2/24/25: One month in, one hundred disasters

Summary

The David Pakman Show – Episode Summary
Date: February 24, 2025
Episode Title: One Month In, One Hundred Disasters

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I. Economic Metrics Under Trump's First Month

David Pakman begins the episode by objectively assessing the economic indicators following Donald Trump's second inauguration. Committing to a data-driven analysis, Pakman outlines the initial economic performance by comparing key metrics from the end of Joe Biden's presidency to Trump's first month in office.

• Unemployment Rate: Decreased marginally from 4.1% to 4.0%, indicating a slight improvement.

  "Trump's first month saw the unemployment rate tick down from 4.1 to 4%. Great. No significant change. No significant spike, certainly, and a small reduction in the unemployment rate." (00:07)

• Inflation Rate: Rose slightly from 2.9% to 3.0%, suggesting a minimal increase.

  "The year over year inflation rate at the end of President Biden's presidency was 2.9%... After Trump's first month in office, we saw the inflation rate go up just a little bit from 2.9 to 3%." (00:07)

• Interest Rates: The 30-year fixed rate dipped from 7.04% to 6.85%, partially reflecting Federal Reserve activity.

  "At the end of Joe Biden's presidency, the 30-year fixed rate was at 7.04%. It is ticked down a little bit to 6.85%." (00:07)

• Consumer Sentiment: Noted a 10% decline based on the University of Michigan study, highlighting growing public pessimism despite stable economic indicators.

  "Consumer sentiment has worsened 10% since Donald Trump became president." (00:07)

• Stock Market Performance: Remained largely flat with minor fluctuations, reflecting no significant immediate changes.

  "The stock market flat during the first month of Donald Trump's presidency." (00:07)

Pakman concludes that while some metrics show minor improvements or stability, consumer confidence has decreased, indicating potential challenges ahead.

II. Trump Administration's Position on the Russia-Ukraine War

A significant portion of the episode focuses on the Trump administration's handling of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Pakman criticizes the administration's reluctance to label Russia as the aggressor, arguing that this stance undermines effective policy and negotiation strategies.

• Lack of Acknowledgment: Officials, including Secretary of Defense Mike Hegseth, avoid directly stating that Russia invaded Ukraine.

  "The new line from MAGA is that they will not even acknowledge that Russia started the war... Secretary of Defense Mike Pete Hegseth asked, can we just say Russia attacked? And he says, no, no, no, it's more complicated." (06:29)

• Political Maneuvering: Pakman suggests that admitting Russia as the aggressor would complicate the administration's negotiation tactics, as it would necessitate concessions from Ukraine without requiring Russia to make similar compromises.

  "They probably do [love Putin], but it's more than that... Their entire approach to who needs to give up what doesn't make any sense." (08:38)

• Trump’s Frustration: Donald Trump's public frustration is highlighted through his meltdown at CPAC, where he expresses anger over policies he perceives as lenient towards Russia.

  "Donald Trump suffered a complete and total meltdown... 'Angry. When I see that, I get angry.'" (10:48)

III. Confrontations with Governors and Executive Overreach

Pakman details a contentious exchange between President Trump and Maine Governor Janet Mills, showcasing what he describes as Trump's overreach and authoritarian tendencies.

• Threats to Governors: Trump demands compliance with federal policies, threatening withholding federal funding if states do not comply.

  "Trump asks, is the governor of Maine here, Janet Mills?... 'You better do it, because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't.'" (23:01)

• Governor’s Resistance: Governor Mills stands firm, asserting adherence to state and federal laws over presidential directives.

  "'I'm complying with state and federal law,' said Janet Mills." (23:15)

• Legal Battles: The confrontation is set to escalate to the courts, demonstrating a deepening rift between state and federal authorities.

  "'See you in court,' she dumps on Trump State." (23:54)

IV. Trump's Misstatements on Asylum

Pakman critiques President Trump's confusion regarding asylum procedures, highlighting inaccuracies in his statements about asylum seekers and mental institutions.

• Confusion Between Asylum Types: Trump conflates political asylum with psychiatric hospital admissions, leading to misleading narratives about immigration.

  "Trump is still confused between making a claim of political asylum and what it means to come from an insane asylum." (17:28)

V. Appointment of Dan Bongino and Cash Patel to the FBI

The episode delves into the controversial appointments within the FBI, focusing on Dan Bongino as Deputy Director and Cash Patel as Director, both perceived as loyalists to Trump with questionable qualifications.

• Bongino’s Background: Bongino, known for his conservative podcasting and conspiracy theories, is criticized for lacking credible experience necessary for his FBI role.

  "Dan Bongino, a failed politician who lost not one, not two, but three elections, is now in charge of helping to oversee the FBI." (50:29)

• Patel’s Leadership: Cash Patel’s appointment is seen as a consolidation of Trump’s influence over the FBI, transforming it into a tool for political objectives rather than an independent law enforcement agency.

  "With Cash Patel at the helm and Dan Bongino second in command, it will be anything other than a political tool for Trump." (50:31)

• Lack of Oversight: The fact that Bongino’s appointment does not require Senate confirmation raises concerns about the erosion of checks and balances.

  "This is like hiring the arsonist to run the fire department." (50:31)

VI. Dynamics Between Red and Blue States

Pakman explores the economic interdependence between red and blue states, countering Trump's rhetoric that blue states might "disappear."

• Economic Contributions: Blue states like California contribute significantly to federal taxes, subsidizing red states that often depend on these funds.

  "The blue states bankroll the red states... California contributes over $400 billion in federal taxes annually." (27:26)

• Interdependence: The dissolution of blue states would lead to economic collapse, as red states rely heavily on the resources and infrastructure provided by blue states.

  "If blue states disappear, as Trump suggests, the red states are going to disappear right along with them." (27:26)

VII. State of Mainstream vs. Progressive Independent Media

A critical analysis is provided on the declining viewership of mainstream networks like MSNBC and CNN compared to the rising popularity of independent progressive platforms such as The David Pakman Show.

• Mainstream Media Decline: MSNBC and CNN have faced significant drops in viewership, struggling to recover post-election.

  "MSNBC is averaging 734,000 viewers. CNN 522,000 primetime viewers in January. Post-election ratings... down 53% and 47% respectively." (37:49)

• Rise of Independent Media: In contrast, independent progressive media shows like The David Pakman Show are experiencing rapid growth, reaching milestones such as nearing 3 million YouTube subscribers.

  "The David Pakman show is experiencing some of the most rapid growth we've had in a long time... last week we had our three best consecutive days for new subscribers." (37:49)

• Audience Connection: Independent media is favored for its genuine connection and innovative formats, resonating more effectively with progressive audiences tired of corporate media's perceived inauthenticity.

  "Progressive independent media is on the rise... people are tuning out traditional media in favor of independent creators who speak to them rather than at them." (37:49)

VIII. Democratic Strategies and Future Outlook

In conversation with Senator Adam Schiff, Pakman discusses strategies the Democratic Party needs to adopt to regain voter trust and counteract Trump's administration.

• Broadening Communication: Emphasizing the need to reach audiences across various platforms beyond traditional media.

  "'We need to be speaking to people wherever they're getting their information... you can have the best argument in the world, but if no one hears you, you're not going to persuade them.'" (45:36)

• Offering Solutions: The Democratic Party must present substantial, forward-thinking solutions addressing core economic and social issues to appeal to voters.

  "'We also have to have big ideas that are commensurate with the big problems facing the country... offer something big and clear and powerful that says we understand the economy is not working for everyone.'" (45:36)

• Unity and Voting: Encourage Republicans within the party to stand up against Trump's influence by uniting their votes and opposing nominations that threaten democratic institutions.

  "'Republicans willing to stand up and... voice their concerns... with their vote.'" (43:00)

IX. Conclusion

Pakman wraps up the episode by highlighting ongoing challenges under the Trump administration, including targeted legal actions against media outlets and internal pressures within federal institutions. He underscores the importance of supporting independent progressive media to maintain a counterbalance to the entrenched power of corporate and conservative media.

• Support Independent Media: Encourages listeners to subscribe and support progressive independent shows to ensure their continued growth and resilience against potential administrative attacks.

  "'If it's another one, support a different show. Make sure you're subscribed on YouTube to the shows that you like... fund the alternatives if we want them to succeed.'" (44:23)

• Anticipated Challenges: Foresees legal and political battles ahead as the Trump administration continues to undermine democratic norms and institutions.

  "'If you have cable, you're funding Fox News. We have to fund the alternatives if we want them to succeed.'" (45:36)

The episode emphasizes vigilance and proactive support for independent media as essential strategies for maintaining democratic integrity and counteracting the Trump administration's authoritarian tendencies.

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Notable Quotes:

• David Pakman (00:07):

  "We will track and compare economic metrics. We will not play politics. I will simply tell you, here's what the data says about the state of the economy under Donald Trump."

• Adam Schiff (34:11):

  "This is far worse than that [the first Trump term]. Sadly, they learned from the first four years they came loaded for bear."

• Donald Trump (27:04):

  "With the help of everyone here tonight, the golden age of America has officially begun... the blue states, I don't know, maybe they'll totally disappear off that map."

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the critical discussions and insights from The David Pakman Show’s February 24, 2025 episode, providing listeners with an in-depth overview of the topics covered, including economic analysis, political confrontations, media dynamics, and strategic recommendations for the Democratic Party.

Transcript

[David Pakman]

Welcome to the show, everybody. Hope you had a good weekend. We are now officially more than one month into the second presidency of Donald Trump and I'm going to do what I told you I would do. We will track and compare economic metrics. We will not play politics. I will simply tell you, here's what the data says about the state of the economy under Donald Trump. One of the things we did on the day after Joe Biden left the White House and Donald Trump again became president was I told you, here is the unemployment rate that Joe Biden is handing to Donald Trump. Here's the inflation rate that Joe Biden is handing to Trump. Here's the stock market level that Biden is handing to Trump. And we will track in black and white where this goes as the Trump presidency progresses. Now, I don't know that I'm necessarily going to be doing this around the 20th of every month, but I'm doing it this month just to show that you can do this and you will see that the data is there for the having in black and white. So real quick, the unemployment rate at the end of Joe Biden's presidency was 4.1%. Trump's first month saw the unemployment rate tick down from 4.1 to 4%. Great. No significant change. No significant spike, certainly, and a small reduction in the unemployment rate. The year over year inflation rate at the end of President Biden's presidency was 2.9% year over year. After Trump's first month in office, we saw the inflation rate go up just a little bit from 2.9 to 3%. Not a significant change. Certainly one metric improved. One metric arguably worsened. Depending on what you believe is the ideal amount of of inflation, generally believed to be 2 to 3%. We still don't have we on GDP. GDP is longer term. We would look at GDP quarter to quarter and year over year. We don't even have the Q4, 2024 GDP number yet. So we're going to have to wait on GDP. Interest rates. We tend to look at the 30 year fixed. That's kind of like the baseline metric we often look at. At the end of Joe Biden's presidency, the 30 year fixed rate was at 7.04%. It is ticked down a little bit to 6.85%. Much of that, of course, tracks Fed activity. But not all. Consumer sentiment is the one place where there is an area of concern. Consumer sentiment, based on the University of Michigan study, which is one of the big ones that economists look at, tracking consumer sentiment, meaning the feeling about the direction of the economy, how frugal or lax people would be when it comes to spending. Consumer sentiment has worsened 10, 10% since Donald Trump became president. So what we could. I think it's accurate to say that although no major economic indicator has yet worsened significantly, the opinion of the average American is that things are going to go in a negative direction. Now, that may be true, it may not be true. And then finally, stock market performance flat with the kind of very poor two trading days at the end of last week, we are basically at the exact same place in terms of the stock market over the last month. Now, there are people who will say the expectation is that over time the stock market appreciates and therefore flat is bad. I will leave that. I'm trying to be as apolitical as possible here. The stock market flat during the first month of Donald Trump's presidency. So that's where we are. We will continue tracking it, and I think the next month of data will start to point to a trend. We will either see things start to worsen or improve, or we will see everything seems flat. It seems as though the transition from Biden to Trump has changed nothing about the overarching state of the economy. That's where we are right now. Of course, we know eggs, right? Eggs are going nuclear. I don't have an egg report for you today. Other than yesterday. I found zero eggs at my local 2 grocery stores. I had to go to an inferior grocery store further away, and the only choice I had was a six pack of one type of egg. And there were signs saying two packages max per customer. So that was the state. That's my egg report from yesterday. But at some point during the week, we will look at egg prices. Egg prices certainly up, but we look at broader metrics like inflation, inflation going from 2.9 to 3. That's where we are. The new line from MAGA is that they will not even acknowledge that Russia started the war, that Russia is the aggressor that Russia invaded. This is all happening in a context where MAGA is increasingly deferential to Vladimir Putin. This is happening in a world where it seems as though the Trump administration is going to give Vladimir Putin everything he wants. New territory that he took by force, keeping Ukraine out of Naito, on and on and on. And this is also happening in a world where we do not have a shared basis in fact from which we can have conversations about what's going on. Now, I will tell you in a moment why they are so dead set against simply acknowledging. Yeah, Vladimir Putin invaded. Russia's the aggressor. I'll explain it in a moment. Here is Secretary of Defense Gag Pete Hegseth asked, can we just say Russia attacked? And he says, no, no, no, it's more complicated. Should come to the table because this economic partnership is an important thing for the future of his country, and we hope that he will very soon. But fair to say, Russia attacked unprovoked into Ukraine three years ago tomorrow.

[Adam Schiff]

Fair to say it's a very complicated situation.

[David Pakman]

He won't acknowledge it. He won't acknowledge it. Now. Why won't he acknowledge it? Oh, because they're Russian tools. No, that's not what I mean. There is a deeper reason why they won't acknowledge it, and I will tell you in a moment. Here is Mike Waltz asked essentially the same question by Maria Bartiromo in more territory.

[Adam Schiff]

Can you acknowledge that Russia is the aggressor here?

[David Pakman]

Well, you know what? Who would you rather having go toe to toe with the likes of Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un Xi, or who? Anyone else? Joe Biden or Donald Trump? He's the dealmaker in chief. He's the commander in chief. And not an answer. Not. The question was not who do you want negotiating? The question was, is Russia the aggressor? Here is Peter Doocy asking Mike Waltz the same question. Who's more responsible? Is it Putin or is it Zelensky? Simple question to answer for normal, honest people. Who does he think is more responsible for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Putin or Zelensky? Well, look, his. His goal, Peter, is to bring this war to an end, period. And there has been ongoing fighting on both sides. It is all right. I'm not even going to insult you with the rest of this fighting on both sides. The goal is, of course, to end the war. Not an answer. And then finally, along these same lines, Kristen Welker asking Senator Mark Wayne Mullen, do you acknowledge that Putin is responsible for starting the war? You can still say he is responsible, but I like him, as Trump likes to say, or he's responsible, but he's cool, right, Whatever. But they won't even acknowledge that. Senator Mullen, do you acknowledge that Vladimir Putin is responsible starting the war in Ukraine? You know, I think what President Trump.

[Donald Trump]

Was mean to not think I know.

[David Pakman]

What he was meaning is we gave Zelinsky multiple warnings that there needed to be negotiations before the war even started.

[Adam Schiff]

And President Trump is absolutely correct.

[David Pakman]

If he was in office, this war would have never, ever taken. Okay, so the real problem is Joe Biden, according To Mark Wayne Mullen, why is it that they are so hesitant to just acknowledge Putin started the war, Russia started the war. It might be easy to say it's just because they love Putin, but it's. They probably do. But it's more than that. They all know that implicit in answering, yes, Russia invaded it would be that their approach to the negotiation and their approach to who has to give up what and who has to make concessions wouldn't make any sense. When they are asked what is Russia going to give up in all of this? Because Ukraine's going to be asked to give up land. It seems Ukraine's going to be told in part of ending this will be no Naito membership. Ukraine's going to be told the money is going to stop, which is really military equipment. What will Russia give up? And they don't. Russia doesn't really have to give up anything. They go, russia has already given up. They've lost people. Yes, they've lost people because of a war they started. They all know implicitly that if you acknowledge Putin started the war, period, their entire approach to who needs to give up what doesn't make any sense. Now, you know the approach doesn't make any sense and I know that. But they are trying to maintain some kind of plausible deniability with your average MAGA voter who seems sort of like, I don't know, I mean, everybody should get along. Let's just, let's everybody agree to end it. Let's divide up the territory that Russia already took illegally. Right? So a lot of this is they all know if they acknowledge Putin's the aggressor, period. They now are in a position of having to defend the indefensible with regard to their approach. Simple question, did Putin invade? They don't want to answer it. A furious Donald Trump suffered a complete and total meltdown at everybody's favorite right wing conference, CPAC over the weekend. Don't believe me? Well, here is Donald Trump talking about how angry he is or I'm angry.

[Donald Trump]

And like it's their form of a military parade. And it makes me angry when I see that.

[David Pakman]

Isn't he so funny, that woman just laughing uncontrollably.

[Donald Trump]

Angry. When I see that, I get angry.

[David Pakman]

There you go. So an angry, furious Donald Trump coming up with the latest plan for what Doge is going to investigate. Listen to this one. This does not sound like a two person job.

[Donald Trump]

We are also going to Fort Knox. I'm going to go with Elon.

[David Pakman]

I guess he doesn't go anywhere by himself anymore.

[Donald Trump]

And would anybody like to join us? Because we want to see if the gold is still there. We want to see. Wouldn't that be terrible? We open up. This Fort Knox has got. It's just solid granite that's five feet thick. The front door, you need six muscle men to open it up. I don't even think they have windows. Wouldn't that be terrible if we opened it up and there was no gold there?

[David Pakman]

You know, to me, it doesn't really seem like that's a two person job. I don't know that Trump and Elon need to go to Fort Knox just to see if the gold is still there. And of course, you could probably accomplish this with a photograph. I don't know that Trump needs to go at all, but this is what he says they voted for. They voted for Trump and Ellen to go on this global love affair looking for gold bars and knickknacks of all kinds. Donald Trump again tells the incorrect story that we were very rich in the past because we collected tariffs. And he blames transgender for why we are no longer rich and. Or why people don't like tariffs. It's tough to follow this. It's tough to follow this syntactically, and it's tough to follow this ideologically. But this is the famous weave that Donald Trump is known for.

[Donald Trump]

Word tariff is my favorite word in the dictionary. You know, we were richest. The richest relatively, from. Think of this. From 1870 to 1913, that was our richest because we collected tariffs from foreign countries that came in and took our jobs and took our money, took our everything. But they charged tariffs, and we had so much money, they set up the 1887 each. Think of that. A long time ago, 1887 Tariff Commission, it was a commission of very important people to determine where we should spend all of the tremendous, vast wealth that we had. We had so much wealth. Wouldn't it nice today? Of course, now we give it away to transgender this, transgender that. Everybody gets a transgender operation. It's just wonderful.

[David Pakman]

The reason why, big picture, we are not doing well financially is because of the cost of transgender related stuff, despite the fact that it is statistically a tiny population. When I say that, I don't mean we don't care about trans people. What I mean is the idea that national tariffs are now being in some way counterbalanced by the fact that people are getting trans operations, as Trump calls them, is just laughable. Now Donald Trump does bring up again the supposed Social Security scam that he and Elon have found Talking about the millions of people who are 150 years old receiving benefits. There's no proof of this. Zero proof that they have present.

[Donald Trump]

Hopefully in this room will. But there are in the Social Security ranks and files. And what we're doing now is finding out, do they get paid? Do they get paid? In other words, is somebody taking all of this money? So they have over 100 to 109, 4.7 million Social Security numbers. Think of that. From people whose age is over 100. 3.6 million people.

[David Pakman]

Million million. That's interesting.

[Donald Trump]

Whose age is over 110 years. 3.47 million people who are over 120 years of age. 3.9 million people whose age goes from 130 to 139 years of age. 3.5 million. Whose age goes from 140 to 149 years old. 1.3. See, it's coming down now slowly.

[David Pakman]

There is not a shred of evidence that anybody who is 150 years old supposedly is and dead is receiving a single dollar of Social Security benefits. They have still not proven that, even in one instance. And so this is a real lesson in how they claim it a bunch of times. And then it becomes a basis for something we are all supposed to acknowledge as obviously true when they have still not demonstrated it. Trump has assured us that as far as autism goes, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. And Dr. Oz are going to fix it all for us.

[Donald Trump]

We need him. You know, there's a number on autism as an example, with children, autism, and you go back 15 years, it was from 10 to 20,000. You had like 1 in 10 to 20,000. Some say 10, some say 20, but it was in that vicinity. That's a big vicinity. Now it's 1 in 36 babies have autism. 1 in 36. Think of it was 1 in probably 20,000 people. Now it's 1 in 36. There's something wrong. Something's wrong, and Bobby is going to find it. Working with Dr. Oz.

[David Pakman]

By the way, I actually think they should recruit the help of Dr. Pepper as well, just to really round out that team. And finally, an extraordinarily confused. Trump is still confused between making a claim of political asylum and what it means to come from an insane asylum. He still doesn't understand these are two.

[Donald Trump]

Different that he didn't like people running into our country and taking over our country. I'll tell you, I had four years. I don't know if you had this. I couldn't stand it. Don't get angry Donald, don't get angry, please. I couldn't stand it. Watching these people come in from jails and mental institutions and.

[David Pakman]

And doesn't make any sense. Trump doesn't seem to understand the difference between someone who is in a psychiatric hospital, known to some as a, as a mental asylum or an insane asylum, and coming to the border and requesting political asylum. Trump's confused and the confusion is really part of the humiliation of America under this mango menace. All right, we are rapidly approaching 3 million YouTube subscribers. Only three other progressive channels have ever done it. We are looking to make it a team of four. If you are watching our videos and you are not subscribed on YouTube, please consider that it is free to hit the subscribe button and we are doing what we can to reach that. Insane milestones Speaking of insane asylums, it is a crazy milestone when after the first year on YouTube we had a thousand subscribers. We've added 30,000 subscribers in the last few days. Okay, these are cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs numbers. Help us get to the 3 million. I'll give you an update on where we are very soon. Winter is the perfect time to cozy up at home with some freshly baked treats like flaky pastries, hearty breads, comforting pastas. And you can do it without any effort. Our sponsor, Wild Grain is the first bake from frozen subscription box for artisanal breads, pastries and pastas. Wild Grain simply takes the hassle out of baking everything bakes from frozen in 25 minutes or less. No mess or cleanup. Your family will be amazed thinking you've become a master bread baker all of a sudden. My favorite is the croissants. You throw them in the oven 25 minutes. Wow. If you're ready to bring all your favorite breads, pastas and pastries right to your doorstep, check out Wild Grain. You can build your box of artisanal pastries, breads and everything right now. And for a limited time, Wild Grain will give my audience three thirty dollars off your first box plus free croissants in every box when you go to wild grain.com/pacman to start your subscription. Free croissants in every box and $30 off your first box. Go to wildgrain.com/pacman. The link is in the podcast Notes. Many of us have struggled with sleep at one point or another. A sleep aid many turn to is melatonin because it's a non pharmaceutical remedy clinically proven to work without the effects you might get with antihistamines or prescription meds. My favorite way to take Melatonin is with the Dream Hot Cocoa Powder from our sponsor Beam. It works when you mix Dream Powder into hot water or milk for a delicious mug of cocoa half an hour later, blissfully sleeping, no sugar added. It's naturally sweetened and it comes in delicious flavors. My favorite is cinnamon Cocoa, but vanilla Chai is great too. You can get better sleep with Melatonin, proven to help you fall asleep and stay asleep longer. Feeling rested makes the next day so much better. Keep Dream Powder nearby to soothe you to sleep when you need it. Get 40% off for a limited time when you go to shop beam.com/pacman and use the code PACMAN. That's shop b a m.com/pacman use code PACMAN for 40% off. The link is in the podcast notes the David Pakman show, of course. Thankfully, once I tell you about what's happening on msnbc, thankfully is primarily supported by members of our audience, people who listen to the podcast, people who watch on YouTube or any of our other platforms. You can read about membership and if it tickles your fancy, subscribe@join pacman.com I think this is the best David Pakman show membership you can have. Really all other memberships really kind of pale in comparison compared to the original. And you get the daily bonus show, commercial, free audio and video streams of the show, and so much more. And you can use the coupon code it will end soon. All one word. It will end soon at join pacman.com Donald Trump 3 threatened a governor and the governor said, I will see you in court. This is brilliant stuff. Trump held this Republican, rather governors meeting at the White House where governors, Republicans and Democrats from around the country showed up. And it was all about how they're going to work together. And so all of a sudden Trump asks, is the governor of Maine here, Janet Mills? And he starts mouthing off at her and she says, we're going to follow the law, not what you tell us to do. And then they basically say they're going to see each other in court. This is a wild moment. Check it out.

[Donald Trump]

The NCAA has complied immediately, by the way. That's good. But I understand Maine is the Maine here, the governor of Maine. Are you not going to comply with it with state and federal laws?

[David Pakman]

I'm complying with state and federal law, said Janet Mills.

[Donald Trump]

Well, we are the federal law. Well, you better do it.

[David Pakman]

This is of course Trump's opinion that anything he says because he's the president becomes federal law. Not exactly how the framers of the Constitution imagined it would work.

[Donald Trump]

You better do it, because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't. And by the way, your population, even though it's somewhat liberal, although I did very well there, your population doesn't want men playing in women's sports. So you better come, you better comply, because otherwise you're not getting any, any federal funding. Every.

[David Pakman]

See you in court, she dumps on Trump State.

[Donald Trump]

Good. I'll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one. And enjoy your life after governor, because I don't think you'll be in elected politics.

[David Pakman]

Enjoy your life after governor, because I don't think you'll be in elected politics. There is no longer a gap. You know, there used to be, oh, what a world we live in. There used to be a time in Donald Trump's first term where he would say these crazy authoritarian things and someone would come up with some completely benign interpretation and say, no, you're misinterpreting what he meant. Here's what you think he said, this horrible authoritarian nightmare. But here's what he actually meant when he said that. And it's completely benign. And over time, the gap between what it seems like he's saying and the most perfect benign interpretation has narrowed and narrowed and narrowed, and there's really nothing left here. He's saying, if you don't do what I'm saying, I will ruin your political career and sue you. And by the way, just after this exchange, just after this exchange, the feds will investigate Maine's Department of Education for alleged Title 9 violations because they are not complying with this order as written and then subsequently signed by the Trump administration, that there is no more benign interpretation of what these people are doing. One other moment from this thing. Trump lies to the governors. This is interesting, because he lies, no matter what audience he's in front of, he lies to the governors and says, my polls are the best they've ever been. The truth is that Trump's own pollster is warning him, you're in trouble.

[Donald Trump]

Lovely. Well, we're in a very good mood. We just had the highest poll numbers I've ever had, ever.

[David Pakman]

That is, of course, a complete and total lie. Trump's approval for February of the first year of a term is the lowest of any president since polling began other than Trump himself in February of 2017. Americans don't think he's doing enough on inflation. They think he's overreaching in a bunch of different areas. And the polling is a disaster. The polling, it's, it's difficult to find worse polling this early in the presidency. So a disastrous meeting with the governors. But this is nothing compared to what Trump had to say about blue states. Let's talk about that. Donald Trump is now threatening that blue states will be wiped off the map during his presidency. In what are arguably the most belligerent comments thus far, let's break down what Trump actually said and why. It's not just unlikely that this would happen, but it is practically impossible.

[Donald Trump]

With the help of everyone here tonight, the golden age of America has officially begun. And the golden age of just this, this whole thing, the red states, it's going to be leading the way to making our country richer and safer and stronger than ever before. For the red states are going to do good. And the blue states, I don't know, maybe they'll totally disappear off that map.

[David Pakman]

Totally disappear off that map. Now, let's kind of address the obvious. First, if you're living in a blue state, first of all, congratulations. Blue states aren't going anywhere. Okay? California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts. These states are not just political entities. These are economic powerhouses, as we've talked about before. And the kicker is that the red states depend on the blue states. The red states would go bankrupt if it weren't for the subsidies that come from the blue states. The blue states contribute way more in federal taxes than they get in spending. And you look at many of these red states, which the people, I'm sure are great, right? This is not attacking people. Mississippi, Alabama, Kentucky, they receive much more in federal dollars than they pay in. In other words, the blue states bankroll the red states. So if blue states disappear, as Trump suggests, the red states are going to disappear right along with them. Just look at California, one of the favorite targets of the MAGA, right? California alone contributes over $400 billion in federal taxes annually. That's not money. That just goes California. It gets redistributed across the country. Imagine if California disappeared. Where would the money come from? The answer is it wouldn't. The red states would have budget shortfalls, their economies would crater. And only someone who is completely economically illiterate could suggest such a thing. The blue states are responsible for a disproportionate share of the country's gdp. The blue states are hubs for technology and finance and manufacturing and innovation. And if they disappear, the American economy collapses. Red states don't have the infrastructure and they don't have the resources to fill that void. Not only an absurd idea, but it also ignores the fundamental economic realities of the United States. This rhetoric about blue states disappearing, I don't know, maybe it plays well to the base, but it is completely disconnected from the facts of the situation. Now, of course red states contribute to the American economy. Nobody is denying that. But the reason that the red states are more fragile is that red states are far more likely to depend on a single industry than the more dynamic economies of the blue states in general. The educational powerhouses are the blue states. The standard of living and therefore the purchasing states that keep our businesses afloat through demand side stimulus are the blue states. It takes a combination of different types of states, there's no doubt about it. But we aren't the ones suggesting secession. We aren't the ones suggesting that the red states are going to be wiped the map. They are the ones suggesting it. And so it's as economically illiterate as it is ridiculous to suggest. And maybe it's because Trump doesn't have any idea what's going on. That seems to be the case. Let's take a break. We will speak to Senator Adam Schiff after this short break. Every romantic relationship has periods where people get busy, struggle to find time to connect, or find new ways to connect. And that's why our sponsor Parrot has been such a valuable tool for so many people. People. It's the app for couples who want to strengthen their relationship. Every day, Paired gives you personalized questions or quizzes or games to stay connected, deepen your conversations and have fun. The best part is you can't see your partner's answer until you answer, so it's a safe space to have an open and honest discussion about the relationship. No faking it or pretending, just genuine connection to keep the spark alive. My girlfriend and I have used Paired. Even if you've known your partner for years like I have, I still feel like Paired helps me learn new things and stay connected. Whether you're just a few dates in or you've been together a long time. 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Cash Patel has been confirmed, who seems uniquely unqualified to be director of the FBI to start like at the 40,000 foot level. Is this first month of this administration exactly what you expected or is it even worse? Because I expected it to be pretty disturbing and I'm finding myself thinking this is even worse than I anticipated.

[Adam Schiff]

Oh, I think it's much worse than I had a very low expectation. But this was true of the first Trump administration. I thought going into that first experiment in Trump MAGA world that it would be bad, but it was far worse. This is far worse than that. Sadly, they learned from the first four years they came loaded for bear. They're willing to trample any ethical line, any legal line. And now they have immunity from the US Supreme Court. And not only does the President have immunity to commit crimes, but the people around him know that on his way out the door they're likely to get a pardon from him. So it's basically a lawless administration and we are really going to be tested over the next four years. But just to look at those events of the last seven hours, only in Trump's America, where people who violently, violently attack police and beat them and gouge them and bear sprayed them on January 6th get a pardon. Those violent criminals get a pardon and the people in the FBI who investigated them get purged. Only in that kind of a world, that upside down, wrong headed world, can a sycophant like Cash Patel become an FBI director. But that is tragically where we are.

[David Pakman]

We were told this would be an administration that champions law and order, but it seems to be very much the opposite with these pardons and with essentially a recreation of Richard Nixon's if the President does it, it's not illegal that we saw recently. We were told this would be good for the middle class, but they want to decimate the cfpb. They want to do away with apparatus that can actually defend against the overreach of whether it's corporations or whoever. I'm very worried about just the average American who works for a living and has sort of the nominal amount of savings most people have. It seems as though these protections are being taken down one by, excuse me, one by one. And as you point out, I don't know what backstop there is at this point to put a stop to it.

[Adam Schiff]

You're absolutely right. What we're saying is truly Orwellian. It's the kind of doublespeak that George Orwell imagined. But now we're seeing they are firing inspector generals in the name of rooting out corruption. They are firing the head of the Office of Government Ethics in the name of ethics. They are going after and firing wildland firefighters in the service of fighting fires. It's also asked backwards. None of it makes any sense except viewed through the perspective of what they're really after. And that is getting rid of all the checks in the system so they can raid the Treasury. So there's no one to stop them from plundering the resources of the country to fund a massive tax cut for super rich people and large corporations. That's what this is all about. And where all these lines intersect is the more they can stop any kind of opposition, any kind of even oversight, the better it is to plunder the treasury. So anyone that stands in their way, any independents in the Congress, any independent overseer, whether it's Inspector General or the government ethics office, they have to be fired. They have to be done away with in order for Trump to really fill the swamp in the name of emptying the swamp.

[David Pakman]

You know, when I watched this Kafka esque event in the Oval Office last week where Elon Musk and one of his kids were really getting all of the attention as the president sat sort of hunched over and looking dejected and certainly not in control. I saw this Sean Hannity interview again where Elon, I don't know who's babysitting whom, but Elon Musk is there alongside Donald Trump. Donald Trump. And Hannity seems to be really deferring to Musk rather than to the president. What is your sense of who's really in charge right now?

[Adam Schiff]

Well, Donald Trump, I think, is older and his age is really showing. I think he's never been particularly interested in running the government. He's more interested in the trappings of government. So he's more than happy to be out on the golf course and let Elon be Elon. I think he views that as a great division of labor. And more than that, he's content to have Elon take the heat and that way he doesn't have to. And I think we have to be careful even as we point out all the conflicts of interest that Elon Musk has, all the self serving, self dealing that we don't lose sight of who's really behind this and that is Donald Trump. But I think Trump finds him useful. He doesn't want to expend the energy to run the government. So why not outsource that to Elon Musk who will outsource all of our jobs and, and only enrich himself. So I, I think that's the deal. Trump looks old. He seems tired. He is. He's more erratic than ever and he's content to let others do the hard work of governing.

[David Pakman]

When we think about the concept of revenge, which seemed to be a driving force during the 2024 campaign, it certainly seems to be important for the recently confirmed new FBI director. I spoke to a couple of D.C. lawyers informally who said, you know, David, I do think there's going to be an interest from this administration in going after progressive independent media outlets like yours. They're not going to do it in the way you might think it'll be. Tax audits, scrutiny of different kinds, social media, deplatforming pressure, investigations into funding this sort of thing. You seem to be in the crosshairs here where Donald Trump would regularly go after you during his first term. We're now hearing from Elon Musk, you're a criminal. We're seeing all of this. Do you have any sense that you may be targeted personally by this administration?

[Adam Schiff]

Well, I certainly have to anticipate that's very likely. Cash Patel is, you know, about nothing except for being the tool of Donald Trump's retribution. He's now going to be running the FBI. You have Elon Musk directing his hate and his bile and his lies at me on Twitter, and, of course, Donald Trump calling me the enemy within. But here's the thing, and I tried to articulate this on the Senate floor just a short time ago. Yeah, he may be coming after me right now, but how long do you think it's going to be before he comes after you? You, yes, an independent voice standing up to him. You, the mainstream media, you, Republicans in the Senate who step an inch out of line. I told my Senate colleagues there is far more room under Donald Trump's bus than there is on it. We saw in the first term. He has no loyalty to anyone. If. If you think you can avoid his wrath, you're sadly mistaken. I mean, look what's happened to President Zelensky just within the last few days. Yes, because President Zelensky, as the leader of his country, as really the true Churchillian figure of our time, wasn't content to be left out of a negotiation over his own country's future. He was willing to stand up and defend the sovereignty of his own nation. And so what does Donald Trump do? He takes this as a personal affront. He calls Zelensky an illegitimate leader. He says that Ukraine started the war even though Russia invaded Ukraine. It would be absurd if it wasn't so damn dangerous, if it wasn't such a betrayal of everything the country has stood for. I have to imagine Ronald Reagan is rolling over his grave at this utter surrender to the Kremlin. There's, you know, there are a lot of happy people about this upending of American democracy. Just happened to live in Moscow and in Beijing. But it is terrible tragedy for the United States, for our European allies, and here at home. It will be a terrible tragedy for anyone willing to stand up to this.

[David Pakman]

Most unethical of presidents in terms of standing up. You don't. I obviously don't expect you to betray any confidences or name names, necessarily, but are any of your Republican counterparts in the Senate privately expressing concern about the power grab, the executive order, about expanding the power of the presidency, the sort of being enamored with these strongmen, authoritarians globally, Putin included? Are you hearing concern from Republicans?

[Adam Schiff]

I am hearing concern. And really, for the first time, some of that concern is spilling out into the public. At the Munich National Security Conference, one of my colleagues, Roger Wicker, very conservative Republican, talked about what a mistake it was for Hegseth to essentially write off NATO membership for Ukraine or make territorial concessions to Russia even before the negotiations took place. He called it a rookie mistake. And I think he's been even more forceful in pushing back against the President's lies about who started the war in Ukraine. So we're starting to see Republicans being willing not just to express private reservations to me or to other Democrats, but to speak publicly about them. We saw a couple Republicans vote against Cash Patel today. You know, my concern with the votes on the nominees is they seem to have decided to parcel out their opposition in such a way that they could show independence on this nominee or that one. But as long as they divided their opposition and sort of came to an understanding that they wouldn't band together to actually defeat anyone, well, that really doesn't do much good except maybe help them politically. What we are really going to need are Republicans willing to stand up and, and voice their concerns in the way that really matters around here, and that is with their vote.

[David Pakman]

The last few minutes we have, I'd like to talk a little bit about Democratic strategy. Strategy. When I spoke to Senators Booker and Warren separately, we talked about you and I and many of the people that watch this show. We knew last year the crime epidemic that Republicans were talking about did not exist. It wasn't borne out by the data. The border crisis at the in the way that it was being described by Trump and Republicans did not. Did not exist. Economic indicators were mostly pretty good, but it really doesn't matter if voters don't buy it. And thus Vice President Harris was hurt by many voters not feeling as though she was taking concerns about those issues seriously. We can show them the facts all day. The crime is down. Right. Inflation is down. The stock market's doing well, record job creation. But if they don't believe it, it sort of doesn't matter. If you appear to be dismissing concerns, what do we need to see to prevent that from happening again? And do you get the feeling that the Democratic Party gets it and gets what went wrong?

[Adam Schiff]

Well, we're going to need to do a couple things in order to turn this around. First of all, we need to be speaking to people wherever they're getting their information. And I think Democrats have too much relied on traditional media. When a lot of Americans have moved away from traditional media and we've got to be talking to people where they're getting their information, you can have the best argument in the world, but if no one hears you, you're not going to persuade them. And you know, for that reason, among others, I greatly appreciate what you're doing. You're really an amplifier of your own views, which are super important. But you're also helping to give voice to others with your show that is reaching millions and millions of people. So we need to be broader in terms of who we're communicating with and how we're communicating. But we also have to have big ideas that are commensurate with the big problems facing the country. We can't be viewed as an agent of the status quo at a time when people are unhappy with the status quo. So that is really important. It's not enough to just be just against what Donald Trump is doing in his terrible path of destruction, but we also have to be offering something big and clear and powerful that says we understand the economy is not working for everyone. And to me, the central existential question right now in America is if you're working hard in America, can you still earn a good living? And the party that can answer that question with real solutions is the one that's going to be winning elections. I want to make sure that's the Democratic Party.

[David Pakman]

Senator Adam Schiff, thank you so much for spending a little time with us today. Really appreciate it.

[Adam Schiff]

Great to be with you. And again, thanks for everything you're doing.

[David Pakman]

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[Donald Trump]

That is a frickin predator right there.

[David Pakman]

Correct Trump. Continuing untruth social. Another aspect of the life of Dan Bongino that I think is very important. He has a great wife, Paula, and two wonderful daughters who truly love their dad. What an incredible job Dan will do. This is the guy who was banned from YouTube for spreading COVID 19 misinformation and WHO has spent years pushing baseless conspiracy theories about the FBI being some kind of deep state cabal out to get Trump. And now he's inside the FBI. It's like hiring the arsonist to run the fire department. And don't forget that this is an appointment that does not require Senate confirmation. Of course it doesn't. Why bother with pesky things like oversight and checks and balances when you can just hand over the keys to the kingdom to your most loyal sycophants. Trump's new FBI director, Cash Patel, far right loyalty loyalist with a history of pushing debunked conspiracy theories. And now with Bongino as his deputy, the FBI is effectively being turned into Trump's personal security force. This is not law and order. This is. This is loyalty and lunacy. But according to Trump, Bongino is a guy of incredible love and passion for the country. If by love and passion I guess you mean he is relentlessly obsessed with trolling liberals and selling survival gear to his podcast listeners. And now he's going to help run the FBI. This is like Alex Jones as Assistant Secretary of Defense or like Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense, which we have. It is a bad decision, but it's a full on assault on the integrity of these institutions. The FBI Agents association wanted an active duty agent in this role, someone with real experience, someone with actual credibility. And they got a right wing wannabe shock jock whose only real qualification is anything Trump says, he repeats without criticizing it or considering that it might be wrong. Which at the end of the day is what Trump requires. So it's dangerous. The FBI is supposed to be an independent law enforcement agency. There is no way that with Cash Patel at the helm and Dan Bongino second in command, it will be anything other than a political tool for Trump. It's stacked with loyalists and the message is clear. The message is chilling, in fact. Loyalty to Trump, whether you're a podcaster or a YouTube host or a stated former state attorney general who decided not to investigate Trump because he gave a political donation the way Pam Bondi did, that's more important than competence. It's more important than integrity. It's more important than the rule of law. For sure. If you're not terrified by that, I don't think you're. You're fear muscle is working. So recap. Dan Bongino, whose claim to fame is getting banned from YouTube and losing elections, is now your deputy FBI director and my deputy FBI director. This is the kind of thing that would be hilarious if it weren't so horrifying. We would joke in advance of a Trump presidency. Imagine if someone like Bongino ends up in a position of power. He did. So did Cash Patel. So did Tulsi. So did Bobby, as he calls him. What a time to be alive. There is a serious shakeup happening at msnbc and things are not going well there. Things are not going well at cnn, but you know where things are going really well? Right here. Progressive independent media is blowing up. So let me sort of set this all up for you. MSNBC over the weekend announces a major programing overhaul. Joy Reid is out. Her show is canceled after five years. I've never seen it, to be honest, but it's canceled. I think the ratings weren't awesome. That show is going to be replaced with a panel show hosted by Simone Sanders, Alicia Menendez and Michael Steele. Is that a show that's likely to do well? I have absolutely no idea. Doesn't appeal to me. But maybe there's people that, that appeals to in the cable ratings. Fox is dominating. MSNBC is struggling. CNN is struggling. Fox, I mean, they're just killing, they're absolutely killing MSNBC. CNN lagging very far behind. MSNBC is averaging 734,000 viewers. CNN 522,000 primetime viewers in January. Post election ratings. MSNBC down 53%. CNN down 47%. Both of these networks are really struggling to recover in the prime demographic. They are down. It's just not good. And Fox's dominance is even extending beyond conservatives. More Democrats are now watching Fox News. More independents are now watching Fox News relative to MSNBC and cnn. So MSNBC is going to try to fix this. They brought back Rachel Maddow to try to boost ratings. It did temporarily boost ratings in January, but still MSNBC and CNN recorded their lowest ever January ratings in the key demographic of 25 to 54 year olds. Meanwhile, things are not good at CNN. CNN is cutting 6% of its staff. Jim Acosta left. They're shifting to Digital Media. And CNN's primetime lineup did rebound from the post election bottom during January, but it's still not good now. Meanwhile, independent progressive media is on the rise. Traditional cable news is struggling. The David Pakman show is experiencing some of the most rapid growth we've had in a long time. In fact, last week we had our three best consecutive days for new subscribers in more than three months. Insane. Something like 25,000 new YouTube subscribers in just a few days. And this is really highlighting a shift that's going on towards independent platforms. So let me tell you what I think is really going on here. One of the interpretations of the MSNBC CNN decline is that progressives, Democrats, the left, however you want to characterize it, are demoralized from the election results and therefore people are tuning out. The problem with that assessment is that it's not happening to the independent media sources. In the few days after the November election, we did see a decline. It's long over. We ended up having a solid December, our best January ever. And this month, February is on track to be the best February ever. So it can't possibly be that progressives are just tuning out because progressive independent media is growing. The Midas Touch podcast has surpassed Joe Rogan as the most listened to podcast in the category, that is a big, big deal. So here's what I believe is going on. There is a degree to which viewers of CNN and MSNBC are not engaging with the formats and they're not engaging with the people they see. This is not everybody, right? Like Rachel Maddow really does seem to have the connection with the audience, but a lot of the people in these sort of, you know, anodyne antiseptic feeling, it's like the equivalent of the fluorescent lighting at a doctor's office. A lot of people aren't feeling that it is genuine to it. To the degree that a lot of the independent content is. This is not about me patting myself on the back. I think it's the format. I think something about the format of all of these sorts of shows are. It's, it's working at a time when people look at the corporate media format and go, we don't think that that's useful to us politically. So there is a definite shift here happening ideologically when it comes to what sorts of media do I believe is really speaking to me rather than speaking at me. And so the upside to this is that while Fox News continues to dominate the right side of the political spectrum, it's conceivable that the future of progressive media lies in the hands of the independent creators, where we can innovate, we can try new things, we can connect with audiences in different ways. I hate to say it, but corporate media seems to be part of the problem. The sane washing that people are seeing after Trump loses his mind on stage, and then they cut to CNN and they go, a very spirited Donald Trump. Spirited. It was demented. You've got to call it what it is. The sane washing isn't working. Now, what does that mean for progressive independent media? It depends if and when and to what degree the Trump administration sets its sights on us. And we talked about that last week and that could potentially get very ugly. So the best thing to do, just support the shows you like. It doesn't have to be this one. I know I'm not everybody's favorite. You know, the mustache last week was a problem for some people. And then one day I had a shawl collar and that really threw some people off. And I still get emails. David, your eyes are too close together. They're too far apart. It's a real, real problem. It doesn't have to be this show. If it's another one, support a different show. Make sure you're subscribed on YouTube to the shows that you like, if they have a membership program, understand that if you have cable, you're funding Fox News. Okay? We do have to fund the alternatives if we want them to succeed. If we do those things and we're ready for the potential legal onslaughts, I think we're going to be in very good shape. We have a fantastic bonus show for you today. Every federal employee got an email from Doge saying, tell us the five things you've been working on recently. And it seems as though this is a pretext to fire and lay off even more people. We will discuss it. Pope Francis is in critical condition with early kidney failure. And now we have yet another one of these potential inflection points as far as the Catholic Church is concerned. And the Associated Press is now suing three Trump administration officials, citing freedom of speech. We will talk about what the lawsuits are over and so much more. All of it on today's bonus show. How do you get the bonus show? The bonus show where you want to make money.

[Donald Trump]

Everybody else that makes money to fund themselves is bad.

[David Pakman]

Get the bonus show. Every time someone signs up, Alex Jones sheds a tear. He hates the bonus show. You sign up@join pacman.com it's that simple. Producer Pat will join me. Everybody's going to join me. And we will discuss. And remember, we are heading towards the 3 million YouTube subscribers. Hit that subscribe button. And we will very soon, very quickly, I predict we will very soon hit that 3 million number. See you on the bonus show. See you back here tomorrow.