Hour 3 - Speaker Mike Johnson Calls In

Summary

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The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show

Episode: Hour 3 – Speaker Mike Johnson Calls In
Date: October 6, 2025
Host: Buck Sexton (with guest, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson)
Special Segment: Exclusive Interview with President of Taiwan

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Episode Overview

This action-packed hour of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show dives into two pressing issues:

1. U.S. Government Shutdown: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson calls in to discuss the state of the ongoing government shutdown, assigns blame, and breaks down the contention over healthcare for illegal immigrants.

2. Taiwan’s National Security & U.S. Partnership: Buck debriefs his trip to Taiwan, highlighting his exclusive interview with President Lai. The interview covers Taiwan's domestic civic strength, strategic response to China's aggression, U.S.-Taiwan economic and defense ties, and family formation challenges.

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Segment 1: Speaker Mike Johnson on the Government Shutdown

Main Theme: The Republican perspective on the government shutdown, with Speaker Johnson forcefully criticizing Senator Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats, especially about healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants.

Key Points & Insights

1. Schumer and Political Motivation

• Johnson dubs the situation the “Schumer Democrat Shutdown”.
  “It is the Schumer Democrat shutdown... The truth has been obscured. All these Democrats, their relentless efforts at spinning what everybody knows to be true... We're just simply trying to keep the lights on...” (Speaker Mike Johnson, [02:05])

• Claims the continuing resolution (CR) is “clean”, without partisan add-ons.
  “There's no partisan provisions in it, no tricks, no gimmicks. We're just simply trying to keep the lights on... we ran out of clock because the end of the fiscal year.” ([02:05])

• Asserts Schumer is under pressure from the far left and facing a likely primary threat:
  “The Marxists are now running New York... [Schumer] knows that he's going to get a challenge from his left... it's almost guaranteed to lose. So he's got to show a fight against Trump.” ([03:50])

2. Healthcare for Illegal Immigrants

• Johnson alleges the Democrats are manufacturing a crisis over healthcare for non-citizens (“faux issue”):

  “They're trying to argue that this is suddenly a debate about health care. Never was. This is about... a simple funding measure.” ([04:40])

• Supports claims with reference to Democratic presidential debates:

  “Raise your hand if you would like to give taxpayer funded benefits and health care to illegal aliens. Every single Democrat candidate on the stage raised their hand, including Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.” ([05:44])

• Details Republican action to reverse such benefits:

  “We fixed it, Buck. We passed the one big beautiful bill... we reversed all that nonsense. We took the health care benefits away from illegals.” ([06:05])

• Accuses Schumer of demanding reversal:

  “They are demanding now that we spend $1.5 trillion of additional taxpayer funds on big liberal priorities. Included in that is... restoring taxpayer funded health care to illegal aliens. Fact.” ([07:02])

  • Johnson references page 57, section 2141 of Schumer’s proposal.

• Mechanics Explained:

  “In our bill, we ended Medicaid funding for most noncitizens... ended the emergency care for illegal aliens that had been expanded... hospitals were being reimbursed more for treating illegal aliens than American citizens...” ([08:02])

  “You add it all up, it’s $192.8 billion... Chuck Schumer... would reverse all of it. It’s a fact. They can’t refute it... as John Adams said, facts are stubborn things.” ([09:00])

3. The Path Forward & Impact

• On shutdown resolution:

  “We need five or six additional Democrats in the Senate to come to their senses... They need to recognize real Americans being hurt here...” ([10:12])

• On real-world impacts:

  “Women, infants and children that have their nutrition subsidies being halted... Health services to veterans... Troops and Border Patrol agents... all working to protect Americans with no pay...” ([11:14])

• Furloughs and federal job impacts:

  “Russ Vought... has to sit down and evaluate everything the federal government does and triage it... But he has to... determine the most essential services...” ([11:50])

4. Notable Quotes

• On Schumer’s tenure:
  "Chuck Schumer is a far left progressive politician. Everybody knows that. He's been in Congress for 44 years, brother, about most of our lives, right?... But he is yesterday's news. He's the last generation of leadership." ([03:32])

• On the policy dispute:
  “All the pain inflicted upon the American people is to cover one guy's political future. And his name is Chuck Schumer.” ([04:40])

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Segment 2: Buck Sexton’s Taiwan Recap & Exclusive Interview with President Lai

Main Theme: Buck’s firsthand report from Taiwan amidst aggression from China, and a far-reaching interview with President Lai covering Taiwan’s security, strategic partnership with the U.S., and domestic resilience.

Key Points & Insights

1. Buck’s Impressions From Taiwan ([15:13–21:31])

• Taiwanese civic culture:

  “The sense of civic responsibility here, how respectful everyone is here, how safe everyone feels on your streets. Is this not the case in a lot of American cities?... inspiring to tell Americans...” ([21:31])

• On China’s threat:

  "Xi Jinping is a dictator and a scary one, and they're building up an army and a navy that can only really have one purpose and that is for an invasion of Taiwan to take it by force... Taiwan is preparing its defenses for what could be a massive amphibious invasion." ([15:50–16:36])

• Why this matters for the U.S.:

  "They make 90% of the advanced chips... If that production is taken offline... the whole global supply chain is halted... we can't afford to not care about what happens to our ally Taiwan." ([17:13–18:10])

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2. President of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te: Interview Highlights

A. Taiwan’s Society & China Relations ([21:31–27:13])

• Taiwan’s civil strength – “superheroes with shovels”:

  "Over 100,000 people of their own accord took their shovels to help those affected... in our society, these people were referred to as superheroes with shovels. So you can feel that in Taiwan there's a lot of warmth, people are kind. So our streets... are generally very safe." – President Lai ([22:29])

• Clarifies Taiwan’s status:

  "The Republic of China and the People's Republic of China are not subordinate to each other. Taiwan is not a part of the PRC. China does not have the right to invade Taiwan." – President Lai ([23:10])

• Peace as strength:

  "We believe that to achieve peace there must be strength. Since taking office, I have implemented the Four Pillars of Peace Action Plan..." – President Lai ([24:05])

  • Defense spending up to 3.32% of GDP (2026), 5% by 2030
  • Arms procurement (from U.S. and others)
  • Economic diversification, reducing dependence on China

• Taiwan seeks dialogue, but prepares for defense:

  "Taiwan is willing to engage in dialogue with China based on parity and dignity... We hope that Taiwan will continue to enjoy the support of President Trump. If he is able to convince Xi Jinping to permanently renounce the use of force against Taiwan, President Trump will surely win the Nobel Peace Prize." – President Lai ([26:30])

B. Message to President Trump & U.S. ([27:13–29:01])

• Regional implications:

  "If [China] is able to annex Taiwan, China will be in a stronger position to compete with the United States... This would eventually also impact U.S. interests. So we hope that President Trump can continue to maintain peace and stability in the Indo Pacific." – President Lai ([27:37])

• On Taiwan’s willingness to defend itself:

  "Taiwan is absolutely determined to ensure its own national security... I believe that people help those who help themselves. So I very much agree... when we show unity and work together, that is when deterrence is at its strongest and that is when we will be able to safeguard peace and stability in the world." – President Lai ([29:28])

C. Economic and Technological Partnership ([34:03–36:58])

• On U.S.-Taiwan cooperation in semiconductors and A.I.:

  "The United States is strong in areas such as innovation, R&D and design... For semiconductors, I would say the United States is still the leader in this ecosystem... Taiwan is very willing to work with the United States to achieve this goal... We want to help the United States re-industrialize and become a global AI hub... and we want to help make America great again." – President Lai ([34:51])

D. Family Formation and Social Resilience ([36:58–39:18])

• Policies to promote marriage and child-rearing:

  "The government is supporting families in jointly raising children... providing monthly subsidies... Tuition is also free... couples who are having problems conceiving, the government subsidizes fertility treatment... We want to reduce the burden on households so that more people can start a family. This will promote social stability and continual growth for the country." – President Lai ([37:54])

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Memorable Quotes

• Speaker Mike Johnson:
  "All the pain inflicted upon the American people is to cover one guy's political future. And his name is Chuck Schumer." ([04:40])

• President Lai:
  "Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are essential elements of global security and prosperity. Our pursuit of peace is an ideal, not a fantasy." ([24:20])
  "If he is able to convince Xi Jinping to permanently renounce the use of force against Taiwan, President Trump will surely win the Nobel Peace Prize." ([26:55])
  "I believe that people help those who help themselves." ([29:28])

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Timestamps: Important Segments

• Speaker Mike Johnson on the shutdown: [01:29–12:41]
• Buck's Taiwan Experience & Stakes: [15:13–21:31]
• President Lai Interview - Taiwan's Society & China Relations: [21:31–27:13]
• Message to President Trump: [27:13–29:01]
• Taiwan's Defense Spending & Self-Determination: [29:01–31:27]
• U.S.-Taiwan Tech & Economic Partnership: [34:03–36:58]
• Promoting Family Formation in Taiwan: [36:58–39:18]

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Episode Tone

• Political Segments: Assertive, combative, and partisan, with sharp criticism especially from Speaker Johnson toward Democrats.
• Taiwan Interview: Courteous, earnest, and globally minded, with President Lai offering measured encouragement for U.S.-Taiwan solidarity.

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Takeaways

• The partisan battle over the government shutdown rests heavily on disputes about immigration and healthcare benefits for non-citizens, as presented by Speaker Johnson.
• Buck stresses the strategic, economic, and moral importance of U.S. support for Taiwan, both as a democracy and as an irreplaceable player in global technology.
• President Lai projects a strong, peaceful, and self-reliant Taiwan, eager for continued robust partnership with the United States.

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Transcript

[A]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[B]

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[C]

Bob, great to be with you. I look forward to that interview. That's timely stuff with Taiwan. We watch it very closely. So I'm glad you got to go over there and see it firsthand.

[B]

Thank you. Yeah, please do listen in. He had a. I asked him, I said, what's your message? Directly to President Trump? People should know that we don't have a, an embassy there. We don't have direct high level meetings with the government of Taiwan. So getting the word around, I think is really important because things are heating up with China. But in the meantime, Mr. Speaker, just bring us up to the latest here on. Are we calling it the Schumer shutdown? I am, but what's the latest on this government shutdown? What's happening?

[C]

Yeah, I wish there was more developments to report, but we're stuck at a stalemate. It is the Schumer Democrat shutdown. And I did a little press conference this morning just trying to lay out once again reiterating the simple truths. I mean, the truth has been obscured. All these Democrats, their relentless efforts at spinning what everybody knows to be true. I mean, look, this is a clean continuing resolution. And what we mean by that is there's no partisan provisions in it, no tricks, no gimmicks. We're just simply trying to keep the lights on because as we were going through the appropriations process, we ran out of clock because the end of the fiscal year, September 30th, and not the end of the calendar year, December 31st. So we needed more time. And Chuck Schumer's always been a champion of cr. He never wanted to shut down the government because he knows how dangerous it is. And I mean, but roll the tape. I mean, he gave the most impassioned speeches on this very subject in March of this year. This is like six months ago. But something changed. And I'm trying to point out to everybody, this is very simple. It comes down to Chuck covering his own tail.

[B]

All right, well, so let's. There's the politics of this for Schumer, which. Because I want to talk about the healthcare piece, too, but you're a friend on the Republican side of the Senate. Senator Cruz brought this up, that there is some specific political calculation here for Chuck Schumer. Can you just elucidate, elaborate on that a little bit?

[C]

I'll elaborate as briefly as I can because it's pretty simple. Look, Chuck Schumer is a far left progressive politician. Everybody knows that. He's been in Congress for 44 years, brother, about most of our lives, right? He's been serving here, but it's actually.

[B]

Longer than I've been alive, Mr. Speaker. But, yeah, there you go.

[C]

All right. Yeah, I was gonna. All right, all right, so I'm giving myself a little credit. Look, all of your life he's been here, okay? But he is yesterday's news. He's the last generation of leadership. He's 74 years old now, and he's no longer the cool kid. Here's the problem Chuck Schumer has, plain and simple. The Marxists are now running New York. That's his state. Right? They're about to elect Mondami, an open Marxist, to be the mayor of America's largest city. Chuck Schumer is terrified by that because he knows that he's going to get a challenge from his left in his next Senate reelection bid. And that's probably. Could be AOC or somebody else, but it's almost a guarantee at this point, and he's almost guaranteed to lose. So he's got to show a fight against Trump. They didn't have any fight to show because again, we have a clean cr. To keep the government open. So they concocted this, this faux issue. They're trying to argue that this is suddenly a debate about health care. Never was. This is about simple funding, a simple funding measure. The health care debate is for the three months ahead of us going into the end of the year. That's the calculation. All this, all the pain inflicted upon the American people is to cover one guy's political future. And his name is Chuck Schumer and he happens to lead the Democrats in the Senate.

[B]

Now we've got that political piece of this. Can you dive a little more into the health care for illegals debate? That has just been all over and I was on the other side of the world and trying to follow it from Taiwan last week. But this has been a major issue. Democrats seem to be taking multiple positions at the same time on it. Oh, it never happens. It only happens a little bit. It happens sometimes, but it's a good thing. What is the truth about the concerns that illegal immigrants, illegal aliens in this country are accessing, even indirectly, federal dollars for health care?

[C]

Thank you. There's a couple of very important facts that are irrefutable and I laid them out in my press conference this morning. It's all on social media. But here's the thing, okay? The Democrats have, have been wanting to give taxpayer funded benefits to illegals and they actually did it. We know that. Go back to rewind to 2020 to the presidential debate stage when everybody was trying to get the Democrat nomination and they asked all of them in that debate, raise your hand if you would like to give taxpayer funded benefits and health care to illegal aliens. Every single Democrat candidate on the stage raised their hand, including Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. So when they got elected, they did that for four years. They used all the forces of the government and they expanded all this, these programs to illegals. We fixed it, Buck. We passed the one big beautiful bill. Republicans got control and last November of Congress and we pushed through the American, the working families tax cuts, okay? And in that, in that bill, we reversed all that nonsense. We took the health care benefits away from illegals. It was never intended. Medicaid was never intended for non US citizens and we fixed it. So what Chuck Schumer did because remember, they needed a political issue. Now it's a fight over health care. They filed this monstrosity of a counter proposal just to keep the lights on, just to keep the government open. They are demanding now that we spend $1.5 trillion of additional taxpayer funds on big liberal priorities. Included in that is reversing the changes we made and restoring taxpayer funded health care to illegal aliens. Fact. It is a fact. Go to the website speaker.gov pull it up for yourself. Don't take my words for it. Go look at Chuck Schumer's document that he filed in the Congressional Record that we have highlighted there, page 57, section 2141. That does exactly what I just said.

[B]

Now can you just explain this, we're speaking to a Speaker of the House Johnson here. How does that mechanism work? As in what is the, the process through which illegals are accessing federal dollars for their health care? Or how is the state playing budgetary games in this case states like California and New York in order to give illegal aliens health care that is funded in some way by the federal government?

[C]

Well, there's a number of ways it's done and it's a great question. And there is an exhibit right there on that website speaker.gov that shows you this in a simple chart. Okay? The Democrat continuing resolution, Chuck Schumer's gambit here would spend nearly $200 billion of American taxpayer funds on health care subsidies for illegal immigrants and other non citizens. And what are we talking about? There's six specific ways they do it. We reversed them all in the Working Families Tax Cut act, the one big beautiful bill. And in quick summary, what they are is in our bill, we ended Medicaid funding for most noncitizens. That's about $6.2 billion in savings. We ended the emergency care for illegal aliens that had been expanded, believe it or not. California, for example, expanded Medicaid to cover able bodied illegal alien adults. And in the process of all this, we call that the California loophole. We ended that. They also were literally, hospitals were being reimbursed more for treating illegal aliens in an emergency room than American citizens like pregnant American single women. I mean it's just madness. Okay? We took all that out. We reversed the fraud, waste, abuse in Medicaid, Medicare, Obamacare funding for most noncitizens, these special rules they put in in Obamacare for immigrants. And you add it all up, it's $192.8 billion. Okay? We reversed that in the big beautiful bill. And Chuck schumer on page 57 of his counter proposal cr would reverse all of it. It's a fact. They can't refute it. Not a single one of them have done it on TV or radio or anywhere. They cannot. Yet as John Adams said, facts are stubborn things.

[B]

And yet here we are what are we, six days into this shutdown? Seven to six days, something like that. What is your. Yeah. What is your sense, Mr. Speaker, for where this is going? And also, can you speak to Mr. Speaker, the possibility of not just furloughs, but some trimmed federal jobs as a result of this shutdown? Where does that lie?

[C]

Well, there's two good, important questions, I think, with regard to when does this end? As soon as we get a handful, we need five or six additional Democrats in the Senate to come to their senses and stop the madness. They've always voted for CRS in the past. They need to recognize real Americans being hurt here. I reminded everybody in the press conference this morning. I said basic civics. You'll remember we don't have enough Republican votes to get out of this mess, because you need 60 votes in the Senate. Our problem is we only have 53 Republicans there. So you've got to have Democrats that get off of this plank that they've walked themselves on and do the right thing for the people. So we'll see it goes probably at least another week. They painted themselves into a corner. But with regard to the real pain, brother.

[B]

Mr. Speaker, hold on a sec. Did you. Did you move somewhere? Because our cell, we had a beautiful, beautiful, crystal clear cell connection, and then it got a little bit. A little bit funky there for a second. So I could get you to either step to the other side of your office, wherever you were, or hopefully maybe the connection will just clear up. Go for it. Yeah.

[C]

Is that a little better?

[B]

Yes, it is. There we go. Crystal clear. Keep going.

[C]

Okay, I think it's the Russians. They're obscuring our thing from the capital here. So listen, so here's the. Here's the deal. We're in this situation, and it's causing real pain to real American people. You're talking about, you know, women, infants and children that have their nutrition subsidies, their supplemental nutrition being halted. Right now. You got health services to veterans. You got our troops and our Border Patrol agents and tsa, they're all working to protect Americans with no pay right now. I mean, it just goes on and on and on. So real pain by real people. The question is, how long are the Senate Democrats going to allow this to go on? And, you know, among all those. Those pain points, there's a lot of things involved. Now, you talked about the furlough of federal workers. Russ Vote, our good friend, runs the Office of Management and Budget in the Trump administration. His job is to scale down the government because Chuck Schumer decided to turn off the funding streams. He has no choice in the matter. He takes no pleasure in it. But he has to sit down and evaluate everything the federal government does and triage it. Right? He's got to determine what are the most essential services, policy, personnel that we carry on and which are less so. And anybody who's in his position in any administration of these circumstances has that responsibility. It falls to our friend Russ. We pray that he uses wisdom and discernment, but you know he has no choice in the matter.

[B]

Mr. Speaker, appreciate you making the time for us, sir.

[C]

You got a brother. Take care.

[B]

Man. These Democrats, it's funny, the more the truth gets out, the worst. Their position looks not just on this, pretty much on everything, but on this it is absolutely the case. We appreciate Speaker Johnson being with us there. Look, you want to have the right tools at home to defend yourself and protect your family. An umbrella or a baseball bat by the door isn't going to cut it in an emergency. Our sponsor Sabre makes the most effective non lethal protection tools you can have. You can go big with their pepper spray projectile launchers. In fact, there's a pepper spray launcher bundle [e-mail] right now that I would highly recommend. S A b r e saberradio.com there they've got that pepper launcher. They've also got an innovative 2 in 1 pepper light which is both a flashlight which you know you need for light, and pepper spray for outdoors walking at night. It's a great tool to have to keep yourself safe. This Saber is the company we trust to provide our families with the best non lethal protection tools. If Sabre makes it, we've got a Clay uses them. I use them. Decide what you're most comfortable relying on. Go to saberradio.com you'll save 15% there. That's S A B R E radio.com or call 844-824-SAFE 844-824 safe news you can count on and some laughs too. Clay, Travis and Bucks. Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[D]

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[B]

Welcome back into Clay and Buck. So it's a great interview with the speaker of the House just now telling us everything that we need to know or can know about where the government shutdown stands. It looks like it's going to continue for some time. Eventually Democrats I think are going to have to caveat and that's a good thing. But we shall see. But coming up here, I wanted to tee this up for you. As you know, I was out last week. I was in Taiwan and I am a big believer in going out to see things for yourself and to learn about important things as part of this job. Right. I don't just want to be a guy who is also locked away in a studio doing research all day long. That's important. It's part of the job. But I have to get out there and see for myself and have these conversations and learn about the most important issues in the world. And I understand going to the other side of the world may seem a little bit like a digression from some of what we do here, but here's here's what you need to know about the situation with Taiwan right now. And this is after I've spent a week with everybody in that country who's making decisions at the top level. I had long the interview of course with the president, which you're about to hear shortly, but also a post interview debrief with the President of Taiwan and his national security team. A long sit down with the Vice President separately the Vice President of Taiwan National Security Council, National Security Advisor. I went to a military base to see exercises for their Himars artillery system which they're they're revving up everything. They have an all of the above initiative to prepare all of Taiwanese society for possible invasion. So this is about all of society resilience. Now to be clear, Taiwan is a very happy, peaceful and prosperous country that just wants that all to continue. They have no ill intent toward any of their neighbors. They want to just provide the best microchips in the world as well as a whole lot of other things and just want to live their lives and continue with the status quo. Xi Jinping is a dictator and a scary one, and they're building up an army and a navy that can only really have one purpose and that is for an invasion of Taiwan to take it by force. And they are making it more and more clear that that is the point. Taiwan is preparing its defenses for what could be a massive amphibious invasion. Along with missile strikes, it could shut down global trade in the area, crash stock markets around the world, could trigger US intervention, Japanese intervention. This could get really bad. Here's the good news. I think it can all be prevented. And the way to prevent it is, is to give Taiwan the tools it needs to defend itself so that the so called porcupine strategy of just, you don't want to touch it, China doesn't want to touch it, they don't want to deal with it, continues. And then everything that we've seen will be status quo there and things can work out just fine. But I think that for anybody who believes, well, it's not our problem. They make 90% of the advanced chips. 90% of the advanced chips are made and a lot of it is made by tsmc, a company I met with there as well. If that production is taken offline, even for a matter of days, the whole global supply chain is halted. And all of the things, there are chips in your car, in your phone, in your computers, that all comes to a halt. In addition, if China takes it, they will have absolute dominance in chip manufacturing and an ability to cut us off as they see fit. When AI is becoming the most important technology in the world, including for drones, national security, national defense matters. Simply put, we can't afford to not care about what happens to our ally Taiwan. And that's why I think the conversation with the president of Taiwan is so important. We don't have direct, a direct ambassadorial relationship with them. The last senior government official to visit them was Nancy Pelosi. So obviously that was a waste of time and that was years ago. So this really matters now. And I think one thing they took from the interview is the heat has never been higher than it is right now. We can stop this thing from being a hot war, but we need to stand with our allies by selling them the stuff they want to buy to defend themselves. That's all I would ask that we consider. All right. On the days you need energy, you need chalk. Look, I just came back from the other side of the world jet lag is hitting pretty hard. I'm flying to DC tomorrow. I'm flying to Nashville on Thursday. It's a crazy week, friends. But I've got Chalk, so I am good to go. Chalk's Male Vitality Stack is their most popular product. Like all of Chalk's products, though, it's all natural. You can read the ingredients. You'll say, oh, I know what that is. Go check them out on the website. But the Male Vitality Stack replenishes diminished testosterone levels in men. That's your body's natural source of energy. By it can increase them by up to 20% in three months time according to studies. So Chalk also has a whole range of I love their glutathione, by the way. I'm a big believer in glutathione. I take that daily. And the Chalk Daily is just a great overall supplement for you. Go check it out. Chalk.com choq.com use my name Buck for a discount on any subscription for life. That's chalkchoq.com use my name Buck for a discount on any subscription for life. All right, everybody, as promised, here is my exclusive interview with the President of Taiwan. Now, just to be clear, he responded to me, we had a translator, he responded to me in Chinese. And so you have a voiceover for the translator and my original voice. But this is a critical, critical series of issues that we tackled and certainly affects the U.S. so here you go from just a few days ago, the President of Taiwan, President Lai.

[E]

One of the things we've noticed, by the way, that has already gotten some attention back in the States is the sense of civic responsibility here, how respectful everyone is here, how safe everyone feels on your streets. Is this not the case in a lot of American cities? And it's inspiring to tell Americans about how the Taiwanese people are respectful, law abiding and the civic responsibility that they have. Also wanted to ask you, how would you describe the situation right now with your neighbor China? There's obviously a lot of global concern about a sense of rhetoric heating up, a sense that there is a pathway now that is becoming more imminent, that there could be a crisis. How do you want to describe the situation right now for specifically an American audience as to what's going on here?

[A]

First of all, I am very glad that you have seen a lot of things during your stay in Taiwan and that you are having a fruitful trip so far. I also want to thank you for commending our civil society in the international community. Taiwan is often lauded as being A place where the most beautiful scenery is actually its people. Recently, due to a typhoon, a barrier lake overflowed in Hualien, causing a significant number of injuries and deaths. Streets and houses were covered in mud. Taiwanese society mobilized to help people affected. We had a long holiday weekend this past weekend. On the first day, 30,000 people traveled to Hualien to offer assistance. And on both the second and third days, another 40,000 went, meaning that over 100,000 people of their own accord took their shovels to help those affected. In our society, these people were referred to as superheroes with shovels. So you can feel that in Taiwan there's a lot of warmth, people are kind. So our streets at nighttime or daytime are generally very safe. Her question was about Taiwan's relations with China. I very much hope that everyone in the world who pays attention to Taiwan China issues can be clear about several things. First, the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China are not subordinate to each other. Taiwan is not a part of the prc. China does not have the right to invade Taiwan. Secondly, China has been holding military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, undermining peace and stability in the region. So it is China, not Taiwan, that is disrupting the cross strait status quo. The fact that the Taiwanese people seek to protect their sovereignty and pursue a way of life based on democracy, freedom and human rights should not be seen as a provocation against China. Thirdly, even though Taiwan is facing increasing threats from China, Taiwan has not given up on seeking peace and mutual prosperity across the strait. We understand that peace is priceless and that there are no winners in war. Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are essential elements of global security and prosperity. Our pursuit of peace is an ideal, not a fantasy. We believe that to achieve peace there must be strength. Since taking office, I have implemented the Four Pillars of Peace Action Plan. The first pillar is strengthening Taiwan's national defence. Our defence spending as defined by NATO will reach 3.32% of GDP next year and this will increase to 5% of GDP by 2030. We are procuring arms from the United States and partners across the international community. At the same time, we are promoting indigenous defence capabilities. We will work with the international community to co develop arms including R and D design and manufacturing. This will allow the domestic defense industry to grow and contribute to Taiwan's security. Drones, unmanned submarines and robotics are all areas that Taiwan will prioritize in the future. The second pillar is enhancing our economic resilience. In 2010, 83.8% of Taiwan's outbound investments went to China, but last year this number was only 7%. The United States is now Taiwan's largest destination for outbound investment. In other words, we are not putting all of our eggs in the same basket. We hope that Taiwan's industries will be rooted in Taiwan, deploy globally and market across the world. This will not only strengthen our economy, but also make it more resilient, thereby safeguarding Taiwan's security. The third pillar is standing together with the United States and other free and democratic countries to bolster joint deterrence. This will allow us to prevent war by preparing for one. And fourthly, Taiwan is willing to engage in dialogue with China based on parity and dignity. Through exchanges and cooperation, we can achieve the goal of peace and mutual prosperity. We hope that Taiwan will continue to enjoy the support of President Trump. If he is able to convince Xi Jinping to permanently renounce the use of force against Taiwan, President Trump will surely win the Nobel Peace Prize.

[E]

If I could ask you if you could speak directly to President Trump about the situation of Taiwan right now, the security situation, more specifically, what would you want him to know about ways to bolster the U.S. taiwan relationship and what would you view as goals that could be achieved in this very important partnership?

[A]

I would suggest that he take note of the fact that Xi Jinping is not just holding ever larger military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, but expanding China's military deployment in the south and East China Seas. China's military exercises now extend across the Indo Pacific region. Its aircraft carriers are moving beyond the first island chain and second island chain and its northern fleet even sailed around Japan for a week. Chinese naval vessels also conducted live fire exercises in Australia's exclusive economic zone. The situation in the Indo Pacific region is changing constantly and tensions are rising. So the issue is not only a possible annexation of Taiwan. If it is able to annex Taiwan, China will be in a stronger position to compete with the United States states and alter the rules based international order. This would eventually also impact US Interests. So we hope that President Trump can continue to maintain peace and stability in the Indo Pacific. Taiwan is determined to ensure its national security. We will fulfill our responsibility and work with free and democratic countries to maintain regional peace and security stability.

[E]

What would you say? Because in America, given some difficult lessons we have learned about foreign policy and foreign policy intervention, there's a focus on partners who will carry their weight for their own defense and have a willingness to fight. If anyone in America, whether policy or voter citizen, has a question about whether Taiwan is willing to defend its own sovereignty, what would you say to that.

[A]

Question, I would tell them that Taiwan is absolutely determined to ensure its own national security. Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are indispensable elements in global security and prosperity. So when Taiwan looks after its own national security, it shows that Taiwan is committed to protecting regional peace and stability as well. That is why, as I mentioned before, we are continuing to increase our national defense budget. So during former President Tsai Ing Wen's term, the national defense budget was increased from 1.9% of GDP to 2.5%. Next year it will reach 3.32%. And we hope to increase this to 5% by 2030. This would be five years earlier for NATO's own goal. I also convened a high level national security meeting in which we defined the Chinese Communist Party regime as a foreign hostile force. And I proposed 17 strategies to address the five major threats we face from China. These will translate into more than 100amendments to our national security laws which will be reviewed by the Legislative UN during the current session. This will put Taiwan on a stronger legal footing, bolster its national defense, and allow people to contribute their power towards safeguarding our nation and protecting regional peace and stability. I believe that people help those who help themselves. So I very much agree with your idea that Taiwan and other countries should meet their own responsibilities. And when we show unity and work together, that is when deterrence is at its strongest and that is when we will be able to safeguard peace and stability in the world.

[B]

All right, so we're going to come back and do more of this interview and touching on something I think you'll find really interesting. Family Formation and how that is something that Taiwan is focused on, along with of course, artificial intelligence, its role in the world of semiconductors. But really important stuff coming up here in just a moment. In the meantime, October is Cyber Security Awareness Month. Every day online hackers steal identities, drain bank accounts and open fraudulent accounts using stolen information. Yours may be included. The best way to protect yourself is by having a Lifelock membership. I've had mine for nearly a decade now. It's paid for itself about a dozen times over. Easy to set up, and you've got a 247 ally looking after your online identity. LifeLock scours hundreds of millions of online transactions and account openings and looks for evidence of foul play. And if your name is involved, they notify you immediately. If you've got a problem, they're ready to help. If your identity is stolen, a LifeLock US based restoration specialist will help solve it. And that is guaranteed or your money back plus all Lifelock plan plus all Lifelock plans are backed by the million dollar protection package, meaning LifeLock will reimburse you to your plan's limits if you lose money due to identity theft. Stay smart, stay safe and stay protected with LifeLock, get comprehensive identity protection with a 30 day free trial at LifeLock.com use my name Buck as your promo code. That's LifeLock.com promo code Buck for 30 days free terms apply.

[D]

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[B]

Here'S more of my interview with the President of Taiwan, President Lai, on well, the future of his country. Let's dive into it.

[E]

As part of our trip here we were able to spend some time with people from tsmc. Obviously there's a tremendous global and American specifically interest in artificial intelligence. It was also very interesting to learn in detail about the incredible facility that TSMC has built and is building out more in Arizona. I would like to ask you to speak to the Economic Partnership specifically in Advanced technology, microchip manufacturing, Artificial intelligence, the relationship between Taiwan and America going forward and how you view that to grow and bring prosperity for both countries.

[A]

Taiwan the so we all know that Taiwan's technology industry has performed well. This is the result of decades of cooperation among Taiwan's industries, government, academia and R and D sector, as well as the support of the Taiwanese people. But I must also note with appropriate humility that TSMC and the Taiwanese semiconductor industry are still only one part of a bigger ecosystem and do not represent the whole system. So if you look at the entire semiconductor ecosystem, the United States is strong in areas such as innovation, R and D and design and it is also the biggest market Japan is strong in raw materials and related equipment. And the Republic of Korea, they have flash memory. Taiwan's strength is in wafer manufacturing. And the Netherlands makes the critical equipment that is used to make semiconductors. But in the whole ecosystem, you can see that around 80% of profits go to the United States. So for semiconductors, I would say the United States is still the leader in this ecosystem. Looking ahead, as we face the AI era, every nation in the semiconductor ecosystem will be extremely important. And the United States will continue to lead the world in this. So Taiwan is very willing to work with the United States States to achieve this goal. We want to help the United States re industrialize and become a global AI hub. We want the United States to continue to lead the world in this new AI era and we want to help make America great again. So with regard to Taiwan's semiconductor industry, we see it as an important responsibility in terms of ensuring the world's future prosperity. That is why the Taiwan government has been very supportive of TSMC's investments in the United States and Japan as well as Germany. In the future, when the United States has re industrialized and become a global AI hub, I am sure that TSMC will continue to play a crucial role.

[E]

Over the course of meetings with various members of your government, I learned something that was very interesting to me and it has to do with a problem we have also started to look at in America of family formation. It's very interesting, I think, to the American audience to hear of countries that are trying to use policy to address issues like encouraging marriage and even more encouraging children so that a society can replenish so there's resiliency and there's replenishment. Could you please speak to some of the ways that you are encouraging people to have more kids here? Because this is something that in America, we're also considering the Trump administration through tax policy. But also culturally, there's a sense that we need to bring those numbers up. How are you doing that here and how are those initiatives going so far?

[A]

I am very glad that you look positively at what we have been doing in Taiwan. Actually, Taiwan's policies were made with reference to what the United States and other countries have been doing concerning our strategies. First, the government is supporting families in jointly raising children from birth to six years old by providing monthly subsidies. Tuition is also free for both public and private high schools and vocational schools. Young people who want to get married and have children are given priority in applying for social housing. If they want to buy a home, they can get government funding to subsidize the interest on their mortgage and if they are renting, they can get a rent subsidy from the government. For couples who are having problems conceiving, the government subsidizes fertility treatment. Taiwan's government is currently investing more in our society and cutting taxes by more than ever before in our history. These initiatives will help our young people feel confident that they can get married, have children and will be able to raise them. I note that President Trump is also cutting taxes. We want to reduce the burden on households so that more people can start a family. This will promote social stability and continual growth for the country.

[E]

Mr. President, just want to say it's a beautiful country with wonderful people who have been so welcoming to us and the alliance between our countries is to me and to many others so important. Thank you for taking the time and we wish you and all of the Taiwanese people well.

[A]

Thank you.

[B]

We'll have more on this, of course, throughout the week. We'll be talking about it. Send me your thoughts, your emails, and I'll be back with you solo tomorrow. Shield tie this is an iHeart podcast.