← The Sage Steele Show
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- [00:00]
Abby
Olivia loves a challenge. It's why she lifts heavy weights and likes complicated recipes. But for booking her trip to Paris.
- [00:10]
Scott Jennings
Olivia chose the easy way With Expedia.
- [00:12]
Abby
She bundled her flight with a hotel to save more. Of course, she still climbed all 674.
- [00:18]
Scott Jennings
Steps to the top of the Eiffel Tower. You were made to take the easy route. We were made to easily package your trip.
- [00:26]
Abby
Expedia made to travel flight inclusive packages are atoll protected. If you don't know him, you absolutely should, because he is speaking the truth and silencing the left just about every single night on cnn.
- [00:39]
Scott Jennings
Democrats who say, oh, in private meetings, I've seen Joe Biden do cartwheels and handstands while doing trigonometry, while solving all the nation's problems. We now know that every single person who said that has been lying to the American people. One day, Donald Trump couldn't hold a glass of water and we had like every medical person coming out of the woodwork. Should we have the 25th Amendment? Joe Biden could barely walk an eye with ours. If you called Kentucky Fried Chicken and said, I'd like to interview Colonel Sanders now, his face is on the bucket. He doesn't make the chicken anymore. In fact, he's not even alive anymore. This is what the Democrats are asking people to do, Vote for the face on the. He was fine and he's strong and that he's fine today. Nobody believes that. And I, I just think at some point, I just. Then why isn't he running? It's organic. The entire Kamala Harris campaign has been organic. And so now what? Organic? This is the literal, most manufactured presidential campaign ever. She didn't even run. Well, quite a few people will vote for Harris, so I think we should all open up a head examination. Doctor's office. We'll have plenty of people to.
- [01:42]
Abby
Honestly, I could watch those clips every single day on repeat. Scott Jennings is what makes it must see tv. He actually started off at the University of Louisville as a journalism major, but he's always loved politics. So the fact that he now gets to blend his two passions together every night in an effort to make America great again is so cool to watch. Scott Jennings is a patriot. He is an incredible debater. And as I found out today, he's an even better person. Scott Jennings, the star of this week's episode of the Sage Steel Show. It's the Sage Steel Show. Do you like my screensaver?
- [02:21]
Scott Jennings
That's really cool.
- [02:23]
Abby
I mean, this was. I'll show you later, David. But this was something I feel like when I'm in Washington, D.C. i could keep my, I can keep my Donald Trump screensaver. Yes. But it's from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, or one of those Pennsylvania towns I was speaking in right before the election in October. And when they asked me to moderate his town hall, I did one for JD Vance as well. Can I tell you and you as a broadcast journalist, professional, like, I'm scared to death. Yeah, that's a big deal.
- [02:53]
Scott Jennings
You want to do a good job?
- [02:54]
Abby
Oh, heck, yeah. I mean, you only get one shot. I did JD's first, so maybe that was my warmup. I don't know. He was so incredible. It's the only time I've ever been around him. But I know that, you know, you've been around this much longer than I have, obviously, in politics. But I feel like if you take a look back a year ago where we were. First of all, I could never have dreamt of being on a stage with Donald Trump to moderate a debate a couple months after he was nearly killed. It was an incredible moment in my career picture. But as a country, it's one of 300 million people in this country. Think about where we were a year ago. Like, did you ever think, Scott Jennings, that we would be making as much progress as we have in the first six, seven months of Donald Trump's presidency?
- [03:39]
Scott Jennings
No. I mean, well, I had hopes and I had optimism, but it's amazing how far we've come. And he's got so many balls in the air. But I think about not just domestically, but internationally, the peace deals. You know, we're on the brink of expanding the Abraham Accords in the Middle East. We've got the terror network in the Middle east that's been decimated. And Trump, I think, intervened at exactly the right time. I think his economic strategy, what he can do, plus then what the Congress can do. I mean, it's impressive how fast they move. They hit the ground running. He had the staff and the strategy in place. You know, there was no, they wasted no time. Executive orders on day one, doing it all night long. I mean, it was, it was. Obviously, they knew that from the get go. Time was short and they've made the most of every day. And you can't control everything, but the one thing you can control is what you do with your own time. And they've maximized it. There's no doubt about it. It's amazing what they've been able to accomplish.
- [04:41]
Abby
They made a big deal of, and rightfully so, those first 100 days and listing all the things that have been done, executive orders, along with many other things. And it just made me realize, and again, I'm not in this world as much. I'm like, okay, so this planning has been going on since the day that he, quote, unquote, lost the 2020 election. And that's why they've been able to just take on all of this. So rapid fire, right? I mean, they probably have been working this hard for four years.
- [05:12]
Scott Jennings
I think that two things happened in the planning for this term. Number one, they were planning a campaign, but at the same time, they were planning what they would do if they were able to go back to the White House. And some of that was related directly to what Biden was doing. You know, all the actions that they took, the things they knew they wanted to unwind. So it was building over time. But I think one of the key issues, and I learned a little bit about this as I was writing my book about the first 100 days, is that the staff and the cabinet that they put in place this time is the exact right team for him. I think the first time they had good people, but I'm not sure they were all a match for his leadership style. And hanging around the West Wing a little bit and hanging around him a little bit in the first months of this administration, he is at the center of everything. The Oval Office, the Resolute desk, that's the nerve center of everything. And he is very hands on with things and very. The short details of things, like he's in the middle of the decision making, total departure from the previous four years. When you manage that way, which I think people do expect out of the president, you have to build a staff that matches your leadership style. They got it just right. And the all stars around him, Besant, Rubio, Miller, Susie Wiles, they were a perfect fit for what he was trying to do. I think it actually supercharged how fast they were able to move because he got the right team compared to the first time.
- [06:39]
Abby
I like how you maybe separated that where it was just maybe the right match, not the right match based on leadership style. And I love that he was also pretty open. I thought with Joe Rogan before the election about how he maybe kept some of the wrong people around for too long because he. He actually has a heart and he wants to give people a chance and there's loyalty there and a belief in someone until in some cases, he said too long. So what do you think is the biggest thing that he learned from that first presidency that is better this Time.
- [07:08]
Scott Jennings
Well, I also think that they learned just how hard Washington works to try to swallow you up. I mean, look what happened to him in his first term. He takes over. There was an immediate plot to delegitimize his presidency, to essentially choke it and not allow him to have a full four years to execute. You know, first it was Russia, and then the other, you know, things that they tried to do to him up on the Hill. It was one thing after another, all in service of the idea that he didn't win the election and therefore he shouldn't be allowed to operate so official Washington is going to try to choke this and not. And so I think the lesson learned there was, listen, this is a tough place, and the people who don't like me really don't like me. And so I have to show up with a game plan. I have to show up with the right team, and I have to show up knowing that there are going to be people who are trying to take us out every minute of every single day. And so I think. I think learning that lesson the first time around put them in a place where they were not going to let any of these sort of institutional obstacles, you know, that institutional Washington throw at you, stop them this time. And look, you look 200 days now. I mean, they hit the ground, they smashed the opposition. I don't think the Democrats still have understood what has hit them, either in the campaign or in the Trump administration. And he's getting done basically everything he said he was going to do. He's executing on the things that he ran on. He's fulfilling his campaign promises, and it's been a sight to behold. He has not waited for anyone or anything. I interviewed one of his political advisors for the book, and he told me that the reason he's doing so much so quickly is because he knows time is short. You know, you don't have forever, and once it's gone, it's gone. And so he has a lot of goals and no time to waste.
- [08:56]
Abby
I feel like that was probably the plan coming in. But do you think that that was magnified after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, and how he said, okay, we can't wait on any of this?
- [09:09]
Scott Jennings
I think that moment. And if you talk to Selena Zito, who's written a great book about Butler, and she spent a lot of time with him on these issues, you know, I think it did change his perspective on life, on why he's here, on what his purpose is here, and, you know, being afforded this opportunity to be in public service was only strengthened by the fact that he came within a millimeter of dying. And so I think when you have something like that happen to you, it's jarring. But for him, I think it was jarring in a way that sharpened his focus on maximizing the thing that had been handed to him by the American people. You get four years to make changes for the better, and you could. You can easily get caught up in the trappings of the office or the valedictory part of it. What I have observed of him is that he has gotten caught up in the details of it and the execution of it. And after four years of Biden where, you know, I think he was at best passive and at worst, you know, things were happening that he had no idea what was happening. You have a hands on president now with this really sharp focus that was, I think, sharpened even more by this near death experience. I mean, that's what it was. It was a near death experience. I'm sure it had a psychological impact on him that, you know, is a daily reminder, you know, if not but for 1 millimeter, you wouldn't be here. So make the most of it.
- [10:31]
Abby
I saw two days later, watching from my couch at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, and of course, when he walked out, he had the bandage on the ear and people are, you know, criticizing and saying how fake that was, whatever. But I'll never forget to me what felt like. I was looking at Donald Trump in a way I'd never seen him before. And I had never spent time around him, really. Very, very, very little. Watching his grand. His granddaughter Kai on stage speaking about him at 17 years old. And then the close up of him, that look on his face, you could see him trying to hold back. We've never seen a real emotional Donald Trump. I don't know how you couldn't be any human being, couldn't be after what he had just been through the last two days. But I felt differently about him. I was gonna vote for him regardless. He's my guy, right. I felt differently about him at that moment. It very much humanized him.
- [11:21]
Scott Jennings
Yes, I agree with you. I think the family aspect at the convention was a really effective thing for the American people to see. You want to know in your president, you know, what kind of a person are they outside of politics? And for him, obviously, the interactions that he has and the pride that he has in his family is a big part of who he is, you know, hanging around him a little bit. Like you, I hadn't spent a ton of time with Him. I first spent some time with him in February. I went to Michigan with him on his hundredth day in office. And observing him in meetings, observing him, interacting with staff and others. The thing I came away with is the caricature of him that we get out of the media is not right. I lived through this a little bit when I worked for President Bush and Vice President Cheney. The caricature of them in the media completely distorted. And I think the media largely hates Donald Trump. And so they've taken it upon themselves in many cases to paint a picture of him in his attitude and demeanor that just isn't accurate. And when you watch him up close, you see him with his family, you see him with the staff, you see him with people, you realize he's a funny guy. He cares what you think. I mean, I was in a couple of meetings where he was soliciting my opinion about things. I mean, he knows how to draw people in. Hospitality is in his blood. And it's a different. When you see it up close and you see him operate behind the scenes, you just get a different impression of him than what you might have been led to believe by the way the media covers him.
- [12:55]
Abby
Yeah.
- [12:55]
Scott Jennings
And so I. And maybe that's true about a lot of politicians, but for the ones they really hate, they try to make these caricature of these people and turn them into something that maybe they really aren't. And, and so I was fortunate, you've been fortunate to see them up close. And I wish everybody could. I do think it would change people's opinions, honestly, if you could see them, the way he acts in an interpersonal setting.
- [13:18]
Abby
Totally. And I'm forever grateful for those few moments that I share when I can, without being like, let me tell you what I, you know, but just like, guys, remember, we are all human. Like, stop, slow down. I want people to hear your backstory because it's super important. I'm going to. I'm going to get to that. But I think based on what you just said, Let me just pick up from there, because is it fair to say that the level of recognition for Scott Jennings has just skyrocketed, even in the last seven months since he's been in office?
- [13:56]
Scott Jennings
Yes. Really. I've been with CNN for several years now and been in the commentary business, but for me, the last year, year and a half, it's exploded. And it was really for two reasons. One, the presidential campaign, the 2024 campaign for US at CNN was so much different than 2020. In 2020, we didn't even have a real campaign. You know, there were no events. We, the conventions were virtual, you know, even. It just wasn't normal. And so the coverage of it was really muted. 2024. We were all in, you know, debates and conventions and in person things and big rallies like it was. It was a normal campaign, which required a lot of coverage. And, and number two, the advent of this debating show that we have on the air now at 10 o', clock, which I have to give credit to Mark Thompson at CNN for thinking of it, but actually providing a platform for a conservative to debate it out during a campaign with other liberals in this case or other Democrats, gave me a chance to perform and to get on a stage that was much bigger than I had experienced previously at the network. The campaign itself, with Trump in the middle of it, of course, drew intense attention from around the world. And so, you know, it was a combination of those things. But I have to give credit to CNN for letting me do it and giving me the chance to speak for, you know, in some cases half the country or in some cases 80% of the country on some issues and realizing that, hey, there's a marketplace for a conservative viewpoint and also for the debate. I mean, everywhere I go I hear the same. We love the debates, and so I think it's working for us. But, but those things have, have changed my commentary role and my public profile in a profound way.
- [15:44]
Abby
Do you like it?
- [15:45]
Scott Jennings
Yes, I do love it. I love debating. The country is founded on debates. You know, we, this is how we founded the country. Debates and free speech. And so the more debates we have, the better off we are. It's how we work things out. We debate, we argue, we vote, and then we do it all again in two years. I mean, this is the essence of our political culture, so it's a privilege to participate from it. You know, I'm from Dawson Springs, Kentucky, and the idea that I would be on the network someday debating the issues of the day on the network, I grew up watching, you know, and there were things going on in the world. It's a privilege. And I know conservatives give CNN a lot of crap and I of course, see all that, but I have to say they let me do my thing and they don't tell me what to say and I don't really have a script. And so I get to go out there and be my authentic self. And it's been a lot of fun.
- [16:38]
Abby
That's why it's working.
- [16:39]
Scott Jennings
It's working.
- [16:39]
Abby
And that's probably the only show on the network, that's up, numbers wise. I won't put that. I don't know that for a fact, but I just know, unfortunately, how CNN had chosen to go over the last decade, you know, where it used to be such a dependable news source to your point about when you and I used to watch. So, fine, that is what it is for this show. I believe they're doing it the right way.
- [17:01]
Scott Jennings
I think the authenticity in the debates are attractive. It's attractive to people. People want to hear authentic conversations now. You know, sometimes the debates get a little heated and sometimes, you know, things happen out there and it seems a little tense or a little stressful, but that's okay because some of the conversations we're having as Americans are a little tense and a little stressful. To me, the most important thing is, for an audience is do you feel like the people out there are being their authentic selves? And for me, I am. And that doesn't mean, you know, you're always going to have all the answers or you're going to, you know, have, you know, the sharpest, you know, comeback every time. But what it does mean is that you're going to get an authentic reaction to the news of the day. Yes, from me. And an authentic rebuttal to whatever the Democrats and the liberals are saying that day. And you're going to get that from the other people, too. I. To me, that's what audiences want right now. I think the era of scripted puppets is over. Whether that's in politics or media, Audiences want authenticity. This is why Trump succeeds. He's the most authentic guy in our politics. No one ever accused Donald Trump of being unwilling to tell us what's on his mind. You know, he's speaking in that moment authentically about what's on his mind. There's an attractiveness, even if you disagree, you know, well, I'm getting the real opinion here, and there's a lot of value in that.
- [18:28]
Abby
Sure. You say it's not scripted, I assume based on years that, you know, in network TV as well, like, you have a rundown, you know, what general topics you're gonna touch on, you know, who you're debating, you know, who's on the set that night. Is that it? You know the topics and you form your opinion. And I do assume also based on who is at the table with you that day, you kind of know which way they're going to go as well. But from there, it's organic.
- [18:53]
Scott Jennings
You don't know what they're going to say exactly. You can sort of get an idea based on the news and based on what other people are saying throughout the day.
- [19:00]
Abby
And I say based on what you know from those people that kind of say some of the same.
- [19:04]
Scott Jennings
And I spend all day long tracking it and kind of watching the discourse. So try to get a feel for which way the debate is headed. But it is an organic conversation. I mean, some people are pretty predictable, but you don't really know exactly what people are going to do or how they're going to react to you or what have you. So it is an authentic debate. You know, you never really quite know how the moderator, Abby in this case is going to set it up. You know, you don't really know how that's going to go and you don't always necessarily know what clips of people that they're going to play for us to key off of. So you basically know the topic and you basically know your sparring partners and, and that's what you know. And then what else? What you see is what you bring with you, the amount of research you've done, the amount of paying attention that you've done, and then the, you know, your own willingness to just sort of give an authentic take on things, a hot take, as it were. And so it, I, and I think that's why it's working. We're not overly scripting these conversations and people like it now. You know, sometimes you go in there and you think, well, I really nailed it. And then sometimes you walk anything, oh, I wish I had thought of this. And you know, that happens a lot sometimes. But of course that happens in people's everyday lives. You know, you think of, oh, I wish I had said that. So the best you can do is be well researched and well read and up on the news. Kind of drives me crazy when people come in and haven't really paid that much of attention to the news or even the topics that we're debating. And you know, there's some people who sort of delve into just this hack need recycled anti Trump insults. You know, it's okay, we've heard it all before. Do you have any actual insights about the news? Do you have any insights that are based on your experience or any advice for the people that you support or that to me is more valuable than people who just show up and just, I want to insult Donald Trump for 10 minutes and call it a day.
- [20:58]
Abby
It's shocking, boring. It's shocking sometimes because when you're on a show like that, you better have all your I's dotted and T's crossed. It's very simple. Know what the news of the day is? And I remember when you had to remind Carrie Champion, someone I used to work with for many years at espn, about. No, this actually happened. Maybe you should watch the news before you come in here and talk about things. And I think, to me, that's shocking. But I'm not surprised. Quite often, depending on who's on that set. I know a question you get asked a lot is, how do you stay calm when people are spewing things that sometimes aren't even true? How do you maintain that mindset, that calmness? For the most part, you're pretty good.
- [21:38]
Scott Jennings
Yeah, I've gotten. Been out of shape a time or two. I try not to, though, because some good rules for punditry. Number one, you can't take it personally. Number two, it's best to keep smiling. And number three, it's a little like golf, you know, you got to hit the next shot. You can't dwell on the last one. And so once the panel is over and you go to break and you come back and do the next one, you got to hit the next shot. And so I try to keep these things in mind, but. But to me, it's a privilege to debate, and you just can't take it personally. And. And you have to do it with a happy heart, even when the topics are tough or even when it's a little thorny, you know, in terms of the issue of the day, whatever that happens to be, you have to remember it's a privilege to be here, and it's supposed to be fun. And I think for the audience, when we can laugh a little, even at ourselves, that shows a little humanity, you know? And I think it's more effective debating tactic to just take a deep breath, smile, give your point, chuckle a little if the other people are off the rails. And, you know, that's often just as effective as screaming back at someone, oh.
- [22:43]
Abby
That makes them crazy. And when I. Sometimes I don't need audio, but I watch your body language, and you'll just kind of sit back and you chuckle, and you're like, okay, like, it is pure entertainment. Do you. Do you. Are you.
- [23:00]
Scott Jennings
It's still tv.
- [23:01]
Abby
It's still tv, but you're aware that you're doing that. And of course, they take it as condescending, right?
- [23:06]
Scott Jennings
Well, I sometimes get a report, somebody will run, like, the transcript of the show through a thing, and it'll tell me the word count of everybody. I'm almost always the least word count. Wow. Almost always.
- [23:18]
Abby
Really?
- [23:19]
Scott Jennings
Yes.
- [23:20]
Abby
Now, what does that say?
- [23:21]
Scott Jennings
Well, I believe in the economy of words. I believe in the efficiency of arguments. I don't need to necessarily over talk things. I have a point to make or I have an argument to make, and I try to go in there and make it in the most efficient way possible. I don't need to give a long speech. I don't need to, you know, filibuster it. But also, sometimes I think when you're debating, people know a little look or a little body language or a little bit of. Because if you were in a real life setting with someone, you would be doing that with them. You know, you might give them a look or you might cross your arms or what have you. And so years ago, when I started being a pundit, the lady who hired me actually gave me some advice. She said, just pretend you're at a dinner party and there are no cameras. How would you act in those settings?
- [24:07]
Abby
Yeah, I.
- [24:08]
Scott Jennings
That advice has stuck with me all these years. And so if you were in a setting like that, you would have a little body language with someone. You might give them a head nod, you know, you might give them a funny look. It works, you know, on the television show. And I think it makes people feel like, hey, I'm in the room with these folks who are having a real conversation, but these are my authentic reactions. Like, I'm not, you know, I don't plan to necessarily know when that's going to happen, but I'm. I sort of get lost in the debate. I get lost in the conversation. And so my body language is also part of that. You know, I'm a, you know, I wear it on my sleeve a little bit. But I think it makes the debates that much more authentic. And. But yeah, I often say the least, but I try to say the most, even when I'm saying the least.
- [24:55]
Abby
When you're saying yes, are there any relationships that you have or don't have with people on the set that are strained because of it or you're not. You wouldn't call yourself friends because of the back and forth. And maybe they do take things personally.
- [25:09]
Scott Jennings
Oh, I don't think so. You know, not all of us are personal friends or social friends all the time. Some of us are. I mean, my two best friends at the network are David Axelrod and Van Jones. And I'd actually also throw in Ashley Allison on top of that. Three Democrats who I have gotten to know over the years. I trust them. I think they are really Good debaters. I think they're very experienced. I think when they talk, they're doing it from a position of experience and knowledge. So I respect that.
- [25:39]
Abby
Van Jones seems thoughtful.
- [25:41]
Scott Jennings
He's a thoughtful guy.
- [25:41]
Abby
Yes. And he listens.
- [25:43]
Scott Jennings
And he listens. And he's also willing to sometimes tell his own people things that they need to hear, but they don't want to hear.
- [25:50]
Abby
Especially recently. I feel like he's done that a lot.
- [25:52]
Scott Jennings
Well, on the Israel issue, he's taken on a lot of water. I mean, David Axelrod, during the campaign last year was one of the first Democrats to say out loud, I think Joe Biden's not up to this. And they savaged him over that. I've heard Ashley, you know, who's a very experienced Democrat operative, sometimes say hard things to her party about what they're tactically doing wrong. There's a lot of value in that. I think it takes a lot of backbone to do that.
- [26:18]
Abby
Yeah, it does.
- [26:19]
Scott Jennings
And so I just respect it. And I think they're all very smart. I love them all. I like to hang out with them outside of the set. Axe and I have done some baseball together, and Ashley and I and Axe and Van have all traveled together, you know, going to the conventions and doing things on location. You sort of form a bond with your team. But I think of them as a team. I think of the community as a team. And so I don't begrudge anybody what they have to do on the air. They have a point of view. They have to argue it out, and I know they're going to argue hard, and they know that's what I'm going to do. But at the end of the day, I think you can respect people and trust them, even if you don't necessarily agree with them. And they have certainly earned it out of me. And I love all three of them and would do anything in the world for them.
- [27:04]
Abby
I love that. What a concept. You've posted pictures before.
- [27:07]
Scott Jennings
I like to know that these people have, at a minimum, mutual professional respect for each other. And if they also happen to like each other and they can joke around with each other a little bit, to me, that enhances the overall watchability of the conversation. And. And so I. Having that relationship with them has been. It's been one of the best things about the job, truthfully. Axe and Van and Ashley and there are others. Ellie Hoenig, our legal guy. Harry Anton, our data guy. I mean, we have some really smart, funny people. I don't agree with everything they say on the air, of course. But you can trust them. They're honest and they're experienced. And those are the people that I think come across the best.
- [27:50]
Abby
I'd like to get one moment that you went home and you're like, I crushed that. Like, I won the debate. And then another one where you're like, that was awful. I wish I could take that back. And you still think about.
- [28:04]
Scott Jennings
So the one moment that I crush, that I still. People still mention to me to this day. On election night, when they finally let me out of my cage at 3:38am to admit to the world that Donald Trump had won the election, I gave a speech, a little bit of a monologue, a soliloquy about what had just happened and how this election had been the revenge of the average everyday American and how this had represented sort of the repudiation of the political information distribution complex. I think that moment, even though it happened in the middle of the night to me, was just one of my most authentic commentary moments. It's exactly how I felt. I had been sitting there watching the returns all night. It had been building in me. And so I went out there and delivered it and really, I think, conveyed what millions of people were thinking about what had just happened in the election.
- [28:56]
Abby
So now, if I recall, it was pretty silent on set when you were done.
- [29:01]
Scott Jennings
Well, I mean, there were some melancholy people out there, you know, Ax and Ashley were out there and some others. And, you know, they don't, they didn't want Donald Trump to win. And not only had he won, but then, you know, I think the, the immediate aftermath of what had happened and why he had won was also crushing to the left. You know, watching him sort of crush these narratives. I mean, think about all the things you were told in October that just turned out to be totally false punditry, completely made up narratives. You know, there's a poll in Iowa, you know, the Puerto Ricans are mad, Madison Square Garden. All these things that, you know, they were sort of throwing at the wall at the end, trying to make themselves believe maybe that she had a chance. None of it was true. And so him winning in the way he did, crushing all those narratives. So it wasn't just that he won. He crushed this narrative driven campaign that they had tried to construct and had failed at. So, but, you know, as I said that night, I've been on losing ends of campaigns. I worked for mitt Romney in 2012. It sucks to lose. And so I had a little empathy for my sparring partners that night.
- [30:10]
Abby
But, but that was your. That was a great moment, and I think we all saw it.
- [30:13]
Scott Jennings
Yeah.
- [30:14]
Abby
What's the other side?
- [30:16]
Scott Jennings
Oh, gosh. I've certainly said things about issues that I, you know, have thought were funny in the moment, and maybe I regretted it. That's the thing about when you try to be funny. Sometimes it lands, and sometimes you just, you know, you wish you could take it back because it didn't land. And so I'm going to. I'm going to. I'm not dodging this question, but I want to think about it because I've certainly laid a few eggs out there and. And maybe wish I could take it back. But look, I've been at this now for over eight years, and when you talk as much for a living as I do, I think you're bound to do. I try to minimize that, and I try not to get out over my skis too much. But I know I've laid a few eggs over the years.
- [30:57]
Abby
We all do. When you're in front of one of these, especially when it's.
- [31:00]
Scott Jennings
And you don't have a script.
- [31:01]
Abby
No. And that's what people don't understand. I do think especially it's understandable. I don't care what side you're on if it's you against the world. And that's really what it usually is on any CNN show, frankly. I mean, I liken it in some ways to the View, where back when it was Meghan McCain days and how she was treated, or Elizabeth Hasselbeck. And I know those women quite well, and I believe there's some form of PTSD that they carry. I don't know that that's gonna be the case with you at the end. But it is tough when it's 3, 4, sometimes 5. Cause sometimes the hosts, also, the moderators also get involved instead of kind of staying in the middle like I believe they should.
- [31:43]
Scott Jennings
How does that feel, you know, in the beginning? Look, I've been at it for a long time. The debating show is the most intense show. The Newsnight show is the most intense show I've ever been part of, because it's the nature of the show to have people argue it out on live tv. And it's often tense topics, and they're often framed in a way that is well, askew of how I would frame it. And so not only are you fighting a debating opponent, but you're also fighting the framing.
- [32:13]
Abby
Yes.
- [32:14]
Scott Jennings
So. So there's two things going on. So you feel like you have to correct the framing from your point of view and then also then fight your opponent. So that's going on all at the same time. And in the beginning, I think it's natural to get worked up. You know, it's natural to sort of, to feel a little heated yourself over time. What I have learned is the best way to debate is to never, ever let it get the best of you in the moment. I mean, you can feel, you know, ornery about it after the fact if you want, but the best way to debate is just to try to remain as calm as possible and not let someone get you into a position where you're showing more anger than skill or more, more emotion than knowledge. And so that's the main lesson I would give anybody about when new people come on for the first time. I always say, you know, don't take it personally. Don't get overly emotional. Do not let them make you angry. You, you're here because you belong here. You have something to say and don't let someone get you off your, your path. You know, you're experienced. You know, you have an opinion. If you let someone take you down a, an emotional path, then you're never going to get to why you're here.
- [33:29]
Abby
Yes.
- [33:29]
Scott Jennings
And that's a, it's a really good lesson for, for maybe a lot of interpersonal interaction, but for this show especially.
- [33:35]
Abby
I, I just would implore any host out there. I don't care if it's sports or news. If you just present the facts and then let everyone at your table at your debate desk go from there, fine. I wish that we could have more of that on your show and many others. And that's just, that's just my opinion. Take it or leave it. You mentioned Mitt Romney and working on the Romney campaign. Gosh, that one sucked. That one.
- [34:00]
Scott Jennings
It hurt.
- [34:00]
Abby
That one hurt.
- [34:01]
Scott Jennings
It hurt. It hurt. It was. I was in Ohio and I have to, I've said this before on the air, and Obama's campaign was well run. They did what they had to do to win. I don't agree with everything they said and did. And certainly the way, again, go back to what we were talking about earlier, the way Mitt Romney was caricatured by the press in that campaign. I mean, I think back to the end of it. What was Mitt Romney's greatest sin? He said one day that he would like to appoint as many qualified women to his administration as possible. And that got turned into, you know, Mitt Romney is history's greatest monster. Somehow he maybe he, you know, had an awkward way of Phrasing it, you know, the binder's full of women. But the point was, I would like to do more for women, getting them into public service than anyone's ever done. Inarguably. A good idea.
- [34:49]
Abby
Good thing.
- [34:49]
Scott Jennings
And he got turned into a monster over it. That's not who Mitt Romney is. He's no monster. He's probably one of the most moral, upright people that's ever run for president, who has a heart for everybody. And yet the caricature of him was.
- [35:03]
Abby
And how funny to contrast that with leading up to President Biden's choice for vice president. And I mean, it was going to be a woman of color, naturally, right? So it was okay to be specific with women, black women, everybody else, like that. Isn't that offensive to, I don't know, Asian American women? Like, it's amazing how the rules change.
- [35:21]
Scott Jennings
I think it should be offensive to women of color, and I'll tell you why. And I think he did the same thing to Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson when he said, I'm only going to pick a person with these attributes. And none of the attributes were academic achievement or professional achievement. They were only gender and race. I think you immediately put whoever you choose, you're putting them down. I mean, you're making it almost impossible for them to prove themselves. And he didn't have to do that. All he had to say was, I'm going to pick the most qualified person, and then you choose who you want to choose, and then they can stand on their own two feet. When you qualify it with those kinds of, you know, identity qualifications, you immediately put that person in a hole.
- [36:07]
Abby
You do. And it's a DEI hire is basically what that is. I was called that for years.
- [36:12]
Scott Jennings
You know, I took some grief from conservatives at the time when he appointed Jackson, I thought she was qualified. I thought her academic credentials, she was a little, you know, lighter on the judicial side, but I thought her academic credentials, and she was obviously qualified to hold the job. Now, I think she's had some rough moments as a Supreme Court justice. And, you know, the other justices are obviously annoyed with her right now. But at the time Biden said, I'm picking you because of these reasons. And none of it had to do with how qualified you were, that he should not have done that. And when he committed to Bernie Sanders on his vice presidential choice, I will choose a woman of color. Okay, well, you didn't have to make that commitment. All you really need to do is say, I'll pick the most qualified person. It Hurts whoever you're choosing.
- [37:01]
Abby
It does.
- [37:01]
Scott Jennings
And I don't understand why people on the left don't get that. And this is a main difference, I think, between liberals and conservatives. We want people to rise and fall based on talent, hard work, merit. And they truly want people to rise and fall based on identity politics, identity markers. And I think this is one of the reasons they're really struggling with the American people. Because inherently, this is a country built on the idea that your hard work and your talent will take you as far as you will allow it. And that ideology throws that out the window. And I think people don't like it.
- [37:34]
Abby
I'm so glad you've said that. I've said the same thing through the years, and I know it's cliche, but what did Martin Luther King say right here in Washington, D.C. content of my character, not the color of my skin. And it's amazing. Who chooses to forget that and ignore it. To me, it's. It's devastating.
- [37:51]
Scott Jennings
And it only works, you know, one way. Only works one way because when a prominent, you know, African American conservative rises up, they're ignored or attacked relentlessly. I mean, Clarence Thomas is a great example.
- [38:04]
Abby
Breaks my heart.
- [38:05]
Scott Jennings
And I mean, he is one of the most important African American leaders in the history of this country. What he has achieved in his life, what he's done on the Supreme Court, what he represents, you know, coming from his background, I mean, as poor as you can be, to rise up to the United States Supreme Court and yet largely ignored by the liberals out there who are all about promoting African American contributions to this country, which there are many. But they conveniently leave out Clarence.
- [38:38]
Abby
They do. And they leave out Condoleezza Rice, for example, who is one of my heroes. And just because she worked at the Bush White House, and therefore she is a sellout. All the. All of the things, all of the words. Dr. Benjamin Carson. Brilliant people who are still here today for us to learn from. But they are shunned. Shunned overall, for the most part, by many on the left. And it's heartbreaking. I give them credit for continuing on and doing what they believe in despite this, because many people would cave, because it's a lot, and especially in a.
- [39:13]
Scott Jennings
Culture like that, shunned at best and attacked relentlessly at worst. I mean, you think about the things that have been said over the years by the media and the left about Clarence Thomas. Complete filth, garbage, outrageous attacks on him when he was nominated and all throughout his career, totally undeserved.
- [39:34]
Abby
How can I someday get an interview with him. It's gonna be hard when he's on the Supreme Court. I'm just in awe of that strength.
- [39:41]
Scott Jennings
Yeah, it is a lot of backbone. He could have big shoulders.
- [39:45]
Abby
Gone away, write a book, get millions, go away. And he hasn't run from it.
- [39:50]
Scott Jennings
No. He's leaned into it, and he's proven that you can stand up to the bullies. I think that's something about the left right now that is so troubling. It's so illiberal. If you don't have the right politics, we're going to do everything we can do to make you miserable and to shut you up. And what they do to people of color and to women who they decide don't have the right politics, it's ugly, absolutely ugly. And of course, he's one of the biggest examples of it. But what he has shown is that you can rise above it, you can be better than them. And he's persevered through it all. He is one of the most consequential judicial leaders in the history of this country. And the fact that he is a African American conservative, I think sets such an example for people out there. They tried to crush him.
- [40:44]
Abby
They did.
- [40:44]
Scott Jennings
And he just rose above it. And it's beautiful.
- [40:47]
Abby
It is. If I saw him, it would be inappropriate, but I'd be like, can I hug you? And that's what I did to Condoleezza the first time I met her. I got choked up, Scott. It was at, like, the 2008 ESPYs or something. And I got emotional, and she's like, who's this weird person standing next to me? But because of what she has overcome and the way in which she's done it, with such class. Class and on such a lower level, I mean, the names that I'm called every day for being a black conservative.
- [41:14]
Scott Jennings
Yes, it's terrible.
- [41:16]
Abby
I mean, it's shocking. My kids, the threats that have come to my children because of their mom's opinion, like, it's. It's sick. And I don't know many other communities that eat their yang that way that. That are. That intentionally come after you if you don't go along with the group think, which is actually the opposite of what is preached. It's a whole thing, a whole, you know, a story for another day. Because I respect your opinion on it, and you've seen more than I have based on being in this world for a long time, longer than me. So we don't have time for that today. I do want to follow up on Romney being part of the Bush White House as well. For all those people who have only recently come to know and love Scott Jennings, which is over the last year and a half or so, I mean, you've been in this crazy politics world 25 years.
- [42:00]
Scott Jennings
Yeah, yeah. I start my first campaign was 2000 for George W. Bush. I graduated from college in 2000 and 20. University of Louisville graduate, Louisville Cardinal, which broke my dad's heart. A little big Kentucky wildcat guy. So we're still dealing with that in the Jennings household.
- [42:16]
Abby
Wait, no, tell that full story.
- [42:17]
Scott Jennings
Well, I'm like the first Jennings to go to college and got this scholarship to go to the University of Louisville. And my dad was a little bent out of shape about it. I mean, I think he was ultimately fine with it. But, you know, the idea that we're going to have a cardinal and not a wildcat in the Jennings household was. It did take some massaging when it happened. But I went to college, I was a reporter, I worked, probably spent more time at WHAS radio than I did in my classes at the University of Louisville. Thought I was going to be a journalist. But then in 2000, got the opportunity to go work for President, then Governor Bush and got into politics. And I've been in it ever since. I never lost my taste for media, never lost my taste for radio. I love radio. And so I.
- [43:05]
Abby
You have your radio show.
- [43:06]
Scott Jennings
I have radio show on Salem every day from 2 to 3. And I knew I would always get back to it. And so. But I did put in a lot of years Bushwhite, you know, Bush, two Bush campaigns, a stint in the Bush White House, really part of Mitch McConnell's campaigns going back to 1996 when I licked envelopes as an 18 year old, when we still licked envelopes campaigns. And I've had, I've been fortunate to have a lot of the campaign experiences that I've had and really have lived through all the evolution and undulations of the Republican Party over a quarter of a century.
- [43:40]
Abby
So it's kind of the best of both worlds, isn't it? As a journalism major who loved the media, loved that side of it, and now politics, I mean, you get to blend all of it together. Who knew, I guess back then?
- [43:53]
Scott Jennings
But look, I've been very fortunate and very lucky and have been grateful for every, every body I've worked for. And I get asked sometimes, you know, how do you go from, you know, Bush to McConnell to Romney to Trump? I mean, you're Trump's guy on cnn and, you know, I think the through line for me is very clear. Everybody that I've ever worked for, I always believed were the greatest defenders of Western civilization in the moment. They were great defenders of common sense, and they were great defenders of free speech. And to me, when I think about what Donald Trump is doing, that's his platform. We defend Western civilization, we're promoting common sense in our culture, and we're defending free speech for everybody. I have felt that way about the Republican Party my entire life. There are big differences between George W. Bush and Donald Trump. There are big differences and obviously differences of opinion and personal opinion between Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump. But if there are three things that I think have been the hallmarks of everyone I've ever worked for, it's those three. And today, I think we're in a fight for the future of the West. I think we're in a fight for common sense, and I certainly think we're in a fight for the future of free speech. And Donald Trump is leading that fight right now as well as anybody could.
- [45:09]
Abby
What's your relationship now with Mitch McConnell?
- [45:12]
Scott Jennings
I have been friends with him since, and I consider him to be a mentor of mine since I was 16 years old when I first met him coming in. I was in a high school program and met him. And then I applied to be a McConnell Scholar at the University of Louisville and was a McConnell Scholar for four years. It's a nonpartisan scholarship program. I'm the son of a garbage man and a factory worker from West Kentucky. If not but for McConnell's scholarship program, I don't know that I would have been able to go to college. And so he changed the trajectory of my life with that scholarship program. I've been proud to support him. He's retiring. He's had the most amazing career in Kentucky political history and beat Democrats seven times, held open that Supreme Court seat, which I think helped deliver the presidency to Trump, and then they worked together to deliver the Supreme Court. I think it's hard to measure the impact that he has had. And my relationship with him is every time I'm in town, I go say hello, I go see him. I call him often. We text a lot. I think his leadership for the party and for the state of Kentucky, it's hard to measure how consequential it's been.
- [46:29]
Abby
And it's hard to watch his health decline right now. How is he?
- [46:33]
Scott Jennings
He's okay. You know, he's getting up there. He's over. He's 83 years old. I guess now, and, you know, he suffered polio as a child, and he has the leg that he has struggled with. But truthfully, I talked to him a lot, and I think he's as sharp as ever and his insights on issues and, you know, if you want to know how something is going to turn out, ask Mitch McConnell. He usually got a pretty good beat on how things are going to. How things are going to turn out. And, you know, interestingly, in some of these, you know, fights this year, I think coming into the Trump administration, people were assuming he was going to reflexively be in opposition to Trump. He helped him pass the big beautiful bill. He's voted for most of his nominees to things, has supported him on most of his immigration and policy initiatives. I mean, he's, you know, he's just as he was in the first term. I think he's really tried to help make the Republican president successful. There's one thing about McConnell that people I think fail to understand is motivation, is I want as many Republicans in office as possible, and I want them to do as well as they can do. And that's what he spent most of his career doing. Now, they don't obviously get along personally, although I guess Trump did have them over at the White House the other day when they did the Senate thing for the big beautiful bill. But that's okay. I mean, you don't have to love everybody you work with.
- [47:56]
Abby
Correct.
- [47:57]
Scott Jennings
And I think most of the time, they've actually work together to get drastic, monumental things done for the country. The courts and the tax cuts in the first term don't happen without McConnell and Trump aligning and being partners.
- [48:11]
Abby
Yes. And that cannot be forgotten at the end of the day, at the end of that. That's what matters, I think, no matter which side you're on. You know, listen, the question of term limits has come up a lot, and rightfully so. When you look at Mitch McConnell, when you look at even Nancy Pelosi, when you look at, I mean, in a different way with Joe Biden, and then you can look at Donald Trump at 79 years old, right, about the same age as many of these people. And he hasn't experienced the things that we have seen in front of cameras, especially with Mr. McConnell over the last couple of years. And I think that's where sometimes I struggle because I appreciate endlessly all the good and people who don't want to quit because they want to continue to help the American people until probably the day they die. And then when I see from a human level, Scott, struggling The episodes that he has had. What's that line? And as a, as a human being, as a wife, as a friend, we said this about Jill Biden, too. Maybe different, but when is enough enough? And when should people consider. And I know it's case by case, stepping away, at least, because that has to affect the job that they're doing.
- [49:20]
Scott Jennings
I think it's probably different for everybody. You know, you mentioned President Trump. You know, he holds the only office that we do, term limit, you know. Yeah, the other ones. The other ones we don't exactly. I've never been a huge proponent of term limits because I guess I just think voters can limit your term anytime they want to.
- [49:35]
Abby
True.
- [49:37]
Scott Jennings
And so we, you know, we have term limits. They're called elections. And again, I think it's different. Everybody, I think Trump is more spry than virtually everybody in D.C. and certainly runs circles around what Joe Biden was doing for the last four years. You know, I think on the individual members of Congress, you know, I do think you have to exercise a certain amount of individual, personal responsibility on it and ask, and I think you have to ask yourself all the time, am I the right person to hold this job? You know, it's interesting, in his campaigns, you know, I've heard McConnell make the argument before, look, I don't own this seat. The people do.
- [50:13]
Abby
Yeah.
- [50:14]
Scott Jennings
And I think that's a true thing. And ultimately, the people have to decide. And McConnell obviously has decided to retire and not run again. And I think that was the right thing to do. He made the decision, came to the conclusion that it was time to move on and pass the torch. And now they'll do that in Kentucky.
- [50:33]
Abby
I'm glad for him. Again, I don't care about the politics. I didn't care about the politics with Joe Biden, Scott. I didn't. I interviewed him in 2021, right after he took office. And of course, it was like this, not in person, because of COVID And I am no doctor, no scientist, no nothing. But I could feel it and I could see it. And there is personal responsibility, if we truly do care about the people that we are representing, to step away at some point, even though it is case by case. And it upset me to see Mr. McConnell struggling those times. And again, I support him, but it.
- [51:07]
Scott Jennings
Still made me sad as someone who's known him since, you know, he was 16 years old. That's when I first met him. I mean, was hard. Yeah, because you don't want to see people that you love, you know, struggling in a public setting that way. And now that having been said, my interactions with him lately is as sharp as ever. He's totally bounced back, I think, you know, like anybody else in their 80s, you know, they, they all suffer the same sorts of things that, you know, you would expect with hearing and, you know, mobility and things of that nature. But, okay, my, my view is he is in great shape, doing a good job, made the correct decision and, you know, if there were a Mount Rushmore of Kentucky politics, I mean, it's going to have on there Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay, Alvin Barkley and Mitch McConnell.
- [51:59]
Abby
That's awesome.
- [52:00]
Scott Jennings
I mean, he's the longest serving senator in Kentucky history. He was the longest serving Republican leader in Senate history and maybe the most consequential legislative leader of the last century in the United States. So I, I am, you know, for Kentucky, you know, we're a small rural state. We don't, you know, to punch above our weight, you have to elect people who can punch above their weight. McConnell did that for us. You know, we're not California or New York. We don't send all the people to Washington. We only have six congressmen and two senators. And so we've been fortunate to have people who've, I think, been genuinely skillful and able to amass power because, you know, for a small rural state, you sort of depend on those kinds of folks.
- [52:41]
Abby
When will you be deciding about a political run in Kentucky? I mean, it would be a natural, you can't replace, but natural to have the young man that he mentored for all these years run for Senate in the state of Kentucky and be. Come on, Scott.
- [52:56]
Scott Jennings
I don't really have anything to say about that right now. You know, look, I won't lie. Since I was a little boy, my grandfather Democrat in west Kentucky, he was an elected official and I looked up to him and was very close to him. So it's something that has been on my mind since I was a little boy riding around in my grandfather's station wagon when he was serving as a magistrate in Hopkins County, Kentucky. But I have to be honest right now with my CNN platform, my radio show, I have this book coming out in November.
- [53:28]
Abby
What's the name of the book?
- [53:29]
Scott Jennings
It's called A Revolution of Common Sense, How Donald Trump Stormed Washington and Fought for Western Civilization. And you can pre order it today comes out November 18th. But I have all these things going on that I have been working towards for a very long time. And so, you know, the thought of throwing all that out and doing something else is a little Jarring, truthfully.
- [53:50]
Abby
And you have four boys.
- [53:51]
Scott Jennings
And I have four boys, 16, 11, nine and seven. And. And so. And we've got 35 chickens in the backyard and three dogs and all kinds of things going on in the Jennings household. So I actually respect the heck out of anybody who has the guts to put their name on a ballot.
- [54:06]
Abby
Yeah.
- [54:06]
Scott Jennings
Even the people I vehemently disagree with. It's no small thing to run for office. Public service is a calling. I've heard the calling. It's in me. I want to do it someday. I don't know when. But I respect the heck out of people who sign up to run for office, whether they're Democrat or Republican, young or old, or have a good chance or a terrible chance when you sign those papers. To say, I'm going to put my name forward before the voters takes a lot of guts. And I respect the heck out of it and would never, ever enter into a decision like that lightly because I think elections are one of the most sacred things that we do. And when you put your name on the ballot, you're telling the people, you can trust me, put your trust in me. That's. That's a bond, you know, that's a. That's a bond with millions of people.
- [54:55]
Abby
I know many people who would probably go try to become a resident of Kentucky to make sure and get you in office at some point, that America needs that for sure. Is, Is your dad still here?
- [55:05]
Scott Jennings
Yeah, dad is here and actually stays with us in, in Kentucky and in our house just outside of Louisville some and spends time with the boys. And my dad, interesting guy, Big Clinton guy. Biggest Clinton guy I knew when I was growing up.
- [55:19]
Abby
No way.
- [55:20]
Scott Jennings
He was a. Yep. Big labor guy. My grandfather was a Democrat. I come from a family of Democrats. And my dad was the first person, though, to tell me Donald Trump was gonna be the next president. First guy. And I said, what are you talking about?
- [55:34]
Abby
Oh, my gosh. In 16, 15. 16. So when he came down the gold.
- [55:38]
Scott Jennings
Nuts later, he's going to be the president. And I was like, come on. And he said, I'm just telling you, all my friends are talking about it. He's going to be the president. And I, of course, you know, like everybody else, like, ah, you're full of crap, you know, but what wasn't the first and wouldn't be the last time in life that my dad was right and I was wrong.
- [55:56]
Abby
Wow.
- [55:57]
Scott Jennings
And I think about that conversation a lot, actually, because from that point forward, how much has changed in our politics and in Our culture. All thanks to President Trump. When I was in the Oval Office pitching him on the book in February, I was sitting there thinking, you know, about the time my dad said, trump's going to be the president. And I'm sitting in there thinking, yep, he's the president. I don't know who was running the country the last four years, but I sure as hell know who's running it right now.
- [56:26]
Abby
How cool that your dad, a Democrat, saw that and predicted it. And to watch you, no matter how old we get, we're still our kids, our parents, little kids. Right. Little Scotty. To see, to think of him and how he views you right now and what you are doing with integrity and class and grace and strength. As the first Jennings to ever go to college. What are those conversations like with your dad right now?
- [56:54]
Scott Jennings
Well, we're spending a lot of time together right now, and I'm so grateful for it. I love my dad. He was a Democrat. Whenever I tell this story sometimes in front of people and he always reminds me, don't forget to tell them that I'm now a Republican, okay? But he is like a lot of those working class rural Democrats. Their parents were Democrats. They came from the party of fdr. And over time, the Democratic Party left them behind. They stopped caring about working class people. They stopped caring about rural people. They stopped caring about people with those kinds of values. My dad is a textbook example of this. And Trump spoke to him in a way I had never really seen a politician speak to my dad. I mean, my dad got it and he got my dad. And interestingly, when I went with the President on Air Force One to Michigan for his hundredth day in office rally, when we were leaving the plane, the President said, do you want my hat? And I said, no, but I'd like to take it anyway and give it to my dad. He said, that's terrific. What's your dad's name? And so he wrote a note to my dad on the hat. And I told the President, you know, my dad was the first person that told me you were going to be the president. And he gave me that hat and I took it to my dad the next day. And it meant a lot to me to be able to do that for him because he, you know, my dad and I, you know, we've had a great relationship over the years, but, you know, because of life and things that you do in your life, you know, you go through these periods where you're seeing your parents a lot and you're not seeing them a Lot. And so the older I've gotten, the more I have realized that relationship with your parents and them having a relationship with your children, there is no substitute for that. And there's. Can't put a price tag on it. And so being able to share some of this political history that we're living through with my dad, who's obviously so into it, has been.
- [58:57]
Abby
He must be so proud.
- [58:59]
Scott Jennings
Well, I hope so. I'm trying to make him proud.
- [59:01]
Abby
Yeah.
- [59:01]
Scott Jennings
And I hope that's true.
- [59:05]
Abby
And now you've got Winston and three other boys who are watching everything you do.
- [59:09]
Scott Jennings
Yep. Instagram's over there. He's number two, Everett is number one, Thatcher is number three, and Harlan is number four. And we got a lot of destruction and mayhem in the Jennings household, but we're. We're. We're raising four boys in a. In this world. And, you know, as a parent, as, you know, what are you trying to do every day? Everything you can do for your kids. Somebody once told me, if you want to do something nice for someone, do something nice for their kids. When you have kids and you. You're raising them, you realize, like, that is the best advice.
- [59:41]
Abby
It's everything.
- [59:41]
Scott Jennings
It's everything. They're everything. And so when you're getting up to take your beatings, you know, on some panel or get yelled at or, you know, whatever, get on a train at 5am or get up, go get on a plane and fly to do whatever it. You know, there's really only one reason to do it. Trying to give them a better life and trying to give them a country that they can be proud of. I think about them a lot and about the country's future. And I think I don't want them to just grow up in a rich country. I want them to grow up in a good country that believes in certain things. And so everything I do professionally is really geared around them. And so dad's not home a lot, and I sort of live with that every day. But at the same time, the reason I'm doing it is to try to build them a future that they can live in, and it'll be better than the one I inherited. That's the sort of the goal of generations. Leave the country a little better than you found it.
- [60:41]
Abby
You are doing that, and you are doing it brilliantly. I know you hear it all the time, Scott Jennings, but thank you. And you're representing us in more ways than you know. And maybe, yes, with all the things you say and the facts that you spew and the People you shut down. But it does take courage to go into that lion's den every single day, and not many people are made for it. So thank you for not ignoring that. Like, we need you. I'm sure the people bigger than me have told you that. The president has told you that.
- [61:10]
Scott Jennings
Well, I'm flattered by your comments. I'm trying to do an honest job with it every day and give people the best defense. And that's ultimately the thing about debates. You know, half the country sees the world the way we see it. They have conservative values. They deserve an analysis and a defense of what's going on every day, as the other half does. And you want to give them that as much as you can. And I'll just say I'm grateful for you, what you do and this sort of, what you're doing, pioneering in this new media space. And look, there's no secret about this. The legacy media is struggling, and people are looking for honest people that they can listen to. You're one of them. I mean, people. I mean, your show and the people you interview. And, you know, there's a few people popping up out there who I think are doing such an honest job of having honest conversations and delivering information, in a way, it's attracting audiences. It's authentic, and it's real. And so I just want to congratulate you on that, because it takes a lot of guts to take some of the stands you've taken in the arena in which you work. I mean, goodness gracious, takes a lot of guts.
- [62:21]
Abby
When we get backed into a corner, sometimes a whole other animal comes out that you didn't know existed within yourself. And I think it's. At some point, it is an age thing, too. You know, you get to a certain age where you realize that it's bigger than you. And if you choose to stay silent, that's fine. But I think there's a price to pay, especially when you have your children watching you. And I know this is bigger than me and you and really everybody. It's for our families and our great, great grandkids and the future of this country. And it's just having conversations that's the problem.
- [62:55]
Scott Jennings
What do you want to have people say about you? She had the courage to tell the truth. I mean, that's a great legacy. That alone is a great legacy. The truth has never gone out of vogue. You just. We have to have people courageous enough to tell it. And so when I see what you're doing and, you know, others in our community, I. I'M very proud of it. It's an important thing, and there's a. There's a real hunger for that out there. I think it's one of the reasons Trump got elected.
- [63:20]
Abby
Yep.
- [63:20]
Scott Jennings
I think it's one of the reasons that we've seen this explosion of, you know, new media content out there and platforms that have popped up. I mean, people are desperate for the gatekeepers to go away and to get at the truth or to get at real, authentic conversations. And so I. I think. I think this moment is. I mean, we're just living through massive upheaval in the information distribution space, and I think it's ultimately going to be for the better. But I also think competition makes everybody better.
- [63:52]
Abby
Absolutely. It makes everybody better in sports and everything. I got to get you to your train. You're wearing the yellow ribbon.
- [63:57]
Scott Jennings
Yeah.
- [63:57]
Abby
For any reason in particular?
- [63:58]
Scott Jennings
Yep, because I've been wearing it every day since October 7th. I think what's going on in the Western media right now, in terms of the propaganda campaign around the war in Gaza is terrible. There are 50 hostages there. Two of them are Americans, citizens. I think we've largely forgotten about it. And I wear it every day. Even though we don't debate it every day, I wear it every day because I just want people to know that there's still somebody that can tell the difference between right and wrong on this issue. What happened on October 7 is one of the biggest acts of barbarism and savagery we've seen in modern history. And there are hostages there. It's not okay. And I just. I don't know. This. This whole story has touched me in a way that few have because of the barbarism that took place, the murders, the rapes, the pillaging of these little farming communities, the mutilation of people, treating them like animals. We have to be able to tell the difference between right and wrong. To me, that's what the pen represents, memory of the hostages and just that we have to be able to tell the difference between right and wrong in this world. The defense of Western civilization depends on that. So I wear it and Van Jones wears it, and I'm proud of him for that. And I'm. And I'm. Proud to stand up for these hostages whenever we get the chance to debate the issue. And I'm sort of mortified at the propaganda campaign that's going on to make people, you know, up is down, right is left, red is blue. It's crazy to me what's going on around this, but my center here is on these poor hostages. I met some of the parents of the hostages that are still there and heard their heartbreaking stories. If you have talked to the people who are impacted, if you've seen it for your own eyes, if you've seen the footage of what happened on October 7, I don't know how you could see it any other way.
- [66:04]
Abby
This is why we need you every day. Now get to New York City. You have a show to do tonight.
- [66:10]
Scott Jennings
I do.
- [66:10]
Abby
Thank you for being you.
- [66:12]
Scott Jennings
Thank you very much.
- [66:12]
Abby
God bless you. And, Winston, thanks for hanging with us.