Comey Charged

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Five – "Comey Charged"

Date: September 26, 2025
Host: Katie Pavlich, with Joey Jones, Jessica Charlock, Jesse Watters, and Greg Gutfeld
Podcast: FOX News Podcasts

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Episode Overview

This episode confronts the headline-grabbing indictment of former FBI Director James Comey by a federal grand jury on charges of making false statements to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding. The panel unpacks the political and legal dimensions of the case, drawing parallels to recent years of escalating partisan legal battles. In addition, they discuss broader issues including the polarization around law enforcement, U.S. immigration enforcement, the search for a "Trump-like" Democratic candidate, and the shifting political climate as the 2026 midterm elections approach. The conversation blends serious debate with the show’s characteristic banter and sharp partisan tone.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Comey Indictment: Justice or Revenge?

• Overview: The indictment of former FBI Director James Comey for allegedly lying to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding serves as the episode's main focus.
• Trump's Reaction: Donald Trump, featured via audio, frames the indictment as justified legal accountability, not revenge, while using combative rhetoric against his opponents (01:14).
  • Trump: “It’s about justice, really. It's not revenge... They are sick, radical left people and they can't get away with it... Comey was one of the people. He wasn't the biggest, but he's a dirty cop. He lied.” (01:17)
• Comey's Response: Comey fires back on social media, positioning himself as a victim of political payback and affirming his innocence.
  • Comey: “My family and I have known for years there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump... My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but... I’m innocent. So let’s have a trial and keep the faith.” (01:51)

Panel Reaction

• Historical Parallels: Greg Gutfeld references Watergate to stress the gravity of the moment and the abuse of law enforcement power, calling it a form of 'banana republic' weaponization (02:25).
• Cycle of Retribution: The panel debates whether this is unprecedented justice or simply political payback, noting that both parties have weaponized legal processes.
  • Joey Jones: “He’s making good on his effort to turn the Department of Justice into a Department of vengeance.” (02:36)
  • Jesse Watters: “The country will see very clearly that we have an authoritarian president.” (02:42)

"Old Testament" Justice

• The panel leans into the perspective that current events embody an "eye for an eye" or "Old Testament" style of retribution (03:02).
  • Greg Gutfeld: “This is sort of Old Testament justice. What comes around goes around.” (03:02)
• Mutually Assured Destruction: Gutfeld suggests Republicans are reacting to Democratic action, warning, “When you come for us, you kind of got to finish the job, because now we're in power and we're paying. It’s payback. Revenge. I don't care what you call it.” (04:22)

2. Double Standards, Lawfare, and Political Precedents

• Double Standards: Katie Pavlich underlines the hypocrisy of Democrats supporting charges against Trump and his associates but objecting when the focus turns to Comey (05:16).
• Lawfare & Legal Precedence: Greg and Jesse stress that Democrats “invented lawfare” and that prosecuting Comey is a natural result of the standards set during Trump’s time in office.
  • Jesse Watters: “They're just mad Trump's doing to them what they did to them. So I don't care what you call it... I'm enjoying it, because these people need to be punished.” (05:22)
• List of Prosecutions: The panel lists the arrests of various Trump associates as defining the “precedent” for prosecuting Comey (05:39).

Crime vs. Politics

• Jesse Watters defends the legal merits: “These things are actual crimes. When you lie to Congress, it’s a crime. When you obstruct an official investigation, that's a crime.” (06:37)

3. The Comey–McCabe Testimony Battle

Katie Pavlich introduces a key question about conflicting testimonies:

• Comey's Testimony on Leaks: Audio of Comey's back-and-forth over whether he authorized leaks to the press raises doubt (07:59–08:26).
• McCabe's Role: The panel predicts a legal and political struggle between Comey and Andrew McCabe, who may have to clarify or contradict earlier statements about Comey’s involvement (08:27).

Jessica Charlock's Legal Perspective:

• Jessica argues that investigations have already “vindicated” Comey, citing the special counsel’s report and suggesting a lack of real case, possibly selective prosecution (08:45–09:38).
  • Jessica: “There was a special counsel... who said in his report the overwhelming weight of that evidence supports Comey’s version of the conversation.” (09:18)
• She claims the indictment is “completely detached from [the Russia] investigation” and asserts political motivation (09:38).

Democratic Defense: Jessica also suggests Comey indirectly helped Trump win in 2016 by resurrecting the Clinton email investigation close to Election Day (09:19).

4. The Broader Debate: Democracy, Precedent, and Weaponization

• Joey Jones: Reflects on how the FBI’s perceived partisan actions led to public distrust and helped energize Trump, highlighting that Democrats can no longer claim moral high ground on government overreach (11:22).
  • Joey: “We know that Obama’s FBI and Justice Department tried... to steal this election for Hillary Clinton. The American people understand that.” (12:24)
• Points out the lack of prior precedent for indicting an FBI director, except for the actions during the 2016 election.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Greg Gutfeld: “They called. They said collusion was real and the laptop was fake. Facts about COVID were disinformation. Joe Biden was president. The biggest scandal of our career, and they still haven't paid for that. So you know what? We don't care.” (04:29)
• Jesse Watters: “They arrested his [Trump’s] campaign manager... his national security adviser. They arrested his trade advisor and put him in shackles. They arrested his cfo, they arrested his valet... So what are you supposed to do? They didn't think this was going to happen. They're stupid. They did.” (05:39)

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Segment Timestamps

• Indictment news, Trump and Comey’s statements: 00:35–02:13
• Weaponization and “revenge” discussion: 02:25–05:16
• Precedents, hypocrisy, legal battles: 05:16–07:47
• Comey–McCabe testimony and legal analysis: 07:47–11:22
• Deep state, 2016 election claims, morals: 11:22–13:45

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Other Key Segments

Trump at the Ryder Cup & Democratic Ridicule

• Trump’s cultural presence: The panel discusses Trump's appearance at the Ryder Cup, using sports as a metaphor for his broad appeal and Democrats’ struggles finding a matching candidate (14:42–18:44).
  • Katie Pavlich: “He’s always put culture first. He came out of the culture and was always dabbling in politics.” (18:44)
• Democratic Party’s Struggles: Panel notes the party's historic low approval and inability to find a charismatic outsider (15:24–18:44).
• Gutfeld’s Analogy: Greg likens Democrats to playing golf with one club, reduced by their “addiction” to opposing Trump (21:20).

Violence at ICE Facilities & Political Rhetoric

• Shooting at an ICE facility: Panel denounces violence directed at ICE and criticizes Democrat rhetoric as fueling hostility (23:34–24:42).
• Debate over Law Enforcement: Discussion devolves into finger-pointing over which party is responsible for violence and for defending law enforcement (24:42–27:53).
  • Katie Pavlich: “It’s incredible that ICE agents can be seen protecting illegal detainees from gunfire, and yet Democrats still continue to smear them.” (27:53)

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Lighter Moments & Concluding Segments

On Stage Names

• Funny anecdotes about changing ethnic names in Hollywood; Greg jokes that his real last name was “Gutfeldberg” (33:57).
• Panel shares personal stories about their names and internet rumors (36:12–37:59).

Closing Tributes & Fun

• Jesse announces the death of Robert Barnett, celebrated attorney (38:38).
• Greg shares a mishap about wearing mismatched shoes (39:54).
• Jessica highlights a young chess prodigy; Joey celebrates a skateboarding world record; Katie mentions mountaineering achievements (41:04–41:59).

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Conclusion

This episode exemplifies "The Five’s" signature blend of fiery partisan analysis and cultural commentary, with a strong focus on accountability, retribution, and political hypocrisy in the justice system. The panel frames the Comey indictment as both overdue justice and political payback tied to broader patterns of weaponized legal action between America’s two major parties. Underneath the heated debate and sharp quips lies a warning about escalating cycles of vengeance in U.S. politics.

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Top Quotes (by Timestamp)

• Trump on Comey: “He [Comey] wasn't the biggest, but he's a dirty cop. He lied. He lied a lot.” (01:19)
• Comey’s Response: “My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system and I'm innocent.” (01:53)
• Greg Gutfeld: “It’s payback. Revenge. I don't care what you call it. I don't care what the media calls it. They have lost the privilege of our attention.” (04:22)
• Joey Jones: “If a witness is shown to knowingly to have testified falsely...you can distrust that witness. He [Comey] kind of put it in his own words, didn’t he? ‘Small lies matter.’” (11:22)
• Jessica Charlock: “There was a special counsel...and he said the overwhelming weight of that evidence supports Comey’s version.” (09:18)
• Jesse Watters: “If someone declares war on you, what, are you going to just turn the other cheek?” (05:39)

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For listeners who want an encapsulated yet detailed look at the recent Comey news and its political implications, this episode of The Five delivers spirited, sometimes combative debate alongside lighter, human moments.

Transcript

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[Katie Pavlich]

Hello, everyone. I'm Katie Pavlich along with Joey Jones, Jessica Charlock, Jesse Waters and Greg Gutfeld. It's five o' clock in New York City and this is the five. Well, Lordy, there are indictments. Former FBI Director James Comey indicted by a federal grand jury on two counts, making a false statement to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding. Those charges follow an investigation into Comey's handling of the FBI's now discredited Trump Russia investigation. And President Trump was asked if this is justice or revenge.

[Donald Trump]

It's about justice, really. It's not revenge. It's about, it's also, it's also about the fact that you can't let this go on. They are sick, radical left people and they can't get away with it. And Comey, Comey was one of the people. He wasn't the biggest, but he's a dirty cop. He lied. He lied a lot. Now, it's not a list, but I think there'll be others. I mean, they're corrupt. These were corrupt radical left Democrats.

[Katie Pavlich]

And James Comey looking more like an influencer as he hopped on social media to respond.

[James Comey]

My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump. We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn't either. My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system and I'm innocent. So let's have a trial and keep the faith.

[Katie Pavlich]

So much for no one is above the law. The same Democrats and folks in the media who relished in the Trump indictments now all of a sudden are rattled by Comey being charged.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Not since Watergate have we had such an abuse of power, abuse of law enforcement powers, banana republic, or what some have called weaponization.

[Joey Jones]

He's making good on his effort to turn the Department of Justice into a Department of vengeance.

[Jesse Waters]

The country will see very clearly that we have an authoritarian president.

[Joey Jones]

That's not normal.

[Greg Gutfeld]

For him, it's all about blood feuds.

[Joey Jones]

And personal vengeance and vindictive actions.

[Jessica Charlock]

Even more sadly is that many of his followers agree with this Eye for an eye, right?

[Greg Gutfeld]

This is sort of Old Testament justice. What comes around goes around. You know, today it's a Republican president.

[Katie Pavlich]

All right, Greg, we got a Watergate reference.

[Greg Gutfeld]

I am so excited. He didn't say worse than Watergate. He said, not since Watergate, but I'll give it to him anyway. Look, the same charge this guy created against Michael Flynn basically destroyed him financially. Went after his family, and he bragged about it. So he took credit for doing this. Now it's his turn. It's Comey's turn. And remember, you know, the Dems love due process, so let's due process the hell out of this guy. He may get away with it, but he's got to go through the process. I love the media saying that, you know, Trump has set a precedent. Have they forgotten Giuliani, Bannon, Stone, Navarro, Papadopoulos? The Trump supporters, What, a thousand of them? They invented lawfare so they can call it revenge. It's not revenge if you have it coming. And if it's justice. Here's the issue. Here's the thing. You got to remember about mutually assured destruction. It doesn't work when you go first and we're still standing. That's what just happened. When you come for us, you kind of got to finish the job, because now we're in power and we're paying. It's payback. Revenge. I don't care what you call it. I don't care what the media calls it. They have lost the privilege of our attention. They called. They said collusion was real and the laptop was fake. Facts about COVID were disinformation. Joe Biden was president. The biggest scandal of our career, and they still haven't. They still haven't paid for that. So you know what? We don't care. Also, again, Democrats have to learn about cause and effect. You call people Hitler, then people will target them as if they're Hitler. You open the border and you give away free benefits. You create illegal mass migration. You create a cashless bail. You create a crime wave. And here you unleash lawfare against people you disagree with. You're going to get it in return when they come into power. Think about this stuff before you do it. What Trump said was right. It's like, we have to stop this, and the only way to stop something is to create a cost for your activities.

[Katie Pavlich]

Jesse, it seems like another case of Democrats doing a whole lot and then not liking being held accountable to their own rules.

[Jesse Waters]

Yeah, they're just mad Trump's doing to them what they did to them. So I don't care what you call it on with Greg. Revenge, retribution, accountability, who cares? It's happening, and I'm enjoying it, because these people need to be punished. If someone declares war on you, what, are you going to just turn the other cheek?

[Greg Gutfeld]

You're right.

[Jesse Waters]

It is an eye for an eye, and I hope we win. They're asking, like, oh, well, this is like, the revenge tour. Well, what would the revenge be for, Jessica? What would the revenge be for? No one really answers that question. All right? It's because they arrested him. They arrested his campaign manager, he. His campaign adviser, his lawyers, his national security adviser. They arrested his trade advisor and put him in shackles. They arrested his cfo, they arrested his valet. And not only that, they spied on him, staged a coup, impeached him twice, tried to bankrupt his company, leaked his tax returns, and then couldn't protect him from a sniper. So what are you supposed to do? They didn't think this was going to happen. They're stupid. They did.

[Jessica Charlock]

Which is why Biden gave preemptive pardons, because he knew that you were a vengeful bunch of babies.

[Jesse Waters]

But who didn't get it? But who didn't get the pardon?

[Katie Pavlich]

Comey missed out on the.

[Jesse Waters]

Comey didn't get the pardon. So this is just the beginning. Everybody has to have their house in order. They got to make sure their taxes are right. They got to make sure they never lied to Congress. They have to make sure they never committed mortgage fraud. Because the difference here is these things are actual crimes. When you lie to Congress, it's a crime. When you obstruct an official investigation, that's a crime. They didn't have to bake up some fugazi. Untested, unprecedented brag. Oh, Eric Siebert. He's basically Comey's best friend. He got.

[Jessica Charlock]

Is that why Pam Bondi is in there?

[Jesse Waters]

And then, like, all of Comey's, like, misfits are sitting in there. You get him out of there, clean out the scum, and put real people in there to do the job. Caspertel is a serious guy, and all he's doing is making it right now.

[Jessica Charlock]

Jessica, he said he didn't know if Epstein ever trafficked.

[Jesse Waters]

I'm not talking about serious guy.

[Jessica Charlock]

No, that's about Caspet.

[Jesse Waters]

We really don't care what you guys say or what you think or how loud you're complaining, because you guys did this. You started it. And we're going to finish it.

[Joey Jones]

Does this count as Jessica's time No.

[Katie Pavlich]

I do want to get to an example of why Comey is potentially in big trouble here. Based on his testimonies, his call for number four on Capitol Hill.

[Jesse Waters]

Mr. McCabe, who works for you, has publicly and repeatedly stated that he leaked information to the Wall Street Journal and that you were directly aware of it and that you directly authorized it.

[James Comey]

I can only speak to my testimony. I stand by what the testimony you summarized that I gave in May of 2017.

[Jesse Waters]

So your testimony is you've never authorized anyone to leak.

[James Comey]

Again, I'm not going to characterize Andy's testimony, but mine is the same today.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Why?

[Katie Pavlich]

So we're going to start seeing too, Jessica, this battle between those who are also in this mix. Andrew McCabe, who filled in for Comey once he was fired by Trump. He's going to have to decide if he's going to come back and back up what he said about Comey's authorization or if he's going to allow Comey to lie about him because when he's potentially in legal trouble as well.

[Jessica Charlock]

The good news is, is that this has already been investigated and Comey has already been vindicated. So there was a special counsel, as they're supposed to be. And when you say they, they, they, they, what the Democrats did that was appropriate is there was a special counsel named Jack Smith, and he's the one that brought the charges. Because you can't have a president getting on social media or straight to your.

[Jesse Waters]

Face and saying, why can't you? What are you going to do about it?

[Jessica Charlock]

What?

[Jesse Waters]

What are you going to do about it?

[Jessica Charlock]

Enough had to be going to lose in court. And that's what happened.

[Jesse Waters]

Won the election. So when you gu elections that he.

[Jessica Charlock]

Didn'T do, all the bad guys can.

[Jesse Waters]

Start calling the shots.

[Jessica Charlock]

Appointed enough members of the Supreme Court to get away with everything. And that's essentially what's going on here. So you had Michael Horowitz, who is the special counsel, who said in his report, the overwhelming weight of that evidence supports Comey's version of the conversation. They also tried to go after Andy McCabe. They couldn't pull that off. He never interviewed that everybody.

[Jesse Waters]

He never interviewed.

[Jessica Charlock]

Attention to what Andy McCarthy was saying this morning. And he has a piece up in the National Review. The indictment against Comey should be dismissed. He said to Maria Bartiromo, this indictment is not about the Russia investigation, which is what you want to make it seem like, but it's not at all. It's completely detached from that investigation, and it seems to be premised on Something that's not true. I don't think there's a case. I love Ted about ted Cruz, but McCabe never said that Comey authorized it. This is about leaking to the press. Don't think that the case gets to trial. If you want it to get dismissed maybe for selective prosecution, look no further than the President's social media posts or what he's saying to those gaggles. And also it makes no sense to me why Donald Trump doesn't like Jim Comey because Comey delivered him the election. If he had not come out 11 days before talking about whatever was on Anthony Weiner's laptop and then saying actually there's no problem, you would have had two terms of Hillary Clinton and you would have liked it. Cuz it would have been amazing. I did notice also Lindsey Halligan is the only lawyer that will do this. Don't you think it's weird that the entire Eastern District doesn't want their hands anywhere near us because it's such a big bummer of a case?

[Jesse Waters]

Because these are Democrat prosecutors. Every Virginia one they are.

[Jessica Charlock]

Okay. She's an insurance lawyer with no experience. She had to even go in front of the grand jury herself because she couldn't get a sidekick to even stand up there.

[Katie Pavlich]

Who is Joey in here?

[Jesse Waters]

Who was the lawyer in Atlanta that was so great? That was. What was her name? I only carry cash.

[Jessica Charlock]

Bonnie Willis is not.

[Jesse Waters]

I think she's better than Fonny Joey.

[Jessica Charlock]

Basically these charges. You would love a fan. Lindsay.

[Katie Pavlich]

Doesn't it come back to this idea that if we're going to have laws in the books, like perjury laws, especially when it comes to not having a double standard of what's allowed in the country, we should enforce them and that you shouldn't be able to lie in front of Congress, whether you're James Comey or many of the people who he prosecuted as FBI director.

[Joey Jones]

Yeah, if we get in a way back machine, go back to September 27th almost to the date in 2018. Comey tweeted small lies matter even even about yearbooks from the standard jury instruction. If a witness is shown to knowingly to have testified falsely about any material matter, basically you can distrust that witness. He kind of put it in his own words, didn't he? I mean here's the deal. What's the, what's the argument here? The argument here is, well, even if he did, it's not that big a deal. That's not something we usually indict people over. So there's no defense of if Comey was a bad actor in any way because, I mean, we talk about the precedent set. There's no precedent set here to indict an FBI director on something this small. The precedent that was set was using a dossier to start an investigation, was lying to a FISA court. Let me finish, please. I'm not. Jesse, I'm not even. Didn't even look at you yet. I'm just talking about something that. Okay. And so Comey and his FBI have shown themselves to be partisan actors. I mean, the whole. The two lovers that had the text going back and forth, Strock and Page, like there was a deep state at the FBI under the Obama administration that did not want to see President Trump get elected. And from that, rather, it was direct from this point, to that point, to that point, they're not going to be indicted, but the American people know it. We know that Obama's FBI and Justice Department tried or intelligence apparatus tried to steal this election for Hillary Clinton. The American people understand that. They voted for President Trump this last time partially because of that. So what Democrats aren't going to be able to do whether Comey gets charged or convicted of anything or not, is they're not going to be able to stand there and say, we don't believe in tyranny. We don't believe in government overreach. We don't believe in weaponizing the federal government. We sat here and watched them do it for eight years. So is this. Is Trump getting revenge? Maybe. But Comey saw himself as an avenger of truth and the right thing, going after Trump to begin with. And that's the problem. Hopefully it does stop with Trump. I didn't think for a second when I voted for him that he wouldn't go after some of these people. I didn't vote for him to go after them because I'm more worried about if I get my tax breaks, if we get rid of illegals out of this country, if we keep our city safe, and if my son goes to war or not. And I think he's doing good work on those fronts, too. But I'm not going to sit here and wring my hands as a guy that lives in Gordon County, Georgia, over whether or not Trump is going after Comey for lying. I don't care. I'm not going to be mad about it. And hell, maybe he did lie well.

[Katie Pavlich]

Comey will be spending less time finding shells on the beach about assassinating the president.

[Jesse Waters]

Yeah, they should.

[Katie Pavlich]

More time mounting his defense. All right, up next, President Trump hits up the Ryder cup golf while Democrats get buried in the sand trap.

[Greg Gutfeld]

I ain't as good as I once was. My, how the years have flown. I joined the army in 2000.

[Jesse Waters]

Hey, I'm Trey Gowdy, host of the Trey Gatti Podcast. I hope you will join me every Tuesday and Thursday as we navigate life together and hopefully find ourselves a little bit better on the other side.

[Podcast Announcer]

Listen and follow [e-mail].

[Jesse Waters]

The crowd breaking out enchants at Donald Trump as the president hit up the Ryder cup on Long Island 47, lacing up his golf cleats, watching Bryson Dechambro Crush A monster drive. 340 yards. F18s doing a big, big, beautiful flyover. Unfortunately, Team America taking a little mulligan on the day, falling behind the Europeans. But coach Trump did his best to rally the team.

[Donald Trump]

The team is not doing so well. So when I heard that, I said, let's get on the plane. We have to fly and help them. They've lost three matches and they're tied in one. So that's not so well. But we'll get it. We'll get it done. One way or the other, we'll get it done.

[Jesse Waters]

Democrats, in the meantime, are stuck in a sand trap, hitting another historic low in a national poll this week. 30% of voters nationwide hold a favorable opinion of the Democratic Party, while 54% say they hold an unfavorable opinion. But Bill Maher thinks he's found a Trump like candidate to tee him up.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Who's the candidate on the left that can somehow derail him? Because I don't see anybody with a national presence that can pull that off. And where are you on that?

[Joey Jones]

I see somebody right here in my zoom camera. The reason why, you know, I'm taking you a little more seriously for this is because the Democrats definitely need an outsider. But it would have to be somebody who is unapologetic about calling them out. People have lost faith in the Democratic Party for very good reasons.

[Jesse Waters]

All right. Could, could Kamala Harris go to the Ryder Cup?

[Joey Jones]

Could she? I don't know. Is she banned from there? I don't know. I don't know anything about golf. I know, like, women couldn't play down in, down in Augusta until recently. Right. Is that a thing at the Masters?

[Jesse Waters]

And Greg thinks that's a great idea.

[Joey Jones]

I don't know anything about golf. Golf is a white collar sport. I wore a blue shirt today just so I could say that. Golf is not. I don't know anything about golf, but I do know This. I know that the driving ranges are fun. My uncle had one when I was small and we used to try to hit the deer with the golf balls and get. We got real close.

[Jesse Waters]

Jessica, you're seeing a lot of energy, a lot of action. Is this what real power looks like?

[Jessica Charlock]

The Ryder cup crowd?

[Jesse Waters]

This is the president with the Ryder cup taking on the Europeans. Are you excited?

[Jessica Charlock]

Sure. Go usa. Though I guess the day didn't go that well.

[Jesse Waters]

You're probably rooting for the Europeans, aren't you?

[Joey Jones]

You seem to enjoy saying that.

[Jessica Charlock]

I enjoy Europe and European goods without a tariff on top of it. But yeah, he has a great time at those events. But it doesn't mean that it's going to translate into a good midterms, which is what Republicans are after. And everyone, you know, what did they say in the prompter? That you're stuck in the sand trap. And evidence would point to things going in the Democrats direction. And Mike Johnson knows it and Senator Thune knows it. And they're backpedaling about the government shutdown. They can't get Democratic votes than they need because they won't even compromise to let people keep their health care or put back cancer research funding. And I had everyone waving in my face that Reuters poll that said that you guys were leading on all the issues that matter by these huge margins. And I doubt that you feel good going into a midterm with only 34% saying you have a better plan on the economy, 40% on immigration, and 25% on health care when this is stacking up to be a health care election. There's a good Harry Anton clip from this morning. I love it when he does it. He said a huge shift to the Dems in U.S. house special elections. Dems doing 18 points better than Harris did. The party that outperforms the presidential baseline won every midterm since 2006. So I don't know what happens. I don't want to be the Jesse Waters of 2026, but I wouldn't. I wouldn't feel so braggy at this particular moment on the golf range or at the polls.

[Jesse Waters]

I mean, you're talking about midterms. It's like, what is it? That is what this about? That actually we're not talking about a whole block. We were talking about other candidates. Katie, what do you think?

[Katie Pavlich]

We're talking about presidential candidates and whether Kamala could go to the Ryder cup and actually succeed. Probably not, given her habit of flunking those kinds of events, but the president is successful at these things. And the reason why Democrats are trying to emulate him. They claim they hate him so much, and yet they're trying to find all these people on the right, whether it's President Trump and Joe Rogan, all these personalities, and translate them to some kind of leftist figure who can help them win elections. They're unable to do that because someone like Trump doesn't put politics first. He's always put culture first. He came out of the culture and was always dabbling in politics. And he's still doing that. He still makes sure that he's at all these events. He has a huge range. He can go from very swanky golf to UFC fights on the South Lawn of the White House. He can do it all. And Democrats are still totally focused on checking off all of these boxes to make sure that they don't offend anybody, which is. But while also offending everybody. I mean, Kamala Harris book, Twitter, is a perfect example of that. She's explaining all these bigoted reasons why she didn't choose Pete Buttigieg or Josh Shapiro in order to try and win over the Democrats. At the same time that people are like, what do you mean? You were not choosing people based on those things. We're supposed to not judge people by that. We're supposed to judge them by what they can offer the party. So I think Republicans are pretty comfortable with the fact that Democrats are at their lowest approval rating that they've ever been in the history of polling. Of course, midterms can also always be different when it comes to the president who's in charge. Usually the opposite party takes power. But in terms of what the Democrats are offering and the types of candidates they're offering, not exactly working out with everyday Americans who shifted to the right just a couple of months ago.

[Jesse Waters]

Greg, what's your handicap?

[Greg Gutfeld]

Well, I'm a little slow. I did not like what I saw there. I saw a lot of chanting, a large group of people chanting. And it just made me think of the Nuremberg rallies, these huge crowds, just repeating these things. A golf swing is nothing more than a country club version of the Nazi salute when you think about it. I can't believe you didn't even see that. Jessica, I think we're concerned about health care. I mean, isn't not wanting to get shot by a left wing radical part of being concerned about healthcare? I think that's gonna be a bigger concern for most people. Golf offers an excellent analogy for politics. Jesse, did you know that the sport requires different clubs to hit balls, the ball in different distances? You Factor in length, you factor in lift and design for different situations on the course. Am I right, Jesse?

[Jesse Waters]

You are. Continue.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Now imagine playing golf with one club and it's not versatile at all. That's the Democrat party. Because their Trump derangement addiction. You notice what I did? Addiction, it's no longer a syndrome. It's an addiction. Has reduced them to one play. He is fascist. He is Hitler. And everybody around him, including us, we're just bad people. We don't care about the poor. We don't care about health. We want everybody to die. We're disappearing people. This addiction has a way of convincing the people who have it that it's all you need. It's just like every other addiction. You don't need your family, you don't need your friends. Just me in a room with a bottle. Called demonization. And they believe there's nothing else beyond this fil know what they're missing. They could be out playing golf, but instead they're on the street yelling at cops or chasing ICE agents. They need a deprogramming. They need an intervention. Because they're not. Because the fact is, like I said yesterday, you can't arrest somebody for threatening you. So all you can do is try to talk them out of threatening you. That's all I ask. Jessica, would you stop threatening me? I'm tired of the things that you're leaving on my voicemail.

[Jesse Waters]

You need some more clubs in your bag, Jessica?

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yes.

[Jesse Waters]

Up next, more anti ice insanity from left wing agitators as Democrats fan the flames. I wish I could.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Just recently we asked some people about sharing their New York Times accounts.

[Siemens Energy Announcer]

My name is Dana. I am a subscriber to the New York Times, but my husband isn't. And it would be really nice to be able to share a recipe or an article or compete with him in wordle or connections.

[Katie Pavlich]

Thank you, Dana.

[Greg Gutfeld]

We heard you introducing the New York Times Family subscription. One subscription, up to four separate logins for anyone in your life. Find out [e-mail] family.

[Katie Pavlich]

Shoot eyes.

[Joey Jones]

Just days after a deadly shooting at a Dallas ICE facility, leftist agitators, well, they're at it again. Targeting a detention center in Broadview, Illinois, just outside Chicago. Agents firing pepper balls and tear gas to stop the crowd from storming the building. And Democrats, they're still pretending they're constant smears, calling agents Nazis at every turn. But that's not fueling the chaos.

[Jesse Waters]

Watch this.

[James Comey]

Criticizing the way that ICE is rounding.

[Jesse Waters]

Up people in this country in a.

[James Comey]

Deeply inhumane and immoral way is not.

[Jesse Waters]

An incitement to violence.

[Greg Gutfeld]

We've heard a lot of law enforcement leaders and Republicans talking about bringing down the temperature, people not demonizing ice. What's your, what are your thoughts on that?

[Katie Pavlich]

I think ICE has to follow some.

[Jessica Charlock]

Basic rules and guidelines. There is a lot of fear. I mean, we have people that are just being disappeared off the streets.

[Joey Jones]

Jessica. I mean, we opened this segment and you can hear him saying, shoot, ice, shoot. I don't know, maybe they had water guns out there. And I just don't know that. I don't think that's what that was about. You know, I don't see how Democrats can go on TV right now even in defense of this behavior.

[Jessica Charlock]

I don't think that anyone is defending that behavior in particular, and I certainly don't want to be the one to do it. So I'm going to give that part of this a pass. I do think that you can't create a scenario in which nobody can be critical of ICE ever again or talk about due process violations. And obviously saying, you know, even people who are here undocumented have a right to due process isn't as catchy as some, some other words. And I would caution people against those words, certainly in the immediate aftermath of something like this. But like we were talking about, even in the A block where Jesse and Greg basically just said, we don't care. Right. We don't care what you say. This is happening whether you like it or not. Democrats are going to have to take that into account. The Republican Party is telling you to your face that they don't care if it's a revenge, you know, by any means necessary. Stephen Miller, you get 3,000 people a day, no matter what. Pick them up at Home Depot. Immigration courts, and this has become more of a guerrilla competition between the parties than people who used to go and, you know, stand on the floor of Congress and make impassioned speeches. And that, I think, is a very dangerous turn in our politics. But is the reality, Jesse, from what.

[Joey Jones]

I understand, illegals didn't care how they came into this country. They didn't care what laws they broke if they hurt our economy or other people. When they came to this country and decided to be here illegally, they didn't care. Why should our hearts break for how they leave this country?

[Jesse Waters]

No, mine doesn't. Obviously, you're a humanitarian. No one is more of a humanitarian than I am. And I'm also a grown man. And you have to do tough things when someone floods your country with 10 million people and you have no idea who the heck they are. Jessica says this is dangerous, that we're not listening to them. It was dangerous when we were. We're not even really saying we don't care. We're just saying we're not going to listen to you spew garbage at our people and put them in harm's way anymore. We've actually tried to tell you to tone it down. We've tried to tell you to stop calling them the Gestapo, because we've seen the results of that, and they don't listen. They keep calling them the Gestapo and Nazis. So, yeah, we're kind of like, you know what? We can't change your behavior. You're just gonna have to find out the hard way at the ballot box. Or if you don't, you might actually have to make a decision one of these days and say, maybe I should stop inciting violence against federal law enforcement. It might not be great politics, and it might not be good as a person. Now, I don't know what Jessica's opinion is on all these people throwing around these words, but she hasn't, so I'm not going to link her to those people. But it's not a rogue agency. Congress funds ice. If you want to do something about it, win an election. Congress writes the law that ICE is enforcing. If you want to do something about it, pass an immigration bill. You had two years. You didn't do it. If you want to do anything with the executive branch, win the White House, you probably won't for a while, because you open the borders. And now everybody doesn't trust you. And that's where we are as a country. We're not just not listening to you. We don't trust you.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Katie.

[Katie Pavlich]

It's incredible that ICE agents can be seen protecting illegal detainees from gunfire, and yet Democrats still continue to smear them as the fascists and the Nazis that they claim that they are, it's totally disgusting. But when it comes to the messaging from top Democrats like Senator Chris Murphy when he says ICE is rounding people up, or Congresswoman Grijalva saying ICE has to follow some rules and guidelines, Senator Murphy doesn't talk about who they're rounding up, okay? They're rounding up rapists, human traffickers, murderers. And the Department of Homeland Security puts out all their mugshots and a summary of what they have done, not just here in the United States, but in their home country. And these aren't undocumented, illegal, undocumented people. They're hardened, illegal, criminal aliens who have broken laws over and over again and victimized Americans inside this country. And Democrats are fighting to keep them here inside of our communities to victimize even more people. And when you say that people are getting rounded up at Home Depot, they're getting arrested at Home Depot because on these work sites, as the Department of Homeland Security has detailed in full, they are dealing drugs, they are trafficking women and children at these work sites, and they're illegally sending money back to cartels and paying their debts for getting people into the country. So all of this comes back to whose side the Democrats are on. They've made it very clear. They're willing to smear ICE and they're willing to tell Americans who say, I really don't want people in my community who are going to murder and rape my daughter while she's on a run, can you please get them out? Because it's a preventable thing to do. They continually get on television and in their campaigns and defend criminal illegal aliens while American families are begging for these people to be deported outside of the country.

[Joey Jones]

They don't just get on television. They fight El Salvador and have a margarita with them.

[Katie Pavlich]

Exactly.

[Joey Jones]

I mean, they celebrate.

[Jessica Charlock]

No one had a cocktail.

[Joey Jones]

Greg. You know, there's a study out that shows that what they label as right wing terrorist attacks have plummeted to an all time low and that the left is much more on the rise. But even Will Kane a couple hours ago broke down how labeling something a right wing terrorist attack, it really is a loose catch. Do white supremacist organizations get the same kind of embrace by the right that antifa or BLM riots get from the left?

[Greg Gutfeld]

Well, if you're looking for a white supremacist outfit, you have to go to prison because that's where they are and that's where we put them.

[Joey Jones]

That's right.

[Greg Gutfeld]

You know, we have this weird thing about being conservatives. We're a stickler for law and order. We don't romanticize radicals. If you go back to the 70s, we, you know, we weren't the Manson Family, the Weather Underground, the Black Panthers, you name it, it was them. They loved it. It's part of the agenda that in academia to romanticize Marxists and radicals. We're the only people covering this. Imagine if there was a right wing faction daily attacking government facilities that would lead the news every day. It'd be January 6th every day except with actual violence. And it's kind of incredible that you mentioned it that the detainees were killed. I mean, how nakedly political is their outrage that they don't care that the deaths of the people they claim to protect came from the rhetoric they are spouting. They just love the conflict. They love the attention, the disruption. This reminds me of kind of an amplification of Whipgate. Remember that? Where they tried to destroy a border agent's life by saying he was whipping a migrant. Now they're doing it every day, even though they knew they were wrong. They knew they were wrong about the border agent and yet they didn't care. And they're doing it again. So this is why again, it's not saying we don't care about the issue. We just don't care about your input because your input is dishonest. We just want to fix it. We'd love your help, but we kind of gave up on getting help.

[Jessica Charlock]

I mean, a few things we have to wrap. But that you don't romanticize radicals. There are a lot of people who were convicted of real crimes on January 6 that have been pardoned now and are folk heroes, even though they've gone.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Out and you made them folk heroes. Not us. You with your January 6th commission, you know, you told that blew up in your face.

[Joey Jones]

Not to use a violent metaphor, January 6th. But we're not going to do it now. Okay. The fastest. It's up next.

[Jesse Waters]

Welcome to Hard Times.

[Podcast Announcer]

After my accident, it's Will Kane Country. Watch it live at noon Eastern Monday through Thursday at 5 or on the Fox News YouTube channel. And don't miss the show. Listen and follow the podcast five days a week at foxnewspodcasts.com or wherever you download your favorite podcasts.

[Jessica Charlock]

Welcome back, Leonardo.

[Joey Jones]

Maybe you should have a different name. Easier to say.

[Jessica Charlock]

Leo revealing the stage name his agent told him to use as a young actor while on the Kelsey Brothers podcast.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Finally got an agent. They said, your name is too ethnic. I go, what do you mean? It's Leonardo DiCaprio.

[Jesse Waters]

They go, no, too ethnic.

[Greg Gutfeld]

They're never gonna hire. Your new name is Lenny Williams. Yes, it was Lenny Williams. My dad saw his photo, ripped it up and he said, over my dead body.

[Jessica Charlock]

Jesse. His name is too ethnic for me.

[Jesse Waters]

That was a tough. That was a tongue twister.

[Jessica Charlock]

Yeah, it was a hard read.

[Jesse Waters]

It's usually the Jewish people that are trying to de ethnify what we call it.

[Jessica Charlock]

Also trying to survive.

[Jesse Waters]

Yes, sir. The Jewish people are trying to survive in Hollywood.

[Joey Jones]

Absolutely.

[Jessica Charlock]

No, from the hip. The real.

[Katie Pavlich]

They had to change their names. They changed their name.

[Jesse Waters]

No, but I understand it. If you have a really, you know, ethnic sounding name, you might want to change It.

[Greg Gutfeld]

I did.

[Joey Jones]

Although. What.

[Jesse Waters]

What were you, Greg.

[Greg Gutfeld]

My name. My original name was Greg Gutfeldberg.

[Jessica Charlock]

No, it wasn't.

[Katie Pavlich]

Were you trying to survive?

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yes.

[Jesse Waters]

Didn't Whoopi change her name?

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yeah, her original name was Karen Johnson. No way. She was an original Karen.

[Jesse Waters]

She's a Karen.

[Greg Gutfeld]

She's a Karen. It's funny. You know what I never knew about stage names growing up, I thought that those were their real names. I had no idea. Like Bad Bunny. That's not his real name. Joe.

[Jesse Waters]

That.

[Greg Gutfeld]

The Weeknd. That's not his real name either. His name is Beniti. What is his name? What is the Weeknd's name?

[Katie Pavlich]

Benita.

[Greg Gutfeld]

No, that's some other dude. Lady Gaga. That's not a real name.

[Katie Pavlich]

Oh, I never knew that.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yeah. Madonna.

[Jesse Waters]

Wow.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Not a real name. Kiwi Herman. Not a real name.

[Jessica Charlock]

You're the only one who ever prepares for my blog. Katie, did you. Katie Powash is a great stage name. I mean, also a real name.

[Katie Pavlich]

And it's my real name, which is amazing. Leo was just ahead of the DEI curve, you know? Like, now you have to have an ethnic name to get a job, so you just enter it. I don't think the girls would have really liked Lenny Williams dad. And Aquarium with the hot models.

[Joey Jones]

Johnny Joey Jones is a stage name.

[Greg Gutfeld]

What's your real name?

[Joey Jones]

So my real name is Johnny Joseph Jones, but I never went by Johnny or Johnny Joey until I was in the Marine Corps. And they didn't care that I wanted to be called Joey. On paper, it's Johnny and that's all they cared about. So when I got hurt, like, half the people knew me as Joey and half knew me as Johnny. So when I started going on tv, I used both.

[Katie Pavlich]

I called you Johnny once, and you were very nice not to correct me.

[Jessica Charlock]

I did.

[Joey Jones]

I called Joey.

[Greg Gutfeld]

You call you J Cubed.

[Joey Jones]

Oh, I like it.

[Greg Gutfeld]

That's good.

[Joey Jones]

Anything's better than the other J name. People call me Jerk Off. No, that wasn't it. But I like that one.

[Jessica Charlock]

All right, ML Friday is up next.

[Joey Jones]

I'm way too good a goodbye.

[Siemens Energy Announcer]

Known for building.

[Jesse Waters]

This is Jason Chaffetz from the Jason in the House podcast. Join me every Monday to dive deeper into the latest political headlines and chat with remarkable guests.

[Podcast Announcer]

Listen and follow [e-mail] or wherever you download podcasts.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Fan Mail Friday. This is a good question from Judy. What's the strangest rumor you've ever heard about yourself? I'm gonna go with Jessica first, because I know there's plenty Of. I remember the one. Well, that was a good one. But anyway, go ahead.

[Jessica Charlock]

Maybe this is the same one. The Internet. Mostly men on the Internet and mean women who say they're good Christians. Oh, say that I've been married twice, which isn't true. And not only that, but did I cheat on my fake first husband, My current husband. So he is a bad. I, whatever. Cuckolded some anyway, and then they just call me a C word separately. So that's not true. And stop tweeting it.

[Greg Gutfeld]

All right, Joey.

[Joey Jones]

So there are these fake AI Facebook things and I get.

[Jesse Waters]

I got a text, you know, everyone's.

[Joey Jones]

I got a text from Will Kane today saying, hey, are you really suing Joy Behar? But the worst one is that I went to Texas and this is. I mean, we're having fun, but I went to Texas in the floods and saved dogs.

[Jesse Waters]

Dogs.

[Jessica Charlock]

That's nice.

[Joey Jones]

Well, I've got robot legs. You don't walk around in robot.

[Greg Gutfeld]

There are great AI ones that make me sound great. But anyway, that, like I give. Like I do stuff I never do. Like give to charity.

[Jesse Waters]

Yeah, there's a rumor about me that I started that I let the air out of Emma's tires in order to like get with her. I never did that.

[Greg Gutfeld]

But the thing is, when you, you never did that. Try to be funny, Katie.

[Jesse Waters]

She. She believed it. Well, she told me about it. It's a joke.

[Greg Gutfeld]

I told you after you said it. Like you didn't let people know you were kidding.

[Jesse Waters]

I deadpan too hard sometimes. That's my problem.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Even now.

[Katie Pavlich]

Katie, I don't know if there's any rumors about me. Perfect.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yes. Yes.

[Katie Pavlich]

No bad ones.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Anyway, now I gotta go to the Internet. There's been something floating around that I'm five four, five, five. Guys, stop that. One more thing's up next.

[Siemens Energy Announcer]

When investing leads to questions.

[Greg Gutfeld]

This is Jimmy Fallah inviting you to join me for FOX Across America where we'll discuss every single one of the Democrats dumb ideas. Just kidding. It's only a three hour show. Listen live at noon Eastern or get the [e-mail].

[Katie Pavlich]

Time now for one more thing. Jesse.

[Jesse Waters]

All right, so we have some sad news to share today. Long time powerhouse Washington attorney Robert Barnett, Bob to those who knew him, has passed away at the age of 79. Barnett was one of the most notable legal and political figures in the country, having worked on behalf of politicians and journalists on both sides of the aisle. He was a well known Democrat and counted both the Clintons and the Obamas as his friends and clients. But he had friends and clients across the political spectrum. Among them former VP candidate Sarah Palin, Democrat strategist James Carville. He was also a faithful representative for many journalists in print, on tv, including me and many others here at Fox. Suzanne Scott, the CEO of Fox News Media, issuing the statement. Bob Barnett was legendary as an industry titan across media, politics and law and at his core, a wonderful man. His pristine integrity, wise counsel and knowledge of our business were an invaluable resource to me over the course of our 30 year relationship. He will be deeply missed. But by the Fox News Media family and many anchors and correspondents he represented, we extend our heartfelt condolences to his wife Rita and his entire family. Barnett leaves behind his wife, longtime CBS News correspondent Rita Braver, and their daughter Meredith.

[Katie Pavlich]

Sad news.

[Jesse Waters]

Very sad.

[Katie Pavlich]

All right, Greg.

[Greg Gutfeld]

All right. Tonight we got a great show. 10pm we got Guy Benson, Dagan McDowell, Cat Dimp and Tyrus. That's tonight at 10pm Everybody. Come, let's do this. Greg's fashion tips. You know, I got up this morning, I'm a very busy guy. In order for me to leave, I have to get my bag, I gotta grab my glasses, my phone and I have to get, I have to get my dog away from the door. So I have to grab a scoop, a little kibble, get that stupid little mutt away because he'll follow me out into the street. I'll never see him again. So what happens? I show up at work, I'm sitting here in a meeting. Show the picture if you want. I mean, do you want me to do this? And like, and I'm sitting there and my, my producer Arash looks at me and he goes, did you do that on purpose? And I said, what? And I looked at, I realized I was wearing two different shirts, right?

[Jesse Waters]

They're not even close.

[Greg Gutfeld]

They're not even.

[Jesse Waters]

You got white laces and brownies.

[Katie Pavlich]

Not even Mondays.

[Greg Gutfeld]

Yeah, I know, I know. Isn't that horrific? Anyway, that's the story for today. Now I had to go and buy some new shoes.

[Joey Jones]

Was your left foot moving a little faster with that running shoe on?

[Jesse Waters]

No. No. But you bought new shoes just because you didn't want to wear mismatch shoes all day.

[Jessica Charlock]

You can't sit in a leg chair with.

[Katie Pavlich]

Those are very stylish though. Greg, thank you. All right, Jessica.

[Jessica Charlock]

Okay. Meet Baron Turaga, a seven year old from Pleasanton, California who hopes to be the world's youngest grandmaster in chess. With Sarda's a shared pandemic hobby with his dad and brothers has led him to be the second best player in the US for his age group. A two time state champion and participant in 50 tournaments, he's preparing to compete in the World chess championship in 2026. Although the participants haven't been announced, his family believes he's going to be ready.

[Katie Pavlich]

All right, great job.

[Joey Jones]

Okay, so this is of great importance. Brazilian skateboarding legend Sandro Diaz set two Guinness World records on the biggest skate ramp dropping from a 230 foot massive ramp. Look at that. Goes down this building. Those Red Bull athletes are insane. They just do things that are crazy, but they're always super engineered and safe.

[Katie Pavlich]

All right, a new Polish athlete climbed Mount Everest, no oxygen and skied down. New record. That's it for us.

[Jessica Charlock]

Have a great night.

[Podcast Announcer]

Listen to the all new Bret Baier podcast featuring common ground in depth talks with lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle, along with all your Bret Baer favorites like his all star panel and much more. Available [e-mail] or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen to the 5 AD free on Amazon Music with your prime membership or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.