SUBSTACK TOWN HALL WITH JIM ACOSTA, MICHAEL COHEN, DON LEMON, OLIVIA TROYE, TARA SETMAYER, HARRY DUNN AND MATT FRIEND.

Summary

Podcast Summary: Substack Town Hall with Jim Acosta and Guests

Podcast Information:

• Title: The Jim Acosta Show
• Host: Jim Acosta
• Episode: Substack Town Hall with Jim Acosta, Michael Cohen, Don Lemon, Olivia Troy, Tara Setmayer, Harry Dunn, and Matt Friend
• Release Date: April 16, 2025
• Description: "Don't give into the lies. Don't give into fear. Hold on to the truth. And hope."

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Introduction

On April 16, 2025, Jim Acosta hosted a dynamic and engaging town hall event titled "Substack Town Hall with Jim Acosta, Michael Cohen, Don Lemon, Olivia Troy, Tara Setmayer, Harry Dunn, and Matt Friend" at Theater555 in New York City. The event brought together a diverse panel of influential voices to discuss the pressing issues facing American democracy, media integrity, and the ongoing political climate dominated by former President Donald Trump.

State of American Democracy

Jim Acosta opened the discussion by emphasizing the critical juncture at which American democracy stands. He remarked, “I think it's not a stretch, it's not an exaggeration to say that our democracy is very much on the line” (27:29).

Michael Cohen echoed this sentiment, highlighting the authoritarian tendencies observed in Trump's leadership. He stated, “Donald Trump is not an anomaly. No, he is a culmination. He is the embodiment of every single fear that the Founding Fathers had when they wrote that fragile document that we call the Constitution” (20:35).

Media Coverage and Independence

A significant portion of the town hall focused on the role of media in shaping public perception and countering misinformation.

Don Lemon criticized mainstream media's normalization of Trump's actions, asserting, “He wants the cameras to come in to take his picture... Other networks, other news organizations need to say no. We're standing behind our friends in the press” (36:07).

Olivia Troy emphasized the importance of independent media voices, stating, “Independent media is so important... What Seneca Project is fighting. That's what Jim and I and Don and Harry, what we're trying to do is to build a community so freaking big that there's nothing that can stop you” (58:23).

The Role of Community and Action

The panelists discussed the necessity of grassroots movements and community involvement to safeguard democracy.

Harry Dunn shared his personal journey from law enforcement to running for Congress, inspiring attendees to take actionable steps. He encouraged, “Find something that you're really passionate about. Find one thing. Get involved in that” (47:20).

Olivia Troy reinforced the power of collective action, saying, “You have to be in the fight to do it... We are being miked, right?... You have to think about this as asymmetrical warfare” (92:06).

Challenges and Strategies Against Authoritarianism

The town hall delved into strategies to combat the rising authoritarianism and misinformation spread by Trump and his allies.

Tara Setmayer warned about the chilling effects of Trump's administration actions, noting, “They are trying to instill fear. And that is the whole point of this” (67:29).

Michael Cohen discussed the manipulation of legal systems to suppress dissent, stating, “He is setting up a predicate to do even more than what he did to me... What banana republic are we talking about? The answer is we're talking about America” (70:34).

Audience Interaction

During the Q&A segment, audience members posed critical questions about media bias, legal challenges against the Trump administration, and strategies for political activism.

One notable exchange included a call for greater media literacy and support for independent news outlets to counteract misinformation. Don Lemon emphasized, “You have to support independent media because that's where you're going to get it from” (74:08).

Conclusion and Calls to Action

Jim Acosta closed the town hall with a heartfelt message of hope and resilience. He urged attendees to "hold on to the truth and hold on to hope," and encouraged everyone to "turn your flashlights on... don’t let that light go out" (104:20).

Olivia Troy added, “Every person you talk to matters because that one person may talk to five other people... Do not obey in advance” (107:29).

Harry Dunn concluded with a powerful call to action: “Do something. The only thing you can't do is nothing” (105:58).

Notable Quotes

• Jim Acosta: “We're not just voting in elections anymore. We're voting on whether the rule of law still matters” (27:29).
• Michael Cohen: “Donald Trump and the people who prop him up are exactly who the founders feared” (20:35).
• Don Lemon: “It is un American. This unpatriotic” (36:48).
• Olivia Troy: “You have to be prepared because if you can imagine they can do it, they could possibly do it” (57:03).
• Harry Dunn: “Courage is contagious. It’s very contagious” (78:41).

Final Thoughts

The Substack Town Hall emphasized the importance of unity, independent media, and active participation in preserving American democracy. The discussions highlighted the challenges posed by authoritarian leadership and the critical role of informed, courageous individuals in countering misinformation and safeguarding constitutional rights.

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Note: Timestamps correspond to points in the provided transcript and are enclosed in parentheses for reference.

Transcript

[Ed Sheeran]

It's, it's, it's, it's. Just let me sing to you. Let me just sing you. The club isn't best place to find the lovers of the bar is where I go Me and my friends at the table doing shots tripping fast and then we talk slow Come over and start up a conversation with just me and trust me I'll give it just now my hand stop the man on the jukebox and then we start dancing now singing like girl, you know.

[Jim Acosta]

It'S everybody still here. Thanks, everybody, for coming. It was probably about six or seven.

[Ed Sheeran]

Minutes.

[Jim Acosta]

But we may give the stragglers a few extra minutes. This is viewer. We don't ballet parking. I'm sorry. We try Eric, the manager said that's not possible. But we're gonna have a fun, fun time tonight. We have a great lineup. As you saw, Don Lemon was gracious enough to give up his time. He's going to be here, you know, he doesn't hold back. Of course. My partner friend, Michael Cohen is here, you know, and I've already. I've already heard some of his material and he's gonna knock it out of the park. Olivia Troy, Tara Sedra, she's walking in. Tara's walking in right now. Speaking about any partner. What's that? Yeah, I don't have to hold back anymore. So bring down the house lights. You can bring down the house lights.

[Don Lemon]

There you go.

[Jim Acosta]

Very good.

[Michael Cohen]

We're testing.

[Jim Acosta]

We're testing things. Michael Cohen certainly doesn't need a microphone.

[Michael Cohen]

No way.

[Jim Acosta]

Olivia Troy is here. I heard when Olivia. Harry.

[Ed Sheeran]

John.

[Jim Acosta]

So it's gonna be very exciting. Oh, gosh. We have a special because I know we have a lot of serious things to talk about. We're gonna get into the serious stuff. But my friend Matt. Friend is here.

[Don Lemon]

Social media.

[Jim Acosta]

You see, Matt, you know, he does a few impersonations. So we're having a lot of fun. And of course we're getting your questions and we're just going to kick back and enjoy. There's no, no stress here. If you feel like speaking out, let us know and we'll try to get a microphone to you and that'll be how it goes. I missed you. I wish to. I wish I could have brought you. But I was telling somebody earlier, if I let him lucid here, they would have called this the riot. Swat. Riot swap would have been called out. But no, this will be a lot of fun. And of course, I'll mention all this in the beginning. We're very appreciative of Substack. I know all of you are on substack. Friends, family, friends of them on the. On the ends. Okay? You're here to keep order, Keep everything in line. There's that. Yes. Pictures are fine. Sketches. Want a poster? I'm used to that.

[Michael Cohen]

No sketches. The woman who did me during the trial was terrible. I feel like I have, like this kind of roar.

[Ed Sheeran]

Last night you were in my room and now my bed sheets smell like you. Every day discovering something brand new. I'm in love with your body. I'm in love with your body. I'm in love with your body. I'm in love with your body Every day discovering something grand. I'm in love with the shape of. When we came, we let the story begin. We're going out on our first date. You and me are thrifty, so go all you can eat, fill up your bag and I fill up your plate. We talk for hours and hours about the sweet and the sour and how your family's doing. Okay. And even get in a taxi kissing the backseat tell the driver, make the radio play. And I'm singing like girl you know I want your love. Your love was handy for somebody like me. Coming now follow my lead. I may be crazy, don't mind me say boy, let's not talk too much. Wrap on my waist and put that body on me. Coming now follow my lead. Come and now follow my lead. I'm in love with the shape of you. Push and pull like a magnet Although my heart is falling too. I'm in love with your body. Last night you were in my room, now my bed sheets smell like you. Every day discovering something brand new. I'm in love with your body. I'm in love with your body. On Be my baby. Come on. I'm in love with the shape of you. Push and pull like a magnet Although my heart is falling to. I'm in love with your body. Last night you were in my room, now my bed she smell like you. Everything is covering something brand new. I'm in love with your body, my baby. We were reaching, reaching for the rafters and on most of the days we were searching for ways to get up and get out of the town. We were raised here cuz we were done. I remember we were sleeping in cars, we were searching for eyes. We were burning cigars with the white plastic tips till we saw the sun. We said crazy things like I refuse to look back thinking days were better days just because the younger days.

[Jim Acosta]

I.

[Ed Sheeran]

Don'T know what's around the corner Where I feel right now I swear will never change Back when we were kids and we're driving we're driving just to get out yeah we were swinging swinging from the rafters we were dancing cars we were looking for eyes we were naming the stars of the people.

[Michael Cohen]

And.

[Ed Sheeran]

We were saying things like I refuse to look back thinking days were better just because the younger days I don't know what's around the corner Where I feel right now I swear will never change Back when we were kids.

[Jim Acosta]

That'S.

[Ed Sheeran]

When we kept dancing changing all our plans Making every day a holiday.

[Jim Acosta]

Feel.

[Ed Sheeran]

You start running city lights the turning but something about this feels the same you to look back thinking days were better just because the longer days I He wakes up from the morning.

[Olivia Troy]

Does.

[Ed Sheeran]

His teeth bite to eat on these Rolling never changes I the week ends, the week begins she thinks we look at each other wondering what the other is thinking but we never say a thing but these crimes between us grow deeper Take these chances Place them.

[Jim Acosta]

Welcome, everybody. Thanks to everybody for coming out here tonight. I want to thank everybody at the Theater555 here in New York City. Thank you very much to Eric and all the great folks here, to our crew, to everybody behind the scenes who have been working very hard to put this production together for today. We're going to have a lot of fun here tonight. I was. I was just saying a few moments ago, this is. This is about you. This is about the audience. This is a town hall. We are going to have some folks up here to talk. In a few moments, we're going to have a discussion about everything that's been going on. It's been a little crazy, you might say. It's been a little strange, and it has been unsettling. I mean, I think we are all coming together at a very critical time in this country. I think it's not a stretch, it's not an exaggeration to say that our democracy is very much on the line. And as I talk about on my show on a number of occasions, I like to think about it not just as our democracy, but the American way of life, the way of life that we've all grown accustomed to over the years. For the younger folks in the audience, they may be like, what is he talking about? What's going on? But the older folks in the audience know exactly what I'm talking about. This amazing country that has been handed to us that we're now responsible for, and the question that we all have to ask ourselves is whether or not we're going to let this slip away. And I think everybody here understands exactly what I'm talking about. We have an amazing lineup of guests here tonight to talk about all of this. The one and only Michael Cohen is here. The incredible Don Lemon is here. We love Don. He's amazing. Olivia Troy is here. Tara Settmeier. Harry Dunn is here. You guys know who Harry Dunn is? And a little later, there's a certain comedian, I can't remember his name. He might be sitting in the audience. He tends to do some impersonations. Matt Friend is here as well. Although there's going to be a point in the, in the production where we're all going to pretend that Matt is not here and that this is just some other person. It'll all make sense, I think, when this goes down. But everybody, thank you so. And please give a round of applause for yourself for coming paid subscribers. We thank you. And also a quick shout out to substack. We are, as I understand it right now, I'm asking my producer, Matt, are we streaming? We're streaming live. We're live on the sub stack machine. You can see it. You can't see it. Are they. They're saying they can't see it or hear it? Nope. Do we have it? Do we think we have it? What do you think? We think it's up. We think it's up. So. So for folks at home. All right, well, give it time. Give it time. As I like to say, don't let the correspondent handle the equipment. Oh, is that. Oh, don't worry about that. That. That one right there, I believe that's Michael's. He's doing his own personal thing. All right. But without further ado, let's bring out the one, the only real, as he likes to put it, the real Michael Cohen. Michael, come on out, buddy. We're doing this. As Bill O'Reilly likes to say, we're doing it live. Michael is going to make some comments, make some remarks here. All right, let's listen in. Michael, here's a mic. Here's a mic.

[Michael Cohen]

Thanks.

[Jim Acosta]

There you go.

[Michael Cohen]

So good evening, everybody, and welcome to the no Fear tour. Now, before I say anything else, I want you to imagine something with me. Close your eyes if you need to, but go there with me. Imagine standing in a small room lit by candlelight. 1787. No microphones, no social media. Just ink stained hands, sweat on your brow, and a dream, a radical dream that people could govern themselves. Imagine Madison, Hamilton, Franklin, Jefferson, all of them sitting in the heat of a Philadelphia Summer. Arguing, debating, pushing back against the idea of unchecked power. They just broken free from a king, a tyrant, a man who believed that the government existed for him, not for the people. Now, I want you to imagine them stepping into this moment, right now, today, and seeing this America. What do you think that they would say? What would they feel, seeing a president stand before the American people not to unite, but to divide, to inflame, to lie? What would they say, this is what we built? Or would they ask, how did it come to this? Because make no mistake, they saw it coming. They may not have known what Twitter was, but they knew power. They knew how it corrupts. They knew that someday, someday someone would come along who didn't want to be bound by laws, who wouldn't just challenge the system, but try to destroy it. And they warned us, over and over and over again. They said, beware the man who wants more than the presidency. Beware the man who wants. Who wants the crown. So let me ask you something. Have you seen what a man like that looks like? Because I have. He's not wearing a robe. He's not sitting on a throne. He's flying in a private jet, hoarding classified documents, threatening judges, mocking veterans, and pretending that the law doesn't apply to him. He's turning the military against our own citizens. Remember that? When peaceful protesters were gassed in the street so that he could hold the Bible down like a prop. Does that sound like America? He cozies up to dictators into despots while trashing NATO, while insulting our allies, while alienating every nation that used to look to us for moral leadership. He threatens businesses. Say something I don't like and I'll destroy you. He pressures foreign countries. Help me win or I'll withhold your aid. He rewrites laws to shield himself. He attacks prosecutors. He intimidates witnesses. He claims out loud, out loud that he has total immunity. Now, let me ask you again. Does that sound like a president, or does it sound like a man who wants to be king? Because, my friends, when a president calls the press the enemy, when they demand loyalty not to the Constitution, not to the country, but to him, when they silence dissent, when they criminalize protests, when they purge institutions and sow distrust in every election that they don't win, that's not America. That's authoritarianism wrapped in a flag, carrying a Bible. And we need to stop pretending that this is normal. This is not just political theater. This is not left versus right. This is about right versus wrong. This is all about Whether we are still a nation of laws or a playground for the powerful. And here's the truth a lot of folks just don't want to say out loud. Donald Trump is not an anomaly. No, he is a culmination. He is the embodiment of every single fear that the Founding Fathers had when they wrote that fragile document that we call the Constitution. And he's not alone. He's surrounded by enablers, by lawmakers who once swore an oath and now kneel to a man, by media figures who trade truth for ratings, by billionaires who think that democracy is a nuisance. And I want to ask you something again, and I want you to answer this in your hearts. If Washington could stand here today, if Franklin could look you in the eyes, if Jefferson or Madison could read the headlines that we've all seen, what would you tell them? Would you say we let it happen? Would you say we didn't think it was our fight? Would you say it was easier to just look away? Or would you say we remembered what you built and we fought to keep it? Because we're not just voting in elections anymore. We're voting on whether the rule of law still matters. We're deciding whether the First Amendment still applies to the people or just to the powerful. We're deciding whether three branches of government can still hold each other accountable, or whether one man gets to burn the whole system down because he's afraid of accountability. So let me be absolutely clear. Donald Trump and the people who prop him up are exactly who the founders feared. They feared a man who would place himself above the people. They feared a man who would twist the military, the economy, foreign policy, and the law to serve himself, not the nation. They feared a man who would do it all, not for the good of America, but for the good of one man and a few who stand next to him to benefit. It took us nearly 250 years for someone like him to try. The only question now, the question our children and our grandchildren will one day ask us, what did we do when he did this? Did we stand up? Did we speak out? Did we fight like hell for this fragile experiment called democracy? Or did we let the crown slip back onto the head of a man who never deserved it? You know the answer. Now I want to know yours. And I want to thank you for joining us today. God bless you. And may we always, and I mean always, choose country over King.

[Jim Acosta]

Michael. That was absolutely spot on. Fantastic. Please have a seat. I. I want to start right there with that message that you had, Michael, and tell Me. What motivated you to write that down? What. Why did you decide to put those words to paper?

[Michael Cohen]

My children and God willing, one day grandchildren, and hopefully I live long enough to see great grandchildren. Because the country that we inherited from our parents and our grandparents, not the country that we're living in today. You know, we all just sit there sometimes and we say to ourselves, is this for real? Is this a dream? Right. When do I get to take my head out of the sand and realize this is where we are, this is what we are. This is what we are living with every single day. You wake up at 4:00 in the morning, 4:30 in the morning, as I do, and the chaos has already started. He's already posting. And what he's posting does not benefit a single person in this room. It doesn't benefit a single person in this country. And that's what we have to worry about every single day.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. And Michael, I mean, one of those things. And we're going to talk about that this evening. I mean, one of the things that we saw yesterday in the Oval Office, we saw the President talking about whether he can deport homegrowns. I'm sure you saw this. Which basically means US Citizens. And he said, well, you know, we're. I'm talking about an elderly woman who's hit over the head with a baseball bat or somebody who's pushed in front of the subway. First of all, I don't know, why does he have these violent thoughts in his head? What is going on in his head where he has these thoughts? It's very strange and it's very disturbing.

[Michael Cohen]

I mean, Jim and I spoke about that on Michael Monday.

[Jim Acosta]

Michael Mundy.

[Michael Cohen]

There you go. So I hope everybody tunes in.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Michael Cohen]

And I said we would talk about this. Everything is so violent. It's like being pushed into a. Into in front of a train and being hit in the back of the head. Not even the front of the head, but the back of the head. Right. With a baseball bat.

[Jim Acosta]

And you say to yourself, too many Al Capone movies.

[Michael Cohen]

I think you think it's like the Untouchables. It, it's like enthusiasm, Enthusiasm. Maybe because he hates Robert Dairo so much. I don't know.

[Jim Acosta]

Oh, that's it. I think you hit on it. Bobby. Bobby De Niro's pissed him off.

[Michael Cohen]

Bobby De Niro.

[Jim Acosta]

Bobby De Niro. I don't know. We'll see. We'll see if Matt could do that. But, but Michael. No. And we always love having Michael on Michael. Mondays on the Show. It's always great to have, and it's. But, I mean, Michael, you lived through this. You worked. You were Donald Trump's fixer for how many years? 15 years?

[Michael Cohen]

Almost a decade and.

[Jim Acosta]

Almost a decade and a half. And the man that you're seeing up there, do you recognize that man?

[Michael Cohen]

No. And I say this to a lot of people. Remember when I was the executive vice president and special counsel to Trump was real estate. That's really what it was, real estate. Nothing that we did had any effect upon virtually anybody in this room, had almost no effect on anybody in the country. All right? So there were some unions that we had to deal with, there were some contractors that weren't going to get paid, I hate to say it, New York real estate. The Donald Trump that I see today does not resemble the Donald Trump that I knew. He was always difficult, man, don't get me wrong, but he's not the same. He has become the worst version of himself imaginable and then some.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah, yeah. He thinks he's a king and somehow. What, Ordained by God? I don't know what. All right, Another person we have here tonight, I mean, who. Who needs no introduction, but we all love him. We hold him dear to our hearts. The great Don Lemon is here. The amazing Don Lemon.

[Michael Cohen]

He stole my look.

[Don Lemon]

No, you stole my look. You stole my look with the hoodie, if anybody remembers. Hoodie gate. You stole my look. Hi, everyone. How are you? Good to see you.

[Jim Acosta]

And Michael. Michael, Don. We've watched Don for so many years on TV. He's now on YouTube and now just coming to substack.

[Don Lemon]

Yeah.

[Jim Acosta]

And everybody needs to watch Don show on substack. But, Don, I mean. Exactly.

[Matt Friend]

Another.

[Jim Acosta]

Another. APPLAUSE no, but Don, Michael and I were just talking about this moment that we're in right now, and you've covered Donald Trump so many times over the years, you've incurred his wrath. He's gone after you. Who is this guy that we're seeing right now? He's. He's out of control, isn't he?

[Don Lemon]

Well, he is, but he's a person that we always knew that he could be and that you always knew that he could be. Is it. Is it surprising to me that he's doing what he's doing? No. It's not surprising. Is it disappointing? Yes. I'm disappointed that our country chose to do what it did in November of last year. But am I surprised? No. And I think when people are surprised by it when. When they hit the FAFO moment, like a lot of sadly and I don't wish, you know, ill upon anyone. A lot of the farmers now who are, who supported the president and now they come on the show and they said, you know, I don't know what he's doing. I thought he wouldn't do it to me. Or people who are in business who, who are now saying, I can't, you know, my business is not, the tariffs are not sustainable. I won't be able to, you know, have a business if this continues. And so, yeah, they found out. But we knew this was going to happen.

[Jim Acosta]

Well, absolutely. And these terrorists, I mean, I've talked about this on my show and you know, I've been to a gazillion Trump rallies and almost all of them are within five miles, a five mile radius of a Walmart. And where are most of those products made and manufactured? In China. So, you know, he, he has this knack for screwing over, by the way.

[Michael Cohen]

Including his own ties, the hats, and all of the merchandise that they're actually selling.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah, but Don, I think you hit on something that's exactly right. And, and that is, does he, does he actually care about these people?

[Don Lemon]

No, of course he doesn't. I mean, you know, you knew him well, I'm a New Yorker. You're a New Yorker. You knew him. When he wants to be a celebrity, he loves hanging out with celebrities. He'd rather be hanging out at a party or at the Met Ball or at, you know, the, the Vanity Fair party for the Oscars than going to a rally in, you know, somewhere in the middle of the country.

[Jim Acosta]

Going to a UFC fight.

[Don Lemon]

Going to a UFC fight.

[Jim Acosta]

But maybe not shaking Cheryl Hines hand. Did you see that?

[Don Lemon]

I did, I did. That was bad.

[Jim Acosta]

Awkward. That was awkward.

[Don Lemon]

Very awkward. But he'd much rather be doing that. But also he also likes to be in a place where there's adulation and people are screaming his name and applauding. So we get. I was surprised being a New Yorker and I was like, this guy, this guy's a clown. Yeah, this guy is, you know, did anyone believe that he was actually the businessman that he was portrayed to be on Celebrity Apprentice? By the way, I can say that I'm maybe the only person in this room. I'm not sure. I've never seen one episode of Celebrity Apprentice. Not my thing. I've never been a fan of Donald Trump's ever. You know, I happen to be a Christian and, and I believe in certain values. I don't believe that you should be, you know, you can do what you want if you have an agreement with your wife, but to be cheating on your wife and you have that many babies, mamas, and you're going to pretend that you're a big Christian and all those things, to me, that's just very surprising and disappointing. So I've never really been a fan of Donald Trump's, not even.

[Jim Acosta]

Is that why the Bible was upside down? He was reading it backwards.

[Don Lemon]

That's why the Bible is upside down. This is something New Corinthians. But do you remember, do you remember that day, Jim? I think you were, you, were you covered that day? That was one of the most surreal days. There were two days during COVID and during the George Floyd, the, the unrest, Spring and summer of 20. Oh, yeah, that got me. Was that day when he gassed the protesters in front of the White House. And then when the country was, I, it felt like it was burning down one day because there were fires and there was up unrest and in L. A and then in Philadelphia and D.C. and New York. And I just felt like, oh, my gosh, the world is kind of coming to an end. What the hell is happening? And what a time, what a terrible time for it to happen when we had such poor leadership in the White House.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah, no, there's no question about it. And Don, I'm wondering what your take is. We were just talking about this with Michael a little bit. When Trump is in the Oval Office and he's saying, I'm going to, I'm going to go after the homegrowns next. I mean that to me, I was looking at my New York Times app, my Washington Post app. I was looking at all the major newspapers, the news networks and so on. To me, this should have been front page news. And I know you used to host a show on CNN. You still host a show on YouTube now. You have excellent, impeccable news judgment, editorial judgment. It just seems to me that should be the front page, that should be leading the news.

[Don Lemon]

That should be the front page. It should be leading and it should not be deemed as normal. I find too much when I, when I do tune in to, to, you know, corporate media now or corporate news, that everything is sort of normalized. Like you have to sit there and pretend like you got to go along with it. You got to go, so what happened today with the president? The president said that it was such and such. Instead of just saying, oh, my God, this is ridiculous. The president just said that he wants to imprison American citizens. This is outrageous. You should not have someone on this side going, yes, but Mr. Trump, I love him. And he should be doing. It's like, no, it is outrageous.

[Harry Dunn]

It is.

[Don Lemon]

It is un American. This unpatriotic. I don't need some MAGA sycophant like, making excuses for Donald Trump because it's un American.

[Jim Acosta]

It's un American.

[Michael Cohen]

They are the ones that I constantly refer to as the enablers. And the real thing that people have to fully understand is when he refers to the press, is the enemy of the state. You and. You and I, unfortunately, once again, are now his enemies. And these are the individuals that if you don't capitulate to his wishes and wants, which nobody knows what they are because he doesn't tell you, but if he doesn't like what you say or what you do now, you become a target. And as I said in my opening, he'll destroy you. And he has the full power of the Department of Justice. He has basically now placed every single lever of power in a position to do exactly what he said. When you can get ABC to cough up $16 million, but here's when you can go ahead and you can now try to shut down CBS by pulling their FCC license when you could turn around, Michael, that's because they're.

[Don Lemon]

That's because they're capitulating. If they didn't capitulate, it would not happen. And you of all people should know. It never pays you to capitulate. It never pays you to go along. In the end, you will always pay for it. You will always regret it.

[Michael Cohen]

Look, we do have to live right now in today, when you see the six or seven biggest law firms in the world to the tune of almost $1 billion of free legal work, I want you to think about that number for a second. A billion dollars he created out of nothing simply by turning around and telling him, I will not allow your lawyers to enter a federal courthouse. Imagine. Imagine the twisted thinking that a person has to come up with in order to figure out, how am I going to keep a member of the bar out of a government building? Simply because I don't like the fact that you came after me. I don't like the fact that you went after January 6th insurrectionists, not defendants, and so on and so forth. So when I say that they're capitulating, they are. And that's where the no Fear tour takes off. Because the only way for us to defeat these individuals, the only way is to vote them out of office. Vote the bastards out.

[Don Lemon]

Yeah. But also, again, to your point, you've got to Stand together. Everyone has to stand together. The law firm should be standing together. The law firm should be saying, if you won't represent. I'm sorry, we're not going to represent him, but we'll represent you. Because part of it, part of being. You take an oath, right, as an attorney, just like you take an oath as a doctor to what you always protect. You have to protect the law, you protect the profession, you protect the patient, you protect the client. They're not doing that. They're looking after their own bottom line. Right?

[Michael Cohen]

Right.

[Don Lemon]

So again, to the point that I was trying to make is that it never pays to capitulate to Donald Trump. You will always. And not just Donald Trump, but any fascist. And today on my show, I read the definition of fascism, and what Donald Trump is doing fits into that definition. So we should not be afraid to call a thing a thing. The other thing is that what people have to realize, and this is a big thing for me, so please let me get this out. Especially when it comes to the media, I think we need to be. We should, we have to teach Americans, teach people to become more media literate. What Donald Trump does is a show every single day. You have to realize from morning until the end till midnight. It's a show that is produced like a, like a television show every single day. And so when, when in the pretty shitty one, but. Yeah, pretty shitty one in the morning, they, you know, they, they give the message on Fox and Friends and then they carry it all throughout the day on Fox News. And then they carry it on, on conservative radio throughout the day saying the same talking points. Then Caroline Levitt goes into the briefing room, she yells at the reporter, she.

[Jim Acosta]

Does something you guys don't like. Caroline Levitt is it?

[Don Lemon]

They, they cover it, right?

[Michael Cohen]

Come on, you don't like bullshit Barbie.

[Don Lemon]

But really, real quick, let me finish. They cover it and then they get to spin the news cycle. What he's doing all day is spinning the news cycle. Then he invites people in for the photo op in the afternoon, which he does not have to do. The news doesn't come from the press briefing room. Usually it comes from reporters who are digging behind the scenes. And so then he yells at a reporter, then that gets news. So they pick up the superfluous stuff and not the actual shit that they're doing behind the scenes. It is a show and people have to stop falling for it. And I tell the people at the end of my stream, I'm coming to an end. At the end of my streams, I do two streams every day on YouTube, one at. And, and I do a couple on substack. One at 10am in the morning, one at 5pm and every single time I tell them at the end, the last thing I say is turn the TV off.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah, yeah, there you go.

[Don Lemon]

And that's.

[Matt Friend]

I love it.

[Jim Acosta]

I love it. You're right. And, and, you know, I mean, the thing TV show that Trump tries to produce every day he is trying to gain more and more control over it. I don't know if you guys saw the news. Just as we were coming into this great theater tonight, Trump is not only trying to ban the Associated Press, he wants to ban all wire services from coming into the Oval Office, coming into those small private settings with him where they cover him. And we saw this, credentials, they took my press credentials and we saw this take place just the other day when he had Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office. You guys remember when he had Zelensky in the Oval Office, they banned the ap. They tried to keep Reuters out of the Oval Office. That. You guys know who that is. As a matter of fact, they tried to allow Tass, the Russian news service into the Oval Office that day. Some of the other White House reporters heard about this. They called bullshit on it. They didn't get in. But you know who did get in? Marjorie Taylor Greene's boyfriend. This guy named, I think his name is Brian Glenn, but he's more famous. He's more known as Marjorie Taylor Greene's boyfriend. So his resume is Dairy Queen. And then Marjorie Taylor Greene's boyfriend, suit guy who asks Zelensky, why aren't you wearing a suit? What did we see in the Oval Office yesterday? President Gulag from El Salvador without a necktie. Not wearing a neck. I guess it was kind of a suit.

[Don Lemon]

But.

[Jim Acosta]

And then, and then Kid Rock was in there the other day and that was definitely.

[Michael Cohen]

He looked like a clown that just got shot out of a cannon. I mean, you want to talk about the disrespect, respect to the Oval Office today, today in the Oval Office today, they turned around and they had a conversation with an individual from the Washington reporter. And if none of you know who the Washington reporter is, it's because they opened up about a week ago and they have no credibility. Some crazy right wing. Right, right, right wing paper. First question going to this. Welcome to now the briefing room with Caroline Levitt. He asked a question. Oh, my God, that's a wonderful question. Thank you for asking it. Yeah, it's a wonderful question because she wrote it.

[Don Lemon]

Wrote it.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. Well, and Don brings up a good point. They did take my press pass away. And it was cited in the Associated Press case against the Trump administration officials who kicked them out of the Oval Office. And we're now in a fight for the free press. And even though a judge has already come out and said, you have to let the Associated Press back in, Trump is thumbing his nose at the courts just like he's doing in this immigration case.

[Don Lemon]

Ask you something about that and then.

[Jim Acosta]

We'Re going to bring it. We're going to get to questions in just a moment. Hang on to that question.

[Don Lemon]

Okay, okay, hold on, hang on. I want to ask you this. They're going to do it. The difference is which. I'm trying to make the point that when you were talking about it, the difference is, is that we had people who stood up for us in the news business business. We had bosses who said, no, you're going to give Jim his press passes back. We're going to take you to court and we're going to sue you. And we're not. That's a very good point.

[Jim Acosta]

No, and. And the other news organizations should refuse to go into the Oval Office and take Donald Trump's picture.

[Michael Cohen]

Exactly.

[Jim Acosta]

That's what he wants more than anything else. He wants the cameras to come in to take his picture. The other networks, the other news organizations need to say no. We're standing behind our friends in the press. All right, next segment of the program. Hold that thought. Hold that thought, because I want to bring in. I know we're going to come to you, I promise. I'm going to bring in our next.

[Don Lemon]

I like your passion, Olivia.

[Jim Acosta]

Troy Teraset. Mayor Harry Dunn, come on out. How are you, my dear? Captain America himself, Harry Dunn. Olivia, we hugged earlier.

[Don Lemon]

Such a little guy.

[Jim Acosta]

Great to see all of you, everybody. Subscribe and follow to all of their podcasts and all of their. And Tara's with the Seneca Project need to pay close attention to that. She's doing very important work there. Olivia writes an amazing sub stack, breaking down what's happening in the Trump administration every day. And Harry, he does his own podcast, so you got to watch Harry. And I mean, Harry's been an amazing inspiration to me because I remember, honestly, a round of applause for our heroes from January 6th and our law enforcement community. But, Harry, I mean, one of the things that I wanted to talk to you about is I remember talking to you after Trump got back in the White House, and I talked to you and Mike Fanone and you were not in a good place. You were not in a happy place. There's no question about it. But what I love about you, Harry, is that you have take. You've taken, I should say, being pissed off, and you put it into action, which is what a lot of Americans are doing right now. But you kind of started leading the way.

[Michael Cohen]

I feel like that's what heroes do.

[Jim Acosta]

That's what heroes do. Thank you.

[Harry Dunn]

No, you're absolutely right. Turn that anger into something meaningful, something tangible, something that you can actually stand on and say, I'm doing some work. I quit the capitol police after 16 years of service. And three years after the attack on the Capitol, I stood there and I served my country, and I realized I did all that I can do as an officer.

[Jim Acosta]

We.

[Harry Dunn]

I. I need to step into another role. The country needs me, right? So I quit my job and ran for Congress. Like, that's nuts. Now, I'm not encouraging people to go, quit your job and run for Congress, like, it's kind of nuts to do what you think about it and keep.

[Jim Acosta]

Running, Harry, you know what? Barack Obama didn't win the first time when he ran for Congress. So how that turned out, I appreciate that.

[Harry Dunn]

And I haven't ruled out running again. I mean, it's no secret I haven't ruled out running again. But I want to be helpful, I want to be useful, and I want to do what best serves the country, the purpose. This moment that we're in right now. Donald Trump has led me to this moment. He took away my career. He took away. He's taken away our democracy. He's taken away the things that. That I've stood up for, my father stood up for as a veteran in the. In the Air Force, that my grandfather, all of our ancestors, that he's taken away all of that, and it's worth fighting for, not just typing some angry tweet on Twitter. Do something that actually tangible. There's so much going on right now. A lot of people are, what can I do? How can I be. There's so many fires to put out. And I always tell people, find something that you're really passionate about. Find one thing. Get involved in that. Veterans Affairs, LGBTQ +, Social Security, Medicare, healthcare. It's so many things that you can be involved in that they're trying to dismantle. So I'm just trying to find my lane. And whether that's inspiring people or just continuing to speak out and fight for accountability even after January 6, after all that, I'm just going to Keep showing up.

[Jim Acosta]

Thank you for that, Harry. Thank you. Thank you for what you do. And Tara, you've been. Tara, you've been working on behalf of women. I mean, you have been trying to lead this new crusade among women. And I know that that's. I mean, one of the things that's been happening over the last several months. I feel like there are a lot of women who are very depressed about the outcome of the 2024 election. They said, you know, our reproductive rights were taken away. A lot of women thought that should have been a motivating factor. Enough of a motivating factor to win the last election. You had a female candidate and Kamala Harris, a very excellent, distinguished, prepared, ready to go type of leader. And she. She didn't quite get there.

[Michael Cohen]

So I would like to ask Tara.

[Matt Friend]

Yeah.

[Michael Cohen]

What did they do wrong? What did the dc. We can't just sit back and say, sure, sure, you know, you know, it happens. No. 77 million people fell for the conversation. And the question that I'd love to know, after the Dobbs decision, after the attacks on women's reproductive rights, on attack on everybody, what did the Democrats do wrong that they actually need to do right in 2016, 2026?

[Olivia Troy]

Well, I. I think first, Jim, thank you for having me. And it's a pleasure to be here with everyone and. And on stage fighting the good fight with fellow democracy defenders, heroes like Harry and Olivia, who have, at great risk, spoken out. My substack is called Uncompromised because there are so many people who have compromised themselves in this moment and no one on this stage has. And Jim and Don, you guys were in the media space, very influential for me in making that decision, that those of us who have remained uncompromised in our fight for democracy and for what's right and for decency and for what makes this country great. I think it's important that we're all supported and that the American people know that there are people who are still out here that are willing to do what's right and say what's right and not compromise themselves for attention, for money, for proximity to power. Because we've all seen people who have made those decisions. And that's why we're in the moment, in the. In the position we're in as a country, because so many people have made a decision. Decision to compromise. So just wanted to say that.

[Don Lemon]

Can I say something about you before you respond?

[Olivia Troy]

Sure. Don't be able to stop a minute.

[Don Lemon]

I just wanted to say Tara is one of the Bravest women I know because Tara was a former Republican and she has been standing on business since I. Since Donald Trump hit the scene and fighting for women and for people of color and for LGBTQ people. She said, I became a Republican because I believe in small government. Right. There were certain things she's not always agreed with the Republican Party, but when I saw you stand up to this sort of tyranny, it gave me even more respect for you. So I just wanted to say that.

[Olivia Troy]

Thank you.

[Jim Acosta]

And Tara used to lead a college Republican group.

[Olivia Troy]

Yeah. I was vice chairman of the College Republicans at George Washington University many, many moons ago when the Republican Party was sane.

[Tara Setmayer]

I was there, too. Don't.

[Olivia Troy]

Yes, Olivia too.

[Jim Acosta]

We're getting to you, Olivia.

[Olivia Troy]

We're getting phase. And Don gave me my first big shot on cable news at cnn and I'm forever grateful to him for doing that back in 2015. And we've all been in this fight together for a very long time. The election, you know, people. Well, I say this a lot of time often that cognitive dissonance is a hell of a drug and people have been voting against their own interests. It's not just women. Many demographics for decades. And there's a lot of factors that go into that. And I think it's bigger what the reasons why people chose Donald Trump again is a lot bigger than just what Democrats did wrong, where there are plenty of things that Democrats did wrong. Sure. But it's bigger than that. We have a societal problem where integrity doesn't matter, facts don't matter. You still have misogyny. The patriarchy is alive and well, whether people want to acknowledge it or not. And there's also a lot of women who are. Who buy into a lot of those storylines and think that, you know, they're attracted to different things that are against their own interests. And yes, Dobbs should have been the wake up call. And it was in 2022. We saw what happened in the midterms there. And down ballot women in their home states voted to codify reproductive rights and freedoms. But at the national level, I think there was a failure on the part of, frankly, the media. And I know you guys had talked about that a little bit before we came out in emphasizing that Donald Trump was full of shit when he said, oh, I'm not. I'm not for an abortion ban. Don't believe that. Or he doesn't believe in Project 2025. Who? What? I don't know. Those people, 120 of them that worked for him were authors of it what they all he coffee boy, the entire project, 2025 authors. And they didn't really push him on it. So we saw in polling, in research that women were concerned about some of the other things, but not that because they were like, well, they seem to separate the reproductive issue from that. That's a failure in messaging. On the other side, that's where Democrats failed because they took it for granted that women were just going to be out raged about losing their constitutional rights to, you know, bodily autonomy and that, you know, they would just accept that. And that wasn't true. And so for the Seneca Project, when my co founder Michelle Kinney and I decided to start it last year, exactly a year ago today I think, or tomorrow, we said, listen, you know, we've got to speak to women, not at them because there are a lot of people who are just speaking at women or around them. We just, just as women, speak to women about what's at stake and why it matters. And we tried, we tried very hard. We put out, you know, we're a content organization and we put out a lot of hard hitting content, including our ad at the end, American Girl. I don't know if many of you have seen that ad. It's nominated for a Webby. So please vote for us. We're very proud of that.

[Jim Acosta]

Have a great new ad out now.

[Olivia Troy]

And we have a new ad out now because since Trump on the terrorists. Correct. And we were trying to think about what we're going to call it because speaking of where the Democrats failed, I'll give you an example. Yes, I was a Republican for many years and I trained in the political communication space about how to beat Democrats. And one of the things is that you have to stay on offense, constantly on offense. You never take your foot off the gas. And Democrats were on defense a lot. And I'm sure all of you remember the Kamala Harris is for they them, Trump is for you. So we at Seneca Project turn that around because I said that's bullshit. Because we all know that Trump isn't for anybody but himself or his billionaire buddies. And so we turn that around and we have a new ad coming out tomorrow. I think we're going to call it the Prologarchy, but we're not sure yet. But it's about, yeah like the billionaire broligarchy because that's who's basically running Donald Trump and who he cares about. He doesn't care about any of you. He doesn't even care about his own MAGA people. And we turn around the they. Them ad. Donald Trump isn't for you, he's for them. And the them is his billionaire buddies.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. So that is very effective because it shows the video. You saw this.

[Olivia Troy]

Jim got a sneak peek.

[Jim Acosta]

I got a sneak peek of this earlier today.

[Michael Cohen]

I didn't get a sneak peek.

[Jim Acosta]

Wait, Michael, you're not on the signal chat. Oh, sorry, Sore subject.

[Don Lemon]

I was invited to the signal chat. You let me in there by accident today. Just call me Jeffrey.

[Jim Acosta]

Don was in the parking lot of a Safeway and the strikes are coming in now.

[Michael Cohen]

Just call me John Baron.

[Olivia Troy]

Yeah, you and Robert Bara, right? What was his name?

[Jim Acosta]

But, but speaking of national security, Olivia Troy was the national security adviser for former Vice President Mike Pence or for the Vice president when he was vice president. And you had the. This front row seat to all of this craziness and you had to have been thinking, there's no way America would do this again. Or did you think?

[Tara Setmayer]

I, you know, I hoped. I hoped. But I have seen this machine firsthand and I know how effective they are at messaging. And to get to Tara's point, I think what's happening is that we are losing the information war. We're losing the information war when it comes to getting truth out to the American people. And that is critical. And that is why I'm grateful that you all are in the audience. And that's why it's important to support independent media voices who are willing to speak very honestly and truthfully.

[Michael Cohen]

You know, when you turn around and you start thinking about an app like Substack to take what Olivia is saying, we're in a situation where there's nothing but misinformation, disinformation, malinformation coming from that right wing ecosphere. And they are not good. They're great at it. In 2016, 2015, when Trump started the first campaign, every Single day before 7am, every single person on the list, and that list was a thousand people long, everyone was given what's called Talking Points Memo, the Trump Talking Points memoir. And every single person had to use the same lines or some derivative thereof.

[Tara Setmayer]

This is true. I was on that district like style.

[Jim Acosta]

You guys used to leak them to me. Thank you.

[Michael Cohen]

But anyway, like, hey, you know Stalin? That was on Signal Gate too. Oh, that was a. Yeah, like Stalin. The more you repeat the lie, the more the lie becomes the truth. And that's what ultimately happened. He bullshitted his way back into the White House with lies, misinformation, and disinformation. And that's what Olivia is Sitting, talking. That's what Seneca Project is fighting. That's what Jim and I and Don and Harry, what we're trying to do is to build a community so freaking big that there's nothing that can stop you. Do you remember during the mortgage crisis, they said, how come nobody, with the trillion dollars that was lost, not one bigwig ended up accountable for a single dollar of loss? And the reason that they gave. Too big to fail. We as a community need to be so big that when we show up, the voice is so big that they tremble. That we can change the outcome of elections by being together, not having different thoughts, different, different paths. Stay on the same message. Use the same message over and over and over again. Because for whatever the reason is, there is a segment of this country.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Michael Cohen]

They talk in sound bites and bumper stickers. Three words. Locker up. Build the wall. Right. Gasoline and groceries.

[Jim Acosta]

Drill, baby, drill.

[Michael Cohen]

Drill, baby, drill. Everything with Trump is three words, and you can't stop.

[Jim Acosta]

I call him the C and say president. You remember that toy when we were growing up? You pull the string. This is a tariff. You know, that's, That's. That's basically what he does now.

[Michael Cohen]

I didn't have toilet choice.

[Jim Acosta]

Oh, sorry. But you're rich. Yeah, exactly. No, you're absolutely right, Michael. And independent media is so important. Yes, ma'am.

[Michael Cohen]

Yes.

[Jim Acosta]

Well, no, no, I was about to bring it back to Olivia. I was going to bring it back to Olivia because. And first of all, I want to mention.

[Michael Cohen]

Sorry, Mom.

[Jim Acosta]

No, I want to echo what Michael was saying, though, about independent media and voices like Olivia. If you're not, you're probably all following Olivia because she has a very healthy following on Substack. But, Olivia, you have been speaking out, and I think one of the reasons why it's so important that you've been speaking out is that you know these Trump folks and you know them well, and you know that by speaking out, your. Your sort of Persona non grata to be diplomatic about.

[Olivia Troy]

Well, not sort of.

[Jim Acosta]

Not sort of very much so. And it comes. It comes with a risk. It comes.

[Michael Cohen]

You know what I'd like to ask Olivia? I'd like to ask Olivia, with the recent comments made by Trump and the DOJ about Chris Krebs and Miles Taylor, I'd like to get. Because she knows them well, like, really well, and she's an author herself.

[Tara Setmayer]

Yeah, they're. These people are my friends, and they're also fellow national security professionals and patriots, and they are people who really, quite honestly held the line. The first Trump Turn, there are people that, you know, regardless of what you may think of their politics, I just, I want you to truly understand that they were people that you wanted there in that moment, the kinds of people that are no longer there today. And that was my biggest fear going into this election, was the type of people that would be running the country the second time around if he got back into the Oval Office.

[Jim Acosta]

And we saw that in the oval Office yesterday with Stephen Miller. I mean, Trump was basically being led around by Stephen Miller.

[Tara Setmayer]

Yes.

[Jim Acosta]

During that whole dog and pony show, Tara. And it was downright chilling to hear Trump talk about going after homegrown U. S. Citizens and sending them off to some gulag in El Salvador.

[Olivia Troy]

The biggest thing that we need to be careful that we don't do is have lack of imagination. Okay. If you can imagine they can do it, they could possibly do it. You need to be prepared for that. Actually, my last substack was about this. It was called, I said, wake up, Donald Trump is coming for Americans next. And he said it. I don't know why. Here we are 10 years later that people don't believe Donald Trump when he says things. He's floating the idea. He said it more than once and now he's saying it from the Oval Office in front of a dictator who didn't wear a suit. So I, I'm, I'm like, why isn't this. And I think you guys said this earlier tonight, why this should be blaring across every major news channel. Donald Trump is threatening to send American citizens to a gulag in El Salvador where Erik Prince is going to build extra, you know, paramilitary facilities and get more gazillionaire, you know, dollars from American taxpayers to enslave American citizens against the Constitution because it's not constitutional to do this. So either we believe in the constitution or we don't. And that's the cut. Those are the kinds of tough questions that we need to be asking and challenging Republicans because they're the ones who are the collaborators. Democrats get it, they need to fight. But it's the Republicans who did this to us.

[Harry Dunn]

But also a lot of people, a lot of people have talked about the courts are going to be our fail safe, Right? They're not. They're openly defying them right now as we speak. Like literally as we speak right now. They are. Donald Trump has refused to listen to the supreme Court to bring home the, the person wrongfully. The Maryland man wrongfully sent to Kilmar.

[Jim Acosta]

Yes, Kilmar Alberto Garcia. He's openly sent To El Salvador. Not lawful. To send him to El Salvador wasn't legal. And now the Trump administration, the White House is saying, Trump is saying, all these people are saying, oh, we can't bring it back. That's up to El Salvador.

[Olivia Troy]

That's because somebody there that was inside the White House, in the press corps that was asking questions, let that man get away with calling him terrorists, which he was not. And when he said, well, I can't bring him back. Yes, you can. You already brought 10 people back. They're choosing not to bring this one back. Which concerns me about his proof of life.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Harry Dunn]

And that's why, I think that's why we have to support the people on the Democratic side that are actually fighting. There's a yes. Cory Booker and Chris Van Hollen.

[Olivia Troy]

Jasmine Crockett.

[Harry Dunn]

Jasmine Crockett. They're literally actively right now working the charter trip down to Venezuela to make sure that he is okay. El Salvador. Excuse me. To make sure that they are okay. But also real quick, and I'll say the only thing that's going to stop this right now, it's not a, it's not a Supreme Court ruling, it's not a judge. It's moral courage from somebody on the Republican side. The Democrats are showing up. So that's how we stop this. Somebody's showing up that has moral courage, and that's lacking right now.

[Olivia Troy]

You know how you do that? Because no one's going to save us but us and the importance of all of us coming together and putting pressure. That's why the town halls matter. The marches matter, the protests matter. The phone calls you make to their offices, they matter when you flood the zone in reverse. Right. You use the same muzzle velocity against them. Don't let them co op the tactics. Don't let them co op patriotism. Don't let them co opt what it means to be America. You turn it around and put it right back in their faces and you challeng challenge them because they're banking on intimidating all of us. That's why Donald Trump is going after. That's what all of the, the institutions that protect our rights.

[Jim Acosta]

That's why we're calling tonight. No fear. That's why we're calling tonight. No, that's right, Don. You wanted to make a point.

[Don Lemon]

I want to make a point. I just want to hear assistant, this thing on here. I want to hear from Olivia. You're the only one who worked in the administration who's sitting on this stage right now. So you're sort of, you're on the inside, on the outside looking in. Do you understand what I'm saying? So at this moment, for you, offer us something, some advice, especially to the folks who are out here. What have you been thinking? Because I know you're thinking differently than any of us. You worked for him, but she actually worked in the administration.

[Tara Setmayer]

Yeah, I think. I think what I worry about is that I think we need to be very strategic about the fact that every move they make is tied to their greater picture. And it's very easy for us to go down the rabbit hole on each thing, but we need to be paying attention to those details. But we need to also remember. I'm sorry, what Was that? Well, 100%, 20, 25 is being implemented. And actually, like I talk about in my substacks, you can go to the issue that you care about, literally go to that playbook, and you will see what's coming next. I mean, it is all laid out there and it is.

[Olivia Troy]

Told us.

[Tara Setmayer]

They told you. Yes, they told you. But I'll say this. I think what worries me is that they. They know exactly what they're doing, because what I'm seeing in the media, what I'm seeing with law firms, what they're doing there, and they're using the immigration issue because they know that that was the issue that they want on. If you want to talk about what Democrats did wrong, we can have that debate later. That was a big issue. And I don't blame Kamala Harris for that, because I think she was an excellent candidate. She needed to just be supported by a machine that was behind her back to be very clear about that. And I say that as someone who spent my lifelong Republicanism. So.

[Jim Acosta]

But you can say whatever you want.

[Tara Setmayer]

The chilling effect. The chilling effect is real. And since this is the no fear moment, they are trying to instill fear. And that is the whole point of this. So when you look at what's happening in this situation with this man that we may never see again, that is what's going through my head right now is I don't. I don't think he's ever going to see his family again.

[Jim Acosta]

And. And this is a man who has a son with autism. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.

[Tara Setmayer]

And so I think about that. But they're doing that because this is an issue that they believe that they're winning on. But they're also laying the groundwork. So when they do the executive orders on Miles Taylor and Chris Krabs, that's the chilling effect for people in government, for people saying Keep your head down, because we are going to make an example of these people, because this is what's coming to you. And what they're also doing is the fear of. When he says homegrown, I take that different ways because I also. They've already used terrorism for the people on college campuses. They're using that term very loosely. Donald Trump uses treason very loosely. He uses traitors loosely. These are all terms that are not policy terms. These are extreme words that are being used about to label people. And I think that's something that we need to think about, because that is to institute fear, and that's what dictators do. And so they want you to fear of what's happening if you show up to a protest, they want you to fear of what's going to happen to you. And so that's why I keep showing up, and that's why I'm going to stand by Jim Gon all of these people on the stage, because I don't want you to feel that fear. I think that is important. You got to stand by each other, and it's going to get scary. It's only going to get worse.

[Michael Cohen]

You know, what he's doing is creating litmus tests every single day. And I know it because of all of us here on the stage. I was the first litmus test when I was unconstitutionally remanded back to OSIL because I refused to wave my First Amendment constitutional right in a counterfeit document that they prepared for me so as to stifle my ability to put out my first book. Why? I don't know. Trump decided it wasn't going to be flattering to him. He didn't want it, and so they did it. Now, I was very fortunate. I had a federal court judge, Alvin K. Hellerstein, who actually ruled that it was retaliatory. And he. He enjoined. He enjoined the administration from further interfering with my constitutional rights. You think about this stuff and you say, what banana republic are we talking about? And the answer is we're talking about America. So when he turns around and he says to somebody like a Miles Taylor, who I've gotten to know and like, and Chris Krebs, that this is treason. Understand what he's doing. He's setting up a predicate to do even more than what he did to me. Does everybody know here what the. What the penalty for treason is in this country?

[Olivia Troy]

Yeah, it's death.

[Michael Cohen]

It's death, all right. And Trump, you may have heard him say going back years ago, that one of the Things that he thinks we should do is bring back public executions. And you say what I mean, and this is somebody. Yeah, that's. You know what? I like that idea. I'm gonna. I want to be part of that 77 million dopes that decided to vote for the guy. All right? This is not a joke. And when Trump tells you he's going to. For five years now, I've been yelling from rooftops saying you must listen to what he's saying. Don't take my word for it. Don't take Jim's dons or anybody's. Listen to what he's saying. He is forecasting to you exactly what he intends to do. And so far, he's actually accomplished it. And that's where we, again, united together, will put an end to this.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. As I like to say, for as dishonest as he is, he can be remarkably candid. And he is very candid about what he wants to do. And last time I checked, he's homegrown, isn't he?

[Michael Cohen]

Yeah.

[Jim Acosta]

Isn't he homegrown? Sadly, something like that. He had some. He had little legal issues or something.

[Don Lemon]

Okay, wait a minute, Jim, have we seen his birth certificate?

[Jim Acosta]

I don't know.

[Michael Cohen]

I have. I have.

[Don Lemon]

Are you sure?

[Michael Cohen]

Yeah.

[Don Lemon]

As you've seen his birth certificate, I.

[Jim Acosta]

Saw the long form German one.

[Michael Cohen]

I think, in fact, you may remember. You may remember, I had his birth certificate. I served it on Bill maher for the $5 million.

[Jim Acosta]

Oh, there you go.

[Michael Cohen]

Yeah.

[Jim Acosta]

All right. All right. So we've come to the portion, and I. I do want to give a quick shout out to the Midas Touch Guys. The Midas Touch guys are also streaming. They're also streaming tonight's town hall. And we can't call this a town hall without hearing from the town, so you're the town down. Does anybody have a question? Who wants to get a question out there? The nice lady in the back who. Who so nicely interrupted us at the beginning. Can we get Eamon. Can we get a microphone or one of our. She's a New Yorker. She doesn't voice.

[Olivia Troy]

We can hear you.

[Jim Acosta]

No, but it helps for the streaming audience. I think if we can pass her the microphone. Well, we. You're. It's the 21st century. You're streaming now, ma'am. Well, just replaced by a couple of.

[Don Lemon]

Children, but there you go anyway.

[Jim Acosta]

Three boys. There's enough misogyny in this country. Tell us your name. We had a hands across, you know, hands off demonstration across the country on April 5.

[Michael Cohen]

Millions of people were involved.

[Jim Acosta]

And virtually nobody heard about it afterwards except on these little tiny news channels. So how is that going to threaten Washington? How do we get her? We can sit here all we want. You're absolutely right. It's about the news coverage.

[Don Lemon]

Well, I, I think, Tara, you want.

[Michael Cohen]

The, you want the answer?

[Don Lemon]

Are you done? No, I want to make sure you get it all in before I put, you know, put my big mouth. And I think what Olivia and Tara said are bit. You have to support independent media because that's where you're going to get it from. Because we don't have corporate influence. We don't have people who need to get their mergers and acquisitions in Washington approved. If you want to be honest, our business that's in front of the government and they don't want some big mouth journalist who's sitting down in a studio in Washington D.C. or in New York messing up our business. Right. So that's what you're gonna have to do because it's not going to come from there. Look at the people sitting around him at the inauguration. Look at the people who have given a million dollars to his inaugural ball or inaugural effort. Right. So you have to support. I know it's tough, you know, you got a lot of subscriptions for things. But that's really what's going to make a difference in getting the word.

[Michael Cohen]

You want to know how, how we get it done? Take Midas Touch Network started out with one person and now they're up to 5 million people that's on there that every single day they're putting out additional content. You take their 5 million, you add Jim's and, and you add Don's, and you add Olivia's and Tara's and, and Harry's and my few. And you put it together and next thing you know, they're beating Joe Rogan, they're beating out Fox, they're beating out mainstream lame stream news. All right. So when they now have some sort of a march or anything, all you need to do is you contact the Mycellus brothers. Next thing you know, you got 10 million people showing up. And that. That's an army. One more thing.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah, one more quick thing.

[Don Lemon]

I just want to add to that. I want to answer your question. Sure. I think it's a very important question. But also it is incumbent upon you to get your lawmakers to help us because rather than. They're still enamored by the patina of legacy media, which is not giving them a fair shot right now because they're not serving their Customer base. So the Democratic candidates are the people who are non Trump supporters. Should be going on Jim's show as often as possible. Should be going on Michael show as often as possible. And mine and Harry's and Olivia's and Tara's. They should be going on all of our shows and supporting us because we need an ecosystem that's just as big, if not bigger than the other side.

[Jim Acosta]

All right, how about you right over there, sir? You, since you're right there by the microphone, and I'll keep moving around, don't worry.

[Michael Cohen]

Yeah.

[Jim Acosta]

Dan Lauria, I really admire the courage that all of you are showing. And I do agree with you that we need more courageous leaders on the left. And my question is, when Trump first came in and threatened to incarcerate the journalists in Iowa for lying that he would not win the election.

[Matt Friend]

Why?

[Jim Acosta]

What the next day, why didn't Obama sue him for saying he wasn't an American? Well, that's. Where does the courage come from? Where? Who's going to step up? Who's going to be the next Martin Luther King? No, I agree with you. And you know, Obama just gave, he just did a town hall, I think, a few nights ago, I believe, here in New York. And he was making the comment, can you believe what would be the outcry if I were doing the things, if I had done the things that Donald Trump is doing now? If he. I think that's an excuse.

[Matt Friend]

We gotta fight. This is a street fight. Get out there like you six people are.

[Michael Cohen]

You're 100.

[Olivia Troy]

Well, that, that's actually very, very true. I think that.

[Michael Cohen]

And we're fortunate we have Captain America. America.

[Olivia Troy]

Yes, we. Yes, we do. Thank God. Harry represents a lot of them and his and his fellow officers who have been brave enough. And it cost them their careers, too, which is outrageous. That should have been enough. That was another, I think, tipping point in this country when people were okay with a violent insurrection on our capital and then just said, well, so what? A collective shrug. That's insane. But to your point that you need. Look, Martin Luther King said that the measure of a man, right? The measure of their integrity. And it was not at a time of comfort and convenience, it's at a time of controversy. And everyone should think about that's in leadership. What are they doing in this moment to make the difference? And some of the frustrations that I've had and I'm an independent now, but I say I caucus with the Democrats. But I always say to my Democratic friends, you cannot bring a policy pen to a political guerrilla warfare fight. You have to look at this as asymmetrical warfare. And some of them are getting it.

[Matt Friend]

It.

[Olivia Troy]

They're starting to get it. But the Democrats cannot be afraid to make a mistake or be afraid to offend someone or worry about focus grouping everything they say in every statement. Damn all of that. We don't have time for it because while they're over there focus grouping their stuff, the Republicans are frog marching straight across, you know, killing our Constitution and our rights. So you've got to go out there and sometimes you might take a hit, sometimes you might get down, but you gotta be in the fight to do it.

[Jim Acosta]

Oh, go ahead.

[Harry Dunn]

Also, I also, I want to say, and I pretty sure everybody, we never talked about this individually, but everybody on this stage can relate. This isn't easy. I mean, like, I guarantee you, every single one of our inboxes, if you open it up, has something to the effect of go die, go kill yourself. Like, it's not easy. But courage is contagious. It's very contagious. And seeing all these brave men and women up here, it makes it surround yourself with those type of individuals. That makes it a little easier.

[Michael Cohen]

You know, there's a lot of people also, by the way, who are out there, like Malcolm Nance. Right. We have Malcolm Nance here. Stand up, Malcolm. Right. Did everybody know the great Malcolm? Right. Let me tell you, you want to talk about somebody who is also in the crosshairs every single day. He doesn't give a shit. He'll say what he wants to say, when he says it and how he says it, and he just doesn't care. And that's what Democrats have to start doing, doing as they. They just said, enough is enough playing right? In this, in this playground of Donald Trump's, you got to get meaner, you got to get nastier, and you got.

[Olivia Troy]

To fight harder, but don't become what you despise. There is a line.

[Don Lemon]

Yeah, I think, Jim, we should do a lightning round because these people wouldn't.

[Jim Acosta]

I know this nice lady down here in the front. I want to get to her. And I, I'm. Maybe only one of us can respond to each question. Perhaps.

[Don Lemon]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Jim Acosta]

I love.

[Don Lemon]

All of you can direct it at someone.

[Jim Acosta]

I've actually gone to. Jim, you were talking about media literacy.

[Ed Sheeran]

And I remember my kids are now.

[Jim Acosta]

In their early twenties, scared to hell for them, like, just what they're going to have. But we did a lot of, like, how to navigate the Internet, how to, like, use, understand that Things can be.

[Michael Cohen]

Skewed and how to go about that. It used to be a lot easier because we'd say, well, did you see.

[Jim Acosta]

It in major news? Did you see it here? Did you see it there?

[Olivia Troy]

Now we're talking about going to independent media, which is, I'm so happy. That was a place that people that I respect had to go to.

[Jim Acosta]

But how do we differentiate someone else who may not be as in, have as much integrity as you and say.

[Michael Cohen]

You know, how do I tell you.

[Jim Acosta]

From Joe Blow, who's, you know, not very kind. Thank you. No, I appreciate that very much. You know, I think that we're in a difficult place right now in terms of the media. And I think Don's comments about the need for more independent media, I think that's right on the money. You know, I've been out on the campaign trail for many, many years covering all kinds of elections and so on. And one of the things that I, you know, can pinpoint pretty much with accuracy every time I go out, every four years, is that the medium and small market newspapers keep getting smaller. You know, 15 years ago they were about this wide. Then they got like this. Then they got like this. There are fewer pages, fewer reporters, fewer bylines. And that is because our information system in this country has been decimated. It has been decimated in this country and it's been replacing with right wing talk radio in many cases and places like Fox. And it has really damaged, I think, media literacy in this country. There's no question about it. And I think one of the things, and I, because I get asked about this from time to time, one of the things that these billionaires, if we want to talk about the proligarchy and so on, one of the things that they could do to help this country, instead of beaming pop stars into near space, maybe they can start helping some of these news organizations around the country and not do the, not do the crazy cockamamie crap that they're doing over at the Washington Post right now, where they put the fear of God in those journalists there. We need. And this goes back to what Don was saying earlier, what Michael was saying earlier. We need these news organizations to stand strong. These media companies should not be settling gazillion dollar lawsuits and donating money to a Trump library. Absolutely outrageous.

[Matt Friend]

A lot of it goes back to.

[Jim Acosta]

What Harry was saying. It's about right.

[Olivia Troy]

Take the example of the Atlantic, led by a woman there.

[Jim Acosta]

There you go. Exactly. All right, let's keep going. Yes, sir. In the Block island sweatshirt, I can't ignore Rhode island because, because our ep, Matt Hoy, and his son Eamon. Well, Matt hails from Rhode island, but Eamon from. Yeah, but anyway, you get the point.

[Michael Cohen]

Thank you very much for the opportunity. My name is Mitch. I'm from Westchester County, New York. But I remember when I was in college and law school. But I don't. I do remember I was the escort.

[Jim Acosta]

Sorry, see you.

[Harry Dunn]

They see you.

[Jim Acosta]

They're like, wait, that's, that's.

[Harry Dunn]

That'S right.

[Jim Acosta]

Is that you question him.

[Michael Cohen]

I was the escort for Hanoi Jane on campus at City College back in 1971. 72. And we all know, but some of you will remember Kentucken State and all of the other radical type of, you know, debates and so forth that we were having on campuses. Yeah. Right now we're having a major one between the Palestinian and the Jewish relationship. But that, let's put that aside for a moment and really get the younger, the college kids to be able to talk about what you guys are doing here, but do it on the campus.

[Jim Acosta]

Getting young people involved, get really to a civil war.

[Michael Cohen]

But a, a legal civil war, no guns, nothing like that, but a civil war where we can really rise up.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Michael Cohen]

That's what we need to do.

[Jim Acosta]

What do you think about that, Olivia?

[Tara Setmayer]

I think you're speaking to the power of local community, and I think that's critical right now. I mean, I tell people that we need to go bowling again. We can get back to bowling and bowling alleys where you're sitting around with your neighbors and you're connecting in that way. Unfortunately, I think, I mean, it's just a different time. Right. Because everyone's online, in the media and digital. And so we're sending mixed messages, I guess, right now.

[Olivia Troy]

Right.

[Tara Setmayer]

But what I'm saying is I think that is critical. And I also think that it's important. Sometimes we're going to have to have hard conversations. Sometimes we're going to have to step out of that echo chamber because we cannot continue to remain in these silos. And it's not easy. It isn't. And look, I give credit. I just want to say this about Jim and Don. They were some of my hardest interviews, by the way. The White House was scared of them, like, the way that they would talk about them, especially John, Jim.

[Don Lemon]

I wonder why we're not there anymore.

[Tara Setmayer]

Rachel Maddow, she's still hanging on. But, like, I remember everything that was said about every anchor. Okay. Because I was in the room when they were saying it. And I will say, like, so when it came to me going on with them, can you imagine how scared I was? I've never done media before. I'm a career. Until officer, nobody was supposed to ever know my name. And there I am. And they would ask. I mean, Don. Don and I had some intense conversations, and late night, sometimes he would ask and he pushed me. But it was actually good that he pushed me because the more he pushed me, the more I really sang like a bird and started to really tell the truth and ask myself hard questions, and now I just won't shut up. And the Trump team is pissed, but, like, okay, one.

[Jim Acosta]

One more.

[Tara Setmayer]

That's important.

[Jim Acosta]

Yes, ma'am. You got to make it a good one. This is. The pressure's on.

[Olivia Troy]

Hi, my name is Barbara Smith, and.

[Michael Cohen]

Thank you all for being here and doing this.

[Olivia Troy]

I agree with everything that you've said. How do we get rid of Schumer.

[Michael Cohen]

And Jeffries and get the Democratic Party to grow some balls and do something?

[Olivia Troy]

I love New York. I'm a Jersey girl, and I love coming home because, you know, we do not. We do not take any shit. Listen, there's a lot of. I think there's a lot of. Of. No, I. Listen, we. I think people have been disappointed with the Democratic leadership for the reasons that I said, that they've been a little too cautious. And Chuck Schumer, God bless him, he's been around a long time. However, you have to play the game that you're in. This is 2025. This is not 1995. I remember those days, and it was very different than it is now. And Hakeem Jeffries, I think, you know, you're from Brooklyn. We need some Brooklyn from Hakeem Jeffries. Okay. My husband's from Brooklyn. Trust. Like they. He needs some Brooklyn.

[Michael Cohen]

Staten island.

[Olivia Troy]

Right? And so he's being teased, too, because he's new in his position. He's being very cautious. And this is just my opinion. And people are free to disagree, but there is. What happened with the way the leadership has handled things recently cannot be ignored by the grassroots voters in the Democratic Party. The people who want to say and just ignore that they made mistakes are doing it at their own peril. When you have a lot of people who are looking for leadership and looking to fight, especially at a time where this country's at a crossroads, at a time we have never seen this since the Civil War, where it was brother against brother, where people took up arms. That is the last time we've seen the country divided this way. You cannot have Leaders that are afraid to fight the fight. No one wants to hear policy and process arguments. No one wants to hear that. Well, it's going to be better if we're going to work together. I'm sorry, but Republicans are no longer your colleagues. They're your enemies. This is a war, and they need to take that posture.

[Don Lemon]

Tara, let me jump in. Let me just say this, because I know a lot of people are a lot of.

[Olivia Troy]

Yes, that's okay. I spent seven years. Listen, I spent seven years up in Congress. I understand. And this is very tough.

[Michael Cohen]

And you have every right.

[Jim Acosta]

True.

[Olivia Troy]

Absolutely. They have. Have to do. They have to think about the bigger picture. And sometimes it's worth losing an election over. And that's why you do what it takes in a situation like that. And so we'll see. I mean, the constituencies, they'll vote. They'll make the decision. There's midterms coming in 2026, and that's when the voters will have.

[Jim Acosta]

People are awake.

[Olivia Troy]

And I spent seven years on Capitol Hill. Trust me, I know how the government works.

[Don Lemon]

I think it's really tough in this moment because people love who they love. And I. What I think that the Democrats are not understanding in this moment is that, yes, seniority matters. Yes. You know, ethnicity and all those things matter. Right now, people just want someone who can win. They don't care if they're gay, straight, black, trans or whatever. The Democrats want someone who can win. It doesn't matter that the leader of the Democratic Party is the first black man. That's a great accomplishment. But in this moment, is that going to win the White House? Is that going to win back Congress? Is that going to win back the Senate? I don't know. And especially if you have the person who is in that position who is not strong. I don't like that. Hakeem Jeffries told the Democrats, you need to have decorum for this fake effing State of the Union. No, stand with Al Green. Have some fight, have some moxie. Walk out with him, stand behind him, do what John Lewis would do. Get into good trouble. Don't sit there and hold up a sign that says, elon Musk is mean. Donald Trump is bad. No, stand up and say, this isn't a real State of the Union. This is fake. We don't have to have decorum for something that is not real. This is a show. I don't agree with what Al Green did, but I stand with my brother. I may not have walked out, but I stand with him or do what Jasmine Crockett did walk the hell out with him.

[Olivia Troy]

That's right.

[Don Lemon]

That's what the American people are asking for. The Democrats right now, they're starting to get it. But before, they're selling a product that no one wants to buy. And so I love Hakeem Jeffries. I think he's great. I love Nancy Pelosi. I think he's great. I respect what Chuck Schumer has done. But that's not what the American people want right now. Those people, those senior people who you love and are good and have led before, they can be behind the scenes. They can be creating policy. They can be leading the young people. But what people want to see now, the crowds are showing up for Bernie. They're showing up for aoc. They're showing up for Jasmine Crockett, who's raising more money in Congress than anybody else. Because people want change. They want younger people who are willing to get in the fight and not pretend it's 1997, when Bill Clinton was in office.

[Olivia Troy]

I just want to say one thing. Don is absolutely right.

[Don Lemon]

You know what?

[Olivia Troy]

I just want to give one example historically, because I understand that we're looking for policy wins here, but the policy wins aren't going to change the momentum of what we're doing, and I think that that's important. When Winston Churchill was leading during World War II and the Germans were dropping bombs on London and they were losing at the time, Winston Churchill was not there telling the people, well, we don't have enough ammunition. What are we, you know, we're losing right now. No, he went there and did those fireside chats and did those radio interviews and did all of those things to rally the people, to keep them in the fight. Because morale matters. If you're going to win a war, ask Malcolm Nance, who took up arms with the Ukrainians. Morale matters.

[Michael Cohen]

And we're seeing the same thing.

[Olivia Troy]

Less Chamberlain, more Churchill, less Chamberlain. That's what the Democrats need, and that's why it matters.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. And that's. And that's why the United States must stand with Zelensky in Ukraine.

[Michael Cohen]

Amen.

[Jim Acosta]

Absolutely. For that reason that you just mentioned right there, Tara, I'm so glad that you mentioned that. On the front lines of democracy, just like we are here in America. But, you know, Don, and some of the folks who were just talking about the young people just a few moments, there's one young man here who I think has been waiting all night to get a question in. And can we just laugh for two minutes?

[Matt Friend]

I'm up there for a second.

[Michael Cohen]

The mic on?

[Jim Acosta]

I. I don't know. I think it's on. I think it's on.

[Matt Friend]

It's on.

[Jim Acosta]

Here we go.

[Matt Friend]

Well, this is not a hostile environment, everybody.

[Jim Acosta]

My friend.

[Matt Friend]

How are you guys? You feeling good? I. I just wanted to come here because no better way to celebrate tax day than with Michael Cohen. Truly thrilled to be here. How are you? Fantastic. This is. I feel like I'm at a weird audition right now. This is a good warm up for my show next week at the nra. I'm kidding. Thrilled to be here, though. This is being broadcast live on Truth Social, Jim's platform.

[Jim Acosta]

If you bond, the intern comes to the mic. Exactly. Just so you know.

[Matt Friend]

Well, no, I. I do. I think it's, you know, it's. It's a scary time. I'm 26 years old. Clearly, no one knows when we can laugh anymore, but hopefully we can get a couple of laughs in there before we're all dead. I. What do you guys do, by the way? No one's sitting there. Anyways. Is this the theater where Lauren Boebert jerked the guy? No. Anyways, but there we got some laughs. Come on, baby. I like to sound like other people. Regardless of which side you're on, I think I have a sense of where this room stands. I was watching Trump and I realized if you want to sound like him, you just have to do one thing, and that I think my mic isn't quite on right now. I'll use that one. There we go.

[Jim Acosta]

See, Sometimes I. Hand over.

[Matt Friend]

Yeah, exactly. I. Thank you very much.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Matt Friend]

No, if you want to. No one here wants to sound like Trump, but in the event that you want to freak someone out, you just have to mispronounce very big words whenever you're talking. I was imagining him summarizing the basic plot of Harry Potter. I think he would just be like, is the deal. There was this boy wizard, and his name was Harry Potter. Okay. The guy was such a disaster. He befriended these two losers. They were named Roon and Hermony. They were nasty people. Went to this terrible school. It was called Hugwatz. The headmaster's name was Elbus Dumbledore. Many are saying he was gay. A lot of people are saying that.

[Jim Acosta]

Right?

[Matt Friend]

That's it. But.

[Michael Cohen]

Okay, but.

[Matt Friend]

But he actually.

[Tara Setmayer]

You just gave me ptsd. Just so you know.

[Harry Dunn]

I was about to throw my shield at him, but he.

[Matt Friend]

He proved my thesis this recently because Trump was talking and he called Hamas hummus, which was interesting. And I wanted him to just keep Naming random foods and to finish his grocery list. You know, I almost just elan there. Okay, I'm not doing it. I'm just reacting to the news. No, he called Hamas hummus, and I wanted him to keep naming food. Just like hummus needs to be destroyed. The leader of hummus, Baba Ganoush, is a nasty guy. This is the worst invasion since Tikka masala in the 90s. Tikka Masala is also the name of J.D. vance's wife's sister. Many people are saying that, but we were just talking about Bernie Sanders. Bernie was at Coachella, which was fascinating. This is just what the Coachella crowd looked like for Charlie xcx. This is the Johnny Carson version. Come on. Never perform for so many Georgie Jessel fans. Come on. But we're thrilled. Exactly. No, but I love that Bernie comes out of Coachella like, these kids are trying to dance. Then you just hear, we are in danger. There is an existential threat to our democracy. Every time Bernie talks, he's conducting a very tiny Jewish orchestra with his hands. But wouldn't it have been weird if, like, instead some singer brought out, like, Mitch McConnell at Coachella instead? Just like. Well, it's thrilling to be here today. There are so many young Americans. There are so many young African Americans here as well. I'd be remiss if I didn't just take the chance. We are being miked, right? Well, let me just say the following. We are here with a collection of the worst, most disgusting people you have ever seen. You have Jim Acosta, who is a. First of all, you're a dead dog. You're a nasty pig. Many people are saying that you are the worst journalist anybody's ever seen. Next to Don Lamont, fake news Don. That's true. Then you have. Of course, you have the second black Captain America. That's great, right? That's becoming a thing. Right. Next you have Michael Cohen, who is like an even worse Ray Donovan. The guy's a disaster. He doesn't know what he's doing. And, well, these two women are just fine. But Mike Pence, while he's a traitor. We know that too. Right? I had to do that. Anyways, I want to say. And I have another hour and a half, and then Bill Cosby is coming up.

[Michael Cohen]

But.

[Matt Friend]

No, I'm kidding. That'd be. Come on. Come on. I love the blue. Exactly. It's great. Well, the. The space is unbelievable. Yesterday was Coach or was Space's first freak off. That was wild. Lauren Sanchez gets to space. Her face has been defying gravity for the past 15 years, Don. But Katy Perry lands. She kisses the ground. So I guess it's safe to say that Katy Perry kissed the ground and she liked it. But I was watching the Masters recently, and I was thinking, I love the presidential golf obsession. That's mind blowing to me. And if Trump does run for a third term, which according to Steve Bannon, he will, then Obama needs to run, because then the presidential golf obsession can be debated. And I feel like Trump is just gonna be like, you know what, Barack? You have to play at Mar a Lago. It's gorgeous weather. We finally let in the blacks. It is so fantastic. And Barack will be like, well, Donald, thank you so much. I appreciate that. Thank you. I know you missed me. Thank you, guys. You know, the only reason I'd accept that invitation to play is to show to the American people that regardless of which side of the aisle you're on, we can all get along. And the only reason I'd invite you is because your contact photo popped up and I thought it was Tiger Woods. Okay. Okay. I mean, that was some stuff, right? I would do. I would do my JD Vans, but I forgot the eyeliner in the car. I will say, this is thrilling to be here. I can't wait. This is a good warmup for my 5 minutes I'm doing on Megan Kelly next week. But. I'm kidding. You never know. But has anybody here gotten a prostate exam out of curiosity? Fantastic. Well, the reason I ask is because I was watching Tucker Carlson last week, and I realized it's a great transition. Thank you. And I realized that when I get my first prostate exam, I'm going to make the same noise that Tucker made when he laughed, because it sounded like. When he laughed, it sounded like you were sticking that Captain America shield directly up my Mike pence. But okay. And you know, Bets will be into it, but him and Lindsey Graham, let's just. Let's get it all out, right? Come on, Don. We're laughing, right? But no, because Tucker was talking, and then it just comes out of nowhere. He's like, good evening, and welcome to Tucker Carlson Tonight. Tonight's subject is Joe Biden. A lizard. Somewhere, Lindsey Graham was licking his nipples, thinking, I'll have what he's having. And that's why you don't invite me on your serious news show.

[Michael Cohen]

Thank you, everybody.

[Matt Friend]

And before I go, let me just say, before I go, so much respect for Jim, for Don, a little less for Michael. No, I'm kidding. We like Michael. The three of you, lovely to Meet you all. Thank you for what you've done. What you've done. And honored to be here. It's. It's a crazy time. I'm gen Z. I'm 26. We're trying to figure out what the future holds. It's definitely a frightening time, but having you guys here gives me a lot of hope. And hopefully we can keep laughing because again, apparently at the correspondence, dinner is no longer allowed. So. If I could do Kamala, I'd have my own show right now. I mean, I hope I ring. Say it again. Do who?

[Michael Cohen]

Do Colin.

[Matt Friend]

You can. You can try to do me. I don't know the reason I'm afraid to do Michael Cohen. I'm afraid he's gonna shoot me in the back on my way out, you know? Anyway, that wasn't great. He wasn't thrilled with that.

[Michael Cohen]

Yeah.

[Matt Friend]

Who am I missing? You know, I would do Ted Cruz, but I gotta get to Cancun, and I know you don't want to hear that. I love how Ted Cruz is with Trump, like, dancing at a UFC fight, and it's. Didn't he just call your wife ugly? I don't know what happened there, but. But anyways, I think we closed it a little. Howard Stern. Okay, well, let me ask you this, right? I want to know this, right? Don Lemon, he is one of the sexiest guys in news, right? So, Don, you're a sexy guy. I believe. You're married, right? You're married.

[Don Lemon]

Yes, he's right there.

[Matt Friend]

Now. There he is. He's a sexy guy, too. Now, in all your interviews, did you find that one celebrity was trying to get with you the most because you're a good looking guy? Elon Musk must have been in love with you. Is that true? Tell me.

[Michael Cohen]

It was Bill Moss.

[Matt Friend]

Oh, well, as long as you bring up Bill. You're so wrong. I don't like you. You're mean. Okay, thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Am I like a puppet? This is great. Yeah. And by the way, now that I'm here, Michael's kind of cute. Yeah. Andy Cohen. Michael Cohen. Maybe we're, like, related. Who knows? Yeah. I mean, now I have stage fright right now. I don't know how that's happening. Yeah. Anyways, College Republicans. My God, I've come a long way before we go every day. Like, I'm just so grateful that the world is crumbling just for comedy. You ever see one of those clown cars, Jim? Like, when like, a hundred people come out of a clown car, that's what a Trump Cabinet meeting To me, looks like. And I just love how Trump has Conor McGregor at the White House. I feel like Trump wants to add three sides to the Pentagon so McGregor can fight net. All right, good night, everybody.

[Michael Cohen]

Thank you. You were fun. Thanks, Jim.

[Jim Acosta]

Thank you.

[Matt Friend]

Thank you. Michael, you're fired. Again, thank you very much.

[Jim Acosta]

Way better. All right, well, I think that might bring us. Does anybody. I mean, how can we top that? I don't know why we. We finished that out, but I. I do want to. I do want to close out with. I have a. You can hear me, right? I. I want. I want to close out with a few remarks, and that is. First of all, thank you very much to all of you for coming here tonight. A lot of you folks are paid subscribers to Substack. We appreciate you very much. And speaking of Substack, we appreciate Substack for helping us put this on this evening. Isn't it a great new. It's a great new resource in this new media, independent media revolution. The Midas Touch guys, for streaming this out live tonight. We appreciate them as well. And I do want to. I do want to thank all of the folks who have been here tonight to. To give us their time and pour out their hearts and. And I hope we gave everybody enough time. I feel like we could just go all night. We could just keep doing this. But. But. Well, we could.

[Harry Dunn]

We gotta. I gotta ask.

[Don Lemon]

I gotta ask.

[Jim Acosta]

Harry. What do you want to say? Harry. Harry, you go ahead.

[Harry Dunn]

I got something.

[Jim Acosta]

I don't want to wrap it up.

[Michael Cohen]

Hold on, hold on.

[Harry Dunn]

I have. I have something I want to ask you all to do. This isn't a call to action for you all. Like, we had a lot of laughs and a lot of serious moments here. We can't do this alone. And it's going to be us. That saves us. Not just by sitting around, not just by being on the keyboard. Whether if you could do what? Do something. The only thing. Hold on, I'm getting it. The only thing you can't do is nothing. So whether that is donating $5 to your favorite candidate, writing a letter to your congressman, calling them, putting support on them, getting involved in your local community, Democratic Party or whatever, you do something, be involved, be educated. That's half of the battle right there. Be educated, because when you meet that disinformation, you have to be able to push back against it. So if they're telling you no, Donald Trump said he's going to bring them back, and you're like, wait, did he be educated about what is going on don't just sit around and wait for somebody else to save us. We all have a role in this. So I encourage everybody to do something.

[Jim Acosta]

Should we go down the line? Terry, would you like to make any closing thoughts?

[Olivia Troy]

Yeah. To piggyback off of Harry, Robert F. Kennedy, the good one one, said that he gave a, you know, tiny ripples of hope speech, and every one of us represents a tiny ripple of hope that all it takes is a tiny ripple of hope, and that cascades into a current that can take down a mountain of oppression. So don't think that whatever that little thing is that you do doesn't matter. Everything you do matters. Every person you talk to matters because that one person may talk to five other people. You know, what I found out today, and then next thing you know, it is a current, that ripple turns into a current. So do not be discouraged. It's very easy to be discouraged. It's very easy to feel overwhelmed. But don't be, because that's what they want. Do not obey in advance. Rule number one against tyranny. Do not obey in advance. Turn your fear into outrage, into action. And there are plenty of people. And bring five people with you. One piece of action.

[Jim Acosta]

All right.

[Olivia Troy]

Students to do. Yeah.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah.

[Olivia Troy]

Well, first of all, tell them do not be paralyzed in their fear. That's first of all, because paralysis is another tactic. Let them know that there are people out there fighting for them every day. We do this for them. But one of the one action, I think each one of us may have a different perspective on what that one action can be. But I think for high school students, it is to stay engaged and be educated, because they can't vote yet, but they will. And they can educate each other because they communicate very differently. They may not listen to what we have to say, but for the one student that I just gave a speech to a bunch of teachers and said that you guys are the first line of defense in democracy because you're teaching the next generation. So that's the most important thing, I think, is for those kids to understand their role and what we can do for them.

[Jim Acosta]

And Olivia, quick thoughts. Yeah.

[Tara Setmayer]

I would say, you know, I talked about independent news, the importance of independent voices. That includes nonprofit newsrooms across the country. Please support those. They will probably be targeted next. And I would say, as an actionable item to younger people, I would say, just keep in mind that they are likely going to go after nonprofits working on issues that you care about. They're going to look at that 501c3 status. I don't say that lightly. That is a big deal. Volunteer. If there's an issue that you care about, tell them to go volunteer and support, whether it's an immigration, women's rights, whatever it is that they're passionate about because they have skills, they have skills for digital media, things that nonprofits need to get the word out about what's happening to them. That is a tangible thing where you can help us in the information space get that information out there.

[Jim Acosta]

That's great, Don.

[Don Lemon]

I, I look, I wish I knew what to do. I'm. Be honest, I don't know. But I like to. I spend most of my time listening to people now. And if you dial into my channel, I listen to folks. I go talk to people out on the streets. I know this woman is, was very passionate. Just yell. What was your question? Yeah, we'll get to the, the midterm election, but I don't know if it's going to be any of our elections are going to be fair anymore. The Insurrection Act, I don't know. I'm not in Washington.

[Olivia Troy]

He's prepping us for the Insurrection Act. Mark our words. He tried to invoke it in 2020. Olivia knows the Lafayette at Square debacle, and there were good people there that said no and stopped him. Those people don't exist anymore. So everything that he's doing right now, the Alien and Sedition acts that he's trying to use unconstitutionally, the courts are being coy about whether you could use it or not. This is all in preparation for him to use the Insurrection Act. And I would be very cautious if he didn't try to do that on January, on June 14, when he has his military parade, if people protest.

[Michael Cohen]

So. And Michael, and remember something, in 2016, I said Donald Trump used to constantly quote Vladimir Putin on something that deals with elections. It doesn't matter who you vote for. All that matters is who's counting the vote. And that's where people have to start getting involved. No fear. When, you know, one of the things that they want to do is to put fear into us with that stupid red hat and the MAGA flags and attached to the back of the rusty Ford F150s. No fear. They're all a bunch of cowards, all right? They, they try to make us fearful of them, but it's the other way around. They're fearful of us, which is why that they act in the manner that they do. So don't ever, ever let them get the best of us.

[Jim Acosta]

And I'll that was great. One. One last thing I want to do. And it. It involves a favor. If I could ask the house to dim the lights. The house lights. Is that. That's possible.

[Don Lemon]

Are you going to sing like Frank?

[Jim Acosta]

I'm not going to sing. I'm not going. Thanks for the memories. Donna. We. I would listen to you sing. The one thing. You know, people talk about Trump derangement syndrome. The one thing I get worried about is what I call Trump Depression syndrome and that people get so down in the dumps. This nice lady right here asking, what can we do? You have to remember that there is still hope and you have to hold on to that. And I talked about this when I left my old job. It's not just about not giving into the lies, not giving into the fear. It is about holding on to the truth and holding on to hope. And remember that each and every one of you has a light inside of you. And while this may feel like we're blanketed in darkness right now, you have to remember there is still that light inside of you. That is why we're seeing these town halls explode with tens of thousands of people showing up for the members who will have the town halls, why we are seeing rallies and demonstrations taking place in the smallest of towns. People showing up in their communities to honk their horns and say, don't buy a Tesla. Whatever you want to do, go do it. It. And the one thing I want to ask each and every one of you to do tonight, because I saw some of you looking at your phones earlier, I want each and every one of you to get your phone out right now. Get your phone out right now. If turn. I want you to turn your flashlights on. I want you to turn your flashlights on and just look around in this room. Look around at each other. When you feel like. When you feel like this world is being engulfed in darkness, just remember that you have a light inside each and every one of you. And I know it may sound a little hokey and it may sound a little quaint in a place like New York or if you have two phones, for some of you who have two phones, and you guys could do it, too, if you want it, don't hold back. But seriously, it means something to all of us if you just stay in this game and you keep that light lit, keep that light alive in the darkness. Don't let that light go out. Don't let it go out. Hold on to each other and thanks. Thanks, everybody for coming tonight. Really appreciate it. I want to thank Harry Dunn, Tara Set Meyer, Olivia Troy, the amazing Don Lemon. The incomparable Michael Cohen. And of course, Matt Friend and.

[Michael Cohen]

And Jim Acosta.

[Jim Acosta]

I'm okay. I'm okay.

[Don Lemon]

And remember where that phone was made. China.

[Jim Acosta]

Yeah. Thank you, guys. Thanks, everybody. Thanks for coming tonight. Appreciate it.

[Don Lemon]

It.

[Ed Sheeran]

Tripping in the world could be dangerous Everybody circling his vultures Negative nep Everybody waiting for the F man Everybody praying for the end of times Everybody hoping they could be the one I was born to run I was born for this whip whip run me like a race boss Pull me like a rip go Break me down and build me up I want to be the slip slip word upon your lip lip r that you rip rip break me down and build me up Whatever it takes Cuz I love the adrenaline in my face I do whatever it takes Cause I love how it feels when I break the chain Whatever it take you take me to the top I'm ready for whatever it takes Cuz I love the adrenaline in my veins I do what it takes Being difficult looking at my body been miserable I was hanging on to the visual I want to be invisible looking at my ears like a M Everybody needs to be a part of them never be enough from the particle sun I was going to run as more whip whip run me like a race horse Pull me like a rip cord Break me down and build me up I want to to be the slip slip word upon your lip lip rip break me down and build me up Whatever it takes Cause I love the adrenaline in my face I do whatever it take Cuz I love how it feels when I break the chain Whatever it take.

[Don Lemon]

Yet.

[Ed Sheeran]

Take me to the top I'm ready for whatever it take Cuz I love the adrenaline in my veins do what it takes Hypocritical don't want to be the parenthetical hypothetical Working on something that I'm proud of out of the box and epoxy to the world and the vision we've lost I'm in apostrophe I'm just a symbol to remind you that there's more to see I'm just the product of the system of catastrophe and yet a masterpiece and yet I'm half deceased and when I am deceased at least I go down to the grave and I have to leave the body of my soul to be a part of the I do what it takes whatever it takes Cause I love the adrenaline in my verse days I do whatever it take I do what it takes I breathe you in without fail and then I think twice before I exhale. But you're not my key. You told me you want to be free. Yeah, you want to keep it nice? You want to keep it low key. Oh, but don't bring me down. Oh, just try to understand me. Won't you come a little closer and let me whisper to you? And I say you don't have to worry about a single thing. Just let me sing to you. Just let me sing to you. Oh.

[Olivia Troy]

Now I know you're the type.

[Ed Sheeran]

Would throw my hopes away? You'd like to shake me up to break me up night and day and you can do what you like? I'm not trying to be your one and only? I'm just trying to make you feel good. So good, so good, so good. Oh, but don't bring me down. Oh, just try to understand me. Won't you come a little closer and let me whisper to you? And I say you don't have to worry about a single thing. Just let me sing to you. No, you don't have to worry about a single day. Just let me sing to you. Oh, you don't have to worry about a single thing. Just let me sing to you.