The MeidasTouch Podcast - Trump TRIAL Speeds to Verdict, MAGA is SCARED

Episode Date: May 17, 2024

On today’s episode of the MeidasTouch Podcast: The Trump trial concludes for the week as Trump’s lawyers cross-examine Michael Cohen; Even more Trump stooges show up at court in their most humilia...ting display yet; MeidasTouch gets mentioned during the trial; President Biden’s brilliant debate move; Incredible economic news; and more! Ben, Brett and Jordy break it down! Deals from our sponsors! The Perfect Jean: F— your khakis and get The Perfect Jean 15% off with the code MEIDAS15 at https://theperfectjean.nyc/MEIDAS15 #theperfectjeanpod Moink: Keep American farming going by signing up at https://MoinkBox.com/MeidasTouch and get FREE BACON for a YEAR! Babbel: Get 55% off at https://babbel.com/meidas Fast Growing Trees: Head to https://fastgrowingtrees.com right now and use code MEIDAS at checkout to get 15% off your entire order! NetSuite: Do you know your own numbers for your business? Download NetSuite’s ultimate KPI checklist right now at https://netsuite.com/meidas 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 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 Lights On with Jessica Denson: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/lights-on-with-jessica-denson 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://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/coalition-of-the-sane/id1741663279 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 What's better than a well-marbled ribeye sizzling on the barbecue? A well-marbled ribeye sizzling on the barbecue that was carefully selected by an Instacart shopper and delivered to your door. A well-marbled ribeye you ordered without even leaving the kiddie pool. Whatever groceries your summer calls for, Instacart has you covered. Download the Instacart app and enjoy $0 delivery fees on your first three orders. Service fees, exclusions, and terms apply. Instacart. Grocer $0 delivery fees on your first three orders. Service fees, exclusions, and terms apply. Instacart, groceries that over-deliver. Discover the magic of Bad MGM Casino, where the excitement is always on deck. Pull up a seat and check out a wide variety of table games
Starting point is 00:00:37 with a live dealer. From roulette to blackjack, watch as a dealer hosts your table game and live chat with them throughout your experience to feel like you're actually at the casino. The excitement doesn't stop there. With over 3,000 games to choose from, including fan favorites like Cash Eruption, UFC Gold Blitz, and more. Make deposits instantly
Starting point is 00:00:58 to jump in on the fun and make same day withdrawals if you win. Download the BetMGM Ontario app today. You don't want to miss out. Visit BetMGM.com for terms and conditions. 19 plus to wager Ontario only. Please gamble responsibly. If you have questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you,
Starting point is 00:01:14 please contact Connex Ontario at 1-866-531-2600 to speak to an advisor free of charge. BetMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. The Trump criminal trial is moving along expeditiously. There could be a verdict as early as next week. Michael Cohen still being cross-examined by Donald Trump's lawyer. Todd Blanch will break down everything that went down during the cross-examination. And I think we can have closing arguments starting on Tuesday. And the jury could get this case on Tuesday, next Tuesday. Pretty wild, folks.
Starting point is 00:01:56 Also, Donald Trump continues to bring with him to his criminal trial MAGA stooges to subvert the gag order against him. The ultimate bootlickers, you see the sign right there behind Matt Gaetz, Anna Paulina Luna, Lauren Boebert, Andy Biggs, and others were there today. He had about a dozen MAGA Republican Congress members showed up to basically say how much they love Donald Trump and how unfair everything is and to attack witnesses, attack the judge's daughter and make numerous other statements that would be violations of the gag order if Donald Trump directed them to make those
Starting point is 00:02:39 statements, which he did. And then previously we had MAGA Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House, show up, didn't actually go inside the courtroom itself, but then left the courtroom and pretended that he actually was there at the trial to attack witnesses and to attack the judge's daughter. I mean, folks, how humiliating and embarrassing to our nation where a co-equal branch of our government that is supposed to protect and preserve and defend our constitution and also protect its independence as a co-equal branch of our government and a check on executive authority would go to the twice impeached, four-time indicted former president's hush money payment case to attack the judge's daughter. I don't care what political party you are.
Starting point is 00:03:34 If you heard what I just said years ago, before Trump and MAGA destroyed American politics and destroyed the Republican party, you would be like, what in the world are you talking about? That's the MAGA Republican Party today. Also, Donald Trump's lawyer kept on mentioning Midas Touch and the Midas Touch Network during the cross-examination of Michael Cohen. He was promoting our merch store and trying to pretend that it was Michael Cohen's merch store and that Cohen was selling Convict 45 t-shirts when they were our shirts and the other merch that was Midas merch. And so we'll talk about that also today. The stock market hit record highs, more than going above 40,000 for the first time. Remember when Trump was in office and every day, the front page story on all of the media was like, the stock market did this, the stock market did
Starting point is 00:04:33 that. And that's what they would push over and over again. And remember when Donald Trump said, if President Biden were elected, it's going to crash. Your 401ks are going to crash while the stock market is higher than ever. Also, inflation cooling, inflation is down. And particularly in areas like grocery store, like foods and grocery store, the costs going down there. But you don't really hear the media really focused that much there. Instead, what the corporate media wanted to push out today, which we'll debunk in just a few moments, is that there was one moment during the cross-exam of Michael Cohen where Cohen was asked whether he had multiple topics during a one-minute and 36-second phone conversation he had with Keith Schiller, Donald Trump's bodyguard back in like 2016.
Starting point is 00:05:29 And Cohen on direct examination had mentioned that he believed that phone conversation was about Stormy. He was showed text messages where he also mentioned that he and the campaign were being like harassed by some 14 year old. So Cohen was like, well, it could have been about both of those topics. And then the media ran with, that was a bloodbath. That's the story that the media is pushing today. I mean, it is so utterly absurd. I want to go through with you what was specifically said, because here on the Midas Touch Network, data matters.
Starting point is 00:06:02 The transcripts matter. We don't just use words like mud bath, this, that. I want to show it to you and you could judge for yourself. And then finally, we should talk about this brilliant move by President Biden's campaign where they challenged Donald Trump to a debate, two debates, one in June, one in August. Donald Trump previously said anytime, anywhere, any place. Then President Biden recorded this video of himself, was like, okay, tough guy, let's do it. I'll do it twice. We'll go June and then we'll go September. And then Biden received invites from CNN and ABC, which he accepted. Donald Trump then accepted those, but I said, don't actually view that as Donald Trump
Starting point is 00:06:46 accepting it. We all know what Donald Trump's probably going to do. He's going to try to find some way to back out of it. And then Donald Trump afterwards said, I am hereby truthing that I am accepting the debate invitation from Fox. Let this truth hereby serve that we will be debating at Fox. Well, that's not part of the deal. And so as we know, that's part of Donald Trump's beginning overture to how he's going to back out, we think, of the other debates and go, this is unfair. This is rigged. And that's already started with right-wing media have all been saying, this is rigged. CNN debate is rigged. The ABC debate is rigged. It's all unfair. It's all
Starting point is 00:07:26 rigged. And they're already kind of pushing that narrative. Not a surprise. But this is the Midas Touch Network. This is the Midas Touch Podcast, where facts and data matter. I'm Ben Myselis, joined by Brett and Jordy. How are you doing, brothers? Doing great. It's great to be here. Quite the intro today, Ben, and we have a lot to dig in. But first, I want to say, Ben, it is your last show here on the Midas Touch podcast before the big wedding. I know we've received many an email. I know we've received tons of comments about it. I just want to do a quick brother check-in. How are you feeling as the big day approaches? Ben? The question is, first off, I'm feeling great. I've been looking forward to this day for so
Starting point is 00:08:14 many years. It is finally here. I could not be happier. I'm also so blessed to be able to have all of my family and friends who are going to be attending this. I know a lot of people are sacrificing by traveling into town. So I'm so grateful for them for being here and sharing this special weekend with me and this special day with me. And I am also so grateful for all the Midas Mighty out there who have shared your well wishes. It's really, really special to me when you, when, when I really do feel the love with your, with your well wishes. And I want to let you know, it's right back at you. We're in this together.
Starting point is 00:08:58 And, um, you know, trust me, you will have an honorary seat at, uh, at this wedding. And I, you will always be on my mind at this wedding. And I'm sure we'll take some pictures. The question is – What's the question? Should we do an emoji of my wife, Sochi, or will that cause marital discord from the outset if we do a Sochi emoji, a Sochi emoji. And he's Sochi. Seems like you came up with that idea on the spot without consulting her, but let's go ahead and do it.
Starting point is 00:09:32 I think we just do it. Yeah. It's probably one of the- I think you sneak that in the bow's band. I think I can still make a mistake like that pre-marriage by floating an idea. I think in two days, I'm going to have to run those ideas back and be a little more reflective. Now, I'd have to be like, do you take this man, right, to love, to honor, to create emojis about you? You need to include it in the vows somehow, you know, just to make
Starting point is 00:09:57 it official. I'm telling you. I'll tell you another, just a real funny story, but I know people aren't here for this, but there've been so many people who are like, so are you going to be going on – are you doing like a bachelor party? Like are you going on – I'm not going to a bachelor party. What are you talking about? I got like 10 hot takes. I'm doing like 10 shows. I was joking. You know how they set up booths?
Starting point is 00:10:18 What bachelor party are we talking about? I have been to weddings and events where they have like a photo booth and various booths where they have different activities for the people to do different things. I was joking, half joking, with Ben that we should set up a booth right there where he could sit in his chair, do hot takes from the wedding. And the backdrop to me in this imaginary idea, which I think is funny. Great idea. The backdrop of Ben's living room. We don't even upgrade it living room with the mansion. We don't even upgrade it.
Starting point is 00:10:47 It's the same. It's a picture of that. That's my pitch. The Midas Mighty, I think, is demanding it. No, everyone wants you to have a good time and a time to not think about work. And we're excited to party with you and the Midas Mighty and to share photos. Jordy, what's new?
Starting point is 00:11:03 No, I can't wait to share some photos. If I remember correctly, y'all showed some photos behind the scenes of my wedding that were totally unauthorized. Some of me crying, just uploaded them straight to the internet. So they just exist forever now. And so Ben, I'm ready for this payback, big bro. But don't be scared. I can't wait to see you guys. I'm so freaking pumped. Let's get into it, brothers. What's up, Ben? What do we start off with? We'll do some exclusive posts. We'll post some public, but we'll do some exclusive posts also at patreon.com slash MidasTouch, P-A-T-R-E-O-N.com slash MidasTouch. All right, let's talk about Michael Cohen's testimony today on cross-examination. Cohen's been testifying now for three days, direct exam, another day of some direct exam and a lot
Starting point is 00:11:48 of cross. Today was a full day of cross-examination and he's expected to test. He's expected he will be testifying Monday again, where cross-examination will wrap up. Then there will be probably about an hour of redirect, which should take us into early afternoon. And that could be it, folks. I mean, it's possible that Donald Trump's lawyers will be calling an expert witness on campaign finance, although there's not a lot of topics that this expert can really testify to. So I don't really think it will go long, if at all. And we'll find out on Monday, I think, officially. What we always knew is that Donald Trump is a coward and that Donald Trump will not be testified. Could be wrong, but I've been saying it from the outset that I am confident
Starting point is 00:12:39 and comfortable with a prediction that Donald Trump was not going to testify, but I think that will be made official on Monday. Let's talk about the cross-examination of Michael Cohen. It started off very odd with Donald Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanch, starting off the cross-examination by saying, we don't know each other, do we? And cohen's like no and then uh trump's lawyer todd blanch says so you think i'm a little shit don't you that's how he said and uh and cohen's like uh that sounds like something i would say to which the prosecution said objection and then the court's like yes sustained and sustained. And then Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanche, got angry. The objection was sustained and then wanted to do a sidebar with the judge. And Rashawn's like, what do you do?
Starting point is 00:13:31 Why are you making this? This case isn't about you. Why are you making this trial about you? So then Todd Blanche got the message like, did you call the, I guess Cohen. So did you refer to Donald Trump as dumbass Donald? Did you refer to Donald Trump as dictator douchebag? Did you refer to Donald Trump as Cheeto-faced mango Mussolini? Did you refer – all of these names.
Starting point is 00:13:56 I love these all being entered into the record by Donald Trump's attorneys. And then Cohen calmly responded, sounds like something I could say. I think that that's something. I would say words to those effect. And then Todd Blanche said, I want to show you your merch store. Are you selling Convict 45 shirts? Are you selling Maga Tears mugs? Are you selling, you know, they went through all these merch items. And Cohen smartly said, there's the transcript.
Starting point is 00:14:24 So you see something, this is Trump's lawyer question. So you see something for sale called convict or convict 45 answer. I see that question. And that's about a reference to 45 Trump, our 45th president, correct? Correct. And Mr. Blanch, if we can blow up the bottom, is that a coffee mug that says, send them to the big house, not the white house? Correct. And look, these items are store.midastouch.com. Those are our items. By the way, 100% union made, 100% made in the United States. And Cohen's like, yeah, that's not my merch store. That's the Midas Touch merch store. So we had that portion of it. And really for the first day of cross-examination,
Starting point is 00:15:06 Todd Blanche did not focus at all on the case. There was almost no focus on it. And then today for the first time- Ben, your name came up before anything relevant to the case came up. Literally, you got called out by name. Here the transcript do you also on that podcast discuss frequently on that podcast discuss president trump that is an answer that is also a news podcast i do that with midas touch and ben micellus the format is different topics it's for youtube look at that ben you you made it before any here's the thing. I'm so grateful that in the history books, my legacy will be being there when the label Von Schitzenpanz was created. I'm grateful that I broke the story about Donald Trump farting on himself while he fell asleep. I'm grateful for breaking the story with Adam Kinzinger about how putrid Donald Trump smells.
Starting point is 00:16:04 I am grateful for all of those things. Someone's got to make you the Wikipedia and put that in your accomplishment. Put it in the Wikipedia. I'm grateful our merch got shown, the Midas Touch merch. I've been doing that Convict 45 ad read for three years now. Lock him up. I bet the Midas OGs remember that end card that we had. It's so obvious. Because they were trying to conflate the Cohen podcast shirt that we sell- Exactly. With the rest of the merch that is in our merch store.
Starting point is 00:16:31 And they tried to act like, because we sold a Mea Culpa podcast shirt, that every shirt in the Midas Touch store was related to Michael Cohen. And that it was Michael Cohen's company, as they referred to it. And that this was all Michael Cohen's merch. Michael Cohen doesn't have a say in any of this merch. This is all Midas Touch merch that existed before Michael Cohen. A lot of it existed before Michael Cohen was even in any way associated with the network. So it's funny that they didn't even do their research on those basic facts. And that's why Cohen, during that cross-exam, had to say, no, that's Midas Touch's website.
Starting point is 00:17:05 Those are items sold on the Midas Touch store. That's not me. Look, everything that Cohen had said was corroborated with text messages, phone logs, emails, contemporaneously signed documents, checks that Cohen received, wires Cohen received, checks signed by Donald Trump, tweets signed by Donald Trump. Tweets made by Donald Trump. Statements publicly made by Donald Trump. There was one moment, though, in today's cross-examination where many people said that Todd Blanche may have scored a few points. Which, by the way, that's the point of a cross-examination. If you don't score any points on a cross-examination, I mean, think about it. For those watching the NBA playoffs right now, right?
Starting point is 00:17:48 If the opposing team scores some points, that doesn't mean the team loses or anywhere near it. That's part of the game, which is one team scores, the other team scores. But then the question is, did the prosecution prove it beyond a reasonable doubt or a civil case? Did the plaintiffs prove beyond a preponderance with the preponderance of the evidence? But in a criminal case, it there is a tsunami of evidence against Donald Trump every day, I haven't heard any of courtroom were saying it was a disjointed cross-exam, that Todd Blanche wasn't all that good. If anything, he brought up a point that may not have been discussed on direct examination, but on redirect, it could be cleaned up on a redirect of Cohen. But then I saw Ari Melber on MSNBC calling this moment, this was a bloodbath today. Anderson Cooper using language like that. But I went to the transcript. I went to what was happening. And I'll just let all of you decide. So rather than me use those terms, let's just take a look at a moment-by-moment recount of what took place. So this involves text messages in 2016
Starting point is 00:19:27 between Michael Cohen on October 24th between Michael Cohen and Keith Schiller, Donald Trump's bodyguard. And during direct exam, Michael Cohen stated that he believed that this was a call. And by the way, there were many calls that the prosecution talked about, but this was one call where Cohen updated Keith Schiller, who was with Donald Trump, about the hush money deal with Stormy Daniels going through. We know the deal went through because the money was paid, and then Donald Trump reimbursed Cohen. We know that ultimately what Cohen said he talked about, the end result actually happened and occurred because we have the checks. We also have court documents where Donald Trump previously said that this was reimbursements made to Cohen. We also have tweets by Donald Trump saying these are reimbursements to Cohen. So one of the things that Trump's lawyers were trying to point out is, was this call
Starting point is 00:20:22 on October 24th, 2016, actually about something other than Stormy Daniels? So that's the framework. So moments later, in these documents that Cohen's being shown, Cohen texted Schiller, Trump's bodyguard, the number of the person who had been placing harassing phone calls to Michael Cohen in the campaign. So there was this like 14-year-old kid who was harassing the campaign and harassing Cohen in October of 2016. So then Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer, pressed Cohen about his testimony that the call was with Trump about Stormy Daniels and not with Schiller about the harassing phone calls from this 14-year-old kid. That was a lie, Blanche said, his voice rising and his tone sharp to Cohen. So not asking a question, just saying, you were lying when you said you talked to Donald Trump
Starting point is 00:21:15 and Keith Schiller about Stormy. This was about the 14-year-old. But he said that was a lie. And then Cohen's response was, well, part of it was the 14-year-old, but I know that Keith was with Mr. Trump at the time, and it was more than just this, he said, referring to the calls. And then Todd Blanch, Trump's lawyer, says, so you had enough time in one minute and 36 seconds to update Mr. Schiller, Trump's bodyguard, about all the harassing phone calls and the update on Stormy Daniels? Blanche asked, growing impatient. Cohen replied calmly that, quote, he always ran everything by the boss immediately. And in this case, it could have been just saying everything's been taken care of. It's going to be resolved. At that, Blanche lost his cool. And Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer, said,
Starting point is 00:22:07 that was a lie. You can admit it. And then Cohen responded, no, sir, I can't, repeating that in addition to the conversation with Schiller, quote, I believe that I also spoke with Mr. Trump and told him everything regarding Stormy Daniels was being worked on and it's going to be resolved. And then Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer says, we are not asking for your belief. Blanche said angrily, this jury doesn't want to hear what you think happened. Then the prosecutor objected,ion! It wasn't a question. Cohen was just being yelled at by Todd Blanch. And the judge sustained the objection, and the question was stricken.
Starting point is 00:22:52 Now, that is what corporate media, I mean, right-wing propaganda, Fox Media, they're out. It's absurd. You expect it. Expect it. Expect it. But corporate media, Ari Melber, who, by the way, brought on Michael Avenatti to speak about Cohen a few weeks ago. And then Cohen responded to Ari Melber doing that. Ari Melber said that this moment that I just read, that this moment was a bloodbath. That's how Ari Melberg described it. But what they also don't say is here's the thing, to believe that this moment was all made up by Michael Cohen. By the
Starting point is 00:23:34 way, let me rewind for a second. The prosecution never said in their opening, this was the call. This was the one call that seal. It's all about that. There were multiple phone calls, multiple interactions, multiple contemporaneous messages and notes and logs and all of these things. So let's be clear about that. Number two, why is it inconceivable that you could talk about two topics in a phone call? like, and Cohen responded calmly. Yeah, no, I'm pretty sure it was about that, but it was also about that from a call in 2016, when there's a lot going on. But then here's the thing. If the point the prosecution's trying to make is that Cohen made all of this up, right? And Cohen went completely rogue here. And none of this is even true,
Starting point is 00:24:27 right? And Cohen's just making up these phone calls and none of this really happened. Then why did Donald Trump pay Michael Cohen the reimbursement for doing the thing that Cohen says that he was talking about? What you'd have to believe is that Donald Trump was basically handed checks, is this the defense, to pay off a porn star for $130,000 to be funneled through Michael Cohen. Because remember, Trump's already acknowledged in court documents and posts that these were reimbursements that were made to Cohen. Reimbursements. And that they were then put down as legal expenses, right? That's the case, a falsification of business records. These were reimbursements in connection with the 2016
Starting point is 00:25:15 election when they were, and they were being classified as legal expenses. So you would have to believe that Donald Trump was then handed checks to pay off a porn star who he didn't do anything with and said, yeah, I'm going to pay $130,000. I'm going to pay $130,000. You know what? Let me gross it up to double and let's pay off a random porn star who I did nothing with. And by the way, Michael Cohen is just making this up. Who cares? Let's just give Cohen the
Starting point is 00:25:45 money too, because none of the, because that's what I do. I just give people money for made up stories. And that's the thing, all of the other conduct by Trump, the statements about grossing up all confirmed that the thing that Cohen says happened, happened. And so when you use the, if you want to say, did the, did the defense score a few points here by pointing out that in the direct exam, this other conversation about the 14 year old wasn't mentioned, right? Did you want to say that they scored some points by point? Okay. Scoring points is part of a case, but to say that that moment was a bloodbath, and to me, Brett and Jordy and Midas Mighty, it goes to this broader issue of all this overwhelming evidence the media doesn't talk about that. But when you have this one moment
Starting point is 00:26:39 in Cohen's cross-exam, they seize on that to create this both sides-ism. And then we can apply that to, okay, well, Donald Trump goes to Wildwood, New Jersey, makes up the crowd size. That's like 30 to 50X what the crowd side actually is. Trump talks about Hannibal Lecter, the late great Hannibal Lecter. Trump talks about pulling out of NATO. He plays the J6 anthem. Not a peep from the media, right? But President Biden wears athletic sneakers, which by the way, I wear as well. And then that becomes a story that they put all over and over again. We just see this pattern repeat. So anyway, that's my overall analysis of the cross-example. Cohen is handling himself well. I think the prosecution is doing well. Did the defense score a point or here? I think it's a meaningless one that will on redirect be addressed. jury's going to do? Could there be one or two jurors who ultimately say that they can't? I don't know. I don't know about that. But I know what I just read to you is not a bloodbath.
Starting point is 00:27:50 Yeah. And yeah, I mean, at the end of the day, it's the defense's job to try to instill some sort of reasonable doubt inside at least one of those jury members. That is their goal. Reading through that transcript, I don't see how that negates any of the documentary evidence that has been entered. Donald Trump's admission in the civil case that it was a reimbursement to Michael Cohen. There has been so much hard evidence, pen to paper, in black and white, that proves every nature of these alleged crimes. And so Michael Cohen is just that connective tissue
Starting point is 00:28:26 who is saying what has already been confirmed by the paperwork. So I really don't understand this narrative. In fact, when I heard this narrative start to kind of unfold on my TV in the background, I was like, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, I've been reading because I follow along with the transcripts of the quarter porters all day. I read word by word. And we also have Ron Filipkowski who does word by word, basically recaps of the trial on MidasTouch.com, summarizing everything that happened. And as I was seeing all the moments that happened in the trial, I never saw any moment like that. In fact, I saw kind of the opposite. I saw a lot of people in the courtroom speaking about how Todd Blanche kind of lost his mind, kind of flew into like this bizarre
Starting point is 00:29:11 rage of screaming. It was described in that transcript that we just read as shrieking. And as former DOJ prosecutor Shan Wu, who's been making some great videos for us, said in response to one of my tweets about this, He said, shrieking is never a good defense strategy from my experience. And there was also this contrast that I think we continue to see day in and day out, where you have, in this case, you had Todd Blanche really lose his cool. You have Donald Trump, although I heard he was a bit more attentive. It's funny that this is like news now when Donald Trump is awake. heard he was a bit more attentive. It's funny that this is like news now when Donald Trump is awake. Donald Trump was a little more awake in the afternoon today than he was in the morning when he had his eyes closed,
Starting point is 00:29:51 then past days when he had his eyes closed and was sleeping. But you have Donald Trump slumped over, mouth agape, like drooling in his seat. You have Todd Blanch screaming at this witness. You have Michael Cohen speaking calmly and confidently and looking the jury in the eye, showing respect. And I think that is going to have a huge impact. Something I want to get into soon also are these MAGA Republicans who have been showing up at the courthouse every day and what that means for this trial and if the jury can see them and what the jury may be taking from looking in the courtroom and seeing people like Lauren Boebert there, seeing people
Starting point is 00:30:31 like Matt Gaetz there, and what are the implications of that on the trial? Well, I want to talk about that because when you have a co-equal branch of government, Congress and its leadership with MAGA Republicans showing up and behaving that way, they're just tapping out of democracy. They're done. That's what they're saying. They're saying, we are done with democracy.
Starting point is 00:31:02 We want our very own Kim Jong-un. We want our own Saddam Hussein. We want our very own Kim Jong-un. We want our own Saddam Hussein. We want our own Gaddafi. We want our own Putin. America is just so much better than that. We'll talk about that and more. Let's take said you look like a slob. It's time for an upgrade with the most comfortable pair of jeans you'll ever wear. Today's sponsor, The Perfect Jeans, aren't just another pair of those stiff cardboard jeans that crush your parts, I will say. They're definitely not your pancake butt sweatpants or joggers.
Starting point is 00:31:41 The Perfect Jeans makes great-looking, perfect-fitting jeans that are stretchy as a kangaroo's pouch and hug your assets in all the right places. The special denim fabric is soft and built to last and will fit you perfectly no matter your build. With six fits from skinny to thick thick, waist sizes from 26 to 50, and lengths from 26 to 38, the Perfect Gene has got the perfect size for you. Trust us when we say it's not just the name. These are truly the perfect genes. Once you try them, you will never go back. And for a limited time, our listeners get 15% off their first order plus free shipping at theperfectgene.nyc or Google The Perfect Gene and use code Midas15 for 15% off. That's M-E-I-D-A-S-1-5 for 15% off.
Starting point is 00:32:29 I admit it, during the pandemic, I was in sweatpants all day, every day, and I became accustomed to the comfort. So I was thrilled when I got my hands on the perfect jean and could upgrade my style and still be super comfortable. I have a few pairs of the athletic fit, and they're not like any jean I've ever worn before. I can actually move around in them, wear them all day, and I get compliments on them all the time. The Perfect Jean always has free shipping, exchanges, and returns.
Starting point is 00:32:52 You could have peace of mind knowing that your order is completely risk-free. It's finally time to stop crushing your parts in uncomfortable jeans by going to theperfectjean.nyc. Our listeners get 15% off your first order plus free shipping, free returns, and free exchanges when you use code MIDAS15 at checkout. That's 15% off for new customers at theperfectjean.nyc with promo code MEIDAS15. After you purchase, they'll ask where you heard about them. Please support our show and tell them we sent you. Say so long to your khakis and get the perfect jean. What if you could support family farmers and reduce your environmental imprint all while
Starting point is 00:33:34 enjoying the highest quality meat on earth? When you join the Moink movement, you can. Moink delivers grass-fed and grass-finished beef and lamb, pastured pork and chicken, and sustainable wild-caught Alaskan salmon straight to your door. Moink farmers farm like our grandparents did. And as a result, Moink meat tastes like it should because the family farm, let's face it, does it better. And the Moink difference is a difference you can taste. Unlike the supermarket, Moink gives you total control over the quality and source of your food.
Starting point is 00:34:03 You choose the meat delivered in every box, like ribeyes, to chicken breast, to pork chops, to salmon fillets, and much more. Plus, you can cancel at any time. Moink is helping save rural America. I love it, and you will too. Join the Moink movement today. Shark Tank host Kevin O'Leary called Moink's bacon the best bacon he's ever tasted, and Ring Doorbell founder Jamie Siminoff jumped at the chance to invest in Moink. Plus, they guarantee you'll say, oink, oink, I'm just happy I got Moinked. I know I do, and you will too. Keep American farming going by signing up at moinkbox.com slash MidasTouch right now. And listeners of this show get free bacon for a year. That's one year of the best bacon you'll ever taste, but for a limited time. It's spelled M-O-I-N-K box.com slash Midas Touch.
Starting point is 00:34:55 That's moinkbox.com slash Midas Touch. Let's go. Shout out to our pro-democracy sponsors. Ben, I'll be wearing my perfect jeans to- Not to the wedding. No, not to the wedding, but to a little dinner event Friday night. So I'm excited to bust those out. I just finished packing them. Great sponsor. Shout out Moink too. Link's in the description of the episode.
Starting point is 00:35:15 Moink's amazing. I mean they give you so much food. It's phenomenal stuff. It's so much. Check it out. Check it out, folks. Let them know we sent you. So we've got these MAGA Republican Congress
Starting point is 00:35:25 members who continue to parade themselves at Donald Trump's criminal trial. It started last week with MAGA Republican Senator Rick Scott. Thereafter, we got MAGA Republican Senators J.D. Vance and Tommy Tuberville. Then we got MAGA Mike Johnson, Byron Donalds, Vivek Ramaswamy, who's not a member of Congress, but he was there anyway. And then today we got 11 MAGA Republican Congress members. Here's the list of them, but the lowest of the low, you got Gates. You've got Biggs. You've got Anna Paulina Luna. You've got Lauren Boebert. Peter Henlein, I love some of his observations. He's a DeSantis supporter. He's a conservative, considers himself a conservative. Here's how Peter Henlein described it. In court for Trump today, we have Anna Paulina Luna, a former stripper,
Starting point is 00:36:30 turning Point USA influencer, turned congresswoman, say allegedly, her most recent effort in Congress, a bill to give Donald Trump a gold medal. Come on. Lauren Boebert, a lady who jacked off a guy in a public theater, and a mother who didn't go to a court hearing a few days ago with her 18-year-old son who was facing multiple charges of burglary and identity theft. She didn't even help him get a lawyer. You've got Matt Gaetz, the man who tanked Congress and orchestrated the removal of Kevin McCarthy because McCarthy wouldn't shut down an ethics investigation into activities with underage girls. What a joke the GOP has become.
Starting point is 00:37:10 And that's a DeSantis supporter saying, what a joke. And it's even worse than what a joke, because you've got Matt Gaetz posting the following as he showed up to the criminal trial today, standing back and standing by Mr. President. Trump dresses them up in the long red tie so they look like him. He is quoting the Proud Boys. Remember Donald Trump? Donald Trump supports the Proud Boys. When Trump said, stand back and stand by to the Proud Boys. And Matt Gaetz says, standing back and standing by, Mr. President. Trump is not the president. Y'all are at a criminal trial where Donald Trump paid hush money payments to a porn star
Starting point is 00:37:57 after he cheated on the woman who he's cheated on Melania with. And they're all lined up that way. And again, this is a co-equal branch of government. Congress should protect its independence, even from the executive branch when it's the same parties. That's what it means to be a co-equal branch. But there they are saying to the whole world, we don't give a crap about our democracy. We want dictator douchebag, using the Michael Cohen words. That's what we want.
Starting point is 00:38:32 We are good with that. And we are going to parade ourselves. And then we are going to violate the gag order because Trump is saying these are my surrogates. They're speaking on my behalf. And then look, you have like Lauren Boebert say, they may have gagged President Trump, but they didn't gag me. They didn't gag the rest of us. And here's the thing. The gag order prevents Donald Trump from directing others to make the statements about attacking the judge's daughter. I mean, just think about it. Lauren Boebert's post right here is,
Starting point is 00:39:07 why is Mershon's daughter allowed to fundraise for every Democrat under the sun that she's being paid millions and millions of dollars? She's not getting paid millions of dollars. Like, does she work for a company that earns income? You know, I'm sure she does. People are allowed to have jobs. But just think about it, that you've got these MAGA Republican Congress members. All the gag order says, don't attack the judge's daughter.
Starting point is 00:39:33 Don't attack family members. Don't attack the jury. Don't attack witnesses. You can say anything else. In fact, in criminal cases, you shouldn't even need a gag order to say these things. Anybody else would be thrown in prison the moment they started attacking the judge's daughter. Could you imagine if during the case with the crypto bro and whatever it was who stole all the money, he starts attacking the judge's daughter? Could you imagine in any other case he started – that guy got thrown in jail, by the way, when he spoke to the press's daughter. Could you imagine in any other case you started? That guy got
Starting point is 00:40:05 thrown in jail, by the way, when he spoke to the press about something. So Donald Trump's personally violated the gag order and has been found in contempt 10 times. So then Trump brings in MAGA Republican Congress members, quite literally dresses them up to look like him. And then they quote Donald Trump praising the Proud Boys and attack the judge's daughter. I'll just show you this one moment though, where people in New York were heckling Lauren Boebert. I don't need to show, I think, all of these other, go and look at our hot takes and all of these other clips, but here are the people of New York heckling Lauren Boebert, yelling Beetlejuice at her as she speaks. I want all of the news to start asking the question, what is the crime? Because everyone
Starting point is 00:40:57 in this court has not been informed of what the crime is. The defendant does not know the crime that was committed. Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. It's the the crime that was committed. You know, and there are a bunch of- Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. It's the funniest clip of all time. You see like the mass exodus of even all the MAGA's just getting the hell out of there as soon as Boebert grabs the microphone. How pathetic is that? Look, brothers, we had called this a few weeks back at this point saying that, okay, once we saw one Republican come, we knew they're all going to start to trickle in because it's just like this MAGA allegiance test. And not only that, they've realized that they could also fundraise off of it. So not only are they showing their
Starting point is 00:41:33 allegiance by dressing up like Donald Trump and showing up to his trial, now speaking on his behalf, but now they're also able to take this moment and raise dollars for, I guess, their campaign spread. Is that even allowed? Yeah, they leave right from the court without skipping a beat and they have emails go out to their mailing list asking for money and they make posts on Twitter and the various social media platforms asking for money, basically going, look, I was at the trial, give me money. And the thing I'm curious to dig into here is who is paying for these trips because these trips are being used for campaign purposes. These trips are being used for campaign purposes. Lauren Boebert is posting this on her personal campaign account for donations, as are many of these members of
Starting point is 00:42:16 Congress. Then who is paying? I agree with you, Ben. I think the taxpayer. I think we are paying for these visits instead of them actually doing work. Now, when you look at the actual work that's actually going on in Congress, that's also ridiculous as well. They're trying to hold Merrick Garland in contempt because they're in a constant tear against the Department of Justice. They are once again trying to protect Donald Trump at every turn. But something I want you to realize also, and yes, this will be a scary
Starting point is 00:42:46 thought, but I want you to look at these faces who showed up at court today, over the past few days. I want you to look at these names, people like Matt Gaetz, people like Lauren Boebert, people like Andy Biggs, right? These are the people in a Trump presidency who are going to have top decision-making abilities. These are the people who are going to be put in top positions. You could have a secretary of state, Lauren Boebert. I'm not being facetious about this. These are the kinds of people who will be put as top party members, top people running our government. Lauren Boebert could run the Department of Education. I'm really not joking. This is what they do. They put the worst people to run these positions. So when you see these people show up and pledge their allegiance to
Starting point is 00:43:38 an individual the way they do here, you have to know that this is how fascism starts and that these people will have intimate control over your life, over who you can marry, over what you could do with your body. Lauren Boebert will get to dictate that for you. Matt Gaetz will get to dictate that for you. It's also why the selection is so important. It's not even just about Donald Trump, who's bad enough. It's about making sure that these people don't have more control over your lives. I saw a whole narrative starting with the media and people like Nate Silver and others when President Biden made the offer that I'll debate twice, but we don't need to go through the normal kind of press commission on these debates because y'all are just trying to get clicks versus actual discussions. And y'all want to turn this into a circus versus a real debate where ideas are discussed. They were like, President Biden is violating one of the most sacred traditions, what, by not agreeing to turn it into your media circus and by wanting to focus on the actual topics like democracy,
Starting point is 00:44:53 women's reproductive rights, wage, like things that we could actually talk about. And so- By the way, the Republicans have already pulled out of the commission. Like they weren't even a part of it. They pulled out years ago. Donald Trump already said that he wasn't going to participate. So what are we talking about here at the end of the day? And then Brett, you always pointed out where it's the same corporate media, and I'm not talking about the right-wing propaganda. It's almost like they have an
Starting point is 00:45:18 auto AI where it's like, all right, I guess it's time to run the story about President Biden walking with a limp. I think it's time we run the President Biden wear sneaker stories again. Let's run the story where President Biden is being surrounded by Secret the existential threats to our democracy, some of the most fundamental things. that they are complicit in this, that these Biden years have been boring for them and that it's harmed their ratings. It's harmed their ability to do the whole Trump circus thing. What they're mistaking is that you can tell the truth and get good ratings like us. By telling the truth and not both sides in the issue, that's the success of this community because we crave the documents and the data. Don't call it a bloodbath when it's not.
Starting point is 00:46:36 Don't use those terms. You want to be honest and say, okay, well, I thought this could have been, you know, they scored some points. That's fine. Show people the complaints. Show people the document, show people the clips, and then don't normalize the behavior. Here's MAGA Republican Congress member, Matt Gaetz, who again is under an ethics investigation by the house for his doing what he did with underage girls. I mean, it's disgusting, disgusting. And here he is saying
Starting point is 00:47:06 that the reason that he's there is because Trump can't say these things under the gag orders, but he's not bound. Play this clip. We're here of our own volition because there are things we can say that President Trump is unjustly not allowed to say. This is a corrupt judge. These are corrupted witnesses. This is a corrupt prosecution that belies any sense of the facts or the law. And so we're going to keep speaking out against this. We're going to keep fighting against this. And we will head back to Washington as House conservatives saying that these undemocratic efforts must be stopped. They must be defunded. We must use our Article 1 powers to stand against election interference. It's so embarrassing. And also, we as conservatives, we as conservatives. Let me go
Starting point is 00:47:53 back to that Peter Henline post. Anna Paulina, former stripper turned TPUSA influencer turned congresswoman. Her most recent effort, give Trump a gold medal. Lauren Boebert jacked off a guy in a public theater and a mother who didn't go to court for her son. She's also been arrested multiple times. Matt Gaetz, the man who tanked Congress and orchestrated the removal of McCarthy because of the investigation into his activities with underage girls. Like y'all, y'all are referring to yourself says like that's, that's what it means to be conservative. It isn't, that's not conservative behavior. I mean, these people want to bring down our system, bring down our institutions, undermine law and order. And it is just absolutely pathetic. Can we just, let's just, let's just show people what went down in Congress today. I want to show you what Ted Lieu and Eric Swalwell, Democratic Congress members, were doing and saying. First, let me show you what Congress member Ted Lieu said. And so I just want to paint this picture for you. So there were so many empty seats at this committee hearing where they were marking up the MAGA Republicans want to hold Merrick Garland in contempt.
Starting point is 00:49:05 They don't want to actually do things for the American people. They want to, Brett, to your point, they want to hold Merrick Garland in contempt. But there's multiple empty seats because like a dozen of these members of Congress were with Donald Trump at his criminal trial. Here's what Democratic Congress member Ted Lieu has to say. Let's play this clip first. Let's talk about Donald Trump. I agree with the Republican from New Jersey who said if a person cannot stand trial, he should not be President of the United States. Donald Trump has fallen
Starting point is 00:49:32 asleep multiple times at his own criminal trial. I am a former prosecutor. I can tell you that is not normal. I think there may be some physical and mental health issues that should be investigated. I'm going to tell you what people in the courtroom are writing about Donald Trump falling asleep. Here's a reporter who has been observing this. One reporter observed, quote, that Donald Trump has nodded off a few times, his mouth going slack, and his head drooping onto his chest, end quote. Another reporter said, quote, that Donald Trump slowly dropped his head drooping onto his chest, end quote. Another reporter said, quote, that Donald Trump slowly dropped his head. His eyes closed. It jerked back upward. He adjusts himself. Then his head droops again. He straightens up, leaning back. His head droops for a third time. He shakes
Starting point is 00:50:21 his shoulders, eyes closed still. His head drops, end quote. If a person is so weak and feeble, if Donald Trump is so weak and feeble, he cannot stay awake at his own criminal trial. He can't be president of the United States. I want to show you in just a bit what Congress member Eric Swalwell said. And then I want to talk about what I thought was just a brilliant move with what President Biden did in calling Donald Trump out and challenging him to these debates and already the excuses being made by Donald Trump and right-wing media. Then we got to discuss the economy. It matters. The stock market hitting record highs, inflation falling. There's good economic data out there that I want to discuss that I think
Starting point is 00:51:06 lots of corporate media is ignoring. And of course, the right-wing propaganda media is just going to lie to people and just give false data. They're going to claim that Trump's numbers were better and hope that if they say that enough and corporate media doesn't cover it, that the falsehoods become the truth. And so it is important on us to be focused on the data. Let's take our last quick ad break of the day. Then let's talk about the data. One in five Americans have learned a new language on their bucket list. If that's you, make 2024 the year you finally check it off the list with Babbel. Be a better you in 2024 with Babbel, the science-backed language learning app that actually works. Don't pay hundreds of dollars
Starting point is 00:51:50 for private tutors or waste hours on apps that don't really help you speak the language. Babbel's quick 10-minute lessons are handcrafted by over 200 language experts to help you start speaking a new language in as little as three weeks. Babbel's designed by real people for real conversations. Babbel's tips and tools are approachable, accessible, rooted in real life situations, and delivered with conversation-based teaching so you're ready to practice what you've learned in the real world. Babbel's convenient courses have helped me learn real-life conversation skills in a different language.
Starting point is 00:52:25 It's so easy to learn how to order food, ask for directions, speak to merchants without having to consult language apps while on vacation. Plus, Babbel's speech recognition technology helps you to improve your pronunciation and accent. Studies from Yale, Michigan State University, and others continue to prove Babbel is better. One study found that using Babbel for 15 hours is equivalent to a full semester at college. Babbel has over 16 million subscriptions sold, plus all of Babbel's 14 award-winning language courses are backed by their 20-day money-back guarantee. Here's a special limited- deal for our listeners right now. Get up to 60% off your Babbel subscription, but it's only for our listeners at babbel.com slash Midas. So
Starting point is 00:53:14 get up to 60% off at babbel.com slash Midas. And that's spelled B-A-B-B-E-L.com slash Midas, M-E-I-D-A-S. Rules and restrictions may apply. Did you know that Fast Growing Trees is the biggest online nursery in the US with more than 10,000 different kinds of plants and over 2 million happy customers? They have everything you could possibly want like fruit trees, palm trees, evergreens, houseplants,
Starting point is 00:53:41 and so much more. Whatever you're interested in, they have it for you. Find the perfect fit for your climate and space. Fast Growing Trees makes it easy to order online, and your plants are shipped directly to your door in one to two days. And along with their 30-day Alive and Thrive guarantee, they offer free plant consultation forever. I absolutely love Fast Growing Trees. By now, you have all heard me talk about the Meyer lemon tree I was able to buy at an amazing price. Fast growing trees has an incredible selection to choose from and their customer service is incredible. And the best part, I save so much money by not using an overpriced landscaper. Whether you're looking to add some privacy,
Starting point is 00:54:19 shade, or natural beauty to your yard, Fast Growing Trees has in-house experts ready to help you make the right selection with growing and care advice available 24-7. You can talk to a plant expert about your soil type, landscape design, how to take care of your plants, and everything else you need. No green thumb required. This spring, they have the best deals online, up to half off on select plants and other deals. And listeners to our show get an additional 15% off their first purchase when using the code MIDAS at checkout. That's an additional 15% off at fastgrowingtrees.com using the code MIDAS at checkout. That's M-E-I-D-A-S, fastgrowingtrees.com, code MIDAS. Off offer is valid for a limited time. Terms and conditions may apply.
Starting point is 00:55:07 Welcome back, Jordy. Let's go. Got to love those sponsors links in the description of the podcast and audio. And Ben, how's your babble going? You're doing good with it. My love and babble is love and babble.
Starting point is 00:55:19 Not only look, babble is very important to me and it's going to be very important to me in marriage because, um, sochi's first generation American. Her family's from Guadalajara. And so I have a lot of Babel practice that I'm going to be needing to do. I've been doing my Babel practice, but over the next 48 hours, I'm going to have to dig a little bit deeper into this babble. Brett, I want to show you and might as mighty out there. Oh, by the way, the discount codes are in the description below.
Starting point is 00:55:52 Before I show you Congress member Eric Swalwell, I do want to say, though, look, I was someone – I used to like Ari Melber. And I don't know what's going on. My dogs don't know what's going on. They used to like Melber, too. I don't know what's going on. My dogs don't know what's going on. They used to like Melber too. I don't know what's going on either. He scared me for a second. I don't know. And he had Avenatti on to talk crap about Cohen. Then I saw Cohen respond to that and say, why are you bringing Avenatti on to talk crap about me? And then they kind of went back and forth. But then it just felt, and it was unfortunate, it just felt so deeply personal at Cohen versus rooted. It just felt like you don't like him. So you're saying that versus
Starting point is 00:56:39 what actually happened. And there were so many other people in the courtroom who don't say that. But then the problem too, is that then a Melber or an Anderson Cooper, they then get used as pawns by the right wing media to spread the disinformation. And in this environment, you just, we just have to be so focused on the truth and the data and the facts. And again, I don't want to spread hopium of, I know that this is the way the verdict's going to go. We don't do that. What I did earlier in the show was just read you the transcript of what went down at that moment and then be like, what? This is the moment that you're talking about? I hate to show you other trials where things go down and information is exchanged. Anyway, let me show you Congress member Eric Swalwell. This was
Starting point is 00:57:25 at one of the committee hearings earlier in the day where there was a number of MAGA Republican Congress members missing because they all dressed in the uniforms that Trump dressed them up with so they could help them violate the gag order. But back on Capitol Hill, Congress member Eric Swalwell was in the Capitol building, like saying, like reflecting on the fact that there were a lot of missing people there. Here, play this clip. Well, it's nice to see that some of my colleagues on the other side can make it today. I don't know if that means that there weren't enough seats in the courtroom in New York. But I know that the Oversight Committee canceled the hearing that was supposed to happen right now on this matter so that they could be at the president's trial. I know some
Starting point is 00:58:05 members will miss this vote because they want to be at the president's trial. And I don't think that anything could animate the phrase do nothing Congress more than missing votes and canceling hearings to go up and be a spectator at your cult leaders trial. That is the definition of do nothing Congress. So true. So true. And again, the media, both sides, that coverage and, and Brett, there was some good economic news and look, the media of course is going to cover, you know, the data, but they move on right away. Like there's some historic data happening right now. Tell us about it, right? Yeah. Well, I got to tell you about it. It's all part of everybody's favorite segment here on the Midas Touch podcast. This is the NetSuite by Oracle Know Your Numbers Minute. So I think by now everybody knows that with NetSuite, you get easy access to economic data and trends
Starting point is 00:58:57 through their integrated analytics. It's super convenient. And here are some trends that we are seeing here at the Midas Touch Network. So inflation fell in April more than expected, with the headline rate falling to 3.4% and core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy categories, ticking down to 3.6%. That's the lowest reading of inflation in nearly three years. Wage growth, most importantly, wage growth continues to outpace inflation. Goods inflation has also largely stopped. In many cases, goods are now coming down in price, including in key categories such as furniture, used cars, and appliances, a lot of things that folks at home need. And as a result of these trends,
Starting point is 00:59:43 the stock market has been absolutely soaring over the past few days. NetSuite actually has tailored reporting features that allow businesses to focus on specific stock market indicators relevant to their sectors. And I know this is some news that is, these are some relevant indicators that our listeners would like to hear, like the Dow hitting 40K for the first time in history. Today, the S&P 500 crossing 5,300 for the first time in history. And so now you have the S&P 500, the Dow Jones, the NASDAQ, all at record highs. They've all climbed more than 40% since January, 2021. And I want you to think about this for a second. The stock market has nearly doubled since Donald Trump left office. And I want you to think about this for a second. The stock market has nearly doubled since
Starting point is 01:00:26 Donald Trump left office. And if you think back, like Ben was saying with the headlines nonstop, Donald Trump spiked the football all the time. And I think one of the reasons it's important that we do highlight the success of the stock market. I know the stock market is not necessarily the economy at large. I know not everyone is in the stock market, but it is important for people's investments, for people's retirements. It is an important metric. And Donald Trump was certainly not shy about every time the stock market would reach some sort of milestone, so much so that he celebrated the stock market hitting the same milestone over and over and over. Here are posts every single year of the Trump presidency of him celebrating the Dow crossing 25,000. The Dow crossed 25,000. Woo, the Dow crossed 25,000.
Starting point is 01:01:13 We got 2018. We got 2019. We got 2020. Hat tip to Aaron Ruppar on Twitter for finding all this. But you see here that Donald Trump would spike the football at 25K. Now we're at 40,000 Dow Jones, all of these record highs. And it's thanks to inflation coming down. It's thanks to consumer confidence increasing. It's thanks to there being more than 15 million jobs added a record for any president ever under the Biden administration. I mean, it's because of all of these various factors. I want to show you, if I could find it, there was this video that Joe Biden made about Donald Trump. And if you remember, one of the things that Donald Trump
Starting point is 01:01:57 would say constantly is Donald Trump would go during the 2020 election, and he's still doing it now, by the way, so you don't have to think back far. If Joe Biden gets elected, the stock market's going to crash. So Joe Biden released a brilliant, simple video today that shows him saying that, and then it shows the actual results of what is happening with the stock market today. Here's the video released by President Biden. If Biden wins, you're going to have a stock market collapse the likes of which you've never had. The Dow 30 broke 40,000 for the first time in history. Look at that market.
Starting point is 01:02:32 On a year-to-date basis, we know that the markets have been relatively strong. We see earnings increasing for the second quarter. We see record earnings estimates for the third and fourth quarter. And that's what really impresses me. I've been doing this a long time and never expected the data hit 40,000. I always love in these spots that President Biden also uses anchors that you know that Donald Trump watches, like he uses Fox Business a lot and all this stuff. But a lot to be happy about with the economic updates, of course, always a lot more work to do. But this is a
Starting point is 01:03:04 historic recovery that we're seeing under the administration, literally number one in the world with the economic updates, of course, always a lot more work to do. But this is a historic recovery that we're seeing under the administration, literally number one in the world out of any country in terms of beating inflation, in terms of wage growth, in terms of GDP growth in the developed world. So it's something that we should definitely acknowledge and celebrate. And so I wanted to make sure to bring you the Midas Mighty, these important economic updates. That was the NetSuite Bioracle Know Your Numbers Minute. Do you know your own numbers for your business? Download NetSuite's ultimate KPI checklist right now at netsuite.com slash Midas. Let me just say also one other big announcement from the Biden administration today that I want
Starting point is 01:03:40 to make sure gets mentioned on this show. President Biden, in 2022, he called the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services to review how marijuana is scheduled as part of the administration's work on marijuana reform. Today, the DOJ announced the next formal step for that marijuana rescheduling process. They submitted the notice of proposed rulemaking to the Office of Federal Register, and they propose rescheduling process. They submitted the notice of proposed rulemaking to the Office of Federal Register, and they propose rescheduling marijuana from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule 3 drug. I mean, it's insane. Marijuana is currently scheduled higher than fentanyl and meth, which are the drugs that are driving our nation's opioid overdose epidemic.
Starting point is 01:04:22 So these are all very important moves forward. I would like to see continued moves forward, but I know that the administration and that President Biden are doing everything that he can, at least in his power right now, to bring America into the future and get these laws fixed. And look, President Biden made another strategic move in connection with his campaign where he made this strategic strike, right? All of a sudden in the morning yesterday, President Biden releases this video calling Donald Trump out and saying, I beat you in two debates in 2020 such that you, Donald Trump, canceled the other debate. You said anywhere, anytime, anyplace. All right, I'll give you two shots, one in June and one in September.
Starting point is 01:05:12 Here's the video that President Biden put out. Show it to you. Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020. Since then, he hadn't shown up for debate. Now he's acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, make my day, pal. I'll even do it twice. So let's pick the dates, Donald.
Starting point is 01:05:27 I hear you're free on Wednesdays. So what happened was, and it was such a brilliant strategic move. So President Biden posts that video. Donald Trump then makes some other posts like ranting and raving. But then Trump says, let's do it. I'm ready to rumble. And then all of a sudden, then CNN sends out an invite and President Biden says, okay, I've accepted the CNN invite on June 27th. And then shortly thereafter, President Biden says,
Starting point is 01:05:54 I've accepted the ABC debate on September 10th. The ball's in your court, Donald. I will be there June 27th and September 10th. You said anywhere, anytime, any place. You don't care about the moderator. You said that we can set the rules. Let's do it. And as part of those rules, basically all of the kind of circus environment that actually prevents people from hearing the ideas of the candidates, President Biden said, okay, let's actually have a real discussion. So what we'll do is no live audiences. The mics will be muted after each candidate has their time. So it's not
Starting point is 01:06:33 like Donald Trump continuing to yell and scream over, you know, President Biden, where the people can actually kind of speak and talk. It'll happen in a studio itself. And so, you know, all of those aspects, I mean, to have, I mean, Trump's never done this. President Biden does it all the time. Trump never actually has like conversations with non-propaganda media where he's actually required to speak about his ideas. He always, to use his term, rigs it. So he's got Hannity giving him softballs or Trump's in like a Foxtown hall where everyone claps for him and laughs at him as he says the most heinous and horrific things. As they go, Mr. Trump, you're so, you're so, and they don't say Mr. You're so funny. How did anyone ever tell you that you're
Starting point is 01:07:23 so hilarious and that everyone loves you? Those are the kinds of questions. But then Brett, then he'll go on a tangent too, instead of like saying, oh, thank you so much. Like he'll go on a tangent about freaking windmills, like coming from that sort of sentiment. That's why this is so bad for him. Ben, to your point exactly, not only has he not spoken in just coherent sentences, he hasn't been able to do it for at least even 60 seconds without just going into some weird tangent. So the second that his mic gets cut off after the fair amount of time to speak and get out of point, he's going to just continue to look like a fool to the American people who might not be so keenly in tune with politics as they should, but it's going to expose them in a really huge way. I also want to say these two things because
Starting point is 01:08:08 I see people trying to rewrite this narrative as they do. MAGA always tries to rewrite history. President Biden won both those debates back in 2020 by a lot. It wasn't even close. Donald Trump looked like a maniac. He was ranting and raving. He praised the proud boys. He told them to stand back and stand by. Donald Trump came out of both debates looking horrible. One. Two, Donald Trump is the only one of the two that actually backed out of the debates. Donald Trump refused to do the last debate. So MAGA likes to say, oh, President Biden's never going to debate. Your guy is the one who backed out. And now we're already starting to see the machinations here of Donald Trump inching towards finding an excuse to get out of this thing. We're already seeing that, right, Ben?
Starting point is 01:08:55 Yeah. Like I still say, there's no way Donald Trump shows up to a debate with CNN, with the host Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, who, by the way, I'm not huge fans of either one of them if I'm just being blunt. But I think that they'll at least ask him questions that will be better than Hannity. That's my barometer right now for corporate media. And ABC host Dave, you know, the ABC host as well, that I, like there's no way Trump's sitting, you know, before these people. And by the way, and you could kind of see where, where it's leading, right? Because he went to truth social and did his truth. I accept Fox news is, you know, invitation for the debate, something that he knows isn't agreed upon by any of the parties,
Starting point is 01:09:36 except for just him himself. And so when that time comes around, you could already like mark this podcast. This is exactly the playbook they're going to roll out. They're going to say, oh, we, we were holding this. Fox is going to hold a sham debate that was never agreed to and then call it as if it was going to be a debate that they had to turn into a fireside chat with Donald Trump because they're going to say that President Biden didn't show up to the debate or whatever the heck. So just wait for that because there are two debates that are agreed to and they're ready to go. And then there's this sham, whatever the heck that Fox is sort of cooking up behind the scenes right now. Here's the thing. Fox was found liable in a defamation case for spreading disinformation
Starting point is 01:10:14 about the 2020 election and had to pay an $800 million judgment. They are quite literally an arm of the Trump campaign. So they've lost all credibility to ever host a debate like this. That's their fault for behaving in that manner. Every day they give free advertisement to Donald Trump, a constant stream of infomercials. So why would you ever go? It makes zero sense to ever go on Fox. This is what Trump posted. Please let this truth serve to represent that I hereby accept debating crooked Joe Biden on Fox News. The date will be Wednesday, October 2nd. The host will be Brett Baier and Martha McCallum. Thank you, DJT.
Starting point is 01:10:56 Well, you're just making deals with yourself at this point because no one, Brian's not showing up to that one. Does Trump think that's what President Biden did? Like, do you think like Trump's like, oh, he's announcing that we're up to that one. Does Trump think that's what President Biden did? Do you think Trump is like, oh, he's announcing that we're agreeing to these debates. So I'm going to say he has agreed to this? What world is this man living in? Trump is the worst deal maker historically. And it's always projection and confession.
Starting point is 01:11:20 He's the biggest pushover. And all you have to do is either flatter him or do whatever, or just play to his pathology. And as remember, Hillary Clinton said, if you could bait him with a tweet, imagine what Vladimir Putin can do with him. He's so easy to poke with his pathology. And here, acting like a tough guy, he said, anywhere, anytime, anyplace. So President Biden said, and strategically, Biden rolled it out quick, quick sneak attack. Boom. Here's where it is. Who's we does these interviews where he's like, I just want you to know. You're great. How great do you, how great are you? And then Donald Trump will say, Vladimir Putin is a great guy.
Starting point is 01:12:18 And Kim Jong-un is my friend. And you know, I killed Roe v. Wade. I did it. Like to the question by Hannity of, so tell us how good you are. Tell us how great Melania is. Like, those are the questions. So Hannity knows that Trump will not be able to make it through to normal debates where questions are happening and there's no like distractions taking place. And then the final point I want to make is this. MAGA always makes this mistake over and over again. They do the exact opposite of what you're supposed to do. You should set the expectations of your opponent high. So when they miss the expectations, you say, look, they performed bad. These MAGAs are the worst strategic thinkers in the world because their whole thing is playing to Trump's pathology. So what they do is they say,
Starting point is 01:13:12 Joe Biden, President Biden has dementia. He's sleepy Joe. He can't even talk. He can't say words. He can't say sentences. Fox runs with that. And by the way, corporate media runs with that as well, despite the fact that we play President Biden's speeches. I met President Biden. I interviewed him. He's sharp as can be. Is President Biden older than he was when he was a senator? Yeah.
Starting point is 01:13:36 You know, sometimes does he walk a little bit slower? Sure. But like, let's be data focused. I mean, he's still sharp. His lines are very witty. And in an environment where you can actually speak and have ideas and be meticulous with your words, he will thrive in that environment. And so the MAGA Republicans make it that Donald Trump is this brilliant debater.
Starting point is 01:14:01 He's the best there ever was, the most powerful. And they go, President Biden's the worst there ever was, the most powerful. And they go, President Biden's the worst there ever was, can't even say sentences, can't even say words. So when President Biden does well, it's like, oh my God, he's on drugs. And then when Donald Trump performs badly, they go, it was rigged. Donald Trump didn't get the questions and they gave him the questions. And that's why this was so complicated. The moderator was anti-Trump. The moderator was so woke. And this was a three-on-one. This is all unfair. And they're already starting the whining narrative, right? And remember, when I show you some of these clips right now that I'm going to show you of Hannity,
Starting point is 01:14:41 remember that it's Hannity working with the Trump campaign because they work together. So here is Hannity suggesting that Biden agreed to debate to avoid debating. Let me show you this clip right here. And when you see this note that it's Trump and Hannity messaging this together. Play this clip. Well, you know, even announced this thing, they probably were all discussing it, knowing that, oh, well, we just agree he'll have to do what we say. It's going to be Joe's way or the highway. What he's really trying to do here is ultimately maybe he's really cowering away from any real debate. Either take my chosen liberal network with my chosen moderator with all my rules or I'm not going to debate. Secretly hoping that Donald Trump insists on basic fairness so they can duck and dodge and cower and hide and say, see, we tried to debate.
Starting point is 01:15:31 Let's see the American people. They deserve a fair debate. OK, here's Lara Trump, Donald Trump's daughter in law, who now runs the RNC, saying that these debates are all rigged, that everything's rigged. The debates are rigged. Play this clip. Not less. And you're right. It's rigged so heavily in Joe Biden's favor, but everything always is. Everything is rigged. Everything is always rigged. And what I've noticed about Fox is the entire operation is Donald Trump's crisis PR firm. I mean, we've learned that from reading the January 6 transcripts and seeing the text messages. They literally act as Donald Trump's PR firm to try to smooth things over, to try to help him out. But what I noticed is you have Sean Hannity oftentimes trying to be the guy who throws punches on behalf of Donald Trump and as Donald Trump freaking out about that or Donald Trump telling him to do that. What I've noticed about Laura Ingraham, what she does is I've noticed on her show, she sort of tries to baby Donald Trump and tries to like push him in. She knows she's
Starting point is 01:16:37 full of crap, but she tries to sort of coach him and push him in a certain direction. Like when she said this last night. So all Donald Trump has to do is stay calm and stay calm during the entire debate and let Biden rant and rave because Scranton Joe is looking and sounding meaner and more petty by the day. And then Trump, by comparison, he easily appears presidential, cool, confident, and yeah, possessing a lot of common sense. The projection is so wild. Oh my God. It's insane people coverage. That's an insane clip. They live, and you wonder why, how does half of America or whatever, it's not that much, but how does a large portion of America
Starting point is 01:17:20 appear like they're in this alternate reality? It's because of what you just saw, because they are quite literally, they're living in an alternate reality that's pushed by Fox and these propaganda networks. It's absolutely, absolutely insane. All right, brothers, I got to get ready for a big weekend coming up. And I want to thank all the Midas Mighty for your support. We'll talk a little bit about at a high level, what's coming up this weekend on patreon.com slash MidasTouch, P-A-T-R-E-O-N dot com slash MidasTouch. Check it out right now. I want to thank you all for all of the incredible statements that you've all made, all of the incredible wishes that you've all sent my way. I'm really grateful for all of you. And thank you. Thank you. Thank you for all of that. Jordy, take it away. Shout out to the Midas Mighty. Against the fascists we sing our song We will get it right whenever... It's Ken Harbaugh with the Midas Touch Network.
Starting point is 01:18:34 The film Against All Enemies, which I co-produced with Ben Maisalis and this network, has won awards around the world for its up-close portrayal of America's insurrectionist movement. It premieres in the U.S. on March 29th on Amazon and Apple TV. Go to againstallenemiesfilm.com or click the link below. But don't just watch Against All Enemies. Tell your friends about it. It's one more way to hold accountable those who threaten our democracy. Thanks, Midas Mighty.
Starting point is 01:19:02 Let's use our power well.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.