MeidasTouch Full Podcast - 4/17/26

Summary

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The MeidasTouch Podcast: Full Episode Summary – April 17, 2026

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode of the MeidasTouch Podcast, hosted by brothers Ben, Brett, and Jordy Meiselas, delivers their signature mix of sharp political analysis and irreverent brotherly banter. The focus centers on the global and domestic fallout from Donald Trump's ongoing war policy, his attacks on Pope Leo XIV, religious manipulation by the MAGA movement, mounting economic instability, and key Congressional hearings scrutinizing the Trump administration's actions. The hosts expose hypocrisy in political and religious circles, break down complex geopolitical maneuvers, highlight the impact on ordinary Americans and U.S. troops, and end by calling for accountability and unity in defense of democracy.

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Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Trump’s Attacks on Pope Leo XIV & the Manipulation of Religion

[04:01 – 16:31]

• Stochastic Terrorism & Death Threats: The hosts discuss how Trump’s and MAGA’s targeted attacks on the Pope have resulted in direct threats against Catholic community members (e.g., John Prevost, a Chicago teacher). This exemplifies the real-world dangers of stochastic terrorism.
• Pope Leo XIV’s Cameroon Speech: Pope Leo condemns those who "manipulate religion [...] for their own military, economic, or political gain" and calls out "masters of war." The speech—clearly directed at Trump, Putin, Netanyahu, and others—underlines empathy, peace, and justice. [(05:06 – 08:28); Quotes below]
• Perversion of Religion: The episode highlights MAGA figures like Pete Hegseth justifying war crimes using religion, including a televised Pentagon sermon featuring a Pulp Fiction (not biblical) quote [(25:11)]. The hosts call out this tactic as both fraudulent and dangerous.
• Religious Hypocrisy: Franklin Graham and other religious leaders attempt to excuse or rationalize Trump’s blasphemous social-media posts depicting himself as Jesus. The brothers criticize these ‘grifters’ for their loyalty to Trump over genuine faith, noting, “He surrounds himself with these very fraudulent kind of religious leaders, the people who are more interested in taking big money [...] than actually spreading the word of Jesus Christ.” (Jordi, 13:42)
• Response from MAGA Politicians: Politicians like Elise Stefanik and Mike Johnson claim the Pope should stay out of politics while regularly invoking religious arguments in their own policy stances, revealing deep hypocrisy.
• Separation of Church and State—Only When Convenient: The hosts point out the irony of MAGA leaders suddenly invoking separation between church and state when criticized by the Pope for advocating violence and war.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Pope Leo XIV, on Blessed are the Peacemakers:
  • “Woe to those who manipulate religion in the very name of God for their own military, economic or political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.” (05:06)
  • “The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants. It is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters [...] Peace is not something we must invent. It is something we must embrace by accepting our neighbor as our brother and as our sister.” (07:15)
  • “The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy. Yet often a lifetime is often not enough to rebuild.” (08:01)
• Jordi: “It really exposes who the charlatans are out there, the people who you should just never trust about absolutely anything, even when they try to be slimy and get out of the kind of answering the question. Like, even Mike Johnson, who positions himself as this devout Christian, right? [...] If you're going to use religion to justify your politics, you can't be upset when someone is using religion to speak out against your politics.” (10:19)
• Ryan Reynolds (hosting): “MAGA loves to pretend that Trump is like this religious person […] Trump doesn’t care about any of that. It's all about the grift.” (14:12)

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2. The Trump/Iran War: Consequences, Ceasefire, and Congressional Hearings

[31:46 – 51:29]

• Congressional Hearings Resume: Senate hearings resume after recess, with Democrats grilling Trump administration officials regarding U.S. actions in Iran, war crimes, and inconsistent standards on holding adversaries like Putin accountable.
• Ambassador Waltz’s Testimony: Under questioning from Senators Van Hollen and Murphy, Ambassador Mike Waltz refuses to hold Trump to the same standards he previously demanded of President Biden regarding Putin’s war crimes. Waltz defends Trump’s threats to “end Iran’s civilization” as mere “tough talk.”
• Analysis of Ceasefire Negotiations: Ben unpacks the convoluted negotiations: Trump agreed to Iran’s 10-point framework (resulting in massive concessions like Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz, permanent security guarantees for Iranian proxies, and U.S. military withdrawal), then backtracks, causing further instability.
• Economic & Human Cost: Skyrocketing oil prices, looming shortages, and impact on European airlines are discussed (e.g., Spirit Airlines’ impending collapse), all attributed to Trump’s war and mismanagement.
• Host Critique: The hosts underscore the chaos Trump instigates, the subsequent fallout, and his penchant for abandoning his own messes when consequences loom.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Sen. Van Hollen, grilling Waltz: “You called upon former President Biden in no uncertain terms to condemn Putin as a war criminal and you won't call upon President Trump to do the same.” (34:50)
• Ben Meiselas: “Trump agreed to [Iran’s] ten point plan. I’m not giving you hyperbole. [...] Trump posted, we agree to a framework that is Iran's ten point plan. Then Donald Trump reposted Iran's Foreign Minister’s statement saying the same. As a result of that, Iran agreed to the ceasefire and to have discussions in Pakistan which were a complete and total failure...” (39:39)
• Jordi: “It’s so classic Trump, though, isn’t it? Because he starts these things, he sparks chaos [...] and then, like, he kind of gets bored with it, or realizes that it’s not exactly going well and wants to bail on it in the middle... and then the whole world is left to pick up his mess.” (44:46)
• Ryan Reynolds: "He killed over a dozen U.S. troops. Like, that needs to really just be the first thing that everyone always talks about." (49:50)

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3. Political Fallout: Domestic Turmoil & Responses on Capitol Hill

[60:00 – 66:05]

• Direct Impact on Americans: Congressmembers express outrage over the war’s economic consequences, rising gas prices, threats to the national debt, dead and injured troops, and lack of care for deployed service members.
• House Floor Speeches: Rep. Komliger Dove, AOC, and Rep. Melanie Stansberry are featured denouncing Trump’s actions and calling for a War Powers resolution.
  • AOC: “In February, the Trump administration, in conjunction with the Israeli government, launched an illegal and disastrous war in Iran. [...] Now, President Trump has threatened genocide against the Iranian people.” (61:34–62:40)
  • Rep. Stansberry: “Thousands of civilians are dead. Thirteen service members have been killed... Having been led into an illegal war by a madman who is attacking the Pope, threatening war crimes, and implicated in the Epstein files.” (62:43)
• Rule Against Criticizing Trump: The Speaker Pro Tem annoyingly reminds reps not to "engage in personalities toward the President," highlighting the performative deference required in Congress. (63:53)
• Report from Scott McFarlane: Describes a proposed commission (with 65 co-sponsors) to invoke the 25th Amendment if necessary due to Trump’s instability and the surprisingly bipartisan voices (incl. Tucker Carlson, Marjorie Taylor Greene) recognizing his cognitive decline.

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4. Scandals, Boycotts & International Backlash

[66:05 – 82:52]

• U.S. Troop Hardship: Military families cannot send care packages due to postal suspensions. Photos of paltry meals for deployed troops underscore neglect.
• World Cup Boycott & Tourism Collapse: Global backlash over Trump’s war and rhetoric prompts FIFA officials, cities, and fans to boycott the U.S. World Cup; U.S. hotel demand plummets.
• Saudi Arabia Withdraws from LIV Golf: A major symbolic and financial blow to Trump as Saudi funding ends for LIV, exposing Trump's failure to uphold informal quid-pro-quos that have long shaped U.S.-Middle East relations.
  • “You hit him where it hurts: defund golf.” (Jordi, 79:07)
  • Ben analyzes wider threats from sovereign wealth funds, private equity redemptions, and mounting global distrust in American stability.
• Legal Developments: Judge Leon blocks Trump’s construction of a White House ballroom (disguised as a ‘national security’ shield); Trump counters with outlandish arguments. Speculation about judicial jockeying for Supreme Court slots.
• RFK Jr. Anecdotes & Trump’s “Circle of Weirdos”: The brothers lampoon the bizarre behavior of Trump’s allies and their lack of credibility on the global stage.

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5. Final Thoughts: Empathy, Accountability & Restoration

[82:52 – End]

• International Perceptions: The episode closes with a frank reckoning: Trump’s actions have shattered American standing, enabled further global instability, and invited justified skepticism from allies and adversaries alike.
• Call for Accountability: The brothers urge not only a reckoning for Trump but also for every enabler who has kept him in power.
• Message to Listeners: The hosts, as always, thank the “Meidas Mighty” community, stress the importance of empathy, and encourage continued vigilance and sharing of factual information to counter propaganda and division.

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Notable Quotes (with Timestamp & Speaker)

• “Woe to those who manipulate religion...for their own military, economic, or political gain.”
  — Pope Leo XIV [05:06]
• “The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants...Peace is not something we must invent. It is something we must embrace...”
  — Pope Leo XIV [07:15]
• “It's such a perversion of religion and it's really just disgusting to even see this being invoked at all from the Pentagon and being used to justify this war that has killed so many innocent people.”
  — Jordi [10:19]
• “Donald Trump never was a deal maker in my opinion. He's always been a destroyer and he's used things like implied covenants of good faith and fair dealing norms and traditions to harm people...”
  — Ben [16:31]
• “I just want to, like, rephrase [Mike Johnson]. He basically said, like, he's okay with the Pope getting, you know, like, like brush him off the plate. Like, throw a fastball high and inside to the point Pope. That's what he said.”
  — Ryan Reynolds [24:24]
• “You called upon former President Biden in no uncertain terms to condemn Putin as a war criminal and you won't call upon President Trump to do the same.”
  — Sen. Van Hollen [34:50]
• “It’s so classic Trump, though, isn’t it? Because he starts these things, he sparks chaos [...] and then [...] the whole world is left to pick up his mess.”
  — Jordi [44:46]
• “You know, these are real things that are happening. And there is this detachment in this digital age and craze where we don't recognize a reality of that's that's happening”
  — Ben [51:29]
• “You hit him where it hurts: defund golf.”
  — Jordi [79:07]

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Segment Timestamps

• Opening Issue Summary & Introduction: [01:46 – 03:23]
• Attack on the Pope & Weaponization of Religion: [04:01 – 25:02]
• Pulp Fiction Bible Verse Incident: [25:11 – 26:34]
• Ceasefire & Iran Negotiations Explainer: [31:46 – 44:46]
• Economic Pain & Oil Shortages: [44:46 – 49:50]
• Congressional Hearings & Capitol Hill Soundbites: [60:00 – 66:05]
• Troop Hardships, FIFA Boycotts, LIV Golf Fallout: [66:05 – 79:40]
• Final Thoughts & Accountability: [80:36 – End]

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Flow, Tone & Takeaways

The brothers’ style is forthright, passionate, and accessible, blending deep legal and policy expertise with a sense of urgency and humor. This episode’s tone reflects both incredulity and outrage over recent events, but concludes with a message of hope and determination—emphasizing empathy, listening, and resistance against autocracy.

This summary encapsulates all key topics, moments, and quotes for listeners who want the essential information and storytelling of the April 17, 2026 MeidasTouch Podcast.

Transcript

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[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

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[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

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[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Food noise isn't fair, but Mochi Health is your affordable glp. One source that puts you on a path to successful weight loss by quieting food noise bite. Learn [e-mail] Mochi members have access to licensed physicians and nutritionists. Results may vary. A World cup boycott is brewing against Donald Trump and his regime. Saudi Arabia says it's no longer going to be funding the live golf league. You have Pope Leo XIV striking back against Donald Trump's attacks and threats against the Pope, against the Catholic Church, against members of the Pope's family. We'll talk about this powerful speech that Pope Leo XIV g talk about the status of these ceasefire negotiations intent they are not going well, but Donald Trump continues to say they're going amazing. They are not. We will tell you what the Europeans, what Gulf nations are saying, hint, hint, they don't see a deal happening for the next six months. Congress is back in session. So finally, we're getting some congressional hearings. We have our team there on Capitol Hill bringing you news directly from the Capitol Hill steps and inside the Capitol building. Shout out to Scott McFarland and the whole team there. And a federal judge in Washington, D.C. yet again, said Donald Trump. When I said stop building that damn ballroom, I meant stop building that damn ballroom. We're going to talk about this and more on this episode of the Midas Touch Podcast. I'm Ben Meiselas, joined by my brothers Brett and Jordi. Brothers, it's great to see you. We've got so much to discuss. Shorter intro than usual, so we could just get right into the meat of things.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

I love it. So I'll just say it's good to be here, everybody. Good to be here, brothers. Good to be here. Midas mighty on this episode, the Midas Touch podcast. Jordy, what do you got going on today? Let's just pass it over to Jay.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

What's up, brothers? What's up? Midas mighty pumped to get into today's show. Just really excited to dive in. I mean, the Saudis no longer funding the live golf league like that. They know how to really get to Trump. Right there. That, that is.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

That.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

That's a good. That's a good.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

It's probably why you shouldn't have all these corrupt entanglements and business entanglements as president. You know, it's probably why we have these laws in place that apparently just are completely ignored now.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

But okay, yeah, Benji, where we start off today, big bro.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

John Prevost, a retired Catholic school principal who loves to play wordle with his brother, Pope Leo XIV received death threats likely coming from MAGA individuals after Donald Trump and the entire MAGA leadership structure is now spending every day attacking Pope Leo. The 14th amplifying post of Donald Trump as AI Jesus. Donald Trump doubled down on it by posting more AI memes of Jesus hugging him. While Donald Trump continues to attack Pope Leo XIV to the Italian. Italian press and here at home. This is the way stochastic terrorism works. Donald Trump's MAGA minions and sycophants got the message and they threatened John Prevost over here. He's again teacher over in Chicago. And Pope Leo XIV today was speaking in Cameroon. He gave a powerful speech. He ain't backing down. Despite Trump and MAGA making it their cause right now to attack the Catholic Church over and over Again, let's take a look at what Pope Leo XIV said in Cameroon about blessed are peacemakers. And very clear who this message was directed at. Let's play the clip.

[Pope Leo XIV (quoted clips)]

Jesus told us, blessed are the peacemakers. But woe to those who manipulate religion in the very name of God for their own military, economic or political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth. Yes, my dear sisters and brothers, you who hunger and thirst for justice, who are poor, merciful, meek, and pure of heart, you who have wept, you are the light of the world.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

I just want to be very clear as well, whether you are a religious person or not religious or don't follow any religion at all. We have people here at the Midas Touch Network who are all different types of religions, people who are atheists, people who have no religion. Um, but the key thing, being a good person, being empathetic, being loving, helping people, uplifting, not bullying. Right. These are core messages. And it is a powerful thing when someone like Pope Leo the 14th uses his position to go out and speak to these issues. So that's why one of the reasons we're showing it, and it is driving Donald Trump crazy. And in the past, whether it was Hitler, whether it was the kings in the UK and in France, if you go back to the Avignon papacy, which is what. Our papacy, which is what Donald. Donald Trump has threatened to bring back through the Department of Defense, when back in January, he brought in Pope Leo XIV's top ambassador to D.C. they threatened the Avion. Avion papacy. We're going to bring that back right there, which is a death threat, because the French killed the pope back then after kidnapping him. This is kind of something you see with authoritarians throughout history. You know, this kind of attack on the Pope or other leaders who intimidate them. So that's why one of the reasons we're bringing this up right now, and the Pope is really in Donald Trump's head. And MAGA just continues to attack. And Pope Leo XIV in Cameroon also said the world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants. And it seems pretty clear who he's talking about here. Trump, Putin, Netanyahu and others. Here, play this clip.

[Pope Leo XIV (quoted clips)]

The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants. It is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters. They are the descendants of Abraham, as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore. Let us look into each other's eyes. We are this immense people. Peace is not something we must invent. It is something we must embrace by accepting our neighbor as our brother and as our sister.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Finally, Pope Leo XIV talks about how the masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to to destroy. Play the clip.

[Pope Leo XIV (quoted clips)]

The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy. Yet often a lifetime is often not enough to rebuild. They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing, on devastation. Yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

So the types of people he'd call it out there, Donald Trump, J.D. vance, who converted to Catholicism, you have Pete Hegseth again. Pete Hegseth this morning held a press conference where the entire press conference seemed to be devoted to invoking the name of God and religion to justify war crimes and genocide and to say, and I went into the church and I heard a great sermon and that's what tells me that we need to go to war. Let's play the first clip of Hagseth right here from this morning. Let's play it this past week.

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

Last Sunday, I was sitting in church with my family and our minister preached from the Book of Mark, the third chapter. And in the passage, Jesus entered a synagogue and healed a man with a withered hand. The Pharisees came to watch. And as the scripture reads, they came

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

to see whether he

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

would heal him on the Sabbath so that they might accuse him. You see the Pharisees, the so called and self appointed elites of their time, they were there to witness, to write everything down, to report, but their hearts were hardened. Even though they witnessed a literal miracle, it didn't matter. They were only there to explain away the goodness in pursuit of their agenda.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

So Pete Hegseth comparing the press to the Pharisees, Donald Trump is Jesus and he's saying that Donald Trump worked miracles in Iran by blowing up elementary schools and killing little girls. And the fact that the press would dare report on war crimes and genocide about what's happening place is the same thing that Jesus confronted when Jesus, in the telling of the scripture, as he says, was working miracles. That's what the Trump regime was doing this morning.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

It's such a perversion of religion and it's really just disgusting to even see this being invoked at all from the Pentagon and being used to justify this war that has killed so many innocent people. And so I completely understand why the Pope is speaking out against this sort of rhetoric. But I do find it interesting that the Pope doesn't often even mention Donald Trump by name, really, unless he's asked directly about it, like he was by the press the other day. But the Pope says things against tyrants and against warmongers, and then the Trump administration and people like Pete Hegseth get all offended. But I think what this really shows, first off, I don't understand, you know, like, at least often I, like, can understand the strategy behind Donald Trump's moves, like why he's attacking a specific group, why he's trying to pit these groups apart from each other. But attacking the Pope and attacking Catholics, it's just like I. Do you agree? Like, this is like, the weirdest thing I've ever seen in my life. I don't understand it. But it also shows, like, it really exposes who the charlatans are out there, the people who you should just never trust about absolutely anything, even when they try to be slimy and get out of the kind of answering the question. Like, even Mike Johnson, who positions himself as this devout Christian, right? He's asked about this and he's like, well, I'm not going to comment on any religious leaders, but, you know, I will say that the, the, the Pope should not be waiting in on issues of, of religion. Listen, if you're going to use religion, I mean, if you're going to use religion to justify your politics, you can't be upset when someone is using politics or using religion to speak out against your politics. And so we're seeing just this. These frauds right now expose themselves. And we knew who they were, don't get us wrong. But you even saw a guy like Franklin Graham, right? Trump supporter, evangelical, he writes this, like, super embarrassing note about Donald Trump and about this whole Jesus fiasco where Donald Trump posted that AI image of depicting himself as Jesus and then said, I thought I was a doctor. I thought it was a doctor healing people, I thought, or the Red Cross. And Franklin Graham, who positions himself as this legitimate evangelical type, he writes this whole letter to the press where he's addresses it to Donald Trump, but it's for the press. And he says, I've been out of the country and just returned this afternoon. This is a statement I just released to the media addressing some of the issues you've been facing this week. First of all, issues you've been facing. He's not facing issues. Donald Trump did this to himself. Then he writes, I do not believe President Trump would knowingly depict himself as Jesus Christ. That would certainly be inappropriate. I'm thankful the President has made it very clear that this is not at all what he thought the AI generated image was representing. He thought it was a doctor helping someone. And what he learned, when he learned of the concerns, he immediately removed the post. When I looked at the illustration, I did not jump to the same conclusion as some. And then he says that this was just all the Donald Trump's critics, they just wanted an excuse to come after him and make some stuff up. And they use this as that excuse. Like, dude, you're a charlatan, you're a fraud. Okay, stop defending this behavior. You don't have to defend everything this guy does. He is attacking religion, which is your whole thing, I think. I know you're not a Catholic, you're an evangelical, but you should be offended when Donald Trump is attacking any form of Christianity, Catholicism, any religion, to be honest. But this is the kind of behavior we've come to expect from Donald Trump's sycophants. They will support everything he says. And he surrounds himself with these very fraudulent kind of religious leaders, the people who are more interested in taking big money from people and building these mega churches than they are about actually spreading the word of Jesus Christ.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Exactly. And that's why, because it's so fraudulent, what we're witnessing right now, because MAGA loves to pretend, loves to pretend that Trump is like this religious person, that Trump, that Trump does what Biden actually did and attend, you know, church every Sunday and actually be a religious person and be someone who really believed. Donald Trump doesn't care about any of that. Right, Brett? It's all about the grift. It's all about how can I raise money off of these people. And he surrounded himself by like minded people who are just trying to grift, it seems like, off of the religion and line their own pockets like Donald Trump, man. It's either one of two options with the AI image. Donald Trump didn't know that he was Jesus and then like doing that or he's not a religious person. It was like, it's, it's one of those two. And so for me, it just gets frustrating because people seem to think like Trump is, is like this all being, but like you just have to call him out on the BS and he's attacking the Pope. Like, can we just start and stop there?

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

I'm going to narrow down Jordy's list. It's not one of those two. It's the latter.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Okay?

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

He didn't think he was a doctor. He didn't think he was a red CR guy. He knew exactly what he was doing. And you know, you even have people like Tucker Carlson Close people to Donald Trump saying, like, this is literally like what they say the Antichrist does. Like, he makes himself, you know, try to appear more important than God, more important than Jesus. Like, this is textbook what the Antichrist does, what Donald Trump is doing right here. And you have Tucker Carlson calling him out, you know, Marjorie Taylor Green calling him out. But you have actual politicians, people who say that they are Catholics, these other religious leaders who are really all bound to die. Donald Trump, in my opinion, due to the exact reason that Jordy said, because they're all in on this grift, and it's this grift above all.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Here's the thing. Religion has.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

One second there, Ben. I just wanted to add this, too, because when you actually listen to the Pope's words and what he's saying and he's talking, you know, about just values of love and compassion and hope, and Trump thinks like he's taking digs at him, and then he goes on to attack the Pope. Pope, you know, he's telling on himself there. Donald Trump is. It's absolutely. It's beyond ridiculous. And just one quick side note. Pope Leo, man, every time I see a clip of him and just remember that he's from Chicago, American Pope, I'm just like, let's go. That's wild.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Look, religion has a major potency intertwined with it. People who are religious feel very strongly, often about their religion. And so if you can utilize religion as a tool to divide or use the symbols of religion in order to manipulate. It's one of the characteristics of Donald Trump to lure people in and then use things that make people comfortable and make people invested and then manipulate it. And that's what charlatans do. That's what Donald Trump deserves. The symbolism of the United States, the flag, patriotism, our history, these symbols. Donald Trump as a fraud is able to take these symbols that are very meaningful to people here in this country and manipulate them for his own gain, to divide and to cause major issues. This is what we see as a pattern over and over again. I mean, one of the things that Donald Trump does also. We'll talk about this later in the show. Using the very idea of a negotiation as a tool of chicanery, trickery, fraud, domination. Oftentimes when people engage in a negotiation, most frequently it's not an exercise of domination. It is how can we reach an agreement and reach a deal. Donald Trump's view of a negotiation is to lure people in, usually under fraudulent pretext, and then when they are vulnerable because they believe they're in a deal making posture, you basically sucker punch him. Donald Trump never was a deal maker in my opinion. He's always been a destroyer and he's used things like implied covenants of good faith and fair dealing norms and traditions to harm people when people are following what they believe are basic codes of morality, decency or good faith when it comes to agreements, contracts and general understandings. I think it's an important point that you also emphasize there, Jordy, is that this is not a religious discussion. As I noted before, this isn't about this religion or that religion. Our audience is made up of people of all different types of religion and people who don't follow religion. And again, why I emphasize so frequently the importance of just being a good person and to look out for each other and to uplift and to show compassion and to show empathy is because that isn't discussed enough in the modern day or by news companies. And we can't for forget that, that we're all in this together. We share this earth for a short period of time and it should be our goal to live in peace and harmony and to avoid wars and to try to have prosperity for everybody as much as possible where we can spread the love and joy and equality and then pass on a better world for future generations. Politics is so frequently gamified by news and by people talking about it, we forget that we deconstruct it. What we should be focused on is, is this improving our lives and our collective time here on this earth that we can make it just a better place and we could live in harmony with each other. And that may sound corny saying that, but at the heart of what we do here at the Midas Touch Network is to deconstruct the lies and to try to get to that right there. I'll stop preaching, pun intended. And let me show you what some of these MAGA sycophants were out there saying, because I it was also a concerted effort by Donald Trump bootlickers to go out and attack the Pope. Particularly Catholics who are maga, would go out and they would say, well, the Pope shouldn't have gone political. When you step into the political arena, you deserve it. For example, Elise Stefanik, whose political career is completely over right now. She ran for governor. Dropped out. She ran. She dropped out of her congressional seat as well. After, after this term is over. Here's what she had to say when she was on CNN just before American

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

Pope I don't want to see the Pope as a politician and you know, the President, we know his leadership style. He is going to stand strong for the American people. And the President of the United States is a political figure. Of course he's going to be engaged in politics when he's politically attacked. I don't want to see the Pope get involved in domestic politics. What I think we can highlight as Catholics for myself is the increased number of new Catholics entering, and that's a great success for the Catholic Church long term.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Magamike Johnson wanted to say that he knows more than the Pope does on something called the Just war doctrine. And Maga Mike says, let me preach to you. I'm Maga Mike. I drape myself in religion and everything I do. So let me explain to you, Pope Leo xiv, the just war doctrine Doctrine. Here, let's play this clip.

[Mike Johnson (MAGA politician)]

A pontiff or any religious leader can say anything they want, but obviously, if you wade into political waters, I think you should expect some political response. And I think the Popes received some of that. You know, I was taken a little bit of back, just honestly, frankly, by something that was said. I think he said several days back that something about those who engage in war, you know, that Jesus doesn't hear their prayers or something. You know, it. It is a very well spoken, unsettled matter of Christian theology. There's something called the just war doctrine. There's a time to every purpose under heaven. I think what the President's comments, what the Vice President's comments reflect is their understanding deep in the, you know, the skiff and the classified briefings of the stakes that are so high and the situation that we're facing, and the fact that you had the, the nation that was the largest sponsor of terrorism now has, having had that ability taken away from them, that means potentially millions of innocent people will be able to keep their lives and not be killed by terrorists. That's a good thing. That's what's come out of this. Okay? So I don't. I don't want to engage in a theology.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

I don't want to engage in a theological debate with Pope Leo xiv.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Like, Pope Leo, like, was like, screw Trump. That guy sucks. All the Pope said was that he's not a fan of war, wants peace, and wants innocent people to live.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Live.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

When you break down the Pope's statements, and this is what has so triggered them into this bizarre tantrum. And I just want to remind everybody, these are the people, like I said this earlier, these are the people who use religion to push their political beliefs all the time. It's like their main move I need to ban abortion because the Bible says so. I need to take away rights from this group and that group because the Bible commands me to. To. They do that all the time. And the second the Pope says something that isn't even particularly political, they freak out. And they also seem to forget that the Pope is not only a political leader, but the Pope is also the leader of Vatican City. And so there actually is a political function of the Pope in addition to his religious function. And as I said, this really exposes the charlatans. I actually do have some modicum of respect, respect for those Catholics, those Christians who after these comments were made, after Donald Trump posted those images, actually spoke out and said, no way. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. That's not okay. But these people who make excuses for Donald Trump while wrapping themselves, whether it's in the flag or with the cross or whatever it is, those people to me are just reprehensible and show that they're complete frauds.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

And you have Pete Hegseth up there when, when we, when we showed that clip earlier when he's giving the Bible verse, he literally has like an American like, like flag. Little like, what are those called, Brett? Those like handkerchiefs or whatever that he tucked into his suit. What about, you know, whatever happened to the separation between church and state? Like, how have we come here as a society? Going back to what Maga Mike just said about the Pope, Like, I just want to, like, rephrase that. He basically said, like, he's okay with the Pope getting, you know, like, like brush him off the plate. Like, throw a fastball high and inside to the point Pope. That's what he said. He's like, oh, the Pope's gonna step into the political. He's gonna. He's gonna have to take some heat for that. That.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

That's what he said.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

He's an ins. Like, that's an insane. That's an insane thing. Especially from Mike Johnson who, like, puts forward this holier than thou, like, mentality.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

It's like, oh, oh, now you want a separation of church and state. Now that. Now that somebody said, don't kill innocent little girls. Now that somebody said, maybe don't start wars of aggression now. Okay, now you care about this, by the way. Way. Speaking of how religious these people are, I should mention, I know everybody's seen the clip by now, and if you haven't look it up, I can't play it because there's movie footage in it. But do you all see Pete Hegseth play the clip of. Of Pulp Fiction. He didn't play the clip of Pulp Fiction. He said that he was reading a Bible verse, and it actually was not a Bible verse at all. It was a line from Pulp Fiction, which was a fake Bible verse. And Pete Hegseth read this during a religious sermon that they did at the Pentagon yesterday. To Jordy's point, why are you doing religious sermons at the Pentagon in the first place? But then he. The sermon he ended up delivering ended up being a fake Bible verse from the Tarantino movie Pulp Fiction. Because I'm pretty sure when they write these speeches, they're not actually even writing these speeches. This is my theory. This is my opinion. I think they have Chat GPT write all of their speeches for them. The same way you have all those lawyers and stuff who get caught citing fake cases and fake quotes and all this stuff. Stuff. You get a fake Bible verse that slips in because the Internet commonly uses that fake Bible verse because it's a popular movie. That's how I think, in my opinion, that happened. But it just shows you.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

I told everyone earlier in the week that when I woke up the other day, you know, my wife and I, we. The first thing we said to each other was like, did you see Trump attack the Pope last night? The first thing I said to Brett this morning when we woke up for. For our morning meeting was, do you see Hegseth quote, Tarantino? You know, what is going on, man?

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

I'll just say this about Pope Leo XIV as well. He's an Augustinian Friar who spent 12 years leading the Augustinian religious order. They invented the just war doctrine. Like, literally, the doctrine that Maga Mike cites is an Augustinian doctrine right there. And Maga Mike want to spend the time lecturing Pope Leo XIV on what's called the just war doctrine. So you have that as well. Well, I want to take our first quick break of the show. When we come back, I want to bring us into some of these congressional hearings. I want to bring us to the steps of the Capitol building. The Midas Touch network was there with our Washington, D.C. bureau getting the clips that are now leading the discussions not just in D.C. but throughout the country and the world. Hat tip to Scott McFarland leading an incredible Washington, D.C. bureau there. We'll talk about the World cup boycott growing right now, as well as the Saudis saying, no more live golf for you, Donald Trump in the United States. We've got a lot more to discuss on this episode of the Midas Touch podcast. A reminder. Hit subscribe. Help us get to 7 million subscribers subscribe to the Midas Touch podcast on audio as well. You may think that you're subscribed on audio, but will you double check to make sure you are? Leave a five star review there. Let's take our first quick break of the show.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

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[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

I want to take us to Capitol Hill. Take a look at some of the congressional hearings that are taking place, show you what's going on on the House floor. As I'm sure you may know, the House and the Senate were in recess for a long period of time. They were vacationing while the United States was in this catastrophic and unlawful war. And now they're back. And finally there are some hearings taking place where some important questions get to be asked, even if it's not necessarily the subject matter of what the hearing is supposed to be. For example, Donald Trump's ambassador to the United Nations, Waltz, he was testifying before the Senate regarding a United nations funding issue. But Democrats used the opportunity to ask Ambassador, who was previously a Congress member, some important questions about the war. I'm going to show you two clips now of Democratic Senator Van Hollen Cross examining United States Ambassador Mike Walz to the United Nations. Let's play the first clip if we've got it. And this is the clip where Waltz has asked about his position as a member of Congress when he said that Putin is a war criminal. And he was saying, hey Biden, you've got to recognize that Putin's a war criminal or else you've got to go and Biden did recognize that Putin is a war criminal. So I guess the question right now for Ambassador Wallace is do you still believe that Putin is a war criminal? Because Donald Trump seems to be very supportive of Putin remove sanctions from Russia. So let's play this clip.

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

Would you agree that we should enforce them, that there be consequences for war crimes times and let me ask you a different way. Would you agree it would be a violation of international law to blow up a bunch of civilian infrastructure in Iran because Iran did not agree to open the Strait of Hormuz? That would be a violation of international humanitarian law if we actually did. Actually, that's that that is incorrect. There are we have a long history. We could show look at video after video of the bridges that we bombed in World War II and Vietnam and conflict after conflict of power plants in Serbia under the Clinton. Mr. Ambassador, this was not my question particularly a regime. My question was it has dual use. Mr. Well, I'm going to have military with civilian uses. M. Mr. Ambassador, that was not my question. President Trump threatened to hit civilian infrastructure if Iran did not open the Strait of Hormuz. We all know international law. We know there are some exceptions to the general rule that you should hit civilian infrastructure. The enemy is occupying it. But my question was different. You don't think it's a violation of international law to blow up a bunch of civilian infrastructure because the government of Iran refused to open the Strait of Hormuz? You don't think that would be a violent President Trump? You think that would be a violation of international law. Use every bit of leverage that he, that he I'm asking you if, and if you have you said that President Biden needed to make clear that, quote, Putin is an absolute war criminal, unquote. Do you stand by your statement that Putin was an absolute war criminal? I'll tell you, Senator, statements I made as a member of Congress very different than what I make now as an ambassador of the UN Working for President Trump and representing the United States. So are you retracting? So I certainly, I support President Trump in everything he is doing in trying to end this awful. I just find it very interesting, Mr. Ambassador, that you called upon the former President Biden in no uncertain terms to condemn Putin as a war criminal and you won't call upon President Trump to do the same thing as you know, he has refused to do what you called upon President Biden to do. Let me move on as a co sitter. It's quite difficult to Mediate the end of the war if you take such maximalist approaches. And now being a diplomat and a mediator and fulfilling his goals, working for him, and his agenda is very different than when you're elected. It's interesting, though, Mr. Ambassador, I was. Simple question. I guess you are. You're not asking this president to do what you asked the last president.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Precisely. And you hear this term a lot. Maximalist. Right. That's like a term that they keep on using maximalist frameworks. And these are just people who are BSing their way through this and they're just trying to use big words and dazzle you with the BS as they, as the expression goes, that's a maximalist approach. That was your approach last year before you got the job. That's what you were saying. And applying a different standard maybe 18 months ago or so, that's a standard that you were applying. And by the way, that Biden was agreeing with that Putin was a war criminal. And now you have arguably more power than almost anybody right now. And you're out there saying that it is a maximalist approach to hold Putin accountable and that you need to be neutral and mediate when Russia's position and Putin's position is basically to destroy the United States of America and destroy NATO. And you're like, we're just a mediator. We're just, you know, a neutral in all of this. So I'm glad that these hearings were held so that we can expose this. I'll show you now Democratic Senator Murphy's cross examination of United Nations Ambassador Walsh, which I thought was powerful as well. You know, that's what I like. I mean, these Democratic senators are doing, you know, are out there calling out the war crimes. I mean, you know, I think more could be doing this, but I think Democratic Senator Murphy's doing a really good job. Let's play this clip.

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

But President Trump has said that if Iran does not comply with his demands that he will end Iran's civilization with specific threats to target civilian infrastructure. This looks to a lot of us into the world like a promise by the President of the United States to come commit war crimes. I'm sure you don't agree with that assessment, but we have never had a president before threaten to end an entire civilization and double down on that claim if that country does not accede to the demands of the United States. So what does the president mean when he says that if these negotiations don't work out, doubt he will end Iran's civilization? Well, Senator, I think that statement in the broader context. He also talked about attacking infrastructure, bridges, power plants. And we all know Iran has a long history of co mingling, both civilian and military, of hiding weapons in hospitals and schools, and using what could be just pure civilian infrastructure to also power factories for drones, for missiles. And the IRGC controls nearly 50% of the economy. I think it looks like, frankly, well, look, I guess what does it mean to end a civilization? But I think we have to look at the fact that you have a regime that literally chants death to America for the last 47 years and has acted on it, has killed thousands of Americans, has slaughtered its own people. Do you know how many, I mean, how many machine gun bullets does it take take over the course of a week to kill 40,000 of its own people? Right, but does that. So does that merit a threat to. I think it's civilization, Senator, it was some tough talk. And what are the results? What are the results was we had the highest level engagement in the history of the Iranian regime with the Vice President and Speaker of the Parliament. Less than a week later, we had a ceasefire. 48 hours later, they clearly got the message and they clearly came back to the table.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Okay, I think there's a lot there to break down. But at the end of it, I mean, one he's leaning in on, destroy the civilization of Iran. That's the policy of the Trump regime. Mass genocide, I mean, you hear him saying that, war crimes and mass genocide. But then he also says, but if you look at Trump's tough talk, look at the results, that's what brought Iran to the negotiating table, people. And that's why we're in a ceasefire now. He later goes on to say, but Iran is violating the ceasefire by still controlling the Strait of Hormuz. The clip goes on and on and on, but that is a reinvention of the history of what happened, what actually happened. Donald Trump made a threat to wipe out the entire civilization. And he gave a deadline. Iran said, we're not backing down. Donald Trump got scared as he approached his own arbitrary deadline about blowing up the entire Iran, Iranian civilization. So then Donald Trump said to this Pakistani field marshal, the top guy in Pakistan, that he knows, I need your help, you gotta get me something. They said, okay, well, I guess you gotta agree to Iran's ten point negotiating framework. And that's all Iran will agree to. So then Donald Trump posts, we agree to Iran's ten point negotiating framework. So what's in the ten point negotiating framework framework? Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz. Iran gets to Continue to enrich uranium. Permanent security guarantees for Iran, Hezbollah, the Houthis and the Iranian Shiite militias in Iraq. Full reparations for the war totaling more than $270 billion for Iran. The United States moves its military bases out of the Middle East. Iran gets to charge $2 million per tanker out of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran gets to to keep its ballistic missiles, its Shahi drones and its FPV drones. Iran gets to have all sanctions lifted, all UN resolutions against it lifted. Now, this is what Trump agreed to. I'm not giving you hyperbole. I'm not having a debate. There's nothing to debate. It's an objective fact. Trump agreed to that. How do I know? Trump had a 15 point play plan. Iran had its 10 point plan, which we always had been talking about for weeks. Trump posted, we agree to a framework that is Iran's ten point plan. Then Donald Trump reposted Iran's Foreign minister Iraq cheese statement saying the same. As a result of that, Iran agreed to the ceasefire and to have discussions in Pakistan which were a complete and total failure because the Trump regime showed showed up. Donald Trump didn't and Marco Rubio didn't. The Secretary of State, the main person who's supposed to negotiate these things, they were at a UFC fight in Florida while Donald Trump was telling the UFC male fighters how handsome and good looking they were. But they sent Kushner Witkoff and J.D. vance to negotiate in Pakistan to say, actually we don't agree to the 10 point plan. We're gonna go back to the 15 point plan that we had originally. To which Iran said, well then we're not going to do that. We're gonna continue to control the Strait of Horm, going to continue to do exactly what we're doing. So you can have this ceasefire, but we control the Strait of Hormuz and we're not going to agree to anything that deviates out of the negotiating framework. And that's where we are at this present moment. And now you have Gulf states and European countries saying they believe the soonest there can ever be a resolution. We're talking about six months from now. Now Europe's running out of jet fuel, maybe two, three weeks longer of jet fuel. There are going to be food shortages very soon. The Strait of Hormuz basically no different right now than what was going on during the war. The bombs aren't dropping right now and the missiles aren't flying. But the Strait of Hormuz is effectively being controlled by Iran. Some tankers are still getting out and are passing the blockade. We're not getting good information from our CENTCOM about what's happening, happening, but, you know, they're spiking the football like they've achieved some great result. The Wall Street Journal did an article the other day yesterday that the people now in charge at every level of the Iranian military, the national security structure, at the ayatollah level, from Modaba all the way to the IRGC to the national security, are far more deeply entrenched, less compromising people than all the people who the Trump regime killed. You still have the Islamic Republic in control, and yet the Trump regime spikes the football as though this has some amazing accomplishment. And that Donald Trump social media post is what did it like. I just wanted to break down that full dynamic about.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Yeah, but Ben, you're forgetting totally new regime, you know. Okay, so all the people you just mentioned may still be in power. They may be the more hardline people who took over these positions. Positions were killed. But instead of Khomeini's, him being alive, now his more hardline son is in power. I think we have to acknowledge the total, totally new regime. And these people are way better. You know, this is just. I'm being sarcastic, obviously. I know. Occasionally I get Brett, like, why are you saying that? Being sarcastic. It's. It's so classic Trump, though, isn't it? Because he starts these things, he sparks chaos, and it's something that he's done, really, his entire life. And then, like, you can kind of tell, he kind of gets bored with it, or he realizes that it's not exactly going well and he wants to bail on it in the middle, but he's already so far in, and he's already caused so much chaos that you can't just stop what you're doing in the middle of it. And then the whole world is left to pick up his mess. We've seen it with the tariffs, we were seeing it here. He starts something, and that's why there's this whole, you know, notion of Donald Trump to tacoing, because he gets the backlash. You know, he sees what's happening with the markets, and then he goes, I don't want to do that anymore. Or with this war. You know, I think at a certain point, he realized, like, how, you know, despite his bluster, how poorly this thing was going, and now he's looking for an out. The issue, strategically speaking, when you're looking for an out, when you're this far in and when things are not going well, is you're naturally going to end up giving major concessions to the people and make your yourself worse off and make the world worse off and make your country worse off. And that's what we're seeing with Trump here. I mean, the situation, by every metric right now is still horrible. And we don't know what's going to happen with these negotiations. We have a ceasefire that's going to expire in just a few days, if you want to call it a ceasefire. And Trump is acting like everything is great and everything's, you know, never been better, and the markets go along with this bs, which all I've learned in the past, you know, I think one of the biggest lessons I've learned is that the market is just fake, that it's all, the numbers are fake. It's all fake. I mean, if, if the Allbirds situation yesterday didn't sell you that this market is just fake, then I don't know what's going to. I'm referring to the shoe company Allbirds that was going bankrupt. And then yesterday they decided that they were rebranding themselves as a artificial intelligence company. And because they named themselves an AI company, I don't even know what kind of AI they're doing. Their stock went up like 600 to 800% or something. That's the kind of market we're dealing with right now. So don't give me the market to say that things are going well because it's clearly all bs, Right? Like, we could, we could acknowledge that. But when you look at the actual data, one of the issues right now is that oil is still not going to the places where it needs to go. And we're seeing these major warnings right now from these international energy agencies saying that countries in Europe could be running out of jet fuel within the next, like, six weeks. I mean, these are, these are red alerts and people are acting like everything is fine. I saw yesterday a report that it looks like Spirit Airlines is about to go completely under, because Spirit Airlines is a budget airline that runs in very tiny margins and the jet fuel cost increases have destroyed their company and they're not able to recover. So they may be out of business. Regardless of what you think about Spirit Airlines, and not. Not so sure everybody has a positive image towards them, but, but that's a direct effect of Donald Trump's war here. And the barrels are just not getting through. Now you have the blockade on top of the blockade, you have the Strait of Hormuz still closed. You still have, by the way, the Iranians getting through Millions of barrels of oil despite this so called blockade by the United States. And so. And so while the world is in turmoil, it's like you have Trump and a lot of these people around him and these market forces kind of acting like everything's okay. But when push comes to shove, when that oil delivery does not show up, when all of a sudden they don't have people, don't have oil, or don't have jet fuel or don't have gas, people are going to feel it. And that's why we're seeing countries not in the United States, but countries with more responsible leaders actually giving this warning to their people. Not so different than warnings that they gave to their people at the beginning of, of COVID that, hey, we might start to have to ration some supplies here. We may have to. If you could work from home. Work from home because we might run out of gas or gas is going to get super expensive because we're getting short on supply here. I mean, people are already setting their citizens up for that reality should this continue. And the impacts that will already come from Donald Trump's actions cannot be erased. We can only try to now kind of recover, you know, try to get back to where we are. This is an ugly situation and it's like everybody is just playing pretend.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Yeah. And look, not to mention that Donald Trump getting us in this war of his choice. He killed over a dozen U.S. troops. Like that needs to really just be like the first thing that everyone always talks about. He got over a dozen U.S. troops killed. Donald Trump did. For his war of choice. Yeah. Not to mention the skyrocketing oil prices and all of that as well. And also, also, he bombed a little girl's school. That's Donald Trump. That's the President of the United States. Those are facts. Those are just the facts of it. I want to go back quickly to the waltz clips that we just showed and played. In my opinion, those clips that we had played. The responses from waltz are just such a damning indictment of where we are as a society. Like I give it up to those Senate Dems and not cause I'm a Democrat. Not because I'm like, yeah, go blue team. No, because they're just trying to get the facts, man. Like to trying. Truth matters. Words have meaning. And so when Trump is openly discussing war crimes and he's saying he wants to end a civilization, that's not tough talk. Okay. That means something. And he's telling you explicitly what that means. I think one of the biggest things that we'll have to grapple with as a society as we go forward here, I think we've lost sight of that, that words have meaning and that actions have come consequences. And so collectively not like we hear, but like, we as a country just have to sort of like, wake up and just like, you know, shake our heads and like, get a refresher here and just, you know, double down on truth and facts and not just blindly defending an administration, a regime that we see Walt's doing up there. Like, it's so embarrassing and pathetic and frankly, just beneath any positions of power of government that we see from these quote, unquote leaders every single day.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

It's not just, even. Even that words have consequences, because they do. But consequences are consequences. When the thing happens Covid mass deaths, war, mass deaths, genocide, mass deaths, there is this numbing and this washing of the truth truth that the actual thing itself is just viewed as just something happening in the cacophony of the chaos that exists in the day. And, Brett, I think that's what you're getting at, which is it's this don't look up moment. If you all know the movie with the asteroid coming down to hit the Earth and everybody's so caught up on their phones and devices and what crazy thing is happening here and crazy thing there that by the time people look up and there's the don't look up, you know, movements and like, let's don't look up and there's like, concerts about it, the thing is about to destroy everything. And so the consequences are the consequences. And it's a real thing. And the tangible hurt and the pain people in the United States are suffering. It's not words, it's not a talking point to say people can't afford things that people can't afford homes, or there are rent or gas or health care, or it's getting ripped away. It's not just words or a talking point that people are dying because they can't go see a doctor, because they can't afford it. Like, these are real things that are happening. And there is this detachment in this digital age and craze where we don't recognize a reality of that's that's happening, or we just kind of move on and it's treated as, I don't know, just this kind of similar Acura, this simulation. It's like this is a real life. This is really happening. There's real human suffering. And if you don't empathize with what's happening in the people and that these are life and death, war and peace issues, then that's kind of how you get in this position. And so that's why so much I hate to feel like I'm preaching on this network network. But what I try to re shock the conscience of is that these are conscious, shocking things that are happening. Not to be hyperbolic about it, but because it is a shared reality that is existing and we have to acknowledge it and we have to call it out. And we can't just say the words. We have to understand that this is

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

real suffering and what people are going through. Damn it.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

We take our last quick break of the show. When we come back, we'll show you you more things happening on Capitol Hill. We'll talk about the boycott of the World cup and what's materializing there. We'll talk about live golf, talk about a lot more. Let's take our last quick break of the show.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Starting something new isn't just hard, it's terrifying. I remember when we started building this network, there were a million questions running through my head. What if this doesn't work? What if nobody shows up? What if no one cares? What if we fail? But taking that leap ended up being one of the best decisions we ever made. And having the right tools makes all the difference. That's where Shopify comes in. Shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses around the world and 10% of all e commerce in the US from household names to brands. Just getting started with hundreds of ready to use templates, Shopify helps you build a beautiful online store that actually matches your brand style. Just like the Midas Touch Store and and it's packed with AI tools that can write descriptions, headlines and even enhance your product photography, saving you time and making everything more efficient. Plus, Shopify helps you get the word out like you've got a full marketing team behind you with easy email and social media campaigns and everything from inventory to payments to analytics is all in one place. So you're not juggling a bunch of different platforms. It's time to turn those what ifs into with Shopify today. Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at shopify.com Midas go to shopify.com Midas that's shopify.com Midas M E I D A S Are you tired of waking up hungover and worrying about what happened last night? That's why I've been reaching for Willy's Remedy plus the THC infused social tonic that lets you have fun and actually feel good the next day. If you're trying to be more intentional this year, Willy's gives you that social uplifting buzz without wrecking your goals. For me, it's perfect for unwinding after a long day, socializing without alcohol or even getting a little creative. It kicks in fast, feels smooth and euphoric and there's no hangover waiting for you in the morning. Willy's is a premium THC infused social tonic crafted by the legendary Willie Nelson. Inspired by Willy's way of living where peace flows freely and hangovers are a thing of the past. It is a low calorie, low sugar alcohol alternative that actually works, delivering a fast acting, euphoric social buzz without the regrets that come with alcohol. Willy's isn't that feared edible you ate too much of in college. Each bottle is third party lab tested for accurate dosage with a unique blend of thc, cbd, CBG and L Theanine that delivers calm, clarity, euphoria and relaxation. Relaxation Willy's social tonics come in 5mg and 10mg doses with a best in class flavor experience so smooth and balanced you barely realize you're drinking a THC product at all. You can enjoy the tonics as a shot, sipped over ice or mixed into your favorite mocktail. One shot of Willy's helps you relax, unwind and distress. Perfect for taking the edge off after a long day or socializing with friends, Willy's offers the kind of feeling that makes good company company even better. Willy sold out three times in the first six months with over 50,000 happy customers and they just restocked. Willy ships directly to your doorstep in 40/ states. Order now at drinkwillys.com and use code MIDAS for 20% off your first order plus free shipping on orders over 95 and enjoy life in the high country. That's drink willys.com code MIDAS M E I D A S ED is way

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

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[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Tell your friends about it, too. Word of mouth is one of the ways this network has spread. People have said, hey, aren't you tired of the same old corporate news BS and the split screen yelling and you're not getting the actual data. Give this a try. Give it a try and see for yourself. That's one of the ways this has grown. So, you know, send a text message to people you know about the Midas Touch network and you could send them this episode. Let's go to Capitol Hill. We got our reporters there on Capitol Hill right now, our D.C. bureau being led by veteran reporter Scott McFarlane, who's already been just doing an incredible job at the network. So great to see what he's built his entire career, frankly. But what he's been able to build at the Midas Touch Network for a very short period of time since he's. Since he's joined us. Let's take a look at Democratic Congresswoman Komliger Dove and what she had to say about Donald Trump claiming that the economy's booming and things are going great right now. Congresswoman, are you concerned about the impact that this war in Iran is having

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

on our national debt?

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

Oh, my God, yes, of course I am. You would. Stevie Wonder can even see how much this is costing us. So gas prices are going up. It's almost $10 in California, and fertilizer is going up. I mean, you name it, the prices have gone up. And this dude, Dr. Jesus, okay, is wanting to spend $2 billion of your money every single day rather than help you get health care his ass.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Thank you, Congresswoman.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Powerful words right there. AOC on the floor of the House of Representatives. Here's what she had to say. Let's play it.

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

Gentleman from New York is recognized for one minute.

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In February, the Trump administration, in conjunction with the Israeli government, launched an illegal and disastrous war in Iran. They provided no rationale to the American people. They sought no legal authority from Congress, and they have since descended on our world and our global economy into chaos. And that was just the beginning. Now, President Trump has threatened to use the United States military to carry out acts of genocide against the Iranian people, innocent civilians. Up until today, he has done this on his own. A rogue actor. But today we vote on whether or not he will do this. In the name of the American people, Congress must vote to exercise our power to stop this chaos or whether we sanction it and we must vote to restrain it. I urge our colleagues that we vote yes and that we end and stop all that is imperiled before us. And with that, I yield back.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Congresswoman Stansberry on the floor of the House, let's play to the gentlewoman from

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

New Mexico, Representative Melanie Stanbury.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

The gentleman from New Mexico is recognized for one minute.

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

Mr. Speaker, as CO sponsor of this War Powers resolution. This debate is making me sick. The lies and colleagues who are so weak that they won't enforce the Constitution to rein in a president who is clearly out of control. As we sit here, thousands of civilians are dead. Thirteen service members have been killed. Hundreds of hundreds have been injured with brain injuries, whose lives will never be the same. Millions of people displaced and our American bases bombed. And for what? Having been led into an illegal war by a madman who is attacking the Pope threatening war crimes and implicated in the Epstein files and who can't explain why we were there or what happens the day after. After that is why it is time to end this war, to stand with our troops and to stand with the American people. So we must pass this resolution and end this war now.

[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

Gentlemen, Yields members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the President.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Don't be mean to Donald Trump is what the speaker pro tem says. Don't be mean, don't be mean. Don't be mean to Donald. By the way, that was a rule that they made, a rule that you can't be mean to Donald Trump. Like that's actually a rule that they implemented recently.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

But I thought comedy was back. Wasn't comedy back. Wasn't what they were saying.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Comedy is so back that at this year's White House correspondence the year there is no comedian because they don't hurt the Hunter Spellings so much. Comedy is back. Oh and I think CBS is like welcoming. Yeah see Pete Hegseth who goes on TV at, at 5 in the morning Pacific time and just to shame the media and call on fake news outlets. But yeah, keep, keep putting your arm around Pete hexa. Great job CBS News.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Scott McFarlane, Midas Touch Network DC Bureau Chief was on Capitol Hill. Here's the report that he logged. Let's play it here on Capitol Hill.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

House Democrats do want to fight some messaging fights.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

They are pushing this legislation to set

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

up a commission to help execute the

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

2020 Fifth Amendment on Trump if and

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

when that time comes. There have been 65 co sponsors so

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

far who've signed on to it and could be more.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Yasmin Ansari, the Democrat from Arizona told

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

me it is worth having this public discussion on the 25th Amendment.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

It is warranted even if it's not really going to happen anytime soon.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Getting any feedback at all, negative or positive from the Republicans or purple districts at all.

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

I think we're getting a lot of positive feedback. I have been in, you know, very impressed actually to see non elected but Republicans, people like Tucker Carlson and former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, people like Nick Fuentes, Alex Jones, people I never thought I would ever agree with on anything, recognize that Donald Trump is so mentally unstable and he clearly is, is in a state of cognitive decline. And I'm grateful that Representative Raskin is leading the charge on this 25th amendment bill and has started an investigation into his cognitive decline because he is unfit and he is a national security threat to the United States.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

That's why it's important to have reporters like that on the Hill led by Scott. I mean, those are the questions that the American people are asking right now. And those are the questions that are not getting nearly enough attention or any attention at all. Want to give a hat tip to the USA Today for reporters reporting on this, though? Very important story. Cookies, deodorant, socks Iran war puts military Packages in Limbo Thousands of boxes sent to service members in the Middle east are stuck in limbo. The Postal Service has indefinitely suspended delivery amid the Iran war. And just take a look at what this article says. Dan F. Was alarmed when his daughter, a Marine aboard the USS Tripoli, a warship deployed to fight the Iran war, sent him a photo of a meal served on the the ship. A lunch tray, 2/3 empty, carried one small scoop of shredded meat and a single folded tortilla. A picture of a mid April dinner on the USS Abraham Lincoln shared by a service member with his family was similarly unappetizing. A small handful of boiled carrots, a dried meat patty and a gray slab of processed meat. And so military family members wanted to send food to their loved ones who weren't being fed by the United States military. But that has been shut down as well by the Trump regime as that account the Patriot Takes Account has posted over there. Remember, because this is what the Trump regime said that Americans should be eating. One piece of chicken, one piece of broccoli, a small tortilla. And one other thing. Remember that's when they put that out like two months ago. Well, there's no piece of chicken, there's no piece of broccoli, there's tortilla. And then there's one other thing right there. That's how Donald Trump is treating our troops. And what else would you expect with someone who called our troops suckers and losers and who hates our troops? Now, another development that we've always been focused on here in the Midas Dutch network, and this could be dominating the headlines tomorrow. A social media account that's very close, close to the Iranian parliament leader MB Gallabaf posted this message. Starting from noon tomorrow, the initial steps to block the Bab El Mandab Strait will be taken. The Bab El Mandab Strait is the strait in the Red Sea. The Houthis were able to stop commercial ships and tankers a few years back in the Red Sea. They have not yet been activated by Iran in terms of shutting down the Bab El Mandab straight. But if the United States continues to escalate and Donald Trump continues to engage in these tactics, that he is. Iran has said, here's what we're going to do. We're going to activate the Houthi. So we're going to be focused on that. Few other things that I want to pay attention to. We've covered it elsewhere in long hot take. So I'm not going to belabor it here, but it's worth talking about that federal judge in Washington, D.C. who was appointed by George W. W Bush in 2002, Judge Leon issued an order clarifying a prior order, which I don't think needed clarification to state that the injunctive relief, the injunction to block Donald Trump's construction of a ballroom applies to everything above ground. The ballroom that Donald Trump wants to throw, to hold, that wants to build, to throw parties. Donald Trump said, said that that's for parties. It's for entertaining. Underneath. Donald Trump has said he's building a secret military bunker. And the judge said, I'm not getting involved in that. That's for national security, the bunker. But the ballroom is not national security. Donald Trump's argument is the ballroom is national security. I've already destroyed the east wing of the White House and now I need the ballroom room to protect against ballistic missiles, Shahid drones and FPV drones from Iran and others. The ballroom is a shield to the White House to block missile strikes against me. So we have allowed private donors to build a ballroom shield and it's a National security ballroom shield, not really a ballroom ballroom, and that it and the bunker are one in the same. Now, we can't build the bunker unless we build the ballroom because it's all part of a security apparatus. That's what Trump has argued. National security ballroom. He's made social media posts about it as well. Federal Judge Leon says, no, I don't, I don't agree with that. There is a judge named Rapid now in the circuit court in D.C. who seems to be auditioning. She seems to be auditioning for a Supreme Court position and she's been making a lot of orders like Donald Trump, very Eileen Cannon esque orders. So there's this volley back and forth between this MAGA sycophant judge who wants to replace Justice Thomas or Alito if they retire at the end of this term. Pay attention. This summer, remember this podcast where I said that could be happening. And Judge Leon, a conservative right wing judge appointed by George W. Bush who said, you know what, if you could build your ballroom, just go to Congress, have Congress fund your ballroom and you can build your ballroom. Okay, that, that it's as simple as that. You can't just build ballrooms. And the judge said, you, Trump regime have already said that the underground is the national security issue and the above ground is the ballroom. I'm using your own words about what you've said here. So the judge clarified, Build your bunker, not your ball. Ballroom. We'll see what happens on appeal there. We'll pay attention and stay focused. As noted before, there is a massive FIFA boycott that has been growing as well. We've heard European FIFA officials, their football league officials saying that there should be this boycott. But now we're seeing it in the data. Tourism officials and sports officials and cities that are hosting FIFA World cup games in the United States. States are saying that not a lot of people are showing up. US Hotel or not a lot of people intend to show up. US Hotels had to slash their summer room rates as World cup demand falls short. Just think about it. The demand for the World cup is now falling short because Donald Trump's threatening all of these other countries. Ice and border patrol, Gestapo and airports and on the streets, kidnapping people, throwing them into concentration. Concentration camps, throwing them into concentration camps. In El Salvador. Trump making it about himself, not about the sports. Trump threatening to kill the Iranian football team. Donald Trump giving himself FIFA prizes. It's gross. It's become a gross event. Something that's incredible and loving. And don't get me wrong, FIFA's already always have been. There's always been corruption there. But people like to watch soccer. If you're watching this about football and Trump's made it into this, like, weird thing that's like, I don't even know I want to watch it. Like, you, you. You've perverted it. You've given yourself trophies and awards while you've committed genocide and gone to war against the world. Dude, what are you doing? The hell are you doing? So you've got that. And then Saudi Arabia saying, I don't think we're going to fund live anymore. You know that golf tournament that basically overtook the PGA and became like the big tournament. They threw around all this money. Money, right. They knew that Donald Trump liked golf. They knew that rich people in America like golf. So for Saudi Arabia, it's like, how do you influence Americans? You buy. You buy golf tournaments and you invest in entertainment. And also part of the security umbrella, the quid pro quo. America provides weapons and technologies to the Middle East. These big sovereign wealth funds in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Unity, name it. They then invest in treasuries and private equity and put Money into hedge funds here and real estate. And that's kind of the, the rule. I mean, as Donald Trump said, we're so weak and pathetic and America has never been weak. And why would we give other countries security because they park their money in the United States. Whether it was buying treasury bonds, real estate, the dollar being strong.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

Wrong.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

That was kind of the bargain. That was the bargain. And Donald Trump is such an idiot and he's so selfish and so. And he bankrupts everything he didn't even see. You know, he was so focused on the quid pro quo's for himself without doing the you scratch my back, I scratch your back part. The I scratch your back part. When Donald Trump was called upon to protect the Middle east, not only did he not protect him, he went alone with Netanyahu, Yahoo. And invaded Iran, didn't tell anybody, and now exposed all of these countries, whether it was Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi and Dubai and the UAE or Qatar or all these countries have now had their major infrastructure projects damaged. Who the hell is going to go to Dubai for tourism anymore, Right? Like, ain't nobody going there. All of these countries that tried to for generations build these images as safe, stable places, places they've seen that ripped away by Trump and Netanyahu's actions, they see Donald Trump looking so weak and pathetic. The point I wanted to make before is, which I forgot to make though, is like you may be saying, well then why would Iran make this deal where Trump agreed to the 10 point framework if they know that Trump was going to break it? Like they knew Trump was going to break it, but to get the United States of America, Jordan, to your point, point, Words have consequences and consequences have consequences. The United States of America, who defeated the Nazis, the post World War II undisputed juggernaut superpower. Right. The fact that you got the United States to say, we agree to your 10 point plan, will negotiate within the Iranian framework, what Iran recognizes that has consequences even if Donald Trump now pulls out of the frame framework. And maybe you can deceive certain Fox News or state regime media viewers in the United States, but the whole world saw what Donald Trump did in Europe, NATO, China, Japan, South Korea, Asia, Africa, Mexico, Central America, South America, Africa, the whole world said, whoa, Donald agreed to their ten point plan, the United States, and you posted it on social media, media, and you reposted the foreign minister of Iran as though you agreed to it. Okay, yeah. So Donald Trump sends Vance and Witkoff to, you know, bad faith, change the terms. The damage was done when the World saw Donald Trump threaten to end civilizations back out, agree to the framework, then try to shift it. The world goes, uh huh, uh huh. No balls, Donald, you know, I mean, what do you think? Like, what do you think about him? You know, I don't mean to talk about it. This guy. Guy is, this guy is weak. This guy is, you know, should I just show the clip quickly about RFK Jr. We're on the topic. These are some weirdos, right? I mean, you. I don't know why my mind works like this.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

One second. My, my, my, my face frozen.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

I will play the clip of RFK talking about studying a raccoon's penis while on a vacation. He saw a raccoon on. Just to think about, like, who Trump's like, top people are, right? Trump's health guy, head of. Head of our health right now, RFK Jr. Who's anti vax and who's like, you know, whatever, sees a raccoon on the street and thinks, you know what I'm gonna do to that raccoon? I'm gonna cut off its penis and I'm gonna study that raccoon's penis on a vacation. And by the way, people forget, like, RFK Jr did this. Didn't, like, you do the same thing with the bear and he like, took the bear and moved it to Central park after, like, finding a dead bear and placed it out as though there was like a, like a grizzly bear

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

murder in Central Park.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

This is serial killer behavior. I mean, come on.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

This is, this is great. This is great. You know, I won't play the RFK clip where he says, I don't need to play it. You. But my broader point is the world sees this behavior and goes, weak, weak, weak, weak, weak. And disentangling. What I'm saying about Saudi Arabia recognized. They know Jordy, as you started the episode, you know, where you hit him where it's hurt. Defund golf. Defund lip. But it's also a warning shot about all these private. It's a warning shot by Saudi Arabia. Private equity, you know, treasury bonds, you know, real estate. Saudi Arabia saying, you know what?

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Good luck when you're doing business with the Saudis. I think everyone's first question is, why? Why? Why do you want them to control your purse strings? Yeah. Why do you want to be beholden to them on anything? It's a bizarre stance to take. And so, Ben, excellent point. It's a warning shot. We could do this to live. We could do this to every aspect of your life. We own You, Donald, we own your people. We own everyone in your circle. We control you. So watch this. Watch that. You like this, this thing? Look how fast it goes away.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

Well, you know, what I'm studying, too, is if you've been noticing some of these big private equity companies, there's something called, like, redemptions, when you can pull your money from a specific fund. A few weeks back, what I started noticing is that some of these big funds would cap their redemptions at certain percentages to prevent people from withdrawing money. Right. Like if you think about Ponzi schemes, right. And. Or run on banks, or you could potentially do a run on a private equity if all of a sudden you are able to start pulling your money out and redeeming it and taking it out of. And taking out of these funds. So what I started noticing is I'm like, they're capping redemptions, and so they're worried about. They're worried about it as well. So I'm paying attention to that. Brett, anything you want to say before. Before we go? No.

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

You know, that's why I don't have much to add other than the fact that, you know, people are always going to get burnt by Donald Trump when they enter deals with him. They do it, I think, to create some sort of leverage over him and have him be compromised. And, you know, going back to your point before about how the world saw Donald Trump's actions as weak, unserious, dangerous, and how the world cannot trust Donald Trump. Trump, I mean, just think about this. We right now have Donald Trump, J.D. vance, Mike Johnson, all of these Republicans out there every day, Tom Holman, they're going out there, they're attacking the Pope, they're attacking Catholics. They're doing, taking revenge against Catholics. They're getting rid of Catholic funding to Catholic Charities. You know, this is sick stuff. At the same time, time, you have the Iranian leaders praising the Pope and praising Catholics and the rest of the world. And it just shows you at this moment, like, what side the United States is on here. And it's just, it's, it's. It's a, it's a mess. As Jordi has said before. We don't need to belabor the point, but it's going to take quite a while for the United States to gain back its standing and its trust with the rest of the world after all of this, this. And, and quite frankly, there needs to be a reckoning for all of these folks around Donald Trump who have enabled this behavior. You know, I think going back to the clips, we showed in the beginning of all those people. And Mike Waltz at the hearing refusing to want to offend Donald Trump by calling Vladimir Putin a war criminal. And Mike Johnson and all these Franklin Graham and all those people defending Donald Trump's posts and his comments about the pope. A Donald Trump cannot exist. A Donald Trump cannot rise to the position in power without the people around him there who continue to support, defend and elevate that kind of behavior. Without the sycophants, the house of cards falls. So the responsibility, we could talk about Donald Trump to the end, but the responsibility truly is all the people around him who have enabled and encouraged this behavior every day.

[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

That's all I got, everybody. Make sure you hit subscribe. Help us get to 7 million subscribers. Tell friends, family members, co workers about this network, even have them watch this show. Say, give this one show an opportunity and see what you think about it. Let them know. And by the way, thank you all. I want to let you all know, too. The most important thing we do here as a network is not talk. It's listen. We hear what you're saying, saying that's what matters most to us. And we are making sure that we react and respond to it. So thanks, everybody. We appreciate you and we're going to keep fighting for you. Jordy, take it away.

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Shout out to the Midas mighty

[Pope Leo XIV (quoted clips)]

Standing

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

strong

[Pope Leo XIV (quoted clips)]

against the fascist we sing our song

[Jordi / Podcast Host 3]

we will get it right

[Ryan Reynolds / Podcast Host 1]

Want to stay plugged in? Become a subscriber to our [e-mail] you'll get daily recaps from Ron Filipkowski ad free episodes of our podcast and more exclusive content only [e-mail]

[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

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[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

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[Podcast Host 2 / Advertiser Voice]

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[Ben Meiselas / Podcast Host 4]

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[Various political figures and reporters (clips)]

Com.