September 2, 2026 • 36 mins
Hour 1 of the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show focused heavily on breaking political news, the economic concerns driving the 2026 midterm elections, Democrat Party strategy, and the rising national profile of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC). The hosts also discussed media trends, talk radio's influence, and their growing audience presence as the election season intensifies.
The hour opened with discussion of the criminal case surrounding the alleged killer of Charlie Kirk. Clay Travis reported that Tyler Robinson had been charged with seven felony counts and entered a not guilty plea. The hosts argued that the upcoming televised trial will draw national attention and predicted that evidence presented in court will play a major role in settling ongoing public debate surrounding the case. They also briefly updated listeners on the still-deadlocked jury deliberations in the high-profile Lindsey Clancy case, noting that no verdict had yet been reached.
A major topic throughout Hour 1 was the state of the economy and its impact on the upcoming midterm elections. Drawing from polling data discussed at a Tennessee political event featuring gubernatorial candidate Marsha Blackburn, Travis argued that voters remain overwhelmingly focused on affordability, inflation, and the rising cost of living. The hosts contended that economic concerns, including grocery prices and household expenses, remain the dominant issue for voters across the country. They framed the election environment as a referendum on economic conditions and debated how both parties are attempting to position themselves on inflation, consumer costs, and economic recovery. Battleground states such as Michigan and California were highlighted as examples of differing state-level political dynamics heading into the midterms.
The hosts also spent significant time discussing a recent Wall Street Journal profile of the Clay and Buck program. Beyond some lighthearted discussion about photographs used in the feature, the conversation turned toward broader media industry trends. Travis and Sexton examined the continuing evolution of talk radio, podcasts, livestreaming, and digital media. They argued that live radio retains advantages over recorded podcasts because of its ability to respond instantly to breaking news and current events. They also discussed the changing podcast landscape, the growth of conspiracy-driven content online, audience trust, and the importance of maintaining credibility in political commentary and news analysis.
Another segment focused on the show's continued expansion, including the announcement of a new radio affiliate in Las Vegas. The hosts discussed the growth of their national audience, cross-platform digital engagement, podcast network performance, and the broader reach of conservative media ahead of a highly competitive election cycle.
The most extensive political discussion of Hour 1 centered on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the future of the Democrat Party. Travis and Sexton analyzed a widely circulated TMZ interview in which AOC discussed dating across political lines, family planning, and the costs associated with having children. The hosts argued that AOC has become increasingly effective at presenting herself as relatable and authentic to voters. They suggested that her ability to communicate everyday concerns, particularly affordability, housing costs, healthcare expenses, and family economics, could make her a formidable national political figure.
The conversation evolved into a broader assessment of potential Democratic presidential contenders for 2028. The hosts compared AOC's political strengths to those of Kamala Harris and other possible Democratic candidates, debating whether AOC could emerge as a future nominee or vice-presidential pick. They argued that modern campaigns are increasingly driven by personal connection, relatability, social media influence, and perceived authenticity rather than traditional policy expertise. The hosts suggested that AOC's communication style may resonate particularly strongly with younger voters, college-educated women, millennials, and voters concerned about affordability and quality-of-life issues.
The hour concluded with listener reaction to the AOC discussion. A caller challenged the idea that the TMZ exchange demonstrated political strength, while the hosts countered that modern political success depends less on formal interviews and more on creating authentic moments that connect with voters. They compared AOC's appeal to skills previously demonstrated by successful national politicians and argued that personality, relatability, and voter connection will continue to shape future elections.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome in, Clay and Buck.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
We appreciate all of you hanging out with us on
the Wednesday edition of the program.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
We've got a lot to be tracking with all of you.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Right off the top, breaking news, Charlie Kirk's alleged killer,
Tyler Robinson. has been charged with seven different felony offenses.
He has pled not guilty. That trial will be televised.
And we will, I think, see that there is overwhelming
evidence that this guy, motivated by left-wing anger about trans-related
(00:33):
issues in particular, decided he wanted to murder Charlie Kirk
about a year ago. And despite all of the crazy
conspiracies that have been underway, I think the evidence is
going to be overwhelming. And I think many people out
there who believe that someone else was responsible are going
to feel like morons as all of this evidence, which
(00:56):
is overwhelming in its capacity, is brought to bear against
Tyler Robinson in a Utah courtroom. We are continuing to
track all of the big midterm cases. Races, as we said,
about 60 some odd days away from the midterms. I
got a good update this morning. Buck, I was running
(01:17):
around here in Nashville. Marsha Blackburn is going to be
the next governor of my state. And they had a big.
breakfast for her this morning laying out what they saw
as the major agenda items of this midterm election and
it's not going to shock you buck but in tennessee
in particular their polling demonstrates that it's basically all the
(01:40):
economy it is overwhelmingly cost of goods it is overwhelmingly
economic pocketbook issues, which is in Tennessee, and obviously can
be different in different states. Every state is its own
microcosm in many ways. But in Tennessee, I would imagine
what is true here is also true everywhere, where there's
(02:02):
basically not a close second in terms of what people
are most concerned about. And, Buck, as I was watching
those results come in and looking at all of that,
What stood out, I think, to me in a really
significant way as I watched those results come in is
Democrats are now in a position where they caused the fire. Right.
(02:26):
The Biden administration's awful economic policies that took us to
nine point one percent inflation that led us into the
position where we are now, where things are much better. Remember,
in June and July of 2022, gas was on average
over $ 5 a gallon. That was only four years ago.
But Democrats are now the arsonists who are saying, look
(02:49):
at how bad the fire is. We will fix it.
And that is the argument they're making. Now, I do
think there are some states out there. Our buddy Steve
Hilton in California, it's an interesting example he's in, where
the federal government may be in Republican control now. But
many of these states where candidates are running, whether it's
Mike Rogers in Michigan or Steve Hilton in California, are
(03:13):
overwhelmingly run by Democrats. And so the current situation on
the ground in some of these battleground states where Democrats
are in positions of power, the existing power structure is
a bit different when you look at state and federal.
But all this morning did for me, Buck, was reinforce
the number one concern by far is cost of goods.
(03:35):
And Democrats are the arsonists who are saying we'll put
the fire out effectively as part of their campaign.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
So I want to get into that problem. But I
have to say, Clay, for once, I'm going to be
the Barnum and Bailey here. I'm going to be the
promoter on this program. And just point out to everybody,
in case you missed it, there is a piece in
the Wall Street Journal from this morning, the conservative radio
(04:02):
hosts dominating the airwaves. which I highly recommend to you,
the esteemed and beloved Clay and Buck audience. Yeah, it's
a great profile, guys. We really love it. In the
Wall Street Journal, it talks about our origin stories, how
the show came together, all the stations that we've been adding,
all of our wonderful affiliates across the country, the podcast network,
(04:24):
Clay's projects, all kinds of cool stuff. So please go
check it out. It's nice to get a shout out
from what I think is the best newspaper in the country,
no question. So it's cool. And we very much appreciate
the way that they wrote it up and everything else. So, yeah,
the conservative radio host dominating the airwaves. We'll put it
(04:46):
up at clayandbuck.com so you can check out that story.
What do you think of the photos? Are you happy
with the photos? We didn't talk about this. Was this
in June that we did the initial interview with the
Wall Street Journal? Am I remembering the math roughly accurately there?
I think it was sometime in June. They had their
own photographer in his own studio at the Wall Street Journal.
And what I would point out is that, one, in
(05:09):
the photo that they used, it is– they have managed
to make my head look bigger than yours, which is a–
I think– That's what you take from this incredible profile?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
The article is amazing. The article is amazing. But Carol
Markowitz got in my head a little bit. She said
they gave Buck the soft focus lighting to make him
look 25 and Clay's blurry. And then I went back
in because I read the article and I was like,
this is an amazing piece.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I can't wait for people to be able to read
it over the weekend.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
It accurately reflects the last five years or so. And
then I went in and I saw, you know, in
my for you tab that Carol Markowitz was reacting to it.
Nothing about the language in the piece and all about
the fact that you look great and I look blurry.
And I was like, wait a minute. I was nervous
about this guy, this photographer, because it was very artsy.
(06:01):
And I thought we might end up with like the stepbrothers,
you know, like back in the day, the Olin Mills
photograph where, for those of you who remember Olin Mills,
the photographer that you probably got for graduation if you're
in the South or your mom and dad put it
on the wall when you were 12 or 13.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
And then Carol got my head.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
And I'm like, the headline is amazing, first of all.
And I'm obviously not used to actually having nice things
ever said or written about me in any sort of
mainstream media outlet. And the headline is the conservative radio
host dominating the airwaves. I think that's hard. I mean,
that's a great headline. I'm happy with that. I think
it's accurate. But then now I'm looking at the photo
(06:42):
and I'm like, did have I been led over the
middle and wrecked? This is really based on Carol's criticisms.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
This is really funny. Carol just got in your head.
We love Carol Markowitz, one of our excellent Clambuck podcast
network hosts. which is doing now millions of downloads as
a network, and all of you are checking out those
shows because we handpick every single one of them. They're
people that we know, we trust, we think do great work,
and that's why they're part of the network, whether it's
(07:10):
Nation States with Yates or Carol or David Rutherford or any–
I can't name them all. Ryan Groduski, there's a bunch
of them, but they're all doing great shows. Clay– So
I will say this. First of all, you look good.
I think Carol's being– I think that's totally– I mean,
do I look like an 80s teen heartthrob?
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Maybe.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Maybe. I was going to say.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Carol is– Carol's honest. And I obviously– I don't know
how to do filters. I don't know how to do
any photos. And so if I don't look like absolute death,
I just presume the photo's fine. But is everybody else
reacting like Carol did, which is Clay looks like a zombie.
Clay looks like he's just survived the apocalypse. Meanwhile, Buck
(07:55):
looks like he just came from Charles in Charge.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
You were a guest star on Growing Pains?
Speaker 1 (08:01):
I would just say the only fair gripe, I think
you look good in the photo. And again, clayandbuck.com, guys,
we'll put the article up there. I can't believe we're
talking about this. We're going to talk about affordability in
a second. But the one funny thing, is because you
are a little bit in front, you know, you're in
the foreground a little bit. There's an optical illusion whereby
(08:25):
your head is about, your head actually does look bigger
than my head, which is not true. That's the part
of it I think is so funny. They're like, who's
this Clay guy with his giant head? Clay's been wearing
normal size hats his whole life. I'm the one that
has to get special order hats, not Clay, but you
wouldn't know it from this photo. But no, the rest
of it, I think you look good. I think they
did a very nice job. And now, Clay, that we
(08:47):
have talked about this. Oh, also, the favorite line that
I've been getting texted all morning is that the Clay
and Buck show is buddy cop movie energy. That's what
people are really– That was good.
Speaker 2 (08:58):
That was your line. I mean, to the reporter who
was doing the interview. And, you know, the other thing
I would say is you know this. I don't know
that audience necessarily thinks about it. You talk to somebody
for hours, and they might take 25 words, and sometimes
they're representative of the conversation. Other times you look at
it and you say– That really was not representative. I
(09:18):
think the article in general represented a long form conversation
that they are synthesizing in some way. And I thought
that line was a good one.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
And I think so buddy cop buddy cop movie energy,
but also something that came across. And this was, we
were asked about this is in an environment in a,
people call it podcast to stand right now where things
get really crazy. And there are people who are pushing, uh,
Wilder and wilder stuff, a lot of conspiracy theories, a
lot of just either salacious or whatever. How do you
(09:48):
guys feel about that media landscape? We just say we
just show up every day and do it the right way.
And the people that want things done the right way
come and they listen. And there's millions of them and
people that want. lunacy and lies and nonsense, it's a
free country. They're allowed to choose that. But we don't
change one inch based upon what seems to be the
flavor of the moment in the particularly the podcast market.
(10:13):
You know, radio remains a more a more adult thing. uh, medium,
shall I say an adult in the sense of like
the adults are, are running things and the adults are
still on, on the airwaves. It is podcasts that are
just totally the wild West. It's totally like.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
I do think podcasts are start. You may have a
different take on this. And we love the fact that
you can download this show on podcast. You can watch
us on video. We set an all time record for
live streamers. I think yesterday, uh, or the day before
that continues to grow every day. We'd like for you
to subscribe and follow us on YouTube. We had a video, uh,
last week, I believe, Buck, that did 460,000 views, which
(10:52):
is our all-time record high. So we want you to
find us everywhere. I do feel like podcasts are starting
to fade a bit because a lot of them are
very based entirely on the guests, and there's only so
many interesting people that are guests, right? And so I
think you're cycling through and hearing a lot of the
same people as guests on podcasts, and they're not live.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And so much is happening in real time. As you
all know, while we're live on this show, anything could happen.
We're going to react. We're going to pivot. We're going
to bring it to you right now as it happens.
Speaker 2 (11:25):
I think a lot of podcasts, when they're taped, they
feel old if they're not being done in a way
that is, especially when you're talking about news, it's hard
not to be behind the curve when you make a
podcast that is taped.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
I would also say, I think that there was a peak,
that we've hit podcasting has now turned. Now we're just
talking about the media marketplace, everyone, but it's interesting stuff. Uh,
and it affects politics that affects the national conversation about
really everything. But podcasting went through a phase recently, I
would say of, uh, well, first of all, COVID for
podcasts was an absolute gold rush. Uh, so that all
(12:02):
of a sudden people had a lot of time to
listen and find shows. A lot of people grew really
big during that era who hadn't even been, um, really
known before. But beyond that, there's a lot of self-help,
self-improvement stuff where, like, here are the five things you
need to know for a better life. And it's good
to have some of that, but you can actually overindulge
(12:23):
in that, really, where it's just you know all the
things you need to be doing. You know what's something
we all need to do? Know what's going on. know
smart things, learn more stuff. And that's a day-to-day thing.
And that's what we try to do here on this show.
We do it with you. We do it for you.
And people come away from the show having fun.
Speaker 2 (12:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
But also knowing more about what's happening day-to-day in the
world around them. You know what I'm saying, Clay? There's this,
there's been a real, a divide, I think, into a
lot of podcasting that here's how you become a millionaire
or a billionaire. And it's like, okay, well, Sure, telling
me to work hard is great, but I also need
to just do the work every day. A lot of
podcasting about health and wellness, a lot of podcasting about self-improvement,
(13:05):
and then conspiracies. But also just what's happening every day
still really matters and what's going on in the world
around you. And so that's really what we focus on,
and that's what the article gets to. I think the
Wall Street Journal piece was fantastic, and we really appreciate
the reporter who pulled it all together and sat down
with us for hours to talk to us. And with that, AOC, affordability,
Republicans in advance of these midterms, many, many things, many
(13:29):
things to dive into, to discuss, to make sense of today.
And we shall absolutely do so. That is where we are.
That is part of the mission. Also, we'll be taking
your calls. If you want to just tell, and by
the way, any of you ladies out there in particular,
if you want to call in and say Clay looked
handsome in his Wall Street Journal photo, I think he
would appreciate that right now. Just because Carol got in
(13:50):
his head on this one. Carol's in my head. I
also just got a text.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Buck looks like a superhero on the.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Cover photo. You got to throw some peptides in the mix.
You got to get some chalk going. You got to
do some stuff. You know what I mean? What can
I tell you? What can I tell you? Game respects game.
All right. A superhero, I wish. All right, now I
have a little bit of a hard turn here, but
it's a really important message and something that I'm proud
to talk to you about every time we do, and
that's pre-born. It's about saving little babies. It's a straightforward mission,
(14:22):
and what a beautiful and important mission it is. It's
an urgent mission, though, because you know what's happening every day.
Women are being encouraged, coaxed, sometimes pushed to Planned Parenthood,
to places where abortions are happening, and we want to
have people... supported. We want moms to know that the
baby in their womb is precious. It's a gift from God.
(14:43):
And they have so many options and preborns there to
share that with them. So you so many of you
listening right now are active members in what we could
call broadly just the pro-life movement, the pro-life community. And
you might be wondering, other than just voting and other
than just how you live your own life personally and
how you tell loved ones and others to cherish babies
(15:04):
and cherish the future. How can you do something? Preborn.
You can support this organization. It provides an ultrasound as
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(15:27):
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visit preborn.com slash buck. Preborn.com slash B-U-C-K. Sponsored by Preborn. Laugh, learn,
and hang with the guys. Clay and Buck.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
Preset on the iHeart app.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
Welcome back in to Clay and Buck. Just want to
say we are on a new station in Las Vegas.
Talk Radio 106.9 FM. Weekdays 9 a.m. to noon live.
So we're very excited about this. And General Manager Marty Bash,
(16:06):
Program Director Andy Vieira, thank you so much for adding
us to this great station, Talk Radio 106.9 FM in
Las Vegas. Clay, maybe you have to go do a
market visit. You know, got to see how you are
at the craps table. That would be a lot of fun.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
Hard Rock, our new presenting sponsor, one of them on
the show here, they're building the biggest, baddest-ass hotel on
the Strip in Vegas right now. I don't know that
people have noticed. It's starting to dominate the entire Strip,
and I know that when they get open, which I
think is next year, that they want us to be
(16:42):
doing some events out there. So it's great to have
a really solid affiliate in Las Vegas that is growing
with us. I think, at least I was told, that
there are some billboards of us in Las Vegas. I
don't know that it's going to make people feel better
when they've gotten fleeced on the craps table to be
driving around Las Vegas and then you see us on
the billboard. But I am told I'm not out there
(17:03):
right now. If you are in Las Vegas listening to
us on 106.9 FM right now, you can pull out
your phone and in the iHeart app, you can let
us know if you have seen any of these billboards.
I was sent a picture, but it did not tell
me where the billboards are. But I do believe there
are some up to celebrate the new affiliate in Las Vegas.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Indeed, and I believe you will absolutely love those photos, Clay,
just to be clear. The billboard photos looking very... Some
people are saying Clay Travis, extremely, extremely handsome, even beautiful.
He's a man, but he's beautiful. Clay Travis on the
billboards around Vegas. But yeah, I agree with you, by
the way. People seeing our faces after they've had a
(17:47):
rough night at the poker table, I don't know. Hopefully
they don't associate us with... Well, hopefully they only think
about us when they're winning. That's one way to put it.
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Speaker 2 (18:57):
Welcome back in, Clay and Buck. We are rolling through
the Wednesday edition of the program. We mentioned that the
seven felony counts against Tyler Robinson in the Charlie Kirk
assassination murder trial have officially been filed and there will
be a trial coming soon there, and he has pled
(19:19):
not guilty to them. We are also still waiting. I
should update you, as it is the lead story on
every single channel, every minute update. Still nothing additional on
the Lindsay Clancy jury since yesterday. When they said that
they could not reach a verdict and that they were
hopelessly basically split. So many different moving parts on that.
(19:45):
We were talking about AOC when it comes to affordability.
and we have a couple of cuts on. Sorry, we're
talking about AOC and affordability. Let me go back to
AOC now. She had an interview, Buck, with TMZ, which
is now carrying and covering Washington, D.C. news in the
same way they typically have done celebrity news. And AOC
(20:08):
made a lot of news herself when she talked about
freezing her eggs. She broke up with the ginger boyfriend.
She was asked whether or not she would date a conservative.
This interview has, I think it's fair to say, gone
viral recently.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Listen. Would you ever date a conservative?
Speaker 4 (20:25):
Is that anything you'd ever entertain?
Speaker 3 (20:30):
I have to say it's... Probably not. No, you know,
it's not to, you know, no foul to people who do.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
But and of course, how you define that is very
different person to person.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Right.
Speaker 1 (20:47):
But I think a lot of politics sometimes, at least
for me, is about values.
Speaker 4 (20:51):
And being aligned with in values, I think, is tremendously important.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
OK, let me play. Well, let's just leave it with that. So.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
Buck, here is, and I can't believe I'm going to
sound like you, I think, on this. I watched this video.
She is walking across a parking lot. She gets asked
about having kids, the challenges of family planning. There is 0%
chance Kamala could do this interview, by which I mean
just look normal. I don't know if you buy this.
(21:26):
I think the 2028 cycle coming out of the Trump.
It's fair to say hurricane style chaos leadership. And I
don't mean that in a negative way. I just mean
there's an omnipresent sense that anything might happen at any
point in time. I think that the Biden team was
(21:46):
able to play into that in 2020. And that was COVID.
I think there's going to be a desperate demand for normalcy.
And I don't mean normal politics, because we know that
AOC is not normal in terms of what she would
advocate for. But I mean, they can do an interview
and they just look normal. Chuck Schumer couldn't have done this, Buck.
(22:08):
Lots of Republicans can't do this. AOC is uniquely skilled
at these just normal human moments, which most politicians can't
pull off. And if I weren't a partisan, if I
didn't have opinions aggressively on these things, if I was
a busy mom or dad, I might watch AOC and
(22:29):
just think.
Speaker 1 (22:29):
She seems normal. She seems like me. She's the future
of the Democrat Party. I think that that's quite clear.
And look, if we are... Think of it like a
coach who is assessing the strength of the other team, right?
That's how I think we can do this. Clay's certainly
used to doing that. When you look at AOC as
(22:51):
a player on the Democrat squad, she has... Well, not
the squad. That's a little confusing. But on the Democrat roster,
if you will, she has.
Learned to be less shrill. She has learned to be let,
she made her name with the radical screechy, as she said,
woke 1.0, but increasingly AOC is going to become the
(23:13):
face of a rebranded woke. And this is the way
that I would describe it. You're going to have a, an,
an attractive smiling face telling you why your property is
not yours and you should be sent to the Gulag. Basically,
you're going to have somebody who is appealing to, in
public and to the masses, pushing for the exact same
(23:35):
policies of the street communists, but doing it with more
Mamdani-esque flair and suave savoir-faire, if you will. Yeah. They've
learned something about this. And they have other people who
are the pipe swingers on the street. They have other
people who are... you know, the shock troops, that guy
(23:57):
that everyone's been talking about, Piker, they've got these people
to say the crazy things, to get the angry, purple-haired,
septum-pierced left will be represented by them and will be
mobilized by them. But AOC has now moved into more
of a, dare I say, statesman-like position for the Democrat Party. Clay,
(24:19):
I cannot think of, this is what I would say,
whether she's the top of the ticket or not, we
talked to our our buddy Hannity about this. And Sean
and I agreed you're off in crazy town with your,
it's still going to be crazy. I think, but AOC
scares me way more than Kamala does. I think, I
think AOC is a far more formidable. First of all,
she's not a loser. Kamala loss. She can complain all
(24:41):
day about how it was last minute, but the problem
with Kamala running again in the general, I am a,
your thing about her in the primary, unfortunately still makes sense,
which I'm, I'm trying to find the Achilles heel of
it other than she's terrible. But terrible doesn't necessarily mean
you don't like voters are not going to abandon Kamala black.
So you're particular. Your assessment on that, I think, is
(25:04):
is very sound as much as I wish otherwise. But
in the general election, Clay, I think an issue that
Kamala runs into and anyone would see this is she
was sitting there. She's going to say, oh, but, you know,
I didn't have a full campaign. And that was OK.
You were the vice president. And you had a dementia
patient as the president and you didn't say anything about it.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
In fact, you were so silent about it. She was there.
Kamala is uniquely responsible for the debacle. That was a
dementia addled president. not only being president for four years,
but then trying to continue for another four years because
her job, really? It's like the vice president, really, you
(25:48):
had one job applies. Your job is to be there
in case of. In case of happened with Biden. He
was not in a position to be president. And she
kind of got a pass on this because it was
all so sudden and quick and everything else, meaning the
2024 election. Clay, I think that is a very hard
thing for anybody who's going to be open to persuasion
(26:11):
one way or the other to explain away the next time.
But the smiling, we're going to help you pay for
your groceries and pay for your health care stuff. Guys,
it's going to be very effective in this midterm. It's
going to be very effective in the general election. And, Clay,
it really comes down to this. People are frustrated. They
want someone who's going to fix the frustration. And it
(26:32):
is hard– to tell people who are frustrated while you
are the person in charge, I'm actually doing well. And
trust me, those other people are going to screw things
up much more. It's true in this case. Obviously, I
think so. You think so with Trump and the Republicans
in charge, but people there's, there's enough frustration in the middle,
(26:54):
in the middle five to 10% of voters that it's
going to be volatile.
Speaker 2 (26:58):
I also think this on AOC is, Kamala's base is
black women. I think black women are going to show
up for Kamala. It's why I think she's going to
end up being the nominee, because I think it's going
to be hard to get past her with the identity politics.
I like your line of attack. We'll see how aggressively
Democrats deploy it against her of you're responsible for Biden.
(27:21):
Will they do that in the primary? Will it land?
Speaker 1 (27:24):
How will that play out? Here's what I would say
about AOC.
Speaker 2 (27:27):
And by the way, I think you said it well
on you have to assess what the opponent's strengths are.
Don't misunderstand when I say things that are positive about
AOC that I mean that I want in some way
to be supporting her. I totally understand that she's wrong
on everything. But a lot of people who are wrong
on everything get elected. In fact, COVID taught us that
(27:50):
being wrong on everything, sometimes in the Democrat Party, can
actually be an asset and an attribute.
Speaker 1 (27:56):
When it comes to getting reelected.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
So here's the AOC angle that I think, when I
think through what her base would be, who's the most
reliable people who vote.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
Democrat right now?
Speaker 2 (28:10):
Overly educated women struggling with career and life. That is,
to a large extent, the base of the Democrat Party.
That's the people out there who are telling you some
of them. Lindsey Clancy is completely innocent because she's just
a victim of all the depression and postpartum and all
the incredible pressures that we put on to mothers and working.
(28:34):
And some of you, lots of you, are saying, I
don't agree with that. But there's a lot of Democrats
who do. And when AOC did that TMZ interview, in
conjunction with her freezing her eggs... She is she is
the base of the Democrat Party, and they are going
to like her because they like to see themselves reflected
(28:55):
in media. I'm just telling you, watch out.
Speaker 1 (28:59):
Also, she is an avatar in many ways for the
frustrations of the millennials that she represents. To me, she
is a a a shoo in or no brainer VP pick.
At a minimum for who I don't care. I don't
care if it's Andy Beshear, if it's Kamala Harris, if
(29:19):
it's Gavin, you go through anybody, Wes Moore, whoever the Democrat,
who's the who's the nerd from Arizona, the senator, what's
his name? Mark Kelly. Thank you, Mark Kelly. You know,
I don't care. Any of them. AOC makes sense as
a VP for them. Also, look at look at the
paradigm shift with J.D. Vance as Trump's VP, bringing in
that you that sort of younger understanding of social media
(29:44):
and the Trump is a media phenomenon unto himself. But
understanding that peer group, which is now going to be
people who are basically turning 40, that's very powerful for her.
And I also think, Clay, there's a difference between Kamala
likes to pretend that she's a policy wonk. Yeah. She
(30:07):
likes to talk about how I was a prosecutor. And
basically she says, I'm really smart. AOC used to do
that for sure and had some embarrassing moments. But increasingly
you have her just smiling and focusing on health care,
cost of living, helping people with their lives. And that's
what people are going to hear. They're not going to
(30:28):
care that she doesn't know who the prime minister of
Thailand is or be the king and probably a prime minister.
But you get what I'm saying. I don't even know
who it is.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
The answer she gave where I was like, that's really good. Again,
walking in a parking lot unscripted. She got asked about
having a baby and she said, comparatively, I make a
good salary. I don't know that I can afford to
have a baby right now. And I was like, That's
a really great answer for all every woman who's going
to vote Democrat. She is speaking in their language. And
(31:02):
some of you out there are going to say she
doesn't understand tax policy. She doesn't even to Buck's point.
She doesn't even know who the leader is of this country.
That's not what the election is going to be decided on.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Correct. It's not. Yeah, it's not. And she can all
she can also say she can even turn this around
and flip it on Republicans. Did anyone think Trump was
a foreign policy expert when he was elected?
Speaker 3 (31:21):
No.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
But he said, I'm going to appoint great people and
I'm going to rely on them for their advice. You know,
there's a lot of ways to play this. The way
you can't play it is I'm actually the expert. And
then you look like a buffoon. And Kamala fell into that.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
I mean, we just South Carolina on the Republican side
just elected Darlene Graham. And she couldn't give any answer
at all on the most important, arguably foreign policy issue
that could change the world and Taiwan at all.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
And she won. And she won. And the people of
South Carolina who voted for her, we had a lot
of them calling in and sharing their opinion on this
is quite clear. They're like, look, I think she's a
good person. She's going to respect Lindsay's legacy. She'll represent
South Carolina well, and she's going to work closely with
Trump and do what Trump wants. Period. I don't care
about it beyond that. Or rather, I don't need more
than that. By the way. That's a valid point of view.
(32:12):
She obviously just won, and she's going to win that
Senate seat. So I think you can see a very
similar thing with AOC, where it's, yeah, she doesn't have
to be the expert in Keynesian economics that she was
posing as at one point. She just has to be likable, emotive,
and connect. And she is very good at those things now.
So this is like we're talking about the opposing team's
QB or their D-line or whatever. She is good at
(32:35):
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Speaker 4 (34:29):
Level up your brain and balance out your day with
the right amount of information and entertainment. Clay Travis and
Buck Sexton on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Or wherever you get your podcasts. All right, welcome back
into Clay and Buck. Let's get the calls and talkbacks
right off the bat here. Rob in North Carolina. What's
going on, Rob?
Speaker 2 (34:50):
Hey, guys.
Speaker 3 (34:51):
Hope you guys are having a great day.
Speaker 1 (34:52):
Yeah, we'll stay in touch. Good, good, good.
Speaker 3 (34:59):
I came in late when you guys were talking about
AOC and her potential to be the Democrat nominee. So
if I lack context, I'm sorry. But, Clay, I keep
my eye on you. I saw the Twitter post. You
posted the video, the TMZ video. as evidence that AOC's
(35:24):
dangerous positioning to be the Democrat nominee for president. And
I will give you she may be viable as the
Democrat presidential nominee someday. That TMZ video, dude. That was
(35:45):
not even an interview. That was an adoring fan just
following along and asking her favorite color.
Speaker 1 (35:52):
Oh, Rob, but I want to jump in. Yeah, Rob,
first of all, I'm the one who's really– I'm the
conductor of the AOC for 2028 train here in terms
of the Democrats. Clay recognizes she's formidable, but I think
he still thinks that– I'm not going to speak for you, Clay,
if you disagree, but he still thinks Kamala is more
likely to win the overall primary. That's right. But that
(36:14):
all said, Rob, people look at Trump. The game has changed.
Nobody cares if you do a sit down interview on
a Sunday show that really not many people are watching
anyway and sound all serious on policy. They want connection.
They want authenticity. They want to like you. And Clay,
as much as we trash Biden for a lot of
(36:35):
very good reasons because he deserves it, deserved it. Biden
was good at actually the grand and the how are
your grandkids and playing, as you say, the avuncular grandfather.
He played that gig and played it well. So I
think the AOC interview, I'm with you. I thought she
filled it. And that's good.
Welcome in, Clay and Buck.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
We appreciate all of you hanging out with us on
the Wednesday edition of the program.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
We've got a lot to be tracking with all of you.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Right off the top, breaking news, Charlie Kirk's alleged killer,
Tyler Robinson. has been charged with seven different felony offenses.
He has pled not guilty. That trial will be televised.
And we will, I think, see that there is overwhelming
evidence that this guy, motivated by left-wing anger about trans-related
(00:33):
issues in particular, decided he wanted to murder Charlie Kirk
about a year ago. And despite all of the crazy
conspiracies that have been underway, I think the evidence is
going to be overwhelming. And I think many people out
there who believe that someone else was responsible are going
to feel like morons as all of this evidence, which
(00:56):
is overwhelming in its capacity, is brought to bear against
Tyler Robinson in a Utah courtroom. We are continuing to
track all of the big midterm cases. Races, as we said,
about 60 some odd days away from the midterms. I
got a good update this morning. Buck, I was running
(01:17):
around here in Nashville. Marsha Blackburn is going to be
the next governor of my state. And they had a big.
breakfast for her this morning laying out what they saw
as the major agenda items of this midterm election and
it's not going to shock you buck but in tennessee
in particular their polling demonstrates that it's basically all the
(01:40):
economy it is overwhelmingly cost of goods it is overwhelmingly
economic pocketbook issues, which is in Tennessee, and obviously can
be different in different states. Every state is its own
microcosm in many ways. But in Tennessee, I would imagine
what is true here is also true everywhere, where there's
(02:02):
basically not a close second in terms of what people
are most concerned about. And, Buck, as I was watching
those results come in and looking at all of that,
What stood out, I think, to me in a really
significant way as I watched those results come in is
Democrats are now in a position where they caused the fire. Right.
(02:26):
The Biden administration's awful economic policies that took us to
nine point one percent inflation that led us into the
position where we are now, where things are much better. Remember,
in June and July of 2022, gas was on average
over $ 5 a gallon. That was only four years ago.
But Democrats are now the arsonists who are saying, look
(02:49):
at how bad the fire is. We will fix it.
And that is the argument they're making. Now, I do
think there are some states out there. Our buddy Steve
Hilton in California, it's an interesting example he's in, where
the federal government may be in Republican control now. But
many of these states where candidates are running, whether it's
Mike Rogers in Michigan or Steve Hilton in California, are
(03:13):
overwhelmingly run by Democrats. And so the current situation on
the ground in some of these battleground states where Democrats
are in positions of power, the existing power structure is
a bit different when you look at state and federal.
But all this morning did for me, Buck, was reinforce
the number one concern by far is cost of goods.
(03:35):
And Democrats are the arsonists who are saying we'll put
the fire out effectively as part of their campaign.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
So I want to get into that problem. But I
have to say, Clay, for once, I'm going to be
the Barnum and Bailey here. I'm going to be the
promoter on this program. And just point out to everybody,
in case you missed it, there is a piece in
the Wall Street Journal from this morning, the conservative radio
(04:02):
hosts dominating the airwaves. which I highly recommend to you,
the esteemed and beloved Clay and Buck audience. Yeah, it's
a great profile, guys. We really love it. In the
Wall Street Journal, it talks about our origin stories, how
the show came together, all the stations that we've been adding,
all of our wonderful affiliates across the country, the podcast network,
(04:24):
Clay's projects, all kinds of cool stuff. So please go
check it out. It's nice to get a shout out
from what I think is the best newspaper in the country,
no question. So it's cool. And we very much appreciate
the way that they wrote it up and everything else. So, yeah,
the conservative radio host dominating the airwaves. We'll put it
(04:46):
up at clayandbuck.com so you can check out that story.
What do you think of the photos? Are you happy
with the photos? We didn't talk about this. Was this
in June that we did the initial interview with the
Wall Street Journal? Am I remembering the math roughly accurately there?
I think it was sometime in June. They had their
own photographer in his own studio at the Wall Street Journal.
And what I would point out is that, one, in
(05:09):
the photo that they used, it is– they have managed
to make my head look bigger than yours, which is a–
I think– That's what you take from this incredible profile?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
The article is amazing. The article is amazing. But Carol
Markowitz got in my head a little bit. She said
they gave Buck the soft focus lighting to make him
look 25 and Clay's blurry. And then I went back
in because I read the article and I was like,
this is an amazing piece.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I can't wait for people to be able to read
it over the weekend.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
It accurately reflects the last five years or so. And
then I went in and I saw, you know, in
my for you tab that Carol Markowitz was reacting to it.
Nothing about the language in the piece and all about
the fact that you look great and I look blurry.
And I was like, wait a minute. I was nervous
about this guy, this photographer, because it was very artsy.
(06:01):
And I thought we might end up with like the stepbrothers,
you know, like back in the day, the Olin Mills
photograph where, for those of you who remember Olin Mills,
the photographer that you probably got for graduation if you're
in the South or your mom and dad put it
on the wall when you were 12 or 13.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
And then Carol got my head.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
And I'm like, the headline is amazing, first of all.
And I'm obviously not used to actually having nice things
ever said or written about me in any sort of
mainstream media outlet. And the headline is the conservative radio
host dominating the airwaves. I think that's hard. I mean,
that's a great headline. I'm happy with that. I think
it's accurate. But then now I'm looking at the photo
(06:42):
and I'm like, did have I been led over the
middle and wrecked? This is really based on Carol's criticisms.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
This is really funny. Carol just got in your head.
We love Carol Markowitz, one of our excellent Clambuck podcast
network hosts. which is doing now millions of downloads as
a network, and all of you are checking out those
shows because we handpick every single one of them. They're
people that we know, we trust, we think do great work,
and that's why they're part of the network, whether it's
(07:10):
Nation States with Yates or Carol or David Rutherford or any–
I can't name them all. Ryan Groduski, there's a bunch
of them, but they're all doing great shows. Clay– So
I will say this. First of all, you look good.
I think Carol's being– I think that's totally– I mean,
do I look like an 80s teen heartthrob?
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Maybe.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Maybe. I was going to say.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Carol is– Carol's honest. And I obviously– I don't know
how to do filters. I don't know how to do
any photos. And so if I don't look like absolute death,
I just presume the photo's fine. But is everybody else
reacting like Carol did, which is Clay looks like a zombie.
Clay looks like he's just survived the apocalypse. Meanwhile, Buck
(07:55):
looks like he just came from Charles in Charge.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
You were a guest star on Growing Pains?
Speaker 1 (08:01):
I would just say the only fair gripe, I think
you look good in the photo. And again, clayandbuck.com, guys,
we'll put the article up there. I can't believe we're
talking about this. We're going to talk about affordability in
a second. But the one funny thing, is because you
are a little bit in front, you know, you're in
the foreground a little bit. There's an optical illusion whereby
(08:25):
your head is about, your head actually does look bigger
than my head, which is not true. That's the part
of it I think is so funny. They're like, who's
this Clay guy with his giant head? Clay's been wearing
normal size hats his whole life. I'm the one that
has to get special order hats, not Clay, but you
wouldn't know it from this photo. But no, the rest
of it, I think you look good. I think they
did a very nice job. And now, Clay, that we
(08:47):
have talked about this. Oh, also, the favorite line that
I've been getting texted all morning is that the Clay
and Buck show is buddy cop movie energy. That's what
people are really– That was good.
Speaker 2 (08:58):
That was your line. I mean, to the reporter who
was doing the interview. And, you know, the other thing
I would say is you know this. I don't know
that audience necessarily thinks about it. You talk to somebody
for hours, and they might take 25 words, and sometimes
they're representative of the conversation. Other times you look at
it and you say– That really was not representative. I
(09:18):
think the article in general represented a long form conversation
that they are synthesizing in some way. And I thought
that line was a good one.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
And I think so buddy cop buddy cop movie energy,
but also something that came across. And this was, we
were asked about this is in an environment in a,
people call it podcast to stand right now where things
get really crazy. And there are people who are pushing, uh,
Wilder and wilder stuff, a lot of conspiracy theories, a
lot of just either salacious or whatever. How do you
(09:48):
guys feel about that media landscape? We just say we
just show up every day and do it the right way.
And the people that want things done the right way
come and they listen. And there's millions of them and
people that want. lunacy and lies and nonsense, it's a
free country. They're allowed to choose that. But we don't
change one inch based upon what seems to be the
flavor of the moment in the particularly the podcast market.
(10:13):
You know, radio remains a more a more adult thing. uh, medium,
shall I say an adult in the sense of like
the adults are, are running things and the adults are
still on, on the airwaves. It is podcasts that are
just totally the wild West. It's totally like.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
I do think podcasts are start. You may have a
different take on this. And we love the fact that
you can download this show on podcast. You can watch
us on video. We set an all time record for
live streamers. I think yesterday, uh, or the day before
that continues to grow every day. We'd like for you
to subscribe and follow us on YouTube. We had a video, uh,
last week, I believe, Buck, that did 460,000 views, which
(10:52):
is our all-time record high. So we want you to
find us everywhere. I do feel like podcasts are starting
to fade a bit because a lot of them are
very based entirely on the guests, and there's only so
many interesting people that are guests, right? And so I
think you're cycling through and hearing a lot of the
same people as guests on podcasts, and they're not live.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And so much is happening in real time. As you
all know, while we're live on this show, anything could happen.
We're going to react. We're going to pivot. We're going
to bring it to you right now as it happens.
Speaker 2 (11:25):
I think a lot of podcasts, when they're taped, they
feel old if they're not being done in a way
that is, especially when you're talking about news, it's hard
not to be behind the curve when you make a
podcast that is taped.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
I would also say, I think that there was a peak,
that we've hit podcasting has now turned. Now we're just
talking about the media marketplace, everyone, but it's interesting stuff. Uh,
and it affects politics that affects the national conversation about
really everything. But podcasting went through a phase recently, I
would say of, uh, well, first of all, COVID for
podcasts was an absolute gold rush. Uh, so that all
(12:02):
of a sudden people had a lot of time to
listen and find shows. A lot of people grew really
big during that era who hadn't even been, um, really
known before. But beyond that, there's a lot of self-help,
self-improvement stuff where, like, here are the five things you
need to know for a better life. And it's good
to have some of that, but you can actually overindulge
(12:23):
in that, really, where it's just you know all the
things you need to be doing. You know what's something
we all need to do? Know what's going on. know
smart things, learn more stuff. And that's a day-to-day thing.
And that's what we try to do here on this show.
We do it with you. We do it for you.
And people come away from the show having fun.
Speaker 2 (12:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
But also knowing more about what's happening day-to-day in the
world around them. You know what I'm saying, Clay? There's this,
there's been a real, a divide, I think, into a
lot of podcasting that here's how you become a millionaire
or a billionaire. And it's like, okay, well, Sure, telling
me to work hard is great, but I also need
to just do the work every day. A lot of
podcasting about health and wellness, a lot of podcasting about self-improvement,
(13:05):
and then conspiracies. But also just what's happening every day
still really matters and what's going on in the world
around you. And so that's really what we focus on,
and that's what the article gets to. I think the
Wall Street Journal piece was fantastic, and we really appreciate
the reporter who pulled it all together and sat down
with us for hours to talk to us. And with that, AOC, affordability,
Republicans in advance of these midterms, many, many things, many
(13:29):
things to dive into, to discuss, to make sense of today.
And we shall absolutely do so. That is where we are.
That is part of the mission. Also, we'll be taking
your calls. If you want to just tell, and by
the way, any of you ladies out there in particular,
if you want to call in and say Clay looked
handsome in his Wall Street Journal photo, I think he
would appreciate that right now. Just because Carol got in
(13:50):
his head on this one. Carol's in my head. I
also just got a text.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Buck looks like a superhero on the.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Cover photo. You got to throw some peptides in the mix.
You got to get some chalk going. You got to
do some stuff. You know what I mean? What can
I tell you? What can I tell you? Game respects game.
All right. A superhero, I wish. All right, now I
have a little bit of a hard turn here, but
it's a really important message and something that I'm proud
to talk to you about every time we do, and
that's pre-born. It's about saving little babies. It's a straightforward mission,
(14:22):
and what a beautiful and important mission it is. It's
an urgent mission, though, because you know what's happening every day.
Women are being encouraged, coaxed, sometimes pushed to Planned Parenthood,
to places where abortions are happening, and we want to
have people... supported. We want moms to know that the
baby in their womb is precious. It's a gift from God.
(14:43):
And they have so many options and preborns there to
share that with them. So you so many of you
listening right now are active members in what we could
call broadly just the pro-life movement, the pro-life community. And
you might be wondering, other than just voting and other
than just how you live your own life personally and
how you tell loved ones and others to cherish babies
(15:04):
and cherish the future. How can you do something? Preborn.
You can support this organization. It provides an ultrasound as
soon as the mom comes to the clinic so the
mom can meet the baby in her womb. And then
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and hang with the guys. Clay and Buck.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
Preset on the iHeart app.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
Welcome back in to Clay and Buck. Just want to
say we are on a new station in Las Vegas.
Talk Radio 106.9 FM. Weekdays 9 a.m. to noon live.
So we're very excited about this. And General Manager Marty Bash,
(16:06):
Program Director Andy Vieira, thank you so much for adding
us to this great station, Talk Radio 106.9 FM in
Las Vegas. Clay, maybe you have to go do a
market visit. You know, got to see how you are
at the craps table. That would be a lot of fun.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
Hard Rock, our new presenting sponsor, one of them on
the show here, they're building the biggest, baddest-ass hotel on
the Strip in Vegas right now. I don't know that
people have noticed. It's starting to dominate the entire Strip,
and I know that when they get open, which I
think is next year, that they want us to be
(16:42):
doing some events out there. So it's great to have
a really solid affiliate in Las Vegas that is growing
with us. I think, at least I was told, that
there are some billboards of us in Las Vegas. I
don't know that it's going to make people feel better
when they've gotten fleeced on the craps table to be
driving around Las Vegas and then you see us on
the billboard. But I am told I'm not out there
(17:03):
right now. If you are in Las Vegas listening to
us on 106.9 FM right now, you can pull out
your phone and in the iHeart app, you can let
us know if you have seen any of these billboards.
I was sent a picture, but it did not tell
me where the billboards are. But I do believe there
are some up to celebrate the new affiliate in Las Vegas.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Indeed, and I believe you will absolutely love those photos, Clay,
just to be clear. The billboard photos looking very... Some
people are saying Clay Travis, extremely, extremely handsome, even beautiful.
He's a man, but he's beautiful. Clay Travis on the
billboards around Vegas. But yeah, I agree with you, by
the way. People seeing our faces after they've had a
(17:47):
rough night at the poker table, I don't know. Hopefully
they don't associate us with... Well, hopefully they only think
about us when they're winning. That's one way to put it.
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Speaker 2 (18:57):
Welcome back in, Clay and Buck. We are rolling through
the Wednesday edition of the program. We mentioned that the
seven felony counts against Tyler Robinson in the Charlie Kirk
assassination murder trial have officially been filed and there will
be a trial coming soon there, and he has pled
(19:19):
not guilty to them. We are also still waiting. I
should update you, as it is the lead story on
every single channel, every minute update. Still nothing additional on
the Lindsay Clancy jury since yesterday. When they said that
they could not reach a verdict and that they were
hopelessly basically split. So many different moving parts on that.
(19:45):
We were talking about AOC when it comes to affordability.
and we have a couple of cuts on. Sorry, we're
talking about AOC and affordability. Let me go back to
AOC now. She had an interview, Buck, with TMZ, which
is now carrying and covering Washington, D.C. news in the
same way they typically have done celebrity news. And AOC
(20:08):
made a lot of news herself when she talked about
freezing her eggs. She broke up with the ginger boyfriend.
She was asked whether or not she would date a conservative.
This interview has, I think it's fair to say, gone
viral recently.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Listen. Would you ever date a conservative?
Speaker 4 (20:25):
Is that anything you'd ever entertain?
Speaker 3 (20:30):
I have to say it's... Probably not. No, you know,
it's not to, you know, no foul to people who do.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
But and of course, how you define that is very
different person to person.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Right.
Speaker 1 (20:47):
But I think a lot of politics sometimes, at least
for me, is about values.
Speaker 4 (20:51):
And being aligned with in values, I think, is tremendously important.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
OK, let me play. Well, let's just leave it with that. So.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
Buck, here is, and I can't believe I'm going to
sound like you, I think, on this. I watched this video.
She is walking across a parking lot. She gets asked
about having kids, the challenges of family planning. There is 0%
chance Kamala could do this interview, by which I mean
just look normal. I don't know if you buy this.
(21:26):
I think the 2028 cycle coming out of the Trump.
It's fair to say hurricane style chaos leadership. And I
don't mean that in a negative way. I just mean
there's an omnipresent sense that anything might happen at any
point in time. I think that the Biden team was
(21:46):
able to play into that in 2020. And that was COVID.
I think there's going to be a desperate demand for normalcy.
And I don't mean normal politics, because we know that
AOC is not normal in terms of what she would
advocate for. But I mean, they can do an interview
and they just look normal. Chuck Schumer couldn't have done this, Buck.
(22:08):
Lots of Republicans can't do this. AOC is uniquely skilled
at these just normal human moments, which most politicians can't
pull off. And if I weren't a partisan, if I
didn't have opinions aggressively on these things, if I was
a busy mom or dad, I might watch AOC and
(22:29):
just think.
Speaker 1 (22:29):
She seems normal. She seems like me. She's the future
of the Democrat Party. I think that that's quite clear.
And look, if we are... Think of it like a
coach who is assessing the strength of the other team, right?
That's how I think we can do this. Clay's certainly
used to doing that. When you look at AOC as
(22:51):
a player on the Democrat squad, she has... Well, not
the squad. That's a little confusing. But on the Democrat roster,
if you will, she has.
Learned to be less shrill. She has learned to be let,
she made her name with the radical screechy, as she said,
woke 1.0, but increasingly AOC is going to become the
(23:13):
face of a rebranded woke. And this is the way
that I would describe it. You're going to have a, an,
an attractive smiling face telling you why your property is
not yours and you should be sent to the Gulag. Basically,
you're going to have somebody who is appealing to, in
public and to the masses, pushing for the exact same
(23:35):
policies of the street communists, but doing it with more
Mamdani-esque flair and suave savoir-faire, if you will. Yeah. They've
learned something about this. And they have other people who
are the pipe swingers on the street. They have other
people who are... you know, the shock troops, that guy
(23:57):
that everyone's been talking about, Piker, they've got these people
to say the crazy things, to get the angry, purple-haired,
septum-pierced left will be represented by them and will be
mobilized by them. But AOC has now moved into more
of a, dare I say, statesman-like position for the Democrat Party. Clay,
(24:19):
I cannot think of, this is what I would say,
whether she's the top of the ticket or not, we
talked to our our buddy Hannity about this. And Sean
and I agreed you're off in crazy town with your,
it's still going to be crazy. I think, but AOC
scares me way more than Kamala does. I think, I
think AOC is a far more formidable. First of all,
she's not a loser. Kamala loss. She can complain all
(24:41):
day about how it was last minute, but the problem
with Kamala running again in the general, I am a,
your thing about her in the primary, unfortunately still makes sense,
which I'm, I'm trying to find the Achilles heel of
it other than she's terrible. But terrible doesn't necessarily mean
you don't like voters are not going to abandon Kamala black.
So you're particular. Your assessment on that, I think, is
(25:04):
is very sound as much as I wish otherwise. But
in the general election, Clay, I think an issue that
Kamala runs into and anyone would see this is she
was sitting there. She's going to say, oh, but, you know,
I didn't have a full campaign. And that was OK.
You were the vice president. And you had a dementia
patient as the president and you didn't say anything about it.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
In fact, you were so silent about it. She was there.
Kamala is uniquely responsible for the debacle. That was a
dementia addled president. not only being president for four years,
but then trying to continue for another four years because
her job, really? It's like the vice president, really, you
(25:48):
had one job applies. Your job is to be there
in case of. In case of happened with Biden. He
was not in a position to be president. And she
kind of got a pass on this because it was
all so sudden and quick and everything else, meaning the
2024 election. Clay, I think that is a very hard
thing for anybody who's going to be open to persuasion
(26:11):
one way or the other to explain away the next time.
But the smiling, we're going to help you pay for
your groceries and pay for your health care stuff. Guys,
it's going to be very effective in this midterm. It's
going to be very effective in the general election. And, Clay,
it really comes down to this. People are frustrated. They
want someone who's going to fix the frustration. And it
(26:32):
is hard– to tell people who are frustrated while you
are the person in charge, I'm actually doing well. And
trust me, those other people are going to screw things
up much more. It's true in this case. Obviously, I
think so. You think so with Trump and the Republicans
in charge, but people there's, there's enough frustration in the middle,
(26:54):
in the middle five to 10% of voters that it's
going to be volatile.
Speaker 2 (26:58):
I also think this on AOC is, Kamala's base is
black women. I think black women are going to show
up for Kamala. It's why I think she's going to
end up being the nominee, because I think it's going
to be hard to get past her with the identity politics.
I like your line of attack. We'll see how aggressively
Democrats deploy it against her of you're responsible for Biden.
(27:21):
Will they do that in the primary? Will it land?
Speaker 1 (27:24):
How will that play out? Here's what I would say
about AOC.
Speaker 2 (27:27):
And by the way, I think you said it well
on you have to assess what the opponent's strengths are.
Don't misunderstand when I say things that are positive about
AOC that I mean that I want in some way
to be supporting her. I totally understand that she's wrong
on everything. But a lot of people who are wrong
on everything get elected. In fact, COVID taught us that
(27:50):
being wrong on everything, sometimes in the Democrat Party, can
actually be an asset and an attribute.
Speaker 1 (27:56):
When it comes to getting reelected.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
So here's the AOC angle that I think, when I
think through what her base would be, who's the most
reliable people who vote.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
Democrat right now?
Speaker 2 (28:10):
Overly educated women struggling with career and life. That is,
to a large extent, the base of the Democrat Party.
That's the people out there who are telling you some
of them. Lindsey Clancy is completely innocent because she's just
a victim of all the depression and postpartum and all
the incredible pressures that we put on to mothers and working.
(28:34):
And some of you, lots of you, are saying, I
don't agree with that. But there's a lot of Democrats
who do. And when AOC did that TMZ interview, in
conjunction with her freezing her eggs... She is she is
the base of the Democrat Party, and they are going
to like her because they like to see themselves reflected
(28:55):
in media. I'm just telling you, watch out.
Speaker 1 (28:59):
Also, she is an avatar in many ways for the
frustrations of the millennials that she represents. To me, she
is a a a shoo in or no brainer VP pick.
At a minimum for who I don't care. I don't
care if it's Andy Beshear, if it's Kamala Harris, if
(29:19):
it's Gavin, you go through anybody, Wes Moore, whoever the Democrat,
who's the who's the nerd from Arizona, the senator, what's
his name? Mark Kelly. Thank you, Mark Kelly. You know,
I don't care. Any of them. AOC makes sense as
a VP for them. Also, look at look at the
paradigm shift with J.D. Vance as Trump's VP, bringing in
that you that sort of younger understanding of social media
(29:44):
and the Trump is a media phenomenon unto himself. But
understanding that peer group, which is now going to be
people who are basically turning 40, that's very powerful for her.
And I also think, Clay, there's a difference between Kamala
likes to pretend that she's a policy wonk. Yeah. She
(30:07):
likes to talk about how I was a prosecutor. And
basically she says, I'm really smart. AOC used to do
that for sure and had some embarrassing moments. But increasingly
you have her just smiling and focusing on health care,
cost of living, helping people with their lives. And that's
what people are going to hear. They're not going to
(30:28):
care that she doesn't know who the prime minister of
Thailand is or be the king and probably a prime minister.
But you get what I'm saying. I don't even know
who it is.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
The answer she gave where I was like, that's really good. Again,
walking in a parking lot unscripted. She got asked about
having a baby and she said, comparatively, I make a
good salary. I don't know that I can afford to
have a baby right now. And I was like, That's
a really great answer for all every woman who's going
to vote Democrat. She is speaking in their language. And
(31:02):
some of you out there are going to say she
doesn't understand tax policy. She doesn't even to Buck's point.
She doesn't even know who the leader is of this country.
That's not what the election is going to be decided on.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Correct. It's not. Yeah, it's not. And she can all
she can also say she can even turn this around
and flip it on Republicans. Did anyone think Trump was
a foreign policy expert when he was elected?
Speaker 3 (31:21):
No.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
But he said, I'm going to appoint great people and
I'm going to rely on them for their advice. You know,
there's a lot of ways to play this. The way
you can't play it is I'm actually the expert. And
then you look like a buffoon. And Kamala fell into that.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
I mean, we just South Carolina on the Republican side
just elected Darlene Graham. And she couldn't give any answer
at all on the most important, arguably foreign policy issue
that could change the world and Taiwan at all.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
And she won. And she won. And the people of
South Carolina who voted for her, we had a lot
of them calling in and sharing their opinion on this
is quite clear. They're like, look, I think she's a
good person. She's going to respect Lindsay's legacy. She'll represent
South Carolina well, and she's going to work closely with
Trump and do what Trump wants. Period. I don't care
about it beyond that. Or rather, I don't need more
than that. By the way. That's a valid point of view.
(32:12):
She obviously just won, and she's going to win that
Senate seat. So I think you can see a very
similar thing with AOC, where it's, yeah, she doesn't have
to be the expert in Keynesian economics that she was
posing as at one point. She just has to be likable, emotive,
and connect. And she is very good at those things now.
So this is like we're talking about the opposing team's
QB or their D-line or whatever. She is good at
(32:35):
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Speaker 4 (34:29):
Level up your brain and balance out your day with
the right amount of information and entertainment. Clay Travis and
Buck Sexton on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Or wherever you get your podcasts. All right, welcome back
into Clay and Buck. Let's get the calls and talkbacks
right off the bat here. Rob in North Carolina. What's
going on, Rob?
Speaker 2 (34:50):
Hey, guys.
Speaker 3 (34:51):
Hope you guys are having a great day.
Speaker 1 (34:52):
Yeah, we'll stay in touch. Good, good, good.
Speaker 3 (34:59):
I came in late when you guys were talking about
AOC and her potential to be the Democrat nominee. So
if I lack context, I'm sorry. But, Clay, I keep
my eye on you. I saw the Twitter post. You
posted the video, the TMZ video. as evidence that AOC's
(35:24):
dangerous positioning to be the Democrat nominee for president. And
I will give you she may be viable as the
Democrat presidential nominee someday. That TMZ video, dude. That was
(35:45):
not even an interview. That was an adoring fan just
following along and asking her favorite color.
Speaker 1 (35:52):
Oh, Rob, but I want to jump in. Yeah, Rob,
first of all, I'm the one who's really– I'm the
conductor of the AOC for 2028 train here in terms
of the Democrats. Clay recognizes she's formidable, but I think
he still thinks that– I'm not going to speak for you, Clay,
if you disagree, but he still thinks Kamala is more
likely to win the overall primary. That's right. But that
(36:14):
all said, Rob, people look at Trump. The game has changed.
Nobody cares if you do a sit down interview on
a Sunday show that really not many people are watching
anyway and sound all serious on policy. They want connection.
They want authenticity. They want to like you. And Clay,
as much as we trash Biden for a lot of
(36:35):
very good reasons because he deserves it, deserved it. Biden
was good at actually the grand and the how are
your grandkids and playing, as you say, the avuncular grandfather.
He played that gig and played it well. So I
think the AOC interview, I'm with you. I thought she
filled it. And that's good.
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