Verdict with Ted Cruz

Bonus: Daily Review with Clay and Buck

Episode Date: February 12, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features Clay Travis and Buck Sexton, with special guests Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and commentator Jesse Kelly, examining the key news stories of the day. They cover the ICE operation drawdown in Minneapolis, a recent mass shooting in Canada involving a transgender perpetrator, educational reform efforts tied to America's 250th anniversary, and lively cultural debates including mustache trends and Super Bowl party etiquette. The show maintains its characteristic irreverent, combative tone, especially on cultural and political issues.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Minneapolis ICE Operation Drawdown

(Timestamp: 03:53–10:42)

• Key Issue: The federal government claims "mission accomplished" as they end an enhanced ICE deployment in Minneapolis.
• Tom Homan's Commentary (04:22):

  "A significant drawdown has already been underway this week and will continue to the next week. We have a lot of work to do across this country to remove public safety risks who shouldn't even be in this country."

• Buck and Clay’s Perspective: Concern that left-wing activists may interpret the pullback as a victory, potentially spreading similar resistance tactics elsewhere.
• Underlying compromise: Local authorities begin notifying ICE about violent criminals for custody, leading to the operational drawdown.
• Political implications: Governor Tim Walz’s (MN) political prospects reportedly harmed by fallout from the issue, with Clay noting,

  "His political career is over… ultimately Minnesota voters... are going to tell us what they think about the direction of their state." (08:35)

Notable Quote:

"The fact that Tim Walls, who a little over a year ago was the heartbeat away… from the presidency, now has his political career over, would be a sign that much of the immigration related aspects of Minnesota politics are not breaking in favor of the Democrat Party."
— Clay Travis (08:50)

2. Transgender Mass Shooting in Canada

(Timestamp: 04:54, 28:58–43:12)

• Incident: A shooting at a secondary school in British Columbia by a transgender man, with media and police allegedly misreporting the perpetrator's gender.
• Media Critique: Hosts argue that the Canadian and U.S. media are engaging in “mass delusion” by not reporting the biological sex of the shooter truthfully.
• Mental Health Discussion: Buck Sexton calls for society to address "the extreme mental illness that is behind transgenderism," asserting it requires mental health intervention instead of affirmation.
• Cultural Critique: They highlight the perceived dangers of coddling, rather than confronting, unstable individuals.
• Law Enforcement's Role: Hosts alarmed by police statements respecting shooter's pronouns instead of stating biological sex.

Notable Quotes:

"At what point do we as a society have a conversation about the extreme mental illness that is behind transgenderism and the fact that it… deserves and necessitates support and mental health intervention instead of people placating and playing along?"
— Buck Sexton (33:17)

"You are in a real dystopian situation when the cops are lying to you about who does a mass murder. That Royal Canadian Mounted Police guy… is just lying."
— Buck Sexton (33:44)

"We identify the suspect as they chose to be identified... Jesse was born as a biological male who... began to transition to female..."
— Officer, via media clip (36:12)

• They note a disturbing trend: "three mass shootings basically in the last year and a half that have been propagated by trans people who were on drugs and/or being treated for trans related issues." (40:16)

3. Education Reform & The Presidential 1776 Award

(Timestamp: 15:36–27:44)

• Guest: Secretary of Education Linda McMahon announces the launch of the Presidential 1776 Award—a civics/historical literacy competition for students, celebrating America’s 250th birthday.
• Competition Details:
  • 4,000-question online test, 90 minutes long, three rounds, with a $150,000 scholarship for the winner.
  • Designed to address declining historical and civic literacy in the U.S.
  • Open to students, with registration at presidential1776award.org until February 21.
• Educational Philosophy:
  • McMahon details intention to dissolve the Dept. of Education bureaucracy by returning power to states for educational control.
  • Aims to compile a national “toolkit” of the most effective practices from around the U.S., inspired by successful "laboratory" states (cites Mississippi’s early reading reforms).

Notable Quotes:

"The Department of Education was not established until 1980. And since that time we've spent $3 trillion on education... and watched our national scores continue to decline. So we're clearly doing something wrong."
— Secretary Linda McMahon (20:15)

"What the state of Mississippi did, and it’s actually called the Mississippi Miracle, they adopted the science of reading. It’s based on phonics... and it has proven to be so successful."
— Linda McMahon (22:18)

• Unique Suggestion: Clay and Buck joke about challenging other media duos to the civics test, expressing confidence they would win (17:52–18:57).

4. Teachers & Political Activism

(Timestamp: 25:03–26:25)

• Discussion of school closures and educator protests during the Minneapolis ICE controversy.
• McMahon: If protesting disrupts student learning, federal funding could be at risk.

"Why is my child not in school that day?... I think it’s outrageous." — Secretary Linda McMahon (25:36)

5. Political and Media Commentary

(Timestamp: 10:08, 41:03)

• Book Promotion: Buck Sexton references his upcoming book "Manufacturing Delusion," and how Democrats have mobilized public outrage against standard law enforcement procedures (ICE, immigration).

Notable Quote:

"The degree to which Democrats are able to mobilize people who didn’t care about anything at all for decades... as if it is an existential threat to the nation. That scares me."
— Clay Travis (10:42)

6. Culture & Lifestyle Segments

Mustache Trends

(Timestamp: 02:10–03:53)

• Clay jokes about his mustache becoming iconic, discusses the trend among younger men, and Buck suggests a public poll.

Sports & Family

(Timestamp: 13:20)

• Clay reminisces about beating his son in basketball, discusses March Madness anticipation, and notes the generational mustache trend among athletes.

7. Jesse Kelly Interview: Cultural and Political Banter

(Timestamp: 44:39–56:49)

• Super Bowl Masculinity: Light-hearted debate about Super Bowl party drink choices—Jesse Kelly is roasted for drinking ice water instead of beer.
• Jesse Kelly’s “Little Red Book”:
  • Free downloadable booklet with cultural and political musings at jessekelly.com (49:36).
• Jeffrey Epstein & Public Accusations:
  • Discuss the moral responsibility of accusers in high-profile abuse cases to name perpetrators publicly.

"If you’re on your 20th press conference talking about the powerful men who've abused you… Now you got to deliver much more." — Jesse Kelly (54:04)

• 2026 Political Outlook:
  • Jesse predicts possible Republican losses in the House, retention of the Senate, and economic issues being decisive.

Notable Quotes:

"The normies who decide elections don’t vote on that. They vote on can they afford chicken, can they afford a plane ticket to go see their mother." — Jesse Kelly (55:12)

• Taylor Swift v. The Beatles:
  • Humorous exchange on pop icons, with Jesse mocking Clay’s claim about Taylor Swift’s legacy.

Additional Noteworthy Moments

• Transgender Violence & Media Responsibility:
  • Multiple segments stress possible links between transgender medical treatments/mental health and violent acts—hosts call for open discussion, critique media for using “AI filters” to feminize perpetrator images (41:03).
• Historical Literacy Challenge:
  • Clay, Buck, and McMahon joke about taking the “impossible” 1776 Test themselves and broadcasting their results.

Memorable Quotes & Attributions

• On media and cultural delusion:

  "Part of it is get them to say we don't know what a penis is. We don't know what a vagina is. We can't tell anything. We're all so dumb."
  — Buck Sexton (36:56)

• On mustache politics:

  "I feel an obligation to the American public… It's the most trusted mustache in news now."
  — Clay Travis (02:27)

• On gender and identity politics:

  "People out there say, well, why does this matter?... The trans community is tiny and we now have three mass shootings basically in the last year and a half that have been propagated by trans people who were on drugs and/or being treated for trans related issues."
  — Clay Travis (40:16)

• On political strategy:

  "If we fight tooth and nail, we might lose it [House] by a little... They have to feel it in their pocketbook. Are they feeling it? I don't know. They better be feeling it by election time or we're in trouble."
  — Jesse Kelly (55:12)

Important Timestamps

• [03:53] – Minneapolis ICE operation discussion begins
• [15:36] – Secretary Linda McMahon interview begins
• [28:58] – Transgender mass shooting Canada segment begins
• [44:39] – Jesse Kelly interview/banter begins

Tone & Language

• Conversational, irreverent, and combative
• Emphasis on skepticism toward mainstream narratives, especially around law enforcement and gender issues
• Frequent use of humor, banter, and cultural references (mustaches, sports)
• Guests engage in thoughtful policy discussion but also lively personal repartee

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode offers a comprehensive, opinionated analysis of recent major news—from immigration enforcement negotiations to the politicization of education and mass media coverage of violence. The irreverent rapport between hosts and guests provides context and color, alongside substantive interviews and debate. Expect provocations on culture war issues, with a special focus on the intersection of gender identity, violence, and media, as well as deep dives into education reform and election consequences.