Hour 3 - What Will Trump Do Tonight?

Summary

The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show: Episode Summary – Hour 3: "What Will Trump Do Tonight?"

Release Date: March 4, 2025

Overview

In the third hour of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show," hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton delve into the latest political developments surrounding former President Donald Trump, analyzing his upcoming actions and their potential impact on the current political landscape. The discussion is rich with insights into Democratic strategies, Trump's political mandate, economic concerns, and social issues, all framed with the hosts' characteristic intelligence and humor.

Democrats' Political Strategies and Policy Missteps

Clay Travis initiates the conversation by critiquing the Democratic Party's recent focus on social issues, particularly policies that resonate poorly in key swing states. He argues that Democrats are committing "political suicide" by championing causes that alienate their base in states that Trump won:

"Last night, not one single Democrat senator would show up to vote and say, hey, men shouldn't be able to identify as women and win women's championships. Not one." ([05:30])

Travis highlights that Democratic senators from traditionally Trump-winning states like Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and Michigan are advocating for progressive stances on gender identity in sports, which he contends is driving voters away. This misalignment between Democratic policies and the electorate's preferences in these battleground states is presented as a critical flaw in their strategy.

Trump’s Alignment with Majority American Opinions

The hosts emphasize that Donald Trump's positions align with what they assert is an 80% majority of Americans on several pivotal issues:

1. Men in Women's Sports: Trump’s stance on maintaining gender divisions in sports is portrayed as a response to widespread public concern.
2. Government Efficiency: Efforts to streamline government operations and reduce waste resonate with voters tired of bureaucratic inefficiency.
3. Peace in Europe and Ukraine: Trump's initiatives to broker peace and reduce conflict are seen as aligned with public desire for stability.

Travis underscores this alignment by referencing a poll where 78% of Americans support a ceasefire in Ukraine, positioning Trump as the candidate who best represents these majority views.

Trump’s Political Mandate

A significant portion of the discussion centers on whether Trump's recent election victory constitutes a clear mandate. Responding to skepticism, Travis argues firmly in favor of Trump having a legitimate mandate based on the following points:

• Swing State Victories: Trump won every swing state and managed to flip 89% of counties to the right.
• Popular and Electoral College Victory: Despite winning the popular vote by a slim margin of 1.5%, Trump secured the necessary Electoral College votes.

"The man won every swing state. He increased, in terms of his vote, voter turnout in his favor from the standpoint of blacks, Latinos and young voters." ([12:45])

Travis dismisses critiques of the mandate’s legitimacy, asserting that Trump’s performance in key demographics and counties demonstrates widespread support essential for a strong political mandate.

Upcoming Mineral Rights Deal with Ukraine

Travis and Sexton turn their attention to Trump’s anticipated announcement of a mineral rights deal with Ukraine and President Zelensky. They discuss the media’s reaction, characterizing it as overwhelmingly negative and labeling Trump as a "Putin stooge" for attempting to mediate peace.

"Trump is the good guy here attempting to mediate peace between Ukraine and Russia, both of whom we have failed to live up to the bargains that we created for them." ([17:50])

The hosts argue that Trump’s efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict are misunderstood and that his actions are geared towards restoring peace and stability, which they empathize with the populace’s desire for an end to conflict.

Economic Concerns: Inflation and Cost of Goods

A central theme of the hour is the American economy, particularly inflation and the rising cost of goods. Travis references a CNN poll indicating that 82% of Americans prioritize the economy, yet only 36% believe Trump is sufficiently addressing it:

"82% of Americans say that's what he should prioritize. Look at the number who say he is. I mean 36%. You don't have to be a mathematical genius to know that 36 is far less than 82%." ([20:05])

The discussion highlights fears that ongoing tariff disputes could exacerbate inflation, allowing Democrats to criticize Trump for economic challenges purportedly stemming from his policies. The hosts suggest that resolving international conflicts, such as ending the war in Ukraine, could alleviate energy costs and subsequently reduce the overall cost of goods.

Social Issues and Family Dynamics

Buck Sexton shares a personal story about his family's experience with transgender issues, illustrating the broader societal debates:

"The data reflects that most people who are interested in gender transition are profoundly unhappy... I do think in general, the idea of drastic change is going to suddenly move me from super unhappy to super happy is appealing but oftentimes not necessarily based on the data." ([31:00])

Travis responds by expressing skepticism about gender transition policies, citing data on the mental health outcomes of such decisions. He emphasizes the importance of addressing underlying unhappiness and mental health without resorting to drastic measures like gender transition, advocating for a more measured approach to personal well-being.

Audience Call-ins and Interactive Discussions

Throughout the episode, listeners call in to share their perspectives, which Travis and Sexton engage with thoughtfully:

1. Mark from Virginia praises the show's handling of the mineral deal and emphasizes confidence in Trump’s economic focus.
2. Bill from Maryland discusses Senator Thune’s comments on Senate inefficacy, leading to a broader conversation about legislative gridlock.
3. Ted from Florida shares his personal experience with his son’s gender transition, prompting a discussion on family dynamics and societal pressures.
4. Conrad from Wisconsin offers suggestions on how Trump could address inflation by removing excise and fuel taxes on diesel and rallying retailers to lower food prices.

These interactions underscore the hosts' commitment to addressing a wide range of listener concerns, from national policy to personal struggles.

Strategic Recommendations for Trump

In advising Trump’s upcoming address, Travis emphasizes the need to prioritize economic issues, particularly the cost of goods, as the top concern for Americans. He suggests that focusing on tangible economic solutions would resonate more effectively with voters than continuing to tackle multiple fronts simultaneously.

"If I were giving advice, I would maniacally focus on price of goods." ([35:10])

Travis believes that by addressing inflation directly and laying out clear plans to reduce costs, Trump can solidify his support and address the primary voter concern.

Conclusion: The Path Forward

As the episode draws to a close, Travis and Sexton reflect on the broader implications of Trump’s potential actions and the current political climate. They express optimism that Trump’s focus on key issues that align with American voters can steer the country towards greater unity and economic stability.

The hosts also tease upcoming content, including reactions to Trump’s address from various media personalities and ongoing discussions about the state of the Union. They reaffirm their commitment to providing insightful and entertaining commentary on the most pressing topics of the day.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• On Democratic Missteps:

  "This is why Democrats are committing political suicide on a level I'm not sure I've ever seen before." ([06:20])

• On Trump's Mandate:

  "He won every swing state. He increased, in terms of his vote, voter turnout in his favor from the standpoint of blacks, Latinos and young voters." ([12:45])

• On the Economy:

  "82% of Americans say that's what he should prioritize. Look at the number who say he is. I mean 36%." ([20:05])

• On Family and Social Issues:

  "The data reflects that most people who are interested in gender transition are profoundly unhappy." ([31:00])

• Advice to Trump:

  "If I were giving advice, I would maniacally focus on price of goods." ([35:10])

Final Thoughts

This episode of "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" provides a comprehensive analysis of Donald Trump's political strategies and upcoming actions, juxtaposed against Democratic policies that the hosts argue are misaligned with voter sentiments in crucial states. Through engaging discussions, personal anecdotes, and listener interactions, Travis and Sexton offer a nuanced perspective on the current political and economic challenges facing the United States, all while advocating for policies they believe will resonate with the American electorate.

Transcript

[Clay Travis]

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[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

Welcome in hour number three. Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show. Buck on his way to Nashville Advertiser meetings. We do a lot of them. You can follow the podcast. Make sure you don't miss a moment. Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show. And let me just mention that too, on the ad front. Never seen anything like it. We talked about the vibe shift. We played that cut for you from White Lotus. The number of people were sold out all over the show. The number of advertisers begging to get on this show now is crazy. Uh, I saw where Lachlan Murdoch was talking about it with Fox News. Over a hundred new advertisers. We got people throwing money at outkick this show. It's like they suddenly realized, oh wait, these guys talk to millions of people every day. Most successful radio show in terms of profitability. Maybe the most successful audio show in terms of profitability in the entire country, thanks to you GU guys. And they've got a huge audience and it's from all across the spectrum. Unless you're like a crazy left winger who believes that men should be able to win women's championships, this show basically speaks to you. And I was thinking about that last night as I got ready for bed, about the degree to which Democrats are committing political suicide on a level I'm not sure I've ever seen before. And let me just give you three examples. Last night, not one single Democrat senator would show up to vote and say, hey, men shouldn't be able to identify as women and win women's championships. Not one. You heard us talk with Senator John Th, Majority Leader, South Dakota in the first hour of the program and the votes weren't there on the Democrat side. Georgians listening to me right now, your two Democrat senators said, hey, yes, we love men winning women's championships. That's what Georgia believes. Arizona, your two Democrat senators. These are States that Trump won. This is why I'm signaling them out. They said yes, you know what we love? Dudes pretending to be women winning women's championships. We need more of this. That's what Arizona voted for. Nevada, double Democrat senators. Hey, we need this to be happening more often. Trump won your state. Michigan, double Democrat senators. Hey, it's great to see dudes winning women's sports. It's not just California and New York is my point. I understand that those states have got crazy people leading them. I'm talking about the states that Trump won. Federman, who we talk about as a reasonable guy. Hey, yeah, I gotta support men who identify as women being able to win women's championships, including the University of Pennsylvania male swimmer who flipped over to a female and won an NCAA championship a couple of years ago. I think we need more of that. It's one thing if it happens inside of a, a left wing state, but Pennsylvania, Trump won. Trump won Georgia, Trump won Arizona, Trump won Nevada, Trump won Michigan. All of those Democrat senators, all of them voted in favor of this continuing. And also, by the way, in Wisconsin, I mean these are real significant issues. The other, other two I would point to, hey, you know what we need more of waste and fraud in the government. That's what Democrats are defending when they are attacking Elon Musk and Doge. And remember, Elon Musk wasn't even a Democrat, was a Democrat until about six months ago. This is just basic common sense. 8020 issue. And then they went after him on Ukraine. 78% of Americans want a ceasefire. Now in Ukraine, you're all logical, you're all rational. Trump is on the side of 80% in three different major issues I just ran through. He wants men out of women's sports. He wants government to be more efficient and, and he wants peace in Europe. And Democrats are taking the other side and arguing that he's screwing it up. Now I'm gonna play a cut for you of Stephen A. Smith in a moment from the View, but let me just hammer this home right now. Trump has done nothing wrong in Ukraine in his entire political career. All he is trying to do. Now we got a new tweet out from Zelensky. Hopefully we're going to get a ceasefire and into the war sooner rather than later. But all he is trying to do is get back to peace and the United. Everybody out there wants to say Ukraine is all good and Russia is all evil. Right? That's the way that we have to characterize this thing because we have to Disney fy. Every single issue in the world today. Know what I mean by disneyfy? You know how when you're a little kid, Disney movies would decide that an animal, a type of anadol animal, was either good or bad? And you would be like, well, a snake is bad, a deer is nice. And they went out and created a dynamic where you're in your head when you're a little kid. Oh, crocodile bad, dog good. You know where you're going through and you're looking at all these animals and they anthromorphize them. Is that the right word? I think it is to give them human characteristics. And it's a very Disney fied way of looking at things such that if you've raised kids as I have, you may have had a kid or grandkid come to you and say something like, hey, are, are cats good or bad? You know, as if the animal itself is innately one or the other. That's how we create political dynamics in this day and age. Let me give you one that very few people are talking about. Instead of talking about Russia and Ukraine, how about we point out that American foreign policy failures actually created the war in Ukraine. We talked about this a little bit in the first hour, but I don't think it gets discussed enough. The reason why there is a war right now in Ukraine. Yes, Putin invaded. I wish he had not done it. But the vacuum of American leadership and the lies that American leaders have told to both Ukraine and Russia is what created the dynamic whereby war happens there. I'll give you two easy examples to consider. In 1994, Ukraine had over a thousand, based on my reading, nuclear weapons that it had access to in order to get Ukraine to give up those nukes. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, we entered into an agreement, Bill Clinton did, whereby we provided security guarantees to Ukraine in order to give up those nuclear weapons. Ukraine gives up the nuclear weapons. America gives a security guarantee. 2014, Putin invades Crimea. We don't do anything. Obama allows it to happen, thereby in many ways violating the security guarantee that we had given to Ukraine. This is what Zelensky is complaining about. Meanwhile, we told Russia in after the Berlin Wall came down, hey, Russia, don't worry, we're not going to take your territory and we're not going to put NATO right on your border. And then what do we do? We allowed all of these different states to leave Russia and then we provided them NATO protection to ensure that Russia never tried to take back any of that territory again. Is it any wonder that Russia is afraid that Ukraine will also be given NATO protection and it will be surrounded by enemy, in its words and in its view, enemy soldiers. We broke our word to Russia and we broke our word to Ukraine that by we, I mean the United States. Do you know who had nothing to do with any of this? Donald Trump. All Trump is trying to do now is step into the mess created by Bill Clinton, created by Barack Obama, created by Joe Biden, and actually bring peace to Europe. Trump is, if you insist on a good and evil dynamic, Trump is the good guy here attempting to mediate peace between Ukraine and Russia, both of whom we have failed to live up to the bargains that we created for them, thereby creating a situation that was ripe for conflict. I don't know how many people have laid that out for you, but I think it's important to contextualize and understand exactly what's going on. Trump stacking together a lot of different issues that 80% of Americans agree with. Peace in the Middle east, peace in Ukraine, going out and securing the southern border, keeping men out of women's sports, all of these things that overwhelming majorities of Americans agree with is what led to a landslide. Some are still arguing about whether this was a mandate worthy victory. This just happened on the View. Joy Behar confronted ESPN Stephen A. Smith and said, you know, Trump didn't actually win much of an election mandate. This is what just went down. Play cut 29. He won the popular vote by 1.5%, one of the smallest ever, and he won the general election by less than 50%. So what kind of mandate is this, really? It is a mandate, and I'm going to explain why. The man won every swing state. He increased, in terms of his vote, voter turnout in his favor from the standpoint of blacks, Latinos and young voters. He increased his numbers in that regard from 2020, 89% of the counties shifted to the right. That's a mandate. Twenty years after they last won a popular vote. They won the popular vote. They won the Electoral College vote. The man won every swing state and on top of it all, 89% of the counties shifted against. I don't understand how people can look at that and say, there's no mandate, there's a mandate. What's a different definition of a mandate? I guess Joy Behar put in a body bag on her own show. Stephen A. Smith, laying out systematically why Trump has created a mandate to win in 2024. But I would argue with you, he has taken the next step and actually strung together a series of very popular, not particularly partizan perspectives to a lie and move America in a better direction. Now, all of that is super positive. Let me tell you something. I'm a little bit nervous about what is going to happen with the tariff situation. Why you say why are you nervous about that, Clay? I am nervous because prices have not come down yet. We're still sitting at whatever it is, 2.5% inflation. Many of you still feel it. If the tariff fight goes on for several months, my concern is it's going to provide an opening to Democrats to try and argue that Trump owns some of the cost of goods crisis created by Joe Biden. I'll lay that out for you a little bit and discuss it because I believe the number one thing now border is secure. Trump has done an amazing job shutting down the border in just one month via executive authority. The number one thing I think crime is coming down. We're letting police do their jobs again. The number one thing that is still out there that most Americans care about, white, black, Asian, Hispanic, Democrats, Republicans, independents, cost of goods. What does the data show on that? I'll discuss it for you when I come back. In the meantime, do you need a little bit more vim, vigor, vitality in your life? Are you gonna stay up tonight and watch Trump's speech and then are you gonna be dragging in the morning? Are you already looking ahead to the NCAA tournament coming out and thinking, oh, that's a lot of late nights, early mornings. Are your kids getting you up early in the morning or your grandkids because you got to go to their sporting events and you're dragging yourself around? Maybe you could use a little bit more testosterone in your life with our friends at Chalk Texas based company, our friend Seton. 30% increase in 20% increase in your natural testosterone levels over three months if you try it out right now. They have a male vitality stack. They have a female vitality stack. Use my name Clay. You get the best possible deal on the subscription for life. All you have to do is go to ch.com right now, check it out for yourself, Add my name Clay and boom. You are on your way to not only saving a bundle, but to having better energy in 2025. Don't drag around like Biden. Have the energy of Trump. Put some testosterone in your life with chalk My name Clay. To get hooked up today. That's choq.com Clay, Clay, Travis and Buck Sexton. Mic drops. That never sounded so good. Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts Looking for excitement? Chumba Casino is here. Play anytime. Play anywhere. Play on the train, Play at the store. Play at home. Play when you're bored. Play today for your chance to win and get daily bonuses when you log in. So what are you waiting for? Don't delay. Chumba Casino is free to play. Experience social gameplay like never before. Go to Chumba Casino right now to play hundreds of games, including online slots, bingo, Slingo and more. Live the chumba [e-mail] no purchase necessary.

[Buck Sexton]

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[Clay Travis]

What does the future hold for business? Ask nine experts, you'll get 10 answers. A bull market, A bear market? Inflation's going up, coming down. Can someone please invent crystal ball?

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[Clay Travis]

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[Clay Travis]

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[Clay Travis]

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[Clay Travis]

Welcome back in Clay. Travis Buck Sexton SHOW Head on a swivel. Head on an absolute swivel. The reports out there from Reuters are that Trump is going to announce a mineral rights deal with Ukraine and Zelensky tonight in the joint address before Congress. So Friday afternoon everybody loses their minds. Oh my goodness, he's a Putin stooge. I'm speaking as if I'm a left winger. How dare he turn his back on Zelensky. This is unprecedented. America has shamed itself. This is what we were all told Tuesday night, hey, the mineral rights deal has been signed instead of Friday. Trump gave 24, 48, 72 not even 96 hours of histrionic reactions. And then what everybody expected to happen on Friday is going to evidently end up happening on Tuesday. This is why I always say just chill a little bit. Now I do want to play this and then we'll react to it. Also take some of your calls. I don't think we've taken any calls so far today. If you want to weigh in, 800-282-2882. This is Harry Enton on CNN saying the number one issue at this point that most Americans are concerned about cost of goods. Is Trump focused on it enough? Listen, is he prioritizing the economy? 82% of Americans say that's what he should prioritize. Look at the number who say he is. I mean 36%. You don't have to be a mathematical genius to know that 36 is far less than 82%. This is a massive problem because if he was put in charge to fix the economy, just 36% say he's a, he's prioritizing it. His net approval rating on the economy is already at minus 4 and his overall approval rating is going down. His net approval negative in our CNN poll right around zero overall. This is, this is no bueno. This is not good. And so we'll see if tonight he's able to turn it around at all, but concern me a little doubtful. Okay. So if I were giving advice to Trump at all about tonight's address, he has solved everything at the border. He is, as I said to open the show, he's on the 80% of American side against the Democrats on the 20% side on a lot of issues. I would suggest that right now is the time to pivot and focus almost 100% on cost of goods. And that is why the tariff decision is just confusing in that dynamic because I don't think people really understand the economic impact of tariffs. And when they don't, you just end up with a lot of noise. What they recognize is when the price of gas goes down, it's under $3. Now in my neighborhood, I know I got to fill up my car just like you got to fill up your car. I believe what is embedded here that has the potential to be really, really successful is ending the war in Ukraine would unlock a lot of Russian gas that otherwise we are technically not able to buy. And when that happens, the cost of a gallon of gas is going to come down and act as a much more affordable aspect of everything because the cost of oil is embedded in the cost of everything. I'll talk about that a little bit more. We'll take some of your calls when we come back. In the meantime, I love generational family businesses that are working to make your family also pepper spray individually for people out there, your daughters, your granddaughters, your kids. You got door jams. We got all these products all throughout the house here. Get signed up [e-mail] that's S A B R E radio.com 15 today at S A B R E saberradio.com welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show. A lot of you want to weigh in on a variety of different topics. I wanted to give a a shout out here. By the way, I saw this quote from Charles Barkley yesterday. Charles Barkley, of course, the star NBA player formerly who now is a media prognosticator. I think he's probably the most talented TV guy in media today. He said this about. I've been talking about the vibe shift along with Buck. By the way, Buck will be back with me tomorrow. He's traveling right now. Uh, we've got meetings in Nashville with advertisers tomorrow. But the vibe shift is real. We played a clip for you from HBO from the White Lotus. We played Stephen A. Smith on the View putting Joy Behar in a body bag on her own show. I thought this was interesting from Charles Barkley yesterday. And I'm reading a quote from him because I haven't seen the audio. Greg, see if you can maybe track down the audio on this and maybe we could play it at some point this week. But he was talking about how. Remember the controversy over whether the Eagles were going to visit the White House or not? Philadelphia Eagles, who just won the Super Bowl? There was a report that they weren't then a report. And I talked to the White House and they said, no, no, no, that's not true. And then it comes out, oh, they're going to come and they're going to be honored. But it was a huge story that blew up and a lot of people reacted to it. Here's what Charles Barkley had to say. Reacting to that. I don't. And I agree with him a hundred percent. Let me preface this with, I don't care who the president is. He's the President of the United States. It bothered me the last 10 years. They're like, well, I'm not going because this certain person is president, dude. It's the President of the United States. Even though I disagree with President Trump on some things, if I met him, I would still give him the respect and dignity he deserves. We can disagree, but it bothers me when these teams don't want to go to the White House. I'm just disappointed. We got so divided. Where did we get to as a country when we're like, we're not going to the White House. We don't like who's in there. That's just stupid. I think that's well said by Charles Barkley. I've said this before. If Joe Biden had invited me to the White House, I would have gone. I understand some of you out there might have been upset. I would have gone in and given him my advice. Trump has invited me to the White House before. I've been there. Trump has invited Buck to the White House before. We've both been in the Oval Office. And visited with the President. It's an incredible privilege, but it's an incredible privilege to be able to meet with the President for any reason. So I'm old fashioned in that respect. If I won a Super bowl or if I won an NBA championship or a college championship, Major League baseball, we just had the Florida Panthers there. I would go in a heartbeat. I went to college at gw. We stood in line to be able to go just walk through and tour the White House. Some of you probably have been fortunate enough to do that. The opportunity as an American to visit the White House, shake the hand of the President, even if you disagree with them, I think is something that should be unifying. Democrat, Republican, independent. I think Charles Barkley is right about it. Okay, several different things a lot of you want to weigh in on. Let's go take some of your calls. Mark in Virginia. What you got for us, Mark?

[Caller]

Hey, Clay, what's going on, bud?

[Clay Travis]

Just living the dream here. Mark, what you got for us?

[Caller]

Oh, great. Great job. Rush would be proud of you guys. You and Buck.

[Clay Travis]

Thank you so much.

[Caller]

Real quick, of course, the deal with the mineral deal, no real shocker there. Art of the deal. He is the master magician when it comes to deal making, you know, and fake news media is going to jump all over whatever they can to, you know, create a narrative that drives, you know, a lot of low information voters. Well, anyway, getting back to what you were talking about, the economy.

[Clay Travis]

Yes.

[Caller]

Okay, here we go. Trump will certainly mention the economy. It's certainly on the top of his priority list as usual. But although he may get gigged for it, who are we yet once again waiting on Congress, the House and the Senate. Can they ever get together to do anything right? Here's my opinion. And watch it play out to be true. I think it ends on March 15 where the government shuts down. They'll go all the way up to March 14th. And finally, Rush, in this deal or whatever, something that they could have done a month ago, you know, what have they been doing the last month? You know, all they do is bicker with each other that, you know, somebody's ice cream cone is bigger than somebody else's. So let's have a 45 day fight about that.

[Clay Travis]

Thank you for the call. I agree on the government shutdown. And if you listen to this show, Buck and I have consistently told you the government's going to get funded. The government is not a lot of you out there. Like I wish more of the government would get shut down. Certainly I understand that, but I Feel like the government shut down story is maybe the most overplayed narrative arc out there in politics right now. Oh, my goodness. It's going to be shut down, and then it gets resolved. Bill in Maryland, what you got for us?

[Buck Sexton]

Hello?

[Clay Travis]

Yeah, you're with us. What you got?

[Buck Sexton]

Okay, I'm sorry, sorry. The reason that I called, I heard Senator Thune on your show earlier today, and I was just. I was so flabbergasted, I couldn't believe what I was hearing, because essentially, and correct me if I'm wrong, he said, forget about, we got something from Canada or whatever, and that's why we run the Senate the way we do today. At any rate, he Basically, with the 16 votes required given today, and actually the last dozen years or more, the way we're so divided, there's virtually no chance of the Senate doing anything worthwhile.

[Clay Travis]

Thank you for the call. Yeah, no, and I think that's important. We had Senator John Thune on, and I wanted him to explain to all of you because I do think it's frustrating. Senate majority, 53 votes. There are certain things that a Senate majority can do. They can confirm President Trump's Cabinet nominees, as they, by and large have done. And frankly, as they've done in a fairly rapid fashion. Uh, they could, if there were a, A, A death or a resignation, they could put a new Supreme Court justice in with a majority, Remember, because Harry Reid changed that RULE and Mitch McConnell, remember, said, you may end up regretting this sooner rather than later. And he did, because now a simple majority puts someone on the Supreme Court, what they cannot do. And I thought this was important. And he laid it out. I'd encourage you to go listen to the first hour of the podcast because he, he kind of laid it out in, in, in great detail. Outside of the budget reconciliation process, which can pass with a simple majority, almost every bill in order to clear The Senate needs 60 votes. That means with 53 Republicans, even if you get all 53, you need seven Democrats to sign on in order to get anything through the Senate, by and large. And so the result is John Thune was just being honest with everybody. Unless you have 60, the Democrats can obstruct many of the things that the Senate wants to pass, including, as we started off the show, discussing the men not being allowed to compete in women's sports. Ted in Florida, what you got for Clay?

[Buck Sexton]

How are you, buddy?

[Clay Travis]

I'm great. How are y'all?

[Buck Sexton]

Hey, man. Great. The last 12 years of my life, I've been living this, you know, Family liberal, Republican. My oldest son went to NYU and got indoctrinated and became trans. And at the time, I just didn't understand what was going on. And his younger brother was telling me, oh, dad, don't. It's just a fad. Don't worry about it. And I'm like, well, okay. That fad is, you know, I kind of miss my son. What? And. And I don't have any say in this at all. I'm just, you know, as a parent, you just love your kid. Right? You shoot him like an arrow and just love them.

[Clay Travis]

Yep.

[Buck Sexton]

And so now. Now is she detransitioning? You know, I went through a divorce. Liberal woman. Now I'm happily married last 10 years to a Republican woman. Very happily, you know, no drama. I don't mean any disrespect to anybody, but I feel like my. My life's just been a movie the last 12 years.

[Clay Travis]

So what happened? So I hope. I'm glad that you and your personal life are making decisions that are getting you happier. So what's happened with your son that decided he wanted to transition?

[Buck Sexton]

Yeah, it's a great question. You know, we text very lovingly. We don't. We don't have a huge relationship. I wish we did have a better relationship, but I'm just waiting for her or him, you know, to just. I've tried to go visit, you know, several times, and it just wasn't the right time or, you know, wasn't going to work or. So I'm not sure. Great question.

[Clay Travis]

Well, thank you for the call, and we wish you the best on your relationships with your kids. I think there are people out there who have dealt with this, unfortunately, and it's very challenging in your own families because the data reflects, again, the data large scale, not your individual life circumstance. The data reflects that most people who are interested in gender transition are profoundly unhappy. And if you remember a time when you and your own life might have been profoundly unhappy, sometimes you feel like you need to do something drastic in order to alter the trajectory of your life. The data often reflects that when you do something like, hey, I was a boy, now I'm a girl, that a lot of times that drastic change isn't what's going to make you happier in your life. And I'm far from a life coach. I screw up things all the time. Like all of you, I am imperfect in all facets. But I do think in general, the idea of drastic change is going to suddenly move me from super unhappy to super happy is appealing but oftentimes not necessarily based on the data. Again, what actually makes someone happy. And look, I'm getting on my soapbox here. I also just think one of the challenges, I think, of parenting in general, and I'm sure for a lot of you who are grandparenting too, we've sort of created this world where kids think if they're unhappy that something is wrong with them. You're not always going to be happy. Sometimes bad things happen and they can depress you for a period of time. I saw where Trump. There was a clip going viral of Donald Trump and I thought it was actually really good advice. He said for him the best cure for depression was working really, really hard because then you don't have as much time to marinate on things that you're unhappy about. Now everybody is different. I'm not saying there's a one size fits all aspect, but this is why in general, I'm skeptical of the prescription drug universe. Because I think what they sell is, oh, if you just take this pill, you'll be fine. I don't buy that. I think it's a good business model for them. Hey, if you have to take this pill every day for the rest of your life and you're otherwise concerned that if you don't, you're going to be unhappy, I understand why it makes sense from a business perspective. I'm just skeptical. I'm a skeptic in general when it comes to, and my wife picks on me over this sometimes. Like, I don't even like taking Tylenol. Right. Prescription drugs, I don't take any of them. Tylenol, I don't like to take it. You know, like natural supplements, those kind of things. Okay. Eat healthy, try to get to sleep best you can. I, you know, like, I'm old school. I'm like the guy who doesn't want to wear batting gloves. Just give me a wooden bat, I'll get up and I'll try to make my hit. I do think we sell to kids now. Hey, are you a little uncomfortable? Let me fix it this way. And as a result, I personally believe we are wildly over medicated. And certainly for young kids, we give them way too much medicine. Again, my personal opinion, everybody's different. Conrad in Wisconsin, what you got?

[Buck Sexton]

Hey, how's it going today, guys?

[Clay Travis]

We're doing fantastic.

[Buck Sexton]

Hey, two things real quick on the inflation front. I work in pricing, so I'm aware of how shipping costs can impact food prices, etc. I really think the president needs to get the excise Tax or fuel tax taken off of diesel. That just gets passed on anyway. Okay, so that's one thing. I think that'd be big. Shipping costs would come down. If that would happen per mile, cost would come down. Number two, I think he has to get and make this high profile visit of retailers and big food company executives coming to the White House and rally these guys to get food prices down. To get prices down. Even if it doesn't work that much, he's got to be seen as publicly trying to get prices down. He's not doing that right now and I think he needs to start.

[Clay Travis]

So thank you for the call. I think if I were giving advice to the White House at this point in time, they've been amazing on the border. They've picked a lot of 80, 20 issues. I would maniacally, at this point, assuming we get that mineral rights deal signed with Ukraine and we can get a cease fire there, I'd like to keep the cease fire in the Middle east again. The first 40 days of his term in office I think is maybe the greatest 40 days I've ever seen from any president. But if I were giving advice at this point, I think the number one thing that people care about now because we've solved the border to a large extent, if we can keep the ceasefire in the Middle east and in Europe, we have ended two huge global conflagrations, is now price of goods. I would maniacally focus on price of goods if I were given Trump advice. Price picks. Let me tell you right now, as we get ready to go into the last segment of the show, March Madness is here. There is a lot of fun to be had coming up next week with the conference tournaments. The week after that, with everything going on with the NCAA tournament, even Buck is going to fill out a bracket. NBA is underway. Major League Baseball is going to be back very soon. Spring training underway. NHL just had its most watched hockey game of all time other than the Olympics just a couple of weeks ago when the U.S. played Canada. There is a desperate craving for sports to bring us all together. I just gave that quote from Charles Barkley. Get yourself hooked up right now. You can play in 40 states, 13 million people already. Can you get 50 bucks when you sign up? Pricepix.com Code Clay, you can play in Texas and I know y'all down in Texas need to have some fun because my, oh my, the Dallas Mavericks have lit themselves on fire. You've got, you can play in Florida, you can play in Georgia, you can play in California. Prizepix.com My name Clay that's prizepix.com My Name My name Clay Keep up with the biggest political comeback in world history on the Team 47 podcast Clay and Buck highlight Trump replays from the week, Sundays at noon Eastern. Find it on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. What does the future hold for business? Ask nine experts, you'll get 10 answers. A bull market, A bear market. Inflation's going up, coming down. Can someone please invent a crystal ball?

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[Clay Travis]

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[Clay Travis]

You voted big Government out and efficient government in. Well now it's time to trim the fat from big wireless as well. If you're still on Verizon, AT&T or T Mobile, make the switch.

[Commercial Speaker]

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[Clay Travis]

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[Commercial Speaker]

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[Clay Travis]

Grand Canyon University, a private Christian university in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona, believes we're endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. GCU believes in equal opportunity and the American Dream starts with purpose. GCU equips you to serve others in ways that promote human flourishing and create a ripple effect of transformation for generations to come. By honoring your career, calling you impact your family, your friends and your community. You can change the world for good by putting others before yourself to glorify God. Whether your pursuit involves a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree, GCU's online, on campus and hybrid learning environments are designed to help you achieve your unique academic, personal and professional goals. With over 340 academic programs as of September 2024, GCU meets you where you are and provides a path to help you fulfill your dreams. The pursuit to serve others is yours. Let it flourish. Find your purpose at Grand Canyon University Private christian affordable visit gcu.edu welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show Appreciate all of you hanging out with us. Encourage you to go subscribe to the podcast. Make sure you don't miss a moment. Buck will be back with me tomorrow. We are traveling all over the country meeting with a lot of advertisers. Exciting time as many people want to be a part of the show because you guys have helped us grow to such an extent. Tons of new affiliates rolling in, a lot of fun and I know for many of you you wake up every day excited, which is very different than the first four years we've been doing this show together. And so we appreciate all of you for helping to put the country back in a positive direction. Be watching the State of the Union. For those of you who have Fox News, the Fox Nation broadcast, I'll be live tonight from Kid Rock's bar in downtown Nashville with Tommy Lahren and a few other panelists. Reacting in real time as Trump speaks. Should be a lot of fun. And tomorrow, we'll be back with you. Same bad time, same bat channel again. Search us out. Clay Travis, Buck Sexton, subscribe to the podcast and thank you for spending another fabulous Tuesday with you. Reaction to the Trump speech tomorrow.