Did Biden Just Reveal His True Feelings About Trump? with Co-Host Michael Knowles & Gad Saad

Summary

The Rubin Report: Episode Summary
Title: Did Biden Just Reveal His True Feelings About Trump?
Host: Dave Rubin
Co-Hosts: Michael Knowles & Gad Saad
Release Date: November 15, 2024

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1. Introduction and Opening Remarks (00:00 - 01:02)

Dave Rubin welcomes listeners to another episode of The Rubin Report with co-hosts Michael Knowles and Gad Saad. The atmosphere is upbeat as the hosts reflect on the recent eight-day period, highlighting a sense of renewed optimism in America.

2. Trump-Biden Meeting and Election Reflections (04:16 - 08:34)

Michael Knowles (04:16):
"There was a feeling among the liberal establishment that Trump was Hitler. Well, guess what? Now Trump is meeting with Joe Biden. He's got a grin on his face, ear to ear. He sure seemed happy to be hanging out with Hitler."
(04:16)

Discussion Points:

• The hosts discuss the unexpected cordial meeting between Donald Trump and Joe Biden shortly after the election.
• They interpret Biden’s positive demeanor as an indicator of his genuine respect for Trump, contradicting previous inflammatory rhetoric where many on the left labeled Trump as akin to Hitler.
• Gad Saad draws an analogy to Lionel Messi winning the World Cup, suggesting that Trump overcoming numerous challenges symbolizes a form of "cosmological justice."

3. Decline of Mainstream Media and Rise of New Media (10:58 - 12:26)

Michael Knowles (12:26):
"The New York Times put my face right in the center of their banner about election disinformation, even though they didn't even mention me, the article."
(12:26)

Key Insights:

• The conversation shifts to the diminishing influence of mainstream media outlets like CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.
• The hosts argue that these traditional media platforms are losing credibility and audience to new media sources such as podcasts and streaming services.
• They emphasize the strategic importance for the incoming Trump administration to recalibrate media relations, potentially sidelining outdated media outlets in favor of more influential and trustworthy new media voices.

4. Department of Government Efficiency (12:26 - 15:48)

Michael Knowles (13:09):
"Elon said he wants to cut 320 federal agencies, which a lot of us would say is a good start. He wants to bring it down to 99. This is great."
(13:09)

Discussion Points:

• Announcement of Donald Trump's official picks for the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
• Elon's plan to drastically reduce the number of federal agencies from 320 to 99 is highlighted as a move towards governmental streamlining and efficiency.
• The hosts applaud these appointments, viewing them as pivotal steps in resetting the relationship between the government and its citizens.

5. Critique of Government Inefficiency and Public Spending (15:48 - 17:58)

Michael Knowles (16:52):
"The Department of Government Efficiency is set to expose the complete absurdity and inefficiency of government spending."
(16:52)

Key Insights:

• The hosts share a satirical image highlighting outrageous government expenditures, underscoring the perceived inefficiency within current governmental operations.
• Gad Saad discusses the challenges within academia, comparing them to governmental inefficiencies, and debates the balance between pure research and practical applications.
• They argue that significant taxpayer money is being squandered on projects with questionable immediate benefits, advocating for more judicious use of public funds.

6. Social Media Influence and Academic Shifts (11:25 - 12:26)

Gad Saad (11:25):
"Academia is also realizing that the powerful mediums now are Joe Rogan and et al."
(11:25)

Discussion Points:

• Examination of the shift in influence from traditional academic channels to powerful social media platforms like Joe Rogan’s podcast.
• Saad shares personal experiences illustrating how academia is increasingly valuing appearances on high-reach media platforms over traditional scholarly publications.
• The hosts suggest that this shift signifies a broader transformation in how information and influence are disseminated in the modern era.

7. Celebrity Politics and Moral Disagreements (25:35 - 37:10)

Michael Knowles (31:36):
"With my permission, I have to question it. I don't want to put my kid in that position."
(31:53)

Key Insights:

• The conversation turns to the intersection of politics and family dynamics, particularly around Thanksgiving gatherings.
• The hosts discuss the emotional and moral dilemmas that arise when political disagreements strain familial relationships.
• They emphasize the importance of maintaining personal relationships despite deep-seated political differences, advocating for patience and understanding.

8. Criticism of Oprah and Joy Reid (25:32 - 33:42)

Dave Rubin (26:10):
"They paid off all sorts of groups. I mean, to the tune of over $5 million. She was paying off various racial grievance groups."
(26:10)

Discussion Points:

• The hosts delve into allegations against Oprah Winfrey and Joy Reid regarding financial dealings and political endorsements.
• Claims are made about significant monetary transactions between these celebrities and political entities, suggesting attempts to influence public opinion and voter behavior.
• Gad Saad humorously critiques Joy Reid's authenticity, comparing her influence to the lethality of a black mamba, underscoring the deep divisions and distrust in mainstream personalities.

9. Authenticity in Politics (23:00 - 24:51)

Gad Saad (23:00):
"Authenticity wins the day."
(24:51)

Key Insights:

• The hosts contrast the authentic, relatable personas of Trump and his allies with what they perceive as the constrained and insincere behaviors of progressive politicians like Kamala Harris.
• Saad highlights the importance of genuine interaction and consistency in political discourse, arguing that authenticity resonates more effectively with the public than scripted or evasive communication.
• The discussion underscores a broader theme of valuing honesty and transparency in leadership.

10. Concluding Remarks and Future Outlook (39:11 - End)

Michael Knowles (39:31):
"President Elect Trump is just a different type of candidate from the things he said and the things he's done."
(31:18)

Summary:

• As the episode wraps up, the hosts reflect on the anticipated political landscape under Trump’s potential presidency.
• They express optimism about the unity within the Republican party and the declining influence of the Democratic establishment.
• The conversation touches on personal anecdotes and experiences, reinforcing the episode's themes of authenticity, media influence, and political realignment.

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Notable Quotes with Attribution

• Dave Rubin (04:16):
  "Why not both?" – In response to Michael's comment about referring to Ben Shapiro.

• Michael Knowles (05:06):
  "No, I don’t think you are at all." – Responding to Dave’s dream of a smooth Trump presidency transition.

• Gad Saad (07:10):
  "If I can draw an analogy, when Lionel Messi won the World Cup, I felt as though it was existential justice." – Comparing Trump’s political resilience to sports achievements.

• Michael Knowles (08:34):
  "A priest friend of mine...It's a wicked generation that seeks for signs and wonders, but it's a stupid generation that ignores signs and wonders."

• Dave Rubin (10:58):
  "Let me show you the receipts." – Introducing evidence of government inefficiency.

• Gad Saad (17:58):
  "Sometimes you conduct research without it having any clear, immediate application." – Defending pure scientific research while acknowledging inefficiencies.

• Michael Knowles (21:23):
  "I do have some moral disagreements with my liberal relatives that I go to holidays with because some of my liberal relatives support murdering babies and castrating children."

• Gad Saad (27:07):
  "Perfect example of how corrosive this has all become." – Referring to political tensions at Thanksgiving.

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Key Themes and Insights

• Political Transition and Respect: The amicable meeting between Trump and Biden signifies a potential thawing of political hostilities, suggesting mutual respect despite previous antagonisms.

• Media Evolution: There is a discernible shift from mainstream media to new media platforms, with the latter gaining prominence and influence over public opinion.

• Government Efficiency: Appointments like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to the Department of Government Efficiency are viewed as positive steps towards reducing bureaucratic inefficiency.

• Academic and Media Synergy: Academia is increasingly recognizing the power of new media outlets, leading to a convergence where scholarly influence is extended through platforms like podcasts.

• Family and Politics: The hosts emphasize the importance of maintaining familial relationships despite political disagreements, advocating for patience and understanding during gatherings like Thanksgiving.

• Celebrity Influence in Politics: Allegations against prominent figures like Oprah and Joy Reid highlight concerns over the blending of celebrity influence with political agendas.

• Authenticity in Leadership: Authenticity and genuine interaction are lauded as essential qualities in political leaders, contrasting sharply with perceived insincerity in progressive politicians.

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Conclusion

This episode of The Rubin Report delves deep into the evolving political landscape in America, emphasizing themes of respect, media transformation, governmental efficiency, and the importance of authenticity in leadership. Through engaging discussions and notable quotes, Dave Rubin, Michael Knowles, and Gad Saad provide listeners with a comprehensive analysis of recent political events and their implications for the future.

Transcript

[Dave Rubin]

It's a crazy world Crazy world Somebody.

[Michael Knowles]

Gotta have the same view.

[Gad Saad]

It's a.

[Dave Rubin]

Crazy world It's a crazy world Somebody gotta have the same. All right, people, I'm Dave Rubin and according to the paperwork in front of me, this is the Rubin Report and it's Friday, which means it's time for another roundtable extravaganza and we have an all star program for you. Joining me today is a visiting professor and global ambassador at Northwood University and author of the Sad Truth About Happiness, my old friend, Gad Saad. And also joining me is the host of the Michael Knowles show and a non New York Times bestselling author, Michael Knowles. Gad, Michael. How are you gentlemen doing? Great.

[Michael Knowles]

It's been a great week, huh? Been a great about eight days now.

[Dave Rubin]

It has been a phenomenal eight days, actually. Why don't. Well, first off, should we all put on our glasses just so that people know that we're learned individuals and look at us, that these are professional.

[Michael Knowles]

I only have my sunglasses today because MSNBC is going out of business. So if Jeremy ends up buying it, I don't want the confusion to be so great when I take Rachel Maddow's time slot. So I can't, I gotta, I gotta stick with the Steve McQueen's.

[Dave Rubin]

For the record, I did see Jeremy Boring's offer, CEO of Daily Wire's offer to buy Daily Wire, and I have put out there, I am willing to throw in 500 grand. I don't know what, I don't know if that gets you the mad out set or whatever, but I'm all in on that. Let's just start with that, with what you just brought up there, Michael, for a second. Just like the feeling that we have. I know we're facts over feelings, people, but the feeling of the last eight days has been, I think, just absolutely extraordinary. Like I really think we forgot how good America can be. And suddenly you can feel it again. It really is. It's thick and it's real.

[Michael Knowles]

Knowles, of course. And with respect to our Jewish friend in Boca Raton, sometimes feeling can collapse into fact. As happened last Tuesday night. There was a broad feeling among a broad swath of Americans. That includes white people, that includes one in five black guys, that includes roughly half of Hispanics, that includes Jews, that includes Muslims, that includes women, including 40% of women under 30. There was a feeling that liberalism had failed them, that the leftist policies of the last three and a half years had failed them and they wanted to change and we got it. So that There was a feeling among the liberal establishment that Trump was Hitler. Well, guess what? Now Trump is meeting with Joe Biden. He's got a grin on his face, ear to ear. He sure seemed happy to be hanging out with Hitler. I think that the feeling is actually connected with the fact that Trump was a better president than Joe Biden was. Things have gotten worse under Biden's watch, and they're going to get better under Trump's watch, and pretty much everyone's excited about it.

[Dave Rubin]

We will get to Hanging out with Hitler, which, coincidentally, is the title of my next book, in just a moment. But first, gad, you're up in Canada, so you're a little out of the thing here. But if we go down, you go down, so you got to be feeling pretty good.

[Gad Saad]

You know, as you guys probably know, I lost a lot of weight a few years ago, and I think that that weight loss is lesser than the weight that was holding me down from all of the craziness. I. I mean, I really do mean it, that it's been eight days now that I'm walking around as though we truly did, you know, avoid a existential asteroid hurting at us. And so, yeah, I mean, even though I'm in Canada, probably, I'm even happier than you guys are because I'm in Canada, because we're probably even more woke than what could have happened had Kamala won. So, boy, did we avoid a disaster.

[Dave Rubin]

And Knowles, real quick, before we start, just to be clear, our friend in Boca, you are referring to Ben Shapiro, not Morty Seinfeld. Correct.

[Michael Knowles]

But why not both? Why not both?

[Dave Rubin]

Why not both? All right, so real quick, let's show you the official map. Now that Arizona finally was called, it was 312 to Donald J. Trump and 226 to the Blue Blob Lady. And you mentioned the meeting of Trump and Biden at the White House. And let's take a look.

[Michael Knowles]

Leader of the freeway.

[Dave Rubin]

All right, let's go to this.

[Michael Knowles]

They're meeting. I'm looking forward to having a microset, smooth transition. Do everything we can to make sure.

[Gad Saad]

You'Re accommodating what you need.

[Dave Rubin]

And we're gonna get a chance to talk about some of that today. It's a good welcome chatting. Thank you very much. And politics is tough, and it's in many cases, not a very nice world, but it is a nice world today, and I appreciate it very much. A transition that's so smooth, it'll be as smooth as it can get, and I very much appreciate that.

[Gad Saad]

Joe you're welcome. Thank you all.

[Dave Rubin]

Michael, I think that Joe likes Donald way more than he likes Kamala. And I also think that he has an unbelievable opportunity right now to say goodbye to all the loony progressives and actually spend two months, whatever's left of Joe Biden's brain or whoever's in charge, actually doing some good things that could lead to a really successful Donald Trump presidency. Am I. Am I just a crazy dreamer? What am I, Michael?

[Michael Knowles]

No. No, I don't think you are at all. My first reaction when I saw Trump meeting with Biden is that it was so nice of President Trump to take time out of his busy day to meet with one of his voters. Joe Biden looked happy as a clam out there. And even beyond Joe Biden, you think of his wife, Jill Biden. Joe Biden wore what seemed to me a rather intentional red dress on election Day. There is no love lost between the Biden and the Kamala camps. And so the election's over. Biden has nothing left in his political career. The only chance he has at legacy right now is the next two months or so. And he obviously detests the progressives who threw him out. He obviously detests Kamala Harris, who shived him and twisted the knife. So why not at this point? Why not give yourself the legacy that you had wanted for so much of your political career, which was to be the moderate, the centrist, the man who brings people together. Okay, here's your chance, and there's really no cost to it.

[Dave Rubin]

So, Gad, I think, obviously, the three of us would like to see that. We'll see what happens there. But what do you make of that? For four years, in essence, Biden and everybody in the mainstream media was calling Trump Hitler. And then you'd have Chuck Schumer laughing with him at the Al Smith dinner. Or right there, if you genuinely thought he was Hitler and you thought that half the country were Nazis, you. You as Joe Biden certainly would not be sitting with him and smiling and saying, make it an easy transition and everything else. Is it just that the mask is just fully off now?

[Gad Saad]

Indeed. And what amazes me is, you know, people say that, you know, Trump is so impulsive, remember the old, you know, midnight tweets and so on. For him to be able to stand there with such restraint when you've thrown all that you've thrown at this guy. I don't think there is another politician that's ever been thrown as many things. I mean, literally shooting at him, you know, defaming him, taking him to the court system and so on. So to me, it reminds me, if I can draw an analogy, when Lionel Messi won the World Cup, I felt as though it was existential justice, right? It can't be that this guy who is such a beautiful player would go out without having won the World Cup. I feel the exact same way for Donald Trump, right? Setting aside the politics, just a sense of, you know, cosmological justice, the fact that he was able to withstand all that he did, and yet he now sits when he knows that all those other people are seething with anger and he's all calm, with a little grin.

[Dave Rubin]

It's.

[Gad Saad]

It feels very good to me from way up here in Montreal.

[Dave Rubin]

Michael, what do you, what do you make of that? Because I think it's interesting. It's not what politicians or pundits are particularly good talking about, but I do think God had a little hand in this, that Donald Trump's hero's story was not complete. And had it ended the other way, I think it actually would have done something very strange to the, to the universe, like that evil really was on the march.

[Michael Knowles]

Yes. It is not for me to plot out every aspect of Providence that's above my pay grade. However, it's not for me to do. But one can recognize Providence. A priest friend of mine in New York observed that it's a wicked generation that seeks for signs and wonders, but it's a stupid generation that ignores signs and wonders. And that last minute turn of President Trump's head, seemingly inexplicable in Butler, Pennsylvania, one had this feeling, the story cannot end here. Even just with the language of myth, with the force of narrative, the American story, for goodness sakes, the man's name is Trump, okay? He's gotta win. He can't lose that. The story of this past 10 years in American politics was one in which the man did have to win. I was thinking last night to the narrative and the mythos that we have around American presidencies. After John F. Kennedy was killed, Jackie Kennedy said that his administration was Camelot. And she was actually quoting a contemporary popular Broadway play, the Camelot Musical. And she said, you know, there was a time when there was Camelot. And I thought, okay, if the Kennedy administration was Camelot, what's the Trump administration? And I think what it is to a lot of people, whether they're conscious of it or not, is it feels like the Avengers. I mean, in the case of Elon, you actually have Tony Stark just like playing a role in it. But it just feels like the Avengers. It feels like this team coming together. All hope seems lost, but no, these guys, it's not just about one man. One man's leading up, but he's assembling this team of absolute all stars who are gonna come together and stop the bad, evil powers from conquering the world.

[Dave Rubin]

Yeah. And you know what's interesting? You could even see some of the more lefty leaning people who weren't Trump supporters, some of whom who had tds. The way that they were sort of rationalizing their vote for Trump was, I'm not just voting for Trump. I'm voting for Elon and for Vivek and for Tulsi, rfk, et cetera, et cetera. I want to jump to a media part of this for a moment because to me, the other story, maybe even more important than the presidential story, is that this, to me, signals the end of the mainstream media and the ascendant rise of something that we've all been part of. And I would also say anyone watching this has been part of. Here's AOC doing a little. I don't know if this was TikTok or Instagram, but she's very interested in finding out which Trump podcasts people are listening to. Which podcasts are you listening to, which.

[Michael Knowles]

Accounts are you subscribing to?

[Dave Rubin]

I'm interested, like, genuinely let me know.

[Michael Knowles]

Which one specifically, which accounts, which podcasts, etc.

[Dave Rubin]

Now, Gad, I don't think there's anything genuine about her, however, is this all because she wants to still put us on a list to hopefully get us in the gulag? Or is it possible that there's a flicker of something in her brain going, oh, maybe I did misjudge what's going on here?

[Gad Saad]

No, I think it's the latter. I think people are starting to realize that, you know, the powerful mediums now are Joe Rogan and et al. Right. I mean, I have a personal story from academia that I can share that mimics that reality. So in. In 2017, I had gone to Stanford Business School to give a talk, and the host, who was a consumer psychologist, who was hosting me the dinner the night before, very smugly said that, you know, at. At Stanford, you know, we don't do research so that we can appear on Joe Rogan. I said, well, I don't do my research also to appear on Joe Rogan, but if I can publish in top journals and appear on Joe Rogan, where he's got 15, 20 million viewers, then I'm certainly doing something well. Well, Guess what? Many of the people who told me don't go on shows like Joe Rogan, et al, now they all write to me and say, hey, is there a way that you can get us on Joe Rogan? So it's exactly what she. What she's realizing. Academia is also realizing.

[Dave Rubin]

So Michael mentioned this sort of broad coalition of people that now seem to have all coalesced around Trump, as everybody knows. We've got some info. Donald Trump has officially announced that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead the Department of Government Efficiency. And my crack team here at the Rubin Report, they went into grok, which is the AI system within X Twitter. And here's an image of Elon and Vivek cutting the fat, as you can see. I mean, AI is just like. It really is just incredible. But does it get much, does it get much better than this? Michael, truly, could we have asked for anything more than we are getting handed right now? And I don't wanna look a gift horse in the mouth and I don't wanna get too overconfident, but this is it. This is it.

[Michael Knowles]

Yes. The picks have all been terrific, I think really, really smart. And President Trump is moving quickly. You mentioned the doge, the Department of Government Efficiency. And Elon said he wants to cut 320 federal agencies, which a lot of us would say is a good start. He wants to bring it down to 99. This is great. President Trump has an opportunity, which he appears to be seizing, to reset the relationship between the citizen and the government. Absolutely beautiful thing. He has one other opportunity that you alluded to, Dave, which is President Trump has the once in a generation, at least, opportunity to reset the relationship between citizen and the press, between specifically the conservatives and the Republicans and the press. I think that right now you're seeing CNN in a ratings collapse. In 2016, they had 13.3 million viewers in primetime. Now I think it's down to something like 800,000. MSNBC is up for sale, might be sold for scraps. The New York Times, Washington Post, both admitting that they're having their lunch eaten by podcasters and streamers. The New York Times. The New York Times put my face right in the center of their banner about election disinformation, even though they didn't even mention me, the article. They didn't have any right before the election just to bully YouTube into kicking our shows off the air. So they understand that there's a real threat here. And so the media have revealed themselves not merely to be liars. Not merely to be caught in lie after lie, specifically about Trump, but they've also revealed themselves to no longer have influence over voters. So it would seem to me that the next White House press secretary needs to seriously rethink the seating chart in the briefing room. It is absurd that CNN gets a front row seat. It is absurd that MSNBC is given a seat at all. As far as I'm concerned, it's absurd that the New York Times has a seat. The New York Times was just caught in more fake news the other day. President Trump after Hurricane Helene said that FEMA was discriminating against Trump supporters in disaster relief. CNN had a fact check. This is fake news. Totally ridiculous. Daily Wire obtained messages from fema. We saw that clearly FEMA was discriminating against conservatives and Trump supporters after Hurricane Milton. And then the supervisor from FEMA who got fired came out and said this was not a one off. This is a systemic event and FEMA was doing it during Helene too. So Trump totally vindicated the New York Times posting fake news again. I think the next White House press secretary needs to seriously consider revoking the New York Times pass and rejigger that room. We should have representatives for Joe Rogan, Tim, cast all of the new media. Many of us in this room should be in that briefing room. And the old decrepit media, which no longer has influence, should probably be shown the door.

[Dave Rubin]

Yeah, it could not happen to a worse group of people. Gad, I want to get your take on this. Colin Rugg tweeted this out and this is just the perfect example of how inefficient government has been. In honor of Elon and Vivek being picked as heads of Department of Government Efficiency, here are some of the dumbest uses of your tax dollars. 20,000 to drag shows in Ecuador. 30,000 to study the secret language of butchers in Paris. 750,000 for the New York Metropolitan Opera fire alarm. 350,000 to develop AI smart toy smart toilets. And 660 grand to study the impact that Covid had on Russian women. I mean, we could do this all day long just breaking down the utter inefficiency of all this. But I tweeted out this morning that that basically what they fear the most right now is not that Donald Trump is Hitler. It's that Donald Trump is going to expose their complete absurdity and how inefficient they've been and then there's just no use for them whatsoever.

[Gad Saad]

Listen, I've sat on many of the committees that judge many of these grants like the ones that you just read out. So I've. I've existed in that ecosystem for well over three decades, and it's absolutely astonishing to see the stuff that goes on in academia. And whatever you think you know about academia, it's a lot worse when you're inside the beast, right? I mean, it really is incredible. I should, though, warn about one reflex that might be incorrect to invoke all the time. Sometimes you conduct research without it having any clear, immediate application. So, for example, Pierre de Fermat, who was a famous mathematician in the 17th century, developed these very, very arcane mathematical theorems that sat there for 300 years collecting dust until we then had the advent of cryptography. And suddenly now many of his theorems are relevant today. So it's not that you always have to judge the value of research by its immediate application, but the examples that you gave and many others are truly the squandering of taxpayer money. You're absolutely right.

[Dave Rubin]

So you're basically making the argument that we should have science for the sake of science. The question is how much public money should be allocated to that which. That's an honest debate that we can have, but it has very little to do with COVID response in Russian women Guys, let's talk about bright core nutrition for a moment and then we'll have more. On the other side, wouldn't it be fantastic if we could maximize our body's potential every day? With challenges like muscle loss, slow recovery and compromised immunity, it's crucial to support our health effectively. Let me introduce you to Fortify, the essential amino acid supplement that packs nine critical amino acids into convenient capsules for your busy lifestyle. Many people don't realize that most of the protein we consume from food sources isn't effectively absorbed and utilized by our own muscles. Instead, it's often converted to glucose and fat, leaving us short on the nutrients we really need to thrive. Fortify ensures that you get what your body craves. Not only does it help you build and retain lean muscle, Fortify also helps repair body tissue, regulate metabolism and boost immunity, all vital for maintaining optimal health and vitality. Experience the remarkable benefits of Fortify because feeling your best starts from the inside out. Fortify is easy to take, all natural, non GMO and proudly made in the US of A. Don't wait. Visit mybrightcore.com Rubin and get 25% off with code Rubin or call now at 888-508-9296 to get up to 50 your entire order. Fortify Real results for A healthier you. All right, so Biden handing this thing off to Trump, and they kind of look like they're digging each other. And if the three of us get our way, it's going to be a smooth transition. Kamala and Jill a little less pleasant. Take a look. Cold as ice. Knowles. I mean, do you think there's any chance that Jill Biden has the receipts on what they did to Joe and could somehow incriminate Kamala and some of that, or do you think the ship has just sailed on all that?

[Michael Knowles]

Certainly. I think the song choice of Nessun Dorma was apt because if I were Kamala, I'd sleep with one eye open. I think the Biden White House has it in for this woman, and rightly so, because she shived them, pushed their guy out, and then went down in an historic defeat. So certainly you're seeing a big division right now among the Democrats. For all the talk of Republicans being divided, the Republicans have really come together. Even part of the establishment wing and the libertarians and the traditionalists and everybody, they all seem to be coming together and being put in their places. Whereas for the Democrats, you have people like Chris Murphy, Democrat senator from Connecticut, who's tweeting out saying it was a cataclysmic tragedy on election day. Democrats need to rethink the whole party. Need to abandon neoliberalism. The policies of Bill Clinton. Say we need to become commies, pretty much. And only talk about working class economic issues. Forget about the social issues that also repel working class voters, like migration and the promotion of trans ideology in school, say. So he's freaking out. AOC wants to start listening to our shows, I guess.

[Gad Saad]

I don't know.

[Michael Knowles]

I mean, she's having an existential crisis. And then even within the White House, you're seeing the White House divided against itself. So an early Republican President Abraham Lincoln said that a House divided against itself can't stand right now. I think the whole Democratic establishment is on really shaky ground.

[Dave Rubin]

Well, speaking of a House divided against itself, it appears that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris had lunch. Peter Doocy asked Corinne Jean Pierre about that.

[Michael Knowles]

We know that today, a week after the election, President Biden and Vice President Harris had a private lunch. How awkward was that? I don't even understand.

[Dave Rubin]

Why would it. Why would it be awkward? Because.

[Michael Knowles]

Why would it be awkward? The President got squeezed out for her, and then she kept him at arm's length, and then she lost, and now she's there. Why would you characterize it as awkward? They have Regular lunches.

[Dave Rubin]

They meet and talk regularly. Why would you call it awkward weirdness.

[Michael Knowles]

About the way that things have unfolded? Did you see them together yesterday as well, when they honored our veterans and were together during the day making sure.

[Dave Rubin]

That we didn't forget the brave men and women that fought for this country?

[Michael Knowles]

Did you see them together yesterday? Did you see the show of force together? This is. I'm not even going to take the premise of the question. What I will say is, the president and the vice president had lunch today. They've had lunch many times. They have.

[Dave Rubin]

They communicate with each other regularly.

[Michael Knowles]

They had an opportunity to Discuss the last 70 days or so of this.

[Dave Rubin]

Administration, how important it is to get things done for the American people.

[Michael Knowles]

And that's their focus.

[Dave Rubin]

That is genuinely their focus. Dad, I actually think it was a completely legit question. Everything she did right there with her little duck and weave and all of that is exactly what we're trying to kick out of government right now. It's like, why would it be awkward? I don't know, maybe because she threatened him with the 25th amendment and then lost and he's a little pissed. How about that lady?

[Gad Saad]

Yeah. Well, I think their respective demeanors is really part of a larger story. If you compare the manner by which Trump was behaving, showing up with the garbage truck, and the capacity to be authentic and to troll and to use humor, versus Kamala Harris, who couldn't get out of the three syllables that she knew, she felt very constrained by it. I mean, if I may say, one of the reasons that my message resonates is because I don't speak down to people. I can be funny, I can be buffoon, I can be professorial. And so I think one of the things that really resonated with the American public, forgetting about all the important policy issues, is that with Trump and all of his cadre of folks, you get people who look as though they're actual flesh and bones human beings. When the others are speaking, they're so unsure of their positions that they have to stay within very confined lanes. And once you hit them with any pivot, they can't respond. Right. That's why she couldn't go on Joe Rogan, because how can you go with a guy that's not going to give you any questions, that's not going to give you any, you know, apriori prepping, and you're going to have to sit there and be an authentic self for three hours. And so, bottom line, authenticity wins the day.

[Dave Rubin]

It's really an Interesting notion. I mean, for. For guys like us that talk for a living. Like, if you were going into an interview, what would be scarier for you? That you'd have to talk for three hours in a loose form way or that someone might ask you hard questions? And for her, clearly. I mean, she couldn't answer the hard questions anyway. That 60 Minutes thing was an abject disaster. But clearly, what would have been worse for her was to. Would be to just sit with someone who was not trying to get her for three hours, because there's no there there. However, she did sit down with Oprah, and it appears that Oprah's production company got a cool million bucks from that. Oprah was confronted while on a walk in her Lululemon. Hey, Oprah. Good morning. How are you, darling?

[Gad Saad]

You looking very good.

[Michael Knowles]

How do you think the election went?

[Dave Rubin]

Not talking about the election. Oh, is it true that they paid.

[Gad Saad]

You a million dollars for the endorsement for Kamala?

[Dave Rubin]

Not true.

[Gad Saad]

Not true.

[Dave Rubin]

Okay.

[Michael Knowles]

I was paid nothing.

[Dave Rubin]

Ever.

[Michael Knowles]

What do you think about all the celebrities with their mass exodus? Do you think. Do you think Prince Harry's gonna lose.

[Dave Rubin]

His visa now that Trump's president? Michael, I'm gonna give you a multiple choice here. Would you like to comment on Oprah's boobs, or should we show you the receipts? Did, in fact take $1,000,000? Which would you like to do first?

[Michael Knowles]

I think it would be most conducive to virtue and the flourishing of our country if first we got to the receipts.

[Dave Rubin]

Receipts, yeah. There are the disbursements right there. And hot diggity damn, Harris for president paid the recipient, Harpo Productions. That's Oprah's production company. Twice in one day on 10, 15. $500,000. I'm not a mathematician, but 500,000 times two is roughly $1 million. Anything on the boobs, or should I just throw that to Gad?

[Michael Knowles]

But that goes to Gad. I. He'll be a much better commenter on that. Gad.

[Dave Rubin]

He's a conservative. He's like a true conservative. They get nervous around boobs. Could you handle this?

[Gad Saad]

I won't talk about her boobs. But I can tell you, as an evolutionary psychologist, the ideal waist to hip ratio in women around the world is point seven, and she certainly does not meet that hourglass figure. I'll leave it at that.

[Dave Rubin]

You see why I booked these people? I think you see. All right, now to the receipts for just a second. I mean, Knowles, even that. Look, I have never been paid for an interview, and what she's Doing there clearly is duplicitous. Did you, Oprah, take money for it? No, they didn't hand her a sack of cash, but they paid the production company. And it's not just that. When she did the Call Me Daddy podcast, they paid that girl. I'm blanking on her name doesn't even matter. They paid her $100,000 to build a one time set. I mean, the level of absurdity that these people wanted to run the economy is just off the charts.

[Michael Knowles]

Well, and even beyond that, they paid Al Sharpton $500,000. And then shortly after that, days after that, he plays a happy birthday message that she had sent him. And then shortly after that, he gives her a softball interview. But she was paying off all sorts of groups. I mean, to the tune of over $5 million. She was paying off various racial grievance groups. I think she paid off a freemason break off Black Lodge to try to shore up the blackmail vote. I mean, it was just spaghetti at the wall, none of which worked. So she's been caught in all of this. And at this point, I think this will be studied in political science classrooms as one of the worst ways to wage a campaign. But it all comes back to that point that you started with Dave, which is would you rather sit down for the hard questions or would you rather just have to be loose for a few hours? And the reason that a politician like Kamala has to choose the former is that you can in principle study up for the hard questions. You kind of know what they're going to ask you about. They're going to ask you about the border crisis, they're going to ask you about inflation, they're going to ask you about some dumb thing you said. And so you can study up and write a canned answer and memorize it and regurgitate it. If you want to have a free flowing conversation, you actually have to have a consistent view of the world. You have to have first principles that are coherent. You have to have considered those first principles and developed a political philosophy from that. You have to be thoughtful and sincere in your politics. And Kamala certainly has not been that. She's held both sides of every single issue. I think the Democrats broadly are struggling with that right now, which is why not only President Trump, but also JD Vance can rack up millions and millions of views on Joe Rogan, can hang and be cool and seem normal to normal people.

[Dave Rubin]

Knowles, that was one of the best answers I've ever heard. He was very titillating. Now we're going to talk about Qualia life and we'll have more on the other side. Have you heard about sinolytics yet? If not, you're going to want to listen up. Sinolytics are a new class of ingredients that were discovered less than 10 years ago. They're making waves because they help promote healthy aging and support your body in ways we didn't know were possible. That's why I started using Qualia Senolytic and it's made a huge difference for me. As we age, everyone accumulates senescent cells in their bodies. They're also known as zombie cells because they're old, worn out and not functioning well anymore. They stick around and take up space and nutrients, leaving us with aches, slower recoveries and that sluggish middle aged feeling. But here's the cool part. Qualiacinolytic acts like a reset button. It helps remove those senescent cells, kind of like trimming off the dead leaves from a plant so your healthy cells can thrive. And it's easy. You only need to take it two days a month. Plus it's non GMO, vegan and gluten free and there's zero. Qualia offers a 100 day money back guarantee, so you've got nothing to lose. So if you're ready to take action against aging at the cellular level, go to qualia life.comrubin to get up to 50% off and use code rubin for an extra 15% off at checkout. You can also find it at select GNC locations. That's Q U A L I A life.com Rubin for an extra 15% off your purchase. Thanks to Qualia for sponsoring today's episode. All right guys. Well, Thanksgiving is a coming and that's when we here in America sit down with friends and family and we eat and we drink and we celebrate freedom and we take a moment to be thankful for all of the goodness that this great country has afforded us in almost 250 years of existence. Unless you're someone on the View, in which case you shouldn't invite people you like and you should probably ruin the day for everybody. Go. Whatever your reason is, I would never let my politics be the reason I don't show up to see my family. Because they won't always be there.

[Michael Knowles]

I'm going to disagree. I completely understand her point because I really do feel that this candidate, you know, President Elect Trump, is just a different type of candidate from the things he said and the things he's done.

[Dave Rubin]

And the things he will do.

[Michael Knowles]

It's more of a moral issue for.

[Dave Rubin]

Me, and I think it's more of.

[Michael Knowles]

A moral issue for other people. We're just, you know. So I think when people feel that someone voted not only against. Against their families, but against them and against people that they loved, I think it's okay to take a beat if.

[Dave Rubin]

It meant not seeing you children.

[Gad Saad]

I appreciate the voters, but I will.

[Michael Knowles]

Say somebody who tells me that my child is wrong because of how he or she feels, that tells me that they shouldn't be allowed to be who they are. With my permission, I have to question it. I don't want to put my kid in that position.

[Dave Rubin]

I don't want to put my gay.

[Michael Knowles]

Child in a position where she has to sit with someone who doesn't understand her and feels like it's okay to just blurt all that out.

[Dave Rubin]

That's just me. Gad. I was not invited to Sunny Hostin's Thanksgiving. Thankfully, I did have a debate earlier in the week with our friend Megyn Kelly. Megan believes that Joy Race. Joy racist. I almost called her Joy racist.

[Michael Knowles]

Megan believes where you say one thing but mean your mother.

[Dave Rubin]

Oh, that's good. Megan believes that Joy Reid is the most racist person on television. I think it's Sunny Hostin. What say you?

[Gad Saad]

Joy Reed is the black woman that has short hair, or is that the blonde?

[Dave Rubin]

The blonde.

[Gad Saad]

All right, I'm going to say that in terms of pure corrosiveness, Joy is probably more so. I mean, between a bite from a black mamba in Africa or Joy, I would take the black mamba any day of the week. I stand more chance of surviving the serpent.

[Dave Rubin]

As to the actual clip, because you wrote a book about happiness, which is right behind you, and it's really wonderful. And out of all of the people that I've met in all my years of doing this, you know, you constantly, privately and publicly exude joy and happiness and warmth and all of that stuff that they have now brought this to the Thanksgiving table. Isn't that the perfect example of how corrosive, as you said, this has all become? Yeah.

[Gad Saad]

Thank you for mentioning the book, because there's actually an anecdote that I mentioned in the book that speaks exactly to that clip. I have a cousin who was my closest best friend growing up in Lebanon. We went through the Civil War together. So it's difficult to imagine a context where two cousins could be more, you know, bonded than the two of us. When I put out a tweet after having visited Tucker Carlson at his studio in Florida after doing his show, I put Out a very innocuous tweet saying, thank you so much, Tucker, for your warmth. It was lovely for my family to meet you.

[Dave Rubin]

That's it.

[Gad Saad]

No politics. Just a warm, you know, thank you. He publicly chastised me. How dare you? Have you no shame? How could you be associated with that guy? So the cousin who was my best friend with whom I went through the terror of the Lebanese civil war, disowned me publicly for having said a nice thing about Tucker.

[Dave Rubin]

It's grotesque, Knowles. Can you beat that? I mean, I know you lived through the great Scarsdale, Larchmont civil war.

[Michael Knowles]

I did. And people don't even read about that in the history books. All right, we gotta get that back in our classrooms. The way that people on the View, the way that the libs, broadly, can write off their family members and blow up their families and not go to Thanksgiving is because they lack charity, first of all, and because they have not cultivated virtue and because they don't really understand politics, the present moment, or politics broadly. And you see this revealed when she says that for her, this is really a moral issue. You know, I actually have some moral disagreements with my liberal relatives that I go to holidays with because some of my liberal relatives support murdering babies and castrating children. So we're not even talking about minor or trivial moral issues. We're talking about real, serious moral issues. So how is it that I can sit down with my relatives? Well, it's in part because I know that they don't really understand those issues. It's in part because I hope to have cultivated patients. Three toddlers under the age of four will help with that as well. But it's also because I recognize, as St. Thomas Aquinas might say, that desires are aiming at some good. When a liberal supports murdering babies, the liberals are actually aiming at the good of liberation or the good of self actualization or whatever false good that they're aiming at. They're really trying to pursue some good, and they're just mistaken about how to go about that. Even with the castrating children, they're aiming at a good. It's just their intellects have been darkened through vice and ignorance. So that's how I can sit down with them and have a lovely time and so still love my family, even when they're wrong about a lot of things. For I hope to see they don't.

[Dave Rubin]

Watch this show before Thanksgiving because they may not be thrilled with some of that.

[Michael Knowles]

No, I mean, I would happily say that to their face in some cases I have, but it doesn't mean that I love them any less. Doesn't mean I don't want to spend time with them. But for someone like these ladies on the View, they really don't get it. They don't understand why most people voted for Trump. They don't understand. They want to say it's racism. Well, explain half of Hispanics and 1 in 5 black men. They think it's sexism. Explain 40% of women, even under 30, in the majority of marriage, married women. They just don't know. And so it just seems to me if I were the kind of person who couldn't understand why most people did something, I would maybe become a little introspective. I might think, huh, maybe I'm the one with the problem. And I'd try to figure that out. They do, right?

[Dave Rubin]

You might look in the mirror every now and again, but unfortunately, they just seem to refuse to do it. I want to end with one last clip related to this, because I do think this. You know, we're rolling into the holiday season here, and it's like we're all going to be around family with whatever issues they've got, and we've all, all got the issues. Every, literally everyone on Earth has got some issues with family, and it's going to be incumbent on us to be a little bit better than they are. And here's a perfect example of that. This is a mega viral video of a BLM activist talking about cutting people out of the life.

[Michael Knowles]

I'm going to make this for the white people and the white people only. Oh, y'all are standing on big business, and I love to see it.

[Dave Rubin]

Y'all are cutting off family members.

[Michael Knowles]

You are standing up for black people in these comments. Y'all are stitching videos and going in.

[Dave Rubin]

And we love to see it. This is how you ally, you hold.

[Michael Knowles]

The people accountable for their actions.

[Dave Rubin]

Your people, dad. This concept that she's trying to give accolades to people who will basically cut other people out of their lives in order to serve her purpose. Ooh, that's some suicidal empathy right there, isn't it?

[Gad Saad]

Next book, indeed. Thank you, by the way, for having provided me with a synopsis of what she said. Because I don't speak crystal meth, whatever.

[Dave Rubin]

It is that you're speaking.

[Gad Saad]

So I appreciate. I do speak Arabic, Hebrew, French and English, but I don't speak whatever language that she was speaking. So I appreciate that. Yeah. I mean, it goes to the earlier important that we said that it is unbelievable how for the progressives, everything is political, right? The soccer matches, the football matches, art, the FBI, medicine, everything that should be that should have a clear delineation. By definition, it shouldn't involve politics. They try to infuse politics into it, even at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Here is a prescription from my happiness book. Don't live your life as the progressives do.

[Dave Rubin]

Gentlemen, I was strongly considering writing you both off after this and having this be your last appearance on the Rubin Report because of your radical positions, ending our friendships, et cetera, et cetera. No more whiskey for you, Knowles. No more cigars for you, Gad. However, it's the holiday season. You guys can come back. One more time. Knowles, what do you do over the weekend?

[Michael Knowles]

Well, I. I'm just glad you weren't going to write me off for my lack of breast jokes. You know, I'll try to come with, with more material next time.

[Dave Rubin]

I thought, I thought you had something right there. I thought you. I thought you were about to drop one right now.

[Michael Knowles]

It's good. No, absolutely. Do you know why? It's actually gets to something Gad said earlier. I feel I'm not being cute in any way. I feel since Tuesday that my step has been lighter. I have been springier. I feel in a way that I'm kind of on a cloud. I don't know, I'm still grounded, I'm still unearthed, but it just feels so good. And so President Trump said that we would get tired of winning. I'm not tired of winning. I am tired from winning. I. We've been staying up late. We've been. It's been very, very exciting. But. But I can say for the first time in politics in many, many months or years, what I've been doing over the weekends is enjoying things.

[Dave Rubin]

There you go there. And you know what? The spring in your step is right? I'm playing basketball the other night and I jumped a little higher than I've been jumping. And I felt it was the power of Donald Trump springboarding me that way. Gad, bring us home. What do you got this weekend, Mr. Happy?

[Gad Saad]

Well, continue working on the book Suicidal Empathy and just spend quality time with our children there. As you know, they're now entering the teenage years. So this is the time where you go from being a hero to a zero. So any time that I could spend with them where they still think I'm cool, I'm going to jump all over that. So spend time with the family, write a bit, and life is good.

[Dave Rubin]

You guys are the best. We saved America. Have a good weekend, everybody. No post game show on Friday. We'll be back on Monday. Thanks thanks for tuning in to the Rubin Report. You can watch the show live every weekday at 11am Eastern and 8am Pacific on Rumble Locals and YouTube. Don't forget to rate, review, share and subscribe to this podcast. And you can join me for the post game wrap up every day after the [e-mail].