1 00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:04,200 Speaker 1: Hi, I'm Mollie John Fast and this is Fast Politics, 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:07,160 Speaker 1: where we discuss the top political headlines with some of 3 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: today's best minds. And Sidney Powell has pled guilty for 4 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:14,280 Speaker 1: her efforts to overturn the twenty twenty election, but not 5 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:18,280 Speaker 1: her leopard print card. Again, I'm sorry. Trying to overturn 6 00:00:18,280 --> 00:00:22,200 Speaker 1: elections as serious business, having bad taste is just a 7 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:26,560 Speaker 1: little levity. We have a really interesting show today. Israeli 8 00:00:26,640 --> 00:00:31,440 Speaker 1: journalist Noga Tarnoposki joins us on the ground reporting from Jerusalem. 9 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:35,680 Speaker 1: Then we'll talk to former Louisiana State University Chair of 10 00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:40,000 Speaker 1: Journalism Robert Mann about his classes with the newly elected 11 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:43,239 Speaker 1: governor Jeff Landry. But first we have the author of 12 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:47,920 Speaker 1: Lucky How Joe Biden barely won the presidency, NBC's John Allen. 13 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:52,640 Speaker 1: Welcome to Fast Politics. My close personal friend who hopefully 14 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:53,560 Speaker 1: going to see next week. 15 00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:56,320 Speaker 2: John Allen, Molly, John Guss. I hope that we see 16 00:00:56,320 --> 00:00:57,880 Speaker 2: each other next week. I hope that we see each 17 00:00:57,880 --> 00:01:00,320 Speaker 2: other every day. But for now, talking on I guess 18 00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:00,880 Speaker 2: we'll have to do. 19 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:05,959 Speaker 1: Oh so sweet. This is Thursday, this episode where Friday. 20 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 1: It was Wednesday for a year. But I'm happy to 21 00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:12,680 Speaker 1: report that it is no longer Wednesday. I was actually 22 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 1: reading this on the site formerly known as Twitter. There's 23 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:20,520 Speaker 1: so much pushback about Biden being old. You know, he's old. 24 00:01:20,560 --> 00:01:21,400 Speaker 3: He's old. He's old. 25 00:01:21,560 --> 00:01:25,119 Speaker 1: This is his second war zone visit. I mean, he's 26 00:01:25,240 --> 00:01:27,320 Speaker 1: zipping around a lot for an old guy. 27 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:29,319 Speaker 2: It's a very different war zone than some of the 28 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:32,520 Speaker 2: other war zones the presidents have visited in the recent past. 29 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:35,479 Speaker 3: Right, he also went to Kiev, correct, And like. 30 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:37,319 Speaker 2: So Kiev when he went to Kiev was like, you know, 31 00:01:37,360 --> 00:01:39,759 Speaker 2: it's pretty distant from the front line at that point. 32 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:42,120 Speaker 2: I mean, pretty much everywhere in Israel is close to 33 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 2: the front lines. Compared to or say, like you know, 34 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,960 Speaker 2: when presidents have visited troops in Afghanistan over the course 35 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:53,400 Speaker 2: of that twenty year war. There's considerably more physical certainty 36 00:01:53,520 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 2: of safety. 37 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,800 Speaker 3: Right in Israel than there is in well. 38 00:01:57,800 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 2: I mean in Israel, there's everything's close to the front lines, 39 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:03,600 Speaker 2: and you know there obviously hasn't been enough time to 40 00:02:03,760 --> 00:02:07,200 Speaker 2: establish certainty about security. I mean obviously enough to be 41 00:02:07,240 --> 00:02:08,040 Speaker 2: able to get him in there. 42 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:10,680 Speaker 3: But I mean, I want you to give Biden credit 43 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:11,360 Speaker 3: here for a minute. 44 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:13,680 Speaker 1: I love you on your straight reporter, and that was 45 00:02:13,720 --> 00:02:15,160 Speaker 1: a good straight reporter answer. 46 00:02:15,200 --> 00:02:19,720 Speaker 3: But it is true. I mean, he went to Israel. Again. 47 00:02:20,120 --> 00:02:22,600 Speaker 1: We can discuss the merits of that, but he went 48 00:02:23,320 --> 00:02:26,720 Speaker 1: and he went to Kiev. Those are not such easy trips. 49 00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:30,000 Speaker 1: If you compare him to his predecessor, Donald J. Trump, 50 00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:35,239 Speaker 1: perhaps you remember him, Trump went to nowhere and then 51 00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: finally they got him to visit the troops once. 52 00:02:38,639 --> 00:02:40,200 Speaker 4: But he did do that. 53 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 2: And you know, that's not a huge validation of Donald 54 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:45,320 Speaker 2: Trump's desire to go into war zones. I don't think 55 00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:47,120 Speaker 2: he had his desire to go in the war zones. 56 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:49,920 Speaker 2: I'm not sure that any president has any big desire 57 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 2: to go into war zones. Maybe some have. But I 58 00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 2: think what's really remarkable about the trip. One of the 59 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:56,160 Speaker 2: things is really remarkable about it is. 60 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 3: How fast it happened, right right. 61 00:02:58,280 --> 00:03:01,919 Speaker 2: It's announced on Monday, and then Biden's on a plane 62 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:05,399 Speaker 2: on Tuesday, and then he's in Israel speaking on Wednesday. 63 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 2: Presidential schedules are usually worked out and you know, long, 64 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:13,639 Speaker 2: long in advance, and it's remarkable for a variety of 65 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:15,880 Speaker 2: reasons that he jumped on a plane and went to 66 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:18,840 Speaker 2: go meet with then Yahoo. That's not normal, and I 67 00:03:18,840 --> 00:03:22,520 Speaker 2: think it's to America's desire or the you know, the 68 00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:27,520 Speaker 2: administration's desire, the administration representing the country to keep a 69 00:03:27,600 --> 00:03:30,360 Speaker 2: lid on the Middle East right now and to get 70 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 2: Israel to show more restraint in its counter offensive than 71 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:37,400 Speaker 2: Israeli leaders might like. 72 00:03:37,760 --> 00:03:38,960 Speaker 4: What that did was buy. 73 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 3: Some time, right, It slowed everything down. 74 00:03:41,640 --> 00:03:46,120 Speaker 1: Right Now, we're a country that is evolved in Ukraine, right, 75 00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:49,080 Speaker 1: and then we're also you know, we sent these three 76 00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:51,960 Speaker 1: tankers to be outside the Middle East. I mean, is 77 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: the goal here just to sort of throw anything America 78 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,120 Speaker 1: can at the wall to prevent war? 79 00:03:57,480 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 4: So first of all, there is a war right going on. 80 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 3: But to try to keep it from getting worse. 81 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 2: Yes, it appears that the American goal. I mean, it's 82 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:09,080 Speaker 2: it's sort of it's multi tiered. But basically the goal 83 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 2: is to try to give Israel the room to destroy Hamas, 84 00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:16,719 Speaker 2: but without working a larger conflict in the Middle East, 85 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:22,120 Speaker 2: without drawing in the governments or populations of surrounding countries. 86 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:24,680 Speaker 2: And in order to do that, the US has to 87 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:27,919 Speaker 2: convince Israel to exercise that restraint I was talking about, 88 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,839 Speaker 2: and also convince Arab country the leadership and the population 89 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:37,200 Speaker 2: that Israel is doing that, which is deeply complicated by 90 00:04:37,720 --> 00:04:40,440 Speaker 2: the fog of war, and as we saw with the 91 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 2: explosion at the hospital earlier this week, so much information 92 00:04:44,279 --> 00:04:47,720 Speaker 2: and disinformation and misinformation spreads quickly, and even in the 93 00:04:47,720 --> 00:04:50,240 Speaker 2: best case scenarios, even when there are people who are 94 00:04:50,600 --> 00:04:53,040 Speaker 2: sharing information or what they believe to be information in 95 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 2: real time, all of that is complicated. Of everybody in 96 00:04:55,839 --> 00:04:59,400 Speaker 2: that region is at extraordinarily high level of tension. It's 97 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:01,920 Speaker 2: the world's all this tinder box, and there's a lot 98 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:04,440 Speaker 2: of people standing there with matches and the US is 99 00:05:04,600 --> 00:05:05,560 Speaker 2: trying to blow them out. 100 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:06,080 Speaker 5: Right. 101 00:05:06,680 --> 00:05:09,040 Speaker 1: One of the things that's been really interesting is that 102 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:12,360 Speaker 1: Jim Jordan has used all of Trump's tactics to try 103 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:15,320 Speaker 1: to become speaker, and they haven't really worked. 104 00:05:15,600 --> 00:05:17,960 Speaker 2: I mean, in some cases it appears to be backfiring. 105 00:05:18,040 --> 00:05:20,960 Speaker 2: There's a member of Congress Don Bacon. Can we talk 106 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 2: about Don Bacon's wife, right? Don Bacon's wife was being 107 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:27,120 Speaker 2: harassed by text She was pissed, Yeah, she was pissed. 108 00:05:27,160 --> 00:05:30,640 Speaker 2: And also Mary net Miller Meeks from Iowa was, you know, 109 00:05:30,720 --> 00:05:35,320 Speaker 2: getting threats. Apparently that's not working, right, it's not making 110 00:05:35,360 --> 00:05:37,000 Speaker 2: them want to vote for Jim Jordan. 111 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:38,880 Speaker 4: The idea that you're going to you know. 112 00:05:38,839 --> 00:05:41,360 Speaker 2: That you're going to scare people into voting for him, 113 00:05:41,520 --> 00:05:43,720 Speaker 2: you know, with intimidation and harassment. 114 00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:45,160 Speaker 4: I mean, maybe it works with a few of them, 115 00:05:45,200 --> 00:05:49,360 Speaker 4: but it obviously has backfired with others. That Bacon's a general. 116 00:05:49,720 --> 00:05:51,880 Speaker 1: Yeah, explain to us a little bit about Don Bacon. 117 00:05:51,960 --> 00:05:54,360 Speaker 1: This is what I think is interesting and what we're 118 00:05:54,360 --> 00:05:57,720 Speaker 1: seeing in Congress right now. And again, this is Thursday. 119 00:05:57,960 --> 00:06:00,039 Speaker 1: You know, there may be one hundred votes by f 120 00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:03,040 Speaker 1: and Jim Jordan maybe Speaker of the House, though it's 121 00:06:03,080 --> 00:06:04,240 Speaker 1: looking less and less likely. 122 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:05,760 Speaker 3: One of the things that. 123 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:09,040 Speaker 1: I was certainly struck by was these are all the 124 00:06:09,080 --> 00:06:11,640 Speaker 1: tactics of trump Ism, right. You got Sean Hannity out 125 00:06:11,680 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 1: there publishing members of Congress's phone number. You've got Don 126 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:19,280 Speaker 1: Bacon's wife getting text messages like if you went back, 127 00:06:19,360 --> 00:06:22,240 Speaker 1: if you were to rewind the tape to twenty fifteen. 128 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:27,120 Speaker 1: This worked incredibly well on members of the Senate when 129 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:29,279 Speaker 1: Donald Trump was running, you know, you had he was 130 00:06:29,320 --> 00:06:32,720 Speaker 1: able to take down party chairs this way. So, I mean, 131 00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:35,120 Speaker 1: is it just that trump Ism doesn't scale? Is it 132 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:37,560 Speaker 1: just that Jim Jordan pretending to be Trump doesn't work 133 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:40,839 Speaker 1: for Jim Jordan, Or is it that Trump has diminished 134 00:06:40,839 --> 00:06:41,599 Speaker 1: power in the party. 135 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 2: You know, maybe all of the above, and then also 136 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:47,000 Speaker 2: at some level like so Number one, Jim Jordan definitely 137 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:49,280 Speaker 2: is not Donald Trump does not have that cloud ever. 138 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:52,520 Speaker 2: A Number two, I think that Trump does have diminished 139 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:54,320 Speaker 2: power within the party from where he was when he 140 00:06:54,360 --> 00:06:56,960 Speaker 2: was president. I mean, he is running away with the 141 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:59,520 Speaker 2: Republican nomination right now, and at the same time, you know, 142 00:06:59,600 --> 00:07:02,039 Speaker 2: a lower share of the Republican Party approves of him 143 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:04,120 Speaker 2: than did when he was president of the United States. 144 00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:07,280 Speaker 2: I also think that these tactics are reflective of people 145 00:07:07,440 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 2: in Trump world who aren't Donald Trump that kind of 146 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,040 Speaker 2: predated him, Like he hired a lot of people that 147 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:15,040 Speaker 2: did this kind of work on Capitol Hill and other places. 148 00:07:15,080 --> 00:07:17,680 Speaker 2: So I think it's also important to remember the individuals 149 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:20,080 Speaker 2: like you talk about Don Bacon. He's a retired Air 150 00:07:20,160 --> 00:07:23,360 Speaker 2: Force general, Brigadier general in the Air Force. He comes 151 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:26,200 Speaker 2: from a district that is politically swinging, and it is 152 00:07:26,320 --> 00:07:29,600 Speaker 2: politically swinging not only at the congressional level, but that 153 00:07:29,720 --> 00:07:32,240 Speaker 2: district because of an anomaly with how Nebraska does it. 154 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:35,880 Speaker 2: It's electoral votes is also swinging in presidential elections. He 155 00:07:35,920 --> 00:07:39,520 Speaker 2: has a different calculation than many other Republicans just on 156 00:07:39,720 --> 00:07:43,239 Speaker 2: the pure political level. And also he's a general who 157 00:07:43,840 --> 00:07:47,480 Speaker 2: is being threatened by Jim Jordan's more right, It's just. 158 00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:49,640 Speaker 4: I don't know. 159 00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:52,840 Speaker 2: I mean, Jim Jordan was, you know, a college wrestler, 160 00:07:53,240 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 2: but that's not you know, that doesn't outrank the guy 161 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:58,440 Speaker 2: that survived in the military to get to the point 162 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:00,080 Speaker 2: of being a general. And by that, I mean, if 163 00:08:00,080 --> 00:08:03,000 Speaker 2: you're a general, you're probably pretty good at internal politics. 164 00:08:03,440 --> 00:08:07,640 Speaker 1: You do see though, like Sean hanned Ay, Tucker Carls 165 00:08:07,720 --> 00:08:13,400 Speaker 1: and all the regular crew, Benny Johnson in Wokeness. 166 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:15,200 Speaker 3: You know, these sort of people who. 167 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:17,960 Speaker 1: Are real and imagined and hopefully more imagined than real. 168 00:08:18,160 --> 00:08:20,960 Speaker 1: They have really like like doubled down on trying to 169 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:23,120 Speaker 1: bully these people, but it's not really working. 170 00:08:23,360 --> 00:08:24,560 Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean it worked at some of them. 171 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:27,920 Speaker 2: You saw some flips into Jordan's direction over the weekend, 172 00:08:28,120 --> 00:08:29,640 Speaker 2: and I think that was kind of the high water 173 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:31,360 Speaker 2: markt Well, see how it ends up. But I think that, 174 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 2: you know, sort of more globally, what you've got is 175 00:08:34,040 --> 00:08:38,120 Speaker 2: this fight within the Republican Conference and the moderates or 176 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:40,960 Speaker 2: the normans or everyone want to call them, see right 177 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:44,440 Speaker 2: now like an existential threat to their influence within the party, 178 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:47,680 Speaker 2: and this is just sort of another thing that puts 179 00:08:47,679 --> 00:08:49,559 Speaker 2: them that position of not being able to like kind 180 00:08:49,600 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 2: of get things done within the party and to get 181 00:08:52,160 --> 00:08:53,199 Speaker 2: done within Congress. 182 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:54,960 Speaker 3: Is that really what it is? Though? 183 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:57,960 Speaker 1: You really think that the moderates are seeing trump Ism 184 00:08:58,080 --> 00:09:01,120 Speaker 1: as something that's preventing them from getting things done, or 185 00:09:01,160 --> 00:09:04,920 Speaker 1: do you think that the moderates are finally like, and again, 186 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:07,480 Speaker 1: the moderates, a lot of these people are not really moderates, 187 00:09:07,480 --> 00:09:10,880 Speaker 1: but they're not as demented. Do you think that it's 188 00:09:10,960 --> 00:09:15,520 Speaker 1: really that these people are like, you know, actually we 189 00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:19,480 Speaker 1: should fund the federal government and maybe we can get rid. 190 00:09:19,400 --> 00:09:20,080 Speaker 3: Of trump Ism. 191 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:21,959 Speaker 1: Like, don't you think it might be that there are 192 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:23,840 Speaker 1: cracks in the ceiling here. 193 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:26,240 Speaker 2: Maybe some cracks in the ceiling, But these are people 194 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:28,640 Speaker 2: who do want to get things done, like the people 195 00:09:28,640 --> 00:09:30,959 Speaker 2: that are fighting against the people that are fighting against 196 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:34,800 Speaker 2: the sort of Matt Gate's minority rule revolution in the House. 197 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:38,280 Speaker 4: Right, are people who want to continue funding. 198 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:41,120 Speaker 3: The government, right, They're not nihilists, correct. 199 00:09:40,800 --> 00:09:43,520 Speaker 2: You know, arguably what we've seen is that there is 200 00:09:43,559 --> 00:09:47,400 Speaker 2: an ability for a small handful of extremists within the 201 00:09:47,440 --> 00:09:51,560 Speaker 2: Republican Conference to wag the dog because of their tactics, 202 00:09:51,559 --> 00:09:54,520 Speaker 2: because of their extremism, because they would argue, and I 203 00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:57,080 Speaker 2: think this is right in some cases, the constituents of 204 00:09:57,320 --> 00:09:59,840 Speaker 2: the districts of some of the Republicans who are who 205 00:09:59,840 --> 00:10:02,680 Speaker 2: are get stuffed done are not as interested in getting 206 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:05,360 Speaker 2: the things done as their members of Congress are. So 207 00:10:05,720 --> 00:10:08,959 Speaker 2: all of this gets to this kind of broader battle. 208 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:11,839 Speaker 2: And if Jim Jordan is empowered or somebody like Jim 209 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:15,520 Speaker 2: Jordan is empowered effectively by mac Yates, that makes the 210 00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:18,760 Speaker 2: side that is, you know, the sort of revolutionaries, much 211 00:10:18,800 --> 00:10:20,920 Speaker 2: stronger than they have been in the past. 212 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:23,360 Speaker 4: The Trump side of the party stronger than it has 213 00:10:23,400 --> 00:10:24,040 Speaker 4: been in the past. 214 00:10:24,120 --> 00:10:27,040 Speaker 2: Right, you get all that more power to continue doing 215 00:10:27,080 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 2: the kinds of things that Jim Jordan and his allies 216 00:10:29,600 --> 00:10:31,720 Speaker 2: have been doing over the course of the last several days. 217 00:10:31,960 --> 00:10:35,000 Speaker 3: It gives them more power, wouldn't it give them less power? 218 00:10:35,240 --> 00:10:37,880 Speaker 2: If Jim Jordan becomes speaker, the Trump wing of the 219 00:10:37,880 --> 00:10:39,800 Speaker 2: party is empowered. 220 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:42,960 Speaker 1: Right, But if he can't do it, then the Trump 221 00:10:43,000 --> 00:10:44,640 Speaker 1: wing of the party is diminished. 222 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:46,880 Speaker 2: I'm not sure that it's diminished from where it was 223 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:49,760 Speaker 2: before all of it started, you know, before this sort 224 00:10:49,800 --> 00:10:52,720 Speaker 2: of speaker thing started, right, But I think that's why 225 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:55,440 Speaker 2: you're seeing whatever handful of members it is kind of 226 00:10:55,440 --> 00:10:58,480 Speaker 2: put the brakes on Jim Jordan is because there is 227 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:00,880 Speaker 2: this kind of fight between the tr Trump wing and 228 00:11:00,920 --> 00:11:04,320 Speaker 2: the non Trump wing, and there are members who don't 229 00:11:04,360 --> 00:11:06,959 Speaker 2: want to continue to operate the way the Republican Party 230 00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:09,840 Speaker 2: has been operating in the last half dozen years and 231 00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:11,680 Speaker 2: would like to see it take a different direction. 232 00:11:11,760 --> 00:11:11,920 Speaker 4: Now. 233 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:14,960 Speaker 2: I'm not talking about the people who have abandoned the 234 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:17,880 Speaker 2: Republican Party or will ever abandon the Republican Party. 235 00:11:17,960 --> 00:11:19,880 Speaker 3: Right right, right, right, right right. 236 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:23,800 Speaker 1: You're talking about people who don't mind a gas stove hearing, 237 00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:27,320 Speaker 1: but would like also to cut social security in medicare. 238 00:11:27,559 --> 00:11:30,480 Speaker 2: I'm talking about people who have an r neck to 239 00:11:30,559 --> 00:11:33,760 Speaker 2: their name today, I will continue to have an R 240 00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 2: neck to their name tomorrow, regardless of who the. 241 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:37,280 Speaker 4: Leader of the party is. 242 00:11:38,679 --> 00:11:41,440 Speaker 3: For John Allen, we do happen to be friends. 243 00:11:42,320 --> 00:11:44,440 Speaker 1: So when I do really mean things to him on 244 00:11:44,480 --> 00:11:45,720 Speaker 1: this show, it's okay. 245 00:11:45,960 --> 00:11:46,000 Speaker 6: No. 246 00:11:46,200 --> 00:11:48,880 Speaker 1: John Allen's were hurt in the making of this podcast. 247 00:11:49,360 --> 00:11:52,360 Speaker 1: I do think it is an interesting idea here, and 248 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:55,880 Speaker 1: I want more importantly to bring up that this is 249 00:11:56,080 --> 00:12:01,559 Speaker 1: all really out a Veep and Mat Gates is actually 250 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:04,080 Speaker 1: Jonah from Veep discuss. 251 00:12:04,520 --> 00:12:07,000 Speaker 2: I'm not sure that either Matt Gates or the actor 252 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:10,800 Speaker 2: who played Jonah on Veep would necessarily love the comparison. Also, 253 00:12:10,960 --> 00:12:13,400 Speaker 2: I mean, Joonah and Veep, is I. 254 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:15,360 Speaker 3: Feel less less serious than Matt. 255 00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:17,360 Speaker 4: Gates, Yeah, well, less effective. 256 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:22,559 Speaker 1: Matt Gates is a person who has basically blown up 257 00:12:22,760 --> 00:12:25,559 Speaker 1: the House of Representatives. You notice he's like seeding into 258 00:12:25,559 --> 00:12:28,120 Speaker 1: the background a little bit after doing this, Like, I 259 00:12:28,200 --> 00:12:30,600 Speaker 1: do get the sense that he might be I mean, 260 00:12:30,640 --> 00:12:33,640 Speaker 1: I think he probably enjoyed the media attention, but certainly 261 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:35,520 Speaker 1: there are people who are quite mad at him at 262 00:12:35,520 --> 00:12:37,600 Speaker 1: this moment, right, I think that's true. 263 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:41,240 Speaker 4: He definitely enjoys the media attention. I also think that it's. 264 00:12:41,080 --> 00:12:44,640 Speaker 2: Not helpful for the candidate that he supports at this point, 265 00:12:44,720 --> 00:12:47,360 Speaker 2: who is Jordan or any other candidate that he might 266 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:49,520 Speaker 2: support at any point for him to continue to be 267 00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:53,360 Speaker 2: the face of what's going on, because he has so 268 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:56,199 Speaker 2: irritated so many of his colleagues. So you know, he 269 00:12:56,320 --> 00:12:59,000 Speaker 2: was valuable to anybody who wanted to be speaker who 270 00:12:59,120 --> 00:13:02,240 Speaker 2: wasn't Kevin McCarthy getting rid of Kevin McCarthy. But he 271 00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:05,120 Speaker 2: is not, as a result of that or the way 272 00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:08,440 Speaker 2: he went about it, credible as a validator of the 273 00:13:08,480 --> 00:13:11,559 Speaker 2: next speaker. It's a little bit of a tyrobin. I mean, 274 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:14,199 Speaker 2: Gates is in this, you know, sort of fascinating spot 275 00:13:14,240 --> 00:13:17,520 Speaker 2: where I think certainly the vast majority of Congress and 276 00:13:17,720 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 2: probably the majority of his own party in Congress would 277 00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:21,439 Speaker 2: rather spit on him. 278 00:13:21,559 --> 00:13:24,920 Speaker 3: It's pretty mad at him. Is he going to leave Congress? 279 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:25,280 Speaker 6: You think? 280 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:27,560 Speaker 2: I think if people believe that he's got something better 281 00:13:27,679 --> 00:13:29,520 Speaker 2: that gives him a bigger platform, if he gets an 282 00:13:29,600 --> 00:13:32,160 Speaker 2: hour on Fox or something like, I think it possibly, 283 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:35,560 Speaker 2: But also like the Congress gig isn't bad for him. 284 00:13:35,679 --> 00:13:38,160 Speaker 2: I think we'll have to see what happens with the 285 00:13:38,200 --> 00:13:40,960 Speaker 2: ethics investigation ongoing into him. 286 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:43,080 Speaker 3: Thank you, John Allen, Bye. 287 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:43,880 Speaker 4: I think they're. 288 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:51,679 Speaker 1: Nogat tarn Allposki is an Israeli based reporter. 289 00:13:52,040 --> 00:13:54,120 Speaker 3: Welcome back to Fast Politics. Noga. 290 00:13:54,160 --> 00:13:55,560 Speaker 6: Thank you very much, Morrillie. 291 00:13:55,880 --> 00:13:56,880 Speaker 3: Noga. Where are you? 292 00:13:57,440 --> 00:14:02,120 Speaker 6: Bye? Am in Jerusalem outside the Jerusalem Theater where it's 293 00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:02,920 Speaker 6: pretty empty. 294 00:14:02,920 --> 00:14:06,640 Speaker 1: These days, give me like the TLDR about where you 295 00:14:06,679 --> 00:14:10,320 Speaker 1: are right now? President Biden just laughed, what is it 296 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:12,400 Speaker 1: like on the ground in Israel? 297 00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:18,960 Speaker 6: Everything feels like suspended animation. There's nothing normal about life 298 00:14:19,080 --> 00:14:23,280 Speaker 6: right now. So, for example, in my neighborhood WhatsApp group, 299 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:26,440 Speaker 6: where normally you have people complaining about like the music 300 00:14:26,440 --> 00:14:28,960 Speaker 6: from nearby concerts and that kind of thing, now you 301 00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:33,520 Speaker 6: have neighbors posting who is in mourning for whom and 302 00:14:33,640 --> 00:14:36,640 Speaker 6: could people come and make a shiva call for different neighbors. 303 00:14:37,240 --> 00:14:40,920 Speaker 6: Some have sons or daughters dead or missing. I just 304 00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:44,080 Speaker 6: today got a notification about a neighbor who's in her 305 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:47,000 Speaker 6: fifties I think, whose brother was murdered. They just found 306 00:14:47,040 --> 00:14:50,040 Speaker 6: his body, so she's sitting shiva. So there's that. The 307 00:14:50,080 --> 00:14:54,160 Speaker 6: streets are empty. Some of the restaurants after thirteen days 308 00:14:54,160 --> 00:14:57,600 Speaker 6: of war started reopening. As you mentioned, Joe Biden was 309 00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:01,640 Speaker 6: here yesterday. Today, the British Premi Rishi Sunak is here. 310 00:15:01,680 --> 00:15:05,120 Speaker 6: But the visit that has had really massive impact is 311 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:06,160 Speaker 6: Joe Biden. 312 00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 3: Explained to us why. 313 00:15:08,320 --> 00:15:12,400 Speaker 6: I think there are several reasons. I saw a headline 314 00:15:12,480 --> 00:15:16,000 Speaker 6: go by today on my screen that mentioned Joe Biden's 315 00:15:16,160 --> 00:15:19,560 Speaker 6: bad polls in the States or something right. And it's 316 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:22,240 Speaker 6: interesting to me because in Israel I think he would 317 00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:25,840 Speaker 6: be elected king right now. There are several reasons. One 318 00:15:26,080 --> 00:15:30,680 Speaker 6: is that Biden has a set of skills that are 319 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:34,440 Speaker 6: exactly what Israel requires right now, which is both of 320 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:40,920 Speaker 6: this combination of tremendous and absolutely authentic empathy and also 321 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:46,280 Speaker 6: some tough talk. Israelis have really absorbed him, standing and 322 00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:49,480 Speaker 6: talking about what it means to lose a relative, how 323 00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:52,920 Speaker 6: you will survive, and at the same time saying that 324 00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:58,040 Speaker 6: he supports the Israeli government's aim to destroy from us. 325 00:15:58,400 --> 00:16:01,160 Speaker 6: He said something else, which is that he really made 326 00:16:01,160 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 6: a demand that Israel acquiesced to certain humanitarian demands for 327 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:09,680 Speaker 6: the civilian population in Gaza. And that was I'd say ignored. 328 00:16:09,760 --> 00:16:12,560 Speaker 6: My most Israelis just they didn't likely hear it, and 329 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:17,400 Speaker 6: has been i mean received with rage by many hundreds 330 00:16:17,400 --> 00:16:21,120 Speaker 6: of people who have relatives who are presumed to be 331 00:16:21,240 --> 00:16:27,760 Speaker 6: hostages in Gaza, the Israeli families who have hostages in Gaza. 332 00:16:27,880 --> 00:16:30,000 Speaker 6: I don't know if everybody knows, but part of the 333 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:33,960 Speaker 6: Hamas attack on Israel and October seventh involved a very 334 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:39,760 Speaker 6: concerted plan to basically steal civilians and take them back 335 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:44,880 Speaker 6: to Gaza on motorbikes in minivans. And so we're talking 336 00:16:44,880 --> 00:16:47,680 Speaker 6: about seven month old babies, we're talking about eighty seven 337 00:16:47,760 --> 00:16:51,680 Speaker 6: year old grandma's. The families are panicking. The families are 338 00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:55,120 Speaker 6: panicking about the infants. They're panicking about people who require 339 00:16:55,200 --> 00:16:59,480 Speaker 6: daily medication, or who have chronic conditions like chromes. They're 340 00:16:59,520 --> 00:17:02,400 Speaker 6: just panic. Now, the Israeli government hasn't said a word, 341 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:05,960 Speaker 6: but the assumption among these families is that they're being 342 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:09,720 Speaker 6: held inhuman conditions, and many of them are in underground 343 00:17:09,760 --> 00:17:14,240 Speaker 6: tunnels that Hamas built so as to enable an invasion 344 00:17:14,280 --> 00:17:18,200 Speaker 6: of Israel, and therefore that if the Israeli army acts 345 00:17:18,280 --> 00:17:22,199 Speaker 6: against Hamas leadership that's hiding underground, it would also be 346 00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:28,600 Speaker 6: massacring these estimated two hundred Israelis. So both families are 347 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:32,199 Speaker 6: enraged that Biden had the goal to ask Israel to 348 00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:36,440 Speaker 6: make any kind of humanitarian gesture, even the most minimal, 349 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:40,320 Speaker 6: when they have heard nothing from their loved ones. The 350 00:17:40,359 --> 00:17:43,280 Speaker 6: Red Cross isn't allowed to visit them, Hamas is not 351 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:46,760 Speaker 6: making them available to the Red Cross, and they have 352 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:50,080 Speaker 6: had no news of them, and they are panicking. They're 353 00:17:50,119 --> 00:17:52,919 Speaker 6: counting the minutes, you know, until they think they're going 354 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:53,680 Speaker 6: to start dying. 355 00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:57,159 Speaker 1: I feel like we get so little news, like we 356 00:17:57,280 --> 00:18:01,120 Speaker 1: don't get exactly the news that you have, if that makes. 357 00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:01,760 Speaker 3: Sense, Sairn. 358 00:18:01,960 --> 00:18:06,639 Speaker 1: I thought that before the hospital saying, wasn't it true 359 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:08,480 Speaker 1: that they were going to release that? 360 00:18:08,520 --> 00:18:10,280 Speaker 3: They said they were going to release the hostages. 361 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:14,439 Speaker 6: No. Never, there was a single report made by a 362 00:18:14,520 --> 00:18:17,960 Speaker 6: very good reporter, Richard Engel of NBC. Yeah, and he 363 00:18:18,119 --> 00:18:22,480 Speaker 6: reported that a top Hamas official who he'd never named, 364 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:25,440 Speaker 6: had said to him that Hamas was willing to release 365 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:28,520 Speaker 6: all of the hostages within an hour. That's it. And 366 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:32,600 Speaker 6: for some reason, maybe because he's so renowned as a reporter, 367 00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:37,320 Speaker 6: that one report has gotten an immense amount of echo, right, 368 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:41,200 Speaker 6: And it's never been confirmed by any Commas person, by 369 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:44,800 Speaker 6: any Kamas spokesperson, by any Hamas leader. It's not what 370 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:48,160 Speaker 6: either the American government or the Israeli government is hearing. 371 00:18:48,560 --> 00:18:50,800 Speaker 6: And so I don't know what to say. 372 00:18:51,119 --> 00:18:53,639 Speaker 1: Let's talk about sort of the nuts and bolts of 373 00:18:53,680 --> 00:18:54,639 Speaker 1: what's happening now. 374 00:18:54,920 --> 00:18:56,159 Speaker 3: What is happening now? 375 00:18:56,440 --> 00:19:01,800 Speaker 6: On one hand, what's happening is this massive diplomatic envelope 376 00:19:01,800 --> 00:19:05,240 Speaker 6: around Israel. So a different head of state is arriving 377 00:19:05,240 --> 00:19:08,600 Speaker 6: here basically every day with this double message. One is 378 00:19:08,840 --> 00:19:12,120 Speaker 6: we're supporting you in your darkest hour and Israel will 379 00:19:12,160 --> 00:19:13,040 Speaker 6: never walk alone. 380 00:19:13,400 --> 00:19:15,600 Speaker 3: And the other is don't do it. 381 00:19:15,720 --> 00:19:19,160 Speaker 6: You're right, you're exactly. You're a member of the democratic 382 00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:23,800 Speaker 6: family of nations and you can't act like these terror organizations. Do. 383 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:26,240 Speaker 6: You have to keep to certain rules. 384 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:31,399 Speaker 1: This is really interesting because it's like the opposite. 385 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:32,600 Speaker 3: Of the Young Kipoor War. 386 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:38,560 Speaker 1: It was really Israel alone versus all of these Arab 387 00:19:38,680 --> 00:19:43,280 Speaker 1: nations surrounding it, and America and the more European country 388 00:19:43,359 --> 00:19:46,919 Speaker 1: is not interested in, you know, sort of having to 389 00:19:47,119 --> 00:19:48,760 Speaker 1: kind of be brought in. 390 00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:54,320 Speaker 6: Yes, absolutely that I can speak to. So Israel had 391 00:19:54,359 --> 00:19:57,360 Speaker 6: to all but beg At that time, it was President 392 00:19:57,440 --> 00:20:01,360 Speaker 6: Nixon and Secretary of State kissing your to send Israel 393 00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:06,320 Speaker 6: an airlift of American weapons. Israel almost ran out of 394 00:20:06,440 --> 00:20:10,760 Speaker 6: weaponry at that time. What's happening now is totally the 395 00:20:10,800 --> 00:20:14,439 Speaker 6: opposite in a sense that President Biden has almost taken 396 00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:17,800 Speaker 6: possession of this event. From the military point of view, 397 00:20:17,960 --> 00:20:22,360 Speaker 6: the US sent two fighter jet carriers to the Mediterranean 398 00:20:22,440 --> 00:20:25,400 Speaker 6: rough right off of the Israel's coast, and he has 399 00:20:25,600 --> 00:20:28,760 Speaker 6: announced a massive package of military aid to Israel, which 400 00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:31,720 Speaker 6: Israel did ask for, but he has declared that it 401 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:36,360 Speaker 6: will get And moreover, Joe Biden is perceived by Israelis 402 00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:39,119 Speaker 6: as credible when he says that he will do everything 403 00:20:39,160 --> 00:20:42,760 Speaker 6: he can to get the hostages back, and Nisania who 404 00:20:43,160 --> 00:20:45,800 Speaker 6: is not. And so one of the headlines today in 405 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:48,679 Speaker 6: Israel and Yadiota who notes that's just like, you know, 406 00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:51,880 Speaker 6: it's a very I think it's a top read newspaper 407 00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:55,200 Speaker 6: in Israel. At tablet it was what if we're not Americans? 408 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:58,000 Speaker 6: In other words, there are a small number of families 409 00:20:58,080 --> 00:21:01,560 Speaker 6: of people who have dual citizenship, where Gaza right and 410 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:03,240 Speaker 6: the other one is saying, what about us? 411 00:21:03,520 --> 00:21:07,119 Speaker 1: So this is a really interesting tension here. Net Yea, 412 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:10,200 Speaker 1: who is not a beloved leader, He is not. 413 00:21:11,640 --> 00:21:14,360 Speaker 3: Explain to us. This is like you have a president 414 00:21:14,480 --> 00:21:14,959 Speaker 3: like Trump. 415 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:16,840 Speaker 1: I mean, you don't have somebody where you feel like 416 00:21:16,880 --> 00:21:19,800 Speaker 1: this guy is doing it. And in fact, there was 417 00:21:19,840 --> 00:21:24,760 Speaker 1: a lot of reporting right after the carnage that, in 418 00:21:24,880 --> 00:21:29,000 Speaker 1: fact net Yea, who was not on the ball at all. 419 00:21:28,960 --> 00:21:31,600 Speaker 6: I don't think that's even a question right now. Nasania 420 00:21:31,760 --> 00:21:35,239 Speaker 6: is clearly not on the ball. He is clearly not 421 00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:38,520 Speaker 6: at the height of this event. And there are a 422 00:21:38,560 --> 00:21:41,840 Speaker 6: lot of paradoxes here absolutely so one is you're right, 423 00:21:42,000 --> 00:21:44,480 Speaker 6: Nazaniello has not been a popular leader for a very 424 00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:49,720 Speaker 6: long time. He's been tolerated by a large chunk of 425 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:53,160 Speaker 6: Israelis who I think are now paying i mean, an 426 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:57,359 Speaker 6: almost undescribable price for this sort of passivity for every 427 00:21:57,400 --> 00:22:01,439 Speaker 6: time Nataniell who broke the rules, or broke protocol or 428 00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:06,399 Speaker 6: did something else outrageous. Over the last certainly five six years, 429 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:10,280 Speaker 6: I think that both Israeli media and Israeli populous had 430 00:22:10,320 --> 00:22:13,800 Speaker 6: this attitude of there he goes again, bad boy, bbe 431 00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:17,679 Speaker 6: but whatever, you know, Like the economy was fine, life 432 00:22:17,680 --> 00:22:22,560 Speaker 6: in Israel was good, and many issues, many deep problems 433 00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:27,000 Speaker 6: in Nitzanelle's leadership that now have really i mean jumped 434 00:22:27,040 --> 00:22:30,320 Speaker 6: to the four were viewed as sort of like ignorable, 435 00:22:30,640 --> 00:22:34,840 Speaker 6: you know. And I'll give you some examples. In twenty eighteen, 436 00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:40,320 Speaker 6: Nitanielle found out that the police was investigating him for crimes. 437 00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:44,680 Speaker 3: Right, never so bad, so bad. 438 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:48,400 Speaker 6: He's not only an unpopular prime minister, He's not only 439 00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:51,840 Speaker 6: a prime minister who's polling before this war was like 440 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:55,639 Speaker 6: at twenty seven percent. But he's a prime minister who's 441 00:22:55,640 --> 00:22:58,879 Speaker 6: done everything within his power to destroy the institutions of 442 00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:01,920 Speaker 6: the state that he felt had no right to you know, 443 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:05,960 Speaker 6: quote unquote turn against him. So Natsanyahu did everything within 444 00:23:06,000 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 6: his power to destroy the Israel police. That was like 445 00:23:11,359 --> 00:23:14,639 Speaker 6: his first line of attack. Israel had no police commissioner 446 00:23:14,720 --> 00:23:17,879 Speaker 6: for years. There's budgets for the police have been slashed, 447 00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:21,879 Speaker 6: and I could go down the list. Nathaniel's latest government 448 00:23:22,040 --> 00:23:24,320 Speaker 6: that he formed, you know at the beginning of this year, 449 00:23:24,800 --> 00:23:28,520 Speaker 6: is to say it's extremist. Is it's sort of like 450 00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:32,840 Speaker 6: the Tea Party part of the House of Representatives right now. 451 00:23:33,920 --> 00:23:38,040 Speaker 6: His police minister, Itamar Benkvier, is a guy who never 452 00:23:38,119 --> 00:23:41,280 Speaker 6: before has held public office. His official title is Minister 453 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:45,119 Speaker 6: of National Security. This is his first job in public office. 454 00:23:45,200 --> 00:23:48,480 Speaker 6: And before this, he's a convicted to terrorist, a right 455 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:51,679 Speaker 6: wing terrorist. The guy was convicted eight times of terror 456 00:23:51,680 --> 00:23:54,520 Speaker 6: and hate crimes. That's who's in charge of these big 457 00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:59,240 Speaker 6: national institutions and mechanisms that israelis now badly need. This 458 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:06,200 Speaker 6: government has transferred funds from welfare to Nitzaniao's ultra orthodox 459 00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:11,440 Speaker 6: or settler West Bank settler adjacent coalition partners. To keep 460 00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:16,720 Speaker 6: his government alive. This government transferred, they relied on technology, 461 00:24:17,040 --> 00:24:22,760 Speaker 6: military technology. They transferred four military brigades from the border 462 00:24:22,840 --> 00:24:26,800 Speaker 6: area to the West Bank in order to offer military 463 00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:30,520 Speaker 6: support for illegal settlement settlements that are illegal even under 464 00:24:30,600 --> 00:24:35,119 Speaker 6: Israeli law, as part of Nitzaniao's finance minister's plan to 465 00:24:35,560 --> 00:24:39,640 Speaker 6: basically engage in a silent annexation of the West Bank, 466 00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:43,080 Speaker 6: the Palestinian West Bank. So what's happening now is that 467 00:24:43,160 --> 00:24:46,840 Speaker 6: all of these gimmicks and tricks and dirty tricks that 468 00:24:46,960 --> 00:24:51,119 Speaker 6: nitzania was engaged in very naturally over many years, now 469 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:54,520 Speaker 6: all of a sudden, the feeling is there's no state, 470 00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:56,760 Speaker 6: there's no emergency plan in place. 471 00:24:57,160 --> 00:24:57,400 Speaker 5: Right. 472 00:24:57,640 --> 00:25:01,080 Speaker 6: I can't describe to you. It's like a howly vacuum 473 00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:03,840 Speaker 6: in terms of the power of the state. And so 474 00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:07,280 Speaker 6: when Biden comes in and he's something simply you know, 475 00:25:07,359 --> 00:25:10,040 Speaker 6: he's tall, he's slim, he's dressed in a proper suit, 476 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:14,040 Speaker 6: and he walks in and he strings together coherent sentences 477 00:25:14,720 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 6: and he embraces the families of the hostages or survivors 478 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:22,239 Speaker 6: or families of people who were killed like he means it. 479 00:25:22,400 --> 00:25:24,120 Speaker 6: If you give me another minute, I want to tell 480 00:25:24,119 --> 00:25:25,880 Speaker 6: you about an incident that happened here. 481 00:25:26,200 --> 00:25:26,720 Speaker 3: Yeah. 482 00:25:26,760 --> 00:25:29,879 Speaker 6: So we're thirteen days into the war. Nataniellou has not 483 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:34,720 Speaker 6: yet had the guts to meet with Israeli public, not once. Crazy, 484 00:25:34,880 --> 00:25:38,480 Speaker 6: it's two weeks. He hasn't taken one question from one 485 00:25:38,560 --> 00:25:39,560 Speaker 6: Israeli journalist. 486 00:25:39,960 --> 00:25:40,240 Speaker 5: Zero. 487 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:44,720 Speaker 6: Okay, So he appears to have simply vanished. The criticism 488 00:25:44,760 --> 00:25:48,720 Speaker 6: against him is mounting, as you can imagine. And a 489 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:51,160 Speaker 6: few days ago I can't remember, but let's say three 490 00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:53,679 Speaker 6: four days ago or so, his office announced that he 491 00:25:53,760 --> 00:25:56,600 Speaker 6: was going to meet with five families who had hostages 492 00:25:56,640 --> 00:26:00,640 Speaker 6: presumed hostages held in Gaza. Now, just to make it clear, 493 00:26:00,720 --> 00:26:04,119 Speaker 6: these are people have no idea. Let's say their daughter 494 00:26:04,160 --> 00:26:06,679 Speaker 6: and her boyfriend went to a music festival in the 495 00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:09,280 Speaker 6: desert and they never heard from her again. Is she dead? 496 00:26:09,520 --> 00:26:13,320 Speaker 6: Is she being held hostage? Are there any commas torture 497 00:26:13,400 --> 00:26:16,520 Speaker 6: videos that show her like everyone is just in this terrible, 498 00:26:16,680 --> 00:26:17,479 Speaker 6: terrible limbo. 499 00:26:17,760 --> 00:26:19,600 Speaker 3: So are there videos out there? 500 00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:23,320 Speaker 6: Yeah, send enormous amount and they are the worst thing 501 00:26:23,359 --> 00:26:24,280 Speaker 6: you could ever see. 502 00:26:24,359 --> 00:26:24,719 Speaker 3: Yeah. 503 00:26:24,800 --> 00:26:29,160 Speaker 6: Yeah, So Nathaniel meets them in this super secure location 504 00:26:29,520 --> 00:26:32,480 Speaker 6: in the middle of the country all of these conditions, 505 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,200 Speaker 6: and the families were like handpicked for being the kind 506 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:37,040 Speaker 6: of families who are not going to have, you know, 507 00:26:37,080 --> 00:26:39,600 Speaker 6: a temper tantrum in front of him. And the whole 508 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:42,199 Speaker 6: thing is managed. And in the middle of this event, 509 00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:45,399 Speaker 6: a bearded guy shows up. No one's ever met him 510 00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:47,320 Speaker 6: four none of the found members have heard of him. 511 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:50,560 Speaker 6: And he's a bearded guy and he's wearing the a pipa. 512 00:26:50,600 --> 00:26:51,760 Speaker 6: He's a religious Jew. 513 00:26:52,160 --> 00:26:53,159 Speaker 3: Oh Jesus. 514 00:26:53,280 --> 00:26:55,000 Speaker 6: He just shows up as if this were like at 515 00:26:55,040 --> 00:26:57,080 Speaker 6: a cafe and anyone could drop it. 516 00:26:57,080 --> 00:27:00,920 Speaker 1: It's not smoothly boutish, no, but they're not far off, 517 00:27:01,119 --> 00:27:03,359 Speaker 1: molly right, because I see where this is going. 518 00:27:03,520 --> 00:27:05,760 Speaker 6: That's right, Okay, so you see us is now? So well, 519 00:27:05,800 --> 00:27:08,920 Speaker 6: what happens. I'll make it short. This guy stands there 520 00:27:09,040 --> 00:27:10,880 Speaker 6: and he says that he has a twelve year old 521 00:27:10,920 --> 00:27:14,119 Speaker 6: relative and unspecified relative being held in Gaza, and that 522 00:27:14,280 --> 00:27:17,760 Speaker 6: he is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice so as 523 00:27:17,880 --> 00:27:21,320 Speaker 6: to allow the Prime Minister to execute this war as 524 00:27:21,359 --> 00:27:24,399 Speaker 6: it must be pursued, all right, So he's basically saying, 525 00:27:24,400 --> 00:27:26,920 Speaker 6: you can kill her. And then he stands in front 526 00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:29,360 Speaker 6: of the premierter and he starts heaping in with praise, 527 00:27:29,600 --> 00:27:31,600 Speaker 6: and the families are there, and on the one hand, 528 00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:35,080 Speaker 6: maybe this is a family, right, they don't know, they're perplexed. 529 00:27:35,119 --> 00:27:37,440 Speaker 6: They don't say a word. Jump A day and a 530 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:42,200 Speaker 6: half later and an Israeli journalist called Aviad Glickman publishes 531 00:27:42,520 --> 00:27:47,200 Speaker 6: that this entire mortifying farce was engineered by the Prime 532 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:50,760 Speaker 6: Minister's office. The guy has no relatives who have been 533 00:27:50,800 --> 00:27:54,440 Speaker 6: affected in any way by the tragedy, no hostage, no death, 534 00:27:54,480 --> 00:27:57,920 Speaker 6: no nothing. He's the CEO of one of these marginal 535 00:27:58,320 --> 00:28:02,760 Speaker 6: weirdo right wing races groups called FONO, and he's like 536 00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 6: a die hard Nitzaniell fan. 537 00:28:04,880 --> 00:28:06,160 Speaker 3: So he's just full of shed. 538 00:28:06,520 --> 00:28:08,720 Speaker 6: Yeah, I didn't know I could say that on your podcast. 539 00:28:09,080 --> 00:28:09,480 Speaker 3: You can. 540 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:12,240 Speaker 1: Yes, he's full of shit. He just wants war. He 541 00:28:12,280 --> 00:28:14,080 Speaker 1: doesn't have a relative, he just wants war. 542 00:28:14,320 --> 00:28:17,280 Speaker 6: Well, I think it's worse again. I mean, forgive my 543 00:28:17,400 --> 00:28:19,320 Speaker 6: language that I pick. What he wants is to kiss 544 00:28:19,320 --> 00:28:21,920 Speaker 6: the Prime Minister's ass and to make sure the Prime 545 00:28:21,960 --> 00:28:26,040 Speaker 6: Minister sees him kissing his ass. I think Natana, who 546 00:28:26,080 --> 00:28:30,719 Speaker 6: over the years has nurtured this smallish group of fanatic 547 00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:34,520 Speaker 6: like ultra fans, and they're willing to do anything, no 548 00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:38,320 Speaker 6: matter how treasonous, and no matter how harmful, and no 549 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:42,720 Speaker 6: matter how humiliating, to make him happy. It astonishes even me, 550 00:28:42,840 --> 00:28:45,480 Speaker 6: Like I've spent most of my career covering Natanielle, and 551 00:28:45,640 --> 00:28:48,560 Speaker 6: I have to say I am left mute by the 552 00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:53,000 Speaker 6: fact that his one encounter with a very small number 553 00:28:53,040 --> 00:28:56,960 Speaker 6: of Israeli citizens in the last two weeks, his single encounter, 554 00:28:57,360 --> 00:29:01,760 Speaker 6: in fact, was an attempt to nilate them and humiliate them. 555 00:29:01,840 --> 00:29:02,400 Speaker 6: And that's it. 556 00:29:02,560 --> 00:29:03,880 Speaker 3: That is pretty craven. 557 00:29:04,320 --> 00:29:07,360 Speaker 1: It must be really scary to be Israeli and to 558 00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:09,960 Speaker 1: not trust your government when you desperately need them. 559 00:29:10,120 --> 00:29:14,640 Speaker 6: It's terrifying on every level. The army failed, military intelligence failed, 560 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:18,200 Speaker 6: the government has failed on every level, and so people, 561 00:29:18,360 --> 00:29:20,720 Speaker 6: you know, you have people in Tel Aviv like scouring 562 00:29:20,760 --> 00:29:25,680 Speaker 6: the black market to buy ceramic high tech ceramic flat jackets. 563 00:29:25,880 --> 00:29:30,360 Speaker 6: People feel unsafe in the most basic physical level all 564 00:29:30,360 --> 00:29:33,880 Speaker 6: over the country, not just where they're shooting. They're terrified. 565 00:29:34,080 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 6: And in addition, there's this feeling that I'm trying to 566 00:29:37,160 --> 00:29:40,040 Speaker 6: describe that is of a vacuum, like you look up 567 00:29:40,040 --> 00:29:42,720 Speaker 6: and you look for where's the state, and there's nothing. 568 00:29:42,720 --> 00:29:45,680 Speaker 6: And there's a huge irony behind this, which is that, 569 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:48,840 Speaker 6: as you and I have talked about, Natagnell Over last 570 00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:52,480 Speaker 6: year was trying to basically perpetrate a coups de tat 571 00:29:52,920 --> 00:29:55,440 Speaker 6: and pass a series of laws which would make Israel 572 00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 6: authoritarian and keep power forever. A huge protest movement arose 573 00:30:00,120 --> 00:30:03,480 Speaker 6: against this, and a big chunk of that protest movement 574 00:30:03,880 --> 00:30:07,920 Speaker 6: were military reservists who were saying, basically, We're not going 575 00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:09,360 Speaker 6: to go to war for this son of a bitch. 576 00:30:09,720 --> 00:30:12,520 Speaker 6: We have a contract with the army of a democratic state. 577 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:15,760 Speaker 6: This is over, and they organize these massive protests and 578 00:30:15,840 --> 00:30:19,520 Speaker 6: what they have done is established a kind of shadowed state. 579 00:30:19,680 --> 00:30:23,440 Speaker 6: So in Tel Aviv, the entire this huge convention center, 580 00:30:23,520 --> 00:30:28,080 Speaker 6: the expo grounds are now this huge emergency services center 581 00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:36,520 Speaker 6: run by these former protesters, and they're providing basic emergency services, transportation, food, clothing. 582 00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:39,840 Speaker 6: I don't know how many Israelis are displaced now. Anyway, 583 00:30:39,920 --> 00:30:42,920 Speaker 6: the people have taken over are these same people who 584 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:46,360 Speaker 6: were trying to save the country from Nitaiao before, and 585 00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:48,480 Speaker 6: now they've jumped in and taken his place, and they 586 00:30:48,520 --> 00:30:52,120 Speaker 6: have all of these logistical and organizational abilities because these 587 00:30:52,120 --> 00:30:54,240 Speaker 6: are people served in the army for decades and they 588 00:30:54,280 --> 00:30:55,440 Speaker 6: have the experience. 589 00:30:55,720 --> 00:30:59,440 Speaker 1: This is the coalition government. We're out of time. I 590 00:30:59,480 --> 00:31:02,760 Speaker 1: hope you will come back. My heart breaks for your 591 00:31:02,800 --> 00:31:08,000 Speaker 1: situation and for what's happening. And I really appreciate you 592 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:10,240 Speaker 1: your giving us news that we're not seeing anywhere else. 593 00:31:10,400 --> 00:31:12,560 Speaker 6: Well. I really appreciate being able to talk with you. 594 00:31:12,880 --> 00:31:13,600 Speaker 6: It means a lot. 595 00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:14,240 Speaker 3: Thank you. 596 00:31:16,400 --> 00:31:20,720 Speaker 1: Robert Mann is the former Louisiana State University Chair of 597 00:31:20,760 --> 00:31:26,640 Speaker 1: Journalism and author of Kingfish, You, Huey Long and LSU. 598 00:31:27,120 --> 00:31:30,600 Speaker 1: Welcome to Fast Politics. Professor Robert Mann. 599 00:31:30,680 --> 00:31:31,520 Speaker 5: Good to be with you, Molly. 600 00:31:31,800 --> 00:31:33,440 Speaker 3: Explain a little bit what happened. 601 00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:36,640 Speaker 5: Well, almost two years ago, in December of twenty one, 602 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:39,280 Speaker 5: I and some other faculty members were pushing my institution, 603 00:31:39,400 --> 00:31:43,040 Speaker 5: Louisiana State University, to topping up its COVID policies. We 604 00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:45,440 Speaker 5: had a lot of students and some faculty who were 605 00:31:45,480 --> 00:31:48,240 Speaker 5: refusing to get the vaccine. We had been active in 606 00:31:48,520 --> 00:31:51,680 Speaker 5: forcing the university to impose a vaccine mandate that really 607 00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:55,160 Speaker 5: made Jeff Landry, then the Attorney general now the governor elect, 608 00:31:55,320 --> 00:31:58,719 Speaker 5: pretty angry. And we were pushing to require those who 609 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:00,760 Speaker 5: didn't choose to get the vaccine, have to do weekly 610 00:32:00,840 --> 00:32:03,280 Speaker 5: testing and go through jump through some other hoops to 611 00:32:03,600 --> 00:32:05,320 Speaker 5: just keep us all safe. This was in the midst 612 00:32:05,320 --> 00:32:10,680 Speaker 5: of a worldwide pandemic, so Landry sends a person on 613 00:32:10,720 --> 00:32:13,240 Speaker 5: his staff to the faculty sent a meeting that day 614 00:32:13,280 --> 00:32:15,360 Speaker 5: to read a letter that was full of misinformation and 615 00:32:15,400 --> 00:32:17,960 Speaker 5: out write lies about the vaccine. And I was there 616 00:32:18,000 --> 00:32:20,600 Speaker 5: and just tweeted that it's kind of ironic that he 617 00:32:20,600 --> 00:32:23,480 Speaker 5: would send a flunky to read a letter full of 618 00:32:23,520 --> 00:32:26,680 Speaker 5: lies about a life saving vaccine while he simultaneously calls 619 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:29,240 Speaker 5: himself a pro life politician. He took offense at that 620 00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:32,480 Speaker 5: and went to the university president and demanded that he 621 00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:33,920 Speaker 5: will At first, he called him and then wrote him 622 00:32:33,920 --> 00:32:36,960 Speaker 5: a letter demanding that I be reprimanded or punished for that. 623 00:32:37,200 --> 00:32:40,160 Speaker 5: And that's when I begin thinking that probably one day, 624 00:32:40,280 --> 00:32:42,400 Speaker 5: not too far in the future, I might need to 625 00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:44,920 Speaker 5: be planning my exit strategy. Because it's one thing to 626 00:32:44,960 --> 00:32:47,080 Speaker 5: get a call from an attorney general who doesn't control 627 00:32:47,120 --> 00:32:49,040 Speaker 5: your budget. It's another thing to get a call from 628 00:32:49,280 --> 00:32:52,000 Speaker 5: a governor or a governor elect who very much does 629 00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:55,280 Speaker 5: control your budget and a points reward. This was a 630 00:32:55,280 --> 00:32:57,560 Speaker 5: decision that I feared that I might have to make eventually, 631 00:32:57,600 --> 00:32:59,840 Speaker 5: and so when I saw that there wasn't even going 632 00:32:59,880 --> 00:33:01,720 Speaker 5: to run off, it was pretty clear what I needed 633 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:02,000 Speaker 5: to do. 634 00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:05,120 Speaker 1: What has happened to you is exactly what tenure is 635 00:33:05,160 --> 00:33:06,240 Speaker 1: supposed to prevent. 636 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:09,640 Speaker 5: Yeah, tenure, And I think the First Amendment. A one 637 00:33:09,800 --> 00:33:12,000 Speaker 5: thing that I believe is that even if I didn't 638 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:14,560 Speaker 5: have tenure, what people like me do and say is 639 00:33:14,600 --> 00:33:16,320 Speaker 5: also protected by the Constitution. 640 00:33:16,800 --> 00:33:20,240 Speaker 1: The whole point I mean, obviously the First Amendment protect 641 00:33:20,240 --> 00:33:23,280 Speaker 1: your speech. I was married to someone who now works 642 00:33:23,280 --> 00:33:26,560 Speaker 1: in business but was an academic. The whole point of 643 00:33:26,640 --> 00:33:30,479 Speaker 1: tenure is to protect your academic speech right so that 644 00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,240 Speaker 1: you can do the scary research. You can do the 645 00:33:33,240 --> 00:33:38,040 Speaker 1: things that otherwise an untenured professor might not feel comfortable doing, 646 00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:42,360 Speaker 1: and that cannot happen here right right. 647 00:33:42,440 --> 00:33:45,160 Speaker 5: And I would argue that I was engaging more in 648 00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:48,360 Speaker 5: political speech, which I probably would would rely more on 649 00:33:48,400 --> 00:33:50,720 Speaker 5: the First Amendment than my tenure. But I think it 650 00:33:50,920 --> 00:33:52,959 Speaker 5: kind of was double protection. But there are a lot 651 00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:54,960 Speaker 5: of people on this, you know, on our faculty and 652 00:33:55,040 --> 00:33:57,360 Speaker 5: other faculty around the state, who are doing the kind 653 00:33:57,400 --> 00:33:59,680 Speaker 5: of research that I'm sure Governor like Landry would not 654 00:33:59,680 --> 00:34:02,920 Speaker 5: approve and other Republicans in the legislature do not approve 655 00:34:02,920 --> 00:34:06,520 Speaker 5: of climate change and other issues that will have fallen 656 00:34:06,520 --> 00:34:09,560 Speaker 5: into disfavor with that side. And they're going to be 657 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:13,919 Speaker 5: I think, really careful, if not very fearful of speaking out, 658 00:34:14,239 --> 00:34:16,320 Speaker 5: not nor only engaging in that resoarch, but just speaking, 659 00:34:16,360 --> 00:34:18,680 Speaker 5: you know, just sharing it with the public or talking 660 00:34:18,680 --> 00:34:21,439 Speaker 5: about it in forums like these, Worried that they're going 661 00:34:21,480 --> 00:34:23,759 Speaker 5: to incur the wrath of the guy who sets their 662 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,680 Speaker 5: budget and provides the money for their research. And you know, 663 00:34:26,680 --> 00:34:27,919 Speaker 5: a lot of them are just going to leave because 664 00:34:27,920 --> 00:34:29,239 Speaker 5: they're not going to put up with that. Even if 665 00:34:29,320 --> 00:34:32,600 Speaker 5: tenure is not destroyed or curtailed in this state, they're 666 00:34:32,600 --> 00:34:34,319 Speaker 5: going to you know, they've got grant money, they've got 667 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:37,640 Speaker 5: NIF funds, so they can take other places. Other universities 668 00:34:37,680 --> 00:34:40,040 Speaker 5: and free states will be happy to welcome them. So 669 00:34:40,120 --> 00:34:42,360 Speaker 5: they'll they'll leave, and what will be left as a 670 00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:46,240 Speaker 5: diminished institution that's just run by political whim. 671 00:34:45,880 --> 00:34:50,600 Speaker 1: Now you know this governor, you have sort of seen 672 00:34:50,800 --> 00:34:54,640 Speaker 1: who he is, So what what do you think this means? 673 00:34:54,680 --> 00:34:55,960 Speaker 1: What do you think he's going to be like as 674 00:34:56,000 --> 00:34:56,520 Speaker 1: a governor? 675 00:34:56,880 --> 00:35:00,480 Speaker 5: Well, I mean, he's a full blown culture warrior. People 676 00:35:00,600 --> 00:35:02,799 Speaker 5: who asked me that question here, I said, just you know, look, 677 00:35:02,880 --> 00:35:05,960 Speaker 5: look to Florida is what is cassandas done. I think 678 00:35:05,960 --> 00:35:08,920 Speaker 5: you can expect Landry to probably do pretty much the 679 00:35:08,960 --> 00:35:11,600 Speaker 5: same thing here. It's you know, going to be culture 680 00:35:11,640 --> 00:35:14,239 Speaker 5: war twenty four hours a day, all day long. That's 681 00:35:14,280 --> 00:35:16,879 Speaker 5: what he's done for the last eight years or so. 682 00:35:17,200 --> 00:35:18,960 Speaker 5: And he toned it down a lot in the election. 683 00:35:19,080 --> 00:35:21,319 Speaker 5: I think, you know, politically, that was a smart move 684 00:35:21,360 --> 00:35:24,520 Speaker 5: because he didn't make that a big part of his election, 685 00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:27,200 Speaker 5: and so people were kind of lulled in this ball security. 686 00:35:27,280 --> 00:35:28,880 Speaker 5: This is just a guy who cares about me and 687 00:35:28,920 --> 00:35:31,880 Speaker 5: my family and helping me get a better job. But 688 00:35:31,920 --> 00:35:33,880 Speaker 5: he's very very much a culture warrior. He's going to 689 00:35:33,920 --> 00:35:37,680 Speaker 5: come after liberal faculty of quote unquote liberal institutions. I 690 00:35:37,680 --> 00:35:40,359 Speaker 5: think that any hope that there would be any liberalization 691 00:35:40,560 --> 00:35:46,440 Speaker 5: or any sensible movement back toward bodily autonomy for women 692 00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:48,600 Speaker 5: in the state is gone. We've got one of the 693 00:35:48,640 --> 00:35:52,879 Speaker 5: most draconian laws that was you know, ironically signed into 694 00:35:52,960 --> 00:35:55,360 Speaker 5: law by a Democratic governor last year. That's going to 695 00:35:55,360 --> 00:35:57,840 Speaker 5: make it really hard for women to have any assurance 696 00:35:57,840 --> 00:35:59,160 Speaker 5: that they have control of their bodies. And I think 697 00:35:59,160 --> 00:36:01,880 Speaker 5: it's going to make it hard for Landry to recruit 698 00:36:01,960 --> 00:36:03,680 Speaker 5: new business into the state, and it's going to make 699 00:36:03,680 --> 00:36:07,000 Speaker 5: it harder for institutis like LSU to recruit new faculty 700 00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:07,640 Speaker 5: into the state. 701 00:36:08,040 --> 00:36:11,440 Speaker 1: So one of the things that happened in Florida was 702 00:36:11,920 --> 00:36:18,200 Speaker 1: Ron DeSantis or Ron DeSantis depending on his whim, is 703 00:36:18,239 --> 00:36:22,360 Speaker 1: that he turned New College, which was this jewel of 704 00:36:22,400 --> 00:36:27,600 Speaker 1: an institution, into a kind of testing ground for a 705 00:36:27,640 --> 00:36:35,279 Speaker 1: lot of really reactionary, kind of Hillsdale style education. Do 706 00:36:35,320 --> 00:36:38,480 Speaker 1: you worry about the institutions in Louisiana. 707 00:36:38,280 --> 00:36:43,359 Speaker 5: I do. And so constitutionally, the governor cannot just come 708 00:36:43,360 --> 00:36:47,040 Speaker 5: in and wipe out the governing board of LSU, like 709 00:36:47,080 --> 00:36:49,399 Speaker 5: I believe DeSantis was able to do in some way 710 00:36:49,719 --> 00:36:53,520 Speaker 5: their staggered terms. So it would probably be halfway through 711 00:36:53,520 --> 00:36:56,160 Speaker 5: his second term when he would have finally appointed every 712 00:36:56,200 --> 00:36:59,440 Speaker 5: member of the LSU board. The reality is that what 713 00:36:59,520 --> 00:37:02,919 Speaker 5: happened after Bobby Jendall, the Republican governor who proceeded John 714 00:37:02,960 --> 00:37:05,600 Speaker 5: Bell Edwards. When Edwards came into office, about half of 715 00:37:05,719 --> 00:37:08,600 Speaker 5: the Gendall appointees went to the new Democratic governor and 716 00:37:08,800 --> 00:37:11,920 Speaker 5: switched jerseys and pledged their allegiance and got reappointed. And 717 00:37:11,960 --> 00:37:14,520 Speaker 5: I suspect that a lot of these John Bell Edwards 718 00:37:15,040 --> 00:37:18,040 Speaker 5: appointees to the LSU governing board are going to have, 719 00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:21,840 Speaker 5: if not already, they will soon go and pledge their allegiance, 720 00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:24,400 Speaker 5: been the knee and kiss the ring and become Landry 721 00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:26,960 Speaker 5: people because they're just plumb appointments and people want them 722 00:37:26,960 --> 00:37:29,480 Speaker 5: and they'll do whatever it takes to stay on the board. 723 00:37:29,800 --> 00:37:32,800 Speaker 5: So at some point I think Landry, if he wants, 724 00:37:33,000 --> 00:37:36,480 Speaker 5: could do very much like what DeSantis has done in Florida. 725 00:37:36,560 --> 00:37:41,719 Speaker 1: Louisiana has had film companies boycott the state before, so 726 00:37:41,840 --> 00:37:46,840 Speaker 1: there is a precedent for a kind of over zealous 727 00:37:47,320 --> 00:37:49,479 Speaker 1: autocratic rule of the state. 728 00:37:49,719 --> 00:37:52,040 Speaker 5: Yes, what troubles me a little bit is that, and 729 00:37:52,080 --> 00:37:53,879 Speaker 5: I think we've seen it in other states that North 730 00:37:53,920 --> 00:37:56,200 Speaker 5: Carolina before. You know, a few years ago, when they 731 00:37:56,200 --> 00:37:59,120 Speaker 5: were on the cusp of passing the law to ban 732 00:37:59,360 --> 00:38:01,799 Speaker 5: gender affirming care, they backed off because of those kind 733 00:38:01,840 --> 00:38:05,240 Speaker 5: of threats. The same happened in Louisiana and then everything 734 00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:08,160 Speaker 5: sort of collapsed and those laws went into effect, and 735 00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:10,520 Speaker 5: there's been a few boycotts here in Louisiana, and I'm 736 00:38:10,560 --> 00:38:13,439 Speaker 5: assuming places like North Carolina, but it kind of petered out, 737 00:38:13,719 --> 00:38:16,040 Speaker 5: and you know, I worry that the energy on the 738 00:38:16,080 --> 00:38:19,400 Speaker 5: other side for you know, making it painful for states 739 00:38:19,400 --> 00:38:21,600 Speaker 5: that do that is kind of is kind of dissipating 740 00:38:21,600 --> 00:38:23,640 Speaker 5: a little bit. I just don't see it here in Louisiana. 741 00:38:23,680 --> 00:38:25,840 Speaker 5: Maybe it'll get a second win, but so far it 742 00:38:25,880 --> 00:38:27,920 Speaker 5: hasn't been as pronounced as I thought it would be. 743 00:38:28,239 --> 00:38:30,640 Speaker 1: You were worried that the sort of the Democratic Party 744 00:38:30,680 --> 00:38:31,680 Speaker 1: in Louisiana is. 745 00:38:31,640 --> 00:38:33,919 Speaker 3: Sort of a little bit exhausted. Is that you're. 746 00:38:33,840 --> 00:38:38,800 Speaker 5: Feeling exhausted would be a vast improvement. It's a corrupt entity, 747 00:38:38,960 --> 00:38:39,839 Speaker 5: is a better way to put it. 748 00:38:39,960 --> 00:38:42,880 Speaker 3: Even though they got John Bell Edwards elected. 749 00:38:42,680 --> 00:38:46,400 Speaker 5: Well, that was probably more Edwards than the party. Edwards 750 00:38:46,480 --> 00:38:49,120 Speaker 5: was a Democrat who was basically created in a lab 751 00:38:49,200 --> 00:38:51,560 Speaker 5: to get elected in states like Louisiana. You know, had 752 00:38:51,600 --> 00:38:54,200 Speaker 5: the perfect profile in every way. We'll never have another 753 00:38:54,200 --> 00:38:56,880 Speaker 5: one like Kim any time soon. But he was elected 754 00:38:56,920 --> 00:38:59,200 Speaker 5: in spite of the party. The party leaders were not 755 00:38:59,600 --> 00:39:02,279 Speaker 5: all that particularly supportive of him because they didn't think 756 00:39:02,280 --> 00:39:04,000 Speaker 5: he could win, and they tried to talk him out 757 00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:06,040 Speaker 5: of the race. Because a lot of history you don't 758 00:39:06,080 --> 00:39:09,320 Speaker 5: really want to know. But he came into office estranged 759 00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:12,120 Speaker 5: from the Democratic Party and never spent any time trying 760 00:39:12,160 --> 00:39:14,120 Speaker 5: to build it or even take it over. The previous 761 00:39:14,160 --> 00:39:16,840 Speaker 5: party chairs in prison right now, and the current party 762 00:39:16,920 --> 00:39:19,759 Speaker 5: chair is a quasi Republican who spent most of her 763 00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:22,680 Speaker 5: time tried to undermine Democrats and install people that were 764 00:39:22,719 --> 00:39:25,440 Speaker 5: loyal to her, and even at a brief dalliance in 765 00:39:25,440 --> 00:39:27,960 Speaker 5: the spring with running for governor herself. It was just 766 00:39:28,000 --> 00:39:30,560 Speaker 5: a cluster from beginning to end this year with the party, 767 00:39:30,640 --> 00:39:32,560 Speaker 5: and it has no credibility and it needs to be 768 00:39:32,600 --> 00:39:36,080 Speaker 5: blown up and destroyed and rebuilt on a firmer foundation 769 00:39:36,160 --> 00:39:39,439 Speaker 5: because it just has no ability to get, no credibility 770 00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:42,840 Speaker 5: to advance democratic causes in the state in his current iteration. 771 00:39:43,200 --> 00:39:44,839 Speaker 1: You know, you see this in a lot of state 772 00:39:44,920 --> 00:39:48,960 Speaker 1: party as Florida as a really problematic Democratic straight party, 773 00:39:49,000 --> 00:39:53,000 Speaker 1: though supposedly getting better. This is not as unusual as 774 00:39:53,040 --> 00:39:55,880 Speaker 1: you might want it to be. Is there other stuff 775 00:39:55,920 --> 00:39:58,640 Speaker 1: you've seen that where you were like, this is going 776 00:39:58,719 --> 00:40:01,359 Speaker 1: to be bad about this guy, or is it? I mean, 777 00:40:01,600 --> 00:40:05,280 Speaker 1: is there anything that has really just sort of shocked you? 778 00:40:05,800 --> 00:40:09,279 Speaker 5: It's more his style that I think has alarmed a 779 00:40:09,280 --> 00:40:11,319 Speaker 5: lot of people. I mean, this is a pugnacious guy 780 00:40:11,320 --> 00:40:15,160 Speaker 5: who plays hardball politics, and I think he is very 781 00:40:15,239 --> 00:40:17,680 Speaker 5: much Trumpian in his in his approach to politics. So 782 00:40:17,719 --> 00:40:19,960 Speaker 5: I think there's going to be a lot of bullying. 783 00:40:20,200 --> 00:40:22,759 Speaker 5: And you know, I have people who have told me, 784 00:40:22,760 --> 00:40:25,279 Speaker 5: don't worry. There's a lot of moderate Republicans in the 785 00:40:25,360 --> 00:40:27,200 Speaker 5: legislature who are not going to go along with him, 786 00:40:27,239 --> 00:40:29,560 Speaker 5: and it's not going to be as easy. And I'm thinking, 787 00:40:29,560 --> 00:40:31,680 Speaker 5: you know, I don't think you fully appreciate what a 788 00:40:31,719 --> 00:40:33,719 Speaker 5: bully this guy is and how he is willing to 789 00:40:33,800 --> 00:40:36,480 Speaker 5: use the levers of power to punish his enemies. I 790 00:40:36,480 --> 00:40:39,080 Speaker 5: think people are going to be surprised by just how 791 00:40:39,280 --> 00:40:41,160 Speaker 5: authoritarian he's going to turn out to be. 792 00:40:41,640 --> 00:40:44,920 Speaker 1: Yeah, we've seen again and again more people have said 793 00:40:45,000 --> 00:40:48,040 Speaker 1: don't worry, the guard rails will hold, and a lot 794 00:40:48,080 --> 00:40:51,640 Speaker 1: of times that has really it's just been sort of 795 00:40:51,760 --> 00:40:52,880 Speaker 1: bare lay holding. 796 00:40:53,360 --> 00:40:53,520 Speaker 4: Yeah. 797 00:40:53,560 --> 00:40:55,040 Speaker 5: I think that's right. And I think I think people 798 00:40:55,040 --> 00:40:58,520 Speaker 5: are underestimating Landry. They've underestimated Trump, and Landry is a 799 00:40:58,560 --> 00:41:01,200 Speaker 5: more disciplined, arder version of that. 800 00:41:01,280 --> 00:41:02,399 Speaker 4: I think that is. 801 00:41:02,360 --> 00:41:04,400 Speaker 1: Sort of the nightmare that was always in my night 802 00:41:04,520 --> 00:41:06,840 Speaker 1: row with DeSantis when he was running for president, was 803 00:41:06,880 --> 00:41:10,040 Speaker 1: here is Trump without the chaos? You know? 804 00:41:10,440 --> 00:41:13,319 Speaker 5: Yeah, I think that Landry he really has lulled people 805 00:41:13,360 --> 00:41:15,440 Speaker 5: into a false security and I think the election his 806 00:41:15,840 --> 00:41:19,040 Speaker 5: campaign really I mean, he portrayed himself as this sort 807 00:41:19,040 --> 00:41:21,279 Speaker 5: of moderate, mainstream guy and a lot of people felt 808 00:41:21,320 --> 00:41:23,560 Speaker 5: for it. But that's just not him. And if anybody 809 00:41:23,719 --> 00:41:26,440 Speaker 5: was paying attention to him in the last five or 810 00:41:26,480 --> 00:41:28,920 Speaker 5: six years, they would know better. He's going to quickly 811 00:41:28,960 --> 00:41:31,360 Speaker 5: revert back to form. This was just a facade that 812 00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:33,560 Speaker 5: he had to create, and it worked really well. I mean, 813 00:41:33,640 --> 00:41:35,319 Speaker 5: my god, no one thought he could get fifty two 814 00:41:35,320 --> 00:41:36,920 Speaker 5: percent of the vote in the first primary. 815 00:41:36,920 --> 00:41:37,760 Speaker 4: That's just crazy. 816 00:41:37,840 --> 00:41:40,000 Speaker 5: Yeah, yeah, a lot likely, Youngkin exactly. 817 00:41:40,239 --> 00:41:42,440 Speaker 1: Yeah, I was hoping you could talk about he really 818 00:41:42,480 --> 00:41:47,440 Speaker 1: did actually kind of overperform. He did really really good numbers. 819 00:41:47,480 --> 00:41:49,879 Speaker 1: I'm just curious why you think that is. 820 00:41:50,040 --> 00:41:51,759 Speaker 5: At least two things. I think one was that the 821 00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:55,879 Speaker 5: Democrats just did not offer any coherent opposition to him, 822 00:41:55,920 --> 00:41:58,279 Speaker 5: and I think part of it was because everyone assumed 823 00:41:58,440 --> 00:42:00,640 Speaker 5: that there would be a runoff that would be the 824 00:42:00,640 --> 00:42:03,960 Speaker 5: real engagement. Sean Wilson, the Democrat, was underfunded, so he 825 00:42:04,040 --> 00:42:05,880 Speaker 5: wasn't going to spend a lot of money in the 826 00:42:05,920 --> 00:42:08,239 Speaker 5: primary because he thought that the runoff spot was his 827 00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:10,200 Speaker 5: for the asking, and it should have been. I mean, 828 00:42:10,239 --> 00:42:13,040 Speaker 5: the state's thirty three percent African American. You should be 829 00:42:13,080 --> 00:42:15,319 Speaker 5: able to get in a runoff without any problem, but 830 00:42:15,360 --> 00:42:17,080 Speaker 5: I think there was. The other assumption was that on 831 00:42:17,120 --> 00:42:19,759 Speaker 5: the Republican side that they would be fractured more than 832 00:42:19,800 --> 00:42:22,600 Speaker 5: they were, and that Landry would Flandery and before other 833 00:42:22,840 --> 00:42:25,200 Speaker 5: Republican opponents would split the votes, so Landry would come 834 00:42:25,200 --> 00:42:27,520 Speaker 5: out ahead, but the others would get a pretty big chunk. 835 00:42:27,640 --> 00:42:29,600 Speaker 5: No one else got over six percent of the vote, 836 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:33,000 Speaker 5: and Landry played it pretty smart because he only participated 837 00:42:33,000 --> 00:42:36,359 Speaker 5: in one debate, so there was just no opportunity for 838 00:42:36,400 --> 00:42:40,080 Speaker 5: anyone to personally attack him while they shared a stage, 839 00:42:40,200 --> 00:42:43,400 Speaker 5: and so he really cleverly, I think, toned down the 840 00:42:43,400 --> 00:42:46,960 Speaker 5: election and ran this front runner race, this sort of 841 00:42:47,120 --> 00:42:49,719 Speaker 5: rose garden strategy from beginning to end, and it worked 842 00:42:49,719 --> 00:42:50,520 Speaker 5: perfectly for him. 843 00:42:50,719 --> 00:42:52,040 Speaker 3: What are you going to do now? 844 00:42:52,360 --> 00:42:53,120 Speaker 4: You know, I'm. 845 00:42:53,040 --> 00:42:56,120 Speaker 5: Fortunate that I have enough years that I can retire 846 00:42:56,320 --> 00:42:59,279 Speaker 5: and not have to worry about feeding my family, and 847 00:42:59,400 --> 00:43:01,759 Speaker 5: I write books, so I've got a bunch of book 848 00:43:01,760 --> 00:43:04,400 Speaker 5: projects and the works and have more time for that, 849 00:43:04,480 --> 00:43:06,480 Speaker 5: and I may, you know, I still think I have 850 00:43:06,520 --> 00:43:08,839 Speaker 5: a few years of teaching in me, so I may 851 00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:11,880 Speaker 5: go find someplace to finish out my career, not in Louisiana, 852 00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:14,360 Speaker 5: but maybe somewhere else. But if not, I'm happy just 853 00:43:14,400 --> 00:43:17,279 Speaker 5: focusing on my writing and hopefully spending a little bit 854 00:43:17,280 --> 00:43:19,439 Speaker 5: more time doing fun stuff that I haven't been able 855 00:43:19,440 --> 00:43:19,680 Speaker 5: to do. 856 00:43:20,000 --> 00:43:22,520 Speaker 1: Would you just like tell our listeners what you think 857 00:43:22,520 --> 00:43:24,319 Speaker 1: this sort of lesson year is. 858 00:43:24,719 --> 00:43:25,799 Speaker 4: For people in Louisiana. 859 00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:28,799 Speaker 5: The thing that I hope that my activism that I've 860 00:43:28,840 --> 00:43:31,440 Speaker 5: engaged in for a long time, but the statement that 861 00:43:31,480 --> 00:43:34,680 Speaker 5: my retirement makes is that we really need to care 862 00:43:34,920 --> 00:43:37,520 Speaker 5: about these institutions. For a lot of people in Louisiana, 863 00:43:37,760 --> 00:43:40,320 Speaker 5: when they hear a Louisiana State University, they think of football, 864 00:43:40,400 --> 00:43:43,200 Speaker 5: and it seems that that is really the part of 865 00:43:43,200 --> 00:43:46,560 Speaker 5: the institution that people really care about and demand excellence from. 866 00:43:46,600 --> 00:43:49,480 Speaker 5: And I just feel that we don't begin to understand 867 00:43:49,480 --> 00:43:52,279 Speaker 5: how important these institutions are to our state toward the 868 00:43:52,280 --> 00:43:54,640 Speaker 5: future of our state. We've got tremendous brain drain here 869 00:43:54,640 --> 00:43:57,080 Speaker 5: in Louisiana. The young people are fleeing and by the 870 00:43:57,239 --> 00:44:00,680 Speaker 5: thousands every day. And I hope that at some point 871 00:44:00,800 --> 00:44:04,200 Speaker 5: people begin to connect the failure of our education institutions, 872 00:44:04,280 --> 00:44:07,120 Speaker 5: particularly our higher education institutions, with that brain train. And 873 00:44:07,160 --> 00:44:09,319 Speaker 5: we're not going to build this a new state. We're 874 00:44:09,320 --> 00:44:10,600 Speaker 5: not going to build a better state on the back 875 00:44:10,640 --> 00:44:12,400 Speaker 5: of a football team. It's going to be on the 876 00:44:12,560 --> 00:44:15,520 Speaker 5: on the back of a stronger economy, a stronger you know, 877 00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:17,960 Speaker 5: more social capital. That it's going to come out of 878 00:44:18,000 --> 00:44:20,520 Speaker 5: our universities, not only out of our universities, but it's 879 00:44:20,560 --> 00:44:22,520 Speaker 5: going to come out of our universities largely. And we 880 00:44:22,560 --> 00:44:25,279 Speaker 5: need to support those institutions. And if you want to 881 00:44:25,280 --> 00:44:27,600 Speaker 5: support your college, you got to you want to support 882 00:44:27,600 --> 00:44:30,319 Speaker 5: your local university. You've got to support the people who 883 00:44:30,520 --> 00:44:32,400 Speaker 5: teach your young people. You got to give them the 884 00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:34,960 Speaker 5: freedom to do their work. You've got to encourage them 885 00:44:34,960 --> 00:44:38,279 Speaker 5: to do research without political interference. And I hope that 886 00:44:38,280 --> 00:44:41,040 Speaker 5: that my retirement sparks the conversation about that, and and 887 00:44:41,640 --> 00:44:44,120 Speaker 5: I also hope that it spurs the leadership of my 888 00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:47,920 Speaker 5: institution to speak out and develop a spine and stand 889 00:44:48,000 --> 00:44:51,240 Speaker 5: up and defend their faculty because I think faculty across 890 00:44:51,280 --> 00:44:54,000 Speaker 5: the state in Louisiana need to know that the leadership 891 00:44:54,000 --> 00:44:55,960 Speaker 5: of their universities have their back. And I don't think 892 00:44:56,000 --> 00:44:58,160 Speaker 5: they know that or feel that today. 893 00:44:58,320 --> 00:44:59,920 Speaker 3: Well they don't. They don't have. 894 00:45:00,680 --> 00:45:01,640 Speaker 5: Right, they don't. 895 00:45:01,800 --> 00:45:03,319 Speaker 4: It's just so politicized. 896 00:45:03,360 --> 00:45:05,920 Speaker 5: I know realistically that the minute that the governor and 897 00:45:05,960 --> 00:45:08,640 Speaker 5: the legislature come after these institutions, that they'll fold like 898 00:45:08,680 --> 00:45:11,640 Speaker 5: houses of cards. And that's what's so painful about it, 899 00:45:11,680 --> 00:45:14,000 Speaker 5: because I don't think there's much to stop them if 900 00:45:14,000 --> 00:45:16,600 Speaker 5: they want to, if they want to do to Louisiana 901 00:45:16,719 --> 00:45:20,279 Speaker 5: State University and other colleges and universities here, what Desanta's 902 00:45:20,280 --> 00:45:21,279 Speaker 5: has done in Florida. 903 00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:23,319 Speaker 3: This must be so heartbreaking for you. 904 00:45:23,800 --> 00:45:24,160 Speaker 4: It is. 905 00:45:24,360 --> 00:45:26,759 Speaker 5: You know, I love the state. I love my university. 906 00:45:26,920 --> 00:45:29,840 Speaker 5: Both my children are graduates of LSU, my wife is 907 00:45:29,880 --> 00:45:32,200 Speaker 5: as well. My friend James Carville says it this way. 908 00:45:32,360 --> 00:45:34,719 Speaker 5: No state university is more important to its state than 909 00:45:34,719 --> 00:45:36,920 Speaker 5: Louisiana State University, and I don't know if he's right 910 00:45:37,000 --> 00:45:38,880 Speaker 5: or not, but you know, I choose to believe that 911 00:45:38,960 --> 00:45:40,919 Speaker 5: it is, and I just hate that it may be 912 00:45:41,120 --> 00:45:42,800 Speaker 5: in store for some pretty rough seas. 913 00:45:43,120 --> 00:45:44,880 Speaker 3: Yeah, thank you so much. 914 00:45:45,200 --> 00:45:48,560 Speaker 5: Thank you, Molly, It's been a pleasure. 915 00:45:48,280 --> 00:45:54,279 Speaker 7: There a moment full Jesse Cannon, Mirley Jong Fast the 916 00:45:54,520 --> 00:45:58,440 Speaker 7: chaos in the House when we heard about like fighting 917 00:45:58,480 --> 00:46:00,560 Speaker 7: on the four back of the day, this is like 918 00:46:00,719 --> 00:46:02,520 Speaker 7: just like the new version in my mind, like this 919 00:46:02,600 --> 00:46:04,000 Speaker 7: is We're just never gonna have speakers. 920 00:46:04,000 --> 00:46:06,000 Speaker 4: It's going to be in disarray all the time, right well. 921 00:46:05,960 --> 00:46:12,040 Speaker 1: Until Democrats when here's the deal Republicans are. They have 922 00:46:12,280 --> 00:46:19,960 Speaker 1: a four seat majority and they are just absolutely destroying themselves. 923 00:46:20,160 --> 00:46:22,600 Speaker 1: I'm going to read you a tweet from a congressional 924 00:46:22,640 --> 00:46:26,719 Speaker 1: reporter that I think is really kind of one of 925 00:46:26,760 --> 00:46:29,960 Speaker 1: the smarter takes because I think it's a really good 926 00:46:30,200 --> 00:46:32,800 Speaker 1: example of what's going on. This is a congressional reporter 927 00:46:32,920 --> 00:46:37,040 Speaker 1: called Brian Meltzer. He writes for this is Insider goes 928 00:46:37,080 --> 00:46:40,080 Speaker 1: without saying this chaos and the likelihood that the House 929 00:46:40,120 --> 00:46:43,800 Speaker 1: goes at least three weeks without a speaker will have 930 00:46:43,920 --> 00:46:47,600 Speaker 1: a significant effect on House Republicans prospects in twenty twenty four. 931 00:46:47,920 --> 00:46:51,279 Speaker 1: You don't even need to do OPO, just replay the 932 00:46:51,400 --> 00:46:54,520 Speaker 1: tape of the last couple weeks, and that, my friends, 933 00:46:54,840 --> 00:46:56,480 Speaker 1: is our moment of But you know what, I'm going 934 00:46:56,520 --> 00:46:58,800 Speaker 1: to say today, because this has been such a crushing 935 00:46:58,840 --> 00:47:02,600 Speaker 1: couple weeks, It's our moment of Gleefolfacktory. It is our 936 00:47:02,840 --> 00:47:05,160 Speaker 1: gleeful factory congratulations, Matt. 937 00:47:05,040 --> 00:47:06,200 Speaker 3: Gates, you won. 938 00:47:07,600 --> 00:47:10,960 Speaker 1: That's it for this episode of Fast Politics. Tune in 939 00:47:11,000 --> 00:47:14,240 Speaker 1: every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to hear the best minds 940 00:47:14,239 --> 00:47:17,480 Speaker 1: in politics makes sense of all this chaos. If you 941 00:47:17,600 --> 00:47:20,280 Speaker 1: enjoyed what you've heard, please send it to a friend 942 00:47:20,320 --> 00:47:23,880 Speaker 1: and keep the conversation going. And again, thanks for listening.