Trump Gets Rude Awakening as Protests Strike Home

Summary

---

The MeidasTouch Podcast

Episode: Trump Gets Rude Awakening as Protests Strike Home

Date: August 24, 2025
Hosts: Ben, Brett, and Jordy Meiselas

Overview

In this fiery episode, the Meiselas brothers cover escalating protests against Donald Trump’s deployment of military force in American cities and discuss the broader implications for American democracy. The episode dives deep into Trump’s authoritarian maneuvers, his attempts to federalize the National Guard in states like Illinois, and his administration’s handling—and alleged cover-up—of the Epstein files. The brothers combine their signature irreverence and biting commentary to dissect MAGA talking points, media meltdowns, and the coordinated pushback from political leaders like Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and California Governor Gavin Newsom.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. D.C. Protests and Militarization

[03:14] – [09:09]

• Protests in Washington D.C. have grown, with footage described from the U Street Corridor showing significant and vocal opposition to Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard.
• D.C. residents are largely opposed: 79% don’t want the National Guard present; restaurants and streets are strikingly empty, echoing the atmosphere of the COVID lockdown.
• Trump’s ambitions to expand military occupation to Illinois is strongly condemned.
  • Quote (Host, 04:10):
    “We’re talking about Donald Trump doing military deployments in states in the United States of America. I don’t want that to be lost on us. What level of fascism we have right now...”
• Governor J.B. Pritzker’s unequivocal rejection:
  • Quote (Pritzker’s statement, read by host, 05:05):
    “The safety of the people of Illinois is always my top priority. There is no emergency that warrants the President... federalizing the Illinois National Guard... or sending active duty military within our own borders. Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working class families.”
• The hosts criticize media’s framing of “crackdown”—arguing it normalizes fascist invasion of blue states.

2. Trump’s Health and Bizarre Public Behavior

[09:09] – [09:53]

• The brothers discuss Donald Trump’s apparent efforts to obscure a possible health condition, with speculation about his discolored hand, possibly from blood draws for a heart condition, and his odd behavior in press conferences.
  • Quote (Host, 08:35):
    “Trump played up a nick on his ear like it was a serious combat wound for months. But we’re all supposed to just ignore everything going on with his hands and ankles.”

3. The Epstein Files and Accusations of Cover-Up

[09:53] – [16:15]

• Of 33,000 document pages produced by the DOJ, 97% were already public, failing to meet the subpoena’s aims for transparency in the Epstein case.
  • Host characterizes the document dump as “total and utter bullshit” and a deliberate distraction tactic.
• Republican Jim Jordan defends the completeness of the document release, parrots MAGA talking points, and takes the word of Ghislaine Maxwell:
  • Quote (Jim Jordan, 11:52):
    “We knew President Trump didn’t do anything wrong here. He said that repeatedly... based on what we got from the interview of Ms. Maxwell.”
• Host’s sharp rebuke:
  • Quote (Host, 10:25):
    “So the Republican Party just says, we’re the party that just embraces the word of convicted sex traffickers. So utterly despicable.”
• Interview with Rep. Robert Garcia (14:49):
  • Quote (Garcia, 14:49):
    “What we got was complete bullshit... 33,000 pages of essentially documents that have already been in the public domain... Instead of actually sending us the client list information related to Epstein and his crimes... we didn’t get any of that. That is incredibly concerning for us.”
  • Garcia also blasts efforts to portray Ghislaine Maxwell as credible:
    “She’s a sex trafficker and a known liar. She should not be trusted. And once again, Donald Trump, Pam Bondi, Mike Johnson, they’re all involved in a massive cover up.”

4. Media and MAGA Meltdowns

[12:34] – [13:32]

• Mark Levin, Fox host, is played melting down over California Governor Newsom’s strong pushback against Trump:
  • Quote (Levin, 12:55):
    “It’s Donald Trump—the success of business, success of politics. He’s a massive success. He’s a winner… Gavin Newsom is a loser. He’s a buffoon.”
• Levin bizarrely labels Newsom a “confederate” and discusses nullification (13:32), drawing ridicule from the hosts.

5. Harsh Enforcement & Protester Repression in D.C.

[16:15] – [16:44]

• Clips describe ICE actions and police tactics targeting protesters and people of color in D.C. metro stations, including body slamming a person “literally eating crabs in public.”
  • Quote (Host, 16:44): “If you happen to have brown skin, this was someone who was just literally eating crabs in public. Got thrown to the ground.”

6. Trump’s Desperate Fundraising and Communications

[16:44] – [17:45]

• The hosts lampoon Trump’s barrage of increasingly desperate fundraising emails, highlighting subject lines such as “I don’t need help,” “You just won the gold medal in the Trump world,” and “You’ve just been awarded the Golden Trump Award certificate.”
  • Quote (Host, 17:45):
    “Ben, this is getting sad. I’ve asked you so many times to complete my official MAGA poll. I’m worried about you. This is the last chance right here. This is the last chance.”

7. Newsom’s Social Media Trolls of Trump

[17:45] – [18:40]

• Newsom continues to use humor and social media trolling against Trump, teasing “Term limits are just suggestions” merchandise, mocking MAGA boat parades, and lampooning GOP figures as “the Three Stooges.”
• Newsom admonishes Trump directly:
  • Quote (Newsom, 18:40): “Stop peddling the same lies you used in Los Angeles to infect other cities and states with your authoritarian regime. Stop using our honored military as pawns in your twisted game. Stop the theatrics and attacks on our own citizens.”

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Host, 04:10: “What level of fascism we have right now in the United States.”
• Governor Pritzker, Statement (read by host, 05:05):
  “There is no emergency that warrants the President... deploying the National Guard... Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working class families.”
• Host, 10:25: “The Republican Party just says, we’re the party that just embraces the word of convicted sex traffickers.”
• Rep. Garcia, 14:49: “What we got was complete bullshit... instead of sending us the client list, we got public docs. The coverup continues.”
• Mark Levin, 12:55/13:32:
  “He’s a winner... Gavin Newsom is a loser... he’s a confederate. Oh yes, he’s a confederate.”
• Host, 16:44: “ICE is body slamming people onto the ground... if you happen to have brown skin.”

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• D.C. Protests & National Guard: [03:14] – [09:09]
• Trump’s Health Concerns Discussed: [09:09] – [09:53]
• Epstein Files Coverage & Interview with Garcia: [09:53] – [16:15]
• MAGA/Media Reaction Clips: [12:34] – [13:32]
• ICE Actions & Protester Repression: [16:15] – [16:44]
• Trump’s Fundraising Email Lampoon: [16:44] – [17:45]
• Newsom Social Trolling & Closing Remarks: [17:45] – [18:40]

---

Tone

The episode is unapologetically critical of Trump’s actions, with a blend of urgency, biting wit, and brotherly banter. The hosts combine serious analysis (“What level of fascism we have...”) with moments of levity and mockery, especially when dissecting Trump’s emails or Mark Levin’s rants. Political faith in activism and the power of peaceful protest are recurring themes, alongside a clear disdain for authoritarian tactics and cover-ups.

---

This summary captures all major discussion topics, quotes, and the distinctive MeidasTouch tone, offering a thorough guide for listeners and non-listeners alike.

Transcript

[Podcast Host - Lifelock Ad]

This episode is brought to you by Lifelock. When you visit the doctor, you probably hand over your insurance, your ID and contact details. It's just one of the many places that has your personal info and if any of them accidentally expose it, you could be at risk for identity theft. Lifelock monitors millions of data points a second. If you become a victim, they'll fix it guaranteed or your money back. Save up to 40% your first [e-mail] podcast terms apply. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance Fiscally responsible financial geniuses. Monetary magicians. These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds. Visit progressive.com to see if you could save Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations.

[Podcast Host - T Mobile Ad]

Back to school is better With Family Freedom from T Mobile we'll pay off four phones up to $3200 and give you four free phones, all on America's largest 5G network. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com familyfreedom up to $800 per line via virtual prepaid card typically takes 15 days. Free phones via 24 monthly bill credits with finance agreement eg Apple iPhone 16128 gigabyte 82999 eligible trade in eg iPhone 11 Pro for well qualified credits end and balance due. If you pay off early or cancel contact T Mo alright, quick break.

[Podcast Host - Amazon Music Ad]

Knock knock who's there? Amazon Music Amazon Music who? Amazon Music where prime members can listen to top comedy podcasts. Ad free. No awkward interruptions, just non stop laughs from your favorite shows. It's free, it's funny, and hey, it's better than my knock knock jokes. Download the Amazon Music app and let the good times roll. Or go to Amazon.com adfreecomedy that's Amazon.com ad freecomedy to catch up on the latest episodes without the ads.

[Podcast Host - Shipstation Ad]

Ecommerce Business owners know the best way to run a successful business is to keep their customers happy. You build trust with your customers one package at a time. That's why smart retailers use Shipstation. Shipstation helps you run the smoothest order fulfillment process possible and cut costs, not corners. Shipstation streamlines all your orders from everywhere you sell into one easy to use dashboard. Prints shipping labels, manages returns, and tracks inventory. You can even automate repetitive tasks so your team makes fewer errors. Plus they get you the lowest possible carrier rates. You'll save up to 88% off UPS, USPS and DHL Express and up to 90% off FedEx rates. When shoppers choose to buy your products, turn them into loyal customers with cheaper, faster and better shipping. Go to shipstation.com program to sign up for your free trial. There's no credit card or contract required and you can Cancel Anytime. That's shipstation.com/program.

[Political Commentator / Host]

The protests in Washington D.C. continue to grow. They get louder, they get bigger. What I just showed you there is footage from the U Street Corridor in Washington D.C. as protesters gathered yesterday early evening in order to protest Donald Trump having the National Guard become an occupying military force in Washington D.C. restaurants in D.C. are empty. 79% of people living in Washington D.C. do not want the National Guard there. Donald Trump is now planning on sending the National Guard as well as active duty military to the great state of Illinois. He wants to provoke a crisis and an emergency there using an occupying milit military force and occupying military deployment in Illinois to have kind of permanent military rule over that state. So we're hearing now from the Governor of Illinois, J.B. pritzker, who issued the following statement about Donald Trump's potential military deployment in Illinois. I just want to pause there for just a second. We're talking about Donald Trump doing military deployments in states in the United States of America. I don't want that to be lost on us. What level of fascism we have right now in the United States. Here's what Governor Pritzker just stated. Quote, the state of Illinois at this time has received no requests or outreach from the federal government asking if we need assistance. And we have made no requests for federal intervention. The safety of the people of Illinois is always my top priority. There is no emergency that warrants the President of the United States federalizing the Illinois National Guard, deploying the National Guard from other states, or sending active duty military within our own borders. Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working class families. We will continue to follow the law, stand up for the sovereignty of our state and protect the people of Illinois. Here's the Washington Post headline Pentagon plans military deployment in Chicago as Trump eyes crackdown. Even that headline right there kind of embraces the fascism crackdown on what? Illinois is fine right now. They have law enforcement in the various cities. It's run by a very competent and popular governor, J.B. pritzker. A crackdown of what? What you mean is a fascist occupation of a blue state by Donald Trump as he eyes military style invasions throughout the United States, as he did in Los Angeles, as he's doing in Washington, D.C. as he's doing in Chicago. As our editor in chief, Ron Philip Koski writes about what's taking place in D.C. as we learned during COVID you know, crime tends to go down when nobody leaves their houses. And nobody's leaving their houses, really. When it comes to D.C. residents going out to restaurants, as Amanda Moore writes, stop to grab dinner in Columbia Heights at Tequila and Mezcal, a place I've been to a hundred times. I'm the only person in the bar. I've never seen it this empty, even on weekdays. Near close staff confirmed this is not normal. Reporter Eric Michael Garcia writes. Just had lunch with a friend here in D.C. and it's hard to state how absolutely nobody is dining outdoors and how empty the restaurant is. Very few people walking on the streets on a gorgeous end of summer day. That's what's happening in the Trump regime in D.C. that's what Donald Trump wants to bring to Illinois. That's what Donald Trump wants to bring and had brought to Los Angeles. He is literally invading states in the United States of America. We the people will rise up against that. I will say that for sure. If you thought the no Kings protest was something, wait till you see what we the people will do. Peacefully, of course, peaceful protests, the biggest ever in the history of the United States is coming now. Donald Trump at the same time continues to hide his serious health issues. We've been showing you what Donald Trump's hands look like as he tries to cover it up with makeup. As our editor in chief, Ron Philip Koski writes, Trump played up a nick on his ear like it was a serious combat wound for months. But we're all supposed to just ignore everything going on with his hands and ankles. Like there's no issue from lots of medical people I've talked to. They say it looks like a very serious heart condition. Again, they're just speculating. They're just giving an opinion. They don't know for sure. But it looks like Donald Trump continues to have to go in and have blood drawn on his hand as well. And that can explain the discoloration. Now, as Aaron Rupert writes, it's very conspicuous rewatching this bizarre press conference that Donald Trump had the end of last week trying to hide the back of his right hand from the camera based on everything we now know about his hand condition. Watch as this was the press conference where Donald Trump was bragging that he got a photograph sent to him by Vladimir Putin of the two of them together, where Donald Trump seemed to like, almost be like a, like a guy who's in the honeymoon phase of a relationship and saying like, look at me and my girlfriend. Look at, look at us together. But here's Donald Trump trying to hide his hand at that presser. Let's show you this. Let's play this clip.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation or Clip)]

Your project to make it. It'll be great. It'll be fantastic. You see the way this is looking nice. I can't tell you how much that gold costs. A lot of money. There's nothing like gold and there's nothing like solid gold. But this, this beautiful office needed it. It had to be. Representative. When we took it over, it was dirty, not clean. I immediately changed the chair and had the, this beautiful desk renovated, brought out by the White House. People that do this, they did a great job to send it out. We have a craftsman who's great, but this was not appropriate for the Oval Office when I took over. And now you look at all those paintings, you're allowed to turn back. All of these are great presidents and they're all in the vaults now.

[Political Commentator / Host]

It's not only his hand that he's trying to hide. Donald Trump continues to try to hide the Epstein files. We've learned that of the 33,000 documents the DOJ sent to the House Oversight Committee in response to their subpoena for documents, 97% of the documents were documents already produced previously. In other cases regarding Epstein, in other words, or to quote Democratic Congressmember Garcia, now the ranking member of the committee, they produce total and utter bullshit to us as they continue to try to cover up Donald Trump's involvement with Jeffrey Epstein and friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, whatever that may be. And we know that Donald Trump was all over the Epstein files that have already been released thus far. Congressmember Jim Jordan had the following to say on the Ghislaine Maxwell transcripts that were released on Friday as part of the Trump regime's overall cover up plan. This cover up plan was go after John Bolton, Donald Trump's former national security adviser, on that Friday as a smokescreen, attack him and say that he stole classified information based on a book he wrote in 2020. You try to go after him already in 2020 on that, then release the Ghislaine Maxwell transcripts, a convicted sex trafficker, and try to normalize her and say that she vindicates you then dropped 33,000 documents on that Friday or 33,000 pages of recycled paid pages that had already been produced. But according to Jim Jordan who's made a career out of covering up for people who sexually abuse others like he did when he was a assistant gym coach. Here he is saying Ghislaine Maxwell, very credible lady, let's believe her. And she says, Donald Trump did nothing. So the Republican Party just says, we're the party that just embraces the word of convicted sex traffickers. So utterly despicable. Here, play this clip.

[Jim Jordan (Republican Politician)]

Well, we'll see. What I know is they didn't release parts of the transcript. They released the whole transcript. And, you know, so you can go through the whole thing. And of course, this confirms what we all knew. If the Democrats, if President Trump had done something wrong, you don't think the Democrats would have released that? I mean, it was their Justice Department who handled all this. You don't think the Garland Justice Department and the Chris Wray FBI would have released information. We knew President Trump didn't do anything wrong here. He said that repeatedly. This transcript is the whole transcript, and it confirms that. So I think this is, there's, there's nothing there, it seems, based on what, what we got from the interview of Ms. Ms. Maxwell.

[Political Commentator / Host]

And by the way, all of these MAGA media hosts were just having meltdowns yesterday, like Mark Levin, the Fox host right here, who is losing his mind over California Governor Gavin Newsom strongly pushing back against Donald Trump. Watch as Levan loses it here. Mark Levan here. Play this clip.

[Mark Levin (Conservative Commentator)]

It's really quite simple. And not only is it Donald Trump, his personality, his charisma, it's Donald Trump, the success. Success of business, success of politics. He's a massive success. He's a winner. That's what's changing everything. Gavin Newsom is a loser. He's a buffoon. He's a clown. A little dad won't do them. No.

[Political Commentator / Host]

And then Mark Levin says no. Some he's like a confederate. Here's Mark Levin losing it again. Play this clip.

[Mark Levin (Conservative Commentator)]

I personally hope he is the nominee. Such a loser. It's a sanctuary state. California. One of 13, by the way. Sanctuary state. I've talked at length about this whole idea of nullification and the neo confederacy and that Gavin Newsom is a nullifier and he's a confederate. Oh, yes, he's a confederate. Apparently. So brilliant are my comments that others are repeating them now. But he's a nullifier and he's a confederate. A good old Democrat who pretends to be a progressive.

[Political Commentator / Host]

I had the opportunity to interview Democratic Congressmember Garcia and just so you could hear in his own words what he told me about the Epstein files that were sent by the doj. Complete and utter bs. Here, let me show you this clip right here. Congressman Robert Garcia, it's great to see you today. I've got to ask you, we know the Department of Justice has turned over some subset of what they're calling the Epstein files based on the subpoena that you pushed forward. Um, and you were able to get this subpoena sent to the Department of Justice. So I have to ask you, how many files did you receive? What were in the files that you received? Is the COVID up just continuing?

[Congressman Robert Garcia]

I mean, Ben, what we got was complete bullshit. And we demanded the full Epstein files, and that's not what was sent over. The White House cover up clearly continues. What they sent us was 33,000 pages of essentially documents that have already been in the public domain. And so 97%, 97% of those 33,000 pages are court records, documents, reports that everyone already has, that the public already has and has reviewed. And so instead of actually sending us the client list information related to Epstein and his crimes, what those who have been involved in the serious, serious damage and harm that he has caused, we didn't get actually any of that. So that is incredibly concerning for us. The subpoena was to get all the files unredacted at once. They have failed to do so and instead now are playing this game with this limited release of the Epstein files, which is a complete joke. And let me just say one more thing. They're now trying to claim somehow that Ghislaine Maxwell is claiming that, oh, no, President Trump wasn't involved. Give me a break. She's a sex trafficker and a known liar. She should not be trusted. And once again, Donald Trump, Pam Bondi, Mike Johnson, they're all involved in a massive cover up.

[Political Commentator / Host]

And meanwhile, here's what it looks like in Trump's Gestapo regime as protesters start yelling, Ice is here. Inside metro stations in D.C. here's what goes down. Play this clip. Do it now. Do it now. You will not be here yelling, causing.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation or Clip)]

A disruption to the people.

[Political Commentator / Host]

Come home to work.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation or Clip)]

Right.

[Political Commentator / Host]

Stay out there. That's right. Stay out there. Thank you. Or take a look at this as ICE is body slamming people onto the ground. If you happen to have brown skin, this was someone who was just literally eating crabs in public. Got thrown to the ground. Play this clip. Just relax. Just relax. Just relax. You good? Just relax. And Donald Trump just continues to reek of desperation. He's been sending emails like this all the time. I don't need help. That's the furthest thing from the truth. Unfortunately, his email literally says I don't need help was the subject line. Then you open it and it goes. That's the furthest thing from the truth. Unfortunately, there's less than 48 hours until my fundraising deadline strikes. Or how about this invitation from Donald Trump? I'm upgrading you to Diamond Trump status. Or how about this email from Donald Trump? You just won the gold medal in the Trump world. Or how about this email from Trump? Holy macaroni. You've just been invited to join the one and only Trump lifetime membership. Or this one from Donald Trump? You've just been awarded the Golden Trump Award certificate. Or how about this one from Donald Trump? Ben, this is getting sad. I've asked you so many times to complete my official MAGA poll. I'm worried about you. This is the last chance right here. This is the last chance. Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom continues to troll Donald Trump. Gavin Newsom goes. Term limits are just suggestions. New mug coming soon to the patriot shop Newsom 2026. Or how about this one? Gavin Newsom doing a AI version of what the boat parade would look like. Wow. Historic. Thank you Patriots. Or this photo right here of J.D. vance, Pete Hegseth and Stephen Miller. Governor Newsom goes the Three Stooges. And finally, Governor Newsom writes a message to Trump. Stop peddling the same lies you used in Los Angeles to infect other cities and states with your authoritarian regime. Stop using our honored military as pawns in your twisted game. Stop the theatrics and attacks on our own citizens. There you have it folks. Hit subscribe. Let's get to 6 million subscribers. Thanks for watching. Be sure to add the Midas Touch podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcast for new updates. Every single.

[Podcast Host - Jumbo Casino and Shopify Ad]

Ready to level up Jumbo Casino is your playbook to fun. It's free to play with no purchase necessary. Enjoy hundreds of casino style games like bingo, slots and Solitaire anytime, anywhere with fresh releases every week. Whether you're at home or on the go. Let Chumba Casino bring the excitement to you. Plus get free daily login bonuses and a free welcome bonus. Join now for your chance to redeem some serious prizes. Play Chumba Casino today. No purchase necessary. VGW group void were prohibited by law. 18 TNCs apply. Shopify helps you sell at every stage of your business. Like that. Let's put it online and see what happens.

[Political Commentator / Host]

Stage and the site is live that.

[Podcast Host - Jumbo Casino and Shopify Ad]

We opened a store and need a fast checkout Stage Thanks. You're all set. That count it up and ship it around the globe stage this one's going to Thailand and that Wait, did we just hit a million orders? Stage Whatever your Stage Businesses that grow, grow with Shopify. Sign up for your $1 a month [e-mail] listen.