Hour 2 - Trump/Putin Summit

Summary

Overview ────────────────────────────── In this episode of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show (“Hour 2 – Trump/Putin Summit”), the hosts discuss breaking political news and hot-button issues ranging from President Trump’s journey to Alaska prior to his meeting with Vladimir Putin, to the heated debate over redistricting battles playing out in Texas and California. They also dive into the intricacies of foreign policy issues surrounding Ukraine and the possibility of a ceasefire, all while interweaving remarks on partisan media narratives and even some lighthearted banter about sports and pop culture.

Key Discussion Points and Insights ──────────────────────────────

1. Trump’s Trip to Alaska and the Upcoming Putin Summit
   • [00:00–00:28] Buck Sexton opens by noting the unusual circumstances of President Trump’s arrival in Alaska en route to a face‐to‐face meeting with Vladimir Putin. They highlight that the meeting (and subsequent joint press conference) is expected to dominate the news cycle over the weekend.
   • The uncertainty of the meeting’s duration and potential fallout is a recurring theme, signaling that this high-stakes summit could reshape political discourse well into next week.

2. Redistricting Battles: Texas Versus California
   • [00:28–04:11] The conversation shifts to the issue of political redistricting: while Texas is poised to add Republican congressional seats through redistricting, California’s Governor Gavin Newsom is now contemplating a ballot referendum in November to counterbalance Texas’s gains.
   • Buck Sexton explains how redistricting is not a new political tool, noting historical examples from California, New York, and Illinois, and questioning whether Californians will support the proposed changes given mixed polling data.
   • Notable Quote at [04:11]: A observes, “I think it’s part of the overall trend we see, which is Democrats doing things that will either have minimal impact or maybe even have some blowback, but they have to look like they aren’t just letting Trump have his way or letting the Republicans run roughshod over them.”
   • They discuss the irony of both sides accusing each other of “paying off the refs” when it comes to gerrymandering, emphasizing the partisan double standards inherent in redistricting efforts.

3. Deep Dive into Gerrymandering and Electoral Mathematics
   • [05:55–07:42] The hosts analyze how redistricting has historically benefited Democrats, citing analyses (including from The New York Times) that indicate congressional seats do not always reflect the nationwide popular vote.
   • Buck and Clay note that illegal immigration plays a role in congressional seat allocation, suggesting that the inclusion of millions of non-citizens gives Democrats a structural advantage—a point that stokes partisan debate over fairness and accountability.

4. Foreign Policy and the Ukraine Conflict
   • [11:08–13:20] The discussion then shifts to the challenge of negotiating a ceasefire in Ukraine. Both hosts wrestle with the complexities of security guarantees and what – if any – further U.S. involvement should accompany a ceasefire agreement with Russia.
   • A key point is that any American security guarantee cannot escalate into a full military bailout; instead, the U.S. might rely on economic, moral, and material support without triggering direct military intervention.
   • Buck points out, “I think it’s going to be economic and materiel support... we’re not willing to go to war.”
   • They explore the idea that even if President Trump secures tangible progress in negotiations, critics may shift the credit to figures like President Zelensky, thereby minimizing Trump’s achievements.

5. Partisan Narratives and Media Coverage
   • [13:20–15:00] Both hosts condemn the way media outlets and political factions distort or overreact to events; for example, they note that Trump's actions—if successful—would force critics into a difficult position because admitting a positive outcome could undermine their anti-Trump stance.
   • Clay remarks on the Washington Post’s tendency to equate any truth with anti-Trump bias, suggesting that such an approach leads to inevitable contradictions when good news occurs.

6. Lighter Moments and Personal Banter
   • [21:38–22:56] Amid the heavy political discourse, the tone lightens as the hosts share humorous personal anecdotes.
   • A playful exchange ensues when a caller (“Animal from Alcatraz”) teases Buck about not recognizing NFL tight end Travis Kelce until his association with Taylor Swift was mentioned.
   • This banter not only provides comic relief but also highlights how cultural references intermix with political commentary for the show’s multifaceted appeal.

7. Closing Topics: Reflections on Military and Domestic Politics
   • [27:45–31:28] Toward the end of the episode, Buck and Clay discuss the broader implications of foreign policy decisions, such as the longevity of Putin’s rule versus the short presidential term remaining for Trump.
   • They underscore that while negotiations in Ukraine are essential, there remains a pragmatism that neither side can afford to push too far—asserting that genuine, lasting peace will likely require compromises that do not entirely satisfy all parties.
   • The segment wraps with reflections on how entrenched partisan positions (often defined solely as being anti-Trump or anti-Democrat) complicate objective analysis of policy outcomes.

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments ────────────────────────────── • [04:11] A: “I think it’s part of the overall trend we see, which is Democrats doing things that will either have minimal impact or maybe even have some blowback, but they have to look like they aren’t just letting Trump have his way or letting the Republicans run roughshod over them.” • [11:08] A: “I think it’s going to be economic and materiel support. But you know, we can’t get into a situation ... we’re not going to roll in like the cavalry to clean up the mess.” • [29:19] B: “I think they knew weakness when they saw it. They were right, strategically, to take advantage of the Biden administration’s weakness.” • [21:38] A (jokingly): “I can't believe what I just heard on the show today... the fact that Buck didn't know who Travis Kelce was without Taylor Swift is the equivalent of hitting off the tee box and not making it past the female line.”

Timestamps for Important Segments ────────────────────────────── • 00:00–00:28 – Opening remarks; Trump’s arrival in Alaska and the upcoming meeting with Putin
• 00:28–04:11 – Discussion on Texas redistricting and California’s countermeasure led by Governor Newsom
• 04:11–07:42 – In-depth analysis of redistricting’s partisan implications and historical context
• 11:08–13:20 – Debate over Ukraine ceasefire negotiations and U.S. security support
• 21:38–22:56 – Lighter banter regarding NFL references and pop culture
• 27:45–31:28 – Reflections on long-term foreign policy, Putin’s longevity, and the electoral impact of political maneuvers

Conclusion ────────────────────────────── Throughout the episode, Clay and Buck navigate a dense tapestry of topics—from the tactical maneuvers in domestic redistricting to the high-stakes diplomacy involving President Trump, Putin, and the Ukraine conflict. Their conversation is marked by sharp critiques of partisan double standards, a healthy dose of humor, and an analytical approach that challenges listeners to look beyond surface-level narratives. Listeners who missed the live show walk away with a clearer picture of how political actions, media narratives, and electoral math socialize to shape the current state of American political life.

Transcript

[A]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[B]

Welcome back in Clay Travis, Buck Sexton Show. Appreciate all of you hanging out with us. We are rolling through the Friday edition of the program. President Trump I believe, still en route to Alaska. I do not believe he has landed yet. Team, if you'll let me know when he officially lands. Big news, of course, his meeting with Vladimir Putin scheduled to begin at 3:30 Eastern shortly after we go off the air. We do not know how long that meeting will go or what the joint press conference that occurs afterwards will end up looking and sounding like. So that will obviously dominate the news cycle as we head into the weekend. But something that has been a huge part of the news cycle prior to the start of this week was the Texas redistricting battle. It immediately kind of dove Underneath the Washington, D.C. rise of troops on the streets in an attempt to limit violence which Trump put in place on Monday. And again, I think the Putin Trump reaction and what comes out of this meeting on Friday is certainly probably, I would say going to lead even this show on Monday because I would assume there will be multi days of reaction and fallout from whatever this face to face meeting actually brings to bear. But he has arrived in Alaska, by the way. So just an update there. He is in Alaska and he is waiting now presumably to meet with Vladimir Putin going forward. So a aspect of of that story will continue to follow. We'll see if anything other further comes out of that. In the meantime, yesterday afternoon, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that California is going to try to redistrict yet again in response to Texas potentially adding five Republican seats. Typically redistricting happens earlier in the decade. States like California and Texas and Illinois, sorry, California, New York and Illinois that are blue states aggressively redistricted. Already states like Massachusetts have eliminated all Democrat congresspeople. There are almost no Republican congressmen from a state like Illinois. And the analysis from the New York Times shows that so far Democrats have benefited the most from redistricting. They are fed up with what Texas might do. And now the talk is that Gavin Newsom says he's putting redistricting on the ballot this November and that would allow California to cancel out Texas's actions and more. This, of course, is Gavin Newsom attempting to interject himself into the national political arena so that he can potentially be president in 2028. This is very easy to see what is going on here. My question for you, Buck, I'm not convinced that Californians are going to show up and vote in massive numbers for this redistricting to happen. And some of you can say, okay, well, you disagree. The data actually reflects that. So far, about two thirds of Californians, according to polling, do not agree with this idea that Gavin Newsom is putting forward. And also some of these ballot referendums in general have tended to trend more conservative in nature than many might expect. For instance, they've been trying to put back in place affirmative action policies, and Californians have overwhelmingly said no. Therefore, I'm not sure that Gavin Newsom is going to get this massive wave of support that he is expecting in the event that this actually goes out as a referendum in November. What's your take on California's attempt to try to redistrict? And they've already got a huge advantage outside of the bounds of what would be expected based on the Republican voters already. So they're just going even further blue than they've already gone.

[A]

I think it's part of the overall trend we see, which is Democrats doing things that will either have minimal impact or maybe even have some blowback, but they have to look like they aren't just letting Trump have his way or letting the Republicans run roughshod over them. That's what I mostly see from this. I don't see this as likely to, and correct me if I'm wrong, the redistricting in California, how much more do they think they can already squeeze out of it if they were to go through this? I think Gavin Newsom is much more concerned with the press attention that he gets from this and the fact that he just, he needs to keep his name in his mind. I'm thinking about this now. If I were Gavin Newsom. He wants to be in the headlines. He wants people to be thinking about how Gavin Newsom is one of the biggest names in Democrat politics, because I don't think he views himself as having to do very much. He to be the only real option, or rather the most palatable option to the overall Democrat base and Democrat Party in the next election, which crazily enough is going to be kicking off, in a sense, in what, 18 months, basically not that far off from when real presidential politics starts again. This is, this is one of the only things about Trump's second term that I think is going to require a lot of adjustment, even for his own side is he doesn't have. We're used to a president being in office, and the perception is that they'll have eight years, or at least that's what their party wants this time around. This is going to move pretty quickly. How many seats does Gavin Newsom even think they could squeeze out if they did more redistricting. I mean, this. How many more drops of juice can they get from the lemon here?

[B]

Well, I think that's a fantastic question because again, around 40% of Californians vote Republican. And I know we have this idea of painting with a broad brush, red state, blue state. But if you look geographically at California, it actually becomes somewhat difficult to alienate some of these Republican districts because huge swaths of California are actually ruby red.

[A]

Now, they think they can get five. That's the number here. They think they can get.

[B]

Well, they're basically trying to cancel out what Texas is doing.

[A]

But see, this is why it's a, it's, it's a media, it's a media play more than anything else. It's. Texas is, you know, the, you know, Texas and Florida go back and forth on this, but Texas is a bigger state and, you know, sorry, I have a little loyalty to Florida over here, but Texas is a great state and a red state. And really still, I think for a lot of people, the red heartland. And, you know, it is our California, although maybe we should think of it as it is their Texas. And they're viewing this as Gavin Newsom is viewing this as this is how I show that we're not just going to lay down and let this happen. Right. We're going to do more here in California. Now, it's funny, of course, the irony is that this undermines the argument that's being made about Texas. So they're saying, you know, it's like they're saying, you know, the refs are paid off. And then they're turning around saying, and we're paying off the refs in this other game because we're not going to let the refs get paid off in this game. Well, you're saying that paying off refs is bad. That this is the argument is not that you do it and we don't do it. That's not what Democrats are saying. Democrats make this claim that gerrymandering is bad. Yes, but it's only gerrymandering when the other guys do it. So this is why the whole thing is preposterous.

[B]

I, this is why sometimes I just throw my hands up with politics. It is almost impossible to point to something that one side does that the other side never does. It is. It is. That is the game. And so what, what Texas is doing is reacting later to what Democrats have already done. And again, I point to the New York Times. The basically, if we were being 100% reflective of the will of the voter. The math would directly correspond to a nationwide popular vote when it comes to seats in the House of Representatives. So strip away the 435 electoral votes, strip away straight state boundaries, you would see that the percentages should roughly reflect what the actual voter will is in 2022. Republicans won the nationwide popular vote in that midterm election, and Democrats did better in terms of congressional seats than they would have based on the nationwide vote. And we talked about this. We expected a red wave, red tsunami. You got it in New York, you got it in Florida. It petered out as it went across the country. It didn't end up existing to a certain extent. New York Times went and looked and they said, well, that's because democr have been really successful in their redistricting and drawing the lines efforts. 2024, Republicans won the House again and won the nationwide popular vote for President of the United States. And Democrats actually did better in terms of the majority of the minority party that they got in the House. My point on this is if the New York Times is pointing out they've got an advantage, then they've got an advantage. And here is the huge structural. If we really want to have a conversation about redistricting and the 435 congressional seats, Democrats, by letting in 10 million illegals, continue to benefit immensely from illegal immigration populations because they're counted for purposes of congressional seat allocation. So a state like California, if they didn't have millions of illegal immigrants, would actually have lost congressional seats. Illinois, same way. New York, same way. If you want to talk about the big transformative, unfair political advantage that Democrats have from a. From a districting perspective, it's that they count 20 million illegals. At least Tom Holman tells me there's 20 million, so I'm using his number. Some of you like a bigger number. Buck. They count all of these people that are overwhelmingly clustered in blue cities in blue states, and that allows them to take an additional 10 to 15 seats, which would 100% be likely to swing the difference probably in 2026 if they were to take back the House. So that is the big structural advantage. They're not the victims here. They actually benefit by gerrymandering and redistricting, to say nothing of the fact that they actually screwed up the 2020 census and misallocated there in a substantial way, which Democrats are gonna benefit from in 26 and 28. So this is like the bank robber claiming that they're the good guy.

[A]

Yes. And they're Gonna keep doing it because their other argument is what? They don't really have one. So they just have to hope that they can make arguments that are self refuting but are full of a lot of emotion and a lot of Republicans bad or Trump bat. Really Trump, Republicans the same. You know, Trump is a stand in for all Republicans. And I think that Trump is more of a mobilizer of Democrat rage than anything else. So even though it's the Texas, this is the thing, it's a Texas state legislature that's handling this issue. It's Trump's fault. Right. You've noticed that it's.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Anything that's bad that Republicans do anywhere to get Democrats to pay attention, they have to make it seem like Donald Trump has rolled his sleeves up and is in the back room pulling all of the strings and doing everything necessary to get this thing forward.

[B]

I'm laughing a little bit because I'm just thinking, because Trump is the ultimate villain, what are all those people with Ukraine flags in their bio going to do if Trump actually gets peace in Ukraine? I do think that the cognitive dissonance of Trump bringing peace to the world, they expect him to bring World War three. If we played the Hillary Clinton clause.

[A]

Can I tell you, can I tell you what I think they'll do? You're again, you're asking the rational question.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Which is if Trump, if Trump has clear success in this negotiation, if the pressure on Russian oil got Putin to the table, ceasefire happens. And I think laying this out, laying this out is, you know, important now because they're going to move, they're going to change up everything. Right. They're going to change up the situation no matter what, because they don't want to give Trump the credit for it. But I think that if he does get an irrefutable win, like if we lay out what the win looks like, he gets the win. What they will say is, well, it was really all Zelensky. I think that's probably the move that Zelensky is the one they just, they shift the focus to he was doing. And remember, look, if that were to happen, should Zelensky get credit for standing up to Russian aggression? Sure, yeah, absolutely. But they'll just use the focus shift. So they'll make it seem like Trump was almost like a waiter bringing them bottles of Perrier during the negotiations.

[B]

I think that's a possibility. I think they'll claim that the settlement actually favors Putin and Trump did it because he's a Russian stooge. I think they'll just pretend Ukraine never happened. They never had the bios. And I think their brains are broken. They will say, oh, of course Putin negotiated with Trump. That's what you would expect a Russian asset to do. And, and he sold Ukraine down the river and Ukraine didn't have options. Otherwise. That's probably where I think they're going to have to go. Because otherwise they would have to acknowledge that their chosen leader, Biden, was an impotent failure who allowed Ukraine to be invaded. And Trump was the one who protected them. And their brains won't allow them to do it. Speaking of protection, a lot of you out there right now, kids are going back to school. My two oldest go back to school on Monday. Many of you out there with kids going off to high school, college, maybe they're driving for the first time grandkids as well. Well, do you have protection for them that's non lethal? Pepper sprays. How about alarms in the house? How about alarms for the dorm rooms, for the apartments? Some of those places that your kids could end up living a little bit sketchy. A lot of those college towns, maybe you want to provide them with a little bit of protection, but you want it to be non lethal because everybody's got friends coming in at all hours in college towns, when your kids going out, living on their own, probably not living in great neighborhoods those first few years, check out Sabre. They can provide non lethal protection. You can hook your kid up, you can hook your grandkid up with a lot of awesome devices. We have every single one of them in our own house. You can get them for your own house as well. This is a family business. They take care of you. The pepper gel projectile projectile launcher, shaped like a pistol or rifle, depending on the model, fires off pepper gel projectiles, targeted long distance and effective to end any intruder, but also non lethal so you don't have to worry about about somebody being injured. Decide together what you're most comfortable coming and relying on. Check it out [e-mail] that's s a b r e radio.com you say 15% there@sabre radio.com that's s a b R e radio.com you can also call 844-824 safe. That's 844-824 safe. Stories of freedom.

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[B]

Why do I need to check?

[A]

What was that? Why?

[B]

Why? I. He said both of us need to report. I mean, then he only went after you. I'm actually.

[A]

We're in this. We're in this canoe together, buddy.

[B]

All right.

[A]

One of us goes down. Both of us go down.

[B]

That is really very, very funny for people who missed it. Buck said he had no idea who Travis Kelsey was until he started dating Taylor Swift.

[A]

The implication of that which. Which I picked up after I said it is that because I'm such a T. Swift watcher. Yes. I was like, oh, my gosh, T. Swift has a new boyfriend. In reality, what I'm saying is it became such a national story when he started dating Taylor Swift that I was like, oh, there's this Travis Kelsey guy.

[B]

Clean up on aisle Buck. Clean up on aisle Buck.

[A]

Thank you. Well, producer Ali is coming to my rescue. She says he doesn't know who he was either.

[B]

Yeah, that proves my point. Were you like, oh, producer Ali has an incredible knowledge of NFL tight ends. That's an interesting phrase in and of.

[A]

Itself, but I don't think I could name right now. I don't think I could name three tight ends in the NFL. So I. That's. This is not. This is not.

[B]

Well, I. I. That doesn't necessarily surprise me. I guarantee you, producer Alley cannot name three tight ends in the NFL. Again, actual position, people. Not nice bottoms for all the ladies out there, I see.

[A]

But now we got to make sure we clarify these things as people right now. There's this perception out there that somehow I'm a big Taylor Swift fan, and while I do celebrate some of her catalog, I wouldn't say that I'm, like, part of T. Swift Nation. You know, I just.

[B]

I actually like her. I don't have anything negative to say. Her music is pretty good.

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[B]

Appreciate all of you hanging out with us. We're rolling through the Friday edition, awaiting more news from Alaska, where President Trump and Putin will meet up in the on the flight the way there, Trump said, Buck, that he would be upset if Putin didn't agree to an immediate cease fire. So on the gambling markets, there is a 2% chance that the immediate cease fire comes to pass. So for those of you out there have not been paying a lot of attention to the negotiation elements associated with Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine's position has been in order to actually negotiate an end to the war, we need to have a guaranteed cease fire in place, both sides stop firing, put down their arms, and then the negotiation starts. Here's a question for you, Buck, because I think this is the thing that Ukraine is going to most care about. They're going to have to give up some territory. I don't think there's any doubt about that. Where exactly that territory line is will be negotiated extensively. What kind of guarantees, if any, should the United States make to Ukraine when it comes to providing security for them going forward? We know the mineral rights deal is there. Ukraine's biggest concern is Russia will agree to a ceasefire and a negotiated settlement here and then they'll just invade again somewhere down the line, probably after Trump is out of office. Maybe when we get another weak Democrat in office that Putin feels like he can exploit. To what extent should America provide security guarantees over and above the the mineral rights agreement that has already been put in place. Does that make you nervous? Ukraine obviously wants NATO. Russia is very opposed to Ukraine being allowed to be in NATO, which would provide more of a European security guarantee. What American involvement should there be, if any, in negotiating a ceasefire? Not Only for this situation, but to allay Ukrainian concerns that Putin will just invade again in another couple of years.

[A]

I think it's going to be economic and materiel support. But you know, we can't get into a situation where we have some tripwire for US Military, basically we can't offer them, which really goes to the heart of a lot of the initial conflict here, which is membership in NATO and Article 5 protection. Can't do that. I mean, that would destroy. If Putin even thought that that was something we were going to ask for or demand, there would be no negotiation at all. Right. That's a total red line for him. And so getting to that through another, through other means, I think is just as much of a red line. So how do we guarantee it? We say, you know, one clay, I think we probably end up saying ain't no guarantees in life. And second, we say that there'll be economic consequences and pressure and sanctions and things like that. But unless we want to start having our planes blow up, Russians and our boys in trenches, you know, having these little anti personnel drones flying at people, which we don't want, by the way, to be very clear, I completely oppose this. There are limits to what we can do. Right? This is the thing. We're not, we're not willing to go to war, we're not willing to fight a war on behalf of Ukraine. So our guarantee of whatever this settlement is is going to have to be something along the lines of will give you a lot of guns, weapons and money and we'll be very mad at Russia, but we're not rolling in like the cavalry to clean up the mess.

[B]

Here's another aspect of this that I think is significant, and this is where the intelligence agencies would actually be useful, unfortunately. I'm sure there's 48 different explanations of this question or analysis of this question. How many more years is Putin going to have control of Russia? How healthy is he actually? Because one of the downsides of any negotiation between Trump and Putin is unfortunately, we've only got Trump for about three and a half more years as President of the United States. Now, hopefully he's followed up by someone who is of a Trumpian ilk and not someone who is like Joe Biden. But Putin can play the long game because he's in a position of power, presumably maybe for another generation. What is Putin like, 68, 70 years old? Something like that. I think. I would think he probably has another decade again, you don't ever know about health, maybe a generation of leadership. So he can afford to play the long game and presume that at some point in time there's going to be another American president and maybe that president's going to be weak like Biden was. Because I don't think it's any coincidence that Putin waited until Biden was in office to invade Ukraine, just like I don't think it's any coincidence that Gaza, the Hamas occupants inside of Gaza went after Israel while Biden was in office either. I think they knew weakness when they saw it. I think they were right to strategically take advantage of the Biden administration's weakness and feckless inability to protect us and those around the world.

[A]

Yeah, I think that my expectations for this, just to be very clear, are pretty low. I think that it's very likely that what you'll see is some desire on both sides to suggest there's progress, which is completely understandable, certainly on the side of Trump, because Trump really does want progress. We want this thing over with. Right. There's, there's no part of Trump, there's no part of maga. I really think there's no part of most of the Republican Party, you know, Democrats on this one, they want very clearly. Isn't it weird how this has become a partizan thing, too? Yes, it really shouldn't be partizan because you're getting beyond the normal party lines here, other than what Trump has said about it and what, what Biden has said about it. You know, because Democrats are generally like to think of themselves at least as anti war, though, as we know that's not true. They just tend to be more interested in wars that have no benefit to the American people whatsoever but make them feel good about themselves. Now, Republicans, I'm not saying have done a great job. You go back to Bush administration with why and how they're, you know, running, running the war machine. But that's exactly the point, though, is that you can, you can see these things usually outside of a wise enough person can see these things outside of just a straight partisan lens. But the Ukraine flag thing was just, it was almost comedic or for a while there where you had all these people who were just switching out their fauci syringes and masks for Ukraine flags all over social media. And this is real. You could see this happening sometimes. They, they had them both at the same time as part of the transition. But we should just all want this thing to end as quickly as possible. There's zero benefit to America of this continuing. And, and this is what I've said all along, too, there's no way that Ukraine can win, meaning kick Russia out of everywhere. So it's going to have to give up some stuff. The question is what it's going to have to give up. So negotiation is the only way this ends. Because the idea that Russia is going to just lose is not a real idea at all. But you got to, you know, was it Pelosi said this.

[C]

This is.

[A]

This goes to. This is cut. 15 guys play this for a second. They're fighting for our democracy. This is Nancy Pelosi. Play it. We want the people of Ukraine. We commend them for fighting for democracy and in fighting for their democracy to. They're fighting for ours as well. They are fighting for democracy writ large.

[B]

This is why I think it's so amazing to contemplate if Trump actually gets peace and Vladimir Zelensky comes out. Vladimir Putin. The Zelensky and Putin press conferences. Presumably Trump would be involved with one in Ukraine and one in Russia. I can't imagine they would have a joint press conference, although maybe they would. But if Zelensky comes out and says President Trump was instrumental in bringing peace to Europe, we could not have done this without him. What in the world are all the Ukraine bio flag people going to do? I don't even know what flag they're going to put up next. They can't wear masks now because they're concerned ICE is wearing masks after wearing masks themselves for years. They can't fly the Ukraine flag. They can't fly the American flag because it's racist. I don't even know the Palestine flag, I guess. But what if Trump brings peace in Gaza too? They're running out of things they can stand on. And I think it's funny, but I do think it goes to the essence of the Democrat Party. I can tell you pretty simply what someone who voted for Trump believes. America is the greatest country in the history of the world and. And we can be even better than we have been in the past. I mean, that's a story in a sentence for what a Trump voter would believe. What does a Democrat believe? What does the party? You ask this question. I think it's such a good question because I think it goes to the essence. All the Democrat believes is the opposite of whatever Trump says. That's not actually a foundational party because what we're seeing here is a lot of what Trump says is post partisan. Meaning Trump's opposed to more murder in D.C. democrats are now aligned against it. Trump is opposed to the war in Ukraine continuing. He's painting Democrats into an incredibly tiny corner. Because when you make your entire party predicated on opposing Trump, what if Trump is doing as he is now, a lot of things that are very popular and aren't directly connected to traditional notions of political parties?

[A]

Well, I think it also, it is a reminder of what the mindset became openly at the Washington Post in Trump's first term, where the way that they tried to hold on to. We're a news organization that objectively reports the truth, but everything we say and do is geared toward attacking Trump is that whatever is true is inherently anti Trump. And I want to be clear, that was their philosophy. And this was. You would hear people, writers, people, the Washington Post would say this, that the problem, the roots of anti Trumpism in the reporting were directly from the fact that all truth, truth must be anti Trump because he's so bad. But, Clay, what you're raising here is, well, that, first of all, that's obviously an insane belief, but just put this aside for a second. What then happens whenever Trump does something good? If you're unwilling to tell the truth about it, you have to lie. So you have no room to go with. Right. If everything that Trump does, if all truth is, is bad for Trump and Trump does a good thing, how can you tell the truth about Trump? You can't. This is where we are with. This is why you're seeing on the foreign policy stuff. Well, they better hope that he doesn't pull off something good here, because this is like the old. If Trump cured cancer, they'd be pro cancer. Yeah, they would. Or they would come up with some way. I mean, there's maybe a little bit of a more sly way for them, which is what I was alluding to with, with Zelensky, which is just to say, even if it's, even if Trump is the point man on something and gets the win, they'll find a way to make it someone else. If they, if they can't say it's bad, it's someone else's win, or Trump.

[B]

Didn'T really do that.

[A]

You didn't build that. You know, that's, that's the real move.

[B]

Well, and again, this is, I think there is a huge world to examine of, of groups that Trump broke because their only position was reflexively anti Trump. There was no nuance to it. I think the legacy media is dead. I think it's finished. I think that the Democrat Party right now, as we know it, is dead and buried. It does not exist. I think the woke universe that surrounded Trump in opposition has Crumbled, in essence, around him, too. You cannot define yourself as being opposed to someone else because at some point they checkmate you. And I think every day we are seeing Democrats getting checkmated. I mean, let me play this cut for you as we go to break. Eric Swalwell. Buck is now saying there are no criminals in D.C. outside of politics. It's just transparently ridiculous. Listen to this. Federal troops and federal law enforcement are.

[A]

Coming to A federalized Washington, D.C. the stated reason? Crime is on the rise. Well, I don't know if that's true, but I know there are way more criminals in Washington, D.C. today than there were back in early January. And there's a direct line between a.

[B]

34 count convicted felon coming to a.

[A]

Northwest neighborhood, having other cases that disappear.

[B]

That he should have been held accountable.

[A]

For bringing his seven bankruptcies and his network of other convicts and thieves and thugs into our community. Yes, there are more criminals in Washington.

[B]

D.C. most of them are in the Trump administration. Most of them. I mean, it's so ridiculous.

[A]

Well, I got a fever as a Republican, and the only prescription is more Swalwell. We need more of this guy. We need Swalwell 247 out there in the media being the. He should be the guy that Democrats turn to on everything because they will never win another national election for the rest of their lives. I think this is fantastic. We need more Swalwell. I have, I'll tell you this. I have never met a Democrat that liked this guy, that, like, would go, that would go out of their way. Now maybe they defend him or whatever because he's a Democrat sometimes, but none of them are even vaguely, you know, pro Swalwell. I know, I know people who are big. Bernie people, Hillary people, Obama people, everything else. AOC people. There's all these. But Swalwell is. We just need more of him. We need, we need him making the case all the time. It would be a great thing for America if whenever somebody thought, what's a Democrat? It was this guy and his, his esteemed record with.

[B]

I think he and Jasmine Crockett should pair up. I think that's the best possible.

[A]

They should go on tour together.

[B]

They should.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

They really should.

[A]

Yeah, it would be, it would be a good move. I think that would be excellent. Because I don't, I agree. I don't even know what he thinks he's saying. It's so dumb that I'm not sure that he even understands the point that he's trying to make. It's not. It's so dumb. It's not even wrong, Clay. I don't know what it is. That's where Swalwell is. All right, we got to talk about Preborn here for a moment. Preborn is in a league of its own. This is a nonprofit saving the lives of tens of thousands of babies every year. In fact, they've saved 37,000 unborn babies this year alone. Preborn's mission is to save lives every day by offering pregnant moms support, love and the option of life for their child. The team of people working at Preborn provide these pregnant moms with all that assistance and the ultrasound that they give for free to these pregnant mothers is the beginning of saving so many lives. The ultrasound experience costs $28 per ultrasound. If you can donate $28 today, you'll be helping Preborn save a tiny baby's life in the womb. Some mom is going to have a little boy or a little girl and it's going to be a huge part of it is that this ultrasound happened and that you funded it. Preborn operates clinics in communities across our nation where abortion rates are highest. To donate securely dial pound 250 and say the keyword baby. That's pound 250. Say baby or go to preborn.com buck preborn.com buck Sponsored by Preborn Stories of Freedom, Stories of America.

[B]

Inspirational stories that unite us all each day. Spend time with Clay and Buck. Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[C]

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[D]

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[E]

The reviews and ratings are in and Ice Cube's Big three is the surprise hit of the summer and to cap off the season, iHeart presents the Big Three basketball playoffs this Sunday at 3pm Eastern. The remaining four teams battle it out for the right to make the Big three championship in the most physical, fierce and competitive basketball league in the world. The action starts with the Big 3 Monster Energy Celebrity game where your favorite stars compete in Big 33 on 3 basketball. Then the first of two semifinal games features Dwight Howard and the LA Riot taking on Montrez Harrell and Dr. J's first place Chicago triplets. The finale will see popular Miami 305 with stars MVP Michael Beasley and Lance will make you Dan Stevenson take on Nancy Lieberman's Dallas Power who finished the season winning five straight weeks to capture second place. Can Glenn Rice, Greg Monroe and Paul Millsap stop Miami's physical assault? Or will Miami and Beasley put an end to Dallas winning ways? Who will make it to the Big Three championship? This no holds barred action starts Sunday at 3pm Eastern, 12 Pacific only on CBS.

[B]

How many times have you heard if it ain't broke, don't fix it? While that's great advice for most things, it's not applicable to a cell phone. Over time your cell phone battery fades, the processor can't keep up and it starts to operate slower.

[A]

Fortunately, thanks to PureTalk, your cell phone is something you can replace easily when you switch to PureTalk. This month they're going to give you a Samsung Galaxy A36 for free with a $35 monthly qualifying plan, just 35.

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As little as 10 minutes. Go to PureTalk.com buck to get your free phone today. Again, that's PureTalk.com buck to switch to my wireless company, America's wireless company, PureTalk.

[B]

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[A]

Into Clay and Buck. Just giving you a little update on a very important story here. I think I'm going to be watching the movie Rudy this weekend to get me in the mindset because now with my speed gun, okay, there's video proof online. You can see we're hitting 95, 96, 97 mile an hour serves no problem. Those of you, by the way, who were doubters thinking it was in the 60s, okay, it's one thing Laura knows and she's very she's a stickler. She knows 100 mile an hour mark for like a, for a recreational tennis player is a, is very few rec players, not college, college players can do it and obviously pros do it, you know, plus 30 miles an hour. But very few rec players tend to get up over 100. So that's a real marker. Some of them. Clay. Some of the comments though online were.

[B]

Very hurtful where they're like I bet.

[A]

You can't even get over 50. Well if by 50 you mean 97 now proven with speed gun we are there, my friends. But now the bet does not have a does not have a terminus, at least not in any immediate sense. So I'm going to be limbering up this shoulder this weekend, Clay. I'm gonna be trying to get a full 3 extra mph on my serve and then there will be a victory dance celebration party the likes of which Clay and Buck has perhaps never seen before. I it might even, might even be some shirtless celebration. I don't care what it looks like to all of you on the tennis court, things could get wild out there.

[B]

Who is actually operating the radar gun that was Carrie. I thought I was going to give her because you can only see the.

[A]

Hand, but I was thinking it might.

[B]

Be Carrie, but I didn't know if you just had some random guy at the. At the tennis court.

[A]

I'm going to tell you. I'm going to tell you the truth about this, too. The radar gun is very. It gets, like, one out of five serves. It's actually quite annoying. So you rarely get readings because it has to be precisely, like, in line with the ball. So there might have been some swearing, but I didn't take those videos and put them up because, you know, family show. But 100's coming. This is an I Heart podcast.