative action, and equal treatment under law.

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Summary & Tone

The episode offers a brisk, high-energy analysis of GOP internal dynamics, focused on the looming “Massie vs. MAGA” primary and Trump’s continued power in the party apparatus. The hosts, often humorous and sometimes scathing, push back hard against Democratic narratives around race and redistricting, seeing these as outdated or deliberately divisive. They also express cautious optimism about Republican prospects in Congress, while remaining openly skeptical about polling and party approval ratings. From foreign policy to electoral minutiae, the hour is dense with election-year strategy, sharp political commentary, and culture war arguments.

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For listeners seeking a robust, right-leaning perspective on primary politics, Trump’s party, redistricting, and the evolving narratives around race and representation, this episode provides clear insights—highlighting how much is at stake in both policy and party identity as primary season heats up.

Transcript

[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

Welcome in brand new Week Monday Edition. Thanks all of you for hanging out with us. As is often the case, there are a tremendous bevy of stories that we are going to be following. Big results came in Saturday in the Louisiana primaries. A sitting incumbent, Senator Cassidy, has lost. He didn't even make the runoff. We will discuss that there are six primaries tomorrow, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon and Pennsylvania as primary season is officially starting to kick into high gear. Spencer Pratt, Louisiana mayor battle, governor battles underway and continuing their redistricting storylines galore. We have the Virginia Supreme Court speaking of storylines, refusing to step in and do anything they shot down. We'll talk about that. The Democrat attempts to get them to get involved in their redistricting move. Cuba. What is going to happen with Cuba? I don't even know. We talked about it very much. The CIA director went into Cuba to meet and this is something fun. Pizza Hut is going back in time. Buck. I don't know if you've seen this story to the 1980s era pizza huts. If any of you remember going there and visiting with your families back in those days. Nostalgia is running rampant. We might have some fun with that. But we begin with Louisiana results setting the table for what is going to happen in the primaries going forward. And I would just say this, Buck. There has been a big discussion point about to what extent is Trump still the head of the Republican Party, what is his overall support? I would say we've gotten to pretty clear cut results so far that suggest President Trump is still by far leading the Republican Party when it comes to decisions even as he begins the backstretch of his second term. Soon. Buck, we had in Indiana basically the state senators who refused to redistrict, almost all of them lost their jobs and the races weren't particularly close. And then on Saturday in Louisiana, President Trump suggested endorsed thoroughly campaign for Julia Letlow. And not only did she win the overall early vote, there's a runoff and she's going to be the next senator from Louisiana, let me just put it that way. But significantly, I believe this was the first time since 2012 that that an incumbent United States senator lost his primary in the in the early goings primary, not even the general election. And that was Senator Cassidy, who we've had on this program quite a few times. Trump mobilized against him and he didn't even make the runoff on the Republican Party side. He came in third overall. His political career I would venture probably over why does that matter? The next real target for President Trump has been Representative Thomas Massie. Kentucky in the 4th congressional district, President Trump has decided that he wants him out. He is supporting his opponent in this race. And Ed Galrine, this is going to be another one to really pay attention to on cowshi and in polymarket, Gal Ryan over the weekend surged to favored in this race in the prediction markets. So we'll see. Buck, if President Trump can go 3 for 3 in terms of his targets in the Republican Party in primary season. And we say early go vote Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon, Pennsylvania. Tomorrow is your primary. Go select good candidates that could win in the general election.

[Buck Sexton]

Primaries matter. They matter even more in many ways in red states certainly than I think a lot of people realize. Because if you get complacent, you know, I see all these people that live in, in red states and they'll say, oh, our senator is, is a Rhino. Or our, our congressman is a, you know, is, is a backstabber when it comes to the Trump agenda. And I go, well, who'd you vote for in the primary? And then, oh, I don't, I don't know. I didn't vote. I only vote in the general.

[Clay Travis]

I vote Republican in the general.

[Buck Sexton]

You go, ok, well, you're going to make sure that you keep the rhinos. You're like the keeper of the rhinos if you are in a red state. And I guess that would be a rhino keeper, a red state where you don't actually vote in the primary. So a few things that we see from this. One is we're entering this election season very soon, very quickly. And two, Trump still has a whole lot of sway on the GOP side of things, even though he's not on the ballot certainly on the primary side. MAGA can organize and have its voice be heard in very meaningful ways that shape the trajectory of the overall election and with it, of course, the Congress. So we are here in almost in June and Clay, this midterm season is going to be, remember in the summer we get a little bit of that lull. And then in August, you have all these members of Congress going home and there'll be some town halls and some of them will get booed at and some of them will say stupid things and we'll talk about that on radio. But it goes very rapidly.

[Clay Travis]

It does. And again, we will see what happens with the race in Kentucky with Thomas Massie. That then to me, Buck is kind of the turn the page at that point in time. I don't think President Trump has really come after anybody else in the Republican primaries. And we will see whether Massie ends up winning or not. And then I think the question is going to turn into at 2pm we're going to talk with Derek Dooley. He's running in Georgia. The to me, the question then becomes we know Mike Rogers is going to be the nominee in Michigan, I believe we know Michelle Tafoya is going to be the nominee in Minnesota. We know who the nominee is going to be in New Hampshire. We know that, that our friend in Michael Watley is going to be the nominee in North Carolina. Do any of these guys that are challenging Democrats have the ability to punch through? And then look, I mean, the Senate battleground of John Hustead in Ohio, we're going to figure out who the winner is in Texas, what happens in Iowa and how does Susan Collins do. I mean, there's a big battleground that in the next couple of weeks is going to officially be locked in and we will just see what ends up happening as, as all of this plays out going forward. So primary season, Alabama's got to pick a new senator because we've got Tommy Tuberville who's going to be leaving. Marsha Blackburn is going to be the next governor in Tennessee. So there will be a new senator being picked there before long. A lot of different moving parts. And this is officially, I think, the, the time when we start to get a feel for what turnout's going to look like. And I know people out there who say, okay, President Trump, his approval rating is 40%. I think in the real clear politics average, every Democrat in America has a lower approval rating basically than President Trump. So this is going to be a double hater midterm election. Traditionally, the party in power does not do well in these elections, but Democrats are even less popular in many ways as a party than Republicans are. There's just again, I think uniquely this is a double hater environment where lots of people are unhappy. And the number one thing that people are unhappy about is cost, which has skyrocketed since Joe Biden allowed inflation to go to 9% thanks to his crazy amount of money that he spent in the first year and a half that he came into office. So that, to me, is the biggest storyline out there. What will turn out look like Buck there's some really encouraging numbers from California that the number of Republican ballots is through the roof relative to historic averages. And that would suggest there's lots of motivation to go out and vote for Steve Hilton. Chad Bianco Spencer Pratt in that primary that is coming up in June. So again, to me, in the next two and a half weeks, we're going to get a pretty good snapshot of where the actual American electorate is not what we are forecasting them to be, but where they actually are. And those primaries tomorrow, I think the Massie result will be the third significant. How much sway does Trump still have in the Republican Party result?

[Buck Sexton]

Massey getting a lot of attention from leftists, which is something that does not sit well, I think, with a lot of people, meaning I should say support from leftists.

[Clay Travis]

Yes.

[Buck Sexton]

A lot of the very worst people are very pro Massey right now. Now, I understand that's perhaps a shorthand for whether or not you support someone or not. You know. Well, it's. But it's a pretty good shorthand. I think there's something to be said for all of a sudden the people who want to see the worst things in America are going to bat for Massie in a big way. And I think it's just because they, they view him as part of the dissension among maga.

[Clay Travis]

Yes. And also I think it's just again, the number one, what Democrats stand for is whatever Don they're against whatever Donald Trump likes. And so Donald Trump is against Massie. And so a lot of people who otherwise would disagree with Massie on a very many different fronts have decided because Trump is opposed to him, they are in favor of him. So again, I think we are going to really kind of see some significant income impact and we'll have a significant idea of what's going forward. Let me also add this, I didn't even mention this as one of the stories that we're following. President Trump has got a meeting tomorrow Buck with his National Security Advisory team, and it seems like he is inclined to begin strikes anew on Iran. Now, to be fair, President Trump negotiates as a wizard might in many different ways. And so he has both made Iran think, hey, we're not going to strike you, and then struck them, lulled them into sleep. And maybe on the flip side, he is making them think now, hey, I'm going to strike in an effort to try to get some form of deal done. But I am inclined more so than not to that we are moving in a direction where we may well see more strikes coming sooner rather than later. I don't know where you are on trying to forecast things. And again, predicting President Trump in times of negotiation can sometimes be difficult. But it feels to me like he is moving towards potentially engaging in New strikes.

[Buck Sexton]

How are you feeling about the whole situation, Captain? Optimism market's still very high. Gas prices are still high. People are getting annoyed at me. I was getting a lot of messages over the weekend saying I sound too sour about. I'm not sour about it. I'm trusting in Trump on this one. He's got a clock, he's working with it. Let's see. But, you know, it's. We're moving the timeline back a little bit. It's a little bit of, I'm gonna fix the Russia, Ukraine war in one day, which he said. And I was like, I don't think it's gonna be one day. Same thing here.

[Clay Travis]

It's not a declination. Depending on what is so called in where the nuclear dust is right now, to what extent is it or is it not feasible? My inclination is to try to get some form of result in a positive way. Declare victory, let things calm down in terms of oil and gas prices for the midterm. As soon as the midterm is over, if you think there's more work to do, rain down holy hell on them. I don't think there's anything that Iran is going to be capable of now in June, July, August, September, October. So if you could get transit restored in some way on the Strait of Hormuz, I think oil and gas prices come back down. I think people are more positively disposed for the midterm. Having said that, I also understand everybody who says, hey, we've done 70% of the work. Let's go ahead and finish the job right now. Now, that gets into, what does finish the job actually mean? Right. My general position has been, if you can somehow seize the nuclear dust, prove that they had it, and bring it out of Iran, that is a clear victory. It's hard to argue against that being a slam dunk. Question is, can you get it? And how long does that take?

[Buck Sexton]

So I still. I still think you're pretty optimistic, so that's good. And I think I am.

[Clay Travis]

Look, stock market's at record highs and unemployment has remained low. What I'm concerned about right now is oil and gas prices are too high. And right now you're starting to see that translate into interest rates. So interest rates, because inflation has gone up, interest rates on mortgages, interest rates on car loans, on credit card, they are creeping back up at a level that has not been seen for a while. I want interest rates lower. I want everybody having lower mortgage rates. And that is directly connected in many ways to the price of oil and gas. So we need to get oil and gas prices back sooner rather than later. If I were asked right now, I would say declare a short term victory, let things kind of get back to normal, let the midterms happen and then really go to town.

[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

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[Buck Sexton]

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[Buck Sexton]

Welcome back into Clay and Buck. You know some some good news over the weekend. I was very happy to see that. I love. Don't let the haters tell you otherwise. I love when there is good news to share with all of you, especially about politics. And so here's here's what we've got The Supreme Court has rejected Virginia Democrats attempt to restore the congressional map that would have given basically the whole state over to Democrats. So the court came down with the order and was this, was this a 9 0? Actually I'm trying to find that. Right.

[Clay Travis]

Well, there was no dissent. So sometimes it's a little bit difficult to the way that these appeals work. It may not be reviewed by the entire nine member aspect of the court, but no one dissented to the Supreme Court choosing not to take up this case. So that is in many ways I think indicative. It's not officially 9 0, but no dissent means I think sometimes buck four or five. And trust me, there's all sorts of different aspects of Supreme Court jurisprudence that are followed through. A lot of times these appeals have a particular person who reviews them and they're reviewed by a less, less than the majority of the court. But the fact that there was no, no dissent to the decision not to take this up is indicative that it may well have been a 90 decision. And I know everybody's pointing out how polarized the Supreme Court is, but remember, the Supreme Court has issued a lot of decisions that have slapped down the crazy left wing element of the country. Most memorably, everybody I know forgets this and doesn't want to talk about it. Remember, the Colorado Supreme Court said President Trump was not eligible to appear on their ballot 43 and it went to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court came back 90 and said basically the Democrats on the Colorado Supreme Court are crazy. When you get nine owed when there's no dissent to a decision, it kind of points out how ridiculous the argument was in many ways. And I think that's what has happened now with the Virginia Supreme Court situation where this thing is blown up in the face of the Democrat Party in a way that I think even stunned a lot of Democrats. We'll talk about that when we come back. A bit more on the ongoing situation in Iran, of course. But in the meantime, we're about a month out from Father's Day. Good time to head over to cozyearth.com get him something he'll appreciate. Cozy Earth has comfortable everything. Sheets, bedding, clothing, house shoes, fan favorites, travel clothing, Cozy Earth hoodie and sweatpants set will make airport chaos much more bearable because at least you're comfortable. You really can't go wrong with any Cozy Earth products. Whether you order one of their cozy earth robes, PJs, oversized throw blankets, everything made to last. So much so they'll give you a 10 year warranty. On every cozy earth item you purchase along with a 100 day trial. They're that confident in their products. Go to cozyearth.com my name Clay as your promo code for 30% off. That's cozyearth.com promo code Clay, 30% off. It's an incredible deal. Cozyearth.com promo code clay for 30% off. Welcome back in Clay. Travis. BUCK SEXTON SHOW all right, Buck, I want to get your read on. Well, let me first put a little bit of a bow on that Virginia Democrats Supreme Court decision. It appears that we are going to get a, and again, correct me if I'm wrong because judges can rule at any point in time, but I believe I am up to date on all these states. It appears we're going to get one additional Republican district in Tennessee, one additional Republican district in Louisiana, one additional Republican district in Alabama and that Georgia, Mississippi have both decided to wait till after this election cycle to redistrict. And South Carolina is still up in air as to what they are going to do. Meanwhile, Texas adding theoretically five Republican districts and Florida adding four Republican districts. California has added five. That is the biggest, most significant win for Democrats. But that somewhere around 8 or 9 positive in the direction of the Republican Party. The math is that that's where we're going to end up. And again, people can correct me if I'm wrong out there because there's a lot of different state lawsuits and redistricting stories to be following in real time. And it's possible today in the last two hours there have been changes in those places. Why do I bring this up, Buck, given what the United States Supreme Court did, which is say, hey, we think the Virginia Supreme Court got this right, we're not going to touch this. So Virginia is staying 6, 5 in favor of Democrats. I actually think there's a decent chance Republicans can retain control of the House. That's a, that is a scorching from Clay.

[Buck Sexton]

I like it.

[Clay Travis]

Scorching. I would say that's a minority take right now and that most people would not agree with me. But I was doing my research. I was reading right now it appears there are around 210 safe Republican seats. In order to have the majority you need to get to 2, 18. It appears there's going to be about 17 or 18 so called toss up districts and Democrats would basically need, I mean Republicans need to split roughly on the toss up districts in order to maintain control of the House. But Democrats are going to have, if they win back the House, what appears to be A very slim majority, much like Republicans have had a very slim majority in 22 and in 24 in the outcome. So put me down, Ally. I do not believe there is a world where we have a landslide in the house where suddenly 30 seats one way or the other are swinging. I think we're talking about eight to 10 seats that are moving one direction or the other. And so as that is the case, it is unlikely that we're going to see some sort of seismic tsunami like impact one one direction or the other. Senate is actually somewhat more challenging. Republicans are favored right now in the Senate, but there are more, I would say, battlegrounds in the Senate as a percentage than there are in the House. Does that make sense? The gerrymandering has occurred to such an extent now that there's only 18 toss up seats left out of 435. So it doesn't move very much one direction or the other.

[Buck Sexton]

I like where your head's at on this and I feel like there's more momentum for Republicans at this stage of the game in some key places than certainly would have been just your guess, out of the gate a year ago.

[Clay Travis]

Right.

[Buck Sexton]

I mean, usually going into the midterms, if you remember everybody, the 2018 midterm was brutal. And we didn't even know how brutal it was on election night because some of those had, there were some delays getting in the results. But that was a rough, or rather it came later on, much later on in the election tabulation. But that was not a good, a good showing for the GOP under Trump then. I do think Clay were in a much stronger position this time around. I also think a big part of that is there's still enough. It's not like we've gone through eight, you know, eight years of Trump or anything, or rather eight years of one side and now the other, you know, is we had the Biden interregnum of four years where people can remember. He, it really was incompetent administration of government under the Democrats. You know, they, and they, they came back after Trump first time around. Then Trump's now back in office. I feel like the hope and change routine for Democrats won't be as strong as it would as it might otherwise be.

[Clay Travis]

I think that's a good take. Let me also though, play for you what I think I asked the question if we got a resolution in the, in the Iran situation, what would Democrats run on? I think they're going to run on Calais, Louisiana, and we've got a bunch of cuts of this from People both that we would acknowledge themselves, I think as being far left. And I'll start with them. But even people who are supposed to be moderate Democrats from red states are taking this same talking point. Ayanna Pressley, one of the members of the squad, Democrat from Massachusetts, Buck, listen to this. She says Republicans would rather black people pick cotton, then pick the President. This is cut 15. I have to just tell the truth. There are people in this hostile anti

[Buck Sexton]

black administration that would rather black Americans

[Clay Travis]

pick cotton than pick the president, then pick their congressperson than pick a senator. Okay, so understand what's going on here. In the wake of Calais Louisian v. Louisiana, they now are saying black people's right to vote is being threatened. This is actually, I think, a credit to the Southern states. The numbers that I have seen suggest that black people in the south, and I live in the south, are actually more likely to be registered to vote now than white people are in some Southern states. That is a direct refutation of everything that happened in the 1940s, 50s, that entire era, which most of us listening right now were never a part of. But saying we can't have race based redistricting has immediately turned into, oh, Republicans don't want black people to vote. This is nothing to do with voting rights at all. Here is cut 17. Cory Booker Buck saying the same thing for all Americans.

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[Clay Travis]

Okay, so that. And now here is. Buck, I want to play this because there's a lot of you listening to me in Kentucky who see through this bs But a lot of people are saying, hey, you know what the Democrats really need? They need Andy Bashir. He's a blue state, blue elected Democrat elected in a red state. And now that he's not running for reelection anymore, first of all, I think he's done an awful job. I think Andy Beshear has been a disaster as the governor of Kentucky. I think Kentucky has fallen further behind states like Tennessee that obviously we border. Most of my family is raised in Kentucky. My. All my family, all my dad's family came down from Kentucky. That's how we ended up in Nashville. I think Andy Beshear has done an awful job, but listen to cut 16. I recognize that I will never be able to feel the pain of racism, but I know that it exists. We have a president that denies that racism exists, but he shows us what it looks like every single day. But we can push back against this shameful decision by the Supreme Court. We can try to protect voting rights. Democratic governors can veto redistricting plans that would eliminate minority majority seats. We can refuse to call our legislatures back into session. We are not going to redistrict in Kentucky because I refuse to call them back because they would do the wrong thing.

[Buck Sexton]

Clay, can I just. This. This reminds me so much of the climate change is real mantra. Racism exists. Climate change is real. These are. These are statements of. Of. Well, first of all, they're so broad as to be almost without meaning, where there's. They don't tell you anything because. Okay, what do you do then? Climate change is real. So what now? What? That's the real question. Okay. Yeah, the climate changes. Racism is real. Of course racism is real. Notice how they always say this, though. It's like genuflecting before the left wing racial spoils gods in this country or something like you're supposed to say, oh, well, because racism is real. What we need to add 150 points on average to the SAT score of every black student admitted to Harvard forever. Is that what racism is real means? Because that's what racism is real has meant until a couple of years ago, you know, is, does it mean that black people get to have their own districts where they get guaranteed to have black representation because they're specifically carving. Well, no, we're being told that that's actually not okay. So that's a. You know, there's a difference between being treated the same and being treated specially. And the demand here is actually for special treatment. It's not for equal treatment.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah, the swing was from. Racism existed. And again, it existed for most of the lives of many people that are listening to us when we were not alive. I have said, and some people came after me, but I think it's 100% true. If you were born in the United States since 1980, the only real racism you have experienced is racism, where it is benefiting some races at the expense of others. That is largely anti white and anti Asian racism. Right?

[Buck Sexton]

Benefiting black and black and Hispanic slash Latino at the expense of Asian and white. That is what the data irrefutably and according to the Supreme Court shows.

[Clay Travis]

And the goal of that was coming out of the what was a racist era. We're going to put in place affirmative action. We're going to cure racism with more racism. I think most people in America of all different backgrounds have decided, you know, that's not a great long term plan. Here's what I would say would actually be a great pushback. We talk about racism in America as if it is still 1963. Okay? There are white people who are racist against black people. That exists, not disputing it. There are also a lot of black people who are racist against white people and Asian people and Hispanic people. Racism goes in every direction now. Heck, there are. And some of you who are Asian and listening to me right now are going to nod along too. There is racism inside the Asian community against other Asians based on where they are from in Asia. Right?

[Buck Sexton]

This is actually very Indian, Indian subcontinent and in China based upon the. The darkness of your skin within the same race, everybody. And if you think that this is very real, it's the caste system in India, but it's a de facto caste system in China. In a lot of ways, the darker you are as a Chinese person, the more they look down upon you.

[Clay Travis]

So there's all these different sorts of ways to judge people. What I would say, and I think this show has been pretty consistent on, is your race and your gender are two of the least interesting things about you because you have absolutely nothing to do with what your race or your gender is. You were born, you're black, you're Asian, you're Hispanic, you are white, you're male or female. We believe now, Democrats actually believe now, and this is the foundation of identity politics, that the most important thing about you is your race and gender. That is, the immutable characteristics that you were born with are you're so foundational to you that they should represent everything. This is actually a fundamental refutation of what the civil rights argument was initially about, which is you should be judged by the content of your character, not the color of your skin. What we have ended up with is we've ended up in a big circle where now you are judged and permanently defined by identities that you did not pick. And I think for most people out there listening to us right now, you're kind of nodding along the things that you don't choose to do the things that you don't pick about yourself are your least interesting attributes. Right. Like the fact that I'm a white guy to me is, is the most boring thing about me because I had nothing to do with any of the choices associated with that. It's my life choices since that should people can judge me pro or con on since then.

[Buck Sexton]

Well, this also just goes to the fundamental character of America and the realization, the true realization of the ideals. We all know it was imperfect, more than imperfect, obviously, but we all know it wasn't. It wasn't properly implemented at the founding, but the ideals of the founding, 250 years in, it's not you. You know, we went from you're being treated improperly, unfairly because you are black to now you have to be treated better than other people in the same country because you are black. Both of these are wrong. It's actually very straightforward under the law, neither of these things are permissible. Neither of these things are acceptable under the Constitution. As the Supreme Court has ruled by. This isn't like a theoretical at this point, Supreme Court has said you can't do this stuff in college admissions anymore. It's not allowed. And more and more lawsuits are just going to show that this is being done. And that's how it's going to have to stop. Or it will I think eventually stop. But the promise of the, of of the founding is whether you're black, you're white, you're Asian or Hispanic, you're whatever, you're treated as a person, you have the same rights when it comes to voting. You actually don't get to have special rights forever. That period has passed and that is what all these Democrat politicians are fighting against. Notice you know, the Congressional Black Caucus, you know, doesn't let in Republicans.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah. And, and I would point out if you question the era in which we are in, as we get ready to go to break here, Florida is poised to elect Byron Donalds to represent the entire state. That feels pretty significant to me. Um, so you're going to argue that people in the south are disenfranchised, but the entire state of Florida is about to elect. What would you say? Governor of Florida ranks and most powerful people, isn't it?

[Buck Sexton]

White Republican Floridians are. And I, you know, I'm not, I'm not doing an endorsement thing here, but they're all like super psyched about, about the prospect of a Byron Donald's governor governorship and we don't even feel the need to go look See, because this state isn't racist. Yeah, because we know we're, you know, because you know you're not. This is the thing we and by

[Clay Travis]

the way, Byron Donalds has represented along with Wesley Hunt, along with, along with a decent very white district. Very white districts.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, we really do just care about the person and the principles and what their leadership is. We actually don't care what the skin color is. That's the Republican way the Democrats are. Let's get out the, the, the, the color chart. What, how, how much are both sides just one parent? What special rules? How do we apply it here? Do you cry a lot about how everything's unfair or not? You know, these are the things that

[Clay Travis]

they do Businesses require multiple insurance policies regardless of the size of the business. The exposure's real. And by the way, super frustrating. If you are a small business owner, you have 25 plus employees out there. How frustrated are you with all of the different insurances that you have to purchase for your company? Super sure is the first company we know of that can make all of your policies take place in one particular location. Everything that you need all working in concert together so you're not paying for a bunch of different things that you don't need. Super sure will figure out all the business insurance you need one team year round, not just at renewal plus they have a fine print facts tool that will translate the legal jargon for you. Here's how you get hooked up and just learn about this. Go to super sure.com clay for a full report on your current policies. No obligations, you have no cost associated with this. Just find out what they can do for you. For you. Go to super sure.com clay super sure.com clay one powerful platform, all your policies in one place. Super sure.com clay level up your brain and balance out your day with the right amount of information and entertainment. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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