The Philip DeFranco Show - The Claims From Trump’s Inner Circle No One Saw Coming

Starting point is 00:00:00 So, saw, saw, saw, saw, so, so, so, so, so, so. You beautiful bastards, welcome back to the Philip DeFranco show, you daily dive into the news, the longest run a news show on the internet. It is Tuesday, and there is a lot we have to talk about today, starting with this. Trump is now backing off his demand that Iran and uranium enrichment indefinitely, his blockade of the strait of her moves may actually not be doing anything except causing confusion, and Israel and Lebanon's first direct talks in decades. They look far from ending the fighting that's still going on, despite the ceasefire with Iran.

Starting point is 00:00:27 And so while these three issues, they appear to be the major obstacles, to reaching a deal before the ceasefire expires, there are signs of progress and reports that new rounds and negotiations could take place as soon as this week. And so what we need to start is with the issue of nuclear enrichment. Right, because according to reports, the U.S. position during talks over the weekend, it wasn't actually for a permanent ban on nuclear enrichment like we've been led to believe. Instead, the Trump administration proposed a 20-year suspension of all nuclear activity, which would allow Iran to claim that it had not permanently given up its right to enrichment. But Iran, they still refused saying instead that it would be

Starting point is 00:00:55 willing to suspend nuclear activity for up to five years, which very, notably, is very similar to an offer that was reportedly given by Iran during negotiations in Geneva back in February, the ones before the U.S. and Israel decided to attack. But with the decision to strike, coming after Trump envoy Steve Whitkoff reportedly told a private gathering that the administration was demanding that Iran agree any future nuclear deal remain in effect indefinitely. And so the idea that the U.S. is backing down from that demand and that Iran may be unwilling to make more significant concessions than it offered previously, even after weeks of bombing,

Starting point is 00:01:21 it would yet again raise the question of what this war has actually accomplished. And there's also a risk for the Trump administration that any deal made. It'll look similar to the 2015 agreement negotiated under Obama, an agreement that Donald Trump exited three years later and called a horrible, one-sided deal that should have never ever been made. Because one of the complaints about the 2015 deal from Trump and other Republicans was the inclusion of so-called sunset clauses. Something critics argued amounted to just kicking the can down the road because it would

Starting point is 00:01:45 have allowed Iran gradually more enrichment activity until 2030, at which point all restrictions imposed by the deal would be lifted. Though, a very big thing, Iran's commitments under the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty would still ban it from building a bomb. Now with that said, unlike what's apparently on the table this time, the Obama deal did not involve a full suspension of nuclear activity. But Iran was allowed to continue enriching uranium up to 3.67% and limited amounts for research and medical purposes. And in fact, you actually have someone who served on Obama's negotiating team telling the New York Times, if they could get Iran to suspend for even a few years, that is superior to what we got.

Starting point is 00:02:14 But also very notably, he's just referring to one aspect of the agreement there, new enrichment. There's also the question of uranium that is already enriched. Because under Obama, Iran agreed to ship 97% of its enriched uranium stockpile out of the country. Now, under Trump, you have the U.S. demanding that Iran removed 970 pounds of near bomb-grade uranium that is believed to have been enriched since Trump withdrew from the 2015 deal. But Iran, they've insisted that the fuel stay where it is. Instead, offering to dilute it significantly so that it can't be used to produce a nuclear weapon, which could then leave the door open for Iran to re-enrich the fuel back to bomb-grade at a later date.

Starting point is 00:02:44 Also, Trump has criticized the Obama administration for releasing plane loads of cash to Iran, with him referring there to the return of $1.4 billion in frozen Iranian assets, along with $300 million in interest, some of which was actually shipped by plane because Western banks were prohibited from doing business with Iranian entities. But Iran, they're now demanding that the US unfreeze roughly $6 billion in funds from oil sales that have been tied up because of sanctions dating back to Trump's first term. And so if Trump and the US, they end up letting any of that money go, it's another compromise that's going to be very hard to explain given past criticism.

Starting point is 00:03:11 Though also with that, I'll say, any amount there would be a fraction of the total cost of this war, which was at least $11 billion after just the first six days. And then of course, there's the price being paid by people around the world in the form of higher prices that we have. to consider an outcome that's largely stepping from Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz for almost all ships except those carrying its own oil. Right, actually, as we've talked about, the straits are supposed to be back open during the ceasefire, but traffic has never really picked back up, at least partly because of Iran's

Starting point is 00:03:35 charging of tolls. But then also, you had Trump claiming if the U.S. would start blockading any and all ships trying to enter or leave the Strait of Hormuz. With him and actually the Defense Department later clarifying that the blockade would actually only apply to ships entering or departing Iranian ports in coastal areas. But still, with all that, it's not clear if or how American naval forces will be able to fully enforce the blockade. And tracking data reportedly indicated that several ships had passed through the waterway after the blockade went to effect, including some that had departed from Iran, as well as some that were sanctioned by the U.S. government. But also, I'll say it wasn't immediately known whether

Starting point is 00:04:03 these vessels passed through during what the Defense Department said would be a grace period around the deadline or whether they had gotten permission to pass or somehow gotten through the blockade. But even with so many questions remaining, Saudi Arabia is reportedly pushing Trump to drop the blockade and return to the negotiating table, fearing that the move would lead Iran to retaliate by disrupting other key shipping routes in the region. Especially the Bab al-Ambandeb Strait, which is a crucial passage between Yemen and the Horn of Africa that connects the Red Sea

Starting point is 00:04:26 with the Indian Ocean. It's actually thanks to that waterway that Saudi Arabia has been able to get its oil exports back up to pre-war levels, despite Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. But also, the Houthis, one of Iran's key proxy groups in the region, control a long stretch, a Yemen's western coastline,

Starting point is 00:04:38 and they've taken advantage of that in the past to disrupt shipping in the region. That's why you had one expert explaining to the Wall Street Journal, if Iran does want to shut it down, the Houthis are the obvious partner to do it, and their response to the Gaza conflict It demonstrates that they have the capacity to do it.

Starting point is 00:04:50 And then actually, speaking of Iran's proxy groups, we then have to talk about Hezbollah. Because as we've talked about, the US and Israel claim that the ceasefire with Iran, it didn't extend to Lebanon, where Hezbollah is located. And in the hours after it took effect, Israel ramped up its attacks on the country, killing at least 357 people in Lebanon on Wednesday.

Starting point is 00:05:05 But reportedly under pressure from Trump, Israel scaled back strikes on the capital of Beirut and agreed to negotiate with the Lebanese government. And today, those two countries, which don't have formal diplomatic relations, held their first in-person talks in decades in Washington, D.C. Now that said, ahead of discussions, there was a wave of Israeli strikes hitting southern Lebanon,

Starting point is 00:05:20 including one near the main hospital in a small town, reportedly causing significant damage and several injuries. And that was actually just one of the 14 hospitals that have sustained damage according to the World Health Organization, as six, have also had to be closed along with 55 health centers. And as the violence continues, there haven't been really high hopes for a deal. Or even the Lebanese president suggesting before and

Starting point is 00:05:37 that he was hoping that a ceasefire could be reached first, after which direct negotiations could begin. But also, the Lebanese government doesn't have direct control over Hezbollah, which rejected the talks yesterday. And then as far as Netanyahu, he's ruled out a ceasefire and said that the aim, other discussions would be disarming Hezboa and then securing a lasting peace deal with Lebanon. Now that said, you know, nearly two dozen countries, including France and the UK, have thrown

Starting point is 00:05:55 their weight behind the talk, signing a joint statement calling on both sides to seize the opportunity presented by the U.S.-Iran ceasefire. And then actually, in an apparent response to Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon, you had Italy suspending a defense agreement with Israel that involves the exchange of military equipment and technology research. So on that front, we're going to have to see if, you know, international pressure picks up and also if it has any effect. But then also, maybe even more than that, we're going to have to see what Trump decides to do next, Steven as his decisions are in so many ways, what created this mess.

Starting point is 00:06:19 And actually, notably with that, more than just Trump's decision-making, right, that getting called into question. The debate about his mental health and even suitability for office, it has been ramping up higher and higher every day. Because yesterday, we talked about how Trump posted this picture, clearly depicting himself as Jesus Christ,

Starting point is 00:06:33 though, then he took it down after backlash and said that he thought he was actually a Red Cross doctor. A statement that I truly feel was like him saying to his supporters, either you have brain damage or I have brain damage. Either I think you're the dumbest fucking person on the planet, So you're gonna believe me when I say this? Or I am literally the dumbest fucking person on the planet

Starting point is 00:06:50 and I thought I looked like a doctor when obviously I wasn't. Or I'm sorry, maybe he's just sundowning. No, actually, that is a question more and more people are asking. In fact, just last night, you had Trump attacking the New York Times on Truth Social after their chief White House correspondent published an article questioning his mental health and stability. The Trump's saying, have they no shame? Have they no sense of decency? Right, as far as the article, it highlights him of Trump's recent erratic behavior and extreme comments.

Starting point is 00:07:12 Things including the whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again, tweet, telling provably untrue stories about his family, his eight-minute long ramble about poisonous snakes during a Christmas reception, digressions during cabinet meetings about Sharpies and a general geographical confusion. Beautiful pen, ballpoint. Said to be the most poised, that, the black mumba, the brown mumba, and the viper from Peru.

Starting point is 00:07:35 See this pen right here, this pen is an interesting example. It's the same thing. So this pen is very inexpensive, but it writes well. I like it. Until the last few days, when I told them about Iceland, they loved me. They called me daddy, right, last time? And it had another problem. They didn't write well.

Starting point is 00:07:54 And the article added that many are left with the impression of a deranged autocrat mad with power. Which, yes, is similar to what we've been hearing from Democrats for a while now, with, for example, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer calling him an extremely sick person, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries calling him unhinged and out of control. The others have also been a little more direct, with, for example, Representative Ted Liu of California calling him bat-shick crazy. And some have even called for him to be removed using the 25th Amendment, including the director of the CIA under Obama, John Brennan. With Brennan saying that Trump poses a serious threat to many lives and is too much of a liability to be allowed to stay in office and daddy.

Starting point is 00:08:24 This person is clearly unhinged. I think the 25th Amendment was written with Donald Trump in mind. But through all of that, the White House has maintained that Trump, he's actually fit as a fiddle with a spokesperson saying, President Trump's sharpness, unmatched energy, and historic accessibility stand in stark contrast to what we saw during the past four years. But with that, referring to Biden whose age and mental decline was a frequent topic in the news over the course of his president. And then as far as Trump supporter is one of the things you've seen them arguing is that his craziness is actually intentional Right comparing him to Richard Nixon in the 70s who reportedly told advisors to tell negotiators that he was unstable and Unpredictable as a bargaining tool to secure a better agreement and Trump himself he has also seemed to lean into that in his first term He instructed an ambassador to tell North Koreans that he's crazy

Starting point is 00:09:01 Right and he reportedly told a former attorney general that quote just the right amount of crazy is the secret to a really good tweet But Trump he has left Nixon in the dust in terms of the madmen title right with Princeton historian Julian Zelizer saying as a president who naturally Disregards any guardrails or sense of decorum, Trump feels much freer even than Nixon to unleash his inner rage and to act on impulse And now over a year into a second term things are only getting worse with the public's confidence in him just falling considerably Or even a February Reuters-Ipsons poll finding that 61% of Americans think that Trump's become more erratic with age and less than half say that he's mentally sharp and able to deal with challenges So even before all this new craziness that was a major dip from 54% in 2023 and even last September 49% said that Trump is too old to be president, which was significantly up from 34% in February of 2024,

Starting point is 00:09:45 and I'd be very interested to see the numbers now. But setting aside the democratic concerns and even the polling numbers, you've got Trump's own people, his former staff, and even some people who have previously supported him, expressing a lot of concern about his mental health. Right, you've got Ty Cobb, a White House lawyer during Trump's first term, saying Trump is, quote,

Starting point is 00:10:00 a man who is clearly insane, and that is recent string, a truth social post, quote, highlights the level of his insanity. Also, his former press secretary, Stephanie Grisham wrote last week that Trump is, quote, clearly not well. And then of course you have big names like Marjorie Taylor Green, Candice Owens, and Alex Jones, all of which have been very vocal in their criticism of Trump recently, especially over the war in Iran. Comments that earned them their very own truth social rant, where Trump called them nut jobs and troublemakers with low IQs who will do anything necessary for

Starting point is 00:10:25 some free and cheap publicity, which then led to those same people expressing their concern about Trump's mental condition. Candice saying it may be time to put grandpa up in a home, MTG saying that he's gone mad and adding, we never changed, Trump did. And then you had Alex Jones just outright saying, once a man, twice a child, this is dementia. And all of this, it's been made even worse thanks to the whole Pope feud and AI Jesus debacle, which just saying that out loud sounds insane. But it has also become a whole new front in the Maga Civil War. And even though Trump deleted the AI Jesus picture, he's refused to apologize for

Starting point is 00:10:53 posting it in the first place and for going after the Pope and instead he's just doubled down on his attacks. And that's essentially made it impossible for him to just sweep it under the rug with his supporters as he's done with a lot of other things. And so as a result, his refusal to back down, it just created another fissure within his own base, including some of the most prominent voices on the far right. Right with Megan Kelly, for example, who's Catholic discussing the situation on our show, criticizing Trump for targeting the Pope, saying that he didn't surprise her and then just absolutely laying into his AI Jesus post.

Starting point is 00:11:18 But what we didn't know was coming was this absolutely absurd, offensive meme, AI-generated version of a picture showing Donald Trump as Jesus. It is obviously, him purporting to be God. That is what he's doing. And it is blasphemous by any definition of that word. He should apologize, which is something he never, ever does. But he doesn't care. He won't. He's not going to apologize because he's not sorry. She also went on to accuse Trump of isolating the key bases that got him elected. You've offended 1.4 billion Catholics who have done nothing to you. In fact, many of us have done nothing but support you. but support you when you get attacked over and over and over.

Starting point is 00:12:10 And we would appreciate not being mocked for our religious beliefs, something you seem to be increasingly fond of doing across most, but not all religions. I don't know what he's doing. But the president is spiraling downward in his poll numbers. He is on a downward spiral now. There's no question. He's collapsed now with the white working class. My friends, that's it.

Starting point is 00:12:38 Other than Fox News boomers, there's no one left. There's no one left in the original MAGA coalition. Now, last point was also echoed by Nick Fuentes, who wrote on Twitter, good luck to Trump and the GOP without Catholics, Muslims, anti-war voters, fiscal hawks, immigration hawks, prospective home buyers, anybody who wanted the Epstein files, anybody who watches Tucker, Alex Jones, Megan Kelly, and Candace. And on the note of Candace, you also had her railing against Trump as well.

Starting point is 00:13:01 Because like Kelly, she's also a Catholic and we saw her opening her show yesterday with this. Trump is just, he's lost his mind. And he hasn't found it over the weekend, I'll tell you, there has now, I guess not since 1981, have there been shots fired at a Pope over politics? But Donald Trump is under demonic influence. So he's decided to aim a few figuratively at his holiness, Pope Leo the 14th. And it's not going well for him. It is not going well for Trump at all.

Starting point is 00:13:30 And he would Candace, arguing that his attacks on the Pope just show that Trump's losing his mind and he's further isolating himself from his base. He is so in the cave, he is so convinced of his own invincibility. It is completely unhinged that he was deeply upset by the Pope, telling him the truth. The Catholic perspective is that this is an unjust war because it is, obviously. It's morally contemptible what you are doing in the Middle East. Okay. And forget the part that you went against every single one of your promises, betrayed your base,

Starting point is 00:14:05 The people that were out there trying to get votes for you. Betrayed Charlie Kirk. You betrayed Begathe Kelly. You betrayed Tucker Carlson. You betrayed me. You've lost a large portion of your base. You have lost Maha. You've lost Megan Kelly.

Starting point is 00:14:21 You've lost to be. You've lost Alex Jones. You've lost. And that's just in terms of the commentary, if you will. And you refuse to see reality. And our last point there is something I want to touch on because it is very, very important. The fact that this whole mess, it is clearly bringing up another division among the highest ranks of the MAGA base. That's massive.

Starting point is 00:14:38 These are people who have for years pushed Trump up and acted as some of his most important supporters, serving his ideas on a silver platter to their massive bases and helping him create an entire media ecosystem. And they not only helped him win the election, but their blind loyalty or maybe, you know, there were economic incentives for that maybe that's why they did it. It helped prop him up, enabling his slide toward authoritarianism by helping him shape his narrative of alternative realities. These are people who have essentially been the propaganda arm of his rise to power. The voices who pushes message to the people in neat little packages.

Starting point is 00:15:06 But instead of, you know, navigating the situation and fighting like hell to get them back on his side or listening to what they're saying about Iran, he is just lashing out and isolating himself from people who have been absolutely crucial to his entire operation. And very much, like the war in Iran, this really isn't something that other people look like they're going to be able to clean up for. For example, we've seen a lot of eyes on JD Vance and his response to all of this because he's a about Catholic or says he is. But yesterday, you had Vance going on a Brett Behr's show and he totally fumbled. You advanced while talking about the AI picture appearing to totally, contradict Trump's running narrative that you only posted it because he thought it portrayed him as a doctor. Brett, I think the president was posting a joke. And of course, he took it down because he recognized

Starting point is 00:15:40 that a lot of people weren't understanding his, his humor in that case. I think the president likes to mix it up on social media. And I actually think that's one of the good things about this president is that he's not filtered. He doesn't send everything through a communications professional. He actually reaches out directly to the people. Yeah, JD, you unlovable fuck wit. Yeah, he was posting an AI image of himself as Jesus to reach out to the, the people. Sorry, sometimes it slips out before the end of the story. But also, as far as Trump's attack on the Pope, you advance downplaying the situation, saying that, you know, it's the job of the president to set America's foreign policy, and there will inevitably be disagreements with the Pope on these policies.

Starting point is 00:16:15 And adding, we can respect the Pope. We certainly have a good relationship with the Vatican, but we're also going to disagree on substantive questions from time to time. I think that's a totally reasonable thing. It isn't particularly newsworthy. With the fans that going on to say that it's a good thing that the Pope weighs into issues that he cares about, but then also at the same time, seemingly telling him to stay in his own lane. I think it's a good thing. actually, that the Pope is advocating for the things that he cares about. But I certainly think that in some cases, it would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of, you know, what's going on to the Catholic Church, and let the President of United States

Starting point is 00:16:50 stick to dictating American public policy. But there, of course, the counter argument is that the Pope has really only been talking about morality. It's been lashing out of the Pope because the Pope was like, war and killing innocent people is bad. Essentially, threatening a general. saying you're going to destroy an entire civilization, no, Bueno, which Trump then got triggered and started just lashing out, making up stuff. So we have to see what happens there, but one, I'd love to know your thoughts here in the comments,

Starting point is 00:17:14 and two, just a quick little break to remind you, hey, hit that like button, make sure you subscribe. And then there's more we're gonna dive into in just a minute, but first, let me thank a sponsor and say, you know, the hotter temps, they're coming, which means fewer layers and a lot less room for bad underwear decisions. And that's why today's sponsor me undies makes sense,

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Starting point is 00:18:00 So clearly, you know, a lot of people already figured this out. Also, get this, if you try them and you don't love your first pair, it's on Meandis. So there's really no reason to keep raw dog in summer in bad underwear now. And get this, right now, as a listener of my show, you can get up to 50% off your first order, plus free shipping at meundies.com slash Philip DeFranco, promo code Philip DeFranco. It's up to 50% off plus free shipping at meundies.com slash Philip DeFranco, promo code Philip DeFranco. But then, diving right back into the news, we've got to talk about how after an alleged rape and a tragic suicide, we're now seeing the end of two political careers that have flooded the headline since the primaries began.

Starting point is 00:18:30 You've got House representatives Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzalez resigning from Congress ahead of possible expulsion votes. While there were different specifics, they both received multiple allegations as sexual misconduct against their staffers. And while the stakes aren't high for the seats that they're going to leave behind in Congress, the damage has been done, it's already been high stakes enough. For this weekend, he had Swalwell dropping out of his race for governor after CNN in the San Francisco Chronicle dropped bombshell reports of four women who accused him of sexual assault and one who accused him of rape.

Starting point is 00:18:51 And while he maintained his innocent, saying, I will fight the serious false allegations made against me. He also said that he had to take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes that he had made. With him then going on to say, expelling anyone in Congress without due process within days of an allegation being made is wrong. Then also saying it's also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties. Therefore, I plan to resign my seat in Congress. And then, as far as Gonzalez, a while back, he admitted to making passes at his staffer Regina Santos-Avillas who committed suicide. And while he denied the allegations at first, he eventually called his advances a lapse in judgment and he dropped out of the Texas primary runoff last month. We also denied having any connection to the former staff for his death.

Starting point is 00:19:23 And then, while he spoke out and apologized to his wife for his behavior, Gonzalez was then also accused of pursuing another. staffer for nude photos and sex back in 2020. And so Gonzalez followed behind Swallow yesterday posting saying there's a season for everything and God has a plan for us all. When Congress returns tomorrow I will file my retirement from office. It has been my privilege to serve the great people of Texas. Well yes, you had these two resigning. They were going to be out, right? They were going to be leaving Congress anyway, especially once Republican leadership realized they could kind of do a one-for-one trade with the Democrats. They've been scared to lose Gonzalez's vote because the

Starting point is 00:19:52 margin in the house it's so slim. But now you have many, even if they're not saying it this way publicly, going, oh, this is a trade. Which yes, if you're disgusted by that. Yeah, yeah, I get you. That's the appropriate reaction. But also, those who weren't just going to wait around included representatives Teresa Lager-Fernandez and Anna Polina Luna, who both led the charge to expel Swalwell and Gonzalez, and the resolutions were supposed to be introduced today. And so that's why reports noting that that could have been what triggered the resignations, especially because Fernandez and Luna both seemed confident that they had the votes to get them out. And actually, in response to the news,

Starting point is 00:20:19 you had Luna posting, we have successfully drained part of the swamp this week with the resignation of two very corrupt members of Congress. Then also you had Luna having more to say about Swalwell, and if there is any substance to it, this all. may be far from over for him. I do think that he has serious criminal problems on his hand, and I do think that he might end up in jail, Jesse. And if I could just share with you for a moment, not only did I receive forensic reporting showing that, you know, that infamous video of him in the hotel room was indeed him.

Starting point is 00:20:43 It was not AI generated. But I'm also being told that, A, more stuff is going to be dropping in the next 24 hours. And then also potentially the individual that recorded that video in that hotel room, Jesse, was a female and she was underage. And Luna was actually right about more information dropping. because Lana Drew has just spoke out publicly about her accusations against Swalwell. I believe he drugged my drink. I only had one glass of wine. He, we were supposed to go to a political event, and he said he needed to get paperwork from his hotel room. When I arrived at his hotel room,

Starting point is 00:21:30 I was already incapacitated, and I couldn't move my arms or my body. He raped me. But they're saying that he choked her to the point that she thought she was dying, even claiming that she lost consciousness and adding that while she didn't take a rape kit test She told the people she's closest with and reported it to a sexual assault center in Connecticut I did not want to live anymore I cried all the time for years Also had Cash Patel publicly inviting Swalwell to speak with the FBI and so right now the the question we're kind of left with is well, what now? One Democrat and one Republican are leaving Congress which means the Republicans get to keep that narrow majority in the house It's also unclear of either.

Starting point is 00:22:08 Governor is gonna call for a special election this close to a general election so that that's still to be determined. So overall, this feels like the end of two careers in Congress, but also potentially the start of more issues for at least one of them. Also, I'll say while we're talking about allegations, but less serious allegations and what happened with these two, we've then got to talk about how it looks like Trump

Starting point is 00:22:24 had an awkwardly staged door dash delivery at the White House to celebrate the one year anniversary of his no tax on tips policy. Yeah, I think you voted for me. Do you think that men should play in women's sports? I really don't have an opinion on that. You don't, I'll bet you do. No, I'm here.

Starting point is 00:22:42 about their tax on tips. From then also rolled all this into a press conference praising the big beautiful bill for cutting taxes on tips overtime and Social Security saying that people are getting refunds bigger than they ever expected. We've had more good press for change having to do with the fact that people are receiving more money from their tax refunds than they ever thought possible.

Starting point is 00:23:02 We had a man the other, they got $5,000. They got $7,000. They weren't expecting anything like this. And it's because of the great big, beautiful bill. And look, you know, on the surface, that can all sound great, but the American people apparently are not feeling it. A record 70% of voters say that their taxes are still too high, up 11 points from last year,

Starting point is 00:23:18 the largest year-over-year jump since 2004. And it's not just the Democrats complaining, six in 10 Republican voters agree as well. This is a widespread problem even inside of Trump's own base, and the top complaint, that the wealthy aren't paying enough. Or because Trump's bill that he's so proud of includes international business tax cuts, investment, income exemptions, and estate tax reductions,

Starting point is 00:23:35 measures designed to keep the rich rich. A report show that the bill cut more than $14,700 per year for the richest 10% of house. households over the next decade. For the top 1% that number jumps to over 50,000 a year. And this isn't a new thing with Trump. Back in 2017, Trump's tax cuts helped owners and executives the most with a flat 0% a low-paid worker seeing any benefits. So same song, different verse, and any extra money working Americans might actually see it gets eaten alive by rising prices. Affordability, something that Trump previously called a Democrat hoax, it still feels like a fantasy. So while you've got the top 1% stuff in their pockets, programs that working class Americans actually depend on things like snap, Medicaid, health coverage.

Starting point is 00:24:08 They're getting slashed in that same bill. But then also, don't worry, I didn't forget about it. There's a whole delivery itself we got to talk about. Which also may have caused DoorDash and this woman more than the $100 tip that Trump handed her. Because you had people quickly recognizing DoorDash grandma as Sharon Simmons from Fayetteville, Arkansas. But they're notably a long way from home delivering DoorDash in Washington, D.C. And it turns out, she testified before Congress last year in support of cutting the tax on tips. And so on social media, immediately, people started asking, is she just an actor that the White House pulls out when they need her?

Starting point is 00:24:35 And as far as DoorDash, they admitted in a statement that the whole thing was arranged to commemorate the policy anniversary. As Simmons, she pushed back on the actor claims. No, I am not a paid actor. You know, I have, my life is just like everybody else's. Yes, I testified at the congressional hearing, but then we moved to Fayetteville to be closer to family. So she doubled down that she made $11,000 in Tibbs door dashing last year. Though also, here's a huge thing.

Starting point is 00:25:07 Her story is that she's done more than 14,000 deliveries since 2020. to help keep her family afloat while her husband fought cancer. She's a grandma of 10. And hey, you know, call me crazy, but a grandma grinding through thousands of deliveries to keep her husband alive, it's not quite the feel good story that I think the Trump administration thinks it is.

Starting point is 00:25:23 If anything, it looks like the Trump administration tried to make a piece of propaganda, but it also ends up being a story about how broken things are. And actually, just to go a little bit further, I think it shows you that the White House is completely disconnected from the affordability crisis that real people are living through. Small tax cuts and tips,

Starting point is 00:25:37 it sounds good in a press conference. But when you peek behind that curtain, that same bill's handing billionaires savings that wouldn't leave a dent in their bank accounts while gutting the safety net that working families actually need. So as prices keep climbing and stuff becomes less and less affordable, this administration, they keep painting these rosy pictures of a tax bill that undercuts the working class. And so when they're that disconnected, I'm not sure when we're going to see any real progress on affordability. At least with these guys who have their hands on the wheel right now. So just a quick reminder.

Starting point is 00:26:00 One, voting matters always has. And two, because there's a lot of time from now until November when you can use that vote and even further from 2028 when the bigger vote happens. In the meantime, if you're struggling with affordability, check Benefits.gov to see what programs you might qualify for before Trump's potential cuts take effect. And then there's more we've got to dive into in just a minute, but first, let me thank a sponsor and say, you know, another day, another data breach. And this time, it's Panera exposing millions of people's personal information, names, emails, phone numbers, even home addresses just out there now. And the worst part, it's not just Panera. This is happening everywhere, which is actually where today's sponsor and Cogni comes in. Or once your information gets exposed to get scooped up by data brokers and sold off like it's nothing. When breaches like the Panera leak expose your personal information, Incogni helps remove it from the data brokers trading it.

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Starting point is 00:27:13 But then, diving into our final bit of news today, we should talk about what ends up being another controversy surrounding or at least involving Hassan Piker. And this time, it speaks to a much greater conversation about free speech on college campuses. And that's because he's scheduled to appear at a debate with the Yale Political Union today. So he had Florida Senator Rick Scott, who had previously done events with the organization writing, Yale receives billions from the federal government, President Trump and Congress need to to immediately revoke it. An elite private university that hosts an anti-Semite who says a senator should be killed,

Starting point is 00:27:39 capitalists should be killed, and the U.S. deserved 9-11, shouldn't get one cent from taxpayers. And there, you had Rick Scott specifically referring to one of the things that Hassan was actually temporarily banned from Twitch over in the past. Because when Piker was pushing back against Mike Johnson's crackdown on Medicaid fraud, he said, if you cared about Medicare fraud or Medicaid fraud, you would kill Rick Scott. The reason why I'm saying if you cared about Medicare or Medicaid fraud, you would kill Rick Scott is because, and not make him. him a prominent part of the Republican Party is because he to this day is still known as

Starting point is 00:28:09 committing the largest Medicare fraud in U.S. history. So you know, Scott, not the biggest fan of Hassan. Of course, that wasn't the only criticism or thing people brought up when they were protesting Hassan being there. And in general, there's been this split on whether or not to embrace Hassan to engage progressives or to ice him out of politics or being too toxic. And that divide, it's playing out with what's happening with Yale right now, with a political union's president telling the Yale Daily News, he just bring in someone who's vocal

Starting point is 00:28:33 and has influence. Hassan Piker most definitely is vocal and has influence and has a lot to comment on in terms of the specific issues in today's politics. Saying the fact that a student organization's regular Tuesday debate has become discourse in the national media and has become commented on by prominent politicians and journalists speaks to the idea that our organization, the Yale Political Union, is one that is a central part of not just the Yale experience, but of Yale's unique university experience at large. You also had some students at the school defending Hassan saying that it is disingenuous to try and cancel him when the right-wing figure is dominating politics a much more But then also you had conservatives at that school feeling differently

Starting point is 00:29:06 with the president of Yale's Turning Point USA chapter telling the campus paper that Hassan's rhetoric quote isn't just inflammatory it is blatantly violent and then adding It's language that is very antithetical to the mission of Yale University in terms of promoting an environment of free speech grounded in mutual respect and pursuit of the good and ultimately it's really just anti-American and so yesterday you actually had Hassan responding to this himself Specifically calling out Turning Point and other Republicans who oppose him speaking on a college campus Oh Turning Point USA. See, this I do love.

Starting point is 00:29:36 Okay, I love this. The reason why I love this is because it exposes the inherent hypocrisy on the free speech side of the conversation when free speech lovers actually fucking meet a guy who can go meet for me, okay? Band for fucking banned. All of a sudden, people have a very different approach to free speech. You're God, okay?

Starting point is 00:29:59 your pope-like figure Charlie Kirk clearly had enough respect for what I brought to the table that he wanted to fucking debate me at Dartmouth campus. If you want to abide by the hadiths of Imam Charlie Kirk, okay? If you want to bless his memory, peace be upon him, then you have to abide by his standards.

Starting point is 00:30:27 These guys want to fucking revere him like he was a religious figure, but they're not carrying the goddamn flame. And actually, on that note, there's a whole other campus speech controversy happening regarding Charlie Kirk right now. Utah Valley University, the school that Charlie was speaking at when he was assassinated,

Starting point is 00:30:41 it's facing a ton of backlash over its upcoming commencement speaker, Chera McMahon. Rich is an author and has a newsletter called the preamble that breaks down, quote, government and law in straightforward ways with clarity and context, delivered with sanity and reason.

Starting point is 00:30:52 And according to multiple news outlets, she made posts critical to Charlie Kirk following his assassination. And as far as what people are pointing to and one that's actually still up on Facebook, She posted a video tearfully responding to the news of the shooting, writing. This isn't the America I want to live in. I am sure Charlie Kirk and I would not agree on many things.

Starting point is 00:31:07 And my heart is still broken for his family. Well, that seems pretty non-controversial and neutral. She reportedly also went further and posted have been deleted. For example, her apparently addressing some of Charlie's quotes and writing. These aren't sound bites taken out of context. Millions of people feel they were harmed and the murder that was horrific and should never have happened does not magically erase what was said or done. And one of many, they don't see anything controversial about that statement.

Starting point is 00:31:27 The College Republicans Group at the school released a statement, opposing UVU's choice to select her as a commencement speaker, saying it's an insult to choose someone who mocked the loss of political figure assassinated on our beloved campus. With also the TPPUSA student account condemning the move as tone deaf and Senator Mike Lee writing, what if Charlie Kirk had been a beloved figure on the left rather than among conservatives?

Starting point is 00:31:45 And what if Sharon McMahon were a conservative, one who had defamed Charlie Kirk immediately after his horrific assassination at UVU? Would UVU have scheduled her to speak at commencement? Not in a million years, not in 10 million years. So why does UVU think this is okay? It's not. But there you also had people pointing to the weeks immediately

Starting point is 00:31:59 following Charlie's death, where you had a ton of backlash and controversy involving people losing their jobs for posting anything even remotely negative about him after the assassination. And that includes some people who were just posting Charlie Kirk quotes. And so we wait to see how this plays out, I'd love to know your thoughts on both of these situations and actually anything we covered in today's show in those comments down below. Because yes, while this is a news show, one of my favorite things about it is the conversation everyone has. But then, my friends, you beautiful bastards is the end of today's show. Though if you miss either yesterday's brand new videos, you can check those out. Whether it'd be last night's deep dive into the news

Starting point is 00:32:27 on the Philip DeFranco show or that interview we did. did with Jason Estevez. Or the candidate for GA governor that's not going to be a part of the public debate tomorrow for bullshit reasons in my opinion. But with that said, thank you for watching. I love yo faces and I'll see you right back here tomorrow.

The Philip DeFranco Show - The Claims From Trump’s Inner Circle No One Saw Coming

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