Hour 3 - Doesn't Have to be This Way

Summary

The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show (Hour 3) Episode Title: Doesn't Have to be This Way
Date: September 2, 2025
Podcast Host: iHeartPodcasts

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Episode Overview

This hour of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show dives deep into the pressing issues of violent crime in major U.S. cities—particularly Chicago—and the political response from both parties. Clay and Buck analyze the effectiveness of sending the National Guard into violence-plagued urban areas, the Democrats’ messaging challenges, and the implications for the upcoming election. The hosts also discuss the emerging Democratic leadership bench, notably Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, and examine controversies around his military record. Calls from listeners, including perspectives from the Black community, add additional dimension to the discussion, while the hosts inject their trademark mix of humor, skepticism, and pointed political critique.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Violent Crime in American Cities: Chicago as a Case Study

Timestamps: 01:05-13:21

• Clay Travis opens by citing Chicago’s recent violent Labor Day weekend: 54 shot, 7 dead. He asserts, "The Democrat party has lost its way, and Trump is uniquely hitting on a story that is very positive: I want to drive down the rate of violent crime" (01:05).
• Buck Sexton argues that Democrats are trapped making weak defenses about urban violence: “Trump is doing an objectively good thing. Not even a politically good thing... and the politics of it are favorable to Trump because the Democrats are coming out and they just refuse to say what we all know” (04:05).
• They both reject arguments (like Gov. JB Pritzker's) deflecting to red state crime: “If Pritzker wants to argue that in blue cities, in red states, there are also super high crime rates… I would welcome the National Guard” —Clay (03:12).

Notable Moment

• Referencing Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Labor Day remarks, they mock the dramatic invocation of “defend this land,” with Buck quipping: "Who does he think the National Guard is comprised of? ...They would just be there to assist with law enforcement" (06:56).

2. The Argument for and Against the National Guard Intervention

Timestamps: 05:58-13:21

• Buck outlines the preventative power of visible armed National Guard: “When there are men and women who have, you know, M16s… people are less likely to pull out guns and shoot each other. It’s pretty understandable” (07:09).
• Clay underscores the concept of deterrence: “Even if you’re not directly seeing the armed forces… in the back of your mind, you’re thinking they might be there. When you believe there are consequences for crime… it makes a criminal take a pause” (08:13).
• Both critique Democratic mayors who, instead of offering effective alternative plans, default to “social investment” talk. “They start babbling on about investment, they start babbling on about social workers, and it’s just nonsense. It’s unserious,” says Buck (09:06).

Notable Quote

• “How many people are you willing to let die because you're angry that Trump is trying to provide more security to your city?” —Clay (10:55)

3. Political Framing: Crime, Trump, and Partisan Blindness

Timestamps: 11:25-14:23

• Buck points out the tribal mindset: “People are just saying they hate Trump, they're angry he's president, and anything he does, they want to stop. Right. So it's just a continuation of that” (11:25).
• Clay observes that deflections (“why not Memphis, New Orleans, etc.?”) from Democrats actually legitimize Trump’s approach: “You’re actually just legitimizing the fact that it would be successful. And I give Trump that challenge: why not do it everywhere?” (13:04)

Notable Moment

• Buck and Clay note the irony that Democrats gladly deployed the National Guard for COVID restrictions (to check papers!) but denounce its use for combating violence (13:21).

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4. Caller Perspectives: Black Democrats, Messaging, and Trump

Timestamps: 16:57-19:41

• Caller Kevin from Oklahoma City (a Black Democrat) says party loyalty is often about opposition rather than substance: “Most Democrats, they just hate Republicans, period. And especially Donald Trump. So it doesn’t matter how Jasmine Crockett or anyone else presents themselves, they're going to support it as long as it's against Trump” (17:54).
• Kevin estimates that, one-on-one, about 50% of Black Democrats will reason about politics; the rest "will die on the hill" of hating Republicans and Trump (18:53).
• Clay asks about shifts in Black male voting—Kevin feels the split persists, with facts or policy making little difference for some (19:41).

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5. Democrats' Leadership “Bench”: Gavin Newsom, Wes Moore, and the Bronze Star Controversy

Timestamps: 21:46-27:44

• Clay asserts that, despite his record, Gavin Newsom may be the current de facto face of the party.
• They discuss the emergence of Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, noting optimism on the left about his future—but zero in on Moore’s controversial claims of a Bronze Star:
  • When Moore was pressed about claiming the Bronze Star, his explanations are called “really weak” by Buck (23:54).
  • Clay suspects Moore’s team nurtured the Bronze Star narrative purposefully: “He affirmatively lied in order for that introduction to happen so that he could get credit for something he had not achieved” (25:10).
• Buck likens the episode to past cases of politicians exaggerating or fabricating military service (cites Richard Blumenthal, Hillary Clinton) and notes Democrats are trying to clear the issue early for Moore's potential national run (24:57).

Notable Moment

• Clay offers behind-the-scenes insight: “When you go on Stephen Colbert, they say, hey, how do you want to be introduced?...I think he told them he had it” (25:30).

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6. Democrats, Masculinity, and 2024 Election Guesswork

Timestamps: 27:44-33:04

• The hosts dissect Democratic strategy, speculating about a Newsom-Moore ticket to address party weaknesses with men and project a more “masculine” image (31:06).
• They mock Democrat Tim Walz’s failed attempts to appear rugged/relatable and discuss Kamala Harris’ likely presence on the campaign trail, with banter about attending a Harris event in “future is female” attire.
• Clay predicts: “They recognize that they have a significant issue with men… They will go west coast, east coast with probably the two most masculine, young-ish Democrats on the ticket” (31:54).

Notable Banter

• Buck jokes about disguising themselves for a Kamala VIP event: “I will provide you with a future is female fitted T shirt for you to go in and a little scrunchie for your man bun” (37:10).

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7. Listener Story: The Value of Truth and Military Honors

Timestamps: 39:00-40:00

• Caller Julia from Florida shares a moving family story: when seeking VA benefits for her mother, she discovered her late father had been awarded three Bronze Stars—but he never boasted about it. “My dad...did not need to tell lies about his service to pump himself up” (39:49).
• Clay invites Julia to stay on, promising to try and help recover her father’s medals (39:58).

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Notable Quotes

• Clay Travis (on National Guard):
  • “If Pritzker wants to argue that in blue cities, in red states, there are also super high crime rates… I would welcome the National Guard.” (03:12)
• Buck Sexton (on deterrence):
  • “There’s a reason why bad guys don’t want to do things in front of armed good guys. This is very straightforward.” (07:09)
• Caller Kevin (on Black Democratic loyalty):
  • “Most Democrats, they just hate Republicans, period. And especially Donald Trump.” (17:54)
• Clay Travis (on Wes Moore):
  • “He affirmatively lied in order for that introduction to happen so that he could get credit for something that he had not achieved.” (25:10)
• Caller Julia (on her father):
  • “He did not need to tell lies about his service to pump himself up.” (39:49)

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Quick Reference Timestamps for Major Topics

• Chicago violence & Trump proposal: 01:05–13:21
• National Guard/crime deterrence: 05:58–13:21
• Black community, Democratic loyalty call: 16:57–19:41
• Democratic bench, Wes Moore controversy: 21:46–27:44
• Democrats & masculinity, Kamala Harris: 27:44–33:04
• Listener military honors story: 39:00–40:00

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Tone and Style

• Language: Candid, critical, humorous, off-the-cuff; hosts mix serious political critique with lighthearted banter (“man bun” jokes, VIP event quips).
• Overall atmosphere: Engaged, combative, unapologetically partisan but includes diverse perspectives through listener calls.

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This hour served as a rapid-fire, issue-driven critique of both Democratic city governance and larger party identity, punctuated by listener input and peppered with the duo’s signature wit and skepticism. Anyone concerned with urban crime policy, the current state of U.S. politics heading into the 2024 race, or the drama of modern political branding will find this episode both informative and entertaining.

Transcript

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[Clay Travis]

Welcome back in Tuesday Edition. We hope all of you had fantastic Labor Day weekends. We are back rolling with all of you as we officially enter into the fall calendar season with a lot to discuss. Encourage you as always, go subscribe to the show on YouTube. We are going to be putting more hours of the show up on YouTube in the months ahead and you are going to be able to keep up with us there. That will actually be a great way to keep track of the show as will following us on basically any social media platform out there. You can find me, you can find Buck, you can find the Clay and Buck show. We are across the entire landscape and as we start off the third hour here, I do think looking at Chicago as an example of the Democrat party having lost its way and Trump uniquely hitting on a story that intuitively is very positive, which is, I want to drive down the rate of violent crime across the country right now. Too many people are getting murdered, too many people are getting beaten up. Too many people are getting carjacked, having their property stolen. All of this would be a really good resolution. Um, now this morning, JB Pritzker was walking and being interviewed during his walk and he dodged a question about the extreme rate of violence that took place in Chicago over the weekend. This is cut 29.

[Caller Julia]

You're going to hear people, especially this past weekend, 54 shot, seven dead. Yeah, they're going to say the city's not safe. Would you ask your friends to ride the L after midnight or after, you know, nine o' clock at night, even to get down to the city from o'. Hare.

[Buck Sexton]

Look, big cities have crime. There's no doubt about it. But let's just pay attention to what President Trump is doing targeting Chicago. He's overlooking red states that have much higher crime rates.

[Clay Travis]

Okay, this is a really bad argument. Now, if Pritzker wants to argue that in blue cities, in red states, there are also super high crime rates and the National Guard should be called in there, too. I echo it. Memphis, in my home state, I would welcome the National Guard. I think a lot of you listening in Kansas City or St. Louis or New Orleans would welcome the National Guard in your cities to drive down rates of violent crime. We're going to play a couple of other cuts. Brandon Johnson, the mayor. But Buck, this is an example of trying to make an argument that is very difficult and ultimately comes down to, I'm concerned that Trump is exercising too much power in his effort to drive down violent crime in my community. That is effectively what Trump has got Democrats arguing.

[Buck Sexton]

It's like I said, a win from both sides of the issue. As in, Trump is doing an objectively good thing. Right? Not even a politically good thing, an objectively good thing. And the politics of it are favorable to Trump because the Democrats are coming out and they just refuse to say what we all know. I mean, they refuse to see the reality, which is that it just. It really has to start from this premise. Clay of. It doesn't have to be this way. We don't actually have to have 500 murders a year in Chicago and five or six hundred murders a year in Philadelphia. And you look at some of the recent tallies in these cities, it's just simply unacceptable. And it's year in and year out, this could be changed. Trump wants to change it. And you had the. The mayor of Chicago, Brandon Johnson. I mean, this is just the kind of stuff that you're going to hear from some of these Democrats. He's saying he wants. This is on a Labor Day rally. He called on the citizens of Chicago to def. You know what? I want you to hear this. This is the mayor of our third largest city, Democrat, of course, play 26. Are you prepared to defend this land?

[Caller Kevin]

This land that was built by slaves, A land that was built by indigenous people, a land that is built by workers?

[Buck Sexton]

Are you prepared to defend this land? The people united will always prevail.

[Caller Kevin]

I need you all to stand firm, to stand strong.

[Buck Sexton]

If this president Decides to continue to break this constitution. I, first of all, is he talking about Chicago? He's saying Chicago was built by indigenous people, that it actually wasn't. It was a. It was a fort to fight against indigenous people. But that's a whole other thing.

[Clay Travis]

Not many slaves involved in the construction of Chicago. Yeah, just. Just do a little bit of basic historical research. Just going to toss it out there. Illinois, land of Lincoln, not exactly known for its huge embrace of slavery. And again, for the history nerds out there, most of Chicago burned down in the 1880s. So with the famous cow knocking over the. Knocking over the lantern, and the whole city basically burned down. So Chicago was by and large a city that was built by free people, just FYI. So even the argument of this is stolen land and this is enslaved populace, it's just all bs.

[Buck Sexton]

And I believe that the derivation of the city of Chicago comes from a. An Algonquin word for a. An onion like plant that is quite pungent. Chicaqua.

[Clay Travis]

I think that's actually correct.

[Buck Sexton]

Yes. So there you have it. So we named it for something that has indigenous, indigenous roots, but it was not, in fact, built by indigenous people. But more to the point, defend your city against the National Guard. Who does he think the National Guard is comprised of? Pretty sure it's Americans, last I checked. And defend the city against them makes it sound like they're an invading force that's doing bad things to people. They would just be there to assist with law enforcement. I also, I see all these smug comments in the DC context, even from commentators out there saying, you know, they're not even going into the most dangerous neighborhoods. They're there at, at like, Union Station. There have been people shot within blocks of Union Station. Robbed at Union Station. Traffic shot in Union Station. This actually happens. And it just shows you these people have no idea who are making these comments, what they're. What they're talking about. But also, yeah, it turns out that when there are men and women who have, you know, M16s and who are there observing what's going on, people are less likely to pull out guns and shoot each other. Yeah, it's pretty, Pretty understandable why they say halt, you know, you know, and they. They're calling the cops on. I don't think you want to open up with your pistol on the National Guard. They. There's a reason why bad guys don't want to do things in front of armed good guys. This is very straightforward.

[Clay Travis]

And also, even if you're not directly seeing the armed forces, the security Apparatus in the back of your mind, you're thinking they might be there. Because when you believe that there are consequences for crime, it makes a criminal take a pause and think, oh, maybe the risk of attempting this violent act, maybe the risk of attempting this criminal act is one there will be consequences for. And so there are less violent acts that actually are begun in the first place just by the idea of, hey, they might catch me. And this goes to nypd, right? If you think I might do something that's not very significant, jump, say the turnstile in a subway. If you think I might get caught for doing this, you're less likely to accelerate to some level of crime that is more significant.

[Buck Sexton]

This is why when they were trying to get rid of the plainclothes, there was a high crime specific plane closed unit in the nypd. And this became a big political firestorm. It's. Yeah, because these guys are very, and girls are very useful because if you don't know that they. And the NYPD is very good at this, by the way, at having people who can blend in. If you don't know that that's a cop and you're doing something and you're breaking. But those, those, those plain clothes officers, if you don't break the law, they never, you don't even know they're there. They don't bother you. The point is they're there and it changes the calculation to your point, Clay, of the bad guys. I saw something here in Miami Beach, I gotta say was very Crockett and Tubs, like very, I was very impressed. It was a, I believe it was a Bentley that was actually an undercover cop car. So I've got to assume that it was seized probably in some kind of a drug bust or something. And they, but it had, it was a Bentley with the, with the, the bubble gum machine as they call it, with the blue and red lights or whatever, had pulled somebody over in some kind of. And I was like, you wouldn't see that one coming. You know, you wouldn't usually think that was going to happen. So, you know, there's, there are ways to do this that make it very effective policing. But, but I also, if Brandon Johnson was a serious person, I mean, he's seriously dangerous to the city of Chicago with his policies. But if he was a serious person, he wouldn't say, Trump is evil. Let's just, let's just stop Trump. He would say, guys, I have a better way to bring the crime numbers down. The moment he starts talking about. And every Democrat in a major City starts talking about, they start babbling on about investment, they start babbling on about social workers, and it's just, it's just nonsense. It's unserious.

[Clay Travis]

This is why the data coming out of Washington, D.C. is so important. Because what it begs the question of is if Trump could drive down violent crime in D.C. by around 50% in the three weeks, plus that there have been the distribution of National Guard troops, the support added, how many people are you willing to let die because you're angry that Trump is trying to provide more security to your city, or that.

[Buck Sexton]

You'Re angry that Trump is the president? Let's just call it what is. People are just saying they hate Trump, they're angry he's president, and anything he does, they want to stop. Right. So it's just a continuation of that.

[Clay Travis]

Now, one of the challenges with lowering violent crime is you don't necessarily know what lives you save. There are kids, and I say kids because generally speaking, they're young. There are kids in school this week in Washington, D.C. that would be dead if Donald Trump had not brought the national guard into D.C. we don't know who those kids are, but they are alive today because he did that. That's what the data reflects. Seven people dead in Chicago. I give credit to that media member. 54 people shot over Labor Day weekend. And she asked a pretty basic question. What would you tell people who are afraid to get on a train from o' Hare to go into the city? And he immediately pivots to, well, that's not the real question here. Make look at what Trump is trying to do. I mean, his argument, buck, was he's not going into red states with higher rates of crime. Well, first of all, red states, by and large, don't have higher rates of crime. Blue cities in red states. My home state of Tennessee is a great example. The crime rate in Memphis makes the crime rate in the whole state look huge. So if J.B. pritzker's argument, which begs the question for the follow up there is, hey, Trump needs to be going into more red state cities, which are, of course, blue driven, aren't you actually endorsing that his policies make sense? Like when you're shifting the argument to, well, why isn't he going to Memphis or why isn't he going to New Orleans or why isn't he going to Kansas City or St. Louis? You're actually just legitimizing the fact that it would be successful. And I give Trump that challenge. Why not do it? Let's do it everywhere. Let's see if we can drive down the rate of violent crime in the cities where violent crime is at the highest. All of whom have Democrat mayors.

[Buck Sexton]

And I don't want to divert us too much into this, but it's just a reminder, as I've said, they deployed the National Guard for Covid at airports and all kinds of public venues as if they were going to shoot the virus particles in the air. It was absurd. It was absurd. And they were. Democrats were fine with that, right? Oh, yes. We need the National Guard checking your papers. Checking your papers, everyone, for Covid. That wasn't a police state. They said that wasn't a police state. But having National Guard in a federal province, which is D.C. there to just make sure you can walk down the street and not get shot or carjacked, that they have a. That's tyranny. Someone explain this to me, right? Like someone explain the logic behind this. And Again, you've got two guys who have lived in D.C. we know stuff would happen in D.C. i remember I had a friend who got. Who got robbed at gunpoint and he was a DoD employee. And they were able to track. This is when we all had black or they all had black. Some of them had blackberries, like secure blackberries. And they were able to track the guy down because he had the BlackBerry that he was trying to sell. You know, like that would just happen though.

[Clay Travis]

You just get.

[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

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[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

989898 Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Mic drops that never sounded so good. Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts this Labor Day.

[Commercial Announcer]

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[Buck Sexton]

All right, welcome back into Clay and Buck. And we've got caller Kevin in Oklahoma City wants to weigh in on the issues of the day. What's going on?

[Caller Kevin]

Kevin, Good afternoon.

[Buck Sexton]

Good afternoon, sir.

[Caller Kevin]

Yeah, I heard the snippet you played of Jasmine Crockett and how she tried to sound more to UV Bonnet or whatever. I don't know what her purpose was. But if you ask the question what would black people think about that? And I live here in Oklahoma City and most of my family are Democrats. Many of the black people that I know are Democrats. And I will tell you and you.

[Buck Sexton]

You are black, sir, Right? We haven't identified the caller yet, but you called and you're speaking as a black man.

[Caller Kevin]

I am a black American. That's correct. And I will tell you, here's the thing. Whether you're black, white or green, most Democrats, they just hate Republicans, period. So, and especially Donald Trump. So it doesn't matter how Jasmine Crockett or anyone else presents themselves, they're going to support it. As long as what they're saying is against Trump. They will.

[Buck Sexton]

I think that's, I think that's certainly, that part of it's certainly true. Go ahead.

[Caller Kevin]

They will totally overlook how her speech changes one way or the other as long as she stays consistently against Trump.

[Buck Sexton]

Kevin, can I just ask you, I mean, I agree with you. I'll let Clay weigh in in a second. But just can you get some of your, get some of your family members listen to Clay and Buck, you know, see if you can bring him on the team here? What do you think?

[Caller Kevin]

I would definitely try to get them to listen to anything that is more concerned. And here's what I will say. Most black Democrats, if you do, if you are able to talk to them one on one, you got about a 50% chance of reasoning with one of them because some will listen and they'll be open. Other black people are, they will die on the Hill of hating Republicans and Trump.

[Clay Travis]

Let me ask you this question. Black men around a quarter voted Trump according to the data. We gotta be quick here because we're coming up on a break. Do you feel different conversations now in the wake of 24 than maybe you did in 16 and the black men community in particular?

[Caller Kevin]

I don't. Okay. It's still, it's still about 50, 50 some people will listen to reason. Other ones, they only hate Republicans and they only hate Trump even more. No matter what facts you give them, it just doesn't matter.

[Buck Sexton]

Thank you so much for the call, sir.

[Clay Travis]

Thank you for the call. Appreciate everybody weighing in. Look, we got the NFL and we got college football off and rolling. And that means prize picks you can play in California, Texas, Florida, Georgia. We're going to give you picks. Bucks going to play along if you like football and I know a huge majority of this audience does in fact like football, college and or NFL. We're going to have action for you every weekend. Fun picks. Prizepix.com you get 50 bucks when you use code CLAY. That is prizepix.com code clay prizepix.com code Clay get hooked up today. You can play in California, Texas, Florida, Georgia. We'll give you picks every Thursday or Friday. And we're going to have a little bit more fun than we ordinarily would with football season thanks to prize picks, 50 bucks when you use code. Clay Clay Travis and Buck Sexton on the front lines of truth. Welcome back in Clay Travis, Buck Sexton show. We've been talking about Democrats auditioning different faces of the party going forward. And certainly I would say Gavin Newsom, as awful as pretty much every decision he has made has been, is right now I think probably the closest thing to a face of the Democrat Party. And Buck, that's kind of the Momdani analogy that I would make is Momdani looks and sound about the best that the arguments for the Democrat Party can be. And I think they sort of have come around that Gavin Newsom is the guy. Obviously Mamdani not born here, so he's not eligible to be president. Gavin Newsom is another guy that they are auditioning is the governor of Maryland, Wes Moore. And there is a lot of optimism about Westmore's political future, and they are trying to turn him into a national figure. He's been feuding a bit with Trump over Baltimore crime and numbers, and there's a Bronze Star controversy associated with Wes Moore. He claimed to have gotten a Bronze Star when it did not, in fact happen. Buck, I've read many times, yes, he.

[Buck Sexton]

Claimed many times publicly he was a Bronze Star recipient. And as, as everyone that I saw weighing in on this one, friends of mine from a military background immediately were saying, you either know you got a Bronze Star or you didn't. You're in the military. You know, this is not a, you know, maybe it kind of got thrown into the mix.

[Clay Travis]

So here is what it sounded like. He actually got questioned on this pretty aggressively over the weekend. This was Westmore being asked, hey, what about this Bronze Star argument that you made?

[Buck Sexton]

Listen, you claiming you had a BRONZE.

[Caller Julia]

Star in 2006 when you were applying.

[Buck Sexton]

For a job, why did you do that?

[Wes Moore (clip)]

Well, I think it's, I'm deeply proud of my service to this country and I know my soldiers that I serve with are deeply proud and, and the veteran community is as well. And I think it's pretty common knowledge and, or, you know, common belief that when you're, when you're commanding officers and your superior officers tell you, listen, we put you in and we've gone through everything. So as you're going through your application, include it. I, I included it and I didn't think about it.

[Caller Julia]

But, but in 2008 on PBS, they said they introduced you when I full.

[Buck Sexton]

Saying you had earned a Bronze star medal.

[Caller Julia]

That's 2008, 2010, you were on the.

[Buck Sexton]

Colbert show, when he said you had.

[Caller Julia]

A Bronze Star, you did not correct him. You had to know you did not have one then.

[Buck Sexton]

Well, it was.

[Wes Moore (clip)]

I. I did not go back and, you know, go back and tell the Pentagon, hey, I was told to put this on my application.

[Buck Sexton]

That's really weak. Really weak stuff there on this one, Clay. And here, here's. I think what we both know is going on here. There is a move from the Democrat establishment to create the pathway, the Runway, if you will, for Wes Moore to be a serious presidential contender. We called it here on this show, days after the last election. Okay. It's been very clear, you know, once. Once we saw what happened with Kamala and very clear that this guy would be a move that would make some sense for the Democrats. So what they're doing. And of course they'll pat themselves on the bed. This is like the Jake Tapper book. Like, they'll pat themselves on the back for this honesty. It's very clear what they're doing here. They're trying to just get this out and get this done so early in the process that then the media can all tell themselves, oh, this is already. He's already addressed it. It's already been addressed. It's already been addressed. So they're doing their own oppo as a house cleaning maneuver, if you will, to make sure that this guy can run.

[Clay Travis]

I will say, when he got introduced, this is something that maybe you'd go a little bit behind the curtain here to explain. They told all of those hosts that he had won a Bronze Star, that he had been awarded the Bronze Star, right? When you go on Stephen Colbert, they say, hey, how do you want to be introduced? And I guarantee you, Wes Moore's people said, well, you can talk about the fact that I served, that I was awarded a Bronze Star. And they gave them that information. And when they say, oh, you didn't correct it, I think it's actually more significant than you didn't correct it. I think he told them he had it. And I think many of you out there who served and are familiar with this understand that I also, again, when you're introduced at one of these media events, they say, hey, how do you want to be introduced? Like, I say, hey, I'd like to be, you know, Clay, Travis, Clay and Buck show, also founder of Outkick. I mean, that's typically how people introduce me. He said that he had a Bronze Star. And so the idea that he's like, well, you didn't correct it. No, he affirmatively lied in order for that introduction to happen so that he could get credit for something that he had not achieved.

[Buck Sexton]

Yes. And I think that in general, in an era where people are particularly sensitive about misrepresentation of military records because there have been so many high profile cases. Wasn't they call him Danang? Danang Dick. Right. Richard Blumenthal wasn't the one that was like, unborn. He's like, back in Nam, man, I saw crazy stuff and I was like, you weren't even in. What are you talking about? So Blumenthal, the senator out of Connecticut, he's. He's one. Uh, there have been others who, you know, who just really went to, you know, to. To crazy lengths in order to either inflate their resumes on this stuff. But this is. It's interesting to me, Clay, because it shows you they're trying to get high profile right away, get ahead of this and make this. Make this completely go away. Yeah. Hillary Clinton saying she landed under sniper fire in. In Bosnia.

[Clay Travis]

And then they had the video of.

[Buck Sexton]

A little girl with the. With the wreaths of flowers coming out. Like, if by sniper fire you mean a parade of people being nice to you. Yeah.

[Clay Travis]

Also, Wes Moore didn't have to. A lot of times, these lies, really, if he lied and said, hey, I served in the armed forces, then he didn't. Or he lied, to be fair, like Tim Walls lied about being. Remember when he said he was under fire or whatever the phrase was? And you're like, dude, you were in Italy. You know, I think he served in combat.

[Buck Sexton]

He was risking that they ran out of gnocchi is what he was risking.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah. I mean, look, the. The parmesan might not be. Might not be still in stock when you need to have your again.

[Buck Sexton]

And I want to be. I want to be clear about this, too. You don't have to serve in combat to have served and served honorably. But as anyone who has served, and this is why I always say I served in Iraq, where I served in Afghanistan as a CIA officer or as a civilian analyst, to be very clear, because I never want to be seen as, even for a second, conflating military service with what I did. Clay, I think the people that have done this stuff are overwhelmingly very, one, humble about it and two, very clear. For that reason, if you served in Italy, you were not a combat veteran. Ok. Unless. Unless you were serving in Italy in World War II, you were not a combat veteran. Yes.

[Clay Travis]

And by the way, speaking of Tim Walls, we also have a cut of him. We didn't Even get into this. During the show over the weekend, did you even see any of this? I was primarily focused on college football over the weekend. So I was. But everybody started saying, oh, Trump is unhealthy, Trump is near death. Did you see this thing kind of go viral on social media?

[Buck Sexton]

It was trending all weekend and I, I was. What? Does anyone, you know, not. No way. First of all, if anything was off with the President, you are be getting texts and phone calls from people that are right next to him telling us that there's a problem. Yeah, there's no way. There's no problem. I don't even understand. It just was the, I guess the power of rument or rumor intelligence as, as people call it. It made no sense.

[Clay Travis]

And, and then he went golfing, I think with his granddaughter or grant. He was out golfing all weekend and he's going to talk a little bit later that he'll, we'll see what exactly he's going to say. Is a meeting coming up in the, in the Oval Office here shortly. But this was Tim Walls. Listen to what Tim Wall said about Trump over the weekend. This cut. You get up in the morning and you doom. Scroll through things and although I will.

[Caller Kevin]

Say this, the last few days you woke up thinking there might be news.

[Buck Sexton]

Just saying, just saying there will be news sometime.

[Clay Travis]

Just so you know, there will be news.

[Buck Sexton]

Gross.

[Clay Travis]

What he's referring to is that they were saying Trump was dead.

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, gross.

[Clay Travis]

Really, I mean, to make a joke about that as, hey, haha, the President died. I mean, pretty awful.

[Buck Sexton]

He's a sniveling little coward. I mean, the thing about Walls is he got really well exposed by Kamala. And it also showed you Kamala, who is a horrible candidate, also has horrible political instincts, which is.

[Clay Travis]

And poor judgment.

[Buck Sexton]

That's what I mean, you know, picked Tim Walls, which, what does that, what does that tell you? It was her choice and everybody was very clear that it was her choice. She wanted Tim Walls. Tim Walls was a real, real, I think a real downside actually on that, on that ticket. If anything else. He, he opened up a whole new range and it exposed even more to your point and into your book. Balls.

[Clay Travis]

Yes, there we go.

[Buck Sexton]

It exposed more of a disconnect that Democrats have about masculinity that you could bring this guy out here who normal guys look at and go, he doesn't, he doesn't, that doesn't work. Like his whole, you know, oh, I'm Tim Walls. Look at me with my big shotgun in my Carhartt Jacket. It's like he held a shotgun, like he was holding a ray gun from Mars.

[Clay Travis]

Also, I wear camo. They were like, this is really going to connect with people. No, um, I will say this. I still think Kamal is going to run. I think what they are trending towards is Gavin Newsom, presidential nominee, Westmore vice presidential nominee. And they'll go east and west coast, and they will go. They recognize that they have a significant issue with men. I mean, the Democrat party for young men is an insult to say someone is a Democrat, to say someone is a Kamala voter. And they have to remake that brand. And I think they will go west coast. East coast with probably the two most masculine, young, error. Ish Democrats that are on the ticket.

[Buck Sexton]

I think I was going to say it was very astute analysis, except for the Kamala will run part of it.

[Clay Travis]

I think they'll go double, dude.

[Buck Sexton]

They did it. They did a. A speech right near me here in West Palm Beach. I think it was over the weekend, and it was a conversation. It was a conversation with Kamala. And, you know, I just realized I missed my chance. I should have gone to the vip, you know, martinis and chardonnay beforehand, taking a photo, sat there, had a chat with. With Kamala just to sort of get her. She. I think she. She'd have no idea who either of us were.

[Clay Travis]

I mean, it's just coming to Nashville, too.

[Buck Sexton]

I think you gotta go.

[Clay Travis]

She's going to Birmingham, Alabama. Who in Birmingham is paying a thousand dollars to go watch Kamala Harris? I mean, some of these cities I saw, and I was like, really? Like, that's kind of a record scratch.

[Buck Sexton]

You could do like a. You could do kind of like a white guys for Kamala thing where you just. You got to put some. What are they called? You got to put some. You got to put a man bun. Clay, we got a man bun. You. And then. And then I think we go with maybe plugs. You know, these things. They've seen this. I've never seen a Republican with plugs in their ears. Like, this is the big round thing that people have. Definitely not voting Republican. I think with that, we're going to have somebody in the audience who has plugged. No, I just.

[Clay Travis]

I just gotta wear the future is female T shirt.

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, yeah.

[Clay Travis]

I don't even need to go, super. All I gotta do is get my the future is female T shirt. I'll go in as the male feminist, and I'll just. I do.

[Buck Sexton]

I think you got a man bonnet. I think you future is female T shirt and man bun. You could. They'll probably invite you in the VIP session for free. And you should. I guess here for a. You know. But Clay, you have to tell them. I'm just here to listen. I'm just here to listen. That's what you have to say.

[Clay Travis]

Should I go to the event in Nashville and just go undercover? Go. I think this would be amazing about it.

[Buck Sexton]

I think that we should talk about this. This would be this.

[Clay Travis]

I'm going to look up the dates right now. I might buy the VIP package for the Kamala Harris. Hey, by the way, the VIP baggage for Kamala. No. Tell him what I might get. I'm just saying. I'm just saying. Willie Brown definitely got the V. I.

[Buck Sexton]

Don'T know what you get.

[Clay Travis]

I don't know what's in.

[Buck Sexton]

Stop it. You, you, you, you. Lock it up, sir. You calm that down. All right, all right, look. One of the things I look forward to is Speed gets older is telling about his family tree. It's actually true. I have a. A genealogist out of. Out of. Out of Tennessee who's been working on this. They go way, way back. But that's like 200 years back, 300 years back. I'm talking about how can I introduce Speed to his family tree? From grandparents. Great grandparents. Because there's video and there's photos and all that cool stuff. This is where Legacy Box comes in. They make the whole process super easy. Start by going to their website, legacybox.com buck they walk you through it step by step. The best part is being able to rewatch and share those memories, especially with younger generations who haven't seen them before. Speed. Little Speed. He's going to love seeing all those family stories come to life from these old videos that were digitally transferred by Legacy Box. And he can share them with his own family one day, too. Legacy Box has done this for a million and a half families. He's done this for my family, the Sextons. He's done this for the Travis. They've done this for the Travis's as well. Visit legacybox.com buck that's legacybox.com buck unlock 50% off your order. That's legacybox.com buck.

[Clay Travis]

Keep up with the biggest political comeback in world history. On the Team 47 podcast. Clay and Buck highlight triple trump replays from the week. Sundays at noon Eastern. Find it on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Buck Sexton]

All right, we're closing up shop today on Clay and Buck. Having a lot of fun here. I'm sure some of you have some thoughts especially on that last segment. Clay.

[Clay Travis]

I looked it up, sir. Yes, it up with a VIP package cost. I can't believe this. In my home city of Nashville, they are renting out the Ryman Auditorium which is a legendary venue in downtown Nashville. Cheapest ticket $439. Most expensive ticket $2,761. This is more expensive than a Super bowl ticket would be sometimes on face value. I cannot believe that this thing could actually sell out.

[Buck Sexton]

I kind of will provide. If you get your ticket, I will provide you with a future is female fitted T shirt for you to go in and and and the little scrunchie for your man bun. And I think we, I think we're onto something here, team. We'd have to find a way to be. They probably wouldn't let you record is the problem. So I'd have to see what, what the laws are in Tennessee about. Could you just walk around in a public venue like with recording those Google glasses on or something? Because that would be incredible to be in the view of Clay Travis at the Kamala event with people coming up to you like, aren't you the aren't you the first amendment and boobs guy? Like, it would just be to watch their brains melt in real time. I'm saying we're onto something.

[Clay Travis]

I think I maybe need to go. By the way, Trump alive and well and hosting a press Conference right now in the White House. They have announced that the U.S. space Command headquarters is moving to Huntsville, Alabama. Great town just down the road from where I am and it will be known as Rocket City. So Alabamians, you got a tough loss to Florida State for the Crimson Tide faithful out there. But positive side Huntsville getting a big assist. Great community there.

[Buck Sexton]

Also want to tell you Crockett Coffee, I got my overmountain mug right in my hand. Go to crocketcoffee.com please subscribe. Check it out. I mentioned Clay's book Balls. My book Manufacturing Delusion. The title, because it is now public. It is out will be out in January. Yeah, yeah. It is about mass psychosis and mass hysteria. Things that you know, I'm very passionate about. Clay's book is about balls and he loves sports. So there is that. That is about the balls and the sports and this stuff, which is going to be great. Go get your copies. And Clay and I will have book deals as well for subscribers to go to crockett coffee.com Julia in Florida want to close the show with you. Hi.

[Caller Julia]

How you guys doing?

[Buck Sexton]

We're great.

[Caller Julia]

Oh, I just, I called in because I was just so angry about the Westmore segment because My father died 20 years ago and I just went to apply for VA benefits for my mom because she's possibly need to go into a nursing home and I had to get all the discharge papers together and I'm reading the discharge papers. My dad was awarded three bronze stars. He never spoke about it. Both me and my brother were like what? And we're like to my mom, where are they? And she's like, I don't know. They were lost a long time ago. And so here's my dad who loved this country and he was a great man in his own right. He did not need to tell lies about his service to pump himself up. I, I, I was, I was so.

[Clay Travis]

I love this Julie. And we gotta come up on a hard out. Will you stay on? I bet somebody in the government can get you those bronze stars for your dad in his honor. If you'll stay on with us this Labor Day.

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