Hour 3 - The Trump Track Record

Summary

The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show: Hour 3 - The Trump Track Record

In the third hour of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show," titled "The Trump Track Record," hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton engage in a comprehensive analysis of former President Donald Trump's economic policies, cabinet appointments, and trade strategies. The discussion emphasizes Trump's America-first economic model, the strategic selection of private sector leaders for governmental roles, and his assertive stance on international trade, particularly with China.

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1. Trump’s Cabinet and the America-First Economic Model

Clay Travis initiates the conversation by highlighting Trump's distinctive approach to cabinet appointments. Unlike traditional administrations that often select career politicians, Trump opted for individuals with substantial private sector experience. A prime example discussed is Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

Clay Travis [02:20]:
"An America first economic model that allows us to thrive, yes, economically, but also from a national security perspective."

Buck Sexton echoes this sentiment, praising the intellectual prowess and diverse accomplishments of Trump's cabinet members.

Buck Sexton [05:13]:
"Trump has put together a really phenomenal cabinet. I mean across the board. When you look and compare Trump 2.0 to Trump 1.0, the amount of brain power that he has brought to bear in this cabinet and incredibly accomplished people who have done things outside of government."

The hosts argue that this blend of business acumen and government experience fosters a more dynamic and effective administration, contrasting sharply with administrations reliant on long-term bureaucrats.

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2. Trade Policies and Tariffs Under Trump

A significant portion of the discussion centers on Trump's aggressive trade policies, especially his imposition of tariffs aimed at rectifying what he perceives as unfair trade practices by countries like China.

Donald Trump himself is quoted discussing his trade stance:

Donald Trump [10:15]:
"Every country wants to partake... China is an example... we're going to make a lot of money for our people."

Clay Travis underscores the importance of these tariffs in protecting American industries and preventing resource exploitation by foreign entities.

Clay Travis [03:41]:
"...going after our resources more aggressively and not allowing these lunatic left wing environmentalist wackos to do things like shut down the Keystone XL pipeline, which was just cutting off your nose to spite your face."

Buck Sexton assesses Trump's effectiveness in implementing these policies, particularly noting the significant strides made in the first 100 days of the administration.

Buck Sexton [10:59]:
"He's been right on so many things where even a lot of Republicans were saying, oh, no, you can't do that... pushing through what everyone says is impossible."

The hosts also discuss the continuity of these policies beyond Trump's tenure, pointing out that subsequent administrations have maintained many of his tariff strategies.

Buck Sexton [29:22]:
"The only thing Joe Biden didn't change when he took office was Trump's tariffs on China."

This continuity suggests a lasting impact of Trump's trade policies on the United States' economic landscape.

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3. Long-Term Strategy vs. Short-Term Politics

Travis and Sexton commend Trump's focus on long-term economic benefits over immediate political gains. They argue that this strategic patience is essential for sustained national prosperity but often clashes with the short-termism typical of political cycles.

Clay Travis [07:08]:
"That's a mentality, a skill set and a discipline that is now brought to bear with Trump and his team."

Buck Sexton elaborates, contrasting Trump's approach with that of traditional politicians who may prioritize re-election over transformative policies.

Buck Sexton [07:08]:
"This battle with the tariffs and the trade wars is such a hard fight... they're concerned with doing what's right. They're concerned with what gets them elected."

This perspective highlights the dichotomy between Trump’s administration's strategic depth and the often superficial focus of conventional politics.

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4. Challenges in Trade Negotiations with China

The discussion shifts to the complexities of negotiating trade deals with China. Trump’s recent comments about being “nice” to China are dissected, revealing underlying strategies aimed at coercion and fair trade practices.

Donald Trump [15:16]:
"My relationship with presidency is great... We're going to be very nice and we'll see what happens... they have to make a deal because otherwise they're not going to be able to deal in the United States."

Clay Travis interprets this as classic Trump rhetoric, blending amicable language with firm demands.

Clay Travis [15:37]:
"With Trump, that leaves a lot of open territory nice, like polite and funny, but then going to demand that China plays ball or else."

The effectiveness of this approach is debated, with the hosts acknowledging the challenges inherent in aligning Trump's aggressive trade stance with the need for diplomatic negotiations.

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5. Historical Context and Comparisons

To provide broader context, the hosts draw parallels between Trump's trade policies and earlier critiques by figures like Ross Perot. They argue that Trump's strategies have proven the validity of longstanding concerns about free trade agreements like NAFTA.

Buck Sexton [31:20]:
"Ross Perot, one of his top issues was he said that NAFTA was going to be a net negative for American middle class jobs. And I think that much of the argument that he made has in many ways been proved to be prescient."

Clay Travis concurs, suggesting that Trump's actions validate Perot’s early warnings about trade agreements detrimental to American workers.

Clay Travis [30:30]:
"They kept the tariffs in place... that speaks volumes about this."

This historical comparison reinforces the argument that Trump's trade policies are part of a broader, consistent strategy to protect American economic interests.

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6. Conclusion: Assessing Trump's Economic Legacy

In wrapping up their analysis, Travis and Sexton reflect on Trump's enduring impact on U.S. economic policy. They commend his unwavering stance on tariffs and fair trade, asserting that his policies have set foundational changes that continue to influence the country's economic trajectory.

Clay Travis [31:08]:
"There's a track record here, Clay, that I don't think anybody should ignore if they want to have any sense as to what's possible here and what the likely outcomes could be."

Buck Sexton adds that Trump's blend of private sector expertise and bold policy-making has distinguished his administration from predecessors.

Buck Sexton [31:23]:
"If you can argue otherwise and be wrong."

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Notable Quotes

1. Clay Travis [02:20]:
   "An America first economic model that allows us to thrive, yes, economically, but also from a national security perspective."

2. Buck Sexton [05:13]:
   "Trump has put together a really phenomenal cabinet...incredibly accomplished people who have done things outside of government."

3. Donald Trump [10:15]:
   "Every country wants to partake... China is an example... we're going to make a lot of money for our people."

4. Buck Sexton [29:22]:
   "The only thing Joe Biden didn't change when he took office was Trump's tariffs on China."

5. Buck Sexton [07:08]:
   "This is a mentality, a skill set and a discipline that is now brought to bear with Trump and his team."

6. Buck Sexton [10:59]:
   "He's been right on so many things where even a lot of Republicans were saying, oh, no, you can't do that... pushing through what everyone says is impossible."

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Additional Topics

Interspersed with the primary discussion, the show features lighter segments, including a debate on the range of 1980s actors like Patrick Swayze, Tom Hanks, and Harrison Ford. While these interludes provide entertainment value, they are tangential to the main discourse on Trump's economic strategies.

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Conclusion

"The Trump Track Record" episode offers an in-depth exploration of Donald Trump's economic policies and their implications. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton provide a nuanced perspective, lauding Trump's strategic cabinet appointments and assertive trade policies while acknowledging the complexities of international negotiations. The discussion underscores the lasting influence of Trump's America-first model on the United States' economic framework.

Transcript

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Visit rapidradios.com to save up to 60% and get free UPS shipping from Michigan. Use code RADIO25 for an extra $25 off and a free EMP protection bag with order [e-mail] welcome in third hour of play and buck kicks off right now. And appreciate you being with us, everybody. Let's dive into where we stand on the tariff issue. Things looking okay today in the markets, but I'm not going to do this thing where good day, bad day, we're going to chase it all. And this is about the macro picture. This is the 30,000 foot view of not just the manufacturing and the employment picture and the stock market, but also the future of our country, our competitiveness on the world stage. An America first economic model that allows us to thrive, yes, economically, but also from a national security perspective. We were just talking to Interior Secretary. Great interview, by the way. I highly recommend you go and listen if you missed it. If you're joining us now in progress with Doug Burgum, Interior Secretary, who Clay had breakfast with this morning. And I got to say, impressive guy. And I thought so, to be fair, even during the debates I said this guy's, this guy's got something. Clearly Trump thought so too.

[Buck Sexton]

Right?

[Clay Travis]

He ran for president and made enough of an impression that Trump has now given him what is an important role. Interior Secretary doesn't get the same kind of press as I think it's always treasury and Secretary of State for the cabinet positions. Just the media writes about those. You know, people care a lot about their money and they care about foreign policy and wars and stuff like that. And Secretary of Defense. Those are probably the big three. But Interior secretary has a very important portfolio, especially given the dual, the dual track play that Trump is pursuing with Burgum and the people in doge of efficiency and making everything work better that the government should be doing and should not be doing part of that and then also going after our resources more aggressively and not allowing these lunatic left wing environmentalist wackos to do things like shut down the Keystone XL pipeline, which was just cutting off your nose to spite your face. It makes no sense.

[Buck Sexton]

Totally. And I, I had not met Doug Burgum other than to shake hands with him. I was at the Ohio State and Penn State game. We were campaigning for Dave McCormick and that was a really fun event. Shook hands with him. We had an awesome breakfast this morning. It was great to, to, to be able to spend some time with him. Remember, he was one of the final three, I think buck in the VP sweepstakes. If I remember correctly, it was James.

[Clay Travis]

There were rumors that it was going to be him. There were rumors that he was going to be the vp.

[Buck Sexton]

It was him. It was. This is according to reports, him, JD And I believe Glenn Youngkin were potentially the final three that Trump was reportedly considering. And JD Got the pick and he's been great. But meeting with Doug Burgum, I think we probably have under discussed, I mean you, me and the larger media outlets, Trump has put together a really phenomenal cabinet. I mean across the board. When you look and compare Trump 2.0 to Trump 1.0, the amount of brain power that he has brought to bear in this cabinet and incredibly accomplished people who have done things outside of government. You know, Doug Bargum built a really great company that Microsoft bought in North Dakota. I don't know how many Dakota tech companies have been created that are worth billions of dollars, but he built one. And I, I think he's told this story publicly. But anybody out there who's, who started a small business, there have probably been times where you have been maybe for years, lying awake in your bed like, man, I don't know if we're going to make payroll. I'm not sure how well this company is going to go. I mean, starting a small business is not something that often leads to a lot of rest and relaxation. It's a battle. And he talked about, he said for seven years he wasn't really sure how well the company was going to work. And he's fighting tooth and nail. He mortgaged his family farm, 140 acres to start that company. And he's like, I'm going to legitimately lose the family farm over this business. And I want people, and you and I have talked about this, who have had some success in life, who decide to give back to the government to a large extent. Instead of a lot of these Joe Biden figures who just work their whole life in the government.

[Clay Travis]

Well, this is a whole lot. And I think it's even worse, Clay, than working their whole life in the government. They work for bureaucracies, whether it's the government or some think tank or you know, that it's like they're, they're paid, they're bought and paid for by somebody else who actually has to create things and make money. Right. So I think the other thing is there it was not long ago. I remember in the early days of the Tea Party, the notion of getting a, a slew of high level executives from the private sector to take really important jobs in government, that was a pipe dream. You know, you go, you go back to the Bush era and. Yeah, I know you can say that. Well, you know, Cheney had a private sector background in Rumsfeld. It was like military, industrial complex stuff. I'm talking about what Clay is talking about, which is builds a company, has the vision, takes the risk, understands how to make this work. And you have this with a whole range of people who work with, obviously, Elon Musk is probably the best known and the most visible right now, even though he's a special government employee. But you have it with Doug Burgum. You have it with, you know, Scott Besant, who was very high level hedge fund guy. I mean, these are people who have. This is really a thing, Clay. Have you had to make decisions where right or wrong matters and if you're wrong, there are consequences? Have you gone through your entire adult life working at places where whether you showed up or not, it didn't matter where, whether you showed up or not, the check would be there waiting for you. Because somehow the money, usually from the taxpayer, but you know, comes from somewhere else. An endowment at a university, a foundation set up by some rich family 50 years ago, and no one even knows where the money's still going these days, you know, or I mean, you did this, we're doing this now with Crockett. Do you just pool some assets together, hire some people and tighten up your bootstraps, hope for the best and try to build something? And that is, that is a mentality, a skill set and a discipline that is now brought to bear with Trump and his team. And this was, this was not the case before. I mean, you know, even some of our favorites, I mean, you go back and look at some very popular Republican politicians and presidents did not have the private sector, certainly the private sector cabinet that we see before us right now in terms of how impressive they are. I mean, yeah, they've had people from Goldman Sachs working in the government before, probably too many of them, but there have been a lot of very impressive people. Okay, so let's get into these tariffs here for a second, Clay. This is Trump. First of all, it's funny, someone asked me last night, I did you know Leland Vitterd who used to be at Fox? He now has a show and he's a friend. So I occasionally will pop up on his show at News Nation. He says, you know, so what do you think about Trump saying we're going to be nice to China? And he actually got me for a second. So I was like, Wait, what? Trump just said we're going to be nice. Yeah, he did. Apparently said we're going to be nice to China. That's today. Could change tomorrow. Here's Trump on the trade deals. China's, of course, front and center on this play. Cut four.

[Donald Trump]

They all want to be involved with America. And we have a lot of action going on. We have. We're making a lot of money. This country, this country is not going to be losing money on trade and anymore. We were losing $2 trillion a year on trade. Now we're going to be making money, a lot of money. So that's very good. Every country wants to partake, even countries that have ripped us off for many, many years. China is an example. But it's not just China. European Union, they ripped us off for many, many years. And those days are over. We're going to make a lot of money for our people. We'll be able to lower taxes substantially, and we're going to be proud of ourselves. They're not going to be a laughing stock. Got taken advantage of by virtually every country in the world.

[Clay Travis]

Clay, I'll get to the China piece in a second. How do you think this is going so far for Trump?

[Buck Sexton]

Look, I think Trump, as we come up on 100 days, has had one of the most incredible hundred days that we've ever seen. I mean that honestly, he has delivered on exactly what he said he was going to go after he shut down the border, which we were told was impossible. I mean, that is an A plus plus plus plus plus plus. I mean, Tom Holman, what they have done, this is exactly what we voted for. I think on trade, it's going to be a battle, and this is one that is not going to be decided anytime soon. So I think, you know, you have to give him, I don't know, a B, a B minus, if you want to say, because understandably, it's going to take a while. So that was one that couldn't be resolved rapidly. And then I think overall, on the budget, I think he's done pretty well. I mean, Elon Musk with the work that he has done. We should mention yesterday, Elon said on a Tesla call that he's likely going to be spending less and less time in the government. We told you this was going to happen. And we predicted, I think on this program that sometime around May that all of the obligations Elon Musk has in the larger world were going to begin to impinge upon him. That has happened. He said he's going to spend more time with his companies. And. And so I think this battle with the tariffs and the trade wars is such a hard fight. You mentioned politicians and what their backgrounds are. Starting a small business is hard. A lot of people run from doing hard things. And I think that many politicians try to avoid addressing things that are hard battles to win because they're not really concerned with making the country better. They're concerned with making sure that they always get reelected. And sometimes if you try to do hard things, people can start to blame you for the consequences of taking on hard battles. Look, I think this has happened with entitlements. Why do we have entitlement spending rapidly eclipsing the entirety of our federal budget? Because a lot of politicians won't be honest with people about the cost of health care and the cost of Social Security and how that is gobbling up increasingly more and more of our budgets, because that's not an issue that gets easily resolved. And if it does get resolved, it might cost you your job. And so a lot of politicians aren't concerned with doing what's right. They're concerned with what gets them elected. And I kind of think about it from an analogistic perspective, Buck. If you talk to people who run companies, they will say one of the toughest things about running a company is having to have quarterly results public companies. Because when you have to meet quarterly expectations, sometimes you don't do what's in the best interest of the company for a decade. You do what's in the best interest of the company for two months. Those can become conflicting ideals. And that's why some people say, hey, I don't want to take my company public because I want to be able to run it in the best manner possible. But that might mean that we don't meet earnings in quarter one, but by quarter one, two years from now, we're far better than we would have been if we had been trying to make sure we met short term success. But we sacrifice a long term success for short term success. And I think what Trump's trying to do here is set up long term success, even if that potentially means in the short term, the metrics of success are not necessarily met in a traditional political environment. And this is why I think, Buck, he would like to be able to run for reelection, because I think he's thinking longer term and he knows that it's hard to get a lot done in four years. And the older I get, the shorter four years seems. Because, man, I'll tell you, I didn't enjoy the biden administration. But there are lots of times when you're young where a presidential term of four years seems like it takes forever. High school seems like it took forever. College can seem like it takes forever. I turn around now and I'm like, that was eight years ago. That seems like, you know, two years ago. Right. And I know some of you out there older than me, and you're like, you know, listen here, whippersnapper. It only gets worse. But I think that's part what, what Trump is grappling with, if that makes sense.

[Clay Travis]

Absolutely. Here he is grappling with getting a deal done. This is cut 5 getting a deal done with China.

[Donald Trump]

My relationship with presidency is great. It was. It's been great for a long time. We've had a very good relationship. And I think we'll make a deal with China. Going to be very nice. They're going to be very nice and we'll see what happens. But ultimately they have to make a deal because otherwise they're not going to be able to deal in the United States.

[Clay Travis]

You know, there's very Trump, we're going to be very nice. What does that mean? With Trump, that leaves a lot of open territory nice, like polite and funny, but then going to demand that China plays ball or else. I mean, I think that look, he love, he lives for this stuff, honestly. He lives for sitting down across the table from the second most powerful world leader in the world, which is what Xi Jinping is. It's not Vladimir Putin. It is Xi Jinping, no question. And saying, you know, hey buddy, what do you got? What cards, what cards do you think you hold right now? Let's see.

[Buck Sexton]

He loves to negotiate. We'll talk about this. By the way, screaming match in the Oval Office buck between Elon Musk and Treasury Secretary Scott Besant according to Axios. We'll talk about that. Guy's got chest to chest and we're letting each other have it. So we'll give you the latest on that. Some drama inside of the inside of the White House. Better health care option right now than Obamacare. Of course there is. It's Ease for Everyone. I want you to check it out. Ease for everyone.com Clay that's spelled E A S E E for everyone dot com. You can replace your overpriced Affordable Care act plan with Ease for Everyone. Only group plan. Any adult in the US Is eligible to join. Think about this. Ease for everyone versus Obamacare. With a monthly cost as low as $262, you can get free unlimited prescriptions. With 93% all drugs covered and available at no cost, including insulin. Huge savings on brand names, free unlimited virtual primary care and urgent care. With just a $30 copay, you get generous cashback reimbursements for doctor office visits, emergency room visits and ambulance transportation. You can have affordable health care for as low as 262 bucks a month. Today visit ease for everyone.com clay that's ease for everyone.com clay. You can also get the [e-mail] all of our sponsor info is there. If you're listening and it sounds confusing, you can go check it out there. But ease for everyone.com Clay paid for by Affordable Benefit Choices. You know them as conservative radio hosts. Now just get to know them as guys on the Sunday Hang podcast with Clay and Buck. Find it in their podcast feed on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Buck Sexton]

You can have affordable health care for as low as $262 a month today. Visit ease for everyone.com clay that's ease for everyone.com forward/clay paid for by Affordable Benefit Choices welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show Appreciate all of you hanging out with us. I teased this just breaking about 20 minutes ago from Axios. Musk versus Besant. This is Doge obviously Elon Musk. Besant is the Treasury Secretary. They got into a West Wing shouting match over the IRS head. According to two witnesses, three sources quote it was two billionaire middle aged men thinking it was WWE in the hall of the West Wing. The clash with both men in each other's faces yelling at each other over the IRS head head. Asked about the shouting match, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt referred to comments she made to the Times about how, quote, it's no secret President Trump has put together a team of people who are incredibly passionate about the issues impacting our country. Disagreements are a normal part of any healthy policy process. Ultimately, everyone knows they serve at the pleasure of President Trump. I think, Buck, that Elon is beginning to finally get, as we said he likely would, super frustrated at not being able to get government to move as fast as he wants it to be moved, as we know he has done at Tesla, at SpaceX, at XAI, at Twitter. He wants to move fast and break things. And it's hard to do that at government.

[Clay Travis]

Very hard to do that in government. I've thought this all along. I've told you guys, you know, this Doge thing is going to be tough. They're doing, I love what they're doing, but they're, they're trying to, it's like a guy in a tugboat trying to move the, the empire of the seas or whatever that giant cruise ship is that I see parked in my. What's the, it's called something like that. It's like the biggest ship in the world. I forget the name. I drive past it. All right, switch your cell phone service to PureTalk and save 50 bucks or more every month. Their service is just as good as those big wireless companies. And that is for a reason. PureTalk accesses the same towers, same networks as one of the big three wireless providers. And you can also keep your number and your phone. Speaking of phones, PureTalk has a great deal right now for Samsung users looking for an upgrade with a qualifying plan. You can get the brand new Samsung Galaxy A26 for free with sturdy gorilla glass and next generation camera lenses. Sign on for the PureTalk plan for unlimited talk, text and 15 gigs of data with mobile hotspot for just $35 a month. Dial 250, say the keywords clay and buck, and PureTalk's US customer service team will help you switch in as little as 10 minutes. That's £250, say clay and Bach for your free Samsung Galaxy with qualifying plan from Pure Talk. Again, dial pound 250, say Clay and Buck. Switch to Pure Talk.

[White House Press Secretary]

I spoke to the president about it this morning. He is not going to give up on ensuring that there are fair trade practices around the world. He is not giving up on the fact that China has been ripping off the United States of America for far too long. And President Trump has brought hundreds of countries now from around the world to the negotiating table. We have 18 proposals, proposals on paper from nations around the world who recognize that they have, in fact, been ripping off the United States. And there's a president in the Oval Office right now who is no longer going to tolerate it. So this is the art of the deal. President Trump is using the leverage of the United States to bring nations to the negotiating table. That includes China, who he remains very optimistic there will be a fair trade deal with China that finally puts American workers and American industry first.

[Clay Travis]

Yep, part of the deal. Trump's doing his thing as we knew.

[Buck Sexton]

That he would all along.

[Clay Travis]

No one's going to tell him not to. He is the Trumpster and he will be judged by his results on this one. And he knows that. And he also, I think, deserve, you know, a lot of things. Clay, what I've said, look, he's been right on so many things where even a lot of Republicans were saying, oh, no, you can't do that. His whole political story is being right when everyone says, you know, you can't do that, or pushing through what everyone says, it's impossible. But on China specifically, he's the only one who's doing anything, or rather, he's the only one who's been in a position to do anything, who's been willing to look at this issue. You speak to anybody. And I mean, I saw Mr. Wonderful, Kevin O'Leary was on TV recently talking about how. And I've heard this from other people. You know, I was in. I was in China for a business conference in 2019, and it was very, very interesting, very eerie thing. I don't know how many of you have been to China. Some of you have probably been missionaries there or something, have been there for 20 years and speak Mandarin. But, and I say that, not kidding. I'm sure there are a few of you who. That's the case. But when you go there, it is like you're on another planet in a lot of ways. Just because things that you cannot take certain things for granted at all. And you're very mindful of who you're speaking to and what you're saying and what you're Googling, or rather not Googling, because you can't Google, but you know, what you're doing on the Internet and the theft of intellectual property. I mean, think about this, Clay. You want to do business in China. You run a company that, you know, makes widgets. You know, the Crockett Widget Company. We decide we're going to set up shop.

[Buck Sexton]

Oh.

[Clay Travis]

We want access to China's market. Okay, cool. So we do a joint venture with a Chinese company because the Chinese government mandates it, and then we do this joint venture with them, and then they set up shop down the road with government backing, taking all the stuff that we've brought with us, replicating it, starting a new company, shutting down our joint venture. And we can't sue. We can't do anything. It's see you later. That is standard operating procedure in the People's Republic of China. That is what goes on there, Clay. It's why companies don't want to do business with them. And they get away with this stuff all the time.

[Buck Sexton]

I would point out that if you question Trump's wisdom on tariffs in the way that he responded to China, do you know that the only thing Joe Biden didn't change when he took office.

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

Was Trump's tariffs on China. And it sort of has slipped under the radar that that occurred. But think about all the executive orders that Joe Biden put in place the minute that he got to the Oval Office. One of the most controversial things that Trump did, we were told, was China trade policy and the tariffs that he implemented to try to make Chinese trade policy fairer with the United States. So many people squawked in opposition. Biden got in office, never changed them, kept them all in place.

[Clay Travis]

Here you go. A little Fun throwback here. January 2022. President Biden's administration has left tariffs in place on $350 billion of Chinese goods imposed by his predecessor, Donald Trump. Hmm.

[Buck Sexton]

It might be interesting. They agreed on Buck. I mean, legitimately, and initially, they all said this was unacceptable, it was going to destroy the economy. Biden comes into office, he left them all in place.

[Clay Travis]

So I just think that speaks volumes about this. And also, you notice how people that were saying, oh, why is he tearing up NAFTA with the US Mexico Canada Agreement? Because the US Mexico Canada agreement is better. He was right. All the people that were saying, why is he messing with nafta? NAFTA was old. NAFTA needed to be updated. There were problems with nafta and he did. So do you hear anyone saying we need to get rid of US Mexico, Canada now? No, of course not. Did Biden try to do that? No, of course not.

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[Clay Travis]

So there's a track record here, Clay, that I don't think anybody should ignore if they want to have any sense as to what's possible here and what, what the likely outcomes could be.

[Buck Sexton]

You know, in retrospect, a guy who probably deserves a lot more credit that doesn't get it, Ross Perot, because one of his top, for those of you who remember one of, I thought you.

[Clay Travis]

Were going to say Pat Buchanan. There's a lot of people we could throw into the mix, but go ahead.

[Buck Sexton]

But, but I mean, I think Ross Perot, one of his top issues was he said that NAFTA was going to be a net negative for American middle class jobs. And I think that much of the argument that he made has in many ways been proved to be prescient. In other words, he's been proven to be right and people forget how many voters he got. Back in 1992, as all of this NAFTA free trade discussion was beginning, there were a lot of people kind of tiptoeing into it, not really understanding what we were headed for. And there is an element, I know it's whatever, 40 years later, basically, but there is a strong element of Trump trade policy that is evoking and echoing the arguments that Ross Perot was making as long ago as 92. And to your point, Buck, there are many people who made them, but I just remember Ross Perot in particular getting savaged over these arguments that he was making. And I bet Trump agreed with a lot of them back in the day because Trump's on record talking about this back in the 80s with Oprah Winfrey. I mean, some of that, some of that footage has come out of him. The one thing he's been consistent on is the fact that I was getting our lunches.

[Clay Travis]

I don't think you can find, other than liking pretty ladies, other than, I don't think you can find anything that Donald Trump has been more consistent on in public life, period, than tariffs and China. I don't know what else. You know, maybe deal making is important, you know, but there's Nothing on a policy level that you can point to where he's been as consistent as long as he has on this issue. And I think that for all the reasons we've laid out, we should see where he's able to take this. Here we go. VIP Robert wrote this. Didn't Clay on Trump China pull a line from the movie Roadhouse, be nice until it's time not to be nice? I think that, first of all, great, great reference. Roadhouse, one of the most watchable, absurd movies ever made.

[Buck Sexton]

Just remade it. And now they're making a Roadhouse 2, right? You watched? I never saw the remake.

[Clay Travis]

No, I. But I. I don't even have to. It had like, the little Irish MMA guy in it. What's his name? Not the new one. Patty? Yeah. Conor McGregor. No, no, no.

[Buck Sexton]

I don't know if I want to be on record with Buck saying that Conor McGregor is a little Irish guy.

[Clay Travis]

I'm not. That's fair. I'm not saying he can't fight me and he can't kick. I'm just saying he's not an actor.

[Buck Sexton]

I'm going to be having to get us somewhere and there's going to be a tap on my shoulder and that little Irish guy is going to be there kicking my ass and I'm going to be like, no, it was Buck who said it. I didn't have anything to do with it. NJ Gillen all is the bat is playing the. The lead role, right?

[Clay Travis]

Yeah.

[Buck Sexton]

It's set in the format.

[Clay Travis]

It is a Patrick Swayze classic. For those of you who have not seen it, it is absolutely absurd. Like the whole. He lives across the lake from the main bad guy. He's like, somehow knows karate. He went to nyu.

[Buck Sexton]

Like, none of it adds up.

[Clay Travis]

The movie makes absolutely. He. He goes. He gets stabbed in a knife fight and the nurse who's tending to him is like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model who lives. Who lives in this small town and then wants to go roll around with this guy in, like, the actual barn that he lives in. I mean, I'm just. Look, not all heroes wear capes. It was pretty amazing that he was able to pull this off in the movie. But yes, it is very, very a Sam Elliott, by the way, some great Sam Elliott stuff. What does he keep. Does he call him Kimo Sabe or what's his Me, me, me. Miho. He calls him Miho in the movie.

[Buck Sexton]

Is there a bet? This is a fun debate. Is there a better 1980s era range of actor range than Patrick Swayze? For wildly successful movies that had nothing in common. Because if you think about just off the top of my head, Ghost, Dirty Dancing and Roadhouse, like the difference between Roadhouse and Ghost is or Roadhouse and.

[Clay Travis]

I guess Point break is.

[Buck Sexton]

Is 90s but point break would be another great one to add. And then some of you are going to remember this and this is the history nerd in me. He also played a Civil War soldier or this is. I don't know how many of you even going to remember this was this.

[Clay Travis]

Civil War camp claim this.

[Buck Sexton]

We just sat around and watched this movie. And he played a Confederate general Ori Maine from South Carolina. The range of Patrick Swayze excellence to your point. If you was point break 1990 it might have been just the very right around. But I mean if you think about Ghost, if you think about Dirty Dancing, Roadhouse, north and south and Love and War which was like this television miniseries epic based on the John Jakes novels of the Civil War and man, I may well have super nerded myself out there. I don't know how many of you read these in the 80s, but I did and the because of the miniseries was so popular. Patrick Swayze might have had the best acting career of anyone range super successful movies in the 1980s. I mean like Arnold Schwarzenegger basically played Arnold Schwarzenegger. Right? Sylvester Stallone basically played Sylvester Stallone. I know there's some exceptions like Arnold Schwarzenegger was in twins with Danny DeVito where he was funny.

[Clay Travis]

What about Kindergarten Cop? It's not a tumor. It's one of his best.

[Buck Sexton]

There are a few expert. Oh, Michael Barry, our buddy down in Houston just texted me Red Dawn. I mean remember how good he was Swayze and Red dawn in the 1980s. And as part.

[Clay Travis]

I mean I just want to say well played, Mr. Barry. Well played.

[Buck Sexton]

He's got a great show in Houston for those of you that are listening to us right now. But I mean think about it. Is he. This is a. This may be the most aggressive crazy argument I've made. Is Patrick Swayze the most underrated 1980s movie actor of all time?

[Clay Travis]

I don't know if he could. I don't think he's underrated enough. I don't think he's underrated. I think that. Well, he passed away of cancer sadly some years ago. But I don't, I just think that he didn't. He didn't stay as big for like long. But I think that he was I think in the 80s he was a true leading man and and was. Was Getting his doom.

[Buck Sexton]

Look at the movies. He the best 1980s actor. If you consider.

[Clay Travis]

Now you're getting. Now you're getting crazy.

[Buck Sexton]

Now you're calling range on range. I think there's a sway. There's an under. Under disrespected, under the radar argument for Patrick Swayze's excellence.

[Clay Travis]

Your generation, you. You Gen X people like Pacino and De Niro way too much. So that's always. That always comes up in this. I get.

[Buck Sexton]

I've never been. Robert De Niro plays the same character.

[Clay Travis]

In every same thing and everything. The same, you know, Italian mafio guy.

[Buck Sexton]

Like. Yes.

[Clay Travis]

The whole. The whole thing. I've never. I think that I would put them in the really overrated category, actually. Of actors. Yeah, that's. That's a hot take for you. Some of the people in the Northeast, we got a lot of New Jersey, New York listeners, they're not going to like that one, but I'm just telling you, okay, yeah, Goodfellas is very watchable, but, like, let's calm down. It's not as great as everybody pretends.

[Buck Sexton]

Michael Barry still firing, by the way. The Outsiders, all 1980s. I'm. I'm going to maybe have to die on this hill, but I think Harris.

[Clay Travis]

Harrison Ford was big, was huge in the 80s. Indiana Jones, right? So you.

[Buck Sexton]

He.

[Clay Travis]

You're saying best actor with range.

[Buck Sexton]

Range, like he's Indiana, basically. Harrison Ford is Indiana Jones or Han Solo in those movies. Across the board, right? The range of Dirty Dancing to Roadhouse to Red dawn. Is there better 1980s performance than Patrick Swayze? I'm not sure. I'm not sure we can beat him.

[Clay Travis]

I don't. I would. I would love to disagree with you, but I actually can't come up with anything on the fly here to refute your argument, which makes me think that it's not as crazy as my initial.

[Buck Sexton]

I mean, like, Michael J. Fox was great, and I'm going to talk about testosterone here in a minute, but Michael J. Fox also wasn't taking over, you know, like a country, right? In a. In a. In a. Or a bar or whatever. It wasn't like an action hero. And, you know, Patrick swayze in the 80s. You know what I bet he had? Buck. Unbelievable levels of testosterone. I bet his testosterone levels were through the roof. You can't make pottery like that in Ghost. And then also simultaneously, simultaneously beat everybody's ass in Roadhouse without incredible levels of testosterone. He's a lover, and he was a fighter, Buck. And you might need to be a lover and a fighter someday. And if so, you might need more testosterone in your life. And that's what chalk does. C-H O Q.com they have all kinds of supplements out there for both men and women. Be the best natural version of yourself. Testosterone is the body's natural source of energy. Over time it declines. We were just talking about this earlier. RFK Jr was on with Jesse Waters talking about this. We had a discussion about how much difference the male vitality can create if you have higher testosterone levels. Also, the female vitality stack helps women with hormone health. You can subscribe right now and get the best deal so you can be the Patrick swayze of the 2000s and make sure that you are hooked up with unbelievable levels of testosterone. Chalk.comchoq.com My name Clay Massive discount on any subscription for life. You can cancel at any time with the without any penalty at all. That's chalk.com my name C L A Y 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 podcast.

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[Clay Travis]

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[Clay Travis]

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Them Clay and Buck told you to call and get a free IRS transcript investigation. Rush Tax Resolution is the only company we trust and recommend and they will only take your case if they know they can help you. Period. That number again. 877-554-7874 or rush taxresolution.com welcome back in Clay. Travis Buck Sexton show. This is not going to surprise you, but we are deluge. Michael Berry says I didn't know this. He's evidently a fount of Patrick Swayze knowledge. Our Houston lead in phenomenal talent down there. Patrick Swayze legend in Houston mom ran a famous dance studio for decades. He came up through the dance studio family known by everybody. Michael Berry, unexpected savant when it comes to Patrick Swayze knowledge. And a lot of you firing away. But Buck, you have, you have someone that you think is a more successful range actor from the 1980s that you thought about during break. And I don't even know the answer here yet.

[Clay Travis]

I, I, I think we have to bring Tom Hanks into the conversation here. I think we have to bring Tom Hanks in. You're talking Splash, Big Turner and Hooch Dragnet. You know, you get a whole and then he gets into like Philadelphia, Forrest Gump.

[Buck Sexton]

Now that's early, but that's the 90s.

[Clay Travis]

I knew I would argue you probably.

[Buck Sexton]

Made a good case for Tom hanks in the 90s to be the actor with.

[Clay Travis]

No. But all those movies I named were 80s. So that's Turner and Hooch Dragnet, Splash. He was a little more of a kind of romantic lead comedy guy in the 80s and then very much transitioned into like leading man. Serious roles. To be fair, the transition really occurs right around 1990. So your premise still holds, which I'm.

[Buck Sexton]

Bitter having to say that, but yes, was big 1980s.

[Clay Travis]

Yes.

[Buck Sexton]

Tom Hanks big. That was. By the way, you want to talk about a movie that is super creepy. Super creepy in retrospect. 10 year old boy sleeping with, you know, like that movie. I'm not sure that movie holds up really well as you get to be an adult and it's great when you're 10 when you watch it and you're.

[Clay Travis]

Like, ooh, we got, we got some VIPs real quick here. Tom Cruise. And my friend Garrett just texted. He's listening. He said Tom Cruise. I don't know if Tom Cruise has range. I think he's probably the biggest leading man of all time. Him and Harrison Ford probably neck and neck. Also, VIP Rick writes Harrison Ford much greater range. Witness Working Girl. So many more may be true. Although I feel like Harrison Ford always just plays Harrison Ford. I don't know.

[Buck Sexton]

I agree. I think Harrison Ford's always Harrison Ford. And again, Tom Cruise. Always Tom Cruise. I think my argument's right here. I think Patrick Swayze is the actor with the greatest range of the 1980s. You can argue otherwise and be wrong.

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