Best of the Program | Guests: AG Ken Paxton & Salena Zito | 4/9/25

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See Remixyogurt.com. On today's podcast, have we made a deal with Afghanistan to be allowed to reuse Bagram Air Force Base? If so, what does that mean? What are we doing? And is it the Chinese as the trade war begins to heat up? What's happening there? We try to explore that.
Also, Ken Paxton, who is running for John Corden's seat, joins us to talk about a new community, an Islamic community that is being built or proposed to be built here in Texas. And the one and only, I love her, Selena Zito.
I think she's one of the best reporters. She was with the president on the day they tried to assassinate him.
And she tells the story. She's got a new book coming out in, I think, the summer at some point.
And we just kind of were talking, got into it. Wait until you hear the story that she has to share in her new book, Butler.
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You're listening to the best of the Glenn Beck program. And Paxton, welcome to the program, sir.
How are you? Doing great. How are you? I am great.
I'm very excited to talk to you about your Senate candidacy. Me too.
Yeah. But first, let me talk to you a little bit about what is happening here in the Dallas-Fort Worth area with EPIC.
EPIC is an Islamic center and community. And let me just play some of the video as we're talking about this.
And now we embark on a new chapter of Vision of Harmony. All right, so.
H homes and hearts unite. As a, you know, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I mean, you know, they crossed the mountains and started their own community in Salt Lake.
But they don't have a Mormon separate law. You know what I mean? It's all based on the Constitution and the bill of rights.
And it's, it's not going against everything that the country was done. So I have no, no problem.
You want to start any religious community, not a problem. Is this that kind of community? Do we know enough about it yet? So I don't, so we're in the middle of, we just started an investigation.
So I don't know the answer. I do do agree with you.
We are a free country. First Amendment is like clearly First Amendment.
And you can believe whatever you want to believe in this country and still be free. On the other hand, you're right.
I mean, we have laws in this country. Those laws matter.
The Constitution matters. And if you're not following the laws of our country, then we're going to have some controversy and some contention.
So in the end, you have whatever religion you want and believe whatever you want, but you still have to follow our laws, our state laws and our federal laws and our constitution. So the the developments attorney says that any investigation is just racial profiling.
I'm so sick of that stuff because I don't think that it is racial profiling.

I think we have reason to be concerned.

Look what's happening over in Europe, and we can't let that happen here in America,

especially Texas.

Well, yeah, countries are being taken over,

and the Sharia law is taking over whatever country they're in. And that's certainly, we can't let that happen here.
I mean, the rule of law, our constitution, what our founders put together, it was so beautiful and wonderful, given us freedom for so long. We're not going to sacrifice that for Sharia law.
It's just not going to happen in Texas. And so we're going to be very focused on that and make sure they're following our laws.
And at the same time, as you said, we want to be cognizant that people have a right to have their own religion and we respect that. So where do you, how do you possibly, because everybody involved is going to say, well, of course you're not going to have Sharia law.
Of course, this isn't going to be a no-go zone zone but that's what has been said now for a few decades over in europe and that's exactly what they become how do you if you can't find you know a smoking gun with how to bring sharia law into texas you know you're not going to find that pamphlet how are you going to be able what what could you possibly find that would be solid enough to say no? Well, so what you say is different sometimes than what people actually do. So we're going to be looking at what people are actually doing out there.
What are the developers, how are they implementing this? So are they discriminating based on whether you're a part of a certain religion? Because that would create issues with, you know, fair housing laws. And so we're just going to be looking at what is the actual practice, not what are you saying, not what is your promotional material, you know, lawed, although the promotional material may tell us something.
So it's actually what is actually happening on the ground out there. And that's that's our focus.
What is what is the truth?

So multiple state agencies are involved in this. And are we talking about fines, injunctions, something bigger violations are found? Yeah, so I can't issue fines, but I can certainly sue over it and get, you know, if there's a reason, get an injunction to stop it.
If it's doing imminent harm, it's usually what you have to show. You have to show imminent harm and that you win on the merits.
Otherwise, you know, we would sue them over some type of consumer law violation, or if the governor had other violations through some of the agencies that he's directing, we could represent those agencies in lawsuits. So there's all kinds of different ways to address that

depending on what we find in our investigation. So when you were under investigation here in Texas,

your attorney that represented you in the impeachment hearing, which was all cleared,

is now representing the developers.

Does that cause a conflict of interest with you at all?

Look, I certainly didn't know about that until recently.

And I would say, obviously, a little concerning that I wasn't made aware of that.

And, you know, there definitely could be an argument that there's conflict

because I'm still being represented by him, And he's representing clients that we are investigating. So, yeah, a little conflict to me.
Yeah. All right.
Let me let me switch to Cornyn. This makes Stu very, very happy.
Makes me happy, too. I think when I found out we were together, I gave you, we hugged it out.
Um, yes, we did.

Yeah.

Anybody, anybody who is standing against Cornyn? I think I, I think I told you in person. Yeah, you did.
You did. Uh, but, uh, so we have Cornyn in, um, have you heard anything? Have you talked to the president about this? Is he going to stand against Cornyn and stand with you? Do you have any idea yet? So I don't know.
I mean, obviously, what I've noticed about President Trump is typically he waits till later, closer to the election. He likes to see how things are going, whether people are doing what they said they were going to do and whether they're performing.
So I mean, part of the reason I decided to get this over with, I think there was a big effort by John Thune and some of the swamp to get John an endorsement before I got in or somebody else got in. And I wanted to make sure I was in the game before, you know, all these things got done in Washington.
In my opinion, one of the frustrations I have is it feels like sometimes that Washington wants to decide, oh, well, Ken, you can't run because we haven't picked you. And I'm like, I don't care if you pick me.
What I say about the people of Texas, right? It feels like they think that they get to decide, well, we picked John, so sorry, you can't run. Well, I'm just not into that decision-making and never will be.
So they don't understand. It should be the voters of Texas that decide, not John Thune and a bunch of Republican senators that think they should run the world.
So for anybody who hasn't been paying attention for the last 400 years, what would be different between you and Cornyn? Oh, my gosh. You know, so far I've had this discussion many times.
Everything. I mean, he and I, his focus is in D.C.
His focus is not on the people of texas my focus on the people of texas and that translates into him wanting to be happy and satisfied in dc so he fights to pass gun restrictions on um on texans and all americans and he worked with joe biden and joe biden said hey great job president Joe Biden and Joe Biden said, hey, great job.

President Trump, on the other hand, said, no, this is your rhino. Don't.
This is bad legislation. And so not only did John pass legislation that hurt hurt the rest of the country, but he also enabled the ATF to then have angles to try to expand their control over gun ownership.
And I to go sue them twice.

So it's things like that.

It's things like the amnesty that he suggested he's for. It's the fight he fought, building a wall.
He fought Trump on that. He's been unsupportive and critical of Trump when he ran both times, calling him an albatross.
So fundamentally, John and I are very different. And we believe very different.
Our focus is on very different people. And he's part of the establishment.
He was put there by the bushes. And he doesn't look out for the interests of individual Texans.
He's thinking people in Washington are his people. Ken, part of the establishment in this particular case is, I would say, an understatement.
And one of the benefits of being part of that establishment is you got a lot of friends who have a lot of power, a lot of money. They are going to come after you really, really.
I mean, I can't even imagine. They've already told me.
No, they've already told me. They told me that I should not run, that I was not picked, and that I should not run, and that they would spend, I was told, $120 million to make sure that they kept John Cornyn.
And I said, hey, can you tell me why John Cornyn is running? I just want to know that. And there was a quiet silence, and there was like, well, you know, we told him not to run.
He's already been in there four terms. We told him not to run, but he's our friend.
So we're going to support him, and we're going to spend the money to beat you. And I said, so you're telling me you don't even know why John Corn is running, and you can't explain why he should be the center, and you do think he's already been there too long, but yet you're still going to support him.
And the answer was yes, and we will spend a lot of money to make sure it's not you. $120 million that could go to defeating people on the left.
Yes. And look, I don't know what the real number is.
That could, $120 million in the primary, I don't think that's the real number. That's been a lot.
That's been a lot. Yeah.
I mean, I wouldn't, you have the pockets to go against that? I am, I'm right now I'm doing quite well. I mean, I, you know, part of this has to be separate with super PACs, but I am anticipating that I will be very competitive on the fundraising side.
I already know I'm going to be competitive. Now, will I have 120 million? I don't need 120 million, but you know, 20 to 40 million that's doable for me.
Well, money can't buy this. You know, it's going to be whether, just getting your name out and making sure that people understand what John Cornyn has done.
Who are your friends in the Senate that would be your pack? So I doubt, you know, those senators, most of them, they all kind of stick together behind the scenes they'll they'll they're several telling me they hope i win the only one that i think that would you know openly support me is is uh tommy timberville who said i'll i'll support you and i think he he's uh obviously leaving to go run for governor but he's he's a rare breed there, and that's fine. I don't need Washington to support me.
Ted Cruz won't do it? I think Ted, because he's... I don't think he'll say anything.
I don't think he'll endorse either way. Yeah, he's got to work with whoever wins, I guess.
Is that the game we're playing? That's the game we're playing. Yeah, okay.
Look, and I'm just happy, you know, that's a win for me. If Ted just stays out of it, that's the message, right? I mean, I know he endorsed Cornyn last time.
If he doesn't endorse him this time, it's helpful. Yeah.
And by the way, I'm a benefit to Ted because I'll be supportive instead of disruptive to what he wants to do, because I am a fan of Ted Cruz. I think he's, he's the kind of center that Texas deserves and should have.
And he's done a fantastic job and I've supported him ever, ever since he ran the first time. Yes.
And John Cornyn is in contrast is opposite. I mean, as you I think I heard you say, he'd be fine in Vermont if we had him as a Republican.
We'd be happy to have him, but not in Texas.

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Now, back to the podcast. This is the best of the Glenn Beck program.
The real Z factor is Selena Zito. She is from the Washington Examiner, national political reporter.
I can't wait to talk to you, Selena, about Butler. We're going to get into that here in a second.
But can we just talk about your story that you wrote a couple of days ago, what I learned about America first in Pennsylvania in a steel mill. Tell me about your experience.
Thanks so much for having me on, Glenn. You bet.
So nice to talk to you. You're so great.
You know, so this is a special correspondence to the Washington Post.

And they reached out to me after the election to do this kind of work.

And I really wanted to get in there and tell the people's story, in particular the steelworker's story,

not only about how they feel about this sale to Nippon, but also how they feel about the tariffs. And it is, you know, walking into that steel mill, I have to tell you it was a thrill of my career.
I have wanted to go inside that mill for 30 years and have always been turned down, and I think finally I just wore them down. And you just walk in there gone i don't know if you've ever been in one no heaven but it's it is is it like the pictures where the sparks are flying is it still like that wow so cool i was i really really enjoyed it um i have my heart hat on earplugs the, the sound, everything like the sound, the smell, the visuals, everything about that place screams work, right? You just felt, and you felt like you were in a place that was part of something bigger than self.
And that is how these men and women see what they do is, it's bigger than them. And it, because what does it do? It makes your appliances, it makes your cars, it makes your roads, it makes your buildings, everything, everything.
And, and, and if we are ever threatened, it makes the vehicles and the instruments to protect us. So they are part of something bigger than self.
It is a very

patriotic job. U.S.
Steel is America's first big company. Once upon a time, the largest company, not just in the country, but in the world.
That's the magnitude of U.S. Steel.
And what are some of the things that took it down? Tariffs, trade, bad trade deals.

And these guys have been just hanging on by a thread trying to keep this very important thing still made and produced in America. Now, when the Nippon deal first came out in December of 2023, the union guys, the management, they were like against it.
Why? And there's a historical reason. Most steelworkers are generational, right? Their grandfather, their great-grandfather, they all worked in it.
So the images of the 70s where Japan was selling the deal, dumping the steel, but they're also, you know, they had grandfathers and fathers that fought in World War II against Japan. They probably should let that one go, but...
Yes, they should let that one go, but still, there's this cultural thing, right? Right, right, right. Yeah.
And so they were initially against it. But then as they realized that U.S.
Steel was never going to reinvest in their mill, if people take a look at the story, they can see the rolling mill in action. I put a free link up in my Twitter account, Zito Selena.
But that rolling mill that you see there, which is like this awe-inspiring, powerful thing, is 86 years old. It's really, really difficult to be competitive with any other company or country because of the age of that mill.
And it cost a billion dollars to make a new one. And the U.S.
deal has said, yeah, we're not going to do that. We'll just go down south.
And so Nippon comes in and says, we're going to rebuild it. Not only are we going to rebuild it, we're going to invest in several other billion dollars into your company.
And it took a lot of talks, a lot of understanding, a lot of getting more investment from Nippon, where these steelworkers, by the way, they are not aligned with the international. These are the local steel steel workers the guys that show up every day not the suits the guys that show up every day and and they said we're for the deal it'll save my community it'll save my local church it'll save my schools the tax base and it won't turn my community into places like mckee sport Aliquippa, which are now just shells of what they once were because of steel mills left in those areas.
So I just said, Selena, this week that, you know, when Donald Trump talks about bringing jobs back, he's not talking about, and hear me carefully, not talking about going back into Pittsburgh and saying, we're going to open up all the steel mills. He is talking about steel mills, but they will be smaller and different, closer to the needs, et cetera, et cetera.
There are things, everything's going to change, but it's different kind of jobs and different kinds of things. We're not talking about this nostalgic, you know, rebuilding of Pittsburgh the way it was.
Do they? Right. And they understand that, the workers, right? Absolutely.
Yeah. And the amount of technology that they use there would blow people's minds.
They're like, there's so much stereotype of what you think happens in there that you often get from my profession. And then you walk in there and you're like, oh, okay.
And here's the other thing. And to your point, this is a really important point.
This is another story I covered last week. Two weeks ago, the Homer city coal fired tower plant was leveled.
It was very dramatic watching the highest smokestack in the country fall to the ground. But 10 days later, thanks to Trump, thanks to Burgum, they are open.
They are putting in its place and nobody knew this was going to happen. They're putting in its place the largest electrical gas power plant in its place that will not only provide electricity to Pennsylvania, but also parts of Maryland, New York, Ohio, and West Virginia.
And more importantly than that, it is they're going to build an AI data center next to that. Wow.
Really smart. 10,000 jobs.
10,000 jobs.

$10 billion investment. It's going to be 10,000 jobs.
10,000 jobs.

$10 billion investment.

And it's shovel ready.

And there are places like that all over the industrial Midwest.

That you can retrofit these coal-fired power plants and make them power plants for AI.

Trump and Bergam have said, it used to be the arms race that we wanted to win. Well, we need to win the AI race.
Yes. It is non-negotiable.
We have to win it. And these are the places where we'll build them.
So what is your feeling now that the tariffs, you know, everybody in Wall Street, everybody's freaking out.

And I think it's starting to freak people out, the average person, you know, because everybody is like screaming so hard about it. You know, it's like, you know, when the media doesn't talk about gas prices, nobody says anything about gas prices, even though the average person feels it.

This is kind of like that.

The media is just freaking out about all of this.

And maybe they have good points here and there.

I don't know. about gas prices, even though the average person feels it.
This is kind of like that. The media is just freaking out about all of this, and maybe they have good points here and there.
I'm not sure how this is going to work out, but the last thing we need is to freak out about it. What are the people like you meet in those small towns, the working class people, what are they saying about the tariffs?

Well, you know, Glenn, we have had this conversation so many times before. I feel like I straddled two different worlds.
If I step on social media or if I put on the legacy news, it's a very, very different narrative than when I talk to people. Yeah.

And, you know, for so long, the playing field has not been level for them. And I know that sounds like a cliche, however, it is true.
And it's really interesting to me, to a person, they almost, they are willing to have a short-term sacrifice for a long-term betterment for the country. I was talking to Anthony.
It's going to be in my upcoming story with my interview with Bergam. I was talking to Anthony.
He is a PhD in chemistry, has traveled all over the world in the energy industry. And I said, so how do you, you know, feel about this? And he said, I think it's the best thing for the country.
It's going to make the country better for my children and for my grandchildren. And we need to start thinking in those terms.
We have been thinking in terms of satisfying Wall Street. And I know, look, He goes, I'm 10 years from retirement.
I know what my 401k looks like right now. However, I also knew what it looked like in 2008 and 2020.
America rolls back. What we need in this country, and he said, we should have learned this from COVID.
We need to make more stuff here.

We need to make more stuff here.

And we haven't been able to because corporations see how cheaply it can be made in China, how cheaply it can be made in Mexico or wherever, name a country, Vietnam, whatever country it is.

And we need to be able to have our supply chain be able to supply us.

Thank you. Vietnam, whatever country it is.
And we need to be able to have our supply chain be able to supply us. And if that makes me take a haircut, I'll take a haircut because it's going to be better for my kids and my grandchildren.
I've got about a minute before I have to break. I'm going to pursue something else.
But do you think that the average person really understands that this is not about the economy today? This is about survival. This is the great reset not done by the elites.
This is the great reset saying, no, we're going to put our faith back into America and to our principles. And it's not about racism.
It's not about isolationism. It's just about what the elites have been doing is wrong and it's going to hurt, but we got to do this.
Do you believe that they understand that? Yeah, absolutely. I mean, to a person.
And it's really interesting because I don't lead into that question, right, to try to get them to say it.

It's one of the first things that they say, in particular ranchers. You know, talk to a rancher in Kansas, and they will tell you, you know, we haven't had a level playing field at all.
We have been on the short end of the stick for decades. And, you know, this is the first time that we have a chance to show what we have and show that we can compete so that our ranches for our kids and our grandkids are better, stronger, more viable, because they're not going to be if we don't.
Selina, it's always good to talk to you. You know, one of the things that, let me just say this to anybody who's listening.
One of the things I love about Selena, we've known each other for decades now. And I love her because she does not drive the highways.
She doesn't fly place to place. She drives the back roads.
She stops at the coffee shops and the little stores and the gas station. And that's why I think you have such a good handle on the heartbeat of the average person in America.
You're listening to the best of the Glenn Beck podcast. Hear more of this interview and others with the full show podcast available wherever you get podcasts.
Welcome to the Glenn Beck program. I'm probably going to talk about this tomorrow.
Stephen Moore is going to be on with me in about an hour from now, and we're going to touch on this. I just want you to know that if you pay attention to what's happening in the markets, you'll see the Fed, the treasuries are going up.
That's the opposite of what should be happening right now, and that is because of something called basis trade. And it's a very, very big deal if it's not turned around.
The hedge funds playing fast and loose, and now they got their foot caught in the door, and it's almost a 2008 kind of thing if it doesn't get under control quickly. It's really not a good thing.
Not caused by the tariffs, but kind of pushed over the edge because of the tariffs. It's the unwinding of this thing that has been a problem for a long time.
And I just want you to know, we're aware of it and we're watching it for you. And I'll have more on that tomorrow.
I might be able to get to some of it later on in the program today. Let me go to Jason Buttrill.
He's a former Department of Defense Intelligence Analyst, and he is also our head writer and head of research here at the Glenn Beck program. And Jason, there is something that I did not expect to read and maybe ever.
A C-17 aircraft from ours took off in Doha on our military base and arrived at Bagram on Sunday. It was said to be carrying senior U.S.
intelligence officials, including the CIA deputy chief, military equipment, etc., etc. Now, there's rumors that the Taliban handed the base over to us, which I don't think that happened just because of the kindness of their hearts.

And I have a feeling this, I don't know what kind of, if this is true, I don't know what

kind of deal we had to make with the Taliban to get that base back because that base is

strategic, like nobody's business if you're going into any kind of war with China. Jason, can you fill us in on this? What's true? What's not? What do you read from this? Yeah, so none of this is official.
This news report came out because there's people on the ground that are watching flight trackers. They saw this flight take off.
They saw it land. And then the rumors spread from there, from, you know, the whole thing about, you know, the Taliban handing over Bagram to us is probably a complete and total pipe dream at the moment.
I don't know where it goes. Eventually it could.
But of course the Taliban denied it. Like they can't be seen, you know, handing over facility in their, like that's what sparked off Al Qaeda, you know, in Saudi Arabia, having us, you know, at their military base.
They're not going to admit that. Right.
But I, I do see, we have to look at the state of the world and kind of think about during the cold war. Can you imagine when, if during the cold war War the media landscape was how it is now? So that, I mean, who are these Contra people? Like, what are we dealing with? Or who are the Sandinistas? Like, this news would be everywhere, nonstop.
And we're going to start seeing that with this trade war that's going on right now. And by the way, I think it's important for us to say i think it's official we are in a trade war china just retaliated again a second time what was it number this time 54 they added another 50 so they're up to 84 now and we're up to 104 104 so we're at a trade war and then europe as well europe just retaliated with 25 as well So this is not a good thing.
You don't like trade wars. Trade wars are not a good thing.
Stephen Moore, Art Laffer, have been advising the president. And Stephen's going to be on with us here in about 45 minutes.
Oh, not confirmed yet? Okay. He will.
We've been chatting this morning on text all morning since about 4 a.m., both of us wide awake going, what's happening in the world? But anyway, we are at a trade war. So why does that play a role with Bagram? Well, we're going to start seeing activity beyond tariffs.
Tariffs are the main lever, but we're going to see some clandestine activity and other moves from like our intelligence services maybe even military movements in in the middle of this because right now between the united states and china is a very you know big and competitive world and issue between the both of them and i think this is squarely about china i really think it does that's what was so scary about handing over Bagram to begin with, because that's a major part of their Silk Road initiative.

So one of their major trade objectives is to get to be able to have a land route through places like Afghanistan. So I think that there's a big issue that both us and the Taliban can agree on, if you can believe that.
And that is the elimination of ISIS-K in Afghanistan. That's their affiliate in Afghanistan.
The Taliban doesn't like them. I believe they've worked with them in the past, but now it's a completely different state of the game for them between the two groups.
So I can see them making concessions to allow us to, let's say, operate some intelligence assets out of there or use it in some way. I think we are seeing the beginnings of that negotiation right now with this.
That's my opinion. And you believe after all those years at war with them, there's the possibility that we're going to need their help with China.
I mean, that's insane. That's insane.
And none of this would have happened had we not just handed them the base. That was the dumbest thing I've ever heard.
We paid how many billions for that base? Oh, gosh. I mean, too many.
Yeah. Too many billions of dollars in that base.
And we just handed it to them. Just handed it to them.
And we left all our equipment there. Now, there's a couple of other reasons that, you know, you can speculate on.
Are we doing counterterrorism or intelligence operations in that area? Maybe not with just China or not against China, but also, you know, this is a central place to be for Russia and China, for the United States, make sure we have a foothold in that. What do you think we would have to, do you think we would have to offer the Taliban to get this? Well, I think that, I don't think we'd be giving them anything, but I do think that we would, you know, I don't know what to call it, offer our services, but show that we both have the same enemy in ISIS-K.
And I don't think that we'd be sharing anything with them. But if you look at our relationship with Afghanistan while the Taliban pre-2001 was in place, we didn't have a major foothold in Afghanistan.
We had intelligence operatives. If within the country clandestinely and outside the country, that's how we managed the terror threat before.
I think we're moving into a more aggressive phase where that is our stance in that area. We have some intelligence assets in the country.
We have some intelligence assets in places like Pakistan and other places, not a major military footprint. I don't think that's going to happen again.
I really don't. I don't think Bagram will ever be fully turned over to us again.
I don't think that's going to happen. But I could see some kind of accommodation to allow, let's say, and this is very dangerous, like a a la Benghazi, like a compound or something like that, that we do operate out of, like a handful of intelligence assets.
Extremely dangerous, but I can see them moving in that direction. And so what does that give us, Glenn? That lets us attack terrorists, which is what we want to do.
We don't want them to get larger groups within Afghanistan. That benefits the Taliban as well.
But it also lets us keep an eye on who is using that air base also. Are the Chinese there? Are the Russians there? More importantly, are the Chinese there? That's what I think is going on.
What is the Chinese relationship with Afghanistan? Because they've got to, I mean, Chinese need Afghanistan too. Chinese absolutely need Afghanistan for Silk Road.
And I mean, look what they've done in places like Africa. They move in and offer the world.
We'll build this superhighway. We'll build up this infrastructure, this infrastructure, this infrastructure.
Eventually, the way they structure those deals, Afghanistan becomes a slave to China because then they're on the hook for a trillion dollars in infrastructure payback. That's how China exerts force.
So that's what that's China's stake in this game. And that's probably what they're maneuvering to do.
We would want to stop them from doing that in this overall trade war, looking down the road a decade, two decades from now. You know, everybody I've talked to, everyone has said to me, Glenn, in a trade war with China, if we get into a if this doesn't back off, we're both in real trouble.
China has got to have us and we really have to have China for our medicines and everything else. And I said, so which, which, which, which, which, which, which one of us wins in the end?

And it's like any war. You don't know.
Whoever can stomach it the longest, I guess, is the answer. Your thoughts on what we're entering and how Europe is now responding.
You know, history teaches us so much. And if you look at the world post-world war ii it was very similar to who was that that japanese geopolitics person or philosopher i can't remember where he said that this was the end of history um but he was talking about i think war was the time or war one or two i can't remember but um he's he said this is the end of the history because the world is so interconnected, we're not going to want to go to war again.

Well, that's complete bullcrap. You know, you look at, you know, books like The Clash of Civilizations that pointed out that, well, actually, people are just going to move into their own, you know, racial or race or identity.
And that will be the new, you know, you know, spark for war going forward. But the solution to that, thinking that this is the end of history, was to fully interconnect all these countries, the entire world, so that if we go to war or, you know, whatever, we all suffer for it.
So we won't do it. So it's the end of history.
Right. Well, that system that we built made it to where we are dependent on all these other countries.
We're dependent on China for our, you know, our, our, our, all of our, like, what's it? 75%, I believe of our medicines, 75%. We depend on this country for all of these rare earth minerals.
We compare, you know, we're dependent everywhere. That is the system they built.
They never thought it would turn around and bite people, even though we saw in COVID that that was completely wrong. We are in bad shape and it's not sustainable.
Hang on a second. That is the scariest thing, because when you when you fully understand that, then you understand what the president is doing.
And then you're looking at it going, geez, but that doesn't give us relief right away.

This this this is going to cause a lot of temporary pain.

And maybe I don't know what temporary even means.

It will be temporary, but it's going to cause a lot of pain.

And I'm not sure that the American people even understand truly what's going on.

They think it's just about the economy.'s not it's about changing everything yeah and people rightly point out that change doesn't happen overnight and that's exactly right i mean how many billions of dollars does it take for a company to set up a plant or manufacturing facility within the united states it's billions of dollars how long does it build those? What, three to five years once they finally pull the trigger? We're only in the negotiation stage. I know.
So we're talking about a long, far off in the distance plan that we're just negotiating. Right.
It has to be done. It's unsustainable.
But we are seeing the beginnings and the pain now. And it's only going to get worse

if we don't do anything.

But we have to understand

the pain may be a long time.

This is a hundred-year plan,

longer than that now,

being turned overnight.

And it's going to cause

some shocks along the way.

Thank you, Jason.

I appreciate it. Click fast and save big.
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