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Clay Travis
This is an iHeart podcast guaranteed human
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this July 4th, come celebrate at America's Block Party hosted by America 250. America's Block Party is a can't miss 4th of July concert happening at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
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Experience music, performances by major artists, patriotic tributes and the kickoff to giving 4th, helping to make July 4th the largest day of giving in American history.
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Congressman Jason Smith
You know, not surprised at all, Clay. It's probably because of my colleagues that I serve with in the House of Representatives. Being a Democrat socialist is being a Democrat of today and that's what we experience in Washington when it comes to working with who's taking over, who's guiding the ship when it comes to pushing Democrat policies within, within the House, within the Senate. It's so disturbing to me, Clay, if you look at just these candidates that's winning. For example, in New York, one of the, one of the future individuals that I will be serving with in Congress says that she uses the American flag as a napkin. I mean, this is just crazy of the rhetoric and the beliefs that these individuals have that's going to be having a voting card in Washington, D.C. it should, it should concern everyone, no doubt.
Buck Sexton
And we're talking about the economic situation in general. One of the reasons that I think Democrats are lurching far to the left is there is discomfort with the economic conditions. You're trying to rectify that with the big beautiful bill I've been talking about on this program that the most important thing that people feel is that their wages are outpacing inflation, because that's how we end up with more dollars in our pockets. What is your opinion of where the economy is now? What do you expect the economy will look like as we get closer to people making their decisions in the midterms here come November?
Congressman Jason Smith
First off, Clay, when it comes to wage growth, something to be very thankful for, that just in the first year under President Trump, our wage growth has increased more than all four years combined under President Biden. So that is at least a step in the right direction. We need to continue for wage growth to increase and increase faster. That will be extremely helpful. But imagine if we wouldn't have passed the one big beautiful bill or the working families tax cuts if that would not have been signed into law July 4th. And in fact, we didn't pass this legislation, every single American. Every single American would have faced, on average, a 21% tax increase on top of what they've been dealing with with the inflation tax that was created of over 20% by the Biden administration. And their, their spending spree is that just put basically jet fuel on, on the flame. Um, and so like I, I think about the waitress Clay, that came up to me in Southeast Missouri, in Fredericktown, Missouri, that, that said, congressman, I just want to say thank you. I just filed my taxes. I'm getting a refund of over $10,000. This is a single mother with three kids who's a waitress and who works overtime. She said because of this refund, I will now be able to pay for my rent for a year plus in groceries. That, that is affordability. And it's because they get to keep more of their hard earned dollars instead of the government spending it.
Buck Sexton
What do you think when you see in New York City, you were just talking about hard earned dollars back in your pocket. The idea that Mamdani and everyone else is selling in New York City, that rent freezes in some way make things better. The economic data on this is that rent freezes don't work at all. In fact, what they do is pull the number of available units out of the marketplace because a lot of landlords say, I can't make money based on these dollars that I'm expected to be renting these units for. But what does it say that the solution that Democrats are offering actually makes everything that they're concerned about worse?
Congressman Jason Smith
Well, the Democrat solutions when it comes to the economy are completely wrong on every front. Whether it's the rent freezes, whether it's. Every single Democrat voted against these tax cuts. Not just, not, not one Democrat voted for no tax on tips or no tax on overtime or no tax on Social Security. Not one Democrat up here voted to increase the child tax credit to $2,200 per individual and making that permanent. Not one Democrat. Clay created the Trump investment accounts that allows every child born in America to receive $1,000 seed money where they have an ownership in today's economy. These are things that really affect average everyday Americans, but they're not supporting these policies. What do they want to do? They want to raise your taxes. They consistently say that. You look at some of the liberal states, like New York, like California, they would not honor the no tax on tips, the no tax on overtime. Those different tax provisions they would not recognize in these liberal states, which, which definitely hurts their people.
Buck Sexton
So when we look towards the, the fall, I know that soon Congress is going to be on recess. There's a lot of the angst over the SAVE act and, and I share that. What is, if anything, going to be accomplished in Congress between now and the midterms in a big picture sense, that's going to, in your view, help to make the case that Republicans should remain in control of both the House and the Senate.
Congressman Jason Smith
Play. The absolute most important pressing issue that concerns me and keeps me up at night is funding government funding. Government has to be done by October 1st. That's just five weeks before the election. I'm hearing my Democrat colleagues right now, Clay, saying that they're going to shut down government right now. In, in June they were saying they're going to shut down government. And why? Because they see that it's a political opportunity, that if they can shut down government, that that will help them going into the election. And that concerns me. I think the United States Senate, Clay, has to have some serious heart to heart conversations with my Republican friends over there because if the Democrats try to shut down government and not allow a continuation of funding, at the very least they better do whatever it can to pass government funding. I think that in regards to the filibuster, the filibuster should be out of the window if there's a lapse in government funding. If there's a lapse in government funding, they should change those Senate rules to allow a 51 vote margin to pass anything. And if you did that, you would make sure that the Democrat senators and the Republican senators wouldn't ever allow there to be a lapse of government funding. So that is actually the most important issue right now to me is making sure that we have a plan and that we fund government and we don't allow the Democrats to do what they've done twice already in the last six months. And both of the last two times in the six months were the longest shutdowns in the history of America. So they're willing, able, and I think prepared to shut down government again. We need to be smart about it.
Buck Sexton
Yeah. You know what's interesting about that, that you mentioned it, Congressman, is Virginia was kind of a test case for them. Right. And in November, I think they found and believe that the overall turnout last November in Virginia when everything was shut down worked to their benefit. And so it's kind of a test case. Right?
Congressman Jason Smith
That's exactly the case. It did benefit them, without a doubt in Virginia, the Virginia elections, because of the government shutdown happening. And they believed that it would benefit them once again. And that's why when you. When you talk to most. Most Americans, they're like, the Republicans control the White House, Republicans control the Senate, and Republicans control the House. Why can't they fund government? But it's because of that little crazy rule that you have to have 60 votes in the United States Senate to fund government when we only have 53 Republicans. So if the Democrats refuse to come to the table, they can shut down government unless. Unless the government decides. Unless the Senate, Senate Republicans decide to change the rules. And under provisions, if you recall, Harry Reid changed the Senate rules when it came to confirming judges. It used to require 60 votes to. To confirm a judge. They changed the rules, made it 51. Maybe they should do that with funding government as well.
Buck Sexton
We're talking to Congressman Jason Smith. Okay. Much less seriously in the big picture, but still something that people are very focused on. I know in your state and in many states out there, what is Congress going to be able to do with college sports? There is a bill right now that is in the Senate. I know there's been the SCORE Act. On your side of the equation, is Congress going to be able to get an antitrust exemption done to allow college leaders to put rules back in place? Where are we headed here?
Congressman Jason Smith
You know, I actually, Clay just had a hearing on Tuesday in the Ways and Means Committee in regards to all the different issues within sports, whether it was the nil issues and. And what came up there. We had Mr. Ocho that actually testified, gave a lot of different examples that. That these players that are getting these nil agreements, they don't understand their tax consequences. They may receive like a million dollars, and they don't know that they're gonna have be stuck with the tax bill. 30 to 40%. And so they spend all this money and then they're left there like, oh no, with this tax bill they're not informed of it. So there's, there's different taxing issues from that sense. We also looked at the, the tax subsidies and incentives that's going into public activity, public, public bonds that fund new sports stadiums. We looked at the accounting mechanisms for sports teams owners on how that they deduct their, their expenses. We looked at issues that the Atlanta Braves and the New York Knicks were having in regards to they're only allowed to deduct the top five largest salaries because of the provision that was passed in the American rescue plan by the Democrats several years earlier. But then you have to look at the, whether it's a SCORE act, the different nil provisions. There is a big need and a lot of things have to be addressed. But I do think Congress can find a true bipartisan path to help get this all resolved because it is definitely making a huge impact in our economy. It's making a huge impact just across America, no doubt.
Buck Sexton
We appreciate the time, Congressman. Have a great July 4th celebration and we'll look forward to talking to you again sometime soon.
Congressman Jason Smith
Happy, happy Fourth Clay. Take care.
Buck Sexton
No doubt. I want to tell you all about the incredible work that's being done by our friends at Tunnel to Towers right now. They are making a tremendous difference when it comes to the work that they're doing on behalf of so many people that have put so much on the line here in the 25th year of 9 11. This month they're sending a Steel Across America nationwide tour. It's going to be in Northern California, Washington and Utah this month. It's open to the public travels throughout September as a symbol of reverence and resilience at landmark locations, sporting events, town squares, moments of connection for those who live through 911 and educational opportunities for those too young to remember. Speaking of too young to remember, we came through in Hawaii when we were taking off a couple of days ago from Hawaii out at the Big island airport right after you go through TSA security, they have a American flag with the name of every individual who died on 9 11. We stopped and we stood there and my 11 year old, he said, I had no idea how many people died on 911 until I happened to be standing right in front of this image and you could see in the American flag all these different names. And he said, wow, that there were so many people. I said, yeah. Now he was born in many years after 9 11. He's just 11 years old and they're not really teaching 911 very much. In his school. He's heard from me about 9 11, but seeing that in front of him face to face, it made him realize just how many lives were lost on that day. And and that's exactly what they're trying to do to connect with the younger generations. People who were born long after 911 and don't remember it's been 25 years. There are kids graduating from law school who have no actual remembrance of 9 11. Go to t2t.org to learn more about the Steel Across America tour and to donate $11 a month to Tunnel the Towers. You can amplify your impact with a car or land donation. That's T the number2t.org T the number2t.org Level up your brain Mental mugging with Clay and Buck the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton show podcast is proud to be supported by Grand Canyon University, an affordable, private, nonprofit Christian university based in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. They say higher education is outdated, irrelevant. GCU doesn't settle for the status quo, they shatter it at gcu.
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Academically rigorous, industry driven programs are built to move at the speed of relevance with practical skills, career readiness and opportunity for every learner. GCU believes education shouldn't be a privilege, but an affordable path forward for all.
Buck Sexton
Grounded in Christian truth, GCU works to empower the next generation to lead with integrity, serve with purpose and help transform their communities and building a future that matters. GCU is Purpose Driven education. Take action. Find your purpose at GCU. Private Christian affordable, non profit. Visit GCU EDU to learn more this
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July 4th, come celebrate at America's Block Party hosted by America 250. America's Block Party is a can't miss 4th of July concert happening at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Clay Travis
Experience music, performances by major artists, patriotic tributes and the kickoff to giving 4th, helping to make July 4th the largest day of giving in American history.
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It's more than just fireworks.
Clay Travis
Join this landmark celebration and get your America's Block Party Tickets now for $17.76 at america250.org LA the first ever X
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if we made $15 bills, but it
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Buck Sexton
Welcome back in as we are rolling through the Clay and Buck program. A lot of different talkbacks rolling in and let me start to play some of those as we get ready and then I'm going to get you all fired up for July 4th at the bottom of the hour. Well, I was talking about why communists are winning. This is an unidentified Florida listener, 92.7W MMB radio cut B.
Congressman Jason Smith
Hey Clay, it's Jay from Charleston, South Carolina. I was just thinking, you know, and I've been saying this for years, back when Facebook first came out about what, 20 years ago, that everybody's comparing their lives to whatever their friends lives are like, but they only show you the good stuff. They only show you the trip to Disney World. They only show you all the, you know, all the vacations and all the this is my great dog and I. They don't show you the bad stuff, man. You know, that's what life's all about.
Buck Sexton
That's definitely true. And social media is a highlight reel and many people take it as a legitimate reflection. And I think that younger kids get that. But my goodness, it is. I really do believe that no one has really contemplated how much difference social media has made in the way that people feel in a way that never happened with cable, didn't happen with television in general. Certainly didn't happen with radio. Jeff in Ohio, he super fired up about the the excitement from the US Men's soccer team cut H hello, Jeff
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from North Canton, Ohio. Just wanted to throw a thought about the men's World cup soccer. And that is none of these guys are making this political. They're out there playing a game, doing it for the country. And I wonder if our support for them is almost like a reverse support because of what the women's soccer team did a few years ago at their World cup and how it was all political. We just want to watch our team succeed. We don't care about the politics. Just go out, work hard, do good,
Buck Sexton
and we'll support you. I think that's totally true. The US Men's team is doing everything different than the US Women's team did. By the time they lost and shanked Megan Rapinoe did to the right side her penalty kick in a big upset loss that they had. Penny and Pennsylvania, she's gotten my back cudgee.
Clay Travis
Clay Penny from Pennsylvania, that guy who called and said that you look like Bill de Blasio clearly has never seen that guy because he is extremely unattractive and you clearly are not. So I think that guy just did that to get under your skin. So just ignore it, he says, because he that guy has no idea what he's talking about.
Buck Sexton
Aw, thanks, Penny. Look, Good Ranchers. It's a lot of you. There are many of you that are gonna be grilling out for July 4th coming up on the long holiday weekend. And if you haven't tried Good Ranchers already, trust me, we love it. We eat their steaks all the time here. They also have hamburgers, chicken, bacon. July's a great month to treat yourself to good rancher products. This month also happens to be national grilling month. Whether it's burgers, steaks on the grill, backyard barbecue, you want to get Good Ranchers hooked up. And this July, Good ranchers celebrating all 50 states. $50 off your first order. Go online, check out this company. You're going to love them as much as I do. Good ranchers.com My name Clay for $50 off anything on the site that's good. Ranchers.com My name C L A Y that's good. Ranchers dot com C L A Y welcome back in Sweet Home Alabama. The song there one of the best songs to define a state of all time according to my always humble opinion. And I gave Rocky top Sweet Home Alabama, Country Roads, the Hawaii song, whatever that song is that they play with a ukulele California Love, which is a great song as my top five songs directly connected to estate. We got a lot of people who disagree. I'm right. Most of you who disagree are wrong. And speaking of right versus wrong, I wanted to have some fun here with one of the opinions that came out from the recent Supreme Court decisions. In particular, Clarence Thomas, who really, I thought, summed up things very well in his 6 to 3 opinion. He was in the 6, 3 majority saying, hey, you know what? We can't allow all of this insanity to continue where boys are pretending to be girls and beyond. And Clarence Thomas in one and a half pages said, I just want to read this because I think he got to the essence so quickly. The court correctly holds neither Title 9 nor the equal protection clause prohibit states from offering sex separated athletics. A man does not have a legal right to compete against women just because he believes that he is a woman. I joined the court's opinion in full. I write separately to make two points. And he says in particular that. And I thought this was. This was really kind of amazing. He just says something really simple, that we are in a position that basically everybody out there that is in disagreement on this needs to recognize that people who claim transgender status could more accurately be described as people who are experiencing gender dysphoria, which is not a discrete group, but is in fact an actual mental illness. And I do think sometimes just cutting through and saying, hey, here's the reality. This is not some sort of discriminated group. These are people who are suffering from mental illness. And I thought when I read Clarence Thomas's opinion there and also read Clarence Thomas's dissenting opinion, when it came to birthright citizenship, I saw a connection to America 2, 50 in the context of. But we don't talk enough about how brilliant our Founding Fathers really were. And it wasn't just that they constructed a government with a Constitution that has endured for nearly 250 years now. Declaration of Independence, obviously. 1776, I believe. Team, correct me if I'm wrong. United States Constitution was ratified in 1783. I think I'm right about that. But forgive me if I got that year wrong. And team, look that up, because sometimes people conflate the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, both incredibly important documents. But what is so important about the Founding Fathers was, and this is where I think American history becomes so important, but also world history. They studied the world. They studied all of government. And they were trying to craft a document that would deal with all of the failures of the past and ensure. My apologies. Constitution signed 1787 officially ratified 17. What they were trying to do was they were trying to create a Government that would endure based on all of the governments that had ever existed to world history at that point. And one of the things that I think we do a poor job of in history is contextualizing the brilliance of learning from the past. The reason that I love history on, and I was a history major in undergrad and I continue to read history every day in my life is because to me, history teaches toughness. And it teaches the understanding that whatever you are dealing with in your life today, in your present circumstances, people before you have dealt with much more difficult challenges. And they've come through them on the other side in a better place. And you will too. And if you look at what those guys studied, I talked about a few years back that I got to go to Italy, took my family to Italy. And I've talked about this before, too. I think traveling to Europe is important because it makes you see history on a broader scale, Western civilization on a broader scale. There are bars in London. You can do a pub crawl with bars that are all older than this country. Think about that for a minute. They have been serving beers in bars in England longer than our country has existed. You go to Boston, you go tour, as you should, many of the historic sites connected to the revolution. The homes, Paul Revere's homes, downtown Boston, the homes that we consider to be old are new in much of Europe. And the reason why our country has endured, why we are celebrating the 250th anniversary of our country, is because our founding fathers looked at everything that had happened in human history and tried to craft a more perfect government than it ever existed before. Learning from and building upon all of Western civilization, they were taught a common core of, of, of of history that they could all understand, comprehend, and interact utilizing. I was talking about going to Rome. The Pantheon is my favorite building in all of rome. It's over 2000 years old. Great majestic doors opening in the ceiling. It's one of the truly majestic buildings to visit anywhere in the world. And what I loved about walking into that building over 2000 years old is that Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, if they walked into that building, that building was 1700 years old when they walked into it. That building had existed for so long and looks no different to them than it looks to you and me today. When our founding fathers toured Europe, they looked at everything that had occurred in Western civilization. They studied ancient Greek, they studied ancient Rome. They looked at what had happened in England, what had happened in France. They knew all the history of Western civilization and they said based on all of this recorded history. We're going to try to found a new country in this crazy wilderness, in this new land. And we're going to build a framework of government that is designed to withstand the ages and learn from all the failures of the past. And they did it. And the result is that we now all live in the wealthiest country that has ever existed in the history of the world, in a country that is a force for good like none other in the history of the world. And all of us, every single one of you that is listening to me right now, that is an American citizen. The greatest gift that we could have ever been given, whether we're white, black, Asian, Hispanic, whatever your background is, is to have been born in America, a country of such extreme wealth and goodness that people risk their lives every single day still to just try to step foot on the soil that every single one of us was fortunate enough to either have been born here or to have at some point become a citizen of. And yet, many Americans are not proud of this country. Why? Because we have failed when it comes to teaching history. All of history is a collection of good and bad decisions by flawed men and women, just like you, just like me, just like all of us. Somewhere around 2008, 10, 12, 14, 15, there was a calculated decision. I think it came from many of America's enemies to decide that American history should focus on the failures of this country as opposed to the successes. Now, every single one of us that is alive today is going to make a huge number of decisions on this day, on this month, on this year, all throughout your life. Many of them are going to be good, but unfortunately, many of them are going to be bad. The hope is that if you string together enough really good decisions, they will cancel out many of the bad decisions that we made. If you look at history in America and you go back and you look at the history of Western civilization, America represents the fulsome success of Western civilization. There has never been a freer, wealthier, more prosperous country in the history of the world than the United States. That's because we learned from all of the failures of past history. It doesn't mean that we were without sin or without failure ourselves. But it does mean that the story of America, over its scope, is one of transcendent beauty and ascending excellence, the likes of which has never existed in the history of humanity. We are the greatest country to ever exist in the history of the world. And we were founded on a unique principle of excellence rooted in the study of Western civilization by all of our Founders who would have been eloquent in talking about everything that happened in Greece and Rome and everything that had happened in all of Western civilization. Because that is how they came to build the framework of this country, via not only a Declaration of Independence, but most prominently the Constitution. How many people understand that? I don't think enough. And that is because there's been a calculated decision to try to make American history look like it is rooted in failure and not success. That's the entire basis of the 1619 project. America, in the view of the 1619 project and many other people out there, is a country founded on sin and evil and therefore none of its history can be celebrated. Because if it's rooted in sin and evil, then there isn T any redemption. The Civil War isn T about a struggle to bring more rights and freedom to everyone, regardless of their background in this world. Instead, it is the story of of American slavery. That's why they rooted in 1619, not in 1492 when the new World was discovered. When I come back, I'm going to tell you something that I learned in Hawaii that I think ties all this together. But I want all of you, at some point in time, over the course of this upcoming celebration, I just want for you to think for just a few moments about how amazingly successful the Founding Fathers were. And they weren't just willy nilly haphazardly picking the decisions that they made and packing it into the Constitution. They were brilliantly analyzing all of the flaws of the government throughout human history and trying to craft a durable governing document that would allow America to succeed where all other countries in the past had failed. And they did it. It's remarkable, it's incredible. And the result is that we live in in the greatest country that's ever existed in the history of the world. And yet many out there still don't realize this history matters. Not because it just gives you strength to understand what everyone else has overcome before you, but also because it gives you an opportunity to sit back and contemplate man. Because of their knowledge of history, our country exists and we have the freedoms that we have today. History doesn't just teach, it also creates. And oftentimes I think we miss that. The creation of this country was based on the historical knowledge that thankfully all of our Founding Fathers had and were conversant about. We come back, I'll take a couple more of your talk backs and we'll close it out, take you into America 250. But I want to tell you about our friends at Rapid Radios. They got a great offer right now. If you go to rapidradios.com and use code Bundle you will get hooked up with an incredible offer. If you love Rapid Radios back in the day, if you remember GI Joe radios, they were awesome. They were super fun. They were super exciting. Well what if you had GI Joe radios like that and they work nationwide and you could connect with everybody and you could get a free radio when you buy two if you buy four radios you get two free radios. You buy two, you get one free. If you go to rapidradios.com code bundle that's rapidradios.com code bundle. Miss the show While you're on the Go wind down your day with the Daily Review podcast. Find it on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast. The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show Podcast is proud to be supported by Grand Canyon University, an affordable, private, non profit Christian university based in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. They say higher education is outdated, irrelevant. GCU doesn't settle for the status quo, they shatter it at gcu.
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Academically rigorous, industry driven programs are built to move at the speed of relevance with practical skills, career readiness and opportunity for every learner. GCU believes education shouldn't be a privilege, but an affordable path forward for all.
Buck Sexton
Grounded in Christian truth, GCU works to empower the next generation to lead with integrity, serve with purpose and help transform their communities. Building a future that matters. GCU is Purpose Driven Education. Take action. Find your purpose at GCU Private Christian Affordable Nonprofit. Visit GCU EDU to learn more.
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This July 4th, come celebrate at America's Block Party hosted by America 250. America's Block Party is a can't miss 4th of July concert happening at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Clay Travis
Experience music, performances by major artists, patriotic tributes and the kickoff to giving 4th, helping to make July 4th the largest day of giving in America in history.
Commercial Announcer
It's more than just fireworks.
Clay Travis
Join this landmark celebration and get your America's Block Party Tickets now for $17.76 at america250.org LA the first ever X
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Games League Championship is going down live and New Orleans has the call. Three days of elite action sports. A season's worth of competition coming down to one final weekend. Watch July 24th 4th through 26th on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 or stream on the ESPN app, X Games, YouTube, Kick, Roku sports channel and Amazon. The championship starts July 24th. Don't miss the moment it becomes history.
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Buck Sexton
There's never been a better time to switch to Pure Talk and try it for yourself. It's fast, it's reliable, you're going to love it. Again, any Pure Talk plan, including their unlimited data plans, even their top tier $65 plan, just $15 a month for your first three months.
Pure Talk Wireless Announcer
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Buck Sexton
Go to PureTalk.com Clay to make the switch to Pure Talk again. PureTalk.com Clay to start saving these days
Okta Announcer
it seems like AI agents are just about everywhere you turn, every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, Okta helps you get identity right by securing your AI agents identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Okta you'll turn risk into opportunity. Secure every agent, secure any agent. Okta secures AI.
Buck Sexton
Oh, one of the fabulous Connected to State songs. You missed it. We were playing Country Roads earlier as we had the American soccer team celebrating. I am excited for America 2:50. I will be at Mount Rushmore tomorrow for President Trump's big speech and I'll be on Sean Hannity's television program. I've never been to Mount Rushmore. Can't wait to be there. Should be an awesome day. A lot of people want to weigh in. Linda Green Valley, Arizona, who helped to get the airports taken care of back in the day. Linda, I'll let you have the final word before America 250.
Clay Travis
Well, Clay, all of this history things that you're talking about ties in with what I told producer Greg. I had a conversation with three young ladies, 25, 20 and 19 a couple weeks ago. They all believe that the socialism that's coming to this country, they believe is going to bump them up to the same life that their social media influencers have. These girls don't know where anything comes from. They don't know history and they think that socialism is going to bump everybody up economically and they just don't understand.
Buck Sexton
Amen. Linda, you nailed it again. Teach your kids history. Capitalism in this country is the greatest of all time.
Commercial Announcer
This July 4th come celebrate at America's Block Party hosted by America 250. America's Block Party is a can't miss 4th of July concert happening at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Clay Travis
Experience music, performances by major artists, patriotic tributes and the kickoff to giving 4th, helping to make July 4th the largest day of giving in American history.
Commercial Announcer
It's more than just fireworks.
Clay Travis
Join this landmark celebration and get your America's Block Party Tickets now for $17.76 at America's250.org LA the first ever X
Sports Announcer
Games League championship is going down live and New Orleans has the call. Three days of elite action sports, a season's worth of competition coming down to one final weekend. Watch July 24th through 26th on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, or stream on the ESPN app, X Games, YouTube, Kick Roku sports channel and Amazon. The championship starts July 24th. Don't miss the moment it becomes history.
Okta Announcer
These days, it seems like AI agents are just about everywhere you turn every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, Okta helps you get identity right by securing your AI agents identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Okta you'll turn risk into opportunity. Secure every agent, secure any agent. Okta secures AI Some Moments in history
Buck Sexton
Change the coins we carry in 2026, America marks 250 years as a nation, and for one year only. The Semi Quincentennial Coin and Metal Program from the United States Mint honors this milestone with new Designs on official US coins. Discover the full coin and metal collection at usmint.gov semiq that's usmint.gov semiq.
Okta Announcer
You don't have to overpay for big
Pure Talk Wireless Announcer
wireless, not when PureTalk gives you the same service for a fraction of the cost.
Buck Sexton
Right now, for the first time ever, get any PureTalk plan, including their unlimited data plans for just $15 a month for your first three months. It's fast, it's reliable, and this offer won't last long.
Pure Talk Wireless Announcer
Go to PureTalk.com buck to make the switch to PureTalk again PureTalk.com buck to start saving.
Episode: Hour 3 – Why History Matters
Date: July 2, 2026
Podcast: The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show (iHeartPodcasts)
In this episode, Clay Travis and Buck Sexton explore the significance of history and its impact on American values, politics, and civic understanding, especially as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary (America 250). The hosts engage Congressman Jason Smith in a wide-ranging discussion about the recent rise of socialist Democrats, economic policy, government funding battles, and the importance of teaching and contextualizing American history. Listener feedback is also featured, addressing generational perceptions and the intersection of sports, politics, and patriotism.
[03:00–05:09]
[05:09–09:17]
[09:17–13:00]
Buck Sexton asks about imminent priorities for Congress before midterms.
Smith identifies government funding as the paramount concern, highlighting the October 1 deadline and accusing Democrats of aiming to use a shutdown for political gain.
"The absolute most important pressing issue that concerns me and keeps me up at night is government funding...I think the United States Senate, Clay, has to have some serious heart to heart conversations..." – Jason Smith [09:46]
[13:00–15:22]
[21:01–23:27]
[23:47–34:55]
Clay reflects on recent Supreme Court decisions, especially Justice Clarence Thomas' concurring opinion upholding sex-separated athletics.
Clay then offers an extended meditation on the lasting legacy of the Founding Fathers:
[34:55–45:20]
[45:20–46:00]
Listener Linda from Arizona reports a conversation with young women who believed socialism would elevate their lifestyles, mirroring social media influencers, and laments the lack of historical understanding among youth.
Buck closes the core section by affirming the importance of history education and American capitalism.
“Teach your kids history. Capitalism in this country is the greatest of all time.” – Buck Sexton [46:00]
Jason Smith on the New Left:
“Being a Democrat socialist is being a Democrat of today...it should concern everyone, no doubt.” [04:13]
On The Value of History (Clay):
“The reason that I love history...is because, to me, history teaches toughness. And it teaches the understanding that whatever you are dealing with in your life today...people before you have dealt with much more difficult challenges.” [25:30]
Clarence Thomas, quoted by Clay:
“A man does not have a legal right to compete against women just because he believes that he is a woman.” [24:16]
On The Constitution (Clay):
“What they were trying to do was...create a government that would endure based on all of the governments that had ever existed to world history at that point...they were brilliantly analyzing all the flaws...and trying to craft a durable governing document.” [27:06]
Linda from Arizona:
“These girls don't know where anything comes from. They don't know history and they think that socialism is going to bump everybody up economically and they just don't understand.” [45:20]
This episode argues for the vital importance of understanding history, contextualizing America’s founding and its prosperity as products of deliberate scholarship and civic virtue. The hosts and guests warn of the dangers posed by ignorance—both at the ballot box and in everyday economic choices—and urge listeners to teach history and preserve the legacy that has made America exceptional at the nation’s semi-quincentennial.