Podcast Summary: The David Pakman Show

Episode: Crowds Vanishing and Prices Rising as Trump Has Terrible Week
Date: December 12, 2025
Host: David Pakman

Main Theme & Purpose

In this episode, David Pakman provides a deep-dive analysis into why Donald Trump is experiencing declining support, shrinking crowds at rallies, and a mounting affordability crisis that is increasingly being blamed on his administration. The episode covers the empirical failure of Trump’s economic promises, growing discontent among traditional Republican constituencies (notably farmers), media and public skepticism of Trump’s narratives, glaring issues inside ICE hiring, and the latest in right-wing distractions—including Glenn Beck’s bizarre AI George Washington project.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Collapse of Trump’s MAGA Rallies

• [01:00] Pakman reports on Trump’s attempted “comeback” rally in Mount Pocono, PA, aimed at reassuring Americans about affordability.
  • The event was a flop: “Very little energy. No sign that the old magic is still there. Even Fox News wouldn’t show the wide shot to really show how bad the entire thing was.”
  • The crowd was sparse and disengaged, with “energy… like a balloon with a hole in it.”
  • Trump contradicted himself on whether prices were up or down and dismissed the affordability crisis:

    "Trump said, 'It's an affordability hoax. We brought prices down. Everything's cheaper now.'" – David Pakman [03:10]

  • Instead of addressing suffering, Trump painted a rosy, untrue picture that didn’t resonate with the crowd.
• [07:35] Pakman notes the media is complicit in “sanewashing” the rallies, treating them as more significant or energetic than they are.
  • Pakman has stopped covering the rallies live:

    “I don't believe that these rallies represent a growing movement of sociocultural significance in the United States.” – David Pakman [09:28]

  • Trump’s rallies feel like “the band that has a singer that lost their voice and they replaced every other band member, but they're still going out and touring, and it just kind of sucks.”

2. Polling: Americans Blame Trump for Price Rises

• [12:50] Recent polling shows 55% of Americans blame Trump for rising grocery prices.
  • Nearly half can’t afford groceries; similar numbers struggle with healthcare costs.
  • Key data: 27% skipped a doctor’s visit for cost, 23% didn’t fill a prescription.

  • “Half the country is struggling to buy food and more than half blames Donald Trump.” – David Pakman [15:12]

  • Pakman argues Trump is failing his own promises:
    • Trump pledged food prices would rapidly drop—“they didn’t.”
    • Americans are feeling the brunt; billionaires are doing better than ever.
• Republicans’ focus on “consolidation and inequality” is contrasted with actual results for ordinary people:

  “You're not going to get cheaper groceries when you do that. You will get families struggling to buy groceries, the way you have right now, families struggling to afford doctor's bills.” – David Pakman [17:50]

3. Farmers’ Revolt: Bailouts ‘Too Little, Too Late’

• [20:10] Pakman addresses new farmer bailouts:
  • $11 billion (or possibly more) is being sent to farmers suffering under Trump’s tariff policies (often the same policies they voted for).
  • Farmers interviewed by media acknowledge Trump “caused this problem,” and that “the bailout is merely a band aid.”
  • Quote from a NewsNation interview:

    “This is Donald Trump's problem. He's the one that caused this.” – Unnamed farmer [21:11]

• [23:19] Caleb Ragland, American Soybean Association, calls bailouts a:

  “Band aid on an open wound. … What we truly need are market-based solutions... we need demand.” – Caleb Ragland [soybean farmer] [23:19]

  • Pakman notes how “demand” is fundamentally what moves economies, not perpetual bailouts or trickle-down approaches.
  • Ragland warns of a coming “1980s type farm crisis” if current trends continue [24:46].
  • Another farmer highlights that some are already in foreclosure:

    “For a lot of farmers, it’s going to become too late. We have many farmers already in a foreclosure proceedings process in this country… caused primarily by the administration.” – Unnamed farmer [26:19]

4. Trump’s Economic Self-Grading Ridiculed Across Media

• [27:33] Discussion of the viral moment where Trump gives himself an absurd grade:

  • “A plus A plus A plus plus plus plus plus.” – Donald Trump [27:33]

  • Even Fox News couldn’t keep a straight face:

    “The president didn’t even hesitate before giving himself a triple plus rating.” – John Roberts, Fox News [28:06]

  • CNN’s John Berman [28:35] and Laura Ingraham [31:10] also highlight the absurdity, with Laura’s guest pivoting blame to Biden despite polling showing strong negativity about Trump-era economy.
• Pakman points out the disconnect:

  “If you just tell people everything’s great, stop complaining, stop being so dramatic… That does not play well with the American people.” – David Pakman [29:25]

5. ICE Hiring Scandal and Broader Incompetence

• [34:31] ICE, under pressure from Trump to expand rapidly, is hiring underqualified applicants:
  • Recruits who “can barely read or write,” one weighing nearly 500 lbs, were found unfit by doctors—and possibly heading toward field positions.
  • Agents failing open-book exams, struggling with basic paperwork—“not isolated outliers…this is part of the new normal of ICE.”

  • “Imagine the imagery of a guy asking for your papers who can barely read your papers.” – David Pakman [36:14]

  • ICE background checks are lax; physical standards have plummeted.
  • Concerns about law enforcement standards and white supremacist ties among recruits.
  • Summary: “Militarization of incompetence”—dangerous, especially in an agency notorious for overreach and abuse.

6. Glenn Beck’s AI George Washington: ‘Ideological Ventriloquism’

• [41:31] Pakman plays and comments on Glenn Beck interviewing an AI ‘George Washington,’ constructed to reinforce Beck’s own criticisms of modern America.
  • AI Washington’s message: “The greatest danger to our republic lies not in foreign arms or political faction. … It’s all moral.”
  • Pakman skewers the exercise:

    "What Glenn Beck has figured out a way to do is to get something that is a stand-in for George Washington to tell him, 'You’re right.' … The projection here is so brazen and naked that it’s almost beyond words." [43:07]

  • Pakman asks if anyone could possibly fall for such an obvious attempt at moral authority laundering.

7. Listener Feedback & Closing Thoughts

• [46:00+] Pakman reads audience emails and comments, clarifies economic misconceptions (e.g., difference between inflation falling vs. actual prices falling), critiques grammar and logic in right-wing criticism, and addresses Trump/Biden health transparency.
  • Reaffirms the need to play Trump’s own words, not just paraphrase them:

    “If I'm covering the President of the United States and instead of playing him saying the things I'm analyzing, I just tell you, this is what he said. I don't think I'm doing my job.”

  • Jokes about viewer comments on turtlenecks and includes his usual witty, dry humor.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Trump's Fading Momentum:

  “It feels sort of like the band that has a singer that lost their voice and they replaced every other band member, but they're still going out and touring, and it just kind of sucks.” – David Pakman [09:55]

• On Blame for Rising Costs:

  “Half the country is struggling to buy food and more than half blames Donald Trump.” – David Pakman [15:12]

• On Right-Wing Economic Strategy:

  “Trump has squeezed America for everything it’s worth to enrich himself and the donors that keep him afloat.” – David Pakman [16:41]

• On ICE Hiring:

  “We were told when Trump came in that we were going to get law and order. This is very much not law and order. This is the militarization of incompetence.” – David Pakman [37:32]

• On Glenn Beck’s AI Project:

  “This is like an ideological ventriloquism… what Glenn Beck has figured out a way to do is to get something that is a stand-in for George Washington to tell him, ‘You’re right.’” – David Pakman [43:07]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:00] – Recap of Trump’s failed Mount Pocono rally and crowd reactions
• [12:50] – Polls show Americans blame Trump for affordability crisis
• [20:10] – Farmers and ranchers criticize Trump’s tariffs, bailouts as band-aids
• [27:33] – Trump gives himself “A plus plus plus plus plus” on the economy; media ridicule ensues
• [34:31] – ICE hiring scandal: unfit and underqualified agents in the field
• [41:31] – Glenn Beck interviews AI George Washington
• [46:00+] – Audience feedback, economic misconceptions clarified

Tone & Language

Pakman remains sharply analytical, delivering fact-based critique with dry, sometimes self-deprecating humor, a sense of exasperation at the absurdity of much right-wing rhetoric, and a persistent call for accountability to reality. His tone throughout is conversational, occasionally sardonic, yet always clear and direct.

Summary prepared for those seeking a full, engaging, and insightful breakdown of the episode's core content, analysis, and cultural commentary.