Hour 3 - Liberation Day

Summary

The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show: Hour 3 - Liberation Day Summary

Release Date: April 2, 2025

In the third hour of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show," hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton delve into pressing societal and economic issues, interweaving listener perspectives with expert insights. The episode primarily focuses on a controversial case in Augusta, Georgia, discussions on evolving parenting standards, and President Trump's anticipated "Liberation Day" concerning trade tariffs.

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1. The Augusta, Georgia Child Abandonment Case

Overview of the Incident

The episode opens with a recap of a contentious case involving a 24-year-old African American father from Augusta, Georgia. The father was arrested after leaving his children—aged 10, 6, and 1—in a McDonald's playground while attending a job interview. The situation has sparked widespread debate, with opinions polarized over the appropriateness of the arrest.

Law Enforcement Perspectives

Buck Sexton introduces Roman, a veteran police officer from Boston, who provides clarity on Massachusetts' stance:

Roman (Boston Police Officer) [00:24:12]: "In Massachusetts, the child abandonment laws don't specifically state an age. It's done on a case-by-case basis and is up to the discretion of the officer."

Roman emphasizes that factors such as the children's condition, cleanliness, and the father's demeanor play crucial roles in decision-making. He underscores the absence of a strict age threshold, highlighting the nuanced approach law enforcement must take.

Listener Experiences and Opinions

The hosts field calls from various listeners, each offering unique viewpoints:

• Taylor from Utah [00:35:00]: Shares a personal anecdote where authorities misunderstood Utah's "helicopter parenting" law, leading to a tense encounter after his family left a young child unattended briefly.

  Taylor [00:35:29]: "I can send my five-year-old down to the bus stop on his own. It's my determination as a parent at what age that I can leave my kids at home alone."

• Bob from Pennsylvania [00:46:00]: A seasoned investigator in child welfare, Bob emphasizes the necessity of police intervention in such cases to protect children from potential harm.

  Bob [00:46:03]: "We got to protect the children."

• Debbie from Illinois [00:50:35]: Points out the variability in state laws, noting that Illinois requires children to be at least 14 years old to be left alone legally.

  Debbie [00:50:35]: "Different states have different statutes on this."

• Virginia from Rhode Island [00:52:19]: Criticizes the American lack of a high-trust society, suggesting that community members should take more responsibility rather than immediately resorting to law enforcement.

  Virginia [00:52:19]: "In Warsaw, the babushka would be expected to watch the kids of some neighbor."

• Michelle from Cincinnati [00:56:48]: Highlights concerns about young children handling emergencies without adult supervision, stressing the unpredictability of situations involving multiple young children.

  Michelle [00:56:48]: "What if that baby was just eating solids and the six-year-old thought, oh, he could take this little piece of chicken nugget and the baby chokes on that."

Hosts' Reflections

Clay and Buck reflect on the evolving nature of parenting, contrasting past freedoms with today's heightened vigilance:

Clay [00:06:18]: "A lot of parents out there are hyper vigilant in a way that they were not when we were kids."

Buck [00:06:26]: "I've seen parents that have the kid... on like the little harness... like they're going spelunking or something."

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2. Shifting Paradigms in Parenting

Helicopter Parenting vs. Traditional Approaches

The discussion transitions into a broader examination of parenting styles. Clay reminisces about his upbringing, where children had more independence:

Clay [00:06:33]: "I would get on the bus and every parent... every kid's different. Fifth-grade ride home, empty house... watch television until my family got home."

Contrastingly, Buck shares anecdotes about his grandfather's self-sufficiency during the 1930s:

Buck [00:07:18]: "My grandfather would drive the truck at like 10 or 11 years old. There were no cars."

Cultural Differences in Trust and Safety

Clay draws from his recent trip to Israel, observing the stark differences in how societies entrust children with independence:

Clay [00:07:25]: "One of the women... her 14-year-old daughter hitchhikes, and it's very common."

Buck underscores the disparity in trust levels between high-trust societies and places with higher safety risks:

Buck [00:07:44]: "These are high trust societies... a six-year-old kid walking around the streets by himself in Helsinki versus Culiacan, Mexico."

Implications for American Society

The hosts express concern over America's inability to foster a high-trust environment, which could enhance community safety and reduce reliance on law enforcement:

Buck [00:07:54]: "We are not a high trust society the way we should be."

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3. Liberation Day and Trump's Trade Policies

Introduction to Liberation Day

Buck Sexton introduces "Liberation Day," a significant event spearheaded by President Trump aimed at overhauling America's trade policies through the implementation of new tariffs.

Buck [00:59:35]: "Liberation Day is today... we're looking at some of the big tariffs going into effect."

Economic Rationale Behind Tariffs

Economist Stephen Moore's insights form the backbone of the discussion, elucidating the theory that reciprocal tariffs can level the playing field for American manufacturers:

Buck [00:59:38]: "Our tariffs are about 3, 4, or 5% and many other countries are above 20%. It's not a fair trading system right now."

Clay and Buck critique the traditional free trade doctrine, arguing that it often disadvantages American producers when not executed reciprocally.

Clay [01:20:39]: "I never hear from the people that believe very much in it... Theoretically it should be great for everybody. But when you're talking about reciprocal tariffs, why should we just sit here and continue to have our producers and manufacturers disadvantaged?"

Potential Outcomes and Market Reactions

Clay speculates on the immediate market reactions, noting slight upticks possibly due to anticipated tariff impacts:

Clay [01:25:11]: "Usually the stock market has already priced in what the likely outcome of something is... see, the stock market up a little bit today."

Buck remains cautiously optimistic, emphasizing Trump's track record in successfully renegotiating trade agreements:

Buck [01:27:27]: "Trump has been the only president that has advanced backbone to stand up to our allies and adversaries alike and say, we have to level the playing field."

Challenges Ahead

Clay acknowledges the complexity of executing such comprehensive trade reforms, especially in the context of global economic interdependencies:

Clay [01:28:20]: "If China invaded Taiwan, the entire global economy would collapse. If we said, China, we're cutting you off, we don't have the ability to do that."

Buck echoes these sentiments, referencing the difficulties faced in curbing Russia's economic influence during recent conflicts:

Buck [01:28:11]: "We were largely unsuccessful in cutting Russia off. It didn't stop them, it didn't slow them."

Long-Term Implications

The hosts discuss the broader implications of Trump's trade policies on national security and technological advancement:

Buck [01:29:43]: "We need the domestic industry to be able to support a defense complex here that is increasingly about material and technology and precision-guided everything and AI."

Clay ties in the importance of maintaining manufacturing capabilities to support future warfare technologies:

Clay [01:30:03]: "The future of warfare is really going to be technology and robotics and manufacturing."

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4. Tribute to Val Kilmer

The episode takes a somber turn as Buck Sexton pays homage to the late Val Kilmer, a beloved actor known for iconic roles in "Tombstone," "Heat," and "Top Gun."

Buck [01:36:22]: "He was a great actor and... Tombstone is a great rewatchable. His depiction of Doc Holliday is iconic."

Clay and Buck reflect on Kilmer's enduring legacy and his authentic portrayal of characters battling personal demons:

Clay [01:38:20]: "I think Tombstone is so well done... that performance was unbelievable."

Buck highlights Kilmer's bravery in showcasing his real-life struggles in his final performances:

Buck [01:38:56]: "He was battling cancer, and Tom Cruise asked him, and... that's part of the standout emotional scene in that movie."

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5. Conclusion and Final Thoughts

As the episode draws to a close, Clay and Buck reiterate the importance of understanding evolving societal norms and staying informed about significant policy changes like Liberation Day. They emphasize the need for community trust and robust economic strategies to safeguard America's future.

Clay [01:39:57]: "We need to put the American economy and the American worker on a sound footing for years to come."

Buck adds a final note on personal developments and tributes, maintaining a balance between professional discourse and personal reflections.

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Key Takeaways:

• Child Abandonment Laws: Vary significantly across states, with enforcement hinging on discretion and specific circumstances.

• Parenting Evolution: There's a noticeable shift from traditional independence to more protective "helicopter parenting" in contemporary society.

• Liberation Day Tariffs: President Trump's initiative aims to rectify perceived unfair trade practices through reciprocal tariffs, potentially reshaping the American economic landscape.

• Manufacturing and National Security: Emphasizing domestic manufacturing is crucial for both economic resilience and national defense capabilities.

• Cultural Tributes: Honoring influential figures like Val Kilmer underscores the show's commitment to celebrating impactful personalities.

This episode of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" offers a comprehensive exploration of pertinent societal issues, enriched by diverse listener perspectives and informed by expert analysis. Whether discussing the intricacies of child welfare laws or the complexities of international trade policies, Clay and Buck provide listeners with thoughtful commentary and actionable insights.

Transcript

[Clay Travis]

It is Ryan Seacrest here. There was a recent social media trend which consisted of flying on a plane with no music, no movies, no entertainment. But a better trend would be going to chumbacasino.com it's like having a mini social casino in your pocket. Chumba casino has over 100 online casino style games, all absolutely free. It's the most fun you can have online and on a plane. So grab your free welcome bonus [e-mail] sponsored by Chumba Casino.

[Buck Sexton]

No purchase necessary VGW Group Void where prohibited by law 21 + terms and conditions apply. Welcome in third hour of clay and Buck kicks off right now. And just letting you know where we're going here. We're going to talk about Liberation Day as Trump is calling it in just a moment. Tariffs, what's going on? The in a sense remaking and molding of the American economy as it pertains to trade, which obviously affects the economy overall. We will dive into that momentarily. But first up, remember last hour we're talking about this, the basics of the case. A father, African American, 24 years old, Augusta, Georgia, 10 year old, 6 year old, 1 year old, he's going for an interview. He leaves his kids in a McDonald's playground attached to a McDonald's restaurant, comes back, he's arrested. And a lot of people are going back and forth on this. We weren't there. We don't have all the details but wanted to hear from you. This is interesting way to and we got a lot of calls, a lot of VIP emails. So funny Clay. We talk about like how do we end the war with Ukraine. And like we get some calls, we talk about like how old can you be and as a parent or how old can your kid be as a parent and you let them in public and people are fired up. So a lot of lines lit and a lot of VIPs and otherwise. Let's take Roman, he's a cop in Boston, wants to weigh in on how this factors in Massachusetts. Thanks, Roman. Hey, good afternoon guys. How you doing? Good, good. Thanks for listening. Thanks for calling in. Okay. In Massachusetts and I've been a cop for 29 years in the city in the greater Boston area. In Massachusetts, the child abandonment laws don't specific do not specifically state an age. That's done on a case by case basis. And it's up to the discretion of the officer. I think where this kid got in trouble was with the one year old because 10 and six year old, you know what I mean? People see a one Year old with them for a prolonged, you know, with a 10 and you know, two other younger kids, you know, for a prolonged period of time, they, they start thinking and if the cops arrived personally, would I have arrested the guy? I don't know. I don't know. It depends he's going for a job if he's a hard worker. You have to see the condition of the children, what they look like, if they were clean, if they're well kept. But that, that's, that's all discretionary. I didn't see. That's what I, by the way, Roman, that's what I figured it would be because I've never heard of a hard line number in terms of the age. So it's, it's exactly what you're bringing because obviously you do this. It's a whole range of factors. Yeah, indeed, indeed. You got to take in every single little thing. Even the appearance of the kids. Are they clean? Do they look malnourished?

[Clay Travis]

You know what, you know also Roman, what time was this? Because most 10 and 6 year olds should be in school. So I'm presuming that this was, you know, 4:00 in the afternoon or something as opposed to 10:00am because that would factor in. But I think Roman, for you, do you have kids?

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, I do, yeah.

[Clay Travis]

So the one year old, I think for most dads and moms out there is the, that's tough, right? The 10 and 6 year old at a play area. I can understand how you leave them for 20 or 25 minutes if you absolutely positively were so desperate that you had to do something else. But that, that's why I want more details.

[Buck Sexton]

Thanks for bringing the law enforcement perspective to it, Roman and thank you for listening. Taylor in Utah wants to weigh in on this one. What's going on? Taylor playing buck. How are you guys? We're good, thank you for. Are you listening in Salt Lake, where are you? Yeah, we're, I'm close to Salt Lake. Just another freedom loving patriot where we love to shoot our guns and cannons out here in Utah. Fantastic. Well, you know, we're number anywhere close to Salt Lake, so that makes us very happy. Thank you for listening. What's on your mind? So I had an incident similar to this about four or five years ago. My son, my wife had to run to the store real quick and it was. I had to work on a Saturday and she called and asked whether or not to leave him at home. I said yeah, he's going to be fine. You know, we're, you're going to be five minutes down the road. I'm 20 minutes down the road working. It's not a big deal. Her disgruntled aunt called the cops on us because we left him at home. He was 5, a month away from turning 6. And the cop showed up. It was a big to do and it took me a while to clean up my tools and get to the house and, and the cops were obviously didn't understand the law. We've got a law here in Utah, the helicopter parenting law, where it's the parents discretion at which age that you can leave your child at home alone. So I got pretty hot and heavy with officers because they didn't understand the law. They were threatening to arrest me. I got pretty loud and he was like, well, sir, now I'm going to arrest you for disorderly conduct. I'm like, sir, I'm, I'm in my own home. I said it's my discretion that I can leave my five year old at home alone. I can send my five year old, you know, down to the bus stop on his own. It's my determination as a parent at what age that I can leave my kids at home alone, you know, and he had, he had the Alexa that he could have called us from. We told the neighbors that we were going to be gone for just a bit. And so, yeah, I think it's completely. Well, you knew the law and yeah, I, I, I interesting that that's that the cops and you had that kind of an exchange. Thank you for calling in. Clay, you got something on this?

[Clay Travis]

No. Yeah, I mean, I just think so much of this. Every parent is going to say the difference between how kids were treated in the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, in terms of the freedom of movement versus today. I think that his reference of the helicopter parenting. There's a lot of parents out there that are hyper, hyper vigilant in a way that they were not when we were kids.

[Buck Sexton]

I've seen parents that have the kid and I, I'm not. If you do this, this is your choice. But have you ever seen the parents who have the kids that are on like the leash?

[Clay Travis]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

Like they like the kids are running around and they're on like the little harness with, you know, they look like they're going spelunking or something.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah, I mean it's, it, it's great. I do think again, we were talking a little bit. You lived in New York City. I grew up in the Nashville area. I would get on the bus and every, every parent Every kid's different. Fifth grade ride home, empty house. Both my parents worked, walk home from the bus stop, go into the house and unlock the door and then sit and usually watch like television until my family got home.

[Buck Sexton]

My grandfather on one side who passed away, you know, a while ago, but you know, World War II veteran, greatest generation guy. One of the, one of those guys, he, I think he told me that he would drive the truck. His family had like a place, you know, in upstate New York and they had land and he said he'd drive the truck at like 10 or 11 years old.

[Clay Travis]

I mean he was just like, he's.

[Buck Sexton]

Like, there were no cars. He's like, there's no. Now this was the 19, I don't know, 1930s. Yeah, 1930s.

[Clay Travis]

But when I just came back from Israel, I was stunned by how many young kids, they walk everywhere. They said that one of the women at the IFCJ said her 14 year old daughter hitchhikes and it's very common that she said. And it's interesting, like cultures are different.

[Buck Sexton]

These are high trust societies. What we get to when you, you know, if, if a, I'm telling you, if a, if a six year old kid is walking around the streets by himself in Helsinki versus a 6 year old kid walking around the streets by himself, God forbid, in, you know, Culiacan, Mexico. Yeah, it's just, you know, the risk factors, it's just reality. The risk factors of safety are incredibly different. And it's a shame that America isn't a country where, you know, you have to be vigilant about, I mean, we shouldn't have to be so vigilant about protecting our kids from, you know, I'm not talking about like electrical sockets and falling down. I mean like predators and you know, bad people, kidnappers. AI is rewriting the business playbook with productivity boosts and faster decision making coming to every industry. If you're not thinking about AI, you can bet your competition is. This is not where you want to drop the ball. But AI requires a lot of compute power and with most cloud platforms, the cost for your AI workloads can spiral. That is, unless you're running on OCI Oracle cloud infrastructure. This was the cloud built for AI, a blazing, fast, enterprise grade platform for your infrastructure, database, apps and all your AI workloads. OCI costs 50% less than other major hyperscalers for compute, 70% less for storage and 80% less for networking. Thousands of businesses have already scored with oci, including Vodafone, Thomson Reuters and Suno AI now the ball's in your court right now. Oracle can cut your current cloud bill in half if you move to OCI.

[Clay Travis]

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[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

Ryan Seacrest here. There was a recent social media trend which consisted of flying on a plane with no music, no movies, no entertainment. But a better trend would be going to chumbacasino.com it's like having a mini social casino in your pocket. Chumba casino has over 100 online casino style games, all absolutely free. It's the most fun you can have online and on a plane. So grab your free welcome bonus [e-mail] sponsored by Chumba Casino.

[Buck Sexton]

No purchase necessary VGW Group void where prohibited by law. 21/ Terms and Conditions apply.

[Clay Travis]

I'm Nate Silver.

[Buck Sexton]

And I'm Maria Konnikova. We're both journalists and professional poker players. And on our podcast Risky Business, we talk about taking risks in everything from poker to politics.

[Clay Travis]

And we talk about betting.

[Buck Sexton]

From betting on elections to betting on your favorite basketball team. We've learned a lot about taking risks.

[Clay Travis]

Through our own research and sometimes even our own bets.

[Buck Sexton]

And we share what we've learned with you. Are you still doing sports betting? I had no idea that you'd wagered over a million dollars for your research.

[Clay Travis]

I bet almost the entirety of the.

[Buck Sexton]

20, 22, 23 NBA season, all the.

[Clay Travis]

Regular season, then about half the playoffs.

[Buck Sexton]

And I learned that, I mean, it's probably what I should have expected, but I learned that it's pretty hard.

[Clay Travis]

I went on a huge heater at the start of the NBA season where it was up like 70,000 bucks.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm like, man, I'm really good at the sports betting stuff. But then, but then things change. Now that March Madness is upon us, we're talking bracket strategies and a whole lot more. Join us and listen to Risky business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All right, welcome back. Sorry about that, everybody. If we sounded a little fritzy there for a second, it's because, well, you know, south florid technology. If any of you happen to work for Breeze Line, maybe you could give me a call and tell me how you can fix the Internet in South Florida. That would be fantastic. Anyway, prize picks, my friends. Look, I'm not a sports expert, but I know that this weekend's NCAA Final Four round of games not to be missed. When you're watching or listening to each of the two games this Saturday or the championship game on Monday night, make sure you have the Prize Picks app downloaded on your phone. Prizepix is the app. It's all about the players, not the teams. On prizepix, you have easy decisions to make, choosing more or less on their projection for every player in the matchups you're following look so easy that I use it. I have fun with it. Clay and I are going head to head with March Madness. But Prize Picks is the app you want to be using for your picks. Gives you fast withdrawal, secure and safe, and get your money as quickly as 15 minutes. You can use your MasterCard, Visa, or Discover card for quick and easy deposits. Download the app today. Use my name Buck as your code to get $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup. Use code BUCK to get $50 instantly after you Play your first $5 lineup. Price picks Run your game. All right, we have calls we wanted to get to here. We'll finish up these calls and we'll. We got other topics we wanted to hit. We got Bob in Pennsylvania. Bob, go ahead. Hey, guys. First of all, it's an honor to speak to two patriots. I'm calling from Pennsylvania. Thank you. We're honored. We're honored to speak to you and thank you for holding for us. We appreciate you. Thank you, sir. Thank you, Sir. I spent 20 years investigating child welfare cases from 79 to 99, and I saw everything from A to Z and any conceivable factor can happen. I saw the worst thing possibly happen. So the thing about the gentleman who was 24 being arrested, here's the way I. There's no way to dance around this. Nothing. The authorities of the police have to be summoned to something like this. The whole idea is everything needs to be checked out. If the children are held in custody and if something doesn't jive real quick, then that could. That, that could be very brief. It could be a day. It could be longer than that. But you can't let something like this slide because the worst possible scenario can and will and has happened in these situations. Believe me, guys, I've seen it is does this gentleman belong in jail at that point? It depends on what happened during the investigation. If you know if there was contraband, if the guy was sure he was at a job interview, I get that. But it depends on the demeanor of the guy, what he did, how he cooperated, who knows. We don't know. These are all variables but the bottom line, my bottom line in this, we got to protect the children.

[Clay Travis]

No doubt.

[Buck Sexton]

Absolutely. Absolutely. Thank you for. Look, we got all this law enforcement expertise in this audience. We appreciate you calling in and filling us in on this. Like the officer in Boston said, there's no law in Boston. It's really about the age specifically. You can be left alone, but it's about the totality of everything going on. Are the, you know, is there, which, which makes sense. Right. But VIP listener Debbie says in Illinois, see, this is where you realize states have these things called laws that are up to the states. And you know, we often think so much about federal law, but state laws are, you know, very important. And Illinois, you have to be 14 before you can legally be left alone. So I would have thought, though, I would have thought 13 was the. It's 14 in Illinois, according to VIP listener Debbie. So different states have different statutes on this.

[Clay Travis]

By the way, a little bit of an update. I got a, an email. They're going to send more details about this. We're in on an Augusta. I think there may be some more details that add flavor to this story. So just FYI, just may get that even before the show is out.

[Buck Sexton]

This guy's now got, he's got the GoFundMe Antonio Brown, the very famous football.

[Clay Travis]

Player, wide receiver, formerly for the Steelers, among other teams.

[Buck Sexton]

My beloved Steelers.

[Clay Travis]

It is a story that I think a lot of people react to in a positive way. And again, I just want to know all the further circumstances. We got a lot of different police officers who've weighed in. How about grandma's Virginia in Middletown, Rhode island, how do you react to this story? Virginia?

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, I, I think there's something you haven't talked about. The person who called the police could have taken another tact and could have stayed with the children and kept an eye on them and waited for the father to come back to make sure everything was okay.

[Clay Travis]

So that is a very by the way, sorry to cut you off, but that is a very grandma answer.

[Buck Sexton]

Where in a high trust society, that wouldn't be considered strange at all. Honestly, I think in Warsaw, the, you know, the babushka would be expected to watch the kids of some neighbor. But you know, in America, we are not a high trust society the way we should be. I mean, and I, by the way, I understand why we're not because there's a lot of bad people out there and we have a crime and a.

[Clay Travis]

Lot of violent crime, I think. So what Virginia, I think you're Raising a really interesting question, which is who called the police? Because was it another parent in the playground area of the McDonald's or was it a McDonald's employee? And I bet you also kind of have the reaction that I do. Ten and six year old, very different than the one year old, that one year old. I mean it's hard to take control and, and parent a 1 year old. For grown adults sometimes we don't know if the kid was crying, we don't know if the kid was. May need a diaper change. How long were the. There's so many details that to me need to be determined before you can figure out everything. Thank you for that call. Michelle in Cincinnati, what do you think?

[Buck Sexton]

Hi, thank you for taking my call. You guys are awesome. And buck early, congratulations on your impending arrival to the family. So as a mom, I just wanted to, I guess really talk about, you know, the fact that this is a 24 year old young man and 24, although considered an adult, their prefrontal cortex is still not fully developed. And so this is, to me, it's just no matter the best of intentions and this young man wanted a job and that's all fantastic and wonderful to support his family, but like we've said, there are creepy crawlers out there. You never know what might happen. It could have happened in the first ten minutes after he left. Or you have a ten and a six year old trying to tend to their one year old sibling. What if that baby was just eating solids and the six year old thought, oh, he could take this little piece of chicken nugget and the baby chokes on that. And I tell you something, Michelle, one of the. Sorry, sorry to jump in, but just, you know, I've actually had Carrie hired for me a like a, like a baby care training expert. And one of the things we did was, you know, practice on a little doll baby CPR and baby basically choking, you know, baby Heimlich. And I asked this woman who goes all over training people, I said, I'm just wondering how often do you have parents that call you and say, oh my gosh, I was able to get the blockage out of my baby? She says all the time. She says all the time. She says many times a year, every year. So I mean that was sobering. Yeah. And it's so scary. And it's scary enough if it's your own child and my God, you have to do a cpr, you know, on your own kid. But what if there's other parents there and they don't Looking around, where's this parent? Oh, my God, this child, you know, in severe trauma. What can I do?

[Clay Travis]

What should I do?

[Buck Sexton]

So I guess I just wanted to say best of intentions, that's all. Great. 10 and 6 year olds to me, as a parent are still too young. Well, thank you. Thank you.

[Clay Travis]

I think certainly moms have different standards sometimes than dads in terms of risk analysis. That's quite clear on everything. But what everybody wants to be able to do is hopefully be able to get in touch with your family and be able to save money while you do it. That's what PureTalk does such an amazing job of. I've been always, we have PureTalk phones for my 14 and my 17 year old. When I'm on the road like I am right now, I stay in touch with them. I've been texting with both of them during the course of today just to see how their days are going, how their morning was. Everything else. I trust Pure Talk to stay in touch with my family. You can trust Pure Talk to stay in touch with your family and also save a bundle. And right now you can save up to $1,000 by the end of the year. Best possible deals out there get hooked up right now. Pure Talk by dialing £250 saying Clay and Buck, that's £250 to save an additional 50% off your first month. £250 say Clay and Buck.

[Buck Sexton]

Welcome back in here, Clay and Buck. All right, Liberation Day is today and we should talk about what that means and get into some of that. And so here we are looking at some of the big tariffs going into effect. President Trump stalwart on this. I mean, just not backing down at all. Economist Stephen Moore, very smart guy, very pro Trump economist. Here he is explaining the basic theory around this play 9. I think that what we're going to hear is a lot about this idea of reciprocal tariffs. If Trump's policies work out here, I.

[Clay Travis]

Do believe at the end of the.

[Buck Sexton]

Day that there will be a lowering of tariffs around the world. Our tariffs are about 3 or 4 or 5% and many other countries are above 20%. And so that just is something we can't live with. And at the end of the day, this could be a liberation from those high tariffs that these other countries are charging American made, whether it's cars or whether it's our manufactured items or whether it's technology. It simply isn't a fair trading system right now. Not a fair trading system, Clay. I think that that's very important to factor into this conversation because the free trade mantra is something that we hear all the time and I never hear from the people that believe very much in it. And I understand the economic theory and I understand the history that they, that they. And theoretically it is correct. Right? I mean, theoretically it should be great for everybody. But when you're talking about reciprocal tariffs, why should we just sit here and continue to have our producers and manufacturers disadvantaged by other markets in other countries and do nothing about it? That's the. I never get an answer. They just say, oh, you know, tariffs are bad. Okay, but what do we do about this?

[Clay Travis]

Yeah, and I don't hear a very strong argument for why reciprocal tariffs are. Don't make sense. Right. I mean, basically Trump is saying, hey, if everybody wants to have pure free trade and there are no tariffs that are put on any product, we would have no tariffs with you. And basically this is what Israel has said. And I don't know what, how much product Israel is sending back and forth. I would imagine that they import more American goods than, than we bring in. That's just because our country is so much bigger than theirs. But you know, the real issue that I think Trump has nailed is look at what China did. China took advantage of Mexico's free trade agreement to start to make Chinese goods in Mexico and then get the United States products through Mexico in a way that would not have been allowed through China. And so I think what Trump has looked at is, and I don't think he blames China, in fact, I think he respects good business decision when he sees them. But if we're being taken advantage of, at a minimum, we should have even fair trade competition where our products are treated the same as theirs. And I suspect we'll see because again, he's going to announce this a little bit later today. I suspect when it is fully announced that a lot of countries are going to line up and not want to get into a trade war with the United States because most countries, virtually everywhere, they sell more goods to us than we are selling to them. So they have more to lose in a trade war than we do.

[Buck Sexton]

I would also add that we're going to get to see at some point here if this is right or wrong. I mean, this is, you know, we'll see. Let's see what the results are. I think that Trump, given so much of his record as a president, as a politician at this point, I think that he has earned patience from, well, I would hope the whole country, but obviously some people hate him cuz they're Crazy. But even on the right. Let's see if he's right. Because, and I keep. I keep hammering this point, he was right about China. He was on trade specifically. He was right about us, Mexico, Canada, needing to be updated. And the consensus was, oh, no, don't do that. Don't mess with nafta. Don't know. He was correct. And the consensus, so to speak, was wrong. Look, Kelly Loeffler, who's over at the Small Business Administration, she's a very connected lady here, she is saying that this is gonna be fantastic for small business. Play 8. This is an exciting day. Liberation Day. This is the single greatest salvation for not just small businesses, but for America. This country was traveling down an unsustainable path. And President Trump has been the only president that has advanced backbone to stand up to our allies and adversaries alike and say, we have to level the playing field. This is unfair. You're no longer going to take advantage of us. And, man, I would not bet against America right now. Because what's happening is you see investment coming in, you see $4 trillion investment already in President Trump's first two months. You see trading partners coming to the table wanting to renegotiate. This is what it's about. It's about restoring fairness and opportunity to this nation.

[Clay Travis]

Look, I think the question will be determined to a large extent on what does he say at 4:00 Eastern? Usually the stock market has already priced in what the likely outcome of something is. I think that's why you're seeing the stock market up a little bit today, is there is fear that there could be a slowdown overall in economic growth because there's an increased cost associated with trade. My point on it, I also think the challenge Trump has is a lot of people don't understand this. They understand price of goods. You know what the gas prices are, you know what the price of eggs was, which they tried to turn into a big story for the first part of the Trump administration, and now those have collapsed. Really, the number one goal to me of the Trump administration should be to get prices down. And for economically, right, We've already got the border taken care of. We want to put violent criminals behind bars, all those things. But the average thing that people understand is what is the cost of goods. And then obviously, the other part of this is your overall salary needs to be increasing faster than the cost of goods, or else you feel like you are getting a backdoor tax increase because you don't have as much money in your pocket. People Understand that. And so I hope that what we're going to see is less dislocation while also putting the American economy and the American worker on a sound footing for years to come. And Buck, I mentioned this yesterday back in. I think it was like June of 20, 2016 might have been actually, I think it was like maybe may. My father in law was the first person that said this that I remember. He was the diehard Trump guy. And we were out to dinner in Detroit and he said, oh, I'm going to be voting for Trump. And I said, well, what is it that matters the most to you about Trump? And he said he's 100% right. We have to get back to manufacturing things in this country. We have to have. Now he's from the Detroit area. A lot of you are listening in Michigan, you understand the economic engine that the factory worker provided for so many people in so many parts of the country. But his perspective on it was China's taken us to the woodshed here because we don't make things anymore. And I think with the dislocation that we saw from COVID where suddenly you weren't able to bring in products from offshore as easily and certainly with what happened with Russia. Buck, the question I've asked on this show for years, what would we do if China actually invaded Taiwan? It was relatively easy in the larger geopolitical economic environment to try to cut Russia off. Suddenly McDonald's in Russia doesn't exist. Suddenly Budweiser's hard to find the American business. I know there are exceptions. Some people lost substantial amounts of money.

[Buck Sexton]

We, I mean, I think we were almost, we were largely unsuccessful in cutting Russia off. It didn't stop them, it didn't slow them. And they've got a lot of oil, so they don't really care.

[Clay Travis]

But we thought we could have an economic impact on Russia. Now the interest rates are up there. Like there are a lot of different moving parts there. But we couldn't do that to China. We couldn't. If China invaded Taiwan, the entire global economy would collapse. If we said, China, we're cutting you off, we don't have the ability to do that. And I think what matters even more now, it's harder to be a force for world lack of a better way. Goodness, for world equality, for world human rights. When China has America by the, by the balls, I'll just say it. When it comes to being able to produce many goods that we have to have, we can't allow that to be along the concerns held hostage, there's the.

[Buck Sexton]

Concerns about manufacturing, the stuff that we get from, from China and now actually places like Vietnam and others in Southeast Asia from Amazon and these companies right there is this, there's all the stuff that we buy. There's also the concerns about manufacturing power and resource allocation at a, at a true national scale. When the wars of the future. We were talking about this clay over dinner last night where we actually had steaks from our friends at Good Ranchers.

[Clay Travis]

They were fabulous steaks. Thank you for those guys.

[Buck Sexton]

I don't even have a read from them today. But we just wanted to say the steaks from, from Good Ranchers were absolutely delicious. We, we devoured them. But the, the future of warfare is really going to be technology and robotics and manufacturing.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

Meaning drones in the sky. Meaning, you know, who. Look at what's, look at what's happened in Russia, Ukraine. Yes, there's manpower, which is a part of this, but it's really, it's a war of attrition with drones, artillery shells, and who can keep enough in the field to not lose ground. It is as much a manufacturing battle. The economy of war is being shown to everybody. The wars of the future being shown to everybody on that front in Russia, Ukraine. And you know, there are concerns that we couldn't continue to supply Ukraine even if we wanted to.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

At the current pace. Think about that. And that's, that's a pretty limited conflict relative to what's happened in the last hundred years globally. Right. So, you know, we need to take this stuff very, this is also, I bring it up because there's domestic manufacturing as it pertains to jobs, and there's also, we need the domestic industry to be able to support a defense complex here that is increasingly about material and technology and precision guided everything and AI. And you know, as much as we're always going to need skilled, brave people with, with firearms to kick in the door, the bad guy, you're going to have a lot of AI enabled warfare in the future. And I don't mean 20 years. I mean, pretty much it's starting now.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah. And again, I don't know how we would be able to respond. I think Trump's on this Liberation Day. We will see what happens here in a little over an hour. Scheduled at the White House for Eastern. A lot of you still want to weigh in, by the way, on the Augusta question. The, the, the gentleman, the dad who was arrested for leaving his kids at McDonald's. We'll have a few more of those as well for you. And we'll Close up shop here in in just a sec. Buck, what you got for us?

[Buck Sexton]

Well my friends, we're talking about the markets and what could happen here for at least a while with the tariffs and our liberation day. You want to consider some gold? Gold, my friends, is solid. Gold is something that historically has held value and a lot of people are getting into gold now. Inflation continues to chip away at your savings. Just look at it and look at that price of gold. Just you can do a simple search online. What's the price of gold over the last 10 years? Look at that chart. Something's going on here. This is why sovereign wealth funds and sovereign governments are getting heavy into gold. You can too a portion of your savings or even your an old IRA or 401k. So many people have made this switch and Birch Gold is who you want to help you do this. Whether it's getting physical gold. I've got physical gold, I've got coins, I've got bars. Or if you want to convert an existing IRA or 401k, you want to go with the best in the business, people you can trust. And that's Birch Gold. To learn how you can own physical gold in a tax sheltered account, text my name Buck to Birch Gold at 9898 98. Birchgold will send you a free no obligation info kit. Again, text my name buck to the number 9898.98. Text Buck to 989898 and get in touch with Birch Gold today.

[Clay Travis]

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 iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Nate Silver.

[Buck Sexton]

And I'm Maria Konnikova. We're both journalists and professional poker players. And on our podcast Risky Business, we talk about taking risks in everything from poker to politics.

[Clay Travis]

And we talk about betting.

[Buck Sexton]

From betting on elections to betting on your favorite basketball team, we've learned a lot about taking risks through our own.

[Clay Travis]

Research and sometimes even our own bets.

[Buck Sexton]

And we share what we've learned with you. Are you still doing sports betting? I had no idea that you'd wagered over a million dollars for your research.

[Clay Travis]

I bet almost the entirety of the.

[Buck Sexton]

2022, 23 NBA season, all the regular.

[Clay Travis]

Season and about half the playoffs.

[Buck Sexton]

And I learned that, I mean, it's probably what I should have expected, but I learned that it's pretty hard.

[Clay Travis]

I went on a huge heater at the start of the NBA season where it was up like 70,000 bucks.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm like, man, I'm really good at the sports betting stuff. But then, but then things change. Now that March Madness is upon us. We're talking bracket strategies and a whole lot more. Join us and listen to Risky business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Clay Travis]

Welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton show. A lot of people weighing in variety of different perspectives. We'll get more on this Augusta, Georgia incident. I feel likely in the near future. Right now, Buck and I drinking Crockett Coffee, the best coffee in America. You go to crockett coffee.com, use code book, you get hooked up with an autographed copy of my most recent book, American Playbook, and you get the best possible coffee anywhere on the market. And it is coffee for people who love America, who may remember Davy Crockett as an American icon and hero. And we encourage all of you. Crocketcoffee.com 10% of the proceeds. I was down here Monday playing in the Tunnel to towers golf event. 10% of our proceeds. Our profit goes to Frank Siller and Tunnel to Towers. Buck, tomorrow you will be solo as I am continuing to be the worst golfer attending golf related events. I'm getting to play Doral, which is Trump's course in South Florida. The live event is going to be there. I'm playing with a professional golfer, maybe Bryson DeChambeau, who's a big Trump supporter. I will be there tomorrow. I cannot wait. So I'll be out then I'll be back Friday and then next week you're going to become a dad. So a lot of stuff going out.

[Buck Sexton]

For a while starting late next week, assuming everything happens according to schedule here, which some of you feel the need to remind me, like, hey, Buck, it might happen earlier.

[Clay Travis]

Yes.

[Buck Sexton]

Oh, trust me, I know we've got the go bags ready to go here. But yeah, we're super excited about, about the little man who is coming into this world here soon. I, I couldn't be more thrilled to be a dad. So that's very cool. I just kind of feel like kind of a hard turn. But I don't really think of it as a hard turn because it's a life well lived and a, a great body of work left behind. But Val Kilmer.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

Passed away today and you know, I think that it just take a moment here. I think that even though he was a very successful actor, I put him in the somewhat underrated Category because I think he had some incredible performances. And producer Greg, I got to give you credit. I think you hit On Heat, Tombstone, and a lot of people would. What was the other one on Top Gun? Yeah.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

Those are my three favorite Val Kilmer movies. Also, I think his three best performances. Although people say he became Jim Morrison in the Doors movie. Have you seen that? I actually haven't seen it.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm not a door. Don't yell at me. I didn't. The organ. The organ. I'm not a Doors person, so I didn't see that movie. I think the organ thing is cheesy and it annoys me after, like, two seconds. But people said he was amazing in that movie, and I think he passed away. A long fight with cancer. He made his way into the Last.

[Clay Travis]

Time, for those of you. I mean, I'm sure most of you saw the most recent Top Gun movie, but you could see how debilitated he was even in that role.

[Buck Sexton]

That was real. Yeah. It wasn't like he was just pretending to have the issues that he did. He actually was battling cancer, and Tom Cruise asked him, and, you know, I think that that's part of what. That's a. By far the standout emotional scene in that movie because it's. There's all the nostalgia of Iceman and Maverick. But also, I think, you know, he recognized, like, he's at a point in his life where that might be the last major appearance, you know, and it was.

[Clay Travis]

I think it was.

[Buck Sexton]

And. And so anyway, you know, I don't know if he was a nice guy or not. You know, I wish him and his family, you know, you know, prayers, blessings to them. But I do know he was a great actor and. And I think. I think Tombstone is a great rewatchable. I think I've seen Tombstone dozens of times, and his depiction of Doc Holliday is iconic, kind of the way that Heath Ledger's Joker is iconic to me. Like, it's a great role that he played.

[Clay Travis]

No, you should go back and watch. I think Tombstone is so well done and probably flew under the radar at the time that it happened. I don't remember it being like a colossal blockbuster. When did that come out? Like 1992 or something like that? 94 would be my guess. Somewhere in that vicinity. That performance was unbelievable and to your. Your point. I mean, you know, I think you can tie it in a little bit. The Top Gun remake, the nostalgia factor for that. So well done, and I'm glad that he got to appear in that role. As an admiral in. In that film, which made.

[Buck Sexton]

It was the most memorable part of that movie for me. Beyond it was.

[Clay Travis]

It was fantastic.

[Buck Sexton]

Maverick and Iceman.