← The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Karol Markowicz Show: Salena Zito on Politics, Community, and Resilience
00:35:14
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- [00:00]
Jana Kramer
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:05]
Ryan Reynolds
Every business has an ambition. PayPal open is the platform designed to help you grow into yours with business loans so you can expand and access to hundreds of millions of PayPal customers worldwide. And your customers can pay all the ways they want with PayPal, Venmo, pay later and all major cards so you can focus on scaling up when it's time to get growing. There's one platform for all business PayPal open grow today at paypalopen.com loans subject to approval in available locations.
- [00:35]
Selena Zito
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- [01:41]
Clay Travis
Hey, it's Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. Now I was looking for fun ways to tell you that Mint's offer of unlimited premium wireless for $15 a month is back. So I thought it would be fun if we made $15 bills, but it turns out that's very illegal.
- [01:58]
Selena Zito
So there goes my big idea for the commercial.
- [01:59]
Clay Travis
Give it a try@mintmobile.com switch upfront payment.
- [02:03]
Ryan Reynolds
Of $45 for a 3 month plan equivalent to $15 per month required new.
- [02:06]
Jana Kramer
Customer offer for first 3 months only.
- [02:07]
Ryan Reynolds
Speed slow after 35gb of networks busy taxes and fees extra. See mintmobile.com for some of us, personal.
- [02:13]
Jana Kramer
Finances aren't just personal, they include a lot more people than ourselves, loved ones, neighbors, the communities we call home, and the causes we hold in hearts. At Thrivent, we help plan your financial picture with the bigger picture in mind. Because even though our business is helping guide your finances, our ambition is to make it mean so much more. Thrivent where money means more Connect with.
- [02:39]
Selena Zito
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- [02:59]
Clay Travis
I'm already racing your turn.
- [03:00]
Selena Zito
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- [03:05]
Clay Travis
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Selena Zito
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- [03:15]
Carol Markowitz
Hi, welcome back to the Carol Markowitz show on iheartradio. Clay Travis, Key of the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton podcast network that this show is on highlighted a new study about happiness. And he pointed out that the happiness index has hit an all time low and that that number is largely driven by young people.
- [03:36]
Selena Zito
The United States overall happiness index, to the extent that they track this, hit a all time low and it's being driven by people under the age of 30. And I would bet that it's women.
- [03:50]
Clay Travis
Under the age of 30 overwhelmingly who are unhappy.
- [03:53]
Selena Zito
And I think it's hard not to believe at this point that all of this isn't directly connected to social media. I mean, if you go look at the charts, overall mental health rates, now certainly Covid didn't help, but overall mental health rates just collapsed about 2014 when social media became prevalent in everybody's lives. Yeah, and I think we're going to find out that this is like the, the nicotine or cigarettes of, of our generation, where we allowed these phones and these social media apps, particularly for young people, to really kind of lead us astray in terms of our life's pursuit.
- [04:28]
Carol Markowitz
Now, he's right that it's the phones, but people who have been listening to the show for a while know what I'm going to challenge here. It's not the social media. There is no social media anymore. It used to be that teenagers would get depressed because their friends would share pictures on Facebook or Instagram or of the amazing weekend they had and maybe didn't include them. Or they'd see their friends living amazing lives, filtered pictures, great vacations, perfect babies, all of that. That's just not what's happening on the Internet anymore. That's not what the kids are watching. We're just all watching TV all the time. It might not be half hour or hour episodes, but these young people are just scrolling through hours of videos. And I said this last time in the last episode about the girl the mom wrote into me about her daughter who doesn't seem to have a social life. And I said, you know, we'd recognize depression if I told you Someone watches 10 hours of TV a day. But because they do it in bite sized, you know, pieces and they carry it around with them on their phone, we don't see how bad it is. Social media has nothing social about it, and I think we need to see exactly what the problem is in order to fix it. We have to think about it like a little TV we carry around. We have to understand how damaging it is to be that distracted all the time. Just imagine when there were no phones, if every time you were in an awkward interaction you just turned your television on. When you're out, you don't see people taking selfies with their friends anymore. Instead, you still might see like a full on photo shoot, hapless man shooting his girlfriend from all different angles. She's a content creator, fine, but there's nothing social about that. And look, at least her content is a break from the videos. Instagram, by the way, now offers bonuses for creator accounts that post photos because so few of them do that. It would be something else entirely if young people were still posting pictures of their lunches or their parties or whatever, but they're not. They're just zombified watching TV all the time. No way happiness levels will increase until we solve that. Thanks for listening. Coming up next, my interview with Selina Zito. But first, Iran, a nation that has vowed to wipe Israel and the United States off the map, made calculated strikes at Israel. The onslaught of missiles targeting hospitals, schools and nursing homes caused widespread devastation. Day after day, night after night, Israelis faced relentless and unprecedented attacks that killed dozens of innocent civilians. Thousands fled bombed out homes. Many required immediate medical care. These attacks were only the start of something that could be much, much worse. Your urgently needed gift to the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews will help provide wide scale food distribution along with critical first aid and emergency supplies, especially to Israel's most vulnerable, the sick, the elderly, children and families. Your gift today will help place new bomb shelters across Israel along with first responder FL black jackets and armored emergency vehicles. Now is your time to save and heal Israel's innocent most vulnerable. To rush your gift, call 888-488-IFCJ. That's 888-488-IFCj or go online at ifcj.org ifcj.org.
- [08:14]
Selena Zito
You'Re great at protecting your own personal information. You probably even use things like two factor authentication, strong passwords and a vpn. But as much as you try to be in control of how your information is protected, there are lots of places that also have it and they might not be as careful as you are. That's why Lifelock monitors millions of data points every second for identity threats. If your identity is stolen, a LifeLock US based restoration specialist will help solve identity theft issues on your behalf, guaranteed or your money back. Plus, all LifeLock plans are backed by the million dollar protection package, meaning LifeLock will reimburse you up to the limits of your plan if you lose money due to identity theft. You might not be able to control how others handle your personal information, but you can help protect it with Lifelock. Save up to 40% your first year. Call 1-800-LIFELOCK and use promo code iheart or go to lifelock.com iheart for 40%.
- [09:11]
Ryan Reynolds
Off terms apply Every business has an ambition. PayPal open is the platform designed to help you grow into yours with business loans so you can expand and access to hundreds of millions of PayPal customers worldwide. And your customers can pay all the ways they want with PayPal, Venmo, pay later and all major cards so you can focus on scaling up when it's time to get growing. There's one platform for all business PayPal open grow today at paypalopen.com loans subject to approval in available locations for some.
- [09:44]
Jana Kramer
Of us, personal finances aren't just personal, they include a lot more people than ourselves, loved ones, neighbors, the communities we call home, and the causes we hold in our hearts. At Thrivent, we help plan your financial picture with the bigger picture in mind. Because even though our business is helping guide your finances, our ambition is to make it mean so much more. Thrivent where Money Means more Connect with.
- [10:11]
Ryan Reynolds
Us@Thrivent.Com welcome to the W where elite athletes are redefining the game of basketball. From buzzer beating shots, jaw dropping defense and logo threes, the WNBA delivers nonstop action and world class talent every game. These athletes don't just play the game, they elevate it. The biggest stars, The Brightest Age AT&T WNBA All Star 2025 comes to Indianapolis July 18th through 19th. Tune into the game July 19th at 8:30pm Eastern Time on ABC.
- [10:43]
Jana Kramer
This is Jana Kramer from Wind down with Jana Kramer. I love my Samsung appliances, especially because they're so reliable and with my busy schedule, having reliable appliances has been a game changer. It's no wonder Samsung is the number one brand for customer satisfaction. That's why I'm excited to tell you all about Samsung's new of smart appliances. Featuring their brand new bespoke AI laundry combo, this incredible magic machine washes and dries in one machine. One load. No transfers, no timers, no re washing needed. You just toss in your dirty clothes and they go from dirty to dry in as little as 68 minutes. It simplifies your entire laundry routine. Plus you can remotely schedule cycles from your phone so you have fresh clothes ready when you are. New bespoke AI appliances. This is home living made simple. For more information visit samsung.com 68 minute.
- [11:35]
Selena Zito
Cycle based on 27 inch combos based.
- [11:37]
Clay Travis
On using a super speed cycle only.
- [11:38]
Ryan Reynolds
With a 10 pound doe load.
- [11:39]
Jana Kramer
Cotton 50% plus polyester 50%.
- [11:41]
Selena Zito
Individual results may vary based on actual load content. SmartThings app available on Android and iOS devices. Wi Fi connection and Samsung account required.
- [11:50]
Carol Markowitz
Welcome back to the Carol Markowitz show on iheartradio. My guest today is Selena Zito. Selena is a Washington examiner reporter and author of the upcoming book Butler. Hi, Selena. So nice to talk to you.
- [12:03]
Clay Travis
Hi there. How are you?
- [12:05]
Carol Markowitz
We were just talking offline about how insane it is that we've never met in real life. But I've been a Selena Zito fan like much of the country for a long, long time now, and I just think you're fantastic and everything you do is like full of joy and happiness and you're wonderful. Thank you for coming on.
- [12:25]
Clay Travis
Oh, thank you. I'm everybody's grandma. No, people really.
- [12:28]
Carol Markowitz
Actually, you're everybody's bestie.
- [12:33]
Clay Travis
Basically the food, then they maybe read me, but basically the food. I have to tell your listeners, though, that I thought you gave me a homework assignment and I obeyed because you told me. I don't know how you phrased it.
- [12:47]
Carol Markowitz
But like I said, here are the three questions I ask all my guests and my listeners will know that a lot of the time the guests won't read the emails. And you'll be able to tell because they'll just be deer in headlights when I ask them kind of, you know, a big question like, what do you worry about?
- [13:04]
Clay Travis
And they're like, what?
- [13:06]
Carol Markowitz
Where did this come from? But Selena sent me back the answers, which was the cutest thing ever.
- [13:15]
Clay Travis
I said, no, no, we're gonna talk.
- [13:16]
Carol Markowitz
About it on the show. And she said, oh, I thought you gave me a homework assignment. Which she then did. She finished the homework assignment. She was like, all right, I. I have homework. What am I gonna do?
- [13:27]
Clay Travis
Yeah, it was late, though. Like, if it was true homework, I would have answered it that night. But in my zeal to be a perfect procrastinator, I sent it to you the night before.
- [13:45]
Carol Markowitz
It was great. I did not read your answers because I want to be surprised.
- [13:49]
Clay Travis
I don't even remember them.
- [13:51]
Carol Markowitz
So the questions will be brand new either way, right?
- [13:54]
Clay Travis
Brand new.
- [13:55]
Carol Markowitz
So how did you get into this world? I know a little bit about your story, but you really hit the national scene in 2016, writing pieces that I think nobody else was doing anything close to. You were doing this crazy thing where you went out and you talked to regular people and asked them what they thought, and that was really groundbreaking. So tell me, tell us about your path.
- [14:23]
Clay Travis
So I got into this accidentally and sort of the old fashioned way, the way journalists used to be years ago at local newspapers where they were members of the community and most of them didn't have college degrees, but they had good writing skills, they had good people instincts, and they were able to turn a phrase pretty well. And that's basically all I had. And I also had experiences as a hairdresser, as a waitress, and most importantly, as a soccer and football mom and hockey mom. So I came into the game late. I was in my mid-40s when I went back to work. I was mostly a stay at home mom at that point. And I worked for the local newspaper, the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. But the owner of the paper's name was Richard Mellenscape. He had a very nationally well known name, one of the richest men in the country from a very old family, the Mellon family, who owned all the Mellon banking. And he had a really keen interest in national news. And I don't know what he saw in me, but he saw my ability to listen to people and to be able to tell a decent story. And so he said, do you want to cover national politics? I'm like, all right. And I did. And. And I learned pretty darn quickly. I was there for 20 years. I did this for 20 years covering local and national politics and culture. And I learned pretty quickly. I think it was the John Kerry campaign or the. Maybe it was the Obama campaign. I can't remember. I. I knew very quickly that I did not belong on the campaign bus. Like, I just didn't not belong there. I remember call had. Maybe it was Carrie. I don't know. I can't remember. I'm old. I just remember calling my boss from a payphone in Scranton, Pennsylvania, saying, I can't go on this bus any longer. All I am doing is spending time with other reporters. And they're all like, have the same mindset. They're not from Pennsylvania. They don't kind of understand our quirkiness. And I'm not having any interaction with voters because they. When you're in the press bus, you don't get to talk to people. So I'm like, I'm writing crap. So he said, okay, just come home. And in typical Selena fashion, I told the bus to just keep going without me. And then I was like, oh, wait a minute. How am I gonna get home? Santa randomly rent a car. And from that moment on, I only drove to whatever I was covering, and I've driven to every state. I've even been to Alaska.
- [17:30]
Carol Markowitz
Wow.
- [17:31]
Clay Travis
And I used to fly to events, but flying then became ridiculous because I live in a city where there's no hub. So therefore, you had to make, like, 13 different connecting flights, and you would miss one of them because one was late. And so I just started driving. So when I interviewed Governor DeSantis, I drove to Florida. But in that stretch, I got 17 other really good stories.
- [18:01]
Carol Markowitz
Right.
- [18:02]
Clay Travis
And I always take back roads. I don't take turnpikes or interstates, because that's where you can see how places have changed for the better or for the worse. And you can understand why people vote the way they do.
- [18:17]
Carol Markowitz
That is so amazing. I did not know the driving thing. I always felt like your writing was you were trying to get to the bottom of what people really thought and where they really lived. And you always treat every place with such respect. And I think that that's, you know, so beautiful. But I didn't know you were driving the back roads to get these stories. That's incredible.
- [18:40]
Clay Travis
My First Jeep had 400,000 miles. It was 14 years old. I'm on my second one, and I just passed 270,000. So. Yeah, but, you know, that's where the best stories are. I can't. If I take the interstate, that's no different than flying. Right. When you pull over to get. Get gas, it's like the same gas and the same McDonald's. And there's nothing wrong with that.
- [19:07]
Carol Markowitz
Sure.
- [19:08]
Clay Travis
There's no depth of perception of understanding why people vote the way they do. And that's why I understood in 2016 that Trump was going to win. But I actually called this. This conservative populist coalition that was forming in 2006 during those midterms, really. And interestingly enough, it was when Republicans were losing to Democrats. And I was like, what's going on here? And it was this really interesting intersection where the. And Rahm Emanuel, who was then in charge of the DCCC and recruiting candidates, he picked candidates that were pro life, pro gun, were fiscally responsible. So they picked candidates that Republicans could be comfortable voting for right in. Because he understood that Republicans were pissed off at Republican candidates because they were sprinting like drunken sailors. Right. And they had lost their way. So it was showing me that these coalitions were starting to shift and that the working class was becoming part of the Republican Party. It was very early inception, but it was definitely happening.
- [20:29]
Carol Markowitz
What has been the best part of all this? This whole crazy journey that you've been taking?
- [20:34]
Clay Travis
Oh, all the people I get to meet, all the privilege that I have to interview people where they are, and really getting a profound sense of what place means to people. Having a sense of place, being rooted. You know, people don't realize, but 8 out of 10 people in this, 8 out of 10 people in this country live within 100 miles of where they grew up, and 7 out of 10 people live within 10 miles of where they grew up. So roots matter. So when people don't understand, take my, take my state for instance, and her state is Pennsylvania.
- [21:18]
Carol Markowitz
For anyone who doesn't know.
- [21:20]
Clay Travis
Yeah. Oh, Pennsylvania. So if anybody remembers, one of the last best speeches Joe Biden gave was at the State of the Union address in 2024. It was arguably his best speech and it was coherent and it was to the point. And it was something that had been lacking with him and leading up to that date. And so people were like, okay. But then he said something in that speech. He said something about Snackflation. And he was talking about how greedy these, these, these snack company owners were. And he pointed to Bob Casey, who was then the US Senator from Pennsylvania, Democrat, and said, I'm putting you in charge of these evil, bad people.
- [22:05]
Carol Markowitz
I'm honestly paraphrasing a little bit, only.
- [22:09]
Clay Travis
Yeah, but not really in tone. He was like, you're in charge of snackflation. Get, you know, all this greedy. And he was sort of putting the blame of inflation on that. And I'm watching it and my mouth is wide open. I'm like, wait, what do they not realize that 80% of the snacks consumed in this country are made in six counties in Pennsylvania? That affects someone's vote.
- [22:39]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah.
- [22:39]
Clay Travis
The farmers, the manufacturers, the peoples and people in the C suites that live in the nice neighborhoods, the Dr. Truck drivers. All of these people are a coalition of people. And you just called them the bad guy.
- [22:54]
Carol Markowitz
Right. I had no idea. That's really like such an interesting point.
- [22:59]
Clay Travis
As not meaning me, but I know you expect this Montgomery county or York County C suite, like living in a half million dollar home, vote for Kamala Harris or Joe Biden. Because that's what sort of the stereotype dictates. But if you're going after my industry.
- [23:19]
Carol Markowitz
Right.
- [23:20]
Clay Travis
I don't think so. And you think my family's gonna vote for you? I don't think so.
- [23:24]
Jana Kramer
Yeah.
- [23:25]
Clay Travis
So it's those sort of intimate, granular things that makes me understand, like, why my state mattered. But also, if you didn't know this, if you weren't on a back road in York, Pennsylvania, and you didn't see Snyder's potato chips, or if you've never been to Hershey park and understand sort of all that happens in our state, you know, that that contributes to snacks, then, you know, there was just such a huge disconnect.
- [24:03]
Carol Markowitz
Right. He had no idea. He was just criticizing, you know, some CEO. Yeah, some CEO somewhere. Right?
- [24:10]
Clay Travis
You literally look it up on Wikipedia. Snack belt, Pennsylvania.
- [24:15]
Carol Markowitz
Fascinating.
- [24:15]
Clay Travis
Not that hard.
- [24:16]
Carol Markowitz
Wow. So you're such a champion for Pennsylvania. You clearly love your state so much. And, you know, one of my best friends considers Pittsburgh, like, you know, the undiscovered or not undiscovered, but undervalued American city, which he just thinks is like the greatest city in the country. I've never been to Pittsburgh. What makes it so amazing?
- [24:37]
Clay Travis
If you asked me five years ago, I would say everything but the people. Undeniably, it's the people that make the city amazing. Unfortunately, the politics in the city has gotten very weird, and there's been a lot of anti. Semitism. There has been, you know, a defiance to the ICE orders. There has been. It's just been very ugly, ugly politics. A lot of that has to do with the Democrat socialists of America sort of being backing these far left candidates, Right? And because we are a closed state and a closed primary state, and because people generally that vote in primaries tend to be either the farthest left or the furthest right of their party, they have become the leaders in the. In the state. So think Summer Lee is our congresswoman. And so the politics have. Have sort of hurt the city a little bit. Right? We have a homeless problem. We have a crime problem. But outside of that, my city is, you know, it's. It's a beautiful city. It's a very old American city. It was. Was literally considered the west in the beginning foundings of our. Of our country. It's funny, you know, my family has been in Pennsylvania since 1632. The Scottish side, not the Italians. Yeah, there wasn't even in Italy in 1632. But the. And. And. And have been in Pennsylvania, like Pittsburgh and Butler. That's what made that's what made what happened to me and Butler all that more. You know, personal have been there since the 1750s. I love my city. I just wish that it would clean up its app.
- [26:34]
Carol Markowitz
We're going to take a quick break and be right back on the Carol Markowitz Show.
- [26:39]
Ryan Reynolds
Every Business has an ambition PayPal open is the platform designed to help you grow into yours with business loans so you can expand and access to hundreds of millions of PayPal customers worldwide. And your customers can pay all the ways they want with PayPal, Venmo pay later and all maintenance major cards so you can focus on scaling up when it's time to get growing. There's one platform for all business PayPal open grow today at paypalopen.com loans subject to approval in available locations for some.
- [27:10]
Jana Kramer
Of us, personal finances aren't just personal. They include a lot more people than ourselves, loved ones, neighbors, the communities we call home, and the causes we hold in our hearts. At Thrivent, we help plan your financial picture with the bigger picture in mind. Because even though our business is helping guide your finances, our ambition is to make it mean so much more. Thrivent where Money Means more Connect with.
- [27:37]
Ryan Reynolds
Us@Thrivent.Com welcome to the W where elite athletes are redefining the game of basketball. From buzzer beating shots, jaw dropping defense and logo three, the WNBA delivers non stop action and world class talent every game. These athletes don't just play the game, they elevate it. The biggest stars, The Brightest Age AT&T WNBA All Star 2025 comes to Indianapolis July 18th through 19th. Tune into the game July 19th at 8:30pm Eastern Time on ABC.
- [28:10]
Jana Kramer
This is Jana Kramer from Wind down with Jana Kramer. I love my Samsung appliances, especially because they're so reliable and with my busy schedule, having reliable appliances has been game changer. It's no wonder Samsung is the number one brand for customer satisfaction. That's why I'm excited to tell you all about Samsung's new line of smart appliances. Featuring their brand new bespoke AI laundry combo. This incredible magic machine washes and dries in one machine, one load. No transfers, no timers, no re washing needed. You just toss in your dirty clothes and they go from dirty to dry in as little as 68 minutes. It simplifies your entire laundry routine. Plus you can remotely schedule cycles from your phone so you have fresh clothes ready when you are. New Bespoke AI appliances. This is home living made simple. For more information visit samsung.com bespoke 68.
- [29:01]
Selena Zito
Minute cycle based on 27 inch combos.
- [29:03]
Clay Travis
Based on using a super speed cycle.
- [29:04]
Ryan Reynolds
Only with a 10 pound doe load.
- [29:06]
Jana Kramer
Cotton 50% plus polyester 50%.
- [29:08]
Selena Zito
Individual results may vary based on actual load content. SmartThings app available on Android and iOS devices, Wi Fi connection and Samsung account requirements.
- [29:15]
Ryan Reynolds
Now I'd like to introduce you to Meaningful Beauty, the famed skincare brand created by iconic supermodel Cindy Crawford. It's her secret to absolutely gorgeous skin. Meaningful Beauty makes powerful and effective skin care simple and it's loved by millions of women. It's formulated for all ages in all skin tones and types and it's designed to work as a complete skin care system, leaving your skin feeling soft, smooth and nourished. I recommend starting with Cindy's full regimen which contains all five of her best selling products including the amazing Youth Activating Melon Serum. This next generation serum has the power of melon leaf stem cell technology. It's melon leaf stem cells encapsulated for freshness and released onto the skin to support a visible reduction in the appearance of wrinkles. With thousands of glowing five star reviews, why not give it a try? Subscribe today and you can get the Amazing Meaningful Beauty system for just $49.95. That includes includes our introductory five piece system, free gifts, free shipping and a 60 day money back guarantee. All of that available@meaningfulbeauty.com.
- [30:17]
Carol Markowitz
So what happened to you in Butler? For anybody who doesn't know.
- [30:20]
Clay Travis
So yeah, wait, y' all need to buy my book.
- [30:22]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah, the book is called Butler and when is it coming out?
- [30:25]
Clay Travis
You can pre order it. Pre order it now. I was four feet away from the President when he was shot at in Butler. Oh, it was an interesting day. As any journalist knows, when you go, when you, when you have certain things planned for a day, including an interview, there's a 70% chance it's not going to happen. Sure, right. Like your day's just not going to go the way it planned and you have to be ready. According. Yeah, I was supposed to interview President Trump that day, July 13th in Butler. And it was supposed to be five minute interview right before the rally. And about three hours before he got there, I got a text saying, hey, change of plans. And so I immediately think, oh, it's not going to happen. But they said, no, can you interview him for five minutes after the rally? I said fine. And then about an hour before President Trump gets there, I get a text saying, so, hey, hi. President Trump really doesn't want you to be like 5 minute interview. Want to fly with him to bedminster and do the interview on the plane. I'm like, well, I didn't have that on my bingo card, right? Yeah, yeah. I had my daughter with me. She's a photojournalist, so she was going to do the photos. So she has four kids. Her husband was with her. There's a reason why her husband was with her. It was 103 degrees that day. We made him carry everything. So we're like, okay, that's what. What we're gonna do. And about two minutes before, no, about five minutes before, President Trump's about to go on stage, this campaign advance man grabbed me and said, it's go time. I'm like, oh, my God, everything's changed again. Right? Like, follow him through this, like, narrow little causeway. We go in the back of the stage, there's President Trump. It's. It's called a room, a click room is where generally the President will meet with, like, local people, a couple people grab from the crowd and law enforcement, and they'll get their photo taken with the President. They put me at the end of the line, the three of us at the end of the line, and I said, well, where are we doing this interview? And the poor guy, his name was Michelle, he goes, I actually don't know. He was. Let me go ask the President. So he goes around, there's a big curtain, he goes around and he comes back. He says, like, very sheepishly, says, you just wanted to say hi, we're still going to Bedminster. I'm like, okay, right? So again, things are changed. I go around and we have this thing between us. He always is like, selena, best hair in America. Yeah. And I get so embarrassed because then everybody is staring at me, like, and I'm thinking, is my hair good? I've been in the humidity for, like, five hours. I don't. I hear you, girl. Yeah, like, curly Italian hair. Like, we can't keep it straight.
- [33:36]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah.
- [33:37]
Clay Travis
So he asked about my grandchildren and then sent me on my way. So at this point, he can't get us back to the press riser where the rest of the press are, because that little causeway that we were sent through was now closed off. So he goes, okay, since you're going right after the rally with the President, let's put you in the buffer. The buffer is sort of a well, mostly used by security that separates the President from the crowd and also by photojournalists, because. Just go in the well, follow him around as he goes out on the stage, and then get over on the far side. Okay, we're all taking photos. My daughter, my son in law. He comes out, he waves to the crowd. He then goes up to the podium and you know, if you've never been to a Trump rally, you don't understand. But the relationship between him and the people that are attending, it is very transactional. He feeds off of them, they feed off of him. And this is in a positive way. This is in a very sort of aspirational way. People believe they are part of something bigger than themselves. And chumps intuitively understands that he is as well. He's part of it. He's part of them. It's not just about him, it's about everybody there. So because of that, he never looks away from the crowd. He'll move his. He'll move his body and look at different sides.
- [35:10]
Jana Kramer
Yeah.
- [35:11]
Clay Travis
Like turn around and look at crowds around.
- [35:13]
Carol Markowitz
Right. It's not like he has notes or anything. Yeah.
- [35:16]
Clay Travis
So two things happen simultaneously that never happen. He brings a chart down. I'm like, what is he, Ross Perot? Like, he never has a chart.
- [35:27]
Carol Markowitz
Amazing, huh?
- [35:29]
Clay Travis
And then he turns away from the crowd and he never does that. And at that moment, I hear pop, pop, pop, pop. Bullets fly right over. I watch him go down, but I. He takes himself down. I note that, like, it's really weird. You know how they always say things happen in slow motion? They absolutely do. Really? I can see him go down. I can see him hold his ear. I see the Secret Service go around him. You remember? I'm like four feet away from him at this point and.
- [36:02]
Carol Markowitz
Is your daughter snapping pictures?
- [36:04]
Clay Travis
My daughter, yeah. We don't stop working until the second four bullets go by and Michelle takes us down. The campaign press guy, he's amazing. He's my hero. Michelle Picard. I will love him forever. He was so protective of all of us. And I can hear the whole conversation he is having with the Secret Service and you know, like about when to go up. You know that the shooter is dead. Like, you can hear them talking. You can hear the ra. I can hear the radios just because of how close I am. And I can. It was a little bit funny. It's funnier now. It was a little bit funny in the moment. I can hear him like they want him to get up and want to get up. And he's like basically saying, I need to put my damn shoes on. Right. Like his. Someone had knocked his shoes off. And, and, and I, I hear one agent sigh like, okay, all right. Like, okay, put your shoes on. Right.
- [37:16]
Carol Markowitz
And they get his shoes off. That's so weird.
- [37:18]
Clay Travis
And then he comes off the stage. He goes right past me. There is an agent that holds a gun right at our heads as he's going past. Because they still don't know what else. Sure.
- [37:28]
Carol Markowitz
They don't know. Right.
- [37:30]
Clay Travis
So I did not go to Bedminster that day. No, obviously. Right. But he calls me the next morning bright and early, and before I could say hello, like, I didn't even get my hello out, he's like, are you okay? Is Shannon and Mike okay? I'm like. And I felt like saying, are you freaking kidding me? You, dude, you've just been shot.
- [37:53]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah. Maybe focus on yourself. Yeah.
- [37:57]
Clay Travis
We ended up talking, I believe, seven different times that day. You called me back a lot of times, because he kept getting interrupted, obviously.
- [38:06]
Carol Markowitz
Obviously. Yeah.
- [38:08]
Clay Travis
But also just talking about Faith, about him making that decision, like, all of that. All details of those conversations are in the book.
- [38:19]
Carol Markowitz
I cannot wait to read this, because he seems like a changed person after what happened.
- [38:23]
Clay Travis
He's a totally changed person. Yeah. As someone that has interviewed him 19 times, he is definitely a changed person. And there's really some poignant moments with him and I after that at different places that are really powerful. But. But the book also really gets into, like, everybody was reading things in other newspapers and thinking one thing might happen. And I kept writing, no, it's not. You all need to come to Pennsylvania. Right. It was clear to me that she stood no chance. Biden definitely didn't stand a chance, probably. I mean, I will say this unequivocally. Would have lost worse than she did, really. It was clear to me that she was not going to win. She had no cultural connection to the voters here or any kind of connection.
- [39:21]
Carol Markowitz
I think, to any voters. She was impossible to get through to.
- [39:25]
Clay Travis
Yeah. Yeah. So. And you'll find out in the book, the first. The forward in the book. Not the forward. The first chapter, you'll find out that there was another president that was shot in Butler. And it is really intense and it's really, really interesting.
- [39:47]
Carol Markowitz
Shocking. I can't wait to read it. Butler. And when does it come out again?
- [39:51]
Clay Travis
It comes out July 8th. But pre order, pre order. Pre orders are important.
- [39:58]
Carol Markowitz
Main thing pre. Everybody, pre order. Selena's book. It's going to be amazing. You could tell by the story she just told how incredible a storyteller she is. And I. I just can't wait to read it. So a question that I ask all of my guests is, what do you worry about?
- [40:16]
Clay Travis
So, as I said in my homework. Yeah. I tend not to work.
- [40:22]
Carol Markowitz
Really?
- [40:23]
Clay Travis
Yeah. I mean it doesn't mean kind of Italian doesn't worry. Well, here's why you don't worry. Because it has no power. Worry has absolutely no power. It drains you. It can't do worry can do nothing to change circumstances. It is just a waste of energy. If you, if you want to, if you have something that's really sort of concerning you or a life struggle that you're, you're trying to work your way through, or even if it's just an issue with your child or your parents or your family or your career, the best thing to do is go outside and take a walk. And if faith is important to you, prayer is something that has often gotten me through and by the way, ever get everything I ask for when I pray? I probably only get a tenth. But prayer is really, really a great way or being reflective is a great way to uplift that stress. And it helps you understand that there are some things you just don't have control over and it helps you think about better ways to manage it.
- [41:36]
Carol Markowitz
What advice would you give your 16 year old self? What does 16 year old Selena need to know?
- [41:43]
Clay Travis
All the things you're going to fail at. Don't worry about it. They end up being the things that make you successful.
- [41:50]
Carol Markowitz
What have you failed at?
- [41:52]
Clay Travis
I've been fired so many times really.
- [41:58]
Carol Markowitz
I see you as like this beloved writer. Like I was thinking about this before our interview. Like the right is very fractured and there's a lot of like groups or cliques or whatever and you just kind of transcend all of that. And so it's surprising to me that you failed at anything.
- [42:17]
Clay Travis
Oh, that's because I didn't belong there. Yeah. We have to recognize failures aren't about not trying hard enough. Failure's about it not being a good fit. It's sort of like going on a date with the say you're a woman and you meet the perfect guy. Right. And you like, you know, you get along and on paper he's great, on paper you're great. But it doesn't work out like, and it's not because either were bad, it's because it wasn't a good fit.
- [42:50]
Carol Markowitz
Right.
- [42:50]
Clay Travis
I was in corporate America for two jobs and I was terrible at it. And it was not nothing to do with not working really hard.
- [42:58]
Carol Markowitz
Right.
- [42:59]
Clay Travis
I was just really, really bad. But where I learned so much and I think what makes me a good writer is observation skills. I have always been a people watcher and it has taught me so much. But also Being a waitress, being a hairdresser, being a hockey mom, soccer mom, football mom. My kids played every lacrosse mom. My kids played every sport imaginable.
- [43:27]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah, I have one of those.
- [43:30]
Clay Travis
Yeah. And also understanding place in the world where you are and where you're from, a respect for place no matter where you, no matter where you find yourself, helps you become a better writer.
- [43:48]
Carol Markowitz
I love that. I love everything you do. She's so fantastic. Selena Zito, leave us here with your best tip for my listeners on how they can improve their lives.
- [44:00]
Clay Travis
Well, I'm gonna go.
- [44:01]
Carol Markowitz
It's one of the three questions, Selena. You wrote out an answer. I can go find it.
- [44:04]
Clay Travis
I wrote out an answer and I go back to my second answer.
- [44:08]
Carol Markowitz
Okay.
- [44:09]
Clay Travis
How do you improve your lives? Take a little care of yourself. I'm telling you, nothing is better than either a good cup of coffee or glass of water or whatever you're Dr. Drink of choices shouldn't be alcohol in the morning. And take a walk.
- [44:23]
Carol Markowitz
Yeah.
- [44:23]
Clay Travis
A 15 minute walk. Walk in your house. Like it gets your endorphins going, right?
- [44:30]
Carol Markowitz
Definitely.
- [44:31]
Clay Travis
As what's her name famously said in what's the movie where she becomes a lawyer?
- [44:39]
Carol Markowitz
I think Legally Blonde. I felt like I knew where you were going with this. Reese Witherspoon, you're endorphins.
- [44:46]
Clay Travis
If you're working, you're indoors.
- [44:47]
Carol Markowitz
Happy people don't kill people. Yeah.
- [44:51]
Clay Travis
And so taking that walk, you know, in the first thing in the morning, even if your kids are around the house, do circuits around your house, whatever you need to do, get those juices flowing. It helps your mind be clearer. Exercise is never bad.
- [45:10]
Carol Markowitz
That's what I hear. I wouldn't take the chance myself, but yeah.
- [45:16]
Clay Travis
That would be my best advice.
- [45:17]
Carol Markowitz
I love it. She is Selena Zito. She's amazing. Pre order her new book Butler. It's going to be out in July, but pre order it right now so you have it the day it comes out. Thank you so much. Selena Zito.
- [45:29]
Clay Travis
Thank you so much for having me. This was fun.
- [45:32]
Carol Markowitz
Thanks so much for joining us on the Carol Markowitz Show. Subscribe.
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Selena Zito
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Clay Travis
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