Bill O’Reilly’s No Spin News and Analysis - Panic Over Trump's Tariffs, Secretary of State Marco Rubio's Role in Panama Ending Its Canal Deal with China, President Trump's First Major Deal & David Nasaw Weighs in on RFK Jr.'s Confirmation

Episode Date: February 4, 2025

Tonight's rundown:  Hey BillOReilly.com Premium and Concierge Members, welcome to the No Spin News for Monday, February 3, 2025. Stand Up for Your Country.  Talking Points Memo: Bill breaks down President Trump’s tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China, and how the media is causing unnecessary panic. After meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Panama's president vows to end the canal deal with China and partner with the U.S. Venezuela frees six detained Americans after Maduro’s meeting with a Trump official. Author and historian David Nasaw joins the No Spin News to share his thoughts on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ahead of tomorrow's committee vote. Smart Life: The importance of having an eldercare attorney. Final Thought: Bill’s favorite performance from the FireAid LA benefit concert. In Case You Missed It: Read Bill's latest column, Cheering the Swamp. For a limited time, get Bill O'Reilly's bestselling The United States of Trump and a No Spin Mug for only $39.95. Get Bill's latest book, CONFRONTING THE PRESIDENTS, out NOW! Now's the time to get a Premium or Concierge Membership to BillOReilly.com, the only place for honest news analysis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by San Pellegrino Chau. A new kind of flavor of sparkling water. The kind made with real fruit juice, a pinch of Sicilian salt, and the sparkle of the Italian sun. With no added sugar and just 10 or less calories per can, enjoy. With love from Italy. By San Pellegrino Chau now. I just mailchimp my marketing. You mailchimped your...

What? I maelchimped my marketing with AI to create an effective marketing campaign in minutes. No, MailChimp and Way. Yes, MailChimp in way. Now I can hyper-personalize my campaigns across email and SMS. You can do all that with MailChimp. What did I just MailChimp and say? MailChimp your marketing with the number one AI powered email marketing and automation platform. Intuit MailChimp. Number one, based on publicly available data on competitors, customers. Plans vary. SMS available as add-ons. Visit MailChimp.com. Hey, Bill O'Reilly here. Welcome to the No Spin News for Monday, February 3rd, 2025. Stand up for your country. I'm reporting tonight from West Palm Beach, Florida.

So about seven in the morning when I usually arise. On Long Island, it was about 24. Here. That's 73, that kind of thing, to our 30-minute plane ride. It's amazing. Anyway, I'm down here. I got some business. I got to attend to, and it's not bad to get out of the icy northeast.

Now, tomorrow, we have a big announcement about the next book. It's going to be another controversial thing. I think you're going to want to hear about that tomorrow. But today, there's hysteria all over the place about the Trump tariffs. And to me, this is almost a sitcom now, because it's so obvious what the president is doing. Yet the liberal press wants to try to sell a completely different scenario. And yeah, you're right, it's been going on for what, 25, 30 years, but it's reached the height of absurdity. So let's do the talking points memo and run down.

facts, as we know them. So this morning was a 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico, 10% China. In about a half an hour, Mexico surrendered, and the tariff was paused down there. So what was the issue? What Trump wants is the Mexican military on the border to stop the migrants and the drugs. So, the president of Mexico, Claudia Scheinbaum says, magically, oh, okay, we'll give you 10,000 troops. So what's the difference between now, February 3rd, and three months ago, or six months,

or a year? The difference is Biden didn't give a hoop. They didn't care how many drugs came in or people. And that's the God's honest truth. The man could not have cared less. So Trump, excuse me, gets in, and he says to Mexico, look, we're going to ruin your economy unless you stop the madness. And Shyamom says, okay, so Trump wins, okay?

And that happened in the space at two hours. Canada, as I wrote in my message of the day on Bill O'Reilly.com, which you should read, I hope you do. It's free. You don't have to join anything. Different animals. all Trump wants there is they accept more American products than they are. Simple.

And then there are some tweaks on the border and a few other things that, but they're not big things. That deal will happen. It may have happened by the time you're watching this because Trump was on the phone with Trudeau right when we went to tape in the late afternoon. So I might have already happened. But Trudeau, they're going to give Trump what he wants. Okay. So this is a foregone conclusion. But not before the media goes nuts about the tariffs, driving the stock market down 600 points.

It recovered, of course, but that's why you've got to be careful about the stock market. And then the CNNs of the world, the NBC news is they just play this stupid game that they've got to know is dishonest. Roll the tape. Do you think these tariffs are going to make your constituents grocery prices higher? They might. I think it's a real risk. And by the way, I look at what happened in this election and the one before it in 2022. People have been mad for a long time about rising costs.

It's how stupid that is. Nobody knows whether a tariff is going to raise any prices on anything. It might. I expect car prices will go up, and I expect Americans will buy fewer new cars. That's what I expect to happen. It might not happen. I don't know. Nobody knows.

And throw this stuff out and waste everybody's time. creating this panic. I must have gotten 30 letters this morning from viewers. Oh, no, you know, it's going. No. No one knows. It's possible. And if Trump doesn't get what he wants and prices rise, then he'll be a failed president. Temple is that. That's what's going to happen. his approval rating, it will go like this. And if all of this doesn't work out, it's a gamble. Remember, Biden did nothing for four years. He made everything worse. I'm not in business to boost one party over the other, but at least the Republican Party is trying to get this thing under control, this thing being a $37 trillion debt. And a lot of that's because,

because the countries in the EU, Mexico, Mexico, don't take our products. And we all get in this? China's the worst. But Trump wants to make a bigger deal with China, which is why it was 10% for them, not 25. So eventually, I think this is going to work in Donald Trump's favor. But I'm not sure. Okay? And I'll report it honestly no matter what happens.

And that's the memo. Now, here's a deal that did work. And you didn't hear about it over the weekend because it was very lightly covered by the irresponsible dishonest networks. So Trump's appointed the former ambassador to Jeremy, Rick Grinnell, who I know as his special envoy event is a whale. And Grinnell goes down and he gets six Americans released. We don't know much about the Americans.

But they were being charged with pretty serious crimes down. They're trying to overthrow the government or whatever. So Grinnell goes down. He gets six of them out. That's a pretty good deal. Okay? You didn't hear about it, probably, unless you're really locked in because it was covered on NBC on Saturday, a little bit,

a good morning America on Saturday, a tiny bit. In addition, Grinnell convinces the dictator down there, Medoro, to take back the gangsters, the Venezuelan gangsters that are here in the United States. You've heard all about them. Okay? So it was that Maduro wasn't going to take him back, but now he is. That's Trend de Aragua.

Those are the people in Denver. You know them. They're now Venezuela going to take them back. Now Grinnell should be a hero. You don't know his name because the media ignores it. And I said, do you let it happen over the weekend? Panama. And I'm going to play the soundbite.

So Panama, Secretary of State Rubio, goes to visit. And one of the funny things that I said to Trump a month ago when I talked to him for an extended period of time was send me to Panama. I'll get the deal you want. And then, you know, ha, ha, ha. But I would have got. So Rubio goes, and he gets the Panamanian president who can't stand up. Jose Raul Molino. All right.

We have Jose's picture. He put it up there. So Jose can't stand up to the United States. Jose is going to fire, all right, C.K. Hutchinson Holdings, they're the Chinese company that operates the ports in the Panama Canal. So he's going to fire it. is what Trump wants. So he goes, okay, I'll fire them. They're gone. They've been there since 1997. They're out. And Rubio, I think he was there two hours, and Molino said, yeah, we'll fire

him. And you walk my words, the prices that Panama charged U.S. shipping are going to be way down. The Trump will win, because he threatened to take over Panama, which he was ever going to do. Because you can't do it. Did you know that at Chevron, you can fuel up on unbeatable mileage and savings? With Chevron rewards, you'll get 25 cents off per gallon on your next five visits. All you have to do is download the Chevron app and join to start saving on fuel. Then you can keep fueling up on other things like adventure, memories, vacations, daycations, quality time, and so many other possibilities. Head to your nearest Chevron station to fuel up and get rewarded today.

Terms apply. See Chevron Texcicorrewards.com for more details. The best coast just got better, introducing Quantum of the Seas sailing from L.A. this fall. Conquer next-level thrills on the boldest ship in the west, like flowrider surf sessions, bumper cars, and soaring 300 feet above sea level on the North Star, plus more than 15 dining options on board, all between discoveries in Ensenada and even overnights in Cabo. You've never done Mexico like this. Book your Boulder Baja adventure from Los Angeles today.

Come seek the Royal Caribbean. Itineraries vary by sale date, ships registry Bahamas. So, all right, here's what I said on January 20th, go. Whatever deal President Trump wants, he'll get from Panama. I can't stand up. So he's got that in his mind, believe me, and that'll be one of the first things. He'll get, what, 75% discount on all American shipping, including military, and then they'll have to boot the Chinese out and replace them with American security companies.

That's what I think is going to go down. Okay. I'm not a genius. This isn't hard. I'm just honest, unlike the other media, okay? I know what's happening in the world. I know how it works. Hey.

Now, bottom line on all of this hysteria today, Trump's going to get his deals. He's going to get better deals, trade deals, from everybody, EU, China, Mexico, Canada, from everybody. Now, does he do it the right way? No, he likes the conflict. He likes to be the tough guy. You don't have to do it that way. You get him anyway. You just be on the scene, say, hey, this is what's going to happen if you don't do it. But for Trump, him making, well, I'm going to go in, boosts him. And it's worked politically for him. There's no doubt about it. He almost got 80, 80 million votes last November. Okay.

RFK Jr., as I said in the message of the day, one of Trump's mistakes, okay? This guy is not, he shouldn't be there. I know this family. I know him. No. So he may get in. I don't think he will, but he might.

Because you'll remember that I told you that Hegseth, wasn't going to make it. And 12 hours before the vote, Hegsef wasn't going to, didn't have the votes. The last second, Tom Tillis, the senator from North Carolina, switched. I don't know what the deal was, but believe me, there was a deal. And then once Tillis switched, it was a tie, and Vice President Vance broke the tie, and Hanks said that is the Defense Department Secretary. That may happen with the RFK. It shouldn't. It's like Matt Gates.

That was ridiculous. Okay? But he might get in. But right now, now I don't see it. Good change. Bill O'Reilly here. I recently sat down with President Trump in Florida, and I can tell you he is laser-focused on helping Americans prosper during a second term. That's why I have joined forces with

Alexander Green, chief investment strategists at the Oxford Club, for a special presentation called The Rebirth of the American Dream. In this groundbreaking event you will discover why Donald Trump's policies could trigger an economic boom, how the AI revolution could help create more millionaires than at any other time in history. Details on six specific styles that could soar during Trump's presidency, and most importantly, how you can achieve the American Dream. Now, I followed Alex's work for more than 20 years,

and he spotted some of the best performing stocks of our time. So please don't miss this opportunity. Visit Trump's American Dream.com. Trump's American Dream.com. Bringing a guy who knows a Kennedy family very well. His name is David Nassau. He is an emeritus professor, of history at the City University of New York,

and author of the book The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy, the patriarch of the Kennedy family. All right, Professor. I know the family, you know the family. We know their history. I wrote a book called Killing Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, I agree with him on nutrition.

I agree with him that the health system in America is corrupted by big food companies and other. I agree a big change needs to be made. Kennedy is on board with all of that. But Kennedy is a conspiracy guy who cannot back up what he says, and I think that disqualifies him. What say you? I couldn't agree more. Bobby Kennedy, Jr., look, we got a, I'm a biographer, not a psychoanalyst. So I look at the facts that in there. He was nine when his uncle was assassinated. He was 14 when his father was assassinated. He was a poll bearer at his father's funeral.

He began heroin a year later. That's what he tells us. This is the problem. You put together trauma with overwhelming confidence because he's at Kennedy. Went to Harvard. And you combined those two

too with his sense that he has a destiny. He's got to fulfill his father's promise. He's got to be a great man. And you put those three together, and it just doesn't work. Well, let me play devil's advocate here. It can work. I mean, to try to top your father and do good in public service, that's a motivator.

That would be great, yeah. Yeah. So where is the divergence of him into the dark zone, in your opinion? Okay, it's a great question. I think what happens is that when his father and his uncle are killed, he begins not to trust anything he's heard. He doesn't trust the Warren Commission, and he says his father didn't trust the Warren Commission. He doesn't trust anything that he hears from the media. from politicians, from Washington about what happened to uncle and what happened to daddy.

And then that distrust, that disbelief is transformed into the sense that somehow the media and the government are keeping quiet because they had something to do with it. He's got no evidence in your killing Kennedy and you're killing Kennedy you say Oswald you know that we don't know everything but it looks

but you don't invent out of thin air conspiracy no it's a fact based book Oswald did it there's no question he did it whether there is somebody helping them or something we'll see but here's my point about Kennedy

Kennedy has very cleverly. He made done two things. He made a deal with Trump. And to Trump's, I think, credit, Trump honors the deals. He could have thrown Kennedy overboard. I don't think he's got a lot of emotion invested in RFK. If RFK goes down, Trump will have somebody else. But he made a deal. You get out, you endorse me. I'll get you into the health department because that's where you want to be. That's number one. Number two, Kennedy tapped into the anti-vax movement, which is big in America. It's not just Kennedy who doesn't trust the government. It's millions

of Americans who don't trust it, correct? Absolutely. Absolutely. But what worries me, what worries me is that Kennedy says we need good science. Well, on some things we don't have good science, on fluoride in the drinking water. There's this controversy. That has to be looked into. But on the polio vaccine, he says that the polio vaccine killed more people than polio did. On the COVID vaccine, on the measles vaccine, I mean, he is going to do irreparable harm. I mean, there are already fewer parents getting measles, mumps, chickenpox vaccines for their kids. And, I mean, that is dangerous. That is really dangerous.

But I don't think he's going to have the kind of power to do anything unilaterally because the White House is going to run everything. Kennedy does do what he's told. And he said as much. Kennedy said as much in the hearing. Whatever they tell me to do, I'm going to do. Right. He's been very clear on that.

Right. But the, my posture is that if you're a president, you get the best. Yeah, okay, Trump wasn't run everything for the white. White House, and that's what he's going to do. But you get the best to administrate what you want. And I just don't see RFK as the best. Last word. He's not the best. He doesn't have the experience. He doesn't have the temperament. He doesn't have the skill set. There are lots of people who could carry out the Trump agenda and do it with less hysteria. with less pushback

than Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. I made a suggestion. I said it was like, right. But I would, if I were Trump and I had made that deal with Kennedy, and I understand why Trump did it and was a smart deal to make, I would appoint Kennedy the nutrition czar.

So he just goes around and tells people how to get healthier with no cabinet position there's a need to be confirmed by the Senate. You wouldn't object of that, would you? No, it would have made perfect sense. Yeah, that's fine. Give him the nutrition because he's right about that. All right, Professor, pleasure to talk

with you. And thanks for reading, Killing Kennedy. I appreciate you reading a book and we'll talk again soon, I hope. Kennedy should be up or down this week. Tulsi Gabbard, up or down this week. Gabbard heard herself about the Snowden stuff, no doubt about it. Don't can't call that. cash Patel is no date yet I do think Patel is going to get in Now here's an outrageous story

As you heard George Soros bought Odyssey Radio Okay He owns it Odyssey is a company that had stations All across the USA You set the table Put on a playlist

Even made the lasagna from scratch And now you're wearing it OxyClean Max 4 spray tackles tough Set in stains the first time. Adulting is hard. Fighting stains shouldn't be. OxyClean Maxforce. It's not clean unless it's OxyClean. Your local Benjamin Moore retailer is more than a paint expert. There's someone with paint in their soul. A six cents honed over decades. And if you have a question about paint, it's almost as if they can read your mind. I sense you need a two inch angle brush for the

trim in your family room. Regal selected an eggshell finish and directions to the post office. Benjamin Moore Paint is only sold at locally owned stores. Benjamin Moore, see the love. One of them is K-CBS Radio in San Francisco. K-CBS Radio is actively putting ice agents in danger by broadcasting where they are actually in the Bay Area. Roll of tape. The country's county's response network says agents in San Jose were

in unmarked vehicles, including a black Dodge Durango, a gray Nissan Maxima, and white Nissan truck. Ice agents were also reported outside a residence on South White and Tully Roads, and officers were reportedly at the target on King and Story Road. Stay with KCBS. We'll be tracking it for you. If I were the FCC, I'd immediately suspend the license of KCBS. The guy's name is Brett Burkhart, but I'm sure he was just following orders. the broadcaster.

I think this is a crime. I think what K-CBS did there is a crime because they're putting, the radio stations, putting federal agents in danger. People are at a target? Somebody shows up, some nut? I mean, come on,

giving descriptions of their automobiles. This is the kind of stuff that the Trump administration should be right on. Boom. You can take action against KCBS, real strong action. We'll keep on it. That's out.

I've never heard anything like that. Mark Kelly, Senator from Arizona. So Kelly, he didn't get the vice presidency under Kamala. He wanted it. A little bit bitter. Arizona trending red. It was going blue, but Biden was so bad and the border is so horrendous down there. that's going red.

So Kelly shows up with Christian Welker on NBC's Smith to Press. Welker is a liberal woman. There's no doubt about it. That's okay. I mean, you know, as long as she conduct herself in a fair matter. Anyway, I thought you might want to see the exchange. Go. You voted in support of this bill.

I had an opportunity to interview your colleague, Senator Adam Schiff, who opposed it. He told me last week this bill, is so broad the U.S. quote would be able to deport dreamers for taking a tube of toothpaste. Can you guarantee this law won't be applied in a way that's overly broad? Well, this law is about public safety. Representing a border state, this affects Arizona, I think, more than other states just because of, you know, numbers. And it's where, you know, folks cross. Kristen, if you come across the border and you don't have documentation, you've already committed

a crime? All right. They're talking about the Lake and Riley Act. I should have mentioned that before the sound bite, where it had passed and Trump signed it, if you are an undocumented migrant and you are arrested for shoplifting or crimes like that, nonviolent crimes, then ICE can detain you, not locals. Ice can come in, swoop you up and process you for deportation. Well, the left hates that.

Okay? And Kristen Walker, he'd say, imagine asking a senator, can you guarantee the law won't be applied in a way that's overly brought? No human being could guarantee that, Ms. Welker. And we know you don't like the law. You should explain to your audience why you don't like it. Because, as Kelly pointed out, number one, you cross in here undocumented. That's a crime. And then you shoplift. That's two. How many changes? are you going to give them? Okay? So anyway, I thought that was an interesting soundbite. FBI per Friday night. So 20 field offices had people fired in the FBI across the country. In D.C., a number of them, we don't have the exact total number from the Trump administration yet.

We're escorted out of the Washington FBI headquarters. Okay? That's embarrassing. So they, Eight FBI agents escorting other FBI agents basically kicking them out of the building. That's pretty nasty. Did it have to be done? I'm not sure. But it was obviously a signal President Trump wanted sent. Because Pam Bondi's not in as Attorney General yet. So he went through the acting Attorney General James McKenry, and this came right from Trump.

Get them out. I want people to see we're cleaning it up. And that's the way Trump is going to govern. Now, do I feel sorry for these ages? No, not necessarily. I think the FBI was politicized like crazy. Do I want left or right-wing ideologues holding FBI credentials? No.

I don't. I want skilled investigators. I don't want ideology. That happened Friday. Trump today, busy day. He was down here in Palm Beach over the weekend. Then he, very early in the morning, because he doesn't sleep, flew back to Washington. He made the deal with Claudius Scheinbaum, the Mexican president.

I think that took 12 seconds. On the phone with Justin Trudeau, and again, I'm not sure right now, but it'll work out in Trump's favor. And then Netanyahu is in D.C. talking to Steve Whitkoff, who's Trump's main negotiator in the Middle East. I assume Trump and Netanyahu will meet very soon. And then it was announced that Trump will do an interview on Sunday with Fox carrying a game at 3 p.m. On Thursday, I will show you some of my Super Bowl interviews with the presidents. They're a little bit different than everybody else. You might get a kick out of that blast from the past.

Grammy Awards last night, nobody cares, I know. But this was an interesting comment. So Trevor Knower was the host, and they'll always hire left-wing hosts, always. And here's what he says, go. Oh, and yesterday, Beyonce announced her new tour. Yes. Everyone saw that. I will say, though, Beyonce, there's terrorists.

We can't afford a new tour, right? Maple syrup is about to be $50. Yeah, but no, it's not because you can buy maple syrup in Vermont there, Trevor. I know you're from South Africa. You might not know much about Vermont. A lot of maple syrup up there. So you don't really need Canadian maple syrup. You'll have a lot of maple syrup.

Where I get mine, directly. Okay. Smart life. This breaks my heart. It really does. And I'm not being, I'm not exaggerating. So we have a concierge service at Bill O'Reilly.com. And if you sign up, you get a special email, and you can send me anything you want to

send me. And my team, producers and everything, will help you if you're in trouble or try to help you. A lot of people think we have a magic wand. We don't. All right, but we can do a lot of good and we know a lot of people. I get every single day of my life senior citizens writing to me with the saddest stories that you've ever heard. Many of them are broke. They have no money. Okay? If you get to age 60 and you don't have any money, you're in dire trouble, dire trouble, not just here in the United States, but anywhere on this planet. Okay. But most of these seniors that write to me and have serious problems, some of them are health, some of them are kids, some of them are estate, some of them. They have no clue. There are 4,000 elder care attorneys

scattered across the United States, according to vault.com. 4,000. These attorneys, these lawyers specialize in senior citizens' rights. Almost every state in the union has a robust agency to help seniors. But people don't know about it. They don't know what help is available to them, often freeing. So I find myself, because we answer every letter most of the time within 24 hours. And I write back, in your area, you have to talk to an elder care attorney, all right, and present your problem, and that person can guide you to what is available to help you.

Again, a lot of it is free. Now, if you don't have enough money for a one-hour consultation with an elder care attorney, you're just hosed. You can go to legal aid, and I said this in the Smart Life segment last week, legal aid is free. And they will have pro bono, which means people who volunteer, lawyers to volunteer, to help seniors on the list. They'll be able to give you somebody.

But you don't want your own. And this is not just for indigent senior citizens, just for every single senior citizen in this country. Anyone over the age of 60, okay? You got to have an elder care attorney available to you because it's too complicated. The Medicare changes, the Medicaid changes. This changes. The insurance doesn't pay. This one doesn't do that.

You're getting hose in the workplace. You've got to have somebody. I'm going to reunying to my family because we're going to Burlington for the event of liquidation candidate. We're going to now same to find the best of the best in articles of liquidation, from the world, and much more. With offers, over-offerts.

I can't go every day to be how to earn. My kids and I expect with anxies the liquidation, because it's very cold to lose it. Burlington, Marks, Rebaughes, wow. Are you ready to dairy-free your mind? This summer, melt away your dairy-free expectations with so-delicious dairy-free frozen desserts. Enjoy mind-blowing flavors like salted caramel,

cluster, chocolate cookies and cream, cookie dough, and more. For over 35 years, So Delicious has been cranking up the flavor with show-stopping products that are 100% dairy-free, certified vegan by vegan action, and are so unbelievably creamy, your taste buds will do a double-take. Dairy-free your mind. Visit so-delicious dairy-free.com. I just can't get this across. You can't do it yourself.

You can't fight the system. Get a consultation with an elder care attorney now. And if you like the person and the person deals effectively with whatever your malady or your problem is, then you have somebody to go to. It just, it really hurts me. Because I cared for my mother. My father died at 61. I cared for my mother. She didn't need all that because I was there to do what had to be done.

But there was a lot of stuff that had to be done. And most Cedious sisters don't have children who will do that. And that's another scandal in this country we'll get into sometimes. It's not like Japan where elderly people are revered, not here. You throw them away. Well, you fight for your rights, but you've got to know what they are. Smart life. Stay in history, February 3rd, 1913, first income tax.

No president signed it. This isn't it? Taff was in office. So Congress has run out of money, and they had three things they needed to do. Number one, they had to set up federal apparatus in the West. Indian wars were over. People were pouring out west of the Mississippi, and the feds had to set up an infrastructure out there. Number two, you had to have an army because the gathering World War I stuff was

beginning in Europe. We have an army. And number three, it was an age of rapid expansion. There were millions of people coming from Europe to the United States. And you had to set up a system whereby you could assimilate them. So there was an impact income tax first one. Before that, the government tax booze and tobacco and a whole bunch of stuff to get money. Now they need a lot of money. So the first income tax, which happened 112 years ago today, 1% average on people's income. It went up to 7% for the very wealthy. And that was it. And then it pretty much stayed that way. It went up a little bit, but not crazy. In the roaring 20s, everybody was making money before the Depression, the average income tax there was, let's see, 25% in the

1920s. And then after World War II, it went to 94%. 94%. But nobody paid that because the rich guys figured out how Congress could make their carve-outs, and so they didn't pay it. And then JFK got in, John F. Kennedy, got in 60s and 60s and the you know, have to do this whole thing over again, which he did. And the interest rates came down. The Reagan era was the best time for consumers. He dropped the income tax rate from 50 under Carter to 28%. Trump would like to get it down a little bit more. I don't know whether he will. He's going to have to trade some stuff. But that happened 116 years ago today, the first income tax. Okay, we got a final thought on the fire aid concert coming your way next.

All right, final thought of the day on Thursday, there was a concert that raised $90 million for the victims of the wildfires out in L.A., okay? And Steve Balmer, who was on his program a few months ago, says he's going to match. So that's 180 in Bono, and you two contributed a million. So they made a lot of money. Good for them. six-hour concert. The highlight of the concert for me was my pals, Earth, Wind, and appropriately, fire. Go. All right, Verdeen White and the boys going out this summer.

If you get a chance, boy, these guys are just dynamite. And they're seniors, I mean, they just make the younger people look. They're so good. Now, the Annenberg Foundation, because we always check this out after the 9-11 telethon where I had that big dust up with George Clooney, we check. So this fire aid stuff is being overseen, just so you know, because if I say something's worried that I get money to, I got to back it up, all right? It's being a fire aid is being overseen by the Annenberg Foundation.

Okay? And it is in charge of watching where the money goes. So it goes to places, to the people who lost everything. partially, okay? And then it goes to preventing this from happening it again. That's where the money goes. Looks to me like about 250 million is going to be privately raised here, maybe more. Red Cross is involved, and I like the Red Cross. I'm not down on the Red Cross. All right? So we depend on charity navigator, one word.org. If you're going to give money to any charity, you go there and find out how much of your donation actually goes to help people.

Because a lot of these charities, they got CEOs making $600,000 a year. No, we're not doing that here. But I think that this fire aid thing is legit. And if it's not, they're going to have to answer to me because we're going to continue to watch it. But look, it was a good thing that all these rock people came together. Some of them are sincere, some of them are phonyes, but that's like anything. You know, they want to get on a bandwagon, okay. But they did raise a lot of money.

And we're happy to encourage you to help the fire victims in Los Angeles. As I said, tomorrow is a big day for us because we're going to debut the new book, which will be out early September, and it's going to surprise you. And it's pretty controversial, I have to say. I'm getting gearing up for that, but I just finished it, and it moves like a rocket. Thank you for watching the No Spin News and listening on the radio. We'll see you again from West Palm Beach tomorrow.