Trump is running away from his high gas prices

Summary

The David Pakman Show: Trump Is Running Away from His High Gas Prices

Guest Host: Brittany Page
Date: April 7, 2026

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Episode Overview

Guest-hosted by Brittany Page, this episode delves into President Donald Trump’s erratic public behavior, his administration’s war in Iran, its impacts on everyday Americans (rising gas prices, food costs), and growing unrest among Trump’s own supporters. Brittany criticizes not only the President’s rhetoric and policy but the silence of Republican leaders and the complicity of right-wing media. The episode features extensive commentary, selected Trump remarks, media coverage, reactions from Trump supporters (including military veterans), and statements from both Republicans and Democrats increasingly critical of Trump.

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1. Trump’s Easter “Proof of Life” Appearance & Iran Rhetoric

[00:09–04:31]

• Brittany opens by discussing online rumors about Trump’s health, dispelled by a bizarre public appearance at the White House Easter Egg Roll, where Trump quickly shifted from celebrating Easter to threatening Iran:

  “If you had to guess, how long did it take for Donald Trump to go from introducing the event and talking about celebrating Jesus to revisiting his threats to annihilate Iran? … If you guessed about 60 seconds, you would be correct.” – Brittany Page ([00:21])

Key Trump Quotes:

• “Our country is doing so well, like it has never done before. … Things that we’ve done have not been done before. … Normally when you’re in very hostile territory … and I don’t think it gets much more hostile than Iran, … In fact, right now, they’re not too strong at all...” ([01:27])
• “One year ago, a little bit more. A country was dead. … Today, we have the hottest country anywhere...” ([03:37])

Page’s Commentary:

• Brittany critiques Trump’s dissonant tone and ominous messaging at a family event (“…the Easter Bunny has the perfect face for... horror reflected back to me in the bunny’s eyes...”). She highlights Melania’s discomfort and Trump’s habit of touting imminent positive change—implicitly acknowledging that things are, in fact, not going well.

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2. Trump’s Escalating War Rhetoric and War Crimes Admission

[05:11–12:40]

Trump’s Comments (on Iran, war, and oil):

• Trump reminisces about bombing Iran and claims he’d like to “take the oil, keep the oil, and we’d make plenty of money.” ([05:11])
• On targeting infrastructure: “They’ll have no bridges, they’ll have no power plants...I won’t go further because there are other things that are worse than those two…” ([05:11])
• “If I had my choice, what would I like to do? Take the oil. Because it’s there for the taking.” ([05:11])

Denial of War Crimes:

• Trump openly dehumanizes Iranians: “It’s not a war crime because they’re animals.” ([08:12])

Page’s Rebuke:

• Brittany contextualizes Trump’s dehumanizing language and the normalization of his threats:

  “It is more important than ever for those in positions of power to say it loud and say it continuously: Remove this man from office.” ([09:09])

• She underscores the contradiction in Trump’s rhetoric: claims of protecting Iranians vs. threatening to “take out the country… probably tomorrow night.” ([10:00])

On “Bombs for Freedom”:

• Trump insists Iranians are begging for bombs:

  “Please keep bombing. … These are people living where the bombs are exploding...” ([11:05])

• Brittany: “This is truly sick stuff. Next he’ll be telling us Iranians are begging him to take the oil and keep the oil and that they really want him to be successful in life...” ([11:35])

On the Unraveling Messaging:

• When pressed on the war’s goals, Trump responds:

  “I can’t tell you. I don’t know. I can’t tell. It depends what they do. This is a critical period.” ([12:29])

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3. Loyalists’ Praise and Contradictions

[13:21–15:50]

• Pete Hegseth lavishes Trump with praise for “courageous leadership”—despite the chaos:

  “None of this would have been possible without the courageous leadership and ironclad determination of President Donald J. Trump… authorized immediately, without hesitation, audaciously.” ([13:21]) “Tomorrow, even more than today. And then Iran has a choice. Choose wisely because this President does not play around.” ([14:58])

• Brittany skewers Hegseth as a sycophant:

  “All I heard is: I’m a good boy, please don’t fire me. I’m loyal, please keep me in my position of power...” ([14:05])

• She further exposes the hypocrisy of Trump’s allies on women’s freedoms and social policy.

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4. Rising Gas Prices and Economic Discontent Among Trump Supporters

[19:43–24:21]

• Brittany pivots to domestic fallout: gas prices, groceries, and fertilizer costs surging amid Trump’s war in Iran.
• Clips of Trump’s campaign rhetoric promising “low inflation and affordable groceries” ([20:36]) are contrasted with the crushing reality.

Key Quotes:

• Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rawlins:

  “About 20 to 25% of our farmers...didn’t lock [fertilizer prices] in. We are working...to ensure we can get them what they need and it won't bankrupt them.” ([21:42])

• Pete Hegseth (on Today):

  “Average gallon of gas now $4.12, the highest in four years...crude oil now surpassing 110 bucks a barrel as the critical strait of Hormuz remains closed.” ([24:03])

• Brittany: “It’s just kind of outrageous how much it’s jumped recently...he doesn’t care...” ([24:21])

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5. Trump Voter Backlash – Veterans Speak Out

[27:15–29:38]

• Brittany features reactions from Trump-supporting Air Force veterans.

Notable Exchanges:

• Q: “Did you get any light on [the war’s goal]?”
  A: “No. No, I did not.” ([27:49])

• On targeting civilian infrastructure:

  “I’m totally against it. It’s not a—it's a war crime...how do you win a war by destroying the country?...Let’s hope they negotiate and this never happens.” ([28:59])

• On Hegseth’s praise for Trump:

  “He’s a cheerleader.” ([29:37])

• Brittany: “A Trump supporter is saying Trump is threatening war crimes.” ([29:38])

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6. Trump’s Contempt for Veterans & Vanity Projects

[30:55–32:24]

• When confronted about a veterans’ lawsuit against his planned “Independence Arch” in D.C., Trump brusquely replies:

  “You gotta be kidding me.” ([31:00])

• Brittany notes: “No interest in the veterans’ concerns—just personal grandiosity.”

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7. Media Narratives & Cracks in the MAGA Base

[33:33–39:38]

• Brittany mocks the recurring “big strong men with tears in their eyes” trope and recounts Ainsley Earhart’s claim that “everyone” praised Trump at Easter Sunday lunch ([35:58]).

• Jessica Tarlov (Fox News) pushes back on the assumption that all Trump voters support the war:

  "...if they hear about bridges and...power plants...they’re gonna think that that sounds a little bit like escalation, which doesn’t necessarily make them soft or liberals...It is different..." ([38:03])

• Brittany: “This has the potential to break the spell for some of them. ...Many people are voting on vibes...someone who can’t afford to drive Uber now because of the gas prices because of the war in Iran...sometimes this is all it takes really to make someone vote for another party.” ([39:38])

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8. Immigration Injustice & Children Detained by ICE

[43:09–46:56]

• Brittany features the traumatized family of Liam Ramos, a child detained by ICE:

  “What are you scared about most?”
  “Immigration.” “ICE.” ([44:05])

• Brittany draws on new Marshall Project numbers:

  “ICE has detained over 6,200 children during President Donald Trump’s second term...Families...in harmful conditions including poor medical care, inadequate access to education and inedible food...” ([44:09]) “A 13 year old...put into isolation after attempting suicide.”
  “This is part of why we can’t let these stories get buried while Trump spreads his chaos and terror.” ([46:09])

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9. Democratic Messaging & the Call for Accountability

[47:18–51:39]

• Brittany spotlights Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO), an Iraq War vet, who forcefully articulates the madness of endless war:

  “We have spent over 20 years, 5 to 8 trillion dollars, 7,000 American lives in what is now an endless cycle of conflict in the Middle East. And Americans are over it.” ([48:55]) “The President and administration failed to show an imminent threat...Americans can't afford groceries. We have to end this cycle.”

• Crow also warns:

  “I am gravely concerned by this president’s comments about bombing electrical infrastructure...that would be, on its face, a violation of the laws of war and would be a war crime.” ([50:31]) “We must always stand by the rule of law and the Constitution.” ([51:39])

• Brittany stresses that accountability and bold Democratic messaging are essential—and criticizes the lack of Republican bravery.

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10. Chris Christie’s Scathing Indictment of GOP Cowardice

[54:25–64:19]

• Chris Christie lambasts his party’s “lack of principles” and Lindsey Graham as “a vapid, vacant human being” who is “disgusting” in his sycophancy toward Trump ([55:40], [57:52]).

• Christie exposes Trump’s obsession with power:

  “If you say something enough times, whether it’s true or not, it becomes true. That’s what he thinks about the 2020 election. That’s the principle he lives on.” ([62:52])

• Brittany: “We need to hear these behind-the-scenes stories...We need Republicans who are close to Trump, who have been close to Trump. To be honest, I just wish it was a Republican with more to lose, with more current power...” ([64:19])

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Notable Quotes & Segments with Timestamps

• Trump on Iran:
  “In fact, right now, they’re not too strong at all, in my opinion. But we’re soon going to find out, aren’t we?” — Trump ([01:27])

• Trump on War Crimes:
  “It’s not a war crime because they’re animals.” — Trump ([08:12])

• On Economic Fallout:
  “Average gallon of gas now $4.12...” — Pete Hegseth ([24:03])

• Veteran Backlash:
  “How do you win a war by destroying the country? ... Let's hope they negotiate and this never happens.” — Trump supporter, Air Force vet ([28:59])

• Rep. Jason Crow:
  “Americans are over this perpetual state of conflict when they can’t afford rent, they can’t afford their mortgage, they can’t afford groceries. We have to end this cycle.” ([48:55])

• Chris Christie on GOP Cowardice:
  “They only do what he tells them to do...They care more about the title than they do about doing the job.” ([54:25])

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Conclusion & Tone

Brittany Page’s guest-hosted episode is sharply analytical, often caustic, and aimed at laying bare both the dangers and absurdities of Trump’s conduct and messaging. She weaves together policy, media analysis, and personal testimony to argue that Trump is failing not only as a president but as a leader—and that cracks are emerging within his base and among supporting veterans. She calls for more courage among Democrats and Republicans alike, reminding listeners that accountability, protection for vulnerable people, and honest communication are paramount for American democracy.

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For Listeners:

This episode offers a comprehensive, critical look at the latest chaos in Trump’s presidency, focusing on war, economics, and shifting political loyalties, and is especially useful for those concerned about both policy consequences and the state of political discourse in 2026.

Transcript

[Brittany Page]

How many discounts does USAA Auto Insurance offer? Too many to say here. Multi vehicle discount, Safe driver discount.

[Pete Hegseth]

New vehicle discount, Storage discount.

[Brittany Page]

How many discounts will you stack up? Tap the banner or visit usaa.com autodiscounts restrictions apply. Welcome to the David Pakman Show. My name is Brittany Page, and I host the Paige Perspective right here on YouTube. But today, I am the guest host for David while he is away. And we have to start with Donald Trump's proof of life. We talked yesterday about the rumors circulating online that Trump was in the hospital. Those turned out to be false. And he made a public appearance at the White House Easter Egg Roll event to prove that he is alive. He's walking, he's talking, bruised and bloated, hands and all. And at this event, he spoke incoherently for a period of time with Melania on one side and the Easter Bunny on the other. And I wonder, if you had to guess, how long did it take for Donald Trump to go from introducing the event and talking about celebrating Jesus to revisiting his threats to annihilate Iran? How long from this is a holiday celebration to we should do a World War 3? You guys, what do you think? Well, if you guessed about 60 seconds, you. You would be correct.

[Donald Trump]

So today is a very special day. It's a day where we celebrate Jesus. It's a day where we celebrate religion, and it's an honor to be the President of the United States. Our country is doing so well, like it has never done before. You'll see that very shortly. And things that we've done have not been done before. We've broken every record on the stock market. We've broken every record in our military, every. And what about the rescue that took place yesterday? What about that? That's something that you rarely see. You know, they were giving me a briefing about that, and they said, normally when you're in very hostile territory, and I don't think it gets much more hostile than Iran, they're capable fighters. They're very tough people. And there are others like that. You don't mind when the enemy is weak, but that enemy is strong. Not so strong like they were about a month ago, I can tell you. In fact, right now, they're not too strong at all, in my opinion. But we're soon going to find out, aren't we?

[Brittany Page]

I have to say, I think the Easter Bunny has the perfect face for. We'll find out shortly whether Iran still has capable fighters, whether they are strong enough to fight the. The big Eyes. I don't know. Maybe I'm just seeing the horror that I feel reflected back to me in the bunny's eyes. It's possible. So many things about this video, so many elephant elements competing for our attention. The unwell President Melania working as hard as possible to maintain a neutral face while her husband veers off into territory that doesn't fit so well with a children's event at the White House. And, of course, the bunny with. With Donald Trump, it's always, you'll see how well things are going very shortly. Of course, implicit in that is that things are not at all going well. We already know that. We can feel that. But Donald Trump doubled down in his joyous message for the kids when he said that our country was dead, a dead country, before he stepped in to. I guess the way I would characterize it is ruin all of our lives.

[Donald Trump]

One year ago, a little bit more. A country was dead. We had a dead country. We had an administration that didn't know what the hell they were doing. Today, we have the hottest country anywhere in the world. We're respected by everybody, and that's the way we're going to keep it. That's the way we're going to keep it. So, again, I want to thank all of the associations and the egg farmers and all of the people that are here. We think we could have 50,000 people coming all day long. It's open, and they expect between 30 and 50,000 people. So that's great. And most importantly, I want to just say, happy Easter and God bless America. We have the greatest country on earth. God bless you all. You are very, very special people. Thank you, everybody. Have a good time.

[Brittany Page]

God, I would love to know what that Easter Bunny is thinking when he really hit the dead there. Our country is dead. Maybe it's Stephen Miller in there and he's thrilled by how the speech is going, really hitting all the notes for Steven. So then Trump walks down the stairs, off the balcony, and he starts taking questions from reporters. And this is when things start to get really dark. And these clips are particularly jarring because while Donald Trump is casually threatening to commit war crimes, we hear the dulcet tones in the background. We hear some smooth jazz as the soundtrack to accompany Trump floating his fantasy horrors.

[Donald Trump]

We killed solemnity without solemnity. If they had Solomon, it would be a whole different thing. Maybe would still be winning, but it would have been harder because we are obliterating that country. And I hate to do it, but we're obliterating. And they just don't want to say uncle. They don't want to cry, as the expression goes, uncle. But they will. And if they don't, then they'll have no bridges, they'll have no power plants, they'll have no anything. I want to. I won't go further because there are other things that are worse than those two. And we might have. Well, the thing. If I had my choice, what would I like to do? Take the oil. Because it's there for the taking. There's not a thing they can do about it, unfortunately. The American people would like to see us come home. If it were up to me, I'd take the oil, I'd keep the oil, and we'd make plenty of money. And I'd also take care of the people of Iran much better than they've been taken care of. It's been a horrible. They've killed 45,000 people as of a month and a half ago. 45,000 protesters. We don't do that.

[Brittany Page]

Wait, wait, wait, wait. Several things. So he says he's going to help the people of Iran like they've never been helped before. They just seconds after saying he's prepared to annihilate Iran. No bridges, he says, no power plants, he says no anything. And he even stops himself saying there are other things that he could take out that are worse than that. Which begs the question, especially with new AP reporting I saw today about Israel now targeting hospitals in Lebanon like they did in Gaza, claiming again that Hezbollah is using hospitals and ambulances for military purposes, just like they said about Hamas in Gaza. Is Trump floating, taking a similar action here, targeting hospitals? He's already carelessly overseen the bombing of a girls school. What else is he floating here? What is worse than decimating the power structure and bombing all of the bridges? He also cites the number of protesters that Iran has killed, which is horrible and true. Tens of thousands of protesters dead. But Trump says we don't do that. And as someone who was in Minneapolis in the days after Renee Nicole Good was murdered by ICE protesting in front of Whipple, choking on pepper gas. It is particularly striking to hear this lie from Trump's mouth. I was there in Minneapolis. I saw how ICE behaved. Ice, cbp. They shot Alex Preddy in the back on the ground. We don't kill protesters here. These are lies. But these reporters were out there doing their jobs. As Trump was stumbling around the White House event, one reporter stopped him and specifically asked, how is targeting civilians not a war crime? As he continues to float, hitting more civilians?

[Jason Crow]

Mr. President, how would it not be

[Brittany Page]

a war crime to strike Iran's bridges

[Donald Trump]

and power plants because they killed 45,000 people in the last month? More than that could be as much as 60. They killed protesters. They're animals.

[Brittany Page]

It's not a war crime because they're animals. He says at an event celebrating Jesus, the figure called the Prince of Peace. Remember, just a few minutes ago, you heard him say that he wanted to protect Iranians. More lies. And I know there is this tendency because we are no longer surprised by how low this man goes, the depths of his depravity. But we can't let go of how jarring it is to hear the President of the United States States speak with such dehumanizing language about human beings as he becomes more unhinged, puts more people at risk here, here at home and abroad. It's more important than ever for those in positions of power to say it loud and say it continuously. Remove this man from office. Donald Trump was so threatened by rumors spreading online that he was dead and his White House was covering it. False rumors, of course, that he is doubling down on his appearances and spending as much time as possible in front of the cameras and in front of a microphone. And even though that extended period of time means that we get a closer glimpse of how unwell this man is, it's important to witness just how unwell he is and just how complicit every single person in his administration is in propping this fascist up with every word of praise, every pledge of fealty. Let's start with his press conference about his war in Iran. And let's start with how Trump casually floats taking out Iran in one night.

[Donald Trump]

The entire country can be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night.

[Brittany Page]

I mean, truly a villain. Does he think that he sounds tough? Does he think that he sounds like a strategic player? That he sounds like he has the upper hand simply because he threatens to eliminate a country in a single night? The same country he keeps claiming, by the way, is filled with Iranians that he wants to protect. In one breath, he says this is about protecting Iranians, and then the next, he says he is taking out the country, probably tomorrow night, speaking so flippantly that he could be talking about making a dinner reservation. This man is unwell. He later even said during this press conference that Iranians who live where bombs are being dropped are saying, please keep the bombs coming.

[Donald Trump]

Yes, please.

[Brittany Page]

Thank you, Mr. President. You said Iranians would be mad if you stopped these attacks, but why would they want you to blow up their infrastructure to cut off their power. Wouldn't that be punishing Iranians for the actions of the regime?

[Donald Trump]

They would be willing to. They would be. And it's suffering. They would be willing to suffer that in order to have freedom. The Iranians have. We've had numerous intercepts. Please keep bombing bombs that are dropping near their homes. Please keep bombing. Do it. And these are people that are living where the bombs are exploding. And when we leave and we're not hitting those areas, they're saying, please come back, come back, come back. These are the people.

[Brittany Page]

I mean, this is truly sick stuff. Next he's going to be telling us that Iranians are begging him to take the oil and keep the oil and that they really want him to be successful in life. I mean, what are we doing here? Oftentimes when I watch these press conferences these days, I can't help but notice how many Trump supporters from right wing media outlets that they've put in that room, the number of softballs that get put up for Caroline Levitt. But occasionally we get the people who still know they have a job to do and do it well. And in this room, Trump was pressed again on his vacillating between how the war is ending soon to we're bombing them and ending their country. Our messaging on the war has moved from the war is coming to an end to war going to be bombing Iran to the Stone Ages. And we've heard a range of those kind of messages.

[Jessica Tarlov]

So are you.

[Brittany Page]

So which is it? Are you winding this down? Are you asking?

[Donald Trump]

I can't tell you. I don't know. I can't tell. It depends what they do. This is a critical period. They have a period of, well, till tomorrow at 8 o'. Clock.

[Brittany Page]

So he doesn't know. It depends on what they do because we don't need the straight open, but also he needs it open immediately. And they're tough negotiators, but also they're weak. And he's winding down the war, but we're also escalating it. And he's doing this to protect the Iranian people, but also he wants the oil and wants to eliminate the country. This is the master dealmaker in action, you guys. Now, of course, press conferences about the war in Iran would not be complete without Pete Hegseth offering lengthy praise for Donald Trump. Because after everything you've just seen, naturally, it's what he deserves, right?

[Pete Hegseth]

But make no mistake about it, none of this would have been possible without the courageous leadership and ironclad determination of President Donald J. Trump. From the moment our airmen went down, President Trump made it clear, we will leave no one behind. The first mission, the first of two, was an audacious daylight thunder run right up the middle. It was authorized in less than two hours from that pilot going down when we knew where he was. And it was authorized in the middle of the night because anybody that's worked for this man knows he's up in the middle of the night. Authorized immediately, without hesitation, audaciously.

[Brittany Page]

In other words, all I heard is, I'm a good boy. Please don't fire me. I'm loyal. Please keep me in my position of power while my broker shops around for defense funds for investments. Allegedly right, per reporting from the Financial Times, which he denies, of course. But this whole thing, it's the cruelty, first and foremost, the lack of regard for human beings, and it's also the ignorance, the insecurity, the incompetence, the embarrassment. This is all so dangerous. He's going to continue to threaten war crimes while Republicans maintain their silence while his Cabinet members praise his words and actions and people around the world and in this country suffer. And Pete, well, he's going to proclaim that God is good, right after threatening more war crimes.

[Pete Hegseth]

And that continues today. By the way, per the president's direction, today will be the largest volume of strikes since day one of this operation. Tomorrow, even more than today. And then Iran has a choice. Choose wisely, because this president does not play around. You can ask Soleimani, you can ask Maduro, you can ask Khamenei. To those heroes who planned and executed these rescues, your nation stands in awe. I stand in awe. The chairman stands in awe. We all stand in awe of your professionalism and bravery. We serve for you. You embody the very best of America. To the rescued airmen and their families, welcome home. Your courage and endurance. The quiet declaration of faith amid the storm inspires us all. All God is good.

[Brittany Page]

Every day, God is good, he says. These people are truly sick. The same man who lied about bombing an Iranian girls school, who stood beside Trump silently as Trump lied and tried to blame Iran. I love, by the way, one of the themes of this press conference was Trump attacking Iran for not allowing full freedom for women while standing next to Pete Hegsev. I mean, Pete goes to a church where his pastor is Douglas Wilson, a man who does not believe that women should have the right to vote. He opened a branch of his church in Washington, D.C. to be closer to the halls of power, to agitate for this change, to agitate for policy changes that will take women backward. He's part of this growing white Christian nationalist movement that wants to restrict rights for women. So nice try acting like you care about that. You're surrounded by Christian politics, fundamentalists. They don't like freedom. Okay, now there is so much more that I could say about this press conference, but you get it how things will look Tuesday evening at 8pm Eastern Time. The the deadline that Trump has given to Iran. That is the big question we're all facing now.

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[Brittany Page]

Welcome back to the David Pakman Show. David is out. I'm guest hosting. My name is Brittney Page from the page perspective right here on YouTube. If you've enjoyed my guest hosting yesterday and today, I would love to have you subscribe to my channel, which is a small independent channel. You can do that by searching my name or clicking the link in the description below. Now we've started to see an increase in the number of Trump supporters giving interviews, talking about the high gas prices, their frustration with Trump's lack of action on lowering prices, the stated reason that many of them claim as their primary reason for voting for him. And if you remember, this was part of the pitch. I mean, here is J.D. vance, a little flashback back here for you back in 2024, making the case for why Donald Trump should be the guy people vote for. If you want to get back to

[Chris Christie]

low inflation and affordable groceries, vote for Donald Trump.

[Brittany Page]

If you want to return the world

[Chris Christie]

to peace and stability, vote for Donald Trump.

[Brittany Page]

That's my pitch to voters. I really do believe that we can have a golden age of prosperity in

[Chris Christie]

the United States of America, but voters are going to ultimately make that choice.

[Brittany Page]

Oh, boy. Peace and stability in the world, affordable groceries. JD you have got some explaining to do. And generally, you know, most of these cabinet officials lie. They just go on Fox News, they just lie. They say prices are down, Trump is winning, everything's great. We had a rare moment of honesty from the secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rawlins, who said the administration is taking action to prevent farmers from going bankrupt after Trump's war in Iran has sent fertilizer prices surging just before planting season begins. Madam Secretary, can you just tell us how concerned the administration is that fertilizer prices are increasing right now as we're going into planting season? And would the administration consider another package for farmers?

[Brooke Rawlins]

Well, everything is on the table right now. Clearly, this, I think we're 36 days for the conflict has elevated the issue of fertilizer and how important it is for American farmers and frankly, for our food supply. Food security is national security. Now, the good news is that about 80% of our farmers actually last fall locked in their fertilizers. So as we're moving into planting season, it's only about 20 to 25% of our farmers that didn't lock that in. We are working directly to ensure that we can get them what they need and it won't bankrupt them. The president waived the Jones Act. We opened up a line, I believe, in Venezuela. We have more announcements coming soon. The short term is really important. That, that sort, that kind of 20% of farmers that were keeping the fertilizer prices in the realm of the possible for them, especially in a tough farm economy.

[Brittany Page]

Now, even though that was a rare moment of somewhat honesty, she's still trying to paint a rosy picture, saying, you know, it's only 20 to 25% of farmers who are at risk of bankruptcy. I'm sure the 20 to 25% of farmers are thrilled to hear that. Brooke had another moment where she tried to say, listen, this isn't all due to Trump's war on Iran. It's also, I mean, it's also Biden.

[Donald Trump]

What are you doing to make sure

[Brittany Page]

farmers can get what they need without breaking the bank?

[Brooke Rawlins]

Well, it's great to be on with you, and thanks so much for having me. So we are acutely aware and very, very, very focused on the cost of inputs. And it isn't just in the last 30 days since the conflict began, but really since we inherited a year and a half ago, the increase in inputs from the Biden administration was between 30 and 40%, all in fertilizer, fuel, labor, et cetera. So, so we've been really focused on that. The good news is a lot of that has already come down.

[Brittany Page]

Now, I don't think this is going to work, in part because of the number of videos we've seen of Trump voters describing their struggles publicly to the press, publicly expressing regret over their vote. It's also because the pain is just difficult to ignore. Groceries are expensive, gas is expensive. And the media is actually taking the time to ensure that these issues get coverage. Like we saw this morning on Today.

[Pete Hegseth]

With the ongoing war in Iran this morning, Americans are facing the ripple effects of rising fuel costs. The average gallon of gas now $4.12, the highest in four years, and crude oil now surpassing 110 bucks a barrel as the critical strait of Hormuz remains closed.

[Brittany Page]

It's just kind of outrageous how much it's jumped recently, and it just seems to be going up every other day. Now, this administration knows this is a problem. It's why they keep lying or trying to blame the Biden administration, because as you just heard from J.D. vance, this is what they ran on. Does the president care? Does Donald Trump care? Well, here's how he responded when a reporter asked about gas prices as his recent press conference ended. Rising gas prices for Americans who are concerned. General K. He doesn't care of Course we know this, but many people were fooled into believing that he did care. And some of those people, thankfully, are starting to realize the truth. Only apparently after personal tragedy has allowed them to find their compassion and empathy. And you always hope that it's the other way around, right? That people could find their empathy before their tragedy, put themselves in other people's shoes and imagine the plight of others before personally experiencing hardship and having that hardship be the thing that then opens your eyes. I'd be curious to know in David's audience here how many people are personally connected to people who voted for Trump and whether you know anyone who has changed their minds or is starting to understand the truth. I'd be curious. You let me know in the comments or you can go over to my channel and leave a comment there. Now we know Trump's war in Iran started with deep unpopularity. Pew Research center recently surveyed U.S. adults and found about 6 in 10 disapprove of Trump's handling of his war in Iran, with 59% saying the use of force in Iran was wrong. And 3 in 10Americans expect the war to go on for more than a year. And remember, Trump ran on no more forever wars, no more regime change wars. And then he got into office and immediately started taking out leaders and threatening various countries and going to war and committing war crimes. So what are his supporters, what are his voters saying about this issue specifically? We know, we just talked about it, that they're angry about prices. But what about Trump's war in Iran specifically? Well, a reporter with msnow was stationed in South Miami, Florida, to speak with veterans who voted for Trump. And in some cases, these people voted for Trump three times. This reporter wanted to see how they responded to Trump's press conference threatening to blow the entire country of Iran up if they fail to meet his deadline Tuesday night and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. And we're going to hear from two different Trump voters here. First, let's hear from that three time Trump voter. An Air Force veteran, you're an Air

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

Force vet, you told me you voted for President Trump three times.

[Chris Christie]

I did.

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

What do you make of the press conference that we just watched and the details that we learned about this rescue mission?

[Chris Christie]

I really didn't learn a whole lot

[Brittany Page]

more than I already knew.

[Chris Christie]

They threw out some numbers which I didn't know about, but other than real

[Donald Trump]

details as to how this came about,

[Chris Christie]

I didn't really learn a whole lot.

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

And you told me that if you were a reporter in that press conference, you would want to know what the goal of this war is. Did you get any light on that question?

[Chris Christie]

No. No, I did not.

[Brittany Page]

Again, three time Trump voter there and he seems not impressed. He says he didn't learn anything. He didn't hear any details about the goal of the war. What the point is with all of this now, this Trump voter articulating that Trump didn't describe a goal and that he learned nothing new doesn't necessarily convey that he won't vote for him again. Unless I explicitly hear that phrase from a Trump voter, I'm not immediately jumping to that. But you can tell that this man isn't pleased. And he's not the only one. The reporter here spoke to another Trump voter who also watched the press conference, to Rick Shemeck.

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

Rick is an Air Force vet as well. He's also the commander here. Rick, we heard President Trump being asked about blowing up civilian infrastructure, the bridges and the power plants, and he argued that's not a war crime. I mean, what do you make of President Trump's rhetoric on that issue? Do you think that is the way the commander in chief should be conducting himself in this war?

[Chris Christie]

I'm totally against it. It's not an, it's not a, it's a war crime. I mean, how do you win a war by destroying the country? It's just, he even said it, it would take years to rebuild the infrastructure that he wants to blow up tomorrow. So let's hope they negotiate and this never happens.

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

And Rick, I also heard when Secretary Hegseth was praising President Donald Trump about this rescue mission, saying that this rescue mission couldn't have been done without him,

[Chris Christie]

I heard you grumble.

[Trump Supporter Veteran 1]

Here we go again. What do you make of Secretary Hagseth and his leadership right now?

[Chris Christie]

It's the same as before.

[Brittany Page]

He's a cheerleader, totally against destroying Iran. He says, he says Trump is threatening war crimes. A Trump supporter is saying Trump is threatening war crimes. And how about that message for Pete at the end? He's a cheerleader. I'm sure Pete loves to hear that while he's spending his days filming himself unsuccessfully doing pull ups or other types of weightlifting, trying to reassure us that he is in fact a real man. While others, including this Trump voter, recognize that he is simply a sycophant. What's wild is the veterans who voted for Trump in the first place. Really, after all the suckers and the losers talk and the he likes people who weren't captured. But Trump showed a new contempt for veterans today when he was asked for a comment regarding a lawsuit that has been filed by Vietnam veterans to prevent more of his remodeling and beautification, quote unquote, of D.C. particularly what he's calling his Independence Arch, a 250 foot structure that he's proposing for Memorial Circle. Watch how he responds here. Significant legal challenge to your arch. Do you think that you can get that built or at least start building it before you. It's a group of veterans, sir.

[Donald Trump]

Group of veterans.

[Brittany Page]

Because it obstructs the viewshed between Arlington National Cemetery and.

[Donald Trump]

You gotta be careful.

[Brittany Page]

I mean, so many legal challenges. Who has the time to keep track, right? He says, you've got to be kidding me. Instead of, oh, really? Veterans, a group of people that I respect so much. So tell me, what is their issue? I'd love to hear. I'd love to hear them out and make sure I'm doing the right thing. By the veterans? No, of course not. There are a few reasons for this lawsuit, by the way. I want to read briefly from NPR on this quote. The plaintiffs, represented by Public Citizen Litigation Group, called the proposed plan a vanity project that would disrupt one of Washington's most symbolically charged sight lines between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House, a view designed to evoke national unity after the Civil War. The arch could also pose a hazard to air travel at nearby Reagan National Airport, the plaintiffs argue. At 250ft, the proposed arch would stand more than twice the height of the Lincoln Memorial and sit directly on the ceremonial axis that anchors the Capitol's monumental core. So things to consider, but not for Trump. Especially that part about national unity after the Civil War. We know that Trump won't go for that. As Trump continues to display just how out of depth he is in his war in Iran, I think we'll start to see more people, veteran or not, rethinking their support for this man.

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[Brittany Page]

back to the David Pakman Show. As you can see, I am not David Pakman. My name is Brittany Page and I am lucky enough to return as guest host today. If you have enjoyed my run as guest host so far, I would love for you to join me over on my own YouTube channel where I host the Page Perspective. You can find me by searching my name or checking out the description below with all of the links to my socials. So so I know David's audience is here for David, but I appreciate the warm welcome that I've received from so many of you and truly appreciate his very active and engaged audience. We need people who care to survive this to protect our democracy. So thank you for being here. I know it's become a running joke on the David Pakman show to talk about big strong men and tears in the eyes Given the number of times that Donald Trump has described hot strong men apparently coming up to him with tears in their eyes to thank him for something or tell him how good he is or how smart he is, the big strong men are conjured from his imagination to soothe the gaping hole left behind without anyone to give Trump praise and affection. At least that's what I assume. That's what I assume to be true. Whether it is politicians like Trump claiming that men are coming up to him, thanking him for his work all the time, or conservative activists leaning into the I just left a hipster coffee shop meme. I think that one started when a conservative activist years ago claimed that he had just left a hipster coffee shop where liberals were like whispering to each other in praise of Donald Trump or something. These claims seem to be happening more frequently, and Fox News host Ainsley Earhart recently went the way of big strong men with tears and hipster coffee shops when she said on Fox and Friends that she and Sean Hannity, who is her romantic partner, were having lunch when suddenly a parade of people lined up to praise Fox News, to praise them, and to praise Trump for his spectacular war in Iran. The President of the United States working

[Chris Christie]

over the weekend while people were attacking him online saying, where is the President? He was working while people were going

[Brittany Page]

after our Secretary of War.

[Chris Christie]

He was working, making sure that we had a contingency plan. Ainsley, if something was to go wrong,

[Ainsley Earhart]

well, and yesterday at Easter services, this is what people were talking about. And we went to lunch as a family afterwards, and everyone at the restaurant was coming up to Sean and to me saying thank you to Fox News for all the support on Iran. We had one guy who was an Assyrian, who is a Christian that left Iran and said, please tell Donald Trump to keep going, keep fighting. We are all so proud of our military. The special ops, the forces, the men and women that went down, that surrounded that area, the crevices, the caves. They found our man. And Dakota Meyer over the weekend, Medal of Honor recipient, he said it best and reminded all of us how loyal our military is to their brothers. They don't leave anybody behind.

[Brittany Page]

You know, I just noticed that not only is she claiming everyone was coming up to her and Sean Hannity thanking them and to pass messages to Trump, seemingly because everyone knows how close the two of them are to Donald Trump, but she also said that on Easter services that they attended the church services that they attended. All anyone was talking about was the war in Iran, presumably how well it's going and how favorably everyone views the war and Trump's unhinged behavior. And this is, of course, hard to believe, not just because it's coming from Ainsley Earhart or because it is the classic tears in the eyes situation, but because we've covered the polling on this unpopular war. We've heard from three time Trump voting veterans who are not happy about the war in Iran. And we've also got other Fox News hosts who are attempting to represent the views of some Trump supporters who are angry because they voted for Trump, they say, under the assumption that he was against wars like this. So here is one of these hosts attempting to get her colleagues to see that there are some Trump voters who disapprove of Trump's war in Iran and that this isn't just a Democratic hoax. And for context, this clip is specifically about his unhinged post from Easter Sunday.

[Jessica Tarlov]

Comes to oil, right? Yes. I mean, with a very strongly worded way. I mean, if I posted something like that, I do feel like people at this table would hold an intervention like,

[Brittany Page]

I feel I'll come find you.

[Jessica Tarlov]

And I don't have a problem with the F word personally. Seeing so many people on the right say they're okay with the F word now opens up a lot of opportunities for me personally. So I actually love to see that. But I don't think it was just the F word that people were upset about. Some people think it doesn't sound like strength so much as escalation. Right. And Donald Trump did win the election from support from a lot of people who were non interventionists. So they were sick of these forever wars. They didn't want involvement in Iran. So if they hear about bridges and they hear about power plants, whether there's the F word there or not, then they're gonna think that that sounds a little bit like escalation, which doesn't necessarily make them soft or liberals. It is different, Kellyanne, from I think that there are people certainly who they are wrapped up in. They don't like Donald Trump. And it does can feel like they're rooting against the United States, which is wrong. But it does not apply to everyone. And I think that's an important part of this conversation to distinguish. It doesn't make you anything other than what you've always been, which is a non interventionist. If you are one of those people. People can believe any collection of things they want to believe. They can be liberal, they can be conservative, they can be independent like I am. They can and absolutely detest the Iranian regime and still be concerned when rhetoric starts sounding like escalation, when what you want to see is the opposite of that.

[Brittany Page]

And you imagine so because this wasn't Jessica Tarlov representing this view. She was treated very politely, as you may have noticed. But this is another potential point of fracture for Trump's base. You will always have that cult element that stays lockstep with Trump. Maybe they did claim before the war in Iran that they were non interventionists, but now they see what he's doing and because they are fully in the MAGA cult, they support it. They change their purported values and principles with Trump. He is the guiding value and principle for a certain number of these people. But for Trump voters, this has the potential to break the spell for some of them. Someone who can't afford to drive Uber now because of the gas prices because of the war in Iran. Sometimes this is all it takes really to make someone vote for another party. And I know that sounds strange, especially for David's very politically active and committed and educated audience, but it's true. Many people are voting on vibes going back and forth. And so it's important that this view is represented on Fox News. Maybe it gives some people who are thinking about stepping out and criticizing Trump on this issue the reassurance that they need to do it. And I always worry that I'm sounding too sympathetic. When I talk about some of these voters, I just want to say that I realize racism was not a deal breaker for any Trump voter. I realized that many of these people were eager and thrilled to hold mass deportation signs, that they cheered the boots on necks because it wasn't their neck that had a boot. And I am disgusted and horrified by it. I also want to figure out how to get out of this mess. And I hope some of these people do begin to abandon Trump and see a pathway forward and start to think about how to never let this happen again. As we've been going through the headlines today, we've spent a lot of time on Donald Trump's war in Iran, the suffering in America and backlash in response to higher prices from groceries to gas to fertilizer for farmers, and Trump voters and their disapproval of his handling of the war. And if you think back a few weeks ago, maybe before this war started, how many of the headlines were dominated by the atrocities committed by ice? I mean, ICE is still active, infiltrating our communities, kidnapping families and community members. And I think this is important to remember. I spoke briefly about my time in Minneapolis protesting in front of the Federal Whipple Building. I wrote about it in my substack, which I'll flash up there if you're interested in reading it. But one of the most memorable images that came out of Minneapolis was that of little Liam Ramos with his blue bunny hat. His parents are now giving their first in person interview to tell us more about how they're doing, how Liam is doing, and he's not doing great. He is traumatized by his experience of being separated from his family, being incarcerated. And the Trump administration is continuing to target this family, still trying to deport them. And while many of these stories have faded from the headlines, I think it's really important that we pay attention. So we're going to hear from Liam's parents in this clip, and then we'll talk about some new reporting on ICE's conduct across the country.

[Liam's Parents]

Do you believe ICE was using Liam as bait? See, yes, you do. ICE transferred Liam and his father to a family detention facility in Texas, accusing them of being in the US Illegally. The family from Ecuador says they entered the country legally at a port of entry in 2023. Under a Biden administration, You couldn't do anything. You were powerless. After two weeks, a federal judge ordered them release, but the government is still pushing for their deportation, recently terminating the family's asylum case and asking a court to allow ICE to detain them once again. Now Back home, Liam is seeing a psychologist and his parents say he seems to be a different boy. What are you scared about the most?

[Jason Crow]

Immigration.

[Liam's Parents]

Ice.

[Brittany Page]

It's just horrible to hear this from Liam and to know that Donald Trump is still going after this family. And you know, one thing I think about is how many Liams are in these concentration camps right now across the country. And we actually have new numbers on this from the Marshall Project. I'm going to read from their reporting. Quote, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has detained over 6,200 children during President Donald Trump's second term, according to recently released numbers analyzed by the Marshall Project. People under the age of 18 have often been held with their families in what detained families and their advocates have called harmful conditions, including poor medical care, inadequate access to education and inedible food. US Immigration authorities have long held children in detention, but to varying degrees across administrations. President Joe Biden ended family detention in 2021 and by the final year of his presidency, ICE was holding a daily average of 24 children in custody. But after Trump revived the policy last year, that number jumped tenfold to 226 children incarcerated on the average day since he came back in to office. Now what you heard in the news package there about Liam's trauma, the Marshall Project has important reporting specifically on the traumatic experiences that these children are subjected to in these camps. Quote, parents reported finding worms and mold in food and foul smelling water. In one court filing, a parent said babies are getting thin because they can only really eat pieces of bread. Families at Dilley, one of the facilities where children are being held, have raised more than 700 complaints over medical care with lawyers, according to court filings. In one instance, a baby received poor care before being sent to the hospital with dangerously low oxygen levels. Families have reported children in mental distress, a two year old who hit himself, potty trained, children who began wetting themselves, and a 13 year old who was put into isolation after attempting suicide. I mean, what do you even say about this? This is part of why we can't let these stories get buried while Trump spreads his chaos in terror. And it's the problem of having someone like him in office because he's doing so many horrific things that it's hard to keep up with it. But kids like Liam are counting on us to keep the pressure on and not tune it out. I would really, really love to hear from David's audience on this, so please be sure to leave your comments below.

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[Brittany Page]

pacman.com welcome back to the David Pakman Show. My name is Brittany Page and I have been your guest host for today. I really appreciate you joining me and as I prepare to wrap here approaching the end of the show today, I ask you to please join me and subscribe to my much smaller YouTube channel where I talk about many of these same issues. You can search my name or click the link in the description for my channel and social media links. We have been talking a lot about media framing ways to message things so that people understand the realities of what is happening right now and how those who are in positions of power can and should be using their voices to do the work of convincing the American people that what we are seeing from the Trump administration is wrong and dangerous. And I think it's important to give credit where credit is due when we see examples of elected officials doing things right. And this is particularly important, by the way, in calls that you may make to your elected officials. Do you like a vote that your senator made? Do you like something that your representative did? You should tell them. But don't be afraid to get on the line and tell them what you want from them or what they're doing to disappoint you either. Because if they are failing you, they need to hear that too. Now, one example of messaging done right is Representative Jason Crow, who recently made an appearance on Ms. Now, he's from Colorado and he's an Iraq War vet. And here he lays out the stakes of exactly what Americans are tired of when it comes to failed international intervention, war and chaos.

[Jason Crow]

Here is the bottom line. For me, the bottom line is we have spent over 20 years, five to $8 trillion, 7,000American lives in what is now an endless cycle of conflict in the Middle east. And Americans are over it. I'm over it. We have to find a way to extract ourselves from the cycle of endless conflict. Now, let's not be confused here. That doesn't mean that we don't keep ourselves safe, that we aren't strong and willing to use force when our adversaries threaten Americans or American interests. But that was not the case here, right? This president and the administration completely failed to show an imminent threat. In fact, they have actually come out recently in the last couple of weeks and admitted that there is no imminent threat that this was a long term play by the President and it's got to end, right? Americans are over this perpetual state of conflict when they can't afford rent, they can't afford their mortgage, they can't afford groceries. We have to end this cycle.

[Brittany Page]

This is the way. And this repetition with this point matters. Pairing the unpopular war with direct consequences on Americans lives and their ability to survive, pay their bills, put gas in their cars, bringing it back to the things Americans want to improve their lives, to improve material conditions, and directly tying Trump's failure to these struggles is important. But Jason Crow didn't stop there. He also criticized Trump's complete disregard for the law and the threats that he's made against Iran, which make everyone less safe.

[Jason Crow]

I am gravely concerned by this president's comments about bombing electrical infrastructure, desalinization plants. I mean, that would be, on its face, a violation of the laws of war and would be a war crime. He has continuously threatened, threatening to commit war crimes, whether it's shooting, you know, protesters in Lafayette Square, which would actually be a crime against US Federal law, sending troops to polling stations, which also would be a violation of US Federal law. He has said he's going to kill the families of terrorists, which would be a violation of the laws of war. And of course, now with Iran, this is a president that has shown a complete disdain for the rule of law, for the Constitution, for the laws of war. And we have to stand up with unbelievable voices, Republicans, Democrats, Americans of all stripes, and condemn what the President is saying and say we will not tolerate it and we will seek accountability if he moves forward with it. And at the same time, I stand by that video that we filmed last year in telling our service members they have an obligation to the rule of law into the Constitution and that must always be their North Star.

[Brittany Page]

So the only thing that I would have liked to hear more on is the accountability piece there. I think this could be really beneficial for generating support for Democrats. If Democrats were to come out and say Donald Trump will be held accountable and describe how this would be a winning message, that would make people excited. And I don't think I'm speaking for myself, you guys. You can tell me in the comments, but I think this is also a crucial piece of the messaging. One criticism that I've had for Democrats during this time is the weakness that we've seen. The kind of sitting back and throwing up their hands and waiting for the American public to get so sick of Trump that they turn on him without Democrats really needing to offer much but that's not going to work. And messages like these from Jason Crow are a great example. Messages that we heard yesterday from Ro Khanna, Wes Moore, great examples. We need more leadership here so that Republicans are dealt a very strong defeat come the midterms and beyond. We're still waiting, desperately waiting, for any Republican, any elected Republican to come forward and criticize Donald Trump. We've seen, you know, a few here and there, like Thomas Massie working with Ro Khanna on the Epstein files. But most of the time, Republicans wait until they're, you know, not running for another term to start the criticism or they wait until they're fully out of power to start the criticism. And I guess former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is in the latter camp because he is definitely out here doing the criticism and it's good and necessary and also makes you wonder, why is he doing it? He sees an opening with zero Republicans stepping forward to do the right thing on Trump right now. Remember, Chris Christie led the Trump transition team. He helped Trump prepare for his debates, including with Hillary Clinton, by actually role playing as Hillary Clinton during mock debates. So this is someone who helped elevate Trump to his position of power. So he sees the writing on the wall. And whether it's for politically expedient reasons, his own personal ambitions, or because he is genuinely morally outraged by what is happening, he's going after some big targets here, most notably Senator Lindsey Graham and Trump's son in law, Jared Kushner, who is currently doing any number of things in the government all related to self dealing and stuffing his pockets. But let's start with a broad criticism for the party, with Christie expressing disbelief that there is not even a single Republican right now willing to step forward and criticize Donald Trump, particularly related to his political post on Easter Sunday.

[Chris Christie]

Real lack of principles on display every day in the House of Representatives, in the United States Senate. These people have become lemmings. They only do what he tells them to do. And not only that, they don't even criticize him when he deserves to be criticized. He put out a post yesterday, which I'm sure many of you saw, and I was going to say exactly what he said. Said, you better open up the straight, you crazy bastards. Now look, I'm from New Jersey,

[Sponsor/Ad Narrator]

So

[Chris Christie]

you could tell that language flowed pretty easily for me. But come on, man. Like, this is Coach Amaker knows he coached at seat in the hall. He understands like, but come on, there's not one Republican, not one who I've seen the last 24 hours says, okay, Come on now, that's enough.

[Brittany Page]

He sounds like me during the show today. Yes. Where are they? But we're really waiting for the names. So let's start with Lindsey Graham, a man that Chris Christie calls vapid, vacant as a human being.

[Chris Christie]

Even something as simple as that, Mr. President, those words on Easter Sunday were ill advised. They can't even do that. They're scared to do that because here's why. And this is where the principals come in. They care more about the title than they do about doing the job. They have the best example of this right now in the 535 members of the United States Congress is Lindsey Graham. This is a man who only cares about his title, nothing else. Absolutely nothing else. He is a vapid, vacant human being. And for him to say the things that he has said about Donald Trump in the past, and all he wants to do is suck up and play another round of golf and pray that he gets the endorsement for the United States Senate, you know, lots of people in my party will say, oh, you know, this isn't the way it used to be and people lack principles. You got to say the names.

[Brittany Page]

Now to briefly interrupt him going all in on Lindsey Graham there, I have to say this is a point that I completely agree with. I can't tell you how many times I've heard Democrats tell us during their interviews with various media outlets, oh, you know, behind the scenes, all these Republicans are so disgusted with Donald Trump, they're so anti Trump. And my response to that is always, name names. Who are they? Who are the people who are publicly signaling that they support everything Trump does, while behind the scenes, they hate themselves and hate Donald Trump. Name them. This politeness thing is over. We're in a fight for survival here. If naming a name makes your job difficult or makes things uncomfortable, good. Thousands of children are eating moldy food in concentration camps. I think you'll survive having some spineless weasel upset at you in the hallways at work. Senators. So let's hear Chris Christie continue naming names with his commentary on Lindsey Graham here, specifically his betrayal of John McCain in particular.

[Chris Christie]

If you really want to be credible on this. And there's a bunch of other ones that I'll probably say during this hour tonight, but Graham is the first one. And the reason is because a guy who was a hard edged politician but had some principles was John McCain. And John McCain mentored Lindsey Graham. He saw him as like a son. John McCain, I guarantee you, is spinning in his grave watching Lindsey Graham suck up to Donald Trump. And so I'M disgusted by what my party looks like in Washington, but where

[Brittany Page]

are the other Republicans who are trying to say the same, that that is what we need. So it's so important that Chris Christie is doing this because hopefully it leads to headlines and then that will prompt internal chaos and reporters will ask for comment, and then that creates friction for these liars and cowards, because it's the pressure that's really the thing. And Chris Christie continues here, but this needs some context. So Chris Christie recently went on a podcast and he shared the full story of how he built the case to prosecute Jared Kushner's father, Charles Kushner, who is currently the ambassador to France and Monaco. Back in the early 2000s, Charles was found guilty of tax evasion and making illegal campaign contributions. And at the time, Chris Christie was the U.S. attorney prosecuting the case that he called, quote, one of the most loathsome, disgusting crimes that he'd ever prosecuted. And Charles set up his brother in law hiring a sex worker to lure him into a hotel room where a hidden camera was placed to record them having sex so the video could be sent to his brother in law's wife, Charles Kushner's own sister. But Trump pardoned him and then gave him a job in the administration. And one Democrat voted to confirm Charles Kushner for his current position as ambassador to France and Monaco. His name is Cory Booker. So Chris Christie begins this segment talking about, well, actually, Bill Maher. Bill Maher getting manipulated by Donald Trump, but quickly moves into this podcast appearance where he talked about this case. And then he drops a bomb about Trump apparently trying to break up Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump before they got married.

[Chris Christie]

This famous dinner he had with Bill Maher, and Bill Maher came out charmed, and I just laughed. Bill Maher, probably one of the most cynical people I've ever met in my life, tells you how skilled Trump is. He can charm you. He has the ability to do it. The problem is he. He doesn't have the patience or the discipline to do it regularly. And so he gets himself in it in a lather. I'll give you one example of this. There's a lot of attention from that podcast about me telling, I was talking to Byron York on the way in about the story of Charlie Kushner and prosecuting Charlie Kushner. One of the outgrowths to that was there was a time when Ivanka Trump had dated Jared Kushner. They had broken up. Then they gotten back together again, and it became clear to Donald Trump, that they were going to get married. And he has said this publicly, that he would have rather had her marry Tom Brady, which might be the only popular thing he could say in New England to say nice things about Tom Brady. But he was not thrilled, let's say, about this. And I was still the prosecutor at the time. I was still the U.S. attorney when this stuff was going on. And he asked me to go out to dinner, and he said, do you have anything more on the family so I can, you know, break this up? And I thought to myself, haven't I given you enough? Like, her prospective father in law hired a hooker to seduce his own sister's husband, videotape it, hold it, and then send it to her on the day of her son's engagement party. Looked at him, I'm like, not enough, huh, to say, that might be a family I might want to stay away from. All right? I mean, but that's Trump. Like, when he gets himself worked into a lather, he will say and do anything to get what he wants.

[Brittany Page]

So Trump wanted dirt on the Kushner family well above and beyond the existing extensive dirt that existed before they got married. But I guess after the deed was done, he was fully committed, handing out pardons, giving everyone access, giving everyone jobs. And this is part of it, as Chris explains, part of why those surrounding Trump are not stepping out and offering criticism because of power. They want to hold onto their power. But in this next clip, he also reveals an important pattern about how Trump operates that we need to keep in mind.

[Chris Christie]

He then went on to discuss how he dealt with his wife when he eventually did get upstairs, which was to tell her it's all bullshit and there's no truth to it, even though it was on video. And he kept saying it and saying it, saying it. That's what he's telling my wife. And then he looks at my wife, he goes, remember something, Mary Pat? If you say something enough times, whether it's true or not, it becomes true. Now, that's the principle. That's how the President convinces himself. As to the people around him, they're not trying to convince themselves they have a title. They're in the Cabinet. Surround the cat. Cabinet Room. People call them Mr. And Madam Secretary. They're getting to do some good things from time to time, both for the country and for themselves. They can't. None of them, well, maybe a few of them because they're stupid, but none of them, none of the smart ones can rationalize what they're in the middle of. So don't give them that much credit. And the president just remember, if you say something enough times, whether it's true or not, it becomes true. He doesn't say you can convince people that's different. He says it becomes true. That's what he thinks about the 2020 election. Says enough times it becomes true. That's, that's the principle he lives on.

[Brittany Page]

He says they have a title. They're in the Cabinet, they're in my view, not doing important things. Chris Christie says that sometimes they do important things for the country, sometimes they're doing good things. Not sure where that's happening, but the last bit in there is important. This is why Trump repeats his lies. He believes that if he repeats it enough times, it eventually becomes the truth. It eventually becomes the accepted truth that we all believe. All the more reason to keep calling out his lies every single time. So listen, I appreciate Chris Christie doing this. We need to hear these behind the scenes stories. We need Republicans who are close to Trump, who have been close to Trump. To be honest, I just wish it was a Republican with more to lose, with more current power in the government. Now that is going to do it for me. As I wrap my time as guest host today. I want to thank David and Pat for the invitation and the work behind the scenes to make all of this go smoothly. And I want to thank David's audience for caring about things that matter and staying informed and engaged in the political process, but also for supporting the guest host, me. While David takes, you know, a small break, he needs a break. I have really enjoyed taking you all through the headlines and hope that you've heard something valuable. If you did, I would love for you to join me over on my YouTube channel where I host my show the Page Perspective. And if you are looking for other independent progressive media to support I am your girl, please feel free to follow me elsewhere on social media, Instagram, bluesky Threads. I'm Brittanye Page. Hopefully I'll see you later over on my channel. Until then, take care and keep fighting. You go to Hawaii in your head all the time. But when you're actually ready to go, there's Expedia, flights, hotels, vacation homes, cars. Save more when you bundle so you can stop dreaming and start saving. Expedia, the one place you go to go places. Members only. Savings vary.

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