Hour 2 - Entrepreneurs That Give Back to Government

Summary

Summary of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show"
Episode: Hour 2 - Entrepreneurs That Give Back to Government
Release Date: April 30, 2025

In this engaging and insightful episode of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show, hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton delve into the significant involvement of entrepreneurs in government, particularly focusing on the Trump administration's cabinet meetings. The discussion traverses various critical topics, including the infusion of private sector expertise into public service, economic policies, border security, and international relations. This summary encapsulates the key points, notable quotes, and the dynamic interplay between the hosts, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven't tuned in.

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1. Introduction to the Trump Cabinet Meeting

Timestamp: [01:00] - [03:00]

Clay Travis opens the second hour by highlighting the ongoing cabinet meeting at the White House, emphasizing the presence of high-profile entrepreneurs transitioning into government roles. He introduces key figures such as Doug Burgum, the Interior Secretary, RFK Jr., and notably, Elon Musk, who is participating in his role as a special government employee before returning to his entrepreneurial ventures.

Notable Quote:

• Clay Travis ([02:00]): "Elon Musk is present at this cabinet meeting, and his time with Doge is as was planned. He's going to be rotating out and going back to running his companies."

2. Elon Musk’s Praise for the Trump Administration

Timestamp: [02:52] - [04:00]

Elon Musk publicly commends the Trump administration's achievements within the first hundred days, citing secure borders, safe cities, and sensible spending. Musk asserts that the administration has accomplished more than any previous administration in the same timeframe.

Notable Quotes:

• Elon Musk ([02:53]): "The American people voted for secure borders, safe cities, and sensible spending, and that's what they've gotten. A tremendous amount has been accomplished in the first hundred days."
• Donald Trump ([02:52]): "Period."

Host Commentary: Clay and Buck interpret Musk’s endorsement as a positive indicator for the administration's future, suggesting that such high-level support from a successful entrepreneur bodes well for ongoing and future policies.

3. Economic Performance and Policies

Timestamp: [06:59] - [09:17]

The hosts discuss recent economic indicators, including a reported 0.3% decline in GDP in the first quarter. They contrast this with the Biden administration's handling of economic growth, arguing that Trump inherited and rectified economic issues left by his predecessor. Clay points out that while border security has been largely successful, addressing long-term economic challenges like debt and spending will require more time.

Notable Quote:

• Donald Trump ([07:44]): "Core GDP, removing distortions from imports, inventories, and government spending was up plus 3%. We turned them around and we were getting them really turned around."

Host Insights: Buck emphasizes Trump's willingness to address challenging issues that other politicians might avoid, lauding the administration's commitment to substantial change over mere reelection concerns.

4. The Role of Entrepreneurs in Government

Timestamp: [03:45] - [06:59]

Buck and Clay expand on the theme of entrepreneurs entering government roles, highlighting Elon Musk as possibly the most successful capitalist in history. They draw parallels with other entrepreneurs like Pete Hegseth and Sean Duffy, who transitioned from successful careers into government positions. The hosts argue that this trend brings invaluable expertise and a results-oriented mindset to public service.

Notable Quotes:

• Buck Sexton ([04:30]): "Elon may well be the most successful capitalist in the history of the world... He had no reason other than his belief in his incredible ability to bring talent to the government."
• Clay Travis ([05:15]): "These are the most successful people coming from outside government that Trump has brought in."

Analysis: The hosts commend the infusion of private sector success into government, suggesting that such individuals are more likely to implement effective and innovative policies, thereby enhancing governmental performance.

5. Border Security Achievements

Timestamp: [06:59] - [09:17]

A significant portion of the discussion centers on the administration's efforts to secure the U.S. borders. Clay asserts that border security has been "95% fixed," attributing this success to decisive leadership and strategic policy implementation.

Notable Quote:

• Clay Travis ([08:23]): "The border has been fixed, not immigration. We still have deportations and illegal immigration issues, but border security has been largely 95% fixed."

Contextual Insight: Buck supports Clay's point by noting that while infrastructure improvements have been remarkable, economic factors like national debt require ongoing attention and cannot be resolved swiftly.

6. Trump Administration's Approach to China

Timestamp: [11:23] - [15:43]

The conversation shifts to U.S.-China relations, with Clay and Buck discussing Donald Trump's strategic approach. Trump expresses a desire to avoid overt conflict, emphasizing fair trade practices and the importance of maintaining America's global dominance without unnecessary hostility.

Notable Quotes:

• Donald Trump ([12:54]): "I like President Xi. I don't want to get into a bare-knuckle brawl over trade. We just want things to be fair."
• Clay Travis ([13:45]): "He doesn't want to get into a bare-knuckle brawl for the foreseeable future with China over trade."

Economic Projections: Buck predicts a resolution to trade tensions by August, anticipating new trade agreements and potential rate cuts by Jerome Powell to stimulate the economy. He foresees these measures improving market confidence and easing housing market constraints.

Notable Quote:

• Buck Sexton ([14:30]): "I think by August, China and the United States will have come to an agreement. The larger marketplace will start to fire."

7. Audience Engagement and Interactive Discussions

Timestamp: [16:42] - [28:25]

The episode features lively interactions with listeners, including debates on historical settlement patterns in the United States based on geography and commerce versus climate preferences. Calls from listeners like Henry from Syracuse, New York, spark discussions on the importance of waterways in urban development—a nod to the hosts' appreciation for historical and geographical insights.

Notable Exchange:

• Buck Sexton ([19:57]): "If you look at cities like Chicago and Houston, what has made them so significant is their access to waterways."
• Clay Travis ([20:20]): "It has nothing to do with weather."

Deep Dive into Urban Development: Buck provides an in-depth analysis of how navigable rivers and later, railroads, have been pivotal in shaping the growth and success of major American cities, reinforcing the argument that commerce and trade logistics supersede climate in determining population centers.

8. Closing Remarks and Future Episodes

Timestamp: [37:30] - [39:07]

As the episode nears its conclusion, Clay and Buck hint at upcoming segments, including interviews with political figures like Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and discussions on contemporary political issues. They also touch upon lighter topics, such as sports and personal anecdotes, maintaining the show’s blend of serious analysis and relatable humor.

Notable Quote:

• Buck Sexton ([37:56]): "We'll have some more fun talking about this moving ridiculousness, but I did hear this last night and I thought it was so well said by Giannis of the Milwaukee Bucks."

9. Promotion of Affiliate Services and Community Involvement

Timestamp: Interspersed Throughout

Throughout the episode, promotional segments for services like Dutch Vet Service and charitable appeals (e.g., supporting veterans) are interspersed. While these segments are primarily advertisements, they reflect the show's commitment to community engagement and support for specific causes.

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Conclusion

This episode of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show offers a comprehensive exploration of how successful entrepreneurs like Elon Musk contribute to government efficacy and policy-making. Through dynamic discussions, the hosts underscore the value of private sector expertise in public roles, the administration's economic strategies, border security advancements, and nuanced international relations. Complemented by interactive listener segments and thoughtful analysis, Clay and Buck provide listeners with a well-rounded perspective on contemporary political and economic issues.

For Further Listening:
To gain deeper insights into the discussed topics and hear firsthand accounts, consider tuning into The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show via the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or your preferred podcast platform.

Transcript

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[Leon Neyfak]

In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. It became known as the Iran Contra affair.

[Clay Travis]

The things that happened were so bizarre and insane I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

[Leon Neyfak]

To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco Iran Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Clay Travis]

All right, second hour. Clay and Buck, of course, coming to you live. And speaking of live, over at the White House, they're still going with this cabinet meeting. Clay's buddy, his golf buddy, perhaps soon. Doug Burgum laying it down right now. Dougie B. I don't know if we've called him that yet, but I think that's kind of a fun one for him. He's the Interior secretary. Very important job. A lot that goes under the umbrella of responsibility for the Interior Secretary. Senator MARK I keep doing that. I've just known him as Senator Rubio for the whole time I've been in media. Pretty much Secretary of State Marco Rubio sitting there as well with Donald Trump. We want to bring you some of the highlights of what has gone on so far. And I'd say RFK Jr also sitting next to Dougie B. Secretary Burgum and he's doing his thing. I'm surprised. Not a lot of controversy around RFK Jr. I don't mean on the personal side, but on the policy side. I would have thought by now they would be in a full fledged freakout over him, but it hasn't really happened. Let's dive into what has been going on here and what they've been saying. As you know, Elon Musk is also present at this cabinet meeting and his time with Doge is as was planned. Don't forget, because he's a special government employee or whatever they call it. As was planned. He's going to be rotating out and going back to running his companies. This is cut 23. Elon says Elon has some high praise for the Trump administration thus far, play it. You know, the American people voted for secure borders, safe cities, and sensible spending, and that's what they've gotten. A tremendous amount has been accomplished in the first hundred days. As everyone has said, it's more than has been accomplished in any administration before ever.

[Donald Trump]

Period.

[Buck Sexton]

So this is.

[Clay Travis]

This portends very well for what happened to the rest of the administration.

[Buck Sexton]

I think this could be the greatest.

[Clay Travis]

Administration in your country.

[Donald Trump]

You have been treated unfairly, but the vast majority of people in this country really respect and appreciate you. And this whole room can say that very strongly. You've really been a tremendous help. You opened up a lot of eyes as to what could be done. And we just want to thank you very much. And, you know, you're invited to stay as long as you want. At some point, I guess he wants to get back home to his car.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah. And his rockets and all the other good stuff. Like, I think it's important context because Elon is not a guy who accepts less than the best. It's been 100 days. Trump's doing the things he said he would do. There has been some excellent progress, but you can't slay all the dragons the first time you pick up the sword.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah. And again, I think the biggest story of Trump's hundred days is that he tried. He is trying to fix things that most politicians would not touch. And this is important because it's what you should want politicians to do. But most of them are so concerned with getting reelected that they aren't willing to actually get that far out in front of making substantial change. And this is. You and I have talked about this a lot, and I think it comes up frequently. What Elon has done is what we should want incredibly talented people from a wide variety of backgrounds to be willing to do. It's what Pete Hegseth did. It's what Sean Duffy did. If you are having. This is my opinion, some of you may disagree, but if you are fortunate enough to have success in whatever your private endeavor is, Elon is the most successful capitalist maybe in the history of the world. I wanted to reiterate that because I think sometimes it gets lost. Elon may well be the most successful capitalist in the history of the world, Buck. I mean, certainly on a dollar value, no one has been wealthier. Now, you can argue, hey, historically, on inflation adjusted basis, John D. Rockefeller, some of the people in the late 19th century, early 20th century may have had higher share of wealth. The Stanford's, the Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers, the people who Endowed so many different institutions. But when you think about Tesla, Space X X AI, Twitter and the Boring Company among many others, I don't know that there is anyone in the history of American capitalism who or world capitalism that has been more successful than Elon is. He had no reason, Buck, other than his belief that he had an incredible ability of talent to bring to bear at the government to leave what he was doing and making money and do it. Look at Hegseth and people are coming after Hegseth like crazy. He was making several million dollars a year doing Fox and Friends weekend hits as a host and also then doing lots of different hits on Fox News. And he gave that up to make a couple hundred thousand dollars to be Defense Secretary. Sean Duffy was making really good money hosting a show on Fox Business. He gave that up to go be Transportation Secretary. Donald Trump himself was rolling in billions of dollars, had an easy lifestyle. Everyone loved him. He was one of the most popular entrepreneurs and capitalist in the entire world. And he decided that he didn't like the way America was going and he was willing to put his hat in the ring and take the slings and arrows from other people. There are tons of those people, Lutnick, Besant, people who were wildly successful outside of the government that have decided to bring their talents to bear at the government. I think it's probably the most underreported, under discussed aspect of Trump Cabinet 2.0. I'm not sure we've ever seen a more successful gathering of people from outside the government than what Trump has brought to bear so far in this group that was meeting right now in the last couple of hours.

[Clay Travis]

Now this cabinet will bring more of the highlights to you as it continues to unfold. But a couple of things that have come up. One is you may have seen that the US economy had a.3% decline in GDP in the first quarter. Now remember to remember when 2/4 of negative of negative growth under Biden was a recession. But then they said, well, is that really a recession? And we all had to debate what the definition of a recession was. They're going to seize on this. They're trying to seize on this to say that Trump, his economy is actually not going to be strong for the American people. You all know, we all understand where this is going, but Trump had this to say about the GDP number and he's not mincing words. This is 24 core GDP and this.

[Donald Trump]

Is, you know, you probably saw some numbers today. And I have to start off by saying that's Biden. That's not Trump because we came in on January. This are quarterly numbers. And we came in and I was very against everything that Biden was doing in terms of the economy destroying our country in so many ways. Not only at the border, the border was more obvious. But we took over his mess in so many different ways. Core gdp, removing distortions from imports, inventories and government spending was up plus 3%. When you add it, we have numbers that despite what we were handed, we turned them around and we were getting them really turned around.

[Clay Travis]

Now I would just say, I think it is, it is fair that Donald Trump is. Well, he's saying, look, we came in in the middle of, in the middle of the quarter, which is true. Or, you know, early mid to the quarter. And he's only been president for 100 days. So we have to see how a lot of this plays out. If Trump could snap it because he snapped, I would say this Clay, because he snapped his fingers, in essence. And the border has been fixed, not immigration. We still have all the deportations and illegal immigration issue, but the border issue, border security has been largely 95% is pretty much fixed. I almost feel like he's a victim of his own success because he snaps his finger and fixes the border. He can't snap his fingers and fix the economy. And especially when you look at the debt and spending and these things that have been built up over decades, it's going to take a little time. I do think that's fair context for this number that has just come out.

[Buck Sexton]

I don't think there's any doubt at all. And I just think overall, the battle out there as they are trying to attack Trump. You know, we talked about the polling numbers yesterday, Buck, and I do think this is important. Is there anybody within 20 points, popularity wise, in the Democrat Party that is eligible to run for office with Trump? Because historically with Biden, we knew Trump was going to run. So you could always kind of compare with Biden and then with Kamala, there was somebody that you could put up head to head. I'm not even sure right now who you would point to in the Democrat Party and say this person is even on an even remotely close to an even playing field with Donald Trump's popularity. And so the attack now is, oh, the things that Trump is doing are unpopular. And I think they've had some success going after Elon. And I hope it doesn't discourage other highly successful businessmen from coming into government. But unfortunately, I think it probably will. And I think that's part of the intent. But I don't know who you would even point to and say, in these hundred days this person has been elevated as the foil for Trump District court judges, but there's hundreds of them. There isn't really any challenger of Trump, even if his agenda is not wildly popular in the marketplace right now. Does that make sense? Like, I don't even see a conflict of ideas that's possible because Democrats, it sort of feels, are drunkenly jumping from, oh, we're going to go with Abreu Garcia. Oh, we're going to go with the cost of eggs. Oh, the stock market is not in an ideal position and they just kind of drunkenly move swerve from one argument to another, and there is no uniting coalition of opposition behind it. Does that make sense? Which I think is only fracturing even more. And I think it's going to get worse because I think the economy is going to be getting better in the months ahead.

[Clay Travis]

Now, China obviously looms large in all of this with the economy, with the tariffs. And this is really, I think, for, in my view, I'd be interested. This would be an interesting question to ask Trump. I'd love to hear. Well, we'll talk to him. I think we're going to go see the big guy in June. Clay and I've been talking about this. We were going to see them see him sooner and his team. But, you know, I've got a little human who is very dependent on mom and dad to, to be around. Well, particularly mom, let's be honest. But I try to help out. So Clay has graciously agreed to let us push this back to probably June. I think we'll do our time with the president and some of his team. But I would want to ask him, I think that in Trump's mind, he has defeated the fake news media, which is, which I think is a totally fair assessment. I think he has defeated the Democrat Party. Right. He's not running again. He won twice. He, I know some of you say he won three times, but he won twice officially. And now I think he views his, his primary challenge as China. I don't think he thinks the Democrats are who he really has to focus on as much anymore. I think he's really viewing China and the future of the China US Relationship and our ability to compete and continue to be the dominant global force that we are is a huge part of Trump's legacy. So he sees this as important. I don't think he wants to have an unnecessarily bellicose relationship with China. He just wants us to be well positioned and he wants things to be fair. He spoke about this in this cabinet meeting. This is cut 25.

[Donald Trump]

I know that China is doing very poorly right now. I just saw some reports coming out and I don't want that to happen to China. I like the President a lot, President Xi. I don't want it to happen. I was, I was actually saddened to hear it. But they are getting absolutely hammered in China and you know, they're sending boats, the biggest boats in the world carrying cargo like nobody's ever seen before. These are the biggest boats in the world, biggest cargo ships in the world. And they're coming and they're turning around in the Pacific Ocean. They're doing a big U turn and going back because they don't want the goods because 145% tariff. But at a certain point, I hope we're going to make a deal with China. We're talking to China, but their factories are closing all over China because we're not taking their product. We don't want their product unless they're going to be fair with us. And that includes intellectual property and other things are a lot of things far beyond just buy, sell.

[Clay Travis]

Clay, he's saying, look, he doesn't want to get into a bare knuckle brawl for the foreseeable future with China over trade. All they have to do is change some behavior and we can all be nice. As Trump would say.

[Buck Sexton]

I will be very surprised if by August this isn't all resolved. You can put me down on the prediction market by August. I think we'll get through the summer. I think what you will start to see in the next few days is a lot of these new trade agreements will be rolled out and they'll be better and they'll be more efficient and the market is going to come to realize that this is not the end of the world. And I think by August, China and the United States will have in some way come to an agreement. That's my bet. I think they want to get this thing resolved before we get into the holiday season because you need some finality and certainty as you are getting retail set up for the holiday season, which now Buck, by September, there are Christmas trees showing up in Costco's. You know, the Christmas creep gets here sooner and sooner and I think that will be a time when we will have some resolution. So I don't think this thing's going to stretch on forever. I think both sides are going to sit down at the table. I think we'll get a better deal than we have right now. And by the summer, I think you will start to see the, the larger marketplace start to fire. I also think our boy Jerome Powell inflation is coming down. He needs to cut rates. And there's now a prediction of four rate cuts before the end. I think Goldman's newest forecast is that four rate cuts, a total point rate cut that will also start to juice the economy, maybe free up the housing market or so many of you out there sitting on those two and a half or three percent mortgages, congrats. But it's been a while now and the marketplace needs to kind of start to work through the housing inventory. It's still frozen. A point change in interest rates I think could start to loosen that some.

[Clay Travis]

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[Buck Sexton]

But you could. On the Sunday hang with Clay and.

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[Leon Neyfak]

In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency.

[Clay Travis]

Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir?

[Buck Sexton]

No.

[Leon Neyfak]

It became known as the Iran Contra affair.

[Donald Trump]

And I'm not taking any more questions. In just a second I'm going to ask.

[Leon Neyfak]

I'm Leon Naifak, co creator of Slow Burn. In my podcast Iran Contra, you'll hear all the unbelievable details of a scandal that captivated the nation nearly 40 years ago, but which few of us still remember today.

[Clay Travis]

The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

[Leon Neyfak]

To hear the whole story. Listen to Fiasco Iran Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Buck Sexton]

Welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton show. Appreciate everybody out there. So funny what people get fired up about. Northeast people are fired up because I said nobody would live there if we had settled the west to east.

[Clay Travis]

How dare you, Southern fellow.

[Buck Sexton]

How dare you. I'm just saying the west coast is better than the east coast geographically, weather wise. Weather wise. Northeast I like. Well, anyway, here is Henry Syracuse, New York. He's upset. BB let's hear what he.

[Clay Travis]

I gotta tell you, as someone who lives in upstate New York, your theory on the least populated place in the northeast would not withstand. The reason is why is because of the amount of fresh water we have here. They don't have any water out west. They would go and look and find water and end up here. You don't, don't mess with my upstate New York fam and think that you're going to get away with that, Mr. Tennessee. All right, you leave us Northeasterners alone.

[Buck Sexton]

I think there would have been plenty of water for the early settlers who were on the West. Like I don't remember people dying of, of lack of water in San Francisco or Los Angeles back in the day. Now the cities have grown so much that there is a massive demand for water now and that's actually a huge issue. It's certainly.

[Clay Travis]

Let's get James in Houston and real quick here he also takes issue with Clay's offhand comment. Go ahead, James. Do we have James history? Yeah. Through history, commerce and trade has determined.

[Buck Sexton]

Where population cities are.

[Clay Travis]

If we were still trading with Europe.

[Buck Sexton]

East would be the place people would live. I mean, if you look at cities like Chicago and Houston, what has made them its trade? Their access to the waterways? New Orleans is the same way you can go back in history. Jerusalem was founded as a trade post name with Damascus. That is where people settle.

[Clay Travis]

It has nothing to do with weather.

[Buck Sexton]

If it did, Houston would not have the population it did.

[Clay Travis]

James. James. I love it. I'm just going to say what rev what rivers does Clay have in Tennessee? Not the cool ones that we do in the Northeast.

[Buck Sexton]

I love James's call. I might have to respond to James's argument on why I think I'm right when we come back. But in the meantime, I don't know how many of you out there love major League Baseball. I do. My Atlanta Braves started off 07. Not ideal. Not ideal. But thanks to the fact that Denver has maybe with the Colorado Rockies, the worst baseball team of all time, my Braves are about to be back to.500. Sorry, Colorado Rocky fans out there and a lot of you out there, big NBA fans, big NHL fans, whatever the local team that you follow, mlb, NHL, Major League Baseball, NBA, whatever you like, you, you can get hooked up right now with prize picks. Go to prizepix.com code clay. You get 50 bucks when you play. $5. California would have been the most settled state if we had gone west to east Texas, Georgia, all of you can play along. Pricepix.com code clay.

[Clay Travis]

Welcome back into Clay and Buck Trump still going strong here with the cabinet meeting. So we'll continue to watch that for notable moments. Right now he's taking questions from reporters. He's got the whole team around him. Secretary of state, secretary of defense, interior, go down the line. Everybody is there and they're, they're taking questions in real time from reporters. So we'll continue to follow, bring you those highlights. But we are monitoring that the team is keeping an eye on everything and we've got, you know, a great radio team. So they'll make sure that anything that you need to hear we will bring to you. I have a couple of things here. One is Clay wants to respond. I thought our caller James from Houston was erudite. I thought he was on point and describing how despite what Clay may think. And I'm going to let you guys on a little secret. Clay wears flip flops, like all the time. Ok. All the time. Now if you were to wear flip flops constantly, you too would probably think that weather was the most important determination for where you would live. He also wears shorts a lot. I'm just going to say it. He's a shorts and flip flops guy. I live in Miami and I'm going to say I think I wear pants more than Clay does.

[Buck Sexton]

Probably true.

[Clay Travis]

Probably true. But our caller says that commerce waterways, proximity to Europe and the and the trading relationship, they're more important than sunny California weather. If the set, if we could have settled differently. Clay, you want to respond to this scholarly. I will say Scholarly phone call we.

[Buck Sexton]

Received very good call from Houston. Here is my argument. If we had settled west to east, then their relationships with Asia would have been more paramount than our relationships with Europe ended up being. Now that becomes complicated.

[Clay Travis]

Pacific's a lot, a lot bigger, a lot more time to traverse. So that would have been far more complicated. But. Okay, I'll let you keep rolling on.

[Buck Sexton]

This second part of this. He is correct. I am a nerd about transportation. There are a lot of things that I care way too much about that embarrass my kids and my wife when it comes to just nerdy things. I am like James, where I will drive through a city and I will regularly talk to my kids about two things that drive them crazy. One is transportation and why cities exist where they are. And it is correct. The rivers and streams were the initial highways of America. And typically many of our cities now, which people don't think about, were located in places where ships could easily pull up and disgorge their goods. Right. So I lived in the Caribbean, for instance, for any of you that have ever been to St. Thomas, U.S. virgin Islands, I'm still a licensed attorney there as well.

[Clay Travis]

If you get into trouble, place should be your first, your, your, your first call.

[Buck Sexton]

And St. Thomas, I would be an amazing St. Thomas lawyer. If you pull in and you pull in there at a cruise ship, it's kind of crazy. The reason why St. Thomas is a popular Caribbean destination to this day is because it has a natural deep water port that is you're able to pull in a ship and go right up to the water and take off all of the goods on that ship. It's actually very rare. If you think about it, most places, like the land slopes down very gradually. It's how a beach would work, right? Like you come in or it's right up against a rock formation in St. Thomas. The reason why it's still a popular port in the Caribbean to this day for Carnival, Carnival Cruise Ships, Royal Caribbean, whatever else, is because you can pull a huge cruise ship up and actually disembark right on the land. Very rare, doesn't exist very many places. That is also why New York City is popular today as it is as a harbor. That is why Charleston is popular. These places along the coast had more access to ships. So our caller, this is probably, again, I think about this a great deal. Embarrassingly such. The caller is not wrong. However, if you think about when we finally got to the west, it was not until basically the railroad era, really.

[Clay Travis]

Yes, you needed trains. You need trains. That's this. But this goes to. I think his. First of all, I like how excited about geography nerdom you're getting here because I.

[Buck Sexton]

Transportation and shipping cost and all of these things.

[Clay Travis]

Love the. Love the geography. The issue that you would have if California and the west coast had been settled first, I think is first starting off Asia, the Pacific, far bigger, more complicated, more time consuming just in terms of transport than getting from Europe to here. Right. But put that aside. Put that aside. Now we're talking about the landmass. The. And I know some of you are like, buck, why are you taking shots at Tennessee's river? We have the Tennessee river, the Cumberland River. I know, but I just wanted to poke at Clay for a second because he was talking about my beloved.

[Buck Sexton]

We have a great river network in the state of Tennessee. Quite, quite fond of our river network. The. The original.

[Clay Travis]

Before they. Before the locomotive comes along. Right. The most important things for. For commerce by far not even close really. All commerce in essence. I mean, all meaningful tonnage of commerce. When you're looking at tonnage, it has to be via rivers. This is why the Hudson river, which is now just a place that people think is pretty in New York and the Hudson Valley. Hudson river was the most important waterway in the early era of this. Of North America by far. Right. Which is why West Point and Benedict Arnold and all that was so important as well. Because if you could have cut off access the Hudson river, you would have maybe been able to end the. End the war.

[Buck Sexton]

The.

[Clay Travis]

The war, the insurrection, if you will, against the British. And then you get into the Great Lakes, the Great Lakes, which because of the Canal.

[Buck Sexton]

Erie Canal.

[Clay Travis]

Erie Canal. And then gets us into Chicago. Chicago, named for I think an Algonquin word for stinky onion. Chicago. And the Mississippi River Basin a lot. I don't. I was going to get there and then you get. The Louisiana Purchase in the Mississippi river basin is probably the most impressive. It's like God's or, you know, God slash nature's same thing highway system that we inherited with the Louisiana Purchase, which is the most impressive system of rivers. I mean, you've got some pretty good stuff in Europe too. But our navigable rivers because of the Mississippi River Basin were incredible for commerce and allowed for the phase settlement of this. Of this country to be as successful as it was.

[Buck Sexton]

And the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which I have argued should be a program and would immediately become the most popular show in America if they would make it. And I've been arguing that for four years on this program buck. The entire purpose of the Lewis and Clark expedition from a business perspective, other than mapping and checking flora and fauna and different animals, is, was to see if there was a way to go across the entire continent and access the Pacific Ocean. Was there a major river that could act as a highway? Now back to James's point. Yeah.

[Clay Travis]

Wait, wait, wait. I got something on James's point too though. Clay, to your. To your theory though. Just throwing it out there, Mr. Flip Flops. California. So nice. You're an early settler. Pre railroad. Railroads change the game, right? You're a pre railroad. You're in California. It's all beautiful and nice. What happens when you find yourself in Nevada, no offense, Nevada, not throwing shade. What happens when you're in the desert surrounded by rattlesnakes and Gila monsters in Arizona? You know, like, this is. Would have been. This would have been tough not sledding because it's not sledding. You know what I mean? This would have been a way to go.

[Buck Sexton]

That's my argument. You would turn back and be like, why would I leave the Garden of Eden? You would stay on the west coast. But by the time we got to settling the west coast and I'm leaving aside the Oregon Trail and all of that era, we had moved to Caller James's Point from a predominantly ocean and ship based commerce system to the transcontinental railroad, which then became at that point in time around, you know, the 1860s during the Civil War, the railroad system took over to such an extent that whether you had a railroad stop became the foundation of your city's success. Such that we have a lot of cities then that grew up that were not necessarily located on rivers and streams that were the primary source of distribution. So you end up with a lot of different cities that have blown up in an era where the railroad was the primary transportation and communication hub. So I think by the time we got all the way to the east coast, my point is it would have been a situation where the railroad would have become more predominant than the rivers and streams.

[Clay Travis]

Well, I agree with James from Houston. So now I'm going to throw something else your way and we just want to get some of you fired up over this. I remember there was a conversation we had on this show where Clay and I actually agreed. I like it when I get to disagree with him and we get to fight it out on the air, but I actually agree with him that the expectation that most people have that you should be picked up from the airport in the era of Uber Especially in major metropolitan areas. Yeah, I agree with Clay. I'm like, this is. You know, my family just came to visit. I was like, great, take an Uber. I'm happy to send the Uber for anyone happy to set it up. It's not that, but don't make me drive in rush hour traffic in Miami to the airport and then drive in rush hour because there's nothing but traffic here when it's rush hour. Just like a lot of other. You want to go to JFK airport in New York at the wrong time, you know, I hope you brought some snacks, because you're going to be on. On that highway trying to get yourself the airport for about two hours. Okay. It's a nightmare. All right. That was something that a lot of you disagree with us on. That's fine. That was. Anyone who agreed with us was right. Who disagree was wrong, Clay. More than a third of people, according to the New York Post here and new data that has been put out of a poll of 2,000 adults. So they really. They decided to really go after this with a new study. A third of people, 38% hate being asked to move. Right. So moving by either family or friends to move your residence, to move your domicile. 38%. I just want to throw this out there, Clay. If I had a choice between you calling me and saying, hey, buddy, I need help moving, or hey, buddy, don't tell Lara, I'm stuck in Tijuana and I need you to come and bribe the police to get me out of here before anyone finds out. I think I'm taking door number two. Moving is the absolute worst. And unless you are an immediate family member or romantically involved with somebody, I think asking them to help you move is just going way too far. I think there's. There's reasons why we got moving companies.

[Buck Sexton]

This is a good test for how pretty the girl is or how much the guy likes you, because there is no guy who's like, yeah, you know what I want to spend Saturday, Sunday doing? Moving a bunch of stuff from one apartment to another in a city. I have been in this situation college age, a lot of you have where you're in your 20s and you're moving from one place to another. We just carry stuff across Washington, D.C. because it's so expensive to rent moving vans that we would just. I remember carrying multiple mattresses just from one side of D.C. to another on the street with, like, just a couple of guys, like, hey, we're just going to throw this in, you know, like, we're literally going to carry this rather than try to move it. I agree completely that this is bad. I think it's probably the number one thing that people ask for you to do and you're like, you probably.

[Clay Travis]

Have you ever been asked to help somebody move and you're just like sorry, hard pass, can't do it.

[Buck Sexton]

I haven't been asked since. You know it's funny is we're in the process of moving and it's going to take like eight months. I have no idea when the new house is going to be done. But I am already thinking my boys, my two oldest, the 17 and 14 year old, I'm like these guys should be carrying everything now. They're the ones who are always doing push ups. They're trying to impress girls by getting in shape. I've been married 21 years, I'm getting to be an old guy. They should be in charge between the two of them now of moving everything. I'm starting to feel a little bit like a farmer Buck. Remember back in the day you had a lot of kids because you just needed labor at the farm. I, we don't have a farm. But for the move process I think I'm going to put the Travis boys to work and do your boys do.

[Clay Travis]

Daily chores or daily chores something that you assign them or not really.

[Buck Sexton]

They. So to their credit they are really good kids and they spend way more time at school than we ever. I don't know about you. They leave at 6am and they do not get home at the end of the day. Some days till like 6:30 or 7:00 at night because they have so many different obligations at school. I think we layer more stuff on kids now than we did then. So they have obligations around the house but they're not massively substantial. And my wife would say if she were listening right now that the misery of being a mom of three boys who are two teenagers and me, who was probably the one that she would say is the most difficult is she basically lives in a frat house. And like all frat houses, my boys basically live in a pigsty all the time. So there is pizza boxes everywhere, there are potato chip bags. The beer obviously is not started. But I told my wife, joking with my wife the other day, I was like, you never wanted to. You know, no girl ever wants when she walks into a frat house. They're never like oh this is amazing. You know, sorority house is really nice, pretty well kept. Frat houses are all just dinghy dumps. She now lives in a frat house because the boys are messes. And then you layer it on with me.

[Clay Travis]

I'll put this out there for any of you. What are the rules for who you can or you should or should not ask to help you move? Do you agree with me that it is immediate family, love interest and that is it? Or would you ask a good buddy? Ok, like I said, Clay tells me that he's in prison in Beijing, he's a tourist over there and he needs me to make calls to the State Department, fly over, do a little, you know, hostage trade. Fine. Clay says I need you to help me move Buck. I don't know. Jesse Kelly's tall. He's probably got good leverage. Call him like. I just think the rules here need to be pretty clear. But what do you think 800-282-2882 will take it?

[Buck Sexton]

I think you have to be friends with somebody for a long time in order to ask them to help you move. I gotta tell you, a lot of challenges going on right now in the Middle East. As many of you know, right now, every single day there is a new story about missiles being fired, about the need for bomb shelters. I went to Israel in December and I saw for myself the international fellowship of Christians and Jews, what a tremendous difference they make with their support over there. And I also saw touring old Jerusalem, the importance of the relationship between Christians and Jews and standing for religious freedom and religious faith and what that union of two faiths can represent. And that's why I'm proud to support the international fellowship of Christians and Jews. And I would ask you to join me and Buck in supporting them as [e-mail] get hooked up now with helping to make a difference as Israel celebrates tomorrow, its 77th Independence Day Day. It is the only country with freedom truly in the Middle east and every single day people are trying to strip that from Israel. Show your support for Israel by making a life saving gift today at 888-488-IFCJ. That's 888-488-4325. You can also go online to supportifcj.org that's one word support ifcj.org news and politics. But also a little comic relief.

[Clay Travis]

Clay Travis and Buck Sexton.

[Buck Sexton]

Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Dutch Vet Service]

Time is precious and so are our pets. So time with our pets is extra precious. That's why we started Dutch. Dutch provides 24. 7 access to licensed vets with unlimited virtual visits and follow ups for up to five pets. You can message a vet at any time and schedule a video visit the same day. Our vets can even prescribe medication for many ailments and shipping is always free. With Dutch. You'll get more time with your pets and year round peace of mind when it comes to their vet care.

[Leon Neyfak]

In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency.

[Clay Travis]

Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir?

[Buck Sexton]

No.

[Leon Neyfak]

It became known as the Iran Contra.

[Clay Travis]

Affair and I'm not taking any more questions.

[Donald Trump]

In just a second, I'm going to ask.

[Leon Neyfak]

I'm Leon Nayfak, co creator of Slow Burn. In my podcast, Iran Contra, you'll hear all the unbelievable details of a scandal that captivated the nation nearly 40 years ago, but which few of us still remember today.

[Clay Travis]

The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

[Leon Neyfak]

To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco Iran Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Buck Sexton]

Welcome back in great email here from Jennings. Jennings says, buck, friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.

[Clay Travis]

Whoa, whoa. Okay.

[Buck Sexton]

That is when you know you got somebody who's in your, in your proverbial foxhole there. You show up with a dead body, you're like, hey, I gotta move something. You're like, what are you moving to a new apartment, no dead body, and they grab a shovel. Um, that's how you become an accomplice and spend the rest of your life in prison too, if you get caught. Just FYI, I wanted to play this for you. We'll have some more fun talking about this, this moving ridiculousness. But I did hear this last night and I thought it was such a well said by Giannis out of Kempo, who is a basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks. Buck, you even saw this. In fact, I don't know that we're going to have time to play it. We'll play it in the third hour because we got a short turn here instead. I will tell you, you're going to enjoy, trust me, what he said. And I think it's emblematic of sometimes a decision being made about who to put forward as your front facing brand. NBA would have done a lot better, I think, if they made Giannis the face of the league instead of LeBron. Talk about that a little bit. Third hour. By the way, we're also going to be joined by Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. She is a big fan of the Cumberland River, Tennessee river and many other of the lakes and waterways in our fair state of Tennessee that I call home. We will talk to her at 2:30 east coast time and we got a couple of other stories that are out there. Hakeem Jeffries will update you that, but Tim Walls when we come back. Buck Tim Wall says Kamala Harris picked him because she needed to speak to white guys who like football. This is real audio. I'm going to play it for you.

[Dutch Vet Service]

Time is precious and so are our pets. So time with our pets is extra precious. That's why we started Dutch. Dutch provides 24. 7 access to licensed vets with unlimited virtual visits and follow ups for up to five pets. You can message a vet at any time and schedule a video visit the same day. Our vets can even prescribe medication for many ailments and shipping is always free. With Dutch, you'll get more time with your pets and year round peace of mind when it comes to their vet care.

[Leon Neyfak]

In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. It became known as the Iran Contra Affair.

[Clay Travis]

The things that happened were so bizarre and insane I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

[Leon Neyfak]

To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco Iran Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.