The Glenn Beck Program
Episode: Why Glenn Beck Wants to Kiss EPA's Lee Zeldin | Guests: Lee Zeldin & Jeffrey Steele
Date: February 13, 2026
Main Theme
This episode is a spirited exploration of the monumental deregulation move by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), featuring insights from EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. Glenn Beck unpacks the implications of this decision on American life, economics, industry, energy, and personal freedom, positioning it as a turning point in the role of federal regulators. The episode intertwines political philosophy, American history lessons, and a segment on the culture war in music—spotlighting censorship and the silencing of conservative voices. The show is layered with Glenn’s signature wit and direct opinions, aiming to galvanize listener engagement in both policy and culture.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. EPA’s Landmark Deregulation
- [02:55-13:51] Glenn Beck Monologue
- Context: Lee Zeldin’s EPA announces the “largest deregulation in modern EPA history.”
- What Changed: Repeals the legal backbone for federal regulators to control industries through greenhouse gas rules.
- Implications:
- Cars and appliances may get cheaper (est. $2,500 off new vehicles) due to end of regulatory compliance costs.
- Annoying features like auto engine start-stop are scrapped.
- Less paperwork and barriers for energy production, trucking, rail, and air transport—impacting prices of goods across the board.
- Return of consumer choice in products such as stoves, appliances, lighting, and even shower pressure.
- Quote:
- “This moves us back closer to an actual consumer free market where you have choices rather than the choices that the bureaucracy put in front of you.” — Glenn Beck [08:47]
- Rollback could be contested by Democrats and bureaucratic resistance.
2. The Philosophy Behind Deregulation
- [13:53-24:53]
- Heavy regulation is critiqued as a tool used by large corporations to solidify their power, block competition, and breed cronyism, not fairness.
- Deregulation levels the playing field for small innovators, fosters competitiveness, and restores power to consumers and localities.
- Beck asserts that true capitalism is messy, dynamic, and shaped by consumer choice, not by bureaucratic “experts.”
- Quote:
- “Ask any of the protesters, what is a fascist? ... Fascism is the public-private partnership between government and corporations, and government tells the corporations exactly how to make their products.” — Glenn Beck [05:40]
- Beck blames progressivism’s century-long creep for morphing government’s role from referee to engineer of everyday life.
3. Historical Parallels: Streetcars vs. Automobiles
- [25:53-44:17]
- A vivid story on the government-corporate destruction of the once-dominant electric streetcar networks in the U.S., replaced by buses due to collusion by GM, Standard Oil, and Goodyear.
- Links the past manipulation of transportation infrastructure to present-day manipulation through regulation.
- Quote:
- “They would buy the local streetcar company, they'd stop investing in maintenance ... say it was outdated, rip out the tracks ... then sell cities buses. That changed the entire design of American life.” — Glenn Beck [29:55]
- Moral: When incentives and hidden collusion drive policy, public choice disappears.
4. Interview: Lee Zeldin on EPA’s Deregulation
- [44:36-59:00]
- Zeldin describes the legal and constitutional rationale: the Clean Air Act never authorized sweeping climate-based regulation without congressional vote.
- SECURE: Supreme Court cases (Loper Bright, West Virginia vs. EPA) underpin the reversal and shield it from future reversal by executive action.
- Key Impacts:
- $1.3 trillion in regulatory burdens erased.
- Immediate average new vehicle cost reductions (~$2,400+).
- Removal of the “start-stop” auto feature and other climate compliance add-ons.
- Quote:
- “A new vehicle is going to cost over $2,400 less on average now that this decision has been signed. And ... we got rid of the climate participation trophy: that annoying start-stop feature in vehicles.” — Lee Zeldin [48:59]
- Beck celebrates as “conservative and constitutional porn,” hailing Zeldin for returning agency to the American people.
5. Deregulation Explained for All Americans
- [56:07-58:39]
- Emphasizes: This policy isn’t “anti-science;” it’s pro-consumer-choice.
- Lower costs for trucking = lower prices for groceries, clothes, fuel, etc.
- Expanded benefit to middle-class and low-income Americans through reduced cost of living and increased mobility.
6. Government by Experts vs. Popular Sovereignty
- [59:01-74:37]
- Beck continues: Too much delegation of power to unelected “experts” (the administrative state) undermines representative government.
- Focus on the Utah Prop 4 redistricting fight as a contemporary example of elites being given power over regular voters.
7. Cultural Battle: Music Industry Censorship
- [109:18-123:48] Interview with Jeffrey Steele
- Songwriter Jeffrey Steele discusses his song “A Voice,” dedicated to giving “voiceless” Americans representation.
- The music industry refuses radio play unless conservative names are omitted (e.g., Charlie Kirk). Steele stood firm against self-censorship.
- Quote:
- “They said, ‘We can help you, but you have to take that line out ... it's too right-wing.’” – Jeffrey Steele [113:18]
- Glenn urges listeners: Buy the song on iTunes, request it on the radio, and take grassroots action to disrupt industry gatekeeping.
- Larger point: Cultural control is as important as political change.
8. Geopolitical Chess: Russia, Cuba, and Ukraine
- [86:44-108:51]
- Glenn speculates: Is the current standoff around Russia, Cuba, and U.S. policy a “Cuban Missile Crisis 2.0”?
- Points to clues that Russia might want to return to using the U.S. dollar, conditional on a Ukraine settlement.
- Suggests the “Ukraine chit” could lead to larger realignment, recalling the 1962 missile crisis and U.S. deal to remove missiles from Turkey.
- Importance: U.S. foreign policy could be on the edge of another historic shift.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Glenn Beck:
- “Does anybody else feel like we were being conditioned to live in a second world country? ... Who is making those choices? Not you.” [07:30]
- “We haven't been a free market in a very long time. A really free market looks very messy. ... But you decide who wins. The market decides by what you buy.” [09:26]
- “More innovation means more jobs, more freedom. Less regulation means people get to keep more of what they earn—not just money, but choice.” [14:58]
- “The only way to change that is to reduce the size of government.” [41:37]
- To Zeldin: “You are the greatest man alive today. Thank you ... for everything that you and Donald Trump have done.” [46:46]
- Lee Zeldin:
- “A smart guy like you ... you know the timeline that this has been a long time coming. The left ... created this endangerment finding to hoard power in a very unique interpretation of the Clean Air act that is not allowed under any best reading of it.” [46:54]
- “This is about more consumer choice. This is about having more affordable vehicles... the cost of living across the board is able to go down $1.3 trillion … it’s more mobility, more economic mobility.” [56:57]
- Jeffrey Steele:
- “All [Charlie Kirk] did was give people a voice ... The first thing the music business said ... ‘We can really help you, but you gotta take that line out.’ I said I’m not taking the line out.” [113:18]
- “The 60s hippie culture was built on Rolling Stone magazine ... We need the same thing on our end.” [114:01]
Timestamps for Important Segments
- EPA Deregulation Explained: [02:55–13:51]
- What Deregulation Means for You: [13:53–25:53]
- Streetcar History Lesson: [25:53–44:17]
- Lee Zeldin Interview (EPA): [44:36–59:00]
- Deregulation and Democracy: [59:01–74:37]
- Cultural Censorship in Music (Jeffrey Steele): [109:18–123:48]
- Geopolitical Analysis: Russia, Cuba, Ukraine: [86:44–108:51]
Episode Flow & Listener Value
- Political Analysis: Glenn Beck lays out the philosophical, economic, and personal freedoms at stake in deregulation, connecting past and present.
- Concrete Impacts: Focus on how policy actually affects the daily lives and wallets of listeners.
- Culture Wars: Spotlighting music industry censorship as part of the larger battle for American values.
- Actionable Takeaways: Listeners encouraged to engage: support deregulation, get involved in local/state politics, and fight cultural censorship by purchasing music and speaking out.
- Broad Appeal: While conservative to the core, the explanations aim to reach even skeptics by framing policy as a battle for everyday choice and opportunity.
TL;DR:
This episode celebrates a historic regulatory rollback at the EPA, explaining its impact on freedom and American prosperity through history, law, and practical examples. Glenn Beck (with Lee Zeldin) frames it as a victory against bureaucratic overreach and corporate collusion, while also spotlighting the cultural struggle for a “voice” in America through the experience of songwriter Jeffrey Steele. The show functions as both a policy explainer and a call to cultural and political engagement.