Hour 3 - A Conclave of Cardinals and a Contest of Cities

Summary

Summary of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" – Hour 3: A Conclave of Cardinals and a Contest of Cities

Release Date: May 7, 2025
Hosts: Clay Travis and Buck Sexton
Guest: Raymond Arroyo (FOX News correspondent in Rome)

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1. Introduction to the Papal Conclave

The third hour of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show delves into the intense atmosphere surrounding the Papal Conclave—the secretive process by which the Catholic Church selects its next Pope. Joining Clay and Buck is Raymond Arroyo from FOX News, who provides live insights from Rome.

Raymond Arroyo begins by highlighting the profound historical context of the conclave:

“[...] it is upon the bones of St. Peter where the Mass was held today to choose the successor of St. Peter 2000 plus years later.”
[01:02]

He emphasizes the conclave's deep roots in Christian tradition, noting that 133 cardinals from approximately 80 countries have convened in Rome to uphold centuries-old rituals aimed at maintaining continuity within the Catholic Church.

2. The Conclave Process and Current Proceedings

Arroyo explains the meticulous process involved in the conclave, tracing its origins to Pope Gregory X in 1274, who instituted the seclusion of cardinals to expedite the election of a new Pope. This tradition ensures that cardinals remain focused solely on their critical task, devoid of external distractions like “gnocchi and cappuccino” ([00:32]).

He outlines the day's events, mentioning that the first vote typically results in black smoke if no decision is reached or white smoke signaling the election of a new Pope by the early Friday morning ([03:20]). Arroyo anticipates prolonged deliberations due to the division among cardinals over the future direction of the Church.

3. Top Contenders for the Papacy

A significant portion of the discussion centers on potential candidates for the papacy, with Arroyo analyzing each contender's influence and likelihood of success.

• Cardinal Tagle (Philippines): Seen as a progressive candidate aligned with Pope Francis’s vision, advocating for modernizing Church doctrines.

  “He believes that Vatican II, the more modern approach, is the way to go and that we should loosen some of these moral bonds...”
  [06:50]

• Cardinal Parolin: The Vatican's Secretary of State, whose involvement in the controversial China-Vatican deal and financial missteps may hinder his candidacy.

  “He's the number one liberal candidate... also involved in a lot of financial chicanery...”
  [09:00]

• Cardinal Robert Serra (Nigeria): Represents the traditionalist faction, advocating for a return to eternal values and opposing recent progressive shifts under Pope Francis.

  “Both of his parents were converts... he got into problems with Pope Francis over the old Latin Mass...”
  [09:00]

• Cardinal Pierre Battista Pizzabala (Jerusalem): Praised for his integrity and financial acumen, especially noted for his heroic offer to exchange his life for hostages taken by Hamas.

  “He's a prayerful man who believes the word of God should be the center of our lives... offered his life in exchange for the hostages.”
  [09:25]

• Matteo Zuppi (Italy): A liberal candidate supportive of LGBT rights and aligned with Pope Francis’s progressive stances.

  “He's a liberal... been very open to the LGBT community...”
  [10:17]

Arroyo posits that Cardinal Pizzabala may emerge as a compromise candidate capable of bridging the gap between progressive and traditional factions within the Church.

4. Excommunication and Betting on the Papacy

In a lighthearted segment, Buck Sexton introduces the idea of betting on the conclave’s outcome, prompting a humorous exchange about the implications for Catholics:

Buck Sexton: “You can bet on who the next pope is gonna be.”
Raymond Arroyo: “You just mentioned it's excommunicable. We can't do it.”
[10:03]

This playful banter underscores the deep-rooted significance of the papal selection process while engaging listeners with a touch of humor.

5. Real ID Requirements and Political Commentary

Transitioning from religious discussions, Clay and Buck address the contentious topic of Real ID requirements, expressing skepticism about its implementation and utility.

Buck Sexton shares his frustrations:

“I have had a Tennessee driver's license for 30 years. I don't have a real ID... How in the world is that not more than real id?”
[28:12]

Clay Travis echoes similar sentiments, reflecting on personal inconveniences and broader public discontent:

“I think a lot of our audience thinks this is a you problem, Clay... it's ridiculous.”
[31:38]

The hosts critique the necessity of Real ID, arguing that existing identification measures like TSA PreCheck and passports already suffice for travel and security purposes.

6. U.S. Attorney Appointment Controversy

The discussion shifts to the political arena, specifically addressing Senator Thom Tillis's opposition to Ed Martin as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. Buck and Clay dissect the implications of this opposition, highlighting Ed Martin's positive impact on reducing crime rates in Washington, D.C.

Buck Sexton: “... Ed Martin is doing a good job in that role. Why does he think that Ed Martin shouldn't get the job?”
[25:16]

They criticize Tillis’s stance as politically untenable and question the motivations behind opposing a seemingly effective U.S. Attorney.

7. Listener Engagement and City Growth

Engaging with their audience, Clay and Buck read VIP emails highlighting cities like Jupiter, Florida, and Fort Wayne, Indiana, discussing their growth and appeal over the past decades. They encourage listeners to share their favorite cities that have improved significantly since 2000, fostering a sense of community interaction.

8. Fashion Trends and Personal Anecdotes

In a lighter vein, the hosts discuss modern fashion trends, particularly the prevalence of tight-fitting pants among young men. This segment adds a personal and relatable touch to the episode, balancing the heavier topics discussed earlier.

Buck Sexton: “...why all you young men decided that you wanted to have the tightest pants on the planet...”
[33:10]

9. Closing Remarks

As the episode concludes, Clay and Buck remind listeners to stay tuned for upcoming discussions, including a dedicated segment on Real ID the following day. They express gratitude to Raymond Arroyo for his live insights from Vatican City and encourage continued audience participation through calls and emails.

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Notable Quotes:

• Raymond Arroyo [01:02]:
  “...it is upon the bones of St. Peter where the Mass was held today to choose the successor of St. Peter 2000 plus years later.”

• Raymond Arroyo [06:50]:
  “He believes that Vatican II, the more modern approach, is the way to go and that we should loosen some of these moral bonds...”

• Buck Sexton [25:16]:
  “...Ed Martin is doing a good job in that role. Why does he think that Ed Martin shouldn't get the job?”

• Clay Travis [31:38]:
  “I think a lot of our audience thinks this is a you problem, Clay... it's ridiculous.”

---

This episode skillfully weaves together a significant global event—the Papal Conclave—with pressing political and social issues in the United States, all while maintaining an engaging and conversational tone. Whether discussing the future of the Catholic Church or critiquing federal identification policies, Clay and Buck deliver a comprehensive and informative discourse for their audience.

Transcript

[Raymond Arroyo]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.

[Clay Travis]

All right, third hour of clay and Buck kicks off now. And we are joined by Raymond Arroyo of FOX News. And he comes to us from Rome itself, where we know the next Pope is being chosen by the Conclave. Raymond, great to have you back on the program.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Oh, always a joy being with you guys. Thanks for having me. It's appreciated. Traffic here.

[Clay Travis]

Oh, yeah. Well, we're sorry to take you away from some delicious gnocchi and I'm sure a cappuccino with perfect froth. But yeah, what is going, what is going on here with the whole process to choose the next pope, the leader of the Catholic flock? Take, take us into everything you're finding out, everything that's going on because a lot of people, I'm just gonna say this, Raymond, even some of the Catholics listening don't know that much about the process itself and what's going on here.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Well, it's a mysterious process and that's part of the fun. And look for non Catholics, I said this this morning during our live coverage at fox. This is the root of Christianity. Whether you're a Lutheran, Episcopalian, Evangelical or Catholic, the fact is if you believe in Jesus Christ. The Mass that these cardinals held today was right over the tomb of St. Peter, which in the 50s they dug up the the basement of St. Peter's and found first of all, there's another church down there. There's a third century Constantine Basilica beneath it. And then beneath that is a graveyard like an above ground cemetery like we have in New Orleans. And they found the bones of St. Peter there. So it is upon the bones of St. Peter where the Mass was held today to choose the successor of St. Peter 2000 plus years later. I mean, it's a kind of incredible thing when you step back and look at it. So 133 men from something like 80 different countries went into this con just this afternoon here in Rome a few hours ago. And this is an ancient tradition. And the beautiful thing about Christianity is all through the ages, through the millennia, all these little rituals are picked up in traditions, practices and devotions. And the Catholic Church has a wonderful way of kind of preserving them and pushing them into the future. The conclave practice, this all started because in about 1274, they couldn't elect a Pope. It took them. The Conclave was dragging on for three years. They couldn't make. So I think it was Pope Gregory the 10th decided to lock the cardinals in a private place with no contact with the outside world, deprive Them all of that gnocchi and cappuccino you mentioned earlier, no food for them and kind of made them uncomfortable. So they would come to a decision and they did. So that became the new rule of electing a pope. You went into seclusion. It was kind of like a retreat. It was spartan. And it kind of forced them to focus on the thing at hand. That's what we're watching now. 33 cardinals are going to choose one of their own, but it could be any baptized Catholic male to be the Pope. And they're in the Sistine Chapel now. In fact, we're expecting smoke any minute now. My guess is first ballot is usually black, meaning you don't have a pope. White smoke, you probably won't see until Friday at the earliest, though I think it could drag on longer.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, that's the question I was gonna ask you, Raymond. And thank you for joining us from the Vatican City. As the Pope is being selected, what is the expectation? You said Friday. You think we'll know? How does the vote process take place? I think they're doing one. What is it, about 7pm or 8pm, I guess in Rome right now, they're doing one. They're doing one this afternoon. And then how will it work? There's a vote every morning or multiple votes every morning and every afternoon going forward. What should we expect? Assuming they don't pick one now.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Yeah, they only do one vote on the first day of Conclave. They went in, they prayed, they all did their oaths, they sat down, got to kind of know the process. Took a vote around 4 o' clock. They're counting it. They have six people that count the vote, Clay, which is unbelievable. They, three of them, scrutinize it, make sure the vote's authentic. Nobody forged the signature or dropped too many votes in. Then the other guys double check it, and then it's read, it's read aloud. So you can imagine how long that takes with 133 people. But at 7, 7:30, they start lighting up the stoves. They take those ballots, burn them, and that's where the black or the white smoke comes. Tomorrow, in the days that succeed, there'll be two votes in the morning, two votes in the evening, in the afternoon. So you'll get two smokestacks going up to indicate whether or not they've come to a decision. But when you've got 133 guys who don't know each other, you see cardinals used to meet every year. The College of Cardinals would meet Pope Francis 10 years ago. Had a conference on the family where he wanted to do some wacky things, and the cardinals started talking back to him. He didn't like that. So he canceled the annual meeting of the College of Cardinals. They haven't met in 10 years. And he appointed 108 of the 133 men in this conclave. So they literally don't know each other. Haven't met each other, and they don't know each other's concerns. So the last week or so, 12 days has been about getting to know each other and figuring out what they believe is the next step for the church. And it's a battle. Some want to continue the Francis line, which is more progressive, focused on kind of loosening the bounds of the doctrine, dispensing with the things of the past. And then you have the other block that wants tradition, a return to eternal values, back to basics and get rid of some of the chaos and the lack of clarity we've seen over the last 12 years. And we'll see who comes out the winner here.

[Clay Travis]

But that's where I wanted to go next with you, Raymore. Speaking of Raymond Arroyo from Fox News. He is in Rome right now covering the Conclave very closely. And we're going to be finding out about a new pope here. You said what, by Friday? Probably. So a couple more days. Yeah.

[Raymond Arroyo]

If it goes to Saturday, we're in trouble because that's a day of pause in the, in the, in the, in the constitution, if you do three days of voting, you don't have a pope. They have to pause for a day and pray and meditate, which means voting would resume on Sunday. I hope that's not the case because I'm leaving on Sunday. I'll watch him.

[Clay Travis]

Well, I was going to say, I mean, it could be, you know, you could be on the India, Pakistan border or something right now.

[Buck Sexton]

Right.

[Clay Travis]

I mean, you know, tough, it's not such tough duty. You know, you're going to be on a Vespa. You're going to be seeing the site to be very nice. But tell me, tell me this feel.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Around in me.

[Clay Travis]

Some of the top options that are being discussed. I hear a lot about a cardinal.

[Buck Sexton]

Sarah.

[Clay Travis]

Tell me some of the top contenders right now. And, you know, you got into this a little bit, but what some of the different directions would be based upon who some of those top candidates are for the church.

[Raymond Arroyo]

You know, I have a podcast and we've been doing this every day, Daily Reports. It's a royal Grande show on YouTube and I have this concept crew, and it's a priest and a historian, and three of us kind of go through all the gossip we heard that day and the candidates. So that's at Arroyo Grande show on YouTube, and some of whom the people we discussed, there's a Cardinal Tagle from the Philippines. He's kind of an Asian Pope Francis, happier, more buoyant, but he's the same line. He believes that Vatican ii, the more modern approach, is the way to go and that we should loosen some of these moral bonds on whether it be marriage or the LGBT community. He'd like to see a more open approach. You have a Cardinal Parolin. Now, this guy is the Secretary of State at the Vatican. He's the guy who drafted the China deal, the hidden China Vatican deal, which literally handed faithful Catholics, and not only Catholics, Bible churches, tons of people, over faithful people, to the ChiComs. They rounded them up, they've shut down churches, the Vatican, why they got into this deal, no one can figure. They also allowed the Chinese to choose their bishops, two of which they appointed after the Pope died. Okay, so Cardinal Parolin is a guy with a lot of clouds over his record. That will probably damn his candidacy. He's also involved in a lot of financial chicanery here, a $400 million land deal that went belly up in London. So he will probably not make it out of the gate. But he's the number one liberal candidate, if you will, the progressive, candid, to continue Francis legacy. On the other side, Cardinal Robert Serra, who you mentioned, priest from Nigeria, an incredible man. Both of his parents were converts. African cardinal who headed up the liturgy office at the Holy See and got into problems with Pope Francis over the old Latin Mass, which Francis outlawed. Cardinal Robert Sarra did not want that to happen, so Francis booted him out. He's a huge favorite of the more traditional cardinals. I think, though, at the end of the day, you need somebody who can both reform this bureaucracy, clean up the financial problems. The Church is broke here. That's the reality. And revive the faith in a winning way. I keep looking at a man I know. I've known him for 25 years. Cardinal Pierre Battista Pizzabala. Try saying that four times fast. Pizzabala is the Jerusalem Patriarch. He's a Franciscan. He's lived in the holy land for 35 years. A sturdy man from the farming country in northern Italy, but a prayerful man who believes the word of God should be the center of our lives. And he's cleaned up all the financial problems there and navigated this landmine of Israel and the Palestinians, and when. In fact, when Hamas took those hostages, he offered his life in exchange for the hostages. That will, I think, tip the balance for him. If they need a compromised candidate, it's kind of like Trump getting shot in Butler. That was the end of the campaign. I feel that way about Pitzabal as well.

[Buck Sexton]

All right, so this is maybe gonna damn me to eternal flames here, but you can. You can bet on who the next pope is gonna be. And, Raymond, I don't know if you've paid attention to this, but here are you.

[Raymond Arroyo]

You just mentioned it's excommunicable. We can't do it. But others can. But we can't. It's literally an excommunic crime if you bet on the. On the papacy. Do you know that?

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, yeah. Really?

[Clay Travis]

Clay was trying to get me excommunicated, Raymond. He wanted me to be a heathen.

[Buck Sexton]

All right, well, then, you guys, I'm saving you.

[Raymond Arroyo]

I'm here to save you.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm not Catholic, so I can't be excommunicated here. So I'm going to tell you the favorites according to the gambling markets one time either.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Clay, there's still time.

[Buck Sexton]

There's still time. Okay, well, then I might be ending that forever. Now the Southern Baptist can be happy because I'm shutting the door on being Catholic. Here are the four favorites according to Polymarket right now. Pietro Parolin. And I'm probably going to mispronounce the names, but you said you thought he was talking about. Yeah, you. You hit three of these names. That's. That's what I was impressed by. It says that you think he's got too many scandals in his background. Tagal or Tagla? 19 point. Yep. Tagley. You mentioned Pizza Bella. Who was the individual you were just talking about? He's the fourth most likely. The. The only one you didn't mention. I'm going to put you on the spot here. Mateo Zuppy or Zuppy. What do you know about him? If anything, he's third most likely.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Zuppy. Matteo Zuppi is an Italian cardinal, very much in line with the Pope Francis vision of things. He's a liberal. He's been very open to the LGBT community. Look, Clay, when you have young people. We just saw this at Easter, and Buck will back me up on this. Young people are flooding into the Catholic Church. Not only Catholic Church, other communions, too, but particularly the Catholic Church and its young men, because they found their way into the faith through the Internet and reading, and they're looking for something Eternal, ancient, the truth of Christ and the gospel. I don't think you're going to get that from a guy like Zupi or Tagley, who are basically pushing a line that we just have to be more like the world and less like the apostles. You want an apostle? So my guess is, if I were a betting man, and I'm not because I don't want to get excommunicated, I would put my money on somebody like Pizzabala, because I think both the right and the left candidates are going to go down, and they're going to need a compromise. And that guy's story is so compelling, I think it might just win the day.

[Buck Sexton]

Outstanding stuff, Raymond, for coming right to us from the Vatican City. If there are immediate results or something like that, don't hesitate to call us back in. If you were there in the Vatican City to report live, we'd love to have you on next couple of days if that happens.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Yeah, call me anytime. I'm here. I'll be smokestack watching until, I hope, Friday, and then we can all go home.

[Clay Travis]

Excellent. Excellent choice. Imposter for us and Clay. You know, my dad is an Anglican, so I'm actually split by parentage. So he's an Anglican, like, Church of England type and. Or, you know, Episcopalian, say. I think it's the same thing.

[Buck Sexton]

Isn't that basically. And I'm gonna probably get religious people off now. Isn't that basically just when Henry VIII decided that he wanted to get married and they split the Church of England from the Catholic faith? Isn't that bas existence of that faith?

[Clay Travis]

Yes, that is the history. That is the history of the Church of England. Is Henry VIII not a great guy, Wanted to get remarried again? Definitely. Beheaded a wife. Not a good dude. So.

[Buck Sexton]

So that is the founding history of the Church of England. That's what I thought. Just wanted to make sure.

[Clay Travis]

Which now that. That low IQ, pretentious weirdo. What's his name, King Charles, is the head of. He's the head of the Church of England.

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, I know. Yeah. The Church of England is always headed by the king because the king wanted to marry a new woman and decided that he needed to leave the Catholic faith. That's right. Right. I've got the religious background there. I think that was awesome.

[Clay Travis]

All the angry Episcopalians. But honestly, you're not gonna be angry about this. You could send your ire at Clay.

[Buck Sexton]

For just talking about the historical record, but that was cool. Raymond Arroyo, Right. From the Vatican City as we wait to see who the next Pope is gonna be. And you found out that I've now been excommunicated from the Catholic because I shared the latest gambling odds on the pope. And it was interesting that Raymond had broken down three of them as the potential likely pope.

[Clay Travis]

You're like the Beelzebub of the Clay and Buck show, you know, tempting our audience to place place wagers that would damn them for eternity.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Clay.

[Buck Sexton]

Well, I'll be honest. You know, the Southern Baptists believe that basically you can be forgiven for anything. So. So yeah, we'll turn. You know, you asked for forgiveness, you get it. President Trump, remember Bill Clinton, big Southern Baptist, President Trump, lot of forgiveness there. President Trump didn't say it first, but he said it loudest. His words were something to the effect of Obamacare sucks. And that is the reality when it comes to our friends. At ease. Total health. And I talked about them a little bit earlier because I changed the order in which I was going to do these ads. So I'm going to subtly make the incredible switch right now and tell you, speaking of pope odds, my friends at prize picks will get you hooked up and get you taken care of all over the country. California, Texas, Georgia. They don't have pope odds up anywhere. You can't play the pope on prize picks, but you can play major league baseball, NFL, NHL, Major league baseball and the NBA. Basically you could do the Kentucky Derby, any sport that you love. Kelli Derby tying this all in the sport of kings. They used to say horse racing was. You can get hooked up right now with prize picks. You can make up to 2000 times your cash. A week ago it was only a thousand times. But they are getting hooked up. They're going to allow you two to six player projections get hooked up right now. NBA, NHL playoffs underway. Bucks beloved. The New York Knicks up 10 on the Celtics. There's game two, I believe taking place tonight and you can get hooked up. NHL playoffs underway as well. Download the app to do today. Use my name Clay as the code for $50 instantly after you play your first five dollar lineup. That's code clay. $50 instantly after you play your 1st five dollar lineup. Pricepix.com code clay Texas, California, Georgia, 40ish states nationwide, 13 million people playing along. Join the team pricepix.com code clay. You know them as conservative radio hosts. Now just get to know them as guys on the Sunday hang podcast with Clay and Buck. Find it in their podcast feed on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back in Clay Travis BUCK SEXTON show. Appreciate all of you hanging out with us. We'll take some of your calls. 800-282-2882 in the final half hour of the program. Our thanks to Raymond Arroyo who was there breaking down the absolute latest from Vatican City as a pope selection is underway. Much to to break down there also. There's a couple of of stories out there. We haven't really talked about this, Buck, but this real ID story has got people super fired up. Tomorrow, I believe is the beginning of the real ID or else it's today and I bet a lot of you have strong opinions on that. I do not have a real ID because the state of Tennessee does not regularly put the real ID on the driver's license. I do have TSA and I am flying on Friday up to Chicago to go speak at the University of Chicago again. Is it going to be a calamity? You guys can weigh in, let us know what you think. But in the meantime, I want to tell you all about Leaffilter and the tremendous difference they can make given that we are in a season right now where there are tons of storms, branches coming down, leaves falling all over the place. It's not fall, but in spring with the weather certainly can have a tremendous difference for you all throughout the country right now. Big storms, clean gutter can clear the way for a carefree summer. Whether you're tired of unclogging your gutters or don't know what they look like, it's time for a permanent solution. With Leaff Filter right now you can save up to 30% off at leaffilter.com clayandbuck Gutter clogs aren't just a nuisance, they can cause extensive water damage as well. Let Leaffilter's trusted pro help protect your home from flooding, foundation issues and more. America's number one gutter protection system. Schedule your free inspection up to 30% [e-mail] ClayandBuck that's leaffilter.com Clay, Clay and Buck.

[Clay Travis]

All right, welcome back in. We got a lot of you writing in, a lot of you sending us VIP emails, talkbacks, everything. We're going to take a bunch of those here momentarily. Just want to tell you, a lot of you trying it Crockett coffee, but not just Crockett coffee, the mushroom coffee, my friends. Organic functional blend. Key benefits. This is I'm reading from it because I just I'm going to have some here in a moment. I'm going to make myself some mushroom coffee. If you never Tried it before. It's really good and it's got all kinds of great stuff. Key benefits. You got lion's mane for mental clarity, shiitake antioxidants, MCT oil, sustained focus. A bunch of things here. So it's like a functional blend of all kinds of good stuff. It's delicious. About half the caffeine of a standard cup of coffee. So for me this is my afternoon go to. So even if you're drinking some other coffee, you're not drinking Crockett, which that itself is a shame. Go check out the mushroom coffee. Go to crockett coffee.com please subscribe Clay we have so many VIP emails coming in here. Let's see people, people standing, standing tall, standing strong for their home city or their, their, their town. VIP email from Ron. There's no place to live like Jupiter close enough to West Palm Beach. Fort Lauderdale. Miami is not far away. I hear great things about Jupiter. Clay, have you been Jupiter?

[Buck Sexton]

I have, but not to spend a substantial amount of time. My point on and for those of you who don't know, we were talking about hey what places have blown up the most since 2000 roughly it's about.

[Clay Travis]

The arc, the run up. It's not about what the best place is, it's about has gotten the, gotten better in the last decade.

[Buck Sexton]

We were talking about decent sized cities. I mean there are a lot of suburban or smaller scale city like Jupiter is not a big place. So if you like the arguments we put out there were Miami, Austin, Nashville, Charlotte, Raleigh, maybe Phoenix. Things that have in the last 25 years gotten progressively better in terms of a place that people want to live and, and certainly there are a lot of nominees rolling in. Like let's see, Matt says love you guys but wow, my heart is hurting today after you shunned the Bold City Jacksonville, Florida. Throw St. Augustine in as a bonus. Great city, great beaches, great people. Don't forget about the Jaguars. Jacksonville is a huge city physically it is so expansive. I think one of the most underrated places in a pro sports city. Jack's Beach. Ever been to Jacksonville Beach Buck?

[Clay Travis]

Oh yeah, very nice.

[Buck Sexton]

Jack's beach is really, really nice. I think under the radar. Now the problem, Jack's beach is not an insubstantial drive into downtown Jacksonville and downtown Jacksonville is still, I would say a work in progress. They need to have more centrality it seems to me there. But in general I do think Jacksonville has improved very much as a city in the last 25 years.

[Clay Travis]

We got a VIP email from Matt says One city that's been on the rise last couple of decades is Fort Wayne, Indiana. Used to be attorneys and bail bondsmen were the only people to go downtown. Now there are so many things to do there, dining, entertainment, recreation. Downtown's doing great. Well, yes. And thank you. Whoa, whoa. In Fort Wayne, Indiana, for picking up the Clay and Buck Show. And I have, you know, Clay, I've been to Fort Wayne twice. I have been to Fort Wayne, and it's a lovely town. So, yes, we will continue to take some of your VIP emails, calls and all the rest of it. We did have Trump weigh in here in the last hour on Thom Tillis wanted to get to that. Senator Tillis said he would not support Ed Martin, who was the interim U.S. attorney in D.C. would not support him to be made the formal permanent U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. And this is what Trump says about Thom Tillis standing in the way.

[Raymond Arroyo]

Senator Tillis has come out against ed Martin as U.S. attorney. Do you have any response to that? Well, it's disappointing because, you know, I know Ed. He's very talented. Crime is down in Washington, D.C. street crime, violent crime by 25%. And it's people have seen, they've noticed a big difference. So I haven't, I didn't know that. But if he, if anybody voted against him, I feel very badly about it, only in the sense that in this short period of time that he's been there, Crime is down 25% in Washington, D.C. but that's really up to the senators. If, if they, you know, feel that way, they have to vote the way they vote. They have to follow their heart and they have to follow their mind.

[Buck Sexton]

Okay.

[Clay Travis]

Pretty gentle from Trump on this one, I have to say. I'm a little surprised.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, very gentle. I think the important thing there is the, what he said about violent crime being down substantially. I think you have to give some credit to the U.S. attorney. I think Trump deserves credit. I think actually Muriel Bowser deserves some credit because she seems to have gotten at least a little bit sane about what needs to happen to make the city of Washington safer. But I just, again, I, Tom Tillis should come on this program. I just, I want to hear from him why he feels that Ed Martin, who already has the job and as Trump just laid out, appears to be doing a good job in that role. Why does he think that Ed Martin shouldn't get the job? I just buck, there's no way, there's no way he defended January 6th defendants is possibly a reason that he could not Support Ed Martin, in my opinion, I mean, to your point, and it is a significant one, everybody deserves the right to a defense. So I can't remember, I'm trying to think somewhere where I've said, oh, this attorney has to be held accountable because of what their defendant was alleged to have done. And I've defended murder victims, I mean, murder people accused of murder, not because I'm in favor of murder. I mean, drug dealers, wife beaters.

[Clay Travis]

Did the alleged murderer get off when you were defending him?

[Buck Sexton]

He was already convicted and I think he's still in prison. It was, I was on his appeal. I was on his appeal. But, but you're, when, when you're a young lawyer, you were assigned, it's kind of a unique spot. When I was in the US Virgin Islands, you are assigned, all lawyers are, because they don't have enough public defenders. You are assigned some criminal cases and you are forced to take them on. And this goes for any lawyer in the U.S. virgin Islands at that time, 20 years ago. And that didn't mean that I agreed with the defendants or that I was in favor of no punishment, but I had an obligation as an attorney to defend them to the best of my ability. So I think the idea of, oh, well, he's defended this person, therefore he can't have a job, is really bad precedent to set.

[Clay Travis]

That's also showing you just how far the overreach went from the Democrats, the left, the anti Trump forces. You can go ask anyone at one of the big law firms out there, you know, the big law firms, they will tell you they banned their people from doing any work related to Trump election stuff. J6 and it was career destroying for people if they tried to go and represent people involved in this. So there was a whole movement within the legal industry to prevent Trump and his people and his supporters from getting a robust and talented defense. Just to show everybody, you know, ACLU didn't have any problems with that.

[Buck Sexton]

And to your point, Thom Tillis voted for Merrick Garland. I think if you voted for Merrick Garland to be Biden's attorney general, how in the world are you opposing anything that Trump puts forward? I just think that is a politically untenable and indefensible position. But Phyllis has that opportunity to come forward. A lot of people also weighing in buck on the real ID requirement, which is starting to play itself out. And, and I, I think this is super interesting. I don't have a real id, and maybe we can have this conversation tomorrow as it becomes more of a reality. But Brian. And Worcester, Mass. Is upset with me. 94.9WTAG News Radio 5 80. Brian CC weighing in.

[Clay Travis]

I clam buck Brian from Worcester, Mass. The real ID story is ridiculous.

[Raymond Arroyo]

They have been telling you that you've had to get a real ID for years.

[Clay Travis]

I mean, literally years.

[Raymond Arroyo]

I got mine. I mean five years ago.

[Clay Travis]

I mean a ridiculous amount of time.

[Raymond Arroyo]

They'Ve given people to get this. So people are still flipping out over this. Now that's a them problem.

[Buck Sexton]

I disagree because I live in the state of Tennessee. I have had a Tennessee driver's license for 30 years. 30 years. I don't have a real ID. I did TSA PreCheck. I have TSA PreCheck. I don't know all this stuff that I had to. I don't remember. I feel like I had to basically give a blood test. I think I had to send in X rays. I think the federal government now, thanks to my TSA PreCheck, knows every single thing about my medical history, basically. I don't. I'm kidding someone. I don't remember all the things that I had to set in. But I have TSA PreCheck. How in the world is that not more than real id? I just am telling you what's going to happen. People are going to show up. People still don't know how to go through x ray machines post 911 and it's been 25 years. You think the real ID is not going to be a huge major issue? Only half the population even has a passport. Now. I have a passport. I guess I can travel with it, but this is ridiculous. I don't see any benefit from this. And I think it's going to be a total cluster.

[Clay Travis]

I think a lot of our audience thinks this is a you problem, Clay. I think I'm good with their real id. I think they're good. I think they're not worried about this.

[Buck Sexton]

You know, I think some people might.

[Clay Travis]

Have been busy betting on sports and going out there having fun, didn't get their real ID in time.

[Buck Sexton]

I've had an ID for 30 years. I got TSA PreCheck done. I know I'm not. I think there are tons of people out there listening to me right now that do not have a real ID because it isn't the default in their state. And so you have a driver's license. You may even have a passport, but. And you may even have TSA PreCheck like me. How in the world do I need to get a special circle on my driver's license in order to be able to fly when I have TSA precheck and a passport. I think the federal government has plenty of information from me about who I am. I'm fired up. I don't think it makes sense.

[Clay Travis]

It goes in the Clay file of tell him what to do and he won't do it. But this time it's the TSA telling him. So it's a little different.

[Buck Sexton]

Trust me. I am not a fan of the tsa. I do not believe by you.

[Clay Travis]

Bite your tongue. We have a lot of Taub in Red States, in particular, we have a lot of TSA people who listen to this show.

[Buck Sexton]

I know because they say hi to me when I come.

[Clay Travis]

My first name. This probably happens to you, too. They're confused for a second, understandably, because they look at my ID or whatever, and it doesn't say Buck. It says James. And with you it's Richard. By the way, the. As we've said, the Richard Travis and James Sexton show.

[Buck Sexton]

Very different.

[Clay Travis]

Sounds like something on. Sounds like something on npr talking about, like, international music of the world or something.

[Buck Sexton]

You know, it would be very popular in the BBC. I think that we would do well with the British Broadcasting license with that name. But I do know there are a lot of TSA people listening and they work there. I don't think that we're actually that much safer because of tsa. A lot of times I go through and I think that person, not you, who listen, I love all of you. That person at TSA does not seem like the person that's going to stop a terrorist from blowing up a plane. I don't know that we're that much safer with tsa. And I still do not understand what the real ID requirement is. I don't. It doesn't make any sense to me. And people are like, well, it's going to keep illegals from flying. No, it isn't. They fly without IDs.

[Clay Travis]

I'm going to confess something here. I started to get a little fired up about this in front of my wife. I was like, this real ID thing is ridiculous. And she says, you have a Florida id. It is real ID compliant. You're fine. And then all of a sudden, I was like, the real ID is not so bad.

[Buck Sexton]

As soon as you found out that by default you had a real id, you didn't care. Yeah, I don't have a real id. And I think there are millions of people out there that are like me that don't have a real id. People say, well, you could go Get. I don't want to spend four days at the dmv. It is impossible to get a DMV appointment right now to be able to get a real ID in Tennessee. So I am going to. I didn't get the COVID shot. I don't think I'm ever going to get the real ID I'm going to be. I'm going to be anti real ID and I'm going to be anti the COVID shot, and I guess I'm going to have to travel with my passport. Uh, even though they have my TSA PreCheck clearance, you can't tell me that the federal government doesn't have enough of my information to allow me to get on an airplane right now. And have you ever shown up without an ID at all? Because I have. They still let you on the plane. You just have to go prove ID Some other way. I didn't have my driver's license. I had to go to the southwest gate. I had to show them, like, eight credit cards or something, and then they let me on the plane. So. So even the requirement of an ID if you happen to show up at the airport and you are like me and sometimes do not have your driver's license because it was in a different pair of pants, I can tell you that it isn't even that necessary.

[Clay Travis]

I don't know if any of you are as fired up about this as Clay. We'll have to see.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm fired up. But you know why? Because we were going to say, why was your ID in a different pair of pants? Because all you young people started wearing tight pants, and my wallet wouldn't even fit in my pants anymore. My wife gets me a new fancy pair of pants. Can't even. It's not even made to fit a wallet anymore. Have you noticed this? You. You probably never got into this skinny business.

[Clay Travis]

This is a very. This is a very unk discussion we're having now. You saying that your wallet is too big to fit in your tight, cool pants.

[Buck Sexton]

I. I am telling you that I don't understand why all you young men decided that you wanted to have the tightest pants on the planet so that your genitals cannot move and you look like ridiculous.

[Clay Travis]

I don't know if you saw this. This is one argument that. Not argument, but this is one point of contention I have with my wife is I like pants. I like pants that aerate, you know, that keep it all free. A little baggy, a little, you know, a little. Little loose. Little loose. My wife says Those pants are too big. All the pants are too big on me. All my pants somehow are too big on me. No matter what, I can never find pants that aren't too big on me.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, well, let's just tee off here. My 14 year old walked through the house the other day. He's in eighth grade. It was like he was wearing Daisy Dukes. I don't understand why all these young men. I was like, hey, those are nice Daisy Dukes you're wearing. You know, go look up dukes of Hazzard, 1983. You look just like Daisy. Like, why are you walking around like basically his whole thigh is hanging out. I don't understand how this became trendy. I blame women because the boys must be doing it because girls like it.

[Clay Travis]

People, people allowed 90s era cargo shorts for men to be thrown under the bus. And we will live to regret that. Okay. A lot of pocket. A lot of pocket coverage with the cargo shorts. Indestructible. They got a hole in them. They just look cooler.

[Buck Sexton]

My mentions are deluged with real ID reactions. But this is. A friend of mine just said she and her husband went to the DMV by me. Two hour wait, no appointments available. And they don't have them. And you get it mailed to you a month later. This is Nashville right now.

[Clay Travis]

Florida is really sympathetic to you Tennessee people on this one where we're really crying crocodile.

[Buck Sexton]

30 years I've had a driver's license. Why can't they just put a circle and a star on it? I don't understand.

[Clay Travis]

Take it up with those Tennessee state reps. Placing self protection devices in your home is a smart, responsible thing to do. Whether you follow our advice on this already or you've got ideas of your own. Look, let me just throw this out there for you. Sabre. So many great home protection products. Clay and I know this company well. We've got their products at home and both of us have wives who like having non lethal self protection devices that they can use easily and they know they're effective. And that's what Sabre gives you. S, A B, R E is how you spell this. This company. And look, I've got a gun safe full of guns. But my wife, she doesn't want to go for the gun. If something happens here. Her first reaction is she wants a non lethal option to protect herself. Pepper spray, the pepper spray launcher. They've got door bars, they've got alarms that are easy to set up. I mean, amazing stuff. When you go to Saber radio dot com, go check out the home defense self defense products they have for you at Sabre. This is who we trust. Saberradio.com sabre radio.com you'll save 15% at that website. Or call 844-824 safe. That's 844-824 safe.

[Buck Sexton]

Keep up with the biggest political comeback in world history on the Team 47 podcast. Clay and Buck highlight Trump replays from the week, Sundays at noon Eastern. Find it on the I Heart radio app or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back. In only 20 seconds left, I'm gonna take all of your real ID shrapnel. Tomorrow we're gonna take some calls on this. We're gonna discuss it all that and more. We love you guys. Appreciate all the feedback. Lots of fun coming Thursday edition. Clay and Buck, we'll see you all then.

[Clay Travis]

Made in America means something to us.

[Buck Sexton]

When you invest 700 billion annually in.

[Clay Travis]

American companies and the 13 million workers and families they support, you're investing in.

[Buck Sexton]

The success of Main Street. That's money powering growth in manufacturing, tech, energy and innovation. And it starts with private equity backing American ambition.

[Clay Travis]

Learn to how private equity keeps American businesses [e-mail] paid for by the American Investment Council.

[Raymond Arroyo]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.