Bill Meyer Show Podcast - Sponsored by Clouser Drilling www.ClouserDrilling.com - 04-22-26_WEDNESDAY_6AM

Episode Date: April 22, 2026

04-22-26_WEDNESDAY_6AM

This hour of the Bill Meyer Show podcast is proudly sponsored by Klauser Drilling. They've been leading the way in Southern Oregon well drilling for more than 50 years. Find out more about them at Klausurdrilling.com. Now more with Bill Meyer. Great having you here on Wheels Up Wednesday. Eric Peters is going to join me. In fact, he even answered a K&E listener question about Kea. So we'll kick a bit of that around.

And also the latest reviews and the news and what's going on in the transportation world. and always a lot of fun and always happy to take your calls during that time too 770 563 770 KMED also we're going to have Jason Sneed from the honest elections project action we're going to have to talk more about what is next because Virginia voters ended up approving this redistricting measure and so instead of having like four Republican congressional districts and six Democrat districts like they have right now it's going to be maybe nine to one. Nine to one. Yeah. It's like it's this big redistricting war, which has been going on. And they didn't even go as far as, as Texas. Texas kind of lit the fuse on all of that a little earlier this year.

And then they redistricting, they redistrict. And it's like, you know, like a 60-40 split, maybe a 70-30 split between Republicans and Democrats. Then California, look at what California is doing. We're going to have a congressional district up in, Susquee County, which, you know, consists of people in the Bay Area. You know, it's that kind of nonsense, the way they're going to gerrymander this stuff. But this is what happens when you're weaponizing these congressional districts. And let's face it, it's real tight. All it takes is a few seats one way or the other to flip Congress in the midterms. And boy, the battle is on.

Now, from what I understand, Jason is part of a group which is suing over this Virginia redistricting measure. We'll talk with him about an hour from now after Eric Peters. So that'll be some really good conversation, no doubt. David Brock Smith, Senator David Brock Smith joins me in studio. I haven't talked to David for a while. He ended up dropping by when I was doing the, getting the award from the Jackson County Chairman's Award a little earlier this year. And that was a lot of fun talking to him out there outside of the meeting hall. And he's running to dislodge Senator Jeff Merkley from the U.S. Senate. I would love to see it happen. I would love to see it happen. It's going to be, I think, well, maybe it won't be a tough fight. I don't know.

Joe Ray Perkins, of course, is running. There are five other Republicans besides Joe Ray Perkins. Joe Ray Perkins always runs every time. Every time you'll see her running for, you know, one Senate position or another. David's already a state senator, and he's running to take on Jeff Markley. We'll see what this is, you know, what this is looking like right now. Jail Ray Perkins, you know, it's kind of funny, though. I heard about somebody who was talking to a friend of mine and said, well, yeah, they said that Jarre Perkins, boy, she got 42% last time. Yeah, that's just because every Republican voted for Joe Ray instead of voting for Jeff Merckley, right? So they don't, you know, the idea is that you got to get it above 50, right? You got to give it above 50%. You got to beat the

Democrat vote. That's maybe a tall order. But we'll see what Senator Brock Smith has to say about that. So he's wanting to switch from Salem to the D.C. Swamp, apparently. We'll talk with him in studio around 7.30. And I haven't had the opportunity to catch up with E. Warner Reschke either, state

rep from the Klamath Falls area. And he's going to join me at 8.10. I know that they just, they're just talking about idling 10,000 acres of farmland over in Klamath County due to the water restrictions and drought, et cetera. We'll find out what's going on in his mind. So a lot of political

conversation this morning, and of course your calls at 7705-633-77-O-K-M-E-D. Wow, what a wild story happened here in downtown Medford yesterday morning. Just found out about it right when I got off the air yesterday. But there was this guy, I guess, was yelling and screaming and carrying on about five in the morning. And it was swinging an axe around, or I guess, Yes, he had an axe, and this is down on South Oakdale Avenue. There's an apartment house or apartment complex down there. And so he's yelling, and he's taking his axe, and this is what he's accused of doing at this point, allegedly trying to, you know, chop his way into another guy's apartment.

And I don't think they knew each other. I have a feeling that he was definitely in crisis, maybe going a little nuts. I don't know. I mean, it's all sort of up in the air right now. So the Medford cops get over there. They respond to the call. And then the guy with the axe, swinging the axe around, shot in the arm. The guy inside the apartment said, oh, no, you're not coming in here.

Almost sounds like the suspect, by the way. What was his name? Oh, yeah. Justin Moon Haidt, a 22-year-old. Yeah, H-A-I-G-H-T. And maybe he was in some sort of crisis or whatever it is. and he is not in Jackson County jail. They did take him to the hospital.

I know that. So, I don't know. Maybe he's in two north or getting a psychiatric evaluation. I'm totally speculating right now, but it was reported that he was pretty much just rather unhinged and maybe just having, you know, a tough time, you know, for whatever the case might be. But no, the neighbor's saying, no, you are not coming in here,

especially with that ax, one of those Jack Nicholson's here's Johnny kind of moments in real life, you know. So that was a wild story. Fortunately, nobody seriously heard. You know, the other guy's going to be fine, and the guy inside the apartment, he's certainly okay, too. No talk about any charges at this point in time. Like I said, a hate is not in the Jackson County Jail. I checked that out this morning. All right.

Another great story, and I have to give a tip of the hat to the Josephine County Sheriff's Department because they ended up reopening a case a couple of years ago. It was a cold case. the one about a 27-year-old Teresa Peroni. And they always knew. I think back when Teresa Peroni was killed back in 1983, she was a 27-year-old woman, young woman, and she was going to a party in the Selma area,

and she was the boyfriend of Marcus San Fratello. Well, Peroni was not seen after the party, and I'm sure the Sheriff's Department, they knew that San Frantello had something to do with it, but they couldn't make the case. There wasn't any evidence. There wasn't enough evidence to make the case. And so San Frantello has been living all these years.

I mean, most recently in Chico, California, a few months ago, he ended up getting extradited here because they finally came up with enough evidence to charge him. Because what happened with the death of Theresa Peroni, they didn't have a body. And then it was in late 1990s, yeah, 1997 that they found a solid. skull at nearby property. And from the way I'm telling it, and this was a release that came from the state attorney general's office yesterday that put this out. I just find it really interesting because they found a skull back in 1997, but I don't

think they had enough evidence to say that it was, that it was Peroni, or maybe they weren't sure. DNA was much cruder back at that time. And so now they have much better forensic techniques and better DNA. better DNA techniques and they were able to do more evidence and get the case and they brought it to trial and not to trial actually but what happened is that San Frantello did admit he confessed to it and they got him for first degree manslaughter so this 73 year old this is essentially could be a life sentence he's going to go to prison for at least a minimum of 10 years and so he's off there right now

and that was all because the Josephine County Sheriff's Department didn't give up. They reopened it. And you can imagine how tough it is sometimes to reopen an old case like that. But I'll bet you there are people that, you have a case like that, 27-year-old goes to a party and isn't, and doesn't make it home. And the family doesn't have any closure. And now it's over. And San Frantelo is going to pay for his crimes.

So that was a great story. and tip of the hat to the Josephine County Sheriff. It's always good to see a cold case put to bed that way. And another piece of news out of Josephine County, too, is reading the J. Lee Courier this morning, Daly Courier and Scott Stoddard has stepped down as the editor. And if you have been reading about that, and, you know, the rumors had been out there for several months,

several months that he was suffering from brain cancer. And, yep, the rumors were true. ended up having that glioblystoma that I told you about last week. Same disease that had taken my best friend from high school, Bob. And I had to mention that a few months ago. I was just kind of shocked over Christmas that he ended up passing away. But Scott is down to his last few weeks or months, good months. I guess he's going to be this according to the Daily Courier.

They wrote a piece about that. He's going to be touring Japan. Apparently he really loves the country of Japan. He loves Japan. and so he's going to spend his last few good times there in Japan. So sorry to hear about Scott, but yeah, unfortunately, the rumors we were hearing ended up being true. And so he ended up stepping down finally. No talk about who's going to be taking over as the editor of the Grants Pass Daily Courier.

But apparently they ended up hiring a design person against a while back trying to fill in for Scott not working as much as he was. and other people there at the paper have been doing more work and adding a few hats, you know, to their job as that goes. But I'm sure we'll get some announcement here in the near future. 22 minutes after six, you're on the Bill Meyers show. This is KMED and 993 KBXG on Wheels Up Wednesday. Thanks for coming to the three-day plant sale at Crater High School greenhouse. Let's run through the roster. Perennials.

Here. Annuals. Sir, yes, sir. Hanging baskets. Wee! Vegetables. Vegetables. Ah, they're coming, sir.

It was league night at the salad bowl, and they're running late. Okay, show off those leaves and stems and make us proud. It's the three-day plant sale at Crater High School, April 28th through the 30th. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. All proceeds benefit the Crater High School Horticulture Department. It's simply unbelievable. Do you ever get that feeling the walls are closing in on you? From stress?

No, from hanging out in our basement. What do you mean? There's a wall that's actually starting to close in on us. It's cracked and bowed. Well, we have to do. choices. Number one, watch it get worse, or, or call Malek Construction for a free estimate. Foundations, basements, and concrete walls adjacent to a slope can crack and move, compromising the integrity of your home. Malek Construction can repair the problem and correct the issue that caused it.

Visit Malek Construction.com. The purchase of another gutter manufacturing machine has spurred speculation at the offices of Fontana Roofing. Yes, we'll custom fabricate them on site in your choice of 30 colors and includes heavy-duty hangers, zinc-plated screws, and complete downspouts. Great. Talk to you soon. Another quote? Yep. They're deciding between copper, steel, or aluminum. All will last decades. Even when they're occasionally plugged, they can handle the weight of water and leaves. And space dust. Researchers have calculated about 5,200 metric tons of micrometeorites fall to Earth every year.

Huh. Ooh, what about bird poo? I'm guessing that's got to be in the millions of tons dropping from the sky every day into the gunters. Montana roofing manufacturer's sturdy. Custom gunter systems to withstand just about whatever lands on your roof. Call Fontana rooping for your next set of gutters. Visit Montanaruping services.com. Hi, I'm Matt Stone with Stone heating and air, and I'm on KMED. 624. Steve and Sunny Valley. Steve, it's not conspiracy theory Thursday. David, you wanted to float a theory anyway, huh? You're getting in early? Yeah, Tim Poole floated the idea that Trump will use the nuclear option and make Arlington part of D.C. again and upset all of Virginia's redistricting plans.

Okay. Now, how could he do that? What is the process? I'm not familiar with the ability of making Arlington part of D.C. How does that work? Well, it originally was part of D.C. The original founders made a square mile that included Arlington, but after the Civil War, they put the cemetery there and they put it into Virginia, but there's also a very blue city there. So if you were to take Arlington then and say it's no longer part of Virginia, but then part of the District of Columbia, there goes a lot of their redistricting. All of the fight of fingers go to Arlington. Yeah, well, that's kind of like what they're doing with the Bay Area. the Bay Area, as they read District in California, so that way, Siskew County is going to have probably some communist from the Bay Area, you know,

running it at some point. And I don't know. You know, there seems like there could be a case to be made in court somehow, but of course, you're going to be talking with mostly liberal judges, I would imagine, a case to be made that are you really as a conservative in Josephine County or, I'm sorry, I'm going to go like Siscue County in Northern California, or, you know, the northeastern, part of the state, which is very, very red. You're really being represented by a communist from Marin County, right? Right. Well, the state of Jefferson tried that in California, saying that they

were not being represented, and they lost in court. Did they lose in court, or I thought that the state of Jefferson ended up just going away because it was World War II, went into World War II, and everybody. This was only 10 years ago. Oh, 10 years? Oh, 10 years? Oh, okay. All right. They had a resurgence. They had a lot of ground swelling of support. And then they took it to court, and they lost in state court in California. The lawsuit was about underrepresentation because, you know, L.A. had, you know, 156 or something.

State legislatures in Northern California had one. Yeah. You know, and it comes right down to it, though, the way I'm looking at it, all of this about, you know, leaving. I find it fascinating that they make it so difficult to secede from a state or form a new state in this country because you have to get permission from the existing tyrant. Now, you're in a bad marriage, all of these places like, you know, the State of Jefferson or the Greater Idaho Project.

You're in this bad marriage. You have a, you know, a state husband in the wife-beater T-shirt beating on the, on the abused wife forever and ever and ever and ever and then in order to leave you have to beg permission from the same beating husbands so to speak to leave it's like communism you can vote your way in but you have to fight your way out yeah the hotel california right check out any time you can't leave yeah yeah and i figure that um all of these efforts now i'm a big fan of anybody that wants to leave their state and or create another state hey california la wants to create another state okay fine i can see of course that means two

more senators from L.A. I wouldn't like that. But you know how it goes. That being said... It's a complex issue. How do you draw the line? Yeah. How do you do it? And I have a feeling that as we continue, as the United States continues to get ever closer to fiscal crisis, because you know what's going to end up happening? What's going to drive a lot of this will be fiscal crisis at one point. when you'll get to the point where someone's going to have to finally start doing something and they're really going to have to start paying back government debt somehow or really have to stop spending so much at the federal level and then you don't have all the services and all the bribes out there

and then you'll get to the point where okay you're a farmer out here in a rural area of Oregon or California and you're being told by some clown that you can't have water or you can't farm or you can't do this or you can't do this. And I think people will just start rebelling that way. You're just going to say, okay, I'm out here in the middle of the – What are you going to do? You're going to roll tanks on the farming?

Okay, go ahead. We'll meet you. The last people who get paid are the state police. You know, the long arm of the law will keep getting their paycheck long after the teachers or let go for lack of funds. Yeah, you could be right about that, right? You always have to pay the gendarmes, right? That's right.

Yeah. That's right. Yeah, yeah, make sure. Gendarme, gendarm, there was someone over there. They are burning a tire in protest of Earth Day. Anyway. By the way, today is Earth Day, isn't it? Now that I think about it.

All right. Wow, it seems awfully early. Okay. Well, what a great day. It snuck up on me. Yeah, just burn a tire for fun, and that way you're putting some soot in the air, and that will help cool the planet since they're always worried about it getting warmer. Okay?

There you go. All right. Just don't stand down wind. Exactly. Exactly. By the way, I'm not advocating the burning or... It just sounds... It's just an idea.

I'm just having fun. All right. 630 at KMED or 993 KBXG. Boy, wouldn't you like to see... The DEQ cops arrest someone for burning a tire on Earth Day. That would be probably one of the bigger crimes, wouldn't it? On Earth Day, 2026. This is the Bill Myers Show.

At Two Dogs Fabricating, we're woofing about our new Iron Bull dump trailers with new features, including enhanced side-armored 10-gate steel sides with seven-gate steel floors, three-way spreader gates, and retractable tarp systems. Choose from bumper pull or goose necks with telescopic or scissor lifts. And contractors love the horizon

and iron bolt roll-off trailers with a bin you can easily drop and pick up. Most customers buy extra bins too. Stop by the doghouse on Brian Way off Sage Road and visit two dogsfab.com. If you've been injured in an accident, you've got Reed Law firm on your side. I'm Shane Reed. Call us for a free, no obligation consultation to discuss your case.

We've been helping injured clients get the care and resources they need to get their lives back on track for 27 years. Don't be a victim twice. Put our experience on your side. Find us at reedlawfirm.com. R-E-D law firm.com or call us and let's talk 772-3-266. KMED News. Here's what's going on. Some terrifying moments in Medford. Tuesday morning as a raving axe-wielding man allegedly tried to chop his way into a South Oakdale Avenue apartment and ended up getting shot by the resident inside. Bedford police responded just before five yesterday morning to the 911 call. They found the suspect. 22-year-old Justin Moon hate suffering from a gunshot wound to his arm. He was taken to the hospital and treated.

No criminal charges announced it this time. At last check, hate is not in the Jackson County jail. After almost 43 years, Justice finally done, a man extradited from California and charged in the killing of Teresa Peroni is going to prison for at least 10 years. 73-year-old Marcus San Frantello pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in Josephine County Circuit Court. The case dates back to July of 1983, when then 27-year-old Teresa Peroni was reported missing after going to a party in the Selma area. She was last seen with San Frantello, her boyfriend at the time, but there wasn't enough evidence to make a case. In 2024, Josephine County sheriffs reopened the case and by 2025 with new DNA test.

techniques and witness interviews, they had enough evidence to indict San Frantello. The State Wolf report is out. They appear to be eating well. 109 livestock kills in 2025 versus 69 the year before. And Scott's daughter, long-time award-winning editor of the Grants Pass Daily Courier, has officially stepped down. Recently, he wrote a column detailing his 10-month struggle in treatment for aggressive brain cancer. The Daily Courier reports that Scott will spend his remaining good days touring Japan. Bill Meyer, KMED News. I'm U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. We all seem to be in a rush these days, from work to driving our kids around. But when you're behind the wheel, please do not speed. A few minutes saved by going faster

is never worth a risk. So follow the speed limit. Enjoy the drive. Maybe bring some snacks for the kids. And know that along the way, you're getting quality time with your family. paid for by Nitsa. Need a roof that performs and lasts? Stephen Westfall roofing installs snaplock metal roofing, lightweight, low maintenance, and energy efficient. They're portable machine custom cuts, five profile options on site,

saving time, and reducing costs for homes, offices, barns, and more. They also have laminated architectural shingles rated for high wind and impact and concrete or clay tile roofing for a sophisticated look with superior thermal efficiency. Call today to get your estimate tomorrow. 541, 9401, 3736. Licensed CCB-250730.

The six-eg heart attack omelet is so massive, the Hash Browns feel claustrophobic. Bill Myers Show on 1063 KMED. 634 Wheels Up Wednesday. South of the border, down Mexico way. Now you're asking self, why would Bill be actually using Frank Sinatra

to introduce Wheels Up Wednesday because we're headed south of the border. the border with Eric Peters, automotive journalist from epiados.com. Eric, welcome back. Great to have you on. Oh, thanks for having me, Bill. You know, if I'd had time, I would have suggested that you'd pull something out of the past. Do you remember the Greeceman from back at DC 101 in the 80s? Oh, yes. The one I think he talked about, if we could get the whole week off if we shot another Yeah, yeah. But he had some great bits, and one of them was south of the border. And, you know, he would just play this hilarious, you know, kind of like stereotypical Frito bandito type.

music and then go into this little spiel about some, you know, say something he's going on across the border. And what am I talking about? Well, something is going on across the border. I had, you know, I've written a number of articles that talk about the fact that Americans are not able to buy affordable vehicles. And I had a reader scold me and say, well, you know, you just don't get it. It's because of inflation. It's kind of like, okay, boomer, okay, Gen X, or you don't know what you're talking about, right? Right. Well, so I thought, I thought that I would dig into it a little bit to substantiate it and just find out whether I'm wrong. And so, you know, I looked over the border in Mexico. It turns out, and this was just such an easy thing to document, I found about

half a dozen vehicles that you can buy right now, brand new in Mexico, for about $14,000 to $15,000 U.S. And these are not, you know, like sketchy vehicles that lack modern equipment. They're just the kinds of vehicles that we used to be able to buy in this country as recently is about 10 years ago before the manufacturers stopped selling them. So it's got nothing to do with inflation. It's got to do with the bizarre nature of the current car market in this country. Now, when you talk about these various, and by the way, the name of the article is called, it's not just inflation, all right?

Inflation certainly has had some effect on the car markets. There's absolutely no doubt about that. But you're bringing up, you know, many of these vehicles, Are they little like roller skate tin cans that will just get crushed to the first time that they hit an SUV in the United States? I mean, what is the difference between, as an example, what you could buy in South America or in Mexico or any of these other places? What's the real difference between those cars and those same manufacturers what they sell here? Well, to a great extent, it's just price and equipment. You know, they're small, yeah.

You know, I cite as an example, the Hyundai venue is right now the least expensive new vehicle you can buy in this country. and it's about $21,000 to start. That's the base price. And it's a subcompact crossover. It's not a huge car. It's a little car. But you can buy something that's extremely similar to that in every way in Mexico for about $5,000, less.

Now, some of those cars still have manual transmissions. And some of them have fewer amenities and so on that you might find in this country. And that has to do with the fact that in Mexico, it's kind of like it was in America, I don't know, about 30 years ago, just in terms of attitudes, meaning that. in Mexico, people tend to want to live more within their means. So it's not as much a culture in Mexico of you have to have the $70,000 Ford F-250 everywhere, right? Well, yeah, and they, of course, don't have the degree of affluence that Americans have enjoyed for a very long time that has made it possible for them to live beyond their means, especially with six-year

financing and all the other things. Of course, that's changed dramatically now. And another factor that's interesting is that the manufacturers, for their part, saw that. So, you know, there's more profit in selling a more profit per vehicle in selling a higher priced vehicle. They have, you know, they make more money that way. So that's why they have no longer got, you know, your basic vehicles with manual transmissions, roll up windows, things like that. You go to a new car lot now and you'll see that pretty much everything is loaded. All right. And they want that because they make more money. So they don't, they don't import. A very good example of this, Nissan canceled the Versa, which used to be their most affordable

car. You could buy a Versa as recently as a year ago for about. $17,000, but you can't get it anymore. They eliminated it. They dropped it from the lineup. You can buy it in Mexico. It's the same car. It's just not available here anymore. Now, could you buy it in Mexico and then re-register it in the United States? Not legally. That's the problem. You can't get it across the border. And even if you manage to somehow through some culleduggery, I don't know, put it in a box truck and kind of drive it across the border, you'd still have difficulty getting it registered and plated. Because, you know, we live in this Panopticon state where you have to provide a VIN. You know, you have to provide a

title and all of these other things in order to get it registered and legally able to be driven on American roads. So the answer there, unfortunately, is no. But isn't this also what President Trump, rather, was alluding to a few weeks ago about wanting to permit cars and trucks that were not available to be purchased here, to be purchased here? Wasn't that kind of what he was getting at? Well, I think it was another one of his, I don't know exactly what his motive is. I think that, you know, to give him the benefit of the doubt, he didn't really understand what he was. was talking about. I think, unfortunately, that's true about a lot of what Trump says. And, you know, you can't just wave your wand and say, oh, come on in, bring the tiny cars. You know, Americans should have out tiny cars. That's great. I love that idea. The problem is that until you get rid of the regulations and so on that prevent them from legally being brought into this country and sold, that's the other thing, forget about it. You know, you can't just say, well, yeah, sure, we can have a car that has only one airbag rather than two as mandated by the FMVSS and some of the other requirements. the real government imposes.

Okay, so in other words, this false affluence that the federal government assumes that all of us can afford to start at $35,000 for a vehicle, right? That's kind of the way they've been treated. But what happens, though, as the sales go down, because people are not, especially in the current world, able to buy quite as much of this as they were a few years ago in the go, go, go, zero interest rate time? Yeah, remember Johnny Carson when he would do Crescott and put on his hat and predict the future. I'm going to predict the future. There's a lag time effect. You know, everything that's

happening right now is going to have consequences that will become obvious in about a year from now. And one of those consequences, in my opinion, unless things dramatically change, is that the major car companies are potentially going to go bankrupt again because I think you and I talked about this a little, a little while ago in one of the other episodes, their profits depend on big trucks and SUVs. That's where the money is. That's where, you know, they have been cashing in for a lot of years now. But not everybody wants nor needs a big truck or SUV. Can't afford it. How many people can afford to put $100 of gas once a week into a big truck or SUV? Well, probably not most people.

No, not really. And yet when it comes to societal stability, $6 or $7 diesel, that's an existential threat in the United States long term. If we keep that going to go in a while. Yeah, well, that's something that's going to affect us at the grocery store. But, you know, in terms of the car market, it's going to be a very difficult thing to sell 50,000. And that's on the low end pickup or SUV that takes $80 to $100. worth of gas once a week to a public that's strapped paying for a plastic bag of groceries. All right.

So. Yeah, I know I'm looking at one of these, uh, of these vehicles in your article. And it's the 2026 Renault quid. Is that what it's called KWID? Is that how you pronounce it? It's funny. It's in Mexico, but it spells like, it's spelled as if it were in Australia. Quid, I might.

Yeah, yeah, exactly. And it, uh, is, it even kind of looks like a Hyundai venue. Is it like made on the same, uh, same? No, it's, it's not. But, you know, there's this homogeneity that you and I talk about often. You know, these vehicles generally just look the same. Another good example is there's a, you can get the Chevy Aveo over there. Basically, they call it something else.

They used to be able to buy that in this country. You can't anymore, but you can get it in Mexico. The Aveo, which is discontinued here, you can get it in Mexico. And by the way, that Hyundai, or that Renault, rather, that I was talking about, is like $14,000. Yep. How many people in this country would like to buy a brand new vehicle? Now, granted, it's not a huge SUV.

but it's a serviceable, perfectly functional car. Unlike electric cars, you know, this is something you could actually drive every day. You don't have to sit at a charger all the time. I wasn't able to look up the stats because, you know, that's different in Mexico. But I bet the thing probably gets 35 to 40 miles per gallon because it's a little thing. I would also venture a guess that it probably would match the safety standards of the United States, what, maybe eight, nine years ago, probably, really? Oh, sure, or even five. Yeah. You know, it's so fatuous. You know, a car can be characterized as, unquote unsafe if its tail lights aren't a certain size or, you know, not at the exact height that the federal government says they have to be or if it doesn't have a backup camera. You know, unsafe is

simply a synonym for not compliant with every jot and tittle of the FMVSS. And so if President Trump really wants to get serious on this, he would be going after NHTSA, wouldn't he? Certainly. Absolutely. You know, and would be at least saying something publicly so that people understand it's not a matter of saying, oh, sure, just open the door and let them in. You can't. until you change the requirements. That's the bottom line. I'm talking with Eric Peters this morning, and we're discussing cars you can buy south of the border for much less than you can buy here. And it's not just the exchange rate. There's more to, I mean, there's just a bunch of small vehicles that you're just not allowed to have here,

that you are down south. All right. Yeah, and again, that was cursory. You know, if you look at, South America, you look at Asia. I think you and I have many times talked about the Toyota High Lux Champ, which, again, it's a bare bones, a little configurable truck. And they sell that in other markets for about 15,000 bucks. Wouldn't you like to be able to buy just a basic little truck for 15,000 bucks? Well, people used to buy them all the time. I could think the Ford Ranger is a classic example. Sure. Totally. Yeah, when my, I have a Nissan Frontier, the old model, which was still a compact-sized truck. They made that through 2004. And when it was new, it was about 12,000 bucks. Talking with Eric Peters this morning, you have a question or comment on this or any other

subject about being on the road or a car or vehicle you're looking at 7705633 and we'll continue wheels up on kmedy don't portland southern oregon what works for portland politicians doesn't work here and i won't let them force it on us i'm duane yonker your organ state representative from josephine county and grants pass in salem southern organ is a minority and that's why my most important job i have isn't passing more mandates. It's being a strong voice, pumping the brakes on bad legislation. I help leave the fight to protect

your right to vote on the gas tax because politicians shouldn't raise your cost of living without your consent. That fight is saving the average Southern Oregon family about $500 a year. Next term, my job is clear to protect taxpayers,

hold Salem accountable, and keep more of your money in your pocket. I'm Dwayne Yonker. And I always stand up for Josephine County at home and in Salem. I'd be honored to earn your vote. Paid for Yonker for State Representative, PAC ID 23071. Turning 65 is a big milestone. And with it comes one of the most important decisions you'll make,

choosing the right Medicare coverage. Hi, I'm Kelly Bales with Vuterte First in Medford, and we want to make sure you get it right. That's why we're hosting a free Medicare educational workshop, designed to walk you through your options clearly, so you can make the best choice for your health and your budget. At Futurity 1st, we're independent advisors. That means no loyalty to insurance companies, only to you.

And if you choose us to help you enroll, there are no additional fees. Join us Tuesday, April 21st at Central Point Parks and Rec, 23, South Haskell Street in Central Point, or Thursday, April 23rd at the Financial Learning Center, 516 Crater Lake Avenue in Medford. Both classes begin at 530. Seating is limited, so sign up today at Medicaremadefor-you.org. That's Medicare made for you.org.

Futurity first on Crater Lake Avenue in Medford, putting your needs first. You're hearing the Bill Myers Show on 1063 KMED. 770563 to join in Wheels up Wednesday. We're talking cars and what you can buy south of the border, which is not permitted here in the United States. And incredibly affordable. It's shocking. When you look at what Eric has dug up on this article, it's called It's Not Just Inflation. Deplorable Patrick, you're on with Eric.

What's on your mind, huh? Go ahead. Hello. Hello, Patrick. Yes, sir. Hey, now that I saw the way this was going, it seemed like my best opportunity to curl a handful of smoking disregard at the automotive marketers based on, something that I learned from back in about the 70s. And in those times, the Chevy Nova was a big popular car around here.

And they said, well, hey, why don't we sell this in South America? Didn't work, did it? So they ship these novice down, Chevy Nova's down to South America. And they sit there and nobody'd buy them. And they said, what the heck? You know, a great car? and they started forcing themselves to think about it. Nova in Spanish.

No go. Nova, meaning it doesn't go. That's probably why they've gone to these alphanumeric designations. There are a lot of examples of that. One of my favorites goes way back to the 60s when John DeLorean was still in charge over at Pontiac. And he had this idea of building a Pontiac-specific two-door sports car that was going to rival the Corvette. And the name they chose for, it was Banshee, which sounds great until you look it up. Apparently, it's the sound made by a

creature to heralding the imminent death. I love that kind of stuff, Patrick. I appreciate the call. Let me go to Phil. Phil's and Roe Griver. You're on the topic, too. Go ahead. Morning. Yeah. Hi, guys. But you were talking a little bit about safety features, and I would put my old 72 Chavelle up against one of these comparable size new cars, and I'll bet my Chavelle would probably fair or much better than some of these new cars. You think that's true? Well, certainly in terms of structural damage, I can, you know, I can vouch for this. My 76 Tranzan has a battering rammed front end with heavy gauge steel hood.

And if I were to say, just bump into it, say five miles an hour, the Lincoln Nautilus that I have out there, I probably put $5,000 worth of damage into the Nautilus and I would scuff my paint, perhaps. True. Maybe. You know, the point is, though, Phil, I don't want to just completely scoff at the safety thing, because I've watched some of those, a lot of those videos on YouTube. They have a bunch of the crash test videos. And you will see how the older vehicles, Eric, and I think you'd agree with this, they were not as good at protecting the passenger compartment. It really is designed to essentially smash all around them, isn't it? No, absolutely. But I think the fundamental point here is whose decision ought it to be. At one time, people were free to make a decision. Do I want to drive a smaller vehicle, let's say, that might be a little bit flimsyer in terms of its structure? And if I get into an accident, yeah, chances are I might have a higher chance of being hurt or even killed. Or do I want to drive in a big, you know, body-onframed car that's built like a tank and have that safety? Now the government says we all have to drive safe cars and pay for it. And, you know, fundamentally, I think that we're not children and we have a right to make these decisions.

for ourselves. Agreed. Here, here. All right. We're continuing. Thanks for the call. Phil. Let me go to Vicki. Vicki. You had a question about the gas and ethanol. Fire away with Eric. You're on. Hey, guys. Good morning. I'm sorry my voice is still kind of wonky, but I just got a new writer and a friend of mine told me that they're going to bump up the ethanol and the gas, I guess, on May 1st from 10% to 20%. And in your lawn equipment, you don't want to use that much ethanol. It says right in the paperwork, no more than 10%. So my question is, if they bump up the ethanol to 20, what is that going to do to our vehicles?

Well, those that can't, a lot of bad things. And I'm hoping that you're not exactly correct in that they are forcing 20% percent ethanol, E20? I've not read that. I've not read that either. Now, E15 is becoming available. And in a lot of stations of sheets in my area, you can choose E15 if you want it. Most gas, by the way, is E10, meaning 10 percent ethanol.

And all new cars are fine on E10. And, you know, most new cars will take E15. But you have to be careful. You know, if you look in your owner's paperwork and it says, don't use E15, well, don't use it. You know, drive to a station that has E10 because the vehicle's not designed to burn that fuel. Right, and there is a station across from the mall that has a separate gas pump that I guess it just has regular unleaded or it might have 10%, but it stays at 10%. But I guess it's like $5 a gallon, which is $5 a gallon everywhere.

And then I had a comment about the cars in Mexico. You know, Eric, you are like dangling a carrot in front of people's faces when you say that you can pick up, you know, a smaller car for 15,000 versus 30 and not be able to bring it to America. They import cars all the time. Why can't they do that with Mexico? Same reason we were talking about earlier, because they're not legal to bring into this country for one reason or another. And also some manufacturers just choose not to bring them,

as in the case of Nissan that has decided not to sell the Versa in this market any longer. And Chevy that decided to stop selling the Aveo because they want to charge you more for a more expensive car. Yeah. So is it because it doesn't have the safety qualifications and it's a used car, possibly? No, in some cases, it may not. You know, for example, if it only has one airbag, let's say, or it doesn't pass the certification requirements having to do with other standards that are put forth by the federal government, you can't bring it into this country.

So they don't. They sell it in other markets. You know, the U.S. market is a big market, but the world is an even bigger market. All right. Eric, I wanted to, by the way, thank you for the call. there, Vicki. I'm going to dig into this because I know that there has been sort of a gray market for a long, long time of people bringing in the Toyota Hyluxes, like you have talked about, those very rugged small trucks there that you cannot buy new in the United States.

These vehicles in Mexico, could you bring them in used after, you know, two or three years, like, okay, I'm a resident of Mexico and now I'm moving back to the United States, United States citizen, this is my vehicle, would I be allowed to bring it in after it's been used for a while? Because sometimes they kind of make an exception for that, don't they? They do make an exception, but unfortunately it goes back a lot longer than just two or three years. It does. Yeah, the cutoff is, I think, 25 years old, something like that. I've got a company in my area, actually, that specializes in that. There are a number of these all around the country where you can go and they have a whole fleet or inventory of these right-hand drive.

export model vehicles like the Toyotas that you can get in other markets with diesel engines by the way in a lot of cases which were never available in this country like for example you can get a diesel powered forerunner they call it something else again they call it the high lux you know something or other you know a diesel powered forerunner be great a little bit of low end torque and grunt that'd be wonderful that's what the jihadis are driving you know yeah then they drive them for a reason you know they're unclay la la la la and then you hear the explosion right you know that right okay right Isn't it obnoxious that we can't have a vehicle like that? Again, this is something with the diesel engine you're talking about,

you know, 400,000-mile vehicle if you take care of it. All right. Talk about Eric Peters. It's not just inflation this morning. And what else is on your mind? Let me go to next line here on the Bill Myers Show. Hi, good morning. Who's this?

Welcome. Good morning, Bill. Good morning, Eric. This is Bob in Medford. Hello, Bob. When I go down south, I'm really enamored by the small little kind of car pickup truck Utes that they sell down there. Chevy Tornado being wonderful.

of them, Volkswagen makes one, and Dodge makes one as well. I think those are the neatest little things. There are people use them for, you know, all sorts of businesses, you know, flower shops, construction and everything. And I wish they could bring those up north. But you see, that's an example of what we are not in the land of the free, Eric, allowed to purchase what Bob is talking about, vehicles, which could be very useful for people in different Well, different runs of life or areas of life. I'm glad the caller brought that up because that's a very good example. They have these hugely practical types of vehicles that are not offered in this country.

Sort of like, remember the old El Camino? Yes. Similar to that. Yeah. You know, so it's a car, but it's also got a bed. And, you know, it's versatile and you can do all sorts of stuff with it. You would be amazed what's available in Mexico. You know, Americans live in a bubble.

People have no idea if they've never gone outside of this country, which you can get, not just in Mexico, Central South America, Asian countries, India all over the world. You know, we're hermetically sealed here and stuck with what what they allow us to have. Yeah, good call and thanks for bringing it up, Bob. I appreciate that. Hey, Eric, speaking of which, now, I remember there was a reboot or Subaru brought back the brat at one point, didn't they a few years ago? Whatever happened to that? Is it still around? Well, kind of sort of. It wasn't the same. It had four doors instead of two like the original. It did okay. It never really sold that well at the time. It might do better now. Again, you know,

everything kind of gets distorted in this country because we have this cyclical thing of a boom and a bust, and a boom and a bus. And people feel flush for a while. And they start spending a lot more money on indulgences as far as vehicles and everything else. And then things get tight. And by that time this backlash happens and the car companies are not congruent with their offerings with the market. So you end up with this just, you know, and now we're at the point where practically it's like being winnowed down to all the same transportation appliance. The universal transportation appliance is a crossover-shaped thing that comes, you know, in various different sizes, but fundamentally it's all the same thing. Yeah, everything looks like a melted candy bar with an angry face, right? Yep, yep. There we go.

By the way, Patrick writes me to the point you were talking about cheaper in Mexico, and Patrick writes, Bill, since you can't import cars from Mexico, what about registering the car in Mexico, but driving it in the United States? How would that work? Well, I guess you might be able to get away with it for a time, but you know, you're going to have funky Mexican plates and, you know, you're going to get pulled over at some point perhaps or stopped at a checkpoint. And they're going to notice that you've got an American driver's license and a foreign registered car and it's probably going to be a problem for you. And then there's insurance. You know, good luck finding an insurance company that's going to write you a policy, which you have to buy on a vehicle that isn't titled in this country. Yeah, I forgot about that aspect of it. Insurance always has to, you have to please the insurance mafia or else. That's the way that goes.

All right, let's take it to the latest review. I love the review that you had of the Lincoln, and because it is one of the few luxury cars that is not trying to be sporty, and that was something which started infecting the United States luxury market. When did that first start happening, by the way? Yeah, I think sometime back in the 80s, everybody, American car companies in particular, decided they had to be just like BMW. You know, BMW made a lot of hay by being sort of this prestigious European brand

that offered high performance handling dynamics. You know, they called them the ultimate driving machines. And they were. You know, you could get a five-series sedan or a three-series with a manual transmission and a rippie engine and all of that. But, you know, I think the American car companies, Cadillac and Lincoln, made a big mistake in attempting to replicate that and be just like BMW. You might remember back in the 80s, Lincoln came out with the Mark 7,

which was a good looking car, you know, and it had the Mustang GTs five-liter V8, and they even came out with a sedan called the LS that you could get with a manual transmission. And from a driving point of view, if you were an enthusiast driver, great. The problem is Lincoln's a luxury brand. And so it was Cadillac, you know, and Lincoln finally figured it out and thought, you know, we're not going to continue to worry about how quickly we can slalom around an autocross course. We're going to make vehicles that are posh and quiet and comfortable and elegant and stylish. And you'll find that in this nautilus.

It's just a very nice, pleasant vehicle. No, it's not going to go across a skid pad as quickly as a Corvette. But that's just the whole point of the thing. In other words, you are enveloped in a pillow-like feeling and probably massaging seats, all that kind of good stuff. Yeah, and a lot of attention to detail. You know, a lot of cars now have, a lot of high-end cars have massaging seats. But it's frustrating because you have to go tap, tap, tap, scroll through the menu in order to find the massaging seats.

And then you turn them on. And in most of these cars, they'll shut off after 10 minutes. Now, in the Lincoln, there's a little button that you push on the side of the seat cushion, and it stays on. There you go. That's luxurious to me. Boy, whoever would have thought we'd be talking about buttons being the mark of a luxury car, instead of having to, you know, tap the iPad in the middle of the dashboard, right? Yeah, and something else. You know, I encourage people to go check out my review because you can see the pictures and you can actually. I did a video, too. The dashboard is, it's kind of nice. They did a really interesting take on this LCD thing that I complain about all the time.

that to me, you know, looks tacky, cheap and homogenous, this tablet thing that pops out of the hood. Everybody's got them now. Well, Lincoln did it a totally different thing. They put this sweeping curved dash that goes from from the side of the windshield to the other side of the windshield. And it displays all kinds of information that's actually useful instead of like being sporty. Look at the tack. Look at the, you know, look at the angry, all these other data points that you have if you're going to go around an autocross course. Instead, it's just, we're going to have a nice, pleasant drive. We'll look on the right side. You can see what the weather is today and what it's going to be tomorrow. You've got a nice big display for whatever you're listening to. And by the way,

you can get a 28 speaker audio system in this thing. 28 speaker. I don't know if there's anything worth listening to it with 28 speakers. You know, talk radio. You don't need 28, but we're fine. Not for talk radio, but put on your favorite music and listen to it. And you'll appreciate the virtues of 28 speakers. I love it. So you really like this car from the sound of it. I did. I liked it a lot. Yep. Okay. Glad to hear a 2026 Lincoln Nautilus. By the way, is it a continuously variable transmission or not? Not if you don't want it. You can get, it comes standard with a two-liter turbo four,

but a conventional automatic transmission. If you want a little bit more scoot, and if you want a lot more range, they do offer hybrid augmentation, and part of the hybrid augmentation is a CVT automatic. But again, the nature of this vehicle is just to cruise along. You know, if you're not going to hot dog it, it's probably going to be okay.

And getting back to luxury, this thing gets more than 600 miles of driving range. I think that's pretty luxurious. Not having to stop for gas all the time. Cool. Talking with Eric Peters once again, E.P.O.O.S.com. I have time for one more call.

Then Eric turns into a pumpkin, and we have to move on. Hi, who's this? Good morning. This is Paul Williams. Hello, Paul. What's on your mind? Well, what did they get away with them putting some plumpy upholst around and call on the Cadillac, Simmeron?

Oh, the Cadillac. Oh, that was... It wasn't the Cicatoron. That Cimaron was the Cavalier. Oh, the Cavalier. Yeah, even worse. Okay. Even worse.

I remember that. Oh, my gosh. That was an embarrassment. Wasn't it, Paul, back of the day? Yes, absolutely. Yeah. Thank you for the call. Yes, it was.

It was terrible that they thought that they could get away with selling Cadillac buyers, a cavalier with the wreath and crest in the grill. Yeah, that did not work. I remember that so well. I remember the first time I saw the Cadillac Cimar on, I said, oh, this is not going to work. Not going to work. All right.

Hey, I have to ask you, I'm going to be talking more about this with other guests here in the next few minutes, but what are you thinking about the fact that you're probably going to now have a communist representing your rural area of Virginia? What are you thinking? I don't, I'm still processing it. You know, I think it's macro, this is, I think, the beginning of the backlash, frankly, against everything that Trump is doing. And a lot of people are going to take issue with that, but I think the frustration out there. On the one hand, I think that the blues have been enraged by everything that Trump has been doing. And on the other hand, I think a lot of people who support Trump are just defeated and

demoralized. And they stayed home. You know, and I think we're going to see worse come in midterms, unfortunately. I don't know if it's quite as much staying at home. But I, yeah, I've noticed that there has been more quiet coming out of MAGA than, than I've seen for a while. And I, well, we'll see. You know, at this point, we're in ceasefire world, and we don't know we're season tankers and everything like that. And I don't know who we're negotiating with. But, We'll keep you in the room on that one, Eric. Okay. Thanks so much.

All right. Thank you, what are you going to review next week? Do you know? Well, they're dropping off a Subaru Forrester today, and it has its own virtues too, which we'll talk about then. I have some thoughts about that. All right. Very good. We'll see you then.

Thank you. Okay, do you. E.P.O.com. Eric Peters, Automotive Journalist. This is KMED, KMED, H.D. Eagle Point, Medford, KBXG, Grants Pass. Jason Stade will be joining me from the Honest Elections Action Project. And, yeah, he has a lot to say, they're going to be suing over the.

this Virginia development from yesterday. If your garage or overhead shop door need service or repair,