Hour 2 - The LA Riots

Summary

Summary of "Hour 2 - The LA Riots" from The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

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Introduction

In the "Hour 2 - The LA Riots" episode of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show, hosted by iHeartPodcasts, Clay Travis and Buck Sexton delve into the unfolding unrest in Los Angeles. Released on June 9, 2025, this episode offers a critical examination of the LA riots, attributing significant blame to Democratic leadership and highlighting widespread support for former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. The hosts engage with callers, law enforcement professionals, and share notable audio clips to underscore their perspectives.

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Political Context and Upcoming Guests

At the outset, Clay Travis informs listeners about the show's current location in Washington, D.C., and teases upcoming interviews with prominent United States Senators Marsha Blackburn (timestamp [00:04] – [05:31]) and Tommy Tuberville. The discussion sets the stage for a deep dive into national political dynamics, particularly focusing on immigration and law enforcement policies.

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Criticism of California Leadership

A substantial portion of the episode is dedicated to critiquing California’s Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass. Clay and Buck argue that governmental incompetence has exacerbated crises, from wildfires to the current riots.

Clay states, “I think you can’t see these LA riots [...] and not see how they are connected. The LA wildfires were finally contained on January 31st” ([04:21]). He attributes the inability to control the wildfires and the subsequent riots to the failures of California’s leadership, asserting that “government incompetence is forcing the hard-working men and women of the LA Police Department to actually deal with people throwing projectiles at them, burning their cars down” ([05:31]).

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Blaming the Administration for the Chaos

The hosts argue that Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom are deflecting responsibility for the riots onto former President Trump. Buck Sexton criticizes Bass by highlighting her stance, stating, “Provoked trying to get violent illegal criminals out of LA to help it be safer for everyone. [...] This is Trump's fault” ([04:49]). Furthermore, Buck criticizes Newsom’s response to attacks on police officers, implying soft-handedness towards violent protesters.

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Support for Trump’s Immigration Policies

A central theme of the episode is the growing support for Trump’s immigration stance. Clay Travis emphasizes that “there's actually a huge level of support for Trump when it comes to the deportations all over the nation” ([05:31]), suggesting that Democrats are faltering on this critical issue.

Supporting this claim, Buck Sexton refers to a CNN report, stating, “Trump approval rating on immigration surging like a rocket, according to CNN” ([08:35]). The CNN clip included in the show highlights Trump’s improved approval ratings on immigration, contrasting this with his initial negative standing during his first term.

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Use of Force in Law Enforcement

A significant portion of the discussion revolves around whether police should be empowered to use deadly force against violent protesters. Clay Travis passionately argues for allowing police to defend themselves, saying, “Police should open fire. They should hit them, they should wipe them out” ([11:00]). He contends that violent behavior from protesters warrants a strong response to ensure the safety of law enforcement and the community.

Buck Sexton expands on this by sharing posts and engaging with callers who largely support the notion of lethal force when faced with violent attacks. Notably, at [34:23], an unknown caller asserts, “Deadly force can be met with deadly force. [...] This is not a protest, it is a riot.”

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Caller Perspectives and Law Enforcement Insights

The show features multiple callers, including former law enforcement and active-duty military personnel, who reinforce the hosts’ viewpoints. For instance:

• Jonathan in LA ([21:03]) observes suspicious police activity, suggesting orchestrated chaos, and expresses skepticism about Mayor Bass’s claims of mere chaos.

• Jane from California ([34:23]) strongly supports the use of deadly force, emphasizing personal experiences and cultural perspectives that condemn the violent actions of rioters.

• Bill in Savannah, Georgia ([35:27]) affirms that police are justified in using deadly force, citing training and the need to protect lives.

These interactions underscore the hosts' stance that law enforcement requires more robust support and authority to effectively manage violent disturbances.

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Critique of California’s Infrastructure Projects

Clay and Buck also critique California’s infamous high-speed rail project, portraying it as a symbol of governmental mismanagement. Buck Sexton explains, “Gavin Newsom is grossly incompetent [...] one of the most ridiculous boondoggles probably in the history of American politics” ([24:31]). They argue that the project is over budget and poorly executed, reflecting broader systemic failures under Democratic leadership.

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Federalism and Constitutional Authority

The discussion touches on the balance of power between federal and state governments, especially concerning immigration policies. Buck Sexton articulates a federalist perspective, advocating for federal supremacy in immigration matters and criticizing states like California for defying federal law. He muses on the challenges of enforcing federal policies when state and city leaders resist, highlighting the complexities within the constitutional framework.

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Conclusion and Future Outlook

As the episode concludes, Clay and Buck reflect on the imminent political shifts and the potential impact on national security and governance. They anticipate a showdown between Trump and California’s leadership, pondering legal battles that may escalate to the Supreme Court. Buck hints at upcoming discussions with Senator Marsha Blackburn, promising further exploration of these critical issues.

The episode wraps up with a call to action for listeners to engage with the show via social media, share their opinions, and support the hosts’ platforms, emphasizing community involvement in addressing the unrest in Los Angeles.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Clay Travis [04:21]: “I think you can’t see these LA riots […] and not see how they are connected.”

• Karen Bass [04:21 - [04:49]]:

  “What we're seeing in LA is chaos caused by the administration. People should exercise their right to protest. That's their First Amendment right. But people should also exercise that right peacefully. We do not want to play into the administration's hands.”

• Gavin Newsom [05:31]:

  “Why doesn't he do that? He knows where to find me. [...] The hell are they doing These guys need to grow up. They need to stop, and we need to push back.”

• CNN Reporter [08:35]:

  “If we just take a look at the baseline numbers here. This is Trump's net approval rating on immigration. It's gone up like a rocket.”

• Unknown Caller [34:23 - 35:58]:

  “Absolutely, sir. Deadly force can be met with deadly force. [...] This is not a protest, it is a riot.”

• Donald Trump [24:00]:

  “I would do it if I were Tom. I think it's great. Gavin likes the publicity, but I think it would be a great thing. He's done a terrible job.”

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Final Thoughts

In "Hour 2 - The LA Riots," Clay Travis and Buck Sexton present a critical and provocative analysis of the current turmoil in Los Angeles, attributing significant blame to Democratic leadership and advocating for stronger federal intervention and law enforcement authority. Through engaging discussions, caller interactions, and strategic use of audio clips, the hosts aim to shape public opinion on immigration, governance, and public safety amidst the ongoing unrest.

Transcript

[Clay Travis]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Buck Sexton]

Welcome back in Clay, Travis, Buck Sexton Show. Appreciate all of you hanging out with us Monday edition of the program up in D.C. for the next couple of weeks here. Buck is going to be with me back tomorrow and we will be up here with a lot of different guests coming your way from our nation's capital. Later today in the third hour, we'll have a couple of different United States senators in with us. Marsha Blackburn at 205 and Tommy Tuberville at 235. Tommy Tuberville, of course, announced, I believe it was last week on this program that he would be running for governor of Alabama. So he will, I think, soon be governor of great state of Alabama, but also in the meantime, a United States senator. And they're working through the big beautiful bill. They're in the process of trying to get that figured out on the Senate side as it has already passed the House side. I have sent in a couple of additional clips as it continues to grow the fallout of the LA protest. And you just heard us a little bit ago talking with Riley Gaines, who was fabulous. We'll dive into a bit more what was going on there. But it turns out that there's actually a huge level of support for Trump when it comes to the deportations all over the nation. And, and I think this is yet another issue that Democrats are losing on. And I want to play for you the awful governor of California, Gavin Newsom, in addition to Karen Bass, the mayor, we have them trying to blame Donald Trump for what is going on in la. And I want to open up phone lines for I'm asking for just people in the Los Angeles area who want to weigh in 800-282-2882. And in particular, I want to know how this is playing with people that you are talking with. And some of you out there say, well, I don't care. California is a blue state. They're morons, like, let their city burn. I don't agree. I think that there are around 40% of Californians that are big Trump supporters that recognize that they are in many ways behind enemy lines, fighting for truth, insanity in a state that they way may well love. And we have had on our friend from California who is running for governor right now, Steve Hilton, several different times to talk about the arguments that he is making. And, and I don't think you can see these LA riots in the, in the aftermath of what happened with the LA wildfires and not see how they are connected. The LA wildfires were finally contained on January 31st. A lot of you out there listening have friends and family that lost homes in those LA wildfires due to a large extent because of government incompetence. And, and now government incompetence is forcing the hard working men and women of the LA Police Department to actually deal with people throwing projectiles at them, burning their cars down. And I'll just point out that in a city that just had a massive wildfire issue, allowing fires to be started for any reason is a particularly dangerous and pernicious act. Because yes, we don't ever want to see riots lead to looting and burning anywhere. But in Los Angeles, a city that we all know is uniquely susceptible to the dangers of arson, it's even probably the worst place in America where we could be allowing looting, violent behavior and arson because how quickly it could spread and take over the city as we just saw in January. Now as Trump is the reason for everything, Mayor Karen Bass is saying, hey, this chaos is actually Trump's fault. Listen to cut 9.

[Karen Bass]

What we're seeing in LA is chaos caused by the administration. People should exercise their right to protest. That's their First Amendment right. But people should also exercise that right peacefully. We do not want to play into the administration's hands. We're working with officials, we're organizing resources. But what we're seeing in Los Angeles is chaos that is provoked by the administration.

[Buck Sexton]

Provoked trying to get violent illegal criminals out of L A to help it be safer for everyone. Democrat, Republican and independent. This is Trump's fault. And if you thought it was just the mayor of Los Angeles, the incompetent and should be removed and impeached Mayor of Los Angeles who could not stop the fires from burning and might I remind you, was out of the country despite being warned that there were very dangerous wildfire like conditions. Gavin Newsom says arrest me. This is how California's governor responds to police officers being attacked and having their cars lit on fire. Cut 13 he's a tough guy.

[Gavin Newsom]

Why doesn't he do that? He knows where to find me. But you know what? Lay your hands off four year old girls that are trying to get educated. Lay your hands off these poor people that just trying to get live their lives, man. Trying to live their lives, paying their taxes, been here 10 years. The fear, the horror, the hell is this guy? Come after me, arrest me, let's just get it over with, tough guy. You know, I don't give a damn, but I care about my community, I care about this community. The hell are they doing These guys need to grow up. They need to stop, and we need to push back. And I'm sorry to be so clear, but that kind of bloviating is exhausting. So, Tom, arrest me. Let's go.

[Buck Sexton]

Arrest me. Honestly, I think you should be impeached. I think that the people of California have been led astray by Gavin Newsom, who is one of the worst mayors. Sorry, one of the worst. Well, he wasn't a great mayor either, of San Francisco, but one of the worst governors that we've ever seen. And people are voting with their feet. They have fled. California talked about this. California became a State in 1850. From 1850 to 2020, California's population increased every year. 1850 to 2020. Suddenly, in 2020, California's population started decline. The only reason California has declined hasn't declined even more precipitously, illegal immigrants. But the actual number of residents of California has been declining year after year during Gavin Newsom's tenure. People are voting with their feet and leaving that state. And that's despite the fact that in many ways, as many of you listening to me in California know right now, I've spent a lot of time in California, probably the city that I'm in Right now, Washington, D.C. i live in Nashville. Nashville is number one city I've spent the most time in. I went to college here in Washington, D.C. number two, L.A. number three. I have spent years of my life because Fox Sports is based in la, traveling back and forth in la. I love a lot of the people in la. It's a fabulous place, Garden of Eden, in many ways, they have destroyed it. Democrat rule. Both the mayor and the governor, the congressmen and women, the Kamala Harris of the world, have taken a true American Garden of Eden. And they have, both metaphorically and unfortunately, oftentimes, legitimately, Democrats have lit that city and state on fire. And that's what we're seeing right now, is we are seeing the major consequences of a series of awful decisions being made time after time after time. And this is significant. The overwhelming majority of Americans are seeing what Trump is doing on immigration, and they're saying this is the right choice. Listen, this is CNN. It's what CNN had on this morning. Cut 26. The Trump approval rating on immigration surging like a rocket, according to cnn. This is what they were saying this morning. Listen to cut 26.

[CNN Reporter]

You know, if we just take a look at the baseline numbers here. This is Trump's net approval rating on immigration. It's gone up like a rocket. Compare now versus eight Years ago, during Trump's first term. Look at this. In his first term, Trump was way, way, way underwater at minus 21 points. But look at this. He's up over 20 points now. In the aggregate, he is in positive territory at plus one point on his net approval rating. So some other polls even have it a little bit higher than that. There is no issue on which Trump is doing so much better than he was in his first term. More than the issue of immigration. No wonder the Times has written up the way that he is. Trump is begging for a fight on this because he knows what he's doing so far is working with the American electorate.

[Buck Sexton]

Nothing has he been more right about in his entire political career than immigration. And as he has made the argument over the last nine years, 10 years since he came down that escalator at Trump Tower, the American public has come to see Trump was right and Biden. I really believe this allowed an invasion of this country. You see all those people waving Mexican flags as they burned American vehicles, as they threw rocks at American police. It is a sign that we have lost much of our country. You engage in violent behavior while waving the flag of another country, what else is that but an invasion and an actual insurrection? CNN confronted Mayor Karen Bass about this, saying, hey, there's overwhelming support for President Trump's deportation agenda. What do you have to say about that? This was cut 27 a little bit earlier.

[Unknown Caller]

Are Democrats out of touch on this issue?

Well, I think if you did the polling in Los Angeles, I'm not sure it would be that way, considering we are a city of immigrants. And then people might approve that policy. But do people really approve the federal government coming in and seizing power from a state and from a city? So I drill down a little further on that poll because I do not believe that Americans support the federal intervention in a city takeover or state takeover.

[Buck Sexton]

It's not a city or state takeover. It's a city at state protection because the people in charge of the city and state are unwilling to protect the people who live there. Trump is doing what they should be doing and what, unfortunately, he has to do. And let me say this, I'm probably going to get people fired up about this. I just shared a video. It's a video of LA police officers trying to hide underneath an overpass as big rocks are being thrown at them later, effectively Molotov cocktails being thrown at them. Why shouldn't the LA Police Department be able to open up fire? I mean this, honestly. If you are being attacked potentially by someone who is putting your body and your safety in peril. It is not crazy to think that one of these officers could get hit by a big rock and die. It is not crazy to think that one of these officers could get hit by one of these Molotov cocktails. You should be able to open fire. I think they should wipe these guys out. I'm sorry, I'm past the point of being concerned. When someone is on an overpass throwing rocks at you, when they are throwing Molotov cocktails at your police vehicles, the police should be able to open fire and wipe those dudes out. I'm sorry, I'm not going to apologize for that because their lives are in danger, Their friends lives are in danger that they're working with. We got to stop this namby pamby, police can't defend themselves bs. I got to be careful not to curse here because when I watch those videos, I get angry. And I know a lot of y' all are police officers, military that are listening right now.

[Gavin Newsom]

We.

[Buck Sexton]

When you see people putting police officers lives in danger, those guys should get wiped out. I'm sorry. Police should open fire. They should hit them, they should wipe them out. They should arrest them if they're still alive, cuff them, throw them in the back of the cruiser, prosecute them to the full extent of the law. I don't think this is a difficult decision at all. Again, I'm talking about the videos. You go to my Twitter account, we'll share it from Clay and Buck. The videos that are out there are of police officers lives being put in danger, and they're just supposed to sit there and take it? No, the message that would be sent is when you attack police officers, you should expect to die. That should be the message. Not talking about peaceful protest, but when you are throwing from an overpass big, huge pieces of rock that if they hit people, would kill them. When you are throwing Molotov cocktails designed to light police vehicles on fire, you shouldn't be able to do that. Police should be able to respond with force. And I think if they responded with force, suddenly all these antifa lunatics would say, wait a minute, maybe we shouldn't be doing this. Maybe there are real consequences for our behavior. The entire reason that we have laws is because we have the idea that people are going to respond rationally to consequences that are laid out against them. When it comes to violent behavior, clearly that hasn't worked. And so when you have people engaging in violent attacks on police, I think the police should be able to open fire. Wipe them out. People are going to be angry about that. I'm not going to apologize for it. I don't know how many other people are making that argument. I'm not sure that anybody else has. But I'm just going to tell you exactly what I think. Those police officers, their lives should not be in danger because these lunatics feel like that they can just throw rocks from an overpass and Molotov cocktails from an overpass at police officers and there's not going to be any consequences at all. Give them the ability to return fire. Your lives are in danger. You shouldn't have to stand there and just get pelted and just watch your police cruiser burn because the people that are your bosses are too much of cowards to allow you to defend yourself. I'm sorry. And I would ask the president to say the same thing. Hey, every police officer in America, I will pardon you. If you are being attacked and you need to defend yourself. Do it. I've got your back. I think you would see things change in a hurry when it comes to violent criminal protesting behavior. Look, I want to take a minute here to speak about the one federal government agency that doesn't deliver a lot of good news. The irs. Some of us live our whole lives without getting one of their letters. You know who has it? Your boy. Soon as I took over this show, every one of my tax returns got audited. I think I'm still being audited. IRS under Joe Biden. I was told, hey, you're good. You're a sports talk radio guy. As soon as you do Russia's new Russia show, soon as you start there, you're going to get audited. I was like, nah, you're boom. Letters started arriving at my house. IRS miraculously starts auditing me as soon as I start doing this show. If you've gotten one and I have gotten a bunch, don't ignore it. You don't know what to do. Putting it off. Call the experts at Rush tax resolution and 877554 rush. That's 877554 rush. Remember, by the way, this always comes via mail. You're not going to get contacted by the IRS with a phone call. You're not going to get contacted from the IRS with an email. IRS notices, because I got them, come right to your house in the mail. If you own a business, get behind on payroll taxes, don't call the IRS on your own. They have the power to shut your business down, drain your bank accounts, come after you personally, and you need somebody to have your back. Get Rush Tax resolutions. Attorneys on your side. Get protected today before it's too late. Mention our names Clay and or Buck and they'll do a free IRS transcript investigation. Other firms will charge $500. They'll do it if they know that they can help you. They will take your case, but they will look at all the details. No charges. Number again, 877-554-rush. That's 877-554-7874, rush taxresolution.com use my name Clay want to also ask police officers. And again, I want you to look at the video that I shared and we'll share it from Clay and Buck too, if we haven't already. Am I wrong that the police should be able to respond with deadly force to defend themselves? 800-282-2882 when you see that. I'd love to hear from police officers if you believe that is enough attack to warrant deadly response. To me it is. But I would love to hear from some of you based on your training. Homeowners. Look, it's thunderstorm season and right now your gutters may well be getting clogged like crazy. Crazy. That's why you need Leaffilter, the company that will hook you up number one gutter and gutter protection company. Right now you can save 30% off your entire order. Go to leaffilter.com clay get started today. They'll clean out, realign, seal your gutters, get you hooked up. Could be anything in those gutters. Wiffle balls. That's what my boys end up. Even some small footballs. Unbelievable what ends up in my gutters. Get 30% off your entire purchase. Leaffilter.com clay that's L E A F leaffilter.com clay hey, Buck. One of my kids called me an unk the other day.

[Clay Travis]

An unk?

[Buck Sexton]

Yep. Slaying, evidently. For not being hip, being an old dude.

[Clay Travis]

So how do we un unk you?

[Buck Sexton]

Get more people to subscribe to our YouTube channel. At least that's what my kids tell me.

[Clay Travis]

That's simple enough. Just search the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton show and hit the subscribe button.

[Buck Sexton]

Takes less than five seconds to help un me.

[Clay Travis]

Do it for Clay. Do it for freedom. And get great content while you're there. The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton show YouTube Channel.

[Buck Sexton]

Appreciate all of you rolling through the program with US in Washington, D.C. where President Trump just landed back on the South Lawn a few blocks away. And we're going to have the audio for you of this in a moment. It's a little bit difficult to hear because you can still hear the helicopter in the background. But he said if he were Tom Holman that he would arrest Gavin Newsom. But we have several of you who want to weigh in. Again, I would love to hear. I've asked for two different types of callers so far. LA area people, particularly, what are the conversations like for your. In your conversations that you are hearing now as the riots played out over the weekend, LA only I understand that a lot of you, I'm just curious about people who are actually living there. And then secondarily, the videos cops that you have seen. Is deadly force warranted when there are bricks, concrete, big rocks, objects being pelted at police as well as Molotov cocktails thrown at their police vehicles? To me, this is not even a difficult call. I'm sure the police have been told that they cannot take action. But as for police that are out there listening, and I would like for you to watch the videos if you haven't already seen them. They're up at my. You can just go to Clay Travis on Twitter and. And you can see the videos that I'm talking about. But am I wrong that deadly force is warranted here? Let's see. Jonathan in la, what do you think as you are watching these in your home city?

[Jonathan]

Yeah, we're here in LA area and I was driving down to take my wife and kids to the airport. And if they're saying there's nothing going on, it's totally orchestrated and it's totally fraudulent. I watched 21 marked and unmarked cars, cop cars, speeding down the express lane towards downtown la. I don't do that just for fun. There's something going on and it's clearly. It was clearly, you know, in a huge hurry. Yeah, I do know. And I will, I will say this. You had the head of the seiu, he was arrested a few days ago and Maxine Water goes to try to visit him. I mean, it's kind of like why there is something more afoot. And it feels like a repeat. These people repeat stuff over and over again. They're boring. Their playbook is very predictable, yet it seems to be effective. It constantly works. And I think you're seeing it play out again. I don't think Trump's gonna go along with it like he did before.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, I think he's certainly not gonna go along with it like he did before. It's also worth noting politically. First of all, I think Trump wants the cities to be Safe. I was sharing all of the murder data. The violent crime rate in this country has plummeted in the first six months that Trump has been in office. Not getting much attention, but it has plummeted. Trump's also not ever going to have to run for reelection. And the fact that Democrats, I really think, took advantage of the summer of 2020 to try and make Trump look bad, I think those were orchestrated protests designed to occur in an election year to damage Trump politically as much as they could. And I think there was a political calculus that is different now. Trump doesn't care what people think. He's just going to do what he thinks is right. And in the wake of surviving the Butler, Pennsylvania, assassination of July 13, I think Trump legitimately believes that he was kept on Earth for a reason. I think that he believes that he was spared by God. I really do. And I think that he has decided that he is going to do everything that he thinks is right, come hell or high water, and he's not going to be worried about what people say against him now. He just landed on the South Lawn. Buck and I are going to be in the Oval Office with him on Thursday. Have a conversation. Looking forward to that. But this was Trump asked directly about Gavin Newsom. We played the audio for you of Gavin Newsom begging Tom Holman to arrest him. Trump was asked whether or not he thinks the California governor, Gavin Newsom, should be arrested for impeding ice, as Gavin Newsom encouraged the administration to do. Listen, Gavin Newsom is.

[Jonathan]

He's daring Tom Holman to come and arrest him. Should he do it?

[Donald Trump]

I would do it if I were Tom. I think it's great. Gavin likes the publicity, but I think it would be a great thing. He's done a terrible job. Look, I like Gavin Newsom. He's a nice guy, but he's grossly incompetent. Everybody knows all you have to do is look at the little railroad he's building about 100 times over budget. We're putting a flagpole over there under budget. I always do under budget.

[Buck Sexton]

All right, I know again, because you could hear the helicopter rotors there in the background. I like Evan Newsom, but he's grossly incompetent. He then Trump is putting in a new flagpole and he says that they're going to do it under budget because he always builds things under budget. Whereas Gavin Newsom, and this is true, one of the most ridiculous boondoggles probably in the history of American politics is currently underway with the railroad that they are trying to build in California. I know some of you are rolling your eyes about it. It's way over budget. They basically built none of it. And it's supposed to be high speed rail. I believe it's supposed to connect California. I mean, L A and San Francisco team in New York, correct me if I'm wrong on that being the destination that they are trying to do, to connect LA and San Francisco via high speed rail and they've just been completely unable to do it. It is gross incompetence and it has cost California taxpayers billions of dollars already and they've got nothing to show for it. And you know, they made the decision. I know not a lot about building railroads. Not going to stun you. I'm not sitting around in my free time with my railroad displays and my little conductor hat making all my. Making all my railroads. And I've not studied the railway industry. Seems like the easiest thing to do would have been to run the railway alongside of the existing interstate because you've already got right of way. You've already created all of the challenges associated with getting an actual interstate built. I don't know why they made the decision not to do that, but I would have just done that. Instead, they're trying to build an entirely new railway network unconnected to the existing interstates. They've had to take over so much land, they've had to cut through so many farms, and they haven't even done anything with it yet. So, look, I think Gavin Newsom wants to be arrested, but because he wants the attention, he's gonna run for president in 2028. He wants to make the argument that Trump is an authoritarian dictator and if he'll arrest the sitting governor of California, none of us are safe. But if the sitting governor of California refuses to follow federal law, as he is obligated to do under the supremacy clause of the Constitution, what should the president do? I mean, I think it's a really challenging question because Trump is actually acting to protect the people of Los Angeles when their mayor and their governor will not do it. But they are bragging about directly defying federal law. Well, look, the entire concept of our Constitution is predicated on federal overruling state. When there is a conflict on who has the, who has the power now, on things that are not giving you a little bit of a constitutional law lesson, going back in time on things that are uncertain. The whole concept of federalism is, hey, we're going to allow the states to be laboratories and do their own research and do their own projects. And the best decisions by the states, we would hope would then spread. So I believe very much in federalism, but the courts have clearly said that each state can't have its own immigration policy, and each state can't have its own city and state immigration policies. You have to have federal immigration law. And we talked about it a lot on the program because sometimes it was very frustrating to many of you in Texas, and even the governor of Texas himself, Greg Abbott, because he would say, how in the world am I not allowed to protect my state and my cities from Biden's open border policies? And there were a lot of different court decisions. I came on this program, I said, you're not going to like it. You're not going to like it that the courts are saying, hey, it's the province of the president to determine immigration policy, but you clearly can't have 50 different immigration policies. We have to have federal immigration policy. And Trump is saying, I'm implementing federal immigration policy. City and state government should not have the opportunity to obfuscate, to oppose the federal government from implementing federal immigration law. I don't think this is a very challenging situation. So what do you do if they will not allow that to happen? I think it's a super challenging position politically, especially when the governor of California is daring you to arrest him for violating the law. The law is pretty clear. I think Gavin Newsom is in the wrong. Now, you gotta work through your way through the California courts first. Do you think there's any federal district court judges in California that are gonna say, you know what, Gavin Newsom has violated federal law? Probably not. Is the circuit court that governs California, Washington and Oregon, 9th Circuit, are they going to say that California doesn't have the right to defy federal immigration law? Probably not. So it's going to have to be expedited all the way up to the Supreme Court, potentially depending on who the judges are that end up with cases like these. And given that the primary opposition to Trump 2.0 has been government in nature, I think you just have to be careful about the battles that you're undertaking and in the court system. And I think California, I would expect, if it hasn't already happened, I would expect that California is going to try to sue. To argue that Trump doesn't have the authority to call in the National Guard into Los Angeles, but he does, clearly, because, again, of the Supremacy Clause, which gives the federal government the power over state. Remember, this wouldn't be complicated, and there's a reason why things like this aren't happening in red states because I guarantee you, if the state of Florida had a protest like this going on, first of all, Governor Ron DeSantis would take care of it. Red state governors would not allow this to happen. So that's not point one. Point two, if they did need help, they would ask for it. But crazily, what are you supposed to do if the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, is okay with the city burning? If the governor is. What about Chicago? Do you feel like the mayor of Chicago, Brandon Johnson, is going to stop the city of Chicago from burning? I don't. Do you feel like Mayor Wu in Boston is going to stop Boston from burning? I don't. Maybe Eric Adams would do it right now in New York City. Maybe he would. But a lot of these big cities in blue states with blue state governors and blue state mayors, they're not. They just think this is the price that has to be paid. Lighting a city on fire, small price to pay. We'll take your calls. I want to hear from police should there be deadly force able to respond. Thanks to Tunnel to Towers. Your support can make a lasting difference in real lives like the lives of The Clark family. U.S. air Force. Air Force Sergeant Jesse Clark's military service came to an end after chemical exposures caused a large tumor to form in his brain. As a result, he's paralyzed on the left side of his body, legally blind, prone to memory loss, and in a wheelchair for the remainder of his life. Thanks to you friends like you, Tunnel the Towers built this hero a new smart home to help him live a more independent life. We want to make sure that many more families like the Clarks can have the same done for them. But Tunnel to Towers needs your help to make that happen. We must not forget all of the people sacrificing so much every single day. America's heroes given so much. Together we can say thank you. Join Buck and myself donate $11 a month to tunnel the towers at t2t.org that's t the number 2t.org t2t.org join us in donating Today we are breaking down everything going on in the world, in particular Los Angeles, where unfortunately, like many of you, I was watching last night as much of the protests turned into violence. And I want to hit a bunch of different calls out there. And again, I'm referring to video that I shared. You can go see. It is just to kind of describe it for those of you who have not seen it from a highway overpass. Police are trapped on the underpass. They are trying to protect their vehicles underneath so they can't be reached, but there is not enough space. And so the police are having rockets, rocks thrown at them and then there are Molotov cocktails also being thrown that could and did catch their police vehicles on fire. To me it seems like a clear situation where use of force that is violent, potentially death causing force could be justified. And I'm asking for people out there that have had experience in law enforcement. You can also respond on my Twitter account, as I'm sure many of you will and already are. Jane, in California, former law enforcement and former active duty military. When you see what was happening to the LA police last night as a part of these riots, should they be able to defend themselves? Is violent force lethal force potentially warranted based on what you've seen?

[Unknown Caller]

Absolutely, sir. Deadly force can be met with deadly force. And there is no, no good leader should place his people in harm's way without their capacity to defend themselves. That is actually criminal. So people need to be ready for some consequences. Because I hail from Latin America, I mean my family is from Latin America. You know, I can do this whole conversation in Spanish I want. But every self respecting Mexican that I know is embarrassed by this. Yes, this is some drama show that's being put on by somebody to try and elicit something and good people are gonna get hurt. So this, I, nobody who is, you know, has a rational mind needs to be going down there. This is, this is really bad and it's dangerous. So this is not a protest, it is a riot. So no need for a counter protest. Avoid those areas. Let the cops do their job. I was also National Guard. Let the National Guard do their job. And I was active duty for five years, 20 years law enforcement.

[Buck Sexton]

So thank you. A dangerous situation and no doubt to you that police would be justified in using violent force to respond based on what you've seen?

[Unknown Caller]

Absolutely. You are 100% correct. And it moves from this to another thing. You mentioned all the dangers that California is in as you move from this little game to something else to something else. California is in danger. So people stay away from that. Let the people do their job and leaders let their people do their job swiftly and get this over with.

[Buck Sexton]

Thank you very much. Very fast. Bill in Savannah, Georgia, retired law enforcement. Any doubt based on what you've seen, seen that police are entitled to defend themselves?

[Bill]

No, I absolutely defend themselves. You're taught in the police academy to defend yourself and the lives of others. If you're in danger, then deadly force is authorized. And these people that, I mean, I hate, I hate to say it, but the only thing that's going to stop this is when it's kind of stuff with Molotov cocktails stuff going on or deadly force is used that's going to deter a whole bunch of these people. They're going to think twice about it.

[Buck Sexton]

Amen. I'm sorry to cut you off for coming up on the end of the hour. Senator Marsha Blackburn with us next, but I'll ask her about this as well. To me, there's no doubt LA cops should be able to protect themselves from violent attack. This is an I Heart podcast.