Digital Social Hour - Why Corporate Power is the New Bipartisan Enemy | Cenk Uygur DSH #1092

Episode Date: January 12, 2025

Discover why corporate power has become the surprising common enemy across political lines! 🎯 In this eye-opening conversation, we explore how both sides of the aisle are uniting against corporate overreach, from Pentagon spending to Wall Street's housing takeover.   Ready for some real talk about the changing political landscape? We're diving deep into how establishment media's influence is declining, why online authenticity matters more than ever, and where unexpected alliances are forming in American politics.   Get the inside scoop on: • Why corporate subsidies are facing criticism from all sides • How student debt and education costs affect everyone • The truth about Pentagon spending and government waste • Where right and left actually agree on major issues   This candid discussion breaks down the walls between political tribes and reveals surprising common ground. Whether you're conservative, progressive, or somewhere in between, you'll find fascinating insights about the real battle happening in American politics - the people vs corporate power.   Want more unfiltered conversations about politics, business, and culture? Subscribe now and join our growing community of independent thinkers! 🔔   #news #donaldtrump #onlinemediachanges #worldnews #politicalmediachanges   CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Intro 00:30 - Post-Election Analysis 04:37 - Ineffective Government Actions 10:15 - Student Debt Forgiveness Debate 11:26 - Future Plans for Cenk & TYT 12:14 - Understanding the Populist Pledge   APPLY TO BE ON THE PODCAST: https://www.digitalsocialhour.com/application BUSINESS INQUIRIES/SPONSORS: [e-mail]   GUEST: Cenk Uygur https://x.com/cenkuygur https://www.instagram.com/cenkuygur/   SPONSORS: Prolon: http://prolonlife.com/DSH   LISTEN ON: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-social-hour/id1676846015 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Jn7LXarRlI8Hc0GtTn759 Sean Kelly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmikekelly/

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BED-MGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. Are you a fan of the Doge movement, getting rid of government jobs? Doge is too big in terms of an umbrella word. If you say am I in favor of doge cutting Medicare, my answer is hell no. But if you say doge cutting Pentagon, yeah, let's have a conversation. I don't wanna spend my money on foreign governments.

I don't wanna spend it on corporate subsidies. I don't wanna spend it on Pentagon BS. That's a fair take, take it agency by agency, not an overall umbrella. All right guys, he is back. We're at Amfest, how's it going, man? Post-election. Good brother. How you been? Yeah. I remember we filmed right before the election and Trump was not was favor to win

and he pulled it off. So. Yeah. Yeah, he did. Has your world changed a lot? It has actually in a lot of ways. And so obviously I didn't want Trump to win, but something really positive has come out of the win. I mean, we'll see if a lot of negative things come out, right? And there's definitely policy things I'm super worried about.

But the good news is like establishment media feels defeated. And I think that they know it and I feel their panic and I love it. And I drink it up. Yeah. Well, you see, uh, hot ones just got acquired by Soros. So he's shifting his efforts to alternative media and Padilla. Yeah. Everybody's shifting because so look, the right wing is more mixed bag.

You guys, uh, a lot of the funders, donors, investors, et cetera, understood the power of online media earlier than the Democrats did. Yeah. The Democrats, they believe in mainstream media so much. They've the Uniparty has controlled mainstream media so thoroughly for so long that they got cocky. And they didn't believe in online media. And so anytime that you'd even have a conversation about online media, the power brokers would think,

oh, first of all, that's a little thing. Like it scraps off our table, it's not important. But most importantly, you're gonna say what we want you to say, right? And I'm like, no, A, we're never going to do that. And B, you missed the whole goddamn point. Yeah. Okay.

So the power of online media comes in authenticity. So if you don't want authenticity, this is not the place for you. And so they will all went away because they don't want authenticity. Yup. They just wanted propaganda. Right. And what do you got to give Trump credit for and now your credit for is that they embrace the chaos.

They knew that they're, Hey, some people are going to disagree. Some people are going to say bad things about you. You can't fully control the message. Right. Yeah. But they rode that wave, right. It's strategically not policy, but strategically that was the correct decision. Yeah.

Democrats keep making the wrong decision and doubling down on the establishment. And that's why they're getting their asses handed them. So after the election, the fact that people realize oh We're not gonna be able to propaganda our way out of this and mainstream media is on its way down. That's great news Yeah, have your political views changed? No, none. They're still the same. Yeah, really? Yeah. Wow Okay, I suspect that you're still standing on it though. Yeah. Yeah. A hundred percent. Yeah. So, but look, the great news on policy front is not that my opinions have changed or anybody else's, it's that we're finally beginning to realize, hey, wait a minute. Some things we actually do agree. Right. No. And if I'm being, you know, more direct, I would say to you that the right wings, ethos, dry,

like culture and their way of thinking about things has changed. So the left wing became, unfortunately, big portions of not all of it, not the Bernie crowd, but a lot of it became authoritarian. You must believe this. There is no other way to do it. And if you veer from that, it's heresy and it's unacceptable, right? The right wing used to be more authoritarian and then started to open up, open up and say, okay, you know what? You're allowed to disagree. Okay. Yeah. This, that, and the other thing, right? And so within that disagreement, all of a sudden people started saying, Hey, I don't know that corporate power is such a great thing. And that another thing, right? Yeah. And so within that disagreement, all of a sudden people started saying, Hey, I don't know that corporate power is such a great thing. And I'm like, there you go.

Okay. That's populist. Yeah. Right. That's what we've been saying all along. So when I'm telling my left-wing friends, his brother, when they get to a yes, take it, take the yes. Right. And they're so burned and they're so reluctant because of the past that

they have trouble believing it. But I've been on enough shows. I've talked to enough maga hosts and real people to know that it's real. Okay. Are you a fan of the Doge movement getting rid of government jobs? So, uh, Doge is too big in terms of an umbrella word, right. And an idea. So if you say am I in favor of doge cutting Medicare? My answer is hell no.

Okay. Or social security, no way. Right. But if you say doge cutting Pentagon, yeah, let's have a conversation. Looking for the ultimate online casino experience? Step into the bet MGM casino app where every deal spin and goal brings Las Vegas excitement into the palm of your hand. Take your seat at premium blackjack Pro, where strategy meets top-tier gameplay. Hit the ice with Gretzky Goal Lucky Tap, inspired by the great one himself,

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Yeah. So let's unite on the things that we agree on. So why I don't want to spend my money on foreign governments. I don't want to spend it on corporate subsidies. I don't want to spend it on Pentagon BS, right? Yeah. That's a fair take. Ticket agency by agency, not an overall umbrella.

Yeah. And look, that's what I'm trying to explain to the left because I think the right is actually pretty good at this, which is guys, so what if we disagree? Okay, then let's fight over it, right? There's nothing wrong with that. But when we do agree, why don't we unite and just get the policies we want? Right. What about the department of education? Are you in favor of removing that? No. Why?

So look, education is obviously an enormous equalizer. It's about equality of opportunity. So a lot of times the right way thinks that the left wants equality of results. And some few people in the left do, but most of the left, especially the voters, just want equality of opportunity. And for me, my dad was a very poor farmer in southeastern Turkey. And the way he got out of that was they allowed for a free education in Turkey back in the 1960s.

If you qualified, if you scored in the top 15, 20%, and he did, he wound up going to the top engineering school and it changed our lives forever. And so I'm an enormous believer in education. I know that you can say, Hey, you know what? Department of education maybe doesn't help that as much as it should. And then you'd have to really get into the nitty gritty of what are the programs. Do they help? Do they not help?

Yeah, I am in favor of education, but don't you think it's gotten a little too expensive? Oh, education is ridiculously expensive, but that's not on the department of education, that's on the colleges. And they're basically building up these giant trust funds. These, um, uh, and, um, I'm forgetting what they call it, but they've got like 10 billion here, 40 billion there. And the Yale and Harvard have this giant fight, but what are you going to do with it?

What are you going to do with your 10 or 20 or $40 billion? Why are you charging people an arm and a leg and you know what happens when they charge that much, you become an indentured servant of the corporate, uh, uh, class, right? Because then you spend the rest of your life paying that debt back. And then they got you the college debt, along with healthcare being attached to your employer is what puts shackles on you. So you can't fight corporate power. Right.

And, and, and now when private equity buys all up, all the residential homes, they're just turning us into endangered servants that are going to serve them the rest of our lives. Absolutely. That's why the right wing revolt is, is actually positive when on the things I don't agree with. No problem, man. We'll fight you on that completely, but you guys are doing some portions of it.

Yeah. And we'll have to see if it's real though. Can I, let me do this back at you, right? Cause I see the energy here and I've now talked to hundreds and hundreds of guys who are MAGA and they really do mean it, right? And let alone dozens of hosts. Yeah. But what I asked back is that you guys hold your leaders accountable.

Because if they don't do any of that, right, they don't, they get rid of the department of education, but education still costs just as much, right? And, uh, and if they don't actually fight private equity, buying up our homes, if they don't do any of that, you've got to hold them accountable. I'm all about accountability. I mean, look what's happening to Mike Johnson right now. Yeah. You know, he's being held accountable. He canceled all about accountability. I mean, look what's happening to Mike Johnson right now. Yeah. Now he's being held accountable.

He canceled his whole speech here. Yeah. So, and yeah, look, so again, we might agree and disagree on some of the cuts, but Mike Johnson was doing uniparty stuff, right? Yeah. And what they were thinking is, Oh, this election is fun and games, but at the end of the day, we're just going to go back to more corporate tax cuts and more giveaways, et cetera, and you guys block that for worse in some ways, but for better in some ways.

So at least that's a revolt, right? And as I, Charlie and I talked about on stage, you're revolted against Mitch McConnell. You were revolted against Dick Cheney. Those are huge wins. Absolutely. So I asked Charlie if he, if he believes college debt should be forgiven student debt, he said, no, won't your take on your take on that? Look, I, yes is the answer.

But it has to be coupled with Bernie's proposal of free college education. That doesn't mean you get to go to Harvard. What it all it means is if you go to a state school, right? Just like the state schools in Turkey in the 1960s, back when it was really poor, could still afford it, gives you an opportunity to go to a great school like University of Wisconsin or University of Texas, University of North Carolina, these amazing state schools, right?

Get you a chance to get that for free because, and they say, oh, well, there's some of that will go to the rich. Guys, they're going to the Ivies, right? They don't need, you know, University of Georgia to let them in and to get a free education, that's for the rest of us. That's for the middle class. So if you do those two things together, you say education is not going to cost this much anymore.

You paid if you want to, if you want to go to Harvard and pay them a gazillion dollars, that's your business, right? That's freedom, right? But you're going to have an opportunity for your kids to have the same shot as rich people's kids. I love that. I love it. What's next for you and the Young Turks?

So look, first of all, everybody come watch live six o'clock Eastern every single day, Monday through Friday, right? Come find out for yourselves. What's our policies? What do we believe, et cetera? Hold us accountable. Right? So Young Turks on YouTube is a great watch, a place to watch six o'clock every day. Come find out for yourselves. What's our policies? What do we believe? Et cetera. Hold us accountable. Right. So Young Turks on YouTube is a great watch, a place to watch six o'clock every day.

Okay. So we put together a populist plank on tyt.com six things I think we all agree on. And so one of the things, come sign it. We don't want just left-wingers signing it. We want left-wing, right-wing independence. We want everybody. By the way, we polled our audience. 18% of our audience are not Democrats. They're independents.

Oh wow. That's a big number. 18%, right? Yeah. People are beginning to realize, well, these guys fight for us, right? We agree and disagree on some issues, but on the core issues that we agree on, there is no better fighter than the young Turks on those things. So what are the six real quick? Higher wages for the average guy, not for the corporate CEOs, right?

And there's ways to get there. Uh, uh, pay family leave. So when you have a kid, you get to a mom gets to take 12 weeks off, raise her kid for just a little while. Right? Yeah. And so that's just basic decency, uh, anti-war, anti-corruption. One of them is private equity cannot buy residential homes.

And then the last one is we negotiate all drug prices. What is this one drug or 10 drugs or no drugs? No. In a capitalist system, in a free market, you can negotiate any price. It's an absolute outrage. I think we all agree to all six of those. If we get that to be a couple million people that sign it, and then we take it to the politicians and go,

we're demanding that you do this on behalf of all of the American people that would be a great way to go. Yeah I'll do it. We'll link that below thanks for coming on again man. All right thank you brother appreciate it. Cool. Bet MGM is an official sports betting partner of the National Hockey League and has your back all season long. From puck drop to the final shot, you're always taken care of with the sportsbook Born in Vegas. That's a feeling you can only get with BetMGM, and no matter your team, your favorite skater or your style, there's something every NHL fan is going to love about BetMGM.

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