The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Hour 3 - Julie Kelly on the Pipe Bomber

Date: December 4, 2025
Podcast: The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
Host: iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

This episode delves into the breaking arrest in the long-unsolved case of the January 5, 2021, D.C. pipe bomber, whose devices were left outside the RNC and DNC the day before the January 6th U.S. Capitol riot. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton analyze the details and political implications of the arrest, question why previous investigations stalled, and feature an in-depth interview with Julie Kelly—an investigative journalist who has tracked the pipe bomber story for years. The episode interrogates law enforcement priorities, examines new evidence, and confronts narratives built around January 6th.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Arrest: A Major Case Break

Segment Start: [02:36]

• The DOJ and FBI jointly announce the arrest of Brian Cole Jr. for allegedly planting pipe bombs outside the RNC and DNC on January 5, 2021.
• Cole is charged under 18 USC 844 (use of an explosive device).
• The investigation is ongoing, with multiple agencies involved and more possible charges pending.
• AG Pam Bondi’s statement:

  "Early this morning, Brian Cole Jr. was arrested and charged with placing the pipe bombs at the RNC and the DNC on January 5, 2021." ([03:51])

2. Contrasting Law Enforcement Responses: Jan 6 vs. Pipe Bomber

Segment Start: [04:49]

• Clay and Buck draw strong contrasts between the aggressive prosecution of January 6th defendants (even minor participants) versus the years-long delay in solving the pipe bomber case.
• The hosts argue the Biden administration prioritized pursuing Trump supporters over investigating the pipe bomber, theorizing political motivation.
• Clay Travis:

  "If all they had to do was go back over and commit investigation resources to all of the evidence that was already there... why didn’t they do this in the Biden administration?" ([05:36])

3. Political Narratives and the Pipe Bomber Story

Segment Start: [07:52]

• Buck asserts the story was unlikely to align with the mainstream January 6th “insurrection” narrative and was thus deprioritized under previous FBI leadership.
• Buck Sexton:

  "If you upset Democrats...the only riot that has ever upset them is January 6th. The only riot that wasn’t the voice of the people being heard was January 6th. Well what the heck was going on with the pipe bomber the day before?" ([11:39])

4. The FBI’s Shift Under New Leadership

Segment Start: [10:11]

• On-air, cut from FBI Director Cash Patel thanks the new investigation team and credits the shift in approach to fresh leadership:

  "We did not discover any new information. What we did... brought in a new team of investigators and experts, reexamined every piece of evidence, sifted through all the data—something that the prior administration refused and failed to do." ([10:02–10:14])

5. Motivation and Identity of the Suspect

Segment Start: [26:33] and [31:19]

• Released court documents allege:
  • Cole used his credit cards to buy bomb components.
  • Cell phone data places him at the RNC/DNC at the relevant times.
  • Surveillance matches his appearance.
• The hosts quickly observe that Cole is a young Black man from Virginia, with potential links to left-wing politics or Antifa—conflicting with earlier implications that a MAGA supporter was responsible.
• Clay Travis:

  "He is a young black man, Brian Cole Jr. And the indications that he is a die hard Trump supporter... not to be true." ([27:32])

6. Julie Kelly Interview: Investigative Depth and Ramifications

Segment Start: [25:16], [28:55], [34:20], [35:10], [36:35]

• Kelly details how the investigation into the pipe bombings was robust in early 2021, then seemed to fade inexplicably.
• She strongly implies a deliberate stall due to the suspect not fitting the preferred political narrative.
• Julie Kelly:

  "Why Chris Wray’s DOJ, Joe Biden’s Department of Justice completely dropped this matter... We have to believe at this point... [the suspect] was linked to Antifa or that anti-fascist movement—and was not a MAGA person..." ([25:16])

• Kelly emphasizes that if the public had learned earlier about the suspect’s identity, the entire January 6th “insurrection” narrative could have unraveled.
• She flags possible legal ramifications for January 6th prosecutions if evidence was withheld, and the significant cover-up this suggests.
• Julie Kelly:

  "This is a huge cover up on a massive scale of Chris Wray’s FBI and Joe Biden... J6 defendants could have used something like this as exculpatory evidence..." ([28:55])

7. The Scandal, Cover-Up, and Ongoing Questions

Segment Start: [34:20]

• The FBI only needed diligence, not new evidence, to identify Cole—suggesting intentional negligence under prior leadership.
• Kelly and Travis query possible wider conspiracies or additional actors, noting the frequency of “lone wolf” explanations in politically charged violence.
• Discussion examines questions surrounding Kamala Harris’ proximity to a pipe bomb and inconsistent security reactions.
• Julie Kelly:

  "This was not a sophisticated operation that this kid did on his own. Who was he working at, whose behest?" ([37:39])

8. The Broader Impact on January 6th Narrative

Segment Start: [36:04]

• The arrest potentially “seismically” disrupts the established Jan 6 narrative, particularly the portrayal of a so-called white supremacist insurrection.
• Clay Travis:

  "At a minimum, this is destructive to the narrative of Jan 6 in a seismic way..." ([39:15])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Buck Sexton [11:39]:
  "The only riot that has ever upset them is January 6th. The only riot that wasn't the voice of the people being heard was January 6th. Well what the heck was going on with the pipe bomber the day before?"

• Clay Travis [13:10]:
  "If you want to say that [Jan 6] was the most dangerous thing that’s happened...since the Civil War...wouldn't you want to find the guy that was trying to commit the greatest act of violence on January 6th?"

• Julie Kelly [28:55]:
  "This is a huge cover up on a massive scale of Chris Wray's FBI and Joe Biden, Merrick Garland's DOJ keeping this from the American people, keeping it out of legal proceedings."

• Julie Kelly [36:35]:
  "There would be no January 6th insurrection narrative. It would have been over. Yeah, they could not allow that to happen. And this is a scandal of massive proportion and that should be the biggest takeaway."

Important Timestamps

• [02:36] – Episode begins; news of pipe bomber arrest
• [03:51] – Attorney General Bondi’s press conference statement
• [10:02–10:14] – FBI Director Cash Patel on investigative process
• [13:10] – Discussion on investigative priorities and White House objectives
• [25:16] – Julie Kelly joins the show; outlines the investigative lapse
• [28:55] – Kelly elaborates on political motives and cover-up
• [31:19] – New evidence from court filings read live on-air
• [34:20] – Kelly discusses ramifications for J6 narrative and legal cases

Tone and Style

The episode maintains a high-energy, urgent tone—combining news analysis, pointed questioning, and investigative commentary. Both hosts use a mix of skepticism and assertive critique, at times adopting a conspiratorial edge regarding government motivations. Julie Kelly provides detailed journalistic insight with a sense of vindication, pressing the case for a politically motivated delay in the pipe bomber probe.

Summary

In this major news episode, Travis and Sexton interrogate the long-deferred arrest of the D.C. pipe bomber, lambaste past FBI inaction, and suggest the stalling was deliberate to protect the prevailing January 6 narrative of an insurrection by Trump supporters. Julie Kelly, a leading investigative journalist on the story, insists the facts indicate a cover-up of epic scope, as new leadership quickly solved the case using old evidence that had languished. The discussion closes by predicting the arrest will reverberate through public understanding of January 6 and partisan politics, opening hard questions about law enforcement priorities and the suppression of inconvenient facts.