The MeidasTouch Podcast - Major Altercations Break Out in Capitol as GOP Stunt Backfires

Episode Date: October 9, 2025

MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on two major altercations breaking out in the Capitol Building as Republicans grow more desperate now that their shutdown lies are failing and as they attempted to confront Democrats in front of the press which did not go as they planned. Trade Coffee: Trade: Get 50% off your one-month trial at https://drinktrade.com/meidas Visit https://meidasplus.com for more! Remember to subscribe to ALL the MeidasTouch Network Podcasts: MeidasTouch: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/meidastouch-podcast Legal AF: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/legal-af MissTrial: https://meidasnews.com/tag/miss-trial The PoliticsGirl Podcast: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-politicsgirl-podcast The Influence Continuum: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-influence-continuum-with-dr-steven-hassan Mea Culpa with Michael Cohen: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/mea-culpa-with-michael-cohen The Weekend Show: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-weekend-show Burn the Boats: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/burn-the-boats Majority 54: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/majority-54 Political Beatdown: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/political-beatdown On Democracy with FP Wellman: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/on-democracy-with-fpwellman Uncovered: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/maga-uncovered Coalition of the Sane: https://meidasnews.com/tag/coalition-of-the-sane Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So two major altercations just broke out in the Capitol building as Maga Republicans are getting so desperate. They're trying to pull these public stunts of like getting in the faces of Democratic lawmakers. And the Democratic lawmakers are not taking it and they're fighting back. We have it caught on camera, folks. So the first altercation involved Maga Republican Congress member Mike Lawler from New York. He brought the press with him and he was going to confront Democratic. leader hakeem jeffreys to geoffrey's face but leader jeffreys was ready jeffreys comes out of his office gets into luller's face and just utterly exposes luller and shows how weak and pathetic luller

and these maga republicans are luller's like can you sign this and jeffreys is like you are there just to support the billionaires you're ripping away people's health care people are going to die in your district this was a powerful moment i think this was hakeem jeffrey's moment watching Watch for yourself. I'm going to play you this shorter clip of what went down first. Let's play it. You're not going to talk to me. Wasted. You're not going to talk to me and talk over me because you don't want to hear what I have to say. Oh, I'm listening. So why don't you just keep your mouth shut? Oh, is that the way to talk? You showed up. You showed up. Yeah. And so you voted for this one big ugly bill. You can extend it right now. A permanent extension of massive tax breaks for your billionaire dollars. So 90% of Americans. They can get a permanent extension of Americans take the standard adoption. Then the other altercation involved

Maga Mike Johnson trying to interrupt a press briefing that was being conducted by the Arizona Senators, Senator Gallego and Senator Kelly, who were calling for Adelita Griehalva, the representative elect, the Congresswoman elect from Arizona 7th congressional district to be sworn in. And then you'll see Maga Mike just like shows up. It's like, I'm here every month. I'm here. Maybe you just got to open up the government. No, it's the Trump and Republican government shutdown. And I loved how Senator Gallego and Senator Kelly also got in Maga Mike's face and said, this is about your cover-up of the Epstein files. This is strange. This is how it's done. Here, play this clip. Mr. Hava, recollects Ms. Hava has not yet had a scheduled day because she was elected

after the House was out of session. So I am anxious to administer the oath. As soon as you guys vote to open the government. You don't want to be on Epstein district. How much? It's totally absurd. You guys are experts in red herring. There's nothing to do with Epstein. The House Oversight Committee, the House Oversight Committee is working upon the Epstein files right now, releasing 34,000 pages and more on the way. I know she's just let me finish the House Oversight Committee. This is an excuse so she doesn't sign on to that. Now let me show you the longer interaction of what went down when you had Mike Lawler, the Mago, Republic. congress member from new york uh try to approach leader jeffreys in this publicity stunt leader jeffreys walks out of the office drawn gets right up in lawler's face looks at him and says you realize how

pathetic you are how pathetic you come in here and you're saying lies watch this powerful moment right here let's play this clip let's your question did you get permission from your boss Why don't we sign on right now? Did your boss Donald Trump? He's not my boss? Did your boss? Yes, he is. No, he's not.

By the way, Why did you vote to shut the government now? Why do you vote to shut up? For years, you're making, you're making a show of this to make yourself relevant. You can easily sign on. You're embarrassing yourself right now.

You're chasing your cloud. You're an embarrassment. You're an embarrassment. You have four Democrats on here. Let me ask you a question. Let me ask you a question. Let me ask you a question. You voted for the one thing that we vote.

You voted for the one thing. I voted for a tax cut bill that gave the largest tax cut to Americans in history, including, by the way, the average New York are getting a $4,000 tax cut. Are you against that? You're embarrassing yourself right. Do you want to cut the standard deduction in the largest cut to Medicaid in American history? You voted for that. Waste, fraud, and abuse, by the way.

Tom Donatley, the Democratic controller of New York. Let me ask you a question. Pointed out that $1.2 billion were wasted. Listen, you're not going to talk. You're not going to talk to me. Wasted on. and talk over me because you don't want to hear what I have to say. Oh, I'm listening.

So why don't you just keep your mouth shut up? Oh, because you showed up, you showed up. And so you voted for this one big, ugly bill. You can extend it right now. A permanent extension of massive tax breaks for your billionaire donors. Then Democrats went out and held, I thought, a great press conference in contrast to what Maga Mike and the Republicans today, their talking point is, do you all know that young pregnant women, they get to reimburse the hospitals less than

these like migrants do, less than, I mean, it's just such a bizarre press conference that Republicans said. This was the Democratic press conference, though, on point, on the side of the American people, watch what goes down as Democratic leader Jeffrey says, our position is clear. The Affordable Care Act subsidies need to be extended permanently. we should help all Americans have health care the way Donald Trump is helping subsidize the lifestyles of his rich and shameless friends. Here, play this clip.

Our position that has been articulated in a bill that was introduced by Senator Patty Murray and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro is a permanent extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits to match the permanent extension that Republicans aren't. on their own, saw fit to do for the wealthy, the well-off, and the well-connected as part of the Republican continuing effort to subsidize the lifestyles of the rich and shameless. More from Hakeem Jeffries right here,

saying this is the second time it's been shut down under Donald Trump. He's nowhere to be found. He's out there golfing. Here play this clip. If we're going to get a resolution here, we need presidential leadership. That's what Donald Trump himself said.

12 years ago in 2013, if a shutdown happens, the buck stops with the president. This is now the second time that the government has been shut down under Donald Trump, and he's in the presidential witness protection program. He's nowhere to be found. He's got time to be on the golf course, but apparently doesn't have time to sit down with Democrats in the House and the Senate to reopen the government. Then we have Democratic Congress member McGovern. Here's what he said.

Let's play it. I'm not if anyone else wanted to add. Yeah. You know, Republicans love to advocate for more work requirements for poor people, people on SNAP, people on Medicaid. Well, I got an idea. Let's have a work requirement for Republicans to show up to Congress and do your goddamn job. I mean, millions of people are about to lose their health care.

This is a serious crisis we're in, and we can avoid it. We can avoid people losing their health care, and we can keep the government open. They need to show up. Back to Democratic leader, Jeffries, saying, you know, Republicans are obviously trying to cover up the Epstein files right now. They know that Adelita Grijalva, Congresswoman elect from Arizona's 7th Congressional District, would be the 218 signature on the discharge petition. Here, play this clip. Will you call Speaker Johnson and implore him to swear in Adelita Grijalman? We have made clear privately and publicly that Representative Adelita Grijava should be.

sworn in immediately without delay. Mike Johnson swore in two Republican members of Congress immediately after their April 1st special elections were concluded during a pro-former session when no one else was even around. And that was done by Republicans because they wanted to. to jam their one big ugly bill down the throats of the American people so they could rip away health care, steal food from children, and enact massive tax breaks for their billionaire donors.

Republicans acted with great urgency to swear in two right-wing members of Congress to do in the American people in order to reward the wealthy, the well-off, and well-connected. But now at this moment, Representative-elect Adelaide Grahava, who won by much wider margins than those two Republican members, there is no dispute or controversy relative to her election. And so many of us are asking the question. Why the delay, Mike? What's the delay with respect to Representative-elect Adelita Grahava?

But does it have anything to do with Republicans continuing effort to hide the Epstein files from the American people? Inquiring minds want to know. You know what I love about fall? The smell of coffee that fills the kitchen before the day even starts. Whether it's that first warm mug in the morning or an afternoon ice coffee, because let's face it, for me, it's always ice coffee season. The best parts of fall all have one thing in common. They're better with coffee.

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to get 50% off one month. Drinktrade.com slash mitus. This is the fight that we wanted to see, right? Democratic leader Jeffreys over here saying these extremists, these Maga Republican extremists, they ain't even showing up for work. Let's play it. Leader Jeffreys, what do you make of Speaker Johnson canceling House sessions this week? And when will you call for the House to vote? House Democrats were here last week.

House Democrats are here this week. week. House Democrats will be here next week. House Republicans are on vacation right now. That's extraordinary. They canceled votes last week. House Republicans have canceled votes this week. We haven't been in session since September 19th. And on that day, Republicans got out of town before sundown, never to be seen again as we approach the government shutdown and are now in day eight of the Trump Republican shutdown. And these extremists don't even want to show up to work when they're requiring hardworking federal employees to show up to work without pay because of the Republican shutdown. And so we've repeatedly made clear we will

sit down as Democrats, anytime, any place, anywhere, with anyone, our Republican colleagues, either here in the Congress or go back to the Oval Office to reopen the government, to enter into a spending agreement that actually makes life better for the American people and that addresses the Republican health care crisis. Then you have Congress member Ted Liu. Here he goes. Having served an active duty in the U.S. military, it is insane. not to pay our troops. Some of them are in high-risk missions, and you want them thinking about

whether they can get paid, whether they can care for their family. You don't want them focus on that. You want them focus on our national security, and this is going to affect our national security. House Democrats are here. Republicans are on vacation. They need to come back and work, and we need to pay our troops. Here we have Congressman Aguilar. Let's play it. Take, for example, Iowa's first congressional district represented by Congresswoman Marianette Miller Meeks. This, by the way, is the same member who said she'll hold town halls when hell freezes over just this week. A 60-year-old couple earning $82,000 a year will see their annual premiums rise by $200 percent, $13,000 a year. And here we have the Democratic Whip, Congresswoman Clark.

play it. And as I looked in my district, as premium notices are coming out, a couple in Massachusetts that makes $88,000 a year is looking at having their premium doubled. If we go to Speaker Johnson's hometown of Benton, Louisiana, that same couple making $88,000 will see a tripling of their premium three times. That could be around $23,000 a year for that couple to pay. People can't afford that. 60% of families in this country cannot meet the basics, cannot afford the basics for their family. And these sort of dramatic jumps in premiums are what is going to pull them under. So here we are, and we implore the Republican Party, go talk to your neighbors and hear their anxieties about what's happening to their health care, what's happening in your shutdown you're imposing on them, and get on a plane and come back to Washington and get to work in reopening this government and protecting health care and the American worker. And what's Maga Mike been doing? Oh, talking about how he doesn't like Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl

and how Lee Greenwood should be the halftime show? Oh, Maga Mike, you definitely know what the American people are thinking about Maga Mike. Here play this clip. Any reaction to the Bad Bunny being chosen as the Super Bowl halftime performance? I didn't even know who Bad Bunny was, but it sounds like a terrible decision, in my view, from what I'm hearing. What's that? How come? Well, it sounds like he's not someone who appeals to.

a broader audience. And I think, you know, there's so many eyes on the Super Bowl, a lot of young impressionable children. And I think, in my view, you would have Lee Greenwood role models doing that, not somebody like this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And what are the American people thinking our friend Don Lemon interviewed Americans on the street to see how they feel about the shutdown play this clip? Who's more responsible for the government shutdown? Democrats are Republicans? Republicans. Republicans. Republicans. Why is that? They have the power.

Republicans! Why so? They control the House, the Senate, and the White House. Who else would be responsible? I would assume the Republicans. I think it's the Republican. One party is in control of all three branches of government, and I don't think that there's really any reasonable way to spin this is the Democrats' fault. I would say Republicans.

Republicans are good for one thing themselves. I mean, with everything that's going on and everything that Trump does, I think we can... And while this shutdown's taking place, folks, just know that $20 billion of your taxpayer money has now bailed out Donald Trump's Maga Puppet in Argentina, Javier Malo. And he held, he took that money and he threw a rock show to celebrate his new book called, it's a new book, Construction of the Miracle, taking our taxpayer money, pyrotechnics everywhere, fireworks show in Argentina with our taxpayers. pay your dollars as Donald Trump does not want to extend Affordable Care Act tax subsidies and rip away health care. How utterly despicable is that? Hit subscribe. Let's get to 6 million subscribers. Thanks for watching. Love this video? Support independent media and unlock exclusive content, add free videos and custom emojis by becoming a paid member of our YouTube channel today.

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